Sit's Dynasty (NBA Live 06)

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Nice dynasty, and great write - ups. Keep it up, Sit!

[John WB]

Wow! You robbed them on that trade.

Utah got the worse end of it.

[The X]

note to Sit - utilise Artest and Boozer better

and Kobe's stats 46pts, 7rebs, 8asts, 8stls, 8TO's and he fouled out ....looked like it was an up-and-down game for him....he tried to carry the team and force the issue, but at the same time, shot good %'s....

do you usually get that many steals in the game or was it once off....if so, adjust steal slider down a tad

[John WB]

He only had 2 the game before.

[The X]

I didn't look....had had a few drinks last night then came home and when I saw that boxscore, I was like

still, he had 42 in the game before....looks like some run 'n' gun basketball to me

[brad feet]

hey sit, how is it goin? thanks for the e-mail you've sent me, looking forward at your friends infos....

wow you lost against the clipps.... too bad..... and three chances to win the game by the young guard but he didn't capitalized, i guess he still doesn't have the clutch thing......

[Fresh8]

Kings rule in Conference Finals Re-match Re-Run

Los Angeles Lakers 99 @ Sacramento Kings 104

Nov 25, Sacramento – The Sacramento Kings had exactly the same roster as the one the defending NBA champions used last year. The Los Angeles Lakers had essentially the opposite. The result was the same even with Kobe Bryant’s name inked on LA’s game play.

“It’s funny to watch teams change after losing or winning in the playoffs. The Lakers were swept in a tight series without Kobe Bryant,” Reggie Miller; a new edition to the ESPN news team commented, “But they (Lakers) still mixed and matched new team mates onto their current roster. I believe they should have waited”

Miller’s analysis could be standing correct as the Lakers dropped their third game on the road to finish their 5 game road trip at 2-3. And what was worse that they lost even though Kobe Bryant put up a rare triple double. Bryant recorded 40 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists but had to take 40 shots to get to the points total and turning the ball on 7 occasions.

“He (Bryant) played very selfishly tonight,” Head Coach Magic Johnson said, “He shouldn’t be taking 40 shots, not at all!” Bryant shouldered the criticism, “I can’t argue with Magic. He’s my coach and I respect him.” Similar words came out of Bryant last season after Michael Jordan criticised his wild play and Bryant then led the Lakers into the playoffs. The team is surely hoping something similar will happen soon.

“It’s sad to watch teams going so far (in the playoffs) and then redoing their whole rosters,” Chris Webber said, “Good luck to Kobe and his new crew.”

Ron Artest struggled to get an open jumpshot up until the last quarter while Carlos Boozer was unsuccessful to gain any ground in the paint during the whole second half against Chris Webber. The two stars recently arrived to play for the Lakers and are having a hard time adjusting to the team with Artest clearly the slower one fitting in. Boozer tallied 21 points with Kwame Brown chipping in 16 and 11.

Peja Stojakovic lead the kings with 29 and 11 while Mike Bibby recorded another 23 points. Last year’s Finals MVP Brad Miller added a disappointing 10 and 6 but was still happy about his performance, “We had Mike and Peja doing all of the scoring, I’m just happy that I could contribute with defence.” Miller had 3 blocks and stopped Kwame Brown by forcing him into consecutive 24 second violations in the fourth quarter.

The Kings jumped to an early 16-4 lead as the game seemed to be rolling too quickly and it literally did as the game was delayed after the scoreboard malfunctioned with 8:54 left. It seemed to work in the visitor’s favour as the Lakers slowly battled their way back into the match and end the first period ahead by 1.

Carlos Boozer was unstoppable in the second quarter and was so good that he caused Chris Webber to receive a technical foul. On one play, Boozer scored his fourth basket in a row and it appeared he had knocked Webber down. As the refs called play on, Webber threw his arms up in protest as the ARCO Arena crowd roared in approval. As the referees waved his complaint away, Webber started stalking towards referee Jim Bean and Coach Adelman stepped in front of his team captain.

“Unacceptable behaviour,” Adelman shook his head after the game. Webber was fined $10, 000 by the team.

The Kings dominated the second half and pulled ahead easily in the third quarter. Kobe Bryant struggled, missing 7 shots in the quarter and getting a lot of shouting from the Lakers bench. During one stage of the game, shooting guard Kareem Rush was heard screaming out, “Pass the goddamn ball Kobe, don’t hog! Come on Coach, let me on!” His wish wasn’t granted as Bryant played the full 48 minutes of the game and nearly redeemed himself in front of his team mates as he led a Lakers comeback.

