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OT- NBA Playoffs

KhalidShockedTheWorld

KhalidShockedTheWorld

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i watched last night's Spurs-Thunder game with some interest. I thought that the Spurs would win, but Russell Westbrook really came to play the last 2 games. He looked very jacked up to me. The Thunder were most impressive.

If you talk about all facets of the game besides 3 point shooting, Westbrook is the best point guard in the NBA. It's his terrible 3 point shooting that has held him back from true greatness along the lines of Stephon Curry who just completed probably the best season by any NBA point guard in league history. But last night Westbrook hit a big 3 at the end which stymied a Spurs rally.

I am intrigued by the matchup of point guards in both semifinals- Westbrook v. Curry and Irving v. Lowry. I think a lot of legacies are on the line, in particular Westbrook's and Irving's. It's going to be a lot of fun to watch these games.
 
I have a tremendous amount of respect for the Success and the way the Spurs play. But I'm glad they lost. Duncan and Ginobli cry about every call/non call like a soccer player. They are the Duke of the NBA Imo.

As for Westbrook, he's the physically most talented PG of all time, but his decision making is downright awful at times. And I think that will ultimately cost them the series against GS. A series that should be great to watch. It will be interesting to see who guards Westbrook. It may have to be Iguadola at times. If OKC wins, it will be because Westbrook decides that playing great defense on Curry and taking him to the basket to wear him out, is more important than out scoring the mvp.
 
Westbrook is a very high turnover guy but he is also high assist, high rebound and high scoring. Last night Spurs got beaten up in the athletic categories- 21-5 in fast break points and 10-3 in loose ball battles. Most of that was Westbrook and Westbrook also played great D especially in transition. Westbrook's game may play well against Golden State. Golden State and OKC should be a very entertaining and high scoring series and Curry and Westbrook should light it up. However I think Curry is on another level or planet with his shooting and that's what separates him from Westbrook- unless Westbrook can neutralize it with his D. The only reason why Westbrook isn't on Curry's level is Westbrook shoots around 32% from 3 while Curry, who was a 50/40/90 shooter this year, strokes at around 46% or so.
 
Should be a very entertaining Western Conference Finals with two high-octane offenses going at it. I just give the edge to Golden State because of the perimeter defense they play on a consistent basis. Oh yeah they also have that guy named Steph Curry. Westbrook has shown he can be a smart decision maker when he does not rush and go at full speed 100% of the time. Him and Durant figured out how to play off each other last series against the Spurs but the Warriors will give them multiple looks on the defensive end. But as we all know, the backcourt of Steph & Klay will be the overall determining factor in them winning the series.
 
dbaum-

The western conference finals should be epic. It starts Monday night in Golden State. This is a legendary matchup of superstar point guards who have vastly different playing styles- one who relies on athleticism and freakish scoring ability in transition (Westbrook), the other who has a more old school game with some of the craftiest step back moves ever seen in the NBA, a lethal crossover dribble and the best shooting touch in NBA history (Curry). The stats on these guys back it all up. Durant and Thompson are also superstars who could impact on the outcome if Westbrook vs. Curry is essentially a draw.

I think the Warriors are in for a dogfight. I look at this series going 7 and the Warriors winning due to homecourt advantage, but a OKC upset would not totally shock me. The game plan on Westbrook, as always, will be to invite him to shoot 3s, and keep him out of transition. However, the way the Warriors play is not a grinding halfcourt style at all. Westbrook could have a big series.
 
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The Cavs looked very impressive in the first half tonight! 67% FGs and a layup line at times for the Cavs. Although there are grown men on both teams LeBron James looked like a man playing among boys tonight. Nobody on the Raptors is man enough to step in and take a charge on him. The result was unmolested layups. If the Raptors keep playing defense like this they are going to be swept.
 
KhalidShockedTheWorld said:
The Cavs looked very impressive in the first half tonight! 67% FGs and a layup line at times for the Cavs. Although there are grown men on both teams LeBron James looked like a man playing among boys tonight. Nobody on the Raptors is man enough to step in and take a charge on him. The result was unmolested layups. If the Raptors keep playing defense like this they are going to be swept.
Click to expand...

No excuse but man what a tough spot. Coming off of 2 series going 7 games, sprinkle in a couple of over times and the Cavs being off for almost 10 days and the loss of a true center, and you that game last night. I am not sure the Cavs even sweat in this series. They have really put together quite a team up there.
 
If the Cavs somehow win a title this year..... I will boycott watching NBA basketball for a year!!!
 
Why Oz? Lebron is everything a superstar should be. He shares the ball, plays defense and is the biggest cheerleader when his teammates do well. If they win this year, that's 3 and 5-6 are definitely in sight.
 
