Getting Ready for Game 7
Kevin Garnett (photo. Land)Saturday was a rare off day until we get into back-to-back Game 7’s — Celtics/Cavs this afternoon, then Hornets/Spurs on Monday night. Although very recent history says the home teams will prevail, it would be kind of dumb to bet money against LeBron or Tim Duncan in an elimination game … The Celtics as well as their fans have to be in shock as to how they’re even in this position. Granted, it is the Big Three’s first year together, but then again no one was using that excuse when they were racking up 66 wins in the regular season. Wasn’t this the squad with the League’s best road record? Weren’t they supposed to be plenty rested coming into the playoffs after clinching the #1 seed early? So why are they now looking so anemic on the road and always appear to run out of gas in the fourth quarter? Not to put too much blame on the coach, but Doc Rivers is pulling the same trick Avery Johnson pulled last year (which ultimately cost Avery his job) in ignoring what made the team successful in the regular season. And now that LeBron is coming off consecutive 30-point games, don’t be shocked if that anticipated Boston/Detroit series never happens … And have we gone over the growing irony of Kevin Garnett’s overdone Gatorade commercial? The “Every game needs a hero” and “League Of Clutch” parts are especially bad. Except for Game 1 of the Cavs series, what has KG done in the fourth quarter of any of these playoff games? … As far as Hornets/Spurs, expect some chippy-ness following the whole Robert Horry/David West incident, the Bruce Bowen/Chris Paul dynamic, and the typical high tensions of a Game 7. We know San Antonio can keep their cool in such situations, but what about New Orleans? Especially D-West, who seems overdue for a fight at this point … Working in the Hornets’ favor is that they’re at home, and at New Orleans Arena they’ve been smashing the Spurs by about 20 every game. Whatever happens, Chris Paul’s 2008 legacy is gonna be established in this game; toppling the defending champs will take him from “amazing year” to “unforgettable year” …. The WNBA got underway yesterday, highlighted by Candace Parker’s pro debut in the Sparks/Mercury game on national TV. Parker was K-I-L-L-I-N-G Phoenix, dropping 34 points, 12 boards and 8 assists, the highest-ever point total for a WNBA rookie in her debut. Still wearing that shoulder brace from the injury she sustained in the NCAA Tournament, Parker was still getting to the rack at will and scored 10 of L.A.’s 12 points in a key fourth-quarter stretch. She’s playing with Lisa Leslie (17 pts, 12 rebs, 4 blks) and is already the team’s go-to scorer from Day One. The announcers were going a little over-the-top with the LeBron/Kobe treatment for Candace, though … Cappie Pondexter (who has a WNBA logo tatted on her arm that she got in high school) was balling, too, scoring 32 for Phoenix in the loss. She picked up a tech when she missed a potential game-tying three and went off on the ref because she thought Parker fouled her … E-mail sent yesterday from Austin: “On my way home I ran into (not literally, otherwise he might have killed me) this guy stalking through Brooklyn with no shirt on and tattoos everywhere. One covered his whole back and said ‘God takes care of children and fools,’ with an evil clown underneath. Dude was talking reckless, too. The only sentence I made out was, ‘You’re gonna respect me! Or concede to these knuckles!’ It’s not often that I’m admittedly scared of somebody, but I was this time.” … We’re out like the League of Clutch …
May 18th, 2008 at 1:53 am
knoc says:
LMAO @ austins email
May 18th, 2008 at 1:56 am
josh says:
Go hornets
May 18th, 2008 at 2:16 am
SkyG says:
Go Spurs Go! Let’s end this even number year curse at last!!
May 18th, 2008 at 2:49 am
Omar says:
D-troit is gonna win the chip
May 18th, 2008 at 2:54 am
JHov says:
Hey I know that guy Austin was talking about..his name is Dennis Rodman! He’s mostly just bark (no bite) and usually only hits women..as seen by the two cases he caught for attacking his former girlfriends!
