NBA Champions posted by Brandon Richardson

With the top 4 teams in the league last year making ALL the big moves so far this off-season(Boston excluded so far because they haven't signed sheed yet, but they will be getting a healthy Garnett back so it's like they made a big move),  is it too much to ask to skip the next regular season and just have a 4 team playoff for the championship?!  Seriously....      and I don't want to hear anything about the Spurs or the Nuggets.  Jefferson is a mediocre pick-up at best and the nuggets were just a flash in the pan, "Oh my gosh Billups is from here!!!!", team last year.  The team that will have an honorable mention next year will actually be the Blazers, but that's it.  I know no one wants to suffer through the Cavs, Magic, Lakers or Celtics pounding away at sub .500 teams for the first few weeks of the playoffs.  I sure don't.  The only reprieve is the fact that whoever finishes 2 and 3 in the east will have to play in the second round.  It's really kind of crazy that the best teams in the league are the ones getting better.  The conference finals and finals will be like an all-star game, best of seven  Throughout the 4 bigs there are now 14 allstars between them with at least 5 of them current or future All NBA Top 50 players.  This is like a crazy Robin Hood movie where the rich are getting richer and the Grizzlies are getting Iverson.  I bleed purple and gold so I know my team has a great fighting chance next year, I just wonder what fans of aContinue reading "NBA Champions"

Trading the Lakers' Enemies? I Don't Think So posted by Greg Archuleta

Shaq can't even proclaim himself "The Big Trade."

The defending Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic trumped Los Angeles Laker ex Shaquille O'Neal's move from the Phoenix Suns to the Cleveland Cavaliers when they acquired Vince Carter from the New Jersey Nets.

Carter's relocation to Disney World seemingly would keep the Magic in control of the ever-increasing wild, wild east. Although, it is intriguing to imagine what The Big Change of Address (five teams in the career of the most dominant center of our generation? Hard to fathom) might do for King James -- His Royal Poor Sport -- and the Cavs if Shaq is properly motivated.

Yet, the biggest immediate threat to a potential Laker dynasty -- if properly healed -- comes from our Green "friends" in Boston.

If Kevin Garnett can return to 100 percent form from the knee injury that derailed his 2008 season just inches from the start of the playoffs, the hated Celtics remain the most viable candidate to make good on that "Beat L.A." chant.

Remember, Boston was one game away from knocking Orlando from the postseason in the Eastern Conference semis without Garnett, not to mention Leon Powe.

Sure, two of the key figures in the Celtics' 2008 run to the title -- the New Orleans Hornets' James Posey and 77-year old P.J. Brown -- aren't returning anytime soon to help them.

And the Chicago Bulls almost eliminated the C's in the first round.

But the scary thing about the Celtics is their toughness was evident as ever in the playoffs despite their short stay. And that was without Garnett, their toughest player.

National Champs send four in NBA Draft posted by Christopher Arroyo

The people who saw the 2009 NBA Draft on Thursday were in for a special treat when they saw Blake Griffin go No. 1.

Very predictable however.

Then, Hasheem Thabeet went No. 2, which was also predictable. Then things got a bit interesting.

The early shocker was Stephen Curry going number seven to the Golden State Warriors. But what was really neat was that all of the North Carolina players that declared were drafted.

The first Tar Heel chosen was Tyler Hansbrough, who went at number 13 to the Indiana Pacers. This was a good pick, for the Pacers and here is why. Indiana is not known to carry much toughness, especially in the frontcourt.

If you had the treat to see this guy in college then you would know that he’s the real deal for toughness. I think he will start the season on the bench, but he will emerge into that starting position around December.

The second Tar Heel chosen was Ty Lawson, who was picked by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Now I know many of you were wondering why Minnesota picked four guards in the first round, which three were point guards. But, rest assured, they ended up trading Lawson to the Denver Nuggets for a future first round pick.

This is the BEST team for Lawson. You’re putting one of the top, and under-appreciated, point guards in the draft on a team that is surrounded with rising talent. He is also going to appreciate being an apprentice to Denver’s Chauncey Billups.

