ESPN First Take: We're Back!

[IamQuailman]

ESPN first Take is about to begin. Once again, we ask for the respect of all of the GMs to not respond until the show closes.

Jay Crawford: It's been a long NBA season, with the regular season already drawing to a close soon enough. And just in time to discuss the ups and downs of the season before the insanity of the playoffs, we once again have both our beloved co-hosts back: Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith.

Skip Bayless: Yes, my Skippers, I'm back! It's great to be back on air! Just because you haven't seen me on the show all season doesn't mean I haven't been watching all the developments taking place in the NBA. Despite all that off-line drama involving yours truly, I am back today to discuss some pretty popular topics. Oh, and trust me, I'm going to go OFF.

Stephen A. Smith: Don't go off too much... that's what got you in that slander law suit to begin with. Let's try to stay on the air for the rest of the season.

Skip Bayless: Stephen A., do you have a broken skull? Honestly, I wouldn't doubt it. It's been going around this year in the NBA like the plague. Everything I say on here is to speak truths to the masses, and if some of the recipients of my constructive criticism can't take the heat, then get out of Miami. I'm here to keep people honest and fair, first and foremost Stephen A.

Stephen A. Smith: Well speaking of keeping people honest and fair, that brings us to the first topic we want to discuss. And I know you have quite a bit to say, so I'll let you speak first and then add to it. Without further ado, we bring you our first topic...

Tanking

[BallSoHard]

Skip Bayless: First off, I want to tell everyone how excited I am to be back, and you'd better buckle up because Stephen A. will be the sacrificial lamb, and he will be silenced when i'm done. This first topic is a hot topic and that's tanking as Stephen A pointed out. This is a touchy topic because how do you prove intent with teams and their mind sets. What's the difference between tanking and rebuilding? It can be a very fine line.

Jay Crawford: So What is the difference between the two Skip?

Skip Bayless Well, to me it's simple. And on our last show, I warned the commissioner and the league about the Nuggets already on the path to tanking by fireselling their team to really not be able to compete in the league to hopefully land them one of the big 3 from this draft. the main difference is not making an effort to improve for the present and the future in order to gain a higher probability of landing a higher pick in the draft, and as we can see from the Nuggets, Magic, and the team no one is talking about, the Maverics, it's working. I was scared for the integritity of the league, as i stated last first take, until the commissioner finally spoke out about it last week. I'm glad he came out and made the statement, but I won't be convinced until these teams are sanctioned. There is a delecate balance to note though. If the sanction are handed out, I think we could see 2 out of 3 of these GMs step down and leave their teams. If nothing's done though this could leave a stain on the game like the steroid era left on baseball.

Skip Bayless: There are a lot of teams to be commended for their effort though in theses times. The Heat, the Pacers, the Hawks and the Timberwolves have all kept a lot of their young talent and are letting the chips fall where they may, and for that, i applaud them.


Jay Crawford: Stephen A. ?

[IamQuailman]

Stephen A. Smith: I know we usually disagree on most things, like vinegar and water. But once in a while worlds collide, and usually the antagonist agrees with and joins forces with the protagonist to defeat a common enemy. Like Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader taking out the Emperor, both you Skip as Luke Skywalker and I as Dark Vader need to take out tanking, the Emperor. As Herm Edwards has recently said, "You play to win the game".

Stephen A. Smith: You may not win. You may flat out suck. But you play to win, regardless. When you play to lose and play for a better chance to look good in the future, what does that tell your fans? What does that tell your players? Coaches are supposed to put their players in a position to win games, nurture their growth. But what have we seen this season? High draft picks that should be excelling playing 3rd fiddle to some vet min scrub. Don't get me wrong; those scrubs are getting a chance. But how DARE those coaches stunt the growth of their own players. How DARE those GMs allow that kind of action to represent their organization. We have seen coaches that have devised the worst possible gameplans and STUCK WITH THEM despite losing. No sign of improvement or change. What does that teach these young players? Respect for the game? I think not. It is an embarrassment to the organization, the fans, the city they represent, and the NBA product that is portray worldwide.

Jay Crawford: Stephen A, it appears you dislike tanking.

Stephen A. Smith: You're damn right, I do. Now like Skip said, there are teams out there that took the high road. They had high hopes for their seasons and made moves, that they felt, were in the right direction. Sources close to the Timberwolves situation even told me that when engaging in the trade with the Magic earlier in the season, the Timberwolves GM TURNED DOWN his own pick in return. A) Because he expected big things out of his players and B) He felt it would look bad if his team didn't excel and he traded back for his own pick. That's the kind of integrity this league needs. Not trading best players for a bag of cheez-its.

