Apparently Ford disagrees about the "other" TX teams...

Let me be the first to say that I respect Chad Ford and enjoy his columns on ESPN Insider. But since he took a teaching gig, he's clearly lost a step. Por ejemplo, take this excerpt from his most recent chat on ESPN.com (Insider req'd for link):
While the Spurs are the hands down favorites as the best team in the league ... I think the next five best teams (Indiana, Detroit, Miami, New Jersey and Cleveland) are in the East. David Stern always said that the pendulum would swing the other way and it has.

What-what-whaaaaaat? Chad. Dude. Seriously. You want to call a restocked Indy and almost-crowned Detroit #2 and #3 in some order, fine. Make the argument. But the other teams? Bzzzt. Let's break it down:

Miami
Last I checked, Jason Williams and Antoine Walker were two of the most overrated bad-chemistry chuckers in the league. Plus, they've got the delusional, feet-in-quicksand version of GP to add to their stack of whiners. In this league, you win by surrounding a few stars with hard-working role players. Last year's team had exactly that: Shaq, Wade, some shooters, some rebounders, a great backup C, and a tight rotation in which everyone knew his job. If Wade hadn't been hurt, they probably beat Detroit. And you blow all of that up to add selfish ballhoggers with no rings and a long history of dragging teams down? I'm sorry, but the LA experiment with Shaq, Kobe, Malone, and Payton proved that the fantasy-style approach to real basketball doesn't cut it. O'Neal and Wade will get them into the playoffs, but I would bet my Dirk jersey they don't even make the conference finals. And if they made it to the NBA Finals, SA, DAL, HOU, SAC, DEN, and maybe even PHO would decimate them.

New Jersey
Puh-leeze. VC is back, Kidd has some juice left, but their inside game is super-ultra-mega-weak. Scott Padgett and Cliff Robinson could be combined and they still wouldn't qualify as a starting NBA 4. Krstic would get destroyed by the Western PFs and Cs. You can't hang with Western Conference teams without an inside game.

Cleveland
LeBron is spectacular. Hughes is underrated. Ilgauskas can score down low. Jones gives them a much-needed shooter. And I like their coach. But let's be clear about something: you don't usually go from zero to top-5 in the NBA even with the best player in the game. Ask KG about that. Teams need seasoning and playoff experience, and if Cleveland were in the West, I am certain they'd be punk'd by the likes of better-tested teams like Denver, Sacto, and of course, the other TX teams. In two years, maybe this team will be in the mix, but it says here they will have a losing record against the top 5 teams in the West.

Pick up your game, Chad. You're slipping!

D'Antoni can go eff himself

From dallasbasketball.com:
This week's Sports Illustrated features a by Jack McCallum, who got to spend a week working as a Phoenix Suns assistant coach. McCallum writes of a behind-closed-doors comment uttered by Suns coach Mike D'Antoni: " 'We've got to find a way to get to 100,' he says. 'We don't score 100, we're Dallas.' He means a good but not great offensive team doomed, in all likelihood, never to get out of the Western Conference."

“We’re Dallas?” Let me tell you something, you simpering cardboard cutout of a coach: in a month you’ll be weeping and blowing your nose on your porn ‘stache, wishing you were Dallas. You want 100, do you? Good effing luck. Amare’s riding around the gym in a power chair, and let me assure you, Steve Nash’s got one on order. Here’s another newsflash: no matter how many times you spot him up on the wing, Kurt Thomas won’t hit a three. No, I know, you have this textured, multi-layered gameplan of 4 dudes standing around the arc while Nash penetrates, and it’s probably all Kurt’s fault (and Brian Grant’s fault, and Boris Diaw’s fault) that he isn’t receptive to your “coaching,” but your wildly innovative schemes might come up a bit short in 05-06. So polish up your Matt-Dillon® brand capped teeth, Mikey; maybe if you reflect enough flash bulbs back in their eyes, the reporters won’t notice those pee stains on your pants this year.

So, yeah, I'm a Mavs fan. And I can be as objective as the next guy, but when a fraud like D'Antoni drops the hammer on my team, I stand and fight.

Welcome to Texas NBA

Let's face it -- the Spurs, Rockets, and Mavs are three of the top teams in the league, and whoever survives to win our division will be the favorite to take the title. Plus, the Mavs and Rockets are coming off an epic 7-game series last season, and the Spurs snagged Michael Finley from Dallas to add to our in-state drama.

And you can talk about it all right here.

If you want posting authority, lemme know and you'll probably get it. And remember: just because we're a football state doesn't mean we don't rule the basketball world, as well.