Fiending for a hit?
(Mouse over photo to view hidden image)
BALL IN …
I hate to keep it so real but I can’t for the life of me understand why J-Ho (3-16 FGs) went public with his private, summertime affection for ‘dro …
Being stupid to one’s detriment is one thing, but throwing one’s colleagues under the bus is quite another …
Any wonder why the Mavs are down 3-1?
Dirk (22 pts & 13 rebs) has been big-gaming it all series, but he’s on an island by himself, save Jason Terry who’s at least trying to contribute, but unfortunately his shooting percentage isn’t cooperating. With a determined effort in Game 4, scoring 10 points early in the second half, David West helped lead the Hornets past the Mavericks 97-84 last night. West had 24 points and nine rebounds, while Paul had 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds as the Hornets ended an 0-for-14 drought in Dallas dating back to January 1998.
Will someone please pull the plug on the Dallas-Kidd (1-6 FGs for 6 pts) experiment …
Phoenix staved off elimination behind an impressive outing from oft-criticized Boris Diaw, defeating the Spurs 105-86. Diaw also played tough defense on his good friend and fellow Frenchman Tony Parker, who scored 18 points after a career-high 41 in San Antonio’s 115-99 victory Friday night in Game 3. I won’t say the Spurs mailed Game 4 in, but they didn’t put forth their finest effort. The much maligned Diaw 27 stole the show with a 20 point, 10 rebound effort, falling two assists short of a triple-double. But no one was more aggressive than Raja Bell, who scored 21 of his 27 points in a dominant first half to help Phoenix bring a one-sided end to the defending NBA champions’ nine-game playoff winning streak. The Suns were 11-0 in the regular season when Bell scored at least 20. Now that the Suns have averted a sweep, can they summon the courage to get greedy?
Inquiring minds want to know …
What’s wrong with ‘enver, aside from their lack of D? With the Lakers out front 3-0, it seems like only yesterday that everyone gave the ‘Melo-Iverson experiment a pass due to the limited time the two had to work out the kinks last year. But this year was supposed to be their time to show the world that two selfish, ball-stoppers could change their spots en route to the Western Conference crown. With Game 4 tonight, the Nuggets are going to have to get more out of Anthony and Iverson if they hope to take the series back to the Staples Center.
For once the Nuggets clamped down on defense, but their high-flying offense went AWOL as Anthony and Iverson had their worst tandem performance since being brought together last season.
Uh, what had happened was …
And speaking of ball stopping, someone please tell TNT’s Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley they didn’t create, introduce, or coin the term, ball stopper.
Sorry to bust your bubble, Kenny. Nonetheless, congrats on your newborn. At least you can take credit for that. Right?
PJ is reportedly more than a bit concerned about his team’s defense. Although Anthony and A.I. shot a combined 10-for-38 and finished with 16 and 15 points, respectively, it wasn’t due to the Lakers, suggested Jackson.
“I thought our defense packed it in on them, but they missed some easy shots,” Jackson said. “I told the team at halftime, ‘They’re not going to shoot like this for the whole game. They missed some close shots, some shots they usually make. We’ll have to play better defense in the second half.’
The Lakers defense hasn’t been that great in this series, but one would hardly know it after the 84 point outing Denver put up in Game 3. With a date with a tougher second-round opponent on the horizon, the Lakers would be well-served to start shutting a few guys down.
Gotta give Houston credit, they have not helped the Jazz’s 3-1 series lead come easy, but how much more could anyone realistically expect from a Rockets team already down a major cog in Yao Ming. Rafer Alston being out for Games 1 & 2 didn’t help.
As much as I wanted to see McGrady get out of the first round, I simply couldn’t pick Houston to win this series. Nonetheless, Mehmet Okur bailed out Williams big time in this one. After Williams missed two free throws with 7.3 seconds left, Okur made two from the line to seal an 86-82 win over the Rockets on Saturday, giving the Jazz a 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 series.
“Memo saved my butt. I ought to give him something. I ought to buy him a car or something,” Williams said.
