Carnival Of The NBA #65

Screw The Suits, Little Man From Another Place, I've Found My Excuse To Put You In My Blog, You're A Star, That Gum You Like Is Going To Come Back Into Style, It IS!!!

Is that organ music I hear and cotton candy I smell in the land of Full Court Pest? I think so... or it could be the elephants. One thing I do know; I like David Lynch. Thus, I like things that are Lynchian. Starting off a sports blog post with a reference to Lynchianism may seem odd at first, until you realize that all things Lynch start off nonsensical eventually arriving at some point of clarity if only to make an obscure reference to something that should be less obscure. I guess what I'm trying to say is that TV suits sucked in 1992 when they ruined and canceled an unresolved Twin Peaks just as much as they sucked in 2005 when they canceled the kick ass show it influenced, Carnivale, which was also left unresolved. In reality, it just gives me context to make my obscure reference in the picture on the right. Umm.........



Welcome to Carnival(e) Of The NBA #65!

My favorite contribution is this diddy from Both Teams Played Hard comparing the NBA's progression to Chex Mix and other chips. There be wisdom in dem dere fried potatoes.

The NBA Chex Mix Rennisance

Side Note: I threw BTPH on my twitter account since I liked his article so much and saw the following two posts one after the other.

BothTeamsPlayedRT @sportsguy33 Did you ever notice that the Zoltar machine in Big looks like Hedu Turkoglu?
sportsguy33Did you ever notice that the Zoltar machine in "Big" looks like Hedu Turkoglu?
No! Don't Do It Young Tom Hanks... Sure, You'll Be Big And Still Score Like A Guard, But You'll Play D Like, Uh, An Unpluggd Zoltor Machine, AKA Hedo Turkaloo

Low class Sports Guy. Boo Hiss! Am I to believe your columns are just a culmination of fan mail with added quotation marks??? If Simmons is not going to give credit (or at least traffic) for ripping Both Teams Played Hard off for his hilarious insight, Full Court Pest will with it's second carnival(e) themed picture.

Time to pick up the pace.

NBA Database has a decent evaluation of Joe Johnson: The Most Under Rated NBA Player.
It still makes me wonder how you let Joe Johnson leave your 62 win team, or trade him for the worst NBA team's bench players. We all hate Sarver for his NBA ownership evil, yes? Its difficult for me to tell who I'd punch first or enjoy punching more: him or Clay Bennet.

Sports Agent Blog has a piece explaining Why Did Jason Thompson Pick Andre Buck. Interesting Blog with an insider feel that's just leaking out highly relevant information no one ever talks about. I checked out their First Round Break Down Of The Draft and was fascinated to get a view of the sports agent world. Just seeing who's repping who is eye opening when you consider David Falk had just as big an impact on Jordan's career as David Stern and Nike did. Great blog.

Basketball Fiend brings us The Fraternity Of Clutch comparing frat life with the best closers in the game. His ideas seem based on free thinking thoughts. ;)

A Stern Warning wrote an interesting piece on Joe Ingles, the NBA Draft And Exposure

explaining why playing in Europe may be why no-one knows who Joe Ingles is. The more coverage of Europe the better IMHO. Theres something real happening in Euroleague and I love it.

Binary Basketball feels The Role of the Point Guard in Today's NBA Era has changed over the years and makes some very strong points.

I really dug With Malice's article highlighting a bank teller guy Shaq's going to play HORSE with... the dude's oops are totally off the charts! If you have not seen the vid I advise it. Behind the back full length court perfect oop bounce passes are just that rare.

If You Don't Like This, Here Is Something You Might Like WNBA.COM

Retro Sports Talk has two great submissions showing how 2009 NBA CLASS REMINDS OF DRAFTS OF THE PAST. If you like Pete Maravich, as anyone who's a basketball fan absolutely should, then you'll also enjoy RICKY RUBIO BRINGS BACK MEMORIES OF THE PISTOL if only to watch the clips of the two and see how remarkably similar their games are. Its not just the white skin and big hair!

Draft time is always tough for Celtics fans. They missed KD and TD, but nothing is worse then Remembering Len Bias like they have to do at Celtics Green every year. Dude had sick talent and would have won multiple rings with Bird in Beantown. Cocaine is, indeed, a hell of a drug. Great clips of Bias's I'm Ready For The Pros game. If you're too young to remember Len Bias in college you should check it out. They've also got a Summer League Update.

On a more positive Celtic note, Red's Army is trying to make lemonade out of the Rondo situation. He contends that Dannys Not Trying To Trade Rondo Hes Trying To Keep Him. Red's soldier might have a pretty good point there. I love Rondo's game too and hope it works out.

In the fantasy hibernation period of the year Give Me The Rock is creating a Fantasy HOF that you can vote on. On the ballots right now are class of 2008 players: Chris Webber and Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Remember that the best pros are not the best fantasy plyaers... I like this idea lots. Yet another way to rank my guys. Your host is coming off a fantasy championship... thanks Dwight!!!

Life of a Knicks Fan submitted a post quadfecta. To Shoot or not to Shoot? deals with the perils of building your team around career chuckers and what you DO need to win. Follows it with the Knicks 2009 Draft Preview (not so easy when Stern isn't fixing the draft for you, is it knicks fans? j/k :) ). Next, The many faces of Kobe Bryant. This may or may not be due to bitterness due to the defection of ex-knicks fan, present 'Kobe Superfan', Spike Lee. (again, a joke :) ) Lastly he completes the quadfecta with Amare Vs. Bosh: The Battle Of The Not-Quite Super Stars. Lets add in Zach Randolph. Why does every forward in the league compare themselves to Bosh if they're all better then him, and then say 'go ask Chris Bosh, he'll say the same thing'? I'd like to know this as well. E for effort and good posts Knicks Fan.



A few things that are a litle dated, but I'll throw in anyway.

Not That There's Anything Wrong With That, Terrence, But Barbie And Much More So Ken, Are Gay On Many Levels
Da Bears And Bulls did a Bulls Mock Draft 2009. It has a vid of NBA clip ready, Terrence Williams which is worth the price of admission alone. I have no idea whats going on in his head, but I like it (if only for selfish reasons), and look forward to being entertained by this guy for years to come.

Jojo adds his two cents to say Thank you Vinnie DelNegro for the Bulls run. Myself, I'll say thank you Derick Rose for being Derick Rose. :) Love the split pic of the Noah dunk on Pierce. Dunk of the playoffs. Best since Davis/Kirelenko especially given the context. Massive.

Nick Knows Best also adds his Reaction to Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Nick is beating his friends by one point. Go Nick! :)

Like 'what ifs' 'what ands' or 'what buts'? GeekMBA360 asks What if you have five 17-year old Kobe Bryants on your team? but I get the feeling this is a business guy promoting his blog, not a hoop fan, so he'll go to the end of the post with the rest of his ilk. Thats why its down here. Some other business blog posted Business Skills Of A Basketball Coach.html. Both are actually talking about hoop so yea, they can have a backlink but this is for NBA blogs not people masquerading as them to make money.

Last, and hopefully not least, if you are interested in reading articles of your gracious host (and still reading this one at all) I'd reccomend 12 Ways To Fake Being A Pro Basketball Expert for laughs, NBA Fan Evolution Part One: Fan Eras and Part Two: The Fan Evolves if you're into history of the game (with lots of clips), and Scoring Assist Differential - Breaking Down The Kobe Laker Era, but only if you're not a Kobe fan, as most of the cool cats of LA probably won't like it anyway. Or check out the sidebar for anything else.

And that's edition #65 of Carnival(e) of the NBA! Lots of great writing and information and links. Till the next one. Cheers!

And PS: If you've never watched Twin Peaks, you should!

If Spud Web Could Make It In The NBA You Could Be A Second Round Sleeper, Little Man. Especially In This Draft! ;) Now Dance Us Home!!!

NBA Fan Evolution: Part 1 - Fan Eras

Here are a few highly evolved fans...I recently engaged in a lengthy discussion with an older NBA fan regarding various players in different eras. He was a big fan of guys like Wilt/Russell/West/Kareem and got quite passionate when I suggested that while great and deserving HOF players they played in a much weaker era that inflated their stats. They could not compete at the same level during the 90's peak.

He passionately argued these stars would have no problems retaining status. In fact, it was not weaker but stronger. Play today is just ‘flashy’ or 'fancy', not quality. While I respect his opinion as a fan supporting his players to do it he had to more or less ignore an exhaustive list of strong points which settled all but his mind.

Its self-evident the league has evolved from it’s past, I won't write about that, but rather what I learned: the basketball fan in general has evolved with the league. In fairness its possible he's right and I am wrong. I doubt it based on full games and clips I've watched. Compared to today’s game it looks like the video game graphic at the top of this blog.

These are the stars of a finals game? Seriously? No wonder Bill had 35 boards: he invented 'jumping on defense'Ignoring video evidence he said that it was only a perception that the guys on old film never jump or display ability dribbling the ball... its because they did not want to?? At some point during the back and fourth I realized the intense differences in being a casual/serious fan of pro basketball and how that has itself evolved. It's not so much that you can't compare eras but fans from different eras are too set in their preconceived notions of quality to agree. There is no other reason to think someone could ignore the following list of points. The 60's/70's were weak. Not to say I can't be wrong because my own era affects my own thinking in the same way. But I'm me, not that guy, so I'm writing it from my perspective.

