The long road to the NBA playoffs is finally ending, with the Los Angeles Lakers looking to faceoff against the Philadelphia 76ers in the finals. Looking back, it seems like the playoffs have been going on for a very long time.
And while the action on the courts has been as good as ever, several incidents have been overhyped and have tarnished this year’s quest for glory. An example is the attention surrounding Juwan Howard’s excessively flagrant foul on the San Antonio Spurs’ Derek Anderson.
Recently, yet another incident has dragged out the playoffs and prolonged the inevitable. The Milwaukee Bucks now claim that the NBA is conspiring to ensure a match between the Lakers and the Philadelphia 76ers in the finals. Supposedly, the officials are giving the 76ers the benefit of the doubt on close calls. Supposedly, NBA Commissioner David Stern was seen cheering for the 76ers during one of the playoff games.
What a load of crap.
If I were a member of the Bucks right now, I would be hanging my head in shame. I realize that teams are always going to have complaints about the officiating, but this is a new low. A conspiracy? Come on, is this the NBA or “”The X-Files?””
Granted, the Bucks had better players than the 76ers. Ideally, they should have won the series, and early on. But instead of whining about the officials, who are veterans picked by players and coaches, the Bucks should have looked at the anemic offense of Ray Allen. Or at the lack of leadership from Allen and the Bucks’ other two big names, Sam Cassell and Glenn Robinson. Or at the Bucks’ meltdown in game four, blowing a 16-point halftime lead. Or at the fact that they play like five individuals rather than a team. Or at the need to rely on forearms to the throat, like the Milwaukee Bucks’ Scott Williams did to Allen Iverson in game six.
If this is the Bucks’ reaction to losing, I shudder to imagine what would happen in the finals. If they lost a game to the Lakers, would they start crying that Shaq is too tall, or that Kobe is too fast? Would it be an NBA officials-led conspiracy that wants the Lakers to win the championship?
Allen has vigorously defended this conspiracy theory. In front of a horde of reporters before game six, he reiterated his belief and answered their questions. What they should have asked is if he had taken his Ritalin that day.
The thing is, I fail to see the point of the whole farce. The officials are still going to referee the game the same way, the Bucks are still going to be inconsistent, Iverson is still going to take 30 shots a game, and Allen will still not be a leader.
The only thing this episode has accomplished is creating a media sensation and giving new blood for reporters to sniff out and multiply to five times its original size. This has extended an already very long series, as every angle of this story is looked at, reported on, then reported on again. Each pointless story merely perpetuates this pointless circle, including this pointless article.