.jpg)
Yesterday's Celtics/Cavs Game 7, which featured a memorable mano-a-mano shootout between Paul Pierce and LeBron James, hearkened back to the glory days of the NBA.
As I sat on my couch watching Game 7 of the 2008 Eastern Conference Semifinals, witnessing a spectacular battle between All Stars Paul Pierce and LeBron James, I told my son the game reminded me of one of the epic playoff confrontations I grew up watching, like Bird & Dominique, Bird & Magic or Bird & Jordan.
Now, thanks to the Truth and the King, he will have his own playoff classic to recount from his childhood to his kids.
The Celtics defeated James' Cavaliers, 97-92, yesterday at the new Garden, which sounded awfully similar to the old Gahden, especially when the traditional Hub chant of "BULLSHIT!" echoed through the building and the surround sound after a few questionable calls late in the game, and earned the right to take on the Detroit Pistons in the Conference Finals starting Tuesday.
But this game will not be remembered for that, nor for the final score, nor for the sight of Tom Brady wearing a San Francisco Giants hat courtside.
No this one will be remembered for two men bringing the NBA back to relevance, for rekindling the fire in old school basketball fans' bellies by melding memories of immortal league legends with feats of present day superstars to create an everlasting image of how great NBA playoff basketball can be.
For four quarters Sunday afternoon James and Pierce played a full court version of "tag, you're it", each scoring at will early and often while challenging each other to match one big shot for another as they took their teams, fans and a nation of enthralled viewers along for the ride.
LeBron wound up with 45 points on 14-29 shooting including 15 in the final frame, and Pierce ended up scoring 41, 17 of those coming in the second quarter when Boston built a double digit lead, only to see it dwindle down to a single basket thanks to James' heroics.
At one point late in the game, after a pair of Bron treys cut the Boston lead to three points, Pierce stood at the free throw line with the outcome still in the balance and his stat sheet sitting at 39 points. As he shot the first freebie the ball hit the back of the rim and bounced straight up in what appeared to be a late game brick from a tired player.
But miraculously the ball plopped straight back down and through the net, ringing 4-0on Pierce's point register and ensuring the Celts were going to pull this one out.
As a nervous smile spread across a relieved Pierce's face, the rest of the NBA fans smiled as well.
In a series that had been about as painful to watch as an episode of Cashmere Mafia, the duo not only revitalized the semifinals but may have possibly brought the sport of NBA basketball back from the abyss.
With the recent infusion of entitled youngsters, gigantic guaranteed salaries and a business-first mentality that has permeated the Association in the past decade, not to mention a crushing referee betting scandal, the league has taken numerous hits of late, both PR and fan interest-wise.
Sure there have been some memorable postseason games played the last few years. The Suns and Lakers have been involved in a few, Dallas and Golden State Game 7 last year was epic, and the Spurs have had a couple of gems during their run of dominance this decade.
But not since the 80s have we seen a truly memorable scoring duel between two NBA superstars in a crucial Game 7, and rightfully so this one is being called the greatest series-deciding duel since Bird and Dominique Wilkins in 1987.
In that game Larry Legend was, well, legendary, dropping in shots from all over the court en route to a monster 20-point 4th quarter and 34 point night. But as good as Legend was 'Nique was even better, pouring in 47 points on a barrage of layups, jumpers and rim-rattling dunks, but his Hawks ultimately lost to my Cs 118-116 in a game that has been called one of the greatest game 7s of all time.
Until now.
I'm not suggesting yesterday's game, which had enough suspense, thrills and jaw-dropping moments to qualify as a summer theatrical blockbuster , was better than that one.
But I am saying that thanks to the efforts of two special players, the torch has finally been passed from one generation to the next.
"We both tried to will our team to victory and, just like Dominique Wilkins, I ended up on the short end and the Celtics won again," James said. "I think the second round of the postseason, Game 7, these fans will finally have an opportunity to forget a little bit about what Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins did and remember what Paul and LeBron did. This will go down in history."
Amen, King James.
Thankfully, we were all witnesses.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Celtics and Cavs stage an NBA playoff game for the ages
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
NBA Finals: Thanks for coming, Cleveland
.jpg)
This non-call on Bowen did not decide GM3- the Cavs inability to seize the game didThe game started with an incredible, Hendrix-esque rendition of the National Anthem by slide guitar magician Ben Harper (wikitrivia: he's married to Laura Dern-yowza!) that brought the already overly-enthused crowd to it's feet and had the players ready to rock & roll.
In fact the whole opening scene for the first NBA finals game in the city's history was befitting a summer Hollywood blockbuster, from the introduction of Tim Duncan first to Lord Vader's theme, to the ear-splitting roar that rose through the crowd when the PA announcer finally introduced King James last amid a cornea-searing display of pyrotechnics.
