The Draft is Here!

Finally the NBA Draft is about to start. There has been so much hype and discussion that I feel like I've been waiting forever for it happen.

Notable Pre-Draft Trades

RJ to the Bucks for Bobby Simmons and The Chairman

Jermaine O'Neal to the Raptors for TJ Ford, Nesterovic, and the 17th pick


In honor of one of the best days of the NBA season I will do another running diary. I expect to at least get through the lottery, maybe the entire 1st round. I will be doing a cliche counter at least including the cliches - upside and any variations (i.e - tremendous upside potential), long or length, ball-friendly (lol), blow-by ability, high motor etc.

4:o3 PM - The draft starts in about 30 minutes. The main analysts are Stuart Scott, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson, and Jay Bilas. Should be entertaining. And of course Dick Vitale will be commenting from time to time. Did Bilas just call it a "diaper draft"? May the cliches begin

4:05 PM - Andy Katz reports the Bulls will take Derrick Rose - no big surpise there.

4:10 PM - All the analysts say Miami has to take Beasley (Bilas - His arms extend beyond normal limits) instead of Mayo or trade the pick

4:12 PM - Dick Vitale is unusually calm (for him) when talking about Beasley. He is worried about the temptation of South Beach but agrees he is a good fit in Miami. I hope he gets more excited when the draft starts.

4:14 PM - Journey to the Center of the Earth looks incredibly cheesy. A cell phone getting service? C'mon now. Looks like they are ruining a great book.

4:17 PM - Stephen A. Smith interviews Beasley and manages not to yell or get hype. What the hell is going on?

4:2o PM - Knick fans are booing Gallinari just when Stuart Scott is talking about him. I really hope the Knicks draft him, it could get very ugly.

4:24 PM - Colleen Dominguez reports that it looks unlikely the Sonics will trade the #4 pick

4:31 PM - David Stern is talking and the draft is finally starting. I really don't care what he has to say. Just start the damn draft! Bulls on the clock (5 mins max)

4:34 PM - All the analysts say the Bulls have to fit the team around Rose, not the other way around. The Bulls have a logjam at guard although none of them are all-star quality except Rose in the future

4:36 PM - Still don't understand the Del Negro hiring, probably never will

4:38 PM - Bulls take Rose as expected. Beasley has a fake smile on his face. Rose is nicknamed "Pooh". I'll avoid any corny joke. Heat on the clock. According to Bilas Rose "can dunk with his elbows" - sounds retarded but I know what he meant....I think

4:42 PM - Heat select Michael Beasley. Looks like they're not idiots after all. Mayo looks a little perplexed. I wonder if the Heat are still working on a trade to move Beasley.

4:45 PM - All the analysts are praising Michael Beastly. Somehow they are avoiding a lot of cliches but Bilas busted out his beyond normal limits line again

4:47 PM - Bulls GM Paxson is saying Rose is going to have to earn what he gets. He better start over Hinrich.

4:49 PM - T'Wolves select OJ Mayo. Not really surprising. He doesn't look that happy. I wouldn't be. Sonics on the clock. Mayo is wearing some wild outfit. Ugly shoes and it looks like a striped polo under his suit jacket and vest lol.

4:53 PM - Riley supposedly loves Beasley now. Don't know if he's just trying to increase his trade value or if they really were just BS'ing

4:55 PM - Sonics select Westbrook. 1st real surprise of the draft. This is higher than most people expected him to go. The Sonics were unsuccessful in trading down but I guess they just really wanted Westbrook

4:57 PM - Durant appears happy about the Westbrook pick

5:01 PM - Grizzlies want some Love in their club and select Kevin Love. I'm not that high on this pick but it wasn't unexpected. Bilas has a man-crush on him apparently.

