The Public Responds To Josh Howard
I don’t care what you’re doing, go read this post on Mark Cuban’s blog (Update: the original post has been removed, this is in it’s place). Just as a warning, it gets pretty disgusting at times. Cuban has always done whatever he wants, but this is on a whole other level. By posting these revolting responses towards Josh Howard, he succeeds at taking the spotlight off J-Ho - turning it on himself and the American public. The ironic twist is that Howard threw out a 10 second sound bite proclaiming defiance to his country and these comments totally spit at what the red, white and blue represents. The Mavericks owner obviously doesn’t care about people’s privacy (mental note: probably shouldn’t send Cubes that pic of me in a speedo). He seems genuinely ticked at what people have to say about a man he calls a “nice guy” - not to say he supports what Howard said, because he clearly doesn’t, as stated in the opening.
The Blog Maverick post is your standard YouTube comments section ratcheted up a notch, but this comments section will get people talking. As Cuban said, cell phone cameras are not athletes’ friends. Imagine the dumb things you would say, or have already said to a friends’ video camera. Ah, yeah, those were good times. Anyway, 2 less entertaining videos follow: first off is the original Howard vid, and second is an interview with the man who filmed the video, rapper Los, on ESPN.
The Dallas Little Ponies: Has a Nice Ring to It, No?
What? I laughed…
Mark Cuban Seeks New Image [Sons of Steve Garvey]
(via Just Call Me Juice)
Comments (2)Whatchoo Talkin’ About, Willis?
Before we begin: Yes, I am under contractual obligations to use a Diff’rent Strokes headline and a tyrannosaurus-rex picture any time I mention Kevin Willis’s name. That’s just the way it is.
From the Dallas Morning News blog:
Kevin Willis ended his interview that ran during Ch. 21’s pregame show with some bold words. After mentioning that the Mavericks are a championship-caliber team, Mr. Willis proclaimed:
“We will do it. We will definitely do it.”
I believe “do it” refers to the Mavericks winning this year’s championship, though it could just as well mean, “play some shuffleboard” or “watch Matlock re-runs” with old man Willis coughing up cobwebs. Who knows?
I just found it funny that some 44-year-old reserve, playing on a 10-day contract, just went all Joe Namath-y on us. That’s pretty incredible when you think about it.
Mavs Blog [Dallas Morning News]
Comments (0)I’m Dirk Burgundy?
You stay classy, Dallas.
Behind The Scenes With Ben & Skin [YouTube] (thx B. Harvey)
Comments (2)Game 6: Judgement Day
If the NBA is rigged, then here’s how tonight’s Game 6 will go down…
Pre-game Show:
- Mike Breen and Hubie Brown welcome us. Hubie is wearing a crown. Odd.
- Quick video package hyping up the series so far. Highlights include: Stack taking out Shaq (shown from multiple angles, with over-the-top SFX), Haslem’s bleeding eye, Wade’s heroics, and Cuban pointing and screaming at Stern.
- Breen informs us that Bennett Salvatore, Dick Bavetta, and Earl Hebner are refereeing tonight’s game.
Miami Heat Introductions:
- Boisterous ‘You Suck’ chants from the sold-out American Airlines Center crowd.
- Jason Williams drives out in a ‘65 Impala Convertible Lowrider.
- Shaq walks out a crawling Antoine Walker, who’s attached to a dog leash.
Dallas Mavericks Introductions:
- Stackhouse gets a huge pop. Looks like a Pepsi…
- Dirk enters the court thru Sec. 125 and walks down the aisles. He spits water all over the crowd.
- Quick shot of WWE wrestlers, Triple H and Shawn Michaels, sitting courtside.
- Commissioner David Stern pulls a chair up beside the scorekeeper.
1st Quarter Action:
- Shaq wins the tip with a nice side Russian legsweep.
- Wade hits his 2nd triple of the game. Miami jumps to a quick 12-2 lead. Stern nods accordingly.
- Cuban is down on the ground, slapping the hardwood, trying to pump up this Dallas crowd.
- Terry ducks a Posey clothesline, tags in Harris on the fly, who then finishes on the break. Nice. End of 1: Miami 22, Dallas 16.
2nd Quarter Action:
- Dirk is struggling from the field, shooting only 1-for-6. Hubie breaks it down:
“You are Dirk Nowitzki. You have fireman carried your team throughout these playoffs. You KNOW tonight that it’s do-or-die, and you KNOW you’ve got to step up your game. Now … you know that your game is a submission type of game, and you KNOW that Haslem’s shoulder is hurting him. You need to attack it. Now … you also know there is only one move for you to do it successfully — you need to get on an arm-bar. You know this is going to be TOUGH.”
- End of 2: Miami 46, Dallas 39.
Half-time:
- The Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat Dancers have a bra-and-panties match at center court. Everybody wins, except the fabric.