Click to expand an exhaustive list of factual points, if you care...

• - Most of that era's players actually learned to play with soccer balls
  
  
• - the talent pool they came from was literally 1000's of times smaller
  
  
• - the league was so bad defensively that a player could average 50 points, a triple double or 20 boards for a whole season
  
  
• - Players didn't really know how to box out and rarely did, even on foul shots
  
  
• - In 10 years from 1966 to 1976 the size of the league more then doubled from 9 to 24
  
  
• - teams allowing way more scrubs who had never once played at that level into the league to get beat up on by the pros
  
  
• - At the same time as that expansion the ABA opened it's doors. 3 years later NBA owners voted 14-3 to let them merge cuz they knew they were getting crushed.
  
  
• - In 1976 when the merger happened 75% of the ABA players made the NBA sending many star's victims home
  
  
• - of the 4 teams who merged the Spurs won division titles 5 of their first 6 years. The Nuggest were 1-3 games from the league's best record. The Nets who were the best team in the ABA were forced to sell their best player Dr. J and move the team due to the severe financial/draft limitations. Their other great player, Nate tiny Archibald broke his foot. The team still won 22 games.
  
  
• - when the merger happened many stars stats plummeted... some from top five to out of the top 20 in many cats
  
  
• - Elgin Baylor, a 6' 5" player averaged 35 and freaking 20 and 38/19 in back to back seasons. He was 6'5" and was one of the first players who could actually play, but he was 6'5". That's almost a 40/20
  
  
• - one player had a 55 rebound game as well as many other 40+ 50+ games, as did a few other dominant players. In the past 25 years of basketball and more, there has not been a single game over 35 and only a handful close to it
  
  
• - Jerry West at the 2 guard put up better numbers then Michael Jordan in his prime in the 90's, better then Lebron, better then Kobe in his prime, he was 6'2", could not jump, could shoot the lights out and D'ed up, but could barely dribble with his left hand... he was 6'2"
  
  
• - While not playing basketball players did not spend time doing anything else but having sex with women and jumping. That's how Wilt had a 50" vert and planted his stilt in 20,000 pieces of trash... well u know, according to him.
  
  
• - Players used to actually smoke butts at halftime of games
  
  
• - One of Bill Russel's 'innovations' on the game was learning that jumping helped you block shots: read this quote: "To play good defense... it was told back then that you had to stay flatfooted at all times to react quickly. When I started to jump to make defensive plays and to block shots, I was initially corrected, but I stuck with it, and it paid off."^[7]

Close list...

There are 5 myopia inducing Fan eras with plenty of overlap in the group. Fans form opinions about the game and once set its locked in for life. While the 90's/MJ era stands alone as a seperate era, in terms of fandom, the game was very much the same as in the latter 70's and early 00's. Fan eras tend to be driven by how basketball is thought about rather then those who play it so things like major rule changes are the turning points. There are 4 fan eras of hoop:

Pre Shot Clock Era

Did "Mr. Basketball" actually play basketball? Sort of... Not many of these dudes left. This era occurred when the league was in a formative state. Play varied so much its difficult to imagine any comparisons being made. Games were won with stalling techniques and scores were regularly in the teens and 20's.

Simultaneously equipment was improving. Basketballs before the late late 40’s and early early 50’s were not quite symmetrical and did not bounce consistently. Dribbling therefore didn’t become a crucial part of the game till the 50’s altering how you played. Basketball resembled team hand ball with limited on-ball movement resulting in a very pass oriented game. Maybe an old timer thinks George "Mr. Basketball" Mikan is the greatest but its like trying to argue Charlie Chaplin being more talented then Martin Scorcese.

Post Shot Clock To The 1976 ABA/NBA Merger

Athletic players in the NBA were not really welcomed or accepted. People rarely dunked and much of the league was still quite slow. This era was dominated by the Celtic’s 11 championships in 13 years and fostered rules to limit Wilt Chamberlain’s size induced dominance.

Much Improved: But This Is The Finals With GOAT Candidates??? Really???

While players like Jerry West, Bill Russell and Elgin Baylor dramatically increased elite talent the NBA expanded from 9 to 24 teams negating them. Simultaneously the ABA formed in 1967 and drew many of the best making both ends of the era a wash.

