The NBA

[xaxat]

So that's what optimism in a Sixers fan looks like.

 

 A lot of die hard Sixers fans were optimistic during The Process because we understood what Hinkie was trying to do. Trusters (of The Process) are actually more pessimistic since his firing because the front office is a mess right now. Back when Jerry Colangelo was brought on board there were crazy conspiracy theories about how he took the job in order to get a job for his out of work son, Bryan. 

 

I thought no one would be that brazen. And then that crazy theory proved true!

[AimingforYoko]

Well, looks like the W's had a serious hangover from their celebration on Wednesday, they only beat the Rockets by 26. Seriously, no team that isn't coached by Gregg Popovich should worry the Warriors.

[xaxat]

ESPN used the Houston feed for their radio coverage today.

Listening to the frustration of the Rockets' play by play team for the first half was simultaneously hilarious and sad.

[isalicat]

It was a solid win for the Warriors but my heart sank, as they say, when Steph hobbled off with an ankle injury. He, of course, is insisting he will be playing Monday night but now I'm wondering if its necessary against these Rockets. Harden was nigh invisible! You could see the Warriors relaxing a bit too much in the third quarter and starting to turn the ball over unnecessarily. They just can't get into that habit or the Senors will take charge (when we get there...most likely).

 

Good job by the Pacers! I love the playoffs!

[Jx223]

It was a solid win for the Warriors but my heart sank, as they say, when Steph hobbled off with an ankle injury. He, of course, is insisting he will be playing Monday night but now I'm wondering if its necessary against these Rockets. Harden was nigh invisible! You could see the Warriors relaxing a bit too much in the third quarter and starting to turn the ball over unnecessarily. They just can't get into that habit or the Senors will take charge (when we get there...most likely).

 

Good job by the Pacers! I love the playoffs!

I was happy to see the Pacers pull of a very nice win today. I am glad that Paul George played well and I hope he continues to do so throughout this playoffs. The Pacers were fortunate that they managed to squeak into the playoffs at the very end of the regular season. For a while there the last few spots were tight and up for grabs, but they made it. I hope they win this series (even though I also like Toronto).

 

I am also glad that the Hawks won today. I appreciated the efforts of Jeff Teague and Al Horford who is one of my favorite basketball players. I think that Al is underrated. I would like to see the Hawks advance to the next round as well.

[DrSpaceman73]

2-8 in the east are all very close, despite Toronto being ahead of the others record wise. Indiana lost a lot of close games this year and is a team in transition this season, learning how to play a new style and new combinations. I could see them beating Toronto

But boy was that an ugly game to watch. I like Indiana. The Pacers and Hornets are my favorite teams. But the Pacers sure play ugly at times. Reminded me of the old series from the 90s with Knicks-Pacers. Low scoring, grind it out, low shooting percentage.

Indiana got killed underneath and couldn't hit anything close. Toronto did not shoot well either. The difference between the two teams was Paulg George in the second half, played great. I think he will have to keep that up for them to win the series.

Myles Turner has played great this season for the Pacers as well. Larry Bird made a great move with getting rid of Hibbert and drafting him. Bird made the one big whiff in his GM career by giving up Leonard to the Spurs for George Hill, but other than that most of his moves have been solid. They never make the big free agent splashes and they have never had a top three pick, but he still manages to keep the team contending. And Vogel is a great coach, though again not one that comes to mind with Pop, Carlisle, Kerr and others at the top of the league

[AimingforYoko]

To say Latrell Sprewell has some issues is an understatement, but it's hard to hate a guy that has a sense of humor about himself.

Edited April 18, 2016 by AimingforYoko

[Maximum Taco]

Ugh, Toronto cannot win a game one. They just can't, I used to think it was possible, but it's not.

 

Home openers (and playoff home openers) are Kryptonite for a Toronto team. It seems like everyone gets the jitters when the crowd roars, like home field/court/ice almost works against us to start off.

 

My only solace is the Raps actually kept it close with their two best players playing awful. I can't see DeRozan and Lowry having too many more games like that, I could be wrong, but I'm still confident they can get this series back in hand.

Edited April 18, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[kathyk24]

If Houston can't beat Golden State without Stephen Curry they don't have a prayer of beating them with Stephen Curry.

