Wednesday, April 27, 2011

4/27: NBA Blowouts, NFL Nonsense, etc.

Greetings...
  • Orlando 101, Atlanta 76... Well, I saw this one coming... this particular cast of characters for the Hawks is prone to not showing up when it's not a "must-win" spot and this was no exception... they played like a team who went into game 5 thinking, "we'll just win Game 6 at home".. Josh Smith led the way with 22 and 11 but shot just 7 of 18, Joe Johnson was a putrid 2 of 12 from the field for just 5 points, Jamal Crawford posted a -30 +/- for the game, and even Al Horford shot just 3 of 9... It's not as if Orlando's box score was impressive either... Dwight had just 8 points and 8 rebounds, but as soon as Orlando went +10 with Dwight on the bench in the 1st quarter, it was going to be a long night... what does it all mean? I'm not sure... The Hawks are still "in the driver's seat" but would anyone be surprised if they laid down at home on Thursday? I wouldn't be...
  • Chicago moves on... nothing really to see here... a 27-point blowout.... really the only takeaway is that Derrick Rose's ankle looks to be fine, and now he'll have some additional time off waiting for the Hawks/Magic winner... done...
  • LA 106, NO 90... This game was closer than the score... New Orleans was within striking distance til the end, but couldn't make that big run in the 2nd half.. Paul was outstanding again with 20 and 12, and the Hornets got good games from Belinelli and Ariza, but the difference between Game 4 and Game 5 was the lack of production from the frontline... Landry, Okafor, and Gray combined for just 13 points and only 15 rebounds between them, and they got manhandled up front... LA had 6 guys in double-figures led by Bean's 19... any questions about Kobe's ankle were likely answered when he posterized Emeka Okafor, but he assuaged them again with a lefty dunk in the 2nd half as well... I have some concerns about Pau Gasol, who looks like he did in the first Boston finals right now (not a good thing), but Bynum is playing extremely well, and covering it up....
Non-NBA...
  • The lockout is... over?... well, by rule anyway... in a weird twist, a judge ruled to basically end the lockout but the NFL seemed to be unprepared to deal with this.... Watch TV if you want to hear more... it's EVERY where...
  • Warning... Hockey mention.... I only do this because Vancouver avoided the colossal embarassment of blowing a 3-0 lead in this series by the skin of their teeth... Luongo was apparently dominant in Game 7 after being overly shaky in the 3 previous games... I just report the news...
  • The Braves got a comfortable 8-2 win last night behind Jair Jurrjens and a complete game... one night after the bullpen was taxed a bit (although Fredi Gonzalez inexplicably left Kimbrel on the bench and allowed Martinez to hit/bunt AND implode on the mound, sigh), Jurrjens gave them a rest with a very effective complete game... nice to see 8 runs in Petco Park as well...
What to watch for on Wednesday...
  • Sixers @ Heat - TNT 7:00 - I'm not really interested in this too much.. but Miami looks to close out Philly in 5 here...
  • Grizz @ Spurs - NBATV 8:30 - The best game of the night ends up on NBA-TV.... interesting... anyway, I think San Antonio responds and gets a win at home here... Game 6 in Memphis may be another story...
  • Nuggets @ Thunder - TNT 9:30 - Here's an idea Russ... Don't take 30 shots with Kevin Durant on the court unless you're absolutely feeling it (hint: he wasn't)...
  • Braves @ Padres - Hanson vs. Latos - SportSouth 3:30 - Pretty awesome pitching matchup in the afternoon...
  • A's @ Angels - Ross vs. Haren - ESPN 7:00 - Lost in all the Jered Weaver love has been how awesome Dan Haren has been for LAA....
Enjoy...

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