Sports Blog

It’s official:  Mark Cuban and Kenyon Martin are two enormous babies who are starting to look more like cast members of The Hills than members of the NBA.

Their childish behavior made me think for a second I was dealing with a couple of kids in high school.  Certainly this couldn’t be the behavior of two well to do adults.  Sadly, it is.  Right down to the reports of back and forth banter, insincere apologies and no actual face to face communication.

What should have ended with a simple apology has turned into a gigantic pissing contest and appears to have no end in sight.  In case you haven’t heard, after game three of the Denver/Dallas series, Cuban made some disparaging comments to Martin’s mother while exiting his seat in the arena.  He later apologized via his blog, which led Martin to call Cuban a coward, according to HoopsHype.com.

The entire ordeal is ridiculous and is only getting worse with each passing day.  With that in mind, here are five reasons why Cuban and Martin need to quit their bickering.

1] I hate to sound like a NBA spokesperson, but their online feud is distracting people from a really good NBA playoffs.  The Eastern and Western Conference finals should be electric and the more time they fight the less attention there will be on the actual games.

2] Cuban made a mistake and needs to own up to it appropriately.  It shouldn’t need to be said, but for Cuban apparently it does — when you heckle someones mom an apology in a blog isn’t enough.  People shouldn’t be yelling at mothers in the first place, but if you do say sorry in person and squash it.

3] Martin is only making the situation worse.  There was a lot of sympathy for him at first, but each word he utters takes some of that away.  Calling Cuban a coward is only adding fuel to the fire.  It is natural to stick up for your mom, yet the best course of action for Martin is to just shut up.

4] If there is one thing I know about the NBA it’s this — you don’t want David Stern to get involved.  Stern has been patient in letting the situation resolve itself but at some point he is going to start dishing out fines.  If Cuban and Martin don’t want to get hit in their pockets they need to end this.

5] Listening to the two of them is funny.  Cuban, who acts awfully tough, isn’t exactly an imposing figure.  And while I wouldn’t say it to his face, it is impossible to take anyone with a pair of lips tattooed on their neck seriously.

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Some people are a little down on this years NBA playoffs and I can’t for the life of me figure out why.

I realize people are busy with school, work and American Idol, but this years playoff race has been absolutely amazing and the very definition of must see TV.  With so many different things competing for our precious attention, though, I have compiled a list of the top ten reasons why you should be catching the rest of the NBA playoffs:

1] If you grew up watching basketball in the ’80s and ’90s there is a good chance you have found yourself reminiscing while watching recent games.  The amount of hard fouls and seemingly genuine distaste between players has brought old school basketball back.  If only the NBA would stop fining/suspending the hell out everyone!

2] Jumping on the NBA bandwagon is the perfect excuse to go drinking with friends after work on a Tuesday night without feeling like an alcoholic.  Down a few Jäger bombs on an ordinary weeknight and you apparently have drinking problems.  Doing the same in conjunction with your team winning and you’re just celebrating like any good fan would.

3] There are a few bona fide superstars still alive in the playoffs and one of them is Kobe Bryant.  A staple of excellent play for the last decade, the still elite Bryant can’t last forever so you better get your fill while you can.  Plus, for you casual fans, there is always a lot of drama and intrigue surrounding the Lakers, so making the transition from day-time soap watcher to Lakers aficionado is a breeze.

4] Long time NBA watchers have had a lot to enjoy in this years playoffs.  For instance, anyone who watched Boston hoist up another banner last year has had two questions on their mind since the playoffs started this year: can the Celtics repeat and will Kevin Garnett go all Willis Reed on us if Boston goes deep into the playoffs?

5] While there has certainly been a number of blowouts thus far, there have also been some legendary overtime thrillers.  The Boston/Chicago series featured many nail-biting games and will be talked about amongst hoop-heads for years to come.  With a little luck both the Eastern and Western Conference Finals will do the same.

6] Remember back in 2005 when the San Antonio Spurs beat the Detroit Pistons?  Not many people do because both teams were excellent on defense and struggled to score a lot of points.  This year is much more casual fan friendly because there have been a lot of fast paced, high scoring games.  Three teams still in the playoffs average at least 100 points per game, and all teams that have a chance to go to the conference finals average at least 94.

7] People who love to hear some solid trash talking are basking in the playoffs back and forth banter. Technical fouls have been dished out by the bushel as players try to get in each others heads. When an owner (Mark Cuban) gets into it with a player’s (Kenyon Martin) mom, you know the trash talking is top notch.

