For the second consecutive year as the top overall seed the Cleveland Crabs fail to make it to the promise land and could be in rebuilding mode again if King Crab decides to seek greener pastures. The rejuvenated Leprechauns dismissed the hugely favored Crabs in 6 games demoralizing them in the closing minutes and starting many questions from coaching to roster changes. Gone was the joyous silly bunch on the sidelines for the Chosen One's team replaced with a disappointing look of repeated failure in the post season. Even though they faced off against my favorite team's nemesis, I was hoping for the Crabs season to end like this, harsh I know, but the sideline antics were annoying, the constant ass kissing to the chosen one by all media and blind followers alike, the ridiculous scam to land Jamison for chump change (I am so glad that failed and hope the league fixes that by next season), and finally for having the Big Once Was in their roster. While I am grateful for what the Diesel did while in a Laker uniform, the constant bad mouthing of the organization turned me against him and I am delighted he will not get that fifth ring before Mamba and at worst will end with the same count, Kobe's work is still not done though and may just eclipse Shaq's total, which would be SWEET.
As far as the closing game goes, the Leprechauns survived a barrage from Mo Williams who sliced for 20 1st half points to help his team stay close. The Celtics were lucky as they also had to contend with foul trouble for Pierce and Perkins but got great production from Tony Allen. Crabs managed to take the lead at 1 point but the Celtics showed poise reminiscent of the '08 run and clamp down to King Crab and friends answering every run the Crabs made with one of their own. At the end the King's number were not bad at all 27 pts 19 rbs 10 ast 3 stl but 9 turnovers. Mo came back to earth and scored just 2 points in the 2nd half. Shaq was the only other player in double figures for them with 11. The other starters were atrocious Jamison had 5 pts on 2/10 shooting and Anthony Parker contributed just 7 pts in 4 shots. The bench which was supposed to be a factor was non-existent 13 pts on 4/13 shooting, 9 rbs, 6 turnovers as a unit, regular season members like Hickson played less than a minute while former Celtic Leon Powe did even step on the court, he always had high energy for the Celtics and could have helped. At the end the Crabs seemed to have given up and stood by as the clock winded down ending their season prematurely again.
The Leprechauns were not all great offensively but made up in defense forcing Cleveland to 22 turnovers, they were led by KG who turned back the clock finishing with 22 points, 12 rbs. Series MVP Rajon Rondo continued his stellar play 21 pts, 12 asts, and 5 steals. Pierce, Perkins, and Allen shot poorly but the "Truth" hit some timely shots key during a Celtic run. The big difference was the 23 pts from the bench who stepped up while Pierce was in foul trouble. Tony Allen had 10 pts in the 1st half along with 3 stls and Rasheed still trying to make amends for a lousy season chipped in 13 pts and also 3 stls, including 2 big treys and hustle plays.
So, what now? Are we looking at awaited Lakers/Celtics rematch? Will Orlando finally lose as they face a superior opponent compared to the last 2. Is this the final year for King Crab in his home state? Is gonna be interesting. All is not lost in Cleveland, and with Shaq's contract coming off the books they have a nice amount to bargain with. There several names that can go to the Crabs and have more of an impact than Shaq did. Amare, Boozer, Bosh, Wade, Nowitzki are all nice sidekicks available who are also seeking a shot at the ring. What about Diesel? Is his career done? At 38 years old, slower, and more prone to injury it would be bone headed for any team to over pay him at this stage. He had career lows or right at career lows for ALL categories. I recall him saying he did not want to finish his career being a shadow of what he once was like Kareem did. Well, 'Jabbar was 42 at time of retiring and yes his number were all career lows, but what about at Shaq's current age of 38? His numbers were superior to Shaq and he was still the focal point of the Lakers offense, Kareem turned 38 during the 1984-85 season similar to Shaq this year. He was the anchor of the Laker team that finally beat the Celtics in the Finals with Kareem becoming the oldest player to win Finals MVP. His season awards included being an All-Star,All-NBA 2nd team, 4th on MVP voting, 4th FG%, 10 in blocks, 5th PER, and led the team in scoring, rebounds, FG%, and blocks, was third in minutes played and steals for the Lakers. So yes, Shaq was right he will not leave the game as Jabbar did when he laces his shoes for the last time as a player, he will leave with worse numbers and still ranked behind the top centers in history. As for King Crab his legacy is still being written, will he catch that elusive ring? Time will tell, Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Julius Erving, Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, David Robinson are among the top 50 greatest ever played who got rings late in their career. I think King Crab is too great of player to not win at least 1 or get another crack at the ring, but to say he's going to form a dynasty is premature, competition is too fierce nowadays and more and more teams are thinking mini runs instead of long term dominance. We'll see if King Crab will be another Logo or Big O, or end up being another Baylor, Barkley, Ewing, Stockton or Malone.
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