THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY IN THE NBA...

by Don, With Malice...

The NBA. My favourite of all the US sports. But as with everything done on a grand scale, there's the good along with the bad, and then there's the downright ugly. Funnily enough, the bad/ugly is more often than not more enticing than the good... but let's cover some of it all.

GOOD

Boston's revival. The re-invention of Boston was a good thing for the NBA. The Celtics are one of the premier franchises in the league, and the fact that it got to a point where players were stating that they never, ever want to play there would have to weigh heavily on the NBA's collective soul. I bet that if you asked Shawn Marion now if he'd like to go to Boston, his bags'd be packed before you finished the sentence. The acquisition of Kevin Garnett & Ray Allen has not only rejuvenated a Boston team that was up to and including the 2007 draft a complete joke, but also added legitimacy to the Eastern Conference. Granted, several other teams within the East have made in-roads on the West as well...

Balance. It would seem that several of last season's powerhouses have come back down to the pack this year. Yes, the Spurs are still the Spurs... and the Suns still run... but neither seem absolutely invulnerable, yet. Even in victory against the Lakers, I didn't get the sense that San Antonio were a markedly better team than Los Angeles...

The reaction that the Knicks players have had towards Stephon Marbury. The general rank & file at New York state that they're unhappy with Starbury and his behavior? Must say, I'm a little surprised: 'moral fibre' is not a phrase I usually associate with the New York Knicks.

BAD
Stephon Marbury proves he is selfish beyond all expectations. And that's saying something. Before this latest tantrum, we all knew that Steph was an incredibly selfish person. This took the cake. Still, if you described the incidents leading up to and including this, I'd probably have guessed Marbury (now that Steve Francis is in limbo). Even with the reports of his philanthropy, I have always had the feeling that it's done as something that he can point to and tell us what a good human being he is.

Still, that said and done, it makes you realise that whatever we learnt about the leadership of the Knicks in the recent court case - there is more we don't know about Isiah, and it's all bad. The very fact that Starbury could basically blackmail the coach, and get away with it tells me that Mr Thomas isn't someone any of us would actually like. Up until the vote of no confidence in Stephon Marbury by his team-mates, I was hoping for a major implosion. Now, I'm not so keen.

How upset everyone got over Phil Jackson's 'Brokeback Mountain' comment. PUH-lease folks, get a grip. Talk about gone politically correct WAY over the top. Big deal. Penetration? So what... Something worth thinking about: when has Phabulous Phil ever done something that he hasn't considered carefully? Pretty sure that Phil's intentions were to have the media focus on the comment, rather than on other things. Looks like it worked too.

UGLY
The Bulls. Damn, but the way they've gone about from being the anointed team to being god-awful has been nothing short of astounding. The loss against the Suns takes them to new lows. The trade they knocked back to get Kobe sure has to be looking good now, but the funny thing is, come December if Paxson decides to revisit it, the Lakers might not. Let's wait and see how bad an injury Gordon has. If it's severe, the situation in Chicago is going to get worse before it gets better.

Bulls fans. I'm not sure what is worse: earlier when they were all claiming that "hey, we always start slow", or now that they're all defeatist. They're right on one thing tho': the East is better, and I'm not just talking about Boston. Teams can't afford to take a month or so off now, and still make the playoffs.

Chris Kaman. 'Nuff said. God he's playing well tho'.