Finally A Good Comment

Today, as I typically do, I started the day off by reading a few articles on ESPN.com. I came across anarticle about the sting Kevin Durant is feeling having to be teammates with theLeBron, the man who beat him in the finals. Didn't think it was an overly good article or anything but I enjoyed it. What I enjoyed more was the comments section. Most comments sections are better than whatever is being commented on. This is mostly because of the trolling that goes on. On ESPN that takes the form of outrageously stupid opinions from irrational fans usually with ridiculously handles: "NatsDukesSkins," "Lebron - The Greatest Of All Time - James," "FeartheOlympicBeard" (which I actually like lol) being a few examples. Comments are also great because occasionally you will come across a fan that really knows what they are talking about or at the very least makes a compelling, logical comment. 

Today that came from a guy named "MyWordsSpeakTruthAllDay" (heavy burden to bear). He came up with a top 10 list of players and provided some pretty good info to back it up:

1) Jordan: No explanation needed... 6 Rings, 6 Finals MVP’s, 5 MVP’s, Only Player In History Other Than Wilt To Go For More Than 3,000 Points In A Season (3,041 in 86-87), All-Star every year played (14), 10 Scoring Champ, Scoring Titles 10, DPOY 1, Steals Titles 3, All NBA 1st Team, NBA All Defensive 1st Team 9, ROY

2) Magic: Finals MVP As A Rookie... 3 X Finals MVP, 3 MVP’s, 5 Rings (9 Finals), All Time Leader In Avg Apg 11.2, All-Star 12 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 9 X’s, All-Star MVP 2 X’s, ROY

3) Kareem: 6 Rings, 2 Finals MVP’s, 6 MVP’s, NBA All Time Leading Scorer, 19 X All-Star, All NBA 1st Team 10 X’s, All NBA Defensive 1st Team 5 X’s, NBA Scoring Champ 2 X’s, ROY

4) Russell: 11 Rings, 5 MVP’s, All-Star 12 X’s, All Star MVP 1 X, NBA Rebounding Champ 5 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 3 X’s, All NBA Defensive Team 1 X

5) Wilt: 2 Rings, 4 MVP’s, 1 Finals MVP, In 1962 He Avg 50.4 PPG & 25.7 RPG & Scored 100 Pts In A Game... Next Season He Avg 44.8 PPG & 24.3 RPG, All-Star 13 X’s, All Star MVP 1 X, Averaged 50 Points One Season, All NBA 1st Team 7 X’s, All NBA Defensive 1st Team 2 X’s, NBA Scoring Champ 7 X’s, NBA Rebounding Champ 11 X’s, ROY

6) Bird: 3 Rings, 3 MVP’s, 2 Finals MVP’s, All-Star 12 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 9 X’s, 3 Point Champ 3 X’s, 3 X’s All NBA 2nd Team Defensive, ROY

7) Shaq: 4 Rings, 3 Finals MVP’s, 1 MVP, All-Star 15 X’s, All Star MVP 3 X’s, NBA Scoring Champ 2 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 8 X’s, ROY

8) Duncan: 4 Rings, 3 Finals MVP’s, 2 MVP’s, All-Star 13 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 9 X’s, All NBA Defense 1st Team 8 X’s ROY

9) Kobe: 5 Rings, 1 MVP, 2 Finals MVP’s, Scored 81 Points In A Game, All-Star 14 X’s, All Star MVP 4 X’s. NBA Scoring Champ 2 X’s, All NBA 1st Team 10 X’s, All NBA Defensive 9 X’s... Why so low? NBA records: 1) most missed shots in a game 2) most missed shots in a regular season 3) most missed game winners 4) only finals MVP to not shoot above 50% in a single finals game (9 & 10) 5) worst shooting performance by a finals MVP in history (40% shooting) 6) of the top 10 scorers of all-time Kobe has lowest shooting % 7) there are only 13 games in history where someone shot below 50% to reach 50 points, Kobe is responsible for 7 of those 13 games 8) most missed shots in a series 9) most missed shots in a finals

10) Lebron: 1 Ring, 3 MVP’s, 1 Finals MVP, All-Star 8 X’s, NBA Scoring Champ 1 X, All NBA 1st Team 6 X’s, All NBA Defensive 4 X’s, ROY

  

That's pretty well done if you ask me. It’s kind of hard to argue with his list. What do you think?

NBA Finals Preview

So the NBA Finals kick off tonight, finally.

