04/25-27/13 Game 3 of the NBA Playoffs discussion thread

[nbafan88]

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[TD="class: team"] NBA - 4/26/2013[/TD]
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4/26

8:00 PM

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739 New York Knicks
740 Boston Celtics
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[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 58%
42%
[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 61%
39%
[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 52%
48%
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 185
-2.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184.5o-102
-2.5-108
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184.5
-2.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184
-3-105
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184.5
-2.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook_full"] 184.5o-102/+100
-2.5-105/-105
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184
-2.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184
-3
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 184.5
-2.5
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4/26

10:30 PM

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741 San Antonio Spurs
742 Los Angeles Lakers
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[TD="class: pct"] 74%
26%
[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 77%
23%
[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 50%
50%
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -2.5
189.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -6-104
185o-101
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -6
184.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -5.5
185
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -6
185
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook_full"] -6+102/-104
185u-106/+102
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -6.5-115
185
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -5.5-115
185
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -6
185
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4/26

10:30 PM

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743 Denver Nuggets
744 Golden State Warriors
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[TD="class: pct"] 43%
57%
[/TD]
[TD="class: pct"] 55%
45%
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[TD="class: pct"] 67%
33%
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] 211
-1
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -1.5-110
210o-103
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -1.5
210.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -1-115
210.5
[/TD]
[TD="class: sportsbook"] -2
210
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[TD="class: sportsbook_full"] -1.5-103/+102
210o-101/-104
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[cogenman]

I hope Curry plays. With him playing, there's always either him or Jack to run the point. Without him, they have nobody if Jack needs a break or gets into foul trouble.

 

[nbafan88]

Lakers' Injuries Giving Dwight Howard More Than He Bargained For

<cite class="byline vcard">By Michael C. Jones | Yahoo! Contributor Network – <abbr title="2013-04-26T19:09:00Z">4 hours ago</abbr></cite>

COMMENTARY | Los Angeles Lakers superstar Dwight Howard wants to be the main man in Hollywood one day in the post-Kobe Bryant era; when the Black Mamba went down late in the regular season, he got a chance to play that role.
But now, with significant injuries to Steve Nash, Jodie Meeks and Steve Blake in addition to Bryant, the Lakers' depleted backcourt is going to put a lot of stress on Howard's game. Without shooters to stretch the floor, he can now expect more double teams in the post. In Game 2 of the opening round of the Western Conference playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs, five Howard turnovers on the offensive end and five fouls showcased how difficult life could be for him as a focal point.
That's not to say Howard isn't the best center in the NBA, because he is precisely that. But centers need touches, and they need perimeter players capable of taking some pressure off them in the paint. When that doesn't happen, defenses can collapse and mitigate the effectiveness of the bigs.
Even Shaquille O'Neal had superstar perimeter players in Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade when he won each of his four NBA titles and three Finals MVP awards. In fact, Kobe Bryant was an MVP-caliber player in his own regard when he won the award in the 2001 and 2002 Finals.
Howard is no O'Neal, but in order for him to be at his best and showcase what he can do as the alpha male of the franchise, he'll need help. Now, he has virtually none other than Pau Gasol in terms of being a top-tier player.
At this point, no one expects anything from the Lakers this postseason, but it would have been nice for everyone in and around Los Angeles to see what the Dwight Howard era might look like if he re-signs.
Now, the purple-and-gold faithful won't even have that as a silver lining to this disaster of a season.
Given the way things have played out, that shouldn't surprise anyone.

 

[nbafan88]

You guys should enjoy JVGs commentary while you can, he should be on the nets sideline next season. :badass:

 

[emkee]

That Nuggets line looks like it's about to flip again.

Lang with a 50 Dimer on GSW...

 

[braves]

How is Lang doing in the NBA this year?

He doesn't seem to be quite the mush he used to be

 

[emkee]

Dude is 2-2-2 (-25 dimes) so far in the playoffs.

8-8 (-41.5 dimes) in the regular season.

 

[nbafan88]

Warriors point guard Stephen Curry will start despite suffering a sprained his left ankle — the “good” one, not his twice-surgically-repaired right ankle — during Game 2. Golden State coach Mark Jackson seemed buoyed by what he saw in Curry’s pre-game workout. “He looked good,” Jackson said. “Obviously, he didn’t look 100 percent, but he looked like he’s definitely able to play.”
The Nuggets will make one change to their starting lineup, plugging Kenneth Faried in at center despite Faried’s so-so numbers — four points, two rebounds in 21 minutes — in his return from his own ankle injury in Game 2. “I didn’t think he was bad (in Game 2), but I didn’t think he was good, either,” Denver coach George Karl told reporters. “We’re going to start him tonight just because we need his energy and his passion on the court.” Kosta Koufos will come off the bench.
Karl was on the Warriors’ bench for one of the most famous playoff moments in the franchise’s California history — Eric “Sleepy” Floyd dropping 51 points on the Lakers during a second-round series on May 10, 1987. “We were fake-calling plays,” Karl said. “Basically, it was just, give him the ball and he’d make a shot.”
This will be Golden State’s first home playoff game since 2007, when the Warriors went 4-1 hosting Dallas and Utah. The fans gained national notice during that series for turning Oracle Arena into a wall of sound, something that likely will happen again tonight. However, Jackson cautioned against depending on too much of an emotional lift from that support: “It won’t win the ballgame. It won’t hit a shot. It won’t get a defensive stop. As a basketball team, it’s important for us to realize that being home is not going to solve the problems that the Denver Nuggets present.”

