As the playoffs have progressed in both the NBA and the NHL, I find that I am being seduced by the games. A couple of Game 7’s in hockey and the Conference semi-finals in the NBA. There have been fewer late starts to games in the NHL, given one series involved St. Louis and Dallas, both in the Central Time Zone. The Eastern Conference games in the NBA are at reasonable times, but in the Western Conference, three of the four teams are in the Pacific Time Zone and Denver is in the Mountain Time Zone.
Up to Wednesday night, the latest I had stayed awake was to just after midnight for the Rockets and Warriors in Houston. I missed the 2OT clincher by St. Louis to end their series.
But I could not help myself on Wednesday night, and I tuned into the TNT broadcast of Golden State and Houston from Oakland. Which kept me at rapt attention to the TV until the 1:07 am final buzzer. I would have to wait another 44 hours for the next dramatic episode. More on this later.
So what filler did I have to occupy my time? How about the Yankees? They had two games left against the formerly hot Seattle Mariners, now drifting inexorably towards a berth below .500. As opposed to the Yankees, as injury-ridden as they have been, who are trending upwards towards first place in the AL East.
Wednesday night’s game started out and finished as a bad outing for the team. Which, in the course of the first quarter of the long season, have been few and far between. So I gave up on them early and turned my attention to the Warriors game without distraction.
For the record, I had checked in on the Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics, merely to watch the obvious—that a very strong Milwaukee team obliterated Kyrie Irving and his cohorts. There was not much to see except highlight reel dunks and drives to the hoop by “The Greek Freak.”
I like the Celtics head coach Brad Stevens—I have liked him since he took his Butler University teams to the NCAA Final Four. It is my belief that, with a really good supporting cast, he would be a great coach to lead a team to an NBA championship. While his demeanor is not that of Greg Popovich, I think of how Pop wouldn’t be on the pedestal of certain Hall of Fame coaches if he didn’t have David Robinson, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and a tremendous group of interchangeable supporting parts to meld into a tapestry of offensive and defensive prowess.
I hope that the Celtics are rid of Irving via free agency and can come up with a scenario whereby GM Danny Ainge, recovering from his second heart attack, can bring in the necessary parts to make Boston a championship team again. A coach such as Stevens deserves an opportunity to show what he can do with players who form a whole team, not one with a divisive guard as the focal point.
Diverging for a moment, the other cornerstone of the NBA, the Los Angeles Lakers franchise, is in complete and utter turmoil. First, poor Luke Walton takes the blame for a poor season, one in which LeBron James was injured and could not play much of the final potion of the season. Then Magic Johnson leaves his beloved team without a hint or warning that this was going to happen. A coaching search centers on Ty Lue coaching LeBron again after his successful sting with James in Cleveland. Except that the Lakers and Lue could not agree on a deal when Lakers’ management refused to let Lue bring in his own assistant coaches. Now there is a new search for the leader of this dysfunctional group—one who might be complimentary to the mercurial James. And word has leaked out that owner Jeanie Buss is even considering trading James who, unbelievably, does not have a no trade clause in his contract. How and when this hysteria comes to a necessary end is unanswerable. No wonder fans are protesting outside of the Staples Center.
Such a shame that the Lakers and Celtics—NBA royalty—are in disarray. Moreover, two more glamor franchises, the Knicks and Bulls are bottom feeders, hoping that the upcoming draft will provide salvation. Not good for the NBA.
What is good for the NBA is the emergence of the Bucks, Nuggets and the 76’ers. Plus mainstays Portland and Toronto have been playing well.
Yet the team that is spellbinding for the NBA is the Golden State Warriors. With Stephon Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala aiding and abetting Kevin Durant, the Warriors are a joy to watch. Durant has played above the rim, defended incredibly and carried the team with his offense. Once more, he looked like the greatest player in the NBA.
The marquee matchup between Houston and Golden State was living up to the pre-series hype. James Harden and his crew were giving the Warriors fits. The scores were close—the final tallies showed that the teams were within 6 points at the end of each game. So it was no surprise that the two teams were tied 2-2 before Wednesday’s meeting. Home court victories for each, none of them easy. The Rockets were gunning threes and Harden was shimmying on the court and not missing much while heading to the free throw line regularly. The basketball choreography was stunning. And no one knew which team would survive the pre-determined seven games series and move on to the Western Conference Finals.
