NBA 2015-2016 Season thread

Alex_sl said:

Starters are dog shit tonight.

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Don't feel bad Cavs bench has scored 0 points.

Cavs look like a better team all around with Jefferson starting over Love.

Fennin_sl said:

Cavs look like a better team all around with Jefferson starting over Love.

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Cav's will look flat with the same configuration next game and lose, sneak a win in Golden state, and get dropped in Game 6. It's Lebron James Clockwork.

So where did Gilgamel go? I need him to come back and remind us all how non-competitive this finals is going to be.

He'll be back when the Cavs lose by 30 points in game 4 since it seems close matches are like gold dust this these playoffs.

Nah Cavs win Game 4. They are undefeated at home in playoffs I believe, and Lue has found something with that line-up. Jefferson is somehow a better athlete than Love and hes 46 years old. If you can mask the offensive deficiencies of Shumpert, and the same for Kyries defensive shortcomings, the Cavs can easily win this series if LeBron scores 35 a game and plays defense like last night. Curry is a world beater when the offense is in rhythm and he is draining 3's, but as soon as his shot isnt falling he adds nothing. Maybe some steals, but thats about it.

Thompson is also beasting the glass again,and if the Warriors cant do the same Cavs will dominate in 2nd chance scoring.

So, last year the Cavs didn't "easily" win the series with Lebron averaging over 35 a game, with Love out, Tristan Thompson averaging 13 boards a game going home with a 1-1 split without home court advantage. But this year, if they willfully take Love out of the game and Lebron averages 35 and TThomp keeps beasting only 10 rebounds per game, they'll "easily" win a series when they're down 2-1 and are undefeated at home but still don't have home court advantage.

You heard it here first, guys, if 10 specific factors fall into perfect alignment the Cavs will win this series easily! So easy!

Kerr's Warriors just suck in Game 3s. They would be 0-8 in them if it wasn't for the miracle fourth quarter against the Pelicans last year. Was hoping they would win to close it out as a sweep but it'll be cool to see them win in Oakland this year.

Shots can stop falling. Ive seen it happen many, many times. If the Warriors come out in game 3 and start missing shots from outside and the Cavs continue scoring 100+points then its gg. The only players on Golden State that can consistently get pts in the paint is Igoudala (when he is aggressive and looking to get to the rim off pick and rolls), Green, and sometimes the splash brothers can start penetrating for easy buckets, but not against Mosgov and Thompson. So the Warriors have to be hitting long distance shots at a good clip to win.

I also think the basketball gods have something up their sleeve for this Warriors team. They should of lost that Conf finals and escaped, and have had a great home floor advantage, but If Cleveland wins the next game......

edit: And the most incredible stat is the 78% success rate shooting against Kyrie in the first 2 games. Your going to lose with defensive numbers like that. If they get out and contest more shots, it can snowball out of control for Golden State if the 3 isnt there. Irving has to be a star for the next handful of games for Cleveland to truly have a chance.

Slaythe_sl said:

Yeah. Observation bias. Maybe the Warriors are good at getting in Love's head, but Kyrie/Love/LeBron have played better than any other trio in the league when on the floor together dating back to last season. A couple bad games and one counter doesn't change this.

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And they have been torched 3 times this season with Love trying to defend the pick and roll of Golden State. Golden State runs their offense almost entirely on pick and roll plays. Love is a liability on the defensive end against this team. Jefferson was a complete pain in the ass last night for the warriors, he gave them some of the same length and quickness trouble that OKC did. Love doesn't bring that. Love brings more individual scoring, but in my opinion its a wash because his entire career he has never been able to defend the pick and roll, and Golden State does it better than anyone else. The rotation you saw last night, is going to be the best rotation against this Warrior team. Love coming off the bench when Kyrie or Lebron sits with Mozgov is going to give them the best chance of winning, and I expect that to be the case in game 4.

Jozu_sl said:

I also think the basketball gods have something up their sleeve for this Warriors team. They should of lost that Conf finals and escaped

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Why should they have lost? They won 4 games in the series before OKC did, they're the better team. After going down 3-1 all they did was do the same thing against OKC that they did during the regular season. Win a home game, win an away game, win another home game. Played OKC 10 times this season and won 7.

Honestly have no idea what Warriors team we'll see next game. Game 4 @ OKC could have been viewed as a must win but they didn't show well in that one. The way the Cavs have played at home these playoffs, wouldn't be surprised at all to see them even up the series. Curry needs to stop moping and start making plays. I think he dragged the whole team down last night. When your star isn't paying attention to details or playing like he cares, why should anybody else?

The Thunder blew that series. Give me a break. They were up by what 17 and lost a close out game?

This Warriors team is great, but can be had. I agree about Curry. He shimmying and shaking his way down the court when those ridiculous treys are falling from 29 feet but if someone actually gets in his face and he isnt the star of the game he skulks.

Jozu: King of Hot Takes

Jozu_sl said:

The Thunder blew that series. Give me a break. They were up by what 17 and lost a close out game?

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Warriors blew game 1 to put them in that position in the first place. Up 13 at the half, at home, with the Thunder looking like they wanted no part of it, and the Warriors came out in the second half with no energy or desire. But that's basketball, it's a game of runs. In the end the Warriors had more runs than the Thunder did and won the series. It took one of the all-time great performances by Klay in game 6 but that's what the playoffs are all about.

Ambiturner_sl said:

So where did Gilgamel go? I need him to come back and remind us all how non-competitive this finals is going to be.

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I tried to give you a +1 for this, but apparently I negged you too recently.

Honestly though the Warriors are there for the taking IMO.

Like I said, they arent a team thats going to out-rebound you and dominate in the paint. So the outside buckets have to fall for them to beat a team with LeBron on it. If they have a bad shooting night in Game 4 its going to be another blowout. I know it sounds simplistic, as obviously if shots dont go through the hoop your not going to win, but there really is no plan B for Kerr, unless they went with a smaller line-up and try to get out on the break etc., but they cant do that at the start of the game where everyone has a full tank and is less vulnerable to being ran out of the gym. So they are going to have to play a slower, half court game in the early stages, and again, their only way to stay on the level is to hit those outside shots.

On the other side of the coin, LeBron can handle the ball and create for slashers, he can command pick and roll attenetion or be the catalyst for it, and most importantly he can post you up or overpower smaller defenders for easy finishes. If Kyrie is playing the point LeBron can hurt you with jumpers if he is in a rythym, so the Cavs have a lot more ways to score the ball. (in half court situation, low tempo)