Swagger Jacker
Chris Paul (photo. Zach Wolfe)Now we know what the Hornets needed that could have pushed them past last year’s Game Seven conference semis hurdle: Not just some instant dose of magic James Posey dust, but an overall team confidence that starts at Chris Paul and goes all the way down to the Rasual Butlers and Julian Wrights on the roster that they can knock off a team like the Spurs when they’re under the gun. Granted, last night was just a regular season game, but you can’t tell us there wasn’t a playoff atmosphere in New Orleans Arena. During the Hornets’ decisive 13-0 run in the fourth quarter, that place was deafening … David West (21 pts, 9 rebs) got the run started by hitting a pair of threes from opposite corners. Funny how Amare hits a couple long jumpers and everyone is all on his jock for diversifying his game, but West just quietly adds elements to his game, continues getting better all the time and no one mentions it. Do you realize how dangerous the Hornets are if West starts consistently knocking down threes? CP said in the post-game that he’s been imploring West to shoot ‘em more often … If it still seems like the Spurs are missing something even though Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are back, it should have become apparent during N.O.’s fourth-quarter run: It’s Robert Horry. Seriously, what the hell is Matt Bonner doing on the court during the last five minutes for a team that’s allegedly a serious championship contender? That’s just not going to work. We’re not sure what the issue is — maybe there are some hurt feelings or whatever — but the Spurs need to squash it and sign the old man. And to think, about a year ago we remember a Spurs game where the announcers were talking about how the team was looking for someone to step into that Horry role for whenever Big Shot Rob eventually retired, and they settled on Bonner as the best choice. Looking back, that was about as delusional as the whole “Jim McIlvaine will be a force when he’s not backing up Gheorge Muresan“ line of thinking … Chris Paul (19 pts, 12 asts, 3 stls) got the steal he needed for the record books in the second quarter, stepping into Parker’s passing lane and putting his name above Alvin Robertson against Robertson’s old team … Crazy Jeff Van Gundy invention idea of the night: A basketball that lights up on its way down, making it easier to tell what is and what isn’t goal-tending. So would this ball be smart enough to know when it’s not “going down” while being dribbled, but rather during a shot? Those wacky humans and their technology … You had to assume the Celtics would get all they could handle from the Hawks. After all, Phillips Arena was a house of horrors for the C’s in last year’s playoffs, the Hawks were fresh off snapping the Cavs’ 11-game win streak, and it took a Paul Pierce game-winner for the C’s to knock off ATL last time they played. Last night they went down to the wire, and ATL took the lead when Josh Smith gave Kendrick Perkins a nasty fitted cap plus the foul. (J-Smoove loses style points for his post-dunk face, though; he looked like a four-year-old throwing a temper tantrum. “JUMP IN THE LAKE!!”) …
Kevin Garnett (photo. Gary Land)Boston got the lead back on a Rondo-to-KG alley-oop (becoming one of the L’s top ‘oop combos), part of Garnett’s big fourth quarter where he scored 10 of his 18 points for the game, and ultimately it came down to Joe Johnson at the line with 2.7 seconds left and a chance to tie. He missed … Did you see in the first half when Rondo did his fake-behind-the-back move and turned it into a tough layup in traffic? If you looked to the Boston bench, Patrick O’Bryant pumped his fist and hopped out of his seat for that one. That was not only the most emotion we’ve ever seen P.O. display, it was also the most athletic thing we’ve ever seen him do … Thanks to reader “That’s What’s Up” for pointing out that the longer Mike Bibby grows out his hair, the more he looks like Jason Biggs from American Pie … Meanwhile, Delonte West and his mini-fro are looking more and more like Kyle from “South Park” without the green hat. Delonte scored 21 as the Cavs took care of business against the Wolves on the road. LeBron had 32 in the blowout … Maybe the Bulls benefited from some belated karma after Tuesday’s slightly-shady last-second foul call that allowed D.J. Augustin to beat them in Charlotte. Down by four to the Clippers with 20 seconds left, Ben Gordon got the whistle as he was coming around a pick and sunk a three over Eric Gordon. That led to overtime, where Derrick Rose made some clutch buckets and we had an actual Luol Deng sighting as Chicago pulled out the W … This was all despite a MONSTER night from Marcus Camby, who pulled down 27 rebounds to go with 19 points and four blocks … You’re not gonna believe this, but the Raptors lost control of a game where they had a sizable lead at halftime, but ultimately got torched by one of the other team’s guards and were dominated on the glass. The opponent was Dallas, the guard was Jason Terry (27 pts, 7 rebs, 8 asts), and the rebounding tally was 47-37 for the Mavs. You know how it seems like no matter who plays for the Oakland Raiders, they always seem to have a bunch of penalties every year, like it’s their franchise birthright? That’s the Raps … We’d like to thank all of you who voted yesterday for DimeMag.com in our bid to make some noise in the 2008 Sports Blogger of the Year Tournament. If you haven’t voted or want to vote again (no rule against that), GO HERE … A few minutes into Sixers/Bucks (in Philly), the Milwaukee color analyst says, “If you have any question as to why six coaches have been fired already this season, just look around here. It’s economics.” The camera goes to Andrew Bogut at the foul line, and from that vantage point it looked like there were more people on the court than in the rest of the stadium. And yet, Speedy Claxton is due more than $10 million over the next two years … We’re out like Mike Bibby at band camp …
December 18th, 2008 at 2:16 am
UDBBALL says:
KG needs to chill out. first time he made more than one shot in the 4th quarter
December 18th, 2008 at 2:17 am
UDBBALL says:
oh and i think bonner should be up there for worst player in the l. missing open dunks and bricking threes he had no business taking anyways, sad.
