Nobody Cares

So, I'm watching the NBA playoffs tonight, and after watching the Mavericks march one step closer to their annual 1rst round playoff exit, I decided to watch the Suns and Spurs, hoping to see at least one Texas team win in the last two nights.
After watching nearly 4 straight hours of NBA basketball, I started to notice a recurring theme. No, it wasn't that the officiating was bad. No, it wasn't that Charles Barkley is opinionated. And no, it wasn't that I think we've got a national crisis on our hands, because at one point I saw three white players on the court at the same time, meaning there is obviously a decline in black NBA players, and we need to pull congress together to discuss this tragedy, pay millions of dollars to study the decline in black NBA players, and maybe even have Bill Russell's wife speak at a press confrence about how this is a sad and shameful day in American history.
No, what I've noticed is that the "NBA Cares". That's right, the NBA Cares. We get it. You really don't have to spend every single commercial break reminding us. They do community service, great. But can they hit clutch free throws with the game on the line?
Now look, don't misunderstand what I'm saying here. Community service and helping out those less fortunate than you is a very important thing. It is, I get that. In fact, just the other day I found the opportunity to help a homeless guy I saw in the street. I walked within a safe 20 yards of him, and yelled, "Hey, Bum! Get out of the street before one of those cars nail you!"
But do I really need to see Michael Finnley sit in a bulldozer, pose for a photo, then get on a ladder and put two meaningless strokes of paint on the side of a house that doesn't even need painting, and pose for another photo? Really? Do I really need to see that?
I don't think so.
The NBA Cares. Great. Just stop trying to make me care that you care, because I don't.

These and This

James Westfall here, wanting to take a little time to talk some basketball. NBA basketball that is.
Tonight we're gonna be seeing some really interesting games, especially concerning the Hollywood Video trades that took place out west. Jason Kidd will make his return debut with Dallas as the Mavs take on the number one team in the confernece, New Orleans. Kidd, along with the rest of the Mavericks and their faithful, are dreaming of seeing these, while New Orleans and their fans are hoping all of these powerhouse moves in the west won't start to feel like this.
Shaq will be making his long awaited debut with the Suns tonight against Kobe and the newly acquired Gasol of the Lakers. This will be a very interesting game of re-vamped teams, as both are thought to be the next behemouths of the confrence. The Suns are hoping a Shaq-filled future will be full of these, while Shaq is hoping his Pheonix-filled future is full of this.
At any rate, the latest trades have ended the stigma of the No Balls Association, and hopefully will pump more excitement into the NBA. Taking these trades into account, and then throwing in how well Lebron is playing, and the resurgent dominance of the Celtics in the east, and you can't help but feel giddy. As fans, I know we can all hope for more nights like these, as opposed to the more recent years of the NBA, bringing several nights of this, this, and this, which almost always inevitably lead to thinking about these and this.
Welcome back, NBA. Dr. Kenneth Noisewater and I, and NBA fans all over the world have missed you!