NBA: Two Conference Finalists Decided Tonight?

Saj, will either the Chicago Bulls or Golden State Warriors be alive tomorrow?

Yes. Both. I believe in a lot of things in this world, Ian. I believe in hot dogs. I believe in vibration dampeners for tennis rackets. I believe in the irony of serenading Kevin Edmund Youkilis with something that sounds vaguely like "Jew" when he comes to the plate. I believe in ripping off Crash Davis' speech from Bull Durham (note that Davis, played by conspiracy-o-phile Kevin Costner, believed that Oswald acted alone). But most importantly I believe in hope. And I believe in Baron's beard and his facial-izing of Andrei Kirilenko. And I believe in Andres Nocioni doing his best Bill Laimbeer impersonation.

I have more confidence in the Warriors than in the Bulls tonight, but for the sake of the game I hope they both win.

Something else to talk about: Robert Horry's ridiculously physical body check at the end of last night's Suns-Spurs game and Bruce Bowen's "wink, wink" halftime interview where, without saying it, he basically admitted to constantly fouling Steve Nash. If basketball were like hockey, Amare Stoudemire would have knocked three of Bowen's teeth out by now and the Suns would have signed Rick Mahorn before the series as a bench coach/enforcer.

NBA Playoffs: Thank God for Youtube and Ian Eagle

My roommate and I were watching game 2 of the Cavaliers/Wizards series last night when this happened:




Our reaction: quixotic. Was this truly just a situation where the producers came back from the commercial break and forgot, intentionally or not, to tell Ian Eagle and Jack Ramsay? Or was this an orchestrated bit? Either way we should be thankful that A) Ian Eagle did not say anything racist and B) he compared a timeout during a professional basketball game to a Bar Mitzvah. Mazel tov!

Video notes: Watch how much Ian Eagle fidgets and, speaking of eagles, how Jack Ramsay is the exact human doppleganger of Sam the Eagle from the Muppet Show.