Congratulations to the Lakers
by Dave on Jun 15, 2009 12:02 AM PDT
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That's right, I said it. No asterisk. When you win a World Title you deserve something. There you go.
Seriously, congrats go out to the Lakers and their fans. The trip through the Western Conference turned out to be more uncomfortable than they could have wished, but they did exactly what they needed to do. Kobe was, as (almost) always, big time. The supporting cast did their job. The trophy returns to L.A.
Even for a Blazer fan, there are a couple positive things about the Lakers winning it all. First, it jazzes up the hatred and rivalry even more. Second, it's probably good for the league for the title to sit in Los Angeles every once in a while. It's not just the big market, it's the fact that L.A. is the first team you think about when you think about the NBA. It's kind of like Hulk Hogan or Steve Austin winning the WW(F/E) belt. That brought some credibility to it in the casual fan's mind so that the next guy who won it looked bigger than he would have otherwise. To most people the championship feels right and expected in L.A. It's been a while since they've re-upped that feeling. Portland had no chance to win it this year, so why not? Getting a ton of prestige behind that trophy isn't the worst thing that could happen when the Blazers are ramping up to fight for it.
I don't think we saw anything this year from L.A. that indicated that this would be an unbreakable dynasty. The team's still in turmoil and they still had to fight hard to make it to the top. They'll be there, of course. You can't dismiss them in any way. But you're not looking at a clear-cut dominant team for the next decade here, or even the next three years. Again...it's all good.
Besides, and maybe this is the most convincing argument of all, you know the media buzz was going to surround the Lakers win or lose. Given that inevitable phenomenon, it's at least nice to have folks talking about a team that actually won instead of saying, "Good job, Orlando. Now how can the Lakers recoup and finally break through? We'll take your calls on that all afternoon!"
Then again, I wonder how much buzz there really is. This feels like a topic that the sports shows will highlight for about 24 hours and then drop like a hot potato. Part of that is the nature of sports talk nowadays but part of it is also the general lack of publicity surrounding the league. The NFL is the undisputed king of national attention, but that still doesn't excuse the NBA for being barely a step above hockey. The league still isn't well. If a Lakers championship can help fix that, more power to them. I don't believe it works like that, but we'll see.
One final comment before we close the door on the playoffs. I said this at the beginning but I want to repeat it here. The post-season is just...too...long. Anyone remember the opening of the playoffs? They were two full months ago! Just recently I watched Baby Point Guard go from completely non-mobile to walking without assistance in less time than it takes the NBA to slog through their bracket. One of the keys to picking up casual fans is them being able to tune in at the beginning of your playoff season and follow through to the championship. Unless I cared deeply about one of the teams involved I'm pretty sure I'd just try and pick up the Finals. If I'm busy with other things when those start (quite possible in early summer when the weather finally turns nice) then that's out too. There's no way in heck I could sit down and follow two straight months of basketball. It's not a good recipe. You already know I'd favor shortening the first round to five games again, but failing that at least cut out some of the wait between games. Starting in mid-April we should at least be able to get done by early June. If you need more than six weeks to determine a champion you have too much fluff in the way.
--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)
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Yeah yeah yeah, this is the relevant part for me:
Even for a Blazer fan, there are a couple positive things about the Lakers winning it all. First, it jazzes up the hatred and rivalry even more.
Grrr! (gnashing of teeth) Arrrgh! (furrowing of brow)
Hah! Blah blah blah L@kers think they’re so blah blah blah. Wait till we blah blah blah and then their blah blah will be all over the blah blah. Then all their fans will know to do is blah blah blah until we blah blah blah. That’ll show em!
by conspirator5 on Jun 15, 2009 12:34 PM PDT up reply actions
Thanks for the kind words............
I know you mean it. Some others here I don’t think will be so nice, but that’s why we’re fans, right? I do have one question though.
“The team’s still in turmoil”
What does that statement mean? Seriously, I can’t think of any turmoil, but maybe I am missing something? Upcoming free agents?
