NBA Play-offs

I doubt the Celtics hold their ranking in the East.

I've seen the 76'ers the last couple of games--based on how they are playing at the moment it would not surprise me to see them end up in the finals.

Not so sure about Toronto making it out of the East. They seem to fold in big moments. I think the wizards will give them a good series in the 1st round & if they make it past them they will most likely have to deal w/ lebron in round 2.

Not so sure about the Raptors but Houston is always pushing hard Pops is always a smart bet, but James in Cleveland could go on a tear same with the Warriors they have the horses we need to wait and see how the first two rounds shake out there is no real clear favorite this year.

It’s probably gonna be the same as it always has been. BUT, who is more likely to get knocked off, Cavs or Warriors this year?

So many injuries.Steph Curry from the Warriors probably won’t play in the first round. Kyrie Irving from the Celtics is out for the rest of the season. Kawhi Leonard for the Spurs probably won’t play in the postseason. Joel Embid from the Sixers just had eye surgery, even if he plays he won’t be 100%.

It’s unbelievable how the Cleveland avoided the tough matchups in the first round. Toronto is the 1 seed and they have to play the Wizards in the first round. If Cleveland played Washington in the first round, Cleveland could get upset. The 2 seed Boston has to play Milwaukee in the first round. Milwaukee has the Greek Freak, Eric Bledsoe, Jabari Parker, they have some firepower. If Cleveland played Milwaukee in the first round, Cleveland would probably win, but it would be a 6 or 7 game series. The 3 seed Philadelphia has to play Miami in the first round. If Cleveland had to play Miami in the first round, Miami could definitely beat Cleveland. Miami has had LeBron’s number since he came back to Cleveland. But instead Cleveland gets to play Indiana in the first round, it will be a cakewalk for Cleveland.

Because of all the injuries in the West I see the Rockets making it to the Finals. Because of all the injuries in the East I see the Cavaliers making it to the Finals. I see the Rockets beating the Cavaliers in 6 games.

If the Knicks or Nets win any games - those will be huge upsets!

The NBA is fixed.

^^^and LeBron isn’t the GOAT ;)

^ Don't patronize me bro

We can’t even discuss the playoffs without patronizing comments! Nothing new here.

Don’t try to bully me Cashlessman! ;)

I just hope it's something new and not Cavs vs warriors again.

LeBron isn’t the GOAT. I agree 25.

Well Cash and 25 are flaunting their ignorance.

Mamasan is your goat named LeBron, if so save it for flagooner so he can have some yanky wanky, cause his ignorance is patronizing;)

LeBron is a great player - but he doesn’t have the skills or charisma of a player like Jordan.

The NBA was incredibly popular across the league - when Jordan was at his peak.

Mamisan needs to post more often. I can always use a good laugh.

And NO, Lebron is not the GOAT ! Although he did have a one hour TV show to tell us where he was taking his talents to !

Why are we talking lebron? Goat or not(he's not) hes also not getting to the finals and may not even get past the second round.

The way gsw is playing they are going 6 or 7 games with san antonio and they also might not get past the second round w/o curry.

I love it!

My prediction is very specific. Lebron will not be in the finals this year. However, two minutes after ESPN starts it's report on the final championship game, they will start talking about Lebron again.

That's because he is the undisputed GOAT, at least by any rational measure.

I’m sure he believes he’s the GOAT.

He keeps making the same move - and he whines like a baby if they don’t call a foul! Big LeBron got touched on his way to the hole - and he’s very upset someone breathed on him on the way....

LeBron is going to LAL next year. Watch.

All these injuries suck. I didn't even know Kyrie was out all year. If he and Hayward were healthy together I would pick Boston as the obvious choice from the East, but now, it's a toss up --- and not looking good for Boston.

If Steph is healthy for the WCF then the Warriors will be in the finals. If not, it'll be Houston. When Steph first got this current injury, I actually was adamant about resting him first round even if he were to be cleared to play. So I'm not surprised they've ruled him out. I sure hope he's healthy for the next round.

