Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Brooms in da house! - NBA playoff notes - 06/14/2007

The Spurs thankfully put this dog to rest as they swept the Cavs and ended one of the most boring NBA finals ever that recorded some of the worst TV ratings. The Cavs seemed to fight and give it a good effort in game 4, but they are just not in the same class as the Spurs. No Timmy, no problem for the Spurs as the finals MVP Tony Parker led the charge again. He scored 24 on 10/14 shots and Ginobli had 27 on 8/19. Timmy had an off-night shooting just 4/15 for 12 points and 15 boards. Cavs were led by LeBron's 24, but he had a tough shooting night hitting just 10/30. Trial by fire for LeBron as he had to face a tough Spurs team in his first finals and just couldn't do much.

This defeat might be the best thing to happen for the King because all his limitations got exposed. He usually skates through the regular season with his raw athleticism, but when you get to this level, only the best of the best survive. Also the microscope is on you as everybody is watching. They are not going to just catch a glimpse or two of your dunks on Sportscenter and say you are the best. Experts like Bill Walton and Tim Legler pointed out how his game is still growing and pretty limited. He is not a great jump shooter, he doesn't really have a dependable mid-range shot and his post-up game is not yet there. All areas of improvement for him if he takes the criticisms positively. I think this will wake up the King and motivate him. He can't just blame his teammates for all this, his game has to improve too. But the Cavs better work on their team as well because the King needs some help. They can use a new coach too if you ask me, but it'll be hard to change Mike Brown after a finals trip.

As for the Spurs, they are now a dynasty having won 4 rings out of 9 years. These playoffs were great for them just looking at the development of Tony Parker. This guy took another step in his growth and is now becoming an unstoppable force. His jumper is becoming very reliable and is even starting to hit 3's. The league better watch out for this stud. With Ginobli and Duncan already at their peak and Tony joining them there, the Spurs should be good for another ring or 3. They'll try and win it back to back as thats one thing they have not done yet. That'll cement them as a dynasty and I am sure Pop has already started using that as the motivation for next season.

San Antonio @ Cleveland - 83-82

No comments: