2021 NBA Playoffs Gamethread

Tony C

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Now might be time to head over to your trade machine bookmark and play around with Kemba for Giannis scenarios.
If you haven’t googled Bobby Portis I’d highly recommend it....Hes out of his fucking mind.

Two highlights:
-Punching Nikola Mirotic in the face and fracturing his orbital bone....oh yeah, Mirotic was his teammate at the time.
-He psyches himself up by imagining every member of the opposing team has slapped his mom across the face...
Thx! Now feel fully informed. And, also, proud that at just a glance at his eyes intuited his nuttiness. :)

During a game like this...gotta get kicks where one can.
 

ElUno20

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There's a lot of this that isnt Xs and Os and just spineless effort giving the physical mismatches between the rosters. Giannis in particular
 

Auger34

used to be tbb
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I can’t help but wonder how different these Eastern playoffs turn out if Bogdanovic is on Milwaukee (where he signed at first) instead of Atlanta
 

Kliq

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If the Nets win the title with this Frankstein team...I'm going to lose a lot of interest in the NBA.
 

Average Game James

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Insane to think that if the Bucks were shooting 55% from 3 tonight like the Nets instead of 35% they would still be down by 18 right now...
 

Light-Tower-Power

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I will be amused if the Bucks get swept and the only team to win a game against Brooklyn in the first two rounds was basically Jayson Tatum by himself.
 

Cellar-Door

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I have to say, I thought the Nets would win this series pretty easily because I didn't think MIL could stop them.... I did not expect them to be this bad on defense.
Offense... well the problem with Giannis is until he prevents you from daring him to shoot the ball he's gonna be limited. I mean, Blake is defending him well where Blake was almost unplayable against the Celtics, because Tatum can shoot and Blake had to respect it. Against Giannis he just gives him all the room he wants to shoot
 

Sam Ray Not

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Fun to ponder: this team has probably a top 5 starting backcourt (Harden and Dinwiddie) and a top 10 sixth man (Jeff Green) on the shelf.
 

Cellar-Door

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I think Giannis is probably still a better player than Tatum.
I think Tatum is probably an easier guy to build a title team around.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Fun to ponder: this team has probably a top 5 starting backcourt (Harden and Dinwiddie) and a top 10 sixth man (Jeff Green) on the shelf.
Not only are they Uber-talented but they are playing with a purpose and with a passion. Everyone who is in the game, starters or reserves, are committed to defending too. They can taste the carrot.
 

azsoxpatsfan

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I think Giannis is probably still a better player than Tatum.
I think Tatum is probably an easier guy to build a title team around.
Ive always wondered when people say stuff like this, what’s this mean? Isn’t being the best player being the one that a team would want to have the best chance at a championship?
 

Cellar-Door

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Ive always wondered when people say stuff like this, what’s this mean? Isn’t being the best player being the one that a team would want to have the best chance at a championship?
Giannis is an elite defender and elite at a number of things on offense. You can build a title team around him. Tatum is solid on defense and elite at a number of things offensively. He's also a traditional wing, which means you can build around him in a lot of ways.
Giannis needs a particular type of team around him that plays to his strengths, BUT if you play to his strengths he is better because he can make an elite impact on both ends. Tatum is unlikely to be elite at both ends, but one of his skills is going to be 3 level scoring, which means you can more easily build around him.
So to me it's a question of best individual talent, best player in an ideal situation both of which are likely Giannis, versus guy who can win a title in the most different situations. Giannis needs a teammate who can be the offense creator with the ball for him as his 2nd star. So like Giannis and Kyrie or Harden would be a great fit, with Embiid or Simmons or Gobert would be bad. Tatum doesn't. Tatum could pair with Harden... but probabaly the Giannis Harden pair is better. But... Tatum could also pair with Simmons or Embiid or Gobert. Tatum gives you a slightly lower ceiling in the right situations, but gives you more ways to get to his ceiling.
 

azsoxpatsfan

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Giannis is an elite defender and elite at a number of things on offense. You can build a title team around him. Tatum is solid on defense and elite at a number of things offensively. He's also a traditional wing, which means you can build around him in a lot of ways.
Giannis needs a particular type of team around him that plays to his strengths, BUT if you play to his strengths he is better because he can make an elite impact on both ends. Tatum is unlikely to be elite at both ends, but one of his skills is going to be 3 level scoring, which means you can more easily build around him.
So to me it's a question of best individual talent, best player in an ideal situation both of which are likely Giannis, versus guy who can win a title in the most different situations. Giannis needs a teammate who can be the offense creator with the ball for him as his 2nd star. So like Giannis and Kyrie or Harden would be a great fit, with Embiid or Simmons or Gobert would be bad. Tatum doesn't. Tatum could pair with Harden... but probabaly the Giannis Harden pair is better. But... Tatum could also pair with Simmons or Embiid or Gobert. Tatum gives you a slightly lower ceiling in the right situations, but gives you more ways to get to his ceiling.
Gotcha, that makes a lot of sense I agree with it
 

HomeRunBaker

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Am I the only one who sees Chris Paul in a post-game interview and almost expects a State Farm commercial to break out?
 

Cellar-Door

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KD didn't rely on his athletic ability to score. He is just longer than everyone else. Achilles didn't affect that.

