After the game, my Uncle in Massachusetts sent me a text regarding his opinion of the Celtics..."I am so pissed - they played like little scared girls!!!!!!!!"
That reminded me of Bird's comments about his own teammates after Game 3 in the 1984 finals, Boston vs LA Lakers.
Game 4 this happened. Doubt we will see any such tone setting by the Celtics this time around. https://youtu.be/X7r6vXeOfyQ
Looking forward to game 3 tonight! My son got me a firestick, explained a little how everything works and now i hopefully will be able to stream all the games by myself ( yes, i am very bad when it comes to technical stuff or everything to do with the computer). As i understood right, i have to install kodi first and after different addons like it is adviced here . I guess for people in my age it is not an easy thing to do, but i am really trying my best.
Tatum tried his best to keep Boston in it but just didn't have much help from the others. Strange fact that both teams were 15 of 37 from three point and GS only outscored Boston from the line by 1 point.
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
This and the next one. I'm adamant about that. The way that the refs (via the league) are going to affect these games, I don't see us winning game 7. We need to win the next two. We will lose game 5. Then win it game 6 in Boston. And in order to make this happen, we need to play near perfect basketball. We can do that.
I think that might be easier said than done though. Other than the win I'm just hoping to keep this 3rd quarter as even as possible, they can't go into the fourth down 20+ on the scoreboard again.
@erikthredd said:
I think that might be easier said than done though. Other than the win I'm just hoping to keep this 3rd quarter as even as possible, they can't go into the fourth down 20+ on the scoreboard again.
The only other way is to split at home, win the next one in SF, then win game 6 in Boston.
With how that previous first half was called I doubt that we see either team go out and dominate over a 3-4 game stretch,they're too evenly matched imo. Just win this next one then go from there.
i picked GS to win the chip, thus i feel it's important for the Celtics to stay on top in the series in order to prove me wrong. tonight has a slight must-win feel to it where Boston is concerned.
also, i'd keep an eye on Klay Thompson moving forward. he had a subpar G1 and a downright terrible G2, but everyone and their dog knows he can go off at any time. i expect his contributions to improve
@SanctionII said:
Is something similar happening in the Boston area?
Yup,has been like that all postseason after the BOS-BKN series where no teams were able to go dominate over a 3-4 game stretch.
I think many fans,tv analysts and sports radio talking heads just feel the need to blame the losing team for everything that they didn't do right while tending to not give any credit to the opposing team that literally just won the game.
Boston beats Miami in game 7 and over the following 2-3 days no one around here in NE wanted to talk about how Boston just won a hard fought series to get into the Finals, they'd rather go on at length about how Boston "almost" blew the final 3mins of G7. Miami was a #1 seed for a reason and made a valiant last ditch effort to save their season but Boston was able to hang on for the win.
I've spent some time last night and today reading what GS and their fans had to say about this loss and there's a ton of hypocrisy going on.
Klay Thompson calling Boston fans "unclassy" for chanting FU Draymond during the game yet Draymond is over in his press conference swearing in front of his son.
GS fans accusing Al Horford,of all people, of trying to purposely injure Steph Curry on a loose ball play when both teams literally had about three guys each on the floor fighting for a loose ball and Horford ended up on top of Curry's legs yet Green is out there purposelly yanking on Tatum's bad shoulder.
this has been quite the jeckyll n hyde series. no outcome closer than 12 points in the first 3. one team has literally looked more prepared to play than the other in every game. last night, Boston looked hungrier, straight up.
Golden State has a serious Draymond Green problem. pretty remarkable how profoundly he sucks now. his D is a shell and you can forget about him putting the biscuit in the basket. he makes ben simmons look like alex english out there.
what's crazy is that if the Warriors win a lopsided G4, the net result of 4 uncompetitive games is that essentially the home team has held serve thru the first 4
This next game will be huge on how the rest of the series will play out. Will the light bulb finally click for Boston where they play smart and bring the effort in back to back games or will they let GS even the series heading back home?
"...............he makes ben simmons look like alex english out there>"
Now that is very funny and POTD material.
