Darko has a ring. Now if he pans out in a few years and this team stays together.... hmmm.
Seriously, on the Darko front- I get the whole "He's a project" and "he's still young", but man! He sucked ass when he came out. His shot was awful, his attention span was weak (getting stripped on that one possession from behind, even if the game was effectively over, was just pathetic), his hops were non-existent, his rebounding a joke. Where is the supposed raw talent they're going to form into a "factor"? Count me duly unimpressed with Darko. I don't see the "there" there to eventually be a key part of the Pistons, or any team. But in any event, BIG congrats to the PIstons. I'm with Mike McD- it wasn't shaq not scoring 50, it was Kobe making ill advised shots instead of moving the ball, and more than anything the 10 other stiffs who showed up 3 at a time on the floor for the Lakers. Payton for example was an embarassment over what we used to see in his prime here in Seattle. Larry Brown noted in his post-game that he loved what the Pistons do for the league, showing fans, kids, and especially team execs that you can win with a rounded team game, not with 2 stars and 1-2 fillers. The Pistons won in the best way possible, with 5 MVPs on the court at any time. Detroit won far more than LA ever "gave away" any of the games.
Kobe's one three-peat and a whole lot of class short of being the next Jordan. I think we can quietly bury that whole "Kobe vs Jordan" arguement after Kobe's performance in this series, at least for a while. When Kobe *leads* a team to a few championships, and grabs a few finals MVP awards on the way, we can start having this discussion again, but for the time being the arguement should be changed to "Kobe vs Scottie" (a match that Bryant admittedly wins).
I'm just waiting for the interview in which Shaq-fu says that as long as they bring their game, that the Pistons shouldn't be a problem.
Is it too early to call Joe Dumars one of the best architects in NBA history? He hand-picked each piece of this team, and they went from 32-50 doormats to world champs in 4 years...
To me, as someone who doesn't really follow the NBA, the interesting thing was that if the games were reversed and it was the Lakers spanking the Pistons all over the court it would have made for five boring games of basketball. The fact that the nominal underdog came out and just dominated for 90% of the entire series was, to me, what turned a dull blowout to a fascinating NBA finals.
Seriously, on the Darko front- I get the whole "He's a project" and "he's still young", but man! He sucked ass when he came out... You and me both, Hal. What the hell was that? Seems to me that if you're given a sliver of daylight to prove yourself, no matter the context, you play your ass off. Just hustle, you dumb ass!
I just really enjoy saying "It's getting Darko, it's time to go home!" whenever they put him in.
Hooray! Down with the Lakers!
Ben's monster rebound slam mid-way thru the 4th was sick.
I'm with Mike McD- it wasn't shaq not scoring 50, it was Kobe... Ummm......Hal, have you actually been reading Mike McD over the past three days?
When Kobe *leads* a team to a few championships Amen.
Darko was the most entertaining subplot of the series. I'm glad they answered the mystery of why he was wearing tape on his ears (he tried to pierce them in the Eastern Conference finals and his ears got infected). Darko was definitely acting strange when he got the ball. Didn't he realize that everyone was rooting for him to score? He just stood there looking like he he had taken one too many seconals. And the post-game was kind of sad. While Mehmut Okur planted himself front and center (and really was there anything funnier than the big goofy Turkish guy getting his groove on. He's like the Pistons answer to Mark Madsen), Darko was standing alone, off to the side in the back. Like he wasn't part of the team.
When Kobe *leads* a team to a few championships, yeah, I think this is the biggest difference between Mr. Jordan and Mr. Bryant. In all the series that the Bulls won during the '90s, when things were not going the Bulls' way, Jordan just Took Over. He in effect grabbed his team by the scruff of the neck, and said, "This is how you do it, boys." (Allen Iverson tries to do this as well, but it doesn't work quite the same way.) It didn't always result in a victory, but if it didn't, it was hard to blame him. Kobe is obviously a good ball player, but he's done little to show me that he can move up from the Club of Really Good Players into the Pantheon of Greatness. I suppose it could be because the Lakers have long had other outstanding players who would resent any overt grab by Kobe of the "leader" mantle, but his lack of ability to fire up his teammates, and his regularly questionable decisions on the floor, lead me to believe that he will never dominate a team (let alone the league) the way Jordan did. That said, a big and heartfelt "yay!" to the Pistons. This is the definitive group of overachievers, who showed the country some of the best team play I have ever seen.
smithers: Ummm......Hal, have you actually been reading Mike McD over the past three days? Whoops! I think i was thinking of whomever was arguing vehemently against Mike McD, and didn't check. :( In my defense, I was really drunk when I got home last night, honestly. I had trouble typing that whole paragraph without a lot of backspacing.
Oh. I guess it was you, smithers (and dusted). Man, I gotta cut out the weekday drinking...
