I don't think there is anything better than watching LeBron argue foul calls. The rich can't get rich enough. Dwight Howard alternates between being completely fundamentally unsound and plain dumb far too often.
You're right about everything you say, but why have three of the four games come right down to the wire? Orlando has more talent overall, but they rely too heavily on the three. Live or die by the three, as Charles Barkley has said. They are living now, but the games have been nail-biters.
Loyalist, Orlando is a good but uneven team. Howard is a load but still has no shot. Van Gundy is ok but not a great coach. They are missing Jameer despite Alston. The Pistons usually have stopped Hedu in the crunch. It is not that the Cavs are bad. They are a good team in a watered-down league of parity due to the luxery tax. What they are not is a great team. The NBA has hyped them to the hilt and I am glad they have been exposed. It is bad for the game to see plays like Le Bron getting that call to end regulation. It is bad for the game to have announcers like Collins hype things and ignore some of the calls. Fans are not dumb.
Cavaliers are down 3-1... they're toast, done like dinner. And Mo Williams looks even more foolish for that guarantee. I'll tell ya, I was glad when he was hit upside the head with an elbow in game 3. That didn't stop him from talking though. Perhaps another elbow to the noggin will knock some sense into that chump? Or Orlando could just eliminate Cleveland on their home floor... that'll put an end to it.
Do you mean the call for Lebron when he fell after a defender moved out of the way, or the no-call on AV when he body-tackled Dwight Howard on the last play in regulation?
Yep, I'm rooting for the underdogs in both series (doesn't help that I've always hated LA and I have a newfound hatred for Cleveland). And a potential bonus to getting that finals matchup is that Stern may resign should that happen.
I didn't get to see any of the game tonight, but recalling a certain prediction after Game 2... Ball don't lie?
I can't wait for people to actually start giving credit to Orlando, instead of calling the Cavs a bunch of chokers, in all seriousness. There is no defense for 17-38 behind the arc. And Lebron has been in the 40's all series, so it can't be on him. Actually 44 on 29 shots, even if a lot were free throws. It's fun to call Orlando a soft team for some people here just because they have a tough time against us. Well I suggest that you should also check their track record against everyone else, INCLUDING LA...
I really don't understand why Cleveland doubled Dwight Howard the entire game. He wasn't looking very effective when he got the ball in the post. Just let him try to score on Z, V, or Ben, and stay on their 3-point shooters. 75% of Orlando's 3's were like practice drills with nobody even close. Of course they are going to make those. They took 38 three pointers and still shot 50%. What a big shot by Lewis though. Difficult and not necessary, but he knocked it down.
As much as I was rooting for Orlando, those calls weren't obviously wrong IMO. Lebron's feet got tangled up as he was driving. Not sure what the correct call would be. On the final play, Howard was pulling on Varejao pretty good before the contact. And on Lebron's pump fake from 3-point territory, he did get Howard off the ground and drew an amount of contact this is usually good enough to get the call... but surprisingly didn't get his way. Glad Orlando pulled it out. They seemed to be choking something fierce with the barrage of bad 3's toward the end of regulation.
The Cavs are not choking. They just aren't that good. They've been over hyped all year. Throughout the entire Piston/Cavs series that was one of the most frustrating things ever to watch us unable to compete with a mediocre team b/c of our dysfunction. The Cavs were actually alot stronger when they had Eric Snow. They now lack perimeter defense entirely which is precisely why AI/Bynum were so effective getting into the paint. ORL is still soft IMO. They are a three point shooting team and the Cavs can't guard the three. It's a match made in heaven. They are winning despite their flaws. They have clutch players, but they still can't hold leads and always find a way to almost lose the game. Had Howard not been angry about the lack of foul call and demanded the ball, they probably would have been content to chuck themselves into a loss. Also alot of the reason they look better is b/c SVG has woken up and realized he needs to play a traditional PF; Gortat, etc. The Cavs main problems are that they don't have anyone to match-up w/ the smaller Lewis, but they can't punish them on the boards either. They also don't have anyone to guard Dwight. Ben Wallace is a ghost. Z is like 50, and Varejo is on the floor half the time. You were right when you said it's a matchup nightmare for the Cavs. But LAL will not have those problems. Bynum or Gasol = Howard Odom/Ariza = Lewis/Turkey ORL will likely get to the finals; I see CLE coming back enough to make it interesting but that's it.
They are falling into the trap completely. ORL is totally content with letting LBJ go off. Now imagine they start doubling him . . .
We've been dysfunctional since 2005. We weren't winning anything regardless. The closest we've gotten was last year. Bynum or Gasol on Howard is going to be freaking hilarious. You don't need to be Miss Cleo to see that. And over/under: 20 missed/blocked layups for Derek Fisher in the lane for the series. Dwight is going to be playing volleyball. Derek Fisher is the biggest black hole they have and he WILL try to get his.
