Lamar said the perfect thing when interviewed: he met the mom and liked her. He said, “Now I know where Khloe gets her beauty from…her intellect from.” Gushing up to the mom is always a smart move.

Plus he complimented her family, and let’s face it, if you’re going to date a Kardashian, you’d better get along with the family.

When asked what they like to do together, Khloe said lay in bed, and Lamar toned it down by adding, “… and watch movies.” That Khloe is always starting trouble isn’t she?

Image: Zuma Press

Post from: EveryJoe

Khloe Kardashian Is In Love

Last season’s Rookie of the Year and MVP took some time off to have a baby. Now, she’s back and ready to play.

Parker let the world know via Twitter that: “I’m bbbbaaaaacccccckkkkkkk!! headed to first practice!”

According to ESPN, Parker practiced for the first time since her maternity leave but told the Los Angeles Times she would have a better idea about how she is adjusting after finishing contact drills.

After getting back into the basketball groove, Parker expects to be back on the court in five weeks — which is plenty of time for her to make an impact on the rest of the regular season as well as the playoffs.

Post from: EveryJoe

Guess Who’s Back?

Rookie Courtney Lee will likely get his shot at the Black Mamba in the beginning, provided Lee is in the starting lineup. Otherwise, when Mickael Pietrus is in the game, he will no doubt be regarded as the ‘Kobe Stopper’. How well he can stop Kobe is debatable, but my guess is Pietrus will do a better job than Ruben Patterson ever did.

Wouldn’t surprise me to see Hedo Turkoglu or J.J. Redick get some cracks at Kobe here and there, but it probably won’t end well for them.

Can Andrew Bynum step up his game against Superman?

If Bynum can, it could very well be a short series. An aggressive and interested Bynum could spell foul trouble for Dwight, and we all know while backup center Marcin Gortat can be decent in spurts, the Magic don’t have a prayer in the series unless Dwight is playing darn near 40-42 minutes a game.

LA’s offensive game plan?

Drive the ball to the hoop as much as possible. Instead of settling for jumpshots, post Pau and Andrew. Make Rashard and Dwight work on the defensive end. Get them out of the game and the Laker’s chances drastically improve.

Dwight wants some payback (Image: readmoretalkless.wordpress)

Orlando’s offensive game plan?

Besides shooting the three unconsciously? Force feed Dwight, keep him involved. If he gets doubled, that all the better because Turk, Lewis, Alston, Pietrus, Lee, and maybe Redick will be open to knock down their shots. The Magic must be cognizant of the abilities of Pietrus and Lewis to create on their own. Settling down the offense and running some isolations or post up sets for these two could prove to be a more dynamic and wiser attact than just the perimeter shot.  But this is the Orlando Magic I’m talking about, so the three ball might be just fine.

Oh, I almost forgot: get outta the way of Hedo in the fourth.

Who has the best closer?

Might not be as simple of an answer as you think.

Especially if Turk gets his proper pizza fix before the game.

Wildcards

1. Lamar Odom

2. His sugar highs/ lows

3. Shannon Brown/ SashaVujacic/ Jordan Farmar

4. Jameer Nelson (Is a rusty Jameer Nelson better than a healthy Anthony Johnson?)

5. J.J. Redick, will he play, and if he does, can he find his stroke?

Post from: EveryJoe

Inquiring Minds Want To Know: The Finals

Three Conference finals games, three barnburners.

Though, either Western Conference team could very easily be up 2-0 right now.  Both took turns making major bone headed plays at the end of a game.

Game 1

What was Kenyon Martin thinking fouling Kobe Bryant, basically giving the Lakers two points.  Kenyon, don’t reach!

Anthony Carter, pass fake or something!  No lobs! And apparently Carter also made another mistake shortly thereafter by not playing sufficient enough defense on Kobe (I was going to give him a pass on this, he’s giving up about 5 inches on Kobe).

Game 2

Lakers were careless with the ball and didn’t come up with enough of the loose balls either.  The refs screwed them a tad with that J.R. Smith violation no-call, but it happens.

Magic over Cavs in Game 1

The Magic actually kept their focus down the stretch and made some huge shots.  Shard Lew especially.

And before I forget

This guy finally made some shots and made up for less than spectacular bench performances from the other Nuggets.

Linas supplied the punch off the bench, scoring 16 in Game 2 (Image:Newscom)

Post from: EveryJoe

We Got Ourselves A Couple Of Good Series

Apparently, Kobe missed an “important” practice on Sunday because he wasn’t feeling well.

Kobe Bryant isn't sick. He just needs to play better.

There’s been a lot of speculation as to why Kobe underperformed, so much so that he finally put a stop to the “sick” rumors. He told the LA Times that he is fine and that it wasn’t an issue for him on Monday night.

