PHOENIX-DALLAS: GAME OF THE YEAR (SO FAR)

If you missed Phoenix-Dallas tonight, you missed one hell of a game. The quality of play was high and both teams played as hard as you'll see anyone play in the first month of the season.

The defending Western Conference Finalists were a combined 1-8 coming into the game, and the sense of desperation was obvious. Phoenix was up by 9 at one point; weird stat: Phoenix has led by at least 9 in each game this year, yet have lost 4 out of 5. And this game was yet another example of Phoenix not having the stuff down the stretch as Dallas ended up pulling it out, possibly turning the corner on their horrible start to the season.

The problem with Dallas so far has been offense, they just haven't been able to get it going. It was nice to see Dirk Nowitzki & Jason Terry break out of their mini-slumps, Dirk going for 35 (on 11-19 shooting and 12-12 FTs) and Terry putting in 30 himself (9-15 from the floor, including 4-6 from three). Speaking of Terry, he'll make a great coach or analyst someday, he's a really bright guy and actually has an iota of personality, rare for a professional athlete. He actually reminds me a lot of his coach, Avery Johnson, just someone who could always speak really intelligently about the game of basketball.

Phoenix blew yet another lead and lost yet another game on their home floor, but there were some encouraging signs. Diaw got the start and looked miles better than he has so far this year, going for 13/4/5 and being far more active than he's been to date.

Jalen Rose looks to be a great addition for them, he's had a whole one practice and six minutes of PT last night, and D'Antoni still had enough confidence to put him out there for 24 minutes tonight. Jalen had 9 points on 4-6 shooting and looked like a great fit for their motion offense. He's a really smart player, he just knows how to handle the ball, how to pass the ball, and how to move without the ball, all key ingredients in the Phoenix system.

And there was Leandro Barbosa. I know I sound like a broken record here (hey, at least I've shut up about Andrew Bynum for a few days), but I'm really excited about what this guy is doing. He had 30 tonight on 9-15 shooting, including a scorching 5-8 from three. In fact, I think D'Antoni made a real tactical error having Barbosa out of the game late in the 3rd/early in the 4th when Dallas took back the lead. Barbosa is now averaging 20 a game and shooting 47% from three. Wild prediction: Barbosa will end up being the leading scorer on this team, ahead of Stoudemire, Marion and Nash. He's just unstoppable, it's really as simple as that.

And finally we get to Amare. I feel so encouraged for my fantasy team, I want to cry. On the second night of a back-to-back, Amare played *34* minutes, and had 16 & 8. He still isn't nearly the same player he was, he missed two would-be dunks on the pick-and-roll that would have been highlight reel-ers if he were 100%; and he's having trouble with the entry pass from Nash--Nash had 10 turnovers, and at least 4-5 of them came from passes to Stoudemire that were tough to handle in traffic, but ones he definitely snags 2 years ago. One of Amare's greatest strengths is his hands, and I feel like he's a little rusty in that department right now. He also missed a couple of boards where he had inside position. It'll come. I think.

One thing I noticed is that they're not running any isolation for him. When he was scoring 26 a game two years ago, sure, a lot of it was from the pick-and-roll, as Nash is the greatest pick-and-roll passer of all time and Amare is the best finisher in the game today--but they also ran some isolation for him where he could either take the opposing center off the dribble, or stick that 15-footer if the guy played off him. I think it'd help him out if they gave him some opportunities like that--it doesn't take explosive athleticism to (a) drive on Desagana Diop, or (b) pop a foul line jumper.

The officiatinn in this game was truly bizarre, the worst I've seen since, well, last year's playoffs. And not-at-all-coincidentally, the game was officiated by Dickhead Bavetta! Seriously, when is this guy going to be booted out the fucking door? The man is 66 YEARS OLD, that's too fucking old to be in a profession that relies on lightning quick judgment. We make airline pilots retire at 60; sure, pro sports officiating is *slightly* less important than being responsible for 300 people's lives, but the point is the same: at a certain age, your mind just can't function quickly enough to process all the information you take in. Period. And look, there's a lot of controversy about NBA officiating, everybody has their opinions, their teams' favorite refs, the ones who are "out to get us"--but one thing we can all agree on is DICK BAVETTA FUCKING BLOWS. *Everyone* hates Dick Bavetta, fans, players, coaches, everyone. So get rid of this guy already!

