2022 NBA playoffs discussion

erikthredd · May 11, 2022 8:59AM

I think its eventually going to come down to the four deepest rosters in Boston/Miami and GS/Phoenix. I'd love to see a BOS/GS finals but the C's have their hands full right now trying to get by Milwaukee.
This series reminds of the Celtics/Raptors 7 games series in the bubble a few years back where the C's took down the defending champs but at the cost of being mentally/physically drained in the ECF versus Miami. Hopefully we get that rematch,I know Miami has been pretty banged up in these playoffs as well.

erikthredd · May 11, 2022 9:10AM

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:
Hopefully we see Timelord back out there tonight, we need that second big on the floor to account for Brook Lopez in the paint while Horford chases Giannis around. At some point though I wouldn't mind seeing that small-ball lineup again of Al,the J's,Smart & White that closed out the game especially if our offense gets stagnant at any point. That group was able to push the ball on offense and help create points before the Bucks set up their D. The only downside is Milwaukee gets a favorable mismatch in the paint with Lopez in the game.

On a sidenote,Ime Udoka finished 4th in Coach of the Year voting,not bad for his rookie season. The way he was able to turn their season around was phenomenal but the guys that finished ahead of him all had teams that were great all season.

His fourth place finish is probably less of a side note and more an addition to your first comments. Great coaching. Not afraid of making changes. Trying things. Seeming to hold guys accountable.

That last part was probably the hardest part about their turnaround,imo, getting everyone to buy into his system especially Tatum & Brown. Once they really started believing in their teammates fully we started seeing some beautiful basketball being played,with their game 4 win they're now 32-8 over their last 40 games. We still see some hero ball moments like jacking up threes with plenty of time still on the clock but Ime has been great in settling them down and playing smarter
while finishing out these past two games even though they lost one. Here's hoping the home crowd is buzzing at tip-off and we start off like game two again.

olb31 · May 11, 2022 7:15PM

sad performance by marcus smart the last two minutes of the games. 3 turnovers, lots of flopping and flailing, no boxing out. he let his teammates completely down. he is probably the worst point guard in the nba. good defender, hustles, but lacks skill to play the point in the nba.

thisistheshow · May 11, 2022 7:25PM

It was definitely a tough ending as a Celtics fan.

thisistheshow · May 12, 2022 4:15AM

Yes, Smart had a bad showing at the end. But we shouldn't have been in that position in the first place.

erikthredd · May 12, 2022 7:07AM

They definitely let this one slip away. Now we'll see what they're really made of needing to win two elimination games.

galaxy27 · May 12, 2022 5:46PM

in the hizzy for Mavs-Suns G6 tonight

i'm presently roaming around the arena looking for the Suns-in-4 dude, a sub-10$ beer, and a blazing female so i can test out this seemingly tried-and-true pick-up line....

"hi. hydrant wanted me to tell you that you're really hot."

hope all of you brothers from other mothers are doing well

galaxy27 · May 12, 2022 8:24PM

Luka to the rack

G7 forthcoming, where anything can happen

thisistheshow · May 13, 2022 5:26AM

@galaxy27 good to see you man. I guess I can shut down my "where's galaxy " thread

erikthredd · May 13, 2022 7:27AM

Looks like the NBA has Scott Foster reff'ing game 6 tonight, I'm not sure how I feel about that. He's usually the guy the NBA sends when there's an elimination game and he tends to favor the team down in the series but he's been a thorn in Boston's side over the years. I'll gladly take an extension tonight.
https://boston.cbslocal.com/2022/05/13/scott-foster-celtics-bucks-game-6-nba-officiating-playoffs/

erikthredd · May 13, 2022 7:17PM

...one more to go!

erikthredd · May 13, 2022 8:32PM

Of course he'd come through today of all days.

https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1525309263677206528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1525309263677206528%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomments.celticsblog.com%2Fapi%2Foembed%3Ftype%3Dtwitterurl%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2FBleacherReport2Fstatus2F1525309263677206528siteID%3D112aa377-e27f-4b58-9156-5e5df25f39a2frameID%3Dframe-id-922449b1-7a93-422b-b0e6-30ea77cec3ee-21ec6d00-d336-11ec-a0c1-c33be7b12a82

thisistheshow · May 14, 2022 6:39AM

@erikthredd said:
...one more to go!

