In other news, Howard was just trying to scratch an itch on the tip of his elbow with that move. Come on, anyone woulda done that.

You must not have turned on the TV or opened your web browser after Game 5 if you think ESPN isn't going to be discussing this. "Was Rondo's foul on Miller a flagrant" was non-freaking stop coverage during the live sportscenters' that they do during the day, and front page story on espn.com for much of the day with the various NBA analysts opinions prominently featured. And holy crap once Bill Simmons weighed in on it it went right back up to the top of the page, with Simmons column MORE prominently displayed than the opinions of the analysts (I don't hate Simmons, I hate ESPN giving a homer of a specific team/city who belongs on Page 2 with the other offbeat content front page billing).

I'm quite sure that if I have a lot of work to do during the day tomorrow and have ESPN on in the background I will get to hear no fewer than 10 different people discuss whether he should be suspended.

Oh, did Rondo do something with Miller Tuesday? Funny, I didn't see anything on ESPN.

Different situations. Doesn't ABC have the rights to Game 7? Don't you think they want Rando playing?

Does anything ever happen in sports or sports reporting that isn't some massive manipulation or conspiracy to you?

I dunno I'd assume they want people consuming their content on ESPN so they'd discuss the big stories of the day. After all this would allow them to hype game 7 incessantly if it is on one of their networks.

Take a guess as to why ESPN hardly covers hockey these days. :)

HAHAHAHAHAH.

Funny shit DT.

Yeah..Rondo chucked him. If I was the ref, I would have tossed him after seeing the replay.

But....let's just take the day and brace ourselves for Game 7, shall we?

TNT has Game 7, but I'm sure they wanted "Rando" to play too.

You should have stopped at an unrelated story. Turkoglu was not tossed for getting in Dalembert's face. He received a technical. Seeing that he was his second T, THAT is why he was ejected the game.

Artest and Yao at the postgame press conference :



that was actually pretty damn funny by Ron Ron :D On saving a ball late in the 4th and going into the stands

"Well, i´ve been in the stands before ..."

Yao : "but this time at home court"

Artest : "one guy offered me a beer, no one threw one at me. I was to take a sip, but there´s too many cameras"


Crazy Pills FTW :popcorn:



Rondo really had a strange game. Looked pretty riled up and out of whack, flustered on his drives and everything. But still 19 Assists on ZERO Turnovers, that´s pretty good for a PG that looks out of sync ... Should have been ejcted and should be suspended. That wasn´t a basketball play and could have resulted in serious injury for Hinrich. Plus pushing/moving/swinging guys towards the sidelines/stands is pretty much a no-no .
I mean, Robert Horry did get 2 games for hipchecking Nash into the scorers table on Nash´s dribble.

Yeah, would be kind of less fun if he wouldn´t play, but that´s his fault.

Brad Miller was a bad man yesterday, too. That was cold blooded what he did at the FT line and on that 3 and that drive. Especially after he couldn´t get done much offensively, was terrible late in games and then the bloody mouth incident. Impressed the hell out of me.

How do you think this is done, league memos to referees, or just a wink-wink-nod-nod, sack of money with a dollar sign in a tree stump arrangement?

I used to be very suspicious of the NBA, until all of those referees got in trouble for tax fraud. I thought that if they had that ace in their pocket, that the NBA was rigging games, they certainly would have used it with the feds then.

I know that Tim Donaghy made allegations about that Kings/Lakers game 6 (just as I thought those tax frauds referees would do, if there was really funny business). Obviously that didn't go anywhere, and Donaghy isn't exactly credible (though I realize that it's the sleazy, non-credible types that usually know the dirt - see Jose Conseco).

I mean, the NBA/networks rigging games is a serious, serious allegation. That's life-in-prison type stuff, end of North American professional sports forever type stuff. Do you really think the risk of that is worth the .05 rating jump or whatever a game 7 gets over regular programming? How do you keep the referees/network employees quiet?

