I'm only creating this so I can have a place to quickly say that I've watched basketball pretty much my entire life, and Steph Curry may be the 2nd best basketball player I've seen in my lifetime. This guy is Isiah Thomas/Allen Iverson/Reggie Miller all morphed into one. Remarkable.
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NBA Playoffs Spam Discussion
- Thread starter jmt225
- Start date
The first round of the playoffs have been a bit underwhelming compared to last year's. But injuries hav hit certain teams like the Blazers, Grizzlies, and even if the Spurs.
But yes, Steph Curry is a hell of a player. Great comparison btw. Never thought I'd see an Allen Iverson/Reggie Miller type player. That's a scary thought. He can score at will while dishing the ball to his teammates.
Let's hope Kawhi Leonard can take his game to the next level during these playoffs. He was phenomenal last year but injuries hurt him during the regular season. This may be the year of Kawhi yet again.
But yes, Steph Curry is a hell of a player. Great comparison btw. Never thought I'd see an Allen Iverson/Reggie Miller type player. That's a scary thought. He can score at will while dishing the ball to his teammates.
Let's hope Kawhi Leonard can take his game to the next level during these playoffs. He was phenomenal last year but injuries hurt him during the regular season. This may be the year of Kawhi yet again.
Ty Burna
Getting Noticed By Management
I highly doubt it. Warriors would have carved up what little defense OKC had. Klay would have limited Westbrook pretty substantially as well.
Anthony Davis though. Good god someone get that man a proper coach and some better pieces around him. New Orleans is gonna be scary as fuck in the next few years. He was destroying anyone guarding him this round. Draymond was too small and Bogut was simply too slow. The post moves he's got with the strength and athleticism. Oh and he can knock down the midrange now too.
Kermit
the Frog
Who said the game was ever going to be about defense?
The last time the teams played was back in January and that was just when Westbrook was heating up with his triple-double streak. Westbrook got a triple-double and they killed Golden State by putting up 127. That was also one of the few times Durant was back, so he had to split numbers with him. Westbrook's late surge and the addition of Kanter would have gave Golden State some trouble. I never said they would win the series, but picking up one game in a seven series is more than believable. I know that you are biased with your Warriors, though. Just as I am with my Thunder.
Ty Burna
Getting Noticed By Management
Who said the game was ever going to be about defense?
It's the playoffs. It's always about defense. Just ask Steve Nash and the Suns. Kanter would have been handled by Bogut and Draymond pretty well. Even if you let Westbrook get his and Kanter is your next option who has to go against two stout defenders, who's your third option? Ibalka who had regressed badly this year? You stifle everyone else and Westbrook gets his they still lose. Happened to them when he dropped 54 and they still lost..... to the Pacers. Who are not a good offensive team.
Kermit
the Frog
Overall, yeah, defense matters in the long run, but we are talking one game. Winning one game. Morrow, Waiters (a stretch), and Adams have all shown they are capable of putting out 20+ points on any given night. Ibaka was also slated to come back in the first round. Had he regressed? Hell yeah, but how much of that was due to his nagging injury that he had to have surgery for? I'm not saying the Thunder gets even close to pushing a series win, but one game is doable. I'm sorry, but with the type of season Westbrook had at the end, all it takes is one off-night for Golden State out of four to let the Thunder pick up one game off of his momentum.
Also, I'm not going to spend time explaining why picking a single game against the Pacers versus some of the other amazing performances they had toward the end of season is not sensible for defining the team. It's silly to do that just like it is silly to do in wrestling when defining a prestige of a wrestler. Surely you also know that there is a difference between a game like that (with an attitude of being fat and happy) and the intensity that comes along with a playoff series. Especially against a conference rival that took your spot at the top of the pack.
In the end, this "debate" is meaningless for obvious reasons. The Thunder is not in the playoffs, and I am biased in my affiliation. A Westbrook led Thunder is simply a team I would put money behind to pick up a playoff win. Besides, my comment was merely meant in jest in light of them missing the playoffs. You're not going to change my mind, and I never wanted to change yours.
This is a tough one. I'll say that if Ibaka came back in time for game 1 - even if he was at 50%, they could've won one game MAYBE. The OKC offense is pretty much Westbrook driving to the rim and kicking it out to shooters (Morrow, Novak, Augustin). Then you have Waiters who can shoot them out of a game. Westbrook can shoot them out of a game as well. Like I said, this is a MAYBE that they'd win one game.
The playoffs, for some reason, is a whole different monster. You gotta have your team clicking on all cylinders and your defense has to be great. So either the Pelicans or the DEPLETED crew of the Thunder probably wouldn't have won a game against the Warriors. They're the best team in the West for a reason.
Don't get me started on the Pelicans and their potential though.
The playoffs, for some reason, is a whole different monster. You gotta have your team clicking on all cylinders and your defense has to be great. So either the Pelicans or the DEPLETED crew of the Thunder probably wouldn't have won a game against the Warriors. They're the best team in the West for a reason.
Don't get me started on the Pelicans and their potential though.
One Punch Doug Crashin
I AM INVINSIBLE!
Calling it now. Warriors vs Wizards....
The thunder might be able to get one game off of the Warriors but they will probably be blown out in 3 of the other games. Kanter and Morrow are minus defenders. Westbrook gambles too much on D too. Westbrook and Waiters will compete with each other in who can take the worst shot on offence. I think the Pels provided better competition than this OKC without Durant and a recovering Ibaka could.
And Steph Curry is simply Steve Nash that takes more shots. Don't need to go back to Miller or Isiah to find a comparison.
