Dwight Howard’s Top 10 Plays of the 2008-09 Season

Kobe was feeling a little lonely here…

Dwight Howard has played excellently this postseason and surprised many by leading the Orlando Magic past both the defending-champion Celtics and the LeBron James-led, No. 1-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. So it’s only fitting that he also gets props from the NBA by posting a top-10 video of his top plays of the season. The guy is a beast, ’nuff said.

LeBron James Facing Scrutiny For Lack of Sportsmanship

The media has been stirring for the last few days after the NBA’s top seed in the playoffs, the Cleveland Cavaliers, fell to the Orlando Magic in game six of the Eastern Conference finals. Orlando quietly played very well against the Cavaliers this season, and likely surprised many people with their victory, LeBron James included.

The league MVP this season and leader of a 66-win team, James obviously had high expectations placed on him, mostly by himself. So it’s no shock that he was overcome with disappointment at the end of game six, which the Cavaliers lost 103-90.

What the series was supposed to show in the end was that James’ supporting cast in Cleveland really isn’t good enough to win an NBA championship, and looked better as a result of the MVP’s superlative play. What it ultimately showed, though, was that the 24-year-old James, the league’s biggest star and most recognizable face has a thing or two to learn about sportsmanship.

After quickly disappearing into the Cleveland locker room and not saying a word to the media or anyone, LeBron broke his silence that, while less than 24 hours, felt like an eternity.

Jalen Rose’s commentary at the end says it all. In the spirit of competition, there is still a level of respect for one’s peers whether or not they like each other. Ali and Frazier still tapped the gloves even though they likely hated each other in real life. Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin share an intense budding rivalry in the NHL, but they still embraced after their series showdown was over.

What LeBron did after game six was unacceptable. The problem wasn’t even that he didn’t give the media the juicy nut-graph quotes they were looking for. It was that he didn’t show his opponents the proper respect.

He went further by commenting that he can’t shake anyone’s hands just after they beat him up. What he doesn’t seem to realize is the amount of disrespect he’s showing toward Dwight Howard and the Magic by doing that. In time, he will learn that although he may not want to even look at Howard, let alone shake his hand, he still needs to do it. For the sake of the sport.

I’m not a LeBron James hater by any means. I don’t jump on the kid for any little transgression he might have. But this really bothered me. I always see James as mature beyond his years, a consummate professional who’s always willing to give props to the ones who humble him. He did it to the Celtics last season, so I expected more of the same this time around.

He eventually gave the Magic the credit they deserved, but he had already done the damage to his credibility, however small it may be in the big picture. He said he e-mailed Howard after the game to congratulate him, which is fine & dandy. But Howard had to have at least been thinking “Gee, why couldn’t he say this to me on the court?”

The scrutiny that’s coming over James might make him realize what he did was a lapse in judgment that came in the spirit of competition. There’s nothing wrong with having an intense desire to win; James wouldn’t have a chance at an NBA title without it. But when he does not reach the goal he sets out to attain, he needs to recognize the ones that stopped him. For that one night after his season ended, he failed to do so.

Cavaliers Practice Their Trick Shots

Now focused on preparing to face the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers took a little time to goof off Sunday, taking some crazy long-distance shots from places they would never have to shoot from in an actual game. It might have taken a hundred takes, but LeBron James nailed a 40-footer from behind the backboard at an awkward angle. I still think LeBron will be capable of making these kinds of crazy shots regularly- while on the actual playing court, of course.

The Current Boston Celtics: Window Of Opportunity Closing

There will be no Eastern Conference Finals for the Celtics or the City of Boston this year. No Pierce-LeBron showdown sequel. No Lakers rematch. The Celtics instead have an off-season to reflect on an undermanned, inconsistent conclusion to 2008-09, in which the Celtics lost to the Orlando Magic in game seven at The Garden, only the fourth game seven home loss in franchise history. The Magic have now made believers out of their critics, writes Chris Mannix of SI.com.

When general manager Danny Ainge overhauled the roster of the Boston Celtics in the summer of 2007, the team underwent an almost miraculous transformation from league laughingstock to championship contender. At that point, it was realistic to give them a four-year window for championship-level success, because by the fourth year the Celtics may not have their Big Three at all, let alone in their mid-30s and the twilight of their respective careers. Bob Ryan has similar, yet optimistic questions about the Celtics’ future.

Now, two years have passed, and the window is halfway closed. The Celtics had to battle like lions through this postseason without Kevin Garnett, their emotional leader and defensive anchor. They struggled throughout series to figure out different ways to stop their opponents’ offenses.

The Magic ultimately defeated the Celtics with their near-universal prowess from behind the three-point line. Dwight Howard turned out to be something of an x-factor in the series, as the Celtics obviously could not ignore him on defense but ended up giving way to the open man as Orlando drained three after three to send the Celtics’ season swirling around the drain and leave any chance of late-game Paul Pierce heroics nonexistent.

Without invaluable members of the bench that were vital to their championship in 2008- guys like Leon Powe, P.J. Brown and James Posey- the Celtics replaced them with mediocre-at-best role players like Brian Scalabrine and Mikki Moore and underachievers like Stephon Marbury. Eddie House at times had to play way over his head for the Celtics to have a chance to win certain games, something he never had to do last season.

How did coach Doc Rivers feel about the game seven loss and the Celtics’ season? As usual, he made no excuses for his guys, no “We missed KG” posturing, no blame to be placed. He acknowledged that they clearly didn’t play well in game seven, but also that the Magic deserved credit for their win. Above all else, the sweaty, emotionally-drained Rivers made it clear how proud of his guys he was at how hard they fought to repeat their magical playoff run.

But make no mistake, the biggest reason for the Celtics’ defeat by far was the loss of Garnett. His ailing knee never fully recovered, and now Celtics fans are left to wonder if he could have made a magical return had the Celtics advanced beyond the second round of the playoffs. What was a four-year window for the big-three-led Celtics is now two at most, with Garnett looking to already succumb to the injury-riddled decline years of his NBA career.

There’s no doubt that Garnett’s desire and intensity that could make him a coach some day is still there. He still has the fire in his belly that drove his motor, and infected the rest of the Celtics in a way that they rallied around each other and reached the summit as a team, a complete unit. But his body is betraying him. His 6’11”, 240-pound frame can only sustain the rigors of an NBA season for so long, and at age 32 Garnett could already be burning out.

It’s pretty much a foregone conclusion that Garnett will be right back in the Celtics’ starting lineup come this November as the pivotal 2009-10 season kicks off. What also commences at this point will be Garnett’s three-year, $60 million extension. With his age, injuries and missed games on the rise, the Celtics will need to be even more careful with Garnett throughout the season in order to avoid another 2009-like disaster.

Garnett’s minutes will need to be monitored even more closely than in his first two seasons as a Celtic. He averaged 32.8 and 32.2 minutes in his first two seasons, respectfully. That number may now need to dip below 30 for the first time since Garnett’s rookie season in 1995-96 to keep his legs and knees fresh and 100 percent for the postseason, which even with Garnett out they should plausibly reach again.

A positive in the Garnett situation is that Glen “Big Baby” Davis really stepped up his game in the postseason, and showed his ability as a future starting power forward in the NBA. He will likely receive a bigger workload than the 21.5 minutes per game her averaged this season, and it would come as little surprise if he and Garnett split their minutes down the middle from now on.

The Celtics were very impressive during the regular season- perhaps more than they got credit for- going 62-20 despite missing Garnett for 20 games. But in the postseason, where their opponents got better and took their games to another level, the Celtics struggled. Almost every game was a battle, and the defense often looked disorganized.

Now the Celtics need to start thinking about the future. Garnett will likely be around for at least two-and-a-half of the three years of his extension, and potentially could become an albatross by then. Ray Allen will likely enter the epic free agent class of 2010, where someone may be willing to dish out a five-year deal to get him. The Celtics, however, like aren’t one of those teams.

Paul Pierce will be the final domino to fall in the big three’s departure from Boston, but he is by far the most likely to stay with the team for the remainder of his career. As the third-leading scorer in the history of the franchise- putting him behind only John Havlicek and Larry Bird- it’s only right that Pierce would never don another jersey in his career. In this age of free agency, athletes that stay with one team throughout their career are only getting more and more rare.

Pierce has a legitimate shot to pass Bird and possibly Havlicek if he stays with the Celtics for the rest of his career, so since he’s won a championship and will see his #34 raised to the rafters one day, why not make him a Celtic for life?

The Celtics will need to be patient with Pierce, but not too patient. There’s no doubt that Pierce has an undying love for this team, its fans and the City of Boston. But with his last chance to cash in coming in two years, what reason is there to believe that Pierce wouldn’t at least consider a lucrative offer to play near his roots on the West coast, say for the Clippers, Warriors or even-gulp-the Lakers???

For the next three years, deciding what to do with the big three will be the biggest task to manage for Ainge and his front office. But what also needs to be considered before it’s too late is what to do with their young stars, who have already blossomed into at least above-average NBA players. The aforementioned Davis averaged 15.8 points in 14 postseason games, including five games of over 20 points scored and a game-winning shot at the buzzer of game four against the Magic.

