ESPN has impeccable design sensibility

Only reason ESPN did this was so all the pictures would match and everything would be symmetrical.  This IS NOT the way the actual MVP voting is going to go.

Credit: New Beantown Butt Boy

DO NOT ANGER LEBRON

 

 

 

Can you imagine seeing LeBron look at you like that on the basketball court while you're between him and the basket?  Jesus Christmas.  He's fun to watch when he realizes he can do anything he wants on the court and nobody can stop him.

Midseason Recap

I know this is a few days late now, but I figured I'd go back over my initial predictions for this season, hand out Chuck's midseason awards and make some second half predictions. 

First to recap my previews of the Northwest and Pacific Divisions.

Out in the Northwest, it was no secret going in to this season that K. Smooth and the fellas would easily conquer the competition and grab a top 3 seed in the West.  My real brilliance came in with the 62-20 record prediction.  Currently the Thunder sit at 39-14 and if they continue with their current win rate, they will end up 63-19.  I'd say that makes me a fucking genius.

The major mistakes I made in the Northwest were predicting the Minnesota Timberwolves as the 2nd place team and the Jazz to only win 1 game.  In my defense on the outlandish Minnesota prediction, they have been decimated by injuries this year and Kevin Love has only played in 18 games (posting averages of 18+ppg and 14rpg).  No way a team that has traveled at times with only 7 people to away games is going to have a winning season.  As for the Jazz, the liquor laws in Salt Lake City have not been loosened so they are bound to falter under the pressure of the home stretch. 

In the Pacific, I was pretty damn close sans the meltdown out in Lakerland that no one in the entire world saw coming.  As long as the Warriors stay the course, they'll actually be better than my 43-39 prediction (47-35) and they'll be a 5/6 seed in the playoffs.  NO ONE can want to play this Warrior team.  If Bogut actually rounds into form so they have an inside presence and if Steph Curry stays healthy, I think they can surprise the Clippers or Grizzlies in the first round.  I was also able to correctly predict horrible, atrocious, embarrassing teams in both Sacramento and Phoenix, but that's nothing to write home about.

Midseason Awards:

MVP: Kevin Durant (I'm the biggest Kevin Durant apologist in the world, but this may be the tightest MVP race ever.)

Rookie of the Year: Damien Lillard in a landslide (Notice I didn't mention the idiotic prediction I made regarding him in the preseason.)

Defensive Player of the Year: Larry Sanders (Video game like block numbers, gets the nod in a surprise over Tyson Chandler)

6th Man of the Year: Jamal Crawford (17ppg off the bench, could also make a case for J.R. Smith but he has cooled off from the beginning of the year.  Honorable Mention: Kevin Martin)

Most Improved Player: YOUR Jrue Holiday (Ridiculous year.  19 and 9 up from 13.5 and 4.5 last year.  Paul George is also a strong candidate here especially with how he has carried Indiana without Danny Granger but I'm a homer so Jrue gets the nod.)

Coach of the Year:  Mark Jackson (Look at the turnaround.  That's enough evidence right there.) George Karl gets honorable mention. (Has Denver playing incredible basketball with no All-Stars and really no go-to scorer.)

All NBA Team: I'm going to do the same thing the All-Star game did and pick two back court and three front court players.  Back Court: Chris Paul and Tony Parker (I really wanted to put James Harden in here because he is carrying Houston, but could not ignore Tony Parker scoring 20 a game on 54% from the field while dishing out 8 assits).  Front Court: Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony

Eastern Conference Finals: Miami Heat vs. New York Knicks
Sleeper: Chicago Bulls.  If Joakim Noah can get healthy and Poohdini returns anywhere close to where he was last year, I honestly believe they could beat the Heat in the second round.

Western Conference Finals: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. San Antonio Spurs
No Sleeper here.  No chance.

NBA Finals: Miami Heat vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Not so sleeper: San Antonio Spurs.  Would not surprise me in the least to see Pop take Timmy D and the gang to South Beach.

NBA Champion: Oklahoma City Thunder.  One reason, Kevin Durant.  He is having one of the greatest scoring seasons of all time and as long as Russ Russ gets him the ball in the clutch instead of blindfolding himself and taking wild layup attempts, the Thunder will take down the Heat in Game 7 in Oklahoma City.

BronBron Done Did It Again

What more can you say?  Marquee matchup right before the All Star Break.  Finals rematch, with 2 of the 3 best records in the league.  Bron vs KSmoov.  And Bron steals the show yet again.  39 points, 12 boards, 7 assists, 2 steals.  Shot only 58%, missing out on continuing his 60% streak because he took a long 3 pointer with a minute left in the game as the shot clock wore down.  No way Durant would have taken that shot, lest his stats get affected. 

The Heat came out hard and put up a double-digit lead in the first quarter, stretching it to 23 points in the third.  Durant overcame a nasty fall and rough shooting start to finish with 40, and eventually (kind of) made a game of it in the 4th quarter, but no dice.  Every time the Thunder got close, LeBron answered.  Whether it was a long 3 right in Smoovs grill, dish to a teammate for a wide open 3, or throwing down a viscious dunk off the inbounds, Bron was all on his own tonight.  Completely owned the game, making it 6 straight wins vs Smoov and da fellas, dating back to those fateful summer nights in South Beach.  Miami has won 7 straight overall, and built a 4-game cushion over NY at the top of the East. 

I was really hoping Durant would win the MVP this year, partially because I like him and he completely deserves it, and partially so people would be off LeBron's back a bit.  But right now, unfortunately for Smoov, I don't know how you'd pick anyone but Bron.  You never know, but this could become the usual.

State of the Thunder Address: Really Just February 12 Review

The Thunder found a way to lose to the Jazz last night in a game that they shot 56% from the field compared to the Jazz's 48%.  In normal circumstances, I'd put the loss on Russell Westbrook's wild layup clinic, but he was a solid 8/14 from the field last night.  Next I'd move to turnover differential, which Russ Russ certainly contributed to abundantly, but once again, I'd be wrong.  Though Russ Russ did have 7 turnovers, the Jazz ended the game with only a +3 turnover differential.  That leads me to the real answer.  An answer that had Russ Russ noticeably upset after the game and a notion that shakes me to my very core.  You see in the video below, just off camera, sources close to OKC confirm that a reporter from the The Daily Oklahoman was holding up a cue card that read "where's James"?  Short and sweet.  Warm and nostalgic.  Love and loss.  As soon as Russ Russ saw it, it was game over.

The bench lost the game for the Thunder last night, which scares the shit out of me.  You know who else it scares shitless?  Fucking, Presti.  Kevin Martin was invisible, finishing with just 6 points on 3/8, and the rest of the bench combined for a skinny 19 points. Presti made this bed.  He cashed this check. He pumped this fist.  This was a prime game last year where Harden would put up 30 points on a ridiculous 12/16 from the field and carry the Thunder to a win.  They counted on that guy.  I'm worried what is going to happen in June when they don't have that guy.  I know Smooth J had a rough finals last year, but all signs pointed to a breakout this year.  He is having that breakout but not in OKC.

Poppa Perk was not happy about the absence of Jeremiah (more so than Smooth J) and he took it out in an elbow to the side of Al Jefferson's dome that would've made Ron Ron proud.

K. Smooth can do no wrong.  LeBron.