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WCF: Warriors vs Blazers

Vic Mackey

By Vic Mackey
in Basketball

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youdunnf'dup

youdunnf'dup 2147

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2 hours ago, totallynotabuttpirate said:

I feel like they're a better team with KD. 

They certainly are, but they’re now 30-1 without him. No need to rehash any of this. No matter how you slice it. To lose a player the caliber of KD and still have a record like that over a 31 game stretch is just unbelievable. 

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BradInATX

BradInATX 9208

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Remember when the western conference finals would always be two badass teams? I’m not sure what happened, but Portland fucking sucks. 

 

Kawhi's bitch move created a vacuum in that top 2 Western conference team tier. That spot defaulted to a team made up of three of the weakest minded nba personalities in, well, ever.  Warriors pretty much have a monopoly on the fiery guys that don't wilt when pressure is on, save the guy that went to LA to disappear from the public eye and the guy that probably will next year. Maybe Giannis has enough, but probably not. There are a lot of talented players in the league right now, but there's a severe shortage of alphas. Outside of the homegrown Warriors, most of the best players in the league (KD, Harden, AD, both the OKC guys) are bitches.

 

 

 

 

 

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youdunnf'dup

youdunnf'dup 2147

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1 minute ago, BradInATX said:

Kawhi's bitch move created a vacuum in that top 2 Western conference team tier. That spot defaulted to a team made up of three of the weakest minded nba personalities in, well, ever.

Warriors pretty much have a monopoly on the fiery guys that don't wilt when pressure is on, save the guy that went to LA and the guy that probably will next year. Maybe Giannis has enough, but probably not.

If they win that series, and Giannis plays like the MVP that he is in his first finals, against this team, then the sky really is the limit in terms of where he could finish in NBA history. Because I’ll believe Milwaukee’s bench will be the difference in that series when I see it. The warriors just have that heart of a champion and they’re on a mission right now.

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BradInATX

BradInATX 9208

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If they win that series, and Giannis plays like the MVP that he is in his first finals, against this team, then the sky really is the limit in terms of where he could finish in NBA history. Because I’ll believe Milwaukee’s bench will be the difference in that series when I see it. The warriors just have that heart of a champion and they’re on a mission right now.
Yeah, that wasn't a shot at Giannis at all. He's 100% a future HOF and NBA champion. He's the truth. But I don't think he can drag that team to 4 wins against the Warriors.
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LTtxfan

LTtxfan 49360

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6 hours ago, youdunnf'dup said:

So apparently Iguodala has some sort of lower leg injury. Something to monitor. They definitely need him if KD is out.

And Dame has separated ribs. JFC

GSW just wearing Dame out physically with all the doubleteams.... not enough other playmakers on Blazers team if both CJ and Rodney Hood don't have big games.  

Portland just doesn't play strong enough defense to disrupt the GSW offense.  As a result, the Blazers aren't able to run their fast break offense very much because they are not getting many defensive rebounds. 

GSW also appears to be the fresher team..... Portland just looks worn out and spent by the 3rd quarter of each game.  Best game I've ever seen Draymond play was Game 3 yesterday!!

 

Edited by LTtxfan
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d2o

d2o 1602

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42 minutes ago, PittsburghTiger said:

They just said on TV that it looks like an Achilles sprain, not a tear, but a sprain.

Seemed to be walking too normally for it to be an achilles.  I'd be surprised if it was that.

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aggie08

aggie08 21534

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3 minutes ago, d2o said:

Seemed to be walking too normally for it to be an achilles.  I'd be surprised if it was that.

Windhorst said that the team told him that's it's something Iggy has been dealing with for awhile, and that he had a hard minutes cap last night. I guess he just aggravated it worse than normal, but it doesn't seem like anyone is terribly concerned. No chance that he plays again in this series unless there's a Game 6 though. 11 days until Game 1 of the Finals. Come on down, Alfonzo McKinnie.