After intermission Bryant scored 17 points and was amply supported by Ron Artest’s 8 points. However, with the Lakers behind by only 5 points, Peja turned up the heat by knocking down three straight triples in a minute and blew the Lakers away. Lakers three point specialist Kyle Korver was amazed, “He just knocked those three shots and we knew we were gone.”

NOTES

Bryant has scored at least 40 points in three consecutive games… The Lakers’ new run and gun offence failed for the first time this season to reach triple figures… Kobe Bryant scored a three pointer, two steps outside of the line and then backpedalled downcourt and slipped… Kings PG Bobby Jackson has hinted that this is his last season…

BOXSCORE

[John WB]

Another loss. Keep your head up.

[Fresh8]

November Recap

5 Dec, Los Angeles

The Los Angeles Lakers finished the month on a sour note. Another loss as their record moved to 2-3. The bright spot for the team was Kobe Bryant, who scored 40+ points in his third game consecutively but horrible team defence and Ron Artest's slow adjustment to the new system caused the Lakers to lose in their last two matches.

Newly appointed Head Coach Magic Johnson was 50 50 on his team's first month, "We played all our games away and visiting other places is definitely hard because the atmosphere is so tough to win in. But Kobe's taking too much of the load, the guy needs to calm down and take the right shots and pass the ball to his teammates."

Bryant who notched a triple double against NBA Champions Sacramento in a 5 point loss agreed with Johnson and has agreed to try to pick up his act, "I admit I've been playing like a hog lately. I promise I will change my style."

NBA Players of the Month

Shaquille O'neal led his Miami Heat to a 6-4 record and the team now leads their division. O'neal scored 22 points and grabbed 17 reboudns in a 109-79 win over the Dallas Mavericks. In a 105-96 win against the Magic, O'neal struggled on offence with 12 points but made up for his absence on the other end of the court with 19 rebounds and 7 blocks. The Golden State Warriors were thrashed by the Heat 105-68 which saw Shaq produce his best game of the season as he scored 48 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 blocks.

Dirk Nowitzki's Dallas Mavericks aren't too far behind the Heat as the Mavs started 05-06 with a 5-4 record. Nowtizki scored 7 treys in a 109-107 win at Seattle. The German sniper scored his seventh long range basket at the buzzer to steal a win. He was equally impressive in his team's nail-biting 113-112 win over the Atlanta Hawks as he recorded 34 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and made two free throws to win the game for his team. In the team's 94-76 win over the Bulls, Dirk assembled a triple double of 18 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists.

O'neal averaged 27 ppg, 15 rpg and 2 bpg through November. Nowitzki had 20 ppg, 11 rpg, 1 bpg and 1.6 spg for the month.

GotMilk? Rookies of the Month

The League got a taste of their new rising stars. Cothran Tyson of the Chalotte Bobcats averaged 16 ppg, 5 rpg, 3.5 apg and 1.5 spg as the guard endured what Emeka Okafor did last season. 7 losses in a row to begin the new season. The rookie kept his head up including a 19 point performance in a blowout loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. In a 94-85 loss to the Sacramento Kings, it was Tyson's 25 points and 8 rebounds which kept his team in the game until the last 5 minutes of the match and it was his 15 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assits and 6 steals that helped the Bobcats to their first win of the season; 77-74 against the Portland Trailblazers.

Forward Xavier Radwan helped the Golden State Warriors to a 3-4 record by contributing 6 ppg, 8 rpg and 1.8 bpg. The young man was a standout in their opening night clash against the Chalotte Bobcats as he grabbed 17 rebounds in a 1 ponit win. It was his poise after grabbing a missed shot with 3 seconds remaining and holding onto the ball which sealed the win for his team. In another win, Xavier had an impressive box score of 11 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 blocks.

MVP Candidates (As of 4/12/05)

Rank. Position Name Team | PPG | RPG | APG | BPG | SPG |

1. C Shaquille O'neal, MIA | 27.2 | 15.0 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 0.7 |
2. PG Stephon Marbury, NY | 22.0 | 4.2 | 8.1 | 0.7 | 2.1 |
3. SF Vince Carter, TOR | 16.8 | 8.0 | 5.4 | 1.0 | 1.7 |
4. PF Dirk Nowitzki, DAL | 20.8 | 10.6 | 3.1 | 1.2 | 1.5 |
5. SG Kobe Bryant, LAL | 36.5 | 8.0 | 7.5 | 0.3 | 4.8 |

[The X]

Artest can't be happy with the number of shots he's getting

[John WB]

Yeah, even Kwame got more shots than him and Kobe 43 to only 5 for him.

