The lead video comes courtesy of Devour.com, and it speaks volumes. So do these NBA Finals statistics:

Finals scoring totals

Player One:

36, 33, 29, 28, 30, 39, 39, 26, 32, 46, 33, 31, 42, 44, 55, 41, 33, 28, 29, 36, 23, 26, 22, 31, 38, 26, 22, 38, 39, 33, 37, 24, 34, 28, 45

Player Two:

14, 25, 25, 24, 24, 20, 17, 8

(Stats courtesy)

Obviously, Player One is Jordan and Player Two is LeBron. Another obvious thing that stands out is Jordan has a much larger sample size to pick from, but then again, you’ll also notice he never scored under 22 points in a Finals game, either. It should also be noted that LeBron was much younger in the first four games, and only shot 35% in those outings. He was also asked to do much more for that team than he is now, and for that, James should be thanking Dwyane Wade profusely. Honestly, the better comparison would be Wade’s Finals scoring versus Jordan instead of LeBron’s. Wade has enjoyed much more success being a lethal scoring threat.

Wade’s Finals scoring totals:

28, 23, 42, 36, 43, 36, 22, 36, 29, 32

Granted, a portion of Wade’s output was aided by liberal use of the free throw line — 97 attempts in the first six total, 73 over the last four of those six — but his totals are much more comparable to Jordan’s than are LeBron’s. In 10 NBA Finals games, Wade is averaging almost 33 points a game (32.7). In Jordan’s first 10, he averaged 33.8, exactly 1.1 point more than the Heat guard.

Clearly, the lesson here is forget Kobe and LeBron. If you want to make a comparison to Jordan, especially when it comes to the Finals, Dwyane Wade is the more appropriate player to use, even if his sample size comes against one team in the Dallas Mavericks. Does that lessen Wade’s impact? That’s up to you to decide. Similar Posts:

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The NBA playoffs are long, and since switching the first round to a 7-game series, they tend to drag on even longer. Even the games themselves seem longer, with more fouls, injuries, and stoppage of play, mostly because of the heightened competitiveness of the players. The NBA playoffs are so long that many other things typically viewed as agonizingly long do not even come close. The following are ten examples.

1. Christmas – On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, five front row seats. Yes, Christmas may last twelve days, and for those of you who find the holiday season to be stressful, that seems like a long time. Still, it pales in comparison to the NBA playoffs, which can go on as long as 61 days.

2. State of the Union Address – While it is long for a presidential speech, a single playoff game is still longer. Even Bill Clinton, who was known to sometimes top 1 hour and 20 minutes, cannot compete with sum of commercial ad time of the NBA playoffs.

3. Lifespan of a Housefly – It may seem like forever when one of them is buzzing around in your house, and you cannot seem to catch it. But a housefly will push 30 days if it is lucky. So, if it was born in a trashcan outside of the Staples Center in April, it might have lasted just about as long as the Lakers this year.

3. NaNoWriMo – If you really have some time on your hands, you might have considered taking on the challenge of National Novel Writing Month. While writing a book in 30 days may seem like the longest time of your life, it will only get you through half of the playoffs.

4. “The Cape” – For many it appears that sitting through an episode of this superhero show may have felt like an eternity, but NBC squirted out 9 episodes in about 50 days before canceling it, still shorter than the NBA playoffs.

5. March Madness – Despite starting out with 65 teams (more than the entire NBA, including those teams that fail to make the playoffs), the NCAA Men’s Division I tournament still manages to wrap things up in less than a month.

6. 2011 Cricket World Cup – Cricket is a notoriously long sport, with one type even taking up to five days for a single match. Nevertheless, the 2011 Cricket World Cup started on February 19 and concluded on April 2, lasting less than 45 days. Even cricket fans would get tired of hearing commentators argue over whether LeBron is “clutch”.

7. Kindle Battery Life – So, you managed to get through War and Peace without recharging your Kindle. Congratulations, but reading the stat sheets from each game of the NBA playoffs would have you reaching for your charger several times over the course of the 60-day b-ball marathon.

8. Google Chrome Releases – Nope. Sorry. It only took Google seven weeks to release Chrome 11 after Chrome 10, and according to clustered hosting experts at 34SP.com, they managed to fix 25 security vulnerabilities. That is the type of efficiency even Dirk Nowitzki has to admire as he approaches the last leg of his two-month playoff excursion.

