Thoughts on the first weekend of NBA Playoffs!

So the first weekend of NBA Playoffs went down, and there is much to talk about.  I have no witty opening since I am a little fired up, so I’m just going to get right to it.

Let’s start with Bulls-Nets since Derrick Rose’s ACL injury put me in such a depression I gave up blogging the entire season.  Rose has now become the source of a great controversy surrounding the Bulls as many are upset he has not returned from his injury yet, and likely won’t this season.  People are questioning Rose’s heart and toughness and trying to make him look like a bad guy because he has been cleared by doctors to play for months but won’t come back.

Call me crazy, but I feel like there is more to a return from a major injury than simply being told by doctor’s that structurally you are good to go.  If he isn’t comfortable then he isn’t comfortable.  Players like LeBron James, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony have defended Rose’s decisions thus far, and you haven’t heard anything about the organization being furious with him for not playing, and his teammates all stand by him.  You only really hear the shit talking coming from fair-weather fans and idiots.

The Bulls didn’t re-sign Rose to win a title in 2013, the Bulls re-signed him to contend for years to come since he is an amazing basketball talent and if you have to sacrifice one whole season for him to come back strong then so be it.  But frontrunners seem to know what’s right for the Bulls and Rose and feel he is a dirt bag because he isn’t playing right now.  I am only mad that they would not announce Rose is out for the year months ago since they knew it all along.  I am not mad he is missing time.  Screw it, they can win next year or the year after.  I would much rather Rose take the time to get comfortable than come back too soon, a decision basically everybody but people who don’t know anything about anything sympathize with.

People are saying Rose isn’t tough and doesn’t have heart, but if you stop and think for a minute you would realize that makes no sense.  The only reason LeBron James isn’t about to win a fifth straight MVP is because Rose played out of his mind two years ago.  Fair-weather fans and idiots have short memories and now think Rose was overrated this whole time, but he was a death dealer in 2010-11 and nobody should forget it.  Then in the playoffs he badly sprained his ankle against the Pacers but kept playing and took a beating every night all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Then the next season he was nursing injuries to his back, his groin, basically his entire body.  He pushed himself hard to come back and try to win the championship, but he has no heart?  He ended up tearing his ACL because of that.  That’s a major injury, and just because Adrian Peterson could come back quick and be successful that doesn’t mean Derrick Rose is ready.  Maybe it comes from the fact I enjoy fighters like Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida, but I recognize patience is extremely important and right now isn’t as important as setting up for the future.  Who is the motherfucker who has delivered again and again in big games for the Bulls and said he wants to lead them into the future?  I’ve never had reason to doubt Rose before, and just because the Bulls won’t win a championship this season I am not about to start doubting him.

So the moral of the story in terms of Bulls-Nets is that the Bulls are fucking terrible and are going to lose in six games, and I don’t feel bad that Rose won’t be playing.  Noah’s hurt, Hinrich’s hurt, Hamilton’s a walking injury, Gibson’s hurt, Deng is drained from too many minutes yet again.  Yes, the next part of Rose’s rehab is to play in a game, but if he isn’t comfortable then why rush him back to take part in the ass kicking they are going to be dealt for the next week?  And the Nets are just going to get beaten by Miami next round anyways so I won’t even bother discussing them.

The Nuggets-Warriors game was pretty wild.  Last year the Nuggets were on pace to set the world on fire until everybody got injured.  They were ready to set everybody on fire this year but things looked bad once Danilo Gallinari went down with a torn ACL and Kenneth Faried got hurt.  But the beauty of the Nuggets is that they play an amazing team game.  The Nuggets could very well make it to the Finals.  They are that good even without a superstar to lead the way.  Ty Lawson is filthy, Andre Iguodala is solid, and Andre Miller is still good.

Miller, at the age of about 867, drained the game winner with 1.3 second left to give the Nuggets the victory in Game 1.  The 37-year-old has missed six games in his entire career, and has overcome his strange Smokey Robinson voice to become one of the most reliable players of the era.  Speaking of reliability, the Warriors were dealt some damage when David Lee suffered a torn hip flexor and had to leave the game.  Lee got a whole lotta money, never really played up to it until this year, and now he goes down with an injury.  That’s a big problem for Golden State as they need all the help they can get against the amazing team game of Denver.  I figured the Nuggets could handle them before, but now with Lee out it seems like Denver just got a much easier road to the second round.

I thought I wanted to see the Knicks make it out of the East until I saw Game 1 of their series with the Celtics.  In life there are few things I hate more than the Madison Square Garden crowd.  Spike Lee is a douche, and Knicks fans suck at life.  Now that the Knicks are good, there are a lot of obnoxious frontrunners afoot.  The Garden crowd acts like their team is the best team in the universe when they are winning, then boos the team off the floor when they aren’t playing well.  Now all of a sudden they have “real” fans because they are good but you know if they get eliminated by Miami in Game 6 of the Conference Finals the Garden crowd will be booing their own players because they are morons.

