NBA Draft Recap (2013)

Ok, where should we begin… #1 sounds good… “With the first pick in the 2013 NBA Draft”, then David Stern proceeded to stall creating the infamous build up for an announcement less than 1% of the entire human race was prepared for… “The Cleveland Cavaliers select… Anthony Bennett of Toronto Canada and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.”

I’m not gonna spend much time on that one, because though it was a shock to many – even Mr. Bennett himself – obviously the Cavs did what they were supposed to do with the #1 pick, and took the best player that can help their team IMMEDIATELY!

The #2 and #3 picks weren’t surprises.  I believe Jay Bilas said it best, that if all the draftees were put in a room together and told “only one of you can get out”, Victor Oladipo would be that one!  Personally, I see him becoming a legit PG in the NBA.  At his height and his defensive prowess on the ball, I believe he’ll become something like a young Rajon Rondo (obviously, without the insanely-high level of basketball IQ at onset).  Otto Porter was a sure bet for the u’rea!  DC has seen him FLOURISH as a Georgetown Hoya, so it was prophetic for him to land right at home, on a squad where he should make his mark instantly.  Teamed with John Wall and Bradley Beal, their young perimeter of talent should make a few good teams nervous on a nightly basis.

Now, at #4… *crickets

If you weren’t surprised by Anthony Bennett going 1^st, perhaps knowing that Ben McLemore, Nerlens Noel, Alex Len and a few other notables were still on the board when Michael Jordan’s Bobcats selected Cody Zeller.

((Click Here to see Charlotte Fan's Reaction))

Not bashing Zeller, because I HOPE he’s productive and even breaks the starting rotation, but will his presence suggest wins?  Will his name sell tickets?  Will his persona sell jerseys?  Will his stats attract Free Agents?  These are the questions that boggle my mind.  Again, Zeller is probably going to be solid, but so is Tyler Hansborogh; so is Kris Humphries; heck, so is Josh McRoberts and he’s currently on the roster!  So my only issue with drafting Zeller is not his potential production, but was he worth the #4 pick overall???  After all, just last year, his brother Tyler Zeller who had similar collegiate stats went #17... hmm…  I guess for some reason I just think the Bobcats could have traded down, gained a veteran and still nabbed Zeller with a later pick if they really wanted him… oh well.

In reviewing this year’s NBA Draft class down the road, I think people will look back at picks #6-#10 more favorably than picks #1-#5.  Only time will tell…

1. Anthony Bennett – Cleveland
2. Victor Oladipo – Orlando
3. Otto Porter – Washington
4. Cody Zeller – Charlotte
5. Alex Len – Phoenix
6. Nerlens Noel – New Orleans (traded to Philadelphia)
7. Ben McLemore – Sacramento
8. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (KCP) – Detroit
9. Trey Burke – Minnesota (traded to Utah)
10. CJ McCollum – Portland

OTHER NOTABLES:

* Trey Burke to Utah!  Excellent situation for Burke! 
The PG spot has been up for grabs since Deron Williams departed 2 years ago, the fans will love him, and Utah is one of the deepest teams in the NBA, especially at the forward spot, giving him several targets to feed.

* Ben McLemore to Sacramento!  Lucky Kings!
Of course this was my hopeful pick for the Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets, but, YAK how that goes... arguably the most "NBA-ready player" in the draft, McLemore should find a role very quickly towering over a team with a load of small Guards. I hope the Bobcats/Hornets make a bid for Tyreke Evans in this case.

* Shabazz Muhammad to Minnesota!  Teen-Wolf!
Very similar to the Marvin Williams situation - having exponential hype coming out of high school, but playing one year in college to see his draft stock drop - Muhammad STILL averaged 18PPG as a Freshmen at UCLA.  In Bill Walton's voice when speaking of anyone from his alma mater, this UCLA legend may become a better pro than collegiate player.

* Tim Hardaway Jr. to NY!  Big Name for the Big City!   
With JR Smith opting out of his contract, Tim Hardaway finds himself on a playoff contending team with an opportunity to grab at least a morsel of minutes from Ian Shumpert. 

* Philly-Philly!  Out with an All-Star, in with some Rooks! 