Well, sir, you are a cowardly son of a bitch! You just shot an unarmed man!.......Well, he should have armed himself if he's going to decorate his saloon with my friend. – Will Munny
Seems like
every second sentence we hear out of L.A. is how Odom isn’t happy or why isn’t the ball going to Gasol more. Now granted, that may be semi-manufactured drama. It doesn’t mean a thing next to a championship. That’s the important matter. But the team doesn’t seem San Antonio-tight at this point.
The flip side of that is you could probably get Larry, Mo, and Curly to line up with Kobe and have a decent chance of making the Conference Finals at least. That’s the blessing/curse of Bryant. You never know if guys are going to be content playing with him but it doesn’t matter nearly as much as it would if he were mortal.
—Dave
Shhhhhh.... You're giving away P.J.'s new Quadrangle Offense , nyuk nyuk nyuk!!!
The flip side of that is you could probably get Larry, Mo, and Curly to line up with Kobe and have a decent chance of making the Conference Finals at least.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
I would say your search for your future starting point guard once Fish is gone is as open as ours
And then yeah, Brown and one of Ariza/Odom is likely to go. Bynum looked about as fluid as Big Z in the playoffs, at the moment I’m happier than ever about Oden. The bench was not really as deep as it once was or at least seemed. Jackson could retire. There are quite a lot of question marks around the Lakers.
See, Norskie, it's like this -- the Lakers don't NEED a Point Guard!
There’s nothing that Derek Fisher did, does, or ever will do that can’t be replicated by 150 other guys in any given year.
He is NOT quick enough to defend speedy PGs. Aaron Brooks murdered him…
He is NOT a great passer. In 22 games of the playoffs he averaged 2.2 assists in almost 29 minutes. TWO-POINT-TWO assists.
He is NOT a great finisher at the rim, as anyone who follows Team Purple will be happy to certify at their local notary public.
He is NOT a great shooter, his playoff average was 39.4% and only 28.4% from distance.
Seriously, if Derek Fisher’s name was Jerryd Bayless and he wore a red-and-black jersey, about 5,000 Bedgers would be having a conniption about his abilities and performance instead of worrying about his looking retirement.
What does Fisher have going for him? 1. He knows the offense; 2. PJ trusts him; 3. Kobe likes him; 4. He’s tough and superior at drawing charges; 5. He’s not afraid to take big shots, some of which go it.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
.....some of which go IN...
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
Also: the PG doesn't even carry the ball in the Lakers' system, it's more of a random event, which makes the team very, very hard to trap with pressure.
It’s something more teams should explore doing.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
Well, you will need someone to replace him no matter if the triangle rather commands a 2nd shooting or point guard
And let me tell you, it’s not marketing gag Sun Yue, it’s not Ear Jordan who has come down to earth hard, and it’s not Opera Man who can’t defend the position to save his life. It might be Brown which would be ironic as a throw-in to a deal. But rumors are the Lakers are looking hard for a replacement to Fisher.
Brown looks like a fit if he can be patient.
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
Famar/Brown the perfect combo
Brown is the bruiser, the big guard to handle the other big and strong guards (Billups, D-Will).
Farmar is the speedster, meant to handle the other fleet footed PGs in the league (CP3, Brooks, Devin Harris).
Both are not ready to be championship starting PGs, but they will over time. My prediction is that Brown actually gets the nod as the starting PG, especially if Phil is still coaching, as he prefers the big guards (Fisher being the exception).
Disagree on a few points:
1) I think Fisher is a better passer than his assists numbers tell. He’s not very good at creating shots for others, but he doesn’t turn the ball over a lot or anything. He doesn’t have much play making responsibility, Kobe and Pau take care of most of that. He does, however, manage to connect pretty well on all his passes and probably throws the best lobs out of anyone on the team. He’s above average for an NBA passer at the very least.
2) I think Fisher IS a great shooter that happened to hit a slump during the playoffs. All shooters go through slumps, but I’d still like Fish taking a corner three over a LOT of other players in this league (certainly more than 150 of them).
The Lakers don’t NEED a point guard, but you underrepresent what he brings to their team. The 5 points you brought up mean a lot, even without mentioning his veteran savvy and winning attitude.
The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.
