The Laker’s Dwightmare ends as Dwight Howard goes t… | 4 Hoops Heads.
The Laker’s Dwightmare ends as Dwight Howard goes t… | 4 Hoops Heads
Posted by labatman24 on July 6, 2013
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2013/07/06/the-lakers-dwightmare-ends-as-dwight-howard-goes-t-4-hoops-heads/
In a memorable scene from the 1998 film Pleasantville (in which two 1998 teen-agers are transported into the black-and-white world of a 1950s TV show), the father of the TV-perfect Parker family returns from work and says the magic words “Honey, I’m home!”, expecting them to conjure up a smiling wife, adorable children, and dinner on the table.
This time, though, it doesn’t work. No wife, no kids, no food. Confused, he repeats the invocation, as if he must have said it wrong. After searching the house, he wanders out into the rain and plaintively questions this strangely malfunctioning Universe: “Where’s my dinner?”
Privileged distress. I’m not bringing this up just to discuss old movies. As the culture evolves, people who benefitted from the old ways invariably see themselves as victims of change. The world used to fit them like a glove, but it no longer does. Increasingly, they find themselves…
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Posted by labatman24 on September 18, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/09/18/2037/
Dwight Howard to miss start of training camp
Posted by labatman24 on September 16, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/09/16/dwight-howard-to-miss-start-of-training-camp/
FanVsFan | LABATMAN24 | Profile
FanVsFan | LABATMAN24 | Profile.
I write ish here for Fan Vs Fan.
I got stuff on Pau and Dwight Howard
Posted by labatman24 on September 6, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/09/06/fanvsfan-labatman24-profile/
Competitive Gold Medal Games > Dream Team
Andrew Upshaw
Harry How/Getty Images
Well-deserved Gold Medal after a fun and exciting game.
I was six years old in 1992. I didn’t watch any of the Olympics in 1992 that I can remember. Even if I had I doubt that it would have left a lasting impression on me. You really can’t effectively follow and understand sports until the age of ten. 20 years later I admit that the Dream Team were awesome. Michael Jordan the best player ever teaming up with the two best players from the 80s in Magic Johnson and Larry Bird as well as stars who ruled the 90s ( actually Michael ruled the 90s. His Dream Team teammates had to get used to losing to him and Scottie Pippen every year). The Dream Team were a sensation at the time and still resonate to this day. So much so that every Olympic basketball team the U.S. has is in the Dream Team’s shadow. As soon as the Olympics started people and old ass Dream Teamers claimed that the Dream Team was better. Jordan ran hs mouth a little bit saying that the Dream Team had 11 hall of famers and there just isn’t any way to top that. That’s a statement that’s only true in hindsight. Some players in this year’s team are already hall of famers (Kobe Bryant, LeBron James) but most are young bucks (Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love). It’s also an unfair comparison and in many ways inaccurate. A hall of fame career is a career that combined greatness and longevity. Every one on this year’s Olympic team has hall of fame potential (except Tyson Chandler) so for the purpose of putting together a great Olympic team, it’s really hard to put one team over the other. Lebron and Kobe both like the 2012 U.S. team over the Dream Team. Either way.
The Dream Team killed every other team they played. Since 2004 the U.S. has played real basketball games, in which a loss has been an actual reality. In 2004 the U.S. lost to a Manu Ginobili-led Argentina team. And in 2008 the U.S. barely beat a Pau Gasol led Spanish team. This is the main reason I was hyped for these Olympics. I wanted to a U.S. team in a great basketball game. That’s much more appealing to me than the dominance of the Dream Team. In these Olympics we go the best of both worlds. against Nigeria the U.S. went OFF scoring 156 points and dominating in a way that even the Dream Team couldnt reach. Then the very next game they only beat Lithuania by 5. I missed that game and don’t know if Lithuania brought their A game or if the U.S. slacked off too much. I do know that Spain brought it for real for the second Olympics in a row. That Gold medal game was fun. Fun in a way the Dream Team never were (except in practice when they went at each other in what were allegedly some of the fiercest, competitive games ever).
