tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84120160148669448762024-03-14T08:53:34.614-07:00Ball above AllSnottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-83503549987338796062012-04-27T10:16:00.000-07:002012-04-27T10:16:50.097-07:00The Incredible Blake - All Star or All Wet?Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-62645635219747709672011-01-31T10:28:00.000-08:002011-01-31T10:28:15.128-08:00Monday Madness- The Beginning<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJrStcytm0Sei6dWHGyvmzBE8-mPwCicICSHQW77EYEPfTYT2DlE1aWdOwM5_h3x0mLLxScUQOsIBl1xCq4d5ODf1m7s5KBEITberEpw_iEPIRhWuKvwyDWQct3Lg3RTfa_CkN127jlOY/s1600/monday_morning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJrStcytm0Sei6dWHGyvmzBE8-mPwCicICSHQW77EYEPfTYT2DlE1aWdOwM5_h3x0mLLxScUQOsIBl1xCq4d5ODf1m7s5KBEITberEpw_iEPIRhWuKvwyDWQct3Lg3RTfa_CkN127jlOY/s200/monday_morning.jpg" width="163" /></a></div>So now that I have a respectable spot to post my dominant NBA knowledge (<a href="http://savingtheskyhook.com/">SavingTheSkyhook.com</a>), I haven't forgotten Ball Above All, NO. Screw it, I still like having somewhere to put the crazines I fall across every day, right? So not only will I link stuff like my earth shattering Kobe Expose' <a href="http://savingtheskyhook.com/2011/01/28/cobra-clutch-on-mamba-definitive-edition/">here</a>, I'll make GUARANTEED, or your money back), with other nonense, or make yu think with news that needs to been seen to be believed. Keep pushin', Monday is just one day....Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-81457636088029912452011-01-27T21:31:00.000-08:002011-01-27T23:45:22.235-08:00Saving The Skyhook - We're Really Doin' It!<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZEpbJ9gGes5nj5fG7H6Y6ypooXd94w8-gIg_ICQvLuRhA8IvhV1Wr3P7b_xtqHPv-U1HiJai70nTwzS0pMRjD6QSiG_Xv_WWWan0eD_a6my8BHsHDj8Xt5ar_Y0hJQUZz2Jb6YqkNPvU/s1600/Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" s5="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZEpbJ9gGes5nj5fG7H6Y6ypooXd94w8-gIg_ICQvLuRhA8IvhV1Wr3P7b_xtqHPv-U1HiJai70nTwzS0pMRjD6QSiG_Xv_WWWan0eD_a6my8BHsHDj8Xt5ar_Y0hJQUZz2Jb6YqkNPvU/s320/Kareem-Abdul-Jabbar.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>Soooooo....what's new, y'all? Nothing much here...just WRITING FOR A REAL SITE NOW. Yeah, Yours Truly has been invited to participate in Fansided's SavingTheSkyhook.com. In FACT, my latest thoughts on why <a href="http://savingtheskyhook.com/2011/01/27/fightin-for-that-1-spot-the-pretenders/">teams like OKC and Dallas have a 0% chance of winning a championship this year</a> is up right this very second. I'll still be here doin' what I do, but...not as much doing, I guess. I know it's not big time, but it's on a bigger stage, so come and comment, critique, and show support! As always, catch me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/james.holas">Facebook</a> and on Twitter, @SnottieDrippen.Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-71203183422724780372011-01-18T22:16:00.000-08:002011-01-18T22:16:59.653-08:0024 Hour Twitter Chatter -or- Blogger Blogging Bloggers<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s1600/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s200/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Great NBA holiday weekend, with a slew of entertaining games headlined the Kobe vs Monta shoot-out on Friday and 2 exhilarating Los Angeles Clippers games. Blake Griffin exploded in record fashion on MLK Day, but more impressively, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/talkhoops">Zach Harper</a> kept ESPN.com's <a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/notebook?page=dailydimelive">Daily Dime Live</a> going for <em>over 12 friggin; hours!</em> I could hardly keep up with all the NBA (and other weird) goodness flying around Twitter, but I tried. Click on the names to take you to these dope Twitter pages. Let's go...<br />
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<ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><li>First and foremost, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/NicholsAccomp">High Fivernator</a> of Absolut-ism.com with a sobering take on how cavalierly we treat the day we set aside in memory of one of the greatest leaders the world has ever seen. <a href="http://www.absolut-ism.com/?p=1902">Sneakers sales and a Rick Ross promotion</a>, not a good look.</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/AlexKennedyNBA">Alex Kennedy</a> of HoopsWorld.com investigates the <a href="http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=18503">"Big Apple" phenomena when it comes to NBA players</a>. THe Knicks were disgustingly bad for about a decade, and yet it's still regarded as a hoops hotbed. Good stuff.</li>
</ul><br />
Blake Griffin was an EXTREMELY hot topic, and with good reason; he led his Clips to a HUGE wins over the Lakers on Friday, then dropped a Scud-Missiled sized gem of a game on the over-matched Indiana Pacers.<br />
<ul><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6nZ_Da5HHoGXltQhODNi_B9H84uDP_xGvww3f4tDHDJLL17jH95i9E4pKbpKuaZEC9GUk5lVvqeam8-NKiw0uDL1dIyyxREwlnkp44L_PUSGM7DTSMcZVvyArY7OKgp1DJj4udD44iUk/s1600/Lamar%252BOdom%252BLos%252BAngeles%252BLakers%252Bv%252BLos%252BAngeles%252B6WuFn4eDgZkl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6nZ_Da5HHoGXltQhODNi_B9H84uDP_xGvww3f4tDHDJLL17jH95i9E4pKbpKuaZEC9GUk5lVvqeam8-NKiw0uDL1dIyyxREwlnkp44L_PUSGM7DTSMcZVvyArY7OKgp1DJj4udD44iUk/s320/Lamar%252BOdom%252BLos%252BAngeles%252BLakers%252Bv%252BLos%252BAngeles%252B6WuFn4eDgZkl.jpg" width="208" /></a></div><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/samickAOL">Sam Amick</a> posted on USAToday's Game On! about <a href="http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2011/01/blake-griffin-47-points-james-posey-lamar-odom-/1">Blake's habit of grinding opponents' gears</a>. James Posey reaction to Blake trying to give him dap after the final horn is the single funniest thing I've read. </li>
</ul><blockquote>"<em><strong>He gave us 40-something and I'm gonna shake his hand and thank him? Nah, I'm good</strong></em>." </blockquote><ul><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/jeskeets">J.E. Skeets</a> of The Basketball Jones sent out Trey Kerby's amazing 2-minute video<a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/2011/01/18/video-blake-griffins-47-in-two-minutes/"> unveiling all 47 of Blake's record detonation versus Indy.</a> </li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">How huge was he that night? <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/TrueHoop">Truehoop's Henry Abbott</a> put's Griffin's historic night into perspective: 2, <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/23980/who-has-scored-like-blake-griffin-did">and only 2 rookies have been so productive</a>, EVER.</li>
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</div><ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Sticking with Abbott, he examines a topic that I <a href="http://yesthenailinthecoffin.blogspot.com/2011/01/superstar-status-elite-9.html">recently touched on myself</a>; Carmelo Anthony's position in the pantheon of the NBA. <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/TrueHoop/post/_/id/23950/carmelo-anthony-superstar">Star? Superstar? Gunner?</a> Abbott give an extremely fair look at the facts and stats.</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/CBSSportsNBA">Royce Young</a> from CBSSports says LeBron might have <a href="http://nba-facts-and-rumors.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/27126383">planted the seed for Melo's departure</a> (ANOTHER dang thing that's Bron's fault!).</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/ZachMcCann">Zach McCann</a> looks at the roller coaster that the <a href="http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_magic/2011/01/its-been-one-crazy-magic-season-and-were-only-halfway-through.html">Orlando Magic season has been</a>- canceled games, viral domination, roster shuffles, it's a wacky ride.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mn8enzazsPiXvd15YumDiRair0uSTD_8SyFItmvJLMKkhYqyWNFGtvFjVDBabww3tUt4t8aM9EukEuBb74REy-HFnOZfWTgnoFLKUdVN2BP_sVUnR4vWhzS8gXweWNGWInnXZ4SJPGk/s1600/dwight-howard-fouling-copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mn8enzazsPiXvd15YumDiRair0uSTD_8SyFItmvJLMKkhYqyWNFGtvFjVDBabww3tUt4t8aM9EukEuBb74REy-HFnOZfWTgnoFLKUdVN2BP_sVUnR4vWhzS8gXweWNGWInnXZ4SJPGk/s200/dwight-howard-fouling-copy.jpg" width="138" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"How is this a FOUL!?!?"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/jeskeets">J.E. Sheets</a> from The Basketball Jones swings back through with <a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/2011/01/18/celtics-think-they-have-dwight-figured-out/">word of a little Boston Bravado</a>. Celts Big Baby and KG sound alot like the Rasheed/McDyess Pistons when dissecting their coverage of Dwight Howard. I'm pretty sure this is the 1st time in print history the word "finesse" has been used to describe Dwight Howard's game. </li>
<li>My man <a href="http://twitter.com/CelticsLife">JR. at CelticsLife.com</a> has a different angle on Big Baby's comments- basically, <a href="http://www.celticslife.com/2011/01/drool-continues-to-come-out-of-big.html">Baby needs to zip his lip and play his role</a>. Either way you look at it, Boston has dominated Orlando in the wins column lately, but Howard DID go for 33 pts and 13 boards, so maybe Big Baby Davis and Garnett might wanna tone down the "handling Howard" talk.</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><li>OK, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/teamziller">Tom Ziller at Team Ziller</a> dropped this bomb on me from <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/LithuaniaBasket">Lithuaniabasket</a> - A basketball experiment gone wrong. <a href="http://www.lithuaniabasketball.com/news-517-amateur-player-attempts-124-three-pointers-in-a-single-game.html">124 3 pointers. 108 team boards. A jealous Eddie House.</a> If Roylandas Dovydaitas was pulling this crap while we played Live '98, I'm slapping his face then shutting the game off.</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/cstbtweet">Can't Stop The Bleeding Tweets (CSTB)</a> tells us about everyone's favorite G, Stringer Bell (actor Idris Elba), being <a href="http://www.hackneygazette.co.uk/news/housing_project_named_after_hackney_boy_turned_hollywood_star_idris_elba_1_777010">honored with a housing development bearing his name over in England</a>. Word is Avon already got those tower boys hoppin'.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Jd-0tM0V0yxREeTbNn4p9VwNdu_oJEVb8fkkKokz3sLz6i2SRR3nBi2TpqnbpGr1YkYl13Li2K-CH9YwzhZoLcXH-09aSOFsIDj8uN1zhsl2xkqzpsR3Ju-iaPr5JIy14LRV67wFOmA/s1600/DerrickDeron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="169" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4Jd-0tM0V0yxREeTbNn4p9VwNdu_oJEVb8fkkKokz3sLz6i2SRR3nBi2TpqnbpGr1YkYl13Li2K-CH9YwzhZoLcXH-09aSOFsIDj8uN1zhsl2xkqzpsR3Ju-iaPr5JIy14LRV67wFOmA/s200/DerrickDeron.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Hey, Der-" "Shut the &$% up."</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a href="http://art%20garcia%20of%20nba.com's%20hang%20time/">Art Garcia of NBA.com's Hang Time blog</a> weighs in on Charles Barkley's proclamation of<a href="http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2011/01/18/has-rose-passed-d-will-as-best-pg/"> Derrick Rose as the league's premier PG</a>, surpassing Deron Williams. Personally, one hot stretch does not "Best Point in the L" make; Deron Williams will concede the title if Rose keeps up this torrid pace and blazes deep into the playoffs. Maybe. </div></li>
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</div><ul><li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The homies at <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/GotEm_Coach">Got 'Em Coach!</a> unearth Kobe' Bryant's <a href="http://gotemcoach.com/post/2808376886/a-kobe-bryant-conspiracy-theory-on-friday-the">diabolical public relation plot from Camp Mamba</a>. I wouldn't put it past Bean...</div></li>
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</div><ul><li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"> <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/BlkSportsOnline">Robert Littal of BlackSportsOnline</a> hit me with this one-Rashad McCants: NC Tarheel Standout. NBA Enigma- <a href="http://blacksportsonline.com/home/2011/01/former-baller-rashard-mccants-stars-w-traci-lords-as-bi-sexual-gangster-movie/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blacksportsonline%2Fbso+%28Robert+Littal+Presents+BlackSportsOnline%29&utm_content=Twitter">Bisexual gangster thief ringleader</a>. Also, with old pornstars. Yeah. Read it. </div></li>
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</div><ul><li><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;">And <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/jemelehill">Jemele Hill</a> with the show-stopper; I almost dropped my phone when she tweeted that Luther Cambell- yes, THE Luther Campbell of 2 Live Crew “Me So Horny” fame- <a href="http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/politics/Luther-Campbell-Considers-2-Live-Run-For-Miami-Dade-Mayor-113779179.html">may run for Mayor of Miami Dade County</a>. What more can I say.</div></li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoVCIH9nKg4bvWoGYM9tRsLeNUSHUX5wxZSKinYCItoIoM9v56W01u0-6VtY2BUPbl546saiAIJXE441_XRRboPqwkn9Ng7jV-XmV4l9cckI_kEaHTcyx4wjrz2VAkYcJLaMKQZecIHc/s1600/the-2-live-crew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnoVCIH9nKg4bvWoGYM9tRsLeNUSHUX5wxZSKinYCItoIoM9v56W01u0-6VtY2BUPbl546saiAIJXE441_XRRboPqwkn9Ng7jV-XmV4l9cckI_kEaHTcyx4wjrz2VAkYcJLaMKQZecIHc/s320/the-2-live-crew.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mayor Campbell and his Brain Trust.</td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><em>Questions or comments? Wanna tell me how much I suck? Hire me to pen your memoirs? Hit me here or on Twitter @</em>SnottieDrippen.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-47383264625795280282011-01-16T17:57:00.000-08:002011-01-16T18:44:57.682-08:00Superstar Status: The Elite 9<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>OK, this post mutated as I got into it. I started off bemoaning the label of "Superstar" being attached to every NBA player who averaged over 19 ppg, and gettin' my "ornery old man" on about how there are fewer and fewer true superstars in the League. I texted my boy Jake,"Look at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_NBA_All-Star_Game#Rosters">'91 All Star game roster</a> n tell me how many superstars you see." I counted 7. Off the top of my head, I figured that, by the standards we've seen in the past, there'd be only 4, maybe 5 today, with 2 on the same team. I did some digging, had it out with my Brain Trust, and I admit, was pleasantly surprised to pluck out almost double that many superstars in the current constellation of NBA players. <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2MJwBiVHHttG818FHVrgr0t4Lcv1TQUajBU3fq-2PcN_oGKs6wgWdf6gtxpMUu7k4KU-n50CR1Ea2iMS_ULUbTALZEihUuk4HqrKMIyrCaW20i8gfhKUII9Zbr138CcmtM0Z8G4ba-BM/s1600/supermario.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2MJwBiVHHttG818FHVrgr0t4Lcv1TQUajBU3fq-2PcN_oGKs6wgWdf6gtxpMUu7k4KU-n50CR1Ea2iMS_ULUbTALZEihUuk4HqrKMIyrCaW20i8gfhKUII9Zbr138CcmtM0Z8G4ba-BM/s1600/supermario.jpg" /></a>and THAT'S where we begin. Superstars? Sure, there are 28 All-Stars every year, and every team has it's player or 2 (or 3, if you're in South Beach) who is THEIR star, at least in his respective fan-base. But SUPER? I mean, there's only one Superman. Tecmo Bowl was ok, but Super Tecmo Bowl was where it took off. College bowl games are fun, but there's only one SUPER Bowl. Mario? Plumber who likes spaghetti. SUPER Mario? Bad-ass. So what separates the All-Stars from the ultra-elite superstars? How many legit superstars are in the league right now? I think we can agree that LeBron James and Kobe Bean make the cut. Dwyane Wade? Certainly. Here's where it gets murky. So I took it upon myself to use the most stringent, scientific, meticulous (meaning I arged and shouted back and forth with my boy Dun for an 35 minutes) to come up with the criteria to delineate the really good from the great. So we agree that, to be a superstar, a baller HAS to meet 5 bulletpoints:</div><ol><li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Show marked improvement over the course of their formative years</div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Elevate their team's play</div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Be able to take over a game, changing the momentum to win it</div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Their team is appreciably worse without them (meaning, you replace them with an average dude at their position, their team is looking at the lottery).</div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The eye test, the “It” factor, air of confidence, whatever you want to call it. If someone who doesn't necessarily watch the NBA watches a superstar in a game, he just <i>knows</i><span style="font-style: normal;">,”That guy is good. Really good.”</span></div></li>
