Random Thoughts
Celtics, Lakers on Collision Course [05.23.10]
Who would have given a nickel for a title matchup between the Celtics and Lakers even a month ago? Virtually no one. The Celtics were supposed to be old and creaky, thus unable to duplicate their feat two years ago in throttling the Lakers in the Finals.
For their part, the Lakers were said to be too injured (i.e. - Kobe) and not athletic enough at the point guard position to repeat. 'Someone else will come out of the West' was the prevailing cry.
So much for both of those theories.
On the other hand, the Orlando Magic seemed to be ready to ascend above the level achieved last year to finally win the crown. That seems to be less than likely now, to say the least.
What a spectacle it will be in the Finals. Two aging, cagey, veteran teams -- one trying to prove that the other won the last title purely due to injury concerns on their part; the other trying to get revenge for a historic and humiliating thumping on the world's stage.
Not to jinx it, but this could end up being one of the best Finals matchup of all-time.
Gilbert's Woes [01.07.10]
Could there possibly a more out-of-touch sports figure than Gilbert Arenas? His blatant displays of buffoonery in the aftermath of his gun incident in the Wizards' locker room two weeks ago verged on absolute bizarre. How can you mimic a gun with your fingers before a game, for all the world to see, when you are facing a long suspension and possible felony charges?
I strongly suspect that a dose of reality has smacked Arenas in the face by now, but its far too lage. His transgressions, labeled by him as "jokes", could very likely land him in prison. This eventuality probably seemed as unlikely to him as it did to his fellow sports star Plaxico Burress. Now Plax is sitting in a jail cell, no doubt wishing that he wind the time clock back and not brought a gun to a local nightclub.
Sports stars have been extremely entitled, and live gilded, closeted lives. For Arenas to be joking around about a serious offense, while collecting on a $111 million contract, is unconscionable to the growing number of people who have lost jobs in a recessionary economy. No one is saying that Gilbert will become homeless anytime soon, but momentum is building that could see him lose the rest of that contract. Its doubtful that he'll find that eventuality amusing.
The New Season Beginneth [10.26.09]
I am so ready for the season to begin. The subplots are myriad in what promised to be among the most interesting years in recent memory. Can the Lakers repeat? Will the addition of The Big Fella in Cleveland end up being more then just a marketing ploy? Is Kevin Durant the next "Big Thing" and will he lead the league in scoring, as just about everyone is projecting? Will the Clippers finally rise up, make the playoffs, and make some serious noise therein?
Hope springs eternal, but especially before the season starts. Terrible teams rationalize that their records are just as good as the top teams before the initial tipoff, but reality sets in soon thereafter. For the Big Boys, the returning champion Lakers are clearly in the driver's seat, but challenges abound. It seems like their most serious competitors reside in the East, although top to bottom the West is probably a better conference.
Can't wait to see how the new kids work out. This year's rookie class was rated as one of the worst, but for some reason I think it'll be better than expected. Blake Griffin looks like a serious playa, Jonny Flynn is aching to prove himself and Steff Curry is shooting jumpers from the parking lot even as we wait. Dujuan Blair will turn out to be a huge steal, though the Spurs turnaround will turn out to be illusory.
My season prediction: the Lakers repeat as champions for the last time in Kobe's career when they defeat the upstart Atlanta Hawks in six games.
The Jordan HoF Speech Controversy [09.20.09]
Michael Jordan is still making waves. He can't help it; its just the way his head is wired. In his now-infamous Hall of Fame induction speech, the GOAT went out of his way to point out various people who had helped to "fuel his flame" by doubting or downgrading him in various ways. He even flew the guy in who beat him out for a spot on the spot on the high school varsity team, then pointed out to the then-coach that a mistake had obviously been made with the selection. Needless to say, the media was almost unanimous in criticizing the speech, calling it arrogant, self-absorbed and advising MJ not to remain so bitter.
I liked the speech. After so many years of hearing canned answers from Jordan, we finally got him to open up and reveal what was on his mind all those years. Its what so many sports writers had demanded, then when it came out, they were 'horrified'? Too bad. If the speech was arrogant, that's what MJ was. You don't get to be the best ever at what you do by being meek. If Ali in his heyday were to give such a speech, no one would blink an eye. Why expect humility from someone who has never shown it? Anyway, Michael said his piece and the debate lingers on. At least his place in history is not in doubt.
The Rubio Escape Act [09.04.09]
With the news that Spanish guard Ricky Rubio will be staying over in Europe, rather than coming across the pond to play for the team who team that drafted him, one wonders a number of things. First and foremost, how could the Minnesota Timberwolves have done such a poor job of due diligence in not ensuring that they could secure the player they drafted at the #5 slot. This team has lots of holes and therefore couldn't afford to give away a draft spot to someone who would not produce for them in the next year. Also at issue is the ridiculous buyout clause in Rubio's contract, which stipulated that any team wishing to retain his services had to play dearly for it. With the NBA maximum allowed for that type of transaction limited to $500K, the Wolves were caught with their pants down.
