Heard in the Cheap Seats

I was originally going to do a huge breakdown of the NBA Finals, but I decided not to.  Why?  Honestly, I just can’t stomach writing about these two teams in depth.  I can’t stand the Lakers, and the Magic ended the Sixers and are coached by one of the most annoying people in the NBA, and that’s saying something.  I love NBA basketball and I will be watching, but I just can’t subject myself to a full breakdown.  At least, not for free.  I will instead just do a brief breakdown and give you my pick for the series.  I should mention that I almost always pick against the Lakers and am usually wrong when I do.

I think conventional wisdom says that now that the Lakers have reached the Finals, they will win.  Their propensity to get bored and not show up likely won’t happen now that the end is in sight.  Everyone is saying that Kobe Bryant can cement his legacy by winning a championship without Shaq.  On the other side, you have the Orlando Magic, who are seemingly occupying the space that was supposed to be reserved for LeBron James and the Cavs.  I’ll admit that they have surprised me.  They are firing on all cylinders now.  This series will be closer than some people think.  It comes down to how well Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol guard Dwight Howard and how well the Lakers cover the Magic shooters.  If the Magic somehow continue to shoot at a blistering rate, they can win.  Kobe Bryant will do his thing, but I think the key will be Rashard Lewis.  If he can be huge in this series, the Magic can pull the upset.  He creates matchup problems for every single team in the NBA.  On the other side, Kobe needs either Gasol or Odom to contribute somewhere around 20 points and 10 boards.  The Magic beat the Lakers twice during the season, because they are pretty much impossible to guard when they are moving the ball.  It will be an exciting, high scoring series, that’s for sure.

My brain tells me to pick the Lakers, but it is extremely hard for me to that.  I really don’t want to see that smug look on Bryant’s face when he wins his 4^th ring.  Unfortunately, I think that’s what we’ll see.  Although, maybe my pick can put a reverse jinx on the Lakers and then watch as Kobe disses his teammates.  LAKERS IN 7

Some people who read this blog may already know this, and some may not.  But, this is a site run by 2 brothers, one being myself (Anthony) and the other being my younger brother (Chris).  Well, we have been very slow in our contributions to this site of late, but I assure everyone it is for a good reason.  Our family has been prepping for and celebrating the wedding of my brother, who is now on his honeymoon with his beautiful wife.  It has been a long, fun, and exciting two weeks, and we hope to get back to writing as much as we previously were.  Of course, I am not sure that anyone actually cares about any of this, but now you know, so there’s no turning back! 

It is time for my breakdowns on the NBA Conference Finals.  I have been accurate on all but one of my series predictions so far.  I felt the Celtics had enough in the tank to pull out another 7 game series win, but it turns out they didn’t.  It’s funny because so many fans, including myself, were looking forward to a possible Celtics/Cavs series, but would the tired and short handed Celtics been able to give the Cavs even a little resistance?  I doubt it.  So, maybe the two Conference Finals series that we are left with are the best possible match ups we could have asked for.  So, on to my picks…

Orlando vs. Cleveland

I have been hearing a lot of talk about the Magic being confident after their Game 7 win on Boston’s home floor.  I don’t want to take anything away from Orlando, but…Well, maybe I do want to take something away.  The Celtics had nothing in the tank after Game 5!  Nothing!  Brian Scalabrine was getting tons of minutes.  Seriously, people, winning that game was nice for the psyche of the Magic, but once they hit the floor against Cleveland they are facing a whole different animal.  Cleveland didn’t need some bogus win against a dead legged team to validate themselves, they already know they are good.  Very good.  Like, haven’t even come close to losing a playoff game good.  Don’t get me wrong, the Magic will pose some problems for the vaunted Cleveland defense to solve.  They run a unique offense that surrounds Dwight Howard with 4 shooters.  The Cavaliers must decide how they are going to defend Howard, but my guess is they will mix it up with a variety of defenders and defensive looks.  They will certainly double team, especially given the fact that their rotations and close outs are a staple of their defense.  When the Cavs, double, they may decide that the double team will come from whoever is guarding Rafer Alston.  If Alston is draining jumpers, so be it.  I know that the Magic had quite a bit of offensive success in their two home victories over Cleveland during the regular season, but I think the playoff version of the Cavs is too focused to allow the Magic to score at will.  LeBron James has the ability and energy to play shut down defense on either Rashard Lewis or Hedo Turkoglu.  The interesting thing will be how Orlando guards the combo of and Ilgauskas.  No matter which one Howard guards, the Cavs will use screen and rolls to get him away from the basket, and both big men for the Cavs can hit the outside shot, particularly Ilgauskas.  For the Cavs, defensively Ilgauskas may be a bit of a liability because he does not have the athleticism to guard any of the Magic big men.  It will be a battle of strategy, as usual to create as many mismatches and uncomfortable defensive situations as possible.  The Magic will likely look to push the tempo whenever possible so that Cleveland does not have a chance to set their defense.  Both teams have solid benches that can contribute on a nightly basis.  I think the Magic will make this series competitive, but there are 2 words that will likely be the difference: LeBron James.  There is no one on Orlando’s roster that has a prayer of stopping James.  They will have to do their best to make James pass out of traps and double teams and keep him out of the lane as much as they can.  I just don’t think that will be enough.  He may average a triple double in this series.  CAVS IN 5

