Match Up: Rockets & Lakers+ game preview

So DP and I had this half hour long convo over facebook the other night, and we were just railing on about a bunch of different stuff, some girl, the differences between Australia and the USA with ages, e.g Sweet 16th, 18th, 21st birthday.
Then we shifted on towards a more basketball-orientated theme when I noticed the Bobcats (!) had beaten the Lakers.
Naturally, DP was upset, and I was just rubbing it in, saying how BET would be stoked, and we'd likely see a blog post up soon ( check below this for that) showing him gloat.
This got me to thinking- the Cats have LA's number- they swept the season series, and they've also given the Celtics fits the last year or two.
But it also brought to my attention just how vulnerable the Lakers may prove to be in the playoffs. Last year they destroyed the Nuggets (and rightfully so), with Kobe going off for 30+ in every game. They then got the Jazz in the second round, fresh off a 7 game grind with the Rockets. The Lakers moved on, winning the Western Conference eventually, and fizzled out badly in the Finals, thats a story we all know well.
The thing that strikes me though, is how well the Lakeshow (it just doesn't sound right to me...) matched up with other teams they played throughout the playoffs. And when the met the Celtics, who matched up better, they got destroyed.
So, continuing with my little jabs at DP, I said that the Lakers would struggle to even make it out of the West (just for closure, I said that the Cavaliers or Celtics would be representing the East. Duh).
But think about it for a minute, how do the Lakers match up with the Rockets? Just off the top of my head, I said pretty average. I mean, they both score the ball ok, the Lakers a little easier, while the Rockets are a solid defensive team, kinda making that a wash.
Go deeper. Look at how the teams match-up position wise. Start with the Lakers on the left.

Fisher vs. Brooks


Edge: Lakers. Slightly.

Fish has done it all before and is going to stretch the Rockets. If he can occassionally get into the paint against the much quicker Brooks, it'll create problems for Yao, who has to come out and help.

If Brooks can stop Fisher from posting him up, and can run him around in transition, I think it could be an even match-up. Other than that, Fish is the veteran, and the Lakers are more poised in general. Hopefully Brooks can get into the paint as well with his superior speed and athleticism.


Bryant vs. Artest


Edge: Lakers. Slight.

I call it pretty even for a few reasons. Artest is the superior defender. Without question. Bryant is the superior offensive player. Without question. They can play both sides of the ball and are two of the most versatile players in the league.

Kobe destroyed Ron Ron in their last match-up with 32 in the second half. Ron had a terrible offensive showing and finished just over double digits. If Ron can focus on team oriented defense then he has a better opportunity to stop Kobe at the same time, because he knows Battier and Yao will be there to help out as well. Kobe once again, needs to trust his team and not force issues, but slowing down Artest on the block is going to be huge for Bryant, because once Ron gets going offensively, he's even more dangerous defensively.


Ariza vs. Battier


Advantage: Rockets.

Eh. This is a wash. Ariza with the athleticism, Battier with the smarts. Both can play defense, Battier is superior though, and has (shock horror!) actually contributed offensively the last few games, averaging over 12 points a game (almost double his season average). I think having Battier in the corner for 3pointers may give a slight edge to the Rox, since it spaces everything out, similiar to Fisher. But his ability to come and give Kobe fits also helps out.


Odom vs. Scola

Advantage: Lakers.

Versatility is the key. Both rebound very well and Scola is the more polished scorer, but Odoms ability to run the break off a board and find open guys is significant.


Gasol vs. Yao

Advantage: Rockets.

As good as Pau is, and as skilled as he is, anyone going up against Yao is at a disadvantage. Yao will just bully him away from the paint and force him to shoot 12-15 footers (which Pau can make) but Yao is going to have his way inside, and should be able to get a 25/15 type game. This hasn't been the case in recent games, as the Lakers have doubled from the weakside baseline, and Yao's had difficulty throwing out of the double from that spot. The Rockets have apparently worked on this, and should prove less troublesome.


Bench:

Advantage: Rockets. Hayes is a defensive beast, Landry may play today, Von Wafer is instant offense and Lowry is a very solid backup, likewise with Mutumbo.

Farmar has (IMO) regressed from last year, and he's less consistent, forcing more minutes on an ageing Fisher. The loss of Radman hurts them, and Adam Morrison isn't comfortable yet. Sun Yue is a joke right now, and cant get off the bench (sorry China).


Coach:

Jackson vs. Adelman.

Advantage Jackson. He's had the wood over Rick for a good decade+ and his victories over the Kings has to be demoralising. He's as good as anyone with game to game adjustments, and there's something called the 'triangle' offense?

