It all started last summer, at the Beijing Olympics. The U.S., hungry for redemption after their recent failure, brought along a team intent on winning. It was the best team formed since the 1996 Olympics, and at the forefront were two huge, global stars, Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. Branded as leaders, the two elevated their games and brought home the gold medal. Right then and there, the NBA sensed something great and licked their chops. Kobe vs Lebron for the NBA Title. Now that sounded like a blockbuster and the NBA started a novena, praying for divine intervention to deliver them their dream finals match up.
Lo and behold, as the season wore on, the NBA was beginning to smile. Lebron and the Cavs razed through the Eastern Conference just as Kobe and the Lakers romped through out West. With both teams entering their respective conference finals, the NBA's best laid plans for a blockbuster finals (with massive TV ratings) was so close David Stern could taste it. Now, though, someone has thrown a monkey wrench or two into the well-oiled plan. Enter the Orlando Magic and the Denver Nuggets.
As things stand now, the Magic and the Nuggets have taken away the two favorites' homecourt advantage, with the Magic leading the Cavs 1-0 and the Nuggets ties with the Lakers at 1 all. Will these two teams, who are looking for redemption themselves, prove to be the proverbial monkey wrench or will they merely be cumbersome obstacles that will be hurdled?
The Orlando Magic has not exactly been on everyone's radar when talking about who will win the Larry O'Brien trophy this year, and the boys from Orlando have taken the snub personally. They now pose quite a threat to the Cavs and it's not just because they aren't the Pistons. As shown in Game 1, Orlando had the Cavs beat on two ends.
First of all, Orlando's frontcourt is huge, but lithe and lightning-quick. A front line featuring 7 foot Dwight Howard, 6-10 shooters Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu and 6-8 Michael Pietrus are simply too quick for the equally huge but lumbering front line of the Cavs. While James can match up with any one of the Magic's forwards, he can't guard all of them at the same time. In game one, while it was Howard's 30 points that lit up the scoreboard, the Cavs lost because of the other three forwards, with Hedo and Lewis combining for Orlando's final 17 points. If the Cavs are to make it to the finals, like they told the world they would do, then their tall lumbering front line (Anderson "Sideshow Bob" Varejao guarding Rashard Lewis, are you serious?) must find a way to become light on their feet.
Secondly, the Cavs played to Orlando's strength, which I believe is not their three point shooting but more so their defense. Everyone reverted back to their "watch Lebron" playbooks, standing around hoping to get a pass for a spot-up three. Although James had a monster game, going 20 of 30 from the field, it took too much out of James. In fact, I think he passed up a shot on a late drive that could have won the game, simply because of fatigue. All Star Mo Williams and Delonte West must regain their regular season shooting and aggressiveness and Zydrunas Ilgauskas must make Dwight Howard work on defense if they are to beat the Magic in this series.
The Denver Nuggets almost became the poster child of how not to build an NBA roster as the past few years showed the Mile High team as a group of shoot first, players with immense talent but no will to win a championship. What a difference an old and wise point guard makes. Chauncey Billups has come into Denver and changed the team's outlook (and therefore) its chances this season. The "new-look" Nuggets actually feature the same core of players, save for the enigmatic Chris "Birdman" Andersen, but they have shown a desire and will for teamwork and defense that was last seen on a Nuggets team when Dikembe Mutombo was wagging fingers at opponents. They could pose problems for the Lake show because, as seen in Games 1 and 2, the Nuggets bring in a toughness and and offensive arsenal that have the Lakers on their heels.
First of all, the Nuggets this year are tough, in a good basketball way. They are showing a willingness and the health needed to bang bodies inside, once again threatening to expose Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom as softies playing in a tough guy's game. Kenyon Martin, Nene and Birdman have relentlessly attacked the lanes for both offense and defense, taking the Houston Rockets model of bullying the Lakers inside. If the Lakers want to make David Stern happy, they must dig deep, fight back especially inside the paint to grab rebounds and loose balls, shoot high percentage dunks and layups and block and change shots.
Secondly, the Nuggets while successfully approximating the Rockets' toughness on defense, are infinitely more talented on offense. Carmelo Anthony has shown, at least in these playoffs, that he deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as King James and he has a lot of help. Linas Kleiza and J. R. Smith are bringing it from the bench, K-Mart and Nene have been active and useful on the offensive end (Heck, Nene even had 6 assists in game 2. 6!!! OMG! The Black Hole of basketball learned to pass!) and most importantly, Billups has a stability to keep the Nuggets calm through thick and thin. The Nuggets are clicking on all cylinders offensively, and if Kobe wants to get a chance to win his first title without Shaq, he must lead his team not just in offense, but more so on the defensive end. They must clog the lane and force the Nuggets into shooting from the outside.
So now David Stern is beginning to sweat. His dream blockbuster finals scenario is being pushed onto the brink of oblivion. Will the Cavs and the Lakers bounce back and give Stern a reason to smile or will Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony be the Team USA teammates playing in the finals?
As for me, you all know I love ruining best laid plans, so I will be in my usual place, eagerly awaiting Cleveland's and L.A.'s impending disappointments.
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