NBA Playoffs 2022

[Napoleon 8667]

Ja is Ja Man!

 

[Michael Knight 12977]

 

[Pam Cummings 9640]

8 hours ago, Kermit said:

Are the Grizzlies still better without Morant? Asking for a friend. 
 

 

Can we stop doing this? I watched that game and Morant wasnt even that special. He threw up a bunch of bricks that his teammates were then able to rebound and score on. I will give him credit though for recognizing that the refs were giving him DWade finals treatment and bulling his way to the hoop a bunch of times for foul calls.

Edited April 27, 2022 by Pam Cummings

[ztejas 43418]

22 minutes ago, Pam Cummings said:

Can we stop doing this? I watched that game and Morant wasnt even that special. He threw up a bunch of bricks that his teammates were then able to rebound and score on. I will give him credit though for recognizing that the refs were giving him DWade finals treatment and bulling his way to the hoop a bunch of times for foul calls.

Ja has already accomplished more than Russell Westbrook did in his entire career. You need to keep up with this thread better. Also you have to post a Ben Simmons take. 

I mean some of you need a serious fucking reality check. 

 

Edited April 27, 2022 by ztejas

[Kermit 3156]

1 hour ago, Pam Cummings said:

Can we stop doing this? I watched that game and Morant wasnt even that special. He threw up a bunch of bricks that his teammates were then able to rebound and score on. I will give him credit though for recognizing that the refs were giving him DWade finals treatment and bulling his way to the hoop a bunch of times for foul calls.

Yeah, you’re right. It was a horrible fucking game that he played. Hell, he rebounded his own misses 13 times. And that dunk was a charge. Got lucky with the game winner. Y’all have really turned me around, I don’t know what I was thinking. Can I have my membership to the Westbrook Defenders Club back?

[Pam Cummings 9640]

32 minutes ago, Kermit said:

Yeah, you’re right. It was a horrible fucking game that he played. Hell, he rebounded his own misses 13 times. And that dunk was a charge. Got lucky with the game winner. Y’all have really turned me around, I don’t know what I was thinking. Can I have my membership to the Westbrook Defenders Club back?

All the credit to him. He was great getting to the line and being aggressive like i said. He still is a bit of a chucker but not anywhere near Westbrook levels, plus launching bad shots early in the shot clock just seems to be an NBA-wide thing right now. Edwards was doing the same on the other end. I just dont ever think a team will win with a small PG as it's best player.

Edited April 27, 2022 by Pam Cummings

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

11 minutes ago, Pam Cummings said:

I just dont ever think a team will win with a small PG as it's best player.

[Kermit 3156]

8 minutes ago, Pam Cummings said:

All the credit to him. He was great getting to the line and being aggressive like i said. He still is a bit of a chucker but not anywhere near Westbrook levels, plus launching bad shots early in the shot clock just seems to be an NBA-wide thing right now. Edwards was doing the same on the other end. I just dont ever think a team will win with a small PG as it's best player.

[Braff Zacklin 13557]

This thread has gotten weird.

[Pam Cummings 9640]

8 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

Injuries, Durant

[Pam Cummings 9640]

8 minutes ago, Kermit said:

A rare exception. The Lakers should have beaten them honestly. But i'm very glad that they didn't.

 

[Kermit 3156]

 

(I know this one will be extremely debatable, and I hate myself for it, but he had an argument in ‘07). 

[Pam Cummings 9640]

1 minute ago, Kermit said:

 

(I know this one will be extremely debatable, and I hate myself for it, but he had an argument in ‘07). 

Ha, i was just going to argue that the Spurs leanest years where they didnt really make any good playoff runs were when the team was more Tony-centric. He had an MVP type season in 2011 right before that...thing we don't ever talk about in this household.

Edited April 27, 2022 by Pam Cummings

[HookEm 2467]

Hi

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

Dude is like 6'1" and led the league in points in the paint. You can't leave him wide open at the three point line any more, which makes him virtually impossible to guard. He's only in year three and getting better and better. I don't think he's a finished product by any means. That said, he was also getting relentlessly hunted on defense last night by Edwards. 

And then there's this. I mean, this is physics defying, warping the shape-time continuum type shit here. How can you even explain this?

 

[Quagmire 2147]

Can we make a nba playoffs thread only for ztexas?

[Pam Cummings 9640]

13 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

Dude is like 6'1" and led the league in points in the paint. You can't leave him wide open at the three point line any more, which makes him virtually impossible to guard. He's only in year three and getting better and better. I don't think he's a finished product by any means. That said, he was also getting relentlessly hunted on defense last night by Edwards. 

