(#3) Warriors - (#2) Spurs Series

We're going to finish off the Western Conference semis today before heading over to the East. Why? Because I felt like it, damn it! (Actually, it's a time issue with uploading the rosters and setting the depth charts on WhatIfSports, but we don't need to get too in depth with that. Just trust me on it.) Anyway, it's a Warriors-Spurs matchup today, featuring some of the greatest big men of all time: Chamberlain! Duncan! Robinson! Thurmond! And let's not forget the sweet, sweet taste of the Iceman, George Gervin, combined with Rick "I really should have had an awesome nickname" Barry. I'd bet on the Spurs here; the Warriors are deeper, but I think the Spurs have a better starting five.

(#5) Kings - (#1) Lakers Series

Here we go, starting things off in the conference semifinals with a great matchup: Kings at Lakers. It's a shame that rivalry isn't still going strong. Also, Kings fans, please note, if the series gets this far, Game 6 will not be rigged. I promise.

Tournament Update (Second Round Complete)

Alright, two rounds are now in the books for the inaugural tournament, and we've got some intriguing matchups for the conference semis. The only one I'm not expecting to be super close is Celtics-Pistons, but I've been wrong before.

West:

#1 Lakers                
                                 |#1 Lakers (4)
BYE                         |                     |
                                                       |#1 Lakers      
#8 ThunderSonics (4)                  |                      |
                                 |#8 ThunderSonics (3)        |
#9 Trail Blazers (0)|                                             |
                                                                               |                             
#5 Kings (4)                                                          |                             |
                                 |#5 Kings (4)                        |                             |
#12 Clippers (1)      |                     |                       |                             |
                                                       |#5 Kings        |                             |  
#4 Jazz (4)                                    |                                                      |
                                 |#4 Jazz (0) |                                                      |
#13 Timberwolves (3)                                                                           |
                                                                                                              |                
#6 Suns (3)                                                                                           |
                                 |#11 Nuggets (3)                                                  |
#11 Nuggets (4)      |                     |                                                      |
                                                       |#3 Warriors                                  |
#3 Warriors (4)                             |                       |                             |
                                 |#3 Warriors (4)                   |                             |
#14 Hornets (1)       |                                             |                             |
                                                                               |                             |
#7 Rockets (3)                                                       |
                                 |#10 Mavericks (0)               |
#10 Mavericks (4)   |                    |                        |
                                                       |#2 Spurs        |
#2 Spurs (4)                                  |
                                 |#2 Spurs (4) 
#15 Grizzlies (1)      |

East:

#1 Celtics                 

                                 |#1 Celtics (4)

BYE                          |                     |

                                                        |#1 Celtics      

#8 Bucks (4)                                  |                      |

                                  |#8 Bucks (0)                      |

#9 Cavaliers (2)     |                                              |
                                                                                |                             

#5 Knicks (3)                                                         |                             |

                                 |#12 Magic (1)                      |                             |

#12 Magic (4)         |                       |                     |                             |

                                                         |#4 Pistons   |                             |

#4 Pistons (4)                                 |                                                   |

                                 |#4 Pistons (4)                                                   |

#13 Nets (3)            |                                                                           |
                                                                                                              |                
#6 Hawks (2)                                                                                       |

                                 |#11 Heat (1)                                                       |

#11 Heat (4)            |                       |                                                   |

                                                         |#3 Bulls                                     |

#3 Bulls (4)                                     |                     |                             |

                                 |#3 Bulls (4)   |                    |                             |

#14 Raptors (0)      |                                             |                             |
                                                                               |                             |

#7 Wizards (4)                                                      |

                                 |#7 Wizards (4)                    |

#10 Pacers (1)        |                       |                      |

                                                        |#7 Wizards   |

#2 76ers (4)                                    |

                                 |#2 76ers (1)  |

#15 Bobcats (1)       |

(#5) Kings - (#4) Jazz Series

Interesting juxtaposition of rosters with this matchup. I want to say it's old-school versus new-school, but it's really hard for me to think of the Jazz as "new school." Jerry Sloan is one of the best coaches ever, but I just can't wrap my mind around associating "Jerry Sloan" and "pick and roll" with "modern" and "progressive." It just won't work. But I say it's almost old school/new school because of the players involved. The Jazz feature a roster of players that is almost entirely from the 90's and 00's (Dantley and Maravich are the notable exceptions), while the Kings have a roster of players almost exclusively from the 50's and 60's, and one from the early 70's (Webber and Richmond are the notable exceptions here.) So, this should be interesting. It'll be epic, either way.

