The weekends are always a hotbed of prime time sports. Whether you prefer to spend your weekends running around, partying til the cows come home or relaxing in front of the tube, Monday is a great day to recap the hot stories at the water cooler, coffee maker, copy machine or wherever you set up shop to talk sports at the start of the work week.
But please keep in mind, while things like facts and numbers are considered, I reserve the right to ignore them all for the sake of whatever argument I might pose.
So without further ado…
Is the light clicking for LeBron?
The script was set up perfectly for another colossal LeBron James failure. The Heat were down 2-1 to the uber-underdog Indiana Pacers. Danny Granger and Co. jumped out to a sizable lead early and were in front by 8 points at the half. History suggested that James would tuck his tail in between his legs during the fourth and pray Dwayne Wade would lead them out of deep waters.
Instead, James and Wade put on a second-half show. James finished with 40 points, 18 rebounds and 9 assists, while Wade racked up 30 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. At one point, the dynamic duo dropped 38 consecutive points on their foes.
But as usual, James often dazzles us with his supreme skills one day only to cringe and crumble in fear at the mean ol’ 4th quarter on another. So let’s not read too much into the performance….yet. Miami fan or not, you have to respect the show.
Bye Bye Berkman
The Cardinals suffered an agonizing loss when Lance Berkman went down with a knee injury Saturday. Early reports suggest “Puma” has a torn ACL. At 36 years old, there’s a very good chance the slugger may hang up his cleets rather than attempt to come back from another serious injury. If he has indeed taken his last at bat for the Redbirds, it’ll be sad to see him go. It was a short journey, but one that helped land the Cardinals a shiny new World Series championship.
Whether Berkman announces he’s riding off into the sunset or decides he has one more rehab in him, Cardinal Nation will surely keep a standing O on deck the next time Berkman steps onto the field.
In addition to the Berkman injury, the Cards have been leveled lately with DL trips, including Carlos Beltran, Jon Jay, Kyle McClellan and Allen Craig to name a few. The injuries have brought the Redbirds back down to earth after a hot start.
Spurs have that look
The Western Conference Finals is shaping up to be an epic battle. As Earl Austin Jr. noted in our playoff preview, the Spurs seem to have that look. They’ve quietly racked up a bunch of wins in the regular-season and are still cruising through the playoffs after grounding CP3 and Blake Griffin. They look a lot like previous Spurs’ championship teams and people are finally starting to take notice.
On the other side of the coin, the Oklahoma City Thunder are looking equally impressive as they look to send the Lakers home to chill with its adopted sibling Clippers squad. Durant and Westbrook need to closeout the Lakers quickly to avoid facing San Antonio with tired legs.
Though the Miami Heat have the big stars, the Spurs and Thunder are playing the best basketball in the league right now – by far.
