They were never a TEAM… The Lakers were a collection of good players who never learned how to play together. The sort of behavior that they bring to the game takes much of the fun away, as REAL basketball is a much better game when played as a team.

Thank you, Josh. When the Iggles crash and burn on schedule in, what? six weeks? I will spare a thought . . .

I’m not a huge b-ball fan, but I got back into it last year watching the Pistons, they played the game as a team the way it’s supposed to be played. And they played defense, which is almost unheard of in the NBA. Kind of like my Sonics this year, catch them if you can, they’re playing fun ball this year. I do agree with you about the NBA, but you can’t compare anyone to Jordan, he was one of a kind.

I agree. Kornheiser once said the truest words I think I’ve ever heard: the skins are best when they’re not playing. And I dunno if I agree with the “Steinbrenner Jr” label. At least Steinbrenner has had winning seasons as the fruits of his spending sprees.

Richard:

I remember watching Jordan make everyone look like bumbling high schoolers, and feeling a magic that is lost from basketball today. There is no longer any sense of teamwork, everyone just wants their own shoe commercial.

I’ve watched Shaq, and you can praise his footwork and passing all you want, he’s just not fun to watch. And basketball, like other sports, is all about entertainment. Of course, I was exaggerating for effect when I said he had *no* skills. But, the reality is, he has no grace or style, and he is absolutely no fun to watch play.

He is underrated because he is so huge, people think all he does is go into the key and dunk. However, when you actually watch what he does, he has amazing footwork for his size, he takes a beating inside every game because refs only call fouls when Shaq has been bumped hard enough to move him, and he is the best passer I’ve seen on a guy that size. I can’t wait to see Shaq vs. Kobe on Christmas, and watch Shaq slap Kobe into the 3rd row on a block.

Jim- I feel your pain, I’m a Seahawks fan. The good news is that we’re only 6 years into Mike Holmgren’s 5-year plan…..

Your early-onset dementia was touching.

- Josh, Eagles fan

Actually, we might have been on the winning end if it weren’t for all the penalties, most of which were the Skins’ fault. However, the most costly one was complete hogwash, the first-half interference call in the endzone, setting up Philly’s first TD. If anything, it was offense PI. Springs (I think it was Springs) played that ball exceptionally well. But the NFL has gotten to a point where, if the wideout initiates a big tangle, the corner gets called. BS. And that call was one of those that made the ESPN announcers go “oh, man, what a bad call, he played that ball perfectly…if anything, it was offensive interference!” Shit, this is like the third time I’ve had to bitch about this kinda thing this year. So, I’ll repeat what I said on every other instance: It’s about time the NFL allowed these massive pass interference penalties to be challenged…especially considering how utterly and consistently wrong the refs are.

As for the Kobe thing, I say verily unto you, again and again, fuck Kobe. Even when they were good, I didn’t care about such nonsense. They might have won games, but they were no fun to watch. Kobe, like many other modern players, was a showboating asshole, while Shaq was just a behemoth with no skills. I don’t care how many games they won, I’d still rather watch Jordan score 65. So, also, fuck the Lakers.