And Steph Curry is simply Steve Nash that takes more shots. Don't need to go back to Miller or Isiah to find a comparison.
The Holy One
What's really good?
So I see Chris Paul decided to have one of those "Fuck it, I'll win it myself" type of games. I feel a lot of people are underrating the first round this year. Sure most of them are going only 4 or 5, but all the games have been more competitive for the most part besides Games 1 and 3 of Clippers/Spurs.
PeterSellersSTL
Getting Noticed By Management
can't wait to see my guy Beal and the Wizards end Toronto tonight. hoping for a sweep.
Well, Celts got swept, but I'm not too upset by it. The fact that we even made the playoffs as a #7 seed was way more than anyone expected, especially after Rondo and Jeff Green got traded. Brad Stevens has done a great job as a coach, I think everyone who's a C's fan is on board with him and Danny Ainge's vision for this team in the future now, even if we all were a bit pissed to see basically our entire team traded away or left to leave via free agency, I won't act like I don't miss the Big 3, but our new core of players have me really excited for the future, especially Isiah Thomas, Marcus Smart, Avery Bradley, and Tyler Zeller. Probably not next season, but soon this team can be a contender with the roster they already have, nevermind if they improve on it.
Rooting for the Warriors or Rockets the rest of the way because I like Curry and Harden. More for the Warriors because I like it when a historically bad team becomes good and makes a title run.
Rooting for the Warriors or Rockets the rest of the way because I like Curry and Harden. More for the Warriors because I like it when a historically bad team becomes good and makes a title run.
Clippers got a big win today. That series could have been the Western Conference Finals if the teams were seeded by record in each conference. Chris Paul was spectacular. Raptors are getting embarrassed and put up an abysmal effort in this series. The Cavs suffered a blow with Kevin Love getting injured. We'll have to wait and see how much time he misses. The Cavs can make it to the Finals without him but won't win it all with him on the sidelines. LeBron will have to turn into the Super LeBron we saw the last few years in Miami.
I don't think teams leading wire to wire makes the games competitive though.
The first round has been shit besides the Spurs/Clippers.
The Holy One
What's really good?
If wire to wire means only like 5 points or less, then yes that is competitive. Every Celts/Cavs, Pels/Warriors, Mavs/Rockets, Bucks/Bulls and even Nets/Hawks (despite that giving me headaches) game has been back and forth throughout the entire game. The outcome of the series doesn't determine the quality of the games, b/c to be honest, a lot of the games last year were blowouts.
The only other team that has looked dominant is the Wizards, and I don't think the loss of Love will hurt the Cavs that much in that match up. Mozgov will match up with Gortat, and that leaves Nene and he doesn't make that much of an impact these days averaging 11 points and 5 boards a game. The combination of Irving and James is going to be too much for Wall and Beal to handle.
Not to mention that the Cavs might have Love back by the time they get to the semi-finals, which is the only place they could face the Wizards. Despite the fact that they dropped 2 in a row to the Nets (which is kind of pathetic), the Hawks will win the series and get the Wizards in round 2, leaving the Cavs to take on the Bucks, or more likely, the Bulls. Now that Bulls matchup without Love is a little more intimidating, but the Bulls have dropped two games to a Milwaukee team they should be trampling over. And as bad as the PF matchup is for the Cavs against the Bulls, who are they going to have guarding LeBron?
I don't see the Cavs running into any trouble until the finals when they have to face the best of the West, and by then they'll likely have Love back.
I've enjoyed watching Otto Porter rise to the occasion during the playoffs. I'm from Cape Girardeau so I watched Otto play throughout his high school career. My friends in college from STL watched Beal play in HS.
Yeah Otto Porter definitely surprised in the playoff. Going in I thought the only competitive series in the East was going to be Raptors/Wizards. Wizards have the advantage in the starting line up and the raptors have the advantage off the bench. Otto Porter was the best sixth man in that series, negating whatever advantage the Raptors have there. Even so, the Raps starters were so crappy I don't think even a better bench would have help prevent a sweep.
As I expected, the Bulls get complacent again in the playoff at an advantage. But to throw away two games? That surprised me. They better get the job done in game 6 or game 7 will be a cagey affair.
The Hawks should have closed the series by now, how they let the Nets stay alive to make it a long series I have no idea. They are letting 4th quarter leads slip away too easily.
As I expected, the Bulls get complacent again in the playoff at an advantage. But to throw away two games? That surprised me. They better get the job done in game 6 or game 7 will be a cagey affair.
The Hawks should have closed the series by now, how they let the Nets stay alive to make it a long series I have no idea. They are letting 4th quarter leads slip away too easily.
Aeon Mathix
Has Ascended
Blazers stayed alive last night against the Grizzlies. Don't expect that to continue at all much to my dismay but it was nice to see Portland actually have some fire in them for that game. Maybe Lillard realized it's time to uh play basketball instead of worrying about how many shoe deals or facebook likes he has.
The Holy One
What's really good?
This past week has been increasingly frustrating. I don't believe in any magical switch that gets flipped so that the game is incredibly different in the post season than it is in the regular season, but it's almost seems like the Hawks have forgotten how to play basketball. We've lost the ability to hit open jump shots, Horford/Antic/Millsap might as well be flimsy paper trying to guard Lopez, and if I see another Jarrett Jack contested mid-range shot go in, I may snap. Oh, and it doesn't help that Deron Williams actually decided to show up last night. We better improve in this next two games, or I do not like our chances against Washington at all.
EDIT: Hell, we may not even see Washington if we continue to play like we have.