December 18th, 2008 at 2:31 am
ticktock6 says:
It was 100% a playoff atmosphere in there, best game I’ve been at so far this season. CP has said before tonight, in other interviews, that West hits threes all the time, he just doesn’t take the shot in games. Hornets were missing Peja tonight, so it was the perfect moment for someone to step up.
I said this summer the Hornets overpaid for Posey. It was an error.
December 18th, 2008 at 2:40 am
Austin Burton says:
@ticktock6 — I can see that, but at the same time, Posey was one of those signings you had to make for the sake of the guys already on the team. That move showed the players the front office truly believes they’re a championship-caliber team, and got everyone talking about them like a championship-caliber team, instantly raising the expectations. Even if Posey underachieves personally, the signing itself gave N.O. a boost of confidence that played itself out last night.
December 18th, 2008 at 2:50 am
Raj S says:
Don’t be surprised if technology came about that can tell us if a basketball is on its way down. Maybe the ball doesn’t have to light up, but I can see the following happen: the ball can send a signal to the scorers table and, if it’s debatable as to whether there was goaltending, the on-court refs can take a quick look to the scorers table for a signal one way or the other.
I don’t mean to get all dorky, but when Robert Fulton, the inventor of the steamboat, proposed the idea of powering ships with fuel to Napoleon, the latter replied, “You would make a ship sail against the winds and currents by lighting a bonfire under her deck?… I have no time for such nonsense.”
December 18th, 2008 at 2:52 am
ticktock6 says:
@ Austin: Oh no no no. The signing wasn’t an error. Me SAYING it was an error was an error. Everyone in the city wants to have his babies tonight including the men, after that dagger. They had to put his jersey in the arena store because so many people called and complained it wasn’t there. That’s the 5th or 6th game he’s come up hugely clutch in the last few minutes.
December 18th, 2008 at 2:58 am
Austin Burton says:
@ticktock6 — OK, gotcha. LOL at “everyone wants to have his babies, including the men.”
December 18th, 2008 at 3:04 am
J-Lod says:
“If you looked to the Boston bench, Patrick O’Bryant pumped his fist and hopped out of his seat for that one. That was not only the most emotion we’ve ever seen P.O. display, it was also the most athletic thing we’ve ever seen him do …”
LOL, that’s just mean y’all..sad but true..
December 18th, 2008 at 3:18 am
A-Slam says:
Diversifying his game? 70% of West’s shots are his pattented elbow jumper, and all of a sudden he moves out to three point land and and he’s mixing it up. West is good but if he keeps shooting threes he’s just another ‘Sheed prototype. You live by the three, you die by the three.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:48 am
solomon says:
LMAO bibby at band camp…
what was supposed to be “the battle of the gordons” became “the ben gordon show” – dude is lighting it up inside, outside, northside, southside, eastside, westside, it’s crazy… it looked like a pre-draft drill or something, eric playing the crash test dummy player… well, at least eric gets a 1st hand look on how he can extend his career and earn the $$$’s…
it’s sad looking at how opposing PG’s are exploting “the baller formerly known as deron williams” right now… damn, rondo, then devin… if stuckey kills it, maybe deron should have some confidence counseling of sorts… the explosion aint there, the hesitation on the drives are apparent… sans the laser passing, the looks and the jersey, he’s barely 25% of the deron williams in 07-08 that could be argued as the best PG along with CP3…
and i dunno, but it definetely looks like elton brand’s becoming the 4 version of t-mac… bad season for philly, it seems…
LOL @ post #6 btw…
we’re out like extra mustard in round 2!
December 18th, 2008 at 5:20 am
smity far away says:
“Those wacky humans and their technology”
nice.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:50 am
haslem says:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBuGvhyKYB0
this is huge
December 18th, 2008 at 5:57 am
Dagomar says:
Bosh is a shell of what he was early in the season, and I hope we see a “wtf’s wrong with Chris Bosh” post here soon. At a time when the Raptors needed him to step up and lead on and off the court, Bosh is barely exerting effort on the court and seems quite silent in the locker room. He’s shooting horribly, not collecting the same number of boards, barely playing within the Raptors offense and often settling for weak shots from the perimeter that miss badly. MVP? At this rate, never in Toronto. Meanwhile, Bargnani is regressing, Calderon plays maybe the worst defense of any point not named Ridnour – and those are the team’s bright spots. Something has to change, big, and fast.
Lebron was spectacular again last night, while the Celtics look incredibly clutch. You know they’re tough to beat when KG comes up and starts looking like Jordan lite in the final minutes. I watched the Hornets/Spurs game, and I wouldn’t make conclusions too quickly. It boiled down to a few unlikely missed shots by Spurs role players, an unusual absence of Many in the clutch, even more unusual made threes by West (the Spurs barely covered him from that far out), and, especially, a huge surge of emotion/energy from a crowd already whipped to frenzy by Paul’s steals record. Doesn’t mean the Hornets aren’t better than the Spurs – just don’t read too much into last night’s game.