Quick Thoughts - Tourney, Trades, Lakers Jerseys

Unfortunately, I have not had nearly enough time as of late to get the "Greatest of All-Time Tournament: 2010 Edition" finished nearly as quickly as I've hoped/wanted to. (It would go much quicker if WhatIfSports would allow me to save more than 3 "Dream Teams" so that I didn't have to input the rosters anew every time, but alas...) I'm hoping "doing it right" will trump "doing it fast" in everyone's eyes once its completed. I'm now targeting Dec 31 for the finals, since it would be unfortunate if the 2010 tourney finished in 2011, but we'll see what happens. Fingers crossed.


Other quick notes: I'm also working on a project I'm tentatively calling "Fixing the Hall of Fame" which I'm hoping to have enough research done to start on it in January once the tournament is done. I really think you guys will dig it.


Big trade news today as well. Vince Carter to the Suns, Rashard Lewis to the Wizards, Gilbert Arenas and Jason Richardson to the Magic. Or, at least it sounds like big trade news until you remember it's not 2005 anymore. Honestly, the most interesting part of this trade to me is what number Vince ends up wearing in Phoenix since #15 is currently worn by Robin Lopez. I'd put my money on Richardson's now available #23. (#1 is taken and #5 is retired, by Josh Childress and Dick Van Arsdale, respectively. #6 is also retired for Walter Davis, so he can't do  the add the numbers together trick, and he doesn't strike me as a guy to go for the flip the numbers maneuver and wear #51.)


On another trade/jersey number front (I'm a bit of a jersey/uniform number enthusiast/fanatic), Joe Smith just got traded to the Lakers and is now wearing the #1. I find this extremely interesting because this is a guy who has worn either #32, or if that's unavailable (because it's a fairly popular number - 12 guys are wearing it this year and 9 teams have retired it), he almost always goes with #8. And he has a very significant track record to prove this. The only two instances where he hasn't worn either of those numbers: the Sixers in 1998 - #32 is retired for Billy Cunningham and Aaron McKie wore #8 (Smith wore #9) and the Thunder in 2009 - #32 is retired for Sonics great Fred Brown and while nobody wore #8 that year, Luke Ridnour wore it the year before and I believe he was still with the team when Smith signed and had to pick #7.


Why do I find all this so interesting? Well, the Lakers of course have retired #32 for Magic Johnson. But #8 is available. Has been since Kobe switched to #24 in 2007. Why would the Lakers not issue it to Smith? He surely would've picked it if he could have. Is #8 "unofficially retired" a la Shaq's #34, which nobody has worn since he left town in 2004? Surely the Lakers are not going to retire both #8 and #24 for Bryant, are they? I simply can't imagine it. I have a feeling they're going to let him pick one jersey to hang from the rafters (he'll pick #24) but will anyone ever wear #8 for the purple and gold again? Anyone else have any thoughts on this?

(#12) Magic - (#4) Pistons Series

I don't really know what to say about this series. I don't like either of these teams. I mean in this tournament, not in general. Except the Pistons. I loathe the Pistons, as does/should every other lover of puppies and goodness/hater of evil/person not from Detroit. The only good thing about the Pistons since the 1980's (and I'm talking "good" in the sense of "good vs. evil," not necessarily good in terms of basketball skill) was Grant Hill. And the all-around general malevolence of the organization corrupted and destroyed the better part of his ankle/groin/knee/career. I'm pretty indifferent towards the Magic. Is it weird that the main thing I associate with the Magic is still Nick Anderson bricking free throws? That was like 15 years ago, wasn't it? Eh, whatever. Winner earns the right to get slaughtered by the Celtics in the next round.

(#11) Nuggets - (#3) Warriors Series

I'm still disappointed the Suns lost in the first round. Even without the Chuckster (my all-time favorite player) I thought they could still take out the Nuggets. Alas, it was not to be. (And then the Sixers had to lose, so this tournament is now completely Barkley-less... sigh...) Anyway, let's see if the Nuggets can continue their amazing scoring output against Wilt Chamberlain & The 1950-1975 NBA All-Stars (also known as the "Ultimate Warriors.")

