From the SacBee Kings blog:
Not that Kings fans needed more fuel for their conspiracy fire, but there is a rather odd development to the Game 6 controversy. Several of my colleagues say they've previously viewed video clips on YouTube of each game from the infamous 2002 Western Conference playoff series between the Kings and Lakers.
But as of today, clips of Game 6 are missing. All the other games are there. You can watch highlights of Kobe Bryant scoring 30 points in Game 1 and the clips from the deciding overtime in Game 7 remain. Another NBA blogger also picked up on the missing clips.
Where did Game 6 go? YouTube won't say. Their official response to my question was as dry as they come.
"We do not comment on individual videos or video sets," a spokesperson said.
And so the conspiracy continues.
I mentioned this earlier this week and how weird it was for what would be the hottest sports video on the planet to not be on YouTube.
Meanwhile, for all the a-hole bravado that David Stern let loose in his initial response to reporters, it turns out Ted Bernhardt didn't talk to the feds like Stern implied he did. Neither did Bob Delaney.
Not exactly a thorough investigation.
In other news, tonight is the first night I haven't watched an NBA Finals game since I was deployed in the military. My wife and I are knee-deep in Season Two of the Wire and frankly, it seems more entertaining than the garbage that is probably going on at Staples Center tonight.
UPDATE: Wow, I couldn't have been more wrong about the entertainment value of last night's game. Although, that frickin' McNulty is some kind of special SOB. Anywho, the point I was trying to make was that it's a shame that the NBA couldn't have dealt with the Donaghy issue earlier and better so that it wouldn't mess with the Finals. The "entertainment" comment probably also springs from my belief that if you remove the jerseys from these two teams, one is a less exciting version of the Spurs and the other a less-defensively adept version of the Cavs.