Which is why, on Wednesday night, the drama was high throughout the first two quarters and into the third period. Harden was again doing his thing and the sharpshooters of the Rockets were hitting the long range buckets so much a staple of the Houston offense.
Moreover, the Houston defenders were harassing Curry and Thompson, who could not make their shots. Green and Iggy still were playing at a high level. It was Durant who kept the Warriors afloat and led them to a double-digit lead in the third period.
Until the unthinkable happened. After he hit a mid-range jumper, Durant headed up court a step or two before clutching his right leg in agony. He limped off of the court, heading directly to the locker room. There was stunned, disbelieving silence in the normally loud Oracle Arena. The thought was common—had Durant torn his Achilles tendon and were the Warriors chances to beat Houston over?
Relying on Curry and Thompson to take over the bulk of the scoring, Golden State actually surrendered their large lead to the Rockets in the fourth quarter. Until Curry came out of his funk and started to lead the Warriors to the the unthinkable—a win despite losing Durant.The Rockets simply could not respond enough to win the game and take control of he series heading back to Texas for Game 6.
Meanwhile, off of the euphoria of the Warriors incredible survival, I watched some of the Yankees game on Thursday night—pre-empted for a half hour by the third-to-last episode of “The Big Bang Theory.” New York did what it has been doing well—winning with the unknown players contributing to victories. JA Happ pitched very well, although he hit Seattle’s Dee Gordon with a pitch that painfully plunked him near the wrist and angrily led Gordon swear on the field and after the game call out Happ for pitching inside.
But it was the Gio Urshela story once more. A career utility player who had nearly 200 major league at bats entering this season and who was destined to remain int Triple A, Urshela stroked a two run single to catapult the Yankees to another win. Who knows how long Urshela’s bat will stay hot and how long the team will stay with a struggling Miguel Andujar? Additionally, Didi Gregorius is getting closer to paying again, so his time may eventually be limited. But is certainly has been fun watching Urshela provide a spark to the New York offense along with his fine glove work.
I did see portions of Toronto-Philadelphia Game 6. This was a rout in favor of Philly, with Joel Embiid back in form after illness had limited him. It sets up an intriguing Game 7 Sunday afternoon in the Air Canada Centre. Will the snakebitten Raptors, who have had talented teams not make the conference finals, win behind Kahwi Leonard, or will they succumb to Embiid, Jimmy Butler and the Sixers?
Which leads me to Friday night. I began the evening by watching the Yankees take the early lead against the Rays in St. Petersburg. As easily as they had taken the lead, the team was trailing 3-1 despite the continued good pitching of Domingo German. Of course, the Yankees again rallied from a deficit and overtook Tampa Bay, leaving the Yankees a mere 1/2 game out of first place. With the win, German became the AL’s first 7 game winner.
During a commercial break, I switch to see Michael Conforto hit a monstrous home at Citi Field as the Mets put up 8 first inning runs. After losing 5 of 6 on the road, the pitiful Marlins at home in Queens were a most welcome sight.
Upon the conclusion of “The Blacklist,” I headed to ESPN for Game 6 between Houston and Golden State. Oddsmakers had figured the Warriors to be large underdogs in the game. Very few felt that Golden State might actually win the contest, outside of some loyalist fans and the management and team.
This game was another classic battle. Harden and Chris Paul were on fire in the first half. There were numerous lead changes but the teams managed to be tied at 57 at halftime. Golden State rotated players in and out of the lineup and they held their own, Thompson was drilling buckets and Curry aided the cause by scoring 0 points. Wait a second—did I just say that the greatest three point shooter in NBA history and maybe the greater shooter ever had been held scoreless in a playoff half for the first time ever?
How could Golden State possible withstand the onslaught that was certain to come from Houston, which would force a Game 7 Sunday afternoon in Oakland? Not with Curry playing lousy and no Durant to rescue the team?
No one told Curry that his team—the team he is the acknowledged leader of—could lose this game. Stephon Curry merely scored 33 points in the second half to, along with his teammates inspired play, defeat the heavily favored Rockets and end the series. Thompson had a strong all-around game. Green was a floor general. Kevon Looney put in significant minutes, unleashing a hidden scoring talent in the process. Curry’s parents, present at the Toyota Center, went delirious when a late three pointer was swished by their son. Owner Joe Lacob and Thompson saluted each other in the waning seconds.
