Lakers vs. Mavs brawl: A sign of things to come?

Recently on a ESPN Dallas radio station, Jason Terry said that Kobe could not stay in front of him nor Rodrigue Beaubois just before the pivotal Lakers/Mavericks game. It was a game with huge playoff implications not just for the 2nd seed in the West but maybe for 1st as San Antonio seems to be faltering. In addition, a night where Terry could back up his words with a Mavericks victory.

Unfortunately, the Lakers got the last word in a 110-82 shellacking of the Dallas Mavericks. Yet, the big story about this game besides the Lakers domination of the Mavericks will be the brawl caused none other than Jason Terry. His play was not expressed with his smooth shooting and penetration that he claimed was to come in this game. It was his hard foul, which may be the result of frustration or quite possibly sending a message to their potential playoff opponent down the road.

In the 4th Quarter, the Lakers were shelling the Mavericks 90-73. Blake was driving to the basket after the pass by Andrew Bynum out of the post. As he drove, he got fouled by Peja Stojackovic (who was stroking it in the 1st half) and then got shoved by Jason Terry. Well, Steve Blake did not take that act by Terry (not so much as he was 2-9 from the field and could not hit anything at all in the 3rd Quarter) too kindly.

Suddenly, they were jawing at each other and it led to Matt Barnes intervening as the referees tried to regain control of the action. Barnes was restrained but shoved Mavs assistant coach Terry Stotts as if he was taking off his backpack off his back. When all was set and done, Jason Terry, Steve Blake, Matt Barnes and Brendan Haywood were sent to the showers. Later, they were accompanied by Shannon Brown trying to defend Pau Gasol for being on the court even though the game was already at hand. This was an altercation that pretty much was a preview of what is to come when the NBA playoffs start in April.

Inevitably, there will be fines and suspensions after this skirmish. In addition, the repercussions will be evident as they could potentially come into collision course in either the second round should the standing hold or in the Western Conference Finals. Either way, it's going to be a fantastic show for basketball fans as the raw drama spills out of the HD screen. Unfortunately, it'll be a pain to manage if you're a referee or a fan whose favorite player gets suspended for a game or two.

As for Jason Terry, I recommend that his mouth be muzzled with an electric shock if he says anything like what he did recently. It'll serve him well and this video down below is a clear example of it.

Cleveland rises while Miami wilts.

On December 2nd, 2010, the Cleveland Cavaliers were beaten, humiliated and flat out embarrassed. This was their one night to finally have their revenge for their fallen savior, Lebron James. A man who was once thought to become the Moses that would lead the championship repressed city. Alas, Lebron took his talents to South Beach and had one of his best games of the season that night.

From then on, the Heat have become somewhat of the juggernaut that some people thought but still a disappointment for most at 51-22 before the game. In retrospect, the expectations were a little too high for a virtually new team to accomplish in just one season.

As for Cleveland, they have become a depressing D-League team brought up to the NBA. At one point, they went nearly 26 games without winning a game before beating Blake Griffin and the Clippers. In fact, they lost by more than fifty points on the road to the Lakers and Blazers. It was the worst of times heading into Lebron's second return to the franchise he once called home for nearly seven years.

Yet for one night, the Cavaliers did something that they could not do on that cold December night. They actually played with emotion and never let up despite the momentum see-sawing back and forth the entire game.

At one point, the Cavs had a 23 point lead on the heels of a 18-0 run, which seemed insurmountable. Suddenly, in a quick flash the Heat went on a 17-1 run along with a Lebron 70 ft. buzzer beater at the end of the third to pull the Heat within five at 75-70.

The 4th Quarter was an epic battle as the Cavs tried to hold on as the Heat swaggered around like a confident predator ready to pounce on its quivering prey. Mike Bibby who was hot for the majority of the game nailed another three to tie the game at 83. Bibby finished with 23 points on 7-11 shooting.

Alas, he was not enough to cover Chris Bosh's disappearance in this game as he was absolutely outplayed by JJ Hickson and Ryan Hollins. Bosh disappeared and was virtually nowhere to be seen in the frontcourt as evidenced by his 10 points 4 rebounds and 4 assists. He said he wanted the ball in the post but it seems like tonight, Hickson and Hollins were barking far more loudly than Bosh tonight.

Lebron and Wade put up their usual All Star numbers. Lebron put up eye popping stats with 27 points 12 rebounds and 10 assists, while Wade had 24 points. Yet, it seemed like it was just those two and Bibby trying to fend off a pack that had them cornered from all possible angles.

