REF CRAWFORFD GAVE LAKERS GAME 4 WIN

The "grudge part 2"? NBA ref Joey Crawford ruined what could had been a beautiful and exciting playoff game between the defending champs San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Lakers escaped with a 93-91 win and a 3-1 advantage with the series going back to tinseltown for game 5. Actually the series should have been tied at 2-all if not for the outrageous no-call of Crawford on a very obvious foul of the Lakers' Derek Fisher on a 3-point attempting Brent Barry of the Spurs. The Spurs had magnificently came back from a seven point deficit with 51 ticks to go to trim the lead of the Lakers down to a basket when Barry faked Fisher with the latter falling hard on the former at the 3-point area in front of Crawford and alas no whistle was blown!

It can be recalled that this is the same ref who ejected Tim Duncan last year in a regular season game for no apparent reason at all thus resulting into his suspension by NBA commish David Stern. Now Crawford had unleashed all his anger on the Spurs and what a time to do his revenge! This ref should had not been allowed to officiate in the playoffs in the first place, the league's image can be tarnished with this kind of cheap retaliation.

Joey Crawford has no place in the NBA! period!

CONGRATS TO SOLAR SPORTS

With Solar Sports' bagging of the rights for the coverage of the PBA games starting next season, the giant sports network now had locked up exclusively the TV rights of almost all of basketball's prestigious leagues such as the NBA, PBA, US NCAA final four, Euroleague and PBL.

I would also like to extend my sincere gratitude to the said network for bringing the NBA conference finals playoffs and as well as the coming championship series live on local TV behind C/S Sports. It gave the non-Destiny cable subscribers the chance of a lifetime to watch the NBA games as it happens.

My hats off to the Tieng brothers and Jude Turcuato! Mabuhay kayo!

ITS NOW 2-2 IN THE EAST

Shades of 2004? The Detroit Pistons played their best defesive game of the series so far and whipped the Boston Celtics, 94-75 at the Palace of Auburn Hills to even up the Eastern Conference finals at 2 games apiece.

Jason Maxiell typified the kind of defense the Pistons played all night, highlighted by a breathtaking block of a breakway slam of Kevin Garnett in the second period. So stifling were the Pistons in their air-tight press as they limited the beantown boys to only 32% FG! The Celtics did not scored more than 19 points in each quarter of the second half.

Antonio McDyess topscored for the Pistons with 21 points and hauled down a game-high 16 caroms. Four other Pistons tallied double figures in scoring with Richard Hamilton contributing 20, Rasheed Wallace and Maxiell hitting 14 apiece and Chauncy Billups finishing up with 10 points. The celebrated trio of the Celtics (Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen) were limited to a total of only 43 points.

With the momentum now on the side of the motown squad, expect the Pistons to ride on their game 4 victory and score a crucial win in Boston that will set-up for the clincher at the Palace. Whew! It looks like there's no stopping the Pistons from now on!

WILL BELINELLI BE GIVEN A CHANCE?

The Golden State Warriors surprised a lot of NBA pundits when they drafted Italian hotshot Marco Belinelli with the 18th pick in the 2007 draft.

A many-time national player, Belinelli was expected to offset the loss of erstwhile Warrior pointmaker Jason Richardson, who was traded to the Charlotte Bobcats during a draft day deal which sent Belinelli's co-rookie Brandan Wright to the bay area. The sweet-shooting Belinelli, whose perimeter sniping and 3-point bombing can be compared to Warrior great and now team official Chris Mullin, then took the NBA summer league in Las Vegas by storm, by posting big numbers for the Golden State entry.

But the Warriors top honcho Don Nelson had a change of heart as the 2007-08 season began. Belinelli played in only 33 games (out of a possible 82 outings), seeing action in only 7.3 minutes per game and contributing a measly 2.9 points an outing. As a shooting guard, he played behind swingmen Baron Davis, Monta Ellis and Mickael Pietrus. Poor boy Marco did not had his chance to show his prowess.

With Davis sending feelers to other team and thinking seriously of leaving the Warriors, Belinelli may finally get his chance to shine.

Come on Marco, show the Warriors why you had become one of the deadliest shooters in Italian cage history! The time indeed has come!

