All-NBA teams and All-NBA memes 2013: the return

The same post last year was the most viewed of this humble blog (5000 impressions). "Never change a winning recipe", they say (actually, no, they say that for teams, but you get it).

So I'm disclosing my All-NBA teams with memes.

Same as last year and because we have entered an era that is poor in centers, I adapted the All-NBA rules to pick one "big man" per team rather than be forced to pick exclusively a center. That is: center OR power forward, what one would call "intérieur" in French, but what does not have a direct translation in English it seems as "front court" includes the Small Forward position. This season, however, has not only been poor in centers, it's been poor in "big men" in general. What have become of the power forwards, Jesus ? (no, not you Ray... not anymore).

ALL-NBA 1st TEAM:
G: LeBlow Job
G: +Chris Paul
F: +Carmelo Anthony
F: Kevin Durant
C: Tim Duncan

Any justifications needed ? There might be a small debate on:

• Paul over Parker. Maybe.
• Paul over Westbrook. Maybe.
• Paul over Kobe. Nop. Sorry Kobe : you barely qualified for the playoffs.

As for the big man: at 18 PPG, 10 RPG, 3 APG, 2.5 BPG, 50% FG in only 30 minutes per game, Tim Duncan is the one who trully deserves #vino !

ALL-NBA 2nd TEAM:

G: Tony Parker
G: Russell Westbrook
F: Kobe Bryant
F: +Dwyane Wade
C: Marc Gasol

Justifications:

• Wade in the 2nd team over Harden... Questionable. But, guys, 66 wins. That's not all LeBron. We're talking about a top 5 global player, no less, even if the season was not his best.
• Big man: statistically Randolph deserved it more than Gasol. But the presence of Grizzlies players here is less due to pure stats to the team's results. And Gasol earned himself a spot in the defensive 1st team, if not Best Defensive player award.

ALL-NBA 3rd TEAM:

G: Stephen Curry
G: James Harden
F: David Lee
F: Zach Randolph
C: +Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard? Really? Yes. People are tough on him, but he still weighed 17 PPG, at 58% FG, 2.5 BPG... And the title of best rebounder once again. Over 76 games. Solid. If I were the Lakers, I'd sign him a max deal, let's be serious for 2 seconds.

Jamal Crawford for MUP (Most Underrated Player)

This player is not your typical NBA player.
He's been one of my favorite since he tried carrying the Bulls on his slim shoulders 10 years ago, during my Chicagoan years... God, 2003: all these games I attended at the United Center, he was the only player worth watching (well, Pippen was back, but barely played).
He's a perennial non-all-star, undeservedly so.
He's the perfect transfer commodity (6 clubs in 13 years: who said journeyman ?), undeservedly so.
He's now been benched for 6 years, undeservedly so.

MUP ? Yes.
Not so much stats-wise. Jamal has put up great numbers throughout his career, with all-star-caliber seasons but which were played for sub-30-win teams. His 1st playoff game came as a Hawk, when he was already 6th man in the team.
Jamal is underrated because he's is one of the very, very few in the game who you can just give the ball to and he will have the NBA crowds stand on their feet and forget their onion rings for a sec. When he catches fire, he's not only unstoppable: he will put on a show to remember, just like he did in game 2 of the playoffs series against the Grizzlies a few days ago. Just watch for yourself:

You want facts, I'll give you facts: Jamal is the player with the most 50-point games in his career who has never been an all-star. He scored 50 points twice, as well as 52 points in a memorable route of incumbent champions Miami Heat in 2007 at Madison Square Garden, a game that gave me goose bumps as Jamal scored 16 straight buckets midway through the game. D-Wade was at a loss.
Talk about Most Underrated Player.
Talk about having the most difficult crowd to please (NY's) stand on their feet and cheer for the game.

The most compelling fact though is probably the fact that Jamal OWNS A SIGNATURE MOVE. Does +LeBron James own a signature move ? Nop. When you type "shake'n bake" on YouTube, Jamal Crawford comes in as a 3rd suggestion. LeBlow Job doesn't come as a suggestion for any move. Hell, if you type LeBron James on YouTube, the only move that is suggested is the Harlem Shake. That's right.

Crawford's shake 'n bake crossover is one of the most insanely spectacular moves in the game, which make of Jamal Crawford one of the sickest ball-handlers, probably alongside Chris Paul and Rajon Rondo.

Thank you for the show all these years, @JCrossover.

Coronation street: predicting a title boulevard for the Heat

The real question this year is not who will win the championship, but rather how many games will Miami need to win it all.
My prediction: 20.
Miami will need NO MORE THAN 20 GAMES TO GET ITS THIRD TITLE, winning its series with an average of 4-1. It's a daring prediction, when you think of the fact that, since the advent of the best-of-seven 1st round series in 2003, only San Antonio managed to win a championship in 20 games (in 2007). And that's because they were lucky enough not to face a 67-win Mavericks squad. The 2000s have not been a decade of utter domination at all, but now it's time for a new era of back-2-backs and 3-peats and Ask-4-mores (just made that last one up).
Before that, we had gone through 2 decades of dynasties, so even if teams needed only 15 games to win it all, from the advent of the 4-round playoffs in 1984 to the last year of best-of-five 1st round series in 2003, as many as 10 championship teams managed to get their trophy while undergoing only 4 defeats or fewer: L.A. in 2001, S.A. in 1999, Chicago in 1997, 1996, 1993, 1991, Detroit in 1989, L.A. in 1987, 1985, Boston in 1986.

So here are my predictions:

The one series I hesitated the most:
-no, not MEM-L.A., but BKN-CHI. I finally gave the edge to Brooklyn, because they have the strongest go-to-player of the match-up - Deron Williams. But Chicago's defense will be a long calvary for the Nets.

Other series I hesitated about:
- obviously MEM-L.A.. But same as last year: I think that when you have Chris Paul you have an edge of practically anyone. Supermen prevails in this league, and take their teams to the next level.
- SAS-DEN: it depends how in shape the Spurs. I went from the principle that they would not be banged up anymore.
- OKC-LAC: touuugh series.
- NYK-IND: I want to believe that the acquision of Melo will finally make a difference.

The one series I'm looking forward to:
- MIA-NYK: cannot wait to see +Carmelo Anthony (try and) break Michael Jordan's 63 points playoff record for an epic game or two.

The one series I would have loved to see:
- the butterfly effect, or how Al Qaida managed to crush the city of New York again:  if the bombing hadn't occured in Boston, the NBA would not have cancelled the 82th game between Boston and Indiana, Boston would have won, BRooklyn would have earned the 3rd seed, and we would have had a 7-game derby between the NYK and BKN, which will have been one for the ages.

Of course, haters will hate, and I'm hoping I'm wrong about all this, and that LeBlow Job will end up elbowing his way to the crown with much greater difficulty.

In #kobe veritas

The greatest warrior in the game may have just suffered the most lethal blow. And, man, I'm just really sad. The video below is one of the most moving scenes I've ever seen in 20 years of following pro sports: Kobe holding his tears up as he's describing the most disappointing moment of his career, his body failing him when he most needed it, fans actually starting to wonder whether this will not be the end of Kobe, period. A ruptured achilles tendon is the injury I've always dreaded the most, especially with my recurrent tendinitis. Picturing it is horrible, remembering Patrick Ewing or Dominique Wilkins going through it is making me uncomfortable in my own feet. Seeing such a great fighter forced to surrender without being physically able to put up a last fight is unfair.

I never supported Bryant, hell if anything I've hated him for years, from the 2000 NBA finals game 4 when he killed the Pacers in overtime, to the 2004 series against the Spurs or the title against Boston in 2010. He's basically been the best player in the game from 1999 to 2009, playing for a team I hated. But I've always been in owe in front of his prowesses, his drive, his killer instinct and his work ethic.
A work ethic that was him getting to play more minutes than ever, at a still very impressive and intensive level, defying age and adversity, to qualify his surprisingly clumsy +Los Angeles Lakers  squad. All he needed was the #8 seed, to keep his hopes alive to go face +LeBron James in the finals. And you never knew, with Kobe Bryant. Maybe he would have been able to lift his team up there. God, I would have loved to see the Lakers face the Heat. Even more so than the Spurs. And for the 1st time in my life I would have supported the Lakers  - the clear underdogs.
Kobe, however, spoke a little too fast when he compared himself to good wine improving with age. I truly wish #vino could have defied LeBlow in the finals. He deserved it, thanks to his dedication and work ethic were unique.
I'm sincerely hoping this is not the end of Kobe Bryant on the court.

The NBA is not dead: watch the final this Sunday between Miami and San Antonio. Thank you LeBlow Job.

Was it ever? For me it almost was. Dead, that is. It has been months since I last posted anything (last season actually). I had prepared a post in the beginning of the season to list the few things that were worth following. But apart from Rasheed Wallace’s comeback and the surprise demise of the +Los Angeles Lakers , I didn’t think there was much to comment on.

So I spent the first third of the year spending more time following the rise of +PSG - Paris Saint-Germain and Ibrahimovic in the French football Ligue 1 than the +NBA. I was not even able to sit through a full game anymore.

Beginning in January, my NBA regimen started getting a little more glutton: purchasing an Apple TV and being able to watch games on a large screen TV pushed me to watch at least some game recaps. Add to that the genius of game ratings from nba.lemons.se (the bastards who stole my idea) and you got yourself a few hours a month of fun basketball to watch in the best environment possible.

March has been another story though.

First, Kobe and the Lakers are somehow resurrecting. I must say I’m strangely happy for them.

Second and most of all we’re witnessing history in the making thanks to Mr. LeBlow Job. 27 WINS IN A ROW for Christ’s sake. And the best ever Player Efficiency Rate in history, above Michael Jordan’s 1987-1988 season.

So I still have the most for the +Miami HEAT and +LeBron James, but it’s thrilling to watch their games and hope they will finally stumble off the top of the world they’re arrogantly sitting on. They’ll win the championship anyway, that’s why the most interesting part of the season is really the next few days: will Miami rise up to 34 wins a row ? Can they beat the +Chicago Bulls @ the United Center tomorrow, and mostly can they beat the +San Antonio Spurs on March 31^st?

My take on the showdown against the Spurs will be the pivotal game in their streak: I think San Antonio has a real shot at ending this. If Miami wins, however, it will be win #30 (a striking symbol) and the next 4 games, even the one against the Knicks, are easily manageable. So this Heat @ Spurs this Sunday is really the finals before the finals.  

Of course, Miami might end up stupidly losing against a sub-0,500% team before or after the game in San Antonio. But all odds are pointing towards this game.
Other possibility: Pop could decide to ruin the show by sitting his top stars like last time in Miami :), just to taunt the great David and his absolute powers one last time before the latter's retirement. 