.....
Great game!

A few things. Even when the Bucks made their little runs to get back, we stayed aggressive and built the lead back up. Our 3s were falling, which obviously is key. Tatum was on fire early from the field, then cooled off, but he stayed aggressive going to the rim and was hitting key 3s as well at the end. We played with a ton of intensity. It was an elimination game, but you never know, so I am very encouraged by the performance.

And did you see that steal by White, when after Giainnis secured a rebound? That was Larry's old move.

In my opinion, absolutely no way we lose game 7 at home. Garden will be rocking!!!!!

thisistheshow · May 14, 2022 6:45AM

erikthredd · May 14, 2022 7:07AM

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:
...one more to go!

.....
Great game!

A few things. Even when the Bucks made their little runs to get back, we stayed aggressive and built the lead back up. Our 3s were falling, which obviously is key. Tatum was on fire early from the field, then cooled off, but he stayed aggressive going to the rim and was hitting key 3s as well at the end. We played with a ton of intensity. It was an elimination game, but you never know, so I am very encouraged by the performance.

And did you see that steal by White, when after Giainnis secured a rebound? That was Larry's old move.

In my opinion, absolutely no way we lose game 7 at home. Garden will be rocking!!!!!

That was a hell of a game to come back after that G5 loss and win the way they did on the road. I think Milwaukee really wasted a phenomenal performance by Giannis with his 44/20/6 stat line. He'll showout in game 7 but I doubt we see him go 14-15 from the line and 2-3 from three again. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's game and hopefully Timelord can return and give this team that extra boost to close out the series.

erikthredd · May 14, 2022 7:09AM

The best stat from this game...zero turnovers from Boston in the 4th quarter.

thisistheshow · May 14, 2022 7:13AM

@erikthredd said:
The best stat from this game...zero turnovers from Boston in the 4th quarter.

yes, this was huuuuuuuge!

erikthredd · May 14, 2022 7:16AM

This is Game 7 weekend if you're a NBA or NHL fan. Between today & tomorrow there are five game 7's in the NHL and two in the NBA.

BLUEJAYWAY · May 14, 2022 9:43PM

@erikthredd said:
This is Game 7 weekend if you're a NBA or NHL fan. Between today & tomorrow there are five game 7's in the NHL and two in the NBA.

Sports books love this stat.

thisistheshow · May 15, 2022 8:53AM

Big day! Big day!

erikthredd · May 15, 2022 11:48AM

Robert Williams is a go...I repeat, Robert Williams is a go lol. Hopefully he has full mobility or close to it,his rim protection is sorely needed today.

erikthredd · May 15, 2022 3:12PM

erikthredd · May 15, 2022 8:17PM

https://twitter.com/StoolGreenie/status/1525960318211330048/photo/1

perkdog · May 16, 2022 3:35AM

Celts look good, they should Roll Miami.

How pathetic did the Bucks and Suns look last night lol

thisistheshow · May 16, 2022 4:59AM

Yesterday was great. Boston won. I see us winning it all this year. I really wanted Dallas to win too. Living here, things are more fun when the teams are good. I doubt Dallas will go to the finals, but I'd like it. First of all, I see the Celtics having an easier time with them. And I'm still waiting to see a Boston/Dallas championship game/series. It's possible in hockey, football, and basketball.

Steven59 · May 16, 2022 6:33AM

Congrats to the Celtics and wow did the Suns stink losing game 7 big time.

erikthredd · May 16, 2022 8:48AM

Hopefully holding back Timelord means he'll be a go game 1 on tuesday night. Horford can match up with Bam just fine but having WIlliams roaming around in the paint takes this defense to another level that we really didn't get to see in the Bucks series.

SanctionII · May 16, 2022 11:06AM

A Finals match up the Celtics and the Warriors would likely draw a bigger viewing audience and media buzz than any of the other possible match ups.

