The Swamp

Obviously I've got a big time chip on my sports fan shoulder when it comes to the narrative around Harden, but if he was tweeting trash talk from his couch to a player just eliminated a round after him, there's no way NBA Twitter/journalists are laughing with him, regardless of the backstory. But Dame and CJ are somehow immune to any criticisms for only once leading their team past the second round (and getting absolutely smoked by the Warriors).

Giff wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 10:31 am Obviously I've got a big time chip on my sports fan shoulder when it comes to the narrative around Harden, but if he was tweeting trash talk from his couch to a player just eliminated a round after him, there's no way NBA Twitter/journalists are laughing with him, regardless of the backstory. But Dame and CJ are somehow immune to any criticisms for only once leading their team past the second round (and getting absolutely smoked by the Warriors).

The part you’re missing is that no one likes Paul George and Pat Beverley. There seemed to be genuine league-wide glee among players from a bunch of teams.

This speaks poorly to me because, in the time I've watched, I was rooting mostly for the Clippers bench in the playoffs.

I’m definitely rooting for Denver at this point. I know I said the same thing about the Clippers series, but I reeeaaaaly can’t see them beating the Lakers. If Jokic somehow cooks Anthony Davis, I’m buying a jersey. They’re both great big men, but complete polar opposites on the athleticism scale.

Kawhi did every thing the Raptors and their fans asked of him.

Seeing him play here last season was a highlight of my sports viewing life. And his performance throughout the playoffs was spectacular.

But man, I am so, so happy that he and the Clippers shat the bed like that.

Tatum getting stuffed is doing a nice job of making everyone forget the last possession in regulation where he got the ball and a switch via pick in an iso, dribbled out clock, and threw up a 28-foot brick that was closer to being an airball than actually going in.

Related: Is Brad Stevens getting any grief for drawing that up in a timeout?

DSafetyGuy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 16, 2020 1:42 pm Tatum getting stuffed is doing a nice job of making everyone forget the last possession in regulation where he got the ball and a switch via pick in an iso, dribbled out clock, and threw up a 28-foot brick that was closer to being an airball than actually going in.

Related: Is Brad Stevens getting any grief for drawing that up in a timeout?

That finish was karmic justice for Walker and Smart tricking the refs to call a ridiculous foul on Miami to tie the game late. I don’t know what this is but it isn’t basketball:

I'm more shocked that you're shocked than I am that this actually called in an NBA game. That's been basketball for years.

That Nuggets /Lakers final four minutes.

That Nuggets / Lakers final 25 seconds.

That Jokic backdown.

The AD answer.

Just, holy crap.

Hard to defend a seven footer shooting a three. Man that was fun to watch.

As I assume every team who picked after the Grizzlies took Morant until Herro went at 13 is regretting things now...

I’ve been watching love craft country while keeping an eye on Lakers game. How the fuck is it even possible for AD to only have one rebound in the fourth?


Eta: 2 now

I literally haven’t watched a second of the NBA Playoffs but I’m already getting a hard-on at the irony of a LeBron Lakers team getting beat by a non-superteam Heat.

brian wrote: ↑Thu Sep 24, 2020 11:23 pm I literally haven’t watched a second of the NBA Playoffs but I’m already getting a hard-on at the irony of a LeBron Lakers team getting beat by a non-superteam Heat.

Don’t really see that happening but LeBron does seem to be tiring a bit as the bubble games continue on. While the lack of travel makes it easier on guys, there are also a lot fewer off days than are normally included in the playoff schedule. Boston, Denver, and Miami are younger teams than the Lakers, Bucks, Clippers and Rockets, who I believe were considered the oddsmakers’ four leading favorites pre-shutdown.

I'll believe LeBron can't carry a team when he doesn't carry a team.

mister d wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 9:52 am I'll believe LeBron can't carry a team when he doesn't carry a team.

Oh, I agree. Miami matches up reasonably well from a personnel standpoint but if either Adebayo or Butler gets in foul trouble trying to guard Davis and LeBron, then the Heat would be screwed. Miami may start Crowder on LeBron to try and avoid that but I remember LeBron destroying him in the playoffs during some of the Cavs-Celtics matchups. Iguodala is also a defensive option but he’s a shell of his former self at this point.

Nuggets have them right where they want them!

