Woman hold her head and cry

Cause her son had been shot down in the street and died



This is not a rebirth, consider it more like a repeating radio frequency in the post apocalyptic world. Sure i 'retired' in the most Mo Williams-esque way possible after we all mutually abandoned this blog. I feel bad that i did that. This site deserves better. We were all ambitious and i dont see why we gave up.

The fact remains that we did. I want to stick the size 13 pair of Generic Surplus boots im rocking right now up my own ass and everyone else's on here. Take that comment for what it is. We had something special going here and we fucking blew it.

In basketball news, the Bobcats are working out Javaris Critteron, Antonie Walker, Darius Miles, and Larry Hughes. Players that are NBA cult classics so to speak are now fighting for a roster spot on my #1 favorite team. I would say some shit but that joke writes itself.

It appears my boy Durant is the new Golden Boy after Lebron has morphed into LeCrimminal in the eyes, hearts, and souls of mainstream America. I cant say i didnt see it coming, but since this place is shut down (for good most likely) i have nowhere to jump up and down and shout i told you so.

- Cat out.

The Revolution Will be Televised

-Hursty-

I don't need to name names here. No need to show no pic.
You know exactly who I'm talking about. He-who-shall-not-be-named.
...
If you were given a job offer to work with a higher quality staff, recieve a salary just as good and have co-workers who you knew would show up every day, for the entire season... you'd take that job. No doubt in my mind I would.

He owes people? Owes them what? He played 7 years for them. In some pro-sports, that's a career. Track & Field? You get 1 Olympics, maybe 2 if you're lucky (on average).
Nah, he shouldn't have announced his decision the way he did, that was wrong. But to burn dude's jersey? C'mon. Weak. "You're better than that!".

If your company owner came out of his box and said something like that.. do you really wanna play for that team, knowing that any time you left, you'd get vitriole sprayed at you?
(Now, who as a FA is going to want to play there, if all else is equal? Fool.)
So, who's the more foolish? The fool, or the fool who follows him? In this case, it's the latter.
"Child please."
...
Speaking of Revolutions, the Bucks have quietly got a lot better this off-season, acquiring Gooden & re-signing Salmons. Bogut will be good to go come training camp.
Miami has improved as well, adding a certified post-threat in Boozer, and Utah has improved through addition by subtraction.
...
I'm excited for this next season, I really am.
Beware the Nazgul.
Hursty.

Oh you fancy huh

Summertime...and the livin's easy....

Summer kicks ass. Recovery was good, Thank Me Later was good. Pilot Talk comes out like next week, Yeezy dropping tracks (the actual version of "Power"), Cudi dropping tracks (Revofev), and Big Sean (meh), Ye and Cudi all have albums dropping on the same day in September? We'll see if the plan stays like that. Big Boi in two days? I'll read the reviews before I buy it, haha.

Free Agency, huh. To me, this stuff's annoying. I've always been a LeBron fan because I had to take a side in the Bron-Kobe argument, and I hate Kobe, so LeBreezy is the natural choice. But he's making it harder and harder for me to like him. Screw it then, Chris Paul is the best player in the league (not really). I'm giving up on the argument, though, because I don't like either one of them right about now....LeBron, stay in Cleveland. The fans love you, you finally have a competent coach, and you're from the area. You want to be one of the greatest to put on a jersey? How many of the GREATS changed uniforms? Wilt doesn't count. Do what's best for your career, you have enough cheese already to last eight lifetimes.

But I'll play along, I have my official predictions. Bosh and Wade in Miami. Amar'e in New York. Bron stays because I want him to. JJ looks like he's staying in the ATL. But all of this contract BS that comes during these summers sucks; I love hoops because of the game and I try to ignore the fact that they make millions and millions off of it. But I'm not complaining, I know that it's a big market job, and whoever's the best at what they do in the world makes that kind of dough. But it's annoying; just play for your team and make it about loyalty. I don't blame Bosh, though.

Also, I'm actually kind of mad that the Celtics signed Pierce for the next four years. FOUR. He'll be 36. They basically just did this because it's Pierce, and he wants to end his career here. It was smart of him to opt out, because we probably wouldn't have re-upped with him because his drop-off is imminent. He's one of the least athletic SF's in the league, and that won't help him out once he gets older. But he's aging gracefully. I'm still surprised that Danny signed him for so long, though...he's been talking about how he wants to get younger. I liked the Bradley draft pick, too.

Also....draft. Orlando! Stanley Robinson, Daniel Orton? High-risk picks, yes, but there's real athleticism between those guys. They could be huge players. LAC scored as well. REALLY scored. But the Clippers will forever and always suck, so I don't know if it really makes a difference. How did the rest of the league let Devin Ebanks fall to the Lakers? Criminal...also, SacTown big men can be a force for years to come. Cousins, Whiteside, Dalembert, Landry....and you guys know Jason Thompson is my dude. Omri Casspi? Tyreke Evans? Francisco Garcia? This team could screw around and make the playoffs next year.

Germany, Netherlands, Uruguay, Spain. I want a Spain-Netherlands final, but Germany is ON FIRE right now. ON FIRE. What's on fire in German? "In Brand". They DEMOLISHED Messi and Argentina. Destroyed. Nobody's beating Deutschland right now. But I'm rooting for Holland....even though Torres is my dude.

Happy Independence Day, everyone. Waving those flags.

--Moose

New Jersey...Favors

Dear Mikhail Prokhorov,
You want to come into New Jersey and create a championship contender? Then I recommend one man to help you do the job.

If you want to take Cousins, you can. It's a fine pick. But I recommend the Beast from the ATL. Crazy potential. But then again, it's your call. You and your guys. We'll know in a half an hour.

--Moose

Greatest R'N'B/Soul Album of All-Time?

What is it...?

Who is the greatest artist?

Usher?
Aretha Franklin?
The Temptations?
Lauryn Hill?
Michael Jackson? (Even though he's the "King of Pop".)

Note: this is not hip-hop, therefore, Nas etc can't be included.

Thank Me....Now.

Yes, the NBA Finals are going on right now, but I'm going to go ahead and post something that has absolutely nothing to do with the current basketball situation. These games are on way too damn late. Yeh, I got school for another week (Vontae...you guys were done like three months ago. C'mon son, Ghostface style. Congrats on Ole Miss as well), and I don't like staying up until midnight watching these games to get like 6-7 hours of sleep a night. Doesn't work for me, because by the end of the game I don't even care as much anymore just because I'm so happy to get to bed. Once summer starts I'll get some sleep, but for now...gotta get to bed before 11.

But whatever, this is a must-win tonight. If we don't win tonight, I'm pretty much throwing in the towel. But Garnett v. Gasol is really the x-factor in the game today. But on to this next month which should be frickin' awesome because of...

The World Cup starts tomorrow. I can't tell you how pumped I am for this. Yeah, I know that nobody else on this blog gives a crap about soccer, but the rest of the world does, and I do, too. And the Yanks (that's team USA's nickname, for you American football fans) actually have a shot this year at doing more than a three-and-out. They can really make an impact on this Cup, but Landon Donovan really needs to be on his game. They should be able to get out of Group C, and it would be unreal if they beat England on Saturday. But...not if Wayne has anything to say about it. I hope we pull it out.

Spain or Argentina are my champs. Messi is incredible and Spain plays with too much flopping (like most of the EPL, Champions League, etc...European soccer.), and Torres' hair kinda pisses me off for some reason, so I'll go with Argentina once the US gets bounced (IF the US gets bounced. haha). Should be a fun tourney. Dempsey and Onyewu are my favorite players...Clint because of his creativity and entertaining risks, and Oguchi Onyewu because he's a center back...and I'm a center back. Michael Bradley is a hard-ass, which convinced everyone that even the coach's kid needs to earn a spot. I'm pumped for the US's showing in this cup. Should be sick.

Does anyone hate when you've been following a music dude and then he/she/they blow up and then you look like a bandwagon-hopper? It's happened way too much with me. I mean, I know a ton of other people know the artist, but then they get airplay and all of the middle-schoolers know who they are. Just happened with Cudi, B.o.B, Wale, and is about to happen with Mike Posner. And B.o.B's new stuff (album) isn't even close to his old stuff (B.o.B v.s. Bobby Ray, Who The F*ck is B.o.B?). Posner's more pop-ish than hip hop, but he's pretty much a combo and some of his ish can be pretty damn infectious. And now he's got something that's 19th on the Billboard Hot 100. Sorry about my rant. It's a pet peeve of mine.

Has anyone heard much of Outasight? Dude is nasty most of the time...I hate some of his ish, I have to admit, but I think he's nasty on the whole. He lists his musical influences as A Tribe Called Quest, Marvin Gaye, Talib Kweli, Stevie Wonder and Jimi Hendrix. That's three of my top five artists on that list, and I listen to all of them constantly. Yes, Kweli is my favorite rapper of all time. As far as "conscious" rap goes, nobody can touch him lyrically. Mos+Kweli=beauty. In a musical way.

Drake's video for Find Your Love is frickin' amazing. Thing makes you think. I've watched it 4 or 5 times and gotten goosebumps every time. Thing is amazing. I liked Find Your Love. Not strictly a hip hop song, more 808s, but....I liked 808s. I have a wicked broad music taste, and I loved the song, for real. Power by Yeezy? I'm having trouble liking it....but he better do a good ass job on....Good Ass Job. Looking forward to it. Thank Me Later comes out in five days. No, I didn't listen to the leaks of the whole album, I feel like the dude has put out enough tapes for us to give the dough. I'm getting it on the day, have high expectations....I'll let you guys know what I think of it. I'm sure you all care deeply what I think of it.

I'm out like Ray Allen in Game 3 (what the hell??).

Rest In Peace

He will be missed. Wisest man on the planet.

Who wants it more?

Today, I saw people with sleeping bags outside of the TD Garden, lined up. The line stretched down the entire stadium, and across three streets. Every single person was wearing some sort of Celtics gear. Tickets went on sale today. The Finals will come down to one question: Who wants it more?

I'm going with the C's and the best fans in the league.

Celtics v.s. Lakers Finals Preview

The Eastern Conference Finals are over. I know, it's hard to say that after the Bruins' epic meltdown in the NHL playoffs that I heard so much about from the Beantown hockeyheads. But that was the fourth time in the history of sports that a team has come back from down three down in a seven game series, and really, Orlando's given up, even if they're masking it better than Cleveland did. So, the next games in this series are moot. And come on, the Suns aren't winning this series. If I'm wrong about this, and there is a Finals with either Phoenix or Orlando in it, then feel free to never take my NBA opinion seriously again. So, I'm going to go onto previewing the series, starting with matchups...

Point Guard: Rajon Rondo v.s. Derek Fisher
This is the most obvious pick in the whole series in terms of match-ups. Rondo needs to exploit Fisher. Rajon Rondo's success has been my ultimate I-told-you-so of my NBA following life so far, and he hasn't disappointed one bit in the playoffs. They're talking about him being the best all-around PG in the league now, and he's certainly the best in the East. Say nothing about Rose, it isn't even close. This dude wants to win, and he's been carrying them through every series. Boston needs Rondo to keep playing like he can for them to have a chance at this series, and going against Fisher is the ideal scenario. The only trouble it could cause Rondo is if he gets into foul trouble amidst Fisher's selling (coughFLOPPINGcough) calls, but I don't see it being a huge problem.
EDGE: Celtics

Shooting Guard: Ray Allen v.s. Kobe Bryant
Kobe is still the craftiest player in the game, and he will definitely get his. Because he can beat you with points or dimes, he's effective no matter how you play him. Allen is a hot-and-cold shooter, and the Celtics need him to shoot if they want to win. Every time Ray gets going, the Celtics win. Every time. With a defender like Kobe on him, that could be a tall order for a player who isn't quite the speed type. Allen should drive to the whole often to get Bynum/Gasol in foul trouble. Kobe will be a big part of this series with Ray, because the Celtics will often put Tony Allen in to guard him on the perimeter. This will allow the Lakers to double-team shooters like Pierce or Garnett without having to worry about Tony's gawd-awful shooting on the perimeter. But Kobe wants to be talked about with Jordan in the GOAT arguments, and he's going to be looking for blood. Everyone knows who gets this one.
EDGE: Lakers

Small Forward: Paul Pierce v.s. Ron Artest
Pierce started off the playoffs shooting very poorly, even with his game-winner against Miami. Once the Orlando series started, though, the Captain came back and has been shooting the lights out at a 58% clip, and Matt Barnes, a supreme defender, was, well, defenseless. Artest will body up on Pierce all day, and will try to bully him off the dribble. Artest is the third or fourth option on the Lake Show, and his offensive skill set isn't enough to make a huge impact on the Boston defense. It all comes down to how Artest plays Pierce. It's close, but, based on how PDubs has been playing as of late, I'm going to say...
EDGE: Celtics

Power Forward: Kevin Garnett v.s. Pau Gasol
There's no question who the best player of these two is. Gasol was the best power forward in the league this past year, and his offensive skill set will create problems for the Celtics. But, that isn't necessarily against Garnett. Glen Davis will get a lot of time against Pau while Garnett gets old-man-rest-time, and when that happens Gasol will pick him apart. The fact that Gasol shies from contact is a big deal for Boston; they need to get physical with Pau. If they fail to do that, then it'll hurt them. KG has been playing like, well, KG on offense and defense for the past couple of series', and it's been huge for the Celtics. This match-up is full of conditionals and questions, and it will be fun to watch. But, ultimately, it's obvious who has the advantage right off the bat.
EDGE: Lakers