 

[nbafan88]

Thanks to a long list of injuries, the Lakers are facing long odds heading into Game 3 of their Western Conference first-round series against the visiting Spurs at Staples Center. Already without leading scorer Kobe Bryant for the postseason because of a torn left Achilles’ tendon, the Lakers will be without their other top three guards, Stave Nash, Steve Blake and Jodie Meeks. Blake was already ruled out after pulling his hamstring late in the Game 2 loss, and Nash (back/hamstring) and Meeks (ankle) were doubtful heading into Game 3 before they were officially declared out about 90 minutes before tip off. Darius Morris, who combined for 20 minutes in the 38 games from Jan. 25 to April 12, will start at one guard and Andrew Goudelock, who was signed from the NBA D-League following Bryant’s injury April 12, will start at the other. As if those weren’t enough injuries, Lakers forward Metta World Peace had fluid drained from his knee earlier in the day and was walking stiffly in the locker room prior to the game. “Usually, we lose one guy and that’s a disaster. This is over the top,” Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni said before the game.
The last time the Lakers were down 0-2 in a playoff series was in 2004, when they dropped the first two in San Antonio before coming back to win four straight. They eventually lost in the NBA Finals to the Pistons. Others are drawing comparisons to the 1989 NBA Finals, when the Lakers lost starting guard Byron Scott to a strained hamstring during practice before Game 1, then lost its other starting guard, Magic Johnson, to a pulled hamstring early in Game 2. The Pistons went on to sweep the Lakers in four games.
Spurs center Tim Duncan turned 37 on Thursday but hasn’t shown signs of slowing down in this series. The NBA’s active leader in games played at 842, Duncan is averaging 16.5 points and 7.5 rebounds through the first two games of the playoffs, averaging 34.5 minutes. He had 23 points and 10 rebounds against the Lakers in the second-to-last game of the regular season.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has experienced his ups and downs against the Lakers in his career, but he’s been very successful against D’Antoni, owning a 14-4 lifetime record against his counterpart. All but two of those games came when D’Antoni was coaching the Suns.

 

[divol]

Today we got two more teams playing at home, trailing 0 - 2. So far, it's 1 - 3 SU and ATS for the home teams in that spot.
I really find it hard to believe it will go 1 - 5 SU and ATS...
Should be 3 - 3 or 2 - 4 as worst case scenario...

 

[theking]

Interesting take on the Laker's injury woes...

The Toronto Raptor's hired the Laker's previous athletic trainer maybe 1 or 2 years ago...I can't remember off the top of my head, but I do know that the Raptor's staff and players have said many good things about this fellow.

Perhaps the Laker's new athletic trainer is simply not as good at making sure the players are properly trained, rehabilitated and rested.

 

[Ahambone]

Interesting take on the Laker's injury woes...

The Toronto Raptor's hired the Laker's previous athletic trainer maybe 1 or 2 years ago...I can't remember off the top of my head, but I do know that the Raptor's staff and players have said many good things about this fellow.

Perhaps the Laker's new athletic trainer is simply not as good at making sure the players are properly trained, rehabilitated and rested.

Isn't Gary Vitti still the Lakers trainer?

 

[divol]

You just got to love MWP:

Metta World Peace said that he's doubtful for Sunday's Game 4 vs. the Spurs.

"I wasn’t effective," World Peace said. "There's no sense to stay in if we have guys who can win. We’ll win Sunday."

 

[nbafan88]

Lean nets and hawks

 

[braves]

Isn't Gary Vitti still the Lakers trainer?

Gary Vitti is the trainer

 

[nbafan88]

Durant over 34.5 -115.


He should have this by the end of the third

 

[Grovehard]

Durant over 34.5 -115.


He should have this by the end of the third

Got it at 31.5. Hoping for a KD takeover.

 

[nbafan88]

nice line

i also too ibaka over 14.5 -115

 

[nbafan88]

Hawks -2 -110

The hawks are making adjustments on the defensive side. Hopefully their offense feeds off some pacer turnovers. That's what I'm counting on.

 

[BetCrimes1984]

So far, the only two home teams to have lost the 1st quarter of a Game 3 were the teams missing 1 or more PGs to injury. They also happened to be the only two home teams not to be able to score more than 18 pts in the 1st quarter. Whatever the final wash-up for the SU result between Hou & Okc, I think the Rockets are going to score more than 18 pts in the 1st.

Their 2 games in Houston between these sides this season saw Hou lose the first game 26-31 in the 1st, and win the 2nd game 36-29 in the 1st. Hou led 24-19 w/2 1/2 mins to go in the first game, with a couple of Westbrook 3s the only reason Okc were that close to that point. Then Lin had a shocking end to the period and Okc finished with a 12-2 run.
Fwiw, Hou led the 1st quarter of their only game in Okc by 21-18 w/2 mins to go before proceeding to cough up 3 turnovers which saw them lose that 1st by 25 to 27.

So in all 3 1st quarters this season, Hou has been competitive right until the end of every 1st quarter, all with Westbrook present. Despite the missing star player rule, I gotta have a (small) bet on them to win the 1st.