</ol><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Basically, a true superstar's GM is only going to consider trading him for another true superstar (unless he's Billy King or David Kahn; then he'll give up his Lambourgini player for two 2nd round picks, $3,00, and a pack of Newports). This isn't about rings, scoring average, or hype, this is about the players who, through a combination of dominating talent and sheer will, can turn a franchise around. Who are the bonafide superstar's in the league today?</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"></div><div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqagRHheUIczoiJYD-x1g4_gylIb6FFgjIvJc0btPtGWfuOMDsqFw8bkPLtGtx4Jyx2GYULj5u_LUX_mXiylcGpfr-DQYFcf4XsaNIMr9vBxfPD-w-iXPULliRkm_W0Wx3Gk25CLPH5EE/s1600/LBJWade.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqagRHheUIczoiJYD-x1g4_gylIb6FFgjIvJc0btPtGWfuOMDsqFw8bkPLtGtx4Jyx2GYULj5u_LUX_mXiylcGpfr-DQYFcf4XsaNIMr9vBxfPD-w-iXPULliRkm_W0Wx3Gk25CLPH5EE/s200/LBJWade.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><ul><li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><u><strong>LeBron James</strong></u>/<u><strong>Dwayne Wade</strong></u>, <u><strong>Miami Heat</strong></u>- 2 unstoppable scorers, 2 willing passers, both have led their teams deep into the playoffs, each individually capable of<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wn-58EEdaz4"> destroying the opposition</a>. While LBJ is more physically dominating, Wade's display of a steely will and relentlessness is superior to LBJ's sometime-passivity in the big spots. Say what you will about LeBron's puzzling PR moves over the last 7months, but the Cavs dismal season without him highlight his superpowers.</div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><strong><u>Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers</u></strong>- Right now, LBJ and Wade are his physical superiors due to their relative youth, but Kobe's competitive fire and on-court IQ are on another level. While he may be a cornball off the court, Kobe's ability to beat you in any way necessary (15 boards in game 7 is insane) makes him NBA royalty.</div></li>
<li><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVBADo8jyBg5INZhkqnnJG-pBwUQMrE6VhT90MbKsuyYNMEI-Y7kC9kxtQ7B-yb8ouoXVl2lgXUxb2GbZrGPFv_CFiypjeOiKXj3kr4MbDhk6wGIfxGSWljZhKNt2N5-YTY6Qm10PtccQ/s1600/Dwight_Howard_Dunks_On_Kobe_Bryant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVBADo8jyBg5INZhkqnnJG-pBwUQMrE6VhT90MbKsuyYNMEI-Y7kC9kxtQ7B-yb8ouoXVl2lgXUxb2GbZrGPFv_CFiypjeOiKXj3kr4MbDhk6wGIfxGSWljZhKNt2N5-YTY6Qm10PtccQ/s200/Dwight_Howard_Dunks_On_Kobe_Bryant.jpg" width="153" /></a><strong><u>Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic</u></strong>- We get it. He's a shaky free throw shooter, his offensive repertoire is still in it's infancy, and his recent rash of techs is calling into question his focus. But MAN, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SDDdcnl3DCc">he can play some defense</a>. To witness his claim on superstardom, go no further than Orlando's decimation of the Charlotte Bobcats in last year's playoffs. While foul trouble had Dwight sitting for long stretches, when he was in he bullied the Cats into submission with smothering D. Even though Orlando inexplicably goes long stretches without getting him touches (show me another top-notch player who get's only 10.2 shots a game, like Howard got last year), Howard controls games with tight D and efficient scoring.</div></li>
</ul><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><ul><li><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGSE1pQDw7WqbpYg-IN31xuxGk3jsuMdxUsnC3GaDNcRVTcNsnqKNgAKd0ywgNm8LKV-q6sBAJlX1nP3Y0eQzLw7_ox4zWM_Mo0eDomFKKz4OE9oUP4k-KFjGzzAepFxyTBjqEF9-W0Uw/s1600/tim_duncan_eyes_closed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="139" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGSE1pQDw7WqbpYg-IN31xuxGk3jsuMdxUsnC3GaDNcRVTcNsnqKNgAKd0ywgNm8LKV-q6sBAJlX1nP3Y0eQzLw7_ox4zWM_Mo0eDomFKKz4OE9oUP4k-KFjGzzAepFxyTBjqEF9-W0Uw/s200/tim_duncan_eyes_closed.jpg" width="200" /></a><strong><u>Tim Duncan, San Antonio Spurs</u></strong>- <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/2010-11-29-tim-duncan_N.htm">His time is winding down</a>, but Tim Duncan is still, at 34, an upper echelon PF. Don't let the career low numbers (about 14 points, 9 boards, and 2 blocks in less than 30 mpg)this year fool you, Coach Pop realizes the end of Tim's time is near and is asking him to do less to squeeze every last year of productivity he can out of Big Fundamental. Younger, flashier power forwards are out there, but think about it, future nonwithstanding, you don't think Pat Riley would jump at the chance to swap Duncan and and Bosh? Jerry Sloan wouldn't ship Al Jefferson out in a heartbeat for TD? He's scoring less, but he's proven he can imprint a game by defending the rim and controlling the boards. Superstar certified. </div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><strong><u>Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls</u></strong>/<u><strong>Chris Paul, N.O. Hornets</strong></u>/ <strong><u>Deron Williams, Utah Jazz</u></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin-bottom: 0in;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEtdmhHs0NHE4UQphfYlSCu34-TMOtMxBFuCinpcXkWWV4dBmLXXi-zfJdXv0ikrEISNfVWwSvKv8VpAX6pqHrYcF1Ej9FuOpSqLn6iCdlG1lVE0L6ahxE5eYAq-qoE4sMN-rkqSkkwpo/s1600/rose_090202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEtdmhHs0NHE4UQphfYlSCu34-TMOtMxBFuCinpcXkWWV4dBmLXXi-zfJdXv0ikrEISNfVWwSvKv8VpAX6pqHrYcF1Ej9FuOpSqLn6iCdlG1lVE0L6ahxE5eYAq-qoE4sMN-rkqSkkwpo/s200/rose_090202.jpg" width="121" /></a>Here's where I almost lost a homie. D. Will and CP3 have been The Standards at point guard for the last 5 years; tough, efficient, and have shown that they can beat teams with the pass or shouldering the scoring load. I had them tabbed as superstars- they hit all 5 of the criteria dead-on. Rose, though...Naaaaah. My buddy Dun disagreed; more accurately, he stated,”You high.” Words were exchanged, family members defamed, guns drawn. But I can now admit I was wrong; Improvement? Scoring up by 4 points every year since his robust 16.8 ppg, dimes up to 8 a game, with almost 5 boards to boot. No question he's elevated this team's play, as evidenced by the <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090423&sportCat=nba">epic 1<sup>st</sup> round match-up the Bulls and Celtics waged</a> back in '09, Rose's rookie season. Game domination? Just last night, he willed his team to a win over the Heat, hitting more than a couple eye-popping plays down the stretch. (the left-to-right-cross-floater-combo he hit Chalmers off with was Mortal Kombat“Fatality” level sick). Without him, the Bulls would be, in a word, putrid; there'd be bo one to get Boozer the ball, and they'd challenge the Nets and Cavs for a spot on the bottom of the barrel. Finally, just watching him handle the rock, watch him setting up his man with the slow dribble, like a coiled spring, you just KNOW he's about to do something that you probably <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVo-1_GI5Qc&feature=related">are going to shout about</a> (Click the link, please. He ducks so he DOESN'T hit his head on the BACKBOARD. Click it). So yeah. Any bias I had about his youth is blown away. </div></div></li>
<li><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUn39Qy_gSsSwwdwl9w7cQfftoZzV1LBSji8kSVIDYdlReAy9aZHeqXFYXbtoNMDjY_3UvrPT0fDyl_39MCTHs3_JgS5zqsUlxEDhZhRn_Gu6rf7ERxZGPbDvwlQjH1pzow-wbNN13_o/s1600/durantula-poster-kevin-durant-thunder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSUn39Qy_gSsSwwdwl9w7cQfftoZzV1LBSji8kSVIDYdlReAy9aZHeqXFYXbtoNMDjY_3UvrPT0fDyl_39MCTHs3_JgS5zqsUlxEDhZhRn_Gu6rf7ERxZGPbDvwlQjH1pzow-wbNN13_o/s200/durantula-poster-kevin-durant-thunder.jpg" width="200" /></a>Kevin Durant, OKC Thunder-The “<a href="http://dimemag.com/2010/09/kevin-durant-is-odds-on-favorite-to-win-2011-nba-mvp/">KD is a lock for MVP</a>” talk after he shot the world's eye's out at the FIBA Games this summer was a little overblown; he faltered a bit out of the gate this season, Russell Westbrook has been astronomical, and the Thunder took a while to hit their stride. SOMEHOW, my colleague Dun was of the mind that, while Rose was elite, KD was merely “a good scorer who got the refs in his pocket”. My rebuttal? “You high.” Durant's a force to be reckoned with; vast improvement, takes his team on his back, devastating scorer who has no problem diming, and with a team literally built around his talents, he's vital to his teams success. As far as presence, he's like a not-dorky Tim Duncan; quiet and seems humble, but really in tune with his team. </div></div></li>
</ul><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"></div><div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"></div><div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">And that's IT. Those are the league superstars. Amare' Stoudemire? Has the “swagger”, scores like nobody's business, doing a bang-up job as Da Man in NY, but does too many dumb things at bad spots, is too caught up in his numbers, and really, besides scoring, isn't a complete player. Steve Nash? A Picasso of passing, but a Dagwood Bumstead of defense, we're learning that maybe he needed Amare' more than vice versa. Joe Johnson? Please. Next....Chris Bosh? After his “chill” comment and the whining travesty he pulled about his “<a href="http://stacheketball.neswblogs.com/2011/01/chris-bosh-will-always-be-basketball-loser/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Stacheketball+%28Stacheketball%2C+an+NBA+Blog%29&utm_content=Twitter">widdle ankle boo-boo</a>”, I'm not sure he's even star status. Carmelo Anthony? BREATH-TAKING scorer, but too much of a volume shooter; like Amare', if he's your best player, no way you're winning a 'ship. And as much as it hurt leaving Blake Griffin off of the SUPERstar list, I need to see it for more than 40 games; he's already ahead of the rest of the pretenders in my mind.<br />
<br />
That's what I think, any opinions? Questions? Tell me I stink? Hit me, here or on <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/SnottieDrippen">Twitter, SnottieDrippen</a>.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-19498886547118479882011-01-14T00:50:00.000-08:002011-01-14T04:07:47.881-08:0024 Hour Twitter Stuff: Bloggers Blogging Bloggers<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s1600/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s200/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" width="200" /></a>The Heat, <a href="http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=310113007">REELING</a>. OKC <a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=310113025">going in on</a> Orlando (Dwight did his part this time, they're still a work in progress...). I refuse to talk about The Guy in Denver, not gonna happen. But there was plenty to talk about in the NBA. Here's a veritable smorgasborg of NBA blogger-writer goodness...</div><br />
<ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/talkhoops">Zach Harper</a> sounds off on Hardwood Paroxysm about the whole <a href="http://www.hardwoodparoxysm.com/2011/01/12/say-hello-to-the-bad-guy-and-other-movie-villain-cliches/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter">bruhaha about LeBron James'</a> image. </li>
</ul><blockquote style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> "Now, LeBron is embracing his villainous stature like he gets nourishment from eating babies, stomping on puppies and masturbating to <em>I Hate Orphans Quarterly</em>. We see the change right before our very eyes. It didn’t start with The Decision or whatever the hell he was doing during the 2010 playoffs against the Celtics. It began the night he went to Cleveland and tried to put out the inferno by using Chevron With Techron."</blockquote><br />
Reminds me of when Hulk Kogan broke the hearts of millions of young Hulkamanics and went with the dark 12 O'clock stubble. Embrace the evil, LBJ.<br />
<br />
<ul> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Ky5huUkpa6LoQxHhJAzuzrJLTFy0pEP5Y17ElJ02WWRG2MONB5_yoWn5FilwwNDjyogZwhgn9LWUREqwk87YA2vnkZnPDEvmLap6A-M88Kb9P1rviks9q7AQbIQgatAwje3eM8yshss/s1600/carlos-arroyo-med.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Ky5huUkpa6LoQxHhJAzuzrJLTFy0pEP5Y17ElJ02WWRG2MONB5_yoWn5FilwwNDjyogZwhgn9LWUREqwk87YA2vnkZnPDEvmLap6A-M88Kb9P1rviks9q7AQbIQgatAwje3eM8yshss/s200/carlos-arroyo-med.jpg" width="160" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yup. "Dead Bird".</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Zach and <a href="http://twitter.com/Takahoopshi">Raul Takahashi</a> of <a href="http://www.hothothoops.com/2011/01/10/ny-knick-timofey-mozgovs-thoughts-on-lebron-james/">HotHotHoops</a> watched the Clippers dismantling of the Heat and formulated the Nickame of the Decade. Thanks for your crappy play, <strong>Carlos "Dead Bird" Arroyo</strong>. </li>
</ul><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/BlkSportsOnline">Robert Littal</a> of BlackSportsOnline tips his hat to the<a href="http://blacksportsonline.com/home/2011/01/video-wes-welker-makes-11-foot-references-in-press-conference-shots-fired/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blacksportsonline%2Fbso+%28Robert+Littal+Presents+BlackSportsOnline%29&utm_content=Twitter"> not-so-subliminal heat Wes Welker aims</a> at the J-E-T-S. All the tough talk by Antonio Cromartie looks foolish after this slick talk. Well played, Wes. </li>
</ul><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><ul><li><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/ScottSchroeder">Scott Schoeder</a> at NBA Fanhouse let's us know about Joe Alexander, a favorite around these parts, is <a href="http://nba.fanhouse.com/2011/01/13/joe-alexander-opening-eyes-at-d-league-showcase/?a_dgi=aolshare_twitter">wrecking shop in the D-League</a> and biding his time until a call up. 20-11 and almost 4 dimes a game, while settling in to a better fit at power forward? Yeah, he'll be back in the L.</div></li>
</ul><br />
<ul><li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/KDonhoops">Kelly Dwyer</a> from Ball Don't Lie on chimes in on the <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Rip-Hamilton-and-Brook-Lopez-are-sitting-and-ve?urn=nba-307248">Rip Hamilton benching and offers some smart insight on the Brook Lopez/Avery Johnson tension</a>. He hit's the nail on the head; the coach, as the "teacher", has GOT to figure out a way to get through to the youngster. The funny thing is, as an ex-player, you'd figure Lil General would be more adept at dealing with his team.</li>
</ul><br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/basketballtalk">Kurt Helin</a> from ProBasketballTalk comes through wrecking shop; he hits on the rumblings about where <a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/01/13/knicks-have-deal-to-move-anthony-randolph-for-first-round-pick/">Anthony Randolph</a> might get ANOTHER chance, discusses the sad state of Portland Trailblazers' <a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/01/13/brandon-roy-to-have-arthroscopic-surgery-on-both-knees/">Brandon Roy's knees</a>, and the Clippers' upcoming dilemma; 2 burgeoning centers, one starting spot-<a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/01/13/clippers-kaman-to-be-out-until-february-then-what/">what to do with Chris Kaman</a>?</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><li>Get Banged On's <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/getbangedon">Chris</a> with video that teaches an important lesson: you make him angry, and Blake Griffin will find you...<a href="http://getbangedon.tumblr.com/post/2726101434/blake-griffin-goes-into-total-beast-mode-after">THERE WILL BE DUNKS</a>.</li>
