1. Patty Mills leaves no doubt as to where he’s from… only an Aussie…
2. NBA Mate with their predictions for this year… bye-bye Bobcats?
3. Another solid Forward in Utah.  Some trends are worth repeating.
4. NBA Style(?)…
5. How Ray-Ray torched the Heat, from HoopSpeak.
6. You know those new wristbands everyone seems to be wearing?  We’re not passing any judgement on them, but Dejuan Blair just got a double-double (finally) while wearing one.  Just sayin.  PS Jefferson threw in the word Placebo.  Just sayin.
7. So the SuperFriends are awesome… against bad teams.  This is why TrueHoop rocks.
8. Why the Wizards are the NBA League Pass faves.
9. We’re not fans of the Nash trade rumours.  Neither are the guys at Valley of the Suns.
10. Rondo and Allen now have their flows figured out. Everyone else better be scared.
11. Huge win for CSKA Moscow.
12. We’re starting a fund to purchase Dr Naismith’s original rules of basketball.  Anyone care to chip in?
13. Is it too early to think of the 2011 NCAA March Madness?  In the meantime, reminisce about the current champs, Duke.
14. After routing MIA, Paul Pierce tweeted “It’s been a pleasure bringing my talents to South Beach.  Now on to Memphis.”  Excellent.
15. Come on Greg Oden, stay healthy…
16. Hasn’t happened since ’82… show ‘em how to do it, Kevin Love.

The LA Lakers are one hell of a team. And that’s how they won game seven against the Boston Celtics….as a TEAM. Early on, it looked grim for the Lakers. The media and every basketball expert had already handed the Lakers the 2009-2010 Championship, even before the ball went in the air for the opening tap. Only 3 teams in 64 years have managed to win a game 7 on the road in an NBA Finals. The Celtics were up against it, but it didn’t look that way early on.

With Kendrick Perkins out of the starting lineup with a season-ending knee injury, Rasheed Wallace stepped in and took it to the Lakers in the first half with a series of post moves that looked like someone had wound the clock back to 2001. Kevin Garnett looked strong, Ray Allen hit threes and Big Baby Davis stepped in and made shots. But for the Lakers, Kobe Bryant shot terribly, Andrew Bynum was playing on one leg and the bench wasn’t contributing on the offensive end. And strangely, the Lakers seemed surprised that the Celtics, after 105 games since they started their 2009-10 campaign…weren’t going to just bend over for the Lakers? Um….what Celtics team do you think you are playing, LA?

The second half started the same and with Rajon Rondo’s lay-up with 8:23 left in the third, Boston were up 49-36. But LA would string together a handful of baskets, with some clutch play by Lamar Odom, the ever-dependable Pau Gasol and even Kobe Bryant would hit only his 3r d& 4^thfield goals of the evening to bring the score to 57-53 at the end of the third. Even though they were still being outlplayed by this tough Celtics squad, the LA crowd were energised enough for the Lakers team to ride that momentum into fourth where it was a completely different game.

The Celtics were scoreless for the first 3 minutes of the fourth quarter and following three free-throws from Kobe and a three-point play from Ron Artest, the Lakers had tied the game up at 61-61 and you could feel the pounding the Lakers were taking had ceased. Ray Allen would hit a series of free throws to push it to 64-61, but then with 6:11 left in the game, Derek Fisher, clutch as always, nailed a high-arcing three-pointer to tie it back up 64-64. The LA crowd went crazy, and the Lakers would go on a 12-6 run courtesy of Bryant and Gasol. Gasol’s layup with 1:30 left gave the Lakers a 76-70 edge and a Boston timeout.

Straight out of the time-out, Rasheed Wallace hit a three. Then at the end of the shot-clock, Artest hit a three for the Lakers. 9 seconds into the next Boston possession, Ray Allen nailed a three-pointer. Two possessions later, Rasheed Wallace would collect his 6^thfoul and send Kobe Bryant to the free throw line where he’d make both and give the Lakers an 81-76 lead.

