LAKERS IN TRANSITION

7 OF 8 "GAME ONES" WENT TO THE HOME TEAM: The only home loss went to New Jersey.  This came as surprise to me because I thought New Jersey would get it together and really take care of the Pacers in this series.  Guess the Pacers have other ideas.  Vince was cocky and paid the price for it getting taken down and landing awkwardly and shot a dismal 36% while taking 33 shots. 

UDONIS HASLEM SUSPENDED: Udonis Haslem, in what might be able to be called the most bone-headed move of these playoffs was suspended one game after throwing his mouthguard at referee Joey Crawford.  Joey Crawford?  Come on, even I'm smart enough not to mess with that guy.  His team was already short a big man with Mourning out.  And to top it off D Wade is banged up.  Congrats Udonis, you really showed him!! 

RON ARTEST ALSO SUSPENDED: Ron Artest was suspended for cracking Manu Ginobili in the head with his forearm.  Now, I haven't seen the footage so I can't really comment on whether or not the suspension was/is warranted, but could this the beginning of the return of the "real" Ron Artest? 

THE CLIPPERS ALMOST COUGH ONE UP: In their first playoff appearance since Cave Men roamed the Earth, the Clippers came out strong.  Then they nearly let the Nuggets leave with the victory.  They'd better protect their leads better because Carmelo isn't going to miss every shot in the 4th again. 

LAKERS ALMOST STUN SUNS WITH KOBE SCORING "ONLY" 22: Of course I have to mention my own team.  The Lakers had a great game plan and just about took it to the Suns in game won in Phoenix.  A few first quarter jitters out of the way and the Lakers are looking good.  Kobe didn't shoot great (he got some great looks, nothing forced) and the refs missed a call that the knot on Kobe's head didn't, otherwise the Lakers would have won easily.

raisinbrn at 4:30:21 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

NBA PLAYOFF PREVIEW

Round 1

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

 1 San Antonio vs 8 Sacramento: The Spurs continue their period of dominance and head into the playoffs with the West's best record.  The Kings managed to avoid missing the playoffs as the addition of Ron Artest in January totally revitalized this team. San Antonio took the season series 2-1 with the lone Kings win being the only time AFTER the Artest deal that these teams faced off, and Sacramento won going away.  This could be Upset Special # 3 as these two teams match up fairly well, especially with a hobbled Tim Duncan.  My Pick: 50/50, I'll go with Spurs but only because I have to pick someone

 4 Dallas vs 5 Memphis: The Mavericks get robbed of the second seed and drop all the way down to fourth seed because of a goofy NBA rule.  The Grizzlies draw the unlucky straw and have to play the West's second best.  Dallas coach Avery Johnson has done a great job with this team.  He's had his share of injuries but managed to remain competitive and actually has this team playing defense. Dallas dominated them this year 3-1, and Memphis' lone win came way back in November.  Memphis is still looking to scratch the W column in the playoffs, and I think they will this year, but that's about it. My Pick: Mavericks

 3 Denver vs 6 Los Angeles: Denver grabs the three seed by winning their division, but that's about it and they won't have home court advantage.  The Clippers "magically" escape Dallas and get Denver at home. Melo has his team playing well, but the Clippers have Sam Cassell and a hungry Elton Brand making his playoff debut. By virtue of the seeding you could call this Upset Special # 4, but really the Clippers are the better team and their record proves it.  LA took the season series 3-1 and Denver's only win was early in the season.  My Pick: Clippers

 2 Phoenix vs 7 Los Angeles: The Suns win their division going away and the Lakers are back after a one year hiatus.  Phoenix has been in high gear all season, even without Amare Stoudemire, while the Lake Show really had two different seasons, coming on in the last couple of months.  This is Upset Special #5. The Suns took the season series 3-1 with the Lakers lone win coming without Nash or Bell on the court. But this is a new ball game, Phoenix will find out how much they really miss Amare and just how good Phil and Kobe are in the post-season.  My Pick: Lakers

raisinbrn at 12:50:42 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

NBA PLAYOFF PREVIEW

Round 1

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

 

1 Detroit  vs 8 Milwaukee:  The Pistons close with the best record and have home court all the way through.  After some ups and downs the Bucks squeak in at #8. Detroit took the season series 3-1. This one should be a no-brainer but Milwaukee could do just enough to tire the Pistons out for future series. My pick: Pistons

 4 Cleveland vs 5 Washington: LeBron finally gets his Cavs solidly into the playoff picture and Washington stayed competitive while Caron Butler helped carry the Wiz off the bench.  This could be upset special #1.  The Washington took the season series 3-1.  This is also LeBron's first post-season appearance so we'll have to see if the jitters sink in or he makes a name for himself.  And how will Larry Hughes do against his former team?  My pick: Wizards