The Rockets are still having troubles performing Adelman's 'read and react' motion based offense 2 years in. The supporting staff is great for both teams.


Final: I think the Rockets can pull this off, but it truly depends on how Ron plays on Kobe, and how physical the refs allow play to be- if this is the case, Yao should be able to punish Pau around the hoop. Homecourt means a lot too, even though the Lakers have won the last three games. Being at Staples Centre makes it hard to win, but with wins over SA, and NO on the road the last week and a disapponting loss to the Suns, the Rockets need to bounce back.

The Lakers have also suffered losses lately, and a 6 pt win over the Bucks was less than convincing.


Result:

Lakers by 3, because Yao gets into early foul trouble in the second quarter.

The Education Of Kanye West

A Moose Track

I admire Kanye West.

You look at that sentence. You see my reference to Kanye West in an admirable light, and you feel doubtful. A rapper? Who admires a rapper? Who sees a rapper as a positive influence in our society? And isn't he the one who was on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine as Jesus with horns? He's the insanely cocky one, right? And didn't he get into a feud with another rapper?

Well, that last one doesn't count. It was merely for record sales. But all of the rest of the above statements are good arguments for why Mr. West would not be a role model. They're just ignorant ones. Kanye is one of the most original artists that we've had in a while, and he might be the most original that I've seen and heard in my lifetime.

First of all, his music is awesome. Great rapper with meaningful lyrics (well, most of the time), creative synths and production along with a good singing voice. Yes, I liked 808s And Heartbreak. But I own all of Kanye's musical work, and it's all great in my eyes. But, aside from his musical side, he is still an admirable person.

He is not afraid to take risks. This is the big one. He doesn't care what other people think, he wants to do what he wants to do, and he isn't fazed by the media, critics or anyone who doubts him. And this is the admirable part, whether he gets into trouble for it or not. I'm not saying that I'm patterning my behavior after his, after all, he is undeniably pompous and, well, cocky. But that is what sets him apart; he's confident.

I originally got the idea for this piece while I was listening to All Falls Down from The College Dropout, when a certain lyric really got my attention. I walked over to my desk and wrote it down, because it really provoked my thoughts and I felt like I could relate.

"We're all self-conscious, I'm just the first to admit it."

This is truly an admirable statement. And, it is a trailblazer for others to admit the same thing. The people who are self-conscious (which would be, ahem, everyone) can now admit it without fear of being ridiculed, because Kanye said it. Maybe that's not how people should run, but that's how it goes. I used to think that I was the only one that admitted that I was self-conscious, at least to myself. Because he's right, huh?

Kanye takes risks with everything that he does, communicating his thoughts in every last one of them. He's so open, not afraid of what other people will think of him. Some people see this as pompous and cocky. I see what these people mean, but most of what I see of it is bravery. True, this man is very secure, and he could very possibly be too secure. But that's the appeal of Kanye. Here's another one of Mr. West's thought-provoking quotes.

"Nothing in life is promised except death."

See it one way, and it's pessimistic. See it the way that you're supposed to see it, and it's an entirely different quote. The pessimistic way is that "oh, we're all doomed for death. Boo hoo." But what he's talking about is, go after your dreams. I know, I know. Sounds corny. I know what I'm typing. Nobody can tell you that you can't do something. Of course, maybe I'm interpreting it wrong. Maybe he's remarking that people can back out of their promises, like what his former fiancee did in the past year.

Kanye West does not lack humor, no matter how it's intended. Sometimes it sounds cocky (I'm saying that too much), but funny is another thing to describe the following.

"If y'all (are) fresh to death, then I'm deceased."

Kanye West is truly an interesting man. I don't admire all of what he stands for or all of his actions, but I think that we can all learn a thing or too from him.

Or maybe we're just too self-conscious to admit it.

--Moose

Cocaine Music Homie Dont You Confuse It

Hello family, i have been buisy, so i havent been on in a while.
I wont say much but i will say this:


WE BEAT THE LAKERS WE BEAT THE LAKERS!
WE SWEPT THE LAKERS! WE SWEPT THE LAKERS!

Let me sum up my emotions with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lQW-FWMcBo

The Beantown Pitch

A Kind Of Moose Track

This post is going to be short and sweet, because all I really want to do is show a photo.



Yes, I took that. This Red Auerbach statue (and Larry's shoes to the right) can be found at Faneuil Hall, next to Quincy Market. Five minute walk from the Garden. So, there it is. Everyone should come to Boston. Oh yeah, this statue isn't new or anything, I just wanted to post it. Moose out.

