A MERE MORTAL

MERE MORTAL

They say big time players show up in big time moments. This has not been the case for Dwight Howard in the NBA Finals so far. Howard has been bottled up like a Coca Cola Classic for the first two games of this series. The credit has to go to the Laker big men. More Pao Gasol then Andrew Bynum as Bynum has been in foul trouble for most of the series. What has been exposed now is Dwight Howard's post up game. It is something he has to address in the off season. He had 17 points and 16 rebounds, but turned the ball over 7 times. It's not enough. How can a "soft" Gasol control a super athletic big man like Howard? How can Howard get his first dunk of the series last night in the 3rd quarter? It's as if he's lost his powers. He has become a mere mortal. There is no way the Magic can win this series if Howard doesn't find a way to be the superstar he is. I think one of my Facebook friends said it best on his status update. "This is why Dwight doesn't have a puppet."

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

If the Orlando Magic go on to lose this series it will all come down to missed opportunities. Never will it be more evident than it was last night. Courtney Lee has a chance to win in it regulation and misses the floater in the lane which was a good look at the basket. Then Stan Van Gundy, "The Master of Panic" draws up a great inbounds play that leaves Lee wide open again and he missed the lay up off the lob pass from Turkoglu. You also have to understand that Orlando wasted a outstanding shooting performance from Rashard Lewis who gives you 34 points on 6-12 from beyond the arc. Turkoglu gives you 22 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while doing an outstanding job guarding Kobe Bryant down the stretch. The Magic had a golden opportunity to steal this one from the Lakers, but they missed the layup.

THUMBS UP

When Jameer Nelson wanted to come back and play in the finals, he approached Rafer Alston and Anthony Johnson to find out if it was ok with the two veterans. They both gave the thumbs up and had no problem with Nelson returning. But I agree with Jeff Van Gundy. What the hell were they supposed to say? No? Any good teammate wouldn't say hey we don't want you to play. But I wonder if now they are reconsidering? Alston hasn't been the same player since Nelson came back. He goes 1-8 in the game yesterday. He has to play looking over his shoulder now. It's very unfortunate because Alston is very much responsible for why the Magic are even in the NBA Finals. And poor Anthony Johnson. He put his thumb up, and now he is buried on the end of the bench sucking on it.

BIG GAME JAMES

I hate to say this, but I miss Lebron James so much right now. This series needs something. I realized this last night as my wife had to wake me up and tell me the game was about to start as I had feel asleep on the couch. I realized this when the game went to overtime and for some reason I was still bored. The Magic need that star power and Lebron James has "IT". There is no way that James would be invisible if he were in this series right now. There is no way that he would only have one dunk through two games. One thing about James is he has a lot of heart and doesn't seem to shy away from the moment. I don't think I have ever missed a player this much in the NBA Finals since Magic Johnson retired from the game. I don't think Cleveland could have beaten the Lakers. As a matter of fact, the Magic have a better chance to win. But I know this, I wouldn't have fell asleep before Lebron was getting ready to play. That's a fact.

A FEW THINGS I'VE LEARNED DURING THE NBA FINALS

J.J. Redick is the slowest guy in the league hands down. Maybe Zydrunas Ilgauskas is in the running, but its not clear cut the J.J. is faster. This guy is a snail. I watched him dribble the ball and it looked like he was running for his life. The guy is a heck of a shooter when he is confident. But when he is dribbling it is straight "Hot Potato" out there. The funniest thing I saw on Facebook yesterday was one of my friends that stated in his status "I'm not exaggerating, I've never seen J.J. Redick make a shot in an NBA game."

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the first or second best center in Laker history. Sorry Shaq, I have to now put you in third place. I was reading an article the other day by Adrian Wojnarowski about Shaq. Shaq has said many times that he is better than "Cap". I grew up watching Kareem and I played with Shaq. I always thought Shaq was the best until what I read and realized in that article. Kareem averaged 22 points and 8 rebounds at 37 years of age on a Laker Championship Squad in 1985. Argument over Shaq. Now Wilt Chamberlin scored 100 points in a game. So the top spot is up for debate. But second place is not.

The Lakers are the most hated team in sports. I didn't really understand this until this year's NBA Finals. With Facebook and Twitter now being so popular you can really see what's on almost anybody's mind. I see so many status updates about people rooting for Orlando or people just hoping the Lakers get crushed. People hate Duke, some hate the Yankees, I've heard lots of hatred for the Patriots, but I don't think anything compares to the Laker hating. It's bizarre because they were my favorite team growing up. And you know what, they were a lot of people's favorite team growing up. I can even go as far as saying people hate the Lakers now like everyone hated the Celtics back in the 80's.