By the way I want Bron-Bron and the “Lebronaires” to win if for no other reason than to see Doc Rivers post game press conference(I’m hoping he strangles Ray-Ray)!
May 18th, 2008 at 2:57 am
tealish says:
Paul is already having an unforgetable year. He put up historic numbers and was the Most Valuable Player even without the trophy.
May 18th, 2008 at 3:43 am
karan says:
whoever wrote smack today was either tripping or highly misguided in life
firstly, KG has been the only of the supposed stars in this series (PP, ray allen, lebron) to have played consisitently well
secondly, no matter what happens game 7, no way is this season gonna be forgettable for CP3… his legend has already begun
May 18th, 2008 at 5:18 am
Ian says:
GEE
read your comment on the hated list thing
u made my list but its not personal lol
u know i was messin
May 18th, 2008 at 6:10 am
YOUNGFED says:
Austin you soft bruh, man up son. I can teach you some defensive tactics so you wont be so nervous next time. lol
May 18th, 2008 at 6:32 am
joe says:
the chris paul story will get a new chapter tomorrow when they beat the spurs. Anyway superstars are made for this kind of thing-game 7,bring it on….
May 18th, 2008 at 7:30 am
Knickhopeful says:
Who do you take- a healthy Wade or CP3 into a game 7?
May 18th, 2008 at 7:49 am
for real says:
there’s no such thing as a healthy Wade.
He’s the new Grant Hill
May 18th, 2008 at 7:50 am
KL says:
re: Knickhopeful
It really depends on the mood of the refs
May 18th, 2008 at 7:55 am
for real says:
AUSTIN, wasn’t it like 50 degrees out yesterday?
I guess that dude is one Bad Ass Fool
May 18th, 2008 at 8:51 am
sans says:
I want Wally World to MAN UP and fux with the whole Boston area that grew to despise him. I dream that Andersen Varejao grabs 12 boards off the bench and makes 3/4 shots. I hope that Ben breaks out the fro. That Z will get open 8 footers all day thanks to quality penetration and timely outside shooting. I am anxiously awaiting Delonte West to be like “F that! With KG, RayRay, and Paul I would be better than Rajon–they should have traded him to Seatlle!’ and goes for 21 with zero turnovers. I am nervous that everything will be left up to Bron–but, whatever, he’s LEBRON JAMES, a freak physical anomaly that passes the ball to inferior humans too often, hustles for rebounds, and dunks over whomever is childish enough to stand (and push off like a punk bitch) in his way. I’m dreaming of a Cleveland championship ring and Mike Brown being fired all at once. Go Cavs! Everyone who roots for Boston (despite the fact that they’re actually paying attention to basketball for the first time in 20 years and could never tell me the names of their often changing starting fives because they’re a bunch of fetal-alcohol syndromed perpetually red in the face bastards) are nothing more than the most common of fair-weather bandwagon-jumping pricks that clog our society at every avenue, insisting that they have always been loyal in their fanhood.
I hope Lebron gives a fresh breath to the memories of Mark Price, Terrell Brandon, Andre Miller, Big Z, and everyone else that Cleveland loved and honored through all of the hard years. Shit, Bob Sura was our #1 option for a couple years. Yeah, Bobby “Schoolyard” Sura from Florida State.
May 18th, 2008 at 8:53 am
sans says:
Celts Fan, I don’t think I’m talking at you…just all your new friends.
May 18th, 2008 at 9:09 am
Knickhopeful says:
I think sans is a cavs fan
May 18th, 2008 at 9:33 am
rangerjohn says:
knickhopeful
1st wade IS the new grant hill, and 2nd why would you even ask that rediculous question? what has chris “cheap shot” paul done in a game 7? (he has never been there) and he is up against tim duncan and manu ginobili and tony parker. bet against them all you want but duncan is one of the biggest elemination game performers ever.
i take any of the REAL BIG THREE from the spurs over wade or cheap shot paul any game 7
May 18th, 2008 at 9:51 am
dagwaller says:
hahahahahahaha…you’re gonna respect me or concede to these knuckles…classic.
