Doc, Pop and LeBron. Which One Name Will Prevail?

It's no longer March, but even the best sports tournament in the land doesn't finish in March these days so maybe the Madness and the magic have found their way to an LA doctor.

Hall Of Fame Coach? Doc Rivers.

Before I go all in on butt kissing the legendary coach Glenn "Doc" Rivers, I was concerned that he was using way too much of his coaching capital on the resurrection project called Austin "Doc's son" Rivers. After an impressive double digit win in Game 4, the San Antonio Spurs had better hope "Baby Doc" or whatever nickname we'll be working on for Austin doesn't stick during this playoff season. Baby Doc might stick if he keeps performing as he did to help the Los Angeles Clippers defeat the defending champion Spurs on their home court last night. Along the way, we all got another one of those magical father son moments like Georgia State provided in this years NCAA Final Four tournament.

The win not only ties this series at two games apiece, it reminds avid fans that the NBA will always be owned by legends with one name, even if they all don't shoot baskets.  Over the past decade, a few players and a couple of coaches have elevated themselves into championship contention in such a way that smart money would bet on them every time. Is it just a coincidence that each of them can be identified with a one name description? Maybe not.

Last night's Clipper victory signifies that the decade of the one named legends is poised to continue. Kobe may never get back to the top, but he won two rings in the past decade and joins the2 one name coaches and 2 other one name players to create a list of five one name champions in 10 years (Doc, Pop, Kobe Dirk and LeBron). Dirk (Nowitzki) might not be the same Dirk who upset the one-name legend LeBron to win his own crown, but he is still championship dangerous and desperate to put a cherry on the top of his stellar career as he almost did while pushing the Spurs to 7 games last season.  LeBron also has Dirk to thank for the awful taste that propelled him to finally drink from the cup of victory and rinse the taste of defeat from his mouth, yet he also has Pop and the gang to blame for reintroducing defeats flavor last year.

'Timmy' could also be that South Park kid,
not a one name legend like LeBron.

Greg "Pop" Popovich

Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobli and Tony Parker are all really good two name players that embody teamwork, but do so as they credit their one name coach on the sideline. Greg "Pop" Popovich has found a way to keep each of his Spurs teams championship relevant for the bulk of his career, all while being the only one name person during the storied run of the Spurs organization.

This morning, Pop will need a doc after getting popped by Doc.  Although Doc Rivers captured his own crown a few years back while being the only one name person for the Boston Celtics during his tenure, his return to the top has been tasking, to say the least. No one, especially the LA Clippers who paid Doc handsomely to leave the Celtics and resurrect the Clippers, thinks that this Doc can't operate. In fact, he has pulled off the typed of coaching surgery that only adds to his legacy and his public persona-  but also his expectations.

Game 4 outtakes

During the key moments of the Spurs .vs. Clippers game 4, Doc had his son defending Tony Parker, forcing him to struggle from the field, adding to his struggle from the free throw line as well.  This season, Pop has officially handed the reigns of the Spurs over to Kawhi Leonard, who began to trigger a comeback for his team as the heated game 4 battle neared the end.  Leonard's play making ability engineered a running right hander and two long range three's down the stretch of the game forcing a response from the Clippers coach, desperate for a win to even the series.

When Kawhi Leonard got hot, Doc sent the double team forcing him to attack the basket or find the open man. Leonard had never been a playoff double teamed player before this game, and frankly seemed overwhelmed by the respect it represents. When Leonard adjusted to the double by trailing the offense, he hit two 3's before the double could arrive, but seemed more awed by the moment than wide mouthed fans who keep wondering if we are all watching the second coming of Kobe, Jordan, and LeBron all wrapped into one player.

Good players never get doubled in the NBA playoffs because everybody's good in the NBA.  If a coach doesn't have the ability to counter a good player with a good defender, then his coaching days are numbered.  The challenge of the elite basketball league in America is what to do with the elite basketball players in the league.  Kawhi Leonard has officially been added to the elite list because last night, Doc added him.

He should have been added last season when he won the championship MVP for himself, but the Spurs' ball movement was so precise that LeBron and the Miami Heat couldn't chase fast enough to double anyone safely. Shot clock basketball forces the isolation of the elite players, and Leonard has consistently proven that he is now among the group of elites. Pop uncovered his future star during last year's series, and seems poised to turn him into something that very few players ever become.

One name.      

LeBron James

With a name like Kawhi, it seems plausible that we can soon drop the Leonard  from this year's Defensive MVP's name and send him into all time greatness without confusion between the world famous boxer, Sugar Ray. Unfortunately, right now he is up against a one name coaching legend that just elevated his legend a bit.  You might say that Kawhi forced Doc to double team him with the way he's performed for the Spurs throughout the series thus far. Whatever the reason, Doc did it and it was like placing a defibrilator on a team whose fading double digit lead was their last sign of a heart beat in this series.  To lose that lead could have meant  losing the game and certain death.

Doc not only resurrected his son's career while taking the ire off of his own from the insanity of acquiring him in the first place, he neutralized the vaunted Spurs passing game and has forced them into one on one isolation basketball in which he has the younger, hungrier team with a strong defensive force in the middle (DeAndre Jordan) if things break down.  Even when his force in the middle breaks down at the free throw line and has to sit down next to the coaches as it happened in last night's game, Doc steals minutes from his bench while also resting Chris Paul through crucial moments of the fourth quarter as it happened in last night's game. All of it worked because he recognized the need to double Kawhi.

