Some More Terrible Officiating

Wow.  Just ridiculous.  Rondo throws Kirk Hinrich into the scorer’s table and all he gets is a flagrant-1.  On top of that, Hinrich also gets a technical so pretty much all the Bulls got was another free throw.  I know I said it wasn’t likely that Rondo would get another flagrant but I didn’t realize what a douche he was.  Now the decision not to give him a flagrant takes on a whole new meaning.  If they upgraded his foul on Brad Miller to a flagrant-1, he could’ve been in line to be suspended for Game 7 (if there is one).  Good job refs.  You’ve made me lose even more faith in your abilities.  (And Kendrick Perkins…maybe you should take back those comments you made about the refs not liking the Boston Celtics).

Flagrant Foul By the Refs

I wasn’t able to watch the entire Bulls/Celtics game last night. I was out celebrating my friend’s birthday with a few other people and there was no TV to watch. But after my friend Dave sent me a message telling me the game was another instant classic, we went to look for a place to watch the game. Fortunately, we were able to find one with a minute left in overtime. Watching what happened in that final minute did what watching Michigan football did to me last year. It made me sick.

A flagrant foul clearly should’ve been called on Rajon Rondo. Rondo was in no way going for the ball and even admitted as much after the game. His giant, alien hands came nowhere near the ball and in a picture on ESPN.com’s front page, you see his right hand clenched, hitting Brad Miller squarely in the mouth. Now, I’m not blaming Rondo here. He had to make a play. He couldn’t let Miller tie the game up with a layup and he had to foul him hard to prevent him from doing so. When he saw Miller with an open path to the basket, he probably remembered bear-hugging LeBron on a fast break and James still managing to score the basket for the and one. Now it’s not like it was Ben Gordon going for the hoop. It was the 7-foot 260-pound Miller. Rondo had to hit him hard and he did. Unfortunately, he hit him in the face, causing Miller’s tooth to pierce his lip. For that fact alone, a flagrant foul should’ve been called. But on top of that, couldn’t the refs kind of figure that Rondo was trying to intentionally foul Miller? They didn’t for once, wonder, “Gee, if I was playing in a situation where I’m the defending champion and I’m about to lose this game on my home floor to go down 3-2 to a hugely overrated and inexperienced team, I think I might try to intentionally foul the guy too”??????????? They couldn’t assess the situation and realize that? And if they couldn’t, they didn’t see Rondo flying in from behind and whacking Miller across the face? And if they didn’t see that, they didn’t see Miller’s lip busted open and blood spewing out of it?

What gets to me is that by not calling Rondo’s foul a flagrant, the refs essentially rewarded the Celtics. How did they do that you ask? Let’s say Miller hit both free throws to tie the game up at 106 (which is tough to even imagine considering he’s a big man who probably never had to shoot potential game-tying free throws in a pivotal playoff game, on the road, with 20,000 fans screaming for you to miss. And oh yeah, HE JUST GOT HIT IN THE FACE). With two seconds left, they’re giving the Celtics the final possession and the opportunity to win the game. And why do they deserve that? Rondo just smacked Miller across the face, caused him to bleed, and now you’re giving Boston the ball back for a chance to win? Given how Paul Pierce was playing, he probably would’ve hit the game-winning shot and that would’ve been a travesty. At least acknowledge that Rondo’s foul was excessive and give Chicago the ball back. And what the hell good is upgrading Rondo’s foul to a flagrant-1 after the game going to do? You can’t go back to Game 5 and give the Bulls possession again. Oohhhh Rondo gets 1 point on his flagrant foul record. Most likely he’s not going to commit another one anyway so what does upgrading Rondo’s foul do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

I don’t understand what the deal is with the refs anymore. No one ever liked them to begin with, and after the whole Tim Donaghy scandal, we like and trust them even less. I understand it’s a tough job and I can live with the missing some calls here and there but something like missing Rondo’s flagrant and not ejecting Dwight Howard for his elbow to the face of Samuel Dalembert bothers the hell out of me. (Why they called a technical foul on Howard for that is mind-boggling. A technical? Really? That’s basically just admitting they should throw Howard out of the game but they don’t have the balls to do so. It would’ve been better just to do nothing. Oh wait, that’s pretty much what they did). The NBA should have an executive sitting in a box upstairs who only steps in on situations when the refs are clearly wrong like on Tuesday night. Hopefully he’d have the cajones to make the right call.

UPDATED: Dwyane Wade got called for a flagrant on that play???  Are you kidding me?  He got called for a flagrant and Rondo didn’t????  The league really has to do something about the reffing.  At least admit that the refs screwed up in the Celts/Bulls game.  Something.  And in my opinion, Dwight Howard should be suspended TWO games.  He threw that elbow with nine minutes left in the FIRST quarter, should’ve been ejected for that game, AND been suspended for Game 6.  Instead, he got to play the rest of the game and dominated the Sixers for 24 points and 24 boards.  It’s debatable whether or not the Sixers would’ve actually won that game but it’s fair to say that the Magic ended up winning because of Superman’s play.  It might cause too much of an uproar to suspend him for Game 7 (if there is one) so maybe he should be forced to miss Game 1 of the next series or the first game the 2009-2010 season.  Or he should be forced to watch Ghosts of Girlfriends Past over and over again.  Any of those would work.

