Re: 2016 Playoff Thread

[cowens/oldschool]

Valanciunas.  Big time player?  Yes.  Huge rebounds.

DeRozan.  Big time player?  No.  1-6 ft

Dwayne Casey.  Big time coach?  No.  Didn't understand 2-for-1, all Lowry iso in clutch.  No movement.



bob


.

the shot selection is terrible, all iso ball and these guys aren't Paul Pierce

[dboss]

Now that the Hawks have been swept, how will that impact their resolve in paying AL  $20 mill per?

Dboss

[cowens/oldschool]

dboss

I don't think his own team will give him max money, hes a good, but far from a great player and will be on wrong side of 30 soon....,,,but what do I know?

On another note, nice to seed Thunder execute down the stretch and not turnover the ball and give the game away. Durant had his silky smooth A game going, 17 huge points in 4th, tying his playoff career high with 41. Interesting that Thunder went real long stretch in 2nd half with Adams and Kantor in a twin towers alignment with Durant, keeping the 3 point shooting Ibaka on the bench. Really enjoying this series, love watching Kawhi Leonard, such a great 2 way player that can run the offense, so far whoever wins the Leonard-Durant match up, that team wins.

[cowens/oldschool]

WOW sick!!!

Hate to say it, but Dwayne Wade still has it, just drove through whole team to finish and tie game 83-83 with 13 seconds or so left.

[bobheckler]

The Warriors scored 21 points in the 5 minute OT.  All of them, except for 4, courtesy of Steph Curry.  6-6, 3-3 from 3, 2 fta/ftm.  17 points in 5 minutes.

Want to know why teams are moving away from dinosaurs and towards the perimeter?  It's because of the lethality of a slight-figured 6'3" guard.  The thing to remember is that, while Steph Curry was always a superior shooter, he was not THIS when he came into the league.  It took him 4-5 years to develop into what he is today (and his first two years were limited by recurring ankle injuries that made people wonder if he was going to be permanently damaged goods).


bob



.

[cowens/oldschool]

bob that was a performance for the ages, 17 points all by himself in the OT, who does that? as great as any playoff performance in history.

[bobheckler]

bob that was a performance for the ages, 17 points all by himself in the OT, who does that? as great as any playoff performance in history.

Cow,

Just as MJ begat Kobe, and Kobe begat players like Zach Lavine and others, Steph Curry is breeding a generation of players like him.  He isn't physically imposing.  He doesn't have spectacular athleticism.  He can't outrun everybody else, he can't outjump anybody else, he doesn't have the wingspan of a pterodactyl and he's only 6'3" (which isn't even tall for a point guard anymore, with Michael Carter-Williams and The Freak and others) but he is an absolutely phenomenal ball handler, he can dribble through spaces that IT tries to dribble through but can't, and then there is his shooting.  I've been watching the NBA for a long time.  I have never seen a shooter SO CONFIDENT in his shot that he turns and runs up court with his finger up before the ball reaches the net.   Kobe, MJ, Bird, all of them would watch the ball go in (or realize it wasn't going in and maybe follow it for an offensive rebound).  Some, like MJ, would pose with their arms up in shooting follow-through mode, but who started trotting down court doing his fgm shtick before he saw it go in?

With MJ, Kobe etal, I would scream, yell, hold my head in disbelief, curse, whatever.  I would yell "Holy Shit!" when they made one of their wonder-shots.  With Curry, I just sit there with my mouth slightly open and watch, stunned.  It is like watching a machine.  You don't "oooh" and "ahhh" when a machine works, you just watch it.  If the machine works better than any machine prior to it you don't jump to your feet and cheer the new machine. You just marvel at the advances that time has brought and how things will never be the same again. There may have been better scorers than Steph Curry, but I'm not sure I've ever seen a better shooter.


bob


.

[cowens/oldschool]

Interesting take bob, Curry is gonna give alot of slight ballers a game to pattern, but it won't be easy to get to his level. Interesting that Kobe is a MJ clone, and Magic had a few copycats in Penny Hardaway and now the Greek freak, but theres never been a Bird clone, no one has come close.

[cowens/oldschool]

WOW Thunder just won a huge one!!!

Great game, lead going back and forth whole game, Thunder again used 2 old school bigs, Adams and Kantor down the stretch in 4th and it worked. Father time finally catching up to the great Tim Duncan, after going scoreless last game was 1-6 tonight with 3 boards, sad to see....if it was Duncan of 2 years ago, this series is over and Spurs win.