SPURS IN GAME 3 MASSACRE!

The San Antonio Spurs showed the basketball world that nobody can never, ever underestimate the heart of a champion as they bounced back from a 30-point loss in game 2 to destroy Kobe Bryant and the Lakers, 103-84 earlier today.

The win brought back the Spurs into the Western Conference finals series, 2-1 after losing 2 contrasting defeats at Staples Center. Game 1 saw the Spurs faltering in the final period to succumb, 89-85 but not after blowing a 20-point advantage in the 3rd quarter. A lackadaisical performance by the Spurs in game 2 saw the Lakers running away with a 30-point win, 101-71.

Game 4 is set on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning Manila time) also at the AT&T Center in the kingdom of the Spurs, with the defending champs eyeing the equalizer and sending back the series to square one. Manu Ginobili starred for the Spurs in game 3 and made up for his so-so performance in the first two games.

To those who had given up on the Spurs, "NEVER EVER UNDERESTIMATE THE HEART OF A CHAMPION!"

THE FINAL FOUR!

So its the NBA's 2 most-storied teams, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers which drew first blood in the conference finals. The Celtics took advantage of Detroit's long respite from active play, winning 88-79 at home while the Lakers dramatically came back from 20 points down in the 3rd canto to take the opener, 89-85 at Staples Center.

Both series are worth watching as the top 2 seeds in the east, one with the biggest offseason build up and the other a defensive-conscious perennial title contender and the battle in the west between the defending champs and a team, which is the current toast of the season, slug it out for a finals seat.

It is widely believe that when the smoke is cleared, the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs will be the last 2 teams standing come the NBA finals. Both teams had the experience and the depth to go all the way to the championship round. The core of the 2007 Spurs champion team is still very much around and the same can be said of the Pistons with the vital cogs of its 2004 title-winning squad still wreaking havoc in the playoffs. The celebrated tro of Boston's big 3, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce are all-star calibers but remember none of them had won a single championship ring so far. On the other hand, the Lakers, featuring season MVP Kobe Bryant had only Paul Gasol, Derek Fisher, Luke Walton and Lamar Odom to count on as able veterans of the tinseltown team. Andrew Bynum's injury was a big blow to the Lakers campaign, leaving a big vacuum in the middle. Bynum's absence will create mismatches in the center position against the Spurs, which has big bodies in Tim Duncan and argentine banger Fabricio Oberto. Add to that the inconsistent play of Odom in the current playoffs.

So my apology for those LA and Boston fans who are looking forward to a revival finale between the Celtics and the Lakers as all roads to the NBA finals are pointing to a rematch of the 2005 NBA champioship, the San Antonio Spurs vs. Detroit Pistons!

HORNETS FLY HIGH!; CAVS TO SLAY GHOST OF 2007?

So far, my NBA playoff forecast remains on target. The Detroit Pistons, which I picked to win the east, are now in the finals of the Eastern Conference awaiting the winner of the Celtics-Cavaliers series. The Pistons now had made it to the conference finals a records six straight times tying the record of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 80s.

On my other picks, those on shaky grounds are the highly-fancied Celtics and the defending champs, the San Antonio Spurs. The Beantown squad are currently locked up with the defending eastern winners Cavaliers at 2 wins apiece while the Spurs are facing elimination with a 3-2 deficit against the upstart New Orleans Hornets. The surprising Hornets blew out the Alamo outfit, 101-79 in game 5 and now had 2 chances to close out the series entering game 6, which is scheduled at the AT&T Center. In case of a game 7, that will be played in the Hornets nest in New Orleans.

LeBron James made up for his so-so performance in the first 2 games of the Boston series, leading the Cavs to back-to-back victories in games 3 and 4 in Cleveland. James and the Cavaliers are looking forward of duplicating their NBA finals stint last year, which they lost via a sweep against the Spurs. With a new-look line-up this season, Cleveland is not only gunning for a finals seat but likewise, to win it all come June.

The Utah Jazz-LA Lakers series now looks like a toss-up after the Jazz scored 2 straight wins at home to tie-up the series going to game 5 in Staples Center. I predicted the Jazz to win the series in six games and I am still on track with that one.

The playoffs is now entering the homestretch and all my predictons are still alive. So hang on to your seats as we enjoy a christmas season in June! Hohoho!

WAS CP3 ROBBED OF THE MVP PLUM?

Its now official, the 2007-08 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) is Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers. It was the 1st ever MVP award for Bryant, who is now on his 12th NBA season. But now a few eyebrows were raised on Bryant's winning of pro basketball's most prestigious individual award.

Many felt that the most stellar performance (impact-wise) dished out by an NBA player this past regular season is by New Orleans 3rd year gem of a point guard, Chris Paul. Paul, a 6-0 guard out of Wake Forest, was instrumental in leading the Hornets to a 56-26 win-loss mark and the Southwest Division title. Others will easily point out to the Lakers winning of the Pacific Division and best regular season slate of 57-25 in the West as the upside in Kobe's MVP selection. But remember, the tinseltown's late season surge was not an all-Kobe show but mainly due to the trade last February which sent erstwhile Memphis star Pau Gasol to the Lakers. On the other hand, CP3 was the vital cog and catalyst of a non-star Hornets squad, which is the most surprising team in the league this year and which it also netted Byron Scott the Coach of the Year honors.

For a head-to-head match-up of individual stats between Paul and Bryant, herewith is their respective '07-08 numbers :

CHRIS PAUL KOBE BRYANT

21. 1 PPG 28.3

4.0 RPG 6.3

11.6 APG 5.4

2.7 SPG 1.8

We do hope that come the next selection of the NBA MVP awardee, it will be through merits and not merely a popularity contest. Give it to the most deserving!

THE HAWKS ALMOST SHOCK THE WORLD!

The powerhouse Boston Celtics had finally eliminated the surprising Atlanta Hawks in game 7 of their Eastern Conference first round play-offs via a whopping 99-65 rout! But coach Mike Woodson and his bunch of gritty boys had nothing to be ashamed of! Imagine extending the top-seeded Celtics to the limit, whew!

At the end of game 6 wherein the Hawks pulled even in the series, 3-3, after a heart-stopping 103-100 victory at the Philips Arena, I noticed an ATL fan holding a signboard "SHOCK THE WORLD!", well they almost did. But the experience of the title-favorite Celtics is too much for the young Hawks as evidenced by the winning margin of the deciding game. But I and the rest of the NBA world take our hats off to this up-and-coming team. A team consists of young turks in Al Horford, Josh Smith, Josh Childress, Marvin Willams and veteran snippers Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson, it is widely believe that come the next NBA season, the Atlanta Hawks shall be a team to reckon with! Mark my word on that dude!

TIME TO MOVE, TIME TO CHANGE

This early, some NBA teams had already started to prepare for the next campaign and what a better way to start off by changing the mentors, who will guide the club towards respectability and a possible winning season.

The Milawaukee Bucks immediately fired ertswhile coach Larry Kryskowiak after the regular season and in his place comes former Chicago Bull coach Scott Skiles. Skiles is no stranger to the Brew City franchise, himself a former first round draftee of the Bucks in 1986 (22nd pick over-all). Skiles played 13 games for Milwaukee as a rookie, averaging 3.8 ppg before being traded to the Indiana Pacers the following season. Skiles' career coaching record is 281-251 win-loss mark. He had coaching stints in Phoenix (1999-2002) and Chicago (2003-2008). He was fired early in the 2007-08 season after leading the Bulls to a disappointing 9-16 start.

The New York Knicks had finally parted ways with coach Isiah Thomas and is now looking into several prospects to take over the coaching reigns of the Gotham City franchise. Leading the race is NBA TV analyst Mark Jackson. "Action" Jackson spent 7 years of his NBA playing career with the Knicks. Another candidate is Jackson's co-NBA TV analyst and ex-Knick mentor Jeff Van Gundy. Van Gundy had an NBA coaching record of 430-318 mark. His last team was the Houston Rockets in 2006-07 season. He coached the Knicks for 7 years before moving to the Rockets. Van Gundy is well known for his defensive coaching style and his teams usually led the league in points allowed per game. Either Jackson or Van Gundy will have a lot of work to do during the off-season to rebuild the once-proud NY squad.

