2012 NBA Championship: Union Cain Revisited

Remember in Rocky V when Tommy Gunn defeated Union Cain for the title after he (Tommy) defected from Rocky's mentoring to the evil influence of George Washington Duke. In the post match press conference it was pointed out by a reporter that Cain's title was manufactured that Cain never really defeated Rocky for the title. To me, if EVER an NBA title was manufactured, it is the one the Heat are about to claim. Heat superstars are protected from suspensions by league officials and administrators more than the federal government does in witness protection. Wade's thuggery is sanctioned. James can travel without seeing a travel agent, crab dribble without going to the clinic. Turn charging calls into blocking calls as if leaping a building in a single bound. This looks to be a real room service title and not one that even deserves comparison to past Celtic, Laker (Execept for 2010) titles, Spur championships, or Piston or Bulls titles of years gone by

Games 2-4 of this series have been there for the taking and OKC has not stepped up.

OKC plays multiple players who are usually offensive non-factors.
With Perkins, Sefolosha, Fisher, Collison and Ibaka being so ineffective, they need huge games from Durant, Westbrook and Harden to win. If Harden had just a decent series so far, OKC would be tied, up 3-1 or would have won the series already.

OKC's stars get away with the same non-travel calls and carries that Miami's stars do. When Westbrook makes his crossovers, it seems like he puts his dribble on pause because the ball is by his hip for so long.

OKC still has a chance to win but Miami has played like they wanted this series more then OKC has.

MD, I have to disagree. While I dislike Wade intensely, my respect for LeBron has grown a lot during this series, as well as the last one against Boston. He has been tremendous. Without his exceptional performance, there is no way the Heat beat the Celtics and there is no way the Heat are ahead of OKC.

I dislike Miami, and I am rooting for OKC. I actually thought OKC should be favored going in. But LeBron has stepped up, as have supporting players like Battier and Chalmers. You have to give LeBron credit for this performance. Miami in general and LeBron in particular look like they've learned from their previous Finals experience.

OKC, on the other hand, is getting less than they should from Harden and Ibaka. I thought Collison played very well last night, but for some reason, Brooks left him on the bench for most of the game after the first quarter. His energy and impact was far superior to Perkins and Ibaka, and I don't care which one he replaced, he should've played more. But they're young and on the biggest stage for the first time, and it shows.

My youngest son is a huge OKC fan and even bought an official Thunder cap. I told him last night during the game that he is watching his team learn what it takes to win a championship, even if they don't win this year. Unfortunately, they're playing a team that has already learned that lesson. Give Miami, and especially LeBron, their due.

Scott Brooks is NOT the coach to take OKC to the next level. The market is too small for Phil Jackson. They need someone with more savy and experience on the big stage.

MDCelticsFan wrote:Scott Brooks is NOT the coach to take OKC to the next level. The market is too small for Phil Jackson. They need someone with more savy and experience on the big stage.

totally agree. Two very average coaches on display in the Finals this year.

How in the world does Brooks have Sefolosha shooting a 3 pointer with 50 seconds left in a 3 point game...when Durant and Westbrook are both in the game (and on fire)?

MDCelticsFan wrote:Scott Brooks is NOT the coach to take OKC to the next level. The market is too small for Phil Jackson. They need someone with more savy and experience on the big stage.

Miami is probably going to win the championship with a coach who never was an NBA head coach before and never played in the NBA.

If Harden hits some shots in the series, Brooks lookis like a genius.

These series are about the way the players perform on the court, not what the coaches do/don't do.

You are right TJ.

It makes no difference who the coach is

I agree with what Outside and TJ have said about the games. Games 2 and 4 were OKC's for the taking. You can't give away 2 games and then blame someone else.

I also agree with MD and MrKleen's assessment of Scott Brooks (and disagree with TJ). For what it's worth, so does Perk.

“I just don’t understand why we start out the first quarter the way we did with the lineup we had, and all of a sudden we change and adjust to what they had going on,” a clearly frustrated Perkins said in the Thunder locker room after the game. “So they won the last three quarters and that’s what happened…

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”


bob


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mrkleen09 wrote:You are right TJ.

It makes no difference who the coach is

How many people here said the same thing about Spolestra.
Is he leading his team to a championship?
Or is it his players?

bobheckler wrote:I agree with what Outside and TJ have said about the games. Games 2 and 4 were OKC's for the taking. You can't give away 2 games and then blame someone else.

