Changing of the guard

Fact: SGL will have a new champion this year.

May not be Texas but will def not be the Irish. The recruiting has been evened out. Dispite off season position changes for his 98 spd QB.

UNC is there
Texas is there
FSU is there
SU is there
Only team not in contention is Cinci.

SGL should begin tonight

Expierence outways optimisim

Blanketed by speed, and. 8 guys in the secondary Texas struggled to produce. The loss of hill mid season set this Texas team back. Hill has since decided to move on to the money and head to the draft. Not the character guy we thought and clearly not deserving of the mo hill scholorship Woth fisher and cook gone as well Texas is forced to look at it's young secondary to lead them to greatness. Every team in SGL is reloading more and more the SGL gets tighter down the stretch.

Alas we keep fighting

Awaiting our Destiny...

As I roll into my first SGL championship after an extremely ridicoulous ACC Championship. Texas feels like the Chaminade as they board the plane. The spread is set at 41.5. Interesting as these two coaches have a long history well before the creation of SGL or Xbox360. Coach O'Connell clearly remembers VTech and Marcus Vick Scrambling for 50 yards and a TD as time expired vs an Under manned Notre Dame. These two have been rivals in  every gaming genre there is. Although the teams have a biblical difference in regards to talent there i no doubt that ND is feeling a little bit of pressure underneath that calm beard. With ACC coaches looking on there is no doubt this will be a special night for 1 of the two programs. Will ND win its 5th Consecutive Champship or will upstart Texas and Coach Chase ascend to gaming greatness and return to his rightful position as a gaming god? Texas is without its Starting QB,RB,and Number 1 Stunner Maurice Hill Jr.

Overated Smith

As Josh Smith continues to dominate the SGL landscape we begin to wonder how. With no real talent other than the ability to stand still dunk we see early on that coach O is continuing to live up to his standard of finding the first round of glitches. But I worry not, because ShotStick 2.0 will carry us through the SGL

SGL Basketball Year 2

The second season of SGL basketball is already looking to be a very interesting and heated season, without two teams even having competed yet. Despite these two teams having not played it is easy to see who the front runner is thus far, as the Sacramento Kings have jumped out to an early 4-1 record. A record that is highlighted by a 28 point comeback, an SGL record, while also jumping out to a 3-0 record at home. Having a 3-1 record against the hated Lakers, the rivalry between the two clubs of the early 2000's seems to be back in full swing. The Lakers have shown to have a good team, focused in on defense and streaky outside shooting, with their record being skewed by their troubles with the Kings. The Hawks are 0-2, but have been in close battles each time, and have shown a lot of potential to be a focal point throughout the entire season in the upper half of the power rankings. With the Magic and Hornets yet to take the court they will have some high standards to live up to with the way the Kings are playing early on. The Hornets are led by reigning coach and GM of the Year JJ Pelligra, and seem to be the biggest challenge for the hot Kings early on. The Magic are a team that not much is anticipated from them early on, and are a squad that many believe need to work on team chemistry before they can challenge the other teams.

The star players are rather obvious early on for these three teams that have played thus far, with Josh Smith of the Kings being on one level and everyone else a step below. Smith is averaging 30.6 points a game over his first five, and also bringing it on the defensive and rebounding portions of the game. With many claiming his 3 straight blocks on LeBron James of the Lakers to start the 4th quarter as the turning point of their last win. Smith is helped out by young and exciting point guard Derrick Rose, that despite averaging under 10 points a game thus far, has not had a game under 5 assissts. Yao Ming is also making a run at Defensive Player of the Year, while Ben Gordon is stepping up to be a reliable 3 point shooter and clutch player off the bench.

The Lakers are a team focusing on defense and that can be seen through the early favorite for defensive player of the year Tyson Chandler, who has had a block in every game, and has really been the intimidating factor of the Lakers. With Marcus Camby also helping out on the defensive end all revolves around LeBron James on the offensive end, as he finally exploded for 44 in their last game, though Josh Smith has the most points in a game this year with 45. With the outside shooting of Deron Williams and Ray Allen the Lakers are beginning to round into a formiddable foe.

