Game 5 and 6, the official breakdown

Nobody likes it when officials decide the outcome of games, espeacially in the playoffs. Unless of course its Detroit on the recieving end. The NBA has dodged a T.V. ratings bullet thanks to poor officiating followed by a Detroit meltdown. The league has avoided another slow, grind-out Finals between Detroit and San Antonio by giving the Cavs free reign during the Eastern Conference Finals. People need to stop saying that the playoffs are more physical than the regular season because that is a lie. Case and point: Game 6 of the Cavs vs Pistons. It started as a free-throw shoot out that Detroit wasn't invited to. I know that the new rules Stern established are supposed to boost scoring, but it seems to me that it only does this by calling more shooting fouls which results in free-throws which is a very boring way to solve the problem of low scoring games.
But this series was decided before it started. The Cavs mugged, elbowed, and flopped their way to victory. The rules only applied to the Pistons. Remember earlier this season when Kobe "inadverdantly" slapped Manu Ginobli in his pie hole? Kobe was suspended for a game and fined. LeBron elbows Chris Webber in the face, again, "inadverdantly" and the league fines him and gives him a flagrant one. Oh, and this flagrant was issued on the day IN BETWEEN GAMES 1 AND 2! WTF?! How does that help the Pistons? Where is LeBron's suspension? Why couldn't McDyess' flagrant two be judged at another time and place outside of a game so he could continue playing in Game 5? This series was a sham. The league has made its allegiance clear when it decided to revamp the rules to disallow farting near a perimeter without being called for a foul. All these rules have done is encourage flopping and give teams more free-throws. Good move Mr. Stern. Make the league more exciting on paper, but more painful to watch. In business its always about the bottom line.

2007 playoffs first round, a look back

Time to see how my first-round predictions came out:

WEST

Dallas vs Golden State - I said: Dallas in 6 Reality: Golden State in 6

Phoenix vs Los Angeles Lakers - I said: Phoenix in 5 Reality: Phoenix in 5

San Antonio vs Denver - I said: San Antonio in 5 Reality: San Antonio in 5

Utah vs Houston - I said: Houston in 7 Reality: Utah in 7

EAST

Detroit vs Orlando - I said: Detroit in 5 Reality: Detroit in 4

Cleveland vs Washington - I said: Cleveland in 4 (who didn't?) Reality: Cleveland in 4

Toronto vs New Jersey - I said: Toronto in 6 Reality: New Jersey in 6

Miami vs Chicago - I said: Chicago in 7 Reality: Chicago in 4

I'll grade myself by giving each semi-correct prediction one point and each completely correct prediction two points (semi-correct being that I picked the team that won or the number of games, completely correct being that I picked both the correct team and number of games).

Grade: 11/16 = 69% D+ One point extra credit should be given for the suggestive final score. So final grade C- aka I sucked.

I'll give myself a handicap on calling the second-round winners (the handicap being that the second-round has already begun).

WEST

Pheonix (2) vs San Antonio (3): For some reason I just can't picture Pheonix's high octane anti-defense strategy making it to the Finals. Call me old fashioned, but defense wins games. San Antonio's got it, Pheonix doesn't. San Antonio in 5.

Utah (5) vs Golden State (8): After upsetting Dallas, Golden State could very well steamroll over Utah. Maybe steamroll is a little harsh. Golden State in 6.

EAST

Detroit (1) vs Chicago (5): Well Chicago is already down 2-0 but that doesn't mean anything until after they return home. I would give the Bulls all of their home games in this series but Detroit is one of the best team at winning on the road. I'll be ballsey and say Detroit in 5.

Cleveland (2) vs New Jersey (6): New Jersey really isn't that great of a team. Sure, Mikki Moore is an unstoppable big man and all, but what else they got? Two washed up superstars and Richard Jefferson. Cleveland in 7.

