NBA Season 2013-2014

NateRich

Mike Brown, how do you get fired from the same team(Cavaliers) twice in 4 years? That's got to be the first time in the history of sports

And he also got fired from the Lakers not too long ago…so 3 times in a 4 year span.

Green_vs_Red

Guess he won't reunite with Lebron if for whatever reason Lebron decides he wants to go back to Cleveland.

killerbee1000

Hell of a comeback by the Thunder tonight. Gotta give Westbrook a lot of credit, he put the team on his back when KD went cold.

Also, that was a blatant blown call by the refs. Stevie could see that Jackson touched the ball last.

NateRich

Whew had to record the game. Had pretty mixed feelings about that one. It was entertaining for the first 45-47ish minutes despite the onslaught of Durant bricks.

Then…wtf was that last minute or so of the game. I don't think I've ever laughed so many times during the closing plays of a game. Just horrible decisions all around, even worse than Game 4. All those Clipper possessions to milk the clock than jack up the worst 3s ever. Then the turnovers when they occasionally didn't play at a snail's pace. The play with Barnes/Jackson out of bounds was horribly called but that situation shouldn't have occurred in the first place. Idk why Paul attempted to split the defenders and cough up the ball when his team had timeouts to spare at THE END OF REGULATION. It's not like there was any time to save those extras for. So Doc's explosion/fit can be squarely placed on Paul's shoulders. Then the Westbrook 3 that was jacked up with a lot of time left(Thunder only down 2 at the time lol) was one of the dumbest shots ever. And then Chris Paul kind of bails him out with a foul. I thought it was a no call but he was pretty close on the play and did ever so slightly catch arm on the followthrough. Then if things couldn't get worse for the Clippers, Paul can't even get up a shot at the end of the game lmao. I love how over the course of the broadcast, Harlan and Kerr were mentioning Paul's recent games with low turnovers only for him to have 5 in the second half.

Can't help but laugh at that game. The Thunder have been better overall team in this series in my opinion but this was a complete shitstorm of a game to win. I guess it somewhat makes up for them choking in Game 4 and offsets what will likely end up being Durant's worst game of the series.

Westbrook and Crawford are both and-1 machines in completely different ways. So fun to watch them get the roll every time.

NateRich

The exact out-of-bounds scenario happened in the Heat-Nets game! Ball goes off of Pierce but because the refs didn't call the foul on the play it was the Nets ball! But since the Heat ended up winning, it won't get nearly as much press as what happened last night. Spitting image of that play though.

NateRich

Aw no basketball until Sunday. A 6 game round feels so much shorter than a 7 game round…

Well I hit one out of four predictions on the head- Spurs in 5 over Portland. Would've had 2 right but my Celtics bias got in the way and I said Heat in 7 instead of 5.

I'm hoping for a Spurs-Heat rematch; San Antonio deserves it. But the conspiracy theorists are sure that the refs are going to award the Thunder with the series XD The last time that the Spurs and Thunder met in the playoffs was 2 years ago and the Spurs also had homecourt advantage to go up 2-0. Then they got backdoor-swept. I think a huge part of the Thunder winning that series was James Harden's offense off the bench. The Thunder are a better overall team now(mostly from the improvements of Durant and Westbrook) but the battle of benches now sways heavily in San Antonio's favor. OKC's duo could combine for 70 over the series and still lose if the Spurs balanced attack scores enough. The finals would be entertaining if either team made it, but I'd rather the Spurs pull through. Spurs in 7

As for the other matchup, I just don't think the Pacers deserve to be in the Finals because nobody wants to watch a sweep. Heat in 6

'ko

No Ibaka for the remainder of the Playoffs means San Antonio will have it much easier, nobody able to guard Duncan or protect the rim. This is San Antonio's year.
I see a Spurs-Heat rematch.

NateRich

During the game today, Mark Jackson said that Chris Bosh is a lock for the Hall of Fame. Sad, but true. Comparing Bosh's career to that of guys like Reggie Miller and Mitch Richmond, his will surely make the cut. Since the bar is so low, maybe even Rondo can be a HoF. The ACL tear got in the way of his career but a few more All-Star berths and playoff ~~appearances~~triple-doubles could get him in lol

'ko

The Pacers are on drugs. How can a whole team be so bipolar? Huge win for them, especially since they had a lot of bad games at home this post-season

NateRich

The Cavs get the #1 pick again! If Bennett(their #1 pick last year) didn't suck complete ass, they might have had a great team next year! On the other hand, they wouldn't have been in their position if Bennett played well.

I'm just happy that the Lakers didn't get a top 3 pick lol

killerbee1000

I believe last game, the Spurs scored a bunch of points in the paint( the exact number of points eludes me at the moment). So Ibaka being out hurting the Thunder is an understatement.

Sesshy

There's a reason why Ibaka was a higher priority signing than James Harden for the Thunder.

NateRich

Looks like this was the right game to skip watching. OKC is through. They don't have the length(Ibaka) or extra firepower(Harden) to come back from 2-0 this time. Assuming the Heat make it out of the East, this could be the ultimate revenge year for the Spurs

NateRich

Ibaka is starting tonight! OKC might not get hammered by 30 anymore, more like 15 or 20!

NateRich

Hibbert laid his 4th goose egg of the playoffs. This guy is leading his team in salary, was named an All-Star this year but can't score on Chris Bosh, who is basically a tall shooting guard

NateRich

Looks like we finally have a series!

Westbrook has been the most explosive player in the league for a while, but tonight….it was like he injected crack directly in his bloodstream before the game. He was looking flat out superhuman on his change of direction and burst off of either foot. He had a step on his defender for most of the game but at times in the 2nd half the refs would blow the whistle every time he feet left the ground, but I digress. Great game for the Thunder. They went up BIG and didn't let the Spurs stop the bleeding.

NateRich

Funny game for Lebron tonight, he had 5 fouls in his first 12 minutes or so. George was almost automatic the entire 2nd half, and sadly the Pacers needed every single one of those buckets. They only won by 3 with James scoring in single digits lol. That last shot for the Heat definitely should have gone to Lewis. He was a machine and fresh off a shot he made earlier. Giving it to Bosh in that situation probably wasn't the set play. But I got to give them credit for going for the win instead of just trying to tie it. Hopefully the Spurs also defend homecourt tomorrow

NateRich

Can't tell if this series between the Spurs and Thunder has been extremely entertaining or extremely shitty. 5 games down, 5 blowouts.

'ko

c-c-c-combo breaker!
this Playoffs are being a bit of a letdown after an unreal first round.
The Lance Show two nights ago was amazing tho

Green_vs_Red

Minus the ear blowing and huddle invasion.

NateRich

The Pacer's ~~shitshow~~season is finally over so let's take a look at Hibbert's higlight of the series. This is how he reacts when a 190 pound guard puts a forearm on him:

Jalen Rose brought up a great point about the Pacers. He said that for them, getting to the Finals would be a huge victory and they don't have the championship-or-bust mentality like the truly elite teams(Spurs, Thunder, Heat) Before the season even started, the Pacers made it clear that their goal was to get the #1 seed in the East rather than what's actually important.

@'ko:

c-c-c-combo breaker!
this Playoffs are being a bit of a letdown after an unreal first round.

It has really been a completely different experience compared to that amazing Round 1. So many blowouts and no overtime games(maybe one in the Clippers/Thunder series) in Rounds 2 & 3 so far.

!

'ko

So, big surprise, the Heat are in the Finals.
Now it seems pretty normal to us, but I think that 20 years from now, this Heat team will be seen as one of the greatest of all time. Four Finals (and counting) in a row is a pretty impressive feat to be honest, and I'm not a Miami fan

Rogues' Gallery

https://tv.yahoo.com/news/v-stiviano-trashes-black-people-tape-video-174700022.html

Pot, meet Kettle.

Green_vs_Red

@'ko:

So, big surprise, the Heat are in the Finals.
Now it seems pretty normal to us, but I think that 20 years from now, this Heat team will be seen as one of the greatest of all time. Four Finals (and counting) in a row is a pretty impressive feat to be honest, and I'm not a Miami fan

Yeah too bad they let the Mavericks roll them in 2011 Finals.

@Rogues':

https://tv.yahoo.com/news/v-stiviano-trashes-black-people-tape-video-174700022.html

Pot, meet Kettle.

Gee she thinks that all black people think with the mentality of black athletes.

ShinigamiKing

Duncan was so clutch, my god.

And Durant wasn't doing much at the end, wasn't he?

Anyway Spurs win Heat in 6 probably

NateRich

Timmy D! Bringing it home in overtime! The first Finals rematch in 16 years!

Durant couldn't get open as well as the play wasn't even meant to get him the ball on the inbounds pass, which is why Scott Brooks sucks at making plays. You'd rather have the 6'10" Durant heaving up a desperation shot than the 6'3" Westbrook. Also, he dinged up his ankle so that limited his effectiveness as well. I'm really happy that the Thunder lost because Derek Fisher is out of the playoffs. I hate that guy.

Hopefully Parker is ready to go on Thursday. The Spurs need his dynamic paint scoring to complete their balanced ~~attack~~onslaught

NateRich

Chris Paul made another NBA All-Defensive First Team off of reputation. The voters wised up and demoted Lebron to 2nd team, so why not Paul as well?

The voting for this should REALLY go to coaches instead of the media. James Harden got 2 votes, that should be enough to ruin credibility for everyone who voted lol.

NateRich

Noah on the All-NBA First Team lol. And the thing is, nobody deserved it over him. The center position is weak as hell. And only one shooting guard made any of the teams

How exactly is Kevin Love on the 2nd Team but Carmelo didn't even get 3rd?

killerbee1000

I got the Spurs in 6.

FINISH THE JOB THIS TIME SAN ANTONIO

NateRich

Call Danny Green Mr. Opportunity! Misses everything the entire game then goes off in the last 5 minutes and pisses all over the Heat's wounds.

