paul george

Last March 5, 2013 NBA Philippines announced that the Indiana Pacers and Houston Rockets will play at the Mall of Asia Arena, come October 10, 2013 as  part of the 2013-2014 NBA Preseason Games. Experts predicted  that tickets for the event will be as high as PhP 25,000.00, that's barely $600.00. That's also enough money to buy me two pairs of Jordan 11's: a pair of concorde and a pair of breds. And for an "average NBA fan" (average - money wise) like me, if i want to slap hands and do high five's with Paul George, Roy Hibbert, David West, James Harden, Jeremy Lin, Omer Asik and/or perhaps with Danny Granger and Dwight Howard(?) on October 10, that would mean skipping my lunch for six months, getting sober for four months, and avoiding getting high for five months. That's a tall order. And if it so happens that Raam would woke up one day, suddenly wanting to see Gerald Green doing a windmill dunk off an alley-oop pass from George Hill, then you just do the math.

It is for the Filipino NBA fans, they say, the fans that NBA Commissioner David Stern described as "among the most passionate in the world". It is for the fans that's why tickets will be "affordable", one MOA official said and that the report about that PhP 25,000.00 court side ticket is ridiculous. They never gave figures, they just said that admission would be favorable for us, "average NBA fans", until before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. How fast things have changed.  It won't come cheap, Yahoo Philippines reported. Indeed it is.Well, at least the word "cheap" is included in the headline. No blaming NBA Philippines and MOA officials here though. We should blame Paul George, Roy Hibbert and the rest of the Indiana Pacers for this. We, the "average NBA Fans" admonish them for thumping the Atlanta Hawks, for making Melo and the Knicks looking like the Melo led Denver Nuggets that never won a playoff series and for going all the way to the ECF, almost beating the defending champs.It could have been PhP 3,200.00 not PhP 32,000.00, Paul George.

So much about that damn overpriced tickets.

Spurs in six.

You read it right, old pal. I will be rooting for your San Antonio Spurs this time of the year, for the same exact reason that I rooted for the Bucks, Bulls and Pacers: I despise that Miami Heat team, specifically, the self proclaimed king (save for Coach Spo of course).To me LBJ is a bête noire. I still hate him for bringing his talent to south beach instead of trying to win his rings in Cleveland. He should have waited for Kyrie Irving rather than teaming up with D-Wade and CB or waited for Dan Gilbert to orchestrate a Pat Riley like trade to give him the supporting cast that he needed to get that first elusive ring. But he took a detour and chose the easy route. The almost easy route. Then there was the Ray Allen Trade. The Shane Floppier antiques. The Mike Miller timely three's. atmaramipangiba.

And besides, me and the Big Fundamental had a strong relationship in the past (bromance?). I once had a life size poster of Timothy Theodore Duncan, all 6'11 of his frame, posted in a wall of my room, way back 1998, when he was still a power forward and  David Robinson was their center. (Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett should be listed as fives not fours).

The Spurs will become the world champions once again at the American Airlines Arena on June 18, 2013. But the Miami Heat will not just hand them the Larry O'Brien trophy tout de suite. We could talk all day about Lebron's decisions but still, there's no denying the man's talent, power, ability and basketball know-how. When I claimed that he is an  anathema, i mean it in a complimentary way. For the Miami Heat, this series will be all about him. They need a 40-10-12 production a night from him, with zero turnovers, four steals and four blocks, to win it all or at least make this one a series.

Clearly, D-Wade and Chrish Bosh are still hurting. But come game time, they will give their all, as they have shown in the Game 7 of the ECF. They will, they should, they must. But like any other athletes, their body will eventually betray them in the end, unless somebody gives them a magic beans.

And for the Spurs?

It will be all about the great Pop. He will make the necessary in-game adjustments and match-ups. Play mind games with the referees. Make Eric Spoelstra sleepless at nights. Answer every reporters question sarcastically, with one liner punch lines. Call out Pat Riley maybe. Or get the ire of Commissioner David Stern for the second time this season. How about sending T-Mac, Nando de Colo, De Juan Blair, Cory Joseph and Boris Diaw home for game 2? Or making them his starting five for Game 1? How much would it cost the Spurs Association? We could only speculate what his plans are, that's why he is a genius, on all matters basketball.

Those so called basketball connoisseur has the Miami as the title favorites bro. I had the Spurs in six, but then again, as Rasheed Wallace said, "Ball Don't Lie".

Kung sa atin naman, "Bilog ang Bola".

Sabay gan-un anu? :-)

(And yes, just like all of you, I also have forgotten that  LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers has once faced this almost exact Greg Popovich-led San Antonio Spurs six years ago.)