For those of you who don’t know the mulldog and I very well let me comment that we are both NBA junkies. That being said we have some contrasting opinions of who will represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals while the Nuggets and Lakers are at a 2-2 series stalemate. Lets first clear the air as I admit I am a Denver Nuggets fan…however, my allegiance to them is not why I think they will advance. Let’s check out the real reasoning the Nuggets will be in the NBA Finals….
Star Power: Kobe vs. Melo:
Listen, I am not going to sit here and go through some ridiculous argument that Melo is a better player then Kobe, just not going to happen. In fact, Kobe recently set the record for most conference final points through the first 4 games last night, Talk about Kobe Doin’ Work (thanks Spike Lee for one of the worst documentaries I have ever watched)! Kobe is still no questions asked the best closer in the game (speaking of The Closer I cringe when any game is shown on TNT because god knows we are going to see the damn commercial for the new season of The Closer 800 times).
Kobe is a jump-shooter at this point of career and you can see he did little to no penetrating in Denver so far this series (it’s not his fault, it's court ordered). Carmelo has done enough this post-season to merit being called a superstar and is slowly edging his way to top of the class. He has taken the challenge of playing both ways (offense and defense perverts), guarding Kobe, and making Bryant look like a child in the post grabbing offensive rebounds. The edge here obviously still goes to KB24, but not by as much as he is getting credit for. Let’s also take a look at their wives, which plays a small factor in my opinion. Kobe’s wife, who is surrounded by scandal and lies is not someone you want to associate yourself with. Carmelo’s wife, world famous MTV VJ La La Vasquez is all over the red carpets. Take that for what it's worth.
Big Men: Trio vs Trio:
For this breakdown we are pinning Nene, Kmart, and Chris “Birdman” Andersen vs Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, and Lamar Odom.
Lets take a stab at the Lakers big girls to start. Pau Gasol (stolen from the Memphis Grizz) is a great player, but not a game changer. Pau could be effective, but they do not utilize him enough and its apparent as he is only averaging 10 shots per game. Andrew Bynum, age 16, still can’t play with the big boys, gets into feuds with Phil Jackson, and is nothing more then a complimentary player. As far as Odom goes, I am actually high on LO…Just not sure if anyone has told him the series started yet.
Nene, Kmart, and the Birdman hold the clear advantage (as evident as them all securing 13+ rebounds last night). Nene is finally playing to the level of his $60M dollar deal (how he got that coming straight off of knee surgery baffles me). Kenyon, currently playing with no knees if nothing more will be your enforcer and scrap. Any man with a tattoo of pink lips on his neck has to be scary, right? And finally the X Factor, the BirdMan. For those of you who haven’t checked out his story its worth a watch.(http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4205357&categoryid=2459788).
The BirdMan is the perfect role player willing to take the charge, rebound, and he will erupt the home crowd with his thunderous dunks and high flying swats….he will even quiet down the crowd when playing in LA…scratch that…they have no home court presence anyways.
Home Court Advantage?:
It does not bother me that the Nuggets have to win one at the Staples Center. Those fans don’t show up until the 2nd half starts and they are more concerned at watching the jumbo tron showing the celebrities in crowd. The celebrities themselves don’t care about the Lakers either. They are just there so they can watch themselves the next day when TMZ reports on every move they make. “Is Leo DiCaprio trying to watch his weight, we saw him eat nothing during the game and even had a diet green tea in hand…two words Leo, Anti-Oxidants!”
Denver will have no problem winning one in LA.
Head Coaching: Karl vs Jackson:
Sort of in parallel to our Kobe vs Melo conversation I am not going to tell you George Karl is a better head coach. In fact, I think Karl is a lousy coach and essentially sits on the sidelines and gains weight. My point here is that Phil Jackson isn’t all he’s cracked out to be. Sure he has 9 NBA championships, but I am convinced you could have all-star, hot as a pistol, Jason "J Mac"McElwain, as your head coach and still win finals with the talent Jackson has had.
