We’ve had this running debate in the Dime office for the last few months: basically, Christian is convinced he could beat Eric Snow 1-on-1, while everyone else says Snow wouldn’t even allow him a bucket. Last night hopefully settled that argument. On the game-deciding possession of Cavs/Nets Game 4, Vince Carter was iso’d on the elbow against Snow, who was giving up 3-5 inches and 15-20 pounds. Vince tried to post Snow up and back him down — presumably setting him up for a fadeaway — but Snow wouldn’t give him anything and poked at the ball, eventually forcing a turnover … Before that play, the fourth quarter was marked by LeBron (30 pts, 9 rebs, 7 asts) missed free throws and jumpers that should have been daggers, and Vince (25 pts, 9 rebs, 9 asts) missing key free throws that would have left Jersey in a better position than they ended up in … As good as he is defensively, Snow is a mess on offense. Watching him take a jumper with the shot clock running down is an adventure. Your main question: Will it hit rim? … If you’re ranking faces, Vince “whiny face” is right up there with Tim Duncan’s, but his sneer falls well short of guys like LeBron and Shaq … Where’s Cliff Robinson? Last year he was a key contributor for NJ in the playoffs. Now he’s just taking up a spot on the bench … Second quarter, LeBron fell into the Nets bench, right on top of assistant coach Bill Cartwright, who thankfully didn’t slip him one of those sharp elbows. LeBron got back on the court and the Cavs went on a break, where he hit an impossible shot from his right shoulder while floating to his left, hanging in the air for about 10 seconds and changing direction with the ball five times … You always gotta wonder, when the Nets play the Cavs, who is Jay-Z really rooting for? Is it one of those “your franchise’s fantasy player vs. your favorite team” deals, where he wants his boy LeBron to score 40 but still wants the Nets to get the W? … Mikki Moore’s jumper from the top of the key at the halftime buzzer drew a Craig Ehlo-like reaction out of Drew Gooden, only Drew stayed on his feet … Mikki finished with 25 points. You know he and Matt Barnes are free agents this summer, right? After this last month, they’re both gonna get PAID … Tyson Chandler-like stat line from Jason Kidd: 17 boards and five points … Funny moment when Kenny Smith showed TNT studio guest Shaq some clips of Hakeem giving him buckets in the ‘95 Finals. All Shaq could respond with was, “He was a great player.” … Reggie Miller had a couple gems from the announcer’s table. First, it sounded like he referred to Big Z as “Za-noo-ras” Ilgauskas. After a while he gave up and just started calling him Big Z. Later, when speaking on LeBron’s possible sulking after not getting All-NBA First Team, Reggie said LBJ needs to “Let your game speak for your actions.” You ever get the feeling Reggie just kinda says stuff because he thinks it sounds good? … Dick Stockton was on his game, too. He kept saying “Mikki Mooor.” … The Spurs probably still don’t know what hit them. Right around the time Steve Kerr all but signed the Suns’ death certificate and said they wouldn’t come back, the Spurs started to fall apart and Phoenix got their act together. Shawn Marion slipped open for some buckets, the Nash/Amare combo became unstoppable, and the Spurs couldn’t get a bounce or get a call … Well, there was one non-call in the last couple of minutes where Duncan climbed all over Kurt Thomas‘ back and there was no whistle … Duncan was dominant for stretches (21 pts, 11 rebs, 3 blks) but didn’t get the ball enough down the stretch. On a few plays where Manu rushed a drive or TD didn’t even touch the ball, he could have made a difference and kept the Spurs in the driver’s seat … Some guy in the San Antonio crowd as Leandro Barbosa took a three: “Go BARBOSAAAAAA!!” … With Robert Horry seemingly running out of gas as the Magic Playoff Moment Man, Mike Finley is just gaining steam. Finley (17 pts) was the one who kept the Spurs afloat in the last few minutes with a few bombs … Speaking of Horry, he’ll be all over the news over the next couple of days for his flagrant foul at the end of the game where he send Nash into the boards like a hockey player. Here’s how we see it: if James Posey and Ron Artest got suspensions last postseason for similar plays, Horry should get a game off … Nash put up 24 points and 15 dimes. As PR said during the game, “All due respect to “Flat-Top Jesus,” but is Nash the most dominant un-athletic player in the history of the game?” For the uninitiated, Flat-Top Jesus is Chris Mullin — who should have won Executive of the Year this year … We’re out like Mikki’s minimum salary …
Related posts:
May 15th, 2007 at 2:55 am
K-Dizzle says:
Now that you haters can get off Nash for a day, let’s switch to
“Chris Mullin — who should have won Executive of the Year this year”.