Probably the most respected guard in the league and known for his patience and leadership on and off the court. Sadly, he will be a bench player for a few years but, learning under Billups will definitely make him one of the top point guards in the league. This was really the best move of the draft Denver should be strong under the point guard position for at least the next 10 years if all goes well.

Auction underways gives Celtics fans the "Ultimate" chance to meet Doc Rivers posted by Audrey1

Auction Beginning June 25th Invites Fans to Bid on Celeb Golf Tournament & Celtics VIP Package
Celtics’ Coach Doc Rivers Partners with Ultimate Escapes, Tees Up For Charity

(Orlando, FL)—June 25, 2009 – NBA Celtics Coach Doc Rivers is partnering with leading destination club Ultimate Escapes to raise money for Shepherd’s Hope, a non-profit organization of volunteers that provides access to health care for the uninsured. Through Ultimate Escapes signature ‘Ultimate GivingSM’ program, individuals will have the chance to bid, via a series of eBay auctions, on six extraordinary packages including a VIP Golf Experience with the world champion coach in Orlando and a VIP Celtics package during the 09/10 season. 
The first auction, June 25 – July 4, 2009, includes three offerings that grant the winners access to the exclusive collection of luxury homes usually reserved for members of the club: a VIP Golf Experience with Doc Rivers in Orlando, a five-night stay in a London home, and a five-night stay in a private residence in Turks & Caicos. As part of the Ultimate Giving initiative, all proceeds from the auction will be donated to the charity of Doc Rivers’ choice, Shepherd’s Hope. The auctions and details about each offering are available at www.UltimateGiving.com. Ultimate Giving has already raised more than $350,000 for non-profits, with a multi-year goal of collecting over $1 million for deserving causes.

The Doc Rivers VIP Golf Package Includes:
• A golf foursome (the winner and two friends, plus a celebrity) at the Doc Rivers Celebrity Golf Invitational on July 17, 2009 at Grand Cypress

Maynor could be a major sleeper posted by Andy Charles

While most people know about Blake Griffin, Hasheem Thabeet and the rest of the guys expected to go at the top of Thursday’s NBA draft, what about those likely to be taken later on but who could still offer their new teams plenty of value.

There has been a long list of much-hyped picks who have failed to produce – in recent seasons the likes of Darko Milicic and Danilo Gallinari – so many teams have become wary about believing college and European form too much.

This year’s draft seems to lack a little bit in depth and the second round could see teams taking risks on some deep projects, either to store in Europe for a couple of years while they develop or perhaps in the D-League.

Chief among them could well be Eric Maynor, whose stock has been rising over the last couple of weeks and may see him lift towards the back edge of the lottery if a team decides it wants a pure point guard.

Although the hype surrounding Ricky Rubio has been deafening at times, you can expect him to struggle to adapt to the pro game early on, and it might be Maynor who produces sooner.

Maynor flew under the radar for much of his college career because of the relative lack of exposure his Virginia Commonwealth Rams received nationally, but he got plenty of recognition when putting up 21 points and seven assists against UCLA in the tournament in March.

He constantly gave the star-studded Bruins trouble and certainly did his pro prospects no harm despite reports that his lack of bulk (Maynor weighs in at only 165lbs) and poor defensive skills could even see him go undrafted.

The 10 Greatest Small Forwards Ever posted by Matt Clark

1.  Larry Bird:  3 titles, 3 straight MVP awards, and countless clutch shooting moments.  

2.  Scottie Pippen:  6 titles.  The best sidekick ever.  One of the best perimeter defenders ever.  

3.  Elgin Baylor:  Averaged 27.4 pp and 13.5 rpg, and a truly dominant scorer, but could never beat the Celtics.  

4.  Julius Erving:  One of the best finishers and dunkers ever.  Extremely athletic.  His ABA career was dominant too.  1 title.

5.  John Havlicek:  8 titles.  Coming off the bench or starting, he could score from anywhere.  

6.  LeBron James (still rising):  Career averages of 27.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg, and 6.7 apg, youngest player to 10,000 points.  