[bobheckler]

WOW Thunder just won a huge one!!!

Great game, lead going back and forth whole game, Thunder again used 2 old school bigs, Adams and Kantor down the stretch in 4th and it worked. Father time finally catching up to the great Tim Duncan, after going scoreless last game was 1-6 tonight with 3 boards, sad to see....if it was Duncan of 2 years ago, this series is over and Spurs win.

I think this Thunder victory also sealed the deal with Durant staying in OKC.


bob


.

[steve3344]

WOW Thunder just won a huge one!!!

Great game, lead going back and forth whole game, Thunder again used 2 old school bigs, Adams and Kantor down the stretch in 4th and it worked. Father time finally catching up to the great Tim Duncan, after going scoreless last game was 1-6 tonight with 3 boards, sad to see....if it was Duncan of 2 years ago, this series is over and Spurs win.

Timmy shooting 28% in the series (7 for 25).  After shooting 49% for the season, that's pretty shocking to see.  And Parker missed a HUGE free throw that would have tied it with 41 seconds to go.  After shooting 75% for the first two games of the series, LaMarcus Aldridge is 22 for 60 (.367) the last three.  Ibaka has given him extra attention lately. And Spurs can look at the rebounding differential, being outrebounded 54-36 as a big reason why they lost.  

Amazing that OKC lost the turnover battle 20-7 and still won the game.  You win VERY FEW playoff games when you're -13 in turnovers.  Westbrook was incredible tonight (35/11/9) but he still had 8 TO's.  He sure is fun to watch.  

Question:  After Spurs won the first game by 32 points, how many people thought they would be down 3-2 after five games?  Okay Charles Barkley, you can put your hand down.

[cowens/oldschool]

WOW Thunder just won a huge one!!!

Great game, lead going back and forth whole game, Thunder again used 2 old school bigs, Adams and Kantor down the stretch in 4th and it worked. Father time finally catching up to the great Tim Duncan, after going scoreless last game was 1-6 tonight with 3 boards, sad to see....if it was Duncan of 2 years ago, this series is over and Spurs win.

Timmy shooting 28% in the series (7 for 25).  After shooting 49% for the season, that's pretty shocking to see.  And Parker missed a HUGE free throw that would have tied it with 41 seconds to go.  After shooting 75% for the first two games of the series, LaMarcus Aldridge is 22 for 60 (.367) the last three.  Ibaka has given him extra attention lately. And Spurs can look at the rebounding differential, being outrebounded 54-36 as a big reason why they lost.  

Amazing that OKC lost the turnover battle 20-7 and still won the game.  You win VERY FEW playoff games when you're -13 in turnovers.  Westbrook was incredible tonight (35/11/9) but he still had 8 TO's.  He sure is fun to watch.  

Question:  After Spurs won the first game by 32 points, how many people thought they would be down 3-2 after five games?  Okay Charles Barkley, you can put your hand down.

right now the old school Spurs bigs are being out worked by the younger more tenacious bigs of the Thunder, Adams really playing tough in the paint, he was actually young Perk like, Kantor having some big offensive boards down the stretch....Aldridge disappearing and missing wide open looks. Tony Parker had wide open 10-12 footers that he bricked down the stretch.

[steve3344]

bob that was a performance for the ages, 17 points all by himself in the OT, who does that? as great as any playoff performance in history.

http://amylawrence.radio.cbssports.com/2016/05/10/warriors-insider-blazers-realized-they-were-being-led-to-slaughter/

[bobheckler]

Two things are clear to me now.

1.  Durant isn't going to leave OKC, not after this, and

2.  You can stick a fork in The Big Fundamental.


bob


.

[cowens/oldschool]

Spurs still fighting

[RosalieTCeltics]

I agree with you on both thoughts. Durant can talk a tough game, but when push comes to solve, he is staying in OKC.

Duncan looks like an OLD player. Time to say goodbye. As I said in another thread, same for Paul Pierce. Done.

[cowens/oldschool]

as soon as Adams went down with hand injury, Spurs comeback started, thats the value of a physical defense oriented center.....13 point game right now

[bobheckler]

WOW Thunder just won a huge one!!!

Great game, lead going back and forth whole game, Thunder again used 2 old school bigs, Adams and Kantor down the stretch in 4th and it worked. Father time finally catching up to the great Tim Duncan, after going scoreless last game was 1-6 tonight with 3 boards, sad to see....if it was Duncan of 2 years ago, this series is over and Spurs win.

