NBA Finals

howard · Post by **howard** » Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:27 am

AussieDave wrote: He did have 2 pretty bad turnovers at the end. But he played like a beast in the 4th quarter.

Okay, guys. Selection bias on my part.

I did not watch the fourth closely until the last five minutes. (Soccer, Giants' game, discussing something pretty important with my business partner. Yeah, 'multitasking' is a fucking myth; I'm living proof.) I went back and watched this morning.

My bad.

I caught a couple of instances earlier in the fourth when he was standing around after passing to whomever. They were late in the clock; and he was in position to either rebound, or to defend the counterattack. And a couple of times down the stretch, he is allowed to grab two seconds of rest, considering what all he did.

AB_skin_test wrote:It looked to me like Lebron said, I'm getting blamed if we lose anyway, so I'll just make it count if that ends up happening.

I agree this is spot on. I would not call his 4Q results as off the charts, but I can't challenge that assessment. I can easily agree his effort was off the heezey, and his play beast-like.

Hey, when Jordan is the bar, nit pickers like me will pick.

This making your mates better is not easy or simple. Especially in the finals, against a great team like the spurs, particularly the parker-timmay-manu champs who know how to do it.

Shit was still sloppy, and sad (to me); the excessive physicality detracts from the artistry--Manu elbowing LeBron in the fucking face; Timmay judo-throwing Bosh to the floor as two prime examples. This shit is not basketball; this does not fall on the specific actions of the refs in this single game.

Bron Bron was not sloppy or sad; the stretches he 'did not play like The King' were brief, and not a fair representation of his overall performance. Again, my bad; I was wrong to suggest he choked or underachieved. He wasn't Jordan; neither was MJ until he had the right supporting cast.

Jerloma · Post by **Jerloma** » Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:45 am

It's amazing how much a little thing like a missing headband can throw you off. Half the time, I had no idea who he was.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Wed Jun 19, 2013 12:27 pm

Not having Duncan in when you need a stop and a rebound to win the fucking championship is about an indefensible a decision as one can make. Almost as bad was leaving Manu in the entire time too. Momentum schomentum, the Spurs still should've won despite all that, so I think they take game 7 by 10.

Johnny Hotcakes · Post by **Johnny Hotcakes** » Wed Jun 19, 2013 7:07 pm

Giff wrote:Not having Duncan in when you need a stop and a rebound to win the fucking championship is about an indefensible a decision as one can make. Almost as bad was leaving Manu in the entire time too. Momentum schomentum, the Spurs still should've won despite all that, so I think they take game 7 by 10.

The line is currently Spurs +6, which I was all over as well.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:06 pm

Mario Chalmers seems like a guy whose teammates hate him roughly 99.74% of the time.

howard · Post by **howard** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:23 pm

Duane Wade was clearly not offsides there.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:24 pm

howard wrote:Duane Wade was clearly not offsides there.

The league should be embarrassed that there was a review for a clear path foul call.

sancarlos · Post by **sancarlos** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:25 pm

howard wrote:Duane Wade was clearly not offsides there.

Heh. I had no idea that sort of thing was even in the basketball rulebook.

sancarlos · Post by **sancarlos** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:26 pm

btw - I don't know how to spell his first name, but I also know that Howard doesn't either.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:30 pm

Danny Green is still a leading Finals MVP candidate - the first five games for the Spurs, the last two for the Heat.

degenerasian · Post by **degenerasian** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:39 pm

DSafetyGuy wrote:Mario Chalmers seems like a guy whose teammates hate him roughly 99.74% of the time.

they hate him more now

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:41 pm

Whole lotta Spurs playing hero ball.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:41 pm

degenerasian wrote:
DSafetyGuy wrote:Mario Chalmers seems like a guy whose teammates hate him roughly 99.74% of the time.
they hate him more now

Before that first free throw, his smug facial expression seemed to be saying, "I'm gonna make these and get laaaaaaaaaaaaid tonight."

govmentchedda · Post by **govmentchedda** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 10:48 pm

DSafetyGuy wrote:
degenerasian wrote:
DSafetyGuy wrote:Mario Chalmers seems like a guy whose teammates hate him roughly 99.74% of the time.
they hate him more now
Before that first free throw, his smug facial expression seemed to be saying, "I'm gonna make these and get laaaaaaaaaaaaid tonight."

