[Tournament] The 2006-2007 NBA Season Discussion Thread

So Yao's godmode button isn't broken. He just murdered the Mavs yesterday.

I really hope McGrady's shot picks up, though. Both Yao and TMac need to be up an effective for the Rockets to contend. I'm not banking on it or anything, but they're my favorite team in the West.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I would've just liked the last quarter or something, if I recall, the game wasn't much until then (Houston was getting killed until McGrady's outburst). But yeah, the comeback was one of the most amazing things I've seen.

And yeah, hopefully Yao's monstrous numbers can keep up so that McGrady doesn't have to force himself into a role he's not ready for yet. Right now his shooting is awful, but he's doing pretty well as a facilitator and is doing a solid job on the boards. Even if he returns to form, he really should be deferring to Yao anyway.

Dunno if it's been said, but the Blazers are 4-2 and it's mostly been Zach Randolph, who's been tearing the league up so far. He's averaging 28.5 and 11.7 , and he's shouldered the load when they were down by 27 yesterday. I'm not a fan of his personality or anything, but his on court play has just been great. Now, to be fair, the Blazers have been winning by pretty slim margins, so I don't think this will keep up, but Randolph deserves some props.

The Nets match up badly with the Heat, but they probably could've pulled that one out yesterday if Jefferson didn't get injured. It's kinda funny to know New Jersey fans in real life, since they were basically calling for trades for basically everyone except Kidd and RJ after this loss. New Jersey's going to be in a little bit of trouble if RJ's out for an extended period of time. On the other hand, Carter's numbers are probably gonna benefit from his absence, and it is a contract year....

How ya doing, buddy?

Pistons are rolling right now. I had my doubts on whether still had any gas in the tank, but he's been surprisingly effective so far.

Dwight Howard has been monstrously efficient lately. He's taken 52 shots in the last four games, and he's missed 8. That's 44/52, 84% from the field. He needs tutelage from Hakeem or someone, because once he actually gets post moves and a point guard who can get him the ball, he's going to wreck things. Also needs to cut down on turnovers.

And augh, another TV matchup with the Heat, Spurs, Cavs, and Lakers. ABC so far has chosen really boring games to show.

The Spurs are always good, but they are never exciting.

The Heat play a pretty boring game in spite of D-Wade, because most of the game is spent on the line, which really slows down the game.

LeBron's Cavaliers have the most unimaginative offense I've ever seen. Thank God they benched Eric Snow, it was getting ugly out there.

The Lakers are actually a fun team to watch for me. I've stopped hating Kobe (as much) now that he's bought into the team concept. The work Phil Jackson has done with the role players is amazing; all of them have great footwork and passing skills now. Bynum looks like he could be a beast, and they're getting decent production out of folks like Luke Walton (injured now) and Farmar. Weirdly enough, they've been struggling lately even with Odom. I guess it doesn't help that he's been pretty crappy these last few games.

Yet these four are the teams they usually pick to showcase on ABC Sundays. That and the Suns, that is usually pretty fun.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

A part of me gets the impression that this trade deadline could end up with a lot of hype with nothing actually happening. That would piss me off, and I hope it doesn't happen since I like to see things get shaken up, but every team seems really reluctant to pull the trigger on these deals.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I don't think he's worth the baggage that comes along with playing him. Yes, he might give a team a boost, but he's crazy, he calls out teammates, and there have been games where he won't come in when the coach tells him to. And then this.

Yes, he is a great defender and he can be an offensive force when he's not chucking threes, but he's killed Indiana and now he's killing the Kings.

I was speaking idiomatically.

If I were a Dallas fan (and I'm not), I'd be a little worried, since the Mavs were making the same kind of errors that cost them the championship last year.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?