Play-By-Play-offs

Heading into the playoffs, I figured the Celtics would dominate everyone in the East, including the Pistons, and be favored in the Finals against whoever came out of the West.  I guess opinions can change in two weeks time.  The Celtics were disappointing, to put it mildly, in their 1st rd series vs. Atlanta.  A real championship caliber team does not play that way, especially with veteran leadership like the Celtics.  The Cavs, while not overly impressive, did what they needed to in order to put away the Wizards.  Although it took them 6 games to finish the job, they were never in danger of losing the series.  How will the Celtics react to their 1st rd let down?  Will they come back in rd 2 ready to step up?  Or will they doubt themselves and crumble?

Some things to consider-

Who will hit the open shot?
As trivial as it sounds, this is the key to the series.  Both teams play solid, tough, team defense, so open shots will be available on the perimeter.  Ray Allen will pose the most difficult match up for the Cavs, as Wally and/or Devin Brown simply can’t handle him if he’s on his game.  Allen averaged 23.1ppg on 51% shooting and 41% from 3pt range in 4 games vs. Cleveland this season.  Wally, Delonte West, and Daniel Gibson are going to get open looks as the Celtics defense focus on stopping LeBron.  Their ability to knock down the open looks will be a huge factor in the outcome of this series.  If Boston is forced to respect the outside shooters, it will leave LeBron covered by one defender, and open up the lane for an easier path to the basket.

Bron Bron
The Celtics had no clue what to do with Joe Johnson.  What does that mean for LeBron?  Is Doc Rivers going to wake up and actually use Tony Allen in this series, a defensive specialist and part of the Boston rotation all season that was neglected in Rd 1?  The Celtics need to throw a mix of Allen, Posey, and Pierce at LeBron, and let the help collapse in the paint to make him a jump shooter.  If LeBron is able to get in the paint at will, the Celtics defense will fall apart, and LeBron will be able to get easy baskets for his teammates.  Obviously James is the best player in this series, and seeing what a talent like Joe Johnson was able to do against the Celtics, LeBron has a chance to win this thing by himself.

The KG Factor
Did KG and the Celtics wear themselves out in the regular season?  Where was the trademark KG intensity in the Atlanta series?  If KG gets himself and the boys back on track, in the right mental state, Boston can play like they have all year, and dominate the Cavs.

In order to win in the playoffs, you must be able to win on the road.  The Celtics inability to raise their level of play in the 3 games at Atlanta is a big concern heading into Round 2.  I don’t love this Cleveland team, but the Celtics showed me enough in the first round to make me not trust them at all.  LeBron steals one of the first 2 games in Boston and doesn’t lose one at home.

Cavs win 4-2.

The thing that separates the Lakers and Jazz from the majority of the other teams in the NBA is execution.  Both teams have offensive systems that they run to perfection in the half-court.  However, there are athletes on both sides here, so an up-and-down style of play won’t scare either team.  Expect a lot of high scoring battles.

Some things to consider-

Rest vs. Rust
These teams come in to this series from completely different mental states.  The Lakers haven’t played a game since Monday, giving them time to rest their legs, and game plan for the Jazz.  Utah, on the other hand, just finished an intense 6-game series on Friday night.  Will the Lakers be in the same playoff state of mind that the Jazz have had to be in for the past week?  Will the extra time to prepare give the Lakers the early advantage in game 1?  Are the Jazz coming into this series exhausted, having to fight for every win vs. the Rockets, while the Lakers were on cruise control in defeating the Nuggets?

Defending Deron
Deron is playing at an awfully high level right now, and is one of the few players left in the playoffs that can put his team on his back and win a series.  Derek Fisher will have the pleasure of matching up with Williams.  Although Fisher is athletically overmatched, he’s always been a solid on-ball and team defender.  He will try to frustrate Deron with his craftiness and experience.  Also, Fisher was a teammate of Deron’s last season, so he knows what Williams likes to do offensively.  Expect to see Kobe guard Deron at times as well, either in crunch time or if Fisher is not able to handle him.  The Lakers could really use Trevor Ariza in this series to take some of the defensive pressure off of Fisher and Kobe.

