THE NBA THREAD - THE N STANDS FOR
 

NICE! :love

This is a thread to talk about the NBA. The nuttiest sport of the Big 4. The playoffs are only a month a way so it's time to talk Finals!

Watching Boston destroy the once invincible Rockets really depressed me today. Boston's record against the West is probably more staggering than their regular season record is. If they get to the Finals they will probably win it. Don't get me wrong, I think Kevin Garnett is awesome but I don't like this for many other reasons.

1) It shows that you can tank a season in the NBA to become a success. The Timberwolves and Grizzlies are in full force of that.

2) If the Celtics or Pistons win, it's going to be the biggest waste of a season for the Western Conference. They are playing phenominal regular season basketball while the Celtics and Pistons are just cruising to the Eastern Finals.

3) James Posey is scumbag.

Anyway, my guess for right now is that the Celtics and the Lakers will be in the finals, which means ESPN is going to hit us over the head with "HEY THESE TEAMS PLAYED ALOT OF FINALS IN THE 60'S AND THE 80'S".

Stupid: At the All-Star break I said there would be a Hornets-Pistons Finals with the Pistons prevailing. Even stupider I said at the beginning of the year that it would be a Bulls-Mavs Final with the Mavs Winning. But at that time I thought the Bulls would at least get Gasol or Kobe. Instead they got eachother I got Drew Gooden.

Who do you think is making the finals. Who do you want making the finals? Did you know Elton Brand screwed over crew members on the Rescue Dawn set?
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THE A STANDS FOR ARGENTINA!



Manu is Teh King

I pretty much think exactly the same thing. The finals will likely be Lakers Vs. Celtics. It will be a good series, but will it be the classic it was in the 80s? I don't believe so. For one thing, most teams these days, as was implied earlier, are going for the "Best team money can buy". Sure there are exceptions, the Spurs for example. But the trend in the NBA (and all of sports for that matter) is to use your money to build a super squad to win right now, generate interest and through that, money. Consequently, that takes away the dynasty factor that the Lakers and Celtic both had in the 80s. Another thing that makes me think this series will lack the luster of the 80s is the lack of personalities in it. The Lakers and Celtics had great personalities in the 80s, Jabbar, Bird, Johnson, and Ainge are good examples. The personalities of nowadays just feel much less interesting to me. I will watch, but it will likely make me pine for the NBA of the 80s, which is not coming back. I guess I will have to take what I can get though, and the playoffs will be interesting regardless.

I wonder if the Timberwolves, in order to secure a better shot at drafting Michael Beasley, give Mark Madsen the order to shoot and miss 7 threes in one game like he did last year.

Also, I found this amusing video on Kevin Garnett being drafted right out of high school. Note Isiah Thomas' hilarious plan for Garnett.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ol3JLceeHRE&feature=related

I wonder what the entire Sixers team has been smoking lately. Back at .500 and ensconced in the playoff picture? I know they'll probably be spanked in the first round, but even so, this is something to build on for next year.

Check it out, David Stern wants to raise the minimum age to enter the NBA!

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slu...yhoo&type=lgns

Not sure how this makes NBA fans feel, the author of that article is for it. I see it as a good thing for college basketball though. sophomore stars will help make for better teams which is always good for the game and the fans

Woo Hoo! The Sixers crack .500 for the first time this season. And by beating Boston at home!

Yeah, they'll still probably get booted out of the first round of the playoffs, but this is hugely better than they were predicted to do at the beginning of the season - I think SI had them next-to-last in the Eastern Conference.

Right now pound for pound the Sixers are one of the more interesting things going in the NBA

I agree. However, this may already de facto be happening. With the globalization of the draft becoming more the rule rather than the exception the pool of talent is becoming ever larger. Kids who might have toyed with the idea of coming out early (or even fresh out of high school) are staying in college. So while I think Stern has a good point, it might already be moot.

Well, we'll know for sure in 2 years, when the CBA gets renegotiated.

Chris Webber retired again today after a short 9 day comeback with the Warriors. It's hard to believe that he played 15 years in the league already. Seems like yesterday when he was inadvertently calling extra timeouts.

Webber's inability to count timeouts has been a source of amusement for me for years :lol

Hey, is this the thread to start handcapping the playoffs, now that March Madness is winding down?

