||||Oncourt Onslaught

The Knicks finished the season going 18-6 after parting ways with D’Antoni.  Carmelo caught fire in April, scoring just under 30 per (29.8), and shooting 46% from the field and behind the arc.  The Knicks were 6-3 during that stretch.  They beat Orlando, Atlanta, Boston, and the number 1 seed Chicago Bulls.  Iman Shumpert looked like a defensive veteran, Baron Davis was holding down the point in Jeremy Lin’s absence, J. R. Smith even had a few games of notable accomplishment, and Woodson had a team that had forgotten how to play defense (or simply never knew) getting it done on both ends of the court. 

The Knicks went hard down the stretch, chasing the number 6 seed, and falling just short; landing at 7 to face the Heat in the first round. The Knicks hung out in the number 8 spot for a while.  As a reward for all that effort, their prize was to face their biggest foe of this season- The Ridiculous 3 and the rest of the Miami Heat. Meanwhile, Philly gets the Chicago Bulls minus Derek Rose AND Joakim Noah.  The Knicks get Tyson Chandler with the flu and Iman Shumpert blowing his knee out in game one. Oh, and Amare slices his hand open after game 2.  Oh yeah, and the back up point guard, 33 year old Baron Davis, tears his knee in game 4…not the ideal situation for a team still struggling to find its true identity and playing a team that had beaten them 3 out of 3 times in the regular season by over 10 points per game.  If ever there were a time when hard work didn’t pay off, this was it.

As expected, the Heat went on to close out the Knicks in a decisive game five, beating the Knicks by (a much uglier than first glance) 12 points.  Amare had returned, and while he contributed big in game 4, was a complete mess in game 5, picking up his 5th foul mid-way through the third.  Melo gave a strong offensive effort, but the Heat were just too much: too much defense, too much offense…just too much.

As a fan, I enjoyed what the Knicks did in April.  And I’m not suggesting they should have tanked the end of the season, but I can’t help but wonder what good all that effort did them. Couldn’t Tyson Chandler, Melo, and certainly Baron Davis used some time off? They didn’t prove anything by winning just one game against the Heat.  Maybe they would have stood a better chance against the Bulls.  Maybe they would have been able to stretch the series out long enough for a Jeremy Lin return.  Maybe Amare would have kept his hands to himself instead of shattering a fire extinguisher in Chicago.  Maybe.  But there’s no denying the Knicks went hard in April, and then…went home in the first round.

 

 

For more, follow me on Twitter @JustACasualFan

Thursday of last week, prior to game 1 of the Heat vs Pacers series, Pacer coach Frank Vogel said of the Heat, that they were “…the biggest flopping team in the league”.  He elaborated further by saying, “Oftentimes, they’re falling down even before contact is even being made.”  While those statements may be founded in a certain amount of truth, they also cost him $15,000.  The next day, while on the Doug Gottlieb show, Zach Randolph said, “The biggest floppers is the L.A. Clippers…by far.”  No word as to whether or not that will cost him anything.  I’m fairly certain there will be no fine for me saying that I’ve always felt that Manu Ginobili and the Spurs were the biggest floppers in the game (sorry Hood).  It seems everyone has an opinion on what is the latest trend in the NBA.  During the Heat/Pacer’s game 1, NBA Commissioner David Stern said, “I think it’s time to look at (flopping) in a more serious way.”  Stern added, “It’s not a legitimate play in my judgment. I recognize if there’s contact (you) move a little bit, but some of this is acting. We should give out Oscars rather than MVP trophies.”  I couldn’t agree more, but who gets the Oscar?  Furthermore, who wants to see it rewarded anymore than it already is.  I just wanna watch a game. 

 I’m not really sure as to when flopping became such a trend.  When did it become cool to pretend that you knocked down?  This flop phenomenon has become not only acceptable, but celebrated.  Growing up, I don’t remember seeing Jordan, Magic, Bird, or Barkley flop.  I’m a long time Knicks fan and Ewing was my favorite player of all-time.  I’ve been ridiculed more than once about him getting dunked on by everyone in the league, but he challenged people at the rim…he never flopped.  The greatest players in the game didn’t flop until recently.  At the risk of letting my disdain for the Heat show, I have to point out that LeBron James is probably pound for pound the strongest player in the league, yet he frequently acts as though he’s being thrown around the court.  When you’re the greatest player in the game, is it necessary to have this pathetic act in your repertoire?  Sadly, he’s not alone.  It seems like everyone is doing it.  They do it on offense, they do it on defense; coaches praise their players when they do it, and ridicule opposing players that do it to them.  It happens in Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and probably even Minnesota.  It has become contagious, and like any other contagion, it needs to be stopped. 

If you get run over in any other sport you’re considered soft.  A catcher gets trucked trying to make a play at home…he might drop the ball and the runner will be rewarded.  Let a running back barrel over a line backer, and it’s the running back that is the star of Top 10, not the linebacker.  I don’t know enough about hockey or rugby to make a comparison, but I’m pretty sure it’s not cool to get run over.  I’ve never played competitively in school (and I’m certainly no pro), but when I do play basketball, I play like a competitor.  There is no way I’m letting someone run me over, and I’m definitely not pretending that it happened.  At what point did players decide that acting like you got fouled was more important than actually making a play on the ball?  David Stern is right- flopping does need to be looked at more seriously.  I’m not sure how the NBA can fix this, but I just know I’m tired of all the acting; I’m trying to watch a game.