"I'm gonna make these and get laaaaaaaaaaaaid tonight."

Swisher rolled tight, got sprayed by Ike

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:12 pm

So what can these assholes get for Bosh in a trade?

howard · Post by **howard** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:31 pm

Hopefully a point guard.

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:40 pm

Create an exemption and sign Chris Paul? He'll have to change his number, but whatever.

Jerloma · Post by **Jerloma** » Fri Jun 21, 2013 12:19 am

Sooo...he's good, yes?

Post by **brian** » Fri Jun 21, 2013 10:43 am

Wanted to bet the Heat ML last night and screwed up and bet the spread -5 and that was a gift for the ages.

Johnny Hotcakes · Post by **Johnny Hotcakes** » Fri Jun 21, 2013 11:28 am

Love when those great gambling victories happen. I, on the other hand, had San Antonio +6, which of course seemed like a mortal lock until Ginobili did his thang in the last 39 seconds.

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Jun 28, 2013 11:31 am

Not much draft chatter. And for that, I thank all my homies here.

But I liked these:

swamper rex ‏@JohnnyMcTweets 13h
I hope KG and Pierce realize that this is Mason Plumlee's team. If they can find a role then I guess that's fine.

swamper rex ‏@JohnnyMcTweets 14h
Mason Plumlee will surely be the only Net who commutes from Mamaroneck.

Post by **Sabo** » Fri Jun 28, 2013 11:51 am

Things I liked about the NBA Draft last night:

1. Picks come every five minutes. The NFL should adopt this policy immediately.
2. Seeing Bill Simmons' face go "WTF?" when the Cavs made their first pick.
3. No Screamin' A. Smith.

Things I hated about the NBA Draft last night.

1. Bill Simmons.
2. Bill Simmons talking about the Celtics trade.
3. Bill Simmons talking about the Celtics ad nauseum.
4. Shane Battier's attempts at interviewing draft picks.
5. No #MACtion. No D.J. Cooper. Hell, even no Zeke Marshall. :(

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Sat Jun 29, 2013 10:13 pm

Did you like Doc going in on Simmons?

DC47 · Post by **DC47** » Mon Jul 01, 2013 12:21 pm

Fan. The ultimate epithet.

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:35 am

I see no NBA offseason thread, so...

Slim Thug Is Doing His Part To Get Dwight Howard To Sign With Houston [Deadspin Link]

Slim Thug is a very tall, untalented rapper out of Houston. Naturally, what he has to say to Dwight is nothing short of magnificent in an unintentionally funny way.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Tue Jul 02, 2013 9:38 am

Fuck Doc Rivers. Anyone that says something along the lines of "I'm too classy to call you an idiot, so I won't call you an idiot" automatically is the dickhead in whatever argument is being had.

Wish Dwight would hurry up and announce he's staying with the Lakers. Morey will need some time to get over this one, so let's go ahead and start the recovery.

Rush2112 · Post by **Rush2112** » Wed Jul 03, 2013 5:21 pm

Brad Stevens in as Celtics coach.

Strange he went for a team with very few assets (left.)

howard · Post by **howard** » Wed Jul 03, 2013 6:00 pm

Nicely done, Mr. Stevens. Gotta be a bit more of a dream job than the Pacers; I'm gonna take a wild guess that he was a Larry Legend fan growing up.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Wed Jul 03, 2013 9:33 pm

Beautiful move. No pressure to win right away. Good picks upcoming. Learn the easy way. Still be young if nba doesnt work out. Come to uk in 2017 worst case.

Rondo gone by August 1.

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 1:39 pm

‘Big Bang Theory’ star makes YouTube plea to Dwight Howard

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USA Today editorial comment:

If you thought the 90-second clip was going to be funny, then clearly you’ve never watched The Big Bang Theory.

