Blue Mamba #15

The word Phenom, as defined by "Your Dictionary", an online dictionary, is one who is extremely talented, skilled or able; specifically in sports,a young exceptionally gifted or promising player; a phenomenon." Look at the last definition carefully: "young and exceptionally gifted". In all the world, there have been many phenoms, those young up and coming athletes who are slowly changing the pace of the game. Guys like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James are very good examples of the word. But locally, to be more specific, in Katipunan wearing the Blue and White, there is a phenom who is currently enrolled in his freshman year taking BS-COMTECH.

You all know who he is the moment I mentioned the word "Phenom".

KIEFER ISAAC RAVENA, the Blue Mamba, the Phenom.

Photo from del Mundo Photography

It's been long overdue, but I'd like to welcome you back to The Atenean on the Hot Seat and since we made you wait so long, we wanted to look for someone in the Ateneo that could properly close the year on DTF.

We sat down with the 6 feet tall freshman this past Thursday, March 15 in the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center, his natural habitat.

The conversation between the DTF gang and Kiefer Ravena has been summarized and paraphrased.

Photo by Erwin Cabbab

Q1: How has your freshman year been so far?

KR: Well, from a basketball standpoint, it went well after winning it all (UAAP Senior's Basketball Championship). My student life went better than expected, it was really good! I was lucky enough to get good teachers, I have a pretty light schedule and I have a really good block. I expected College life to be good, but I didn't expect it to be this good. It was a great surprise!

Q2: How has playing for the Ateneo Senior's team been different than playing in the Junior's team?

KR: Well, college life is harder. With my classes, training and games, it has become more hectic. You really need to manage your time wisely. I had to learn to do that even better.

Q3: Who do you like to pass to the most on the team? And who would you prefer taking the last shot in a game?

KR: Siyempre si Greg! Pagpasa ko lang sa kanya sa loob, pasok na kaagad. Who wouldn't want to pass it to a 7footer? Iba yun. Pero, sa dami ng talent dito, you can't really choose one. Ang daming puwedeng pasahan. Pero sa last seconds, gusto ko ako! Pati nga pag-practice ako naglalast shot e, pero nahihiya rin ako sa teammates ko!

Q4: Do you ever see yourself playing in the PBA?

KR: Actually, totoong dream ko talaga mag-NBA. To be honest, I sometimes see myself there. It's a wildman's dream. Di naman masama mangarap. I always believed kung gusto mo talagang makuha yung isang bagay, basta mag-work ka lang, makukuha mo yon. Pero kung di ako umabot doon, OK na rin yung PBA. Dream ko din maglaro doon.

Q5: Kobe or LeBron?

KR: KOBE SYEMPRE! Tinatanong pa ba yon?

Q6: How did it feel, winning the gold in this past SEA games? How is it compared to playing for Ateneo?

Photo taken from chinoyhoopsfan.blogspot.com

KR: Well I have represented the country many times but ito yung pinakamaganda. Kasi ang daming nanood. Iba talaga to sa playing for Ateneo. Iba pag nirerepresent mo country mo. Especially kasi millions yung nanonood sa iyo, pakita mo na lahat. Philippine pride 'to.

Q7: What's next for Kiefer Ravena next year?

KR: Well to keep winning in basketball. I mean, Sino ba sawa na sa pananalo? Sana maka 5-peat next year. Tingnan natin. Tapos sa academics, just to continue doing well and hopefully even better pa.

The DTF crew thanked and left the college Freshman as he was about to do the easiest thing in the world to him: shoot some hoops. After a stellar rookie year in the UAAP wherein he avereaged 13.7pts, 4.2rebs, 3.1assts and 1.5stls (which led to him winning Rookie of the Year honors), the sky's the limit for the Blue Mamba. The success of Ateneo in the coming years will surely be resting on the young man's shoulders.