Tip of my hat to you
Regarding "pretty remarkable how profoundly he [Green] sucks now.", this comment described how poorly he apparently played in Game 3. (What is galaxy27's definition of "now"? [Game 3, the 3 NBA Finals games played so far, the 2021-2022 playoffs so far, the 2021-2022 regular season and playoffs so far, the past 5 seasons or the Greens entire NBA career so far?]).
If he has a monster game (i.e. 12 points, 15 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 blocks and 12 assists in 32 minutes in Game 4) will Green no longer "suck now"? Of course not, he will be praised as "one of the best players ever" (at least until he has a horrible Game 5).
The sports media (along with other media across all platforms) is something that is tolerable for short stretches of time. Disconnecting from the noise and spending your time doing other things more beneficial is definitely warranted.
Regarding "pretty remarkable how profoundly he [Green] sucks now.", this comment described how poorly he apparently played in Game 3. (What is galaxy27's definition of "now"? [Game 3, the 3 NBA Finals games played so far, the 2021-2022 playoffs so far, the 2021-2022 regular season and playoffs so far, the past 5 seasons or the Greens entire NBA career so far?]).
If he has a monster game (i.e. 12 points, 15 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 blocks and 12 assists in 32 minutes in Game 4) will Green no longer "suck now"? Of course not, he will be praised as "one of the best players ever" (at least until he has a horrible Game 5).
full disclosure: i watched very little of the regular season. when the playoffs launched, i watched incrementally more every round. as for the NBA Finals, i have watched every game from beginning to end at some point. so whereas it might not be fair to say he completely sucks now, as 3 games is a small sample size, it's the most important sample size of the entire season.
to this point in the Finals, Green has been a borderline liability out on the court. 15 total points scored in 3 games while averaging 36 minutes per. that 15 matches the total number of fouls he has committed in 3 games, fouling out of 2 of them. shooting 26% from the field, including 0% from downtown. in G3 he had as many fouls & turnovers as he did points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals combined. on defense, i personally watched him take multiple micro-snoozes that resulted in backdoor cuts and (ultimately) points for the Celtics.
when he was on the court in Game 3 and the Warriors had the ball on offense, it was basically 4-on-5. every time he got the ball in his hands he had the look of someone who was holding a bomb that was about to detonate -- he quickly got it out of his hands and over to a sniper. problem with that is, it creates added pressure on his 4 teammates to pick up his slack; you've gotta think that that has an adverse affect on their own shooting efficiency. Boston knows he can't score beyond mid-range, and if i were them i'd sag on Curry, Wiggins, Poole or Thompson with his defender every chance i got -- especially when the shot clock is winding down. i would double-dog dare him to shoot the basketball outside of 15 feet. even without a hand in his face i doubt very seriously he could connect on north of 50% for an entire game.
you mentioned 12, 15, 5, 3 and 12 in 32..............the Warriors desperately need that from him tomorrow night, but i wouldn't count on it. he does not have the look of the integral cog he was back in '15, '17 and '18.
Green has been a shell of himself in the playoff games that I've watched. Sure, he can still give you DPOY caliber play at times but more often than not he's pulling the type of crap that he got away with in game two. To his credit though he got in the heads of some of the Boston players and that took them off their game. He tried doing the same again last night and it didn't work. Boston just needs to keep attacking him on defense and letting him take wide open shots on offense while focusing his defender elsewhere.
On a sidenote,since last night I must have read at least 40-50 comments from GSW fans condemning Al Horford for diving after a loose ball and coming into contact with Steph's bad leg. Many of these same Dubs fans are calling for certain Boston players to get purposelly injured in retaliation in game 4 yet they're totally ok with Green doing this type of crap. This guy is nothing but a dirty player at this point.
GSW fans in particular and residents of the SF Bay Area in general can be hard task masters.
One day fans (long term and band wagon) are enthusiastically supporting Bay Area professional franchises and individual players on these teams (including defending words and actions of players/coaches, etc. that they would not tolerate if the same words and actions came from teams and players not located in the Bay Area) and the next day the same fans are very harsh in their criticism of the same team/players and in their demand for an immediate change for the better (i.e. get rid of player X and bring in somebody who is better, even if it would be impossible to do so).
