Just thought I should share the ~500 OKC fans that showed up at the airport to welcome home their team, and the players and Scott Brooks impromptu waving session. It's actually a really cool moment, and it explains why the Thunder players were strongly thanking the OKC fans on Twitter last night.

Taj Gibson technical foul for showing emotion in a potential elimination game.

The NBA: Emotions; We Don't Want 'Em

LameBron with the Harden-like flop on an all-ball strip attempt toward the end of the third quarter, and a wink afterward. More floptastic fouls early in the fourth. Awesome basketball plays *dripping with sarcasm*. The announcers, Reggie Miller in particular, are also worthy of praise for the ebullient praise and fellating of LameBron for his fantastic basketball kabuki theater.

I think the officiating has been horrible if you're Dallas in the last series or the Bulls tonight, but even worse have been the national media announcers failing in their duties of objectivity and so blatantly sucking off Oklahoma last night (I'm pretty sure Van Gundy wanted Harden to crawl into bed with him so he could nuzzle his beard) and Reggie Miller tonight. Reggie is taking great pride in passing to LameBron the torch of cheap flop bitchery that Reggie once ALMOST ran to the summit of the mountain. All LameBron has to do to fully take up the torch now is kick his leg out on a three-point attempt with a defender closing out.

My wish: may LameBron's championship pedigree mirror exactly that of Reggie Miller. Local announcers at least have an excuse to be homers. What was Van Gundy's excuse last night? Was he trying to be the next coach of Choke-KC? Did Westbrook storm off the court without shaking hands to cuddle with Van Gundy because Harden couldn't make it right away? What's Reggie Miller's excuse? Does he have dibs on Delonte West's sloppy seconds with LameBron's mom? Why are the officials and announcers conspiring to make otherwise outstanding playoff matchups so much less enjoyable? I weep for the Mavs in the finals. No doubt the officials will try to call two Mavs players for fouls on Wade and James on the same play and award them four free-throws. I will simply continue to hope that Dirk gets his.

Probably trampling on Chris' lacktion report here, but i'm looking at the box scores and am i seeing this correctly? Zydrunas Ilgauskas with all zeroes in the statline (including minutes)?

Nice "prevent defense" that Chicago ran down the stretch, there. (i.e., dribble out the shot clock and then take a horribad shot)

Works just as well in basketball as it does in football, evidently.

WV: deday - Hoping for good offense at the end of the game - that'll be deday.

Hey, look at that. The Heat can win a game by less than 5.

Remember the countdown to disaster for the Heat earlier this year?
Just thought I should mention that

How exactly did this bulls team get 60-odd wins?
Even when they are up by 13 they don't look like a team that can close out.
Shitty shitty day. Worst possible finals match up imo.
if it wasnt for the looming lockout I'd just leave the tv turned off.

Hey Anon, re: the "countdown to disaster," stop revising history. It was a countdown to their failure to win more than 72 games, as certain prognosticators (e.g. Van Gundy) so foolishly proclaimed. I think JVG was waving pom-poms at the Heat's pre-season championship celebration of their not one, not two, not three... championships. They did not, in fact, win 72 or more games. The prediction of the occurrence of the rapture was more accurate than Van Gundy's win prediction for the Heat.

Was at the Heat Road Rally. One of the best nights of my life. Middle fingers around to you Chicago. I'll come back down to earth tomorrow and regain some cynicism, but W.O.W.

Oh. And Carlos Boozer is a bum.

Iirc that was a "countdown to failure" and refered to many analysts' prediction (JVG stands out in my mind) that this Heat squad could/would match or beat the best regular season record ever: the 72 wins of the 95/96 Chicago Bulls.

I think we can all agree that had it been Lebron or Wade who dunked instead of Terry, it would've been an outrage and national news. Case in point: game 5 of the Heat-Sixers series.

Yeah Derrick Rose is young, but what I'm seeing at the moment is Allen Iverson with slightly better dunks.

Rose may take bad shots but I hope he can grow out of that. Also...I have nothing left to say about Boozer. He just is an overpaid fat ass. I am almost glad I missed this epic collapse...I don't think I could watch Heat being so clutch.

"bing said...
How exactly did this bulls team get 60-odd wins?"
--------
Their division is comprised of the Pacers, Detriot, the Bucks and the Cavs, so they got to play those teams 4 times each. Of course they crushed them 15-1.

Sorry to double post but I've gotta ask: Who still thinks Boozer should have had Bosh's all star spot?

Hey Bulls... I think jerry Sloan is available...

