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Hey, Sixers just got Maxey back...Embiid is getting into playing shape and PG13 game out firing in his first game back. Those players that got all the PT because of injuries now make for some decent depth. Drummond has been outstanding lately (he usually is). I don't see a ceiling for them in the playoffs....just a hope for them that they have enough time to get used to each other before the 1st Round is over.Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelSD
Great game going on between MIA and PHI on Peacock right now
BOS @ ATL also just began and DET @ OKC on Peacock later.
Lakers are done for the year. Luka out at least a month.
I'm watching some of the Basketball HOF announcement show and it just reminds me how big of a farce it is. I'm surprised they haven't yet inducted a middle school player for leading his team to three county championships.
Embiid pissed that he didn't get to play Wed. Got to love that fire in him.
Austin Reaves out 4 to 6 weeks. The good ship Lakers is heading for the ocean floor.
Attachment 23710
Chet Holmgrem has finished the season as the number one seed every year that he has played basketball.
Doc Rivers is given his walking papers from the Bucks. Is retirement next?
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba...bc829c5&ei=122
NBA Advance Stats for the last 10 games show the Portland TrailBlazers as the #1 (by a lot all by themselves, 3.6 pts better than the #2 team, where only 2.0 pts separates 2-5 and 2.8 pts separate 2-6) Rated team as far as Defensive Net Rating.
Playoffs are something completely different, so this learning experience is vital. This is why it's been necessary to have the benefits of RWIII, Thybulle (40%+ shooter from "3" now, as is Toumani and Scoot), Jrue and Grant with Dame helping from the bench). The young players (NBA experience)...Deni, Toumani, Krejci, Clingan and Murray, and the young players (age and NBA experience)...Scoot, Sharpe, Cissoko all need to get the experience of a 1st Round matchup against the Spurs, so winning tonight matters. I knew the line would be minus 2-1/2 in favor of PHO, even after it began 4-1/2 in favor of PHO.
Devin Booker is having the best season of his career and Dillon Brooks still plays like an All-Star (Player-of-the-Month just two months ago), but PHO' bench and the rest of their Starting five is outstanding. They suffered lately losing, I think, 8 of their last 13 with Brooks having missed most of those games, but he's healed from the injury now.
Somebody is going to win 108-106, but I just don't know who it will be. I expect POR to have too many turnovers (18 most likely with PHO having about 16), but I do expect POR to out-rebound the Suns by 10+ to make up for it. Again, a close game that will come down to execution over the final five minutes (Grant is clutch in the last 5 minutes of a game, while Deni mistakenly hunts fouls too much at times instead of trying to be aggressive and make the basket. Jrue is clutch whenever he needs to be, while Splitter has tried too much to run out the clock instead of trying to score when he has a 10-pt lead late.
Like most NBA games of this era, it could come down to who has the better 3-pt shooting percentage for the game, but it's not that simple...POR is top-five when it comes to most 3-pt shots taken, while PHO is 7th when it comes to least number of 3-pt shots allowed. That should balance out.
The best way for POR to win is to get into the paint with their play-makers, forcing foul trouble with the Suns (if they get called), but doing so without committing turnovers by forcing the foul-call and not getting it (something Sharpe, Grant and Deni do often).
Personally, I think that if Thybulle and Murray could get 30+ minutes each, then POR will win the game on the Defensive end, as those two players, along with Robert Williams, who would also come off the bench, would likely all have plus/minus's in the +12 to +25 range.
NBA Play-In Tournament schedule: Tuesday, April 14
5:30 p.m. MT/6 p.m. CT: (10) Miami Heat vs (9) Charlotte Hornets, Prime (stream on Amazon Prime Video)
Winner advances to face the loser of Orlando Magic vs. Philadelphia 76ers game, while the loser is eliminated.
