Fair dig, but hey, you try chasing Kobe up and down the court for 40+ minutes, and see how many points he puts up. I'm happy that at the end of regulation, he had only 36. He's been a beast of late.
Toast, if the Rocks depended on me to defend unnamed Laker swingman for just 30 seconds, I would've been waived on the spot (unless I passed out first). The Rocks probably wouldn't have given me a ride home, either.
Live, did you just say that a 7'5 anchor to a defense should not be asked to help perimeter defenders keep the record-setter scoring freak from getting to the rim. That is what Yao Ming is for. sheesh back to topic, as for the flop: did you really credit Phil Jackson for that, Will. What about Moochie's inbounds play. Can I credit Rudy with that? The flop with 29 seconds left and the ball not even in play ranks as one of the worst calls I've ever seen. I cannot believe a referee could consider that. Yeah, let's take the ball away from the inbounding team and foul out their center, so we can justify our piddly existence rather than letting the players decide the outcome. Ball not even in play and Yao 18' out with his back to the basket. g a r b a g e
He went to Stanford, and plays good heady basketball...did you see him role to the hole on the pick and role? Did you see the way he stayed within his capabilities? There is no implication, the guy is flat out a smart player, doesn't mean he is that good, just smart. DD
No, what I wrote (or implied) was that you put in more effort to protect your 7'5" defensive "anchor." Kobe's (so much for remaining nameless) a freak, but there were times where he just blew by Cat, particularly during crunch time. How about forcing him to the middle, or giving him a step? How about trapping Kobe the same way team trap Steve? And for what it's worth, quit pointing out his frickin' height like it's some revelation! We all know how big he is, but we also know he's not explosive and can be victimized by quick, explosive players. In other words, you're expecting Yao Ming to become Hakeem Olajuwon, and that's not happening. Yao is a position defender, and genuinely needs defensive support from his teammates, particularly against the Kobes and McGradys of the league. But I guess that's all a part of the (Mis)Education of Yao Ming & the Rockets.
I like one thing about Madsen, and dislike another. I like the fact that he tries hard. I dislike the fact that he's only effective if he's successful in tricking the refs. It wasn't just the flop w/Yao... he easily had half a dozen uncalled fouls. He fouls on most of his "hustle" plays. One Laker fan poster mentioned that he usually fouls out quickly... he should have fouled out long before overtime in this game. Flopping isn't veteran savvy. It's lame. We need something akin to the soccer rule ("diving" is greeted w/a yellow card if it's determined). There should be a penalty for trying to cheat.
Cuttino Mobley probably remembers Mark Madsen well from the 1998 NCAA tournament when his Rhode Island team was beaten in the Great Eight by Stanford after leading by 6 points with 60 seconds left. The crucial play being a Mobley turnover that led to a Mark Madsen dunk and a three point play. In another game in the same tournament, Madsen was matched against Brad Miller of Purdue. Being 4-5 inches taller, Miller should have dominated Madsen, but instead Miller was sent out of the game 3 times by Madsen to get stitches on his chin, and Stanford won the game. After the game, the Stanford coach remarked that Miller hit Madsen's elbow with his chin so many times that he was concerned about the health of Madsen's elbow . Anyway, the point is that despite being slow, untalented, and a dirty player, Madsen always try his hardest at whatever's necessary for him to contribute and overachieve, while our talented rockets players always find ways (and excuses) for losing to teams that doesn't even belong in the same class (talent-wise) as them.
I would much rather have a good cheerleader than someone that just sits the bench and picks his nose. Seriously though, I don't know how the Lakers keep a straight face with all his gyrations when he gets excited. I'd be rolling on the court laughing.
And I wrote that that is an excuse. You don't "protect" your anchor. The anchor protects you. You got it all turned around, imo. I really don't even think this is arguable.
He's got absolutely no basketball talent whatsoever. All he has is crazy frenetic energy and effort. How can you not root for a guy who basically has no right to be in the NBA? Man, I've seen playground ballers with more skill than Madsen. But by all accounts, he's a great, friendly guy and despite his pathetic skills, he's hugely popular in LA. He's incredibly positive, he's smart (Stanford graduate), speaks fluent Spanish, and always has a smile on his face. He might as well be the Lakers mascot. Let this guy have his day in the sun.
That is exactly why we need a guy like him. He has very limited skills but plays within himself and helps the team. Our problem is that we have all these guys who claim to have alot of skill (eddie g, t mo, cat, franchise etc.) that try to do too much. Imagine if Eddie played as hard as Madsen and set screens, rebounded, loos balls, and ONLY shot layups.
