NBA 2004/05

[Morgbug]

That Walker trade is a weird one...not sure why Boston wants him back

When Len Bias died, all sanity left Boston with respect to basketball.  It's been really, really frustrating for a long time.

[JediMAC]

I feel it should be pointed out that the lowly Clippers, who were in the midst of an 8-game losing streak, knocked off the T-wolves last night.   

Also noteworthy is that the Lakers have FINALLY won THREE freakin' games in a row for the first time all season!     So hopefully they're finally getting their **** together, especially now that they know Lamar and Caron Butler aren't being traded anywhere.

Big game against Detroit tonight though.  Not exactly expecting a win out of that one, but hopefully my boys will surprise me.

Can't wait to see what antics Payton's gonna have in store as far as reporting to the Hawks goes.  Supposedly he ain't gonna be around there long, and he'll eventually get moved back to a Western Conf. contender.

BTW, you guys see the story on Boston's Fleet Center naming rights?  They're eBaying off the naming rights every day for their stadium (since Fleet's no longer in the picture), and some lawyer from New York won the rights for a day for a little over a couple grand, and is demanding it be called the Derek Jeter Center.  Funny!  They're mulling over whether they're gonna allow it though, and it looks doubtful that they actually will...

[JediMAC]

The Lakers have gone totally and completely into the toilet now.  Since picking up our first 3 game winning streak of the season coming out of the Allstar break, we've now lost 4 in a row, including to the **** teams of Toronto, New York, and Boston.  That puts us back at the .500 mark, with a very bleak outlook on things right now.  I think I'm finally ready to admit that we're not anywhere near as good as I was expecting us to be, and Kobe is definitely not "leading the way" like he should be...   

[Jeff]

Kobe is definitely not "leading the way" like he should be...   

This is no surprise to me.... Both Scott and I fully expected Kobe to crap out on ya.  Sorry, man.   


Of course, up here in the land of Wolves there are plently of surprises to keep me humble in taunting your LAkers.   

Losing to 17-40 Golden-fricken-State last night?  AT HOME?  Yet ANOTHER crappy-ass 4th quarter killed us...  at this point I don't even know why I bother anymore. 

Maybe I'll take a break from sports for a bit and just pick up the Twins in March... I can always jump back on the wolves bandwagon when/if they make the playoffs I guess.

In fact, hey look it's March now!  And the first Twins grapefruit league game is today!

[prompty removes himself from the Wolves bandwagon... goodbye NBA season 04-05]

Jeff

[JediMAC]

Another horrid loss for the Lakeshow, to the lowly, pathetic cross town Clippers last night.  That actually dropped us OUT of the Playoff picture too, which is really causing reality to start setting in.  Still surprising to see the Wolves sitting right alongside us.  Despite all their off court shenanigans, I had fully expected Garnett to pull his guys together for the stretch run, and turn things around.

When guys like KG and Kobe, and teams like the Wolves and Lakers are NOT in the playoff picture, and un-noteable teams like the Grizzlies and Nuggets ARE...?  Something's wrong with this picture.

Boils down to playing team basketball and good defense of course.  But I'd rather avoid thinking about that...   

Amusing to see how the Webber trade is playing out in Philly.  Dude's already in the doghouse, is playing way reduced minutes, is not contributing, is disgruntled, and is now getting booed by the Philly fans.  Boy, that trade sure didn't work out too well for 'em, eh?!   

[Dressel Rebel]

Amusing to see how the Webber trade is playing out in Philly.  Dude's already in the doghouse, is playing way reduced minutes, is not contributing, is disgruntled, and is now getting booed by the Philly fans.  Boy, that trade sure didn't work out too well for 'em, eh?!   

I still don't understand why the Kings traded him.  They had Cuttino Mobley, Webber, Mike Bibby, Brad Miller, and Peja Stojakovic, they were definitely playoff bound and had a chance to go deep into the playoffs.  And they really traded Webber for crap.  I can see why the Sixers wanted him.  Webber was a lock for 20 PTS, 10 REB, 5 AST per night, now his numbers have been cut in half over the last 7 games.  Let's see how he finishes the season.  I don't think he'll be a Sixer next year if this continues.

[Jeff]

When guys like KG and Kobe, and teams like the Wolves and Lakers are NOT in the playoff picture, and un-noteable teams like the Grizzlies and Nuggets ARE...?  Something's wrong with this picture.

I wonder what Shaq is thinking right now?

Heat = #1 playoff seed in the East with a 7.5 game lead over #2 Detroit 

Lakers = #9 in the West, 0.5 games behind the #8 seed 


I doubt that Shaq is missing Phil and Kobe all that much at this point... 

[Brian]

Nice to see that Fred Hoiberg is getting recognized for his shooting prowess, in an article over at ESPN.  You can read part of it over at ESPN.com.  This brings about another point I wanted to mention, but doesn't it seem like ESPN.com is getting awfully stingy with their articles and information anymore?  I used to really enjoy reading their various stories about players, teams, etc., but it is pretty rare to even get a chance to read one anymore (not to mention any chats they have).  If they want to have some of their services subscription based, that's fine, but it is coming to the point that anything beyond statistics, standings, and scores has to be paid for.  Sorry, just ranting .