The move uncovered youthfully inspired legs in Austin "don't call me Doc's son" Rivers- who used last night's game to go make a name for himself in the NBA. It also humbled Paul to the point that I hardly recognized him in the post game interview.  It seems Doc has finally converted the Clipper's apostle Paul into a River's evangelist.  Paul quickly creditted (Austin) Rivers with capturing a win for his Clipper team, but his tone was so calm and serene, that I would worry as a Spurs fan that the one name coach with a young and hungry team lead by a humbled Chris Paul represents a serious threat to their repeat.

Paul is no longer a young player, but he is younger than Tony Parker who is starting to reveal the mileage of being in the mix for so long.  Paul is also the undisputed king of the short jump shot, which makes him the undisputed king of the pick and roll that creates the open shots for him.  The poison of playing against the Clippers is the alley-oop ability of Deandre Jordan and Blake Griffin, players who demand attention in the paint.  Until this series is over, the Spurs will have to hope Paul misses his short jump shot- which he won't- or force him to make the extra pass for the WIDE open 3-point shot that JJ. Reddick and Austin Rivers are nailing.

Well- they nailed it during the games that the Clippers have won, but they will need to keep nailing the shots when or if the Spurs finally resurrect their own shooters who have been mostly absent in this up and down series. Pop used his defensive MVP to shut down Reddick's floor stretching ability which made Doc counter by inserting his son who can shoot and penetrate equally. Pop is formulating his counter at this very moment. Doc and Pop are now front and center down the stretch of this series, and their ability to counter each other will be on full display for NBA fans lifting the underbelly of a series that could be the prelude to a championship run.

Neither coach has won a game with all guns ablazing which might also be a credit to their coaching prowess.  Neither of these teams lack counterpunching skills either, so the fatal blow could happen from an attack or a counter.  In losing, Pop wouldn't fall from grace although he might insure the dismantling of a team that is sorely in need of an overhaul. If Doc wins, however, he will secure his place in history as one of the best to ever get it done.  His championship caliber teams have certainly been talented, but they have also been amalgamations of traveling stars trying to connect at the end of their career, and sorely needing a coach capable of making that happen.  Doc does what Pop has never bothered with.  Pop certainly turned his Spurs into the disciplined fighting unit that his military background inspires, but he has never done what Doc has done once, and is trying to do once again.

Doing it like Doc just doesn't happen in today's NBA because it seems Doc is the only one capable of doing it.  On one hand, he is biting off more than he can chew with trying to take down the defending champion Spurs in the first round of the playoffs, but on the other hand that is precisely how legends grow. If Doc can humble Chris Paul into the kind of team play that he has never relaxed enough to take advantage of, Paul becomes a player with twice the late game energy than what he usually carries into the fourth quarter.  In other words, sitting and watching Austin Rivers do your job is supremely inspiring.

I'm rooting for Doc this season.  Besides, Pop should have skin blisters from too many days under the sun.  It might be a dark cloud for the Spurs to bow out in the first round of the playoff after winning a title last season, but a little shade is what it takes to heal those blisters and to make you hungry for the sun again.

Although he's touched the sun during his career, Doc knows about the chill of the shade and has used every trick in his book, including his son, for a chance to bask in the sun once again. Doc has his Clippers shining bright and on the rise. Although these teams are both shining brightly before our eyes, from what I can see, this championship chase will come down to Doc, Pop and LeBron.

Which ONE name will prevail?

Spurs Snatch Title From King James. BEST TEAM EVER?

Did the Spurs officially close the MJ era with their victory?

The San Antonio Spurs are the champions of the National Basketball Association and take over a special mantle that will likely exist for the next decade.  As we experience the next ten years, we shall all be caught up in the whirlwind, rendering us unable to see clearly enough to describe the impact of when the NBA evolved back into a league of teams. When its all over, a new era of basketball will be defined, led by the player whose name and game is defining the era as we speak.

San Antonio deserves more than a moment of consideration in this story.  When the scrolls are compiled and the official doctrine is canonized, King James might see the Spurs as an apostle Paul of sorts.  For this day and for many to come, the Spurs might become the most noteworthy preacher of the gospel of team basketball because team basketball is what they've always represented.  Yet, even they, the harbingers of Tim "the meek" Duncan, have suffered under the pressure of the era in which they've played.  History has already attached a label to that time slot, and MJ rules the day.

The era of Michael Jordan ushered in the wave of individualism that has overtaken the league as we know it. Last night, with the impressive closeout victory by the San Antonio Spurs over the Miami Heat, there was a major market correction of sorts.  In the era of MJ, the shoe deal and commercial exposure took over the league.  Sadly, MJ himself did not play the game selfishly and asked as much of his players as he was willing to give himself. MJ was the essence of team, but his fire and brimstone approach along with his flair for the dramatics left an indelible stain on the youth of the world.  After MJ ruled the league, ESPN and sports television helped to insure that we only remember him for the results of his team effort, not for his team effort itself.

Tim Duncan played against Michael Jordan a time or two.  As an offspring of MJ's era, Duncan and his cohorts had to establish their own "Big 3" and tag one of them as the leader of them all.  The entire leagues image has become driven by the individuals on each team and not the team behind the individuals.  Duncan has never embraced such a notion, but that never stopped the expectations of his era to be placed upon him and every would be champion.

