Did the Cavs & Bucks tank to avoid 2nd seed?

[FrozenEnvelope]

We lost our series against Indiana and Orlando and won our series against Miami and Philly. I am not sure if it would be wise to throw the game.

Regular season means nothing in the playoffs.

Nonsense. Matchups matter. Period. It doesn't guarantee anything but, it matters. You want Boston in round one?

Next thing you will try to tell me is that HCA doesn't matter in the playoffs either. Which we have guaranteed for the first two rounds with this win as well.

I would prefer to be the one seed but, injuries took that away. We are still a really good team though. Let's shock the world!

HCA only matters against inexperienced teams and the odds are heavily in your favor if the series goes to the 7th game. But teams like Boston and Miami do not care about playing at MSG. They have won there before and the "aura" doesn't bug them one bit.

[Jalen Bluntson]

Yes they are spineless cowards

It's a little unexpected seeing this comment next to a picture of Bob Ross.

[Jalen Bluntson]

Regular season means nothing in the playoffs.

Nonsense. Matchups matter. Period. It doesn't guarantee anything but, it matters. You want Boston in round one?

Next thing you will try to tell me is that HCA doesn't matter in the playoffs either. Which we have guaranteed for the first two rounds with this win as well.

I would prefer to be the one seed but, injuries took that away. We are still a really good team though. Let's shock the world!

HCA only matters against inexperienced teams and the odds are heavily in your favor if the series goes to the 7th game. But teams like Boston and Miami do not care about playing at MSG. They have won there before and the "aura" doesn't bug them one bit.

It helps the HOME TEAM. Nothing matters except for tanking. Check. Carry on.

[Wildcat]

I've read some articles that say the Cavs and Bucks were happy to not get the 2nd seed. Granted, sitting starters on the last day isn't unheard of. I remember the Knicks resting Ewing on the last game of the season a few times.

But the 2nd seed plays (probably), Miami or Philly. Philly is a strong team when Embiid plays and Miami was a tough playoff team last year. Better in the playoffs than the regular season.

So 3rd seed - Indiana and 4th seed - Orlando, feels like an easier first round matchup.

Thoughts? Did Cleveland and Milwaukee deliberately avoid the #2 seed?

Cleveland pulled their starters in the 4th (after sitting Garland and Spida). A number of beat writers have called them out on it. My man Bontemps is pissed and echoed a lot of my thoughts about yesterday.

Common feeling on the Bucks is that they just suck.

[FrozenEnvelope]

Nonsense. Matchups matter. Period. It doesn't guarantee anything but, it matters. You want Boston in round one?

Next thing you will try to tell me is that HCA doesn't matter in the playoffs either. Which we have guaranteed for the first two rounds with this win as well.

I would prefer to be the one seed but, injuries took that away. We are still a really good team though. Let's shock the world!

HCA only matters against inexperienced teams and the odds are heavily in your favor if the series goes to the 7th game. But teams like Boston and Miami do not care about playing at MSG. They have won there before and the "aura" doesn't bug them one bit.

It helps the HOME TEAM. Nothing matters except for tanking. Check. Carry on.

How much did HCA help against Miami last year? Didn't they just beat us at home earlier this month too? The Garden is just another stadium to them.

[Jalen Bluntson]

HCA only matters against inexperienced teams and the odds are heavily in your favor if the series goes to the 7th game. But teams like Boston and Miami do not care about playing at MSG. They have won there before and the "aura" doesn't bug them one bit.

It helps the HOME TEAM. Nothing matters except for tanking. Check. Carry on.

How much did HCA help against Miami last year? Didn't they just beat us at home earlier this month too? The Garden is just another stadium to them.

You're so afraid of Miami you should hide under the covers when the games are on. HCA doesn't matter. Regular season doesn't matter. Having one of the best teams in the conference apparently doesn't matter. Miami is coming! FUQ MIAMI! FUQ PHILLY AND FUQ BOSTON!!!

This discussion will tell me who I want in a fox hole with me. You just got crossed off the list!!

[FrozenEnvelope]

It helps the HOME TEAM. Nothing matters except for tanking. Check. Carry on.

How much did HCA help against Miami last year? Didn't they just beat us at home earlier this month too? The Garden is just another stadium to them.

You're so afraid of Miami you should hide under the covers when the games are on. HCA doesn't matter. Regular season doesn't matter. Having one of the best teams in the conference apparently doesn't matter. Miami is coming! FUQ MIAMI! FUQ PHILLY AND FUQ BOSTON!!!

This discussion will tell me who I want in a fox hole with me. You just got crossed off the list!!

It's not about being scared of them or being in a fox hole. You don't respect them which is crazy considering their success and history. You are being silly if you don't think they are a threat and will be the first one complaining and wanting everyone traded and Thibs fired if we lose to them.

[KnicksGod]

I’ll say this - I think the Cavs, Bucks, Magic and Pacers are all very happy this morning.

