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NBA Finals Chat, Game 5 at 6 pm PT
2008-06-15 15:25
by Bob Timmermann

I'm expecting a small and grim bunch for this one. Unless you're a Celtics fan. Then you will likely be happy. The grim calculus of the NBA Finals tells us that no team has come back from a 3-1 deficit to win a championship. Fewer sports have grimmer calculuses than the NBA. I think I also really enjoy typing "grim calculus." It sounds a lot better than "grim trigonometry" or "grim linear algebra."

(For those not scoring at home, that was six uses of the word "grim" or a variant of it in one paragraph.)

The NHL has had one team come back from a 3-0 deficit to win the Stanley Cup, as well as one other team in an earlier round. MLB has had one team come back from 3-0 in the ALCS (what city was that team from?) and a handful have come back from 3-1 down in the World Series (1925, 1958, 1968, 1985, 1986).

Today's question: In baseball, the cliche goes "Momentum is tomorrow's starting pitcher." What is the equivalent cliche for basketball?

Bonus trivia question (which I'm sure someone will look up): Which of the following cities has not been the permanent home of an NBA franchise?

  1. Moline, IL
  2. Oshkosh, WI
  3. Columbus, OH
  4. Anderson, IN
  5. Rochester, NY

Double bonus trivia question (and you can look this up too): Where was the first NBA (then called the BAA) game ever played? It was in 1946.

  1. Syracuse, NY
  2. Toronto, ON
  3. New York, NY
  4. Boston, MA
  5. Fort Wayne, IN

Triple bonus trivia question (and you'll likely look this up too): What was the name of the league the BAA merged with in 1949 to form the NBA?

  1. ABA
  2. NBL
  3. NBC
  4. ABL
Comments (152)
Show/Hide Comments 1-50
2008-06-15 16:18:47
1.   Eric Stephen
I guessed #1, and knew #3.

1) Columbus
2) Toronto
3) NBL

My Thursday evening still includes plans for Game 7.

2008-06-15 17:16:13
2.   Eric Stephen
By my unofficial count, there have been 28 other teams down 3-1 in the Finals (I think I'm missing one).

14 of the 28 have forced a game 6.
Home teams down 3-1 have won 7 of 13 games 5.

2 of the 28 teams have forced a game 7.

2008-06-15 17:23:19
3.   overkill94
"Momentum is what's being stalled when the Celtics are setting one of their patented moving screens"
2008-06-15 17:53:51
4.   Bob Timmermann
I'm glad I have tomorrow off of work.

US Open playoff
College World Series
Euro 2008
Lots of laundry to do

2008-06-15 18:00:42
5.   Bob Timmermann
Eric Stephen got the questions right.
Moline is now Atlanta.
Oshkosh and Anderson didn't last long.
Rochester is now Sacramento.

The New York Knicks beat the Toronto Huskies 68-66 on November 1, 1946 in Toronto in the first BAA game.

The National Basketball League merged with the NBA and was in smaller cities (such as Anderson and Fort Wayne and Oshkosh) and had better players. But the BAA had better cities, like Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, so it prevailed.

2008-06-15 18:04:37
6.   Eric Stephen
Jimmy Connors is rocking the Izod!
2008-06-15 18:06:48
7.   Bob Timmermann
In the very first NBA (BAA) finals, the Philadelphia Warriors led the Chicago Stags 3-1.

The Warriors won Game 5.

2008-06-15 18:09:08
8.   Eric Stephen
7
I included that as one of the 28. I can't remember if I've heard this series is the 29th 3-1 lead, or that 29 teams previously held a 3-1 lead.
2008-06-15 18:11:58
9.   Eric Stephen
The first five Finals featured a 3-1 series lead.
2008-06-15 18:12:30
10.   Bob Timmermann
Actually in 1947, the Warriors led 3-0 and the Stags won Game 4 and lost Game 5.
2008-06-15 18:22:27
11.   Eric Stephen
Kobe is a tad more aggressive this evening.
2008-06-15 18:41:22
12.   Bob Timmermann
This game looks familiar.

