The Chat House

Sports News

Welcome to another edition of The Chat House, where Post columnist Michael Wilbon was online Monday, June 2 at 1:15 p.m. ET to take your questions and comments about the latest sports news and his recent columns.

A transcript follows.

____________________

washingtonpost.com: Michael has logged in and will be answering questions momentarily.

_______________________

New Orleans: So...who ya got in the NBA Finals and in how many games?

Michael Wilbon: I think I have the Lakers in six...but I don't want to make an "official" pick until Wednesday after I've had time to talk to more coaches and players, etc. I don't have a feel for it. I could make the argument either way right now, which means I truly, truly don't have a feel for it. I think the Lakers are going to get a rude awakening from the Celtics defense. The Lakers haven't been jostled and pushed around in the west, but the Celtics will surely do that to them from the opening tap...sort of like old times without the cheap shot stuff because these Celtics don't do that.

They don't have a personality who will even go there...And the Celtics, now that they've won two road games, have proven to themselves they can win on the road...So, I'm conflicted.

_______________________

Celtics vs. Lakers: Looks like you have it easy for the next couple of weeks. No shortage of stories or interviews there.

Michael Wilbon: Sorry gang...had to have a quick meeting with the ESPN bosses just now...Sorry about that...Anyway, I love the NBA Finals. Love the games, the off-day availability for the media, (the golf...Shhhh)...I like it a million times more, now, than the Super Bowl which is too big and the Final Four which has become too sanctimonious...And yeah, I've got some big stories planned, none of which I'm going to talk about here because I don't want to tip my hand...But I'm very much looking forward to wearing all my hats during the next two weeks.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Why is the NBA waiting a week to start the Finals? The season is too long, and the playoffs take two months. Speed it up.

Michael Wilbon: Yeah, I wish this was starting tomorrow, Tuesday, though I do like having four days at home (Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday) for the first time in two months...But I agree with you...If it had gone 7, either series, then Thursday would have been understandable. But there are area issues and TV issues I'll never pretend to understand that are at work here.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: If Kobe can win his 4th title, could he make a run at six, like Jordan, with this Lakers team?

Michael Wilbon: Yeah, perhaps. Now remember, Portland is coming and teams pop up out of nowhere ocassionally, like the Celtics did this year, because of trades and free agency. What if the Bulls choose the right coach and Derrick Rose becomes the next great point guard? We didn't even forsee the Lakers having Pau Gasol, remember?

_______________________

Minnesota: Wilbon, thank you for taking my question. Do you think the upcoming offseason will see a flurry of trades as teams see that Boston's trading for Garnett and Allen and L.A. trading for Gasol were the reasons for this year's exciting finals showdown?

Michael Wilbon: Ahhhhh, just what I was talking about. I do forsee a flurry because so many teams think they're close, and so many owners want to win now. Oh, New Orleans is a team I forgot to mention earlier. I think the Spurs will make deals, and the Pistons, and perhaps the Bulls, and Miami. I'd like to see the Wizards get involved and perhaps trade Arenas, though Ernie Grunfeld doesn't seem to be on that page with me.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Hi Mike: As a native Chicagoan who has lived in DC for 15 years, I admire your work greatly, both in print and on PTI. So, how about those Cubs? Have you ever seen a Cubs team that expects to go out and win everyday like this one does? I just hope the attention doesn't jinx them.....

Michael Wilbon: How about this: The Cubs, today on June 2, have the best record in MLB. This is the first time they've had the best record in the majors in June since...1908!

Are you kidding me?

That was the last time they won the World Series.

Of course, Cubs fans are tremendously excited. This is their second seven-game winning streak of the year. I'm terribly excited now, but there's so much time. It's such a marathon.

_______________________

Tampa, Fla.: Why do you think Doug Collins would be a good choice for the Bulls? Will his style of play mesh with such a young team and capitalize on their strengths?

Michael Wilbon: I cannot be objective in any way, shape or form about Doug Collins because I've leaned on him for years as a reporter and columnist. I'm totally, as they say, in the tank for Doug Collins. I don't know if he'd be good for the Bulls. His track record in Chicago, Detroit and Washington is that the team takes a big leap forward immediately, then sort of settles. Doug's a demanding coach and he doesn't suffer fools easily...I don't know. I do know he's a great teacher and the young Bulls (still the youngest team in the NBA in '08) need to be taught. But I'm a little conflicted. How long would he be there? So many questions we don't have the answers to...

_______________________

Ashburn, Va.: Mike -- thanks so much for the chats, they really are a great start to the week.

My question is from your perspective, does it really matter to the NBA or TV Execs that none of the games for the finals start before 9PM? Not one -- not even weekend games are before prime-time.

I know it's a topic that has been discussed a lot before, but it seems like every major sports today in general seem to ignore the fact that they are broadcasting when many younger fans are in bed. Maybe they have researched it and really does not matter in the long run. Thoughts?

Michael Wilbon: You can't just take the eastern point of view here. The Lakers are participants in the series. And last I checked the games start at 6 p.m. in California, and 7 p.m. in Denver, and 8 p.m. in Chicago...Do they start too late for us in the east? Yeah...But what do you want them to do where the games are actually played, in California? Start them at 5? Is that fair to people there? No. It isn't.

