Non-Cavs NBA thoughts

Some of these are obvious, but still

A lot of these series don't suck. There was a lot of talk before the playoffs that only Suns-Lakers and Cavs-Wizards would be interesting series. Well, Bulls-Heat are 2-2, Nets-Pacers are 2-2, Cavs-Wiz are 2-2, Sacramento is a Brent Barry lucky bounce away from being up 2-1 with a game 4 halftime lead. There are some sweet games being played out there.

Lakers got some homer calls. Nash A) was fouled B) called timeout. Bullshit.

Mavs look real good. Dirk hit a back breaking 3 to send the game in overtime yesterday, which just about killed Memphis. Even if they come back and win game 4 (which would be their first playoff win ever), there is no way Dallas loses game 5, they know this is their year to make a run.

I refuse to watch Nets-Pacers. I hate both teams with a passion. The Nets really piss me off because people think they are good. They have 2 shooting guards, one who shys away from contact. The Pacers I hate mostly for beating the Shawn Kemp led Cavs in the 98 playoffs (a team which had rookies Z, Brevin Knight, Derek Anderson and Cedric Henderson).

Pistons-Bucks? Meh, 4 games, 5 games, whatever, it's when not if the Pistons finish this series.

Kirk Hinrich is Mark Price reincarnated. He plays ballsy, he plays bigger than he his AND he plays point guard the right way. He can shoot when you need him to (and can shoot long distance) but he can set his teammates up. The Bulls impressed me in their two losses at Miami, and then took it to the Heat in their two games in Chicago. Very nice. The Heat better be careful, if they lose game 5 they're ripe for upset.

Clippers actually have a team. Also, the Nuggets suck. The Clips look really good, Kaman and Brand give them a big inside presence, Mobely and Maggette give them some good slashers and Cassell gives them A) a ET presence and B) some Colbert-sized balls. If they decide that Shawn Livingston (who I love) is ready to control the team next year, I would beg the Cavs to make a run at Cassell. He would be a good guy to have for a year or two to take the pressure off of LeBron. Plus I would love to see the testicle dance done in Cleveland. Also, even though I'm hating these bullshit Laker calls, if you think I'm not tivo-ing every Laker-Clipper playoff game, you're crazy.

Finally, if you're wondering why you're not seeing any Browns draft analyisis, here's your answer: I have no clue what I'd be talking about. I'm kinda amused by their run on linebackers, but I can't break down their draft pick by pick. Don't get me wrong, I love the Browns and the NFL, but I'm a strange duck when it comes to Cleveland sports. During my formative years (92-97, roughly 3rd grade through freshman year) the Cavs were at their peak (Eastern Conference Finals, whoo!) while the Indians had a renaissance and went to two World Series. The Browns? They let go of Bernie Kosar and then moved to Balti-less. So I'm one of those rare Clevelanders who's allegience goes like this: 1. Cavs 2. Indians 3. Browns. I love my Browns, but I'm not as passionate about them as other Clevelanders. All I know is this, Savage hasn't pulled a Butch Davis trade (move up one slot by trading a second rounder), so I trust the guy. You'll find some analyisis here and here, and it's better than anything I would've given ya.