There has been some unease — if not outright panic — in these parts over the bumpy road the Memphis Grizzlies have recently traveled on their way to the NBA playoffs. Once comfortably atop the Southwest Division, the Griz have limped (in some cases literally) to a 10-9 record since March 7th, not the kind of mark that inspires fear in playoff opponents. But is it really time to shelve the Growl Towels?
While a lengthy winning streak entering the post-season might make a fan base feel better, such a streak is not necessarily a key ingredient in winning a championship. Among the last 10 teams to raise the Larry O’Brien Trophy, five finished their season (defined here as the last 20 games) no better than 12-8. Remember this: The first two rounds of the NBA playoffs are less about who’s hot as they are about matchups. The 2006-07 Dallas Mavericks won 67 games (a total unmatched since). They faced a Golden State team that snuck into the playoffs with a record of 42-40. But confronted with a small-ball lineup masterfully coordinated by coach Don Nelson, Dirk Nowitzki (MVP that season) and friends were bounced in six games. (Those Mavs won 15 of their last 20 games.) Ask the 1993-94 Sonics (63-19) how hot they felt after finishing the regular season 17-3 and losing in the first round to the 42-40 Denver Nuggets. Matchups matter.
There’s a ridiculous number of scenarios for the Western Conference playoffs. (Four teams have 26 losses as I write this column.) The Griz could face any of five different teams. They could have home-court advantage through the first two rounds . . . or they could open the playoffs on the road. No one wants to face the San Antonio Spurs (owners of an 11-game winning streak). Beyond that, the Grizzlies — and their fans — should worry less about how “hot” they feel and more about getting Mike Conley, Tony Allen, and Marc Gasol as close to complete health as possible when that first postseason contest — wherever it’s held — tips off.
• My family took a trip to St. Louis last Saturday, not to see the Cardinals (home opener today), but to check out the Blues. My daughters’ first live NHL game featured the Central Division champions and the Minnesota Wild in front of more than 19,000 fans packed inside the Scottrade Center, a few short blocks west of Busch Stadium. And it was the loudest we’ve heard an arena in some time.
No sport gains more between the television and stadium experiences than hockey. To begin with, an NHL rink is more than three times the size of a basketball court. On TV, a viewer never sees more than a third of the playing surface. And television cameras rarely show the in-action substitutions (they’re called line changes) that give hockey the steadiest flow of any team sport this side of soccer. Furthermore, there is nothing like seeing the home team score a goal in hockey (it’s far more frequent than soccer, by the way). There’s a suddenness to the moment that other sports can’t approximate, with the possible exception of a home run in baseball. There’s simply too much scoring in basketball, and most touchdowns in football happen after lengthy drives. A goal in hockey is a glorious lightning strike, and yields a crowd-standing eruption that makes your backbone vibrate. We experienced four of these eruptions Saturday afternoon, as the Blues finished their regular season with a 4-2 win. (They’ll now face Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs.)
If you’ve never experienced live hockey, make time to see the RiverKings in Southaven. But let that be an appetizer. (The Landers Center doesn’t hold 19,000 fans.) Nashville and St. Louis have two of the best teams in the Western Conference, each chasing the coolest trophy in sports (the Stanley Cup). Consider it merely a novelty sport for Canadians and you’re cheating yourself out of one of the greatest legal highs we have left. Hockey is all heart.