7.  Ricky Barry:  1 title.  Once averaged 35.6 ppg.  Very crafty scorer.  

8.  Dominique Wilkins:  Powerful dunker.  Awesome finisher.  Overshadowed by Magic, Bird, and Jordan.

9.  Paul Pierce:  1 title.  Deadly mid-range shooter.  Very clutch.  Ultra durable.

10.  James Worthy:  Overlooked because he played with Kareem and Magic, but one of the best finishers on a fast break.  3 titles.  

TWolves Say No Way! posted by Ryan Greyslak

Unfortunately the dream of Amare Stoudemire to Minnesota Timberwolves for Al Jefferson and the 6th overall pick are not going to happen. Minnesota said today that the Suns made them the offer but they quickly declined.

http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/extras/celtics_blog/2009/06/jefferson_stayi.html

NBA Finals: Lakers are 2009 Champs posted by Hank Hill

Being from Boston, it's hard to even say that the Lakers are the champs; we wish the Celtics were in their shoes. But even a die-hard Celtics fan needs to admit that the Lakers earned the title and so did KOBE and PHIL.
The game meanwhile was strange. Orlando came out playing like no matter what, they were sending this to game 6 and, from the very beginning, it looked like it was going to happen! They hit every shot and played amazing defense. The 1st ended with Orlando up by 2. Then within minutes in the 2nd, Kobe and LA took over and it went from a 9 point lead for Orlando to a 9 point lead for the Lakers. They would go into the half up 56-46, and Orlando needed to step it back up or this was over.
The second half started just how the 1st ended with the Lakers putting the pedal to the medal and you could see the determination in their eyes that they were ending this tonight. After losing to the Celtics last year, I think Kobe had something to prove, and he did. He would not only put up 30 but he was making the right passes, a game high 5 assists, and involved his whole team and when he does that it's trouble for the other teams as we saw against Houston and Denver and now Orlando!!! Before this playoff I believe Kobe was always doing too much and not finding the open guys and not using teamwork. Since the Houston series, everything changed and Kobe started making those right team decisions and this would lead to everything going right for LA. I think that exceptional teamwork is the reason why they are the 2009 champs!!!
The Final would be 99-86 Lakers, but Orlando definitely made a statement this year and young D. Howard, R. Lewis, Turkolu, Nelson and Lee are a strong team that is only going to get better, and by taking out the Celts and the Cavs and making the Finals, they showed everybody they are for real and will be trouble next year.  Kobe would be MVP of the Finals, well deserved, and received his 4th ring. (That's hard to say, I'm bleeding green, and even harder is that Phil would get his 10th -- going 1 up one Red Auerbach -- but Bill Russell has 11, sweet!, and this is the Lakers 15th overall title, just 2 behind the Celtics. But this year is the Lakers' year, and they earned it!!  We will have to wait till next year to see what will happen next, I already miss B-Ball, so time for some baseball!! Go RED SOX.
Continue reading "NBA Finals: Lakers are 2009 Champs"

Kobe and LeBron facing similar dilemmas posted by Chris Strickland

Or is it dilemmi? Either way.

As the entire NBA world eagerly awaits the potential match-up of Kobe and LeBron in this year's finals, they also can't help observe it's getting increasingly difficult for them to get there. The Magic and Nuggets are hitting their strides at the right time, with bench players stepping up at crucial moments, Van Panic and Karl making good coaching moves, and both team's point guards acting as the leaders they can be. Even if the current and future MJ's of our time average 50 a game for the rest of the playoffs, it won't matter. That's not how you reach the Golden Summit (Yes, I just used "Golden Summit" as an analogy for the Finals. Deal with it. I like it.).