Denver vs. Los Angeles

At the beginning of the playoffs, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the Lakers would be back in the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year.  Then we all watched the Lakers Jekyll and Hyde act throughout the playoffs.  Add to that the fact that Denver has been almost as dominating as Cleveland in the postseason, and we may have a helluva series on our hands.  The Nuggets are a much improved defensive teams, but they are still vulnerable, especially against a team like the Lakers.  If the combination of Gasol, Bynum, and Odom are clicking and playing well, they can create issues for Denver.  Kenyon Martin is an athletic and aggressive defender, but he does not have the size to defend Gasol or Bynum, nor does Nene.  Dahntay Jones will go toe to toe with Kobe Bryant, and Bryant will need to be extremely aggressive in this series, especially with Derek Fisher struggling.  Jones cannot stop Kobe Bryant.  On the other end, the Lakers will likely use Ariza to guard Carmelo Anthony and use Bryant on Billups to try and neutralize Billups a little bit.  Billups is very good and getting buckets in transition, so the Lakers will need to find him immediately.  I have never been impressed with the Lakers defense.  There are games where it looks pretty good and games where it is horrible, and to me that is the sign of a team who doesn’t have the right kind of attitude to maintain consistent defensive effort. A team like Denver should be able to rack up the points on Los Angeles, in my opinion. This has a chance to be a high scoring series, but I feel like the Nuggets have more consistent offensive weapons.  Gasol and Bryant are the only two Lakers playing with any consistency right now.  The Lakers have the home court advantage and they have Kobe Bryant, so my pick scares me.  I keep bouncing back and forth on this one.  I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Lakers win in it seven games, but I going the other way.  NUGGETS IN 6

As most of you already know, and as my brother has already written about, the Sixers took down the mighty Lakers last night/this morning on a three at the buzzer by Andre Iguodala. It was especially gratifying for me since I had been living in Los Angeles since 2004 up until a few months ago. I built up an even stronger dislike for L.A. teams and fans than I had before I moved there. I feel bad for those Laker fans that strolled into the Staples Center at halftime, and then had to endure that last second shot to beat their team. Don’t get me wrong, I am not delusional enough to actually think this means the Sixers will meet the Lakers in the NBA Finals this year, but I will take my chances to talk smack wherever and whenever I can.

I want to give credit to Iguodala for draining a clutch shot, but as I thought more about it after the game, there were a few strange things about that play that came to my mind. It certainly was not a recipe for success. Think about this for a second. The Sixers were down 2, 93-91, after Kobe Bryant nailed a jumper in the face of Iguodala. 6.6 seconds remained on the clock. So, the Sixers called timeout to draw up a play. I can honestly say that I didn’t like the chances of a last second victory by the Sixers. Yeah, I know, I am a pessimist. But, as I thought about what type of play they might run, I thought they might try and go for the win, possibly by designing a play to get the ball in Donyell Marshall’s hands. Maybe a high screen using Marshall or a drive and kick to Marshall, something along those lines. So, the Sixers come out of the timeout and the answer is unveiled. What brilliant play did Tony DiLeo draw up? Uhhh….Apparently there was no play! Now, I’m sure there was, but I have no idea what it was. The ball was inbounded to Iguodala, who was being guarded by Trevor Ariza. As I watched what unfolded, I was freaking out. The Sixers had the floor spread, and I see the clock ticking down, and Iguodala isn’t doing a damn thing. Then, as we have all seen by now, Iguodala rose up and drained a game winning three over Ariza. Could that really have been the play? He was 0 for 6 from beyond at that point. I loved the result of the play but I am still perplexed. After the game, when Iggy was asked about the shot he said DiLeo had told him to drive it past his man for the bucket, but Iguodala decided there wasn’t enough time for that.