The Hawks are led by a rookie, but that rookie sure is not playing like one. OJ Mayo is second in the league with 27 points per game, and also among the leaders in assists per game. He is the straw that stirs the drink so far for the Hawks, and how OJ goes seems to be how the Hawks go. With Rudy Gay struggling thus far from the field the Hawks find themselves winless, but Gay and Kevin Garnett feel like they are going to turn things around as soon as their own play picks up. Al Jefferson is a player to look out for with these young Hawks, as he came in late to the Kings game and made consecutive jumpers to really keep them close going down the stretch, playing well to earn a start in their second game.

This season is off to a quick start and should be quite interesting.

Tensions rise in Yr3

After much discussion with ACC leading Coach Gens and the Tar-heels, Michigan was not able to come to agreement in terms of compensation that would be received for the home team, with Coach Gens quoted “We don’t want to hurt of strength of Schedule with a weak Mich team”. Michigan being disrespected will not be tolerated and Coach Chase says they will never play UNC again. Although he would dream of Beating UNC for the Chip down the road, Mich knows that the idea of UNC in the chip is impossible. When asked Rival coach O’Connell of the predicament he said “dude I love beating on Gens he sucks”, while I do agree and will lose out and a big recruitment weekend, we will refuse games vs. UNC out of spite. Until they win the chip. Michigan Plans on Scheduling a very difficult schedule to jump in the BCS quickly..

 

Syracuse is posed to finally make a big-time run with there recruits finally coming of age. Although it is noted that Coach Pelligra has been known to be a gunslinger and would have to adjust his strategy and tone down ridiculousness to make It through unshaved.

 

Notre Dame blew their changes last year, but looks to be the front runner to make another run there.       

 

 

which ncaa 09 player are you?

http://nextround.net/2008/07/16/what-type-of-ncaa-09-player-are-you/

EA Sports’ introduction of its NCAA Football game each summer marks a significant milepost indicating that college football season isn’t an unbearable distance away. There are several different types of people who play NCAA ‘09. Which one are you?
I Am My Quarterback Player
You benched your school’s starter and created a dynasty with yourself behind center. And why not? You’ve got a laser rocket arm.
You prefer to play solo but on occasion you’ll whoop a friend’s ass.
Your college football knowledge is limited to what the programmers included in the game.
Needed a Two Week Fix Player
NCAA Football is the only reason you own a game system.
You’re a college football junkie. Every summer is the same. You finish memorizing preseason magazines just in time to dust off your Playstation and buy NCAA the day it releases.
Novice gameplay gets you to August camp and your subscription website takes you home from there.
Alma Mater Player
The first thing you do after unwrapping NCAA is set your team’s fight song as the default music.
You play with your school and your school only, anything else would be blasphemy.
You run a dual quarterback and/or dual running back system just like your coaches will this season. Defensive substitutions are in line with your coordinator’s philosophy.
Multi-Player Only Player
You LOVE NCAA Football but think solo play might as well be World of Warcraft.
If your friends aren’t around you make your girlfriend play you. And then you skunk her 70-0 to teach her a lesson.
My Buddy Has It Player
Why would you buy a video game — or a system for that matter — when you can just go over to your buddy’s place?
You don’t take hints well and are often told point blank you have to leave.
You get unreasonably bullshit whenever three of you are over and you have to sit out.
Only Knows Numbers Player
You’re a gamer, through and through. You’d rather spend football Saturdays this fall playing NCAA ‘09 than watching the actual games.
Unless you’re Tebow and Florida you refer to all of players by their numbers because you have zero roster knowledge.
You appreciate the fact that Kirk Herbstreit can use his real name.
Doesn’t Know How to Option Player
You’re the guy who agrees to play even though he really doesn’t want to.
College football and video games aren’t your bag; Lord of the Rings is.
Option plays lead to sack after sack because you have no clue how to pitch the ball.

Bowl Week Recap Yr1

Heisman is the debate, is it too much? Should we always use it? Does it even make a difference? We would learn all of this in the first SGLNCAA post-season.

