Enter The Dragon #5 - April 24, 2005
Blowin' Smoke, Dragon Style
It's been a long time. I shouldn't have left you.

Kudos to our beloved Nets. We saw some damn good basketball of late didn't we Netsfans? And considering the train wreck we witnessed earlier this season, it makes this late season run all the more impressive.

Ah, but we still have work to do and I believe that is what is going to make our fearless leader, Cap'n Crunchtime himself, Jason Kidd, tick. He knows the challenge Shaq and the Heat present. It will be a daunting one, and even if we don't make it out of round 1, we can at least reflect on a season that had the feel of impending doom on same scale as the Cuban Missile Crisis. Fortunately, disaster has been averted.

I could go on and on about our beloved Nets. However, to get us all amped up for the second season, I figured we could reflect on the NBA season that was and all of its glory.

Rather than ramble on, I figured I'd just lay out some of my end of season thoughts, comments, concerns, quandaries, and conundrums. As usual it the only way the Dragon knows, fun.

Let's just call this Blowin' Smoke. Dragon Style.

Ok, now I'm rambling.

For starters, I can't wait for next season to start. Forget the playoffs. You do realize Netsfans that we are looking at a potential 60 win team next year. Barring any set backs (and yes I'm knocking on the only piece of wood I can find so forgive me if I lose consciousness from punching my own forehead) this team will be like the Suns of the East. If we get ourselves another offensive forward along the lines of Shareef Abdur-Rahim or Stromile Swift, to go along with Kidd, Vince and, RJ, our offense should be simplified to one play. Get rebound, give to Jason, everyone go deep. The end. If you understand my excitement raise your hand. That's what I thought.

I'm not sure whether to love or hate the Knicks. On one hand, they're the Knicks, I should loathe their very being. On the other hand, they're an NBA punchline at this point. The Knicks are the very definition of Schadenfreude. We Netsfans can take pleasure in their misfortune.

Plus Isiah Thomas makes me feel good about myself. I mean, if Isiah Thomas can run an NBA team then certainly, I can too! So can you Netsfans! At this point, if I was running the Knicks, I would just hold a lottery in New York City for one lucky fan to become the team GM. Seriously, the odds of a random fan screwing up the Knicks worse than their current condition already indicates is slim and none. Isiah makes me think I could be the next great NBA GM. Same way Ashton Kutcher makes me think I can be a movie star and Jimmy Fallon makes me think I can be a comedian.

Bottom line, I hate the Knicks. I especially hate the Dolans and Cablevision. If you live in Manhattan, you know exactly why.

Speaking of hate, is there a more detestable athlete today than Kobe Bryant. Seriously, if Kobe shed his warm-ups and was wearing a "Saddam Is My Homeboy" or an "I Heart Osama" t-shirt, he may have pissed off less people. When exactly will we get the inevitable Kobe meltdown next year? All season I kept waiting for a last second play to be designed for Lamar Odom and just before he gets the shot off Kobe decks him with a steel chair WWE-style. After watching a full year of Kobe's Lakers and watching the team wither away like a Dorian Grey portrait, I'm thinking this whole season Shaq may have only had one thought in his head. Four Words. I. Told. You. So.

And by the way, Shaq's Godfather quote. Like a Mastercard commercial. Priceless. Possibly the best sports quote of this young century. Take a bow you Big Aristotle.

But I still truly believe that Dwayne Wade deserves more MVP-hype than Shaq. And I also believe, dare I say it, Wade is the better than LeBron. Uh oh. I said it. Felt good too. I'm still peeling my jaw off the floor from the DWade block of Shawn Marion and subsequent full-court heave-ho.

Marion and the Suns helped renew my love of the game. The game is supposed to be art. Graceful yet powerful all with one brushstroke. The Suns revived the NBA offensive simply by deciding, 'Let's put our best five out there and just run.' The chaos perpetuated poetry. Nash ran the show, Q and Joe Johnson provided the lightning, Marion and Amare provided the thunder. They were the perfect storm. I hope I get to watch them as long as possible this postseason.

The Suns were the answer to the defensive doldrums that was killing the league over the past few years. Getting offenses to stay in continual motion and run the break like they did is part of the answer to preserving the future of the game. The other part is being worked on by the league, except I think they are going about it the wrong way. An age limit isn't what should help the talent level in the league. A fully developed NBDL will. Hell let anyone who wants in to come in. But until they get seasoned in the minors like they do in baseball then they don't belong in the show. Plus wouldn't people want to see the stars of the NCAA tournament who don't have the prototypical NBA skills to play and develop among other aspiring pros in the US of A. I know I would.

