2022 OFFICIAL NBA PLAYOFF THREAD - NBA FINALS TIME - GS 4-2 - STEVE GETS #4……ON NT - SUMMER JAM SCREEN RECEIPTS INCOMING……

[Blue Mamba]

What does (insert player) is HIM mean? Him what?

 

[tay1]

Are you praising the Warriors or are you knocking the Nuggets?

Both. I talk **** but Curry is still probably my second favorite player.

 

[had pants]

 

[clyde the glide]

The best player in the league, is currently a 6th man doing this



It’s just getting started. Don’t worry…this will be a long playoffs for all of you. Y’all see it.

This feels like old times again

Respect the consistency but we'll see how they look when they play a real playoff team.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Vincent Van Goat do you want to revisit the Jalen Brunson vs Aaron Gordon debate from the other day?

Give royce his flowers, man

 

[picasso swerve]

Curry playing 6th man with no fuss.

Russy would never.

 

[RustyShackleford]

Bomani Jones made this point, there some white self hatred stuff going on with Nick Wrights Jokic and now steve Nash hate.

i tried to tell yall the same thing happened with Vlade Divac and Luka.


white sports self hatred is a serious problem,
I hope all who are afflicted find peace.

I would kinda buy this, but dude be hanging on to Luka's nutz for dear life

 

[darthska]

race doesn't factor in at all.

-foe

 

[danikerhino]

Both. I talk **** but Curry is still probably my second favorite player.

And LeBron is still number 2 all-time in my eyes.

 

[Maximus Meridius]

Running into 3 Hall of Famers and arguably the greatest defensive player of this generation with a supporting cast that features Will Barton as his second option?

The reaching and stretching we're doing here...

There's legitimately maybe 6 players on the Warriors better than anyone not Jokic on Denver.

It's been 2 players on the warriors that's been better than Jokic and Jokic has by far the worse +/- on his team. Going out ugly.

 

[osh kosh bosh]

TBH The reason I view the Russ MVP skeptically in hindsight, it's less about the playoffs.

and more about 41% usage rate.
I find it really hard to believe there is any good reason to have a 41% usage rate.
monopolizing that much of the offense just seems more about stat padding than actually winning games.


and then we watched his teammate immediately player better once they left him, like Oladipo and Sabanis
and his total inability to fit with other good players.


im not gunna say he was undeserving but it seems less about winning and more about Russ in hindsight.

 

[ill steelo]

Grizz/Wolves tonight. 130 allowed by Memphis. That kind of defense will get you sent home in this round.

Quite a bit of that was the low effort, low IQ that we saw from their first 20 games of the season when they were playing sub .500 ball.



- Adams is in drop because he can’t move his feet in space. SlowMo knows this & sinks to the free throw line anyway like it’s Giannis on the ball instead of D’Lo

Spoiler

- Brooks turns his head, trying to beat Ant around a screen before the play even starts

- Ant isos so Ja leaves the corner to sit on the strong side. This scheme was pioneered by Thibs back when teams only had 3 shooters on the floor. It doesn’t work as well in today’s league with 4 shooters on the floor, and you see why Ant drives right into Ja to keep Ja in the paint & then he kicks it out. Easy

- Bev gets a step on Brooks, both Adams & JJJ rotate, instead of just 1.

- Brooks gambles for the steal, KAT regains possession and Brooks gives a half *** ball denial instead of just getting back in front of D’Lo who then draws the foul

- Clarke & JJJ don’t talk & both stay with KAT on the duck in attempt, Brooks now has to guard two people on the STRONGside

- Clarke switches the D’Lo PnR & Ja is left on an island.

- Clarke hedges the PnR & nobody bumps the roll man …. as if they didn’t expect Clarke to hedge

- 1 big on the floor (Adams & JJJ in foul trouble) they decide to keep a wing on Towns & just double. No front or anything. No double on the 1st/2nd dribble instead. As vanilla as it gets. You see the 3 wolves on the weakside getting into position immediately. The ball is swung to Ant on the other side of the floor within 2 seconds.

- Ziaire with a bad gamble for a steal in the backcourt instead of hustling back, wolves get a 3 on 2 and open 3.

That’s how a top 5 defense turns in a bottom 5 performance. The only adjustments with garbage like that is “Try harder, talk more.” You wouldn’t expect stuff like that to continue after they’ve defended at a high level for the last 60 games.

Unfortunately, they can clean that up & still run into other problems.Minny is a talented 7th seed, and there are a few mismatches on the floor they can leverage.

Starting with Steven Adams.



- As mentioned, he can’t move his feet in space. So in the PnR he’s dropping. Ant has an open jumper whenever he wants it.

Spoiler

- Drop again, open jumper again

- Logo PnR this time. 30 feet away from the rim is just a nightmare for Adams. He can’t move.

- Adams switches this time, Ant gets to his stepback jumper

- Adams hedges on…McLaughlin? Just drop. Jenkins then compounds this by wasting a challenge & a timeout.

- KAT blows right by Adams.

This is just not a series for him. Look for Adams mins to decline. May not happen in G2 but it’s coming eventually.

