There is no place like home and home is meant to be where the heart is ….
In the last few days we have seen an upheaval within the professional basketball world with the departure of LeBron James as he leaves the Miami Heat to rejoin the Cleveland Cavaliers . From my own standpoint, I believe that LeBron simply grew tired of having to support a team where his supporting cast were anything but supportive. As to this idiocy, Dwyane Wade’s sporadic appearances and performances during this past postseason were of benefit to the Heat would be like suggesting that Greg Oden became a force to be reckoned with during the season.
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Slideshow.
Pat Riley’s ambitious rebuilding of the roster this past season, was so misguided, it begs the question what was he thinking to begin with ? Michael Beasley was meant to add to something to this lineup beyond the menial productivity of Rashard Lewis ? Granted, this was the Miami Heat’s fourth consecutive appearance in the NBA Finals was a great accomplishment, but the menial return of only two title wins, is a reminder of how overrated this team was said to be in their appearance against the San Antonio Spurs in this past NBA Finals.
LeBron James saw no reason to resign with the Miami Heat, knowing that the organization had shown little concern in rebuilding the roster with the talent needed to make the team more competitive. As to the talk of his wishing to be offered a max contract, one that would likely see him being offered a six-year $125 million deal, now seems more imaginary on the part of the media , in light of James signing with Cleveland in a two-year $42 million deal.It will be interesting to see the dynamics of the relationship LeBron James will have with his new head coach David Blatt , in comparison to that of his relationship with Erik Spoelstra .
The Miami Heat’s loss, will be the Cleveland Cavaliers’ gain as the Prodigal Son is welcomed home. A far cry from the events of just over five years ago when LeBron James left the Cavaliers under a cloud of controversy, with their being a great deal of controversy and antagonism between the player and Cavaliers’ owner Dan Gilbert . The front office have to be pleased with themselves, in pulling off such a coup, in resigning the franchise’s best player James, along with point guard Kyrie Irving will be the focal point of this lineup in the upcoming season. Cleveland, almost overnight have gone from being outsiders for the NBA title to a presumptive favorites for this upcoming season’s championship.
Whether or not Gilbert and the front office will seek to pull off anymore deals during this off-season will obviously be predicated on the attractiveness of playing alongside the four-time League MVP . I certainly believe the Cleveland Cavaliers will make the upcoming postseason, simply because the NBA’s Eastern Conference remains extremely poor and will continue to be that way over the coming years. Cleveland are .likely to be seen as presumptive favorites alongside the Chicago Bulls and perhaps the Miami Heat, if the franchise is able to resign both Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh . The pairing of Bosh and Wade along with LeBron James were the primary reasons behind the franchise’s most recent success, but the failing of the coaching staff and the front office led by Pat Riley in addressing the Heat’s lack of depth must be seen as one of the many reasons for their failure during the NBA Playoffs .
Miami Heat owner Micky Arison has yet to issue a public statement on the departure of LeBron James, but there has to be some disappointment with the owner’s knowing that the player’s departure will likely lead to a possible decline in the Heat’s play. Acquiring seasoned veterans such as Danny Granger and Luol Deng might well have added some respite ,but the makeup of Miami’s roster as it now stands , no longer makes them a legitimate threat within their division much less the conference.
If the disappointment of the Miami Heat’s postseason was said to be a surprise then the Los Angeles Lakers’ fall from grace has to be seen as one of the most embarrassing in recent NBA history . Lakers’ fans remain optimistic , that Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss can turn things around with a great deal of urgency. Yet, with the franchise being unable to land a marquee free agent during the off-season leads me to believe the team is likely to have another woefully inept season. An aging Kobe Bryant can no longer single-handed lead this team without considerable aid from his teammates. Anyone believing the likes of Robert Sacre , Nick Young , Marshon Brooks, Xavier Henry , Jordan Hill , Wesley Johnson and Jeremy Lin can make the Lakers a force to be reckoned with within the Western Conference , has no idea as to the considerable mountain the team is being asked to climb. You simply have to look at their failure this past season under Mike D’Antoni to fully appreciate, how the head coach and his coaching staff were completely out of their depth ,without considering the loss of Bryant for a large part of the season .