The Charlotte Bobcats had also come into the picture with the firing of 1st year coach Sam Vincent. The former Boston Celtic pointguard posted a coaching record of 32-50 in his only season with the Bobcats. The big news current circulating in the NBA world is the possibility of the Bobcats tapping the services of the legendary Larry Brown. A few days ago, Brown resigned from his front office position with the Philadelphia 76ers and is widely speculated of returning to the NBA coaching world. The 67 year old Brown had an over-all pro coaching record (including the ABA) of 1,239 wins and 907 losses. He led the Detroit Pistons to the 2003-04 NBA championship.

Expect more coaching changes in the next few months as more teams start to fall off from the ongoing NBA play-offs.

WHO IS DARIUS RICE?

For the meantime, let's deviate our attention from the heated wars of the on-going NBA play-offs (the Suns had just avoided themselves from being swept by the defending champs Spurs and the Pistons had just squared their series with the Sixers at 2-all) and take a look at an american import, who is presently taking the local pro loop by storm, the Purefood TJ Hotdogs' reinforcement Darius Rice.

Rice caught the fancy of local hoop fans by pouring in 56 points to lead the TJ Hotdogs to a nail-biting double overtime thriller of a win over the Magnolia Beverage Masters, 127-126 in its season opener last 02 April 2008. The PBA had not seen an explosive type of an import since the days of Tony "Hurricane" Harris, who displayed his wares during the early 90s with the RFM Swift squad. But who is Darius Rice? Where the hell did he came from? Is he an NBA vet?

I made a researched yesterday from the piles of books and magazines in my own little sports library at home and whoa!, I had gathered something about Mr. Rice! The following is the complete profile on Darius Rice, from the 2007 Pre-Season Media Guide of the Cleveland Cavaliers, which reads :

"2006-07: Played in 18 games with the Dakota Wizards of the NBDL.... averaged 13.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 25.4 minutes...... scored a regular season-high 32 points at Austin on April 13.... set D-League Championship game records with 52 points and 11 three-pointers made in the Final game, a 129-121 overtime win against Colorado.... started four of five played with the Cleveland Cavaliers Summer League team during the 2007 Vegas Summer League.... averaged 10.6 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.... finished with 19 points on 7-13 shooting against San Antonio and put up 21 points on 8-11 shooting versus Phoenix.

PROFESSIONAL CAREER: Played in two games with Polpak Swiecie of the Polish League during the 2005-06 season.... averaged 3.5 points and 1.5 rebounds.... joined the Gary Steelheads of the CBA and played in five games.... averaged 8.2 points and 5.8 rebounds.... also played in one game with the Marinos de Anzoategui of the Venezuelan League.... scored 17 points and four rebounds.... played in 42 games with the Florida Flame of the NBDL during the 2004-05 season.... averaged 10.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists.

COLLEGE CAREER: Was a four-year starter at Miami, averaging 16.1 points and 5.7 rebounds.... started 113 games, most at that point in School History.... only the second player in school history to lead the team in scoring, four consecutive seasons.... named All-Big East Second team as a senior.... led the Hurricanes in scoring (16.9) and rebounding (6.4).... led the team in scoring 15 times and in rebounding on 10 occasions.... averaged a team-high 18.7 points as a junior.... named Second Team All-Big east.... on four occasions hit a three-pointer to either win a game or send it to overtime.... had 28 points and seven rebounds against No. 3 Connecticut.... started 31 of 32 games as a sophomore.... recorded 20 or more points a team-high 10 times, including three 30 point games.... became first "Cane since Eric Brown in 1989 to records consecutive 30-point games.... set Miami freshman single-game records for points (35), three-point field goals (7) and 30-point games (2) on his way to being a Big East All-Rookie selection.... scored in double figures 20 times and led team in scoring 10 times.

PERSONAL: Nephew of NFL star receiver Jerry Rice.... son of Tom and Brenda Rice.... father was an All-American football player at Jackson State.... majored in Finance.... enjoys playing chess and working on his computer."

So there goes the complete details on super-import Darius Rice. But the million dollar question now is can he lead the Purefoods TJ Hotdogs to the promise land of the on-going Fiesta Cup, after the Hotdogs heartbreaking defeat in the Philippine Cup finals to the Sta. Lucia Realtors? Stay tuned!

THE SPURS WILL REPEAT

This is it! The best time of the year for NBA fanatics worldwide! The 2007-08 NBA playoffs are now in full swing. I hate making predictions because in the world of NBA playoffs anything can happen thats why the NBA is truly AMAZING!

But i'll try my luck on this one, the way I see it and according to my basketball heartbeat, my fearless forecast are as follows :

EAST FIRST ROUND

Boston over Atlanta, 4-0, Cleveland over Washington, 4-1, Orlando over Toronto, 4-2 and Detroit over Philadelphia, 4-2

WEST FIRST ROUND

LA Lakers over Denver, 4-2, Utah over Houston, 4-1, San Antonio over Phoenix, 4-2 and

New Orleans over Dallas, 4-1

EAST SECOND ROUND

Boston over Cleveland, 4-2 and Detroit over Orlando, 4-2

WEST SECOND ROUND

Utah over LA Lakers, 4-2 and San Antonio over New Orleans, 4-3

EAST FINALS

Detroit over Boston, 4-3

WEST FINALS

San Antonio over Utah, 4-3

NBA CHAMPIONSHIP

San Antonio over Detoit, 4-3

I pick the Spurs to repeat this season. Why? Simply because they play their best basketball in the months of April to June. Tim Duncan is the man! Tony Parker is the director! Manu Ginobili is the finisher and Greg Popovic is fast becoming a coaching legend. The Spurs had a slew of battle-scarred veterans in Michael Finley, Bruce Bowen, Brent Barry, Damon Stoudamire, Robert Horry and Kurt Thomas. Plus able back-ups Matt Bonner, Fabricio Oberto and shock-troopers Ime Udoka and Jacque Vaughn. What i'm truly amazed about this Texas outfit squad is their fluidity and no-nonsense hardnose type of basketball savvy.

So there goes my first ever NBA predictions, how about yours dude?

LIFE IS LIKE THE PLAY-OFFS

Nothing can be larger than life! Life is like the NBA play-offs, we all wanted either "live to win" or "live not to die". We must be very careful in living our everyday lives. We must cherish every moment of it as we can not hold on what is in store for each passing day.

Late last night, our family almost suffered a harrowing defeat. We received an overseas call from my sister, who had migrated to Australia with her family 8 years ago, and informed us of a nerve-racking news that her eldest son, our beloved Bogie, was stabbed by 3 unidentified young hold-uppers near the train station while on his way home from his hospital duty as a nursing student. We were all stunned with the development. As of that moment, my sister is still awaiting the ambulance which will bring Bogie to the emergency room of the hospital where she is presently working. After an hour, we got another call from my sister and this time, we were all relieved. According to her, Bogie was stabbed on one of his thighs and very luckily, not on any delicate part of his upper body. We immediately thanked the Lord Above for sparing our beloved Bogie from further harm. Our family had won by the skin of the teeth or by the slimmest of margin! That experience had transformed our family ties even stronger! How powerful the prayer is if its being said by the whole family.

Family should always work as a unit just like an NBA team. And always remember that a closely-knit family is the key towards a happy and victorious life! The chanmpions of all champions!

GREAT NEWS FOR SKY CABLE SUBSCRIBERS

I just got this information from the ESPN Star Sports website that beginning April 23, 3 NBA playoff games per week will be cablecast on Sky Cable! ESPN shall cover the games on Wednesdays and Saturdays while Star Sports will have its usual Friday games. On UHF or local channel, C/S Sports-RPN's coverage of the NBA post season games will be from Saturdays to Mondays.

This is definitely a big news for NBA fans without BTV or Destiny Cable susbcription! So lets all enjoy the "greatest show on earth" starting this Sunday, April 20!

UNCERTAINTY

With the Golden State Warriors exit from this season's play-offs, what lies ahead for the bay area squad? Right after their fateful loss to the Phoenix Suns, 122-116 which sealed their doom and gave the Denver Nuggets a free ride into the post season party, Warrior fans are now wondering what the future will be for this run and gun "gungho" team.

