Re: the official Dwayne Wade >>> you thread

by dmize Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:58 am

What a block by Avery Bradley on Wade a couple mins ago. Bostons been playing well recently. Not going to contend but still nice to see.

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:54 am

OMFG losing to the Celtics :facepalm:

What a way to waste closing the gap on the Bulls :facepalm:

by The Franchise Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:59 am

by Guest Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:07 am

OKC destroying all who oppose them atm

Looking very strong contenders

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:08 am

Miami

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:11 am

Don't see them winning a title, but Doc can knockout a contender in the first/second round.

He should knockout Miami for the Lulz :bow:

Can we steal Doc from Boston hmm

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:15 am

This is fxcking disgraceful honestly.. These guys need to get there act together

by Guest Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:45 am

Rondo put a hurting on James like no other, came up with the triple-double too, amazing performance

At least Bulls can say they were missing Rose...what was Miami's excuse....

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:48 am

Crimson wrote:Rondo put a hurting on James like no other, came up with the triple-double too, amazing performance

At least Bulls can say they were missing Rose...what was Miami's excuse....

There is no excuse for this bs.. Boston would never beat us in a 7 game series.. I just want to get the number 1 seed this year

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:51 am

Swagg wrote:
Crimson wrote:Rondo put a hurting on James like no other, came up with the triple-double too, amazing performance

At least Bulls can say they were missing Rose...what was Miami's excuse....

There is no excuse for this bs.. Boston would never beat us in a 7 game series.. I just want to get the number 1 seed this year

Wouldn't be too sure about that.

Lebron is Lebron after all.......

BTW...How the hell does Rondo manage to get a Triple Double every single time he's on TV lol.

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 3:59 am

Le Samourai wrote:
Swagg wrote:
Crimson wrote:Rondo put a hurting on James like no other, came up with the triple-double too, amazing performance

At least Bulls can say they were missing Rose...what was Miami's excuse....

There is no excuse for this bs.. Boston would never beat us in a 7 game series.. I just want to get the number 1 seed this year

Wouldn't be too sure about that.

Lebron is Lebron after all.......

BTW...How the hell does Rondo manage to get a Triple Double every single time he's on TV lol.

LOL.. Remember they can't play in the Finals therefore LeBron can't struggle Razz

Rondo is a beast, if he learned how to shoot well he would be the best PG in the game probably..

by Amar Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:00 am

Although regular season games give somewhat of an indicator, playoffs are a whole different thing.

Lakers, Miami, and Chicago have proven their worth in the playoffs, while OKC haven't. I'm not doubting their talent, I'm concerned with their playoffs credentials.

by dmize Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:54 am

http://www.herald-dispatch.com/sports/x1419397058/Maybe-Kobe-Bryant-went-too-far-in-quest-to-Be-Like-Mike

"Unlike LeBron James, no one will ever criticize Kobe Bryant for not trying hard enough to be like Michael Jordan. If anything, it could be argued that Bryant took Jordan's "Be Like Mike" Gatorade campaign, perhaps, a little too seriously.

Because everything about Bryant seems Jordan-esque. It's in the way he talks to the way he carries himself on the court. The fuel that revs his hypercompetitive engine comes from perceived slights and self-manufactured grudges, which was a staple of Jordan's career. Even the evolution of Bryant's offensive genius is eerily similar to MJ's.

I want to say that all of this feels painfully contrived, but saying that would mean Bryant, at some point, decided to make a concerted effort toward becoming an iteration of Jordan. And I don't believe that is entirely true, by which I mean I don't think Kobe Bryant built his career on trying to be like Michael Jordan. I think he built it on trying to be better than him.

And Kobe (mostly) reaped benefits from this philosophy. He's won five championships, and he's realistically one of the 10 greatest basketball players ever. So, really, there's absolutely no basis to say that his career has been anything less than a sterling success.

But the problem with Bryant's pursuit of trying to be better than Jordan is that he has never differentiated himself from "His Airness."

