SA is the only team that could give LA trouble... LA would still beat them in 5 or 6. Sac is a fraud.
Utah is a veteran Team Kings are a young team with vast potential. Kidrock is right Utahs gonna win this game. See how Stockton just hustled down for that ball on the floor. EXPERIENCE in the playoffs!
Are you kidding? The Lakers match up way too well against the Spurs. Duncan has problems offensively against Shaq, and considering Duncan might be the only player in the league right now to be completely carrying his team, I'd say the Spurs would win 1 game in a 7-game series. Dallas has the most potential to cause problems for LA. Don't even start talking about Dallas's record against LA in the last 20 games, either. Since they made the trade, they are 1-1 against the Lakers. First they blew out the Lakers by 20 in Dallas, then they lost by 1 point in LA. That team is practically custom-built to beat the Lakers. Dallas has the best shot. And yes, a year ago the Spurs had a better shot to beat LA (when Robinson wasn't a walking medical bill). But this ain't last year. The Kings have an equal or better chance than the Spurs to beat the Lakers.
Dallas is custom built to beat LA, if they had an inside scorer, and a guy who could deny Shaq position. Since there is no one who can deny Shaq position, there is no such thing as being custom built to stop LA. Dal would be very wise to attack the goal, get Shaq in foul trouble, and go from there. Or step on Shaq's sore toes. Dal is still the same type of finesse team. Finesse doesn't win you jack$hit in the playoffs. Inside game is what wins, and frankly Dal doesn't have it. SA actually does, which is why they could match with LA, better than anyone. LA would beat Dal in 5 games. You mention that Dal blew out LA, didn't SA blow out LA too? And since when did the regular season mean much to LA?
You didn't list FG percentage, and you didn't compare those numbers to his career numbers. Perhaps most importantly, you didn't mention the fact that he's never won a 2nd-round playoff game in his long career. He scores 20 a game in the playoffs, but 22 a game for his career in the regular season. He shoots 50 percent from the field for his career, but only 43 percent in the playoffs. He consistently lowers his level of play in the post-season -- he's the anti-clutch.
Juwan Howard was the only prayer Dallas had in slowing the Lakers down Who's going to guard Shaq? Dirk? Raef? umm they're going to be slaughtered If Dallas could control the boards.....
ttt The Jazz look to be getting the calls from the refs... Utah will win this game. It's 55-55 right now.
I seriously can't understand why the nba loves the jazz so much. they're old, play a slow and boring brand of basketball, cheat, flop, and are universally hated. plus they are on the way down and i would think you would want to promote the new teams plus set up the greatest possible matchup this year, sacramento vs dallas. yet time and again the jazz get call after call. i mean what was that fourth foul on webber? you think of shaq or kobe is standing there they call the foul or if webber did it to malone they give him his fourth. **** no. the ft's seem to be going to the kings but the actual close/judgment calls are all jazz all the way. has anyone kept count on how many times malone has done the tomahawk chop on vlade and pollard today with zero fouls called? i've seen at least 4. vlade just gets reached in on and falls down and it results in a marshall 3. make the call. and finally, would sacramento stop playing like ****. hit an open shot every once in a while anybody not named bibby or webber. pretend you are playing the rockets when you get these open shots.
Funny that you say they play a boring brand of ball. If anything, it's very similar to the Kings. Tons of movement away from the ball, and lots of open shots. The Jazz offense, objectively, is a beatiful offense to watch as the play develops.
The Kings are now officially my least favorite team. I don't know why, other than that little b**** Divac, but I can't stand them. Any team that has me rooting for the Jazz...
i'm speaking from the general perspective of what is considered boring. they are slowing the game down as much as possible and just praying sacramento can't shoot and that the refs will give them every call. i'm not saying it isn't what they should do, i'm just saying i don't think the general nba fan is thinking jazz ball=exciting.
and the officiating is taking on epic proportions. stockton and malone with the back to back flops. didn't webber just get knocked down by malone? why wasn't it the same call as on bibby.
well ok that was a nice blocking foul on stockton there. could've been a charge, i'm proud of that ref.
GAME THREE - 4th Quarter this **** is absolutely ridiculous Stockton is floppin so much Vlade's last foul was atrocious - MAJOR flop by Malone If give Sac Town major props is they manage to win this game. . . cause they will have truly earned This series will go 5 .. . . .. NBA working it's mojo Rocket River
Since when did the Kings become the Lakers? I can buy the Lakers getting preferential treatment from the officials, considering they're in a huge market and have won back to back championships. But the Kings are in one of the smallest markets in the league and haven't won a second round game in the Chris Webber era. 1:30 left, Jazz up 3, and they had this game... until the officials came in. In the last two minutes, there usually has to be blood to call a foul. (At least that's what I was told after Shaq hacked Duncan in the earlier Lakers-Spurs game) But, Kirilenko plays good, straight up defense on Stojakovic, and the officials call a foul. Next trip down, Stockton has position, and Bibby just runs him over... officials call a block. There's four points to the Kings given as a gift by the officials. The result? A three point Kings win. I take one statement back, though: if the Kings play the Lakers, they might actually have a shot to win, if it remains 8 on 5 basketball like it was in this game.
