it starts just shortly after the last loss of last season....and it builds momentum, with many ebbs and flows, throughout the season and climaxes in the last loss of this season....and just as we are now doing, you are left to try and figure out how to deal with that gut wrenching feeling of having no hope of an nba title-not to mention the dagger in our hearts with the departure of our hero....
not much less than a year ago...we went thru similar feelings...but then the draft comes...the free agent signings...the trades...and suddenly we are renewed with that hope....that hope we all must have....that hope that a title is possible...and from that moment on thats what drives us....
and everything that happens from then on we rationalize how it will either help or hinder that hope....and with our bias we probably rationalize some things we shouldnt....but we do....thats what that hope does...and without it where would we be???
well...we would be pretty close to where we were on nov. 22...without hope and full of anger, frustration, and looking to kick *** and take names, and probably start with the commissioners office.....
this season started with so many expectations....ECF participant returning with some tweaks...and feeling like they were left out of the title chase because of injuries the previous year....but with roster tweaks and a year of experience under our belts we seemed primed for a title run....and though in the season opener we started with 3 of our starters out due to injury and 5 of our top 8....we won and continued winning only fueling the hope...what would we do when everyone returned from injury????
and as we were drilling the defending champs on their home court on nov 19, i can remember thinking....reggies out...benders out...foster is out...aj is out....and we are killing these guys....Who In The Hell is Gonna Beat Us This Year, once we get healthy????? and at that moment....the hope has never, ever been more powerful or real....i mean really...cmon...
and then...it all changed....and on nov 22 we lost all hope....cause lets be honest....there was no way this team could win a title without ron artest....the dpoy and one of the two best players on the team....and being without the other best player for 25 games and ur 6th man/starter for 30....well...u can forget it....NO HOPE....
and then it started...we win a few games....games that you just shouldnt win....and because we have to have something to hope for...we started to hope again....it was a glimmer, granted....but remember....where theres a glimmer there could be a fire...
then jermaine gets his suspension reduced...and if we can just make it thru till he gets back....then it wont be long til jax get back....and hey, we got a great bench...look at how theyre performing....
and everything that happened this past season-we took as added hope....another win at detroit...beating miami....beating san antonio....with everything that happened our human nature made us say, 'hey, we got a shot at this'...and everytime something would happen like jo getting injured, this resilient team would do something that would inspire that hope....allowing us to drift further and further from reality....but hey...as a fan...who needs reality....
because honestly...reality only really happens once a year....the last loss of the year....
as reggie visited the fountain of youth, our hope only grew....and we love the underdog....we re hoosiers....we know milan....so we kept telling ourselves...we gotta shot...because if we didnt-what would we do....its that hope that keeps us going...hell, even atlanta had hope at the beginning of the year....its what drives us....
and then we finished on quite a tear over the last quarter of the season or so...so we ignored reality checks like the knicks and the magic....and any residue from them were quickly exterminated when we somehow beat the celtics in a 7 game series that really defies all logic-if we are really honest....
so without artest...with a jo that should be on the IL...with a banged up foster...with a banged up croshere...with a banged up tinsley...with a banged up pollard...etc. etc...we went into detroit...with all kinds of hope....
but really....there was no chance in hell...cmon...the pistons were healthy....we were only a shadow of our former self...
but then they did it to us again...they stole game 2....and dammit if they didnt give us that hope...and to make matters worse....they won game 3....now...not only did we have hope...we actually had a bit of confidence....
but....it aint single class basketball where u gotta only win one game....its a 7 game series....4 of them actually to win the title...
and despite losses in game 4 and 5...we still had that hope....and then reggie gave it to us again in game 6....the pacers played a first half that only instilled that flickering hope again....only to have reality set in by the end of the game....
and now..here we are...our hope is extinquished...and we, as humans dont usually deal with that very well....when our hope is taken away...when we are hopeless...we have a tendency to strike out....to try and hurt and place blame on those responsible....when really, it is our nature that is ultimately responsible.....
so lets not strike out....lets not blame jo...lets not blame carlisle...i mean cmon....this team didnt have a chance at winning the title without artest...u know it...i know it....the others did a helluva job....i mean a HELLUVA job in giving us the hope that they could....motivated by our heros retirement....but cmon....review the roster and the injuries....we might win a game or two here...and steal a series in boston....but there was no way this team was gonna win a championship....and bottom line it wasnt gonna beat a healthy detroit team in a 7 game series...
so instead of blaming them for letting that hope die in game 6 -u know,like we wanted to do to the commssioner on nov 22 for killing our hope....lets thank them....for allowing us to have this hope for so long....far longer than we should have....we really should have lost most of our hope on nov. 22....but instead we were one of only 7 teams left last nite....think about that....we had the hope far longer than most.....we really should be thankful...cause we know how it feels right at this very moment to not have that hope.....how would that have felt for most of the season???? i, for one, am glad i didnt have to really deal with it till now....