Boston has had a nice run after losing Rajon Rondo to a torn ACL a few months back, but this is where the run ends.  They are a solid defensive team, but their offense is only slightly less ugly than that of the Bulls.  Even if Carmelo Anthony decides against passing and keeps shooting terribly, it will be enough to carry the Knicks since Pierce and Garnett might be cooked.  And Jason Terry was a waste of a signing.  Thanks for that amazing 0-5 performance, Jet!  Jeff Green can play his ass off in the first half all he wants, but the Knicks have too many weapons on offense and the Celtics don’t have anything.  These teams are fairly evenly matched defensively, but down the stretch in a close game New York will kill them because of weapons like Anthony and JR Smith, and that is what happened on Saturday.

The Clippers-Grizzlies series has me torn.  On one hand, I really like the Grizzlies.  I thought they would be the team to beat in the West since they play such solid defense and a good team game.  I love the Gasol-Randolph team down low, I love that they have Tayshaun Prince now, I love that Jerryd Bayless cut his hair and grew a beard and looks like Carlos Boozer.  The Grizzlies are a tough, solid team.  On the other hand, I love the Clippers.  Chris Paul is the best point guard in the league, Blake Griffin is an animal, Chauncey Billups is a good man, but Vinny Del Negro is their coach.  It will be a very entertaining series, but ultimately the Clips may pull this one out somehow.  I hope I don’t miss any games from this one.

The Hawks-Pacers series is the most uninteresting series I could ever think of.  Two teams I can’t stand in one place.  I will not talk about this further.

The Heat-Bucks series will be a source of great comedy on a game-by-game basis since Milwaukee guard Brandon Jennings said they would defeat the Heat in six games.  There isn’t much to say about this series since the Bucks are completely overmatched and will get swept.  But at least Brandon Jennings makes funnies.

I was excited for the Thunder-Rockets series until the first few minutes of last night’s game.  I stepped out of the room and missed the first few minutes of the game and walked in to see the score was 13-2 and the Rockets had not hit a field goal.  Granted it was still early, but that said everything I needed to know about the series.  The Rockets have an exciting young team, but the Thunder have been possessed all season.  Houston just doesn’t have enough to stop OKC.  Maybe they can win a game in Houston, but really the Thunder are going to jack them up since too much Houston offense revolves around James Harden isolations and missed threes.

And the last series, the best series, is the LA Lakers vs. the San Antonio Spurs. 10 years ago this would be a showdown of the West’s superpowers.  This year, it is the hobbled Lakers meeting a determined Spurs squad playing like this is their last time out.  Mike D’Antoni, so stubborn in his ways, is the reason Kobe Bryant is out.  You can’t play a guy who has 20 seasons worth the wear and tear on his body (17 seasons plus post-season and Team USA stuff) for over 40 minutes a night and rely on him to do everything.  That was how D’Antoni approached the home stretch of the season and it cost the Lakers dearly.   Steve Nash isn’t 100% and D’Antoni’s defenseless approach to the game is only going to make things worse.

The Spurs made D’Antoni’s life a living hell for most of the 2000s, and it is happening again.  Tim Duncan is playing like it is 2003 again and all signs point to this being his last run.  I have written here before about how Tim Duncan is an amazing talent, and this season only reaffirmed those statements.  He has elevated his game yet again and the Spurs are poised to dominate.  LA is a mess with no depth and no defense, so they may not have a good shot against the Spurs juggernaut.

That is it for the weekend’s games.  I will try to talk some trash about the other games this week at some point.

The NBA Doesn't Protect Stars? Then Explain LeBron's Inability to Commit a Foul

For years people have said the NBA protects their stars and will make sure they win.  When the big three got together in Miami, many cried foul that the NBA would conspire to have Miami win and would protect them with ridiculous calls.  A tweet from die-hard Celtics fan and ESPN columnist Bill Simmons adds fuel to the Heat conspiracy fire. As I said in my post yesterday, the NBA will not punish Dwyane Wade for any cheap flagrant foul he may commit since they will make more money with the marketing juggernaut of Miami, as they have three stars, in the Finals. While in a rage as the Celtics collapsed against Miami , Simmons took to Twitter and ranted on the referees and said they were the reason Miami was winning. He showed off that interesting statistic that LeBron James is only averaging 1.8 fouls per game during these playoffs. Even Michael Jordan never averaged under 2 fouls per game in his playoff career.