8 p.m. MT/9 p.m. CT: (8) Portland Trail Blazers vs (7) Phoenix Suns, Prime (stream on Amazon Prime Video)
Winner earns No. 7 seed in Western Conference, while loser faces winner of Golden State Warriors vs Los Angeles Clippers game.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nb...155232372.html
“I just report the news and the truth can hurt sometimes,” Charania said during a Monday appearance on The Pat McAfee Show (Twitter video links). “… If (the Bucks) spent as much time dealing with their own internal problems as they did responding to accurate reports, they wouldn’t be in the mess that they’re in right now. … I’m just here to document and cover it the right way.”
Eric Nehm of The Athletic shares his own reporting on a disappointing Bucks season, citing multiple league sources who say that Rivers told several veteran players following a March 21 shootaround in Phoenix that he thought they’d “failed him.” The coach also questioned their “commitment, conditioning, focus, and leadership,” according to Nehm, who said those vets didn’t take kindly to Rivers’ remarks. “That’s when I checked out on this season,” one player told The Athletic.
In an interview with Mark Medina of EssentiallySports, Bucks broadcaster Marques Johnson said that the Antetokounmpo saga in Milwaukee – including a disagreement between the star forward and the team about his health – is “as toxic as it appears,” referring to it as a “bad situation.”
https://www.hoopsrumors.com/milwaukee-bucks
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I reluctantly signed up for the 30-day free trial of Amazon Prime so I could watch the games.
But, first I've got to watch tonight's REDS' game.
Charlotte should win vs MIA by a dozen, but you can never underestimate Spoelstra.
4:20 left in the 2nd in a tie game and MIA is 0-1 at the free-throw line, CHA 6-6, but CHA has 9 fouls called against them while MIA only 5. Both teams avoiding turnovers and shooting poorly from "3" (30% for both teams).
This is playing directly into Spoelstra's gameplan.
The Rookie, Kon Knueppel has choked, as expected.
Tyler Herro, Davion Mitchell and Kel'el Ware not much better. (at the time I posted this, but then they turned it on in the 4th)
Toumani choked tonight for POR Offensively...struggled a bit Defensively. Murray was great (+14 1st Half)...surprised Splitter didn't go with him more in the 2nd Half (of course he was in the last play when they got the Defensive stop...Grant with the great strip at the end and two clutch "3"'s in the last 3 minutes).
NBA Play-In Tournament schedule: Wednesday, April 15
7:30 PM EST.
5:30 p.m. MT/6:30 p.m. CT: (8) Orlando Magic vs (7) Philadelphia 76ers, Prime (stream on Amazon Prime Video)
Winner earns No. 7 seed in Eastern Conference, while loser faces winner of Heat vs Hornets game.
10pm EST.
8 p.m. MT/9 p.m. CT: (10) Golden State Warriors vs No. 9 Los Angeles Clippers, Prime (stream on Amazon Prime Video)
Winner advances to face loser of Portland Trail Blazers vs Phoenix Suns game, while loser is eliminated.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nb...155232372.html
My Suns choked. They'll likely choke again on Friday.
I think they'll beat the Clippers.Quote:
Originally Posted by RiverfrontRed
If so, the reward is to get swept by OKC.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kingspoint
Dillon will take someone with him.Quote:
Originally Posted by RiverfrontRed
What a great play - in tournament thus far. My 76ers advance. Now Off to Boston. Philly fans were chanting “We want Boston”.
Warriors dominate crunch-time @ LAC.
Be careful what you wish for.Quote:
Originally Posted by goreds2
Warriors just shot 57% for the game, and scored 43 points in the 4th quarter. And this is playoff basketball in 2026. It's not your daddy's NBA.
Who is Gui Santos? Santos is averaging 17.3 ppg in just 29 minutes over his last 10 games.
From ESPN...
"We showed a video this morning, that these guys have all been in the NCAA tournament," Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley said. "You talk about the 'One Shining Moment.' These guys have all played there, they know you're one-and-done. And that was it tonight.
"You either have a chance to end your season or start a new one. That defense in the first half was probably about as elite as we have seen in a while."
Friday's game was a blueprint for how Orlando is designed to play. The Magic bullied the Hornets with their physicality on both ends, played suffocating defense that forced 14 first-half turnovers, which Orlando turned into 22 points, and looked like the team that entered the season expected to be a top-four unit in the East.
