Epic.
That was the only word I could use to describe the first six games of the Bulls/Celtics first round series that culminated last night.
The games featured everything that made an NBA playoff matchup interesting. An aging champion, injured and battered that mixed some HOF-type veterans (Allen, Pierce) with some underlooked young talent (Rondo, Davis, Perkins). An up-and-coming team that featured some unproven star type veterans (Gordon, Salmons, Heinrich, Miller) mixed with some exciting and elite young talent (Rose, Noah). It had the instigators for each side (Noah, KG), along with the the old, useless backup point guards (Hunter, Marbury).
Rarely, if ever, does a first round NBA matchup garner this type of attention. Back when the West featured the 8 best teams in the league, you would get these type of matchups. Now, the playing field is a little more even. So with the players present to create an interesting matchup, they just had to bring it on the court.
Fourty two overtimes later, and the consensus was that they definitely brought it. It had great finishes, controversy (the Rondo no-call could be the biggest call of the entire playoffs), and two historically elite teams that brought great enthusiasm to each game. Who needs Jordan and MJ when Gordon and Allen are playing like this? Okay, maybe The Swinging Gate does, but he is just nostalgic.
So even with an anti-climactic Game 7, this rates as one of the most interesting first round series in any year that I can remember. I never thought I would see the day when I saw Big Baby Davis turn into a legitimate NBA post player. Derrick Rose took his game to the next level. Rajon Rondo is turning into Jason Kidd Part Two. Ray Allen could be the most underrated player in our generation. And Vinny Del Negro still has no clue how to coach. How do you continuously run out of timeouts and then have it bite you when you need them with 2.4 seconds left at the end of every game? How good could this Bulls team have been if Mike D'Antoni was the coach? That is scary to think about. Ben Gordon would have averaged 29/1/1 this year with a definite All-Star appearance.
And if Kevin Garnett is mean-mugging this much for a first round series, I can't wait until the Celts plays Cleveland in the Conference Finals. He will give a whole new definition to mean-mugging, along with dropping some 12-letter bombs on anyone that tries to intimidate the Celtics bench.
The Kentucky Derby was yesterday, and in my opinion it is one of the most exciting two minutes in all of sports. The field this year was very elite, even with pre-race favorite I Want Revenge being scratched. I had my money on Dunkirk, and was disappointed when he stumbled out of the gates. The best part of this story is 51-1 shot Mine That Bird storming away from the pack when they came down the stretch to put some great distance between himself and the field.
The other great story was that the deceased Eduard Delacroix from The Green Mile came back to ride Mine That Bird to the victory. Real name Calvin Borel, Delacroix apparently has come back from Mouse City with Mr. Jangles and has been reincarnated as a tiny jockey. Congrats, Eddie.
The roof is already caving in on the 2009 NFL season for the Dallas Cowboys, literally. The news that their practice facility roof collapsed on them was met with some "eh" reaction. That is until I saw the video. This is straight out of Twister or something, the only thing missing is Helen Hunt pulling up in one of those trucks with the huge bed on the back with a Doppler radar attached. The best part about it is the scrub lineman that are featured in that footage getting all psyched up after everyone survived. "Thatta baby" is hardly appropriate when a guy falls 40 feet from a balcony while filming the practice.
Here is a Calvin Borel for all of you interested and too lazy to look it up on YouTube. (note: this video is incorrectly describing Borel as Bobby Boucher. Delacroix is the clear choice here.)
Never Run The Toss Sweep
Coach Deuce
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WE SAID THAT SAME THING ABOUT BOREL! I was at Capital for Mart's graduation yesterday with my family and we definitely pegged him as Delacroix too! hahahaha
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw the destruction of that 'Boys facility i couldn't help but wonder about the devastation of a tornado hitting the "Harbor Bay Golf Dome" over in Huron. Actually i think that thing was already torn down before i moved, but still.
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who drew that comparison. It's almost as if The Green Mile was written with him in mind.
ReplyDeleteThere is some talk that Mine That Bird won't run The Preakness (or is it The Belmont?). Is that even allowed? How can you win the Derby and not try for the Triple Crown. If The Bird doesn't run, Boler NEEDS to be on another horse! I need my Delacroix fix!
I know its college baseball, but you guys are missing the BIGGEST story of the weekend. Sophomore Ohio State pitcher Alex Wimmers pitches a 14 strikeout NO HITTER against the beloved (at least by this particular blog) Michigan Wolverines to win 6-0. The Bucks first ever NO HITTER!!! Good job and GO BUCKS
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HQ
While I commend 'HQ' for digging up a college baseball story that somehow went unnoticed by 99.5% of sports fans, I must point out that the story of the weekend, and the story for the next couple of weeks is...the NHL playoffs! Gasp!
ReplyDeleteNow I know that it is uncommon to talk about hockey, and rightfully so. The sport is for the most part lame. It honestly belongs in Canada or Russia where fans would actually care. Also, it is a sin to admit that you actually watch hockey, so that is why I am posting under Anonymous (not really, I'm just lazy and don't have an account yet).
With all of that aside, it doesn't get any better than the NHL playoffs. How can something suck so bad during the regular season, but bring such drama as the 3 OT game in Detroit on Sunday? That type of stuff draws me in like a no-holds barred cage match against Mankind and The Undertaker.
Not to mention the NHL understands the sense of urgency a playoff series should have. Unlike the NBA who takes off 3432098 days between games, it is unlikely to see an NHL team have more than 1 day off. Sometimes they even play game 6 and 7 back to back.
For 80% of the season, the NHL belongs in the same breath as Nascar and Sunday afternoon bowling with Pete Weber, but not right now. I highly recommmend tuning in for the remainder of the playoffs...you might be surprised!
Thanks for listening...
DBensch
Excellent point, DBensch! The Caps/Pens game that saw both Ovechkin and Crosby throw down hat tricks was some of the best sports viewing I have had in a long, long time.
ReplyDeleteThe 17 days off between games really is the downfall of the NBA playoffs. Just as you get into a series, you have to wait a week for the next installment so that TNT can milk every minute of it.
Who is this "HQ" fella? And how dare he point out something like that in this blog!
What does this HQ think this is, Bucknuts? If there's anything I care less about than Spring baseball, its Ohio State College Baseball. In related news...Bemidji State has been trying to get into the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for years, and the powerful conference might finally be relenting for the first No. 16 seed ever to reach the Frozen Four.
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