This man (who admitted he's been very grouchy lately) is a cold blooded killer, and it was clear last night that he will not be denied this championship. I realize that you can't change your prediction once it's been made, so I'll stick with 6 games. But, if I could go back in time, and make a new prediction after what I saw last night, I'd say get the brooms out. This thing will be over soon.
"He's so ornery that his daughters have renamed him "Grumpy" from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." A Lakers staffer encountered him in the workout room before the game, normally a chance to exchange a few pleasantries, but took one read of Bryant's mood and didn't say a word. Those who spend a lot of time with him say they haven't seen him this focused for such a long stretch. The only time he's cracked a smile in front of the media the past few days came Thursday night when, ironically, he was discussing how solemn he's been.
Weep not for the isolated family members or fearful work colleagues. Feel for the Orlando Magic instead, who paid the price for Bryant's battle against the giant names of the past in a 100-75 Lakers victory in the opening game."
This long layover between the conference finals and the finals has really brought me back down to Earth. If I had written this preview on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, or even Wednesday, I'd be picking the Magic. Playoff excitement will do that to you sometimes. You get swept up in one team's momentum, and it causes you to lose sight of reality, and you find yourself clinging to shreds of hope that symbolize what would make this postseason the most memorable. For me, last year, this phenomenon led to me trying to convince everyone that the New Orleans Hornets were going to make a run all the way to the NBA finals. It's fun to root for these new and exciting teams. It's like rooting for Santa Clause. This year, it seems to have manifested itself in my misplaced "belief" that the Magic had all the right kind of mojo going on right now to beat the Lakers, therefore making the Celtics look great for having taken them to 7 games in round 2. Luckily, this waiting period has calmed me, and I am now bringing you a very grounded and realistic perspective. My emotions have settled and I am thinking more clearly. That 5-day handgun waiting period law really does make a lot of sense.
Before I begin to make my prediction, I'd like to state that unlike the people at Nike and those fucks at the league office, I am thrilled that we didn't end up with a Kobe LeBron finals, because I believe the Lakers are superior to the Cavs in every way, and it would have been one of the most anti-climactic moments in sports history.
Now, you can certainly make a compelling case for the Magic:
I ripped into Dwight Howard earlier in this postseason for still needing to develop effective post moves. However, as I have watched him more and more during these playoffs (I basically never watch the Magic during the regular season if they are not playing the Celtics), I have finally arrived at an appreciation for what a dominant force he actually is. That I always thought him overrated was just a product of me not realizing exactly how athletic he was. His ability to run the court is tremendous for a big man, and he is a very dangerous player when he moves his defender out of the paint and they run pick and rolls with him. In transition, his ability to get down the court quickly and establish position leads to a lot of easy buckets and trips to the free throw line.
Rashard Lewis is a matchup nightmare for anybody. It's hard to imagine Pau Gasol defending him out on the perimeter. He and Hedo turkoglu, with their size and shooting range, give any defenders nightmares. Rafer Alston's quickness could give Derek Fisher trouble. Mikael Pietrus and Courtney Lee have been playing at an incredibly high level throughout the postseason. Marcin Gortat has done a great job of spelling Dwight.
The play of the Magic has improved steadily throughout these playoffs, and it's hard to imagine them playing at a higher level than they are right now. Were it not for two incredibly heroic LeBron James performances, they would have swept the Cavs. They've played the Lakers twice this season, and won both games.
It all seemed to make sense around this time yesterday. You can't argue with that type of momentum.
However, as I slept last night I started envisioning how this thing will actually go, and I woke up this morning feeling very centered and having no doubt in my mind that the Lakers will win this series. Here's why:
- Yes, the Magic are 2-0 against the Lakers this season. However, Jameer Nelson dominated in both of those games, and they were still very very close. Plus, I would imagine that these matchups carried much more urgency for the Magic than they did for LA.
- LeBron James absolutely tore the Magic apart. But, nobody was there to help him. I expect Kobe to do the same thing as LeBron, but there will be some key differences: A) Kobe's coach will be sure to get him the ball in favorable scoring positions B) Kobe has a more polished game, and can score down low with his back to the hoop C) Unlike LeBron, Kobe has good teammates and getting them involved makes the team play better. The statistical impact may not be as great as what we saw from LeBron, but the overall impact (I expect) will have a much more profound effect on the series.
- Do you feel like the Lakers were ever really tested in this postseason? They certainly let their guard down against a Yaoless, Tmacless, pesky Houston team. But, there was no sense of panic, no real sense of worry. That was the most un-game-7-like game 7 I've ever seen. There was never any doubt, and they really don't even seem labored at this point. Just taking care of business.
- We've all spent so much time this season talking about how difficult it is to defend Rashard Lewis (well, at least I know Celtics fans have ever since KG went down). However, in this case, it is also very fair to ask how Rashard Lewis will defend Pau Gasol, who (kill me please) is an increbly saavy and versatile scorer inside (I hate him so much). He will give Lewis fits, and he will also most likely draw some key fouls against both Lewis and Dwight.
- You can't lose sight of Lamar Odom in the Rashard Lewis discussion. The best way to defend a 6'10 tweener with range is with another 6'10 tweener with range. With the exception of KG, who could be better suited to defend Rashard Lewis than Lamar Odom?
- DJ Mbenga is 7 feet tall and can eat up fouls against Dwight.
- Trevor Ariza is a very athletic ballhawk, and I think he will do a good job defending Hedo Turkoglu (to whom he only gives up 2 inches).
- Dwight and Kobe will both spend a great deal of time at the free throw line in this series. Big advantage: Lakers. The Cavs shot free throws horribly last round. Dwight, obviously, is shaky at the line (yes, I know he shot 70% last round....call me when he does it over the course of a season).
The Prediction: Lakers in 6. I've been preparing for this since KG went down in February.
You can't crack under the pressure if you want to beat the Lakers. You need to execute for 48 full minutes. Kobe Bryant has been doing this, under this type of spotlight, for almost 15 years. If you allow him to, and sometimes even if you don't, he will steal your dreams away from you in the fourth quarter. The Nuggets had a clear blueprint for what they needed to do to beat this team and, for the most part, they did it. They seemed able to score at will in the paint (although they didn't go in there enough late in the game), they were more physical, Carmelo Anthony got them off to a fast start, and Chauncey Billups was hitting big shots. But, in the end, the pressure got to them, and they cracked. The Lakers will frustrate you, as they did to Kenyon Martin, who committed a costly foul on Kobe Bryant down the stretch. The Lakers will make you pay for any momentary lapse in effort or focus, as was the case when Trevor Ariza picked off Anthony Carters weak-ass attempt to inbound the ball to Chauncey Billups with under a minute left. The guy had flat out looked horrible against Carmelo in the first quarter, but, in crunch time, his confidence and focus were unwavering. That is the mark of a championship team.
The Orlando Magic grew up right before our eyes in the second round. They began as a team that could not hold a lead (game 1), got psyched out and let their frustration get the better of them (game 2), and who could not put away games in which they had the lead in the fourth quarter (games 4 and 5). However, by the time game 6 rolled around, they had been forged into a contender. Their lessons learned against the Celtics will no doubt help them in round 3. Hopefully, we can see Denver go through that same process. It should be easier, seeing as how they have a veteran who knows what it takes at the point guard spot.
After the game, George Karl said "The next 48 hours are going to be difficult". Denver needs to stay positive and focused on what it needs to change in game 2. They controlled this game most of the way, so their gameplan and their intensity do not need much tweaking. They need to watch a lot of film, and see where exactly this thing went wrong. They can still win this series, but it's all about what they are able to take away from game 1. If they let the frustration of this loss get to them, then they are as good as dead. Once Kobe smells blood in the water, you're done for.