Chris Mihm lives!

2008-06-15 18:41:55
13.   fanerman
Woah woah woah... Chris Mihm?
2008-06-15 18:43:34
14.   fanerman
Chris Mihm's job appears to be to foul Paul Pierce.
2008-06-15 18:46:25
15.   fanerman
My hatred of Paul Pierce continues.
2008-06-15 18:47:00
16.   trainwreck
Phil Jackson's on the Yoda.
2008-06-15 18:52:08
17.   Eric Stephen
18 teams have been up 3-2 heading into a home game 6.

14 of the 18 won the series in 6.

2008-06-15 18:52:09
18.   fanerman
Hmm. This meltdown seems to be happening a quarter early...
2008-06-15 18:56:14
19.   trainwreck
Celtics are going to put us out of our misery a little earlier tonight.
2008-06-15 18:59:41
20.   Sam DC
The Lakers are shortening my mother's life.

I wish I could make that more clear to them in this moment.

2008-06-15 18:59:58
21.   fanerman
This is unbearable.
2008-06-15 19:01:53
22.   Sam DC
Is there no calling of fouls in this game?
2008-06-15 19:02:56
23.   Bob Timmermann
But Jackie McMullan wrote on ESPN.com that Doc Rivers needs to win today to make his late father proud.

Unlike all the other participants in the Finals who apparently were products of parthenogenesis.

2008-06-15 19:03:38
24.   fanerman
A field goal!
2008-06-15 19:05:52
25.   Bob Timmermann
Just so you're clear, you can feel free to chat about the Tony Awards tonight too!
2008-06-15 19:08:21
26.   trainwreck
Please throw Radmanovic out of the game, ref.
2008-06-15 19:09:10
27.   Eric Stephen
Radmanovic is not the smartest player ever.
2008-06-15 19:10:32
28.   Bluebleeder87
as my co-worker & HUGE Laker fan said "this one is for pride"

Go Lakers!

2008-06-15 19:14:34
29.   KG16
I hate these refs
2008-06-15 19:15:25
30.   Sam DC
Bill Walton and his masseure?
2008-06-15 19:16:05
31.   Bluebleeder87
I hope the leprechaun doesn't show up in this game...
2008-06-15 19:16:07
32.   trainwreck
Paul Pierce is just making me hate Kansas more.
2008-06-15 19:19:01
33.   fanerman
32 Ugh. Paul Pierce. UGH.
2008-06-15 19:23:00
34.   Eric Stephen
32
I think that's why Kobe was using the March Madness references the last few days ("we're in the elite 8 now", "just need 3 more wins", etc), so he can bring up Pierce's Kansas teams to get inside his head. :)
2008-06-15 19:25:05
35.   trainwreck
Someone should pull an Al Horford so we can see Paul Pierce flash gang signs on the court again.
2008-06-15 19:25:20
36.   Sam DC
Huh? So, a number of folks here probably know of Matthew Yglesias, a leftside political commentator who also talks about the NBA a good deal. He's got this thing up about Kobe which is written around this line: "I think if Kobe weren't a rapist people would have fewer visceral anti-Kobe reactions."

Is this a reasonable way to describe the state of knowledge re Kobe?

This is a sincere question. I'd thought the case in Colo ended in way that was formally exonerating and as a practical matter was very ambiguous. Is that wrong?

(link for quote: http://tinyurl.com/48sewu)

2008-06-15 19:27:40
37.   trainwreck
36
It is ambiguous. Kobe is like Bonds. People hate him because he comes off as arrogant and prickly. The rest of the stuff is people making their minds based solely on how they previously thought of Kobe.
2008-06-15 19:41:12
38.   trainwreck
Probably should have done a better job of following Allen this series.
2008-06-15 19:41:23
39.   fanerman
So, since we melted down in the 2nd quarter, does that mean we'll be ready in the 3rd? Or does that mean this game will be a blowout?
2008-06-15 19:46:19
40.   Bob Timmermann
36
Good to know the Atlantic has some high quality commenters.

