Ep.20: Rivalry

The league had two main forces, one in each conference. In the east, The Brotherhood, with their unselfish style and great talent. In the west, the loaded Lakers, with a "Dream Team" which included Magic Johnson, Karl Malone and Shaquille O'Neal.

Because the Lakers and the 76ers were expected to see each other in the NBA Finals, this match had everybody's attention. No one wanted to miss the opportunity of watching Magic Johnson against Allen Iverson, Karl Malone against Serge Ibaka and Shaquille O'Neal against Alonzo Mourning.

Magic Johnson was the captain and leader of
the Lakers' "Dream Team" with Shaq, Malone, Goodrich and Baylor

But the match was far from what the people expected. Willing to witness an authentic clash of titans, the fans were taken aback by the Sixers' undeniable dominance over the Lakers.

The Los Angeles' team couldn't do anything to stop The Brotherhood. Their offence was completely shut down by the Sixers' deffensive efforts, led by Andre Iguodala's lockdown on Elgin Baylor.

And while the Lakers were struggling to score on the Sixers' deffence, the Sixers were completely destroyed the Lakers' deffence. Iverson scored 34 points, Iguodala scored 13, and Alonzo Mourning scored 12 while grabbing 12 rebounds.

Meanwhile the Lakers' failed misserably against their rivals, the Clippers took this as an opportunity to put even more ground between each other. The Deron-Griffin-Robinson trio won their match and are now 2 games ahead of their counterpart.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for Full Resolution)

Ep.19: Lights On

After losing three games in a row, The Brotherhood felt the pressure of winning their next match in order to avoid a greater crisis. But the rival wasn't easy. After letting their best player, Danny Granger, go away, the Indiana Pacers managed to sign three legends: Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing and Dennis Rodman.

Their starting lineup also features Muggsy Bogues and Monta Ellis, and they have Gilbert Arenas, Roy Hibbert and Grant Hill coming off the bench. The Brotherhood would need a great effort if they wanted to win this match.

Once rivals, Bird, Rodman and Ewing teamed-up in Indiana
looking for another ring

The Pacers hit first with Monta Ellis. Ashaming Jrue Holiday's deffensive capabilities, he scored 12 points only in the first quarter, which ended with the Indiana team leading by 5 points.

During the second quarter, the Sixers team remained unresponsive. This time led by Larry Bird and Patrick Ewing, the Pacers managed to take a 14-point lead going to the halftime. Being dominated in every aspect, it was looking like The Brotherhood would take another loss.

But then Allen Iverson happened. After scoring a season-low 15 points before the half, he scored 32 points and gave all his 9 assists in just two quarters. The Brotherhood slowly returned to the match, and they managed to finally tie the game with 6 minutes remaining in the last quarter.

It was at that moment when Jrue Holiday finally step up. Even though he had finished the first half without scoring any points, during the last minutes of the third and all the fourth quarter he scored 12 points to help Iverson's efforts.

The Pacers couldn't respond in time, and they found themselves in the free throws game, being down by three, hoping for a miracle. A miracle that almost happened, as a Larry Bird's clutch 3-pointer tied the game. Although, Iverson answered quickly with a 3 of his own, which was the only one he scored in the entire match.

In the end was a 3-point differencial. Although losing in almost every aspect, the Sixers defied the odds and took a win out of Indiana. The crisis wasn't over, but ending the losing streak was the first step to return to the winning path.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for Full Resolution)

Ep.18: Into The Darkness

This were hard times for the Philadelphia 76ers. After their win against the Celtics at home, they started a road trip which had really bad results: first, a tough loss in the second game against the Celtics. Then, the second straight loss again the Pistons, this time in a tense low-scoring match.

It wasn't the same scenario for the Bulls though. They won every single match after their loss at home against the 76ers, and they were ready to take revenge. But this time they made themselves sure that nothing could stop them.

Scottie Pippen went off in the games before their
rematch against the Sixers

It was a close game from the beginning. Each time the Sixers scored, the Bulls responded. Every time the 76ers seemed to run away, the Bulls came back. During this time, two players had already step up for their teams: Allen Iverson and Scottie Pippen.