What is crackin, Dime? Chris Mullin? I think Bryan Colangelo got what he deserved. The Raptors didn’t sneak into the playoffs on THE LAST DAY, they won the division. Stop feedin on the GSW hype. I love Baron Davis, but Chris Mullin should be happy that Don Nelson was in his ear, tellin him he wanted Jackson and Harrington. Come on, guys. You better than that.
Oh yeah, one more time. STEVE NASH…MVP. Most valuable player….THIS YEAR. Now to keep it Dime, I’m out like Robert Horry
May 15th, 2007 at 2:57 am
Aaron says:
The rules about leaving the bench are at their core, rules about fairness and safety. But to suspend any Suns player for what happened would fly in the face of what is morally right in this series. An 8th man’’s cheap shot actions taking an all NBA player and a key reserve out of the next game? If the Suns do lose Amare/Diaw for game 5, how do you not put a scrub in the game to hack the Spurs and try to bait them into fighting? How do you NOT do that if you”re Phoenix? Technically it would be a smart move, but morally it would be wrong. But if the NBA sides with what is technially the rule instead of what is morally right, what other choice do you have? Bottom line: A cheap shot by somebody on your team should not result in actions that increase your teams chances for winning the series. And that’s exactly what will happen if Amare and Diaw face any suspension.
Bottom line: A cheap shot by your own team shouldn’t result in a better chance of your team winning a title. And that’s exactly what will happen if Diaw/Amare get any time off.
May 15th, 2007 at 8:33 am
FK in Toronto says:
Wow - didn’t think anyone would have the brass to spit at Collangelo winning top exec - who pissed in your cornflakes?
Big Shot Rob is showing game after game why he should have unlaced them for the last time a year or two ago. If those are the only types of ‘big shots’ he has left just skip game 6 & 7 (following the game 5 suspension) to preserve the legacy.
Is anyone else as dissinterested about the shear pounding Detroit is soon goign to put on the Cavs?
May 15th, 2007 at 8:53 am
Shaughn says:
Nash un-athletic? Are you kidding? Dude is ripped, in insane shape, fast and quick as hell, and even has some hang time, not to mention his soccer skills… Mullin was slow, weak and had no hops, not even close.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:32 am
seth says:
Only in the most narrow & ridiculous definition of the term “athletic” can Steve Nash be referred to as un-athletic. Nash EASILY has more dexterity and hand-eye coordination than any player in the NBA. Nash excelled in 3 other sports in high school (baseball, soccer and hockey) and soccer “experts” who have seen Nash play say he could’ve easily played that sport professionally. While Mullin, Bird & other white saviors have lacked foot speed, Nash routinely blows by defenders on his way to the basket. So while some may call Nash un-athletic because he doesn’t have explosive leaping ability, let me ask you: Would you rather have Steve Nash’s skill set or James “Flight” White’s? Compare their paychecks and let me know.
May 15th, 2007 at 9:47 am
Amar says:
We all love Mullen from back when he was @ St.Johns, but he wasn’t exec of the year — he made one good trade. He got an okay coach, and they got in the playoffs. Seriously, what’s next? A new award for Tim Hardaway for being Most Valuable Biggot?
