NBA Playoffs | Syracusefan.com

NBA Playoffs

longislandcuse

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...and we're off!

Toronto chokes in Game 1, as usual.

Patrick Beverley gets into it with a star player, as usual.
 
Well I'm none to happy that Celtics lost to ATL in Game 1, but now Avery Bradley is out for series with a hamstring, Smart has a sprained finger (still playing), and Olynyk has a sore shoulder (status unknown). Not looking good. Kevin Durant come on down (this summer).
 
Looking forward to Heat-Hornets the most of the round 1 matchups. Both teams have been playing very well the last few months, and they are pretty evenly matched.

It wouldn't shock me if Detroit gives Cleveland some trouble. Jackson would seem like the type of player the Cavs will have trouble checking, plus they have the horses inside. They might be too young and inexperienced to know how to win against a team like Cleveland in the playoffs though. At the very least, I think the games will be close.

Out West...the first round matchups suck. I was really hoping Utah would get in over Houston. The 2nd round on should be great though.
 
Looking forward to Heat-Hornets the most of the round 1 matchups. Both teams have been playing very well the last few months, and they are pretty evenly matched.

It wouldn't shock me if Detroit gives Cleveland some trouble. Jackson would seem like the type of player the Cavs will have trouble checking, plus they have the horses inside. They might be too young and inexperienced to know how to win against a team like Cleveland in the playoffs though. At the very least, I think the games will be close.

Out West...the first round matchups suck. I was really hoping Utah would get in over Houston. The 2nd round on should be great though.

I think the Hornets have a good shot at winning the series.
 
I think the Hornets have a good shot at winning the series.

Me too. They have been red hot since the break. And I think the winner of this series also has a decent shot at winning round 2.
 
Yeah the west first round is so weird; I pretty much expect at least 3 of the 4 series to be over in 5 games or fewer. And the Clippers may take care of business pretty quickly as well.

Look at who Memphis was playing yesterday. The Spurs might figure out a way to win t hat series in 3.
 
Well I'm none to happy that Celtics lost to ATL in Game 1, but now Avery Bradley is out for series with a hamstring, Smart has a sprained finger (still playing), and Olynyk has a sore shoulder (status unknown). Not looking good. Kevin Durant come on down (this summer).

Yeah I think the Celts are toast without Bradley but you never know. At least we have all those first round picks to look forward to.
 
Yeah the west first round is so weird; I pretty much expect at least 3 of the 4 series to be over in 5 games or fewer. And the Clippers may take care of business pretty quickly as well.

Look at who Memphis was playing yesterday. The Spurs might figure out a way to win t hat series in 3.

13 first quarter points for Memphis last night. SAS just putting them on lock down.
 
Harden just got a whistle on the most ridiculous three point attempt I've ever seen. Why do the refs make these calls? The NBA has done a great job of cleaning up the officiating, and Harden is singlehandedly destroying it.
 
I've never seen a playoff team look like they wanted to go on vacation more than these Rockets.

James Harden's defense isn't bad, it's non-existent. I don't care what kind of offensive stats you have, you can't be elite when you don't even try on defense.

Btw, maybe Billy Donovan will get better as a coach, but he isn't good right now. I know the offense is a little different now, but they fired Scott Brooks for this?
 
I love Westbrook but KD is becoming so overrated. He needs to leave OKC and go East to have any chance of not going the way of Melo and that isn't even fair to Melo since KD's OKC teams are light years better than anything Melo has ever been on and Westbrook is light years better than any teammate Melo has ever had.
 
Dion looked like he belonged last night. I would normally never say this as if I'm an OKC fan but towards the end, I thought they should of given him more ISO looks or chances to come off a pick going toward the basket instead of 900 rushed Westbrook/KD shots.
 
I've never seen a playoff team look like they wanted to go on vacation more than these Rockets.

James Harden's defense isn't bad, it's non-existent. I don't care what kind of offensive stats you have, you can't be elite when you don't even try on defense.

Btw, maybe Billy Donovan will get better as a coach, but he isn't good right now. I know the offense is a little different now, but they fired Scott Brooks for this?

Houston is painful to watch, particularly on offense. So dysfunctional. Harden's so inept on defense it's almost as if he's embracing the rep as the league's worst defender. He doesn't even seem to try.
 
Houston is painful to watch, particularly on offense. So dysfunctional. Harden's so inept on defense it's almost as if he's embracing the rep as the league's worst defender. He doesn't even seem to try.
Yup. His defense is insanely bad and his offense is so awful to watch.

Does Houston know Dwight Howard is on their team? I know he's not Dwight of years ago but my goodness, they treat dude like he's Kendrick Perkins.
 
My playoff thoughts so far:

