STARTING LINE-UP:

PG - JOHN STOCKTON
All-NBA 1st Team ('94, '95); All-NBA 2nd Team ('88, '89, '90, '92, '93, '96); All-NBA 3rd Team ('91, '97, '99), All-NBA Defensive 2nd Team ('89, '91, '92, '95, '97); 10-Time All-Star; Olympic Gold Medalist ('92, '96); one of NBA's 50 Greatest Players.

SG - RICK BARRY
Elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (1987); NBA champion (1975); NBA Finals MVP (1975); All-NBA First Team (1966, '67, '74, '75, '76); All-NBA Second Team (1973); Rookie of the Year (1966); 8-time NBA All-Star; All-Star MVP (1967); One of NBA's 50 Greatest Players.

SF - GLEN RICE
3-Time All-Star; All-Star MVP (1997); NCAA Championship (1989); NBA Championship (1999).

PF - TIM DUNCAN
All-NBA 1st Team ('99-'05); All-NBA Defensive 1st Team ('99-'03, '05); NBA MVP ('02, '03), NBA Finals MVP ('99, '03, '05); 7-time NBA All-Star, NBA Champion ('99, '03, '05).

C - DIKEMBE MUTOMBO
NBA DPOY ('95, '97, '98, '01); 7-Time NBA All-Star.

BENCH:

PG/SG - PAUL WESTPHAL, All-NBA 1st Team ('77, '79, '80); 6-Time All-Star, NBA Finals Appearance ('76).

SF/PF - ROBERT HORRY, NBA Champion ('94, '95, '00, '01, '02, '05); Has appeared in the playoffs all 13 NBA seasons and has never been knocked out in the first round; Ranks third in NBA playoff history in games and ranks second in three-pointers made; Holds the NBA playoff record for the most 3PT-FG made without a miss connecting on 7-of-7 from downtown at Utah on 5/6/97; Set a Finals record for the highest 3PT-FG percentage in a seven-game series with a .484 (15-31) mark in 2005; Set the NBA Finals record for the most steals in a single game recording 7 at Orlando on 6/9/95.

PF/C - BEN WALLACE, NBA DPOY ('02, '03, '05) All-NBA 2nd Team ('03, '04); 4-Time All-Star.

OVERALL GAMEPLAN:

If you couldn't guess from the roster, this is a slow-down, half-court, defensive team. The offense really begins with the low-post threat of Tim Duncan. Stock and Timmy can pick and roll at almost any time and generate a good look for either one of them. If anyone is foolish enough to offer help, there is Rice and Barry spacing the floor just waiting to sink a jumper. Once Duncan has the ball in good position in the low-post it's as good as a made basket -- any help will be exploited because everyone (minus Mutombo) can hit a jumper, and any single coverage will be abused by The Big Fundamental. Once my team gets into its half-court set, it WILL generate buckets.

Also, let's not forget that there is a good amount of rebounding skill in every player (minus Stockton), especially matching up against low2behold. There will be PLENTY of offensive rebounds grabbed, and I'm perfectly okay with backing the ball out and setting up EVERY time I get one. If I have a 3-pt lead I might take a full minute on some possessions just to add two more points.

And the 4th quarter is mine. I could spot most teams 10 pts and still win the 4th. As long as I save my fouls I can completely disrupt any opposing offense when my team puts its mind to it, and with hot hands and deep threats like Rice, Horry, Barry, and Stockton I can DEFINITELY put runs together. If I DO have the lead in the 4th, it's as good as done. This is a possession oriented team that WILL milk clock and slow everything down. Most games will end in the 80s or 90s, I don't care how loaded these rosters are. The paint is going to be PAINFUL for the opposition in the 4th and I will NOT be taking shots with over 10 seconds on the shot clock.

We're basically a Bad Boys Pistons squad, only with better offense and a bigger, more athletic D. This IS the formula that kept Jordan from his first championships, recently upset the Lakers in 5 games after people were hollering about "Lakers in 3" and helped Tim Duncan earn 3 titles with minimal help. It's a proven winning formula, ESPECIALLY come playoff time.

MATCH-UPS:

STOCKTON v. AI -- While I respect that AI is a quick little motherfucker and can always grab himself some steals by jumping the passing lane, he's unfortunately going against one of the greatest passing PGs in the history of the NBA, if not THE greatest. John Stockton will not be turning the ball over, even if it is AI jumping the lanes. AI's on the ball D is nothing to get too worked up about either, so Stockton will pretty much have his way with this match-up on the offensive end.