We all love the GSW, they’re a good lotto team that got in, and faced a team that didn’t have the mental fortitude to play their game. It’s a damn shame that after tonight, cinderella will have had her cherry popped.
May 15th, 2007 at 10:30 am
Ampli2de says:
Come on, Nash isn’t even the most unathletic player in this series… That’s Jacque Vaughn. If vertical means athleticism, then most centers are not athletes. I guarantee you Nash has more vertical than Shaq. Loved the end of game comments from Nash who said he was working on his ‘guns’ lately and he was gonna try them out when asked what he was thinking when charging Horry after the bodycheck…
May 15th, 2007 at 10:47 am
bixby says:
nash is crazy athletic…. not jump out the gym athletic but his skill and dexterity and vision are legendary. he could definitely be playing pro in a few sports. give the man his props!
May 15th, 2007 at 11:04 am
Dank says:
lol Nash is ripped? oh yea hes been “working on those guns a little bit, a 1-2 combo would’ve got some points”. WTF ok queer. i wish the refs didnt get in the way. Nash would’ve gotten his ass handed to him. haha trying to come up from behind after landing on the ground and pondering wether he should cry. Then during the regular season he talks smack on melo for his hit and run. im proud of big shot bob, its about time someone tried decking nash. too bad it was pussy material compared to wat should’ve been done.
im out like nash being tough.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:16 am
Jason says:
Hmm I thought Nash’s foul was a tough foul and that Horry should have been ejected. But did you notice that after Nash hits the table and dropped the ball; he realized was alright- then he flails his arms and did the “woe is me, I have been hit” routine. I am just saying maybe the hit wasn’t that hard. And for the record I am not a Spurs fan.
Second, it sucks big time for the Suns, but Amare and Diaw should be suspend for a game. The rule is pretty straightforward. If you leave the bench during an altercation you’re done for a game. They knew the rule and then understood the situation. If you don’t have enough mental toughness to control yourself then maybe you don’t have what it takes to be a champion. If you don’t you have just abandon the rule entirely. Which based on the severe suspensions for the Nuggets is very unlikely.
May 15th, 2007 at 11:57 am
tball12 says:
Nash is most certainly athletic. Let’s define athletic. Involving the use of physical skills or capabilities, as strength, agility, or stamina. If he was at the basketball combine : they combine skill with how high you jump, how fast you are, how smart you are, how fast you can make a decision, how well you can execute with the ball in your hands, check your fundamentals. Alright, when you analyze all these components and understand what an athlete is then pound for pound Steve Nash is something to be admired as an athlete. He may not dunk like Baron Davis, but crazy is the notion of putting him with most unathletic, try one of the most athletic and we now have a debate! I’m not sure how you threw that out there. Basketball is much more then cramming strong on the rim. I’ve seen dudes dunk that can’t hardly dribble or hit a J 6′ out. Unathletic please. I’d be 100 times tougher on the court against Nash then most leapers. Most leapers I ball against are a 2 point show / over.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
PR says:
Lebron… athletic. Kobe… athletic. Nash… NOT athletic. In great shape? yes. Athletic? no. My 72 year old grandmother is in great shape too. I wouldn’t call her athletic either though.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:21 pm
Keith says:
Spurs fan. I think the right call is Horry out for one game, plus about $10,000. No suspensions for leaving the bench. HOWEVER, if they want ratings then no suspension for Horry and he’ll play in front of the Phoenix crowd. But the fine should go up to $25,000 or so.
If they decide to go strictly by the book with suspensions it will hurt what is the best series of the post-season.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:34 pm
John Basedow FC says:
Seemed to me like New Jersey would have been better served running some sort of variation on The Hubie Brown Play at the end of the game there.
May 15th, 2007 at 12:54 pm
dagwaller says:
Dime, PR, and Dank need to check a dictionary before they start calling 2-time MVPs unathletic. Just as a for instance, I thought that “being in shape” was part of being athletic? Maybe you know better than me, though.