In 1976 75% of the merging ABA players forced out their NBA peers. 10 of the new league’s 24 all stars were ABA players . 3 of the elite teams 1976 NBA teams were the ABA teams despite financial and draft penalties accepted as a concession of the merger. Needless to say talent was spread far and thin prior to 1976.

Fans in this era may tend to feel the well documented statistical achievements of the players indicate supreme strength. Due to their disproportionate size many also consider the era's centers the best to ever to play.

Factoring into their stats however is a much faster pace (25 possessions/game or more) and watery competition sporting boys to take on the men. The size factor meant the few truly dominant bigs feasted on a league of diminutive front court players. Elgin Baylor at 6'5" approached scoring 40 PPG and 20 boards over an enitre season. Twice! Nuff said.

Merger To Bad Boys 2

One of the reasons bigs were able to dominate pre-merger was absence of the 3 point shot. Adopted from the ABA it helped to even the size advantage as the lower percentage outside shot now counted for more then a high % inside one. Good shooters at a distance had to be covered by defenders helping to spread the floor and open lanes inside the painted area.

This new unclogged middle opened up the game spawning new strategies featuring athletic players quick players. A 6’5” player who could jump could get a very high percentage dunk or grab a rebound over a center who had moved out of defensive position. Pro ball as we know it was born when the ABA brought it's style and talent to the NBA.

Offensive juggernauts like the Celtics/Lakers led by Bird and Magic flourished as the running game exploded on the 1980’s NBA. Jordan and Dominque were fixtures of the league's highlights and stats. No guard had ever been able to control games like this. They could nearly beat the other team all by themselves as long as it was close near the end. In Jordan's rookie season he dropped 63 points on a shocked Celtics team. Larry Bird won the game. His face however acknowledged some part of of him had been defeated.

No player has been so great under such pressure in history

In response new sophisticated defensive schemes were developed to fight back. The Pistons bad boys team were notoriously physical taking contact to a whole new level. Result: back to back championships. Could have been 3 but the Lakers were bailed out by Pistons injuries in 1988. They made specific “Jordan Rules” to wear down the game’s best player with success.

Defense intensified into the 90’s. Teams saw it as the only way to stop the freakishly athletic new breed of players from crushing them on a nightly basis. Pat Reilly’s Knicks and Heat teams took advantage of ‘hand checking’ loop holes in the rules to literally beat on anyone scoring in the paint. Players like Jordan reacted using their athleticism to become some of the best defensive players ever but to the determent of scoring which was beginning to dip below 90 PPG. Jordan's own PPG would decline as he entered his prime.

Fans from this era are invariably obsessed with defense and incredible individual play capable of beating those defenses. MJ’s quote “defense wins championships” is used more then Michael Jackson’s attorney. After years of marketing ‘superstars’ the league was at a loss on how to sell team defense to it’s fanbase without an MJ caliber superstar to beat them. Combined with the late 90's parade of reitring superstars and weak drafts, they started to feel desperate

The league attempted to curtail the physicality with little success. A tipping point was reached when the second Pistons defensive powerhouse, with no marketable ‘stars’, bullied their way to a 4-1 finals victory (and near sweep) over the NBA’s flagship Lakers team. LA was fielding 4 future HOF players in their prime to late prime, and all arguably more talented the their counterparts who won ‘the belts’.

2005 Rule Changes To Present

Don't cry Minny KG... your title is coming soon!
Ratings slipped and the front office responded with intense aggression. It wanted the growth it saw in the 80’s but didn't have the talent anymore to build around.

NBC was in a similar scenerio a few years back when it replaced Carson with Leno only to learn that Letterman and the guy who replaced David were both much better at the job. NBC was stuck with Leno and it's solution was to copy Letterman's old material and showcase it being fronted by Jay. The NBA did the same thing and copied their 70's ancestors. Instead of copying the 3 point line, they just told their refs to give stars more calls then ever and fronted it as a minor 'rule revision'.

Stern created the world’s first ref fueled time machine. Hand checking which had been made illegal already was redefined to allow a ref to call fouls on even the most minimal contact or just for plainly arbitrary reasons. A defensive 3 seconds forced centers out of the lane and defensive position to block shots and rebound. Refs were told to call as much contact on the perimeter as possible.

It worked. Big time. Steve Nash experienced an unprecedented non-stereoid fueled resurgence at 30. He won two back to back MVP’s after his owner refused to give him a relatively modest contract extension. 13 teams averaged 99 points a game or more after only 2 teams did the previous year.