LeBron mysteriously only committed five fouls in six games against Indiana.  Yes, he averaged 0.8 fouls per game in that series.  I'm not understanding how that is possible.  Here are the official stats showing LeBron is currently 97th in fouls per game during these playoffs.  It is worth taking a look at how similar players are doing this post-season.  Carmelo Anthony averaged 4.2 fouls per game in New York's five games against Miami, up from his season average of 2.8 (I will talk about regular season averages towards the end, especially LeBron's).  Paul Pierce is averaging 3.1 fouls, only having one foul in Game 1 against the Heat but fouling out in Game 2 as well as fouling out in Game 7 against the 76ers.  Pierce is averaging 38.7 minutes per game, Melo averaged 40.1, and LeBron 41.3 but both Melo and Pierce averaged more fouls despite being less tenacious defenders.  Kobe Bryant played in 12 games this post-season to LeBron's 13, but Kobe had 33 fouls while LeBron has 23

Keep in mind Chris Bosh went down in Game 1 against Indiana and LeBron had to start playing power forward. He was down low and goes for a lot of blocks and steals but some how went all of Game 2 against the Pacers without fouling anybody and then never had more than 1 foul in each of the remaining four games.  Playing in the post he didn't foul anybody. Even softie Chris Bosh picks up over 2 fouls a game, same with Dirk Nowitzki, though Bosh's playoff average was 1.6 since he had nothing to do against New York and got hurt against Indy. Guarding team's top scorers like Paul Pierce, Carmelo Anthony, and Danny Granger, LBJ has only found himself on the brink of fouling out in one game against New York, and had 4 fouls in another.  Against Miami, Danny Granger fouled out in Game 2, came close in Game 6, and had 4 in Game 1.

Obviously superstar calls and not calling fouls on stars are nothing new, but this is a strange occurrence.  Simmons even pointed out LeBron ranks first in free throws attempted per game at 10.8, but he is so far down on the fouls per game list.  The conversation always comes back to Jordan since he is the measuring stick and the original of favored superstars, and a look at his playoff stats shows he used to get called for fouls.  In 10 games in 94-95 he had 30 fouls.  LeBron has played three more games and has seven less.  Just looking at random years in the championship era: Jordan averaged 3.1 fouls, 53 in 17 games, when the Bulls won their first title in 1991; he again averaged 3.1, 58 in 19 games, in the 92-93 season; 2.7, 49 in 18 games, in the 95-96 season on one of the greatest teams of all time; and 2.2, 47 in 21 games, in the last championship year of 97-98.  You can see the league started becoming more star oriented in the late 90s as Jordan's fouls went down, but still he never averaged fewer than 2.

Kobe Bryant averaged 4 fouls per game when the Lakers won their first of three straight titles in 2000, then 3.3, and then 2.8.  When LA won back to back titles in 2009 and 2010, Kobe averaged 2.6 and 3.3 fouls respectively.  In the 2006 seven-game series with Phoenix in the first round, he averaged 3.6.  He even averaged 2.8 when he was the MVP in 2008.

If you're curious, LeBron averaged 2.7 fouls in the playoffs last year, 2.1 in 09-10, 2.1 in 08-09, and his lowest average was an even 2 when he had 40 fouls in 20 games in 06-07 when Cleveland made the Finals.  He did average a high 3.4 in 2006 though.  I looked at the seven-game series with Boston from 2008 since I wanted to see what happened when LeBron was matched up with a much better Paul Pierce and found Pierce averaged 3.3 fouls and 6.1 free throws to LeBron's 2.9 fouls and 12.8 free throws.  Those aren't some hard, conclusive numbers that LeBron doesn't get called for fouls since he averaged almost 3 per game, but it is worth pointing out that while Pierce still got called for more fouls than LBJ, strangely the referees actually used to call fouls on LeBron. It is at least worth noting LeBron averaged almost 3 fouls per game in a series during his MVP era.

While I love using statistics, none of the other numbers really matter but LeBron having a fairly low fouls per game average in the playoffs regularly is pretty strange.  But whatever. We're talking about this year and LeBron's great skill at not fouling or the NBA's increased protection of superstars that is most evident with the lack of calls against LeBron James. But wait! What about LeBron's career regular season foul average?

While the regular season average shouldn't matter too much since playoff ball is way different and far more physical and defensive-minded, I did point out Carmelo Anthony's average since a 1.4 foul jump stood out to me, especially since it came against Miami.  Maybe I am putting too much thought into it, but I figured it was worth sharing.  LeBron averaged 1.6 fouls this season and for his career averages 1.9.  Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, the two players LeBron is most likely chasing, averaged 2.6 for their careers. Kobe's can change since he's not done of course, but it isn't going to drop below 2.  Other greats? Magic Johnson averaged 2.3, Larry Bird averaged 2.5, and Bill Russell averaged 2.7.  LeBron has averaged over 2 fouls per game in four of his nine seasons, never higher than 2.3, leaving him with that insane 1.9 career average.

The choices here are that LeBron is not a hard defender, defends so amazingly well he does not foul anybody, or the NBA is even more of a star-oriented league than in years past and wants to protect the jewel of the basketball world.  LeBron was the prized first pick in the 2003 draft, hyped as the "king" and is supposed to be the future of the sport.  With the constant hype about how amazing LeBron is, would it be out of the realm of possibility that the NBA protects him?  Think back to the 2006 Finals when Dwyane Wade took over 20 free throws in Game 5 and then again in Game 6 to secure the Heat's championship victory, and Miami as a whole took considerably more foul shots than Dallas.  Is LeBron's low foul per game average just another case of superstars being favored?

