Wade and Dirk

Thanks to Dan B. for today's pic.

The Atlanta Hawks in Miami: The most toothless road warriors in the NBA playoffs might as well have stayed in Atlanta to work on scrapbooking or further honing their fork-bending skills. The Hawks got smacked around in virtually every way a team can be smacked. Poor shooting? Check: 37 percent. Lousy rebounding? Check: The Heat had a 47-36 edge on the glass. Butterfingers? Double-checkity: Atlanta had almost twice as many turnovers (14) as assists (8). In fact, their blocks against (5) almost matched their assist total. By the end of this brutal 48 minutes, the Dirty Birds had scored a poultry (get it?) 72 points and lost by 26. Oh, and four of their five starters (Mike Bibby, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Mo Evans) finished with a plus-minus score of at least -20.

Heat-Hawks, Part I: Here's what Tim Reynolds, AP sports writer, had to say after Game 6: "So a wild back-and-forth series—three routs for the Hawks, three routs for the Heat—will be decided Sunday in Atlanta. ... The wacky run of outcomes continued: Atlanta's wins have been by 26, 10 and 15 points. The Heat have prevailed by 15, 29 and 26 points." I particularly enjoyed the deceptive use of words like "wild" and "wacky." Not only do they in no way apply to this matchup, they encourage the incorrect notion that the series has been worth watching...when it clearly has not. I think I'd rather watch the entire 65-episode run of Jem and the Holograms. Twice. And that is truly, truly, truly outrageous.

David Stern: So Rajon Rondo can throw an elbow and not get suspended despite the league's continuing effort to punish players for throwing elbows? Ooooookay. Thanks for the continuing and consistent inconsistency, Dave.

Game 7 of Bulls-Celtics: Look, we all sort of knew in our hearts that there was no way this one could live up to the expectations set by Games 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6, right? How could it? How many game-breaking shots and soul-crushing overtimes could a series possibly have? This one had already almost doubled the old record of four overtimes. And if you were a betting man and/or woman, wouldn't you have put your money on the team with championship experience over the one with the rookie point guard AND the rookie (and regularly clueless) head coach? Neither team played all that well, but the Bulls played worse and executed less, shooting 39 percent, getting knuckle-rapped in the paint and -- worst of all -- letting the Eddie House/Brian Scalabrine combo burn them for 24 points on 6-for-7 from downtown. Think about that: Chicago's inability to contain House and Scal probably cost them the game. That and the fact that Vinny Del Negro still hasn't figured out how to coach a defensive rotation. Mind you, the Bulls kept things close, mostly because the Celtics bricked nine free throws, so Boston wasn't free of bawfulry. (Although the C's Boston did hot all 11 of their foul shots in the last 2 minutes.)

Anyway, it was a decent game. But it was pretty much destined to be a bit of a letdown. It wasn't quite Ghostbusters II, but it was close.

Craig Y. wrote in with a couple officiating questions/comments: "Not only the questionable calls during the course of the game but two stand out: 1) How is it Perkins is called for a tech for grabbing his shoulder after getting multiple body blows from Miller cause that is all he did on the play? 2) The call near the end of the first half when Hinrich stole the ball from Pierce, fell down and the refs call a foul on Pierce who was a good four feet from the play." Quick answers: Perk screamed a complaint at the ref for not calling some of those earlier body blows. (And I would guess the officials were letting that contact go because nobody in this series has delivered as many potshots as Kendrick.) As for the Pierce foul, Paul grabbed Kirk immediately after he pilfered the ball, and the ref came in with a late whistle because Hinrich lost the ball. A lot of times refs let those little touch/grab fouls go unless (they believe) it causes a turnover or missed shot.

More from Basketbawful reader DKH: "Wow, apparently Doc Rivers is complaining about the Chicago bench hassling his players. No irony there. Anyway, worst-of to the NBA for doing everything they can to ensure the outcome of this series. Sidenote: How much does Brad Miller lumber into everything? Every time he goes to pick someone, I can't believe he gets there in time. (As I was typing this, he got in the passing lane and picked off the ball, though.)"