As far as Jermaine O'Neal is concerned he's way off base about racism being an issue in an NBA age limit. But I know what he's getting at. Exactly, how many white people go from prep to pros?

And after the brawl in Detroit, there was someone who knew the Pacers would end up in the postseason. That would be the Dragon. But even I didn't expect them to have this good of a season. If Rick Carlisle doesn't win the Coach of the Year award then they should stop giving it out.

But there is a coach not getting enough cred for Coach of the Year and that's our pal Eddie Jordan. EJ inherited a mess in DC and turned the Wiz into an offensive machine. How long has it been since the Wizards were in the playoffs? Since the Nixon administration? Soviet Leader Nikita Kruschev was slamming his shoes on the UN table the last time DC was in the postseason. And any coach who can keep Gilbert Arenas from jumping into the stands and morphing into the next Stephen Jackson deserves more credit than he is getting.

Arenas' former team will be dangerous too. Yes the awful awful awful a-w-f-u-l Warriors will reach the postseason next year. Baron Davis is healthy and happy and along with Jason Richardson make for a fantastic 1-2 punch. Add Helen of Troy Murphy and that dorky white guy from Duke and you don't have too bad a core. And keep your eye on Andres Biedrens. Just know that I told you so.

Let's hope the Warriors are the only bad Western team to make the leap. We need the Clippers to stay bad. We have their #1 pick next year. And in typical Clipper form, it's not lottery protected. Bless you Rod Thorn. Bless you.

What is it with athletes and feeding their families nowadays? Are we running out of food? Are cows and chickens going extinct? Did I miss something? Between Latrell Sprewell and Terrell Owens (I know, not basketball, but just stay with me) you'd think they're trying to feed all of Shawn Kemp's, Calvin Murphy's, and Larry Johnson's kids as well.

I hate Terrell Owens. I don't think there is a more dislikable athlete in the history of sports than T.O. Just the biggest ass I've ever seen. Just wanted to get that off my chest. Sorry.

Back to B-ball. Staying in Philly. Has Chris Webber's knee now eclipsed Grant Hill's ankle as the most unreliable body part in the NBA?

Forgive me; Ron Artest's head is the most unreliable body part in the NBA.

Poor Grant Hill, I was rooting for him. He doesn't deserve what he's had to go through. Why couldn't this have happened to someone like Latrell Sprewell or Rick Fox?

And where have all of the NBA malcontents gone? Trust me, I know it's good for the league that there are less trouble makers and guys like Artest were suspended for extended amounts of time, but wouldn't it be nice to see Rasheed Wallace bark incessantly at the referees and pick up maybe 100 technical fouls over the course of the season? Wouldn't it be nice to see Ricky Davis shoot at his own basket again? Rasheed and Ricky we hardly knew ye.

A future potential malcontent to keep an eye on though is Steve Francis. After Cuttino Mobley was traded from Orlando to Sac-town, Francis fell to pieces. It was as if he just broke up with a girlfriend he was about to propose to. He would've been better off pretending he was Nancy Kerrigan after getting hit by a club, lying on the floor screaming "WHHHHYYYYYY????" Francis must be in love, because after Mobley was gone his demeanor and his game went into the tank. So did Orlando's season.

How do you think Darko Milicic must feel being sandwiched in between what could turn out to be the greatest draft ever assembled? LeBron, DWade, and Carmelo are the future. Chris Bosh and Kirk Hinrich has All-Star written all over them. Studs like Ridenour, Josh Howard, Luke Walton, and Kyle Korver were all in this draft as well. At the rate he is going he'll end up fishing with Sam Bowie in some remote area in Wyoming.

Lastly, I love Alonzo Mourning. When the guy plays at 100% percent strength, he is an absolute warrior. Before his kidney problem he was at the height of his career and becoming one of the most polished big men in NBA history. And he does things like donate his salary to charity and is beloved in his community.

But I hate Zo. Man do I hate Zo. I hate Zo the jealous teammate. I hate Zo, who had Jeff Van Gundy dangling from his leg in '98. I hate Zo, the guy who feels the world owes him something for his kidney problem. I hate Zo, the guy who badmouths the team who gave him everything when he really should've gotten nothing. Could you imagine the irony if the Nets were able to beat the Heat. It would all be because Zo sulked about not being on a contender, which enabled us to dump him to acquire Vince Carter, and then in turn make the Nets a contender. Imagine if the Nets were to beat the contender Zo is on now.

I bet Alonzo Mourning would be quite humbled.

Like Ricky Williams, I'm smoked out.

Happy playoffs Netsfans.
-SwampDragon2

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