Well like I mentioned I have big plans for the summer and I have coined it the sizzlin' summer series which is served with baked potato or rice pilaf. The wondrous dish or knowledge that you could easily think of yourself if you either a) thought enough about it yourself or b) have yet to experience (like warehouse work).
So let's get started on this piece without further ado, tomorrow night marks the best night of non-season sports television. The NBA draft is truly must see TV.
Let's start with the draft itself. Of all televised drafts: Baseball (finally!), Football, Basketball, and maybe hockey but I doubt it, basketball is the one that has completely understood the television audience. We aren't all that into sitting in front of the TV watching analysts for 2 full days of drafts (or six hours for the first round); we also aren't interested in watchin a draft that last time I checked has more rounds than Billy Joel has DUI's, and that the players may never be seen for years if ever again. Basketball comes in at around 2.5 to 3 hours long and everyone taken in the first hour and a half will be on your NBA team in the fall. In addition, there are only five positions each as crucial as the other and thus we can follow players more closely and not draft a lineman that played at southern new mexican christian junior college.
It has all the makings of good television and this comes from someone who knows television than anything I have learned in a classroom. The NBA draft has all the fixins'.
The drama: What more drama do you wish then having players the likes of Garnett, Marion, Kobe, O'neil, Stoudamire, or Jefferson mentioned in trades the week before the draft. Not only that but the lottery. The name sells itself of drama, the worst teams in baseketball taking their pick of the best young players to immediately impact their fortune. My beloved Celtics lost out on the top 1 or 2...3...or 4 picks in the draft and are completely stuck at number five but it's still no less dramatic then if we did have those high picks. But I guarantee you when your team comes up you'll be shaking like Paris Hilton in front of a judge.
Comedy: Let's look at how much two storied franchises have fallen and become Pauly Shore and Andy Dick. The Knicks were a menace in the nineties with one of the best PFs in basketball in Ewing and a great shooter in Houston and Starks. They competed with the Heat in some classic payoff duels and even made the finals (protest and excuses accepted via comment section). The Celtics have many championships and a slew of the legends hanging from the rafters. Now sub .500 hundred play is more their game. Granted they have not had the best of luck, Len Bias, Tim Duncan, Pitino, Ainge, Rivers all become excuses for their downfall but the show goes on and the Celtics suck.
This leaves me at this. The coverage starts at 7 assuming is jumps into the first round I should have my first hard laugh of the night no later than 7:45 when Ainge either selects a player that does not deserve the press (Jianlian), or trades the pick, jefferson, green to the lakers for Kwame Brown and Andrew Bynum. Then 18 picks later the Knicks will entertain us all with this year's Renaldo Balkman. So in advance I would like to welcome Nick Fazekas to New York and tell him that Isiah knows what he's doing and he picked you a round to early for a reason. Unfortunately, that reason was not because you were the smart pick or even a some what logical pick, sorry.
Protagonist/ Antagonist Angle: As a Celtics fan that I have one pick to look forward to and 29 to dread however for most teams there is a clear enemy. Spurs have the Mavs, Suns have the Spurs, Portland has Seattle, Chicago has the Pistons, and Cavs have the Heat. Each will wonder how their team will counteract their rival's pick while still striving for that championship trophy.
Conspiracy: Last but not least is the conspiracy angle. If you know sports and read Bill Simmon's page on ESPN (bostonsportsguy.com) then you have heard all about the '85 Ewing to New York conspiracy. Well folks it appears as though we can add '07 draft to that short list. Think about it both teams that tanked most obviously for Oden/Durant the Grizz and the Celtics end up with the worst possible picks possible statistically. Coincidence, Maybe? Message to the NBA teams from David Stern? Probably. These teams figured out the flaw in the lottery system and Stern fixed the lottery so that he would not look dumb and to keep this from happening in the future. Years from now when the celtics are into the same 50 year drought we'll look back on this draft like we were cheated and rightly so.
All of these categories and more depict the necessity and genius of the NBA draft.
Moving along to the Celtics Section.
We need to do so many things to be competitive now and I will spend the next couple of hours telling you what we should do to give us the best chance to win now. After I thought about it. Here's the list of
Can'ts:
Trade Jefferson/Rondo
Draft List:
Horford (most likely off the board)
Brewer
Noah (if we trade down)
Thorton (if we trade down)
Young (if we trade down)
Tradeable pieces:
West
Gomes
Pierce
Ratliff
#5
Green
almost anyone else.
Basically there is only one thing to do if you're the Celtics.
Don't Mess this up. Trade for a veteran that can help now or draft a rookie that can come in a produce immediatey like Thorton or Brewer. I would trade down and see if we could add another pick to add Boston College's Jared Dudley or Sean Williams to the mix. I will be there and be excited tomorrow night ad you should be to. As for now I am going to go pray ad hope God will shine some sun on the Celtics. Until then enjoy and don't forget to check out the Sizzlin' Summer series. Goodnight.
This should be interesting... Don't Do it to us again Danny!
No comments:
Post a Comment