5:03 PM - explosion ability? is that somehow different from explosiveness? they are attaching ability to anything and everything. That's going to be added to the cliche counter

5:07 PM - Let the booing commence. Knicks select Gallinari. He is booed instantly. My boy Gary wonders "if that translates into Italian". One of these days I gotta make it to the draft. Gallinari is supposedly solid but Knicks fans are just going to boo because of the Frederic Weis disaster (yes that Frederic Weis)

5:10 PM - SAS interviews Gallinari and he is still getting booed. And SAS keeps mentioning it. This is hilarious. ESPN SN fan grade of F for the pick.

5:12 PM - Clippers select Gordon over Bayless. Doesn't make much sense considering they need a PG and Gordon lacks handle. And who knows how good Livingston is going to be when he finally comes back.

5:14 PM - The analysts think this is a good pick even though the Clips need a PG and they can play Maggette/Mobley at the 2. Gordon looks like he has cut down on the cheeseburgers.

5:16 PM - Knicks GM Donnie Walsh is getting booed as he is being interviewed. I think it's safe to say the Knick fans don't like the pick

5:18 PM - Bucks select Joe Alexander. I know they were high on him but it seems unnecessary because they just traded for Jefferson today. Bilas really loves him. Mentioned his athleticism like 80 times in 3 seconds. Supposedly it's "freakish". Buck fans prepare to get freaked

5:24 PM - Jackson thinks the Bobcats are solid across the board. I have to disagree. They really need a 5. Bobcats select DJ Augustin! MJ screws up again. They needed a big man and they draft a PG who's going to be a back-up to Felton (unless they go super small or trade Wallace)

5:26 PM - Brook Lopez looks like he is about to cry. Man up homie

5:29 PM - All the analysts say the Nets MUST draft Lopez because they need a big man badly...and they do. Solid pick.

5:32 - Jackson is hilarious. He says that Vince Carter was the Nets' best post player last year and he's a perimeter player. lol

5:33 - The Lopez twins' voices crack me up. They sound so funny IMO. They are so goofy

5:35 - Pacers select Bayless. Not sure if they are going to start Bayless and Ford or Bayless and Tinsley or bring him off the bench. Bayless doesn't look happy. I wouldn't be either. He was rumored to go 4 to Seattle and now goes 11 to the Indy.

5:39 PM - Euro 2008 plug. Germany vs Spain for the final. Should be a great game

5:41 PM - The Kings select Jason Thompson?! He's not even at the draft. Bilas says he is just "solid, not spectacular". Called him solid about 50 times. I don't remember Thompson being rated this high. King fans give the pick a strong F. Mark Jackson says "it's very surprising they draft a big man out of Rider?!". My boy Sol -"SAC must know something we don't, like they are going to be folding in a few years"

5:47 PM - Blazers select Brandon Rush. Very solid pick for them. Perfect role player who can shoot and defend multiple swing positions. The Blazers are on their way back to getting beat by the Lakers in the playoffs like the good ol' times.

5:49 PM - Stuart Scott simply asks Katz "Why Thompson?" I'm wondering the same thing

5:51 PM - The W's select Anthony Randolph. He has TUP. He seems like a good fit because of the Warriors up-tempo style. Bilas says he is "painfully skinny" and "makes Brandan Wright look like Mr. America". The lottery is finished

5:54 PM - Randolph is very defiant and defensive about being painfully skinny. He is not lacking for confidence.

5:57 PM - The Suns select Robin Lopez. A little surprising but they do need a defensive big man. His hat does not fit at all on his sideshow Bob haircut.

5:59 PM - The Lopez twins' mother acts just as goofy as them.

6:03 PM - Sixers select Marreese Speights. Seems like a solid pick for them. They need a talented big man. No qualms from the analysts about the pick.

6:07 PM - Since the lottery is finished the draft is starting to get less interesting

6:08 PM - Raptors select Roy Hibbert for the Pacers. They need a center but I'm not sure Hibbert "The Big Stiff" is the answer.

