Erick Blasco

That was a great performance by a great Mavs team---and one of the more surprising great teams of the past two decades.

Take care of yourself first Brandon, your health is the most important thing. We'll all be here when you're back.

One thing I've been disappointed in LeBron more than anything is his defense. He's been repeatedly attacked successfully by Shawn Marion in this series, let alone Terry. If Bron is going to struggle on the offensive end and talk about how the defense needs to be better, I'd be fine with it, but for all his talk about how successful his defense has been in the Finals---he hasn't been that great.

JVG. That rule comes up very rarely and a person who isn't completely up to date with NBA rules might have missed it. I completely forgot about the rule that if the offensive player starts in the defensive box you can be in the restricted circle.

Expect to hear a lot of "Steph Curry is a knockdown shooter." "On defense, you need to crowd his airspace." "The operation was a success, but the patient died." "Somebody needs to go out there and make a play." "Monta Ellis with a grown-man's move" "David Lee has an appointment with the rim." And of course, "Mama, there goes that man!"

Grrrr, you beat me to it!!!

I also think that the hire was contingent on all the candidates being in the room and answering one simple question. When the owners asked the lot who wants to be the head coach, they all thought it was a joke, except for Jackson who raised his hand. The owners decided he was the only one who wanted the job and gave it to him. When the other candidates responded in outrage over the process, Jackson turned to them and said, "it's like I always say. HAND DOWN, MAN DOWN!"

He has an extremely rigid, simplistic view of the game. I don't think he'll get much out of Golden State. I expect him to run a lot of floppy action (essentially double curls), since it's the only coaching lingo he ever uses during his telecasts. On the plus side, he's off the TV! Jeff Van Gundy might get a real partner! Or Shaq...which would be great too!

Orlando can retire it too. Any team can retire any player's number. It's not like the Hall of Fame where you go in under one team. Heck, the Miami Heat retired Jordan's number (?!?!?!) simply because Riley was so obsessed with how Jordan couldn't be psychologically broken. It would be like the Jazz retiring Kobe's number when he retires

As for the original post, as time goes on and the world becomes less and less traditional, I'm sure a female head coach will someday be hired, but it wouldn't be for at least a decade. Said female head coach would have to have worked in the NBA on an assistant coaching staff to have proven her worth. The WNBA and women's college basketball aren't good enough (though the female D-league coach would have some credibility). I think the ego thing may be slightly overblown. No good coach worth his shit will embarrass his players in public (except maybe Popovich). While all good coaches are stern, you don't see coaches destroying guys in huddles. Doing so immediately turns the player off to the coach because of the humiliation. It doesn't matter if it's a man or woman, nobody likes to be singled out and destroyed. The problem would be in practice. Can a woman find a way to influence modern entitled athletes to practice hard, and will they respond to criticism if a female coach tries to correct bad habits. That's where most of the NBA yelling and screaming is done. The best coaches know how to prompt/trick/inspire/threaten players into practicing hard. Can a female inspire the same? I'd say probably, especially as societal attitudes in sports continue to change. From the teaching, X's and O's, and theory of the game, I'd say absolutely a woman can coach in the NBA. The difficulty is that most male coaches have those traits, plus have the added advantage of having played in male leagues against male players. There's more to relate to.

This is why I plan on opening up a progressive restaurant staffed by preppy black thugs.

I thought Dallas had some decent looks but a lot of their players were concerned with the speed of Miami's closeouts. That and Bosh has the speed and length to disrupt Barea at the rim. Dallas also missed a lot of layups, got nothing from Peja, and didn't give up many easy shots to Dirk. I like how Wade took ownership of the fourth quarter on both ends, how Chalmers shook off a rough series by playing outstanding defense on Barea and making several big threes, and how the Heat put major pressure on Dirk defensively in the 4th quarter leading to points. A late closeout on a Haslem jumper, getting broken down off the dribble by Haslem, a miscommunication in the zone leading to a dunk by Haslem plus a free throw, and a bad foul call on a Bosh roll leading to two free throws. That's 10 points at least directly attributed to either bad Dirk defense or bad calls on good Dirk defense. Attack the worst defenders in ways beyond isolations. That's something good offenses do. Everytime the Heat attacked Dirk one-on-one, Dirk would usually play decent defense, and help would be behind him. However, eight of those points were attributed to poor help by Dirk. Nice job by Spoelstra and the Heat by punishing Dirk correctly.

