NBA Playoffs Game Thread
- Thread starter JohnnyTheBone
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he gets villain treatment, which is like the opposite of superstar treatment. Maybe someday for him but not yet.Tangled Up In Red said:
Ultimately, I think this game could benefit GS. They came out way too comfortable because they had a 3-0 lead and they let a desperate Houston come out and run over them. As a young playoff team, that is a valuable learning experience for them in the future, and I would bet on them coming out with a huge first half of their own in Game 5 back at Oracle. Curry seemed to be getting his groove back towards the end, so that is a positive sign.
Harden is just such a joy to watch. He is just such a complete offensive player, from shooting from outside, attacking and finishing at the rim, getting to the line, working the pick and roll, passing/finishing in transition, and he does it all with such a silky smooth confidence, just awesome to watch.
Harden is just such a joy to watch. He is just such a complete offensive player, from shooting from outside, attacking and finishing at the rim, getting to the line, working the pick and roll, passing/finishing in transition, and he does it all with such a silky smooth confidence, just awesome to watch.
I love Harden. Reminds me so much of Ginobili, just with more strength and a better shooter. Loved Manu, too.Kliq said:
Hate the head throws on every drive and throwing the ball into non shooting positions to draw fouls.
Well Harden will get his on Wednesday - that much is certain. The question is whether the guys around him like Smith can continue their hot shooting from tonight. If so, I suspect this series goes seven.
You have to cool it with these reverse jinxes man unless it is an homage to Bill Simmons.DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
Its my honest opinion and please don't mention that guy around here. He goes to Starbucks for expensive frappucino drinks during playoff games while the rest of are glued to our screens. And plus he was a bit too thin skinned to deal with the rough and tumble of SoSH.luckiestman said:
And I also do not believe in jinxes, reverse or otherwise. The reality is that Houston almost took the first two games in Oakland and if they steal game five there, I expect them to come home with new life. While they do not present the match-up problem that the Grizzlies did, their ability to score in bunches means that the Warriors have to be lock-down on defense AND right on offense for the entire game. With a guy like Harden, no small lead is safe either. Houston has to be feeling as good as they can right now given that they are playing elimination games the rest of the way.
jon abbey said:
I mean, I can like him and admit that he isn't perfect, can't I? Harden had a lousy game 3, but I don't blame him at all for the way this series has gone. Out of the 4 games so far, Harden has been superb in 3 of them, that is a terrific track record.
Yeah, he had a bad game 3. But the Warriors also have the best defense in the league. This series really could be 2-2, and if it were, no one would question Harden's performance. He's pretty much carried us this series. Without him, it's 4 straight blowouts.
I really wonder if Harden would be this good if he didn't get traded. I know he would be really good but getting traded is almost like getting fired or skipped in the draft and it might have sparked him. Is he on record about this anywhere?
Al Zarilla said:
I'm pretty sure that he meant that if there's a defensive foul away from the ball at the same time another player is shooting, they can get the bucket and the fouled player can get a FT.
Unless that rule has been done away with.
Nope that's the rule. The same mechanics apply as if the foul were on the shooter. If it takes place in the shooting motion it would be a basket and the player getting fouled would have one FT.DrewDawg said:
Bill and I founded the former stuckon16.com after he bolted Sosh. Same day in fall of 2005 i gathered Rocco Graziosa (who now runs the site) and TonyJalaPena as IT guy (now handled by spacemanz gerbil) and we were off. We later renamed the site celticsnuts.com after we were no longer stuck on 16 titles. Somewhere around 2010(?) Bill pulled away as some debates got pretty intense and maybe he felt above it I really don't know.PedroKsBambino said:
The sites vision has always been to be invite-only to remain small and intimate as we used to have some awesome people on the inside years ago.
Remember the founding and good old days there---only lurk at this point. The former ehmunro still hanging around I assume!
Irving and the rest of the team now getting a week off before the finals start is huge.
ATL could have really hurt the Cavs chances in the finals if they could have just extended this series another game or two.
ATL could have really hurt the Cavs chances in the finals if they could have just extended this series another game or two.
How did Atlanta win so many games? Their shot selection is horrible bordering on dereliction of duty.
This is not the team that won 19 in a row because of injuries and the NYPD.DeJesus Built My Hotrod said:
So the Celtics gave the Cavs a much tougher series, huh?
Has a 1 seed even been swept in any 7 game NBA conference playoff series?
