Report: Baron Davis expected to fail physical

 

Much has been made of the trade between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Clippers which sent Mo Williams and Jamario Moon to L.A. in exchange for controversy-laden and Donald Sterling nemesis, Baron Davis. But for the Cavaliers, the crux of the trade surrounded the Clippers unprotected 1st round pick.

In the NBA, teams can trade their draft picks which can be fully unprotected as in this instance, or protected. In the case of a protected pick, teams can determine the terms of the protection so that if the pick ends up being a lottery pick, a top 5 pick or the #1 overall pick, they are able to keep the pick and the team which acquired it in a trade misses out.

The Clippers’ pick that was sent to Cleveland was projected to be the #8 overall pick at the time of the trade but can be no worse than the bottom of the lottery. For the Cavaliers, who will likely possess no worse than the #3 overall pick assuming they remain the worst team in the NBA (seemingly a pretty safe bet), this is an extremely valuable trade in order to speed up the rebuilding process. For a team that is unable to bring in big ticket free agents, having two lottery picks is invaluable to the rebuilding process.

There may be a slight hitch in the savvy trade pulled off by the Cavaliers (and the penny-pinching trade executed by the Clippers), however. Roto World has reported that Lisa Dillman of the L.A. Times has confirmed that Baron Davis failed his outgoing physical with the Clippers and is expected to fail his incoming physical with the Cavaliers due to his “gimpy and swollen right knee.” This also explains the delay in Davis’ reporting to Cleveland.

This news is not expected to hold up the trade, however, as for the Cavaliers, the trade was all about that #1 pick. They won’t say it publicly, but anything Baron Davis does to help the Cavaliers is just a bonus. If he never stepped foot onto the floor at Quicken Loans Arena they would still be thrilled with the trade.

Publicly, head coach Byron Scott (who has had an extremely bumpy relationship with Baron Davis during their days in New Orleans) will tell you that Baron can still be a top-flight point guard and that he expects him to eventually start for the Cavs. This is likely “coach-speak” intended to motivate Davis and get his full effort if and when he arrives. Many fans and local sportswriters question that strategy as young point guard, Ramon Sessions has made significant progress and shows a great deal of potential.

Baron Davis was originally reported to be extremely unhappy with the trade to Cleveland and many questioned his attitude and dedication he would show once he arrived. Davis tweeted during the Cavaliers victory over the Knicks, however, that he was excited to play alongside J.J. Hickson. By all accounts he and Byron Scott have patched up the relationship, but it may be a moot point due to this report.

Technically, if Baron fails his physical the Cavs could ask for additional compensation or even void the trade. It’s possible that they will ask for additional compensation, but even if they are denied I don’t see a scenario in which they will void the trade and forfeit the coveted unprotected 1st round pick.

Lakers Host Promised to Walk Home, Quit Job if Lakers Lost to Cavs

John Ireland, L.A. radio host, has had quite a tumultuous week. He has actually had about as rough of a week as his Lakers have had as of late as they dropped their 3rd game in a row to the infamous Cavaliers last night.

Just a couple days ago, Ireland drew attention for “trying” to interview Ron Artest following the Lakers embarrassing loss to the Bobcats. Check the link for a hilarious “Ron Ron” interview, but that wouldn’t be the end of Ireland’s week from hell.

I found this great piece from Larry Brown Sports who provides the details to this story. Apparently leading up to the game last night between the Lakers and the Cavs, Ireland promised to quit his job and walk home from Cleveland if the Cavaliers were to beat the Lakers. Ireland compared the Cavs to not only an NCAA team, but a lower tier NCAA team likening them to the “play-in” teams in the NCAA tournament.

Too bad for Ireland that the Lakers continued to sink and they’ve dropped their 3rd straight after a 4-0 start to the road trip. For the highlight of the game, check out Christian Sky-Enga‘s incredible “Blake Griffin-esque” throw down on Pau Gasol. Granted, Pau has never been known as a particularly great defender or shot blocker, but hey, for the Cavaliers… this is progress!

Ted Williams detained by LAPD

 

Ted Williams, the man with the Golden Voice, the internet sensation who captured America’s hearts as we witnessed his story of redemption and second chances has been detained by LAPD according to the Los Angeles Times. Williams has been on a whirlwind media tour since his video went viral just about a week ago today and his latest trip was to the city of angels.

Williams was in town for several TV appearances, including Entertainment Tonight and earlier yesterday afternoon, he visited the Los Angeles Lakers. But according to law enforcement sources, Williams and a family member believed to be his daughter were detained after police were called to the Renaissance Hotel for a disturbance.