If you wanna start talking unathletic (for a pro athlete), let’s talk about the Lakers: Aaron McKie (old), Andrew Bynum (weak), Kwame Brown (not tough), Brian Cook (”just a shooter”). Hm.
Or maybe the Cavaliers. Zydrunas Ilgauskas (slow), Eric Snow (old), Damon Jones (”just a shooter”).
I wonder how someone so unathletic can keep up with the rest of the Suns and run their break! Oh dearz! Poor unathletic Stevie!
May 15th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
LD says:
hating on colangelo for exec of the year?
i think you dont want to admit your mistakes… you laughed at bryan for making the TJ Ford for Charlie V trade…
how does that trade look now?
TJ Ford: Starting PG on a 47 win, Division Winner, 75 GP, 14 ppg, 8 apg
Charlie V: Backup PF on a 28 win, last place team, 39 GP, 12 ppg, 6 bpg
give the guy credit, the raps had 27 wins before he was there… thats a 20 win difference… and he did it by overhauling the roster…
May 15th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Frank says:
I’ve been reading Smack for a couple of years now and man, you guys are slipping. This post was hot garbage. Mullin should have won Executive Of the Year over Colangelo? Steve Nash = Unathletic? No mention of Amare and Diaw possibly getting suspended for Game 5? Garbage, I’m about ready to stop coming to this site. Get your acts together please.
May 15th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
Ld says:
Shyt…this Dime Daily Smack is getiing more and more ridiculous everyday. I’m feeling like this is whole buinch of White writers who wannabe black
May 15th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Austin Burton says:
I’m Black and I’ve been known to write for Dime here and there. Tell me, though, how would authentic “Black Smack” sound to you?
May 15th, 2007 at 2:11 pm
K-Dizzle says:
I’m proud of “Big Shot Bob” too. I hope he doesn’t get suspended. I hope he gets to face the Phoenix crowd with the series tied. It was a “given” that San Antonio was gonna sweep at home, but then they lose and if that wasn’t bad enough, “Bobby” Horry decides to motivate the Suns, at home, with a chance to grip the series, by tackling their best player. (refer to last year when Raja Bell got sat for finally saying enough is enough after eating kobe’s elbows all series) That was only Raja Bell. This is your BEST player tackled hard by the other team’s SCRUB. Even Spurs fans were shakin their heads. Watch the replays. They know how it’s goin to go down in Phoenix on wednesday. i feel bad for Horry if this is how his career ends, but know your role. Hit shots, don’t throw shots.
And enough about Nash’s athletism. No one said jack about Stockton’s athletism when he was burying jumpers and droppin dimes, but as soon as Steve Nash gets in the flow, you guys wanna talk about his athletism. Tell you one thing, nobody cares. 25 pts 14 as and a win on the road,(oh yeah 8 turnovers - ask the suns if they care).
Oh yeah, one more thing, congratulations to Dirk Nowitzki on winning the MVP award. Good job, voters
May 15th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
George G says:
Can somebody from Dime please defend the statement “Chris Mullin — who should have won Executive of the Year this year?!” What have you guys been smoking?! I want some!
May 15th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
Austin Burton says:
1. Chris Mullin made a season-altering trade (Jackson/Harrington) that was risky on multiple levels (trading big for small, taking a chance on S-Jack, leaving Biedrins as the only post presence/rebounder with Murphy gone).
2. He hired the perfect coach for this roster in Don Nelson.
3. He signed Matt Barnes as a free agent.
(OK, so he did draft Patrick O’Bryant, but the good far outweighs the bad here.)
May 15th, 2007 at 3:06 pm
Monkey Nutz says:
Please everybody stop grasping at straws with Nash. His prominence has come in a severly watered down league. All you Nash lovers and revisionists, please do not forget that when he was drafted by the Suns originally (yes his career didn’t begin in Dallas), he was not good enough. Both Kidd (by far superior in his prime than Nash) and Marbury were brought to Phoenix as starters over Nash.