In The Paint
For the Jazz to have a chance in this series, Boozer will have to play much better than he did in Round 1 vs. the Rockets.  He averaged only 16ppg and shot 42% from the field, both way below his season’s totals of 21ppg and 54%.  If the Lakers are forced to double team Boozer, he has plenty of weapons on the perimeter in Okur, Korver, Harping, and Williams, who can hit open shots, and make LA pay.  On the other end of the floor, Pau Gasol and Lamar  Odom present huge match up problems for Boozer and Okur, as they are just too athletic and long.  Expect Pau and Odom to score at will from 15ft and in.

Kobe
Umm…I think this may pose a problem for Utah.  (In a related story, Josh Howard said most NBA players smoke weed).  I assume Jerry Sloan will attempt to go at Kobe with a combination of Andrei Kirilenko and Ronnie Brewer.  Good luck with that.  The Jazz tried to punish McGrady in round 1, wearing him down as the games went on.  TMac still averaged 27pts/8rebs/7asts for the series, and Kobe does everything better than him.  Not to mention, he’s physically and mentally stronger than McGrady, and will not be fatigued in the 4th quarter of these games.  Expect Kobe to do whatever he wants in this series, as the Jazz just don’t have anyone who can slow him down.

On paper, this seems like an evenly matched series.  There are all-stars on both teams, the coaches are top notch.  The Lakers have more talent, the Jazz were in the Western Conference Finals last year.  Utah had the best home record in the league, the Lakers have Kobe.  We can go on-and-on.  I think the Lakers are playing at a championship level right now that I’m not sure the Jazz are capable of matching.  They will come in prepared, crisp, ready for anything, and with a united focus.  This series will be a lot easier then most of the experts are predicting.  I think the Lakers move on, and do it with conviction, disposing of the Jazz quite handedly.

Lakers win 4-1.

GAME SEVEN

No words bring more pleasure to my ears other than, “I got my period”.

The fact that Boston will probably win by 20 is irrelevant.  All that matters is, as of now, both team’s seasons are on the line.  One team gets the pleasure of defending LeBron.  One team goes fishing.  DO OR DIE.

Sunday, 1PM.

Be there.

Is everyone else as over the Pistons as I am? They went from an extremely likeable ‘team’, in the truest sense of the word, to a bunch of individuals, who play up to their true capabilities when they feel like it. This ‘technique’ the past few years has been good enough to get them to the Eastern Conference Championship every year in the pathetic conference. As they get older, and new talent begins to emerge, this ‘play when we feel like it’ attitude is going to fail them.

Orlando comes into this series playing great ball, quickly disposing of the Toronto Raptors.  They have a superstar in the middle, great outside shooters, and one of the top coaches in the league.  Are they ready to knock off one of the big dogs and take their place amongst the elite?

Some things to consider-

How will the Pistons handle Dwight Howard?
One would think the obvious thing would be to double him whenever he touches the ball in order to force it out of his hands to make the rest of the team beat you.  But the Magic have a bunch of guys who can hurt you from the perimeter, especially if they’re getting open looks due to the double team on Dwight.  Do the Pistons really want to let the other guys get going early, boosting their confidence, and also forcing Detroit to respect the shot and maybe back off of the double team?  I believe the better strategy would be to play Howard with one man (and implement the Hack-a-Howard if necessary), let him get his 25pts, and don’t let any of the shooters get in a groove.  The fact that Flip Saunders is still coaching the Pistons, I expect to see the double team right out of the gate, and 50/50 on there being any adjustment if the shooters get going.  If Detroit loses this series, Flip is out of job, and will have plenty of free time to get many ‘frip ovahs’.

How will Dwight Howard handle Rasheed Wallace?
This could be trouble for Howard.  Rasheed’s 3pt shooting ability will force Dwight to play him 20ft from the basket, leaving the lane wide open for Detroit’s wing players to attack the rim.  In addition, Sheed’s high release point on his turnarounds in the low post will negate Howard’s immense shot blocking potential.  Most of all, will Wallace get into Howard’s head?  These two are on complete opposite ends of the mental spectrum.  Rasheed, a borderline lunatic, and Dwight, a devout Christian.

Guard Play
Huge with a capital ‘H’ (and not only because it’s the start of a sentence) problem for Orlando, and probably the main reason I can’t see them winning this series.  The Magic are really lacking in the backcourt, while Detroit boasts the best guard tandem this decade.  I really like Jameer Nelson as a player, even as a piece to a championship puzzle someday, but he’s best suited to be an offensive force off the bench, not a starting point guard who’s main job is to lead, set the tone, and distribute.  Aside from Jameer, Orlando has a bunch of mediocrity, and no one who can consistently get the ball in the hands of their stars on the front line.  Rip and Chauncey should have their way offensively against this group, and are simply just much better basketball players.  The Magic guards need to push the ball, increasing the pace in an attempt to get the Pistons in a high tempo game, and not let them get into their half court offense, where they can be dominant.

