Sunday, May 18, 2014

My thought after the Conference Semi’s



1. The Thunder are better off without Serge Ibaka - I like him as a player, but I feel that Ibaka’s injury will give Steven Adams a chance to play more. This works perfectly for the Thunder because Westbrook and Durant get more shots.

2. The Donald Sterling issue caught up to the Clippers - It had to fatigue these guys, I felt like the collapses in gave 5 and game 6 was more a result of mental than physical fatigue.

3. Both Conference Finals series are going 7 - As a bettor I’m looking to play the ziz-zag and the dog heavy in this round. The four elite teams in the League are left and while all have questions each has a complete resume explaining why they can win the title.

(a) Pacers - Lost in 7 last year to the Heat. Lost last two year to the Heat. Have survived the 1st two rounds despite not playing their best.
(b) Thunder - Lost in the Finals in 2012. Have the reigning League MVP. Have survived the 1st two rounds despite not playing their best.
( c) Spurs - Are the Spurs
(d) Heat - See spurs answer

Not only are the resume’s compelling but each team is extremely familiar with their opponent. I’m looking forward to two 1980 type series were Home court is vital but either team is capable of winning in a must win situation.

4. Pacers Heat feels like Lakers Kings 2002 - I remember that year, we all got seduced by the Kings fancy passing and rocking arena. It felt like the Lakers run would end at two because they would have to play a game 7 on the road. In the end the best player in the world was on the Lakers at the time and the Kings just weren’t ready, I feel as we are going to be saying the same thing at the end of this series.



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Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Club Fortune Casino Review



My Club fortune experience was much more enjoyable than I originally thought it would be. Located in Henderson, from the outside Club Fortune looks like the standard hole in the wall poker room. I played their 2:00pm double deuce tournament a $30 buy -in with a $10 Add - On. There were not a lot of spring chickens in the two tournaments that I played in. Most of the players were men over 50. However instead of the grumpy old man experience these old guys were actually fun and seemed to genuinely be having a good time. In My opinion the star of this game is a player named Rocky a elderly gentleman who really likes his short shorts. These guys were all pretty good natured, a rare quality to see in a local card room in the middle of the day. My one major criticism was the bar service, the second time I went, I brought a few friends with me so that they could learn to play poker. and have some drinks, we went to two different bars and got absolutely zero service. Once the tournament started our poker waitress was more than capable, but I don‘t remember even seeing her while we were waiting for the tournament to start? Overall I wouldn’t make this room part of my regular grind, because of the limits, but I would definitely use it as a place to take some buddies, have some beers and splash some chips. The staff was helpful and even provided a demo tournament for my friends that were new to the game. It was a great way to ease any apprehension that new players might have when playing live poker for the first time and helped make the entire experience enjoyable.




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Monday, May 5, 2014

Four Thoughts After Round 1 of the Playoffs




1. Anyone can win the West - I can easily make a case for all four teams left to win the West.
(A) Spurs - Tony Parker needs to play better, and they need scoring from Kawai Leonard
(B) Blazers - Need their Bench to give them anything and have their stars play keep playing like stars.
(C) Thunder - Less shots from Westbrook,need someone from their Bench to be consistent
(D) Clippers - Need to play hard at all times, and get consistent Low Post Scoring from Blake 

2. The Rockets need a new coach -I thought Mchale blew the series, it was a terrible idea to start Terrence Jones and it took him 2 full games to make the adjustment, and then you lose the series because you can't defend for 0.9 seconds? I know fans who saw Damian Lillard's shot think it was  great, and it was, but real Hoop Heads know that you are supposed to switch all screens in that situation. What the hell is Chandler Parsons doing?

3. Pacers might be out of Jail - I thought it was tough Match -up for the Pacers in Round 1. Their not really that deep and they weren’t able to play their best lineup together because Hibbert couldn’t stay on the floor. In the next round against Washington I think they have a much better match up and should play a lot more free. 

4. The Champs are vulnerable. - I don’t think Miami is nearly as good as they have been the last 3 years. They have no real depth, no Point guard and no Big Men, this is going to be the King’s biggest challenge this year. If he can do it the chase for MJ’s greatest ever spot officially begins.


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Thursday, April 24, 2014

Top 5 Fan Bases in the NBA



If you play for one of these teams you have a huge home court advantage. Here is my list of the top 5 fan bases in the NBA. The criteria that I used to come up with this list is

1. What crowd is with there team win or lose: Sorry Laker and Heat Fans but you guys are good at being seen when the team is winning, but are absent when the team is struggling

2. Knowledge of the game - Do you understand when and what you should be cheering for?

3. Crowd intensity - I think that a good crowd is capable of swinging a game by 2 - 3 points per simply by their energy.

4. Longevity - This is aimed at OKC while they do have an amazing crowd, their team has not been around long enough for me to judge them. Also they have endured far more good times than bad times since taking the team over from Seattle.

