2012 NBA Season Breakdown

NBA Finals

Well hip hop hooray Lebron James finally got her first Championship!! Yay, ESPN still hasn't shutup about it yet! I'll give it up to The Heat as a team for getting that trophy and dominating The Thunder and Lebron had a great season and finally learned how to not choke, but don't think for one fucking second I enjoyed one minute of that shit! Where in the hell did the rest of The Thunder team go besides Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook? The bench and all of the role players disappeared as soon as The Finals began, they couldn't knock down a shot and played horrible on defense. I do think this was a good learning experience for The Thunder like other teams in the past and that sucks for the rest of The Western Conference because that means that will be even more hungry than they were this year! All in all I hated The Finals because The Thunder didn't make it interesting they let The Heat run right through them! I was gonna be pissed no matter which way The Heat won but The Thunder could have at least made it fun to watch!

Los Angeles Lakers

When you're a Lakers fan you're expectations are always Championship or bust, so to me this season was a failure. But all in all it wasn't a horrible season for The Lakers, I actually think they did better than they should have given the circumstances. They had a brand new coach and system and no off season to work on it due to the lockout, they lost a few key players to free agency or trade and then also got fucked before the season started by that asshole commissioner David Stern who vetoed the trade to send Chris Paul to The Lakers. One of the things that killed The Lakers this year is they were never consistent with anything they did from the offense, to the defense and the bench was just horrendous this season. Both Kobe and Bynum had dominant seasons and it sucks that their good seasons go to waste but they can't do everything!

This offseason I don't think The Lakers need to make any drastic changes, I know everybody wants to throw Pau under the bus and trade his ass but I don't believe that's necessary even though it looks like that is what will be happening. The Lakers need to focus on their bench and sign role players rather than doing anything major. I think having two 7 footers in the middle is a major advantage for them, they just need to get some solid role players who can come in the game and help out when they're needed. A solid point guard is something that The Lakers also need to look into getting maybe someone like Jason Terry.

Quick Hits

• The Dwight Howard saga with The Orlando Magic is getting so old and it's not going to stop going into next year! Before the trade deadline all the chatter was that Howard would be traded for sure, but for some reason before the trade deadline Dwight decides to opt in for one more year with The Magic and swears that he is going to give it one more year with The Magic. Well guess what now it's another off season of hearing about where Dwight Howard might get traded to because he has requested yet another trade! He could have saved us all the trouble by not opting into the final year of this contract and now he'd be able to sign with whoever the fuck he wants to! Instead the saga lives on!

- I think the biggest effect the lockout had on this season was with all the injuries. This year it seemed we had a different player suffering a major injury at least once a week. Derrick Rose spent the majortiy of his season injured and then ended with the worst injury of them all, a torn ACL, which he most likely will still be rehabbing when next season begins. Chauncey Billups suffered a season ending injury, Manu Ginobili spent a couple months out with injuries, Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, Stephen Curry, Dwayne Wade and many other players suffered some sort of injury that they had to sit out for an extended period of time. My guess is that them not getting the proper amount of conditioning in during the off season and playing so many games in a compacted schedule had an effect on some of these guys ending up with injuries.

MVP: Lebron James

Lebron had a dominant season offensively and defensively and not only was he dominant during the regular season he actually carried it on into the playoffs. He was the leader of his team and they relied on him more since Wade and Bosh were injured throughout the season and playoffs. He won a title so I guess he actually deserved the award this year!

Defensive Player of the Year: Tyson Chandler

Besides Jeremy Lin, Chandler was about the only positive thing about The Knicks this season.

Rookie of the Year: Kyrie Irving

This guy had a great year for The Cavs averaging 18 pts a game, he may not be Lebron but he is definitely a player they can build around. He was by far the most impressive rookie this year.

Coach of the Year: Greg Popovich

At the start of the season nobody thought The Spurs would be as dominant as they were this year. Out of all the coaches in the league I think Popovich handled coaching his team the best given the lockout shortened season. He had to deal with injuries to key players and was able to get his role players to step up when he needed to rest some of the veteran players.

Sixth Man: James Harden

He was by far the best 6^th man in the league, overall he had a great season and helped his team get into the playoffs. Too bad he didn't take that into The Finals!