[AimingforYoko]

If Houston can't beat Golden State without Stephen Curry they don't have a prayer of beating them with Stephen Curry.

FTFY

[twoods]

The ending of the Dallas/OK game cracked me up. The commentators were going on and on about how the last shot was too close and it's going to take the refs a long time to review it, when it took him about 5 seconds. It was obvious that the ball was still in his hands when the lights came on.

Edited April 20, 2016 by twoods

[xaxat]

RIP to the only person I really wanted to see in the Celebrity All Star Game.

 

 

[Maximum Taco]

Woo! My Raps are good again! Rolling the Pacers at home.

 

That's what I want to see all series boys!

[twoods]

Aww that would have been nice to see. Had no idea he passed away.

Looks like the Thunder were pissed about game 2. And poor Rockets- small lead that will likely vanish by the end of the game.

[Magog]

 

And poor Rockets- small lead that will likely vanish by the end of the game.

 

And they almost blew it in the end. James Harden saved their asses tonight.

 

Frankly, not only was I'm shocked that the Rockets showed up tonight, but they somehow didn't choke at the end like I thought they would. It'll be a different story in Game 4 when Stephen Curry plays.

 

Speaking of Stephen Curry, I can't stand him & the constant praising that ESPN does about him & that team downright pisses me off. But, it has gotten very tiring that I have to hear about his sore ankle for the past few days. ESPN is acting like its broken or is very close to being broken. I'm still think that his ankle is OK & that his coach made him take Game 3 off out of precaution. 

[Moose135]

Charlotte may still lose the 2017 All Star Game over NC law:

 

http://www.nba.com/2016/news/04/21/nba-commissioner-adam-silver-says-change-in-nc-law-needed-for-all-star-in-charlotte.ap/

 

Commissioner Adam Silver believes the NBA has been "crystal clear" that the 2017 All-Star Game only stays in Charlotte if a North Carolina law goes.

 

Political and business leaders he's spoken with in the state believe it will, so he's holding off for now on setting any deadlines for when the NBA might act.  Silver said last week that the law that limits anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay and transgender people was "problematic" for the league, but he believed dialogue was more useful than ultimatums at this point, so has continued discussions with North Carolina officials.

 

"The sense was that if the NBA could give us some time, they in the community of North Carolina were optimistic they would see a change in the law. They weren't guaranteeing it and I think which was why my response was the event still is 10 months from now, we don't need to make a decision yet," Silver said Thursday during a meeting of Associated Press Sports Editors.

[Kip Hackman]

Charlotte may still lose the 2017 All Star Game over NC law:

 

http://www.nba.com/2016/news/04/21/nba-commissioner-adam-silver-says-change-in-nc-law-needed-for-all-star-in-charlotte.ap/

 

The irony being that the city of Charlotte passed a very progressive LGBT anti-discrimination law. The state government overturns it, and now Charlotte gets punished.

[AndreaK1041]

I feel genuinely sad about these Curry injuries. I hope he heals quickly. It would be such a let down if we didn't eventually get Warriors-Spurs full strength after the whole season led up to it.

[stealinghome]

Yeah, I'm not even really an NBA fan, but I hope Curry's knee isn't too bad. That just sucks.

[FuriousStyles]

Reports are that its a Grade 1 MCL sprain. He'll be out at least 2 weeks. I told my dad before the start of yesterday's game, that win or lose Curry just needs to finish the game. What a freakish set of injuries the last couple of weeks for him. I hope the Dubs can hold him down the next series, because it'll be a real bummer if he's unable to go.

[AimingforYoko]

They may be able to get past the Clippers, but they're done if he can't go, and at his normal level, against the Spurs.

[AndreaK1041]

At least the NBA playoffs are extremely slow, so it could easily be 2-3 weeks until the conference finals.

[isalicat]

Well, I haz a sad now....poor Steph! After such a magical year seeing my Warriors in such a difficult place is heartbreaking. Hopefully he will pray hard and heal fast and by the time the Clippers or whomever hit town he will be back.

 

I really can't see the Warriors getting past the Clippers entirely without him, and certainly not the Spurs.

 

Waaaaaaaaaaah!