It's important to note how garbage James Harden is in the playoffs. A couple years ago, he broke the record for most turnovers in a playoff game (and that might've been his own record he broke for all I know). And it was so bad, I remember one of the commentators saying something along the lines of, "man, it must be so terrible to keep playing this badly night after night" regarding Harden. So keep that in mind.

I think the Warriors can handle the Spurs fine without Steph. We will find out today how things are looking.

I understand that Klay Thompson is looking to leave GSW. Apparently he is tired of getting teased the past 3 seasons for having a small penis.

^^^So stop teasing him ;) I hadn’t noticed anyone but you doing that!

Nina, You are correct about Harden in the playoffs last year. He was trying to do too much and turned the ball over repeatedly. But with the addition of Chris Paul, he won't have to be the primary ball handler in crunch time. The Rockets are going to sail thru the entire playoffs pretty easily. Harden will be MVP. And Clint Cappella will be a wealthy many next year as he is a free agent.

^ TMZ Sports reported it. I guess he has been taking a lot of teasing from his teammates.

"Apparently he is tired of getting teased the past 3 seasons for having a small penis."

It's not small, I checked.

^^^I'm sure Klay appreciates you standing up for him Nina, Donald has a loyalty test as well .)

Is anyone watching this Warriors/Spurs game? Klay getting a tech? Bullshit. All bias aside, he's so well mannered and rarely gets techs. Very respectful towards refs --- one of the Warriors' "voice of reason" when OTHER guys get mad to the point of possibly getting a tech. What a bullshit call. That's why he hit a nice three right after.

Whatevs. He's still my boyfriend, Steve Kerr is still my uncle (or SD, haven't decided), Draymond his my homie (from Michigan just like me), KD is my back-up boyfriend, Steph Curry is obviously my cousin. I'm so happy to see my loved ones doing well.

"Nina, You are correct about Harden in the playoffs last year."

Hunni I was talking about 2015...

Is anybody watching the Boston Milwaukee game its in overtime due to some clutch three pointers by both teams it’s been an exciting last 4 minutes

Yeah, Boston though they had it won with a half second left. Them BOOM. Overtime. The Greek is going to be a Beast in the future.

Boston won in OT because Milwaukee just ran out of gas !

i was watching game 1 of bucks vs. celtics. what an exciting finish!

Well hell, gas is at a 4-year high.

Lebron’s team is getting killed, let’s hope the Pacers can keep it up!

LeBron led the NBA in minutes this year - crazy and not smart IMO - he's not playing well - he may be tired

^^^you could be right he def looks a bit off today.

Pacers kept it up. Yay! Cavs smacked at home by 18 to Pacers.

Philly beat Miami.

Celtics won.

Warriors beat Spurs by like 21 (at GS)

Pelicans beat the Trailblazers.

Am I forgetting anything? Rockets on tonight, I think 9pm ET, on TNT. Jazz playing OKC now on TNT.

Thoughts so far?

Injury update: Steph Curry is progressing well, will be re-evaluated in one week (my opinion is they'll either clear him for round 2, or say he is "day-to-day" and play him only when needed to get to WCF).

Indiana Pacers are the best team that no one has ever hear of. They smacked the Cavs. During the broadcast, they said that the Cavs were on National TV 39 times this season. The Pacers were on a National broadcast exactly once during the season.

Rockets in a tight game vs Minnesota. I expect Houston to pull it off.

Always found it funny how far "west" the league thinks Minnesota is.

Close game in Houston with two minutes to go let's wait for the buzzer before declaring this one!

"Indiana Pacers are the best team that no one has ever hear of."

Well shit, I heard of em! When I was a kid, I hated when we (Pistons) played the Pacers in the playoffs. Especially with Reggie being the 3 point king at the time...

I did, however, LOVE watching the brawl at the Palace cuz Ron Artest wants to be a pussy and refuse to hit Ben Wallace who would've destroyed him, and went for a fan in the stands instead. Lil bitch. I was not present at that game, though. Me, my dad, and family where watching it (and recording it) live. Can't remember if all the DVR shit was readily available yet... If not, we had it taped on VHS. My dad is tech savvy so maybe it was recorded by cable. We were watching live though, and man, was it great. Even though the Pistons lost that game lol.

