Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here…
highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as
satisfying as a good morning dump.
job when a — I call it an emotional hijack — happens, your job is keep
your team focused and you can't focus on the one guy. Then after the
game, the next day, you have a conversation and get that right.
Emotionally, it's not personal. When you have an emotional hijack, you
don't get along with anybody at that moment. I understand that.
"We had a great talk. I didn't seek his apologies, but he said, 'Hey, I
should have controlled myself.' I don't know if that's an apology, but I
didn't ask for him an apology because I didn't need it."
Doc's wrong. He deserved an apology from 'Sheed. With that said, Wallace had every right to be pissed off at the officials. Chris Forsberg details the incident:
Davis was whistled for a foul against Zydrunas
Ilgauskas. It wasn't so much the play on the court that appeared to
irk Wallace, but the fact that referees did nothing a short time before
when James barked at them for not calling a foul on a layup.
After James scored under the basket, he barked at an official about a
non-call, going so far as to slap his own arm and note, "That's my
[expletive] arm," right in front of the Boston bench. The referees did
not assess a technical foul for James' outburst.
Like Sheed, I noticed James' reaction and screamed for a technical foul. It looked as if Lebron wanted the tech (LBJ did have one tech in the game which I think came later in the 4th). This is just another example of the absurd double-standard that exists in the NBA.
On Page 2, Bob Ryan and Larry Bird on Dennis Johnson.
“I played with a lot of great
players,’’ Bird said, “but if I had to play with only one of them it
would have been DJ. I just had a connection with him. The backdoor cuts
and many other things. We never needed any conversation on the court. No
need for talking. He just always knew what we needed.’’
DJ’s résumé includes two championships
with the Celtics and one with the Sonics. It includes nine
selections to the All-Defensive team. It includes five All-Star Game
appearances. It includes the MVP award in the 1979 Finals, when, among
other things, he blocked 14 shots in five games from the guard position.
There have been many great defensive guards, but Dennis Johnson was
the only one I’d ever call destructive.
The greatest play I've ever witnessed – Bird's steal vs the Pistons – wouldn't have mattered if DJ didn't make the cut and finish the lay-up. We love ya, DJ.
The rest of the links:
Herald – Sheed, Wallace clear the air | Daniels, Robinson await next shot | Globe – Knicks thumbnails | Rivers, Wallace clear the air | CSNNE – Celtics ready for home stretch | Celtics Blog – So how about Miami? | Celtics Hub – Defending Lebron | WEEI – Sheed showing some love | Doc likes the Cavs hatred |
(Globe Staff Photo / Jim Davis)
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