In some ways, San Antonio was actually the only exception to the "focus on the individual"dynamic that drivescharacterizes modern day players.  San Antonio has always nurtured great players and good players alike in order to achieve their goals.  During their absence from the championship mantle, the court of public opinion had conveniently blamed the big 3 of the Spurs. Now that they are back, there was a war over Boris Diaw or Kawhi Leonard for series MVP. During this series, this team got contributions from every player who stepped on the court, but the biggest assist came from the coach.

Greg Popovich made it clear to the world that last year's defeat haunted him throughout the entire summer.  The very first day of the Spurs season included an immediate review of game 6 from last season's finals, the game in which the Spurs handed over a ring they had already been sized for.  Every day that he could actually do something about his pain from one year ago, Pop' did what he could do.  A year prior, Pop' was conspicuously silent at key moments, trusting that trusting his team was the better way to go.  This year?  He was not so composed.  At every moment and upon each opportunity, Pop' used timeouts and reminded his team of the flavor of  failure.  When Miami mounted comebacks, Pop' made it stop.  The formula for winning had been laid out clearly throughout the season, but formula's fall apart when the King shows up with his court.  After losing game 2 at home, Pop' realized that to beat the King at the height of his powers would take more than a formula.

Pop' had a really strong trump card that he did not waste, but played it several times down the homestretch of the finals.  When situations appeared bleak, coach Pop' continued to remind the TEAM that the era of the big 3, or the individuals, was quickly ending for everyone...even them.  Not knowing if they would ever get the chance to win one for their big 3 after losing one for them a year earlier was inspirational.  The eventual MVP, Leonard, was the heel last year who missed the free throw that started the game 6 meltdown.  If any player had a reason to show up big, Leonard might have been tops on the list, but several players had cause to clear their name.  Even one who did not lose.

Win or lose, the world will always force LeBron to prove himself worthy of his appointment.  He might have only secured two rings, but he's fought for 5 of them across 11 seasons, and it's likely that LeBron returns to fight again soon. Vegas has placed Miami as the automatic favorite to win next season.  The fact that he lost this one makes for 2 teams from Texas that tripped up King James along his royal walk.  The Spurs, and every team that beats LeBron, will automatically ascend to the mantle of 'the one' who got it done against the greatest player in the land. They will be a part of the story line, but they will not be the central character.  This story is, and shall remain about LeBron, no matter who manages to beat him during his career.  Sure, we might find interesting angles to report on after a game 5 closeout, but soon enough this shall evolve or devolve back to the King assigned to change the game.

For today, this story is about team again.  It was the same way when Dallas beat the Heat, but now its even more pronounced because overcoming the King keeps demanding greater team play just to get a whiff at the NBA title.  If When LeBron does rise back to the top, he will be forced to double down on his approach to sharing and moving the ball (an approach that he prefers, but the MJ era neophytes reject) and will emerge better for the whooping the Spurs forced him to endure. He may never be excused for his lack of late game heroics, but the current champs, San Antonio, shows how utterly useless heroics become when confronted with team effort.  Heroics are for close games, not decisive victories created by exceptional team play.

However, heroics are needed for lasting legacies, and LeBron simply comes off as too boring to overtake the legend he threatens to supplant. Had he overcome the Spurs to win this series, most of his doubters would have been forced to find new angles for their assault of him.  With his team playing uninspired basketball, beating the Spurs would have taken a better than great performance, and LeBron was simply really good. Such a heroic story might not have been in the cards, but overtaking the great Michael Jordan without an intense commitment to team play won't be in the cards either.

If LeBron can inspire his team to play like the Spurs played to beat him, he will certainly win more championships one day, maybe even more than Jordan.  More importantly,  he will also functionally return the game to its proper form, which is just the type of job suited for a King.

Like MLK Or Muhammad Ali. LeBron On Rugged Journey Of Destiny

Are LeBron detractors much like his talent..part of his destiny?

Peculiar behaviors demand a deeper introspection from all of us.  To be a fan or an intense hater of someone is perfectly acceptable, especially in sports.  It's not fully encouraged in society, but there are ways of getting around without revealing your true feelings about someone in life.  Your boss at work is a great example, but monetary motivations make that an unfair comparison, so let's try another example.  How about Martin Luther King Jr.?  While clearly beloved in this day and age, he was intensely hated by many during his time, even by some who are alive today (you know who you are).  Consider Muhammad Ali.  He is, by and large, an American treasure today and considered the greatest boxer ever to live by many. During his day, he was widely hated for some of the very things that people love him for today.

Leading the 10% = Skip Bayless of ESPN

Let's try one more person. Hmmmm, LeBron James comes to mind.  For reason's that are hard to fully grasp (peculiar behaviors), LeBron simply can not catch a break out there.  In an effort to be fair I will give the +Skip Bayless opposing version of this viewpoint before I delve into my own.  According to Skip, LeBron receives red carpet treatment from about 90% of the media who he believes coddles LeBron no matter how poorly he has performed over the years.  That might be fair, but the 10% who pile on LeBron, and always have, have very little excuse for their misplaced criticism of James, so they simply echo the voice of social media as a means of discussing their own deep seeded disgust.  The social media world utterly annihilates this great player.

Does he earn all of that with his willingness to "play the game" in the world of social media?  Maybe he keeps the fuel going, but this fire started long before he even took his seat on the throne.  This social experiment that we call King James was canonized way back in high school.