The Lakers remain without a head coach, while Mitch Kupchak conducts what he says, remains an in-depth interviewing process of prospective candidates . I liken the statement, to one of a suitor, who is not so sure of his choices of a companion for an upcoming dance . Such has been the incompetency shown within the Lakers’ front office , that it is hard to have any faith in the leadership or acumen shown by either Kupchak or team owner Jim Buss. . Among the candidates that are known to have shown some interest in the vacant head coaching position are former Lakers’ players Kurt Rambis and Byron Scott . Both have varying degrees of success as former head coaches in the NBA. Yet, it appears Mitch Kupchak would rather prolong the situation’s process, in the hope of hiring the right d candidate as the successor to Mike D’Antoni. . Unless the Los Angeles Lakers can hire a coach with a proven track record, then the franchise is likely to struggle in the upcoming years , without ever being able to challenge for an NBA title . As optimistic as their fans continue to be , in reality, they have to know that the writing is on the wall. Kobe Bryant is now in the waning days of an undeniably successful career , but it would be foolish to think he will still be playing for the franchise three or four years from now .
While I believe the NBA has been a marketing phenomenon on the global stage , I believe its hierarchy , first under David Stern and his successor Adam Silver have been negligent in their handling of the Donald Sterling issue ! As the legal process now plays out within the legal system , with the Los Angeles Clippers’ owner and his estranged wife Rochelle Sterling now fighting over the ownership of the franchise as well as their matrimonial assets.It begs the question, how could things have spiraled out of control , after Sterling’s repeated egregious behavior ? As to this idiotic insistence , the former commissioner has been of great benefit to the NBA , well if you value the rising value of the NBA teams , then you would be correct , he has been of benefit to the league. In the case of his custodial responsibilities in upholding the integrity and image of the NBA, I would say he proven to be a disaster , with his lack of leadership and corralling the behavior of the players, that of the team owners and in some cases the front office executives . Excuses continue to be made for the lack of common decency with apathy being shown not only by the fans themselves but also the media, in the ways they have continued to cover the stories within the league concerning player misconduct and that of the owners. But I believe this is simply a reflection of the society we now live in , where a lack of respect no longer seems to be the norm !
The NBA off-season is said to be encompassed by hyperbole, then a great deal of it comes down to the issue of the free agency period. Where conjecture, rumors and speculation make up a great deal of the idiotic news we are continually being force-fed by the media , but specifically, the on air talent who cover the league in general. If they cannot create the suspense surrounding a story , then why not simply create the perception it is for real by sprinkling some falsehoods. Sports’ journalism is no different from that of real news being played out on the domestic front and the o global stage . The journalists themselves now believe they are as popular as the stars they cover, if not more so in some cases , furthering their own profile in the public eye. Buy into their garbage and you are likely to believe just about anything that they will say or write.
Other than LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony was the biggest free agent to hit the market during the off-season. Anthony’s willingness to resign with the New York Knicks now makes him among the highest paid players in the NBA, by way of his contract and annual salary. The player’s six-year $124 million deal slightly dwarfs Joe Johnson’s still ludicrous contract with the Brooklyn Nets . And there are those who suggest that the NBA in terms the contracts being offered reflects a player’s worth and what the market is ready to bear ? An instant recipe for disaster for franchises without any financial expediency and fans who do not understand the nuance of how a business works and that sports’ economics, especially as it relates to the NBA.
Anthony’s return to the New York Knicks and Phil Jackson’s persuasive powers would prove to be too alluring, but I cannot help wonder if the reason was not the fact, the player knew, once LeBron James chose to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers , the chances of the duo teaming up together remained simply an elusive gambit. Carmelo and LeBron James in New York would have been a persuasive image for fans of the NBA to watch the Knicks with a great deal more intensity. Now it comes down to, how the Anthony will readjust his mindset under rookie head coach Derek Fisher and being surrounded with a new supporting cast , which on paper looks a great deal better than what was on offer from the team last season .
Far be it for me to suggest, but Kevin Love’s last three seasons in the Minnesota Timberwolves’ organization have been a complete waste of the player’s talents. Glen Taylor , Flip Saunders and the front office have spurned the issue of seeking to make the team more competitive. This has worn thin one of the NBA’s most talented players as he seeks with a great deal of legitimacy the chase for that elusive first NBA title . Love, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant might be the best players currently in the NBA without an NBA title to their list of achievements.
Now with the Timberwolves quite ready to trade the power forward, with a great deal of interest being shown by the Golden State Warriors , it will be interesting to see what directions the now ongoing deliberations take between the two teams. Will the asking price be too high and are the Warriors ready to give up a bevy of players to make the deal a reality ?