Sometimes I hate the East Coast. I don't mean that in the sense that there is some East Coast conspiracy against sports west of the Mississippi. Nor is this a shot at the weather. Rather it's just a lot harder to follow sports out here. For example right now I'm exhausted after staying up for Rockets/Lakers. However, at least I was rewarded. To review:
- Kobe Bryant was sublime, dropping 40 on Houston. He hit some incredibly well defended shots, threw the ball of the backboard to himself at one point and lit the fuse that got Ron Artest ejected. Count me in the long list of people that can't stand Kobe but respect his game. I hate the MJ comparison as much as the next guy but last night Kobe channeled the whole "I'm going to dominate because you said this guy or guys could stop me."
- Speaking of Artest. I've been fascinated with him since his days at St. John's. Based on interviews I've seen and read I'd argue that he's far more complex than people realize. However, when Artest loses it on the court it's downright frightening. At one point he stormed towards Kobe and later made a throat slashing gesture. Throughout the tirade he appeared to be in kill mode. To be fair who wouldn't be upset after earning an offensive foul while the master of smug (Kobe) got a way with an elbow in the vicinity of the throat? And it pains me to give Kobe credit but he played it perfectly. There's nothing worse than a guy refusing to engage in trash talk. That's exactly what Kobe did as he walked away with his arms up and a "This guy is crazy" look on his face. The whole incident made me wish it was a Rucker Park game. Alas. - This hasn't come up before but I'm a big fan of the Argentinians. Granted Derek Fisher should not be able to knock down Luis Scola under any circumstances. But I'm still a big Scola fan. He's one of those international players that Tommy Heinsohn begrudgingly respects. On top of that Scola just looks like a great teammate. However, if he had lost his cool, and at one point I thought it could happen, and gone after Sasha Vujacic NBA fans everywhere would have rejoiced. How the Spurs let Scola go continues to baffle me.
- In a night full of incidents that will definitely keep Stu Jackson busy - Eddie House's elbow (was it inadvertant?), Rafer Alston's slap, Kobe's elbow and Artest's tirade - Fisher's forearm/elbow was by far the most premeditated and malicious of the bunch.
- There are still times where the game is too fast for Yao Ming. And he did get in foul trouble last night. However, Rockets fans must be in the "He's all growns up" stage right now. It's been fascinating to watch the growth in Yao's game and demeanor. Even his fire from the bench was impressive.
I'll close with a few random thoughts on the Celtics:
- It's not out of the realm of possibility that Eddie House could have signed with another team before 2008, bounced around the league a few more years and then left the Association before anyone got to see the best he had to offer. Thankfully that didn't happen. Last night he was on fire - 31 points, 11-14 from the field, 4-4 from deep, 5-6 from the line, and 10 times as many points as the Truth. House is definitely annoying other players and their fans, which only means he's bringing something to the table.
- Mark it down. Anthony Johnson will be involved in some sort of stand off/double technical/flagrant foul situation before this series is over.
- NBA players know the repercussions for any sort of non-basketball related aggression on the court. And yet they continue to lose their cool. It's a testament to how intense these games get.
I'll be honest, I don't have much for you today. I spent this morning procuring myself a ticket for tonight's game, and at this point I'm really a little too anxious to talk. It's more than I ever imagined myself spending to go to a sporting event, but the magnitude of this sporting event is also greater than any event that I ever realistically imagined attending. Hopefully that makes sense.
The hole on the floor that Kendrick Perkins usually occupies was glaringly obvious on Sunday night. Perk is a huge part of this team, both literally and figuratively. All around Boston, people seem to either love him or hate him. Obviously, it frustrates me when he has to sit down with two fouls and there are still ten minutes left in the first quarter. But, regardless of how anybody feels about Perk, they can't deny that he is a great defender and that the Lakers get to the rim when he's not playing. I've scoured the Internet like crazy over the past couple of days, and at this point it seems like nobody knows for sure whether or not Perk will suit up tonight. However, I'm not overly optimistic about his chances.
Even without Perk, I'm confident about tonight. I'm not going to do the broken record thing here, so you can look at yesterday's Foil in the Oven for reasons why. But, look, this team has been totally rejuvenated every time that they have returned home in these playoffs. What killed them more than anything in LA was getting off to slow starts. That doesn't happen in Boston. They will be amped. You can see in Paul Pierce's eyes how much he wants this. Kevin Garnett is going to be seeking redemption after his performance Sunday night, and he more than anybody else on this team seems to up his game for the Garden faithful. I know that Ray Allen has been with his son in the hospital, but all reports are that he will be ready to play. Certainly, I'm concerned about Allen's family. When you play for UCONN and the Celtics, we consider you part of our family. But, all reports are that his son is fine, and I don't expect this to phase Ray. Ray is a veteran, and one of his strengths is that unlike his two running mates, he doesn't ever seem to let his emotions take over. He's much more calculating than that. The Game 7 performances that this team has turned in have been outstanding thus far during this post-season. They always seem to come out with a great sense of urgency, and they flat-out out work their opponents. This is how things were with Atlanta and Cleveland. I expect tonight to be like a game 7. The Celtics are home after what must have seemed like forever on the West Coast, and they all know how dangerous it would be to give the Lakers hope. Right now, the Lakers are still a long shot. But, if they win tonight, suddenly they're right there and they'd have the momentum. The Celtics and their fans will treat this like a game 7. I think I just shat my pants even though I'm not wearing any.
More to come tomorrow, you all know what they need to do. They know what they need to do. They will do it. Tonight's the night.
Our t-shirt sales have been increasing lately and I want to thank all of you who have bought them. I even heard rumors about a roomofzen Lion Flag T being spotted at the Tom Petty show on Saturday evening. Thanks for buying. If you haven't been to the store lately, check it out (above). We've added a bunch of new designs and remember that half of the proceeds are going to be given to the American Cancer Society (we're going to give it every 6 months, the money automatically goes into a paypal account that we don't touch).
We've hired a very attractive male model to show off the black shark t for you. As you can see, this is perfect shirt to wear out on the weekends.
This shirt is rugged, and pairs well with beer.
One final note on the shirts, if you ordered a Paul Pierce t-shirt and it had a misprint on the back (saying "ths" instead of "this") please email us at oracle@roomofzen.com and we'll replace your shirt. We've had two people with a misprinted shirt. One of the people got three, two were fine and one had the misprint. I have no idea how this happened, and it really doesn't make sense that three would be pressed for the order, 2 fine and 1 bad. But, we have fixed the issue, and we are eager to replace your product. Also, we have invoices for the orders, so we know who ordered the Paul Pierce shirts. So, please don't lie to us and pretend that you did. That really goes against the whole spirit of this site.
Read Ted's post below on Tiger's amazing performance at the US Open. I am an extremely causal golf fan. I hate playing, and I really just watch to see Tiger. Now, the fact that I was all jacked up for the Celts on Sunday night may have played a role in this, but seeing Woods sink that putt on Sunday night was far and away the most exciting moment of my golf-watching career. It was incredible. I want to watch the next major now, and I don't even know when it is.
Then, I'm watching PTI last night, and they get fan mail from somebody suggesting that Tiger shouldn't throw his clubs down after he hits a bad shot and that he shouldn't have yelled "fuck yeah!" and pump his fists. The reader, who is obviously a Tiger-hater said that Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus never would have behaved in such a deplorable manner. Wilbon ate the e-mail alive and I loved it. Of course you never saw Palmer and Nicklaus doing that shit. They didn't have HD cameras zoomed in on them for the entire goddamn tournament! I find it hard to believe that they never swore on camera or showed their frustration.
