Thoughts on Celtics Castration of Lakers

The Los Angeles Eunuchs lost last night in Gm. 6 of the NBA Finals to the hungrier and more experienced Boston Celtics, continuing New England's charmed sports existence. It was super exciting to watch, until the 2nd quarter, when the Lakers in unprecedented fashion began literally packing their bags to head back to LA on national television.

I cannot name a single Boston player that underperformed. It was that rarest of occasions in sport where an entire team seems to be playing in "the zone", and is simply incapable of doing anything wrong. I would say, "Player X led the way today with...", but I can't. To post such a shellacking in the championship clincher, you need the consummate complete team effort, which is why the Celts are hoisting a 17th championship banner to their rafters this year.

The Lakers, meanwhile, allowed themselves to get rattled early, and were too young and dumb to recover from large deficits in the same fashion that the Celtics did in Gms. 4 and 5. When Kobe Bryant's surrounding cast proved inept to the task of keeping LA in the game, it put more pressure on Kobe to shoulder the burden, and the Celtics, in true shark-like fashion, smelled the blood in the water and honed in on Kobe defensively, forcing him again to a miserable shooting night. It was clear all throughout this series which team had the better horses, the better poise, and, if only for this series, the better coaching.

Some other observations:

* Have you ever seen a team have more fun in a championship game setting than the Celts last night? The game had the feel of an all-star game, with half court sets being optional if not obsolete completely, along with myriad highlight reel plays and smiles aplenty from the men in green.

* How good are the Celtics role players? Boston displayed its superior depth throughout the series, and could not have reached this point without the likes of James Posey, Eddie House, P.J. Brown (all former Heat players), Kendrick Perkins, Tony Allen, and Sam Cassell.

* I think Rajon Rondo just pick-pocketed another Lakers player.

* Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom played a Charmin-soft NBA Finals.

* How great was KG's emotion after the game - kissing the midcourt logo, screaming to the heavens, bumbling through a post-game interview, and hitting on Michelle Tafoya to boot.

* I'm happy for Celtics fans, but not necessarily New Englanders, who have been spoiled like no other region for the last several years now. Make way for the resurgence of South Florida! One can dream...

Best NBA Finals Performer? Dwyane Wade!

At long last, a credible source to back what was deemed a regional argument. Yes, Dwyane Wade's performance in the 2006 NBA Finals was the most spectacular in Finals history, including the six from Michael Jordan.

In an ESPN exposee, John Hollinger (noted stats guru) places Wade as #1 on the list of top 50 Finals individual showings. This is why I've always maintained that no matter how ineffective Dwyane Wade was when hampered by injuries the last two seasons, the Heat would NEVER TRADE HIM under any circumstances, and certainly not for Chicago's meager offer.

Here are a couple excerpts:

"For the series, Wade averaged 34.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.7 steals -- and this in a slow-paced series (neither team cleared the century mark in regulation in any of the six games). His basket attacks were so deadly because the Mavs couldn't stop fouling him. Wade shot a whopping 97 free throws in the six games -- the most of any player since the merger -- including 25 in Game 5."

Perhaps Mavs fans can start attributing the FT frequency to his incredible speed and agility? There may have been a couple borderline calls, but nearly all of them were legitimate calls. People tend to forget that.

"Overall, Wade's 33.8 PER is easily the best of any Finals performer since the merger. While it seems strange to have somebody besides Michael Jordan in the top spot, the truth is Jordan never dominated a Finals to this extent. At the time, many called Wade's performance Jordanesque. It turns out they might have been selling him short."

And that makes John Hollinger a superstar on The South Florida Fan list of noteworthy sports journalists!

One additional note: As we watched King James struggle in last year's finals and Kobe Bryant sputter despite playing on the superior team (he can't blame his teammates anymore), why wouldn't you want Wade on your team most of all? When it truly counts, he's the guy. Don't ever forget those 2006 Finals. Wade is the premier player in this game when he's healthy.

