The following is a text I received on Christmas morning: “Merry Christmas Michael! Hope you are having a good day and watching some NBA!”
And that just about sums up my day yesterday. The gift giving (and receiving) were just about overshadowed by the thrill of the long-awaited opening day. The combination of these two was almost just too much for me to handle. So much joy, hope, and excitement for the new year. Just to give you an idea of how my priorities lay, I sent one Merry Christmas text, but analyzed the day’s games with 12 different people over the phone. Gifts are great, but after the disappointing beginning to Vandy’s basketball season, I need some Grizz. So here are my thoughts on opening day.
First, props to the Holcombs for their song, “Live Forever,” being used in the TNT promo clip. That was pretty cool. A little confusing, theme wise (yes, I get the whole “forever” aspect of it) but a pretty awesome video nonetheless.
As for the Celtics-Knicks game, what a way to start the year. Fourth quarter dramatics between two huge-market teams make for a great opening game. While the Knicks did win the game, and Kevin Garnett made sure to reinforce my hatred for the Celtics with his post-game chokehold, I am not sure the Knicks are the better team. Aside from the pretty tough call that got ‘Melo to the line to hit the game winning free throws, the Knicks offense was terrible. It just so happens that they can rely on Carmelo and a little Amare to get them through a game. But the ball movement (outassisted by 11), spacing, rebounding (outrebounded 41-31) looked terrible. Tyson Chandler, whom everyone thinks is a perfect fit for the Knicks, had a pillowy soft 7 and 3, with 5 of his 7 from the stripe. Not a great night. Unfortunately, Rondo looked great with 31-5-13. He also looked like an alien, but that’s just hearsay. I think the Celtics, if they can outlast their age, will finish ahead of the Knicks this year unless significant improvements are made. Still, the Bulls and the Heat are the elite of the East. The Celtics are the top of the next tier.
Next came the Heat-Mavericks game. In a game in which the Mavs presented their trophy to the city, they looked like they had lost motivation for this year. The first half was all Heat. I am not the biggest Heat fan in the world, but I also don’t hate them like so many do. But regardless of one’s feelings for the team, they looked amazing. Their ball movement was remarkable. The defense was unrelenting. At one point in the second quarter, they were up 51-27. On the defending champions. It was never a game after the first quarter. Whenever the Mavs would make a great play, the Heat would score in the next seven seconds. After a big three by the Mavs, Lebron took the ball in, and four seconds later scored a lay-up plus a foul. A healthy Udonis Haslam and Shane are really going to help the Heat this year. Plus if King James can put up 37-10-6 every night, and only play for 36 minutes, the Heat are in pretty good shape. Sure, the final score didn’t look so bad, but if you watched the game, you know how scary good the Heat looked.
On a related note, Jeff Van Gundy is still my favorite announcer in the NBA. His cynical honesty, plus his supreme knowledge of the game make him fantastic to listen to. Also, he made a great point about NBA league pass: they are still charging full price for the package this year despite the decrease in games and season length. That’s ridiculous.
Now the next three games I wasn’t able to watch as closely. So here are some very brief thoughts from the games:
Derek Rose is the coolest player in the NBA. If his 3-pointer stays this much improved (4-6 last night), then he could be the best player in the NBA too.
Black Mamba should have either pulled up for the jumper or passed. No way he was hitting that shot. But a great end to the game.
I’m sorry, maybe I am missing something, but I just don’t get the love for Russell Westbrook. I’m just not that impressed. 35% shooting and 6 assists? Not very good for a point guard. Also, he still looks kinda like a frog.
Kendrick Perkins makes the Thunder even more hatable.
Kevin Durant is a boss.
Lob City just wasn’t very exciting. Chris Paul is awesome, and they have the sweetest jerseys, but that game was not fun to watch. And David Lee outplayed Blake Griffin. Whatever.
All that to say, let’s get rowdy for the Grizz tonight. Take down the Spurs and get ready for the home opener against the Thunder. Get Loud.
Medwards
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