With 16 second left in the 2009-10 season, Rajon Rondo would get the offensive rebound off a Ray Allen missed three pointer, dribble out to the corner next to the Lakers bench and nail a three to make it a 2 point game, 81-79. Sacha Vujacic would then be sent to the line, and hit possibly the two biggest free throws of his career to seal the 83-79 victory.

The Lakers have won their 16^thNBA Championship of all time, and they did it as a team. Fisher, Odom, Vujacic, Brown, Odom, Gasol, Farmer, Walton, Mbenga, Bynum, Powell and Bryant. All of them at some stage over the last few weeks have stepped up and made a difference. And especially in game 7, where Kobe shot a dismal 6-24 from the field, he needed his team more than ever and they all contributed. Kobe would still finish with 23 points and an impressive 15 rebounds, but Pau Gasol (19 points & 18 rebounds), Ron Artest (20 points) and Derek Fisher (10 points) all featured heavily to help Bryant win his 5^th NBA Championship and coach Phil Jackson’s 11^th coaching championship. For Kobe, this was the toughest of any of the Championships he’s been a part of, and for coach Phil Jackson, this victory will only make his summer even more interesting as he grapples with the option to return to the Lakers.

We are all very lucky…we’ve just witnessed something that has happened now 4 times in 30 years.  And between the two most successful franchises in NBA history, no less.  Congratulations to the LA Lakers, the 2009-10 NBA CHAMPIONS!

No-one on the LA Lakers team can guard Rajon Rondo right now.  Rondo seemed to make play after play in the Celtics 92-86 game 5 win, and there was nothing the Lakers could do.  The Lakers tried Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmer, even Kobe Bryant & Ron Artest at times tried their hand…but Rondo kept making big plays and big shots.  Rondo’s tip in over three Laker defenders with 3:56 remaining would put the C’s up 87-75 while the Lakers were scoreless from the 6 to 3 minute marks in the fourth.  Rondo finished with a solid 18 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds on 9-12 shooting.  Whilst he was forced into 7 turnovers, it hardly seemed relevant considering how much pressure Rondo was putting the Lakers under.  And the Lakers DID look under pressure.  The Lakers looked overwhelmed on both ends of the court, but especially on the offensive end, where they shot a dismal 39.7% from the field.  Kobe Bryant was the shining light for the Lakers again, pouring in 38 points to go along with 5 rebounds and 4 assists.  None of Kobe’s shots were easy, either.  Ray Allen & Tony Allen made life difficult for Kobe all night, forcing Bryant into hard shots that kept finding the bottom of the net.

“I would say they were the toughest shots that I ever seen somebody hit while I was on the court,” Paul Pierce said. “He was shooting fadeaway 3s, fadeaway jumpers off the double team.”

It was an incredibly impressive display, but once again….Kobe had no help.  Pau Gasol (12 points, 12 rebounds) was the only other Laker in double figures whereas the Celtics had Rondo’s 18 points, plus great games from Pierce (27pts), Garnett (18pts) and Ray Allen (12pts).  And as a team, the C’s shot 56.3% from the field.  All of this mounted up to a 92-86 scoreline.  Only a 6 point game, but much like the Celtics game 4 victory, it looked a lot more convincing than that.  It was the first time in the series that the C’s big 3 ALL had great games and they also had good bench support.  Even Kobe putting on one of the best offensive displays in recent NBA Finals history couldn’t overcome the well-oiled machine that Boston have become over the past month.

Not to take away from the Celtics solid win, but attention LA Lakers & Boston Celtics!!!  Just play basketball, will you?  We’ve seen some great NBA Finals basketball, but it’s seemingly being scripted and at times overshadowed by aspects that the game can do with a lot less of.  From Nate Robinson taunting every player on the Laker team, to Rasheed Wallace’s tantrums after every foul call, to Kevin Garnett continually showing why he’s the biggest jerk in the NBA, to Kobe Bryant abusing his team-mates and Sacha Vujacic being…well, Sacha Vujacic. 

