About a week ago, I was driving down to Hermosa Beach to visit some friends when I saw something I haven’t seen in years. It was white, yellow, and purple and flapping furiously in the wind in front me. Could it…? Nah. But wait, maybe…? Yes! It is! My heart leapt into my chest as I realized what my eyes were seeing… A Los Angeles Laker flag! Riding proudly atop the vehicle of a true Laker Bandwag – er – fan. We’re back, baby!

While I’m not abandoning my quest to become a baseball fan, I am fully engrossed in, what I call, Basketball Christmas, or Kwanzifestivchristmahanukkah to be more politically correct. Game one of the Spurs-Suns series was one of the best basketball games I’ve ever seen… and I hate both of those teams. Passionately. I hate Tim Duncan and I hate Raja Bell and I hate Steve Nash and I hate Tony Parker. It doesn’t matter what stats you provide or glowing character references you give me. You may say, “hey Jocelyn, you only hate them because they keep beating the Lakers.” And you are exactly right. Plus, they are jerks. As a true Laker Girl, I can and will conjure up any nonsensical, emotional, or outlandish argument to support the Lake Show and what should be your 2008 NBA MVP, Mr. Kobe Bean Bryant. Not that I need to anymore.

With the exception of the Tornto-Orlndo (Inside the NBA, anyone? One of the best shows on TV), every series has had drama and excitement. All of the “There Can Be Only One” commercials give me chills. Well, not the Fisher and Camby one. I love D-Fish just as much as the next guy (who isn’t a Spurs fan with 0.4 seconds left on the game clock), but that was a stretch. Once again, Dallas fails to live up to, possibly unrealistic, expectations. The Spurs single-handedly discredited the Big Shaqtus trade. You don’t think the Suns could have used some Shawn Marion defense? I really wanted that series to go 7 games, with about 3 triple overtimes, 9 technical fouls, and a few suspensions, but you can’t have your cake and eat it too. Personally, I think it is absolutely hilarious that DeShawn Stevenson has decided to call out LeBron James. That’s like Soulja Boy calling out Jay-Z… oh wait… shoot. Houston, Philadelphia, and Atlanta (Atlanta???) have, if nothing else, made their respective series worth watching. MBA (most bad ass) award goes to Zaza Pachulia.

I don’t know if any other Laker fan had the same thoughts watching this series, but despite my devotion, I kept waiting for a breakdown, the other shoe to drop. But it never did. Pau was masterful in the first game. For three days, all I could think about was how Gasol reminds me of a soccer player. Stay with me. He’s like a patient, smart, and creative target forward. He knows just when to pass and when to take it himself, when to hold the ball and when to move it quickly. There was one play where Kobe was about to steal the ball and Gasol was already at the other basket. About to… he didn’t even have possession of the ball yet, but Gasol was anticipating! He also knew how to forget all of that in game 4, but that’s why we have Kobe, Lamar, and the rest.

Game 2 was one of the most dominant performances that I’ve ever seen by Kobes (that’s my nickname for him. Pronounce it Koh-bzzz). Even JibJab, who doesn’t even like the NBA (but somehow got Laker playoff tickets and I’m still bitter) texted me, “Would you have sex with George Clooney?” Woops… wrong one. Here we go… “Kobe is sick good.” He is beyond sick good. But I’ll stop now, because although we just swept a 50 win team, we still have a lot more basketball to play. Unfortunately, some of those teams will play defense as well. As a Laker fan and a basketball fan, I’m so happy that Kwanzifestivchristmahanukkah came early this year. Do yourself a favor and watch the playoffs. Do me a favor and get me some Laker playoff tickets. Please. Seriously. I really want them. Laker fever… catch it!

RotoHog Rundown

My team value dropped as low as $282 and some change. I have been able to climb all the way back up to $349.21. Also, BatterDayz is ranked respectably at 554 in the Fantasy Baseball Championship contest. Yes, be impressed. Would you like to know how I did it? Here are a few of Jocelyn’s Keys to Success:

- Buy the green guys in the morning (people going up in price). This is called “pulling a Sachin.”
- Always start two relief pitches – advice from JibJab, so don’t blame me if it doesn’t work out
- Before purchasing players, ask your knowledgeable friends if they suck or not.

Example: me - “Hey Sean, is Hendrickson any good?”
Sean – “Uh no, he sucks.”
Me – “Aaaand sold.”

- Apparently we are supposed to pay attention to the Position Usage. For now, I would disregard this. I know I have.
- You probably should have bought Chase Utley on the first day. That has really worked out nicely for me.

I hope that was helpful. Don’t forget to sign up for the HogBlogger League.