Take it back to when we actually had quality basketball as recently as the ’80’s and early ’90’s, Nash doesn’t make ONE NBA roster.
May 15th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
dagwaller says:
Austin, those are some pretty good points. I have to say, that the coaching points between the Raps and the Ws are a bit of a wash - Colangelo rode Sam Mitchell, instead of hiring a new guy even after a bad year from Toronto, until he made Coach of the Year. To offset your Barnes point, the Raptors picked up Jorge Garbajosa AND Anthony Parker. Finally, there was the TJ Ford/Charlie Villanueva trade to offset your Jack/Al point.
The draft shortcomings are even similar, with Colangelo passing on the eventual Rookie of the Year, although Bargnani compared to O’Bryant is apples and oranges.
It would be pretty close, but the Warriors were definitely better last year (close to a playoff spot, surging in the final month), vs. the Raps that were their usual terrible selves. This year, the Warriors got it done (even in the post season!) in a much tougher conference AND division, but the Raptors won their division and had a better record. In short, the Warriors improved by a couple games by virtue of all of the changes Mullin made, while the Raptors improved by leaps and bounds.
May 15th, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Bron says:
I’ma keep this short, for the kid who said nash has a higher vertical than shaq? not even close. Shaqs vert is low 30s, nash isnt even in the 30s. And most centers in the nba (not counting the yao’s of the world have hops) And nash ripped? Maybe compared toa 12 year old asian boy but not by nba standards. Yea i’ll say hes somewat fast but its more his ability to change direction that it is flat out speed. Tony parker is fast, just ask nash why he cant stay in front of him. Its like manu, hes not really fast either but he changes directions well (and sloppy). Don’t think just cuz nash is a good pg (not even close to top 5 alltime) hes suddenly a supreme athlete. Even if you ignore vertical hes not an amazing athlete. His best skill is his basketball IQ..which is why he’d be more effective than james white who has no IQ and hasnt improved since high school. And as a pro training, I can tell you, hand eye doesn’t mean your a good athlete. Hence fisherman and some golfers arent considered major athletes. Why david wells isn’t a elite athlete. Nash is a athlete, an above average one? not so much. Hes average and smart which is all you pretty much need at the pg spot. Whats next, gonna start sayin john stockton and jeff Hornecek were better athletes than malone?
May 15th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Amar says:
this is a hilarious thread, first the smack, then people looking at Nash’s athleticism, to then trying to figure out how black sounds/reads on the internet.
malone was in really good shape. stockton looked like a math teacher. stockton beat him every year in jazz training camp to see who could stay on a treadmill the longest.
different players play in different ways, and use the tools that they have. stockton had more endurance, maybe nash is this way too?
May 15th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
K-Dizzle says:
“Take it back to when we actually had quality basketball as recently as the ’80’s and early ’90’s, Nash doesn’t make ONE NBA roster.”
See? It’s stupid, ignorant rants like this that make me HAVE to defend Steve Nash. I’m not a Nash fan, not even a Suns fan, but I’ve watched enough games to know who can play. I actually had to research this to make sure your points are as stupid as they come off as.
First off, if you are saying Steve Nash, in his prime, wouldn’t even crack a roster between ‘85-’95, give your head a shake.
I was bored waiting for tonight’s games so I checked out a site that had every player of every team from 1946-2001.
“http://nbahoopsonline.com/History/Rosters/index.html”
So, getting past the usual studs of the time, meaning : Magic, Isaiah, Stockton, Mo Cheeks, GP, Tim Hardaway, Kevin Johnson, Terrell Brandon, Mark Price, Terry Porter, Mookie Blaylock,Mark Jackson off the top of my head, you’re saying Nash couldn’t get a job in the day?
Don’t forget, Nutz, he was an All-Star in Dallas, too. He was drafted by one of the top 3 GMs of my day.