NBA Finals Prediction

1^st Round Record (6-2)

Conf Semi Record (3-1)

Conf Finals Record (1-1)

Miami Heat Vs Oklahoma City Thunder

I am so fucking pissed off I have to see Lebron James stupid face playing in The NBA Finals, I mean I am going to love when he loses again, but man the ass kissing from ESPN and the rest of the media is going to be even more annoying! This will be a fun matchup to watch though, these two teams matchup very well against eachother and I'm expecting high scoring games in the majority of the series. We are going to see the top two players of the season, Durant and Lebron, go one on one against eachother and do what they can to carry their team to a Championship. The deciding factor in this will be whose bench will step it up when they need them to and I think that Oklahoma City plays team ball, where as The Heat like to play a lot of individual ball and get flustered easily. The Thunder also have an edge with their coach Scott Brooks, Erik Spoelstra doesn't do well under pressure and tends to make dumb decisions and overthink things kind of like with Chris Bosh and his minutes when he came back from his injury. Home court is also helpful for the Thunder since they are undefeated at home in the playoffs, their fans are much better and louder too because they are REAL fans unlike the majority of the bandwagon fans in Miami! In the end I've had The Thunder winning it all from the start and I can't jump off the bandwagon now, I think they're the better team and we all know Lebron chokes in the end!

Thunder over Heat 6 games

MVP: Kevin Durant

NBA Conference Finals Predictions

1^st Round Record (6-2)

Conf Semi Record (3-1)

Eastern Conference

Boston Celtics Vs Miami Heat

God this is such a horrible matchup for me personally because these are the two teams I can't stand the most! But oh well one will lose this round and hopefully the other will lose in The Finals! This is where I thought The Eastern Conference playoffs would end up when the playoffs started. The Celtics have really stepped up their game since the second half of the season and have been back to their dominant defensive ways. Even if The Heat had a healthy Chris Bosh in the middle this would be an uphill battle for them, but with an injured Bosh or no Bosh at all Kevin Garnett is going to own The Heat in the paint! Garnett has really stepped his game up since the playoffs began and I think a lot of it has to do with him actually being healthy for once, he looks really hungry to get back to The Finals and I don't see him letting Lebron or D Wade just run around all over him like some of these other teams in The East. The Celtics have owned The Heat during the regular season and can easily match what The Heat are doing on offense because they have more weapons, a deeper bench, and play better on defense. The Heat have no one at all who will be able to play one on one against Rondo for the entire game, let alone an entire series that could end up going 7 games! The Celtics aren't intimidated by The Heat at all and actually thrive on moments like these where as The Heat, especially Lebron, crumble in the crucial moments. I never bought into The Heat hype at the start of the season, the end of the season, anytime during the playoffs and still won't even if they move onto The Finals. That's not just hater talk either, that's real talk, this team has not fixed their issues from their loss in The Finals last season and the remaining teams in the playoffs are all teams capable of taking advantage of them like The Pacers ALMOST did! This should be a good series to watch but The Celtics are going to shut a lot of people up!

Celtics over Heat 6 games

Western Conference

Oklahoma City Thunder Vs San Antonio Spurs

This series is going to be so much fun to watch if you're a basketball fan. These are the two best teams in the NBA this season, between the two of them they have only lost one game in the playoffs! Hell The Spurs are on an 18 game winning streak going back to the regular season. These teams are pretty much equal from top to bottom, two great point guards (Tony Parker and Russell Westbrook), two 6^th men that come off the bench and make a difference (Manu Ginobili and James Harden) and two leaders who have been dominating all season (Tim Duncan and Kevin Durant). These are two of the top teams on offense and defense and both teams are about as healthy as you can be at this point in the season. So the winner of each game is going to be the one who takes advantage of all the little things like steals and fast break points. The Spurs have owned The Thunder ever since they moved to OKC so The Thunder have a lot to prove in this series. I picked The Thunder from the start of the season to win it all and even though The Spurs are playing really well and have Championship pedigree from coach to players, I'm going to stick with my gut on this one and go with The Thunder. I think they are finally ready to take that next step and become a Champion and become one of the elite teams in the league by beating all of the Champions before them in the Western Conference. But with all that said WHOEVER wins this matchup WILL be the Champion when it's all said and done!

Thunder over Spurs 7 games

NBA Conference Semi Finals Predictions

1^st Round Record (6-2)

Eastern Conference

Indiana Pacers Vs Miami Heat

The Pacers have been one of the surprising teams out in The East not only because they're winning, but how they're winning. They play a very paced game and once they get going they are hard to stop, so they should be able to keep up with The Heat. But unfortunately I don't think they are good enough to win a seven game series against The Heat. The Pacers won't be a chump team for The Heat to run over like most of the garbage teams in The Eastern Conference, this will actually be a good test for them and offensively they should be able to keep up, but on the defensive side that's a completely different story. That's where The Heat have the edge in this series and that will be the deciding factor in the series.

