If you didn't watch the Bulls/Wizards game, you missed a classic ending.
More later. Time to watch Fallen Idol.
UPDATE: I finished watching the end of the Spurs/Nuggets game, and God knows everything else. It's late, so I got a lot of blogging to do between now and tomorrow afternoon.
First things first; let's talk about that incredible Wizards win over the Bulls tonight. In retrospect, it was sloppy - the Wizards blew a 22 point lead, and a 12 point one in the final two minutes for the Bulls to tie the game with 5.4 seconds left - but an incredible shot by Gilbert Arenas had Washington pulling out the win on the road.
Poor free throw shooting by Antwan Jamison (a Tarheel no less!) almost blew the game. Jamison missed four straight at the line, and the final two could have possibly put the game away with 25 seconds left in the game. Larry Hughes could have done the same later on by making it a two possession game with ll seconds left, but went 1-1 for a three point lead. A cheap foul placed Bulls guard Kurt Hinrich at the line, and he missed both fts, but a scramble for the rebound resulted to a Heinrich pass on the wing to relatively unknown Bulls backup Jannero Pargo, who sank the trey and tied it up.
NBA's timeout rule gave the Wizards the ball at halfcourt with 5.5 seconds left. Arenas got the ball at the top of the circle. It almost seemed as if he wasn't going to be too late, but he drove inside off the elbow and hit the jumper; nothing but net. Arenas was almost Jordan-esque with that shot as he really made it seem easy.
In the late game, the Spurs finished off the Nuggets to take a break before they move on to the second round to face the Sonics.
I've always liked the Spurs ever since they drafted Tim "Groundhog Day" Duncan (the Inside the NBA guys call him that because he plays the same way every day). The reason why is real simple; they are the personification of what a team is supposed to be. You never hear any drama coming from that Spurs locker room. All of those guys are like family to each other. And when they get on the court, they all know their roles and they execute them to a tee.
Rarely do you hear about the Spurs blowing a lead. If you beat them, it was because you played a hell of a game. Kenny Smith was the truth when he talked about the Spurs being like the volume dial on the radio. Most of the time, they'll always be a 7. They can go up to 10 if need be, but they'll never go below a 6, which means every team that faces them must consistently play at a 7 level or up to have a chance to beat them.
You find very few teams in the league consistent enough to play them at that level for a seven game series, particularly in the last three seasons. That's what happened to Denver; they have the talent, but they simply don't have the team chemistry and the consistency that brings. Besides Larry Brown, Greg Popovich is probably the best coach in the league, and he understands how to get maximum results from his players when he needs it. George Karl is a great coach too, but he just came on board in midseason, and needs time to mold this team into true contenders. But Denver only won Game 1 because Duncan was coming off of an injury. Seattle won't have that luxury in the next round.
So with the remaining Round One series, we have some great ones with Indiana/Boston, with the Pacers leading 3-2, Bulls/Wizards, with the Wizards leading 3-2, and Dallas/Houston, with the Mavs leading 3-2. Which ones will go seven games? I see Dallas/Houston going that route, and maybe the Bulls/Wizards as well. Indiana I think will close out the series tonight. Hopefully I will be able to watch the Pacers/Celtics game and Mavs/Rockets game to see if I'm right.