Links: Playoffs Diary Day Six
Plus, NBA Friday meets Allen Iverson…
OK, we’re almost a week in. After two games, it all looked pretty simple and explainable. In fact, I realized yesterday morning that it looked as thought I was going to correctly predict all 8 of the first round winners. And I still think I’m going to nail all eight. But everything took a turn for the interesting tonight.
I really thought Washington was dunzo after LeBron shattered them in games 1 and 2, but they got their groove back tonight while Cleveland looked hungover. Washington didn’t just win, they destroyed Cleveland and somehow made Souljah Boy relevant. Tell ‘em! Years from now, we will look back on this series and not remember Cleveland eventually winning or LeBron taking over games four and five. No, instead we will recall Soulja Boy, a rapper who writes his name on his sunglasses and then wears them indoors.
And look what happened to Washington tonight: They stopped trying to thug it out and instead made like Soulja Boy: fun and disposable. That’s where the wins are for the Wiz.
Up in the T-Dot, the Raptors got one back as well. They’ve been letting Orlando push them around, but TJ Ford decided to make some shots for a change and everything opened up for the Raps. I tried to watch this game but got distracted by “The Office” and “30 Rock.” As Jack Donagie said, “Hugs are so…ethnic.”
I did watch most of the Jazz/Rockets game, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise: By far the coolest part of this game was Carl Landry getting his tooth knocked out. Boozer caught him with a stray hand and a tooth went soaring majestically through the air. As it turned out, it was a temporary tooth that got knocked out, a falsie Landry had installed after Mutombo knocked the same tooth out in practice earlier this season.
Anyway, really good, hard-played game with two tough teams. If it wasn’t for Collins The Greater’s braids, this game would’ve looked like it was being played in the 1960s. Houston got Rafer back from injury and he gave them just enough firepower to squeak out the win in this series where no home team has won a game. A Carl Landry one-toothed block of a Deron Williams runner sealed it for H-Town.
Why does Rafer Alston always look like someone just told him to go sit in the corner?
I’m on the road tomorrow night, and I’m lining up a fill-in as I type. Then I’ll be back with ya through the rest of the weekend. In the meantime, thought I’d consolidate this post with NBA Friday.
Oh, but first, I wanted to get a link up to this clip that aired really late on TNT Wednesday night. It’s pretty self-explanatory, and the parts with Kobe laughing get more and more awkward the more I watch them…
Quality. Now, finally, let’s check in with Joel Kimmel, the official illustrator of The Links. This week’s team is the Denver Nuggets. And this week’s player? Allen Iverson.
“One of the first words that comes to mind when describing Iverson is ‘heart,’” Joel says. “He’s always been undersized in stature but made up for it with the energy and passion in which he plays the game. You can often see Iverson on the court, hunched over and tugging at his shorts for a quick breather, his heart pounding. I wanted to portray a moment like that where he’s in the middle of a tough game, facing players who are bigger and stronger than him, and he stops to gather himself before heading back into the battle. Of course he’s also an emotional player, so I put some hearts on his sleeve.”
The picture is below. Have a great weekend and keep checking in with SLAMonline all weekend!!
53 Responses to “Links: Playoffs Diary Day Six”
Apr.25 at 2:08 am
RV says:
before anything else, can SLAM use their influence to get Stern to put a stop to AK’s flopping?? Did anyone see him on that last play? Its really just getting pathetic, the worst part is a rookie crew probably would have given him the call. I lost all respect for AK, he even called that game 2 flop a foul and the “correct call”, at least say it was a tough call, glad it went our way, something like that, now he’s a flopper AND a liar, i wish someone would actually knock him down so he’d get the foul he wants so much..
Apr.25 at 2:12 am
RV says:
and what was wrong with the utah fans, they were eerily quiet in the first quarter, and when they did cheer after that it was almost like they only clapped, in unison, and only a specific number of times, its like they were trying to be on their best behavior for the world (Texas) to see…
Apr.25 at 2:13 am
Hursty says:
fu(k Kirilenko… dirty russian. WHOOO!