First off we start with Mike Paulus, and North Carolina, who finished 2^nd in the ACC behind the eventual NCAA Champion Miami Hurricanes, The got a strange draw as the headed to the Chic Fila Bowl to face off against the Mississippi St. (SEC #4). It was a strange matchup in the fact that Clemson (ACC#3) got an at large bid to play in a BCS bowl. Feeling Slighted Team G3NS handled M St quickly jumping to a 28-0 lead after the first and never looking back. After the game Coach Gens had this to say, “Heisman, what a joke, feels like varsity to me”, a joke it was indeed.

Syracuse, O the Syracuse Orange, deathly afraid of the Jump to the Desmond Howard level. Quoted as saying I will have no chance on Heisman and it will suck, well when you win the Big East Title as Syracuse, its time to look into it. In the real world we’d be looking at point shaving and possible steroid allocations or money from Boosters. Syracuse played Wisconsin (Big Ten #2) If I knew of the matchup I would have thrown the Big Ten title just to beat on the Orange one more time. The won a close game proving themselves as a worthy team to look out for next year but still a few years off from making a run at the Cup.

Notre Dame, the eternal last place in coaches poll first place in media poll, although they did impress with a record breaking recruiting season( 12 blue-chipper 5stars, next closest was 4) They have been claiming that want to play at the Heisman level the whole time but leading 7-6 late over Florida St (Miami beat’em) FSU continued to drive down the field and hit a Field goal to give them the lead as time expired. This would be the most realistic game in all of the Post-Season. Once again leaving Notre Dame as the laughing stock of the SGL.

Michigan, what a Rose Bowl, with star Freshman slot guy, McGuffie out for the Game early, they start behind but go for a pick 6 as time expired in the 2^nd half, Down 10-7, QB Steven Threet(peat), who was once benched for the remainder of the season, scrambled on third and goal for the go ahead TD making it 14-10 with 1:44 left in game. ASU would drive and end up throwing short in hopes of turning to a big game from just outside the red zone, they would be stopped short. Game Michigan, Rose Bowl Michigan, Tan Everywhere, Jan Everywhere.

The Featured Game was the Hurricanes vs the utes(what a weak squad.). When discussing the Heisman jump with Coach Ackermann, prior to kickoff we had this conversation:

“Lets Jump to Heisman Permanently”

 “let me get my ring first”

“If not now then never”

            “You say get’em I say got’em lol”

And so it was Miami beats the Undermanned Mormans. And the shocker of came in his post game press conference in which he announced he has done everything there is to do, and would be perusing new challenges for him and his ego. I know one happy coach in the Raleigh-Durham Area right now.

Michigan Wins Rose Bowl

Michigan survived a Ridiculous onslaught in the RoseBowl but prevailed proving they are poised for a National Championship Run in 2009

They had a hard fought season and if the injury to McGuffie proves anything, its that he will indeed be red-shirted coming this fall.

Who Wants to be our first Victom?

Mich Beat Wisc, Loses to Illinois

Michigan was able to handle the #6 Badgers, but later struggled to mount any sort of offense against the #10 Illini. (Video)
A win over Juice Williams would have surely pushed the Wolverines into the top 25, who eagerly wait #21 Miami.

Michigan has had a long road but has recently had an awaking in the Practice, they have uncovered a dominate force on the depth chart, who that although will not see time this year, and is expected to redshirt next year, will instantly boost the Wolverines title hopes.

Power Rankings

	Rank	Name	Votes
o	1	JJ	20
Ý	2	POC	9
Þ	3	Yann	8
Ý	3	Gens	8
Þ	5	Grif	6

As of Preseason:

1^st = 4 votes

2^nd = 3 votes

3^rd = 2 votes

4^th = 1 vote

5^th = 0 Vote

Season Outlook

Words from a Carolina Blue Sky type of Guy



The Season is only hours in front of us and I sat down and chatted with the real QB#7 and asked for his input into the SGL's first crack at the NCAA 09 Dynasty.