NBA: "We're Halfway there"

  With the annual NBA All-Star weekend finishing 2 weekends ago, the NBA is now in the final half of the regular season. And this point, ladies and gentlemen, is when things get exciting! With the Playoffs scheduled to start somewhere in mid to late April, there is roughly a month left with still a whole lot of games. With at least 30 games left for every team in the league, the pressure is starting to build and each team is going at it, neck and neck, for the 16 playoff spots (8 in the East, 8 in the West).

from philippinesgoforgold.blogspot.com

Eastern Conference: The Eastern Conference is divided into three parts: The Top, the Middle and the Bottom. The top part, or the the top two seeds, belong to the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat (as it has been since the last few months of last season). The Bulls and the Heat have been the two most dominant Eastern teams (with Chicago having a slight edge over Miami) and have been head and shoulders above everyone else. The Middle pack has the Indiana Pacers, Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks. Entering this season, the make up of the East has been somewhat established. We all knew it would be these 8 teams making the playoffs, the only thing unsure, is what place will each team be in. These 6 teams are only separated by a few games (with exception to New York who is farther from the 5 other teams or all squished together). The last month of the regular season will truly be frantic for these 6 teams as they scratch and claw their way to individual playoff spots. The Bottom part, has the remaining teams: Charlotte, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Washington, Toronto, New Jersey and Detroit.These 7 teams aren't good. None of them are above .500 and, unless something drastic happens (if New Jersey can somehow land Dwight Howard or Kyrie Irving can will the Cavs to the playoffs), I don't see any of these teams getting close to the top 8.

from wikimedia.org

Western Conference: The West is different, It has one team lording the standings, the Oklahoma City Thunder, who exude a dangerous combination of tenacity and youth, and the next 10 teams: San Antonio,Utah,the Clippers, the Lakers, Denver, Houston, Dallas, Minnesota, Portland and Memphis, are all separated by a few games. This is the most exciting part of the season because these 10 teams are battling for 7 spots. And even a short 2-3 game losing streak could mean the difference between making the Playoffs or going fishing by the end of April. Watch and follow closely each of these teams and witness the playoff like atmospheres when these teams face each other.The next few weeks will surely be a scratch-and-claw affair as each team will pull out all the stops to make it to the final 7 spots. The final 4 teams, Phoenix, Sacramento, New Orleans and Golden State, though not far from the others like the East, lack the manpower and skill to make it over the hump. Look for these teams to just jostle for pride as the season winds down.

from wordpress.com

So the NBA season, though shortened, has become much more exciting. With only a few weeks left before the Playoffs, it will be really interesting and fun to watch which 16 teams will make it.

Are you Down to Lin?

The Chinese Revelation, the Yellow Mamba, the Asian Sensation, or Lin-sanity. Whatever it is you call him, he is Jeremy Lin.

Taken From: http://bit.ly/zqlpae

Taken from: NBA.com

Taken From: http://bit.ly/zTfoog

In over a span of two weeks, Jeremy Lin or more popularly known as Lin-sanity, has become a house-hold name. This unlikely story of an undrafted, twice-cut, and demoted basketball player from the NBA came out blazing. Scoring 136 pts in his first 5 career starts, he ranks second in scoring IN HISTORY, ahead of NBA legends such as Shaquille O’neal and the great Michael Jordan himself. He has had five consecutive games where he had at least 20 points and 7 assists proving that his rise is not a fluke; to top it all off, he hit a game winning three for the New York Knicks against the Toronto Raptors. Lin-sanity has certainly reached not just the city of New York, but arguably, the entire basketball world. Ever since his sudden-rise to fame, Jeremy Lin hasn’t been silencing crowds like most NBA superstars do, he gets the crowd excited – even when he’s on the road. Even when he beats the Toronto Raptors lose on their own home court… he brings the crowd to its feet. Selling out arenas wherever he goes.

But what makes Jeremy Lin so special? Well Jeremy Lin’s rise to stardom is not your typical underdog story. There’s more to Jeremy Lin than just his competitive side. Jeremy Lin graduated from Harvard studying Economics. Having no basketball scholarship, Jeremy Lin had to work hard to make sure he didn’t just graduate, but that he would also develop his basketball skills. Jeremy Lin is also very humble, never taking the credit for himself even when he carries his team on his back – he never fails to lift up his team mates. Jeremy Lin isn’t your typical underdog story in that, he never was an underdog. Jeremy Lin always had the potential to become great, but never had the chance to prove it. Playing for the Golden State Warriors and the Houston Rockets didn’t give him a chance to shine. But that all changes now.

Jeremy Lin is on a steady climb upward. There are more teams to conquer, and expect Lin-sanity to hit those teams; and to hit them hard at that.