The sports media talking heads and others in non sports media do the same. The standard format today is multiple radio, television or streaming hosts who spar over the course of 3-4 hours with each other and with those who call in or text in over the smallest detail.
One must create controversy, buzz, chatter and noise to get and keep attention from an audience (whose favored demographic of 18-45 years of age is continually developing a shorter and shorter attention span; and who are ever more strident in their expectation that others should "entertain them at an ever higher level" because they have a right to be so entertained).
I assume that what I described above is the norm in many of the areas of the USA where pro sports teams are located (and is probably the same or even worse in the world outside of the USA).
It does get to be annoying if one tunes in for too long.
As for Game 4 tomorrow, unless the GSW plays much better (or Boston plays much worse) the Finals will most likely not be going 7 games. If Boston wins Game 4 it would not surprise me to see Boston hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy Monday evening at Chase Center (if that happens the whining late on Monday evening and on Tuesday will be very loud, with much of it coming from fans and sports media members who at the start of the 2021-2022 season opined that the GSW team would, at best, make the playoffs as a #6 - #8 seed and not make it out of the first round).
For those folks, me thinks that they will "protest too much".
There's a lot of that sentiment here in the NE area regarding our local sports teams especially with our sports talk radio which can be downright toxic at times. Rick Pitino didn't get many things right during his time as Boston's HC/GM but he absolutely called it correct when he pointed out that "the misery in this town sucks."
There are times when the local fanbase look to do nothing but complain even after wins,big wins, I personally think it goes back to all of the hard years that Red Sox/Patriots fans went through before those teams were finally able to win some championships. We still saw much of the same during the Brady & Belichick hate each other years and even more recently with the whole Tatum & Brown can't coexist so lets trade them even though they're just 24-25yrs old.
I gave up on local STR and cable sports shows years ago but I fully admit my guilty pleasure is reading comments from opposing team's fans lol.
I listen to a lot of sports talk radio. But I understand what's going on, and take it for what it is. I also read those opposing fans comments. I'll do it during games even. I'll actually do it at other times just to get a feel for whatever it is they are thinking. It puts things into perspective.
I consider tonight a must win. If we don't win tonight it will be the first time all playoffs that I had any doubt that we will win it all. Sounds weird but true. I just don't trust us to win another in SF. Yes, we are a good road team. But still.
Hope the GSW pull out a win tonight to tie up the series 2-2.
I still want the series to go seven games
I want Game seven to be nip and tuck in the 4th quarter. I want with the winner to be down 1 point and see it make a winning basket as the game clock expires (my viewing pleasure wants to see first hand "the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" play out before my eyes from the comfort of my couch ).
Great finish by GS on both ends,those last two threes by Steph & Klay were daggers. I don't get why Udoka didn't go with the double bigs late in that fourth when GS got some pretty easy baskets in the paint. This series has played out as I expected to this point so now its a best of three for it all.
As the game started to wind down, maybe five minutes left, I felt as though what we really miss is a true leader who calms everyone down.
Because "this is the show", and to reiterate my point, let me share a screenshot of my text message conversation I was having around the five minute mark of the 4th. My cousin in Massachusetts, who I have referenced, had stopped watching but was checking the score. And I knew he was up. So I thought I would give him some play by play as we advanced to a Celtics win. But this is the point where I knew that a win wasn't on the menu.
And it just never felt like we were really in it after that.
the Celtics relied far too heavily on the 3-ball down the stretch. they have some highly-effective slashers who can take guys off the dribble, yet they kept jacking up 3 after 3 after 3. that strategy resulted in a grand total of 3 points scored in the final 5:18.
He never tried to take over late like we're all expecting him to do. It was great that he not settling for threes but he just needs to slow down when he gets into the paint and either find a path to getting off a shot that has an actual chance of going in or look for an open guy besides Smart. Smart will get killed tomorrow by half of NE because that is par for the course but in the moment when he's the guy that has to take the shot late in the clock there's not much he could do there. Now we get to wait three days to see if they'll revert to form and win the next game following a loss.
