TNT's Coverage

First of all Chuck Barkley and Kenny Smith give me exactly what I want. They obviously know basketball and don't pull their punches like so many broadcasters. Some TV personalities seem to want to garner favor with the people they cover in order to secure future interviews. Not so much with that TNT crowd.

As far as the basketball goes I think TNT's announcers and color men do a fine job of covering. But does the Miami-NJ series really excite anybody? It doesn't get me going. The only compelling quesiton I see is why Vince Carter is not in the same class as Dwyane Wade. I mean seriously, Wade is as tough a matchup as anybody in the league. Some people will say "But Wade plays with Shaq so it's not a fair comparison!" I suppose. Phewey. Wade was impossible to stop last year too after the All-Star break. He's a great team player who doesn't seem likely to quit on his team like Carter did. And that settles it for me, as a fan.

Long story short in the Eastern Conference: Wake me when that Detroit-Miami series starts. That's gonna be a six or seven game feast of good hoops.

As for the West: If Duncan (He's a noun. He's a verb.) is healthy then Denver is in real trouble. That game last night was a laugher from the get-go. Duncan's only getting healthier and I've no doubt that Denver could relax its way to a 4-2 series loss in a hurry. And then they'll probably beat up on Seattle. And then the Suns will learn what playoff basketball really is.

MEANWHILE
The OC is preempted. And that makes me sad. So here's a Rachel Bilson photo spread. Probably not office suitable.