Two nice Christmas presents for NBA fans
PHILADELPHIA – With the dawn of Christmas morning comes the sight of a big, jolly man in a red suit.
We speak, of course, of Shaquille O’Neal.
Christmas Day is the traditional “start” of the NBA season – at least the day when people who don’t have cable can begin watching league play on ABC. The network doesn’t start showing NBA games in earnest until February so it tries mightily to make its yuletide doubleheader a big event, must-see viewing.
Today’s double dip has stars galore: defending champion San Antonio, with Tim Duncan, against Detroit, the 2004 champs. The second game, Los Angeles at Miami, is a ratings dream: Kobe Bryant against Shaq, and Phil Jackson patrolling the Lakers bench against his opposite number, the Heat’s Pat Riley.
Pistons vs. Spurs
The Pistons-Spurs game is a rematch of June’s thrilling seven-game Finals, won by the Spurs.
So far this season, the Pistons and Spurs again have been the league’s two best teams. Detroit is off to the best start in franchise history under first-year coach Flip Saunders, and the Spurs played .800 basketball for most of November and December without breaking a sweat.
The Spurs integrated newcomers Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel seamlessly into their championship rotation, still anchored by Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.
The Pistons’ starting five are the best in the league, and they have thrived under Saunders, who has given them freedom on offense that they never enjoyed under former coach Larry Brown.
Lakers vs. Heat
Today’s Lakers at Heat matchup looked to be a rather desultory affair a few weeks ago, with both teams struggling to play better than .500. But the planets fell in place for both – and for ABC – a couple of weeks ago.
After playing sub-.500 basketball for weeks, the Lakers went 5-1 on a recent road trip, with Bryant’s teammates finally starting to help him out on a consistent basis.
In Miami, the team’s fortunes changed significantly in one 24-hour period two weeks ago, when on Dec. 11, O’Neal returned to the lineup after missing seven weeks with a sprained ankle.