(#11) Heat - (#3) Bulls Series

I'm not a mathematician but I'm pretty sure this equation is accurate "Ultimate Bulls > Ultimate Heat." I know the Heat lamely tried to steal some of Michael Jordan's mojo by retiring his jersey (look it up, it happened. Nobody on the Heat can wear #23...), but I'm buying into their ploys. The Heat might steal a game, maybe even two, but this series is gonna go to the Bulls. Let's find out if I'm right

Blake Griffin's Dunks

Just had to mention this after watching another highlight of Blake Griffin. How is he that much better at dunking than everyone else? He dunks like Jack the Ripper murders prostitutes. Viciously. With Authority. As if that is his Sole Purpose on this Earth. As if God Almighty Himself contracted him out to do the things not even Satan could pull off.


Henceforth, whenever I think of Zeus or Thor hurling thunderbolts from the heavens (okay... it doesn't come up much, but it doesn't come up never, either) I will think of Blake Griffin pulverizing a ball through a hoop far, far below him. Is it too late to cast him in the Thor movie? I'm really looking forward to that movie, but at this point it should almost be just an hour and a half of Blake Griffin dunking while screaming Thor's catchphrase. (What's that? Thor doesn't really have a catchphrase? Well, he can just yell stuff like, "Odin's Beard!" and "Ye Gods!" while wearing a Clippers jersey with a font consisting of old Norse runes. That'll work.)


And honestly, I don't even think "dunking" is an adequate way to describe what he's doing. It's so far above and beyond dunking that it's doing a disservice to those who haven't seen it. He's not dunking. He's "Basketball-Crushing." Or "Hoop-Smashing." Or "Bitch-Making." But he's not simply "Dunking."


Hyperbole? Probably almost certainly. Awesome? Definitely.

(#10) Mavericks - (#2) Spurs Series

I don't know if I made enough of a ruckus about how stunned I was that the Mavericks upset the Rockets. I mean, I know it was just a 10-seed beating a 7-seed, but really... just look at the size of that Rockets team. Hakeem Olajuwon. Moses Malone. Yao Ming. All starting. And Ralph Sampson coming off the bench. All at their peaks. I don't know how the Mavericks pulled it off. Is Dirk Nowitzki that good? Is Steve Francis that poisonous to a team? Even a fictional superteam that doesn't hang out or (probably) doesn't smoke weed in between tip-offs? Or were the Rockets just too big and slow for the Mavericks quickness and sharp shooting? I don't know. These are the quandaries that keep me up at night. Looking at this matchup, however, the Spurs still have the size advantage on the Mavs (Duncan & Robinson, naturally) but also the speed and shooting to balance it out (Gervin, Parker, Ginobili.) I just think Duncan and Robinson will be opening up a nightly carpentry/construction business with the number of boards they'll be tearing down. Of course, that's what I thought about the Rockets, too, so who knows. Still, I'm taking the Spurs in 5 here.

(#7) Wizards - (#2) 76ers Series

I actually kind of like the Wizards odds here. Their big men may be too much for the Sixers to handle. I'm thinking a 7 game series at least here.

(#8) ThunderSonics - (#1) Lakers Series

This is another series (like the Bucks-Celtics) that I thought was going to be a "no doubt about it sweep" mostly because of the strength of the Lakers roster: 9 Hall of Famers, and Shaq, Kobe, and Pau, players with 100%, 100%, and 45.9% chances, respectively, of making the Hall of Fame according to basketball-reference.com. Also, my "Greatness Factor" has Shaq ranked as the 6th greatest player ever with a score of 687.0, Kobe as the 10th with 630.1, and Pau as 68th with 196.9 (at the start of the season.) But the ThunderSonics made short work of, what I thought, was a pretty good Blazers team, so we'll see what happens here.

(#8) Bucks - (#1) Celtics Series

We're kicking off the second round here with the Celtics and Bucks, and I'm going to predict a sweep. I actually have a hard time imagining this Celtics team losing until they get see either the Bulls or Sixers in the Conference Finals. I mean, the Celtics have 11 Hall of Famers and Paul Pierce, who basketball-reference gives a 96.3% chance of making the Hall of Fame, and who my own personal "Greatness Formula" has ranked as the 58th greatest player of all-time with a score of 211.9 to begin this season. But let's see what happens. (By the way, I am adamantly not a Celtics fan... this team is just flat out stacked.)