Am I the only one who thinks this series is beginning to smell "fishy", or are there others too? Have "drama" and "TV ratings" become more important than athletic competition?
I hope I'm wrong, but something about this series just doesn't seem right to me.
BTW, my skepticism has forced me to cover the original bet (on the Warriors) that I made a month ago. Now my profit will be $22.50 if Boston wins the series. My profit will be $30 if Golden State wins the series. Whoopee! ;-)
So, if the series goes to Game 7 and the players on both teams continue to perform at or above the levels that they have performed at so far, what player for each team do you think would be deserving of the Finals MVP award?
For GSW I expect it would be Curry (though for games 1-3 he did not perform well during the 4th quarters).
@SanctionII said:
So, if the series goes to Game 7 and the players on both teams continue to perform at or above the levels that they have performed at so far, what player for each team do you think would be deserving of the Finals MVP award?
For GSW I expect it would be Curry (though for games 1-3 he did not perform well during the 4th quarters).
For Boston it is much more difficult to say.
.
I was just having this conversation with someone. And I thought the same thing. But it just occured to me that they might throw a little wrinkle into it. If it goes like that, game 7, and Boston wins (with Curry being the only standout) they might just give him his never before gotten finals MVP anyway.
You hold Curry to just 16pts,you crushed GS in that 3rd when you got back into the game and held them to 9-40 overall from three and lose by double digits. Give credit to the Dubs entire team for showing up on both ends while the C's gave another game away late.
Celtics need a point guard. Ball handling overall has been very average from Tatum and Brown. Smart is not an NBA point guard.
1) Too many turnovers
2) too many threes
3) Never post up big guys against much smaller warriors
4) Very little ball movement
5) Not enough bench rotation
Size and athletes goes to the Celtics. Basketball skill goes to the Warriors. Coaching also goes to the Warriors. Rookie coach looks like a rookie.
Game 5 is an example of how the GSW play well as a team. When Curry has an off night, other players can (and many times do) pick up the slack.
The Celtics made 31 shots during the game, 11 of which were three point shots. The GSW made 41 shots during the game, 9 of which were three point shots. The 32-20 GSW advantage that it had in two point shots is the result of team play (constant motion offense, looking for and passing to the open man [GSW had 23 assists on its 41 made shots] and excellent team defense leading to points off of turnovers [Boston had 18 turnovers compared to 6 for GSW].
All of Boston's primary players except Horford (Tatum, Brown, Smart, White, R. Williams and G. Williams) that play most minutes are overall mostly younger, bigger, stronger and maybe a little more athletic than the primary players of GSW (Curry, Green, Thompson, Wiggins, Looney, Porter, Payton, Poole).
That gives Boston an advantage, however that advantage has been countered by GSW playing very well as a team.
Your thoughts on Game 6 please.
I think GSW is going to want to win the title in 6 games and thus will be locked in; I think Boston will also be locked in; and I think Game 6 will be close all night with the winner being the team that does not make mistakes in the last 3-4 minutes of the 4th quarter.
I would like to see Boston win simply because I find a Game 7 so compelling.
Comments
After the game, my Uncle in Massachusetts sent me a text regarding his opinion of the Celtics..."I am so pissed - they played like little scared girls!!!!!!!!"
That reminded me of Bird's comments about his own teammates after Game 3 in the 1984 finals, Boston vs LA Lakers.
https://youtu.be/X7r6vXeOfyQ
Game 4 this happened. Doubt we will see any such tone setting by the Celtics this time around.
Looking forward to game 3 tonight! My son got me a firestick, explained a little how everything works and now i hopefully will be able to stream all the games by myself ( yes, i am very bad when it comes to technical stuff or everything to do with the computer). As i understood right, i have to install kodi first and after different addons like it is adviced here . I guess for people in my age it is not an easy thing to do, but i am really trying my best.
Tatum tried his best to keep Boston in it but just didn't have much help from the others. Strange fact that both teams were 15 of 37 from three point and GS only outscored Boston from the line by 1 point.
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Game 3, tonight
Gotta win this one.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
This and the next one. I'm adamant about that. The way that the refs (via the league) are going to affect these games, I don't see us winning game 7. We need to win the next two. We will lose game 5. Then win it game 6 in Boston. And in order to make this happen, we need to play near perfect basketball. We can do that.
