Aw, where’s your sense of drama? Owner’s a racist, on the road, down at the half… nobody believed in us!
Wasn’t really expecting the Wizards to win that one so easily. Just stomped the shit out of the Bulls from the jump.
Warriors too. I don’t get a chance to see the Warriors very often (honestly that was the first I’ve seen of Golden State all season), so I really only know Stephen Curry by reputation but he’s every bit as good as advertised. And I still always enjoy JJ Redick losing.
How about a 5/6 ECF? At this point, maybe the Pacers can eke out their series, but their level of play since February has been mediocre (just over .500, I think), while the Wiz have been playing lights out. And while the Nets 4-0 season record vs the Heat isn’t worth one playoff win, it should offer them quite a bit of confidence (provided they get past Toronto).
Frankly the Bulls just are not all that good a team. I expected them to make the playoffs and not much else. Thibodeau is a very good coach but the team as a whole just doesn’t produce.
Willpower, grit, and defense are great attributes to have in a team, but you still have to be able to score; basketball is a offensive sport and if you can’t score, you can’t win. The Bulls just don’t have anyone who can score, simple as that.
They lost Rose and traded Deng. They were a balanced and very good team with them. Without them they’re painfully one-dimensional.
I’m a wiz fan but objectively it makes no sense that Jimmer Fredette is getting 0 playing time in the playoffs. Is he hurt?
Good job Wizards. Wasn’t pretty, but they got it done.
Everyone had the Bulls in this series, but Washington showed up to play, and had their youth and balance on full display. In hindsight, Chicago never had a chance.
Now they get to wait and see who they get in the semis. They’re 3-1 against Atlanta this season, and got flat out embarrassed twice by Indiana, but the Pacers are playing like shit right now. Then again, digging out of that hole would mean the Pacers have gotten their shit together, so I’m definitely rooting for Atlanta to close that one out.
The way I see it Atlanta’s got one shot at it. The Pacers are the best home team in the league, so if it goes to Game 7, the Hawks will be the ones up against the wall (to state the obvious).
Thibodeaux just cannot abide a blown defensive assignment. He runs the guys he knows won’t screw up a rotation into the ground. It’s a definite blind spot but you could always tell with him that he really doesn’t give much of a damn about anything except his defensive schemes, which on the one hand does result in beautiful team defense, but on the other hand… yeah, there’s no place for Jimmer. He’d have to play him at the 2 and then the first time Wall or Beal got to the rim Jimmer’d get yanked again and Thibodeaux wouldn’t sleep for three days.
Just getting home from Staples Center. Great game, and I got a free ticket 2 hours before tip off. And it was spitting distance from the Clippers bench. Seriously. I’ve never been that close to the court at an NBA game. Awesome. I could hear the interplay between Doc Rivers and the officials.
While I was rooting for the Clippers, I do have a soft spot for the Warriors - I have loved Iguodola’s game since he was at Arizona; Klay Thompson is a wonderful player, textbook shooting form, and an above average defender; and Steph Curry is just magical on the court.
Wow, another OT game between the Grizz and Thunder, this first round’s been the best ever! Last year the Grizz beat the Thunder because there was no Westbrook, and I can’t believe they’re doing it again this year with Westbrook! Tony Allen must be stalking Durant, getting into his head, or something. When Durant’s in line at McDonald’s, Tony Allen pops out of nowhere and blocks the money he’s passing to the cashier. When Durant goes out to get his mail, Allen picks his pocket and runs off with his cable bill. When Durant is brushing his teeth, he lowers his head to the sink and spits and when he looks up, Tony Allen is behind him in the mirror! Him and Westbrook have missed a combined 100 shots so far. I think they lose this one to the Grizz. The question is, is Brooks gone if that happens?
I hope Houston and Portland can go into another OT today, should be close. Rockets are at home but they lost the first 2 at home so its not that much of a difference maker in this series. Forget Aldridge, they gotta stop Lillard somehow. Lin needs to run off some screens and be a spot up shooter, they are not utilizing him properly and he’s sucking as a result. I like how Portland’s got Houston sort of figured out, just let Howard run wild on you but stop Harden or make him jack up 30 shots to get 30 points.
Glad to see the Clippers shaking off the issues they had. Thanks to Adam Silver doing what he did, it takes some of the pressure off and they can play freely. DeAndre Jordan looked like a different person than in game 4, and I suspect most of the Clippers will be similarly energized. I feel a little bad for the Warriors, they are an exciting team and I would have liked to see them make a deep run, but the West is too stacked and they have no chance to get out of the first round.
Frank Vogel’s gotta bench Roy Hibbert. 12 mins, 0 points, 0 rebounds, and 4 fouls is something any one of us can do, and we don’t get paid millions to do it. Something’s wrong with him and the team, if the rumors of infighting are true. In a few weeks, some interesting stories are going to come out about what’s been going on in that locker room. I read a stat the other day that says Indiana’s record at the All-Star break and after is is the largest differential by any team in NBA history. No team with a record that good has sucked that bad as the Pacers. If they lose to the Hawks, this will truly be an epic collapse for the ages. Years after, when people talk about teams that collapse, they’ll say “at least they’re not like the 2013-14 Pacers. Now THAT was a collapse!”
The coaching battle between Pop and Carlisle is making that series one to watch. Dallas is almost a 50 win team and the Spurs seemed to have been outplayed in the series. Both sides have had their lucky miracle shots and the series could go either way. Neither team will beat itself I think, they’re full of veterans players and coaches and luck will have to do more than anything.