What does it say for the league in general when a high draft pick can simply thumb his nose at the team that selected him? Granted, this is an unusual situation, but commission David Stern cannot be pleased at the overtones. Once the NBA comes calling, no matter which franchise it is, phone calls are usually returned. We'll see what happens in the aftermath of this debacle, but my feeling is that Rubio, while a groundbreaker in certain regards, might not be worth all of the hullabaloo that he's causing.
Draft Thoughts [06.25.09]
Tonight is the draft -- the night when NBA executives (most of them) make panicked stupid decisions that can sometimes set their franchises back years. The recently-fired Kevin McHale is the poster boy for ineptness at this event.
Looking back over past drafts, hindsight being 20/20, it seems incredible that such highly-paid, supposedly well-informed individuals, and their staffs, could make such bad choices. First round busts are so commonplace that the situation doesn't even elicit any surprise.
My favorite aspect of the draft are those second-round choices that end up being better than most of the players chosen in the first round. Players like Rashard Lewis, Mehmet Okur, Manu Ginobili, Gilbert Arenas, Clifford Robinson, Nick Van Excel, and Dennis Rodman -- stars all -- were taken after the initial round. It takes keen discernment and lots of research to find these gems in waiting, and franchises who have those types of GMs will profit. Most will not.
Disappointment [06.17.09]
Now that the Finals are over, the chief emotion from most people that I talk to is disappointment. It was over much too quickly, and the level of basketball played was not nearly what last year's Finals produced. In fact, the more I think about it, the epic LA-Boston reprise might be the very best that will be seen for a long, long time.
For me, it all about playing consistent, hard defense. Boston did that last year, and blew LA out of the water. I venture to say that if this year's Laker squad played the previous year, the ending would have been the same, but it at least would be more competitive. The emergence of Trevor Ariza (given away by the Magic for virtually nothing) was huge.
In the end, I just don't like the fact that a team which plays "when it feels like it" is the new champion. LA provided so many stark examples of this in the Houston and Denver series. They won the ring, but their accomplishment is diminished. Both from not playing hard on a consistent basis and from facing a non-seasoned team that gave up in game 5. Dwight Howard will have a lot of thinking to do this summer.
Danger Lurking [06.10.09]
For some reason, the theme from Jaws keeps coming into my head when I think about this Finals series. On the surface, LA seems to be cruising, or at least driving, towards a championship that virtually all of the pundits say they will eventually win. But there is that unseen danger lurking beneath the deep; the same threat that derailed the Celtics in a must-win game 7, and virtually swept the "can't-miss" Cavaliers.
Its time to acknowledge that the Magic are an elite team that is perfectly capable of winning a championship. That is something that no one would have predicted when the '09 playoffs began. I have underestimated the Magic for two straight series, and won't do so again.
LA has to be very careful in their approach to game 4. One more lackluster game with iffy defense could doom them against a very deep team that's gaining confidence with each game. Game 2 could have gone either way, and if it went to the Magic, it would now be 2-1 in their favor, with an opportunity to close the series out at home.
Laker fans have been preparing for the parade for some time now, but if after game 4 things are all tied up, the Jaws theme music will start to get louder and louder, as the shark thrusts itself up through the water, ready to strike.
Rookie Coach Finals Learning Curve [06.05.09]
I think that Stan Van Gundy is a quality coach. He's innovative, makes solid in-game adjustments and seems to generally be a savvy operator. Not much of that was in evidence in game 1 of the Finals. The Magic had the Lakers on their heels in the first half, with lots of lane penetration and dribble drives. The Lakers simply don't have as many people who can beat someone off the dribble as the Magic do.
Then the second quarter arrived and it all fell to pieces, due to a Kobe explosion. First of all, why don't you start Mikael Pietrus on Kobe? I understand that rookie Courtney Lee is a very promising player, but why start him -- on Kobe -- at the start of the game? The stage was a bit big for him, and it showed. Then, when it became obvious in the second quarter that the Lakers were openly going after Lee, and that Kobe was heating up, why not double team him?
Mark Jackson mentioned this during the telecast. It was painfully obvious that the Magic needed to get back to what worked for them in the first quarter. Unfortunately, their outside shots weren't dropping, but if they consistently got to the hoop it wouldn't have mattered as much. The second quarter 10-0 Laker run, where Lee was victimized for nearly every point, was the turning point in the game. The Magic never recovered from that blow. SVG should have made the necessary adjustments to at least stay in the game before it got away. I'm sure, though, that he'll learn from this and come out with a better game plan for game 2.
