For a little while yesterday, time ceased when the news of Michael Jackson's death hit.
While I wasn't around for when Michael was only the biggest pop star in the world and I've seen him only as the circus celebrity that he was for the end of his career, it's still a sad day. The thing is though, as long as my generation has been around, he's been the biggest star in the world. Everyone knows his name and anywhere he goes, everything stops.
While he certainly had his issues and demons, he was a musical revolutionary, whose impact is still felt in the industry today as the Omarions, Chris Browns and other young R&B/pop artists show MJ's influence on them. Even 26 years later, you can put on Thriller and people my age can groove out to it.
The Orlando Magic's incredible run came to a sad conclusion Sunday night with a loss in Game 5 and in a strange turn of events, I'm okay with that. Now I know what you're thinking "Jerry's not acting like it's the end of the world when his team loses? There must be a guest editor." But stick with me, I'm truly not even close to the edge.
If you had told me going into the Philadelphia series that this team would come within 3 wins of a championship minus Jameer Nelson for the entire Eastern Conference playoffs and a healthy/effective Jameer in the Finals, I would've laughed. If you had told me that after Game 3 of the Philly series, Games 4 and 5 of the Boston series and after LeBron's miracle, I probably would've elbowed you like Sam Dalembert.
Given the numerous spectacluar chokejobs that seemingly all of my teams have pulled the last 2 and a half years, you couldn't have blamed me for going into defeatist mode at any of those particular points, but a funny thing happened, they kept winning.
At all the situations in the East playoffs where my teams normally fold like a tent in a tornado, the Magic kept finding ways to escape. Going into Game 6 of the Philly series minus Superman and Courtney Lee, I had all but resigned myself to an everything does happen Game 7 in Orlando, but the boys in blue boat raced the Sixers by halftime and it was never close.
Until the final 5 minutes of Game 5, they didn't even seemed remotely fazed by Big Baby Davis' Game 4 buzzer-beater and even after the meltdown in Boston and Dwight demanding the ball, they kept their heads. With relentless waves of the Celtics and the rep of the team hanging in the balance in Games 6 and 7, the Magic always found the shot or a play at the moment they needed to stem the tide.
The Eastern Conference Finals was the moment when they proved they belong. After the tests they faced in the first 2 rounds and the way the Magic have been able to measure up against the Cavs the last few years, a 22-point lead in Cleveland didn't seem so insurmountable and while Rashard's game-winning 3 was thrilling, it wasn't as shocking as it was to the national media, who I'd like to personally thank for not giving the Magic an ounce of credit at any point in the postseason because they were so bitter that their dream of a Celtics-Cavaliers east final and LeBron-Kobe finals didn't happen, you guys are outstanding.
As the series went on (and even during the Finals) you started to believe that no matter how poor the Magic were playing or how well Cleveland was playing, they were going to find a way to pull it off and it wasn't the least surprising when they did. It was the kind of confidence in a team I haven't had since the Mets of 1999-2001 made spectacular comebacks an art form.
Even after LeBron's miracle 3, it wasn't a momentum-draining play, they had proved the Cavs couldn't put them away, even in the building where they had gone 39-2. Watching the Magic winning in transition and at the arc in Game 1 and then in a grind-it-out style in Game 3 proved this team could do whatever it takes to win a championship. Game 4 was the most intense basketball game I've watched since Game 7 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals and the most intense experience as a fan since Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS.
As the 4th quarter went on, the belief that they could actually win this series grew only to be met with each retaliatory strike from LeBron (who, say what you want about his sportsmanship, played the greatest individual series I've ever watched), followed by the sheer elation of Rashard's 3 and then the fear that maybe they had left too much time on the clock as they had in Game 2 (you gotta love the fact that LeBron's only strategy on the final play of regulation was either get fouled or lose the game), then the sheer anger on the no-call to end regulation. The back and forth pace of overtime, the final play/lebron's half-court heave seeming to take a half hour to unfold and then the sigh of relief/pure joy after the miss.
When Game 6 became determined, it was an indescribable feeling. I could say it was the thrill of finally watching a team of mine close in a big spot after the heartbreak that has been continuous since October 2006, but it's a lot deeper than that.