8] If the last decade belonged in part to Kobe Bryant, the next one will have its lion’s share held by Lebron James.  Voted this years regular season MVP, James somehow continues to get better despite already being one of the best players in the league.  In other words, he is reason enough to watch this years playoffs.

9] Most TV series are coming to an end, and while we will all miss our favorite shows (go Scrubs!), the playoffs can certainly help fill the void. There is plenty of action, drama, suspense and comedy (both intentional and unintentional) to help hold you over until fall.

10] The last reason is by far the most obvious: basketball is awesome.  Seeing some of the best athletes in the world go at it in one of the best sports to watch on TV is a real treat.  I defy you to not get excited when James throws down a monster dunk or when Dwight Howard swats a ball into the third row.

Take it from someone who watches a lot of basketball — it’s not possible.

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Find at Smarter.com:  Shop for the NBA apparel and memorabilia you need to support your favorite team.

The first round of the NBA playoffs are barely wrapping up yet rumors are already starting to fly about what players might be switching jerseys this off-season.  With the economy continuing to struggle and the salary cap going down for the first time since its inception, many teams will be looking to get creative when it comes to their roster.

One player possibly heading to a new city is the self proclaimed Most Dominant Ever, aka Shaquille O’Neal.  A lot of people think that his monster contract and diminishing skill set are untradeable, but his resurgent play this year has landed him on a few GM’s radars.  Shaq, through the use of his Twitter account, has made it known he is quite fond of Dallas and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

NBA sources say, however, the most likely destination for the Big Tweep is New Orleans.  Shaq has a large fan base in the south stemming from his days at LSU and the Hornets let it be known they wanted out of Tyson Chandler’s contract when they traded him earlier this year (only to have it fall through due to health reasons).

The trade could work in both teams favors should it happen.  The Hornets would only carry O’Neal on their books for one season and he would bring proven playoff experience to a team that really needs it.  He would also sell a lot of tickets, which makes the deal interesting from a business perspective.  The Phoenix Suns would get younger and more athletic in their front court, and if healthy, Chandler paired with forward Amare Stoudemire would be one of the most tenacious big-duos in the NBA.

What do you think? Is the Big Aristotle worth the big bucks? Or is the big man a big waste of money at this point in his career?

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If you have been watching the NBA playoffs you probably feel like the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers are destined to meet in the finals.  The reason so many people feel this way is simple — it is the only logical conclusion based on everything that has happened from the beginning of the season to now.  Well, that and the fact that it is David Stern’s dream scenario (kidding … sort of).

One thing that may be less clear, however, is what team is going to prevail.  So for all of you who are unsure about who is going to win it all, here are 10 reasons why the Lakers will be hoisting up another championship banner into the rafters.

1.  Revenge factor:  It is becoming increasingly unlikely that they will see the Boston Celtics should they make the finals, but avenging last years embarrassing game six performance is surely on the mind of everyone in the organization.  There is no way they let what happened then (or 2004 for that matter) happen again.

2.  Kobe Bryant:  Lest we forget amid the flurry of props for Lebron James and Dwayne Wade that Bryant is arguably still the best player in the game and certainly one of its best finishers.  A player of his stature, someone who is already in the top 20 all time and might retire in the top 10, can accomplish a lot on will power alone.

3.  Phil Jackson:  Some people refuse to give Jackson credit because all of his titles have come with either Bryant or Michael Jordan at the helm.  I am not one of those people. Jackson is a calming influence with championship experience and that will come into play during the Lakers run to the finals.

4.  Lock-down defender:  To get through the gantlet of quality players in the playoffs you need someone who can play shut down defense.  The Lakes have Trevor Ariza and he is a flat out beast.  He can guard multiple positions, run the break and knock down the three point shot.

5.  Weaker west:  This is the year the almighty Western Conference finally took a step back.  It still took a better record to get into the playoffs than it did in the east, but no one can argue it is as strong as it was last year.  Even traditional arch nemesis San Antonio is playing with a hurt Tim Duncun and without Manu Ginobli.

6.  Twin towers:  Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum are one of the better front court combinations since Duncan/David Robinson won it all in 1999 (they did again in 2003 but Robinson had declined by then).  Bynum is coming off an injury, but if the two start clicking they can guard any front line in the NBA.

7.  Variety of styles:  The Lakers offense can play in half court sets or push it up-tempo.  Bryant and Derek Fisher execute Jackson’s heralded triangle offense to near perfection, making the Lakers the third highest scoring team in the regular season.  No matter who they play the Lakers will put plenty of points on the board.