[ketchuplover]

Chill y'all. The Warriors will come out to playyyyyayyyyyy just fine.  Trust me.

[twoods]

Figured he would have all these injuries with how many minutes he played this season and at what a high level. Someone's body can only take enough. Hopefully he heals and doesn't rush back and cause a possible worse injury.

[FuriousStyles]

But he's only averaged like 30 minutes a game and sat out a bunch of 4th quarters. The guy isnt even 30. I dont think these injuries, at least not the knee, is a result of his work load during the season. It was just a freak accident.

Got to shout out LinSanity. I didnt really keep up with him much after he left New York, but im really happy he seems to be fitting nicely for Charlotte and is contributing at such a high level. I really liked him when he was here.

[Jx223]

I am glad to see that some of these 1st round playoff series have turned pretty competitive and that we will be getting at least six games in some of them. (IND/TOR, BOS/ATL and CHA/MIA) It's seems like teams like Charlotte and Boston were rejunivenated after they got their first wins in these playoffs. I enjoyed watching Charlotte play well on Saturday and getting their first playoff win in over a decade. Their Bigs played well and Jeremy Lin has been doing a nice job facilitating things on the floor. Kemba Walker has also been helpful and played well tonight. MJ seems legitimately happy that his team is doing well and I like how he sits with the players (Mark Cuban does the same thing with Dallas).

 

I felt bad for the Grizzlies and their head coach. He really did seem heartbroken by them getting swept. I definitely think they would have had a better chance had Marc Gasol and Conely been healthy  Maybe they will do better next year.

 

I hope Portland can extend their series with the Clippers by getting another win tonight and I would like to see Dallas get another win as well, (Even though they have been struggling against OKC).

 

I think that Steph and the Warriors could end up being okay. They held things down with his absence yesterday and I think they may do enough to hang in there while's he's out with his injury. 

Edited April 26, 2016 by Jx223

[twoods]

But he's only averaged like 30 minutes a game and sat out a bunch of 4th quarters. The guy isnt even 30. I dont think these injuries, at least not the knee, is a result of his work load during the season. It was just a freak accident.

I don't buy two freak accidents. Players slip all the time- ankle and knee ligaments start to break down with overuse. Even if he doesn't have the minutes, his work ethic seems insane. He is probably hitting the court or gym every chance he gets. He has gotten so much attention and publicity- it must take a toll on him.

Poor Grizzlies. I feel worse for them than the Warriors because they were without two of their best players and got swept. The Warriors still look pretty decent.

Edited April 26, 2016 by twoods

[Crs97]

Poor Steph? Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving would have loved to have had his prognosis last year!

[stealinghome]

Man, this is a rough first round of the playoffs for superstars. Like with Curry, I feel really bad for Chris Paul. But the Warriors may have really lucked out--even if they're without Curry, it's hard to see either the Blazers or a Paul-less Clippers team getting past them (especially if Griffin is injured too).

[twoods]

Wow, the Clips really are cursed. They could have beat the Warriors if they were healthy but with Chris and Blake out, they may not get out of the first round. I feel so bad for the players and their fans. 

[Maximum Taco]

WOW!

What a comeback by the Raptors, or a choke by the Pacers, whatever you want. That was one of the most exciting games I've seen all year. I'm so pumped my Raps found a way to get it done, but I gotta feel for Paul George, plays all but 7 minutes, puts up 39, flirts with the triple double, and his team just gives it away in the the 4th while he's trying to catch his breath.

[AimingforYoko]

Way to put up the good fight, Rockets. No Steph and they still get waxed by 33. Some columnist said the W's deserve great praise, not for advancing without Curry, but for removing the Rockets from our view. What a fall from grace.

[xaxat]

The only thing that kept me up for the end of Warriors/Rockets was anticipation of what the TNT guys would say about their pathetic performance. Well that and watching Harden try call out teammates for his own missed defensive assignments. 

I feel bad for Bickerstaff. He really got handed a shit sandwich.

ETA. Damn! Austin River's eye looks awful! Last time I saw swelling like that was when I watched Creed.

Edited April 30, 2016 by xaxat

[AimingforYoko]

So, in the first half against the Thunder, Duncan, Ginobili and Parker have a grand total of 12 points. The Spurs are up by 33. Holy crap.

