Real Deal

Cleveland fans aren't just mad at the way he left (The Decision, not giving any indication before he announced it), they are mad because of things like this: http://i51.tinypic.com/2dw7qth.jpg ...and the fact that he supported every move Gilbert made through trades and free agency. He wanted Jamison. He wanted Shaq. That roster was built for him to average 30/8/8 and win 60 games or more, due to his production and their team defense and shooting abilities. Put shooters and defenders around the superstar slasher. Yeah, the Cavs are worse without him. Why? Because he never gave Gilbert a chance to put him on the block before he announced his decision to go to Miami. I understand he wanted to say where he was going to go...but he could've done that while giving back, also. Instead, AFTER he makes his decision to go, the Heat give up the cash and picks to get him...which gives the Cavs less. They could've had Beasley, at least. While he had the right to do it, he didn't have to. He could've given back. Gilbert, and the fans, helped make LeBron one of the biggest superstars in NBA history. It wasn't all just James. And it wasn't until the final second, before the Decision, that it all turned sour...so he could've done it all differently.

I doubt there was enough time for that. Once Ron pump-faked on his shot, Bryant would've been at the three (giving Kobe time to get there). But right after that pump-fake, Ron had to shoot the ball immediately. I don't see how he would have enough time to hit Kobe with a pass, then Bryant put that shot up, given the fact that Kobe needed to come back out to the three to begin with. Too much defensive attention around him. Bryant should've just taken the shot to tie the game. I can think of two or three other times where Ron has failed to hit a big game-winning three, out of the four I can remember him taking to begin with. I would take a Kobe 15-footer over that any day of the week, no matter who is in his face.

Can't say, really. I knew there were multiple people on that IP addy since the third member registered with it, but I figured that maybe they were friends. Then we had one register and say he was from France, and act as if he didn't know anything about basketball. IP pointed to Ontario. Rogers Cable doesn't use dynamic IP addresses. One or two members later, different team reps and (according to them) different locations, it's evident that there's only one person behind the names.

More than ever, because Gasol is being a sissy right now.

It doesn't matter who was on Bryant. There isn't a single person on this team that can make a clutch shot other than him (not even Fisher if it's the regular season). Passing out to Artest was a mistake, and while I thought it may have been a good idea against the Pacers, I've come to realize Bryant should never pass up a game-tying or game-winning shot unless he has three people on him.

The other problem I have is that you say you live in the outskirts of Washington... But your IP address is from Rogers Cable, in Ontario.

DAMN KOBE JUST TAKE THE SHOT.

LOL, Conley just killed Fisher all night long.

The reason I ask is because you have the same IP address (using the same computer) as five other members... http://i52.tinypic.com/idegj9.jpg

Did he tell you to list your favorite players as Fields, Felton and Mozgov?

LMAO.

Haha, Philly fans have to be happy about this win. Roy is playing injured, but the Blazers are still a decent team with him playing at around 75%.

Pau isn't doing jack against his brother, so it looks like Bryant will continue to be aggressive and score 50 this game, just to get the win.

It probably wouldn't even go five games. If the Kobe/Shaq Lakers were able to dominate Duncan and the Spurs before they started fighting for shots, a team with a prime Shaq, Garnett, Pierce, Allen, Jermaine, and Rondo would crush the Spurs in four, maybe five.

I don't know, dude. Phil has retired a couple of times already in his coaching career. Riles has a problem: if this team fails, he fails. I think that he steps in if he sees even a squeak of light at the end of the tunnel, because even though he's not coaching today, his basketball legacy will take a major blow for bringing together three all-stars, two of which are superstars, and watching them self-destruct without attempting to coach them.

Don't remember where I read it, but I guess they are going to disallow anyone trying to enter the game with offensive material on. Then again, it's like that in a lot of arenas depending on how offensive it really is. I'm thinking that this will be pushed to the limit, though...meaning, no Delonte West references, for instance.

Celtics, hands down, and they would go 16-0 in the playoffs.

It's been up for a few days now, but I'm just going to direct your attention to it through an announcement. http://www.otrbasketball.com/forums/forum/134-star-trackers There's a pinned topic at the top...you should read that first. I'm interested in who will have the best star tracker by the end of the season. The last time we did this (a few years back), it was popular. Let's make it interesting.

Just when you think less fingers could be pointed in his direction... Read more: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-lebronspoelstra112910 AND... Read the rest here: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/Relationship-between-LeBron-and-coach-gets-chill?urn=nba-290079 It's not even the first day of December yet. Miami better start winning, or this is going to blow up as quick as the Kobe-Shaq issue.

