Basketball Newsletter - April 11, 2000
Hype
Good golly! With their big man sidelined with a sprained ankle, the Lakers lost a game. You'd think it was the end of the world. The headlines were all doom and gloom: "Can Lakers last without Shaq?" ... "Mere mortals" ... "One-man team can't win' ... etc. etc. A little melodramatic, no? But then again, we're talking about Hollywood here. And even when the Shaq-less Lakers hit the boards Monday night against Seattle, it took a monstrous game by Kobe Bryant to pull out a win in overtime. Shocking!
But come on... a couple of weak games late in an explosive season does NOT bode badly for the La-La-Lakers. Good teams lose sometimes. The Lakers have lost 13 all season. 13! Stop the presses! As if! Make no mistake, the Lakers are the best team with or without Mr. O'Neal. Believe any hype you want about their greatness or their fallibility, but believe it when we say they'll be in the finals come June!
We'll have a triple-double latte, hold the hype please
What a season it has been for Vince Carter. He's been labeled the next big thing; he blew away the competition in the All Star Slam Dunk contest; he's won several games at the buzzer; and he fills every house every night. However, he's also been labeled a ball-hog, a showboater, an individual rather than a team player -- and the press hasn't been too friendly lately. Well, that may have changed on Monday night when the young flying man had his first triple-double against Cleveland. Carter scored 31 points, had 11 rebounds and added a career-high 10 assists in Toronto's 112-103 win over the Cavs. And if that doesn't shut his critics up, nothing will.
You a critic? Still not convinced? Well take a look at this highlight
reel:
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Who's hot
* The Phoenix Suns' shooting guard Penny Hardaway. Remember him? Now that Jason Kidd and Tom Gugliotta are on the injury list, Big Penny has taken control of the team's drive to the playoffs (looks like they'll grab home court advantage for the first round anyway). So far in April, he is averaging 10 rebounds, 7 assists and 21 points per game. Not bad numbers for a guy who has been out of the spotlight for most of the season. Maybe we'll start seeing Little Penny on the tube again, or if we're lucky, a new motion picture: "Blue Chips 2, the Sequel."
Who's not
* New Jersey Nets. Not long ago these guys were still in the hunt for the final playoff spot in the east. Well, 6 losses in a row later and it's kiss the season goodbye. The Nets have had injury problems all season -- centre Jayson Williams has been out all year with a broken leg, and now rookie centre Evan Eschmeyer is back on the bench with a sprained ankle -- but then again, EVERY team has dealt with injuries this year. No excuse anymore kids! So come post season, New Jersey will play sad cousin once again to the neighbouring Knicks.
Pat Riley's Atlantic oil slick
The Heat's well-gelled coach, Pat Riley, has led his team into the playoffs once again. This is the coach who once said "the regular season is essentially meaningless." CTVSportsnet.com's Paul Jay reviews the Heat's season, and the rest of the Atlantic division to boot:
"Whether or intended or not, Riley's long-ago quote still rings true for the Heat: no one will remember Riley's regular-season record with the team (238-131); they'll remember his playoff record (12-18). Now is the time for Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway and Jamal Mashburn to play well when it counts. Otherwise a house-cleaning might be in order."
Read more at:
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What the fans are saying
The Grizzlies aren't heading into the postseason this year, but the fans in the CTVSportsnet.com forums think the future looks bright for the Vancouver squad.
Grizzlies Rule says:
"SHAREEF, DICKERSON, BIBBY HOW COULD YOU NOT LOVE THIS TEAM THEY WILL BE THE TEAM OF THE FUTURE. THE GRIZZLIES WILL WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2 YEARS!!!!!!!! "
.-period puts a Raptor spin on the topic:
"I don't think they are championship contenders but at least they have a better team than the Raptors right now... but only because we have the worst player - the biggest hog in the NBA, on our team. Without Vince Carter, the Raptors will win the championship so easily, it would be an achievement for the Grizzlies to lose less than 50 pts. If we play the best player in the NBA right now, Sean Marks, he'll show that guy you have in Vancouver called Bryant Reeves why losing 50 pounds is good. Marks will be dunking on him, hitting 3 pt shots over him and stuffing every of his ugly shots...and add in Yogi Stewart in the starting lineup too and Harrington and Rahim will never get a rebound...
vince's chick - 06:57pm Apr 10, 2000 (2.)
"The Grizzlies are a cool team but when you only win 20 games in a season you know you are bad!!! If they can learn how to hold on to a lead like the Raptors did then they can be a pretty good team. But it was sweet when Mike Bibby got the winning lay up against the Rockets!"
A girl's gotta dream!