I couldn't resist the urge to chime in, especially when I saw the Heat hate and the "OMG this will be the worst Finals matchup evahh!" comments.
Look, I rooted for a couple of teams this season (coincidentally, both the Grizz and the Thunder, and the Clippers), and Miami was one of those teams. I love D-Wade and LeBron as players (who the fuck cares what they do off-court?), and the coming together of this year's team was a dream come true for me. All year long however, I've seen nothing but bitching from most of you guys, and kazam92 (and some other guy whose nick I can't remember) was, for the most part, the only guy defending the Heat (as well as criticizing them, when necessary). Needless to say, he was in the minority, and had to pick his words very carefully. You guys vented your collective frustrations on them during the whole season, and wished for their failure so much. Well, guess what? Even though they are not playing the prettiest basketball in the league (and they could be, considering the talent on this team), and even though I honestly don't think that they deserve the title this season, based on their quality of play, I do hope that they win it. They didn't cheat. They didn't play dirty. They didn't buy their way to the Finals. They are a group of super-talented basketball players, who are amazing together, and definitely present something new and interesting to watch. In addition to Dallas, and more importantly Dirk, being surprisingly clutch and awesome this post-season, I think that the Finals will be a treat to watch. Especially, because I, for one, am tired of seeing the same old match-up variations consisting of the fucking Spurs, Pistons, Lakers and Celtics in the Finals. Hooray for change, and go Heat!

Mladen, I'm not sure who said "OMG this will be the worst Finals matchup evahh!", but I for one, am looking forward to the finals. Mavs vs Heat rematch is awesome, even if both teams have been revamped.

I don't like LeBron, I do agree he is pretty amazing and fun to watch on court. And maybe that's all that matters. It's not like I'm friend or something. Wade has some BronBron rubbing on him, but he's still pretty cool in my book. Bosh..is Bosh.

Regarding Heat, I think Noah said it the best, "They're Hollywood as hell but they're still very good."

Finals will be repeat of this series..

Mladen: It's not really a variation, since these same two teams met in the Finals in 2006.

Anon: If you're saying Rose's dunks are only slightly better than Iverson's, I am concerned for you.

I'm really disappointed in all these late game meltdowns in the playoffs this year. Ironically, I hope for one more: The Heat to choke up a 13 point lead while on the verge of going 3-0 on the Mavs and they end up losing the series 4-2. ;D

Kidd deserves a ring.

Basketball-wise i love the rose - iverson comparison. As far as character goes rose is the one you would prefer to start a team around, but im very afraid he might never become more than a benign growth

this superstar clustering will definetely become a factor in the future, and i thinks rose's chances to ever win a championship are hinging on the bulls' ability to attract big FA names.
What if howard teams up with deron in NJ in 2 years, and chris paul joins the new york superfriends?

Regarding the 72-wins thing
(I hope i get flamed for this superhard), i think any of michael jordan's championship teams
would have struggled mightily with this heat team in a 7 game series.
A 60 win team could be as good as a 72 win team. The regular season has too many variables to just plain compare season records and declare the winningest team the undisputed best team ever.
I was also hoping to see the heat crash and burn all year long, but im not afraid to say they're really good. jordan faced (and defeated) some monster teams in his day, but he never faced a 3headed monster like this. rose needs more help!!

draftaraujo,
I respectfully disagree. The Mavs are much better offensively than the Bulls.

I think the big question is whether or not the Heat's bench can keep playing well. If the three Nazguls don't get any help, the Mavs can wear them down.

P.S., the captcha for this comment form was "shifest." A sign?

Stern button v2.0?

Batmanu - all due respect, but you might have forgotten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvI_iTbgTwU

Iverson could dunk, and he was shorter than Rose. And he played against proper big men.

@ Anon - Unfortunately, I cannot view it (blocked at work).

I know Iverson could and did dunk. Not denying he had some nasty ones, but I think Rose is on another level with his.

Spelled wrong. It's Van Der Graaff Generator. :P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wtUFJPGE0I


@Anonymous: "Regarding the 72-wins thing (I hope i get flamed for this superhard), i think any of michael jordan's championship teams
would have struggled mightily with this heat team in a 7 game series."

Hope requited.

Of all the slurping bandwaggoning, did you just compare arguably the best team of all time with a one-dimensional team that can't even break a hundred against a bunch of young, inexperienced players? Let's contemplate some matchups:

Jordan on Wade. Jordan was arguably the best two defender of his generation, and the best scorer ever, the most clutch player ever. You think he doesn't shut Wade's ass down? Wade is merely a better than average man defender, and Jordan steals his lunch money.

Pippen on LeBron: Pippen also arguably the best 3 defender of his generation, and a guy who came within one basket of taking the Bulls to the Finals WITHOUT JORDAN. LeBron is an above average man defender (his specialty is blocks, especially leaving his man to roam--does he dare roam against Pippen? No).

Bosh. Bwahahaha. Dennis Rodman bends him over and makes him a sex slave a la "Pulp Fiction." Bosh scores career lows and Rodman collects 15 boards per game.

Or look at the BullS 3 point specialists vs. the pale excuse the Heat has at that position. You gonna put Mike Miller up against Kerr? Best 3 pt % EVER? REALLY?

The only weak spot was at center. Yet the Heat don't have much there, either.

You are deceived by the numbers Bron and Wade put up in the "no hand check" era. Let's see how they do in the 90s, when brutal playoff fouls were routine, and grabbing and hand checking of perimeter players was standard. What an ignorant, horse shit assertion you just made. With luck, the Heat may be that way in a few years. But even that is in an era when All Stars snuggle up with their enemies. It's such a joke to compare these guys with the best 90s teams.

Batmanu - I don't disagree that Rose's dunks are nice, but I think people have forgotten some of Iverson's nastier efforts - a few of which feature in the linked vid (for when you get home - damned office internet permissions, huh?!).