It cannot be that LeBron is just an incredible defender who knows how to not make contact with people.  That would be ridiculous to even think.  It comes down to either LeBron doesn't play hard defense and therefore can't commit fouls, or the NBA pampers stars and especially turns a blind eye to any contact LeBron James may dish out.  I would hope people aren't clamoring to accept the former.  All superstars are protected, but this is one of the most ridiculous aspects of the superstar protecting actions of the league.  LeBron goes for a lot of steals and a lot of blocks and is seen as a hard defender, so to think he is just so good he doesn't foul people is funny.  He would be a more amazing talent than any of have thought these last few years.

Every superstar is given favorable treatment, but LeBron's low foul count is unheard of for a player of his stature and with the increasingly favorable treatment the league is giving stars it isn't hard to see how this has happened with the league's star of stars.

Is Dwyane Wade a Dirty Player? Does the NBA Care?

Whenever blood gets boiling in the NBA, one player will try to insult another by insinuating they are a dirty player.  Last year, after the intense Pacers-Bulls match up in the playoffs, Danny Granger of the Pacers said Chicago center Joakim Noah is a dirty player.  This was a ridiculous accusation made out of frustration since Noah is a high-energy player and hustles, and the Pacers were the only team doling out hard fouls and physical play in that series.  But still, when hit with the anger of getting eliminated in the playoffs Granger resorted to the accusation that somebody bends and/or breaks the rules.  Amare Stoudemire did this in 2007 against the Spurs when the Suns were down as well.  Those types of accusations come out a lot when players or fans are upset and many times there is nothing to it, but other times it is worth investigating.

Dirty players are like what Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen would be if they were on the basketball court. They throw out cheap shots oftentimes which could legitimately injure somebody then throw their hands up and walk away like they did nothing.  Sometimes they are subtle plays, sometimes not so much and you get hit with a flagrant.  If it is subtle then it is like a wrestling manager distracting the ref, slipping their wrestler a pair of brass knuckles, the wrestler hitting his opponent with them, then the ref suddenly turning around to see the opponent down as the other wrestler acts like nothing happened.  There are all sorts of guys like that in the league these days.  You hear it mentioned most with Kevin Garnett.

Garnett is a psycho on the court.  His once unbelievable play has declined with age, and up until recently when he's been able to back up his trash talk with stellar performances, he resorted to cheap shots and dirty play to get his message across.  Remember KG undercutting Channing Frye while hitting him in the nuts?  Garnett's bark had become much bigger than his bite (his game) so there was a while there where he just changed his bite to be cheap shots and bully tactics.  He still throws elbows after the whistle and stuff.

Ron Artest/Metta World Peace's elbow on James Harden is the prime example of a dirty play since he nearly killed Harden then acted like he was just flexing.

Kobe Bryant is a dirty player.  This isn't because I love Michael Jordan.  Kobe is a dirty player.  Remember he got suspended twice in the 2006-07 season for first punching Manu Ginobili after a shot, then doing it again to Marko Jaric?  His teammate Derek Fisher is also dirty.  Here's a neat clip of their dirty antics in the playoffs against Houston a few years back.  Somehow Ron Artest got ejected for Kobe elbowing him in the throat and pretending like he did no such thing.  Kobe has all sorts of cheap little elbow and knee plays.  You don't agree? Watch:



Of course the dirtiest of all players is Bruce Bowen.  He used to undercut people all the time, throw drop kicks, knee people in the balls, etc.  You didn't know? Watch:



But now we have an entirely new issue here.  Is Dwyane Wade a dirty player?  Does the NBA's superstar-pampering system enable this?  In my last post I touched on this briefly.  After last night's Eastern Conference Finals victory over the Celtics I feel the need to address it again. And no, this is not just because Wade is on Miami.  The first basketball player whose jersey and shoes I ever owned was Wade.  I have always respected him and been a fan, but I've seen enough in the last year to turn sour on him and think his little slap on Rondo and kick at Kevin Garnett were not just heat of battle coincidences.

Last year. Playoffs. Heat-Celtics. Boston is up 10. Wade loses the ball and drags Rajon Rondo down, dislocating Rondo's elbow and sabotaging the series for the C's:



This year. All Star Game (!!!??!?!). Wade smacks Kobe in the face, breaking his nose and giving him a concussion. A flagrant foul in the ASG? Are you kidding me? Nope:



This year. Regular season against the Bulls. Wade shoves Rip Hamilton for no real reason, gets called for a flagrant:



This year. Playoffs. Heat-Knicks. Wade throws Mike Bibby's shoe into the front row. Not quite as bad as his fouls, but still a dick move:



This year. Playoffs. Heat-Pacers. Wade gets upset he didn't get a foul call so he hockey checks Darren Collison, gets called for a flagrant:



Now this brings us to last night.  The Celtics were trying to even their series with Miami in Game 2, but they blew a big lead and couldn't play defense in the third quarter.  Even though Miami went to the foul line a ton - LeBron almost as many times as the entire Celtics team - Boston could have won that game but they couldn't execute.  Of course it didn't help Wade got dirty in overtime.

