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NBA discussion thread
- Thread starter Scofield
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Well San Antonio has guaranteed home court advantage now (since they are first in their division), but iirc Portland has the tie breaker so if Portland wins it will be Portland vs. Dallas and San Antonio vs. Houston.
Edit: Yep Portland has the tie breaker, so it all depends if Portland wins or loses. If Portland loses they would go down to 5th =(
Edit: nm, got confused =/
Edit: Yep Portland has the tie breaker, so it all depends if Portland wins or loses. If Portland loses they would go down to 5th =(
Edit: nm, got confused =/
lol did you even watch last season? Last season Atlanta got into the playoffs with a 37-45 record (ironically, they finished 45-37 this season lol), so you can't really call this a "travesty of a season"
And I beg to differ on the Sixers being a joke team. They are a solid team, and their recent slump begun when Young got hurt (who is a really solid player). I have been following the Sixers pretty closely all season, and I can say that they are solid. They won't win against Orlando, but calling them a joke is just dumb.
Edit: I also wanted to add that all the non-playoff teams in the West, except for Phoenix, have a worst record than every team in the East except for Washington. And I think the East had a winning record against the West, but last I heard that was like two months ago so I don't know if that is still true. And 3 of the top 4 teams are in the East. Yeah, I don't get why you say the East shouldn't even be called a conference >_>
And I beg to differ on the Sixers being a joke team. They are a solid team, and their recent slump begun when Young got hurt (who is a really solid player). I have been following the Sixers pretty closely all season, and I can say that they are solid. They won't win against Orlando, but calling them a joke is just dumb.
Edit: I also wanted to add that all the non-playoff teams in the West, except for Phoenix, have a worst record than every team in the East except for Washington. And I think the East had a winning record against the West, but last I heard that was like two months ago so I don't know if that is still true. And 3 of the top 4 teams are in the East. Yeah, I don't get why you say the East shouldn't even be called a conference >_>
....While I'm still pissed as hell with the loss, it does mean that the Rockets will finally, finally, get out of the first round even without the homecourt, given that they match up extremely well against the Blazers. It's just the next round that's pretty depressing,as we don't like either the Lakers or Jazz.
Hell yea, 2006 all over again.. I hope not.
eh so I am a little confused. Why do the Spurs have the 3rd seed even if they tie with Portland (Portland won 3 of 4 against them)? I know that before you would get one of the top 3 spots if you lead the division, but that changed last season to one of the top 4. So, I'm a little confused here =(
Round 1 predictions:
East:
Cleveland vs. Detroit (4-0)
Meh, the Pistons are just not very good anymore and Cleveland is playing extremely well on both ends of the court. There might be a tight game or two, but I am confident Cleveland will win this with ease.
Boston vs. Chicago (4-2)
If the Hawks were able to cause trouble to the Celtics last year, then so can the Bulls. The Bulls are inconsistent but very talented, and they should be able to get a couple of wins against the Celtics. I think it may go 2-2 in the beginning, but by then Garnett should be back in shape and the fully healthy Celtics should win the rest.
Orlando vs. Philadelphia (4-1)
I like the Sixers and I think they will get a win at home, but Orlando will win. The Sixers are a bad outside shooting team and rely a lot on cutting to the basket and fastbreaks. It will be hard getting near the basket with Howard around, but they should get plenty of fastbreaks if Orlando misses its 3s (which I think is what will happen in the lone Sixers win).
Atlanta vs. Miami (3-4)
Ah, now this is a very good match up. The Hawks are very talented and got Marvin Williams back, so they should be at full strength. The Heat have Wade of course, but unless the role players play well they won't win. I think it will go to 7, with Wade carrying his team to the 2nd round.
West:
LA Lakers vs. Utah (4-1)
Well I have no idea what is wrong with the Jazz lately, but they have the potential to cause the Lakers at least a bit of trouble since they play so well at home. The problem for the Jazz (other than Kobe) is that they are undersized in the post compared to the Lakers. I think the Jazz will win one at home, but the Lakers will get the other games.