But even if you take adams off the floor & you’ll still have a small guard out there. Minny can poke & prod at that weakness, force Memphis to talk & rotate which they struggled with at times.



- Ant hunts Ja, who doesn’t really try get back instead tries & fails to block Pat Bev from behind.

Spoiler

- Pat Bev (who’s been a great offensive player for them all year btw) pushes in transition, gets the cross match with Ja on Ant. Ant attacks the (very weak) closeout & finds Pat in the dunker. Great ball.

- Minny sets a backscreen offball to get a guard on Towns & eventually get him the ball. Great stuff. Russell fell giving them the chance to switch back but they didn’t talk

- Ant at his absolute best here. Gets a smaller guard on the switch and blows by instead of settling for a stepback.

- Ant hunts Ja, Prince slips & Ja essentially sets a screen on Brooks Ant has a lot of room & Brooks hand is down

- Same action but with JJJ, he shows to take away the 3, Pat bev slips it & JJJ wildly closes out. Loses all control.

So you can see Chris Finch knows his stuff & Minny is talented enough to take advantage of a few weaknesses of Memphis. At the same time, it’s important to take a step back.

Ant was good this year, not great. Had games where he looked like a superstar, he also gave you 9 single digit scoring games. Several others where he was just a guy on the court. He’s also very young. All that to say, his decision making & jumper may not be as spectacular night in & night out.

So the first step for Memphis is to not beat themselves That 3rd quarter in particular was a nightmare. Clean up the low effort, low IQ garbage defensive possessions. I think it’s safe to say that’s a given.

Next, Jenkins has to cut down the Adams minutes.

Do both of those things & then you force Ant & D’Lo to be patient & consistently make great decisions.

 

[antidope]

I cannot believe this is happni

What does (insert player) is HIM mean? Him what?

It mean he is HIM, the man,

 

[danikerhino]

As bad as it would be for my bracket, the Wolves winning would be my preferred outcome for the chaos

I want that series to be as dramatic and petty as possible before finishing in 7.

 

[osh kosh bosh]

I would kinda buy this, but dude be hanging on to Luka's nutz for dear life

point taken.

but I think there's a bit of a difference when white guys look at wing players, a position that indexes much more on skill, intelligence ect
than Center, which usually is about emphasizes physicality, athleticism.

but you could be right.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Nah but fr addict4sneakers the youngster really did do the fvv glow up

You know I’ve been calling that for a lil bit now

Gordon v brunson is a classic case of reg season v playoffs. Whole diff ball game

We gonna revisit the Jokic v luka thing though too then!

 

[osh kosh bosh]

-foe

you have the option of simply clearly stating your position.

but If I say "race warps how some white people view black and white athletes"

and you all act like what i'm saying is crazy.
my assumption is you think it's not a factor.

 

[clyde the glide]

Game 1 was morants first game in how long? Alot of other starters were also resting down the stretch they looked rusty game 1 while Minnesota looked like a team that's been fighting the past few weeks. Interested to see how Memphis bounces back.

 

[addict4sneakers]

Nah but fr addict4sneakers the youngster really did do the fvv glow up

You know I’ve been calling that for a lil bit now

Gordon v brunson is a classic case of reg season v playoffs. Whole diff ball game

We gonna revisit the Jokic v luka thing though too then!

Luka’s help just won a playoff game and Jokic’s help can’t even win the minutes he sits.

FREE JOKER

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Grizz/Wolves tonight. 130 allowed by Memphis. That kind of defense will get you sent home in this round.

Quite a bit of that was the low effort, low IQ that we saw from their first 20 games of the season when they were playing sub .500 ball.



- Adams is in drop because he can’t move his feet in space. SlowMo knows this & sinks to the free throw line anyway like it’s Giannis on the ball instead of D’Lo

Spoiler

- Brooks turns his head, trying to beat Ant around a screen before the play even starts

- Ant isos so Ja leaves the corner to sit on the strong side. This scheme was pioneered by Thibs back when teams only had 3 shooters on the floor. It doesn’t work as well in today’s league with 4 shooters on the floor, and you see why Ant drives right into Ja to keep Ja in the paint & then he kicks it out. Easy

- Bev gets a step on Brooks, both Adams & JJJ rotate, instead of just 1.

- Brooks gambles for the steal, KAT regains possession and Brooks gives a half *** ball denial instead of just getting back in front of D’Lo who then draws the foul

- Clarke & JJJ don’t talk & both stay with KAT on the duck in attempt, Brooks now has to guard two people on the STRONGside

- Clarke switches the D’Lo PnR & Ja is left on an island.

- Clarke hedges the PnR & nobody bumps the roll man …. as if they didn’t expect Clarke to hedge

- 1 big on the floor (Adams & JJJ in foul trouble) they decide to keep a wing on Towns & just double. No front or anything. No double on the 1st/2nd dribble instead. As vanilla as it gets. You see the 3 wolves on the weakside getting into position immediately. The ball is swung to Ant on the other side of the floor within 2 seconds.

- Ziaire with a bad gamble for a steal in the backcourt instead of hustling back, wolves get a 3 on 2 and open 3.