I think that might be easier said than done though. Other than the win I'm just hoping to keep this 3rd quarter as even as possible, they can't go into the fourth down 20+ on the scoreboard again.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
The only other way is to split at home, win the next one in SF, then win game 6 in Boston.
With how that previous first half was called I doubt that we see either team go out and dominate over a 3-4 game stretch,they're too evenly matched imo. Just win this next one then go from there.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
GSW has won one or more road games in 26 straight playoff series that it has played (going back to the 2014-2015 playoffs).
It will be very surprising if Boston wins games 3, 4 and 6 in this series.
i picked GS to win the chip, thus i feel it's important for the Celtics to stay on top in the series in order to prove me wrong. tonight has a slight must-win feel to it where Boston is concerned.
also, i'd keep an eye on Klay Thompson moving forward. he had a subpar G1 and a downright terrible G2, but everyone and their dog knows he can go off at any time. i expect his contributions to improve
you'll never be able to outrun a bad diet
Don't get all excited yet - still early and GS has come out flat..........should be interesting.
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Great bounce back win,now treat this game like a loss going into game 4.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
...
I hope they do just that.
That might have been Timelord's best game in this entire playoff run. When he's on his game he adds another DPOY caliber player in their lineup.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
....
He played so well. What a difference maker. And we know he's hurt, but he's out-hustling guys too.
Pretty crazy stat...GS scores 7pts on one possession during that huge third quarter run then score just 11pts the entire 4th quarter.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
I watch game 1. Looks like Boston in 4. I watch game 2. Looks like Warriors in 5. I watch game 3. Now I don't have a clue.
http://www.unisquare.com/store/brick/
Ralph
Did not watch game 3. Instead went swimming at the community pool with my better half and cooked dinner together.
A nice evening.
This morning I have listened to SF Bay Area sports media.
My observation about media coverage on the playoffs and GSW, plus fan reaction.
Crazy.
The GSW team one day is the greatest. The next day the team is pathetic, embarrassing.and not worthy of anything good.
Same thing goes with any player on the roster (from all star to scrub). The bi-polar, manic depressive nature of this sports media banter is tiring.
Unfortunately this dynamic is present accross all society today.
I much prefer sports talk where the discussion is centered on the competition between very talented opponents.
Is something similar happening in the Boston area?
And so now Curry has a foot injury....... no word yet of severity but he vows to be ready for game 4
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Yup,has been like that all postseason after the BOS-BKN series where no teams were able to go dominate over a 3-4 game stretch.
I think many fans,tv analysts and sports radio talking heads just feel the need to blame the losing team for everything that they didn't do right while tending to not give any credit to the opposing team that literally just won the game.
Boston beats Miami in game 7 and over the following 2-3 days no one around here in NE wanted to talk about how Boston just won a hard fought series to get into the Finals, they'd rather go on at length about how Boston "almost" blew the final 3mins of G7. Miami was a #1 seed for a reason and made a valiant last ditch effort to save their season but Boston was able to hang on for the win.
I've spent some time last night and today reading what GS and their fans had to say about this loss and there's a ton of hypocrisy going on.
Klay Thompson calling Boston fans "unclassy" for chanting FU Draymond during the game yet Draymond is over in his press conference swearing in front of his son.
GS fans accusing Al Horford,of all people, of trying to purposely injure Steph Curry on a loose ball play when both teams literally had about three guys each on the floor fighting for a loose ball and Horford ended up on top of Curry's legs yet Green is out there purposelly yanking on Tatum's bad shoulder.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
this has been quite the jeckyll n hyde series. no outcome closer than 12 points in the first 3. one team has literally looked more prepared to play than the other in every game. last night, Boston looked hungrier, straight up.
Golden State has a serious Draymond Green problem. pretty remarkable how profoundly he sucks now. his D is a shell and you can forget about him putting the biscuit in the basket. he makes ben simmons look like alex english out there.
what's crazy is that if the Warriors win a lopsided G4, the net result of 4 uncompetitive games is that essentially the home team has held serve thru the first 4
you'll never be able to outrun a bad diet
This next game will be huge on how the rest of the series will play out. Will the light bulb finally click for Boston where they play smart and bring the effort in back to back games or will they let GS even the series heading back home?
