Who will be watching? And who will be rooting for the best team in the NBA!! GO LAKERS!!!!!

You and Tasha will get along great on this board!! Utah can't match up with the Lakers, especially since Kirilenko and Okur are out with injuries. I don't think you'll see the Laker bench melt down again like they did in the first game.

My favorite team is, as always, whoever is playing the Lakers...but I fully expect for them to win another championship this year.

BTW, you ought to get in touch with the lovely Rina Takami.  She is a die hard Laker fan as well.

Hahaha!!! I have a lot of friends who feel the way you do toward the Lakers. And it don't bother me at all. I have some teams I am not crazy about in the NFL so I get it.

And I love that the girls on here are huge Laker fans!!  I try to go to as many games as I can. GO LAKERS!!!!

Good attitude, Bridgette!  I may hate the Lakers, but I recognize their talent.  When Gasol was practically given to them, I knew it was going to be ugly for quite a few years.

I honestly wouldn't wish for even teams I love to become dynasties.  It takes away the fun.  Seeing new teams and new styles come into play is half of the fun of the playoffs.

... but I do not share your sentiments regarding dynasties.

Watching my Chicago Bulls from the late 80's through the end of '98 season was pure unadulterated fun.  In fact, those two years of a hiatus in between were quite miserable (especially in hindsight).  I am happy for Hakeem and his Rockets those years, but I would rather have had our chance at them in lieu of the Knicks (really?) and the Magic (puhleeeeze!).

Did we become spoiled?  Sure, but why shouldn't we expect excellence.  Those times were quite special, and I for one will relish it if comes to pass for our team again.

Your team actually has a solid nucleus, BTW.

I disagree with you about the 90's basketball wise.  I enjoyed Mike...but even HE got bored with the NBA back in the early 90's and played baseball for two years.  The Rockets of the mid-90's (all due respect to The Dream and The Glide and Sir Charles) were BOOOOORING!.  And it was not fun for me to see the Bulls beat the Jazz when The Mailman and Stockton so deserved at least one title.  I mean, I respected Mike's talent and all (and if anyone thinks the Bulls would have won the title without Mike, see 1994 and 1995), but it got boring for most of the NBA.  Same with the Lakers and the Spurs since then (ESPECIALLY the Spurs...another BORING Texas team!)...again, unless you are like most fans of those teams.  I don't think that way about the two teams I like, just because variety is the spice of life...but that's just me.

even though they lost, what talent. laker fans enjoy the next years 3 years, because than you will suffer for 10 years. so so tired of calls all super stars get, its not a sport, its home cooking, ask tim donaghy he was so right, nba is fixed. only fair game would be cavs against lakers , i wonder who would get calls. jordan was greatest but if he didnt get all calls i doubt he would have 6 championships, who agrees with me how the home cooking calls destroys game. lets vote with liorr.

I have a feeling that Phil lit a fire under their asses after that awful 4th quarter.  I expect tonight's game to be a blowout.

I actually started watching the Knicks when Pat Riley became their new coach.  I LOVED Pat... So I of course followed him and I am so happy that I did.  The Knicks at that time were so much fun to watch. Ewing, Oakley, Starks, Houston, Johnson,  Charlie Ward (who was the Heisman trophy winner) and Spreewell.  I feel bad that they never won a championship. They had all heart and spunk. I even continued to watch them when Van Gundy took over and I also have to say they had some of the best bench clearing fights in NBA history. haha!  
Don't get  me wrong I bleed purple and gold. But I do appreciate great basketball and amazing players.  And I was glued to the TV when Michael Jordan played. Wow! He was something special when he played. And I loved that John Starks would match the master with 3 point shots.  (When Starks was on fire) haha!..
Those were the days of B-Ball for me. And of course I loved to watch Magic, Bird, Kareem and Dr J play.. i love this game!!!

and once isiah thomas came he destroyed franchise. when van gundy was there the knicks were always a good playoff team. everyone wanted ewing out, you see what happened no playoffs for over 10 yrs. we were spoiled wit hewing and fans were never happy. all playoffs, rebound against indiana,how about miller game when he scored 10 pts less than a minute, that was nba.

than in college the final of 81 the greatest ever, nc vs georgetown, or hoyas against sampson at virginia. or kenny anderson at georgia tech against unlv. or duke unlv final. or dwayne pearl washington in syracuse.or when jordan came into the nba , knicks bulls playoffs games, when jordan and ewing were rookies, what playoffs, how about bill walton and portland  against dr. j sixers.what a decase, 1977to 1998, that was greatest 20 yrs ever college and nba. who can forget bernard king one of greatest ever, that turn around.

he would had been on floor, and gasol is so lucky there are no great centers around anymore. before you had akeem,admiral,ewing,oneal,parrish,daugherty,mourning,remember those great centers, look what we have now, please dirk who.

Wow! You really know your basketball...  I love it!! And the memories you bring back. Thank you!  The centers back then were amazing! Especially when they played defense.

Be careful about encouraging liorr.   Did you ever see the move "What About Bob"?

the nba now is no way near what the nba was in late 70s,80s and 90s. you never saw bill walton play in his prime i am sure. you also forgot the tandem of sprewell,hardaway and mullin.i remembered when charles barkley played at auburn or dominique wilkins at georgia, or what kind a powerhouse the sec was.or when louisville was a great time.

It was damn good advice at that.

The trio you're referring to was Run TMC

Tim Hardaway
Chris Mullin
MITCH RICHMOND

Re: Go Jazz!!! my sentiments as well 100%.....Go! Suns's Go!!!!

the only other team with those sentiments for me would be the Spurs too!

-- Modified on 5/5/2010 7:35:59 AM

... your previous statement was that you would not even wish it for teams that you love to be dynasties.  While I appreciate your sentiments behind this statement, I was simply pointing out that, in my instance as a Bulls fan, I was more than happy to have had the joy of watching those teams of the '90s.

Despite you assessment of the 'boring' Rockets and Spurs teams, I am quite sure that their fans were quite happy to be watching them as well during their respective runs.

As far as the Jazz are concerned (and this goes for every other team who has visions of an NBA championship), a team has to earn it - no matter how much they deserve it.  "Will" is a very misunderstood intangible is the world of sports.

Regarding Jordan and his year and half hiatus (rememeber he came back late in the '95 season - wore #45, and poured in 55 on the Knicks at MSG), it has been rumored that there were other circumstances which contrubuted to his first retirement.  I am not saying he wasn't bored, but the toll of the NBA life could be grueling.

It is debatable that the Bulls have a solid nucleus now ... the next few months will tell a lot.

BTW, who is "your team"?  And can you honestly say that you would not like to see them have an extended run of 5-6 years competing at the highest level?