Skip Bayless: Do you think they should be sactioned?

Stephen A. Smith: Yes, in fact, I do. Flat out. Although Denver has adjusted his game strategy and his rosters and played his best players, the damage done in Free Agency, intentionally signing inept players, was enough. The Magic? Their own pick? Yes. No questions asked. But I think they should be allowed to keep the Wolves pick. As for the Mavericks? Sactioned and I would go so far to call for the GM's resignation.

Skip Bayless: Wow, Stephen A. You are bringing a tear to my eye.

[BallSoHard]

Skip Bayless: You know, the worst part about the Orlando Magic is their blatent lie to their fans and their peers when they've been asked by reports repeatedly if they were tanking for LeBron James sweepstakes and they've repatedly said no. The telling sign though was when the Magic actually traded for their own pick back in this draft because they knew they were going to tank. I know I said it's hard to prove intent, but I think that would hold up in the court of law; that coupled with their PATHETIC free agency run, and the trading of Antwan Jamison TO A DIVISION RIVAL, who's only 26 and could be the leader of any rebuilding project, was flat out blatent.

Stephen A.: Preech on my brotha.

Skip Bayless: And then you have the Dallas Mavericks general manager, who apparently has been taking the former Warriors GM, Brian Eman's school of GMing, and has totally let go of the wheel. He trades Paul Pierce, who's 25, a champion, and wanted to be a Maverick for life to the Seattle SuperSonics. I don't get it and i'm worried.

Jay Crawford: Well there you have it hell has frozen over once agin and Stephen A and Skip whole-heartedly agree on something. Now on to the next topic: League awards. So Skip, you can lead off, who's you MVP, DPOY, and Rookie of the year, MIP and Best GM?

Skip Bayless: Great topic and I have a lot to say about it.

Stephen A.: And you had to state that? Skip Bayless had to state he has a lot to say about something. SOMEBODY BETTER CALL THE FBI the CIA. ALERT THE NATIONAL GUARD BECAUSE SOMETHING PECULIAR IS HAPPENING AND IT NEEDS TO BE STOPPED. Please Skip. Go on.

Skip Bayless: Are you done? That's rhetorical, Stephen A. because anytime you come to First Take to debate me, you're DONE. ENOUGH from you. Now on to my in season awards. For Defensive Player of the Year, there are a lot of guys that deserve recognition: Marcus Camby, Theo Ratliff, Zo, Antionio McDyess, and from the guards you have Jason Kidd, who has signle-handedly kept the Spurs relevant. But the person I think Deserves it is Shaquille Oneal and hear me out. Shaq, has a burden all of those guys don't which is carrying his team on offense, and it's because of being able to carry the burdens of being an offensive and defensive stalwort which is why he deserves this. I think Zo does this as well to a lesser degree.


Jay Crawford: How about Rookie of the Year?

Skip Bayless: Wow, can I pick Stephen A.'s whole team to win this award? Because all of these rookies have been majorly impressive and have lead this Knicks team from the cellar to the playoffs. I guess if i had to pick one, it'd be Amare Stoudamire. His explosiveness has been a breath of fresh aiur for New York, and with the Bulls essentially giving up, this conference could be theirs in 2-3 years.


Skip Bayless: For MVP I think it's a really tough race to call. On one hand you have perrenial MVP candidate Tim Duncan, but I don't think he Skipdeserves it because him team isn't doing very well. Then you have the two dominant Centers in the League, Alonzo Mourning, who's on the better team, and Shaq, who's the better player and is putting up OUTLANDISH numbers, but My MVP is Chris Webber, who is the leader on a historically good Celtics team. This is a team i've picked to go far in the past and Chris Webber really having a season that'd make Karl Malone blush.


Jay Crawford: Alright we'll Let Stephen A. respond and lead off with MIP and Most Improved Player

[IamQuailman]

Stephen A Smith: First off, DPOY. I love that you say Shaq. You know he's my boy, but I'm going to go with Marcus Camby. The guy is playing outlandish basketball right now. He's a monster presence in the paint, rebounding like a fiend. On top of that, did you know he's averaging 4 blocks per game? FOUR BLOCKS! You know the last time you averaged 4 blocks per game, Skip? When you played Jenga. Took you an average of 4 blocks before you knocked everything over. Camby is going nuts and is the primary reason the 76ers are more than alive in the race for the Eastern crown despite the illegal attempted trade for McDyess and Courtney Alexander's departure last offseason.