Unfortunately, then the game began.
The Spurs and Cavs combined to set basketball back 50 years as the two teams managed to score the second-fewest points in a Finals game since dawn of the shot clock era in 1954-55.
They were on pace to shatter the record of 145, held by Ft Wayne & Syracuse in 1955, when the teams had tallied just 130 points (67-63) with 4 1/2 minutes to play, but a late flurry fueled by back-to-back threes and a bunch of frees kept them from the ignominious achievement.
As poorly as both teams shot (Spurs- 41%, Cavs 37%) and as ugly as a game that's 40-38 at halftime and 55-50 after three quarters can be, the thing actually came down to a thrilling conclusion, which is more than can be said for the first two games of the series.
That's because San Antonio, which turned a five-point deficit near halftime into a five-point lead going into the fourth quarter, tried every way humanly possible to give this game to the Cavs.
Want proof? Tim Duncan shot 6-17 (14 points) and grabbed only nine rebounds (the Spurs were out-boarded by Cleveland 48-41); Tony Parker was 7-17 for 17 points, but he did hit one of the clutch treys at the end that may have sealed the MVP for him; and sixth man extraordinaire Manu Ginobili (0-7) nearly dropped a goose egg, netting just three points, all on free throws in the final minute.
The only way the Spurs held the lead was the disparity from the 3-point arc; San Antonio shot a blistering 10-19 (53%), while Cleveland was an atrocious 3-19 (16%), including misses on its 14 of its first 15 attempts-yikes!
Even still the Cavs had plenty of opportunities to take this one back and salvage this series in the final minutes. After taking a 10-point lead at 67-57 with 6 1/2 to play, San Antonio went on a five-minute drought where it missed three shots and turned the ball over three times.
But after Cleveland cut the lead to two, 67-65, on two James (25 points, 8 rebs, 7 ass) free throws, the moment was ripe for the Cavs to snatch the lead, the game, and bring some respect to the city and these woefully rated Finals.
Alas Cleveland could not get over the hump, thanks to some questionable decison making by James (passing it to Varejao down low-why?) and the foul shots by Ginobili, and the Cavs chance to knock some of the bite out of the Spurs and extending this series past four games was lost.
That's why the "controversial" play on James at the end was really more like a minor inconvenience rather than an outrageous oversight that could have changed the game.
LeBron was trying to get free for the game-tying trey with five seconds left, and as he came around the top of the circle, Bowen flailed at him and brushed his shoulders & back, but James still got off a good, unadulterated shot that hit the the rim and came tantalizingly close to going in.
Was Bowen trying to foul James on the final possession with the Spurs up by two and just five seconds to play? Of course, he and his coach admitted as much after the game, but James wasn't in the act of shooting anyway, so it's uncertain if he would have been awarded three frees.
No matter; after initially expressing outrage at the non-call, James backed off in the media room, saying the brush did not affect his shot and he simply missed the 28-footer that could have miraculously tied the game.
Classy move, Bron Bron.
Because he knows the series is all over but the crying.
You know things are bad when the anthem performance is the best part of the game
And there could be a lot of tears flowing into Lake Erie by Thursday night.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Spurs turn King James into a pauper in Game 1
.jpg)
You gotta love this look Duncan shoots James; it says 'you know you want what we got, and you ain't gonna get it this year'.The Spurs carved up James & his Cavs like butter-soft prime rib, with the Batman & Robin duo of Tony Parker, a.k.a The Luckiest Man on Earth, doing his best Steve Nash imitation, and Tim Duncan rejecting LeBron so much he must have felt like Anthony Michael Hall in a John Hughes flick.
LeBron was a miserable 4-16 from the field, tallying just 14 points, and although he did grab seven rebounds, he had only four assists and one steal while turning the ball over six times.
Those TOs were the result of poor, cross-court passes that the Spurs guards intercepted like DBs snare lazy laterals, and whenever his highness did try to go to the basket, he was met by a phalanx of security forces that cut off his path and/or shoved the ball back in his face.
While it took James until nearly halfway through the 3rd period to score his first basket, Parker & Duncan were having their way with the over matched Cavs from the get-go.
Parker, who is marrying actress Eva Longoria one month from today (7/7/07), played like a man who is about to win his third (championship) ring and then hand his first (wedding) ring to one of the hottest women on the planet. He scored 13 points in the first half, most of them on speedy, twisting trips through the lane, a-la Nash, and if he wasn't scoring then he was completing picturesque bounce passes in traffic to his teammates for roof-raising assists, another forte of the man they call Nashty.
.jpg)
Much like this loose ball, a Game One victory was out of James' reach
Game 2 is in San Antonio on Sunday night, so LeBron, coach Mike Brown and the rest of the Cavs have a couple of days to come up with a gameplan that either forces James to be more aggressive in his game, or that will enable his teammates to make some of those shots that he can't.
One good place to start is to give electric rookie guard Daniel "Boobie" Gibson more PT.
After his coming out party vs. Detroit (31 points in Gm 6), Gibson saw limited action in this game, but did manage to lead the Cavs in scoring despite playing only 28 minutes.
Plus, who doesn't want to see more boobie? Sorry, that was poor.
Oh, and another piece of advice for Cleveland: downplay that poster-job of LeBron over Duncan.
After all, that play came during the regular season.
When the ball doesn't taste nearly as bad.
King James ready to take the NBA Finals by storm
New school LeBron and the Cavs take on the retro, Tim Duncan-led Spurs in a Finals straight out of an ABC Sports executive's wet dream.
You can bet Tim Duncan has heard enough about this dunk already.
The popular thinking among "those in the know" is that the veteran, savvy, playoff tested Spurs should have little trouble defeating neophyte Cleveland for its fourth title in nine years.
After all, San Antonio plays smart basketball, has a 1-2 combo of Parker & Duncan that's as good as any in the league, and will have Bruce Bowen & co. will clamp down on LeBron James like Mike Vick's pit bull on Paris Hilton's chihuahua, which will force the Cavs supporting cast to help win games without LeBron having to score 48 points every night.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
The day LBJ saved the NBA
.jpg)
The San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons were both supposed to make it to the NBA Finals this year.
James (20 pts, 14 rebs, 8 ass) didn't have the monster game like he had in Game 5, but he didn't need to. With a career-high 31 points from rising star guard Daniel Gibson and another solid defensive effort that helped limit Tayshaun Prince to five points and Chauncey Billips to nine, the Cavs used a complete team effort to defeat the ultimate "team" in the league.
Friday, June 01, 2007
Will they get off LeBron's back now?!
An incredible, amazing, fantastic, yes, even Jordan-esque performance from LeBron James elevates the Cavaliers to the brink of the Finals
.jpg)
Check out 'Sheed's face as Bron nails yet another clutch jumper
"One of the great performances all-time in playoff history."--Marv Albert
"Did you know that you were this good?"--Craig Sager
LeBron, smiling sheepishly-- "No."
LeBron James' Nike campaign slogan uses the brilliant subtlety of a simple word: 'Witness'.
Tonight we did.
I'm not really sure to begin describing what I just witnessed, as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Detroit Pistons, 109-107 in double-overtime to take a 3-2 series lead, but I guess I'll start with the numbers, because they are so mind-boggling:
- 48 total points
- 25 consecutive Cavs points to end the game
- scored 28 of his team's last 29 points
- 35 points after halftime
- 18-33 from field
- 9 rebs, 7 assists, 2 steals
But numbers don't always do a story justice, and this game tonight between the Pistons and Cavs was about much more than numbers, although the Cavaliers are happy to be headed home with a 3-2 series advantage.
Because more than just put up nearly half a hundy en route to knocking off the 5-time conference finalist Pistons in their own building in double OT, King James took his custom Nikes and stomped on all the haters who have criticized his every move, endorsement deal and ill-advised pass on his way to becoming the face of the NBA.
Perhaps all the griping had to do with the fact that he was a poster boy for over-exposed high school athletes from the age of 14, or that he inked a $90 million dollar contract with the swoosh empire before he ever laced up a sneaker on an NBA court....
...or it might have been the fact that he has never given the haters reason to actually hate him; he's stayed clean off the court, has never been seen brandishing a firearm, wagering on 'roided-up Rotties, or raining bags full of his millions down on unsuspecting exotic dancers. Sure he had an incident or two, like walking off the court or snubbing a teammate or coach here and there...
...but c'mon, the kid is just 22 and in four years has given hoop fans more highlights and memorable moments this side of Dwayne Wade, and with Wade hurting and the Cavs poised to make it to the Finals for the first time in franchise history, the time is now for LeBron to silence his critics and take the league by the balls.
.jpg)
Tonight LeBron did something that few other players have done since His Airness exited the league-the first time: put his team on his back and willed them to victory by scoring a slew of outrageous, jaw-dropping shots from all over the court and stunning a favored team in their own crib.
He hit long fadeaways. He hit driving layups. He nailed threes. He got fouled and hit 10-14 free throws. Oh yeah, and he had three monster dunks late in the game, plus a knifing layup through four Pistons that turned out to be the game winner.
Tonight, all critics will reluctantly agree, was truly LeBron's "welcome to the NBA" moment.
I'm just glad I got to witness it.
