Pull Up A Seat And Let’s Talk Sports

Now that the dust has settled from free agency for the most part has anyone over taken the Los Angeles Lakers as the best in the NBA? The Miami Heat made a big splash in free agency by resigning Dwayne Wade and grabbing Chris Bosh and Lebron James from free agency. There biggest problem will be in the middle where they are thin and that is a problem for the Heat.

The Chicago Bulls were major players in free agency with Kyle Korver and Carlos Boozer two big names that came to Chicago. Now with Derrick Rose and Jokaim Noah the Bulls have to be considered one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. The problem for the Bulls there is many good teams in the Eastern Conference. Boston and Orlando are still very good and two of the elite teams that will be gunning for the Lakers as well. Have any of these teams over taken the Lakers?

The answer is no. The Los Angeles Lakers quietly were signing players including Theo Ratliff who is a guy who will give them quality minutes. The Lakers also inked Matt Barnes to a contract and will give the Lakers another defensive stopper. Until Kobe Bryant retires, it looks like the Los Angeles Lakers are the team to beat once again.

Doc Rivers over the years has proven to be one of the NBA best coaches as his 38-26 playoff record as the Boston Celtics coach will attest. It seems that Doc Rivers gets no love when it people talk about the best coaches in the NBA. He has one just one coach of the year award and is very under appreciated it seems in coaching circles. As far as his players go they will tell you to a man you will not find a better coach. For the most part Doc Rivers out coached Phil Jackson in the NBA Finals, but still no credit or at least the credit he deserved. He took the fourth seeded Celtics to the NBA Finals which many thought was impossible.

Now Doc Rivers has to decide if he wants to return to coaching or spend more time with his family. Without a doubt a very tough decision. If he does not return to Boston and decides he rather coach somewhere else Doc’s services will be highly sought after. Then and only then he may get the love and respect he deserves. He may not get the respect he deserves, but ask players around the NBA what coach they would love to play for and his name will be in the conversation always.

The last time the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics battled it was the Lakers coming up on the short end of it. It was not just on the court as after the Celtics won the Lakers team bus was pelted with rocks and names that still resonate inside many Laker players minds. Pau Gasol can still recall that day as if it had yesterday. For the Lakers this is for more than an NBA Championship this is payback for what they went through last time these two teams met.

For the Lakers they have matured since the Celtics pushed and shoved them around in the NBA Finals. Gone are some of the players who were in that series. Ron Artest will give the Lakers some of the toughness they will need in this series. Kobe Bryant will back down from no one as well. Bryant is one player that is tough to defend. If you double team him he can find the open man. Play him one-on-one and game will be over. The Celtics will have it tough this time around with the Lakers who have plenty of confidence. The one thing people have learned about Kobe Bryant you never beat him twice and that’s what the Celtics want to do. Should be a hell of a series.

Before the playoffs started their was some question who was the best basketball player in the NBA. That can be put to rest now. Kobe Bryant gave another vintage performance with 37-point dominating game in a series-clinching 111-103 victory over the Phoenix Suns. It was the final daggar in the Phoenix Suns heart. The Suns battled back all night long, but no one could stop Kobe Bryant and that was the Suns main problem. Bryant did everything right and when it was clutch time he hit the shots the Lakers needed.

Now that the Suns have been sent packing Kobe Bryant and his Lakers can work on some unfinished business they have with the Boston Celtics. Last time Kobe Bryant faced the Celtics in the NBA Finals they pushed and shoved his team around and the Lakers lost. It is still fresh in Bryant’s mind and he is looking for paybacks. The way Bryant is playing right now it looks like it could be back to back NBA Championships for Bryant

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Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Lebron James, and Joe Johnson will be free agents and now word comes of a meeting they all will have together. I am sure that David Stern cannot be very happy with this type of thing at all. All players involved just want to see what everyone is thinking. One of the biggest problems by doing this is these players could tip the favor of one team over another. They could also broker deals to go certain places which is not what the commissioner would like to see. David Stern though I am sure will be watching this very carefully.

These four players could change the balance of power in the NBA for sometime especially if they all signed for one team. James has said it is not about the money and could take less to play with these guys and form a Super team. If this happens then other players may try this in the future. This is not what David Stern had in mind when these top stars could become available. The one thing for sure this could create some interesting problems for the NBA and David Stern. We will just have to wait and see how it all plays out.

It’s usually Kobe Bryant who is the hero in these clutch moments, but this time it was Ron Artest turn to show he belongs. Kobe Bryant tossed up a three pointer that fell short, but Artest got the rebound and put it in to give the Lakers a thrilling 103-101 win over the Phoenix Suns. Artest has struggled all year to find himself, but this is something he really needed to prove he can still get the job done. Kobe Bryant had 30 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists for the Lakers.

For the Phoenix Suns it was a bitter pill to swallow as they battled back all night long just to see it end this way. Steve Nash had 29 points and 11 assists as the Suns overcame a 18 point Lakers lead in the second half. The Suns may have lost this game, but the Suns gained a lot of confidence and if their is a Game 7 they now understand anything can happen. First, the Suns need to win so they can force a Game 7.

Stan Van Gundy has done everything you can ask of a coach except one thing and that is win an NBA Championship. The Orlando Magic have been one of the best teams the past few years, but the only thing that is missing from his resume is a championship. Van Gundy’s team though has not played well at all in the Boston Celtics series. His critics think that the players have tuned him out and his yelling style does not fit them anymore. I do not know about that, but it is possible.

I think a loss by the Magic depending on how bad could cost Stan Van Gundy his job. The Orlando Magic have plenty of talent, but the performance that they have given in the Boston series is unacceptable. In the end it is the coaches job to have the team ready to play. The players have to perform, but ultimately it comes down to the coach getting them to play. The owner will never fire the whole team they will get rid of the coach. It is going to come down to tonight’s game. If they play as bad as they did Saturday Night Stan Van Gundy could be looking for a job.

Jimmy Clausen was passed on in the first round and It looked for awhile he was going to have to wait. He finally got his named called by the Carolina Panthers as the 48th pick in the NFL Draft. The wait was very long, but in reality this could be the best thing that could happen to Jimmy Clausen.

Carolina is a perfect fit for his skills. He will have a great running game and wide receiver Steve Smith to throw to. Clausen could start right away as the Panthers are looking for a quarterback that they can rely on for many years. Clausen might not wanted to wait so long, but in the end this could be exactly perfect for him and his success.

As expected the Kentucky Wildcats lost John Wall, Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton, Patrick Patterson, and DeMarcus Cousins to the NBA Draft. This was expected in Wildcat country so now the process can start in rebuilding the Cats. Now Kentucky will have Darnell Dodson,DeAndre Liggins, and Darius Miller back who all have logged some time this year. These three players will be expected to really step up now. With all the players leaving this also means the incoming freshmen have a chance to show what they can do as well.

One area that Kentucky will need to work on is forward and center. Kentucky lost a lot of their inside muscle with Patterson, Orton, and Cousins leaving. They need to bring in some big bodies to take there place. Getting talent like this years team will be awful tough. I think we will see a little different style of play because many times your talent dictates the tempo you run. Kentucky will still play good defense and push the ball when needed. The key will be what type of freshmen that John Calipari can bring in. Calipari seems to always bring in top talent so It looks like this season coming up could be a interesting one in Wildcat Country.