Sounds like most of the commenters are refugees from a Lenny Bruce performance.

2008-06-15 19:48:30
41.   fanerman
40 Just preparing for the worst.
2008-06-15 19:50:11
42.   Sam DC
See, I just don't read comments at web sites until I've hung around long enough to have a reason to believe.

I certainly would never read them at a major media web site.

2008-06-15 19:52:27
43.   Bob Timmermann
If you read the comments on the LA Times blogs, you will learn that every thing is the fault of illegal immigration.

Even things like Katherine Heigl's comments about the quality of scripts on "Grey's Anatomy." (Perhaps I exaggerate there.)

2008-06-15 19:53:21
44.   fanerman
I don't much like James Posey either.
2008-06-15 19:54:16
45.   Bob Timmermann
Does anyone know if Turkey's keeper is ineligible for the next match against Croatia because he got red carded in the match today?
2008-06-15 19:54:33
46.   fanerman
43 From comments on certain Dodgers blogs, I had the impression everything is the fault of Gary Bennett.
2008-06-15 19:54:33
47.   thinkblue88
Nice basket by Fisher.
2008-06-15 19:55:13
48.   thinkblue88
Nice little mini-run by the Lakers.
2008-06-15 19:55:16
49.   Bob Timmermann
46
That's self-evident.
2008-06-15 19:55:49
50.   Lexinthedena
So Vlad Rad isn't entirely usless.
Show/Hide Comments 51-100
2008-06-15 19:55:59
51.   Sam DC
46 Next thing you'll be suggesting that people lack confidence in Juan Pierre.
2008-06-15 19:56:30
52.   trainwreck
I am pretty sure that most network television shows use day laborers for their writing staff.
2008-06-15 19:59:14
53.   Bob Timmermann
52
So that's what all those people outside Home Depot are waiting around for?
2008-06-15 19:59:23
54.   Lexinthedena
52 Not that's funny...
2008-06-15 20:00:02
55.   KG16
if the Lakers manage to come all the way back and win game 7 (and assuming all games are close), what are the odds of Pierce getting the series MVP anyway?

I'd say even money at this point.

2008-06-15 20:00:02
56.   trainwreck
53
How else would they come up with the brilliant twists in 24?

You think Americans know drama?

2008-06-15 20:01:22
57.   fanerman
55 If the Lakers manage to come all the way back and win game 7, there's 0 chance Pierce gets MVP. Because somebody on the Lakers will have to be amazing for that to happen.
2008-06-15 20:02:18
58.   KG16
Radmonavic should only be allowed to catch and shoot. no more dribbling, please
2008-06-15 20:02:47
59.   Eric Stephen
55
I'd say if the Lakers come back to win the series, there's a 100.3% chance that Kobe will win series MVP.

There hasn't been a MVP from a losing team since The Logo in 1969.

2008-06-15 20:03:11
60.   Lexinthedena
Maybe they could get a day laborer to guard Pierce.
2008-06-15 20:03:38
61.   Eric Stephen
58
A simple rule can be instituted from Rad-man: catch and shoot, or be shot.
2008-06-15 20:03:50
62.   trainwreck
58
I guess you have missed all those open threes where he just hits side of backboard or airballs
2008-06-15 20:05:03
63.   KG16
62 - if they are going to pay him what they pay him, and he's going to get playing time, his role should be what he's best at... as sad as it is, that's catch and shoot.
2008-06-15 20:06:39
64.   KG16
I'm sorry, Jeff, Kobe has not been playing "below average basketball", his teammates have stone hands and can't catch passes from him when he's double teamed. If they could actually catch and finish, he'd be looking like Magic in this series.
2008-06-15 20:07:03
65.   trainwreck
63
Vlad Rad = the Pierre or Andruw Jones of the Lakers
2008-06-15 20:07:11
66.   KG16
Lamar Odom has to be the most frustrating player in the NBA to watch.
2008-06-15 20:08:50
67.   Lexinthedena
Odom= This year's Matt Kemp.
2008-06-15 20:10:42
68.   KG16
good gawd, Sasha and Fish look like they're playing at the local LA Fitness rather than the NBA finals.

