NBA Playoffs Thread

[coolhandgopher]

I know some of these conversations are happening in other threads, but I felt it deserved a thread of its own. . .

I am LOVING these playoffs--fresh blood, great games, new starts showing up, well built rosters--there's a freshness to these playoffs I haven't experienced in quite some time. Last year had a taste of that with Miami (with Herro and Adebayo) reaching the finals and the Nuggets (with Jokic and Murray) in the West Semi's. but this year has been even better.

* Trae F'in Young, man. That dude can ball and has the stones to back up his considerable mouth. At the end of these playoffs, he'll be Public Enemy #1 of fanbases in New York, Philly, and Wisconsin--which is awesome.

* Alongside Young is John Collins, who as jamiche has already made note, is a beast. The numbers were impressive last night, but I thought he was even more better than the stat line indicated. On these two players alone, the Hawks should have a bright ten years ahead.

* Before I turn my attention away from the Hawks, I need to acknowledge "Red Velvet" Kevin Huerter. Solid game, legendary nickname for a player whose babyface looks like it should be entering a middle school dance.

* Okay, final note on Hawks for now: Young & Huerter, 22 years old; Collins, 23; Capela, 27. In my life, since 'Nique left the franchise, this franchise has mostly been uninteresting, and that's in the best of times. Those times have changed--almost feels like the Warriors when Curry, Thompson, and Green bubbled up so many years ago now.

 

[coolhandgopher]

I keep reading or hearing commentary that the NBA powers that be must be so disappointed to have these four teams left standing, how its going to hurt ratings, that there's not going to be anyone interested. . .that could all be true, but I always felt that the NBA Finals fall in a part of the calendar where the "casual viewer" is overrated-if you don't regularly follow the game, all of a sudden you're going to do so in June when the days are long and other distractions are aplenty? Anyhow, I saw the other day that since the NBA/ABA merger, none of the four franchises remaining has won a NBA championship. And the headliners are fresh--only Paul George, Chris Paul and Jrue Holiday are over 30, with the likes of Giannis, Young, Collins, Booker, Ayton between the ages of 22-26.

I'm more than ready for Lebron and the like to be surpassed by younger and fresher legs. I say this not as a Lebron hater either-I can admire and marvel that he's still playing at this level after 18 seasons but I got tired of ER well before it reached its 15th season. For all the ballyhoo of The Last Season, the most compelling part of that documentary for me was recalling the battles that the Bulls engaged in with the Celtics and Pistons to first become champs, not the end of the road.

The first two games of the conference finals have been dynamite and anyone who's tuning out because Lebron or Durant or Steph Curry aren't involved, well, it's their loss.

 

[BleedGopher]

These playoffs have been fantastic. The Suns are so fun to watch and Trae Young is incredible. He's shedding the "not a winner" narrative quickly.

Howl Wolves!!

 

[coolhandgopher]

I saw a quote the other day from De'Andre Ayton claiming that the draft class of '18 was the best ever and after scoffing at the ridiculousness of that claim (I mean, c'mon, class of '84 is a no brainer), it's a pretty good start for this group:
#1: Ayton
#3: Luka Doncic
#4: Jaren Jackson
#5: Trae Young
#10: Mikael Bridges
#11: Shea Gilgeous-Alexander
#12: Miles Bridges
#14: Michael Porter, Jr.
#19: Kevin Huerter
#36: Mitchell Robinson
#37: Gary Trent, Jr.

Four guys on this list who are making major contributions on teams that could be headed to the NBA championship. And #2 on this list isn't a total bust (Marvin Bagley, Jr.) but those players right behind him...whew, that's gotta be tough to swallow if you're a Kings fan.

 

[Frink]

There has been some really wild stuff happening, such as the MVP getting tossed and the finish of the Suns/Clipper game. On the latter, I did not know that there is no basket interference on an inbound play. That whole sequence was bananas, including Paul George making two clutch baskets then choking at the free throw line.

Atlanta is fascinating. Amazing job by Nate McMillan to step in and turn that around. I've been a fan of his since his days at NC State. It's also interesting when you look at the how they ended up with Bogdanovic. If the Kings and Bucks hadn't botched this so badly who knows how this would look?

 

[coolhandgopher]

There has been some really wild stuff happening, such as the MVP getting tossed and the finish of the Suns/Clipper game. On the latter, I did not know that there is no basket interference on an inbound play. That whole sequence was bananas, including Paul George making two clutch baskets then choking at the free throw line.