His explanation for the poor performance? Simple. His shooting was off. It happens, even to the great ones.

Other than that Kobe said, “I’m fine. And he’s looking forward to Game two.

The Lakers and the Rockets play tonight at 10:30 EST.

Photo provided by Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

Kobe’s Not Sick, He Just Didn’t Play Well

I can relax on my couch and blog while watching one of the most exciting match-ups in the NBA.

It’s Kobe Bryant vs. LeBron James and it doesn’t get any better than this.

Care to watch with me?

1st Quarter

3:46 p.m. Started watching a little late. No worries. Kobe just made a great lay-up and has a chance for a three-point play.

3:47 p.m. I wonder why Luke Walton got the start?

3:47 p.m. Fisher hits a three. Is he solid, or what?

3:48 p.m. It’s all tied at 18

3:48 p.m. Horrible shot by Ilgauskas, but it puts him at the line. TV timeout.

3:53 p.m. Mo Williams hits a three!

3:54 p.m. Battle underneath. Kobe has the ball. Fisher hits a jump shot.

3:55 p.m. Lakers 26 Cavs 27

3:59 p.m. Cavs are inbounding the ball. Gibson misses a three.

4:00 p.m. Pau Gasol went to the lane hard and got fouled. He’s at the line. He hits both shots.

4:01 p.m. Wally S. (can’t spell his last name to save my life) hits a three. Cavs are 4-6 from three-point land.

4:02 p.m. Kobe’s at the line. He makes them both. We are all tied at 30.

4:03 p.m. Great move by Sasha Pavlovic, slashing through defenders. That’s the end of the first quarter. Cavs 32 Lakers 30

2nd Quarter

4:08 p.m. Cavs are really trying to get ahead with the three ball. Williams hits another one!

4:09 p.m. Pau gets in for an easy dunk. Too easy.

4:10 p.m. Whoa! A little rebounding scrum and it’s Cavs ball. Ariza was out of bounds when he touched the ball.

4:11 p.m. Varejao is at the line. He hits both shots. Lakers 32 Cavs 37

4:12 p.m. Long three by Williams. Farmar makes his own three-point shot.

4:13 p.m. Offensive foul on Pau give the Lakers their third turnover. TV timeout.

4:16 p.m. Cavs are perfect at home. We’ll see if that record holds up.

4:17 p.m. Odom makes a nice move but can’t hit the shot. Varejao commits a double-dribble.

4:18 p.m. Kobe is on the bench. Word before the game was that he wasn’t feeling too well. Lakers 38 Cavs 39

4:19 p.m. Varejao just shot an airball from five feet away … ugly.

4:20 p.m. Wally hits another three! Ariza hits a two for the Lakers.

4:21 p.m. Farmar misses from inside. Williams hits a jumper on the other end. He’s got 13 points so far.

4:22 p.m. Wally hits from WAY downtown. That was an impressive shot. Cavs lead by five.

4:26 p.m. Gibson takes Farmar off the dribble and has a chance for a three-point play.

4:27 p.m. Varejao makes a nice move inside. Odom turns the ball over. LeBron was headed for an easy dunk but Farmar held him up. Cavs 51 Lakers 45

4:31 p.m. Lebron makes one out of two, gets his own rebound and then hits a three. Are you kidding me?

4:32 p.m. Odom hits down low. Turnover by the Cavs. Under two minutes to go in the second quarter.

4:33 p.m. Luke Walton hits a shot. Ilgauskas hits another one on the other end.

4:34 p.m. Kobe slips inside for two. Under a minute. Williams misses a runner. Kobe misses a jumper. Williams gets Walton in the air and draws the easy foul. Williams makes both shots.

4:36 p.m. Kobe is stripped by Williams (who now has 17 points) and that’s how the first half ends. Wow. Great game.

I won’t be able to blog for the second half. But I hop you all are planning on watching the rest of the one unfold!

Post from: EveryJoe

Live Blogging: Lakers vs. Cavaliers

Woman charged with stalking Lakers forward Walton

Walton said Beshear has been harassing him since late last year. He told the Orange County Register she waited outside his Manhattan Beach home numerous times and wrote on his car with a marker after he refused to sign an autograph.

Why on earth would anyone want to stalk Luke Walton? Michael Jordan in his heyday, sure. Dwaye Wade, definitely. Kobe Bryant, makes much more sense. But Luke Walton?

I never understood his appeal. I still don’t get it. And I’m a firm believer that he only made it into the NBA on the reputation of his last name.

But I have to say that it’s probably better that the woman got arrested. Granted, Walton is no John Lennon but we don’t want another tragedy on our hands.

Photo provided by Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

Luke Walton Has A Stalker?