And, furthermore, that passion on Sunday was exactly was roped me in. Golf has always lacked that for me. Tiger pumping his fists, showing genuine emotion, swearing, this is what sports is all about. Don't we want these guys to be intense? Don't we want them to show emotion? How are we to be expected to be passionate about the sport if they are not? I've heard all of this stuff about it being a gentleman's game, but that's bullshit. I've seen John Daly. I remember the shit that Fuzzy Zoeller said after Tiger won the master's back when I was in seventh grade I think. What these people, and that fan who wrote the e-mail, want is for golf to remain a sport of the elitist country-club men. That's fine for them, but it doesn't make it exciting to watch. I love the NFL, the NBA, and college basketball so much because they are exciting. Sunday was the first time I ever felt that same excitement with golf. I hope Tiger shows more emotion in the future. Trust me, it will help his sport.
Tiger, if you're out there man, we'll send you a roomofzen shirt to wear in the next tournament. Then you can really let loose.
And, while we're on the topic of fans being too old-fashioned, I think it's time for baseball fans to loosen up as well. As a Red Sox fan, there have been no better players to watch in my opinion than Pedro Martinez and Manny Ramirez. These are guys that just act like themselves. They have personality. We need more of that. Everybody gets bent out of shape when Joba Chamberlain gets fired up after a strike out. He should! I would be! When Manny hits a home run, why not raise your arms and do a little showboating. These guys are all millionaires. As Babcock said so well back in November, "if you're getting paid millions of dollars to play a sport then you have the right to get your ass kicked on national television." Furthermore, you have the right to be made a spectacle of by the person doing it. Some more emotion please. Not just in golf, also in baseball.
Another late night writing a paper last night meant listening to more old episodes of the Basketball Jones podcasts. I've got two to highlight here:
First, this one , from before the season, which ponders how far the Celtics can go with Garnett, Allen, and Pierce. It's nice to hear some smart commentary instead of the bullshit that ESPN churns out. These guys say, very logically, that a team with those three players is bound to go very far. And, my favorite part about it is that JE Skeets makes the point that I made over and over again. OBVIOUSLY any team that has injuries is going to stumble! I couldn't stand people before the season talking about how potential injuries might be a downfall for this team. Anybody that paid attention to Ray Allen's ankle surgery knows that he was only having bone spurs removed. Structurally, his ankles were fine. In fact, as he said, it was like getting two new ones. There was no indication that he would have chronic ankle problems. Is it really neccesary to devote air time during the summer to whether or not a team will suffer injuries once the season starts? I hate ESPN. And yet, I watch, everyday. Goddammit.
Second, this one , which really epitomizes why I like to listen to these podcasts. It's hilarious (great Vince Carter line at the start) and they discuss whether you'd rather have Chris Paul or Deron Williams at point. Those types of conversations are really why we all watch sports in the first place. Great stuff.
Also, Chris Sheridan had Paul and Williams as on the bubble for Team USA in the next olympics. As you all know, I'm against pros in the olympics, but if we're going to send them over and really go for the gold, why not send both of these guys and leave Jason Kidd at home. These two guys are undeniably better (did you see that Mavs/Hornets series?) and they are the perfect one-two punch. If Paul is getting bodied too much by bigger guards, throw Williams out there. If Williams needs a rest, throw Paul out there. I know Jason Kidd is the captain and whatever, but either we're selling out of the olympic spirit for a gold medal or we're not. The fact that we send NBA players means we are, so let's make the right decision. Just tell Jason Kidd that I want him to be punished for being part of the worst goddamn trade in league history. GOD WHY DOES THAT STILL BOTHER ME! I HATE YOU MARK CUBAN! I DON'T EVEN LIKE THE MAVS! I NEVER HAVE! WHY DOES IT BOTHER ME! IT WAS JUST SO HORRIBLE! 2 FIRST ROUND PICKS AND DEVIN HARRIS! YOU DUMB MOTHERFUCKER!
Holy shit. That was the greatest playoff win I have ever seen, by any team. 2002 was great, but it doesn't hold a candle to the significance of what the Celtics did last night. Maybe now people in the national media will finally concede what we've been saying on this site ever since the playoffs began. THE CELTICS ARE BETTER THAN THE LAKERS. When the Celtics are playing well, the Lakers can't touch them. If last night's historic come-from-behind win didn't convince you of this, then nothing will.
I don't want to dismiss the poor play from the first half. This was a pivotal game, and this team should have come out aggressive from the opening tip. Instead, they came out with the same lack of intensity that we saw in game 3. They never should have found themselves in that hole in the first place. But, the way they played in that second half was incredible. We've seen impressive defensive stretches from this team in the past, but I can't ever remember a game like that. Remember, the Lakers are the NBA's number one offense. To see the Celtics playing so poorly in the first quarter was disappointing. Seeing them dig deep and find a way to come back on the road is something that I'll never forget, and I imagine that last night's victory will be remembered as the pinnacle of a season that has been marked by one great moment after another.
In his post-game press conference, Doc Rivers was asked by a Los Angeles Sentinel Reporter about the general belief that the Celtics still have not played at their best during this series. He agreed, and said that he told his team that after the game. It's true, the Celtics are yet to play well for all four quarters of a game. And still, they lead 3-1. At this point, it's not a matter of whether or not they will win this series, it's a question of when. And, I guess that in a lot of ways that depends on the Lakers and how they respond to this soul-crushing defeat. Apparently, Kobe plans on drinking heavily:
Some thoughts on the game:
Great move by Doc to stick with Eddie House for most of the second half in order to space out the Lakers defense and open up more scoring lanes. We've been calling for Eddie to be unleashed, and last night was just what we had in mind. It will be interesting to see how the point guard situation plays out on Sunday. I'm sure Rondo will see more minutes. But, as the announcers stressed time and time again, Rondo can't pass up those open shots. Even if he's not making them, continuing to shoot them will attract more defensive attention.
Paul Pierce did not look good during that first half. And yet, it was Pierce who asked Doc Rivers if he could guard Kobe Bryant during the second half. Paul has been impressive on defense all year long, and there are a number of games that stick out to me. But, he was incredible last night in the second half. He didn't bite on any of Bryant's fakes. He didn't allow Bryant to get him off balance. This was the best player in the world that he was defending, and he had him locked down.
Also a great move by Doc to play James Posey for so many minutes down the stretch. By having all shooters in the game, he opened up a lot of one-on-one opportunities for the Celtics to exploit. An example of this was Ray's fleecing of Sasha Vujacic at the end. Doc was really reacting well to what the Lakers were doing, which is crazy for him.
Sasha Vujacic practicing for his audition to become the next Slovenian Idol
I've heard the question of "if the series were to end right now, who would be your MVP?" thrown around a lot over the past couple of days. There seems to be a consensus that Paul Pierce would be the front runner if the Celtics win the series. Look, Pierce is my favorite player, and nothing would make me happier. But, I'd like to throw Ray Allen out there right now as a possibility. Ray has had a great series, and he is the only one of the big three that has played consistently well throughout all four games (both Pierce and Garnett sucked on Tuesday, and Ray was a big reason why the Celtics were still in it until the end). Furthermore, Ray has done a great job on Kobe Bryant, and he played at a high level for all 48 minutes of last night's game.
Speaking of Ray, how about that leg-scissor that Sasha put on him. I've tried to find it on youtube but no luck. Instead, why don't we all just watch this clip of Ray abusing Vujacic on one of the game's final possessions.
Last night was one of those nights when you try to think of a play of the game, and you can't decide because there were so many huge shots. I'm going to go with the three-pointer that James Posey hit to bring the Celtics within one. I believe the score was 81-77 before he hit it. Please feel free to disagree with me below in our comments section. Obviously I'm talking about offensive plays. Otherwise, every fucking defensive possession in the second half could be considered the play of the game.
For some reason, the There Can Only Be One commercial last night towards the end of the game had a very powerful effect on me. Seeing those guys' entire faces while they read the lines was like seeing Darth Vader without his mask for the first time in Return of the Jedi.
Last night was incredible, and now the ultimate goal is within reach. As I've said, the Celtics are the better team. They just need to play hard and come out more aggressive on Sunday, and banner #17 will take care of itself.