3rd Quarter Action:
- The Mavericks come out swinging: Howard dropkicks/screens Walker, rolls back door, and then jams home a nice alley-oop pass from Terry.
- White Hot Cheats? Stack gets a steal and is alone on the break, but Riley trips him up! Salvatore turns a blind eye. The crowd goes crazy!
- Payton drives to the net, scoops one over Diop, and manages to draw a ticky-tack foul. Diop goes nuts and starts eating the protective foam padding underneath the net. End of 3: Miami 71, Dallas 70.
4th Quarter Action:
- Great exchange to start the 4th:
Williams misses a jumper, rebound up, Stack and Posey battle for position and go to the floor locked up. Ball goes out of bounds. Stack and Posey break, and then back in they go. Oh, stare down; the two go nose to nose. Posey with a take down, sharp (3-point) shooter try, but Stack counters into a single leg submission. Posey counters into a side headlock. Both up, and Stack executes a full (Don) nelson suplex. Stack with the cover … 1 … 2 … Posey kicks out! The ball is finally in-bounded.
- The teams exchange
rightsbaskets for 7 straight minutes. Miami stays up 1. Only 31 seconds left.
- Wade kills some clock, comes off a pick and beats his man. It looks like he’s got an easy lay-up for 2, but NO! — Dirk with a boot to the face! “I Am A Real Germanian” blasts through the PA system. The crowd goes nuts! Dirk gathers up the loose ball, dribbles to the line, launches a game tying three … it’s GOOD! Dallas 95, Miami 93!
- Riley wants a timeout. The AAC erupts! Dirk rips off his jersey and puts his hand to his ear. OH NO! Salvatore calls a technical foul for showboating! WHAT!? Miami will shoot one, AND get the ball back!
- Wade at the line … he calls “GLASS!” … and knocks it down. “He’s as a cold as ice!” Dallas 95, Miami 94.
- 22 seconds left: Wade near the top, killing some clock … spins left, pulls it back … 10 seconds to go … Avery’s yelling at the whole Mavs team to get on Wade … Wade somehow keeps his dribble alive … everyone is on him; even Cuban’s out there! … 5 seconds to go, Wade beats four defenders … he pulls up for the jumper … 4 … 3 … WOAH! Wade finds a wide open Shaq under the rim … 2 … Shaq going for the dunk …
- Breen: “OH MY GOD, IT’S KOOOOOOOBE!” Kobe Bryant, sitting front row, grabs his chair, and absolutely clocks Shaq in the skull … Shaq and the ball slump to the floor … the buzzer goes! DALLAS WINS! DALLAS WINS!
- We fade to commercial as we see an evil looking Kobe – in a charming blue sweater vest, mind you – being paid off by Cuban!
Winners: The Dallas Mavericks via scoring more points @ 48:00
Comments (9)A Letter To Dirk…
Dear Mr. Nowitzki,
Next time, wipe my ass down.
Sincerely,
Stationary Bicycle
[Gif credit: ‘Howie’ from NBA Basketball and Other Unrelatedness via YAYsports!]
Comments (4)The Basketball Jones - Game 3
Apparently, it is in him …
The Basketball Jones — Game 3 Podcast.
(Ep. 028, 15 mins)
In this week’s post-game Skyped-out episode, J.E. Skeets and Tas discuss Wade’s Jordanesque-like 4th, the pros and cons pros of sitting Antoine Walker, whether we’ve got ourselves a series now, and much, much more…
Oh, all that, and we talk “LIVE” with ex-Heat coach Stan Van Gundy!
[Record a Message for the NBA Finals Podcast — Game 4]
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[Subscribe to The Basketball Jones Podcast via Odeo]
Germany, Dirk, Beer & Nash
Toronto Star reporter Chris Young may be busy in Germany drinking beer covering the World Cup, but that doesn’t mean he couldn’t find time to check in on Deutschland’s favourite 7-footer:
Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks tipped off the NBA Finals in the hour of the wolf time zone of 3:15 a.m. here this morning, and it made for some strange Mundial-defying moments:
Jorg and Helga Nowitzki were set to stay up all night, as they have for every one of their son’s games this playoff tournament, Dirk’s mom frequently leaving because she gets too nervous. “She went to bed at halftime of the game on Saturday night, she couldn’t take it,” said 63-year-old Herr Nowitzki, sitting in his office in neighbouring Gerbrunn. “Then she came in with a minute left and they were up by four points, and she’s all mad, ‘Why didn’t you wake me?’”
Damn! 3:15? And here I was whining about a 9 p.m. tip…
But the best part of the piece, by far, is this little gem concerning Dirk’s guitar pal, Steve Nash:
With the World Cup coming to Germany — although Ghana is training in Wurzburg, no games will be played here — the elder Nowitzki wouldn’t be surprised to see Nash, an avid fan, show up to catch some of the action.
