NBA Playoffs 2012 Thread Round II

[ranger]

shouldn't give up hope too soon for the Heat, I wouldn't be surprised if they win the series, but OKC are clear favorites.

Lebron be Lebron, and Wade is Wade.  annyytthiiings possssiiibbbbllleeeee *KG crying

You like those three point attempts by Bosh? oh god, haha.

Also, here's your weekly crazy Spurs trade rumor

http://www.caller.com/news/2012/jun/11/ ... ny-parker/

tl;dr - trade TP for Melo in NY, pickup Nash from FA.

I have the upmost respect for Nash in talent, loyalty, personality, everything.  Tony's great, but he's like 30 years old, and his market value is sky high after this year.  Plus i'm not a fan of PGs with no range and aren't pass-first, I don't think we could ever win again with Tony being our no. 1 option.  The man does terrible against big physical teams.

Anyway, Melo is sick.  He's gotten a lot of hate this year along with Linsanity emerging, but, talent-wise..he's like a top 10 player.  People forget he was probably the best player in the 2008 Olympics team.

[Jd-]

If the Heat win this game, they'll win the series. If they don't, they won't. This is very strong play right now, but the Thunder are also just getting outmatched everywhere on the court. I'm not sure if the Heat can keep this up, but I hope so.

[ranger]

stop flip flopping lol

[M.Holmes]

If the Heat win this game, they'll win the series. If they don't, they won't. This is very strong play right now, but the Thunder are also just getting outmatched everywhere on the court. I'm not sure if the Heat can keep this up, but I hope so.

That's a tenuous prediction at best - the Heat haven't exactly been gods at home this post-season. The Thunder have had god-awful starts, but there isn't a team I trust in the 3rd and 4th quarters more than them.

This particular game has been like a perfect storm against them. Wade and Battier on fire, Durant in foul trouble and out for a majority of the first half, shooting well under 40% as a team and KD uncharacteristically shooting around 30%, a few bad goaltending and foul calls in favor of the heat, etc. Even after all that they're still within a reasonable comeback range, it's not as bad as OKC vs. SAS game 6.

In short, I don't see this particular scenario happening again and unless the Heat can pick up 3/3 or 2/3 at home then they have a slim chance.

[Jd-]

stop flip flopping lol

To refresh your memory, all of my posts echo the exact same sentiments: I like the Heat, but I have very clear and well-documented concerns about not just this series but the future of the team. I want LeBron to get a ring, but the way he's doing it right now isn't something that's going to last for future seasons even if they can pull off this miracle this time. The current team is simply not a strong team. If they win, it'll be completely on LeBron's back (look what happened in this game as soon as he sat down). I do not think the Heat will win this series from an objective point of view and that hasn't changed from the beginning. In other words, it was and still is the Thunder's series to lose.

My biggest problem with the entire situation remains: Chris Bosh takes up too much money, and if they win this series, he and Spoelstra will undoubtedly be here for the long haul. As a result, the team I'm supporting is going to be in this exact same tiresome position every single year until that contract lapses and the cap is freed up. If they lose now, it's possible things can be cleaned up in time for next year.

I'm not sure if you've been able to deduce it yet, but to put it more bluntly: This is not a simple situation. Either they win and things get even more draining as they get even older as none of the problems go away this offseason, or they lose and possibly very beneficial changes come. I have consistent doubts about the Heat being able to beat any quality team with any sort of ease, and that's how it's been so far. It all comes and goes with LeBron and that isn't going to change.

The Thunder are still a better team. If they lose this, it will be entirely on their shoulders, as the Heat are very, very beatable as a team.

That's a tenuous prediction at best - the Heat haven't exactly been gods at home this post-season. The Thunder have had god-awful starts, but there isn't a team I trust in the 3rd and 4th quarters more than them.

This particular game has been like a perfect storm against them. Wade and Battier on fire, Durant in foul trouble and out for a majority of the first half, shooting well under 40% as a team and KD uncharacteristically shooting around 30%, a few bad goaltending and foul calls in favor of the heat, etc. Even after all that they're still within a reasonable comeback range, it's not as bad as OKC vs. SAS game 6.

In short, I don't see this particular scenario happening again and unless the Heat can pick up 3/3 or 2/3 at home then they have a slim chance.

It's definitely the Thunder's series to lose, due to their late-game presence that you mentioned. If they don't show up with that, then the Heat can win. The Heat have tremendous difficulty closing out games due to having virtually no roster depth.

What I imagine will happen if the Heat win this game is basically that the Heat will take at least two at home, and being on the brink for two final games should give them the edge they need to beat the Thunder at home in one of the two final games if the Thunder can't get their late-game act together. The only way the Heat will win this game is if that is the case, and if they are willing to fault once at home, it can happen again. That's the scenario I expect to see playing out assuming the Heat can win tonight, but even that's not in the bag yet.

[ranger]

I get your reasoning, but i was just kind of poking fun at you because a couple posts back you were like "damnit the thunder definitely won this" and now in this game you're just like "if we win this game, we can win the series", haha, I know you're pullin for your team but its just pretty funny from an observing standpoint.

while OKC is the clear favorite, I mean..you can't just brush away the Heat.  It's just the Lebron factor - the man took Cleveland to the finals.  I don't think Heat fans should give up hope yet, especially since its HC for OKC right now.  HC has been really important this postseason, which I honestly don't like since the refs drastically change their whistles.

[M.Holmes]

Wow, what a massive jam by Durant. My brain couldn't even comprehend it at first

[kei]

What a game!

[ranger]

duuuuuuuude wtf why are the thunder this good, is no lead safe from these guys?!

[M.Holmes]

I don't see the Thunder winning this one, but you have to admire their resilience. They had quite a few bad calls against them (around 6 or 7 by my count) and I think that made all the difference, but I won't use that as an excuse.

The up-side is that the Thunder can't do any worse than this in future games, and I doubt Miami can do any better than they've done tonight. Like Jd said, if they lose this championship, it'll be on them.

[ranger]

ooommmmmmmmmmmmmmgggggg now its a game  Jesus.  This team has to blow up. they gonna win like 5 championships.

[kei]

Foul from James to Durant. The refs didn't call it. Game for the Heat.

[M.Holmes]

I retract my earlier statement. The referee's incompetence in a large part decided this game. I was willing to let the previous calls slide, but that no-call on the last play was inexcusable.

[ranger]

wow, that was a foul, by its also like, in the last 10 seconds of the game so its expected not to call it.

I was surprised they shot it so quickly.

Also, why give it to westbrook for that shot?

And, why is Bosh taking 3s?

[ranger]

dream team documentary is so  great, I want a larry bird and magic rivalry again in the NBA...