--Moose

Some Moosetacular Musings

A Moose Track

Hursty asks for a post. Moose says maybe. Moose acts. So here's a post with my random thoughts concerning basketball, not basketball, and other things. You never been on a ride like this befo'. With a producer who can rap and control the mic stroke . . . how about with a teenaga who can write and control mouse stroke? No? Well, I tried. Anyways.

The new SLAM issue came. And it made me happier than all other SLAM issues ever, ever made. First of all, I was in it, and that was pretty cool. And, Ben's little Ed. reply made me really happy. I'm not gonna spill it for everyone who hasn't seen it yet, but it made me real happy and appreciative.

But there was something else that made me even happier in this newest SLAM ish. In PUNKS, there's a feature (yes, with pictures!) on Alex Oriakhi and Jamaal Coombs-McDaniel of Tilton School. Yeah, those guys that I wrote the article on that nobody commented on got some SLAM action. I met both of 'em. They're both going to UCONN. But the thing is, when I asked Coombs-McDaniel where he was going to school, he said that he didn't know (it was a good conversation starter, haha). So, I don't know what to think. But, he scored 42 an hour later. So, I'll forgive him.

Another thing about me before I turn to things that are insanely more interesting. I got the Damani shoes, with the box autographed, which was a surprise. It says, "Congratulations Playa, Inglewood City behind me." And the shoes are sick, just sick. Yeah, they're a size too small and I can't wear 'em, but they're staying on my shelf. And the XL shirt doesn't fit this 5-9.5, 160 pound man-child, but that's dope too. I also got two Damani mixtapes, which are great too. Thanks, Ryne and Susan! If you guys were here I'd buy you a sandwich.

NCAA is having a good tournament right now. Pitt almost lost a couple times, but DeJuan Blair is great. Sam Young is tearing it up. Everybody's just performing. There were a few upsets so far. My bracket is doing well, but I lost Arizona State, my upset Final Four team, which hurt me. My West bracket is perfect so far, but I need the Zags to find a way to beat UNC next week. I need that real bad. Otherwise, my ten bucks is going out the window.

Shaquille O'Neal is amazing and hilarious. And this is why.. Gotta love the big guy. Who is 36! Man, that guy is getting old. But he was the fantasy surprise of the year. Speaking of fantasy!

Al Jefferson killed a lot of teams, including mine. Dwyane Wade was just amazing. Playoff time there, and he's gotta do his thing. Because it's near the end of the season, and this piece is more cluttered than Barkley's actual jail time, I'm just gonna give out a few of my vital end-of-season awards.

LeBron James is the MVP. This guy has done so much for his squad, and for himself as well. He's got more triple-doubles than it seems humanly possible, and he's just tearing it up. Dwyane Wade is close second in my opinion (yes Eboy, I see you), just because the Heat wouldn't be anything without him, seriously. And, Kobe hasn't done better than any of them. And, the Lakers minus Kobe would kill the Heat minus Wade or the Cavs minus LeBron.

Rookie Of The Year goes to O.J. Mayo. Maybe I'm biased here, but Mayo has scored a ton this year, totally unprecedented for any rookie, really. Yes, Rose might give him a run for his money, but both teams stink. Russell Westbrook has played outstanding, but he hasn't gotten the consistent minutes and opportunity that Mayo or Rose have. And, Anthony Morrow still has to be reckoned with. Yeah, Morrow!

Thank goodness for KG. The Ceatles are so unhealthy right now, it's scary. Hopefully, once we get the guy playing bigger minutes and we get the rest of the team healthy, we'll be fine again. But the other day Leon got 31, 11 and 5 blocks. That made me really happy. I Love Leon! That should be a new black-and-white sitcom. I like that.

MIP goes to Rajon Rondo. Yeah, I need to do it. No explanation needed. Anyways, Hursty, there it is. A new Hibachi post! There you go.

--Moose

DJ Pretty Mutha Flippin Kitty has entered the building

Whats good America, Saudi Arabi, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Brazil, Australia, Austria, Mexico, Canada, New Zeland, Japan, and the rest of yall!

First i need yall to click this to prepare your ears. Dont want anyone's ears to explode. Click this and get ready!

Now that your ears are preped to handle the loud sound, i present MY PLAYLIST:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6egWvtU-8I
This needs no words- Eminem If I Get Locked Up Tonight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEpAeSj504c
Old song, but i am wearing mine right now for no reason!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUcr24DFxvA
Judge for yourself, not saying who

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxVRFI06Ju8&feature=channel
Same as above

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRqOT-zLwY0
decent

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kH1z2mwmrS4
The worst thing i ever heard, he is talented though

Lastly, i would like to formally annouce that Gucci Mane is indeed the greatest greatness maker of all time. RIDE OR DIE. I dont even need to put Gucci up here, he is every where! GUCCI IS THE AIR YOU BREATH, GUCCI IS THE THOUGHT YOU HAD 1 SECOND AGO TIL IT SLIPT YOUR MIND, GUCCI IS ALSO THE REASON THAT THOUGHT SLIPT YOUR MIND.