Media, Do Your Part for Once!

When I got wind of the latest fragment (an incredibly sharp one) in the Tim Donaghy scandal, I expected ESPN to run with it like there was no tomorrow. Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, TO, Spygate? That should be NOTHING compared to this story.

In case you haven't heard, Donaghy claims that the league ordered the refs to fix Game 6 of the 2002 Lakers-Kings series to push it to a Game 7. ANYONE who watched that game knew it was horribly officiated, with the Lakers getting 27 free throws in the 4th quarter. In fact, that was when many of the modern conspiracy theorists joined the long-chugging bandwagon.

I understand that Donaghy has no credibility these days, but this story is enormous. Why isn't it taking a full page on the front of ESPN? These are the kinds of scandals that made ESPN the corporate giant that it is!

I have a two-pronged theory:

1. ESPN isn't interested in any real scandals. As long as it doesn't involve polarizing figures like Barry Bonds, TO, or Bill Belichick, who cares?

2. ESPN, like the NBA, is evaluating this from a "holy sh*t!" perspective. Perhaps they realize that if the NBA goes down, so will the network. ABC, which owns ESPN, has the Finals contract, so they don't want to deteriorate ratings. You can also be certain that David Stern and the league informed them of the need to steer the ship quiet.

Ultimately, I think ESPN will suffer from its own leaks. Let's watch today and see how much burn this story gets.

Paul Pierce: Willis Reed-Like Legend or Academy Award Winner?

He was writhing in agony. There was speculation that the Celtics would have one person missing from the Boston Three Party for the duration of the Finals. And then he came out, to thunderous applause prompting a timeout by Phil Jackson. Paul Pierce then became unconscious, hitting key three after key three and propelling the Celts to a Game 1 victory over the Lakers.

But I ask you, the South Florida Fan - was the new classic Finals moment authentic sports legend, or shameless, phony theatrics?

Which to Watch?

Every year, the NBA and NHL playoffs begin and end around the same time. One with SportsCenter specials, hour long previews, and player-by-player match ups. The other, a 2 minute segment here, a quick blurb there, far from the national attention as the other. (In case you can't figure it out, the NBA is the attention getter, the NHL is the forgotten step-child.) There are many, many reason why this is. Hockey has long been the 4th, if not the 5th sport in this country behind the NFL, MLB, NBA, and now probably NASCAR. The canceled 2004-2005 season certainly didn't help. The NHL's banishment to the cable nether-regions of the Versus network is another reason for the sport's decline. But is this all deserved? The NHL set attendance-records this season. People are going to the games more than ever. Let's discuss why (and hopefully by the end of this, you'll be able to tell on what side of the center ice line I stand).

Now related to Florida sports, as this blog clearly is, only the Orlando Magic are competing in the 2008 Spring Playoff season. But for discussion's sake, let's pretend the Panthers and\or Lightning qualified for the postseason.

Let's begin with the pure adrenaline pumping, action packed, heart stopping excitement factor. Everyone knows NBA games don't begin until there are 5 minutes left in the 4th quarter. Both teams generally will score at least 70 points, so why bother watching them get there? The last 5 minutes of the game then take, on average, 30 minutes to complete. In hockey, the play easily continues for 3 to 4 minutes at a time, and then once the whistle does blow, there is an actual rule in the books that the puck must drop within 18 seconds of the play stopping. NHL plays 3, 20-minute periods for a total of 60 minues. The NBA? 4, 12-minute quarters for a total of 48 minutes. So why do the two sports take about the same amount of time to complete? Far too much dead time in basketball. Hockey has an actual flow to the game.