The sources described the event as an altercation with his daughter and Williams was eventually released. The investigation is classified as “ongoing” and it appears to be unclear as to whether any arrests would be forthcoming.

There is no mention about drugs or alcohol being involved and the cause of the altercation is unknown at this time.

For Williams it had been just about the perfect week, but it ended on a sad note. We can only hope that this was an innocent event and that he’s staying on the right track with his life and newfound fame.

Anderson Varajao Out for Season

 

 

The 2010-2011 NBA season has quite honestly been a total disaster for the Cleveland Cavaliers and their fanbase. After opening up the season with an upset victory over the defending Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics, their season has gone downhill in a hurry. Entering the December 2nd matchup with former superstar, LeBron James, the Cavaliers were hovering just below the .500 mark and appeared to be in position to at least compete for the 8th seed in the NBA playoffs. As we know, however, the Cavs were dismantled by LeBron James and the Heat and they have yet to recover. News came out yesterday that the Cavaliers’ best player, Anderson Varejao, who had been playing the best basketball of his career, will likely miss the rest of the season due to a torn tendon in his ankle that was suffered while running suicide drills in practice.

As of today, the Cavaliers are 8-29 and they have literally only won one game since the December 2nd meeting with the Heat. The Cavaliers, losers of 20 of the last 21 games, have looked awful in what was expected to be a difficult season. Any team that built its roster completely around one player would struggle mightily after losing that player with no time to make adjustments. In the long run, the Cavs struggles this year may be the best thing for the franchise as they will likely be competing for the top spot in the NBA lottery. The roster is currently so bloated with players who are aging and have ridiculous contracts, that there is just no way that the Cavs can move forward with the current roster.

Unfortunately, blowing up the team as many say, is easier said than done. Those contracts aren’t all that easy to dump as other NBA teams are very slow to take on a big, long-term contract for a marginal player. Think about it. What championship contender would want to take on Mo Williams or Antawn Jamison‘s contracts? Neither player is likely to significantly contribute to a championship run and the contracts are so restrictive that it would hurt the team’s long-term flexibility.

With that being said, one way to potentially move guys like Mo and Jamison is to package them with valuable trade assets. For the last couple of seasons, it was largely believed that J.J. Hickson represented the Cavs’ most valuable trade-able asset, but after the performances this season, there is no question that Andy is the most valuable asset. I have no idea if the Cavs are willing to move either player, but Varejao’s injury will make it a moot point, at least for Andy.

For the Cavs, this injury likely won’t equate to much of a difference in the win and loss columns as they are horrible even with Varejao’s strong play, but it represents yet another bad break for the struggling franchise. The fans are still behind Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers, but the rebuilding must take place sooner than later as what we’ve seen thus far this season is nearly un-watchable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Cavs fan’s unique way of ripping Dan Gilbert

 

Cleveland Cavaliers fans have been faced with a very real and very difficult transition from being a perennial power in the Eastern Conference to being a likely lottery team. After building the team entirely around LeBron James, his departure immediately transformed the Cavs into a bottom dweller.

Most Cavaliers fans have been very supportive of Dan Gilbert and the organization and despite some very ugly basketball, remain patient and trust in Gilbert to turn the franchise around. That is of course, MOST Cavs fans.

One disgruntled season ticket holder paid for an ad on Basketball-Reference.com in a unique effort to protest and voice his or her displeasure against Dan Gilbert and the Cavaliers. The ad appears to expire tomorrow sometime and I’m not sure how much the “Extremely Ticked Off Cavs Season-Ticket Holder” paid for it, but here is a screen shot.

 

If you want to check it out, just navigate to the Cavaliers page on BBR.com and it’s there in all it’s glory. It’s actually much, MUCH bigger on their site. You literally cannot miss it.

If that weren’t enough, the same fan appears to be “extremely ticked off” at J.J. Hickson as well as this ad is taken out on J.J.’s player page:

Now I can’t say that I disagree with the J.J. add as he has been a tremendous disappointment both on the court and off, but I am of the opinion that Dan Gilbert is a very good owner. Yes, in hindsight he maybe should have handled #6 differently and not rolled over but that course was already set by the previous owner, Gordon Gund. Gilbert carried on the same practices and honestly thought that was the best way to retain #6 and thought it was the best thing for the team.

