The Brain Leak

The Brain Leak (Week of 6/16/08 - 6/22/08) Another week, another seven days worth of sports-related drivel. With not much more than the yearly push towards the Mid-Summer Classic to bide my time, you'll notice I have instituted some fresh (some might say seedy) perspectives to the already multi-faceted Leak. In addition to serving up heaping servings of the usual BS, TBL [read more...]

Lakers v Celtics

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The NBA Finals: And the Winner Is…

By June 19 either the Los Angeles Lakers or the Boston Celtics will be handed the Larry O'Brien trophy. When this occurs the two teams will have combined to win exactly half of the NBA championships - 31 of 62 - since the league's inception. But the question is: Which team will win number 31? The "Big Three" equals one Kobe. Think about [read more...]

Phil’s Quest for 10

When Game 1 of the historic 2008 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics tips off on Thursday night, the answers to many questions will finally come to light. Does Kevin Garnett have the inner-drive to dominate a defender who has one-third of his skills? Can Lamar Odom fill the Finals X-Factor shoes that Robert Horry [read more...]

Kobe Bryant: The Jaundiced View of a Superstar

Right here before these playoffs end, before we get to the Finals, it is important to put Kobe Bean Bryant in some sort of perspective. His Los Angeles Lakers - and make no mistake, on the court they are his Lakers - are winning and winning big. They finished first in the highly-competitive Western Conference with a 57-win season. They [read more...]

Kevin Garnett

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Kevin Garnett

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Celtics Step Up

LeBron James and Paul Pierce has the kind of classic playoff duel that harkens back to the days of Bird against Wilkins. Because of Pierce's superior supporting cast stepping up and James missing key shots, the Celtics survived another seven game series. Despite the Celtics inability to play on the road, they've managed to win two series and will now [read more...]

Game 7’s to Decide Who’s for Real (Celtics vs. Cavaliers)

There is no greater phrase than "We go to game 7." All the predictions go out the window at this point because no matter what, anything can happen. For the Boston Celtics, they might be the team under the most pressure of the four teams. The acquistion of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce should have at least made the first [read more...]

Lakers and Celtics, Make it So

Even without the Chicago Bulls in the playoffs, this is one of the better postseasons I've ever seen. It seems like every team still remaining has a chance to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy in about... say six months. I know, the postseason is that long. I know that it would probably go down as one of the most over-hyped series [read more...]

MVP Kobe Does What the Greatest Do

There are beauties and there are beasts. In the NBA both are considered for MVP consideration. Chris Paul with his 21 points, 11.6 assists to only 2.5 assists, and league-leading 2.7 steals is a beauty. Kevin Garnett, who led the Boston Celtics to 66 victories and was the Defensive Player of the Year, is a beast. But neither won the MVP. The [read more...]

Boston-Atlanta: Where Head-Butting and Not Getting Tossed Happens

I'm wondering if anyone noticed that fact that, just before Game 4 (about 6 p.m.) of the Boston Celtics-Atlanta Hawks matchup the league informed Paul Pierce that he would be fined $25,000 for making a "menacing gesture" during Game 3. The "gesture" Pierce made was said by Commissioner David Stern and his patrolman Stu Jackson to be a "Blood gang [read more...]

Bulls Season In Review - Part 1

Wow, that was painful. The only solace Bulls fans can take from a miserable 2007-08 season is that it wasn't just Chicago that was optimistic about the team coming into this season. After three straight playoff appearances and an 06-07 season that featured 49 wins and a first-round playoff sweep of the Miami Heat, even the World Wide Leader was buying [read more...]

Impact Players

It's unlikely there has ever been an NBA regular season with more intriguing storylines than the 2007-08 one. It started last summer, when both Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett were traded from last place teams in the Western Conference to the new Beast of the East, the Boston Celtics. That was followed by Lakers star Kobe Bryant demanding a trade, [read more...]

Searching – Unapologetically – for Larry Bird

On Cold Pizza's First and 10 the question was raised: Sage Steele introduced the segment by stating that the NBA has been on the quest for the next Larry Bird since - Larry Bird. She asked why no Bird-type white player has been found and stated that there is a "constant search for the next one." Talk about airing an open [read more...]

The MVP Debate

I've heard the NBA has an image problem . I've heard the Seattle SuperSonics, a team that won the 1979 NBA Championship and only three years ago won the Northwest Division with a 52-30 record, are on the verge of moving to Oklahoma City and their fans aren't all that happy. I know one of the league's premiere franchises, [read more...]

FSR Daily

-Kevin Garnett is not expected to return to the Celtics' lineup before the All-Star break. No one player has really stepped up to replace KG's fantasy numbers. -Monta Ellis is the real deal. He's averaging 26.7 ppg this month after last night's 34-point effort against the Kings. Ellis has scored at least 20 points in six of his last eight games, [read more...]

FSR Daily

-It doesn't look like Curt Schilling will have much of a fantasy baseball impact this year. The Red Sox starting pitcher will miss at least half of the 2008 season, possibly more because of a shoulder injury. -Kevin Garnett is still suffering from his abdominal injury, and despite his statements he'd like to play against his former team tonight, it appears [read more...]

FSR Daily

-The trade of Shaquille O'Neal to the Suns will have little impact on Shaq owners (he's still battling injuries), but a huge impact on others. Marcus Banks is likely to see more minutes and Shawn Marion will probably get more scoring chances with the Heat, while Boris Diaw is now a lock for 30 minutes a game. Diaw will drive [read more...]

It Could Be Worse, You Could Be A Bulls Fan

I got the call late last night. As a sports radio junkie, I knew there were rumors the Heat were looking into trading Shaquille O'Neal and that the Suns were a possible suitor. I literally laughed off the report of a Shaq for Shawn Marion trade, though. Then my friend called and said it was real. ESPN's Ric Bucher was reporting [read more...]

FSR Daily

-According to this ESPN report, Chris Webber declined an offer from the Los Angeles Lakers last week and is likely to be rejoined with the Golden State Warriors and his first head coach, Don Nelson. -Yao Ming sat out the Rockets game on Sunday with the Jazz because of an upper respiratory infection, the first game he's missed this year. Doesn't [read more...]

FSR Daily

-The Damon Stoudamire buyout saga is nearing completion, with Marc Stein reporting Boston and Phoenix are interested in the veteran point guard. He hasn't been a fantasy factor since '04-05, and I doubt a trade to a contender will change that. -Lots of injury news today. Despite his abdominal injury, Kevin Garnett is expected to play today against the Magic. Carmelo [read more...]

FSR Daily

-I didn't see this coming, but KG says he's been battling an abdominal injury. It doesn't appear to be a serious issue now, but if it continues Garnett will probably rest at the end of the season (during your fantasy playoffs) when the Celtics have the #1 seed locked up. -Ben Gordon's MRI showed no damage, so the Bulls leading [read more...]

Can a Window Be Closed Before It Opens?

Let me take you back, Bulls fans. Take you back a few years and a million lifetimes ago, before I ever had any foolish dreams about wanting to be a writer. Entering the 2003-04 season, Bill Cartwright was the coach of a young Bulls franchise that featured unproven young bucks: Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler, Jamal Crawford, Jay Williams, and a rookie [read more...]