This season, I’m officially delving into the “casual NBA fan” territory. I covered why in my last post, but to sum it up, the hype around the lockout, recent free agent madness and likeable superstars have sucked me in. All season, I’ll be posting an update here or there to explain my ups and downs in NBA fandom, all the while rooting for my hometown squad, the Philadelphia 76ers.
The keyword here is “casual”; I’m an uneducated, fair weathered, fickle fan just looking for entertainment. I’m going to be that guy missing all the role players and drooling at the slams all season. Sorry. I hate me in other sports. Baseball? I geek out. Hockey? Geek out. Football? I play a lot of Madden, which is kind of like geeking out. Basketball? I’m trying to have fun watching TV.
My “teams to watch” predictions from the last post were not that good at all. Celtics? Slow, old, kind of boring to watch. I’m sure Celtic fans are digging the team this season, although they did get puinished by the Heat, but me? A front running NBA casual? Not so much. Same with the Knicks; I really over valued them in my mind. Carmelo is outstanding and the Knicks are almost worth watching just for him, but as a unit they’re just not enjoyable. I’ll watch games where those teams play high caliber squads, but will I watch Knicks – Bobcats? No. That’s the point of being a casual NBA fan: I want to be able to turn on ESPN, see a marquee (or sub-marquee) matchup and enjoy it.
On the other hand, I got the Heat right. That offense is incredible. They run a fast-break offense, I don’t know how else to explain it. If you’re a struggling AAU coach desperate for an offense strategy, grab the fastest, biggest kid on your team, inbound him the ball and let him run end to end and lay it up. That’s what the Heat do, except they have four of those guys and they dunk it down in spectacular fashion. I’m one of those “Lebron Haters” and even I love watching the Heatles go to work. It’s also great to watch the media hate machine try to go full steam when the Heat are playing so well.
I can’t believe I didn’t have the Thunder on that list, a major oversight on my part, because honestly they ARE the team to watch so far (interesting side note: I turned off that buzzer beater game to watch a DVR of the third episode of 24/7. I blame this partially on Corey and partially on the Mavericks being sleep inducingly boring). Could Durant be the NBA’s next big star? I’d love to see him win a championship this season, and they should be able to last considering how young they are. Sure, we’re five games in, but a Miami – Oklahoma City finals looks like it is extremely possible and would be a hell of a series to watch.
As for the hometown squad, the Sixers have looked pretty solid so far. Five games on the road to start the season is brutal, especially when most of those games are on the west coast. Spencer Hawes has been the media darling so far this season, and honestly I’m pretty amped for the Sixers to have a good big man if things work out. He’s no David Robinson, but as long as he fills his spot well I won’t complain. The guy I’ve been most impressed with so far is Evan Turner. I want this guy to be great, and maybe he’s not ever going the be a superstar, but he’s progressed so well especially now in a starting role. Could you imagine if he just went off for 40-15-6 one game? Man, that would be sweet. It’s early, but I expect big things from the Sixers, at least more than a 5 game out in the first round (let’s hit six this year guys!).
So yeah. There’s a short glance into my first two weeks of NBA fandom. Here’s to hoping the next twenty five are just as fun.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Monday, January 2, 2012
Wildcard Weekend in the NFL
Another NFL season has flew by. 2011 should be remembered as one of the most prolific passing seasons in the history of the league. Drew Brees shattered Dan Marino's passing yard record and set a new standard at 5,476. Not only that, the Saints broke the 'Greatest Show on Turf' Rams record for most yards on offense with 7,474. We could be here all night with the records the Saints broke, honestly. Rob Gronkowski broke the touchdown record for tight ends, while Jimmy Graham and he fought till the end on the new tight end yardage record in one season. The Eagles' Lesean McCoy broke the team record for rushing touchdowns and overall touchdowns in a season. Both number one seeds (Packers & Patriots) have high powered offenses, with lacking defenses. 2011 proved the best defense is a dominant offense.