Over the last few months I've dealt with the detoriating health of my father, one of my grandmothers battling breast and bone cancer and the passing of my other grandmother, so it's been a nice distraction. Being able to immerse myself for 2-3 hours every other night for the last 2 months and forget the chaos of my life has been a welcome element. Each of the playoff games were experiences, you rode the highs and whethered the lows. And yes, if the Mets had gone on a roller-coaster run like this, I probably would’ve had an ulcer. Despite them falling short of the ultimate goal, they rank just behind the '02 Bucs and '99 Mets as my favorite team of all-time.
Sure, there are plenty of what-ifs that pundits and Magic fans alike will debate as to what kept them from a winning a championship, but that's not what this is about. Until last season, the Magic hadn't won a playoff series since 1996. Now, should the window already be closed, armchair quarterbacking is certainly allowed, but I think this team has staying power.
Dwight Howard dedicated himself throughout the playoffs to making his free throws and the misses at the of Game 4 aside, shot nearly 70% at the line. You don't think he's going to absolutely kill himself the next 3 and a half months to get himself some post moves and change the opponent's defensive schemes next season? I sure do. You can look at his Finals Game 5 no-show if you want, but Rashard Lewis silenced those who called him overpaid over the span of these last 2 months, hitting nearly every big shot. Jameer Nelson, who will be conviently blamed for the Finals loss, had finally figured it out when he went down with the shoulder injury in February. Most importantly, the front office is willing to go all-out to keep Hedo Turkoglu to keep the contending core intact, something one of the prior regimes half-heartedly attempted to do with Shaq (who has gone back to enemy status with his recent sour grapes tweeting).
Some can dwell on the loss to the Lakers, but that would be dismissing all the accomplishments leading up to that. In 1995, we expected them to win and were were stunned when the Rockets embarassed them on the biggest stage. This time around is different, we have not heard the last of this team as a championship contender. I hope as Magic fans move further away from this moment in the years to come, we look at this not as an opportunity lost, but a 2-month thrill ride that none of us will ever forget.
As Magic fans continue to bask in the afterglow of the stunning (to everyone except Magic fans such as myself who knew the boys in blue had flexed their muscle against Cleveland over the past 3 years) over the Cavaliers, the usual noise from bitter Celtic and Cavs fans about the bandwagon fans infiltrating Amway Arena can be heard. While I will have none of that, here's a list of things for the Magic fans who deserve an NBA title:
- If you had a life-size Shaq cut-out as a kid or bought the size 22 Shaq shoes even if you were better off wearing flippers.
- If you started wearing goggles all the time because you thought Horace Grant was awesome.
-While Kenny Smith is an integral part of the best NBA studio show, his shot against the Magic in the 1995 Finals still makes you crings (same goes for Robert Horry). Thank you TNT for having him re-create that Tuesday night.
- You remember exactly where you were when you heard Shaq skipped town....and a little part of you died that day.
- While they probably wouldn't start for most teams, Darrell Armstrong and Bo Outlaw are legends.
- Lil' Penny is the puppet Kobe and LeBron wishes they could be.
- Deep down, you still hold a little bit of resentment towards the Milwaukee Bucks for beating the Heart and Hustle team of 2000 on the final day of the season to knock them out of the playoffs.
-You know that the Magic would've beaten the Lakers in the finals once in this decade with a core of T-Mac, Grant Hill and Tim Duncan. *sigh*
- David Vaughn, Brian Evans, Johnny Taylor, Courtney Alexander, Steven Hunter, Jeryl Sasser, Curtis Borchardt, Reece Gaines are not just NBDL legends....they're first round draft picks since 1996.
- Fran Vazquez...'nuff said.
- From 2001-2003, you always got to the set for the 4th quarter to see what T-Mac was gonna do next.
- You also know that Magic management surronded him with Pat Burke, Jeryl Sasser, Olumide Oyedeji, Andrew DeClerq, Ryan Humphrey, Patrick Ewing and Shawn Kemp's bloated carcasses, Chris Whitney and Don Reid.....yet it's his fault he's never been out of the 1st round. Well, at least those three years were excusable.
