How about the Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade Monday night! He was spectacular in hanging up 48 points in the Heat's double overtime win over the Chicago Bulls. Wade was at his highlight reel best hitting big shots all night but it was the way he ended the game with a steal and a running three ball to beat the buzzer that capped an incredibly entertaining night. Wade knew he had a timeout but chose to go the length of the court for the winning shot eschewing the chance to set up a play.
The MVP discussion is becoming an interesting one considering Wade, named Monday Eastern Conference Player of the Week, and his play this season. While many see LeBron James as the man in the lead at this moment, "King James" would be second on my list, and maybe even third on a ledger according to others. It seems that some are taking Kobe Bryant's production for granted.
In these eyes, the reigning MVP, Bryant, has done nothing to lose this vote. Bryant's Lakers are still atop the Western Conference, the deeper conference when it comes to quality teams, holding down the NBA's best record a half a game ahead of James and the Cavs. Bryant is still the player I want with the ball with the game on the line. It's not that James isn't capable of winning a ball game, but I would rather have the ball in Bryant's hands with the game in the balance.
Again, you may even have to look at Wade as a player that might eek out James in the end of game situation. After injuries took their toll on Wade last season, he came back during the Beijing Olympics and gave an indication of what kind of year he was planning on having in 2008-09. Wade is trying to add the long range element to his game. Maybe the beating his body has taken early in his career has forced him to evolve slightly and try to become more comfortable behind the arc. Oh, he still has the explosive drives and great mid-range jumpers, but this season while he is still only shooting 30 per cent from distance, he has attempted a career-high 200 three-point shots.
No question Wade's play has been outstanding this season but his team has not won enough games to put him in discussion as a viable MVP candidate. Great theatre but not yet MVP worthy until your team becomes one of the NBA's elite. With all due respect to Wade's great campaign, he is going through what both Kobe and LeBron have in recent years by playing exceptionally and carrying his team, but as a group, they are not threat to win it all. But hey, in terms of entertainment, it's amazing. As it was put to me by one Miami Heat season seat holder, "That's why I have my tickets and go to the games, because you just never know when he (Wade) will dumbfound you with his play."
The Portland Trailblazers were upset last night as Trevor Ariza took a hard foul on Rudy Fernandez. The phrase "it was a dirty play" was uttered in the Rose City as some took exception to the block attempt by Ariza that saw Fernandez crash into the base of the basket stanchion as he lost control of his body when he was hit while airborne. Ariza was ejected from the game as the play resulted in a flagrant foul, and even though Fernandez was taken from the floor on a stretcher and kept overnight at a local hospital for observation after x-rays and a CT scan returned negative, it was not an intentionally dirty play. Ariza made an attempt, albeit a high risk one, to make a play on the ball. It's the sort of play that has one of two results. A, is what happened to Fernandez or b) an unbelievable block. Those kinds of plays used to happen all the time, back in the day, but times have changed. It will be interesting to see if there are any suspensions that result from the ensuing melee that took place in the vicinity of the Los Angeles bench. You can bet the league will be reviewing video to see if any Lakers left the bench area which would result in a suspension.
It's the wrong time to be backing your way through the standings as is the case with the Denver Nuggets. The crew from the Rocky Mountains has lost three straight games and seven of its last ten. Whatever it was early in the season following the trade that brought them Chauncey Billups, it is now gone as the Nuggets have slipped to seventh in the west.
Alright as someone that travels frequently covering an NBA team, stories like this one, of a very rough and turbulent flight endured by the Orlando Magic, make me a bit squeamish. Wonder if Tyronn Lue is seriously thinking of going John Madden and taking a bus?
We've all heard and read the stories of "doom and gloom" regarding negotiations in reaching a new collective bargaining agreement when the current one expires. But Commissioner David Stern says that there may be some adjustments made and the league will carry on in spite of past predictions of its demise.