Tayshaun
Whoever Tayshaun Prince doesn’t guard between Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu will have to have a huge series for Orlando.  Prince completely locked down Andre Iguodala in Round 1, cementing his status as one of the league’s best perimeter defenders.  I assume he will spend most of this series matched up with Turkoglu, considering he facilitates a majority of the Magic’s offense.  Turk will be a tougher matchup for Tayshaun than Iguodala was; he’s just a more complete player that can be effective in different ways.  If Tayshaun is able to neutralize Turkoglu’s offense, I don’t see how Orlando can generate any offensive continuity with the rest of their ball-handling options being sub par.

I’d really like to see the Magic win this series and put the Pistons, as we know them, out of their (and our) misery.  Unfortunately, I think the Magic are still one player away from taking that next step.  The only one who can beat the Pistons in this series is the Pistons, and I just don’t see that happening.

Pistons win 4-2.

The first thing that stands out about this series is the 10PMest start time on Saturday night for game 1.  Who’s in charge of this?  Was there a meeting where people sat around a table and actually thought this was the best decision?  Let’s see, there’s only one other game on Saturday, New Orleans is in the Central time zone, there’s nothing on TV to compete with the game in the afternoon besides the Derby and most people watch that from 6PM to 6:04PM, people tend to leave their homes on Saturday nights…10pm it is!  If anyone has any connections with the NBA scheduling committee, let them know I’m available to act as a consultant, and all I ask in return is a date with Michelle Tafoya.  The only positive that can come out of this start time is that it may produce my 1st ‘DVR game and watch it after a night out drunk blog’, so we have that going for us.

Anyway, this series is very evenly matched.  The Spurs main advantage is simply, that they are the Spurs, which alone makes it extremely difficult to bet against them.  I believe experience in the playoffs is overrated, but the Spurs have championship experience, which is a different animal.  As they showed in the Suns series, the Spurs know what to do in crucial situations (as evidenced in Game 1 when Manu took it the length of the court for the winning fg instead of calling timeout), and they always know how to get off a good shot in crunch time.  The Hornets lack in these areas solely because they haven’t had to do it before.  Anyone can say ‘give it to CP3 and let him make something happen’ with 10 secs left, down 1.  But will the other team members know where to be, how to attack a missed shot for an offensive rebound, and will any of them actually WANT the ball to come to them in that type of situation.  We don’t know the answer.

Some things to consider-

Will David West be effective offensively vs. Tim Duncan?
In the Hornets 2 wins this season vs. the Spurs, West had 32pts and 29pts.  In 2 losses, he only managed 16pts and 15pts.  Duncan, and the Spurs in general, take their defensive play up several notches when the playoffs arrive, and West hasn’t seen anything like it before.  If West’s jumper is on, he will force Duncan to come out and play him, opening the lane for CP to penetrate, and for Tyson Chandler to have more offensive rebound opportunities (he was the league leader).  West is an outstanding player, an all-star this season who has emerged as a legitimate force to be reckoned with for the next decade.  However, he’s going up against a perennial All-NBA defensive team member.  West’s ability to score and make Duncan work hard on the defensive end will be a major key to the series.

(I just learned that David West’s nickname is DX, which I’d like to think, is based on the old WWE crew, ‘Degeneration X’, although I’m pretty sure it’s because he went to Xavier.  In any event, if West does the signature 2 hands to the crotch routine (that WWE DX made famous) and says ‘Suck It’ after a dunk, he will move into my top-5 non-Laker favorite player list immediately.  Maybe top 2.)

Who will stop Manu?
Obviously no one, he’s Manu.  It’s like saying who will stop LeBron.  When looking at the matchups on paper, we have CP3 vs. Tony Parker and Duncan vs. West, but there seems to be no answer for Ginobili.  I give you, Julian Wright.  When Wright was a freshman at Kansas 2 years ago, I said to Crafty Barnardo, my partner in my fantasy basketball keeper league, ‘this guy’s going to be on our squad in a few years’.  Now Wright’s rookie season was nothing to brag about, but he was unleashed in Round 1 vs. the Mavs, and became a steady bench contributor.  He’s the Hornets best bet to contain Ginobili.  They don’t need him to score at all, with the other offensive weapons they have, so Coach Scott should just have him shadow Manu at all times.  His length and athleticism should be able to frustrate Ginobili, and hopefully take him out of his comfort zone.