- You know the rules....no touching the railings at the O-Rena.
- You caught a stub from that mini-blimp thing.
- You've been this close to catching a t-shirt at least 3 times.
- When Paul Porter says staaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnd and cheer.....you shout "YOUR ORLANDOOOOOOOOOOO MAGICCCCCCCCCCCCCC!!!!!!!!" right back at him.
- You kept watching even with John Weisbrod and Steve Francis prominently involved
- You KNEW Jameer Nelson would be a star.
- You remember that Darko Milicic wasn't half bad.
- You were thrilled when Billy Donovan took the money and ran back to mediocrity and bandwagon jumpers in Jortville.
-Most of all, you'll shed a tear when the O-Rena closes next season. Hopefully with a 2009 NBA Champions banner flying from the rafters.
This run is for those of us who know these all too well.
By now, you've heard everybody wax poetic about the epic 7- game series between the Bulls and Celtics and where it stands amongst the all-time list of playoff series. Without all the usual palaver, here are, in my opinion, the 10 best playoff series of the last 25 years:
10. 2005 West Semis: Phoenix over Dallas in 6
This was the year of the coming out party for The :07 Seconds or Less Era and never was it more apparent than in this series. Under then interim coach Avery Johnson, the elements of NellieBall were still in effect, as neither team scored less than 102 points in any of the 6 games.
Also in full effect was Steve Nash's F You to the Mavs for letting him walk the previous summer. He had 3 30+ point games in the series including a 48-pointer in Game 4 and 39 in the Game 6 OT clincher including a 3-pointer to force OT in the final seconds of regulation.
Unfortunate side of this series was Joe Johnson's eye injury early in the series which kept him out of the West Finals against the Spurs which the Suns would lose in 5. The 05-08 Suns rank atop the list of "What If?" teams.
9. 1989 East 1st Round: Chicago over Cleveland in 5
Each game decided by single digits, the final two decided by a combined 4 points and of course this.....
8. 2002 East Finals: New Jersey over Boston in 6
Sort of forgotten in the shuffle of the blockbuster that was the West finals, this one had some mothers too.
There was of course the Celtics' memorable 24-point 2nd half comeback in game for a 94-90 victory which, until last year, was Paul Pierce's defining moment in Boston. Two days later on Memorial Day (the day after the Lakers did nearly the same), the Celtics came back from 14 down in the 4th to tie the game, but Lucious Harris hit two free throws in the waning moments and neither Pierce nor Tony Battie could convert to tie.
The Nets would take Games 5 and 6, the latter including a mini 4th quarter rally of their own to put the bow on one of the most improbable turnarounds in NBA history.
7. 1990 West Semifinals: Portland over San Antonio in 7
As you'll see later, having a Game 7 go to overtime certainly helps your case.
The heroics of Clyde Drexler and a thin Rod Strickland doing his best Damon Jones impression for the spurs seals the win for Portland, who would advance to their first of 2 NBA Finals appearences in 3 seasons.
6. 1987 East Finals: Boston over Detroit in 7
A Game 7 decided by 3 points and of course......
"Annnnnnnd......Now there's a steal by Bird! Underneath to DJ who lays it in!!...Right at one second left!! What a play by Bird! Bird stole the inbounding pass, laid it up to DJ, and DJ laid it up and in, and Boston has a one-point lead with one second left! OH, MY, THIS PLACE IS GOING CRAZY!!!"
5. 1993 East Finals: Chicago over New York in 6
While the Knicks would get over an MJ-less Chicago bunch the next season, this was the peak of the rivalry.
The two had faced off in a 7-game semifinal the year before and the Knicks revamped the roster during the offseason solely to top the budding dynasty. They would take the first 2 games at home, including John Starks' poster of Air Jordan and Horace Grant. The Bulls returned the favor at Chicago Stadium including Jordan going off for 54 on Memorial Day in Game 4. While the series progressed, the allegations of Jordan's gambling habits made their way into the media.
Game 5 was a back and forth epic that culminated in the Bulls swatting Charles Smith several times under the basket in the final moments as the Bulls snapped the Knicks' 27-game winning streak at Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks were still mathematically alive in Game 6, but for all intents and purposes, after the Bulls stunned the New York crowd 2 nights earlier, it was over.
