NBA Playoffs Thread

[tuq]

[ QUOTE ]
Phoenix went 0-3 on their home friggin court against that Bulls team. No rational person can suggest they were the better team.

[/ QUOTE ]
Don't get me started, Bulls homer. The first two games were gimmies to the Bulls because they had 1) the best player on the planet at his peak, 2) two straight titles coming into the finals, 3) an inexperienced Suns team who had to battle seven games against Seattle just to make the finals, whereas the Bulls got in a game early thanks to Charles "I choose to miss layups instead of dunk it" Smith. The Knicks would likely have taken that series were it not for his weird finish in game five.

On top of all of this, you and I have had these debates about the Bulls run. No, I don't think it would have been eight straight. Between egos, salary caps, expectations, and being a target, the issues grow every year. Jordan showing back up in 1995 - and LOSING to Orlando - proved he was motivated. That sparked the three-year run that followed, which simply wouldn't have happened had he played contiguosly.

As for your quote above, the Bulls went 1-2 on their home floor in the 1993 finals and as a series total both teams scored the same number of points, so you should stop harping on that point and be happy you won with a clearly inferior team.

[Clarkmeister]

Thought on the Suns, et al, and it's not original at all, so sue me.

The fact of the matter is that in the playoffs you simply need to be able to play filthy halfcourt defense. Some clown will come here and suggest they play great defense and it's all pace related and adjusted, but it's nonsense. When push comes to shove in playoff basketball, you need to play phenomenal lock-down half court defense. Phoenix doesn't do that. Period. The two best defensive teams are going to meet in the finals. It is what it is.

[Artdogg]

The part that annoys me the most about this loss is for the first time I thought the Suns actually had the superior team. For the 3rd straight year I/we all were robbed of actually knowing. I'll concede that the Suns would have lost to the Spurs 2 years ago even with a healthy Joe and that they probably would have lost last year with a healthy Bell, but Im not conceding [censored] this year.

It was clear 2 years ago that the Spurs were better and the Suns brought in Bell+Thomas strictly for them. Needless to say they were pretty damn good moves. Manu went off in EVERY game 2 years ago, which wasnt the case this year or last year. Not only did Duncan go off, but he was doubled every time which led to Barry/Horry/Mohammed/everyone else going off. The Suns just couldnt get a stop that year.

The two things that have annoyed me the most over the last 48 hours:

1. People saying the Suns blew game 5. I knew theyd need to be protecting a pretty sizeable lead in the 4th to have a chance in that one. Their lead just wasn't quite big enough. The way they are built they need both Nash and Amare in the half court sets to close, and if they don't have Amare they need Diaw to replace him. This isn't a weakness, teams are meant to have their best players.

2. People looking at this series and saying the Spurs are "definitely" the better team. WE CANT [censored] KNOW THAT. If the Suns lose game 7 at home then the Spurs are better, but we were robbed of that chance. I knew coming in that the Suns would have to steal 1 in SAN, but being forced to steal 2 is ridiculous. How many championship teams would take 2/3 against this Spurs team?

Horry, Bowen, and the Spurs are dirty pieces of garbage. I'm sorry, they are a great team, but 6 rings isnt enough for Horry to play legit? He has to knock Nash over right by the Suns bench? Bowen has to stick his fat foot under every jumpshooter? which to be honest is almost worse than Horry's move. I love how the league dismisses all of Bowen's "accidents," yet he seems to have more of them than the rest of the league combined.

Two years ago I war rooting hard for the Spurs in the finals, but I have now completely flipped it. I'll be rooting for the Pistons, although I know they have much less of a chance this time around.

[kidcolin]

Art,

Good post. A few random things. Bowen IS a dirty hack (not Horry, or the Spurs, despite my hate for the G-Nob flop). However, he played awesome D on Nash, who seemed very flustered in games 5 and 6.

[ QUOTE ]
1. People saying the Suns blew game 5. I knew theyd need to be protecting a pretty sizeable lead in the 4th to have a chance in that one. Their lead just wasn't quite big enough. The way they are built they need both Nash and Amare in the half court sets to close, and if they don't have Amare they need Diaw to replace him. This isn't a weakness, teams are meant to have their best players.

[/ QUOTE ]

[censored] that. These are professional NBA players. You have to find a way to get a few buckets when you have that sort of lead going into the final minutes.

[Artdogg]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

1. People saying the Suns blew game 5. I knew theyd need to be protecting a pretty sizeable lead in the 4th to have a chance in that one. Their lead just wasn't quite big enough. The way they are built they need both Nash and Amare in the half court sets to close, and if they don't have Amare they need Diaw to replace him. This isn't a weakness, teams are meant to have their best players.