If there's one more thing he needs to do, it's to just keep Lin-ing.

PBA back in action!

source: http://tfcnow.abs-cbn.com/imgs-videobox/pba.jpg

After the Talk N Text Tropang Texters defended their all Filipino PBA championship, a few weeks later, the new PBA Commissioner's Cup is just about to begin!

In the newest round, each PBA team will have the benefit of utilizing imports, foreign players, to strengthen their teams. And without a height limit, you know every team was raring to get their hands on some huge imports to defend the paint.

There are 2 games to kick-off the newest PBA season tomorrow starting at 5:15pm and then 7:30 pm

The first game features the new look Barako Bull Energy going up against the Alaska Aces, who are looking to make up for last Conference's lackluster performance. Alaska will be utilizing the services of 6'11" bigman from Stanford University Matt Haryasz while Barako will be using 6'9" athletic swingman and NBA vet, DerMarr Johnson.

The next game will pit the new look BMEG Llmados against the surging Meralco Bolts. After an early playoff exit last conference (BMEG was upset by 8th placed Powerade), both teams are raring to go and start the season with a much needed win. BMEG, after acquiring JC Intal, will also be using  6'10" paint defender Denzel Bowles from James Madison University while the Bolts will be playing either 6'10" NBA veteran Jelani Mccoy or standby import (injury replacement) Jarrid Famous, a 6'11" bigman who played for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA D-League.

This is sure to be an exciting season especially with the addition of the imports and with all the new story lines and player movements! Catch the PBA tomorrow on AKTV (channel 15 on Sky or channel 13 for Televisions without cable) at 5:15pm! It's game time in the PBA!

UAAP round up: ADMU

Contrary to what most people believe, the UAAP doesn't stop just because the UAAP Men's Basketball Season is over. Despite winning 4 championships in a row in Men's Basketball, the world of athletics doesn't end in Ateneo. With the UAAP still on going, here are three ADMU teams that are still fighting for college supremacy:

Ateneo Lady Eagles (Volleyball): As of right now, the Lady Eagles have just secured a Final Four spot by defeating fellow aerial spikers, the Adamson Lady Falcons.They bested their counterparts 25-16, 25-22, and 25-19 in 3 out of 4 sets to have a solitary hold on Second Place behind FEU. THe Lady Eagles were lead by sophomore Alyssa Valdez with 19 points and was one of four Eagles in double figures.It may have been a 3-1 set score card, but it was no easy win for Eagles. The Falcons came in strong every time Ateneo made a run. The Lady Eagles were just more desperate and stymied every offensive attack made by the Falcons.

photo taken from uaapsports.studio23.tv

Ateneo Blue Eagles (Baseball): The Blue Eagles Baseball team completed its first ever first round sweep of the elimination by knocking down Arch rival, and currently third placed team, De La Salle Green Archers 8-4.It was a highly intense and exciting game (which was hyped up even more by the rivalry) as it was tied 4-4 at the end of the 5th inning. However, thanks to some RBIs (runs batted in)in the final few innings, triggered by Dio Remollo, the Eagles solidified the W. It was a good start for ADMU with a 4-1 lead by the end of the third inning but DLSU came back to notch it at 4-4 after the 5th. It was a sweet victory over their arch rivals but an even sweeter one because it gave the Eagles their first ever sweep. IF they can continue this win streak until the end and sweep everything, they will immediately be crowned champs! The Eagles then opened up the second round with a 10-0 destruction of neighboring UP. Led by Matt Laurel and Kirk Long, the Eagles destroyed UP last Sunday.

photo taken from the Go Ateneo website

Ateneo Blue Eagles (Football): The Blue Eagles UAAP football team started their Title hunt on January 14 and opened up with a match against UP. They ended the first round with a score card of 2 wins, 0 draws, and 3 losses by knocking out arch rivals De La Salle Green Archers in the final day of the first round with a score of 1-0.The Blue Eagles are a far cry from their glory days in the early to mid 2000s where they won championship after championship. However, with a new mindset, the Blue Eagles are looking to reclaim their glory and bounce back in the second round.

photo by Alec Yatco, taken from the team's FB page

GO ATENEO! ONE BIG FIGHT!

LeBron VS Kobe

Over the past few weeks, and actually over the past few years, there has been so much debate about who the best player in the game is: LeBron James or Kobe Bryant. And to add fuel to this fire, it was rumored that Michael Jordan picked Kobe as the only person in the league that come close to being compared to him. 

