Basketball Thread

[Malice Chains]

I was off by one point. I would have some money if Nike answered his phone.

 

[theeboredone]

How the Thunder will win the Finals...Lol why does Ibaka not care?

 

[brownsheep]

boston sanbagged the playoffs until the heat.

really? a bunch of old guys want to extend series' and tire themselves out MORE?

guys that experienced dont sandbag in the playoffs. especially not a group of guys that hungry and competitive. did they sandbag the entire regular season too?

and who the hell sandbags in the playoffs? i dont buy that AT ALL.
__

westbrook playing smarter than he did in the regular season doesn't mean he's playing smart

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Heat's goal should somehow be to make Westbrook take as many shots away from Durant as possible.

 

[Masmasher@]

really? a bunch of old guys want to extend series' and tire themselves out MORE?

guys that experienced dont sandbag in the playoffs. especially not a group of guys that hungry and competitive. did they sandbag the entire regular season too?

and who the hell sandbags in the playoffs? i dont buy that AT ALL.
__

westbrook playing smarter than he did in the regular season doesn't mean he's playing smart

yes
they have had stretches were they laxed and it cost them.
look at the philly and atlanta series.

in the back of their mind they didnt take them seriously.
why do you think every other post i had the last month was about boston getting their head out their ***.
at their best Boston evidenced by this last series.
would destroy Atlanta and Philly.
consistency (probably a better word then sandbagging) was a issue. that was supposed to be a gimme to the ECF after the bulls imploded


and westbrook i think is smart enough to watch tape lol

its noticeable that wade is hurt
and because of that i expect him to have it least 2 games where he exploits that...
and wade is gonna get lit up
i dont understand how you can sit here and say that westbrook playing more efficient and smarter doesnt factor in.


lol @ boredone you gotta take baby steps with westbrook sometimes

 

[theeboredone]

By smarter, it just means dribble up court and give ball to Harden and KD. Then get out of the way and be the secondary driver.

 

[shadrach kabango]

vegas has thunder nearly 1.5:1 favorites

this is unconfirmed by me, just saw a thread on it @ realgm and thought it was high

also lmao @ phil jackson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-MWyeOs-q0

hey aj, you ever been to pieology? yelp that **** if not. brian (whatisfear) and i were planning on catching a game there (which is assuming they have TVs) and im pretty sure fullerton's close to you

 

[brownsheep]

yeah its really close, and im totally down that. place looks awesome. is JR still around? maybe he could join us he lives right there

i think WB took a step back in the WCF from his unusually great play in the first 2 rounds. its not unreasonable to think he'll play like he usually does in the finals, especially considering he's performed poorly against them in the season

i think everyone was just overrating the celtics, and this was just a matchup issue.

Wade doesn't look hurt to me he just looks really cold. He threw down pretty hard yesterday.

 

[Masmasher@]

who in the heck overrated the celtics operative word being overrated.
almost every major conglomerate and sports media picked the heat to be in the finals by divine right lmfao.

underestimated sure, overrated no... they just gave the heat all they could handle.

and westbrooks never been in the finals (end nitpicking) westbrook is moving the ball more along with the team so theres no telling... he could have another breakthrough
plus its not like mario chalmers is the greatest point guard ever lmfao


and media has confirmed already... wade is hurt. thats why the predominate amount of time he has been more effective in the later stages of the game
because he only has a small burst to be 100% active
a weakness that will and should be taken advantage of

 

[shadrach kabango]

celtics fluked their way to a competitive series

 

[The Real Gamer]

I wouldn't necessarily call it a fluke... They just really knew how to take advtange of Miami's defense and their lack of size without Bosh. Spoelstra got outcoached until he made good adjustments with Bosh back in the rotation for extended minutes in Game 6.

 

[brownsheep]

yeah i dont think it was a fluke. i think it was just too much rondo. they had trouble with them all season long. rondo can actually get in the lane and pass.

if the heat are smart theyre going to let WB get his. id rather have 30 points from westbrook than 30 from harden or durant. if they can somehow limit Durant to ~23 points (instead of 27) and harden to <15 (instead of 17) theyre probably set.

wade looked pretty strong coming out of the gate in game 7. how hurt is he?

 

[theeboredone]

I wouldn't necessarily call it a fluke... They just really knew how to take advtange of Miami's defense and their lack of size without Bosh. Spoelstra got outcoached until he made good adjustments with Bosh back in the rotation for extended minutes in Game 6.

If Bosh was healthy, the series goes 5. Nothing against Boston, but as great as Rondo was...KG was the other big guy in this series. When Bosh came back, KG shrank on defense and offense. Harder for him to rebound. Bosh spreads the floor so it opens the lane for LBJ and Wade as well.

Honestly, I think their best lineup is...