It’s a good thing. The Sixers were on the road against the best team in the NBA, and they were going to play for overtime? An overtime that probably would have been owned by Kobe Bryant. Iguodala definitely would not have gotten a foul called, and even if he did he is not the most clutch free throw shooter. If Iguodala had driven into the lane it would have been easy to collapse, since the Sixers don’t exactly scare teams with their outside shooting. I give Iguodala credit for knocking down a huge shot under pressure, I was just shocked at how it played out.

Of course, this would most likely all be a moot point had the Lakers not crapped the bed. The Lakers had a foul to give, and even when Iguodala just dribbled slowly and took his time, Ariza never used the foul. The other part that was curious to me was why the Lakers did not have Kobe Bryant on Iguodala. Maybe they didn’t want Bryant to use up his 5^th foul on the play, but if you are playing to win in regulation, why would it matter? Bryant is the best on the ball defender in the NBA. Ariza is pretty good in his own right, but Bryant is better.

I will play devil’s advocate to myself, and say that Tony DiLeo was showing great confidence in Iguodala. I agree that he was, and I like it, but even DiLeo said they gave Iggy the option of driving for the 2 or kicking it if he got into trouble for a 3. So, essentially there was no play. However, the result was beautiful. It was about time someone in a Sixers uniform was the one hitting a game winner.

via Depressed fan

This was the one game on the West Coast road swing that the Sixers stood no chance of winning.  The Lakers are arguably the best team in the NBA right now and were playing at the Staples Center where only a handful of teams have walked away victorious.  Everything in the book and pre-game analysis said that Philly should lose this game.  Well throw out the book, because the Sixers had different ideas. 

Prior to the game I outlined five keys to walking away victorious.  Let”’’s take a look back at the game and see how the Sixers fared last night.  

#1 Don””t Allow Kobe to Beat You 

This was the key factor in the game.  Any time you limit Kobe Bryant to 11 points on 5-15 shooting you will put yourself in position to win the basketball game.  Andre Iguodala was blanketing Kobe Bryant for the entire fourth quarter and made him work hard on every offensive position.

#2 Keep The Lakers Off the Offensive Glass

The Sixers did a solid job of keeping the Lakers off the offensive glass last night—holding the Lakers to 10 offensive rebounds, which is 2.5 below their average.  Sure, they struggled down the stretch at grabbing defensive rebounds and it almost cost them in the end.  But overall, they held their own.  Perhaps more importantly, the Sixers were all over the offensive glass, particularly Samuel Dalembert who pulled in 8 on his own. 

#3 Limit Turnovers

The Sixers took care of the ball all night—refusing to give the Lakers extra possessions.  In the first half, Lou Williams practically carried the team and made solid decisions on where to go with the basketball.  For the game, Lou Will finished with  18 points, 6 assists and only 1 turnover.  As a team, the Sixers only coughed up the ball 10 times resulting in 13 points for the Lakers. 

#4 Shoot the Ball Well 

The Sixers did not shoot the ball particularly well in any facet of the game last night.  They struggled from beyond the arc and fell victim to the same woes that have plagued them all year long at the free throw line.  But there is a silver lining to this story.  In crunch time, when it mattered, the Sixers turned it all around.  Iguodala started knocking down shots, including the decisive three pointer at the buzzer and Donyell Marshall came off the bench to knock down 3 from three-point land.  It appears that Marhsall is playing his way into some crunch time minutes. 

#5 Start Quick

At halftime, the game was all knotted up, so the Sixers did a great job of hanging around.  They had an awful third quarter but clearly put that out of their minds with a torrid fourth quarter. 

Bar none, this was the biggest win so far this season.  In looking at the five-game road trip, few people expected the Sixers to walk away from this game with a win.  But the team kept fighting and was able to pull off the upset.