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
galaxy27 said:
"...............he makes ben simmons look like alex english out there>"
Now that is very funny and POTD material.
Tip of my hat to you
Regarding "pretty remarkable how profoundly he [Green] sucks now.", this comment described how poorly he apparently played in Game 3. (What is galaxy27's definition of "now"? [Game 3, the 3 NBA Finals games played so far, the 2021-2022 playoffs so far, the 2021-2022 regular season and playoffs so far, the past 5 seasons or the Greens entire NBA career so far?]).
If he has a monster game (i.e. 12 points, 15 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 blocks and 12 assists in 32 minutes in Game 4) will Green no longer "suck now"? Of course not, he will be praised as "one of the best players ever" (at least until he has a horrible Game 5).
The sports media (along with other media across all platforms) is something that is tolerable for short stretches of time. Disconnecting from the noise and spending your time doing other things more beneficial is definitely warranted.
full disclosure: i watched very little of the regular season. when the playoffs launched, i watched incrementally more every round. as for the NBA Finals, i have watched every game from beginning to end at some point. so whereas it might not be fair to say he completely sucks now, as 3 games is a small sample size, it's the most important sample size of the entire season.
to this point in the Finals, Green has been a borderline liability out on the court. 15 total points scored in 3 games while averaging 36 minutes per. that 15 matches the total number of fouls he has committed in 3 games, fouling out of 2 of them. shooting 26% from the field, including 0% from downtown. in G3 he had as many fouls & turnovers as he did points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals combined. on defense, i personally watched him take multiple micro-snoozes that resulted in backdoor cuts and (ultimately) points for the Celtics.
when he was on the court in Game 3 and the Warriors had the ball on offense, it was basically 4-on-5. every time he got the ball in his hands he had the look of someone who was holding a bomb that was about to detonate -- he quickly got it out of his hands and over to a sniper. problem with that is, it creates added pressure on his 4 teammates to pick up his slack; you've gotta think that that has an adverse affect on their own shooting efficiency. Boston knows he can't score beyond mid-range, and if i were them i'd sag on Curry, Wiggins, Poole or Thompson with his defender every chance i got -- especially when the shot clock is winding down. i would double-dog dare him to shoot the basketball outside of 15 feet. even without a hand in his face i doubt very seriously he could connect on north of 50% for an entire game.
you mentioned 12, 15, 5, 3 and 12 in 32..............the Warriors desperately need that from him tomorrow night, but i wouldn't count on it. he does not have the look of the integral cog he was back in '15, '17 and '18.
you'll never be able to outrun a bad diet
Green has been a shell of himself in the playoff games that I've watched. Sure, he can still give you DPOY caliber play at times but more often than not he's pulling the type of crap that he got away with in game two. To his credit though he got in the heads of some of the Boston players and that took them off their game. He tried doing the same again last night and it didn't work. Boston just needs to keep attacking him on defense and letting him take wide open shots on offense while focusing his defender elsewhere.
On a sidenote,since last night I must have read at least 40-50 comments from GSW fans condemning Al Horford for diving after a loose ball and coming into contact with Steph's bad leg. Many of these same Dubs fans are calling for certain Boston players to get purposelly injured in retaliation in game 4 yet they're totally ok with Green doing this type of crap. This guy is nothing but a dirty player at this point.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
GSW fans in particular and residents of the SF Bay Area in general can be hard task masters.
One day fans (long term and band wagon) are enthusiastically supporting Bay Area professional franchises and individual players on these teams (including defending words and actions of players/coaches, etc. that they would not tolerate if the same words and actions came from teams and players not located in the Bay Area) and the next day the same fans are very harsh in their criticism of the same team/players and in their demand for an immediate change for the better (i.e. get rid of player X and bring in somebody who is better, even if it would be impossible to do so).