May 18th, 2008 at 9:51 am
GO Cavs...but come on James says:
the wnba tat is kinda strange, getiing your workplace tat…not my thing. It reminds me of a guy on my college team (years ago) that had the nike swoosh on his arm….funny thing was, we were a reebok school.
May 18th, 2008 at 10:38 am
BALLZ says:
I know a dude who has a Nike swoosh on his chest…lame.
May 18th, 2008 at 11:00 am
BustJlaze says:
“…concede to these knuckles!” I don’t think I’ve EVER heard that before…
I’ve been saying this since last week: The Celtics BETTER win game 6, or they WILL lose game 7. So here we go! This is the Bron explosion we’ve all been waiting for.
May 18th, 2008 at 11:07 am
BustJlaze says:
Oh man…if the spurs win today, and the cavs win…then my dream of a Lakers/Pistons rematch will come true! Then I can just sit back and watch my 2 favorite teams go at it, and not care about the outcome cause it’s all good either way (while secretly hoping the lakers win and Kobe finally gets that ring minus shaq).
May 18th, 2008 at 11:16 am
Jeffrey says:
I couldn’t watch Candace’s post game interview cause she’s so beautiful
May 18th, 2008 at 11:25 am
YOUNGFED says:
Minus Shaq, but plus Pau and Odom Bustjlaze
May 18th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
catdaddywhack says:
to those celtic fans looking for playoff tickets in boston: this is all your fault.
look what you’ve done. back to back game 7s. now stop praying for tickets
May 18th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Three Stacks says:
I’d take Chris “Spurs Killer” Paul, which I hope becomes his permanent playoff nickname after he leads New Orleans to another blowout of the Spurs.
LOL, I hope New Orleans wins if only to see if rangerjohn has an aneurysm or not.
May 18th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
nick says:
if david west’s back is still hurting the hornets can say good-bye to their season. hoping for a lake show-honets west finals.
May 18th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
drodrone says:
candace parker and i would have some amazing kids i would tear that up
May 18th, 2008 at 1:58 pm
jasmine says:
I love cp3.. He is the realest player to day. We talk a lot about lebron and kobe, but its chris paul who doing it all at his height. To be honesty I think his going we way better then allen iverson or steve nash.
May 18th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
K Dizzle - we been here before says:
So all the pressure’s on boston, right?
May 18th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
Austin Burton says:
There’s pressure on LeBron, too. The 2nd-best (or best depending on who you ask) player on the planet usually gets past the 2nd round of the playoffs.
@Youngfed — I’m not dumb enough to never be scared of anything. I ain’t Bone Crusher.
May 18th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Prodigy195 says:
C.Parker was hooping yesterday. The girl is bad.
May 18th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Gee...I got this! says:
Ian you straight lol!
Austin “Or concede to these knuckles!” That is hilarious.
Reminds me of being on Marta in Atl. cause you never know who gone come up on you strange and deranged lol.
Summer will now welcome Tim Duncan and LeBron James.
Do you all think a female squad in the WNBA could beat And 1?
May 18th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Jeffco says:
all the pressure is on the celts
because of their high expectations of a 66 win season
and the cavs i mean lebron, arent even supposed to make it this far
does anybody even know the starting five for the cavs?
you only know one guy n hes single handedly beating every team!
and spurs are gonna beat the hornets.
thats all!
cp3 isnt really much on the road
and i doubt it hes anything on a game 7!
oh yea and candace parker is the new face of the wnba!
May 18th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
Yooooo says:
Hey smart guy (rangerjohn) what have tony parker or manu done by theirselves EVER? Do you kno the luxury of havin 2 other people on the court that have to be account for at all times? Chris Paul is going game for game with your Big 3 without nearly as much talent. So your a dick for taking any one of those guys (except Duncan) over Paul because he’s been kicking all 3 of their asses.