But there is no time to soak in the victory, it”’’s time to continue the ascent up the Eastern Conference standings with a win over the Suns tonight.

So far the NBA Finals has gone exactly the way I thought it would go, and the exact opposite of the way most experts said it would go. I figured that the Celtics would win the first two games of this series in Boston. I do think that the Lakers will bounce back in a tight Game 3, but I do not feel they will win this series. I stated previously here that this would go 7 games, and it still may, but I wouldn’t be shocked to see it over way sooner. Many of the advantages that I laid out on this site, turned out to be even bigger in the first two games. The Celtics have dominated all the aggressive play, especially loose balls and rebounding. The main problem for the Lakers, however, is that they came into this series riding high due to a high octane offense. Though the Western Conference was much better this year, the Lakers have not had to face a defense as physical, athletic, and suffocating as the Celtics. The Spurs did do a better than average job of forcing Kobe Bryant into taking jumpers, but unfortunately he made most of them. The Celtics, so far, have done a masterful job. They have intimidated the Lakers physically, and kept them away from the paint. When the Lakers are not hitting from the outside, their high octane offense starts running on unleaded. They have been settling for outside shots, and their patented ball movement and spacing has disappeared. Some people feel that with the 4^th quarter comeback in Game 2, the Lakers have gained an advantage. I disagree. The Celtics simply went to sleep.

Phil Jackson, the Lakers fans, and the Lakers can complain all they want about the officiating, but that won’t win ballgames. Not to mention, the Lakers have benefited from the refs calls as well, specifically in the Utah series. Go back and look at the numbers. Seriously. That means you Lakers fans. Its easy to point at the refs or the free throw disparity, but even in doing that you might miss the fact that there was only seven more fouls called on L.A. This again points to a lack of aggressiveness. When they were dominating from the free throw line against the Jazz they were the more aggressive team. They might get more calls if they actually grew a set of stones and actually drove to the basket. They need to get more physical and aggressive. Maybe they need to have their own equivalent of the 1984 Finals clothesline of Kurt Rambis courtesy of Kevin McHale. That changed the tone of the series for Boston. Instead of complaining about officiating, maybe one of the Lakers should have put Leon Powe on his ass instead of offering him a cup of tea on his way to another easy dunk. Kobe Bryant has a meanness and tenacity but I am not seeing it from the likes of Gasol, Odom, Radmanovic, etc. That is the problem. It has been stated so many times that defense wins championships. Cliché as it may be, it also most times proves to be true. So, can the Lakers come back and win 4 of the next 5 games, two of which would be in Boston? Anything is possible. Is it likely? Not unless they take off their skirts and act like they are playing for the trophy. Like I said, I believe the Lakers will make this an interesting series again by winning Game 3, but I would not be shocked, if they get off to a poor start, to see them implode. Then we will see the frustration of Kobe realizing that his teammates can’t stand up to the pressure, and then this puppy is over. We will see the preseason, hating his teammates Kobe Bryant. Lakers fans better hope that moment doesn’t come.

On this toasty Sunday morning here in Boston I’d like to offer our loyal readers a tip free of charge courtesy of Heard in the Cheap Seats: Whatever you do, do NOT lock yourself out of the house on a 90 degree day and then proceed to walk to Dunkin Donuts for an extra large hot coffee.  It’s really not a smart move–a lesson I had to learn the hard way this morning.  But I digress; Sunday Smattering follows ladies and gentlemen.

• Big Bummer for Big Brown: The horse racing world takes center stage at least once year (the Kentucky Derby) and at most twice a year when a horse is chasing the illusive Triple Crown.  As has been the case many times before, the media anointed Big Brown the savior of horse racing after a trying season and practically handed the horse the victory.  But the horse racing gods would not oblige and Big Brown delivered a clunker–finishing dead last at the most grueling race of the Triple Crown series.  Da’Tara, rode by the same jockey that spoiled Smarty Jones’ Triple Crown bid, played the spoiler once again.?

