WC Champ +1200 the week leading up to the deadline. Added Lakers/Heat Final two weeks ago at +1800.
2023 NBA Playoffs
- Thread starter BaseballJones
- Start date
Nice work. You were early on the Austin Reaves freight train also. The dude is adept at drawing fouls
Have fully agreed on how much the Lakers have been under-rated. I'd add that can also see how they're improving on the fly as the new players are integrated in. Ham has been an excellent coach and has been strong on mix and matching among the (now deep) supporting cast depending on situation/opponent. That said, while I picked them over both Memphis and Golden State, Denver is the other under-rated team out of the West. As great as AD is, Jokic is the sort of challenge that is very different. At a minimum, Jokic is so multi-dimensional that even if AD can limit his scoring (which I sort of doubt), I don't see how he limits how great Jokie distributes and sets up for teammates, and AD certainly won't be roaming as he could do vs both Memphis and GS, which is really the X factor that has made LA's defense so great.
If AD plays like he did last night, they can absolutely beat Denver. Ton of advantages both ways, but the Lakers are gonna feel some relief not going up against an elite rim protector like Draymond (who I thought was very good defensivley for most of the series, at least when he wasn't in foul trouble).
The Lakers had the best winning percentage in the league in March and April and came into the playoffs playing better than the rest of the field. In the first two rounds of the playoffs they beat two fairly good teams. It feels like they are Finals bound.
I haven't followed Denver very closely. They steamrolled Minnesota in the first round and a depleted Suns team took them to six games in the second round. Jokic is a magician but he can't play all 48 minutes and I don't know that they have the depth to beat the Lakers.
I haven't followed Denver very closely. They steamrolled Minnesota in the first round and a depleted Suns team took them to six games in the second round. Jokic is a magician but he can't play all 48 minutes and I don't know that they have the depth to beat the Lakers.
Was just coming to look it up. They finished the regular season on a 17-7 run, and are now 8-4 in the playoffs, 25-11 in that stretch. They also finished 9-2, so 17-6 in their last 23. Of those 17 wins, 13 have come against either playoff teams or play-in teams.
I have no doubt that you are right. They are the 1 seed for good reason. I am rooting for Denver and regardless of who comes out on top I am hoping for a seven game series.
Agreed. Denver's rotation gives them a lot of flexibility against the Lakers. They have the size/personnel to slow both AD and LeBron and their rotational pieces are going to match up well with Reaves/Russell/Walker. To me, this playoff run is where the Gordon acquisition is paying huge dividends. Gordon is a good player but his fit on Denver amplifies what he does well while minimizing a bunch of his flaws.
I can't believe after we win tomorrow that we're going to have to suffer through another Heat series, after all the bullshit last year.
Fuck.
Fuck.
Is Herro going to be back at some point next round? I believe his timeline was 4-6 weeks, and he got hurt on April 16 (it'll be 4 weeks tomorrow).
Yeah, if a lot of people were sleeping on how good LA were down the stretch, I feel like a similar number overstated how much Denver playing .500 ball since the ASG was a true reflection of their talent level, rather than a team that's a long way clear leaving plenty in the tank for the postseason.
Course that's sports media through and through; lots of data points that can be interpreted either way, but afterwards the interpretation which turns out to be true "Ought to have been obvious."
Not sure what the exact surgery was for but 4 weeks for a broken shooting hand seems optimistic at best and....well you know the rest of the phrase. Based on what I've seen anyway. Maybe tail end of series?
The Suns weren't depleted until the last 2 games (when Denver rolled them).
Prior to that, they were a lot of people's pick to make it out of the West, and Denver was clearly better imo, with Phoenix requiring extreme Booker heroball to stay in games.
Yeah Booker put together as good a two game playoff stretch of anyone ever (34-43 for 83 points), this easily could have been a sweep. LA can certainly win the series, but Denver has looked nothing short of excellent so far in the first two rounds.
and two last night. definitely could've stretched one of those series an extra day. Like, which series even was it that would've played today? Nuggets-Suns Game 7?
Networks call the postseason scheduling. That's why they pay a gazillion dollars.
Chris Paul only played in the first two games of the series (both losses which to some extent supports your point). Maybe not having him on the floor is addition by subtraction.