I haven’t watched a lot of the Brooklyn/Toronto series, but I think both teams have their shots on each other and countered effectively. I like how this playoffs is creating or hardening a lot of rivalries that will sure to bleed into the regular season. Almost every one is competitive and filled with hatred towards the other team. I would never have thought a Canadian would be the first to say fuck to the other town, but I never though Canada would support an NBA team.
I hope all these close 2-2 and 3-2 series go the distance. Game 7’s all around!
I’ll just pick back up my crusade on this point: I continue to be the only man in America, apparently, who isn’t impressed with Durant’s mentality in the playoffs. He doesn’t want the ball! He’s afraid to force it. What kind of 32 point a game scorer would even let his point guard take 30 shots in a close game in a close series? Westbrook gets blamed for taking stupid shots, but that’s what you do when you’re the creator in an offense. Westbrook’s the only one on the team who will consistently create his own shot. The ball goes to Durant and comes back out with five seconds on the shot clock in the fourth quarter of a close game in the playoffs. That’s insanity. When you can handle the ball and finish like he can, you go get the ball at half court if you need to.
Part of that might be Scott Brooks not drawing up good plays for Durant to be open. Since Westbrook is the PG, he’ll usually have that ball, and its up to him to follow Brook’s instructions to get it to Durant to take it in himself.
In the last play of Game 5, the only play Brooks could draw up is a contested 3 pointer 25 feet from the basket? When they only needed 1 point? No backdoor cuts, no rolling to the rim, or alley oops? That might have been the worst end-of-game plays I’ve seen in this year’s playoffs so far.
Houston’s got good players, but I can see why they’re down 3-1. Harden’s a good player, but he’s careless with the ball; he takes a lot of risks and it seems to bite the Rockets in the ass at the worst possible times. And I’ve never really been sold on Dwight Howard. He disappears when his team needs him the most. He’s just not a guy who can carry a team. I like Lin but he’s definitely better coming off the bench.
I like seeing General Greivis Vasquez get some quality time. He’s the last legit player Gary Williams produced. There’s something I like about big point guards.
To go in the random thoughts column, I really dislike the look of the Rockets’ arena. The red everywhere and the darker finish on the floor just doesn’t really work for me; it looks dull. Verizon Center (Washington) has the same problem. The floor there isn’t as dark, but the whole arena feels too dark. Not really a fan of the Nets’ floor for the same reason. I like the brighter look of the Raptors’ and Spurs’ floors; that looks “right” to me, but YMMV.
Well, it was Masai Ujiri, who is not Canadian. He’s Nigerian.
I’m a bit surprised you would not think Toronto wouldn’t support an NBA team. It’s a rather enormous city - I believe it is the fourth largest city with an NBA team, actually. I’d be shocked if it COULDN’T support one. The fact that the fans are as supportive as they are despite the team’s track record of abysmal failure is an indication of the depth of the fan base.
Toronto blew a 26-point lead and still won. Jeezus. (Why it took so long to get Kyle Lowry back into the game I do not understand; the collapse began with him out, and ended more or less immediately upon his return. Lowry is one of the ten best players in the NBA right now.)
Whenever you hear someone say an NBA game is meaningless until the fourth quarter… ummm, well, just watch this game. The Raptors were totally outplayed in the fourth quarter, and they won the game, because they won the first three quarters.
And speaki9ng of the Pacers… Toronto beat them about two, three weeks before the playoffs. Going into the game the Raptors decided not to dress their best player, Kyle Lowry, and arguably their second best player, Amir Johnson (that’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it) to rest minor injuries. And they still won. In fact, they kicked Indiana’s ass. I was appalled. The Pacers looked like they didn’t know what they were doing and did not particularly care. They had no backcourt at all. They had no hustle. They were lazy. They shot poorly. If they aren’t the worst #1 seed in NBA history I challenge anyone to name a worse one. I don’t know what evil spirits took them over halfway through the season but they should hire an exorcist.
I agree with you about Amir Johnson, RickJay. I love the mix they have in that frontcourt. Except for Hansbrough. That’s a very likeable team in general, except I don’t think their wings are good enough.
Ahh, it’s the NBA and he’s Kevin Durant. You don’t need instructions to get the ball. Imagine saying the same thing about Michael Jordan or Kobe or even Carmelo Anthony or AI. Coaches don’t need to get their superstars open; ultimately a perimeter player takes as many shots as he wants. That’s one of the things that I love about the NBA - talent will out.
Anyway, though, like I mentioned, the thing that really turns me off is that he is getting the ball. He’s getting more touches per game in the playoffs than he did in the regular season. He’s just not greedy with it. I just looked it up for the hell of it and he drove to the basket 5.8 times per game in the regular season playing 39 minutes per game. This series he’s driving 3.8 times per game and he’s playing more than 48 minutes per game.
Is that you, Scott Brooks? 
I hope you’re working on your resume because you are going to get fired if your team loses, and a big reason the team is losing is its predictable offense and its failure to maximize the considerable abilities of its players. For a while now they’ve been making it work in spite of you, but after a first-round loss people are going to run out of patience. A better offense might get Durant the ball in more favorable situations. He’s not having a great series, but still.
What I meant was that its Canada. I didn’t think they liked basketball enough.
Holy shit, what a finish to the Portland/Houston series! Damian Lillard hit a three pointer at the buzzer to win game six and the series by one point. I haven’t followed NBA play for years, even after moving to a city where there is a pro team. The Blazers have been lackluster or worse the past few years, but this year they really upped their game. This series was a firecracker.
Total points scored in six games:
Houston 672
Portland 670
Five game sevens this weekend. This could be the best first round ever.