In any case, whatever team ends the streak will immediately become a cursed nemesis for the Heat and a savior for all the LeBlow Job’s haters out there. And also for Jerry West and the 72' Lakers streak.

France - Spain : who's to despise more now?

What a fantastically awful symbol: Nicolas Batum, until now one of our cleanest and smartest players, going for the dirtiest move of the basketball olympic tournament to express his frustration after Juan-Carlos Navarro, the player who epitomizes Spanish basketball year-on-year domination over France, but also Spanish basketball slyness in all its splendor.

I've listed reasons to hate on the Spanish team even more now and to appreciate Batum for what he did

1. Because the Spaniards cheated.

They lost purposely against Brazil to avoid Team USA in the quarter-finals, and, in an ideal world, should have been disqualified from the tournament.

2. Because Navarro is the sliest flopper in the game.

I've seen him play in Barcelona: the reason why he didn't succeed in the NBA is that he's a super smooth player lacking physical power, and thus always going for the flop and the foul. It's extremely annoying from a spectator point of view as it degrades the game. I can imagine hundreds of players who've been victims of Navarro smile at the comment Batum made when asked right after the game about hitting Navarro in the groin: "I wanted to give him a good reason to flop". C'est mal M. Batum. Très mal ;).

3. Because how can you not hate a team's guts after they kick you out of 3 major tournaments in a row?

Forget about Greece. They don't play in the same league as France now. Our ultimate nemesis are the Spaniards, and I can't wait to have the US team destroy them... unless they lose to the Russians in the semis. On Friday in London, I'll be rooting for the Russians in any case.

 It's too bad, because as much as I hated them already, I thought they were the lesser of two evils when compared to Team USA - I'm not into LeBron-led teams :). In any case, it's only fair to hate them more now.

And now reasons why France is starting to get on my nerves and Batum turned into a major disappointment

1. Because France turned Rudy Fernandez into a victim! 

After his hard shove on Parker a year ago in the European championship final, and his ejection in the exhibition game in July at Bercy, Fernandez was the one player we all loved to hate in France, and Batum, a former teammate in Portland, had always seemed to outduel him and was the forward Portland preferred to Fernandez. The tipping point of this the game, after endless minutes where the score seemed virtually halted at 57-58, arrived when Parker finally took a good shot in a comfortable position, for what would hopefully have been a much deserved lead for France, but ultimately missed the shot while Batum (seemed to have) hit Rudy hard on the rebound, for subsequent easy free throws and a clearer 3-point lead. 

A few minutes later, Turiaf went for a (seemingly?) hard foul on Fernandez, which signaled the death of France, and saw an annoyingly victimized Fernandez (yes, I'm biased) take his time to recover.

2. Because we didn't need a basketball Zidane.

The dirty player was Fernandez, and the sly, flopping player was Navarro. We all knew that and we didn't need unsportsmanlike attitude, which will just have Spain wallow in satisfaction and despise towards France. Plus, I hated Batum's face after hitting Navarro, acting surprised and pretending it was just a normal foul, and not even getting ejected for it.

3. Because I'm sick of seeing France not knowing how to win big games.

I'm sick of seeing these France players play well in the NBA, play a better tournament than the Spaniards in spite of Noah's absence, lead most of the game, only to let it slip at the end. It was written, we all knew it would unfold like that, and Team France didn't disappoint. These players are mature now, Parker won many championships, why on earth are they not able to sustain a lead in big games? Fuck it. 

All-NBA teams and All-NBA memes

I love rankings, top fives in particular, even before High Fidelity kinda made it a thing.

The NBA just released its All-NBA teams. I respectfully disagree with 40 % of them. Main reason is: it's time the NBA offsets a few PF to Centers, and a few SG to SF. Otherwise we end up with Tyson Chandler in the 3rd team :s.

So here are mine:

All NBA 1st team:

LeBron James

Kevin Durant

Dwight Howard

Kobe Bryant

Tony Parker 

Rationals:

- Tony P. over Paul: the best season of the leader of the best team in the league. Period.

- Dwight Howard over Kevin Love: I hesitated a lot, but at the end of the day, the Magic won many more games

- Kobe over D-Wade: I hesitated a lot for Kobe, especially since Wade is statistically much more robust than Kobe. 50% Vs 43% shooting. No brainer for me. But Kobe carried his team on his shoulders, played more games, more minutes, and almost finished best scorer in the league. Hats off to the 33 y-o star.


To illustrate my all-NBA 1st team, I thought I'd represent it with an All-NBA meme (I loooove the Kobe one, obviously):

All NBA 2nd team:

Blake Griffin

Dwyane Wade

Kevin Love

Russel Westbrook

Chris Paul

Rationals:

- I cheated : I considered Wade tall enough to play SF, as he was more deserving of an All NBA 2nd team than the forwards in the 3rd. 

- no brainer for the other players

All NBA 3rd team:

Dirk Nowitzki

Paul Pierce

Tim Duncan

Carmello Anthony

Derrick Rose

Rationals:

- Nowitzki started out slow, but finished with an impressive scoring line. 

- Pierce: the best Celtic, still. And they had a surprisingly good season. 

- Duncan: he played less than 29min... but was a pivotal player of the best team in the league, with better stats than Marc Gasol with less playing time! Over 38 min, he's statistically the best interior in the league again. At age 36.

- Anthony: still impressive, though not able to propel his Knicks to playoffs heights

- Rose: a disappointing season, but still the leader of the best team in the East

- Rondo, Bosh, the Gasol brothers, Bynum, Aldridge? next year...

