So, May is about to end. Been quite a month. I turned 18. My dad turned 60. I graduated from high school. The Diamondbacks fired Bob Melvin and have shown some good signs of improvement since then. Yankee Stadium has been a hitters dream and a pitchers nightmare. Mark Teixeira hit a ball off of Cole Hamels that severed his bat, but the ball still went over the left field wall. And the NBA playoffs have been stellar.
From the Denver Nuggets absolutely thrashing the Hornets in New Orleans (121-63) to the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls giving us the series of a lifetime that had a very anticlimatic ending thanks to the officials.
LeBron James delivered a shot that will not soon be forgotten. It's a shame that it had to come when the seemingly unstoppable Cavaliers were all-of-a-sudden springing leaks all over the place.
We all wish that the Suns could've made it and gotten swept in the first round. But, it's time for Dwight Howard to really step up. The Magic won both games against the Lakers in the regular season. Both were close and both had the now injured Jameer Nelson as Player of the Game. So, it'll be up to Dwight Howard to play smart, stay on his feet, and dominate the paint. If he can do this, Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Mickael Pietrus, and Rafer Alston will be open from long range.
Sadly, I must address this point. The officiating in these playoffs has been abosolutely terrible. It ruined the best series (Bulls v. Celtics) and completely put the underdog Jazz out of contention. I watched every game of the Jazz v. Lakers series and really, seriously, the Lakers had it made with the refs.
Bill Simmons, writer for ESPN, addresses this issue and more here. (Mama Bear, pay special attention to what he says starting with the sixth paragraph of the "Where Aging Doesn't Happen..." section all the way to "The General Motors Syndrome")
I would also like to add that being an official in the NBA is not easy at all. My brother, Daniel, says at least once during every game that he watches that he could be (and should be) a ref. I really think that he would be not so good at it.
But the problem is that the NBA is comfortable with the bad refs that they have now. However hard as it may be to find young, good referees, they need to try. They need to hold their refs accountable. If only the refs had to answer to the media.
3 comments:
Yes, a lot has happened during May. NBA playoffs have been especially good--and I agree with you about refereeing. I've always said the refs are ridiculous. The article you refer to is actually very interesting (but very long!)--and I'll agree with you again that it's way past time to get some new, younger blood into the officiating business.
Now let's go Dwight Howard and the Magic!
The Lakers have been the clear winners from the beginning. Howard is great, but Bryant is on a mission. He's focused, he's ready, and nobody's going to take the title from him. He's not only the best player of this era, but probably the best that the NBA has seen, and he's not even done! People are just upset that there is somebody that is THAT good playing the game and beating the crap outta their teams. What is this infatuation with Daniel? I get that there are interesting people in the world, but sometimes you have to get your OWN life. Plus, with what I've seen, Daniel probably wouldn't be a bad choice for a NBA official. Vote for Daniel!
I'm almost always for the underdog, and so will be cheering for the Magic. Having said that, however, I have to agree with Winkee Stinky about Kobe Bryant--he just seems so much more focused and intent on getting another ring--it will be no surprise at all if the Lakers win.
Oh--and Daniel would make a great NBA official if he learned the rules first.
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