Halftime interview selection: From Basketbawful reader J.T. Magee: "The only bawful thing so far [in the Bulls-Celtics game], besides playing Brad Miller more than Tyrus Thomas, which is why they're losing at the half, is the fact that David Aldridge interviewed Brian Scalabrine instead of, well, any other Celtic." Choice Scals quote, from Chris (regarding Boston's in-the-point domination): "We're getting penetration, and we're getting wide open." Couldn't David have at least spent a little time talking about Brian's headbandage? Speaking of Scal...

Update! Brian Scalabrine: From Ruben: "I know that Scal had a very good game by his own standards, but you should definitely mention that block by Rose. When I saw that I laughed so hard, thinking that it must have been devastating! Credit to Scal though, because he didn't turn into Stephon 'afraid to shoot' Marbury, and made some big shots.


Paul Pierce: From Basketbawful reader Ignarus: "I'd like to put of a WotW nomination for Paul Pierce's horrible, horrible mutton chops. I rarely get on anyone's case about hair, but he's got the hair version of a strangulated hernia glued to the sides of his face." Seriously, do you think anyone's told him? I mean, I rely on my friends to tell me when I do something that makes me look like a damn fool. Does Paul have friends like that? Or would that get somebody kicked out of the posse? (Note also that it's tough to be too hard on Pierce's face-fuzz after a series that starred Joakim Noah's head-bush.)

The Miami Heat: They just didn't look like a team that was ready to win in the playoffs. Mario Chalmers (1-for-6, 4 assists, 3 turnovers) looked lost. Michael Beasley finished with 17 points and 7 boards but, at times, didn't look that into the game. Jermaine O'Neal, who sat out of Game 6 with a concussion, played just 42 seconds after being cleared by doctors before the game. (Which means that he and Moon, the two castoffs from Toronto, were both unavailable for this do-or-die game.) And Dwyane Wade spent the entire second half looking kind of pissy...mostly because he was killing himself and yet his team was never in the game after the first quarter. (At times, particularly when he was jawing at Beasley, it looked like Pookie had taken a page out of the Kobe Bryant's 2006 novella, "Browbeat Your Teammates To Success." Anyway, their season finally ended in a 91-78 laugher, but not before a little needless drama...

Udonis Haslem: Late in the game, with the conclusion pretty much decided -- the Atlanta fans were already singing "Hey, hey, hey, goodbye!" -- Haslem did this:


Memo to Udonis: You can't foul an opponent around the face or neck and avoid a flagrant and potential ejection...unless you're Rajon Rondo. Haslem gets bonus points for his post-ejection tantruma and angry tossing of his jersey into the crowd. Way to stay classy, Udonis.

Heat-Hawks, Part II: What a fitting end to a crummy series. Seven games, seven double-digit losses. There were exactly 10 lead changes in the ENTIRE series, and all of those happened in the first quarter. Think about that: The lead never changed hands after the first 12 minutes in seven straight games. Even the Associated Press was bored. According to the AP recap: "A series totally devoid of drama ended in appropriate fashion. After a back-and-forth first quarter that ended with Atlanta ahead 20-18, the Hawks pulled out to a 49-36 lead by halftime." But wait, there's more. You want to know how boring this series has been? Check out this excerpt from the AP game notes: "The late-arriving crowd of 18,864 was just short of a capacity, ending Atlanta's streak of six straight playoff sellouts." When a Game 7 featuring an extremely popular home team and one of the three best players in the league doesn't sell out...you KNOW there's a problem.

The Dallas Maverick: Man, there was a lot of talk about how hot these guys have been, especially after the way they handled the Spurs. But people who were hoping for a second-coming of Bulls-Celtics had to be pretty bummed out when the Mavs fell on their face in Denver. Dallas was actually up 24-16 after the first quarter and then got outscored by 22 points the rest of the way. The Nuggets turned off their targeting computers and "Forced" their way to 55 percent shooting behind 'Melo (7-for-10), Nene (9-for-13) and J.R. Smith (7-for-13). And the Mavericks took a break from not defending only to bumble away the ball (20 turnovers). On the bright side, if you're a Dallas fan, is that the Mavs probably won't be able to play any worse in Game 2.

Rick Carlisle, "blame the refs" machine: Carlisle spent some time after his team's staggering loss insinuating that Dirk was getting abused...but not getting the calls. "I'll look at that closely, and if the referees were right they were right. But he's being played very physically, away from the floor where the rules are different than in post play. We'll look at it and if there's a complaint to be made we'll talk to the league about it."