6:13 PM - Wizards select JaVale McGee. Don't know much about him. Bilas says "his arms go forever"

6:15 PM - Breaking news. Blazers trade Rush (their new pick) and Jack to Indiana for Bayless and Ike Diogu. I really like the trade for the Blazers. Rush gets to play with his brother Kareem in Indy. Don't know if that's good or bad

6:20 PM - Jackson tells Arthur to get a new piece of gum and enjoy being the last person at the draft not to be drafted yet

6:21 PM - Cavs select JJ Hickson. He is strong, powerful, and explosive according to Bilas. I've seen him play I think and don't remember anything special but we are getting late into the 1st round.

6:25 PM - Bobcats select Alexis Ajinca. They needed a big man and they went international (France). He is lacking strength but is very long (7'8 wingspan). Fran Fraschilla - "He was unstoppable in those 1-on-0 workouts" haha. Is he another Yi?

6:29 PM - More news on the Pacers-Blazers trade. Josh McRoberts is also going to Indy. Bayless looks a lot happier to be going to the Blazers instead of the Pacers.

6:33 PM - Nets select Ryan Anderson. He was pretty solid in the Pac-10 (20 and 10). He's tall and can shoot. I think it's a good pick

6:38 PM - Magic select Courtney Lee. They could use another guard but this seems a little high. He is a "strong player with a strong build". JVG just bangs on his brother (coach of the Magic) talking about how he's at the buffet line.

6:42 PM - The Jazz need backcourt help according to the analysts. I agree

6:43 PM - But the Jazz apparently don't...they select Kosta Koufos. Bilas loves the pick even though Koufos has a lot of different things to improve on (according to him)

6:48 PM - Sonics select Serge Ibaka. The Sonics are back to drafting international big men. This is one of the those "stash away" pick.

6:52 PM - Stan Van Gundy says he wanted to eat so he doesn't even know who they picked lol.

6:54 PM - 25th pick. Bout to dip to go hoop. Hopefully the Rockets mess up this pick hahaha. Rockets select Nicolas Batum. He gets compared to Rudy Gay. They show a nice move where he dunks on someone.

10:00 PM - Had to dip but there was a big trade. Minnesota trades OJ Mayo, Antoine Walker, Marko Jaric, and Greg Buckner to Memphis for Kevin Love, Mike Miller, and Brian Cardinal's terrible contract. Also, the cliche counter was a failure as the usual cliches were missing. Bilas had come classic lines but he even admitted that he went through the entire draft w/o saying long or upside.

For a quick wrap-up I just have to say I hope the Lakers win a few titles before the Blazers' youngcore (Roy, Oden, Aldridge, Bayless) enter their primes. But seriously I grade them as the winner of today. They're adding two lottery picks (yes Oden counts) to their already young and promising core. My boy says "pritchard [their GM] is a serial rapist"

The Draft

The Fakers' embarrassing showing in the Finals will not be detailed. They were a joke and I expect a lot more from them next year.

Moving onto the draft....

This is shaping up as one of the more interesting drafts the NBA will have in recent years. There is a lot of talent available at the top of the draft (Beasley, Rose, Mayo, Bayless, Gordon, etc.) and even though the draft is Thursday it's still not clear who is going to land where.

Chad Ford on ESPN is up to his 6th! mock draft and Hollinger is back with his complicated statistical formulas and methods. He even has separate formulas for big men and perimeter players.

With so many teams talking about trading up or down I'm not even going to attempt to do a mock draft or anything like that.

Here are the 5 players I think will have the best pro careers

1. Beasley - he has so much talent and although he is a joker and a goofball from what I've seen he does work pretty hard. With giant post up big men in decline and the league becoming more up-tempo Beasley has the potential to be a dominant 4 in this league.

2. Rose - He has great size and athleticism for a point guard. He seems to have great court vision and his size and athletic ability also will allow him to be a capable defender at worst.

3. Bayless - He is quick and has great range. There are some questions about his size and his ability to the run the point but even with the rise of some great PG's it's not really necessary to be a "pure" point guard anymore. The ability to score is sometimes even more important than the ability to set other people up.

4. Mayo - He has an "NBA" body whatever that means haha. Seriously he does have good size and decent shooting ability. He didn't live up to the immense hype he had coming into college and at times he seemed turnover prone and unable or unwilling to take over when his team needed him to.