And then there's this. I mean, this is physics defying, warping the shape-time continuum type shit here. How can you even explain this?

 

That's another thing though. This display of athleticism is wild, and obviously i am very entertained(this is the best series so far), but that athleticism doesn't last. And that's what always worries me with these types of players, especially when they are undersized and need that athleticism to be their most effective. Dude can do that now but what about in 5 years? That's a lot of NBA games played right there and he's already missed time with injury. Even losing a little bit of that explosiveness will make him have to change his game.

 

The behind the back pass that ended up getting blocked was a display of good playmaking imo. Dude should have finished that.

Edited April 27, 2022 by Pam Cummings

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

Lol I just noticed Calipari in the bottom of that picture. Calm down, John. Really, settle down. Don't get so excited. Maybe lay off the benzodiazepines a little? 

[Vic Mackey 47018]

[MNLonghornFUKM 8817]

Jas dunk at the end of Q3 was absolutely insane. Props for him on the cold blooded 3, I think it was the first or second three pointer he made since game 2. Also was the first or second jump shot he made since game 2

Dude needs a pull up game tho. He’s going to die with this wreckless abandon style. Wolves should have no fear of JJJ, Ja and Brooks shooting 3s. They absolutely suck and have terrible shot form. All shoot like middle school girls.

Wolves gonna blow them out Friday night setting up a G7 back in Memphis

[d2o 1602]

1 hour ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

Dude is like 6'1" and led the league in points in the paint. You can't leave him wide open at the three point line any more, which makes him virtually impossible to guard. He's only in year three and getting better and better. I don't think he's a finished product by any means. That said, he was also getting relentlessly hunted on defense last night by Edwards. 

And then there's this. I mean, this is physics defying, warping the shape-time continuum type shit here. How can you even explain this?

 

Yeah this and that dunk on Poetl (sp?) have me convinced that these guys just dont believe a guy that small can jump from that far out and still dunk on them.  I can understand the thinking though cause that shit should be impossible.   Dude is jumping from the dotted line and dunking on folks at 6'1.   We never seen shit like that before.

[SilasCoade 2622]

I will cut @ztejas a little slack after looking back at some data. I think the closes comp for Ja right now is actually Derrick Rose but statistically Russ at age 22 wasn't that far off. Granted Russ was playing next to KD at the time so that has to be taken into account. Ja has a better FG% and 3P% than Russ really ever did and Ja has a significantly lower turnover rate. Surprisingly for the triple-double king, Ja is roughly the same rebounder and defender. Statistics aside, Ja is not a bitch and Russ always has been.

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

1 hour ago, Pam Cummings said:

That's another thing though. This display of athleticism is wild, and obviously i am very entertained(this is the best series so far), but that athleticism doesn't last. And that's what always worries me with these types of players, especially when they are undersized and need that athleticism to be their most effective. Dude can do that now but what about in 5 years? That's a lot of NBA games played right there and he's already missed time with injury. Even losing a little bit of that explosiveness will make him have to change his game.

All that is reasonable, but I think he's got a longer shelf life than 5 years. What's the best comp here, Allen Iverson? AI was productive until he was 33 or so and he was consistently among the NBA leaders in minutes played, not to mention that he was living a lifestyle that was not particularly conducive to prolonged health and longevity (to be kind).

Iverson averaged more than 40 minutes per game for the first 11 years of his career (one year was 39.4 mpg -- another was 43.7 mpg!).  Ja is right around 32 mpg. That's like an extra game off every 5 games for Morant in comparison. With what is going on today with regard to load management, advances in training and nutrition, not smoking blunts and gambling until 4 am every night, etc., I think he's got a decent chance to have a long, productive career. All guys have to change their game as they age from AI to MJ to Lebron to Tim Duncan to Tony Parker to Jason Kidd to Ja. That's just part of the deal.

[PittsburghTiger 6178]

Is there a reason that Steven Adams has gotten no time in the series? Is he hurt? Or is it a matchup thing?

[Baboontyme 2810]

7 minutes ago, PittsburghTiger said:

Is there a reason that Steven Adams has gotten no time in the series? Is he hurt? Or is it a matchup thing?

He cannot move his feet so he gets caught in the blender on the perimeter with KAT and in p&r situations. He was in heavy foul trouble for the first game or two when Jenkins decided to play Clarke/Anderson/Tillman more. 

[PittsburghTiger 6178]

5 minutes ago, Baboontyme said:

He cannot move his feet so he gets caught in the blender on the perimeter with KAT and in p&r situations. He was in heavy foul trouble for the first game or two when Jenkins decided to play Clarke/Anderson/Tillman more. 