The unthinkable had happened. Another year, a crushing loss by the Rockets to their rivals. Houston is in need of a big man to compliment Harden and his crew—a guy like DeMarcus Cousins, who will be free agent after his season with Golden State is over—must retool and rethink their isolation game and become a better, all around team.
I don’t know if Portland on the road can overcome Denver on Sunday. The matchup of the two Curry brothers would be interesting. If Denver does win, Golden State will encounter defensive problems. Will their offense be enough to deny Denver a spot tin the Finals? What I do know is the the Warriors earned themselves some needed rest and the series opens on Tuesday in Oracle. And I will be watching.
I have said this before, but it bears repeating. There are certain athletes who I felt were must see individuals. Aaron Judge and Derek Jeter. Sandy Koufax. Tiger Woods. Muhammad Ali. Tom Brady. Michael Jordan. Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal. And of course, Steph Curry.
This isn’t to say that there aren’t or weren’t other brilliant athletes—I loved watching Martin Brodeur, the greatest goalie ever. Wayne Gretzky, Sidney Crosby, Guy Lafleur in hockey. Tom Seaver and Mickey Mantle. Golfers Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Lebron James, Kareem Abdul Jabbar are and were exceptional basketball players.
Yet only those I mentioned first were the ones who captivated me, who made their games must see TV. The ones who could orchestrate great theater and repeatedly come through in the clutch. They are the special ones—the athletes who mesmerized you with their incredible talent—the ones you could not wait to see again and for who you would stop what you were doing or plan your day around the events they were in.
Which is why I so vociferously root for the Warriors. It is an incredible team, especially with Kevin Durant. But if he should leave in free agency, will he be a draw for me to watch? Not really.
This is why, to me Steph Curry is so unique. A smallish guy on a court with other talented players, who can do things no one else can—win again and again. He get repeatedly maligned for his defensive deficiencies or his excessive ball-handling not measuring up with other talented guards.
Make no mistake—he is one of the all-time greats. His grace on the court, his fearlessness, his ability to play with a significant hand injury suffered earlier in this series are what defines the player and the man. I love to watch Steph Curry and I love to watch the Warriors team because of him, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Shane Livingston, Kevon Looney, and the coaching of Steve Kerr, a very smart man who was a talented player on championship teams with Jordan in Chicago and Duncan and Popovich in San Antonio.
Still, what makes this team so magnificent to watch is the play of Steph Curry. Just like the years that Derek Jeter played, they led and willed their teams to victories with heroic plays which defied explanation.
I have been most fortunate to have seen so many great athletes in the over 60 years I have watched televised sports. With players like Aaron Judge and Stephon Curry out there, I know that I will still be working my schedule around their exploits. With pleasure.
I may tune into the two remaining games that the Yankees play against the Rays. I might check out the two NBA Game 7’s.
For certain I will be wearing my Golden State T-shirt on Tuesday night, watching the Warriors play for the right to get into the NBA Finals again. Led by Steph Curry.
If only Aaron Judge can get rid of that oblique injury…
One last bit of TV sport to critique. The craziness which related at last Saturday’s Kentucky Derby and that made history was lengthy, suspenseful and in the end, the right decision was made. It wasn’t racing’s finest moment, and the ensuing response of the public and sportswriters was expected. Maximum Security’s disqualification has led to no Triple Crown winner this year, as declared winner Country House is ill and Maximum
Security will sit out the Preakness.
NBC got a ratings bonanza, then suffered a great loss with the ensuing decisions. The Triple Crown is one more event that captures the imagination. Just not this year.
Besides, I have my hands full with Stephon Curry and his band of Golden State survivors making it to the next round. That is why I am enamored with sports—because athletes can compel us to watch them perform under extraordinary circumstances and excel. Sometimes horses, too.
This means another weeks delay viewing “House of Cards.” I will have to find some time in this busiest of seasons to start watching…yeah, right. I won’t make Slow Cooker Chicken Curry for extra good luck..unless I have to.
No comments:
Post a Comment