broom broom...

Still enjoying the butt-kicking that the Mav's gave the Lakers. But sadly I think the NBA Finals will be Chicago vs Memphis (funny that Chicago is the Eastern Conference team and is west of Memphis...)

And that elbow injury Rondo had in the last game was ugly.

You're putting Memphis in after the Mavs demolished LA?

I also don't think Derrick Rose (that's all Chicago is) is a lock for the east.

The Mavs don't match up well vs Memphis (athletic bigs and an energetic PG that will make J. Kidd have to work on the defensive end). Memphis actually took 3 of 4 vs the Mavs this year. I think Dallas matches up better vs OKC (Marion has shown success in defending Durant) and Dallas took 3 of 4 vs OKC this year.

The #1 reason why Dallas has been successful in the post season is because Jason Kidd has not been required to shut down a much younger and more athletic PG (Portland and LA had older and slower than average points). When Kidd doesn't have to work hard on defense he doesn't seem as old as he is. Making Kidd work on defense changes Dallas from a drive and dish team (like they have been in this six game post season winning streak) to a settle for jump shots team (like they have been in past post seasons and the end of this regular season - when Kidd is worn out). A jump-shooting team does not draw fouls and does not force the other team to use their bench (Dallas has the best bench in the playoffs). It may work at times, but you can't build extended success on jump shots.

I dunno, I think Dallas has gotten hot right when they need to. Chicago owned the Hawks in the regular season too, if I recall, but it hasn't meant so much in the playoffs. I like the experience of the Mavs and the fact that they have a lot more to prove. I just don't see a number 8 seed going to the final. 7-game series' have a way of grinding down the Cinderella teams.

I don't really see the Celtics staying with the Heat much longer, with their injuries, so if Chicago gets past Atlanta (and I think they will), I don't see Chicago beating the Heat.

this week off is going to have an affect on the Mav's peaking right now. Yeah and extra day or two would be good, but a week to ten days? YIKES!

Memphis is just one of those teams. They are going to battle you to the end. They tanked the last few games so they would meet San Antonio. One would hope that sports karma would come back to bite them for being so blatant about it.

As for Miami in the finals, it will either be Chicago or the Heat. I don't see Atlanta beating the Bulls and the Celtics window has closed. There are a lot of people in the DFW metroplex that WANT to face Miami in the finals. They want to get "payback" for 2006. To that I say, be careful for what you wish... I REALLY don't want to see the trophy "taken to South Beach"...

FWIW I see the NBA Playoffs being a who has a better point guard (or who's PG plays better). Derrick Rose looks, to me, like a much better Dewayne Wade circa 2006. I think he can carry a team to the championship.

Oh, I don't know if you tweet or not, but following "Bill Walton's" tweets during the Mavs/Lakers series has been good reading

Samples:
They have found a helmet to fit Charles Barkley's gigantic head. The cost of materials used to create this device must have bankrupted TNT. (postgame)

Phil Jackson had the perfect sunset ending to his Last Crusade. But like Indy, he came back with a failure of Crystal Skull proportions.

Meanwhile back in LA, along with their managers & paparazzi, Laker fans are holding a sobering candlelight vigil in the gym at Bel Air Prep.

An embarrassing dunk attempt by Ron Artest. Not since Henny Youngman graced the stage have I seen such a ridiculous comedy act. #iamappalled

Fresh from his work with a starter’s pistol at the Kentucky Derby, Steve Blake continues to fire useless blanks into the sky. Just unreal!!

Lakers continue to leave Jason Terry wide open in the corner. I haven't seen such idiocy since Sarah Palin's interview with Katie Couric.

Tyson Chandler has brought a toughness to this Mavs squad reminiscent to Kelly Leak's dramatic impact on the blundering Bad News Bears.

Like the NBA version of Revenge of the Nerds, the Mavs are using brains over brawn to keep the elitist Lakers off balance. Tri Lambs unite!

It is extremely evident that Kobe's pregame routine included reading Keyshawn Johnson's literary classic 'Just Give Me The Damn Ball'.

On a lovely Mother's Day Mrs. Gasol has tearfully placed her son Pau's face on the side of a milk carton, hoping to inspire his putrid play.

all from @TheBillWalton (The Bill Walton Trip)

All of them are pretty good, but the Palin comment definitely tops the list.

That would be funnier if it were really Bill Walton.

My problem with the bulls beating the heat, though I hope it happens, is that rose is all of 22 years old, and he really earned the "V" in MVP. If he has a bad game, they will lose to a team like the Heat or Cavs. I think the pressure will get to him eventually.

This OKC game needs to end.

It did. 3OT 133 - 123

Will be interesting to see who rebounds from that game and who lets it get to them.

good article about the evolution of Dirk:

http://theticket.com/Shows/TheMusers/Cr ... fault.aspx

hoping that the Mavs finish the series tonight with the Thunder. I don't see how a team could respond after blowing a game like they did last game then go to the other team's town to play.

