NBA Playoffs 2011 Memes: Knicks Eliminated, Brandon Roy And Chris Paul Capture Our Hearts

The line led to the day’s ultimate Twitter meme, and with good reason. Andy covered this well on Sunday, but it bears mentioning: there’s a time and place to begin the discussion over whether Rondo’s development was aided by three Hall of Famers. Immediately prior to your team’s elimination game, when the dude has been shredding what you call your “point guards” all series, is not that time. D’Antoni may catch too much grief for having a shallow roster and two superstars who are an awkward fit at best, but he deserves every amount of ridicule he received for that line.

(Speaking of Jackson: does anyone else imagine Jackson and D’Antoni meeting on a plane and deciding to switch jobs, like in that Kobe Bryant Turkish Airlines commercial? We’ll then see D’Antoni scrambling to come up with broadcast catchphrases, while Jackson gets into a fight with Anthony while his Knicks keep losing. Then, when it’s all done, the two will agree not to question each other, and Jackson’s not-so-secret public lobbying for D’Antoni’s job on air will stop).

On it’s own, that’s special. When you throw in the fact that Roy was crying because of his inability to contribute enough to even get off the bench two games ago, it becomes the feel-good playoff story of the last several years. It was the kind of performance that really speaks for itself, and there’s really not much more for me to add. If you missed it, you better watch it again here.

But in Portland, that guy is beloved, because the whole city understands how difficult the last few years have been for him. Those angry quotes are correctly identified as a sign of frustration that, for all the work he put in to get to this point, his body is betraying him. There’s a level of empathy that’s so rare in professional sports, which is yet another reason why Portland fans are the best in the league. If you don’t think their support made a difference with Roy’s performance, just watch this video and tell me otherwise.

Why all the Paul love? Maybe it’s because he’s a throwback to how point guards used to play, instead of how they currently just slash and jump into people to draw fouls. Maybe it’s because he’s taking on the Lakers, the league’s title favorite and two-time defending champion, with a group of teammates that many non-NBA fans would be hard-pressed to recognize. Maybe it’s because he is so small and yet so dominant. Nevertheless, we’ve learned very clearly that Paul still has plenty left in the tank.

The thing that was so remarkable about Paul’s performance in Game 4 is that it wasn’t a typical Paul game. He got double-digit rebounds. He didn’t seem natural. No, instead, this was Paul stepping out of his usual element to dominate. At the Hive put it best:

Thankfully, we have some smart people covering this Heat team that can add more context. The truth is that Miami lost because everyone on the team stopped doing the right thing in crunch time. Wade had bungled the two previous possessions, so why not go to LeBron at the end. For more on this, Kevin Arnovitz of ESPN provides the must-read of the playoffs.

Individually, none of that makes sense. Collectively - well, they found a way, right? Just like Randolph’s shot was a poor decision that worked out, so to has Memphis’ rise coincided with poor decisions that have worked out. Hell, they even tanked the final two games of the season just to play the battle-tested Spurs! And it’s working! Up 2-1, with home-court advantage and against a Spurs team that is expending so much energy just to keep up, Memphis is in great position to win the series. Talk about the ends justifying the means.