And there's another guy on the Bavetta crew (wait, do they have officiating teams, or do they rotate with all the other refs? I should know this). Anyway, I've noticed that this assclown Derrick Stafford is another of the truly horrific officials in the league. He made at least 5 calls tonight that I had to rewind on Tivo because I *literally* didn't understand what the call was. He made this charge call on Steve Nash--two-time MVP Nash on his home floor--where he was *in front of* Jason Terry, there was contact from *behind*, and Stafford rules that Nash had *backed into* Terry. I know you can't even picture this, because that call has never been made in the history of the league. You had to see it--several times on Tivo--to even understand what the fuck he was thinking. And look, it wasn't Reggie Miller kicking out a leg to draw contact, it was Nash coming to a direct stop and Terry hitting him from behind. Truly, truly bizarre call.

Then the Suns are down 4 in the final minute with the ball, and Dickhead Bavetta calls a *moving pick* on Stoudemire. So I'm like, "OK, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, Amare must have just moved 10 feet and chicken-winged somebody to the floor". They show it and it's literally Amare--in position--moving maybe half a step and barely drawing contact. Down 4. With a minute left. On their home floor. Huh?!?

For all of David Stern's concerns about NBA players bitching too much, the entire Suns team showed amazing restraint. I would've walked over to Bavetta and punched him in the throat. I mean, if I were a *fan* there at the game. If I were a *player*, I don't see how I walk out of the arena without some of Bavetta's blood being spilled. The guy just pisses me off. Retire. Please retire. You're an old, old man, you don't have much time left. Please. Go.

OK, now that that's off my chest, a few other observations from the last couple of nights:

With Jason Richardson out with injury, blog favorite Monta Ellis got the start tonight in Golden State and didn't disappoint: 21 & 5 in 39 minutes. This kid is coming *fast* (oh, get your mind out of the gutter, damn junior high schoolers). He reminds me a lot of Barbosa. He can't really do anything but score (and handle and pass a little, but nothing like a true PG), but man, can he score. He's super quick like Barbosa, but he's also got high-end hops too. Sky's the limit here.

Monta Ellis' running mate had a pretty decent night too, Baron Davis putting up a riDICulous 36/4/9 with no turnovers. Sometimes you see Davis play and wonder how the hell he isn't putting up hall-of-fame numbers. Then you see him the next night with one of those 6-19 specials and it's like, "Oh yeah. That's why."

In addition to Ellis, keep an eye on Michael Pietrus too. He's been being talked up for the last couple of years--and not living up to it--but he's had a nice start to the season. He was averaging 10 & 6 coming in, with 1.5 threes per game on 50% shooting, and had 18/5/5 with 4 threes tonight. It seems like he's been around for a while, but he's only 24, he could be one of those guys on the verge of a nice little breakout. If he's available in your league, you might want to think about grabbing him before the Christmas rush. He's the kind of guy--quick, rangy, athletic, can shoot the 3--that thrives in a Don Nelson offense.

Chris Paul had 34 & 10 in the game, but not enough as resurgent Golden State defended their home floor with an OT win, handing New Orleans/Oklahoma City/Butte/Poughkeepsie their first loss.

Cleveland killed Chicago tonight, leading by double figures basically the entire game. Lebron was Magic Lite, dishing out 12 assist, some of them spectacular, as Gooden & Varejao played the 2-headed PF monster, combining for 36 & 15 in 49 total minutes.

The Bulls' offense was just dreadful, as it will be at times. I just don't think they can be a championship competitive team until they figure out how to put the ball in the bucket more reliably. Charles Barkley made a great point tonight when he suggested they start Nocioni, as he's "the only big man they have who can score". I agree--I just don't think you want PJ Brown and Ben Wallace playing a lot of minutes at the same time. You can already defend as well as anyone, do you really need two offensive zeros out there together? I also like Nocioni over Deng; I like Deng a lot, I think he's a really good all-around player, but Nocioni showed in the Miami playoff series last year when he scored 22 a game that he can really be that other scorer alongside Ben Gordon. I like Gordon, he's yet another one of my favorite players to watch, but he ain't Kobe--you just can't rely on him to be The Man every single night. They have to figure something else out, and I think that something is Nocioni.

I love Thabo Sefolosha. I know this is another broken record, but I just can't get over how good this cat looks. How the hell did Philly let him get away? I can't remember if they were picking for Chicago in a pre-arranged deal, but whatever, Sefolosha is *way* better than Rodney Carney. He was only 2-7 shooting tonight, but had 6/4/3 in 22 minutes and just had a variety of smooth looking moves out there. Great, great draft for Chicago, as Tyrus Thomas also looked good in garbage time minutes, picking up 9 & 3 in 11 minutes and just showing off some breathtaking athleticism.