In the first quarter the U.S. hit a crazy amount of threes( they were 7 of 10) and looked like they were gonna pull away. Juan Carlos Navarro, former Memphis Grizzly and slept on star of the 2008 gold medal game somehow matched the three-point shooting of the U.S. and even had a AND-1 three-pointer. After one quarter the U.S. was up by 8, but Spain was hanging in there. The second quarter was as strange as any quarter of basketball I’ve seen. Kevin Durant keep the U.S. going but the refs slowed them down. Hell, the refs dominated the game in the second quarter more than any player did. Fouls were calls on almost every play. 22 fouls were called in all which is insane considering the quarters are only 10 minutes long. Juan Carlos Navarro kept up his hot shooting and Ruby Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez hit some shots of their own. But they also shot a ton of free throws some of which involved flopping. Spain was hurt by the fouls though too. Marc Gasol somehow got 4 fouls called him in the first half. In FIBA officiated games there are only 5 fouls each for a player and as a result Marc sat much of the game. Serge Ibaka played very well though so I’m not sure how much they missed Marc. At the half the U.S was up 59-58.
At this point I found myself rooting in a very bizarre way. I wanted the U.S. to win, but I didn’t want them to pull away too early in the second half like they did against Argentina. Thankfully Pau Gasol played out of his mind in the third quarter outscoring the entire U.S. team for a stretch. The U.S. decided to cover Pau in single coverage believing that Tyson Chandler could handle him. Pau ate him up as he did to Kevin Love, which wasn’t as surprising. Pau also found the open man setting up Serge Ibaka for a few big baskets. Spain took the lead briefly but weren’t able to build or maintain it through the quarter. The U.S. were kept a float in the third behind Lebron, Durant, and Kobe. Lebron was setting every one up and Durant in particular was knocking them down. Kevin dropped 30 beastly points on Spain and the U.S. had a one point lead going into the fourth quarter.
Larry W. Smith/EPA
Pau had 24 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Beast.
The start of the fourth started off bad for Spain. For whatever reason Spanish coach Sergio Scariolo took Gasol out to start the fourth quarter. Perfectly acceptable 99% of the time. But when your team is overly matched talent-wise playing a close game and its for a championship or gold-medal you DON’T sit your best guy. In the playoffs this past season both Lebron and Durant played the entire game a few times and today was Pau’s turn especially with his brother on the bench still with foul trouble. The Ibaka-led Spaniards quickly got down by 6 behind more three-points form the U.S. Gasol came back into the game with 7 minutes left and quickly left again after Lebron hit him in the eye. Lebron sat out a few with foul trouble though so I guess its even. Chris Paul made some plays including a step-back three of his own to stretch the lead to 10. Spain got it down to 6 again with three minutes left. Pau had Love posted up for a few good looks but missed them this time and that was that although Spain kept fighting every second of the game. The U.S. held on to win 107-100.
Many international players like Gasol and Ginobili credit the Dream Team for sparking their interest in basketball and for that the Dream Team’s legacy will always live on. Cuz now these foreign guys can ball and for that I’m thankful. Blowouts are no fun to watch.
John McDonough/Icon SMI/Newscom/File
Props to the Dream Team for inspiring the rest of the world to get better at basketball so we don’t have watch Dream Team-style ass-kicking basketball games in The Olympics as much.
Related articles
- US, Spain Battle for GoldIn Men’s Basketball Final (foxnews.com)
- USA vs. Spain: Grades, Twitter Reaction and Analysis for Gold-Medal Game (bleacherreport.com)
- U.S.-Spain Game Blog! (hangtime.blogs.nba.com)
- Durant pours in 30 as USA outlasts Spain for the gold (sportsillustrated.cnn.com)
- Why This Dream Team Is the Most Explosive in US History (bleacherreport.com)
Posted by labatman24 on August 12, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/08/12/competitive-gold-medal-games-dream-team/
Lakers Stay Winning…
(John Raoux / Associated Press / January 20, 2012)
Andrew Upshaw
The Dwight Howard drama is finally over. The Orlando Magic traded Dwight to the Lakers who got Denver and Philly to help out and send Aaron Affalo, Al Harrington and a couple dudes I’ve never heard of to Orlando. Philly gets Andrew Bynum, the second-best player in the deal and Denver gets Andre Iguodala. Overall it’s a good deal for every one, except Orlando. For the lakers it’s a great deal. I have no idea why the Magic decided to trade Dwight for so little but at the very least they get a clean slate to start over. In my opinion they would have been better off trading Dwight for Bynum straight up. Its cool though.
