Millman and Birdman Sharing Same Pipe?

<--Mrs. Bryant vs. La La -->

First of all, this is essentially a direct response to the piece directly below this, so if you haven’t checked that out first, you’d be advised to do so. The Millman may be on the wrong side of this argument, but it is worth a read, if for no other reason than the one-liner about Kobe which I won’t spoil.

Well before I get into my defense of the Lakers, a few quick notes on last night / the Cavs-Magic series in general. First off, you’re nuts if you’re complaining about the foul call at the end of regulation that allowed the King to tie the game with .5 seconds left. Bottom line is, NBA refs are not going to let a game end while Lebron James hits the floor (with the defender not in position no less) and doesn’t even get a shot off. The Magic should consider themselves lucky that his second free throw went in, by the way – it was going to be the most tailor made tip-in by Varejao of all-time. On the other end, as Varejao and Howard got tangled up, it was a good no-call – honestly if anyone was fouled there it was Varejao. The refs, who I and most everyone else love to kill, had a bunch of extremely difficult calls last night, and I feel they were on the right side of most, if not all of them.

And after yet another incredible game we have to start considering the fact that we may be on the verge of having the best pair of conference championship series in the history of the NBA. With the Cavs down 3-1 now, that could be in jeopardy, but both of these series could easily still go 7 games, almost every game has been decided on the final shot, with only the last Lakers-Nuggets game really being a bore. I don’t recall two series ever both going to game 7 in the same year…and you really have to go back to the late 80’s, early 90’s golden age of the NBA to find both conference finals having this much juice.

I remember having a conversation (as the Magic were wiping out the Celtics in game 7) abut the conference championships where I made the – at the time unpopular – claim that if either the Cavs or Lakers were going to not make the finals, that the undefeated Cavs were the team in danger. Now, both teams are arguably in danger, but I still feel as strongly as ever (and most would now agree) – the Lakers will be in the NBA Finals waiting, but the King may not make it.

But why can’t the Lakers lose this series (currently 2-2)? For one, I maintain that the Nuggets are simply a lesser version of the Lakers. Both teams want to get out and run, unfortunately for Denver the Lake Show is more efficient on both ends of the floor. Both teams shoot it efficiently, but the Lakers control the boards…the only place I really see an advantage for Denver is their ability to get to the line, which is why I do think the Lakers home court advantage helps them – even if the entire crowd looks like they’re watching Jack Nicholson re-enacting About Schmidt.

As for the Millman’s claim that Kobe is a jump-shooter – he has been to the free throw line 53 times in the first four games. He has proven absolutely un-guardable all series even when Dahntay Jones is tripping more people than Julian ‘Frankenstein’ in Big Daddy.

The idea that La La Vasquez is somehow superior to Kobe’s wife is probably the Millman’s most ridiculous claim however. I love how he conveniently found Kobe’s wife’s worst picture and La La’s best…and it was still arguable who looked better. Huge advantage in the wife department to the Lake Show – a quick google search reveals a rumor that Andrew Bynum is dating Rihanna. I then bring to the table Pau Gasol’s wife:

The big men argument is almost laughable. Pau Gasol can score on Nene anytime he gets single coverage - quick shake, baseline, dunk. Repeat…the Lakers have not utilized this enough yet but it is there for them at any time. For the record, he has recorded a double-double every game…and the way he opens up the floor for that offense by always being in the right spot is so underrated. Odom hasn’t been special, but he’s rebounding a ton and doing exactly what Phil Jackson wants. Did I mention that Bynum is dating Rihanna? Meanwhile, all the Denver big men are the same exact players…shot-blocking, poor one-on-one defenders who offensively can do nothing but dunk and have been getting beaten on the boards (despite being a good rebounding unit).

Look, I love this Nuggets team. They have a player who made an appearance in a gang-related Stop Snitchin’ video (Melo), a recovering – and in my suspicion relapsing – drug addict freak (Bird Man), and the guy who netted the Knicks Antonio McDyess (Nene). They are exciting to watch. But really, what kind of crushing blow would it be for the NBA if somehow both Kobe and Lebron get knocked off before the finals? Can the season-long crash course that was the Cavs-Lake Show really turn into Magic-Nuggets? Orlando and Denver really? The same Denver team that has never made the NBA Finals in the franchises 32 years of existence? Can’t happen. Won’t happen. In one of the juiciest NBA seasons in recent memory there would be little juice for that NBA Finals. David Stern is too wise for that. His referees are too scared for that.

His referee

One more piece of real analysis – once the Lakers big men realize that they’re better off staying on Nene, Birdman and Kenyon and forcing the Nuggets guards to finish around the tin themselves, I think we see the Lakers take total control. That or if Kobe decides he wants to lock up on defense (a characteristic he can do like no other which has strangely not been employed by him yet this series as JR Smith is blowing by him with the greatest of ease, though he’s doing a good job of not letting him get his threes off). Unless Melo comes out in a vintage Orange jersey (which he practically has so far this series) then I really can’t see the inferior Nuggets getting it done here.

And last but not least, has anyone ever put a career in cruise control more than Spike Lee? After the masterpiece that was He Got Game, every “Spike Lee Joint” has been hot garbage. It’s as if you could plot his career path along the same curve as Public Enemy…once his favorite rap group lost it, he did too. Am I the only one who thinks that maybe Chuck D should get more credit for Do the Right Thing and He Got Game than Spike Lee himself in hindsight? Am I just crazy? Kobe Doin’ Work is probably the worst execution of a great idea I have ever seen. I literally thought it was a joke with insightful comments from Kobe such as “Here I take a jumpshot” and “that’s me running back down the court to play defense.” It was at times reminiscent of the infamous Ball St “Boom Goes the Dynamite” announcer as Kobe finds himself at a loss for words, check this clip and then watch the legendary footage if you have not seen it before: