WCF: P4 | (1) Houston Rockets vs (2) Golden State Warriors | Tied 2-2

[sikma42]

Dude, CP3 and Harden losing this series to the Warriors won't "show the [play-off choker] label has been warranted all along" - you don't "choke" if you lose in 6 or 7 games to this Warriors team. It's literally the greatest team of all time missing 0 impact players.

At this point, no matter how the series ends, Houston has shown up and acquitted themselves well.

It isnt the greatest team of all time, stop this non-sense.

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


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[RightToCensor]

It isnt the greatest team of all time, stop this non-sense.

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

Please name those twenty teams

[msr999]

Houston needs to get extremely lucky to win this series.

houston is 4-2 vs warriors this year in games harden has played

2-1 in oracle

houston is a better team
clearly

Regular season record don't mean a thing. Ask Lebron

[HotTubMike]

It isnt the greatest team of all time, stop this non-sense.

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

[sikma42]

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

Please name those twenty teams

3 peat Lakers
2009 Lakers (team with Ariza)
2010 Lakers
2 Lebron Miami Championship teams
96 Bulls
2014 Spurs
Big 3 Celtics
2007 Spurs
2006 Heat
Cavs 2016
Showtime Lakers multiple teams
Bad Boy Pistons Back to back squad

Just off the top of my head. This Rockets team isn’t some all time great team. GSW are mentally not showing up. Just seems that happens to be their big issue as a team


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[MaxRider]

Houston needs to get extremely lucky to win this series.

houston is 4-2 vs warriors this year in games harden has played

2-1 in oracle

houston is a better team
clearly

Regular season record don't mean a thing. Ask Lebron

I'm sure LeBron wish they have home court advantage against Boston

[ken6199]

Read on Twitter

[MaxRider]

Read on Twitter

Thanks to Justin Timberlake concert, GSW can't practice in Toyota Center

[RightToCensor]

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

Please name those twenty teams

3 peat Lakers
2009 Lakers (team with Ariza)
2010 Lakers
2 Lebron Miami Championship teams
96 Bulls
2014 Spurs
Big 3 Celtics
2007 Spurs
2006 Heat
Cavs 2016
Showtime Lakers multiple teams
Bad Boy Pistons Back to back squad

Just off the top of my head. This Rockets team isn’t some all time great team. GSW are mentally not showing up. Just seems that happens to be their big issue as a team


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

If I'm not mistaken the Rockets were on a 77 win pace when the starters were healthy. They dispatched their first and second round opponents easily in five games. Their offense is statistically one of the greatest of all-time, and their physicality and defense is forcing KD and Curry's Warriors into bad possessions.

All you did was blindly name some NBA Finals winners without any thought of how they match up with Houston. I'm surprised you didn't name Russell's Celtics or Mikan's Lakers.

[igorbianch]

It isnt the greatest team of all time, stop this non-sense.

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

They might be the "most stacked team off all time", or "most talented", but they definitely arent the BEST(it involves mutiple factors)team of all time, and the possibility of losing this series without a major injury to Houston proves that.

The 73 win team was an ATG regular season team, but werent this good the playoffs. They were in the same tier as Cavs and OKC(lost 7 out of 14 games against those 2 teams), so IMO this "73 team" is overrated. They were a great team but far from this level as people try to make pre-Durant.

Rockets is the first real challenge(Cavs had no defense and Spurs lost Kawhi)they face post Durant, and they have a legit chance to get eliminated. How is that the greatest team of all time? It doesnt make sense.

Jordan 2x 3peat is the best team of all time because they proved that on reality, not just on paper. They had the talent and were mentally tough as ****, the opposite of this Warriors, and thats why they were almost unbeatable.

Talent-wise they are obviously amazing, but even then i'm not sure i would take them over LeBron Heatles just in terms of talent.

[RightToCensor]

The 73 win core who added the 2nd best player in the league and went 14-1 in the playoffs and who hadn't lost a home play-off game in six series isn't the GOAT team?

Waiting to hear who the better team was.

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

They might be the "most stacked team off all time", or "most talented", but they definitely arent the BEST(it involves mutiple factors)team of all time, and the possibility of losing this series without a major injury to Houston proves that.

The 73 win team was an ATG regular season team, but werent this good the playoffs. They were in the same tier as Cavs and OKC(lost 7 out of 14 games against those 2 teams), so IMO this "73 team" is overrated. They were a great team but far from this level as people try to make pre-Durant.

Rockets is the first real challenge(Cavs had no defense and Spurs lost Kawhi)they face post Durant, and they have a legit chance to get eliminated. How is that the greatest team of all time? It doesnt make sense.

Jordan 2x 3peat is the best team of all time because they proved that on reality, not just on paper. They had the talent and were mentally tough as ****, the opposite of this Warriors, and thats why they were almost unbeatable.

Talent-wise they are obviously amazing, but even then i'm not sure i would take them over LeBron Heatles just in terms of talent.

So Jordan's Bulls never got taken to seven games? They never even got taken to six games? So they just swept through the playoffs, that's what you're telling me?

[otwok]

If I'm not mistaken the Rockets were on a 77 win pace when the starters were healthy.

I hate this argument that they were on a pace to win X amount of games. Not everything is equal. All because they won the games they played doesn't automatically mean they win future games given so many different variables even if teams were healthy.

Not downplaying the Rockets team (I don't think they are one of the great teams but everyone is entitled to their opinion) but it's a weak argument. If you are trying to argue they are a really good team or a great team, that's fine they were the #1 seed and a 60 win team in the conference finals.

At the same time, if they do win this series it would be looked at as an upset despite them being the #1 seed.

[jradMIT]

If they lose this series...Rockets + 20 teams I’d take to beat the Rockets


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

Please name those twenty teams

3 peat Lakers
2009 Lakers (team with Ariza)
2010 Lakers
2 Lebron Miami Championship teams
96 Bulls
2014 Spurs
Big 3 Celtics
2007 Spurs
2006 Heat
Cavs 2016
Showtime Lakers multiple teams
Bad Boy Pistons Back to back squad

Just off the top of my head. This Rockets team isn’t some all time great team. GSW are mentally not showing up. Just seems that happens to be their big issue as a team


Sent from my iPhone using RealGM mobile app

How many of those teams mentioned above didn't win 65 games? (with injuries) How many of those teams dispatched their opponents in as few games in the first two rounds? There is no objective way to say the vast majority of these teams are better off the top of your head, seriously other than a subjective dislike of this Rockets team, only a small handful of those teams is there a real discussion. The others were run of the mill champions, if the Rockets, big IF, beat this warriors team and go on to win in the Finals in 5 or 6 games, they would have very compelling objective case against like 70% of those teams you mentioned. Its how you basically threw everything at the wall to see what stuck. But lets be honest you can't say anything real reason why the Bad Boys Pistons should be considered better, i could go through each of them but I imagine it would be pointless.

The rockets really do have more than their fair share of haters, at first it was they were choke artist that were gonna have their hands full with Utah and Minn, now if they pull off what many thought would be a major upset against what is considered to be one of the greatest teams ever, and they go on to win it all, they aren't even in a discussion of greatest teams ever. Despite the elite record, despite beating elite competition, despite having the MVP, despite all of the other stats that say so, they are essentially the luckiest team in the History of the NBA is they win it all.

[iggymcfrack]

Seriously, ‘09 Lakers had same record as this year’s Houston team, then got taken to 7 games by a Rockets team led by Yao and Kyle Lowry, then got taken to 6 by Melo’s Nuggets. Neither one of those teams would have ever gotten more than a game off this year’s Rockets. 2010 Lakers won 8 games less and got taken to 6 by the 8 seed Thunder and the 54 win Suns with a 35 year old Steve Nash.

