The biggest story of the weekend was Allen Iverson's 55-point, 8-assist effort against the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday night. Iverson, a career 42 percent shooter, made 21 of his 32 shot attempts, including nine of 11 in the fourth quarter, as the 76ers took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. After missing more than twenty games last year due to injury, Iverson battled his health all season and did not miss a game, all the while averaging over 27 points per game.
Despite his spectacular individual season and the 76ers' team success, Iverson has been largely ignored as an MVP candidate. Take Iverson away from of the 76ers, and they are one of the worst teams in the league. This is the definition of most valuable player. Iverson gets my vote.
Speaking of most valuable players, Paul Pierce single-handedly beat the Indiana Pacers on Saturday afternoon. After a horrible start, Pierce went off for 21 fourth-quarter points during the Celtics' three-point victory. Down 16 mid-way through the third quarter, Pierce and the Celtics came alive, outscoring the Pacers 40-21 during the last 15 minutes of the game. While most of the country has written off the Celtics as too dependent on Pierce and Antoine Walker, I still believe they have what it takes to make a run in the very homogeneous Eastern Conference. I admit, the Nets look tough to beat, but come on, I'm a stubborn, die-hard Boston guy. There's no way I'll admit defeat until the final buzzer.
In the Western Conference, the most exciting game was Phoenix's overtime victory over number-one seed San Antonio. Stephon Marbury's desperate last second, running three-pointer off one leg as time expired gave the Suns a one-point victory over the heavily favored Spurs. Even though Phoenix will have a tough time taking three of the next five games from San Antonio, I believe Marbury and company will test Tim Duncan and Tony Parker's desire for a championship.
Speaking of desire, how can anyone bet against the Lakers? The Lakers may have struggled at the start of the season, but no one is going to convince me that they didn't play some of the best basketball in the NBA over the second half of the year. Some people have said that Orlando is going to be a tough team to beat because of T-Mac, but the Lakers have a guy who is equal in ability to T-Mac: Kobe Bryant, as well as the most dominant player in the game, Shaquille O'Neal. Sometimes it's not the best team, or the best player who wins the championship, but it is almost always the most dominant player.
The NHL Playoffs
Unlike the NBA, where there truly is a large difference between a one and an eight seed, the NHL playoffs can be wholly unpredictable. All an underdog needs in the NHL playoffs is one mistake from its opponent each game and some spectacular goaltending, and they move on to the next round.
This phenomenon was played out last week as the lowly Mighty Ducks of Anaheim stunned the second-seeded and defending Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings in only four games. The Red Wings looked very good in the regular season, despite losing Dominik Hasek to retirement, garnering 48 wins and 110 points. After losing only six home games all season, the Wings lost the first two home games of the series and never recovered. The Red Wings were manhandled by Ducks' goalie, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, who shut down Detroit's powerful offense, not allowing more than one goal to any individual player in the series.
The Wings-Ducks series showed more than ever how much great goaltending can really affect the outcome of a playoff series. In the NHL, where each goal's importance is maximized in playoff time, a hot goaltender can lead a mediocre team deep into postseason waters. A bad goaltender, on a great offensive team, however, usually leads his team to an early round exit.
It's really not surprising that guys like Hasek (before retirement), Patrick Roy and Martin Brodeur are always looming around in the late rounds of the playoffs year after year, even as the personnel around them changes. These guys are the most dominant force on the ice, and just like in the NBA, the most dominant player usually wins the game for his team.
Last night, three game sevens played out, including two four-five games and a three-six game. Whenever playoff series last the entire seven games, the excitement and energy is amazing, but three game sevens in one night? Don't tease us.
Don't get me wrong, the fall schedule of the Major League Baseball playoffs and the starts of the NFL and college football seasons are great, but April and May are the best time for sports. The NBA and NHL playoffs are in full gear, and the baseball season is new and exciting. If heaven involves five or six hours of NBA and NHL playoff games every night on television, then rest assured I'm going to be on my best behavior for the rest of my life.