The Conference Finals should be very entertaining.

thisistheshow · May 16, 2022 11:25AM

@SanctionII said:
A Finals match up the Celtics and the Warriors would likely draw a bigger viewing audience and media buzz than any of the other possible match ups.

The Conference Finals should be very entertaining.

You are probably right, but if speaking/writing it into fruition is a thing, I would like Boston vs Dallas

erikthredd · May 16, 2022 12:37PM

Marcus Smart questionable for game one but Robert Williams should have no restrictions. I was really surprised Smart stayed in the game on that block attempt on Giannis when he was undercut and landed hard. Kind of looked like he slammed his head on that play but he didn't come out. There's also a report out of Miami that Kyle Lowry unlikely to play in game one also.

erikthredd · May 16, 2022 12:51PM

Seeing Giannis put up the first 200pts/100trb/50ast series in NBA history was pretty incredible.

thisistheshow · May 16, 2022 1:19PM

@erikthredd said:
Seeing Giannis put up the first 200pts/100trb/50ast series in NBA history was pretty incredible.

It was. 7 games. Glad we won. 🤷

erikthredd · May 17, 2022 3:17PM

Dammit! No Marcus Smart (Foot) or Al Horford (Covid) tonight for game one.

thisistheshow · May 17, 2022 3:35PM

it's not going to be a cakewalk, but we got this

erikthredd · May 17, 2022 3:59PM

Maybe but with games every other day this might mean that Horford misses multiple games.

olb31 · May 17, 2022 7:44PM

JIMMY BUTLER may be the most overrated "superstar" in history. average shooter, average defender, but apparently makes large donations to the NBA refereeing committee. they put him at the foul line if someone looks at him. no wonder miami finished first.

olb31 · May 17, 2022 7:45PM

9 straight foul shots in 1 1/2 minutes, no baskets. all for miami

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 3:38AM

that 3rd quarter.....

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 4:37AM

@erikthredd How much did we miss Smart? We definitely struggled significantly bringing the ball up. Tatum was terrible in the 3rd. And Brown just disappeared for much of the game.

erikthredd · May 18, 2022 7:52AM

They definitely missed Smart but Ime should have had anyone other than Tatum as the ballhandler. That one stretch where Tatum gave it away 3-4 times in a row should have been a sign to let someone else bring it up. Between the TO's and getting double teamed right away our offense never really got going in the second half. I thought Brown played alright outside of the missed FT's. Even being down two starters I still thought that was a winnable game had they just played an average 3rd quarter. Also GWill & White need to do better than 10pts combined in the starting lineup. Hopefully we get Smart & Horford
back soon.

SanctionII · May 18, 2022 8:50AM

Any predictions on tonight's Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals?

Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals should be much different that Game 1 with Smart and Horford possibly suiting up; and both Tatum and Brown likely performing much better.

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 9:17AM

@SanctionII said:
Any predictions on tonight's Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals?

Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals should be much different that Game 1 with Smart and Horford possibly suiting up; and both Tatum and Brown likely performing much better.

.....
I haven't watched much Golden State, but I know more about the Mavericks than I do any other team in the league, and any other sports franchise outside of the Patriots and Cowboys. Since the new year, they are one of the top three teams in the league. And with Boston, they are one f the best two teams left. In my opinion. Which is crazy t say, considering that outside of Luka none of their starters would start for any remaining team, and probably for any of the last eight teams that remained. I would not be surprised if the Mavs lose game 1 and 2, or game 1 and struggle game 2 first half. But I d expect them to make it a series.

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 9:19AM

@erikthredd said:
They definitely missed Smart but Ime should have had anyone other than Tatum as the ballhandler. That one stretch where Tatum gave it away 3-4 times in a row should have been a sign to let someone else bring it up. Between the TO's and getting double teamed right away our offense never really got going in the second half. I thought Brown played alright outside of the missed FT's. Even being down two starters I still thought that was a winnable game had they just played an average 3rd quarter. Also GWill & White need to do better than 10pts combined in the starting lineup. Hopefully we get Smart & Horford
back soon.

