What Have We Learned?

It’s been an educational month of NBA playoffs, that’s for certain. We’ve learned a lot about some of the “superstars” and their teams. Here are a few thoughts I had while watching Stan Van Gundy and Dwight Howard get into a slap fight like a couple of high school girls.

- The Lakers Still Have No Heart
What is this team’s problem? They play like it’s a pickup game at the rec center, and they have a chance to close out a 2nd round series on the road. They have absolutely no heart. If this team played out to its full potential they would be the best team in the league. They should be going for their second title in a row, but instead they are going to end up falling short in the conference finals. That’s right, if they don’t get their act together they are going to get beat by a hungrier, more determined, and damn good Nuggets team. After last year’s Finals, Kobe said the Celtics were just “hungrier.” I believe that, I have a problem with anyone who says that, but I believe it. How can you be a professional athlete, and have your hunger outmatched? Is that a motivation problem? Should we be looking at Phil? Maybe it’s the fact that they play in a mausoleum? Either way, this team doesn’t deserve to win a title.

- It’s Time for Dwight to Grow Up
I mean this in a couple different ways. First of all, don’t call out your coach. You’re 24 and you’ve never won a meaningful playoff series. Stan Van went to the conference finals and then had a title team taken away from him because of the greed of a slicked-back grease ball. Second, call for the damn ball in the fourth. Don’t cry that the coach didn’t run you enough plays, this is your team so act like it. Also, if you want to be the big man, the franchise guy, you need to become a consistent scorer. It’s time for Dwight to decide if he wants to be Shaq or Robert Parish. Don’t get me wrong, Robert Parish was a great player, but Dwight can be Shaq-like if he gains that offensive game.

- I Wish KG Was Playing.
I hate the Celtics. I really hate them. I can’t stand KG and I think Paul Pierce is one of the most overrated pieces of turd to come out of the garbage era of the NBA (1999-2006). Still, if KG was playing we’d be getting ready for one of the best final fours we’ve ever seen in the NBA. In the west we have a hungry, talented Denver Nuggets team getting ready for the veteran driven and super talented Los Angeles Lakers. And we could have a rematch of one of the better series in the last decade or so between the Celtics and a better Cavaliers team. I think even with KG the Celts wouldn’t be able to beat Cleveland, but it would make for an even more interesting series. I should feel the same way about Cleveland/ Orlando potentially, but I don’t. And I know you don’t either.

- Denver Is Going to Do More Than Just Challenge L.A.
If Kobe & Co. believe that they can scrape by the Rockets and waltz into Denver and do the same thing they are out of their mind. This Nuggets team is really good, regardless of the fact that they finished 10 games behind L.A. I’d argue that if the Nuggets had Chauncey through the off-season and in time for the opener they’d have been a lot closer to the Lakers. The Nuggets have dropped two games through the first two rounds, including an embarrassing thrashing of Chris Paul’s Hornets, and the recent dismantling of Dirk and the Mavericks. There is nobody on the Lakers who can cover Chauncey Billups, unless they move Kobe on him but then Carmelo will run rough all over them. Speaking of Carmelo…

- Really Chuck? The Best Scorer in the Game Today?
After the Game 5 win in Denver, Charles Barkley called Carmelo the best scorer in the game today. He said Lebron was the best player, Kobe was right behind him, and Carmelo was the best pure scorer. I love Carmelo, I’m a huge fan of his game. I think he’s a tremendous athlete and definitely one of the best players in the league. But calling him the best scorer in the league? That’s outlandish…right? When I started thinking about it more and more, I can see where Chuck is coming from. Carmelo doesn’t put up the gaudy numbers that King or Kobe put up, but he doesn’t necessarily need to. It’s never because he can’t, it’s usually because he doesn’t have to. He’s just as capable of dropping 50 on any given night as anyone else. Then I started to think about the other aspects of Melo’s game. His shot is cleaner and better than Lebron’s, from inside and outside the arch. It’s not as good as Kobe’s, but his inside game is better than Kobe’s is at this point. Kobe can’t really go the rack the way he was once able to, and the way Carmelo can now. He gets to the line just as well as anyone in the league, and for the most part he can score at will. So while I would say that if I need 10 points at any given time, I’d probably still go with Kobe, I do see where Chuck is coming from calling Carmelo the best scorer in the game. Good observation Chuck.

- Kobe’s Last Hurrah
It certainly has that feel to it. I don’t think he’ll ever have as good an opportunity as he has this year to win a title. The odometer is rising on him, and the young guys in the league are just getting better and better. What will be interesting to see is whether Kobe will go back to his ball-hogging, shoot first ask questions later mentality, or if he’ll be able to keep his cool and keep his teammates involved when the going gets tough in Game 7 and in the next series against the Nuggets. I’m not a Kobe fan, but part of me would like to see him win one more title. He’s one of the all-time greatest players the league has ever seen, it would be a shame if he was remembered down the line as the guy who was on Shaq’s title teams. Unfortunately, I just don’t see it happening. This Lakers team is going to struggle to keep up with Cleveland, they don’t have the heart and the desire, and I don’t know why.