</ul>Finally, The <a href="http://www.thescore.com/tbj">Basketball Jones</a> blogger <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/jeskeets">J.E.Skeets</a> linked one of the dumbest things I've ever seen. 1st Mike Tyson (sorry Iron Mike). Then Stephon Marbury. The Game. Now <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2011/01/gucci-mane-tatoo-ice-cream-cone-face-psychiatric.html">Gucci Mane gets a $%#$ ICE CREAM CONE</a> tatted on his face. Look at that picture. Lightning bolts. Ice cream. a healthy scoop of WTF. From this small sample of entertainers/athletes, I'm deducing "face tattoo = cry for attention/slide into insanity". <br />
<br />
<em>Questions or comments? Wanna tell me how much I suck? Hire me to pen your memoirs? Hit me here or on Twitter @</em>SnottieDrippen.Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-50201420936463349782011-01-12T23:50:00.000-08:002011-01-13T02:04:14.259-08:00Clip Show: A New Beginning (?) <div style="text-align: right;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><em>Questions or comments? Wanna tell me how much I suck? Hire me to pen your memoirs? Hit me here or on Twitter @</em>SnottieDrippen. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAKr01Tmsgwt582j4qexxjCJkTfebUQDe7kbPdlfMLLXbxXFBUmpMjq39XbKzucp2BMe8B_M9tnNucKlR6FEphy4kLeyJXnCmALcv5zNA5ODGMHf8Sdi_OYW4Su24dDB4hDIgln4htNc/s1600/Karate-Kid-Photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="188" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAKr01Tmsgwt582j4qexxjCJkTfebUQDe7kbPdlfMLLXbxXFBUmpMjq39XbKzucp2BMe8B_M9tnNucKlR6FEphy4kLeyJXnCmALcv5zNA5ODGMHf8Sdi_OYW4Su24dDB4hDIgln4htNc/s320/Karate-Kid-Photo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Tech. No taunting."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>David and Goliath. Washington Generals and the Globetrotters. The bullies from Kobra Kai versus Daniel-Son. The Fratellis vs the Goonies. You can use any imagery you want, but that fact is, the Miami Heat, winners of 9 straight and 20 of their last 21 games, rolled into Los Angeles to play the young buck Clippers with their chest puffed out, and left with their hat in their hands and their egos bruised, the result of a rousing 111-106 Clips victory. Miami's Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh had the pedigree: 17 All Star games, 2 MVPs, a Finals MVP, 1 Larry O'Brien trophy, a shot at a historic road win streak, and a foolish nickname (LeBron, "Heatles" is a terrible, terrible idea); all the The Clips have is a FIBA World Games medal and a couple of Rookie-Of-The-Month accolades on it's mantel. But from the opening tip, you just FELT a shift. Watching the Clips fly around the court like attack dogs (ok, attack labradors, but still), seeing the young legs of the Heat 3 get overwhelmed in the opening minutes by the young-ER legs of the Clip 5- the box score is going to show Blake Griffin's collossal 24 point, 14 rebound, 6 assist line and Eric Gordon's 26-5-6 as the big story, but best believe that Eric Bledsoe, Al-Farouq Aminu and DeAndre Jordan's speed, energy and D off the bench were JUST as vital- it was enthralling. As long as I can remember, the Clips have been, in a word, pathetic. Even the blip in the early 2000s when Lamar Odom, Darius Miles, and Q Richardson were clowning, dunking, and ignoring their coach had an air of desperate optimism, like a drowning man clutching at straws and convincing himself that they'd float him to shore. Even earlier this year through all the hullaballoo of Blake literally <a href="http://wheresmy40acres.blogspot.com/2010/11/blake-griffin-dunk-on-mosgov.html">exploding in Mosgov the Knick's</a> face, we glossed over the fact that they LOST the game. But the electricity tonight was different; the Clips didn't win because of a flukey shot, or with the other team losing a Big Gun in the 1st quarter to injury. The Clippers stood and stared down the same juggernaut that had steamrolled Lakers in the same building about a week ago. Blake Griffin bullied through a defense that refused to give up the adrenaline-pumping dunk, 3 or 4 non-calls, and a suprisingly mouthy Mario Chalmers (Yeah. You read that. Mario Chalmers). Baron Davis shot waaaaay to much, but you can't hate on 20 points, 9 dimes, and 2 incredibly clutch buckets in the 4th. Boom Dizzle alternately set up Blake n' Co., scored off of crafty drives and long Js, and tried to gack the game up with "hero mode" pull ups and blown lay-ups. Eric Gordon picked his spots, running through and shooting over Wade when it counted. Bledsoe (4 dimes, 2 steals, sblocks(!), a steal, 2 points) was everywhere, dropping dimes and bringing the crowd to a roar when he chased doen Chalmers LBJ-style to wipe out a fastbreak, and by stuffing a loafing LBJ lay-up attempt <em>straight up.</em> DeAndre Jordan was hit with foul trouble, but in his 25 minutes he was pivotal to clogging the middle on D and keeping Bosh in check until the Heat were playing catch-up. Aminu continued to fill in the gaps and give Clip fans hope for the future; 4-4 for 9 points and a 2 critical blocks.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghMLd1Hd1lAS5FvaqvA_j2pyHsmf49lOVgq078MTf7_vx87_845iEkoRsWKLllYWwyjASxV2HJpHmoAfmFEnr9JEmy80cFQNAKb-jzmjph6bpebGVQGMa-QhYu52EG9BG140hfJ6jy8x0/s1600/blake-griffin-2-307x471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghMLd1Hd1lAS5FvaqvA_j2pyHsmf49lOVgq078MTf7_vx87_845iEkoRsWKLllYWwyjASxV2HJpHmoAfmFEnr9JEmy80cFQNAKb-jzmjph6bpebGVQGMa-QhYu52EG9BG140hfJ6jy8x0/s320/blake-griffin-2-307x471.jpg" width="208" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> In the big scheme of things, I know, this is just one game in the doldrums of the season; when we look in the history book, there won't be an asterisks. But seeing this young team that was such a disheveled mess as they stumbled to 1-12, then 5-21, take the big blows of the Miami Triumvirate (Wade, Bron, and Bosh combined for a staggering 84) and actually make the plays to win. It wasn't always beautiful backetball, but their youthful energy and all-out effort showed glimpses of a talented team under the recent ineptitude.It was obvious the Heat were in foreign territory down 9 late in the 4th; Wade shot a 3 off of the SIDE of the backboard, and Bosh inexplicably channeled his inner Jesus Shuttlesworth, jacking up 2 horrible 3s in the closing minutes. When Griffin threw down a thunderous baseline dunk off of a slick Baron drop-off, then stared down Mario Chalmers through the howl of the delerious Clip crowd, even though there was still a few minutes in this tight game, you <em>knew </em>it was over. Daniel-son had Crane-Kicked the blond jerk. THe Goonies had found Chester Copperpot's gold. It's only one game, but history shows that sometimes it just takes one game to turn a season from a lost cause to something to pull for. Now if only Donald Sterling would get lost in quicksand or struck by a meteor, the Clips faithful could really havr reason for hope in the years to come. Never know, it MAY happen; like that one dude said: Karma is a....ah forget it. BEAT. THE. HEAT.</div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-7622940009180158112011-01-11T14:34:00.000-08:002011-01-12T02:56:41.212-08:00Rebirth Of Turk <strong><em>Questions or comments? Wanna tell me how much I suck? Hire me to pen your memoirs? Hit me here or on Twitter @</em>SnottieDrippen. </strong><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4E6U-ctq3l40J239m5i5kTXkd6Y4KfBSNKtlJgIbOS2rDz71lp7x62cQvzoD8riaODWU-Qe-QeJ1TQiOKMGsvSJ30ENY0kr2ElC4l_wBGVQ4ox3DgTjFBs2bs2zlQfX4CzW_enyVgYcQ/s1600/20080426LewisHedoCelebrate_JPMoczulskiCandadianPress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4E6U-ctq3l40J239m5i5kTXkd6Y4KfBSNKtlJgIbOS2rDz71lp7x62cQvzoD8riaODWU-Qe-QeJ1TQiOKMGsvSJ30ENY0kr2ElC4l_wBGVQ4ox3DgTjFBs2bs2zlQfX4CzW_enyVgYcQ/s320/20080426LewisHedoCelebrate_JPMoczulskiCandadianPress.jpg" width="182" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wha..Do the Homie? Nah...</td></tr>
</tbody></table> Ah, 2009. Memory's are hazy, but those were good times. Jamie Foxxx was blaming it on the Goose, Soulja Boy was idiotically begging to be kissed via telephone, and the Orlando Magic looked primed to be NBA bullies for years to come. After toppling the LeBron-led Cavs powerhouse, they battled the powerful Lakers admirably well before <a href="http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/john_schuhmann/06/15/magic.sider.game5/index.html">falling in the Finals</a>. In the future, who could deal with their Mad Scientist line-up??? Dang, interchangable 6'10" forwards who could beat you off the bounce or stroke it from 3? A 7' beast of a center who ran like a guard and pummeled rims and shots with equal ferocity? A Mighty Mite PG with ice in his veins? "Man, as long as they grow together and add a real 2, these guys are trouble". And Hedo Turkoglu was the straw that stirred it; post up buckets, dimes, long treys, easy oops to Dwight Howard, he was the Do-It-All MC for these upstarts. The bad thing? He knew it. Never mind that the Magic system and this system ONLY was the one place that he would max out his good-at-alot-excel-at-nothing skillset. Hell, if Jerome James could parlay 12.5 ppg and fake hustle during a playoff run into a $30 million contract, Hedo's 16-5-5 line was about to get him PAID. The cliched "it's a business" was bandied around by both sides and the Hedo was packing his bags (to be fair, who would TURN DOWN 56 mil?). And BOY, would they all be sorry.<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRe8Wk1TYTACoSHMRJkvt0bRala2YVaJio8g9pxkuWvvudYYKAs4iMHOUmN7YIv0YfKTT1idLtggmbC6RU-3Syz47gVGgHadrSLeIEsRjFW8Q7ZaYCL-qDtEWcM6YHtu72kQiwAm6-QZ4/s1600/dwight-howard-hedo-turkoglu-i-miss-you-misses1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRe8Wk1TYTACoSHMRJkvt0bRala2YVaJio8g9pxkuWvvudYYKAs4iMHOUmN7YIv0YfKTT1idLtggmbC6RU-3Syz47gVGgHadrSLeIEsRjFW8Q7ZaYCL-qDtEWcM6YHtu72kQiwAm6-QZ4/s320/dwight-howard-hedo-turkoglu-i-miss-you-misses1.jpg" width="320" /></a>Toronto was supposed to be on the CUSP in '09-'10: a veritable United Nations of talent from around the world, a statistically dominant power forward in Chris Bosh, Uber-Euro wunderkind Andrea Bargnani, a front office not afraid to spend the cheese. Turk & Co. killed all that optimism right off the bat, playing uninspired, disjointed, defenseless ball, with Big Money Turk being a main culprit. Out of shape? Check. Disinterested? Check. Sulky? Uh-huh. Silly stuff like his his <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Hedo-Turkoglu-just-wants-to-party?urn=nba-230813">"stomach bug" party night</a> drew <a href="http://www.outsidethenba.com/2010/03/hedont/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter">hate, both sports AND legitimate</a>, from even the biggest Raps supporters (PLEASE, read that Eric Wright diatribe. My blood got angered just reading it. Fantastic stuff). <a href="http://www.examiner.com/portland-trail-blazers-in-portland/hedo-turkoglu-problems-evade-the-blazers">Portland breathed a sigh of relief</a> for missing on him. <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Hedo-Turkoglu-has-already-crapped-out-in-Toronto?urn=nba-230860">So he was done, right? Washed up?</a> Doomed to attempt to rejuvenate his career in Phoenix with Nash, while the Magic kept trying to convince themselves that Vince "pinata" Carter was a championship difference maker? He spent the summer trading nasty barbs with Toronto management, and was embarrassingly pathetic this season in Phoenix. Nash was the ball handler supreme, Jason Richardson was the designated scorer, Jared Dudley and Channing Frye the 3 point aces, Hakim Warrick was the nonrebounding power forward; Turk was QUADRUPLY useless. The "if he only had stayed with the Magic" tsk-tskers were out in full force.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqLp5UWrjY_ebBQE5VINjWI79xqJr_5mzYIk1demDqZfwq38PYZJGMvZ1ks_COYiee189ETaA8B95GAKTHNh4eXEApBI1ubjIRA2Ym4GigibVffM0X4-v9wQiwQ-iEuW4OPR4Ko5Zjm2w/s1600/nba_g_howard_hedo_260.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqLp5UWrjY_ebBQE5VINjWI79xqJr_5mzYIk1demDqZfwq38PYZJGMvZ1ks_COYiee189ETaA8B95GAKTHNh4eXEApBI1ubjIRA2Ym4GigibVffM0X4-v9wQiwQ-iEuW4OPR4Ko5Zjm2w/s320/nba_g_howard_hedo_260.jpg" width="184" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"You never left my <em>heart.</em>"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">But the Basketball Gods smile on the game; against all odds, Zombie Turk has been resurrected in Orlando. We all know where the story is at now, but it's a very, very rare thing that we're seeing in Orlando: a professional athlete leaving a situation, flaming out elsewhere, then actually coming "home" to success. Have we EVER seen it before? <a href="http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/4982185.html">Steve Francis tried going back to Houston</a> after his humbling turn with the Knicks. <a href="http://www.hoopsvibe.com/features/breaking-down-the-nba/51349-a-grizzly-return-why-houston-traded-steve-francis-to-memphis">Um, that didn't work too well</a>. And honestly, how refreshing is it for a front office bigwig like Magic GM Otis Smith to not only <a href="http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/os-bianchi-magic-otis-smith-20110108,0,7972523.column">admit making a mistake</a>, but actually move to RECTIFY it?? As absolutely pathetic as Turk looked with the Suns (again, to be fair, it's nigh-impossible to replace the preposterous Amare' Stoudemire production, but 9 ppg and 4 rpg for 10 mil a season really sucks), he's looked equally as good with the Magic. The 12.5 ppg isn't eye popping, but his 6.5 apg and 5.3 rpg are both career highs. More important than all the numbers though, is his energy, his confidence, and his playmaking. He was Pouty in Toronto, Lost in PHX, now he's Turk in Orlando. That's what makes basketball so confoundingly hard to project; raw numbers, even advanced stats, don't necessarily tell the story. Anyone can take an average player and find statistics somewhere that make him seem like garbage, or like the Second Coming in disguise. A good team isn't just the talents of the players, it's a synergistic thing, where 2+3 isn't always 5; it might equal 7 ('04 Pistons), or it might equal 3 ('04 Lakers, Vince Carter). <a href="http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/31/hedo-turkoglu-same-as-he-ever-was/#more-7889">Turk is what he is</a>, a tall, unathletic dude with a good feel for the game, no fear of the clutch who's the perfect 2nd or 3rd banana. Yeah, he was a cry-baby in Toronto and looked like a bum in Phoenix, but now back in Orlando, he's once again Turk the Jerk, nailing step back Js and flipping 13 foot high passes for Dwight Howard to lunch on, smiling like a madman the whole time. For fans of good basketball, it was kinda sad playing "what-if" when he left, and it's just as exciting watching Turk and Dwight re-develop that chemistry they had in The Good Old Days. We don't know if we can call it redemption; let's see how the next few years go. Personally, I'm just glad to see Vince Carter let off the hook of being a key peice on a good team, now he can return to the random 38 point explosion and extra-lacksadaisical play in games that don't matter. The NBA- Where Prodigal sons happen.</div><br />