The one good thing about the lakers winning to me:
The trophy will rest safely on the west coast. At the end of the day, west>east, and that is the bottom line. It feels good to put those damn upstart eastern fans to bed after the celtics of all teams stole it away.
"We Believe" - Rudy Fernandez
by TheGreatMon on Jun 15, 2009 12:13 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Right on....+1
I’m in the group that believes the Western Conference of the NBA has been superior to the Eastern Conference for the last 30 years, Chicago notwithstanding. I think the Lakers’ relatively easy victory should give the Eastern Conference honks something to consider.
This is so true.
I am a Laker hater, but when it comes to West/East, I pull pretty strongly for the West.
The Eastern Conference may now resume their subservience.
word...
I’ll admit that once upon a time I actually watched the NBA playoffs start to finish, but have been preoccupied enough with a REAL home team of late and with genuine anticipation for Blazer off season drama that there’s little room to be overly interested in the plod of it all. I think your perscription to tighten it up is sound, Dave; afraid the economics of it all won’t allow it to happen though…
As for L*kers/K*be?
Congratulations?
Must we be gracious?
Ugh…
by balladofgregoden on Jun 15, 2009 12:20 AM PDT reply actions
Appropriate words well said
The issue I question is popularity with the growing worldwide attention that will bring more US fans back to the NBA as well. Contesting for the world championship and Olympics is driving this well.
As a casual fan I would have still been drawn to the final eight teams’ series for their competitiveness and stayed to watch the rest. It has been a good year for the NBA.
just a quick question....
You said the NBA is just a step above hockey (God forbid…). I’ve been wondering lately how the popularity of sports ranks in America. I haven’t been able to find anything with substantial reasoning (not that I’ve looked much). So are you saying that it goes NFL>MLB>NBA>NHL ?
to be honest
I cannot understand the fascination with baseball. As a Portlander it is easy for me to say I love basketball because I have a home team to root for, but as I’ve dug deeper into my “fandom”, I have also started to develop an appreciation of the high level of skill and athleticism required to play bball. For some reason I have never had that kind of awe for the game of baseball, most likely due to the fact that I don’t really see any real skill or athleticism in the game.
"B-Roy is the best shooting guard I have played against"
-Ron Artest
definitely...
gonna have to agree with you. When I watch basketball, I’m just amazed at the athleticism of the players. Not to make this too girly, but it’s truly like ballet. The players are just phenomenal specimens of human beings.
Baseball on the other hand….. All I can say is, it’s the only sport that, up until last year, allowed drinking before and after practice (in the clubhouse… remember? They had to ban it last year cause too many players were getting DUIs?). I think that speaks for itself
well, michael jordan couldn't play baseball at a professional level
the difference i think between baseball and the other two major sports (football and basketball) is that baseball is much more democratic. that is, you don’t have to be 6’9" or a blown-up beefy 300 lbs.
i was a pitcher in high school, 6’2 and 1/2" 205 lbs, and i worked and worked on my control and on my different pitches, and it paid off. whereas there was only a very minute chance i might ever have been a legitimate prospect for basketball or football.
maybe you have to have played baseball to fully appreciate it. i focus on the pitcher and can still feel it sometimes in my right shoulder as the ball is thrown. i still dream about pitching sometimes. baseball has latin american, black, white, and asian players, ranging from 5’7" or so to 6’10" (though, as in ordinary life, the extremely tall player is rare).
you can still play effectively when you’re as old as 45, 46 years old (jamie moyer, who doesn’t throw hard but relies upon guile and craft). fast reflexes and speed come in handy, but you can survive and even do quite well without this sort of gifted physique.
the athletes i’ve seen in my life who seem most magical to me include sandy koufax, bob gibson, nolan ryan, lou brock and rickey henderson. there’s a perfection and triumph of the will (pitching a no-hitter or perfect game) which other sports can seldom match.
obviously i love the nba or i wouldn’t be around here, and there have been great moments for me as a fan watching either the blazers or my all-time favorite team, the 1973 ny knicks. but even during a bad season seattle sometimes offers great moments — just watching ichiro, for example, is worthwhile, every at-bat. the young venezuelan pitcher, felix hernandez, flirts with greatness and is a joy.