If Dallas comes out smoking you could see the Thunder fold.

They didn't fold early like some expected, but when Dirk hit that 3 it certainly took some wind out of their sails. Now Dallas needs to beat Miami. I can hope, right?

Russell Westbrook is a great player but he has lots of growing up to do. He didn't single-handedly cost them the series, but he was certainly one of the biggest reasons OKC lost (and yes, I know he is also one of the biggest reasons OKC made it as far as they did).

And Durant is a great shooter, but great basketball "players" also should have high numbers of assists. Way too often he just takes the shot with a double team rather than dish to the open man.

OKC will be a really good team if they continue to grow. It was obvious that their game still needs polishing before they consistently challenge for the title. From the coach on down they have a lot to learn and I think that they do have the talent to do it. They are not far away from being a force, if they continue to grow.

I'd like to see Chicago win tonight so that the Mavs will have a few extra days off. They will need to be at full strength if they are to have a chance against Miami (or Chicago).

I think OKC is definitely on the rise. There are some opportunities with the Lakers and Spurs on the decline, I think, so they are in a good place. Completely opposite from the Hawks, who can't seem to progress any further than they have.

Their biggest problem is that Westbrook is a pussy and will cause problems. He thinks he's better than Durant... and he ain't.

It's also easy rooting for Durant, he's a class act.

after the amazingly tight first four games of the NBA finals, I am scared to think that game five will be a total blow out for the Heat.

I have a feeling that LBJ will go off for 40+ with DWade adding another 30+.

The Heat D will shut down Dirk's supporting cast and The UberGerman will not be enough to keep the Mavs in it.

Haywood will probably not play, Chandler will get into foul trouble minimizing him.

Kidd is old and his legs are tired. He doesn't have the energy to score and his body is moving a lot slower than his brain is, causing more turn overs.

Terry will pull his disappearing act tonight.

The Matrix will put up a fight but get overshadowed by LBJ

I would like to see the Mavs win it all, but I have a really bad feeling about this game.

I feel the opposite. It's hard to say... but so far, LBJ has been pretty consistently inconsistent in the biggest moments. He has a lot to prove.

I could be wrong... the reality is that if he does show up, they will win. I'm glad the series has some drama, though.

LBJ has been the one to fade in the 4th quarter, not 38 year old Kidd. Not that Kidd's offense has been very good, but he's still hustling and playing great defense the whole game. LBJ looks lost and tired towards the end of the games.

Oh snap... Wade goes out and now the pressure's *really* on James.

And it's over. What a game! That locker room is going to go into meltdown now. I love the 3-pointer over Lebron to seal the win right at the end.

ok, looks like I was wrong. What a game. I hope the Mavs can win one more this season

some great Tweets by The Bill Walton Trip (in reverse order):
Meanwhile, Scottie Pippen has quietly requested the same witness protection program as Henry Hill.

Lebron, Lebron. In the Immortal words of the ever eloquent Rasheed Wallace, “Ball don’t lie.”

The grandiose hype surrounding Lebron James is starting to sputter faster than that highly talked about Y2k debacle.

Did Lebron just make a shot in the fourth quarter or was that the Loch Ness Monster sauntering by?

Dwyane Wade is the greatest example of a one man show since Ric Flair won the 1992 Royal Rumble wire to wire! My goodness gracious!

As Wade fell for Dirk’s shot fake, somewhere Admiral Akbar was yelling “ It’s a trap!”

With Dwyane Wade out, the Heat have turned to offensive input from...Mike Miller?

As Dwyane Wade retreats hurt to the Heat locker room, Lebron is nervously yearning for the warmth of Linus’ security blanket.

they played this video just before the game at the AAC last night...

sports chills

oooh, Heat messing with basketball Karma again...

I don't really care for either team, but since I have nothing but contempt for his Supreme Douchbebagness Mark Cuban, I'd like to see Miami win the next two games just to stick it too him, either way I may have watched 30 minutes worth of NBA games since the playoffs started.

you have to be impressed that Cuban has self imposed media ban. He has been keeping his mouth (and blog) shut since just before the end of the season.

Things have been much better around here since he decided to not be the news and let the team be the story

I love this

12 point lead. Barea waltzes right up the middle and not only is no one from the Heat there, they don't even move towards him. I hope the Mavs close this out.

You can also really see the tentativeness that everyone has been talking about with James. I've seen several plays where he just needs to shoot, drive to the basket, etc., and he passes.... and passes.... and passes... good thing that's not a drinking game, shit.

Go cry your eyes out on your big pillow Lebron.

I don't follow or care about basketball, but I'm glad the Heat did not win the title. I hate when teams buy their championships etc.

Would you look at that. I don't give a shit, but it's kind of nice. Plus everyone will be in a good mood this week.

_________________

no game 7. sweet

I'm not a Mavs fan, but I was pretty impressed by them. Good victory. Dirk & the boys deserved a Championship.