December 18th, 2008 at 6:51 am
Nimit says:
“If you looked to the Boston bench, Patrick O’Bryant pumped his fist and hopped out of his seat for that one. That was not only the most emotion we’ve ever seen P.O. display, it was also the most athletic thing we’ve ever seen him do”
LOL
Has to be one of the funniest lines in the history of dime smack!!
December 18th, 2008 at 7:21 am
haslem says:
speaking of the raptors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBuGvhyKYB0
December 18th, 2008 at 7:25 am
rkirby says:
hahahaha…nasty fitted cap…classic…
December 18th, 2008 at 7:45 am
JT$ says:
Yesterday the BIG10 Network replayed the 2000 National Championship game matchup of MSU vs. Florida. Bonner was jacking up all sorts of garbage early in the shot clock and overall played like a donkey. Brett Nelson was doing the same accept making his all his. The first from NBA range was a catch in shoot right in J-Rich’s grill and hit nuthing but cord. Two plays later he brought the ball up and pulled up from damn near the hash mark like he was Gilbert Arenas with like 28 seconds left on the shot clock and drained another. I wish he could have continued this trend and finished with 34 on 8-12 from 3PT range, mostly just because I hate Mateen Cleaves and MSU and it would have made 6 foot white kids everywhere proud.
How did Udonis Haslem go undrafted after leading all scorers with 27 in the title game?
I was suprised you guys didnt mention Psycho T getting ready to step into the all-time leading scorer at UNC tonight vs. Evansville. He’s easily had the best college career in the post-Bill Walton, psychadelic mushroom, look gay in short shorts while laying it in since we cant dunk-era. When, not if, the Heels win it all this year, you could make the argument he’s the best college player ever. Not to be confused with the most talented, or the one with the most potential going into the Draft.
I wish that Kevin Harlin would call the Rams game this weekend so I could hear him say “Oshiomogho Atogwe with no regard for human life!” Please, Santa.
December 18th, 2008 at 8:18 am
Mikey says:
I watched the Celts/Hawks on ESPN yesterday. I was surprised by a couple of things.
1) Mark Jones is black. I was listening to the play-by-play for the entire game and just wrote it off as a standard white guy announcer (like Mike Breen or something).
2) ESPN’s commentary crew was all black. Normally, stations will run out a white play-by-play guy along with a former player for color commentary (and sometimes a third guy for fun). It was nice to see the change.
December 18th, 2008 at 8:24 am
AB_40 says:
poor elton brand
getting injured like that… it’s the same as D Wade though this man doesn’t cry and roll of the court in a wheelchair because his shoulder is hurting… so it doesn’t get any atention… now philly get’s on a roll and all the people will say well maybe they’re better without EB no. they arn’t and the players are dumbasses who have never played with a real post presence that’s why they’re losing.
December 18th, 2008 at 8:26 am
NOEngineer says:
Hey, I just noticed that not too many reasonable people care what color anybody is anymore….
How come when the Spurs miss a bunch in the 4th nobody attributes it to nerves or lacj of mental toughness like they did when the Hornets missed a bunch in Game 7 last year?
I think the Spurs miss Brent Barry more than last year’s Robert Horry, although Chandler did have a sore neck earlier in the week he could maybe have aggravated… I’ll take Posey any day!
December 18th, 2008 at 8:34 am
fallinup says:
“If you have any question as to why six coaches have been fired already this season, just look around here. It’s economics.”
Yeah…I had to give up ONE my $1000 courtside seats because of this damn recession!
*shakes fist
December 18th, 2008 at 8:39 am
that's whats up says:
I couldn’t tell if it was Jason Biggs from American Pie or Mike Bibby out there, but they both played awful last night.
The Spurs simply caved; I hope they don’t make it a trend. But the Hornets played last night like it was a Game 7. Now if they could only play Game 7’s like they were Game 7’s. Maybe Posey will be the difference in the playoffs. We’ll see.
I see these two meeting in the playoffs and taking it to 7 games again.
December 18th, 2008 at 8:42 am
Kermit the Washington says:
In Van Gundy’s defense….why would you need the ball to not light up while dribbling? As long as it always lights up when it’s going down, that’s fine. You’re not gonna need it to not light up while dribbling. I still think it’s kinda silly, but it’s not THAT bad of an idea. Maybe if it only “dimly” lit up, so that it would only be noticeable on replays? Hmmmmm…..
December 18th, 2008 at 8:48 am
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
Houston up!
I am all for new ideas and stuff, and most here know that. Even I can’t get with the ball that lights up lol. Can you imagine what pre-game shoot around would look like! Christmas!
Manu comes in around 7 minutes left in 4th quarter.
2 turnovers, 2 fouls and 1 hustle play and 1 jump ball where Chris Paul cleary won it. Way to point out just the negative GEE.
Did they give Matt Bonner a green light no one knew about, cause dude was just letting go at will lol.
