[Tournament] The 2006-2007 NBA Season Discussion Thread

wheee double post, but a necessary one. so the all-star starting lineup votes are in, with quite the pleasant surprise:

Quote:

Arenas was 214,460 votes behind Carter two weeks ago, but finished with 1,454,166 to Carter's 1,451,156.

we're also getting another first-time starter in chris bosh! freakin' awesome for them. sadly though, shaq is also getting his 14th straight start too. whatever whatever.

so here are the lineups:

EAST
C - Shaquille O'Neal
F - Chris Bosh
F - LeBron James (led all votes)
G - Dwyane Wade
G - Gilbert Arenas

the west is pretty typical;

WEST
C - Yao Ming (led all votes in the West; too bad he can't play though since he'll still be injured)
F - Kevin Garnett
F - Tim Duncan
G - Kobe Bryant
G - Tracy McGrady

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Good to see both Bosh and Arenas getting starting nods. Arenas should have been on the team last year but got snubbed.

The East is SO weak at the center position that Shaq should get the starting spot there every year by default. The West starters are no suprise at all. Like you said, it's become the typical norm over the last couple years.

It should be a very good game.

-------------

Also, tonight, the Suns go for a franchise-record 16th straight win tonight against the Bucks. I'm sure they'll get it. They've just been totally streaking lately. Might be the greatest offense in the history of the Association.

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

Originally Posted by bishop743

Good to see both Bosh and Arenas getting starting nods. Arenas should have been on the team last year but got snubbed.

The East is SO weak at the center position that Shaq should get the starting spot there every year by default. The West starters are no suprise at all. Like you said, it's become the typical norm over the last couple years.

It should be a very good game.

-------------

Also, tonight, the Suns go for a franchise-record 16th straight win tonight against the Bucks. I'm sure they'll get it. They've just been totally streaking lately. Might be the greatest offense in the history of the Association.

There was an argument for Dwight Howard at center (since he is most deserving) yet this is the All-Star game, and fans would rather see Shaq over the power house that is Howard.

Shame Yao is injured though, he was definitely deserving after what he did most of the season. :/

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

Originally Posted by nazpyro

wheee double post, but a necessary one. so the all-star starting lineup votes are in, with quite the pleasant surprise:



we're also getting another first-time starter in chris bosh! freakin' awesome for them. sadly though, shaq is also getting his 14th straight start too. whatever whatever.

so here are the lineups:

EAST
C - Shaquille O'Neal
F - Chris Bosh
F - LeBron James (led all votes)
G - Dwyane Wade
G - Gilbert Arenas

the west is pretty typical;

WEST
C - Yao Ming (led all votes in the West; too bad he can't play though since he'll still be injured)
F - Kevin Garnett
F - Tim Duncan
G - Kobe Bryant
G - Tracy McGrady

Was Nash even selected for the all star team? I thought he would have a great chance at making the starting lineup, but I just never heard of him. He might just be on the bench.

And too bad about Yao. Any estimates when he'll be back in action again?

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Fiddlegoof

Was Nash even selected for the all star team? I thought he would have a great chance at making the starting lineup, but I just never heard of him. He might just be on the bench.

And too bad about Yao. Any estimates when he'll be back in action again?

I think Yao was thought to be back at the end of Feb. to the beginning of March, but I'm not sure if I heard that from a source or if it was just my roommate talking about it.

As for Nash, he's on bench.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Wow. The Suns lost... to Minnesota of all teams. =/

KG with an atypical outburst of 44 points I guess did it, but yeah. :streak over:

FELIPE NO

The streak seemed like it had been going on for forever now. I figured they'd lose to either San Antonio or Utah but they didn't make it that far. KG just had one of those dominating games where almost everything was falling. Ricky Davis had a nice game to, which helped a lot.

I wouldn't be suprised if the Suns reeled another streak like this before the season finishes up.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Oh, man I gotta see this guy:

7-foot-9 Sun Ming Ming out of China, signed with the ABA's Maryland Nighthawks.



There's a bunch of articles no him. Here's one. There were some shots of him in today's newspaper, but I couldn't find them online. The dude can dunk without jumping. =p

Jam it back in, in the dark.

That's gotta be a lot of pressure on his legs though. Like Yao seems really able at his height, while I remember Sun was looked over in the draft cause he was slow, weak and seemed susceptible to injury.

How ya doing, buddy?

That's a matchup that I'd like to see.. Yao vs/ this Sun guy. Two Ming's going at it.

And wow, that Raptors game against the Wizards. Gilbert who???? CB4 absolutely stole the show with his 30+ points, and that 60 foot shot at the buzzer. Sam Mitchell went nuts!

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

Celtics lose again! Raise your hand if you were surprised. Ahahaha.

Can't call them tankers.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by The Dopefish

Celtics lose again! Raise your hand if you were surprised. Ahahaha.