The Cavs looked very tough in game 1 but the Raptors played absolutely no defense. I still think it will be a Cavs-Warriors final and a much fairer fight this year because the Cavs did not have Love or Irving last year and needed LeBron to be a 1 man wrecking ball. Irving has been playing great of late.
 
Lebron is as fake as they come Canolee.

Wants everyone to like him then tried to be a tough guy villain when he is a charmin softy.

Anyway because they have had the easiest road in a pac 12 level... Depleted eastern Conference.
 
Ozzie you should ask Toronto Raptors if LeBron is a "charmin softy". I have not seen a single Raptors player come anywhere near getting in front of LeBron as he drives to the hole in these first two games, and the result has been an embarrassing avalanche of layups. I have never seen so many repeated, unimpeded drives to the hole. They are afraid to step in and take a charge on him and it's not because he is soft. The Raptors are soft.

Raptors are going down in this series, possibly getting swept. Valancunias not playing hurts them but from what I have seen, they suck defensively for playoff calibre basketball. Nobody on their team has even attempted to obstruct the driving lanes to the hole and because Lowry has been abused by Kyrie Irving, it has also effected his offense (1-15 on 3s for the 2 games). Lowry left the bench in last's night's game during the first half with 2 minutes to go because he "needed to decompress."
 
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OKC Thunder looking very impressive. Their bigs are just better than the Golden State bigs, which means if Curry and Thompson are not hitting their 3s the Warriors are in trouble. I am really starting to think OKC can win this series.
 
Oz, Lebron has been under the microscope since he was 15. That has to wear on you. Especially in the social media world we live in now. I like him.

That being said, Toronto getting this series even is not a good sign. Kevin Love and Kyrie to a lesser extent, are bully players. It's easier to make a shot up 10, then in a close game.

The west winner likely cuts down the nets and that's looking like OKC. But I still think they may blow a game they have no business losing. Much like our Huskies did a few times this past year.
 
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I agree and in that sense he has handled himself overall pretty well but I just don't like the antics like flailing and faking like he got shot by a 12 gauge the other night and flopping etc...

I agree on OKC. I thought the warriors in a series this year were unbeatable but OKC so far has them figured out and out hustling and playing them!!

Bittersweet because I think KD stays another year Atleast and not come to my Lakers :p
 
Oz, because of Lebrons size and strength, he doesn't get your normal superstar whistle because he usually plays through contact.

No one is going to the lakers as long as they have a narc in the locker room. :)

Durant should try and win a ring or two in OKC and then if the Clippers could ever move Griffin, team up with Paul and Jordan. But the grass is always greener...
 
Totally disagree about the whistle Canolee. He gets the benefit of the whistle the most I seen since MJ! Yea maybe now that the athleticism has wained and he still can't shoot outside the paint this many years in... The whistle is less understandably.

Lakers will rebuild this off season and have a solid young core.... Despite the Ohio taint narc :)
 
I tend to agree with Canolee that LeBron plays through contact a lot, however in an earlier game I saw him get swatted by Biyombo on what looked like a clean block and it was called a foul. LeBron sometimes does get the benefit of calls because he can play through contact and that play may have been an example. At the NBA level it is very hard to play through contact. Virtually all the really good teams have huge monsters clogging the lanes. OKC Thunder and TO Raptors both have very good young and strong big men.
 
If you had to award a playoff MVP so far based on what has transpired to date, Russell Westbrook wins, and LeBron James is second place.

From what I have seen in the Thunder-Warriors series so far, the Thunder is the better team. They have been the better team because the OKC bigs are better than their GS counterparts, and because of Westbrook, who has been the best player on the court in almost every game and is playing like a man possessed. Has anyone noticed how he is suddenly making 3s? He is a career 30% shooter from 3 land but it looks to me like he has worked on his shooting and improved it. And you knew if that happened it's all over because deep shooting and sometimes reckless decision making are this guy's only weaknesses. Westbrook is quite possibly the best transition point guard in NBA history. They don't call him the one man fastbreak for no reason.

I see no reason for any of this to stop tonight. I predict OKC will win at home and head to the finals vs. the Cleveland Cavs. I don't rule out a GS win, but based on how this series has played so far, I don't see it happening. GS needs to overhaul their frontcourt. They don't have enough scoring or rebounding from their bigs.
 
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That was one of the best games I have seen in a long time. Klay was on absolute fire and set the record for most three-pointers in postseason history (11). Curry also returned to form down the stretch and showed why they are the best shooting duo to ever play the game. With that said, KD and Westbrook completely blew it in the 4th quarter. Possession after possession they just made the wrong basketball play and it let to Golden State capitalizing in transition. Game 7 anything can happen but Golden State has retaken the momentum and has a very good chance of advancing to the NBA finals if they play like that again.
 