Cold Chillin

I thought I might as well hit you guys up with a post seeing that I am in a complete state of eternal boredom. I know, I know...I SHOULD BE WATCHING SELECTION SUNDAY RIGHT NOW. But for odd and fucking peculiar reason, we are watching a bootleg version of Street Fighter. Does anyone know that they even made this a movie? Me neither. Personally, I would rather play the game and whoop up on some cats but I digress. Since I am clueless to what is going on in the realm of college hoops, I want you guys to fill me in with some comments on who's who in each division. All I know for right now is that the four number one seeds are L-Ville, UConn, Pitt(who is going to be the first number to fall of IMO), and NC. The way L-Ville's bracket is looking, I want to go on and pencil them in for the Final Four. The other's I don't know yet but as of right now, my team of the NCAA is 'Cuse. Devendorf and Flynn make one of the best one-two punches as far as guards go in the whole nation. Seeing those guys just do their thing constantly during those 6 overtimes made me a fan all over again. I haven't watched that much hoops this year but I was so glad I neglected my economics test to watch THAT game. Greatest college game I've ever seen. Cuse is my darkhorse in the tourney and I have them in my sweet sixteen. As long as Flynn and Devendorf are on their pimp shit, they might even make it to the elite eight. Who knows? Only thing I know for certain is that this is the most unpredictable tourney that we will see for ages. I really cannot give you guys a definte winner because all of these teams can lose with ease. I guess will we have to see how it all unravels.


Other random musings

1. Shouts out to Mississippi State who won the SEC tourney! I couldn't believe what I saw as I watched the game as State won four games as in as many days. They probably won't get out of the first round but to even do what they did is a major accomplishment. Kudos to my home state.

2. Jarvis Varnado...If you don't know who he is...look up some youtube on him and you will see why he erased Shaq in the books as the all time leader of blocked shots in the SEC.

3.Flynn is Nate robinson 2.0

4. Charles Hamilton is nice...check dude's mixtapes. I don't know, I always listen to him when I watch a game.

5. I'm finally using my jumpsoles! Shout out to Tariq who hooked me up with the pair like almost a year ago. congrats on your book success my man.

Finally, I would like to request that the whole bachi team get twitter. Don't ask any questions just fucking do it. and if you already have one, hit a dude up with the IP address.

Till next time...peace, love, and Crooks and castles apparel. all ready.

To: BETCATS

With much love,

Rockets fans everywhere

NEPSAC Tournament . . . A Player Report

A Moose Track

Yes, I know that picture is lame. It was the only NEPSAC logo I could find. Speaking of NEPSAC, it stands for New England Preparatory School Athletic Council, a prep sports division for, well, New England. As you've probably figured out. Anyways . . . this past week there was a tournament there, and some guys with pretty big names were present. Some of them were postgrad, some of the schools had a lot of PG guys there.

Well, you guys know me, I'm gonna go to as many games as I can. And, I want to take all of the opportunities possible. I walk up to all of the players that I can and I meet them, tell them that they played great, ask them where they're going to play college ball. Anyways, I'm not going to go into a big summary about the tournament, but I do want to give a report on all of the players that I talked to. Here are the guys that I saw play and met in order by ranking on NERR (New England Recruiting Report). These are only the guys who really stuck out to me.


Alex Oriakhi - C - Tilton Prep - NE Rank: 1 - College: UCONN
This guy is a beast. Huge. 6'9", 230, with muscles bigger than a monster truck. OK, not really. But he's got some big guns. Anyways, he's ranked number one in New England, and he's in the top 20 for national high school rankings. He's just a dominant post player, and he grabs rebounds like nobodies business. He was nice to me, he stopped in the middle of one of his conversations because he noticed me lingering. He's a bit small to play the 5 at UCONN, so he'll be a power forward there most likely. He's been committed to UCONN since 2006.

Thomas Robinson - PF/SF - Brewster Academy - NE Rank: 4 - College: Kansas
This guy is bigger than their center and can jump flat over him. Thomas Robinson is a big guy, 6'8", 210. His tenacity on the boards is phenomenal, his rebounds are up the roof because of it. He knows how to grab them, and with a combination of that, size, and hops, this guy is tough to beat when there's a loose ball. Very athletic. Will dunk on anyone and everyone, as I saw in the tournament. Can dominate at times. Is going to Kansas next year, but also got offers from Memphis, USC, Miami University and Texas. I didn't know who he was when I asked him where he'll be playing college ball, but when he said Kansas the word, "Sweet" popped out of my mouth. He laughed.