SMH… I can only think this was somewhat of a knee-jerk reaction when Philly saw Noels was still available (no pun intended) for them to trade Jru Holiday – coming off his best season of his career – for Noels and a 2014 Draft Pick (Michael Carter-Williams was drafted at #11 soon after, presumably to fill Holiday’s void), but maybe I'm wrong.  True, both rookies are great prospects, but digging deeper, in the 2^nd Round, Philly also acquired PGs, Nate Wolters and Peirre Jackson (traded to NO), so the challenge for collecting minutes in that backcourt will be interesting.


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Twitter / Instagram: @TPClikeYAK

NBA Finals Game 7 Recap

last's nights NBA Finals Game 7 made these 25 things apparent:

1. Elimination Games have a way of exposing the good players and defining the great players! "There are levels to this!" as the kids say!
2. You gotta love the Spurs for their ambition! Very classy.
3. Lebron should have given Juila Dale a pair of PE Lebron X's by now!
4. Wade obviously borrowed Blake Griffin's Kia to get to the game: "Uvo, take me back to 2005!"
5. Shane Battier, the new Robert Horry! (ha! just kidding)
6. Ginobli successfully cemented his role back to 6th Man!
7. It took 7 games before Lebron and Wade began to actually look comfortable shooting uncontested jumpers.
8. Pat Riley has the genetic makeup similar to Joe Johnson and bar of Speed Stick; he never sweats!
9. T-Mac was obviously added to the roster just to play as "Lebron" during the Spurs practices.
10. When Wade waived off Lebron to take the last shot of the 1st Half, he was feeling himself like Miguel right before he took off for the Hulk Hogan leg drop at the Billboard Music Awards! #FLOURISH
11. Stephen Jackson was somewhere shaking his head, internalizing how he would have given somebody his infamous slow-mo 3-ball at least twice!
12. "Because his [Tim Duncan's] game is so fundamentally sound, he's able to age gracefully." -Notorious JVG
13. Whenever a foul is called on Ray Allen or Mario Chalmers, they make that face like Alan during the intervention scene in Hangover 3! AAAAHHH!
14. Bosh couldn't help it... he had been salivating to shoot a corner 3ptr since the Indiana series!
15. Boris Diaw could probably be a starter if he was ever introduced to a weight room or a workout regiment!
16. After Game 3, I was ready to blame Li-Ning for the Heat's ultimate demise!
17. Ray Allen was on his way to looking like Ginobli early on in Game 7 before Pat Riley got the voice message from the accounts office that they had gotten their money's worth out of Mr. Shuttlesworth from 1 shot at the end of Game 6!
18. It's always funny how professional athletes are bitter enemies until the final buzzer, then they smile 2 inches away from each other's lips, giving each other Family Reunion hugs & homeboy dap!
19. Patrick Ewing was somewhere feeling Tim Duncan’s pain!
20. Social Media wasted no time unleashing the Heat, I mean the HATE!
21. Shout outs to the NBA Videographers for limiting video footage of Chris Bosh and any champagne celebrations! #YAK
22. It should be mandatory for the post-game reporters to have their questions reviewed and written out on cue cards beforehand like the Presidential Debates and Town Hall Meetings!
23. Reporters always seem mad nervous to ask Popovich a question, even though it'll be over quick because he's going to answer using 5 words or less!
24. Funny how the "workers" are often more respected than the "managers"; ask Bill Russell and David Stern.
25. Lebron James won his 2nd NBA Championship… give the man his credit... obviously, at this point this is several less than the other GREATS that CRITICS LOVE to compare him to, but do we have to hear it every year?? It’s not like he could have scored 50pts or added 10 more assists to double-up on the number of Title Coupons he would receive at the NBA checkout counter! Sheesh! Can we just let that man live and be the GREATEST LEBRON JAMES he can be? Nevermind, I know the answer to that... #logout #likeYAK

NBA Champion Trophy Presentation



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NBA Finals Recaps (Games 4-6)

For those that know me, know that I LOVE BASKETBALL!!!  In saying that, I'm also a student of the game and acknowledge players for their individual talents as well as the collective team's greatness.  I'm excited about this series because it positions both characteristics of a handful of the NBA's top players and it's 2 best teams on the main stage!

