AP Photo via Yahoo!

Why am I pumped (or seised) about a preseason game tonight? Yea, well, got my DVR set up….and we’ve got the season’s starting lineup (Etan, DeShawn, Antonio, Caron and Antawn) ready to show….something.

What about Pop’s beard? Something he’s been needing to do for a while. The guy doesn’t exactly have the best…..complexion. And our buddy Haywoode Workman is refereeing again.

Q1

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Jeff from CelticsBlog.com is doing the grunt work to put together a comprehensive NBA preview from bloggers ’round the ‘sphere. The Atlantic Division Preview was first, and now the Southwest Division is out. Here are the highlights from the participating bloggers for each team:

Dallas Mavericks

[Mavs Moneyball]
The single biggest move made in the offseason was the dismissal of head coach Avery Johnson and the hiring of Rick Carlisle. The Mavs have the luxury (or curse) of having their core team signed for some time. This continuity will certainly help the team transition under a new coach, as they only need to adapt to him rather than a bunch of new faces.
Prediction: 55-27

Houston Rockets

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Phil Jackson…..you sly dog, you.

Did you see it? Phil’s moment at the end of the 3rd quarter of game 5 against the Spurs? I love NBA mic’d up and the required between quarter interviews.

Fresh off pleading his “case” to Steve Javie, Phil turned to chat with TNT’s Craig Sager. Sager asked Phil about his talk with Javie (most think it’s spelled ‘Javy’, and NBA Draft.net thinks he looks like Martha Plimpton)….Phil exclaimed that the refs gave Kurt Thomas an extra FT. Thomas made a bucket, was fouled, and sent to the line for an And1 opportunity with just under a minute left in the third. Phil said he wasn’t paying attention, making a sub, and that Kurt Thomas missed his initial FT attempt, but then was given a second, which he made.

Marv Albert and Doug Collins did a double-take……and checked the replay. No dice Zen Master, didn’t happen. But did Phil Jackson really believe that Kurt Thomas shot an extra free-throw?

We are all aware of Coach Jackson’s mind games, on and off the court, with referees, opponents, the media, and even his own players (in a homeless man’s Clockwork Orange kind of way). He’s already called the Zen Master, now I’m adding the title of Minister of Mental Trickery (in a Saddam Hussein era Iraqi Minister kind of way - they had a ton of those guys)…..and maybe Jedi should be added to the moniker list as well.

I must admit that I might be suffering from ‘boy who cried wolf’ syndrome, as it’s to the point where I simply assume that everything that comes out of Phil Jackson’s mouth is some sort of trickery, or at least serving a purpose.

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Well, none of us were surprised that Caron Butler sat out last night. No word on his status for the 4 game west coast trip. Tony Longoria Parker was not in the lineup as he is out for about 3 weeks with a heel. By now, we all know the outcome, so let me provide this video of Big Tigger dunking before I get to the game notes.

Uhhh….enjoy?

I must say, a much better effort than those idiot fans who were trying to jump off of one leg during the Laker game.

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“Caron said it best, ‘You can’t under estimate our will.’ And he’s our leader.”
-Eddie Jordan

A couple other good games on the NBA League Pass tonight. LeBron James makes his first trip back to the Palace in Detroit since…..well, you know. And I’d also like to keep my eye on the Raptors-Grizzlies game…aww eff that, Raptors are up 19 now with 6:43 left in the 3rd, back to LeBron. Thing is, I only get the NBA League Pass on the main TV. The compromise? Wizards-Spurs on the left and right TV feeds, sound up. Boo-ya. (I can’t believe I just typed ‘boo-ya’)

In any case, here we go. For some reason, I decided to switch my hosting services late this afternoon, so truthaboutit.net is down right now because things are switching over. Oh well.

So, the Spurs…. gotta defend that pick and roll Son. And let’s play church….I, the preacher, will say, “And the Lawd says, you gotta stop Tony Parka” (in my best Eddie Murphy, Coming to America, talent show scene voice), and you, the choir, say, “Amen.”

Happy belated birthday to Brendan Todd Haywood btw….turned 28 yesterday. Aww naw, I know the Spurs dance team is not wearing chaps tonight, the only thing that would top that is if they were all wearing glasses and business suits. Another BT-dub….look out for my NBA Cheerleader Rankings in an upcoming blog post.

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