8.  Team depth:  Part of what makes the Lakers so tough is the minimal drop off between the first and second units.  Their backup guards (Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic and Shannon Brown) and big men (Lamar Odom, Josh Powell and Luke Walton) are very capable and could start on some teams.

9.  Cavaliers match-up:  Assuming both teams make it the Lakers are best equipped to handle King James.  No one player can guard James, but a combination of Ariza’s quickness, Odom’s length, and Bryant’s all-around defensive efficiency could slow him down better than any other team.

10.  Hunger:  A lot of people in the franchise have something to prove despite the fact that none of them would admit it.  Bryant wants to win a title without Shaq.  Jackson wants to surpass Red Auerbach for all-time championships as a coach.  Gasol needs to prove his toughness.  Odom needs to show he can play a variety of roles in a contract year.  The list goes on and on.

Find at Smarter.com:  Shop through a variety of Los Angeles Lakers’ gear.

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Congrats to the Celtics.  The series was a strange one, but you did it! 

So, what exactly happened last night?  I was at the Angel’s game eavesdropping in on this nice guy’s radio behind me.  I couldn’t hear everything at certain times (like when the crowd would cheer because the Angels were kicking butt- Figgins is back batting .305 & Lackey pitched an awesome game), but the staduim also flashed the score on the Angel’s scoreboard a few times.  I didn’t even want to talk as much smack about the Lakers (mainly Kobe) as I usually do because it was pretty unreal that they went out like that. 

I kept wondering what records were broken last night.  The man with the radio informed me that the Celtics had the most steels in a Finals game, Allen Perkins hit 7 3-pointers which made a Finals record & I understand there were even more records made.    What a dissapointing game for fans.  Imagine, you build the game up so much, you get all your friends together to watch & this is how it goes down?  I also, tried to watched the ten minute version of the game on NBA.com, but although I don’t personally like the Lakers, it was painful to watch.  I also listened to AM 570 (an LA station which covers all the Laker games) & Matt “Money” Smith was asked by a caller if he thinks that the Lakers would make any big changes for next year.  He responded saying that the Lakers might be looking to get Posey.  Interesting.

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As tonight’s game between the Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs climbs closer, I can’t stop thinking about how STUPID and RIDICULOUS it was to suspend Amare Stoudemire from the contest.

I mean, c’mon now. The guy left his seat and was going to come to the aid of a helpless Steve Nash after Robert Horry decided to transform into a freight train with seconds remaining in the game.

And if you look at the replay, cause they seem to be playing it on every station on TV, he didn’t even get that close.

The NBA should have just made the Suns forfeit and given the Spurs a win for tonight. They took away Phoenix’s biggest scoring weapon inside and the biggest threat to Tim Duncan.

And who cares if you guys suspended Robert Horry. What has he really done? Can he single handedly take over a game like Stoudemire? You should have suspended him for the rest of the playoffs along with a player to be named later. That would have been about even.

Don’t rorget they suspended one of the Suns’ best role players, Boris Diaw, for a game too.

JERKS! 

But it’s ok I guess. The NBA wanted to be fair and enforce their rules.

Hmm…Lemme think about this. Give a one game suspension to a guy who gave a helpless point guard the People’s Elbow, sending him flying into a wall a 2 game suspension while giving the opposition’s two players, one game a piece for getting out of their seats.

Sounds fair to me.

Congratulations NBA. You hit this one on the nose.

When the Golden State Warriors upset the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the NBA playoffs, the courtside seats at the Oracle Arena have begun to look like that of the Staples Center.

With their recent popularity, the Warriors have been attracting Hollywood stars such as: Kate Hudson, Owen Wilson, Penny Marshall, Snoop Dogg, Woody Harrelson, Santana and Jessica Alba.

Alba was in attendance during Sunday’s matchup with her boyfriend Cash Warren.

Warren and Warriors guard Baron Davis played high school basketball together in Santa Monica.

Since their beloved Lakers were knocked out early this year by the Phoenix Suns, A-Listers had to go elsewhere for their dose of NBA playoffs.

Now with the Warriors on the brink of elimination, where will Hollywood go next?

Utah? Phoenix? San Antonio?

Stay tuned.

Western Conference Semifinals
Tuesday, May 15
Game 5
UTAH JAZZ vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

Carlos Boozer and company will try to finish off the Warriors to get the Jazz to their first conference finals appearance since 1998. That year they went to the NBA Finals, but eventually lost to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Watch for Boozer to have another stellar game as he is averaging 25 ppg and 14 rpg in the series.