I can recall it now.  Every time a Slam magazine or Sports Illustrated came out back then, it referenced some kind of up-and-coming high school star.  Kobe and KG had already broken onto the scene before LeBron, but the anticipation for this guy was unlike any other.  Yeah, they tried to tag team him with Sebastian Telfair, who was also a legendary high school player at the time, but I don't remember him being called Prince Sebastian. King James was tagged with his royal lineage so early in life that he had to make a serious decision way back then.  He had to decide whether or not he would deflect the label or own it.  LeBron tattooed himself with the words "The Chosen One", and he did it long, long ago.

Since that time, this man has played the game the right way and improved at doing it every year of his career. He continues to get better and to display the game of a champion.  In game 2 against the Spurs, LeBron created for his team on 4 straight plays to close the game for good, but in the minds of the revisionist (Skip Bayless) LeBron did almost nothing in that minute and a half.  There is so much wrong with that suggestion that I don't know where to begin, but I will take a deep breath and clarify it for Skip and anyone else who seems unclear about winning basketball.

This won't take long, because I only have to refer to the losing coach, Greg Popovich.  He complained that his team allowed the ball to get too sticky down the stretch and it cost them the game.  In fact, he insisted that it will be the death of them in this series if they do not fix it because LeBron is too good.  Pop' didn't say this because LeBron scored all of the final points, because he did not.  In fact, of these 4 key possessions that I previously mentioned, LeBron only scored 1 freethrow when he got fouled on the only shot that he took.  The other 3 possessions went as follows:

LeBron attacked and found Bosh in the corner twice for a 3 point shot. The first one he missed, but the Heat got back, defended and blocked out the Spurs to secure the rebound before LeBron goes back down court to give Bosh another look at it, which he made.  Considering the Indiana Pacer game, Bosh had now missed two key jumpshots late in  key games after a good pass from the King, so the 3rd pass was an immense display of trust. The next possession, LeBron rove and got fouled on the shot, but only made that one free throw.  The following possession, the Spurs double teamed the ball away from his hands, forcing Bosh to make a decision with the ball.  Bosh eventually drove at the basket, attracted the double team and found D-Wade for an easy layup.  All was created by the decision to double team and deny the ball away from LeBron, and LeBron telling Bosh to attack the basket.  Bosh tried to force the ball to the King who deferred but dragged the double team away from the lane, which created the space for Wade's eventual layup.

Somehow the John Paxson/Steve Kerr/Chicago Bulls championship jumpshots have gone to distant memory.  Jordan was so appreciated during his time, that revisionist' now think that he actually took every game closing shot and can hardly remember how necessary it was for Jordan to create for teammates in order to win championships.  Revisionist' also watch LeBron create like a magician and tell themselves that they are watching a local clown act and not the great Houdini himself.

Just as weird people know they are weird, peculiar behavior recognizes itself and seems quick to answer to "Why".  Why do we hate a player who is defining and redefining the game that we thought Jordan would rule forever?  This mere argument is gaining heat because LeBron is putting the heat on everyone who stands above him.  Kobe has already taken a back seat in the debate.  LeBron might not be the best player the game has ever seen, but he intends to be, and very little seems capable of stopping him.  Except public opinion.

No matter how great a performance Ali put on in the ring, millions simply tuned in to see his destruction.  His mouth earned much of that hatred, but his skill backed up his mouth more often than it did not. LeBron doesn't talk like that.  Tiger Woods could be a more modern equivalent to the peculiarity of LeBron hatred.  He was also a chosen legend who is living up to the hype and threatens to surpass them all. LeBron isn't a philanderer like Tiger. To be labeled "chosen" embodies more than a messianic connotation, it virtually insures a messianic journey.

Christ was as much beloved as he was reviled.  LeBron may not see his plight on such a spiritual level, but he did seem willing to confess that he is comforted in God whether he wins or loses.  Though he plugs out of the social media world during the playoffs, he still understands the sentiment regarding who he is as a person and as a player (why do you think he unplugs?). He know's when critics take advantage of the cramps that took him out of game one.  He realizes that some people who never lived in Cleveland still hate him for "The Decision".  He knows the good, the bad and the ugly of his public persona.  He might even be coming to terms with the fact that it would have NEVER been any other way.

The spirit of envy and hatred  isn't something any one of us proudly embraces, but all of us clearly experience it from a giving or a receiving perspective.  All have been victims.  All have been perpetrators. Back in the day, athletes used to get ridiculed for their  "show me the money" mentality, but today they face "how dare you control your career" critics.  Athletes had no control before LeBron demonstrated how it is done.  By the time Carmelo did the same thing in my hometown of Denver, no one seemed to care anymore because the blueprint was out.  Denver also lost a legend in Dikembe Mutombo for reason's that Mutombo could have dictated in the favor of Denver, and did not.  Yet, thousands of Denver natives and Nugget fans, remain forgetful and forgiving of both Mutombo and Anthony, but can not stand LeBron because of  "The Decision"?

Personally, I don't totally buy it.  I believe there are a significant number of people who celebrated when Tiger Woods fell from his mantle and there are those (maybe the same people) who needed LeBron to justify their disapproval with the kid who they called the King.  They criticized him similarly when he only threatened to win with Cleveland. It only got louder when he refused to stay.  Now, the room to criticize him is narrowing swiftly.  Why?