Funny after Josh Smith’s dunk, which was very ill, if you listen real close you can hear someone in the background of the tv announcer going something like ‘Oh my GOD’ and yelling some other stuff.
Now to think if Josh had made the free throw from that And1 and of course Joe missed his too.
I most def. could watch Boston and Atl. play all day everyday.
KG did his thing in the 4th can’t even front. I can’t wait for someone to constantly bark at him as he always talks. I just want to see how he is going to react.
P Dub and his coach sound the same when they talk.
December 18th, 2008 at 9:10 am
Amar says:
CJ miles is in trouble, Jerry Sloan is cleaning house and is benching guys. trouble in utah . . . or for the rest of the league, depending on which team shows up.
December 18th, 2008 at 9:14 am
vinny says:
@jt$-psycho t greatest college player ever-really-dude stop smoking that shit, win a couple of national Ship’s- then maybe we can talk, but comon there are guys who led there teams to 3 ships(walton, alcindor)!! damm read some ncaa history!! not only did matt bonner miss an easy dunk-then he gets a tech for hanging on the rim-wtf!!
1 time in band camp…………………..
December 18th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Kobeef says:
If the Hawks could trade Marin Williams for a legit Center they would officially become the team nobody wants to meet in the playoffs. Trouble is there isn’t a legit Center available in the league. Sad.
It is GREAT to see the fans going nuts in Atlanta again. The hawks are a hot ticket for the first time since ‘Nique left.
OH – and Boozer officially declared he is opting out of his contract. He is going to dethrone Vince as the most hated player in the NBA if he keeps this up.
December 18th, 2008 at 9:30 am
srb says:
Haha Doc and Pierce do sound the same.
Also, I’m sick of the term “playoff atmosphere.”
December 18th, 2008 at 9:33 am
Heckler says:
spurs are too old. aging before our eyes. just like the indy colts in football. they may pull a streak together, but they’d just be lying to themselves if they dont seem themselves aging.
they gotta get younger and quicker. you trying to win another chip and matt bonner, roger mason and mike finley are in your starting lineup?
that aint gonna get it done. with that starting trio of five, even the rockets would beat them in the first round….
December 18th, 2008 at 9:44 am
KCL says:
Is it time to end the arguement on who would you take between Joe Johnson and Brandon Roy? after last nights choker in his own building, I think JJ sealed the discussion and proves B-Roy’s the best. no way brandon would have ever choked like that
December 18th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Heckler says:
kcl–
i dunno homey. joe johnson is ill fam. yeah he bricked a FT. but so what? who hasnt?
no disrespect to brandon roy; theres nothing not to like about roy; but there aint much not to like about joe johnson either
December 18th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Jay says:
About the ball lighting up, maybe they could program it so it only activates at 10 feet and higher. Still, the additional weight, even if only a fraction more, wouldn’t pass.
Anyway, I saw that Joe Johnson missed free throw the moment I saw his motion. On all the previous swished free throws, he had repeated the same motion of bringing his fingers past his hairline. At that point, the ball was positioned high and he was able to get a nice semi-high arc. On the missed free throw, maybe it was the tension making him tighten up but his hands didn’t swing as freely back to his hairline. They went only to his forehead and the result was a line drive that hit the back of the rim.
December 18th, 2008 at 9:53 am
Amar says:
booz opting out is not a surprise, d-will said that if he was in his spot, he’d do it too. it’s a financial move. booz wants to stay with the jazz (seriously, what other offense in the L is so PF centric that it’s made a lot of money for guys like malone, and in the future, millsap?), but he wants to get paid too.
December 18th, 2008 at 9:53 am
rell says:
I am glad KG came through in the 4th last night because he was struggling before then. I hope the Celts don’t have to play ATL in the first round this year. No one in the East want to play the Hawks in the first round because they could be going home early. The biggest problem with the Hawks right now is Woodson making adjustment during the game. How many times was Mike Bibby holding Paul Pierce in the 4th on the switch? Pierce and Rondo kept doing the same play and Woodson made no adjustment. Everytime I see Posey I keep thinking, man he suppose to be in Boston. We needed him badly last night because the bench is not that strong without him. Tony Allen has played ok this season but Posey is clutch.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:02 am
Jay says:
Bonner had an off night but he’s been good for them this year. He looks like he should be lit up on a nightly basis but he makes shots, rebounds and plays passable enough defense. It’s hard to look pass the pastiness and red hair but he’s like what Brian Cook might look like with more consistency and mental stability.
It’s crazy that I saw Bonner play years ago on some grainy New Hampshire public station that I stumbled upon while channel surfing. I thought I was just seeing some unathletic hometown basketball star who would be a marginal player after high school. But damn, he’s pulling down millions in the nba and starting? The guy’s more talented than he looks.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:12 am
rangerjohn says:
whats up, no mention of duncan getting rebound # 10000? putting in a very select group of players.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:13 am
rangerjohn says:
oh and by the way, last i checked the red rocket is leading the league in 3 point shooting % at over 50%. i dont have much problem with him in the game. not to mention he is averaging 7.7 rebounds per game over his last 10 game
December 18th, 2008 at 10:17 am
fallinup says:
Bonner is 2nd right now in 3pt%… 1.4 3’s per game. He may be pasty, but give credit where credit is due, Dime.
