The Magical Bums

The Orlando Magic are a team that has just downright gotten under my skin. It has hardly anything to do with a biased opinion. This literary lashing that is about to ensue is derived from their lack of effort but mainly their incompetence.

A lot of people probably thought the Magic would beat the Celtics fairly handily without Kevin Garnett, with the series going no more than six games, especially since they were 3-1 against Cleveland, 3-1 against Boston, and 2-0 against the Lakers in the regular season. You know why they had such great records against those teams in the regular season but don’t look like it in the post season (like the way they let the Philadelphia 76ers start out to a 2-1 lead in their first round series)? Because they keep playing like the team that looked so good in the regular season, as opposed to the type of team that it takes to get through the postseason… one with heart, and guts, and that wants to live up to the hype, rather than expecting to.

An example of this is Dwight Howard. How many times has he missed on his short hooks in this series? More than someone who is considered in some circles “the next Shaq.” He has the same expression and drive in playoff games as he does in the regular season games, and I would not be surprised if he never worked on that might-as-well-be eyes closed hook shot of his. And who is to say that he should try to live up to Shaq, but he sometimes seem to have an heir as if all the hype is true and that’s that…. no need to work on it or prove it.

Then you have guys like Hedo Turkoglu and Mikael Pietrus looking like all they can do is shoot three pointers. They need to play smarter than that. They are the three seed in the Eastern conference and sport the fourth best record in the entire league, not the three-balling 29-53 Golden State Warriors. Turkoglu and Pietrus need to trust their inside game more and try to force fouls on that Boston interior defense. They have no excuse. Like they say… “You live by the three and you die by the three.”

In game four, they were down by 10 or so with six minutes to go, and only had a little over 80 points total, and needed the help of a six plus minute Celtic scoring drought in order to catch up for the one point lead they blew on Davis’ jumper. Then, in game five, when they seemed to get it right as they had a ten or so point lead on Boston with about four minutes to go, they blew that, and lost by three! You know what that smells like? Pure, plain, and simple incompetence.

Until they change, I will be an advocate of what Charles Barkley said a few nights ago… “If they can’t beat the Celtics without Kevin Garnet, then how in the world do they expect to beat them with him?” It’s not a pity to say the following either, because they’ve only brought it on themselves… The Magic are the second round version of those loaded teams who can never get out of the first round. Except in this case they just can’t get out of the second.” – Alex V

 

 

Are the Boston Celtics Really Going to be a Three Seed?

As the season winds down and everyone has ten or so games left, many teams are inching their way each night jockeying for playoff positioning. In the West you have just about every team up from the two seed and all the way down to the eight seed at no more than three games apart. However, one intriguing race to the playoffs has to be between the currently three seeded Orlando Magic, and second seeded Boston Celtics. I wonder… Is the most looming question whether the Orlando Magic can grab the two seed in the Eastern Conference, or is it are the Boston Celtics really going to be a three seed?

 

The Celtics had been on a roll all season long, and were as comfortably ahead in the Eastern Conference standings that they were rivaling the Lakers current 9.5 games lead in the Western Conference standings. Now the defending champs have had to deal with injuries to stars like Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and even to their key players and role players like Rajon Rondo and Tony Allen. If the Celtics, who are only a game ahead of the Magic, get bumped down to a three seed in the playoffs then that means they’ll have a chance to play Orlando and Cleveland on the road. That’s no easy task.

 

It is all just so intriguing because if anyone should seem better equipped to win on the road it’s the Boston Celtics. They are tied for the third best road record in the league at 25-12, but then again, they allowed their first two playoff rounds of last season go seven games. How did they do that you ask? By losing their first six road games.

 

Either way, it could be the champs looking like super-cool vets and pulling it off as a three seed, or it’ll look a little shocking if they aren’t in even their own conference finals.

Are the Cleveland Cavaliers Ready to Come Out of the East?

Are the Utah Jazz Contenders?

In the past few weeks, the Utah Jazz have the leagues’ best hot streak with four straight wins. Two of those wins have come at home where they are 24-6 against the Lakers and the Celtics. Although Garnett did not play the second half, they still held serve and beat two experienced teams and one champion.

With Deron Williams’s career highs in points per game with 19.2 and an excellent 10.2 assists per game, it means this guy is averaging a double-double per outing. Carlos Boozer has been out for a while, but the other players have been picking up the slack: Ronnie Brewer with 13.5 points per game, Paul Millsap 14.6ppg, 9.2 rebounds per game, and even C.J. Miles with 10.0ppg.

The Jazz are set to welcome back Boozer’s 20.5ppg, and 11.7rpg. With that added to the two vets of Mehmet Okur, 18.0ppg, 8.4rpg, and Andrei Kirilenko 12.6ppg, and 5.5rpg and Utah has a seven man rotation that can averaging double-digit points per game. Last season they took L.A. to six hotly contested games in the second round of the playoffs. What’s even better for the Jazz is they pose a lot of matchup problems for opposing teams with their height, size, and strength.

