Game for the Ages

This last Wednesday night I was able to witness one of the best basketball games that I will ever see in my lifetime. The Duke and North Carolina game is one that will be talked about for years to come. Throughout the game the two ACC giants stood toe to toe, trading blows. 

It looked like it was over when UNC pulled out to an 8 point lead with under 3 minutes in the game. Tyrus Jones put the Blue Devils on his back and willed them to overtime. Once overtime was reached Jahlil Okafor, who many consider to be the best player this year in college basketball, came to life. UNC still put up a good fight in overtime, and almost secured the rebound on the last free throw attempt that could have led to a basket and a second overtime. I hope to see a rematch in the ACC tournament and maybe even big dance in March.

All Star Break

The week up to All Star Weekend has had many highlights in the NBA. The first highlight was with Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who became the ninth NBA coach to reach 1,000 career wins.  The win came Monday of this week against the Indiana Pacers in a great contest which had a final score of 95-93. It is a well deserved honor for Popovich. In a day where all the focus turns to the athletic ability of players, I think that many fans do not realize the impact this man has had. He was the mastermind behind one of the greatest playoff series ever played, last year in the NBA finals against the powerhouse Miami Heat. He also established and maintained a dynasty ever since he began coaching the Spurs in the 1996-1997 season. As a basketball fan I consider myself blessed to witness one of the best coaches to have ever coached the game, and also to be able to watch him achieve such an amazing milestone. I hope to see many others from coach Popovich. 

Although I write a novel about the greatness of coach Popovich, I want to take a look at how the playoff picture looks while heading into the All Star Break. In the West the top 8 teams are as follows 1. Golden State, 2. Memphis, 3. Portland, 4. Houston, 5. Dallas, 6. LA Clippers, 7. San Antonio, 8. Phoenix. Golden State is looking like a strong favorite to win the West, but I don't believe that Memphis is getting enough recognition. Memphis has been playing strong defense all year and the addition of Jeff Green has provided some firepower offensively. I think that this will help them get over the hump this year in the West side of the playoffs, and will help them bring the first title to Memphis. 

The top 8 teams in the East are as follows 1. Atlanta, 2. Toronto, 3. Chicago, 4.Washington, 5.Cleveland, 6. Milwaukee, 7. Charlotte, 8. Miami. A lot of people don't believe that Atlanta is going to have what it takes to win the East because of there lack of a closer. I don't know that this is necessarily a bad thing however. I think that it will make them a tough team to guard in late situations, because the ball could go anywhere and all of their players are playing with the confidence to be able to knock down clutch shots. However, I think that Cleveland is really starting to come together and will be a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs. Chicago did look good last night in their win against Cleveland, and Derrick Rose looked like his old self. The big question is whether that he will continue to be healthy the rest of the season. If the Bulls remain healthy then they can beat anyone in the East.

Check out next week's blog as I will bring you more basketball updates.