After the lock out, it was tough to get into basketball.
Jordan was on the decline and smack dab in the middle of retiring and un-retiring. Magic and Larry were history. And guys like Reggie Miller, Karl Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, and David Robinson were aging, and just couldn't carry the sport.
Shaq and Kobe may have been the saving grace of the NBA.
Scores were down. Mike Fratello had just finished running the Cavs into the hole that LeBron James found them in a few years later.
Big Poppa Kemp looked like he stashed a couple dozen apple fritters under his jersey.
The All-NBA Rookie Second Team included such tantalizing names as Michael Doleac and Michael Olowokandi.
But now...
Now it's different.
Kobe's playing his best basketball ever. Steve Nash is playing out of his mind. LeBron is amazing. Dwight Howard is a freak of nature (in an awesomely good way). And if you haven't watched CP3, you're missing out.
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There is no shortage of star power. There is no shortage of excitement. There is no shortage of scoring (besides the Cavs/Celtics series).
By my account, the NBA is back and badder than ever.
With that in mind, I have watched more playoff basketball this year than I ever have before. And, although the road teams have been Hoovering it up, it's been quite enjoyable.
If the final minute of the Lakers-Jazz game Friday night didn't get your ticker going, I will pray for your basketball soul.
But, amidst all the excitement, I had a disturbing thought the other day.
I was pondering the fact that road teams had won, to that point, just one game in the second round. And then, do you know who popped into my head?
Tim Donaghy.
I was listening to the radio and the guys were talking about more foul shots being shot by the home team.
Tim Donaghy.
Why? For the love of George Mikan, why?
I had loads of exciting games in front of me and all I could think about was how much money some referee was going to make when a home team finally dropped one they were supposed to win.
Tim Donaghy.
Way to go, Timmy. I can, with confidence, say that you've tainted your profession.
Lucky for you, I love basketball. About five minutes after I had those abhorrent thoughts, I shoved them to the side and didn't let them out until now.
Go Cavs.
Go NBA.
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