Rapcity_11 wrote:Whole Truth wrote:Rapcity_11 wrote:
It's incredibly rare for a team with significantly more wins to lose back to back home games in the playoffs...
Clippers are not your ordinary 8th seed, They just got back both PG & Norm, possibly Kawhi too.. Their current PO position is not relative to their teams actual capability playing most of the season injured, which would lead to a tough situation for Wolves first game.
Assuming Clippers with PG/Norm back "upsets" the 7th seed, they would now have to win a one off vs a team with nothing to lose & everything to gain. That's their reward for having a winning record over the course of 82 games.
The incentive is there to prevent teams from all out tanking though Portland took that tanking route 2 games up on NO's at the time they chose to tank. What's the 7th seeds advantage for having a clear winning season ? Home court in a game 7 do or die environment.
IMO the 8th seed should be the only spot open to help prevent teams that are close from tanking. The 7th seed is earned, they should not have to make 6th seed to be safe after 82 games played & a 10 game difference in seeding.
Alot of people don't know this but Pels too since acquiring CJ, 12 games under 500, are on a 50 win pace when both he & Ingram play.
Rare when there's no extenuating circumstances to consider. Neither Clippers or Pels healthy over the course of a season are your average 8/9 seeds.
Again, the Wolves have 2 shots to win a home gain against at worst, similar calibre teams. It would be embarrassing for them to lose both. And if they do lose both, they would have gotten steamrolled in the first round anyway.
Why would the 8th seed be any less "earned" than the 7th seed?
Lastly, teams get tough draws all the time in the playoffs due to injuries, teams peaking, trades, etc. This is no different.
Last year, Memphis beat the Spurs/Pop to face the winner of 7-8, then beat GS/with Curry on fire to face the Jazz first round & then they took game 1 vs the #1 seed not just in the West but both dvisions.
I reference this to show Memphis didn't win just 2 single games against seperate opponents but 3 & all arguably tough matches. If the #1 Jazz were the 7th seed in this instance, they would have lost to the 9-10 seed & been in a do or die situation with a team like GS with Curry playing extremely well, game 7 situation after earning their league best record win or lose. Their reward for being the best team in the league.
How embarassing would it have been for the #1 seed not 7th to possibly lose their 2nd game to GS/Curry in a one off.That's the luck of the draw, am I right?.
Just so happens the #1 seed, that earned it, was afforded a best of 7 where they went on to win in 5, talk about avoiding the risk of being embarrased by the 9th seed in a rare moment.
Rare, is a bad team winning a best of 7 series against a proven better team where adjustments are made.. Not rare, is teams having hot or off nights. Reason I specifically showed Memphis winning what would have been 3 one off games against 3 seperate teams ranging in seeding. If the Jazz series was a game elimination & not a series. The #1 seed could have been cheaply knocked off in a game 7 pressure situation.. I took it to the best record in the league to show the rediculousness of it.
Enter, luck of the draw- Clippers are a tough first draw because they are where they are because of injuries. They would theoretically be a tough match for the Suns healthy, let alone the 7 seed. So Wolves first game is not a 7 vs 8 seed game in theory., that Wolves should in fact win it.. They lose to what is arguably a better team when healthy... they then have a one off against a team that has absolutely nothing to lose who can get hot which is not indicative of Minnesota's overal season. The 9th seed Memphis beat the 1 seed, the hottest player in the game in Curry & arguably the best coach, 3 straight ... 9th seed winning 3 not 2, one offs in a row including the best team in the league.
A situation where if the #1 seed wasn't afforded a best of seires, they eventually close in 5.... they'd be ousted by the 9th seed & embarassed because luck of the draw, a rare moment, am I right?.
What's Minnesota's incentive in this for being 10 games over the 9th seed over the course of 82 games - A game 7 elimination match with all the pressure on them to defend their season while the team they're playing is playing with house money, free and easy.