I'm looking for the Sixers to somehow secure the 5th seed and perchance play Cleveland in the first round. I think this is the only possible matchup that could get them to round two, where they undoubtedly will get smoked.

Boston is the real deal, and will come out of the East, while the West is a crapshoot - the Lakers always seem to play their best ball in the Spring, but SA has been playing well. Hell, even the 8 seed in the West will have a legitimate shot. And where did New Orleans come from?

What do you all think?

I stand by my original prediction. Lakers vs. Celtics. That said, I would much rather see the Suns vs. the Cavs :)

Yes, I am editing this post but only because I want to go more in depth....later.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080415/...l_anthony_dc_2

Wow, Carmelo Anthony caught drinking and driving. Come on Carmelo, you're better than that, or at least you should be. Word is he has since apologized for it, but he needs to not do something so lacking in judgement in the first place. All I can hope is he really is sorry and has learned from this.

NBA = Not Being Astute

Manu has Kobe like numbers off of the BENCH. One thing I know about the Spurs, then they turn it on it is hard for any team to stop them- I think last night was a little preview for the Suns. They hosted a playoff clinic for Denver and I don't see anybody beating them in less than 7 games this year.

Now that the T-wolves gracefully finished the season at 22-60, my interest in the NBA is 0.0002 units of Giving A Shit.

My interest is a little higher than this; admittedly, the Sixers did finish below .500, but still secured the 7 seed, which means they'll be booted by Detroit in round one.

Tell me, WR, what is your take on what Kevin McHale did to the Wolves? I'm thinking he's channeling the departed soul of Red Auerbach in some sort of Satanic mind control thing. Was there any rhyme or reason to his decimation of what could have been a respectable franchise?

He drafted KG. That seemed to work out fine. He drafted Ray Allen and then traded him for Marbury minutes later. He entered into illegal contract negations with Joe Smith, which led to the NBA stripping us of 3 first round draft picks (which fucked us over pretty badly in the long run). He gave up on Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell after only 2 seasons (Sprewell could've gone...but ditching Cassell was a bad move). Trading for Ricky Davis and Mark Blount....yeah, that worked out just fine for us...

With that said, I will say that trading Garnett was a necessary move. Having only advanced past the first round of the playoffs once in Garnett's tenure as well as his huge contract eating most of the cap space, it was time for KG to move on. To tell you the truth, I'll take Al Jefferson over Garnett any day of the week. He's a 20 and 10 guy with a lot more upside at only 23 years of age.

After all that McHale is looked at by most minny fans as being a huge fuckwad that needs to step down/get fired. People are just tired of his Celtics fetish and his other related shit.

PS - forgot to mention that he drafted Brandon Roy and traded him later that night for Randy Foye. WTF.

Philadelphia 90
Detroit 86

WTF? How the hell did that happen? Iguodala had a crappy shooting game from the field and Dalembert didn't fare much better, yet they still managed to come from 13 down at halftime to win by 4.

So much for the Sixers getting smoked - looks like they'll give Motown a series. My interest is piqued.

I'm just waiting for the 2nd round of playoffs where the real action will begin. The celtics are going to detroy the hawks. :zzzz

Fixed :)

Tell you the truth, I think the magic who I predict will advance to the next round is a match made for the celtics. They did manhandled them twice in the reg season.

Who the Sam Hill scheduled the 2008 NBA playoffs anyway? At this rate, they'll be finishing game 7 of the finals just in time for the Olympics. >:

Ouch. That was quite the ass-whuppin'. I guess the Pistons were Pissed-Off.

So, I just out from my friend that there's no more Charlotte Hornets. I know this sounds stupid but I haven't really checked on basketball since NBA jam: TE. Is there anything else huge I've missed out on?

NBA=MOFIA....

I think you confused the NBA with the 2001 Baltimore Ravens :lol

Looks like the two of the stupidest trades of the year didn't work out for the mavs and the suns...bwahahahaha

Celtics :(

Ummm ... the Celts sure don't look like world beaters anymore. They don't even look like Hawk beaters, a team they swept during the regular season. Game 7 is Sunday.