the nba, when i’m not invested in a particular team, can become quite tedious. if kobe hits 4 or 5 straight shots, sometimes it’s impressive, other times it’s a yawn. the refs have more arbitrary impact than in baseball or the nfl.
if you’re 7’2" and at all athletic, with any reflexes, you might have a chance at being a basketball star, on some level, just because of your genes. but good luck ever hitting or accurately throwing a major league curve.
ignacio
Sandy Koufax - my favorite baseball player of all time,
and Gibby – my second favorite pitcher (this was before I totally stopped following baseball because of all the juicing).
Just wanted to mention to you ignacio that I approve of your baseball hero’s.
Brandon Roy just destroyed everything in his path. There's your rational analysis -- Dave
Also: COMCAST SUCKS!
Skill and athleticism are a must in baseball.
But are not the only components. Strategy and risk are also major factors. In fact, those two factors are what draw me to the sport. Not that they’re not there in basketball, it just doesn’t matter as much. Given the choice between an MLB game on TV and a non-Blazer NBA game, I take the baseball game every time, even during the NBA playoffs.
Like Ignacio said above, I can watch a baseball game, even when I have no vested interest in either team, and still thoroughly enjoy the experience. I can’t say the same for basketball. I love the Blazers because I’m emotionally invested in them, not because i think basketball is a great sport to watch.
εἴγε καὶ ἐνδυσάμενοι οὐ γυμνοὶ εὑρεθησόμεθα.
skill is a must in baseball
athleticism is not. The examples of successful un-athletic baseball players abound: David Wells, Bob Wickman, Mo Vaughn, etc.
I couldn't possibly disagree more.
“I don’t really see any real skill or athleticism in the game.”
I am not a huge baseball fan, but I would imagine a much larger percentage of us could:
A: Throw a decent football pass and catch one as well
B: Dribble a basketball, make a free throw, etc.
C: Make a 20 foot putt, hit a nice drive, etc.
than could:
Hit a 95 mile per hour fastball, turn a double play, or strike out a decent hitter.
Athleticism, maybe not. Skill, definitely.
Well, sir, you are a cowardly son of a bitch! You just shot an unarmed man!.......Well, he should have armed himself if he's going to decorate his saloon with my friend. – Will Munny
you're right
I was incorrect in saying there is no skill in the game of baseball.
"B-Roy is the best shooting guard I have played against"
-Ron Artest
I'll respectfuly disagree with you...
A: How many people can throw a football ON TARGET while several 250lb+ guys are trying to hit you and your reciever is being covered by some of the best athletes in the world.
B: How many people can effectively dribble a basketball through world class athletes without turning it over, much less actually hit a shot while someone is draped all over you. Free throws are a lot harder when it is a pressure situation and not in your driveway.
C: On the hardest golf courses in the world there are very few people that can compete, much less make money at it. I don’t really know much about golf but I know that it takes an extraordinary amount of skill to play professionaly.
All of these things are harder to do than play baseball. I’m not trying to say that baseball does not take skill because it takes a lot of it, but these other sports are harder to compete in.
"And once again we can say, it's a GREAT day to be a Blazer."- Brian Wheeler
The fact that MLB retains its popularity when 95% of the players cheat tells you all you need to know about America
Blazer Fan
by leeroyjenkins on Jun 15, 2009 7:09 AM PDT up reply actions
Um, that we really like baseball????
Did you know that 82.6 percent of statistics are made up right on the spot? It’s true.
Well, sir, you are a cowardly son of a bitch! You just shot an unarmed man!.......Well, he should have armed himself if he's going to decorate his saloon with my friend. – Will Munny
Think it's more like, NFL>MLB>NBA>PGA>NHL>MLS
by conspirator5 on Jun 15, 2009 12:42 PM PDT up reply actions
Wait, make that NFL>MLB>NBA>X-Games>PGA>NHL>MLS
by conspirator5 on Jun 15, 2009 12:46 PM PDT up reply actions
That is if you are in PDX
Put yourself in Minneapolis, MN and it looks more like this: NFL>NHL>MLB>NBA>High School Hockey>Curling>Ice fishin>what is MLS? ;-)
"And once again we can say, it's a GREAT day to be a Blazer."- Brian Wheeler
bah!