Chris Paul vs. Tony Parker (and Bruce Bowen)
It’s hard to imagine two point guards playing any better than these guys did in Round 1.  It seems that every May, Tony Parker reminds me what a great basketball player he is (I assume I don’t realize during the regular season because he’s not a great fantasy pg).  The thing in this matchup that intrigues me the most is seeing how CP3 handles Parker defensively.  Paul led the league in steals this year, but that doesn’t mean he can be a lock down man-to-man defender, so I’m curious to see if he’s able to neutralize Parker’s ridiculous offensive abilities.  We already know that Parker is a limited on-ball defender, so Bruce Bowen will often get the defensive assignment of guarding Paul.  How CP3 will be able to handle the questionable defensive tactics of Bowen (who will do anything and everything to try and frustrate Paul to get him off his game) will set the tone for the Hornets in this series.  In addition, when Bowen is guarding Paul, whichever Hornet Parker guards will have to demand the ball, take him down to the block, and punish him.

The Bench
This is where the Hornets can win this series.  Besides the big 3, and the always-steady Kurt Thomas, the Spurs’ personnel are not that great.  The Brent Barry’s and Michael Finley’s and Robert Horry’s of the world shouldn’t scare anyone until the last few minutes of a tight game.  Other than Parker, Duncan and Manu, no one else on their roster can generate any offense.  The Hornets on the other hand, have some firepower on the pine.  Jannero Pargo is a little sparkplug.  We already discussed Julian Wright (they call him JuJu).  Don’t forget Bonzi Wells, who torched the Spurs 2 years ago as a member of the Kings to the tune of 23pts and 12 rebs per game in the playoffs.  The Hornets have a very solid 8-man rotation, any of which can score double figures on any given night.  The bench’s productivity, which will give the starters some rest, will keep the Hornets with fresh, young legs on the floor at all times, potentially posing a problem for the elder Spurs.

Interesting fact: The Spurs are 15-2 in their last 17 playoff series’!!  Their only 2 losses involved the Derek Fisher .04 shot and the game 7 Ginobili foul on Dirk.  So, as great as the Spurs have been, we could very easily be talking about the 5 time defending champions right now.  Something to think about.

So where does that leave us?  Honestly, I’m not sure.  I would not be surprised with any outcome in this series.  Since I have to make a choice here, I say Chris Paul continues his dominance, David West and Tyson Chandler control the paint on both ends of the floor, Byron Scott validates his Coach of The Year award, and the New Orleans crowd is a factor.

Hornets win 4-3.

-Dirk’s the 1st guy I’ve ever seen take the mic off the mic stand at a press conference. He was just leaning back in his chair, chilling. I wonder if this is going to be a new trend.

-Speaking of trends that have come about in recent years, I’ve had just about enough of the congratulatory high-fives after EVERY F#&KIN FREE THROW. Is it really necessary? Is the self-esteem of today’s players so low that they need a pat on the back (from 4 guys) for hitting a 15ft shot from dead center with no one guarding them? On top of that, free throw shooting is about rhythm and repetition. I would think that focusing on your stance, repeating the routine you use every single time you step to the line would be more beneficial than looking for your teammates sweaty palms to touch. Also, for the 4 non-shooters who leave their positions on the floor to walk towards the foul line, this is your time to rest. Most of the time during the game you’re running up and down the court, in constant motion. Take advantage of your chance to rest for a minute. Save your energy guys, it’s only 1 point.

-Does anyone know where Bill Walton is? The playoffs aren’t the same without him. They subject us to the awful sounds and analysis of Mike Dunleavy (given the Clippers season, shouldn’t he be scouting or planning or something instead of broadcasting???), and Walton is nowhere to be found. Really?
‘This is the worst staffing decision in the HISTORY OF MANKIND.’

