Twice today I’ve discussed the upcoming NBA Finals with people, both of whom said they hope the Los Angeles Lakers win the series. Why? Because if the Lakers humiliate the Orlando Magic, then that means the Denver Nuggets were the second-best team in the NBA!
Golly gee, that’s incredible! I forget, what do they call the trophy they give you for being the second-best team? (As a Broncos fan, I’m pretty sure the NFL calls it the “Lamar Hunt Trophy”, actually.)
Why does anyone care about this? The Nuggets are who they are, and what they are is a team not yet good enough to win the NBA championship. I don’t really care for second-place finishes. Seriously, though, I hate the Lakers, and have for years. That doesn’t just change because a Lakers victory might fool the simple-minded into regarding the Nuggets more highly.
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As you’ve probably heard, LeBron James left after getting eliminated by the Magic without speaking to the media, which I guess wasn’t the most grown-up thing ever. I loved his quote the next day, though:
‘It’s hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them,’ James said Sunday after the team returned to Cleveland. ‘I’m a winner. It’s not being a poor sport or anything like that. If somebody beats you up, you’re not going to congratulate them. That doesn’t make sense to me. I’m a competitor.’
What do you suppose he means by “I’m a winner”? Because I assume it’s not the conventional definition.
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Enough about LeBron. The actual winners of that series, according to the scoreboard, were the Orlando Magic, who pulled off an incredible upset. LeBron & Co. were crushing opponents with ease before they slammed into the brick wall of Orlando.
The Lakers, for my money, played extremely well their last five quarters but were largely inconsistent throughout the rest of the postseason. Nonetheless I am terrified that this is their year, especially considering the regular season they put together. But you know what? They haven’t won anything yet, nor can they keep Dwight Howard off the boards. And since I can’t pick teams I hate (would you believe I once prophesied a Bears Super Bowl victory for this very reason?), I’m calling this series for Orlando in six.
5 comments:
I really hope your prediction is right - but after last night's failure to even find the gym, I think the Magic are doomed.
I also despise the "cheer for the team that beat your team" mentality. It is a complete sell-out to the team you rooted for in the prior series, and makes second place sound like it means something. But it also is logically fallacious, particularly in a game like basketball, where winners and losers are all about individual match-ups. The fact that the Lakers beat both the Nuggets and the Magic proves only that the Lakers are better than both teams; only through a head-to-head can you determine whether the Nuggets or Magic are the better team. (In fact, to cite a better example, the Cavs had a better record against common opponents than the Magic, but couldn't handle the Magic head-to-head.)
I thought LeBron's failure to shake hands was a little unclassy. Isaiah Thomas and the "Bad Boy" Pistons did that to Jordan and the Bulls back in the 80s, which is reason enough for LeBron not to do it.
For me, it doesn't have anything to do with the fact that the Lakers beat the Nuggets so it might make the Nuggets look better. I could just never root for any team which Kobe is playing for.
The Magic played a lot better last night, and they should have won the game in regulation. Hedo's block on Kobe was sweet and if Lee could've just found some way to make that layup the series would be tied.
Cap-absolutely right. I'm sure LeBron has heard that MJ/Pistons story. That was still quite a bit worse (the teams had played several years in a row, the Pistons always had won, and the Pistons were exceptionally dirty) but still. Really weird move, especially from a guy who is so image-conscious.
Blaine, last night was brutal. I LOVED Hedo's block on Kobe...as I said on Twitter that whole sequence was the quintessential Kobe play. Drive in to four guys and take a really contested shot instead of finding a teammate. I love that the Magic all went for him because they knew he wouldn't pass. Too bad they gave the game away in OT...it's starting to feel like the Nuggets-Lakers series...you can't give games away.
I agree that it doesn't make your team the second best team in the NBA by losing to the champion, for all we know the Nuggets might have lost to a healthy Houston team. But I don't care what the fans think, it's the mental game that helps bolster the players (I think we have enough young players they'll be running this scenario through their heads.)
Essentially as a player if I played a team and lost to them, then saw that same team get destroyed in the next series, I know I did not play the best and yet still lost. Not great for the psyche. However, if the team that beats you wins the championship, you now have a mental guage of what needs to improve for you as a player and as a team to be the best, without the question mark that you never even played the best team. Knowing what it takes, doesn't make you better in itself, but it doesn't hurt.
Now as a fan and a hater, I can't in all rights root for the Lakers or their pissy team leader (don't give me those stupid MJ comparisons until you have 6 rings and two years in a completely different sport!) So go Magic! May you be blessed by the three point Gods for 4 games in a row. I know this isn't going to happen.
Truth be told I'm glad we met the Lakers later in the series and I hope we become the team that stops them from ever advancing again that's win enough for me!
On a side note seems like the east isn't all that tough without KG?
LT
LT, your psychological insights seem wise. I think it could help for our players to know that they did beat the Lakers, twice, and until the end had kept it close. Something to build on.
And you're right about the East. It's a shame we didn't get to see the Celtics again...I wonder if that team will ever really be back together. I think a healthy KG & co. would have trumped the Lakers again.
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