It just doesn't add up to be as a practical plan for the NBA and the networks to get involved in something that ridiculous. I do though, think the NBA has done an amazing job somehow sweeping under the rug that a referee rigged games and got caught!! How did that not harm the league more? It's always in the back of my mind when I watch the NBA.

All the timeouts actually made me miserable by the time the 3rd OT rolled around. I just wanted the fuckin thing to end and didn't care about seeing anything exciting anymore.

I don't watch sports live anymore. It's like I have extra hours in a day.

First off, games were rigged. A 13-year NBA official was convicted of gambling. He bet on games that he officiated. He passed along information on refs and players to his handlers. Statistical analysis of his games showed a very high probability that those games were fixed. So lets not act like the NBA has not had fixed games before.

As for throwing games, I don't think it's a simple "hey make sure the Lakers win on Sunday". They assign officials they know call games certain ways to get the outcome they want. There are certain officials like Joey Crawford who they know doesn't handle home crowds well and calls in favor of the home team (you can look at his statistics on a number of betting sites). He will get assigned to a lot of Game 6's where it benefits the NBA to have the home team win and force a Game 7. Is Joey Crawford cheating? No. Does the league factor in what's in their best interest when assigning refs to games? I believe so.

Now there have been a lot of controversial games. The Kings-Lakers game is probably the most used. I've seen that game multiple times and I'm still convinced it was thrown. Whether that came from the NBA or just a crooked official (Donaghy did officiate it) I don't know. I do know that Donaghy did say games were fixed by a few refs who were "company men". I also know that the games that have the most controversial officials all seem to involve the same refs (Salvatore, Bevetta, Crawford, Donaghy, etc). Now most of these refs are rated very poorly throughout the league yet seem to get the most important games every year. I guess I don't understand why you wouldn't want your highest rated officials on the court for the biggest games.

Whatever you believe though, I still find the Donaghy story the most underated sports story in decades. Yes it got air play, but it should have been enormous. A 13-year NBA official who was involved in some of the biggest games was caught betting on those games. How is that not Pete Rose times 100? The entire integrity of the NBA just got shot in the face. I felt ESPN didn't go too deep into it because of their relationship with the NBA. The company that has to inform me of ever bowel movement TO makes couldn't research the games he officiated and come up with some statistics?

I was wrong and pretty drunk last night. Still haven't seen them talk about it on ESPN all day.

Interesting points. Especially combined with the fact that the NBA has refused, even in light of the Donaghy thing, to make referee evaluation/assignments the responsibility of some independent entity, when that was suggested.

But I don't think Donaghy rigging games necessarily equates to "the NBA rigging games". Dongahy had nothing substantial on the NBA to save his own ass. I always assumed with him it was a money thing, but who knows.

Certainly, the NBA hasn't done much to quiet the suspicions (though I totally agree with you that it's AMAZING the Donaghy thing didn't get more play). For me, it was a huge deal, even somewhat tainting the Celts' championship last year. Who knows if they didn't get help from crooked refs?

Is there any evidence that the NBA goes 7 games more often than the NHL, or MLB?

Robert Horry received 2 games for this:

Rondo misses with his shot to the face thanks to an official holding him back.

Chicago and Boston are showing how to put on a good seven game series. Miami and Atlanta could learn a few things from them.

according to the ESPN crawl, to solid, he should eat more veggies. and it was obvious ESPN tanked the story.

Pretty freakish summary of the Heat-Hawks series from the Atlanta beat writer's blog

It's a really odd series. It's too bad the games haven't been closer. I think it would be cool to see a Lebron/Wade second round matchup though I don't think the Heat have a chance. The Hawks on the other hand are an odd team. They seem to step up in the playoffs and are real physical. They also create some tough matchups. If they can beat up on Lebron a little, it could be a real interesting series.

Boston - Chicago game six was the most watched first round game on cable TV in league history with 5.35 million viewers.

si.com link

I was hoping the Hawks would close out tonight. I want no part of D Whistle and the insane amount of cheap fouls he draws.