Olajuwon forever: in complete awe!

I just stumbled upon this video from Hakeem Olajuwon as I was reading a Bill Simmons article about Footnote titles, a pretty classic Simmons ranking about all these NBA championships that weren't entirely truly deserved and kinda require an asterisk to them, where he ranked Olajuwon's 1994 Rockets team as the most deserving of a big footnote (as in: hadn't Jordan inexplicably retired the year before, the Rockets wouldn't have won it that year).

But that's not the point. The point is: he's the first to acknowledge Hakeem's superiority at the time.
I mean, these sequences of moves are soooo jaw-dropping, as if they were choreographed. All people just remotely interested in basketball should be shown this very video to discover the true essence and art of the game, even before watching slam dunk highlights. 
I remember really loving that player back then - Jordan, Pippen, Olajuwon and Shawn Kemp were my fab four. I didn't remember, however, how smooth and fast his technique was.
I also remember reading his agile footwork was due to his learning how to play soccer as a teenager in Nigeria, and his quickness was due to his being slightly smaller compared to other centers.


I don't even think Jordan or Kobe, the players with the quickest and most precise footwork, spin moves and fadeaways, I've witnessed in 20 years, can actually rival Olajuwon's grace, now that I'm reminded of it!
In any case, there is no center or power forward, not even Duncan at his prime, who can rival his technique.

Tribute to Sir Charles: "I predict Charles Barkley is gonna be fat, again"

Just rewatched a hilarious Saturday Night Live skid of TNT's Inside the NBA. Priceless quotes, atmosphere and performance by Barkley:

- "This year you promised you'd cool down on the pranks and focus on basketball"

- "no, this is a professional television show, guys"

Since Shaq joined TNT's show, pranks have multiplied, even earning the show and Barkley multiple Emmies...

Watching that, I can't believe that in the old days I used to root against Barkley and Shaq that much. I mean: these two guys where Jordan's ultimate nemeses back then, I just had to hate on them. In 92-93, the year I started following the NBA, Barkley was the season MVP and Jordan's rival in the finals, while Shaq was the one who ousted Jordan out of the playoffs upon on his return to the courts in 1995.
Also, funny to think these 2 guys now get along so well, when you think that one of Barkley's last NBA games as a player turned into a brawl with Shaq. Watch the brawl and ensuing comments by TNT's Inside the NBA 13 years ago, already with Ernie Johnson and Kenny "the Jet" Smith...

Now watch Shaq, Sir Charles, Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and other fellas from TNT re-live and discuss that fight 12 years later. Straight out of a Martin Lawrence film.

My 2012 playoffs predictions

So here I am, cheating again as I prepare my predictions one game into the playoffs.
Also, it's about time after 6 years I skip from Times New Roman to Verdana.


Just a foreword to stress this has probably been to me the least interesting season of the last 20 ones. Yet, my two favorite teams - Bulls and Spurs - are topping the league! It's just a sum of things: the annoyance of the lock out, the lack of rivalry, the ominous impression that LeBron is bound to finally win it all, but with little style... 
The playoffs should come up to a no surprise showdown between the NBA's two best players, LeBlow Job and Kevin "French pornstar" Durant. Unlike most experts, and even though I still hesitate a lot, I want to bet on Durant and the Thunder to win it all. I've seen so many close games won by the Thunder this year, starting with the recent playoffs ones, they're such a robust, cohesive squad, as opposed to a somewhat disappointing Miami team singlehandedly carried by superman James... who still hasn't proven he can turn it on during the finals. So I see OKC in 6, even though I'm quite distrustful of Russel Westbrook, a talented but frighteningly selfish player at times. I know it's a long shot, but it's my bet. I obviously also speak from the heart a bit, as I hate Miami.

LeBlow Job and "Pornstar" Durant on the court... and (yes) at the pool (does LeBron look kinda short or what?)

I'm hoping however that the playoffs can reserve surprises and see the old rivalries rise again, from Spurs to Lakers, Mavs or Celtics. I doubt it though.
So here we go:

A bit of explanation.

1st round

Bulls-Sixers: not much to say. Rose's injury will cost the Bulls one game, but they know how to play without him anyway. 4-1 for Chicago.
Hawks-Celtics: so Rondo will miss game 2, and they're already down 0-1 against a solid Hawks squad. On paper, the Celtics are weaker than ever, they don't even have a center! But neither do the Hawks after all and the Celts have done great after the all-star break. Most of all: they're the goddam Celtics, they won't let this slip. 4-3.
Pacers-Magic: I hadn't realized Howard was out on injury! I was about to predict a Magic win. No way in hell they can win without him. They have a solid bench though and a strong experience. I say 4-2 for Indiana.
Heat-Knicks: so I'm writing these predictions knowing that Stoudemire self-injured his hand by hitting the glass of a fire extinguisher case (you can follow the life of the poor extinguisher on Twitter @ AAA extinguisher). Well, these things happen, after all Ama're was super disappointing this season, and Anthony can catch fire at any time. He actually probably will at some point... But the difference of talent is just too important. The Heat will crush the Knicks 4-0. Before the Stoudemire accident I would probably have said 4-1.
Spurs-Jazz: the Jazz will take one game. The Spurs never sweep anyone, not their style. They're more the 4-1 the style.
Grizzlies-Clippers: well that's interesting. Against most pundits, I will go with the Clipps on that one. So, granted, I cheated : I've seen the greatest playoffs come back in history that was game 1. They have the psychological edge. But I will have bet 4-3 on them anyway. Granted: Memphis has been one of the hottest teams in the post ASG period, they have the same roster as last year... + their best player, Rudy Gay, who's finally back, while the Clipps have just lost Butler. However: the best and most experienced player of the two team is the Clippers' Chris Paul, this guy can carry a team on his shoulder and win games on his own, while Z-Bo, formerly the Grizz' best player, seem to have collapsed statistically this season. Also the Clippers still have a lot of depth: Nick Young is playing very well, Mo Williams, K-Mart, etc. 4-3 for the Clipps, for a series I expect to be for the ages.