People tend to write off Hole without ever giving them a shot. At least, that’s the way it was back in the 90s. Courtney Love became this sort of sad and tragic figure, and people never seemed to take her seriously as a musician because of it. I will certainly concede that she has seemed to be a bit outlandish at times, but I think that we can all agree that we can’t really say for sure how we would act if our spouse had blown their head off and we then had to deal with intense media scrutiny. Not really taking a stance either way here. Just saying.
Anyways, I can’t say that I celebrate the entire Hole catalog. In fact, I have no interest in most of it. In particular, I think that Celebrity Skin sucks. It’s not that I don’t think there was talent there, I just don’t think talent always produces results (sort of like the Nuggets I guess). But, like many bands do, Hole did manage to catch lightning in a bottle in 1994, and produced one of my favorite 90’s rock albums, Live Through This.
Here’s what David Fricke of Rolling Stone said in his 1994 review of Live Through This: "Forget, just for a moment, everything you've heard about Courtney Love for the past three years – the tales, apocryphal and otherwise, of substance misadventure; her, uh, lively marriage to Nirvana's Kurt Cobain and checkered passage into motherhood; the endless Yoko Ono comparisons and dragon-bitch disses. Then go straight to the lusty, vengeful, lung-busting "Fuck y-o-u-u-u-u!" that blows the roof off "I Think That I Would Die" three-quarters of the way through Live Through This. Even if you have serious reservations about punk-rock brats living on major-label largesse or believe profanity is the last refuge of the inarticulate, the sheer force of Love's corrosive, lunatic wail – not to mention the guitar-drum wrath unleashed in its wake – is impressive stuff, a scorched-earth blast of righteous indignation as feral and convincing as anything in Johnny Rotten's bark-and-spittle repertoire."
Live Through This was one of the best rock albums of the 90s. I’ll stand by that statement until I die. This album epitomizes the grunge movement of the early 90s, and I think it stands up to anything that was put out by other grunge bands of that era (Nirvana included). If you own it, you know what I mean. If you don’t, and you loved the grunge rock of the early 90s, I guarantee that you can find it for cheap somewhere on the Internet and you won’t be disappointed. Plus, it’s only about 38 minutes long, so it won’t take long for you to appreciate it.
Now, there have always been rumors circulating about as to the level of involvement that Love’s husband, Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain, had on the album (which was released only four days after he was found dead). There are even some that claim he wrote the entire album. However, these rumors seem to be built more on a lack of appreciation for Love’s musical abilities than any actual facts. Here’s what I’ll say: I’m sure the two of them bounced ideas off each other all of the time. That’s what musicians do. But, I find it hard to believe that he wrote the album. First, neither of them seem like the types that are driven to compromise their artistic integrity for money. For both of these individuals, their music seemed to serve as more of an emotional release than a product designed for financial gain. Second, look at these videos. These performances seem too genuine for these songs to be coming from someone else. I was discussing this with this dude last Friday night while drinking heavily. The person was a musician my age that makes their money playing in local bars and clubs. His answer to my question was simply “I think that you tend to be much more creative when you are around creative people.” I felt pretty content with that answer.
This has been an incredible year in sports for me. I never thought I would be accused of being a bandwagon hopper for being a Red Sox, Giants, and Celtics fan (note: I'm omitting the UCONN Huskies here because they have been strong for my whole life and were not strong this year). And yet, here I am, a fan of the World Series champs, the Super Bowl champs, and in the midst of watching my favorite NBA team play for an NBA title. The Giants Super Bowl victory gave me a feeling like none I have ever experienced because it was so unexpected. It took five full days for me to even write about it on this site because I was so awed.
Not a day has gone by since the Super Bowl that I have not woken up and thought about the Giants Super Bowl. Really. Some days my alarm has gone off and I say in my head "oh fuck it's early....The Giants won the Super Bowl" and I spring out of bed. Some days it's "Jesus I bet it's cold as shit outside. I would cut off a finger if I could just stay in bed right now.....Holy shit, the Giants won the Super Bowl" and then I work my way up to the sitting position. Some days it's "Holy shit my head hurts. I'm a fucking idiot. Ah, the Giants" and I somehow find myself at work several hours later, apparently having gone through my normal routine. This is really how it's gone. And, it doesn't end there. Watching this video to start my day has been my key to success for several months now. Every day I watch it, and then hit the ground running, ready to kick ass all day:
That video still gives me goosebumps four and a half months later, and I expect that it always will. But, eventually, I would have to shift my focus away from basking in the glory of 07-08 to focusing on the challenges that lie ahead in 08-09. I was prepared for this. I just didn't think that it would happen so soon.
Many challenges lay ahead of the Giants, some expected and some unexpected, as they took the field yesterday at their mandatory mini-camp. For the first time in 15 years, Michael Strahan is not in the plans for this season. I was ready for that. Jeremy Shockey attended but did not participate. Hell, this was more than I expected, but I still have no idea how that situation will play out. What caught me off guard, and what seems to have caught the media in general off guard, was the fact that Plaxico Burress refused to practice because he wants a new contract. I don't know why but this popped the Super Bowl fantasy bubble that I had been living in for nearly five months now. Super Bowl 42 is a great memory, but I've now put it behind me, and I'm ready to focus all of my attention on the season at hand.
I've been tossing around this Shockey situation for months now, and I've gone back and forth. The guy is a great player, no doubt about it. His receiving skills are well-documented, and he is an exceptional blocker. In fact, I think it is his run-blocking that is most valuable to this Giants team. On the field, there is no question that the Giants are much better with Shockey than without him. He's an impact player. Anyone who tells you otherwise is an asshole. But, they can't keep him on if he continues to act the way that he has been for the past few months. It could potentially ruin the team. The guy is a constant distraction as it is. Him being unhappy with the organization will only exacerbate his distracting effect.
The 06-07 Giants were like a circus by the end. There were so many distractions and bits of drama in the media. It was horrible. It left such a bad taste in my mouth. I thought they were crazy for extending Tom Coughlin another year after that, but I'll give him credit for turning the team atmosphere around last season. This team can't fall back into their old form. If dealing Shockey is what it takes, then that's what they need to do. I hate to say it, because he's such a good player, but I just don't see any other way for this to resolve itself. Other than a trade, he hasn't indicated that he wants anything. There don't seem to be any contract issues. What options do the Giants have?
I'm not worried about the Plax situation. The Giants will pay him, and this is certainly not the kind of thing that would affect the team's chemistry. Usually, I get bummed out whenever I read about an NFL player holding out for a new contract. I never like being reminded that this is all about money at the end of the day. But, in this case, I think Plax is justified. What he did for the organization last season was incredible. He played hurt for almost the entire season. He caught 70 balls. He had over 1,000 receiving yards. His performance in the NFC championship game against Green Bay will go down as one of the greatest individual performances in the history of the franchise. And, in case you've forgotten, he also caught the winning touchdown in the Super Bowl.
There are three years left on Burress' contract, and his average salary during those three years will be 3.5 million. Certainly, he's underpaid for his abilities. His agent is also Drew Rosenhaus, the same slimy, crooked motherfucker that represents TO. So, this isn't something that is just going to go away. And, like I said, I don't have a problem with this. Burress very well may have shortened his career by playing hurt this season. And, because there are no guaranteed contracts in the NFL, he needs to make sure he gets his money now before it is too late. And, before you start judging Plax and declaring that he should honor his contract, ask yourself whether or not you hold the players and the organization to a double standard. Many times, people criticize players for not wanting to play out their contract and then don't seem upset when an organization cuts a guy that they don't feel is earning their money. The bottom line is that the man needs a new contract. The Giants need to get this done before training camp.