Cleveland made timely shot after shot while Miami settled for long jumpers that had no prayer going in. Most notably the big three point shot by Anthony Parker coming off ball penetration to put up a precarious nine point lead to twelve. From then on, the Cavs just poured it on as they outscored the Heat 19-7 in the last 7:01 to get the 12 point victory. Culminating with a Baron Davis three pointer to push the Cavs to a 98-85 lead and a JJ Hickson dunk to top off the victory. The home crowd was also into it just like on that fateful December 2nd night. Throughout the game, they were bringing the energy and fanatical passion that was vital for the Cavs to bring it home on this night.

Since the Infamous ESPN special, these fans have been starving for a moment like this in an otherwise disastrous NBA season. The Cavaliers won with a total team effort that Coach Byron Scott has been preaching all season long. As for Miami, it was an off night and confirmation of a recurring theme where it's just Lebron, Wade, at times Bosh and role players who could catch fire or disappear.

Pittsburgh Steelers bumbling and fumbling prove costly

For the whole week, Dallas became the scene of America's bizarre weather. It was supposed to be a week of sunshine amongst the cold reality of Winter that still holds any continent north of the equator freezing and cold. Fortunately, the game was a classic that lived to the billing.

Last night, The Green Bay Packers led by Aaron Rodgers silenced the critics who said that he could not win the big game. Well, it was mostly Brett Favre supporters who thought nobody could fill the gigantic cleat prints he left in the Frozen tundra. He was clutch and cool under pressure. His reward: Super Bowl MVP and a 111.5 QB rating. Also, a trip to Disney World. Not bad at all.

Rodgers was supposed to be the inexperienced QB who would get his head sawed off by a pack of hungry linebackers and linemen. Ben Rothlisberger was a QB who would come up with the clutch moments. He did make a couple of big moments that helped get the team back from a 21-3 deficit. Yet, he made big turnovers that were critical.

Namely, the pick-six that led to a 14-0 deficit that put the Steelers on the eight ball before the 1st Quarter had ended. Within seven minutes, the Green Bay Packers ambushed the Steelers.
In addition, he made another interception just as the Steelers were about to march to the red zone down 14-3. Another momentum buster that pushed the Pittsburgh farther away from the Packers.

For the whole game, Pittsburgh played catch up and had chances to win this game despite making three turnovers. They made a big push in the 3rd Quarter where they put the once confident Green Bay Packers on their heels. The Steelers were very close to making an unbelievable comeback that would go up there with the greatness of the franchise. Yet, they seemed to constantly shoot themselves in the foot.

Down 21-17, The Steelers are driving into Packers territory and just about around field goal range or a chance to take the lead. Rashard Mendenhall fumbles the ball thanks to a big hit by Clay Matthews who proved that he should have been Defensive Player of the Year in this game. Green Bay recovers the ball.

Aaron Rogers drives the Packers offense for the decisive score that made it 28-17 early in the 4th Quarter. It was the big play that proved vital and enough of a cushion along with a field goal to put the lead to six. This despite a two point conversion on a lateral by Rothliseberger to put them within three.

Green Bay stood tall and played perfect football while Pittsburgh bumbled and fumbled. Packers showed poise in Super Bowl XLV while the Steelers were left dazed, shocked and empty-handed. It was there for the taking despite the missteps but they shut the door on a seventh championship and a third for Ben Rothlisberger. Alas, they may have to wait for next year. Oh wait, we have a labor problem. Maybe October 2011 at the earliest (gulp). Hopefully, it will be September 2011 but anyway, it was a great end to a controversial season in many years.

Marshawn Lynch stiff arms the Defending Super Bowl Champions

For the whole week, we have heard about the Seattle Seahawks as the first 7-9 team make the playoffs and win their division. Every football fan, knows that the NFC West as both the punchline of the season and a joke to boot. In addition, it started the calls for a Playoff system to be based on record no matter if any team won their division.

Every football fan outside of Seattle were picking and putting tons of money against them. Nobody gave them a chance to win and were expected by many to go out in a whimper i.e. get absolutely obliterated. This was despite the fact that they had the home field, which happens to be the loudest in the NFL. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that the they were playing the Defending Super Bowl Champion, New Orleans Saints.

Tonight, they did the unthinkable and beat the defending champions. I gotta say that the Seattle Seahawks played their hearts out and deserved to win. Credit should go to Coach Pete Caroll's motivational skills, coaching and tactics. Also, Matt Haselbeck turned back time with a great performance despite being mostly injured the last couple of years. It was both magical and an entertaining game to watch. Yet, no moment summed it up better than Marshawn Lynch's Herculean run.

In that game, Lynch, a castoff of the moribund Buffalo Bills, made a run with the game hanging in the balance. Seattle was hanging on to 34-30 lead with just three and half minutes left. It was second and 10 at their own 33 yard line. The Seahawks are trying to the run the clock out and they set up an I-formation run play. As you will see in this clip: A moment of human will and sacrifice ensues followed by bedlam at Qwest Field.