"When you play with a sense of desperation and urgency, when you know you're either going home or extending your season, that's what it looks like," Mosley said. "There [are] no second chances."
Suns crushed the Warriors (whose era was over before the season began).
The a-wipe Draymond Green appropriately ejected while mouthing off from the bench where he had already fouled out (PHO only got 13 FT attempts from non-technicals).
PHO is the best in the NBA from mid-range with Booker and Jalen Green, both of whom are better Offensively than SGA (who is constantly gifted FT's on fouls he should be charged for or that simply don't occur) right now. Anyone who doesn't think so did not watch Jalen Green the last two games (he kissed most of the season and had to ramp up into NBA playing shape and get to know his teammates without the benefit of practices), or Booker for most of this season.
If you think OKC will dominate the middle, that's not going to happen, either. They suffocated the combination of Clingan/RGIII, a pair that has dominated all other opponents this season other than Jocic.
PHO will win "at least" two games vs OKC with Dillon Brooks leading the physical play for the Suns who can match the depth the Thunder have (as will POR against SA for the same reasons). With ORL embracing playoff basketball last night and matching Bane's intensity, they should also win "at least" two against DET. If only PHI had Embiid I would say the same for them against BOS. BOS lives and dies with the "3", so 20-pt leads disappear fast with them.
It all begins tomorrow as the Road teams all try to Steal Game 1, always the easiest game to win on the road.
Sunday, April 19
Game 1: No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 7 76ers, 1 p.m., ABC/fubo
Game 1: No. 1 Thunder vs. No. 8 PHX, 3:30 p.m., ABC/fubo
Game 1: No. 1 Pistons vs. No. 8 ORL, 6:30 p.m., NBC
Game 1: No. 2 Spurs vs. No. 7 Trail Blazers, 9 p.m., NBC
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2...e-times-dates/
PHO not ready for OKC's suffocating Defense.
It's either OKC or the Spurs, and the Spurs probably aren't playoff hardened enough yet. Of course, 7'4" and mobile can make up for a ton of inexperience.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kingspoint
OKC has a 7.4% chance of getting a Top-4 pick in this draft. They'll also have two other 1st Round picks.
Dillom Brooks is an uber punk. How do players such as Draymond Green and he stay in the league? Does someone need to be seriously injured?
1st play of the game Wembyama takes out and injures Avdija with a full-flying body slam that any WWE member would be proud of. No call.
So, that's how the officiating is going to go for the rest of the playoffs. Expected this, but not so blatant. Try to steal game 2.
76ers up by 8 at the half. Edgecombe 16 points second qtr.
Philly wins via the Boston massacre.
Nice Game 2 Wins by MIN, PHI, ATL and POR (and CLE)
Go HOU!!!
Tomorrow:
Attachment 23737
Kon Knueppel was named ROY. They got that wrong. There isn't a GM in the league that would trade Cooper Flagg for him, unless they were on drugs.
The people who cast the votes aren't qualified to make them.
Terry Cummings was named ROY in 1983, and deservingly so. He outperformed all rookies that season. Though Terry had a nice career - probably should be a Hall of Famer - no GM would have traded James Worthy or Dominique Wilkins for Cummings. This is a similar situation.Quote:
Originally Posted by texasdave
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Yup. Kneuppel was the clear offensive performance outlier among rookies- posting up a whopping 60% shooting efficiency (that's near-peak Steph Curry efficiency). But I wouldn't trade either Flagg or Edgecombe for the guy.Quote:
Originally Posted by Revering4Blue
Speaking of being on drugs - Spurs GM passed on both Edgecombe and Kon to draft Dylan Harper. Yikes dawg.
Is VORP basketball WAR? It stands for Value over Replacement Player. Knuppel was 3.1 to Flagg's 2.0 according to Basketball Reference.
Knuppel winning ROY has been a foregone conclusion for a while. Doesn't mean he'll have a better career than Flagg necessarily.