Because he is worthy of the throne he was anointed to assume.  He may not have arrived there in a fashion that his critics appreciate, (joining Wade and Bosh in beautiful Miami instead of having them come to kinda grey Cleveland is a problem for some) but he has arrived, and "He" is the King no matter who he assigns to close out matches. +Skip Bayless and anyone else who does not recognize all-time greatness will have to enjoy his career much like we do that of MLK and Muhammad Ali. In total hindsight if at all.

LeBron might not realize it now, but one day when he is old an gray he will look back on his detractors and realize the sheer necessity of them all.  Because of those who say he is not ...whatever, he works on his game to prove them otherwise.  His paint domination of big man Boris Diaw when San Antonio attempted a last minute adjustment in game 2, proves his complete ability to own any position on the court. In post game interviews, Greg Popovich seemed baffled as to what to do about LeBron's play making ability admitting that double team or no double team, there is no easy way to stop LeBron.  Spur's officials are scrambling to contact the Oberto beef jerky man to see if he can implement that 2-3 zone that he says is needed against LeBron.

LeBron will force the entire league to either design some variation of a zone to defend him or they must build a team that utilizes perfect passing execution for an entire game and an entire series.  According to Popovich, his Spurs, who are the closest thing to that model, will not win with anything less.

...and neither shall LeBron.  His quest demands a fuel that passion alone can't fully provide.  He is on a mission that needs a nice chip on the shoulder.  Michael Jordan achieved a lot in his career and some of it came from those who told him that he could not.  Before it was all over, the world would willingly eat from a pair of his highly priced athletic shoes and the voice of his detractors became muted.  Michael had many reasons that we could be critical of his career, on and off the court.  LeBron may as well, but the quality of the competition and the quality of the performances keeps falling in favor of the King.

If you want to be the King, the messiah, the second coming of MJ, then you must assume the throne like any good King does.......by force.  In addition, you are going to be crucified for your namesake alone, and you will only be called the best player to ever play when the argument fully tilts in your favor, and not a moment sooner.

Fortunately, this King wouldn't have it any other way.    

LeBron Bows Out From Leg Cramps. Should The Spurs Fix The A/C?

"Sugar" Ray Allen might have been thanking
 Jesus that he didn't miss this dunk. - CBS sports

One game down and the story line remains virtually unchanged.  The luck, or lack thereof, is becoming palpable in relation to these teams and this level of competition between them. I know it has been a while, but Ray Allen must have kept his Boston Celtic Irish luck with him when he drove the lane and completed a full court driving dunk that has the blogoshpere calling him Jesus Shuttlesworth once again. When you are a 6' 5" NBA player, you had better be able to still put one in the hole as needed.  The strain of completing it showed that his hops will go away a few years after he retires....which might be soon if LeBron can't take the Heat in San Antonio.  


Fan's of the NBA and HVAC repair men all over San Antonio, Texas are scrambling over the news that the A/C didn't work during last nights game in San Antonio.  As a result of the heat, the Heat took a Game 1 loss to the Spurs when the league's best player, LeBron James, went down with cramps, presumably from the heat of a Texas arena without AC.

Much like the humidor Colorado uses for baseball's, the Spur's have uncovered a competitive advantage that is not "technically" against any rule.  LeBron, who has had history of cramping up in the playoffs, was the only player taken out by the Heat as Spoelstra waved the white flag, refusing to give LeBron a second chance to play on expired limbs. Teammates had to help him off the court from the failed first attempt. While most expect the Spurs to correct the condition of the air, the repeated "heat" related songs that the Spurs organization chose to play in their blazing hot arena sounds like the kind of premeditation that could accidentally cause another A/C failure now that we all realize heat and Heat don't mix.

Here's where LeBron and Spoelstra are going to have to manage his minutes and his hydration better.  There are ways to avoid these things, but freakish genetics can be freakishly demanding on ones hydration level.  Skinny cats rule basketball because they are more capable of enduring the aerobic strain.  The thin player also has an easier ability to play a longer career since they put less strain on joints and ligaments throughout their careers.

Jesus might be blessed to play until he is 40 (even though he may never get another dunk), but Lebron will have to expand his understanding of the limited power of his massive physic versus the greater power of his brain. He may even want to become, and actually play at power forward to avoid the beating that he puts on his nearly 300 pound frame while squatting to defend smaller players.  If LeBron is a chiseled 270 now, age will easily see fit to add 10-30 lbs. of additional mass that comes with aging. At some point his desire to display perimeter domination has to give way to a style of game that provides better stamina.  270 pound guards can certainly force their will upon any basketball game, as long as they have the legs to avoid getting benched in the end of the NBA finals from leg cramps.  

You know why you can't remember the last time that you saw a Ray Allen dunk?  Because Ray is old school and old school realizes that the dunk still is only worth 2 points.  Until it becomes worth more, it comes with a physical price that you only sacrifice when situations demand.  When Allen decided to dunk the ball, he pushed off on the only player that had a chance to stop his attack of the rim.  Even with that push, he realized that an older, more mature player who expected such a push would have recovered enough to contest almost any shot........except a dunk.

Ray Allen dunked the ball for one reason and one reason only.  He had no other choice in the matter.  Until LeBron James understands this kind of basketball and stops dunking and wasting leg stamina just for the Michael Jordan of it (who was 54 lbs. lighter than King James), then he might never avoid late game cramping in the playoffs..especially in Texas, cuz everything is hot in Texas.  Even playoff basketball. 