Jay Crawford: Okay, but what about MIP? Who do you have?

Stephen A Smith: Can I say Camby again?! Hah... While he's drastically improved upon his numbers across the board including averaging 6 more points per game this season and 1.5 more blocks per game, I'm going to say the most improved player is by far Steve Francis.

Stephen A. Smith: He's taken his game to a whole new level this season. After last season when the Blazers were looking more like the Fizzlers, Steve Francis decided to work hard in the off-season to improve his game, and it showed. His stats are up across the board except in one column, turnovers. He's shooting over 46% from the field and 40% from the arch. Who is this guy?! On top of that he really stepped into the leadership role that he needed to. And he's ONLY 24 years old. To think that he'll keep getting better is a scary thought.

Jay Crawford: And GM of the Year?

Stephen A Smith: This is a toughy, as there have been many teams that made good moves to improve, and then many teams that made moves to become utterly dominant. The Knicks made a ton of moves last season and last off-season to acquire probably the best collection of young talent in the NBA... and here they are sitting pretty in the fight for a playoff spot in the East with a team of players mostly under 25 years old. But that's not my selection. I think for me it comes down between the Raptors, the Grizzlies, and the Celtics. The Celtics made the moves to get Gary Payton, keep their core together, and take it to another level. The Raptors made a blockbuster trade mid-season, trading away two star players in Mashburn and Stackhouse for a Superstar in Grant Hill and a starter in Doug Christie. Despite trading them, the Raptors maintained their stud trade acquisition from last season in Rasheed and overachieving point guard Nick Van Exel. In the ever-changing dynamics of the West, the Grizzlies decided to hold the fort and keep a good thing going. They developed their young talent in house and kept true to Memphis Grizzlies basketball.

Skip Bayless: Are you trying to say that there are 4 GMs of the year? God, you're more fickle than my mother!

Stephen A. Smith: No, Skip. Again jumping the gun. I hope you aren't always that quick, nom sayin'. ANYWAY, if I had to choose 1 GM to represent the GM of the year, I would go with the Toronto Raptors GM.

Jay Crawford: You sure you don't want to pick the Magic's, Nuggets', or Mavericks' GMs?

Stephen A. Smith: Jay, you sure are talking a lot on today's show. I liked you better last season.

Jay Crawford: Well, someone has to cut off Skip and make funny remarks. Onto our next segment: TRADES.

Jay Crawford: There have been a lot of trades go down this season, some good and some bad. What were your favorites? Which did you hate? Skip we know you have something good to say.

[IamQuailman]

Stephen A. Smith: Actually Jay, I'm going to let Skip rest his mouth for a few more minutes, and I'll start this topic off. There's a few trades that happened that I really loved. Obviously, the Celtics trading for Gary Payton was a trade that moved them from great to elite this season. I mean, their record speaks for itself. I thought losing Ziggy would hurt them, as he's a good defensive center. But Ostertag has really stepped in and filled that role beautifully! The Kings turned right around and then traded for Sam Cassell. Just great GMing right there and two great trades. Although, this begin part of the Mavericks firesale/tank-a-thon that we mentioned earlier in the show.

Stephen A Smith: There's the trade that I love/hate and it's the Warriors-Sonics trade. The Sonics decided to get something for nothing for Ratliff and Shareef. And he got something alright. He got Antonio McDyess, who was in high demand all season, to pair with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. But he also got probably the worst contract in the NBA in Ernest "What's a Basketball Court Cuz I've Never Seen One This Season" Brown. So props to the Warriors for making the move to drop that horrible contract that they signed in the offseason. This trade made the Warriors immediate contenders in the West, but only short term. We'll see what happens in the off-season.

Jay Crawford: What about trades you hated?

Stephen A. Smith: Obviously, we all know how I feel about the Jamison trade. So I won't go there again. Worst trade of the season, from an integrity perspective, although I don't blame the Sixers for taking it. Actually, I don't have 1 other particular trade that I hate so much as I hated this season the fact that many GMs didn't do their due diligence to make sure that trades would go through the first time around. If you are going to be a GM in the NBA, there's no excuse not to understand the rules of the game and how basic salary cap logic works. We saw many trades fall through because GMs couldn't be bothered with seeing if salaries matched. It's not that hard folks. Simple 'rithmetic!

