A sea captain's breasts, loosed on the Grizzlies dance cam. (Sometimes you finish writing a sentence, and you just know: throughout the entirety of history, no human has ever written that precise sentence before. It's an awesome feeling. And yes, that link is safe for work.)
The Nuggets won one of the most exciting games of the year. Yao Ming is kicking himself for missing his chance to win the game at the end of regulation. And how about Shane Battier taking, and making, a huge shot from way behind the three-point line?
TrueHoop reader Ben emails with a theory about why players like Chris Webber and Kevin Garnett are not seen as "clutch:" "They're known for 'disappearing' at the end of close games. Depending on their current Q rating, this is often attributed to either a lack of testicular fortitude or a pathological generosity and team-mindedness that prevents them from getting the sole glory. Again, this might be partly true ... but think about what else Garnett and Webber have in common: they're high-post players. They score by hitting the elbow jumper, or by backing down their man and making a nice move. They're great passers and so probably the threat of the pass helps them attack the defense. Now, I'm not a basketball coach and I'm not much of a player, but I do know that the high post is a frightening place to be even in the midst of average-intensity, first-half defense. You've got your back to most of the action, and you've got the perimeter players trying to cheat off and swipe the ball every time you move. You can't pass if you're single-teamed - everyone's sticking their man like crazy; this is obviously why no one goes to set up in the Princeton offense and make four passes before shooting on the last play. So the best feature of the high post, its centrality for passing, is basically eliminated. And you're left trying to make a one-on-one move from the foul line with your back facing the basket in the middle of a sea of jabbing hands. Basically, it seems like the worst place to be in that situation. And it's the place where Garnett and Webber like to be (unless they post up, in which case they're usually several feet outside of Shaq- or Duncan-deep position, leading to many of the same problems). So maybe the reason those guys aren't clutch players is just because they and their coaches aren't so dumb as to throw the ball to the worst spot on the court with the game on the line. This could be selective memory, but can you think of any famous clutch shot that involves a guy setting up on the elbow? I can't. It's not like that's where Jordan or Kobe start when they're in that situation." Yao Ming tried to win a game from the high post last night. I can recall Tim Duncan doing it. But it's not all that common. Here is some video of great game-winners. (And more.)
Clipper fans always have one more reason to keep caring, which is cruel, in a way. At the moment, that reason is Chris Kaman.
Britt Robson of the Rake: "Randy Wittman angrily called out his team in the postgame press conference, essentially calling them spineless, and chokers. The coach again invoked the fighting analogy, claiming that when the team gets hit in the mouth it doesn't fight back, and going so far as to say the team 'would not allow people to do that to them in the parking lot.' Earlier he had pretty much hollared, 'At some point we have to man up, stand up and say `Enough is enough!' The coach further added that when he called time out with 8:34 to go in the third, "their body language said it all to me ... their heads were down.' He noted it was something the team 'had been fighting all year,' specifically citing the 8 point halftime lead tonight, the six point halftime lead Monday in Miami, and the 15 point first quarter lead last week at home against Seattle--all for naught in three losses. I understand Witt is competitive, and increasingly frustrated. These losses are like water drips from a faucet when you're trying to sleep--they'll drive you temporarily crazy."
Some insight into Utah's losing ways, courtesy of the Salt Lake Tribune's Ross Siler: "The Jazz have fallen apart against zone defenses three times in the last week, giving back big leads in losing to Portland, Atlanta and Charlotte. They have been guilty of forcing passes at times, but Sloan thought there was a bigger factor at work. 'You break a zone by making shots,' Sloan said. 'You have to be able to make some outside shots. You can't always get layups. That's one of the things we've had a difficult time doing is making shots.' The Jazz are connecting on just 3.6 three-pointers a game, barely half that of their opponents, and just sent home Gordan Giricek, a career 36.8 percent three-point shooter." The same blog post also quotes owner Larry Miller hinting at changes if things don't get on track soon.
A big mess of Laker photos from the 1970s, including one of Wilt Chamberlain warring simultaneously against Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's defense and Chamberlain's own shorts.
Mike Barrett on Blazers.com: "After some research, Elias Stats says the Trail Blazers are the third-youngest team in NBA history. The youngest team ever was the 2000-01 Chicago Bulls. The second-youngest team was the 1953-54 Baltimore Bullets. That Bulls team went 15-67. The Bullets went 16-56. The Blazers are, obviously, proving that you can be young, and win."
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