On Notre Dame coming to town October 11th…
“You can expect a great environment. Both sides will play with a lot of heart, determination and effort. It will be a close ballgame. Hats off to best team that is able to pull it out.”

On early season philosophy of UNC/young quarterbacks. “Sling the rock! A lot of youth and talent mean learning on the fly and under fire. We will be running a lot of spread looking to get the ball in the hands of our playmakers- Specifically #88 and #87.”

Challenge to a young Michigan squad. “Not a lot of people run in videogames but if you can master the new features, it could break the game wide open but more importantly control the clock and put pressure on your opponent to score on the few possessions he gets."

On putting pressure on young quarterbacks like the situation at Michigan “Bring some smoke and heat, bring the blitz and make them throw and make decisions that either make mistakes or be a prime time player.”

Miami

The new rivalry with Butch Davis' former team. “Miami is just like us (UNC)-young and athletic. Being away is always tough, especially in ACC. The new stadium will certainly be an adjustment but it will be louder than ever. George Deleone being there with the Dolphins will also get the juices flowing. Keys to beating Miami on the road is to get up on them early. They could be hot coming off an old rivalry game with playing Florida State in week 3. There defense is young and quick so the key will be to jump on their inexperience like we did last year and just stay up. (that’s what she said) It’s all about getting the W on the road. "

On Syracuse
“You have to hope and believe in the hometown team. Comes down to skill. It comes down to the fingers of the player using the wireless controller. Cuse is very good academic institution, clearly took a lot out of mike Williams and will definitely hurt them as far as having any big play type guys beside Lavar Lobdell. I know teams will try to test that Syracuse offensive line early, as it was tested last season, but if the user can make the right reads and get the ball to where it needs to go early in the game, they could surprise some teams.”
“The big east schedule is always tough. If Syracuse can grab a few wins early against some lower quality teams like northwestern they may have the confidence to scare a power like Penn State like they did in the late 80s. You can’t be afraid to make a mistake early in the game because against the great teams you have to take your shots if you want to slay the giant.”

On Tebow being the 99 overall. “Tebow is a beast there is no doubt about that. There are probably only a few defenders in NCAA that would be able to take him down 1 v 1, specifically Erin Andrews.”

Celebrations
"I would definitely run over to Ramsey’s our Carolina mascot and pimp his jersey because he is also #7. He knows what’s up."

SGL NCAA '09 Preview Coming Soon

SGL NCAA '09 Preview

Race for the heisman will commence Tuesday July 15th as 2 of the top 5 quarterbacks in SGL will play each other "Outlined against a blue, gray October" 11 sky in a pivotal week 7 matchup. Which QB#7 will prevail? blogger.com will host Mike Paulus for a Q+A heading into the coveted matchup and touch upon a possible new rivalry to the mix of irish tradition and also what it felt like to have Jimmy rip away a scholarship offer from Notre Dame on National Letter of Intent Day back in February 2007.

As the season approaches more previews to come as well as pre-season SGL rankings, pre-season SGL players of year, and pre-season SGL coaches of Year. Votes will be tallied Monday July 14 and posted before midnight release.

October 11 Matchup

vs

quarterback rankings

Heisman frontrunner. Only qb to have their own website dedicated to them.

http://www.jimmyclausenonline.org/

New BreakAway Engine

Video (How the New Jukes work)

Season 2 Playoffs Tonight

2K Season 2 Playoff Format:

(3)Kings vs. (2) Magic

(4) Bulls vs. (1) Knicks

We Have to Make a New Tournament

Tourney Name: SGL2

Tourney Pass: nba

·          5 Game Series

·          After Draft Waivers are closed.

·          Trading is still allowed though, although has to be approved.

·          Draft Time 8:45 Tonight (Thursday)

Once everyone has joined the league, we can go in and set our PreDraft Rankings, incase someone can’t make the draft. I’m planning on playing JJ right after the draft. The West can play whenever they feel.