Lakers-Nuggets: still don't get how the Nuggets have won so many games. It's just a good all-around and unselfish team. But come on: we're talking Kobe and the Lakers. 4-1. 
Thunder-Mavs: so this is sad. This is sad, because the incumbent champions could have done a great playoffs race, I've grown attached to this team, I will always cherish the memory of their finals against the Heat, just like millions of Miami haters in this world, and they're still a damn good team, regardless of their season. Nowitzki and Kidd are one year older though, and mostly they have lost Tyson Chandler. Odom got cut, Carter didn't bring much. Also, I've cheated: I've seen the first two games. They could have won both, I was super disappointed. But that's what will make the Thunder the Western Conference champion in 2012: on top of their great game, they have luck on their side. 4-1.

Semi-finals

Bulls-Celtics: the Bulls are a 66%-win team without Rose. But the Celtics might get Allen back, and I see this as a revival of the Bulls-Celtics series of 2009: a tight series, eventually won 4-3 by the Celtics.
Heat-Pacers: the Pacers can play some good basketball, they've beaten the Heat this year, which are not invincible. So I see the Pacers winning 1 game. 4-1 for the Heat.
Spurs-Clippers: so here's the thing, I see the Clippers going way further into these playoffs than most people expect them to. As everyone knows, the Spurs are the best regular season team of the decade for all US sports, but when playoffs come, they don't have the required toughness they used to have. Also, comparing starting lineups, I realize that the Spurs' two best players of the season, Tony P. and Duncan, are probably a notch below their Cipp's counterparts, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. This will be great to watch. 4-2 for the Clipps. Of course, I wish I were wrong.
Thunder-Lakers: the Lakers are weaker than ever, Metta World Peace, as very averagely useful as he has become anyway, could have served on defense on Durant but is suspended until probably the middle of the series. Also, Thabo is one of the best defenders on Kobe. But the Lakers have the best frontcourt in the league, have had a fantastic come back against the Thunder recently, and I suspect won't surrender without a great fight. 4-2.

Conference Finals

Celtics-Heat: complete crush by the Heat. If Ray Allen comes back, might be a tighter series, but I doubt he will. 4-1 like last year. The Heat should cruise to the finals in the East anyway. If they don't, they suck.
Clippers-Thunder: a wildly high flying series that should still end up in OKC advancing to their first finals in professional sports history. 4-2.

Finals

Thunder-Heat: I've said it all in the intro. The Thunder have Durant to rival James, and Westbrook to rival Wade, plus a better, more cohesive squad. Most of all, they have a knack for come backs and winning close games. I wish it would go 4-3, but these are pretty rare in the finals, usually one team cracks the other's defense and strategy before that. 4-2.

Suns forever?

The Suns are the weirdest team I've seen in years. 
I cannot believe Marcin Gortat is now the best scorer of the Phoenix Suns - 16 pts/game, 5th in the league in field goal percentage, 10th in rebounding. Almost an all-star.
Also, Steve Nash is 38, still leads the league in assists/game, and Grant Hill will turn 40 in October with 10pts/game. 

And yet: the Suns are close to the 50% bar in the West, it's a decent team.
Funny they haven't considered rebuilding yet. Not a single move. Well, apart from Gortat.

Is Rondo over-rated?

Just out of Celtics-Rockets, a pretty good game, which Rondo almost spoiled for the Celts by "bricking" a lay up where he was driving to the hoop without opponent, which helped Houston send the game into overtime a few seconds later.

I am bemused by the genius of this player, his all-star dribble and passing abilities, and the ease with which he can miss easy lay ups sometimes as just badly as ridiculously as Ben Wallace. It doesn't make any sense.

Watching the NBA all-star game from France after the fact: a 19-year habit

This was my 19th NBA all-star game. As usual, the non-fun part was to to try and avoid spoilers: avoid social networks, avoir news sites, avoid newspapers, avoid basketball fans, avoid colleagues who know I like basketball and think I'll be happy to see they remember it, warn basketball friends that I wouldn't be able to watch the game before Tuesday evening... Bref: watching a big game after the fact. Usual stuff.

Unfortunately, Google+ spoiled it: I very briefly and very reluctantly stumbled upon a picture of Kevin Durant in my feed... It was too late. 


Did you know that "Durant" was in the top 10 most widespread surnames in France?

And Kevin was a widely popular (in both senses of the term) name in the 80s-90s, for mums who wanted to call their son after names from silly US soaps, or films like Home alone, etc...

I'm pretty sure they are hundreds of Kevin Durant in France.

So apart from the fact that I knew Durant had won the MVP and that the West had won the game and that I was not supposed to tell my friend who was watching the game with me that LeBlow Job would either miss the buzzer beater or just defer to Wade or another player as usual (which he did) when the East had the last possession, it was a fairly good game.