I am not saying the Jazz are in the Finals already, but they could turn some heads and go as far as the Western Conference Finals.

5 Contenders

At this point there are five title contenders in the NBA; in the west, the Los Angeles Lakers (31-8) and the San Antonio Spurs 26-13, and in the east, the Cleveland Cavaliers (31-7), Orlando Magic (33-8), and Boston Celtics (33-9).

Right now, I would put the Spurs over the Lakers. I know the records are five games different, but lately I’ve been seeing Kobe take a lot of shots in the fourth quarter in games against Orlando and San Antonio that just haven’t been going down. Pau Gasol is having a great season, but now the Spurs have four guys who can be counted on to hit big shots, and not in any particular order; Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli, and now Roger Mason Jr.

Furthermore, the Spurs show no signs of getting older, and they even seem like they are playing “younger” than last year.

In the east, the one team with the overall best consistency has been the Cavaliers. The Celtics seem like their big three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen are getting older (More-so Garnett and Pierce), and their role players have not stepped up much in their recent strings of losses. I would have to say that right now Pierce and Garnett seem to be taking a step back, but I know they can turn that around. However, until that happens, I have to keep them under Orlando and Cleveland, even if they are the defending champs.

The Orlando Magic just seem like they play within themselves every game, and that has been just enough to pull out some big road wins this season. But with their ever-growing regularity of settling on huge three pointers down the stretch to win games may not be so hot come playoff time… “You live by the three, you die by the three.”

Finally, it is the Cleveland Cavaliers who are my top pick in the east. LeBron James seems to be coming into his own, as if what he had been doing already wasn’t enough. He is really hitting his peak now, and is relying on his teammates much longer in games than Kobe Bryant.

What’s even more is that they (Cleveland) aren’t even letting any of the non-contenders come close to beating them at home. If they can hold on to the number one seed come playoff time, and have homecourt advantage in the Finals, I will pick them to win it all.

NBA First Quarter MVP?

Who is the Man whose momma spells the name “Dwayne” as “Dwyane?” Who is the Man who leads his team to victory by being the league’s top scorer at 28.7 points per game, almost a full point over the one they call “King” with 27.8 in Cleveland? Who is the former Marquette Master that let his team sit back and watch as he carried them to four straight victories once upon an NBA Finals ago? Who is this Man you say? D-Wade?

 

Yea… that and Dwyane Wade.

 

For those of you who it isn’t too early to be talking MVP yet, Dwyane Wade ought to be your man. He has no Shaq, and at 9-9, has his team just four wins shy of the 13 total they had all of last season. To say he has gotten much help would be a bit of a stretch.

 

Sure, Michael Beasley has been turning in a pretty fine rookie season at 14.7 points per game with a 45% field goal percentage. Other than, they have no big men and their pick up from last season, Shawn Marion has not presented himself as much of a scoring threat with just 12.3 points per game (coupled by a big 9.3 rebounds per contest), but at 6ft 7in, he is shorter than rookie Michael Beasley at 6ft 9in!

 

Thus far, Dwyane Wade has played like a man who wants no part of the shame and deplorable play his city and fans suffered through last season, and definitely does not want to be watching most of the playoffs as opposed to playing in at least part of them.

 

As long as Dwyane Wade can keep carrying his team to victory, especially in the fourth quarter, he has my vote for MVP right now… D-Wade! All the other usual and potential names, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Steve Nash, Tim Duncan, Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, or Chauncey Billups have an at least decent supporting cast around them.  

NBA Quarter-Mark Outlook

So far in the NBA a few teams are back up to their old tricks, a few have been somewhat disappointing, and a good number of upstarts from last year as well as some surprising newcomers have begun to surface.

 

The newcomers that need to be involved in this discussion are as follows; in the east it’s Miami, New York, and New Jersey and in the west all of the other teams with playoff aspirations are of no surprise at this point in the season. Miami, led by top scorer in points per game, Dwyane Wade, are currently 9^th in the eastern conference standings. Last year, everyone remembers how atrocious they were. New York seems to be hitting its stride under the tutelage of former Phoenix head coach, Mike D’Antoni as they are 8-8 and 8^th in the standings. Finally, the previous season’s trade between the Dallas Mavericks and New Jersey Nets has finally begun to payoff, as the Devin Harris led Nets are 8-7, 6-4 in their last ten, and 7^th in the east.

 

The Upstarts from last year that are proving their worth are as follows; in the east it’s the Orlando Magic, the Atlanta Hawks, while in the west we have Portland and Denver. The Magic currently sit at 3^rd and atop the eastern conference standings at 13-4 going 9-1 in their last ten. Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Rashard Lewis, and Hedo Turkoglu and company are really hitting their stride. The continued and improved production of guard/forward Keith Bogans and the extra lift provided by off season veteran pick up Anthony Johnson as point guard have been stalwart.

 

The Hawks slid a bit after starting off 5-0 mainly because of losing Josh Smith for the next few months, but have regained form and are now 10-6 and 5^th in the eastern conference.