Okur had 18 rebounds, Carlos Boozer added 14 and the Jazz made up for some dismal outside shooting by controlling the lane.
And just when we thought Boston was firing on all cylinders, Josh Smith happened …
J-Smooth (27 points) dropped hammers on the C’s heads all night. The victory marked Atlanta’s first playoff win since May 16, 1999, when they beat the Detroit Pistons in the series clinching Game 5. Rookie Al Horford was a force on the interior. He had 17 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and showed he wasn’t afraid of the mighty Celtics, jawing with Paul Pierce in the final minute.
Nonetheless, Kevin Garnett has been downright bringing the attitude in this series, leading Boston with 32 points, but he looked exhausted late, as the young Hawks gave Boston’s All-Star triumvirate more run than their old legs could handle. Look for the Celtics to bounce back strong in Game 4. Anything short would be cause for serious concern …
Boy, if Andre Iguodala actually had a playoffs’ game the Pistons would be headed for disaster. Fortunately for Detroit, Andre can’t find his stroke, or his high-flying ways. Rasheed Wallace was 5-for-12 from the field, but sank all three 3s in the third. Billups’ 4-for-16 was an afterthought compared to his nine-point, three-assist quarter. Tayshaun Prince scored 23 points, making all but one shot from the field
Detroit should be thanking its lucky stars. If the Pistons allow Philly back in this series, they deserve to lose it. Still, given the Pistons hubris, the playoffs might be better served with a Cleveland-Boston matchup over a Pistons-Celtics matchup. Pierce, who was body slammed to the court in Game 2, played 36 minutes with a stiff back and wasn’t much of a factor. He managed 17 points on only 5-of-13 shooting. Allen was 5-of-14 and held to 13 points, leaving Garnett to carry the Big Three. KG also had 10 rebounds.
Jameer Nelson stepped up in the face of Stan Van Gundy’s challenge to be more aggressive, scoring 12 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, including 10 straight at one stretch, as the Magic beat the Raptors 106-94 on Saturday to take a 3-1 lead in their first-round series.
Rashard Lewis added 27 points and 13 rebounds, and Dwight Howard added 19 points, 16 boards and eight blocks for the third-seeded Magic, who host Game 5 of this first-round series tonight. Howard finished 1-for-6 from the free throw line and has gone 9-for-23 since a 9-for-11 showing in Game 1. Nevertheless, with a win tonight, the Magic will advance past the first-round for the first time since 1996.
So much for the hype of a DeShawn Stevenson-Lebron James matchup. So far, LBJ has made DeShawn and the Wiz a virtual disappearing act. Despite Stevenson’s bush league head-hunting, James remained poised, hitting Delonte West for a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 5.4 seconds left. That shot, along with James’ 34 points and 12 rebounds, led the Cavaliers to a 100-97 victory on Sunday and a 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference playoff series.
LeBron became the 170th player in NBA history to record 1,000 career points in the postseason. He becomes the 3rd youngest in NBA history to reach that milestone, trailing only Kobe Bryant (22 years and 263 days old) and Tony Parker (23 years and 23 days old). James was 23 years and 119 days old Sunday.
BALL GAME …
THE CARROT
—————————
PREDATORS
(VVS-1, All-World Game)
Rabbit
Tony Parker (Bruges) - The Spurs go as far as you carry them?
Fox
K. Bryant (Philadelphia) - Smelling rabbit food …
Wolf
L. James (Akron) - Son’ning Stevenson nightly
HUNTERS
(SI-2, Suspect Arsenal)