And let’s not get started on the flopping. Paul Pierce, Pau Gasol, Derek Fisher, Ron Artest and Ray Allen have all starred in this award winning drama to the point now where the players have lost all credibility with the referees and we are seeing some physical, ugly basketball while the refs stand by and let the game play itself out.  Some might argue that it’s all part of the big dance that is the NBA Finals.  That controversy is somewhat unavoidable to an extent.  But wouldn’t you rather see two teams battle it out on their own merits rather than headlines, technical fouls, flopping & poor sportsmanship taking the limelight?  And it’s a shame that these parts of the game are dominating the headlines & seemingly influencing the referees when there have been some great performances in the first 5 games.  Ray Allen’s NBA record 8 threes in game 2 and Kobe’s 38 point offensive explosion in game 5 are just the tip of the iceberg. 

So………… 3 Man Weave is asking you, LA Lakers and Boston Celtics.  Cut the rubbish out, quit flopping, think about what Bill Russell & Kareem Abdul Jabbar would expect from you wearing the jersey of the team that they built before you, and play the damn game. 

Game 6 is Tuesday in the USA, Wednesday 11am here in Australia.  Let’s hope they listen to us.

Carlos Boozer, Amare Stoudamire, Jeff Green and Paul Millsap……you’re probably hurting right now, aren’t you?  You were dominated by the Lakers frontline of Odom, Gasol, Bynum & Artest.  But Glen ‘Big Baby’ Davis is getting it done against the Lakers frontline that sent you to an early summer.  Not Garnett, not Allen, not Pierce.  It’ s Davis who has been the difference. 

Only a night before, this writer from 3MW was discussing how ineffective the Celtics bench had been.  That Shannon Brown, Jordan Farmer & Lamar Odom were playing great ball, and other than Davis (who had just had a great game 3), the Celtics bench were playing terrible.  We spoke of how they missed James Posey and Eddie House of the 2008 Championship team, and that the current Celtics bench have been inconsistent.  What a difference a day made…..24 little hours.

Big Baby Davis killed the Lakers in the paint with offensive rebounds, spin moves in the post, lay-ins and single-handedly changed the 2010 NBA Finals.  Davis led the charge with a unit of Davis, Nate Robinson, Rasheed Wallace, Tony Allen and Ray Allen on the floor against the Lakers starters.  The makeshift Celtics lineup put on a 10-2 run midway through the final quarter enroute to a 36 point fourth quarter as the Celtics won 96-89.  Davis muscled his way through the Lakers for 18 points on 7-10 shooting in just 22 minutes.  And whilst Nate Robinson & Rasheed Wallace’s on-court behaviour was disgusting (that had this writer asking why Davis Stern doesn’t suspend them), they both did hit big shots and with Davis, have made it a series. 

Kobe Bryant scored 12 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter, but it felt almost like a flashback to 2006.  Kobe was on his own out there in the 4th and the Lakers made alot of small mistakes that turned into Celtics points.  Even the ever-dependable Pau Gasol gave up offensive rebounds, missed defensive assignments and was man-handled by Davis for 22 minutes.

We’ll be honest though, it seemed as though Coach Doc Rivers’ complaint to the NBA front-office was very well timed, with the Celtics getting alot of the whistle in the fourth quarter, but in the end it probably wouldn’t have made the difference.  Davis was very, very impressive, Nate Robinson hit some big shots, and Paul Pierce was the shining light of the big 3, with 19 points on 7-12 shooting while the Lakers did more head-shaking & complaining than stepping up.  Game 4 had everything you would want in an NBA Finals game, and once again showed that it’s about the guys who stepped up…and Big Baby Davis stepped up.  Boozer, Amare, Green, Millsap…you squandered your opportunities in the 2010 postseason.  Glen Davis hasn’t. 

3MW followers, Guffers and lovers of the NBA….we’ve got ourselves a series!  Game 5 is in Boston on Sunday (Monday for Aussies).