2006 Heat only even won the title because the officiating was terrible the whole series. If you were allowed to contest going straight up the way you are now, Wade scores about 8 less points a game. He was just jumping into defenders left and right. And that team went 52-30 in the regular season. The only reason you’d compare them to a team that went 42-3 with their top guys and would have beaten an all-time team in Golden State is just to be a hater.

[Patches Perry]

Rockets favored by 1 in this game. Closest spread of any game in the series so far. Tonight's game could be very good, here's to hoping.

[iggymcfrack]

Anyway, I feel Andre Iguodala’s the key to tonight’s game. He’s currently listed as questionable. If he can’t go at all, I love the Rockets chances. Warriors lack of depth 1-4 is killer, especially with Klay a little banged up. If he can play at 100%, Warriors maybe have a slight edge? If he can go, but he’s not quite right, a step slow on D and doesn’t trust his shot on O, I still like the Rockets, but should be another close game that comes down to the final minutes. Either way, I’m very excited. Should be a fantastic game tonight!

[og15]

This is defense

The Warriors' 14 assists in Game 4 represented a series low. Their 48.2 assist rate in the series is worse than the Rockets' assist percentage (49.3), a remarkable and surprising development. The final period on Tuesday revealed Golden State at its most unrecognizable and disjointed

http://www.espn.com/nba/preview?gameId=401032765

Is GS actually going to adjust or are they going to try and win with isoball and beat the Rockets at their own game? The Rockets are also forcing them into more isolation, it's not just that GS is forgetting how they play, great defense is part of the equation.

[Warchant]

Anyway, I feel Andre Iguodala’s the key to tonight’s game. He’s currently listed as questionable. If he can’t go at all, I love the Rockets chances. Warriors lack of depth 1-4 is killer, especially with Klay a little banged up. If he can play at 100%, Warriors maybe have a slight edge? If he can go, but he’s not quite right, a step slow on D and doesn’t trust his shot on O, I still like the Rockets, but should be another close game that comes down to the final minutes. Either way, I’m very excited. Should be a fantastic game tonight!

I would sit Iggy....give him a few more days....knowing game 6 is at home....get him ready for games 6 n 7....GS should take care of business in game 6

[WarriorGM]

The Warriors have been disappointing. One gets the feeling they have the ability to turn the afterburners on and end this series, but they are inconsistent and unfocused. I'm sure the Rockets have something to do with that and kudos to them for playing well. Still the turnovers and lack of decisiveness during the critical moments seem to indicate a Warriors team that is wishy-washy in its dominance. My respects to Jordan and the Bulls, when they were on you could sense they had kicked their game to a higher gear. The Warriors are giving off a casual vibe in comparison in this series even though it is widely seen as the real finals. If the Warriors lose this series, they deserve to lose based on how they have played up to now.

[jradMIT]

The Warriors have been disappointing. One gets the feeling they have the ability to turn the afterburners on and end this series, but they are inconsistent and unfocused. I'm sure the Rockets have something to do with that and kudos to them for playing well. Still the turnovers and lack of decisiveness during the critical moments seem to indicate a Warriors team that is wishy-washy in its dominance. My respects to Jordan and the Bulls, when they were on you could sense they had kicked their game to a higher gear. The Warriors are giving off a casual vibe in comparison in this series even though it is widely seen as the real finals. If the Warriors lose this series, they deserve to lose based on how they have played up to now.

I think you're dead on here, call it arrogance, focus, etc. GS for whatever reason seems to play with a sense of procrastination. When they blew the Rockets out by 40 in game 3, you already knew they weren't gonna play with much intensity in game 4. There is a downward spiral cycle that happens in procrastinators, using the pressure as a motivation, each time they feel the pressure or use it to focus themselves and it works, the next time around the pressure isn't as great and they need to be in an even more precarious position to feel the same incentive. Its quite possible GS comes out tonight blazing and then goes home and lays another egg because they feel so little pressure to win and think a game 6 close out at home is a given.