65 - I'd go with Garry Matthews, Jr.

67 - hmmm, not bad.

2008-06-15 20:21:02
69.   fanerman
Lamar Odom hit a 3? Really?
2008-06-15 20:22:19
70.   trainwreck
Hancock is one of the dumbest titles ever.
2008-06-15 20:23:51
71.   Eric Stephen
{70]
I was hoping it would be a movie about one of the signors of the Declaration of Independence, capitalizing on the John Adams craze.
2008-06-15 20:24:59
72.   trainwreck
71
Or at least about selling insurance.
2008-06-15 20:27:24
73.   Bob Timmermann
Some are L.A. Fans supposed to hate Sam Cassell now?
2008-06-15 20:29:32
74.   trainwreck
73
You mean ToyCannon is not the only true Clipper fan in Los Angeles?
2008-06-15 20:31:35
75.   Eric Stephen
73
I've hated Sam Cassell for some time, long before his Clipper days, but long after his spaceship came to Earth.
2008-06-15 20:36:48
76.   Bob Timmermann
I don't have any questions to ponder for a Game 6.

Keep that in mind. I used up all my bullets today.

2008-06-15 20:42:16
77.   Lexinthedena
Now go at them!
2008-06-15 20:43:57
78.   trainwreck
Up and at them!
2008-06-15 20:45:57
79.   Bob Timmermann
The goggles! They do nothing!
2008-06-15 20:47:58
80.   Lexinthedena
Mark Jackson says "Big Time" a lot.
2008-06-15 20:53:39
81.   fanerman
I appreciate Odom's intensity these days.
2008-06-15 20:54:23
82.   Lexinthedena
Why do they keep having Kobe dribble the ball down to 10 seconds while everyone stands there?
2008-06-15 20:54:34
83.   Bob Timmermann
For the Vladimir Radmanovic Marching and Chowder Society members:

He leads all Laker players tonight in +/- at +20!

2008-06-15 20:55:11
84.   fanerman
Clutch!
2008-06-15 20:55:55
85.   Bob Timmermann
Sam Cassell leads all players in the game at +22.
2008-06-15 20:56:08
86.   MC Safety
Best Basketball Player Ever.
2008-06-15 20:56:58
87.   trainwreck
What's the +/- on Eddie Murphy's career?
2008-06-15 20:57:15
88.   Eric Stephen
That was a gift. Looked like a possible foul on Kobe there.
2008-06-15 20:58:47
89.   Lexinthedena
87 Arseniooooooooooooooooooooo Hall!
2008-06-15 21:00:59
90.   Eric Stephen
Ralph Lawler says get your Game 6 questions ready Bob!
2008-06-15 21:01:51
91.   Vishal
90 i didn't dare invoke lawler for fear of provoking murphy.
2008-06-15 21:02:40
92.   Eric Stephen
91
Eddie Murphy's law was to attend tonight's game.
2008-06-15 21:02:59
93.   Lexinthedena
91 Bingo!
2008-06-15 21:04:21
94.   Eric Stephen
Bill James says the lead still isn't 100% safe however.
2008-06-15 21:05:07
95.   Bob Timmermann
Does the Bill James rule apply to the NBA and NCAA equally?
2008-06-15 21:05:47
96.   Bob Timmermann
Shouldn't the Celtics have just waited for an 8-second call?
2008-06-15 21:06:02
97.   Lexinthedena
Mark, that wasn't a wide open look.
2008-06-15 21:06:33
98.   Eric Stephen
95
I forgot it was only college.
2008-06-15 21:06:57
99.   trainwreck
Live to Die, Another Day!
2008-06-15 21:07:13
100.   Bob Timmermann
So, according to Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy, the Lakers win would only have counted if they had jumped and down on the Celtics and danced on their grave?
Show/Hide Comments 101-150
2008-06-15 21:07:55
101.   Sam DC
Gah these announcers.