Will coach Don Nelson be back? How about team superstar Baron Davis? Well, old Nellie loves to play games, remember how he held up during the off-season and stayed much longer than usual in his Hawaiian home before coming to terms with the Warriors last October. Everything is still pre-mature to presume whether he would stage a comeback the next season or think about retirement and fishing in Oahu.

Davis has an opt-out clause in his contract and can sign with any other team this summer. However, I honestly believe that Nellie will play a vital role in Davis' future with the Warriors. If Nelson returns so is Davis thats how simple it is. Nelson has tremendous influence in the transformation of Davis from a self-centered guard during his Hornets days to what he has become now as leader of the Warriors.

2 major factors contributed to the Warriors' failure to duplicate last season's miracle play-off run. First is the trade which sent the team's spiritual leader Jason Richardson to the Charlotte Bobcats for rookie Brandan Wright. As the 2007-08 regular season comes to a close, take a close look at the individual stats of the 2 players:

J. RICHARDSON B. WRIGHT

21.6 PPG 4.0

5.3 RPG 2.6

3.2 APG 0.2

1.3 SPG 0.2

38.2 MPG 9.9

Whew! what a one-sided deal! If only J-Rich stayed with the Warriors, they could have easily reach the 55-win mark this season.

Secondly, the 0-6 start of the Wariors, no thanks to the 7-game suspension of Stephen Jackson, told heavily on their run-up for the 8th play-off spot in the west. To think that they missed the play-off bus by only a game, well, that season-opening 6-game losing streak did the Warriors out! Lets take a review of that 6-game debacle:

October 30, 2007 - Jazz 117 Warriors 96

November 2, 2007 - Clippers 120 Warriors 114

November 3, 2007 - Jazz 133 Warriors 110

November 6, 2007 - Cavaliers 108 Warriors 104

November 8, 2007 - Mavericks 120 Warriors 115

November 14, 2007 - Pistons 111 Warriors 104

After the 6-game tailspin, the Warriors won 9 of the next 10 games. But that is still not enough to compensate for that nightmare of a start.

Well, maybe a good advise for the team right now is to focus their attention on Nellie's and Davis' future with the team and not to think anymore of those "what ifs?".

I'm pretty sure it will be one hell of a busy summer for team Executive Vice President Chris Mullin. But knowing Mullin, he always delivers at crunch time even during his Warrior heydays!

CHANGING TIMES

In 1980, I bought my first-ever NBA magazine, the Game Plan 1980-81 NBA preview, at the National Bookstore-Harrison Plaza branch for only P 42.00. Then in 1982 I purchased a Basketball Digest featuring Moses Malone on the cover, for P 21.00 at the United Supermarket in Makati. Now, the prices of NBA magazines in the local market are as follows : SLAM at P 450.00/issue, NBA HOOP at P 575.00/issue and Basketball Digest at P 350.00/issue, respectively. Whew! How time flies!

However, if you find the prices astronomically high, you can try to settle with Tower Sports NBA magazine, a locally-produced quarterly publication, which sells at P 120.00 per issue except Issue No. 1 of each year, which is pegged at P 200.00. Its actually worth the price, as the said mag features great articles by who's who in local NBA media world such as Henry Liao (Editor), Quinito "The Dean" Henson, PBA Executive Director Ricky Santos, Bill Velasco, Ed Tolentino and Butch Maniego among others.

My sources of NBA magazines are not limited within the local market but through the help of my relatives abroad, like my sister in Australia, cousins in the United States and friends in Canada, they just keep pouring on. My sister, Sonia Martin, actually subscribed me before the Pro Basketball Today, an Australian newspaper-style publication, which touches on 90% NBA news and 10% info on the Aussie cage scene. Unfortunately, it has already closed shop, but lately, another outstanding basketball magazine from the land down under has emerged, HANDLE.

Anyway, I still continue to buy from time to time the SLAM and HOOP magazines from my friends in Emerald Headway, the exclusive local distributor of the same. Well, it seems very hard to stop an NBA junkie like myself from securing such even during these hard times, but no regrets! I just love it!