Which Top 3 Seed is in the most trouble? (1st round, NBA) - Page 4

kidcolin · #31 04-23-2007, 02:30 PM

oops.. +8 / -20 . [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] I edited it. He was the only DAL player with a good +/- according to http://www.popcornmachine.net/cgi-bi...mp;game=GSWDAL (via TrueHoop).

Billy Bibbit · #32 04-23-2007, 02:39 PM

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The Spurs game was 100% SA and nothing else. SA got any shot they wanted the entire game; they just happened to miss 98% of them. Melo and AI were both on fire on the offensive end, but other than Nene's rebounding, nobody else did much of anything. The fact that the Spurs shot about as bad as is possible for them, and yet it was a game that was close the entire way, bodes well for the rest of the series.

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That wasn't my impression of the game at all. I saw Marcus Camby and Nene force Tim Duncan to take lots of tough shots that he won't suddenly start making from here on out, and I saw Parker's and Ginobili's shots get changed by Camby in the lane. I'm not sure things are going to get any easier for them offensively. As for Denver, yeah, Iverson and Anthony probably won't keep playing that well on offense. I still think the Spurs take this series but they're in serious trouble, they're maybe 60-40 to win it.

The Dallas game on the other hand, I did think they just missed lots of easy shots that they'd normally make. I mean they were bricking open layups. They SHOULD bounce back and win the series in five or six games but they have a history of going horribly cold on offense at the wrong time, so you never know. I'd put them at about 80-20 to win the series.

Toronto doesn't really belong in this thread because they're hardly a "beast." They're not even a better team than the Nets. For the guy who said people are fickle, I picked the Nets in the other thread and I thought a lot of other people did too.

ThaSaltCracka · #33 04-23-2007, 02:55 PM

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I don't see SA coming back against Denver, who I think wins in 5.

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This comment is as weird as Clarkmeister picking the Spurs to beat the Suns in five. I don't know if you guys are posting for shock value or what but both predictions are way off.

[/ QUOTE ]I just sense it. The Nuggets are a pretty damn fierce team with a healthy Nene and Camby. They look sharp, however perhaps my prediction is way off. I just haven't been impressed by the Spurs all season. Seriously, something about the Nuggets just feels right.

edited to add a few things

The one thing that will derail Denver is consistency, which is probably redundant. They were such a hot and cold team during the regular season. If they are clicking right now they could run deep into the playoffs. I don't think a long series helps them though because they lack the depth of the top 3 teams.

kidcolin · #34 04-23-2007, 03:42 PM

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I saw Marcus Camby and Nene force Tim Duncan to take lots of tough shots that he won't suddenly start making from here on out, and I saw Parker's and Ginobili's shots get changed by Camby in the lane. I'm not sure things are going to get any easier for them offensively.

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This is the beauty of having an experienced coaching staff led by Popovich. There's no way they don't correct their approach. They'll run more pick and rolls, they'll go small at the 4, they'll mix it up. Karl, on the other hand, will see his team completely dumbfounded when Spurs switch into a zone.

tuq · #35 04-23-2007, 03:47 PM

TSC,

I guess I get annoyed and confused by the bandwagon-ish tendency of people to take a single game result and project it out over the whole series. Trust me, as a certified Spurs hater I hope you're right, I'm just not feeling it.

In the 1985 NBA finals, the Celtics beat the Lakers 148-114 (!) in game one. Showtime proceeded to win four out of the next five and the title.

Although people may moan about how long the playoffs go, I am happy for the extension to seven games in the first round. There was a point around the early 80s when the NBA introduced a new round of playoffs and made it best of THREE, which is comical in its tendency to produce upsets. Luckily $$$ and common sense prevailed after a couple-few years.

ThaSaltCracka · #36 04-23-2007, 04:04 PM

Tuq, understandable, but you can look at their recent performances. They won 10 of their last 11 games heading into the playoffs, 5 of those wins were against playoff teams. The last game against SA we can throw out though, SA was resting their guns.

tdarko · #37 04-23-2007, 04:06 PM

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The Dallas game on the other hand, I did think they just missed lots of easy shots that they'd normally make. I mean they were bricking open layups.

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Yup. They are a 47% shooting team, they aren't going to shoot 35% this entire series and they didn't shoot 35% b/c of anything GS did...Dallas missed open shots and lay-ups the entire game, GS gave the lane all night, it was ugly. GS is a 46% shooting team that shot 43% last night, not a huge disparity yet the game was locked up until the very end.

But if Dallas doesn't make shots the series will be quick.

tuq · #38 04-23-2007, 04:08 PM

TSC,

Well yeah, 11 results >>>>>> 1.

By the way, your last comment reminds me of why I love D'Antoni and his copstache. While in the last two games Dallas and SA were busy dusting off the far end of the bench, at least D'Antoni gave the fans their money's worth by playing the regular rotation almost as much as any other game. They lost those games, who knows how hard they were trying, but at least he didn't puss out and go with the scrubs.

ThaSaltCracka · #39 04-23-2007, 04:09 PM

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I saw Marcus Camby and Nene force Tim Duncan to take lots of tough shots that he won't suddenly start making from here on out, and I saw Parker's and Ginobili's shots get changed by Camby in the lane. I'm not sure things are going to get any easier for them offensively.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is the beauty of having an experienced coaching staff led by Popovich. There's no way they don't correct their approach. They'll run more pick and rolls, they'll go small at the 4, they'll mix it up. Karl, on the other hand, will see his team completely dumbfounded when Spurs switch into a zone.

[/ QUOTE ] This is really their only chance IMO. Pop is a much better coach than Karl and he will need to make some adjustments.

ThaSaltCracka · #40 04-23-2007, 04:11 PM

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By the way, your last comment reminds me of why I love D'Antoni and his copstache. While in the last two games Dallas and SA were busy dusting off the far end of the bench, at least D'Antoni gave the fans their money's worth by playing the regular rotation almost as much as any other game. They lost those games, who knows how hard they were trying, but at least he didn't puss out and go with the scrubs.

[/ QUOTE ] A possible explanation, D'Antoni didn't want to disrupt his teams "flow". It has to help with their consistency and their game readiness. Interesting that both Dallas and SA lost their first game while Phoenix fought hard to overcome Kobe for a game 1 win.