You can't play the Heat close, cause if you breathe on the guy, he's going to the line.

I found this to be quite ironic.

=)

Why is everyone concentrating on/being obsessed with that "ellbow" Rondo threw ? Seriously, no way that was an attempt to hit Hinrich with an ellbow.

The action before was the problem and imo just not a basketball play which imo should automatically lead to an ejection + X .

Well, when you're broadcasting for 7 hours there's a good chance a lot of people will tune in at some point.

Shhhh. I like double standards.

See 2006 nba finals for Wade

Celtics not looking good so far. Bulls up 9-2.

How about that block by Rose?

Great play, although it looks like he got part of Scal's hand.

The Bulls aren't even bothering to defend Scalabrine when he sits on the outside. No one is close to him. He can hit those shots, so they need to pass it to him every single time until they respect him. Otherwise, we're playing 4 on 5 on the offensive end.

They're playing the fucking Crazy Frog Axel F? Argh

Maybe I'm biased (yes, of course I'm biased), but if I was a Bulls fan, I do not like their body language right now. They're not up for game 7 at the moment.

The Celtics are playing inside and just wanting it more

dola: Anyone who thinks the refs are biased to boston.. look at points in the paint (Boston +20 some odd), and Free Throws (something like Chicago 3 to 1 ratio more)

Pop Quiz Hotshot Bulls Fans. Was THAT a flagrant? (at least be consistent here, the way they've been calling it, the answers no to me, it's a hard playoff foul, but if you call Rondo's swipe flagrant in Game 5, this one is more obvious.)

That was Stupid of Rajan

For someone rooting for the team that's supposed to win and is fighting off a rather poor underdog, you sure seem to have a pretty big chip on your shoulder about things :)

Big Baby has really come a long way since his little crying fit earlier this season.

Mostly Bulls fans elsewhere (the ones who are saying Stern and the Celtics are in cahoots, yadda yadda yadda :))

without garnett (and to a lesser extent powe) the teams are a lot more even then their seedings would indicate

here we go. 4th quarter. we really need to start hitting FT's

agree with the T on House, but that should be a double T, look at the Bulls Bench screaming invectives at him as he prepares to take the shot

Ben Gordon is going to shoot the Bulls out of this one.

Celts have done a nice job of exploiting double teams most of the game. Bulls really have not been able to stop C's much at all.

Hinrich has balls.

I like balls.

wow, they give the Bulls a bonus point from the first quarter. Heh.

And now it's down to a 3 point game

SI

Boston trying to give the game away but Bulls look like they just don't have any legs left.

SI

It's good to get the correct call, but there has to be a time limit on review.

What did Perkins do to get a technical?

Technical Foul for swearing about a Bull hurting his shoulder? Are you fucking KIDDING me?

that's a bullshit call by the fucking refs

how is that

a) a technical?

b) a technical on the guy who GOT fouled?

that's exhibit A for "Why I hate the nba" - makes ZERO fucking sense

Doc, please put in Tony Allen. K, thx.

Um please do not listen to him Doc. Keep Tony right where he is.

Gordon should be VERRRRRRRRY careful he just grabbed the ref by both hands.

I'm calling game. Not enough time, and Vinny is drawing up a play in huddle. I think the latter is a bigger issue than the former.

Well at least he didn't swear.

my summary of the series:

the success of the bulls is inversely proportional to how often Ben Gordon has the ball in his hands during the final two minutes of a game/OT Period.

at least he didn't grab the refs crotch.


Gorden has to make that 5 foot floater.

Come on C's.. don't DO this to me. :)

I probably like Gordon less than just about anyone in Chicago, but I don't think this is fair based on his production earlier in the series. He was out of control hot in Games 2 and 3 and probably has been limited by the hamstring over the past couple of games.

However, when he has to create his own shot against a set defense then bad things usually happen. When he is in on defense in crunch teams bad things invariably happen. When the other guys sit around and wait for Ben to throw one in, bad things happen about 100% of the time.