 3 New Jersey vs 6 Indiana: Vince is playing well and he JKidd, and RJ have elevated the Nets back to a more elite status.  The Pacers are just trying to get back to some semblance of good basketball and winning ways after the "Artest years."  Peja has been solid as of late, and even though they took the season series 2-1,  the Pacers just don't have it in them right now to take what New Jersey will dish out.  My Pick: Nets

 2 Miami vs 7 Chicago: Shaq is out to prove he can still win rings.  Andthe Bulls are trying to prove that they are legit. This could be upset special #2, and maybe the biggest upset of the playoffs.  Miami took the season series, but the Bulls are hot coming into the post-season and it remains to be seen if the Diesel has enough gas left in the tank. My Pick: 50/50,  I'll say Heat, but in a close one

raisinbrn at 3:51:52 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

The Lakers are back to .500. 

 I could sit here and rant about team chemistry, or coaching.  If I wanted to be a sore loser I could sit here and rant about the refs, and I'd have some legitimate beefs.  Instead I will turn my attention to something different. 

Over the last two games, road games that seemed winnable, we lost in the closing moments.  No matter who or what you want to place the blame on for each loss, the bottom line is we had a chance to win  (or go into OT) in these games at the end.  Both games resulted in Kobe missing the game winning, or game tying, shot.

This has a raised some interesting questions among some of the Laker faithful:

Should Kobe be taking these shots?

Has anyone else earned the right to take these shots?

Is Kobe refusing to let anyone else take these shots?

Would Kobe support different late game plays so that the defense is thrown off and someone else can take (and hopefully make) a wide open shot?

We all know what Kobe can do. He has taken and made some pretty crucial shots over his career.  We have all seen the miracle shots with defenders draped all over him that have tied and won games.  No one is denying the fact that he has "earned" the right to try to make the big play.  Nearly every year they do a coaches poll, and nearly every year, nearly every coach in the league says that they would rather have the ball in Kobe's hand than any other player in the league.  That's saying something.  But, we have also seen him miss his fair share of last second shots.  We just don't celebrate them because well, they''re misses. Even Jordan once said that he has probably missed more "clutch" shots than he has made. That's true for Kobe as well.  No one is perfect, even Kobe can't make them all. 

So who on the team SHOULD or COULD be shooting if not Kobe?  Certainly no one else on this team has Kobe's experience with these types of shots but they aren't all a bunches of slouches either.  In rhythm Brian Cook is a fantastic shooter.  And despite a very slow start Luke has been shooting the ball very well lately. Lamar has shown that he isn't one to back away from a late game play, despite all of the criticism he receives about not being aggressive.  Sasha will ALWAYS take any shot he can get.  And I just know Smush is dying to get that "game winning" opportunity.  But, is being WILLING the same as being DESERVING?  Sure it is.  It's the NBA, if these guys didn't know how to play the game and knock down some shots they wouldn't be here, or they certainly wouldn't be playing, much less being considered for this scenario.  Any player whether it's Kobe, Smush, Luke,Darius Miles, Steve Nash, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Scot Pollard or anyone else, has a 50/50 shot of the ball going in.  It's that simple.  And of course the chance may increase or decrease based on the degree of difficulty and whether it's contested or not.  But, let's say a teammate had a wide open 15 footer and Kobe had a contested 30 footer....wouldn't the odds tell us that the 15 footer is more likely to go in?

So is Kobe "hogging" the ball and simply refusing to share the potential spotlight?  I say no.  The biggest knock on Kobe his whole career has been that he is a selfish player. The Kobe that I have followed since he came into the league is a competitor.  He WANTS to take the game winner because even if he has missed his previous six shots, he believes he can make it.  He wants to win.  He believes in himself, and his coaches and teammates obviously believe in him. 

All this being said, we have seen Kobe get flat out mugged out there, pretty much since the All-Star break.  It's no secret that Kobe is the driving force of the Laker team, and no secret that he generates the majority of the offense.  Unfortunately, it is also no secret where the ball is going late in the game, especially when we need a buzzer beater.  The defenders flock to him like bees on honey.  He struggles to get open to receive the in-bounds pass and struggles to find a line to get the shot off. 

The past two games I have seen two plays that forced the ball to a totally covered Kobe, and watched Kobe take a heavily contested shot and miss while there were open teammates.  It's not necessarily Kobe's fault, there is only so much time to get the ball in, get a shot and get the ball up in the air.  But we really need to start running some different plays and drill into these players (and the guy making the in-bounds pass) that Kobe isn't the ONLY option.  Use Kobe as the decoy, let him draw the defenders to him and let someone else take the shot.  Who knows, we could end up with a lay-up.  At the very least we end up with an uncontested shot rather than Kobe shooting with defenders covering his sight line to the basket.  Do we have to do this every time?  No.  Kobe is our main guy, he should be the one to try to step up in these situations, but for now, EVERY team, player and coach knows who is going to shoot the ball.  Why not catch them off guard and actually win some of these close games for a change? 