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d2o

d2o 1602

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1 minute ago, aggie08 said:

Windhorst said that the team told him that's it's something Iggy has been dealing with for awhile, and that he had a hard minutes cap last night. I guess he just aggravated it worse than normal, but it doesn't seem like anyone is terribly concerned. No chance that he plays again in this series unless there's a Game 6 though. 11 days until Game 1 of the Finals. Come on down, Alfonzo McKinnie.

Yeah he and KD (if he actually makes it back) will be very rested.   The Finals schedule is set no matter whether the Bucks sweep or not so they will have close to two weeks toget back to full strength

Boogie may even be ready by then too

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aggie08

aggie08 21534

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"I've been really focused and locked in on that, and I realized I got to a point where I was doing more crying than playing. I'm sure it was disgusting to watch because I felt disgusting playing that way, and I just wanted to lock back in on the game.

I understand that officials aren't perfect, and I still have conversations with them now when they miss a call, but it's completely different conversations. You know, my mom has been really big [in helping me]. My fiancée has been really big [with] just talking to me about that and just telling me to stay locked in on the game. I also have some little ones at the house that's enjoying watching me play. I don't necessarily want them to see that. So just try to be more mindful of it."

 

Sure, Dray. I'm sure that attitude will last right up until you're down double-digits to a team that you actually worry about beating you.

Edited by aggie08
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Slacks

Slacks 6862

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I've been really focused and locked in on that, and I realized I got to a point where I was doing more crying than playing. I'm sure it was disgusting to watch because I felt disgusting playing that way, and I just wanted to lock back in on the game.
I understand that officials aren't perfect, and I still have conversations with them now when they miss a call, but it's completely different conversations. You know, my mom has been really big [in helping me]. My fiancée has been really big [with] just talking to me about that and just telling me to stay locked in on the game. I also have some little ones at the house that's enjoying watching me play. I don't necessarily want them to see that. So just try to be more mindful of it.
 
Sure, Dray. I'm sure that attitude will last right up until you're down double-digits to a team that you actually worry about beating you.
What team would that be?

Like I said, when Draymond realizes he can just play and use his emotions to elevate his team and game positively, he's going to be hard to beat.

People tend to mature. Great players have to.

We will see.
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aggie08

aggie08 21534

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4 minutes ago, Snacks said:

What team would that be?

Like I said, when Draymond realizes he can just play and use his emotions to elevate his team and game positively, he's going to be hard to beat.

People tend to mature. Great players have to.

We will see.

I'm sure they realize that an 18 point deficit against the Buck won't be so easy to erase, creating emotions that have caused Dray to lash out in the past.

I do think it's pretty cool that, after the Game 1 Rockets/Warriors ref bitching, he, of all people, came out and basically said that both teams need to shut the hell up and realize that they're representing the game in a poor fashion. And he's largely backed that up since then. He's taken layups without yelling "And 1!" for probably the first time in his career.

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Mitch Cumsteen

Mitch Cumsteen 18583

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Yeah... the guy with three technical fouls in 15 playoff games this year is suddenly being mindful and productively channeling his frustrations into the game. Next series he's most likely going to have to spend a good chunk of time checking Giannis. Let's see some of that Buddha kick in after he gets his head dunked through the basket.

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Mitch Cumsteen

Mitch Cumsteen 18583

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Also, this Portland series is really tailor made for Draymond. He doesn't have to stay at home on any of their forwards and can play rover on defense, which really let's him take advantage of his unique basketball IQ. He's directing traffic, trapping on picks, playing passing lanes, helping out at the rim, getting boards and starting the break. He isn't going to be able to play that way against Milwaukee. He's either going to be bodying up Middleton or Giannis, or sticking with Ilyasova, Mirotic or Lopez 25 feet from the hoop.

And all this talk about the W's bench is fun right now. It's all relative to their opponent. Don't get me wrong, they were great last night but Portland has nobody that can take advantage of them. Last night Kerr started a guy who hadn't played in five months to try to steal some minutes. And for Portland, Meyers fucking Leonard started and played 31 (mostly good, especially in the first half) minutes in the WCF. I don't think people understand how good the Bucks roster is. They just got Brogdan back and he's a 50/40/90 borderline all star coming off their bench. Point being, the Ws aren't going to be able to steal minutes against Milwaukee. They are going to have to push minutes for their stars.