If Kobe's Lakers are going to utilize home-court advantage and take this 2-2 series, Lamar Odom's going to have to step it up, dawg. You can't just score 7.5 points a game against Denver. They aren't the Clippers. Also, learn to box out. CHRIS ANDERSON SHOULDN'T HAVE MORE UPS THAN YOU. As someone who watched last night's humiliation, I can safely say the only thing more embarrassing to watch than Anderson jamming home the tip-in on a missed shot was his lamer version of TO's eagle routine, shouting a "wooooot" bird call to Denver's lame bird-loving fans as he ran backcourt. That, to me, was the epitomy of the bench differential. Denver's reserves are whooping Los Angeles'. Where's the depth? James Posey was a HUGE reason the Celtics won it all last year. At least their bench showed up.

As for "King" James, his supporting cast has been getting manhandled by Orlando's size, speed, and a combination of the two. This is clear as day because Coach Van Panic has done a solid job of exploiting Cleveland's lack of depth. Michael Pietrus (Who?) has 39 points through the series' first three games, which is THE NUMBER ONE REASON Orlando has a 2-1 lead going into tonight's Game 4. Pietrus finds any way he can to get into the lane, while the Cavs just stand and watch. On the flip side, Wally, Joe Smith, and Sasha Pavlovic, what the f*** are you staring at? Putting Pietrus on LeBron, too, was a great move by Van Panic. If only he'd kept him there for that last shot in Game 2. 

Red Sox: It's All Up to You Now posted by HankHillRedsox

With the Boston Celtics' loss in game 7 last night, and the disappointing Bruins' loss, upholding Boston as Titletown is now in the hands of the Red Sox. Right now, with the Sox playing well, all we need to see is continued solid play; should that change, then we call in the miracles.

The Sox are in second place behind Toronto, 3 games back with a record of 22-16 in this early season (5-5 in last 10).  Our young pitchers look good: J Lester (2-4), Masterson 2-2), Ramirez (4-1). J. Beckett (4-2) finally had a great start (so hopefully he's coming around to the Beckett we know), and Wakefield (4-2) and Penny (3-1) have been looking strong. Dice-k who has only pitched an inning this year is due back soon, and Youk, who has a strained back, is doing well and should also be back real soon.

Meanwhile the Sox themselves are fed up with D. Ortiz (hitting 200, still no homers and only 15 RBI. Compare that to Lowell who has 28 RBI and 6 homers).  He was benched for the weekend and is due back Tuesday against Toronto so hopefully his head is now in the right place and he can get going. (Man, do we need Papi!) Because so far Jason Bay "watch" has looked like an MVP, JD Drew, Lowell, Pedroia and even V-Tech have all been swinging the bats well and holding the Sox together. If our pitching is on point and healthy, game over. But we need the help of everyone if we want to take this tough eastern division, so let's get our jerseys on and see if we can take first place this week.

Report: Celts offer Rasheed Wallace deal (AP)

The Boston Celtics have offered forward Rasheed Wallace a contract as part of a major push to land the coveted forward, according to a published report on Friday. The Boston Globe reports the Celtics offered Wallace a deal during a three-hour meeting in Detroit on Thursday. Celtics stars Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce joined general manager Danny Ainge and managing partner Wyc Grousbeck... [read full article]

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Ainge: Big 3 may stay beyond contracts (AP)

The Big Three of the Boston Celtics very well could stick around beyond their current contracts with a changing cast of supporting players. Ray Allen will be 34 after the one year left on his contract, Paul Pierce will be 33 after his two remaining years and Kevin Garnett will be 36 after the three years left on his deal. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Ainge: Big 3 may play beyond contracts (AP)

The Big Three of the Boston Celtics very well could stick around beyond their current contracts with a changing cast of supporting players. Ray Allen will be 34 after the one year left on his contract, Paul Pierce will be 33 after his two remaining years and Kevin Garnett will be 36 after the three years left on his deal. [read full article]

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Celtics unlikely to trade up in draft (AP)

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TV ratings for Game 2 down from 2008 (AP)

Television ratings for Game 2 of the NBA finals are down slightly from last year. ABC said Monday that the Los Angeles Lakers' 101-96 overtime win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night earned an 8.2 fast national rating. That's down less than 4 percent from the 8.5 for last season's Game 2 between the Lakers and Boston Celtics. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports