2009 NBA Playoffs Preview: West
Monday, April 20th, 2009
I guess you can call it the wild and wackier side of the postseason.
Yep, unlike the Eastern Conference, seven of the eight seeds in the West for the 2009 NBA Playoffs were not determined yet until they played the last game of the regular season.
While everybody knew the Los Angeles Lakers will remain on top of the field, nobody knew which teams will occupy seeds two to eight. But now that the dust has cleared and the 82-game regular season finally came to a close, we already have the seedings complete.
Playing the top-seeded Lakers are the no.8 seed Utah Jazz. This might be a tougher series than the Lakers expect. Sure, the Jazz have a big problem with winning games on the road this season, but at 33-19 against conference opponents, Utah is still a tough nut to crack in the West. And as good as the Jazz are in the West, they are even better at home.
The rejuvenated Denver Nuggets, led by their court general Chauncey Billups, will take on the New Orleans Hornets as the overall no.2 seed in the conference. Nobody anticipated how good of an impact Chauncey Billups will have on Denver but can he outplay CP3?
Even though the New Orleans Hornets can only muster seed no.7, Chris Paul still remains as a solid candidate for MVP. It’ll be nice watching Chauncey take on CP3. And while Denver appears to be the more talented team on paper, it’ll still be a shocker if they can get past the Hornets to get to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in quite a while.
A good ol’ fashioned shootout in Texas is next as the no.3 seed San Antonio Spurs take on their state rivals, Dallas Mavericks, to kick off their postseason campaign. Jason Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry will be put to the test as they take on arguably the most consistent team in the NBA.
However, as good as the San Antonio Spurs have been in years, they’re starting to show the effects of the wear and tear they accumulated playing in the league together. Can their old wheels still be fast enough to keep up with the run and gun pace of the Dallas Mavericks?
Last but certainly not the least, we have the no.4 seed Portland Trail Blazers playing the no.5 seed Houston Rockets.
The Blazers are arguably one of the most exciting teams to…
Kobe Bryant versus Michael Jordan
Friday, March 6th, 2009
Recently comparisons with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant have been surfacing, and what gets on my nerves is that people are even considering that Kobe Bryant is as of the same level with the great one.
People please…
There is no contest with this comparison. Sure Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen on his side in their 2 NBA Championship runs, but have the critics even considered comparing the rest of the roster the Chicago Bulls had when they won 3 consecutive championships TWICE? Sure they had Dennis Rodman, but his offensive output was more of something to laugh about.
The only thing Kobe Bryant was better at is his outside shooting and nothing more. Kobe won 3 NBA Championships as well yet that was when Shaquille O’Neal was in his prime. Michael Jordan won NBA Finals MVP every time they went to the NBA Finals compared to Kobe Bryant amassing NOTHING. Michael Jordan won NBA titles with Luke Longley and Bill Cartwright at center, the only teams to win an NBA Championship without a dominant center.
Statistics alone have Kobe Bryant climbing a…
2009 NBA Playoff Race Heats Up
Friday, February 27th, 2009
We are less than a couple of months from the postseason.
You read it, and that only means one thing, the 2009 NBA basketball season will just get interesting from here. Unless of course, if you’re a Piston fan like myself.
The second half of the season has already started and we have quite a handful of teams moving up and down the proverbial food chain. One of which is the Detroit Pistons.
The Pistons clearly has some 
serious problems, no matter how much the team (including their fans…) deny it or not. Detroit suffered the consequences of trading Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, thinking that the young Rodney Stuckey was already ready to step in for Mr. Big Shot.
Enngggrrrkkk… WRONG! A lot of people thought the Allen Iverson deal was the move that could put the Pistons over the hump. After three straight losses in the Eastern Conference finals, losing to Miami, Cleveland and Boston in three straight years, Joe Dumars felt that the move will finally bring Detroit back in the NBA Finals and change the makeup of the team for the better.
The makeup did change, but it wasn’t anything better. From being one of the powerhouse teams in the East, the Pistons are just hovering above the .500 mark with Rodney Stuckey and Allen Iverson running the backcourt. All that is left for this team is hope that teams in the 9, 10, 11 spots won’t be talented enough to overtake them.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, on the other hand, is a team surging in the East. With the injury to Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett, it seems…
LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers for MVP
Wednesday, February 18th, 2009
If the NBA Regular Season MVP award it would most likely settle in the hands of LeBron James, not to take anything away from Kobe Bryant but the fact that LeBron James has no help what so ever on the Cleveland Cavaliers and yet they still have the second Best Record in the NBA Eastern Conference is just amazing.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are second only to the Defending NBA Champions the Boston Celtics, and with the amount of talent on the Boston Celtics compared to the Cleveland Cavaliers it is clear how much LeBron James contributes on both ends of the floor.
Many would also consider Dwyane Wade to be next or even slightly ahead of LeBron James. What we have to look at despite the Miami Heat being a bottom dweller team is that Dwyane Wade has the likes of Michael Beasley and Shawn Marion to help him at least get a winning record for the Miami Heat.
Sure Dwayne Wade has a remarkable stat sheet and he levels up with LeBron James, but the factor that makes everything lean towards LeBron James is that the Cleveland Cavaliers would be far less than the Oklahoma City Thunder without him.
Michael Jordan who critics…
NBA Basketball Betting Preview for the 2009 NBA All Star Game
Thursday, February 12th, 2009
The 2009 NBA All Star Game which will be held at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona is just a few days away. The 2009 All Star Game would be yet another basketball gambling delight as this would feature the NBA’s top basketball players of the year with the exception of players that were left out of the fray.
Kobe Bryant would be appearing in his 11th All Star Game and is a favourite to win this year’s NBA All Star game MVP award. With the way the Los Angeles Lakers are playing it would not be a surprise if Kobe Bryant goes home with the award.
On the other end of the court would be Kevin Garnett who would be playing in his 12th NBA All Game, yet would not be a favourite to win the MVP award. LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers is the reigning All Star MVP and is next in line on the polls to take the award.
Notable NBA Players are…
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