David Stern Is A Joke

The more I think of how David Stern is running the NBA, the more I think he is turning the NBA into a laughingstock. This guy has simply got to go to ensure the viability of the NBA as a sports league. I mean this is getting completely out of hand. Most of us understand what Stern is trying to do, but he is going about it the wrong way.

Now you might think that the picture posted is a bit extreme and that Stern isn't that bad, but just consider the case of the San Antonio Spurs. That team (which is the league's most successful since 1999) keeps getting screwed by the commish. Their most recent offense was sitting older players during a brutal road stretch. The team had a 6 game road trip and was in its final game in that trip. They had to play several in a row and needed to rest a few guys, including the 36 year old Tim Duncan.

Let's not forget either that Gregg Popovich kind of knows what he is doing. The guy has 4 NBA Titles to his credit and has kept the Spurs the class of the NBA despite his franchise player being 36 years old. Don't you think Pop knows best when his guys need a rest. Especially the older players like Duncan and Ginobili. Instead, Stern interjected saying the Spurs were going against the interest of the league and the paying fans. Do we really think the folks in Miami care about Duncan playing? Maybe a few of them, but the overwhelming majority of them were thrilled to see a great game, that the hometown Heat won. In fact the 105-100 game is one of the best games so far in this young season. Perhaps, Stern should thank Pop for making it close, but no a punishment came down instead.

A punishment to the tune of a $250,000 fine. Are you kidding me? A fine for resting old players the NBA is setting a horrible standard here. You notice how despite this happening routinely in every sport, the Spurs are the 1st team in any sport to be fined for this action. I guess because they are the Spurs and Stern hates that the non-marquee team keeps looking great.

Maybe that's why he keeps letting Joey Crawford ref Spurs playoff games. The same Joey Crawford that gave Tim Duncan 2 technicals in one game when he was sitting on the bench. The same Joey Crawford that was outed by convict Tim Donaghy as having a vendetta against Tim Duncan. You see Donaghy passed this information off to bookies so that they could bet against the Spurs when Crawford was ref. It just so happens that every series the Spurs have been knocked out of recently, Joey Crawford has been the ref. Pretty interesting.

If that isn't enough, just consider that Crawford and Donaghy were allowed to ref at any point in the league. Crawford still is allowed to ref. If you don't think he is that bad, click on his name in the tab and watch some videos of him as ref.

Side Note: The Spurs may still win a title before Stern or Crawford retire because they are the best team. However, I guarantee that the season that Stern steps aside, the San Antonio Spurs will be NBA Champions.

David Stern is a complete joke. Many people think the NBA is fixed. I agree that certain series seem fixed. If he really wants to help the NBA and make it as successful as the MLB, then he will stop giving off the impression that the league is fixed. Fix that and it will have much greater benefit than who is on the teams. Clean games with good officiating will appeal to the masses. When fans feel their team is cheated, it drives people away.

-Noland

How I Feel About Lebron Winning a Title

Good for him, now...

He still isn't Jordan, Duncan, Kobe, etc. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Lebron, but I think he gets too much love sometimes. However, he does get too much hate too so I don't know. Sometimes I wonder why Lebron is so polarizing, it's like most people think he is the best ever and some people think he is the most overrated player in the history of sport. I think he is a really good player, that may be the best in the game, but is overrated still. Why do I say that? Read on..

Lebron now has 3 MVPs. Yes, MVPs. Tim Duncan only has two MVPs. Duncan has taken a cast of misfits that nobody else wanted to the top of the West year in and year out. Well, Lebron did that in Cleveland right? WRONG! Cleveland made the Finals once in an inferior Eastern Conference and got their clocks cleaned by Duncan's Spurs. Additionally, Danny Green was a unused scrub in Cleveland, he goes to San Antonio and is a starter. You cannot argue with these things. Even if you consider that a coincidence you can not ignore the fact that Lebron failed in Cleveland and wrecked the franchise before he went out.

I don't blame Lebron for wrecking the Cavs because he was doing what he thought was right, but he wanted ownership to make moves that weren't in their best interest and then left them hanging. It is a big reason why people don't like him. The worst of these moves in my opionion were the horrible trade for Antawn Jamison that ate salary cap and put a useless (at that point) player into a starting role for the Cavs and the re-signing of Anderson Varajao. The latter just isn't that good of a player and James advocated for his re-signing because he was close with the forward.

Then there is the decision. Again, I do not really blame James too much for the decision. He was an immature guy who wanted to do what kids do while committing to college. James missed that by going straight to the league so he wanted to get that. To feed his ego he decided to make it an hr long thing instead of a 10 second announcement. After being dubbed "King James" can you really blame him though. Also given the 2 yr old tirade that the Cavs owner threw after James left, can you really blame James. He wasn't able to grow up, because he was the guy always. Kobe had Shaq when he was immature, Duncan was never immature, but he had Robinson and Jordan well Jordan was Jordan.

