Assorted thoughts on the NBA

I've been an avid NBA fan ever since David Robinson entered the league back in 1989, just as the Jordan Era was beginning (up 'till then, I was primarily a Giants/baseball diehard... I've totally lost touch with that sport though). I've watched hundreds, if not thousands of games, and I have to agree with the numerous media folks saying that this year's playoffs have been one of the most exciting of my fan lifetime. Some assorted thoughts from all rounds...

- Every year in March, you have some people who claim that March Madness is the best basketball in America. While the one-and-out tournament format makes for some exciting drama, in terms of the quality of basketball, nothing can touch the NBA playoffs, where the best players, the best teams, and best coaches rise to the top over the course of 7-game series with individual adjustments, coaching tweaks, and matchup shifts. The chess match of dynamic strategies employed by the teams is almost as interesting as watching individual stars raise their games in the clutch.

First round
- Arenas vs. LeBron. This was the series for casual fans of the sport, as barely a lick of defense was played by either team... but two incredibly talented offensive players just took over. Watching Arenas dominate with speed and outstanding shot-making ability made me long for the days when he and JRich were tearing up the floor at the Oakland Arena... now we have Baron Davis in a suit.
- Kings vs. Spurs. Wells made himself a lot of money in this series, but fortunately the Kings have Kevin Martin waiting in the wings so they don't have to give him all that much money this offseason. Also, the Spurs were severely tested in this round... ironically, despite fighting so hard to achieve home court throughout the entire Western Conference, they ended up drawing a more difficult first-round opponent than Dallas (Memphis laid down and took their whuppin').
- Kobe is, without doubt, the most skilled individual player in the world, and for most of the series against the Suns, he showed some promise that he could indeed be a team leader and player. The problem is, nobody wants to go and play with him, which will hamper even the Lakers' renowned ability to attract primetime players (contrast this with both Duncan and Shaq, where players are taking less money to play with them).

Second round
- The Spurs were beaten by a team that played a better series. I watched almost every game, and despite a heroic, turn-back-the-clock performance from Duncan, they just got beat by a younger and faster team with a coach who knew their system inside and out. I think that's one reason why I didn't begrudge the Mavericks their win - their grit and defensive toughness was very familiar, as it echoed Avery Johnson's playing style back when he won the '99 title for the Spurs with his Game 5 jumper against the Knicks. Plus, Dirk stepped up his game big time - he's finally taking advantage of his height, strength, and quickness, and become truly unguardable. His tough drive and-1 against Bowen and Ginobili in Game 7 is a play that can go down in history, particularly if the Mavs end up taking it all. (BTW, Spurs? You're still my favorite team, but you still whined quite a bit about foul calls this year. It's unbecoming. Stop it.)
- The Clips-Suns series was immensely entertaining - finally got the chance to see Elton Brand work his magic in the post. He now needs to develop a little baby hook in the lane, but every other part of his game is prototypical four-man. In a couple of years, we may be asking the question, "Chris Paul or Shaun Livingston?"

Conference finals
- Classy show by the Pistons going over to congratulate the Heat bench after being soundly thrashed this year.
- Boris Diaw and Josh Howard played themselves into my list of favorite players during these playoffs with their all-around games (doesn't hurt that I had them both for at least some, if not all, of the season on my fantasy team). With Amare coming back next season and Nash getting older, Diaw will probably end up taking a larger role in running the offense - I could see D'Antoni trotting out a second period lineup of Diaw, House, Jones, Marion, and Thomas to give Nash/Bell/Amare a rest.
- Howard = mini-Pippen, without the passing ability.

General thoughts
- The Spurs and Pistons, in general over the past few seasons, both play the game with the right amount of competitiveness, sportsmanship, commitment to defense, and execution on offense, which was great for basketball purists. The thing is, there's not a lot of charisma or charm that would draw the average sports fan, unlike this year's finals matchup between Dallas and Miami, with fresh blood, some old/recognizable names, heroes, villains, redemption stories, and three of the brightest basketball talents on the planet. I'm rooting for Dallas to take it this year, to begin an in-state rivalry with the Spurs over the next 4-5 years as Duncan winds his career down.
- I'm awfully optimistic about the NBA as it moves into the next decade. There's some great talent out there, up-and-coming stars, established veterans, coaching innovation on offense and defense, worldwide appeal... it's going to be fun. Now if only the Warriors could get in on this tidal wave of good feeling...