So the bracket's been completed and, to the surprise of few, UNC reigns almighty as NCAA champs after a comfortable victory over home crowd favorites Michigan State. Known throughout the tourney as a high-octane offensive beast, the Tar Heels' defense smothered the Spartans through the first half, forcing innumerable turnovers, questionable shots and preventing any sort of rhythm that would help them appease the Detroit masses. The result was a historic blowout that cemented a dominant tournament for UNC; they won each game by a minimum of twelve points and got huge games from all their stars in a balanced effort. Well played.- Meanwhile, back in the NBA the race for the right to lose to the Cavs/Celtics/Magic in the first round is thinning out. The Raptors gave us fans north of the border a late-season tease, peeling off six straight wins and reminding us how they could've been playing all year, but inevitably joined the Bucks, Pacers and Knicks in the Lottery as they fell from striking range of the 8th spot out East. The Bobcats continue to chase their first playoff berth, and given the way Detroit's been playing recently (what, with Will F***ing Bynum being their go-to guy in the fourth and all), they're far from safe. I knew the Pistons were going to lose a step after they traded Chauncey, but damn...
- Things are zany as usual out West; while the Suns have more or less set, the Spurs might be losing their grip on contender status now that Manu's done for the season. This leaves the door wide open for a prohibitive favorite to get murked by the Lakers in the West Final. It'll be a mad scramble from 2-7, which should provide for some great games down the final stretch as teams jockey for seeding and homecourt. Stay tuned to RaptorsTV.
- It's Green Week!! (not that it has anything to do with basketball, but because most of the Western hemisphere has been put on this giant fucking eco-guilt trip) In a further attempt to prove its corporate social responsibility, the NBA's parading its players around in recycled warmups and green jerseys, while making them appear at schools and museums to promote a cause that's been adopted by dozens of major media outlets; it's become stale. It's nice to see the league taking steps to lessen its environmental impact and raise awareness, but its seems more forced than a T-Mac jumper at this point.
- Speaking of forced jumpers, there's a lot of questions in Detroit these days surrounding the future of one Allen Iverson. Almost as many as there are cliche plays on his nickname every time his career reaches a crossroads such as it has this past month. AI's tenure in Detroit appears to have ended; he's failed to mesh with a team he was a horrible fit for from day one, been relegated to the bench for the first time in his career and been forced to the sideline by an ailment that he likely would've played through on a relevant team. He'll likely enter the free agent market this summer as a huge question mark; one who has never been able to let his game take a backseat to team dynamics and appears to have lost the fire that once drove the league's most competitive player. He's contemplated retirement as opposed to a supporting role, and given his history, it's not totally beyond him to stick by those words. If this is it for Iverson, can his status as the greatest pound-for-pound scorer ever really overshadow the truth that single trip to (and swift dismissal from) the Finals is the only significant thing an AI team has accomplished?
- Speaking of forced jumpers, there's a lot of questions in Detroit these days surrounding the future of one Allen Iverson. Almost as many as there are cliche plays on his nickname every time his career reaches a crossroads such as it has this past month. AI's tenure in Detroit appears to have ended; he's failed to mesh with a team he was a horrible fit for from day one, been relegated to the bench for the first time in his career and been forced to the sideline by an ailment that he likely would've played through on a relevant team. He'll likely enter the free agent market this summer as a huge question mark; one who has never been able to let his game take a backseat to team dynamics and appears to have lost the fire that once drove the league's most competitive player. He's contemplated retirement as opposed to a supporting role, and given his history, it's not totally beyond him to stick by those words. If this is it for Iverson, can his status as the greatest pound-for-pound scorer ever really overshadow the truth that single trip to (and swift dismissal from) the Finals is the only significant thing an AI team has accomplished?
- Lawrence Frank made headlines for all the wrong reasons this week; the guy whose first impression with the Nets set expectations high, and whose subsequent attempts to deliver have apparently not been enough for the team's upper brass. GM Rod Thorn recently all but revealed that Frank would be let go in the offseason, ending his streak as the longest-tenured coach in the East. I can't say I blame them; Frank's done an alright job but never seemed to inspire greatness from his players or achieve anything beyond mediocre with talented players in a shitty conference.
It's gonna be a frantic week in the NBA. Stay tuned next week for Awards and Playoff previews when all the dust settles.
No comments:
Post a Comment