-Mike D’Antoni should not be fired. 80% of the teams in the league should fire their coaches and go after him if he hits the open market. If the Suns decide to go that route, it seems to me like it’s a ‘change for the sake of change’. It reminds me of another move the Suns recently made, a mid-season trade that fit into the ‘change for the sake of change’ category. We all know how that one worked out. The Suns failed this postseason due to personnel decisions, not coaching. Is there a time where some teams and their coaches and their philosophies in general reach the end of the line? Sure, but if the Suns are at that point, it is due to the current makeup of their roster. Getting rid of one of the top 5 coaches in the league will not solve any of their problems.

-I was really impressed with Amare’s offensive arsenal. He can hit the 17-20ft face up jumper consistently, but can also put it on the floor and get to the rim. He shoots 80% from the line and a remarkable 59% from the field. He’s a complete beast once he gets in the paint. I don’t understand why more players don’t have the ‘I’m dunking the ball on your head with authority and there’s nothing you can do to stop me’ attitude like Amare does. No player in the league gets from the floor to the rim faster.

-I’m sure you’ve all seen the dual faced playoff commercials where the screen is split down the middle and 2 NBA stars talk simultaneously about what playoff basketball means. Actually, let me take that back. These commercials used to feature NBA ‘stars’. The first one I saw was Kobe and Shaq. Awesome. Loved it. Then I saw LeBron and KG. Cool, there are 2 versions of the commercial I thought to myself. I was way off. I’ve now seen them featuring the likes of Antawn Jamison, Mike Bibby, Ben Wallace(they were available), and a couple I haven’t even recognized. Looking forward to the Keyon Dooling/Rodney Stuckey version in Round 2.

-What do you think the Suns have to say about no suspensions being handed out for the altercation in Celtics/Hawks game 4? Forget about KG and Zaza, those are both arbitrary calls to be made by the league. But Kendrick Perkins and Marvin Williams came onto the court, which, according to the league one year ago, is an automatic suspension. Now we all know this is a stupid rule, but Commissioner Stern assured us last year during the Suns/Spurs series that it will be followed as long as it is in the rulebook. So what changed in the past year that allows Perkins and Williams to go without penalty? If I were a Suns fan I would be outraged. This “rule” potentially cost them the championship last year, which would have changed their entire existence. Who knows if they would have went on to win the title last year if they had Amare and Diaw in game 6, but it was a definite possibility.

-CP3 vs. Tony Parker…I’m giddy. More on this in the Round 2 preview.

Lakers/Nuggets tied at 88 with just less than 6 minutes to go.  As a Laker fan, this is exactly what I wanted to see out of this game.  Will the Lakers step up and put the finishing touches on the series, or will they let the Nuggets get their token W before closing them out at home in game 5?  At this point in the game, Kobe hasn’t made a FG in 17 minutes.  Here are the Lakers offensive possessions to finish out the game, and the series:

5:31 Kobe makes a ridiculous turn around jumper from the top of the key as the shot clock hits 0.  Kenyon Martin could not have played defense any better.  90-88

4:33 Kobe drains a 3 from the right wing.  93-90

4:00 Kobe makes JR Smith his bitch with a spin move to the hole.  Makes the bucket and gets fouled.  Kobe misses free throw. 95-90

Meanwhile, JR Smith hits a 3 and makes a steal, drives to the hoop, makes the shot and gets fouled.  95-96.  He’s single-handedly keeping them in the game.

3:10 Kobe nails a 20ft jumper with a hand in his face.  I think he found his stroke at this point.  He will not let them lose. 97-96

2:38 Kobe gets double-teamed on the left wing, passes to Odom at the top of key, who makes the extra pass to a wide-open Luke Walton in the corner.  Luke hits the 3.  100-96

1:19 Carmelo fouls Kobe for the 2nd time 40 ft from the basket, fouling himself out of the game.  Why was he guarding Kobe?  Because Kobe fouled K-Mart out of the game 1 minute earlier.  Kobe makes 1 out of 2 at the line.  Awful night at the line for him.  101-96

:40 Kobe hits a gorgeous running bank shot from the right side of the lane.  103-98

:22 Kobe drives thru the lane leaving the ball off for Odom who makes a nice interior bounce pass under the hoop to Pau for a dunk.  105-101

:18 Kobe makes a steal and is fouled immediately.  Kobe makes both free throws.  107-101

:7 Kobe gets fouled.  Misses both free throws. An atrocious 4-10 from the line tonight.  Get the misses out of the way now I guess.  107-101

Game over.  Series over.  Lakers 4 Nuggets 0.