First up is Wade's defense against Rondo which somehow resulted in no foul call:



After the flagrant on Kobe in the All Star game and the other cheap fouls Wade has resorted to in recent history I tend to believe this wasn't an accident and he was trying to smack Rondo in the face.  I'm sorry but after you jacked up the guy's arm a year ago and have been building a history of bad fouls lately I don't find it coincidence that you smacked a guy who was lighting up your team right in the face.

Then he came down and had this dagger and-one over Kevin Garnett.  But he was also throwing a dropkick:



Wade leads with the leg right into KG's knee. When they show the replay again at about the 1:35 mark in that video Jeff Van Gundy even comments that could have been an offensive foul. Yeah buddy.  Wade has started to develop a nice little list of questionable play lately.  An All Star game flagrant, the flagrant on Rip, the flagrant on Collison, and the other cheap plays.  Yet he hasn't faced any kind of real punishment for this stuff.

Kobe was suspended for those shots at Manu and Jaric, but that is the most I've ever heard about a superstar being punished for dirty play.  Garnett has never faced any repercussions for his nonsense, and with Wade being on the marketing juggernaut of Miami he damn sure won't face any sort of punishment.  The NBA protects the superstars no matter what, and we're seeing clear evidence of it now.

Robert Horry was suspended for his check on Steve Nash.  Wade only received a flagrant 1 for his check on Collison.  A flagrant 2 is an automatic ejection and you get suspended.  Horry's check on Nash was harder, but still look at the rule.  Wade's check was unsportsmanlike, unnecessary, and excessive.  That was clearly a flagrant 2.  Tyson Chandler's illegal screen on LeBron was originally deemed a flagrant 2 but then lowered to a flagrant 1.  A flagrant 2 is insane since that was a clear flop from LBJ, but a flagrant 1 still isn't right since it was nothing more than an illegal screen.  Wade could have really hurt Collison, it wasn't even remotely a play on the ball or anything, but still it was on the level of the Chandler play?  That does not seem right.  Even his shove on Hamilton was totally uncalled for and could be seen as a flagrant 2.

Why bother calling Wade for smacking Rondo in the face or kicking Garnett? The league will get more money out of the Heat being in the Finals anyways.  Wade is a superstar, unlike Horry and Chandler, so he would never be suspended for that shot on Collison and he would never be reprimanded for his cheap plays in overtime.  This goes for all superstars of course as Kobe's suspensions were an aberration when it comes to how the NBA treats the money makers.

Accusing somebody of playing dirty is pretty serious and oftentimes makes you seem like a crybaby, but it is worth pointing out Dwyane Wade has found himself in some questionable situations in the last year, starting with Rondo's injury.  The legend has been growing since then, and last night on nearly back-to-back possessions Wade added to it big time.  For some reason people keep getting hit when they are around him.  And since it is widely known the NBA coddles superstars, it is no surprise they haven't hit Wade with a flagrant 2 or a suspension for anything he's done.

The Rights and Wrongs in the Sporting World 2: The "I Loathe Miami" Edition

This is a good way to start off this post, even if I don't talk about their late-game fails

It has been a few weeks and there are many things I want to discuss so what better way to do that than to treat the world to another installment of The Rights and Wrongs? We are a few games deep into the second round of the NBA Playoffs so things are starting to get good. There are a great many things floating around my head and I don’t want to forget them so I’ll just get right to it.

The Right:
1. Chan Sung Jung – The Korean Zombie has put himself in the title hunt in the UFC’s featherweight division following a wild victory over Dustin Poirier on Fuel the other night. Zombie seemed to get winded by the time the fourth round came, but he still locked in a d’arce choke and finished Poirier off. It was a great fight with exciting stand-up and grappling, including a wild moment when Poirier took Zombie down, only for Zombie to roll right into a full mount. As far as shows on networks most people don’t get go, this was an exciting main event and Zombie has proven he can deliver an exciting fight every time. His fights against Leonard Garcia, especially the second one in which he submitted Garcia with the twister, were both entertaining and his seven second knockout of Mark Hominick was wild as well. Of course Jung wouldn’t stand much of a chance against featherweight king Jose Aldo, but really would anybody? Jung-Aldo would be an exciting fight and if you through that on the next UFC on Fox and build it up right it can be a good ratings boost and people would love it.

2. Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan – Two of the greatest power forwards of all time, both in the twilight of their careers, have turned the clock back as of late. I have written about how Duncan is amazing here before, but after reading Chris Ballard’s piece on Timmy for Sports Illustrated I like him even more. The best statistic mentioned in the article is the .702 winning percentage the Spurs have had with Duncan, a percentage unmatched in the last 15 years by any other team in any sport. Even in NBA history there has not been such a run. Ballard touches on this for Duncan but it goes for Garnett as well, as both men played fewer minutes per game this season, but if you look at their per 36 minute stats their numbers are right in line with their stellar career marks. Duncan absolutely shit on Blake Griffin and the Clippers in Game 1 of their second round series, hanging 26 and 10 with 2 blocks and 2 steals on them. Garnett is averaging 20 and 11 (I may have done that math wrong) through the nine games Boston has played thus far. On the third page of that Ballard article he points out how Duncan loathes KG, but it is nice to see the rivals both stepping up their game.

3. CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan – I will not be watching WWE’s Over the Limit pay per view this Sunday as it is expensive and the card doesn’t appeal to me, but Punk and Bryan are going to put on an awesome WWE Championship match. Bryan is the best technical wrestler on the face of the planet, winning Wrestling Observer’s award for that for the last seven years, and Punk is high up on the list. WWE markets everything around John Cena and he’ll have a stupid match with Raw General Manager John Laurinaitis, but for the Internet Wrestling Community this WWE title match is going to be the true selling point. They’ve worked matches before, in Ring of Honor and the WWE on Raw, but to have the two best guys working a match for the biggest title in the biggest wrestling company on pay per view is what it’s all about. I will definitely be ordering a replay of the show for Bryan-Punk alone.

4. The Return of Paul E. – WWE brought back Brock Lesnar, jobbed him to John Cena, had him “break” Triple H’s arm the next night on Raw, then the next week Lesnar has his legal council announce he had quit the company. Who would be Lesnar’s legal council? None other than the greatest mind in the history of the business, Paul Heyman. Heyman was the head of the now-defunct Extreme Championship Wrestling in the ‘90s. ECW’s hardcore, edgy style was ripped off by the WWE for their “Attitude Era” and WCW mastermind Eric Bischoff hired guys like Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero away from Heyman. He wasn’t a good enough businessman to keep ECW going, but he was brilliant at booking and as an on-screen character. Jim Ross loved doing commentary with him, and as Brock Lesnar’s manager and General Manager of SmackDown he was so entertaining. His mic skills are better than most wrestler’s, and his shoot promo on Vince McMahon is one of the greatest promos in wrestling history. I haven’t watched SmackDown regularly since Heyman was its head booker in 2002-3. He made guys like Kurt Angle, Edge, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, and Chavo Guerrero into gods. I will never forget the awesome fatal four-way between Angle, Benoit, Eddie, and Edge that took place on SmackDown. Heyman always knew what matches would work, and if you gave him a microphone he could get anything over. I don’t like the idea of hiring Lesnar to be this big star then holding him off TV so they can save his 24 remaining dates for the build to WrestleMania next year, but if Heyman is going to be Brock’s mouthpiece and handle this then I’m interested.

The Wrong:
1. Dwyane Wade Part 1 – In Game 2 of the Heatles’ second round series with the Indiana Pacers, Wade committed a flagrant foul on Darren Collison. Now, in the NBA there is a Flagrant 1 and a Flagrant 2. A flagrant 1 results in a technical foul, the team of the player who was fouled getting possession, and a $35,000 fine. A flagrant 2 is all of that, but the player who committed the foul is ejected and can be suspended. Here is the rule on how to define a 1 or a 2. Wade’s foul on Collison was only a flagrant 1, despite being unnecessary and totally excessive as well as unsportsmanlike. Wade hockey checked Collison, but somehow just got slapped with a flagrant 1. A few years back, Shaq at least made a play on the ball when he killed Rodney Stuckey and was hit with a flagrant 2 and ejected. Wade was pissed because he didn’t get a call when he didn’t deserve to get a call, and then he could have really hurt Darren Collison with that shove. There wasn’t even a play on the ball, nothing of the sort. That’s a punk ass foul and you can’t tell me that’s just a flagrant 1, like Tyson Chandler’s screen on LeBron (LBJ totally flopped) in the first round. This is ridiculous. Not to mention, this isn’t the first time Wade has pulled punk stuff like this. Remember last year when he pulled Rajon Rondo down, dislocating Rondo’s elbow and crushing Boston’s title hopes? Or for some reason giving a hard foul on Kobe Bryant in the All Star game this year, resulting in a broken nose and concussion?

2. Dwyane Wade Part 2 – After losing Game 2, Wade complained in the post-game presser that Indiana was celebrating too much after the win. They weren’t, but whatever.  The Bulls were pissed Indiana celebrated after beating them during the season too so this isn't the first we've heard about the Pacers being dicks.  However, if you watched the game with Miami you would have seen the buzzer sound, a few Pacers high five each other, and David West rush everybody off the floor.  No elaborate celebration. Funny Wade complains about celebrations, since I seem to remember the Heat having a championship party before signing anybody other than the big 3. I used to love Dwyane Wade but holy crap this dude is committing punk fouls and acting like a baby. This is why people don’t like Miami. Just shut up and play. We’re just getting started.