The Pistons did luck into the finals again due to Dwyane Wade’s shoulder injury but lost to the Spurs... SA had equally good defense but it their guards won the series for them. Their penetration game was built for the new rules. Tony Parker led the league in points in the paint, something no small guard had ever done. The next year saw two offensive teams in the finals with Wade’s call inflated games defeating the Mavs.

I have a man crush on Lebron, but he does have it easierThe trend has continued. We were all a witness to Lebron’s vastly inferior team climbing on his back as he continually annihilated the Piston’s defense for 29 straight points in game 5 of the East finals in 2006. The Spurs continued to win with good defense and great slashing guards who closed out game: before they won with the twin towers of Duncan/Robinson surrounded by shooters.

What does this say about the fans of this new era? I really can't tell. I cut my teeth on the defensive 80's/90’s making it hard to get a good read. Defense is still important but you can’t win a title without quick slashing players. Effective centers are shrinking in size and weight as mobility to get back into position is trumping power and the banging game.

Players like Marcus Camby, Josh Smith, Amare Stoudamire and Dwight Howard have become the best bigs in the game while 7’6” Yao Ming, who would have been a defensive monster in the 90’s (Manute Bol blocked 5 shots a game in that era!) just does not seem quick enough to get to the spot and protect the rim or board. The league has gone from rebound/defend to slash and kick.

Fans who didn’t experience the 90’s may rate these skills as the most important facets of a good basketball star. That was Jordan's game so he still gets his respect but will a player like Alonzo Mourning, who was absolutely devastating in the paint, get the same props? What about a guy like Patrick Ewing or even Greg Ostertag? Will I be on the receiving end of an NBA fan in 10-20 years who rather justly doesn’t feel many of the players in my era would wilt in his modern game? With Dwight Howard winning the dunk contest and having 9 20/20 games this season, it seems likely.

Forget West, is 'anyone' in the 1963 finals even approaching Jordanesque??? Rotation/role playeresque, not 30/7/6, is more like it

Only time will tell. Many claim you can’t compare eras. On stats alone I agree. You can with the right concessions, but maybe comparison is not the right approach as understanding eras garners more legit results. I still think the overall growth of the game and especially the use of athletic ability to not only overpower/out finesse truly trumps many past era superstars. Jerry West would not put up Jordan numbers today but he did in the 60's.

In the same league Jordan would kill him... its just not even close. There were no Jordans, Battiers, Pauls, Pippens or Stocktons so slow 6'2 guys could put up 32/7/6. The advancement since then is just too much for the old, old school guys to overcome.

Still have to know your roots though. You can't know where you're going if you don't know where you're from. You don't want to be the young punk who just does not understand the game but if you look at things honestly you can also avoid being that guy who can't let go of the past.

This is part of one NBA Fan Evolution. If you enjoyed it be sure to check out part 2. It will examine fan evolution in the context of these eras with regard to the growth of media, technology and general sophistication. Available now, click here!

So just one last video... this is Elgin Baylor's 61 point FINALS performance. Where is the D? Where is the speed? This guy nearly averaged a 40/20 for two seasons and is routinely compared to players like Barkley and Lebron.



Be Sure To Pay Attention To What Bob Cousey, Best Point Of His Era, Has To Say At The End

Once Upon A Time In 2009: 5 All Time Outcomes NOW!

If You Disagree, You're WrongStorybook endings are rare in sports but easily the most cherished moments. You'll feel lucky that you experienced that game instead of the highlights years later. Commonality is not memorable. Its almost never the actual play that determines if an event is going to be special. Its the details surrounding games and between whistles that drive the enormity the biggest reason we are sports fans. Its fun to try and predict them too when you're right, two years back I predicted the Warriors over Mavs upset and last year successfully picked Davidson to the elite 8. I picked GMU out in the first round though and lost both brackets and fantasy league though. ;0

A couple examples to get warmed up.

MJ. Career Game. Little to do with stats or records. Not the perfect game. Had they lost game 5 to the Jazz it probably would have broken the Bulls. Jordan's stomach virus was visibly making him wobble on court. In his face mind over matter was personified. Pushing out the fatigue, ignoring the sickness for just a few seconds, he focused for the mere seconds it took to score. Rather, rinse repeat until the hearts of Stockton/Malone were crushed to an irreparable state. People truly felt they were seeing something bigger then basketball that game. Watching anything other then the whole game at that specific date in time does not count. An epic struggle of a spectacular human vs. his own humanity, even if it was only sports. Anyone who claims a jumper after crossing/pushing Byron Russel tops that game is more misguided then "Mission Accomplished."