(hey, I just report; you decide)

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 1:57 pm

Giff posted that on Facebook. I watched. It was kinda awkward. Slim Thug was better.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 5:51 pm

Johnnie wrote:Giff posted that on Facebook. I watched. It was kinda awkward. Slim Thug was better.

Well, Slim Thug's pitch worked. Everyone reporting now that Howard decided on the Rockets. Now the question will be if he can recapture his form from a few years back. If so, that team is formidable.

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 6:44 pm

While the Warriors sign a 30yo wing player, six seasons removed from his peak scoring season. Cause Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes need a backup; $12 mil x four years for Andre Iguodala is just fucking perfect.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 7:06 pm

howard wrote:While the Warriors sign a 30yo wing player, six seasons removed from his peak scoring season. Cause Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes need a backup; $12 mil x four years for Andre Iguodala is just fucking perfect.

My guess is that the Iguodala signing was an attempt to lure Howard to GSW by signing a big name player (even if he is past his prime) so that they could offer Howard to the opportunity to have a "Big 3" of Curry, Howard and Iguodala. Immediately after signing Iguodala, the Warriors made a trade with Utah that was just a salary dump on their part to clear cap room (presumably for Howard). This would make sense, given the reports that Howard was pushing Houston to sign another star to go with Harden. Though, given that they missed out on Howard, I agree with you that the Iguodala signing doesn't make much sense.

howard · Post by **howard** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 7:33 pm

They thought they would fool D12 into thinking Iguodala is a star player? Show Howard tape of the 2008 season? Not even by Chris Bosh standards is he a big time player anymore.

I appreciate the rationale, I had heard that explanation, but I don't see it. As a born-again Warriors' fan, I am glad they aren't getting Howard. I'd have a hard time rooting for him, such a dog. As soon as he was displeased about something, he'd probably quit trying, as he has done already. I will be surprised if he suddenly becomes professional in Houston, and I expect him to continue to underachieve, and lead that team no where.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 7:50 pm

Maybe they lured Iguodola there by fooling him that Howard is a star player...

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 8:44 pm

I am thinking GSW wanted a strong wing defender and they can now keep Barnes as a sixth man, or play small with those four (Curry, Thompson, Barnes, and Iguodala) surrounding Bogut. Bogut is a very strong passer, so they could do some interesting things with him operating with the ball from the high post and four guys who can shoot threes/make various cuts to the bucket.

Of course, Bogut's health is its own major issue.

DC47 · Post by **DC47** » Fri Jul 05, 2013 11:17 pm

Iguodola is a simply a much better all-around player than Thompson or Barnes, at least right now. So he'll play 35+ minutes and they'll play the balance at the two positions -- plus some more time when they go small with Iguodola or Barnes at PF. If Curry is healthy, this gives them talent at the three small positions that is up there with that of any team. The AI contract seems about right given the market for wing players.

Can Bogut stay healthy? Can Lee fit in with this team? Who are the other rotation players? Those are big questions, but I think the Warriors are now among the dominant six teams in the West. I don't know what they could have done in free agency that would leave them better off than the Iguodola deal.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Sat Jul 06, 2013 8:14 am

The ticker at the WWLIS is reporting that Kobe Bryant's response to Howard signing with the Rockets was to unfollow him on Twitter and post a photo of himself with Pau Gasol on Instagram. Basically, he's a scorned high school cheerleader.

Johnnie · Post by **Johnnie** » Sat Jul 06, 2013 9:15 am

DSafetyGuy wrote:The ticker at the WWLIS is reporting that Kobe Bryant's response to Howard signing with the Rockets was to unfollow him on Twitter and post a photo of himself with Pau Gasol on Instagram. Basically, he's a scorned high school cheerleader.

I read that too. Hysterical. Him and Pau BFFs! Lakercorazon!

Except remember when he was demanding a trade to the Bulls a while back? Lakers fans don't.

And despite my uncanny ability to make the absolute opposite come true, in my opinion, I don't think the Rockets are going anywhere with Dwight. Not while LeBron is still playing.