So why is it every time yours truly tunes in to watch an NBA playoff game -- Marv Albert is calling it? I mean, how many different places can this guy be? Does the NBA have some sort of Star Trek transporter that beams him from one place to another so he can do the play-by-play?
Nevertheless, though the hair may be fake, his rants are real. Not counting Dick Vitale, certain radio talk-show hosts/political commentators and even my ex, nobody can get worked up into a frenzy like this guy over otherwise routine matters -- though the latter is a close call. Haven't seen her in many years and rumor has it she moved far away, though when the moon is full sometimes I think I can still hear her howling way off in the distance. But I digress. On to the NBA playoffs.
Though the Brooklyn Nets swept the regular season series 4-0 against the Miami Heat, and won Game 3 at home to only trail Lebron and Co. 2-1 in the playoffs, no way are the Nets going to win this series. At that, it's hard to imagine what that franchise was thinking when they took on over-the-hill former Boston Celtics stars Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, along with their fat contracts, thinking they could win a championship. Ain't gonna happen, and they've crippled themselves in the near future. Boston GM Danny Ainge wisely understood the Celtics might be good -- but not championship caliber -- with the aging veterans, so he bit the bullet in the short term to build for the long haul. Sure, the Celtics stunk it up this year, and might again next year. But Ainge has got a lot of draft picks and salary cap room to work with in the near future. It may take some time, but the Celtics will be back.
The LA Clippers/Okla City series is pretty much a toss-up. Both teams have already won on the other's home floor, have a couple genuine super-stars, and who knows which team will prevail to move on?
Awaiting them will be the San Antonio Spurs. The Portland Trail Blazers and their fans may have taken on the battle cry of "Rip City", but they'd have to be mighty ripped to think they can come back from a 3-0 deficit against the Spurs. Fuhgetaboutit. It's over.
The Indiana Pacers, Roy Hibbert in particular, seem to have emerged from another funk to play the kind of basketball they're capable of. The Washington Wizards eliminated the Chicago Bulls (sans the services of former MVP Derrick Rose and big man Luol Deng) in the opening round. Color them gone against Larry Bird's crew.
So it's going to be Miami facing off against Indiana in the eastern conference finals, with the Pacers having home court advantage. Prediction? Home court hasn't meant a whole lot in the playoffs so far. Regardless, when it comes to crunch time -- do you really think the Pacers can defeat the Heat in a best of 7 series? Not me.
As for the west? The Spurs will be in the finals against whoever emerges from the Okla/LA series. Who will win that to move on and face the Heat? The Thunder and Clips both have some phenomenally talented young players. But nobody plays better team basketball than the Spurs. Methinks they've got at least one more go-round left in them.
Yet in the end -- as I've said all along -- barring a major injury, yours truly suspects a Heat three-peat is going to happen. Too much talent with a bunch of guys at the peak of their careers that rise to whatever challenge faces them when it really counts.
And Marv Albert will probably be there ranting and raving away into a microphone providing the play-by-play. Though most have forgotten, there was a time several years ago when Albert got caught up in a series of very lurid sexual allegations. Desiring male-male-female threesomes, dressing in women's undergarments, sodomy, and even a nasty penchant for biting were amongst the things he was accused of, which led to him being fired by NBC at the time (1997). He pled guilty to lesser charges and got off with the proverbial "slap on the wrist". Years later, Albert would claim he was totally innocent all along. The women were at fault. Believe what you will.
But hey, America is the land of second chances and opportunites. He's been back for a while, because even though Marvin Philip Aufrichtig (his birth name) will turn 73 in a few weeks -- he's still "the voice", and is evidently coveted by many TV sports producers.
One way or the other, they think Marv Albert brings excitement to the broadcasts. It's all about rantings and ratings.
Idle thought: Maybe someday fate will bring Marv and my ex together, wherever they are. Given certain behaviors mentioned above -- that would be just about perfect. Who would win that clash of the titans in a seven game series? Not a clue, but it would definitely be hard fought.
No comments:
Post a Comment