Not this year, not ever

No history will be made this season. The Defensive Player of the Year Award will go to Marcus Camby. Ben Wallace had the opportunity to be the first player to ever win the award five times but it looks like he’s going to have to up his game in order to do that. Until then, he will have to settle being tied with Dikembe Mutombo for four. Ben Wallace is having his worst statistical season since joining Detroit with just six points a game, ten rebounds, a steal, and a couple blocks this season. In the last three seasons we have seen Ben’s stats go from superstar (9.7 ppg, 12.2 rpg, and 2.4 bpg in 2005) to the solid yet unspectacular stat line that the Chicago Bulls have paid $60 million for this year. If this trend continues, then Chicago is going to start spending big bucks for a role player who’s ability to perform that role is steadily declining. That’s what made Ben Wallace such an impossible situation for the management of Detroit. He was the face of the franchise, giving everything he had to help build the Detroit Pistons into the Eastern Conference powerhouse it is today and has been for the past four years. Detroit could have used him another season as a starter and in future seasons coming off the bench. But it was not meant to be. Big Ben wanted big money and a bigger offensive role despite having no offensive game. Joe Dumars decided that the franchise couldn’t afford it and offered him a still lucrative $50 million contract, but Ben wanted none of it. Did Ben deserve a maxed-out superstar contract? Yes, five years ago. If they decided to resign Wallace, Detroit would soon be faced with the same dilemma that will eventually face Chicago: lots of money going to an old timer who cannot produce anywhere near his paycheck. Retiring players, particularly superstars, is no easy task. Often the ego supersedes reality, and that’s the type of thing that ruins teams. Look at the Celtics at the end of the Larry Bird era. Nobody in Detroit wanted that.

First-round playoff predictions

With the playoffs just around the corner, I figure that I would give my first round predictions. Let’s start with the Western Conference.

West
Dallas (1) vs Golden State (8): Despite Golden State sweeping the season series I don’t expect this to turn into an upset. After a 12-year post-season drought for the Warriors I expect them to come out with plenty of energy. Plus after winning all of their games against the Mavs this season, the Warriors know that they can beat them. In a seven game series though, Dallas is too deep and too good; Dallas in six.

Phoenix (2) vs Los Angeles Lakers (7): Everybody is talking about last year’s long series with Kobe Bryant giving Phoenix a run for their money (notice how I said Kobe Bryant, not the Lakers). With plenty of hard fouls and suspensions to go around in last year’s first round (remember that hard foul when Raja Bell about ripped Kobe’s head off or hearing Papa Walton ripping Luke Walton for playing dirty while Papa was commentating on the game?) people are wondering if we can expect to see another bloodbath or if Phoenix will make short work of L.A. this time around. I’d go with the latter; Phoenix in five.

San Antonio (3) vs Denver (6): Denver is ending their season hot, which might spell trouble for San Antonio. But this is the post season, and I just don’t see the young Nuggets led by A.I. giving the tried and true Spurs that much of a problem; San Antonio in five.

Utah (4) vs Houston (5): This match-up I expect to be a battle. With Utah’s strong starters matching up against Houston’s two superstars, this series will be taken to the limit (or perhaps “go the distance”, to use another completely lame sports cliché). I foresee McGrady breaking his curse this year; Houston in seven.

East
Detroit (1) vs Orlando (8): Detroit better watch out, Jameer Nelson said that he knows that the Magic can beat the Pistons. Uh huh, I’ll be nice and give Orlando a game; Detroit in five.

Cleveland (2) vs Washington (7): This match-up, without Hibachi? Cleveland in four.

Toronto (3) vs New Jersey (6): The tri-star attack by the Nets will give Toronto some problems but NJ is nowhere near as cohesive as Toronto. I’d say Toronto in six.