Hoops: Is it me, or do the Bulls do a lot more 1 on 1, make your own space type things, compared to the Celtics, who run a lot more plays/screens to give people space?

Yeah to be fair I am not an NBA fan but got into this series based on the rose/rondo fun early on. It is the 1 on 1, Gordon forcing things in tight situations when Rose was having much better games and seemed a better option that is what I'm primarily reacting to.

SirFozzie, I think that is a fair point. Rondo is a much more pure PG than Rose at this point in their careers and Pierce really does a nice job at playing the point forward role. Both of those guys help establish easier shots for their teammates better than anyone on the Bulls right now.

The Bulls definitely do try to create shots for Gordon off of screens, and Rose/Miller run a fair amount of pick-and-roll, but the team does have a bunch of guys who put the ball on the floor and go to the rim. They then look to pound the offensive boards with Noah (who gets a bunch of them), Thomas (who really disappeared as this series went on, and is frustrating because people project him to his potential rather than what he is) and Rose.

Well, those are my impressions based on watching less Bulls games this year than I have in quite some time. From what I've read on here guys like RainMaker, Neuqua, and Coffee Warlord have probably seen a few more games start to finish than I have this year.

Honestly, you take Gordon shooting the ball rather than passing it because he is pretty frightening when he tries to create for his teammates. Very high turnovers, which is disappointing because he is vertically challenged for a SG. You would like him to have a bit better handles.

Rose is going to get better, and more assertive, over the next couple of years. But he is not there yet, at least not every night. He seemed to be hiding from the ball at the end of Game 6, to pick one example. And this was after having a great first half.

I know a lot of people like Gordon but I still believe he is actually bad for this team. Yes he gets hot and can single handidly win you a game from time to time. But he's also a guy who can get real cold and won't stop shooting (tonight for example). His defense is horrible and the Celtics exploited him regularly on that end. He's also a me-first player who doesn't involve his teammates in the game. There are just some trips down the floor that he's got it engraved in his head that he has to shoot.

He has a ton of talent and is one of a handful of guys in the league that can put 40 up on you any night. But I feel he needs to play within the flow of the game better. If teams are rushing to trap him off the screens, he needs to pass out of it. He needs to get more shots off of kickouts from his PG. He goes into every game thinking he must take 20 shots when he should determine those shots based on what's best for the team.

But most importantly, he hurts Rose. There are times where Rose won't be involved in the offense for 5-6 consecutive trips. He's the most athletic player in the league and the future of your organization. The offense should for the most part revolve around him.

Thomas has problems on offense. He think he's an outside shooter despite what the coaches have told him. I think the team just gave up on him and his lack of playing time in the playoffs has been a sign of that.

It's sad because he's got a ton of potential. I would have loved to have seen him out there more in this game when we were getting killed inside. But Vinny is clueless and refused to put Tyrus in when we needed a shotblocker so badly.

I never said they were in cahoots. I said there was a huge double standard with Stern and how he disciplines players.

Ugh, seriously. I really hope they don't bring him back next season, or at least if they do, it's only as a backup -- no wait, the guy is just poison.

On the bright side for Bulls fans, the goodwill generated by a long playoff run might have given del Negro an extra year in the future before his eventual firing/resignation. Maybe he'll improve in the future but right now I wouldn't be happy with him in charge of my team.

It's bad enough we took the Celtics to 7. People actually think Del Negro is competent and "learning". The whole hiring was a slap in the face to Bulls fans. He is one of the worst coaches in the league.

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I don't watch much basketball, but it seems like Gordon is not good enough to carry this team to dominance alone, and not willing to play as a team. Plus from the looks of it, I'm pretty sure Salmons hates him.

Ben Gordon is the Zach Randolph of perimeter players.

Yeah, really seems like there are two ways to look at this series. One is that the Bulls did an awesome job taking the defending champions to seven games. The other is that the Celtics are hugely weakened without Garnett (and his backup), didn't play to their best and any team that was semi-decently coached would have wrapped it up in 5.