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<em>Oh, and this is what's tough about blogging; I'm finishing this,doing a lil more research, and find articles in the same vein by better, smarter writers. Dang. Great reads, shout out to </em>Kelly Dwyer <em>at Yahoo's </em><a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/At-whatever-cost-Hedo-Turkoglu-s-Orlando-reunio?urn=nba-305562&cp=2#comments">Ball Don't Lie</a> <em>and</em> Rob Mahoney <em>at NY Times </em><a href="http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/31/hedo-turkoglu-same-as-he-ever-was/#more-7889">Off The Dribble</a> <em>blog, you guys get outta my head.</em>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-17043399699155874672011-01-10T17:07:00.000-08:002011-01-10T18:48:18.505-08:00Lazy SundayIf some dude from Noballistan came to the US for the 1st time on a cargo ship on Thursday and spent the last of his village's meager cash in a sports bar all weekend watching the NBA action for the 1st time, he'd be hooked for life. Sure the league is different from when alot of us came up in the '80s and '90s. But like Rick Pitino ranted- MJ, Karl Malone, and Pig Miller ain't comin' through that door. That doesn't mean some entertaining basketball isn't happening. Some poor fools don't understand: "Psssh, basketball is a buncha undisciplined thugs runnin' around bein' selfish with their bling and their FUBU and the rap-hop music." This weekend was a perfect example; if you caught the games this weekend, even as a casual fan and you still talk down about the L and where it's going, then you also kick puppies and push little old ladies trying to cross the street into traffic. I mean, check it:<br />
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<ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHmpz5W1KsFd6NMiNB-Y4Bjo6d2aiiotdhWndpnb5KPElrpyU7cU7XXpJPt-yBy6DyGE-t9Yh7_I1vdUq0YJM_t7F04Pq8bfgEXp49u4gjsgqKahgkdDGpmL6MWUVC07zPz7CmKkHlucM/s1600/wes3goggles.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHmpz5W1KsFd6NMiNB-Y4Bjo6d2aiiotdhWndpnb5KPElrpyU7cU7XXpJPt-yBy6DyGE-t9Yh7_I1vdUq0YJM_t7F04Pq8bfgEXp49u4gjsgqKahgkdDGpmL6MWUVC07zPz7CmKkHlucM/s200/wes3goggles.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><li>THere's an <a href="http://www.bakadesuyo.com/is-there-really-a-hot-hand-in-sports">ongoing</a> discussion about the <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2008/03/the_illusion_of_streaks.php">existence of a "hot hand"</a> ; Wesley Matthews single-handedly shut all that talk down with evidence pointing to a resounding "Hell YES there is." Matthews' 5-of-5 3-pointers in the 1st quarter, 7 for 8 from deep for the half on his way to hanging 36 points on the hapless <a href="http://www.portlandroundballsociety.com/home/2011/1/7/minnesota-recap-wesley-matthews-wesley-matthews-wesley-matth.html">T'Wolves as the Blazers slapped Minnesota </a>down 108-98 on Friday. The Wolves may be not-good, but man, they provide some enjoyable games, like the Washington Generals for the Globetrotters. K-Love put up 30/19, LaMarcus Aldridge kept pouring it on with 28/10 (since the New Year, he's been a monster; 27.8 and 11.6 on 52% shooting in 5 games), but Matthews shooting display early was electric. No hot hand, my @&^$. </li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yeah. THIS guy.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><li>Also on Friday, we got to see Luke Harangody pull a Rudy-type coming out party. He's from Indiana, he went to Notre Dame, he's a Celtic; the only way he could be a more stereotypical white baller was if he....well, there's no way he could be. But dude put up numbers in college and has been warming the pine behind the 31 feet of Center/PF ahead of him on the depth chart. KG get's hurt? <a href="http://raptorsrepublic.com/2011/01/08/luke-harangody-lays-the-smack-down/">No prob, Luke to the rescue</a>; for almost 27 minutes he was poppin' J's, beating up shots, crashing the boards like the over-hustler you HATE when you play pick-up (aka "Gettin' his Tyler Hansborough on") on his way to career highs 17 points, 11 boards, and 2 blocks in the Celts 122-102 drubbing of Toronto. Throw in 4 dimes and I thought Tommy Heinsohnn was gonna have a cranial explosion. No matter what sport, it's dope seeing the end-of-bench guy come up big, even in a "meaningless" January game.</li>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and he turned into an action figure mid-air.</td></tr>
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<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Saturday was Manna from Basketball Fan heaven; Durantula put on a 40 point display while OKC busted the Griz, Rose had a dazzling 36 (NO one is better at beating not only his man, but any and all help D, to the hole) and Boozer showed off that devastating J for stretches in CHI's subduing of the Celts, and Millsap put a cheat-code in in the 4th, scoring 23 points in the 4th and overtime while the Jazz beat up Houston 103-99, and Hedo Turkoglu again proved the Hot Hand theory in another way, he hit the Dime Zone; every pass added to his 17 assist total while the Magic were winning their 9th straight, 117-107 over the Mavs with Invisible Dirk. </li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCz5fE9DRREK-pJCyfTOpS04Niolsdgnjl2OP0pnp8YSustZCKRGQ4vsgKTlWJaTqck9JnRmDj4PXvHeQ9NarXvQAM43XubXsS5e-v2XQ32LAkhEm5zo82WMQFQkzbKMjHpaLkD2cdVDU/s1600/chrisBosh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCz5fE9DRREK-pJCyfTOpS04Niolsdgnjl2OP0pnp8YSustZCKRGQ4vsgKTlWJaTqck9JnRmDj4PXvHeQ9NarXvQAM43XubXsS5e-v2XQ32LAkhEm5zo82WMQFQkzbKMjHpaLkD2cdVDU/s200/chrisBosh.jpg" width="131" /></a>And Sunday...Man, Sunday. Miami Heat. THIS is what fans dreamed of and haters feared. Portland as a team played together, smart team ball, LaMarcus Aldridge dominated Bosh with 31, Nicolas Batum played inspired D on LBJ for stretches while giving a bonus 22 points, Patty Mills excited off the bench. If you say that Portland held anyone named Bosh, Wade, or LeBron to 11 points, I'd say that Portland coasted to a W. But NOPE. LBJ's 44, Wades 34, and Boshosaurus' 18 (he DID shoot like crap, but we all realize he's not on the Big 2's level now, right?), simply overpowered Portland. THe Heat are rampaging; 95.5% winning percentage, giving it to the L anyway they want it, via "grind-it-out" (against Milwaukee) or steamroll blow-outs (the Lakers got the business, smacked 'em by 16). I STILL think the lack of size is gonna bite them in the Joel Anthony sooner or later, but right now, we fans should just relax and marvel at what we're seeing...</li>
</ul>There's absolutely no point to this post except to celebrate how awesome the NBA is.Forget the dumb Melo soap opera, and don't look ahead to the dreaded Lock Out. Play-offs? Don't worry about it...just wait for the next game, enjoy, then repeat.Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-76847647345507913582011-01-07T13:30:00.000-08:002011-01-07T14:13:57.783-08:00Quick HittersFirst things 1st, a huge, LOUD shout-out to <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/talkhoops">Zach Harper</a>, AKA "DDL ALL DAY", of <a href="http://talkhoop.net/">TalkHoop.net</a>, he showed love and gave Ball Above All tremendous props during a live ESPN event a couple of days ago. He makes blogging look easy, which I'm realizing is the hardest feat of all. So I finally get to catch a breath; since the Clips/Utah game on the 28th, it's been go-go-go-go; eating, driving, eating, laughing with fam, eating. Eating. But I kept one eye on the games, or on the articles and blogs about games, and I got to say that this has been ONE AMAZINGLY entertaining season. See, I watch the NB to see really fast, extremely tall cats try and dunk over, break the ankles of, or shoot the eyes out of other behemoths, and for the storylines: think of it as the male version of soap operas. This season hasn't disappointed. I mean:<br />
<br />
<ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOfyN6V0-PCkWlL7d1m4kM4892qR3ktKEHpvB33HIh7yrz5p4dsNGsK3F_Gv6FsONUanW4yxYlztR2d4d9mH4P2oKA09DFU-Md7-6RpIr4OmCRhMyXQOElhsPX2_kwhEt7ZbJag_PzWM/s1600/ChrisPaul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOfyN6V0-PCkWlL7d1m4kM4892qR3ktKEHpvB33HIh7yrz5p4dsNGsK3F_Gv6FsONUanW4yxYlztR2d4d9mH4P2oKA09DFU-Md7-6RpIr4OmCRhMyXQOElhsPX2_kwhEt7ZbJag_PzWM/s320/ChrisPaul.jpg" width="320" /></a>What's wrong with Chris Paul? I've watched when his games were televised, and the 1st 2 weeks of the season, he was like a dribbling Napoleon; no matter if he was one of the smaller dudes on the court, just the way he carried himself said I'm Gonna Beat You. Now? I was blown away to see that he was the leader in PER. <a href="http://hoopspeak.com/2011/01/is-chris-paul-still-the-one/">Beckley Mason of HoopSpeak has a smart analysis</a> that explains why numbers can be deceiving. Is this a case of efficient < raw dominance? I remember a couple of years ago, before I had NBA League Pass, when you saw Hornets highlights, you saw Paul as a whirling dervish who alternately overpowered, out-quicked, and simply flummoxed defenders with sleight-of-hand. He was just BETTER. Now, according to Beckley:</li>
</ul><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> "Perhaps some of this has to do with the six footer’s ongoing recovery from his 2009 knee injury. Paul, who claims to be healthy, seems to lack his typical burst in the open court, though in the half court his strength and explosive lateral quickness still allow him to penetrate nearly at will. That is, in short distances, Paul remains elite, though his full court sprint is no longer as impressive.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> And though Paul is producing more efficiently than ever before, he’s also producing less. His point per game average of 16.5 is Paul’s lowest since his rookie season, and his assists per game are under 10 for the first time since 2007."</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">DEFINITELY worth watching. IS this a Melo case; he's trying, but not TRYING trying? Naaaah...</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8uuBoyph9afeatj1GQyvstQQEL7DRdOB-c95hB6_Aq0GfYGwRQ3ICLze6NQzbHHX5SEtvfE0CIxWwoj3Tj0Qo5ExNmIHnAbrFb5ZaJlLLKoGyacoWQZASTQI8ANLXtR95mvSr_Bdxsk/s1600/paugasol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8uuBoyph9afeatj1GQyvstQQEL7DRdOB-c95hB6_Aq0GfYGwRQ3ICLze6NQzbHHX5SEtvfE0CIxWwoj3Tj0Qo5ExNmIHnAbrFb5ZaJlLLKoGyacoWQZASTQI8ANLXtR95mvSr_Bdxsk/s200/paugasol.jpg" width="140" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Pau...tired. Pau...sleeeep."</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Speaking of which...What's going on with Pau Gasol? For stretches last season and early on this year, Pau wore the crown of BBMITG (Best Big Man In The Game) quite easily; for all of Dwights breathtaking physical dominance and the volleyball spike-blocks, Pau was a consummate craftman with a veritable tool chest to work with. Now, as I've mentioned before, he's all but invisible for games at a time, and <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/los-angeles/lakers/post/_/id/14488/does-pau-gasol-still-belong-on-the-all-star-team">even die-hard Laker lovers are questioning his seemingly untouchable All-Star status</a> (thanks, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/forumbluegold">Darius Soriano</a>). Personally, as much as I admire his game, his marked decline in production and his horrible neckbeard should make him an observer during All Star weekend, maybe Kobe's Bag Caddie.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJMrYaqKBJBXJziiSaMiyk-t2BQ4ypBogku3xAtgoDiOgHEvNqIMpZCxp-V8aibFsbQ8__HvwcKhckmT2N6GQCmqljqMz4WJ50QneniLaqVPqIIrS8bLSvogWZXl8Eim26DwPiWEYynlo/s1600/Tony+Allen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJMrYaqKBJBXJziiSaMiyk-t2BQ4ypBogku3xAtgoDiOgHEvNqIMpZCxp-V8aibFsbQ8__HvwcKhckmT2N6GQCmqljqMz4WJ50QneniLaqVPqIIrS8bLSvogWZXl8Eim26DwPiWEYynlo/s200/Tony+Allen.jpg" width="174" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Sup. Where my money."</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.englisharticles.info/2011/01/07/violence-in-sports/">Sports is all about controlled struggle and conflict</a>, and elite athletes perform against the opposition walking a line between agression and anger all the time. Sometimes that boils over in negative ways, with teammates slugging teammates. In <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100815&content_id=13489284&vkey=news_det&fext=.jsp&c_id=det">baseball</a>, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/24/renardo-sidney-elgin-bailey-fight_n_801069.html">in college</a>, in football, in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uju4qv2qDV8">soccer</a>. Sometimes, <a href="http://www.kansan.com/news/2009/sep/23/police_escort_basketball_and_football_players_insi/">like at Kansas, they mix it up</a>. The point is, it happens. So when 2 young NBA players like <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-allengrizzlies010411">Tony Allen and OJ Mayo get amped up and a scuffle ensues</a>, why the outrage? Gambling, girls, playing time, missed assignments; no matter the reason, it IS part of - not just their world - the world in general. I'm not condoning the fight, but at the same time, I think banning gambling, <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/14512854/berger-its-time-to-fold-on-the-nbas-gambling-subculture">even a partial ban</a> like Ken Berger of CBSSports suggests, is NOT the answer (although the esteemed writers at <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/CBSSportsNBA">CBSSports</a> <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26876260">alternatives to Bourre'</a> had me rolling). Let's stop the knee jerk reactions and admit that no matter the situation, <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2001/05/16/hill-oakley010516.html">Charles Oakley's bullyfoot handling of Tyrone Hill</a> back in 2001 is awesome.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOgVAzyghA-KwU6rG8xuOvr81IsLL4fBZSKw0OKDuzf9zu07zX20ouPpNi_6eMogiqsHIPqwtpJD6rbM_A-lLRgoQKy2fqZM-Ana4-Wi4u-Ih97ozmVdrwEMuVRDC3B7IohixcjWbd98Q/s1600/sterling_i.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOgVAzyghA-KwU6rG8xuOvr81IsLL4fBZSKw0OKDuzf9zu07zX20ouPpNi_6eMogiqsHIPqwtpJD6rbM_A-lLRgoQKy2fqZM-Ana4-Wi4u-Ih97ozmVdrwEMuVRDC3B7IohixcjWbd98Q/s200/sterling_i.jpg" width="148" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">"Tall enough. Now lemme see your teeth."</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">On a serious note, when will David Stern shut down Donald Sterling's foolishness? <a href="http://nba-facts-and-rumors.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26449752">Heckling your own players</a> is bad enough, but add in the litany of gross, racist, and bizarre behavior compiled <a href="http://deadspin.com/5398936/donald-sterling-continues-to-get-away-with-being-the-most-evil-man-in-sports">here</a>, and doesn't SOMETHING have to be done? I understand that <em>courts</em> need undeniable evidence, but as the caretaker of a multi-billion dollar sport, doesn't the onus fall on Stern to protect the image of the NBA, not just from the players bad behavior, but owner malfeasance (we're looking at you, Marge Schott)? And as <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/110905&sportCat=nba">this thoughtful Jemele Hill piece</a> from a while back asks, where is the PLAYER outrage? We can't move forward as a country if we turn a blind eye to such blatant ignorance.</div><br />
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Oh, yeah. The Miami "debacle"? <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/562186-lebron-james-miami-heat-has-chris-bosh-been-the-key-to-heats-turnaround">Um...never mind</a>. Heat are on....FIRE right now. Bosh been killin', Wade been killin', LBJ, he's got the top billin'. I guess we all should apologize to Spolestra. Still not sold on the "legit" contender noise, the bench is suspect, but DANG, they run deadly breaks and are showing defensive chops. Stay tuned....<br />
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What are some of the stories that get you pumped in the L right now? Hit me here, on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/james.holas">Facebook</a>, or on <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/james2477911">Twitter</a>! (james2477911)<br />