Marc Stein, unintentionally dirty writing machine: Basketbawful reader catfish noticed this quote in today's Daily Dime: "The Mavs also suffered the indignity of watching Jason Terry, their newly minted Sixth Man Award winner, make less noise than three Denver subs: Andersen, Anthony Carter and Sixth Man Award runner-up J.R. Smith, who had 15 points and six rebounds in repeatedly punishing the visitors with his penetration."

Weekend lactivity roundup: Chris proves that even playoff elimination games can have lacktion:

Heat-Hawks Game 6: In the least interesting seven-game series in memory, lacktion was the name of the game for both Mike Woodson and Erik Spoelstra. When Mario West ruined a six minute sleep-inducing stint with a made shot, Marvin Williams decided to get it on with a +4 suck differential in 4:49 via brick, turnover, rejection, and foul. Meanwhile, the Heat celebrated their blowout win by both giving Dorrell Wright a check for 3.05 trillion and having Yakhouba Diawara toss three bricks in the same amount of time (3:04) -- twice from the charity stripe - for a +3.

Bulls-Celtics: As the Celtics successfully defended home court one last time in the first round, the upstart Bulls served notice that they will be a force for years to come, with a successful array of lacktators. Lindsey Hunter has won the NBA title twice, so he understood the value of unproducitivity in any championship run; his +1 suck differential via foul in 2:17 showed The Notorious VDN that he can be counted on to provide potential victory-clinching celebration in the future when the Bulls get good enough to start garbage time early in the 4th quarter.

Heat-Hawks Game 7: In the most forgettable Game 7 in a most forgettable series, lacktators took the spotlight in a one-sided Atlanta victory - appropriate as the Hawks-Cavs matchup that resulted promises to be an All-Lacktion classic. But first off it's time to recap the merciful end to this all-Southern sleep contest.

Miami had two of its usual lacktators on the case as the game was close early - Yakhouba Diawara withdrawing 3.45 trillion from his bank account, and Jamaal Magloire negating a board in 3:30 with a giveaway and foul for a 2:1 Madsen-level Voskuhl.

The biggest surprise however has to be Jermaine "The Drain" O'Neal. When he was acquired by the Heat, nobody expected him to pan out to the same level of mediocrity that his former teammate Jake Voskuhl demonstrated in the Land Before Time. Instead, O'Neal surprised everyone by running across the platform in Level 1-2 -- http://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4675261/94124_Full.jpg - and finishing off his game in a mere 42 seconds, a surprisingly robust Mario: one brick and two fouls for a +3 suck differential AND a 2:0 Voskuhl!!!!!

Mario West ironically enough did not score a Mario -- or for that matter, any lacktivity (thanks to an unwanted assist and steal). Luckily his teammates showed that they are prepared for the epic lacktion battle in the next round against Darnell and Tarence, as Acie Law vetoed productivity in favor of a 2.75 trillion check, and Randolph Morris gave up the rock once for a +1 in 1:59, also good for a Madsen-level 1:0 Voskuhl (Morris's second in three games).

Mavs-Nuggets: The very first game of the second round provided George Karl an opportunity late to provide the home fans with their human victory cigars. Linas Kleiza fouled once and missed from downtown for a +2 in 7:02, while Jason Hart makes his third lacktive appearance of the postseason by firmly fitting into a Power Glove for a 38-second Mario!
Andrew Bynum: From Basketbawful reader Sun Devil:

DISCLAIMER: I am a Blazer fan

DISCLAIMER: As a Blazer fan, I like to jab at Lakers fans

Yes Greg Oden has had a sometimes strong, but mostly underwhelming rookie year. This has been noticeable in the playoffs.

But!!!

I'm just going to leave Andrew Bynum's stats right here:

Game 1: 7 points 3 rebounds 5 fouls
Game 2: 10 points 4 rebounds 2 fouls
Game 3: 4 points 2 rebounds 5 fouls
Game 4: 2 points 1 rebound 2 fouls
Game 5: 2 points 5 rebounds 2 fouls

And that's against the freakin' Jazz! They don't have Yao Ming!

