The Official 2011-2012 NBA Thread

	Matt - Ombudsman 01/03/2012 @ 03:06:19 AM
After 3 close losses to start the season, the Timberwolves have won 2 straight and are looking good. Kevin Love is averaging 25 points and 15 rebounds a game so far, and Ricky Rubio is the real deal. If the T-Wolves can keep this up, I wouldn't be surprised if they make the playoffs.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Matt screwed with this at 01/03/2012 3:10:44 am

	Matt - Washington Bureau Chief 01/03/2012 @ 03:10:34 AM
B-Easy http://gifninja.com/animatedgifs/526213/beasley.gif		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Matt - 3875 Posts 01/25/2012 @ 01:47:30 PM
Timberwolves signed Kevin Love to a 4-year extension. http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7502324/kevin-love-minnesota-timberwolves-reach-four-year-deal-opt-sources-say The T-Wolves are 7-10 so far this year. They have been looking good at times, while also losing some games they could/should have won. They are struggling with injuries, so hopefully when they get some of the guys (Michael Beasley, J.J. Barea, Martell Webster) back they can start reeling off some wins and get to a winning record.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Scott - 6225 Posts 02/03/2012 @ 12:11:27 PM
The Bucks have won 6 of their last 8, including 2 wins over the Heat and a win over the Lakers. Impressive? I have no idea, I don't follow the NBA. Does Alonzo Mourning still play for the heat?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 02/03/2012 @ 01:43:07 PM
Since they're on almost every night because of the condensed schedule, I've watched a little bit. At this point it seems to me that the Bucks have the depth to get into the playoffs (especially because of the condensed schedule) where they'll promptly make a first round exit due to a lack of star power. Although I saw Jennings go off in the second half against Miami, but beyond him they have a bunch of role players.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Matt - Ombudsman 02/06/2012 @ 02:49:08 PM
http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/NBA_suspends_Kevin_Love_two_games_for_stomping_on_Rockets_face020612 I don't know if I want to follow a league where you can't even step on Argentinians anymore. Video of incident here: http://www.nba.com/video/games/timberwolves/2012/02/04/0021100348_hou_min_recap.nba/index.html		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - No one's gay for Moleman 02/06/2012 @ 08:50:47 PM
Obviously only K Love knows if it was intentional or not, but I just don't see how you get that it had to have been intentional, and I think you have to get there to suspend. Love is looking up the court until it's too late, and the Rocket's player's arms essentially ensure he gets stepped on.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Scott - If you aren't enough without it, you'll never be enough with it. 03/14/2012 @ 09:29:45 PM
the Bucks are 5 games under .500, which puts them among the elite teams in the league, in that they currently sit in the 8th playoff spot in the east. Does anyone else find it weird that in basketball (and hockey, for that matter), more teams make the playoffs than miss the playoffs?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Scott - Resident Tech Support 04/23/2012 @ 01:22:46 PM
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/page/5-on-5-120422/nba-happens-metta-world-peace Metta WorldPeace and the case of the flying elbow. In hockey, we were taught from a very young age that you are responsible for whatever happens with your stick. It's actually in the rules. There doesn't have to be any evidence of intention, but if by some action of yours your stick comes down and slashes someone, or hits someone high, or worse, you are guilty of a penalty. That being said, if you are going to celebrate a a dunk by throwing flying elbows like a maniac even though you know there is a guy next to you whom you are actually making contact with, you should probably be held accountable for such flagrant lack of judgement. I don't know if MWP was mad that Harden was infringing on his personal celebration circle or if he truly didn't realize he was there, or if MWP just snapped and decided to slam the first guy he saw. Whatever the scenario, Harden has a concussion because of a severe lack of control and judgement by MWP, for something that cannot in any way be defended as "part of the game".		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Sarah - 4605 Posts 04/23/2012 @ 06:41:29 PM
Just saw the video, he clearly saw the guy and went out of his way to hit him. What he said on twitter was complete bullshit and he is getting suspended. (maybe they've already handed that out?) How many times is a guy allowed to go crazy on his co-workers?		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Alex - 3619 Posts 04/23/2012 @ 10:48:52 PM
Fully intentional, at best he thought it as an elbow to the shoulder or back that turned out to be a head.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - I believe virtually everything I read. 04/24/2012 @ 12:16:53 AM
Yeah, just because he intended it doesn't mean he meant for it to be a kill shot to the head. As Scott pointed out though, it barely matters if it was intentional or not though, especially for him.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jon - infinity + 1 posts 05/03/2012 @ 12:48:13 AM
This article's not mind blowing or anything, but I found it to be an interesting look at the development of an NBA center. Plus, I found Roy Hibbert to be fairly likable when I heard him do an interview on the radio so why not link to an article about him? http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7881895/how-indiana-pacers-all-star-center-roy-hibbert-avoided-becoming-stiff		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jon - many posts 05/19/2012 @ 01:22:11 AM
If you've followed the NBA postseason at all, I think Bill Simmons' article on it is worth a read. http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7946461/the-nba-award-winning-playoffs If you haven't been following it, you should still at least read the short section on LeBron James, which is near the end (about 80% of the way down the page). It's short. Just read it.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jon messed with this at 05/19/2012 1:31:01 am