In the middle of the second quarter, we did wonder whether we hadn't gotten "too old for this shit", as this was getting pretty boring and messy, but for once I'm glad LeBron got his team back on track, and almost kind of glad Wade broke Kobe's nose (retaliation was weak though). LeBron's series of amazing 3s (uncomfortably reminiscent of how he single-handedly killed the Bulls in game 5 of the East finals last year) at the end definitely turned it into a worthwhile show.

From Kobe to Dr Lecter (sorry Kobe but thank you Dwyane Wade) to  Kevin "spoiler" Durant

The dunk contest was crap, but Tony Parker won the skills challenge, and mostly Kevin Love, who already grabs 14 rb a game and scores +20pts, beat Kevin Durant at the 3 point shootout. This guy just became the best all-around player out of nowhere. I was also thinking: there certainly isn't any Frenchmen called "Kevin Love", but if one of our hundreds of Kevin Durants was to become a porn actor, he'd probably go for Kevin Love as a "stage" name.

Kevin Strangelove, or how he learned to stop worrying and love the 3

Latest NBA ad and Moneyball...

One of the best NBA ads ever: the ending with MJ and D-Rose is giving me goose bumps.
I just saw Moneyball today (Moneyball (2011) Movie Trailer - HD - Brad Pitt), and it's intriguing how much Brad Pitt's character is all about the stats and leaving aside all emotional aspects of the game. That might work for baseball, but basketball is a less statistical sport: it's only 5 of your players on the court at the same time, so player's emotions and intensity of the moment have a greater impact. So do NBA legends. 
#nba #nbalegends

Et BOOM! Thank you CHICAGO for this Xmas GIFT

What a pleasure to kick some Laker ass, especially after trailing by 10+ a few minutes before the end. These Bulls have a great season ahead, and Kobe and the Lakers will go down...

The end of basketball as we know it

So no NBA season, its 99% sure now. Players rejected the NBA's ultimate offer, will sue the NBA in federal court for antitrust damages.
And maybe no NBA season next year either.
And maybe a new league will see the light of day gathered around a few billionaires willing to give the players the astronomically gigantic contracts they're asking for, with a new name, new uniforms, a new history to build, fewer teams most probably... 
It won't be the same though. It will never be the same. The NBA was not just about the beauty of the game, to me it was at least as much about its history, its logos, its players' characters, its rivalries and derbies, its ability to help crystalize role models and men's inner need to identify and admire heroes, create and despise villains.
It might very well be a part of my life that is ending, a part I thought would outlive me. No more Chicago Bulls, no more All-star games, no more months of June waking up in the middle of the night to hate the Lakers or the Heat. NBA seasons were pacing my life year after year, and now this element of stability is gone.
Like a very dear friend who suddenly and shockingly died.
Or may be reborn next year. Hopefully.

Reaching the playoffs final four - objective: beat the Miami Monstars!!

Ok, so I got it all wrong with my post on the Lakers, believing they'd win a 17th title that would crown them as the best team in history.
Instead, they faded pathetically into early May, drowning within this strange series against a Mavs team they had never met in the playoffs. I was disappointed my prediction was so off, but so happy with that game 4, the sweep, the frustration of the Lakers, the lack of class from Odom and Bynum, the 36-point blow out. The Laker-hater in me rejoiced at this debasing. Eddie Johnson sums it up nicely in his latest Hoopshype blogpost.

And now I regret not standing by my early season prediction, i.e. that the Heat will win the championship. They are the absolute favorite now. God I hate them. The objective is now clear: the Lakers will not rise again, but the Miami villains are in a great position to win multiple championships.

So I will stand by my Bulls, and am happy to be able to re-live once again a series between the team I hate the most and the team I like the most, it doesn't happen every year. It might become a new classico. I just bet €20 online on the Heat for game 1 just as insurance policy against the potential anger from defeat, but I am sure the Bulls can beat them. They only have one superman against 2 Monstars, but more cohesiveness.

The one thing that saddens me the most is the very likely possibility to re-live a Mavs-Heat series in the finals. I'll have to root for the Mavs yet again - a team I don't like -, and I will have to see Wade crush them yet again. Damn you Mavs.

To conclude, I would like to thank the Grizzlies for a superb playoffs performance so far, it's great to witness such a surprising playoffs story and team. They're the opposite of the all-expected and all-hated Miami Monstars. Thank you Z-Bo.
I'll be rooting for them big time for game 7 against OKC, starting now! GO GRIZZ!

The concept of prediction

Everyone seems to predict this NBA season to mark the end of an era. So far, NBA eras seem to have followed our standard time decades, more or less 1 year:

• 1970 to 1979: a chaotic decade, with no back-two-back championships and 8 different champions
• A transition being led by pick #1 and #6 of the 1979 draft: Magic and Bird
• Lakers & Celtics dominating the 80s with 8 titles
• The Pistons’ back-two-back making a perfect transition towards the Jordan and Olajuwon-led 90s
• The lock-out closed the decade in 1999

It seems the 2000 decade will have last 13 years, from 1999 to 2011. A decade that seemed to be Duncan and Shaq-led (4 titles each) finally appeared to be a Duncan, Shaq &… Kobe-led. 10 titles in total + 1 incidental Pistons and 1 Celtics title. And potentially an 11th and decade-closing title for the trio this year if the Spurs, Celtics or Lakers win it.

Why is it the end of the 2000 era? Because the 3 dominating forces of the era are clearly drawing to an end: Shaq is 39, Duncan 35 and Kobe 33. Because the NBA seems to be headed straight into a long lock-out. And finally because Phil Jackson, the lord of the rings of the last two decades with 11 championships, is retiring after the playoffs and potentially a 12th ring.