Tournament Update (First Round Complete)

Here's how things sit after the first round of the 2010 Greatest of All-Time Tournament. The second round will probably kick off Monday with Bucks-Celtics and Lakers-ThunderSonics.

(#9) Trail Blazers - (#8) ThunderSonics Series

I love how this worked out, where the Blazers and Sonics get to renew a rivalry in this thing. Also, for the record, I'm going to refer to the Thunder as the Oklahoma Seattle City ThunderSonics whenever I have to refer to their combined history. It just works for me. Both of these teams seem incredibly stacked for me, at least 7-8 deep, for 8 and 9 seeds anyway. Whoever wins will be going up against an incredible Lakers team, but I think either of these teams could give them a pretty good run for their money. Anyway, this is our last first round series, so let's get to it.

(#9) Cavaliers - (#8) Bucks Series

Well, after watching that Miami-Cleveland game, I have a feeling I know how Cavs fans are going to feel about this (and it won't be fondly nostalgic), but LeBron is on the Cavs roster. Best player on it, actually. By quite a bit. And he will be until he accumulates more career accomplishments with the Heat. Which could take a while. But maybe you'll all get lucky and see the Bucks knock them off in this round and won't have to watch any more games with LeBron associated with your team. (Side note: If there actually are any Cleveland fans reading this, do you want to see your team do well and advance as far as possible in this? Or would you just rather see LeBron lose? Please leave a comment. I'm curious. I have a feeling it's mixed feelings either way.) Also, a really interesting note to see how this plays out: the Bucks have neither a true point guard nor a true center. (They have 7 shooting guards, 3 small forwards, and 2 power forwards.) I have no idea how that's going to work. On to the games!

Tournament Update

(#10) Mavericks - (#7) Rockets Series

I said before this was one of my top three first round match-ups I wanted to see, not because I think these games will be close, but because I really want to see how a lineup featuring Olajuwon, Moses Malone, Yao, and Ralph Sampson plays out. This should be interesting, so here we go:

(#10) Pacers - (#7) Wizards Series

No offense to any Pacers or Wizards fans out there, but I hear these team names and I just get instantly bored. I also have a hard time seeing how this won't be a sweep for the Wizards, considering they have four Hall of Fame big men on their team (Hayes, Unseld, Bellamy, and Gus Johnson) as well as a Hall of Fame guard in Earl Monroe. While the Pacers have... Reggie Miller. (Okay, that's not entirely fair, Jermaine O'Neal and Mel Daniels had some really good years with the Pacers, but they're no Hayes and Unseld.)

Twitter

Trying to get everything all cohesive here as I get this off the ground. So, here's my lame attempt - I just started a twitter account. It's LucasEwalt34.


I also have a ton of NBA related quizzes on Sporcle.com. (Two published to the front page, even!) My username on there is LucasEwalt if you want to check out those at all.


Pacers-Wizards and Mavericks-Rockets should get simulated today. Possibly getting the next to first rounders (Blazers-ThunderSonics & Cavs-Bucks) out of the way before the weekend, but we'll see how much I get to today.


Also, I have big big plans for the next "event" after the tourney. It involves updating/revamping the "NBA's 50 Greatest Players List." More details to come...

Tournament Update

(#11) Nuggets - (#6) Suns Series

This is perhaps the first round matchup I would most want to actually see. Either that or Trail Blazers-ThunderSonics. (A close runner up is Mavericks-Rockets.)