Anyway, I'm fine with ragging on Greg, but let's not forget about Mr Bynum
Tracy McGrady: His humiliation became almost complete when the AP ran a story about how the new "mature" Ron Artest has become the heart of the Houston Rockets. The choice quote: "He's been key to the success of a team that was all but written off when Tracy McGrady had season-ending knee surgery in February." So not only did his team finally break out of the first round AFTER he was lost for the season due to "injury," but RON ARTEST became the hero in his absence. Seriously, at this point the only way Knee-Mac could possibly feel any worse would be if the Rockets went on to win a title. (By the way, did you know that his injury took his passion for the game? Did you know he HAD passion for the game? Yeah, I was shocked too. By the way, check out that article and you'll notice that Tracy repeatedly makes a point of how hard he works in the offseason. Maybe he's been reading Basketbawful...?)

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49 Comments:
Blogger Murcy said...
well, Knee-Mac DID work hard when he was in Orlando, he only became a... well... shall we say, a negative factor after he arrived in Houston. Of course, in his Orlando days, he had that first round choke-job against the Pistons though...

Anonymous Anonymous said...
I wasn't paying much attention to the Heat/Hawks finale (you know, because it was a horrible game), but I think I recall THE Mario West whiffing on a wide open dunk then picking up a tech for hanging on the rim. I know somebody on the Hawks did it, and I think it was him.

Blogger chris said...
Anonymous: Someone else pointed that out in the comment thread before this one...I hope there is video.

CAPTCHA: "meing" - is that a state of being in tune with one's most egoistic desires? (Knee-Mac!11!1!)

Anonymous catfish said...
i was talking with one of my friends about "what is jamaal magloire up to these days?" then i turned on the hawks/heat game and saw him playing. he went from an all-star to battling it out with zaza pachulia. enough said...

Blogger chris said...
catfish: Jamaal Magloire has really become quite the effective lacktator, hasn't he?

Anonymous Ruben said...
I know that Scal had a very good game by his own standards, but you should definitely mention that block by Rose. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWAQZvCYm7w
When I saw that I laughed so hard, thinking that it must have been devastating! Credit to Scal though, because he didn't turn into Stephon "afraid to shoot" Marbury, and made some big shots.

And if there are any Celtics fans who have gone to the games, is Scalabrine a kind of a joke to you guys too, in a retarded but loveable cousin kind-of way? The cheers he got when he touched the ball seemed overboard, and all doubt was removed when he made those shots. I'd like to think that it isn't because he is the only white Celtic left, and more that he sucks...

Anonymous Anonymous said...
Wasn't Oden the #1 pick and Bynum was like #10? Why compare them? Oden should be better

Blogger Faizan said...
Isn't Oden a rookie while Bynum is in his fourth year of NBA basketball? Isn't this Oden's first foray into the playoffs while it's Bynum's third (excluding last year's trip to the Finals)? Why compare them? Bynum should be better.

Anonymous Pelliott said...
What Ruben said was exactly what my friends and I were talking about when we watched game 7. Whenever Scal bricked a shot/got rejected by a point guard 6 inches or so shorter than him, and Doc was about to have an aneurysm, we imagined that Scal looked over the bench, gave thumbs up, and said "I do good, coach?!" And Doc just couldn't help but smile and nod.

Anonymous Pelliott said...
Also, the current ESPN front page picture regarding the Lakers-Rockets series:

http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2009/0504/nba_g_yao_gasol1_576.jpg

Man love?

Anonymous DKH said...
Anon: Oden's also a rookie and Bynum...isn't (I don't know what his experience is).

Not only do the Jazz not have Yao Ming, they don't even have Mehmet Okur. They do have one of the Collins, though.

=======

Regarding the Dirk situation, I thought Dirk initiated at least as much contact as any Denver defender. He's a master of getting his shoulders and elbows discretely into defenders to create space and then taking a little step-back jumper (and sometimes he only needs three steps after his dribble to do it!).

Point is, I think he gives it as much as he gets it, and Carlisle shouldn't necessarily want that matchup watched more closely.

Blogger chris said...
Faizan: Hey, both Oden and Bynum have at least one Voskuhl this playoffs already, if I'm not mistaken...YAY for "player development!"

Blogger chris said...
Pelliott: Why is it that every time I see Scal on TV, I think "Will Ferrell?"