The cowards never started
The weak died along the way
Only the strong survived
They were the Trailblazers
by lukeyhere on Jun 15, 2009 4:01 AM PDT reply actions 1 recs
The Lakers win and...
Their fans riot. That is why I am thankful that I am a Blazers fan. Honestly, I’ve visited Lakers sites similar to this one, and all I have seen is a mess of swearing, and general hate of other teams. Were another team to win the Finals, I doubt any of the people who post there would offer congratulations. Instead, they would tell their viewers why the Lakers are going to win it next year, and pound the defending champions in doing so.
I sincerely hope our fan base never becomes like that. If we do win the championship again, then I hope noone gets arrested after the outside of the stadium is declared an area of unlawful assembly. And, knowing Blazer fans, I doubt it would be. We wouldn’t have to smash things to express our joy, we’d be content knowing that we are the best.
At least, that is what I hope…
LA Riots
I was in downtown LA when they started.
Beatings are bad. But any town that could riot in defense of a Rodney King beating is a sad place. Although I’m usually against violence in any shape or form, if anyone deserves a good beating, it is him. They were like catching him and throwing him in jail every other week. I knew a woman who was a police officer in Pasadena, and got a call to a convienience store for a rude/lude behavior in a customer about 2 years after the LA riots. When they drove up, and saw the perpetrator was none other than Rodney King, they said, “Oh, crap, now we’re going to be on the news and accused of discrimination.” Which they were.
I think they just like to riot there. Remember Quiet Riot, “Cum on Feel the Noise!” Isn’t that just a clever pun? Riot-ers are SOOO clever!
Eh, said it once, said it a million times…Laker fans are the worst in sports.
Hi, my name is Ed, and I despise the Lakers.
by Ed (dfjmed) on Jun 15, 2009 11:13 AM PDT up reply actions
That's lame.
Whether or not he’s a knucklehead, nobody deserves a beating like that by the boys in blue for what he did, and brutality like that is an attack on entire communities of color just like a hate crime. Have you ever been in a fight? The amount of time they beat him is an eternity in those situations.
Laker fans are schmucks for rioting during a celebration, but people losing it over the Rodney King verdict was completely justified notwithstanding a lot of the senseless violence against individuals.
No
Put yourself in the police officers shoes. If some punk, regardless of color, was constantly pulling the same crap over and over, wouldn’t you want to throw him a beating. The fact that he put others lives in danger makes it justified. As far as the rioting goes, its just a few drunk idiots that give entire cities bad names.
"And once again we can say, it's a GREAT day to be a Blazer."- Brian Wheeler
Yeah. Everybody knows that Black people get off easy in the justice system.
That’s what due process and incarceration are for. He was an idiot for getting schnockered, going on a high speed chase, and resisting arrest, but that’s not probable cause for savagely pummeling a guy with a nightstick for two minutes. Of course I would want to beat the guy, but that’s not a cop’s job, nor is it the purpose of the American justice system. It’s to remove threats from society by putting them behind bars. This ain’t Saudi Arabia.
Riots are justified?
It’s similar to the shooting at the relief choppers flying into New Orleans, so that no relief was brought in for another 48 hours. Punks who have nothing but hate for any “authority” figure, especially the boys in blue, make it much worse for everyone else.
Riots accomplished nothing, except allow OJ to run free. “If the glove don’t fit, you must acquit!”
by 3pointer on Jun 15, 2009 12:40 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
I couldn't bring myself to watch the game.
There was no way I was going to watch Kobe celebrate. I’m glad we have good people to root for.
The same for me
Except that I watched until the Lakers pulled ahead..then turned off the TV and didn’t care. Congrats to the Lakers for winning..I suppose. Can’t wait for them to return to the lottery.
Granted this means nothing since they are the champions, but here’s my opinion on this years Lakers:
Up until last night’s game, I felt they were more inconsistent, and therefore less impressive as previous Lakers championship teams. I’m thinking of the early 2000s squad, and early 90s teams.