1. I was playing basketball myself and didn’t get home until after tip off.

2. I wanted to focus ALL of my attention on the game and the game only.

And what a game it was. The Celtics were unstoppable. They totally dominated the Lakers for four whole quarters. They were the better all-around team, they were the deeper team and they were the better defensive team. I said it before, even at their best, the Lakers couldn’t hang with the Celtics. Their best wasn’t good enough. Their best just barely got them wins in games three and five. When the Celtics are at their best … well, they clobber you by almost 40 points.

This game wasn’t even close. The Celtics played with so much heart and determination. The bottom line is that they wanted it more. And it showed.

Paul Pierce was amazing. Kevin Garnett was aggressive and gave us the “I will be better” performance that he had promised. Ray Allen shot the lights out even after being hit in the eye.

And my unsung hero pick of the game is Rajon Rondo. After playing poorly in all three games at LA, he stepped up big last night. He was this little fly buzzing around the entire court and harassing the entire Laker team to no end. And they couldn’t shake him or swat him. He never stopped. He hustled on every play and it showed.

He out rebounded Laker players who were taller than him. He took the ball right out of Odom’s, Gasol’s and even Kobe Bryant’s hands. He was all over the court. He played smart and got the ball to his teammates for open looks. And he shot the ball when he was left open. As a result, Rondo finished with 21 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, six steals and only one turnover. He was absolutely fantastic the entire game. Oddly enough, I was proud of him. I don’t even know him and I was proud of him because he took the criticism in stride, he took being benched by Doc Rivers like a man and turned it into a motivational tool. He, like Garnett, promised to be better. And he, like Garnett, delivered.

Unfortunately for Kobe, nobody else on his team stepped up the way the Celtics role players did. As good as he is, Kobe can’t do it all by himself. Even MJ was surrounded by talented role players. I do have to say that I am disappointed that Kobe didn’t at least try to take the game over though. It seemed as if he gave up and I know for a fact that MJ would never do that. Yet, the comparisons live on. Can we finally let it go? Can we stop with all the Kobe vs. Jordan nonsense.

Kobe will never be MJ. That’s the bottom line. And his performance throughout this series proves it. Enough said.

Congrats to the Celtics! It was so great to see Garnett, Allen, Pierce and Rivers finally get their championship. I’m wearing green today in their honor.

Image provided by Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

Celtics Win!

I know the WNBA is in full swing. I caught the end of a game this afternoon. Once the NBA Finals are over, I’ll jump full force into WNBA action. I’m on a one-track mind at the moment (Celtic pride!!! I won’t lie … I’m rooting for Boston) …

As for the live blogging, I’m going to try to be a little more witty this time around. Thursday night was my first night blogging while watching a game and it was quite a challenge keeping up with the play by play action. I read Bill Simmons diary from the same game and it was HILARIOUS. So I’m going to try to up my game a little bit. Let me know how I do! See you tomorrow for tip-off!

*Just a heads up – I’ll be talking about the U.S. Open, the NBA Finals, the Tim Donaghy situation and Marshawn Lynch on Monday for a Weekend Sports Round Up edition. Check it out!

*Don’t forget to vote on this week’s For Argument’s Sake poll!

Post from: EveryJoe

Live Blogging: Lakers vs. Celtics, Game Five

8:56 p.m. Introductions are underway!

9:07 p.m. Tip off. Let’s get it on.

1st Quarter

9:08 Nice move by Allen. Celtics need to drive the lane more.

9:10 p.m. Kobe needs to hit his free throws tonight. Bos: 2 LA: 5

9:11 p.m. Odom needs to step it up more too, same with Gasol. They’ve been non-existent the past three games. Bos: 2 LA:7

9:13 After seven straight points, the Lakers look confident. Bos: 4 LA: 11

9:16 Odom is on fire! Bos: 6 LA: 16 TIME OUT Celtics!

9:20 I’m impressed with Odom so far. He’s really being aggressive.

9:22 The Celtics don’t look any better than they did last night. Bos: 6 LA: 20 1st Quarter 5:24 left to play

9:23 That looked like a clean block to me…

9:25 Wow! Bos: 7 LA: 24

9:31 That’s how quickly the Celtics can get back in a game. With plays like that. Bos: 12 LA: 26

9:33 Shots are not falling for the Celtics.

9:36 End of the 1st Quarter. It’s not looking too good for the Celtics. Bos: 14 LA: 35

2nd Quarter

9:43 Celtics need to start hitting shots or they have no chance of winning this game. Bos: 15 LA: 37

9:45 Garnett needs to take it inside more instead of shooting jumpers

9:47 Man … even Walton hits a three! Bos: 19 LA: 40

9:51 It’s time for the Celtics to make some kind of run here.

9:54 This is embarrassing. The Celtics aren’t playing any defense.