Game 1: Nuggets 103 - Suns 112

Ultimate Nuggets PLAYER MIN FGM/FGA 3PM/3PA FTM/FTA OREB REB AST BLK STL TO PF TP 1977-78  David Thompson* 38 7/16 0/2 0/2 4 6 4 1 0 0 1 14 1986-87  Fat Lever* 35 2/9 0/1 0/0 2 9 13 1 1 0 1 4 2007-08  Carmelo Anthony* 33 9/17 1/3 3/3 3 8 3 0 0 3 2 22 1981-82  Alex English* 31 8/15 0/0 4/4 4 7 4 2 1 4 5 20 1979-80  Dan Issel* 31 3/6 0/0 0/0 1 5 2 0 1 1 2 6 1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe 18 2/6 0/0 1/2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 5 1968-69  Larry Jones 11 4/7 1/1 0/2 2 3 0 0 1 1 1 9 1975-76  Ralph Simpson 10 3/3 0/0 2/2 0 3 4 0 0 1 0 8 2007-08  Marcus Camby 9 1/2 0/0 1/1 0 1 2 0 0 0 1 3 1984-85  Calvin Natt 8 2/3 0/0 0/1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 4 2009-10  Nene Hilario 8 3/5 0/0 0/0 1 3 2 1 0 1 2 6 1998-99  Antonio McDyess 8 1/1 0/0 0/0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 TOTALS   45/90 2/7 11/17 17 46 36 6 4 11 15 103     Ultimate Suns PLAYER MIN FGM/FGA 3PM/3PA FTM/FTA OREB REB AST BLK STL TO PF TP 2005-06  Steve Nash* 41 3/8 0/2 0/0 0 1 13 1 0 3 0 6 2007-08  Amare Stoudemire* 32 8/12 0/0 3/3 1 8 2 1 1 3 4 19 1988-89  Kevin Johnson* 31 4/7 0/0 4/4 0 2 6 0 2 3 4 12 1978-79  Walter Davis* 29 7/13 0/1 1/1 0 5 6 0 1 0 1 15 1975-76  Paul Westphal* 28 8/13 3/4 2/3 0 1 2 1 0 0 1 21 2005-06  Shawn Marion 20 4/6 2/3 1/1 1 7 2 0 0 0 2 11 1992-93  Dan Majerle 16 5/6 2/3 0/0 0 1 0 0 2 0 2 12 1969-70  Connie Hawkins 11 1/2 0/0 2/2 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 4 1975-76  Alvan Adams 11 2/5 0/0 0/0 1 2 2 0 0 1 1 4 1989-90  Tom Chambers 8 0/1 0/0 0/0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale 7 2/5 0/0 0/0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 1989-90  Mark West 5 2/3 0/0 0/0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 4 TOTALS   46/81 7/13 13/14 6 36 33 3 6 11 16 112     * - denotes game starter Player of the Game Amare Stoudemire (Ultimate Suns)

Game 2: Nuggets 130 - Suns 108

Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1977-78  David Thompson*	37	9/17	0/0	4/5	0	2	3	1	1	1	2	22
1986-87  Fat Lever*	32	7/17	0/0	0/0	6	14	7	0	2	1	2	14
1979-80  Dan Issel*	30	4/12	0/0	6/6	8	12	5	1	1	2	0	14
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	29	10/21	1/1	0/0	3	5	3	2	2	3	2	21
1981-82  Alex English*	28	7/12	0/0	4/4	3	7	3	3	1	0	4	18
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	21	7/8	0/0	1/1	1	5	2	0	1	3	2	15
1968-69  Larry Jones	14	1/4	0/0	0/0	1	5	1	0	1	0	0	2
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	14	2/4	0/0	1/1	1	4	2	1	0	0	1	5
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	12	3/6	0/0	0/0	3	4	2	1	0	0	0	6
1984-85  Calvin Natt	9	1/2	0/0	3/4	1	2	1	0	0	1	1	5
2007-08  Marcus Camby	9	2/4	0/0	0/0	2	3	1	0	0	1	0	4
2009-10  Nene Hilario	6	2/3	0/0	0/0	0	3	0	1	0	0	0	4
TOTALS		55/110	1/1	19/21	29	66	30	10	9	12	14	130
Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	40	5/10	1/1	6/7	1	3	6	0	1	0	0	17
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	33	6/11	0/0	4/4	2	3	8	0	0	6	2	16
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	31	10/15	0/1	1/1	3	12	1	1	0	3	1	21
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	29	1/4	0/1	0/0	0	1	5	0	1	1	1	2
1978-79  Walter Davis*	26	7/15	2/5	6/7	0	1	4	0	0	4	4	22
2005-06  Shawn Marion	21	4/8	1/1	0/0	0	4	0	0	1	0	1	9
1975-76  Alvan Adams	13	1/4	0/1	0/0	2	4	4	1	1	0	1	2
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	13	4/9	0/1	1/3	1	3	0	0	0	2	1	9
1992-93  Dan Majerle	13	3/7	0/1	0/0	0	2	1	0	0	0	1	6
1989-90  Tom Chambers	9	1/7	0/2	0/0	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	2
1989-90  Mark West	7	1/1	0/0	0/0	4	5	0	0	0	0	1	2
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	6	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0
TOTALS		43/91	4/14	18/22	13	40	30	3	4	16	14	108
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Alex English (Ultimate Nuggets)

