[Izulde]

"Hello, Mr. Jestor. Sam Mitchell here."

It's a little surreal, the Toronto Raptors GM calling me out of the blue like this on the day after we've been defeated by the Mavericks.

"Hey, Sam. Congratulations on returning to the Finals. Hell of a job your boys did coming back from a 3-1 deficit against the Knicks."

"Thanks. I just wanted to call you and tell you that you guys deserve a lot of credit, too. I know the loss was extremely disappointing, but nobody gave the Nuggets a chance and you pushed them all the way, even when Jones got hurt. That says a lot for the job you've done in putting the team together and its toughness. You've got nothing to be ashamed of. Heck, between our two teams, we owned the 2010s and we're still going strong into this decade."

"True, but it still stings."

"Sure it does. But you guys made it to six straight Finals, something that nobody's done since the Celtics dynasty way back when and got three straight titles out of it. And let me tell you, so what if Augusto's the one that beat you guys? Put his flameout last year on that team and subtract Jones's MVP performance last season and you don't have those three titles in a row. I know you're probably feeling pretty depressed now and I heard a rumor from a little bird that you're thinking of quitting, but I think you owe it to Yeaton to stick around until he retires at least. If you want to go somewhere else then, fine. But you've got a ton of first rounders coming up, including a guaranteed top five pick this next draft. By that time, you may love the new version of the Nuggets and want to stick around for them."

Strange as it sounds, Sam's words are a real comfort. The Raptors/Nuggets rivalry over the last half-decade has been an intense one, but it's one built on mutual respect and admiration. We both are really impressed with what the other's done and the dynasties we've been able to simultaneously build.

"Thanks, Sam. That means a lot. Now go and kick Augusto's ass for me, will you?"

Sam laughs, "You bet that's exactly what we're planning to do. And hopefully next season, we'll play each other again in the Finals."

So I'm in a better frame of mind for the Finals, but I still don't read the previews or watch the games. It still hurts too much to. Like when you're with the girl of your dreams, the one who's so perfect for you, you don't even look at other girls the same way anymore and then she dumps you for a slimy, super rich douchebag. It's too painful for you to even see her picture, hear her voice, or listen to other people talk about her, let alone see her in person.

It's a good thing I don't, because Dallas sweeps Toronto, a result nobody expected. Marcelino Augusto wins the MVP award and, from what I heard later, made a speech talking about much he loved the Mavericks fans and the city of Dallas, how they appreciated him and what he did in way that nobody else ever did.

It was a slap in the face to all the Nuggets fans who loved and lauded him so ardently. Him saying that about me is fine and probably accurate. But our fans deserve better than that. He may be a future Hall of Famer, but the more he's been in this league, this less I like him and the happier I am that I traded him.

NBA Lottery
14. Atlanta Hawks
13. New Jersey Nets
12. Charlotte Bobcats
11. Washington Wizards
10. Golden State Warriors
9. Houston Rockets
8. Los Angeles Lakers (-2)

Bad news. That means two teams skyrocketed into the top three.

7. Phoenix Suns (-2)
6. New Orleans Hornets (-2)
5. Memphis Grizzlies (-2)

Now the sweating out starts.

4. Indiana Pacers (-2)

Well, we avoid the worst possible outcome at least.

3. Seattle Supersonics (+4)

Great, the divisional foe leaps up to #3. But we're guaranteed to be ahead of them, which is far better than what it could've been.

2. Denver Nuggets (-1)

A little disappointing, but I'm okay with it, actually, which means...

1. Boston Celtics (+7)

Stunning upset by the Celtics, who can add a franchise youth player to all that old talent they have floating around Beantown. Talk about Lady Luck smiling down on them.

NBA Awards
MVP
Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors - 15.1 PPG 15.0 RPG 3.2 APG 2.6 BPG 1.0 SPG
Defensive Player of the Year
Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors - 15.1 PPG 15.0 RPG 3.2 APG 2.6 BPG 1.0 SPG
Rookie of the Year
Jamarcus Wilson - Philadelphia 76ers - 12.9 PPG 5.1 RPG 1.8 APG 0.9 BPG 0.7 SPG
6th Man of the Year
Al Jefferson - Charlotte Bobcats - 11.7 PPG 5.9 RPG 1.6 APG 1.4 BPG 0.6 SPG
Coach of the Year
Avery Johnson - Dallas Mavericks

Another BS MVP award for Oden, who frankly keeps getting fellated by the national media when he doesn't deserve it. I can't even remember the last time the MVP Award went to someone other than a C. But whatever.

All-NBA 1st Team
PG Corey Neal - New Jersey Nets
SG Justin Richler - Toronto Raptors
SF Devone Allen - Dallas Mavericks
PF Marcelino Augusto - Dallas Mavericks
C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors

Yeah, see, Augusto honestly deserved the MVP award over Oden. It's a bunch of horse manure.

All-NBA 2nd Team
PG Kenny Graham - Sacramento Kings
SG Filip Mikulic - Houston Rockets
SF Kevin Durant - Portland Trailblazers
PF Kelvin Moody - Minnesota Timberwolves
C Narcyz Malinomowski - Memphis Grizzlies

All-NBA 3rd Team
PG John Aylsworth - Cleveland Cavaliers
SG Jerian McCrary - Portland Trailblazers
SF David Anyan - Toronto Raptors
PF Henry Fisher - Utah Jazz
C Andrew Bynum - New York Knicks

All-Defense 1st Team
PG Leland Peterson - Washington Wizards
SG Walter Hicks - New Jersey Nets
SF David Anyan - Toronto Raptors
PF Kelvin Moody - Minnesota Timberwolves
C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors

All-Defense 2nd Team
PG Corey Neal - New Jersey Nets
SG Jermaine Butler - Boston Celtics
SF Devone Allen - Dallas Mavericks
PF Dwight Howard - Orlando Magic
C Dontay Williamson - Los Angeles Clippers

All-Rookie 1st Team
PG David Cormier - New Orleans Hornets
SG Rasheed Wheeler - Los Angeles Clippers
SF Wayne Scott - Atlanta Hawks
PF Jamarcus Wilson - Philadelphia 76ers
C Jarrod Hill - Seattle Supersonics

All-Rookie 2nd Team
PG Jason Griffin - Houston Rockets
SG Bernard Legans - Washington Wizards
SF Rick Smith - Indiana Pacers
PF Ronnie Fry - Memphis Grizzlies
C Mark Wilson - New Orleans Hornets

Hall of Fame Update
Dirk Nowitzki - 2017 - Dallas Mavericks #41
Kobe Bryant - 2017 - Los Angeles Lakers #24
Michael Redd - 2018 - Milwaukee Bucks #22
Elton Brand - 2018 - Los Angeles Clippers #42
Yao Ming - 2019 - Houston Rockets #11
Dwayne Wade - 2021 - Miami Heat #3
Ben Gordon - 2021 - Indiana Pacers #8
Gilbert Arenas - 2021 - Washington Wizards #1*

* - The NBA passed a rule that says 0 is reserved for summer league non-roster players, so Arenas took 1 as his retired number.

The meeting with Bob Neal about next season does not go well. I ask him to stick with our usual $15 million max deal, but he's demanding that we keep it under $10 million over the cap. How the hell he expects me to do that when we're already $31.8 million over with just 7 players signed, I don't know.

It appears I may have to break up the team some more, which is actually made somewhat easier now that the Rings Quest is over.

Mock Draft
Bad time to miss out on the #1 pick as the clear-cut top choice is 20 year PF John Walker from UCLA, the only player in this draft said to have 5* potential and the only one who's already obtained an elite level of development.

After him come a group of players all bunched together. We're projected to take Deon Sterley, a 20 year old PF out of Cincinnati, who impresses me initially, as his 6'9, 250 lbs frame reminds me a lot of Emeka Okafor's build, only Sterly appears to have the scoring hops to be an offensive force.

With the 20th pick, we're tabbed to select another PF, Mike Wise, a 19 year old one and done from LSU, who unwisely entered the draft too soon and who doesn't impress me.

The 25th pick sees us taking yet -another- PF in the mocks, 20 year old Czech Lubomir Novotny. He doesn't excite me either.

I do anticipate us leaving the draft with 3 players, though, as I think there's enough depth that we can find someone even at the 25th spot worth selecting.

Of course, one never knows how the workouts will turn out or just how the draft will shape up.

That's the beauty of draft night.