Last year was last year. Players always deserve chances to rewrite their legacy if they play better than they did in the past. You want to become recognized for clutch play? Go own the 4th quarters against Boston, Chicago, and Dallas with repeated gigantic shots and dunks over Pierce, Deng, and Marion. Propaganda is propaganda. But what are you going to say when the game is close and LeBron makes multiple shots and few mistakes?

Not giving the turnovers and the plays where LeBron disinterestedly took himself out of the game are major crimes of omission in this argument.

I'm strictly using 2008-2010 Gasol. This season's Gasol pales in comparison to Dirk, but this season's Gasol also pales in comparison to last season's Gasol.

Lots of screen/rolls that Portland switched leaving Dirk with smaller defenders. He may or may not have been doubled, as he was usually at the top of the circle. He wasn't consistently doubled, though sometimes guards would dig in. There's some nitpicking I can do, but you're right with these posts. Multi-B hasn't taken into account the poor defense played by Portland and Los Angeles on Dirk, plus awful Game One defense vs. OKC. Dirk wasn't brilliantly spectacular after Game One, particularly against Collison. Plus OKc missed a lot of help assignments.

And how Gasol played incomparably better in 2009 and 2010 than how he played in 2006 where Gasol WAS the most effective option the Lakers had against the Celtics and Magi those two years. Gasol did all he did against Garnett and Dwight too. I recognize that Dirk has taken steps this season that make him better than his 2006 version, why do people not assume that Gasol made similar strides?

So the tiger isn't part of Blake's posse?

Oliver, how quickly do we all forget how good Gasol was last season, and how Dirk couldn't lead the Mavs over an aging #7 seed in San Antonio last year.