However, Kobe to me (in general) seemed less of a factor in this post-season than his supporting players..they really stepped up, with the exception of Bynum, who IMO took a step back in terms of his importance. I’m curious to see how many Lakers fans now think he is the Next Great Center.
Ariza and Odom were probably more essential to the Laker’s winning it all than Kobe was.
ya cut me deep dave.... ya cut me real deep....
:(
The Faith don't panic, the faith freaks out, burns out farms, and torchs small villages in the name of The Faith.
It was interesting to once see Kobe and the Lakers completely happy
When he entered the press conference, that was the most relaxed and happy I have ever seen him. Not his usual slightly fake laugh, real joy and smiles. He got a big monkey named Shaq off his back. Odom was visibly moved to finally win the title (remember he was one of the guys traded for Shaq). Gasol too. Fisher was classy. So was Jackson, who admitted he thought he would only plant the seed of a new championship team and not experience more himself.
Here is my personal screen capture of Odom with his consolation trophy for not winning MVP (it was a gift of the TNT guys Ernie, Kenny and Chuck to Kobe. Looked like Kenny’s idea. Breakfast of Champions).
It was at least as easy to watch as KG and Pierce screaming around and telling stories last year, though that was interesting too. In the end I’m more of an NBA fan than a Laker hater.
P.S.: Priceless awkward moment of the night: Every Lakers and basketball fan asking himself “who is that kid??! What did he do to help win this? Why is he holding a terrible speech? Joey Buss? Who? The son of Jerry? Where is Jerry?” Legacy kids for the win.
Joey Buss' speech made the Jim Rome show this morning.
Rome: “He started off like Vinnie Mac and finished like Howard Dean.”
Well, now all the NBA Media attention is going to draft day.
At least that’s something that the Blazers are part of, albeit in a much less significant way than the last few years. When the Blazers are there, then I’ll care who the NBA Champs are. :p
εἴγε καὶ ἐνδυσάμενοι οὐ γυμνοὶ εὑρεθησόμεθα.
*mumble* Congrats to the Lakers *mumble*
Wow. The Lakers won the championship. Again. Great. Phil won his 10th ring. Phenomenal. Kobe won his 4th. Outstanding. Vujacic won his first ring without scoring a single point in the finals. Fan-freaking-tabulous. Together, the Lakers are a great team. Separate (besides Kobe and Pau) they’re mediocre at best. It’ll be interesting to see if they keep the whole team in tact for next year. Something tells me they probably will since they have a bevy of Laker fans and can afford to be over the salary cap. So next year it will probably be the Lakers (playing for their 16th championship) vs Celtics (playing for their 18th championship) in the finals, right?? How…..unsurprising.
You forgot to mention that Adam Morrison got a ring too. >.<
by conspirator5 on Jun 15, 2009 1:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Morrison may be the next Wally Walker.
The Lakers need to trade him to the team that will win next year’s championship, then Morrison washes-out of the league and becomes the Thunders’ GM.
WHO!
Your last paragraph
I totally agree. They playoffs are way too long, and I also think too many teams make it. Couldn’t they go to six teams per conference and have 3 vs 6 winner play 2 in the second round and 4 vs 5 winner play 1 in the 2nd round to make the playoffs more of an accomplishment to get in to and a top 2 seed more of an advantage? No sub 500 team should make the playoffs, when that happens there are too many playoff teams. Also, make the first 2 rounds a five game series, and make all the 7 game series go to a 2-3-2 format with fewer break nights. If you really wanted to speed it up, make games 4/5 and 6/7 back to backs. I think 6 weeks of playoffs seems like more than enough.
Eight playoff teams out of 30 regular-season teams is perfect.
We would have played the Lakers in the first round instead of the Rockets.
We tried 5 game series - not as sure that the best team wins
But it is all about the money. The more teams in the playoffs and the more games the longer the greater fan interest. Many teams only become profitable with the extra playoff revenue. That interest also gets us playoff TV coverage throughout.