9:57 Bos: 21 LA: 45
Boston is 28% from the field!

10:00 Pierce better get going and start contributing to this game.

10:02 Now would be a great time for the Celtics to make a run. They need some confidence going into halftime. Bos: 28 LA: 45

10:04 12 – 0 run for the Celtics

10:08 Lakers put a stop to that with Gasol’s dunk. Bos: 33 LA: 50
1:47 left to play

10:10 Nice job of Fisher on splitting the defense.

10:12 Kobe’s complaining about a foul … big surprise. Pierce sinks both free throws.

10:14 Pau Gasol slides through the lane for a three-point play with 9 seconds left to play in the 2nd Quarter.

10:16 Lakers finish the quarter nicely with a running three by Farmar to get the lead back up to 18 points at halftime.
Bos: 40 LA: 58

Halftime
This is almost painful to watch. The Lakers are completely dominating this game. The Celtics are a 3rd Quarter team. Let’s see if they can buck up and play some ball. If they don’t make a serious run in the 3rd, they can kiss this game goodbye.

3rd Quarter

10:38 Pierce comes out and draws the foul.

10:39 Celtics need to play better defense this half.

10:40 Good drive by Garnett! Bos: 48 LA: 60

10:43 These mini-runs aren’t going to do anything for the Celtics. Especially when the Lakers keep coming back and making shots. Bos: 48 LA: 66

10:46 Well … I had mentioned before to a friend that in order for the Lakers to win, their role players had to step it up. And they are doing just that. Time out for Boston. It’s back to a 20 point lead.

10:51 The shots are just not falling for the Celtics. Meanwhile, the Lakers are playing good team basketball.

10:53 What a block by Pierce! Great outlook pass to Allen in transition. Bos: 56 LA: 70

10:54 When you are that wide open, you have to make that shot! (Posey missed a wide-open three!)

10:57 After some sloppy play on both ends, Celtics capitalize on a few Laker turnovers and go on an 11-2 run to cut the lead to 11.

11:03 WOW! What a move by Pierce to make a three-point play!

11:04 Gasol missed a wide open dunk on a great pass by Kobe.

11:05 House hits a three and it’s a six-point game. Bos: 67 LA:73

11:06 The Celtics really are a 3rd Quarter team. This is the best they have played all night!

11:07 The Lakers look out of sync. PJ Brown dunks on Kobe to make it a two-point game. That’s the end of the Quarter. Bos: 71 LA: 73

4th Quarter

11:09 What a comeback by the Celtics. They have a chance to pull out a win regardless of the fact that they played horribly the first half of the game.

11:13 The Lakers look as though they are back on their heels right now.

11:14 Pierce gets called for pushing-off. Watch that elbow!

11:16 Kobe is just 3-14 from the field.

11:17 Pierce and Kobe are going at it. Time out.

11:20 I was going to go to bed if the Lakers had a big lead. I’m not going anywhere now that it’s tied!

11:22 Nice shot by Kobe and the Lakers are back on top.

11:23 Bos: 77 LA: 77

11:24 Odom puts the Lakers back on top by two points.

11:25 Pierce falls down and Kobe takes the ball right to the basket. Time out. Bos: 77 LA: 81

11:29 Posey hits a three and it’s back to one-point game.

11:30 Garnett draws the foul on Gasol after Gasol hits a tough shot in the lane for two. Garnett hits both free throws to cut it to one.

11:31 Celtics take the lead on a jumper from House.

11:34 Allen is having an amazing game!

11:35 Lakers take a time out as the Celtics pull away by five. The momentum of this game has switched incredibly!

11:38 2:10 remaining …

11:39 Bryant hits two free throws. The lead for the Celtics is three.

11:40 Now it’s Pierce at the line for two free throws. He hits one of two.

11:42 Bryant makes a tough shot to cut it back to two. But Posey comes back and hits a three.

11:43 Bos: 92 LA: 89

11:44 Pierce draws the foul on Kobe. Guess what happens next? That’s right, Kobe complains.

11:45 46.8 left to play in the 4th Quarter with Pierce at the free throw line. He makes them both.

11:46 Allen makes a great move to the basket and hits a bucket with 15 seconds left to put the lead back up to five points. Bos: 96 LA: 91

11:48 Celtics are on the verge of one of the greatest comebacks in NBA playoff history.

11:50 Lakers miss a few shots and it looks like the Celtics have wrapped this game up.

That’s the game folks. Ray Allen is my player of the game. He played the entire game and he’s the one who kept the Celtics in it with 19 points and 9 rebounds.

The Celtics take a 3-1 lead. My opinion? Series over. Celtics are going to win it all.

Good night! I’m off to bed.

Post from: EveryJoe

Live Blogging: Lakers vs. Celtics, Game Four