The best thing for this Bulls team IMO is that Gordon leaves, and they get an experienced coach to mentor Rose, Thomas and Noah. Seems like they have a great young core of players, but some of Vinny's decisions in this series were just bizarre. How many minutes did Lindsay Hunter play again?

I think the Celtics are still the 2nd best team in the conference even without Garnett. I just think the Bulls were a really bad matchup for them based on their style of play.

my bold prediction for next season: Vinny DelNegro will be fired before the end of next season

Can we make that 'Vinny will be fired now?', please?

The best thing for the Bulls will be if they learn from the mistakes of a couple of years ago. Good young team coming off a playoff sweep against the defending champs (Heat) and a 4-2 series lost against the Pistons. All of a sudden, they are trying to trade half the team for Kobe, guys were turning down contracts etc. Hopefully they build on this performance.

So a lot of weekdays had 3 games going on, but on the weekend we get one game on Saturday and two on Sunday? What genius let this happen?

Chris Andersen is sporting like the most ridiculous haircut ever, that Gel-Hawk is hideous ... Totally changed the game with his energy though, could be that the Mavs were busy laughing ... :p

In related news, Nuggets and Mavs is close right now at the half. Got Anthony in foul trouble held to 4 points in 11 minutes. And Billups hasn´t got going yet as well with only 3. Nene though has been a beast with 18.
Nuggets go from 16-24 to 51-47 in the 2nd quarter.

And Atlanta advances behing an efficient 27/5/4 with 5 steals and just 1 TO on 11/19 FG by Joe Johnson. Made 6 of 8 thress. Smith was pretty good as well today.
The Heat were a typical one-man-operation tonight and Wade couldn´t come through enough to make it work, they basically ran the same play over and over and over ... Made the Trail Blazers look creative.

some of the shots Nowitzki sinks are just sick, other players that height would like twist an ankle or snap their back taking those off-balance fadeshots off of one leg.

And a 7 footer taking 20 shots a game while handling the ball all the time and being doubled constantly shouldn´t be able to average below 2 TOpg ...

Nice run by the Mavs with Kidd hitting his shots, came back from down 10 now to go up 2.

Quirky stat from the Hawks-Heat series

Admittedly I didn't watch any of this series but based off the stats this seems to be the worst seven game series in any sport ever. Just fascinating how it went.

Awesome first half from Orlando. Keeping big leads was a problem against the 76ers though so this one isn't over. Marbury was Boston's best guy in the first half.

C's looking VERY lifeless tonight. Not surprising - I will give them the first half of game 2 to see if they've got energy and some type of plan to contain orlando

JJ Redick makes it a 28 point lead. This is beautiful.

C's are exhausted AND they just don't have the horses to keep up with orlando i think, even if they weren't all tired (emotionally and physically)

What did I say about Orlando and holding leads. Down to 16.

Reddick had all ball there. Might as well let Usain Bolt be an NBA point guard if all you have to do is run fast and barge into people to get calls.

The Celtics are certainly making this interesting.

I don't think I've seen a made Fg in the 4th quarter

wow - the C's aren't making it easy (if they'd hit shots they'd be ahead by now) but it's now 89-83 magic with 2:40 to go!!!

could be another tight finish!

2 mins to go, 4pt lead with orlando...6 now with 1:47 to go

lol

4pt game and orlando commits an 8 second violation with 35 seconds left

ray allen just had a 3 rattle and fall off the rim that woulda cut it to 1 right before

Boston fans with the audacity to criticize the reffing after this second half :lol:

How the fuck is that not a foul on Howard? Seriously, I'd like to hear an explanation as to why that's not a foul.

Because it wasnt?

If a defender goes straight up and stays in "his area" there can be as much contact as you want as long as it´s not by the hand. It gets whistled a lot, but it shouldn´t by the rules and it didn´t this time. Fair Call.