The sports media talking heads and others in non sports media do the same. The standard format today is multiple radio, television or streaming hosts who spar over the course of 3-4 hours with each other and with those who call in or text in over the smallest detail.
One must create controversy, buzz, chatter and noise to get and keep attention from an audience (whose favored demographic of 18-45 years of age is continually developing a shorter and shorter attention span; and who are ever more strident in their expectation that others should "entertain them at an ever higher level" because they have a right to be so entertained).
I assume that what I described above is the norm in many of the areas of the USA where pro sports teams are located (and is probably the same or even worse in the world outside of the USA).
It does get to be annoying if one tunes in for too long.
As for Game 4 tomorrow, unless the GSW plays much better (or Boston plays much worse) the Finals will most likely not be going 7 games. If Boston wins Game 4 it would not surprise me to see Boston hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy Monday evening at Chase Center (if that happens the whining late on Monday evening and on Tuesday will be very loud, with much of it coming from fans and sports media members who at the start of the 2021-2022 season opined that the GSW team would, at best, make the playoffs as a #6 - #8 seed and not make it out of the first round).
For those folks, me thinks that they will "protest too much".
There's a lot of that sentiment here in the NE area regarding our local sports teams especially with our sports talk radio which can be downright toxic at times. Rick Pitino didn't get many things right during his time as Boston's HC/GM but he absolutely called it correct when he pointed out that "the misery in this town sucks."
There are times when the local fanbase look to do nothing but complain even after wins,big wins, I personally think it goes back to all of the hard years that Red Sox/Patriots fans went through before those teams were finally able to win some championships. We still saw much of the same during the Brady & Belichick hate each other years and even more recently with the whole Tatum & Brown can't coexist so lets trade them even though they're just 24-25yrs old.
I gave up on local STR and cable sports shows years ago but I fully admit my guilty pleasure is reading comments from opposing team's fans lol.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
I listen to a lot of sports talk radio. But I understand what's going on, and take it for what it is. I also read those opposing fans comments. I'll do it during games even. I'll actually do it at other times just to get a feel for whatever it is they are thinking. It puts things into perspective.
Here's hoping Robert Williams can make a similar impact as in game 3 but on one less day of rest between games.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
I consider tonight a must win. If we don't win tonight it will be the first time all playoffs that I had any doubt that we will win it all. Sounds weird but true. I just don't trust us to win another in SF. Yes, we are a good road team. But still.
I still think they can go back there and win if needed but i'd rather just see them win this one then go from there.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Hope the GSW pull out a win tonight to tie up the series 2-2.
I still want the series to go seven games
I want Game seven to be nip and tuck in the 4th quarter. I want with the winner to be down 1 point and see it make a winning basket as the game clock expires (my viewing pleasure wants to see first hand "the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" play out before my eyes from the comfort of my couch
).
Great finish by GS on both ends,those last two threes by Steph & Klay were daggers. I don't get why Udoka didn't go with the double bigs late in that fourth when GS got some pretty easy baskets in the paint. This series has played out as I expected to this point so now its a best of three for it all.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
As the game started to wind down, maybe five minutes left, I felt as though what we really miss is a true leader who calms everyone down.
Because "this is the show", and to reiterate my point, let me share a screenshot of my text message conversation I was having around the five minute mark of the 4th. My cousin in Massachusetts, who I have referenced, had stopped watching but was checking the score. And I knew he was up. So I thought I would give him some play by play as we advanced to a Celtics win. But this is the point where I knew that a win wasn't on the menu.
And it just never felt like we were really in it after that.
my take:
the Celtics relied far too heavily on the 3-ball down the stretch. they have some highly-effective slashers who can take guys off the dribble, yet they kept jacking up 3 after 3 after 3. that strategy resulted in a grand total of 3 points scored in the final 5:18.
and there was your ballgame.
you'll never be able to outrun a bad diet
He never tried to take over late like we're all expecting him to do. It was great that he not settling for threes but he just needs to slow down when he gets into the paint and either find a path to getting off a shot that has an actual chance of going in or look for an open guy besides Smart. Smart will get killed tomorrow by half of NE because that is par for the course but in the moment when he's the guy that has to take the shot late in the clock there's not much he could do there. Now we get to wait three days to see if they'll revert to form and win the next game following a loss.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
As I hoped, GSW wins Game 4 to tie the series at 2-2. Both teams are evenly matched.