Bengals @ Texans
The Texans enjoyed Peyton Manning's neck injury more than any other team. As cynical as that sounds, Houston was the number one seed in the AFC for a while, before suffering injuries to Andre Johnson and Matt Schaub. After Schaub went down, the Texans played totally different offensively and Matt Leinart along with TJ Yates got hurt. The defense is very talented but injuries will kill a team. That said, the Bengals are a young team. Kudos to Marvin Lewis getting them in the playoffs once again. First playoff game ever for the Houston Texans, I think there's just too many injuries to over come. Bengals 23-17
Lions @ Saints
Since the Eagles are (disappointingly) out of the tournament this year, I have adopted the Lions as the team I will root for. After initially doubting Matthew Stafford, I started loving him after the NFL Films WIRED piece I saw with him during the game he broke his collarbone his rookie year. The guy is tough as nails and if you hadn't seen it, check it out. That said, the Saints are an offensive machine. Getting in a shootout is something they do best and I don't see the Lions stopping Brees and company. Saints 41-31
Falcons @ Giants
I've read on Twitter that this Giants team is set to make a run like the 2008 Eagles (one of my followers, don't recall who) but I just don't see it. They are a flawed 9-7 team that won the weak NFC East division. Yes, that have rolled on some opponents this year, but they have also lost games they should have won, like Giants teams seem to do every season. Eli can lead them down the field only so many times. The Falcons have quietly had a very good season. I think they have at least met expectations, especially after being in the same division as the Saints. This game could come down to the last possession of the game, and it will depend on which Eli shows up. My guess is the bad one. Falcons 31-27
Steelers @ Broncos
I enjoyed seeing Tebow be so successful during the middle of the season this year. No, I am not one of those Tebow-heads that will root for him no matter what. I always thought he was overrated in Florida, but his success in the NFL made me smile. Something about the coach and GM not having faith in him even though he lead them into the possibility to make the playoffs. I think the magic has run out for the Broncos though. Earlier this month, I thought the Steelers were primed for another Super Bowl run, but getting the 5 seed along with some injuries (Big Ben, Mendenhall) hurt those chances. That said, their defense is experienced enough to solve the Tebow puzzle. This could be ugly to watch. Steelers win 20-10
So there are my predictions for Wildcard Weekend in the NFL. Three of the four road teams will win and all should be very good games.
Bengals @ Texans
The Texans enjoyed Peyton Manning's neck injury more than any other team. As cynical as that sounds, Houston was the number one seed in the AFC for a while, before suffering injuries to Andre Johnson and Matt Schaub. After Schaub went down, the Texans played totally different offensively and Matt Leinart along with TJ Yates got hurt. The defense is very talented but injuries will kill a team. That said, the Bengals are a young team. Kudos to Marvin Lewis getting them in the playoffs once again. First playoff game ever for the Houston Texans, I think there's just too many injuries to over come. Bengals 23-17
Lions @ Saints
Since the Eagles are (disappointingly) out of the tournament this year, I have adopted the Lions as the team I will root for. After initially doubting Matthew Stafford, I started loving him after the NFL Films WIRED piece I saw with him during the game he broke his collarbone his rookie year. The guy is tough as nails and if you hadn't seen it, check it out. That said, the Saints are an offensive machine. Getting in a shootout is something they do best and I don't see the Lions stopping Brees and company. Saints 41-31
Falcons @ Giants
I've read on Twitter that this Giants team is set to make a run like the 2008 Eagles (one of my followers, don't recall who) but I just don't see it. They are a flawed 9-7 team that won the weak NFC East division. Yes, that have rolled on some opponents this year, but they have also lost games they should have won, like Giants teams seem to do every season. Eli can lead them down the field only so many times. The Falcons have quietly had a very good season. I think they have at least met expectations, especially after being in the same division as the Saints. This game could come down to the last possession of the game, and it will depend on which Eli shows up. My guess is the bad one. Falcons 31-27
Steelers @ Broncos
I enjoyed seeing Tebow be so successful during the middle of the season this year. No, I am not one of those Tebow-heads that will root for him no matter what. I always thought he was overrated in Florida, but his success in the NFL made me smile. Something about the coach and GM not having faith in him even though he lead them into the possibility to make the playoffs. I think the magic has run out for the Broncos though. Earlier this month, I thought the Steelers were primed for another Super Bowl run, but getting the 5 seed along with some injuries (Big Ben, Mendenhall) hurt those chances. That said, their defense is experienced enough to solve the Tebow puzzle. This could be ugly to watch. Steelers win 20-10
So there are my predictions for Wildcard Weekend in the NFL. Three of the four road teams will win and all should be very good games.
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