There are plenty of other owners in professional sports that make decisions solely based on what is in their best interest (which isn’t always aligned with the team). So if Gilbert makes mistakes in good faith and in an attempt to do what’s best for the franchise then I can accept it. He ponied up tons of cash to keep building the team towards a championship and he was over the luxury tax for the last few years.

Of course, fans can have their opinions and I at least give this fan a lot of credit for coming up with an original idea instead of getting drunk and throwing something at the Q!

 

 

 

 

 

Heat vs. Cavaliers Part Duex

 

 

Entering tonight’s rematch with LeBron James‘ former Cavaliers team, he and the Miami Heat are on a roll and the Cavaliers are in a colossal tailspin. After the performance he put on in Cleveland on December 2nd and as the Heat continue to gain momentum and learn to play together, tonight’s game could get ugly. Fast.

#6 put up an effortless 38 points through 30 minutes of play on December 2nd and embarrassed his former teammates and franchise with ease. Since that game, the Heat have racked up 9 straight wins, all of which by 10 points or more. With what we’ve seen from #6 and the Heat as compared to what we’ve seen from the Cavaliers, there is no reason to believe he or they will be slowed down tonight. It’s entirely possible, and maybe even likely, that he puts up half a hundred tonight. That is, if it’s close enough to warrant giving him more than 30 minutes. To me, the question isn’t who will win, but by how much and how embarrassing it will be.

As a Cavaliers fan, it kills me to say that, but as I have always promised, I’ll tell you how it is. No matter how ugly the truth may be. If the Cavaliers are great, I’ll tell you why. If they look more like the Cleveland Cadavers, I’ll reluctantly tell you about it as well. When a team loses its superstar that it literally built the entire team around, things are not going to be pretty. Literally ever single player on the roster until this off-season were brought in to specifically compliment #6 in one way or another. When the player that you’ve tailored your team around for 7 years leaves and you bring in a new coach with a new system, it’s not going to be pretty. But I never anticipated that it would be this ugly. Through roughly the first quarter of the season, the Cavaliers have essentially quit on the season and that’s sad. They don’t have the talent that they need to compete, but they have shown zero heart, effort, energy, intensity, or hustle and with that roster, they can ill afford such a combination.

Long-term, it’s not the worst thing in the world because if they can somehow sustain this degree of poor play they’ll be well positioned in the NBA Draft Lottery. The overwhelming strategy in the NBA is to tear your team down completely and rebuild with a lottery pick or 2 and to get lucky on a 2nd round pick (i.e., OKC Thunder). Despite Head Coach, Byron Scott and Owner, Dan Gilbert saying all the right things about wanting to win now, this is undoubtedly a thought in their minds.

The Heat are on the complete opposite end of the spectrum. After struggling mightily in the first month of the season and fighting to stay above .500, the victory over the Cavaliers on December 2nd seems to have catapulted them to the top of the NBA. The Big 3 are starting to learn how to play together at least well enough to run roughshod over the marginal to poor teams in the NBA and they’re probably talented enough to compete with some of the better teams at this point. Big picture, however, there are still massive holes and issues on this team that we’ll get into next.

What to watch for:

Miami Heat:

The obvious thing to watch is LeBron James. There are a ton of subplots in this game and the first thing I’ll be looking for is how he and the Cavs players interact. On December 2nd, #6 walked right up to his former teammates and with the exception of Mo Williams, they were all friendly with him and Anderson Varejao even went so far as to give him a bear hug before the game and jokingly steal his headband during the game. The Cavs took a lot of criticism for their poor play as well as their seemingly friendly treatment of their former teammate. Speculation has been that a number of them are trying to stay in his good graces so that he will recruit them to play with him in Miami. We’ll see how they act tonight.

Next, I’ll be curious to see how he approaches the game. In the first matchup he was feeling out the game, whether or not he would be fouled and roughed up, and how the refs would call the game. After he got a feel for the game, he went on attack mode, especially in the 3rd quarter. It wouldn’t surprise me if he starts out attacking like he did in game 3 against the Celtics last year where he had 21 first quarter points and was literally unstoppable. Obviously, the final point tally will also be something I’ll be keeping an eye on. He’s likely to try to embarrass his former team again and what better way than with a 50 point performance and a 30 point win?

There has been much discussion about Erik Spoelstra‘s “incentive program” that he used to get the Heat going after a horrible start to the season. In case you haven’t heard, the players have been very unhappy with the offensive system thus far in the season. It’s my belief that it’s because LeBron James has literally never run an actual offense and he doesn’t like the restriction. He is the one who leaked the story about players being unhappy and thinking Coach Spo wasn’t cut out for the job.