Chris Paul (Winston-Salem) - So much for first-round jitters
P. Gasol (Barcelona) - Maybe you should stay at the five?
D. Howard (Atlanta) – Super effort by a super-flyer
Tim Duncan (St. Croix) - Still good, but lost a little fierce
K. Garnett (Mauldin) – Kicking ass and taking names
D. Nowitzki (Wurzburg) - Could use a little help
A. Stoudemire (Lake Wales) - Again, rebounds equal wins
D. Williams (Parkersburg) - Gotta close the CP3 gap, bro.
M. Ginobili (Bahia Blanca) - Boy, with a little more consistency
D. West (Teaneck) - If only you complained less …
M. Okur (Yalova) - Enough with the momentary lapses
C. Boozer (Juneau) - The second coming of the mailman?
S. Nash (Johannesburg) - What has happened to your handle?
T. McGrady (Bartow) - Another year, another first-round exit
P. Pierce (Oakland) - Sometimes less is more, but not now
L. Odom (Jamaica, NY) - Such a yo-yo game
BLOODHOUNDS
(Flawed, AKC Certified, Questionable Pedigree)
T. Prince (Compton) - Still Mr. Reliable
P. Stojakovic (Belgrade) - Must average at least 20 ppg
H. Turkoglu (Istanbul) - Post season pressure getting to you?
R. Hamilton (Coatesville) - Detroit’s most consistent scorer
A. Jamison (Shreveport) - As uncanny as they come
A. Miller (Los Angeles) - Must elevate your underrated game
A. Iverson (Hampton) - Still doesn’t get it
C. Anthony (New York) - Neither do you
T. Chandler (Hanford) - If not for CP3’s spoon feeding …
R. Rondo (Louisville) - Floor leadership is impressive
KENNEL CLUBBERS
(Well-trained, Knows More Than a Few Good Tricks)
C. Billups (Denver) - Mr. Big Shot, not
J. Kidd (San Francisco) - Just aint got it like before
R. Allen (Merced) - C’mon Ray, bigger production
R. Lewis (Pineville) - Time to earn that contract
R. Wallace (Philadelphia) - Should be in the dog house, but …
S. O’Neal (Newark) - A few flashbacks to Shaq of old, please!
A. Iguodala (Springfield) - Can’t throw it in the ocean
DOG POUND
(Needs to be More Integral)
M. Camby (Hartford) – So much for your All-World defense
J. Howard (Winston-Salem) - Relax, just not with a toke
GRAVEYARD
(R.I.P.)
AP Roundup
NBA
FIBA
MORE NBA
The United States men’s basketball team will face host China in its first game at the Beijing Olympics.
In a draw held Saturday in Beijing, the Americans were drawn into Group B with China, defending world champion Spain and Angola. The two other teams to fill out the six-team group will come from an Olympic qualifying tournament in Athens, Greece, on July 14-20.
Group A is made up of Lithuania, Russia, defending Olympic champion Argentina, Iran and Australia. The sixth team will come from the Athens tournament.
* Player in red is reigning champ
* Players is gold won regular season individual category rankings
Photos:
J. Howard: ESPNDeportes.com
J. Howard embedded: Dime Magazine
J. Smith: Scott Cunningham/NBAE/Getty Images
L. James: AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais
Credits:
Story and score roundups: Associated Press
Predator: Released June 12, 1987 by 20th Century Fox
Rambo: Released October 22, 1982 by Orion Pictures Corp.
http://www.dophotoshop.com/angry-wolf
http://www.actden.com/GRAP_DEN/clipart/images/rabbit.jpg
Fox: G and C Corsi (California Academy of Sciences)
Profiles/Teases are done for the season.
LOTL Postseason Edition posts Monday & Friday mornings.
__________________________
The League, Lord of the League, LOTL, THE ‘L’ © 2008.
All Rights Reserved.
MeanDovine
You’re not the only one trying to fathom why the Mavericks have performed so badly. As I’d alluded to before, they’ve no real heart for a contest when they face real adversity. And despite the veteran presence on the team, there’s no real leadership there. If you think that I’m of the wrong opinion then I’d like to read your opinions as to where I might be wrong? They’re being out-played and out-coached by a team that’s playing with renewed zeal and character. Somethig that on appearance the Mavericks don’t seem to have in large doses.
And as to the series between the Suns and Spurs. Though it’s not yet over I expect that it’ll be once they return to San Antonio. That final nail will be put in the Suns’ coffin once and for all!
tophatal …………
Left by tophatal on April 28th, 2008