Stephen A. Smith: On top of that, throughout the season, we saw trades that fell through because of other GMs pulling out. I understand that this is contract negotiation and better offers come about. But there were instances in this league where a deal was agreed upon, but one party decided to delay the trade a couple sims before pulling out. Some pundits may say "Well if a better offer is there, take it". But I say have integrity and if someone is about to make you an offer, tell them that that player is no longer available. Simple as that.

Jay Crawford: Skip, you've been pretty quiet. Do you have anything to add?

Skip Bayless: Actually, Stephen, why don't you call out who you are talking about? Always hiding behind a veil like some bride on wedding day.

Stephen A. Smith: Oh PLEASE. I've learned a little bit from your mistakes these past months, Skip. Rather not face a law suit. I like stay on-air.

Skip Bayless: You had no problem calling out other GMs earlier about tanking. What's the difference?

Jay Crawford: He's got a point, Stephen.

Stephen A. Smith: Will you shut up, Jay? I will not throw out the names of the Warriors GM or the Nets GM as examples of this. I just won't do it. Skip, your turn.

[BallSoHard]

Skip Bayless: Stephen A. I have a lot to say about what you just talked about concerning integrity of General Managers and the league. A lot of it's been discussed already from the tanking teams and the lack of integrity there, but I think you really have to separate what you're talking about here, and I want you to hear me out.

Skip Bayless:On one hand we have what you were talking about where a GM has verbally agreed on a deal and wants to see how things pan out before he sends in the paperwork to the league. I have no problem with team pulling out of deals like this, you wait a few games, and your team begins to take a new shape, and the direction you were going to go doesn't seem so great anymore. Nothing was submitted, and kudos for that GM for taking the time and not making a knee jerking reaction. Now, in doing that, you have a few risks. You risk injury, first and foremost, and if you're player is expiring without bird years, you really lose a lot of leverage, as we saw by the botched Nets/ Suns deal.

Skip Bayless: Then we have another scenario, where both GMs have verbally agree’ d on a deal, and then sent the paperwork into the league. This really TICKS ME OFF Stephen A. For one, these are general managers of teams. They should know the rules well enough, and for deals to fall through due to salary cap not matching is baffling. I know these GMs have tools to be able to calculate this and just aren’t using them. They waste the League office's time and reporters time, like you and I, and make us look foolish when the deal falls through. I think Antonio Mcdyess and Jermain Oneal have been traded, what 5 times each already? And Jermaine O'Neal is STILL on the same team.

Skip Bayless: In my opinion, if you agree to a deal with another GM, to the point of them sending paperwork through, if the deal falls through, then it should be renegotiated in GOOD FAITH for it to work. I am getting sick and tired of GMs erring on the side of making a better deal rather than their word meaning something. We had the VERY public exchange between the Lakers and Clippers, the Lakers and Nets, and even more recently with the Warriors and the Bucks and the Warriors and the Magic. There's a lot of bad blood in the league because of this, and that's not what the fans want to see. They want to see bad blood between players, not GMs.

Jay Crawford: How about the trades Skip, what trades did you like/ not like?

Skip Bayless: Well, first I want to talk about Stephen A's picks: The Gary Payton trade to the Celtics, which I think was a brilliant move FOR THE CELTICS. Then the Kings go out and get Sam Cassell. Now let's analyze this trade that my cohost just applauded for the Kings. The Kings got 1 2002 first round pick and a marginal Center, THEN Trade that pick AND another for a worse PG? STEPHEN A SMITH I AM DISAPOINTED IN YOU. The Kings GAVE UP a first rounder to get a worse PG. Stephen A., you can now start calling me THE PROFESSOR because I’ve been schooling you for years now.

Stephen A.: Puh Lease


Skip Bayless: Now onto my picks for the best trades. One is the trade that did not happen. The Suns almost acquiring the Nets 2 best players, Jermaine Oneal and Baron Davis for a high turnover PG, Andre Miller and the inept offensive Center Ben Wallace. What a great deal for the suns and I’m sure their teams "performance issues" down the stretch were really affected by this failed trade?

Stephen A: wait a minute, you call me out for my trade then you pick a trade that didn't go through? HIDE YO WIFE HIDE YO KIDS EVERYONE because I’m about to drop the hammer on Skip.

Skip Bayless: Stephen A, wait a minute, I’m not done.

Stephen A: Surprise Surprise

Skip Bayless: And by the looks of those noodle arms, you're going to struggle holding that hammer for long. Anyway, the real winner of trades this year was the 76ers, but I hate to say it, they get an asterisks because they received him from the basketball team in Orlando.

