Hey, it's Quick Takes time again, and we are live at the NBA Finals the day after and as things begin to wind down, it's time for The Riot! to weigh in as only we can. I know at the beginning of "Quick Takes" I would usually check my own personal scoreboard for what I'm tracking, but on a "Maverick" Monday there is only one stat that matters; Titles won - Mavericks - 1, LeBron - 0. LeBron's Postgame
You know LBJ, you really know how to make a brother look dumb. Here I am writing in defense of you last week (posted today), and you go and lay an egg on that court last night? Now to be honest, I'm not even upset about the performance, I'm pissed about his childish, sticking your tongue out at poor people postgame comments. “All the people that was rooting on me to fail, at the end of the day they have to wake up tomorrow and have the same life that they had before they woke up today,” James said. “They have the same personal problems they had today. I’m going to continue to live the way I want to live and continue to do the things that I want to do with me and my family and be happy with that." So let me translate. "I don't care what you poor bastards say or do. I'm going to win when I win, and then all of you will be up on my tip again." He doesn't care about you, at all. Miami, wake up, he cares about you about as much as he cares about Cleveland, not at all. He is a look-out-for-#1 guy, and that all became very clear during his postgame remarks last night. Not only does LBJ not care about the fans or his team, he doesn't even take responsibility for his losses. In a tweet posted last night he said basically that his championship chances lay in the hands of God. WTF? God? You have been blessed with the most God given talent in the world when it comes to playing basketball, and now you're asking God for more? I think he's done enough. In 1984, when the Lakers lost to the Celtics, Magic Johnson (a real leader) came out and said he was the reason they had lost. LeBron has alot to learn about being "the man." Now I still stand by what I had said in a prior post, he's not Jordan; nobody is. He is still the best player in the world though. So maybe the real story is he doesn't want to be "the man." You see, there is the most talented player, and then simply the best player. One would think these two players would be one and the same, but I think in this case it may not be true. The most talented player is the guy who throws his sneaks out there and can just play with anyone, at anytime. No practice, no difficulty, just play and play like a God. The best player has a tremendous amount of God given talent, but has to work real hard to get over the hump. The best player is the one who wins, not the most talented. There are many of these most talented players on the scrapheap of history (Iverson, McGrady, Wilkins, etc.) who were just constantly outworked and inevitably outplayed by someone of there generation. A player who earned it, instead of just relying on there talents to get them by. Now I'm aware that Jordan had Pippen and a good bench, Magic had Kareem and Worthy and Kobe has had Gasol and Shaq but why do you think these players never folded when it came to crunch time? The Heat have 3 all stars, and 2 of the top 5 players in the NBA, this is unexplainable. After watching the way LeBron James folded over the last 3 games, and then his postgame reaction to those performances are a sign that he just wants to play, collect his money and live his life. Maybe going to Miami and playing with D-Wade was not about championships, it's about living the Miami lifestyle with his buddies without a care in the world. I mean, what better destination is there in the league other than Miami and LA. LA wasn't interested in LBJ, so Miami is the next best spot. One of his best friends was already there, Bosh is also another besty and there you have the best of all worlds for LeBron. As an additional little perk, the move to Miami also creates the illusion that he's doing it to win; not for sun and fun on the beach with his buddies. So leaving Cleveland for championships looks way better than leaving them for fun, right? That just makes you look like a dick. So I guess it's fair to put the LeBron vs. Jodran argument to rest now right? I guess we'll see.
American Airlines owns the Finals
Did anybody else notice throughout the course of this finals series that The Heat play in the American Airlines Arena and the Dallas Mavericks play in the American Airlines Center? Has the world ended? Did we come full circle? It's like a few weeks ago when I was in San Jose and I saw a Starbucks. That's normal, not unusual at all right? But then I walk literally 10 ft....BAM! another f$%king Starbucks. What is the world coming too?
Mark Cuban is my Hero
I heard the drones on ESPN this morning debating whether or not Mark Cuban is a great owner or not. I don't really know how you could say he's not a good owner; he pours money into his team and is always supportive of them. I know early on he was in officials faces, and maybe was a tad outspoken, but I don't really think those are negative things in the eyes of the team and the fans. Players love to play for him, and man we are entertained by him so give it up for Mr. Cuban. Evidence by all of his behavior yesterday. In an ultimate class move he invited former Maverick owner and founder Donald Carter up on stage for the initial trophy presentation, and then as entertaining as he is classy, he called out Heat fans saying "we just punked the shit out of Heat fans," ouch. As far as The Riot! is concerned he is now on the legends wall. So congrats to you Mark Cuban for winning your first NBA Champioship and being an honorary member of The Sports Riot! I know you're giddy about that honor most of all. I bet he slept with his trophy last night.
Crying?
I understand all the emotion that comes with being competitive professionally. When I was in radio, I felt that sometimes, but nowhere near the level of say a Dirk Nowitzski or a Chris Bosh so I excuse myself right away and will stand corrected if the collective feels differently, but is it weird that I got major douche chills when I saw Chris Bosh uncontrollably weeping while walking off the court last night? I appreciate his passion, especially when compared to that bullshit LeBron pulled, but they lost by 10, there was no drama. Why wasn't he crying down 12 with 2 to go then? IDK, maybe it's me, it gave me massive douche chills.
The Missing Hand Shake
So what is the big deal? At the end series last night, Dirk Nowitzski (Finals MVP) ran off the court without shaking hands or even congratulating his own teammates. Why? This was a topic of hot debate this morning on both the radio and TV. One side says Dirk was over emotional and wanted to sort that out in the locker room before publicly celebrating his victory (Chris Bosh, pay attention). Others said that he was purposefully avoiding a handshake with the Heat due to the disrespect he recieved from them calling him soft. Now I heard these arguments all morning and I have to say, WHO GIVES A SHIT! Really? This is what it's come to? Look, I don't care why he left the court immediately, he just did. My God, these people will argue about anything. It make you wonder what it's like to talk to these hacks in a bar, or even being married to one of them.
Meanwhile in Cleveland...
As soon as the game ended Cavs players and management came out of there postseason slumber to throw dirt on the rotting corpse that was The Miami Heat and LeBron James. Mo Williams came out and said "Dallas just healed my heart...." That made me cringe. You sound like a 12 year old girl with that crap. GET OVER IT! He's dating someone else now. Cavs owner Dan Gilbert actually said something worth hearing "Old Lesson for All: NO SHORTCUTS. NONE." Somewhat profound although I will say, if the tables we turned, he would have signed Wade and Bosh in a second. Unfortunately, you live in Cleveland Dan, so you can't compete with Miami. Sorry dude.
And finally...
The most overlooked player in this whole series who deserves a title as much as any of them was Jason Kidd. Jay Kidd was "the man" for most of his career. He has been responsible for revitalizing the Mavs once in the mid 90's, and made the Nets of all teams, championship contenders in the early 2000's. He was a rookie of the year and a 10 time all star. He played a crucial but quiet role on this years team, and for me seeing him win last night was the best part of it. He earned years ago, I'm just glad he can now go into the Hall of Fame with "NBA Champion" emblazioned on his plaque. Congrats to J.Kidd and the Mavs, the 2011 NBA Champions.
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