I’ve said before that Dwight is a major upgrade over Bynum. To recap, Howard is the best defender in the league while Bynum was slightly above average. Both Bynum and Howard are great rebounders but Dwight is slightly better. Offensively many people feel that Bynum is better because he has more of a conventional big-man post-up game. Dwight is much better working off of pick and rolls and cutting than Bynum is. Passing wise Dwight is used to hitting the open man, something Bynum hasn’t mastered yet. Adding all that up I say that Dwight is a better fit offensively for LA and a great pick and roll partner for Steve Nash. This trade makes the lakers legit championship contenders. I can’t call it. The Heat look great and Ray Allen is very good addition. The Thunder can still improve in the short-term but Dwight puts LA right there with both teams in terms of talent. Now we just have to play the games.
Dwight has been chilling in LA since he had back surgery in March and will probably miss the early part of the season. What are you gonna do? The Lakers still have other holes to address but damn man they STAY WINNING. A lot of other NBA owners are mad as hell right now especially after that lockout which was supposed to make it hard for superstars to leave their teams and make things easier for the little guy NBA owners(whatever the hell that means). That mentality is part of those OTHER team’s problems though. The Lakers go hard, all of the time. Unlike most other owners, Jerry Buss and family don’t have any other business ventures. Their business is basketball and that makes all the difference. Many teams complain about being a small market and the fact that the Lakers go over the cap to sign stars. While its true that many players prefer a big market to a small market that’s not the only factor in the Laker’s continued success. The lakers make trades and sign players to take on more money than other teams are willing to. It’s really that simple. Players who want to win(and that’s everybody) are going to come to LA. The small market argument is funny to me because most of these dudes are billionaires. Billionaires. The market matters a bit but if want to build a team for real you gotta put some of your OWN money up. Or get smarter like The Thunder, or Spurs or any other successful team (The Knicks put plenty of money up but their problem is that they’re dumb as hell). Complaining ain’t gotta get them anywhere. The Lakers are smart (Mitch Kupchak) and willing to ball if needed( The Buss family) plus competitive(they make the playoffs every year and aren’t satisfied with anything less than a championship). Take Mark Cuban who used to run the Mavericks in similar fashion to the way The Lakers run things. After the new CBA was passed Mark changed up his approach and The Lakers did too for a minute but after losing in the second round the Lakers did what they had to and got Steve Nash and Dwight Howard. The Mavs didn’t bother to defend their 2011 title. I’m not saying mark Cuban is wrong and he has done a great job running the Mavericks, but the Lakers were in the same exact position as Mark and pulled this trade off in spite of the financial penalties ahead (penalties that other teams pushed for specifically to fuck the Laker’s shit up). The Lakers don’t care about penalties though, just winning.
Philly and Denver got a little win out of this but the other big winner in this trade is Dwight Howard, NBA superstar. Superstar players stay winning too no matter how hard the other owners try to slow them down. The Stars are why fans tune in and why the teams matter. The owners can act like they’re all in this together during a lock out but as soon as a superstar is available, all bets are off because a great player can carry a franchise. Dan Gilbert talked all that shit about Lebron but Lebron was the main reason for all the success he’s had thus far as owner of the Cavs. The Cavs have bounced back a little and are hopeful for the future. Why? Cuz they have a potential superstar in Kyrie Irving. And other teams will want to take Kyrie for the Cavs. But are they willing to go as hard as they Lakers just did? Cuz that’s the bar for continued NBA success.
Related articles
Posted by labatman24 on August 10, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/08/10/lakers-stay-winning/
NBA offseason in Dwight Howard’s Hands, Still.