......
I don't think Brown had a good game. The missed free throws hurt, but he wasn't shooting well and lacked aggression, imo. It was a VERY winnable game. We needed to extend our first half lead. Everyone knew Miami would make a run. The run they made was not expected, but we should have been up more going into the 3rd.

SanctionII · May 18, 2022 9:35AM

Dallas has been playing very well and won 3 of 4 games against Golden State in the regular season.

Golden State started the regular season 18-2. After that great start it finished 35-27. Curry, Thompson and Green missed significant parts of the regular season due to injury. The only played 11 minutes together during the regular season. They won their last 4-5 regular season games, easily beat Denver in the first round of the playoffs (4-1) and had a very hard fought second round series against Memphis, winning 4-2 (4 games were very close and two were blow out wins of 30 points [GS] and 39 points (Memphis)).

Golden State is very good when it shoots well from 3 point range (it has been very inconsistent doing most of this season); when it plays a fast, up tempo game where all 5 players are constantly moving and passing the ball; and when it plays lockdown defense. It is not very good when it shoots badly from 3 point range, when it turns the ball over constantly (this has been a problem all year), when players are not constantly in motion and when defensive intensity is lacking.

I have no idea who will win the WCF, but expect the series to go at lease 6, if not 7 games.

For the ECF, I think both Boston and Miami are really, really good and evenly matched. Game 1 was a roller coaster. I expect that series to go 6 or 7 games also, with each game having lots of fireworks.

So far the NBA playoffs have been very competitive and entertaining.

erikthredd · May 18, 2022 10:31AM

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:
They definitely missed Smart but Ime should have had anyone other than Tatum as the ballhandler. That one stretch where Tatum gave it away 3-4 times in a row should have been a sign to let someone else bring it up. Between the TO's and getting double teamed right away our offense never really got going in the second half. I thought Brown played alright outside of the missed FT's. Even being down two starters I still thought that was a winnable game had they just played an average 3rd quarter. Also GWill & White need to do better than 10pts combined in the starting lineup. Hopefully we get Smart & Horford
back soon.

......
I don't think Brown had a good game. The missed free throws hurt, but he wasn't shooting well and lacked aggression, imo. It was a VERY winnable game. We needed to extend our first half lead. Everyone knew Miami would make a run. The run they made was not expected, but we should have been up more going into the 3rd.

Not to make excuses for Brown but you can tell by watching him play that he's still dealing with bit of a hamstring issue but he's been grinding it out. The whole team needs to really step it up and at the very least they should be matching Miami's intensity especially on the defensive end.

This could be really bad news if it starts to spread past Horford.
https://www.celticsblog.com/2022/5/18/23124090/report-multiple-backroom-staff-have-tested-positive-for-covid-boston-celtics-al-horford-jayson-tatum

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 10:32AM

@SanctionII I agree with you that these playoffs have really been competitive and entertaining. If I was forced to bet, I would predict a Boston vs Golden State finals. I also give Dallas more of a chance over Golden State than I do Miami over Boston. And I say that having watched the Celtics lose last night and not yet seeing Game 1 with GS and Dallas.

Dallas was able to handle GS during the regular season fairly well, albeit while facing a mix of lineup combinations (if I remember correctly).

thisistheshow · May 18, 2022 10:36AM

@erikthredd said:

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:
They definitely missed Smart but Ime should have had anyone other than Tatum as the ballhandler. That one stretch where Tatum gave it away 3-4 times in a row should have been a sign to let someone else bring it up. Between the TO's and getting double teamed right away our offense never really got going in the second half. I thought Brown played alright outside of the missed FT's. Even being down two starters I still thought that was a winnable game had they just played an average 3rd quarter. Also GWill & White need to do better than 10pts combined in the starting lineup. Hopefully we get Smart & Horford
back soon.

......
I don't think Brown had a good game. The missed free throws hurt, but he wasn't shooting well and lacked aggression, imo. It was a VERY winnable game. We needed to extend our first half lead. Everyone knew Miami would make a run. The run they made was not expected, but we should have been up more going into the 3rd.