The NBA playoffs are long, and those fans who manage to catch every game are an elite few. For their spouses and family members who dislike the game, the playoffs may be unbearable and seem like they will never end. If you are a true fan, however, they might not last long enough.

Tavis J. Hampton is an indentured staff writer for All Blogs Considered. During his free time, he plays outdated video games and occasionally watches basketball.

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The inspiration of such accolades obviously comes from Nowitzki’s Game Four performance against the Oklahoma City Choker Thunder. After outplaying the Mavericks for about 44 minutes — the NBA is a 48-minute game — the Thunder worked themselves to a 15-point lead over the Mavs. And then this happened:

And then, Jason Kidd happened:

/Mike Breen

While a comeback is definitely still on the table, the consensus is the Western Conference Finals are over; however, considering OKC has already won in Dallas — Game Two — surely Rick Carlisle doesn’t feel the same way. Game Five is tomorrow night, thank goodness. No more weird, travel day layoffs. Similar Posts:

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Granted, it’s always a good time having fun at the expense of others, but really, just what the hell was Korver expected to do here?

A quick search of YouTube for “Kyle Korver blocks” yields not an awful lot except this gem:

LeBron: “Try to block this one, Kyle.”

Korver: “Good God, he’s coming right at me!”

Furthermore, any player who’s as good of a shooter as Korver, but yet, is still more known for this picture than he for his shooting ability… There’s not much you can expect from such a player put in the same position, except maybe, for them to remain upright. I guess that’s not too much to ask.

Hell, at least he hustled back (I’m quickly running out of defenses for Korver’s spin out). Similar Posts:

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While Harden was indeed playing the role of closer quite successfully, the highlight of Game Two, however, was when Kevin Durant literally threw the ball down on Brendan Haywood. It wasn’t so much a dunk as it was a “get the **** out of the way” smash, something similar to Blake Griffin’s highly-celebrated throw down on the New York Knicks.

The difference being, Durant’s dunk came during the Conference Finals, making much more important than Griffin’s regular season offering.

First, the video:

As for the series, it looks like it could very easily go seven games, with each team scoring over 700 cumulative points as it continues. Again, defensive gurus need not apply to the Mavs/Thunder series, because you’d probably pull your hair out as either Nowitzki, Durant or, in this case, Harden, continues to make mockeries of set defenses.

In fact, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if one of these upcoming games finished with a 130-129 score. Good thing Tom Thibodeau isn’t on either of these coaching staffs. Such offensive displays would probably make his head explode. Game 3 is Saturday night in Oklahoma City. Any guesses on the combined final score?Similar Posts:

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The old record was 21 in a row, but thanks to Nowitzki’s unstoppable Game One, the record now stands at 24, all of which are contained in the lead video. For his efforts, Nowitzki finished with 48 points, while only taking 15 shots. Considering the NBA is all about efficiency now, Dirk’s game earned him a solid +12 on the NBA’s ubiquitous plus/minus rating.

Stats only begin to tell the story, however. The Oklahoma City Thunder’s defense on Nowitzki, be it James Harden, Serge Ibka, or Thabo Sefolosha, was simply toyed with the entire game. When they decided to double team the German assassin, Nowitzki routinely found an open shooter, usually in the form of Jason Terry, J.J. Barea, or Jason Kidd, who would punish the Thunder defense for slow rotations.

That being said, the Thunder were in a no-win situation. They had no chance of stopping Nowitzki in an one-on-one setting, so it was a “pick your poison” scenario, with either options offering little in the way of successful defense. Furthermore, the Thunder got a great game from Kevin Durant, who also had his way at the free throw line, converting on 18 of 19 attempts and finishing with 40 points; although, he only rated a -1 in the plus/minus category.

So what can we expect going forward? More of the same from the Mavericks and Nowitzki or will the Thunder actually be able to solve the conundrum that is Dirk Nowitzki’s ability to score the basketball? Game Two is Thursday night, but if Nowitzki continues to perform at such an unstoppable level, go ahead and pencil the Mavericks in for the NBA Finals.Similar Posts:

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Sure, the Lakers might have had Phil, Kobe and Pau, but a lot of good that did while being unceremoniously swept out of the playoffs by the Mavericks.