The Warriors’ co-owners, Joe Lacob and Peter Guber are known to very ambitious individuals who are well versed in their respective fields. Yet the thought of making their franchise , perhaps the best NBA team in the state of California is not something that can be overlooked. I certainly believe that the Golden State Warriors are the equal of the Los Angeles Clippers , certainly better than either the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings in almost every aspect of the game ! The continued knock against the Warriors , will be that until they make a deep playoff run with Steph Curry leading the team , they can only be looked upon as a franchise with a great deal of flair and offensive firepower .
The Golden State remains a work in progress and I believe the team in its current guise with the potential addition of Kevin Love are credible challengers to the San Antonio Spurs , Oklahoma City Thunder , Los Angeles Clippers for conference supremacy. As things now stand even with the Spurs having the same cast of characters with an addition or two they are still likely to remain the best team within the conference and the NBA in general. Their clinical dismantling of the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, was simple proof of the fact, they remain a team be reckoned with, just as long as their Hall of Fame destined triumvirate are part of their arsenal. With Gregg Popovich also having signed a contract extension with the Spurs, team owner Peter Holt and the front office have reaffirmed their faith in the head and his coaching staff . Now comes the defense of their title ,where they are likely to caught in the cross-hairs of the NBA’s other combative teams.
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Picture gallery .
During this NBA off-season, which story or event do you believe to be the most important? By all means leave a comment as you see fit and thanks as always for the continued support of this site as it has always been greatly appreciated !
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Picture gallery slideshow details below .
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(1) In a scene from the classic movie “The Wizard of Oz “ , from left to right , Bert Lahr, the Cowardly Lion, Ray Bolger , Scarecrow, Judy Garland , as the heroine Dorothy Gale and Jack Haley as the Tin Man. The movie made in 1939 remains a timeless classic loved by generations . Courtesy of Warner Bros .
(2) A pensive LeBron James speaks to the convened press during this past season’s NBA Finals . James’ gallant effort was not enough to stave off the Miami Heat’s embarrassing 4-1 series’ loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the Finals. His announcement that he is rejoining the Cleveland Cavaliers took the NBA world by surprise including the front office of the Miami Heat . AP Photo/ Chris Charles …
(3) Luol Deng of the Cleveland Cavaliers agreed to a two-year $20 million deal with the Miami Heat as team President Pat Riley seeks to rebuild the roster after the departure of LeBron James who rejoined the Cleveland Cavaliers, signing a two-year deal with the franchise . AP Photo / Amy Morton ….
(4) Jeremy Lin who this off-season was traded by the Houston Rockets , joining the Los Angeles Lakers . Lin hopes to add some much-needed productivity to a team that languished at the position within the conference this past season . Getty Images / Christina Belcher …. ..
(5) Byron Scott is rumored to the frontrunner to succeed Mike D’Antoni as the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers . Scott is the only known candidate to have been interviewed twice by Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss for the vacant head coaching position . AP Photo / Paul Matthews ….
(6) Minnesota Timberwolves’ power forward Kevin Love . The Timberwolves are said to be interested in trading the player , with the main suitors in such a deal, being the Golden State Warriors . Team owners, Joe Lacob and Peter Guber , a highly ambitious duo, are keen to make a big off-season splash and see the acquisition of Love as a big part of gaining a much higher profile for their franchise . AP Photo/ Morton Parker ……..
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Tophatal's Blog 
Chris Broussard couldn’t get it right if he were asked to spell the ” word ” right or write the word right . Max contract Chris ? No he (James) signed with the Cavaliers because dumb @ssholes believe that Dwyane Wade still has game , when every indication shows he is not the player of five or even six years ago. Make me wonder what the #uck these idiots are watching at times , when they come up their dumb @ss synopsis on a game or series of games !
Chris Broussard is a damn hypocrite ! He lambasts Jason Collins because of his sexuality but this fu#king moron (Broussard) has never come out and be critical of the misogynistic behavior of the NBA players , much less utter a word with regard to the behavior of either Donald Sterling or a homo-phobe such as Rich DeVos .
NBA news
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Flights of fancy and there is simply fancy fishing , looking to catch some “wet fish” .
tophatal ………….
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LeBron James and Judy Garland’s character Dorothy Gale did manage to make it back home and in last year’s NBA Finals. Bosh , Wade and Ray Allen were the the Scarecrow , Tin Man and Cowardly Lion to LeBron James’ characterization of Dorothy . Toto was played by Chris Andersen .