[twoods]

Shows how deep the Spurs are. Their domination for the past, what, 2 decades is absolutely ridiculous. This is how you run a successful franchise. 

[Magog]

Quote

The only thing that kept me up for the end of Warriors/Rockets was anticipation of what the TNT guys would say about their pathetic performance. Well that and watching Harden try call out teammates for his own missed defensive assignments. 

I feel bad for Bickerstaff. He really got handed a shit sandwich.

Their "Fake Hustle" was on full display against the Warriors. I'm still surprised that they somehow won game 3 in the series. They're a bunch of losers & Kevin McHale should be laughing at these bums. Dwight Howard's "Fake Hustle" will be a perfect fit for the Knicks. The Clippers lost Chris Paul & Blake Griffith and even though they lost to the Trail Blazers, they still put up a fight.

Quote

Wow, the Clips really are cursed. They could have beat the Warriors if they were healthy but with Chris and Blake out, they may not get out of the first round. I feel so bad for the players and their fans.

I feel terrible for Chris Paul, Blake Griffith, & their fans, but at least they don't have to worry about getting mocked on a daily basis for not winning anything for 52 years (1964), finding heartbreaking ways to lose big games, & having ESPN wanting to see you fail all the time.

Why do I have a feeling that raptors are going to find a way to lose tonight? They always find ways to lose these type of games. 

As for the Warriors, they will have no problem taking care of the Trail Blazers without Stephen Curry. I still find them very irritating. 

[Jx223]

I am disappointed that Indiana didn't advance to the next round. But I that tonight's game 7 against Toronto was a hard fought game between both teams. Congrats to the Raptors for advancing to the next round for the first time since 2001. They showed up today and played well to get this win and advance..

I am also disappointed that Charlotte didn't advance. I liked the improvement and growth I saw from them the last few games against the Heat. Maybe they will do better next year. I do give a lot of credit for Dwyane Wade for being clutch in game 6 and helping lead the Miami to victory over the Hornets. Dwyane is a seasoned vet and his leadership and hustle has been driving the Heat in these playoffs.

I am interested in seeing what happens between the Raptors and the Heat in the next round. 

Edited May 2, 2016 by Jx223

[Maximum Taco]

Woo! My Raptors pulled the win out, despite their best efforts to let the Pacers back in in the 4th.

Hard fought game, hats off to the Pacers, they didn't give up, even when down 16. Paul George is some kind of machine, he played 46 mins, that's insane. I know it's Game 7, and the Pacers were trailing almost the entire game, but still that's insane.

Raptors are gonna need to tighten up if they want to stand a chance against DWade and the Heat though, this kind of effort will not do.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[HalcyonDays]

Totally thought the Raptors were going to blow it in the 4th quarter. Exciting game, but the Pacers became a literal wall and prevented the Raps from moving the ball at all...Pacers are good and Lowry was right - they were better than a 7th seed.

Paul George is a shooting god, but so is DeRozan!! Him, Carroll and Patterson were amazing. Very happy they won! Downtown TO must be insane right now! Basketball is usually a bit dull to me, but I've watched most of the games this series and am loving it!

[twoods]

Congrats to the Raptors for finally pushing that monkey off their backs. The Pacers looked way too good to be a 7th seed. George's 360 dunk was insane. Too bad the fans booed it and reminded me how ridiculous Toronto fans can be.  Same with Drake's picture of George crying on his Twitter or Instagram feed. Maybe someone can post one of him crying when Toronto loses the next round- it took your team 7 games to bear a 7th seed. Time to take a seat.

Edited May 2, 2016 by twoods

[Maximum Taco]

8 hours ago, twoods said:

Congrats to the Raptors for finally pushing that monkey off their backs. The Pacers looked way too good to be a 7th seed. George's 360 dunk was insane. Too bad the fans booed it and reminded me how ridiculous Toronto fans can be.  Same with Drake's picture of George crying on his Twitter or Instagram feed. Maybe someone can post one of him crying when Toronto loses the next round- it took your team 7 games to bear a 7th seed. Time to take a seat.

