Since I have always wanted to be a part of sports in some way, shape or form, I have taken up the role of writing about some of the interesting things that happen in the everyday world of sports. The goal is to attract the attention of those who share my passion for sports and give them an opportunity to indulge in their sports related interests. I will also try to incorporate some gambling angles in my articles for the occasional sports gambler who is looking for an edge.
I have always been and will continue to be a great fan of the NBA. Throughout the years, I have been lucky enough to witness greatness at its best. At 40, I’ve had the honour of watching in-between players that on some given night can capture your eye and make us all jump out of our seats. However, the reason we all turn the TV on, is to watch the big boys take the court. Kareem Abdul Jabbar was the first to capture my attention with his signature sky hook, then came my man James Worthy who could move so quickly on the baseline that defenders’ shoes would get untied! If it sounds like I’m a Laker fan, well you guessed right. I got to watch Magic taking our breath away with his superb passing abilities, Larry Bird with his tremendous shooting and his competitiveness against Magic and the rivalry they brought between Boston and the show-time Lakers. Then came the lovable and handsome no. 23, Michael Jordan. From far and wide everyone had a love for his airiness and unique abilities. Every time he stepped on the floor, some 7-year-old would get hooked and would ask for permission to pass his bedtime curfew in order to watch just a few more minutes of artistry. The torch has been passed from Wilt, to Kareem, to Magic, to Michael Jordan, to Kobe and now the next big thing is our beloved (and some times hated) Lebron James.
We can go on and on about players that are listed as the top 10 of all time but I believe Lebron should be right up there. Strong, wide shoulders, with a body to kill and a fierce competitor. His training during the off-season is stupendous. This is a player who has never been in trouble off the court and has been a great role model for our kids. I say that for the simple fact that he has been in the league since eighteen and at that age, we all know, anyone can slip up at times, especially with the type of signing bonuses they give these young fellows, many of whom have grown up in rough neighbourhoods.
Lebron went from high school, straight into the NBA draft and was picked first overall by his home town Cleveland Cavaliers where every year he had displayed mediocre talent. He stayed there for 8 seasons and then was judged upon leaving and heading to south beach. The way that I look at things, it’s simple, if you are a superstar and ask for help during the off season to upper management and the best you can do is have Ilgauskas as your centre, then we have to agree that him parting ways was his only chance of winning a title. I agree with Lebron and I don’t wrongfully judge his show in Miami with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade but everyone has to chill out on this guy. His bad judgement of going on stage and flexing his ego alongside his friends Dwayne and Chris was childish and uncalled for. The cold hard fact here is, he went to the finals year after year, and won 2 rings with Miami. His time came to an end in Miami and I believe his wife wanted to be back in Cleveland so Lebron decided to rejoin his former team and make his family and fans happy. What it boils down to is we can’t judge an athlete for one bad move and forget all those times we were in awe when he jumped from the free throw line got fouled and dunked in someone’s face.
In anticipation of game ones loss to Golden State in this year’s NBA finals, I turned on my TV and wanted to see what this guy was made of. Remember that we have no Bosh, no Dwayne, no Kevin Love, No Kyrie Irving, just a bunch of role players going against the 67-15 Golden State splash brothers team. From start to finish I was applauding the freight train going toward the basket, like he was saying move over or I will run you over. I was surprised on how his leadership showed up and how on Sunday he single handedly showed the world that he deserves the hype and the respect from the non believers. Oracle once again was the toughest away stadium to chalk up a win all season and Lebron brought his A game with a supporting cast of Dellavedova, Shumpert, Mozgov, Jr Smith, Thompson. Now that’s not Steve Kerr, or Dennis Rodman, Tony Kukoc or Scottie Pippen for that matter. These are guys that on most teams would be coming off the bench. Lebron could have easily gotten up one morning and said how the hell are we going to beat the best team in basketball with my top guns injured. Lebron sang the anthem, took off his sweats, did his dumb chalk thing, and single handedly gave us a Jordan performance that had Oracle shaking their heads. The honest truth here for all you haters is that Lebron is the type of player who makes a nobody into a somebody.
Listening to these late night talk shows, I realized that people have the tendency to compare him to Michael. There’s no 2 people the same in this world but as a player Lebron is way better at going to the basket than Michael, where Michael was way better as a jump shooter and striking fear into his opponents .
Watching game 2 on Sunday I sensed the will to win at all costs. Lebron’s defending was superb and while his shooting was off at times, the man still got 39 points, 16 rebounds, and 11 assists and his ability to make his teammates better was sensational. That’s exactly what superb players do. Can you say LEBRON, well, I surely can. The series is tied 1-1. With Irving and Love out this team is not even as good as his former Cavalier team he was on 8 years ago. There’s a lot to be said about that. What it truly says to me is that Lebron stands at the climax of his career and if he does find a way to lift the championship over his shoulders he will surely gain admiration. I truly hope he does, like the old commentator of the Cavs use to call him, THE FREIGHT TRAIN will be amongst the greatest.
If we look at this game coming up on Tuesday from a gambling angle, I see the line favouring the warriors at -1 or -1.5 and the total at 194. Now the way I look at this game is simple, the odds makers don’t believe in a weak sided Lebron team and have given the slight edge to the warriors here as a small favourite. I thought honestly that the Cavaliers deserved to win game 1 and almost blew game 2. This series has been surprising but I find the odds makers don’t respect the hostile environment that Steve Kerr’s warriors will be entering now that the series is shifting to Cleveland.
Apart from Lebron being way more experienced than any warrior player, the odds makers I feel will be surprised on how well this Cavs team will be ready for game 3. For me the value bet will come in game 4 on Thursday, where I believe the loser of game 3 will win game 4 and send this series back to Oracle all tied up. The mojo on the Cavs team is extraordinary and anyone who has watched basketball can sense that the underdog is ready to bite the ass off the -250 money line favourite. I’m going to predict The Cavs win this series in 6 and my boy Lebron will shut some mouths and staple them forever as well as show everyone that this is Lebron’s torch for now.