Who's better: The Black Mamba or King James?

Now with this, you'd think the debate would be over. However, this is not entirely fair.As hard and as much as people compare LBJ and KB24 to MJ, the most similar in both position and game style, is Kobe.Kobe is a 6'6"220 plus pound shooting guard with a deadly jumper and back to the basket game. And similarly, Michael is a 6'6" shooting guard with about a few more pounds over Kobe.So when it comes to MJ comparisons, it isn't really a fair comparison because by definition and by style, Kobe = MJ. 


So let's stop with the MJ talk and focus on Kobe VS LeBron.


Here are the credentials for Kobe Bryant:
5 time NBA champion, 2 time Finals MVP, 1 time season MVP, 12 time All Star, 2 time NBA scoring Champ and 3 time All Star MVP (tied for most with MJ). He holds the record of being the highest reserve scorer in Laker history. He has appeared in the All Nba team for 12 consecutive seasons and has been in the All Defensive team 10 times. Kobe is also one of the all time greatest scorers with 28,417 total points as of today and has the second highest point total in a single game in NBA history (81). Right now, KB24 is the league's leading scorer, narrowly edging out LeBron. Kobe has a career average of 25.3 pts, 1.5stls, 0.5blks, 4.7 assists and 5.3 rebounds

LBJ VS KB24

Here are LeBron James' Credentials:
2 time MVP (one of the only 2 in history who went back-to-back but never won an NBA championship), 7 time All Star (and has started every All-Star game he's played in). He is also one of only 2 people to ever record a triple double in an All Star Game (the other is MJ). He is a 2 time All Star MVP, a Rookie of the Year, one of four players to average 20points, 5rebounds, 5 assists as a rookie, a 1 time NBA scoring champ, has recorded 32 triple doubles and was a former #1 draft pick. LeBron has been in the All Nba Team 7 times and All defensive Team 3 times. LeBron has a career average of 27.7pts, 0.8blk, 1.7stls, 7.0 assists and 7.1 rebounds.


Based on wins and championships, obviously the nod would go to Kobe, winning 5. However, 3 of those 5 were won because of Shaquille O'neal and 2 were because they had Pau Gasol instead of Kwame Brown. But, if you go look at the other side of the fence, you'll see that LeBron James, for all of his glory, his "greatness", has never won an NBA championship. They were swept by the Spurs in the '07 Finals and then defeated by the Mavs 4-2 in last season's Finals (and the latter was with fellow superstars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh).


This, you may say, should end the debate but championships, despite being a huge percentage on determining the greatness of a player, is not the only criterion (because this would mean Mark Madsen with 3 titles, is better than Charles Barkley who has 0). The other part that needs to be looked at, is a player's averages. 


If Kobe gets the nod in the Championships department, LBJ wins career averages. True, Kobe is a top 10 scorer and does have pretty good individual accolades, he has played 8 more years than LeBron. And right now, LeBron is well on his way to overtaking Kobe in the scoring list and has already surpassed him in the number of MVPs department. simply put, LeBron is a more complete player because he destroys teams in more than one way. 


LeBron also has a knack, over the past few years, of choking and disappearing in the clutch whilst Kobe has amassed numerous game winners and big-time 4th quarter moments.


In the end of it all, to be honest, you really cannot make a decision between the two. Why? Because these two players are so different. Their games are so different which was also the reason why it was unfair to compare MJ to Magic or to Bird or to Kareem. 


You can make a case for both players being the best in the NBA but ultimately you will come to two conclusions: LeBron James is the better all around player, the better fantasy player and the better team player. While Kobe, on the other hand, is the more accomplished player, so far (he  has about 8 more seasons more than LeBron) and is the better scorer and one-on-one offensive player.

photo from Tumblr

So that we make a decision (at the very least), if we had to pick a player we would have taking the last shot, it'd be Kobe. But for the first three quarters, it'd be LeBron.


*photos are not owned by the group but were found on Google

Do or Die Wednesday

On Wednesday, January 18, will be the biggest day in the current PBA Season yet because there will be two epic showdowns in the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Powerade Tigers VS Rain or Shine Elasto Painters

Can El Granada explode Powerade to the Finals?
Or will Paul Lee and the rest of the Elasto Painters extinguish the Tigers?

