At the beginning of the season, Rose asked why he couldn’t be MVP:
“The way I look at it within myself, why not? Why can’t I be the MVP of the League? Why can’t I be the best player in the League? I don’t see why-why-why can’t I do that? I think I work hard, I think I dedicate myself to the game and sacrifice a lot of things at a young age and I know if I continue to do good, what I can get out of it and if that’s me going out or doing whatever, I’m willing to do it because I know in the long run, it’s going to help me.”
Miami Heat’s LeBron James celebrates after scoring against the Boston Celtics during fourth quarter of Game 2 of their NBA Eastern Conference basketball playoff series in Miami May 3, 2011. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)
LeBron James scored 24 points over the final 16:35, hitting 8-of-12 shots, which helped the Heat turn a nip-and-tuck game into a snoozer down the stretch. (Miami won, 102-91.) LeBron was so sharp in the third and fourth quarters that it makes me wonder if he was extra-motivated after finding out that he finished third in this year’s MVP voting. For their part, Dwyane Wade added 28 points and eight boards, while Chris Bosh chipped in with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
The Heat were +10 in made free throws, which was the difference in the game. Otherwise, the numbers were pretty even. That’s not an indictment of the officiating — the Heat simply attack the rim more (and better) than Boston, which is at its core a jumpshooting team. Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce combined to go 15-of-38 (39%) from the field for 36 points. That’s not going to get it done.
Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose smiles as he walks off the floor during a timeout in the third quarter of game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Indiana Pacers at the United Center on April 26, 2011 in Chicago. The Bulls won 116-89, winning the series 4-1. UPI/Brian Kersey
Rose totaled 1,182 points including 113 first-place votes, from a panel of 120 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada as well as an NBA MVP fan vote.
Rounding out the top five in voting are Orlando’s Dwight Howard (643 points, three first place), Miami’s LeBron James (522, four first-place votes), the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant (428, one first-place vote) and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant (190).
As I discussed back in early March, I agree with the selection of Rose since he led his team to the league’s best record after losing his team’s second and third best players for big chunks of the season.
I am a little surprised that Dirk Nowitzki didn’t crack the Top 5 in voting, though Kevin Durant is surely a rising star. It’s interesting that Dwight Howard beat out LeBron James and that Dwyane Wade didn’t make the Top 5 at all.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook dribbles against the Denver Nuggets during the second half in the Western Conference Playoffs-First Round game four at the Pepsi Center in Denver on April 25, 2011. Denver avoided a sweep by Oklahoma City winning 104-101. UPI/Gary C. Caskey
Sorry, I’m not done with Westbrook yet. Oklahoma City has enough talent to win the 2011 title — it’s sitting right there for them — but it’s going to hinge on how Westbrook runs the show. There’s a game beyond the f**king game and I don’t think he can totally see it yet. He’s learning on the fly. A crash course, if you will. I don’t trust him yet. Stephon Marbury never found that balance between scoring and creating; Allen Iverson only found it when they moved him off the ball. Can Westbrook find it on the fly? Either way, Durant’s unreal fourth quarter in Game 5 was the best reality check possible: He basically hired Brother Mouzone and Omar to shoot Stringer Westbrook. We’ll see if he comes back from the dead.
That reminds me, I thought Chuck and Kenny did a spectacular job of breaking down Westbrook’s struggles in Game 5 — he took some heat for the first time (for Game 4) and it clearly affected him, but as Kenny pointed out (I’m paraphrasing), if you want to be great, you need to learn how to handle being the hero and being the goat. That’s the final stage for a basketball player. Durant struggled earlier in the season, took some heat, questioned himself a little, and ultimately, it made him stronger. Now it’s Westbrook’s turn. To be continued.
The Thunder aren’t going to beat the Grizzlies (who are simply on a mission right now) if Westbrook doesn’t learn how to play point guard on the fly. He seemingly hasn’t learned how to exercise good shot selection or set his teammates up in three years, so it’s doubtful that he’s going to be able to learn it in three games.
I’m always reminded of this classic quote from “Ghostbusters” whenever anything weird happens.
On the heels of the Grizzlies’ win in Game 1 over the Thunder (after upending the #1-seeded Spurs in the first round), both the Hawks and Mavericks won on the road last night against the Bulls and Lakers, respectively.
The Hawks broke a 15-game second round playoff losing streak by winning in Chicago. Here are the highlights:
Rose’s twisted ankle at the end is obviously worrisome for the Bulls, who could normally overcome a Game 1 loss to the Hawks if he were healthy.
Joe Johnson (12-of-18 from the field, 5-for-5 from 3PT for 34 points) was on fire throughout the game. Where was the vaunted Chicago defense that has shut players down all season?
In Los Angeles, the Mavs overcame a 16-point deficit with a 17-4 run over five minutes in the third quarter. Pau Gasol had a bad finish to the game, fouling Dirk Nowitzki on an inbounds pass with under 0:20 to play with the Lakers up one and then he turned the ball over attempting to hand the ball to Kobe on the ensuing possession. (Kobe was really at fault because he was trying to draw the foul on his defender instead of making sure he got the ball.)
Either way, the Lakers are down 0-1 and the Mavs have stolen home court advantage in the series.
Here are the highlights:
The only higher seed to win Game 1 in the semis is Miami. Go figure.