Lynch breaks nearly half a dozen tackles as he sprints across the field. The biggest stiff-arm was to Super Bowl Hero Tracy Porter. The same Tracy Porter who made big plays against Brett Favre and Peyton Manning. Anyway, Lynch absolutely slams Porter to the ground like he's a life-size cardboard cutout. He runs to the end zone for a 67 yard touchdown that put the game away for good.

Another thing of note: The entire Seattle Seahawks offensive line as well as the QB and receivers were running with Lynch blocking anybody that tried to tackle him. It was a shining example of teamwork and kinda like a scene in a sports movie about an underdog team playing as one.

Seattle wins 41-36 and will play next Sunday in the NFC Divisional Round. They made many people including me look absolutely foolish. On Monday, I guarantee the majority of us will be eating our words to the delight of Seattle Seahawks fans.

Milwaukee stomp the Lakers

It was a very unusually cold,rainy night in Los Angeles where the rainfall pounded a normally sunny metropolis. In fact, it's been an above normal rainfall in just five days with more to come. Yet, no one could have forseen it as a thematic backdrop for what was to happen between the Lakers and Bucks.

The Lakers were flying high after five straight wins on the road and they had oft-injured Andrew Bynum back. They were at home against a lowly Bucks team without Carlos Delfino and Brandon Jennings. A Bucks team that the night before got absolutely destroyed in Portland. No highlight exemplifying the game than Lamarcus Aldridge alley-oop slam over Mbah Moute that you can see below. It would seem a relatively easy win for the Lakers. Right?



Unfortunately, it was not the case as the Bucks defense and their shot came to life under the bright lights of Staples Center. While the Lakers shot, disappeared like the sunshine that Los Angeles bathes in nearly year round. The Bucks defense did a few things:

- Denied the pass to the post to Pau Gasol during the 4th Quarter.
- Make Gasol work for his points and deny him from being a playmaker.
- Made Kobe work for his shot.
- Convert points into Turnovers.
-31 points off 16 Lakers turnovers.
-Make the Lakers work for their points
-45.5% field goal percentage
-79 points for the Lakers

Offense:

-Shoot 50% from the field along with 8-14 three point shooting
-Out-rebound the Lakers 39-35.
-Convert their free throws 16-18 (88.9%).
-Limit the impact of the Lakers bench: Bucks 32-25 (Boykins scored 22 pts.)

The Bucks played with energy and passion while the Lakers played like a team that just came back from a long road trip. Oh wait, they did. In addition, the Lakers were playing like a little child who was peaking at their wrapped Christmas present (Miami Heat) while forgetting to lock the gate so that the dog does not run away (Milwaukee Bucks).

They played tough Bucks defense that has been a philosophy of Scott Skiles. Andrew Bogut disrupted Gasol's flow and made him a jump shooter. Bogut dominated and outplayed Gasol. He held Gasol to 11 pts. on a deceptive 6-12 shooting.

John Salmons and Earl Boykins picked up the scoring slack as they scored 42 points combined. Salmons made timely buckets as the Lakers made their runs. He made a big 3 on a five point swing after the Lakers got too cute on the fast break to turn a 59-58 Laker lead into 61-59 Bucks advantage. He had another big shot as he converted an end of 3rd Quarter buzzer beater to give the Bucks a six point lead heading into the fourth. The bucket set the tone in the next quarter. Salmons shot was clicking and for one night he showed the same fire that he had in Chicago that had been lacking this season.

Earl Boykins was the closer in this game as he knocked timely 3pt. buckets that put a game that the Lakers could have easily taken if they had one big quarter out of reach. He was instrumental in his 22 points along with Luc Richard Mbah Moute's lockdown D that bottled up Kobe and sent him to the showers with 2 techs.

In the fourth quarter, it was the Bucks not the Lakers that closed the game out. They outscored the Lakers with a game deciding 26-13 in the final quarter. Milwaukee discombobulated the Lakers offense, which to begin with, was not clicking on all cylinders. It was evident when the Lakers passes and timing were significantly off. For example, Gasol bobbled a pass from Fisher and was out of position for behind the back Kobe pass early in the game. The Lakers offense was off despite flashes of brilliance in some parts prior to the 4th Quarter.

Overall, it was a great win for the Bucks. They won a nearly impossible game without Brandon Jennings and Carlos Delfino. It's another great win and Christmas present to go along with ending Dallas' 13 game winning streak.

For Los Angeles, it's a head scratching loss heading into a tough three game stretch (Miami, @San Antonio and @New Orleans on a back to back). It may take the luster off the Lakers/Heat Christmas Day bash but it is a lesson to the Lakers that the road to the Finals will be just as hard as it has been in Christmas Past, Present and Future.

