The Post Up: Parker Ballin

by Holly MacKenzie

It’s somehow Thursday and I am majorly behind on my work for this week. I’m learning very quickly how important it is to have balance in your life and I’m also realizing that I suck at it.

I took parts of my evening off both Tuesday and Wednesday night and now, here I am absolutely screwed in every sense when I think about all of the things I need to have finished and filed before 3 p.m. today. My goodness.

Is this grown up life?

Back to last night, I came home and crashed. Maybe it’s because I’m working through the cold that I had, maybe it’s because I’ve been all over the place, I do not know. I know I’ve missed most of another night of NBA action though, catching the fourth of the Atl/Denver game (sorry Hawks fans, that was a rough ending), the Clippers shocking the Celtics, and that’s about it.

Chris O’Leary was a champ though and decided to pay homage to Russ by writing haiku’s about each match up of the night. I promise things will be back to normal around here soon, but Wednesdays might have to be brief from now on. Too many games! (Not that this is a bad thing, of course), but a girl’s got to find balance. Or at least pretend to.

Check my piece on Mark Madsen over on my Court Surfing blog and be sure to check out Lakers/Suns. Could be a high-scoring one tonight!

Not sure if any of you guys saw it, but NBATV showed a special on Kevin Garnett last night that I wish I could link you all to right now. From high school, to Sam Mitchell and Malik Sealy to the Celtics, it was one of the best player features I’ve seen and it would show anyone that dares to doubt KG’s passion that it has been there all along.

One thing that occurred to me while watching: How amazing it must be for Kevin to have Bill Russell as a father figure in his life right now. You can tell this is something that holds weight for him. I love the pride he has when it comes to the history that Boston has as a franchise.

Is Steph really going to become a Celtic tomorrow?

Not to jump the gun here, but, Where is Iverson going to end up after this season?

Also, Lamar Odom. Is there anyway the Lakers can keep him?

I’ve been becoming more and more obsessed with the salary cap issue these past few days. It’s going to be interesting to see how things shake out this offseason. This could be a result of the Raptors disappointing season. Here in Toronto we are all looking forward to see what’s next.

Okay, so the good from last night:

Devin Harris being wild for the second night in a row. 42 points on 14-23 from the floor as the Nets win against the Bulls 111-97, thanks in large part to the fourth quarter where they outscored Chicago 37-21. Harris had 19 himself in the final twelve minutes. Tyrus Thomas had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Bulls.

O’Leary says:

Devin Harris balls
I’m just saying he’s got game
I don’t mean his junk

Dwight Howard with 24 points, 20 rebounds and 4 blocks and Hedo Turkoglu scored 33 in a 114-109 victory over the Knicks. The Magic got lucky in this one as the Knicks pushed things until the final possession. Nate Robinson led the Knicks with 32 off of the bench while Al Harrington added 27.

O’Leary says:

Nate/Howard part two
Howard wins when it matters
dance like soulja boy

The Hornets got 30 points and 11 rebounds from David West and 20 points to go with 13 assists from Chris Paul to escape with a 90-87 victory over the Pistons who have lost their eighth straight. Richard Hamilton had 24 points for the Pistons off of the bench. More bad news for Detroit as things continue to unravel as Allen Iverson aggravated a back strain and Rasheed Wallace wasejected from the game in the fourth quarter, but more importantly, will be suspended for the Pistons next game because he is now up to the 16 technical-limit for the season.

O’Leary says:

Pistons lose again
Their worst slide in many years
Who’s Walter Hermann?

Every game it feels like Utah’s got a different guy to step up, last night it was Mehmet Okur who scored 25 as the Jazz beat up the TWolves, 120-103. Ronnie Brewer added 20 points and Deron Williams had a 13-point, 13-assist double-double. The Wolves were led by Kevin Love who scored 24 points to go with 15 rebounds. Ryan Gomes scored 24 as well and Mike Miller added 21 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in the loss.

O’Leary says:

Utah has their big
Minny’s without Jefferson
but they have McHale

Another huge night from Tony Parker in the absence of Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili. Parker had 39 points and 9 assists to lead the Spurs to a 99-84 victory over the Blazers. Portland struggled mightily in this game, shooting only 37% from the floor as Channing Frye led them offensively with his 15 points off of the bench.

The Hawks were without Josh Smith and Mike Bibby last night and they lost a heartbreaker to the Nuggets after coming back from 17 down to lose 110-109 after Flip Murray’s shot at the buzzer was too strong. Chauncey Billups scored 33 for the Nuggets as Carmelo Anthony added 23 points and 10 rebounds. Marvin Williams scored 31 for the Hawks in the loss.

O’Leary says:

Nugg-life narrow win
a fourth that’s cheekier than
Eric Snow’s sly grin

The Clippers shocked the world and the Celtics by taking them down 93-91, thanks to a late basket and a free throw from Zach Randolph who finished with 30 points and 12 rebounds on the night. Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo each scored 17 points for the Celtics, while Paul Pierce scored 20, but struggled after dislocating a finger.

O’Leary says (he wrote this one a little too early, but I liked the KG line, so here you go):

C’s play the Clippers
Boston’s fear of KG’S wrath
leads them to the win


Gerald Wallace had 27 points, Boris Diaw scored 23 and the Bobcats took down the Kings, 98-91 at Arco last night. The Kings were led by Kevin Martin who had 27 points and Francisco Garcia who scored 15.

O’Leary says:

Who can beat Sacto?
Even Michael Jordan’s team
A King-free roster

And, a few more from O’Leary:

Gil says he feels good
but what about McGuire?
new dog in town

Cover up your face
when the Clippers come to town
watch out for Z Bo

Bucks versus the Mavs
where was Cuban last week
Dirk needs a fresh start