1. Chalmers
2. Wade
3. LBJ
4. Bosh
5. Haslem

You got two bigs who can shoot, making the defensive bigs spread out. It makes your two star players play one on one and get to the rim.

 

[brownsheep]

am i crazy for thinking joel anthony has some value in rebounding and shot blocking? they dont have anyone else that can do that, and it seems a little important with WB coming into town

 

[shadrach kabango]

doesn't anthony average like 7 rebounds per 40 minutes?

 

[brownsheep]

i was thinking more for the shot blocking to be honest. hes not a good rebounder.

 

[theeboredone]

Even if Anthony blocks WB or somehow Harden, it just causes a rotation spill which means Ibaka and Perkins are gonna have a field day on the boards. I mean, that's the benefit of having people who can get to the rim. Even if they miss the shot, the rotation should give you a shot at O-rebounding.

So with that being said, unless LBJ gets down there, I'd take Ibaka/Perkins over Bosh/Haslem.

 

[brownsheep]

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8...robert-pera-agrees-purchase-memphis-grizzlies

http://www.thenation.com/blog/16831...l-root-miami-heat-beat-oklahoma-city-thunder#

found this nice lil flow chart

Spoiler

 

[brownsheep]

Magic v Bird Part II

it begins: http://espn.go.com/espn/story/_/id/8036803/lebron-versus-durant

 

[theeboredone]

While I would love for this rivalry to go on for years to come, I'm not sure if we're gonna keep seeing this teams in the Finals for years to come...

1. We don't know what OKC's cap is gonna be like in a few years. When they have to keep either Ibaka or Harden. Unless both take a paycut...eh. Championship chances maybe ruined. On the plus side, Spurs aint' getting younger, same with LA and Dallas. Memphis is here and there. Clippers, maybe.

2. Miami is not getting any younger either. Yes LBJ and Bosh are 27, but WADE is 30 right now, and has played a style that would make him look 32 at this point. Furthermore, he hasn't developed a game outside slashing consistently similar to Kobe or MJ. I'm not sure where his career is headed, but if he regresses to just a "star"...well I dunno how I feel about Miami making it out every year.

 

[soap]

I hate dynasties. I like seeing teams scrap every year like the mavericks did last year.

 

[shadrach kabango]

yeah, the magic/bird comparisons are pretty stupid. just enjoy the game aye. americans, always trying to rate something. can't just experience something. it's gotta be THIS good. where does it rank in history? HERE!

While Westbrook is often though of as a star, his overall contribution put him right in the average range. In the first two rounds of the playoffs he played very well. He’s come back down to earth. After a few seasons of up and down performance, Chalmers finally has stabilized into a productive point guard.This one is pretty much a tie with a slight edge to the Heat.

lol wages of wins

aj have you read Personal Foul, the Donaghy scandal expose? Just copped it on .pdf. THE NBA IS RIGGED RIGGED RIGGED

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Heat's championship window all depends on Wade's health as well as his ability to develop a mid-range jump shot. A lot of people don't remember but Wade's mid range game was actually pretty lethal between '06 and '09. After that though his numbers just fell off and he relied more on strictly slashing.

He needs to get that mid range jumper back and watch Kobe tapes or something.

 

[theeboredone]

The Heat's championship window all depends on Wade's health as well as his ability to develop a mid-range jump shot. A lot of people don't remember but Wade's mid range game was actually pretty lethal between '06 and '09. After that though his numbers just fell off and he relied more on strictly slashing.

Always had this theory that players in their primes make their defenders play a few extra inches or foot off. So when the offensive player pulls up for the jumper, the hand in the face/contested shot isn't as tough to shoot over.

Wade isn't the "flash" anymore. With him slowing down, people catching him on the drive, defenders can play a bit more up on him, making the shots tougher to hit.

Kobe just shot 45% his whole career cause he'd go herpa derp and shoot 35 footers for no reason. If not that, he would shoot when 3 people were draped over him compared to passing it out to the almighty Smush Parker.

 

[brownsheep]

its really hard for me to think the nba isnt rigged, but the players still have to hit their shots. the refs can only do so much. but to answer, no i havent read it. wanna email it to me?

i use magic/bird as a sort of template for the coming narrative that will influence the next gen of players. itll happen. how can it not? it worked out so well for the league before. people love drama. sports are just the soap operas for men.

and Lebron has carried nobodies to the finals before we could see it happen in Miami. it is a bigger market so it might even be more likely considering hes playing better now than he ever has.

While Westbrook is often though of as a star, his overall contribution put him right in the average range. In the first two rounds of the playoffs he played very well. He’s come back down to earth. After a few seasons of up and down performance, Chalmers finally has stabilized into a productive point guard.This one is pretty much a tie with a slight edge to the Heat.

im not sure what to say about this...i mean it definitely feels stupid to compare the two players straight up using the point guard position as the standard by which theyre judged. chalmers isnt the ball handler and WB isnt a pure point guard so the comparisons to other point guards around the league are probably not exactly as accurate as they could be. at the same time, i get that ultimately, they are listed as point guards whose overall impact can be comparable in terms of point differential. idk. the heat make comparisons hard because they have a forward running point.