To sum it all up Lebron James was a person everyone always told was great and he didn't have a real mentor. He thought he would get it with Riley and that is why I think he went to the Heat when it all boils down. I know that is not what most people think, but hey it's my blog. He also didn't go to college, which you can't forget. Duncan went to a great school for four years when he attended Wake Forest. Also when Duncan came out of school, he had David Robinson right there with him. Lebron had to be the guy right away. I think Duncan is the example all should follow, but some just can't and Lebron was one of those.

At the end of the day everyone knew Lebron would eventually get a title. Most of us just didn't think it would come this soon. The NBA wanted it now and they got their wish. Joe Crawford looked like he was at the top of the list on that venture. You already know how I feel about Joey Crawford though. Lebron and company said they weren't talking about 5, or 6 titles, but more. Well they got that 1st one and I think it changes little. I still say that even with the super teamup they don't even get to Duncan's 4 titles. In fact I think Duncan is more likely to get another title than the Heat are to match him.

-Noland

The NBA Refs Make the NBA More Like Pro Wrestling Than Sport

Don't get me wrong, basketball is my favorite sport, but enough is enough with these refs. Are you kidding me? These NBA Finals are almost torture to watch because of all the blown calls. In fact I am done watching these playoffs because it is so bad. I don't know if the fix is in or it is just incompetence, but this is horrible. If Joey Crawford is the best the NBA has to offer, then I think it is time to get some new refs. College basketball never calls games this horribly.

The no call of Lebron on Durant in Game 2 was horrible. Almost as bad was last night when Lebron cleared with his elbow three times and a foul was called...on Harden. WHAT????

Why do I dislike Joey Crawford so much? I think the better question is why do we know a refs name? You only know the bad ones? Crawford has had some absolutely terrible calls throughout the years, here are some of his worst. These aren't just bad calls, these are horrible errors.

Joey Crawford is so bad, there is a petition online to get him banned from being an NBA ref. Sign it here.

During the Tim Donaghy scandal, Donaghy said that he would tell bookies which team to bet on based on the refs assigned to that team one of them was Joey Crawford against the Spurs. That is just crazy right, well watch these two instances.

The 1st one was Brent Barry and while it was not the worst call ever, I cannot believe that officials at the highest level would miss it, how do you miss that call? Barry was clearly fouled by Fisher. Then there is the Duncan video below that where Tim Duncan was ejected while he was on the bench. He was on the bench. Come on! There was absolutely no reason for Crawford to make those calls.

Next up, is a "foul" where Joey Crawford said Marcus Camby was choking Steve Nash. Why don't you look at where Nash was and look at where Camby was. No way Nash was getting choked.

That foul was bad, but have you ever seen a referee take out a player and then call a foul to cover up his error? Well, if not, you will in a second.

Then there is the Perkins technical when Perkins did nothing wrong other than go straight up. It should have been a foul on Jones.

Then there is the Kenyon Martin ejection for a normal foul. What is wrong with Crawford?

If the NBA wants to eliminate conspiracy theorists, the 1st step has to be the removal of Joey Crawford from NBA games. Having him do the most important series of the year does not help. Especially, given the fact that he is the head ref. There are many more instances of Crawford abuse throughout the years, the guy has to go.

-Noland

Why the Spurs Title Window is NOT Shut

Recently, the Spurs looked like an unstoppable machine. They hadn't lost a game in 50 days and started 10-0 in the playoffs. Then the Thunder came in, hungry and ready to win. Oklahoma City was younger and more athletic and they played like the best team in the NBA and won 4 straight games to win the series. After the series the inevitable questions about whether the Spurs run had ended started creeping up again, just like any other time the Spurs get knocked out. The simple answer to that question is no.

First off, the officiating was beyond terrible. I am not one to try to get into this too much, but Joey Crawford SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED to ref Spurs games. Perhaps he should not be allowed to ref any game. The first thought in the mind of any Spurs fan when they see Joey Crawford reffing the game is, why is this turkey reffing our game. Crawford is the guy who gave Duncan the double technical from the bench. He is also the guy who Tim Donaghy (the guy who fixed games) talked about with his bookies. Donaghy told the bookies to pick against the Spurs when Crawford was the ref. You can look it up. It is horrible that Crawford can referee the pivotal Western Conference Final matchup. I don't think it had a large impact on the outcome, but it had an impact. It is also clear that the NBA is doing everything it can to get the Heat and Thunder in the NBA Finals. Just despicable. Here is Duncan and Popovich talking about the loss.

Anyways, back to the Spurs. It wasn't all about the officials, the Spurs looked bad in at least two games this series. However, they aren't done. How can you suggest a team that won 20 straight games and 10 in the playoffs is done? These sports writers kill me with this one. They have the greatest power forward of all time. They have a PG that nearly won the MVP (and probably should have). They have the greatest coach in the league, who is fresh off a coach of the year award. Sure changes have to be made, but those changes will be made and the Spurs will be right back in the thick of it like always. Tim Duncan will not go out like this.

-Noland