While the baseball world copes with Sammy’s corked bat, basketball fans prepare to gather around the telly for the start of the NBA finals tonight. I expect the Spurs will take it, but I want to root for New Jersey, so I’ll go out on a limb and say Nets in 6. JKidd, this is your hour.
Category: NBA
The Mercenary.
With NBA coach firings coming fast and furious, Slate takes a moment to burst the Larry Brown bubble. I have to say I’m inclined to agree. Given both his own coaching tour and his often inexplicable trades every year, it seems Brown’s got a terminal case of basketball ADD. Is he really the right guy to take Detroit over the hump?
Kerrazy shooting.
Can’t say I was rooting for the Spurs last night, but it was kinda heartwarming to see Steve Kerr get in a final three-ball spree. Now this should actually make for an interesting Finals, as the Spurs are worse than last year’s Lakers and the Nets are better than they were last year. Here’s hoping Jason Kidd leads the East to glory.
Race and the Hoop.
“For years, black ballplayers were stereotyped as not being interested in playing defense. When black players became very good at defense and began to dominate the league on the defensive end, the NBA loaded the dice. And this is precisely where the Euro players stepped in.” Dan McGraw talks about race and the foreign invasion of basketball in the Village Voice. I’m not sure I buy the zone defense conspiracy theory being promulgated, but there’s some interesting food for thought here nonetheless. And it is pretty sad to see how far the league will go to pander to white people — For example, the Frank Sinatra ad mentioned, or the ridiculous soft-focus Finals ads (“This is old school basketball.”) on ABC right now.
Gonzo to the Rim.
I weep for Sacramento, but so what? It was like betting on a three-legged horse. Dr. Thompson checks in from the NBA finals.
Regime Change.
The Lakers fall to the Spurs in six. (Woohoo!) But, amid the rejoicing (outside of LA, of course), let’s take a moment to remember Dave DeBusschere, one of the all-time Knick greats.
Van Gundy to Gund?
Mike Fratello notwithstanding, it appears that TNT continues to be the best place for basketball coaches to spend time between gigs. A week after Danny Ainge joined the Celtics, the cellar-dweller Cleveland Cavaliers ask New York if they can speak to Jeff Van Gundy. Hiring Van Gundy would be a great move for Cleveland, but I’d think he’d want a more high-profile and talent-laden club. (Of course, they might always get LeBron…) Ah well. I still wish Van Gundy had never left the Knicks. (As for playoff news, Chris Webber’s injury has greatly depressed me, but I’ll stick with my earlier picks for now.)
Round 2.
Per Saturday’s post, here’s some revised NBA picks in wake of Indiana and Portland not living up to expectations (Spurs v. Lakers and Pistons v. Sixers remain as before – LA and Philly in 6 apiece…Chauncey Billups may have filled out the remainder of Troy Hudson’s Kurt Warner-like contract with the devil in Games 6 and 7 against Orlando, but AI will still eat him alive.)
Sacramento v. Dallas: Dallas may have saved Nelly’s job with their fourth quarter showing in Game 7 on Sunday, but the Blazers still exposed them as soft and suspect. The Kings have trouble closing teams out, so I’ll give Dallas two wins…but that’s generous. Sacramento in six.
Boston v. New Jersey: I have to admit, Paul Pierce was much more dominant in the Indiana series than I thought he’d be – usually he has a tendency to disappear in games. But, as with the Kings, I’ll stick with my original pick and take the Nets. Sooner or later, the threeball offense will collapse on you. New Jersey in six.
Hoop Dreams.
I know I haven’t been posting much about them here, but trust me – I’ve been watching the NBA playoffs religiously, and will post my revised second round predictions in short order. Right now, I’m 5 for 6 on my original first round picks (Boston played better – and Indiana played much worse – than I had expected), and I’m feeling much happier about calling Portland over Dallas in 7 than I was when the Blazers were down 3-0. Then again, Portland deserved some karmic recompense after Coach Mo Cheeks’ star-spangled save before Game 3.
Statement Game for the Zebras.
I gotta say, last night’s Lakers-Wolves Game 3 had the worst officiating I’ve seen since…well, since Sac-LA Game 6 last year. With the ticky-tack 4th, 5th, and 6th fouls on KG, the phantom foul on Kobe’s 4-point play, and that egregious call in OT when Wally World shadowed Pargo (a rookie…a rookie got that call) on the full-court break and never touched him, it was clear the league was angling for the Sacramento-LA rematch. Fortunately, Wolves got the win anyway…nevertheless, the reffing was flat-out egregious. Update: The league fesses up.