• Tempers Flare in Beantown: On a night when the Celtics were supposed to have the limelight all to themselves, the Red Sox stole a bit of the city’s attention with two separate incidents.  First, Coco Crisp charged the mound after being plunked by James Shields.  Most baseball brawl prove rather uneventful with a whole of shoving but not much fighting.  This one was a bit different.  Shields, instead of backing off the mound and praying for the hasty arrival of his catcher, took three steps toward Coco and attempted to deliver a haymaker.  With boxing in his lineage, Coco adeptly dodged the punch and then succumbed to the pile of Rays’ players that went after him.  Later in the game, Manny and Kevin Youkilis had a small dust up.  Maybe Yuk reads Heard in the Cheap Seats and read my call to action from last week?

• Chipper Hits Number 400: One of my favorite baseball players of all time, Chipper Jones, reached a career milestone this week–HR number 400.  Of course, immediately after the blast, the posts came fast and furious debating his hall of fame credentials. Let me put it this way, if he retired right now, he is easily in the top 3 in terms of switch hitters of all time.  That alone is enough to get him in. But, Chipper himself says he would like to play another 4 years at a minimum provided he remains healthy and the Braves would like him back.  Let’s just assume for argument’s sake he sees a fairly sharp decline in his power numbers after this season and only hits 20 HRs a year (a huge stretch) for the next four years.  Assuming he hits about 20 more this season, that would put him at 501 HRs for his career.  Now, let’s look at hits.  Let’s say he finished this season with 200 hits, which would be an additional 110 on top of where he currently stands.  Then for the next four years, he sees a slight decline to 175 a year.  That would put him above the 3,000 hit mark for his career.  In terms of RBI, he will probably get another 60 this year followed by four seasons at a conservative 80 per year.  That would give him 1700 RBI for his career.  My point is this: he is already a HOFer, everything he tacks on from here on out is just gravy.
• John Smoltz to Have Surgery: John Smoltz had to make the painful decision this week to undergo season-ending surgery, which begs the question, is this the end?  Contrary to the opinion of Jayson Stark, I simply can’t envision this being the end for Smoltz.  Before the announcement, Smoltz was making statements that would indicate if he had to endure another surgery he would retire.  But when faced with that reality, he quickly retreated from his stance.  John Smoltz is too much of a competitor to have this be the way he goes out.  He’ll be back for one more go around next season.
• Must Win Tonight for Lakers: Is it too early to call this game a must-win?  I don’t think so.  The Lakers need to come out of Boston tonight with a split or they can kiss their title hopes goodbye.

On Thursday night, the long-awaited NBA finals match up finally took its rightful place at the center of the sports universe. And if you examine what transpired in Game 1, there are a few subtle and not-so-subtle lessons that are evident and might impact how the remainder of this series plays out.
Lesson 1: Rajon Rondo Not Awestruck

Coming into this series, I believed this would be the primary factor in determining the Celtics success in the series. Reason being, you have a pretty good idea that you will get approximately 60 points out of the big three every night, but somewhere along the line you need to find an additional 30-40 points to win ballgames. In Game 1, the big three combined for 65 points. Tack on the 15 that Rondo scored and it is easy to see why the Celtics came away with a W. But more telling than the 15 points in my mind was the mere two turnovers. If he is able to keep that turnover rate steady for the remainder of the series, the Celtics will be in good shape–regardless of how many points he scores.

Lesson 2: Doc Still Hasn’t Learned his Lesson

Quietly, the skepticism in Boston regarding Doc Rivers’ coaching prowess grew from a barely audible whisper to a full-fledged buzz. What Doc Rivers needs to realize is that his best coaching asset is pulling back on the coaching. He is over thinking this game and it shows in his rotation. With the extended TV breaks in the playoffs, there is no reason Sam Cassell should be getting 13 minutes. None. It worked out this time around, but Boston’s resident ET has a tendency to kill any semblance of flow an offense manages to create. If he continues to get these kinds of minutes, Doc better be prepared for the fallout in the Boston media.

Lesson 3: Kobe Continues to Look for Teammates Early

Throughout the season and the playoffs, Kobe has been lauded for his willingness to involve teammates early in the game. I had some doubts that this would continue once the allure of the NBA crown was in sight. But if Game 1 is any indication, Kobe is content to involve his teammates early and look to take over late in the game. In Game 2, look for Kobe to ditch this strategy and come out of the gates strong with a solid first quarter. Kobe will not let his team leave Boston without a split.