I get it. Good for them. I don’t get how they can only have 1 game between Saturday and Sunday, with the 1 game being mid afternoon on Mother’s Day. Like I can’t see how that maximizes revenue. But they know what they’re doing. I think.
I don't know either. I always trust that when it comes to maximizing ratings and advertising revenue they know what they are doing.
Seems just related to the series outcomes, no?
If there were a bunch of other game 7s, I'm guessing they would have been this weekend? If a couple went quick and ended in 4 or 5, maybe they would have a Game 1 this weekend and spread things out for the conference finals.
Aside from the Celtics/Sixers, they all went 6 games and ended thurs/fri so not surprised just 1 weekend game.
There were three games scheduled for tomorrow. Two series ended before game 7.
EDIT—and Saturday is shitty for TV ratings
Because big money suits jobs are on the line if they aren't following their numbers.
Yeah I don't think networks have much of a clue about anything in general, but also not sure how this could have been different. Three of the four series ended on game 6, I guess they could have made the PHI/BOS game 7 today and the DEN/LAL game tomorrow but they lined it up to try to make sure they wouldn't have a Sunday with no game.
Everything runs through Jokic. He will wear AD out if Davis has to play him most of the time. I’d look at seeing if LeBron can body him, a la Grant Williams, with AD as a help defender. Play off Bruce Brown or Aaron Gordon, and dare them to beat you from three.
You can’t let Jokic and Murray pick/roll you to death.
The Lakers should have players to defend it, in AD, Vanderbilt, LeBron.
LeBron and AD outplayed Joker and Murray in the bubble. The Nugs have a better supporting cast, but so do the Lakers. If LA wins one of the first two games in Denver, they will win the series. Denver must run them out of the building in altitude.
You can’t let Jokic and Murray pick/roll you to death.
The Lakers should have players to defend it, in AD, Vanderbilt, LeBron.
LeBron and AD outplayed Joker and Murray in the bubble. The Nugs have a better supporting cast, but so do the Lakers. If LA wins one of the first two games in Denver, they will win the series. Denver must run them out of the building in altitude.
Lebron/AD are also completely different offensive players now than in the bubble. This year they're averaging 23 and 21 points respectively, with TS%'s of .576 and .596. In the 2020 playoffs, they both averaged 28 ppg on TS%'s of .647 and .665. Not that they're bad now, but they were otherworldly in the bubble.
Not having a prime time Sunday game seems strange. I'd think Celts 76ers at 8pm would be a better ratings attraction than a 3:30 tip. Perhaps Adam Silver is a fan of Succession.
Its on the networks as I understand it - not on Silver. Embrace the doghouse!
I'd imagine the Grant-role guy here is Hachimura who has been their secondary big defender since the deadline. Like Grant vs Atlanta, his role evaporated in the Warrior series but now it will expand again.
I was doing a bit and figured in this room Adam Silver would play better than a nameless suit at ABC or Robert Iger. I'd still think an 8pm primetime tip draws better than 330 (12pm west coast) on a nice spring day/mothers day.
I suspect this is about not cannibalizing Sunday night baseball or the Stanley Cup. Disney will own the sports day from 3pm to post midnight
Yeah I agree with the last paragraph for sure. I don't pretend to have their data but there had to be a good reason and not competing against each other seems to be it.
Nuggets seem to have the best, 4th best. 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th best players in this series
Malone is going to be reminding Denver that this is their year, and don't let up. They seem to listen to him when he does!
And why didn't Ale also include #1 best player?
Denver is a fun team, easy to root for, and I despise the Lakers. On the other hand, I think the Celts would destroy the Lakers and not so sure about the Nuggets. This is confusing.
Denver is a problem man. We were talking about it somewhere else. They have 4 really good guys. They seem to be bad away from altitude though.
I think Murray is possibly better than the current version of LeBron.. and Reeves? Schroeder, Murray may be somewhere in the top ten players of the series..
One thing I think is a surety is that AD can not play at this pace for an entire game. Another thing.. Jokic makes Gordon a very good player.. the two of them play well together and Gordon seems to move well off ball always expecting the pass.
A Celtics/Nuggets series would be very good.. but I think Boston would probably lose.. their size inside/rebounding would be a problem.