Of all the subplots in Miami’s heroic 83-80 comeback victory over the Chicago Bulls in Game Five of the Eastern Conference Finals, the LeBron James versus Derrick Rose individual matchup may have been the juiciest. The confrontation between the most talented player against the most valuable one indeed proved memorable, as LeBron issued a royal decree and executed Rose on the spot. Consider the final 10 minutes of the game: Rose finished the game hitting only one of his final eight field goal attempts with no assists, two turnovers, and one trip to the line (which included a damning choke job) during that stretch.LeBron’s strength, length, and quickness eliminated Rose’s attempts at playing screen/roll offense, plus Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem both played excellent screen defense, never allowing Rose to turn the corner.The three times Rose was able to get a half-step on James, Haslem and Bosh were again there to contest misses at the rim.When Rose overpenetrated and foolishly jumped in the air to pass late in the fourth, Dwyane Wade struck into the passing lane for a key interception.When Rose tried to pitch a throwback pass to Kurt Thomas on a screen/fade, LeBron deflected the pass and stole it.Rose also frequently dribbled the ball atop either wing aimlessly, killing time and forcing the Bulls to try and beat the buzzer far too often.While Rose’s offense was ineffective, his defense was boneheaded.He was late recovering to LeBron in transition, and provided a tepid closeout. LeBron calmly sank a three over him.Another poor closeout saw Rose nicking Wade’s elbow on a three-pointer, count it, plus the foul.He hacked LeBron across the arm on a layup attempt resulting in one made free throw.A questionable call when defending Wade in transition led to another plus-one.He was also blitzed by Wade for a layup, though his positioning was respectable, and the fault lie more with Thomas’ inability to alter shots after rotating.Still, Rose had a chance to undo most of the damage with two free throw attempts with 27 seconds to go and the Bulls down two. After making the first freebie, he clanged away the second freebie, as well as Chicago’s season. Meanwhile, LeBron James was awe-inspiring, both with his clutch shooting, and with his lock and chain defense. Besides the defensive plays listed above, LeBron also deflected a Thomas pass to a cutting Rose for a steal.James boxed out on the glass and grabbed three defensive rebounds.After Thomas tried to flop his way into a charge on a LeBron drive, James sank two free throws.A snake dribble around a early offense wing screen/roll led to a foul and free throw.After a sloppy dribble, LeBron was fouled after diving for a loose ball, earning another free throw.Down eight with two minutes to go, LeBron caught an open pass and sank a critical three.Down three with a minute to go, LeBron brought the ball up, used a wing screen by Haslem to shed Brewer, and hit a clutch triple.With the game tied and 30 seconds to go, LeBron whittled the shot clock down and hit a pull up jumper at the key to give the Heat the lead.LeBron stayed with Rose and blocked his desperation heave at the buzzer to clinch the series. Whereas Rose took advantage of unique circumstances to garner the regular season MVP, LeBron used Game Five as a platform as to why he’s the best player on the planet. In doing so, he continued to silence his critics over the course of the series. He silenced both critics of his jumper and of his heart with back-breaking jumper after back-breaking jumper. He silenced critics of his defense and of his intensity by stymieing Luol Deng, and shutting down Rose at critical junctures. And he silenced critics of his uncoachability and inability to work within an offense by diligently executing Miami’s corner screen system and making the right decisions all series long. Bravo, a performance fit for a king! Of course he had help. http://cdn0.sbnation.com/images/blog/star-divide.v777cf8a.jpg While Wade was largely too casual and ineffective on offense and made several screen defense breakdowns over the course of the game, he scored on several broken plays late, and nailed a pivotal four-point play during the crux of Miami’s comeback. Chris Bosh’ screen defense was exceptional, his jump shooting was true, his rotations were alert, and his pump fakes were convincing. Removed of the burden of carrying a team, Bosh has joined Wade as excellent princes in his kingdom. <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/players/24234/joel-anthony" class="sbn-auto-link">Joel Anthony’s defense was Grade A, and he even managed to hit a driving layup plus foul over the inept Carlos Boozer. Udonis Haslem committed a surprising number of defensive mistakes and couldn’t drop the ball in the ocean—0-5 FG—but his defense late influenced several Bulls misses at the rim. Mike Miller made plays with his passing, his cutting, his shooting, and his rebounding. The Heat team defense was exceptional, suffocating the life out of the Bulls with pinpoint rotations, constant energy, and perpetual hustle. No surprise a Pat Riley managed team would be in such great conditioning despite exerting such high effort. Miami’s baseline rotations were always a step ahead, often because Miami’s corner defenders on the weak side of Chicago’s side screen/rolls could ignore the player, trust their ability to close out, and sell out on hard rotations. Also, give credit to Eric Spoelstra for getting his three superstars to buy in completely to his defensive philosophy, and for running an effective corner screen offense using Bosh as a safety valve usually at the opposite high post. Spoelstra’s virtues of patience, trust, professionalism, and attention to detail have all paid off so far. Aside from Rose’s individual collapse, the Bulls played an admirable game and season unbefitting such a dismal collapse. Chicago’s own defense was more impressive than even Miami’s, with Chicago’s wings forcing Wade into a dismal shooting game, Luol Deng hounding LeBron into a rough first 40 minutes, and precise rotations of their own limiting Miami’s open looks at the basket. Chicago again had some success on the offensive glass, converting second shot opportunities into easy scores even after Miami’s initial defense stifled them. Chicago didn’t overload its defense as severely to stop LeBron on the strong side, leaving fewer openings on diagonal passes from the wing or baseline to a wide-open Bosh at the elbow. Kurt Thomas and Ronnie Brewer each made critical fourth-quarter offensive plays to provide a modicum of offense, while Thomas’ board work was also valiant. However, several fatal flaws did Chicago in. Whereas in general, Chicago’s defense was of the highest order, Carlos Boozer was a weak link. His quick hands earned some steals in Miami, but his habitual soft closeouts, poor lateral movement, and absent rotations gifted Miami with too many easy points.Likewise, Boozer tucked his tail between his legs on the offensive end—1-6 FG.Chicago’s defenders too often lacked discipline on Miami’s head fakes.Luol Deng had trouble creating his own offense, and his high dribble prevents him from making plays in traffic.Kyle Korver couldn’t make up for his poor defense with shooting.Before Rose’s choke job, Brewer also missed a free throw. Still, considering Chicago’s approach to the game, and their quantum leap from last season to this season, the year can only be considered as an unmitigated success. The question becomes, what do the Bulls need to do in future years to supplant the Heat? Derrick Rose’s character assassination as a point guard is partly overblown by the media. True, he’s not as good as LeBron James, and all his minor flaws were ripped open to the world by LeBron—Rose is still a poor decision maker in traffic and makes the incorrect decision an inordinate number of times. Rose is also often out of control on his drives, leaping up into his shots way too far from the basket. Rose’s jump shot still doesn’t have enough arc and is unreliable. He also doesn’t have great vision and is prone to careless defensive mistakes. Still, the comparisons to Russell Westbrook are largely invalid because Rose will run an offense, often making the correct trigger pass, cutting away from the ball along the baseline, and then coming back to the ball after initial early offense sequence is run. Rose seldom aborts plays simply to clear out or screen/roll the same way Roes does. In these respects, Rose is more advanced as a point guard. He seldom forces bad shots, and plays passable on-ball defense. What Rose needs to work on is his vision and his decision-making. Elite defenses are able to capitalize on Rose’s bad habits in the lane, and his relative lack of vision results in missed open teammates. Rose also has to work on his focus at both ends, particularly the defensive end. Finally, few things alleviate choke-itis except self-confidence, trust in one’s self, and alleviated pressure. A better supporting cast could do wonders for Rose, but the performance could also become self-prophesizing. Luol Deng is a definite keeper thanks to his defense, his versatility, and his range, but he’s not a creative enough handler to be a secondary scorer. In a perfect world, he’s a third option, meaning the Bulls need to bring in an elite scorer. Carlos Boozer was supposed to be that guy, but as his performances against the Lakers and now the Heat will indicate, he’s an offensive coward against length, and too irresponsible on defense to make up for it. In a perfect world Boozer would be shipped out, but his recently signed expensive contract and poor play make that possibility extremely unlikely. While the Bulls two-guards are all acceptable rotation players, none is a difference maker at a championship level. Two of them should be shipped out, and a more capable playmaker brought in. Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson, and Omer Asik are all young, athletic defenders, while Noah doubles as a great passer. All have value, but only surrounding a dreadnaught post scorer, which Boozer is not. As a fifth big man in a four-big rotation, Kurt Thomas should also be welcomed back, though his defense is a notch below his young thoroughbred counterparts. C.J. Watson is passable because of his ball-pressure and his shooting, but makes too many mistakes with the ball. In other words, the Bulls are extremely close—but those final pieces are often the hardest pieces to acquire. As for the Heat, they’re also close to fulfilling the expectations they set for themselves when Bosh and James joined Wade last summer. With their ferocious defense, boundless energy, and star-powered scoring, the Heat are four wins away from NBA divinity.

