2007-2008 NBA Playoffs Thread

[ALTRNTV]

I loved how Kobe and Kenyon kept talking trash.
Doesn't Kenyon know not to fire Kobe up?

Good win for the Lakeshow. Gasol was amazing.
All his points were from dunks/layups. Denver has
NO interior defense whatsoever, and this game
just justified that.

The Boston/Atlanta and Detroit/Philly game will probably
be boring, so I won't watch them.

[s14_legend]

hah just more motivation for kobe...keep it comin'

Originally Posted by AkademikONE

I loved how Kobe and Kenyon kept talking trash.
Doesn't Kenyon know not to fire Kobe up?

Good win for the Lakeshow. Gasol was amazing.
All his points were from dunks/layups. Denver has
NO interior defense whatsoever, and this game
just justified that.

The Boston/Atlanta and Detroit/Philly game will probably
be boring, so I won't watch them.

[Xandy Boosts]

Originally Posted by AkademikONE

The Boston/Atlanta and Detroit/Philly game will probably
be boring, so I won't watch them.

Philly wins game 1. VERY NICE

[Rob's S14]

You're not a true NBA fan if you aren't going to watch those games.

I missed the Laker game but it turned out pretty much as expected. I want to hear what Chuck and Kenny have to say about the games so far too.

[Xandy Boosts]

Originally Posted by Rob's S14

You're not a true NBA fan if you aren't going to watch those games.

Dude...I was a bum yesterday. I got about 6 hours of sleep and woke up to watch the Cavs/Wiz game. That 2 hour break between Spurs/Suns and New Orleans/Dallas I went to go grab some Pho haha. That Houston/Utah game got boring when Utah went up by alot.

[ALTRNTV]

True, but I have something to do anyways.
I try to watch as many non-Laker games
as possible, to see how other teams are
playing, but some games just don't interest
me (such as the Eastern Conference playoffs).

[Phlip]

So will Lady McGrady cry when they get swept out of this year's playoffs?

[OptionZero]

holy crap, the pistons lost

now i think i should root for ATL

with a disappointing postseason, I got to think Rasheed Wallace is on the block.

He belongs in oakland.

[Rob's S14]

I think there's a good chance he could be traded but not for the reasons you say. He's going to be 35 and he'll be an expiring contract. I could even see them making a draft day trade to move up in the draft. The only reason for them to not trade him would be if they won the title.

I seriously doubt Oakland would want that contract on their books...especially since they got rid of J-Rich last year.

[OptionZero]

Originally Posted by Rob's S14

I think there's a good chance he could be traded but not for the reasons you say. He's going to be 35 and he'll be an expiring contract. I could even see them making a draft day trade to move up in the draft. The only reason for them to not trade him would be if they won the title.

I seriously doubt Oakland would want that contract on their books...especially since they got rid of J-Rich last year.

Quite the contrary, I think it's a perfect fit. Nellie's going to be in his last year, as will Baron (he ain't opting out of shit this offseason).

One last go with Nellie, baron, and adding Sheed makes a whole ton of sense, as there's no downside. Everyone walks, we hand the keys to Ellis/Biedrins/Wright in '09-10 with a fuckload of capspace (Foyle's buyout disappears then as well, and I think Jack is in his last year too).

My package:

Harrington ($9M, $10M left in final two years)
sign and trade Patrick O'Bryant to small contract starting at $1.5-$2M
top 3 protected '09 and '11 picks

I would swap first rounders with them this year but free agency does not begin until after the draft, which makes it unworkable unless we make a handshake deal to take picks for each other. In such an instance I would be happy to throw in an additional top 3 protected future pick.

I consider that a fair package considering Wallace is 35 and given his attitude /temper/antics he is unattractive to any team that isn't interested in making a deep playoff run. Harrington replicates much of 'Sheed's offense, if not improving upon it (Sheed is mainly a jumpshooter these days, and Harrington's a good 3P shooter). There's a considerable loss on defense, but Al is only 28, a good seven years younger. Al's a mediocre PF in the West, but above average in the East (lol at Drew Gooden, Joe Smith)

Two first rounders seems to be the going pricetag for recognizable names.
Patrick O'Bryant is just salary filler, but he adds to their stable of athletic young bigs. With McDyess a free agent and aging as well, they need young bigs. If it came to it, I'd be more than happy to add a third first rounder as well.

From the Warriors perspective, this move adds only $3M in salary. If we hit the tax, I think Sheed is a sufficiently talented and recognizable player that paying a one-year hit is justified, especially since we didn't make the playoffs this year. Recall that the Warriors were in the mix for Garnett, and had that paid off, would have required a sizable extention and luxury tax payments as well.