Durant and Westbrook were terrible down the stretch last night. I thought the Warriors played very good defense on Durant. When the Warriors kept the game a half court game their offense was better. I have to say though I still think that the OKC bigs are way better than Golden State's. Bogut sucks donkey balls! I can't believe that guy was taken as an overall #1 NBA draft pick.
 
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The term 'Clemsoning' should be renamed 'OKCing'. That being said, I won't be shocked if they win tonight and think it's close to a toss up(55/45) GS. I've been critical of Westbrook because of the bone headed decisions at crunch time, despite his immense talent. however, Durant deserves some criticism as well.

The pressure is off of them to an extent because not a lot of people expect them to win tonight and that's when they are most dangerous.
 
Durant was very well defended in game 6 by Iguodola. OKC was terrible at the end of game 6 but I still think OKC bigs are much better than GS bigs. GS is winning despite their bigs, not because of them. GS needs upgrades over the likes of Bogut and Ezeli and Speights.
 
Honestly I see Cleveland as the favorite but I think homecourt advantage will be big for GSW. Could go 7 games. I don't know who covers Love for Golden State.
 
I think it goes 6 again with the same result as last year. If Cavs have any chance, they have to win tonight.
 
At the moment I say GSW in 7..... But we will see what happens. I was surprised by the result in game 1. Cavs actually played great D on Curry and Thompson and still got blown out. It seemed like a choose your poison situation. Who knows if GSW bench will play that well again.
 
One of the adjustments the Cavs are going to make for game 2 is to not have Kyrie Irving dribbling so much. The Cavs coaches felt that their guards dribbled way too much (something I thought watching the game), and this led to TOs and easy breakouts. Kyrie Irving is being challenged to make sharp, quick attacks to the hole rather than be lulled into excessive dribbling. The way GSW plays defense is to encourage a lot of dribbling so it will be interesting to see what happens.
 
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What a disaster the first two games have been for the Cavs. Their biggest problem is that GSW played great, great basketball. Apart from that, Kyrie Irving is not a point guard, he is a 6'2"-6'3" shooting guard. The Cavs are running all their offense through LeBron but he is not getting any help and he is the only guy on the Cavs that promotes ball movement whereas GSW is just a bunch of team oriented guys, several of whom are great offensive weapons. Cavs left Draymond Green open a few too many times, and paid, big time. On defense Golden State is putting bigger guys like Thompson and Livingston on Irving and he is just way off and can't get off clean shots. My opinion of Kyrie Irving has gone way down. He is a good scorer, but he is not a point guard, and not a team player. He and JR Smith are similar players and you can't win with two guys like that at guard.

Love getting concussed did not help matters, but Cavs were getting drilled before that injury happened.
 
For the Cavs to march with a 12-2 record through the Eastern conference playoffs and then get seriously bitch-slapped in the first two games of the Finals has to be colossally disappointing to Cavs fans. It can be expected that the Cavs will play better at home, but they did so little well in the first two games that anyone picking them to last more than 5 games would be a little nuts. Golden State looks like a much better team even without Curry and Thompson at their best. The Cavs tried to negate those players and it hasn't worked as the rest of GSW team has killed them.

On offense LeBron James looks great but I felt he is not getting any help. The rest of the Cavs have been shut down and other than LeBron nobody on their team promotes good ball movement. Kyrie Irving isn't a drive and dish kind of player and this has become obvious. I also didn't like the body language of the Cavs players at the end of the game. The body lanaguage was of guys who just got their asses kicked and were perplexed about what just happened to them. They were overwhelmed by greatness. GSW just played great ball the first two games. Some of the best team ball I have seen in a long time in NBA finals. This team didn't win 73 games by accident.
 
Lebron should spend the summer working in the post and moving to PF next year. His ball handling and face up game looks clumsy now.

They could play barbosa, Livingston, iguodala, speights and Varajeo for 48 minutes and they'd close this series out on Monday.
 
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The Warriors will have to start Iguodola if Green gets suspended, but the Warriors bench is very good and they don't lose a ton bringing in Iguodola for Green. The Warriors have a great team. They had to deal with some adversity in these playoffs and they handled it very well. The game 6 of the OKC series was an all time classic. I honestly don't recall a better collection of perimeter shooters on an NBA champion. The Warriors big men have looked mediocre at times in these playoffs, particularly against OKC when they were outplayed, but the perimeter guys are so good it doesn't matter. Their team is young and if they keep their core together they have a chance to win multiple additional championships if they stay healthy.
 
LeBron leads both teams in ppg, rebounds/ game, assists/game, steals/ game, and blocks/ game.

Talk about domination. Even though he had a few clunkers he is showing the world he is still the best player on the planet
 
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