Other NBA Playoff series

Atlanta beating Miami (with Herro) is still the biggest surprise of the play-in/playoffs so far. Atlanta is rumored to be blowing the whole thing up this summer with Trae Young on the trade block. You are never winning anything with him. Their fluke trip to the EC Finals two years ago was more a result of Ben Simmons' completely melting down in the Sixers-Hawks series than anything else. The Bucks were fortunate to be playing the Hawks at that point with Giannis missing the final few games than a more dangerous team.

The Heat are still going to be a problem, but they are going to have to blow things up this summer to remain remotely competitive. Butler is a load, but I don't think you can win a title with Butler, Adebayo, and Herro as your core three without something else to supplement that. They got to the Finals three years ago in the bubble with that core - but they had younger versions of Crowder, Iguodala, and Dragic to go with that. Kyle Lowry ended up being a liability, Duncan Robinson regressed after he got paid, and Vincent/Struss/Martin are just guys.

If the Bucks get there, the biggest issue in the EC Finals (besides health) will be who the Bucks can put on the floor with Giannis, Middleton, and Holiday in crunch time. Matthews and Crowder are the best bets to give Tatum and Brown at least some challenges on defense, but Crowder has just been awful so far in the playoffs on offense. He's 1 for 9 from the floor. Ingles has the opposite problem. He's lethal on offense, but a target on defense for a team like the Celtics. The Celtics make you guard them with your weakest link, by setting picks until Tatum or Brown is on Grayson Allen, Ingles, Portis, Lopez, etc. Then they either dominate 1 x 1, or, if you help, get Horford, Brogdon, etc. shooting wide open 3s. That's why they got Crowder - to go with the big 3 and probably Matthews (or Connaughton) in crunch time against Boston. I'm not sure he'll be playable.

Kings-Warriors. I watched a lot of these 2 games - give the Kings fans credit for a great atmosphere. I'm still amazed at how Curry can just shoot. A lot of talk radio guys still think the Warriors will win this series, but they need to win 4 out of 5 now.

If warriors win next 2 at home. We'll see. They can't lose either one though.

Something tells me if the Warriors win next 2, Kings are going to get scared - we'll see

What in the Blue hell.....The Hawks actually won a game?!?!

Boston must've been sleeping

Even more surprising is the Knicks working over the Cavs (again).   New York has a real chance to win that series.  

Let's not forget how shitty Celts fans are

If the Bucks can get by Miami, I'd rather play the Knicks. Donovan Mitchell is scary good. Rather see him out

@Cheezers posted:

Just in case anyone wants to discuss the other series.

Boston-Atlanta.  Celtics up 2-0 and as we thought, not much of a series.  Celtics should sweep.

Philly-Nets - See Celtics.  Nets might win 1.

Knicks-Cavs - Let's hope it goes 7.

Denver - MN.   T-Wolves gave a better effort last night but they'll probably win 1 game.

Memphis - Lakers.  I despise the Lakers but the Grizzlies are the cockiest team I've ever seen for not having won anything.   I may be rooting for the Lakers to take this one.

Kings-Warriors.  I watched a lot of these 2 games - give the Kings fans credit for a great atmosphere.  I'm still amazed at how Curry can just shoot.  A lot of talk radio guys still think the Warriors will win this series, but they need to win 4 out of 5 now.

Suns-Clippers.   Should be a competitive series.   A lot of star power, especially Kawhi vs KD, but I just can't get into watching these games for some reason.

Western Conference just feels odd because the top 3 seeds aren't really taken too seriously it seems, while in the East most people look at only the top 3 seeds as having a chance to get to the Finals.

Brook no sweeps.

Hmmm 🤔

https://packers.timesfour.com/...2#708681476139023002

All tied up boys. I don't care how it happened but the Kings have to be scared now. Let's see who wins next 2.

I think it's going 7 and W's finally breakthrough in Game 7

How is Jimmy Buckets back?  

@Boris posted:

Hmmm 🤔

https://packers.timesfour.com/...2#708681476139023002

All tied up boys. I don't care how it happened but the Kings have to be scared now. Let's see who wins next 2.

I think it's going 7 and W's finally breakthrough in Game 7

Fox has fractured finger on his shooting hand.  May not go 7!