So clearly, an NHL playoff game is more exciting. What about the game itself? Both hockey and basketball are "team" sports. Yet watching Kobe Bryant score 81 points, or Shaq Diesel turn around, raise an arm, and score 32 points without rising more than 4 inches above the floor, seems impossibly individual. Is it really just a coincidence that Michael Jordan, I mean the Chicago Bulls... won 6 straight NBA titles? Try watching the great ones in hockey go from one end to the other to score a goal... he'll be crushed by a 6'3", 220 lb defenseman moving at 25 mph before he gets to the blue line. I've heard basketball described as a contact sport... but apart from Steve Nash (a Canadian, mind you) being checked into the boards last year, I'd hardly call slaps to the hands while trying to shoot or "bodying up" a hard foul.

If you're still skeptical about the NHL, I have just one request. Tonight, Tuesday the 22nd of April, there are 2 game 7's in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Take a moment of your time, tune your digital cable box into the triple digits and find Versus network, and check it out. I promise you will not find a more intense, thrilling game on television. Even if the hockey doesn't do it for you, you can't go wrong with playoff beards.

NBA Playoffs & Popcorn

You may remember Terrell Owens once saying, "get your popcorn ready." Even more amusing is when Sean Merriman sent Jason Taylor a bowl of popcorn when the Dolphins missed the playoffs two years ago (as revenge for Taylor's outspoken remarks about Merriman taking steroids and not deserving Defensive Player of the Year because of it).

Regardless, popcorn is often synonymous with watching from your couch. That is exactly where the Miami Heat are viewing things from right now (Dwyane Wade for the last month). Today, the Magic will get their shot against the Raptors, but in the meantime, let's do a quick review of yesterday's games:

1. Cavaliers-Wizards (1-0 Cleveland) - The Wiz are certainly doing their share of talking. I won't lie...I'm an unabashed Gilbert Arenas fan. I find his trashtalk more hilarious than obnoxious. They'll need to defend better down the stretch if they're going to have a chance in this series, though.

2. Spurs-Suns (1-0 Spurs) - The NBA's premier 1st round series far exceeded its billing in Game 1. The Suns just don't seem to have the luck in those close, late games, and it's not their fault. Tim Duncan hitting a 3 to send it into 2OT??? The Suns could really use a win in Game 2.

3. Hornets-Mavericks (1-0 Hornets) - Everyone is overlooking the Hornets. Chris Paul is absolutely fantastic, as he proved yesterday. Look for favored Dallas (even though they're the #7 seed) to go down quickly if they don't stop Paul soon.

4. Jazz-Rockets (1-0 Jazz) - Tracy McGrady's nightmare may be happening again. Another year, another 1st round exit. Sure, the Rockets would trounce a number of East teams, but the world isn't fair (just ask the Sonics fans, who could care less about the NBA Playoffs when their team may not even be there soon). McGrady's legacy is going to take another big hit when the Jazz take this 4-1 (my prediction).

Anyway, enjoy the year off. I expect the Heat to be right back in the thick of things next year, and the Magic should play well against the Raptors today.

Magic get playoff TV snubbed

So for those of you who didn't get to watch the Magic during the regular season, you won't get much of a chance in the first round of the playoffs either. Here is a look at the schedule:

Game 1 - Sunday, April 20, 12:30 p.m., TNT (Orlando)

Game 2 - Tuesday, April 22, 7:30 p.m., NBA TV (Orlando)

Game 3 - Thursday, April 24, 7:30 p.m., NBA TV (Toronto)

Game 4 - Saturday, April 26, 3:00 p.m., TNT (Toronto)

If necessary. . .

Game 5 - Monday, April 28, 7:30 p.m., NBA TV (Orlando)

Game 6 - Thursday, May 1, Time and TV TBA (Toronto)

Game 7 - Saturday, May 3, Time TBD, TNT (Orlando)

As you can see there are only two (maybe three) nationally televised games on the schedule. Instead, the Magic have been relegated to NBA TV, where no one will watch them. If the Magic want to get some respect (and some national attention) they are going to need to get out of the first round. I am sure everyone in the country will want to see the Detroit Pistons and hear their ever-annoying Deeee-troit Basssket-balll chant.

P.S. If you live in the state of Florida there is a good chance that SUN SPORTS could pick up the NBA TV games, and maybe more.