Atlanta is fascinating. Amazing job by Nate McMillan to step in and turn that around. I've been a fan of his since his days at NC State. It's also interesting when you look at the how they ended up with Bogdanovic. If the Kings and Bucks hadn't botched this so badly who knows how this would look?

I was thinking last night, there's some Steve Fisher taking over Michigan on their run to the '89 title vibe with McMillan (if you allow me to stretch the comparison a bit). While the Wolverines weren't flailing like the Hawks, I certainly wasn't expecting that team to run to the national championship and Trae Young's got that Glen Rice '89 juice going. Can't you see it?

 

[Frink]

Yeesh, last night's Suns/Clippers game was ugly. Poor shooting, incessant whining and some really shaky reffing.

 

[jamiche]

Yeesh, last night's Suns/Clippers game was ugly. Poor shooting, incessant whining and some really shaky reffing.

It wasn't all poor shooting. It was also excellent defense.

I know it will never happen but I think the league should consider making the court bigger. The players are bigger, faster and stronger than ever and the game is increasingly physical, especially during the playoffs. The court, however, is the same size as 100 years ago. There isn't enough room for players to move freely. Another more plausible option to create more space and unimpeded movement on the court might be to create a four point line, maybe 30-35 feet from the hoop.

I'm hoping for a Suns/Hawks final. Two new, athletic teams. I don't think Chris Paul, clever as he is, could stay with Trae Young.

 

[Frink]

It wasn't all poor shooting. It was also excellent defense.

I know it will never happen but I think the league should consider making the court bigger. The players are bigger, faster and stronger than ever and the game is increasingly physical, especially during the playoffs. The court, however, is the same size as 100 years ago. There isn't enough room for players to move freely. Another more plausible option to create more space and unimpeded movement on the court might be to create a four point line, maybe 30-35 feet from the hoop.

I'm hoping for a Suns/Hawks final. Two new, athletic teams. I don't think Chris Paul, clever as he is, could stay with Trae Young.

True, there was some solid, physical D.

I have thought the same thing about the spacing. In particular the passing lanes are so much more closed off. The rules and the players have adapted to this to some degree but the sheer size of the players have definitely affected the flow of the game.

 

[tikited]

Yeesh, last night's Suns/Clippers game was ugly. Poor shooting, incessant whining and some really shaky reffing.

Really ugly game. The refs were terrible which added to it but mostly just a ton of missed shots by both teams. Glad Phoenix won. One positive was watching Beverly play defense.

 

[jamiche]

Really ugly game. The refs were terrible which added to it but mostly just a ton of missed shots by both teams. Glad Phoenix won. One positive was watching Beverly play defense.

Nobody in the league plays defense like Patrick Beverly. I remember Lonzo Ball's first game in the NBA a couple of years ago. He was a hotshot like LaMelo and the Clippers (?) put Beverly on him. The poor kid almost retired that night.

 

[Frink]

I have always appreciated PJ Tucker's hustle and defense but man, his whining about calls has gotten out of hand.

Tied at half of game 4. Let's see if the Bucks have a home court burst of energy to pull away or if the Suns can at least hang close.

 

[stocker08]

That was a really good game. Bucks made the plays they needed down the stretch.

 

[IceBoxGopher]

Last night's game was a real battle. Shaping up to be a good finish here. Rooting for the Suns because I sure don't want to see Wisconsin get another trophy.

 

[stocker08]

Last night's game was a real battle. Shaping up to be a good finish here. Rooting for the Suns because I sure don't want to see Wisconsin get another trophy.

I'm a bit split on this. Yeah.....screw Wisconsin. At the same time.....they are in the Eastern Conference, so they aren't even really a rival. And I like Antetokounmpo. Him signing back with the Bucks gives me some hope that superstars aren't always going to head for greener pastures when the opportunity arises.

 

[Frink]

What a performance by Giannis on both ends of the floor. Ayton has turned into a good player but tonight Giannis just overwhelmed him. Between Giannis and Lopez there was too much size and defense in the middle for the Suns to overcome.

Here's the list of players who have put up 50 in Finals game.

Bob Pettit
Elgin Baylor
Rick Barry
Jerry West
Michael Jordan
LeBron James
Giannis Antetokounmpo

 

[stocker08]

Good for the Bucks. Had to fight through some misfortune to get to the finish line. Obviously, Middleton stepped up when Giannis went down. But Lopez had a few GREAT games to help pick up the slack. Bobby Portis came out of nowhere to help out. And Jrue Holiday took over and had a few big games too.

Just a fun playoff. Someday....T-Wolves fans. We'll get there.