Jay Crawford: The Magic.

Skip Bayless: Jay you'd have to get a submarine to Atlantis the way this team tanked to find any Magic from this team. Anyway, the 76ers were already a fast rising team and you've got to respect a lot of the work this GM did this season. The best move he made though was to not overbid for Courtney Alexander, who really isn’t a guy that deserves the money he got. He won't get my vote as GM of the year because the major asset he got was from a tanking team, but you can't really fault him for taking advantage of that situation. If it wasn't him, it would have been someone else.

Jay Crawford: Alright, well on to out next Topic:

First Round Playoff Matches

Jay Crawford: Skip, we'll let you comment on the Eastern conference, and let Stephen A respond and start with the Western Conference and then you'll get a chance to respond.

Skip Bayless: The Eastern conference playoffs after the first round are going to be one of the better set of games I've seen in a very long time. We have one real Power and everyone else is really on equal footing besides the Nets Bulls and the Bucks. So I’ll go ahead and pick those games First. I see the Celtics beating the Nets in 5 and the Bucks putting up a fight but losing to the Hornets in 6 as well in close games. Then we have the Bulls who I have losing to the Raptors in 5. The real interesting matchup will be the 76ers versus the defending champions, the Washington Wizards. I think this goes 7 games and the 76ers prove to be a little too much for the defending champions.

Jay Crawford: Stephen A, your picks?

[IamQuailman]

Stephen A. Smith: Skip, I like those picks, but I think we'll have 1 upset in there.

Here it is: I'm going to go with the Bucks over the Hornets. Bucks and Hornets have matched up pretty well this season, winning 2 a piece. But looking back to the last two games, the Bucks blew out the Hornets in the 1st one and the Hornets won the last one. The variable between those 2 games was Antonio Davis. Davis played a big part in the win, but was injured prior to their next game. He's is out for the remainder of the season with Patella Tendonitis. HOWEVER, I think, that the Bucks have enough depth that they can make adjustments to give the Hornets trouble and take this series in 7 games.

Jay Crawford: And what are your thoughts on the Western Conference?

Stephen A. Smith: Onto the West, I have (barring any bruised hips) the Grizzlies handling the Suns in 5 and the Lakers sweeping the Spurs. After that, the match-ups get a little tougher to predict. However, I think the Clippers will bring the Blazers's magical season to an end in 6 games. The Clippers have been playing very well since acquiring McGrady, and we'll continue to seem them playing well in this series. Lastly, I have the Kings over the Warriors in a grueling 7-game slug-fest. Punches (hopefully not literally) will be thrown by both sides, with the Kings silencing the Warriors in Game 7.

Jay Crawford: Skip, thoughts?

[BallSoHard]

Skip Bayless: Are you crazy? The run the Hornets has been on is downright blistering. Get this Stephen A., the Hornets had a 31-10 Mark in the second half of the season compared to the vaunted Celtics who went 27-9. Think that's crazy? How about this stat, THEY BEAT THE CELTICS 3 STRAIGH TIMES in the second half, and you think the Milwakee Bucks are going to slow down the Hornets? You are out of your mind. The only thing I think the bucks will be to the hornets is BBQ'd for dinner.

Skip Bayless: Now onto the Westen conference where we have the Grizzlies playing the Suns, which i think will be a sweep. The Suns haven't been playing well since their botched trade, and I don't think their 3 PG backcourt experiment will fare well againts the Grizzlies front-court. The Lakers and Spurs which is intriguing because the Spur typically own the Lakers. I have the Lakers in 5 because the Spurs always play them well, but ultimately, Scottie Pippen's injury and eventual retirement will doom them here.

Skip Bayless: Then we have the more interesting set of games, that i think will both go to 7. For the Clippers/ Blazer match-up, i think the Blazers are the better team right now, but the Clippers really owned them all year. This one is tough to pick, but i'm going to go out on a limb and pick the Blazers due to Steve Francis taking over against the rookie, Jay Williams. The other series, which is just as interesting, pitts the Kings versus the Warriors. The Kings had a heck of the second half of the season only faltering in the last week. the warriors own the series 3-1 but all three of those games were with Mcdyess. I'm going to take the Kings here.

Jay Crawford: Alright guys, well we are out of time. Thanks to everyone for watching, and see you next week!

[BallSoHard]

Please let us know what you think guys. When we stop getting feedback, we will probably shut down first take. We want to make sure this is something interesting everyone likes and reads.