 

NCAA Team Ratings

Ranking	Team	Overall	Offense	Defense
NR	Syracuse	72	73	78
NR	UNC	79	79	80
NR	Notre Dame	81	83	82
NR	Miami	86	83	92
NR	Michigan	84	81	89
#8	West Virginia	84	90	80
#20	BYU	79	88	73

 

Season 2 Playoffs

Playoffs Begin Monday

• No Awards because of the shortened season
• Seeding done by W/L only. Ties -> strength of schedule.
• Finals MVP
  

Unrelated: Apparently we can do an online Draft League in 2k. if anyone wants to do this on the side a lil while we have NCAA football let me know. cuz those games can be played in anyorder.

NCAA Football 2009

Proposed Rules:

4min Qs

All-American

36hrs for Each Game to be played before Simulated by Commissioner.

10min Recruiting if users waiting for Week Advance (otherwise full)

Trophy Ideas:

http://www.trophycentral.com/handsaward.html

we can get any words we want on and a logo for $40.

Could def be used for All of the SGL sports (ncaafb,choops,nba,madden) or we could get a dif trophy for each event haha let me know what you guys think. I think this one is baller. I didn’t check ebay though

Can I get a Witness

First Test Run of the Pic.. I can't decide how It should go? should I make you bigger like my curry one? it's also tough cuz your white lol.

I'm gonna try again with the You and JJ pic.

Bulls Bynum Boggles Brain

The Chicago Bulls led by Kobe Bryant (29pts, 5ast) and Carmelo Anthony (18pts, 3ast), needed a little extra boost through out the game to continue there winning streak and undefeated play vs. the Sacramento Kings. With Carmelo and Kobe leading the way the Bulls, who trailed only once, needed timely 3’s from Skip2mylou and Ray Allen. Bynum and Chandler (4blk) dominated the inside rebounding and defensively. But the Bulls were unable to shutdown All SGLer Deron Williams (34pts, 6-11 3pts). In the final possession with the Score tied 81-81, Bryant Drove hard to the basket and attempted to Dunk over Yao Ming and the Rest of the Kings. Kobe missed the Dunk but Bynum was there for the put back with .6 left. The Kings would not get a shot off on the other end. Game Chicago.

Pelligra is Champion...

In a 3-0 Sweep Pelligra Becomes the First SGL Champion
He won each game by 20+ points over the over matched O'Connell

Finals Preview

-Dr. Jack Style-

Matchups:

		Advantage
Deron	Nash	Nuggets – Deron will produce more with the High screen and roll
Wade	Kobe	Lakers – He is Kobe
Rudy	Marion	Nuggets – Ugliest Shot vs. Perfect Release... Beautiful Peoples Jump Shot Club
KG	Amare	Nuggets – I simply don’t respect Amare as a person
TD	Shaq	Lakers – Shaq has been playing with this team all season

Advantage : Nuggets

Bench:

No question Yao and Ray Ray, beat out Jamison and CP3 and Chandler.

Pat’s players play in the group setting and have reliable scorers on each lineup.

Advantage: Nuggets

Gamer Edge:

Don’t underestimate the advantage of owning a 360 and having played games against non competitors to experiment and learn the intricate of the game, such as the Analog Stick.

Advantage: Lakers

Settings:

At my house, the settings Favor O’Connell’s two rotation setup but with limited fatigue and the presumption that the games will be played at John’s House, it has to favorite the Lakers, who can play Kobe 18 of 20mins in Fayetteville.

Advantage: Lakers

Ridiculousness:

This one clearly favors JJ”2K” Pelligra. The Jumping steal of the inbounds and forcing over and back calls. I wouldn’t be surprised if Steve Nash Wind milled over KG, Yao, and Duncan.

Advantage: Lakers

“Hate the Game not the Player”

The Nuggets are sure to get riled up from Shaq doing leaning turnaround layups and Rudy Gay and Deron missing uncontested 3’s and Yao getting blocked my Marion. JJ is known to just accept it but POC, can be put on full tilt. And JJ will just keep egging POC on.

Advantage: : Lakers

Tempo:

Pat will look to control it, while Pelligra will Run and Gun, and that style is just a fun way to lose.