3. LeBron James Part 1 – Guys like Derrick Rose come across as humble because they are. Guys like Kobe Bryant come across as fierce, competitive dicks because they are. A guy like LeBron James puts on an act like he is humble and it is bullshit since everybody knows it is an act. If you've watched the Heat-Pacers series you have seen the video clip I'm about to rant on. After winning his third MVP in four years, LeBron said he can’t figure out why his name is mentioned with the greats of the game like Bird, Magic, Jordan, Kareem, etc. Well I could be cheap and say it is because LeBron doesn’t have a title, but it is more fun to point out how full of crap the self-proclaimed King is. Here is a guy who markets himself as “King James” and had ESPN hold an hour-long special on where he was going to sign during free agency. He was spotted wearing a shirt that said “LBJ MVP” a few years back so clearly he believes the hype. Say it is an honor and all that, but don’t act like you can’t believe you’re being mentioned with these people when you market yourself as the biggest and greatest thing to ever walk the Earth. When Steve Nash won his second MVP somebody asked him what comes to mind when he hears the names of the other people who have won multiple MVP awards or won two in a row and Nash replied, “Who doesn’t belong?” Nash never claimed to be King, so being humble seemed pretty genuine. LeBron still comes across as the guy trying to say the right things to make people like him because he realizes The Decision was a bad idea and wants to repair his image. And that is the problem: LeBron worries about his image too much.

4. LeBron James Part 2 – On Wednesday LeBron stated that it is “taxing” to play power forward with Bosh out and that playing 40 minutes or more in a playoff game is a lot and he was hoping he can get some rest. Now maybe some won’t see this as a complaint, but I feel talking about it is complaining since you would never hear Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan hint to the media that their coach should rest them or that they feel very tired playing a different position. Even Carmelo Anthony didn’t care about playing power forward, and he’s smaller than LeBron so going against other power forwards was tougher for him. Melo wasn’t complaining about how he was playing too many minutes or how it took a toll physically. He just wanted to make sure the Knicks were playing good enough defense to win, and that’s a fact no matter how weird saying that about Melo is. Maybe it wasn’t a complaint. Maybe he was just stating the case. I still feel it is worth noting Michael Jordan played 40 minutes or more in 17 of Chicago’s 21 playoff games in 1998, and he was 35 with bad knees. He wasn’t complaining about how playing more with Pippen injured against Utah was “taxing” and hoping he could get some rest, he took it on himself to kick some ass and win no matter what. That’s the mindset of guys like Jordan, Kobe, Garnett, and Duncan. They do what the team needs for a win and they don’t ask for shortcuts and they don’t complain. KG played small forward, then power forward, and now center. Not once did he complain about how physically demanding it was to switch positions or play more minutes in the playoffs. He wanted to win so he shut up and played. Is it so hard to ask that the most naturally talented athlete to ever play the game does the same?

5. NBA Officiating – If anybody reads this correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought the NBA instituted a new rule this year that said if you pump fake and then lean into somebody and throw up a jumper as a means of getting an easy foul call the refs won’t call it. I hate that move so I was glad to hear this, but yet I saw Derrick Rose go to the line off one early in the season and I’ve seen Kobe do this all the time. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade make a living doing this as well. In Game 1 against Indiana Wade did this and went to the line in the second quarter, then Dahntay Jones of the Pacers tried the same thing towards the end of the quarter but got no call. I know the Heat are going to get a ton of calls, but with something like that can’t the refs at least be consistent? Correction: So after posting this last night I had to go look up this rule to make sure I got it right. I didn't, as the new NBA rule is for "rip-through" moves, meaning you can't swing your arms into a defender's and then throw up a shot and hope for a foul call. Good thing Brandon Roy retired otherwise he'd be screwed. But that pump fake thing should be a rule since that's as cheap as the rip-through.  Either way, they called it for Wade but not for Jones just a few minutes later. It was the exact same play. That isn't right.

6. WWE Booking – They are most likely going to put the John Cena-John Laurinaitis showdown as the main event for Over the Limit this Sunday. That is totally idiotic since 1) Sheamus is defending the World Heavyweight Championship against Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and Alberto Del Rio and 2) CM Punk defending the WWE title against Daniel Bryan is going to be a match of the year candidate. If Laurinaitis loses then he is fired and all outside interference is banned. This of course means Laurinaitis is going to win due to some kind of interference, most likely the incredibly lame Lord Tensai attacking John Cena backstage before the match or something. The match will be roughly 8 to 10 minutes long, Johnny Ace wins, Cena will be incapacitated somehow, and everybody except children will be mad Punk-Bryan or the four-way wasn’t the main event.

So that’s about it for now. Game 3 of the Heat-Pacers series is happening as I type this and Game 2 of the Spurs-Clippers is next so I need to get ready.

What's Up with the Association's Top Teams?

We are slightly farther into the NBA season and even though it has only been a few days since I last shared my thoughts on the world’s greatest game, there have been some developments worth discussing regarding some of the league’s biggest and brightest teams.