That's a bit what I was guessing. I haven't watched any of this series, just looked at the box scores.

[d2o 1602]

41 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

All that is reasonable, but I think he's got a longer shelf life than 5 years. What's the best comp here, Allen Iverson? AI was productive until he was 33 or so and he was consistently among the NBA leaders in minutes played, not to mention that he was living a lifestyle that was not particularly conducive to prolonged health and longevity (to be kind).

Iverson averaged more than 40 minutes per game for the first 11 years of his career (one year was 39.4 mpg -- another was 43.7 mpg!).  Ja is right around 32 mpg. That's like an extra game off every 5 games for Morant in comparison. With what is going on today with regard to load management, advances in training and nutrition, not smoking blunts and gambling until 4 am every night, etc., I think he's got a decent chance to have a long, productive career. All guys have to change their game as they age from AI to MJ to Lebron to Tim Duncan to Tony Parker to Jason Kidd to Ja. That's just part of the deal.

Right, saying Ja will fall off if/when he isnt super athletic is assuming that he will never work on his game to have tricks, moves, shots that dont require him to be super athletic.  Every great player added to their game to offset getting older.   Nothing I've seen from Ja says that he wont do the same.

[HookEm 2467]

People are saying Ja is small, but really he is just light and will add bulk as he gets older.  He has decent height and excellent wingspan.  His standing reach is more like someone who is 6'5.

Here are some measurements of other point-guards drafted over the last 15 years.  

• Ja - 6’2 with 6’7 wingspan,  175 lbs, 42” vertical
• Chris Paul - 6’0 with 6’4 wingspan, 179 lbs
• Trae Young - 6’1 with 6’3 wingspan, 178 lbs
• Kyrie - 6’2 with 6’4 wingspan, 191 lbs
• Lillard - 6’2 with 6’8 wingspan, 189 lbs
• De’Aaron Fox - 6’2 with 6’6 wingspan, 170 lbs
• Curry - 6’3 with 6’4 wingspan, 181 lbs
• Westbrook - 6’4 with 6’7 wingspan, 192 lbs

One good sign to me that he has improved his eFG% while also increasing his volume.  He is also up to >34% from 3 and will keep getting better.  Memphis really needs to add another major weapon and decrease his usage to help him get to the next level. 

[Vegas64 673]

3 hours ago, HookEm said:

People are saying Ja is small, but really he is just light and will add bulk as he gets older.  He has decent height and excellent wingspan.  His standing reach is more like someone who is 6'5.

Here are some measurements of other point-guards drafted over the last 15 years.  

• Ja - 6’2 with 6’7 wingspan,  175 lbs, 42” vertical
• Chris Paul - 6’0 with 6’4 wingspan, 179 lbs
• Trae Young - 6’1 with 6’3 wingspan, 178 lbs
• Kyrie - 6’2 with 6’4 wingspan, 191 lbs
• Lillard - 6’2 with 6’8 wingspan, 189 lbs
• De’Aaron Fox - 6’2 with 6’6 wingspan, 170 lbs
• Curry - 6’3 with 6’4 wingspan, 181 lbs
• Westbrook - 6’4 with 6’7 wingspan, 192 lbs

One good sign to me that he has improved his eFG% while also increasing his volume.  He is also up to >34% from 3 and will keep getting better.  Memphis really needs to add another major weapon and decrease his usage to help him get to the next level. 

Lillard’s wingspan is surprising. I loved him in his prime but he’s the exhibit A of how fast you seem to fall off a cliff when your “athleticism” peak is over, which doesn’t bode well for Ja if making that comp.

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

2 hours ago, Vegas64 said:

Lillard’s wingspan is surprising. I loved him in his prime but he’s the exhibit A of how fast you seem to fall off a cliff when your “athleticism” peak is over, which doesn’t bode well for Ja if making that comp.

Lillard for sure seemed like he was completely washed this year. I don't know how much of that was injury, but he really needs a strong comeback next season. I know that if I were a GM, I wouldn't want to be on the hook for that $48.7 million in 2024-25.

[SilasCoade 2622]

I'm giving Lillard a pass until next season. No way to know how long he was playing with that abdominal injury. He would have kept trying to play through it if the team hadn't decided to tank.

[Make em eat Taco Bell 1549]

I didn't realize CP3 is listed at only 6'0" as he plays much bigger, always thought he's 6'2 - 6'3.  The rest seem the same. Absolute height is a bit overrated due to arm length, shoulder level, upper body flexibility and hand size.  There's something called "reach" that is more important than absolute height. 

