Author Topic: The NBA thread (Read 1519749 times)

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #1980 on:** May 16, 2011, 01:11:53 AM »

The Dallas-OKC series presents an interesting dynamic. On the one hand, you have the young up-and-coming kids looking to prove that they're legitimate contenders and on the the other you have the aging veterans trying to win their first ring as their window of opportunity rapidly closes. It'll be really interesting to see how that plays out in the series.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #1981 on:** May 16, 2011, 01:24:22 AM »

Chicago pushed Miami around all game. Bosh had 30 points but had little effect on the other side of the ball; Gibson and Boozer really did as they pleased. I kinda feel like Haslem would be a better body down low against those two, if not for the injury.

Wade and LeBron aren't going to struggle like that through the series, but Deng and the Chicago defense is clearly going to make them work for everything.

Noah was EVERYWHERE. I didn't know he took 14 shots until I saw the box score though; seemed like he was simply getting a butt load of rebounds, that big block, hustle plays, and some dunks here and there. I really didn't expect his scrappy play to carry into the NBA; honestly I thought he'd turn into some priveledge expecting bum. But dude is a baller.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1982 on:** May 16, 2011, 02:14:12 AM »

bit LTTP on Noah there, PD. He's been playing like this for a good 3 years. He's one of the most coveted big men in the whole league.

Well, I may have to eat some crow here

I thought the Heat's D was at least as good as Chicago's but the Bulls definitely looked stronger. It was like watching waves break against a cliff. Everything just got thrown back at the Heat, or picked off by the Bulls. I knew they would play balls-out but I wasn't expecting it to work this well on LeBron and Wade. Possibly there is some emotional hangover after finally beating the Celtics that is affecting those two, but if so, they deserve the loss. I'm not expecting the Bulls to score that many easy baskets going forward, but you never know. Their offense really feeds off the D, and I'm betting it feels REALLY GOOD saying no to LeBron and D-Wade

Shame about the Grizz but Durant and Westbrook figured them out at last, it seems. Still, they made an incredible run for an 8th seed and I'll be back on their bandwagon next season for sure.

Mandark · « **Reply #1983 on:** May 16, 2011, 02:23:15 AM »

I think Westbrook was catching a bit too much flak as the series went on, and I say this as someone who was worried by his shot selection and body language in the Denver series. Yeah, he has those possessions where he decides to shoot right from the start, but even when he was looking for Durant the Grizz were doing a great job of denying that pass or at least forcing Durant to receive way away from the basket or his comfort zones.

It's something he maybe hasn't dealt with that much in his career. As great a scorer as he is, in the NBA regular season teams usually won't go so all-out to keep the ball away from one player. Seemed to have it figured out by the last game though.

Missed most of MIA-CHI. Looking forward to watching the rest. Might be one of those series that comes down to whether the Heat's no-names can convert 3's, or maybe it's just a matter of Wade and LeBron trying to bludgeon their way through a series of 83-78 games.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1984 on:** May 16, 2011, 02:53:21 AM »

19 offensive rebounds for the Bulls. Those are Rodman numbers.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #1985 on:** May 16, 2011, 08:39:11 AM »

It's very easy to over-react to one game especially a home game but the Bulls just seem to be the team built to handle the heat. And this is a bit of an easier conclusion to come to since they've now beaten the heat 4 times in a row this year.

This is the one series where just being more athletic isn't going to win them the series. And how shitty their half court offense can be is going to be exposed if they can't get lots of turnovers and fast break points in easy transition.

It also doesn't help that I think Spoelstra sucks and will get out coached this series. Dude never reacts to what is going on in the flow of a game and takes way too long to react over the course of several games to correct issues. That's not going to work in this series

I stand by what I said earlier. If the Bulls win the next game, the Heat are in massive trouble. They don't show a toughness when things go wrong.

The only real positive thing the Heat could take away from that first game is that the Bulls were unusually hot hitting perimeter shots and that should even up as the series continues.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1986 on:** May 16, 2011, 08:39:53 PM »

Quote from: Mandark on May 16, 2011, 02:23:15 AM

I think Westbrook was catching a bit too much flak as the series went on, and I say this as someone who was worried by his shot selection and body language in the Denver series. Yeah, he has those possessions where he decides to shoot right from the start, but even when he was looking for Durant the Grizz were doing a great job of denying that pass or at least forcing Durant to receive way away from the basket or his comfort zones.

It's something he maybe hasn't dealt with that much in his career. As great a scorer as he is, in the NBA regular season teams usually won't go so all-out to keep the ball away from one player. Seemed to have it figured out by the last game though.