Follow the Yellow Brick Road . A contemporary remake this past season saw LBJ and his supporting cast of Bosh Wade and Ray Allen along with The Munchkins , being the Miami Heat’s bench players . Now what ?
Courtesy of CBS Philadelphia
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You are and were blowing smoke , you dumb %%ck .
tophatal ……
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Brad Stevens and the Boston Celtics will be in for a tough time this upcoming season . Though there are said to ongoing talks to seek a trade of point guard Rajon Rondo , but this would be to the detriment of the team and organization . Clearly, Danny Ainge and team owner Wyc Grousbeck underestimated the team’s depth in light of a poor season in 2013 .
“There is no truth to the rumors that I knew Brad’s Mom while he was in diapers, when I played in college ” . Celtics’ GM Danny Ainge , left and team head coach Brad Stevens .
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Boston Celtics overview
Boston Celtics news
Boston Celtics roster and coaching staff
The Celtics’ draft class from this off-season and transactions .
tophatal ….
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With the departure of LeBron James from the Miami Heat , where does this now leave the team and organization .
Pat Riley single-handed banked on James remaining , but he’s left to pick up the pieces as he tries to restructure the makeup of the roster .
James’ leaving , and Riley has brought in veterans Danny Granger and Luol Deng . Chris Bosh’s future appears to be up in the air as he is activley being courted by a number of teams ,specifically the Houston Rockets .
Miami Heat profile
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Miami Heat active contracts and payroll for 2014
Miami Heat draft class and free agents in 2015
tophatal …………..
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You have to hand it to the Los Angeles Lakers and the continued incompetency being shown by Mitch Kupchak and team owner , Jim Buss . Bear in mind also , their fans are just as clueless as the two senior executives who preside over the franchise . The Lakers are still without a head coach and the candidates now being interviewed appear to be a haphazard collection of coaches simply looking to get paid , rather than the organization seeking a coach with a proven track record . If the likes of Kurt Rambis and the recent failings of Byron Scott are said to be your top two candidates, then clearly there is something with the mindset of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Current makeup of the roster leaves a great deal to be desired and anyone who believes that this team will be a legitimate candidate for their divisional title much less a playoff berth within the Western Conference has to be delusional .
Los Angeles Lakers profile
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Los Angeles Lakers’ roster and coaching staff (vacant head coaching position)
Los Angeles Lakers’ draft class
Los Angeles Lakers active contracts and team payroll
A forty win season for the Lakers might be beyond their scope for 2014 and Kobe Bryant is likely to struggle with his supporting cast of teammates .
tophatal ………
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The Minnesota Timberwolves have missed the boat , team owner , Glen Taylor and Flip Saunders are running the franchise into the ground . Both executives are simply bereft of any intelligence whatsoever . Their ongoing idiocy concerning Kevin Love and apparently wishing to prolong the player’s agonizing stay with the franchise , clearly shows that the organization and the NBA in general has to do something how the free agency period is dealt with .
” We will only trade Kevin if we can get equal value in return, because the Timberwolves want to remain competitive . Flip and I, have always been of the same opinion on this ” T’wolves’ owner Glen Taylor , left and team President and head coach Flip Saunders .
Looking to get paid but the Timberwolves over the past five years have been cheap and uncompetitive @#ssholes . Power forward Kevin Love .
The whole process is far too long and should be curtailed to encapsulate a time-frame of no more than one month and that should be it ! This can all happen from the end of the NBA postseason and last no longer than thirty days. Nothing is achieved with this ongoing mess , other than the players and their agents who draw out , what has now become a boorish and idiotic process . I guess once again we have David Stern’s imprint for this nonsense, as this was another of his frigging dumb @ss ideas , simply to make the league more high-profiled and relevant in terms of news .
NBA news and archived stories
tophatal ……………
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I find the NBA a total bore. I would rather watch paint grow and grass dry. The EPL starts in about a month. The NFL begins training camp pretty soon. The NBA a snooze and a bore.
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bobby gee
This NBA off-season was a monotonous bore , as once again LeBron James hogged the headlines with the NBA analysts and writers treating the player as if he were some basketball god. He has now become an instantaneous pain the @ss and where I believe , the majority of fans would now like to see him fail , in light of this most recent decision ! Granted . the failure of the Miami Heat rest squarely upon the shoulders James’ teammates . specifically Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh who over the last four years have spent more time hanging on LeBron James’ coattails , rather than proving their worth competitively .