Reinhold Matay / Associated Press / March 26, 2010
Andrew Upshaw
The NBA off-season has been exciting and many teams have improved or changed drastically. The NBA champion Miami Heat added Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis. That’s a decent improvement but I wouldn’t call those moves home runs. The Celtics signed Jason Terry who is a slight improvement at this point in their careers IMO over Ray Allen. The Lakers made a move for Steve Nash, which I’m happy about. The Nets made themselves a playoff team by getting Joe Johnson and tried to get Dwight Howard to no avail. They have stated that they’re done trying to get Dwight. Dallas made a few moves that are good, I guess. Dwight Howard is still on the Magic and any place he goes to is gonna be the most improved team in the offseason. Likewise as bad as any other move a team makes this offseason, the Magic will end up being the biggest losers.
The Houston Rockets have gutted their entire team in order to trade for Dwight. That seems crazy especially since Dwight can leave next summer but it illustrates Dwight’s worth. Dwight Howard‘s presence alone ensures that any team that has him at least makes the playoffs. So there should be a lot of offers out there for the Magic. But there really isn’t for whatever reason and at this point I would say the Lakers have the most to offer the Magic in Andrew Bynum. Houston, clearly is the most interested. People in LA have been fantasizing about Dwight Howard becoming a Laker for 2 years now, and at no point until recently have I though that it was a possibility. Hell two years ago when the Lakers were the defending champs I wasn’t even sure if it was a good idea.
Unlike some of the more vengeful, and sometimes stupid Laker fans I like Andrew Bynum. Dwight Howard is better though. Way better and he’s a better fit for this Laker team. Bynum is slow and doesn’t always try hard defensively. Dwight Howard is the best defensive player in the league and is athletic in way that Bynum never was even before the knee injuries. Dwight Howard is so defensively he can cover up fro Steve Nash and Kobe(he’s still good but no where near his peak). Offenseviley Dwight can run the floor better and is better at running the pick and roll. Dwight apparently has reservations about playing with Kobe because Kobe told Dwight he’d have to get in line behind him offensively. But Kobe already recruited Nash and if that’s gonna work then Kobe is gonna have concede some control to Nash. If Kobe concedes to Nash then in theory Kobe conceding a little more to Dwight too isn’t too much of a stretch. Just convince Kobe that it was all his idea and try your best to give him as much credit as possible and I think it’ll work out. Listen to Coach K when he talks about Kobe during the Olympics or how Phil Jackson regarded Kobe in the last five years.
With Dwight and Nash added to the Lakers they are in the same league as The OKC Thunder and the Heat. The Lakers are hesitant to pull the trigger on this move because they are scared that Dwight will bounce after one year. What if the Lakers win the title that season, will Dwight leave after that? Kobe is the man in LA but Dwight would be loved right away and Kobe’s old. He said it himself earlier this week. Dwight could be the man in LA for years and years to come. The Lakers, Jim Buss in particular also have a thing for Bynum. He’s very good and they Lakers shouldn’t trade him unless the move is a home run that can win the Lakers multiple titles. Dwight Howard is that kind of trade, so try your hardest (According to Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times they are trying). Orlando would be hesitant to do the deal for Bynum because they’re weary of Bynum bolting on them too. I say that if these trade offers don’t get better than The Magic should risk it anyway. Bynum is more talented than any other center besides their current one and he’s never had a chance to be the best player on his team. He wants that, trust me. Bynum accepts playing besides Kobe but he wouldn’t mind being The Man. The magic also could offer Bynum a lot more money in free agency. Dwight Howard going to the Lakers finally makes sense.
Related articles
- Old-man Lakers (4hoopsheads.com)
- Dwight Howard latest: Three-team deal with Bynum to Rockets in play (probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com)
- Report: Lakers meet with Magic, push for Howard (tracking.si.com)
- Andrew Bynum Trade Rumors: Dwight Howard, Lakers Superstar Must Agree To Contract Extensions With New Teams (losangeles.sbnation.com)
Posted by labatman24 on July 17, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/07/17/nba-offseason-in-dwight-howards-hands-still/
OLD-MAN LAKERS
Andrew Upshaw
Harry How/Getty Images
As every one now knows Steve Nash is now a laker. The Suns traded the two-time MVP to the Lakers for future draft picks and 3 million dollars. That’s it. The Suns apparently argued to trade Nash to LA after Nash guilt tripped them about being close to his kids, who still live in Arizona. Cool. The Lakers now have a good point guard. They went from Derek Fisher who was old and bad at basketball to a young and slightly above average Ramon Sessions to Steve Nash, who’s old and good. The Lakers and their fans have to be happy about this very good trade. One that makes sure the Lakers will still be relevant in the NBA title contender conversation. If the Lakers don’t compete for a title at the very least they’ll compete for the title of the OLDEST team with the Celtics.