Center: Andrew Bynum v.s. Kendrick Perkins
I don't know the status of Bynum's knee, and I don't think anyone does, and it could all be different by the time the Finals start, but as of now, nobody really knows. He's been playing about 20 minutes a night, and he's still been effective. Reports have said that he might be all right by the end of their series, and for preview purposes let's just say that's what's going to happen. Kendrick Perkins will have no offensive impact on this series whatsoever. Bynum might. He has a significant size advantage over Perk, and even though it will be a good physical battle, Perkins might foul himself all the way to the bench whole Bynum dunks all over him. Perkins' defensive presence will still be there, however. So, it's hard to know now, but as I see it, if everything's okay, Bynum has it. IF.
Edge: Lakers

Bench: Glen Davis, Tony Allen, Rasheed Wallace v.s. Lamar Odom, Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown
Lamar Odom is definitely the best player in either bench, by far. Odom is a huge blow to the Celtics, simply because he's an answer to any question. If you want scoring, he'll bring it. If you need dimes, he'll dish 'em. If you need rebounds, he'll grab 19 or so boards (see: Game 1). The dude is unstoppable, and he's huge. But, GBBD has been playing like a starter, Sheed has been playing the way that we intended him to play when they signed him before the season started, and TA has been bringing the defensive energy and offensive athleticism that propelled the Celtics past the Cavs. Farmar and Brown are solid, but they can't match up to the rest of the Celtics' red-hot bench. Even though Odom could start for almost all teams in the League.
Edge: Celtics

It's hard to make a prediction on this series. The size, athleticism, star power and experience that the Lakers have is undeniable, and everyone kew that they'd make it this far. The Celtics are a different story. Nobody thought they'd get past the first or second round, much less all the way to the Finals. But, the Celtics are definitely looking like the team that wants to win more than any other. They have shown a desire that has led them past the best teams in the league, and their savvy will be hard for the Lakers to get past.

In the end, the desire, deep roster, and a certain young point guard will prove to be too much for the huge and athletic Lakers. In seven tough, slow-paced (as both teams like) games, the Celtics will tough it out. I doubted them up until this point, and they are looking to secure their second championship in three years against the LAL. Should be a great series. Getcha popcorn ready...

--Moose

Give Me Peace Of Mind.. I Got 21 Questions.

So, I gotta know...

1. Who's coming outta the West? And who's coming outta the East?
2. If you take Rondo and James off of their respective squads, which team wins the series based on performances thus far?
3. How much money has the NBA lost in tickets/merchandise/tv advertisements etc because of the three sweeps in the second round? It has to be in the tens of millions.
4. Where do the Hawks go from here? Does Woody stay on as the Head Coach? What about Joe Johnson?
5. Is Dirk leaving?
6. What about Boozer?
7. Chris Bosh?
8. Are the Spurs going to get blown up?
9. How will the Rockets fair next year with a healthy Yao back in the line-up? More importantly, does he stay or get traded?
10. LeBron...
11. Wade...
12. Why do the All-NBA Defensive teams suck so much? Where are Ariza, Battier and Hayes?
13. Why are the Dodgers and Diamondbacks so f*king bad?
14. Why is there a Winter? Nobody likes Winter.
15. How long will the Suns be able to hang around with the Lakers for? It could be a very, very clean house for the Suns. Or it could be a 7 game series.
16. How come people eat spinach? That sh*t is disgusting.
17. How old is 15 really?
18. If you have four people naked in a row, how many legs are there? Two of the people are white, one is from The Philipians, and one is African.
19. Is Lady Gaga a man?
20. What are your top 5 ways to procrastinate?
21. DP, what college did you end up deciding on?

Peace, Hursty

RIP Guru

Rest In Peace to an iconic rapper and Boston's best of all time, 1/2 of Gang Starr, Guru. Tragic for hip hop fans, even if it did seem inevitable for awhile there.



Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal.

Hot hot heat

It was 90 degrees in Boston all day today (For Hursty and the rest of the world, that's over 32 degrees celsius). On April 7 in New England, that's unheard of. And tomorrow, the high is 58. I've heard about global warming, I saw An Inconvenient Truth, and if this isn't climate change then I don't know what is. A forty-degree change between two days is ridiculous.

There has been some "climate change" in the NBA lately. Two examples: the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Celtics have flat-out sucked lately. They've lost four out of the last five games, and the win was to the Cavs, who own the best record in the league and have clinched homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. So that was a good win, but they still blew a 20 point lead in the fourth, so it left a bad taste in Celtics fans' mouths. The losses came to the Spurs (understandable), Thunder (understandable), the Rockets without Kevin Martin, Shane Battier and Trevor Ariza (shouldn't have happened) and the Knicks (inexcusable).

The Celtics' painful inconsistency has been embarrassing lately for a Celtics fan. I'm not embarrassed about losing--the wins and losses will come, especially when your team is aging quickly, it can all be expected. But the reason that it's been embarrassing lately is some of their apparent arrogance. Garnett is still jawing, and he can't back it up. So is the rest of the team. THAT is the embarrassing part. I can't apologize for the club that I root for, but if I could, I would. I wish the Celts could just shut up and play as hard as they can.

Which is something they haven't been doing lately, apparently. In the paper I've read countless quotes about how "their hearts aren't in it". It's a pretty quick turnaround that the Celtics have had lately. I'm not saying they're out of it, I'm not--but their ball lately has been painfully inconsistent for sure. Especially from the point of view of a MA resident and Celtics fan. It just bugs me that they're complaining about the calls WHILE the other team is putting up a layup on the other side.

The OKC Thunder sucked last year. AND the year before. But a lot of us knew that they would come around and be a playoff team in the future (I see you, BET), and right now, I see them as a formidable foe in the playoffs in the West this year. Yeah, their average age is 23. Which only means that they're ready to take the league by storm in years to come. Durantula going off for 40 seemingly every night. People haven't caught on yet, but Russell Westbrook is a nightly triple-double threat. Jeff Green is insanely versatile. The one thing that this Thunder team is missing is a decent center. After that....the league's theirs.

I feel like I (maybe all of us) can relate to this team more than any other because of their youth, style of play and tight-knit-ness off the court, because that's the sort of cameraderie that I feel with my friends/teammates, and they do things that we all do, based on articles I read and quotes that I hear. This team is so intriguing and fun to watch, when I was watching them own the Celtics in the fourth the other night, I found it hard to know who I was rooting for. And that NEVER happens, it was just impulse.

So, the NBA waters have been churning lately, and new things have been coming out for these seasons. I'm not saying that these huge turnarounds are unpredictable, but who knew that Garnett was gonna fall off THIS much, and that OKC would be near the top of the West NOW?

