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People in Phoenix may be conflicted by Arizona's new immigration law, which has been capturing headlines across the nation, but there is certainly no confusion over their city's Suns and their march through the NBA postseason. The Suns took a 2-0 lead over the San Antonio Spurs in their Western Conference Semifinals series, and talk has begun to shift to the prospects of the Suns representing the West in the NBA Finals. It's one ...

Trevor Who? Ron Artest’s Defense Makes Ariza a Distant Memory

Posted: 6th May 2010 by Hadarii Jones in NBA
I wrote an article yesterday concerning Kobe Bryant and his selection to his eighth NBA All-Defensive team, and many of the commentators voiced their opinion that Bryant was not even the best defensive player on his own team. Most felt Ron Artest deserved that honor, and to be fair, I couldn't agree more, although the reason Bryant was selected over Artest had more to do with the respective positions of ...
The Oklahoma City Thunder gave a valiant effort in their first round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, and their performance has some wondering where the young Thunder rank amongst the NBA's greatest No. 8 seeds. Don't rack your brain too much. While the Thunder may have inspired some to include them among the ranks of the league's greatest underdogs; it simply doesn't hold up under any amount of scrutiny. To be ...
Fate may have dealt a blow to the Los Angeles Lakers quest for a repeat. Unfortunately, the culprit is one Laker fans are all too familiar with. It was revealed earlier today that Andrew Bynum suffered a small tear in his meniscus, and although he attempted to play through the pain it's an ominous sign for the Lakers going forward. Bynum just began to find his rhythm in the Lakers offense and ...
For some strange reason, Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan elected to leave star point guard Deron Williams on the floor in the closing seconds of the Jazz's close-out win over the Denver Nuggets, and he may have paid a price for it. Williams ran into a hard screen set by Denver's Chris Andersen and appeared to injure his left shoulder in the process, a development which could have grave ...
Maybe now that both the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks have been eliminated from the 2010 NBA postseason we can start discussing their ill-fated playoff journeys with a little bit of realism. It was widely assumed the Nuggets and Mavericks existed in the rare air of NBA title contenders, but their respective first-round losses revealed them to be pretenders of the highest magnitude. For instance, the Mavericks were exposed by the San ...

A Los Angeles Lakers’ Repeat May Be a Matter Of Destiny

Posted: 1st May 2010 by Hadarii Jones in NBA
No one said repeating as NBA champions would be a simple task for the Los Angeles Lakers, and the young Oklahoma City Thunder gave the men from Tinseltown all they could handle during a grueling, six-game, Western Conference first-round series. But, the Lakers finally managed to dispatch of the Thunder due to great defense, superior play by Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant, timely baskets by Shannon Brown, and of course a ...
LeBron James stepped to the free-throw line in last night's Game Four matchup with the Chicago Bulls needing only to sink the first attempt in order to give his team a two-possession advantage in a close game. James calmly swished the first through, then curiously attempted the second free throw with his left hand. James missed the shot, but the Cavaliers went on to defeat the Bulls and advance to the ...
For those of you unfamiliar with the art of ghost-riding you will have to excuse my association with the term and the Los Angeles Lakers, but for those who have witnessed the feat, it may be easier to understand my analogy. Ghost-riding is a hip-hop derivative that was popularized in the streets of Oakland, Calif., and it is definitely not for the faint of heart. It involves placing a vehicle in neutral ...

2010 NBA Playoffs: Has Kobe Bryant Lost His Way?

Posted: 26th April 2010 by Hadarii Jones in NBA
I've always admired the abilities of Los Angeles shooting guard Kobe Bryant in much the same manner I have always marveled at the talents of deceased rap star Tupac Shakur. Tupac was one of those rare people who was able to be different things at the same time. Tupac could be shallow or profound, thoughtful or reckless, and passionate or indifferent, just to name a few. Bryant exudes some of those same qualities ...