For more, follow me on Twitter @JustACasualFan

 

This is definitely the coolest sports-related party figure I’ve ever seen.

Via Bro Bible comes a video tour of the coolest beer pong table to grace the internet, and it happens to be Thunder-themed.

The table even has an automatic ball washer as you will see, along with LED lights and a sick sound system. I’m sure one of the Thunder players would take this off their hands for a reasonable price.

Throughout the condensed 2011-12 NBA season, there have been quite a few injuries because of the grueling 66-games in four months format. Add the Chicago Bulls’ superstar Derrick Rose to the list.

Of course, we all know the season was irregular because of the lockout that began in July of 2011 and ended in December.

Instead of taking its time in bringing back the best professional sports league in America back to TV screens and arenas, the NBA decided to rush the players and coaches through a two week camp and then march them right into a non-stop action packed schedule.

The Memphis Grizzlies’ Zach Randolph, the Golden State Warriors’ (ex-Milwaukee Buck) Andrew Bogut, the Atlanta Hawks’ Al Horford, the San Antonio Spurs’ Manu Ginobili, the Charlotte Bobcats’ Corey Maggette and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ Anderson Varejao are just a few of the names that have missed at least half of the season.

Reigning regular season MVP Rose missed 20 plus games this season as well with multiple different injuries.  He tried to do what winners want to do, get back on the court for the playoffs to give his team a legitimate chance at winning a ring.

His legs couldn’t even handle the first game of the playoffs as he tore his ACL in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers.

I don’t blame Rose or the Bulls’ training staff for the injury at all.

The NBA is at full blame because they’re so worried about making money instead of the quality of product. The three games in four days or the back-to-back-to-back contests have left all of the league’s athletes drained. I’m not one to use the word fatigued for professional athletes but let’s face it, what they’ve tried to do this season is unreal.

In all honesty, I’m surprised more of the older guys haven’t experienced worse injuries. The Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and the Boston Celtics’ Ray Allen have missed some games, but not nearly as many as I would have thought.

The Rose injury isn’t only a tragedy for the Bulls but for the entire basketball world.

An elite team with promising NBA Finals hopes is now pressured to get out of the first round. Philadelphia smashed the Bulls 109-92 in game two of the first round series Tuesday to tie it up 1-1. Instead of basketball fans watching the league’s best and brightest stars, they’re watching a turnover machine like John Lucas III feed the 76ers transition game anything it wants.

Again, this isn’t nobodies faults except NBA Commissioner David Stern and the rest of the league’s governing body for rushing into a season. The quantity of games the NBA had to force feed down the throats of the players has now led to an inept talent stable.

Good job NBA

 

Brett Roberts and Brandon LaChance tackle current news in the NBA, including Ron Artest (his name will remain Ron Artest).

The ownership ordeal in New Orleans has finally come to and end, as Saints’ owner Tom Benson purchased the team for a reported amount $338 million.

Benson will own 100% of the team after initially bidding on the team in January. Now we just wait and see if Benson pulls the annoying move of rebranding the team name.

Sesame Street recently had some Los Angeles athletes on the show as guests, and Blake Griffin made himself a Street legend in a matter of seconds.

Blake was asked to impersonate a chicken, to which he obliged. He went berserk in what is probably the best chicken impersonation I’ve seen to date, for what it’s worth. Cock-a-doodle-doo, indeed.

Matt Kemp made a much more calm and less noteworthy appearance.

Electronic Arts started producing their basketball games in 1992 with the famous hit Bulls versus Lakers and the NBA Playoffs. For the first time in the history of basketball video games, we had actual players performing (unrealistic) moves that were patented to their game. Players had definite skill ratings, and could be objectively measured against one another.

What the game lacked originally was fluidity. The players moved like robots with slow exaggerated motions. Tecmo Basketball, another popular Super Nintendo game, had fluid motions, but lacked many of the other great things that made the EA sports games more realistic — more varied player appearances, better graphics, etc.

Then came Live ’95. EA Sports out did itself! The players moved well, could block shots flying through the air, the dunks were realistic, and the game was high paced with very few hitches in the interface. (One of the best parts was the “floating backboard,” neither backboards had those ugly stansions blocking the view). The court angle was coming from 45 degrees in rather than a plain view from half court. The game was perfect.

I spent an entire summer doing nothing but playing Live ’95. 

My team was the Cleveland Cavaliers. Mark Price was considered an NBA Live God (VIDEO LINK) and Gerald Wilkins hit just about as well, rating a ’93′ in three point shots, while Price was an uncanny 94. Both very rarely missed. Add that to Hot Rod Williams, Larry Nance, and Brad Daughtery patrolling the paint, not to mention a host of great role players (Terrell Brandon, Craig Ehlo, Bobby Phills, Danny Ferry [not so great]), and you have the makings of a pretty unbeatable team.