I originally thought they would represent the East in the finals, and now I'm thinking they will have trouble getting past Cleveland. WTF?

I am shocked that the series has went to game 7. I along with everyone else assumed the Celtics would make quick work of the Hawks. I guess Josh Smith wasn't batshit insane when he said that the Hawks would "shock the world."

Maybe not shock "the world" but they sure shocked me. :eek

All the pundits on ESPN picked the Celts in 4 or at most 5 games. So in reality, they're no better than us at picking these things.

The hawks were like a bad hemorroid on the ass that was hard to get rid of. The Celts sure creamed them with preparation H yesterday. I'm concerned since that the first round was dragged into game 7, how much energy left the Celts will have in the rest of the post season. As long they have home court advantage, maybe I shouldnt be too concerned.

I think the Celtics will be just fine.

They obvioulsy underestimated the Hawks and did not bring their "Playoff game" when the Hawks clearly did. They will not likely make that mistake again,

Problem is, they made that mistake 3 times in the Hawks series. The Cavs are a different story, with legitimate props, so methinks that even once will be too many. Not that I have any rooting interest, but I'd like to see a good series from both teams.

It should be a good series considering the two teams split 2-2 in the regular season. Also the cavs has two former celtics, delonte west and wally sczerbiak, from last year whom were traded to the sonics for ray allen then went to the cavs in mid season in part of the trade that also brought ben wallace and joe smith into the squad. wouldn't it be just hilarious if the cavs had won?

Poor Spurs. The Hornets sure giving them the "sting"! Oh har har har, I'm about as funny as former big man Jim Mcilvaine pulling up for a three!

The hornets are one of the year's biggest surprises, the other being miami heat. :lol

Game one of celts and cavs series was one of the ugliest games i have ever witnessed. It was the first time ray allen didn't score a point in a game in 11 years. The total final score not far from the lowest scoring game in postseason ever. The lowest ever in postseason (with 24 second clock) was 66-64, celts over pistons in 2002 at boston garden. I expect lebron to get hot tonight. He must be steaming pissed by his own poor performance and celts' numero uno defense from game one.

i just love it when i am wrong :)

Looks like the Cavs just won't roll over and play dead. And LeBron is still shooting like crap. Let's see if they can repeat the performance in game 4, shall we?

Anyone paying attention to what's going on out west? Or are we just waiting for the Lakers to win it?

Them or the Hornets

Maybe we're assuming too much - the way the Jazz played this afternooon, maybe all they need to do is to steal one at LA to knock off the bastards.

I hate the Lakers.

Although I dislike the Minneapolis Lakers, i'm not to fond of the New Orleans Jazz either.

:lol

I always thought it was dumb to keep the names of teams when they changed cities. It would make sense for the team from Utah to be called the Hornets (the Beehive State) and NO to be called the Jazz, but that would be too logical.

By that logic the Lakers would be called the LA Smog and the Clippers would be called the LA Plastic Surgery

What the hell does "Clippers" even mean? I always figured it to be an old 1800's clipper sailing ship.

Yes. Back when they were an expansion franchise in San Diego, they were named with that city's harbor history in mind. At least, that's how I remember it. But I'm gettin' old ....

I believe that's accurate actually

Not that it matters too much; Los Angeles or San Diego, they still suck.

So, it's the Pistons vs ..... in the East. :\

If the Cavs can take 1 win out of Boston they've got this thing locked up. Wait a sec...If the Celtics take 1 out of Cleveland, then they've got this thing locked up as well...Who's it gonna be kiddos?

Dear Spurs,

Please die.

KTHNX
MattJack

PS Robert Horry, you are a son of a bitch.

You may get your wish, they might die soon, though it will likely be from old age :lol

The Cavs and Celts are tied up. Given the current trend as of late in the playoffs, the Celts will win the series and will continue to soak up all of the media attention.

PS - To hell with "the gay 3".

...and Minneapolis goes to the West finals again.

Talk about gay....

Fuck the Celtics. >:

I have no one left to root for, except maybe the Hornets. If they can get by the Lakers.

