This is going to be sporadic but time to get some thoughts out of my head. I have 45 mins of laundry, so time to do a thread...
Boston losing tonight could be the pathway to extra rest for MVP Joel Embiid...
Speaking of injuries, wtf is going on? This isn't just injured guys, but huge stars. Something is amiss here. That itself could be a whole different thread as a standalone...
At this point, Kawhi should just retire. What's the point? He is an NBA champion with multiple teams and one of the very best 2 way players we've seen in this league. He simply can't be counted on to play. Now, it's one thing to miss a lot of regular season games but he can't be counted on in the playoffs anymore. This one is bewildering. He had 38 in game 1 and 31 in game 2. They said the injury occurred in game 1. So, why did it take till between games 2 and 3 to determine he was too hurt to play? I'm not doubting him at all but this is just a weird one...
Russ gets a lot of heat, but he played his heart out in this series despite a rough last 20 game mins in Phoenix. With the right team, he's an asset. This needs to me a situation like he was traded to, winning team, but not like the Lakers.
Rob Pelinka did a great job at the deadline. The keys to this Lakers team are Vandy, Rui and Reeves. I'd say Russell too, but you know that he'll be consistently inconsistent. The newcomers help shield Lebron's shitty ass one on one defense. Big time...
Can Anthony Davis make it through an entire playoff run? He's hit the deck 3-4 times in this series. I dunno. That, in itself, will be interesting...
This is the NBA playoffs and we've now seen 2 complete collapses and 2 near collapses the last 3 nights with DD leads and 3 to 6 mins left in a game. In both the Milwaukee and Boston games, you could sense it all 2h. These teams did not have the 'want' to put a team away. The Minnesota collapse that sent their G4 to overtime was just a quick flurry. Tonight, the Suns collapse was a combo of their terrible defense and pure complacency on offense...
Pure complacency=let's just shoot three's. We see this all the time in the regular season and that is creeping into the playoffs. These coaches need to step up a bit. Maybe draw up a play or pull guys that are out there going through the motions...
Playoff Jimmy is a real thing. This guy had a great 16 games last year and very similar in the bubble. The guy just steps up. He's another example of a guy that will play less than 60 games, float through regular season then turn it on when needed...
The West is nuts. We have 5 teams left and any of them could advance to the Finals. Each has a bad flaw or two. I'm sure we have more injuries to come as well ...
Phoenix plays very little defense. They are especially bad on penetration and inside. Now, they meet the 2 time MVP. This won't be pretty. On the other side, they'll score. This series will see scoring and the 2 guard matchup is quite epic...
Memphis is very, very tough to watch on offense. They are just ugly. Now, last postseason, their defense was tremendous. They showed some flashes last night of that again, but at crucial moments couldn't make the plays...
The Fox injury is a bummer. He is a treat to watch and to finally see him in the playoffs is many years too late. We'll see how effective he can be...
This NBA playoffs has seen some inconsistent officiating. For me, stop with the ticky tack calls. Let em play!! Some games they do, others is a parade to the line...
Oh, this 1st round has also seen an a bevy of "acting jobs" by guys trying to draw flagrant fouls. Last night, Dennis made it like he got hit in the nuts due to the Brooks play the game before. Overall, I've seen guys barely get touched or a regular foul trying to see the flagrant. Be a man, and stop "being a bitch"...
Boston still my team to beat for all the marbles. Milwaukee the best chance but they have their own issues being on the brink... Philly doesn't have the offense to get it done... None of these West teams can win vs the Celtics 4 times. I'm sure something weird will happen though...
Lastly, late night Tuesday predictions on rest of this round plus next round ...
Milwaukee gets this back to a G7 in Milwaukee, provided Giannis is at same health or better than the other night...
Boston wins a hard fought one Thursday and pulls away late...
The Knicks lose G5 tomorrow but close it out in front of a wild crowd at MSG in G6...
The Lakers lose a tight one tomorrow but close out Memphis back in LA...
The Cali series is so tough due to Fox. I think GSW wins the series now, but I'm not sure which game they win in Sacto. The kings defense at home was totally different...
I'm no fan of the Nuggets coaching staff, but they should score at will for this entire series and advance to the WCFs in 5 or 6 games...
I'll say again, this is the weirdest WC Playoffs I've ever seen. This is a true "wide open west".
Lastly, part #2. These series are so finite. Take away a splurge of DeAngelo three's on Monday night and Memphis likely comes home 2-2. Now, the Lakers are legit contenders to make the WCFs...
The smallest of things... That's where coaching comes in... And frankly we have some bad coaches out there right now... The best resides in South Florida...