and u know what???? i think about artest, jo, jax, tinsley, foster, dd, aj, f jones, jj, austin, and i cant help but think we are gonna go to the finals next year.....ahhhhh....
theres that hope again....god it feels good....Dont U Think??
not much less than a year ago...we went thru similar feelings...but then the draft comes...the free agent signings...the trades...and suddenly we are renewed with that hope....that hope we all must have....that hope that a title is possible...and from that moment on thats what drives us....
and everything that happens from then on we rationalize how it will either help or hinder that hope....and with our bias we probably rationalize some things we shouldnt....but we do....thats what that hope does...and without it where would we be???
well...we would be pretty close to where we were on nov. 22...without hope and full of anger, frustration, and looking to kick *** and take names, and probably start with the commissioners office.....
this season started with so many expectations....ECF participant returning with some tweaks...and feeling like they were left out of the title chase because of injuries the previous year....but with roster tweaks and a year of experience under our belts we seemed primed for a title run....and though in the season opener we started with 3 of our starters out due to injury and 5 of our top 8....we won and continued winning only fueling the hope...what would we do when everyone returned from injury????
and as we were drilling the defending champs on their home court on nov 19, i can remember thinking....reggies out...benders out...foster is out...aj is out....and we are killing these guys....Who In The Hell is Gonna Beat Us This Year, once we get healthy????? and at that moment....the hope has never, ever been more powerful or real....i mean really...cmon...
and then...it all changed....and on nov 22 we lost all hope....cause lets be honest....there was no way this team could win a title without ron artest....the dpoy and one of the two best players on the team....and being without the other best player for 25 games and ur 6th man/starter for 30....well...u can forget it....NO HOPE....
and then it started...we win a few games....games that you just shouldnt win....and because we have to have something to hope for...we started to hope again....it was a glimmer, granted....but remember....where theres a glimmer there could be a fire...
then jermaine gets his suspension reduced...and if we can just make it thru till he gets back....then it wont be long til jax get back....and hey, we got a great bench...look at how theyre performing....
and everything that happened this past season-we took as added hope....another win at detroit...beating miami....beating san antonio....with everything that happened our human nature made us say, 'hey, we got a shot at this'...and everytime something would happen like jo getting injured, this resilient team would do something that would inspire that hope....allowing us to drift further and further from reality....but hey...as a fan...who needs reality....
because honestly...reality only really happens once a year....the last loss of the year....
as reggie visited the fountain of youth, our hope only grew....and we love the underdog....we re hoosiers....we know milan....so we kept telling ourselves...we gotta shot...because if we didnt-what would we do....its that hope that keeps us going...hell, even atlanta had hope at the beginning of the year....its what drives us....
and then we finished on quite a tear over the last quarter of the season or so...so we ignored reality checks like the knicks and the magic....and any residue from them were quickly exterminated when we somehow beat the celtics in a 7 game series that really defies all logic-if we are really honest....
so without artest...with a jo that should be on the IL...with a banged up foster...with a banged up croshere...with a banged up tinsley...with a banged up pollard...etc. etc...we went into detroit...with all kinds of hope....
but really....there was no chance in hell...cmon...the pistons were healthy....we were only a shadow of our former self...
but then they did it to us again...they stole game 2....and dammit if they didnt give us that hope...and to make matters worse....they won game 3....now...not only did we have hope...we actually had a bit of confidence....
but....it aint single class basketball where u gotta only win one game....its a 7 game series....4 of them actually to win the title...
and despite losses in game 4 and 5...we still had that hope....and then reggie gave it to us again in game 6....the pacers played a first half that only instilled that flickering hope again....only to have reality set in by the end of the game....
and now..here we are...our hope is extinquished...and we, as humans dont usually deal with that very well....when our hope is taken away...when we are hopeless...we have a tendency to strike out....to try and hurt and place blame on those responsible....when really, it is our nature that is ultimately responsible.....
so lets not strike out....lets not blame jo...lets not blame carlisle...i mean cmon....this team didnt have a chance at winning the title without artest...u know it...i know it....the others did a helluva job....i mean a HELLUVA job in giving us the hope that they could....motivated by our heros retirement....but cmon....review the roster and the injuries....we might win a game or two here...and steal a series in boston....but there was no way this team was gonna win a championship....and bottom line it wasnt gonna beat a healthy detroit team in a 7 game series...
so instead of blaming them for letting that hope die in game 6 -u know,like we wanted to do to the commssioner on nov 22 for killing our hope....lets thank them....for allowing us to have this hope for so long....far longer than we should have....we really should have lost most of our hope on nov. 22....but instead we were one of only 7 teams left last nite....think about that....we had the hope far longer than most.....we really should be thankful...cause we know how it feels right at this very moment to not have that hope.....how would that have felt for most of the season???? i, for one, am glad i didnt have to really deal with it till now....
and u know what???? i think about artest, jo, jax, tinsley, foster, dd, aj, f jones, jj, austin, and i cant help but think we are gonna go to the finals next year.....ahhhhh....
theres that hope again....god it feels good....Dont U Think??
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