Game 3: Suns 138 - Nuggets 148 (3OT)

Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	59	8/19	2/4	4/4	1	4	14	0	2	4	2	22
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	50	11/19	0/0	4/8	2	7	10	1	3	2	3	26
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	48	14/25	0/1	4/6	5	15	4	3	2	0	5	32
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	47	5/14	1/3	0/1	0	2	3	0	1	2	3	11
1978-79  Walter Davis*	37	7/15	0/1	4/5	3	5	2	2	1	2	5	18
2005-06  Shawn Marion	20	3/8	0/2	0/0	1	7	0	1	1	0	1	6
1992-93  Dan Majerle	15	4/5	1/2	0/0	1	2	0	0	2	1	1	9
1975-76  Alvan Adams	12	4/7	1/1	1/1	2	3	4	0	0	0	0	10
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	10	2/4	0/0	0/0	1	5	2	1	0	0	0	4
1989-90  Tom Chambers	10	0/3	0/0	0/0	0	3	1	0	0	1	1	0
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	4	0/2	0/1	0/0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1989-90  Mark West	3	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0	1	0	0	1	0
TOTALS		58/121	5/15	17/25	16	54	40	9	12	12	22	138
Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1981-82  Alex English*	63	17/30	0/1	1/2	8	15	9	2	0	4	4	35
1977-78  David Thompson*	53	12/24	1/3	4/5	0	8	12	2	2	4	4	29
1986-87  Fat Lever*	48	4/7	0/1	4/5	0	12	6	0	1	0	5	12
1979-80  Dan Issel*	47	10/20	0/1	5/5	4	16	3	1	1	2	4	25
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	39	7/14	1/3	5/7	2	7	4	0	0	3	6	20
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	20	4/6	1/1	3/3	0	4	0	0	2	4	1	12
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	13	3/4	0/0	0/0	0	0	2	0	0	1	0	6
1968-69  Larry Jones	10	0/1	0/1	2/2	0	1	2	0	0	0	0	2
2009-10  Nene Hilario	8	1/1	0/0	0/1	1	2	0	2	0	0	0	2
2007-08  Marcus Camby	8	0/1	0/0	0/0	1	3	0	0	1	1	0	0
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	7	1/2	0/0	3/4	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	5
TOTALS		59/110	3/11	27/34	18	70	38	7	7	19	24	148
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Alex English (Ultimate Nuggets)

Game 4: Suns 110 - Nuggets 101

Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	42	4/9	0/1	1/1	0	3	12	0	1	5	2	9
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	34	5/12	0/0	1/2	0	1	11	1	1	1	2	11
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	32	9/15	0/1	5/5	3	15	0	0	0	3	3	23
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	30	2/5	0/2	2/2	0	1	6	0	5	2	2	6
1978-79  Walter Davis*	29	9/13	0/0	5/10	2	5	0	1	1	0	2	23
2005-06  Shawn Marion	22	4/7	0/1	1/2	2	3	2	0	1	2	0	9
1992-93  Dan Majerle	16	7/11	1/1	0/0	0	1	0	0	4	1	1	15
1975-76  Alvan Adams	11	0/3	0/1	0/0	1	2	2	0	0	0	1	0
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	9	3/3	0/0	0/0	1	2	0	0	0	1	0	6
1989-90  Tom Chambers	6	1/3	0/0	1/2	1	3	1	0	0	0	0	3
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	5	1/2	0/0	0/0	2	2	0	0	1	0	0	2
1989-90  Mark West	4	1/2	0/0	1/1	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	3
TOTALS		46/85	1/7	17/25	12	38	34	3	14	15	14	110
Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1981-82  Alex English*	48	8/14	0/0	5/6	7	11	7	2	1	5	5	21
1977-78  David Thompson*	39	9/11	1/1	0/0	0	5	5	0	2	5	1	19
1986-87  Fat Lever*	34	6/14	0/2	3/4	1	6	9	0	4	2	5	15
1979-80  Dan Issel*	32	7/13	0/1	6/8	0	4	3	0	2	2	0	20
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	31	6/14	0/0	0/0	0	8	2	1	1	5	5	12
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	13	1/2	0/0	2/2	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	4
1968-69  Larry Jones	11	0/1	0/0	0/0	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	0
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	10	1/1	0/0	0/0	0	2	0	0	1	1	2	2
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	9	2/3	0/0	0/1	0	1	3	0	0	0	1	4
2009-10  Nene Hilario	7	0/0	0/0	2/2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	2
2007-08  Marcus Camby	5	1/2	0/0	0/0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	2
TOTALS		41/75	1/4	18/23	9	41	30	4	11	21	20	101
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Amare Stoudemire (Ultimate Suns)