That’s how a top 5 defense turns in a bottom 5 performance. The only adjustments with garbage like that is “Try harder, talk more.” You wouldn’t expect stuff like that to continue after they’ve defended at a high level for the last 60 games.

Unfortunately, they can clean that up & still run into other problems.Minny is a talented 7th seed, and there are a few mismatches on the floor they can leverage.

Starting with Steven Adams.



- As mentioned, he can’t move his feet in space. So in the PnR he’s dropping. Ant has an open jumper whenever he wants it.

Spoiler

- Drop again, open jumper again

- Logo PnR this time. 30 feet away from the rim is just a nightmare for Adams. He can’t move.

- Adams switches this time, Ant gets to his stepback jumper

- Adams hedges on…McLaughlin? Just drop. Jenkins then compounds this by wasting a challenge & a timeout.

- KAT blows right by Adams.

This is just not a series for him. Look for Adams mins to decline. May not happen in G2 but it’s coming eventually.

But even if you take adams off the floor & you’ll still have a small guard out there. Minny can poke & prod at that weakness, force Memphis to talk & rotate which they struggled with at times.



- Ant hunts Ja, who doesn’t really try get back instead tries & fails to block Pat Bev from behind.

Spoiler

- Pat Bev (who’s been a great offensive player for them all year btw) pushes in transition, gets the cross match with Ja on Ant. Ant attacks the (very weak) closeout & finds Pat in the dunker. Great ball.

- Minny sets a backscreen offball to get a guard on Towns & eventually get him the ball. Great stuff. Russell fell giving them the chance to switch back but they didn’t talk

- Ant at his absolute best here. Gets a smaller guard on the switch and blows by instead of settling for a stepback.

- Ant hunts Ja, Prince slips & Ja essentially sets a screen on Brooks Ant has a lot of room & Brooks hand is down

- Same action but with JJJ, he shows to take away the 3, Pat bev slips it & JJJ wildly closes out. Loses all control.

So you can see Chris Finch knows his stuff & Minny is talented enough to take advantage of a few weaknesses of Memphis. At the same time, it’s important to take a step back.

Ant was good this year, not great. Had games where he looked like a superstar, he also gave you 9 single digit scoring games. Several others where he was just a guy on the court. He’s also very young. All that to say, his decision making & jumper may not be as spectacular night in & night out.

So the first step for Memphis is to not beat themselves That 3rd quarter in particular was a nightmare. Clean up the low effort, low IQ garbage defensive possessions. I think it’s safe to say that’s a given.

Next, Jenkins has to cut down the Adams minutes.

Do both of those things & then you force Ant & D’Lo to be patient & consistently make great decisions.

Mm hmm. Adams was legit hurting them on both ends, it was painful to watch

He made it even more clogged for Ja and it exposed his lack of variety or finesse on drives. Ja still scoring like crazy tho lol he gonna need to add some alternatives in the summer

 

[danikerhino]

TBH The reason I view the Russ MVP skeptically in hindsight, it's less about the playoffs.

and more about 41% usage rate.
I find it really hard to believe there is any good reason to have a 41% usage rate.
monopolizing that much of the offense just seems more about stat padding than actually winning games.


and then we watched his teammate immediately player better once they left him, like Oladipo and Sabanis
and his total inability to fit with other good players.


im not gunna say he was undeserving but it seems less about winning and more about Russ in hindsight.

I agree with everything you said, but the guy averaged a triple double for a season. That's a ******* accomplishment right there. But his value to the team's success is questionable as hell.

 

[Vincent Van Goat]

Luka’s help just won a playoff game and Jokic’s help can’t even win the minutes he sits.

FREE JOKER

While i totally agree with you, remember it’s the utah jazz lol

Utah vs golden state who can play steph off the bench lol

But yeah dude is dragging dead weight out there

 

[addict4sneakers]

Game 1 was morants first game in how long? Alot of other starters were also resting down the stretch they looked rusty game 1 while Minnesota looked like a team that's been fighting the past few weeks. Interested to see how Memphis bounces back.

He played last week. He had 32 in game 1. He wasn’t rusty.

They got little from bane and JJJ was hacking. No rust excuses

 

[wavycrocket]

Jokic has the excuse of Murray being hurt. They will start going at him next season maybe once the MVP fatigue kicks in.

It’s not really an excuse. The nuggets are at least 3- 5 wins better with Murray and MPJ. Which would put them at about 53-55 wins. And a top 3 seed.

It’s fair and factually accurate to say that this team fully healthy, is a team with like a WCF ceiling. That’s a good thing.

Part of the reason Jokic is in the mvp race, is he’s somehow catapultued this team to almost 50 wins in the west, putting up crazy numbers, while missing a combined 40ppg from his 2 next best players. Neither who are even all stars

And that is the reason they find themselves a 6 seed, playing a team that got whole at the right moment…and has only lost one series when fully healthy (2016)

 

[wavycrocket]

Respect the consistency but we'll see how they look when they play a real playoff team.

They’re going to wash Minnesota. And y’all don’t believe in Chris Paul. And the basketball gods don’t either