NBA Finals Begin With Questions About Last Year. Were The Heat Lucky?

When Tim insured they would get it done this year, did
he open up speculation about what happened last year?

When an NBA fan watches the conference finals finish in 6 games, leaving several days before the championship series begins, you have a lot of down time to fill. I've grown weary of the May/June swoon of the Colorado Rockies, so an angry flip of the channel found me on game one of the Stanley Cup finals. I don't have anything at all against the NHL.  In fact (as long as my team is still in it), I am quite the fan.  When the playoffs come around though, I love the intensity of the game and hate the intense need for pure luck.

Of all the major sports, hockey is the hardest championship to win because luck is simply too much of a necessary quotient.  However, don't get confused on this luck thing.  It is necessary for sure, but the luck that we common folk speak of and the luck of a champion are hardly cut from the same cloth.

Enter the reigning NBA world champions, the Miami Heat, and suddenly the conversation of luck has taken on new dimensions.  If you followed last year's finals, you understand clearly the reason for such opinions, but it might take a deeper knowledge of winning and losing to understand what luck is and what it is not.

Was it lucky that Ray Allen got his feet behind the line to tie game 6 on a miracle 3 pointer when San Antonio had the game all but wrapped up just moments before?  Ray Allen won't let you describe his well practiced jumper as lucky.  To me, the long bounce off of the rim that gave Chris Bosh, an exceptional rebounder, an offensive rebound and the assist to Allen was much more akin to luck.  Had that ball bounced a little less than it actually did, then Bosh possibly gets called for an over-the-back foul and luck rewrites this story.

Yet, all of this is belaboring the obvious when it comes to luck.  No one argues with the cliche', "I'd rather be lucky than good", including the greatest of them. No sensible human being would sacrifice the benefit of luck.  In the end, life, and sports, demands a healthy dose of luck just to get an opportunity at greatness.  Deep thinkers and coaches try to sell the notion that luck benefits the aggressor, but at the highest level of competition the lines blur between who is truly the most aggressive, especially since aggression has to be tempered by wisdom and prudence to become a champion.

We would all rather be lucky when our good isn't better than the competition  Luck notoriously chooses sides.  Sometimes it stays where it began, other times it becomes a bit fickle, but most often it walks out with the winning team.

I say often and not always because the beauty of sports is that you can make luck, and your opponents fall prey to your exceptional effort and unity.  Revisionist' might revise you into the seat of the lucky one because that is what they do, but you and luck will always know the truth.  Overall, it even takes a bit of luck to remain healthy enough just to be good.  Greatness in team sports like basketball demands the luck of your good and my good showing up on the same day.

The Miami Heat know how to be great.  They are a team in every sense of the word, but so are the San Antonio Spurs.  Each team understands that they must exhibit the ability to play multiple styles of basketball and be fortunate (not lucky) enough to stay one step ahead of an opponent who is perfectly capable of doing the same to you.  Had San Antonio won last years series, they would have had to mention the good fortune (luck) of overcoming LeBron and them, but it would be disrespectful to assign such a monumental achievement to the sheer luck of the draw.

As game one of the Stanley Cup finals came to an overtime end last night, one team came out playing really really good hockey....only to see a lucky bounce go in the net for the other team.  The Colorado Avalanche opened the playoffs this season with one of the greatest efforts ever seen to erase a deficit and win in overtime.  As they sit at home watching two other teams chase after the cup, I wonder if they feel lucky just to have won that first game and to have pushed Minnesota to a game 7.  In hindsight, this Av's fan certainly feels a lot luckier than I did as our boys cleaned out lockers for the season.

The best team will win the NBA finals because the best team always does.  No matter the nature of a game and the plays within it, the lucky team will always be the winner and the losers instantly become the team who's luck ran out.  This years champion will need to overcome injury and in-game adversity. This years champion must shoot and defend, or run the risk of losing control of scoring. This year's champion also really needs luck to fall their way just to take advantage of the few advantages that great teams give up.

Call it what you want, but only the greatest teams ever get lucky enough to come within reach of a championship crown.  The Spurs have plenty of rings and got a fairly good sniff of the crown last season.  If the Spurs add to their championship legacy by winning another title this year, I can guarantee you that they won't care what adjectives we add to the word "Champion"
.

Lucky Champions smile just the same.

Spurs .vs. Thunder: A Home Court Battle Or A War For The Ages?

I will see your Serge Ibaka and raise you a Boris Diaw.

The question is, why?  Not so much why make a change, but why did it matter who started the game in the world of the great Greg Popovich?  Publicly declaring Boris Diaw and Matt Bonner over Thiago Splitter seemed a declaration of deep seeded concern for a team that the Spurs have dominated at home this playoff series, but seem clueless against on the road.

For 5 games, each home team has dominated in this series and for 5 games the opposing team has sounded the bell as though they had to dramatically adjust the game plan in order to turn the tide.  As this series has played out, the tide has proven to be home cooking, and unless San Antonio travels to OKC with their Diaw plan firing on all cylinders, Durant and company will likely exact their revenge on the home court.

The reason I focus my attention on Pop' is only partially from the geriatric depiction his nickname evokes.  Growing old gracefully is a luxury that only great coaches enjoy.  Everybody else has to prove that they can remain effective and relevant in a world where AAU born players lack respect for coaching philosophy and team concepts. Although the game will never truly change, the ability of older coaches to be heard by the younger generation of players is starting to resemble an episode of  Charlie Brown.  "Wa, wa wa wa waaa".