Boston losing tonight could be the pathway to extra rest for MVP Joel Embiid...
Speaking of injuries, wtf is going on? This isn't just injured guys, but huge stars. Something is amiss here. That itself could be a whole different thread as a standalone...
At this point, Kawhi should just retire. What's the point? He is an NBA champion with multiple teams and one of the very best 2 way players we've seen in this league. He simply can't be counted on to play. Now, it's one thing to miss a lot of regular season games but he can't be counted on in the playoffs anymore. This one is bewildering. He had 38 in game 1 and 31 in game 2. They said the injury occurred in game 1. So, why did it take till between games 2 and 3 to determine he was too hurt to play? I'm not doubting him at all but this is just a weird one...
Russ gets a lot of heat, but he played his heart out in this series despite a rough last 20 game mins in Phoenix. With the right team, he's an asset. This needs to me a situation like he was traded to, winning team, but not like the Lakers.
Rob Pelinka did a great job at the deadline. The keys to this Lakers team are Vandy, Rui and Reeves. I'd say Russell too, but you know that he'll be consistently inconsistent. The newcomers help shield Lebron's shitty ass one on one defense. Big time...
Can Anthony Davis make it through an entire playoff run? He's hit the deck 3-4 times in this series. I dunno. That, in itself, will be interesting...
This is the NBA playoffs and we've now seen 2 complete collapses and 2 near collapses the last 3 nights with DD leads and 3 to 6 mins left in a game. In both the Milwaukee and Boston games, you could sense it all 2h. These teams did not have the 'want' to put a team away. The Minnesota collapse that sent their G4 to overtime was just a quick flurry. Tonight, the Suns collapse was a combo of their terrible defense and pure complacency on offense...
Pure complacency=let's just shoot three's. We see this all the time in the regular season and that is creeping into the playoffs. These coaches need to step up a bit. Maybe draw up a play or pull guys that are out there going through the motions...
Playoff Jimmy is a real thing. This guy had a great 16 games last year and very similar in the bubble. The guy just steps up. He's another example of a guy that will play less than 60 games, float through regular season then turn it on when needed...
The West is nuts. We have 5 teams left and any of them could advance to the Finals. Each has a bad flaw or two. I'm sure we have more injuries to come as well ...
Phoenix plays very little defense. They are especially bad on penetration and inside. Now, they meet the 2 time MVP. This won't be pretty. On the other side, they'll score. This series will see scoring and the 2 guard matchup is quite epic...
Memphis is very, very tough to watch on offense. They are just ugly. Now, last postseason, their defense was tremendous. They showed some flashes last night of that again, but at crucial moments couldn't make the plays...
The Fox injury is a bummer. He is a treat to watch and to finally see him in the playoffs is many years too late. We'll see how effective he can be...
This NBA playoffs has seen some inconsistent officiating. For me, stop with the ticky tack calls. Let em play!! Some games they do, others is a parade to the line...
Oh, this 1st round has also seen an a bevy of "acting jobs" by guys trying to draw flagrant fouls. Last night, Dennis made it like he got hit in the nuts due to the Brooks play the game before. Overall, I've seen guys barely get touched or a regular foul trying to see the flagrant. Be a man, and stop "being a bitch"...
Boston still my team to beat for all the marbles. Milwaukee the best chance but they have their own issues being on the brink... Philly doesn't have the offense to get it done... None of these West teams can win vs the Celtics 4 times. I'm sure something weird will happen though...
Lastly, late night Tuesday predictions on rest of this round plus next round ...
Milwaukee gets this back to a G7 in Milwaukee, provided Giannis is at same health or better than the other night...
Boston wins a hard fought one Thursday and pulls away late...
The Knicks lose G5 tomorrow but close it out in front of a wild crowd at MSG in G6...
The Lakers lose a tight one tomorrow but close out Memphis back in LA...
The Cali series is so tough due to Fox. I think GSW wins the series now, but I'm not sure which game they win in Sacto. The kings defense at home was totally different...
I'm no fan of the Nuggets coaching staff, but they should score at will for this entire series and advance to the WCFs in 5 or 6 games...
I'll say again, this is the weirdest WC Playoffs I've ever seen. This is a true "wide open west".
Lastly, part #2. These series are so finite. Take away a splurge of DeAngelo three's on Monday night and Memphis likely comes home 2-2. Now, the Lakers are legit contenders to make the WCFs...
The smallest of things... That's where coaching comes in... And frankly we have some bad coaches out there right now... The best resides in South Florida...