Timmy shooting 28% in the series (7 for 25).  After shooting 49% for the season, that's pretty shocking to see.  And Parker missed a HUGE free throw that would have tied it with 41 seconds to go.  After shooting 75% for the first two games of the series, LaMarcus Aldridge is 22 for 60 (.367) the last three.  Ibaka has given him extra attention lately. And Spurs can look at the rebounding differential, being outrebounded 54-36 as a big reason why they lost.  

Amazing that OKC lost the turnover battle 20-7 and still won the game.  You win VERY FEW playoff games when you're -13 in turnovers.  Westbrook was incredible tonight (35/11/9) but he still had 8 TO's.  He sure is fun to watch.  

Question:  After Spurs won the first game by 32 points, how many people thought they would be down 3-2 after five games?  Okay Charles Barkley, you can put your hand down.

right now the old school Spurs bigs are being out worked by the younger more tenacious bigs of the Thunder, Adams really playing tough in the paint, he was actually young Perk like, Kantor having some big offensive boards down the stretch....Aldridge disappearing and missing wide open looks. Tony Parker had wide open 10-12 footers that he bricked down the stretch.

Perk taught Adams everything he knows, remember?  I wanted that Kiwi, but he was picked #12, so Danny moved up and took the 7'shooter, Kelly, instead.

Adams on our team is just a more aggressive Zeller.  On OKC, with the shooters they have, he fills a big hole.

That's why they traded Krstic for the offensively challenged Perk and was then able to trade Perk, keeping Adams, for the defensively challenged but offensively proficient Kanter off rhe bench.  That trade was as big a steal as any.


bob


.

[cowens/oldschool]

bob you had to remind me....???? the Perk trade while we were still in contention mode is the biggest fockin mistake in Celtics history, how do you do that to Pierce and KG? still fockin pisses me off all these years later!!!!

Adams a huge 15-11 tonite and countless dirty work that helped his team that don't show up on a stat sheet

[cowens/oldschool]

for Jeff Green, fockin biggest pussy, useless waste of talent

[bobheckler]

bob you had to remind me....???? the Perk trade while we were still in contention mode is the biggest fockin mistake in Celtics history, how do you do that to Pierce and KG? still fockin pisses me off all these years later!!!!

Adams a huge 15-11 tonite and countless dirty work that helped his team that don't show up on a stat sheet

Traditionally, when you throw a shovel of dirt on a corpse that's a ritual that says "it's time to let them go".  You live in the Zombie Apocalypse, where nothing ever dies.  How the Hell do you not have ulcers or hair falling out in clumps?


nob


.

[RosalieTCeltics]

Bob...this is a battle you will never win. As long as Cow is here, we will forever be reminded of the value and worth of Perk!!!!

I admire your devotion Cow!

Rosalie

[bobheckler]

Bob...this is a battle you will never win. As long as Cow is here, we will forever be reminded of the value and worth of Perk!!!!

I admire your devotion Cow!

Rosalie

Rosalie,

Even Jackie O realized there was a point where you remember and respect the past, but had to let it go and move on.

Cowens is even more traumatized by that trade than Jackie was by that ride in Dallas, and she was actually there.



bob


.

[gyso]

Bob...this is a battle you will never win. As long as Cow is here, we will forever be reminded of the value and worth of Perk!!!!

I admire your devotion Cow!

Rosalie

Rosalie,

Even Jackie O realized there was a point where you remember and respect the past, but had to let it go and move on.

Cowens is even more traumatized by that trade than Jackie was by that ride in Dallas, and she was actually there.

bob


.

Bob,

Who is Jackie O?

[cowens/oldschool]

Two trends that are emerging in this playoffs that I hadn't noticed are Thunder have become one of the most physical teams in the league. Spurs could not handle the physicality of Adams, Ibaka and Kantor and Andre Roberson is a great fast physical wing defender with legit shutdown ability. When Spurs went small with Diaw, Thunder stayed big and Adams has the ability to punish in the paint and hustle out to perimeter when need be as does Ibaka. Thunder is a very strong defensive and rebounding team, I sure didn't see them beating this 67-15 Spurs team in 6 the way they did.

Cavs have morphed into a deadly 3 point shooting team, they were 2nd in the league in made 3's and have set playoff records for most 3's in a playoff game twice already in these playoffs. Channing Frye was a great pick up for them, seems JR Smith has his head screwed on straight for once and Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving are healthy and on top of their game at the most important time.....they also have this decent historic player Lebron.

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