The Celtics didn't let ring night get spoiled, Tyrus Thomas really got up for Scott Skiles' Bucks and the Lakers went all Mr. Olympia on Portland in an action-packed opening night.
The Lakers flexed massive muscles throughout a truly dominant first effort, suffocating Portland defensively and getting a perfect 10 out of Kobe Bryant.
If the league's reigning MVP can put together performances like he did against the Blazers, L.A. could wind up with the league's best record.
Kobe forced nothing. His 23 points came at the most opportune times. Remember, four months ago the Lakers notoriously blew one the largest leads in Finals history. After surging to a huge advantage against the Blazers, Bryant extinguished nearly every run with a big play, effectively taking over whenever he wanted.
The sour note in L.A.'s romp was of course Greg Oden's game-altering foot sprain, incredibly suffered on the third play of the game after coming down on Derek Fisher's foot following a hook shot.
Despite his desire to continue gutting it out, Oden physically couldn't go, unable to run despite having the foot taped.
The Lakers flexed massive muscles throughout a truly dominant first effort, suffocating Portland defensively and getting a perfect 10 out of Kobe Bryant.
If the league's reigning MVP can put together performances like he did against the Blazers, L.A. could wind up with the league's best record.
Kobe forced nothing. His 23 points came at the most opportune times. Remember, four months ago the Lakers notoriously blew one the largest leads in Finals history. After surging to a huge advantage against the Blazers, Bryant extinguished nearly every run with a big play, effectively taking over whenever he wanted.
The sour note in L.A.'s romp was of course Greg Oden's game-altering foot sprain, incredibly suffered on the third play of the game after coming down on Derek Fisher's foot following a hook shot.
Despite his desire to continue gutting it out, Oden physically couldn't go, unable to run despite having the foot taped.
We'll collectively hold our breath's for the results of Wednesday's MRI. Everyone should want to see this kid succeed.
"It sucks," a disappointed Oden told reporters post-game," but you know, keep on working. Just a little setback."
Hopefully, he's right. This eerie Blazers center curse needs to stop.
Cavs cost themselves chance to spoil Boston's fun
Mike Brown won't be beating himself up too much over his Cavs coming up short in Boston. Cleveland gave itself an opportunity to win from an effort standpoint, but missed far too many open shots.
That especially includes those uncovered 15-foot shots they give you from that place they call the charity stripe.
After knocking down 19 of their first 23 free throws, the Cavs failed to respond in the fourth, finishing up 5-for-10. LeBron James went 2-for-6. He looked out of sync throughout. Ditto for Mo Williams, Boobie Gibson, Wally Sczerbiak and Sasha Pavlovic, Cleveland's supposed shooting specialists.
Combined, they went 10-for-28, repeatedly wasting opportunities. Chalk it up to an off night.
At least Anderson Varejao and Zydrunas Ilguaskas looked spry. Sadly, Ben Wallace didn't.
From the Celtics' end, they have to like the resiliency displayed after coming out flat and weepy after seeing that 17th banner go up.
Watching Paul Pierce and Leon Powe make big plays sure picks up where we left off and it was nice that Pierce redeemed himself for almost delaying tip-off with what had to be the longest pre-game speech since Lou Gehrig's.
Bulls stop Bucks in encouraging opener
Chicago/Milwaukee produced plenty of eyebrow-raising fodder, starting with how comfortable Derrick Rose looked scooting around out there. He was sharp, finishing with 11 points, nine assists and four turnovers that he wasn't happy about.
Ben Gordon did what he does best, beginning his season-long audition off on the right foot with 18 points. His future won't be in Chicago, but while he's there, he may as well help win some games and earn himself some extra dollars. Having accepted a qualifying offer from the Bulls after flirting with Europe, Gordon is in the process of earning every penny possible when he comes up for unrestricted free agency next summer.
As good as Rose and Gordon were, Thomas left the most tantalizing impression. After spending the offseason dedicating himself to doing all the right things, he made sure his former coach had a front-row seat to what might go down as his coming-out party.
It's still too early to say for sure, but his first offering was impressive, a testament to his desire to work hard for new coach Vinny Del Negro, who has vowed to treat him fairly by promising what Skiles wouldn't: consistent minutes.