Now that’s how to finish off a game and a series.  Kobe, struggling for most of the game, takes over as only few who have ever played this game can do, with 14 pts in the last 6 minutes.  He didn’t take one ill-advised shot.  He made the right pass when a double team came, and his teammates stepped up and made the play.  He got Kenyon Martin and Carmelo Anthony to foul out of the game.  He put the Lakers on his back and led them to a few extra days of rest before the Western Conference semi-finals.

There’s been a lot of commentary in the past week about the ‘hack-a-shaq’ strategy, and opinions are ranging from one end of the spectrum to the other.

Two analysts (both former coaches) whose opinions I value are on opposing sides of this argument.  Doug Collins believes the ‘hack-a-shaq’ is bad for the game.  It slows down the pace, bores the fans, turns what should be a competitive, intense playoff battle into a free-throw shooting contest, and in general, is not what basketball is about.  All fair points.  Collins thinks the way to fix this problem lies with the league, as in a rule change of some sort that makes this strategy illegal.

Jeff Van Gundy has a different take.  He believes that free-throw shooting is part of the game, and if a coach sees an advantage in putting an opposing player on the line in order to better his teams chances of winning, then he has every right to do so.  Regarding the idea of a rule change to prevent the ‘hack-a-shaq’ strategy, Van Gundy stated, “You can’t legislate rules for lack of skill”.  Very reasonable.

I believe both views stated above have their merits.

As a pure basketball fan, I hate the ‘hack-a-shaq’ strategy for all the same reasons as Doug Collins.

As a practical, rational human being, I agree with Van Gundy.

It’s not a part of the game and it is a part of the game.

The NBA rulebook has something called the ‘away-from-the-play’ foul.  In its simplest form, this states that if a team uses the ‘hack-a-shaq’ in the last 2 minutes of regulation or overtime, the fouled team gets one free throw, and keeps possession of the ball.  (Many people think this rule was formed in response to ‘hack-a-shaq’ but in fact was instituted decades ago when the same strategy was used against Wilt)  I think they had the right idea here, but why only the last 2 minutes?  If the team who is fouled gains an advantage for a reason in the last 2 minutes, then why not throughout the entire game?  Is there any other rule that is time dependant like that?  Maybe 3pters should count as 5pts in the last 2 minutes.

Either make the ‘away-from-the-play’ foul relevant for the entire game, or get rid of it altogether.

-its 545PM EST and were live at the pepsi center-ive got (one of) my laker hat on-next round will be a jersey-west conf finals and finals all people in the room with me will be required to have some sort of laker gear on(provided by me)-weve got marv/reggie/czar in the booth-im cool with that-“My Really Tall Friend”(MRTF) is comin over to watch with me-all my friends have become pseudo laker fans because of me-isnt that cute

-and here we go-sorry if there are any typos-need to get used to the altitude in Denver

-the crowd ‘boos’ when kobe touches the ball as they will everytime he touches it-original-really seems to get to him

-kenyon martin takes 2 dribbles and tries a 15ft jumper which hits nothing but the backboard-possibly the worst shot ive ever seen by a #1 overall draft pick

-odom abuses kleiza in the post-with kmart on kobe theres noone to match up with lamars size in the post-he should have a field day in the paint

-halfway thru q1 very sloppy game-no flow for either team-nuggets taking quick shots-lakers up 9-8

-in the past minute marv said kleee-za-reggie said klay-za and the czar said klee-ay-za

-craig sager makes his 1st appearance-tells us kobe deviated from his usual pregame routine-well see if that effects him

-kleiza back to back backdoor cuts for dunks-kobes overplaying the passing lanes thinking steal all the way and is paying for it

-MRTF is at the door-I wish michelle tafoya were here to let him in

-MRTF immediately lowers the value in the room by asking-‘so whos on the 76ers that theyre up 2-1’-I reply with ‘fu-iguodala-andre miller-lakers are on’

-MRTF realizes hes now a character in this post and says-‘im kind of scared to talk-I feel like theres a camera on me’

-kobe picks up his 2nd foul with 1min left in the opening qtr-goes to the bench-maybe he should have stuck to his normal pregame routine

-end of q1-lakers up 23-20-very low scoring for this series and these 2 teams in general

-sasha drills a 3 to start the 2ndq-what a great weapon off the bench-he will hit one HUGE shot before the season is over