Has a 1 seed even been swept in any 7 game NBA conference playoff series?
FYI: Historic cap increase in 2 years due to TV contract. Good timing by CavsThe Social Chair said:
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12461874/players-union-rejects-salary-cap-smoothing-historic-cap-increase-nba-set
GraysonGrandeGonads said:
01 Spurs by the Lakers and 03 Pistons by the Nets in the WCF and ECF respectively.
Not the same round, but this series reminded me a bit of the 1999 second round matchup between the 8th seed but rampaging Knicks and the 4th seed Hawks, who got swept without much of a fight despite having homecourt advantage there also. The parallel I thought was strong because NY got entirely overmatched by the West Coast representative in the Finals, the Spurs winning their first that year, and that's what I expected to happen until a few days ago this year too. NY obviously didn't have LeBron, now Curry is a bit of a question, but that's what this entire series kept reminding me of, so we'll see if it plays out similarly.
ATL doesn't exactly have a proud playoff history.
ATL doesn't exactly have a proud playoff history.
Yup, after Pettit closed out Boston with 50 in Game 6 of the 58 finals, it has been pretty much all downhill for Atlanta.
These where two teams trending in opposite directions, I mean, Atlanta had trouble putting away Brooklyn. The big loser in this series was Al Horford, who was just crushed by Tristan Thompson.
These where two teams trending in opposite directions, I mean, Atlanta had trouble putting away Brooklyn. The big loser in this series was Al Horford, who was just crushed by Tristan Thompson.
I think Thabo Sefolosha and Kyle Korver are very good NBA players. That said, I find it hard to believe that their absence resulted in four straight losses to a LeBron-led but flawed Cleveland team.The Social Chair said:
I think this Cavs team sweeps the Hawks even if both players are healthy. To me, that says more about Atlanta's shortcomings than it does Cleveland's strengths.
The Hawks just got squashed in four games in the Conference Finals, and this is still *easily* their best season since they moved to Atlanta - it's not even close. It's exciting to have some real optimism going forward into next season; Millsap and Carroll are free agents, so the roster may (or may not) look noticeably different next year, but there's no reason the Hawks shouldn't be in the mix again next year, particularly if they peak nearer June than January and get luckier with injuries. I mean, Kevin Arnovitz says Atlanta hit only 31 percent of its uncontested 3-pointers and 20 percent of its catch-and-shoot triples - half its regular-season rates - in the Cleveland series; with even a modest regression to the mean, you'd think they'd have to perform better in the playoffs next year, no?
ConigliarosPotential said:
I'm not a Horford believer, he seems to always disappear at this time of year one way or another, injury or ineffectiveness. I have always loved Millsap, but he also was really disappointing down the stretch this year when they really needed him. They obviously seem like they're moving in the right direction, though, pending roster changes as you say.
To be fair, Millsap may now need surgery on his shoulder:
http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2015/5/26/8664599/paul-millsap-injury-shoulder-surgery-atlanta-hawks
And Carroll was suffering from turf toe (?) in addition to his sprained knee:
http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2015/5/27/8666899/demarre-carroll-injury-turf-toe-sprained-knee
Korver is of course already set to undergo surgery, and Teague and Horford were also battling their own injuries of lesser severity. I mean, I know everyone is banged up by the time you get this late into the playoffs, but this is pretty ridiculous.
http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2015/5/26/8664599/paul-millsap-injury-shoulder-surgery-atlanta-hawks
And Carroll was suffering from turf toe (?) in addition to his sprained knee:
http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2015/5/27/8666899/demarre-carroll-injury-turf-toe-sprained-knee
Korver is of course already set to undergo surgery, and Teague and Horford were also battling their own injuries of lesser severity. I mean, I know everyone is banged up by the time you get this late into the playoffs, but this is pretty ridiculous.
It really is. A great regular season -- one of the best ever in my memory -- and really a sucky post-season due to teams being ripped apart. Feel particularly bad for Atlanta, though admittedly a franchise that it's hard to get worked up over.
I would like this Hawks squad to get another guy who can create their own shot. That seemed sorely lacking throughout their playoff run.ConigliarosPotential said:
Klay is key. Stepped up and looked comfortable when Steph went down last game (like he'd been all season). Needs to get it back.
The officiating in this game has been ... inconsistent. They are calling lots of ticky-tack handcheck stuff on the perimeter but letting the big guys down low bang away at each other.