Oh wait, that's right, with the goofy headband and all, the TNT commentators earlier in the Bulls-Celtics series actually did make the reference to Will's movie Semi-Pro. And an appropriate reference it is.

Anonymous AK Dave said...
With the Bulls series done... I just don't know if I can give a damn anymore about these playoffs until the conference finals (and the ECF will be boring too).

Dallas-Denver? OK this is an OK matchup, but despite what Kenny Smith says, I don't see Dallas winning more than 1-2 games in this series. The only things I am interested in seeing here are JR Smith jacking up 3's and Chris Anderson flapping his arms and blocking shots (6BLK in game 1? The guy's possessed)

LA-Houston? Yawn. Lakers in 4-5. Artest eats his words about Brandon Roy/Mike Chatfner or whatever that guy's name is (like anyone could understand what he said there).

CLE-ATL- See LA-Houston

Orlando-Boston- Meh. Two broken-down teams missing key players.

The NBA- where predictable and forgettable playoff series' happen. Let's pray that Denver-LA is as good as I hope it will be.

Blogger chris said...
AK Dave: I think Bawful could do the world a public service by scoring an EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH THE BEST PLAYER NOT IN THE ASSOCIATION TODAY (according to Ron-Ron), MIKE CHATFER!11!1!1!

Hey, he'd be an improvement over the rest of the Suckramento Kings. Maybe they should choose him in the upcoming draft!

At least Cleveland-Atlanta will provide the battle between Mario West and Darnell "Lacktion" Jackson, that will be worth some price of admission at least. More so than the least exciting Game 7 in ages.

Anonymous Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.

Blogger eileen said...
I think the no-technical on Noah grabbing Rondo by the shoulders and throwing him to the floor was the make-up call for Rondo's previous headthumpery. Karma has been restored.

Also, I happen to think the Rockets have a decent chance of beating the Lakers, or at least going 6 or 7 games.

Anonymous AK Dave said...
Chris-

This needs to happen. I'm honestly surprised that somebody hasn't already followed up on this. Craig Sager: you've let us down.

Anonymous Ruben said...
Chris- surely you aren't suggesting that Bawful might have to do the interview in prison? Would he have to request a conjugal visit for that? Talk about man-love! Actually, now that I think about it, Craig Sager is probably lining up this interview right now.

Anonymous Anonymous said...
AK Dave - the world is ending. Because I agree with you on almost everything, though I give the Rockets 2 wins before they go out.

That tears it. I'm going to knock off a bank, by a cadre of hookers and spend the next and last 18 hours on this earth in pure hedonism.

Anonymous drj said...
How about not being SO blatantly anti-Boston? Rajon did not elbow anybody. That was an artifact of camera angle and bodies moving. In fact, Hinrich went after Rondo to pick a fight which = grounds for immediate ejection.

In game 7, Noah THREW Rondo to the ground. No flagrant at all. And calling that a "late whistle" on Pierce for the prior contact on the steal is just pathetic. The whistle was CLEARLY for the fall, and Pierce had nothing to do with that. But that one can be excused, because that's what refs do when something goes wrong and they didn't see it... they make something up. Pretty typical.

And btw, that great and what-you-consider-funny "block" by Rose of Scal's dunk? It was a foul. In the slow-motion replay, you can clearly see Rose hitting Scal's forearm. Last I checked that's a foul. (But again, can't blame the refs for not seeing that. I blame the NBA for not having backup video refs... but that's a whole other argument.)

Anonymous Jon said...
When Miller and Scalabrine were guarding each other the amount of awkward whiteness was too much to handle. I was scared that that high caucasian concentration would implode creating a white hole which would envelop all of Boston.
CAPTCHA: unphap (sound it out)

Blogger Basketbawful said...
drj -- "How about not being SO blatantly anti-Boston?"

I just LOVE comments like this one. It's particularly amusing considering that I have stated, repeatedly, how much I love the Celtics (even referring to them, more than once, as "my beloved Celtics") and how they are my all-time favorite team. But I'm blatantly anti-Boston...just because I point out the obvious, that Stern was inconsistent with his application of punishment. Rondo threw an elbow, at a face, regardless of whether he connected. That's an offense that has been punished by suspension before, but it didn't happen in this series, likely because this was the money-series of the first round and Stern didn't want to screw that up.

