The Official 2012-2013 NBA Season Finals (The 2013 NBA Champs The Miami Heat)
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http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8478267/who-nba-top-title-contenders-season-trailing-pack
The Real Title Contenders
Miami Heat
Perhaps the strongest repeat favorite since the heyday of Shaq-Kobe. It took a potentially franchise-destroying injury to Chris Bosh at nearly the worst possible time, but the Heat discovered in May and June that their version of small ball, with LeBron James at power forward, should serve as the foundation of the team's identity rather than as a change-of-pace tactic at the start of the second and fourth quarters. The alignment change, coupled with James's new comfort as a post-up threat, took Miami's offense up another level without compromising the defense in a significant way. Miami let this development guide its offseason, signing two perimeter threats (Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis) and precisely zero traditional big men guaranteed to be part of the team's rotation in high-leverage moments.
There are challenges to come. Erik Spoelstra will play trial-and-error with lineups, and Miami cannot risk overtaxing James in the regular season. That might mean less small ball than the Heat end up using in the playoffs, and some banging against power forwards for Shane Battier and Lewis. Dwyane Wade's knee will probably act up again, and the Heat may not have the luxury of going through the last two rounds of the playoffs without facing a team equipped to punish them on the block. But they enter the season as the clear favorite.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The big steps are done, but sometimes the smaller steps are the hardest — the subtleties of defensive positioning, lineup choices, and balance on both ends of the floor. The Thunder made progress on all fronts during the playoffs, when their offense nearly set records, the team remembered James Harden was actually on the floor in crunch time, Scott Brooks leaned more (but not enough) on his most productive small lineups, and the team's aggressive defense at least limited the unstoppable Spurs. Getting Eric Maynor back should help more than Maynor's individual numbers might suggest, since he allows Brooks to play small lineups featuring four threatening perimeter players instead of just two or three. The other young guys are only going to get better, and Serge Ibaka has shown glimpses of morphing into a more multidimensional pick-and-roll player.
But Miami overwhelmed this defense in the Finals. It has to be better, and if that improvement comes from playing Kendrick Perkins and Thabo Sefolosha more, the Thunder won't dethrone the champs.
Los Angeles Lakers
A team whose offense failed them early last season and whose defense failed them late has added the game's very best defender and perhaps the NBA's single greatest offensive force of the last decade-plus. There are questions, of course. There is no off-the-dribble dynamism among the backups for Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant, and Nash is just about a 30-minute-per-game player at this point. The Lakers are counting heavily on Jordan Hill and Antawn Jamison, and perhaps Earl Clark at some point, to hold the fort when the stars sit, and it's unclear if they can do so on either end. Bryant and Nash, both iron men, are well into the stage of their careers in which age- and injury-related declines are scary possibilities. Pau Gasol isn't far behind. Fit and chemistry might be uneven as the stars learn the team's new hybrid Princeton offense. Bryant, a gifted cutter and passer, must dial back his shot selection and tendency to stop the ball. How they respond to Oklahoma City's dynamic small lineups in a potential conference finals matchup is unclear.
But holy hell: These four stars should be able to be on the court together for 35 minutes per night in high-stakes playoffs games, with all but Nash capable of logging many more than that. And Mike Brown's staff should be able to stagger minutes so that no single star is left to carry too heavy a burden on bench units. They don't get the favorite's perch right away, not even in their own conference, but a team that had declined to second-tier status should happily accept something like co-favorite in the West.
San Antonio Spurs
It's fine if you want to slide them into the next tier. Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili are old, and neither is quite capable of serving as a full-time go-to scoring centerpiece against dialed-in defenses. The Western Conference Finals had the feel of one team figuring out how to beat the other, in part because the brilliant Ginobili, the Spurs' best all-around player, couldn't score big on a night-to-night basis.
But Duncan and Ginobili stay productive every year, and the Spurs could find enough incremental internal improvements to offset any Ginobili/Duncan drop-off. Kawhi Leonard and Tiago Splitter should get even better, with Leonard perhaps developing into a top-shelf defender and a wing more capable of working off the dribble when the ball swings his way. Boris Diaw has a full season to help Gregg Popovich find the right balance in his big-man rotation, and Stephen Jackson is around to shoot and present small-ball options should that ideal big-man rotation never emerge. Nando de Colo and Patty Mills provide healthy competition for Gary Neal and could help Popovich limit Ginobili's minutes.
And again: This team outscored opponents by an unthinkable 15 points per 100 possessions over 30-plus games last season, per NBA.com's stats database. That kind of dominance earns some preseason respect, even if the Thunder left the Spurs' defense and rotation in tatters. -
No mention of the celtics lol
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Alpha Outlaw wrote: »No mention of the celtics lol
lol....real disrespectful to the future east champs
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Kobe has mentored Dwight Howard for years. Secretly.