Its not the degree of difficulty of Reggie's biggest moment. Hiting 2 3's between stealing the in bounds pass to scored 8 points in 9 seconds to win... No, that was only amplification. It was IN Madison Square Garden. After a career of proving to Knicks fans that you can NEVER count out Reggie Miller they collectively started to celebrate and count out Reggie Miller. They thought the task too much for even him. He took it personally and for revenge decided he was going to rip out the hearts of an entire stadium/city full of Knicks fans, rip the confidence out from that heart and hold it still beating before their faces. Reggie Miller 1, city of 10 million, 0. If there was ever an F-You ball moment that was it. They did respect him by choice but by force. Reggie is one of the only players in history that truly did enjoy playing on the road as much as home and maybe the only guard that 'wanted' to play Jordan. Jordan was the biggest, and Reggie lived for the biggest moments.

He Did This To Them, They Chanted His Name

I tricked you though. The event above is not Miller's most spectacular or memorable moment; to me anyway. Its something much less famous. In Reggie's last game in NYC the Pacer hometown chant of Reggie! Reggie! raucously echoed in every corner of Madison Square Garden while fans stood on their seats to honor a player many had been indoctrinated to hate since birth. In MSG. Praising 'The Enemy'. It was like watching the Pope pray to Allah in the Sistine Chapel. Rudy's cheers pale in comparison. Ultimate respect for one of THE most important players in Knicks history and they made sure he knew it. Its my favorite sports moment ever.

The improbability drives the drama. The setting and context cause doubt. Most "I believe" moments have a "how silly was I" refrain. Outcomes will be negative almost always if something even has a chance to be shown on replays for 50 years. A handful of times though a player or team is up for the challenge. They say "We Believe". You say "BS, I don't". Then you get pulled over and someone decides to do something people will talk about till long after they are relevant anymore.

Check this list for 5 potential moments this post-season that offer players the slimmist chance of becomming bigger then the game itself. Lebron or Kobe winning will be cool and they'll be great but it whats expected to happen so its not going to really be that big a deal after they retire and the marketing campaign for them slows down. These aren't getting on the list for their likeliness to happen, but rather for the opposite, and the enormity of their importance if the miraculous did occur.

1. Allen Iverson Back "Heals"?

Need An Answer? Doc Has The Cure!

As I write this the Pistons are down 0-2 to the Cavs and the 'end of an era' columns are already showing up on every sports site on the internet. Everyone has written this team off after the Iverson trade and AI is looking like his career is headed in the same direction. Down. The Cavs are the best team in the league and Lebron it's best player and look unstoppable in a 7 game series. Their direction. Up.

There's only two games left for this to happen but should Iverson/Curry/Dumars/The Pistons sit down and make a commitment to each other true playoff history could be made. AI goes all out on a mission, the last of his career, destoring his body to quiet the doubter in a game 7 upset. The Pistons become the first team to ever come back from down 3-0.

After taking more criticism then ever in his historically criticized career AI proves to people he's a team player. The Pistons complete a memorable 4 game series ending sweep. Iverson shuts up everyone who's ever questioned him before. The Pistons shut up anyone who ever questioned their heart. On the other end this would be a crushing defeat for Lebron. One from which he may never recover much like Dirk never recovered from the warriors handing him his own ass on a first round exit platter. Moments like these can turn an entire career. Ask Nic Anderson.

Why It Can Happen: The Pistons are going to lose. It will look bad on them. It will look bad on Iverson. But have nothing TO lose. For the sake of the team someone like Dumars might try something historic.

Why It Won't Happen: NBA egos' and pride prevent people from doing things for the sake of the team anymore... that, and Lebron's own mission is in full effect.

Wow Factor: 8

Likelihood: 1

People Stop Talking: It would have to be 2030 at the earliest a while after Bron retires. Never at the latest especially if a 0-3 comeback occured. It would take a full generation for people to not bring it up. Would a loss this serious put a crack in his thus iron clad confidence? I think so.

2. KG Returns To Push Celts Over The Top

KG Is Actually A Cry Baby, But I'm Not Telling Him
KG's legacy is in the balance. He's proven that Minnesota's follies were not his doing. Ironically however, it's Celtic great Kevin McHale that he can impersonate to create the hallmark of his whole career erasing the criticism he recieved due to McHale's front office incompetence.

To get past the Cavs its most likely will have to return. If KG can emulate Willis Reed and come back the drama will go off the charts. If he can emulate McHale and play his heart out while hurt he may walk away with a limp for the rest of his life, but it will be a limp that makes his enormous paycheques useless in every New England bar for the rest of his life.

