Clippers - Warriors Live Game Diary

I never thought I would be able to sit through an entire Clippers - Warriors game.  Yet here I am writing about one - on Christmas Night.

The game doesn't start for an hour and a half, so I'm killing time with the Bears - Packers football game and an extended pregame notes section (between pieces of pecan pie).

30 Thoughts On 30 Teams

I always say that I am a Celtics fan more than an NBA fan.  I'll watch any Celtics game, but probably not any random game on tv.  The Clippers and Lakers are "local" here in Vegas, so those games are on the regional FOX Sports channels.  Will watch some Clippers, probably not the Lakers. 

I like this sort of thing - and since I did one for baseball and football (see the archives), here are random thoughts on all 30 NBA teams.

Atlanta Hawks - Paying Joe Johnson max. money is a mistake they'll be paying for a long time.

Boston Celtics - I don't have a good feeling about this season.  If they make it to the playoffs in one piece, quoting KG, "anything is possible".

Charlotte Bobcats - No idea what is going on in Charlotte.  So Michael Jordan and I have something in common.

Chicago Bulls - Just extended Derrick Rose for max. money.  Should be good for the next half-decade, at least.

Cleveland Cavaliers - Rebuilding.  At least they have the ability to get better.

Dallas Mavericks - Lost a lot off of their championship team.  They could still make changes and get back tot he finals.

Denver Nuggets - Also-rans since losing Carmelo Anthony.  Didn't help that some of their players left for China during the lockout.

Detroit Pistons - Team in disarray.

Golden State Warriors - Should trade Monta Ellis.

Houston Rockets - Devastated by losing Yao and having the Chris Paul to Lakers deal overturned.  

Indiana Pacers - Sleeper.

LA Clippers - Fun to watch.  How good, I don't know (I think good).  Look like they want to throw an alley-oop on every play.

LA Lakers - See Boston Celtics.  Wake me up when the playoffs arrive.

Memphis Grizzlies - Nice run last season.  May not get any better than that.

Miami Heat - Favorites to win it all. 

Milwaukee Bucks - Don't like the look of this team.  Would not want to hang my hat on Brandon Jennings being my go-to guy.

Minnesota Timberwolves - See Indiana Pacers. Sleeper.

New Jersey Nets - They're going to throw money around.  We'll see who takes it.  Good for them (Williams, Howard, shooter).  Bad for them (Not Williams and Not Howard).

New Orleans Hornets - About the only fun thing here will be watching Eric Gordon run amock until  it's his turn to leave town.

New York Knicks - Carmelo is good.  Not sure they can trust Amare to stay healthy long enough to contend.

Oklahoma City Thunder - See Chicago Bulls.  Should be good for the next half-decade, at least.

Seattle Supersonics - Should still exist.  One of the most disgusting things I have seen in sports during my lifetime.

Orlando Magic - Dunno until Dwight Howard situation is resolved.

Philadelphia Sixers - Meh.

Phoenix Suns - Steve Nash, otherwise Meh.

Portland Trail Blazers - Too bad about Brandon Roy...and Greg Oden...

Sacramento Kings - May not be all that good, but at least they'll be interesting.  Jimmer, Evans, Cousins...

San Antonio Spurs - Window closing?  Duncan is one of the best ever.

Toronto Raptors - At least they're in Canada, where I won't be seeing them very often.  

Utah Jazz - Mediocre.

Washington Wizards - Poor man's LA Clippers (yeah that sounds weird).  Wall, McGee,, Crawford and Vesely represent young potential that may or may not ever turn into a winner.

10 reasons to be happy the NBA lockout is over

Most of my comments about the NBA lockout have been disparaging, or basically saying that the NBA can stay away for as long as they want.  I stand by those comments.  I'm a Celtics fan, not really a fan of the NBA.

But now that they're scheduled to begin the season on Christmas, I'll share 10 reasons to be happy the lockout is over.  It's actually a chore coming up with 10 reasons (I scratched out three while I was playing poker yesterday; #'s 2,4,5).  Here goes...

In hindsight

Was out most of the night playing poker, so I woke up in time to watch the Patriots thump the Eagles.  Here are a few things that I know, wish I knew, or wish I did in hindsight.

1.  Won $150 playing poker.  Wish I left hours earlier when I was up close to $300.  I'm usually good at that, but thought I could make more.  Ended up giving some of it back.

2.  The easiest bet on the board this weekend was Virginia Tech -4.5 at Virginia.  I even helped talk a rich guy from overseas into making a very big bet on the game.  Final score was 38-0.  I did not bet the game, or even include it in my weekly picks.  Dumb.