Lesson 4: Defense Will Decide

This isn’t exactly a startling revelation. After all, how many times have we heard: “defense wins championships?” As tired as the cliché is, it probably was never more evident than in Game 1 of this series. Offensively, these two teams are pretty evenly matched. Defensively, the Celtics clearly outclass the Lakers. Defense is nothing more than a will to commit and right now, the Celtics have that will. Kobe is a world-class defender; I look for him to set the tone for the remainder of the series. In addition, don’t be surprised if Ronny Turiaf starts to get a slight increase in playing time due to the energy and defensive ability he brings to the floor. He might be the only player the Lakers have that can match the intensity and energy of Kevin Garnett.

Lesson 5: Lakers Will Win This Series

Bet you didn’t see that one coming did ya? With the Celtics winning Game 1, it wouldn’t seem logical to come away with the conclusion that the Lakers will win this series. But, the Lakers showed they are quite capable of winning a game in Boston. You can bet that Kobe will not score 24 points again in this series; in fact, I might even venture to say he won’t score fewer than 30. In addition, I don’t think we continue to see 15 a night out of Rondo. While the Celtics certainly took care of business on their home floor, they did not do enough to sway me from my original belief that the Lakers would win this series. That being said, Game 2 is a must win for LA.

The NBA Finals is a culmination of a painful 6 months as a Philadelphia sports fan. Beginning with the Eagles season fading away, followed by having to endure a Super Bowl with two of the teams I hate most in this world. Next up came watching the Sixers and Flyers have very respectable seasons, but also with the knowledge that they have not reached elite status just yet. Look out NHL, because the Flyguys are creeping up to elite next year. Which brings me to this point: Lakers vs Celtics. I may go on a steady diet of Vicodin and Heineken for the next couple weeks. Or just bang my head against a brick wall enough times to put me in a coma short term. Don’t get me wrong, I am extremely excited for this series. It’s just that in the NBA, these are the two teams I hate most. I’ve actually been openly praying for an NBA lockout to avoid having to watch one of these teams hoist the trophy. I have always hated the Celtics and the Lakers, however my level of hatred for the Lakers has reached a new level since moving to Los Angeles. With the stupid car flags and the damn purple jerseys floating around town wherever I go, I’m a ticking time bomb. I wonder if now that it’s the NBA Finals, those amazing Laker fans will be able to make it to the game by halftime. I know, I know. I am just complaining again. I promise I will get to the series in a minute since no one cares about my pain. One more thing, though. This is a message to all Lakers fans: KOBE WOULD NOT HAVE WON MVP AND YOU WOULD NOT BE IN LOVE WITH THE DUDE HAD CHRIS WALLACE (WITH THE HELP OF JERRY WEST I’M SURE) NOT GIFT WRAPPED PAU “ THE OSTRICH” GASOL. Whew. That felt amazing. On to the series now.

I was going to do my usual position by position breakdown, but I decided to just breakdown the series as if I was sitting with a buddy at a bar. Plus, I am tired and too lazy to do a full roster breakdown. Let me also say that if you’ve been reading my posts, I have been picking against the Lakers in every series except Denver, but as I type this, I have no idea which way I’m leaning. This is another series of interesting match-ups and storylines. There’s the obvious historical significance. Although, even though hearing Lakers and Celtics gets me excited (in a non sexual way), I do think it is over hyped. The Celtics have been away from the Finals for 21 years. Those teams in the 80’s were some of the best in NBA history. Neither of these two teams hold that distinction. We also have Phil Jackson going for a record 10^th NBA title as a coach. East coast against West coast. Purple against green. The legacies of many players can be altered. Excuse me, I need to take a Vicodin.