Why It Can Happen: There are few whose presence could make such a difference. And there are few with the psychotic intensity required to permanently injure yourself for the sake of winning one or two more games out of 7. If completed KG goes directly to first ballot of the all time warrior list. With KG the Celtics are the best team in the league. The Celts have gotten stronger without him and I can't see KG sitting for the whole playoffs without trying at least once. His return will make the Celtics go bananas. He's got one game to use that chip in so he'd better choose wisely.

Why It Can't Happen: This one is actually pretty likely given aforementioned insane intensity and the fact that it looks like KG can actually get on the court and perform, if in pain and not efficiently.

Wow Factor: 7

Liklihood: 9

People Stop Talking: Knowing Celtic's fans propensity to fanboy their legends (many still claim Bill Russell is the GOAT and no one is close) this might be never. But you'd got to expect this to be shown in retrospective at least once during every Celtics run for the next 50 years and then some. People should quiet down by 2050 but probably talk till at least 2075.

PS: I just watched that KG interview and am more convinced then ever that KG is the best teammate in the history of sports. If you have not watched it take the time: its worth seeing why he got his contract.

3. Dwayne Wade Plays Out Of His Mind

How Many Can Win A Series By Themselves?

Wade has done this one once before but with a team much better then these Heat. If his mediocre teammates can gel enough to keep them in enough games for Wade to take over in the clutch something speical can happen. Wade has to answer the challenge strongly enough for a truly historic run. The historical tipping point would be Wade vs Bron.

Lebron gets the MVP award in the same way as David Robinson was handed his award in game 1 vs Houston. Then Hakeem ripped out his heart, then ripped out his heart's confidence and held it in front of his face, beating. If Wade can respond with taking over the series and soundly out playing Lebron, especially defensively, he will have quieted all the people who foolishly voted against him and affirm himself as the best player in the world.

Writers roundly declared his career as an elite player over. If he can push the heat to winning the title like Dream did it will change everything. Wade gives us one of the most fantastic runs of all time and will start to be mentioned in the same breath as the holy unbreakable trinity of Magic/Bird/Jordan.

Why it Could Happen: Wade is ridiculously good and arguably the best in the world.

Why It Won't Happen: Lebron is ridiculously good and arguably the best player in the word... and has the much better team.

Wow factor: 9, (10 if champions)

Likelihood: 3 and 1 respectively

People Stop Talking: This goes the history of the league. It would put Wade into best player ever discussions as the only guard besides MJ to win without a dominant center. It would be considered the best individual run of all time.

4. Dirk/Mavs Put It Together And Win The Title

He's Fallen: Can He Get Back Up?
The Mavs are an odd team. They lack depth and have been underachieving since they started round 1 vs the Warriors two years ago. The Jason Kidd trade which was bad has now become under rated. Devin Harris' awesome performance has much to do with the team making him the focus of the offense. The sheer volume of negative press the trade received has so outweighed the trade's positives that its undervalued now.

Vetran teams that win championships are not regular season juggernauts. Instead of fast starts they play their best ball at the end of the season. See 08-09 Celtic's 27-2 record to start, KG injury, and subsequent early playoff exit (if #1 on this list does not happen) for examples of vet teams not winning championships. See the Spurs past few titles despite TD et al being either injured, on weaker teams or past their prime for examples of winning.

Its all logical. In the regular season depth matters. You play 3-4 games a week. If you win with your starters they will wear out and hurt the post-season chances. In the playoffs you play 1-2 games a week and rotations shorten as you give your best players heavy minutes. Start to kick after allstar, attain a higher seed then anyone thought capable, cream a weaker opponent in the first round and start to roll on your title run. In the post season you win with your best 6 players and since there's more days of rest older players have much less problem putting it all on the floor and then recovering for the next game 3 days later.

Being doubted all season helps. Shoulder chips for all! More then any other sport this matters in ball: you never want to play the team that feels disrespected or angry. After years of Dirk is soft articles, years of Jason Kidd being considered done and out of 'best PG in the league' discussions you'd better bet they have something to prove.

Why It Can Happen: Kidd can still play and wisely waited till the last month to step up his game, Dirk is still in his prime and Josh Howard has underachieved all year. The Mav's bench players like Bass/Barrera et al have stepped it up. If the many cards fall right Dallas still has the pieces to be very elite. Elite yet under rated teams have a habit of surprising teams and occasionally winning titles.

Why It Can't Happen: Other then having ref's who are in their pockets instead of the Heat, they've always had the pieces. They've never gotten it done. Why should it be different?

