2008 NBA Playoffs: Watch it Happen

What do you get when a mix of veteran players and rising young stars follow up the greatest regular season in eons with a first round for the ages? Well that would be the 2008 NBA playoffs. If you're anything like me, you figured there was no way the playoffs could live up to the hype of the regular season. I mean com'on, eight 50 win teams in the west, the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons battling for the East, Chris Paul and Deron Williams vying to be the NBA's next great point guard. How could the post-season live up to these kind of expectations?

Yet, here we are, only a week into the playoffs and Kobe has already joined Sir Charles and others in the 40/10 club, Dwight Howard has joined Wilt and Nate in the back-to-back 20/20 club, and Chris Paul is keeping company with a short list of legends as well in the back-to-back 30/10 club--including a ridiculous 35 point 17 assist performance in game two. Oh, and how can we forget game 1 of the western conference finals, er, I mean the first round match-up between the Suns and Spurs. That game had more endings than Steven Spielberg's AI, but this time it was a good thing. How many game "winners" can one game have?

So after a first week so exciting it makes one wish the playoffs would never end, what can we possibly expect from week two? Well here are five things that you can count on in the next week.

5 - Get Out the Brooms
As exciting as the playoffs have been so far it doesn't look like the Hawks have any chance against the Celtics (no surprise there). What is unique about the Celtics/Hawks series, however, is that it appears to be the only series that will likely produce a sweep. There are a few series that could potentially lead to a sweep, but in all likelihood the lower seeded team will find a way to get a game or two while at home, just as the Raptors did against the Magic on Thursday.

4 - Doubt Your MVP Choice
It's a good thing that CP3 and Kobe don't play on the same day, because if they did our heads would explode trying to choose an MVP. Seemingly every time either one of these guys takes the court they convince you that they should've been the choice for MVP. Hopefully they'll find a way to meet in the Western Conference Finals and provide some closure to the argument. So for now just listen to Terrell Owens and get your popcorn ready, because you're going to change your mind at least four more times this week.

3 - Tracy McGrady Will Take the Blame
Seems like each year we have this conversation, of course we used to say the same things about Kevin Garnett. Why can't T-Mac get out of the first round? Why does T-Mac fade in the fourth quarter? What is keeping the Rockets from getting over the hump? Somehow one of the league's true good guys--the sleepy eyed McGrady--takes the blame for not carrying his teams LeBron style through the playoffs. Well let's try to pardon T-Mac for only getting the Yao-less rag-tag Rockets homecourt in the brutal Western Conference. McGrady can only get them there and give them a chance to win late before he's totally tapped out. So maybe he's not LeBron, but T-Mac is still great, so even though everyone will blame him for the loss, we really shouldn't.

2 - Cry us a River
There is no doubt that some superstar in the Western Conference is going to get eliminated and give us a teary display of emotion at the post-game press conference. Who is it going to be? My leading candidates are the aforementioned Tracy McGrady,--who may cry at the press conference even if they win--Allen Iverson, Dirk Nowitzki, Amare Stoudemire, and my dark horse candidate for the weepy award, Chris Webber, who may finally realize he's retired. So grab a box of tissues and cry along with them, because the closer we get to the end of this NBA season the sadder we should all be.

1. Your Jaw will Drop
If there is one certainty in the next week, it is that something amazing is about to happen. How could it not? Records are being challenged everyday already and we're not even half way through with the first round. So sit back and enjoy what you're about to see, because we may not see anything this good again in a long long time.

PS. Hopefully it is just the TNT guys who don't realize that Kobe didn't jump a car and there wasn't any computer tricks either. How complicated is the concept that the car drove next to Kobe while he jumped simultaneously? I find it amusing that they talk about this video so much and they still haven't figured out how they did it... I mean com'on, I bet your average 4th grader would know after watching it once.

PPS. The potential of the Hornets v Spurs should have you drooling. Tony Parker and CP3 going head-to-head, Duncan and David West, the grumpy champs and the upstart Hornets--oh man it's going to be good.

Enjoy the next week everyone! I know I will.

10 Ways to Stop Your Favorite Athlete

Ever watch your favorite athlete and think there's no way they could possibly be stopped? Well think again, here are some sure fire ways to stop your favorite jersey sporting members of society.

Kobe Bryant
Zone defenses and triple coverage don't stand a chance versus Kobe, but he'll stop dead in his tracks for 19 year-old hotel workers from out of town. Could this open up additional roster opportunities for spry youngsters in the NBA?

LeBron James
Think LeBron is dominant in the NBA? You should have seen him in high school where he was literally a man among boys. Despite his apparent dominance he was totally shut down for several of his final high school games. Apparently he hasn't figured out how to penetrate the double team that came from Gale Sayers and Wes Unseld.

Randy Moss
We've seen him be slowed down by injuries and his own Raider teammates but there is one thing that can't slow him down. He blows through parking officers in front of his car as easily as safeties in a cover two. Heck, he didn't even miss a start!

Michael Jordan
The legendary MJ wasn't slowed down by much during his career. What Sir Charles, Hakeem, and many others could not do, however, was--allegedly--accomplished by a drug dealer and several big stakes golfers, forcing Jordan to the bench for two controversial years. Who needs the Jordan rules when you've got a sick short game?