Lakers/Playoffs and all that jazxz
Of course the playoffs are too long in the NBA. Everyone knows that. (It’s a little out-of-whack in baseball too). But it won’t change because they let the networks control everything and the networks are greedy just like everyone else in power. The 1st round should be best-of-three; and each successive round should be best-of-five, including the finals. Also, there should not be any long gaps between the games. Finally, there is no need to let the networks determine any dates for the schedule. But as I said earlier, this will certainly not happen, because it means less money for the greedy.
Eddie
Wow Kobe did it without shaq
but he had gasol, who is better than shaq, more skilled at least. Congrats on winning a final that was more boring than spurs vs. cavs.
"The problem with tweeners is that sometimes they’re exactly what you need to plug the hole and sometimes they are the hole."
-LaughingJon
Gasol's performance was a series changer
I was suprised how effective he was. – S.
VENTURA: It's drowning. It gives you the complete sensation that you are drowning. It is no good, because you -- I'll put it to you this way, you give me a waterboard, Dick Cheney and one hour, and I'll have him confess to the Sharon Tate murders.
Congrats to the champs....
glad the title stayed in the west….and here’s what i like about it.
Had an eastern team won (Orlando, or the Cavs, had they made it to the finals), we’d be wondering how the Blazers would stand against them. Would we be seeing the rise of a team that could keep the Blazers from winning a championship?
But heck, we know how hte Blazers stack up agains the champs…..very well I might say. So a team that Portland does well against just waxed the floor with the best the east could offer.
I’m good with that.
I agree with you..
I like the Blazers chances in the next few years against the Lakers. In a way, the Lakers mirror the Blazers. Their two best players are Kobe-SG and Pau-PF. The Blazer’s two best players are Brandon-SG (who is 6 years younger than Kobe) and Lamarcus-PF (who is 5 years younger than Pau). Lakers don’t have a truly dominant center (Bynum) or point guard (Fisher) a la the Blazer’s GO and Blake. They have a lot of lengh and so do the Blazers. The only reason the Lakers are ahead of the Blazers is because they have more experience, they have a good PF back up (Odom) and EVERYONE plays defense. Plus, I guess if you throw in that they have the NBA’s best coach of all time coaching them, they have more of an edge — but he will be retiring soon (YEAH)!! Now, next year if Greg can show some dominance, the Blazers get a good back up PF and everyone makes a commitment to defense (I’m talking to you Travis) they could give the Lakers a run for their money.
I am not buying that PJ is the best coach of all time
He has never won without the most dominant player in the league at the time on his team. Others like Larry Brown have had tremendous influence on players and coaches around him (4-time coach of the year including ABA) without ever having the best player. Even Red Aurebach probably never coached the best player in any particular year but had a large number inducted into the HOF.
He still gets credit for 10 championships so not knocking the man.
This is fantastic
Its going to be so much sweeter next year when we knock the lakers off there perch!
I try to help with everything," Fernandez said. "If the coach says go rebound, I go rebound. I work for the team.
""If I'm playing this game to get media and attention, I shouldn't be here," Aldridge said. "I'm here to play basketball, and do what I can do to help this team win."
His stare became blank. It was apparent he was back in that place, on the Rose Garden's logo, picking up Aaron Brooks as the crowd nervously roared.
Playoff's are far, far too long!
I remember the 77 Blazer’s first playoff series against Artis Gilmore and the Bulls (the most tenuous of the whole championship run) was the best 2 out of 3. The first series later changed to 5 games and then to 7. If I were king I’d have the first two series at 5 games with the conference finals and the finals at 7.
Kobe Bryant is incredible. As long as he is healthy the Lakers will be very, very tough to beat.. But he has a lot of miles on his odometer so I don’t expect his stratospheric level of play to extend beyond one or two more years.
If the refs allowed Oden to get by with the physical play they were giving to Howard, not only would he be able to stay on the floor, he would dominate.
Next year? Look out for Houston — if Yao can stay healthy that is but even without T-Mac. Denver will be tough too and so will the Blazers. Along with LA, these are my 4 picks for the front runners in the Western Conference.