After the half, the match started to become phisical. Iverson struggled with the Bulls' defence while Kendall Gill began to thread the 76ers' chances of winning. During the third quarter, both Gill and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar led a 15-3 scoring run, thus entering the last quarter with a 9-point advantage.

The Broterhood's hopes relied on Allen Iverson. Although, the Bulls' defence was forcing Iverson to take contested jumpshots, as the paint was too toughly defended. AI missed four 3-pointers in a row, all of them answered by fast breaks. Slowly, the match slipped away from the Sixers' hands, and the Bulls were closer to the win.

Nothing was enough. Iverson's 33 points, Mourning's double-double, Holiday's 5 assists, Ibaka's 10 rebounds. The Bulls outplayed The Brotherhood and handed them their third straight loss.

Rumours began to spread. Was Nick Young's trade a mistake? Should the 76ers make another trade? Never. These bad games only made the players get closer between each other, and the 15 of them were ready to another battle: Larry Bird's Indiana Pacers.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for Full Resolution)

Ep.17: Defending Home

Less than a month ago, the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76ers clashed in what was one of the most intese games so far. And that's why the whole league was excited for the rematch between Bill Russell and Allen Iverson, this time in Philadelphia.

After an amazing performance in the first game against the Celtics,
Iverson was ready to repeat that 57-point game

The Brotherhood dominated the start of the match. The Iverson-Iguodala connection proved to be deadly for the Celtics' defence. After scoring 20 points combined in the first quarter, the Sixers were leading by 9 points.

The visitors tried to respond. Their bench unit, lead by Tayshaun Prince and Dennis Johnson, brought the game back to a one possession game. But the Sixers' bench again managed to "stop the bleeding." Lead by World B. Free, the team tied the quarter 24-24 and kept the 9-point advantage alive.

With the starters back on the court, the Celtics vanished again. Chris Paul was left alone against the Sixers' offense, and sooner than later, the home team had a 15-point lead. Although, Paul Pierce and Chris Paul scored four consecutive 3-pointers, giving the visitors a chance to win the game.

However, Allen Iverson again step up in the last quarter, scoring 19 points in 12 minutes. The Celtics' efforts to contain the 76ers were in vain, and they gave the game up with around 5 minutes left in the last quarter. Iverson completed his 42-point performance. Iguodala ended up with 20 points and Alonzo Mourning scored a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The third match between the two teams would be only 24 hours later, this time at the TD Garden. This could be the Celtics' last chance to prove the world that they weren't a bust.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for Full Resolution)

Ep.16: The Return

Although they had won four of their last five games, something was wrong with the 76ers' squad. Yes, they enjoyed great chemistry, as all their stars were playing with only one objective in mind: the Finals. Although, the management though that something was missing.

A consistent problem with the team was their 3-point efficiency. Although having great long-distance shooters like Jrue Holiday or Dell Curry among others, the management was thirsty for a 3-point specialist. And they found him: although risking to affect their team chemistry, they decided to trade George Lynch to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for sharp-shooter Nick Young.

Former Wizards player, Nick Young was enjoying a lot
of minutes with the Wolves after Jerome Kersey's injury

Destiny wanted that the first match of Nick Young with a 76ers jersey was against the Timberwolves. The Minnesota team was struggling to win as an important player of their team, Jerome Kersey, was still injured. All the weight of the team's offence fell on Gerald Green and Jason Kidd. Nick Young would come off the bench, but the other player involved in that trade, George Lynch, would be a starter, since now he was the Wolves' best available small forward.

The match was a blood-bath. Allen Iverson instantly took the lead of the 76ers' offence. He was absolutely unstoppable. When the first half ended, AI had played 19 minutes and had scored 41 points. Because the match was already out of range for their rivals, Iverson wouldn't return to the game.

The bench took the relay: Dell Curry scored 12 points, Thaddeus Young socred 10 and JJ Barea scored 7 on a season-high 14 minutes. However, Nick Young struggled to produce in his new team and only scored 5 points in 11 minutes and shooting 2-4 from the field.

