NBA PLAYOFFS 2017-2018 Thread

Lets have a discussion

Hardens stepback.

Travel or nah?

Originally posted by JustinMT:

Originally posted by blizzuntz:
Wiggins is settling for 3s. Less shots around the rim and less free throws.

He's just not aggressive and he's awful at the line. 64% at the line after being a 76% career shooter. I don't know what is going on inside his head but he's coming across as incredibly soft and selfish if he's upset over Butler and KAT being the main guys there.

his defense has gotten better, but how he can a freakish SF like him only average 4 rebounds?

from 2008-20015, every number 1 pick overall has made it as an all star except Wiggins and Bennett

Originally posted by Knowledge:
Lets have a discussion

Hardens stepback.

Travel or nah?

Yes, but a lot of guys travel throughout the game. I saw analysis on how much Embiid travels, just a random example and there are others. I would prefer they don't call it by the book... Let's see some good offensive ball ya dig

Originally posted by ads_2006:
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2770729-thats-your-leverage-dont-blame-kawhi-leonard-for-taking-control?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national

good read/perspective on kawhi

The Isiah Thomas example is a great comparison. Tried to play through an injury and changed his career.

lol you have two of the best perimeter defenders in the league, and instead of letting them guard Harden, you want Durant to guard him? huh? i must've missed the season when Durant turned into an elite defender or can guard the other teams best PG/SG.

Originally posted by TheGore49er:
lol you have two of the best perimeter defenders in the league, and instead of letting them guard Harden, you want Durant to guard him? huh? i must've missed the season when Durant turned into an elite defender or can guard the other teams best PG/SG.

Yup. Silly. Durant has really worked on his defense and he has become a very good shot blocker but he isnt someone you want out on the perimeter guarding an incredibly tough guard who can take it to the hoop with the best of them.

Originally posted by sacniner:

Originally posted by ads_2006:
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2770729-thats-your-leverage-dont-blame-kawhi-leonard-for-taking-control?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national

good read/perspective on kawhi

The Isiah Thomas example is a great comparison. Tried to play through an injury and changed his career.

ya but with Isiah you could tell they were just using him. they weren't gonna pay him the max contract he wanted anyways, most likely he wouldn't have been a Celtic much longer. with Kawaii, there's no way they are rushing him out there if they don't think he's 110% healthy. and if you're the Spurs, why even chance it? it's not like the Spurs had a shot to win the title this year. they should've just played ball with him...

Originally posted by RishikeshA:

Originally posted by binarythird:
KD is great but you can dictate him with physicality. Look at how Iggy defended him in our series in 2016. If you can be physical with him, he'll settle for some really bad shots.

Westbrook has a pretty good midrange but his shot selection is terrible...when it comes to taking bad shots, he's the master. He also has tunnel vision like a mfer. He's emotional and can let them get the best of him very easily.

Neither of these guys compare to Harden imo. Not only does Harden dominate the person guarding him, but he owns you if you try to bring help because his feel and vision are so advanced. He's taken iso play to a new level.

Good analysis, I think a major factor will be that Harden won't be worn down as in past playoffs. The entire Houston starting 5 must be defended. In the end it may come down to can Mike D'Antoni's system win an NBA tittle.

IMO, D'Antoni's system was a bit too "ahead of the curve" with Phoenix, but it's perfect for today's game and perfect for this roster. They've crafted the team beautifully around Harden, giving him extreme space with shooters and a perfect lob outlet in Capella. It truly is a system built to perfection, much like the Warriors had with the Steph/Bogut high picknroll era. Great job by their mgmt.

Originally posted by TheGore49er:
ya but with Isiah you could tell they were just using him. they weren't gonna pay him the max contract he wanted anyways, most likely he wouldn't have been a Celtic much longer. with Kawaii, there's no way they are rushing him out there if they don't think he's 110% healthy. and if you're the Spurs, why even chance it? it's not like the Spurs had a shot to win the title this year. they should've just played ball with him...

Yeah, they weren't giving him the max especially if they had a chance at Kyrie. Although, IT would not have tried to play through the injury if he could go back. He costs himself tens of millions of dollars, at least. He wasn't worth a max, but he was in for a fat payday. Now he just looks like a scorer off the bench and nothing else.

Good lesson for NBA players.

Originally posted by binarythird:
IMO, D'Antoni's system was a bit too "ahead of the curve" with Phoenix, but it's perfect for today's game and perfect for this roster. They've crafted the team beautifully around Harden, giving him extreme space with shooters and a perfect lob outlet in Capella. It truly is a system built to perfection, much like the Warriors had with the Steph/Bogut high picknroll era. Great job by their mgmt.

You're picking Houston in a seven game series against Golden State?

Originally posted by TheGore49er:

Originally posted by sacniner:

Originally posted by ads_2006:
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2770729-thats-your-leverage-dont-blame-kawhi-leonard-for-taking-control?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national

good read/perspective on kawhi

The Isiah Thomas example is a great comparison. Tried to play through an injury and changed his career.

ya but with Isiah you could tell they were just using him. they weren't gonna pay him the max contract he wanted anyways, most likely he wouldn't have been a Celtic much longer. with Kawaii, there's no way they are rushing him out there if they don't think he's 110% healthy. and if you're the Spurs, why even chance it? it's not like the Spurs had a shot to win the title this year. they should've just played ball with him...

even if he was not going to get the max, he played through an injury (demonstrating some form of loyalty to a team, albeit without any guarantee) in good faith and was promptly traded. Additionally, the trainer for the Celtics who cleared Thomas was let go, possibly indicating that Thomas should not have come back anyways.