Also, Noah hardly threw Rondo to the ground. He grabbed Rajon by the shoulders and Rondo's momentum spun him around. Rondo just pulled a Tony Parker to make it look worse than it was...laying on the ground with his head on his arms as if there had been some kind of head contact when there wasn't.

And as for Rose's block, seriously, go back and re-watch the series. There were numerous blocks on BOTH sides -- notably from Noah and Perkins -- in which there was a LOT of contact that went uncalled.

Blogger chris said...
Ruben: I'm surprised Bawful hasn't come up with an All-Time Association Penitentiary Team, though I guess Mr. Chatfer will not qualify, having not played in the NBA.

Jayson Williams on the other hand...

Blogger Henchman #2 said...
I dunno about the Perkins-Miller double technical (yes, it was a double technical). It didn't look like either of them did anything. Miller fouled him, they got a little tangled up and seperated awkwardly. Perkins did yell something. From the replay, it looked like "Ow!"

Anonymous AK Dave said...
"When Miller and Scalabrine were guarding each other..."

Dude, Jon, you can't guard Scal- you can only hope to contain him!!

Anonymous Anonymous said...
Is Dirk knocking himself out with chloroform in that picture?

Blogger Andy said...
That Rose block reminds me of Ronnie Price annihilating Luke Walton's layup attempt in last year's playoffs.

Blogger Rob D. said...
the cheering for scal is mostly a joke; because he is white, has red hair, and looks lumpy. This takes a lot away from him as he is nowhere near as bad as tony "radio" allen (cuba gooding jr.). He is the reason for the game 6 loss. at least scal has a bit of a shot and can dribble. scal is a solid player and before his concussion he was helping a lot. and would someone mention ben gordon falling after every shot.

Blogger chris said...
BleedingHeartPessimist: I guess "expressions of pain" counted as one of the many ticky-tack reasons to draw a foul in Game 7...

Anonymous jj said...
@drj: how about not being so ridiculously pro-boston?

this is a site, which takes pride in making fun of everyone, including the team that gives you wet dreams.

get over it or g t f o

ps: boston fans love scal because he looks like 99% of them

Yes... that was the Mario West hanging on the rim after missing the dunk and picking up the T.

The best part was (as usual) Steve Holman's (legendary radio voice of the Hawks) take on the affair.

Steve: "And they've called a technical on Miami. No, wait, I think they gave the T to Mario for hanging onto the rim. Ouch. There goes $500 of that playoff money, Mario."

And Holman said it in a way that told all listeners that Mario really needed that playoff bonus. It was priceless. A highlight of the series.

Worst thing about a first round win? Woodson ain't getting canned this summer. But I'm pumped to be in round two. I hear T.I. got his jail time postponed so he can join me and all the other fanatics at the Highlight Factory Saturday Night, Baby!

Blogger Nick Flynt said...
I hate to admit it, being surprisingly pro-Celtics for a Yankees fan (in Alabama, don't ask), but I was rooting for the up and coming Bulls in game 7.

I call it the underdog, no KG being a douche reflex.

Anonymous poptarted said...
I watched that Rose block several times and was amazed at how clean it looked. With all the blocks from behind that tend to be fouls and not to mention dangerous that happen, I thought that block was textbook.

Blogger Unknown said...
lol I'd say Worst of the Day goes to Basketbawful

1) For saying how hot the Mavericks are. J-Kidd and Dirk must be yummy to SOMEBODY I guess

2) Brad Miller can punch Rondo in the face and nobody says a word, but reverse it, and it's a worldwide controversy.

Am I crazy in thinking that Miller is 7 ft center and Rondo the 5'11" point guard here?

Today's writer must have caught his mom sleeping with a wicked pissah dude in a Larry Bird jersey. You have some SERIOUS Celtic hate

Blogger Mintz... said...
D-Wade's underwear looks like some pretty heavy duty kevlar-type body armor...

Anonymous DKH said...
Sure "mike". Because people who are a foot shorter than I could not possibly knock my tooth out.

Anyway, you'll have to post the video of Miller punching Rondo in the face. I didn't see much of games 6 or 7, and I honestly missed that.

Anonymous Anonymous said...
Look here in the Lebron MVP post: http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/rob_peterson/05/04/james.20090504/index.html

Even nba.com doesn't check it stats, saying "Dwyane Wade led the league in scoring with 30.2 points per game and was the first player ever to record 100 steals and 100 blocks in a season."