	Jon - 3375 Posts 05/23/2012 @ 01:00:15 AM
If you follow this website closely, or follow me on twitter, you realize that I love to write about things no one else cares about. So let me talk about the Heat a little bit more. Game 4 of this Pacers series was fantastic. The play of LeBron and Wade, both individually and as a duo, was seriously one of the most impressive performances I've seen on a basketball court. I heard someone refer to it as performance art and I totally agree with that assessment. I won't go through the stats because you've either already heard, or can find them anywhere. Plus, it wasn't just the numbers they put up that made it great. They were making perfect passes. There was one pass LeBron made that seemed to come out of nowhere, split the defense, and got to Wade under the hoop in the blink of an eye. There were backdoor cuts, and big rebounds, and tough D. Oh, and they dropped 70 points combined. It was just a great display of basketball skill. And it all came at a point in the series when it looked like Wade had completely lost it and they were about 6 quarters from being out of the playoffs. But I was thinking today about what else made it really great. There was a moment when the game was almost done and it was clear the Heat were going to win. At that moment, the two superstars finally relaxed for a second, dropped their game faces, and shared a smile and a hug. I was thinking about that moment today and how, to me at least, it serves as a clear response to the critics. Not all the critics necessarily, but a specific group for sure. There were people, many of them past and present players, who questioned Wade and James for teaming up together rather than each trying to lead their "own" teams separately. That sort of argument is ridiculous for so many reasons, I don't have the time or patience to cover all of them. But in any case, what happened Sunday showed that not only are their accomplishments together just as valid as they would be had they not teamed up, but that what they do together will probably prove much more rewarding than the ego-centric, alpha dog approach that people think validates a player's career. Forget about all the money and the hype and the Decision and everything else and remember that these superstar athletes happen to also be actual human beings. I'm pretty sure they even have emotions much like the rest of us. Call it sappy if you want, but it's true. And what happened Sunday was so cool because aside from the brilliant play, I felt like I was witnessing a really great moment between friends. Who doesn't love playing ball with your friends? Well how much better do you think it feels when you're mired in a huge slump, the rest of your team is injured or also slumping, and the two of you still find a way to completely take over the game, put the team on your backs, and pull out a victory? Our softball team is comprised of family and friends. We managed to put together one really good win last summer and it made the entire crappy season worth it for me. The stage the Heat are on is only about a billion times larger, but my guess is that the emotions those two felt Sunday were something similar to what I felt after that softball win last summer. Teaming up with friends to do something awesome is a cool thing to experience. It's a cool thing to watch too.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jon edited this at 05/23/2012 1:05:14 am

	Jon - Nutcan.com's kitten expert 05/23/2012 @ 01:44:33 AM
Oh yeah, there was a game tonight I was going to comment on. Impressive showing by the entire Heat team, except for the fact that some players decided to physically harm the opposition. And in pretty obvious fashion, I might add. Udonis Haslem will almost certainly be suspended for the next game, as will Dexter Pittman, most likely. Pittman rarely plays anyway, but Haslem seems to have recently reestablished himself as the most important big man not named Chris Bosh. That leaves them pretty weak down low. How funny that they're in enough need of bigs that Dexter Pittman may have gotten on the court in the upcoming game 6 had he not mauled one of the opposing players while his team was leading by 30+ points in garbage time of tonight's game. Not only will the Heat have fewer players, but they'll also have to watch out for retaliation from a Pacers team with nothing to lose. So basically Wade and James might have to dodge elbows and forearms all night.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jon messed with this 2 times, last at 05/23/2012 1:45:58 am

	Alex - Refactor Mercilessly 05/23/2012 @ 01:18:18 PM
I watched the game off and on but happened to see both of those plays. Wait, I must have seen the Pittman incident on SC. Anyway, the Pittman play was just stupid. Haslem's foul, I don't know. I don't think I'd ever teach it as a coach, yet I kind of felt it was appropriate or at least not totally inappropriate. Retaliation in baseball tends to be pretty dangerous, but Haslem's foul wasn't that dangerous. It wasn't a clothesline type attack like Pittman, or a head hunting elbow like Artest, just a little facial massage. He made his point (that the Pacers weren't going to be allowed to rough up Wade and James at will), took the flagrant 1, and the game went on. He shouldn't be suspended for that.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.

	Jeremy - 9475 Posts 06/21/2012 @ 11:01:58 PM
Driving into Ohio should be interesting tomorrow. I was rooting for the heat because I found the haters more insufferable than the supporters, and also because I have essentially no skin in the game, but am a big fan of Dan Lebatard's show, so I guess that's as good a weak tie breakers to pull for Miami sports as any. (Also, Jon welded himself to the Heat bandwagon, so there's that too.) That said, I assume the goal posts will just be moved to somewhere along the lines of, "yeah, well, they said [joked once] they were going to win 6....so they obviously failed!" That, or some nonsense about, how Lebron "needs to prove he can build a team/do it alone." Hopefully they shut up for at least a little bit.		Rate this comment Yours: Rated 0 times.
Jeremy perfected this at 06/21/2012 11:02:55 pm