Advantage: Lakers

Series Prediction:

Lakers 3-1

Kobe Finals MVP

(Yao/Deron in Upset)

USA Basketball Roster

In:

Chris Paul

Jason Kidd

Melo

Dwight Howard

Wade

Redd

Prince

 

Out…

Billips (Pulled out) Scared no PT with all the PGs

Amare (Pulled out) Scared of Hurting knee

Chandler (Cut)

 

 

NCAA 09 Demo

Me and Yann downloaded the demo yesterday and got a game in. So these impressions are completely based on my 1 game experience vs. Yann.

 

First Noticed:

• When Selecting Plays you can now press a button instead of Navigating it to prevent preying eyes from seeing your play call
• I had 2 User Picks on Yann, apparently it’s not an auto penalty to slow down and bump the WR as the DB anymore, there was definitely contact.
• User Celebrations. They are like in March Madness when you get the Impact moment and like dance with mascot or cheerleaders or instruct the band.
• Rattled QB. LSU’s QB was so rattled that pre play when you try to pull your play with LT, all the routes are squiggly and don’t go anywhere and some of the Icons are messed (instead of an “A” over receiver it was a “?”). Pretty good stuff
• After throwing a pick you get to guess the defense you played against and your Answer affects your composure.

 

The game glitches on us like crazy, we couldn’t call a play the whole second half, so when Yann couldn’t call up his play to see it made it real hard. I also returned a Kick Return for TD, so we know it’s not impossible like the one of the old games.

 

 

What a series (Game 5)

With the series now tied at 2, and the Nuggets going home having won the last two, their confidence was riding high. They were well aware of what they needed to do, and now what they could do to win this game. They were also motivated by the post game comments from the Raptors side following game 4. The Raptors were also high on confidence though, and Carmelo looked as if he might score 40 to start off the game, scoring the Raptor's first 8 points quickly. However, the Nuggets and KG and Gay were also starting off the game well, and were able to keep up with Carmelo. Seeing this trend the Nuggets made an adjustment on the fly and were throwing both KG and Duncan out on Carmelo to give Gay a hand, which led to Carmelo being blocked three times in a row, and then missing contested shot after contested shot. This started a run that the Nuggets would take command of the game with, as at the end of the first quarter they were up 21-8 in this deciding game 5. Ray Allen began where he left off, as Yao had his only single digit scoring performance of the series. Allen was running on all cylinders with threes, pull ups, and even an and one dunk over Dwight Howard that got the fans off their feet. Even with this play the Raptors began to get back into it, similar to what had happened in game 2 at Denver. This was halted however when All-SGL guard Deron Williams came back into the game, with the post game comments of his lack of an impact in the series. With this motivation Williams hit three late 3 pointers, all of which were deep, to give the Nuggets a 17 point lead at halftime, a lead that had the Nuggets faithful already celebrating the comeback. The Nuggets, and Williams started the 2nd half where they left off, as he hit an early three to extend the lead at one point to 44-22 in favor of Denver, with Gay and Garnett also leading the way. The Raptors tried to make their runs, as Carmelo once again found his stroke, as well as Allen Iverson continuing his strong play with penetration. Camby and Howard did all that they could down low to try and keep up with the Nuggets big men, but it was too late. With Paul Pierce not doing much, and the Nuggets continuing to hit on all cylinders the game entered the 4th with the Nuggets up by 21. Deron Williams would end the game with 23 points, letting everyone know who the team leader was, and the Nuggets had completed the comeback in the series. The Raptors were able to outscore the Nuggets by 6 in the quarter to make the final score 81-66, but the Nuggets win the series 3-2 and are heading to the finals. A series synopsis will follow at a later time, describing big plays, x-factors, defensive players of the games/series, and players of the games/series.