Like it or not, these two teams are your Western Conference representatives, so with that, let’s take a look at the match up that should make this series a great one to watch: Kevin Durant versus Dirk Nowitzki. Now, before the scoffing begins, it is understood that basketball is a team sport and the success of each team’s bench will play a large part on who goes to the NBA Finals.

Be that as it may, the marquee players in this series are Dirk and Durant, two of the best scorers the league has ever seen. While these two will spend the majority of their 48 minutes guarding other players, as the lead image shows, there will be times these two go directly at each other. So who has the advantage?

A quick look at some charts on StatSheet.com’s StatPlot service sees both players are pretty evenly matched in reference to statistically benefiting their respective teams. Unfortunately, StatSheet.com is having some difficulty with their embed feature, so start here. You’ll see there isn’t much of an advantage, either way.

Over at the Painted Area, there’s a good post discussing who on the Oklahoma City Thunder will have the luxury of guarding Nowitzki, and let’s just say expect to see a lot of Serge Ibka on the German assassin. Will such an approach work for the Thunder? It’s hard to be optimistic. If Ibka does get the call, I would expect Nowitzki to absolutely abuse him until the double teams come.

As for the Mavericks, is Shawn Marion the one who will be guarding Durant? If so, it’s hard to expect much success. In three games against the Mavericks this season, Durant averaged right around 30 points a game, while shooting a total of 27 free throws. As for Dirk, in two games against the Thunder, he scored 47 points and got to the line 19 times.

So yeah, like I was saying, it’s essentially a push. Durant is younger, but Dirk has all the playoff experience you could ask for. While the series will be decided by which player has the most help, watching these two scoring machines will be a true treat for basketball fans. Essentially, it’s a match-up of small forwards who have no business being perimeter players.

I mean, how in the world do you stop either of these shots?

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Although, considering the bandwagon nature of at least some members of that stable, do their feelings count?

Joking aside, while Game One was indeed a dominate performance from the Bulls, it would be foolhardy to consider the Heat done. Surely the names “LeBron James” and the aforementioned Wade still resonate in the NBA, right? Expect Wade to be looking for some payback come Game Two. If he happens to smash on Gibson, all the better, no doubt.

As for the almighty Taj, his vicious destruction of Wade was not his only notable dunk of the night.

Part two of Gibson’s smashing evening:

Game Two isn’t until Wednesday night, but before that, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks begin their Western Conference Finals throwdown. No matter the outcome, both teams have their work cut out for them if they want to outdo Taj Gibson’s vicious display of dunking aptitude.Similar Posts:

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Maybe the Knicks organization doesn’t want to believe the news is true.

One thing there isn’t a lack of, however, is an avalanche of analysis concerning the Carmelo-to-the-Knicks trade, something the Google News timeline demonstrates quite nicely:

One area that reacted quickly, and somewhat predictably, was the prices of New York Knicks tickets. According to USAToday.com, tickets have seen a 600 percent increase, which should honestly come as no surprise. Once an interest level increases, especially in a market as large as New York City, the focus of that increased interest becomes more valuable.

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The gossip all started because Jordan, who owns the Charlotte Bobcats, practiced with the team a few times last week. At first people were saying it was just his way of making the guys more accountable during practice. But then the rumors started flying because Jordan didn’t suck out on the court. Bobcats forward Gerald Wallace said Jordan “doesn’t have this quickness, but he can score, he’s a shooter. The last thing to ever go is your jump shot and he has that.”

Of course Jordan is Wallace’s boss so what is he supposed to say? If he did come back, Jordan would be the oldest guy to do it. Besides the obvious problem to a comeback (his age) there are plenty of other reasons why it’s a bad idea. He’d probably have to sell his interest in the team for one. And start taking a few more vitamins, for another.

While I loved Jordan when he played (and defended him when he came back) I cannot imagine him running around with the guys currently on the court today. The average age is just over 26 years. Most players’ fathers are probably Jordan’s age.

Jordan is 48 and last played in league in 2003. He gave that wonky Hall of Fame speech in December 2009 where he said “One day you may look up and see me playing a game at 50. Don’t laugh. Never say never.”
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