The Hoop and The Harm

Apologies to Rajon Rondo for turning in a play that was certainly worth a Hypothetical Trophy, but failed to receive one. Why? Because Dwight Howard is having himself quite a month. Watch Rondo break Anthony Carter’s ankles without using a crossover, spend a few seconds wondering how another play could top that, then check out Orlando’s big man dunk over (count ‘em) FOUR defenders. (If you have good ears, notice the music in the background. He fights for truth, justice, and the foul!)

Wow. That’s all. What an unbelievable exhibition of basketball. Really, what else can you say? It left me so stunned that it took me until Friday morning to write about it. I was going to put up a long, entertaining article about how awesome the weekend was, but it’s probably better to let the highlights speak for themselves.

- If you missed any of the dunk contest - the best one in 20 years, by the way - you can see every dunk by all four competitors. (Unfortunately, you miss some of the more hilarious moments, like Chocolate Thunder knocking Gerald Green’s sneakers off the table after his final dunk, or the long, uncomfortable period between the end of the contest and the announcement of the fan vote results, where Green had to stand at center court the whole time even though everybody in the arena already knew he had lost.)

- The NBA has also provided similar abridged versions of the 3-Point Shootout, the Shooting Stars Competition, the Playstation Skills Challenge (no, this is not the NBA equivalent of the Madden Bowl), and the Rookie Challenge, as well as the All-Star Game in 15 Minutes. (All of these can be found via the above link.)

- And as for the H&H action? I thought the refs were going to swallow their whistles all game, but I guess they must like the site too. There were about half a dozen H&Hs during the All-Star Game, and by narrowly defeating Amare Stoudemire in the fan vote, the Hypothetical Trophy goes to: Pookie.

In keeping with the seasonlong tradition, here are the Top 10 Plays of the 2008 All-Star Game. (Wade’s play at number 4 beat out Stoudemire’s play at number 6 for the award. If I had to guess, it’s because of the clap. I know, that sounds bad. But not as bad as Marv Albert after number 2 - I’ve never heard a funnier sentence during an All-Star Game.)

The NBA All-Star Game: Where Superman Getting a Facial Happens.

Thanks to the All-Star break, the past (almost) two weeks have been combined into one post. There were a lot of worthy candidates, but one rose above the rest. And by ‘the rest,’ I mean ‘Rodney Carney.’ Plus, there’s the whole ‘Pookie Rule’. And Pookie Rule or not, how can you NOT vote for a guy who dunked so hard he knocked his defender to the ground? According to the NBA, it’s the #9 Play of the Week, but here at H&H, it’s definitely in our Fav 5.

- PICK THE TOP HOOP AND HARM OF THE ALL-STAR GAME!

Send me your e-mails and you can help decide what play will be the official Hoop and Harm of Sunday’s All-Star Game in New Orleans! Give as much detail as possible (simply saying LeBron’s dunk, for example, probably isn’t going to be enough). All votes must be received by 9 PM Eastern on Tuesday (approximately 48 hours after tip-off).

It’s not often that you see a H&H from 20 feet away. But then again, it’s not often you see a player like AI. What makes this shot even more impressive is that because of the contact, he shot with only his arms while the rest of his body was going backwards. Trust me, ask any shooter, this is one of the most impressive shots you’ll see all year - it should be higher than #7 on the Weekly Top 10 Countdown, no?

The top plays for Week 12 are in -check them out here.

The Hypothetical Trophy for this week goes to Amare Stoudemire, who made Sean Williams wish he stayed in school one more year.

The All Star votes are in, and that means it’s only a matter of time before the final rosters are announced. Expect some feedback from yours truly, because I can tell you right now, they won’t look like they should.

Apologies for missing a week, but we’re back and if not better than ever, at least just as good.

Since there’s no point in bringing up old news, I combed the past TWO weeks of NBA action (hence the asterisk) for the best Hoop and Harm in the land. And there were plenty to choose from; check out the Top Ten plays of the past week, several of which could have easily nabbed the top spot. But my vote goes to Dwyane Wade because A) apparently anytime there’s an asterisk involved with this award, he wins it - call it the Pookie Rule - and B) He claps his hands as he flips the ball up over his head (notice the second replay). Maybe if he could flip his team’s record, he wouldn’t be the only one clapping in Miami.

I know you’ve all been giddy with excitement, so here it is: the first Hoop and Harm of the Week winner of 2008.

This week, the Hypothetical Trophy goes to the Lakers’ Trevor Ariza, who defies gravity -and defiles Grant Hill - to start the year off in style (Play #4 on NBATV’s Top Ten Plays of the Week.)

A belated Happy New Year to all of our readers, as well as to the NBA players who make you and I come to this site in the first place. As for Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian, I suppose it would be a preemptive Happy New Year to you.

Rookie Kevin Durant takes home the Hypothetical Trophy this week, becoming the second Sonics rookie to do so this season (Jeff Green, Week 1).

Interesting side note reagrding Seattle - former star Ray Allen comes back for the first time since being traded away this off-season. Expect a warm reception for the man generally regarded as the best shooter in the NBA.

Check out Durant’s jam, as well as the other Top 10 Plays of the Week, right here.

Why does Vince Carter deserve to win this week’s Hypothetical Trophy? Simply put, “He is gifted!”

Check out the Vinsanity that is the Number 3 Play of the Week here, courtesy of NBATV.

Check out the number 2 play from NBATV’s Top 10 Plays of Week 6, and tell me that Golden State’s Monta Ellis doesn’t deserve this week’s award. Not only was it a great finish, but it capped off a 21 point night for Ellis to help lead his team to a win.