I still don’t see them getting past the Miami Heat or even the OKC Thunder I’m excited though. Nash addresses many of the Laker’s weaknesses. Number 1 is shooting. The Lakers didn’t have any good outside shooters last year. Now they have one of the best shooters of all time on their team. The Lakers had a bunch of white guys on their team last year but honestly none of them were that good ( except Pau, who’s Spanish). Now they have one of the greatest white guys of all time of their team. As much as Nash will help the lakers with his scoring ability his biggest contribution will come from his ability to create for others. That’s also the biggest question mark for Nash.
WIll Steve be allowed to do his thang or will Kobe go Kobe and jack it up again. Kobe adjusted his game a bit to accommodate Sessions last year, but for the lakers to fully utilize Nash he needs to adjust even more to Steve’s game. Nash’s passing ability will generate easier shots for Pau, Andrew, and Kobe. Pau Gasol is most suited to play with Nash as he can run the floor and pass as well as any big man. Bynum is gonna have to run to floor more and take less time in the post. Kobe is gonna have give up the rock a lot more and settle for less isolations. That, to me is the most awesome thing about this trade. Kobe had two all-star caliber big men to pass it too in the last few years and it still didn’t stop him from putting up two of the highest usage rates of his career. But now Nash will have the ball and not only will the Lakers benefit from his passing so will Kobe. Kobe knows this. Kobe played well off the ball with Sessions and that will have to be how Kobe plays with Nash for this to work. Steve Nash also brings a nice-guy veteran leader to the lakers(something they have been missing since they traded Fisher). Whenever Kobe screams at a guy, Nash will be there to pat him and on he back and reassure him. I can’t wait for the moment when Kobe gets pissed off at nash. Will he yell at him too?(John Hollinger of ESPN) Or does he respect Steve too much? I could see Nash yelling right back at the Black Mamba. Steve is much more feisty than he’s given credit for.
Kevin Ding of the OC Register wrote here about Kobe and Nash’s connection. They both are really hard workers who breathe basketball. This right here is reason to be excited about the Nash and Kobe back-court. Kobe respects hard work more than he does anything else. Shaq was Kobe’s most gifted teammate ever (more gifted than Kobe, actually) but Kobe always questioned the big man’s work ethic and desire. Pau Gasol is Kobe’ s second best teammate and without Pau Kobe wouldn’t have his last two titles. Kobe thinks so much of Pau that when he was presented the MVP trophy in the 2010 Finals the first thing he did was thank Pau. Kobe also knocked Pau for being too passive in the playoffs the last couple of years. Kobe respects Andrew Bynum as well, but the (former)teammate he respects most is Derek Fisher, a guy who works as hard as he does. Steve Nash is that guy, except he’s good. Kobe and Nash were rivals for years dating back to 06 when the Suns came back form a 3-1 deficit to beat the Lakers in the playoffs. Nash and Kobe weren’t all that friendly with each other but out of that competition their respect for each other grew. Now they need each other to stay relevant.
Remember this?
The Nash trade means the Lakers will be better but it also shows management’s commitment to winning, as the Kamenetzky brothers of ESPN say here. The lakers have cut salary in the last year in a half and many expected Pau Gasol and/or Bynum to be dumped partially to save money. But the fact that the lakers went after Nash like this means they still are willing to go over the salary cap to win. The Lakers have reportedly said that this is team they want to have for next season and if this is it, I’m happy. I think we all want Dwight Howard though. I understand that Andrew Bynum is Jim Buss’s boy. Pau is my boy and I don’t want the lakers to part with him either. But unlike Bynum Dwight can run the floor. Dwight is better at running pick and rolls, which is Nash’s bread and butter. Dwight is the best defensive player in the league and would instantly cover for the Laker guard’s defensive shortcomings. Andrew Bynum is probably the best player the Orlando Magic can get in any trade involving Dwight, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there aren’t better overall offers out there from other teams. The Lakers may not get Dwight but they HAVE to TRY.
