OK, ok. It's Friday so let's go with Big Steve's (Clint, if you remember that guy I'll give you $1, lol) old message board addage of, "chatter, not splatter."
-Pacers current form is way down yet the price does not reflect this. Bucks still in the adjustment period with payton faced the two teams (besides the Lakers) that they match up most poorly with in the NBA, Minny and Phoenix, in their last two. Those losses are deceiving and they are in a great spot to respond with a win against a team that they match up better with tonight.
-Sonics obviously are in top form with Lewis on fire and Allen playing a role similar to Pippen in 1994 and 1995. Emergence of Dobnjak and James as post threats is important in both working Shaq on the defensive end and taking advantage of mismatches at the four. Lakers, in a 3 of 4 and back to back, come off a couple of tight wins over teams in poor form. Should be a shock to the system to play a team in top form.
-Sabres called up the AHL's top goal scorer to replace the departed defensive minded Varada, which should be a boost to scoring. Tugnutt has faced a demanding schedule and now travels after an overtime game where he lost on a soft goal. Sabres have no defensive stoppers to neutralize Guerin and Lehtinen and when that happens, numbers tend to pile up, similar to the game vs. Boston recently. Sabres actually have scored 8 goals in their last 3 games despite continuing their poor shooting percentage, so another 2 or 3 goals tonight is likely and should send the game over