Yeah, I really wanted to see the Celtics go down. Now it's up to Detroit to do the deed. I'm also rooting for Charlotte to to face the Pistons in the Finals.

nba season is over for you guys, move along now

The Celts aren't in yet. If they keep playing below their potential like this, the Pistons could knock them off. That said, i still think the Celtics are going to the finals, but now I believe, as Dennis Green would say, "THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE" :lol

Ray allen sure found a hell of a time to go on a slump. Hopefully he will break out in this series and give pistons a whipping otherwise there will be trouble fo' the celts.

Truth be told I think this next series the Celtics will turn it on like fire. Too bad for them the Lakers will likely beat them in the end though. They are going to be too beaten up for a matchup with LA I think.

After the celts' performance last night, i think the series will most likely go 5-6 games, celts take all. They'll have to win at least one on the road, dammit. Winning one on the road would feel like winning the champ.

Dunno about lakers beating the celts in the finals, though, considering the celts owned the lakers, beating them by double digits twice over the reg season but then its an entirely different atmosphere in the postseason, so who knows

Honestly, I think the Celts will be too gassed for the finals. It will most likely go 7 games, and had they not had to go 7 in the 2 previous series, I would be in agreement with you, but the Lakers are different post season than they are regular season. Kobe has shown he can drop 80 in a game when it needs to happen, and while I don't expect him to hit 80 against the Celtics, I don't think 50 is out of the question for him, add to the fact that he has help around him now that is worth a crap, and you have a tough challenge.

Truth be told, I would rather see Boston win it than LA, I just don't feel in my heart right now that they can win the finals.

Uh, now they need to win 2 games on the road to close it out in 5 games. :lol

Once again Garnett goes home without a championship. :love

Looks like the Spurs are who we thought they were.... old and broken

They are who we thought they were!!!

It's going to be a 7 game series between the Celts and Pistons if Detroit can hold on for the next 5:00 minutes.

Guess why I am happy, guys?

Spurs/Lakers game 4, final shot by Brent Barry...

I think he was fouled, I think it was a huge no-call, and I think had it been Kobe or a flopper like Ginobli it would've been called. The Spurs only have themselves to blame for being down 3-1, but that doesn't excuse Joey "I hate Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs" Crawford for watching a guy get mugged and not making the call.

END RANT

Because you are pleased with your snazzy new avatar?

Because finally milk is cheaper per gallon than gas is?

Because those bastards, they blew it up, damn them, damn them all to hell?

Anyone else think that 'Sheed will be sitting out game 7?

No, because there won't be a game 7 because the Pistons blow at home.

The league and TV networks have half of their dream final in place with LA winning. The series should be 3-2 (thanks for the apology, Tim Frank). With Rip Hamilton hurt and the Pistons blowing at home, as Gadzooks pointed out, it looks like a throwback NBA Finals match-up.

'Sheed should've went ahead and got that T last game, preferably by kicking the shit out of Bill Belichick.



He's in that picture somewhere...

Oh, and a bit of good news: the NBA will fine floppers next year. Anderson Varejao is fucked.

what the hell is a flopper? never heard of that term in nba.

btw, i'm keeping my mouth shut until the postseason is over, at least for the celts :x

Manu "The First Flopper" Ginobli:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=fEef1T_lqwA&feature=related

Raja "Sir Flops-a-Lot" Bell:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=8BjhfwVY_p8&feature=related

Lalers vs Celtics (yawn)

I got the Lakers in 6.

You're probably right, but the mental image of Ko-baby lifting the trophy is enough to make me physically ill. :x

Is the fact that very few people outside Mass. and Cali. care about this final indicative of how far the NBA has fallen since the last time these two teams met?

I would so. I don't plan on watching a single game, nor do any of my friends.

I may catch a game or two, I think that while the NBA has fallen from what it was in the 80's (you can thank the player attitudes, referee controversies, and cheapening of the sport itself for that) it has started to dust itself off and become mildly interesting again. If it continues in this direction, it will be a great sport again. It will just take time.

I'm pretty much on the fence on this one - while the games may be the stuff of legends (and there is every expectation that there will be some great basketball being played here) my heart is just not in it. Both teams are the best money can buy (or steal), they were both number 1 seeds, and frankly, I can't see a great human interest story anywhere here.

I love the sport, I just don't really give a shit who wins. :sleep

I don't love the sport anymore, but I hate Kobe and I don't want Garnett to win a title so that gives me two reasons not to watch (if KG wins it I want to pretend like it never happened).