Game 5: Nuggets 109 - Suns 121

Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1981-82  Alex English*	45	12/22	0/0	2/5	8	9	10	2	0	3	2	26
1986-87  Fat Lever*	34	10/18	0/0	0/0	1	5	6	1	5	3	2	20
1977-78  David Thompson*	34	7/13	0/0	2/3	2	5	5	2	0	2	4	16
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	29	6/14	0/2	1/1	1	3	1	1	0	2	2	13
1979-80  Dan Issel*	28	3/9	0/0	0/0	0	6	3	0	0	1	2	6
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	16	2/3	0/0	3/4	1	4	3	0	1	0	0	7
1968-69  Larry Jones	12	2/9	0/2	4/5	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	8
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	12	2/4	0/1	1/1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	5
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	11	1/3	0/0	1/2	1	2	0	0	3	1	1	3
2007-08  Marcus Camby	9	0/0	0/0	1/2	1	4	2	2	1	0	1	1
2009-10  Nene Hilario	7	2/2	0/0	0/0	1	2	0	0	0	1	0	4
1984-85  Calvin Natt	3	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS		47/97	0/5	15/23	16	43	31	8	10	13	15	109
Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	39	11/18	3/6	1/1	3	5	11	0	0	1	3	26
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	32	7/15	0/0	6/9	0	1	4	0	1	2	1	20
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	30	10/16	0/0	1/1	3	12	1	1	2	2	0	21
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	29	3/8	0/0	2/2	1	4	9	0	1	2	3	8
1978-79  Walter Davis*	27	6/11	1/1	2/2	1	4	3	0	0	4	4	15
2005-06  Shawn Marion	21	3/5	1/1	2/2	3	9	2	1	1	3	0	9
1992-93  Dan Majerle	17	4/5	0/1	0/0	1	2	2	0	1	1	1	8
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	13	2/4	0/1	0/0	1	4	2	1	1	1	0	4
1975-76  Alvan Adams	11	2/5	1/1	0/0	1	4	2	0	0	0	1	5
1989-90  Tom Chambers	8	1/3	0/0	0/0	0	3	2	0	0	0	1	2
1989-90  Mark West	7	1/1	0/0	0/0	0	3	0	0	0	1	3	2
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	7	0/0	0/0	1/2	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	1
TOTALS		50/91	6/11	15/19	14	53	39	3	7	17	17	121
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Steve Nash (Ultimate Suns)

Game 6: Suns 118 - Nuggets 127

Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	42	11/21	2/5	1/1	1	9	13	0	1	2	1	25
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	34	8/10	1/2	2/4	0	2	6	1	0	2	5	19
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	28	4/6	0/1	3/3	0	1	10	0	0	2	1	11
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	27	3/6	0/0	1/2	0	6	2	2	0	2	3	7
1978-79  Walter Davis*	25	7/14	0/3	1/1	0	3	2	1	1	2	0	15
2005-06  Shawn Marion	19	3/4	1/1	0/0	1	1	0	0	0	1	1	7
1992-93  Dan Majerle	16	2/2	0/0	0/0	0	2	1	0	0	1	0	4
1975-76  Alvan Adams	14	5/11	1/2	4/4	0	2	6	2	0	0	2	15
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	13	1/3	0/1	2/2	1	5	2	0	0	0	0	4
1989-90  Tom Chambers	10	2/3	0/1	1/1	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	5
1989-90  Mark West	6	2/2	0/0	0/0	2	4	0	1	0	0	2	4
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	5	1/3	0/1	0/0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	2
TOTALS		49/85	5/17	15/18	6	36	43	7	2	12	17	118
Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1981-82  Alex English*	45	9/15	0/0	1/1	7	12	8	1	1	0	2	19
1977-78  David Thompson*	36	9/24	1/4	2/2	1	5	4	0	2	1	3	21
1986-87  Fat Lever*	34	8/13	1/2	0/0	3	6	6	0	1	1	3	17
1979-80  Dan Issel*	33	6/12	0/0	11/14	3	9	3	0	1	2	3	23
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	27	5/8	1/1	1/1	1	4	6	0	2	2	3	12
1968-69  Larry Jones	16	6/7	0/0	1/2	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	13
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	14	3/6	0/0	0/0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	6
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	10	3/3	0/0	2/2	0	1	2	0	0	1	4	8
2007-08  Marcus Camby	10	1/5	0/0	0/0	2	5	1	0	0	1	0	2
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	7	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
2009-10  Nene Hilario	6	3/4	0/0	0/0	0	4	0	1	1	0	2	6
1984-85  Calvin Natt	3	0/2	0/0	0/0	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS		53/99	3/7	18/22	18	51	31	2	8	8	21	127
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Alex English (Ultimate Nuggets)