I also agree with MD and MrKleen's assessment of Scott Brooks (and disagree with TJ). For what it's worth, so does Perk.

“I just don’t understand why we start out the first quarter the way we did with the lineup we had, and all of a sudden we change and adjust to what they had going on,” a clearly frustrated Perkins said in the Thunder locker room after the game. “So they won the last three quarters and that’s what happened…

“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”


bob


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Team go through runs during games.
Does Perk really think that since he was on the floor when OKC took a 17 point lead early in the game that if he played in the 4th, they would have made another run?
Perk is nothing but a liability for OKC and putting him on the floor when they were having scoring issues, would not have helped.

tjmakz wrote:

mrkleen09 wrote:You are right TJ.

It makes no difference who the coach is

How many people here said the same thing about Spolestra.
Is he leading his team to a championship?
Or is it his players?

Some teams win because of a combination of coach and players.
Some teams win IN SPITE of their coach.

Miami is in the later category.

TJ and Kleen, I'd say you both have a point. Coaches do make a difference, but players make the biggest difference. The series would be totally different if Harden had performed even half as well as he had during the season, and Brooks has made a couple of odd choices during the series that could've changed the outcome of at least one game.

Overall, I'm not that hard on Brooks. He did a pretty good job making adjustments in the San Antonio series and seemed to get the better of a pretty good coach there. I'm also think Spoelstra has done a good job. I put a lot of credence in what Doc said about him in his post-game interview after game 7 (starts around 1:35 in the video below).

What is Doc going to say Outside?

I won't EVER give James any credit for anything except wimping out on Cleveland. How could he run out on the city that the greatest football player ever, Jim Brown called home for nine seasons. Too bad Jim couldn't have laid the smack down on Lebum in his (Brown's) prime. Jim Brown is more of a man more of an icon than James EVER will be!

MD!

tjmakz wrote: Perk is nothing but a liability for OKC

Kendrick Perkins turned the ENTIRE CULTURE around in OKC. But yeah, he is nothing but a liability.

Wow. You are on a roll today TJ.

MRKleen:

Teams winning inspite of their coach: Dallas Cowboys the year Barry Switzer coached them! Switzer could coach kids, but not men!

MD!

mrkleen09 wrote:

tjmakz wrote: Perk is nothing but a liability for OKC

Kendrick Perkins turned the ENTIRE CULTURE around in OKC. But yeah, he is nothing but a liability.

Wow. You are on a roll today TJ.

Have you seen Perkins play on the court this series?

He can't score and it not a good defender against non-traditional centers and Miami is not using a traditional center.

That is a broad statement that Perkins has changed the culture of OKC.
You might want to look to see how many ppg OKC gave up in the paint this season.
Their interior defense was their weakest part of their defense.

Yeah....OK TJ.

http://articles.latimes.com/2012/feb/04/sports/la-sp-nba-thunder-20120205

Stats don't tell story for players like Thunder's Kendrick Perkins

Oklahoma City center averages fewer than six points and rebounds per game. But his defense, leadership and physical play are key contributors to the numbers that matter most: Thunder's NBA-best record.

Hi,
On the topic of the thread. I think that it should've been Celtics in the Finals instead of Heat. The refs gave game 2 to the Heat and robbed the Celtics.

I agree with others: OKC gave away game 2 and 4.
Also, agree with TJ - Perk is liability. He's so unlike Perk we're used to. He is Beast no more.

AK

Perkins is a good guy to have on the team but in this series he is a liability.
Miami is not a good matchup for Perkins.
I admire Perkins tough defense and I have seen him take Dwight Howard out of his game for years by being physical.
At the end of games this season, Ibaka is almost always the one on the court while Perkins is on the bench.
When OKC gets nothing offensively except for Durant and Westbrook, then you have to look at why OKC routinely plays so many limited skilled offensive players.

mrkleen09 wrote:What is Doc going to say Outside?

It's true that coaches stick together for the most part (when they're not fueding), but that doesn't seem like some obligatory "the other coach did a good job, yadda yadda yadda" speech from Doc. It looked heartfelt to me. As did Doc's congratulations to the Miami players, particularly LeBron, after game 7. I don't think Doc is one for faking that stuff.

