Number of the Day: Kyrie Irving's 57 against the Spurs

courtesy of gettyimages

Yeah. Still not over it.

Game Six of the Thunder and Spurs: Zeus Goes One on One with Cronos

In any driveway or gym, the human eye is a keen observer. Youth bears witness to technique and instinct without even knowing: dribbling, shooting, pump faking, jabstepping, slashing. The slashing is key. And with every successful drive to the basket, a young athlete learns that not only can he do what his father does but he can do it quicker--precision be damned--gashing his way through an invisible veil, making the realization of the moment feel as effortless as a bulldozer burning through spiderweb. Driveways are full of big gaping holes between the past and the present.

George Hill: Keeping Hope Alive

Now that the George Hill era in San Antonio has come and gone we can say that it went exactly as we expected. He never delivered a championship or even an All-Star performance, but then again, what twenty-sixth pick from IUPUI ever does? What does IUPUI even stand for? Did we ever even find a position for George Hill? And the true answers to these questions are the paradoxical existence that is a team at the end of a championship run: Being drafted at the end of the first round to a team like the Spurs comes with all the mystery and pressure of being asked to perform necromancy, when to be picked by any other team would merely be a free pass to let the dead rest. When a team is on the rise, it relies on picking the right cornerstones at the top of the draft, but the more a team rises into the League's higher altitudes, it requires late round picks to prolong its oxygen supply, and George Hill was the Spurs' last breath.

The number of the day is:

55, as in Tony Parker went off in Minnesota last night by dropping an astonishing 55 points on the T-Wolves. One of those buckets included a 20-footer at the buzzer to force a second overtime. He added 10 assists and 7 boards in an amazing effort to help the Spurs avoid going 0-4 by beating Minnesota 129-125. Tony Parker has carried the team early in the season by leading the Spurs and the league with his 33.3 ppg.

For historical comparison, the last NBA player to have at least 55 points and 10 assists in a game was Michael Jordan. He had 57 points and 10 assists for Chicago against Washington on Dec. 23, 1992.

Time Waster- Hip Hop Edition

Now I had the idea to do this while watching tonights game, which is still in progress. I am going to give you some old school flava for ya ear brought to you by NBA ballers past and present, attempting to rap.

1. First up Shaq, the original NBA rapper featuring Fu-Shnickens.



2. Cedric Ceballos follows up, with a little help from Warren G.



3. Next up is Kobe Bryant accompanied by Tyra Banks, before the Black Mamba days.



4. Last but not least is Tony Parker.



The edge has to go to everyone who has had the benefit of never listening to any of these songs. I feel dumber.