Then again, did anyone predict that the hottest day of the year in Beantown could end up coming at the beginning of April?

--Moose

Game Notes! Hawks @ Bobcats

-By Hursty-

Whadddddup!
So, these are live game notes of the Hawks/'Cats clash (duh).

Hawks are at 49-26, Cats at 40-36 on the season.

I'm watching the feed from the local Atlanta station, so don't get mad at me if 'Nique gets all excited, and I decide to write about.. whatever it is he's rambling on about.

Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby are both out today, so it's likely Jamal Crawford will get the start. Jeff Teague is expected to see extended minutes off the bench.

J-Creezy had a 50pt game against the Bobcats last year, just fyi.

Well, looks like Teague and Mo Evans will start tonight, Crawford will begin the game oooon the bench.

1st Quarter:

Diaw takes Evans in the post, then Smoove takes Diaw. Touch'e sir.

Teague is super quick, but... can't really control it. Gets his shot blocked by Ratliff (yes, Theo is still in the L), then turns it over a few possessions later. Charlotte lead 10-6 early.

Wallace misses a fast-break dunk, but makes amends 20 seconds later, and the 'Cats lead 14-6. Time out Hawks.

Boris Diaw's ass looks bigger in HD.

Wallace throws down a 'meh' alley-oop off the inbounds, assist to Diaw.
Crawford checks in.

Mario West is in the game for "defensive purposes". It's 21-10 Cats.

Mo Evans sucks, and Mario can't dribble the ball. Half-court trap? West has never heard of it.

Bobcats are just dominating all facets of the game right now. Good interior defense, strong transition game, and they're finishing at the rack - unless Smoove gets a piece of it.

28-12 Cats are up.

Diaw gets a nice seal, feeds it to Tyson Chandler, who's just checkd in. Chandler throws down. Then Mario West goes baseline for the strong jam over Chandler.

Oh, man. Atlanta looks UGLY without Joe Johnson in the line-up. Bibby not so much, but Joe just does so much for the Hawks. Crawford airballs a 3 at the buzzer to end the 1st Q.

Bobcats have 11 made field goals. They've also got 11 assists. Efficiency at it's best.

-2nd Quarter-

Just quietly, Raymond Felton looks like he's been taking dieting advice from Boris.

Tyrus Thomas checks in and promptly commits an offensive foul. Yay!

Bobcats lead is "cut" to 14, after it had blown out to 20. Chandler decides to take matters into his own hands however, and on the third attempt gets a put-back to go. *Insert celebatory fist-pump*

Josh Smith is the only dude on the Hawks who's contributing offensively, and he's doing it off offensive rebounds and put-backs. 'Cats are still up by 17 though.

Crawford has 11 now, Wallace leads all scorers with 16. Actually, make that 18 - opportunity for an And-1. Smoove picks up his 3rd foul.

Wallace has 19, Smoove has a seat. Bobcats lead 51-33.

Wallace is just silky smooth. Another 3pt play gives him 22. Can I say he's in Predator mode?

Bobcats force another turnover. Ugly, ugly, ugly. Evans looses the ball off of his foot. Chandler gets an And-1 dunk (he hits the FT as well).

Cats finish the half with an 11-3 run, and lead 59-36 at the half.

-3rd Quarter-

Crawford starts in place of Teague, no suprise there. Horford kicks things off with a 15 footer, Felton misses, Crawford throws up a brick, then Felton decides to drive, $ money.

Hahaha, Diaw blocks Josh Smith's lay-up attempt, then misses the easy lay-up. He redeems himself 20 seconds later though.

Crawford hits a 3, and it's 63-43. Wait, no. S Jax hits a 3.

J-Creezy leads the Hawks in: pts (14), 3's (2), assists (4), minutes and turn-over's.

Hawks cut it to 14 after Smith blocks Wallace and gets a transition lay-up at the other end. Annnnd, Felton knocks down a 3.

Boris Diaw triple double alert! He's got 12, 7, 5 and most suprisingly... 2 blocks!
Wallace has 22 and 4. S-Jax has 8, 4, 3 and 2.

The T.V shows a great stat - the Bobcats have only lost 9 games at home this season. Orlando and the Hawks have only lost 7. Talk about protecting your home-court advantage.

Hmmm, Hawks have cut it to 13. 75-62, after Crawford knocks down a 3. Evans does likewise, and it's now a 10 point game. Hawks have also gone to a zone.

Charlotte takes time, and quickly disintegrates the Atlanta zone, peppering it from the perimeter. Bobcats lead 82-67 with 1.05 remaining in the 3rd.

-4th Quarter-

Bah, boring 4th so far. Most interesting thing so far is Wallace jumping into the 3rd row.

Teague hits a 3, cutting it to 10. Teague slids into the paint for two. But Evans and Wallace
answer the call. Evans has three 3's.

Bobcats lead 102-88. D.J Augustine has come to life. Wallace is still scoring at will, he's got 28. 5.45 remaining in the 4th.

The crowd is doing mexican waves... good times. 105-92 'Cats lead. Tyson Chandler is 6/7 from
the FT line. What!

Great hustle by Diaw - of all people - leads to a 2nd chance opportunity for the 'Cats. Josh Smith deflects a potential alley-oop to Chandler, who goes sprawling. Anyways, Diaw has 15, 9, 9, a steal and two blocks, 1 turn-over.

Charlotte lead 105-94, with 2.27 remaining in the 4th.

Shoutout to Betcats! Whaddddup man!

Neither team is particularly motivated to close out the game, and Charlotte trots out with a W.

Happy birthday to S-Jax, who turned 32(!) yesterday.

Diaw finishes with 17, 9, 9, 2, 1.

G-Force finishes with a game-high 28 and 6 rebounds.

For the Hawks, Horford finishes with a super quiet 16, 12, 3 and 2.
Mo Evans lead the Hawks scoring with 20, and Crawford ended up with 18 and 6 assists off the bench.

Overall, a very solid win for the 'Cats, who lead from start to finish. Their 41st win of the season ensures that for the first time in franchise history, they won't have a loosing record.



Peace, Hursty.

I Hate Duke

I can't believe I'm about to say this but..
... they deserve to win the NCAA Championship this year. Best team still remaining.

sigh..

FIN...

Brackets are for suckaz. I'm glad I finally realized this over the past two weeks of my life. That and the fact that ninjas are blowing up my direct line trying to find out when my dues will be paid(Kansas go f&ck yourselves).I would choose this time to bash my "champion" pick, Syracuse, but I won't. Butler came to play and they are looking DAMN good right now. Honestly, I have only seen a little bit of them here and there because their games are always on when I'm chillin at my workplace but from what I've seen, Michigan State better be ready for a war. Gordon "G-time" Hayward and his bulldogs are ready to sink their collective teeths into this championship and they are my pick to lose it all in the championship to West Virginia.


