Player Haiting…?
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If I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times... I love Shaquille O'Neal. But this attitude at the moment regarding LeBron James' participation, (or lack thereof) in this year's Sprite Slam Dunk Competition is pathetic.
He's calling out the likes of Vince Carter and Kobe Bryant to participate when neither of them has been near the event participation-wise in approx 10 years. He also claims that meeting those conditions is the only way James will compete. I say get a life and stop clinging on to the limelight Shaq! Then on top of that, he has the mouth to suggest the prize money can be halved between the winner and Haiti.
Wow.
When we were all in shock regarding the tragedy that still is Hurricane Katrina, Kenny "the Ninja Jet" Smith assembled a sensational crew of stars to play the "relief game" in Houston. This took approximately 24 hours to organize and as much money as could be donated was thrown into the proverbial hat.
What's different about Haiti?
I know what you're thinking. If every player throws his wallet open for every single cause, the players will have no money left. To that, I call B.S. It's safe to say that the NBA in general, let alone the players, have plenty of cash to make a difference.
As Ryan put it, The NBA Cares... about themselves.
The 2010 All Star Game is about to be played in front of possibly the largest Basketball attendance in living history with potentially 100,000 seats available and in a stadium that cost some $1.3 billion dollars to construct.
This building cost $1.3 billion dollars...
Is anyone else seeing the issue here?
Whether it's Haiti, Katrina, Africa or your local school or community, something is definitely out of sequence.
I think the NBA is on notice to really show something here. This is not a 30 second spiel on the water and food delivery in Detroit, or the "read to achieve" day in Cleveland or even the "drop dimes not pills" kids day in Atlanta. It's about a serious fund raising attempt.
Although Shaq may struggle with this, it's also not about Kobe, Shaq, VC or anyone dunking a Basketball. It's about the juggernaut that is the NBA and the fact that while players like Larry Hughes and Eddy Curry can "earn" more than $10m for 8 months work... we have a problem.
It's a bigger problem than this little white blogger can solve in one column... but just think about it.
Meanwhile, regarding the Slam Dunk Competition... hell, I suggest you give KryptoNate the ball for 15 minutes and get people to phone and text to pledge money on every missed dunk. We'll have raised enough for another new Cowboys' Stadium by the time it's finished.
KryptoNate! The potential savior of Haiti... and quite frankly any other cause depending on how much people pledge...
Welcome to the Jungle…
Well, well, well...
We currently stand on some very strange and unprecedented ground after both opening games of the respective Conference Finals. Not only are the Lakers only 48 minutes away from unexpectedly "taking care of business" in the West. But the Cavaliers lost... at home! What IS going on?
Some say the Lakers got lucky, and to a small extent I'd have to agree. But Denver got lucky against Dallas with that now infamous "no-call" and that springboarded them to a 4-1 fatality of both the Mavs and their dinner reservations at the Cuban household. So I guess it says to me that no matter how you do it, you just have to do it. Seems to have worked for the Magic today too. As much as I despise Orlando, it is good to see the Cavaliers get tested and perhaps play a six game series...
I like the way Ryan has bagged me for "changing my spots" when it comes to the Laker 2-0 prediction. At the end of the day, I guess I react to the senseless bashing of the Lakers when it's based around hot air... And hence come out swinging with bold predictions to puff the Lakers reputational chest out. To say Kobe's teammates don't like him, or that they don't play defense because Kobe hogs all the shots just seems ridicuous to me. Just because the Lakers don't pose for fake photographs before the game, doesn't mean they all hate each other. Furthermore, it doesn't mean they all hate Bryant.
Kobe's been the fun-loving gimmick guy... he's six years older than Lebron and has been in the League for seven years longer. If you look at his earlier years he was a young guy with the immature swagger, game playing, showmanship and general goofy behaviour. I remember him posing in Shaq's arms like a baby and plenty of other general clowning around. It's not about that stuff for Kobe anymore. Sure, we'd all like to see a few more assists and a few more rebounds from him, but only because we're comparing him to the one we'll one day refer to as the G.O.A.T.
Maybe my glasses have stumbled back into the yellow and purple jungle, and maybe I'm concentrating too heavily on the Black Mamba himself. But let's face it, he's a cold blooded assassin who does have that special DNA that we all love in an elite athlete, let alone an NBA player. Some more than others I suppose.
Just a side note for a second... But had anyone EVER even referred to this supposed assassin of a reptile before Kobe's marketing crew did? This question conjures up thoughts of Kenny "The Jet" Smith. I keep moaning on about this but my challenge to the Basketball public s simple. Someone put me out of my misery and please show me footage or written proof that Kenny was referred to as "The Jet" before he hit the screens of TNT.
Anyway...
The Lakers will win by 9 today and head back to "hold court" in Denver up 2-0. The Cavs will then look down their metaphoric glasses at the Magic and mutter the golden words "someone gonna get a hurt real bad". And finally, if Mark Jackson is broadcasting the Lakers/Nuggets game tonight I may be physically ill.
Mama there goes my lunch...
Jagged Little Phil…
Ah, questioning Phil. Brilliant. This record has been played more times than that "Thriller" album in the 80's. Not sure what happened to that guy...
Phil is the Zen Master, and unlike Kenny "The Jet" Smith, his nickname is derived from actions, not marketing. Maybe you're forgetting how brilliant Phil has been in the past, bringing together massive ego's to strive together for an individual goal. Sure last year didn't work out, but in the words of KG "Anything is posssiblllllllllllllllllllllllllle!"
Or...
Maybe Phil is past it? Maybe he was just lucky to have MJ, Scottie and the "Big Shaqtus"? Maybe Phil would rather be somewhere else? It's also possible, I don't know the guy.
One thing that seems to ring true to me however, is that whenever Phil hasn't wanted to coach, he's stepped away. When he's in it, he's in it to win it. So I still expect to see the adjustments, I still expect a six game series win and I still see Kobe taking 30 shots in Game 5.
Maybe it's more of Phil's legacy on the line when Denver and Cleveland roll around?