Do I feel that Kobe would support this? 

Absolutely, because Kobe is a competitor and a winner, NOT a ballhog. 

raisinbrn at 6:23:37 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

Can I possibly have been in a worse mood over the last few days?  I'm not sure.

Don't get me wrong-there were a couple of good moments mixed in--going to my in-laws to see the snow, and hubby and child being nice, cute and charming...BUT

First Edgerrin James signs with the Cardinals Sunday successfully putting a GIANT wrench in the Colts offense next season.

Then the Lakers lose to Seattle after beating the World Champion Spurs on the road only two days before.  And Kobe acts more like a child than my son does. 

Then Drew Brees made a deal to go to the Saints today.  Which means that the Chargers offense is also officially seriously in pain.

I still held out hope that those guys would somehow end up signing with their respective teams again.  Oh Well!

And I am frustrated because the Lakers are playing the Kings tonight and I have NO idea which team is actually go to show up.  Add to that that it's in Sacrament, AND if we lose we are not only booted out of the 7th playoff spot (by them) but booted out of the 8th (and final spot) by the Hornets (by virtue of the loss column, which is what matters right now).

I am just hoping an embarrassed and focused Laker team with something to prove shows up in Sacto tonight and mops the court with the Kings.

The other alternative I have in mind is too ugly to mention.  I'll let you know which team showed up after the game.

raisinbrn at 7:23:28 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

 

 Edgerrin James is officially an Arizona Cardinal after seven seasons with the Colts. 

I'll say right now that I am mad, bummed and every other emotion that goes along with something like this.

Clearly it's about money because even with Edgerrin and whatever player the Cards ultimately draft they are not a contender.  If Edge cared about rings, he's be putting on the blue jersey again this fall. Typical professional sports figure ego.  I hope he enjoys his millions, he can use them to buy a giant TV screen to watch the playoffs on because he certainly won't be playing in them, let's just hope the Colts still are.

What does this do to them? 

Well unless they find a suitable replacement...which most likely not possible the offense takes a giant hit.  Specifically Peyton takes a giant hit. 

The defense is going to go after Peyton every time.  There is no other credible offensive threat anymore.  The Colts will have to rely on their passing game since they no longer have one of the top 5 running backs in the game.  The best thing about the Colts and what made them so good was they they could beat you all over the place.  Obviously Peyton is Peyton but having a great running game really took the pressure off.

This all has me worried.  The playoff game against the Steelers might as well have been a preview of what's to come...Peyton sacked, Peyton hurried, Peyton way off the mark.  Let's hope that the offensive lines gets it together or it will be a long season.

Hopefully the team has an ace up their sleeve.

More on this when the bitterness dies down.

 

raisinbrn at 5:55:12 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

How many times can I apologize for the lack of updates and then promise to get back on track?  Well, consider this apology #412.

No reason whatsoever except that I've been lazy.  I've been online, just too lazy to spew out something creative.  All of my creative writing energy has been going toward two books that I am working on.

A FEW THINGS TO GET ROLLING AGAIN:

I plan to buy and read  Game of Shadows : Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports  when it comes out on March 27.  I have long suspected that Barry was a "juicer" and I am curious to see what evidence they come up with.  I know the book alleges that Bonds started using steroids after the 98 homerun race between Sosa and McGwire, reportedly because he was jealous.  Here is a pic of Bonds from that season, and then one from the following season( after he allegedly began using steroids).

 

Not sure if there is a huge difference, but his physiche has certainly changed throughout the last 7 years of his career. 

 

I love this show.  No, I am not late to the party, I have loved it since it first came out.  I am a stay at home mom so I get to catch it in the morning during the week and probably like many others I try to test my sports trivia knowledge right along with anyone else.  I have only seen a few people "Stump the Schwab."  Paging  SPORTZ ASSASSIN.

Anyway, so I am watching the other day and I notice the show 2 Minute Drill on my guide.  I have always thought it was a football show.  Not that I am not into football, it just never occurred to me to watch it.  I decided to check it out..

 

Turns out it's another game show, NOT a football analysis show.  Now I love this show too.  For those that also thought it was a football show...there are four panelists from various sports, and three contestants.  Each panelist is assigned a category usually having to do with their sport.  The contest goes through a "two minute drill" picking panelists and answering their questions.  The two contestants with the highest first round scores move on to the second round and they play another round just like the first adding to their first round score.  There are bonus points for sweeping all 5 of a particular panelist's questions.  The overall winner then gets to answer a question in their pre-determined area of expertise.  For instance, the other day his are of expertise was the 1999-2000 Sacramento Kings.  His question was about game four of their series with the Lakers: Two players were involved in altercation under the basket in game 4.  Name the Laker, name the King, name the perpetrator and tell us what quarter it was in.  He got it all correct (Kobe, Vlade, Kobe) except the last part.  Good for him for even remembering the first past though.  About teh only altercation I remember is the Fox/Christie pre-season debacle. 