Does anyones else think Kendrick Perkins looks EXACTLY like Jeezy?? That’s wild.
May 18th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
daquesti?on says:
i have lost total respect for jeff van gundy, i wouldnt listen to him even if he coached my rec league team
May 18th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
daquesti?on says:
sam cassell looks like he is breaking down
May 18th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
daquesti?on says:
oh and wats the deal with all these coats that the nba players are using i think the look horrible
May 18th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Jay says:
@Austin
Kobe has been regarded as the best player on the planet for several years, but got booted in the 1st round 2 consecutive years and didn’t even make it the year before. Considering the squads each player respective has/had, I’d be very surprised to see LBJ lead his can’t-make-a-wide-open-jumper team past arguably the best team in the league. And no more talk of the West being so much better, that argument is no longer valid past the 1st round.
May 18th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
JoeGym says:
@#38: TP, Manu, Deron etc put up more impressive numbers when they play the Suns or Warriors b/c of the tempo but have to play slow b/c of coaches/teammates. Paul has the perfect team for a PG:
Byron - played w/Magic & ran the Nets offense
Peja - elite shooter from all spots & was in MVP consideration not too long ago
Bonzi - Spur killer w/tough to matchup post game
West - legit all-star w/midrange game & matchup nightmare
Chandler - maybe the most athletic big in the NBA
Pargo - athletic defender & finisher
Mo Pete - tough, smart, can post & hit the 3
No 7 game series is an asskicking.
May 18th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
JoeGym says:
^ that should read @ 36
May 18th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
daquesti?on says:
i know losing ur hops is possible but is it possible to lose your jump shot??? that is freaking impossible wally isnt hitting n e thing and hes supposed to b a three point specialist
May 18th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Austin Burton says:
@Yoooo — Manu and Parker have had 30-plus-point games in times when Duncan was out injured.
May 18th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
rangerjohn says:
joe gym
i love it, those are some really great points, paul has had a pretty nice series but then he is averaging 24 points and 10 assists, nice but not great, and then there is “BONZI- THE SPURS KILLER” have you watched any of the games? bonzi is possibly the absolutely weakest player on the floor every game. people still think bonzi is a tough matchup for the spurs after he had one good series what 4 maybe 5 yrs ago? peja has not been an mvp candidate in what 4-5 yrs, i will agree west is one tough sob,chandler is not even close to the most athletic big in the game, d howard, al jefferson, AMARE are all BYFAR more athletic, pargo is pretty much ineffective, mo pete is tough to guard but he is a liability on defense.
so lets try this again.
May 18th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
rangerjohn says:
@yooooooo
lmao so now i am a dick for not picking you boy? now thats mature.
last i looked “cheap shot” was averaging 24 points, 10 assists, and 3 rebounds, while parker by himself is averaging 20 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds.
remember cheap shot has david west who was an allstar this year (duncan was the only allstar for he spurs) and as someone else said chandler and peja who are 2 tough guys to play against.
so since i am a dick, i will be a dick, take your mouth off chris “cheap shot” pauls dick. quit sucking the guy off and watch the game,
spurs in 7
May 18th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Jay says:
@rangerjohn
What are you even arguing? First you discredit Paul’s teammates and then you discredit the man himself. Someone should deserve credit for pushing the defending champs to the brink of elimination…
Say what you will about the Paul’s inexperience, but the man has carried his team past 1 experienced team, and he could very well do it again tomorrow.
May 18th, 2008 at 6:40 pm
for real says:
damn, Lebron James didn’t even say nuttin’ to the Celts after the loss. No good game, good luck, great series, etc…
Nuthin’.
He’s like school in the summer…..