Unless you live under a rock you know that its the Oklahoma City Thunder going up against the Miami Heat and LeBron v. Durant. It's going to be a very interesting and entertaining series. The battles of two prolific big 3s. The young, full of energy Thunder are high octane. The Heat, with LeBron and Wade can be equally as exciting. LeBron v Durant matchup will be epic.

For the Heat to Win:

It will mostly come down to how much the big three will do. I think LeBron will bounce back after a horrible finals last year. He is on a roll right now and I don't see that stopping. I can see him averaging 30-11-7 for the series and playing strong defense on Durant at times throughout the series. He must play well in the 4th though for them to win. Wade will play well offensively as he typically does in Finals. Defensively, he will draw Westbrook at times and Harden in the closing minutes of the 4th. He will have to play strong defense against those two when he gets matched up with them. Bosh was the difference in the series against Boston. He may not be fully healthy and whether he is or not he will be facing a tougher defensive matchup then he did against Boston: Serge Ibaka and/or Nick Collison. He will have to play as well as he can for Mia to be succesful.

The big three alone won't be able to beat OKC, someone from the rest of the roster will have to step up. For me this really means Chalmers, Battier or Haslem. I don't see any of them performing well for the duration of the series, but if each of them can have a good to great game at any point during the series they could be the difference in a few games. Mike Miller and James Jones may see some action this series and they have to hit the threes they will get. The Heat "big" men: Bosh, Haslem, and Anthony must do a good job rebounding. The Thunder are a jump shooting team. They can't make all your jumps shots. If the Heat can pull down some of those rebounds and turn them to points on the other end they can win.

As a team the Heat must capitalize on turnovers, which they do pretty well. OKC isn't the strongest defensive team and are prone to lapses, especially on the perimeter. Miami needs to be ready to take advantage of those lapses and knock down open jumpers. I'd like to see Miami run some pick and roll, which San Antonio used effectively at times. Miami needs to play with some fire in their eyes. After reaching the Finals and not playing well last year, this shouldn't be a problem. They must stay focused and hungry throughout the series. Obviously for Miami to win the series they will have to win at least one game on the road. The best chance might be in game 1 if the catch the Thunder overly excited. If they win one of those 1st two game on the road they have a great chance to win the series.

For the Thunder to Win:

They have to do what they've been doing which is getting great production from their big three and steady production from their role players. Durant has to be ready to put in work this series, some of which will match him against the best defender he will face this playoffs: LeBron. He can't be timid, as he sometimes is, this series. When the game is in the balance he needs to step up and demand the ball and rise to the occasion. Westbrook has to make good decisions and limit his turnovers. Plain and simple. Harden must do what he has been doing, coming off the bench playing solid on both ends. He may have to play more minutes this series so he needs to play at the same high level throughout.

Serge Ibaka has to play big this series, all series. On the defensive end he will have to guard Bosh but also have a presence in the paint when Wade and LeBron drive. Offensively, he has to be ready to knock down some jumpers and/or get some easy buckets in the paint. Not really sure we will be seeing a great deal of Kendrick Perkins because of the Heat's lack of big men but when he plays he needs to patrol the paint as he does, and pick up a few of his patented "Who me fouls" to put some fear in Heat players. Former Bulls great Sefolosha must play great defense throughout the series, mostly on Wade but at times on LeBron. He also has to be ready to knock down a few threes when his number is called. Collison and Fisher will be the main people coming off the bench with Harden. Fisher must play decent defense when he is in the game. While with the Lakers he was weak against younger, quicker PGs so he can't let Chalmers get going.

As a team, the Thunder have to remain poised. This is their first finals appearance since relocating. The crowd will be super hype. The players must stay calm and under control especially early. Avoid poor decisions and bad shots which Miami can flip into easy buckets and get going. They also have to remain confident. They have played so well throughout the playoffs mainly because they haven't been scared of anything, knocking off the Mavs, Lakers and Spurs. Finally, the Thunder must continue to play well at home (8-0). Obviously, if they win out at home they will be champions, but if they can have a strong first 2 games and win convincingly they will will put all the pressure on Mia, which they don't typically play well under.

Prediction:

My head is telling me that the Thunder will win, almost rather easily. They are a better team and have depth. They have home court advantage and they are playing with such confidence. Mia doesn't have much depth and hasn't played typically well under pressure. LeBron will be great but he will be tired, especially mentally, when it may count. My heart also leans with the Thunder simply because I like them more than I like the Heat. They have 4 of my favorite players and one of my favorite beards: Westbrook, Durant, Perk and Harden and his beard. I'm getting a gut feeling that the Heat can pull this thing out. They are in their second consecutive Finals. Do we really expect them to lose two in a row? They might be a little more hungrier than the Thunder because of all the pressure that is on them. On top of that I really think the Heat can get one of the 1st two games in OKC. I wouldn't be surprised if they won game 1. If that's the case, they can go home and win 2 of 3 and come back for games 6 and 7 up 3-2.