4. 2000 West Finals: Lakers over Portland in 7
Not only a great series, but altered the fortunes of two franchises in dramatic fashion.
The Lakers took a 3-1 lead in the series, only to have the Blazers led by the veteran leadership of Scottie Pippen and the fire of Rasheed Wallace, storm back to tie the series and led 75-60 in the 4th quarter of Game 7 with just under 10 minutes to play. What happened next, changed two teams forever.
Portland went 1 for its next 18 as the Lakers outscored the Blazers 29-9 to finish.
Consider this: If Portland makes even two shots during that fatal stretch, maybe the Shaq/Kobe dynasty never happens. Instead, even Met fans consider that fourth quarter by the Blazers to be one of the purest chokes in sports history. Though I suppose Steve Smith being Shaqtastically hip-checked on the way to the hoop late and not having Dick Bavetta call it didn't help matters either.
With the exception of the '05 rebuilding and first-round losses to Phoenix in 06 (an epic series in its own regard) and '07, the Lakers have been a title contender every year of the decade. Portland has only just begun to recover.
3. 2009 East 1st Round: Boston over Chicago in 7
This series had it all: The coming out party of Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo going toe to toe with the rookie and just about anybody else wearing red, Ben Gordon and Ray Allen having their own version of Home Run derby, Joakim Noah finally earning his keep in the NBA (and thankfully losing), two teams matching shot for shot and making one big play after another, two racous crowds that didn't need gimmicks to get wild, the Celtics valiantly defending their crown with pride minus their best player AND an unexpected Game 7 hero.
Side note To Kevin Garnett: we get it, you're intense and you can drop more 4-letter bombs than the average VH1 reality show, it's looking less and less like you care that much and more and more like you have an act to uphold. And did we see you mimicking running through the phone book the other night? Quit while you're ahead.
2. 2002 West Finals: Lakers over Sacramento in 7
Games 4 through 7 all decided by 6 points or less. Game 4 decided on Robert Horry's buzzer-beater to cap a 24-point rally over the course of 2 halves. Mike Bibby made the game-winning shot with 8 seconds remaining in Game 5. That Game in a moment. The finale featured four of the best words in sports: Game Seven in overtime. Ultimately, the Lakers would flex their championship muscle and pull away in OT on the road but......
The only reason this series isn't #1 is because of Game 6. Without the alleged fix, that epic Game 7 may have never happened. If you don't believe me, check out Parts 5, (especially) 6 and 7 of The Greatest Tragedy In Sports on youtube.
1. 2006 West Semifinals; Dallas over San Antonio in 7
Game 7 going to overtime was just the icing on the cake for this series.
Game 1 was decided on a missed final shot by Dallas, the Mavs won Game 3 by 1, Game 4 in OT. Game 5 went to the Spurs by 1 and featured a scrum in which Jason Terry gave Michael Finley the business, which cost him the Game 6 defeat to the San Antone 91-86.
The deciding game saw Dallas race out to a 20-point lead, only to have the Spurs take a 104-101 lead on a Manu Ginobili lead for the first lead of the night with 32 seconds and the prospect of a double choke (a 3-1 lead and the Game 7 lead) adding to the notion that Cuban's Employees couldn't close seemed to ring truer than ever. Dirk then went hard to the hole and converted a 3-point play after Manu commited a puzzling foul( just think how close the Spurs were to a 5-peat if not for 2 freak plays). The OT was all Dallas and for for a few weeks, put the postseason demons to rest.
Honorable Mention: Phoenix-LA 2006, Indiana-New Jersey 2002, Toronto-Philadelphia 2001, New York-Miami 2000, New York-Miami 1999, Utah-Houston 1997, Indiana-New York 1994, Seattle-Phoenix 1993, Boston-Atlanta 1988 and New York-Detroit 1984.
After the Magic blew a 14-point 4th quarter lead in Game 1 and nearly did the same in a close Game 2 victory, much has been made of Stan Van Gundy's composure under pressure, considering Shaq criticized Van Gundy as a "Master of Panic" and "when it gets time for his team to go into the postseason and do certain things, he will let them down because of his panic."