You don’t like Steve Nash? Great! I’m a Laker fan and I would have traded Kobe instead of Shaq, but don’t come on here spittin venemous b.s. about a two-time MVP cuz you got an issue with him. Be happy the writers and voters got gutless and didn’t vote for this season’s MVP, but voted against Nash cuz they didn’t wanna see the little white, Canadian kid make history by pullin the trifecta. The first one was cuz the team got better; the 2nd one was because there was no Joe Johnson and Amare; this year, the numbers go up, the team keeps winning and you give it to “the best player on the best team”? It’s MVP, not MOP like college.
Keep it real out here. You haters are makin me more and more a Suns fan the more times I watch the dude play
May 15th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
dagwaller says:
K-Diz serves like Andy Roddick - hard, fast, and…I don’t know, from the court? You get the idea.
May 16th, 2007 at 9:33 am
Monkey Nutz says:
I love that someone has the sack to stand up for what they believe in. But, that does not make the point waver.
First I must ask a simple question, do you believe that today’s league even measures up to the bygone era’s? If so, then my argument is futile, and would not be understood because todays players are so protected by the league that if you look wrong at, or go near a marquee player, that’s an automatic fine (read: Kobe Bryant misses a shot, must have been fouled).
We can look at one of the most beloved and hated players of the last relevant era Jordan. Born by fire (read Detroit), these players today would not know the meaning of that type of physicality, or developing their games to rise above it.
Next we look at when Nash (since you are becoming more of a Suns fan) entered the league, in the waning days of a legitimate era. He was not looked at as a starter. That’s why “one of the top 3 GMs of my day” brought in Kidd and Marbury and cut bait on him. Why would a top GM do that?
As the league continued to weaken Post-2000, you began to hear his name. What happened the first time he was a Sun?
“He was an All-Star in Dallas, too,” give me a break. Yao Ming is a perennial All-Star, and it has nothing to do with skill. All-Star balloting in the NBA is a popularity contest. Fans vote for who they like, therefore Vince Carter can lead the league in votes in a season when he did not play for half of the season prior to that game. Are you kidding me. And let’s please remember, the Mav’s cut bait on Nash too. Why was that Dizzle?
I bet you are one of these guys also crying about the NBA rule that suspended Amare Stoudamire and Boris Diaw, thinking that it is a conspiracy that the NBA enforced a rule enacted in the ’90’s because of the New York Knicks.
I do not have to qualify my argument, by saying that “I’m not a Nash fan, not even a Suns fan, but I’ve watched enough games to know who can play,” because I don’t have an agenda. And, if you had watched enough basketball, you would not have spent time to actually respond to my comments.
“writers and voters got gutless and didn’t vote for this season’s MVP, but voted against Nash cuz they didn’t wanna see the little white, Canadian kid make history by pullin the trifecta,” so I guess we have this conspiracy theory too. They were not gutless enough to vote for him the two years prior, when, please forgive me because I hate to say it, BUT Shaq was able to take pressure off of Wade to grow and help his team go to the Finals, or LeBron, led one of the most untalented teams in the to the Playoffs (albiet the East). Let the conspiracy theories abound.
Again, I’m glad you responded, but before you rattle off names, and qualify that you are not a Nash fan, but a Laker fan who would have traded Kobe before Shaq (I totally agree with you there), Make more of an argument than lumping me into the category of being a hater, because I can differentiate between what preceded the game we now call the NBA and era’s that far exceed what we as fans recieve today.
May 16th, 2007 at 11:58 am
dagwaller says:
Monkey, you’re missing the point. I think that the original point was that Nash COULD make a roster back then, at bare minimum. I think that he went out of his way to say “after you get past” the good/great players from earlier eras, Nash could’ve made a roster.
Also, no one’s saying he’s an all-time great in this thread. We’re just saying that he could’ve been MVP this year, and that he was the MVP in the last couple. Watered down league or not, they’re still playing basketball, and we’re only comparing the players of this era to other players of this era, except to say that the former 2-time MVP could’ve played for one of the teams from “back in the day”. Calm thyself and go back to your rocking chair…