The Supersonics should feel very fortunate to get this win this evening as they were able to survive Sacramento's surge in the fourth quarter. Jerome James came through with a big point when Sacramento cut the lead to 83-82. That point was huge as Seattle was able to get out of this with a win. Speaking of Jerome, he was fantastic out there. He did the dirty work defensively and got the big points when he had to. Ray Allen was fantastic too in this game. He played like a polish veteran out there. You have to hand it to Sacramento. They were resillent. They found ways to get back in this game and they almost stole this game. Kings did not play well and they did not great performance from their guards. Mobley was horrible and Bibby looked like he was in pain. That ankle injury has affected his speed and his ability to shoot. That could be difference in this series and that's why I pick the Sonics to win this series. Bibby is a huge part of their offense and if he can't get it going, you can forget about the Kings winning. While I give credit the Kings for making the most out of this game, props to the Sonics for come through with big shots and big defensive stops. They needed this win and they could not afford to blow this lead tonight. They got it done tonight In other games, how about Tracy McGrady. When he wants to play, there is no one who can stop him. I did not figure Boston would spank Indiana this badly tonight.
The story of the night and the playoff weekend was Denver beating San Antonio in the first game. That was huge for the Nuggets as they were able to win in a hostile environment like San Antonio. San Antonio had a scoring drought in the money quarter aka fourth quarter. Duncan struggled to score in that game. Tony Parker was nowhere to be seen in that quarter. To Denver's credit though, they played and they were never fazed which was not the case last year against the Timberwolves in the playoffs. They made the big shots when they had to. Camby was fantastic. This is a big win for them for sure and they can only get confidence heading to the next game. Duncan looked like he was in pain all night and that could be something to keep an eye on in this series. Phoenix made it easy against the Grizz and the sad thing was that it was not their best game. That Suns team is amazing to watch. They can beat you in so many ways whether it's from the paint or from the three-point line. There is no cure to beat Phoenix offensively. They just get it done. Suns were hot shooting the ball all night. Nash did his damage through passing the ball. Q was unconscious tonight. Suns were solid defensively. Just your typical Suns night. Great win by the Bulls. Noncioni was huge tonight along with Ben Gordon. Chicago played a great game. I thought Washington would play better. Nice to see Miami spank the Nets. It was not even a contest. Yeah the Nets cut the lead to nine, but Miami was coasting when the Nets had that run and a NBA team always make a run. Miami took care of them when it counted. I have to say though that I am not really into the playoffs. I just can't get into it without the Timberwolves. I haven't watch much. The only games I watched was Phx/Memphis and Sacramento/Seattle. I watched the fourth quarter on the Nuggets/Spurs game.
Tracy McGrady is simply unbelivable. When he wants to play and when he is on his A game, there is no stopping this dude. What he does is just simply amazing. He is something else. He does things that can be Jordanesque at times. He was huge down the strech and that shot he made was something else. He is playing in another level right now. He and Yao simply had their way with the Mavericks. What you saw from Tracy and Yao is what was expected when the Rockets acquire Tracy in the offseason. Mavericks looked like they were scared when the Rockets were making shots in the fourth quarter. Some of them did not want the ball and some of them did not want to take a big shot. A good example is Keith Van Horn. My god he had an opportunity to score by going to the paint. He is right by the hoop. He should have found a way to get past his defender and score. He just seemed scared. No wonder why Kenyon Martin and Jason Kidd called Keith out after Game 4 of the NBA Finals three years ago after the Nets got swept by the Lakers. Where is Michael Finley? He needs to get his act together. I swear he has done nothing in the first two games. As for Dirk, he has been very dissapointing to say the least. He seems timid out there. He got it going late in the game, but that was too little too late. No wonder why Barkley is calling the Mavericks out. Where is Nick Van Exel when you need him? Avery Johnson has been outcoached by Van Gundy. I question his subsitiution patterns big time. Why is Marquis Daniels not playing much? At least, Nellie seems to know when to put his players in a position to succeed with his creative offense. You gotta give lot of credit to the Rockets. That team is playing so well. It starts with Yao and Tracy and then the role players has been excellent as they had been all year. As for Dallas, I am shocked with them. That team looks lost and some of the players like Finley and Howard need to start producing. This Mavericks team has been a dissapointment so far. Mavericks players got lot of soul-searching to do. As for the Pacers/Celtics, all I have to say is Reggie! Reggie! Reggie! Reggie carried his team on his back. It's good to see Reggie do this as his career is about to come to an end. He has really played well since last month. You can make a case that he carried his team to the playoffs. What he is doing is amazing.
