NBA playoffs 2018

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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The schedule has yet to be announced but the match-ups are set - the real NBA season is now upon us:

EC
1. Toronto vs 8. 'Zards
2. C's vs 7. Bucks
3. LondonSox Process vs 6. Miami
4. Cleveland vs 5. Indiana

WC
1. Rockets vs 8. Minnesota
2. SRN's NBA villains vs 7. San Antonio
3. Portland vs 6. New Orleans
4. OKC vs 5. Utah

Looking it over, each series, save for the Rockets/T-Wolves, has the chance to go the distance. I think Thibs can slow Houston but the reality is that the Rockets swept Minnesota this season - and the T-Wolves, despite their talent, don't seem to be a cohesive team. It is worth noting that the Rockets will miss Mbah a Moute so perhaps that changes things.

I like the following:
-Toronto over Washington in six
-Cs over Bucks in seven
-Philly over Miami in six
-Cleveland over Indiana in seven

-Houston over Minnesota in five
-GSW over San Antonio in five
-Portland over New Orleans in six
-OKC over Utah in seven

That last series is the marquee match-up for me though I am going to be watching a metric eff-ton of playoff basketball over the next few weeks. As referenced in this forum, Utah is incredibly well coached and deep. But I expect Westbrook and George (and even Melo) to win out in a fierce battle.

The wild-cards here are the Spurs who might shock Golden State if Leonard comes back. I could also see Miami giving the 76ers a really hard time and, perhaps, stealing the series if everything falls right They split their season series and as mentioned in the other thread, the 76ers Big Head Mode of late is partially the results of playing a lot of bad teams.

Finally, if Giannis goes off and his supporting cast plays up to their abilities, I could see the Bucks upending the hobbled Celtics...though I hope not.

Who ya got?
 

The Social Chair

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-Toronto over Washington in seven
-Bucks over Celtics in six
-Philly over Miami in seven
-Cleveland over Indiana in five

-Houston over Minnesota in five
-GSW over San Antonio in five
-Portland over New Orleans in six
-OKC over Utah in five
 

Sam Ray Not

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Agreed with DeJesus that OKC v UTA looks like the marquee matchup — two big, rugged, talented teams, neither of whom seems like the obvious favorite. Adams v Gobert and Westbrook v Mitchell alone make it worth the price of admission.

As far as SRN’s Villains ... I mean, careful what you wish for — no opponent is gonna be easy for them without Steph — but I think most Ws fans would have hand-picked the draw they ended up with (assuming no miraculous return by Kawhi). HOU, OKC, and UTA — the three teams most capable of taking them down — are somehow all on the opposite side of the bracket. And while SA in the first round may be roughly the same degree of difficulty as Minny, I think the Wolves’ ceiling/volatility is a bit higher, with Butler back and Towns being Towns.
 

the moops

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Schedules are up. Most importantly

Game 1 Sun. April 15 Bucks at Celtics, 1 (TNT)
Game 2 Tue. April 17 Bucks at Celtics, 8 (TNT)
Game 3 Fri. April 20 Celtics at Bucks, 9:30 (ESPN)
Game 4 Sun. April 22 Celtics at Bucks, 1 (ABC)
Game 5* Tue. April 24 Bucks at Celtics, TBD
Game 6* Thu. April 26 Celtics at Bucks, TBD
Game 7* Sat. April 28 Bucks at Celtics, TBD
 

Sam Ray Not

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Update: I no longer have any Spurs fan friends...
Haha. Ah well, they're a bunch of self-righteous pricks, anyway.

Kidding, of course. The Spurs and their fans are awesome, on the whole. And no one deserves this weirdness with Kawhi. Sincerely hope he gets himself 100% right (though naturally I wouldn't mind if it took at least another couple weeks...)
 

Ale Xander

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Haha. Ah well, they're a bunch of self-righteous pricks, anyway.

Kidding, of course. The Spurs and their fans are awesome, on the whole. And no one deserves this weirdness with Kawhi. Sincerely hope he gets himself 100% right (though naturally I wouldn't mind if it took at least another couple weeks...)
in terms of one city pro sports town NBA fans, I much prefer Grizzlies and Jazz fans over Spurs fans.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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Since there's no dedicated Cs playoff thread yet, I just learned that Jonathan Gibson gets to stay on the playoff roster and hopefully continue to bury 3s until one of 4 injured players comes back (i.e., Smart). Fun!
 

Imbricus

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The OKC play-by-play announcer will be suspended for Game 1 after declaring that Russell Westbrook as playing "out-of-his-cotton-picking-mind."
Huh. Interesting. I grew up hearing this expression a lot (even though we were well north of the closest cotton field, which made its usage even more absurd). What happens, when you hear it often enough from a young age, is it just becomes this background cliche, and you tend not to even think about what it means. We were always using it for white people (no diversity where I grew up). I could see someone blurting it out carelessly, not having ever thought about how the phrase might have originated.

Or the guy could be a flaming racist. :)
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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The OKC play-by-play announcer will be suspended for Game 1 after declaring that Russell Westbrook as playing "out-of-his-cotton-picking-mind." I did not know that was an expression.

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/thunder-announcer-suspended-one-game-after-racially-insensitive-comment-about-russell-westbrook/
Interesting. Can see the racist background but Bugs Bunny used to say it s hat does that mean?

Didn't know this was a subject of a Canadian Parliament debate in 2011: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2011/03/11/ignatieff_accused_of_racist_slur_in_cottonpicking_controversy.html

I guess we should rid of "off the reservation" and "gypped" next.
 