Miami (4) vs Chicago (5): By some bizarre twist of David Stern’s playoff seeding fate, the Bulls dropped from the second seed to the fifth overnight. That gives them the Miami in the first round, like last season. This time around, the Bulls have a much better shot. Chicago almost gave Miami a scare last season and the two teams meet again with basically the same roster. Except the Bulls young players are much better than last year and Ben Wallace knows how to play Shaq as well as anybody. Not to mention that a hobbled Dwayne Wade and an old Shaq with questionable stamina after playing hard to get Miami in the playoffs might cause a Miami breakdown. I’d say the defending champs are out in the first round; Chicago in seven.

The politics of a massacre

In the aftermath of the Virginia Tech shooting, the left and right are starting to mount an attack and defense respectively on the Second Amendment right to bear arms. Prepare for nothing to happen. Liberal special interest groups are going to attempt to use this tragedy to show the danger of firearms in our society and conservatives are going to counter by saying that if the students were packing, this wouldn’t have happened. For the liberals, I think this argument will die. The gun laws are not going to change, they didn’t after Columbine and this will be no different. The conservative stance is simply ridiculous. Usually in this kind of situation the bad guy is generally easy to spot, they’re the one who is wielding the gun. If everybody starts wielding weaponry, it may become difficult to tell if the person you’re bustin’ a cap in deserves it or not. The escalation of violence would only make matters worse. If everyone having a gun made you safer than the inner-city would be the safest place in America. Massacres like this are an abnormality and can’t be prevented by laws going either way. We must take them as they are. Bad shit just happens sometimes, no need to politicize it.

Detroit Basketball

With the playoffs approaching this weekend, everybody is already shoeing in Dallas as the lock-in NBA champions, with some justification. They did reach the Finals last year and proved themselves to be hungry for success this year by ending the season with the best record. But I am not quite so quick to give them a free pass, mainly because their situation mirrors Detroit’s position at the end of last season. Detroit was beaten in the Finals the previous season to San Antonio and they were hungry for some payback. Detroit then finished with a franchise-best season and the best record in the NBA. Then they promptly fell apart. Five of the last six teams to end the season with the best record have been eliminated from the postseason in an “upset”. This stat really isn’t that surprising to me. With 82 games in a season, going all-out every night would leave any team not led by Michael Jordan drained come the post season. Add a couple of game 6 and 7s along the way and you’re done. That’s why I think that Detroit has the best chance for the Championship this year and I’ll give you my 5 reasons.

5.) The Bench: For the last two seasons the Pistons bench has been a non-factor. In 2004 when they won the Finals, they had such bench players as Mehmet Okur, Mike James, Corliss Williamson, and a younger Lindsey Hunter to name a few. In 2005 and 2006 the bench was, well Antonio McDyess, and, um, Antonio McDyess. This year players like Carlos Delfino and Jason Maxiell are providing a spark off the bench. Carlos Delfino is being exceptionally productive. Antonio McDyess has been producing double digits in scoring since the All-Star break and is still a defensive presence. Lindsey Hunter is still a premier one-on-one defender against guards and occasionally forwards. Flip Murray has been coming into his own after a mostly disappointing season. Hell, maybe even Nazr Mohammed will prove valuable; he was, after all, the starting center for the 2005 San Antonio Spurs champs that ousted the Pistons.

4.) Loaded Western Conference: Most sports casters on ESPN and other networks have been spouting this ridiculous notion that an Eastern Conference team cannot compete with all of the top three teams in the West. Having four of the top five teams in the Western Conference helps rather than hurts any of the Eastern contenders. For instance, Dallas will have to go through Golden State, then Houston or Utah, and then San Antonio or Phoenix just to reach the Finals. Coming out of the West in itself will be a feat. Which brings me to:

3.) Weak Eastern Conference: Detroit will have much less opposition in winning the East. A first round match-up with Orlando followed by a series with Cleveland or a battered Miami and then an Eastern conference show-down with Chicago or Toronto seems much less intimidating. By the time the Finals roll around, they should just be getting warmed-up.

