HoopsHype.com Columns

Random thoughts from the second round
by Eddie Johnson / May 19, 2005

- What did the Western Conference do wrong? Did they do something to ABC? ABC reminds me of the pretty girl who likes the ugly guys because they don't want to compete for the mirror. I cannot believe that a national audience has not seen the two most exciting teams – the Phoenix Suns and the Dallas Mavericks. What is the allure of watching the Pistons and the Pacers? Especially after watching Game 5, where Indiana had 40 points with four minutes to go in the third quarter. Are you kidding me?

- Speaking of the Pacers... After watching Game 5, Indiana look like a tired team. They ran out of gas before halftime. Give them credit for getting this far with all they had to overcome this season. Reggie Miller will must have a flashback in order to push this series to seven games, because it's obvious Jermaine O'Neal is playing with one arm. He can't even lift his right arm to block a shot.

- The Pistons, who had to come up with big wins in every series last year except in the Finals, are at it again. If they get past the Pacers, their season will end against the Heat. Their inconsistent ways will catch up to them against a team that will be more physical than they are.

- I was watching Darko Milicic play the last few minutes against the Pacers and wondered how good Dwyane Wade or Carmelo Anthony would have looked in a Piston uniform.

- Somebody has been working with Ben Wallace on offense. I guess his defense will start to decline since he has found out that scoring is more glamorous. Heck, he might even cut his hair since he considers himself more than one-dimensional.

- By the way, Larry Brown is out of there. How do I know? Because he gave them the kiss of death. He said he was staying.

- Miami is looking like a team on a mission, but it's hard to tell because they have played arguably two of the worst teams in the playoffs – the Nets and the Wizards. One thing we do know is that Shaquille O'Neal will be well rested. And that means trouble for Detroit or Indiana.

- Why are people comparing Dwyane Wade and LeBron James so early in their careers? It's not like they have led their teams to a championship. Right now, they are like apples and oranges. I bet neither the Celtics nor the Lakers would have given up Larry Bird and Magic Johnson for each other. Just let it play out.

- Wade may have the advantage right now because he is playing and LeBron is at home. These two – along with Amare Stoudemire – will be the face of the NBA for many years to come. So please stop talking about how Wade might be the best player in the league after putting up sick numbers in the first two rounds. He still has a long way to go to get the three titles Kobe Bryant has.

- Alonzo Mourning right now is equal to the Pistons' pick-up of Rasheed Wallace last year.

- Who told Damon Jones he was a pretty boy? I know he can shoot, but just because girls come up to you to ask for Shaq's autograph doesn't mean you are sexy.

- Someone tell me how the Sonics won two games against the Spurs last week? No Vladimir Radmanovic for both games and they lose Rashard Lewis for Game 4 and they win? I will tell you why. They compete harder than any team left in the playoffs. That's the way the Sonics have played all year. The Spurs better take notice or it could be too late.

- I think one of the major reasons why the Spurs struggled in Games 3 and 4 is because players that were playing well – like Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker – were back watching a healthy Tim Duncan instead of staying aggressive. Ginobili finally broke out again in Game 5.

- Bruce Bowen is known as a great defender, but the extra advantage he has is the ability to funnel players like Ray Allen to Tim Duncan. I don't care how great a defender Bowen might be. Great offense will always overcome defense in the long run if the player is patient.

- Gregg Popovich better consider playing Glenn Robinson more minutes. His offense could be huge – especially when Parker is not scoring.

- Dirk Nowitzki called out Erick Dampier for more production against Amare Stoudemire The one thing I have always remembered about great players is that they took on extra work when needed. Not one time have I heard Dirk say he wants to guard Amare.

- The Mavericks feel like they have solved the Suns two-man game. They better think again. Once you think you have the two-man game figured out, it jumps up and bites you again. Just ask all the teams that had to play the Utah Jazz all those years with John Stockton and Karl Malone. Nash and Stoudemire scored a combined 63 points in Game 4 and the Mavericks say they have figured it out. OK. What they should have said was they figured out how to slow down the Suns running game by crashing the offensive glass and taking care of the ball.

- Jerry Stackhouse has been the one problem the Suns have had a hard time solving. This is where the Suns miss Joe Johnson. His defense in the post would negate Stackhouse.

- I love Michael Finley when he is cooking – like in Game 2 – but he and Allan Houston float under the criticism radar better than any other $100M player I've ever seen.

- Amare Stoudemire has given us all a glimpse of how good he will be. Right now, he is the second most dominant player in the NBA behind Shaq. In Game 3, he dunked on Stackhouse so hard that I feared for his life.

- People focus on the Suns inability to play great defense as the reason why they will not win a title, but defensive rebounding and turnovers could be their downfall.

- Joe Johnson's injury was huge. Not only did he take pressure off Nash, but he was also the Suns' second best scorer in the playoffs.

- After scoring 48 points on 20-28 shooting, I guess we see why Nash was chosen MVP.

- I wish I had grown up with LeBron James. Just think I would have made more money doing his off-court deals than I made in a 17-year NBA career.

- Jeannie Buss knows how to control her man. I cannot believe Phil Jackson is considering a return to the Lakers. Phil is even saying that it wasn't all Kobe's fault that he left the first time. Shaq must be ready to punch a hole in a wall.

Eddie Johnson is a regular contributor to HoopsHype.com

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