I will be watching every game. This could of been Spurs Vs. Pistons and that would of sucked a whole bunch more. Fuck ya'll I called it.

You really reached with that one.

Yeah, who would have thought the two number 1's would make it to the finals. What are the odds? :confused:

1) It hasn't happened in 8 years

2) The Lakers were NOT the first seed when I made said prediction

suck it

Hawks vs. Nuggets would be just as uninteresting as the final we have. At least the best players are out there.

My prior statement about interest in the final versus what it was in 1987 wasn't based on derision of stars like Kobe or KG, but of the simple fact that a much more select few give a shit today. The NBA didn't know where to go after Jordan, and it still doesn't. Lakers and Celtics is attractive to viewers (and therefore, to ABC/ESPN/Disney) because those team names mean something to anyone who has followed the sport.

I love the game, I just think that a lot of the mystique is gone. I don't know many who are that interested, except people I know from SoCal or Mass. That wasn't the case 21 years ago. Finals series like Spurs vs. Nets haven't helped regain the allure of eras gone by, but I question if that is the fault of the fans or the league and its players.

4 Spurs Championships will do that to any sport, ugh

I don't see what the problem is with the Spurs. Is it the small market? Is it the fact that Tim Duncan doesn't flap his jaws or demand trades? Someone please tell me why the Spurs get no love. It's tearing me up inside, people!

Frankly, I don't give a shit if the Finals lack "allure". I don't need a supposedly flashier big market team to get me to watch the Finals. Good baxetball can come from anywhere, not just from Kobe's cervix or Boston's taint.

They are boring ass basketball to watch that grinds games out to a Hack-A-Shaq halt and also are the more prolific floppers in the league. And while Tim Duncan doesn't flap his jaws about being traded (why would he?) he and his team certaintly do bitch about almost every call making their already slow game slower.

They were fun to watch for their first championship back when David Robinson was an active member of the group. Also they are a Dynasty in a league that is in some definite need of parity. It's not completely their fault (except the flopping shit, which the league promises to work on).

I've never heard of the Spurs having a reputation for whining about calls but damn did Barry have a good reason to. Duncan flapping jaws was a reference to Kobe flapping his labia before the season started and the flopping is not exclusive to the Spurs, nor did they perfect the craft. That shit has been infesting the league for years.

I can see people tiring of the Spurs because of their dominance, but I personally find it refreshing to see a small market team hit the 9 point Hot Spot. I really really really get sick and tired of hearing about the fucking Lakers, Celtics, and Knicks (the only 3 teams in the league if you watch Sportscenter).

Small market is a misnomer. San Antonio is the 7th largest city by population in the country. It's a market that doesn't command national attention, and the working class mentality of the team doesn't capture people's imaginations. Hence, they get no ink. Nobody likes hard workers in America, and yes, I can throw in a Simpsons reference: the Frank Grimes episode. Homer command's attention, but Frank is the better worker.

Boring basketball has been the NBA's mantra since Jordan left the Bulls for good. We just watched a playoffs in which home teams dominated and almost all the games were decided by wide enough margins to make them pointless to watch past the 4 minute mark in the fourth quarter. NCAA b-ball has been the basketball of choice for a solid decade now. NBA stars sandbag their asses off.

Of course people are going to talk about the Lakers, Celtics and Knicks. But other than market shares, people talk about them for all the wrong reasons. LA wouldn't be here without the Gasol trade, period. The Knickerbockers are a god damned disaster and we love our disasters. The Celts bought their way back to the finals, and let's face it, Mass. has been ground zero of great sports this past year. Between the Sox, the Pats, BC, and the Celtics, Boston has had a phenomenal year. I've spilled enough Haterade on the subject, but it's hard to deny. If Tim Duncan flapped his pussy then San Antonio would get some press; he doesn't, so they don't.

Don't hate the game, hate the players. The flopping, the refs, the bitching/fighting/arrests/pot smoking/sandbagging has made this series less relevant than it should be. Not the Spurs, not the markets, and (as one) certainly not the fans.

That was the one time they should of and they didn't. Which was weird.

Well Gad, that's because it's fixed.