SpoFi: Opinionated sports fans + drunken typing = posting goodness
I suppose it could be because the Lakers have long had other outstanding players who would resent any overt grab by Kobe of the "leader" mantle Exactly deadcowdan. That's not Bill Cartwright playing center, it's Shaq-Fu Diesel and he needs his touches. That's what makes this Piston's team so refreshing. Their starting 5 all contributed. I'm looking at the Boxscore, and Payton played 31 minutes. His line looks similar to Darko's and he only played for 2 Minutes. And just for the record, I think I'll give Darko some more time. He turns 19 on Monday. I think he has even grown an inch since being drafted and has put on some muscle. Really makes me wonder if they went with Carmelo, would they have even come this far?
Questions for Hal, Dusted and Smithers. Why now? What changed about the Lakers? Why did they go from being a team that lost 1 playoff game in 2001 (remember they won 11 straight before dropping game one to the Sixers in 2001) to a team that was dominated by the Pistons (a team who's MVP was Chauncey Billups)? If you think it was Kobe's shot selection and passing, why did Kobe's passing change this year? He didn't have any problems passing the ball to Shaq in 2000, 2001, 2002. Again, why now? Why in 2004, is Kobe suddenly unable to pass the ball to Shaq?
Jordan just Took Over. Yes, but he also drove and dished to set up a championship-winning shot for Steve Kerr. Kobe, by contrast always wants to hit the game-winning shot. Remember Jordan's commercial where he lists the many times he missed game-winning shots? There's no way Kobe could do that. What changed about the Lakers? Too many egos. Malone did an OK job changing from a star on the Jazz to a roleplayer in LA, but Payton never accepted his role. Kobe and Shaq both think they're the best player and resent the other's accolades. Shaq's too heavy and out of shape. Also, I've never believed the Lakers were as good as people say over their recent dominant run. Teams buy into the Laker myth and fold against them, even teams that are beating them. The Pistons came into the Finals with nothing to lose, and played tough defense and much better team ball. They reminded me of the Patriots beating the Rams in the Super Bowl. The Patriots basically just beat the Rams up, and the Rams couldn't handle it when their opponent didn't just curl up into a ball at the thought of playing them.
Took Jordan what, 4-5 years to get past the Pistons in the playoffs. The Bad Boys never shut him down, but they did contain him. I don't buy into the "[name] is the next Jordan" arguments, but Kobe's performance was similar to the Jordan vs. Pistons battles of the late 80's. I don't really understand the Kobe hating, I hate the Lakers as much as the next guy, but were I a Laker fan, I would sure as hell want to keep him. If it came down to Shaq vs. Kobe staying or going I'd still take Kobe. Shaq can now be single covered, when did you think that would be possible? I'll take the 26 year old scorer coming into his prime over the 32 year old big man with bad feet and a questionable work ethic any day. Mike McD has really hit on some valid concerns re: The Diesel. No way in Helll this is a better team, Finals team, maybe even playoff team minus Kobe. Besides, when did the triangle ever run through Cartwright?:) Shaq and all the Lakers fans should have been careful what they wished for, because now they will get it. Might be worth hitting a Suns game or two next year.
This is what kills me about this country...the Pistons destroyed the Lakers in 5 games...after everyone said they'd just be happy to be there...they showed what a real team is, and showed just how classy they are...yet all anyone can talk about is the Lakers...must be why all these "reality" shows are so popular...
Not me -- I love the Pistons now. If there's room on the bandwagon, let me aboard.
Ditto here. The past three days at work I've been all "Ben Wallace" this (scoots around big, dumb office coworker to grab the last donut on the filing cabinet) and "Rip Hamilton" that (puts a tupperware on my face). Blowouts aren't usually fun to watch, but it was a blast to see Detroit stomp LA into the ground. Detroit, to me, is summed up by the following: after Gary Payton's cheap shot to Rip (in the face, knocking him to the ground), I didn't see any retaliation except suffocating defense and a bigger lead. Classy.
And Larry Brown's wife is a cutie.
Larry Brown is a damn cradle-robber. What is she, thirty years younger? You go, geezer!
Take it to the rim!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!
Blowouts aren't usually fun to watch, but it was a blast to see Detroit stomp LA into the ground. The best baseball comparison would be back in 1990 when the Cincinnati Reds demolished the heavily favoured "Bash-brother" led Oakland A's. Everyone figured the A's would stomp the Reds in 4 straight, but lo-and-behold, the reverse happened. I had no routing interesting in either team at the time (except for a little hate for the A's for what they did to the Jays in 1989), but it was interesting watching the "experts" scramble to cover their asses when their predictions went haywire.
New Republic says the Pistons rescued the ethos of basketball.