 

In the west the Portland Trailblazers, continue to look like a team of the future with stars Brandon Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, and the potential of first-year NBA players like Rudy Fernandez, and Greg Oden. They are now tied with Phoenix, Denver, and Houston at 11-6 while going 7-3 in their last ten games.

 

Denver’s success can be attributed to the trade of Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson. The Nuggets are 11-6 and 7-3 in their last ten while holding 3^rd place in the west. They have had many impressive victories and performances as they beat Boston in Boston, and took the Lakers to the brink of a loss in L.A.

 

Now come the disappointments. The Detroit Pistons are hovering somewhere between average and above average. Although they are 10-5 and in 4^th place in the east, they are suffering some inexcusable losses, most recently a 10+ point loss to Minnesota, do not yet seem to have their act together with Allen Iverson skipping the thanksgiving day practice (however, I do give huge props to Michael Curry for taking charge by suspending him for one game), and are not nearly as consistent as they were when they had Chauncey Billups in the lineup. 

 

The other eastern disappointments for the eastern conference are the Toronto Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers, and Washington Wizards.

The Raptors just 8-7 and are barely holding a spot in the eastern conference as the 7^th seeded team. With capable point guard Jose Calderon, and former all-start Jermaine O’Neal, they should be doing better.

 

The Sixers were a team last year that without Elton Brand finished 6^th in the east and took Detroit to six games in the playoffs. Now with virtually the same team and Elton Brand, they are struggling to find their rhythm and are 7-9 and 5-5 in their last ten. As for the “Wiz Kids,” although without injured star Gilbert Arenas they may not have been a playoff contender anyway, they are still abysmal with their 2-12 record which is good for worst in the east. Last season they played without Arenas for the most part, but still managed to finish above .500 and make the playoffs. They have now fired their coach Eddie Jordan and are in a state of disarray.

 

The disappointments in the west are the New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, and L.A. Clippers. The Hornets finished second last year and were one game away from the western conference finals. They are now 9-6 and 7^th in the standings in the west. The Mavericks are 8-8 and look like they are ready to get their act together one game, and then go back to mediocrity the next. As for the Clippers, you would think they could be more competitive than their 3-13 record would suggest with the pickup of marquee point guard Baron Davis. Oh well.

 

As for the Spurs, I’m sure a lot of people would like to put them in as a disappointment, but they have been playing without Manu Ginobli for the entire season (who is set to return soon), and Tony Parker has just returned from his injury earlier in the season. To further their defense, they are now 9-7 and 7-3 in their last ten while being 8^th in the west.

 

Finally we come to the top dogs in the league.

 

In the east you have the Cleveland Cavaliers with their 14-3 records, 9-1 in the last ten games, and 2^nd place spot in the standings. They have put together a bevy of blowouts on their opponents this season, and the addition of a scoring point guard in Mo Williams has been absolutely huge for them.

 

The second team that has picked up right where they left off from last year is the Lakers. They are 13-1 and making mince meat out of would be superpower teams and have the best record in the NBA.

 

But the pinnacle of all teams continues to be the Boston Celtics. They’re 16-2 and are still dominating defensively and continue to get great production from their supporting cast members. And although the Lakers get much help from their bench and up and coming players, let’s face it… the Celtics are still the champs.

 

The last three teams I must mention are the Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns, and Utah Jazz. To me, these three teams are in a state of limbo. Houston would look to be an upstart, but they can’t seem to keep their stars, Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, healthy. The Suns seem like the same team as last year, which wasn’t a contender anyway, and the Jazz keep being a team with potential that can’t seem to build on it.

 

That would about sum up the NBA season at or around its quarter mark. We’ll look to see who shifts from wherever they were in this discussion and who remains where they are in the coming weeks. As for those that I did not include in this article… you really just aren’t worth mentioning (Chicago, Indiana, Milwaukee, Charlotte, Golden State, Minnesota, Sacramento, Memphis and Oklahoma City).

NBA League Pass should be a Prerequisite of any Diehard Pro Basketball Fan

 

 I don’t work for the NBA. I work for the SportsRoids authority of America in my spare time. But I must say that the NBA League Pass is something that diehard NBA fans should get. And I’m not talking about diehard fans of one team. I’m talking those who follow all the team’s records throughout the season, and who like to watch games because of the talent and action.

If you multiply the 82 games that each team plays each season by the 30 teams there are in the league you get a total of 2,460 games. It seems almost unbelievable! I have enjoyed watching great NBA basketball the past two years as a League Pass owner for various reasons.

The NBA likes to nationally televise the games between the contenders, but there are plenty other teams out there with start talent and superstars that aren’t being given face time. There are also a lot of young teams that have promising talent and fans cannot see them grow because they haven’t reached their potential yet and the NBA schedulers won’t “recognize” them.

I’m telling you, get NBA league pass. You get a whole lot of bang for your buck, and the games between underdogs and contenders are typically more competitive than if they met in a best of seven series. It is just a suggestion.