Allen Iverson
No one can keep up with AI's crossover, even as a rookie Iverson set scoring records in place since Wilt roamed the Earth. What no defender has, however, is a warrant and a pair of handcuffs. If you want proof that AI was stymied just look at this mug shot (left). Obviously juking defenders out of their shoes is a more heralded skill than kicking your wife out naked, but AI has mastered both moves.

Barry Bonds
There's no curveball he can't belt and no fastball he can't punish, but after instilling fear in pitchers in both leagues for over twenty seasons he was finally sat down when prosecutors threw the book at him. Maybe teams should be calling players out of law school instead of the minors to stare Bonds down at the plate?

Milton Bradley
Usually professional baseball players count on coaches and umpires to keep the players at the top of their games. In Bradley's case, however, beating out a single became the least of his worries when the first base coach and umpire tag-teamed him. Bradley may need to reinvigorate his game now that opponents know how to trip up his game.

Reggie Bush
Defenders had a hard enough time tackling Bush while he was in front of them, let alone while trying to catch him from behind. NFL defenders haven't been much more successful, but that didn't stop the NCAA and a sports agent from tracking him down and claiming he broke the rules. Will Bush outrun these allegations? Or will his NCAA career be stiff-armed out of the record books?

The Fab Five
It always seemed like the Fab Five was too good to be true. How could such an elite group of basketball players all assemble at one place at one time? Turns out that there were a few things that could stop them, mostly it was themselves. In their final foray of futility all their accomplishments were wiped away from the books when the NCAA uncovered multiple violations. Webber and crew may need an extra timeout to figure out how to recover from this one.

Nancy Kerrigan
In the ultimate display of win at all costs, Olympic favorite Nancy Kerrigan was knee-capped in plain sight by thugs hired by competitor Tonya Harding. Is there any greater example of going the extra mile to stop your opponent? Perhaps next time Nancy should just triple toe loop sow cow out of there? Meanwhile, Harding should probably just learn how to triple toe loop and she won't need to hire thugs to make the team.

So there you have it. Ten ways to slow down some of the highest paid and most talented athletes in the country. So next time the announcer yells, "He's unstoppable!" You'll know better, because trouble may be just around the corner.

Who/What is the 2008 NBA MVP?

With the NBA season drawing to a close it's time for the inevitable question we ask this time each year, "Who is this year's MVP?" and more importantly, what the heck makes someone the MVP? The NBA MVP award is a bit of an enigma, for some reason people have a hard time agreeing what exactly the MVP should accomplish during the season. Is it the best player on the best team? As was the case the last three years with Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki? Is it the single most dominant player? Such as Shaq, Kobe and Lebron over the last few seasons? Or is it some combination of these factors along with additional intangibles? Whatever makes a player your MVP there is probably only a small pool of players left that satisfy any traditional criteria, so let's take a look and see what case each can make to win this year's award.

Kobe Bryant
The best player on a team that will probably finish in one of the top three seeds in the ultra competitive Western Conference, Kobe is widely regarded as, "the best" player in the NBA this year. He is a fan favorite and a clutch performer but with late season struggles and no one dominant statistical category it may be tough to make a case for Kobe. Despite this he'd probably win the award if it was given today.

Chris Paul
A dynamic young point guard, Paul has carried--along with David West--the Hornets to the top of the Western Conference and could very well secure home court throughout the Western Conference playoffs. Few other players have done so much with so little around them and if he wins no one will question the decision as long as the Hornets make noise in the playoffs.

LeBron James
If there is anyone who has elevated his team more than LeBron they don't play in the NBA. The Cavs are a terrible team without LeBron and a four seed with him so his impact is undeniable. He is the only player capable of challenging Kobe for the best player in the NBA title as well so he makes a strong case to be this year's MVP. The only pitfall is that he is only a four seed in the weak Eastern Conference and would be nothing more than an also ran in the West.

Kevin Garnett
The best player on the best team in the NBA, Garnett has turned the Celtics completely around in only one season with some help from Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. The Celtics success is Garnett's greatest asset in the race because his individual numbers are not fantastic. He is a long shot in the race but he has to be considered the strongest candidate outside of the previous three players.

The Field
Several other players have no chance of winning the award but have merited some mention in the discussion. Amare Stoudemire has been spectacular for most of the season for the Suns this year, helping turn the Shaq-periment into a success for the time being. Tracy McGrady has displayed his impact on the Rockets by helping them to 22 straight wins earlier this year. His early season struggles and late season fade, however, will keep him from hoisting the trophy. Kevin Garnett's Celtic teammate Paul Pierce has drawn praise for his pivotal contribution to the team's success but again he'll lose out because he's not even the best player on his own team.

However you define the MVP award, there are plenty of people who are voting on the award that disagree with you. This makes the NBA one of the most interesting, and yet, meaningless regular season awards in all of pro sports. Despite this, they are still going to give the award to someone in a few weeks so we might as well sit back and enjoy the show as the top contenders try to make their final pushes.