Miami's Big 3 soars while Cleveland burns

Since the day Lebron James made the biggest decision that created more heartbreak for Cleveland to go along with numerous others such as The Shot, The Fumble, The Drive, etc. December 2nd, 2010, was the so-called day of reckoning where Cleveland would get their say on what they felt after Lebron took his talents to Miami to play with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade.

Tonight, it was Lebron, Wade and Bosh who put the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers to bed before the 4th Quarter. Their defense was smothering, which led to easy points and baskets. They were forcing the Cavaliers to shoot jumpers and throw wild shots at the basket hoping for it to fall. Alas, it would not fall and the Heat's lead would continue to balloon.

Collectively, the Heat rebounded the ball with passion that seemed lacking the last few games. They out-rebounded the Cavaliers 43-34. Miami's defense was able to produce 28 points off 13 Cavalier turnovers.

In addition, their shooting was excellent for the majority of the game. Lebron's jumpers fell in the formerly friendly confines of the Quicken Loans Arena, which he called home for the past seven years. He went 13-18 from 2 pt. land but a pedestrian 2-7 from the three. Lebron's athleticism and game were humming as he scored 38 points, 8 assists but only five rebounds after three quarters. One such example, was when he took on Joey Graham along the baseline and scored on a reverse lay-in that was almost a Julius Ervingesque type move that reminded me of the 1980 NBA Finals. Pardon me, for my hyperboles as you will see in this video below:



D-Wade was the Flash as he scored 22 pts. 9 rebounds and 9 assists for a near-triple double. It was vintage Wade as he drove to the lane for pretty dunks and lay-ins. He was the distributor and scorer, which made me wonder if he should be the guy who feeds Lebron and Bosh for 3 quarters. Then in the crunch time, he takes over a la Michael Jordan to close the game out.

Bosh had a decent game where he lived off jumpers and kick-outs. Yet, was nonexistent in terms of rebounding. At some point, the Heat will need to find a frontline center who will do the following: rebound, bang and do the dirty work to get his points. In a sense, they need a Dennis Rodman/Joakim Noah type player to protect Bosh and Lebron.

The Cavs were just awful tonight as they could not buy a bucket during the Miami onslaught. Mo Williams shots stopped falling and as a team they shot 35.5%. It just confirms the fact that Lebron was their offense A-D for seven years. Right now, the Cavaliers will be lucky to make it as an eighth seed in the East and they might considering how moribund it is right now.

That might be an accomplishment for the fans who put up various signs and shirts expressing their anger for Lebron's departure. They booed him every time he touched the ball but were silenced by the end of the 3rd Quarter as the Cavs were down by thirty points. Aside from that, it's sadly going to take a long time before Cleveland will have another winning team that can bring joy to a city that has gone 46 years and counting without a championship.

As a whole, the Heat basically pummeled a reprehensibly bad team tonight in front of a hostile crowd. They showed up and did not have the glazed terrified look they had in Boston. For now, they took care of business but there will always be critics who say they need to beat teams like the Celtics, Lakers, Spurs and Bulls. Yet, it's still a long season and they have a lot of chances to prove their worth when they play at Utah on Dec. 8th and the sputtering Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day. Until then, enjoy the Roller Coaster ride that is the NBA season.

Blake Griffin: A memorable night and ridiculous dunks

Since being drafted as the first pick of the Los Angeles Clippers in 2009, Blake Griffin has been the centerpiece of the hopes and dreams of the small sect of clipper fans in the Los Angeles Area. Although, he missed his rookie season due to a cracked knee cap, which drew echoes of previous so-called Clipper saviors who were taken down by terrible injuries. (See: Shaun Livingston and the horrifying knee injury). So far, Blake Griffin has been a revelation and a sight to behold.

Last night, Blake Griffin scored 44 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists. In addition, he was 16-23 from the charity stripe along with highlights that sent the listless Clipper fans buzzing with oohs and aahs. His jumping ability is off the charts bringing some comparisons to a young Shawn Kemp when he was not ballooning to 300 pounds. As you can see here where he victimizes an unfortunate Golden State Warrior big man in the early 1990s :



Now, compare that to Blake Griffin as in one dunk he just flies over and throws the ball into the basket over Timofey Mosgov in the Third Quarter. It led to a three point play on a pretty pass by Eric Gordon. Even watching it nearly five times, I am still in absolute shock at how high he jumped over the seven foot Russian center. He's still a rookie and if he learns some post moves to go along with his improving jumper, Griffin will become a force where defenders will have pray to God and kiss their butt goodbye.



Late in the fourth quarter, Griffin received a pass from DeAndre Jordan on a block shot and dribbled it across the court. As you will see, he does a very good NBA Jam impersonation over Danillo Gallinari for a breathless dunk. It sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy and pulled the Clippers to within five. Alas, the Clippers lost 124-115 and are now 1-12. Although, it was certainly a night to remember if you were at that game or watching it.