Rubio @ #1? [05/20/09]
Word has it that the Clippers, not satisfied with being the laughingstock of the league, are actually thinking about drafting Ricky Rubio with the #1 pick, rather than Black Griffin. You have to be kidding me. Not that I have anything against Rubio, but as basketball talents, they aren't even comparable. Rubio has yet to prove that he can excel against NBA-level competition, but there are no such questions about Griffin.
I watched the 2008 Olympic games of Spain vs. Team USA and didn't see anything exception out of Rubio. He is a slick guard and obviously knows the game, but doesn't show quick lateral movement and will probably be a sieve defensively. As a lead guard, if you can't keep your counterpart in front of you, then opponents will live in the lane and your team will likely lose. See: Derrick Fisher trying to stay with Aaron Brooks in the Lakers-Rockets series.
The Clippers have a well-earned reputation for ineptitude, and selecting Rubio as the first pick would cement it for all time.
Hypocrisy Surrounds HS Preps Decision [04.24.09]
The hypocrisy is flowing freely in the "raging controversy" about high school junior Jeremy Tyler's decision to skip his senior year to play professional ball in Europe. Howls of outrage can be heard from every corner of the sports world, from columnists to talk show hosts to sports site posters.
Completely ignored is the fact that other major sports, such as tennis, soccer and gymnastics, athletes as young as 12 and 13 turn pro, and without a peep of complaint. Why, then is there such angst over a young black man doing the same?
Couched behind all of the "concern" regarding his future prospects should he fail in his European venture is the ugly face of jealousy and class, which simply hates to see a teenager getting the opportunity to make millions of dollars playing a game. All of the haters who wish Tyler ill would rush to grab a similar opportunity, if offered to them, that's for sure.
Isiah Lands at FIU [04/15/09]
I'm really not sure how to feel about Isiah Thomas -- incredibly -- accepting a position to coach at FIU in the Sun Belt Conference. Part of me is still pissed at a man who would throw his own daughter under the bus to save is own sorry @ss from criticism -- not that the attempt worked. Zeke seems to have some serious character issues, and I'm not sure if that's the kind of person that parents are going to want molding their sons.
Then again, everyone deserves a second chance and Isiah certainly brings some name cache to a basketball program that's never had any. I'll say this -- if he can't make a major impact on the fortunes of FIU, then he should just give up this basketball thing and try something else.
No question that he is one of the best players of all-time, yet success on the court is no guarantee for future, post-playing career endeavors as has been witnessed over and over. Being a great player also doesn't translate into being a great coach, proven by Magic Johnson, and others. I guess this will be one of those 'wait & see' issues. One thing for sure -- FIU will be getting a lot more attention in the next season. And for that, they win, no matter what happens.
Iverson Critics Coming Out [04.10.09]
I suppose it was inevitable, but the careers of one of the most amazing players the league has ever seen is coming to a close -- and the nay-sayers are coming out of the woodwork to bury him. I am talking about Allen Iverson -- pound for pound, perhaps the best pro that ever played the game. What other 5'10" 150 lb. man has ever so thoroughly dominated a very large man's sport for so many years?
You can talk Isiah Thomas, you can talk Nate Archibald, but that's about it in terms of the competition that Iverson has for the title of "Greatest Small Man." In my opinion, it isn't even close. As great as Isiah was, he was a point guard who was mostly a facilitator. He was never counted on to produce gaudy scoring numbers night in and night out -- a mental and physical grind, if there ever was one. Archibald did produce one of the most statistically startling years of all time when he led the league in both scoring and assists (34/11/4 !!), but he didn't perform at that level as consistently as Iverson -- who, by the way, owns a career scoring average of 27.1 points per game, which is fifth all-time.
Now that Iverson is apparently done in Detroit, all kinds of mocking commentaries have appeared, mostly questioning what team will "take a chance" on signing him. Instead of treating him like the first-ballot Hall of Famer that he is, these idiots are acting like having a capable scorer is some kind of detriment.
I could go on and on, but can't help but step back and marvel at what this very small man has managed to do through multiple injury-ridden seasons by playing a style in which he consistently threw his slight body into the mix with much bigger, stronger men. He will get his just due one day, but right now more respect for his myriad accomplishments should be shown.
Kobe & Shaq -- Part II? [02.18.09]
Shaq is trying to weasel his way back into LA and Kobe, to his credit, isn't having it. Why would Kobe want to deal with all of the headgames that would inevitably result from having the "Big Aristotle" back in town, and thinking that the team was his again. Remind me what Shaq meant when he rapped, "Kobe, how my ass taste?" or something to that effect, after LA lost in the Finals to Boston. Nostalgia is a preoccupation with events of the past, and those who think that there is any chance of a reuniting of these two is simply fooling themselves.
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