Remember when I said in my tournament preview that I would explain later on why I like West Virginia? I think this is the perfect time to explain these things. West Virginia is the only team that hasn't dissapointed me and I expected them to go the the Final Four from the get go. I informed all of the homeboys and girls that if UK ever played WV, they would lose. West Virginia just reminds me of a better version of Misssissippi State. They are so balanced from the 1 spot all the way to the 5. Everyone knows about Butler and what he can do but the rest of squad shares equal success and they are clicking on all cylinders without their starting PG. Really can't believe Duke is still in this thing because I expected them to choke like they do every single year. I blame Nolan Smith for proving me wrong. This tourney has been one of the most flippiest shits I've ever witnessed. Wouldn't be suprised to see Butler win it all or Michigan State. I just truly believe that the team that comes victorious out of the Duke/West Virginia game will be our new champs. But who knows what will happen with alll the f*ckery that has taken place these last 3 weeks. I just pray to God that Gus Johnson is announcing one of the games.....




Man just wanted to drop by a little quickie(pause) for yall. I'm out....Im in need of some hot wangs..

The Big (Red) Surprise

A Moose Track

Let's get this straight. Twelve seeds aren't supposed to beat five seeds.

Yeah, it happens sometimes. Cinderella stories, the NCAA tournament surprises, yeah, whatever, whoop-de-do, it happens. But they're not supposed to turn around and beat a four seed, right? Twelve seeds are usually all gone by now, even in a crazy tournament year like this, right?

But, there's one thing we're missing here: Ivy League schools aren't supposed to get to the Sweet Sixteen, right? I mean, a school that doesn't even give out athletic scholarships upsetting Temple and Wisconsin? I mean, we know that UCLA, UNC, UConn and Memphis were having NIT seasons, but an Ivy League school taking their place and winning? THAT'S a cinderella team. Especially when nobody in their conference has made it that far since 1979.

Cornell started the tournament 3-63 all-time against top 25 teams, and they beat two of them within three days. They're very efficient, they rarely turn the ball over (and they make the other team turn it over often). They play like, well a team that doesn't give athletic scholarships: unspectacular and technically sound. But they get the job done and they'll take you by surprise.

On Thursday, Ryan Wittman (who became the fifth player in conference history to score 2,000 points on Sunday) and the Big Red will take on John Wall and the Kentucky Wildcats. Yeah, it's a one seed against a twelfth seed. Yeah, Kentucky's favored by nine. Yeah, the talent is overwhelmingly on UK's side.

But everyone loves the underdog, right? Especially one's who have no NBA aspirations, playing for only their pride. But hey, Ivy League grads are probably more valuable to our society than one-and-dones, right?

--Moose

The NCAA Tournament So Far

-Hursty-

I'm going to keep it short & sweet.
This is a run-down of the games so far:
All the no.1 seed's are through to the Round of 32 (doesn't exactly have a ring to it though, does it?)
All the no.2 seeds are through as well, but Villanova had a scare vs. Robert Morris, eventually scratching out a 73-70 win.
The 3 seeds are where things get interesting. Georgetwown went down to Ohio (not Ohio State) by a massive 14 points, disappointing for the Hoyas and Greg Munroe.

New Mexico got a run for their money, in a tight win over Montana 62-57, and this game was a battle, guys giving hard fouls from the opening possession, until N.M pulled it out with FT's.

For me personally, the biggest suprise of the Tourney this year came with AJ Ogilvy's No. 4 seed Vanderbilt going down to Murray State on a buzzer-beater 66 - 65. Vanderbilt never looked dominant, or even in control of the game. Just letting the underdog hang around way too long. I guess that's the danger of a "one and done" competition, a bad game and you're out, no second chances.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdiUoY6iz6I

Wisconsin & Wofford had the lowest scoring game of the Tournament this year in Wisconsin's 53-49 win.

No-one really expects the seeds 5-10 to go deep in the Tournament this year, but my personal suprise squad will by Texas A&M, led by Dash Harris. They just play well together, very good chemistry.

Peace, I'm out.
Hursty.

Last second ramblings, the story of my lfie

I told you guys about the life of a blogger and how I always fugg around with deadlines. When I say I'm going to drop something tomorrow, what I really mean is that it will be out at least int he next week. I'm the definition of a true procrastinator and I can't help it. I'll have to change this as I go to Mississippi State or Ole Miss next year but for right now I'll enjoy being dubbed the lazy bastard that still gets by at life with ease.

Anyways, I'm on to business. It's March Madness suckaz!!! Just saw on nahright.com where rapper big pooh(member of one of my favorite rap groups, little brother) did a little article for slamonline about march madness and what not. I'll check it out as soon as I'm done with my little analysis of who is going to be rocking the trophy come April. We can all be honest with ourselves and say that this is the year where anyone and I mean ANYONE can win the title. Kansas has been number one most of the year but they are not that dominant in my eyes and they could be bounced by the sweet sixteen. But that goes for all the other teams in the field of 64 as well. Kentucky, Syracuse, Ohio State, West Virginia, Duke, and Villanova all seem like title contenders in their own right but none of them get my full co-sign as champion. My bracket is pretty predictable but I will explain as I go along. First lets hit up my sweet sixteen picks.

Sweet Sixteen

Kansas



This has to be the deepest team in the tourney right now. With Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich being one the best inside/outside combos in the nation, it is hard to go against these guys when both of them are on their game. Throw in the Morris brothers with the hustle and grit, morningstar and reed with the 3 balls, and a freshman that I haven't been hearing enough of, Xavier Henry, and you have a team that is ready to make a deep run in the tourney.


Maryland



That Vasquez guy. That boy good! Honestly, I think Maryland can get by New Mexico State and Michigan State as long as Vasquez keeps his head on straight and leads the team in the right direction. Maryland is my sleeper pick for the sweet sixteen and I love watching them play. They are exciting, they play defense(sometimes), and they just never give up. Watch out for these guys.



Due to the fact that I'm on my homeboys laptop and his parents are ready for me to leave his house, I will just make key words on the rest of the teams that are in the sweet sixteen and out.....on to the rest of the sixteeen!!!!

Tennennesee



Chism. Hopson. If they are not playin up to task, UT won't be doing much of anything. Might be a repeat of when they played UK.

Georgetown



They are really dangerous when Monroe plays like a beast.

Ohio State


Mr. Triple Tandem Evan Turner ain't going bruh. POY #fuggyouropinion


Kentucky




Wall. Cousins. Bledsoe. Patterson...nuff said




Temple



DARKHOUSE!!!!!!!!!



Washington



Isiah 2.0 really plays like THE Isiah Thomas. Look for him, polished senior Quicny Pondexter, and company to make a little noise.


West Virginia



More about these guys later......



Duke




They get in by name alone




Texas A and M





Villanova




Scottie ain't goin




Syracuse





Second most balanced team after Kansas




UTEP

I know nothing of these dudes except that they have the nations leading scorer.