OK, gotta post some more funnies here...

Apple has announced that they are getting on the LeBron bandwagon and is releasing a "LeBron Phone". The only drawback is that it only vibrates as it has no ring.

/rimshot

and now for photos:
Loss of the ring
Dirk gets Finals MVP
Scoreboard

more LeBron jokes...

Don't ask LeBron for change for a dollar. He can only give you three quarters.

It's LeBron James Day in Dallas! Everyone takes off 12 minutes early.

Apple just released the new LeBron James iPhone. When you receive a call, it only vibrates. It doesn't have a ring.

A husband and wife were discussing what to name their baby. The wife said she liked the name LeBron, but the husband said "it doesn't have a ring to it."

Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are taking CPR classes this summer, just in case LeBron chokes again next season.

Why does LeBron only eat boneless buffalo wings? Because he has a tendency to choke.

LeBron James plans to release his autobiography as soon as he comes up with a title.

Why did LeBron get an automatic transmission in his Lamborghini? Because he's not good in the clutch.

LeBron James was just traded to the Florida Panthers. He should be wildly successful, since in the NHL, there are only 3 periods.

Why did LeBron James skip college? In order to avoid the finals.

Curious here, why is there so much LeBron hate? I don't get all the hub bub about buying a championship and LeBron taking the "easy" way out instead of building his own team. That is the way all the free agent sports are now...I mean in Philly we just got Cliff Lee back and no one gets on his back when it's essentially the same thing. I know the way he announced it was attention whore and a waste of time for everyone (I blame the media AND LeBron for that idiocy), but besides that, why does anyone care?

Sure he had a bad finals, but it's not like he was terrible, just very mediocre. Plenty of stars have fallen short in finals, usually at least 1 on every single losing team.

Not a fan or hater of him, really curious why he causes so much polarity though.

edit: I should also mention that regardless of my post, some of those jokes are pretty funny

I can understand the LeBron hate from Cleveland people (although I think they should get over it). People outside of Cleveland, however, don't make any sense. As you said, free agents leave their "homes" all the time for new teams and it's rarely an issue other than from the home cities. "The Decision" was a fiasco, but I wonder if we'd still be talking about it if his "decision" on that hour-long special was to stay in Cleveland rather than taking his talents to South Beach.

There are many reasons for the "hate". I don't "hate" LBJ, but he is an easy target to pick on. First it was "The Decision", there really doesn't need to be much more said about that. Then there was the Miami Three party when they were counting their multiple championships. They basically invited all the scrutiny on themselves.

As a Mav's fan, the majority of the anger is at D-Wade from the 2006 series and other things that he has done. But he did have a good series and you can't really bash a guy that brings it on the biggest stage.

Early on it was looking like the Mav's fans would be targeting Bosh for pulling a Casper act, but he was performing better by the end of the series.

Finally, the "failure to perform" in the closing parts of the games for LBJ was, I think, also due to the way Dallas was playing LeBron. Somehow the Mavs got LeBron to be a spot up shooter and passer - not the slasher that dominates a game. When he is driving to the basket to make a power dunk and/or gets fouled it brings his and the Heat's energy to a higher level, like sharks in a feeding frenzy they smell blood and want more. The passivity in James's game helped neuter the killer instinct. The media and the people picked up on that and because he brought a giant spotlight on himself, he is getting the negative recognition.

Like Krby said, it had some to do with "The Decision" and a lot to do with the big party guaranteeing championships where Lebron said once they got on the court it would be easy.

I am the biggest non NBA fan around, so I don't care, but any realistic mavs or for that matter any other teams fans who think that the dirk is the best player on the planet right ,well that just makes me giggle, yes he is very good, but he's 1-1 in championships, and well I'd bet its another 5 years before they get back if at all, and yes I think LBJ will win more championships than dirk, but I do give props to the mavs this year they had a magical run were everything fell their way, with 1 really good player, and a bunch of avg players.

Ever since Dirk got in the league the critics were saying "a Euro cannot lead a team to the Championship." After the beginning of the Super-Teams (like Boston's Three, LA with Kobe Ron and Paul, Miami, San Antonio with their three headed monster Duncan, Manu, and Parker) they were saying that Dallas didn't have the star power to win it all.

No Dirk is not the "best player in basketball" He is an amazing shooter, with a will strong enough to carry a team to a higher place than it could without him. Dirk does what all superstars must do, he makes the other players on the team better. In this playoffs, after the Portland series, it was like Dirk found the beast inside of him and took over the floor. Dirk was making clutch shot after clutch shot. Driving to the rim. Dunking the ball. And he was playing some defense too. What we saw in this playoffs is the best Dirk that the basketball world has ever seen. He has developed a more complete game every year.

Will the Mavs win it all next year (if there is a season)? I doubt it. But I also doubt that the majority of Basketball fans won't be picking Dallas to lose in the first round of the playoffs next year either.