Howard laid it all out for Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated in a fantastic profile.
“What people don’t know is that this is one of the guys who I’ve been talking to for about four years now,” Howard said. “And he has been an amazing help to me, just pushing me in ways — secretly because we played in the Eastern and Western Conference. But it’s been him just talking to me, showing me how to do certain things with my team and things like that…
“I told [Bryant] as soon as I got here, ‘Hey, I want to be one of the greatest to ever play. I want you to push me every day,’ ” Howard said. “And he was like, ‘I’m going to push you, because I see something in you, and I want to make sure that I do my part.’ And I promised him that I’m going to do whatever I can do.” -
The Oklahoma City Thunder not only have to deal with James Harden's future, but Eric Maynor's, too. Both are eligible to receive a contract extension by Oct. 31, but Maynor, coming back from ACL surgery, will likely not be offered a deal by the deadline.
Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman was asked how Harden affects Maynor and he writes: "If Harden signs, Maynor is gone. If Harden doesn't sign, Maynor has a great shot at staying. But even then it depends on his price tag. The Thunder isn't going to overpay for Maynor when Reggie Jackson is waiting in the wings."
Maynor and Harden will be restricted free agents in 2013 if they don't sign extensions.
Will the Thunder be able to keep their core intact?
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Bulls’ Carlos ? says to judge him by wins, losses
Here is what he told the Sun Times.
“People look at it from the wrong perspective,’’ ? said. “This isn’t Utah, and this isn’t just a team with me and [former Jazz point guard] Deron Williams on it. We’re playing with five scorers here, so your touches aren’t going to be the same, your looks aren’t going to be the same. It’s a different system.
“All the people should worry about is if we win. Criticize me if we lose, but if we win, just praise us.’’ -
[img]http://sphotos-a.? .fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/550774_10151237324160255_1363091238_n.jpg[/img]
i aint even know stackhouse is a net.....
see iverson....this is what happens when u shut up and just collect the checks for retirement -
? that ? ? , I 'll never forgive him for blowing a wide open to the basket layup. ? should have dunked it, he on Keith Bogans status with Chicago fans. I don't know why Taj Gibson not starting over himBulls’ Carlos ? says to judge him by wins, losses
Here is what he told the Sun Times.
“People look at it from the wrong perspective,’’ ? said. “This isn’t Utah, and this isn’t just a team with me and [former Jazz point guard] Deron Williams on it. We’re playing with five scorers here, so your touches aren’t going to be the same, your looks aren’t going to be the same. It’s a different system.
“All the people should worry about is if we win. Criticize me if we lose, but if we win, just praise us.’’ -
? ? , all that matters to him is winning the central division
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[img]http://sphotos-a.? .fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/550774_10151237324160255_1363091238_n.jpg[/img]
@Spyda explain why yo squad even signed this ? nikka lol -
I ain't even know Stack was still in the league[img]http://sphotos-a.? .fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/550774_10151237324160255_1363091238_n.jpg[/img]
i aint even know stackhouse is a net.....
see iverson....this is what happens when u shut up and just collect the checks for retirement -
king hassan wrote: »
? that ? ? , I 'll never forgive him for blowing a wide open to the basket layup. ? should have dunked it, he on Keith Bogans status with Chicago fans. I don't know why Taj Gibson not starting over himBulls’ Carlos ? says to judge him by wins, losses
Here is what he told the Sun Times.
“People look at it from the wrong perspective,’’ ? said. “This isn’t Utah, and this isn’t just a team with me and [former Jazz point guard] Deron Williams on it. We’re playing with five scorers here, so your touches aren’t going to be the same, your looks aren’t going to be the same. It’s a different system.
“All the people should worry about is if we win. Criticize me if we lose, but if we win, just praise us.’’Chi-Town Bully wrote: »? ? , all that matters to him is winning the central division
This ? needs to go jump off a damn cliff ? ass ? you getting paid superstar money and playing like a bench player foh we judge you by how you play and the past 2 years at the times when we needed you the most yo ? ass was a no show. Amnesty this ? and drop him off a cook county jail so he can get ? like he been ? us -
king hassan wrote: »
I ain't even know Stack was still in the league[img]http://sphotos-a.? .fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/550774_10151237324160255_1363091238_n.jpg[/img]
i aint even know stackhouse is a net.....
see iverson....this is what happens when u shut up and just collect the checks for retirement
he was in ATL last year....... -
i thought thomas robinson was already a SF/PF....why the ? is that noteworthy?