Apr.25 at 2:14 am
Kevin says:
i’m happy T-Mac’s Rockets got a game.. i’ll be psyched if they get a series even, but i don’t think it’ll happen.. the Ernie/Kenny skit was good though, i laughed my ass off when i saw it on air lol
Apr.25 at 2:16 am
RV says:
This is on the yahoo home page “The viral Web video of Kobe Bryant jumping over a car is challenged by an NBA expert”, guess who the expert is?
Apr.25 at 2:17 am
tealish says:
Great concept for AI’s drawing. Not to be a downer, but out of all the player portraits (all very nice), this one looks the least like the portrayed player.
Apr.25 at 2:22 am
Hursty says:
stephen A?
Apr.25 at 2:25 am
RV says:
nope, guess again
Apr.25 at 2:42 am
d.Y. says:
woooooooooord. all heart.
Apr.25 at 2:51 am
Myles Brown says:
“Very nice! How much?”
Apr.25 at 3:03 am
mylespapi says:
Come on, Lang, you’re better than that. You are too good to even acknowledge Soulja Boy F**kin’ Tell Em. Love your work, man, but I couldn’t get past the Soulja Boy trifecta in the first three paragraphs. F’ Soulja Boy, Slamonline fo’ life. Peace!
JW P.S.
More Vincent Thomas. More Vincent Thomas. More Vincent Thomas.
Apr.25 at 3:22 am
Blinguo says:
Heart on his sleeve, cool concept. Kinda looks like Waliyy Dixon though which brings up “Much respect Kobe, but you don’t go through sh*t like this,” after that reverse dunk and the rim fell & cut his scalp open, which needed stitches. +1 Mount Mutombo elbow victims, practice counts too right? LeBron better step up like his ad campaigns state about being the Zoom Soldier one man army so “Soulja Boy” can go watch Dwight’s games instead.
Apr.25 at 3:40 am
tenorca says:
Now, if only Melo played like he gave a crap, they might have a chance.
Apr.25 at 3:54 am
Michael Tillery says:
Nice!
Apr.25 at 4:00 am
snyper48 says:
@ RV,Who told you that SLAM has any influence with the Sternbot?That guy lives by the rules programmed on his chip.
Apr.25 at 4:12 am
Weapon X says:
The Answer!
Apr.25 at 6:14 am
Naz says:
Is this the first player painted without a team allegiance? It says alot about him
Apr.25 at 6:39 am
Mayor of Lovetron says:
The Rockets deserve mad props for last night. Tough to get a W in Utah. Not that I’m happy for them…
Apr.25 at 7:08 am
thesubwayconnection says:
LeBron will go off for 50. At least. The Wiz danced a lil’ too much.
Apr.25 at 7:11 am
maio says:
If Rex Chapman and Latasha Byears had a child it would look like that. That’s a big “if”, though
Apr.25 at 7:16 am
Slobodan Chutzpah says:
All this complex symbolism confuses me. Like, what is the picture really about?
Apr.25 at 7:56 am
Mayor of Lovetron says:
Complex symbolism! Man it’s a picture of Allen Iverson with a heart in the background…put it together brother. Plus it gives you an explanation in the paragraph above!
Apr.25 at 8:07 am
Captain America says:
Is AK part fish outtawater?
Apr.25 at 8:11 am
Mayor of Lovetron says:
AK is full Russian. Which is why he flops.
Apr.25 at 8:28 am
matt the jazz fan says:
uhm, i think chutzpah was being ironic. or sarcastic, at the very least. (though maybe so were you?) @lang - has there already been a utah friday illustration
Apr.25 at 8:30 am
Ryan Jones says:
He’s right, though. That IS crazy. Totally.
Apr.25 at 8:44 am
DP says:
This is no freakin lie but I saw Soulja Boy in a store called “City Gear” and he was buying a pair of glasses that cost like ten dollars. But that was like 2 years ago so I guess he wankin right about now. But where was Hov? LeBron should have brought his ass there. Yeezy was in the building.
Apr.25 at 8:48 am
DP says:
Wow, it would really suck if the home team in the Utah-Houston lost every game………………..sorry T-mac.
Apr.25 at 9:09 am
Mayor of Lovetron says:
He’s definitely serious Matt. You can see it in his name.
