The Association Is Hot

Life’s been busy, but I thought I would weigh in on some of the top stories around the NBA.

Earned Not Given

I watched all five 5 games of the NBA Finals and they were must-see television.  Kevin Durant is the truth and my type of player.  He appears to be all business on the court and his jump shot is silky smooth.  He will get a ring.  Russell Westbrook’s first step makes him almost un-guardable when he is slashing to the basket.  He is definitely an emotional player, but he needs to learn how to play under control.  James Harden reminds me of Joe Johnson, and that is not a good thing.  Overall, the Thunder is a team worthy of cheering for; except for the fact they abandoned Seattle because the taxpayers did not want to buy them a new arena.  They will compete for a title next season.

Noting the above, my team was the Miami Heat.  I wanted LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, et al to get a ring.  They set out for greatness 2 years ago and said title or bust.  They fail short last season, but came back focused.  King James blossomed into the unstoppable monster we envisioned.  Some NBA players are going to regret their hate.  He may have underachieved had they keep their mouths shut.  Although D-Wade struggled through much of the series, he played big during crunch time, and I cannot say enough about the game 5 performance of the Heats’ bench.  Mike Miller may have cemented his South Beach legacy.  Can you say back-to-back champions?

 I Am Taking My Talents…

Happy trails to Joe Johnson and Mervin Williams.  You cannot deny the accomplishments of both players (many for Joe and few for Mervin), but they had taken the Hawks as far as they could.  The Birds new general manager, Danny Ferry, is gutting the team and hoping that there are such things as addition by subtraction.  I would like to see the Hawks pursue Atlanta native Dwight Howard.  It is probably a long shot, but we could use a “hometown hero”.  If not Howard, we should try for Roy Hibbert.  He is 7’2 and athletic.  Imagine Josh Smith, Al Hofford, and Hilbert guarding the basket.  Defense wins championship.

The Dream Team

As I drove to work this morning there was talk of whether the 2012 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team – Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Tyson Chandler, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, James Harden, Andre Iguodala, LeBron James, Kevin Love, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and Deron Williams – could beat the 1992 “Dream Team”.  I say no and I believe the games would not even be close.  I mean no disrespect to the 2012 team, but as it stands – only 2 players on roster are on track to make the Hall of Fame and could possible compete with the caliber of the 1992 team – 5 times NBA champion and Finals MVP Kobe Bryant and 3 time MVP and 1 time NBA champion LeBron James.  Everyone else would get demolished.