Missed most of MIA-CHI. Looking forward to watching the rest. Might be one of those series that comes down to whether the Heat's no-names can convert 3's, or maybe it's just a matter of Wade and LeBron trying to bludgeon their way through a series of 83-78 games.

There is a lot of truth there about Durant-Westbrook. Durant was letting himself get pushed away from his spots, so there was often little point in Westbrook passing to him. In Game 7, he was a lot more mobile. Durant is really a 7ft Reggie Miller in many ways. Needs to spend a lot of time cutting off screens to be successful. Either that or lift big weights.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #1987 on:** May 17, 2011, 01:52:43 AM »

[youtube=560,345][/youtube]

Brehvolution · « **Reply #1988 on:** May 17, 2011, 02:41:47 PM »

I saw that yesterday and the first word to come to my mind was "Filthy".

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1989 on:** May 17, 2011, 08:29:33 PM »

Yeah, and it's worth remembering that at 6'3'' or so, Wade blocks those shots regularly.

It's interesting that Gibson is blooming as an offensive player a bit, 'cause he brings so much else to the table. It's not clear to me that this is going to continue, but if it does, the Bulls will have a real player on their hands.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #1990 on:** May 17, 2011, 08:57:11 PM »

Stern just gave the Cavs the 1st and 4th pick in the lottery in compensation for Lebron

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1991 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:04:16 PM »

so, who have you got in Thunder-Mavs? I don't even know who has home court in this one - Thunder?

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #1992 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:04:19 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on May 17, 2011, 08:57:11 PM

Stern just gave the Cavs the 1st and 4th pick in the lottery in compensation for Lebron

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #1993 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:10:12 PM »

Quote from: Cormacaroni on May 17, 2011, 09:04:16 PM

so, who have you got in Thunder-Mavs? I don't even know who has home court in this one - Thunder?

The mavs have homecourt.

I legit don't know. I think they both are capable of winning this series. If I was a betting man I would probably go with Dallas but I don't really have any concrete reasons for that. I mean I could come up with some but I think the Thunder equally have some advantages on their side (youth and quickness being the two primary ones). I do really like what Tyson Chandler brings to the Mavs on defense.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1994 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:12:54 PM »

I liked Tas Melas' tweet (the guy from the Basketball Jones) -

'No-one can stop Kevin Durant. No-one can stop Dirk Nowitzki. No-one can win the Western Conference Finals'

I mean, the way basketball writers approach this is like the Buttered Cat Paradox. Everything is uber-simplified to make a story that newbs can pick up on from the headline. But it makes no sense whatsoever. No superstar is ever stopped. Team defense is far more important than individual defense.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buttered_cat_paradox

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1995 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:21:01 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on May 17, 2011, 08:57:11 PM

Stern just gave the Cavs the 1st and 4th pick in the lottery in compensation for Lebron

this year's draft sounds absolutely horrendous. It really sounds like paying any of these guys will be a financial burden.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #1996 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:23:49 PM »

Quote from: Cormacaroni on May 17, 2011, 09:21:01 PM

Quote from: Stoney Mason on May 17, 2011, 08:57:11 PM
Stern just gave the Cavs the 1st and 4th pick in the lottery in compensation for Lebron

this year's draft sounds absolutely horrendous. It really sounds like paying any of these guys will be a financial burden.

Yeah I was gonna make the joke that the Cavs are still cursed because they get high draft picks in what most are forecasting as an incredibly weak draft. I'm totally going by the pundits though as I don't really watch much college basketball anymore these days.

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #1997 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:27:35 PM »

I'd trade the #1 pick and let someone else draft Kyrie Irving. At best, he'd be about the level of a Mike Conley, which is not worth a #1.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #1998 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:30:25 PM »

Sounds like all the good guys opted to stay in college (4 or 5 of them), which is bizarre given that they could have such a great shot at being #1 or #2 this year, and that next year could have a whole different rookie contract system due to a new CBA.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #1999 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:38:42 PM »

Kyrie Irving is a baller, and is better than John Wall imo. But Duke guards don't translate well in the NBA heh, so we'll see.

I wonder how Derrick Williams will translate

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #2000 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:55:41 PM »

Irving is just average athletically which means he might have a hard time guarding speed devils like Rose or Westbrook. On offense, his jump shot doesn't seem to be good enough to make up for his lack of explosiveness. The best thing about Irving is his size but NBA rules make it much harder for a perimeter player to rely on strength.