Never thought I'd find myself cheering for the Hawks.

Lol the Hawks are going to win game 5 to keep that series alive.

Hawks delay the inevitable for another game or two.

Would be something if Atlanta took them to 7 games.  

Boston has been a little weird this year in that they’ll look like world beaters but then have a total clunker (even at home) against lesser opponents.  

No way that team should be losing to the Hawks.

Warriors just won 3 in a row.

Kings are crapping their pants

So kings win Game 6 on the road, then Warriors win Game 7 on the road and Steph drops 50.

Interesting way to win a series.

https://www.nbcsports.com/baya...-game-7-win-vs-kings

Draymond said Monk "called us old" LMAO.

Guess they needed a little extra motivation. They ain't done yet! Should be a great series with the Lakers

You see this a lot in the NBA playoffs in that younger teams - even very talented younger teams- often get beat by the old heads.   This year is no different.  Sacramento, Memphis, and Cleveland were upended by the saavy vets.  

These experienced teams and players have been through the wars and know what it takes to get over.  

@Tschmack posted:

Would be something if Atlanta took them to 7 games.  

Boston has been a little weird this year in that they’ll look like world beaters but then have a total clunker (even at home) against lesser opponents.  

No way that team should be losing to the Hawks.

The Celtics will get to the NBA Finals by playing a Hawks team that is about to be blown up (who still took them to 6 games), the Sixers without Embiiid, and either the Heat without Herro (and now a banged up Butler) or the Knicks (with a dinged up Randle).

Obviously what a missed opportunity for the Bucks.

It sure seems like the path for a team like Boston got much easier.  

By the way, when is Embiid ever healthy by this point?  

Denver or Phoenix playing Boston would be pretty cool.  If I see the Lakers and Boston I may stop watching the NBA.  

Lebron is a dumbass. Steph Curry is Steph Curry....50 points..wins game 7 because he wants to.

The Sixers/Celtics game was really good.  At least for now Philly has a leg up on them.  I still think the Celtics win that series though despite the upset.

As great as Embiid is, Philly just seems to be so much more active and quicker when he’s not out there.  If he’s not truly 100%, he needs to be limited in his minutes if and when he comes back.

Chris Paul hurt again for the billionth time in the playoffs.  Phoenix is cooked.  Glad that KD trade worked out for you.  

As for Boston, they might be the favorites but this is not the same team they were last year.  Not sure if it’s the head coach or if they just get lazy on defense.   In no reality should a Boston team at home lose to Philly without the best player in this series (Embiid).  

@Tschmack posted:

Chris Paul hurt again for the billionth time in the playoffs.  Phoenix is cooked.  Glad that KD trade worked out for you.  

As for Boston, they might be the favorites but this is not the same team they were last year.  Not sure if it’s the head coach or if they just get lazy on defense.   In no reality should a Boston team at home lose to Philly without the best player in this series (Embiid).  

I think the Celtics or the Warriors will win the title, if for no other reason that every other legit contender seems to be dealing with an injury to one of their key guys. Giannis, Embiid, Butler/Herro, Randle, and Chris Paul getting hurt probably realistically ended each of those team's chances. Yes, the Bucks shit the bed even with Giannis, but there is no way they are down 2-1 if he's healthy for the first 3 games.

The Suns have literally 4 playable guys and now Paul is out.

I don't trust Denver yet. If they get into a series with the Celtics, Jokic is going to get abused on the defensive side of the floor.

The Lakers have the inevitable AD injury that will happen at some point.

I think the biggest issue the Celtics have is that their two main guys don't really like each other. When the KD trade rumors were happening, Jaylen Brown had some weird quotes about how KD and Tatum work out together and he's kind of the outsider. Tatum and Brown just don't gel well and there have been rumors about how Brown wanted out for a while. When they win, that stuff fades a bit, but the first sign of adversity the lack of trust between those two starts to show.

https://clutchpoints.com/celti...own-long-term-future

The fact that the Bucks blew this opportunity this year is really frustrating. Not adding a single guy that can actually help then win playoff games since they won the title two years ago is an underlooked factor in this. For all the Bud screwups this year, the Giannis FTS, and Jrue turning into Eric Bledsoe, the fact that they flipped Tucker and DDV into Crowder, Ibaka, Matthews, and Ingles is what really cooked them. Jon Horst has not made a single good personnel move since that title team and you could argue the only two good moves he's made were the Holiday and Tucker trades. They've gotten nothing out of the draft since Giannis and all his other deadline trades resulted in the guys they traded for being benched during the playoffs: Mirotic, Ibaka, and Crowder.