-on the floor at the moment-sasha-farmar-mbenga-walton-odom-acarter-najera-nene-jr smith-melo-besides melo and odom this could pass for a dleague game

-kobe and pau back in to make things normal again-tie game w 720 left in the half and melo and Iverson haven’t done a thing-scary

-MRTF asks-‘like is paus ‘look’ cool in france’-I say ‘spain dick-and yes its cool-and its also cool on the lower east side’

-I just got a ‘kobes gonna have a triple double today’ feeling

-lakes up 3 w 3min left in half-I feel a run coming to close out the half-right on cue vladrad hits a 3 and denver calls TO

-right out of TO kmart has a seizure with the ball-traveling

-reggie comments(paraphrasing)-‘what is so funny-carmelo is smiling after missing that shot running back down the court laughing-youre down 2-0-down 8pts-whats so happy’-well said reggie-wish more analysts would call these guys out for not taking this seriously

-lakers up 53-46 at half-kobes got 8/6/5-on pace for a triple double-pau leading the way with 13 on 5/7 shooting-melo and ai combined 5/21 from the floor for 15pts-are the nuggets lucky to be down only 7 or are they showing that they need to play a team game w role players rather than have melo and ai go off for 30pts each-not sure

-were back for 2nd half-kobe comes out firing draining a picture perfect 20fter

-melo right back with a jumper of his own

-kobe back at him with another-here we go

-kobe again-lakers up 11-TO nugs-maybe george karl should remind his team this is a playoff game and theyre down 2-0-basically the seasons on the line-just a thought

-uhoh-kobe nails a 3-actually changed it to a 2-nonetheless lakers up 13-nuggets falling apart

-double uhoh-dfish for 3-lakers up 16-nugs call TO-theyre in trouble-and they look like they know it-lakers fired up

-MRTF pours himself a glass of sancere-what a fag-actually he got the bottle from my fridge-ummm yeah

-nuggets go on a run and cut the lead to 10-TO lakers

-some missed shots and turnovers by the nugs results in a 17pt laker lead-and melo gets T’d up-could be implosion time

-end of the 3rd-lakers up 83-64-thanks for playing Denver

-this effort by the nuggets is pathetic-I almost wish the warriors made the playoffs instead of them-almost

-my man sasha drains a 3-lakes up 21-we may get to see colby karl make an appearance-does he stay at his dads house while hes here-do they have dinner together-do their teams allow them to interact-I smell a reality show here

-lakers up 23-im bored

-5 minutes left-lakers up 24-the crowd is filing out hoping that the broncos had a good draft

-curious to see how the lakers come out in game 4-will they take it easy knowing they can close it out at home in game 5 or come out hard and want to end this thing-will be a good indicator of where they are mentally and if theyre really ready to win the whole thing

-game over-lakers win 102-84-kobe finished with 22/7/8-no triple double but whatever-ill take the W instead

The Western conference this season was amazing, arguably the most competitive ever.  Teams 1 thru 8 were separated by a mere 7 games, and 1 thru 6 by a remarkable 2 games.  In fact, not one playoff match up was set heading into the last night of the regular season.  This incredible regular season led us to believe that we were headed to a ridiculous 2 months of basketball.  So far, not so good.

Lakers 2-0
Hornets 2-0
Spurs 2-0
Jazz 2-0

And it’s been even worse than that.  There have only been 2 of the 8 games that were competitive.  The classic double OT between the Spurs and Suns, and game 2 of the Jazz/Rockets, which was decided by an atrocious offensive foul call on Luis Scola based on a superb acting job by Kirilenko.

So what’s the problem?

Let’s remove the Jazz/Rockets series from the equation due to the fact that Houston is not whole.  Without Yao, and now Rafer, they are simply overmatched.

If you’ve been watching the other 3 series’ thus far, there’s a common theme of the teams on the losing side.  I’m looking for a 7-letter word, starts with D, ends with FENSE.  The Nuggets, Mavericks, and Suns defense, or lack thereof, has been borderline comical for 50+ win teams with title aspirations.  You cannot expect to beat quality squads like the Lakers, Hornets, and Spurs, when you can’t guard anyone.  The amount of lay-ups, alley-oops, and dunks in the first 2 games by Pau and Duncan and Chandler, to name a few, has been a joke.

The time is now guys.  Down 2-0, heading back home, step it up or go fishing.