So in an attempt to quell the uprising, Coach Spo implemented the new system so that in exchange for a good defensive effort (block, steal, defensive rebound), he gives free reign for his players on the offensive end. Of course, the players love the ability to ignore the offense and freelance and dominate the ball for 20 seconds and then either draw contact or throw up a 30 footer. Especially LeBron James. Remember, he won 2 MVP’s with this exact style of play. And against the lesser teams in the NBA, it will work just fine. Despite zero inside presence, they’re athletic enough to create problems for the other team on the defensive end. If they put in the effort. Offensively, they’re so freakishly talented that they can get away with freelancing against the bad teams and even good teams when they’re hot.

But what I’ll be curious to see is just how far the players take this. Will they get so used to doing whatever they want that when it comes time in the half court to run a real offensive set that they either ignore it or are so rusty that it looks awful? Lets face it, all 3 and especially LeBron are only accustomed to running ISO garbage and getting away with pure physical ability. That’s why long-term, I believe the incentive program is a tremendous mistake. These guys need all the practice they can get in the offense. Right now is the EXACT time they should be running it and running it and running it again. In December, against mostly bad teams is when they should run the offense so much that they can run it in their sleep. So that when things get tough and they’re up against a great Boston defense, they don’t screw up and they can run it and trust it.

I’m telling you right now, if they don’t learn to execute the offense flawlessly right now, in the regular season, against bad teams, they’ll never be good enough to run it against the Celtics. And we saw what happens when LeBron or anyone else for that matter, tries to run ISO garbage against the Celtics defense. You just cannot win that way, no matter how much of a physical freak you may be.

Think about it, why did the Heat struggle so much to start the season? Because they were trying to run an offense that they don’t know how to run because they’ve never been forced to learn it and execute it. When that broke down because they’re not good at running it and they don’t trust it, LeBron went into his old offense which consists of him dominating the ball and turning everyone else into statues and jump shooters. No one mentions it, but in training camp, the Heat focused solely on defense because they thought that they would be so gifted that if they played good defense, the offense would take care of itself. After starting off so badly trying to force these guys to run an offense that they clearly didn’t want to run (remember, they just wanna chill), Coach Spo essentially gave in. Which is the last thing he should have done.

Short term, he looks like a genius. The Heat are on a tear and look great. But remember who they’re playing and remember that it’s the regular season. The playoffs are an entirely different game as #6 knows only too well. I’m not saying that Coach Spo plans on doing this all season, but I’m telling you that these guys need ALL the practice they can get within the structure of the offense. They need to learn it against the bad teams in the regular season and perfect it as they match up with the better teams. Now. Not in the playoffs. If they wait until the playoffs they’ll get run out of the gym. If they continue the freelancing, ISO crap in the playoffs, they will get run out of the gym.

Cleveland Cavaliers:

As far as the Cavs go, there really isn’t all that much to watch for. We need to keep an eye on how friendly they are with #6, not just before and after the game, but during the game. In the first match up, not one Cavalier put his hands on LeBron outside of a few hugs and kisses. There were multiple opportunities to foul him hard when he went to the rim and they didn’t even attempt a foul. There were multiple opportunities to be physical with him out on the wing and they never tried. They can say whatever they want publicly about being upset with him and about the conversations not being friendly, but until they show me on the floor, I don’t care.

The Cavaliers’ spin job after the last debacle was an insult to every single fan’s intelligence. Unless they play physical, intense, fundamental, smart basketball, no fan is going to listen to a thing they say. They may come out with some energy to start the game, but face it… they’re not a good team and they’re in the middle of an awful losing streak. I’ll be curious to see how they respond when they get 8, 10, or 15 points down. Will they just roll over like last time and let the Heat run up a 38 point lead? Or will they fight back even though they’re clearly outmatched?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LeBron James Vows to Trash Talk Cavs Bench Again

 

When LeBron James returned to Cleveland on December 2nd the fanbase was ready for a fight (figuratively). The Cavaliers fans were amped up and as loud as I’ve ever heard them. Given the intense love and now hatred directed at #6 following his 7 year tenure with the Cavaliers and his sudden departure, there was no lack of emotion and intensity at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavaliers players, however, must have missed the memo as they literally laid down for #6, put up absolutely ZERO fight, joked around with him, hugged him, stole his headband, and essentially bent over and grabbed their proverbial ankles.