At 5:15 pm, the first of two back to back winner take all series will take place as the Powerade Tigers and the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters square off. With Powerade leading the series 3-2, the Elasto Painters dug deep and forced a win-or-go-home game 7 with a 112-98 win. Led by Jeff Chan's 26 points on 5/9 shooting from behind the arc, Rain or Shine equalized the series with a much needed victory. The Elasto Painters bounced back from their 2-point devastating loss back in game 5 with this convincing W. The game started close with Powerade leading the way.But with strong second and fourth quarters, the Painters were able to pull away and got the win. Gary David and Marcio Lassiter led the charge for the Tigers with 30 points each but wasn't enough to fend off the Painters.
One a side note, this was Gary David's 8th 30 plus point game in 9 contests dating back to the quarter finals round.


Talk N Text Tropang Texters VS Petron Blaze Boosters

The second game of the double header is the do or die game between last season's all Filipino Champion, Talk N Text, against last season's with Import Champion, Petron. With the first 6 games being decided by a total of 16 points, look for this game to be one heck of a nail biter! With Petron, going up 3-1 in the series, the Tropang Texters harnessed all of the energy and won the next two games to tie up the series! Being the hero of game 6 with his 3point shot in the left corner giving TNT the lead and the win, Jimmy Alapag, the reigning MVP, proved to everyone why he is the leader of this team. Pouring in a game high 29 points, grabbing 7 rebounds and adding 10 dimes as well, Jimmy "Mighty Mouse" Alapag carried the Texters and forced a Game 7. Even with 6 Blaze Boosters scoring in double figures, they could not overcome the "Mighty Mouse" as Petron lost 111-108.

Who will be back in the Finals?
Alex and the Boosters or Jayson and the Tropang Texters?

With these two games set on Wednesday, it will surely be one exciting evening! So tune into Skycable channel 15 or Free tv channel 13 this Wednesday to catch the "Clash of the Titans".

Miami Heat: Not Unstoppable

Last year, the Miami Heat, the most scrutinized and the most hated team in the league, fell short of winning the NBA championship, to the delight of the entire basketball world. The Heat was ahead in 4 of the 6 games entering the 4th quarter and the collapsed and choked away the lead 12 minutes later to lose 4 games to 2 to the Dallas mavericks. The Heat said that was just a fluke, a learning curve or stepping stone they must take to become the best possible team they can be. They said they would put their 4th quarter collapses in their past.


That was in June. Now, almost 8 months later, the Heat are still having their 4th quarter collapses. Despite being one of the most athletic, quickest, and accurate 3point shooting team, the Heat are on a downward spiral. Their nightmares of the NBA Finals last year are resurfacing as they have encountered 3 straight 4th quarter (and over-time) meltdowns.

A picture of the Miami Heat's Not-So-Big Three
Taken from NBA.com

The Heat's biggest point of concern  is their Zone offense. Everyone knows they have 2 of the best 1-on-1 players in the league, which is why teams play them in a zone. Teams force the Heat to move the ball, to drive and kick, to rely on a team game rather than on 3 people. This is where the Miami Heat struggles.


As unselfish and team-oriented LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade are, they still always revert back to their one-on-one ways against the zone, the same mentality that cost them the Championship.


The team, not only struggled on the offensive end in the 4th quarters of the past three games, but also on the defensive end despite being one of the best defensive teams in the league. Their failure to score on one end and to defend on the other has cost the heat their top spot in the NBA.


The Miami Heat, now currently the 6th seeded team in the Eastern Conference, looks to silence all the loud, once more, doubters and haters with a win in their next game on Wednesday against the San Antonio Spurs.

Happy New Year, Basketball!

by Mikey Favis

It’s already 2012, so why don’t we ring in the New Year with some more basketball!

Christmas vacation (for those who are still in school or took leaves off of work) is winding down and it’s back to reality.  As you have probably already heard of, the NBA is back and there is once more a balance in the basketball world. However, with all the buzz the NBA has gotten over the past few weeks, we have forgotten our very own local basketball league, the Philippine Basketball Association or the PBA.

