Thank goodness my dad ordered the NBAtv + West Coast package. Now I can catch all my Laker games. I was surprised to flip to the game and see some Mexican kid wearing a Carmelo jersey playing in the game. Oh wait, IT WAS CARMELO! Judging from the picture above, Kobe was probably crackin' some jokes on Melo's new do (or dont). He looks stupid IMFO. His Puerto Rican side is more visible with the cornrows chopped off. I wonder when Iverson will follow...

But back to business. The game was tight throughout. Even though the stars Iverson and Anthony werent scoring big numbers, it were the role players Kenyon Martin, J.R. Smiff (Smith), and Anthony Carter keeping Denver in it. The Lakers werent at their best tonight however. Jordan Farmar and Trevor Ariza both looked like they were still ballin at UCLA, Bynum 'exploded' for 4 and 8 after becoming $50 Million richer, and although Gasol had 15, he still looked like Marc bullies him around when they go back to Spain in the summer. The guy is so f'ing soft. Even though the Lakers didnt play like this year's favorites that they are, they still came out with the win. Why? Three words, Kobe Fucking Bryant. Dude took over in the 4th and sealed the deal for the Lake show. He did it with such ease late in the game. Once again, Kobe has his way in Colorado.

;)

Image from NBA.com

I know what you're thinking, it's an odd year, so the Spurs would be the best bet to win the championship if we believe in those sorts of things, but i'm not one of em. The Spurs aren't the team they used to be, and an era of Spurs dominance may be coming to an end real soon. 

With Manu Ginobili out until mid December, the Spurs are left without their best playmaker; and as a result, the Spurs are looking a little stagnant on offense, and by "little", i'm actually being generous because i'm having a good day so far. The Spurs only had four players that scored in the game against the Portland Blazers(10/31/08) going into the fourth quarter. Four players. Think about that, one or two of the starting five players did not score until the fourth. So not only are the Spurs missing their main playmaker, they are missing their second best offensive player(You can argue that). I saw Duncan carrying the load of the offense, and I believe he could do that every game if we was still 26-27 years old, but he is a 32 year old man; grandpa age in the basketball world. So if Duncan wants to keep playing in the post season, they need to rack up some wins in the regular season, but Duncan can't keep playing 36 minutes a game, his body won't be able to keep up.

Even with Manu out, the bench looks like a D-league starting lineup(With the exception to Thomas and Mason who was an excellent pickup for them). Bruce Bowen wasn't even there to finish off the fourth because he couldn't contain Brandon Roy(Bruce's age is taking a toll also), and Finley could have won them the game, but he missed a shot he would usually make with his hands tied behind his back. Get this: The youngest player on the Spurs roster is Ian Mahinmi(22 years old), and he isn't even part of their rotation. I can't possibly see this bench helping maintain a lead for San Antonio, and basically it's a two man team until Manu comes back; the Spurs seriously need to make a trade, because they are slowly going from the team nobody wanted to play on their schedule, to the old geezers.

I give credit to the Spurs though, even with their horrible first half, they managed to take the Blazers to the brink of the game. Speaking of the game, Roy traveled his ass of on that buzzer beating three that ending the first half; Roy must have given the refs an iRoy.(Check the vid out yourself; the guy commentating makes me want to shoot my eardrums)

 

image found via google

Kevin Garnett is the youngest player to play in 1,000 career games at 32 years and 165 days of age. Congrats Big Ticket

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Last year, there were many things to complain about with the Knicks; their roster, their general manager/coach, their passion from their players, everything. This year, fans have something to feel good about; their new coach with his new system that seems to net a ton of regular season wins, a surging player in Wilson Chandler who could end up being a star(A reach, but in D'antoni's system, anything is possible), and you have Curry and Marbury both riding the pine until further notice.

With that said, toninght's game should actually be in the 76ers favor because Philly won three of their four meetings last year(Blown out twice), but we forgot that New York has a new coach, and sometimes a new coach plays a huge part on who is team is, and who they can be. 

The top player in the Knick-Sixer series was Jamal Crawford(With the exception of game 2 where he had sorry numbers)

Game 1: 28 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers

Game 2: (Nate Robinson) 25 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist

Game 3: 18 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists

Game 4: 14 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 4 turnovers

I also went to check on the numbers for Duhon to see if he had any significance against the 76ers.

Duhon(With the Bulls):

Game 1: 2 points, 2 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 3 turnovers

Game 2: 5 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, , 1 turnover

Game 3: DNP

Game 4: 1 assist (The only category he did something in)

Yikes! Not exactly the numbers you want to see.

It's only been one game, but the Knicks are #1 in offense and the 76ers are 26th in offense, so the Sixers will have to play in the favor of the Knicks style of play tonight because I know D'antoni won't slow things down for anybody.

Andre Igoudala recently said that his goal this year is to "Win a Championship". Well, I think that is every team's goal, but the 76ers have acquired Elton Brand; who is part of a rare group of players that average 20 points and 10 rebounds for their careers. Once you add that type of forward with a star two-way player in Iggy, a veteran floor leader that can rack up assists in Miller, a shot blocking presence in Dalembert, and two young offensive threats that are opening eyes in Lou Williams and Thad Young, you have a recipe for success. 

Finishing the season strong last year and making the playoffs, the somewhat new-look Sixers plan on getting their first win tonight against the Run n' Gun Knicks. If last season is any indicator of who is going to win(I hate repeating myself), then the Sixers are your team to bet on. They won three of their four meetings against the Knicks in blowout fashion, check it out:

Game 1(win): 101-90

Game 2(win): 105-77

Game 3(loss): 89-81

Game 4(win): 124-84 (DAMN)

Pretty impressive, I must say. Who was the star of these games pre Brand? Nobody. EVERYONE had their own dominant game against the Knicks of last year:

Game 1:

Reggie Evans: 11 points, 12 rebounds, 2 turnovers

Andre Igoudala: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal

Sam Dalembert: 20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks

Andre Miller: 9 points, 11 assists

Lou Williams: 15 points, 6 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers

Game: 2:

Andre Igoudala: 17 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers, 2 blocks

Andre Miller: 11 points, 10 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers

Thad Young: 14 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal

Game 3:

Andre Igoudala: 24 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers

Game 4: 

Andre Igoudala: 19 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover

Andre Miller: 12 points, 10 assists, 3 steals

Thad Young: 20 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal

If I had to pick one player to have a good game against the Knicks, I would go with Igoudala; he stays consistent throughout the series these two teams had, but I wouldn't sleep on Thad Young, he is a lethal scorer and I expect him to have a good rebounding game against the "7 second" offense.

So my pick to win? Sixers, Sixers, Sixers. The Knicks are on the road, The Sixers are inspired by the Phillies, and I can't wait for this game at 7PM ET.

images found via google.com