And everyone else in the starting line-up getting more shots than C-Webb? That never happens.

[Fresh8]

Home Crowd Ushers Team to First Home Win

Phoenix Suns 105 @ Los Angeles Lakers 109

Dec 7, Los Angeles – Quentin Richardson put on a show in the third quarter with a barrage of five three pointers en route to scoring 24 points in the period. All was lost for the Suns though as the Lakers levelled their season record to .500 after a huge fourth quarter comeback riding on the backs of Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest.

Kobe Bryant scored 12 points while Artest added 9 in a fourth quarter comeback which silenced Amare Stoudamire and Jack Nicholson’s trash talk session. Stoudamire finished with 23 and 11 as he, throughout the match challenged the famous Hollywood actor in a war of words. After one dunk, Stoudamire pointed at Nicholson whom replied with the words, “They (Lakers) let you score!” And when the Suns took a lead into the last quarter Amare walked up to Nicholson on the sideline and exclaimed, “Who’s going to win now?”

Nicholson got the last laugh as the STAPLES Centre crowd cheered home the Lakers and a 12-0 game deciding run in the final 3 minutes decimated any chance of a Suns win. With 3:16 remaining, the Lakers were down 105-97 as they took a timeout. Bryant returned to the court and fuelled the game winning scoring run by igniting it with a three pointer at the top of the key. He then striped the rock off of Joe Johnson and raced down the court for a spectacular reverse dunk. Ron Artest blocked Shawn Marion’s dunk attempt with 1:24 left and put the ball on the floor before hitting Kwame Brown with a pass. Brown converted a three point play to put LA tied with the opposition at 105.

Steve Nash tried to put his team ahead but missed a wide open three point attempt and Stoudamire missed a put back attempt after grabbing the offensive board. Nicholson screamed out after the miss, “My mom can play better than that!” Bryant then added another jumper to put LA ahead by 2 with 43 seconds left. The Lakers forced Richardson into a rushed shot before icing the win with two free throws from Ron Artest.

“Our first home game was a win!” Carlos Boozer said happily at the post game conference, “The fans create a very exciting and encouraging atmosphere to play too. Reminds me of college days when the fans actually followed the players.” Artest who finished with 24, 9 and 7 had a breakthrough game and was clearly ecstatic about it, “Finally I play a good game. It’s been a long time waiting.”

Lakers Head Coach Magic Johnson was pleased with his team’s performance, “We shared the ball and even though we let Phoenix ahead, we fought back for a great victory. Well done team!”

Richardson who finished with 28 points was disappointed his team was held to 2 points in the final 5 minutes of the match. “We got off to a great start and could have won, how did we fall behind?” Stoudamire was cheerful when asked about Nicholson and him, “The old man (Nicholson) won between us. He is quite a character.”

The key to LA’s win was the success of their starters. Carlos Boozer and Kwame Brown both notched double doubles, Bryant and Artest both did their fair share of scoring while Fredrick Ratchuk made sure he converted open looks and controlled the tempo of the offence.

The Suns dominated the third quarter and the highlight of the night came on a Suns’ fast break. Stoudamire rebounded the ball and threw it behind his head. Nash caught it and passed around Juan Dixon behind his back and the ball sailed into the hands of Shawn Marion who passed it backwards between his legs. As if it had been rehearsed before, Joe Johnson caught it on the fly and went up for a lay up, hit it off the backboard for Quentin Richardson to come in for a put back slam. “It was truly a team effort on that play!” Leandro Barbosa exclaimed.

NOTES

SG Kyle Korver couldn’t join the team as he attended to a family problem… First overall NBA Draft Pick Priest Askins was quiet off the bench scoring 5 points and added 4 rebounds and 2 assists… The Lakers play the Miami Heat in their next game at home tommorrow… Current Record: 3-3 (1-0, 2-3)…

BOXSCORE

[John WB]

Beat a good team in your first home win. Congrats.

[Micchy_boy]

great win against the Suns... The next home game will be a big one so....
GOOD LUCK!!!