Game 7: Nuggets 127 - Suns 97

Ultimate Nuggets
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
1981-82  Alex English*	46	9/20	0/0	8/8	7	11	9	1	1	0	2	26
1977-78  David Thompson*	40	13/23	1/3	0/1	3	9	10	3	2	0	0	27
1986-87  Fat Lever*	31	6/9	0/0	0/0	2	9	8	0	4	0	1	12
1979-80  Dan Issel*	30	8/13	0/0	2/5	0	4	1	0	1	0	2	18
2007-08  Carmelo Anthony*	29	5/12	0/1	3/4	3	6	5	0	0	4	5	13
1968-69  Larry Jones	14	4/8	0/0	0/0	2	3	0	0	0	3	0	8
1982-83  Kiki Vandeweghe	11	0/1	0/0	0/0	0	3	1	0	1	1	0	0
1998-99  Antonio McDyess	10	4/7	0/0	3/4	2	4	2	0	0	0	0	11
1975-76  Ralph Simpson	10	3/5	0/0	0/0	1	1	2	0	1	0	0	6
2009-10  Nene Hilario	10	3/5	0/0	0/0	1	5	0	1	0	1	1	6
2007-08  Marcus Camby	8	0/0	0/0	0/2	1	5	0	3	0	0	0	0
1984-85  Calvin Natt	3	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
TOTALS		55/103	1/4	16/24	22	60	38	8	10	9	12	127
Ultimate Suns
PLAYER	MIN	FGM/FGA	3PM/3PA	FTM/FTA	OREB	REB	AST	BLK	STL	TO	PF	TP
2005-06  Steve Nash*	38	3/8	0/2	2/2	1	4	12	1	2	3	0	8
2007-08  Amare Stoudemire*	33	7/12	0/0	0/0	2	10	2	1	0	3	3	14
1988-89  Kevin Johnson*	31	4/9	0/1	5/5	0	4	8	0	1	0	1	13
1975-76  Paul Westphal*	29	5/10	1/2	1/2	1	4	2	1	0	3	5	12
1978-79  Walter Davis*	28	7/17	1/2	2/3	1	4	4	0	0	3	0	17
2005-06  Shawn Marion	21	5/9	0/2	2/2	1	4	0	0	2	4	4	12
1992-93  Dan Majerle	14	2/4	1/1	0/0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	5
1969-70  Connie Hawkins	12	1/6	0/1	0/0	5	5	2	0	0	1	1	2
1975-76  Alvan Adams	11	0/3	0/1	2/2	0	0	1	0	1	0	2	2
1968-69  Dick Van Arsdale	9	1/3	0/1	0/0	0	1	2	1	1	0	1	2
1989-90  Tom Chambers	8	4/7	1/3	1/1	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	10
1989-90  Mark West	6	0/1	0/0	0/0	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS		39/89	4/16	15/17	13	43	33	4	7	17	18	97
* - denotes game starter
Player of the Game
Alex English (Ultimate Nuggets)

Seven games and only one score under 100 points (and it was 97) including a triple overtime where 12 players scored in the double digits and the teams combined to put up 286 points. Screw defense. Those are the Suns and Nuggets we love to see. But the Suns ultimately had a huge let down game in Game 7 and the Nuggets will take on the Warriors in the next round.