It's always a personal failing of the team that doesn't get something done; they just never allow that the other team might be real good and playing hard.

2008-06-15 21:08:47
102.   trainwreck
100
That's how I will teach my kids to respect their competitors.
2008-06-15 21:09:56
103.   Eric Stephen
100
Leave it to the Fordham guy to restore order and remind them that the Lakers just had to win first, no matter how ugly.
2008-06-15 21:10:44
104.   trainwreck
I wish I could be as smart as Fordham's Smush Parker.
2008-06-15 21:15:55
105.   Sam DC
Just flipping:

Actual questions on Who Wants to Be A Millionaire:

$64K -- How many states border California?
$125K -- In the equation, e=mc2, what does c stand for?

2008-06-15 21:17:55
106.   Bob Timmermann
105
I really need to be someone's "Phone a Friend."
2008-06-15 21:21:12
107.   Eric Stephen
104
Wow, that's a crushing revelation for me. Not quite Scully-negating, but ouch.
2008-06-15 21:23:54
108.   Sam DC
$500K -- This philospher taught Alexander the Great when he was a teenager:

Socrates
Aristotle
Pythagors
Plato

2008-06-15 21:26:09
109.   Bob Timmermann
I work Tuesday until 8 pm.

That is my payback for getting to watch EVERYTHING tomorrow on my day off.

2008-06-15 21:26:12
110.   Sam DC
He got it -- Aristotle.

Never seen anyone go for a million.

2008-06-15 21:29:43
111.   Bob Timmermann
What was the $250K question?
2008-06-15 21:30:11
112.   Sam DC
$1M - In what language was Anne Frank's original diary published?

Dutch
Eng
French
German

2008-06-15 21:30:58
113.   Sam DC
111 picky -- it was easy -- this painter's later work focused on the deserts of New Mexico where she made her home.
2008-06-15 21:32:47
114.   Bob Timmermann
112
I would bail on that question.

Seriously, I would.

2008-06-15 21:33:51
115.   Sam DC
He did not answer.

I would have guessed French. ("published" not "written".) He guessed French. Answer was Dutch.

2008-06-15 21:36:16
116.   Bob Timmermann
115
I had to go check the library catalog.

The tricky part was "published" since it's possible that somebody else would have tried to sell it first.

Although I should have known since I've been to Anne Frank's house.

Anne Frank was born about six weeks after my dad and two months before my mom.

2008-06-15 21:38:27
117.   fanerman
Is this airing right now? I turned off the TV after the game ended.
2008-06-15 21:43:06
118.   Sam DC
"turned off the TV" -- what makes you think that is allowed?
2008-06-15 21:43:06
119.   Eric Stephen
I forgot you could bail after seeing the question.
2008-06-15 21:44:08
120.   Eric Stephen
And don't worry Bob, as long as Thursday is free you can catch Game 7 live.
2008-06-15 21:45:35
121.   bhsportsguy
Apparently now you must win games stylistically as well as by points.
2008-06-15 21:46:57
122.   Bob Timmermann
121
If UCLA won games stylishly, they'd have won in the Final Four the last three years!
2008-06-15 21:53:25
123.   trainwreck
I realized I had no right to make fun of a Spurs/Pistons finals being a UCLA fan.
2008-06-15 21:57:22
124.   bhsportsguy
123 So Reeves Nelson and Brandon Lane, are we now recruitng players with two last names?

Has Luc said anything yet?

2008-06-15 21:58:21
125.   bhsportsguy
123 Jordan should have watched Aboya or Mata to learn how to take a charge.

Actually Fisher is pretty good at it too?

2008-06-15 22:01:08
126.   Eric Stephen
125
Fisher is the Vice President of charge-taking and/or flopping, having the baton passed down from the master Vlade Divac.
2008-06-15 22:06:54
127.   trainwreck
124
I think Luc goes, because he wants to so badly and he will probably figure he won't do any better next year.