I’m very interested in seeing how both teams decide to play it defensively. Will the Celtics trust Perkins to guard Gasol one on one and Garnett guard Odom? Perkins certainly cannot handle Odom’s quickness. I am also curious to see how the Celtics decide to defend Kobe. Obviously, Kobe Bryant is by far the best player in this series and in the NBA, so they cannot expect to stop him. I think Kobe will see a variety of defenders. Probably some Paul Pierce, a little Ray Allen, and a lot of James Posey, as well as Kevin Garnett and Perkins popping out in order to try and force Kobe to beat them from the outside. The single greatest difference between the two teams is that the Lakers have a guy who has proven he can take over a playoff game in crunch time, and the Celtics do not. Paul Pierce did it once, but I would not call that a trend. The good thing for the Celtics is that they are the top defensive team in the NBA. The Lakers have not gone up against a defense like this. The Spurs play solid defense, but they are nowhere near as quick and athletic as the Celtics. The ideal scenario for the Celtics is to be able to swarm and rotate their defense and keep Kobe out of the paint. If they can force him to give up the basketball, and his teammates do not come through, then Kobe may revert back to selfish mode. To me, the only guy other than Kobe I would trust in crunch time is Derek Fisher. Problem is, there is only Paul Pierce on the Boston side. Speaking of Paul Pierce, how will the Lakers defend him? Neither Radmanovic or Luke Walton can do it. I think Kobe will be chasing around Ray Allen, so the Celtics have a decided advantage there.

The other question I have is: will Rajon Rondo completely crap the bed in the spotlight? Boston better hope not. Ray Allen is also going to be big here. He needs to knock down shots and if Kobe is guarding him, run Kobe as ragged as possible. If I was coaching Boston, my offensive strategy would be to use my big men as much as possible. Get the ball down low and try and get the Lakers frontcourt in early foul trouble because the backups for L.A. in the frontcourt do not stand a chance. The Celtics need to dominate the defensive boards, which I think will happen. There are definitely things that worry me like Kobe Bryant going crazy on Boston, Rondo crapping his pants, and Doc Rivers being the coach of the Celtics. All in all, I think this is going to be a great series with close games throughout. I see it going the distance, and as hard as it is to pick against Kobe Bryant in a game 7, I am going with…drum roll please…BOSTON IN 7.

That was a tough post for me to write. The Vicodin helped though. But, as a fan, I am looking forward to an exciting NBA Finals. So let’s get it started before Kevin Garnett eats someone.

As my brother so astutely pointed out in the previous post, what seemed a forgone conclusion in recent days came to fruition last night when Kobe and the Lakers put the proverbial nail in the coffin.  In the end, youth and energy trumped savvy and experience.  Bellyache all you want about non-calls, conspiracy theories and injury problems–it doesn’t change the fact that the Lakers simply were the better team and proved it emphatically.

So for the first time in eight years, we will watch an NBA championship that does not contain men by the name of Duncan or O’Neal.  So the question then becomes, did we just witness the end of an era–both in the sense of the closing of the window on the Spurs dynasty and the era of big men dominance in the NBA?

Each point warrants its own examination (and potentially its own post) so let’s take them one at a time.

The Spurs:

Call it what you want: dynasty, prolonged success, it really doesn’t matter, it’s impossible to deny the success of the Spurs over the last decade.  This is a team that has won four championships during that time and has been a legitimate contender every year.  But their demise this year felt a bit different didn’t it?  This is a team that has never been shy about finishing games that seem to be out of reach–something they failed to do twice in this series with the Lakers.  More than that, the Spurs seemed to be outworked and out willed, something I have never seen happen in my time watching the current variation of the Spurs.  Part of that is a result of simply running up against Kobe Bryant.  Say what you want about him, but the man can play.  He wasn’t going to let his team leave the Staples Center without a Western conference title.

So was this the end of the Spurs?  Are they finally too old?  Is Tim Duncan no longer able to carry a team?  Has the wear of a decade’s worth of extended seasons finally taken its toll?  If you looked at this past series in a vacuum, the temptation would be to write off the Spurs next year.  That would be a mistake.  This is a team that has its entire core group of players signed for at least the next two seasons.  Sure, Tim Duncan might be on the decline, but he isn’t finished yet.  A quick injection of youth and athleticism will have the Spurs right back in the thick of the race next season and possibly one more beyond that.  Let’s not  make this one series out to be more than it is for the sake of manufacturing some drama.

The Fall of the Big Man:

This question is a little bit tougher to answer.  Slowly but surely over the past decade, the NBA has been methodically moving to a different brand of basketball that favors athleticism and agility over size and strength.  It started with the European invasion.

When Europeans began entering this league in bunches, they brought with them a brand of basketball that favored a broad set of skills over specialty players.  Players like Toni Kukoc, Detlef Shrempf, Arvydas Sabonis and Sarunas Marciulionis typified this brand of basketball.  Over time, this philosophy had a trickle effect across the league and as players like Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing and David Robinson retired–the face of the game looked quite different.