1) Summer admin with Ben, or season lead moderator? 2) Ahmed Johnson or Ron Simmons? Explain. 3) Harlem Heat's Booker T, or King Booker? 4) Would you rather have today's Vick, or McNabb in his prime? 5) Trade one, waive one, and keep one: Turner, Williams, Young. 6) What is your favorite wrestling move, non-finisher? 7) Who do you want in the NBA Finals? 8) On a scale of 1-10, how much do you like the Miami Heat? 9) Same scale, how much do you like LeBron James? 10) Past or present Philly sports athlete (Eagles, Sixers, whatever), who would you want to meet?

The lack of ball movement is due to uncertainty and isolations. The difference between the iso's that LeBron was used to in Cleveland, and the ones he's acting on in Miami? He doesn't have Williams, Parker, Gibson, West, and all of these shooters to spread the floor at once, knocking down shots. Again, for the thousandth time, I take a look back at Allen Iverson and his successful Sixers teams, and see a similar build to that of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The only way this duo seems to work is when they perform iso's, and hope that others knock down their shots. Wade isn't going to move like Allen on the court, so LeBron's job, in an isolation, is to just put his head down and kick it out to someone. Back down the court, Wade takes the same approach. Sounds ridiculous, but that's how it's being done when they want to win those games. Get to the rim and get to the line, penetrate and kick out to guys like Jones or Haslem. Playing this way changes how these guys perform, though. They become disconnected with the game, simply because they are superstars who do not want to have to stand around and defer. Defer to the superstar teammate, and shooting when he decides you shoot? That's why both are struggling shooting the ball, and that's where the uncertainty comes in, when they aren't knocking down shots. Something will need to be done. One of them will need to change their style, or else this will only work against teams with little size once the playoffs roll into town.

I figured it was related to that, but is it really related to it? That was my question. Doesn't make much sense to me. Jordan (or his legacy) was not killed off by Bryant, in any way, shape or form. I guess I can see where he wants to make the relation in regards to saying Kobe wants to be like Mike (like Ford to James), but the only problem with this is that Bryant has stated numerous times that he doesn't. I don't know.

The plan was actually for Amare and LeBron to go to Chicago (well, Amare and Wade at first). They had the money, no doubt. And I left off Watson and Korver because they wouldn't have been there, but I just remembered Brewer signed in the off-season as well (forgot he was dealt from Utah to Memphis, for some reason I was thinking the Jazz traded him to Chicago). Either way, the Bulls would give LeBron defense up from (Noah, and Gibson off the bench at the four), a power forward in Boozer or Amare, a bit of defense with Deng, and a guy that would adjust better than Wade (Rose). There would be no gaping holes at the center or point in that five, either. In fact, LeBron could play the two, Deng starting at the three, or vice-versa. C - Noah PF - Boozer or Amare SF - Deng SG - LeBron PG - Rose That's a dangerous team, and once you throw in Tom Thibodeau (who is the well-respected coach that assistant coached the 2008 champs, the Celtics), you're adding a defensive mastermind that is not afraid to stand up to his players (like he did Rose last week). LeBron owns Chicago, begins his fight in the East against an aging Celtics team and an uncertain Magic squad, and he paves a road as the undisputed #1 option on a team where the greatest of all-time actually made his name first. There's no doubt in my mind that going to Chicago would be better for him.

Passing up a three-hour night of basketball with about 15 people just to watch this game. It better be wild, at least in the crowd.

Players don't do that because of career-ending injuries and future contract agreements with other teams. In four seasons, if the Heat and Bosh are ready for a divorce, Bosh will want his money. Let's assume Bosh is limited to a backup role by then (due to two microscopic knee surgeries). His contract is big for him AND for the teams wanting an expiring. That even gives Miami more to work with, as well, because the bigger the expiring, the bigger the deal. Sometimes, teams get screwed over, like Arenas and his hefty deal with Washington...but if an all-star or superstar were to take the minimum while they were in their prime, teams would be pretty reluctant to give them anything near that as they approached retirement, and a couple of rings later, a re-up of the contract for a player that has played 5-6 seasons into it means no max contract due to that player's age. Obviously, someone like me would sign for $400,000 to even play in the league, and that's a TON of money for me right now...but these guys can get max deals from any team that can afford it, and there's more than just one contender in the NBA every year.