Bosh never defended screens with the discipline and tenacity he defends with on the Heat. His own, isolated, individual defense is worlds better. This is a testament to Spoelstra's constant emphasis on defense and defensive detail, the rigor of his practices, and his ability to get people to actually improve. The credit then goes to Bosh for implementing this stuff. Thibodeau did the same thing in Chicago---but Carlos Boozer never improved his defense much, and it was one of Chicago's undoings. Bump Bosh up a couple of pegs and slide Boozer down. For all the heaping criticism placed on Rose for getting destroyed by the best player in the game, Boozer was abysmal against Bosh and friends.

Rivers and Van Gundy are Riley disciples who preach the exact same things. Rivers is a terrific motivator and ego manager and would be fine, though LeBron might easily tune out Van Gundy and his tendency to panic. Scott Brooks' strength is his ability to appeal to such a young team. His constant optimism and inattention to detail would probably be tuned out by LeBron. I don't think LeBron would take Brooks seriously. Hollins is a man of integrity, character, and patience, and is a sound tactician, and managed Allen Iverson, Zach Randolph, and O.J. Mayo perfectly. He'd probably work. Carlisle too, because Carlisle is an upper echelon coach. You, yourself, are bringing in aberrant cases---the coaches who have had the best success this year, but many other good coaches may not have worked. Larry Brown's micromanaging and megalomania might have driven LeBron insane, like he did Stephon Marbury. Ditto for Scott Skiles. Jerry Sloan is too stubborn to adapt and too rigid to appeal to superstars. Byron Scott doesn't motivate players. So on and so forth. A lesser coach, and the 2011 Heat could've been a disaster.

Sad, sad story. She was way too young, and always came off as a very nice person when I saw or read about her.

Keep in mind how vague the award's language is, how LeBron didn't play this well in the regular season, and Chicago's meteoric rise relative to expectations, yes. Few sane people said Rose was better than LeBron. He's not via talent, and if somebody argued against LeBron's postseason character, Rose didn't have any body of work to trump LeBron there.

Finally, there is one huge difference between Westbrook and Rose. Westbrook is the point guard on a team with a superstar. Rose doesn't have that luxury. Plus Rose, for all his misgivings, runs the offense. He's score-first, but he doesn't often abort plays. I feel Rose has the maturity to improve, but Westbrook is still a major work in process.