Give me the white guy over the bones of Robert Horry these days…maybe it’s just me.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:17 am
fallinup says:
Damn you for posting while I’m fact checking, Rangerjohn!
December 18th, 2008 at 10:21 am
TheGreatGatsby says:
Am I the only who finds Stuart Scott annoying? His jokes are always corny. Based on his recent material, I see that Jalen Rose has been attending his seminars.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:23 am
P_Dizzle says:
Camby pulling down 27 boards! Wow! And he had 19 points! When Dwight pulled in a 20/20 you would have thought all the sportswriters were on the verge of losing their loads, Camby pulls down 19/27 and all he gets is one line.
Nice!
Also, Danny Granger was doing everything for the Pacers last night. Pulls down 11 boards, 6 assists, and 41 points. All 3 stats were team highs. Pretty damn impressive.
I would sure love to see sportswriters get off of Kobe, CP3, Lebron, and the Celtics nuts and realize there are more players who are putting up some sick numbers. I can read about the same damn thing on every sports website, I would like a little change up.
What about the Jazz only scoring 7 points in the first quarter and coming back from 22 pts to win on the road, where they are horrible?
December 18th, 2008 at 10:25 am
Diego says:
Yes, Bonner is better than old man Horry is right now(and he should have seen more tick in the playoffs last year, when Horry was horrendous). Please get your (apparently race-influenced?) head out of your ass on this one, Dime writer.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:27 am
fallinup says:
“I would sure love to see sportswriters get off of Kobe, CP3, Lebron, and the Celtics nuts and realize there are more players who are putting up some sick numbers. I can read about the same damn thing on every sports website, I would like a little change up.”
Word.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:35 am
dapro says:
Watching CP3 the last few games I realize that he’s become the NBA new Golden Boy and replaced Kobe
They act like the kid can do no wrong..
I love his game but he talks alot of sh*%, whines alot, and uses a bag of tricks to bait the ref into calling fouls
Smart player, fun to watch but he’s slowly moving into the pre-Colorado Kobe
December 18th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Sam I Am says:
Both nationally televised games were awesome last night.
AWESOME!!!!!!!
December 18th, 2008 at 10:48 am
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
LOL It might have been just GEE but last night Woodson had this look like crap we are close and I got to think of something to help us win.
Seriously the camera showed dude looking up at the scoreboard once and the expression was like “Now what was that play I did on 2k9 with my kids, maybe we can use that?”
That dude appears he has no clue and coaches like he doesn’t have one either.
3 top coaches that appear to have no clue in no order.
Woodson
Karl
M. Brown
December 18th, 2008 at 10:49 am
control says:
A better idea for the ball lighting up thing would be to have an RFID chip in there that does the same thing, but sends a signal to a remote light the refs/score table/instant reply guys can see and confirm. RFID chips don’t aren’t heavy enough to change ball mechanics and that way it don’t look like xmas out there.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:50 am
control says:
Dime, you gotta throw some shit in so we can edit posts
December 18th, 2008 at 10:56 am
rangerjohn says:
@ dapro
i have been saying the same thing since last season. he is so popular because of where he plays, and all he “does for the poor people of NO”.
i mean on play last night, he pushed off (jvg said “chris paul pushes off and hits the shot and the foul”) and it was an OBVIOUS pushoff, and they called the foul on parker.
what i thought was funny though, thomas falling down when paul slightly nudged him lmao it was FUNNNY!
fuck cp3 and his cheatin ass
since didnt i will
congrats to tim duncan on 10000 rebounds, and we look forward to many more.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:57 am
sans says:
I don’t think Delonte is gonna like being compared to a jew on southpark–then again Kyle does not have a gigantic permanent sore below his lip.
Marcus Camby won my fantasy chip for me last year, if only I had him this year…27 boards is fucking ridiculous.
December 18th, 2008 at 10:58 am
sans says:
Control–that’s called reading before sending.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:00 am
rangerjohn says:
oh and bonner is shooting 52.6% from 3, the next closest is durant shooting 48.4% (4% less) i say bonner is doing well enough in filling that horry role. and his defense is actually coming around, he Ded up west pretty well last night
December 18th, 2008 at 11:04 am
JCARR says:
LBJ got a standing ovation in Minni. And so far ESPN has delivered with quality games on national T.V
December 18th, 2008 at 11:06 am
control says:
sans
I’m not asking Dime to read my posts before I send it to them. I’m asking for an edit button.
Don’t talk shit like you’ve never made a spelling mistake.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:29 am
deeds says:
First off, Matt Bonner > Robert Horry right now. Seriously, you think Horry is the answer? the guy is a dinosaur out there now, and he’ll be the first one to tell you
And Van Gundy absolutely kills me….I think he’s the best in the business right now. Anyone else catch when they showed the stats for the runners up in the steals category for active players….and Jeff Foster was on there with 8 games or something? “MY goodness, you gotta protect the rock around Jeff Foster!!!” lol
December 18th, 2008 at 11:32 am
buck says:
what’s with all this spurs hate? so they lost a game. it happens. they’ve been pretty good as of late and one hornets lost shouldn’t mean it’s the end of the world and they’re done this season.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:39 am
SKE says:
Although I recently talked up Robert Horry’s career defensive stats/prowess (vis-a-vis those of James Posey), I agree with RangerJohn, fallingup, et al. In last year’s playoffs, Horry’s field goal, three-point, and free throw percentages were 19%, 23%, and 67% to go along with .33 spg and .33 bpg. It’s hard to see how Bonnor isn’t an upgrade.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:50 am
dagwaller says:
RE: last week’s Bosh vs. Dirk argument.
