A Message for the Lakers

Get a rebound.  You're doing a good job forcing the Celtics to take long jumpers.  Long jumpers equal long rebounds.  The Celts are killing you on offensive boards and second chance opportunities.  If a long jumper is taken, don't run under the basket and expect the ball to fall in your lap.  Back up and block somebody out.

Rotate on pick and rolls.  I'm going to lose my testimony if I see another Celtic guard beat an LA big man to the basket by about 10 minutes.

Unless some things change real quick, this is going to be a short series.

No Accountability

If you follow sports at all, then you've probably heard about NBA referee Tim Donaghy. He has plead guilty to gambling on and fixing NBA games. Of course, this kind of activity totally compromises the integrity of the sport. Fans who watch the game simply assume they are watching two teams play as hard as they can with the same rules applying to everyone on the court. The team that plays better wins if everything is on the level. This scandal puts doubts in the minds of fans about how level the playing field really is.

The whole situation is sickening to me as a basketball fan. However, I read a statement from Donaghy on Foxsports.com that sickened me more. He said, "I'm very sorry about what happened..." At first glance that sounds good. He's sorry. He's contrite. He wishes he never did what he did. I don't think so. If he was really sorry, he would have said, "I'm sorry for what I did." This kind of attitude is prevalent in our society. There is no accountability for his actions.

I'm sorry for what happened too, but he should be sorry on a different level. He was the one who was gambling! He was the one who was fixing games! I know that in the scope of eternity, this situation has almost no bearing at all. I just view it as a microcosm of our society.

Thanks

I promised myself I would do my best not to get involved in character assassination on this blog. All I have to say is: Thank you David Stern for the worst ending to an NBA season I've seen in my 20+ years as an avid basketball fan. You and your man Stu have completely ruined the integrity of these playoffs. If this is the direction the NBA is heading, I am deeply saddened.

I don't say this as a Suns fan who feels cheated, I say it as a basketball fan who feels cheated. Once again, thanks.

NBA Playoffs!

It's the best time of the year! The NBA playoffs started today! The last week or so has been kind of boring as teams like the Mavs and Suns had already locked up their seeding. Now I don't have to watch baseball or playoff hockey! There will be basketball on every day! I'm taking the next several weeks off from playing golf because of a bad habit I've developed in my swing. The timing is perfect. I can take the next few weeks to watch basketball.

I'll root for the Suns or the Mavs. If it comes down to those two teams in the Western Conference finals, I'll have to root for the Suns. First of all, the Mavs got their shot last year. Secondly, the Mavs have a better chance of getting back to the finals after this year. Steve Nash isn't getting any younger. This is the Suns year. It better be, because they may not have another one.

Can't Figure Out These Suns

The Suns beat the Mavericks in impressive fashion this afternoon. The final score was 126-104. Phoenix shot 65% from the field for the game and an incredible 86% in the fourth quarter. My question is: "Where were these Suns when we watched them play here in Denver almost three weeks ago?!" I just can't figure these guys out. I think Steve Nash put it best when he said after the game today, "Sometimes to a fault we've played to the level of our competition." That may or may not work come playoff time. What they need to do is play every game with that killer instinct they were playing with for the first half of the season. The truth is that if they play with any lack of intensity, they can be beat by any team in the league. Their whole system relies on crisp player and ball movement. Without that, everything falls apart for them.

They play the Spurs on Thursday, so they have another big test coming up quick. Hopefully they have snapped out of the lethargic spell that has plagued them the last few weeks.

Fizzling Suns

I love the Phoenix Suns. I love the talents of the individual players and the way they gel on the court. When the Suns are on, they truly make the game of basketball a beautiful thing to watch. Another thing I like about Phoenix is their passion for the game. People have been telling them all along that they can't win a championship playing their "style" of basketball. I believe they want to prove them wrong.

We have a problem though. It seems in the last few weeks that the Suns have lost that passion. My guess is that it is driving Steve Nash crazy. As great as he has played the last three years, he is a lot closer to the end of his career than he is to the beginning of it. His opportunity to win a championship has grown quite slim. I was at the Suns/Nuggets game in Denver a few weeks ago when the Nuggets absolutely throttled them. Then I watched them lose to the Kings and the Warriors this week. I really got the impression they were playing with no sense of urgency in all three of those games. All these games came after an impressive double-overtime win against the Mavericks. I just don't get it.

All I can say is that somebody better light a match under these Suns or their playoff life will be relatively short!

The Final Four

When it comes to college basketball, I'm a UCLA fan first and foremost. I'm a PAC-10 fan in general. Needless to say, I was quite disappointed last year when the Bruins fell to the Gators in the national championship game. I was bummed that UCLA lost, but I also had respect for Florida because of how well they played and complemented each other.

As I have followed the NCAA tourney this year, I still believe Florida is a great basketball team, but I have lost almost all respect for them. I was talking to my dad one night about how I noticed that this was an extremely cocky team. I thought it was quite humorous when I found this article by Randy Hill on FoxSports.com the very next day. I have to say that I agree with Randy 100%. I was rooting for the Bruins last year in the title game and you can bet I'll be rooting for them again in the Final Four. I hope the Gators fall all over their big heads. This time, UCLA is the underdog. Go Bruins!