Oh Canada!

Are the Lakers the new elite team out West with the addition

of Two Time Most Valuable Player Steve Nash?

Just over 5 years ago, I'll be honest, I wasn't exactly Steve Nash's biggest fan.  Nash capturing the MVP in the 2005-06 season put me in anger, to say the least.  Sure Nash had a great seaon, leading a high octane Suns team to the second overall seed in the Western Conference playoffs... but did anyone forget about Kobe Bryant's 35.4 ppg campaign?  He scored 81 points against Toronto and didn't get the nod for MVP?  He took the likes of Smush Parker, Chris Mihm, Luke Walton, and Kwame Brown all to the playoffs... that deserves an award of its own.  To a 12 year old kid who bled Purple & Yellow, let's just say that I wasn't too fond of Nash... until I learned to appreciate how unique of a player he was.

An elite point guard who passes first, shoots second.  A distinction that is thrown around much too often in today's NBA.  Right now two names come to mind when I think of that label:  Rajon Rondo, Steve Nash.  These two, and it should come as no surprise, were the top two assist men in the league this past season.  While Rondo is a younger, quicker player with an incredible 6'9" wingspan, Nash, even at age 38 can still effect the game just about as much as any NBA Point Guard.  Despite his age, Nash's coordination, court awareness, and ability to execute in Pick & Roll situations make him not only an asset on any NBA roster, but a superstar on any team.  Nash being a member of the Los Angeles Lakers will be no exception.  There are a few questions that will be floating around throughout the next few weeks:

1). How will Nash & Kobe coalesce?

A:  It shouldn't be a problem.  "Stevie Boy" brings a positive attitude to any locker room.  Also, him being a pass first Point Guard will help... no need to worry about egos clashing here.

            2). At this stage of his career, what kind of style benefits Nash more:  a half-court, slow down game or an up tempo, 1990 Loyola Marymount type of style?

  A:  Both.  Even with his age progressing, #13 can control the tempo.  Although he can't get up and down as easily as he used to, his Basketball I.Q. will give the Lakers baskets at times when Nash's age starts to show.  In the half court, his Pick & Roll opportunities are unlimited.  Bynum, Gasol, and even Bryant will start to see the baskets come much easier.  If Nash gets into the middle of a defense... the two points (or even three) are pretty much guaranteed.  

3) What would some of the red flags be by having Steve Nash as your new point guard?  

A:  Injuries.  Any 38 year old man would laugh in your face if you ever told them to play 82 games (and most likely more with the Lakers).  Although Steve Nash is obviously in great shape, he may take a bit longer to recover from even the smallest of injuries.

NBA 2K12 First Impressions

No rookies?  No problem.  NBA 2K12. will give basketball gamers all that they

 need during the duration of the NBA lockout.

No Kyrie. No Derrick Williams. Nobody will be taught how to Jimmer for the better part of two months since the release of the game. The lockout has left a number of NBA fans depressed, and maybe even drove a larger number away from watching the pro game. However, if you are a basketball junkie like myself, then NBA 2K12 will give you more than you need to stay entertained before the 2011-12 NBA season begins (whenever that may be). 

For the better part of an hour I navigated the menus, in absolute awe of a video game of all things. The 1964-65 Lakers vs the 1964-65 Celtics consumed the majority of my attention on October 4th. The black and white display, announcers' voices sounding 1960-ish, and no three point line were all among the amazing features that had my jaw dropped. Bill Russell, like he did in his playing days, changed the game like no one else. John Havlicek, with the ability to score from anywhere on the floor, bailed me out on numerous occasions. However, if the game came down to the closing minutes, Jerry West or high flying Elgin Baylor would stick a dagger in my heart with a spectacular play that they seemed to come up with on every single possession in the game's final quarter or overtime. Nonetheless, the NBA's Greatest Mode is extremely authentic, and even the casual basketball fan will be able to appreciate its accurate representation of the game in the "good ol' days."

The pregame pump up video is insane. Not only does the music coincidentally seem to fit whatever kind of game that you're playing, but one song even has a special effect when it is played during the pregame promo. If the song "Awesome" comes on, the word AWESOME will even pop up during the promo. After the short clip, the starting lineups look even more realistic than ever before. The back court players come up on the screen, dribbling the ball or even twirling it around their head while it displays their stats and percentages. The same happens with the three front court players. Like last year, the pregame rituals (such as Dwayne Wade's chin-ups on the rim, LeBron's Powder Toss, Tim Duncan's caressing the ball, etc.) all remain on one of the top selling franchises in sports video games. 

I have not seen it for myself, but from what I've heard, shots at the buzzer are reviewed on this year's game. It has been told to me that the referees go to the monitor after the shot, and even review the play in slow motion, so that one can tell much easier whether or not the shot was released on time. While the celebrations for winning shots are still a bit generic, the atmosphere in the arena definitely gets magnified by 100 when the game is close in the final seconds. Another thing that had me constantly viewing to the replay was the animated first row of the crowd. If the ball is heading towards the people who paid Donald Trump like money for their floor seats, they sometimes actually flinch to get out of the way. Other times, it seems like they also gravitate towards the ball. Some fan will be going home with a lucky souvenir. 

A thing that went remarkably unnoticed during Miami's 2006 Title run was the "White Out" by Heat fans. When you look around the crowd and see nothing but white, you know that the crowd is behind their team, and the stakes couldn't be higher. Now, when you play with certain teams on NBA 2K12, the local faithful will wear their battle colors. Whether it may be the blue for Oklahoma City, all red for the Windy City, or green in Beantown, you definitely know where you're playing during the postseason.

Now, unfortunately, come some of the negatives.  Despite 2K's servers being a major issue the last few years, they still have not been fixed.  On the game's release day, when I first played online, once I finally did find an opponent poor connection wouldn't even allow us to play.  Also, there were a few instances when the game froze after a defensive three second violation.  But, even with these few flaws found in this game, it without a doubt deserves the 9.5 rating that it received from IGN.com.

If you appreciate throwback basketball at its finest, do not hesitate to purchase the latest installment of 2K Basketball.  If you're a graphics person, then you may want to take a trip to your local Wal-Mart and pick up this game.  The faces look unbelievably real.  All in all, the pros outweigh the cons by a long shot.  Those who say "With no rookies, it's just like play NBA 2K11 all over again" couldn't be further from the truth.  In my opinion, this is the biggest leap that i've ever seen a sports game make over the span of just one year.