Apr.25 at 9:59 am
Tariq says:
If Utah lose three games in this series, they won’t be able to play Game 7 because the Apocalypse will have arrived.
Apr.25 at 10:08 am
bobby stew says:
Love the picture and concept of Iverson
Apr.25 at 10:21 am
Paps says:
The Raptors kicked butt last night! Go Raps! Nice AI also.
Apr.25 at 10:33 am
Joel Kimmel says:
My complex symbolism comes after years and years of study. I wanted to make the suggestion of the heart as subtle as possible.:)
@matt the jazz fan: The Utah NBA Friday is coming in a few weeks.
Apr.25 at 10:57 am
Krishan says:
Joel, I would purchase that drawing if two very precise and particular conditions are met: (1)if it’s for sale, and (2)if I had money. Regardless, It is totally wicked.
Apr.25 at 11:09 am
eric g says:
Funny haircuts + Soulja Boy = blowout win?! LeBron almost has to shave ‘King James’ into the back of his head and bring Jay-Z to the Q for Game 5. Its their only chance, really.
Apr.25 at 11:48 am
t-rocc says:
Lang, did you notice last night - Ernie mentioned that the Wizards said Gilbert was “day-to-day”, and Kenny used the “Aren’t we all” quip - and had Charles rolling. I felt like I knew where Kenny got that one when he busted it out…
Apr.25 at 11:50 am
RV says:
@snyper, u dont get to sit face to face with Stern in his office without having some kind of influence, he even let Russ in! (if i remember correctly)
Apr.25 at 11:58 am
Lz - Cphfinest3 says:
Nice concept for the drawing, but has to agree with Tealish doesn’t look like Allen at all - I’m talking about the face here. The hearts on the sleeve are dope.
Apr.25 at 12:02 pm
RV says:
and incase anyone was wondering, the “expert” was kenny smith..
Apr.25 at 12:04 pm
RV says:
quote of the night for Yao “Hey, Carl Landry! It takes 16 games to win a championship. So I think you need to sacrifice 15 more teeth. You might look funny, but you’ll have a ring.”
Apr.25 at 12:22 pm
jdubbs says:
TNT is the best. LOL.
Apr.25 at 12:34 pm
FLUXLAND says:
I wanted to refrain from criticizing as I can’t even draw stick ppl buuuut… yeah the cheeks look like AI after he stops playing and gains weight… one hand is bigger then the other.. I thought he had “longer” feet. On the other hand the heart looks like you draw for medical textbooks. Good work, either way and WTF do I know anyway.
Apr.25 at 12:57 pm
Mayor of Lovetron says:
What the f*ck is up with Mr. Boozer
Apr.25 at 1:03 pm
Mayor of Lovetron says:
15 and 13 is a really OK night. This is the playoffs man. And 3/8 on free throws? Plus where has he been in the first two games? Everyone is ragging on Ak but we all know he’s a p*nis, I want to know where Boozer’s been.
Apr.25 at 1:36 pm
Darksaber says:
Mambiatch sure fits in Hollywood, what with that fake ass “hilarious” laughing thingy he did? Gotta say, the 1007 reruns of the stunt didn’t help. Mildly funny spoof, not more.
Apr.25 at 3:37 pm
TADOne says:
I may need to hit up Joel to buy that Ivy pic. This is by far my favorite. Great work Joel.
Apr.25 at 3:39 pm
henry says:
couldnt help but feel awkward for the tnt crew, while kobe gave his fake/pity laugh attack..
Apr.25 at 4:30 pm
tt says:
i guess if you can’t bag on his game might as well bag on his laugh
Apr.25 at 5:07 pm
henry says:
not baggin on kobe, just thought it was funny that kobe didnt think it was actually THAT funny
Apr.25 at 6:26 pm
Allenp says:
y’all should show this pick to Iverson and get his opinion since he is apparently a kick ass artist.
Apr.25 at 7:22 pm
chiqo says:
okur shaves under his arms.
Apr.26 at 12:23 pm
Bubba Chuck says:
Joel u know i luv that picture!
Apr.29 at 9:26 pm
pablo (from Argentina) says:
Jojojo, man, what is Kobe doing? eyaculating?