Miami Heat:Artist rendering of LeBron James last night

Wow have these last few days been a learning experience or what? First, we find out Dwyane Wade may have plantar fasciitis. For those unaware, that is a very painful inflammation in the foot. After missing three games due to soreness in the foot, Wade was adamant he was fine and returned against the Warriors on Tuesday and looked very good, scoring 34 points and shooting 48%. However last night he shot 35% en route to to 17 points and a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. With this vicious schedule putting teams in action with hardly any rest, that foot is going to be a nagging issue that could come back to haunt Miami big time since Wade has hit both game winners for the team this season.

As for LeBron James, he spent the summer training with NBA legend Hakeem Olajuwon to improve his post game. Hakeem’s career highlight is leading the Houston Rockets to back-to-back championships, leading to the city being dubbed “Clutch City.” Apparently Hakeem couldn’t do much for him as LBJ has spent the last two nights constructing “Anti-Clutch City” for himself and his fellow Heatles by performing miserably in the fourth quarter and overtime of both games. LeBron did practically nothing against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday, notching three points in the fourth and overtime...combined. Then last night LeBron went 1-6 in the fourth and overtime, and missed several crucial free throws down the stretch. Granted it was one game in January, but it is worth pointing out the Heat have won on two game winners this season and they weren’t LeBron. Now when he’s had the ball in his hands in the clutch he’s been ineffective and cost the team. It is great LeBron has taken his game inside the three point arc and is using his superior athletic skills, but until he gets over whatever it is in his head the Heat are in serious trouble if Wade is out.

Chicago Bulls:

I get so nervous thinking about Chicago's issues so I look at this to relax

You want to talk about a team in trouble? Chicago has the deepest team in the league and may very well be the best team in the league, but there are some concerns moving forward. The most important is Derrick Rose’s health. He missed last night’s game with a sprained toe and has been having issues with his left elbow. He says he is fine, but who is really going to come out and say “Yo I’m fucked up, man”? If his toe is hurt badly then he won’t be able to drive as much and this is not a good thing. No Rose means no offense in the Windy City since there is not one person on that team who can create for themselves consistently.

The other major issue here is Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah. The Bulls are paying them a whole lot of money and in the fourth quarter of the last few games they’ve been doing a whole lot of sitting on the bench. People have theorized that coach Tom Thibodeau doesn’t trust them enough to play them in the late game situations, but I feel it is too weird that they are sitting for an entire quarter. My theory on it is that they are both injury prone so he is going to limit their minutes in the early season to play them longer stretches come playoff time. At least that is what I hope this is all about. If Rose is jacked up, their next best scoring options are Boozer, Rip Hamilton, and Luol Deng. Rip is nursing a groin injury, Deng plays too many minutes to be relied on too often, and if Boozer isn’t even playing then this is all very bad. And Joakim Noah’s defense and rebounding is key to the team’s success, but if he isn’t being used due to ineffectiveness, then Chicago is in some serious trouble in their quest for a ring.

Oklahoma City Thunder:

I have no clever image for this one

People are saying Durant and Westbrook are fine, but I just don’t buy it. I also don’t like how Westbrook’s percentages are going up, but his assists have stayed the same. I don’t buy that Westbrook and Durant will coexist peacefully and win a title. Well maybe they can win one, but I don’t know how great this relationship will be in the future. The Thunder also have a bit of an issue now with Eric Maynor, their back-up point guard, going down for the season with a torn ACL. He was an important piece of that Thunder depth and if the injury bug starts hitting them harder this is going to be a long season.

Los Angeles Lakers:This is all I think of when I think of Kobe

Some will say Kobe is playing great, I will say Kobe is hogging the ball because he wants to send some kind of a message that he’s still good. Yeah good for him, let’s see how taking 30 shots a game works for them come playoff time. I still refuse to believe that the FIFTEEN YEARS of wear and tear on his body aren’t going to come back and haunt him during this insane schedule. He is already nursing like four different injuries, and if doesn’t take time to heal and keeps trying to do so much this won’t end well. And even if the injuries don’t pile up for Kobe, the Lakers can’t win a championship if he is playing like this. I am glad for Mike Brown that the Lakers are playing better than people thought they would, but sadly reality is going to hit this team at some point.

Also, Andrew Bynum is going through the best stretch of his career. Let’s give it about six more games before he gets injured. And that is very sad because Bynum and Gasol up front gives LA an advantage over almost everybody, but for some reason Kobe is taking the most shots per game he has since 2006...when they had Kwame Brown and Smush Parker. Keep in mind Kobe is older and more beat up than he was back then. The Lake Show is almost over so we should enjoy it while we can. Kobe doesn’t have Phil Jackson there to stop him from being so enamored with being Kobe. Mike Brown is an enabler who allowed LeBron James to build up the biggest ego on the planet, so we can expect more of the same here.

That is it for now. There are games on TNT tonight that will be so bad I will more than likely spend my night reading Keith Richards’ autobiography and watching WWE’s Bret Hart compilation from 2005. Why on Earth do I want to watch the unbelievably overrated Knicks take on a Grizzlies team missing their best player? And why would I want to watch Dwight “I am half-assing it because I don’t want to be here in Orlando” Howard play the Warriors? Yuck.