<img height="53" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOfyN6V0-PCkWlL7d1m4kM4892qR3ktKEHpvB33HIh7yrz5p4dsNGsK3F_Gv6FsONUanW4yxYlztR2d4d9mH4P2oKA09DFU-Md7-6RpIr4OmCRhMyXQOElhsPX2_kwhEt7ZbJag_PzWM/s200/ChrisPaul.jpg" style="filter: alpha(opacity=30); left: 702px; mozopacity: 0.3; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 1169px; visibility: hidden;" width="96" /> <br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-43190019757068448672010-12-26T17:59:00.000-08:002010-12-26T17:59:16.609-08:00Yo, Kobe'. &^$%# Just Got Real.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL72extzhgZI2f-Gpy6W1x_0Dv0v0chZgDP-filPzD9CKgwUy-tWGxhZLnObpYA5ws98l_xf6gHR81RuytXb9tcUy5wai9oBNvQXfHsXNijvyTrvIzkJhkaluwoduEIYuqAjZFFGYlV_8/s1600/pautumnus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL72extzhgZI2f-Gpy6W1x_0Dv0v0chZgDP-filPzD9CKgwUy-tWGxhZLnObpYA5ws98l_xf6gHR81RuytXb9tcUy5wai9oBNvQXfHsXNijvyTrvIzkJhkaluwoduEIYuqAjZFFGYlV_8/s320/pautumnus.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pau delivers in the clutch. And in a scarf.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Ah, the NBA is on an' poppin'; teams are past the "getting in gear" phase (except the Magic, they got another 2 week window to get it together). Remember the DEFCON-1 when Miami stumbled out the gate, the "I think LBJ and Wade are beefing!" rumbles and the "Spoelestra is GONE!" muttering? Yeeeeeah, about that. And how about LA bullyfooting out the gate, rolling to 8-0, then 14-2, while Pau displayed the full tool chest he has at his disposal, Shannon Brown unleashed his devastating long-range game and came out scorching, and Kobe' played the facilitator, when the "LA is so good they're bored" talk had LA fans foaming at the mouth? To paraphrase that ol' Jay-Z song "it was all good just a week (ok, about 3 weeks) ago..." LA fan But LA is approaching the crucible of it's season; starting with the Bucks playing custodian by mopping the floor with a LA in front of a disgusted Staples Center crowd, and followed by a 16 point shellacking on a national by the resurgent Heat, the schedule ratchets up the opposition level; before LA lost to the Bucks, a wearing down Pau Gasol said, <a href="http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_16908619">"You have to start tightening things up. You want to see some progress."</a> At the time they were 21-7, giving the "all-business" sound bites as the fervor built for the Christmas showdown with Miami. Since then... 0-2, their 5th loss to a sub-.500 team (last year around this time they were 21-4; they hadn't lost their 1st game to a team with a losing record until their 35th game. And while 21-9 is perfectly respectable, watching LA from the 1st week and a half compared to the disjointed performances from the last 2 losses is like night and day. Now, this isn't me crowing about the Fall of the Lakers; if Boston taught us anything with their Rope-A-Dope performance last year, it's that to veteran, established teams, the regular season is less about W's and more about fine-tuning rotations and maintaining health (which is why even I, a Laker-hater, feel bad for Pau Gasol; almost 40 minutes a game for a not-particularly-athletic 30 year old big is tough). But even the most pro Pro-Lakers apologists like the writers at <a href="http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2010/12/21/1889014/lakers-bucks-preview-last-chance-for-a-cupcake">Silver Screen And Roll</a> have to admit that, with opponents winning a paltry 41ish% of their games (that's like a 12-17 record, gross). It all averages out, though, with the 2nd half of January sees LA battling foes with a projected 65% win percentage, and from there on out the opposition projects at +.536. LA IS still the team to beat, no doubt; their resume' earns them that much. Artest has got to do SOMETHING on offense, and Pau has to return to his November (12 g, 20 ppg, 12.3 rpg, 54% from the floor), and Bynum needs to move from "potential" to "bonafide" if LA is going to duplicate the success of the past 2 years. On deck- Tuesday San Antonio Express rolls into town. Good luck with that...Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-83717953560110775062010-12-21T17:07:00.000-08:002010-12-21T17:22:09.864-08:00Tuesday's Twitter Stuff: Bloggers Blogging Bloggers<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"> OK, something new. I get all kinds of good stuff all day on twitter, so why not grab a few and save 'em for posterity? Follow me on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/james2477911">james2477911</a>.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s1600/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhskn12bIH3Qh4XllV_MFXpQXk69WPJehEp3d7hQTw9VCXRTf1iLTAj4_7SJSSD4-2yvB8R7di_BeOWlamyQRwK2tvt3Xc1kwxJNfwqhb0Wf6kf_K0kcF4FFTY1a59M1EhX2Dg-sJfm1Bg/s200/Twitter%252520Basketball.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/ScottSchroeder">Scott Schroeder</a>, on Ricky Davis Being <a href="http://www.niubball.com/2010/12/source-ricky-davis-and-mike-james-on-the-way-out-of-china/">Ricky Davis (with Mike James getting in the act)</a> over in the Far East. Marcus Williams, c'mon DOWN.</div><ul><li>Staying in China, what's Stevie Franchise up to? <a href="http://www.ridiculousupside.com/2010/12/21/1890086/steve-francis-is-in-trouble-for-giving-chinese-fans-the-middle-finger">Not givin' a &^$%, apparently</a>.</li>
<li>Sport's Illustrated's <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/SI_ChrisBallard">Chris Ballard</a> dropped off this interesting nugget:</li>
</ul> <em><strong>" Random NBA stat of the day: J.R. "We Just Saw a Man Fly" Smith has played 548 minutes this season and has yet to block a shot. Not one."</strong></em><br />
Damn. one of THE most athletic cats in the league and ZERO blocks?? Ballard let's us know that even Luke Ridnour has 5 this season. That's a damn shame.<br />
<ul><li>The good fellows at <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/HPbasketball">Hardwood Paroxysm</a> tweeted what we all know; it's time to go to <a href="http://nba-point-forward.si.com/2010/12/21/the-bobcats-margin-for-error-explodes/">the extreme in Charlotte</a> (<a href="http://nba-point-forward.si.com/">NBA Point Forward</a>). Last year was squeezing the max out of minimal talent. That 33 point loss to the Wiz was a disgrace. At the very least, Gerald Wallace deserves better. You can't be nicknamed "Crash" and play for such a crappy team.</li>
</ul><br />
<ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYI1WlrIupM3w8-vVqffP9xiUCuNEIILJ_BcPnui6SwOf1gZfNb-Gq7mV8BSsxCEWe-9qmekB7Hpui4B-6pZgGm9IpiK6aDjvIXSEEzVL94-Dgacy0X9Z8iSKgV0Odm_UmKSYzQ-ktrA/s1600/blake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYI1WlrIupM3w8-vVqffP9xiUCuNEIILJ_BcPnui6SwOf1gZfNb-Gq7mV8BSsxCEWe-9qmekB7Hpui4B-6pZgGm9IpiK6aDjvIXSEEzVL94-Dgacy0X9Z8iSKgV0Odm_UmKSYzQ-ktrA/s320/blake.jpg" width="227" /></a><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/jeskeets">J.E. Skeets</a> of <a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/">TheBaskeballJones</a> ranks my favorite NBA topic: <a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/2010/12/21/vids-ranking-blake-griffins-alley-oops/">Blake Griffin Rim Assaults</a>. Corey Brewer. Just don't, homie. </li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/CBSSportsNBA">CBSSportsNBA </a>with a recap from last night, focusing on that uggggly<a href="http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26577204"> 6-23 from the Magic newcomers</a>. They didn't even get to practice yet; they'll be better...</li>
</ul>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-42804103069307413252010-12-20T09:03:00.000-08:002010-12-21T12:56:15.493-08:00Gilbert Arenas: Sidekick, ActuallyGilbert Arenas<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj4548t5vRP5jS9viaKLblb6haZMwPNd_IZllD3JSeb2oDvExW6qDT2d4__ENvk9dRt2OdqcK5G3zEF-ASqiRu7cNm-faVZWgq_rONUQn_TVJAwt1YWEMr9qTu0iJ1k5Jn_RGbSmjVA0U/s1600/gilbert-arenas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj4548t5vRP5jS9viaKLblb6haZMwPNd_IZllD3JSeb2oDvExW6qDT2d4__ENvk9dRt2OdqcK5G3zEF-ASqiRu7cNm-faVZWgq_rONUQn_TVJAwt1YWEMr9qTu0iJ1k5Jn_RGbSmjVA0U/s320/gilbert-arenas.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>We can all agree that Gilbert Arenas' new start is necessary; we wonder exactly what kind of production we can expect going forward from the 28 year old guard. I mean, in his heyday, Gil was giving you 28.4 a night; the percentages were never great (42% with 35% from 3. Yikes.), but MAN, when it counted he got buckets, right? This season his 17 ppg on 39.4% shooting, with an abysmal 32.4% from deep looks sobering for Dwight n' Co. BUT...let's look at the games he's played as Numero dos, with John Wall running the show. It's a small sample size, only 11 games, and if you throw out the 2 absolute stinkers, a 2-14 bomb vs Charlotte and a 1-10 clunker at Toronto, as "just bad nights", Agent 1 looks decidedly better when he's riding shotgun; the other 9 games playing Robin to Wall's Batman he was at 18 ppg, 42% overall, but 44% FROM 3. Playing with a much better assortment of talent around him, Gil's minutes may drop, but his efficiency should, I say SHOULD, be at an all time high for him. Not worth friggin' 22 MIL a year, but given the situation, I guess Otis Smith is making the best of it. At least Gil has a pulse, he'll affect the game somehow; there are stretches where you're not even sure Rashard Lewis was in the bulding, and if a 6'11" dude can make himself invisible doing what he's grossly overpaid to do, then something's gotta give.Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-18301796567610816362010-12-19T15:10:00.000-08:002011-01-12T03:59:23.453-08:00When The Smoke Clears...Magic Make Things Appear.<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuot1c6U2arrkbvSOLaI-RsCrARZauMmt0kl0YtN92WMUp_nfDztpkoPcRriyjnCJAAOm3Yr_XL42Lrgg0fZePT2bhS3BYJK7TMQ6W-He67maE0G-WqtsjvwKsSsMLyTtgHUSaOK43_zc/s1600/arenas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuot1c6U2arrkbvSOLaI-RsCrARZauMmt0kl0YtN92WMUp_nfDztpkoPcRriyjnCJAAOm3Yr_XL42Lrgg0fZePT2bhS3BYJK7TMQ6W-He67maE0G-WqtsjvwKsSsMLyTtgHUSaOK43_zc/s320/arenas.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>So there I was, it's 11 AM on a Saturday, I'm gettin' my head kicked in by a Statistics final, and my phone goes nuts. Texts. 3 missed calls. Twitter alerts. After I turned my test in, dried my tears of failure, it was time to see what the fuss was abo...DAMN! So <a href="http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-07-01/sports/os-bianchi-magic-free-agency-20100701_1_dwight-howard-magic-ownership-magic-dancers">Orlando is trying to do what the Cavs and the Raps couldn't do and and now the Nuggets and Hornets are trying so desperately to do</a>: keep the Franchise content with his lot in the NBA landscape. Dwight Howard's locked in until 2012, and best believe, as jokey and "aw shucks" as he seems, he's got a shark's eye on the moves of the Heat, and the Bulls, and the moves that CP3 and 'Melo make. It's a business, the leagues Last Dominant Big wants to win. the Magic have been Mavs East (regular season juggernauts who look lost when they get ousted in the playoffs), so Orlando rolled the dice: Said "our bad",bringing back Turk, along with athletic streak scorer Jason Richardson and enigma Earl Clark, while shipping out the gutless VC, Martin Gortat, and Michael "Peaches" Pietrus. Almost simultaneously, they admitted that 'Shard Lewis fooled 'em into giving him that utterly ridiculous 119 million dollar (goddamn) contract and swapped him Gilbert Arenas, AKA 2010's fontrunner in the "Mike Vick Comeback Award". For some reason the rumbles seem to be that 1) Orlando panicked, that 2) replacing VC with Arenas/Richardson is a somehow a downgrade, and that 3) Turkoglu being brought back is pointless. Well, let's see...<br />
1) Define "panic". Is it panic because, while the Magic looked unstoppable at times last season, especially in the 1st 2 rounds of the playoffs, the front office realized that the throttling they recieved by the Lakers 2 years ago and the thrashing the Celts laid on them in the '10 would continue if the Magic didn't make some significant moves? This team isn't the Blazers or the Thunder, being built painstakingly and lovingly via draft and shrewd midlevel free agents; the "let's be patient and let it marinate" tact won't fly, D. Howard's clock is ticking. Panic or not, this is what a GM is SUPPOSED to do; see your teams weaknesses and try to improve on them. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15yxyoB8oZlpF9DB0-XHjLYpbPgiyOyPFA4JSCvY_Rf5WeJ6VYbDlRvcy72s234CTwaECTcd3uOwAB-9gkABXWFXn0P-tsZeJBccPiNN_x5cXy-PWFx84cW0hdrhhm7EoLhzYn6KrelA/s1600/Jason%252520Richardson%252520on%252520the%252520field.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15yxyoB8oZlpF9DB0-XHjLYpbPgiyOyPFA4JSCvY_Rf5WeJ6VYbDlRvcy72s234CTwaECTcd3uOwAB-9gkABXWFXn0P-tsZeJBccPiNN_x5cXy-PWFx84cW0hdrhhm7EoLhzYn6KrelA/s200/Jason%252520Richardson%252520on%252520the%252520field.jpg" width="174" /></a></div>2) Richardson is a MUCH better defender than VC, and J-Rich<a href="http://valleyofthesuns.com/2010/06/08/jason-richardson-from-expendable-to-essential/"> in last year's playoffs</a> was SPECTACULAR, providing timely scoring and clutch play. Arenas? For all the baggage; the bad knees, the bonehead gunplay, the silly "faked injuries", Arenas still has to be feared by the opposition for his scoring and his fearlessness in the clutch. Sure, the shooting percentages don't look good, but how quickly we forget the insanely clutch play Arenas showed just 3 years ago, when he was turning his back and celebrating while the ball was <em>still in-flight </em>on a last second shot he put up. Plus take into account that Gilbert was handed the keys to 2 of the most dysfunctional franchies out there, G-State and Washington. A team with strong leadership in Van Gundy and an exceptionally bigger star like Orlando should bring out the best in Gil while keeping his insanity in check. Give me Arenas/J-Rich over Carter any day, hands down.<br />
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi95MazNo85cFu0B3sdyalH19leGw2AVVJ6BaeUVYH2vsvyhv7VRuI70gotP83h5BxUdpMVDDQnBXLyUEas8mFNuqhJOmdgnk-Dc_lnlS2DeB1OLOw2CPVLdgfKg6lMtSMjJNl5Q8nh0gE/s1600/r_turkoglu_vt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi95MazNo85cFu0B3sdyalH19leGw2AVVJ6BaeUVYH2vsvyhv7VRuI70gotP83h5BxUdpMVDDQnBXLyUEas8mFNuqhJOmdgnk-Dc_lnlS2DeB1OLOw2CPVLdgfKg6lMtSMjJNl5Q8nh0gE/s200/r_turkoglu_vt.jpg" width="144" /></a>3) Championships aren't won by stars, they're won by stars driving the engine built on role players. Turk in Orlando was a unique thing. he was a role player who carried himself like a star, but THE STAR WAS COOL WITH THAT. Why they let him leave is baffling to me, and it's cool to see Otis Smith pretty much shrug and say,"my bad, lemme get that back and try again." He was good when he had 2 things; the ball in his hands and someone to pass to. He was bad when he was expected to do "little things" and be a catch-and-shooter. This is a win-win; he comes back to the situation that made him look so good, and Orlando get the ONE thing that really made them devastating; the 6-10 guard who can create a matchup nightmare for anyone. And Lewis? Lewis was like paying Lambo money and having it show up with a Camry engine: Camry's are ok, but Lambo money should NEVER be spent on one. At least he should bring some professionalism and shooting to the Wiz, alleviating the Arena/Wall overlap, and shoot ALOT of 3s. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqQJKxs7hyV9C3DWpO1oXSNdSxtizc_TpUzDekiCU2LtZyFgaEOjjB8-uiQd1UGldctaLQOwD_8ATXUhChubV7t0CwU9oupdYbinMORktS_BwgNT950G3zP-O4v8WU3MVs9zj4J5lsr0/s1600/dwight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqQJKxs7hyV9C3DWpO1oXSNdSxtizc_TpUzDekiCU2LtZyFgaEOjjB8-uiQd1UGldctaLQOwD_8ATXUhChubV7t0CwU9oupdYbinMORktS_BwgNT950G3zP-O4v8WU3MVs9zj4J5lsr0/s320/dwight.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>Honestly, the thing that may hurt the Magic in the short-term is the absence of Gortat and "Peaches", leaving the bench pretty dang thin. Somehow Gortat got labeled as a "starter" talent which is foolish, but the guy was quality in his short stretches. Same with Peaches; he might never be the player HE thinks he is, but his shooting, D, and athleticism will be missed, at least by <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Mickael-Pietrus-No-20-in-your-program-No-2-i?urn=nba-238911">Chuck Wagon</a>. I dug watching the Polish Hammer and Air France when they'd dominate lesser second units, or when they were plugged in with Howard and Nelson and were part of a ridiculous 23-4 scoring run. <br />