In April of the last 3 years, I accurately predicted the future NBA champion. If such things as entrenched historical trends and consistency really exist in the NBA – and it seems they always have - different scenarios could occur:

• Shaq wins a 5th title to end his career and finishes tied with Kobe. The Celtics get a little more time before the Lakers catch up on them as the NBA’s most titled franchise.
• Duncan wins a 5th title, definitely beats Shaq. The Spurs are tied with the Lakers with 5 titles apiece as the ruling franchise of the decade.
• Or Kobe wins his 6th ring, is heralded as the king of the decade, ties Jordan, gives Jackson his 12th ring as the lord of the last two decades. Most importantly, he helps the Lakers finally catch up on the Celtics as the most titled franchise in history, with 17 apiece. Which would only be fair as the Lakers, as much as I hate them, are the true Yankees of the NBA.

Of course, History has ways that cannot always be predicted, and we may have already entered a new era. Maybe Kobe will win more titles, with Brian Shaw as his coach – after all, Gasol, Odom and Bynum aren’t that old. Maybe the Heat will prevail, as I predicted at the beginning of the season. Or maybe the Bulls will open a new era, as they did 20 years ago.

My prediction? Lakers in 6 against the Bulls. Why? I think they are a number of underlying forces that are ruling this league and shaping its history. Things are not always easy to read and predict, but they are too many elements that are evidence that the Lakers will close the era, a mix of underlying historical forces and more obvious tangibles:
1. They are the ruling champions and are eager to do the three-peat
2. They have Jackson and the triangle offense. Jackson’s been the true hero of the NBA tale for the last 20 years. Not Jordan, Not Kobe. Jackson. And the triangle’s been its magic.
3. They have the best and heaviest frontcourt in the league
4. They have Kobe Bryant
5. It is time the Lakers catch up on the Celtics as the best NBA franchise in history. They have been so for quite a while, but title count always had them 2nd. Time for justice.

Ideally, for the picture to be perfect, you’d want the Spurs to meet the Lakers in the West finals, and Bulls to meet the Celtics in the East. Duncan, Kobe, Jackson, Shaq. I don’t see this happening though: too many tangibles go against what would be a nice historical conclusion to the decade.

So here are my predictions:

West:

1st round:

- Spurs Vs Grizzlies: I wanted the Spurs to avoid the Grizz so much! The deadly sleeper everyone wanted to avoid actually. Many signs are frightening: the Spurs get shocked in their playoffs opener, Ginobili is injured (remember 2009?). And yet, I don’t see the Grizz being more damaging than any other 8th seed the Spurs have met in the last decade: the Suns were beaten 4-2 in the 1st round of the 2003 playoffs. Artest’s Kings were beaten 4-2 as well in 2006 if I reckon correctly. 4-2 here again.

- OKC Vs Nuggets: yes, the Nuggets have been impressive since the Mello trade. But come on: OKC is outstanding and have been even more since the all-star game and especially since that Perkins trade. OKC in 5.

- Mavs Vs Blazers: the Mavs have been called soft lately. Yes, they are the #3 seed, but does that mean much in the West, with so few extra games won Vs #6? Last year they were ousted by the Spurs 4-1 as the #2 seed. That said, and in spite of Gerald Wallace and 10 other great players in the Blazers squad, I think the Mavs have been too strong for years. And Nowitzki looks better than ever.

- Lakers Vs Hornets: so the weakest team in the West has shocked the NBA champion and best team in History (I love contrasts) in the series opener? Big deal: granted, the Lakers have played soft lately, but they will rebound and win 4-1. Kudos to Paul for getting back into shape though, what an amazing point guard at 6-0.

Semis:

- Spurs Vs OKC: I believe the Spurs will get Thunder-struck. Let’s talk about the 2010-2011 Spurs for a bit: it’s the team of efficiency. I know the way Popp and Duncan handle things, they’re great but cannot make miracles. I know how Parker can be the most efficient player in the league but matters less in crunch time. Ginobili is both their best player and real x-factor, a guy who can do miracles. But will he? I think he peaked in 2005, now he’s a little used. What made the Spurs so good this season? A fantastic support cast around aging stars making up for a very efficient team. But when playoffs come you also need heavy superstars such as Durant and Westbrook. And the cohesion and knack of the Thunder is at least as impressive as that of the Spurs. It will be a beautiful series, similar to that Spurs-Hornets series in 2008. But this time, I see the contender winning it. 4-3 for OKC.

- Lakers Vs Mavs: no surprise here for the Mavs. The series will be tied 2-2 until the Lakers put the engine in cruising mode. 4-2 for L.A.

West finals:

- Lakers Vs OKC: so the Thunder can get their revenge from last year. And they almost will as it is a fantastic team. I will be rooting for them big time. But too much History and experience are at stake here. It’s this type of unique series, when the biggest market in the league faces the smallest one for a place in the most awaited moment in basketball year, a series whose outcome business people would want to influence in favor L.A. to help shape the History of the NBA and the History of the finals, a series whose outcome you wonder whether the NBA itself would not try and influence. Remember Lakers-Kings in 2002, and all the Donaghy suspicions? This was the last time an aging Lakers squad took a shot at a three-peat. I predict another Lakers-Kings with the Lakers barely qualifying for the finals, 4-3. And some very controversial calls.