Andrew Fitzgerald - C/F - Brewster Academy - NE Rank: 6 - College: Oklahoma
This dude is a flat-out beast. 6'9", 245 pounds and will dunk on you, pick up the foul and hit the free throw. Seriously, that's what he does. He got five three-point-plays in one of the tournament games. And I only saw him miss two free throws in three games. And he shoots a lot of them. Conditioning is a slight problem, but he has a very good midrange jumper that falls in more often than not. Pretty quick in the paint and scores there easily. He's going to Oklahoma, but got offers from--are you ready for it?-- Pittsburgh, Seton Hall, St. Johns, Xavier, Tennessee, California, Kentucky, Louisville, Marquette and Minnesota. Wow. He was nice to me as well, I told him I'd be watching for him in college and such and he was like, "Great!" or something like that. Nice guy anyways. Very animated on the court as well.

Kevin Parrom - SF - South Kent Prep - NE Rank: 8 - College: Xavier
Parrom can just ball. He can do a little bit of everything on the court, he does everything pretty well but isn't spectacular in one category. He is a great scorer, a good shooter, a good defender. From what I saw and the games I watched, he needed to get the ball a lot more; he was clearly on another level than most of the other guys. Some nasty high-flying blocks were performed by Parrom in the tournament, and he has clear athleticism that is just crazy. 6'6", 200 pounds, he will be attending Xavier, but he also got offers from Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Rhode Island, Clemson, South Carolina, and St. Johns. He was kind of into his music when I met him, but I got eye contact and a handshake.

Omari Lawrence - G - South Kent Prep - NE Rank: 9 - College: St. John's
Omari Lawrence was probably my favorite player from the tournament. He was funny on the court, he interacted with other players well, he was just a good-natured player. He was most likely the nicest one that talked to me, and he's not a bad player either. The 6'4", 185 pound lefty threw down two alley oops in the three games that I saw him, he can get off. He is stocky, with a Barkley butt that helps him penetrate more effectively. He's quick. Good in transition. Pretty good shooter. Again, just a cool guy. He's going to St. John's, but he got offers from Georgetown, Memphis, Clemson, Auburn, Xavier, Arizona, Pittsburgh. Again, he was nice to me he looked me in the eye, thanked me and all of that.

Givon Crump - SF - Brewster Academy - NE Rank: 15 - College: Baylor
When Givon Crump gets hot, he gets really, really hot. I'm not suggesting anything here. He has great athleticism, he's very explosive. He does a good deal of damage on his jump shot, which falls through a ton (there's a YouTube video of him hitting 25/28 in practice, pretty funny). Good size, high release point on his jumper makes it unblockable. Textbook release and form on it. He's going to Baylor but also got offers from Iowa State, South Florida, Nebraska, Oregon State, Providence and Rutgers. He was fun to watch, although he didn't play a ton in two of the three games. I wondered why. He was nice to me, he was a little tired though, you could tell.

Malik Stith - PG - Bridgton Academy - NE Rank: 22 - College: Kentucky
This is another one of those guys who I liked a lot by watching him play and meeting him. He's a little guy, 5-10, 170, but he can ball better than he looks like he can. He's got a nasty ankle-breaking crossover, lights-out jumpshot and quickness that would make Chris Paul jealous. Not really on the last one. But he's fast. He's really fast. He's so fast he makes fast people look, well, not fast (if you get the reference, I'm happy). He's intense, he's tough, a complete team leader. In one of the tournament's championship games, he pretty much single-handedly won it for Bridgton, just nailing jumper after jumper. He can move around the court at will with the ball. He had committed to St. John's, but I guess he backed outta that because he told me Kentucky. He was really nice, one of the few guys who said something more intelligent than "Thanks" when I told them their play was good. Nice guy, seems a bit small for the League, but he was great to watch.

So, there are the big-name guys that I met. There was one other worth noting, Majok Majok, from, whaddya know, Australia! I had talked to Hursty about him beforehand, so during one of the other tournament games I went up to him and asked him about our favorite Aussie (and you too, MBW). And, sure 'nuff, he knew who he was. Small world, no? Another big name guy that I saw (3rd in NE), Jamal Coombs-McDaniel, dropped 42 in one of the games. That will get you to UCONN on a full ride, everybody. I didn't get to meet him, though I wish I did. It was great stuff.

--Moose