[Fresh8]

KOBE'S SUPER SECOND HALF LEADS LAKERS RALLY PAST HEAT

Miami Heat 95 @ Los Angeles Lakers 105


ABOVE: Shaquille O'Neal swats Kobe's shot in the Second Quarter (Left) but Bryant was on fire in the Third Quarter (Right)

Dec 9 Los Angeles – Shaquiile O'neal and Kobe Bryant have both tried to set their differences apart. Last night a a pre-game function, O'neal told reporters, "I don't have anything against him (Bryant) but don't expect to talk to him." Bryant responded to a sideline reporter during shoot-around, "Great to hear that tonight will be another basketball game with no distractions."

Was it just 'another game' last night? The answer is no.

From the first whistle to the final buzzer, the Lakers and the Heat battled it out furiously. The main mtachup between Shaq and Kobe turned into Carlos Boozer against Dwyane Wade for the first half. Boozer had 14 and 11 at halftime while Wade had already scored 21 points. Ron Artest and Juan Dixon both got injured in the second quarter which led to their benchings and a Heat dominated quarter. Kobe Bryant then came out of the locker room to lead a Lakers resurgence and scored 15 third quarter points to lead Los Angeles back into the game. Artest picked scored 9 points at the beggining of the fourth quarter. Bryant and O'neal finished the game with their own little matchup in the decisvie minutes at the end of the game.

O'neal scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. It was him who helped keep Miami in the game as he scored 11 fourth quarter points but O'neal started playing hard too late and Wade disappeared in the second half of the match. The young guard scored 31 points and dished out 5 assists to finish the game while Eddie Jones was the only other Heat player who made a significant contribution by scoring 22 points. CHristian Laettner added 10 rebounds to the Heat boxscore.

"We could have won this game," O'neal said, "How did we let the Lakers beat us?" Coach Van Gundy was angry with his players, "We let Kobe Bryant score 15 ponits in the third quarter. You can't let someone like Kobe do that or your team will go down fast and that's what happened to us tonight."

The Lakers were led by their Fab Four of Kobe Bryant, Carlos Boozer, Ron Artest and Kwame Brown. Bryant led the Lakers with 28, 5, 6 and 2 steals as he helped bring the Lakers back up from a double digit defecit and then sealed the win with a series of spectacular individual scoring plays. Boozer finished with 24, 15, Artest had 21 and 6 assists while Brown's output looked like 14, 18, 5 and 3 steals.

"This was our best game of the season, for sure!" Brown exclaimed afterwards. Head Coach Magic Johnson couldn't wipe the grin off his own face at the post game press conference, "We were magic out there tonight! Lakers basketball is back!"

Kobe Bryant who had four dunks including one coming in from the baseline in the final minute of the game described how he felt to win his second game in a row, "Next game, we're going for three in a row. Tonight, we played great hard defence and stopped Miami from gaining any momentum in the second half. It was great!"

The first quarter saw Boozer score 14 points and grabbed 7 rebounds as he dictated the inside defence Miami put up. "I guess I was just playing really well," Bozzer shruged when asked about how he didn't miss a shot until the third quarter. Brown added 8 points i nthe first period which was started by Kobe Byrant's three point shot.

Bryant though didn't score after that shot and scored his 4th point on a free throw at the beggining of the third quarter. The Lakers lost Juan Dixon to a left finger injury after the point guard was tackled to the ground by Michael Doleac after only playing one minute in the game.

Ron Artest who collided with O'neal in midair had to be helped off the court. He sustained a back injury but later returned after halftime and was one of the main reasons why the Lakers won. Artest continued to hustle on his sore back and sparked his own scoring run in the fourth quarter.

"Ron kept playing hard but you could see he was in pain," Heat guard Keyon Dooling said.

Artest came out of the thrid quarter break to dunk on his first posession. He then scored a three pointer on the fast break that followed and then sliced through Miami's defence to dunk on Christian Laettner. The heat then relied on Shaq who got the Heat ahead 93-92 with 5:38 left i nthe game. This signalled Bryant's return to the court and Kobe delivered the goods as he scored 10 of the Lakers final 13 points, the other 3 coming from a Carlos Boozer three point play.

NOTES

PG Juan Dixon and SF Ron Artest are both out for 1 week each due to a left finger injury and a strained lower back... Lakers' fan Ashton Kutcher was happy about his team's win and went to the Heat locker room to congratulate Shaquille O'neal on the loss. On arrival Shaq saw Ashton and said, "Kyle (Korver), please don't pretend to punk'd me!"... Current Record: 4-3 (2-0, 2-3)

BOXSCORE

[The X]

sweet, those boxscores are lookin' a lot better Artest getting his shots....

[Fresh8]

Thanks! I learnt how to make Kobe play a team game!