Obviously both teams have some work to do, but this is going to be a fascinating finals matchup.

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MNLonghornFUKM

MNLonghornFUKM 8822

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2 hours ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

Also, this Portland series is really tailor made for Draymond. He doesn't have to stay at home on any of their forwards and can play rover on defense, which really let's him take advantage of his unique basketball IQ. He's directing traffic, trapping on picks, playing passing lanes, helping out at the rim, getting boards and starting the break. He isn't going to be able to play that way against Milwaukee. He's either going to be bodying up Middleton or Giannis, or sticking with Ilyasova, Mirotic or Lopez 25 feet from the hoop.

And all this talk about the W's bench is fun right now. It's all relative to their opponent. Don't get me wrong, they were great last night but Portland has nobody that can take advantage of them. Last night Kerr started a guy who hadn't played in five months to try to steal some minutes. And for Portland, Meyers fucking Leonard started and played 31 (mostly good, especially in the first half) minutes in the WCF. I don't think people understand how good the Bucks roster is. They just got Brogdan back and he's a 50/40/90 borderline all star coming off their bench. Point being, the Ws aren't going to be able to steal minutes against Milwaukee. They are going to have to push minutes for their stars.

Obviously both teams have some work to do, but this is going to be a fascinating finals matchup.

Warriors are going to go all out to win tomorrow and close out Portland. Thatll give them 10 days to rest until the Finals starts on the 30th

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Vic Mackey

Vic Mackey 47157

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"After defeating the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-99, on Saturday to take a 3-0 series lead in the Western Conference finals, the Golden State Warriors have now won four straight playoff games without Kevin Durant. If you count the gutsy win in Game 5 vs. the Rockets, in which Durant missed most of the second half, they've essentially won five straight playoff games without Durant. 

Now, let's flip the script. Let's say it was Stephen Curry, rather than Durant, who got hurt against the Rockets and went on to miss the rest of that Game 5 and the four subsequent games. Are the Warriors still 5-0 in that span? Think before you answer, and don't take the lazy way out by laughing off the idea that a basketball team might actually be better, or at least largely unaffected, without arguably the best player in the world. 

Really think about it. 

Are the Warriors 5-0 if it's Durant playing instead of Curry?

From the moment Durant took the floor for the first time with the Warriors back in 2016, fans and media alike have been obsessed with the "Curry or Durant" debate. Whose team is it? Who's the better player? On one level, these are pointless questions. Golden State has both of them. Who cares which one is better? But on another level, they might not have both for long. Most people think Durant is gone this summer, and if that indeed proves true, the question of what this Warriors team is, and can be, without him is a very important one. 

"Put it this way: They'll be the favorite to win the title as long as Durant is there," a league exec recently told CBS Sports. "Without Durant, I don't think they would be the favorite. I don't know who would be. It would be pretty open, I think. We'll have to see how the summer shakes out. But Golden State would still be very good, but not the favorite in my opinion. I mean, we're talking about Kevin Durant." 

In fairness, we're also talking about Stephen Curry, who has now scored 207 points in 213 minutes since Durant went down against Houston. Have you any idea how ridiculous that is? That is 46.6 points per 48 minutes, the length of one NBA game. When you look at what is happening to Damian Lillard in this series, watching him all but disappear under the weight of the Warriors' constant traps and double teams, it only makes you appreciate Curry's greatness even more. 

Curry, after all, has been seeing that type of defense for the last six years, the same defense that can render one of the 10 or 15 best players in the world virtually invisible, and he's still managed to do what he's done. Two MVPs. One the only unanimous vote in NBA history. A mind-boggling 1,578 made 3-pointers, on 43-percent shooting, over the last five seasons, including an NBA record 402 in 2016 before Durant ever showed up. A scoring title. A 26.5 PPG scoring average. 