“He always stays here. Five years ago he was over and there was a beer festival,” recalled Jorg Nowitzki. “Germans can drink beer — but Canadians! I think he drank about seven litres. He was boiled!”
Nowitzki Germany’s Latest Hero [TheStar.com]
Nash & Nowitzki, Guitar Pals [The Basketball Jones]
Mavs, Heat & TBJ Predictions
Dirk: Hey Jet, you ready to rock ‘n roll?
Jason: Heck, let’s get it.
Dirk: ‘Cuz I’m ready to rock. I’m– I’m ready to fire it up.
Jason: Light it up!
For the first time in a long time, there seems to be no consensus favori– blah, blah, blah– Mavs in 6.
Look, anything I could possibly say about this series has already been said ad nauseam, so I’ll just spare my keyboard the workout and keep this simple.
The Mavs have three things: home-court advantage, a coach who’s shown he can make the necessary adjustments, and a deep bench. I’m confident all three of these factors will play a key part in Stern having to hand good ol’ Larry over to Cuban.
But honestly, the real reason I’m backing the Mavs is because of Dirk. Now I know it sounds crazy – and dang, what a circus it would be – but I think Dirk just might have it in him to go out and average like a 35-15 this series. Seriously, who on this Heat roster can slow him down, let alone stop him? Udonis Haslem? Pleeeeease…
Dirk’s game right now is just head and shoulders (and hair) above the rest. Over the past 6 weeks we’ve watched him go from star (Griz, game-winner), to superstar (Spurs, foul and the throw), to super-duper-star (Suns, cool fifty and the game 6 comeback). Yeah, it’s pretty obvious Dirk has seen the bar, made the jump, and is clearing that shit like some type of freaky German gazelle.
Mavs in 6. Fire it up, Dirk. Fire it up.
– Skeets
Shaq: Can. You. Dig it!?
Forget about the match-ups. Forget about the tempo.
Sometimes this game comes down to will. The winner of this evenly matched series will be the one that is ready to own these games – the team that battles every last second of every last play because they understand the urgency they need to play with in order to win.
Miami is more ready for this series because of their experience. You could see it last week in two very different post game celebrations. The Mavericks were ecstatic – jumping around as if they’d won the entire thing. In Miami, the Heat were much more low key. They truly know they have more work to do while I can’t help but think that the Mavs are just a little too happy to get this far.
I know ‘The Little General’ is exactly that – a very influential leader that can keep his team focused – but on the other side of the floor is a man in his 9th NBA Finals as a Head Coach. However, in the end, a basketball game is won by its players. That’s why it’s even more important that the Heat are led by hungry players who know this opportunity is precious. ‘The Big Diesel’ is desperate to build his legacy and win his 1st ring without Kobe. Payton and Mourning know this may be their last shot. These men will instill their tooth and nail attitude needed to win the championship upon veterans like Walker, Posey and Williams to go along with the grit of Wade and Haslem. In big D, no Maverick has ever played significant minutes in the final round.
The Finals are a different animal. When the Mavs step on the floor for game 1, it will not feel like any other home game they’ve played this playoff.
As the Mavs eyes widen while they soak in the surroundings, the Heat will squint hard and go to work for something they’ve all been waiting for.
– Tas
[Record a Message for the NBA Finals Shows]
[Subscribe to The Basketball Jones Podcast via iTunes]
[Subscribe to The Basketball Jones Podcast via Odeo]
FD: No Shame in the Bandwagon
“Responsible bandwagoneering simply asserts “I see you.” The past matter not; what the Mavs were or were not earlier in the season, and whether I did or did not acknowledge them as such, is irrelevant to the fact that now I really want to kick it with this proud band of characters. You can’t teach yourself to feel fondness for another; it sneaks up upon us, and is at its most sweet when it takes root in the soils of familiarity. That this should occur at a time of heightened sensitivity only proves that there is a rhythm to all seasons, natural or otherwise.”
Man, Shoals’ writing be so on point; I bet the dude pops a zit and even it oozes eloquent prose. Great writer, great post. Check it out. Or die.
No Bloom is a Late One [FreeDarko]
(By the way, Tas and my disagreeing Finals predictions will be posted later tonight along with some incredible YouTube fun.)
Comments (2)About
The Basketball Jones is a NBA blog and podcast, written and recorded five times a week by J.E. Skeets, Tas Melas and Jason Doyle. Comments, questions and cold hard cash are always welcome and much appreciated. Contact us.
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Latest Episodes
- Ep. 329: Finals, Game 6 – Wednesday, June 18th
- Ep. 328: Finals, Game 5 – Monday, June 16th
- Ep. 327: Finals, Game 4 – Friday, June 13th
- Ep. 326: Finals, Game 3 – Wednesday, June 11th
- Ep. 325: Finals, Game 2 – Monday, June 9th