_______________________

Bulls are on the clock: Be careful what you wish for Michael. Imagine where the Celtics would be if they had won the lottery and chosen Greg Oden.

Michael Wilbon: That's right. But I don't trust John Paxson to make a great trade over the summer anyway. I'll take my chances with those players and D. Rose. The Bulls did make the playoffs three straight years with the young guys on that roster. The Celtics were dreadful, the Bulls weren't. But I'll take Rose in a heartbeat and live with the consequences.

_______________________

Bethesda, Md.: I don't like Kobe Bryant. I think he is a bad teammate, selfish, egomaniac and over dramatic whenever he is 'injured' or playing under the weather, like he is trying to match the Jordan flu game. But of course I don't know Kobe Bryant. You know Kobe. Tell me some things about him that will make me like him more. Thanks. Happy early Fathers Day.

Michael Wilbon: I think some of the sentiments you express about Kobe, which many have over the last dozen years, are out of date. I think he's worked in the aftermath of Shaq's departure, Phil's departure and return and the team having zero postseason succcess for three years, to become a very good teammate. I think he's put aside some of his self-indulgent ways...I think the sad, sad episode in Colorado also moved him in a different direction.

There have been times I didn't like Kobe very much, and over the last couple of years I've come to like him very much. That's a big swing, but I think we all have to remember that these guys are public figures by the age of 19 and have to grow up in public. I actually do know Kobe in some ways...have spent time with him, some in interview settings, some in personal social settings. And I've seen him evolve as a person to NOT exhibit some of the things that characterized him as a younger guy. I think he's worked hard at it.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Unlike Kobe, Paul Pierce has NEVER complained about his team, even when nobody would have blamed him if he did. Add to this the loyalty shown to Doc Rivers by Celtics management, it's not hard to see which team people should root for.

Michael Wilbon: People should root for whomever they want to root for. And Paul Pierce has been described by some as a total egomaniac at times in his life, which you may choose to ignore. He hasn't complained about his team publicly, which is admirable. But let's not make him out to be a saint or use it to justify your rooting interests. Paul Pierce is one helluva player, and clutch at that, which is reason to root for him and the Celtics if you want to.

_______________________

Baltimore: Hey Mike. Tell the truth - you watched at least some of the MMA on CBS Saturday, didn't you? It was hard to stomach Kimbo exploding that guy's cauliflower ear. Think this has staying power? (At least it's got Gus Johnson calling it, which doesn't hurt.)

Michael Wilbon: No, I didn't...Went to dinner with my wife and close friends in D.C. Saturday and didn't think a minute about it. It was the first Saturday night at home I've had since Christmas, so Kimbo Slice wasn't foremost in my thoughts, as you might now understand. But we've got the video in here and I'm going to watch it now...I'm not excited. I've seen the lowlights. I'm not an MMA kind of guy. My mind's not closed on it; it's just not my thing.

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: Does the NBA have a back-up plan if the postseason winds up extending through the start of the regular season?

Michael Wilbon: Is that your best shot at funny?

_______________________

NYC: If the Lakers win will it end the BS spread by some that Phil Jackson has gotten lucky all these years by having great players? Do they even need to win for that to happen, or is his talent now without doubt?

Michael Wilbon: I think Phil Jackson is the greatest coach, other than Red Auerbach, in NBA history...and he's up there in the history of team sports in America. This Lakers team didn't make the playoffs in 2005, lost in the first round in 2006 (albeit in 7 games to the Suns after leading, 3-1) and lost in the first round in 2007. Rudy Tomjanovich, one helluva coach with two championships to his credit, couldn't do anything with the Lakers when Phil was away for that year. The other night, with his team down 17 in a Game 5 at home to the defending champs, Phil stayed with his regular rest rotation, meaning he put Kobe and Gasol on the bench and stayed with the subs. You think Pat Riley would EVER have done that? Please, if he'd rested John Starks in 1994 the Knicks would have a championship, but Riley wouldn't...Didn't have the faith in his reserves (even though Rolando Blackmon was on the bench), didn't have the patience...Even great coaches panic...but not Phil...

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: It's hard to say Boston sport fans are starving, but it's been 21 years since the Celtics were in the Finals. Are hoop fans there starved or what?

Michael Wilbon: Yes, they are because they won 16 times in the first 40 years of the NBA...I hate to do this to you guys but I have to run and tape our guest for PTI who has to do this early today...Ticks me off, but I have no choice...We'll figure out a time next week to chat...It might still be Monday but I have to fly from Boston to L.A. Monday morn and it'll depend on the flight schedule...I'll get the earliest one possible to keep the chat at 1:15 to 1:30 start time...Everybody take care, watch the Finals...Be well. MW

_______________________

Washington: Did you just say trade Arenas? Why? And who do you think they could/should get for him if they did?

Michael Wilbon: Yeah, there are people out there. Shawn Marion? Luol Deng and Kirk Hinrich or Andres Nocioni...Elton Brand, Carmelo...It could work out...Could...

_______________________

Editor's Note: washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions. washingtonpost.com is not responsible for any content posted by third parties.