 

[ViperGold42]

Go thunder beat the heat!

 

[brownsheep]

go lebron, so next year i can go back to not giving a **** about the heat

 

[shadrach kabango]

its really hard for me to think the nba isnt rigged, but the players still have to hit their shots. the refs can only do so much. but to answer, no i havent read it. wanna email it to me?

I got jipped. Nevermind! Hahaha, closest I came was this: Deadspin.

sports are just the soap operas for men.

Yeah, I loathe that!

and Lebron has carried nobodies to the finals before we could see it happen in Miami. it is a bigger market so it might even be more likely considering hes playing better now than he ever has.

Mike Miller has to retire. One time!

im not sure what to say about this...

That's it a friggin' turrible, if cherrypicked, example of the terrible conclusions placing zero value on shot creation?

--

This is random, as my posts usually are, but I read some speculation about steroids and the NBA, and it got me thinking. Now I'm watching the 2002 Lakers vs. Kings game, Game 6.

Derek Fisher is in the prime of his athletic career at age 28. He looks at least 20 pounds lighter than he does now. It should not be feasible for someone doing three to five hour sof cardio a day to be able to put on that much muscle at such an advanced age.

'Roids, dawg.

 

[The Real Gamer]

Crazy *** OKC fans. >.<

 

[Linguini]

And so it begins......

Lets ****ing do this HEAT!!!!!

 

[SharkAttack]

Crazy *** OKC fans. >.<

I love loud crowds. In general I think most crowds are very passionate about their team, but for some reason the Thunder fans in this Game 1 have a great impact of support that I haven't felt in some time watching a game on T.V. It is amazing.

 

[shadrach kabango]

Hahahaha at how salty Wade sounds at having to admit LeBron is better.

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Heat's half court offense nearly looks flawless right now. Defense needs to tighten up a bit but otherwise no complaints!

Anyone who is a true NBA fan should really be appreciating the amount of athleticism in this series and so far it shows.

 

[theeboredone]

Alright, some notes from the first half.

1. After playing Boston, Miami thinks OKC's defense is JV. Their rotations are TERRIBLE. Big reason for all those early 3's.

2. LBJ not playing well? Sign of things to come?

3. Wade playing a bit better than he did vs Boston. Not going against elite D.

on the OKC side...

1. Hello? Can WB or Harden please stand up? I know WB has 5 assists, but those two should be driving to the hole, not settling for jumpers.

2. Can Harden play any worse D? LBJ blowing by him. Chalmers spinning on him. Wade scoring on him.

3. KD is not afraid of the moment.

4. WB struggling vs Wade. What else is new?

 

[The Real Gamer]

Both LBJ and Wade were playing more in the flow of the offense and getting good looks for the role players so I can't complain. I'm LOVING Bosh's presense on the floor right now. His floor spacing was sorely missed in the beginning of the Boston series.

 

[theeboredone]

LBJ isn't playing in the flow. Most of his shots have been in iso with the shot clock running down.

Can't believe they didn't replay Sefolosha's sick pass to WB.

Harden is just getting ***** slapped by everyone on the court. Stupid foul on Wade J. Reaches in on LBJ. Can't break down Mike Miller. Forgets about Battier as he hits a 3.

OKC defense is soooo bad. How does LBJ have back to back lay ups?

Lmao. Chalmers "slapped" by Fisher and falls down.

Miami now has 3 "home" calls in the 4th. Phantom call on Bosh drive. Phantom call on LBJ and 1. Questionable blocking foul on Collison with Wade And 1.

 

[shadrach kabango]

Will the Heat continue to zone? That, combined with aggressively trapping any pick and rolls, will lead to open 3-pointers, like the one Thabo just missed from the top of the key. But the Thunder are one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the NBA.

 

[theeboredone]

If the Heat were playing "zone", it was for like 2 sequences. KD just too long.

LBJ 2/6 in fourth. WB and KD outscore entire Heat team in second half.

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Heat had such a good shot at winning this game but the offense just went to **** in the 2nd half and Wade especially looked awful during that time period. Players looked tired as well. Don't understand why they're not utilizing Bosh in the post more often but meh whatever. Oh and rebounding was atrocious in the 2nd half as well... Collision single handedly out-hustled all of Miami's bigs.

Gotta regroup and win Game 2.

 

[theeboredone]

Bosh needs to start Game 2. Have Battier come off bench and guard Harden. He sucked **** tonight, but I doubt he'll be like that for the series.

I love Collison so much. He's the guy I'm rooting for most. Been there since them Seattle days.