I couldn't focus on anything yesterday. The anticipation for Game 4 has been building, and I expect to be at a pretty steady rage by tonight. Pierce and KG will be rested and they will play better. Rondo's injury scares me, but it sounds like he's playing. It's a sprained ankle, which guys play on all the time obviously, but I just worry about whether or not he'll be able to get any penetration. I read several sources that said Doc may consider playing Tony Allen at the point, which could be disastrous. In my mind, you play Rondo or House. If that's not working, then give the ball to Ray or Pierce and have them bring it up. There's no need for Cassell or Tony Allen to be on the court. Who knows. It's the Finals. No excuses. If the Celtics are aggressive and play a physical game, I'm confident that they take tonight. Just pound the shit out of them.
The picture below is the new addition to my desk. Hopefully it can inspire me to write some more creative things. The man in Mexico that sold it to me said it was made out of shells, but who the hell knows if that's true or if I even understood him correctly.
Before I get into this Foil in the Oven, I need to break this news. Last week, while the Lakers were staying at the Four Seasons in Boston, a Lakers rep called down to the desk saying that they needed someone brought in to give Kobe Bryant a pedicure. I'm not naming any names here, but this is a very reliable tip. You heard it here first.
The Celtics almost stole one last night. They didn't play well enough to win in any phase of the game. As dynamic as this offense can look when they are in sync and playing an aggressive style, they have at times throughout this post-season looked completely disjointed and confused. Now, give the Lakers credit for doing a much better job of holding down the interior on defense, but it was so frustrating to watch this Boston offense. The passes were rushed and sloppy. The over-passing reared its ugly head again. The team seemed content to shoot jumpers for the entire first half. It all reminded me of Game Four against Detroit. At one point, when the Celtics were running around, heaving arcing passes to one another and passing over their heads backwards to the man behind them, I screamed in a fit of rage "what is this? The Traveling Circus?!" I don't really know what this meant, but I'm sticking with it.
Defensively, the Celtics didn't bring the level of energy that they did in the first two games, which is the level at which they need to play against this offense. In fact, the fourth quarter was the first time I really felt like they played defense with any urgency. Now, certainly they knew that they were going to be at a disadvantage with the officials, and that may have affected their play, but by not being physical they were abandoning the biggest edge that they have in this series. Maybe they were feeling fatigued from the first two games and the flight. I don't know. But, they weren't sharp. It made me sick to see Gasol beat us on the offensive glass twice in one minute (once with the tip in with about 5 left, and then the offensive rebound and layup), and then run back pounding his chest like some kind of rowdy bearded woman that has had too much to drink. Gasol and Odom are soft, and they should never get those kind of second chances. Perk should have had Gasol smothered on those two boards. It shouldn't have even been an issue. That was lack of intensity, nothing more. This was a low point for me, even though I was laughing
I don't want to second guess Doc here, because we do enough of that already on this site. But, I'd really like to know what happened on the possession at the end that ended with a Vujacic three. I understand trapping Bryant, but not double teaming him in the middle of the floor at half court. And, even if you are going to do it out there, I don't think you do it with Garnett. And, even if you are going to do it out there and you are going to do it with Garnett, I don't think that you leave the Lakers best three point shooter wide open. I'm assuming there was a miscommunication somewhere. How about the Kobe three pointer from the top of the arc? He stood there like it was a foul shot before letting it go. Not a single Celtic came out to contest it. This was such a frustrating goddamn game.
Don't even get me started on Pierce and Garnett, who were a combined 8-35 from the field. This was the worst passing game I can remember Pierce having in a long time. Both of these guys were far too content to shoot outside jumpers at the start of the game. I don't have a problem with them shooting like that if they are falling, but they shot horribly in the first quarter (neither had a field goal), and at some point they needed to start attacking. When this team settles for jumpers, they are not good. We've talked about this so many times.
Even dunks were low percentage shots for KG last night.
SOME MORE THOUGHTS FROM THE GAME:
- I can see why the Lakers took Kobe off of Ray Allen early in the game, and Ray made them pay. He's the only reason that the Celtics stayed in the game. Granted, Kobe was free to expend much more energy on the offensive end. But, I don't think anybody else on the Lakers matches up well with Ray.
- Did anybody else feel a little weird when they clearly had that feel-good moment with Kobe talking about his family at halftime? We've seen 8,000 specials on him as an intense on-court guy and teammate. That whole thing was obviously designed so that he could talk about his family and they could push the good guy Kobe agenda. I couldn't help but feel like the overall message was "don't worry, me and my wife are fine. She hasn't been ashamed about showing her face in public for a while now." I don't really think that Kobe's a bad guy. But, still, I thought it was weird how they stuck that in there.
- Leon Powe only played 6 minutes last night. He wasn't great, but I would have liked to see more of him. He always brings energy and intensity onto the floor, and it seems like he really gives Lamar Odom problems.
- Eddie House played great. I don't want to see Sam Cassell again. It was nice to remember how well our second unit used to play in the regular season with Eddie at the helm. 1) He doesn't look to shoot first, which means that the Celtics get better scoring chances 2) He works harder on the defensive end 3) They can't lose track of him on defense because he will make you pay from the outside. His inconsistent minutes have affected his shooting touch, so he will only get better if Doc sticks with him.
- Mark Jackson said that Jordan Farmar is a starting point guard in this league.
- I'm sure this was more exaggerated pronounced yesterday because of everything that happened with Donaghy, but why won't they show us replays of questionable fouls? The offensive foul on Ray Allen? The traveling call on KG? I want to see these replays.
- Speaking of Donaghy, I think this guy is just trying to get his sentence reduced. There's no way for us to ever know if those two series were fixed, but I absolutely don't believe that the NBA office has ever fixed a series. Furthermore, Donghy said that referees were told to try not to eject stars in the playoffs. Doesn't that go without saying. Don't you expect the league to say that? In a way, that's the league MAKING SURE that the referees don't decide games. Look, NBA officiating is very subjective. It always will be. And, there will always be certain players that have issues with certain referees. That doesn't mean the game is fixed. I'm more concerned with bad officiating than I am with crooked officiating.
Look, I'll say the same thing I've said time and time again throughout these playoffs. The Celtics played pitifully. They only shot 34.9% from the field. They shot less than 70% from the line. They weren't aggressive on either end of the floor. They gave up 36 points and 7 boards to Kobe Bryant. Paul Pierce was in heavy foul trouble for the whole night. They weren't physical at any point in the game. They only out rebounded the Lakers, a horrible rebounding team, by one (45-44). That they were only down three with two when Vujacic hit that three (with 1:53 left) is a miracle, and speaks to the fact that the Lakers also did not play well. But, Kobe did play well. Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett did not. Am I still confident? Absolutely.
I'm sorry there aren't many pictures. Blogger has been very tempermental today. I didn't even think I was going to be able to get this thing posted.
I'll be honest; I wanted the Celtics to stick it to Phil Jackson in a big way last night. I understand that the greatest timeout caller of all time is well known for making very directed comments (which have often been referred to by media people as "Jedi mind tricks") post-game comments with the intention of sending a message, but his comments about Paul Pierce after game 1 were out of line. Now, I completely understand that the Willis Reed comments were wearing thin on Jackson, and I can't blame him. But, with his comments about Oral Roberts being in the Celtics locker room, he was clearly insinuating that Paul Pierce was faking being hurt.
Clearly, Phil has earned the right to speak his mind on all NBA-related matters, but that's not what he was doing. This was a blatant shot at Pierce, and in my mind this was just the kind of comment that players and coaches should avoid. Today's sports media will take any angle necessary to make a story, and in this case that meant attempting to legitimize the idea that Paul Pierce faked his knee injury so that he could go into the locker room and then return to give his team a momentum boost. As Bobby Knight once said, journalism is "one or two steps above prostitution." Jackson knows what kind of player Pierce is. He knows that Pierce had been on fire in the second half, and the Celtics had the momentum at the time of the injury. So, it wouldn't have made sense for Pierce to pull a stunt like this. He knows that after returning, Pierce did all of his damage shooting from the outside rather than driving to the hoop as he normally would have. I just don't see how you can doubt that Pierce was in real pain when you look at him down on the court grabbing his knee.
