The Asterisks is right here

You can call it sour grapes. You can call me bitter. Or, you can agree that the 2007 NBA Champs are champs in their own minds and nobody else’s.
Just for the sake of spite, I’m not even going to mention the name of “The Team Who Shall Not Be Named” (TWSNBN) throughout this blog entry.
While there are some players on the TWSNBN who I do respect, the team in general seems to be in the right place at the right to win.
Out of protest, I didn’t watch a single minute of the finals and it paid off because many others sent the same message to Stern that the fans didn’t like what was transpiring. I don’t think he recognizes the real reason of the low ratings, but it’s there if he wants to look for it.
The point is, the officiating was atrocious throughout all of the playoffs. There were some very shady rules enforced which, like-it-or-not/admit-it-or-not, had an impact. To that end, the 2007 NBA Champions have an * in this record book. And I’m sure the fans in that region of the country don’t care, but the rest of the world doesn’t care who won the trophy this year.
How do you like them apples S.A.?

Shazzam! Thank You Al McCoy

Let me just start off by stating that Al McCoy hasn’t retired, nor is there a rumor that he will.

With that said, Thank you Al McCoy! Thank you for being such a great piece of Pheonix Suns history. You will be remembered as a respected icon even amongst your peers.
I will always remember and appreciate your unique approach to announcing game play and respect toward players of the opposing team.
I love the tradition that you seem to be the final word when it comes to giving Phoenix Suns teammates their nick name.
Thunder Dan (Majerle), Socks (Elliot Perry), The Matrix (Shawn Marion), (Steve) Nash Rambler; just to name a few.
I thought you deserved to hear some fan appreciation and I can’t wait to see your place in The Ring of Honor at the Purple Palace.
Shuh-Zamm!!!

Stern, the 2007 NBA Finals are a Big Yawn

Stern, you have no-one to blame but yourself.
I can’t wait for the first interview where you shamelessly throw buzz words like; successful, popular, world-wide viewership to try to convince the fans that this was one of the greatest finals ever.

Lets start from the beginning.
You started with two heavy-handed edicts where you instroduced a new basketball. You said it had been tested. It hadn’t. It took your most outspoken owner to pony up some real dollars for a real test from real scientists to get the real answer. Not the analysis that Spallding provided you with. We all know their analysis was presented to you in the form of a check.
Posts here and here .

Second, you instituted a new dress code. Great idea, poor execution, questionable results at best. I’m pretty certain that even you saw toward the end of the year that your fashion police were taking days off. I know the players saw it.

Additionally, you and Stu have got to get on the same page when it comes to discipline. Not only that, you need to read the same book and apply some common sense. The way you two handled the Warriors/Jazz and Suns/Spurs fiasco was rediculous. My Christmas presents to the two of you will be a tee-shirt for each of you (Dumb and Dumberer). I’ll let the two of you fight over “Dumberer”.
Any off-season rule chages as a result of the Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw should also include subtext… “Yes, Stu and David were idiots, should have applied some common sense to a rule that is meant to prohibit ‘escalation’ of any conflict where there was no escalation on the part of Amare and Boris and should not have applied any suspension.” The rule worked. Yes they got off the bench, but they stopped short of entering the fray. You should have went to the press conference and said the rule had made its impact and no further penalties will be applied.

A final suggestion, the tweaks to the playoff alignment last year stopped short. Next time think of what could happen, not just what did happen. I know Mr. Cuban invaded your office with whinning and tantrums, and I simpathize as I also have kids, but those immediate concerns didn’t create a solution for this years playoffs.
I’m sure you will pridefully avoid implementing this suggestion, but go with a variant of the NHL playoff system where teams are re-seeded in the case of an upset. This will help to ensure that the most competitive teams face each other at the end of the tournament rather than the 2nd round (Suns / Spurs).