Pittsburgh



They are always the team with the most gangsta to me. I don't know why.


Kansas State



Frank Martin told me to put them in or else. What the heck was I supposed to do????



Elite eight

Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Villanove, Texas A and M, Kentucky, West Virginia, Kansas, Ohio State

Final Four

Villanova, Syracuse, West Virginia, Kansas

Championship Round

Syracuse vs. Kansas

For some odd reason I believe it will be raining orange in the championship game. You have the two most well rounded teams in the nation squaring off against each other in what will be a very fair matchup. Kansas has the advantage when it comes to leadership and overall experience in the tourney but Syracuse is soooo athletic and long. If Onawaku(i know I butchered his name) is at 100 percent, this game is the Orange's no doubt. I still believe, however, Cuse can win without him. Wesley Johnson, Scoop Jardine, Andy Rountins, and Rick Jackson can handle the load for them while he is away.

I have to go know seeing that my friends dad just cursed me out. I guess I ate too many honeybuns or something. I will discuss West Virginia in detail the more they win in the tourney. I want you guys to check them out a couple of games first. They really might make me change my mind about who wins the championship. But we will discuss that another time.

WE 'BOUT TO GO GLOBAL

Alright, i just wanted to let everybody know that I made a Twitter page and a Facebook fan page for 'Bachi. If we really are serious about expanding, we gotta take advantage of any big-time outlet we have available. Here's the link to the Twitter page and the Facebook fan page. Peace fam!

I'm out...

the song below (which is one of my all-time favorite songs) pretty much explains everything...

Drop that Sh%t Vontae!

Soooooo, my college and final four predictions will be hitting the scene tomorrow. I want to wait until the brackets hit so I can do some of my vontology for the masses. I'm pretty sure you will want to go with my choices so just sit back and wait for that time. It will drop sometime tomorrow.......hopefully. You know how bloggers are with release dates. Forgive me in advance family. Oh yeah my picture pretty much says it all.

Double Pene...........nevermind on to happier thoughts

Daddy's home once again. I know yall didn't miss me but hey it's all good in the neighborhood. Good to see that the site is making a comeback and I must say I am thankful to work with a group of bloggers that share's my same passion for the game of basketball. I haven't really been checkin out that many games lately mainly due to something called Senior Project aka the most useless class that any student could ever have but somehow the principal thinks that it prepares us for college when all it is is busy work that test your patience and makes you sometimes want to drive your car into your garage and let down the door and keep the car running. Yeah it's that pointless. Every night that I have planned to watch some games, Senior Project comes and tells me I have a portfolio due this friday that is 60% of my ENTIRE grade. So, either I plan on spending time with it, or I can just stay at moms house next year and watch all the NBA I want when I'm not able to graduate. Pretty sure most of you guys don't have a senior project and if you do, it's not the f*ckery that I deal with on a daily basis. All I can look foward to everyday is Holly's Post up and even some days at school I'm unable to look at it. No need to worry, however, because I will be through with all things senior project after this friday. Just in time for Selection Sunday too. Expect a nice little spoiler from me about who I belive is going to bring the trophy home (hint: it rhymes with orange juice).


Big shoutout to Matt Barnes. He would have totally made me swallow that gum. Can't really say anything negative because his team came out with the W and my lakers are not looking like the best team in the west. I've said for the longest that Denver is the best bet to make it to the Finals if LA and I'm sticking by that. I wouldn't be suprised if they beat LA in 6 games. We all know Kobe will get his troops back in order and they will be ready come playoff time. But a quick message to Kobe from me, stop with all the bullsh*t and let's win some games. 2 game losing streak almost made me punch my TV. The last loss I had to be tranqulizied by moms. Get it together.

Russel Westbrook, Russel Westbrook, Russel Westbrook, Russel Westbroook. You get the point, homie is straight BALLIN. I love how the PG posistion is going to be held down for years to come. Westbrook, Rose, Reke, BJ, Dwill, and Paul are going to hold it down. and I'm sorry Darren Collison for everything I said.......

Dang, Senior Project is bothering me AGAIN. I'll hit you guys up tomorrow. I'm gone back to workin in the lab.

Worst. Sports. Reporting. Ever.

Welcome to the Plastic Beach

You mad?

98-83!

Previous to this game, things fell apart on us Chinua Achebe style. We were playing like shit. After what we did last night though, i have faith we will make the playoffs. Combined with the Bulls inexperience, the Bucks failure to be consistent, and the Heat's dependence on Wade, i see us pushing one of them out of the playoffs. It will be hard(**thats what she said**) but i think it will happen.

That's about all i have to say....

Prioritising Horribly

This was something I found that really made me think.
What are your priorities in life? What matters to you? To our generation? To our future?

What's Going On?

A Moose Track

"Mother, mother
There's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today"

An NBA season can do a lot to a team. Sometimes it takes a year for the players to jell, to get used to one another, and to perform well. Sometimes a team starts out strong, builds steam, and comes into the playoffs looking for blood. And, sometimes a team starts out strong, and then tapers off . . . like the 2009-10 Boston Celtics.

Before the all-star break, the Celtics were playing their worst basketball of the season. From January 11 to all-star weekend, they went 6-9, dropping games to Atlanta (2), LAL, New Orleans, Orlando (2), Dallas, Detroit and the LAC. The short break was going to be their resting time; they were going to come back and take the league by storm.

And they did, for a second there. They came back to face a west-coast trip with match-ups against Denver, Portland, Los Angeles and Sacramento, going 3-1. Ray Allen was shooting, something that he hadn't done since the middle of the season last year. Kevin Garnett was looking like KG, the first time he had played like he can since the surgery.

And then they came back home, beating the Knicks 110-106. On the surface, this looks fine. But the Celtics, who have prided themselves as a defense-minded team for the better part of three years now, looked like they just didn't give a rip about giving up buckets. The next two games the Celtics were matched up against the top and the bottom: The Cavaliers and the Nets.

Boston led for most of the matchup, and suddenly, in the middle of the fourth quarter, something changed (I didn't watch it because a power outage in Massachusetts took out my TV in the middle of the 4th. Huge storm with a ton of damage took us down, bunch of rain, most people didn't have power until yesterday). The Celtics blew the lead, eventually losing by 20 to the best team in the league. A loss is understandable, but a blown lead late in the game is inexcusable. It shows that they can't handle any of the elite teams in one game, much less a seven game series.

On Saturday, the Celtics played the Nets at 1 o'clock. I didn't even consider watching it. I was hanging out with my friends during the game, I didn't even see a point in watching it. When I got home, my mom informed me that the C's had lost to the Nets. I was more confused than Wally Szczerbiak in a half-court trap. The Celtics are considered to be title candidates, and even my Mom knows that the Nets suck. It was their sixth win of the year. Their sixth.