Williams seems to have more potential but athletic wingmen are a dime a dozen. Even if Williams turns out pretty good, he might not ever be top 10 at his position, which is what you'd want for a 1-3 pick. For a draft like this, I would lean towards drafting whatever is needed for my team instead of drafting the most talented player available.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2001 on:** May 17, 2011, 09:56:42 PM »

Well, I'm sold on John Wall so that sounds like an upgrade for Cleveland vs the bloating corpse of Baron Davis. It sure doesn't look like there are any LeBrons or Durants in this draft though.

Good game so far, looks like we'll see some great Dirk-Durant shootouts in this series

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2002 on:** May 17, 2011, 10:01:17 PM »

Real talk - has any bench player in these playoffs had more of an impact than JJ Barea?

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2003 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:05:29 PM »

Dirk

This is a Kevin McHale-like bag of tricks he's displaying tonight. Unstoppable.

Mandark · « **Reply #2004 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:19:38 PM »

Dirk showing the skills that made a bunch of NBA GM's start overrating tall foreigners during the early aughts.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2005 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:21:36 PM »

I don't think I've seen anyone draw fouls on as many different players in a looooong time. And unlike Shaq, he is capitalizing on it.

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #2006 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:23:08 PM »

JJ Barea

Dating supermodels

Making baskets

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2007 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:25:12 PM »

Quote from: Mandark on May 17, 2011, 11:19:38 PM

Dirk showing the skills that made a bunch of NBA GM's start overrating tall foreigners during the early aughts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikoloz_Tskitishvili

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2008 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:32:37 PM »

Think Darko really has to be #1 though Stoney

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2009 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:33:47 PM »

well, the rest has certainly been good for the Mavs. Dirk is more unstoppable than Durant. Hell, he is more unstoppable than Galactus.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2010 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:42:02 PM »

that JJ Barea - he just toys with you. You can only hope to contain him.

Mandark · « **Reply #2011 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:45:42 PM »

Even though "unstoppable" is mostly used as a synonym for "really good", I think Dirk really is the least stoppable player in the league. Of all the great scorers in the league right now, he seems to be the least affected by whoever's guarding him.

While you can get Jason Collins to mess with Dwight Howard, and Tony Allen was giving Durant some problems yadda yadda, is there anyone who can really stop Dirk from shooting a fadeaway jumper from the elbow that starts from above his damn head?

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2012 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:45:57 PM »

Good god - Durant isolated against Barea at the top of the key...Durant drives past him into a crowd

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #2013 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:46:49 PM »

Dirk's going all Wilt Chamberlain on the Thunder!

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2014 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:48:32 PM »

Quote from: Mandark on May 17, 2011, 11:45:42 PM

Even though "unstoppable" is mostly used as a synonym for "really good", I think Dirk really is the least stoppable player in the league. Of all the great scorers in the league right now, he seems to be the least affected by whoever's guarding him.

While you can get Jason Collins to mess with Dwight Howard, and Tony Allen was giving Durant some problems yadda yadda, is there anyone who can really stop Dirk from shooting a fadeaway jumper from the elbow that starts from above his damn head?

Nope. David Robinson might have been able to affect that but of current players, not even Dwight Howard can stop it. The killer is he is also incredible at drawing fouls from that position - witness Harden's dumb foul on him (albeit from closer in...)

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2015 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:50:52 PM »

As I expected it's gonna be a fun offensive series.

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #2016 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:52:23 PM »

Western Conference superstar duel

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2017 on:** May 17, 2011, 11:58:25 PM »

Durant has 40 but who is even noticing with Dirk and Barea lighting it up like this

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #2018 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:06:06 AM »

15 shots. 48 points. Unbelievable.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2019 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:07:12 AM »

from Kevin Pelton -
Nowitzki fouls drawn: Ibaka 5, Sefolosha 3, Collison/Durant/Westbrook 2, Harden/Perkins 1. 16 total.

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #2020 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:07:58 AM »

Dirk almost single-handedly fouled out Ibaka.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2021 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:09:21 AM »

more Kevin Pelton -
Fewest shots in a 45-point game in that span was 23 by Jordan vs. Orlando in '96. Dirk took 15.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2022 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:15:14 AM »

Durant and Westbrook combined for 60 and were still down by 10-plus most of the game. That's...not good for the Thunder.

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #2023 on:** May 18, 2011, 12:49:01 AM »

Dirk was in straight beast mode today. Aside from rebounding, Dirk might be playing the best ball of his life, which is amazing for a 32 yr old big man that runs as much as guards.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2024 on:** May 18, 2011, 02:12:03 AM »

4 blocks too.