Denver vs. New Orleans (4-2)
This one can go either way. While New Orleans has struggled a bit lately, we all know they have the talent. However, with Chandler clearly not healthy the Hornets will get dominated in the boards by the Nuggets very active big men. Then again, the Nuggets turn the ball over a lot which plays to the strengths of CP3. I give the edge to the Nuggets because of their superior frontcourt, with the Hornets getting their wins on the nights the Nuggets play like they did today.
San Antonio vs. Dallas (3-4)
Ah, this is a classic! This is definitely my favorite match up. I give the edge to the Mavs because I think the Spurs lack the offensive power without Ginobili to beat them. Of course this is counting that Josh Howard will be able to play...
Portland vs. Houston (4-3)
The Blazers got the homecourt advantage they wanted, and I think that's what will give them the win. The Blazers have two big and strong centers in Przybilla and Oden to defend Yao, and I think that the Rockets lack the offense to beat the Blazers without TMac (similar to the Spurs without Ginobili).
East:
Cleveland vs. Detroit (4-0)
Meh, the Pistons are just not very good anymore and Cleveland is playing extremely well on both ends of the court. There might be a tight game or two, but I am confident Cleveland will win this with ease.
Boston vs. Chicago (4-2)
If the Hawks were able to cause trouble to the Celtics last year, then so can the Bulls. The Bulls are inconsistent but very talented, and they should be able to get a couple of wins against the Celtics. I think it may go 2-2 in the beginning, but by then Garnett should be back in shape and the fully healthy Celtics should win the rest.
Orlando vs. Philadelphia (4-1)
I like the Sixers and I think they will get a win at home, but Orlando will win. The Sixers are a bad outside shooting team and rely a lot on cutting to the basket and fastbreaks. It will be hard getting near the basket with Howard around, but they should get plenty of fastbreaks if Orlando misses its 3s (which I think is what will happen in the lone Sixers win).
Atlanta vs. Miami (3-4)
Ah, now this is a very good match up. The Hawks are very talented and got Marvin Williams back, so they should be at full strength. The Heat have Wade of course, but unless the role players play well they won't win. I think it will go to 7, with Wade carrying his team to the 2nd round.
West:
LA Lakers vs. Utah (4-1)
Well I have no idea what is wrong with the Jazz lately, but they have the potential to cause the Lakers at least a bit of trouble since they play so well at home. The problem for the Jazz (other than Kobe) is that they are undersized in the post compared to the Lakers. I think the Jazz will win one at home, but the Lakers will get the other games.
Denver vs. New Orleans (4-2)
This one can go either way. While New Orleans has struggled a bit lately, we all know they have the talent. However, with Chandler clearly not healthy the Hornets will get dominated in the boards by the Nuggets very active big men. Then again, the Nuggets turn the ball over a lot which plays to the strengths of CP3. I give the edge to the Nuggets because of their superior frontcourt, with the Hornets getting their wins on the nights the Nuggets play like they did today.
San Antonio vs. Dallas (3-4)
Ah, this is a classic! This is definitely my favorite match up. I give the edge to the Mavs because I think the Spurs lack the offensive power without Ginobili to beat them. Of course this is counting that Josh Howard will be able to play...
Portland vs. Houston (4-3)
The Blazers got the homecourt advantage they wanted, and I think that's what will give them the win. The Blazers have two big and strong centers in Przybilla and Oden to defend Yao, and I think that the Rockets lack the offense to beat the Blazers without TMac (similar to the Spurs without Ginobili).
i have a very big problem with your predictions mizuno if only on the basis that, except for 2 of those series, you picked the winner in the amount of game as they're on the road. that's just highly unlikely to do so tbh.
on another note, predicting rockets win game 1, lose game 2, win game 3, win game 4, lose game 5, win game 6
on another note, predicting rockets win game 1, lose game 2, win game 3, win game 4, lose game 5, win game 6
I am fairly confused with your statements with the Portland-Houston series, mizuno. Pryzbilla, and especially Oden, cannot stop Yao. There are three ways that you can stop Yao:
1. Front him, which is generally the most efficient strategy, as the only other Rockets who are extremely good at creating their own shot are Wafer and to a lesser extent Lowry.