Tomorrow night the Cavaliers will take their “talents” (or lack thereof) to South Beach to face off against the Miami Heat and good ‘ol #6 again. Subject to much controversy both nationally and locally following LeBron’s one man wrecking crew performance and blowout win by the Heat was the amount of time #6 spent in front of the Cavs bench seemingly chatting it up.

A Cavalier who was specifically involved in the discussions was Daniel “Boobie” Gibson who was, at one time, extremely close friends with #6. Leading up to the game on December 2nd, Boobie told reporters that during the game he would “go at his neck” referring to LeBron James. For the record, neither Boobie or any other Cavs player actually laid a hand on #6 for the entire game despite multiple opportunities to commit a hard, but clean foul as he pranced through the lane repeatedly. That is, unless you count hugging him and snatching his headband as “laying a hand on him”.

The following day after getting a lot of criticism for chatting it up with #6 during the game, Boobie tried to control the spin of the story telling reporters and fans that it wasn’t a friendly conversation and that he wasn’t happy with the way #6 acted during the game. Again, neither he or any other player did a single thing about it during the game. Although Boobie did almost get into a fight with Eddie House which shows you that if he were actually pissed off at anything #6 did we would have known about it during the game.

When asked today if he would be spending time chit-chatting with the Cavs bench again, LeBron James indicated that he plans to spend the same amount of time talking to Cavs players and the bench as the previous game and that “there was no joking involved.”

This comes from the Akron Beacon Journal Beat Reporter, Jason Lloyd (**invokes Ari Gold voice screaming Lloyd!!!**)

The December 2nd game seemed to have a drastic effect on the course of the NBA season as it sent the Heat, who at the time were hovering around .500, on the path to a 9 game winning streak (and counting) and seems to have gotten #6 going again. Being back on his old floor and completely embarrassing his old teammates and so-called “friends” have clearly reinstated his confidence and the Heat appear to be a team to be reckoned with. For now.

On the complete other end of the spectrum, the Cavaliers have lost 8 straight and most being double digit blowout losses. As far as I’m concerned, if the Cavaliers aren’t going to put up any sort of fight and get in his face, foul him or do anything other than hug and kiss him then they have no recourse to be upset when he dances around and talks trash the entire game.

We’ll see how it plays out, but I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see #6 drop half a hundred on his former team. Remember, he had 38 without really even forcing anything and sat out the entire 4th quarter in their last matchup.

 

Fear the Beard: James Harden Castrates J.J. Hickson

The Cleveland Cavaliers have provided very little by way of highlights this season and especially in the last month or so of the season. After bending over and grabbing their ankles for #6 and the Miami Heat on December 2nd, the Cavaliers have gone on an embarrassing 8 game losing streak. Worse than the losses are the way in which the Cavaliers have lost nearly every game. Without heart, hustle, toughness, and seemingly without caring.

Last night’s game against the young and talented Oklahoma City Thunder was no different as the Cavaliers fell 106-77 in another embarrassing defeat. But they did make it onto the highlight reel and disgruntled Power Forward J.J. Hickson may have earned his spot onto a poster.

Check out this video of James Harden absolutely castrating J.J. Hickson. It’s about the only thing worth watching involving the Cavs for quite some time.

Did Kobe’s Comments RE: Derrick Rose have a Subliminal Message?

 

In a recent story from fellow YBN blogger, “Los That Sports Blog” about Kobe Bryant‘s mentoring role with some of the younger players in the NBA (http://bit.ly/eUy6up), I noticed a bit of a subliminal tone to some of his comments. Check out the story for the full background, but here’s the basics. Kobe has taken on a sort of mentoring role with some young players in the NBA that he respects. Despite being one of the more selfish players early in his career, Kobe has evolved into an incredible leader both on his team and with other players.

Following a game last month in which the Lakers beat Derrick Rose‘s Bulls, he had a brief conversation with the young PG which caused some reporters to inquire as to some of the details. Chicago Tribune’s K.C. Johnson asked if the conversation had some sort of “passing of the torch” symbolism and Bryant had a great response:

“Oh, sure, but I ain’t passing SH*T,” Bryant said.

Bryant was then asked if Rose has to come take the torch from Bryant at which time Kobe smiled and offered “He can certainly try.”