Nina, most leagues have had some interesting geographical alignments over the years. Atlanta and Cincy were once in the NL west in MLB. Dallas is in the NFC East.

Huntsman - I know. It's just something that's been funny to me, like, since I was a really lil kiddo first getting into basketball. Minnesota's WNBA team was also a part of the western conference and I always thought it was nuts :)

We are pretty thrilled to have the Lynx here. They win!

Nina you really know your stuff!

I enjoyed the playoffs this weekend, especially aincey Warriors opened up strong for game one. I think the draw we got gives us the best chance. I did NOT wanna see OKC or Utah first round. Spurs without Kawhi is almost not fair. I mean I know they got Aldridge but that's just not enough.

Next round will be a totally different story for us. If we have to face New Orleans we're gonna be seriously tested. Not gonna.be the same as our first round against them in 2015 where we swept.

I LOVED seeing the Cavs get smacked at home. That man Lance Stevenson was balling! That dunk he had over damn near the entire Cavs team pretty much summed up that game.

Utah vs OKC wasn't as entertaining as I thought it was gonna be. Timberwolves/Celtics however was amazing, especially the last minute of the 4th.

The game that just concluded was pretty damn good also. The expected result, but I thought it was gonna be a shalacking, not the game I just saw.

Go Warriors! Man I hope Steph will be ok to go by at least the third game of the 2nd round.

"We are pretty thrilled to have the Lynx here. They win!"

OMG YOU DON'T KNOW HOW ELATED I AM TO HEAR YOU SAY THAT. SERIOUSLY.

'Nina you really know your stuff!"

Awww thanks babe.

"The Pacers were on a National broadcast exactly once during the season."

How many national tv games did the heat and jazz play? Ultimately its about the superstars, and all the other playoffs teams have at least 1 1st or 2nd tier "superstar". Hell the lakers probably played as many national tv games as cleveland, probably because of all the(unwarrented) lonzo ball hype.

Trailblazers might be the first team to be 'gone fishin' this year. The Pelicans with Holiday and Anthony Davis look like too much for them to handle. A damn shame since the Trailblazers we're so good during the regular season. Lillard and McCollum having subpar games at the worst time.

Hoping to see the Cavs lose again tonight. And that Utah actually makes it a series with a win today.

With the Trailblazers having problems, looks this will help the GS Warriors a lot. They won't have to face a real hard challenge until the conference finals. That will give Curry plenty of time to heal.

And so much for the Wizards giving the Raptors problems. Toronto looks good.

^Agreed.

Houston tonight.

James Harden's mom tonight.

I'll be doin' her during the game, just so y'all know.

C’mon wolves. Get the ball to KAT more and shock some people.

GOAT

One thing is obvious even in this early stage of the playoffs Cleveland is not going to be in the finals even if they manage to get past this round, LeBron is running out of gas and it shows. And they just don’t have the horses to get to the finish line.

Greg Pop's wife has passed.

^^^I Just heard about that what happened ?

If anyone is watching the wolves and rockets, Barack Obama appears to be working security in front of the bench when the refs go to the monitor.

Rockets taking care of business. My prediction of a Rockets-Raptors series is looking good so far.

Anyone watching the Heat-76ers game this afternoon it’s getting kind of chippy on the floor. Looks like a hockey game could break out any minute.

The attitudes change a lot once the teams get into the playoffs and the players get a lot more serious. Both of those teams have a lot of young players with not a lot of playoff experience. So it's not surprising that tempers would flare up. Veterans know what to expect this time of year. These kids are just now trying to establish their dominance.

The NBA season is long a boring. The playoffs are great.

@25
That chippiness was prevalent last game too

I think the refs need to assert a bit more control here, or someone’s gonna get hurt, it came pretty close in the first half, with a bunch of flagrant fouls, that weren’t assessed.

The Barcelona v. Sevilla Cop del Rey match has been pretty chippy too.

Trailblazers are the first to lose. Impressive performance by Anthony Davis and the Pelicans. Who needs DeMarcus Cousins ?

Who’s watching today Milwaukee beat Boston even though Boston came close in the last few minutes. Not surprised!
Watching San Antonio v Golden State rooting for the Spurs, I’d enjoy seeing San Antonio win this series, just because the Warriors act so fucking entitled.