And that has nothing to do with his accomplishments or talent and everything to do with the fact that his game is unoriginal, unmistakably derivative of Jordan's. What Kobe is doing hasn't ever felt like that of a basketball evolutionary, like Bird or Magic or Russell; it feels like identity theft, a well-researched plagiarism of someone else.

He's like the greatest Beatles' cover-band ever assembled: They may look and sound the part, but nobody ever mistakes them for the original.

Earlier in the season, after becoming the fifth-highest all-time scorer in the history of the NBA, Bryant had this to say when the prospect of moving up the all-time scoring list was mentioned: "I just want No. 6, man. I'm not asking for too much, man. Just give me a sixth ring, damn it."

This candid moment gives us a glimpse into how much the quest of surpassing Jordan looms in the back of Bryant's mind during the last leg of his career. And maybe it's reasonable to deduce that the rivalries during his NBA career haven't been with other players, but with himself in relation to Jordan's stature.

Yet, Bryant isn't in an advantageous situation to secure another NBA Finals appearance. He's aging and his body is deteriorating. The Lakers' roster has been both old and in flux this season; and head coach Mike Brown has often been at a disconnect with the players.

As with the most tragic of stories, the end is nigh for Kobe Bryant, and it's happening not with a bang but a whimper. You can tell he knows it by the desperation in his play. He's reverting back to his one-man show, circa 2006. This season, even though he's playing alongside two of the best big men in the league (Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum), his 33.9 offensive usage rate is the highest in the NBA.

Bryant is all too aware that a sixth championship would put him one ahead of Magic Johnson and (most of all) at a tie with Jordan. Although, I'm not even sure another championship would make much of a difference at this point, because the (slight) problem with Kobe's career is too far gone.

It's that we don't have any memories of Kobe Bryant -- we merely have memories of Kobe Bryant trying to do impersonations of Michael Jordan."

Good read, nothing new, but still a good read. Opinions?

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:21 am

Mostly agree.

Except from my standpoint , I still expect (hope) that Kobe evolves once again , like he did in 08.

It's my understanding never evolved other than his transition to being predominantly a jump shooter, he never tweaked his game so that he could make full use of his teammates.

Kobe still has the opportunity to do so.

He responded well in 08 and it earned him and MVP and he's ready for the next stage.

I hope our offense is modeled somewhat on that of the Celtics in the future, take the ball out of his hands, make him a set scorer instead of an Iso scorer and make full use of all the aspects of the team.

He still has time.Once he realizes that, that's the way he's going to win, I'm really confident he'll alter his game.The thing is it's hard to convince him....

As far as the memory part goes, I dunno.....I mean a guy like me who's 16 could care less about Jordan, they try to make it sound like Jordan reinvented the game or something....I don't think he did particularly.

What he did was influence the guys in the league today...something I think we'll be saying about Kobe in 10 years time.

When it's all said and done, you can't blame him for it. The media made it what it is.......and now the media is coming back to say this is a asterik on his career.It's entrapment really lol.

If kobe undergoes that final stage of evolution and proves that winning matters above everything else to him, including his reputation as a scorer, then I'll have that much respect for him in the end.

by dmize Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:33 am

Le Samourai wrote:
As far as the memory part goes, I dunno.....I mean a guy like me who's 16 could care less about Jordan, they try to make it sound like Jordan reinvented the game or something....I don't think he did particularly.

What he did was influence the guys in the league today...something I think we'll be saying about Kobe in 10 years time.

I don't think Jordan re-invented the game. More like changed, in terms of making the NBA more known worldwide, etc.

I do agree with the writer in that, it's obvious Kobe wants to be better than MJ, not MJ himself. The plagiarism part is probably too much, every good player borrows moves, shots, skills from other greats. For the most part I agree with the article though.

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:37 am

Agree completely.. Kobe try's way too hard to be like Jordan it's so obvious..

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:39 am

Ah, I see.

Anyway, I do agree with the article as well,just think Kobe has time to change it. He makes it seem like it's too far gone, but he doesn't understand the powers of perception, Kobe's behind Jordan right now.....but to the masses if he wins 2 more rings i changes his legacy completely.