In today's game, you win Coach of the Year and you are likely to lose your job soon after.  The winning is one part of conjoined triplets.  His brothers recognition and expectation shall never depart from him.  The Lakers and the Knicks are burdened by expectations from successes that we hardly recall anymore, but they are equally blessed with the eyeballs that generate revenue that give you a chance to make it happen every season.  For years the recognition that Pop' has received has outshined the expectations, and while his teams remain competitive the top of the mountain has eluded them for years.

San Antonio is the team that Pop built and his success is legendary, Hall of Fame worthy in fact.  His ability to win, and keep winning has displayed a masterful use of superstar talent, over achieving backups and an unmatched system for developing teamwork.  Players don't scream of their joy of playing for Pop' but they do scream of loving the way they've personally improved while playing for Pop'.  In the end, a coach must win in the game of player development and Pop' makes the more of marginal talent than any coach left in the game.

Pop' developed Thiago Splitter into his starting center, only to bench him when it became obvious that his slow feet were jamming up the lane.  To my eyes, Splitter jammed up the lane in the games they won as well but teams don't really make adjustments until they are forced to.  Winning is a dangerous elixir that rarely inspires a repeat performance.  Educated sports fans across the world have assumed that one of these amazingly talented teams would find a way to put up a sincere fight on the road realizing the necessity of winning on the road in the playoffs. Even the legend himself, Tim Duncan has declared this the strangest series that he's ever been a part of with the unpredictable performances from each losing team and the 20+ point spread on all of the wins thus far.

As of yet, neither team has found the road to be predictable, and unless the Spurs reverse a trend, this series is going 7 and the Thunder will need to roll into San Antonio with a roar to steal a chance at the NBA crown. I have a hunch that basketball experts are not totally wrong and the Thunder will find a way to be the first team to show up on the road.....but first they must force the game back to the road by staying alive at home.

The Spurs have to be fighting for a closeout, but it is not always wise to send your Queen running wild if it leaves your King exposed to attack? In other words, they are probably best served to save some energy for a home court defense instead of wasting it on an improbable closeout in the house of OKC.  Adrenaline has a way of inspiring your legs, but old legs require a whole lot more adrenaline than their feeble minds will ever produce anymore.  Once you've seen too much and traveled too many miles to see it, you simply can't make your legs do what they refuse to do.  Despite the Spurs tradition of winning, Father-Time remains undefeated and he is chasing fast after every part of this legendary team, especially its leaders.

The Spurs are coached by a dude named Pop' who is likely the oldest coach left in the game. His closest comrade in coaching (at least in age) was a guy who,  last season, received the same "Coach of the Year" honor that Pop' won this year. George Karl got canned in Denver because "Coach of the Year" is the biggest kiss of death on the planet.  The list of coaches who win the award and soon lose their job resembles the Sports Illustrated or the Madden video game cover jinx.  Some accolades just ain't worth it at times, but is this curse strong enough to take out Pop' too?

Age and wisdom have a value, but basketball is ultimately a young man's game.  If the Spurs pull off a championship victory in the Western Conference or NBA finals, they will have placed a mark in the column for the old guys. If you hadn't noticed, the old guys don't have many marks in their favor.  On the 'every other game' occasion that the great (an old) Dwayne Wade has a good game these days, it becomes leading news.  Manu Ginobli is officially in the every third game category of old age in basketball and even Tony Parker is struggling to string consistent games together. Young minds might not be able to produce consistent production either, but young legs don't have a big problem answering the bell.  Unless you can rip the hearts out of young players, you run the risk of them finding their confidence and running you into the ground because of it

Popovich is the last of the "young player hating" coaches in the league.  He is not afraid to play young players like Karl seemed to be at times, but he is guaranteed to maintain a short leash on them.  Since Ginobli is only good every third game, he is given carte blanche to stink when the Danny Green's of the world lose minutes the minute they aren't hitting shots. Shooting out of it is a luxury that Pop' only offers to his elder statesmen.

Win or lose, it will soon be time to blow up the Spurs and start anew.  If the time is now, do you want to assign that task to Greg Popovich?  If the time is not exactly "now" but "soon", how deep do you level the foundation in order to begin the rebuild?.  Pop' may be the last guy who gets to decide his own departure, but it is more likely that he will eventually get replaced like every coach gets replaced? Teams that win have expectations to go along with all that recognition. Eventually, like George Karl, close will not be good enough anymore and the Spurs will be forced to move on.

Whether we are witnessing the beginning of the end of Pop' will soon be determined?  You might say that we will know in a Diaw or two.

Denver Misses Playoffs For First Time In Years. (..blaming coach Shaw has gone missing as well)

So the playoffs are out of reach but all hope is not lost in Nugget Land. Last season the Washington Wizards waxed the Denver Nuggets every time they played them.  This year we returned the favor. In order to defeat the Wizards, the Nuggets went without the services of former Wizard Jan Vesely (yeah, I said it….Vesely), overcoming a different kind of spell,….the injury bug.

Vesely came to Denver with instant intrigue, but got lost in the parental controls that coach Brian Shaw had to place on the center position.  Allowing Mozgov to assert physical presence early in games, and  a foul free JJ Hickson to come off the bench and close out games has been brilliant, especially with Hickson actually hitting late free throws. 