East

1st round:

- Bulls Vs Pacers: okay so the Bulls almost got shocked by the Pacers at home. Rose saved the day again with 39 points and put on a show in the last 3 minutes. But come on… That’s a sweep. I don’t even know how the Pacers got there.

- Magic Vs Hawks: the Hawks have been somewhat of a quandary for the Magic in the past seasons. And, yes, they shocked the Magic in the playoffs opener. Clearly the Magic are a notch lower than last year. Therefore they’ll beat the Hawks 4-2 and not 4-0 like last year.

- Celtics Vs Knicks: no one wanted to face the Knicks. The Celtics paid the price of a sloppy end of season. Given the outcome of the series opener, this could very well be as entertaining as the Celtics-Bulls series from 2009. I see the Celts wining 4-2 rather than 4-3 though, as Garnett is on the floor on this time.

- Heat Vs Sixers: not much to say here. Everyone’s called the Sixers a sleeper. They’re just not as talented. 4-0? I hesitated. I’d say 4-1 as they will put up a serious fight.

Semis:

- Bulls Vs Magic: the Magic have lost it a while ago – their magic, that is, not their mind. But they’re still quite an opponent for the young, inexperienced Bulls. I hesitated between 4-1 and 4-2. I’d say 4-2.

- Heat Vs Celtics: funny how this series will be infinitely more interesting than the Bulls-Magic one… So? Will the Celts pay their mistake of trading Perkins that early, especially against such a light-weighted front-court as that of the Heat? To be honest, 2 months ago I pictured the Celts going to the finals again. I’m now really hesitating about the outcome of this series. Clearly the Celtics are now weaker. The Heat may be light-weighted under the basket, but the knack of James and Wade should make a real difference. Sometimes you don’t need interiors to win the rebound war if your 2 wingmen stars are so powerful and high above the pack. Remember Jordan and Pippen in 1998 with an aging Rodman. 4-3 for the Heat

East finals:

- Bulls Vs Heat: I hesitated a lot again. The Bulls now have more knack and power force than the Heat. And one superhero to face the 2 Heat super villains. It will be a marvel of a series too. I see the Bulls prevail in 7.

Finals:

- Bulls Vs Lakers: one word: experience. The more experienced Lakers will take their revenge from 20 years ago when they lost to the Bulls. The damn Lakers always finish by taking their revenge. Funny thing is that, 20 years ago, it was the lesser experienced Bulls who beat the Lakers. Not this time around. Rose isn’t Michael Jordan yet. Kobe is though.

Champions:

- Lakers (doh'!)

Who is the true favorite to win it all this year?

We are 20 games before the end of the season. Today, the Lakers routed the Spurs, and the Heat lost their 4th straight game.
This is a bummer, because my early season prediction was a Heat victory in the finals, then the Spurs started topping the league... But clearly the Lakers remain the real kings, despite their ups and downs.

In brief, here are the last 3 round of the playoffs as I see them:

So you could argue that the Bulls might catch up on the Celtics due to a slightly better calendar, or that the Heat might catch up on the Bulls, or even the Lakers on the Mavs. But I believe the current rankings will stay put.

In the East:
- the Celtics are aging, but are so deep that, provided they can stay injury-free, they should prevail over an underestimated Magic squad. With some difficulty. 4-2.
- the Heat-Bulls match-up, after an epic Heat-Knicks match-up in the 1st round, will be one for the ages, and the start of a decade rivalry. The Heat will unfortunately prevail because of LeBron, who's the true MVP.
- the Conference finals: can LeBron finally go past the Celtics? I used to think he could for the majority of the season, regardless of the Heat's defeats against the Celtics... But now I'm starting to doubt it. The Celtics will end the Heat in 6 games.

In the West:
- the Mavs will be super tough to beat, especially given their home court advantage, but the Lakers are not going to fall that easily
- they will meet the Spurs in the conference finals, for the 7th playoffs match-up between the two teams in 13 years (Kobe wins 4-2 against Duncan). And, as always, this will not go 7 games. Of course I'm being influenced by the outcome of today's rout of the Spurs, but I've always thought the Spurs were losing their vista when playing the Lakers. It's been the case for years. I think it won't be worse than in 2008, but still a clear victory for the mighty Lakers.

Finals:
- the Celts will be super hard to beat again. Same as last year. But Kobe will have his 2nd three-peat, and beat Shaq in the finals.

That said, I'd like to finish this post on my ideal playoffs outcome, which goes with a few basic comments to understand my psyche:

- basically: let's have the Lakers suffer against the Mavs, then be humiliated by the Spurs

- same with the Heat against the Bulls

- let's have a grand Bulls-Celtics series... with the Bulls taking their revenge from 2008

- let's have my 2 favorite teams in the finals (as in 1996)... and let's have the aging Spurs win it, as a tribute to Duncan. Rose will have many more opportunities

The Mark Jackson rule: ever heard of that?

In today's games between the Celtics and Heat, Rondo was whistled for posting up his opponent near the basket for a few seconds... Mark Jackson himself was commenting the game and referred to it as the Mark Jackson rule, which I never heard of. It goes like this:


"Jackson is also notable for prompting an NBA rule change. In response to Jackson's penchant for backing down opposing point guards in the post for 15 or more seconds at a time, the league instituted the Five-second rule (basketball), sometimes referred to as the "Mark Jackson Rule," prohibiting an offensive player from dribbling with his back to the basket for more than 5 consecutive seconds when below the free throw line."


Sometimes the NBA just goes too far to guarantee systematic fun for the fans. I don't think a few 5+ second post-ups here and there could really harm the flow of the game...