Memo to the Heat and the Bulls; Orlando may have been stumbling, and they haven't been a "story" all year. They realized that they were <em>juuuust </em>a cut below the Celts and Lakers, while the Bulls, Spurs, and Heat are all bristling with talent, so they made a huge gamble. At the very least the Magic now are a team to watch as they try to integrate new variables into the always elusive "team chemistry" while attempting to slug it out with the NBA big boys, and at most they've thrown their hats into the ring with the rest of the contenders. Can't wait to see Nelson running with Agent Zero on one wing and J-Rich on the other with Howard rumbling down the middle behind them. Your turn, N'awlins!Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-9170663717310502672010-12-15T11:20:00.000-08:002010-12-15T11:20:48.308-08:00Menage A Trade: T. Will, Old Smith, Sasha Vu Switch It Up: Melo-Drama<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWseVX4IxkO65NuFOPHa1NuweHHkXnuXatOBOZrvgAgLQaXvwDKivIxBYhwQCVtkWurtgM6IjCOPmhgkGU7zXyj6oYh5dJY5-Sem9uRx-ZfwTNSgMRkJ6BGLctfEtP9RGAAeEu3BbkRQs/s1600/DolphLungrenasIvanDrago%2527IMustBreakYou%2527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWseVX4IxkO65NuFOPHa1NuweHHkXnuXatOBOZrvgAgLQaXvwDKivIxBYhwQCVtkWurtgM6IjCOPmhgkGU7zXyj6oYh5dJY5-Sem9uRx-ZfwTNSgMRkJ6BGLctfEtP9RGAAeEu3BbkRQs/s200/DolphLungrenasIvanDrago%2527IMustBreakYou%2527.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/12/15/three-team-trade-becomes-official-terrence-williams-is-a-rocket/">Three players</a>. One goal. We know the Nets want Carmelo, like an insecure young woman trying to woo the guy who's sweating her better looking older sister. So this isn't about the "<a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/149623-the-free-anthony-randolph-movement">Established Coach X vs Promising Young Player Y"</a> duel playing out yet again, (I hate when an in-all-other-ways reasonable coach gets a wild hair up his, y'know what, and ends up with some personal vendetta against a talented young player, then tries to "break" them, i.e. <a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/trade_nate_4g1sIcOQUXwiNk6HPp1zII">D'antoni vs Nate Robinson</a> . From 18 ppg to benched when the new coach comes in? That's beef...). Terrence Williams is, by all accounts, a very, very good young basketball player who <a href="http://dimemag.com/2010/11/terrence-williams-sent-to-the-d-league-by-nets-coach-avery-johnson/">needs an alarm clock and rubbed The Lil General the wrong way.</a> So the Rockets get ANOTHER exciting, hardworking perimeter player (yawn), Sasha Vujacic is kicked off the coattails of Kobe' and Co., and the bones of Joe Smith are forced to shuffle out of the duct on NJ's bench and actually may see court time for the Lakers. PLUS, the Nets have like 487 1st round picks over the next coupla years.<a href="http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26456255"> </a><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuIowkK08UdFdtqnl59zLoIOZqzpBb7wQP3VzR4Xkv09Fj0jWpWCs2nPHZgmXsb2Ro_GB_xJOaXMuKQQzTjNk9jK74MIiI8YA2-HX-S1rhhFreOM3LiAZyPQutJA1sIvOntF5Q9e0zPk/s1600/Anchorman1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuIowkK08UdFdtqnl59zLoIOZqzpBb7wQP3VzR4Xkv09Fj0jWpWCs2nPHZgmXsb2Ro_GB_xJOaXMuKQQzTjNk9jK74MIiI8YA2-HX-S1rhhFreOM3LiAZyPQutJA1sIvOntF5Q9e0zPk/s200/Anchorman1.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now in Denver. </td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/26456255">Even though fake-named Lionel Bienvenu and his 7News team</a> insist otherwise, the Favors/Murphy/2 1st rounders-for-Melo deal is far from done. My question: <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/2010/12/13/1872922/carmelo-anthony-trade-rumors-nets-knicks">Why would Melo sign an extension in Jersey</a>? Is Brook Lopez an upgrade from Nene? Is Devin Harris THAT much of an upgrade from Chauncy (well, yeah, he is). Adding Melo, subtracting Derrick Favors and his potential, and the roster in Denver is more talented than Jersey's would be, right? Ah well, at least Houston's pick might be worth something next year if Chairman Yao's feet keep exploding....Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-88283872298787282612010-12-15T09:43:00.000-08:002010-12-15T09:43:41.526-08:00Demar DeRozan: Baptizer of Fools<iframe height="295" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BJDbCnxQfjM?fs=1" frameborder="0" width="480"></iframe><br /><br />DeMar DeRozan:" 'Sup, Double T."<br />Tyrus Thomas: " S'happenin', DeMar."<br />DD: "Chillin' man. Lemme get by?"<br />TT:"Can't do that, homie."<br />DD:"I'm goin' in."<br />TT:"Dang. I see bright light...."Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-8794279672328731252010-12-14T08:40:00.000-08:002010-12-14T08:40:42.101-08:00Tuesday: Quick Hitters <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheMhQg2MTWrM7_TF8qNFxaSZVk7UC5BTtebDLYG_xAPAyOt5QOBGtWdLxq9tSs5zwIdF191G7XIHMwE94eRxBoEsOzhESc0MNInfrC1iVLMJLncruPdxcVBHHBc7d9ZbXZfxsIo59NTQ0/s1600/dhoward.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="249" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheMhQg2MTWrM7_TF8qNFxaSZVk7UC5BTtebDLYG_xAPAyOt5QOBGtWdLxq9tSs5zwIdF191G7XIHMwE94eRxBoEsOzhESc0MNInfrC1iVLMJLncruPdxcVBHHBc7d9ZbXZfxsIo59NTQ0/s320/dhoward.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">OK, this is just ridiculous.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>*So, who is Charles Pierce? He wrote <a href="http://deadspin.com/5712872/deadspin-classic-bill-simmons-is-not-the-cosmos-the-book-of-basketball-reviewed">this review</a> of Bill Simmons, AKA ESPN's Sports Guy's book. Simmons is a big boy, right? <a href="http://www.nowpublic.com/sports/bill-simmons-charles-pierce-twitter-feud-sports-guy-rips-feud">Wrong; he tries to big time CP</a>. Silly stuff for national writers, but it's comedy.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLK0lfyKSUJj0ZySnQ8AxCZAG_JhWTKbi9hNOB3hNfLLcxOdRyvNSepou0Sm_O5JvAKBFRY8yrxoq0cfl2HXRa2cB4dtdqbx7pcIII334f5pHKKL1kdD1kDSh6r3sR46FiXIXvFWTNfaM/s1600/wadesuspect.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="111" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLK0lfyKSUJj0ZySnQ8AxCZAG_JhWTKbi9hNOB3hNfLLcxOdRyvNSepou0Sm_O5JvAKBFRY8yrxoq0cfl2HXRa2cB4dtdqbx7pcIII334f5pHKKL1kdD1kDSh6r3sR46FiXIXvFWTNfaM/s200/wadesuspect.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wait. What part of practice is THIS?</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*Oh, LeBron, it's NEVER your fault; now <a href="http://www.playerpress.com/articles/12728-lebron-calls-wade-worst-finisher-in-the-league">Wade is the worst finisher in the L</a>? LBJ's mom Mrs James respectfully disagrees, Delonte hangs his head in shame.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIvgoblSPcrnjZhf-MpSD_fTjb995nudAqudGcMgsSnJVx4tCsdFWotIErH9gdYzDH0Htm-v1YNKzJjP2QW14BY6P-teYEL98nXf8gmckM1oX0u_8pGdL7dNlafDeNX8OklFaqR4Vyfb8/s1600/NCAA%252BBasketball%252BTournament%252BSouth%252BRegional%252B6RfqLg2klyul.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="135" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIvgoblSPcrnjZhf-MpSD_fTjb995nudAqudGcMgsSnJVx4tCsdFWotIErH9gdYzDH0Htm-v1YNKzJjP2QW14BY6P-teYEL98nXf8gmckM1oX0u_8pGdL7dNlafDeNX8OklFaqR4Vyfb8/s200/NCAA%252BBasketball%252BTournament%252BSouth%252BRegional%252B6RfqLg2klyul.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">D Rose makes Pointguard-coladas.</td></tr>
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*Donald Sterling. Clippers owner. Racist. Cheapskate. Slumlord. <a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/2010/12/13/donald-sterling-still-the-worst/">Heckling his OWN players</a>? David Stern, fix this. Shout out to <a href="http://twitter.com/treykerby">Trey Kerby</a> at <a href="http://blogs.thescore.com/tbj/">thebasketballjones blog</a>. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*Silly Tyreke Evans; you can't wear skates and play basketball! <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZTr8FdOIi4">Derrick Rose puts Evans in the blender</a>.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*Anybody need a shooter? The 76ers might as well post <a href="http://philadunkia.com/?p=3323">Jason Kapono on Craigslist</a>.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-74263222005783246412010-12-13T23:28:00.000-08:002010-12-13T23:28:56.071-08:00James Harden: Demolition Man. Harden harkens back to a time when men with beards did fantastic things.<iframe height="295" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/jGCjeluFUTs?fs=1" frameborder="0" width="480"></iframe>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-56969373817328839442010-12-13T09:37:00.000-08:002010-12-13T09:37:09.976-08:00Blake Griffin is an Engine of Destruction<iframe height="295" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ij4mL_dmXbM?fs=1" frameborder="0" width="480"></iframe>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-21078853661203685292010-12-13T08:26:00.000-08:002010-12-13T09:14:42.499-08:00See, what had HAPPENED was....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOSV8XF6ndcn8B1QaemY3I4RNKJhvgEYYWgMHfcqhjM1ROcuR92QJt_pFH3lA4yBhTLHtGgMgg90Vl7CkE1XQPKeTUny5DW7hZ-fvUhKV1CD8GGklwv5apUe311yxH_QBShXdWzyaJk44/s1600/Blake-Griffin-dunks-on-Timofey-Mozgov.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOSV8XF6ndcn8B1QaemY3I4RNKJhvgEYYWgMHfcqhjM1ROcuR92QJt_pFH3lA4yBhTLHtGgMgg90Vl7CkE1XQPKeTUny5DW7hZ-fvUhKV1CD8GGklwv5apUe311yxH_QBShXdWzyaJk44/s320/Blake-Griffin-dunks-on-Timofey-Mozgov.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>What?!?! October 27th was the LAST post?! It's not my fault, coach. I'll fill y'all in on the tale of bullets, mistaken identity, and shift Colombians with big guns that had me MIA later, let's just say that whoever the real Justin Nellerton is, he should thank me for dealing with the Lionaza family for him. Can't believe it's been that long; since then we've got excessive successes, suprise flops (*ahem*Miami*cough*), and as always, some dope basketball. Quick hitters:<br />
<br />
<strong><u>MIAMI HEAT</u></strong><br />
<br />
OK. Um. My bad. Wait...what? So I figures if you take 3 of the top 5 or 6 STATISTICAL players from last year, add 2 really good spot-up shooters, throw in the janitor (or hell, even me), you'd see an offensive explosion, Shock and Awe in South Beach. WRONG. WRONG.They've "righted the ship" recently, winning 8 in a row, but damn. 9-8? It was like if someone had used a time machine, uniting 80s Michael Jackson, vintage James Brown, and Luther Vandross, and they come out singing "Rumpshaker" and "Stanky Leg". <br />
<br />
<strong><u>NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN</u></strong><br />
<br />
OK, out the gate, the <strike>Fakers</strike> Lakers, the Hornets (huh?), the Celtics, and the Spurs killed. A quarter of the season passed; LA has stumbled a little, with a 4-game swoon, some uninspired play, and they are KILLING Pau Gasol (some call NBA bigs work horses; then somebody needs to call the ASPCA, cuz Phil Jackson heaping 40 minutes a night on his 30 year old back is downright cruel), the Hornets are looking like the Washington Generals in this piece (6 field goals in the 1st half last night. Against a pathetic Philly team. CP3 is gonna look GOOD in Knicks blue-n-orange), but the Spurs and Celts, both anchored by PFs who played for James Naismith (I'm playin', but KG and Duncan are OLD), are both just chuggin; along, gobbling up wins. The Celts (KG, Ray Ray, Pierce, and Shaq average out to 35 years old) defensive execution, led by a '02 Kevin Garnett, is a nightmare for all comers, and the Spurs' (Duncan, Ginobili, and TP average almost 32 years old) new-found offensive juggernaut is being driven by Manu and <a href="http://poponthepop.com/2010/11/how-eva-longoria-caught-tony-parker-cheating/">"Text Pimp" Tony Parker</a>, letting Duncan take his Centrum Silver in peace (yeah, it's a career low 14 and 9 a game, but the minutes are nice and low, he's gearing up for the play-offs). <br />
<br />
<strong><u>YOUTH IN REVOLT</u></strong><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9RubckdAh4d2Kl_B5nkHY0bqhLsqJd8FOmRhguYoZ4aBnIr3EqH9nl2yFSAdQSF_F3Ey8SGoMYDbT2RgXLyU0GUMV4coZQgBzfFrMtYg80P_4MrftsiMLQnJ6oTVle3C15IT8L6ekORE/s1600/Blake_Griffin_Dunks_On_Lamar_Odom_%2526_Pau_Gasol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" n4="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9RubckdAh4d2Kl_B5nkHY0bqhLsqJd8FOmRhguYoZ4aBnIr3EqH9nl2yFSAdQSF_F3Ey8SGoMYDbT2RgXLyU0GUMV4coZQgBzfFrMtYg80P_4MrftsiMLQnJ6oTVle3C15IT8L6ekORE/s320/Blake_Griffin_Dunks_On_Lamar_Odom_%2526_Pau_Gasol.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Blake. Griffin. Highlights don't do him justice. For a 21 year old about 20 games into his 1st season, to be considered Must See TV is incredible. I've watch John Wall, and dude is extra nice, no doubt. BLAKE is on another level; he already has a season's worth of highlights, and he has <a href="http://therookiewall.com/blog/2010/12/09/artest-on-blake-griffin-i-hope-he-dunks-on-me/">the um, admiration of vets such as Ron Artest (pause...)</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6bwOkhRzGI&feature=related">Amare Stoudemire</a>. Once the Clips slip the shackles of Baron "Fat Boy" Davis' crappy contract and get a real coach, they will beast with Griffin (20 ppg(!), 11.7 rpg(!!)), and Eric Gordon (24 ppg, 4.6 apg) leading the charge. DeMarcus Cousins put the "revolt" in "Youth In Revolt"; the whispers about his attitude have become a dull roar in Sac Town, and he's already been kicked out of a practice because of his behavior, but his game is obviously tight. The question "Why did Philly draft &$%# Evan Turner?!" is a valid one; dude can barely crack the rotation, and as a #2 overall pick on a turrrrible team, that's NOT a positive sign.<br />
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Alot more to cover: The Rise of Westbrook, the Flight of Amare', The Young Team Conundrum, but Rome wasn't built in a day, and YTNITC won't be rebuilt in one session...but once I finish puttying over these bullet holes in my kitchen I'll work this blog back to respectability. Shout out to <a href="http://twitter.com/talkhoops">Zach Harper </a>at <a href="http://talkhoops.net/">talkhoops.net</a>; his work kept me in the loop while I was evading Cartel goons and setting up contract killers in desert ambushes.Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-26488675808093537472010-10-27T09:59:00.000-07:002011-01-12T03:16:37.752-08:00Day Zero: What We LearnedDon't Do it. Don't look at Boston's 88-80 stifling of the Heat and start the hand-wringing and sneering about how MIAMI SUCKS or I KNEW THEY WOULD BE HORRIBLE. Just stop. Along with the harsh glare of opening night shining on the Heat, here's what we learned:<br />
<br />
*Miami has a ways to go; ESPN construction of a dedicated news team JUST for the Heat and people like Jeff Van Gundy <strike>smoking a bowl and then</strike> declaring them 72 game winners put alot of pressure on 'em, and last night we saw that, simply put, they're not ready. BUT-<br />
<br />
- To open with the Celts was one of THE worst scenarios for MIA. THe Celts are the epitome of supreme defensive squad , their suffocating defense ranking 1st, 2nd, and 5th in<a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/hollinger/teamstats/_/sort/defensiveEff/year/2010"> John Hollinger's Defensive Efficiency</a> in the last 3 years. (The 5th place finish last year is misleading; Garnett, Rasheed n' Co. sandbagged the regular season and stepped up at the end, cumulating in the throttling of the Magic and Cavs in last years playoffs, then giving the Lakers ALL they could handle in the Finals). Boston's disciplined rotations, paint-clogging bigs and swift close-outs on the perimeter were too much for the still-developing Heat squad.<br />
<br />
- Mike Miller is going to be a HUGE part of the Heat offensive attack; his sharpshooting, passing, and rebounding (<a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/players/21739/mike-miller">no, really</a>) are expected to lead that 2nd unit and boost the Miami Thrice. Right now, he's a spectator due to a cracked thumb.<br />
<br />
- 3 minutes does not a preseason make. This was basically Dwyane Wade's 1st on-court action since the Celts bounced him from the playoffs, and it showed. He seems out of rhythm and lacked that Burst, going for a weak 13 pts on 25% shooting. Give Wade a week and a half of court time before we proclaim the LBJ/Flash experiment a failure. <br />
<br />
- 1 game does not a legacy make. Bosh had a crap game with 8 and 8. It's one game. He's a 25 and 10 guy. I got faith he'll make up for this clunker. <br />
