It's Playoff Season

Do you smell that? Are your eyes watering? Is it hard to breathe? Many would suggest I'm referring to Spring, and the allergies that usually come with it, but no. I'm referring to Playoff Season.

What is Playoff Season? For those who don't know: the day the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin. That feeling that there are only 16 teams out there that can win the championship. You would think that hockey would be enough, but no, the NBA also joins the party to make for what is almost always an enjoyable month and a half to two months for me. It also comes at an opportune time for me as well. I am an avid college basketball fan, being a student at Syracuse University. Okay, so maybe avid is putting it lightly. Rabid may be a better description of my allegiance to the Syracuse Orange men's basketball team- But back to business. Following the NCAA Tournament (the greatest playoff in sports, by the way), any real sports fan needs to find an immediate outlet for their passion and energy. For some, they simply shift gears to baseball. I can do this for a few days, but why focus on a bunch of April games that aren't that important in the big scheme of 162 games? That's why I turn to Playoff Season.

Just for some background information on my sports allegiances when it comes to the NBA and NHL before we continue, so I don't have to continually explain anything later:

As far as the NBA goes, I am a Dallas Mavericks fan. I've been one since 1999. I used to be a Knicks fan. Some may consider me a traitor for leaving my team just like that, but I digress. I still want the Knicks to be successful, I just want the Mavericks to be MORE successful. Some other noteworthy facts about me: I absolutely HATE the Rockets, Timberwolves, Lakers, Pacers, and Spurs. Don't ask me why, because honestly, they all have their own stories, none of which would probably matter to those reading this.

The NHL is a little less-complicated. I'm a New York Rangers fan since I was born, and though I don't remember the 1994 Championship, I still take pride in it. If the Rangers aren't around in the playoffs, I will support the Nashville Predators or Colorado Avalance, just because I need a team to at least follow so I can keep myself involved in the playoffs. NBA teams I hate include the Hurricanes (for leaving Hartford), Coyotes (for leaving Winnipeg), the Flyers (for being the Flyers), and Devils (because what real Rangers fan couldn't?).

If you've gotten to this point in the article, you're probably asking the point of all this. The answer: last night. Last night, my Mavericks played in game 5 of a series against the Warriors that they should have won already, but instead were down 3 games to 1 going into it. My Rangers were also in action, taking the ice against the Buffalo Sabres. I also had a public relations paper to do. Playoff Season puts that paper aside.

After the Rangers won in thrilling fashion last night, knotting their series up at 2 games apiece, it was up to my Mavs to save their season, and preserve my sanity for the night. Now I know it was a little late, but before game 3 of the Rangers series, I began to grow a playoff beard. I'm incredibly superstitious about sports, ask any of my friends about the "Kerry Collins jersey", "Sox hat". or the now-infamous "Rally Monkey", and they'll be able to tell you what events I "claim" to be associated with them. But so far, the playoff beard worked quite well for my Rangers, as they have won 2 straight games since I began to grow it out, so it's staying for the remainder of their playoff lives. But back to the Mavs.

After a masterful first portion of the second quarter, the wheels began to fall off. We were up by 21 points, and the lead had hit single digits. I didn't think it could get any worse. Oh, but it did. With a little less than two minutes left, I saw the Mavericks losing to the Golden State Warriors, 112-103. I couldn't believe my eyes. What happened? That's when Dirk Nowitzki finally stopped whining and realized he should start playing like an MVP. That's when they baffled myself and everyone else watching with a 15-0 to close out the game. It was amazing, it was astounding, and it was probably one of the best playoff games I've seen in awhile. For some reason, several of the Blazers-Lakers games from the Western Conference finals a bunch of years back stick out with the distinction "great". I'm sure there were some in between then and now, but for some reason, I can't think of any. It wasn't just the fact that the Mavericks made an amazing comeback, it was the fact that they saved their season, and maybe Dirk saved his MVP trophy. Stephen Jackson getting thrown out? Baron Davis fouling out? Just added to the drama of the situation.

It's games like that that justify me staying awake until nearly 1 o'clock. It's games like that that cause me to go into near-fits every couple of seconds. It's games like that that leave me writing a paper until 4 o'clock that same morning. It's all worth it though. All for playoff season.