NBA Playoffs Last Night
So what.
Look this wouldn’t be an issue just ten years ago. The bitchassness in the NBA has to stop. I would run out on the court and kick my own son’s ass for whining over a paper cut on his elbow. Bring back Mahorn, Oak and Maurice Lucas and these cats would be shook to come on the court. Didn’t some of these cats play football growing up? LeBron has to know teams are going to be physical to stop him for being so physical himself. It should be expected. I’m not going to compare the LeBron’s Wizards to Mike’s Pistons–that’s absurd. The Wizards haven’t won a division title and the Pistons were great enough put themselves in a position to go to the NBA Finals that year and then go back to back ’89 and ’90.
These are the Jordan Rules described by former Piston’s coach Chuck Daly. The Wizards seem to be employing only the last part:
“If Michael was at the point, we forced him left and doubled him. If he was on the left wing, we went immediately to a double team from the top. If he was on the right wing, we went to a slow double team. He could hurt you equally from either wing — hell, he could hurt you from the hot-dog stand — but we just wanted to vary the look. And if he was on the box, we doubled with a big guy.”
“The other rule was, any time he went by you, you had to nail him. If he was coming off a screen, nail him. We didn’t want to be dirty — I know some people thought we were — but we had to make contact and be very physical.”
Stop. Just stop the comparisons. It’s ridiculous.
LeBron is young and I understand he’s rightfully concerned for his livelihood, but c’mon bruh stop bitchin’.
Can we talk about the game now?
Cleveland 116, Washington 86
Damn a thirty point playoff loss to a hated rival when you need some momentum going home? Not good.
Gilbert Arenas 7 points 4 fouls (yeah he’s injured but this is money time). Antawn Jamison 9 points. Caron Butler was respectable with 12 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals.
The problem is he, Arenas and Jamison shot a combined 10-36. You are not winning in the NBA with your offensive stars funkin’ it up like that.
Mike Brown stop bitchin’. You don’t have to lobby to the refs up 2-0. LeBron can handle the punishment trust me and your team will be better off in the long run. From where you sit, the game should be about mental toughness in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. That’s what you are shooting for.
LeBron James was a freight train last night. He had another ridiculous dunk–That’s African!–driving through the whole squad. His strength is unparalleled for someone at his position. Bron Bron played last night at an even heightened gear than the previous game–which is otherworldly.
James 32 points (10-17 free throws), 12 assists, 9 rebounds, 2 steals. Oscar he’s coming for you next year.
Washington you better shut up and play the game or get swept for the second straight year by a team you absolutely hate.
Like I asked in the preview, is Gilbert hurting his team by coming back? The Wizards played a little above average this season and seem to be stagnant on offense. They have no inside presence whatsoever–Brendan Haywood (10 points and 3 rebounds?) is becoming a goon and nothing else.
I gave the Wizards credit and said this series would go to seven. The prospect seems laughable huh?
Eddie Jordan better come up with something soon. Anthony Gilbert and I will be in DC covering Game 3. It will be very interesting to see how Washington’s big three will respond. If they don’t show some sort of improvement the duration of this series. Abe Polan is going to blow up the spot and who can blame him.
Again…so what.
Utah 90, Houston 84
The call on Luis Scola really had no true impact on the game. Yeah in the moment it was foul and the call was straight BS, but Houston has not came to play. Even Scola himself downplayed Tony Brothers call that waved off Bobby Jackson’s three that tied it late: “I don’t like to put the loss on the ref,” Scola said. “I don’t think that’s fair.”
Because of the absence of Rafer Alston and Yao Ming, Tracey McGrady has to facilitate the entire offense. Let me say this and I know some of you will disagree, but I don’t think McGrady is a NBA superstar. He’s a bad boy and can do almost anything, but he’s faltered year in and year out when the money is on the table. I want to see a superhuman effort out of him right now when the game is on the line–we all should. If he’s injured then that’s something different, but no more excuses like this:
“I didn’t have anything (in the fourth quarter),” he said. “It’s tough, banging with these guys.”
They say you are a superstar Tracy. Step up bruh and prove it.
Stop Mehmet Okur, 16 and 16 and stop Derron Williams, 22 and 5.
Yeah it’s Utah so they are going to get calls. The NBA wants the Utah demographic to be interested. It’s part of NBA marketing. You may not like it, but it’s real. You have to play through that ish. Now you are going to their house and it’s about to get worse.
Utah was 37-4 at home.
TMac was one assist shy of his first career triple double with 23, 13 and 9, Bobby Jackson tossed in 18 and Scola added 14 but that’s about all they got.
You are not going to win in the playoffs shooting 21% behind the three point line and 61% from the stripe at home. That’s obvious.
Mental toughness. Heart. Inspiration. Will. Balls–whatever else. This is money time. Step up or you will become one of those funny ass Gone Fishin’ segments on TNT.
Look at the last 4 years the rockets have been in the playoffs. TMac and Yao always run out of gas by teh 4th qrt. They are the most worst conditioned superstars I have ever seen.
Also Scola commits the most dumbest fouls I have ever seen. I have watched about 60 rocket games this year. And boy does Scola commit dumb @ss fouls. He is a hacking machine………..he11 he should have had 15 fouls this game. Yet boozer was getting called for ticky tac crap in the first half.
The NBA used to stand for No Boys Allowed now it stands for National Basketball Association.
T-Mac is most definantly a superstar, its just not his game to do everything from PG to SF. No one says Shaq isn’t a superstar because he can’t play point, the same for KG, hell AI, but you get on T-MAc because he can’t. Sound like some straight hater $hit if you ask me.
Rockets are suffering because of injuries, simple as that. Yao is gone and Rafer is gone and no one is stepping up to fill their place. Battier isn’t consistant on offense to step up, and hell thats pretty much it.
DMac you missed everything I said. When is TMac going to get out of the first round?
It’s on him. That’s what superstars do. I don’t care who is on his team. I want to see some 20 point quarters and some 45, 9 and 7 games to stave off elimination.
Yes his team has been a detriment and Rick Adelman has never been known to be the best x and o’s guy, but damn…
The cat can ball–don’t get it twisted–but win a series first.
What would Rick Mahorn do if David West tapped him on the jaw? lol
These cats couldn’t have played in the 80′s. Kevin McHale laughs at your feeble attempts to clothesline:)
Getting out of the 1st round isn’t all on T-Mac , the same way as Phoenix not winning a ring isn’t all on Barkley, J.Kidd, AI, or anyone else. That is BS. I hear what you said, I disagree. Superstars need supporting casts to win rings and win playoff series, you can’t do it on your own, period.
He needs a supporting cast to do it, I mean damn look at what he did when he was in Orlando, remember who was on that lame ass squad that he got to the playoffs every year? No one. Now this year he starts off hurt, then comes back, Yao gets hurt for the damn season & playoffs, they survive and make it, then Rafer, the only other offensive threat , gets hurt and they lose by 4 and you want to blame him for that too. Come on man, it isn’t like they are playing scrubs either..
T-Mac is my boy, I can’t stand by and allow the hate to build up against him.
All I know is that I am getting so F-ing tired of these damn players flopping all over the place. The shit by Kirilenko last night almost made me throw up, I was so pissed. You’re damn near a 7-footer, at least 200 pounds, STAND ON YOUR DAMN FEET!!!!!!
Manu and Tim Duncan do that ish too!!! GO PLAY SOCCER!!!!
As for T-Mac…one of my favorite stars of all time. I just don’t think he’s really equipped to do it all by himself. At least not anymore. You can kinda see it in his eyes sometimes…he just seems tired. Can’t blame him…..sad kinda…
DMac I don’t care who the team is. 2 points in the last 2 fourth quarters is just unacceptable for someone labeled a superstar. Name another case.
I hear you on the floppin. I can’t stand it. Be competitive and play some damn defense. When I used to go down the lane if you stood in my way you got the Chuck truck!
Name another case of what? I remember at the mid point or a little after the midpoint of the season, Adelman and co. saying T-Mac needs to distribute the ball and everything will be ok, they don’t need him taking all those shots and what not. He does that and now he is labled not though enough? I’m glad T-Mac doesn’t listen to the garbage and just does what they ask of him, also again its not like he is playing a scrub team. Utah is great at home and plays pretty good D, its not like he is playing the Nuggets or the Wizards.
Another case where a superstar has 2 points in the last two playoff fourth quarters.
I can’t think of it off the top of my head, hell I don’t know if it happend before, but if it hasn’t that is not T-Macs fault they lost. He was the only threat on the team and they wore him down, period.
I’ll leave with quotes from Doug Collins and Magic.
Collins on the strong performance of Rockets guard Tracy McGrady for the first three quarters:
“What an effort it has been tonight, it’s a shame that people will write about Tracy McGrady’s fourth quarter because he was brilliant through the first three quarters. The whole philosophy of Utah is to try to wear him down and take away his legs in the fourth quarter. He has to do so much for this team without Yao Ming and without his starting point guard in Rafer Alston and it just took it’s toll.”
Magic Johnson on the competitiveness of the game:
“It won’t be T-Mac’s fault tonight (if they lose), he’s playing just like a superstar is supposed to play when his team is depleted and the talent is not there to beat a strong Utah team. Utah has come to sweep this series, they think, ‘we know that we’re better than them, we are going to be physical and we’re going to run.’ Utah’s bench is better now, they are playing very good basketball right now.”
The Rockets won, what, 10 straight games without Yao, were one game away from home court throughout the playoffs, and won 55-56 games this year. That doesn’t scream out “scrub supporting cast.” Some of the blame has to go on Tracy’s shoulders because he’s the leader. If the Rockets had blown Utah out, he’d get the credit, so he has to take the blame after losses. But Adelman deserves his fair share of blame as well, just because…it’s Rick Adelman:)
They won 10 games without Yao but with Tracy. They won 15 games without Tracy but with Yao.
The point I was making was without Yao and another scorer, Alston, the team is very weak. With those two out you only have T-Mac, maybe Battier will provide some 3s but you can’t count on it. That means all the only thing the other team has to do is focus and tire T-Mac down and that is what they are going to do until some other scorer steps up to help out, period.
Magic and Collins said it perfectly, you can’t blame T-Mac for losing this game, he is only human and he gets tired.