About last night....

A total kick to the nuts for Warriors fans last night (and anyone that took the 3.5 and started shopping for new golf clubs after Matt Barnes hit the late jumper). But either way - it definitely hurts. I mean, shit- I'm just some schmuck that hopped on the bandwagon 4 weeks ago and I was screaming, pacing, and unable to speak after Baron Davis stepped out of bounds in the closing minute. A legit warriors fan must feel emotionally drained this morning.. and probably in pain after punching something last night.

Not to be a total dick about it - but why is Derek Fisher being treated as some kind of hero? First of all- I can't stand Fisher. I always thought - along with Rick Fox and Devean George - that he carried himself just a little TOO confident when Shaq and Kobe were racking up titles in LA. Like wise ass little kids that just happened to have 2 huge older brothers. ANYWAYS- he forced that big turnover in the 4th and hit a fairly big 3 in overtime. That's it. I'm glad his kid is ok, but does Dick Stockton have to say, "Derek Fisher is coming in the game.. LISTEN TO THIS CROWD!!!!" Like it was Willis fuckin Reed. Settle down, Dick.

We're gonna see just how powerful that home court advantage is for the Warriors. Hopefully it's strong enough to balance out the rebounding differential. Hard to believe Golden State was destroyed on the glass 60 to 32 and STILL had the game in their hands. And look for our man Stephen Jax to break out of his slump (2 for 15 from 3pt so far). And it also might not be a bad idea to slip AK47 a roofie before game 3. This morning on the basketball jones' podcast, j. skeets hit the nail on the head - Kirilenko is blocking shots like he's a goddamn pro-beach volleyball player.

Speaking of podcasts- did you hear Bill Simmons' podcast yet? Remember the "not that there's anything wrong with that" episode of Seinfeld? When George didn't want his voice recorded because he thought he sounded "all high and whiny." Well let's just say it's a shame Simmons doesn't have that same fear - cause he should.

Wednesday's Action

The numbers for tonight's game:

Golden State +3.5 @ Utah 212.5

With only one game on tonight's schedule at least those on the east coast will be able to see more than the first quarter of a Warriors game. Take the warriors tonight. They cover the 3.5, probably win out right. There are numbers to back this up but they dont matter. Utah is allowing Golden State to play the game the way the Warriors want to. Game 1 was a let down game for the Warriors but I think they answer back tonight, especially if Utah now believes they can run.

Additionally, the over is 11-5 in the last 16 Utah games. If you are looking for prop bets, Deron Williams under 18.5 pays +115. Dont get me wrong, I love Williams just short of having a man crush on him, but he got everyon's attention with that 30 point performance on Monday. Everyone including Baron Davis. I dont see him putting up a big game tonight.

Tonight's Action

New Jersey @ Cleveland

Much like everyone else, I was pretty confused to hear that the Cavs haven't lost in a full month. For a team that isn't that good- that's no small feat. But i think that comes to an end tonight. Game 1 sucked - the final score was 81-77 and don't confuse bad basketball with good defense. Because this was definitely not the latter.

This one is going 7. And tonight I'd be all over the points (4.5) with Jersey probably winning outright.

San Antonio @ Phoenix

It's almost impossible for me to look at this series logically. I'm in the Suns' corner 1,000% and my hatred for the Spurs is reaching heights unseen.

But if you're a betting man- it's pretty hard to take Nash and co. The Spurs are 7-2 ATS when playing AT Phoenix over the past 3 years. Those are tough numbers to ignore considering what a solid home court advantage the Suns have.

I'd grab the 5 and pray it's inside the number.

About Last Night....

Let's get the Bulls-Pistons talk out of the way. Clearly, this should've been called in the 3rd quarter to start the Warriors game at a reasonable hour. Thank god tonight's Suns-Spurs game is the last 10:30 start of the playoffs.

This Bulls team looks completely lost. It's like a beer league softball team trying to play the Mets. Aside from a couple plays by Ty Thomas (dunk, block, alley-oop all in a row late in the game) and a couple nice plays by C.Webb - this game was a total waste. The Bulls got out-rebounded 51 to 30 and they let the Pistons shoot wide open jumpers all night (53% from 3!!!!).

Wake me up when the Bulls are within single digits in the 4th quarter. Until then, TNT should show Seinfeld re-runs instead.

The G.State-Jazz game was a lot better than advertised. A lot of talk yesterday about Jerry Sloan trying to slow things down and stop the Warriors from.... well.... being the Warriors. This game was a fuckin track meet in the first half. Okur played very well last night, but you know he's begging for some more half court sets. Homeboy's gonna be gassed by game 3 if this style of play continues.

