OKC Is The Truth
We’re into the conference finals and it’s becoming clear what we’re going to be getting for the NBA Finals.
The Oklahoma City Thunder already have a 2-0 lead following decisive wins over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Newly minted MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been a commanding presence during this series averaging 34.5 pts, 8.5 assts, 4 rebs & 3 stls on 45.8% shooting. He’s gotten help from Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams as they combined for 48 points during their Game 2 win over MIN. The key for OKC has been the 3rd quarter – they’ve outscored MIN 67-39 during the 1st games of the series.
Anthony Edwards had a quiet Game 1 with 18 points but rebounded in Game 2 with 32 points, 9 rebounds & 6 assists but it wasn’t nearly enough to overtake OKC. He’s going to need more help from Rudy Gobert going forward. Gobert, who averaged 12.9 pts & 10.9 rebs during the regular has disappeared in this series with 7 points and 12 points – combined.
Minnesota is going to have to figure out how to slow down OKC. They can attack you in so many different ways. SGA has been an artist with getting to the free throw line and while MIN has had the size advantage in their lead up to the Western Conference Finals the size and athleticism of OKC has bothered MIN all series so far.
As the series shifts to Minneapolis, will the Timberwolves be able to figure out the league’s most dynamic offense or will OKC put a stamp on their Western Conference playoff run with a convincing sweep?
The Knicks Might Be Cooked
The NY Knicks are in the Eastern Conference Finals for the 1st time in 25 years where they lost to the team they’re currently down 0-2 to – the Indiana Pacers.
New York got to the conference finals after 2 grueling six games series with the Pistons and the defending champion Celtics while the Pacers quickly dispatched of the Bucks in 5 and then made quick work of the #1 seed Cavs in 5 games.
The Knicks’ Jalen Brunson has done all he can to lead the Knicks in this series averaging nearly 40 points a game so far on 53.8% shooting. He’s also gotten help from Karl Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges who are averaging 27.5 ppg & 18.0 ppg respectively. The problem with the Knicks has been their bench… or lack of it. The Knicks bench has scored just 28 points in the first two games of this series. They’re going to have to get other people involved. Tom Thiboudeau won’t make it past this series if he can only go 7-8 people deep. The Knicks looked tired in both games down the stretch while the Pacers seemed to gain more confidence as the game wore down. As great as Brunson is I don’t think the Knicks can win a championship if he’s the #1 option.
The Pacers’ quick style of play has frustrated the Knicks. In Game 1 with star PG Tyrese Haliburton on the bench the Knicks built what looked to be a commanding 17-point lead in the 4th quarter – only for the Pacers to walk the Knicks down. Aaron Nesmith had a playoff performance for the ages nailing 5 straight 3-pointers during a crucial stretch that saw the Pacers erase that 17 point lead in the last 6 minutes of the 4th quarter. What made this stunning was the Knicks became the 1st team since 1998 to lose a game when having a 9+ point lead in the final minute of the game.
Tyrese Haliburton’s step back jumper as time expired forced OT and then the Pacers walked the Knicks down again to win Game 1. In Game 2, the Pacers used their uptempo play and size to wear the Knicks down. Pascal Siakim picked up the scoring slack in Game with an outstanding 39 point performance on 15 of 23 shooting(3 of 5 from the 3-point line).
With the series shifting to Indiana, the Pacers have to be feeling confident knowing they’ve taken the Knicks’ best punch and came away with a 2-0 series lead. For the Knicks the series isn’t over yet… but they just might be cooked.
Caleb Williams’ Dad Was Right
Bears QB Caleb Williams has come under fire during the off season for some comments he and his father made in an upcoming book, American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback. The book, written by Seth Wickersham, suggests Williams and his dad sought ways to get out of being drafted by the Chicago Bears during his last year with USC.
The book details how Williams’ dad Carl said that Chicago “is the place where quarterbacks go to die”.
While this has caused a firestorm in the media, I’m here to tell you this – Caleb Williams’ dad was right. Chicago WAS the place where QBs go to die. The Bears have been around since the NFL started and they’re the only team in NFL history that doesn’t have a QB with a 4,000 yard passing season. Let that sink in – the charter franchise of the National Football League doesn’t have a QB who ever passed for 4,000 yards. The single season record for passing yards for the Bears is 3,838 yards by Erik Kramer… in 1995. The single season record for passing yards is still held by Erik Kramer who passed for 29 TDs in 1995. Josh McCown owns the Bears best QB passer rating with 109.0 back in 2013. The next closest Bear? Mitchell Trubisky with a 95.4 passer rating in 2018.
Media types like Boomer Esiason and others can talk about Caleb being entitled but the fact is the track record speaks for itself. The Bears have never developed a franchise quarterback. Kyle Orton. Rex Grossman. Mitchell Trubisky. Justin Fields. All of these quarterbacks were failed experiments because of the ineptitude of the Bears franchise to have offensive minds develop young quarterbacks.
The hope is that Caleb Williams can rebound from a rocky rookie season that saw him go through two head coaches and three offensive coordinators. With Ben Johnson in place as the head coach, the Bears have the best chance to prove Carl Williams wrong… but the 102 year lead up to this proved that he was right.
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