DJnVa

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It means Bugs Bunny was written in a different time. Bugs Bunny also did blackface.
 

dhellers

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It means Bugs Bunny was written in a different time. Bugs Bunny also did blackface.
I still love Looney Toons & Stooges, but they can make you cringe from time to time.

Back to topic (celtics-centric)

Is Horford ready to play? He has shown that he can dial it up in the playoffs.

Will Rozier pull out of his (injury induced?) back slide into fast-but-not-efficient? This year, and in the last 2 year playoffs, he has risen to the occassion.

Will Jayson avoid rookie yips? Could be --he seems to have gotten past the rookie wall.

Will MaMo remember to keep his head out his ass? It is possible, but I am not that good an astrologer.

Will Jaylen assert his will when it is needed. Why not!

Prediciton: Celts in 6

And if Smart can come back near 100% Smartishness in round 2 (and given how he played after his first hand injury, that's a good bet)... ECF isn't out of reach.
 

benhogan

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back to the playoffs...and on to the Philadelphia 76ers, pick du jour for NBA talking heads.

Hate to rain on the 76ers jamboree here, but their schedule was soft at the end (snagging the 3 seed was predictable the last month). The one tight game they had down the stretch versus a legit team they blew a 30pt lead and looked nervous/mistake prone at the end.

The Heat and 76ers played 4 close games this year splitting them. Combine (1)Embid injured/masked, (2)Whiteside motivated, (3)Spoelstra/Miami players experience, (4)76ers/Brown inexperience and this could easily be 7 tight games.

I have yet to see one NBA media pundit say this will be a close series?
 
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Sam Ray Not

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Rockets in 5
Warriors in 6
Blazers in 7
Jazz in 6

Raptors in 5
Celtics in 7
Sixers in 6
Cavaliers in 5
 

Sam Ray Not

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Excellent Game of Zones episode, for anyone who needs to kill the three hours before the real season begins. T minus three hours till Warriors-Spurs...

 

CreedBratton

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Raps in 5
Celtics in 6
Sixers in 6
Cavs in 5

Rockets in 4
Warriors in 4
Pelicans in 6
Thunder in 6
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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I love that JaVale McGee has completely reinvented himself in Golden State. He is good at basketball and I hope that if he leaves Oakland for more money next year, its a situation where he can continue to thrive.
 

benhogan

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Rockets in 4
Warriors in 5
Blazers 5
Jazz in 7

Raptors in 5
Celtics in 5
Heat in 7
Cavaliers in 5
 
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Sam Ray Not

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is Iguodala-Thompson-Green-Durant-McGee the biggest starting 5 in the NBA playoffs since Ainge-DJ-Bird-McHale-Parish?
 
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DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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The most impressive thing about this half is the Warriors defense. They are forcing the Spurs - the well coached, ball-moving Spurs - into sub-optimal shots each possession.
 

Kliq

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It always makes me sad that the number one announce team for the NBA involves Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson.
 

JCizzle

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I do not feel for the Spurs. In fact, I want to pry Kawhi from them, so the worse this situation gets the better. Guys like him do not become available at his age.
Man I agree, but it's also concerning that he might be a total head case? I don't think it's a good sign that he's been called out publicly by the likes of Manu and Parker who have been around forever
 

jon abbey

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is Iguodala-Thompson-Green-Durant-McGee the biggest starting 5 in the NBA playoffs since Ainge-DJ-Bird-McHale-Parish?
I have that Warriors 5 as 1 inch taller in total than the old Celtics one, but I bet there are others who were taller in between.
 

bankshot1

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In the next 2-5 years when the Celts play the 76ers in the ECF every year, I think they need a bigger body than Leonard to match-up with Embid. That is to say, keep the ammo dry for that bigger body. Pass on Leonard and the shit ton of assets it will take to get him
 

BigSoxFan

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In the next 2-5 years when the Celts play the 76ers in the ECF every year, I think they need a bigger body than Leonard to match-up with Embid. That is to say, keep the ammo dry for that bigger body. Pass on Leonard and the shit ton of assets it will take to get him
Anthony Davis isn’t happening. Nobody else will be available who would even remotely approach the potential impact of Kawhi.

Embiid will be a problem no matter who we have. But someone has to guard Simmons too and Kawhi is basically the perfect guy for that if he’s healthy, which is my biggest concern with him along with his mental state.
 

JCizzle

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Let's say Leonard does get traded, where do people think he ends up? I agree with bankshot that we might not be the best fit, even though we probably have the most to offer. Do the Lakers have enough to offer if they trade their young guys and pair Leonard with LeBron or George? Other than the Celtics, I'm trying to think who had the luxury of offering much young talent. The Sixers can't really afford to trade Simmons or Embiid and Fultz has no real value this offseason.
 

southshoresoxfan

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Anthony Davis isn’t happening. Nobody else will be available who would even remotely approach the potential impact of Kawhi.

Embiid will be a problem no matter who we have. But someone has to guard Simmons too and Kawhi is basically the perfect guy for that if he’s healthy, which is my biggest concern with him along with his mental state.
I also want to see Embiid healthy for more than one season before turning down a top 5 player because of fit.

A Jaylen or Tatum, smart w a new deal to match salaries and Kings pick w a filler (Memphis or Boston protected pick type) would be the best offer they would receive. A top tier young player w a likely top 3-5 pick, a capable PG and another first.

A Kyrie, Jaylen (or Tatum), Hayward, Kawhi, Horford lineup would be an absolute nightmare on both ends of the floor.
 

ElUno20

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Wall doesn't look half bad. Needs to start finishing at the rim but it's there. They can't stop him so far.