Kind of weird UCLA has to go to Rocklin and Modesto to pluck out the top talents of California.

2008-06-15 22:12:44
128.   bhsportsguy
126 Dude, picking up from the DT thread, I would go to the U.S. Open tomorrow if I could.
2008-06-15 22:16:57
129.   trainwreck
I can't tell what's a really good shot or not in golf, since I base everything off Tiger Woods PGA Tour.

They keep praising Tiger for making it to the green in three, but I can do it in two!

2008-06-15 22:18:01
130.   Bob Timmermann
129
It's pretty easy to tell which shots by the pros are good shots.
2008-06-15 22:32:42
131.   Eric Stephen
128
I don't think I'll be able to go, but I'll be watching from my desk at work.
2008-06-15 22:32:59
132.   ToyCannon
If I was a casual basketball fan and only watched the finals I'd think Paul Pierce is a better player then Kobe. Then I'd be told by the serious Laker fan that Pierce is only looking this good because he's playing against the Laker defense and Kobe is playing against the Celtic defense. Then I'd ask isn't Kobe playing defense for the Lakers, and isn't that Pierce playing defense for the Celtics and isn't Pierce a big reason why the Celtic defense is so good.

Did Mark Jackson or Van Gundy ever win a championship because based on their preaching they must be experts at it? I do remember Mark Jackson as a Clipper point guard and while we did make it to the playoffs we were far away from a championship. I don't remember any Knick or Indiana championships.

I did enjoy Sam I Am finally making some key shots as he has been terrible this series. Only in basketball do they have this great deal for the players where they sign a contract, stink it up, get a buyout from the owner who gives them something like 80% of the original contract, become a free agent, sign with a contender, win a ring. Donald Sterling was dumbfounded when he heard that is what Sam's agent wanted and that he couldn't believe it was a common thing in the NBA.

2008-06-15 22:39:17
133.   Eric Stephen
132
Without question Pierce has been the best player in the series, by far. He has been getting to the hoop just about every play, against whomever has guarded him, including Kobe.

I must say I really, really like Van Gundy as an analyst. he has a pretty good sense of humor, and makes some cogent points throughout. I think he kind of forces the "arguments" with Jackson, but otherwise JVG is top notch.

2008-06-15 22:54:03
134.   bhsportsguy
132 Well Sam has contributed more than Mitch Richmond did for the 2002 Lakers. He got a ring but only played 4 minutes in the entire post-season.
2008-06-15 22:56:44
135.   trainwreck
134
And I was happy to see him receive his ring!

Still makes me think of how crazy would it have been to have Glen Rice followed by Mitch Richmond just a couple years prior to the Lakers getting them.

2008-06-15 22:58:08
136.   Eric Stephen
Bob, I thought I'd mention this here since it's Griddle-worthy: Scott Baker had a 4-K inning today.
2008-06-15 23:02:54
137.   KG16
Van Gundy was annoying me tonight with the whole "they have to winner better than they are winning" schtick. Considering that when the season started, the Celtics were everyone's pick to win it all and the Lakers would have been considered lucky to get out of the first round; I'll take forcing a Game 6 at this point.

If the Lakers force a Game 7, my opinions are subject to change. Drastically.

2008-06-15 23:05:05
138.   Bob Timmermann
136
Those are far more common in this era than they were in the past.
2008-06-15 23:05:23
139.   LogikReader
I might start a fire with this comment:

If Kobe is "the best player in the game" right now, how did he end up going over a quarter and a quarter's worth of game time without scoring? Michael Jordan does not go 15 minutes of game time without scoring a basket, even if he plays the Knicks defense at its peak.

As far as Kobe as a leader, he affirmed that he is truly that over this weekend. Still, I think I have to pause before making the Jordan comparisons. After all, two games in a row, a simple trap shuts Kobe Bryant down in the entire second half.

I also thought it was so unusual to see him pass up shots to set other people up so many times in the 4th quarter.