So without further ado here is my Top 5 list.

1. Golden State - The Dubs have a huge home court advantage, the crowd decked out in gold with the dim lights makes it feel like something special is happening on every play. These guys show up to support their team no matter what the record

2. Chicago Bulls - The madhouse on Madison has seen it’s share of great basketball, but it also has seen some mediocre b-ball. Overall Chicago is home to some of the most knowledgeable fans in the game.

3. Portland Trailblazers - Blazer fans come out in droves for their team providing an energy and a spark that makes their arena one of the toughest to play in the L

4. Boston Celtics - No list of NBA fan bases would be complete without the Celtics, the tradition combined with their knowledge of the game make them one of the most passionate fan bases in the game. In fact their so famous that even their fans have become famous (Bill Simmons)



5. You name the 5th .................

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Thursday, April 17, 2014

NBA Regular Season Awards



NBA Season Awards

MVP: Kevin Durant- Won his 4th scoring title while carrying OKC to 2nd in the west.

Rookie of the year: Victor Olidipo- Lot of people like MCW but Olidipo's consistency gets him the nod.

Defensive Player of the year: Jakim Noah - What a year for Noah who has emerged as a top 15 player in the League

6th Man of the year: Jamal Crawford - J-crossover just gets buckets. Averaged 18 a game providing the Clippers with serious offensive fire power off the bench.

Most improved: Gerald Green - Who knew he had it like that? Green took his game to a new level this year having a breakout season with Phoenix

Coach of the year: Tom Thibodeau - Tibbs is the best in the biz, making no excused he once again has lead an oft injured Bulls squad into the playoffs.

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Saturday, April 5, 2014

My Thoughts Immediately after the National Semifinals.



1. John Calipari is one of the elite coaches in college basketball. He has been to 5 final fours, and three Championship games. If you are one of those that believe he is not elite. Then you should check yourself into the nearest psychiatric facility to you.

2. Kevin Ollie is a rising star - You can tell that his players love to play for him, and IMO his adjustment of going to 5 guards was the difference in the game. It will not be long before NBA teams will be wanting him.

3. Deandre Daniels is the guy who made himself the most money during the tournament. - I had never heard of this guy before the tournament now he is a projected Lottery Pick. A 6”9 Stretch 4 that has crazy athletic ability is a nice commodity in the NBA.

4. Wisconsin played one of the best basketball games I ever saw…. And Lost - The Badgers shot %46 from the Field %40 from the 3, went 19-20 from the line and had only 8 turnovers. In my entire lifetime of watching basketball I have never witnessed a game where I felt the Loosing team was the best team on the floor.

5. If Kentucky wins the title it will be the greatest run to the title ever. They beat a good Kansas State team in the first round, an Undefeated Wichita State Team, in the 2nd the defending Champs and Runner ups in the Next two and then a number 2 seed Wisconsin in the Final Four. Before the tournament people talked about the Midwest Region being the toughest bracket ever and Kentucky Outlasted them all and is now playing for the Chip.

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Sunday, March 30, 2014

5 Players who made themselves money during the NCAA Tournament

This is a big draft everyone knows about the top of the list but what about the guys who are using the tournament to make a name for themselves. 




1. Kyle Anderson  - The more and More I watch Kyle Anderson the more I start thinking he could actually steal the #1 pick spot. I honestly feel that most GM’s would prefer to have him then some of the more hyped Freshman. His skill set combined with the success that Michael - Carter Williams has been having makes him an attractive choice for the top spot. I really think that a few teams sitting around the middle of the lottery will actually be happy to have him fall to them.

2. Adrean Payne - At the beginning of the season I thought he had a chance to play in the League. Now I see him being a solid contributor right away for a playoff team. I think where he goes is extremely important because he works better as a second option type player.

3. TJ Warren - I am conflicted about Warren, on one hand the guy can flat out score, but I kind of feel like I’m watching a Anthony Bennett clone here. He shoots it well, but his range is only to the college 3 and he doesn’t really have a post game, some team will fall in love with his numbers though.

4. Cleanthony Early - He is nice, I feel like he is one of those guys who is going to better in the L than college. I see how Wichita State went undefeated for so long. He was a beast all year and in the Kentucky Game he was the best player on the floor on a floor full of pro’s. He had 31 in the game, and they never went to him once the game got under 4 minutes.

5. Xavier Thames - He’s going to play in the League for sure. On the low SDSU has been producing players the last few years, Kawi Leonard, Jamal Franklin to name a couple. He already has a NBA type game. I don’t think he will ever be a regular rotation guy, but he will carve out a 4 or 5 year career.



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