With the Christmas Season and the holidays rolling in, being a very family-oriented culture, the PBA “shut down” or went on a much needed leave of absence so that all the players, coaches, officials and members of the PBA could spend the holiday season with their loved ones. Before the PBA paused to take their Christmas Break, we were left with Final Four after the Quarter Finals round had finished. The Final Four or the Semi-Finals begins on January 4, 2012 with the Powerade Tigers Opening up against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.

JAN 4: Rain or Shine VS Powerade

This will surely be a very interesting and exciting series because it pits together two very high-octane and fast paced offensive teams. Both Powerade and Rain or Shine rely heavily on 3point shooting and fast-breaking. With Rain or Shine, the so called “Cinderalla Team” of the PBA (they were the first 8^th seed team to defeat the number 1 seeded team in the playoffs). Led by their scoring machine, Gary “El Granada” David, number one overall draft pick Javee Casio and former Smart-Gilas swingman Marcio Lassiter, the Tigers look to carry their momentum of eliminating number one seeded B-Meg into their match-up with the Elasto Painters.

On the other side of the fence, Rain or Shine was one of the top-scoring teams in the league this past season and is arguably the most physical defensive team. With their array of shooters and their sticky like glue defense, the Elasto Painters, spearheaded by dynamic and possible Rookie of the Year winner Paul “Angas ng Tondo” Lee and veteran Gabe “The President” Norwood, Rain or Shine looks to make quick work of the Tigers.

JAN 5: Talk N Text VS Petron

The second game, which will be on the 5^th of January, is the more anticipated and dramatic game between the Petron Blaze Boosters and the Talk N Text Tropang Texters. Already known as the “Championship before the Championship” all the hype in the PBA will revolve around these two teams. Featuring a rematch of last year’s finals and two of the more popular franchises, look for this to be a very exciting and down to the wire match.

With the long break, the Tropang Texters look to come back stronger than ever as most of their lineup is finally healthy. Being called the “Walking Wounded” for the whole season, TNT enters the semis with a full lineup. At their fullest, the Texters are the deepest team in the league wherein everyone of their players in the first and second unit can come out and score in the twenties. Led by Jimmy “Mighty Mouse” Alapag and Kelly “The Machine Gun” Williams, you can expect Talk N Text to come out guns a blazing and prove to everybody their loss last year in the finals was a fluke.

 On the other hand, Petron, the reigning PBA champs look to repeat and seem like the best suited team to combat TNT’s offensive firepower. Petron will rely once more on Alex “The Crunchman” Cabagnot and Arwind “Spiderman” Santos to carry the banner for the boosters. Alongside their one-two punch, Petron has an array of role players in Danny Ildefonso, Joseph Yeo, Rob Reyes and Smart-Gilas defensive Specialist Chris Lutz. This series will surely have a championship atmosphere and will certainly go the distance.

The NBA may be back, but it’s Playoff time in the PBA so expect a whole lot of drama, excitement and last-second plays in the semi-finals. This will surely be an interesting semis for the PBA with all the storylines and subplots within each series. Let’s all be thankful that we’re only fans because no matter what happens, we are the ultimate winner since there are a number of fantastic games lined up for our viewing pleasure. It truly is a Happy new Year for basketball!

                

Holiday Hoops

by Mikey Favis

6 months have passed since we last saw the Dallas Mavericks, lead by superstar and future hall of famer Dirk Nowitzki, with his team of aging, hungry veterans, beat the Miami in Game 6 of the 2011 NBA Finals. That was mid- June, the first week of classes had just begun and now it is almost Christmas and yet the NBA 2011-2012 regular season has yet to begin. Thanks to the lockout that commenced a few days right after the NBA draft and a few days before the opening of free-agency, the whole basketball world has been in a standstill.

Since July 1, up until the start of December, there was no NBA. There were no off-season acquisitions or transactions, nor were there any teams practicing or getting ready for the upcoming season. There was just stillness and that echoing silence that nothing NBA related was going on. Our only glimpses of NBA were the tweets and status messages about certain NBA players getting together and playing for charity and those reruns of old classic NBA games on BTV and ESPN. For a basketball-hungry country such as ours, this deprivation of the NBA was almost nightmarish. True, we had the UAAP and the NCAA and the FIBA-Asian games and the PBA but come October, and not being able to start up a fantasy league, all these other leagues could not mask that it is NBA time and yet there was no NBA. What made it worse was that the UAAP, NCAA and FIBA-Asia games finished early and there was a gap before the PBA started. To add insult to injury, there were so many close calls to reinstating the NBA when the players and officials would constantly meet and fail.