This year, once I noticed that the NBA Finals was going to be a great series, I started these post-game recaps acknowledging particular things that I found intriguing.  For some that catch me on Twitter, some of these were spouted out during the apex of game play, so they had to make these recap lists! enjoy.

last night's NBA Finals Game 4 made these 15 things apparent:

1. The REAL Miami Heat flight made it to San Antonio on Thursday!
2. D. Wade came out of a coma as soon as he saw Splitter guarding him!
3. T-Mac should have checked himself in like it was college intramurals!
4. Spurs have the illest in-game, And1 Mixtape Tour-inspired, soundtrYAK in the NBA!
5. Notorious JVG started a firestorm via Twitter with the "D.Wade is top 4 or 5 2 Guard of all-time" comment! (after MJ, Kobe & Jerry West it's a good argument)
6. Battier continually gets illegally undercut by some invisible chicken wire!
7. I blame Reggie Miller and Vlade Divac for the NEED of an anti-flopping rule!
8. Spurs won Game 3 by allowing Heat stars to "self-check" themselves bricking all those elbow jumpers... bamas started hittin last night tho!
9. Juwan Howard asked Spoelstra to check in so he could get a block on Splitter!
10. I'm pretty sure David Robinson has a set of keys to the arena!
11. Macklemore and Birdman are still the same person!
12. Pop keeps punishing Blair w/ limited minutes for wearing those 8.0's again!
13. Mike Miller is in an official slump after going 0-1 from 3pt range!
14. Alonzo Mourning & David Robinson could probably suit up & still get 10 & 10!
15. Miami fans hype because no matter what, the Championship game will be in South Beach! 


last night's NBA Finals Game 5 made these 5 things apparent:

1. Spurs are the most consistent TEAM in the NBA!
2. Someone keeps sporadically adjusting the thermostat on the Heat!
3. For 3 minutes, Jay-Z and company held the world mentally captive with intrigue and excitement! No Illuminati tho, I guess!
4. Birdman has been caged for no apparent reason!
5. The team that wins Game 6 has the best chance of winning the Championship!


last night's NBA Finals Game 6 made these 10 things apparent:

1. Both teams played hard!
2. Tim Duncan could play another 5 years & STILL be consider a top 5 PF in the NBA!
3. Boris Diaw almost made me turn the TV OFF when he hit Lebron w/ that sloppy pump fake & finished him w/ the bowling scoop shot tho!
4. Lebron was missing DIFFICULT shots that he USUALLY makes look easy until he got his coofie knocked off & started playing like an unlockable player from NBA 2K14!
5. "They [Spurs] didn't know if it was Lebron James or Joel Anthony once the headband came off." -Brent Barry
6. I would pay money to watch Wade's 180-backwards-underhanded-reverse-scoop-hook-finger roll uninterrupted, on repeat via Vine, for like 5 minutes straight!
7. The idea of Homecourt Advantage came into play; Manu was fouled! TP9 was fouled! & Danny Green's final attempt was 50/50 on the no call!
8. Boris Diaw was 1 quarter & 24pts away from creating his legacy as the "Lebron Stopper" & another former Bobcat to win a championship! could it still happen?
9. The media loves to speak hypothetically w/ 20/20 hindsight, amplifying & highlighting every mistake in the NBA Finals!
10. Lebron can have 40pts & 20rebs, miss the last shot & critics will declare "he's not clutch!"; Lebron can have 8pts going into to 4th, take over the 4th, end w/ 32pts, 10rebs, & 11asts (triple-double) & critics will say "he's too passive!" - in other words, "haters gonna hate, ballers gonna ball!" #ILOVETHISGAME

Game 7 is tonight, so check me out at @TPClikeYAK for my in-game play-by-play analysis.  As a prediction, I'd say Miami wins by 10 tonight, with the Finals MVP going to Lebron James.  However, I do believe the Spurs are more than capable of keep the rhythm of the series on beat (with no team winning back-to-back games) and in that case, I'd see Tony Parker edging out Danny Green as the Finals MVP.  In either case, stay tuned the final game recap tomorrow via Facebook.

Facebook: DJ Dexter Dynamite
Twitter / Instagram: @TPClikeYAK