Still, I did lose. 

I didn’t play against the computer because in those days 320-86 blowouts were very possible and common against the mentally challenged computer interface. Those days are no longer, but in my video game days, the computer was awful. I played my season games against my brother and our friends.

Live 96 brought some incremental improvements: the game was still basically the same, but you had 20 random players spots, that could either use to re-create legends or to create your own player (of course everyone creates themselves at some point, and makes themselves perfect in all categories, of course). The result was you could form “All-Time” teams for certain teams. We catered which teams the players spent their career on according to our own personal preference.

My least favorite to play against was when my brother used the Houston Rockets and ran a high post offense with Charles Barkley (he had to be created) at the top of the key, Clyde Drexler and Robert Horry flanking the wings, and Hakeem Olajuwon and his 96 in field goals hovering around the paint. It was almost impossible to stop, because even if you could keep Barkley from hitting an automatic top of the key jumper, you probably couldn’t cover for Hakeem around the paint. I lost by more than 20 to the Rockets using that high post offense all the time. I could hang with my brother with any other team, but not in that mode, not against Sir Charles and Hakeem. What if they had played together in real life in their primes!

I don’t think today’s video games can eclipse the sheer greatness of a game where just shooting a high percentage from the field qualified the player to bang at high accuracy from anywhere…as long as it was inside the arc. Fading away over three defenders from behind the glass? Quite as possible as a wide open 15 footer. The game made no distinctions in shot difficult. Shaq could tee up 20 foot jumpers with pin point accuracy. In real life, Shaq never shoots further than 7 or 8 feet away from the basket.

Because of this fact, there were all kind of players that were far better than their actual talents would dictate they should be. Chris Gatling was one of the best players in the game, with an 88 in field goals, despite being nothing more than a role player his entire career. Bo Outlaw was a 96 in dunking, meaning he could take off anywhere within 15 feet and tomahawk on opposing players’ heads.

Kids today that have been spoiled by the ever so realistic graphics of today’s games would find the games I played as a kid intolerable, but they proved to be great entertainment at a time when we knew no better. 

NBA Live 95 will forever hold a place in my heart, and I still own both it and my Super Nintendo. I broke the power cord about two years ago, but need to replace it so I can get back to draining mid range jumpers with Greg Ostertag and fouling out with my point guard because I get too aggressive pursuing steals.

There isn’t a better way for a team’s first-year coach to make his presence felt than benching the team’s superstar player. However, there isn’t a better way to submit termination papers either.

Welcome to the Los Angeles Lakkers’ Mike Brown’s problem.

In the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, Brown told Metta World Peace to sub in for one of the best players the NBA has ever seen: Kobe Bryant. If you haven’t watched a Laker or NBA game in the last 14 years, Bryant has made a name for himself as one of the best closers in the league.

Brown must have been on the same page as the people in the closet and missed the memo. The Grizzlies went on to beat the Lakers 102-96.

The NBA is not like college ball in where the coach is the foreman, the general and the mastermind behind everything occurring or not occurring for his team on the court. In a lot of cases, the players are the definition of a player-coach without the official title. This is Bryant.

Bryant and the Buss family (the Lakers’ owners) have a 16-year relationship that has brought in five trophies and has kept basketball fans coming back for more whether it’s through ticket sales, jersey sales or TV ratings.

Yes, Phil Jackson had just as much or more to do with LA’s success at Bryant, but times have changed, Jackson has retired and Bryant is more the coach than Brown.

There isn’t one player I would rather have on my team in the fourth quarter of a close game than Bryant. I don’t care if he punched a chair. This shows emotion and his drive to win. I’d rather have a superstar  who wants to win and gets angry when he doesn’t than a guy like the New York Knicks Carmelo Anthony or the Miami Heat’s LeBron James who seem to not care if they win or lose as long as they get their paychecks and stats.

Brown has made a big mistake if he planed on staying in LA for awhile because as we all seen with Mike D’Antoni in New York, the top dollar player an owner paid for or made a blockbuster trade to acquire is more important to the big man calling the shots than a coach who isn’t winning games.

I understand basketball fans have a problem with players being the real decision maker instead of the coach. At times, I agree and think the suit should take his role to exact theory of what a coach is supposed to do. However, the league isn’t like that know and in some cases, wasn’t like that in the Michael Jordan era, Wilt Chamberlain era or Elgin Baylor era.

Coaches like Brown and D’Antoni have to stop fighting the power and realize the real situation if they want to keep their jobs. D’Antoni didn’t figure it out or  he chose not be the coach who is inferior to a player (I pick the later) and he is out of a job.

Open your eyes and play to Kobe, or you will be sitting at home as an interim coach sits on the Lakers’ sideline in the postseason.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bulls are still without Derrick Rose, so it was up to C.J. Watson on Saturday to create a game-winning shot against the Raptors.

His shot fell short off the pick and roll with Deng, but Deng was right there to clean up the miss in the nick of time. It doesn’t get any closer than this.