Here's why the Jazz won:

A) Boozer could not be stopped on the boards. The guy hauled in 20 rebounds including 10 on the offensive glass. The last one leading to a HUGE bucket that ended up winning the game.
B) Deron Williams played like a man. 31 pts on 11-21 shooting to go with 8 assists. Most of his assists were early, but he came up with some big shots in the 4th.
C) BD, J-Rich, and our man Stephen Jackson shot 4-15 from 3. This after a 13-25 performance against the Mavs in Game 6.


All in all - I still can't stand the Jazz OR their fans. And this is gonna be one hell of a series.

one more note - Reggie Miller sucks at announcing. He blatantly misspeaks and doesn't correct himself. Last night he used "delight" when he clearly meant to say "dismay" or some other adjective with a negative connotation, but he just glanced over it like no one would notice.

And after BDizzle got fouled on a 3 from the corner (after the ball had clearly left his hands) - Reggie made a point to say:

The shooter cannot be touched throughout the entire act of shooting.

We get it Reggie. You like when shooters get the foul call.

Second Round Preview: Cavs - Nets

Hard to believe it's the second round of the playoffs and Lebron is still yet to throw it in high gear. Tough to say that about a guy who pours in 27 ppg, but let's be serious - the Cavs only beat the Wizards by double digits once. That's pathetic for a 2 seed playing a team that's missing 48 ppg from its starting lineup.

Lebron cranked up that disgusting free throw percentage (81.2%), but I know I'm not the only one dying to see him take the line with the game hanging in the balance.

I see this one going at least 6, probably 7 with the Cavs pulling it out. Now that Dirk, T-mac, Wade, and Shaq are fishing - Do you really think Stern is letting King James pack his tackle box?

Although it blows my mind to think about a Conference Finals where Eric Snow is getting serious minutes. A friend of mine was more than willing to trade E. Snow for a pair of throw back jerseys - and that was over 4 years ago.

Second Round Preview: Bulls - Pistons

The big talk about this series seems to be about "matchups". Deng-Prince, Hinrich-Billups, and Gordon-Hamilton are the 3 most notable. But I'm actually intrigued to see C. Webb on defense against Ben Wallace. C. Webb is like a fuckin cat on defense these days.

Certainly going to be a rude awakening for the Bulls in this series. They moonwalked past the Heat in round 1 which means they'll go from playing a team with the worst perimeter defense to a team with clearly one of the best.

I'm interested to see the impact of Big Ben in this series. The fact that he used to play for the Pistons doesn't mean shit to me. But after the Bulls got waxed in game 6 of the first round last year - and Shaq poured in 30 and 20 for the first time in EASILY a half decade- the Bulls felt pressured to use the spare cash from the Eddy Curry trade to get a guy more capable of stopping Shaq. Well, they probably could've used CHRIS Wallace at center (the Notorious B.I.G for all you non-rap fans out there. But if you're reading a basketball blog then I imagine you have a pretty good grip on the 'ol rap scene) So yeah - Biggie could've played center it wouldn't have changed a a goddamn thing in round 1.

But it'll be kinda funny if the absence of Ben Wallace's defense and rebounding for the Pistons is actually overshadowed by the slight boost in their offense - now that they can play 5 capable scorers at once.

The pick: Pistons in 7.

Friday's Picks

The numbers for Friday's only game:

Toronto +7.5 @ New Jersey 188

Tonight I can only quote Tony Kornheiser and say"Goodnight Canada" because the Raptors are DONE. I was rooting for these guys to make a move this year as CB4 and Tj Ford are fun to watch, but sadly they have been exposed. The Raptors are not a terrible team, they definitely have potential and will probably be back next year. But New Jersey is just too much for the Raps and tonight its all over for them.

I expect Vince Carter to "step up" tonight. You know where the game is in hand and there is no pressure, so everything he puts up goes in. I love it when he pulls this. All I want to do is strangle him because I know if the score is tied in the last seconds hes clanging from 15 feet and costing you big time money in a 5 team parlay. Umm, not this has ever happened to me... God, I hate him.

Anyway, Raps are 1-8 ATS in the last 9, New Jersey is 8-1 ATS in their last 9, and the home team is 11-2-1 ATS in the last 14 meetings. This spells disaster for the Raptors. I realise 7.5 is alot to give but this is simply Vegas begging you to take Toronto. Don't do it! Take New Jersey, give the 7.5 and get ready for FREE MONEY.

Check out Kissing Suzy Kolber for a great take on the Sports Guy or any Celtic fan as far as I am concerned...