Anyway, it's a pretty cool show, and they have a cool online game that you can play by clicking  Here.

LAKERS OVER SPURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

raisinbrn at 5:45:36 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

I deeply apologize for the lack of updates.  I have been mourning, I have been celebrating and my teams have been wreaking havoc with my emotions.

Obviously I had some serious let downs, one of my football teams (Chargers) beat my other football team (Indy) to end their chances and going undefeated this season.

It was all downhill from there.  Indy started a skid they didn't recover from.  They nearly dropped the rest of the games, a nice call kept them from getting a goose egg in the W column down the stretch.

I don't know what else to say about the playoffs except boooooooooo!!  The offensive line totally sunk Peyton Manning.  He had no pass protection.  BOOOOO! Yeah, I'm bitter, this was our year.  Who knows when it may come again. 

In related news...why does everyone think the Steelers are so dominant?  They "escaped" every game this postseason.  Aside from the Colts game (which they almost coughed up) the other team was in it.  They weren't displaying dominating football. 

Of course I'll be rooting hard for the Seahawks (I NEVER root for the team that has knocked out my team) but even if I didn't currently despise the Steelers, I still think Seattle has a heck of a shot at taking this game. 

 

And now to basketball.  The Lakers this season look like an EKG reading.  There are so many peaks and valleys it's unreal.  Rocky start, glimmer of  hope, rough patch, signs of greatness, plateau, freefall.  It'll be a miracle if I don't NEED and EKG before the season is over. 

And how about that Tiger?  A win in the Buick Invitational despite playing horribly.  I was at my in-laws on the final day and my father-in-law, not a Tiger fan was beside himself that Tiger was even in contention after playing so badly.  We left before it was over but I could resist calling him to get in a good ribbing.  He wasn't amused. 

The Olympics are starting soon................sorry I don't really care.  Some of it's fun to watch but i have a lot more interest in the Summer Olympics than the Winter event.  Though I will be interested to see if Michelle Kwan can finally get that gold medal so she can retire. 

Lakers at Hornets tonight.  Which team will show up?

 

raisinbrn at 6:03:47 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

Get the shirt!!!!!!!!!!!!

Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant 81 points Commemorative Tee

raisinbrn at 3:07:48 AM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

                                   

Admittedly I have a lot to learn, but man I love football. 

Of course I have to ask myself if the reason I am loving football so much is because my main team (Colts) is undefeated and my poor basketball team is slipping past mediocrity all the way to awful. 

I suspect it's a little bit of both of those.  But also, football is just a game you can really get into.  I'm just sad I found it so late. 

When I started dating my husband I didn't like football at all.  We went away for the weekend that January and he turned on football on Sunday, it was MLK weekend.  I was so peeved.  All I remember is that the Broncos were playing, and given the time frame it was probably the playoffs.  I begged him to turn it off.  I think he eventually did. 

I think the next year I just did other thingswhile he watched football.  The  year after that we had just gotten married when football season started.  We went to a SB party when the Rams were playing (and won) and I left with his brother's wife to go shopping. 

Somehow the following year I started watching with him.  I'm not sure if I just decided not to be a "football widow" or what, but I watched.  His teams (Colts, Chargers) weren't very good. 

Over the last few years I just gradually started getting more and more into it.  I adopted his teams because i didn't know who else to like and it made it easier.  I was sad with him when our teams finished with losing records and failed to make the post season, and I cheered with him when the Colts finally broke through in 02 and th Chargers last year. 

What's even funnier is that Ifind myself watching football when he's not even home.  I check to see what time the games are on so we don't miss our teams.  I am the one wanting to have a Super Bowl party.

So it's great that at a time when my  Basketball Team is badly faltering I have my 11-0 football team to fall back on.

The Colts are the best team in football, no question.  I'm just glad I was along for some of the ride.  The first year I was a fan they didn't make the playoffs, and then I have watched them make early exits.  I've been with the Lakers through all of the ups and downs, and it's just nice to know that I started with the Colts during some "downs" so I am not a total bandwagoner. 

That beautiful 80 yd TD pass to Marvin Monday night was just what I needed after seeing the Lakers score 10 first quarter point and lose in overtime the night before.  That Steelers game was what I called a "big hurdle" after the win over the Patriots, the Bengals game was another one.  We have cleared every big hurdle so far and the division and the league is ours for the taking. 

Like the team (or at least like they say) I don't care about the 72 Dolphins or the undefeated record.  I care about each individual game and what it means to us come January.

                    

The way things look, at least one of my teams might be getting some bling in 06.  (hint: it's not the Lakers or the Chargers)

raisinbrn at 7:58:44 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own