5. Gordon - He is really only placed here by default. I'm not that high on him but I don't see Love, Westbrook, Galinari (or however you spell that Italian dude's name) etc. being better. It does seem like he is a few cheeseburgers away from being out of shape. But he is a pretty good finisher due to his size and quickness and he basically has unlimited range.

Really the only things that seem sure about the draft are

- Rose or Beasley will go #1 to Chicago
- Miami will def take Rose if he falls to them. If Beasley falls they will take him or trade the pick
- Mayo will land somewhere in the top 5.

I'm excited for the draft and might do a running diary for the first part (I have a league bball game that night)

The Finals!

So the Finals matchup that everyone (well not everyone) wanted is going to happen. The Los Angeles Lakers versus The Boston Celtics. I can't imagine how happy David Stern is right now. These two teams are the marquee NBA franchises as they have 30 of the 61 NBA titles - Boston with 16 and Los Angeles with 14. They have had some classic battles in the playoffs and boast some of the greatest players of all-time - Russell, Bird, Chamberlain, Magic, Kareem, West, McHale...the list could go on and on. But none of that history matters now. The only things that matter are how the teams have played so far in the playoffs and how they match up against each other.

Los Angeles Lakers (12-3 in the playoffs, +6.4 differential)

The Lakers have simply been dominant these playoffs. They have only lost 3 games in rolling through what was supposed to be one of the toughest Western Conferences ever. They swept Denver easily, took Utah's best shot and closed them out in 6, and finished off the defending champs in 5. They have won in many different fashions. They have come back from big early deficits, they have led wire-to-wire in solid victories, they have blown teams out, and they have held off teams. They have won the high-scoring up and down games and they have won the slow-down slug fests. Although they are a young team they do have veteran championship leadership and a coach with 9 rings. They also have the best player in basketball. Kobe is on a mission and playing some of the best basketball of his career. The Lakers have had the best and most diverse offense in the playoffs. And their large frontline and overall team length and quickness has allowed them to play solid defense. The only thing the team seems to be lacking is a physical 5 man who's job is to rebound and play defense (and no DJ Mbenga doesn't count).


Boston Celtics (12-8, +4.3)

The Boston Celtics have been an enigma these playoffs. They looked very vulnerable in their first two series - dragged to 7 games by both Atlanta and Cleveland. Then after they lost Game 2 at home to Detroit they looked very vulnerable because their home dominance had ended and they still had yet to win a game on the road. Then they went a played their best game of the playoffs and won Game 3 in Detroit and ended up winning Game 6 there as well to finish the series. They looked a lot better against Detroit than they did the first two series but I still think they have a lot of flaws. Simply put, they are an average offense at best. It is rare when the Big 3 click at the same time and they have some offensive droughts at time. Also, it seems that Doc still doesn't know what his best rotation said. All in all, they only need 4 more wins for a title and they have home-court advantage to try to do it.

Match-Ups

PG - Fisher vs Rondo

I think the old man gets the advantage over the young guy. Fisher has championship experience and is very smart. Rondo has an obvious quickness advantage but if Fish can do a decent job on Tony P I'm sure Rondo won't cause too many problems. Also, Rondo likes to roam on defense sometimes which can be problematic b/c Fisher can and will knock down open jumpers

Solid Edge - Lakers

SG - Kobe vs Ray Ray

Even with Ray Allen starting to come back to life this match-up still isn't close. Kobe is MVP and the best player in the league and Allen hasn't played at an all-star level in these playoffs. Allen is going to need a lot of help to guard him. As long as Kobe doesn't roam too much he should be able to do a decent job on Allen.

Significant Edge - Lakers

SF - Vlad Rad vs Pierce

Another easy match-up to call. Pierce is an all-star and Vlad wouldn't even be starting if the Lakers were healthy. Pierce has gone off at times in the playoffs but Vlad's length (6'10) and decent quickness should allow him to not get abused too badly as long as he has some help. If Pierce loses focus Vlad will knock down open shots.