Weird how 3 of these guys were Rockets in the last few years.  Wall getting paid $47million next year for nothing. 

And look at the combined annual salaries! 

[HookEm 2467]

I actually think with Ja's style, he is better off staying somewhat slender.  I'm most concerned about his knees and ankles.  Curry would fly around all over the place and was amazingly durable.  

I'm also not ready to give up on Lillard.  Back a year ago, he was 2nd team all-NBA.  When he finally falls off, it will be a slow decline more like Chris Paul or Kyle Lowry. He will have some bad years with injury and then he will bounce back for some good years.

 

[Kermit 3156]

22 minutes ago, HookEm said:

I actually think with Ja's style, he is better off staying somewhat slender.  I'm most concerned about his knees and ankles.  Curry would fly around all over the place and was amazingly durable.  

I'm also not ready to give up on Lillard.  Back a year ago, he was 2nd team all-NBA.  When he finally falls off, it will be a slow decline more like Chris Paul or Kyle Lowry. He will have some bad years with injury and then he will bounce back for some good years.

 

Curry had ankle problems and that’s the reason why he got such a shitty second contract.

[Message Board User 12395]

 

[shadow_operative 15932]

1 hour ago, Make em eat Taco Bell said:

I didn't realize CP3 is listed at only 6'0" as he plays much bigger, always thought he's 6'2 - 6'3.  The rest seem the same. Absolute height is a bit overrated due to arm length, shoulder level, upper body flexibility and hand size.  There's something called "reach" that is more important than absolute height. 

Weird how 3 of these guys were Rockets in the last few years.  Wall getting paid $47million next year for nothing. 

And look at the combined annual salaries! 

this photo from 4-5 years ago is when i realized how small CP3 actually was:

then again i remember when he was in HS and committed to Wake, i felt like he was too small to be as highly rated as he was (i was wrong, lol) so maybe i shouldn't have been that surprised in the first place. 

[Quagmire 2147]

 

Fuck booker

[Francisco 2.0 32389]

 

 

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

Maybe I'm not giving the Heat enough credit, but Celtics / Bucks is for my money, the de facto eastern conference finals. That should be a great series. I hope Middleton gets back. 

[Wulaw Horn 19069]

36 minutes ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

 

Either way is scary time. 

[Wulaw Horn 19069]

12 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

Maybe I'm not giving the Heat enough credit, but Celtics / Bucks is for my money, the de facto eastern conference finals. That should be a great series. I hope Middleton gets back. 

I’m not sure Miami beats Philly. I’m not sure Ohilly beats Toronto. Since Harden is incapable of getting to the hole now both those things depend upon how well Embiid can get used to the thumb, what percentage  harden is going hit from 3 and which Maxey shows up. 
but yeah- Bucks C’s winner is going to win the East. 
 

[Baboontyme 2810]

No one asked me but to me, Ja's potential is almost limitless. His physical skill combined with his already high IQ and his basketball instincts make him a generational type of prospect. The only one who will limit his ceiling is himself or injuries. How bad does he want it? How strong is his will? Can he work like Kobe? I don't know the answers. He seems a little thin skinned to me a la early KD but that could be a good thing depending on how he uses it. I'm here for it, I'm a huge fan. 

[Mitch Cumsteen 18547]

1 hour ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

 

You take Kyrie every time because he also functions as coach and GM. 

[aggie08 21495]

1 hour ago, Francisco 2.0 said:

 

 

I can punch myself in the dick for free.

[4doorsMoreWhores 107]

11 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

You take Kyrie every time because he also functions as coach and GM. 

Coach on the floor. Invaluable

[bluto 4915]

Gordon is laying it on the line tonight, insane effort

[Vegas64 673]

Bones Hyland is like Ja Morant if Ja was weaker and too skinny. 

[BigOrange1 6435]

3 minutes ago, bluto said:

Gordon is laying it on the line tonight, insane effort

no shit, guy is all over the place.  fun to watch.  hope denver can pull it off but every time they get some breathing room, golden state immediately goes on a quick 5-0 run.

[aggie08 21495]

Giannis has a strong case, but, for my money, Jokic is the best player in the league. He's been having a quiet night, struggling with foul trouble...and he has 19 fucking rebounds.

[Dutchrudder 11137]

Denver just can't make an offensive play to save their lives. They look like they have no plan every time they take the ball down the court. The slightest bit of defense makes them pass back out to the 3 point line and start over, even with like 5 seconds left on the shot clock.