Can't call them tankers.

Well Paul Pierce has been out forever, and he is the heart of the team. :/


Any word on when Yao will be back? I haven't seen anything, but I've been speculating the beginning of March.

Most amazing jew boots

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.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Arenas... 41 points less than what he promised. He got owned.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by nazpyro

Arenas... 41 points less than what he promised. He got owned.

Yeah, he got owned really bad. Owned by himself and owned by his coach too.

How ya doing, buddy?

A lot of injuries on the Western roster in the All-Star game.

Yao Ming, Steve Nash, Allen Iverson and Carlos Boozer.

It seems that aside from Yao, the rosters seems set. The only other centers I see on the Western roster are: Amare Stoudemire and Mehmet Okur. I assume Amare is starting.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Yeah, that Western lineup is a bit weirded now. I mean, Okur is good but he's Okur. =p Props for the Terror from Turkey!

So, with the Cavs beating the Lakers for the second time this week, we're all set for the All Star break! Skills Challenge go!

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I love how injuries have completed decimated pretty much every point guard who was set to play in the All-Star game. All the West has left is Tony Parker, and he's not even starting. No Iverson, no Nash, no Kidd...pretty much a guarantee we'll be seeing way more iso and much less passing.

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

Wow... yesterday's all star events were very entertaining. That was mad fun to watch.

Jason Kapono ties a record final round points for threes, making Arenas and Dirk have to step it up for a possible new record if they wanted to win it. Man, I was cheering for Arenas though I actually bet on Kapono to win, but that was exciting.

Slam dunk contest: Gerald. Green. Oh. My.

Skills challenge had an epic feel to it, but those guys need to enter something like the Slam Dunk contest... D-Wad, LeBron, CP3, Kobe... that was fun too though.

Bill Laimbeer in that shootout game was hilarious. <3 how it ended controversially and Detroit was the usual bad self even in that.

Commentary for the night was hilarious too. =p

And let's not forget Barkley v Bavetta. Haha, that was funny.

Originally Posted by Barkley

We're gonna give a ton of money to uh... *walks over to huge check* ... that charity...

Also that dunks show before it all was great too. But man, the fans voted for the wrong " best dunk" in the end. =/ Anyway, I liked the Shaq quote on Barkley:

Originally Posted by Shaq

Barkley's coast-to-coast [dunk] was one of those things that made me want to learn how to dribble.

Lastly, LOL at that East dance contest earlier in the day. Shaq was breaking... and doing the Worm! If you missed that, it's on the NBA.com front page on the side. =p

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

It was a pretty good show overall. I thought it should have been Dwight Howard instead of Nate Robinson in the finals with Gerald Green after Howard's sticker dunk, but that was all right. And it seemed like Lebron mailed in the skills competition, which is sad considering he's ducking the dunk contest in the first place.

Still, it was entertaining, especially the shootout and the clock controversy. Looks like Pippen might be able to contribute a bit for whatever team takes a chance with him, even if it's just 10-15 minutes a night.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I wasn't able to watch the entire All-Star weekend like I have been in the past, but what I was able to see was very entertaining. It funny because all the guys in the Skills challenge should have been in the dunk contest, but it was all good. Dwayne Wade really put a good show on. The dunk contest was pretty fun to watch as well.

All in all, a great weekend. The All-Star game should be good as well, even though several key players will be out.

I was kind of suprised to hear that Pippen is thinking about coming back. But, after seeing him last night, he still can contribute to a contending team. It'd be cool to see him return.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Kapono killing the 3-point contest was one of the highlights of the night. The fact that he wasn't even invited originally was a huge surprise, and the fact that he won proved something.

Howard got low low scores in the dunk contest, probably because of his height (he's the tallest ever to be in the dunk contest, or something). I thought his sticker dunk was creative though. Gerald Green definitely deserved his victory. Some great dunks by him.

Barkley was hilarious after the race - completely out of breath, didn't know the charity or the amount of money they were going to give. A great laugh.

FELIPE NO

West Wins!!!!

Kobe snatched MVP with 31 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 6 steals.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Easy victory for the West, and thanks to the roster they had (even with four players injured), they had some ridiculous line-ups out there most of the time. Solid outings for the two Suns: Marion with 18 points and 8 rebounds, and Amare with 29 and 9. Shame Nash and Kidd couldn't play.

Really, the only agonizing part of the game (besides the first few minutes when both teams were sluggish) was the 45-minute pregame/intro ordeal. Might be why the teams struggled in the first quarter. That and all the partying.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I love how it started out slow, but after a couple of great dunks and alley-oops the game just rolled on.

West just held the momentum the entire time - and you can't forget the fact that they had 52 assists. 52 (versus the East's 29)!!!

There's nowhere I can't reach.