Still, although it felt like total domination, the Mavs didn't really put this away 'til that last Terry 3 with 28 seconds to go. I think this will be a great series.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2025 on:** May 18, 2011, 02:13:49 AM »

YET

'"I don't think you can make comparisons to me and LeBron," said Irving, who attended the lottery. "One, I'm not 6-8. Two, I'm not a high flyer and three, my name isn't LeBron James. Honestly, you can't make those comparisons yet.'

Also

at the Clippers for trading away what turned out to be the #1 pick. For Mo Williams.

Mandark · « **Reply #2026 on:** May 18, 2011, 06:27:59 AM »

I only just now realized that the Clippers didn't protect that pick at all.

WTF?

T-Short · « **Reply #2027 on:** May 18, 2011, 06:58:16 AM »

Quote from: Mandark on May 18, 2011, 06:27:59 AM

I only just now realized that the Clippers didn't protect that pick at all.

WTF?

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2011/05/17/no-regrets-for-clippers/?ls=iref:nbahpt1

Quote

“Protecting the pick was never an option,” L.A. general manager Neil Olshey told NBA.com. “There is no way to Monday morning quarterback this (since) our draft position wouldn’t have been the same had we not made the deal as I’m sure we would not have finished 11-11 post-trade without Mo Williams.

“Additionally, we had a 97-percent chance of sitting here tonight with Baron Davis (taking up 25 percent of our cap), the eighth pick in a weak draft and no cap flexibility. Adding Mo Williams and $8.5 million in cap room gave us a better opportunity to become a playoff team next year than adding a seventh player under 23 with no NBA experience.”

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2028 on:** May 18, 2011, 07:38:15 AM »

Donald Sterling will shortly announce a statement thoroughly endorsing Olshey and reassuring everyone that he will be the GM for the long haul no doubt

Ah, it's not THAT bad really: the team runs better with Mo Williams, and Baron was clearly cancerous and despised by Sterling. They got a bunch of cap space that can bring in a better player than whoever they would have gotten at #1. It's just hard to believe they couldn't have gotten it protected for picks 1-3.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2029 on:** May 18, 2011, 08:33:08 PM »

Must win game for the heat imo

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2030 on:** May 18, 2011, 08:45:05 PM »

Already killing them on the boards.

Why isn't spolestra trying Haslem or anybody else to rebound since Bosh and anthony can't.

edit: And Magloire gets inserted. He's fucking awful. Why him?

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2031 on:** May 18, 2011, 09:06:11 PM »

Everything going Chicago's way after one quarter even though they struggled to hit outside shots. Not looking good for the heat.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2032 on:** May 18, 2011, 09:15:35 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on May 18, 2011, 08:45:05 PM

Already killing them on the boards.

Why isn't spolestra trying Haslem or anybody else to rebound since Bosh and anthony can't.

edit: And Magloire gets inserted. He's fucking awful. Why him?

Spoelstra is simultaneously the most stubborn and most panic-stricken coach I've ever seen. I think maybe he wants to make more changes but is terrified of Riley. And his Big Three.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2033 on:** May 18, 2011, 09:26:01 PM »

Chicago is just the better team (with a better coach). I'm just about ready to call this series.

TakingBackSunday · « **Reply #2034 on:** May 18, 2011, 09:28:45 PM »

Yeahhh if Wade or James don't score like woah, this game seems pretty rough.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2035 on:** May 18, 2011, 09:38:14 PM »

The Bulls are playing the Heat the way I had hoped Boston would play them. It's ALL uphill for Miami. Huge test for LeBron and Wade here - they need to carry them to a crazy extent to win this.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2036 on:** May 18, 2011, 10:14:32 PM »

Heat have picked it up quite a bit. Entertaining game.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2037 on:** May 18, 2011, 10:18:15 PM »

Haslem has been playing well. Maybe he could have helped you last game jack ass Spolestra.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #2038 on:** May 18, 2011, 10:22:57 PM »

Why Bibby is EVER on the floor, I have no idea. The Heat's best line-up is clearly some combination of Chalmers, Wade, LeBron, Bosh, Haslem and Anthony. NOBODY ELSE should ever be on the floor barring foul trouble. Literally everyone else kills them.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #2039 on:** May 18, 2011, 10:26:54 PM »

One of the other things that is helping the Heat is that the Bulls have come down from their crazy outside shooting in the first game. I knew that was gonna happen.

EDIT: Why the fuck is Magloire playing?

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Author Topic: The NBA thread (Read 1519749 times)