Heat over Pacers 6 games

Philadelphia 76ers Vs Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics are playing some great basketball right now. They are back to their old ways playing great on defense and scoring on offense. I don't know what has got into Kevin Garnett but dude is ballin hard! Everybody was ready to count this guy out and now that he's healthy he is back to full form and talkin mad ass shit! Paul Pierce is still coming up with the clutch shots and Rondo is dishing the ball, scoring and rebounding, he does it all. The 76ers have had a good season but I don't think they have a chance against The Celtics. The Celtics are on a whole other playing level compared to them and they will make the series interesting but that's about it!

Celtics over 76ers 5 games

Western Conference

Los Angeles Clippers Vs San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs have been resting up and patiently waiting for their next opponent in the playoffs. They are a team who benefits from all this time off too because they do have a veteran squad. The Clippers were pushed to the brink in a tough series against The Grizzlies, a few of their guys got banged up in the series too. That is not a good way to be coming into a series with the way The Spurs have been playing this season. Like I said in the last series I don't believe in The Clippers and never have so I think their run will be over in this round. I think The Spurs will dominate The Clippers and it won't even be that great of a series to watch unless you're a Spurs fan!

Spurs over Clippers 5 games

Los Angeles Lakers Vs Oklahoma City Thunder

From the start of the season I picked The Thunder to be The Champions so I am not surprised at all to see how much they dominated The Mavs in the first round of the playoffs. If The Lakers want any chance of winning this series Gasol and Bynum have to play well and the bench has to step it up. We never have to worry about Kobe, he comes out and does his job night in and night out, but he needs the rest of his team to step it up and play with the same heart or else they will get run over by this fast paced Thunder squad! There will be a little more animosity due to Artest and his elbow to Harden's head, so if there wasn't already enough hatred between these two teams it got worse with that! This will be a good series to watch and I'm sure I will have a million heart attacks throughout. I am picking The Lakers to win the series but that's only because I'm a fan of them. I won't be shocked at all if they lose this series. But when you have Kobe anything is possible!!

Lakers over Thunder 7 games

NBA 1st Round Playoff Predictions

Eastern Conference

Chicago Bulls Vs Philadelphia 76ers

I feel so bad for the reigning MVP Derrick Rose, he has been battling injuries all season long and then in the first game of the playoffs dude tears his ACL! But with that said The Bulls have been able to still play dominant basketball without their star player. The Bulls play smothering defense and spread the ball around on offense. At some point I think being without Rose is going to kill The Bulls in the playoffs, but I think they are a much better team with our without Rose, than the 76ers. The 76ers have been a surprise team this year and they play really good ball so they could make some of these games interesting, but I don't expect them to even have a shot at winning this series.

Bulls over 76ers 5 games

Miami Heat Vs New York Knicks

A lot of people are calling The Knicks a surprise team to beat The Heat. Well not me, even though I'd love nothing more than to see The Heat knocked out in the first round, The Knicks are not going to be the team to do that. The Knicks are definitely headed in the right direction, but The Heat are a much better team than them right now. The Knicks have no shot.

Heat over Knicks 5 games

Boston Celtics Vs Atlanta Hawks

This is probably going to be the best matchup in this round of the Eastern Conference. Both teams matchup well against eachother and have also been playing well the second half of this season. The Celtics are a bit beat up right now which has kind of been the theme all season for them so that can hurt them in a few of these games. But for some reason I just don't see The Hawks winning a seven game series against The Celtics. The Celtics are a bunch of scrappy vets who know how to get it done, while every year The Hawks choke in the playoffs.

Celtics over Hawks 7 games

Indiana Pacers Vs Orlando Magic

The Pacers have been the surprise team out in the East. They have played consistently well from the get go and have been doing it against legitimate teams. The Magic have had the complete opposite season, it's been full of nothing but drama and now they lost Dwight Howard to injury and he won't play in the playoffs. If Howard was playing this would be a much better series to watch, but I don't think The Magic have a shot without him. The Pacers are too fast, they can keep up in scoring with The Magic and also will dominate them in the paint.

Pacers over Magic 6 games

Western Conference

Los Angeles Lakers Vs Denver Nuggets

The Lakers have finally got their shit together at the right time. They started the season off up and down, but it looks like they finally put it all together. The defense has been great and the bench has finally started to step it up. Bynum has been having a monster season and was able to dominate even when Kobe was out due to injury. The only thing I'm not happy about is Ron Artest (I refuse to refer to him as Metta World Peace) his suspension is something that could hurt The Lakers in a few games in this series because he also has finally stepped up his game and been playing some of his best basketball the second half of this season. The Nuggets are a team that have always played The Lakers well especially in the playoffs so this should be a good series and it won't be no cake walk for The Lakers. But when you have Kobe Bryant you don't worry too much about the first round of the playoffs he won't be letting them lose this early!!