actually he was drafted @ power forward....kings saw him in practice with cousins and chuck hayes...(all 3 played together and WON their games) and they liked him @ small forward.....and thinking @ that lineup reguarly
it was well known that he was in between positions and needed to be able to play both if he were to have a place in the league. -
i thought thomas robinson was already a SF/PF....why the ? is that noteworthy?
actually he was drafted @ power forward....kings saw him in practice with cousins and chuck hayes...(all 3 played together and WON their games) and they liked him @ small forward.....and thinking @ that lineup reguarly
it was well known that he was in between positions and needed to be able to play both if he were to have a place in the league.
maybe kings didnt know that b/c the coach said he was surprised he did well at small forward -
Hell yeah and the same goes for Amare Stoudermire, ? you got a pass last yeardeemula420 wrote: »king hassan wrote: »
? that ? ? , I 'll never forgive him for blowing a wide open to the basket layup. ? should have dunked it, he on Keith Bogans status with Chicago fans. I don't know why Taj Gibson not starting over himBulls’ Carlos ? says to judge him by wins, losses
Here is what he told the Sun Times.
“People look at it from the wrong perspective,’’ ? said. “This isn’t Utah, and this isn’t just a team with me and [former Jazz point guard] Deron Williams on it. We’re playing with five scorers here, so your touches aren’t going to be the same, your looks aren’t going to be the same. It’s a different system.
“All the people should worry about is if we win. Criticize me if we lose, but if we win, just praise us.’’Chi-Town Bully wrote: »? ? , all that matters to him is winning the central division
This ? needs to go jump off a damn cliff ? ass ? you getting paid superstar money and playing like a bench player foh we judge you by how you play and the past 2 years at the times when we needed you the most yo ? ass was a no show. Amnesty this ? and drop him off a cook county jail so he can get ? like he been ? us -
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Three more ? weeks until ball starts, awe ?
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smh @ T-mac signing dat deal in china
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Throwed Off Axel wrote: »smh @ T-mac signing dat deal in china
what did u xpect him to do? no one picked him up........and he can always come back to america in march (when china season ends) if a team do pick him up
he does have basketball IQ though.....he helped ATL @ key times last yr -
im not mad at him im mad a team aint give him a chance dude can still contribute
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Throwed Off Axel wrote: »im not mad at him im mad a team aint give him a chance dude can still contribute
Tracy Mcgrady Statement
"There are times in life that a new road presents itself and it appears this time has come for me now. I am so proud of what I have accomplished these past 15 years playing in the NBA. It was a dream entering the league as I just turned 18 years old. I worked hard and poured my heart and soul into this game. I consider myself a student of the game as I have watched, studied and played with and against the best players in the world. The NBA was my University and I learned so much. The gratitude I feel is really immeasurable. I have experienced the best moments a player can experience and have had some dark ones too. Both equally important in helping shape me into the man I am today.
As I leave the league for now, there have been so many profound people who inspired me along my way. I have to say thank you for guiding me and having an enormous influence on the way I played basketball. Isaiah Thomas, R
ich Devos, Leslie Alexander and John Gabriel, you believed in me and I thank you. Jeff Van Gundy, you exemplified the brilliance of what a great coach is. Steven A. Smith, you gave us players a voice and for that I thank you. Doug Christy, Charles Oakley, Dee Brown, Mugsy Bogues, Antonio Davis, Dell Curry, Kevin Willis, you all showed a young kid from Auburndale Florida how to be a better player. Kobe, you made me work harder and it was an honor to play against you. And Yao, we shared an experience together that will always be with me, thank you. Sonny & Pam Vaccarro showed me how there is loyalty and genuine friendship in this business. Arn Tellem and Tim Hoy, 15 years and you are still my agents. Thank you for guiding me throughout my career. When all is said and done, there is so many that made an impact on my life. I am one blessed man to have the love and never ending support of my wife CleRenda and the best 4 kids a man can ask for. But most important, I give glory and thanks to ? . It is thru Him that I have been so blessed and I am forever thankful.
As I enter this next chapter, I am excited to play for Qingdao Eagles in China. I have been to China several times in the last few years and I love the people and the country. It will be an honor to play for them. Thank you to every fan that has followed me and believed in me. Injuries and all, I wouldn’t have changed a thing. I am proud of the mark I left on this game and am grateful to have been a part this league. It was a dream to play in front of all of you, each night, in every stadium. Thank you." -
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playmaker88 wrote: »
what a slam by KB...hahahha.... he is really firing up his teammates now.......... -
Can't hate on mac....more potential financial opportunities out there for American players....