On the Timberwolves' side, only Gerald Green and Aaron Gray enjoyed a good game. Mitch Richmond finished with a season-low 10 points, Chase Budinger had one of the worst matches in his career, as he shot 3-9 and 0-3 from the 3-point line, and Jason Kidd ended up with no points after he missed every single one of his six field goals attemps. In his first game with the Wolves jersey, George Lynch only scored 4 points in 22 minutes after missing 3 of his 5 shots.

For The Brotherhood, only time would tell if the decision of trading away Lynch would be a success or not, but for the time being, they had to focus in their next match against the Boston Celtics.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for Full Resolution)

Ep.15: A Clash of Kings

Probably last summer was the best for a Chicago Bulls' fan, when a medical lab announced the release of "Age Away." This could mean that the team's current star, Derrick Rose, could recover quickly from his last injury and that he wouldn't need to sit out for the entire season. But it also meant that probably the best player of all time, Michael Jordan, would return home.

Well, not exactly. Although the Bulls retained Rose and signed Scottie Pippen, Michael Jordan turned down Chicago's offer.

"It was difficult for me to turn down the offer they (the Bulls) made me. I have to be honest, I would give everything to play one more day with that jersey, but at the same time I have some unfinished business. Ten years ago I promised a ring for a city, a ring that I couldn't bring. Thus, this season I'm going to play for the Washington Wizards" - Michael Jordan

With "The GOAT" out of the team, another member of "the olympus of basketball" wanted to join the Bulls: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Not willing to return to Milwaukee, nor sharing team with Shaquille O'Neal in Los Angeles, he signed for the Chicago Bulls and instatly formed one of the most feared teams in the league.

Once a rival, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the new
hero of the Windy City

However, their start of the season wasn't as good as they were expecting: first, some chemistry issues, and then the lack of bench depth, made really difficult to the Bulls to win some important games, and because of that they were 5th in the Eastern Conference by the time they had to face one of the best teams in the league: The Brotherhood.

It wasn't the best moment for neither of the two teams. Although winning their previous match against the Bobcats, "The Brotherhood" still had some doubts about their bench after the poor performance most of them displayed in the humiliating loss against the Mavericks. In the other hand, the Bulls were returning home after a disastrous road trip, in which they lost 4 out of 5 games.

The match started and from the first play it was clear that this could be one of the best face-offs of the season. Both teams traded baskets for a while, until the Bulls managed to begin a 16-5 run near the end of the second quarter, relying on Kendall Gill's explosiveness. The match headed half-time with the Bulls leading by 7.

But then, the 76ers' defence readjusted and all the responsibility of leading the comeback fell on Iverson. And he didn't dissappoint: 33 points in 24 minutes, plus 2 rebounds, 7 assists and a clutch steal to Kendall Gill, that lead to the play that tied the game.

With 5 minutes to go, the game looked as if it could go to overtime. However, World B. Free came in for Jrue Holiday and lead the team's final effort: thanks to his energy, the tired Bulls' defence fell apart and, with less than 2 minutes remaining, they were down by 5. They tried to come back, but it was too late: after the free-throws game, the Sixers won the game by 7.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for full resolution)

Month Review #1 - October/November

The league's first month of action has ended and a lot of teams are experiencing a lot of different scenarios. Some are clear title contenders, as others struggle to find chemistry in teams full of stars but without a good relationship.

The Monster

Although they aren't the team with the most talent, the Philadelphia 76ers are reassuring their nickname of "The Brotherhood" night in and night out, as they display an excellent and unselfish basketball, where the one who takes the shot it's not the best player, but the one who is open.

Allen Iverson is having an MVP-worth season, as he is by far the highest scorer in the league, averaging 34.1 PPG and 7.3 APG, while leading the Sixers' 15-2 record. This is no surprise, as his partners Alonzo Mourning (12.7 PPG and 8.7 RPG), Andre Iguodala (12.2 PPG) and Jrue Holiday (11.5 PPG and 4.4 APG) are all averaging more than ten points per game. They also have a huge production coming off the bench, as World B. Free is averaging 7.4 PPG at 12.4 MPG. Also Dell Curry is averaging 4.2 PPG at 7.2 MPG.

Los Angeles: The Dream City

Los Angeles is having one of its best years in basketball, as both the Clippers and the Lakers are leading the Western Conference. Taking a lot by surprise, the Deron Williams-Blake Griffin duo is proving to be deadly for a lot of teams, and they lead with a 14-2 record, 1 game ahead of the 13-3 record of the Lakers' "Dream Team."

