Real Deal

Does anyone remember the Clippers trading Marko Jaric to the Wolves back in 2005? Guess what they received? Minnesota's 2012 first round pick. At the time, it was a current first, but it was top 10 and lottery protected every year...until next year's draft. Talk about cashing in seven years later... :o

Go on 2k10 and try it, Superstar difficulty level, against the Celtics. Crazy hard.

When my machine tells me so. http://www.plentyofhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/highbloodsugar.jpg

While we're all waiting for LeBron to have that big Finals game, I wonder how many of us are waiting for Wade to have a terrible one. If it happens in Game 6, and LeBron doesn't step up, the Heat are toast. Suddenly, these last two games are must-wins for Miami. As it stands, the Heat are now 2-5 against the Mavericks this season, and two of those five losses are in Miami. Sunday will be huge.

To be honest, if anyone else were to have a challenge feature, it should be Kobe. Score 81 points on Toronto Outscore Dallas 62-61 by the end of the third quarter Have four-consecutive 50-point games Set the scoring record at MSG Hit a record 12 threes in one game 40/8/8 vs. Orlando in Finals 49 points, 10 assists vs. Denver in playoffs 45/6/6 vs. Phoenix, playoffs 50 vs. Phoenix, playoffs 48 points, 16 rebounds vs. Sacramento, playoffs 45 points, 10 rebounds vs. San Antonio, playoffs Win a single game with Kwame, Smush, Walton and Odom as starters Would be sick.

Wade is actually older, and didn't even come out to start the second half due to the injury. That is the green light for LeBron to seek a 25-30 point second half. I can't accept excuses for LeBron James. Not right now. Wade has been carrying him, so he shouldn't be that tired. He's having to average just 17-18 PPG in this series, and just 2.2 PPG in the 4th quarter. He's defending Jason Terry, not an overly-aggressive Derrick Rose. When you are just two wins away from an NBA championship, and you're a superstar that many consider unstoppable, you prove those people right. When your superstar teammate is down and obviously limping around, the opportunity hits you in the face, and you take over the game, much like he has done against many teams in the playoffs back in Cleveland. If Dallas is up by 3-4 points, two minutes to go in Game 6, and Wade is hurt...I'm turning into Michael. If anyone is to stop me, it means they'd have to foul the hell out of me and send me to the charity stripe. Will he do that? Probably not, because in what he said was the biggest game of his life, he didn't make that attempt.

Right, but he wasn't trying to get to the line in the first half (or the second), and as I've stated over and over again (and many of you as well), that's how the Heat win their games. They win them at the line. LeBron was 4-10 in the first half. I recall 4-5 of those missed shots being 20 feet from the rim (or beyond that). One or two were off of offensive rebounds, under the rim. He wasn't putting his head down and driving to the rim. It's kind of like watching Shaq stand 15 feet from the rim and take jumpers for 40 minutes. That was never his game. He always belonged in the post, throwing elbows and shoulders, creating room, and dunking the ball with players fouling him like crazy. That was his thing, and that's what made him one of the most dominant players ever. So, yes, LeBron is relying too much on Wade...so much, he's really turning into a sidekick. The truth is, LeBron is not a Ray Allen, Reggie Miller, or a Rip Hamilton...he can't play off the ball. He doesn't utilize screens well. He doesn't cut when he should. At the end of the day, the conflicting games (or, I guess you can say the similar games that conflict each other) of Wade and LeBron could be the death of this team this season.

LeBron is doing everything in his power to not take the blame during this presser. They asked him, directly, if he needs to score more...if he needs to shut down Terry better in the fourth...and he talks about how it's not an offensive problem, how the team has to play better defense, and how Terry will "make a few" shots if he "gets enough cracks at it." How the hell can Heat fans even like this guy?

What some aren't going to understand (I'm reading it on Facebook right now) is that LeBron has to score the ball. He has to be aggressive. If he becomes a facilitator, Dallas can sag off a bit and focus more on Wade, and basically force the ball into Bosh, something Miami doesn't want to do because it slows the game down.

Yeah, the triple-double was nice, but LeBron has never scored over 25 points in an NBA Finals game (nine games so far). I figured he was due for a 30.

WRONG.

LOL, yes, by ignoring the insane six-step travel on a post-up by Dwyane Wade, the two flagrant fouls by Juwan Howard, and the step-and-pro-hop three-step travel by James, or when Jason Kidd was hit in the hip on his last three-pointer, or when Barea was hit on the hand by Chalmers on his three-pointer.

TIME: 8:00 PM ET TV: ABC

LeBron is averaging just 2.2 PPG in the 4th quarter of the series. That's 11 points total, five games, a high of 5 points in one of those quarters. Miami isn't getting anything from LeBron on the offensive end, scoring-wise, and they aren't getting anything on the defensive end with 3-4 minutes to go. Dirk has two games to get one win. Both on the road. He has to smell blood. As of tonight, right now, this is the best chance he has ever had to win a championship...and may be the best he'll ever have.

LeBron is probably going to go ballistic.

Man, that's so difficult for me to watch. I've been through there a few times, on all of those streets.

? I said it would be us ripping off the Wolves, if we traded Gasol for Love and the #2. And no, I never said Gasol was that worthless. Kwame and Smush are trash. During the playoffs, Gasol played more like a lightweight version of Andrea Bargnani, but given the fact that he's an actual post player who can rebound the ball, I wouldn't have dealt him for nothing less than another all-star. Someone asked on TLN if I'd deal Gasol for Monta Ellis. Tough to say...probably a no, only because Monta is a guard, and I'm not 100% sure Drew will be healthy again next season. Now...Kevin Love and the #2 pick? That's Love and Derrick Williams, or Love and either Kyrie Irving or Brandon Knight, and that's a no-brainer for us.

Not a chance, unless Kevin Love is included, and that would be a rip-off for the Wolves.

Kaman knocks $12.2 million off the books after next season. If you add an unconditional 2012 first-rounder, Philly does this deal. I think the Sixers can do better, though, because that first-rounder is more than likely going to be a mid-first, and while Kaman was an all-star center just two seasons ago, those injuries are killing his game, and I just don't see the Sixers taking him for his production...but rather that money off the payroll, and when you look at it that way, who are they after? I doubt Dwight Howard would be interested. CP3 is dead set on New York. Free agents love big market teams these days. Interesting, to say the least.

Yep, 8-17 if I recall correctly (and I'm not sure if that's counting the last game).

http://www.otrbasketball.com/forums/topic/23209-yao-ming-says-ankle-shows-progress-wants-to-stay-in-houston/page__view__findpost__p__271410

TIME: 9:00 PM ET TV: ABC

Pierce isn't a two-guard nowadays, Green isn't a two-guard, and Ray Allen is needed because he spreads the floor. He's also a better player than Green, even at his age. Boston presented themselves with a problem when they traded for Green. They have four starters that should be in the five at tip-off, no matter what, and unfortunately, Green isn't going to play center and be that fifth starter.

Skip was giving Wade a lot of credit. He basically said the Heat were still going to win in six, and it was going to be all because of Wade, and the reason LeBron joined the Heat was so Wade could carry him to multiple championships.

Wow, they are absolutely smashing LeBron all over ESPN, in every show. It's not just Skip.