Personally , I believe there are so many lame and apathetic fans of the NBA , who bought into the Heat during the postseason , who were simply unwilling to give the San Antonio Spurs their due respect . Not really surprising however , when you consider the lack of insight being offered up by the fans who had Miami winning the Finals with ease .
Like I said in a statement in the comments’ section the free agency period for the NBA should not be longer than a month and all deals should be dealt with , within thirty days of the Finals game of the NBA postseason .
tophatal ……………
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The NBA is just about dead. The only ones who make a big deal about the NBA is ESPN and that’s it
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The NBA remains popular globally and it is the one sport , that the rest of the world can really get into and truly enjoy . With that being said , if the play gets any more dire , along with the ongoing narcissism of the major stars within the game , then we could very well be witnessing the slow demise of professional basketball(NBA) .
LeBron James may well be the best player of his generation but over the past four years , he has come across as something of a sleaze , with his ” it’s about me mentality” , while his handlers make poor decisions showing off traits that the athlete simply does not have or will ever possess.
tophatal ……………….
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It may well be but the NBA is almost dead in this country and the NBA will supplant futebol as the most popular sport in the world
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bobby gee
The NBA will never reach the heights of , soccer in global popularity , but it has already supplanted the NFL globally in terms of awareness and marketing .
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yet the NBA is still on verge of losing money
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bobby gee
A number of teams are making money and the likes of the Lakers and Knicks either are owned by billionaires or they have a multimillion dollar annual television deal that supplements their other revenue sources . Where the real disparities lie , are in the teams’ payrolls and the very fact several franchises do not really choose to adhere to the rules concerning the salary cap , and therein lies the lack of financial expediency. , Yet you have moronic fans who have no fu#king idea about the economic of sports, talking about the great job David Stern has done for the NBA.
In 2009 that dumb son of bitch (Stern) had to borrow money ($575 million) to keep twenty teams afloat , while ticket prices that year went up on average 26% , yet he saw fit to try and tell the fans that the bailout that came by of major financial institutions were in the best interests of the teams and the game ,
David Stern remains an ass wipe and those who support him, are just as clueless as he remains today , say nothing of which he gave the likes of bigoted assholes such as Rich DeVos and Donald Sterling a pass for their ##cking odious behavior . Sports’ fans here in the US remain pathetic and frigging dumb in general and it goes with a lack of education and knowledge overall on so many issues .
tophatal ………………
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I agree with bobby gee. The regular season is unwatchable in most cases. The sport would wallow in total mediocrity if it weren’t for the gambling aspect. The meaningless games are overexposed and run by owners that have many skeletons in their attic. Donald Sterling the only bad apple? Come on? Do you believe that any commishioner with ‘a pair’ would allow a coach(Popvch) to purposely sit his 3 best players that aren’t injured in a game where you just paid hundreds of $$ for tickets expecting to see their stars? This has happened multiple times and it’s call FU sucker fan.
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Ronbets
Neither David Stern or his successor Adam Silver have yet to punish Orlando Magic owner Rich DeVos for his bigoted homophobic statements which have been repeated on more than one occasion in private as well as public but yet you have anal retentive fans haranguing Donald Sterling and blaming his paramour V Stiviano . I swear that the US does have some of the dumbest mother $$%king sports’ fans on the planet who are so goddamn clueless that they cannot think for themselves . The frigging apathy is unbelievable ,.
Rich DeVos’ son , Dan DeVos was calling for Sterling to be thrown out of the NBA altogether , but made no mention of his father’s downright egregious and abhorrent statements . concerning the gay and lesbian communities.
Stern and Silver must feel proud of themselves with their ongoing hypocrisy while their anal retentive supporters try to point out their few positive contributions to the league .
Rich DeVos
Dan DVos
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The elder DeVos, was given a pass by the NBA hierarchy but yet, Stern’s supporters and the print media , who cover the NBA remain silent on Rich DeVos’ homophobic statements . I wonder why ? All of this bull$hit about the league being all inclusive and compassionate was a frigging joke much like the entire professional sporting landscape of the country in general .
The regular season in the NBA has been a joke and specifically the play within the Eastern Conference where mediocrity is easily rewarded under the pretext of great play .
tophatal ……………….
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Onliest thing that affects Lebron is MONEY…..wanted to go home??? TO CLEVELAMD??????
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Al Clements
James’ wish to leave Miami were two-fold , he no longer wished to be a part of a team where he was the main contributor , where the rest of his teammates simply sat on their ass and admired him from afar . That was clearly the case during the NBA Finals and the / postseason in general for the Miami Heat .
tophatal ……………
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