Knee injuries can be devastating, and they are always handled very cautiously. Luckily in this case, it was not as bad as we all may have feared. But, the notion that Pierce staged this is absurd, and I'm sick of hearing about it. The people making this argument know nothing about basketball, which is why I know Jackson doesn't believe it. Perhaps we give him a pass on these comments because we know this is what he does, but I was furious and I'm sure these comments did not sit well in the Celtics locker room.
Here's Jeanie Buss (girlfriend of Phil, daughter of Jerry) lying naked with basketballs on her chest for all of you to enjoy.
Next, let's move to Jackson's post-game 2 press conference, in which he mispronounced Leon Powe's last name and laid blame on the officials for the loss. I'm not upset that he mispronounced Powe's name (although you'd think he'd have it down after hearing it so many times over the Garden PA system last night). In fact, in a way his doing so symbolizes to me the fact that the experts everywhere (Phil included) were really sleeping on this Celtics bench. Depth has been one of the Celtics' strengths all year long, and I haven't been able to figure out why everyone was so convinced that the Lakers' bench had the edge in this matchup. Perhaps it's because the Celtics have had great depth all year, and the Lakers' bench really asserted themselves more in the post-season.
What does bother me is the fact that Jackson wasted no time pointing to the free throw discrepancy. Again, not explicitly stating that the officials cost his team the game, but again clearly insinuating it. Look, 38-10 is a lopsided margin, no question. But, given the way each team played, it should have been lopsided. The Celtics were extremely aggressive on offense. They attacked the rim all night long, which is why they got to the line. The Lakers settled for jumpers during the first three quarters of the game. When you settle for jumpers, you don't get to the line. You have to earn your free throws. Let's think back to game 6 against the Cavaliers. On offense, the Celtics looked like the Lakers did last night. They weren't being aggressive, and they shot jumpers for the entire game. Here is the boxscore from that game 6, and you can see that LeBron James shot more free throws than the entire Celtics team.
I'm not saying the game was well officiated. Very few have been during this post-season. And, certainly Kobe's early foul trouble reminded me of Ray Allen's early foul trouble in Game 2 of the Detroit series. Two of the fouls called against Kobe in the first half were very weak. But, Phil knows the game. When you shoot jumpers for the first three quarters, and the other team is playing its most aggressive offensive basketball of the entire post-season, the free-throw count is going to be lopsided. A call here or there, sure. But, the free throws should not have been anywhere near even.
And, in response to Phil, I'd like to make my own complaint about the officiating. This video clearly shows Vladimir Radmanovich making a great steal, stopping his dribble before he gets to the free throw line, taking 78 steps with the ball in his hands, and then dunking. This was also a big no-call, as it brought the Lakers to within 4 with one minute left.
I don't really want to talk about the fourth quarter, because it's like beating a dead horse. The Celtics never make things easy on themselves. We talked about it after game 5 of the Cleveland series, and games 5 of the Detroit series, and last night was the best (or worst) example of it yet. After the game, on ABC, Dana Barros and Mike Dowling were discussing how the near-Lakers comeback might affect the series from here on out. Mike Dowling said that he thought it would be a good change because it would keep the Celtics focused as they head to LA. This may be true, but I can't help but feel like it is just trying to make light of a bad situation. A win is a win, and I don't expect the Lakers to carry any momentum from that near-comeback with them to game 3. But, you have to remember what could have happened. If the Celtics had blown their 24 point lead at home in the fourth quarter, the momentum shift might have been too great to overcome. Really, think about how deflating that would have been. This series may not have made it back to Boston. Now, it didn't happen, and in the big picture this all means nothing. But, if they had simply not gone totally anemic in the last 6-7 minutes, they could have cruised comfortably to the finish. Kobe is capable of bringing his team back to win in these situations. We saw it in game 1 against the Spurs. The Celtics need to stay hungry until the clock reads zeros.
That being said, the first three quarters of this game were the best basketball that the Celtics have played throughout the entire playoffs. Obviously we all know about Rondo's 16 assists. His performance was phenomenal. He pushed the pace, and facilitated a quick-hitting offense that had the Lakers totally dumbfounded. Rondo penetrating is the key to this offense clicking. When he is kept on the fringe, this team can't be aggressive. He had his way with the Lakers last night, and that was the biggest reason for the Celtics' dominance. All of that being said, 33 percent from the line is rough.
We've said all along that this is going to be Paul Pierce's series. Again last night, we saw that the Lakers have no answer for him. He had everything working last night, and it was great to see that he was still able to defend well despite that knee injury. Pierce is an LA guy, and he has always played well there. Aside from a possible cold streak, I don't see any way that the Lakers can keep him from getting big numbers in this series.
I've tried hard all along not to say that Gasol and Odom are soft. It seems like sort of a stupid "mail it in" kind of comment with no thought behind it. And, how many times have you heard it from the media since Saturday? But, how could I more accurately describe them last night? Up until this point, nobody on this Lakers team has shown me anything to lead me to believe that they can handle the Celtics physical game in the paint.
Perk has to keep out of foul trouble. How many times on here have we talked about the two different types of Perk games? Type A: Perk stays disciplined and makes a huge impact on the game. Type B: Perk gets two fouls in the first five minutes and leaves us high and dry. Now, PJ Brown was great last night. Really, he impresses me more every night. But, we need Perk. Jim at Green Bandwagon states it well when he says "I definitely noticed that it was a lot easier for the Lakers in general (think Ronny Turiaf on lobs) and Kobe Bryant in particular to get to the rim when Perkins is on the bench. As much as I like Powe, Perkins' health is important to Boston's defensive efforts."
Finally, let's hit on Leon. There are so many feel-good stories on this Celtics team, but Leon has to be near the top. And, I'm not even talking about the homeless and hungry in Oakland story that you heard last night (although that is very moving). Any Celtics fan will tell you that last April, in the midst of Tank-a-palooza, there was one Celtic who was really impressing during his increased minutes. This was Leon. Despite the fact that this team sucked, and despite the fact that we "weren't" losing on purpose (not that we needed to try very hard), Leon was an animal on the court. Coming down with tough offensive rebounds, and diving all over the court for loose balls, I think we all thought that great things were going to come from Leon. I was really genuinely disappointed during the first half of the season when it seemed like he was the odd man out. To see him emerge as such a major role player on this team has been great.
If the rest of this series is anything like game 1, we may be in the midst of the greatest Celtics/Lakers showdown of all time. This game tonight was an all-out slugfest complete with all the drama, suspense, and pageantry of the legends my elders have told me about the glory days of the 60s and 80s. The second half in particular was an emotional roller-coaster ride that seemed to last for days. To be honest, I feel like I just watched all seven games of this series. I knew it would be amazing to watch this team in the Finals, but there was no way that we (the younger fans) could have prepared ourselves for that kind of intensity.
As I've said, I think I went through the whole spectrum of emotions during the third quarter. When the Celtics cut the lead (mostly thanks to a key 4-point play from Pierce) early on I was fired up. I can't even begin to describe the sinking feeling I felt when I saw Pierce go down. Like many Boston fans, he's my favorite player and has been for some time. He is our emotional leader and our best scorer. To see him going back to the locker room in a wheelchair was the worst basketball sight I can imagine short of him being taken off in a stretcher. Then, when Perk went out, it didn't even seem real. The ground seemed to be coming out from underneath us.
Suddenly, when he came back out, a huge weight was lifted. If he could walk out of the tunnel, you knew he was going to play. This guy is one of the toughest competitors in the game. I don't think I can ever remember experiencing such highs and lows so close together. And, even with how happy and fired up I was seeing Pierce emerge, I couldn't help thinking about how much I hate this commentating crew. Paul Pierce just left with what appeared to be a potentially season-ending injury, then walked back out of the tunnel to put his body on the line against the Lakers in the NBA Finals, and all Jeff Van Gundy can talk about is how Phil Jackson is the master of calling time outs. Seriously, shut the fuck up. He called a time out after the opponents’ best scorer, and the biggest matchup problem, just checked back into the game. It's not ground breaking.