Lakers over Nuggets 6 games

San Antonio Spurs Vs Utah Jazz

The Spurs have been one of the most dominant teams all season long. Most people had them written off at the start of the season but even when they had injuries and Popovich resting his top 3 players because of the shortened season, they are still dominating. They kill people with their 3 point shot and they also play great defense. Tony Parker has had an MVP calibur season and has literally been carrying this team on his back. Everybody has been calling Tim Duncan old but the dude can still ball and he's a leader, oh yeah he also has four rings so he knows what it takes to win! The Jazz backed their way into the playoffs and I don't think they have a shot!

Spurs over Jazz 4 games

Los Angeles Clippers Vs Memphis Grizzlies

I am probably one of the few people who has not fallen into this stupid trap with The Clippers. Everybody has been acting like this is one of the greatest teams of all time when they have accomplished NOTHING!! Yes they can be a fun team to watch but dunks do not win Championships! The Clippers are nothing but a highlite reel and at some point they will have to step up the defense. The Grizzlies picked up right where they left off in the playoffs last year. They are tough on the defensive side and are hard to beat in the paint with Randolph and Gasol in there. They did blow their wad in the first game to The Clips, but I still think they will take the series.

Grizzlies over Clippers 7 games

Oklahoma City Thunder Vs Dallas Mavericks

The Thunder are probably so happy they get The Mavs in the first round so they can avenge the loss from last years Western Conference Finals! Durant has been having an MVP calibur year, Russell Westbrook has been playing the best basketball of his career, and James Harden is most definitely the 6^th man of the year because he has also played lights out. Also don't count out Derek Fisher, the man may be old but he does have 5 rings and he's played alongside some of the greatest players in the game and his leadership alone is big especially in the playoffs, the man is clutch! The Mavericks season has been the exact opposite. They haven't been able to get it together at all this season and I don't see them getting it together in the playoffs. They have Dirk so he's always going to keep The Mavs in it as long as he can, but the rest of his team will let him down.

Thunder over Mavericks 6 games

NCAA Basketball National Championship Prediction

Kansas Vs Kentucky

Kentucky has been one of the most dominant teams all season long, they are very talented and John Calipari is a good coach, but for some reason I never really saw them as The Champion when it was all said and done. When The Tournament started I had a feeling a not so obvious team would be the winner and Kansas is a team that can do it. Kansas has dominated teams on the defensive side of the ball, but they have also had their ups and downs throughout the seasons and lost some close games. But the same can be said about Kentucky. Earlier in the season when they played it was a close game until the end when Kentucky pulled away with the win and I expect this game to be similar in many ways, except this time around I think Kansas will walk away with the win. John Calipari teams seem to choke in the big games, remember when he coached for Memphis and they went to the National Title game and lost to none other than Kansas back in 2008? His Memphis team was almost identical to this team, they were dominant all the way up until The Championship and blew it. Bill Self has been in this position before and knows how to get the job done and has his team prepared for this matchup. This should be a good game overall and I'll enjoy it no matter what happens because Thomas Robinson is playing for Kansas and he is fine as hell!

Kansas Over Kentucky 66-63

Tropp's Bracket

Sweet 16

Kentucky Vs Indiana

Baylor Vs Duke

Michigan St Vs Louisville

Marquette Vs Missouri

Syracuse Vs Wisconsin

Florida St Vs Ohio St

North Carolina Vs Michigan

Georgetown Vs Kansas

Elite 8

Kentucky Vs Baylor

Michigan St Vs Marquette

Syracuse Vs Florida St

Michigan Vs Kansas

Final 4

Kentucky Vs Marquette

Florida St Vs Kansas

National Championship

Kentucky Vs Florida St

National Champions:

Florida St

Yes this is definitely an off the wall type of pick. Most people are looking at Florida St as a threat but not a legitimate contender for the Championship. I on the other hand have had my eye on The Seminoles all season long. They play smothering defense, great team ball and have some big playmakers on the team. The Seminoles remind me of Uconn from last year, a team that can step it up in big situations and play very well in the tournament format. Florida St dominated the ACC conference, they absolutely owned North Carolina during the regular season and beat Duke at home! Then they went on into the ACC Tournament and did the same damn thing! Don't sleep on Florida St ya'll and this team is for real!