    

Hickson has always been a player of immense promise.  Those who follow these things recall JJ Hickson as the dude that replaced Lebron James when Cleveland lost Lebron to the “Decision” to exit for Miami.  Later, Portland acquired Hickson and thought his heavy body could learn to dance around centers, so they converted him to a nimble scorer at the post.  In both scenarios, Hickson saw the ball a lot, and was asked to do something with it. When Hickson has the room to operate, the only way to stop him is with a foul since he is typically a poor free throw shooter.

Correction; he was a poor free throw shooter.  Hickson went down with an ACL injury recently ending a season of redefined dominance in the paint for the Nuggets. Last season Denver was among the league leaders in points in the paint, but most of those were strictly from fast break points. With less fast break points, Denver is still among the tops in this statistic and Hickson was key to that transition.

Lots of people might see the injury bug as a negative curse, but the reality is that the Nuggets are being designed and defined by these handicaps.  Literally.  The toughness to put forth a win worthy effort every night is something most teams struggle to do once the starters take a seat.  In Denver, we never know who will play and contribute, much less start or finish, but every time Coach Shaw digs deep, he keeps finding gold.

Timofey Mozgov is a rough edged center who makes you happy and mad all in the same play. He does the same for his teammates and coaches, but he is a legitimate center, and a fairly good one at times.  What matters most is that Timofey Mozgov is a developing player who will get there…..wherever his there is……..if he could only remember to block out.

If he would only block out like Jan Vesely does. Vesely is as raw a player, but he has freakish athletic ability,  a wingspan like a condor, and is fairly sound on basic techniques like blocking out.  He can run the floor with the best of them and will out run the worst of them. When he plays, it looks like Chris “Bird Man” Anderson and  Javalle McGhee gave birth to a love child.

Did I mention that Vesely got hurt too?  His old team got tired of his “Bird Man” antics, and gave him the shot fake, shoulder to the ribs trick sending him to the injury list as well. 

No worries! The Denver Nuggets proceeded to sweep the Wizards, returning a bitter favor from the season prior when WE were in the playoffs and the Wizards swept us as their yard marker for the future.

Oh, how things have changed.  Yet, in this situation the Nuggets are not an up and coming team gaining in health and chemistry as the season progresses.  They are an up and coming team that keeps losing players day by day.

Did I mention that Wilson Chandler went down several games ago too, forcing Quincy Miller and others to pick up the slack?  With Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder game following the Wizard victory, Miller would get tested quickly.

Within minutes after the start of the game, Coach Brian Shaw forced Randy Foye to get eaten alive by Kevin Durant instead of allowing Quincy Miller to lose 10 games worth of confidence from the assignment.  Before the game, Miller reminded Coach Shaw that he started the game the last time the Nuggets defeated OKC.  Shaw probably reminded “Q” later that Durant is the likely NBA MVP this season, and was unlikely to have forgotten the previous defeat. 

In a common theme, the Nuggets couldn’t get enough scoring or defense from the starting five to make a real game of it, but we did discover one amazing fact. 

Quincy Miller has been sitting so long, we hardly noticed that he is as long and agile as Kevin Durant.  He is actually one inch taller than Durant and he is certainly equally as skilled with handling the ball, but lacks the maturity and all-star pedigree that Durant brings to bear.  However, if there ever were a player that Miller could pattern his game after, it is Kevin Durant.

Over the past few games, Miller has taken advantage of his minutes with aggressive defense and attacking offense along with way too many turnovers.  In this first installment of the two game San Antonio series, Miller actually kicked off the scoring for Denver.  Early on, he was all alone as San Antonio built a lead that appeared too large to overcome.  Without much scoring again from Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried and Aaron Brooks stepped up late, and the Nuggets made a strong rush down the stretch to give the Spurs a challenge, but failed to seal the deal.

Since the Nuggets are playing a home and home series against the Spurs, Coach Shaw instantly claimed tonight’s rematch game in Denver as the Nuggets playoffs for this season.  This is Denver’s chance to give the Spurs, and ourselves, a bit of what we gave the Wizards; a warning shot for next season and for the future of this franchise.  San Antonio is currently the hottest team in the league with 15 victories in a row, but Faried and the fellas will do their best to put a stop to the streaking Spurs.

As San Antonio secured victory number 15 by finishing off the Nuggets 108-103, it was noteworthy to see Tim Duncan giving post game respect to Kenneth ‘For Real’ Faried before they left the court.  As they say….game recognizes game. The sky is hardly the limit for this hardworking player.  Faried’s consistent growth with each game shows that he is virtually limitless.  Whatever he is missing in his game right now will be added with time and hard work.  He is short on neither.

Does the fact that Coach Shaw declared this game a playoff game make a Nugget victory more likely?

 Probably! 

The signs have shown that these guys will threaten to win even when all seems lost.  If tanking the season for a better draft slot were in the plans, they need to sketch a new plan.  These Nuggets are playing for pride and for an identity.  In Faried, they have fortified the toughness element for a long time coming. Given the nature of the Denver sports fan base,  Faried might be slowly prying this teams identity away from timid Ty Lawson and establishing himself as the player you fear most whenever you play Denver. In Randy Foye they now have a consistent outside shooting threat.

Since Faried and Foye are the only starters that have not succumbed to injury or poor play, they must be particularly responsible for whatever success we have had in this injury filled home stretch.

...Because it couldn’t be the coach of course.