[The X]

have you adjusted any of your sliders recently as I noticed steal totals are down a tad for Kobe

[Fresh8]

I havent adjusted anything.. instead of stealing im trying to play defence lol

[Micchy_boy]

nice to see a big win against the talented Heat

[John WB]

Great game.

[Fresh8]

LOS ANGELES LAKERS SIGN SHANE HEAL


Above: Shane Heal's signing is confusing for Lakers followers

Dec 11, Los Angeles - The Los Angeles Lakers signed Australian native Shane Heal to a one year contract valued at the NBA's low level exception. The move is a confusing one as Heal joins three other point guards on the Lakers' roster and is another guard to join the full guard/small forward rotation.

The 6'0", 180 lbs point guard who has played in the past for NBA teams; Minnesota Timberwolves (1996-1997) and San Antonio Spurs (2003) will make his thrid and most likely last trip to the NBA. The 35 year old who retired from international duty for his home nation after the 2004 Athens Olympics is playing his first basketball since that tournament.

"I've been on holidays," Heal said, "And Will Sit of the LA Lakers contacted me one year ago and told me to start working out because he could gurantee me a contract for this team. I can't wait to play!"

The point guard had a 43 game stint as a rookie with the Wolves in the 96-97 season. He had a career high 15 points which saw him shoot 5/9 from three point range against the Seattle Supersonics. The guard then left the NBA and then returned in a failed comeback with the San ANtonio Spurs whom he played 6 games for.

Heal's strengths lie on offence where he can shoot from all over the floor with ease straight out to the NBA's three point line. A fiery competitor and team leader, the little man climbed to fame in the Australian basketball landscape after doing something few players did; stand up for themselves against Charles Barkley. The year was 1992 and at the Barcelona Olympics, the guard butted heads with Charles and even gained the respect of the bigger opponent.

The signing of the 'Aussie' is an issue of debate. The Lakers already have a full backcourt, so why did he get signed? Will Sit explained, "Shane (Heal) is a veteran and he can still shoot out the lights on any given night! I think he is a great addition to the team and he will be given minutes no doubt." Heal's last game was in 2004 in an Olympics game against New Zealand which saw him score 9 three pointers, a tournament high.

The veteran is expected to supply a shooting option at the end of games. Heal isn't known for his clutch shooting on any big stage; obviously Andrew Gaze's presence on his national squad overshadowed Heal but GM Sit is confident in his signed player's abilities to take over games in their late stages.

Many fans in Laker nation are bracing this signing as something which will help them win tight games. Either that or the Lakers are ready for another trade... or the Lakers' GM is only signing fellow countrymen to NBA contracts for the sake of bringing a NBA championship to the shores of the world down under.

Heal was brought in for a work out yesterday to pass a fitness exam. The guard passed his physical by flying colours and revealed he had been doing a lot of fitness training over the preceding eight months. The player then went out to shoot baskets and looked out of form however it isn't of any concern to the Lakers.

"We will sign him straight away and give him time to work into form. We got a few months."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OTHER INTERESTING HAPPENINGS:

- Heal met team captain Kobe Bryant and said, "This guy is a very intimidating guy. He's very convincing when he speaks and you just listen to him." Bryant also talked about Heal, "I have never really talked to this guy, actually haven't heard of him before."

- Heal would go on to finish his work out session by landing 33 consecutive three point shots and told a reporter, "I can finally shoot again." He did look rusty on his technique

- Head coach Magic Johnson was asked how he'd utilise the player and replied, "That's an interesting question. One name comes to mind; Steve Kerr. We will use him as Kerr was used by the Bulls which means in any tight situation we will switch to a half court game and try and free him up."

- GM Sit joked about what other players he'd try to sign to his team, "Maybe I will try and get a Kiwi?" (Kiwi is Australian slang in reference to someone from New Zealand)

[Fresh8]

I will tyr and play my next game against the Chicago Bulls... and btw... Shane Heal is rated around 40 overall... and his jersey number is 23.... Just in case y'all wanted to know...

[The X]

- GM Sit joked about what other players he'd try to sign to his team, "Maybe I will try and get a Kiwi?" (Kiwi is Australian slang in reference to someone from New Zealand)

you want another shooter, Kirk Penney perhaps?!?

Shane Heal is rated around 40 overall... and his jersey number is 23.... Just in case y'all wanted to know...

sweet, a nice realistic rating

[Fresh8]

He's actually rated 37 lol

I'm thinking Sean Marks... i could sign him through the game.. i think hes a FA... or that big guy who plays for them... cant remember his name!