Look, I don't like Miami. I particularly dislike Wade. I haven't been a LeBron fan up to this point. The Decision and that whole "not two, not three, not four..." crap was some of the worst stuff I've seen players pull. I understand a lot of people will refuse to give them any credit regardless of the situation. But I am willing to acknowledge what they've done that is worthy of acknowledgement.

For Spoelstra, that starts with the defense. His team plays very good team defense that everyone buys into. That takes good coaching, both from an X's and O's perspective and a psychological, managing egos perspective. The whole issue with LeBron and Wade and whose team is it and how do we handle this since both guys are perimeter players who at their best when they dominate the ball -- he's handled that pretty darn well. He held his team together when they were down 2-1 with Bosh hurt against Indiana and down 3-2 going to Boston against the Celtics. Would I give him Coach of the Year? No. But he's done a good job in exceptionally tough circumstances. Most guys would've wilted under the pressure, not just in this year's playoffs, but also under the pressure of the last two seasons. Regardless of whether a good chunk of that pressure was self-inflicted by LeBron and that stupid celebration crap, it was pressure nonetheless, and Spoelstra has held up. He has his team playing well. They are a flawed team, yet they are one win from a championship. You don't have to like him as a coach, you don't have to think he's any good, but I think he deserves credit. I don't let my dislike for Miami get in the way of acknowledging that.

sinus007 wrote:Hi,
On the topic of the thread. I think that it should've been Celtics in the Finals instead of Heat. The refs gave game 2 to the Heat and robbed the Celtics.

I agree with others: OKC gave away game 2 and 4.
Also, agree with TJ - Perk is liability. He's so unlike Perk we're used to. He is Beast no more.

AK

Careful, sinus, you're very close to incurring the wrath of Cowens.

:-)


bob


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bobheckler wrote:

sinus007 wrote:
Also, agree with TJ - Perk is liability. He's so unlike Perk we're used to. He is Beast no more.

Careful, sinus, you're very close to incurring the wrath of Cowens.

Yeah, Perk hasn't been that effective, but I wasn't about to go there. Regardless of his apparent value on the floor, however, he's much more valuable as a player who has been in the Finals before and won a championship, as is Fisher. Fisher has been awful in the Finals, but he showed his worth after the game 2 loss to San Antonio when, with them down 0-2 and looking dead, he was the calm voice of confidence and perseverance. We don't know what goes on in the locker room, but that kind of thing can be invaluable to a young, emerging team like OKC. I have to think Perk provides that type of veteran leadership as well.

Which has me puzzling at Perk's comments after last night's game. He may be right in what he said, but the fact that he said it seems to me to be the type of thing that sows dissent and doubt, which is precisely the type of thing I wouldn't expect a veteran leader to do. Even if they don't win it all this year, this is a team potentially on the cusp of great things, and questioning the coach publicly is not helpful to their overall goal of becoming champions.

Outside

I can't bring myself to sit down and watch any of these games. I have been rooting for OKC but, from what I have seen the day after games, they have given this series to Miami.

I, too, feel like some about LeBron, however, I will say this, he wants it more than anyone on the court right now. What happens in years 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, who knows. I will be rooting against him. He has truly taken this team on his back and will be the one responsible if they win. As far as wade is concerned, he is
no one I would admire and want on my team. It is called HEART, and he doesn't have it.

There is no way Scotty Brooks will be the long term coach for this young club. They deserve better. As far as Perk goes, I love him, but alot of his faults are coming out this playoff season.

I hope LeBron enjoys his title this year, it may be the only one he gets.

At the risk of beating this drum too much, I found this in an article by Bill Simmons:

For three quarters, LeBron James played at the single highest level I have ever seen from him. (Yes, I went to Game 6 of last round's Boston series.) This was the greatest Bird impression ever attempted (and executed), something that could only be called "power point guard." He did whatever he wanted on the low post, crashed the boards, got his teammates involved, made the right play time and time again … it was like watching Bird 2.0, only if Bird was also one of the three best defenders in the league. To repeat: LeBron was playing like a rich man's version of the fifth-best basketball player of all time. I don't care how much you hated "The Decision" — if you can't appreciate what LeBron James is doing right now, you need to start following another sport. It's one of the greatest night-to-night athletic feats we have ever witnessed.

The article is mainly about Russell Westbrook and is, as usual, an entertaining read.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8077467/that-boy-competed