2. Double team him
3. Use a center that is much faster and that has very good range (eg. Okur, Jefferson, the Raptors center Baragnii or something like that.)
Portland doesn't generally do it, as seen from their games, and they'll suffer it. Furthermore, Artest can shut down Roy, Yao can deal with the Portland centers as he is bigger and stronger, and Brooks seems to play extremely well in Portland. And let's not forget that Houston went 2-1 against Portland, with the one Portland win coming off of a "WTF how did you make that" ridiculously long buzzer beater off of Roy. I would go ahead and say Rockets in 6.
1. Front him, which is generally the most efficient strategy, as the only other Rockets who are extremely good at creating their own shot are Wafer and to a lesser extent Lowry.
2. Double team him
3. Use a center that is much faster and that has very good range (eg. Okur, Jefferson, the Raptors center Baragnii or something like that.)
Portland doesn't generally do it, as seen from their games, and they'll suffer it. Furthermore, Artest can shut down Roy, Yao can deal with the Portland centers as he is bigger and stronger, and Brooks seems to play extremely well in Portland. And let's not forget that Houston went 2-1 against Portland, with the one Portland win coming off of a "WTF how did you make that" ridiculously long buzzer beater off of Roy. I would go ahead and say Rockets in 6.
MoP: I'm not sure if I understand your statement correctly. I think home court plays a big factor especially in the first round since there are quiet a few teams, especially in the west, who perform a lot better at home. I don't think the home team will win every home game since a lot of these teams are very good, but for teams like the Nuggets and Blazers it should give them the push they need to advance to the next round. At least that is what I believe.
Kay: I never said they could stop Yao, but they will be two tough defenders that will bang him around. Few teams have the luxury of having two good, tough centers. I know of the defensive inconsistencies of the Blazers, but I also know of the offensive inconsistencies of the Rockets. It will be a very interesting series IMO.
In other news, apparently there is a really good chance Garnett will be out for the playoffs. If that is true I still think the Celtics will beat the Bulls, but I don't think they can beat Orlando in the second round.
Kay: I never said they could stop Yao, but they will be two tough defenders that will bang him around. Few teams have the luxury of having two good, tough centers. I know of the defensive inconsistencies of the Blazers, but I also know of the offensive inconsistencies of the Rockets. It will be a very interesting series IMO.
In other news, apparently there is a really good chance Garnett will be out for the playoffs. If that is true I still think the Celtics will beat the Bulls, but I don't think they can beat Orlando in the second round.
The KG news is pretty sad... I wanted to see the Celtics at least have a chance to defend their championship, and to see the contenders of the East tangle at full strength.
of course home team wont win every game, but do you honestly really think a home team is losing a deciding game at their place? example: lower seed teams in game 6. let's say blazers make r2, do you honestly think lakers win in 6, as game 6 in in portland? it's more likely lakers in 5 or 7. if there is an upset, the underdog team would upset them in 6 games, example: warriors over mavs in 07.
Usually teams steal a win on the road early in series. San Antonio won game 7 against NO last year, but outside of that it barely happens. This year home court is big because of teams like the Jazz, who play really good at home and really bad on the road.
In the first round, I like LA, Denver, Dallas, and Houston in the west and Cleveland, Boston, Orlando, and Atlanta in the East.
I really wish the Heat would start Michael Beasley. There's no telling how well he will do in the playoffs, being a rookie and all, but he has put up some pretty impressive numbers, especially as of late, with Haslem out.
A problem for the Heat, obviously, is its rookie point guard, Chalmers, who has been pretty average this season. I can't imagine he will handle the pressure too well, but there's really no telling to what extent Wade can carry his team. He won't be able to do it alone, but I'm hopeful that Beasley will step it up if he is given solid minutes.
A problem for the Heat, obviously, is its rookie point guard, Chalmers, who has been pretty average this season. I can't imagine he will handle the pressure too well, but there's really no telling to what extent Wade can carry his team. He won't be able to do it alone, but I'm hopeful that Beasley will step it up if he is given solid minutes.
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