- Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z

 As my latest avatar shows, I'm frustrated. This is a last ditch effort to clear my (screen)name with the blog police around here.

A Moment of Clarity is an awakening...a realization if you will. Although I am a Renegade by nature and I want to Takeover the blogs, I got 99 Problems, What More Can I Say?...How about: Excuse Me Miss, I Just Wanna Love You so Beware, all I want are Dead Presidents and a shot at mass appeal. I saw that I sometimes went too far...my first blog addressed this issue, I explained how nba is the worst opened my eyes to my shortcomings. I made the change and all I got for my repentance was a trip to the dunce's corner...My first two blogs and screenames were deleted due to my own button pushing, I can accept that. My blog was removed from board eligibility and has never been reinstated despite my reducing myself to practically begging in an open letter to the powers that be. I have yet to hear a peep in response despite several attempts at contact on my part...I might as well be at the DMV.

Whatever...what can I do? Clone myself?....hey, wait a minute...that's not a bad idea...it worked out well for Prince and Garth Brooks right?...We'll see what happens.

A Moment of Clarity is what the Lakers got force fed loud and clear in game 6 of last years NBA Finals. The final score of the game was 131-92....clear enough for you? If that trouncing wasn't motivation enough for the Lakers, nothing ever will be. When a team is thoroughly dismantled, outclassed and embarrassed in such a public manner...the ONLY road to redemption is to come back and prove that that's not everything this team had to give. Los Angeles has been here before, many times. Boston treated them like a one legged - red headed stepchild throughout the 60's. Elgin Baylor and Jerry West knew NOTHING but heartache in the finals and for all their accomplishments and accolades, a title was the one missing piece. Imagine the pain endured by these two year after year in being repeatedly beaten and tortured by Bill Russell, Bob Cousey and Red Auerbach...they were like John McCain in that Vietnam prison camp. And, like him, they eventually recovered and were able to compete another day. Elgin retired early in the 1972 Lakers Championship season, so he never got to feel the joy of redemption in victory that West did. After so much faliure, winning couldn't have tasted any sweeter for Mr. Clutch unless it could have been the nemisis Celtics on the losing side of that series instead of the New York Knicks. Magic Johnson and the Showtime Lakers won five titles in the 80's...but lost a few along the way too...including losing to Larry and the rival Celtics.

Michael Jordan had the Pistons, then later the Knicks. Magic and Larry had each other, Kobe had Shaq, now the Celtics, but more importantly himself. He has been his own worst enemy in his legacy. Between his arrogance upon his entry to the NBA, his unwillingness to pass or pass up a shot early on, his feud with Shaq, his feud with Phil, his feud with fidelity and his perceived personal selfishness, his biggest demons have been self created UNTIL NOW. Now, the sleeping giant has been awakened and last June, punked Kobe and the purple and gold brigade like Ashton Kutcher. The jolly green Celtics led by insta-legend Kevin Garnett and Paul "wheelchair" Pierce, Kobe finally has that challenge...a legitimate, worthy opponent (other than himself)  An adversary that pulled a Buster Douglas on his overconfident ass. Now I'm not saying they took the Celts lightly last year, but everyone from the Vegas odds makers to your Mama thought the Lakeshow would win last year. After their domination of the Western Conference Playoffs and the Celtics struggles in the East, it was to be merely a formality to even play the games....well, it didn't quite follow the script...the green monster flipped the script in fact by bitchslapping the Lakes like Ike did Tina. In the end, Tina got her due though..What's Love Got to do With It?....

EVERYTHING.

Love is what keeps basketball junkies like Kobe in the gym hours after practice is over. Love is what pushes Jordan Farmar to work on his game over the summer to the point that he looks like a starter now. Love is what a small criticism by the Zenmaster about Tervor Ariza's outside shooting keeps him in the gym an extra three hours a day to expand his range. Love is a career starter like Lamar accepting his bench role for the good of the team and still claiming he wants to be a Laker for life. Love is Andrew Bynum signing a 4 year 58 million dollar extension to stay with the team that believed in him as a teenager, even though he could probably get more money by waiting for the year to play out. Love is an organization believing in an unproven, barely out of his teens center to be the missing piece to a possible dynasty and locking him up despite the risk. Winning, greatness and glory are a combination of risks, dedication, blood sweat and tears and Moments of Clarity.

The Takeover: I believe the future starts now. Andrew Bynum is poised to become THE dominant big man in the NBA as soon as this season. Although this Lakers squad is dripping with talent, the league MVP isn't the key to the success that Los Angeles fans are drooling over these days. Bynum is the answer. Kobe will be Kobe regardless. He became the league MVP by showing the willingness to involve his teammates. Lamar is passive and defers by nature. Pau shows an extremely high basketball I.Q. and seems more than willing to feed Bynum the ball. The beauty of it all is that this team doesn't need Drew to be the man on offense, but I think it would be a stronger team if he does become an offensive beast. The elements that were so glaringly obvious in the finals were dedication to defense and protecting the rim. Bynum can solve the rim issue and the other issue seems to be #1 on Colonel Zanders to do list...defensive intensity. The players are saying all the things I wanted to hear after the smack down last June. Actually carrying it out and delivering on the promise of the defensive gospel being voiced by these guys is paramount to getting back to the mountaintop and reclaim the throne once again. Moments of Clarity and relecting on past mistakes are essential components of keeping the focus needed to accomplish great things.

 The first REAL test for the Lakers comes when they face the re-fueled Houston Rockets. (I thought the opening game would be a test, but the Portland Trailblazers showed their age and unworthiness) Tonight's contest vs. the Enver (no D) Thuggets should be a rollover game before the big matchup in Houston. I don't see the cornrow twinz and wild card JR Smith as true threats. The following game is vs. the Clippers and they are always the Clippers so you tell me. Lots of "ifs" with this Rockets squad. They had a nice 22 game win streak last year and were one of the best defensive teams in the league BEFORE adding lockdown defender Ron Artest. The IFS are in no particular order:

IF Tracy "Crooked letter - crooked letter EYE" Marty McFeldman can stay on the court for a full season and be healthy come playoff time.

IF Yao "The Thing" McMing can do the same...although without the Red Chinese government hovering over him to play in the Olympics, he should be less inclined to sit it out this years playoffs.

IF RonRon "Wingnut" Artest can retain some semblance of reason, logic and decency and keep his focus on basketball instead of perceived slights and "disses" about him or his posse.

IF Rafer "Skip to my Lou" Alston can and spread the ball around enough to keep the big three happy.

IF Carl Landry, Shane Battier, Carl Landry and the rest of the Rockets bench can continue to play like their in the midst of a 22 game win streak all year and into the playoffs.

I still say LAKERS IN JUNE.

Meanwhile my USC Trojans are currently up 42-0, so all is well on that front...

I watched the latest Hulk movie this weekend with Edward Norton...not great, but didn't suck either. Another movie I watched this week was Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull. It was an abomination and should have never been made...aliens? Sorry Indy...you lost me there. The movie that takes the crown this week is....

Movie Recommendation:  FELON

This movie stars Stephen Dorff (who you may remember from the 90's Aerosmith videos and many other things) as a man convicted of murder for doing something I think he should get an award for...protecting his family. An intruder breaks into his house and Dorff tees off on his dome with a Louisville Slugger, killing the criminal. He then gets sent to prison and has to assimilate to a brutal environment and carve out a niche for himself through fighting and gangs. Val Kilmer co-stars as the veteran inmate who takes him under his wing. Though hard to watch at times due to violence, the story is well crafted and realistic enough to draw you in emotionally -especially when it comes to the dynamic between Dorff and his wife. I had never heard of this movie until spotting it at the rental store (after perusing the porn section first of course) and being a big Val Kilmer fan, I took a chance and ended up really liking it.

Hopefully MY Moment of Clarity is enough to get me back on the boards...the ball is in Fox's corner. But I hope my butt kissing last blog was enough to get them to at least place me on parole.

Time will tell.