  • GSW/Houston --> GSW clearly the best, and deepest, team in the league. Would be surprised if they don't sweep. Houston is perhaps the strangest team I have seen. All-star core, and solid role players but just no chemistry at all and honestly strange rotations, imo.
  • OKC/Dallas --> OKC still wins this series, but last night showed how good of a coach Carlisle is and how streaky players can be. Westbrook and Durant killed them down the stretch, but I expect big time bounce back games. Props to the veterans on Dallas for stepping up down the stretch, but they have too many injuries to overcome, and OKC still has loads of talent. No chance of coming out of the west though, imo.
  • LAC/Portland --> I expect LAC to win this series because their best players are better than Portland's best players. I can see this going 6-7 games though, especially if Lillard gets hot. I think this comes down to the bench guys. Who contributes more? Great year for Portland either way.
  • Memphis/SA --> This will get ugly. It's a shame Memphis has so many injuries because if they were fully healthy, this series would be fun. Of course if that was the case, they wouldn't be a 7 seed. Vinsanity, Chris Anderson, and Jordan Farmar started for them. Think about that.
  • Cle/Detroit --> Living in akron, I hate Cleveland. I have always been a Lebron defender and fan because his bball ability is un-matched, but after living here and being able to watch so many games, I can absolutely see why so many people dislike him for non-basketball reasons. Detroit is going to be very good in the next 3-4 years with their young core. Lebron, Irving, and Love all played solid, at least in terms of scoring, and the game was closer than the score. I would be concerned. Cavs still advance, but Detroit will battle every game. I also work with a lot of delusional Cavs fans who think Dellava-idiot outplayed Curry in the finals.
  • Miami/Charlotte --> Luol Deng? Guy is balling. Heat are a very sneaky team to come out of the east. I think a Cavs/Heat east finals would be awesome. Charlotte has some good players (Kemba has had a GREAT year) but they won't be able to hang with Miami's experience.
  • Indiana/Toronto --> I think this goes 7 games but Toronto pulls it out. Tough first round matchup for them, as Indy has the best player and guys with experience.
  • Celtics/Hawks --> Losing Bradley was big. Like Detroit, Boston will be very good the next few years but I think Atlanta's top players > Boston's top player and with their experience, they move on.
Some teams I am rooting for - GSW, Dallas, Detroit, Hawks, Heat.
 
My playoff thoughts so far:

  • GSW/Houston --> GSW clearly the best, and deepest, team in the league. Would be surprised if they don't sweep. Houston is perhaps the strangest team I have seen. All-star core, and solid role players but just no chemistry at all and honestly strange rotations, imo.
  • OKC/Dallas --> OKC still wins this series, but last night showed how good of a coach Carlisle is and how streaky players can be. Westbrook and Durant killed them down the stretch, but I expect big time bounce back games. Props to the veterans on Dallas for stepping up down the stretch, but they have too many injuries to overcome, and OKC still has loads of talent. No chance of coming out of the west though, imo.
  • LAC/Portland --> I expect LAC to win this series because their best players are better than Portland's best players. I can see this going 6-7 games though, especially if Lillard gets hot. I think this comes down to the bench guys. Who contributes more? Great year for Portland either way.
  • Memphis/SA --> This will get ugly. It's a shame Memphis has so many injuries because if they were fully healthy, this series would be fun. Of course if that was the case, they wouldn't be a 7 seed. Vinsanity, Chris Anderson, and Jordan Farmar started for them. Think about that.
  • Cle/Detroit --> Living in akron, I hate Cleveland. I have always been a Lebron defender and fan because his bball ability is un-matched, but after living here and being able to watch so many games, I can absolutely see why so many people dislike him for non-basketball reasons. Detroit is going to be very good in the next 3-4 years with their young core. Lebron, Irving, and Love all played solid, at least in terms of scoring, and the game was closer than the score. I would be concerned. Cavs still advance, but Detroit will battle every game. I also work with a lot of delusional Cavs fans who think Dellava-idiot outplayed Curry in the finals.
  • Miami/Charlotte --> Luol Deng? Guy is balling. Heat are a very sneaky team to come out of the east. I think a Cavs/Heat east finals would be awesome. Charlotte has some good players (Kemba has had a GREAT year) but they won't be able to hang with Miami's experience.
  • Indiana/Toronto --> I think this goes 7 games but Toronto pulls it out. Tough first round matchup for them, as Indy has the best player and guys with experience.
  • Celtics/Hawks --> Losing Bradley was big. Like Detroit, Boston will be very good the next few years but I think Atlanta's top players > Boston's top player and with their experience, they move on.
Some teams I am rooting for - GSW, Dallas, Detroit, Hawks, Heat.
Good thoughts.

I'm hoping for a rebound for the Hornets. I can't envision Miami playing as well as they did on Sunday all series. I still think they win it, but I think Charlotte will push them.
 
Dion looked like he belonged last night. I would normally never say this as if I'm an OKC fan but towards the end, I thought they should of given him more ISO looks or chances to come off a pick going toward the basket instead of 900 rushed Westbrook/KD shots.

He had one really nice and one finish. He's still Dion though.

I couldn't believe with maybe 45 seconds left, OKC called a timeout and the play they ended up with was Durant pitching it to Russ for a 3 pointer. (they were down 1 or 2). You know, the 30% career 3 point shooting Russell Westbrook.

Durant was about as bad as he could possibly be last night, but he's still freaking incredible. 28-8-5 on a 63% true shooting this year.

Am I the only one strugglign to get into the first round? Especially in the west.
 
He had one really nice and one finish. He's still Dion though.

I couldn't believe with maybe 45 seconds left, OKC called a timeout and the play they ended up with was Durant pitching it to Russ for a 3 pointer. (they were down 1 or 2). You know, the 30% career 3 point shooting Russell Westbrook.

Durant was about as bad as he could possibly be last night, but he's still freaking incredible. 28-8-5 on a 63% true shooting this year.

Am I the only one strugglign to get into the first round? Especially in the west.

NBA playoffs are fun to watch, but it usually takes a few rounds to get into it. Over half the league is in the playoffs.
 
NBA playoffs are fun to watch, but it usually takes a few rounds to get into it. Over half the league is in the playoffs.

Also just this first round in particular; the entire west first round seems like we're just killing time until the next round. (Despite the outcome of the game last night)
 

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