Major trades dissapoint in NBA playoffs

So far the only 1 blockbuster NBA trade has paid off - Pau Gasol to the Lakers. Even though this trade was more like a freebie it has clearly been the best trade of the year. Gasol has had a huge impact on the dominant looking Lakers. The shaggy caveman is playing awesome. Kyle Korver to the Jazz is probably the second most valuable trade so far.

Jason Kidd has not turned the Mavericks around as anticipated and Shaq to the Suns is turning out to not be so great of a plan after all. The Suns brought him to Phoenix to help beat the Spurs. He is slowing down Tim Duncan so maybe his is doing what they wanted but I think they gave up too much in Shawn Marion to make that trade worth it.

Even though these trades are definitely not busts in my mind since the West is so competitive but it does put major question marks as to the direction for next season for the teams that pulled the trigger.

Excuses for the Rockets

The Rockets are done. The Jazz have defeated them twice, in Houston . Its going back to Utah for 2 games and they aren't going to make it back to Houston . Their only ammo left is excuses. Yao is gone, Rafer Alston is gone, Kirilenko flopped… blah, blah, blah.

I will give them the first excuse. Yao Ming is arguably their best player. He is sorely missed. This series would be very different with him in the middle; however, Utah would still win. He might mean a couple of wins in the series, but without him the Rockets will be done in 4 games.

Excuse number 2. The way the Rockets have talked about Rafer Alston the past few days you would think he is on the NBA 50 greatest players list. He will make an impact but that will mean nothing to the outcome of the game.

Kirilenko did over exaggerate, okay even flop, but that wasn't even close to the worse flop in the game. Not only was it not even a level 4 flop on the 5 point flop scale (5 being extreme fake), but Jackson took that shot a couple seconds after the call. Play was stopping. And besides that play did not cost the game for the Rockets. Not even close.

Keep the excuses coming Rockets because that's all you got left.

The Atlanta Hawks new uniforms

I know this is old news but watching the Celtics Hawks game last night made me appreciate Atlanta's new jerseys. Those old ones have had their day.

The new Hawks jerseys aren't my all time favorite but a definite upgrade.

NBA Playoffs

The West is crazy. Never before have the playoff teams been so close together. The top 9 teams in the West all could have over 50 wins this season. I believe the record is 6 teams with 50 wins. It is really amazing how tough the West is. In reality any of the top 8 teams could be ranked 1st or 8th.
Today the New Orleans Hornets were the first Western Conference team to secure a playoff spot - and with only 5 games left to play. Unheard of. That is crazy. Already 7 Eastern Conference teams have secured a spot. Each day the positions and potential match ups change. It will really come down to the last day of the season until everything is set in stone. And then starts the real madness. Never before has a playoff been so close where a any team has a legitimate chance of winning the Western Conference. Crazy.
I feel bad for the 9th team who will be left out. Right now it is between Dallas, Denver and Golden State. Chances are it will be Golden State sitting at home which is ridiculous considering they would be the 4th best team in the East. How can a 31-44 Indiana team still be alive for a playoff spot in one conference and a 46-30 Golden State struggling to make the playoff in another conference?
The NBA should take the top 16 teams and line them up for the playoffs. Regardless of the conference. That would be fairest.