Thomas played 41:26 of the available 48 on Tuesday, the most of any player in all three games. He responded with 15 points, 10 rebounds and provided a game-changing presence on both ends of the floor.
"You can't produce consistently if you don't play consistent minutes," Thomas told the Chicago Tribune. "It's impossible, regardless what people say. You play me five minutes and then say I'm inconsistent? That's crazy.
"You won't be consistent playing 30 minutes a game for three games and then five minutes a game for the next six. It's not going to happen. I know what I can do. If I play consistent minutes, I'll produce consistently."
There may be a similar situation brewing at power forward in Skiles' new surroundings, where Charlie Villanueva, Malik Allen and rookies Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Joe Alexander are all going vying for time next to Richard Jefferson and Andrew Bogut.
Villanueva got the start, because, as he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "it would have just been an arbitrary decision by me to do something different rotationally. He deserves first crack at it. He's played well in exhibition. He's another guy who's trying to do everything we're asking him to do."
Villanueva lasted less than nine minutes, deferring to Malik Allen and Mbah a Moute, who led all reserves by playing 26.
It's obvious where this is headed.
Mbah a Moute, who Skiles has touted one of the best defensive rookies he's ever come across, is going to be looked upon as the glue guy. It's only a matter of time before he's starting and Villanueva is left to fill in during times when another scorer is needed, potentially in relief of Jefferson.
Alexander didn't get off the bench despite being the first guy Skiles called upon in the Bucks' last two exhibition games. He didn't play well in those opportunities and clearly hasn't earned his new coach's confidence.
Allen, the most natural power forward on the roster, is pretty much guaranteed to see action, which leaves Villanueva or Alexander out of the mix.
You can't play everybody, but Skiles can take a cue from Thomas' rant and attempt to be consistent and direct. He's not the type to coddle anyone, but he's got to understand that Villanueva and Alexander are former Top-10 picks who are supposed to be part of Milwaukee's future.
As it stands now, it looks like at least one should come to terms with the fact he won't be playing. It's up to Skiles to make sure no hard feelings ensue that disrupt his team the way the Bulls came apart.
Tuesday's +/- report: Delonte West was a -10 against the Celtics despite starting and spending the bulk of his 35 minutes out there with Cleveland's regulars. If I'm Brown, one thing I am reconsidering is going with West over Sasha Pavlovic, who was limited by an ailing ankle all preseason but should be roudning into shape...Pierce and Powe, not surprisingly led the Celtics with a +12...Michael Redd's 30 points weren't enough to keep Milwaukee from losing by double-digits because the bench offered little. Mbah a Moute fared decently but Charlie Bell, Tyronn Lue and Allen were all -13s, while Dan Gadzuric chipped in a -11. Interestingly, Villanueva was a +5 in his limited action, the only Bucks player to register a positive... Oden registered a -13 in just under 13 minutes. Travis Outlaw, who was by far the best of the Blazers' bad bunch, came in at -18 despite his team-high 18 points. Derek Fisher, who looked 24 years old instead of 34 in diving around all over the place, registered the highest +/- on opening night, breaking out a +20.
Hopefully, he's right. This eerie Blazers center curse needs to stop.
Cavs cost themselves chance to spoil Boston's fun
Mike Brown won't be beating himself up too much over his Cavs coming up short in Boston. Cleveland gave itself an opportunity to win from an effort standpoint, but missed far too many open shots.
That especially includes those uncovered 15-foot shots they give you from that place they call the charity stripe.
After knocking down 19 of their first 23 free throws, the Cavs failed to respond in the fourth, finishing up 5-for-10. LeBron James went 2-for-6. He looked out of sync throughout. Ditto for Mo Williams, Boobie Gibson, Wally Sczerbiak and Sasha Pavlovic, Cleveland's supposed shooting specialists.
Combined, they went 10-for-28, repeatedly wasting opportunities. Chalk it up to an off night.
At least Anderson Varejao and Zydrunas Ilguaskas looked spry. Sadly, Ben Wallace didn't.
From the Celtics' end, they have to like the resiliency displayed after coming out flat and weepy after seeing that 17th banner go up.
