So what better way to start blogging than to talk (bitterly) about Sports. Now basketball is my favorite sport but over the years, well at least over the last 7 yrs. I have felt that league tries to force results; in other words, tries to control who wins a match or a title or even the championship. How they do it! Through the refs. in my experience.
Tom Donaghy was just a scapegoat in my eyes. I bet that almost every ref. is influenced one way or the other, by the league office to ensure that the some teams are kept under check in a game while others are allowed to get away with all kind of nonsense plays. In the name of a hard game, some teams will be allowed to physically hurt, almost injure, players of the opposing team in a game while opposing team will be called for a foul every time they are within an inch of the players of the favored team. Since the non favored team knows that they will be called out fro the slightest touch, they start being tentative and end up backing away from any contact on both sides of the floor, resulting in obvious results - non-favored team loses out.
My guess is that league does this not with a specific malice but to ensure that advertising dollars, TV rights and general sentiments of NBA fans are taken care of while making the max money possible. I saw this in 2006 when Dallas Mavs were getting all kind of foul calls on other teams almost through out the season BUT in the post season when Mark Cuban started making loud noises about refs playing favorites, the league suddenly pulled out the "easy call" cushion for Dallas, mainly during the finals with the Miami Heat. Nowitzki and rest of the Mavs looked stunned during the games with Heat and lost to a team that they had no reason to lose to. Some can give an argument that Heat was really good that year, Shaq and Wade were a deadly combination but that's all B.S. No time during the season or post season that year, Heat looked good enough to beat any team in Western Conference leave alone Mavs but there they were, Champions of 2006.
Big joke but well, no one can complain, can they! As for Wade and Shaq, is there any doubt that they are exceptional players, none. Were they capable of playing good that year - absolutely, WERE THEY capable of winning a title that year - no way.
Anyways, I must mention the fact that I am not a Miami or Mavs fan, heck I live in Jersey so these are not even my teams. Just my oobservations of last few years.
Before I go on to make quick statements on Knick and Spurs I do want to quickly give my predictions for the current play offs ;
Lakers and Utah - Lakers in 7, (even though I'm conscious of the fact that league would like to make it Utah in 7 - apparently a good bunch of NBA fans think that Jerry Sloan should get a title that he has never got)
Spurs and Hornets - Spurs in 6 ( even though I know league would like it to go to 7 games to make enough TV and advertising dollars)
Pistons and Magic - Pistons in 5
Celtics and Cavs - Celts in 7 (only because they have home court advantage)
Conference Finals
Lakers and Spurs - Spurs in 7
Pistons and Celts - Pistons in 6 or 7
Championship
Spurs and Pistons - Spurs in 6 or 7
Knicks
There are many doubts being expressed on D'Antoni's move to Knicks with an overwhelming majority of comments expressing their disapproval and the fact that Mike will have to manage Marbury and Curry. In my opinion, it will be a great move benefiting everyone and Mike will be very successful.
Spurs
So everyone was writing off Spurs when they went down 0-2 against Hornets and how old spurs were done and finished. Oh my, how things change, last night during the fourth game suddenly the TV presenters were talking about " New Orleans inexperienced youth"! What an about turn. Same specilaists were talking about how New Orleans was a perfect picture of young and experienced just four days back.
As of now I pick Spurs to clean the act and the match up, by picking next two games
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