Witness it Again!

No games in July, lots of trades and draft scuttle though, damn the Atlantic Division. Speaking of games do you remember LeBron's fantastic Game 7? He's on the latest covers of Sports Illustrated and Slam. Relive everyone of his made field goals (12) in one very cool GIF. Keep in mind that some of the shots portray him as shooting left handed. This result is due to the 'mirroring' of made baskets from the other side of the court. He's Heating up! Thanks D Rock, this is so choice.

45 minutes, 37 points (12-23 & 8/8 at the line), 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 champion. 

Congratulations on repeating Bron Bron. It's a pleasure watching you play the game the right way.

The Miami Heat go for the three peat next year (not to mention four finals in a row). Only in the NBA!

eightychoices.

Heat Check

Tuesday Heat

Last night the Mystic theatre played humble host to Lotus. In my opinion lotus attacked this Tuesday night with serious heat. On a side note, the Miami Heat lost tonight for the first time since February 1st, that was 27 in a row if you hadn't heard. It will motivate them as a team, just as Lotus was motivated in throwing down for a smaller crowd of around 200 in McNears Mystic. Petaluma got a good one.

It was a lively scene regardless of the intimate number. Lotus had their vibe going and the crowd was pleased to move with it. It was clear that the fierce opener was simply setting the tone for a journey that had just begun. Multiple times I had these feelings of fantastic video game odysseys. It was as if everyone had just acquired some super ability or time device that allowed for us all to advance onward. In the first set we were treated to, intro to a cell which grew into golden ghost. I also liked kodiak, a new one. The second set was bananas. Harp kicked it off and then they uncorked a mikesnack which kept the crowd hyped through arupa. Sunrain was hot too.

Lotus at the Mystic

Here's a glimpse at the sets: 1) hammerstrike, intro to a cell > golden ghost, juggernaut, kodiak, let me in, wax   2) harp, mikesnack, bellwether > moonset > bellwether, arupa > sunrain, uffi, jump off  encore) cloud 9, break build burn

They only showcased three tracks from the new album Build, two of the three were to my liking. Their sets had a solid mix of selections from the albums, Escaping Sargasso Sea, Hammerstrike and Lotus. I do need to say however, that they played a song in the first set, prefaced by a comment from Luke the Knife Miller that, "this is an unreleased track." Maybe it should have remained unheard. They tried to implement a fake digi-voice that sang refrain/chorus type fluff, it was dull. I believe all artists have the right and obligation to explore and experiment, but this seemed to be in direct opposition to their more organic approach. With that said, they rocked the rest of the night. I know that they possess a great art, full of creativity and skill. They cooled down the Petaluma crowd with a two song encore (the last song employed a faux MC rap, it didn't resonate with me). Aside from the two blips it really was a funky work night reprieve. The music spread with energetic momentum. All of us in attendance were fortunate to catch this good time. Lotus is still on tour, give 'em a heat check.

eightychoices.

RING'R

     bron bron gets his ring, messes around to notch a triple double in the finals' clincher & shows us an incredible smile that only the NBA championship can deliver. way to silence the haters, albeit temporarily.
     en route to becoming the finals MVP, not only did he stymie the 3 time scoring champion (love durant too) while guarding positions 1-5 & playing focused team ball at a beast mode level, he shredded the finals to the tune of 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds & 7.4 assists. as far as performances go, this has few rivals. jordan in '97 comes closest with averages of 32, 7 & 6 (and MJ is the greatest). he became just the third player ever to lead his team in points, rebounds & assists during the finals. the other two who have accomplished this feat go by the names of magic & duncan (two of the five or ten greatest ever). quite the showing considering the microscope of unfair scrutiny that james is constantly under. mad props to the best all around player on hardwood.
     shaggy 3 pop, aka mike miller, went off in game 5 connecting on 7 treys. prior to shaggy, there was the other former grizzlies forward, shane battier, putting his fingerprints on games. then there's mario chalmers, who may have become the heat's 4th man (kinda like rondo in '08). of course there's wade, one of the fiercest competitors in hoops, acknowledging the fact that it took "sacrifices" to accomplish their goal. that same sentiment of sacrifice came up a lot in post game interviews (love wade's mint slacks). and who can forget bosh-a-saurus-rex? he definitely showed us his value. way to go heat. i'm especially happy for lebron, he's both the gift & the gifted & such a joy to watch. we have all been witnesses, now we may be in wonderment. he's only 27, so there's most likely more to come. the association is in good hands right now.
                                                                           
     as an avid nba fan i can only hope that the zombies, aka the thunder, will learn from this setback as other aspiring champions have. i trust that they will improve during the off season, as all of them appear to be dedicated gym rats. this explosive & relentless group of personalities seem utterly devoted to the concept of team. they're too good & youth is on their side, potent ingredients when trying to conjure something special in sports. westbrook (aka westbeast & one of my three favorite players to watch), harden (who needs a contract) & durant (a real baller, who gets buckets) have some seriously absurd game. add to the mix ibaka "i block ya", sefolosha & perkins and you begin to realize why this team is not going away any time soon. they'll be back & i'll be rooting for them.
     i get the feeling that this heat/thunder match up has the potential to be celtics/lakers version 2.0! although this battle between two extremely skilled & athletic teams finished in 5, it was a joy to watch. i was genuinely excited for each game day. thanks to oklahoma city & miami for making it a hard fought series showcasing amazing talent. these were the two best teams, apologies san antonio & this was the match up i wanted to see. in case you weren't paying attention, they didn't disappoint. hopefully we get to see these two teams duking it out for the championship again. i wouldn't be surprised.

adios en bee ah, i'll catch you on the flip side.

~eightychoices


ps. the draft is june 28th, 4pm pst - where a teams' future can be made or delayed...