Most importantly, the Warriors won a championship when it was just Curry leading the charge. The next season, they won an NBA record 73 games and went to Game 7 of the Finals. And still, somehow, there is this idea that Curry and the Warriors "need" Durant to win. They don't. This has been proven a hundred different ways. Are you ready for this? Over the last 31 games that the Warriors have played with Curry and without Durant, they are 30-1.

You can trace this all the way back to when Durant arrived in 2016. Since that time, in the 37 games that Curry has played without Durant, the Warriors are 33-4. That's better than a 73-win pace over an NBA season. Over that same time frame, when Durant has played without Curry, the Warriors are 28-18. That's a 49-win pace. 

From the moment the Warriors embarked upon this postseason, there's been this sort of "last hurrah" narrative attached to their run, as if to imply that when and if Durant leaves this whole thing is going to come to an end. What evidence is there that such a notion is even remotely accurate? I'll give you a hint: There isn't any. In fact, 100 percent of the evidence points to the contrary -- that when it comes to this Warriors team, as long as Stephen Curry is around, Kevin Durant is more of a luxury than a necessity. 

People won't take it this way, but this is not a knock on Durant, who is clearly one of the greatest basketball players to ever live. The simple truth is that Curry is also one of the greatest players to ever live, and he is restrained next to Durant. And when Curry is even relatively restrained, there is something different about the Warriors. Something not quite quantifiable but palpably real. 

After Game 2, Seth Curry said what a lot of people have been thinking, that the Warriors are harder to guard without Durant. It's true. Everyone moves more. Shares more. Stands around less. There is an inclusivity to a Curry-led attack, a joyful, almost rambunctious energy that trickles through the team like sugar at a birthday party. Yes, Curry is a monster playing off the ball, running around as part decoy/part Reggie Miller reincarnation. There is no doubt about that. 

But Curry WITH the ball is a whole different beast. Curry completely unleashed as an off-the-dribble playmaker, as the head of an ever-swerving snake hunting shots from all angles, is the single most dangerous weapon the NBA has seen since Michael Jordan -- while the Warriors, by extension, with or without Durant, are the single-most dominant team since those Bulls. 

We have been reminded of that these past five games. 

And if Durant does decide to leave this summer, we'd be wise not to forget it. "
 

https://www.cbssports.com/g00/nba/news/2019-nba-playoffs-stephen-curry-warriors-reminding-us-that-kevin-durant-is-more-luxury-than-necessity/?i10c.ua=1&i10c.encReferrer=aHR0cHM6Ly9pdHNieC5jb20vcmVkaXJlY3QvP3VybD1odHRwczovL3d3dy5jYnNzcG9ydHMuY29tL25iYS9uZXdzLzIwMTktbmJhLXBsYXlvZmZzLXN0ZXBoZW4tY3Vycnktd2FycmlvcnMtcmVtaW5kaW5nLXVzLXRoYXQta2V2aW4tZHVyYW50LWlzLW1vcmUtbHV4dXJ5LXRoYW4tbmVjZXNzaXR5Lw%3d%3d&i10c.dv=6

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UTDD

UTDD 362

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3 hours ago, NowThis said:

KD was absolutely necessary in 2017 to beat Lebron and Kyrie.  2018 maybe not so much as KI was gone. 2019, they're not facing Lebron and Greek isn't at that level yet. 

Definitely agree with you about 2017 and I think Golden State cruises against Cleveland in 2018 without KD, but the Houston series is the real question there.  I don't think any team this year is as good as 2016 or 2017 Cleveland so I think Golden State can win this year without KD if Draymond (I expect Curry and Klay to mostly play well without KD as that's been the pattern fairly consistently) keeps playing at this high level.  He's playing fantastic (plus not much drama) right now.

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conVINCEd

conVINCEd 21469

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Shaun Livingston might be the best player in the history of the league at the 8-10 ft. “push shot.”  It’s not a layup, it’s not an actual jump shot, it’s something in between, and I’d be willing to bet that he makes about 90% of them.

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