What a series (Game 4)

The Nuggets had a new confidence going into game 4, having finally gotten in the win column, though the Raptors were still confident in their abilities at home and to close out the series. The Nuggets began the game much like they did game 2, going down low early and often, and jumped out to another early lead. Duncan and KG were just proving that they are a dynamic duo down low, one that could only hope to be contained. Carmelo Anthony continued to struggle early on, as he was ice cold from the field. The Nuggets also hit a dry spot however, with the second team coming in and slowing it down. With the Raptors closing in Ray Allen, the initial number one pick of the Nuggets, began to shine with his play. The sharpshooter not only began making his threes, but also brought Michael Redd down low and dominated him in the lane. To go along with Yao Ming in the pick and roll, Allen and Yao were able to increase the lead on the Raptors. With the starters back in to start the 2nd half the Nuggets continued their strong play and were able to increase their lead again, with Wade and Duncan taking the game over. Throughout the quarter the Raptors faithful began to file out as the Nuggets turned up the heat and increased the lead to over 15, with Duncan starting to shine, ending the game with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Ray Allen and Yao Ming came in to end the 3rd and begin the 4th, starting right where they left off. The Nuggets were on their way to evening up the series, and used this time to get Rudy Gay going, hitting all his shots in the 4th to get him into double digits and really feel confident for the eventual game 5. Carmelo Anthony also found his stroke again, as well as his ability to penetrate and score, though Paul Pierce was unable to get going. Despite their dropping of their two games at home, the Raptors were confident in themselves, especially with the strong play of Dwight Howard, Marcus Camby, and Carmelo scoring over 20 points in the 4th quarter after his slow start. With the series tied at 2-2, and heading back to Denver for a deciding game 5 the Raptors might have been too confident, with both Carmelo and his coach saying that he may score 80 the next game after what they saw in that 4th quarter the next game. This, along with the calling out of Deron Williams not being the scoring factor of an All-SGL player despite his excelling at the game's other aspects, gave the Nuggets all the bulletin board material that they would need.

What a series (Game 3)

Back in Toronto the Raptors were riding high with confidence, knowing they had to take only one of two at home to end the series, also knowing that they were one of the most dominant home teams in the league. The Nuggets came in confident as well however, knowing what they as a team could do, and knowing that confidence would help them fight through the adversity. The game started with the Nuggets continuing to go down low to KG and Duncan, with Deron Williams and Dwayne Wade running the pick and roll to perfection. The Nuggets were able to get an early lead of 7, and were able to maintain it throughout. Carmelo Anthony of the Raptors was finally slowed after his torrent pace of the first two games in Denver, being held to only 6 points in the whole game. Michael Redd was able to keep the Raptors in the game, given both teams struggles from the field, to go along with the strong defense of both teams. The low scoring game was favoring the Nuggets as they got out to the early lead and made sure they maintained their 7 point lead throughout. In the most boring games of the series Yao Ming was able to continue his strong play, as well as Duncan and KG who each had 13 points of their own. With Michael Redd leading the Raptors in scoring with 15 points they were just unable to finish off the Nuggets, with the Nuggets finally getting a win to make it a 2-1 Raptor's series lead.

What a series (Game 2)

Game 2 started with the Nuggets coming out and dominating the paint, jumping out to an early lead. Tim Duncan started off the game as a man possessed, scoring 8 early points on 4 consecutive dunks; which were followed up by Kevin Garnett getting 8 quick points of his own in the paint. With dunk after dunk the Nuggets were able to race out to the 24-10 lead to end the first quarter. The onslaught continued early in the second quarter as Yao Ming began right were he left off with his own dominance. The Raptors however made their own run at the end of the first half, with Carmelo Anthony catching fire, which cut the Nuggets lead down to 42-35 at intermission. The Nuggets maintained their lead throughout the 3rd quarter, as the two teams were going back and forth, until the Raptors made another late quarter push by blocking the dunks of Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, and Yao Ming, while getting their own dunks on them, as well as behind the head layups and reverses over the premier shot blockers, while also getting a hand on every pass that the Nuggets tried to throw, no matter where they were on the court, getting to within 2 points to end the quarter. The score finally became tied early in the 4th when Paul Pierce was able to hit a three from the wing, quieting the Nuggets crowd. The two teams continued to go back and forth, until the Nuggets were able to tie the game up on a Rudy Gay shot from the corner with 19 seconds left. The final possession put the ball into Carmelo Anthony's hands, where he drove into the lane only to be met by both KG and Duncan, forcing him to kick the ball to the wing for Paul Pierce. Resulting in a call that had the Nuggets fans talking about the possibility of another Tim Donaghy running around in the white and black stripes. In what will be known as one of the worst calls of this season, and the past 10 years, Paul Pierce went up for the three and was challenged by Deron Williams brilliantly from the side, to which the official called a three shot foul with .01 seconds on the clock. Pierce would make 2 of the 3 free throws and the Raptors would go back to Toronto with a commanding 2-0 series lead.