After all it's not to hard to win championships with Michael Jordan, Scotty Pippen, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kobe Bryant. These championships were more about the players and less about the “Zen Masters” Triangle offense. Phil Jackson only got the LA coaching job because he was sleeping with the owner’s daughter Jeanie Buss in the first place. So Phil Jackson you keep being the “great” coach that you are and stick your fingers in your mouth and whistle and pretend you are doing something while you sit on your elevated throne on the bench.
Intangibles: Nuggets have them, Lakers don’t:
If my points above don’t help my argument about Denver’s ability to win, let me sprinkle these “Nuggets” into the post for you (You see what I did there, I used Nuggets to represent both small facts, and the basketball team…it’s called journalism, don’t worry about it). The Nuggs have the best point guard left in the playoffs in Chauncey B-B-Billups. Mr. Big Shot will make a statement in one of the final remaining games the way he did in the first two series vs the Hornets and Mavs.
Also, the Nuggets have one of the best benches in basketball. Leinas Kleiza the Lithuanian all-star, the BirdMan, and last but not least J.R. Smith all bring big time scoring to the court. Finally, the Nuggets lead the league in this all important NBA stat: Most team tattoos: Carmelo Anthony, Chris Andersen, J.R. Smith, and Kmart all host sleeves of tattoos. You can guarantee (yes you, Mark Cuban) that this group of thugs will be storming to the NBA finals.
Home Court Advantage?:
It does not bother me that the Nuggets have to win one at the Staples Center. Those fans don’t show up until the 2nd half starts and they are more concerned at watching the jumbo tron showing the celebrities in crowd. The celebrities themselves don’t care about the Lakers either. They are just there so they can watch themselves the next day when TMZ reports on every move they make. “Is Leo DiCaprio trying to watch his weight, we saw him eat nothing during the game and even had a diet green tea in hand…two words Leo, Anti-Oxidants!”
Denver will have no problem winning one in LA.
Head Coaching: Karl vs Jackson:
Sort of in parallel to our Kobe vs Melo conversation I am not going to tell you George Karl is a better head coach. In fact, I think Karl is a lousy coach and essentially sits on the sidelines and gains weight. My point here is that Phil Jackson isn’t all he’s cracked out to be. Sure he has 9 NBA championships, but I am convinced you could have all-star, hot as a pistol, Jason "J Mac"McElwain, as your head coach and still win finals with the talent Jackson has had.
After all it's not to hard to win championships with Michael Jordan, Scotty Pippen, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kobe Bryant. These championships were more about the players and less about the “Zen Masters” Triangle offense. Phil Jackson only got the LA coaching job because he was sleeping with the owner’s daughter Jeanie Buss in the first place. So Phil Jackson you keep being the “great” coach that you are and stick your fingers in your mouth and whistle and pretend you are doing something while you sit on your elevated throne on the bench.
Intangibles: Nuggets have them, Lakers don’t:
If my points above don’t help my argument about Denver’s ability to win, let me sprinkle these “Nuggets” into the post for you (You see what I did there, I used Nuggets to represent both small facts, and the basketball team…it’s called journalism, don’t worry about it). The Nuggs have the best point guard left in the playoffs in Chauncey B-B-Billups. Mr. Big Shot will make a statement in one of the final remaining games the way he did in the first two series vs the Hornets and Mavs.
Also, the Nuggets have one of the best benches in basketball. Leinas Kleiza the Lithuanian all-star, the BirdMan, and last but not least J.R. Smith all bring big time scoring to the court. Finally, the Nuggets lead the league in this all important NBA stat: Most team tattoos: Carmelo Anthony, Chris Andersen, J.R. Smith, and Kmart all host sleeves of tattoos. You can guarantee (yes you, Mark Cuban) that this group of thugs will be storming to the NBA finals.