2008-06-15 23:09:21
140.   LogikReader
139 , 137

With all that said...

It is awfully silly to have everyone talk about the Lakers as the team with all the pressure.

KG16 is dead on. Um... weren't the Celtics the consensus pick for dominating the Eastern Conference? Don't you think they are expected to shut down everything in their path? Was it wise to allow another breath for the Lakers knowing they were coming off a shocking game 4?? I'm a little surprised how quickly the media forgets just how far the Lakers came in only 12 months. Going into 2008, I'd have been overjoyed to make it to the Conference Semifinals. This has been a GREAT year for Lakers basketball.

2008-06-15 23:09:27
141.   trainwreck
139
Now I am not one that will say Kobe is better than Jordan, but people have to remember to compare Kobe to Jordan when they were at the same age. Plus, Kobe started his career earlier.

But, I never see Kobe reaching Jordan's defensive level (game was more physical back then too)and sometimes you see Kobe give up.

2008-06-15 23:29:11
142.   Bob Timmermann
The people who really hated the Lakers winning this game were the media except from those in Boston. Now everybody else has to fly back to Boston.

The Boston media were going to go home anyway.

There are numerous Tony Jackson like complaints going on right now at LAX.

2008-06-15 23:39:09
143.   KG16
One of the most annoying things about the "Age of ESPN"™ is the annoying comparisons to MJ. Everyone who comes along is faced with the question. Forget different eras, forget ages, forget all that stuff, sports history began with the first telecast of Sportscenter. There's no sense of appreciation for what we're seeing in the moment or the context of the different players.

Kobe is asked to do a lot more in the triangle than Jordan ever was. Jordan got to be the focus of the triangle the entire time he played in it. Kobe has had two or three different roles in the triangle and often time has to switch between them in the game. As far as defense goes, Kobe is probably an underrated defender, and when challenged is probably one of the best three defenders in the league right now.

As far as the trap shutting him down, not really. He's making the good pass to his open teammate, who is letting it go right between his fingers or otherwise failing to finish. If the Lakers played with half the efficiency they did against the Spurs, we'd all be going to the parade on Tuesday.

For the record, Jordan barely cracks my top ten all time (NBA edition):

1. Kareem
2. Russell
3. Magic
4. West
5. Bird
6. Wilt
7. Oscar Robinson
8. Dr. J.
9. Jordan
10. Mikan

2008-06-15 23:40:09
144.   Bob Timmermann
If there is a Lakers parade, stop by and say hi to me at work.
2008-06-15 23:43:21
145.   KG16
The only way I'd be able to go to the Lakers parade is if I had a hearing in LA that day. And I suspect that my giant Lakers fan boss would be more than willing to trek to LA for a hearing and the parade.
2008-06-15 23:45:44
146.   trainwreck
If Lakers get a parade, I may come down to LA.
2008-06-15 23:47:50
147.   Bob Timmermann
Despite being two blocks away, I didn't go to any of the three Lakers victory parades on Figueroa.

I'm holding out for the Clippers parade.

Or watching the Kings parade the Stanley Cup down Figueroa.

2008-06-15 23:53:26
148.   KG16
147 - I suspect you'll be waiting a very long while.

Despite living minutes from Angel Stadium, I did not go to either the Angels or Ducks parades. Nor have I gone to LA for a Lakers or Dodgers parade.

Parades, I think, are like golf, better on TV, where I can change the channel to something more interesting once it starts.

2008-06-15 23:57:03
149.   Bob Timmermann
148
The only advantage of going to a putative Lakers parade is that ultimately I know that I would have access to a clean bathroom.
2008-06-16 00:02:35
150.   trainwreck
Maybe if it were a parade of lights like Disneyland, then I would go.
Show/Hide Comments 151-200
2008-06-16 00:04:56
151.   Bob Timmermann
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxgtRm8_gxM&feature=related
2008-06-16 00:07:05
152.   trainwreck
151
It is so appropriate that the uploader's handle is called theskunkwerx.

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