First, that’s just the perfect answer from a true champion and competitor. Kobe can be a complete dick sometimes, but there is no doubting his competitive fire and he just flat out plays the game the right way. It’s been mentioned, but doesn’t get enough credit in my opinion, the vast injuries Kobe plays with and plays at such a high level with. In a world where Paul Pierce was literally wheeled off the floor in a wheelchair acting like a little bitch after a mild knee injury only to see him come back in the game and play, Kobe plays every day with some sort of injury and never makes a single excuse. In a world where LeBron James and his handlers leak stories about a mysterious and unproven “Elbow Injury” to supply a built in excuse for his poor play and effort and inability to beat the Celtics, Kobe continues to play the game the right way.

But that’s not the best part of his comments, at least to me. Bryant elaborated on his comments to Rose saying “I just told him to stay healthy and continue the job he’s doing.”

“I don’t think you can develop (a killer instinct). You either have it or you don’t. He’s had it since he was in high school.”

“That quality separates players I think. With players of equal ability, it’s about the engine you have inside. It certainly gives him an edge.”

Now I don’t know if Kobe was taking a page out of the Zen Master‘s playbook here or not, but it’s entirely possible that there’s a bit of subliminal messaging going on here. There have been whispers for years that Kobe’s biggest individual rival, LeBron James, lacks the killer instinct that the truly great seem to have. Despite never winning an NBA title, #6 was basically anointed as the greatest player on the planet a few years ago. Physically and athletically, it’s actually not even close. #6 is so much bigger, stronger, faster, quicker that if games were decided on paper, Kobe wouldn’t stand a chance.

But games and championships are not decided on paper as we well know. Often, the players with the most physical gifts and the teams with superior talent can be beaten by a better overall team and a better overall player. As we know, the true measure of a player isn’t just physically, especially on the pro level. Most players are so close athletically that the true difference is mental. The player with the greater mental toughness, leadership, and competitive fire will win out over a player with equal or even sometimes superior talent. This has held true time and time again and it will never change.

This is exactly what Kobe is saying here. There are players who are more physically gifted than he is, especially at this stage in his career. He has been in the league for 15 years and although as an overall basketball player, I still rank him ahead of anyone else, there are several players who “on paper” are far superior. Yet despite the incredible talents and hype surrounding these players, it’s Kobe who continues to win championships. Despite the Lakers solid start to the season and their quest for a 3-Peat, they are largely ignored by the likes of ESPN in favor of the sexy new team in South Beach.

But as Jordan and Kobe will tell you, the game of a champion is built on fire, not flash. And these comments, I believe, are a Phil Jackson-esque message to #6. People for years have said that he lacks Kobe and Jordan’s killer instinct and fire and after watching nearly every minute of every game for his first 7 years in the league, it’s hard to argue. Like I said, athletically, #6 is far and away superior to any player in the NBA and, in my opinion, in NBA history. But something has been missing, that much is clear.

We’ll see how it all plays out, and honestly I’ve seen more from #6 this season to indicate that you maybe can develop a killer instinct at least to some degree. #6 has his issues as a player that I won’t get into here, but he has surprisingly showed SOME signs of adaptation. He’s just so physically gifted that despite his deficiencies, I think he’ll figure it out, learn and change just enough that he’ll end up winning. And from what I’ve seen from the Cavaliers that he left behind, I can’t even argue that he made the wrong decision. There is no way he could win with those guys. Period. There are extenuating circumstances, though, that go largely ignored in that #6 is a huge part of the reason that the Cavs roster was and is the way it is, but I’ll get into that in another post.

Only time will tell if and when this happens and how many rings he’s able to accumulate over the years. And despite all the hype and premature crowning of #6 by the media and fans, this much is clear as it stands today. Kobe Bryant is still the King of the NBA and he has an innate competitive fire and killer instinct that few have ever had and that I don’t think anyone in the NBA has today. Kobe is certainly diminished physically, but if you look at Jordan’s last few years with the Bulls, he wasn’t the dominant athlete that he once was. But he was a better overall player, he was smarter than everyone else, and he still wanted it more than anyone else.

Kobe will run out of time, but for now he’s the premier champion in this league by far. #6 will likely catch him just based on freakish athletic ability and lets face it… If he and Dwyane Wade can learn to play together the right way, they can be very dangerous. But for now, it’s still Kobe’s game and he’s making sure everyone knows it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LeBron James: Pursuit of “Happiness”

 

 

As promised, this is the second video made in anticipation of tonight’s game. I put this one together and I really didn’t intend for it to have this tone when I first set out. As you’ll see, it’s pretty different than most of my stuff.

Take a look and enjoy.