But then I looked at the box score, and three things stood out. The Nets were 34-41 from the charity stripe. 34-41. 34-41. The Celtics were 9-11. The Nets shot 44.4% from the field. Boston shot 50% and still lost. The Nets went 6-13 from downtown, where the Celtics went 3-19. There are only a few justifiable reasons for this loss.

The Celtics aren't playing defense like they used to. Yes, Pierce was out for these last two games, but this isn't just about those last two games. The Celtics have lost something. The defense isn't there. Nobody should let the New Jersey Nets take 41 free throws. Nobody. Our defense is gone.

The other thing. Rasheed Wallace needs to play like he should. He shouldn't be taking five or six threes a night. He needs to get on the block, post up and do what he does best. His leadership should be a big part of the team, and instead he just gains us four or five bricks from long a night.

We needed to do something at the trade deadline. So we got Nate Robinson. Did it improve us all that much? We aren't sure. But all this failure from such a talented team begs one question: What's going on?

--Moose

Remember Way Back When?

Remember when Jerry Stackhouse was averaging 30ppg in Detroit?
When Rasheed Wallace got 41 Technical Fouls in 2001?
When LeBron was just a kid, not all bitter at the game?
When Kevin Garnett was a perennial MVP candidate?
When Greg Oden dominated all things, and everything?
When Jermaine O'Neal would have his way with anyone he wanted in the post?

Jordan's fading pivot to (seemingly) win the All-Star Game for the East in 2003?
The 2008 Giants?
The 2009 Steelers?
2010 Ole Miss Football team?
Joe Johnson as a Celtic?
Tayshaun playing in like, 400 straight games?
Hakeem as a Raptor?
Before Birthay Sex, and you had to ask 21 Questions?
Before New Orleans was flooded and Kanye spoke his mind. Truly.
The Jay-Z vs. Nas BEEF

Malace at the Palace
Ron Artest as a King?
Eminem before The Eminem Show
Tiger Woods as a loving, faithful father
Lady GaGa's first No. 1 single (name it in the comments)
That chick who sang the "right round" part in Timbaland's version? Yeh, that was Ke$ha

Remember where you were when Michael Jackson's death was filtering through?
What about the Twin Towers? (I was getting ready to go to school)

The Blackstar Album?
Before the Kardashians?
Run It - Chris Brown?
Confessions?
Breathe - Fabolous
Your first crush? Remember, that girl you couldn't ever speak to because you would say something really, really stupid by accident? Mhmm. Word vomit man.
When TMZ was about as well-known as UFC

The line "It's ok to lose your pride over someone you love, but don't lose someone you love, over your pride"
Shaq destroying fools in 04/5 with Wade, and his fall-off in the space of two years?
The Bulls of 2009 being almost the exact same team as they were in 06/7?
'Melo with braids? ... actually, everyone with braids?
Drew Gooden's ducktail soulpatch?
Mike Redd - All-Star
Carlos Boozer - Gold Medalist

Before ball was life, and life was ball?

When Hibachi 2.0 dominated the blogging world and brought the internet to it's knees? Yeah. This is just a reminder. We run this shit.

Did somebody call for an auction?!

While some really terrible things have happened in my life, none are more terrible than what i have recently experienced. While i am in some emotional pain right now, i feel as though what has happened could not have been stopped and i need to keep on living my life. It will never be the same, but it doesnt have to. That being said....

Whats up America! Im just trying to chill now and think, and i figured i might as well collect some of my thoughts on certain 'subjects on interest' to all of us, or at least me.

I will start where the last piece (by Daddy 'bachi himself DP left off (irony of DP being a father? Someone with the intials of the way you become a father ( or dont become a father depending on the hole you chose) is something i didnt forsee until after i typed it). Enough of the tanget, i am talking about this blog. Shit is happening. We all have our own personal situations going on. The team here knows about mine, everyone knows DP and Hursty are both involved/getting involved with college shit. The rest of the group all have their own things, which i cannot speak to since i dont know the full story/facts behind what they do outside the computer. But when it comes down to it, we are all a bunch of unmotivated, semi-lazy, mo-fos with priorities that differ from the improvement of this blog or higher thinking society (those two go hand in hand, in case you forgot, in which case you arent a member of the later).

In my opinion, we are starting to try the tricks couples use to restore relationships. Have a baby/get new blood in the mix. Move into a new house. Not saying Collin and a domain name arent good ideas, but if we are using them to try and save a site it is most likely going to fail once it doesnt live up to our expectations. If we are really going to get this site 'back' to what it once was, we need to forget what it was and try and recarve it/get re-energized about writting for it. Living in memories about how great our shit once was isnt going to get us anywhere other than a bloggers retirement home, where we will eat soft food and play bingo. We just need to get back to promoting our stuff, and making stuff to promote. It will be a cycle the way i see it. And we need to get back on SLAM and comment (like DP already said) and also go out into the rest of the cyber world and bump our shit too. This doesnt mean go on a site you have no interest in and start trolling for attention, but just find some stuff you already are on/that interests you and find ways to advertize it their. Put it in your signature, link it to your domain name; get people to look at it by typing insightful comments that will make people see we know what the fuck we are talking about. If we can reconstruct rather than move on, i think this site can prosper and turn into something bigger. We shall see.

Gerald Wallace didnt win the dunk contest but so what. We are on pace to have the best year in our franchise history, and to make the playoffs. To sum up the season, we won the season series vs the best team in the NBA (the Cavs) and lost the season series to the worst team in the NBA (the Nets). We are the squad that leaves a lot of people scratching their heads, but i just am loving what is going on; we are a decent NBA team now with some respect from the mainstream media. Maybe next year we will get a game on national tv. Probably not, but one can dream.

Seeing us as a place where people want to come is also impressing me. Names of recently bought out guys like Larry Hughes, Kenny Thomas, and Mike James among others as guys that WANT to be Charlotte Bobcats is just really something i can appreciate. People are starting to see that Charlotte is where you can play basketball and be yourself, just as long as you do it 'the right way'. Look for instance at Tyrus Thomas, whose numbers have skyrocketed since getting traded, every catogoery is significantly higher. Stephen Jackson's stock has also gone up since comming arriving in the Queen City. For the first time in his career, Jackson is getting POSTIVE media attention. Just amazing.

Tracy McGrady is back.It is nice to see Tracy getting minutes. After the Rockets signed Ariza, i pretty much knew the McGrady era in Houston had come to a close. Then the Rockets did him dirty and didnt let him play. I will let RV give us the 411 on what really happened and what the build up was behind everything, but for the end T-Mac's stint in Houston he was not treated well.

I got homework to do. I havent been at school for almost a week. So on that note, Cat out.

R.I.P.?????