Not to make excuses for Brown but you can tell by watching him play that he's still dealing with bit of a hamstring issue but he's been grinding it out. The whole team needs to really step it up and at the very least they should be matching Miami's intensity especially on the defensive end.

This could be really bad news if it starts to spread past Horford.
https://www.celticsblog.com/2022/5/18/23124090/report-multiple-backroom-staff-have-tested-positive-for-covid-boston-celtics-al-horford-jayson-tatum

.......
Brown is a grinder, we just needed a bit more from him. But he is certainly not the reason we lost at all. I saw Miami play with what looked like more intensity and urgency. Especially defensively.

SanctionII · May 18, 2022 10:53AM

I hope that the Boston players do not come down with Covid (at all, or at least until after the playoffs are over).

Losing players during the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals would be terrible. If half or more of a team's roster was not able to play because of Covid would the league postpone the playoffs? (especially if more than one of the four remaining teams lost half or more of their rosters).

erikthredd · May 18, 2022 2:58PM

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:

@thisistheshow said:

@erikthredd said:
They definitely missed Smart but Ime should have had anyone other than Tatum as the ballhandler. That one stretch where Tatum gave it away 3-4 times in a row should have been a sign to let someone else bring it up. Between the TO's and getting double teamed right away our offense never really got going in the second half. I thought Brown played alright outside of the missed FT's. Even being down two starters I still thought that was a winnable game had they just played an average 3rd quarter. Also GWill & White need to do better than 10pts combined in the starting lineup. Hopefully we get Smart & Horford
back soon.

......
I don't think Brown had a good game. The missed free throws hurt, but he wasn't shooting well and lacked aggression, imo. It was a VERY winnable game. We needed to extend our first half lead. Everyone knew Miami would make a run. The run they made was not expected, but we should have been up more going into the 3rd.

Not to make excuses for Brown but you can tell by watching him play that he's still dealing with bit of a hamstring issue but he's been grinding it out. The whole team needs to really step it up and at the very least they should be matching Miami's intensity especially on the defensive end.

This could be really bad news if it starts to spread past Horford.
https://www.celticsblog.com/2022/5/18/23124090/report-multiple-backroom-staff-have-tested-positive-for-covid-boston-celtics-al-horford-jayson-tatum

.......
Brown is a grinder, we just needed a bit more from him. But he is certainly not the reason we lost at all. I saw Miami play with what looked like more intensity and urgency. Especially defensively.

Brown finished with 24pts/10reb/3ast + 4-8 from three which are all but the assists up from his playoff averages. I think the whole team looked & played like they were mentally/physically drained from having to win games 6 & 7 in the last round. Finding out right before game time that both Horford & Smart were out probably didn't help much either. The one plus in their favor though is that they really haven't put up back to back stinkers during this current playoff run so they should be ready for tomorrow night.
If they're gonna have any chance of winning then their offense can't afford another 11-34 game from three again and Grant Williams has to do better than 7pts on just 5 shots especially with multiple starters out. He & Pritchard need to let them fly,imo, while White drives to try to get the line more often. They can't let Miami's defense dictate how they're gonna play on offense.

erikthredd · May 18, 2022 3:13PM

@SanctionII said:
I hope that the Boston players do not come down with Covid (at all, or at least until after the playoffs are over).

Losing players during the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals would be terrible. If half or more of a team's roster was not able to play because of Covid would the league postpone the playoffs? (especially if more than one of the four remaining teams lost half or more of their rosters).

The only way I see the NBA postponing games due to Covid is if the team can't field 5-6 active players and with the vaccinations and all of the protocols that the NBA has to prevent this,it likely isn't going to happen.

This article from right at the start of the playoffs kind of explains what happens if a player has to miss time due to Covid health & safety protocols. With Horford getting sidelined yesterday he'll likely miss games 1-3 due to the NBA making players sit 6 days providing he doesn't test positive again. That sucks for any team dealing with this but it came at the worst possible time for Boston after just getting into the ECF.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/04/23/nba-playoffs-coronavirus-paxlovid/

2022 NBA playoffs discussion

Comments

Categories