On defense, AI will be able to get by Stockton, but he will be running into one of the biggest, most effective shot-blocking front lines in the entire competition, and we WILL be playing TEAM defense. The lane will not be kind to AI and he will be largely relegated to jump-shooting. His frustration will also lead to poorly advised jump-shooting. Stockton also happens to have more steals to his name than any player in NBA history, and he will surely be picking off his share of lazy and ill-conceived passes from AI. It's basically fundamentals v. insane streetball talent, and I'm going to pick fundamentals here.

BARRY v. KOBE -- Fine, Kobe will be able to score a few points.

Kobe will NOT be able to stop Rick Barry, though. Barry is my Super Rip Hamilton, he'll be running through screens on nearly every set and the slightest bit of separation means a made jumper off a Stockton dish. There's no good reason why Barry can't be getting 40 with Stockton feeding him the ball. This dude is bad, and I don't care, NO ONE in this competition can slow his game down, definitely not Kobe.

RICE v. ARIZIN -- Come on now. Here's a link to Arizin's bio:
http://www.nba.com/history/players/arizin_bio.html

He's small, he's slow, he plays the old game, and he is getting lit the FUCK UP by Glen Rice. It's 6'8" v. 6'4", Rice can shoot wherever and whenever he wants, and god forbid he takes the little kid into the low post. Rice will be making at least five 3-pters a game with this kid covering him. Any time we get tired of controlling the game through Duncan and Barry, Rice can step up and reel off 10 straight points without even trying.

DUNCAN v. WALLACE -- Is this the same Rasheed Wallace that a less than 100% Tim Duncan just won Finals MVP against? Oh, all right, I'm not too worried about it then.

MUTOMBO v. GILMORE -- We all know Mutombo isn't even really here to match up against the other Cs, but we also know that he's not about to get abused. Mutombo is going to hold his position, clean the glass, and make Gilmore work for each and every bucket. If he's ever in trouble 1-on-1 we can get the quick-handed Stockton in to help create TOs or we can have Duncan rotate to close down the lane. Gilmore might get 20, but he'll have to work hard for them, and it will just further feed into my slow-down tactics.

BENCH v. BENCH -- First of all, Walton and Ratliff are redundant. There's no good reason to put Theo on the floor unless Duncan has gotten the front-line in real trouble. And Peja Stojakavic? Are they really subbing him in for Kobe when Kobe is sucking air like it's going out of style after chasing Rick Barry like a madman for the past 20 minutes? And then Peja is gonna D someone? Rice, Westphal, and Barry can all light Peja up with minimal effort. Each and every minute Peja plays should be high comedy, as he worries about breaking his pinky nail trying to actually play some tough-nosed b-ball. Peja just further underscores how my team WILL win EVERY 4th quarter in this series.

As for my bench, I've got Westphal who is instant an offensive threat, Big Ben who can guard either Sheed or Gilmore, not to mention the paint, when I need him. Horry is there to give minutes and space the floor. This is the playoffs, remember, so whoever is covering him HAS to get out to the 3-pt line, meaning even more space for Duncan to have his way in the low post and more room for Wallace or Mutombo to grab offensive boards. Don't sleep on Horry's D either. He takes it SERIOUS when crunch time comes, no matter what his physical talents may be. Every guy can play multiple positions, so it will help keep rotations fresh and foul counts low. Every guy on this bench will be getting 20-25 minutes a night, and my slow-down, possession oriented gameplan will always be safe in their hands.

CONCLUSION:

I'm willing to admit that AI might black out steal one game all by himself, a la the Finals against LA, but that's it. Kobe and AI might have high point totals at the end, but real observers know they are just going to get frustrated and shoot the team out of every game. low2behold's FG% should be right around 40% for the series, and in a slow-down, possession oriented game that means disaster. Although my team might not be winning games by huge margins, we'll do everything when it counts and end up on top when the clock reads zero. Afer AI steals his one Hail Mary game, Kobe shoots the team out of the first 3 quarters, Peja cries about getting sexed against his will by Mutombo, and Duncan shows the MVP form he's always capable of, my team wins the Series 4-1.