Around the NBA (Non-Celtics) 2019-2020, Part 3 – "Playoff Version"

[BillessuR6]

Murray had another stellar game. 40 points. If only...

SMH

What do you mean?

[Triple7]

I'm glad there aren't a lot of Nuggets fans to begin with because they think they're better than ALL 3 teams left now.

Rondo will be MVP of the series, btw.

Ever since Rondo returned, the lakers turned a corner and started playing great. I think he is the key for them to win it all. Without Rondo, they don’t really have a playmaker other than maybe lebron. I think the Nuggets have a punchers chance against them. The lakers are favored to win of course, but if the nuggets wins one of the first two games, then that series would go to 6 or 7. If they go down 3-1, there is no way lebron would lose that series. That nuggets team are loaded, with even bench players capable of scoring and defending.

Agreed regarding Rage: ON. I just like to mess around w/ the Nuggs fans w/ "Playoff Rondo" references. I've been cool with him all year. His detractors overhype the hell out of his deficiencies. He's got his problem areas, yeah, but he's had good games all throughout these season(s), that wacky past-Celtic. He's still very capable and he's got a serviceable shot to the arc considering he'll go unguarded out there for the rest of his career. LAL wanted Rondo as a rook way back, he's one of a number of guys they eventually got after being rumored to be interested in them as rooks. Def not a coincidence they picked him up. Same with Brian Shaw years earlier. Lakers were gonna take Shaw before Red snatched him 1 pick head back in 88. From UC Santa Barbara, ugh. That was Red for ya.

I think this should go 6 games max. That would be my take if I were an outside observer. Lakers handled em in the RS, but I'm not interested so much in the outcomes to RS games, but in where the Nuggs can't hang. Denver fans so far have grossly missed the forest for the trees -- AD and Brawn fer chrissakes. It seems they're ridin and dyin on that scrappy team thing. They might be one but every series is new and starts all over. If the Lakers bleep this up like the Clips did, it would be unforgivable, that's all I'm gonna say. They would not live it down. A blown near-lock of a title that would be (tho both East teams are tougher than DEN). If the Lakers don't know that yet, they should be ashamed of themselves, but I think they do. I think the series will go further and further in their pocket as it goes along. Their team D and man D in various spots squoze the Rockets like a python harder and harder every game. That was supposed to be the team that was gonna take LAL out last.

The Clips looked good on paper, but the way they treated the regular season, was really disrespectful. They were looking ahead on the playoffs. When the playoffs arrived, they were looking ahead with their matchup with the lakers. Its obvious they have no chemistry. They rely too much on the heroics of kawhi and PG. Now both guys struggled and they collapsed. serves them right. They would have lost to the lakers anyways.

[zoyathedestroya]

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[NPZ]

The Clips looked good on paper, but the way they treated the regular season, was really disrespectful. They were looking ahead on the playoffs. When the playoffs arrived, they were looking ahead with their matchup with the lakers. Its obvious they have no chemistry. They rely too much on the heroics of kawhi and PG. Now both guys struggled and they collapsed. serves them right. They would have lost to the lakers anyways.

I was one of those that thought the Clips were gonna be able to skate by on talent alone, potentially even by the other LA, and made a post in the MIA/BOS Gm1 thread that I would root for Boston over LAC (and I woulda). That was when they were up 3-1 of course and then they imploded. Not only imploded, but managed to blow a double digit lead in all 3 final games which is something you probably won't see again in the next 25 years of playoffs. They may be scrappy, but if they expect the Lakers to do something like that, they're dreaming. It may partly have been the case of the Clips not seeing the Nuggz coming and not taking them seriously as a Semis matchup. It probably had partly to do w/ their institutional culture of losing and low expectations as soon as they're hit with adversity. Where the Clips panicked, the Lakers might otoh use it as an opportunity to come together against the odds. Against LAL, DEN has neither of those advantages in their bag. Now they won't surprise anyone.

Rust does and has hurt LAL tho. They didn't lose both G1s by coincidence. Only time they have not come back rusted from even as little as 4 days off all season(s) long was after the ASB and that was probably a fluke. Interestingly enough, they bothered to win at DEN for the 2nd time as their final game before the break, in OT. Last time Lakez won both RS games at DEN when the Nuggs were good was 1985 and they lost to LA in the Conf Finals that year, too, 5 games. They've shown the Nuggs have weaknesses to exploit already. How long it takes Vogel (Bird in German, btw) to re-send Markieff to the bench in favor of McGee/Howard might be interesting, but I bet that mostly hinges on whether Markieff hits 4/4 treys again like last game (doubtful). I wouldn't be shocked if DEN won Gm1, but I wouldn't wanna read RGM for a couple days if that were the case.

Your series, otoh, that has 7 games written all over it. I think the Celts can make it back. Heat aren't a clear-cut fave in that matchup. Stuff you probably already know but still. Team that makes better adjustments often wins out. Gm1 was fluky, OT, late block probably impossible to replicate. I do think Boston is the better of both MIA and then DEN. Just better not lose Gm 2. LAL/BOS would be a good series, but I can hear the groans across the nation already on that matchup. I've been (nothin but a Laker) fan since around 88/89ish and I've never seen an LA roster that can go small to beat one team and big to beat another, or another contending team that had a major mixup they could use. Maybe the Nixon/Magic/Wilkes era where they could switch Mag to a bigger position, but that was ancient Roman times.