While "Master of Panic" is the best nickname since Don King accused Jose Canseco of being a "practitioner of rat thinkism", you have to wonder if it is entirely justified.
Here's how Van Gundy's post-season track record goes:
2004- Led by an up and coming star named Dwyane Wade and the occasionally interested Lamar Odom, the Heat win a 7-game first round series against the Hornets that made you go (yawn). The Heat ultimately fall in the East semis in 6 games to an Indiana team that had the NBA's best record and went on to lose to the eventual champion Pistons.
2005- Led by a motivated Shaq, the Heat grab home-court advantage in the playoffs and lead the Eastern Conference Finals 3-2 when Wade suffers a ribcage injury that keeps him out of Game 6 and hinders his performance in Game 7. Also worth noting that the Heat were leading Game 7 with just over 2 minutes to play when Damon Jones reared his ugly head.
November 2005- Van Gundy is fired to spend more time with his family *cough cough* Pat Riley got the itch to coach again.
2008- Magic cruise past Toronto in the first round in 5. Lose a highly-contested 5-game set to Detroit in the East Semis.
Since he was hired in the summer of 2007 after Eddie Munster Donovan robbed Otis Smith at gunpoint, the Magic have won 52 and 59 games respectively. Before the season-ending injury to Jameer Nelson, the Magic were a very real threat to win the 1st title in franchise history and may very well still.
Since arriving in Orlando, SVG has made the Magic a much more offensive-oriented team, using the perimeter skills of Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and (credit to Otis I must say) Courtney Lee. Gone are the 81-80 staples of the rigid Brian Hill Part II Era.
In the series against the Pistons, the Magic lost 3 games in the final minutes. Game 2 was lost partly due to a clock malfunction that would change momentum, Game 4 thanks to multiple brain-lapses by Keyon Dooling (also an assailant in Miami's Game 7 collapse) and Game 5 due to several shots by Hedo falling short. While you could argue that Stan may not have been as calm as Flip Saunders (who I argue was just plain dense), I think this particular Magic group needed to go through that experience to become the contender they are now.
As the season has gone on, the rap on SVG has been that he cannot find anything positive to say about his team, surprisingly Dwight Howard in particular. Now far be it be for me to confirm because I'm not in the timeout huddles, but when Marcin Gortat says things like "His gestures make us nervous out there,", that doesn't really help to dispel the notion now, does it? When it appears that you're a bigger complainer than yours truly, that's not good. The concern being that if he continues to grate, berate and be just irate, this team will eventually tune out whatever good he may have. This isn't exactly true beacuse Superman has it down pat....
I still contend that he was the best fit for this team. Given the weapons available, Stan has gotten the most out of this group. I fully believe that under Eddie Munster Donovan, this is at best a 43-39 team.
Don't get me wrong, Sunday night wasn't exactly Stan's finest hour, but I can't put the onus squarely on him. Firing three after three and giving the Sixers quick outlet opportunities to trim the lead didn't help matters. Not being able to secure A REBOUND on the defensive end did this them in.
With the weakened Celtics looming and the dominance the Magic have shown in recent years over Cleveland, the NBA Finals are well within reach. If they fall short, it'll be because of those things amongst others (Memphis Tigers-like FT%, anyone?) not because their coach had a cross between bitter beer face and John Mayer when he sings.
They say as a coach you should never let them see you sweat a la Phil Jackson, but to each coach his own personality. Might I remind you, this is the Van Gundy family we're talking about here. Jeff wasn't exactly Willie Randolph on the bench.
Now to say I like Stan Van, warts and all isn't fair, because that seems like an indictment on him, but it certainly wouldn't hurt him to have a Paxil and smile before Game 3.
You couldn't blame Mets fans for being as cynical about the 2009 season as the American public is about the current economy. But after a winter of second-guessing, what ifs, self-loathing, trades and signings, we're ready to go.
The main issue addressed in the off-season was the downfall of the last 2 Septembers. As big as the signings of K-Rod and J.J. Putz were, the execution of Scott Schoeneweis, Aaron Heilman, Joe Smith, Duaner Sanchez and Luis Ayala were just as huge.