The Brotherhood Goes to School

Adidas recently came out with some commercials with four of their preps-to-pros (Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard, Tracy McGrady, Josh Smith) going to “school” called March Is A Brotherhood.  I’m not really sure how they decided on the schools but I guess the guys just got to pick (an Adidas-sponsored) school to align with for this year’s tournament.  I am certain those aren’t the schools they would’ve gone to because I know KG would’ve gone to either Michigan or North Carolina and Dwight had his heart set on Chapel Hill as well.  (I’m thinking they aligned Dwight with Kansas because of the UNC/Kansas ties).  Unfortunately for them (and Tar Heel fans) they are Nike-sponsored schools so obviously it was impossible for them to be used.  Nonetheless, it’s a cool idea and I’m glad to see Adidas has been stepping their game up with their ads.

KG for UCLA

Superman for Kansas

T-Mac for Louisville

J-Smoove for Pitt

D-Wade, Dwight, and Chuck

I’m real late with this commercial as it’s been out for a few weeks now but I still gotta post about it.  Another All-Star performance by Dwyane Wade in this bit.  I really think he has some acting potential and I’d like to see him make some appearances in TV shows (real ones…not like Terrell Owens in Under One Roof) or movies.  Having Dwight on board is a nice move by T-Mobile so now they gotta add one more NBA superstar or legend to round out the 5 (with Barkley and Yao as the other 2).  It was interesting thought that they decided to run this spot even in the wake of Sir Charles’s arrest.  I guess the publicity of Howard’s slam dunk contest participation was too much to pass up.  So we know T-Mobile can make some pretty good commercials, now only if they’d work on those dropped calls…

Power Rankings – March 1

1. Cleveland Cavaliers (46-12, #2 LW) - All four of the league’s elite teams lost this week, but the Cavaliers were the only ones not to lose multiple times.  As a result, the Cavs regain the top spot.

2. Los Angeles Lakers (48-12, #1 LW) – Tough week for the Lakers losing to both the Nuggets and a Nash and Amare-less Suns.  But back-to-back games against the Grizzlies and Timberwolves will cure any losing streak.

3. Boston Celtics (47-14, #3 LW) – A brutal week for the C’s as well (losing to the Clippers???)  They need KG to return bad.

4. Utah Jazz (37-23, #7 LW) – The Jazz have won 9 in a row to join the elite teams for at least a week.  Will the streak stay alive Wednesday against the Rockets?

5. Orlando Magic (43-16, #4 LW) – An unimpressive week drops the Magic out of the vaunted top 4 this week.  Looks like the loss of Jameer Nelson is really affecting this team.

6. San Antonio Spurs (39-19, #5 LW) – After missing three games where the Spurs went 1-2, Tim Duncan returned Sunday only to get blown out by the Blazers.

7. Houston Rockets (38-22, #8 LW) – A terrible loss to the Bulls stains an otherwise stellar last two weeks for the team from the Big H.

8. Portland Trail Blazers (37-22, #6 LW) – I wonder if Greg Oden will play again this season…

9. Denver Nuggets (39-21, #9 LW) - They follow up a huge win against the Lakers with a loss to the Pacers.  I can’t trust this team and I’ll predict another first round exit for the Nuggets.

10. New Orleans Hornets (36-22, #10 LW) - The Hornets have won 4 in a row but only by a combined 14 points.

11. Dallas Mavericks (36-23, #12 LW) - Another quality opponent, another loss for the Mavericks.

12. Phoenix Suns (34-25, #14 LW) - Nice win Sunday against the Lakers but they got a tough road trip ahead of them.  I’m guessing 1-3.

13. Atlanta Hawks (33-26, #11 LW) - A bad week was capped by a heartbreaking loss to the Cavs Sunday night.  They stay ahead of the Heat because of their win against them.

14. Miami Heat (31-27, #13 LW) - Dwyane Wade, a dark horse for the MVP award this season, has been putting the team on his back all season long.  I haven’t heard any of his doubters lately.

15. Philadelphia 76ers (29-29, #15 LW) - The Sixers have a pretty easy next two weeks of the season before they go on a west coast road trip.

16. Detroit Pistons (29-29, #20 LW) - After losing 8 in a row, the Pistons bounced back with 2 road wins against the Magic and the Celtics.  Impressive wins yes but it looks like AI is gonna return soon so their streak will end Tuesday against the Nuggets.

17. New Jersey Nets (26-33, #16 LW) - The Nets stay one spot ahead of the Bulls with their head-to-head win Wednesday night.

18. Chicago Bulls (27-33, #17 LW) - Amazing comeback by the Bulls against the Rockets.  Totally uncalled for loss by Houston.

19. Milwaukee Bucks (28-31, #19 LW) - The Bucks are holding onto that last playoff spot.  I’ll be shocked if they make it though.

20. Charlotte Bobcats (25-35, #24 LW) - After dropping 3 straight, the Bobcats have won 3 in a row, making their push for that last playoff spot.

21. Indiana Pacers (26-36, #22 LW) - The injuries are piling up for the Pacers as now Mike Dunleavy, who has been hobbled all season, is done for the year.  But amazingly the already Danny Granger-less Pacers only lost by 5 to the defending champs and beat the Denver Nuggets.

22. Golden State Warriors (20-39, #21 LW) - Two brutal losses this week to the Clippers and Bobcats.  Another bad week and the W’s will plummet in these rankings.

23. Toronto Raptors (23-38, #20 LW) - This week will be a good test for the Raptors and we’ll see if they are worthy of making the playoffs.

24. New York Knicks (24-35, #23 LW) - The Knicks angered a battered and bloodied D-Wade and were outscored by 20 in the 4th quarter (24 points by Wade) to give a victory away to the Heat.  Shades of the Knicks of old have been showing in recent games.

25. Los Angeles Clippers (15-45, #29 LW) - Any time you beat the Celtics, you’ll move up in the rankings.

26. Memphis Grizzlies (15-43, #26 LW) - Mike Conley has played pretty well since the team traded away Kyle Lowry.  Can’t say the same about the team though.

27. Washington Wizards (14-45, #27 LW) - The highlight of the their week?  How about having the President attend your game?  Fortunately for the Wiz, they were able to win the game.

28. Minnesota Timberwolves (18-41, #28 LW) - I’m beginning to wonder if the T-Wolves will win another game this season.

29. Sacramento Kings (13-48, #30 LW) - The Kings’ last three wins have come against the Clippers, Grizzlies, and Thunder.  Not exactly the cream of the crop in the NBA.

30. Oklahoma City Thunder (14-45, #25 LW) - Bad news for the Thunder as they lost KD to an ankle injury…the same ankle injury that kept Deron Williams out for a month.  A Durant-less Thunder team easily makes it the worst team in the league.

Barack Obama the Savior of the NBA?

President Barack Obama took in the Wizards-Bulls game Friday night in the nation’s capital.  It was pretty awesome to see him sitting courtside, drinking a beer, and mingling with the fans.  It’s cool that he would come to a game and enjoy it just like the rest of us would (albeit with a better view).  As a die-hard basketball fan, I am ecstatic that our President is such a huge fan of the game.  I know the sport’s popularity has dwindled quite a bit, for a variety of reasons, since Michael Jordan retired and we’ve been trying to figure out who will fill his shoes and bring the sport back to the masses.  But maybe the answer won’t be a player on the court.  Perhaps it’ll be a fan…The First Fan actually.  Maybe it will be the President that makes basketball reach the status it enjoyed during the Jordan Years.  His passion for the game has been well-publicized and his desire to replace the White House bowling alley with an indoor basketball court made headline news.  With many casual fans leaving the game along with His Airness, possibly turned off by the new hip-hop regime that took over the league, can it be the leader of the free world who will revive basketball?  It might be a little far-fetched but I’m glad he’s on our side.  So next time you’re watching an NBA (or college) game, you can sit back knowing that maybe the President is doing the same.

Oh What a Shot by Devin Harris!

Everyone’s talking about Devin Harris’s incredible game-winning shot to beat the Philadelphia 76ers. Well here’s the video of the desperation half-court heave by the All-Star. Ridiculous concentration by Harris to get the shot off after Andre Iguodala stripped (or fouled) the ball away from him.  Check it out yourself:

Another Mistake by MJ?

Check out this monster swat by Shannon Brown. It was called a foul but still amazing.  Can’t believe MJ traded him away to get Vladimir Radmanovic. And poor Mario West. He’s forever been Youtubed.

Power Rankings

Power Rankings have been updated as of 2/23.  Check them out here.

KD, KG, and D-Wade Bustin’ a Move

Apparently Shaq wasn’t the only one getting down with the Jabbawockeez. Check out this video from the missiong.com website of Kevin Durant, Kevin Garnett, and Dwyane Wade with the Jabbas at All-Star Weekend displaying their dance moves for the fans at a Gatorade event.  KG is doing his thing which is no surprise, but KD actually shows some promise as a dancer.  It looks like he’s got some moves.  D-Wade……..notsomuch.  Which is surprising actually since he looks like he’s a smooth cat on and off the court.  C’mon Dwyane, you gotta work on your moves and not let the other guys show you up.