Wow Factor: 8

Likliness Factor: 5

People Stop Talking: Hard to judge. I say 2015-2025. Once Kobe retires it won't be nearly as big. This would be enormously discussed right now however consensus would quickly build that the Mavs were always underrated while the other two over rated lessening the achievement of the Mavs. A bevy of reasons they lost before would seem very reasonable if they got the title. People don't talk about the Rockets first Dream Championship cuz it was pretty obvious they were the best team with the best player now. People forget no one thought that at all going in. AT ALL.

5. Derrick Rose Pulls A Magic

This Kid Can Flat Out Play
Very few rookies start. Fewer still are their team's leaders. Only one has led their team to a championship. After two games vs the Celtics Rose has shown he's got the chops to be a truly great player. If he can play at the same level he showed in game 1 what really is the ceiling of this Bulls team?

A Rose/Bulls that consistent can take out the Celtics without KG. With the confidence they gain from that can they push the Cavs? One thing is for certain: if the Rose/Bulls we have seen thus far in the playoffs was playing all season the Bulls win at least 10-20 more games, have home court and be roundly considered championship contenders, if only a dark horse.

Why It Can Happen: It's happened before, it will happen again. Its only a matter of time. A great point can turn almost any underachieving team into a winner and the bulls have proven they've got a whole arsenal of weapons to throw at teams.

Why It Can't Happen: Youth gives you great legs but can be a serious bitch. How are the Bull's front line going to respond the first time foul trouble hits in the first quarter? Probably with panic, more fouls and a loss.

People Stop Talking: Since it's year one of the Derrick Rose era he probably won't retire until at least closeish to 2030. If he pulls it off and has the career that appears to be in front of him it will take everyone who watched to die before they shut up. So the basement is probably 2060. The ceiling 2100 or never.

5A. Little Brothers Are Not Allowed To Win Fights

The Dominant Story Of The Present Era Could Be Story Book... If The Real Shaq Is Behind The Mask
This was scenario one I wrote before the Suns were eliminated from the playoffs and before Amare went out for the season.

Should the Suns make the playoffs Shaq's 8'th place team will face the Lakers in one of Kobe's last chances to prove he could win without the Diesel. The beef is real: not marketing. Both would relish putting their own stamp on the defining moment of the tail end of each other's careers. For Kobe he would push Shaq out of the post season on his way to his first non-Shaq championship. But that's expected.

Shaq is supposed to lose that matchup though. The setting is perfect. If he lays it ALL on the floor and pushes his body at 36 what it used to do 5-10 years earlier, he could make a statement 1000's of times stronger then "Kobe how my ass taste!" No rap neccessary, this would be pure drama and ultimate revenge against the team and player that deserted him after he delivered 3 championships and one more finals appearance in 5 years. After that win Shaq could say anything, any slam at all or nothing at all, and they would have to take it. It defines story book.

Its not likely but without the setup for something unlikely nothing truly historic can happen.

Why It Will Happen: Shaq is playing better then he has in years and the Suns are playing their best ball of the year. Nash and Amare have already sent Kobe packing a few times and have a mental edge to compete with him. Shaq has he's twice the player when he cares and might totally get into Kobe's head if say during game 1, Shaq does something crazy like the Jabberwokeze dance to get the crowd on his side, and then goes insane in the game and gets cheers. Kobe's head would split in two pieces if people in LA gave Shaq love in the playoffs.

Why It Won't Happen: Bynum should be back by the playoffs and the Lakers look just too strong with Gasol, Odom, Bynum, Kobe and decent role players. They should be the best team in the West and have a cakewalk to the finals.

Wow Factor: 10 given the history

Likelihood: 4 The suns are better after allstar then before. They're way above what their record indicates. If their shooters connect you never know what happens. Live by the 3 teams sometimes live.

Most truly great historic playoff moments are nearly impossible to predict because there's nothing truly memorable about the best team winning a title. That's why MJ's 3 most famous moments are the flu game, his switch hands shot when he was the underdog vs the Lakers and his final shot in Utah when he was supposed to be too old. Its rare people talk about his Phoenix, Seattle or Portland series even though they were better performances of unquestioned dominance.

In the same way there is very little talk about the Celtics past dynasty. They were an unbeatable super team. Winning was assumed so when they won it wasn't special unless you were a Celtics fan or your team was crushed by them. The sagging popularity of the league when the Celts dominated is a strong indicator of this.

If even one of these events took place it would be nothing short of spectacular. Just like the flu game or Reggie receiving adoration from his sworn enemies. These events fans would rehash throughout their own lives, retelling to their children and subsequently their grandchildren. Its what makes sports transcend generations and truly great. So while unlikely if we keep our fingers crossed maybe, just maybe, something just ridiculous will happen and in 2009 I'll be happy to know that I lived the moment instead of watching the highlights of it.