[grindtime22]

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It's down to 14

They lost their own 1st round pick when Muscala hit back to back 3s to win a seeding game

[ConstableGeneva]

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[BostonCouchGM]

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and unlike Danny, they're pretty damn good at drafting. That right there is a dream job for a coach. I'm not sure why you'd trade Paul since his salary doesn't matter considering how much cheap talent they have and will get through the draft.

[Cuban Pete]

Murray had another stellar game. 40 points. If only...

SMH

What do you mean?

On the day of the 2016 NBA draft, I wanted Murray. Danny took Jaylen, which still irks me.

[ConstableGeneva]

Congrats to the Greek Freak!

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[KGboss]

Lots of lebron stans angry right now

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[Bleeding Green]

LeBron stans know which awards matter. Giannis can have his regular season awards.

[London2Boston]

Lots of lebron stans angry right now

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He will be winning his ring and finals MVP in a few weeks unfortunately.

[BostonCouchGM]

LeBron stans know which awards matter. Giannis can have his regular season awards.

3-6 in the Finals. First two wins he had to form a super team with two other Hall of Famers. Third win the league clearly rigged the series to promote his "coming home" narrative and dispel the notion that the Warriors were unbeatable and destroy the notion that the league was boring. But tbh Lebron should have one more MVP because he was clearly better than Rose that year. Bird should have won more than three MVPs but the NBA has storylines and narratives they push because it's a television show at the end of the day and scripted almost as bad as the WWE

[Bleeding Green]

Imagine using being to nine finals as a knock against someone. The amount of people who watch LeBron dominate for almost 20 years now and hate him the entire time, feels kind of sad. How many Hall of Famers did Bird play with and who even cares the answer to this question.

[exculpatory]

An upset W by Denver tonight will make all of us feel better.

Kick ass, J & J

[Darthlukey]

LeBron stans know which awards matter. Giannis can have his regular season awards.

3-6 in the Finals. First two wins he had to form a super team with two other Hall of Famers. Third win the league clearly rigged the series to promote his "coming home" narrative and dispel the notion that the Warriors were unbeatable and destroy the notion that the league was boring. But tbh Lebron should have one more MVP because he was clearly better than Rose that year. Bird should have won more than three MVPs but the NBA has storylines and narratives they push because it's a television show at the end of the day and scripted almost as bad as the WWE

I dont know why people ignore the fact that he tried to actually form a super team upon his return to cleveland too, it just failed becuase he marginalised kevin love completely.

[Darthlukey]

Imagine using being to nine finals as a knock against someone. The amount of people who watch LeBron dominate for almost 20 years now and hate him the entire time, feels kind of sad. How many Hall of Famers did Bird play with and who even cares the answer to this question.

My knock on him has never been his game, its been his approach to the game. Unless he is totally stacking the deck (miami super team, attempted kyrie and love super team, throwing his lakers team under the bus to get the best big in the game) he can't win or he isnt happy. If you want to be in the conversation for the GOAT, to me it has a separate set of criteria. Losing so many times in the finals and his total and utter lack of ability to legitimately overcome adversity himself (with the exception of 2016 perhaps) or want to compete rather than stack the deck should absolutely be part of the narrative

[BostonCouchGM]

Imagine using being to nine finals as a knock against someone. The amount of people who watch LeBron dominate for almost 20 years now and hate him the entire time, feels kind of sad. How many Hall of Famers did Bird play with and who even cares the answer to this question.

imagine elevating someone who went to nine finals, losing six of them, when he was coming out of the weakest Eastern Conference in NBA history. His need to form super teams to do so. Then think about his game. Zero post moves. Zero midrange. It's barrel down the lane using mostly his God given genetic advantage to score or get to the line, or hitting threes. That's it. He's never been clutch. He's not a particularly good rebounder considering his massive physical and athletic advantages. He's not a great FT shooter. Nobody is saying he's not an all-time great. He's just ridiculously overrated as a basketball player. Like all other overrated high usage players, he has the ball in his hands all the time so he's going to rack up counting stats He stopped playing defense years ago. He's got great court vision and is a great finisher but most of his game is predicated on being bigger, stronger, faster. If you gave Lebron Larry Bird's body and athleticism is he even in the league? He's certainly not a star if he is.

[Darthlukey]

Imagine using being to nine finals as a knock against someone. The amount of people who watch LeBron dominate for almost 20 years now and hate him the entire time, feels kind of sad. How many Hall of Famers did Bird play with and who even cares the answer to this question.

imagine elevating someone who went to nine finals, losing six of them, when he was coming out of the weakest Eastern Conference in NBA history. His need to form super teams to do so. Then think about his game. Zero post moves. Zero midrange. It's barrel down the lane using mostly his God given genetic advantage to score or get to the line, or hitting threes. That's it. He's never been clutch. He's not a particularly good rebounder considering his massive physical and athletic advantages. He's not a great FT shooter. Nobody is saying he's not an all-time great. He's just ridiculously overrated as a basketball player. Like all other overrated high usage players, he has the ball in his hands all the time so he's going to rack up counting stats He stopped playing defense years ago. He's got great court vision and is a great finisher but most of his game is predicated on being bigger, stronger, faster. If you gave Lebron Larry Bird's body and athleticism is he even in the league? He's certainly not a star if he is.

Also transitioned away from the east when it started to strengthen and the west isnt at its peak like it has been for the past 15 to 20 years

[BRUNiNHO91]

Lakers and Nugs offense feels so much slower than the Heat's..