NBA Playoff Matchups in the East
Saturday, April 17th, 2010
Cleveland has secured the top spot in the East for quite some time. As for the rest, here they are.
The matchups in the East for the 2010 NBA playoffs are finally… um… finalized and while the Cleveland Cavaliers have secured the top playoff spot in the conference a few weeks ago, the remaining few seeds were not determined until the final few days of the season.
As it turned out, the no.1 seed Cleveland Cavaliers will be taking on the no.8 seed Chicago Bulls, who secured the last playoff spot in the East after beating the playoff-pound Charlotte Bobcats, hence denying the Toronto Raptors of postseason play for the second straight year.
Kudos to coach Vinny Del Negro and the rest of the Chicago Bulls for overcoming a late-season injury to Joakim Noah and the publicized rift between coach Del Negro and team manager John Paxson. Congratulations guys, you’re in the playoffs.
Your reward? LeBron James. (I don’t know if the Bulls would still be happy about that in a few days…)
The Orlando Magic will be this year’s no.2 seed as they look to make a return to the NBA Finals when they take on no.7 seed, Charlotte Bobcats. Thanks to some key additions to the Magic roster, more specifically the addition of Vince Carter, the Magic have become an even bigger threat in the East.
And since the Magic will have the Charlotte Bobcats, a team that will be making their very first appearance in the playoffs, there should be no problem for Orlando to get past the first round. Who do the Bobcats have to guard Dwight Howard anyway?
Probably the most surprising team in the East this season is the Atlanta Hawks, who have secured the no.3 seed in the East this season. Yup, those high-flying Hawks are now one of the East’s three kings, supplanting the Celtics in the food chain to join the Cavs and the Magic.
They have the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round…
LeBron James officially switches to no.6
Saturday, March 6th, 2010
LeBron James finally got what he wanted.
Once were done with the 2010 NBA basketball season, LeBron James will be wearing no.6 for his next campaign. That’s right, he finally made the bold decision of switching his jersey number from number 23 to number 6 official.
The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar just beat the deadline and is dead serious in honoring Michael Jordan. ”I’ve done it,” LeBron James said in an interview. ”I already sent it in. I’m going to be No. 6.” James first floated the idea in November, saying he wanted to switch from 23 out of respect for Jordan.
”I just think what Michael Jordan has done for the game has to be recognized some way soon,” LeBron James said. ”There would be no LeBron James, no Kobe Bryant, no Dwyane Wade if there wasn’t Michael Jordan first.”
”He can’t get the logo, and if he can’t, something has to be done. I feel like no NBA player should wear 23. I’m starting a petition, and I’ve got to get everyone in the NBA to sign it. Now, if I’m not going to wear No. 23, then nobody else should be able to wear it.” he said.
James would wear 6, the number he wore while leading the U.S. to Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008. He has worn it in Cavs practices over the past two years. But it has other special qualities to him.
”My second-favorite player was Julius Erving, and he wore No. 6,” James said. ”I wore 32 in high school because Dr. J wore it at first. My first child was born on Oct. 6, it’s my Olympic number, my second child was born in June.”
The last big-name player to change numbers without changing teams was Kobe Bryant, who switched from 8 to 24 in 2006. Kobe’s new jersey quickly became the league’s top seller. I don’t see any reason why James’ new no.6 wouldn’t do the same.
Now, the question is, will he wear his…
James and Stoudemire in Cleveland?
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
That could make the Cavs heavy favorites to win the title. If they are not already.
With the second half of the 2010 NBA basketball season underway, the Cleveland Cavaliers are coming in with the best record in the league at 43-11, riding a league – best 13-game winning streak heading to their date with the Denver Nuggets this Thursday.
With all kinds of momentum going for the Cleveland Cavaliers right now, it seems they are not satisfied just yet. Rumors are claiming that the Cavaliers are going after Amar’e Stoudemire. And if these guys manage to sign a talent like Stoudemire to complement the already formidable tandem of LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal, you can just imagine what the Cavs can accomplish from here.