Dirk vs. Bosh: 27 pts, 11-20 shooting, 1-2 from 3, 4-4 from the line, 10 boards, 4 assists, 2 blocked shots. 0 blocks against.
Bosh vs. Dirk: 12 pts, 6-20 shooting, 0-2 from 3, 0-2 from the line, 9 boards, 2 assists, 0 blocked shots. 1 block against.
Kid’s nice, but he’s not elite yet.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:50 am
dagwaller says:
Oh yea, and nice post deeds.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
JT$ says:
@ vinny
I said in the post no dunking era, you donkey. And I said you could make the argument, not that is was alien to introduce the idea of someone else being the best college player ever. I could smoke all day, thrash you in one on one, then school you on how to read.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Ian says:
that game made me puke last night
December 18th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
QQ says:
@56:
Dime hates the Spurs. They just do. Simple as that.
@46:
Mike Brown has no clue? Suuuuuuureee. When your team is at 21-4, that means you have no clue on what you are doing. Ummmm….. You just win by accident. That explains it all.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
control says:
QQ
Mike Brown is great if you love the Fresh Prince “Give it to Will” play book.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
QQ says:
But his team is winning, eh?
Not to sound clueless, but why hate on a winning coach? Yeah, Lebron, weak schedule, blah blah blah… But bottom line: They are winning which means he is winning. Don’t hate on winners. He doesn’t have the swagger of a Riley or the aura of a Phil Jackson, but still. You just don’t hate on winners.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
QQ Yes Mike Brown has no clue unless you call a clue
“Hey as soon as you get the ball pass it to LeBron”
“Ok this time we are going to bounce pass it to LeBron”
“Guys fake a pass to one guy but then quickly pass it to LeBron”
“We got to crash boards fellas and hit the Offensive glass, but remember soon as we get it back look for LeBron”
“Ok we got 3 seconds for 1 shot, anybody feeling it (several hands go up)..I didn’t think so, LeBron it’s on you”
21-4 is great but honestly, my dead granny could coach a motivated LeBron to 21-4.
It’s good to know Mike Brown has a fan though, lol I didn’t know those were real.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:54 pm
Shakers says:
There has to be a way that the ball will only light up on camera when it’s going down. The actual ball doesn’t have to have a light in it. Van Gundy is on to something here.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
Calling out the obvious is not hating. It’s just saying what’s true.
Don’t act like that dude is an x and o specialist when the rest of the world knows his game plan every single game.
It ain’t like he Nelly or something and has tried small ball or some different methods. Every game you know what is up.
LOL Larry Brown knows the game well and he ain’t winning so I SHOULD talk about him, but because Brown is winning I shouldn’t say anything.
That is pure pish (a mixture of piss and fish).
Again I am happy someone likes Brown and I hope you enjoy him. He could be 25 and 0 and he will still be pretty clueless to me.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
that's whats up says:
Gee – @ post 65.
if Lebron is out of the line-up do you think Mike Brown would even open his mouth once on the sideline?
he wouldn’t have anything to say
December 18th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
Seriously there is way to much thought going into this ball lighting up thing.
While we at it though can we have some type of light to go off on players when they flop, perhaps a headban or something lol.
December 18th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
QQ says:
Im not a fan Gee. LOL
I’m just one of those guys who just won’t hate on him because everyone seems to do so. I don’t think he is great, but I don’t think he’s that douche that people picture him to be either. Most haters are casual fans who doesn’t know what a ‘zone defense’ is (‘Hey, you know Lebron’s team? The Cleveland Centipedes or something like that? ESPN says their coach sucks. Boy, he must suck reallllllyyy hard if ESPN reports about his suckiness’).
Give the guy credit.
I’ll give Bron 99%. Mike Brown gets my 1%.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
that’s whats up
forgive my brain please. I can’t tell if you comment is praising Brown or saying that this dude really is nothing outside of having LeBron?
Clarify please
December 18th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
that's whats up says:
no praise.
If Lebron wasn’t on his team he couldn’t post a 2-8 season in a rec league
December 18th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
QQ aight fair enough.
I will at least give dude credit for not changing what works.
Agreed lol.
1% it is.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
LOL yea with no LeBron this guy if fired in the Pre-Season lol.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
control says:
QQ
What is this talk about not hating on someone if they are winning? Fuck that, you can hate on someone for any reason…winning is just MORE reason to hate on him.