All that being said, I'm going Thunder in 6. I'm going with my head and heart. Going to be a great series though.

#HelloBrooklyn

The Brooklyn Nets have unveiled their logos...

The Shield of Brooklyn

Half Court Logo

I absolutely love it! My fan hood has officially begun.

Morehouse vs Kentucky

The college basketball season officially starts tonight with some mouth watering
(-_-) matchups.

The exception is of course is the North Carolina vs Michigan State game which is being played on an active US Navy Carrier: USS Calvin. The game, a rematch of the 2009 national championship, is set to be a good one. If not at least we can say that it's on a boat. Pretty fucking cool.

Anyway, I din't start this to write about UNC but about another powerhouse Kentucky. Even though the season starts today most schools have played a few exhibitions to prepare, Kentucky included.

On Monday night, my Alma mater: Morehouse College traveled to Lexington, Kentucky to take on the famed Wildcats.

Why, you ask?

Who knows?

Maybe he does

Seriously though I think hope that it involved some money being given to my school. This is a common practice in college football. The big schools often pay smaller schools to travel to their schools for a game, cupcake matchups. Hopefully, Morehouse got 6 figures for it because, well you know what happened...

#JEALOUSED

Kentucky Dominates From Start, Routs Morehouse 125-40

Kentucky Cruises Past Morehouse in in Final Exhibition

And we have no NBA thus far....

Great.

Throwback Thursday: MJ's Last Shot

In honor of being in Chicago this week's Throwback Thursday comes from the man who had so many great moments in this city: Michael Jordan.

His last shot was on the road in Utah tho lol:

Let LeBron Live

Unless you've been under a rock you know that the Miami Heat did not win the NBA title.  

#respect

You also know that LeBron James has been taking the majority of the blame for it. Some might say he's just getting what he deserves. There were so many things from b4 the season (the Decision, the concert style intro) to the Finals (the way he celebrated with Wade, made fun of Dirk, the disappearing act he did in the 4th quarters of this series) even post finals (game 6 postgame interview) that provide justification in people's minds.

Ever since "The Decision" LeBron has arguably become the most hated person in the NBA. I've hated on him all year, consistently calling him LeBama and RTing nearly every insulting tweet about him that crosses my TL:

I'm done hating now though. I'm starting to feel bad for him. If you know me and how hard I hate things you're probably thinking "Wow Chris, really?" Yes, really. 

If there is one thing I can say about this whole LeBron thing is that he has had to deal with a ridiculous, unfair amount of pressure. I hate pressure, more than I hate LeBron, and so I think its time to let up and let them man live. 

Perhaps he made his own bed and now has to lie in it. Perhaps. I'm a little skeptical though.

I will be the first to tell you that LeBron disrespected the fans of Cleveland by announcing on national TV that he was "taking his talents to South Beach." That's the initial reason why I hated him. He could have went about that better for sure.

I also didn't like how he decided to join forces with another elite player (Top 5), rather than try to win it on his own and potentially becoming better than Jordan. I think these are the reasons why most people hate him. Everyone needs to chill.

LeBron carried a team a city on his back for 7 years. He played the best he could (back to back MVP awards) and took them as far as he could with what he had ('07Finals) for as long as he could. Truthfully, he had done everything he could as a Cavalier. They always say once you've done everything you can at a particular job its time to move on to a new challenge. And its not like he demanded a trade, he served out his contract and then moved on. Nothing wrong with that. The way he decided to say it, yea that was bad, but how long can we hate him for that?

Now going to the Heat to play alongside Dwanye Wade doesn't present much of challenge at all, but I think that's exactly what LeBron wanted.

We get on him for not being clutch and for crumbling under the pressure. What if its true and he doesn't like the pressure and having to perform under it. What if he knows he's simply not wired that way (very few people are). So he decided to go to a place with less pressure and that had a guy who is perfectly fine when the heat is on (see what I did there?). In LeBron's mind he was escaping the pressure of having to be the go to guy every night. There's nothing wrong with that either.

Think about anytime you were the go to guy/girl. You may have enjoyed it and may have even been good at it. Eventually I'm sure you got tired of the pressure and expectations. I'm sure that whatever it is that you were relied on to do wasn't being watched and counted on by millions of people. I'm sure that if you had a chance to step out of the pressure cooker you would. You did. LeBron did too.