I'm not talking about LeBron carrying or not carrying a team, just the irony of him assembling yet another superteam and getting beaten by a non-superteam in his first superteam location.

I wouldn’t call the Lakers a superteam. LeBron and Davis are both historically great players but it’s a pretty underwhelming roster otherwise. Their third-best player by win shares this year is Dwight Howard, who averaged 7.5 ppg. It’s not like like the 2016-19 Warriors or the 2010-14 Heat who had 3 or more legitimate All-NBA caliber players.

ETA: based on another advanced stat metric, Box Plus-Minus, the only Lakers besides LeBron and Davis who are even above average are JaVale McGee, Danny Green and Howard. Not quite the Warriors, who rolled out Klay, Draymond and Iguodala as their 3rd to 5th best guys.

They're like the '92ish Bulls with gamma radiation

They "only" have one of the two best players to ever play the game and one of the five best current players in the game. It's a mystery how they won any games really.

brian wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 11:00 am They "only" have one of the two best players to ever play the game and one of the five best current players in the game. It's a mystery how they won any games really.

It’s funny because you were trying to shit on LeBron for forming superteams, but you’ve essentially acknowledged how great he is by pointing out that if he has one elite teammate you can fill out the rest of the roster with a G-League squad and still win a title.

The early-90s Bulls comp is a good one, although Horace Grant was way better than any of the Lakers role players.

The superteam era makes me sad it wasn't really inclusive of Iverson's career.



(I know Barkley to the Suns was a think and then the over-the-hill Lakers, but where it was prime players and more common.)

I never denied LeBron's greatness, only that it would be awesome to watch him lose another NBA Finals to a city he had assembled his first superteam in.

I don't get not liking LeBron or even rooting against him as a neutral.

Put yourself of the mindset of hating basically everything ever

Or just teams/players that win all the time maybe?

Guess that explains why you like VEGAS AND THEIR ZERO STANLEY CUPS OOOHHHHHHH!!!

mister d wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 11:28 am I don't get not liking LeBron or even rooting against him as a neutral.

LeBron is easy to root for but the Lakers, as an organization, are very easy to root against. I’d root for them against the Celtics because it’d be funny to see LeBron eliminate the C’s six times in one decade, with three different teams. Conflicted about Miami because I despised them in the late-90s when they were the Knicks’ archrival, hated the way the refs gifted them the 2006 title, and also didn’t like the 2010-14 superteam squad.

Jimmy Butler being Jimmy Butler and Nunn beating women is more bad than Adebayo being from Newark is good so Miami is a negative. LeBron is very good, Howard is very bad, they're a neutral at worst. Its math.

Whoa whoa C's haven't been getting blown out here. Win two see what happens.

Taking this timeout to say I've had just about enough of Goran Dragic

Unless Jokic has 6 fouls he needs to be playing here

mister d wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 9:52 am I'll believe LeBron can't carry a team when he doesn't carry a team.

Lebron did the thing.

A_B wrote: ↑Sat Sep 26, 2020 10:31 pm

mister d wrote: ↑Fri Sep 25, 2020 9:52 am I'll believe LeBron can't carry a team when he doesn't carry a team.

Lebron did the thing.

Even if I live to 100, I doubt I’ll ever see anyone again make the Finals 9/10 seasons. Doing it with 3 different teams, two of which were complete shit before he got there, makes it even more incredible.

Whoa

Joe K wrote: ↑Tue Sep 15, 2020 10:12 pm Are we sure Doc Rivers’ job is safe? Because this is now two stunning 3-1 collapses since 2015 for him. How long he can he keep banking on the 2008 and 2010 postseason runs with Boston?

I guess not!

Certainly it’s possible for a comeback because the nba is nuts but the heat scored 39 points in the second and third quarter combined. That isn’t ideal. Dragic and bam injuries certainly affected that.

Add Jimmy to that list of injuries.

Lakers went on a 77-32 run over roughly 2 quarters of play after falling down 23-10. And Dragic tore his plantar fascia. Even without the injuries, I don’t see what Miami can do besides play zone and hope LeBron just forgets how to beat a zone. There’s just too many Miami players that are easy pickings for LeBron and Davis to exploit on defense if the Heat play man-to-man.

On the other hand, the Lakers are a sneakily really good defensive team. Other than perhaps Kuzma, they don’t have anyone that’s a defensive liability in their rotation.