[The JNR]

It was entertaining as always. I like the transparency you guys use, like the complaining about tanking, and Stephen A predicting a Bucks upset.

But on the negative side, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING POSTING A PICTURE OF MEAT AN HOUR BEFORE LUNCH TIME? YOU MONSTER!

[PrepP]

Always a good read! Appreciate the time you guys put into this. I like how you bring important topics like tanking, flaky Gm's, lazy trade checking, etc to light and call them out. I think First Take is doing the league a favor by calling teams out and might make them second guess their questionable moves.

Now for skip bayless's prediction of Blazers/Clippers series, I'll have to disagree. I expected that tho. Clippers get no love from First Take.

[BallSoHard]

Always a good read! Appreciate the time you guys put into this. I like how you bring important topics like tanking, flaky Gm's, lazy trade checking, etc to light and call them out. I think First Take is doing the league a favor by calling teams out and might make them second guess their questionable moves.

Now for skip bayless's prediction of Blazers/Clippers series, I'll have to disagree. I expected that tho. Clippers get no love from First Take.

Gotta earn it my friend, and a win over the Blazers would go a long way!

[BeeBall Reasons]

It's kind of drifting towards more personal beef, which should be done in the league chat thread. I really like to see you guys break down trades and playoff matchups. Could use some more facts, (like they use them in real life anyway though ).

I liked it, those are just my suggestions.

[BallSoHard]

But on the negative side, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING POSTING A PICTURE OF MEAT AN HOUR BEFORE LUNCH TIME? YOU MONSTER!

I literally LOL'd

[BallSoHard]

It's kind of drifting towards more personal beef, which should be done in the league chat thread. I really like to see you guys break down trades and playoff matchups. Could use some more facts, (like they use them in real life anyway though ).

I liked it, those are just my suggestions.

I agree this segment had more of a personal feeling to it and I agree we need to steer away. I think a lot of my personal comments really didn't reflect that though. I think the tanking, the flaking etc calls a little for it, we obviously don't know many other examples besides what we've been through or what's been made public. I appreicate the suggestion and will certainly steer away from this in First Takes to come.

[PrepP]

Gotta earn it my friend, and a win over the Blazers would go a long way!

I agree. I was hoping the Tmac/Nash trade might get discussed tho too. Seems like one of the more "legit" blockbuster trades. Would have liked to see the opinions on it.

This will be my first playoff appearance so I'm pretty excited and hoping not to get bounced in the first round and just maybe upset someone in the second round or later. I think the Blazers home court advantage could hurt me but IMO it's actually the most favorable matchup for my team in the first round. Didn't want to face you or the grizz.

[Conroy]

Also really enjoyed reading it, you all did a great job.

[BallSoHard]

We should have had one during the deadline. Works been getting hectic though.
Concerning the trade
@HRSkipBayless: Good trade for clippers in Nash/mcgrady deal. Have to wonder why bulls traded their own 23 year old guard for 27 year old guard to rebuild. Should have been jay Williams not Nash.

[BallSoHard]

Also really enjoyed reading it, you all did a great job.

I didn't realize how dominant the Hornets have been in the second half until I looked it up. Was shocked they beat u 3xs. I'm sure you'd prefer anyone else in the wcf.

[AD23forMVP]

Good work guys.

[Pelicans78]

The Suns went 4-1 in the last sim after making major adjustments to their gameplan. They're really good defensively and cause alot of turnovers. However their offense will cost them against Memphis.

[Pelicans78]

The Hornets were hot, but they're not great defensively especially in the interior with Okur at center, and their a perimeter shooting team for the most part. If those 3's don't fall, they will have trouble. But when they're on, they put up a ton of points

[IamQuailman]

Yeah, works been crazy busy (as has been life too... Damn friends and them getting married! Lol)

Sorry if you could see some of that personal stuff, but like Balls said, we can only go as far as we know. We know things happen like that, but for those trades and stuff, its mostly handled on a private level and therefore hard to use other examples. As for me picking the bucks over the hornets lol.... I hard to find something to disagree with Skip about and that was the easiest one to pick. Lol

We really do try to get into character when writing these articles, so we'll try really hard to hold ourselves to that standard going forward

[IamQuailman]

The Hornets were hot, but they're not great defensively especially in the interior with Okur at center, and their a perimeter shooting team for the most part. If those 3's don't fall, they will have trouble. But when they're on, they put up a ton of points

Yeah, that's what I'm hoping for... I think I have a chance... It'll be close