At some point in the series Jeff Van Gundy said that all LeBron did was change his place of employment and decided to go work with his friends and that if we had the chance to we'd do the same thing. Its absolutely correct. We would. Nothing wrong with that.

Then we have the Jordan comparisons. Well Jordan wouldn't have done that, Jordan would have perform under pressure, la la la. True Jordan would have and did. That's why he's Jordan and LeBron is LeBron. JA Adande wrote that it's us who compare him and want him be the next Jordan or even better. That's what we want but clearly not what LeBron wants. We can't seem to appreciate his greatness as is because we want him to be the next Jordan. He's not. Guess what? Nothing wrong with that either.

LeBron has been under more media scrutiny than any other athlete (maybe person) ever. Everything he does get dissected and blow out of proportion. I mean in game 2 did he really celebrate more than any other player does at a timeout? More than Jet does? 

No. But it was made to seem that way. Even his post finals comments got blown up. If you listen to the whole statement you'd see he wasn't being malicious, he was just stating facts: we all will return to our normal lives. We have.

Its time to ease up on the man. Time to stop expecting him to be something or someone he's not. Let's pull the microscope back. Let's realize that at any given moment he can be the best player on earth. Lets also realize that the Heat are still the best team in the East and will probably represent the conference in the finals for the next few years. Lets let the man live.

Respecting Rose

22. Youngest to ever do it.

"I just play basetball"

That was the main point of the first Derrick Rose interview I had ever seen. It was after his playoff debut in which he dropped 36 points and 11 dimes and help his Bulls beat the Celtics. I wish I could find the whole interview but all I could get was this clip:



You've probably seen the rest. Dude sounded like a mix of Warren from Something about Mary and Boobie Miles and looked more dumbfounded than W and Eli put together. Every since then I have been making fun of his lack of intelligence, consistently calling him dumber than a box of rocks. Then of course there was that whole NCAA investigation thing which added fuel to my fire...

I've always respect Rose as a player but throughout the course of this season I've grown to respect him more and more as a person. He hasn't gotten any smarter in the traditional sense but I realized that he hasn't needed to. He's a ball player and he's done the one thing he's had to: continue to get better and smarter at being that. And boy did it show. As he dominated opponents and carried his team to the top record in the league many people consistently pronounced him as the MVP. Rather than let his ego inflate he stayed humble.When he was voted in as an All-Star starter and people suggested it was his chance to shine he deferred to the All-Star elders. And even once he was formally announced as the MVP all he could do was thank his teammates and #shoutout his mom:

If anyone deserves a moment to brag it would be Rose. He made it through the slums of the Chi to the league. He got drafted by his hometown team number 1 overall. He was asked to bring the Bulls back to a place they haven't been since That Guy left. Many would have wilted under such pressure but Rose has risen to the challenge gracefully.

I used to think his subdued and humble demeanor was moreso an side effect of his ignorance but now I realize that he is just a respectful youngster doing what he's been blessed to do. He's just a kid honing his craft, humbly accepting his accolades and being a great representation of his family and his city. It's refreshing and I respect it. Go on young brotha...

#Respect

The Return of the NBA

End of October mean NFL is in the swing of things, the BCS starts wrecking havoc, Baseball is preparing to crown their champ via the World Series and the NBA starts up, oh yea Hockey is back too.

Anyway tonight the NBA season begins. You might have heard that a few things happened this offseason. Talents went to South Beach, Boston brings in 2 O'Neals, Knicks land Stat and some new playoff hopes, CP3 requesting to be traded have a better team put around him, the continuous Melo Trade rumors, Kevin Durant's continued emergence as US grabbed Gold, the John Wall dance finds a home in DC, Lakers quietly re-arming....so many stories. (List of Free Agency Moves).

Experts are torn between crowning the Lakers or Heat as champs but most agree that Durant will notch the MVP ending LeBron's run. They are split about the Rookie of the Year battle between John Wall and Blake Griffin but solid on the Defensive Player of the Year. Who really cares about the coach of the year, most improved and 6th man? If you do go to ESPN it aint touching my blog lol.

Nonetheless the season starts tonight with Miami Thrice and suspects taking on the Boston Three Party plus the Sliding punch and the Big Shamrock.

I'll be at the Wagon with the #NYcrew enjoying brews and sending boos.

 

I'll be posting my NBA preview/thoughts/predictions later this week, I'll let you know...

Durant, B-Team Earn Gold

Francis Scott Key and James Naismith would be proud

The so called "B-Team" finished on top at the Worlds.