3.  I've been saying UNLV is good.  Never thought they'd beat #1 North Carolina.  On the other hand, I've lost the ability to argue or surprise people by saying they're a good team because now everybody knows.

4.  Maybe I should have gone to the game.  Oh well.

5.  The NBA Lockout appears to be ending, with games beginning on Christmas.  The Celtics will play the Knicks.  I haven't missed the NBA (and wouldn't if the whole season were cancelled).  I've always been a Celtics fan, but notice I don't write a lot about basketball.  The teams and games boost the economies and many in the community, so for that reason, I'm glad there will be NBA basketball.

6.  Common opinion is that the reduced schedule helps an older team like the Celtics.  We all know the "Big 4", but who else makes up the roster?  FYI - this isn't what it's going to be.

7.  The game I debated the most was Chicago +5 at Oakland.  Ended up being a push.  Wonder what the line will be for the Colts at Patriots next week.  -18 or so?

8.  Bob Costas did a halftime commentary on touchdown celebrations.  To paraphrase (pretty closely), "hey knuckleheads, is it too much to ask that you confine your stupidity to situations that don't end up directly hurting your team" (roll Steve Johnson and DeShaun Jackson highlights).  In my mind, it needs to go one of two ways.  Teams need to tell their players to stop getting 15 yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalties when they know they're going to be penalized.  The other solution - allow touchdown celebrations that are not direct taunting an opponent.

9.  I've not shaved in about a month, so I have a little bit of a beard going.  It doesn't look horrible.  I have only trimmed it a little, so that it looks fine.  But I'm not used to it being as long.  In hindsight, maybe I should have shaved.

10.  This isn't hindsight, more a thought.  I wonder if Peyton Manning should play football again.  I am very much not a Colts fan, but that doesn't matter to my opinion.  If he could sustain another significant neck injury, or risk diminishing the quality of his life after football, I'd like to see him retire as one of the best ever and not take that chance.  My guess is that he and his family understand the situation.  I don't know details, but I'm not hearing anything yet that convinces me that he can or should come back.

11.  In hindsight, why am I watching the Steelers - Chiefs game?  This is horrible (changes channel).  I don't like the Cleveland Show (changes channel again).  An ESPN documentary on Herschel Walker (puts remote control down).

12.  I generally don't think twice about holding the door open for somebody when I have the chance.  In hindsight, holding the door open for a prostitute in the middle of the night only led to an unwelcome solicitation.

Something Old, Something New

The LA Clippers beat the San Antonio Spurs last night 90-85, answering the question, what would happen if a bunch of really good college kids played against an NBA team.

Well, actually not answering that question at all.

The Clippers are, in fact, still an NBA team.  What I found most interesting about the Clippers (sans Chris Kamen and with Baron Davis coming off the bench after missing 14 games due to injury) is the age of their starting line-up.

Here they are:

PF Blake Griffin - Rookie, 21
SF Al-Farouq Aminu - Rookie, 20
PG Eric Bledsoe - Rookie, 20
SG Eric Gordon - 3rd year, 21
C DeAndre Jordan - 3rd year, 22

This group of Clippers all played significant minutes and beat the best team in the NBA last night.  The five players above all left college early, are making a lot of money, and making significant contributions to their employer, when they could still be in college or having just finished.

Hopefully these players continue to pursue college degrees.  Education is important for everybody, even talented and rich athletes.  But when it comes to the NBA, it's so much for "stay in school".

No Respect

The Boston Globe (and boston.com) really doesn't care who the Celtics are playing.

Bill Russell to receive medal of freedom

People sometimes speak of the three people they would like to have dinner with, or play a round of golf with.  I haven't really given it much thought; Bill Russell would probably be one of the three living people I would choose.

I have watched and read a fair amount about him.  I read Second Wind, written by him.  He is more than just a great basketball player.  At this point, he is one of those people who has been the best in his chosen profession, seen the worst of America, made his fair share of mistakes, and become a wise and eloquent voice in society.  It was announced that Russell is being awarded the medal of freedom, the highest civilian honor awarded in the US.  Former President George H.W. Bush is amongst the other recipients.

Iconoclasts did an episode with Russell and Samuel L. Jackson, where Jackson visits Russell's home, and they (you guessed it) play a round of golf together.  That show can be pretty good.

Bill Russell is considered the greatest winner in professional basketball.  This is a different kind of award, also well deserved.

What's wrong with the Miami Heat?