Well said because Pacers can def beat the Bucks and Magic can win too

[seren]

I hope the tankers get their karma and lose in the first round. I personally am fine with either Miami or Philly matchup. We have brought fire power even without Randle. We should go all the way up to the conference finals

[El Poochio]

Why would Cavs do that? Now they will have to face Celtics instead of Knicks in the next round

[gavran]

Why would Cavs do that? Now they will have to face Celtics instead of Knicks in the next round

There's your answer.

[Spree2Houston]

Ofcourse Cavs tanked. They’re soft.

[nykballa2k4]

Bucks clearly dodged it. Cavs are just as good as they are. I think they would fare well against Miami specifically. There is something comforting about knowing who you are game planning for. All of the teams in the 3, 4, 5, 6 know exactly what they are aiming for in the first round. We and Boston do not. The play-in is a bit of a disadvantage for the top-dogs, but if we really are a top-dog it should not matter.

[KnicksGod]

Benching stars in the final game/s is done for three reasons. Playoff seeding is set so...who cares? You are out of the playoffs and want a better pick. You want to avoid teams in the playoffs. Milwaukee seems like it's possible but, with the injury to Giannis, I might give them a slight pass but, pretty suspect. Cleveland flat out tanked.

We don't play that shyt. It's just the wrong mentality to have. Winners want all the smoke!! People who think it's a smart move, go hide with the Cavs and Bucks while the rest of us lock and load!! FOH!

This is not a street fight. Both of those teams made business decisions and honestly it was the right move imo. We don't get any extra credit for wanting the smoke. Will you still feel this way if Miami sends us on vacation?

You scared of Miami? You scared of Bam intentionally injuring players?

We are without Randle who until recently was considered our best player. On paper and history it is entirely reasonable to conclude that Miami is the favorite.

[robillionaire]

This is not a street fight. Both of those teams made business decisions and honestly it was the right move imo. We don't get any extra credit for wanting the smoke. Will you still feel this way if Miami sends us on vacation?

You scared of Miami? You scared of Bam intentionally injuring players?

We are without Randle who until recently was considered our best player. On paper and history it is entirely reasonable to conclude that Miami is the favorite.

Plus you know… they were in the nba finals last year, and they beat us on the way.

We had a better regular season record this year, yeah. We had a better regular season record last year too. They have been known to reach an extra gear in the playoffs

[robillionaire]

Regular season means nothing in the playoffs.

Nonsense. Matchups matter. Period. It doesn't guarantee anything but, it matters. You want Boston in round one?

Next thing you will try to tell me is that HCA doesn't matter in the playoffs either. Which we have guaranteed for the first two rounds with this win as well.

I would prefer to be the one seed but, injuries took that away. We are still a really good team though. Let's shock the world!

HCA only matters against inexperienced teams and the odds are heavily in your favor if the series goes to the 7th game. But teams like Boston and Miami do not care about playing at MSG. They have won there before and the "aura" doesn't bug them one bit.

The aura doesn’t bother anybody. The hawks came in there and spanked us. The pacers or magic wouldn’t hesitate to do the same. The Magic had our number all season. At some point you have to play good teams. And it’s ultimately not gonna matter if we won a first round series or not. We got over that hump last year. Boston will also likely have to play Philadelphia or Miami, they probably aren’t complaining about it. Good teams don’t throw games trying to play the matchups, they just don’t.

Both of those teams are beatable if we play proper Knicks basketball and if we are serious about being a contender we have to beat these guys. Miami went to the finals last year and they beat the #1 seed bucks and the Celtics on the way. We have to show we can do the same or we just don’t belong there yet. Whether it’s 1st 2nd or 3rd round.

[Luv those Knicks]

Cleveland pulled their starters in the 4th (after sitting Garland and Spida). A number of beat writers have called them out on it. My man Bontemps is pissed and echoed a lot of my thoughts about yesterday.

Common feeling on the Bucks is that they just suck.

You're right.

I didn't watch the Cleveland game and when I made this thread, I'd just seen 2 articles and it hadn't exactly "blown up" yet or if it had, I hadn't noticed. Reading what Cleveland did in the 4th quarter of a "won" game, was interesting and if I'd known that at the time, I'd have almost certainly worded this thread differently.

At the end of the day, the path to a championship is all the way, not just the first round, and with all the bad press Cleveland is getting, I think teams will be careful to avoid this kind of bad press incident in the future.

It's different, if a team wants to rest a banged up star on the last day. That's fine.

[Capn'O]

If we can't beat philly or Miami we weren't winning anything anyway. Go forth and conquer. With metal bats.

[Iron Mantis]

Role players tend to play better in front of their home crowd.

This will be important in helping Brunson's supporting cast to elevate their games and play better than their opponent when it matters the most.

Screw Miami, Philly, and the cowards who ducked them.

[moocow007]

I’ll say this - I think the Cavs, Bucks, Magic and Pacers are all very happy this morning.

The Magic and Pacers may be extra happy after finding out Giannis won't be playing when the 1st round starts.