<br />
What else did we learn Opening Night?<br />
- Lakers are even <a href="http://www.latimes.com/sports/basketball/nba/lakers/la-sp-lakers-web-20101028,0,6607717.story">BETTER</a> than last year. Just typing that makes me wanna sit in a dark room with a bottle of brandy and a cigarette. Shannon Brown might have made the biggest sacrifice of any player this off-season, passing up <a href="http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5660710/shannon_brown_contract_with_los_angeles.html">bigger money and minutes</a> to play his position in LA. If he shoots even close to the way he did last night, he's going to be a problem for the rest of the L. Matt Barnes looks like he was made for this squad. All the <a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Steve-Blake-shows-he-belongs-with-Los-Angeles-Lakers-102610">Steve Blake nay-sayers?</a> Shhhhhhh. It's amazing how playing with quality teammates brings the best out of even those considered "mediocre". <br />
-<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/Los-Angeles-Lakers-star-Pau-Gasol-is-the-best-center-in-the-NBA">Pau Gasol is the best center in the league right now</a>. He's toughened up, he boards, he can shoot, and he's got a full toolbag of post moves. I hate him. His 29/11 and 2 blocks somehow wasn't the headline, but it should have been. <br />
- Speaking of centers; if you KNOW Yao is only playing 24 minutes, shouldn't the coaching staff down in Houston wouldn't force the issue a little, get the team to STOP SHOOTING JUMPERS while Yao's out there??<br />
<br />
<a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=301026022">Phoenix is in big trouble, and Portland is gonna be good</a>. As much as I think we'll see Amar'e struggle without Nash, the Suns now have a gaping 25 ppg hole in the middle. Nash may still have" It", but if you got no one to pass it to, you end up with 26 points (good...), 6 asts (eh..), and 9 TOs (What the..?!?). Hedo Turkoglu's Karma is kicking him in the crotch; I bet he cries into the obscene amount of money he stole from Toronto every night, thinking about throwing lobs to Dwight Howard. <br />
Nicolas Batum = Bruce Bown 3.0?<br />
<br />
That's enough of what I learned...what else stood out on Opening Night?Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-78094536907701165652010-10-26T06:14:00.000-07:002011-01-22T02:46:28.403-08:00Reality Check: This WILL Happen <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNPMx0-RL-Fi-1MTKnPtEt9fK6u9yQiuZTU1FDnKSD3snOfmqLoGCvpj5Pgq_NOqXc_Av6u9AzbeS40PKyKtRSVUp2_blDjdmuhrWu7zJ7myKuiG380VT21EALipjwqYmLjlc287c34HA/s1600/funny_basketball_pictures_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNPMx0-RL-Fi-1MTKnPtEt9fK6u9yQiuZTU1FDnKSD3snOfmqLoGCvpj5Pgq_NOqXc_Av6u9AzbeS40PKyKtRSVUp2_blDjdmuhrWu7zJ7myKuiG380VT21EALipjwqYmLjlc287c34HA/s200/funny_basketball_pictures_05.jpg" width="163" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"They are SO mean on Twitter."</td></tr>
</tbody></table> Right now, as a wanna-be blogger, I'm slackin'. I post less than Chris Bosh does. I produce less than Vince Carter in Crunch-Time. I put up less numbers than Michael Redd's kneecaps. I got all kinds of issues, My ISSUES got issues, and I'm not updating what is SUPPOSED to be the dopest blog in the land enough, but it's cool, because it's STILL the dopest blog in the land. The season starts in less than 48 hours. <a href="http://twitter.com/REALSKIPBAYLESS">Skip Bayless</a>, <a href="http://www.blazersedge.com/2010/10/19/1762559/simmons-new-podcast-with-nba-predictions">Bill Simmons</a>, <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/nba">John Hollinger</a>, and especially <a href="http://twitter.com/talkhoops">Zach "Bacon" Harper</a> at <a href="http://talkhoops.net/">Talkhoops.net</a>, they all pontificate, subjugate, evaluate, palpitate and insinuate their season previews. I'm gonna tell you what exactly is gonna happen this season. As I type, I'm watching Ahmad Rashad try to slurp Kobe, telling him he doesn't "need" the same motivation MJ needed; the same guy who woulda spent millions to pay for the medical situation that would have allowed him to take Michael Jordan's child into his man-made womb if MJ woulda lrt him, is now tryna put Kobe into the conversation with Mike. Ms. Cleo has temporarily given me the gift of sight (Ms Cleo and the fact that I know what the &%#@& I'm watching), so I'm gonna bless you, the NBA reader. As an NBA fan, I hold these truths to be self evident...<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9T1E6TxGM2uClDbOEBIv12V_lfL1QZr-018ClojFePGrdyTQvMJR59MBX4Y90vgJER77u6Rvytp9Jpmy_FV_t6s4h7P3PK62t3bZjZkh5bcLzHd6yIw0nLsAvAZjYpAFBpD50gkLBVqk/s1600/garnett-celtics-heat-041710jpg-655e782915b503c1_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9T1E6TxGM2uClDbOEBIv12V_lfL1QZr-018ClojFePGrdyTQvMJR59MBX4Y90vgJER77u6Rvytp9Jpmy_FV_t6s4h7P3PK62t3bZjZkh5bcLzHd6yIw0nLsAvAZjYpAFBpD50gkLBVqk/s200/garnett-celtics-heat-041710jpg-655e782915b503c1_large.jpg" width="200" /></a><strong><u>1. One of the 3 following teams</u></strong> will win the 2011 championship: Miami Triple Threat, LA Lakers, or the </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Boston Celtics. I'd bet anyone, any time, any where.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaslnVlwRh73glvAIC4yaJHL0thNqIePoHQ1KoXHFntkz2ufp3nfd_EaflY1DiVQ-77XIJXqoT3YTYJRYFgm_4dRRfgTyXH7FikA4Fa_WQUWjUQr18JsmUchC1dAc3uoSRjaSedT625eY/s1600/heatbig3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaslnVlwRh73glvAIC4yaJHL0thNqIePoHQ1KoXHFntkz2ufp3nfd_EaflY1DiVQ-77XIJXqoT3YTYJRYFgm_4dRRfgTyXH7FikA4Fa_WQUWjUQr18JsmUchC1dAc3uoSRjaSedT625eY/s200/heatbig3.jpg" width="200" /></a><strong><u>2.The Miami Heat might not win the champiuonship, but they will DESTROY alot of teams</u></strong>, win a butt-ton of games, and are gonna have nights where we wonder if they'll ever lose. The vitriol and venom is aimed at the Heat. The message board fake-gangstas are trashing the Heat, saying that they're overrated, they don't have the talent to support the hype. Be real. LeBron screwed over a city (and by Electricity, a whole state), but statistically he can't be touched. the foolish babble about Durant being the "best player" is pure media-driven hogwash. Best scorer? Durant, hands down. Best player to build around? I'll take LeBron's 29.7 pts, 8.6 asts (DUDE IS 6'8". 270 LBS!!!!!) and 7.6 boards over Durant's 30.1 ppg, 2.7 asts, and 7.6 boards ANY DAY. Look at those assists numbers again. And damn, Dwyane Wade, who's been missing through the whole "what's wrong with the Heat???" preseason, put up 26.6 points, almost 5 boards, and, most importantly, 6.5 DIMES A GAME last year. That's over 15 dimes a game between those Heat's two primary ballhandlers. <a href="http://www.iamagm.com/news/2010/07/18/wally.szczerbiak.lebron.wade.wont.work">Why are some fools</a> claiming that the 2 stars can't co-exist, as if they have some kind of selfishness syndrome? And somehow, Bosh got stuck this label of being some kind of lame, just along for the ride with these 2 superstars. 24/11/2.4 steals and a block. Bad team or not, those are elite numbers. In the preseason games I watched, Bosh shut that talk down. His jumper was wet, he drove to hole with authority, he used crafty shimmies and fakes on the low box...Bosh is doing exactly what he did in Toronto, with alot more room to fry his opposite number. We are going to witness history.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">24 min 5 sec. Yao shuts it down.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><strong><u>3. Yao Ming will play well</u></strong> but get hurt at some time and miss significant time. It's all well and good to try to limit Yao's minutes protect him, but we ALL know the old adage: if you're out on the court worried about getting injured,sooner or later (probably sooner than later), you WILL get injured. No real baller can thrive on <a href="http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/7202701.html">such a rigid minute farce</a>. If you had a sleek top-of-the-line SUV with a known bad axle or a faulty transmission, would you be scared, driving it only to the store 6 miles away at 8 miles and hour, no more, no less? Or would you go out and get a less awesome but more dependable vehicle? It's getting to that point with Yao. <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/435702-houston-rockets-outlook-even-with-yao-ming-are-they-contenders">The Rockets</a> will be exciting to watch, may make a surprisingly deep playoff run, but the absence of Yao will sink 'em in the playoffs, Ground Hog Day-style...Kevin Martin will score in bunches, Aaron Brooks will cook and look unstoppable at times, and Budinger's a legit NBA threat, but where's that ROCK for that squad, the dude to get tough buckets down the stretch when there's 3:13 seconds left and they're down 7?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NOT the recommended box-out. </td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><u><strong>4. Orlando has a motivated D. Howard</strong></u> (you're a multi-millionaire with physical gifts no one else in the league can touch- why the HELL <a href="http://www.magicbasketball.net/2010/09/23/dwight-howard-looks-to-avenge-last-season/">weren't you motivated last year</a>? You're paid to do one thing: pay basketball really, really well. Why didn't you holla at Hakeem last year, or the year before???). Orlando also is depending on the ultimate dog-player/frontrunner, Vincent Carter. VC HAD breathless talent; but he admitted to dogging it in Toronto, and he's gakked in all his bigtime moments- he is what he is. <a href="http://www.lionsdenu.com/legendary-rant-why-vince-carter-sucks-at-life-and-basketball/">He's not-good when it matters</a>. He worried about being a star without ever being a star. He'll find a way to trip up the Orlando Magic. They won't win one until they go through a mini-rebuilding and shed that idiot Carter's contract. I saw a mock deal to Denver for Carmelo an' Chauncey for Peaches/Reddick/Bass and Carter and Jameer, which would have given Orlando it's best shot. if the Magic wins a 'ship this year I'll eat one of VC's "I suck at life" hats. Let's be real; you can't teach "playing nasty", so Howard hasn't learned how to play nasty. He's a physical freak, he'll probably win 2 or 3 'ships sometime in his career, but this Orlando team is a Regular Season Killa and Playoff Pansies. </div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1sch5s0p1W1GK9DUSaKFRDhmKh4nqFnmsPi2MY-lxt-tZFaV8JDSxU84OXFOcvFxX79Vs8_AjW2GKXjsWRJ-eajsSPKYSwIiHaMrEyI2ojqOHj0942sk3rcjdN-cVoLg2BE6GziNEaM/s1600/dallas-mavericks1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="136" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF1sch5s0p1W1GK9DUSaKFRDhmKh4nqFnmsPi2MY-lxt-tZFaV8JDSxU84OXFOcvFxX79Vs8_AjW2GKXjsWRJ-eajsSPKYSwIiHaMrEyI2ojqOHj0942sk3rcjdN-cVoLg2BE6GziNEaM/s200/dallas-mavericks1.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">taken yesterday. They've already given up.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><u><strong>5. Let's be real. Dallas is like the Cowardly Lion</strong></u>- they just don't have the heart. The basic talent is there- Boubeaouis is freakin' Tony "Longoria" 2.0 with a J; Dirk is a 7 footer raining Js, Jason Kidd is Mr. Do-It-All M.C. Guess what? 2 of those 3 have been the exact same for the last 13 years. Who <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/082610dnspocowmavsitem.8cc27208.html">exactly is gonna make Dallas an elite team</a>? Caron Butler? Yeah, if this was 4 years ago when he was a dominant player. Tyson Chandler? He couldn't hold Kevin Love's jockstrap this summer at the World Games. Prediction- Dallas wins 50+ games and flames out in the 1st two rounds of the playoffs. Dirk isn't an Alpha. Jason Kidd's hanging on but he won't put a team that needs a serious 2nd star like Dallas does over the hump. Jason Terry will give you 20 on some ridiculously in-the-mug jumpshots in losing efforts as usual. Stop playing, that's the Dallas max. </div><br />
<u><strong>6. Who else, San Antonio?</strong></u> C'mon, Tim Duncan is still a very, very, very, VERY good player, but the years haven't just caught up with him., they've built condos on his back and strip clubs in his knees. Yeah, he'll give you 17-20 ppg and 8-12 boards in the monitored minutes Pop will give him, but with the athletic freaks all over the center and PF landscape, how is this throwback <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/330338-san-antonio-spurs-breakdown-the-declining-duncan">gonna lead his team to the Ring</a>? When's the last time we saw <a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/10/24/1887142/spurs-know-championship-window.html">Manu and Tony Parker dazzle</a> on a consistent basis? When's the last time we saw San Antonio string a 4 week period of dominance together? Can you see the Spurs, with no perimeter stopper, dealing with 7' Durant, jumping jack Ibaka, and X-Men mutant Westbrook in 7 games? Be real; Splitter will help, George Hill will help, but in what reality are they beating LA, Miami, or even OKC? The Spurs have fallen back to the pack.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Weeee SUUUUUUUUCK!!!!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>7. The Nugs window is nailed shut.</u></strong> <a href="http://www.nba.com/seasonpreview/2010/DEN/index.html">Carmelo's girlie-drama</a> and Kenyon Martin's mentally deficient reasoning (dude, you're PAID for what you DO, not for what you MAY DO IN THE FUTURE; any time you miss games is stealing money) already got the Nuggets out of the picture. Chauncy's overrated at this point, Nene' is good but not that bomb big man they need, JR Smith is insane...they're like the Atlanta Hawks West. </div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl9stI5ZcQVkW7z79r5j32Ws2Q8f3I9BnuhyphenhyphenX0ISgfTSPBjEjzSF1WceNu1_QJ4nHS09RDbBxKj2XyFTJ29NGkJwNsCwP6PfYxL7EUJ8HAP56V3g42crhvMoIsdfYLnGhIsTqAdja0Epk/s1600/funny-sports-pictures-glee-audition-gone-wrong.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl9stI5ZcQVkW7z79r5j32Ws2Q8f3I9BnuhyphenhyphenX0ISgfTSPBjEjzSF1WceNu1_QJ4nHS09RDbBxKj2XyFTJ29NGkJwNsCwP6PfYxL7EUJ8HAP56V3g42crhvMoIsdfYLnGhIsTqAdja0Epk/s200/funny-sports-pictures-glee-audition-gone-wrong.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Yaaaay! Chcaaago!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>8. Utah Jazz?</u></strong> We love Deron Williams, BEST PG IN THE L, (can't wait to see him somewhere in Texas in 2013!) and we love Jerry Sloan, in my opinion the best coach in the league over his career; he took Karl Malone, Stockton, and the 99 Cent Store Clearance rack to the finals, and more recently he molded Deron, Boozer, and The Other Jacksons into "contenders" (getting Wesley Matthews an bloated contract from the Blazers in the process). <a href="http://www.utahjazz360.com/landojohnso/championship-contenders/">But...be real</a>...</div><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6FVrCHFmivYafzGte1SvFq4VEg__vCwi29XHcqhFDktz0DhvmrnyMU93gA9CrCZwLuYLdXjI4OqyW2gRljZ2NmWBUu-cY_VBrZkCl5Sy-1VF6IMx0o-2TsOv7eK1OYgJk6ksMzI7Hqno/s1600/nets_g_williams1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6FVrCHFmivYafzGte1SvFq4VEg__vCwi29XHcqhFDktz0DhvmrnyMU93gA9CrCZwLuYLdXjI4OqyW2gRljZ2NmWBUu-cY_VBrZkCl5Sy-1VF6IMx0o-2TsOv7eK1OYgJk6ksMzI7Hqno/s200/nets_g_williams1_400.jpg" width="133" /></a><strong><u>9. The Nets Terrence Williams</u></strong> will catch some poor soul slippin' and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nRXOgbiMk8">destroy all nonbelievers</a> with one of those once-in-a-generation, reality twisting, make-me-scream-while-watching-from-the-couch monster poster dunks....</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>10....</u><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwarjipfn3s">kinda like Rose did.</a></strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><u><strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eIgWRcMRzw">11. Also. Anthony Randolph will put heads to bed.</a></strong></u></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><u><strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opcT9pVQQpQ">12. And Javale McGee will make it punch-time at lunch-time.</a></strong></u></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"THE ICE-CREAM MAN IS COMIIIING!!