But even in recent years, teams with dominant big men have gone on to win titles (with the notable exception of the Detroit Pistons).  This is probably why teams continue to put a premium on size by drafting Greg Oden and Andrew Bynum with number one picks.  This year is different.  Whatever team wins this year will do so without a traditional dominant big man (apologies to Gasol and Garnett).

I would contend that this year’s NBA playoffs have been a microcosm of the shift that has been taking place over the past few years-the game is moving toward a more guard-dominated league.

Now I know the next argument: the Suns tried the small ball approach and abandoned it in favor of adding the traditional big man to the mix.  To that I would say: “yea, how’d that turn out?”  The Suns abandoned the small ball approach–not the guard dominated approach.  There is a significant difference.  The Suns’ offense was based on the premise that a shot had to go up in seven seconds or less.  Ultimately, this created a tempo of basketball ill-suited for the playoffs and for teams that could impost a physical presence.

As players like Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and next year, Derek Rose continue to emerge, you will see teams grow more comfortable with the idea of a guard dominated team.  If this most recent playoffs was any indication, you better get used to the idea, because it’s already here.

Contrary to what my brother has previously reported (see below), the Spurs are definitely dead.  This is a painful time for me, as I work in an office filled with annoying Lakers fans.  Now I understand the pain, although nowhere near the magnitude, that my buddy Zamp was trying to convey to me after the Giants won the Super Bowl.  He had to go to work everyday in Jersey surrounded by Giants fans, and being a die hard Eagles fan, that is painful.  Either way, the Spurs and Lakers will meet tonight in Game 5 at the Staples Center, and Kobe Bryant will most likely see to it that he and his Lakers teammates do not have to board another plan en route to San Antonio.

I had been holding out hope that I would not have to see the freakin’ Lakers and Kobe Bryant much more, but it looks like I was wrong.  The worst part about this series is that it has left me with a lot of “what ifs?”  I watched Game 4 in anguish as the veteran Spurs seemed to be allergic to ACTUALLY taking the lead.  They must have tied that game up 6 different times, only to miss wide open looks to take the lead for the first time.  The Spurs have no one to blame but themselves for being in this position. They have not earned themselves a spot in the NBA Finals. They let the Lakers off the hook.  There is no chance now that the Spurs can win 3 games in a row, two of which would be in Los Angeles.  What this means is I need to spend a few minutes whining and complaining about things that matter very little.  So the pain continues for me.

Do I think this series would have played out differently if Manu Ginobili could actually move?  Absolutely.  Do I think that the spoiled brat Kobe would be MVP or the Lakers would have even gotten out of the first round if they never were handed Pau Gasol on a shiny platter?  No I do not.  Is it a damn travesty that Joe Crawford, who was basically suspended for his feud with Tim Duncan and the Spurs was allowed to ref a pivotal playoff game?  You’re damn right it is.  Don’t even get me started on that one.  Can you say conspiracy theory?

Then there is the Brent Barry last second non foul call.  It’s like the NBA welcomes the conspiracy theories.  I am not saying the NBA has instructed officials to help the Lakers reach the finals, or better yet just stop the Spurs from getting back.  But, that doesn’t mean it looks good.  All those who refuse to admit that are just fooling themselves.  No way Crawford should have been anywhere near that arena.  None.  Not in the era of the Tim Donaghy scandal. Who was the official closest to that play?  Oh, that would be Joe Crawford.

Yesterday the NBA announced that a 2 shot foul should have been called on Derek Fisher.  Sweet!  Thank you David Stern.  Brent Barry definitely should have gone into the air when he had Fisher off balance and forced a foul call, but somehow I doubt that even that would have mattered.  I realize this is all just spilt milk.  I needed to vent, and it would have been much more entertaining if my editor would let me use the words that I really wanted to.  I have to work tonight, and I will be recording Game 5, but I am sure one of the stupid ass Laker fans in my office will let me know the result long before I have watched the game.  I still cling to a sliver of hope that a miracle can happen, but I am not going to hold my breath.  It sure looks like we are headed towards EXACTLY what the NBA wanted all along:  A Celtics versus Lakers NBA Finals.  I will have to sedate myself to get through those two agonizing weeks.