Do the Cavs even run plays? I don’t think I’ve seen them setup a play in like 3 years. Usually the plan is lets Bron go down and draw a double, triple, or quad team, have him dish and hope his supporting cast don’t suck too much. Mike Brown is more of a administrative assistant for the team than coach, he organizes the team Xmas party, schedules practices and ensure everyone gets their piece of cake. LeBron does the real play calling/making.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:18 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
organizes the team Xmas part lol classic.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Austin Burton says:
All the “if Brown didn’t have LeBron” talk reminded me of my failed Cleveland conspiracy theory:
Going into the ‘06-07 season, I had this feeling that LeBron was going to suffer a season-ending “injury” early in the year, naturally causing the Cavs to stink and landing them first crack at Greg Oden. With ‘Bron and fellow Midwest kid Oden, who was at the time supposed to be the next Duncan/Shaq/etc., the Cavs’ dynasty would be put in place.
Of course ‘Bron took Cleveland to the Finals that year.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
jayslay says:
mike brown is doing what works…the cavs have a top d scoring they are top in scoring %…..so i dont think he’s that bad…and having lebron ds help but its not all lebron….and i dont think the cavs would have gave him a contract extention if he couldnt coach….do you honesly think phil would have 9 rings if he didnt have jordan kobe and shaq??? would you really be saying hes one of the best coaches of all time…think about it
December 18th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
sans says:
QQ
As a Cavs fan…it took three years for Mike Brown to install backdoor cuts for Bron into his offense. 3 years. I had that pish (Gee, that may be the funniest thing you ever came up with) down in 2K8 in like four minutes.
It’s not hard to figure out that a “Hi/Lo” play will open up the lane; even a basic motion offense would give Lebron a litany of easy looks; this season is the first in which Lebron isn’t initiating the offense 90% of the time. Mike Brown is better than Mike Woodson, Tim Floyd, PJ Carleisimo, Randy Whitman, and Terry Porter–but he is not even on Avery Johnson’s level yet.
But yeah, my team rebounds, plays stingy D, and have the most physically talented player in the L, and Brown takes advantage of all of that.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:30 pm
QQ says:
@75:
I’m not talking bout that kind of hate. Not the ‘I hate Duke because they always fucking dominate the ACC and get the best recruits’ kind of hate.
I’m talking bout people, casual fans who doesn’t even know who Brown is, hating on him because everyone seems to do so, but NOT knowing that he is a winner. Winner, because technically, he’s team is winning right now.They just hate on him because the media tells them to.
If im gonna be a bandwagon hater, Im gonna hate on losers like Kevin Mchale and not on someone who is coaching the second best team in the East. And yeah, that’s my fucking opinion.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Vinny says:
@jtno$- ’said in the post no dunking era, you donkey. And I said you could make the argument, not that is was alien to introduce the idea of someone else being the best college player ever. I could smoke all day, thrash you in one on one, then school you on how to read’
oh its not alien- its stupid to suggest OR MAKE THE ‘ARGUMENT’ a guy like ‘psycho t’ could possibly be the best player ever. SHIT HE AINT BETTER THAN DUKE’S CHRISTIAN!
Thats my point dimwit! Tell u what-smoke all day get on a plane-come to LA and lets play that 1 on 1. and you can get a better education then the 1 you’ve gotten so far.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
sans says:
The only time I’d been more angry in my fanhood than when the Cavs drafted Chris Mihm was when Danny Ferry gave Brown his extension. It took him 2 games to even consider putting Bron in the post instead of bringing the ball up every play. Then he leaves “stone hands” Varejao in to chunk a fn layup in crunch time, instead of having Z out there, who’s butter down low (real slow moving butter, but capable), and, for “leading” the Cavs to the finals he got paid. FN nonsense. I do not know what playoffs anyone else was watching, this year or two years ago, but Mike Brown gets out maneuvered by HS coaches daily.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:41 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
78 I have also heard Kobe, Shaq and MJ praise Phil for different aspects of his coaching.
I have NEVER heard LeBron say nothing about his coach lol.
And perhaps he one day may or may have and I missed it. Still then he probably either is being politically correct or just nice or he wants to keep a coach that will give him the green light for the rest of his life.
I mean if LeBron has praised him, please let me know.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
sans says:
hate hate hate hate hate…
yeah, since I’m riled up, fuck Kevin McHale. Why, out of every person in the Wolves organization, would they keep him?
And QQ…if you have followed the Cavs even remotely, you’d know how awful Mike Brown is on the offensive end of the basketball court. It’s laughable, because any real fan of the Cavs knows this. Your point is moot. Go Cavs and all, but Mike Brown has gotten some sage advice, maybe from Lebron telling him things that Coach K mentioned over the summer, maybe Mike called Pop up to ask him what “offense” means (that he kept hearing about this term and had yet to figure it out), or maybe, just maybe, he bought a Better Basketball video on off-ball movement, realized that spacing is crucial in basketball and walked his happy ass down to Wal-Mart to buy a new Vis-a-Vis erasable marker to use during huddles.
Seriously, Mike Brown has won nothing on his own. He got rings in San Antoinio because Ahab runs a tight ship. He got his job because of how good Greg Poppovich is (easily the Coach K of the NBA).
Unless your banging Mike Brown’s mom and feel bad about it, then there is no reason to have his back on this.
December 18th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
sans I am not even a Cav fan and I was mad at the extension lol.
Hey so I figure Boston is most def. going to break the Rockets streak of last year, real question is how far will they go.
I got to check their schedule to see who they got on deck, but if and when they get past the Lakers.
Is 30 games possible?