Related articles
- Lakers Rumors: Why LA Is Smart to Keep Pau Gasol & Andrew Bynum After Nash Trade (bleacherreport.com)
- You: Steve Nash Trade: Los Angeles Lakers Must Now Move Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol (bleacherreport.com)
- How Steve Nash to the Lakers Can Revitalize Pau Gasol’s Career in LA (bleacherreport.com)
- Steve Nash Chose the Lakers to Stay Close to His Kids (slamonline.com)
Posted by labatman24 on July 6, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/07/06/old-man-lakers/
Lebron Rises Above Hate to WIn 1st Championship
Andrew Upshaw
Derick E. Hingle/US Presswire
Game 5 didn’t go like I expected. I expected it to go down to the wire again. Instead The Heat came out firing and built up a big lead. In the third quarter The Thunder got the lead down to 7. At that time I took a quick break to eat and when I came back the game was over. The Heat hit a million threes in a row and now were up 20.LeBron James had a monster triple double game with 13 dimes. The Heat shot 14-26 three pointers. That’s crazy, whats crazier is that Mike Miller climbed out of his grave and hit 7 of them. 7 threes. Damn. The Heat beat the Thunder 121-106. It was a great series for the first 4 games but The Heat winning the title is a great moment, so I’m not mad. The Thunder finally died via lava. Props to them. They played with fire and heart. They made too many mistakes and didn’t always know what they were supposed to do. The Heat did and were able adjust and make plays a little bit faster than the Thunder.
Game 5 recap:
The focus after the game was on LeBron James. Usually I would say that focusing on just one dude is wrong, but not in this case. LeBron James has been the best player in the NBA for 4 years now, but now he he’s on the best team. Now he can prove he’s the best. Not that he really needed to. In fact trying to prove people wrong is what Lebron says got him into trouble last year. This year he just did him and didn’t focus on the hype and negativity. The Heat won the title this year because Lebron willed them to. They were down 3-2 to the Indiana Pacers and The Boston Celtics and the main reason they won was because Lebron played out of his mind. His stat line for the Finals and the entire playoffs is insane. 28.6 points in the Finals, 30 for the playoffs. He averaged 10 boards and 7 assists in the Finals and 10 boards and 5 assists for the playoffs. Dominant numbers. But Lebron was more than just numbers this year, he came up big in key moments time and time again. His image as a choker died a terrible death. In my 26 years on earth 18 of which I’ve watched the NBA closely I haven’t seen a player dominate and carry a team quite the way Lebron did this postseason (In my opinion, Shaq and Jordan were the most dominant players I’ve seen in the playoffs). Micheal Jordan dominated and carried his team from time to time but he never had to bring the Bulls back from 3-2 deficits in consecutive series. Jordan is the greatest ever no doubt, but Lebron’s playoff run is right up there with anything he ever did. Jordan is the standard that all great players are judged by but Lebron just created his own standard. Lebron should only be measured by the performance he put on in this year’s postseason. Dude was the best everything(except shooting) on his team. The best scorer, rebounder, passer, AND defender. He’s actually been doing this stuff for the last four years, but this was the first time he did in the NBA Finals. Now hopefully more people will appreciate him. Not only is lebron brilliant, he’s one of a kind.
Where the Haters at? They can’t say shit right now. Everything they said about Bron was proved wrong. Everything. They said he was selfish. Lebron took the most offense to that, but he dropped 13 dimes tonight, that aint selfish. They said he was choker. Lebron had so many clutch games and moments in these playoffs that I’ve lost count. He beat the Celtics in game 6 by himself for and tonight made damn sure the heat closed out the Thunder. When Lebron first came to the Heat people snickered that he had to come to Dwayne Wade’s team and was somehow playing second fiddle. Lebron shined so bright this postseason that we couldn’t even see D Wade any more. D Wade willingly took a back-seat to Bron and the Heat played their best ball and won a title. Let that hate go. Lebron did and he won his first ring. Maybe his haters can do better with their lives too.
