Well, that was fun. Amazing happened.
With the recent conclusion of the NBA season, it is easy to
forget all of the great stories in the wake of the Miami Heat's ascendancy into
a borderline dynasty. But that is a different conversation that has been
literally beaten into the ground by real sporting news outlets. Let's recall
some of the good that we witnessed in the Eastern Conference this season that
we may have forgotten...
1. LeBron
He was the unequivocally the best, but I think we have all OD'ed on the
slow-motion coronation of King James. Next topic.
The Knickerbockers finally won a playoff series for
the first time in 12 years. The Mike Woodson "spread the floor and fire
away" approach to basketball was perfect for this team, setting a league
record for most three's made in a season with 4 games to spare. J.R. Smith had
a great regular season, earning the sixth man of the year award. Carmelo's
stretch in early April when he averaged 40 points over 6 games was a sight to
behold. Hopefully an increasingly injury-raddled and obsolete Amar'e Stoudemire
can miraculously heal and help lead this team to the promised land, namely sequential
playoff series wins.
The guy with the most average name in the
NBA did some pretty un-average things in the regular and post-season. He did
not all of a sudden emerge during the Heat series. That was just when most of us
noticed how good this kid is. He was a fantasy stalwart on my team all season
long, emerging to fill the void that the Danny Granger injury left. The Pacers
have a baller that will ball at a high level for a long time.
Yes,
naysayers, I realize that I have simply reflected the Eastern conference
standings in this post. Good things come to those that wait.
Sans Derrick Rose. Seriously, as good as the NBA
(post) season was, can you imagine the mayhem that would've ensued had Derrick
Rose returned mid-series against the Heat? In the era of supposed NBA on-court
apathy (and the tired complaints of how professional basketball players don't
try), how great was it to watch the little giant Nate Robinson on the sidelines
losing his lunch one minute, and the next minute pulling this out of his bag of tricks? (Kris, we know, double dribble!) As we often learn, grit doesn't put
the ball in the basket. Even Uncle Drew knows that this game is, and always
will be, about buckets. Once-MVP Rose could've helped in that department.
Once upon a time during my recreational
soccer glory days, my team was short a player and the overzealous soccer moms on
our team had the brilliant idea of sneaking my little brother onto my team to
fill the space. Three years my junior, I was a bit worried for his safety, but he
ended up being all-conference at his high school, so the kid could ball. Despite
giving up on average 50 or 60 pounds to his adversaries, he had a few moments
where he made the older kids look silly, but on the whole was irrelevant. That
was the Bucks series, my little brother was Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings,
and the kids that could legitimately beat my brother were LeBron James, Dwayne Wade,
and company.
The Bucks are the most entertaining bad team to
watch this season due to a glorious form of hero ball. They really need to lose the 1980's Christmas
color scheme, though.
Velociraptor. Praying Mantis. Alien. Weird.
Another reason to hate on the Heat.
But everyone can agree on this.
Best of the 2012-2013 Western Conference is
up next.
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