Significant Edge - Celtics

PF - LO (Dey Know Dey Know) vs The Big Ticket

It's good that KG doesn't like to dominate down low a lot because I'm not sure if Odom could handle him down there consistently. Still KG is a fierce competitor who is a great defender and rebounder and he could cause some problems for Odom.

Significant Edge - Celtics



C - Pauuuu vs Perkins

Perkins has played better recently but it's clear he's no Gasol. This is another match-up that's not close. KG might have to switch onto Gasol because he might be too quick and long for KP. I'm not sure if Perkins is going to be able to handle all the things Gasol can do out of the high post. Perkins should able to have some decent rebounding games as he is more physical than Gasol.

Significant Edge - Lakers



Bench - Farmar, The Machine, Turiaf, Luuuuke vs Posey, PJ Brown, Eddie House, Sam I Am

The Lakers' superior depth is one of the primary reasons a lot of people are picking them over the Celtics. IMO their bench is significantly stronger. They have much better guards coming off the bench and they have comparable big men.

Significant Edge - Lakers



Coach - Phil vs Doc

9 rings versus 1st finals appearance. Calmness and strength vs not having a set playoff rotation. I don't think I need to delve into this match-up much.

Significant Edge - Lakers

Given that the Lakers have edges at 3 out of the 5 positions, the bench, and the coach I would be surprised if they didn't win this series. Given that they have the best player in the league in Kobe I would be surprised if this series went 7. Lakers in 6

Lakers Back to the Finals!

The Los Angeles Lakers are back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2004. They beat the Spurs 100-92 to win the series in 5 games. It was a pretty entertaining game with the Lakers coming back from a 17 point deficit in the 2nd quarter and pulling away from the Spurs late in the fourth quarter. Kobe was the hero of the game with 39 points including 17 in the 4th. He now has a chance to win a title as the unquestioned best player on the Lakers and to give the Lakers their 15th title in 29 finals appearances.

Their opponent has yet TBD as the Celtics lead the Pistons 3-2. I would much rather face the Celtics because of the history between the franchises but more importantly the matchup. The Celtics don't have anyone to slow down Kobe and don't have enough offensive weapons to keep up with the LakeShow. IMO the Pistons would pose more problems but the Lakers would still win.

Right now the opponent doesn't matter, it's a time for celebration for all fellow my laker fans.

Cardiac Arrest...

That's what the Lakers almost gave Laker fans all over the country tonight. After racing out to a 22-8 lead early the Lakers managed to hold off the Spurs for a 93-91 victory to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.

In case you missed the ending and haven't seen highlights here's what happened in the final minute.

- Lakers are up 93-86 and Pau Gasol grabs a rebound and gets fouled. Game seems basically over
- Gasol misses BOTH free throws
- Manu hits a 3 and cuts the lead to 93-89
- Kobe loses his mind momentarily and takes a rushed shot when the Lakers just needed to milk the clock and wait to be fouled and misses
- Spurs rebound and Parker gets out on the break and LO goaltends his lay-up attempt. 93-91
- With about a 5 second differential between the shot clock and the game clock the Spurs decide not to foul and Fisher and Kobe miss jumpers and the Spurs get the rebound with 2 secs left
- They inbound the ball to BRENT BARRY?! and he goes one-on-one against Fisher beyond the 3 point line. He pump fakes, gets Fisher to jump in the air and come down on him but dribbles to the side and takes a deep 3 that misses badly. Game Over

There's some controversy because Fisher looked like he fouled Barry. But Barry didn't sell the foul at all which is especially important at the end of games where refs swallow their whistles. Anyway Fisher's shot with 5 seconds left looked like it grazed the rim which would have reset the shot clock and led to the Spurs having to foul the Lakers and Kobe making free throws to ice the game. And when it comes down to it when you run the most important play of the season so far for Brent Barry you deserve to lose

Western Conference Finals

Los Angeles Lakers (4-2 over Jazz) vs San Antonio Spurs (4-3 over Hornets)

A Rivalry Renewed....