This sounds so weird to me. I don't know about other fanbases, but I think Toronto treats playoff basketball the same way we do playoff hockey (and for that matter playoff baseball), someone else has come to our city to try and steal a game and end our season, and we don't like them. Until the series is over, we hate those guys. And we're gonna boo their star players, we're gonna boo everybody who makes an impact on the game that hurts us, especially when they hot dog and throw down (admittedly sick) 360 dunks, even more especially when it takes the lead away from the Raptors.

What did you want Raptors fans to do? Cheer Paul George giving his team the lead in a game that could end our season? We don't do that in the 6.

[Kip Hackman]

Great season for the Hornets, but it ended with a thud.

Kinda like the Panthers.

[HalcyonDays]

2 hours ago, Maximum Taco said:

What did you want Raptors fans to do? Cheer Paul George giving his team the lead in a game that could end our season? We don't do that in the 6.

Okay, you have to explain what the 6 means!! I assumed it meant the 6th Man aka the fans, kinda like in football, Seattles' fans are the 12th man. Or is it the group of people hanging in Jurassic Park....

[Maximum Taco]

37 minutes ago, HalcyonDays said:

Okay, you have to explain what the 6 means!! I assumed it meant the 6th Man aka the fans, kinda like in football, Seattles' fans are the 12th man. Or is it the group of people hanging in Jurassic Park....

The 6 (sometimes stylized as 6ix) is a nickname for the City of Toronto.

Toronto is made up of 6 boroughs that all used to be separate cities, Old Toronto, York, North York, East York, Etobicoke, and Scarborough

And Toronto's area codes are 416 and 647.

Drake popularized the name (in songs like Know Yourself, You & The Six, 6 God and many others) and he attributes it's creation to another rapper, Jimmy Prime. The Drake ties are probably why the Raptors embrace the name so enthusiastically, but the Blue Jays also use it a lot, their preferred phrase being "It's hot up in the 6ix" (a line from Drake's 6 God) when things are going well and the wins and hits are coming fast.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[Perfect Xero]

Reggie Miller is just insufferable.

[twoods]

Looking back at my post, I didn't mean to bash on the Raptors fans so sorry for that. I think it was late and I was just annoyed about Drake and them constantly panning to him, and then hearing about the gloating and I got mad at the whole fan base. 

Thunder showed they were not down and out after one game. Good for them. I'm still rooting for the Spurs because I think they can beat the Warriors unlike the Thunder, but I would be happy with either team moving on. 

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

Reggie Miller is just insufferable.

I should start keeping track of how many times I say "Shut UP, Reggie!" during a game. If I turned it into a drinking game I would not be long for this world.

[Maximum Taco]

8 hours ago, twoods said:

Looking back at my post, I didn't mean to bash on the Raptors fans so sorry for that. I think it was late and I was just annoyed about Drake and them constantly panning to him, and then hearing about the gloating and I got mad at the whole fan base. 

Thunder showed they were not down and out after one game. Good for them. I'm still rooting for the Spurs because I think they can beat the Warriors unlike the Thunder, but I would be happy with either team moving on. 

Fair enough.

Drake was a jerk, we can agree on that point. Posting that Paul George crying pic was just stupid and "I knew you were scared" as a caption? That was even stupider. George had just dropped almost a 40 spot on us (and flirted with a triple-double getting 8 rebound and 8 helpers) and the only reason he didn't take the buzzer beating shot was because George was double covered and Solomon Hill was totally uncovered and was 3/3 beyond the arc. He made the best play and it just didn't work out by 1/10 of a second. It doesn't make George scared, it makes George smart, and it makes Solomon Hill get the shot off quicker next time.

Even Drake knew that post was stupid which is why he deleted it less then an hour later.

The fact is the Raps were lucky to escape the first round, I fully believe we're a better team then the Pacers, but we weren't playing like it and Paul George was playing like the All Star he is. He just needs a little help and the Pacers will get real scary real quick.

[Ohwell]

I like some of Drake's songs but I hate him when he's standing on the sidelines at basketball games, mouthing off at the opponents.  Just once, I wish he'd get an "accidental" elbow to the mouth by one of the opposing players.  I know celebrities sit on the sidelines, like Spike Lee and Jack Nicholson, but I don't remember seeing anyone standing up, mouthing off like he does.