The rest

I will post a synopsis of the rest of the series at a later time, most likely either early or late tomorrow. Do not worry about it Griffin, I both want to, and will do it. Just give your own feelings on things I suppose.

What a series

Well this was quite a series indeed, the Nuggets almost blew their chance to raise the trophy, until they pulled themselves together and won a series that most thought they would. The Raptors won two hard fought games to take a commanding 2-0 series lead, leaving the Nuggets one loss away from elimination. Given their desperation the true stars stepped up and took back the series, winning it going away in game 5.

Game 1 consisted of the Raptors slowing it down and making sure that the game was played at their pace. With the Nuggets starting lineup missing a lot of easy layups early and often, the Raptors were able to jump out to an early 26-13 lead, stunning the Nuggets and their faithful. However, the Nuggets went on a run led by Yao Ming, who would prove to be quite a force all series, making the lead only 4 at halftime for the Raptors at 32-28. With the 3rd quarter remaining heated most of the way the Raptors again began to pull away to end the quarter. The Nuggets would again make a run to get back into it behind Yao Ming, who led all scorers with 28 points. With Yao now getting minutes with the starters to end the game the Nuggets were able to finally take a lead in the final minute. With the score tied and 15 seconds to go, Kevin Garnett was able to get a rebound and dunk to give the Nuggets a 2 point lead. However, with Paul Pierce being triple teamed he was able to find Elton Brand under the basket, where he would make a shot with .02 seconds remaining to force OT. In OT Dwight Howard and Tim Duncan went back and forth before the Raptors gained a 4 point lead with under a minute to go, forcing the Nuggets into quick possessions. The Raptors escaped out of Denver with a 7 point OT victory despite Yao's dominating performance, to take a 1-0 series lead.

Fucking Ridic

i just blew the final. Pure Ridicness with Ray Allen and Deron Williams. I am speechless and Melo gets 27,23,6,24,24 and paul pierce doesnt show up the last 3 games.

This is bullshit

Wired for Sound: Toronoto Raptors

Pregame – Toronto’s plan of attack is to slow the pace of the game down and pressure the guards especially All SGL PG Deron Williams, to force up mid range jumpers and give up less 3point baskets then this Nuggets team is used to. They are hit or miss when shooting and that will be the first thing that effects the match up, the 3point shooting of each team. Will 6^th man of the year, Paul Pierce, shoot consistently and will the red hot Carmelo Anthony continue his dominate scoring. The Raptors plan to go to Dwight Howard early and often, and give him shorter more frequent rests with the addition of Elton Brand. Expect Nuggets to come out Firing when there favorite corners as well as looking for Penetration from Gay (indeed). Nuggets will continue with there A team, B team setup with Their number 1 pick waiting on the second team.

Key Players of the Series:

Denver: Deron Williams, Yao, Rudy Gay, Billups

Toronto: Dwight Howard, Melo, Pierce

X-Factors:

Denver: Ray Allen, Rasheed Wallace

Toronto: Michael Redd, Allen Iverson

All SGL, All Defense, 6th Man

All SGL Team:

Deron Williams	Kobe Bryant	Carmelo Anthony	Lebron James	Dwight Howard

All Lockdown Team

Chris Paul	Kobe Bryant	Lebron James	Yao Ming	Dwight Howard

6^th man of the Year:

Paul Pierce