The Miami Heat, aka "the greatest team in the history of basketball", lost to the Boston Celtics for the second time this year to fall to 5-4 on the season.  It's a little to early to make the statement that this is what their season is going to be like.  Get back to me at playoff time when it matters.  But right now, this is the baseline, from which they can make changes and improve.

Reggie Miller identified many issues during last night's TNT broadcast.  For the Heat, I'm sure it's a little overwhelming, but they know it as well.  So give it time, and this team will be a lot better than it is today.

Here is how they will do it.

NBA look alikes

I was watching the Celtics and Bulls the other day and my mind wandered to NBA players who look like other celebrities.  Here are a few.


Celtics Assistant Coach Lawrence Frank



 Wayne Rooney



Blake Griffin is already one of my favorite NBA players

Watch this first.

REMOVED

Now you know part of why Blake Griffin is one of my favorite NBA players after only one game in the league.  Ok, I watched him play a lot in college, so I knew what was coming.  Still, I made sure to stay up late to watch him finally make his debut in the NBA. 

Griffin was the #1 overall draft pick by the Clippers before last season and injured his knee, on a slam dunk, during a preseason game.  He missed all of last season, so this is his rookie year.  In addition to being one of the most athletic big guys you will ever see (he is listed at 6'10", 251 lbs.), Griffin plays good defense, boxes out, runs the floor, passes, and plays the game with energy.  And he makes highlight reel plays like the ones above.

Blake Griffin plays the way you would teach a young big man the game.  He acts like one of those marginal players that has to outwork everybody just to make the team, but he is actually the best player out there.  Opponents will get tired of having to deal with this guy on the court.  Hopefully that trait spreads to his teammates, and maybe the Clippers will become a decent team.

There aren't many basketball players like Blake Griffin.  He reminds me a little of what Len Bias might have been.

These highlights are only the beginning of a promising career.

Evan Longoria, David Price call out Rays fans - only marginally about that

Evan Longoria and David Price voiced their displeasure at low home attendance, despite the Tampa Rays being on the verge of clinching another post season appearance.

While I do not question the intent of star players to motivate their fan base, the delivery may be a little strong.  It comes off as cocky young millionaire athletes being out of touch and disrespectful to their fans, when they are simply saying, "we'd love for more fans to come out, support the team, and share in our success."  I believe they are good intentioned. 

Unfortunately, the real problem is Tampa Rays baseball is one of many franchises in professional sports that should not exist.

This list includes, but is not limited to: Tampa Rays, Florida Marlins, Washington Senators, Oakland A's, Kansas City Royals, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Hornets, Charlotte Bobcats, Orlando Magic, Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Thrashers, Phoenix Coyotes, Ottawa Senators, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, and Anaheim Ducks.

One team that should have never been ripped from it's home and should be restored ASAP is the Seattle Supersonics.  That is a topic for another post.

Notice I am particularly biased against recent expansion and moves into new markets.

The basic reason for all of this, of course, is greed.  Leagues and team owners see more short term money in expanding or moving teams and having venues built for them; "building the brand".  They will expand overseas as soon as they can figure out how to make it ("cough") work.  Same concept as the NFL moving to an 18 game schedule.  It has little to do with the need for a preseason, and everything to do with preseason games not generating the same revenue.  So, expanding the regular season is an untapped revenue stream.  We will soon learn the impact because it's probably going to happen soon.

Let's get back to over-expansion in sports.  Leagues hold cities hostage for new venues at taxpayer expense.  Many markets do not have the business presence, individual wealth, population, or interest to fill overpriced seats and luxury suites (see hockey below the Mason-Dixon Line).  Canadian teams were also at a disadvantage due to the exchange rate.  Player unions don't mind because it means a greater job and salary pool.  Yet talent is diluted, and competitive imbalance (which already exists due to operational incompetence) grows.  The product suffers.  The cycle completes itself when fans of bad teams stop showing up for games.  Advances in cable and high-definition television make it preferable to just stay home (blackout or not).

In the case of the Rays, years of futility, on and off the field, finally contributed to the Rays becoming a team loaded with affordable young talent.  They became good in spite of being utterly incompetent in every area except drafting.  But drafting is made easier when you're among the worst teams every year.  You get top draft picks, such as Longoria and Price.  Eventually those picks improve the team (looking at you Pittsburgh Pirates).  Signing Longoria to a long-term deal was a brilliant move by new management.  Maybe this is an indication they will continue to move the team away from their legacy of losing.  However, as with recent Florida Marlins and Cleveland Indians teams, there is talk that Tampa will not be able to keep their core intact after this season.

In other words, Rays fans should enjoy their success while it lasts.  It will likely be short lived.