Here is a video of Pierce emerging, and Van Gundy and Jackson off air deciding that they're going to talk about how Phil Jackson is "the best time-out taker" in the NBA. I just checked Phil's profile on the Basketball Hall of Fame website, nothing about time-outs. Can somebody add "the best time-out taker of all time" somewhere next to all the impressive stats please.
And then, the two threes he hit after re-entering the game:
Both of those videos courtesy of Odenized.
I'm sure that I'll have more thoughts between now and Sunday as things become a little less jumbled in my head. I'd also love to hear from our readers, in comments and e-mails about your impressions of the game. Here are some final things to think about:
1) It's easy to forget now, but the Celtics did not look good in the second quarter. The Lakers were killing them with that pick and roll. There cannot be a defensive let down. The Lakers move the ball too smoothly and efficiently.
2) I'm watching Kobe's press conference right now. He's keeping a pretty mellow tone of voice, but he looks like he's about to turn into the Incredible Hulk and tear everyone's limbs off.
3) Did anybody else think it was strange that after Cassell hit his first three shots, the Lakers put Kobe on him? I did. I guess they wanted to keep him from getting shots off and wanted to try to pressure him into turning the ball over. Still, it threw me off.
4) The Celtics were strong on the glass, out rebounding LA 46-33. But, they could have been better. The play that is etched in my mind right now is the play where we had two guys in Kobe's face, he airballed a fade-away, and Odom was allowed to just move underneath the shot and lay it in. These things need to be cleaned up. There were many emotional wildcards tonight (game 1 at home, pierce and perk leaving and coming back) that won't be present from here on out.
5) Back when we first acquired him, did you ever think PJ Brown would have this kind of playoff impact? What a great move.
6) Tonight was amazing and a game that I'll remember forever. But, the problem is that it was game-7 drama in game 1. The Celtics need to put everything that happened tonight behind them and stay focused on the larger goal. The Lakers are going to be dialed in on Sunday night. Also, I am worried about how Pierce's knee will feel once he cools down and tightens up. This extra day off will be huge.
So, I'm a huge transformers nerd (many of you know that). I have the original movie (the cartoon one from the 80s) on DVD and I watch it more than someone my age should. I came across this video today, a parody of the awakening scene in "The Return of Optimus Prime" done by Dr. Smoov. I think it's hilarious. Watch the whole thing. Remember, this takes place right after the movie, in which Optimus dies, gives the matrix to Ultra Magnus, who loses it to Galvatron, who used to be Megatron, who is getting it for Unicron, who is a giant planet eating transformer, and in the end (after much robot carnage) Unicron is defeated and Hot Rod becomes the new carrier of the autobot matrix and is called Rodimus Prime. That's where this picks up. It's a joke using voiceovers with the scenes.
It seems like bad timing given the intensity of that game tonight, but a promise is a promise. So, here it is, the first edition of Friday 90's Rock Talk:
The 90s were a great time for music, and I feel very fortunate to have been young and impressionable during this time. My mom left very early for work every day, and there was no bus stop within walking distance of our house, so I always spent several hours awake at my aunt’s house each morning. This was good, because I could do all my homework in the morning and watch sports on television at night. Every morning, my TV routine was the same: Sportscenter, MTV Jams with Bill Bellamy, and Rude Awakening with John Sencio. Great music was coming out in all of the genres (I don’t get anywhere near rap/r and b stuff that comes out now. But, the Chronic in ’92, Doggystyle and 36 Chambers in ’93, this was all great stuff even for someone who listens to virtually all rock music). It was great to have all this groundbreaking stuff coming out and being so accessible to a kid. The changes that were happening in the music and media industries lead to all kinds of new creative sounds. In the end, maybe it was MTV and this whole media craze that killed popular music and turned it into what we have today. Maybe I was part of the problem. But please, don’t blame me; I was still wearing sweatpants to school on a daily basis.
Anyways, a lot of the music I still cherish most came from this period. And, I feel like since this was really the last great era of popular music (unless something changes in the future), I’d like to talk about it every Friday during Foil in the Oven.
Today’s topic is one that I’ve argued both sides of to no end at different times in my life. The question is this: Which album, Siamese Dream or Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, do you consider the defining Smashing Pumpkins album? People seem to feel strongly about this, and I’d love for our readers to weigh in. I can see the arguments for Mellon Collie. It is a double-disc, it has very unique and ornate cover art, and there were a lot of quality singles that came from it. In fact, Muzzle is probably my favorite Pumpkins song of all time. Let’s check out some of the highlights:
Bullet with Butterfly Wings, probably the most popular song from the CD (and a really sick video).
Tonight, Tonight : Not my favorite, but still very popular:
Zero, rocks pretty hard
There were a lot of other good songs besides these. 1979 was a pretty popular single with a popular music video. Muzzle, as I have said is sick. Here Is No Why rocks pretty hard. Stumbeline was different. This album may have been the crowning achievement of everything that Billy Corgan worked to convey through his songwriting. There is an overall feel of hopelessness and passive-aggressive surrender communicated throughout. However, overall it feels like a concept album to me. It did when it came out (I got it for Christmas and listened to it and nothing else for like a month) and it still does.
When I think about the Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream is what pops into my mind. To me, the definitive album of a group must have the band’s seminal song on it. What was the Pumpkins’ seminal tune? I would say Cherub Rock. You could also say Today. Maybe Disarm. I have had people tell me that Bullet with Butterfly Wings was the seminal Smashing Pumpkins song, but I disagree completely. Everything on Mellon Collie has its own unique and self-contained feel. Siamese Dream, to me, almost served as a Smashing Pumpkins mission statement. An introduction. It’s not as pieced together as meticulously as Mellon Collie, and I like that. It’s more raw and it rocks a little harder in my opinion. Although it was their second album, it was their first that was hugely popular. When I think of the group, one of my favorite from the 90’s, this is the album I think of. This is their defining album.
How many times can we play this Cherub Rock video on this blog? 5? 6? 7?
They played this video all the time on MTV when it first came out:
This was my first attempt at Friday 90s rock talk. Already I think that moving forward I will reduce the number of videos and stick with one or two live performances.
Next week: Why I believe, as others do, that Kurt Cobain must have helped Hole write the album Live Through This. That album is awesome, and Hole was just really not so good overall.
------------------------------------------------------------------------- don't forget to buy your Paul Pierce shirts
Well, the day has finally arrived, and I can't wait for tip-off. We're all very excited about today's Foil in the Oven. We are interviewing Kurt of Forum Blue and Gold in an attempt to get our finger on the pulse of LA as we count down the hours to what we all expect to be an epic NBA Finals. You should all check out his site, it's the best Lakers site out there. And, compared to his site, we are hugely obscure, so we're very happy that he agreed to talk with us.
Just as will be happening here in Boston, people in LA will hop right out of bed this morning, they will go to work with a little extra spring in their step, and they will most likely be less than half as productive as they might otherwise be because most of their collective energies will be given to talking about and thinking about tonight's game and this series. Like us, they are confident. Like us, they believe that they are rooting for the team with the best chance to win.