90 degrees isn't even that bad. But I guess when you factor in the humidity in a packed arena like that, it's got to feel like hell when you're running up and down the floor. Completely wacky game though. High turnovers on both sides, the refs were actually pretty good, Parker showed no sign of being injured, the last person we'd expect to go down does, oh and this came out of nowhere…

!
THE FUCK?!

loneassassin

@NateRich:

Call Danny Green Mr. Opportunity! Misses everything the entire game then goes off in the last 5 minutes and pisses all over the Heat's wounds.

90 degrees isn't even that bad. But I guess when you factor in the humidity in a packed arena like that, it's got to feel like hell when you're running up and down the floor. Completely wacky game though. High turnovers on both sides, the refs were actually pretty good, Parker showed no sign of being injured, the last person we'd expect to go down does, oh and this came out of nowhere…

!
THE FUCK?!

I was shocked Allen didn't break every bone in his body doing that.

ShinigamiKing

Man what a game.

I missed the first three quarters, but man, that 4th quarter was something. San Antonio's ball movement on offense was epic. Ginobili got some assists, Duncan and Parker being clutch, and Danny Green really just trolled the Heat after doing nothing the whole game. Did the spurs nail their last 4 threes within the final 5 minutes?

And omg at Lebron. Oh yeah, and, the Heat all sucked without him, getting outscoured like 37-18 or something like that in the 4th….

'ko

I think this cramps accident is being overly exaggerated by the media and the people on social networks. It happens, what's the big deal?

Green_vs_Red

When you're the most celebrated player in the league (right now), you're going to have your fair share of critics and haters, who are going to shit on you just cause. Now if the Heat had won GM1 after Lebron left all this snark over his leg cramps would be nonexistant.

NateRich

He still would've received similar criticism if the Heat won.

Nex 0

Seriously. For a professional athlete to get removed from a game due to cramps, that's snark worthy no matter the outcome. Yes the AC broke, but how many other players left? He needs to eat more bananas or something.

He also got cramps in the 2012 finals if I remember correctly. Tough he went back into that game for the last minute or so.

NateRich

Now we have a series.

I was expecting Danny Green to shoot some miracle 3s again, but I'd rather have the series tied up at 1-1

Nex 0

Spurs played like crap at the end. That is not how you finish a game if you want to win it all.

NateRich

Derek Fisher is the new coach of the Knicks. If I wasn't already rooting against them, I'd have a great reason to now. Both NY teams have former players thrown into the coaching fire

'ko

Apparently having zero experience in coaching at any level is a huge requirement to get a coaching job in today's NBA. Latest example is Fisher, but I'm still wondering why "my" Warriors hired Steve Kerr out of the blue, instead of a proved coach

killerbee1000

Kawhi fucking Leonard. He's more than making up for the past two games. Putting on a clinic, along with more great teamwork and ball movement by the Spurs.

NateRich

That was one crazy first half.

Bold prediction: Spurs wins the next one, but this still goes 7 games :ninja:

'ko

I don't like to go by stereotypes or to generalize, but how in the fucking hell do you leave an NBA FINALS game with 3 plus minutes on the clock??
Miami fans are really the worst in the league. Damn bandwagoners

loneassassin

@'ko:

I don't like to go by stereotypes or to generalize, but how in the fucking hell do you leave an NBA FINALS game with 3 plus minutes on the clock??
Miami fans are really the worst in the league. Damn bandwagoners

I still remember last year when they left game six and they tried to break the doors down to get in.

But yeah worst in the league hands down.

killerbee1000

Wow, the Spurs are dominating on the Heat's home floor. I describe the Spurs offense as a well oiled machine. And that monster putback dunk by Leonard, holy fuck…

I honestly feel had the Spurs made those free throws in game 2, this series would've been a sweep....

loneassassin

Wade has no more legs and all those 40+ minute games Lebron has played the past two years including playoffs may have finally taken effect

NateRich

Kawhi put on the man pants in Game 3 and did not take them off! Holy shit, give him Finals MVP!

James is looking fine to me, this is just the Miami Cavaliers on display lol

ShinigamiKing

Nah. LeBron James was too passive.

He should have been more selfish instead of passing the ball all the time.

Part of why they won game 2 was because LeBron tried to take over the game.

But now he was too afraid to even shoot too much. He only jacked it up a few times (and got them all in).

they should just give the Spurs the trophy

NateRich

Hate to be devil's advocate here, but he wasn't passive. That's just how good Kawhi's pressure has been. Lebron went off in the 3rd quarter because the Heat came out with a different lineup and it sort of threw off the Spurs' defense. Now if the Heat could get some stops of their own, they might have cut the lead. But I do agree that Spo may as well throw the playbook away and let Lebron shoot 30+ times for the rest of the series, nobody else is making things happen. First the Superbowl, now this? Haha, what a letdown

Gatekeeper

Wow, did not expect the Spurs to do this well. After the Heat beat them at home in game 2, I was worried for the next two games but damn, the Spurs killed the Heat in Miami. Looking forward to seeing them hoist the trophy on Sunday.