These two franchises have locked horns more than a few times in the playoffs over the past 10 years. The Spurs swept the Lakers before the Lakers went on their three-peat run where they beat the Spurs in their last two championship runs. The Spurs then ended the Lakers three-peat and then Lakers returned the favor and prevented the Spurs from repeating the following year. Although many of the faces have changed the teams still know each other very well and it should be a great great series. I get chills thinking about all the memorable moments between these teams

The Lakers have yet to be seriously challenged in the playoffs. They swept a Denver team who didn't really show up and then took Utah's best shot without being seriously challenged. I think the physicality and offensive precision of Utah will have the Lakers ready for the tough veteran Spurs.

The Spurs dispatched the Suns rather easily in the 1st round and then were dragged to the limit by the pesky young Hornets. The Spurs have showed they can win high-scoring or low-scoring games which the Lakers have not shown yet. The Hornets' quickness and athleticism will prepare them for the Lakers.

Key Questions
- will Kobe continue to trust his teammates after they go through some struggles against a good defensive team? Bowen and Udoka are solid individual defenders and Duncan is still a great help defender. Kobe has to play very smart this series. He has had a great playoff run so far but he can't get stubborn especially if his back flares up

- will the Lakers be able to rebound better? The Jazz pushed around the Lakers a little bit but they were able to overcome that because of great offense and solid defense. They shouldn't count on the same happening against the Spurs if they don't rebound better

- will the Spurs be able to score enough points? The Spurs are not a great offensive team especially if you can run them off the 3 point line. The Lakers are not a great defensive team but they are quick and long which can cause the Spurs problems. Vlad, Odom, and Gasol is a very long frontline. Also if the Spurs let the Lakers speed it up at all then this will be a quick series

Prediction
This should be a wonderful and entertaining series. With what has happened the first two rounds I think everyone would agree these are the two best teams in the West. The Spurs may have the pedigree and experience but I think the Lakers will ultimately take this series because they are more versatile offensively, they have the MVP and most talented player in the league, and a better bench. Kobe is so determined to show he can win without Shaq and now that he has legit weapons around him he is nearly unstoppable. Lakers in 7

Eastern Conference Finals

Boston Celtics (4-3 over Cleveland) vs Detroit Pistons (4-1 over Orlando)

This is the Eastern conference final everyone expected at the beginning of the playoffs and although both teams had some bumps on the road (Boston more than Detroit) they both made it for what should be a showdown series. Boston has the Big 2 and Ray Allen's expiring contract and the Pistons still have one of the strongest starting 5's in the league.

The Pistons played around with the Sixers in the 1st round but once they became serious they rolled and won in six. The Pistons knew the Magic were a bigger threat and took them serious from the get-go and won the series in 5 even with Billups missing most of Game 3 and all of Games 4 and 5. The Pistons are rolling right now and they will thrive in their underdog role against the Celtics.

The Celtics faced a minor scare against the Hawks in round 1. Although they were dragged to 7 games they were never challenged at home and won Game 7 by 34. Against Cleveland they were really tested and could have easily lost Games 1, 5, and 7 at home. They survived LeBron in a classic Game 7 but now look very vulnerable. And they still haven't won a road game.

I believe there a few reasons why the Pistons will win this series.

- Ray Allen is simply terrible and with his decline the Pistons have clear advantages at PG and SG and a decent advantage at C (Maxiell over Perkins).

- Although KG and Paul Pierce are better overall players than Sheed and Tayshaun both of those players have the ability and experience to keep those matchups relatively even

- Boston hasn't shown they can win on the road in the postseason and they were very vulnerable at home against Cleveland

Those 3 points along with my overall disappointment with Boston's performance during these playoffs lead me to believe Pistons in 6

Tonight's Game 7 prediction - My heart says the Hornets (because I hate the Spurs and I think the Hornets are a better matchup for the LakeShow) but my head says the defending champs will find a way to prevail. The Hornets are the better overall team but the Spurs' Big 3 is great and stars win Game 7's. Tonight should be great though.