Everywhere you look, there are lists.
Power rankings, odds, scores, stats, numbers, etc.
From the best to the worst, from the highest to the lowest, from the most to the least, from the tallest to the shortest, we are obsessed with lists.
The problem I have always had was determining how long a list should be. I've always been tempted to create a list of something, but the process always ended when I could not correctly determine how long said list should be.
Should it be ten items long? Twenty? A hundred?
Top 10 lists seem to abound everywhere, from the Top-10 list on the "Late Show with David Letterman," to the poignant, emotionally-driven "10 Things I Hate About You" list from the eponymous film.
However, for my personal list (of whatever it may be), the number 10 never seemed to be enough.
There are larger lists also, for example, the Top 100 American Films by the American Film Institute. Unfortunately, I have been out of college a couple of years now, so counting that high without the assistance of nine other sets of hands has always proved a daunting task.
So that leaves all of the numbers in between, from 11 to 99. The golden question, of course, is what number is perfect for a list?
Fifty-seven? Thirty-five?
Should I go with a prime number? An even number? A number that holds a special meaning in my life, like a birthday or my favorite lottery number?
Maybe it should be the number of times I flunked Art History 102 because of poor attendance? (2)
Maybe it should be the number of times I attended Art History 102 in three semesters of taking it? (17)
Maybe it should be the number of times I had to ask out my current girlfriend before she said yes? (15)
Maybe it should be the number of times she has since regretted saying yes? (134,759)
My quandary was solved with the help of television (the source of many of the answers to my life's questions.)
After stumbling upon TNT the other night, I was not only surprised to find that there was finally a television station that showed episodes of Law & Order every once in awhile, but also that they were going to be showing 40 NBA playoff games in 40 nights.
At that point I knew exactly how long my list should be.
40.
It was perfect.
After determining just how many items my list would contain, I then embarked on finding a topic to cover. Considering that the number forty came to me while watching the NBA playoffs, I figured that it was some sort of omen or sign that the list should be about that topic (sort of.)
So, without further ado...
The 40 Things I Have Seen, Thought About, Heard Through the Grapevine, Considered, Predicted, Been Insulted By, Been Nauseated By, Scoffed At, and Missed About the 2006 NBA Playoffs So Far (In No Particular Order)
1. It has been magical watching LeBron James.
As a native Clevelander, it it surreal to find that a superstar of LeBron's caliber is playing for your team. After watching everybody else win championships, superstars rise in other cities, and Cleveland teams consistently walk toward the locker rooms with their heads down, we feel like it is simply about time for the tables to be turned.
This must be how the kids in Peter Pan felt the moment when they realized they could fly.
Things are going to end badly for the Cavs this year, but every step is about learning and maturing for LeBron, and you can guarantee that this year will be internalized and turned into motivation to get his team even further next year.
2. Charles Barkley should be put on the court and forced to try and guard Shaq.
It quite possibly may be the only way to shut him up and stop him from making anymore ridiculous comments.
Yes, the comments are funny to read every once in awhile.
No, viewers should not be forced to listen to him during broadcasts.
It is up to Shaq and his inhuman strength to shut Barkley up for good.
That, or a golf club to his bald head.
3. The playoffs are not the time to grow a beard.
It does not bring magical powers. I does not make you look cool if curly hairs are coming out of your neck. Yes, it makes you look like a crazy person that has been holed up in Wyoming for five years.
Beards are for winter, first of all. Second, they give the impression that you want to snuggle up on a couch in front of a fireplace.
Not exactly the impression you want to give while trying to score in the paint against the Pistons.
(I'm talking to you, Zydrunas Ilgauskas.)
4. A perfect place to tell you that 40 ounces at a time was the only way I could watch the first Cavs/Pistons game.
At that point, alcohol is your friend. (Sure looked like some of the Cavs players had sipped a few too many before the game, too.)
5. I dislike the new Pistons more than I disliked the old Pistons.
Bill Laimbeer, Dennis Rodman, Vinnie Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars. Tough defense, high energy, full intensity, and total intimidation.
Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince, Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton. Tough defense, high energy, full intensity, and total intimidation.
Yes, there are many comparisons that can be made between the two teams. However, I seem to dislike this year's team a little bit more because of their attitude which can be summed up with the phrase, "We're better than you."
I hate them more — even if it's is true.
6. Mark Cuban is entertaining.
He has officially joined the ranks of George Steinbrenner and Al Davis in the pantheon of owners that are always fun to pay attention to.
This week, he was fined almost $200,000 for his actions during Game 1 of the Mavericks/Spurs series.
I don't mind the fine, as I'm sure he doesn't, also. It has always been about principle and honesty for Cuban instead of money and punishment.
Regardless of whether his beliefs were right about the officiating during the postseason or not, you have to respect the man for not cowering behind his status.
Because a fine of any amount is still minimal to Cuban, I would love to see him rush out in the middle of the court during the game, steal the ball and run off the court (kind of a basketball version of Lloyd McClendon stealing first base and taking it to the clubhouse).
I wonder if the NBA would push the $1,000,000 mark for that one?
7. Librarians seem unimpressed with my need to finish this article.
They also seem completely disinterested in the NBA playoffs.
One has just walked over to me and told me I must get up because someone else needs to use the computer and I have been on past my thirty-minute allotted time.
After trying to explain that I was making a very important list of 40 NBA-related items, and that I now know that 40 is the best number for making lists, the librarian still seems to want me to leave.
In fact, he is staring at me right now. Apparently, there are hoards of people waiting to log in at the library to check their MySpace accounts.
8. The seeding system in the playoffs is completely absurd.
In the East, the Cavs are the fourth seed, and in the West, the Mavericks hold that spot. The difference between the two teams is just amazing.
That, of course, is because the Mavs should be the second seed if not for David Stern's bizarre system.
The Spurs, instead of facing a true fourth seed, now have to play the second best team in the West in the second round. That is not to say that the Spurs/Mavs series won't be entertaining, in fact, the exact opposite is true. It's just that in a playoff system meant to give the top seeds an advantage because of their regular season records, the seeding of the division winners in the top three spots seems patently unfair and unbalanced when you take this year's Western Conference into account.
9. I was impressed with the L.A Clippers months ago after seeing them play the Cavs during the regular season.
The mix of talent, experience, youth, and energy on the team is impressive.
After thinking before the season that they hardly stood a chance to break .500, I was convinced that they would make some noise if they got into the playoffs.
I was not surprised when they beat the Nuggets, and I would not have been surprised if they beat a Nuggets team that included a focused and unselfish Kenyon Martin.
In the present, they are a squad that is going to test the Suns every once in awhile, but still lose the series.
In the future, they should present a strong competition to the likes of the Spurs and Mavs.
10. The number of people I expect to read past this point.
11. Next year will be the year of Gilbert Arenas.
2007 will be the year that Gilbert Arenas leaves the likes of Michael Redd and joins the ranks of Dwyane Wade.
His first-round performance against the Cavs was simply amazing. The scary thing is that his 500-foot shot to temporarily even the score in Game 6 might be nothing compared to what he does next year.
He matched LeBron step-for-step, shot-for-shot, superstar moment-for-superstar moment.
The Wizards have nothing to be ashamed about this season because they hung with one of the top teams in the East and showed the promise of the years to come.
12. How does New Jersey seem to hang around when, by all accounts, their age should be getting to them?
Led by Jason Kidd and Vince Carter, the Nets remain a minor powerhouse in the East. This could simply be because of the comparative lack of talent in this conference, or it could be because they have the ability to match up well against a wide range of teams.
This is apparent given their thrashing of the Heat in the first game of that series.
They are going to be in trouble if Richard Jefferson's injury prevents him from being on the floor for any substantial minutes in the remainder of the series, but they might still have a chance against the "play a game, take a game off" Heat.
13. This number is all about luck and the belief in it.
If you believe in luck you have to think that the Miami Heat are heading toward another disappointing end to their season.
Shaq never seems to have two good games in a row. Wade is feeling the pressure to deliver for every minute he is on the floor. The team seems to go through long stretches (like in Game 1 against the Nets) when they seem to be thinking more about the beaches in the city than the game on the floor.
There is no question about the talent on the team. Hitting on all cylinders, they have the physical ability to stay with the Pistons on any given night, but the problem is that their mental ability only lets them do just that — play well for one night.
Until their psyche catches up with their talent, it will always feel like they are one bad stretch away from exiting the playoffs.
Then again, you can always blame it on luck.
14. Rick Adelman's career rank for coaching victories.
He is the 14th most successful coach ever to walk the sidelines, and the Kings have decided to let him go despite the fact that he took the team to the playoffs in eight consecutive years.
752 career coaching victories apparently weren't enough to keep the Maloof brothers satisfied.
Even though the Kings started the season with a dismal stretch, Adelman led the team to the playoffs and took the Spurs to a sixth game in their series.
The 14th most successful ever, huh?
I wonder who on earth is on the short list to be his replacement.
15. Is Manu Ginboli's right leg going to fall off at any point?
With the way the man throws his body around on the floor and into the stands, you have to believe that he lives in a veritable igloo in between games.
The Spurs need Ginobli to make it into the next round. Tim Duncan can only do so much, and as we all know, that is quite a lot — however, his play largely depends on the team's ability to hit outside shots and provide penetration through the paint. Tony Parker is exceptionally gifted at this, but the Spurs can only be dominant if Ginobli lives up to his end of the bargain in these areas, as well.
16. I'm pretty sure that Steve Nash runs marathons in between games.
It is the only way to explain his endurance. The man never stops running. It is actually dizzying to watch.
With the exception of the early games against the Lakers, Nash has lived up to his status as MVP and AMC (Amateur Marathon Champion.)
And it is his style of play that meshes perfectly with that of the Suns, and that is why I was not surprised when the Clippers scored 123 points and still lost.
Phoenix is going to have a lot of success in the playoffs if they maintain their tempo and focus. As long as they continue to run up and down the court as if the Kenyan Marathon Team trained them in the offseason, they will continue to win.
At this pace, they could win even if the Clippers scored 135 points.
That is the power of Steve Nash, and that is the power of controlled, explosive speed.
17. Chris Kaman is ugly.
That is all I have to say about this one.
18. If Detroit somehow loses and doesn't make it to the Finals, is the Spurs/Mavs series going to be thought of as the real NBA Finals?
Would it be like the Red Sox and Yankees meeting in the ALCS if there was no real prospect of a great team coming out of the National League?
19. I would love to see the 2006 NBA playoffs give birth to a great rivalry.
Remember the Bulls/Pistons rivalry of the late 1980s?
That's the brand of basketball that I want to see in future playoffs.
The knockdown, five technical fouls per game, two bloody foreheads per game kind of basketball that makes you want to watch every minute of a series.
The NBA is dying for a rivalry like this.
If it's the Spurs/Mavs, so be it.
If it's the Cavs/Pistons, so be it.
It just needs to be somebody.
With the regular season altercations between Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Rasheed Wallace in the books already with a couple of technical fouls and some blood on the floor, my money is on the Cavs/Pistons reaching this level of intensity.
20. Forty is a pretty important number when it comes to the Bible.
It signifies coming to maturity or coming to the end of a trial. The 40 days and nights in the desert, for example.
What the Bible also teaches us is that numbers related to the number 40 also have similar meanings because of their associations. For example, 120 is three times 40, so it is also important.
And now we come to number twenty on my list. Twenty is half of 40, so it is important.
It is the last entry for part one of this list.
I'm allowed to do that because it is related to the end of a trial or journey.
That, and I think the librarian is staring at me again.
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