[JediMAC]

I wonder what Shaq is thinking right now?

Heat = #1 playoff seed in the East with a 7.5 game lead over #2 Detroit 

Lakers = #9 in the West, 0.5 games behind the #8 seed 


I doubt that Shaq is missing Phil and Kobe all that much at this point... 

And that's what's making this whole Laker season 100x worse.  I hate seeing Shaq kick ass in the East, and us go down the damded toilet.  As horrible as it is to say, I was kinda hoping that Shaq's injury a few weeks ago would be season ending.   

I just pray that Detroit can keep Miami out of the Finals.  Daily, I pray for that.

Nice ass-whippin Stoudemire (44 points) and the Suns administered upon the Spurs last night.  Of course, it was because pansyass Popovich kept Duncan and Ginobli out of the game.  Keeps the Suns right alongside the Spurs in the West, and Nash's surprising MVP push gets even stronger.  I'd imagine Amere's gotta be getting into the running now as well.  Gonna be interesting to see who's gonna grab it this year, since it seems like a wide open race at this point.  I doubt Iverson and LeBron will have enough W's to be considered too seriously.  Shaq and Wade will split a lot of the Heat votes, as will Amare and Nash for the Suns, which may just let Duncan sneak in for his third.

Granted, Kobe should actually win it.  But you guys already knew that...   

[Brian]

Personally, I'd really like to see Nash win the MVP.  I don't know how likely it is, even though he does deserve it, but the fact that he isn't the "high scoring" type might hold him back some too.  It really is up in the air this year with crappy team seasons likely keeping KG and Kobe out of the running.  Candidates probably consist of (in no particular order):

Steve Nash
Tim Duncan
Allen Iverson
Shaquille O'Neal
LeBron James
Kevin Garnett
Kobe Bryant
Amare Stoudemire
Dirk Nowitzki

[Dressel Rebel]

I think all of those players have a chance to win the MVP except for Amare Stoudemire, no chance there.  If a Sun wins, it's gonna be Nash for sure.  The Suns scored 30 pts less a game when Nash was out with his injury. 

And about Shaq, if you put him there, Wade's gotta be there too.

I like LeBron's odds.

[Brian]

Yeah, forgot to put Wade in there, that guy is outstanding.  Although, he's probably in the same boat as Stoudemire....if someone is going to win it on his team, they are more likely to give it to Shaq, although I don't think that will happen either.

[Jeff]

I doubt Iverson and LeBron will have enough W's to be considered too seriously.  Shaq and Wade will split a lot of the Heat votes, as will Amare and Nash for the Suns, which may just let Duncan sneak in for his third.

I agree with this too.  I think Amare and Nash will split a lot of votes, same with Shaq and Wade.  It's hard to be the league MVP if you might not even be your team's MVP.   

I'll guess that Duncan, LeBron, and Iverson have the best shots at the MVP. 

Iverson is scoring a ton and is at the top with assists.  King James has turned around a once hopeless franchise.  But, like J-MAC pointed out, they both might not have enough wins when compared to the other teams (Miami, Spurs, Suns).

If this were baseball (where MVP means "Flashiest Offensive Player regardless of team performance"), I'd give the award to King James.  He's the most valuable to the game and it's future in terms of leading the next batch of super-stars.

However, since this is the NBA MVP (where TEAM performance actually matters to the MVP vote) I have to give the nod to Duncan.  He's is leading the Spurs to the best in the west alone without a Nash/Amare helper.  Near the top in scoring and rebounds, I think it's his.

Jeff

[JediMAC]

After faltering to the lowly Clippers last week, the Lakers have bounced back with a nice win over the Mavs (again), and barely squeezed by the pathetic Bobcats on Saturday.  It took 21 points in the fourth quarter from Kobe, along with a game winning 22 foot jumper with 9 tenths of a second left, to pull that one out by a single point.  Embarrassing.  But I guess a W is a W.  Our first 2 game winning streak on the road this year too.  Also embarrassing.

Clinging to the #8 spot again.  Barely.

[Morgbug]

I think LeBron will win the MVP - the league needs to promote itself again.  It is suffering through some (for the NBA) hard times, image-wise.  The fallout last year between Shaq and Kobe, some less than stellar games (did I see a final with Detroit last week where they won 64-62 ) and some rather bad reputations for it's players. 

Iverson won't win because of negative associations.  Nash won't win because he's white and playing for a non-major team (no, it's not politically correct to state that, but it's true).  LeBron is deserving, make no mistake about my views, but I think Nash does more for his team than LeBron does for his team overall.  Duncan's a decent, if boring, shot to win again - a quality player, a quality individual.

I just wonder what the decision making process is for the NBA.  I admit I was surprised Duncan got it previously, given his work ethic, attitude, etc. are so un-NBA in the modern sense.  LeBron is the next Jordan and has kept his nose clean so there's an option with appeal to the fans and the league.  hmm.