Team USA cruise to gold with an 81-64 win against Turkey in the Gold medal game of the World Championships. Kevin Durant led this version of Team USA to the 1st USA Gold in the World Championships since 1994 (when he was 5). Durant was an offensive force, scoring 33, 38 (USA Record) and 28 in the tournaments final 3 games. He averaged 22.8 ppg during the tournament and was named the MVP.

This team was a reluctant favorite to win. They were young (6 players under the age of 22), inexperienced (only 3 played on an international team), undersized (one true center on the roster) and lacked star power (only 8 all-star game appearances). However. they did have talent, freakish athleticism and that guy Durant.

Throughout the tournament the team used their speed, length and athleticism to play impeccable defense, limiting opponents to 68 points per game. Durant, who some feared may not be ready to take the national team on his shoulders (myself included), rose to the occasion and was for the most part unstoppable scoring at will and not having any off nights (another thing people feared). He's not even 22 yet...

The Gold ensures Team USA a spot in the 2012 Olympics, meaning the team won't be under pressure next summer. The only question is what the 2012 roster will look like, and who from this team might make that one...Durant for sure.

My vote:
Starting 5: CP3, Wade, Kobe, LBJ, Dwight
Bench: D-Will, Durant, Melo, Bosh, Rose Iguodala, Some additional big man (Boozer, Odom, Love, Chandler, Amare, B. Lopez,  Bynum).

We'll see...anyway #Respect to this team...coming home with Gold.

Rondo Withdraws...

Start working on ya jumper man

Rajon Rondo withdrew from Team USA late Tuesday night citing family issues but it may be more than that. Rondo, who felt he was on the bubble, may have been trying to save himself from the embarrassment, at least thats what a few reports have said (ESPN and Fanhouse). The news saddens me as I'm a big Rondo fan (my game is similar to his). Outside of my fanhood, I did think he was a good fit for the team, being a championship PG and very good distributor. Of course I was aware of his shooting struggles from the field and the FT line, but I thought his strengths vastly outweighed the weaknesses. What do I know? (Nothing, been wrong all my life). Better hit the gym brotha, 5000 jumpers a day.....

Team USA now has its set Roster. We'll see how they'll do tonight, 7pm ESPN and in the tournement (starts Tuesday).

A look at Team USA

2008 Team USA (Redeem Team) Collects Gold Medals

In case you haven't noticed I'm a Team USA Stan. After the '08 Olympics I wrote a lil something on what I thought the '12 Olympic team would look like (Scroll through the comments I'm cbwr24). Its time for a little revising lol (Future post).

Anyways, the FIBA World Championships is right around the corner (Aug. 28th-Sept. 12th) and Team USA has been preparing all summer, so naturally I've been following. The started in camp earlier this summer out in Vegas, then they came to New Your City where the participated in the Nike World Basketball Festival, and now they're in Europe for the final preparations before the tournament starts. 

Of course no players from the Redeem Team are on this team one from that team is on this team (nothing to prove unlike last time). Fortunately for us we have a bunch of talented players to choose from as replacements. This, of course, is what got us in trouble in previous years. We would just plug in a bunch of "talented" players and expect gold. Thanks to the '04 Olympic debacle we now realize that its the right talent that needs to be together, something Jerry Colangelo (Director of USA Basketball) has worked very hard on. That being said, this team is an interesting cast.


Coach K returns as the head coach of the team, as does his Olympic assistants: Nate McMillan, Mike D'Antoni, and Jim Boeheim. This is a very young and athletic team, loaded with long and versatile wing players, and lighting fast guards. Kevin Durant, Rudy Gay, Danny Granger, Andre Iguodala are all 3s who will probably play 3 and 4 in the tournament. Rajon Rondo, Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook are three very fast and strong PGs. Chauncey Billups provides veteran leadership, having played for Team USA at the 2007 FIBA Americas Championships. He also brings great clutch shooting to this table, something thats very important in international competitions. He will play mostly SG. The team only has one true center; Tyson Chandler, but plan to use Lamar Odom and Kevin Love at center at times. Stephen Curry and Eric Gordon, who both provide shooting, round out the team.

While they were here in NYC they played the 1st of 4 international friendlies vs France. The won easily 86-55. I had the fortune of being at the game. Since they've been in Europe they have played game 2 and 3 of their friendlies schedule. The first was Saturday vs Lithuania, a 77-61 victory, and the second was yesterday where they narrowly beat out Spain 86-85. Their final tune-up will be this coming Wednesday when they face off with Greece (7pm ESPN). After the game we should get a better look at how the team will play when the tournament starts and who will be on the final roster (1 more cut must be made).


A closer look coming soon...