The Clippers not only rely on Griffin and Williams' production, because their recently-signed star David Robinson is also playing amazingly. The Clippers' big-three averages 45.7 PPG, 18.9 RPG and 10.4 APG.

For the Lakers' "Dream Team" it's not going as well as they expected, but their stars are slowly clicking and are playing better game after game. Their max-scorer still is Elgin Baylor, who averages 19.4 PPG. Shaquille O'Neal is their max rebounder, with 8 RPG. Also, Magic Johnson is averaging 12.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 6.8 APG.

The Pursuers

Although standing right now 3rd and 5th in the Eastern Conference standings, the two teams that are most likely to stop "The Brotherhood" are the Chicago Bulls and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Bulls are lead by a dreamt Big-Three with Derrick Rose, Scottie Pippen and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Derrick Rose is averaging 16.3 PPG and 6.7 APG, while Abdul-Jabbar is having a near-double-double season, as he right now averages 14.5 PPG and 9.3 RPG. Kareem also averages 1.1 SPG and 1.5 BPG while shooting 50% from the field.

The Cavaliers are lead by LeBron James and his unlimited energy: playing 27.6 MPG, he averages 16.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.5 SPG and 0.9 BPG while shooting 49% from the field and 37% from behind the three-point line. Kyrie Irving and Larry Johnson are the main supporters of the team, as they average 14.7 and 13.5 PPG respectively.

The Disappointments

Although we're only one month into the league, both the San Antonio Spurs and the Toronto Raptors are running out of time for doing something to solve their current problems.

The Spurs are dead last in the Western Conference, with a 3-15 record, and the Raptors stand second-to-last, with a 5-12 record that is half a game better than the Bobcats' record, the worst of the conference.

No one can find out why these teams are such a failure. The Spurs start Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker every night, the three of them accompanied by Kawhi Leonard and Tyson Chandler. They also have Gerald Wallace and Vinny Del Negro coming off the bench. The big-three is averaging 38.5 PPG, 13.2 RPG and 11 APG but they just can't defeat their opponents.

Same history with "The New Lob City." Even though their five starters are averaging more than 10 points per game, their lack of bench depth have catched them quickly and they don't seem able to turn the situation around. Also, their three big stars are not getting along very well, as they often battle for who will have the ball in the important moments of the game. Since mid-november they've been looking for a trade, but they haven't made any yet.

Trades

The first trade of the season came on 6th of November, when the Detroit Pistons agreed to trade Josh Smith and Charlie Villanueva to the New York Knicks for Amar'e Stoudemire (who was having problems with Knicks' legend Willis Reed) alongside Kurt Thomas and a couple of draft picks.

Then, the Mavericks traded away Danny Ainge for Grizzlies' player Tony Allen because the former was complaining about his lack of minutes. Nate Robinson also was complaining to the Pistons' management for his lack of playing time, and he was basically given to the Oklahoma City Thunder, as the Pistons only recieved in return Ish Smith and two Draft picks.

The same day, the Spurs did their first move in order to turn around their disastrous season, as they traded starter Stephen Jackson to Charlotte in exchange for Gerald Wallace. However, the latter didn't fit very well in the Spurs' structure and is now a back-up for new starter Kawhi Leonard.

Finally, the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics agreed to exchange Tayshaun Prince and Jason Terry, as both teams felt that this exchange could give each other a better back-up for their positions.

Injuries

Only days before the end of november, Steve Nash took a contested lay-up and, when he landed, he sprained his knee. This was the first important injury of the season, and only a day after the lab responsible for "Age Away" released a statement saying that from then on, some players could get injured. It was confirmed later that Nash would be out of the courts for a month.

On November 29th, Willis Reed went down with a thigh contusion, which though is not preventing him to play on restricted minutes. A far more important injury caught Jerome Kersey, former Blazer and starter for the Minnesota Timberwolves, as he sustained a corneal ligament tear during a training and will be out for 6-8 weeks.

League Leaders

- Points

1) Allen Iverson (76ers), 34.1 PPG

2) Larry Bird (???), 19.6 PPG

3) Elgyn Baylor (Lakers), 19.4 PPG

4) Michael Jordan (Wizards), 18.5 PPG

5) Moses Malone (Blazers), 18.0 PPG

- Rebounds

1) Dwight Howard (Magic), 11.1 RPG

2) Moses Malone (Blazers), 9,5 RPG

3) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Bulls), 9.3 RPG

4) Otis Thorpe (Rockets), 9.1 RPG

5) Bill Laimbeer (Pistons), 9.1 RPG

- Assists

1) Allen Iverson (76ers), 7.3 APG

2) Steve Nash (Suns), 7.1 APG

3) Penny Hardaway (???), 7.0 APG

4) Derrick Rose (Bulls), 6.7 APG

5) Terry Porter (Blazers), 6.4 APG

- Steals

1) Tim Hardaway (???), 2.1 SPG

1) Mike Conley (Mavericks), 2.1 SPG

3) Chris Paul (Celtics), 2.0 SPG

4) Jason Kidd (Timberwolves), 1.9 SPG

4) Michael Jordan (Wizards), 1.9 SPG

- Blocks

1) Shaquille O'Neal (Lakers), 2.3 BPG

1) David Robinson (Clippers), 2.3 BPG

3) Tyson Chandler (Spurs), 2.2 BPG

4) Marcin Gortat (Thunder), 1.9 BPG

4) Dikembe Mutombo (Nuggets), 1.9 BPG

Standings

- Eastern Conference

1) Philadelphia 76ers, 15-2

2) Miami Heat, 11-4

3) Chicago Bulls, 9-6

3) Orlando Magic, 9-6

5) Cleveland Cavaliers, 10-7

6) Atlanta Hawks 8-6

7) Indiana Pacers, 9-8

8) Brooklyn Nets, 7-9

9) Washington Wizards, 6-8

10) Boston Celtics, 7-10

11) Detroit Pistons, 7-11

12) New York Knicks, 5-10

12) Milwaukee Bucks, 5-10

14) Toronto Raptors, 5-12

15) Charlotte Bobcats, 4-11

- Western Conference

1) Los Angeles Clippers, 14-2

2) Los Angeles Lakers, 13-3

3) Oklahoma City Thunder, 12-6

4) Utah Jazz, 11-7

5) Portland Trail Blazers, 10-7

6) Minnesota Timberwolves, 8-7

7) Memphis Grizzlies, 8-7

8) Houston Rockets, 8-8

9) Golden State Warriors, 8-8

10) Denver Nuggets, 8-9

11) Dallas Mavericks, 7-10

12) New Orleans Hornets, 6-9

13) Phoenix Suns, 5-12

14) Sacramento Kings, 4-12

15) San Antonio Spurs, 3-15

Ep.14: Mourning Stole the Show

The Charlotte Bobcats had finished the last season with an historic 7-59 record. Thus, when "Age Away" came in, the Cats were one of the least favourite teams for the past legends. Except for one. During the summer, and after recovering former player Gerald Wallace, Boston Celtics' legend John Havlicek decided to sign with the team and try lo lead them to, at least, a playoffs appearance. With Havlicek, the Bobcats were able to also attract to their team Chris Bosh, who left Miami, and former Nuggets-player Robert Pack.

Although, the squad had a lot of issues and only won 3 games during the first month of competition. The shipwreceked team tried to solve some of their issues by trading Wallace to the San Antonio Spurs for Stephen Jackson, who was complaining for being left as a backup because of Kawhi Leonard's progression.

Havlicek trusted the Bobcats' management and tried to
lead the disastrous team

The fire test for the new squad would be against the almost-unbeaten Philadelphia 76ers. And it was a massive failure: both Allen Iverson and Alonzo Mourning went off, with Iverson finishing three assist shy of a double-double, and Mourning finishing two rebounds shy of getting a "dub-dub" of his own.

During the last quarter, it was Mourning's show: out of the 25 points he scored during the match, 15 were on the last quarter, many coming from assists by Iverson and Jrue Holiday, who also had 6 assists.

The "saviour" for the Charlotte Bobcats appeared to be sophomore Kemba Walker, as he was the team's highest scorer with 18 points, all of them in the first half. During the last two quarters, rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Pablo Prigioni tried to lead a failed comeback effort, as they scored 14 points combined.

It was an awful performance for Havlicek, who spent the whole match under tight defense by Andre Iguodala. "Iggy" finished with 2 steals and 1 block, all of them on "Hondo", who finished with 2 turnovers and 11 missed field goals. The just-arrived Jackson also had a bad night, as he missed 4 of the 5 shots he attempted, and left the court with only 5 points.

It was another blowout by The Brotherhood, and this was the best way to recover themselves after their loss against Dirk Nowitzki's Mavericks.

Post-Game Stats:

(Click for full resolution)

Ep.13: An Unexpected Event

A lot was going on in the league after only one month of competition. Some teams were beginning to look like serious title contenders as other teams struggled for chemistry with all their stars not getting along.

One of those teams was the Phoenix Suns. After losing against "The Brotherhood", the team were now standing outside of the playoff picture, and were below 50%. Although they had an amazing offensive style of playing, their lack of defence and bench depth were causing a lot of troubles for the Arizona team.

After having a day off, the Suns were ready to play again, this time against the Houston Rockets. It was being a "normal" match, with Houston relying on the Rondo-Worthy-Olajuwon trio. While leading Phoenix's comeback efforts, Steve Nash saw a clear path to the rim and didn't hesitate.

Emeka Okafor jumped in order to contest the layup, even though Nash managed to get an and-one play. But after he went down, he couldn't get up. Everyone immediately realised that something was wrong.

Nash had to sit out for the rest of the game. The Suns lost their momentum and finally ended up losing the match by 13 points. However, the big news were that, even though "Age Away" was supposed to prevent players from getting injured, one of the league's best player was now facing a really important one, which could send him out of the courts for almost a month.

The following day, the lab responsible of the development of "Age Away" released a statement.

"The medicine (Age Away) does prevent players from getting injured. Although, after around one month since the first dose, its effects slowly weaken, and thus some players may get injured. It all depends on how well the organism process the medicine."

The statement soon rose a lot of concerns. Some teams gave players with a long injury record a second chance, as the medicine was supposed to prevent those players from getting injured again. So, teams like the Golden State Warriors (who acquired Brandon Roy), the Miami Heat (with Greg Oden), the Sacramento Kings (who had Bill Walton) and a lot of others were now on the line, praying for their players not to get injured.

Would players who saw their careers ruined by injuries lose their second chance because the so said "saviour" medicine could fail?

Ep.12: Seven Seconds or Less

Back to 2005, the Phoenix Suns were regarded as one of, if not the best offensive team in the league. With their fast-pace mentality, ilustrated with the famous "seven seconds or less", and the deadly Nash-Stoudemire pick-and-roll, the Suns were very succesful, reaching three conference finals in six seasons.

Although, in the 2012 offseason, it was announced that the Los Angeles Lakers made a sign-and-trade deal with the Suns for Steve Nash, who was alone in the team after Amar'e Stoudemire left the previous season. However, when "Age Away" was introduced, the Lakers offered the Suns to return Nash only in exchange for money and a bunch of draft picks.

With Nash back in Arizona, the reborned 7-seconds-or-less Suns were complete, as the team also acquired 70's star George McGinnis and role players like Rudy Gay, Joakim Noah and Hersey Hawkins.

Nash came back to Phoenix to lead the new 7-seconds Suns

The team's start was amazing, crushing defensive teams like Detroit or Milwaukee. However, by the time they had to face The Brotherhood, the team standed on a 5-7 record after a 3-game losing streak.

The first half was just like everyone expected: fast-paced action, with Nash and McGinnis leading Phoenix's offensive efforts, and with fast answers by Allen Iverson, who once again had a superb performance. After two quarters, Phoenix was leading by only 2-points, after Jrue Holiday missed a buzzer-beater that could've tied the game.

In the third quarter, Philadelphia's defence adjusted. Iverson took Nash and Holiday was matched up with Hawkins. Also, Andre Iguodala had to step up, as Rudy Gay totally dominated him in the first half. After that, the game was controlled by The Brotherhood.

Phoenix tried to stop Iverson with double and sometimes even triple-teams, but AI could always escape or, at least, throw a pass to someone open. That's why, after playing 32 minutes, Iverson ended up with an astonishing 54-point performance, plus 9 assists and 3 rebounds.

The Suns headed to the desert with a 5-8 record and a 4-game losing streak, which needed to be stopped as soon as possible. On the other hand, The Brotherhood was now 13-1, and was running away in the eastern conference standings.

Post-game stats:

(Click for full resolution)

Ep.11: Team Effort

There were a lot of amazing teams in the Western Conference. Alongside the seemingly unbeatable Lakers and Clippers, the Oklahoma City Thunder, with an amazing starting five, were third in the standings with an 8-5 record.

They were the league's "Big 5". Alongside all-star Kevin Durant, the starters were Shawn Kemp, Kyle Lowry, Kevin Martin and Marcin Gortat, plus George Gervin coming off the bench as the sixth man. They had no weaknesses. When the five of them were in the court, they were unbeatable.

The team relied on Kevin Durant and Kevin Martin's
amazing scoring ability

However, The Brotherhood came into the Wells Fargo Center's court with only one objective: prevent the storm. It was a flawless defensive effort, led by Andre Iguodala's lock-down on Durant. None of the Thunder's players could score more than 20 points in the whole match.

On the offensive side, and as usual, the leader was Allen Iverson. Nothing was enough to stop AI: 39 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals, all of this while being defended by a tight double-team during almost the whole match.

It was a superb team effort that completely dried out OKC's energies. A run in the third quarter (33-19) burried the visitors' hopes. In the end was a 16-point blowout, and The Brotherhood was now the best team of the league, as both Lakers and Clippers lost their respective matches and were now on a 11-2 record.

It also was the end of a disastrous weekend for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who only 24 hours before had lost another game by a 14-point blowout. Sooner than later, trade rumours began to spread as the Thunder were starting the search for more bench depth.

Post-game stats:

(Click for full resolution)

Ep.10: Rematch

Only days before, The Brotherhood and the Cavaliers faced each other at the Wells Fargo Center. It was a clash of titans, as both Allen Iverson and LeBron James scored 18 points. That day though, the diference-maker was Alonzo Mourning, who scored a season-high 27 points, while grabbing 5 rebounds and giving 6 assists.

LeBron took advantage of "Age Away" to return to Cleveland
and try to win a ring for the city

The Cavaliers learnt about their mistakes and made some changes in the rotation, giving Craig Ehlo the opportunity of starting a game for the first time this season. The starting lineup also included LeBron James, Larry Johnson and Kyrie Irving. The Sixers also changed their rotations, as Todd MacCulloch took Tristan Thompson's spot.

The first quarter was entirely dominated by The Brotherhood, as AI humilliated Ehlo's weak defence and finished the first 12 minutes with 19 points and 4 assists. In the second quarter LeBron James step up, scoring 10 points in 12 minutes and being the leader o the Cavs' 14-6 run.

After trading baskets during the most part of the third quarter, a triple-team on Iverson made him turn the ball over with only 10 seconds remaining. Then, Kyrie Irving passed Jrue Holiday's defense and scored. The last quarter would begin with the Sixers leading by 1 single point.

However, Allen Iverson again carried the team on his back and scored 22 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and give 5 assists in only 12 minutes. Meanwhile, Iguodala played lock-down defence on LeBron James, and both Ibaka and Mourning managed to control Larry Johnson's explosiveness.

It was an 11-point win for The Brotherhood, who now stands with an 11-1 record. James' Cavaliers went to the locker-room with a below 50% record of 5-6, and started planning the strategy for their next game.

Post-game stats:

(Click for full resolution)

Ep.9: Week Round-Up

Last one wasn't a bad week for The Brotherhood. The team played five consecutive games at the Wells Fargo Center, winning 4 (one the previous week) and only losing one, a heartbraking defeat against the Detroit Pistons. After a 22-point blowout against John Stockton's Utah Jazz, LeBron James' Cavaliers fell short of upsetting the Sixers after winning the last quarter by 12 points but losing the game by 2.

The last game of the week was against Raptors' big-three. Like the last time, The Brotherhood controlled the game and took a 6-point advantage, despite Raptors' last-quarter comeback efforts.

As usual, Allen Iverson was the team's top-scorer, as he scored 21 points against Detroit, 29 against Utah (also giving 10 assists), 18 against Cleveland and 19 against Toronto. The team stands right now on an amazing 10-1 record and leads comfortably the Eastern Conference. Although, their likely rivals in the NBA Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers, are also 10-1, after losing their only match two weeks ago against Chris Mullin's Golden State Warriors.

In the East, Philadelphia leads Miami (8-3) and tied Chicago and Orlando (7-3). Fifth is Indiana (7-5), Brooklyn and Cleveland are tied for sixth (5-5) and Detroit stands eigth win a 5-6 record. The biggest upset right now are Michael Jordan's Wizards, right now 10th with a 4-5 record.

In the West, the Lakers lead the Clippers (8-2). Oklahoma City is third (8-3), Utah fourth (8-4), Minnesota fifth (6-3), Kobe's Trail Blazers are sixth (6-4), Golden State seventh (5-6) and Memphis eigth (4-6). Hakeem Olajuwon's Rockets are 9th, half a game back from the Grizzlies. A big surprise is Spurs' terrible start, as right now they stand dead last with a 3-8 record.

Zoom In #2 - The New Bad Boys

Remembered for being the great villain of the late 80s, the Thomas-Dumars-Laimbeer trio returned to Detroit after taking a dosage of "Age Away." Adding to the squad Josh Smith (later traded to New York for Amar'e Stoudemire), the new Bad Boys were ready to retake the leadership of the league.

The team already played 9 games and, even though it wasn't the start they've hoped for, they are the only ones who could beat the unstoppable force: their last game was an 88-84 win over The Brotherhood.

Although right now they stand on a 4-5 record, the team enjoys good chemistry between players and everyone is doing their parts: 5 players are averaging double-digits points, and two of them are shooting above 50%

Isiah Thomas is their leading scorer with 14.4 PPG, followed by Dumars (11.2), Stoudemire (10.8), Laimbeer (10.6) and Corey Maggette (10.5). Both Thomas and Stoudemire are shooting 49% and 53% off the field respectively.

Also, the team has in Bill Laimbeer a player who is right now in the Top 15 of players averaging the most rebounds, as he right now averages 8.7 rebounds per game, and 1.4 offensive rebounds per game.

However, not everything is perfect in Detroit: three players are yet to make their first appearance in a game, as Rodrigue Beaubois, Jeff Adrien and rookie Andre Drummond are yet to play a single minute. Also Nate Robinson is said to have requested a trade, as he only averages 6 minutes per game with the team.

Ep.8: Unstoppable

The Brotherhood returned to Philadelphia after three succesful road games. Although, in ther first game after a week away from home, their rivals would be Milwaukee's big-three of Oscar Robertson, Sidney Moncreif and Pau Gasol.

The team was also loaded with talent in the bench: Brandon Jennings, Ray Allen and Caron Butler were the three stars coming off the bench. However, and because of a tough schedule, the team was standing on a 2-3 record.

"The Big O" was back in Milwaukee and ready to lead
the run for another championship

The first half was a duel between Moncrief and Iverson. Both took their teams on their backs and were the max-scorers, with 15 points each. However, and thanks to the contribution of Holiday and Iguodala, the 76ers finished the first half with a 3-point lead.

The Bucks responded quickly. Pau Gasol and Oscar Robertson finally step up and forced some fouls on Serge Ibaka, who was having an amazing defensive performance. Two three-pointers, one by Jennings and the other made by Ray Allen, gave the visitors a 7-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Allen Iverson was yet again the saviour for the 76ers, as he had an amazing clutch performance, single-handedly returning The Brotherhood to the game.

With about 4 minutes to go, the Bucks were out of energy and "The Answer" didn't forgive: five straight field-goals gave the Sixers the final 12-point lead. Even though it was again a close call, Iverson's 43-point performance gave The Brotherhood its seventh straight win.

It was Iverson's third consecutive game scoring 40 or more points, and the fourth consecutive scoring 30 or more. Although only two weeks of NBA had passed, some people were already considering AI as a possible MVP.

Post-game stats:

(Click for full resolution)