Brandon Roy just destroyed everything in his path. There's your rational analysis -- Dave
Also: COMCAST SUCKS!
Hell yes, the playoffs are too long!
How about best-of-three in the first round, then a best-of-five. You might have an occassional upset, which could be good for teams that rarely get past the first round. Or dismiss the “lucky to be here” group more quickly.
looooong season
The NFL season lasts about 5 months, the NBA season almost 8 months. Always leave them wanting more, not less? The NFL leaves their fans wanting more, the NBA less. How many blowouts occur in the 4th game in 5 nights for the road team? Way too many. Even the best teams have inexplicable road losses to bad teams. The only fans that make it all the way to the championship series are a few hardcore NBA fans and the fans of the 2 teams involved. Is it any wonder that the U.S. TV ratings are miniscule and continue to spiral downward?
by Original Blazer Fan on Jun 15, 2009 10:28 AM PDT reply actions
I've figured out if you follow both NFL and NBA pretty rigorously, you can make MLB go bye-bye.
Bye-bye!!!
"A bizarre and extremely rare hybrid Blazer/Laker fan, Timbo has always struggled to contain the Beast Within, like Dr. Jekyll, Bruce Banner, or Ted Kennedy." — Miled Animal
The short period between the end of the NBA playofs...
and the start of NFL training camps is just the right amount of time to re-charge the fan-dom batteries.
by antediluvian on Jun 15, 2009 4:40 PM PDT up reply actions
Your facts might be a bit off on spiral downward
As 2008 was the highest since 2004 and I would not consider 14 million viewers minuscule. Here are the actual numbers. The ratings are driven by star power and Kobe cannot draw like Jordon or Bird and Magic did. B-Roy will change all that in the next few years!
extra long playoffs
are made even longer by the two- and three-day vacations between games. If the teams aren’t changing cities, let’s make the games on consecutive nights. – S.
VENTURA: It's drowning. It gives you the complete sensation that you are drowning. It is no good, because you -- I'll put it to you this way, you give me a waterboard, Dick Cheney and one hour, and I'll have him confess to the Sharon Tate murders.
You're just reinforcing their conceit.
Yeah, they earned the trophy, and Kobe is still the best basketball player in the world. But Laker fans remain the worst fans in all of professional sports, and they can’t even celebrate yet another championship without rioting.
May i just say
That as a writer for Blueshirt Banter i take offense in your “no excuse for just above hockey” comment. Kidding (well sort-of)
Anyway not an NBA fan but i read your stuff alot. You kick some serious writing ass (not kidding).
The Ranger Reporter - My Ranger Blog!
Blueshirt Banter: Covering the New York Rangers
To me the only good thing that come out of this is
if when Blazers beat the L*kers next year, it will be all the more impressive because we would have knock out the defending champs
"What gets us into trouble is not what we don't know. It's what we know for sure that just ain't so."
No. No congrats, no graciousness. No positive things ever come out of the l*kers winning anything.
Dave, your words aren’t supposed to make me vomit.
A three-pointer is not a "triple." A triple is a hit in baseball.
A three-pointer is not a "trey." A trey is either an ESPN sportscaster or something that bad spellers eat cafeteria food on. - Dave on Mar 20, 2009 10:00 PM PDT
Dave dave dave
this is the one that I can`t take, I hate it when people call the NBA championship a world championship…. Again, the Lakers did not beat Panathinaikos, trevise, rejkjavic nor even the Togolese champion for that matter.
Ther is such a thing as a world CLUBS championship in soccer, so the team that wins gets the title of world champions….but the NBA champion is only the NBA champion…
oh and sorry if it was mentionned before in the comments, I didn`t read them all there`s just too many!
Ati toi, fumier de lapin...
This is something that bothers me too...
World Championships are held every two years and are played by the national teams.
"And once again we can say, it's a GREAT day to be a Blazer."- Brian Wheeler
class act
on the lakers though, and I know how hard it can be, one of my bosses is from LA and was waiting for me at work with his lakers hat on… which I countered with a ROY shirt and a Buffalo Braves hat… HA! wait for next year….
Ati toi, fumier de lapin...
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