After the Ball

This year's mid-season showcase has come and gone, so now, enjoy a few all-star game thoughts:
1) Ray Allen deserved the MVP (if only for hitting those three clutch triples down the stretch), but thanks to the brilliant idea of letting the fans vote, LeBron James (who had worthy stats) snagged it.

2) Thanks to the pinkie injury, I am now able to maintain that the East won the all-star game (and LeBron won the MVP) only because Kobe was sidelined for all but three minutes.

3) Doug Collins, pre-game: “As soon as everyone gets healthy, the Cavs will be the team to beat in the East. I know about Boston and Detroit, but LeBron is too good.”

Doug Collins, in-game: “Chauncey Billups is so good, he is definitely returning to the MVP form from the finals a few years ago. He is the reason why Detroit will be the team to beat in the East this post-season.”

Wow. Must I elaborate?

Now, second half thoughts…

4) I am really not sure what to make of the New Orleans Hornets. Early on, I thought they were a fluke. Then, they maintained a blistering pace, so I thought they might actually have something. Next, they dropped a couple easy games, so I assumed they were coming back down to earth. Now, they have picked the pace back up and are still leading the West. What gives? Do I trust them or not? Thanks to a statistic provided by TNT, I now have an answer I plan on sticking with for the rest of the season: the Hornets are good, but not great. My rationale? New Orleans is 13-0 in overtime games. At first glance, you might think “wow, they must be something!” But think about it. One basket here or there and that 36-15 record could easily be 23-28. Maybe I am being too harsh, but I want the team to prove that they can pull those close games out come playoff time. And besides, 13-0 in overtime means you have luck on your side. Can that luck actually last all season long? We’ll just have to see.

5) Finally, if I could get a little mushy, I’d like to supply a link to a USA Today article: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/lakers/2008-02-17-Bryant_N.htm
It caught my eye due to the mention of Kobe Bryant, but I think it is worth reading just to see how much energy everyone in the NBA put forth during the league’s all-star visit to the Big Easy. Who says the NBA has an image problem? Maybe the white majority has a racist problem.