Arena The NBA Thread

$5 that we need 20-25 or so of those points for a couple games in the Finals.

 

Congrats to James Jones, on his fifth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals.



Someone else on the Cavs achieved that tonight, too.

 

I don't really care for the Cav's.

I hope the Western conference team wins.

 

...says the Wisconsin guy who doesn't root for Aaron Rodgers, HOW ARE YOU A HUMAN

ON. TO. THE. NEXT. ONE.

 

It's Lebron's fault.

He just isn't a likable. He used to be, but no more.

Still best b-ball player on the court.

 

Wait darth_gersh is from Wisconsin and yet worships the Cowgirls?

Suppose it could be worse. Could be a Bears fan in Wisconsin.

 

But I live in Oregon.

 

Every time Juliet says "Cowgirls" I report her under the new sexism policy. Glorious.

 

The Warriors will still win the Finals, count on it.

 

I wonder if all this will convince Kevin Love to stay in Cleveland, or if he'll just bail for some other place to get more money.

 

yep. cavs were oh so close to going 3-1 down to a fairly average Bulls team really, given the injuries and form. and beating the hawks is no great achivement. warriors will still win.

 

obviously as a fan i'm wary of even putting the warriors in the finals at this point and it makes me uncomfortable seeing people crown them champions already. if they do make it i think there's a danger of the pressure getting to them. this is the first time past the second round for them, and as has been mentioned, for the leader on the other team it's his fifth straight finals. if he smells blood at all it could be a dogfight of a series. especially if the cavs can steal one of the first two. it feels like lebron this postseason is more likely to put the team on his back than check out when he's not getting enough help from his teammates as he has in the past.

 

I typically don't like counting chickens until they're hatched but the Warriors will be in the NBA Finals. Even though the Warriors can light up the score board, the strength of their team is defense. When the Warriors bring their A-Game on the defensive side and play good fundamentals (meaning not turning the ball over), the dominate and break the will of their opponents. I very much doubt the Warriors will come out tonight flat like they did at the start of Game 4.

 

Here's the thing. (forgive me - there are scattered thoughts here)

When LeBron penned his letter (ghost penned, I suppose), I was excited. Over the top excited. And emotion. Again, over the top.

The greatest basketball player of his generation, four years after spurning his home town team for a better chance at a title (and after winning two of them) was returning home. To join a team that had the fortune of winning the #1 Draft Pick three times in those four years.

That sort of sports luck doesn't happen in Cleveland. Top level free agents in their primes don't go to Cleveland.

Anyways, when that happened, I didn't get serious delusions in my head that this team could win the title this season. Not because Cleveland is cursed (thought it is), but because history tells us that, by and large, teams don't win a title without taking some time to gel. The Celtics did it when they got KG and Ray Allen, but even the Heat needed a season to really gel before they won the title. Could this team compete this season? Win 50-60 games? Make the conference finals? Absolutely. Those were the expectations.

Then came the Kevin Love trade. Still, I didn't think this team would win a title this season. Blatt was still needing to learn the league and how to coach in the NBA. LeBron would need to learn how to play with his teammates. Uncle Drew and KLove would need to learn how to win. Kryie, especially, would need to learn how to get his game without having the ball at all times. Love, especially, would have to adjust to not being the number one option. I thought with Love in hand, that winning the East was possible, but that the team wouldn't get past a well oiled team, like the Thunder or Spurs, in the finals. I thought the focus should be on winning a title in 2015-16.

Then came the atrocious start to the season. LeBron's vacation in Miami. The inability to figure out how to use the best Stretch Four in the league, when you are playing with a superstar who makes average stretch fours look great. The media hype over a LeBron-Blatt feud. The suggestion that the answer to any question would be "trade for J R Smith" and that it should excite me.

Then. That trade worked. And so did the chain reaction trade. Love never quite fit in, but Irving found a way to play off of LeBron. Irving was never a real point guard, so having him play combo guard who has to score more than he has to playmake" was perfect. Mozgov was the perfect center for a LeBron team - a competant rim protector who could hit a mid range shot and grab rebounds, and not need an offense designed to draw up plays for him. It was like getting Z back, but with better feet and younger. Even with Andy hurt, it pushed Tristan Thompson to the bench, and he became a great energy and rebounding guy with the second unit, giving the Cavs the chance to hold serve when LeBron rested.

I started to believe this could be a championship team, and moved the needle of expectations up just a bit.

Then the Love injury happened. It happened right after it appeared the team finally had figured out how to properly utilize him. I was happy there was no swear jar in my house, else I would have lost a lot of money to it.

My expectations dropped back a bit. This team could still win the East. But, no way they win it all.

Then ... something else happened. Tristan Thompson turned into a non-weird version of Dennis Rodman (seriously, the man needs a nickname that plays off of "The Worm"). Iman Shumpert became a poor man's Scottie Pippen. J R Smith was shooting better than racially motivated police officers (okay, that one might be an over the line joke). Delly became Delly. The team was clicking. Yes, there have been a couple of games where it was LeBron willing the team to win, despite anything else. But there have been games where the team has won because the team plays so well together.

The sweep of the Hawks - and the dominate fashion in which it was done - have set me up. I now believe this team can beat the Warriors in the Finals. Get game 1 or 2 in the Oracle, hold court at home, and win it in six. That's the recipe. Can they do it? If JR's hot, and Kyrie is explosive, and LeBron is attacking? Absolutely. If Shump can guard Curry to keep him from extended stretches of burying us in threes and if Thompson can continue to win every fifty-fifty offenseive rebound? Yes. It can happen.

I'm allowing myself to believe. I think this team can win the title.

I think this team can win the title.

I can't believe I'm typing that.

No, they aren't the favorites. They shouldn't be. The Warriors match up very well and should win the series. If they do, I'll be upset, but not disappointed. A trip to the Finals fulfills my initial hopes and expectations for the season. It sets us up well for next season.

But, I honestly think this is going to be a great Finals matchup. I can't wait to see Oracle Arena getting rowdy for a Finals game. I can't wait to see Steph Curry under the biggest lights. I can't wait to see if we get a parade down Euclid.

 

I was just happy to be in the playoffs again. Everything since then and the next 4 games is just icing on the cake no matter what happens imo.

 

Seems apropos to post this then. Maybe something similar will be played during the Finals:

 

Igudala's shoulder looks bad.

 

Lots of thuggery going on at the end of that game.

 

Cleveland vs. Golden State... such a wonderful Finals.

 

Fresh blood in the Finals...something we haven't seen since Mavs/Heat in 2006.

 

Young Miss Curry is stealing the press conference once again.

 

A few minutes before that...


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i'm so excited. last time the warriors were in the finals was the first finals of my lifetime. should be a great series!

 

The last time that the Warriors were in the Finals was also the last decade that had the most diversity in champions.

1950s: 6 teams: Lakers, Hawks, Royals, Warriors, Celtics, Nationals.
1960s: 2 teams: Celtics, 76ers.
1970s: 8 teams: Knicks, Bucks, Lakers, Celtics, Warriors, Blazers, Bullets, Sonics.
1980s: 4 teams: Lakers, Celtics, 76ers, Pistons.
1990s: 4 teams: Pistons, Bulls, Rockets, Spurs
2000s: 5 teams: Lakers, Spurs, Pistons, Heat, Celtics

And already in the 2010s we've had 4 different champions (soon to be 5). Hopefully the rest of this decade will be similarly diverse.

 

And for your "trying to hard to be funny" tweet of the night:


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GET IT, 'cause were in a real drought out here!