2.) Chris Webber: I know that Webber has been the guy people loved to hate for the last, say, pretty much since his high school days at DCD. Webber is perceived as being a talented yet lazy, destructive, disinterested, gutless, and, I you’re from the Ann Arbor region, completely boneheaded player. Rasheed Wallace has had a similar rep throughout his time in the NBA but found a home in Detroit. It seems that Webber has done the same. I found it amusing that Philadelphia has been upset with Webber’s recent desire to play team basketball for Detroit after being nothing but a lump of over-priced coal in Philly. People who say that Chris Webber cannot replace Ben Wallace are morons. Ben Wallace was already gone. Chris Webber came to replace Nazr Mohammed and you can’t argue that a change wasn’t needed there.

1.) Flip Saunders: I wholeheartedly believe that the reason for the collapse of the Pistons in last years Conference Finals rests on Ben Wallace’s shoulders. He fought with Flip Saunders every step of the way. He complained about their defense, practicing, money, and my favorite, a complete lack of an offensive role. This year it will be Flip’s show without a major dissenter to his method in the locker room. Ben Wallace was a relic to the Larry Brown era (ok, relic is a bit harsh, it wasn’t that long ago), not to mention that age is catching up to him. If LB was still head coach and didn’t go all diva on Detroit’s ass Ben would still be the face of the franchise but LB did, and now Ben isn’t. Flip now has an offensive minded center in Chris Webber and four other guys whose only agenda is to win another championship.

The unofficial and in no way authentic Starbury II review

April 1st marked the release of the new line of Starbury merchandise including the much anticipated (evidently) release of the Starbury II. Their availability is leaves something to be desired being that they are only sold at Steve and Barry’s and that they are almost always sold out. This problem may have something to do with the sign that I saw posted near the register which read, and I quote: “In order to be fair to fellow customers, no more than 10 pairs of the Starbury II per customer”. At $14.98 per pair, every cheap bastard you can imagine was buying a pair whether they played basketball or not. I did manage to snag a pair of white ones in my size. Now white shoes for me are a problem considering that I primarily play on blacktop courts, a white shoe would get trashed fast. I then came up with the brilliant idea to purchase a pair of black Starbury Ones (which the store had much of) to wear outside. Previous to my purchase of both pairs of Starburys I balled in a pair of generic Nikes that cost me about $50 (as you can see I am cheap when it comes to shoes). Now for those of you that had complaints about the Starbury Ones, I hear you. I never tried on a pair until my recent purchase and the faults are definitely noticeable. For example, the ankle is high, to give support I imagine, but often makes you feel locked in to the shoe, not to mention the chaffing. If you are a flat-footed individual, you will definitely want a shoe with more arch support, this shoe has none. Overall though, the shoe feels about as good as my $50 Nikes (which often gave me blisters). So with the Starbury Ones you are essentially buying a pair of $50 cheap Nikes for 15 bucks (the Starbury One also looks a bit sleeker).
One good thing about having Stephon Marbury actually wearing his shoe on court is that he knows if there is a problem with the product and can adjust accordingly. Now enter the Starbury II. Almost all of the major problems with the Starbury One have been resolved (I say almost because the arch support still leaves something to be desired, it’s better but not great). The shoe doesn’t ride high in the ankle so the chaffing is gone. This also makes the shoe easier to get on and off. The shoe construction is much better too. One upside to the Starbury One was that it was light, if a bit clunky. The II still maintains the lightness factor but has improved on the clunky factor (this is probably due to the lower-riding ankle that allows for more flexibility and the increase of arch support). The One also had a bad habit of caving in on your foot with the most basic of movements (like walking forward, for instance), with the II, no such problem.
The Starbury II, like the One, is advertised as being just as good as the $130+ Air Jordan’s, Adidas, or what have you. Like I said before, on a scale of dollars, I’d rate the Starbury One at $50 bucks. Not bad for a $14.98 shoe, but no where near the mission statement. The Starbury II is more likely in the $80-$100 range, still not at the promised value but not too shabby to say the least. I plan on ballin’ in them from now on (barring some horrible defect, like they completely disintegrate after your tenth pick-up game).