Baron, Ellis, Jack, Sheed, and Biedrins. That gets us back in the Western Conference discussion.

I'm rooting hard for the Sixers now.

[ALTRNTV]

How do you guys feel about the Laker fans
chanting "DUI" whenever Carmelo shot a FT?
If you don't know, Carmelo was arrested a couple
days ago for suspicion of drunk driving.

I could care less. You make the mistake of doing
something like that, when you have millions and millions
of dollars that you could call a cab, or a friend, but decided
to drive anyways and risk people's lives. This is basketball.
People are made fun at, hated on, and jeered on all the time.
It is also the playoffs, where the intensity level is high.

Now I know the Denver fans will be shouting "RAPE" when LA
is in Denver. It's only reflective of how he'll rape the Nuggets.

[s14_legend]

yup carmelo messed up...

[Rob's S14]

they should be shouting rapist...haha.

i think booing/taunting definitely has it's place. as long as you don't get personal like about someones family. if it's directed at the player it's all good. this is why i didn't get everyone getting all bent about utah or gs (can't remember which) booing derek fisher. he doesn't play for them anymore so boo his ass.

[Rob's S14]

While that may be a "fair" trade it would be very difficult to pull off.

Seeing as O'Bryant is currently making 2.2 million, I doubt he'll be willing to take a pay cut.

While Harrington is a good shooter he can't come close to the complete offensive game of Sheed. Yeah he did get 3 happy this year but he still can punish you down low, something that Harrington doesn't really do. Harrington also played in the east already and wasn't really anything that special.

2-3 first rounders...I doubt GS wants to part with that much. Plus I could easily see BD opting out for a long term deal. He knows that Ellis is going to be the center of the team and they'll build around him.

Besides all that both teams are over the cap by quite a bit. Yes some salaries come off this year, but I think both will be looking to shed payroll.

[OptionZero]

I had this discussion before the season on a Pistons blog (guy who wrote for Hoops World and covered the Pistons):

1. POB's option was declined by the Warriors, so he's an RFA. That 2.2M was the salary of a #9 lottery pick, status he hasn't justified yet. Given that he's proven nothing at the NBA level, I can't see the market for him being too hot. Amir Johnson and Andray Blatche got only around $3M annually, and they might have been even shinier prospects.

Getting him to agree to a deal might be a problem, though, as he doesn't have much incentive to help us...but a change of scenery might be welcome. We could always threaten to match any deal we can (up to the $2.2M he woudl have made in the 3rd year option). I don't see anyone throwing half the MLE at him unless they're nuts.

2. Harrington shot slightly better than http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/playe...r?playerId=883 this year, whether you use straight FG% (FG/FGA) or TS%, which includes the value FTA's and 3's. All the offensive numbers are remarkably similar.

While 'Sheed, as you said, has the ability to punish someone downlow, he really, really doesn't do it much (whether it's due to fatigue or preference or just age). He takes four 3P's per game and rarely gets to the line (only about 2FTA's). The rebounding has also declined quite a bit as well from his glory days

3. Al did play in the East. For the Pacers. The 61-21, First Place Pacers. That's 79 games, averaging 30MPG for the 61-21, First Place Pacers that went to the ECF in '03-04. The prior season, he also played 82 games for a 48-win Pacer team. It's not like he was sucking on a bad team, he was a productive part of good teams (could you really hold him responsible for the H awks sucking?). No one's saying he's special, but he is certainly capable of starting for a good team (Warriors won 42 and 48 games respectively with him as starting PF). Billups, Prince, and Hamilton would still be around, and they were already planning to give Maxiel and Amir Johnson bigger roles in the rotation anyways.

4. The picks would spaced out every other year and probably need to be lotto protected. Perhaps a better solution would be to do what Chicago did and give the Pistons the option to swap picks, which means the W's give up draft spots instead of the picks entirely.

5. There's few teams with cap space and no teams with cap space who would pay Baron anything close to $17M, or even $12M annually.

[Phlip]

Man, if Houston fucks THIS one up, they're getting swept.
"houston has lost 2 consecutive home games in thise playoffs, is it over for them?"
"IS THE POPE CATHOLIC?!!?"

... gotta love Charles Barkley

[ALTRNTV]

Houston... the most hyped up team this season.
22-win game streak was for nothing if they don't
get out of the 1st round, but it looks like T-Mac will
not make it past the first round again. Also, they are
going into the toughest arena to play in, where the Jazz
were 36-4.

[yudalicious]

Originally Posted by AkademikONE

Houston... the most hyped up team this season.
22-win game streak was for nothing if they don't
get out of the 1st round, but it looks like T-Mac will
not make it past the first round again. Also, they are
going into the toughest arena to play in, where the Jazz
were 36-4.

With both Yao and Tracy healthy I believe the Rockets are a contender, probably not the favorite, but a contender. They addition of a PF who wasnt completely inept on offense (Scola/Landry) added alot to this team and really changed the scheme of things when everyone was healthy. The addition pushed the Rockets, imo, over the proverbial hump with teams like Utah and GS, whom Hou has always had trouble matching up with. Last year teams would be able to front or double Yao while ignoring Hayes who couldn't make a layup. I think the change was really evident when we played the Warriors the 2nd time (I think) with Scola starting as PF when their quick double of Yao also led to a quick 15+ pt lead courtesy of Scola making short distance open shots that Hayes could not make if his life depended on it. So that was a long winded answer for basically saying barring the injury, I don't think Hou is overrated at all, it just took half the season for Adelman to start the right person at PF.

Also, the 22 game streak absolutely meant something. I watched almost every single game of the streak (and really, of the season) and it was one of the best displays of team basketball and chemistry I have ever seen at the professional level, especially the 2nd half of the streak after Yao's injury. To not give them props is just really being blind to great basketball.

If Houston could have a full season and post season of Yao and TMac + a better PG (Rafer had an absolute career year, but the pessimist in me can't help but think he'd still get destroyed by the likes of cp3, deron, even parker), I think they'd be a shoo in for the championship.

[s14_legend]

true that the jazz arena is pretty crazy

[ALTRNTV]

I'm not saying the streak wasn't great, as it was
the 2nd longest in NBA history, but after pulling
from 9th place to 1st place during that streak, and
getting home court advantage, and then losing
BOTH home games of the 1st round...

T-Mac is a great player, but he has to carry a team
out of the first round first to be considered anything
greater.

However, when Yao Ming comes back next season, I do
expect them to be a force to be reckoned with. Injuries
suck... just ask the Lakers. =p

[yudalicious]

TMac used to be one of my favorite players... but he is who he is, sometimes I love him, sometimes I hate him, meh. The streak had me jumping up and down, but I knew there would be unavoidable heartbreak later.

Originally Posted by AkademikONE

I'm not saying the streak wasn't great, as it was
the 2nd longest in NBA history, but after pulling
from 9th place to 1st place during that streak, and
getting home court advantage, and then losing
BOTH home games of the 1st round...

T-Mac is a great player, but he has to carry a team
out of the first round first to be considered anything
greater.

However, when Yao Ming comes back next season, I do
expect them to be a force to be reckoned with. Injuries
suck... just ask the Lakers. =p

[Rob's S14]

I think more than anything that streak may have been their peak, and they just peaked a little too early. Plus without their 2nd best player it's hard to think that they could actually win. Had they not gone on that unexpected win streak they most likely would have been at the bottom of the playoffs with no expectations.

[ALTRNTV]

I still find this Tim Duncan 3 funny.
Suns must feel pretty down after
Duncan (out of all people), hit that.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kurykcptkes[/ame]

[Xandy Boosts]

I hope dallas and phoenix tie up today. I want NORLEANS to go to the next round but I want to see some first round game 7's.

[Rob's S14]

when you think about it, that was actually a pretty nice play. Duncan has 20' range easily usually from the top of the key is where he likes it. They were able to give him a wide open look so why not. Definitely unexpected too.

[Gnnr]

Uhuh, that thing had a nice arc to it. First 3 of the season for him too, haha.

[Rob's S14]

Spurs win again, I think they just have the Suns #. They definitely missed Marion imo. For all that Shaq does for them, he's still not good enough to get them over the hump and they lost a very good young player in exchange for an old and slow Shaq.

[az_240]

officiating is terrible with these suns game... 3rd quarter was just retarded for the suns.

[ziptiedae86]

I think the refs did pretty well last night in SA. One of the better officiated games IMO, since they allowed a lot of non calls and very few bs calls.

The Suns lost in the 3rd due to Spurs D. Its the Spurs' strategy: 1st half allow Shaq and Amare to score, but shut down all your role players. Then 2nd half turn up the D.

Stop blaming the zebras.

If anyone is to blame its your coach and your role players. Barbs made zero buckets. Diaw disappeared in the 2nd half. Hill is more of a liability due to his injury and should sit instead of play.

Spurs in 5.

[s14_legend]

yeah the suns just arent prepared...spurs are just takin' over....woot game 2 lakers tonight