Watching Paul Pierce and Leon Powe make big plays sure picks up where we left off and it was nice that Pierce redeemed himself for almost delaying tip-off with what had to be the longest pre-game speech since Lou Gehrig's.
Bulls stop Bucks in encouraging opener
Chicago/Milwaukee produced plenty of eyebrow-raising fodder, starting with how comfortable Derrick Rose looked scooting around out there. He was sharp, finishing with 11 points, nine assists and four turnovers that he wasn't happy about.
Ben Gordon did what he does best, beginning his season-long audition off on the right foot with 18 points. His future won't be in Chicago, but while he's there, he may as well help win some games and earn himself some extra dollars. Having accepted a qualifying offer from the Bulls after flirting with Europe, Gordon is in the process of earning every penny possible when he comes up for unrestricted free agency next summer.
As good as Rose and Gordon were, Thomas left the most tantalizing impression. After spending the offseason dedicating himself to doing all the right things, he made sure his former coach had a front-row seat to what might go down as his coming-out party.
It's still too early to say for sure, but his first offering was impressive, a testament to his desire to work hard for new coach Vinny Del Negro, who has vowed to treat him fairly by promising what Skiles wouldn't: consistent minutes.
Thomas played 41:26 of the available 48 on Tuesday, the most of any player in all three games. He responded with 15 points, 10 rebounds and provided a game-changing presence on both ends of the floor.
"You can't produce consistently if you don't play consistent minutes," Thomas told the Chicago Tribune. "It's impossible, regardless what people say. You play me five minutes and then say I'm inconsistent? That's crazy.
"You won't be consistent playing 30 minutes a game for three games and then five minutes a game for the next six. It's not going to happen. I know what I can do. If I play consistent minutes, I'll produce consistently."
There may be a similar situation brewing at power forward in Skiles' new surroundings, where Charlie Villanueva, Malik Allen and rookies Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Joe Alexander are all going vying for time next to Richard Jefferson and Andrew Bogut.
Villanueva got the start, because, as he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "it would have just been an arbitrary decision by me to do something different rotationally. He deserves first crack at it. He's played well in exhibition. He's another guy who's trying to do everything we're asking him to do."
Villanueva lasted less than nine minutes, deferring to Malik Allen and Mbah a Moute, who led all reserves by playing 26.
It's obvious where this is headed.
Mbah a Moute, who Skiles has touted one of the best defensive rookies he's ever come across, is going to be looked upon as the glue guy. It's only a matter of time before he's starting and Villanueva is left to fill in during times when another scorer is needed, potentially in relief of Jefferson.
Alexander didn't get off the bench despite being the first guy Skiles called upon in the Bucks' last two exhibition games. He didn't play well in those opportunities and clearly hasn't earned his new coach's confidence.
Allen, the most natural power forward on the roster, is pretty much guaranteed to see action, which leaves Villanueva or Alexander out of the mix.
You can't play everybody, but Skiles can take a cue from Thomas' rant and attempt to be consistent and direct. He's not the type to coddle anyone, but he's got to understand that Villanueva and Alexander are former Top-10 picks who are supposed to be part of Milwaukee's future.
As it stands now, it looks like at least one should come to terms with the fact he won't be playing. It's up to Skiles to make sure no hard feelings ensue that disrupt his team the way the Bulls came apart.
Tuesday's +/- report: Delonte West was a -10 against the Celtics despite starting and spending the bulk of his 35 minutes out there with Cleveland's regulars. If I'm Brown, one thing I am reconsidering is going with West over Sasha Pavlovic, who was limited by an ailing ankle all preseason but should be roudning into shape...Pierce and Powe, not surprisingly led the Celtics with a +12...Michael Redd's 30 points weren't enough to keep Milwaukee from losing by double-digits because the bench offered little. Mbah a Moute fared decently but Charlie Bell, Tyronn Lue and Allen were all -13s, while Dan Gadzuric chipped in a -11. Interestingly, Villanueva was a +5 in his limited action, the only Bucks player to register a positive... Oden registered a -13 in just under 13 minutes. Travis Outlaw, who was by far the best of the Blazers' bad bunch, came in at -18 despite his team-high 18 points. Derek Fisher, who looked 24 years old instead of 34 in diving around all over the place, registered the highest +/- on opening night, breaking out a +20.
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