Visitors Section: NBA Finals

The Visitors Section Presents the NBA Finals Preview Extravaganza.

With the NBA Finals finally here we thought it would be fun to hear from some of the voices of the Visitors Section and our friends. The Finals start Tuesday, June the twelfth and they go till they're over. That is usually how that works. Until we are all eaten by zombies or Andrew Bynum crashes a  boat laden with explosives into American Airlines Arena. Whatever.

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NICK LIVINGSTON (@NLivingstonTLC)
Chief writer for the Visitors Section, employed to write about sports of the Lawton Constitution, cohost of "The Argument"


Here we go, the matchup we have been waiting for for 10 years.

It's the Seattle SuperSonics vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers.......

Ooooooooooo, did I just bring up a bunch of old wounds?

I love this battle because you get to see for the second year in a row two teams who don't get a lot of love outside of their local markets and in the case of the Heat not even a lot of love in the home market until things get good.
Last year if you wanted to root, you had to either put your eggs in LeBron's basket (which would get you shunned for no good reason) or Mark Cuban's basket (which would get you shunned for a better reason, but still a stupid reason).
This year you get to either root for LeBron again (he's going to make you love him, even if it takes some chloroform), or Clay Bennett (who single-handedly destroyed the hopes and dreams of the Pacific Northwest by taking the team they loved so much they didn't want to see them anymore).
You have to root for the Thunder, for reasons of sanity alone. If you root for LeBron, the terrorists win, and by terrorists I mean those in sports who think that money buys championships. Money can buy great players, but it's a sad day when money can outright buy championships.
So since I don't get a press pass this season to go cover the Thunder in the finals, I will throw my journalistic objectivity out the window and tell you to Thunder the fuck up and join me as we make the world a safer place for our children by sending the Heat back to Miami without a ring again.

Thunder in six.


MIKE ERWIN (@VisitorsSection)
Certifiable crazy person, cohost of the Visitors Section, leader of men


I am eating an ice cream as I write this. Not ice cream. Just an empty cone. It tastes surprisingly good. Could you imagine what it'd be like to eat other foods out of this thing than just ice cream? Wait. You're telling me some hippy did that in Portland? And they taste like shit? Maybe he just isn't doing it right... It seems like such a solid idea... I think food taste worse when handled by white people with dreadlocks. If I was a scientist I bet I could find some repeatable and testable data to back that conclusion up but since I'm a layman I'll just chalk it up to WHITE PEOPLE AREN'T SUPPOSED TO HAVE DREADLOCKS! For fucks sake, wash your hair! Your head looks like my cat shit HAIR!

Thunder in six unless it goes seven then Heat. But if it goes five, Thunder. Or maybe Heat. Whatever...

KYLE VRSKA (@KVrska7)
Also employed to write about sports of the Lawton Constitution, cohost of "The Argument"


LeBron James is the best player in the NBA, nay, the world. The dude is unbelieveable. He's nothing like Michael Jordan (no one EVER will be), but isn't it fine that he's the "Next Magic Johnson"? 'Bron sees the floor better than anyone not named Chris Paul, Steve Nash or Rajon Rondo. He doesn't get the love that he deserves. Some day you will be telling your grandchildren you watched LeBron James play at the peak of his powers. There are very few other NBA players you will say that about.

Yet, it will kill me if LeBron's first title comes at the expense of the Thunder. I love LeBron (I went through the requisite post-Decision hating period last year, but I'm over it), but I don't want him to beat Kevin Durant for his first title. If the Thunder was to lose to the Celtics, I would have been fine. But not the Heat. If LeBron had a title going into this Finals, it wouldn't kill me to lose to him, but come on, not his first! Anything but that!

My pick: Thunder in six (objectively). Thunder in five (subjectively). I won't say Thunder Up... Dammit, I said it.

HALEY DENNIS (@HaleySportszone)
KXCA SportsZone1380 radio producer. Aspiring sports writer, she poured mike a beer without knowing it


We all know, April showers bring May flowers, but what does June deliver? This year, it’s Heat and Thunder. 
         This will probably be the most watched NBA finals in recent history. Everyone wants to witness the most anticipated, post-season match-up of Kevin Durant versus LeBron James. It’s the media’s Hero against the Villain, and if Marvel has taught us anything, it’s that we will spend ridiculous amounts of money to watch the two types battle it out. Like most super-hero movies, there are side-kicks in this struggle, as well. One of who, will be the most important piece of this puzzle. Russell Westbrook. He will be the difference maker. The Heat have faced contention against teams with dominant point guards. The Thunder need a flawless Westbrook, throughout this championship series. The other issue for the “Big 3” is fatigue. Because of the lack of depth, on the Heat bench, the starters will be forced to overcompensate. OKC is too deep, not to win this series.
       If there is still any doubt in your mind, take a look at the journey that brought the Thunder to this point, and we will compare it to that of the Heat. Oklahoma City eliminated not only the two previous NBA champions, but also, ended a twenty-game win streak for a San Antonio Spurs’ team, that holds four titles.  That’s how the West was won. How was the East won? It was against the clearly, over-rated Knicks, the Indiana Pacers (who?), and the beat up, Celtics. In my opinion, that isn’t even comparable.
      So, if you honestly think LeBron is going take home a championship this year, you are probably smoking bath salts, along with the rest of Miami.


WADE DIAL (@realJWade)
A writer, a lover, a gamer


What’s that?  The NBA Finals are coming up?  That’s cool.  Who’s playing this year?  The… uh… Astros?  Is that a ball team?  They’re playing the… Oilers?  Right?  They play with balls?  Anyway, yeah, I’m so super excited about the Big Game, of course, but you know what else is cool?  Have you seen the ability tree… well, I guess it’s not technically a tree in the traditional sense, but you know what I mean… for the Witch Doctor?  Exploding zombie dogs?  Zombie rain?  Zombie walls?  Zombie towers?  Giant zombies?  Giant, stinky, poisonous zombies?  How fucking awesome is that? Man I can’t wait to get my hands on this game.  And… uh… watch the NBA Finals.  ‘cause I’m, like, really into baseball right now.  Word.


Diablo in three.