Rosen's take on East semifinals

[Bruiser]

Hey yo!

Check this out:
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/9533 ... semifinals

There are a number of things that make me disagree with Charley:

1.- BBD's foot speed flies under the radar in this league. Hedo faster than Baby? I'm not that sure.
2.- Why double team Howard? He is not a good offensive player beyond the slams and offensive rebounds. He has averaged 16 points on 26/53, 15 rebs and 1 assist against us this year.
3.- We have to control Hedo in order to win this serie.
4.- Regarding Cavs, I have the strong feeling that Hawks could give them the fits as we suffer last season. This might go 7 games. They are very strong and athletic.

Any thoughts? Kind regards.

[Kefa461]

Atl might get used to that raised floor in Cleveland and get a game or two you never know.

[BillessuR6]

Never double team Howard! Never!

And I expect cavs to sweep ATL...

[BRUNiNHO91]

Never double team Howard! Never!

And I expect cavs to sweep ATL...

I wouldn't say sweep. I think Atlanta gets one..it will be 3-1 going back to Cleveland and the Cavs close it out in 5...they are just too good. Well LeBron is..

[sully00]

I would rather give up a two to a defended Howard than a 3 to a wide open everyone else.

I think I have watched the C's play Orlando 7-8 times in the last two seasons and have never seen Lewis on Pierce, it is always Hedu and help.

This is going to come down to Baby on Lewis and whether or not he can make him a little inefficient on offense he is going to score and attack on the offensive end.

The real key for Boston is the advantage on the perimeter. The thing that has me uneasy about that is to make the most of that Boston has to jump ugly on ORL tonight with it. It is about quick starts and pushing the ball, Boston has to take advantage of homecourt and friendly rims, Eddie House is much more effective weapon with a lead than when trying to come from behind. I love little guys come the postseason but they have to set the tone.

[MyInsatiableOne]

Rosen is a cranky old bastard...disregard him...

[hickfromfrenchlick]

Rosen is a cranky old bastard...disregard him...

The guy wrote a long piece for ESPN.com when LeBron was a senior in HS about how overrated and not NBA-ready he was.

When you miss that wide on something, it's hard to be taken seriously ever again.

As for this article, eh.

Here's an excerpt from Rosen's laughable LeBron article:

Yes, James has good hands, quick feet, extraordinary hops, and a lively body. Yes, he's also an outstanding passer. But his defense is atrocious.

His basic defensive stance is much too upright.

When defending a perimeter player, his hands are in his pockets.

When his team tried a full-court press, one of Oak Hill's guards absolutely left him in the dust.

He always looks for the easy way out, making perfunctory swipes at the ball, and gambling on every entry pass.

His transition from offense to defense is shameful. Instead of hustling downcourt, he lingers near the ball, hoping for a steal.

His post-up defense offers less resistance than a soft summer's breeze.

In short, LeBron James can't guard his own shadow.

What other shortcomings did the young hoopling reveal?

A barely adequate left hand.

A shaky behind-the-back dribble going left to right.

The premise of the article was that people were hyping LBJ too much. Of course he made the perfunctory "of course he could be awesome" qualifier. But anybody who writes an article based on watching one game -- I don't need to read his opinions on anything.

[MyInsatiableOne]

^He's usually off and always comes off like a cranky, curmudgeonly jerk...

[GuyClinch]

Meh. He is more accurate then Bill Simmons. If you had to find a weak point in Lebron's game it WOULD be defense. Though its still good compared to the rest of his game..

[SuigintouEV]

A barely adequate left hand.

lebron "ambidextrious" james? really?

[MyInsatiableOne]

Meh. He is more accurate then Bill Simmons. If you had to find a weak point in Lebron's game it WOULD be defense. Though its still good compared to the rest of his game..

^That's not saying much!

And yeah LeBron's D is not great, but it's not horrid either...and it's way better than it was when he came into the league...

[er1c]

Meh. He is more accurate then Bill Simmons. If you had to find a weak point in Lebron's game it WOULD be defense. Though its still good compared to the rest of his game..

Didn't LeBron just come in 2nd in the DPOY voting? He's a beast on the defensive end now. His biggest weakness is definitely his shooting touch and even that has improved.

[Datruth345]

i agree with not doubling Howard for 2 reasons:

the first is that Kendrick Perkins is one of the best man defenders in the post in the NBA. He has the size, the bulk, and the prowess to keep Howard from getting to his spots, bump him off of his two step running hook, and generally bother Howard, call me a homer, but i take my chances with perk guarding Howard one on one until/if he gets into foul trouble.

the second is, while Howard is not what you would call a great passer out of the double team (even with all those shooters he still only avg. 1.4 assists on the season) the magic have soooooo many guys that can shoot on the perimeter as we saw last night. It is likely is not an effective strategy to leave one of them to double Howard, especially Lewis and Hedo.

Lewis, Hedo, Reddick, Alston, Lee & Peitrus combine to shoot 37% from 3 on the season & they shoot 38% as a team

that's my post between classes for the day
go c'sssssssss