NBA Playoffs 09 - Page 114

On May 23 2009 22:42 Jibba wrote:



And no, Pietrus still wouldn't have done shit to contest Lebron's shot. It was a FADE AWAY.

On May 24 2009 03:14 choboPEon wrote:
the obsession with new york is that it is the mecca of basketball and the basketball culture here is enormous and the money here is even bigger. the nba hq is in ny. it's new york!

On May 23 2009 18:16 oneofthem wrote:
if we are to put any credence into the heart of a champion narrative, now is the time. here lebron can show whether he has the stuff of legends. though the cavs won, they are at a crossroad. they were outplayed for 2 games at home, and had no answers for orlando's attack. their undefeated and smooth run already shattered, not anymore by a fluke win, but by a magics team that has the upper hand and dictated play for 5.5 quarters out of 8. the hype of invincibility that surrounds cleveland is beginning to look obnoxiously manufactured. the only salvageable ground of hope is lebron; not lebron the good basketball player, but lebron the chosen one, the man who can do anything. lebron the good player can lose, lebron the legend cannot, and cleveland has to believe in that legend in order to believe that they can win. they can either fall flat and vindicate the haters, or find some extra energy that they desperately need in orlando. it takes a leader who captures the attention and total trust of the team to make the latter happen.

this is likely the sportswriter's story. whether the cavs really wins because of it is another matter altogether. but it is still a nice story.

that shot, in the long view, is just one play that says nothing about the prospects of the two teams, but the fantasy and legend of the shot is the only hope for cleveland to find themselves again. if cleveland does come out strong and win the series, lebron would not only get all the credit, but also become mystified like jordan was.

this story is too good, it is dangerous. lebron has yet to reach the jordan level of legend that makes him transcend basketball and become "the best" and "the winner." if the ideal story for lebron happens, he might not need new york to make his 1 billion. that is not good at all, not at all. i hope orlando destroys them and close it out in 6. not merely because i want lebron to come to new york, but a lebron win is too simple and buries all the interesting things going on. had the magics won the game, their improvement down the stretch as a team would be more acknowledged, and best of all, they did it against the lolrefs

ps. LOL lecrab got called for a travel.