If the Cavs do trade for Amar’e Stoudemire, that would be their fourth major trade in two years. Yep, you read it, their FOURTH ONE.
Why have they been trading a lot the last few years? Well, they want to keep LeBron James in Cleveland and surrounding the hottest commodity in the league right now with all kinds of talent that might give this team its first championship in franchise history has been their top priority ever since they drafted James out of high school.
According to the rumors, the deal is on the table but both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns haven’t finalized anything yet. Although there are reports claiming that the deal is very close to being done, there are reports that say neither side is certain what will happen.
It’s probably because the Cavaliers can’t offer the best talent package the Suns are looking for, the Miami Heat and the Philadelphia 76ers can. However, what the Cavs can offer is for the Suns to get below the luxury tax, a move that could save the cash – strapped franchise around $10 million.
It would mean salary and tax savings plus…
Are the Knicks still going after LeBron?
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
If so then I won’t be surprised to see Braylon Edwards go bye-bye from the Jets.
Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James called former Cleveland Browns receiver Braylon Edwards ”childish” for allegedly punching his friend, Edward Givens outside of a Cleveland night club.
Yes, you read it, Braylon Edwards found a way to attract all the media attention without doing anything substantial in the 2009 NFL football season. James said Edwards punched Givens, his friend and a promoter with a Cleveland marketing firm who was working outside the club.
Based on the official report, Givens accused an unidentified man of punching him in the face following an argument at approximately 2:30 a.m. Givens, who is listed as 5-foot-7, 135 pounds on the report, said the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Braylon Edwards hit him with a closed fist. Givens added that he suffered a black eye and cut and was later treated at a nearby hospital.
Browns coach Eric Mangini was aware of the alleged altercation and said he spoke with Edwards. ”Personal conduct is very important to me,” said Mangini, who has drawn criticism for fining players this season for breaking team rules.
”I always want our players to put themselves in the most positive positions. This is something I will continue to gather information on.”
Edwards, has been a major problem for the Cleveland Browns in the past. While recovering from a foot injury, he cut his heel running in his socks after practice. Last year, he was pulled over in his Bentley for driving 120 mph in a 65 mph zone.
He has dropped passes, criticized Cleveland’s play-calling, argued with teammates and famously took a helicopter to the Ohio State – Michigan game in 2006 despite being told not to go.
Edwards was also caught partying in March with…
Betting on East this 2009 NBA Season
Friday, October 16th, 2009
It’s the East’s turn to have a champion.
I’m more of an East Coast kind of guy, I always find myself rooting for the East in All-Star Games and in the NBA Finals. Coming to the 2009 NBA basketball season, I have this theory that suggests this year is going to be the year of the East. Don’t believe me? Here’s why.
This somewhat weird theory of mine started in ‘04 when the Detroit Pistons won the title and shocked arguably the most talented Los Angeles Lakers team ever assembled with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant joined then by two other Hall of Famers, Karl Malone and Gary Payton. The Spurs won the title the following year only for the Eastern Conference to win it again when the Miami Heat won their first title in franchise history.
The following year, ONCE AGAIN (ho-hum…) the Spurs took it only for the East to take it back the following season when the Boston Celtics took the title in six games. In case you haven’t noticed it yet, the NBA championship has been alternating between the Eastern and Western conferences since ‘04 and since the Lakers won it last season, I bet it’ll be another team from the East that’ll be crowned champions come June.
Silly? Not quite. And since the Cleveland Cavaliers arguably made the biggest move of the offseason with the NBA title firmly in mind, this little theory of mine doesn’t sound too silly at all.
The Cavs learned winning 66 games in the regular season doesn’t mean a thing without a ring. LeBron James has a lot at stake this season with big Shaquille O’Neal in town.
Kobe won with Shaq. D-Wade won with Shaq. At 37, Shaq can still get it done 20 to 25 minutes a night. So with basically the same unit returning along with O’Neal, there’s no excuse for LeBron James not to win the championship this year. Fail and off to New York he goes.
So if the Cavaliers are your odds on favorite to…
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