However, as if God just wanted to make it dramatic, we catch wind that the NBA is back on track and, fittingly, it will tip-off on the 25^th of December, Christmas Day. After all our waiting (I can’t say patiently because we all through fits here and there about the lockout), Santa Claus decided to give everyone the gift of NBA on Christmas. As some sort of appetizers to the much awaited NBA tip-off, capped off by the rematch of last year’s NBA finals, the NBA technically started on December 9 with the opening of free agency, and actual games begun on the 16^th with the opening of the pre-Season. Now that our appetites are all wet, we have waited long enough, let the games begin! The NBA will start on the 26^th of December (25^th in the United States) with 5 games scheduled to bring in the holidays.

            Here’s a quick summary and guide of the 5 games that open up the NBA:

Game1: “Big Apple Showdown”

            With the Celtics sweeping Carmelo Anthony and Amare almost 8 months ago, you know the Knicks, and the entire city of New York, is ready for some payback. With a new look and a new defensive mindset, the Knicks are looking to beat the aging Celtics in their rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference First round. The C’s however will try to start off, what everyone seems to be their final year to contend for the title, with a W. Can the Boston’s Big 4 match New York’s Dynamic Duo (and Spike Lee)?

Game2: Finals rematch.

            It’s the rematch of last year’s finals, with Miami squaring up against Dallas in Texas. This is sure to be a nail-biter of a game with Miami ready to comeback and prove to everyone their lost last year was a fluke by spoiling the Mavs’ Christmas and championship ring celebration. With a better cast of role players surrounding them, all eyes will be on King James, Dwade, and CB1 to see if they can finally win a championship together. On the other hand, the Mavs, toting a new lineup, are ready to defend their title with a home opener against “The 3 Kings of South Beach”.  Can Dallas and their new pieces start out 1-0 or will the trio of superstars in South Beach come in and steal Christmas?

Game3: Blockbuster Match-up!

            Last Year, the Lakers were swept by the Mavs in the Western Conference Semis and have just lost last year’s 6^th Man of the Year, Lamar Odom. Now, with some new faces mixing in with Pau and Kobe (don’t forget about Metta World Peace), the Lakers are out to show that last year was a once in a life time thing. However, they open up their season with an even more focused MVP in Derrick Rose and his Chicago Bulls, who owned the NBA’s best record last year. The Bulls are looking to regain top spot after an East Conference Finals exit in 5 games to the hands of the Heat. Can the MVP will his team against the Black Mamba?

Game4: Superman against Durantula.

            The Magic start the season with Dwight Howard as the man in the middle, but will he end the season in Florida? Despite all the trade buzz, the Orlando Magic, with a pretty much intact lineup, open up the season on the road when they face the OKC Thunder, who surprised everyone last year by making it to the Western Conference Finals. Led, by 2-time scoring champ, Kevin Durant, and wildly athletic star guard, Russel Westbrook, the Thunder open the season with high hopes and expectations. Will Russ West and Durantula be able power the Thunder against Superman?

Game5: Blake in the Bay Area.

            Christmas can’t be complete without the last year’s Rookie of the Year and Sprite Slam Dunk Champion, Blake Griffin. Blake and his new look Clippers are looking to surprise the NBA by proving to everyone they are a force to be reckoned with. With Chris Paul joining the fray, you can expect a whole lot of highlights in Clip City throughout the season but can they start off by winning the first of sixty six? They visit division rival, Golden State, led by the fantastic backcourt combo of Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry. With their high octane, 100mph offense, new head coach Mark Jackson is looking to lead his team against what could be, the new powerhouse in Los Angeles. Can the Blake and CP3 combo knock out the Warriors, or will the partnership of Monta and Stephen be too much to handle?

Now that all the games set, all we have to do is countdown to December 26 and finally watch the NBA season. With all the trades, rumors and rivalries, this will surely be one the most exciting seasons the NBA will ever have too bad it will only last for 66 games.

Also, if your basketball fix still is not satisfied, enjoy our own local league, the PBA. Catch Talk N Text, Powerade, as they clash as the Final Four of the PBA.