- Love man, love..
Related articles
Posted by labatman24 on June 22, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/06/22/lebron-rises-above-hate-to-win-1st-championship/
NBA Finals Game 4 Classic
Andrew Upshaw
I’m still digesting game 4 of the NBA Finals a day after the game is over. It was that crazy. The Thunder came out strong and built a big lead real quick. the heat came back just as quick. Then the heat went ahead early in the 3rd quarter but they were never able to truly pull away from the Thunder. This game had everything: lead changes, comebacks, all-time great performances by LeBron James and Russell Westbrook, foul call controversy, big shots from role players, and even a LeBron James injury scare which ended up just being cramps.
I don’t know whose performance I was more excited about. Lebron and Westbrook are my boys. I’m pulling for the Heat to win the title mainly cuz I’m tired of the LeBron James shit talk. He’s been the best player in the ague for 4 years and now he’s finally the best player in the Finals. Lebron was such a threat offensively that the Thunder left dudes wide open at the three-point line and Lebron hit the open man every time. To their credit rookie Norris Cole and Mario Chalmers came through big time. But they wouldn’t have been that open if the thunder weren’t scared shitless of Lebron. Lebron racked up 8 first half assists and picked the perfect spots to attack. He had 10 points in the first then got more aggressive in the third quarter. What’s great is that Lebron doesn’t even bother with the jumper anymore, he just attacks or calmly posts up and then decides if he wants to pass out for a wide open three or bully James Harden for close look or blow by him. He has so many options and he makes it look easy and hard at the same time. It looks easy for Lerbon but I can’t imagine any other player even trying the shit Lebron did in game 4. Lebron does EVERYTHING for the Heat. EVERYTHING. And he does it better than any one else on the team. If the heat go on to win one more game in this series The Finals MVP ain’t enough for Lebron.
Photo by Larry W. Smith-Pool/Getty Images)
Last night Russell Westbrook was EVERYTHING for The Thunder. Russ scored 43 points on 20-32 from the field. He added 7 boards and 5 assists. He was the only reason the Thunder hung with the heat. He did this after Magic Johnson and other people questioned him early in the series. Magic went as far to say that Russ played worse than any other point guard in the NBA Finals. I think he’s played well all series. People look at Kevin Durant and wonder why he doesn’t score even more despite the fact that’s he’s already a 3 time scoring champ at the age of 23. Durant had a great game 1 and good to very good efforts in games 2,3, and 4. SInce Russ is a “point guard” and “point guards” are supposed to pass he gets the blame. People cringe when Russ shoots too much but last night Russ proved what I’ve and his team have been saying all along. They need him to shoot. You can’t blast him for being too aggressive one game and then praise him when he goes off for 43 with that same aggression. The aggression is what fuels performances like last night, and the Thunder need it night in and night out from Russ. Russ fumbled down the stretch last night fouling Chalmers after the jump ball. I didn’t know the rule either. I thought there would be only .8 seconds on the shot clock like there was before the jump ball but the refs had the shot clock at 5. Russ apparently though the shot clock was off and the Thunder had to foul.
This is the Thunder right now
Russ’s greatest game wasn’t enough, and now the heat are up 3-1 going into game 5. Lebron fought through cramps to hit the dagger three and he’s one win from his first title. Win or lose Russ probably avoided being ripped apart over the summer(James Harden, your turn). I’m a bit surprised people are counting the Thunder out completely though. That last lost was bad, but they aint dead yet and they’ve shown an T-100 like ability to bounce back from fatal blows. The Heat need to melt The Thunder with lava to put them down for good. If the Thunder in game five and think there’s a good chance they d, they have back in OKC for the final two games. There they’ll have the best crowd in the NBA behind them, they’ll be more comfortable, and they might even get a call or two. The heat would love to win tomorrow but have already shown that they can win on OKC’s home floor. I’m pulling for the Heat and I do think they’ll win the series but I’m entertained right now, so I don’t want this series over too quick.
Posted by labatman24 on June 20, 2012
https://andrew2486.wordpress.com/2012/06/20/nba-finals-game-4-classic/
4 HOOPS HEADS 