People always say sports is a business, but when the athlete looks out for themselves (through whatever action), it becomes a problem.

Originally posted by sacniner:

Originally posted by binarythird:
IMO, D'Antoni's system was a bit too "ahead of the curve" with Phoenix, but it's perfect for today's game and perfect for this roster. They've crafted the team beautifully around Harden, giving him extreme space with shooters and a perfect lob outlet in Capella. It truly is a system built to perfection, much like the Warriors had with the Steph/Bogut high picknroll era. Great job by their mgmt.

You're picking Houston in a seven game series against Golden State?

Yes, but a lot hinges on Steph's health and their defense.

Originally posted by binarythird:

Originally posted by RishikeshA:

Originally posted by binarythird:
KD is great but you can dictate him with physicality. Look at how Iggy defended him in our series in 2016. If you can be physical with him, he'll settle for some really bad shots.

Westbrook has a pretty good midrange but his shot selection is terrible...when it comes to taking bad shots, he's the master. He also has tunnel vision like a mfer. He's emotional and can let them get the best of him very easily.

Neither of these guys compare to Harden imo. Not only does Harden dominate the person guarding him, but he owns you if you try to bring help because his feel and vision are so advanced. He's taken iso play to a new level.

Good analysis, I think a major factor will be that Harden won't be worn down as in past playoffs. The entire Houston starting 5 must be defended. In the end it may come down to can Mike D'Antoni's system win an NBA tittle.

IMO, D'Antoni's system was a bit too "ahead of the curve" with Phoenix, but it's perfect for today's game and perfect for this roster. They've crafted the team beautifully around Harden, giving him extreme space with shooters and a perfect lob outlet in Capella. It truly is a system built to perfection, much like the Warriors had with the Steph/Bogut high picknroll era. Great job by their mgmt.

i think it was still a really good system for back then. only issue was that Suns played no defense. this team has guys like Capela, Paul, Ariza, Tucker, and that guy who's name i can't pronounce or spell.

also, he did change it up a bit. that Suns offense was a shoot within the first 7-10 seconds. obviously this is a much more patient offense with Harden leading it. they don't take many shots during a course of a game compared to those Suns teams, but they take good ones. the idea is still the same though, layups and 3s.

Originally posted by TheGore49er:

Originally posted by binarythird:

Originally posted by RishikeshA:

Originally posted by binarythird:
KD is great but you can dictate him with physicality. Look at how Iggy defended him in our series in 2016. If you can be physical with him, he'll settle for some really bad shots.

Westbrook has a pretty good midrange but his shot selection is terrible...when it comes to taking bad shots, he's the master. He also has tunnel vision like a mfer. He's emotional and can let them get the best of him very easily.

Neither of these guys compare to Harden imo. Not only does Harden dominate the person guarding him, but he owns you if you try to bring help because his feel and vision are so advanced. He's taken iso play to a new level.

Good analysis, I think a major factor will be that Harden won't be worn down as in past playoffs. The entire Houston starting 5 must be defended. In the end it may come down to can Mike D'Antoni's system win an NBA tittle.

IMO, D'Antoni's system was a bit too "ahead of the curve" with Phoenix, but it's perfect for today's game and perfect for this roster. They've crafted the team beautifully around Harden, giving him extreme space with shooters and a perfect lob outlet in Capella. It truly is a system built to perfection, much like the Warriors had with the Steph/Bogut high picknroll era. Great job by their mgmt.

i think it was still a really good system for back then. only issue was that Suns played no defense. this team has guys like Capela, Paul, Ariza, Tucker, and that guy who's name i can't pronounce or spell.

also, he did change it up a bit. that Suns offense was a shoot within the first 7-10 seconds. obviously this is a much more patient offense with Harden leading it. they don't take many shots during a course of a game compared to those Suns teams, but they take good ones. the idea is still the same though, layups and 3s.

agreed, good post. This team has the ability to be wayyyyyyyyy more physical than those old Suns teams.

Originally posted by ads_2006:
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2770729-thats-your-leverage-dont-blame-kawhi-leonard-for-taking-control?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national

good read/perspective on kawhi

Its really not a good perspective though.

I find the comparisons that Kawhi supporters are throwing out there (Grant Hill, Isaiah Thomas, Derrick Rose, Penny Hardaway, etc.) to be ridiculous and no where close to apples to apples. Grant Hill had a really bad ankle injury. Isaiah Thomas had a deteriorating hip problem. Derrick Rose and Penny Hardaway had numerous serious knee issues. Meanwhile, Kawhi has a strained quad. Nothing about Kawhi's injury is comparable to the injuries his is being compared to.

I have never heard of a player's career ending from a muscle strain. Kawhi should be playing. And if he isnt playing, he should at the very least be on the bench supporting his teammates.

I have lost respect for Kawhi over the course of this season.