GSH
06-03-2007, 03:47 AM
Couple of good observations about Spurs and Cavs, and Larry Bird's comment about the rule that suspended Stoudamire and Diaw.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/ian_thomsen/06/01/pistons.notes/index.html
OK, when am I going to learn to stop comparing LeBron James to Michael Jordan? In the big picture he's the new Jordan, as demonstrated by the final 25 points he posted for the Cavaliers in the biggest game of his young life Thursday.
But the Jordan timetable no longer applies. I figured it was naïve and almost blasphemous to think that James could reach the NBA Finals in what should be his senior year of college when it took Jordan seven troubled years to go that far. Wrong. It's a different league with different rules, and the East is adrift without hierarchy. While the Pistons were the class of the conference this year, they were never dominant. In fact, they were as inconsistent all year as they have been throughout these playoffs.
I'm going to be careful about prematurely rubbing out the Pistons, because for all of their inattentiveness and LeBron's extraordinariness, Detroit still had a chance to win Game 5.
As obvious as it is that James is the new be-all/end-all, it's just as obvious what the Pistons aren't. They are not San Antonio. While the Spurs have a killer instinct and seek the highest level of play in the biggest games, the Pistons are more likely to do whatever they need to do to get by and leave it at that. The excuse that the Pistons are bored after contending for so long loses its steam when you realize that Tim Duncan has been at this longer than anyone from Detroit.
Would Gregg Popovich ever allow his Spurs to yield 29 of Cleveland's last 30 points to James in the swing game of the playoffs? The Spurs were scorched by Amaré Stoudemire two years ago and by Deron Williams in the last round, but neither scorer was permitted to single-handedly win the crucial game as James did Thursday.
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When the issue of the Phoenix suspensions came up, the Suns made their case about how unfairly they had been treated. But it was Pacers president Larry Bird who made the most impressive statement of the day. He implored Stern not to change the rule. Bird's point was that players lack self-control in emotional moments, and while they often run onto the court during a fight with no plan to cause harm, little good can come of it when they do leave the bench. What happened to the Suns was unfair, Bird said, but the rule is a good rule.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/ian_thomsen/06/01/pistons.notes/index.html
OK, when am I going to learn to stop comparing LeBron James to Michael Jordan? In the big picture he's the new Jordan, as demonstrated by the final 25 points he posted for the Cavaliers in the biggest game of his young life Thursday.
But the Jordan timetable no longer applies. I figured it was naïve and almost blasphemous to think that James could reach the NBA Finals in what should be his senior year of college when it took Jordan seven troubled years to go that far. Wrong. It's a different league with different rules, and the East is adrift without hierarchy. While the Pistons were the class of the conference this year, they were never dominant. In fact, they were as inconsistent all year as they have been throughout these playoffs.
I'm going to be careful about prematurely rubbing out the Pistons, because for all of their inattentiveness and LeBron's extraordinariness, Detroit still had a chance to win Game 5.
As obvious as it is that James is the new be-all/end-all, it's just as obvious what the Pistons aren't. They are not San Antonio. While the Spurs have a killer instinct and seek the highest level of play in the biggest games, the Pistons are more likely to do whatever they need to do to get by and leave it at that. The excuse that the Pistons are bored after contending for so long loses its steam when you realize that Tim Duncan has been at this longer than anyone from Detroit.
Would Gregg Popovich ever allow his Spurs to yield 29 of Cleveland's last 30 points to James in the swing game of the playoffs? The Spurs were scorched by Amaré Stoudemire two years ago and by Deron Williams in the last round, but neither scorer was permitted to single-handedly win the crucial game as James did Thursday.
=======
When the issue of the Phoenix suspensions came up, the Suns made their case about how unfairly they had been treated. But it was Pacers president Larry Bird who made the most impressive statement of the day. He implored Stern not to change the rule. Bird's point was that players lack self-control in emotional moments, and while they often run onto the court during a fight with no plan to cause harm, little good can come of it when they do leave the bench. What happened to the Suns was unfair, Bird said, but the rule is a good rule.