For now, I want to continue my season review by going over the top "Wow...Look at this!" moments. This is a category that I kind of randomly came up with, but I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the more impressive or memorable moments from this past season. It's really difficult to provide a criteria for this category, but here's kind of what I'm looking for:
- Something that is impressive and really catches your attention.
- At the same time, I want something that makes people want to find our more about it. I'm not looking for a super good game, but an amazing streak or moment that needs to be replayed again and again.
- As well, what makes something memorable is the fact that I didn't expect it to happen, nor do I expect it to happen too often in the future.
- Moments that a lot of people knew about and were talking about.
- I also want to focus on positive things that happen; there's too much negativity in sports
- Basically, whatever made you go to someone and say "Wow...Look at this!"
10. The Philadelphia 76ers become the fifth 8-seed to beat a top seed in the playoffs
Okay, so while Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah both got injured during the season, I still expected Chicago to pull of the series win. Philadelphia was just 15-18 in the second half of the season, and Chicago still had the likes of Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Luol Deng, and Rip Hamilton. I guess I was wrong...
9. The LA Clippers' 27-point comeback against Memphis
The Clippers made the playoffs for just the second time in the last 15 years and were the slight underdogs against a dangerous Memphis Grizzlies team. In Game 1, Los Angeles appeared as if they weren't ready for the postseason, as the Grizzlies were stomping all over them at Memphis. In something we probably won't see for a while, the Clippers came back from 27 down to win the game, and eventually win the series in 7.
8. Oklahoma City defeats the LA Lakers
This has two meanings. It could either refer to Oklahoma City defeating Los Angeles in 5 in the second round of the playoffs, or it could refer to OKC's 119-90 win against them in Game 1. Either way, OKC's success against LA sort of showed a passing of the torch. Oklahoma City was the team of the future, while Los Angeles was the team of the past (or are they...)
7. Boston Celtics come one win away from the NBA Finals
I watched Game 5 of the ECF with a friend, and after Boston pulled away for the win to take the series lead, I looked at him and said, "You can never count out Boston." Boston was considered old and many expected New York to pull away with the division crown. However, despite starting 4-8, Boston rallied to end up 39-27 and win the division. Still, they didn't have home-court against Atlanta, and lost Game 1, but managed to win the series. They lucked out with the Rose injury, and faced the No. 8 Philadelphia 76ers. They beat them, though it didn't look too good that it took 7 games. This didn't matter, though, as they took the series lead against Miami, before dropping the last 2 games. Somehow, Boston is always in the mix...
6. Shane Battier lights it up in the Finals
Fact: Shane Battier is old. He was 34 years old when the season started. Fact: Shane Battier didn't shoot well in the regular season. His shooting line was .387/.339/.622. Yet, in an NBA Finals where I thought the OKC role players were greatly superior to the Miami ones, Battier stepped it up big. He found the fountain of youth, scoring 17 points in both Games 1 and 2, while hitting 9 threes in those games. For the series, he shot 61% from the field and 58% from three.
5. Blake Griffin dunks over Kendrick Perkins
We all know that Blake Griffin is an exciting dunker. Whether he dunks over a car, Pau Gasol, or Serge Ibaka, he gets some kind of attention. However, his dunk over Kendrick Perkins in a game against the Thunder this year took the internet by storm. Dubbed the best dunk of the year, it was the talk of basketball fans everywhere for days.
4. Kyrie Irving impresses in his rookie season
Kyrie Irving was the No. 1 pick in the draft, so I figured he would be good, but I didn't know he would be this good. He posted great numbers across the board, averaging 18.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 5.4 assists. What makes this more impressive is that it happened in just 30.5 minutes a game! Rookie guards also tend not to shoot well, but Irving put up an excellent shooting line of .469/.399/.872. The future sure is bright in Cleveland.
3. San Antonio Spurs go on a 20-game winning streak
Coming off a season where they lost in the first round, the future for an aging Spurs team looked a little bleak. However, the Spurs surprised everyone, tying for the season's best record at 50-16, and earning the No. 1 seed out West. San Antonio only seemed to get better as the season progressed, as they won their last 10 to end the season, before sweeping Utah, the LA Clippers, and taking the first two games against OKC. Though they couldn't make it to the NBA Finals, their 20-game win streak was the most dominant any team was the entire season. Before losing to OKC, I had thought to myself that if San Antonio won the NBA Finals, could they be considered among the best NBA teams ever?
2. LeBron James finally gets his first ring
Even though the Miami Heat were the title favorites heading into the season, they finished with a somewhat unspectacular 46-20 record. While that equates to about 57 wins in a normal season, it doesn't exactly scream dominance. Heading into the playoffs, it was Chicago who was the East's No. 1 seed, and San Antonio who was on the double-digit win streak. Miami wasn't quite the most intimidating team once they made the NBA Finals either, having to go the distance against an aging Boston team. They were the underdogs going up against an OKC team that seemed destined to win, having beat the teams that made up the last 15 Western Conference Champions. Yet, LeBron James stepped up this time around, and after dropping Game 1, won four in a row to get him his first NBA Championship.
1. Linsanity
What makes Jeremy Lin's rise to prominence the top "Wow...Look at this!" moment of the 2012 NBA season was that it wasn't just a basketball phenomenon, but a cultural phenomenon. Here, we had a guy who was basically a nobody and became, temporarily, the face of the NBA. When the New York Knicks were plagued with injuries, they needed Lin to step up, but I don't think anyone imagined he would average 26.8 points and 8.5 assists in his first six games as a "fill-in." New York was greatly struggling and underachieving the entire season, but when it was Lin's turn to steer the ship, they won their first seven games in a row. The high point came when he scored a career-best 38 points as he outdueled Kobe Bryant and the Knicks beat the Lakers. Lin was feel-good story for many because he defied stereotypes. Here was an undrafted Asian from Harvard playing as if he was the best player in the NBA.
Check-in for the remainder of my season review:
Part III: Best "Wow...Look at this!" moments
Part IV: Best NBA Teams
Part V: Best NBA Players
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