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">14. This year will mark the 1st noticeable of the slow-but-steady <a href="http://ambasketball.com/2010/08/why-kobe-bryants-stats-will-decline/">decline of Kobe' Bryant</a>. Say what you will, at least I admitted that he IS the league's best....<a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/462440-kobe-bryant-is-old-battered-and-used-is-this-the-year-his-decline-begins">but age + mileage on his knees</a> + lingering finger problems -LeBron's prime -KD's ascension to an elite player = Kobe' finally reliquishing the "Best Player" label at the end of the season. I'm not hatin', not saying he'll suck, or any of the old "Aw, hell naw, youza hata!!!" standbyes....Lakers fans, enjoy him while you can, it's goin' down...</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-18021789769009363462010-10-18T21:44:00.000-07:002010-10-18T22:15:47.798-07:00A Man On TrialI'm under the gun. I have a confession to make. Firstt, a little backstory. I love watching dominant basketball. I remember watching Mike eviscerate teams and destroy dudes careers and when the horn sounded, I had the satisfied feeling of a full man who just finished polishing off his favorite meal; when Rodman was added to that Bulls squad and we witnessed the record setting rampage through the league, I was in basketball Heaven, it was the dopest of the dope. Watching that 1st LA Shaq/Kobe juggernaut in the early 2000s was like watching a damn top-notch boxer laying all challengers on their back in a parking lot brawl. Somewhere along the way, with Shaq blowing town and Kobe showing certain Diva-like tendencies and allegedly taking unsuspecting hotel service-workers gross panties against their wills, I admit it, I stopped liking Kobe'. I admit, the whole "I'm-not-trying-to-be-like-Mike" while desperately trying to be like Mike thing irked me. The whole "won't-get-Ason (no J)-Kidd-cuz-of-Bynum?-Trade-his-azz!!!" garbage and the BS trade demands when the team struggled got on my damn nerves. So when Vince Carter, T-Mac, and now LeBron hit the scene, I would go through all the rigmarole to put one of these guys, ANY of these guys, above Kobe in the 2 guard hierarchy, cuz I just didn't dig that dude. I mean, who beefs with Ray Allen? Fast forward to December 2009; Lebron is stampeding any and all defenders, the Cavs are doing skits and dancing on the sidelines, and I'm telling any and everyone that wanna babble about Kobe',"Yo yo, my man, Kobe' is nice and all, and I'mma let you finish, but LEBRON JAMES is the BEST PLAYER in the League!!! THE WHOLE LEAGUE!!!!" *Shrug*. Did he dance on the sidelines DURING a game, pissing of Chi? Yeah, and that was some bull. Did he start to really get full of himself, and start referring to himself in 3rd person WAY too much? Hell yeah, and that was crap. But guess what? I didn't care; <em>he wasn't Kobe.</em> The League bestowed him his MVP, Kobe' was banged up, life was good. Then- The Celtics expose LeBron as gutless (I don't care about his "the fans are spoiled" talk; a true warrior would have went out with both guns empty, shot 6 for 24 with 7 turnovers if he had to, he would have TRIED). THEN...Kobe' wills his team to ANOTHER Finals. And DENNN....Kobe' DOES shoot 6/24, but dude grabs 15 boards; at 6'7" with a bum knee, that's insane. I remember sitting in that sports bar with my homie Dun, surrounded by rabid, drunk Lakers fans, while I crowed and heckled with Boston bruising their way to a 4th quarter lead IN LA!!!! BUT...Kobe' goes 8-9 from the line and grabs 4 boards in the 4th. It's over, LA wins. Are you ^$%#* KIDDIN' ME!?!? Did he shoot 40% for the series? Yeah, the Boston D was a wall, and Kobe' was a walking wounded wing all by himself. Did<a href="http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/sports/pau-gasol-steals-the-show-in-nba-finals-game-7_100382362.html"> Pau play better than Bryant in Game 7</a>? Hell yeah, Pau's 18 points and 19 boards was game changing, but in the crunch, that jerk Kobe' grabbed the game by the throat and took it home as his. So yeah, as much as it makes my eyes bleed and my teeth itch, I will admit it: Kobe'snot the fastest or more athletic anymore, he's not the best shooter, not the best pure scorer, or the best defender. He's still not a good person, but <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/409583-kobe-bryant-is-the-2010-finals-mvp-for-a-reason">Kobe' Bean Bryant is the best player in the damn WORLD</a>. Excuse me while I go set myself on fire. I see you Dev...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuSP2UXYaF1W4npnMusMBmcQzPWqGRdelRrbPjZ86jBq4hPCEft1rnERuQzG0jysh2g7_azIDSyC7swzvZc5WSCyfX7hJll3mvK8g9hS9HoMPI6HuoL_eCFC8Zy3P6_gTruc85y-KEOw/s1600/061710-kobe-story.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIuSP2UXYaF1W4npnMusMBmcQzPWqGRdelRrbPjZ86jBq4hPCEft1rnERuQzG0jysh2g7_azIDSyC7swzvZc5WSCyfX7hJll3mvK8g9hS9HoMPI6HuoL_eCFC8Zy3P6_gTruc85y-KEOw/s320/061710-kobe-story.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I hate this guy.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-4691652892884433482010-10-16T15:42:00.000-07:002010-10-16T15:42:06.447-07:00Weekend Flash Pt. Dos<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHDXtNKTqzbKtXCsFgLTLnUjCMw2uRmhVqnjDMbcWx0V99SDGv8fTg7FEpS5k2Jmv_QcKp9d8lyczWZ6JgflPYTaZ9O199FYgKn_Wg4Z7e_XIr8QuTnmJdnbrC1W5urYAiXie652mFtLo/s1600/on-court-kobe-bryant-vs-lebron-james-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHDXtNKTqzbKtXCsFgLTLnUjCMw2uRmhVqnjDMbcWx0V99SDGv8fTg7FEpS5k2Jmv_QcKp9d8lyczWZ6JgflPYTaZ9O199FYgKn_Wg4Z7e_XIr8QuTnmJdnbrC1W5urYAiXie652mFtLo/s200/on-court-kobe-bryant-vs-lebron-james-1.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">KB n' LBJ, right before Kobe's cracked sternum.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*OK, as a pro athlete, you HAVE to have to think highly of yourself; it tales a certain level of arrogance to be elite in your sport. I dig that. So when Kobe' says he'd <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnDrm8YPSBE">win a 1-on-1 match-up with LeBron no sweat</a>, I understand. But PLEASE, how can anyone who watches basketball not fear for Kobe's life if this ever happened? LBJ would simply go beast mode and steamroll Bryant. It's not even a question. I respect Kobe's work ethic and competitiveness and his "jaw-jut" (that's a lie, I find that <a href="http://www.fanballers.com/files/image/Kobe_Face.jpg">idiotic face</a> he does when he's "on a mission" ridiculous), but head up, LeBron is smashing Kobe.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYgXbsTBziW5TIbNIVeIXd5LyeAi9gQxuhYWq_jYelzkUbhAtW2I9AGh85NtSg7FI2cimz8_enzMHM2w3QAgP9f_eC6IYE6oZOKUbftc0ukLOg0O8Dc9_JpSqwGjC73dp3GMNHxW1IYb8/s1600/lbjartest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYgXbsTBziW5TIbNIVeIXd5LyeAi9gQxuhYWq_jYelzkUbhAtW2I9AGh85NtSg7FI2cimz8_enzMHM2w3QAgP9f_eC6IYE6oZOKUbftc0ukLOg0O8Dc9_JpSqwGjC73dp3GMNHxW1IYb8/s200/lbjartest.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"I'm 'bout to bust yo' head."</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*It's funny the kinds of head-games NBA players run on each other. LA is gonna feel the wrath brought on by RonRon's <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=5686339">slick talk (or non-talk)</a> about LeBron. I'm a huge Kevin Durant(ula) fan, but to put him ahead of LeBronicus Rex just because of a (justifiably) superlative run this summer is ridiculous. Durant DID give LA 25 a night in their thrilling 1st round series, but he shot 35% from the floor. This isn't an indictment of him of him, but he's not better than LBJ in any facet of the game right now except humbleness. Remember this tongue-in-cheek diss when LeBron drops a sick 47/13 board/14 assist night on Artest's head sometime this season.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5erpopxkZBzuxcxUS_zbvSLLqzBREw_Zh8xrIleZAKUW6i8HzjJGsYqQDetI2etrAWSF3zwNjZeA9YUUpfVFr7AOnG71k9cM12dB7iqJR5Wj71zn8cjzfEcW5umXBhkqjxwE7fd5RnE8/s1600/mj.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5erpopxkZBzuxcxUS_zbvSLLqzBREw_Zh8xrIleZAKUW6i8HzjJGsYqQDetI2etrAWSF3zwNjZeA9YUUpfVFr7AOnG71k9cM12dB7iqJR5Wj71zn8cjzfEcW5umXBhkqjxwE7fd5RnE8/s200/mj.jpg" width="146" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Like this, but like 40 more times.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*I LOVE <a href="http://search.espn.go.com/john-hollinger/">John Hollinger's work</a>; he's insightful, and leans on smart statwork to bolster his theories. I gotta disagree with him trying to <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/TrueHoop/post/_/id/20458/taking-air-out-of-mjs-100-point-claim">disprove MJ's boast that he could score a 100</a> if he played now-a-days. You know why I KNOW he could have? He's MICHAEL ^%#$* JORDAN. He was basically unstoppable when the league was allowed to push, grab, trip, slap, and pound on him to no end (watch tapes of Detroit and NY <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWsgkauZb-U">playing D</a> on MJ; if Kobe or T-Mac took punishment like Mike had to deal with, their heads would have imploded). Now? With the "no touching" rules, lack of burly interior defenders and even less high quality wing defenders? I can definitely see Mike having one of "those nights" and dropping triple digits on the Suns or Clippers.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">*Interesting post from<a href="http://www.hoopinionblog.com/2010/10/2010-11-season-preview-joe-johnson.html"> Hoopinionblog.com</a>, but I could have saved 'em A LOT of work analyzing stats. Joe Johnson's contract became a negative to Atlanta the minute he placed the tip of the pen on the <em>SIGN HERE: </em>line. In no way, shape, form, or alternate reality is the guy who just went for 18, 5 and 5 on 38% shooting in this years playoffs worth 119 mil. </div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8412016014866944876.post-26815311151256797782010-10-16T13:02:00.000-07:002010-10-16T13:24:43.670-07:00Weekend Blast <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5YFhAXsqnlRMX_jo_bIpi6mA0csZW1w27BDqa7tqiYr0XN07AxzTStc36MGr1Xc7aDQ7KA56Maqd0u5LTmQ3P9ithS4HBFINUmQ2W0TyqnyXGl_4X54x3yduJV_Sx0j5e5fIB3LiDfcA/s1600/rasheed-wallace-pointing_tech_image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5YFhAXsqnlRMX_jo_bIpi6mA0csZW1w27BDqa7tqiYr0XN07AxzTStc36MGr1Xc7aDQ7KA56Maqd0u5LTmQ3P9ithS4HBFINUmQ2W0TyqnyXGl_4X54x3yduJV_Sx0j5e5fIB3LiDfcA/s200/rasheed-wallace-pointing_tech_image.jpg" width="142" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tech.</td></tr>
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">OK, I want my NBA back. I want to see real ballers going all in, screw how much their making. Remember <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-DSk2dwUb04/TARg7njnfqI/AAAAAAAABM0/XzA7oyitml0/s1600/mchale-rambis-clothesline-1.jpg">McHale/Rambis WrestleMania VII</a>? Remember MJ dunking on Ewing, then screaming in his face? Mutombo's finger-wave? Shawn Kemp eviscerating Alton Lister in '92, then <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_PzNsUotVI&feature=related">pointing to show the world who just tasted his junk?</a> I wanna see the best athletes in the world goin' hard in the paint, without worrying about the ticky-tack fouls or BS calls robbing them of their aggressiveness or breaking their concentration. It's so bad that the NBPA might <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=5689436">take 'em to court to stop this nonsense</a>. Yeah, the NBA is a billion dollar corporation, but the essence of those billions boils down to athletes trying to dominate each other, mentally and on the scoreboard. I remember watching the Rocky when he fought Ivan Drago; they showed the huge, ice-cold Russian ripping through his training partners with his face as impassive as stone; his emotionless destruction of Apollo Creed (Throw in the %^#*$ TOWEL!!!!) was chilling, sociopathic. Now, why would we want our NBA to be like that? I've read the sheeplike "this is a good rule!" responses like <a href="http://nba-facts-and-rumors.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/25231539">this</a> clown, to which I respond: Shut up. I mean, are there SOME athletes *cough-KobeGarnettDuncan-cough* who DO whine at every call or non-call. Did the refs, over time, let this be the situation? Of course, this is a league of stars, and some dudes are given excessive leeway. But get outta here with that "ruining the game" crap. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyvjPkhIfA1iiwcBRB3K-7DHb8Scn9Po72m-1z68yxRvwu622H2d96NzfOEVl34rmXNJuCSElg1rChRXWjgfXILNemS7OCINovNbmLy02v__aNbbp9hEk_pTDPctthnjOF1-1loygKRLI/s1600/Sidebox-Rasheed-Wallace_tech.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyvjPkhIfA1iiwcBRB3K-7DHb8Scn9Po72m-1z68yxRvwu622H2d96NzfOEVl34rmXNJuCSElg1rChRXWjgfXILNemS7OCINovNbmLy02v__aNbbp9hEk_pTDPctthnjOF1-1loygKRLI/s320/Sidebox-Rasheed-Wallace_tech.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Except Sheed. He took it pretty far sometimes. Still liked it, though.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Are you telling me that, as a man, if Gerald Wallace is playing hard-nosed, all-out D on Duran tin the last 5 minutes of a 3point game, he doesn't fall for any jukes and fakes, and as Durant goes up he challenges the shot heroically, the shot misses but *TWEEET* the whistle bails KD out, are you telling me that Gerald Wallace can't turn, in the heat of the moment, turn in disbelief and be like "WHAAAT?!?!?"? Are you telling me if Kyle Korver comes hard off the screen, pulls up and drains a slick 18 footer while obviously getting smacked on the arm, it's a TECHNICAL FOUL because he surreptiously smacked his arm to show the ref where he was hit as he ran back down the floor (this actually happened.)? I get it; the Rasheed-Full-Court-Run-N-Screams after foul calls and the KG F-bombs gotta go. </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghBbMOcAcHfmsUGbUQ_zAZknSj33Yq93Z2hVLqS5AETpb7n_-sJoQ1kWdLMzFcetjnK9SiTofdKVneWtprBj8KAKjNgFPQHGMEWbb5T417zo7-ghJvFoUpINwuofL6BwHNcE03EX1X-sU/s1600/tim_duncan_tech.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ex="true" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghBbMOcAcHfmsUGbUQ_zAZknSj33Yq93Z2hVLqS5AETpb7n_-sJoQ1kWdLMzFcetjnK9SiTofdKVneWtprBj8KAKjNgFPQHGMEWbb5T417zo7-ghJvFoUpINwuofL6BwHNcE03EX1X-sU/s200/tim_duncan_tech.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tech.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">But is Tim Duncan's bug-eyed "Who ME??" reaction to commiting fouls or Kobe's glare at a ref is worth a tech? Basketball is a sport, it's entertainment, and seeing the best players in the world show raw emotion is a big part of it; we as fans like to see that these millionaires care just like we do when we play pick up, that they take pride in doing what they do and have no problem showing the world. I know Doc Rivers and other coaches (and even some players) are regurgitating the brown-nosing company line (which is hilarious, Rivers is notorious for working the refs), but this is just another tug on the noose that's strangling the personalities of the NBA. From the crackdown on taunting to the <a href="http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/9730334/">dress code</a>, to the "<a href="http://larrybrownsports.com/basketball/nba-needs-to-change-leaving-the-bench-rule/448">Leave The Bench</a>" rule<a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/3382/flagrant-fouls-leaving-the-bench-and-suspensions"> that derailed the Suns playoff run in 2007</a>, to this crap, Stern is going all Animal Farm on the players, constricting them, brick by brick, into a confining image of what conservative (read: "White") America needs to see. You can't deny the controlled violence and necessary animosity needed to perform at a high level in the NBA. If the worst spillover is players being irked by calls they don't agree with, then we're ahead of the game. This is about players playing, the refs are no more than details and accessories. THey do NOT deserve even close to equal billing, nor should they whine about "respect"; theit job is to judge, so why can't the players voice the displeasure with shoddy reffing??</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Snottie Drippenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11212056039730026775noreply@blogger.com0