Now I could rehash their greatest hits and how they almost drove me to raging alcoholism, but it's a new year.
The big knock on K-Rod is that his arm is due to go Dave Dravecky after 62 saves in 76 appearences last season. I would point out however that he did not have a single 4+ out save last season. Also, it's worth noting that giving K-Rod 3 years/$37 mil at 27 is vastly different than giving Billy Wagner 4 years/$ 43 mil at 34. The fact that Omar was able to shave 2 years and $38 mil off the initial figures Rodriguez was looking at last July is quite impressive. It also makes the Putz trade even more brilliant in hindsight as they have an all-star caliber closer as a set-up man and ace in the hole should Frankie's arm fail him.
It's a little unnerving that the Mets are going into battle this season attempting to take down the lefty-heavy Phillies with just one lefty reliever, who I might add has exactly ONE pitch, but yet I do not fear. The lone bright spot in the tire fire that was the bullpen was Brian Stokes. While the term "crossover reliever" is very LaRussa-esque and makes me cringe, Stokes fits the term to a T as he was effecttive against hitters on both sides of the plate. If 2008 was more of a trend than an accident, not only does that give Jerry a reliable option against lefties (let's face it, Feliciano has been a crap shoot for a year and a half now), it also gives him their 7th inning option.
The rotation is obviously set at the top by The Left Arm Of God and potential in the spots behind him.
Mike Pelfrey showed promise in the 2nd half and become the most sure thing behind Johan and Delgado, but had a shaky spring and the big concern is how he will hold up after pitching 200 innings for the first time in his career, my gut feeling says he'll be fine. When it clicks, it clicks and Pelfrey seemed to develop a confidence last year that we hadn't seen before, the belief that he belonged as a major league starter. When you have the confidence to match the stuff, you're ready to go.
The main reason I believe the Mets signed Oliver Perez this offseason was the sole belief that better for him be on their side if/when he gets it than with somebody else. I'd say he's due to break through this year, but I said that last year too, so search me.
John Maine could be the usual solid #3 if he's healthy. It's a must that he develops his curveball in order for him to get his pitch count down, which is the only thing that has inhibited him as a starter.
Only real changes to the lineup are Luis Castillo tentaively hitting 8th and Daniel Murphy winning the starting job in left. I'm a big fan of what Murph did down the stretch last season. He won't go for a lot of power, but in this lineup, he doesn't have to. His role is to be on base to set up Wright/Delgado/Beltran, not to mention with the quality pitch selection and ability to go opposite field is a huge plus as a #2 hitter with Reyes on base.
I don't expect Carlos Delgado to unleash the '03 version of himself as he did for the final 2 and a half months last season, but a .272/27/96 shouldn't be too much of a reach.
This is David Wright's year to become the leader that we've been waiting for him to be, both on the field and in the clubhouse. True, he may have caught a little too much heat for the strikeout against the Cubs on the final Wednesday (myself included), but more than ever this team needs that Jeter-like influence and Wright has that ability, it's time for him to flex that muscle.
Of course, there is the dirty little secret that should all else fail, the small-market teams will be shedding salary like it's going out of style at the trade deadline. Damn, I feel like a Yankee fan just talking like that. Economic disaster.....catch the excitement!
The New York media has already started the rumblings of Jerry Manuel being fired if the Mets do not make the playoffs again, which to me is propestorous. If the bullpen doesn't trip over itself last year, we'd be talking about one of the greatest turnaround jobs in baseball history. Jerry was able to bring some sense of stability to a team that had been missing it for a long time. With a structured bullpen seemingly in palce (key word: seemingly), Manuel doesn't have to spend the entire game wondering how he eventually has to juggle the pen. Given the circumstances, I think Jerry handled himself quite well, which makes me all the more confident in what he'll do this season.
Prediction: uhhhhhhhhhhhh, you really don't expect me to do that?
My blog name you ask? Well, it comes from the greatest collapse in baseball history whose fate belongs to my New York Mets in September 2007 when they were up 7 games with 17 games to play. I am an aspiring announcer (play-by-play and public address) with neverending opinions.
I am a fan of the New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Orlando Magic and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