Come on Game 7.
Curry was at his best tonight. He really put on a show.
Am I the only one who thinks this series is beginning to smell "fishy", or are there others too? Have "drama" and "TV ratings" become more important than athletic competition?
I hope I'm wrong, but something about this series just doesn't seem right to me.
BTW, my skepticism has forced me to cover the original bet (on the Warriors) that I made a month ago. Now my profit will be $22.50 if Boston wins the series. My profit will be $30 if Golden State wins the series. Whoopee! ;-)
So, if the series goes to Game 7 and the players on both teams continue to perform at or above the levels that they have performed at so far, what player for each team do you think would be deserving of the Finals MVP award?
For GSW I expect it would be Curry (though for games 1-3 he did not perform well during the 4th quarters).
For Boston it is much more difficult to say.
.
I was just having this conversation with someone. And I thought the same thing. But it just occured to me that they might throw a little wrinkle into it. If it goes like that, game 7, and Boston wins (with Curry being the only standout) they might just give him his never before gotten finals MVP anyway.
I honestly haven't even thought about who would win MVP if the Celtics win this series, I just want to see banner #18 get raised,
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
Big time game tonight - Good luck Boston fans even though my money is on GS tonight!
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
coach for boston needs to understand how to substitute. celtics are gassed. rookie coach showing he's a rookie.
You hold Curry to just 16pts,you crushed GS in that 3rd when you got back into the game and held them to 9-40 overall from three and lose by double digits. Give credit to the Dubs entire team for showing up on both ends while the C's gave another game away late.
Eric
Erikthredd’s MJ Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/publishedset/395035
Erikthredd’s Nike Air Jordan Collection: https://www.psacard.com/psasetregistry/basketball/key-card-sets/nike-poster-cards-michael-jordan-1985-1992/alltimeset/408486
This is going to sound unbelievable, but I missed most of the game. I saw a little second quarter, and watched a smidge of the 3rd with the sound off.
I guess we can officially call game 6 a must win.
Game lost my interest early, at 26-12 GS. I did read that the customary late 3rd quarter run by the team behind was performed, by BC.
Klay Thompson commented that these Finals "feel like 2015".
In 2015 GSW was down 2-1 to Cleveland and ended up winning the series in 6 games in Cleveland.
It will be interesting to see how both teams play in Game 6 on Thursday.
Celtics need a point guard. Ball handling overall has been very average from Tatum and Brown. Smart is not an NBA point guard.
1) Too many turnovers
2) too many threes
3) Never post up big guys against much smaller warriors
4) Very little ball movement
5) Not enough bench rotation
Size and athletes goes to the Celtics. Basketball skill goes to the Warriors. Coaching also goes to the Warriors. Rookie coach looks like a rookie.
Game 5 is an example of how the GSW play well as a team. When Curry has an off night, other players can (and many times do) pick up the slack.
The Celtics made 31 shots during the game, 11 of which were three point shots. The GSW made 41 shots during the game, 9 of which were three point shots. The 32-20 GSW advantage that it had in two point shots is the result of team play (constant motion offense, looking for and passing to the open man [GSW had 23 assists on its 41 made shots] and excellent team defense leading to points off of turnovers [Boston had 18 turnovers compared to 6 for GSW].
All of Boston's primary players except Horford (Tatum, Brown, Smart, White, R. Williams and G. Williams) that play most minutes are overall mostly younger, bigger, stronger and maybe a little more athletic than the primary players of GSW (Curry, Green, Thompson, Wiggins, Looney, Porter, Payton, Poole).
That gives Boston an advantage, however that advantage has been countered by GSW playing very well as a team.
Your thoughts on Game 6 please.
I think GSW is going to want to win the title in 6 games and thus will be locked in; I think Boston will also be locked in; and I think Game 6 will be close all night with the winner being the team that does not make mistakes in the last 3-4 minutes of the 4th quarter.
I would like to see Boston win simply because I find a Game 7 so compelling.