Morning Mix

Bob Ryan Predicted the Hawks Would Win Game 3

First Quarter Dunks

I thought I was in a time warp for most of the first quarter last night. There were so many dunks that I kept waiting for Fred Roberts to check into the game so the Hawks could start dunking on him too.

The Iverson-to-Boston Deal that Never Was

I'm not one to dwell much on things that never came to fruition. But I have to admit watching Allen Iverson and the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the 2008 NBA playoffs leaves me no choice but to do just that. Take game 3. It's the third quarter and Iverson leads the Nuggets in scoring with 15. Of course, he's 5-15 from the field and his team is down 20, but, you know, the Answer is getting his. Better yet is the work ethic, or lack thereof, he has instilled in his teammates: Gasol gets the ball eight feet from the basket (yes, that's eight feet, not eighteen). Gasol is standing still. The closest Nugget is three feet away. If your George Karl, you're glad that defender is between Gasol and the basket, but it might be nice if he was putting some pressure on Pao. No matter, Luke Walton back doors someone (it's unclear who, because no one was really guarding him either) Gasol hits the cutter for two points. Now compare that with the impact KG has had on the Celtics.


Hubie Brown Called It: Doc Excludes Talented Vets from Rotation

“I ain’t happy with it but what it’s about is doing it for the team,” said Tony Allen, who averaged 18.3 minutes per game during the regular season. “I’m still cheering on the sidelines and being ready. I’m still clapping hands, passing out water, throwing towels, jumping up for my teammates for something good, just basically trying to stay loose for whenever he calls me to go out there.”

Eddie House, who has seen his minutes steadily diminish following the acquisition of point guard Sam Cassell, regrets that he has been relegated to mop-up duty. “I really haven’t had a role in this series,” he said. “I’ve pretty much been used for end-of-quarter situations and that’s pretty much it, other than spelling the guys at the end of the game, when we’re up by 20.”

Howard Blocks Eight Shots in Magic Win

Yankees (12-13) Lose

1986 NBA Finals DVD Update

Still the first half of Game 1. Larry Bird and DJ go to Robert Parish 7 straight times, and the Chief converts six. If this had been Bill Walton, I would have passed out by now. Because it's the Chief, however, I take it for granted. Similar to appreciating the 1986 playoffs as a "Coming out" party for Danny Ainge, I am starting to appreciate the Chief for who he was. I like to say KG's jump-shot is unblockable. That's an exaggeration. Not so for Parish. If Ralph Sampson couldn't get a finger on his shot, let's face it, who could? Good thing double-zero learned how to shoot his jumper over defender holding a broom stick.

Interesting Electoral College Take on Obama v. Clinton

ALL democratic systems have their quirks, and America's is the electoral college, an 18th-century oddity whose principal effect is to ensure that the president is chosen not by the overall popular vote, but by the outcome in a handful of big “swing states.” Hillary Clinton's nine-point win on April 22nd means she has now bested Mr. Obama in Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania—the three most important swing states. This has been giving Democratic Superdelegates, who had been making verbal commitments for Obama, reason to pause. If the Democrats cannot hold Pennsylvania and move Ohio from the Republican column into their own, they can kiss the election goodbye. --Economist

Ike Doesn't Make the Cut

Over the last two weeks, John McCain has been telling prospective voters that his is the party of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan. As a former political-science and history major, I'd be curious to know why his advisers, speech writers, and handlers exclude Eisenhower from the litany. Disowning the general who led the D-Day Invasion is historically curious.