The Bucks are a lot like the current Suns. They have a limited number of guys you can actually play in playoff games and they've been exposed the last two years because of it. They have no margin for error if any of the top 4 don't play well. It's Giannis, Middleton, Holiday, and Lopez with only Connaughton and Portis playable off the bench (and Portis was SCORELESS in game 5 this year and scored 14 points over the last 3 games in 53 minutes).

The Suns gutted their depth once they dealt KD.  Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges were their future as well.   If Paul can’t go, I don’t see Phoenix advancing.  

Devin Booker is a great scorer but plays no defense.   KD is in the same boat.  Ayton has all the tools but continues to come up small in the playoffs.

Denver has a chance but if they play Golden State I’m not sure they advance.  

As for Boston, they just don’t seem to be as focused and play with as much toughness and intensity.  I do think Udoka kept them motivated and the current HC isn’t as effective.

The refereeing in tonight’s Knicks-Heat games is horrific. Knicks are literally pole-axing Heat players on every possession, especially Randle who’s become quite the thug out there.

Ummmmm don't look now but the Warriors are destroying the Lakers tonight.

Can Philly really knock off Boston?  Celtics made 33 shots for the entire game tonight!  Tatum and Brown had 20 makes.  The rest of the team made 13 frickin shots all game.

@Cheezers posted:

Can Philly really knock off Boston?  Celtics made 33 shots for the entire game tonight!  Tatum and Brown had 20 makes.  The rest of the team made 13 frickin shots all game.

If Boston loses to Philly, they will blow it up after the season. If Philly ends up losing, Harden is rumored to be going back to Houston.

The Bucks are likely to blow the roster up to some degree as well. There might not be any actual chance of it, but the pundits are already talking about a non-zero chance of a Giannis trade.

If the Warriors lose to the Lakers, they'll have some tough decisions as well.

If Denver can't get by Phoenix, they'll get into panic mode.

Dallas already is in panic mode.

There could be some massive trades this off-season.

A Lakers-Sixers final is looking more likely.

Oh, and just wanted to add how idiotic it was to not resign PJ Tucker two years ago. One of the dumbest moves in Bucks history.

It was all to save money for the billionaire owners. It makes me nervous about what's coming down the pike in terms of spending what it takes to field a contending team around Giannis 3-4 years from now.

There’s a lot of possible downstream effects based on how these playoff series end up.  

Golden State and Boston and maybe even Milwaukee or Phoenix will likely have to make some significant decisions on roster makeup.  

Miami is so good. Better than their regular season record indicates.

Sure they lost the play in game to Atlanta but look how good they are right now!

🖕🏼🖕🏼 Miami. No rest for you.

The Heat were the 1 seed in the East last year.  Lots of sand bagging.

Warriors win. Let's see if the Lakers close them out in game 6

I struggle to see how the Heat are doing it, and think either the Sixers or Celts will make short work of them.

@Tschmack posted:

The Heat were the 1 seed in the East last year.  Lots of sand bagging.

Just more evidence that the previous 82 games mean little.

Playoff Jimmy and the best coach in the league (Spoelstra) can cause a lot of damage.  

@Tschmack posted:

Playoff Jimmy and the best coach in the league (Spoelstra) can cause a lot of damage.  

If Giannis doesn't get hurt in Game 1, it's a whole different series and it's very possible Jimmy checks out just like he did in the Bucks 4-game sweep in 2021.

Butler is a great player when's he's on, but he's also quit on some teams as well (including the Heat).

@YATittle posted:

I struggle to see how the Heat are doing it, and think either the Sixers or Celts will make short work of them.

Adebayo gives them a chance to at least challenge the other team's best player and make them work. Sort of like when the Bucks put Giannis on Butler in the 2021 playoffs.

Annnnnnndddd the Warriors & Knicks are done.

Not a surprise in either series.

Fuck the Heat for losing to the Hawks 🖕🏼🖕🏼

Buncha sandbagging assholes