December 18th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
dapro says:
Mike Brow is a damn good defensive coach but offensively his playbook now has to options
“Lebron shoot”
“Lebron pass”
that’s it
His twin Mike Woodson has the same playbook “ISO” for player x and somebody dunk when close to the rim
Doc rivers isn’t an X and O guy either but he has other coaches around him who are
December 18th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
lax inc. says:
did anyone notice garnett cursing at the crowd at the end of last nights game? now if iverson gets his fine for doin the same thing..and garnett doesnt..imma start having a serious problem with the league
December 18th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
control says:
QQ
I can feel ya on the blind hating thing…people in this country are sheep and are going to do what they are brainwashed to do.
The only reason Mike Brown is still coach for the Cavs is because he’s like the cubby, but somewhat cute chick. She gives good blow jobs, she’s willing to work with you and isn’t pushy, and most importantly she’s not a bitch. The Cavs need him like that instead of picking up a super model coach because super models tend to be bitchy and cause drama. King James can get along with Mike, tell him when to stfu and Mike can guide him when needed without pissing him off. If there were some superstar coach in there trying to take away from LeBron’s team…there’d be issues.
December 18th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
Vinny says:
control- well put- in a way only you can do,lol!
December 18th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
da man says:
I think chris paul is an amazing player. So it makes me wonder why someone that good has to resort to cheap tactics. he pushes off pretty much every single time. when he goes for a layup he’s constantly using his off arm to push the defender away or when he drives to the hoop he gives a little extra shove. i remember last year when they played the spurs he tried to draw a foul on bowen by stopping dead in his tracks and letting bowen run into him. the refs didn’t call it.
December 18th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
that's whats up says:
oh, snap – just caught that shout out.
Thanks Dime !!
December 18th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
dapro says:
Duncan also told Paul to “Calm the f*ck down” when he overreacted to the Bonner bumping into him
I was dying when I saw that
December 18th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
GEE...The Grinch and Scrooge are two of my homies. says:
dapro I caught that mess lol. CP is a hyper lil mofo on the court sometimes.
But Duncan to actually assert himself like that had me trippin lol.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
JT$ says:
@ vinny
First I’ll need your address. I’ll play with a pair of Bellagio sandals on and I wont shoot any 3’s. The stakes are $1k a point, game to 11 make it take it, and I’ll spot you 5 points and give u ball first. I will then strip the ball and your dignity from you, take a pull from a Dutch, blow it in your face, waltz past you to make the score 5-1. The next 10 minutes of your life afterwards will be a cross between a Bill Walton bad acid trip and your worst nightmare, as you will owe me $6k, have several broken bones in your legs and everyone @ DIME will know youre a huge dbag. It will be something like Pyscho T abusing a hobbit, hallucinating Christian Laettner. When the smoke clears, you’ll be lying in the paint crying like a girl, mumbling dumb comments about how you masturbate to a life sized Greg Oden cutout in your parents basement.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
that's whats up says:
JT$ – man, you a freak
December 18th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
control says:
JT$
I’ll play you on those terms, where you stay at?
December 18th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
BROGDEN says:
Dissin Mike Brown for having LBJ is like Dissing Phil for having 23 the original and 24. You play your schedule. You play your players. Those are 2 constants that will never change. Mike has a body of work as a headcoach in the L that few can match. LBJ’s a big reason for it, not the only reason. It takes coaching to get a player commited to defense, something he’s been doing since his rookie year. It takes coaching to delegate authority to players and coaches. Given his offensive philosophical shortcomings, maybe it was a brilliant coaching move to hire an O-coordinator. It kinda relates to a parallel situation, sort of. Andy Reid and Donovan get backlash all the time, b/c everyone’s a stout critic where I’m from. But honestly, and realistically, we’d be hardpressed to find suitable replacements with a body of work like thiers.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
Vinny says:
Yo jno$-any clown who would put that much time into posting that garbarge probably cant play a lick!! we can play at venice beach so i can embarrass you in front of a crowd! let me know when you can fly out- and dont wear some weak ass north carlonia shirt with Psycho t’s name on it.
December 18th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Ron says:
Yeah CP was really hyped for that game for a number of reasons. I guess he really wanted to win it seeing the last time they played the spurs their season ended. He got caught up in the atmosphere. That’s basketball.
December 19th, 2008 at 1:28 am
baron von faulk says:
#100
BRANDON ROY, oh lawd!
Just dropped fifty-plus on Phoenix, the dude was UNCONSCIOUS
December 19th, 2008 at 1:41 am
JT$ says:
Cap City, IL. That post took me 3 minutes to write, because I have a brain that functions properly even when I’m high and am not a stumbling retard like Vinny Del Douchebag. I’ve played against Dwight Howard @ Nationals and beat Sebastian Telfair in AAU, and used to run with Andre Iguodala and Richard McBride(UofIllinois), as well as Jeff Viggaino(UMASS), and advanced to Sectionals in the state 3 point contest. I already know your toughest competition was on your 7th grade coed team where you couldnt get off the bench, or in your special gym class. You dont want none, chump. So why dont you crawl back into your newb hole – in this case, your parents basement – and beat off to all the Christian Laettner videos you have in your Favorites filled with on YouTube.