Not to stir a big debate over it, but every player can be stopped, including Jordan. Jordan was just smart to recognize when he had been beat by the defense and would find the open man for the open look. If McGrady is played one-on-one he can go on fire. The trick is to make him cough up the ball by smothering him with double/triple teams. Other than that T-Mac had a great night and KVH completely screwed up on the defense. T-Mac made him pay by knocking down the uncontested shot at the top of the key. Great game by the Rockets. Mavericks have really screwed up this series so far by wasting the home court advantage.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Heat4Life:</div><div class="quote_post">Not to stir a big debate over it, but every player can be stopped, including Jordan. Jordan was just smart to recognize when he had been beat by the defense and would find the open man for the open look. If McGrady is played one-on-one he can go on fire. The trick is to make him cough up the ball by smothering him with double/triple teams.</div> If you double team Tmac/MJ and they find the open man for an assist, you still have not stopped them IMO. Unstoppable is the ability to lead a team, and score when you need to score. Something MJ did, and something Tmac is starting to show.
Although the Mavericks were ranked higher, I always thought Houston would prevail. Houston caught on fire towards the end of the season and their momentum hasn?t slowed down. As for the Mavs, they have improved their defense, but who can really stop/contain McGrady. After watching him in Orlando for many years I know hes capable of knocking down 30 on any given night and making it look like nothing. Now that the playoffs have come, hes needed to elevate his game, and he?s the main reason Houston is up 2-0. However, Yao needs a lot of credit as well after his game 2 performance. He was 13-14 from the field and is beginning to become an impressive center. You also have to consider the new mavs roster. They?ve actually lost a lot of talent compared to last season. They?ve improved their defense; however they no longer have Antawn Jamison, Antoine Walker, and Steve Nash. I?m surprised they finished the regular season ranked as high as they were. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> If you double team Tmac/MJ and they find the open man for an assist, you still have not stopped them IMO. Unstoppable is the ability to lead a team, and score when you need to score. Something MJ did, and something Tmac is starting to show.</div> McGrady is FINALLY starting to show maturity and leadership. A better example of the double team theory is the Jersey/Miami series. No matter how hard the Nets try to contain Shaq they will always fail. He gets doubled, he?ll dish it out to Wade or another teammate. Jordan dished it out to Pippen, Shaq dished it to Kobe, and now Tmac can look to give it to Yao.
Sonics are up by 2 as they embrassed the Kings tonight. The Kings looked awful this evening. Bibby is clearly not 100 percent and that is going to be their downfall in this series. Kings offense are just not getting it done at all. That has to change or else this is going to be a sweep. Ray Allen was fantastic tonight. The role players has been fantastic again. Jerome James had a very good game for the second game in a row. Kings looked flat and lost out there. Their offense is as effective as the Twins offense. Maybe going back to Arco could help them, but it will not matter if Bibby can not be effective. Nets/Heat? Can you say SWEEP? Yes, you can. Nets are going to play the Heat tough? HA! That's funny. The NY media and Nets fans have been saying how the Nets are going to play the Heat tough or how they would beat Miami. That thought has gone out the window. Nets are just overmatched and it shows. Miami is toying with them. Miami has no business losing a game to a team that has backed in the playoffs. As Magic Johnson said on TNT, if the Heat are really a championship contender, they should sweep the Nets. Oh and how nice was it to see my boy, Zo just have a field day against the Nets. That guy was fantastic out there. He did whatever he wanted when he wanted and it was nice to see him put Wince in his place. This should be over Sunday