Thousands of miles separate the two cities, and yet today we will all be going through the same routines. Of course, the weather will be better in LA, as it is all year. Warm and dry, with virtually no humidity. It is also three hours earlier there, so I imagine most of the city is still asleep. They will have the opportunity to get to bed at a reasonable time after the game because it starts so early out West. Wherever they order their food today, it will most likely come with avocado (possibly in the form of guacamole) for no extra charge. As will be the case here, many of them will be planning outdoor barbecues at which to watch the game. The difference is that many of them have probably been watching the games outside all season long. Someday, when I can afford the NFL, NBA, and MLB TV packages, I would like to live in the land of cheap avocados and 10 AM kickoffs. Regardless, the whole point of this is that we interviewed Kurt from Forum Blue and Gold because he is an expert on the Lakers, and we thought it would be a cool perspective to have. Here it is:
ROOMOFZEN: First of all, how excited are you? I'm in my early 20's, so I don't remember any of the classic Lakers/Celtics series from the 80s. My earliest memories of Larry Bird are of seeing him with a bad back. But, those years are so cherished here that everyone understands the importance of these series.
KURT: This is the most excited I have been about a trip to finals in a long time (and we’ve been a few times recently). Part of that is a season of success that seemed to come out of nowhere — back in October we were worried about Kobe being traded, then we started to get our hopes up as Bynum exploded on the scene, then we were down due to his injury, then came the Pau Gasol steal, er, trade and we were right back on top. Combine that with getting to play our biggest rival in the playoffs, and this is the most excited Lakers fans have been in a long, long time.
R: In my mind, Lamar Odom is the big X factor in this series. If he plays well, the Celtics could be in trouble. When he's at his best, he can impacts the game in a big way. What are your thoughts on how the Celtics will match up defensively against Odom and Gasol, and do you see any players on the Celtics who you view as the "X factor" in this series?
K: I think you are dead on about Odom — if he is having big games the Celtics are in trouble. Not because of the matchup, KG is a great defender, but because of his role in the offense. Odom is thriving in the role of the guy who gets his offense without having plays run for him often. I’ll give you a picture of what Lakers fans hope to see: Kobe drives past Allen into the lane and KG has to slide over to help, which allows Odom to slip in to some open ground, get the pass and hit his open look. Or, KG rotates off him to help and Odom grabs the offensive board and gets a putback. Those are just a couple of scenarios, but you get the idea. If he is having a big game it will be a big problem for the Celtics.
The Celtics X-factors will likely be Rondo or Perkins. If Rondo can get into the lane and not be tempted to take jumpers, if Perkins can be a beast on the boards, they are the ones the Lakers will have the hardest time containing.
R: I was at the game in Boston the day after Thanksgiving, and I really thought the game was more lopsided than the score indicates (The Lakers were completely out of it for the first three quarters). Then, in late December, the Celtics won by 19 in LA. So, my question here is twofold:
A) Obviously Gasol arrived, but Bynum also went down. What has happened to this team between then and now to cause such a drastic improvement?
B) Why do you believe that things will be different between the Lakers and Celtics this time around?
K: If there is one thing I would want Celtics fans to take away from this interview it is this — the Lakers team you saw in November and December and the one you face in the finals are very different teams. Bynum benefited from being in the triangle offense, but Pau Gasol makes it hum and sing in a way it hasn’t since Jordan took the court in Chicago. Gasol has a very diverse game, he can score from the post, hit the 15-foot jumper and is an excellent passer. Really, every Lakers player is a very good passer, and that has spawned a team that moves well off the ball and hits the open man. If you choose to double Kobe or Gasol a lot, they will hurt you with passing, single cover them and they can score. This is by far the best offensive team you will have faced in a long time. The last team you saw that moved and passed like this was Utah in March, and they won that game and got a lot of layups in the process.
Also, know that the Lakers play pretty good team defense (much like the Celtics D, it is more about the team aspect than the individual defenders). The D isn’t as good as the Celtics, but it’s not bad.
R: What is the key to beating the Lakers?
K: The key is not to let the Lakers run their offense from the inside-out, meaning you have to stop Kobe’s penetration and not let Odom or Gasol become a force on the block. When that happens things open up for the offense. If you force the Lakers to be a perimeter offensive team they are not as effective. The other thing to do is to beat them on the boards, without Bynum they are susceptible there.
R: Do you expect Radmanovic to be on Pierce, and are you concerned about that matchup?
K: Pierce is the one really tough matchup for the Lakers, so yes he and that matchup scare me. Two things of note here. First, Radman is very long, plus he is quicker and a better defender than his reputation. He can’t stop PP, but he can at times make things a challenge for him. But the main reason I’m not that concerned about this matchup is that Radmanovic only plays 20 or so minutes a game. In crunch time Sasha Vujacic will be in and on Ray Allen (and Celtics fans will grow to hate Sasha this series) and Kobe will get the key minutes on Pierce. Kobe can’t stop him totally, but he is a good defender.
R: How do you think the benches match up in this series? (keep in mind that Doc hasn't yet established a consistent bench rotation outside of Posey and PJ Brown. I like Eddie House, Leon Powe and Glen Davis coming in).
K: The Lakers bench, and the fact that their depth allows Phil to tinker with matchups, is one of the Lakers biggest strengths. Jordan Farmar is fast and will push the tempo and the pressure on the Celtics subs. Luke Walton is solid and fits the triangle well. Like I said you’ll see a lot of Sasha. And Turiaf is by far the best dancer on either team. I’ll tell you I love Powe, so I hope Doc keeps him on the bench. And while you’re at it, can you tell Doc to play Cassell more?
R: Before I let you go, I want to reminisce for a second. February 26, 2006. A sunday night game in LA. I can't say this with 100 percent certainty, but I believe it was the only nationally televised Celtics game of the 2005-2006 season. Kobe gets 40 , Pierce gets 39, Celtics win 112, 111. This was just a great game, and it was far and away the highlight of 05-06 and 06-07 for me. I just remember feeling like I was watching something significant for the first time all season. The two stars played so well. That was Pierce's best season by far, and it was really too bad that the Celtics were so poor because he got hardly any media attention outside of New England. Did that game stick with you at all, or did you have more important things to worry about since the Lakers were a playoff team?
K: I do remember that game, and that was a very entertaining regular season matchup. Remember, PP is an LA guy and so there is still a lot of love and respect for him around here and his game. He knows how to perform and LA fans love that. But the biggest games that stick out to me those seasons were the playoff games against the Suns. As you all understand, it is the playoffs that create the best memories. (Well, one 81 point game excepted.)
R: Finally, our whole goal here is to get our finger on the pulse of LA right now. I would imagine that the anticipation there is nearly unbearable, as it is here. We're obviously all very confident, as I'm sure you are. Make the case for me right now. I want the Laker fan perspective. Why will the Lakers win this series?
K: Simply put, the Lakers play the style of motion offense that will give the Celtics defense fits. That is your strength, you need to stop us because you can’t outscore us. Lakers fans are confident that the offense, while slowed some, will still be too much for the Celtics D. Plus, as the series wears on, we have Phil Jackson making adjustments and you all have Doc Rivers. That said, we are all excited because we know this is the biggest test on the biggest stage, and you can ask for more than that.
Ok, a few thoughts from what Kurt said:
First of all, I thought that those were great answers. I completely agree that the Celtics have a huge rebounding edge in this series (although I guess that's not exactly how he put it). Cleveland and Detroit were both strong on the glass, so this will be a nice change. I think that I may already hate Vujacic. I was just saying yesterday to someone that I liked him, but after reading that and imagining him defending Ray Allen, I now suddenly hate him. I guess these are the changes that you go through on the morning of the game. Perhaps the most menacing and potentially ominous quote that Kurt gave us in this interview came in his last answer, "as the series wears on, we have Phil Jackson making adjustments and you all have Doc Rivers."
Look, in my mind this is all about the Celtics coming out and playing the way that we know they can. It can't be KG picking up the slack for Ray. It can't be Pierce going off for 41 while everyone else fades into the background. Pierce, KG, and Ray all need to play well. On top of that, Rondo needs to penetrate and Perk needs to stay out of early foul trouble. Basically, all I'm saying is that the Celtics have managed to get here despite the fact that they haven't been playing their best basketball consistently throughout the playoffs. We need their best now, and we need it for the whole series.