Well...Wade in 08-09 had 173 steals and 106 blocks.
MJ in 87-88 had 259 steals and 131 blocks...
Unnecessary hyperbole?

Muttonhead

Anonymous kobefearslebron said...
Hey Basketbawful,

Maybe you can use this for your site:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3303/3502825489_69eba2c3d5_o.jpg

I was also the one who sent you this last year:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3538/3422959267_6804b9010a_o.jpg

Thanks so much!

Anonymous Anonymous said...
is it just me or does charles barkely suggest that every team needs to "push the ball and run faster"?

captcha: chorke, the lakers chorked the game away tonight

Anonymous iamhe77 said...
Is it just me or are Celtic fans starting to sound (and irritate) like Lakers fans?

Anonymous Anonymous said...
Hm they just changed to "first 6-4 guard to"
Muttonhead.

Anonymous Anonymous said...
@iamhe77: absolutely this whiny bunch is freakin annoying

Blogger AnacondaHL said...
Websense at work!

The Websense category "Non-Traditional Religions and Occult and Folklore" is filtered.

rofl.

Blogger Wild Yams said...
We'll get into the Lakers' failure last night in a bit (I'm saving that for today's Worst Of), but I wanted to address this Bynum vs. Oden thing. First, to just point out Bynum's low production in that first round against Utah is a little dishonest since for the most part he was nailed to the bench (tough to produce if you're not in the games), and while some of that was due to foul trouble, a lot of it was due to the Jazz not having a center, and Phil Jackson feeling the Lakers matched up better by not going so big against them. Second, going into these playoffs Bynum had about as much postseason experience as Oden did, and as of right now Bynum only has a grand total of 38 more minutes of playing time in his career in the postseason than Oden does; so whatever rookie excuses you would make for Oden's poor showing in the playoffs this year, they'd pretty much apply to Bynum as well.

The bottom line is that even though both players are the same age, Bynum has at least shown some flashes of being a truly great center, while Oden is looking like he may be one of the all time great #1 draft pick busts. Bynum is still just a couple weeks back from an injury that had him out for a few months, and anyone who thought he'd return at the same level he was when he got hurt is not realistic. He probably won't be back near that level till next season, but the point is that he actually was at that level at one time, something Oden has not yet shown he's capable of doing. I know that's tough for Blazer fans to hear, but it's the truth.

Blogger GonzoPal said...
What a GREAT pleasure it is to see dudes comment here for the first or second time and dont know shit about the way this blog functions (if its not the first time, its even more ignorant not to have noticed). Its called BASKETBAWFUL guys! Everybody gets his share if he deserves it. Which makes no exceptions for former champions et al. And for the great case of mike, talking bout bawfuls CELTIC "hate", do yourself a favour and look up his response to your brother in mind drj a few comments above! It´s amazing! (Yes, exactly intended to sound like the massivly whack song of Kanye)

Anonymous AK Dave said...
GonzoPal-

Kanye likes fishsticks, I hear.

Anonymous DKH said...
Yams,

Oden's PER for this season was 18.13, while Bynum's was 20.03. Clearly a significant difference and Bynum is clearly significantly better (at amassing counting stats, anyway).

But, we're discussing the playoffs here. Bynum's first-round PER (recall, this is per minute and does not depend on playing time) was 6.59, while Oden's was 11.46. This may, as you say, be due to a poor matchup/injuries, but it's not unreasonable to say that Bynum looked worse than Oden in the first round. I don't know what effects remain, if any, from Oden's injury this season. Maybe ask a Blazer fan.

I don't know why you think the inexperience argument applies equally to Oden and Bynum. Sure, they're the same age, but Bynum has spent significantly more time being trained at the NBA level. That advantage will become insignificant in maybe a couple years, but for now Oden's in his first year of playing and second year in the NBA. Maybe Bynum wasn't racking up the playing time in his early years, but he's working with higher quality trainers than Oden did in college or while he spent a year resting.

Anyway, end result: Bynum added 6.8 wins to the Lakers, and Oden added 4.9 to the Blazers, despite the fact that Oden cost twice as much.

Blogger GonzoPal said...
AKDave-

now you now my cellular ringtone... ;)