It doesn't matter if he was chasing Jordan if he passes him (rings not overall game and what not), it only matters if he falls short.

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:45 am

Swagg wrote:Agree completely.. Kobe try's way too hard to be like Jordan it's so obvious..

That's the bullshit the media feeds you.

Kobe's copied from literally everyone, people pushed the Jordan comparison alot that's why people immediately associate it with Kobe.

There are alot of guys who "try to be like Jordan" in that they try to play like him, or they try to win rings or whatever.I'm not comfortable punishing Kobe just because he came the closest.

I mean, Jordan didn't just appear either.....he modelled his game on people......I dunno who it was he tried to be like....I'm guessing Jerry West maybe.....or he tried to emulate Bill Russel....dunno.

I know he didn't just appear out of thin air though...the reason he gets away with it, is because he was the best.

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:49 am

Even if Kobe gets 6 rings he's still way behind Jordan.. Let's be real, Jordan has 6 rings as 'the man' Kobe right now has 2.. It's no just that though.. Jordan has 10 scoring titles, 5 MVPs, averaged 30 ppg for his career.. He's ridiculous

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:51 am

Le Samourai wrote:
Swagg wrote:Agree completely.. Kobe try's way too hard to be like Jordan it's so obvious..

That's the bullshit the media feeds you.

Kobe's copied from literally everyone, people pushed the Jordan comparison alot that's why people immediately associate it with Kobe.

There are alot of guys who "try to be like Jordan" in that they try to play like him, or they try to win rings or whatever.I'm not comfortable punishing Kobe just because he came the closest.

I mean, Jordan didn't just appear either.....he modelled his game on people......I dunno who it was he tried to be like....I'm guessing Jerry West maybe.....or he tried to emulate Bill Russel....dunno.

I know he didn't just appear out of thin air though...the reason he gets away with it, is because he was the best.

No it's not the media.. Most people that watched Jordan play know that Kobe tries to be like him

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:55 am

All that's fine, jussayin the media made more of this than it really is and the more Kobe wins the more they will make of it.

At the end of the day, if he catches him in terms of rings, I don't think that many people will care about the contents of this particular article...(however true or untrue they may be)

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:56 am

Pretty sure most people in the league idolized Jordan growing up and therefore try to play like him.......

by LeSwagg James Mon Apr 02, 2012 6:05 am

I think they idolize him sure.. And want to be great, hit game winners, get mad endorsements and stuff but they don't have to act like him.. I mean Kobe sometimes sticks his tongue out just like Jordan.. It's also his demeanor and the way he acts.. His game is also very similar, the way he way he fakes, his fade-aways..

Jordan probably took some of his game from generations before him but he played like nothing the league has seen before.. The way he moved, dribbled, don't know how to really explain it but he brought swagg to the game lol..

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:12 pm

Kobe killed it.

40.

Bynum out with a ankle sprain, which is worrying for a guy his size.But he can bounce back.

We'll have to do without him for a couple games though :facepalm:

by The Franchise Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:09 pm

Meh, whats wrong with Kobe modelling certain aspects of his game on the greatest player to ever play it?

Jordan did the same with Dr. J, so who cares? You learn from those before you and improve yourself and be the best version of what you can be.

Kobe vs Jordan debate annoys me, because Kobe isnt as good but people good so over the top to protect the golden goose of Basketball they take shits on Kobe unfairly.

2 rings as "the man"? How about when Shaq fouled out against the Blazers and Kobe had to step in and save their asses? Who was the man then?

It was a duo plain and simple.....

Shaq at his peak was the most dominate player I have ever seen...if Jordan was on his team, the same would of happened...Shaq would of dominated and demanded the ball.

Kobe has 5 rings..plain and simple...without him, the Lakers wouldnt of won them, period.

by Le Samourai Mon Apr 02, 2012 11:48 pm

How do you defend someone who's 5 inches taller than you, has about 20 pounds on you , and is faster and stronger.... hmm

And is relatively complete hmm

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