He has lost some lateral motion IMO.
I agree, I think where you see it most is that he doesn't have the defensive ceiling he used to. A few years ago he could turn it up for a quarter and be a top 10 defender, he didn't sustain it, but when he turned it up he was just ridiculous. Don't feel the same way anymore. He can still be really good, but not the freakish cover everything nowhere to go defender he was where he'd get a guy in jail and there was just nothing you could do.
 

lovegtm

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I think Giannis is probably still a better player than Tatum.
I think Tatum is probably an easier guy to build a title team around.
This is probably right, although Tatum could make it very interesting with further improvement the next couple years.

The thing that SUCKS if you're Milwaukee is that there are very specific paths if you want to build a title team around Giannis, and most of those are closed off now due to their asset and contract situation.

They're locked in with this.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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200 Total Points Scored On 60+ FG% in a Playoff Series, NBA History:
2021 1st Rd ........... Kawhi Leonard
2000 Finals ........... Shaquille O'Neal
1984 1st Rd ........... Bernard King
1977 Conf Semis ... Kareem Abdul-Jabbar


And only one of those 4 were playing defense like below

View: https://twitter.com/espn/status/1401660874301984769?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1401660874301984769%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.si.com%2Fnba%2F2021%2F06%2F07%2Fkawhi-leonard-clippers-mavericks-nba-playoffs
 

cardiacs

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Good to see some love for CP3 around here. I lived in OK when the Hornets were temporarily relocated and young Chris Paul was a very impressive, friendly, and talented individual. Always had a smile on his face and didn't complain on the court. I do understand things changed a bit after he (we) moved but that's the way I remember him most clearly.
I went to several games back then and thought to myself he's the best pure point guard I have ever seen in person (I would have to think of who would be second, maybe DJ).
 

Kliq

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CP3 is definitely the most complete PG in modern NBA history, when it comes to checking all the boxes of what you want a modern PG to be able to do. Completely unselfish, makes other players better, can score and create his own shot if he needs too, lockdown defender, sky high IQ that allows him to make every play and a very good shooter. There have been better PGs in league history, but they all had flaws that CP3 doesn't have (Curry and Magic were not at his level defensively and late-career Magic was painfully bad). Stockton has longevity but wasn't as good as Paul as an overall player. Isiah Thomas wasn't a good outside shooter. CP3 checks all the boxes in a way that other guys don't.

Oscar Robertson would be the other complete PG that checked all the boxes, plus he had great size which CP3 doesn't have, but he also played in an era so far back its hard to compare him with someone like CP3.
 

terrynever

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I believe we get to watch Ben Simmons cover Trae Young tonight. He wants the job. Doc gave it to Danny Green and Matisse Thybulle in Game 1. Can Ben keep up with the water bug? Will his height and reach somewhat impede Trae’s court vision? We should find out tonight.

And here is a link to story about Dana Barros talking about Ben’s shooting form back in 2019. Really cool stuff.

https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/ben-simmons-free-throws-76ers-hawks-20210608.html
 

lovegtm

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I believe we get to watch Ben Simmons cover Trae Young tonight. He wants the job. Doc gave it to Danny Green and Matisse Thybulle in Game 1. Can Ben keep up with the water bug? Will his height and reach somewhat impede Trae’s court vision? We should find out tonight.

And here is a link to story about Dana Barros talking about Ben’s shooting form back in 2019. Really cool stuff.

https://www.inquirer.com/sixers/ben-simmons-free-throws-76ers-hawks-20210608.html
Ben is so good on individual D that I wouldn't be surprised if he makes a real difference here. Excited to watch.
 

Mystic Merlin

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It’ll be an improvement, Green was useless against Young. I’m sure Atlanta will work to get a switch if Simmons gives him problems, but at least it’ll make the work.
 

Cesar Crespo

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CP3 is definitely the most complete PG in modern NBA history, when it comes to checking all the boxes of what you want a modern PG to be able to do. Completely unselfish, makes other players better, can score and create his own shot if he needs too, lockdown defender, sky high IQ that allows him to make every play and a very good shooter. There have been better PGs in league history, but they all had flaws that CP3 doesn't have (Curry and Magic were not at his level defensively and late-career Magic was painfully bad). Stockton has longevity but wasn't as good as Paul as an overall player. Isiah Thomas wasn't a good outside shooter. CP3 checks all the boxes in a way that other guys don't.

Oscar Robertson would be the other complete PG that checked all the boxes, plus he had great size which CP3 doesn't have, but he also played in an era so far back its hard to compare him with someone like CP3.

Chris Paul is also what a "pass first" PG looks like in 2021.
 

terrynever

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It’ll be an improvement, Green was useless against Young. I’m sure Atlanta will work to get a switch if Simmons gives him problems, but at least it’ll make the work.
76ers put Simmons on Trae to start second half on Sunday and Ben picked up two quick fouls 30 feet from the basket. Doc is lobbying officials in the paper to “let the players play.” But fouls will be a factor in how long Ben can cover Trae.
 

Sam Ray Not

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Like CP3, John Stockton was awesome at pretty much everything: passing, handling, floor management, thinking the game, taking care of the ball, shooting, defense. I think he’s probably the closest comp in league history to CP3, even if you want to give CP3 the slight overall nod. And I think he’d be even better today, since (like Nash) he was an elite shooter who didn’t launch quite as much as he should have, since in the pre-Curry era a PG who launched too much was frowned upon and seen as un-PG-like.