I'm feelin really inspired right now to do this. I wasn't going to do another blog post for a minute but as I speak I'm watching my lakers do a pretty damn good job of hanging with the celtics without Kobe. Sure, I knew that they were going to put up a fight from the get go, but I love the energy they are playing with and how players who usually don't do much are stepping it up big time. I'm especially amazed at how Ron artest is just schooling Pierce on the lower block. Artest should have been playing like this all along and he looks the guy that La traded Ariza for. Perkins, eat your breakfast!!!!! Yeah I know that Ray made Shannon eat his but I really don't care for that ish. I just have a hatred for Perkins I can't describe. Maybe because he always looks like someone just robbed him at a liquor store or something. I don't know. LA probably won't win if they don't give Pau and Drew the ball more but it's cool. I'm just glad that LA is actually an alright team without Kobe and that some people still deserve their contracts(Sasha, you are STILL not included). I digress.

What I came to vent about is the life of this site. I probably won't even get any comments off this but this place is D.E.A.D. This wasn't my hopes for the new year but hey you can't plan things like this from happening. The song up top I got from Chucky Ham pretty much describes what is going to become of this site. It might actually be time to dead this site and start a new one. One where we can actually blog weekly and get more people reading our material. I sent an email out earlier talking about this and Hurst suggest we go with getting a dot com site. What you guys thinking? I think it's a great idea and if we actually start commenting on Slamonline more I think we can start a following like we did with hibachi. I love this site dearly and I've done some great ish on here as well as the rest of you guys but I know we can go to bigger and better things with a brand new site. Maybe even get some moola. But that's if you guys are with the plan. Hit me back up in the comment section and tell me how you feelin. play wit it.

Good-Bye, Bill Walker

It was fun while it lasted. I wish you luck in your career, and I hope you get some burn in New York, or anywhere, really. Sorry for leaving. Eddie, it was great having you here, too. J.R.....hmmm. Good luck, I guess.

--Moose

David Lee v.s. Al Horford

Al Horford: 13.6 PPG, 9.80 RPG, 2.2 APG

David Lee: 19.6 PPG, 11.60 RPG, 3.4 APG

Somebody PLEASE tell me what the NBA head coaches were thinking.

--Moose

From the ground up...

So has anyone noticed the Memphis Grizzlies this year? Maybe you haven't because you're so accustomed to looking for them at the bottom of the standings. This year though, they are actually 3 games above .500, and are playing some great basketball as of late. Due to their massive variety of talent, I knew that it was only a matter of time before they were challenging for a playoff spot, but I definitely didn't think that it would be going this well, this quickly.

Memphis is one of those teams that doesn't have a MVP-type player, or even a definite leader, (there is no Kobe, LeBron, or D-Wade on their team) but what they do have is a very talented group of players who can beat you in multiple ways.

~Rudy Gay is without a doubt one of the most underrated players in the league today. Most people only see his inhuman athletic ability by his spectacular dunks, but he is actually a very well-rounded player. He can get into the lane almost at will, and has the ability to draw fouls. He is also a very capable passer, and solid rebounder. I think the most underrated part of his game however, is his jump-shooting ability. When people watch highlights of him, his dunks and drives to the hoop are the only thing people notice, but he is actually a very dependable shooter, and most of his points actually come off of jumpshots. His 20.1 points is second on the team, and his 6.1 rebounds rank third on the team. Don't think he is just an offensive player though, he also gets 1.51 steals, and 0.86 blocks per contest. As I said, this team doesn't really have a go-to player, but Rudy is probably the closest thing this team has to a leader.

~Zach Randolph is a double-double machine. Since he played in Portland for the earlier part of his career, I am very familiar with him. Personally, I am not a fan of him, he is actually one of my least favorite players. I think he has a very bad attitude, and I didn't even like him when he was playing for my favorite team. He also has very poor shot selection. Personal matters aside, there is no doubt that he puts up numbers. No matter where he has played, whether it's been Portland, Los Angeles, New York, or Memphis, he has always been one of the most consistent players in the league. He manages to get 20 points and 10 rebounds EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. When I say every single night, I literally mean EVERY NIGHT. He always finds some way to get a double-double, no matter what the circumstances are. He is averaging 20.5 points, and 11.5 rebounds this season; which are both team-highs. He is also shooting 50% from the field, and 81% from the foul line; which is very impressive, especially for a Power forward. Despite all the negative aspects of Randolph's game, you can't argue with numbers like that.

~O.J. Mayo, while also being one of my least favorite players, is a player any team would like to have on their roster. He still struggles with his shot selection, at times, but that will get better as he matures. He's not really a defensive player, not a great rebounder, or even a great passer, but he can score whenever he wants. He is averaging 18.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists this season. When the Grizzlies absolutely need a bucket, O.J. will most likely be the one getting the ball, and he can usually make the shot, no matter how much defense is applied to him.

~Marc Gasol has turned into a very dependable post player. He doesn't get the same acclaim as his older brother, and has never really been taken seriously, but he is actually putting up near-All-Star numbers this season. He had a very solid rookie season, and people thought that he might be a pretty average player, but he put in a lot of work this offseason, and came back this year to prove he was way above average. He is putting up 14.7 points this season on 61% feild goal shooting, and is a solid free-throw shooter for a 7-footer shooting 66%. He has also proved that he can be a great rebounder and defensive player by grabbing 9.7 boards, and 1.5 blocks a game. Since Zach Randolph is more of a mid-range/perimeter player, most people thought that left the Grizz without a low-post presence, but Marc has actually developed a very nice low-post game. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we see him in the All-Star game in the next couple of years.

~Mike Conley has had a lot of doubters and haters since he came into the league, but the Grizzlies know how good he really is, and have put all their trust in him to be their point guard of the future. They proved this when Allen Iverson came in at the beginning of the season. Iverson was expected to come in and be the starting point guard, but Conley ended up not only keeping his starting position, but also playing more minutes. Although his averages of 10.3 points, and 4.9 assists don't seem too impressive, that is exactly what the Grizz want him to do, and they couldn't be more satisfied with him.

One Knock on the Grizzlies is their lack of a bench. Outside of rookie Sam Young (8.1 points), the next highest scoring average by a bench player is Marcus Williams with 3.9. Their bench isn't exactly the best in the league, but coach Hollins always finds a way to get a good rotation out there on every possession. They also have a lot of young talent, who haven't even come close to realizing their potential yet (Hasheem Thabeet, Lester Hudson, Sam Young, DaMarre Carroll).

The Grizzlies have come a long way in a short time. The organization has been at an all-time low, and are finally starting to have hope for the future by their recent success. The bottom of the Western Conference is stacked as usual, and the Grizzlies might not even make the playoffs (or might just be in 7th or 8th), but if one thing is for certain, it's that you definitely can't take this team for granted.

I'm out....

(and be sure to check out Hurty's post right beneath this one)