[/ QUOTE ]


[censored] that. These are professional NBA players. You have to find a way to get a few buckets when you have that sort of lead going into the final minutes.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats one way to look it it but I'm just saying the way they are built it would be very easy to defend them in the half court (without those two players), especially with a smart defensive team like the Spurs. Plus we are talking about an 8 point lead with 5:40ish left, right about when the game becomes primarily half court. Kerr was right on with his analysis at the time, they were basically inventing ways to score and trying to grind it out. They could have won, but I'm just saying the result is not surprising at all given the collection of players on the court.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Phoenix went 0-3 on their home friggin court against that Bulls team. No rational person can suggest they were the better team.

[/ QUOTE ]
Don't get me started, Bulls homer. The first two games were gimmies to the Bulls because they had 1) the best player on the planet at his peak, 2) two straight titles coming into the finals, 3) an inexperienced Suns team who had to battle seven games against Seattle just to make the finals, whereas the Bulls got in a game early thanks to Charles "I choose to miss layups instead of dunk it" Smith. The Knicks would likely have taken that series were it not for his weird finish in game five.

On top of all of this, you and I have had these debates about the Bulls run. No, I don't think it would have been eight straight. Between egos, salary caps, expectations, and being a target, the issues grow every year. Jordan showing back up in 1995 - and LOSING to Orlando - proved he was motivated. That sparked the three-year run that followed, which simply wouldn't have happened had he played contiguosly.

As for your quote above, the Bulls went 1-2 on their home floor in the 1993 finals and as a series total both teams scored the same number of points, so you should stop harping on that point and be happy you won with a clearly inferior team.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah, most clearly inferor teams win in less than 7 games and sweep the opponent on their home court.

[Clarkmeister]

Just to make it clear:

Swept. At. Home.

Lost. In. 6. (not won, not lost in 7, lost in freaking 6.)

Claiming the Suns were better that year is as legit as me saying the Bulls were clearly better than Detroit this year.

[Clarkmeister]

[ QUOTE ]
DEAR GOD,

I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW THAT I DON'T BELIEVE IN YOU, BUT PRETTY PLEASE DON'T LET ANOTHER SUNS INJURY BE A FACTOR IN THE RESULT. IN '05 JOE JOHNSON WAS OUT FOR THE KEY GAMES AGAINST THE SPURS, LAST YEAR IT WAS RAJA BELL, AMARE, AND KURT THOMAS. PROVE TO ME THAT YOU EXIST BY NOT MAKING NASH'S INJURY MATTER IN THE OUTCOME.

THANKS NGA.

TUP



[/ QUOTE ]

God granted your wish

[xorbie]

jazz/spurs definitely favors the spurs, especially with homecourt. here's how i see it...

bowen/deron: this will be huge. the jazz have had TONS of turnovers the last couple series, deron is young. lotta pressure, and a very physical defender in bowen who can fluster gaurds. otoh, deron is big and fairly quick (with good handle), and if he can penetrate it might get ugly with ginobli or whomever trying to cover AK47, who should be able to pound it inside.

boozer/duncan: duncan is basically just better, this will be a very tough matchup on both ends for booz and really where the jazz will hurt. we will see what sloan will do, but if booz runs the pick and roll with deron, hopefully duncan will be forced to the perimeter where he can't help as much defensively.

okur: the problem here is that he's not particularly good in the low post, so he'll probably hang around and draw out oberto or elson. defensively neither of those guys does [censored] anyway, so i suspect he'll be helping out on duncan a ton.

ak47/ginobli: this will be interesting. i think we will see a lot of different matchups on ginobli. ak47 can definitely bother him with his length and shot blocking, but sloan may consider putting dfish or brewer on ginobli and having ak47 double down on duncan because he covers a lot of ground quickly and with his long arms can disrupt the passing lanes a lot better than the suns were doing.

[tuq]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
DEAR GOD,

I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW THAT I DON'T BELIEVE IN YOU, BUT PRETTY PLEASE DON'T LET ANOTHER SUNS INJURY BE A FACTOR IN THE RESULT. IN '05 JOE JOHNSON WAS OUT FOR THE KEY GAMES AGAINST THE SPURS, LAST YEAR IT WAS RAJA BELL, AMARE, AND KURT THOMAS. PROVE TO ME THAT YOU EXIST BY NOT MAKING NASH'S INJURY MATTER IN THE OUTCOME.

THANKS NGA.

TUP



[/ QUOTE ]

God granted your wish

[/ QUOTE ]
If you were a god - and make no mistake, you're not - you would clearly be a vengeful one.