Tough loss for Philly!

[WayOutWest]

Very tough loss for the Sixers after game one of the 2004 NBA finals.

Philly will have to turn over that banner it won in 2001 against the Lakers over to the Pistons!  
 

[Rickortreat]

Only if the Pistons don't manage to take another one from your vaunted Lakers.  I did predict LA in Six.  

Larry Brown is back for revenge!  He and Phil really don't like each other.  Larry's been jealous of Phils' penchant for picking talent laden teams.  Phil is secretly jelous of Larry's abiltiy to work magic with less talent.   :eek2:  

[Guest_Randy]

Why should EITHER of these two coaches be jealous of the other.  And, it's not like Brown took a team like the Chicago Bulls and turned them into a championship team -- I love listening to Brown fans who talk about him going to yet "another" untalented team and turning them into "champions."  Brown is a GREAT defensive coach but let's remember that this team HAS been to the playoffs in the past.  And would Brown turn down a chance to go coach a team like the Lakers, SA, SacTown, etc?  Why would he?  Why do people give PJ a hard time for going to teams with talent?  Can he coach?  That's a different question, IMO.

Can PJ coach?  I, personally, don't think PJ is much of a coach but he DOES have a great coach right beside him -- and he LISTENS to him.  Did anyone catch the adjustments the Lakers made after the two losses to SA?  Umm, isn't that what a great coach is SUPPOSED to do?  LA made adjustments after the Lakers lost to the Sixers in game #1 of the 2000-2001 NBA Finals -- and the Lakers went on to win in 5, I believe.  Pretty significant adjustments, right?  It's up to a coach to make adjustments -- and as I stated before this game -- I believe the coaching match-up is going to be the BEST part of this series but PJ will win it because he has a better squad.

[westkoast]

Only if the Pistons don't manage to take another one from your vaunted Lakers.  I did predict LA in Six. 

Larry Brown is back for revenge!  He and Phil really don't like each other.  Larry's been jealous of Phils' penchant for picking talent laden teams.  Phil is secretly jelous of Larry's abiltiy to work magic with less talent.   :eek2:

I would harldy say that Larry is working magic with less talent.  The Pistons are one of the better teams in the league and with the addition of Sheed it helped put them over the top.  Kinda like the EC version of the twin towers.  To compare this Pistons team to some of the other places Brown coached in is disrespectful to the amount of talent on this team.

PJ coaches.....with this size of ego's and money involved (and all the bs that brings) balancing stars and personalities is a big part of the game now.  He is just not the same kind of coach as a Larry Brown or Tex Winters.

[rickortreat]

westkoast- I wasn't thinking about the Pistons- think of all the different teams Brown got into the playoffs, including the Clippers!  Think PJ could have done that?  To me, that's a real coach.

As far as balancing the ego's, I admit LA is a big challenge, but every team in the NBA has ovesized ego's (and usually not enough talent to match!)  Most likely, one of the reasons Brown left Philly was because of Iverson, he was sick of Allen and his B.S.  He also got out while the getting was good- Philly has been in transition ever since.

Adjustments should happen DURING the game if you're a good coach.  To loose two in a row to the Spurs and then figure out how to play them isn't all that impressive.  Philly never had a shot in their series, IMO.  THe team was never the same after trading an injured Ratliff for Mutumbo.  I wanted them to win but that's not the same as thinking they would!

It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out where LA would have problems with Detroit- I provided the blue-print with my posts, and so did Joe V.  The question is, why didn't Phil have his team prepared to deal with Detroit in game 1.  His excuses in the press conference were laughable.

 :nod:  

[WayOutWest]

The Clippers team LB took to the playoffs was talented, so you should site a different example.

First run:
Danny Manning
Ron Harper
Doc Rivers
Charles Smith
Greg Norman
Joe Wolfe

Second run:
Danny Manning
Ron Harper
Stanley Roberts
John Williams
Greg Norman
Joe Wolfe

What I saw was a lazy unfocused Laker team.  Shaq and Kobe could score at will but I wasn't happy about Kobe settling for jumpers when it was obvious nobody to stay in front of him.  The role playes sucked and that COULD be attributed to the Pistons defense but IMO it was more because the Pistons hustled alot more and had a pretty easy time getting open looks cause the Lakers D was on vacation.  I expect the Lakers to play with more engergy, not necessarily make any adjustments unless Billips starts to Parker-up the Lakers.

Call my opinion what you want but it is my opinion that the light switch was "off".   I don't understand why but it was, I hope it comes "on" ASAP".
 

[jn]

Greg Norman? Was their actually a guy buy that name or are you maybe thinking of Ken Norman?

[jn]

"Their" and "buy"?   :bash:  

[westkoast]

Lets not forget the LUCKY jumper by Danny Manning!

[WayOutWest]

Greg Norman? Was their actually a guy buy that name or are you maybe thinking of Ken Norman?

Ken  :hail: