A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
Pau Gasol is one of the hot names in this morning’s sports highlight cycle after his Lakers won their cross-city matchup against the Clippers last night. This Battle of L.A. featured a brief disagreement among stars after Gasol placed his hand on Chris Paul’s head, an act that Paul immediately responded to in kind. He didn’t appreciate being treated like a child, or something.
I found the act and react photos rather humorous, as I often do with pictures involving Gasol.
From time to time this season, I’ve killed time on Sunday nights while watching SNF by compiling the most entertaining images, GIFs, and videos from the day in professional football. Since this is the final week of the regular season, I can’t pass up my final opportunity for one last trip to the NFL’s lighter side.
Football players risk their long-term health on every play. Baseball players are notorious for steroid use. Freakishly athletic basketball players will attack the rim knowing every time they could get fouled and go tumbling to the hardwood floor. Soccer players will use their head to redirect, in mid-air, a large and relatively firm ball traveling at great speeds.
The point is, athletes will do anything and everything to gain a competitive advantage.
Including flop.
It’s just about that time my NBA crowd. Well, actually it’s well past ‘that’ time due to the foolishness experienced during this past off-season.
All of that is well behind us now, and since the lockout ended there have been numerous signings, trades, and a mess of pre-season games already played. All this can only mean that the NBA season is right around the corner, and it’s time to finally rank each team appropriately from top to bottom.
For Part One of this two-part series, which is inspired by ESPN’s attempt to rank all NBA players from 1-500, click here.
Remember, our goal here is to rank the top 25 players in the NBA right now.
I like Chris Bosh.
I know that he isn’t necessarily the toughest player in the NBA, and I don’t particularly root for he and he is team, and in the interest of full disclosure I did once post this, but I think the Chris Bosh hate has gone way overboard since he joined the Miami Heat.
And offender #1 has been, unsurprisingly, Skip “Dick” Bayless, who proved his dickishness yet again today on ESPN’s 1st Take.
I am going to leave the serious analysis of the 2011 NBA Finals to Jon, Devon, and our other writers who are more passionate and knowledgeable about the NBA than I am.
While we wait for their perspective, I’ll instead do what I do best: find outstanding links as well as hilarious ways to put big moments into context.
The latter is below, presented in no particular order. Just a random assortment of humorous yet illuminating perspectives on one of the most epic NBA Finals I can remember.
The NBA Finals have begun, and the chase for Dirk or LeBron’s first ring is underway.
This game came down to three things; defense; bench play; and rebounding. The Miami Heat are quite fond of all three, and they proved it last night. As for the Mavs, they had the game’s leading scorer, but that did not translate into a Game 1 W.
We have come to the ultimate point of the NBA season. The conference finals are finished, and there are now just two teams left standing.
Within the next couple of weeks, two will become one, and a new NBA champion will be crowned.
“The Miami Heat are exactly what everyone wanted, losing games. The world is better now because the Heat is losing.”
So many thoughts ran through my mind last night as I sat there trying to digest what I thought was an awkward cry for help from Dwyane Wade.
I laughed as I heard Coach Spo let us know that there were players crying in the locker room. Jason Whitlock hit the nail on the head here. I would only add that I think Dwyane Wade cried too and Bosh TRIED to cry because the other two were crying.
I think that Flash cried because the team is clearly not his, and the Heat are worse because of it.
Last night, the Miami Heat lost to the Chicago Bulls 93-89 in the United Center. The loss moved the Bulls to within one game of the Heat in the loss column and just two behind Boston. However, this game will go down in the annals of the 2010-11 NBA season not because of its impact on the standings, but rather because of the inexplicably awful performance by Heat forward and erstwhile “franchise player” Chris Bosh.
In addition to scoring just 7 points on 1-18 (yes, 1-18) shooting from the floor, with a few of those shots being point blank bunnies that Bosh doinked, the third member of the Heat’s “Big 3″ may have turned in the worst flop in the history of basketball; and that is not hyperbole. Scroll to the bottom of the this post where I have embedded the video. It is pathetic.
Needless to say, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade were not going to stand for Bosh’s ineptitude and pansy-ass defense. They got on him immediately after the game was over, and MSF was there to capture the entire exchange. It’s all there in today’s new photo story Two and a Half Men.
First let’s all look back to 2003…
The Pistons, despite being one of the elite teams in the NBA that season, had the 2nd pick in one of the most talent-loaded drafts in history thanks to a trade with the Vancouver (now Memphis) Grizzlies. The first pick was Lebron James and with the second pick the Pistons had their choice of Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, or some 7 footer from Serbia named Darko who nobody had ever heard of. The Pistons pulled the trigger on Darko, passing up 3 of the best players in the game for a player who has not averaged over 10 points a game in his 7 NBA seasons.
Well, now Darko plays for my Minnesota Timberwolves, making an absurd 5 million a year, to do this:
The Heat are heating up, having now won five in a row to push their season record to 14-8. Granted, they are feasting on the lower rungs of the NBA ladder, and still have to prove they can beat elite teams, but every win counts the same once it comes time for playoff seeding. The Heat are currently tied for 3rd in the loss column.
Last night, the Heat’s two biggest stars – Dwyane Wade and LeBron James – were the key players in what has to be the most kickass photo taken yet this year.
The King did it.
LeBron James returned back to his Cleveland throne, and in stellar fashion, dropping 38 points in 30 minutes, including a 24-point 3rd quarter, as he wiped out the Cavaliers. He ignored each and every boo he heard, ignored the t-shirts, signs and hate from everywhere. And he did it all with a few smiles, chuckles, jumpers in front of the Cavs bench, and sideline celebrations.
Yes, LeBron has passed the toughest emotional hurdle he’ll have this season.
But what now? He didn’t curse back at the Cavs fans, he didn’t flip the bird to anyone. He let his game speak, and it spoke louder than ever. But what exactly did his game say?
It said: he is accepting his role as one of the most hated and loathed players in the NBA. He has accepted his role, as the villain.