Kendrick Perkins is also developing into a reliable-enough scorer in the paint area, averaging 11.9 points on 57 percent shooting, as well as a great rebounder. He still fouls too much, but he is still young and developing, and could eventually become an excellent drawer of defensive fouls. At the very least, Perkins figures to average double-digit rebounds as he enters his prime, and could even develop into a Marcus Camby-type when he reaches his peak. It’s hard to believe this kid is still only 24 and has been in the league six years.

Despite Davis and Perkins’ accelerated maturity, the biggest rising star on the Celtics is undoubtedly Rajon Rondo. The 23-year-old, fleet-footed, deft-handed point guard was absolutely spectacular in the postseason this year, averaging a triple-double (16.9 points, 9.7 rebounds, 9.8 assists) and giving the sports world notice that he belongs in the discussion of the league’s very best point guards.

Rondo still doesn’t have the shooting ability of a Deron Williams or Chris Paul, but he is a high-percentage scorer who can drive to the hoop with the best of them, and once Jason Kidd is done could take over as the very best rebounding point guard in the league. His long arms and enormous hands give him the ability to move the basketball with efficiency and deception, and his quick feet make him a dangerous target at any spot on the floor.

Personally, I think it’s realistic for Rondo to average something like 17 points, six rebounds and nine or ten assists per game in his prime. And it also can’t be stressed enough that he is one of the most reliable defensive point guards in the game. Celtics fans must hope that Ainge does not forget about locking this young start up with a long-term contract before another team makes him an offer he can’t refuse.

In June 2007, the window of opportunity of Celtics championships was closed, dirty and dusty, and the locks had gathered plenty of rust. But in just one year, Ainge cleaned the window, removed the rust and opened it as wide as he could as the culture of the Celtics in Boston completely changed. They took on a life energy that had not been seen since the teams of the late-80s. And like those teams, they delivered a championship. They took home a title while the window was at its most open.

But now that window is starting to close. The rust is starting to recollect itself. Aging stars are starting to break down. And worst of all, LeBron James is entering his prime. Yes, he’s entering it. He’s not there yet. But neither are Rondo, Perkins or Davis. At this turbulent and uncertain cross-road for the Celtics, it’s ultimately most important that the young stars stay around long enough, and that the big three are healthy enough, to keep this window open for several more years.

Dwight Howard is NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year

The Orlando Magic may have lost their first 2009 playoff game against the Philadelphia 76ers, but it was not by any stretch because of a poor performance from Dwight Howard. Superman finished with 31 points (11-13 FG), 16 rebounds and two blocks, and now will be rewarded for his performance in the regular season. The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that Howard has been named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year for 2008-09, a season in which he led the league in rebounds per game with 13.8 and blocks per game with 2.92. At 23 years and 128 days old, Howard is the youngest player ever to receive the award. It’s also conceivable that the best days are yet to come for Howard, which makes this first award of his a tremendous accomplishment.

Here are some highlights of just why Howard is considered the NBA’s best defensive player. These clips are not from this season, but are pretty much the same kind of dominance we’ve seen from Howard in 2008-09.

NBA Playoffs Ad Set to Kanye West’s “Amazing”

For lack of a better word, this NBA season has been amazing. The Western Conference came down to the wire to finalize its seeding, and the top NBA superstars all had amazing seasons for their respective teams. LeBron James could have earned his first MVP award, Kobe Bryant has led the Lakers to a 65-17 record and could have his final chance at an NBA Championship this season. Dwight Howard, Chris Paul and Dwayne Wade also had monster years and could be forces to be reckoned with. And teams like Denver, Dallas, Portland, Houston, Atlanta, Philly and Detroit should not be scoffed at either. The 2009 NBA Postseason is setting up to be one of the most thrilling in years. There are plenty of combinations of Finals opponents that could set up a memorable series. In the West, the Lakers are the team to beat, but whoever faces them in the Western Conference Finals is anyone’s guess. In the East, the Cavaliers took the #1 seed and could be ready to ride LeBron James to a championship. The defending-champion Celtics cannot be forgotten about either, and they will be getting Kevin Garnett back. This new ad only gets me pumped up for the postseason even more, as it’s set to Kanye West’s “Amazing” from 808s & Heartbreak. Amazing is almost guaranteed to happen this season in the NBA playoffs.

Vince Carter Makes It Look Easy From Half-Court

Vince Carter had a huge first quarter last night against the Magic, dropping 15 on Dwight N’ the Gang. Three of them come from this buzzer-beater shot which, all things considered, looks like a normal shot coming out of Carter’s hands. “Vinsanity” finished with just 27 after that first-quarter outburst, but it doesn’t make this shot any less impressive.