May 18th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
M Intellect says:
You must be so pissed you wrote that shit about PP…
May 18th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
rangerjohn says:
never discredited cheap shot, i have never once said anything negative about the boys ablility. he is a hell of a player. that being said, he is not the end all be all of the playoffs and just ask labron cant win by yourself. averaging 24 points, and 10 assists is nice but it is in no way destroying anyone. they are very good numbers but they are not great numbers. he had 2 very nice games and the rest have been good but not great. this is where i think people need to get off his nuts, he has not single handedly taken the spurs this far, west has had some nice games, the spurs have had some bad games, peja had a couple nice games.
it is not like he is averaging 30 ,12 assists and 6 rebounds. parkers numbers are not that far behind and he has had a couple of bad games.
he is a very good player, probably the best point in the game today but he has done nothing all by himself.
May 18th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
rangerjohn says:
for real,
i think labron is mad because he feels this series was taken from him with bad calls and things. he also is pissed because he still has nothing for a team.
coach brown gets fired in a week.
May 18th, 2008 at 7:25 pm
K Dizzle - we been here before says:
Ray Allen? Has anybody ever fallen off so hard in the span of a few weeks? They got House playin his minutes
Forget Wally. he had one good season. Worry about Ray.
Anybody hear that junk about Shaq givin PP the nickname “The Truth”…probably not since he had that since Inglewood.
After that series, Detroit gotta be lickin they lips. Boston barely gets by Lebron and nobody else, now they gotta face a team that got a legit 6 to 7 scorers
Can’t wait for that NO-Spurs tomorrow. Someone’s shuttin up. Either Spurs do it again or CP3 is on the scorers’ table, poppin his jersey
May 18th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
daquest?on Im Regularly Irregular says:
wow lebron must be super pissed..man if i was lebron id get out of cleveland as fast as i could but i dont know if id go to new york because they are worse over there
May 18th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
History lesson: Top 10 Spurs 'questionable' plays says:
Funny article - Spurs fans need not read. Complete with youtube clips
May 18th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Jimbo Jones says:
lol @
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhTjSrZi91Y
May 18th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
Tim says:
In the East finals…
If Ray Allen doesn’t show up…Pistons in 5.
If Ray Allen plays aight…Pistons in 6
If Ray Allen plays great…Pistons in 7
Rip Hamilton is gonna run Ray Allen’s old legs tired.
Chauncey is gonna put Rondo in the fetal position.
Should be fun fun fun though.
May 18th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
JoeGym says:
@rangerjohn: Im a Rox fan but see a lot of the Spurs from tv & they used to work out at my hs in Houston.
Peja & Bonzi dont need to be consitent killers, but they can be. All it takes is losing Peja in transition a few times, that could decide Game 7 alone.
Chandler may not be the MOST athletic, but vs the Spurs he & West are clearly more athletic. Both run TD/Thomas up the floor & double hard which causes Duncan problems.
All Paul has to do is throw lobs over Spurs bigs, for Chandler (West to a lesser extent) even in the halfcourt b/c Spurs bigs cant recover like NO bigs do to Parker.
Barring serious foul trouble/injury, whoever guards the PicknRoll best wins Monday.
May 18th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
Celts Fan says:
that was a GREAT game. that’s probably the loudest I’ve heard the Garden since they took down MJ’s Bulls, now we get to settle this with Detroit…
May 18th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
daquest?on Im Regularly Irregular says:
if the celts almost couldnt handle the hawks and just survived lebrn james there is no wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy they will beat the pistons… i just hope there is not a spurs pistons rematch again cuz that is too much D and its boooooooooooooooorrrrrrrinfffffffffffffffff
May 18th, 2008 at 10:17 pm
Celts Fan says:
we get a clean slate now. Ray Allen needs to wake up and Pierce needs to keep making plays, but we can beat Detroit, we just need to actually play like we did in the regular season. I don’t know when the first break in the series is, but these guys look tired. If the Celtics don’t win a road game this series, the run’s over, no question about it, cuz Detroit will take one in Boston…
May 18th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
cora says:
so cool guy,does he still hook up with those tall beauties on the tall dating site ___T a l l m i n g l e . c o m___ ???The last time I saw his profile is last monday, hope he does not leave.