As much as I would love to see the Warriors get knocked off, no one has ever come back in an NBA series from being down 0-3 in the play-off series.

Milwaukee has some good young players. The Greek is going to a star.

^^^Yada yada we know the history just like you, but I would be fun if the Warriors were the team it happened to.

Fuck that! We already blew a 3-1 lead in the finals and no one will ever let us live that down. No way we let these fools come back on us. This series is already over in mind, even if they win this one 'pride' game. Bravo for them, now come back to Roaracle and get that ass spanked!

I am absolutely worried about the Pelicans. They look fucking unstoppable right now. Cousins going out was the best thing that ever happened to them. Plus their head coach Alvin Gentry was an assistant to Steve Kerr for a few years so he knows the ins and outs of our team already. Scary stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if we lost that second round and gave way to a Pelicans/Rockets Western finals. I'd root for the Pelicans all the way from that point on.

Agree on the Pelicans. Anthony Davis poses real match-up problems with most teams. And he seems to be figuring out his game now. And Rondo knows how to run a team.

^^^^^playoff Rondo is always a threat. Way different than regular season Shaqtin a fool Rondo.

Fuck that noise, the Warriors are a seasoned playoff team that still has all its core championship players, when Steph comes back. Plus KD looks so ready. When KD is at championship caliber, the Warriors can't possibly be beat. I'll take the Warriors in 6, dare I say... that means the Pelicans will have to lose the series at home. I am not as worried about the Pelicans as everyone else. They didn't sweep a top seed, damn. As long as Steph is healthy by game 2 or so, we're fine. Even without Steph, the Warriors' biggest battle will come in the western conference finals, unless Harden chokes, which he's been known to do. And Steph will be back by then.

Nina, you do love your Warriors. What club do you work in again ? ;-)

Golden State will be tough if Curry comes back to full strength. But he's been out for a while. So he's gonna be a little rusty.

Pelicans will go down in 5

I hope all you guys are right. I never like to.be too confident. Especially ever since that 3-1 series lead that we blew. I had all the confidence in the world, even despite the fact we were losing Draymond for a game. Shit went sideways after that and it sucked. I didn't watch sportscenter for like an entire week.

I'm looking forward to Saturday.

"I didn't watch sportscenter for like an entire week."

Me either.

I also cried.

G.O.A.T.

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding us we forgot to talk about the Cavs who went up 3-2 in the series against the Pacers tonight, in an explosive 98-95 game, and now have learned to move from standing still a couple games ago and are now at a current jogging-page.

Who’s watching the Celtics v Bucks Game 7
Looks like Boston has the game in hand they’re up by 14 with a bit more than 3 minutes to go.

I'm watching it.

Can't work tonight with Warriors playing their first game this round and Steph is now listed as "questionable." :)

I’ll call this one Boston is gonna take game 7 and advance. Good job tough series for them!

Stephen isn't playing tonight, per Kerr

^Thats what I heard at halftime.

I am sure the Warriors will still win, and he will either come back game 2 or we will rest them if we're handling them with ease, so he can play games 3 & 4 which will be harder.

He is expected for game 2

Damn, dude made that shot from the other end of the court.

Warriors still up 21 at the half though.

Lebron had a good game. ( No he's not the GOAT ) So Lebron will be a Cavalier for a few more games. Toronto is gonna kill them in Round Two.

Rockets looking really good in taking apart the Jazz.

I'm still saying Rockets-Raptors in the Finals.

What a finish for Cleveland, beating the Raptors in overtime WOW

Raptors choked, bottom line. Hopefully this doesn't deflate them enough to cost them the series.

Meanwhile, helluva game out in Oakland. Curry of the bench looking like he hasn't missed a beat. Once Durant can actually hit a shot we might be able to take the lead here.

Enjoy these playoffs and your opportunity to witness the GOAT.

Steve Kerr is so full of himself. I know Curry is just coming back from an injury, but don’t disrespect him by bringing him off the bench when he’s been the MVP of the entire LEAGUE two of the last three years, and he’s still in his prime.

I did love on Inside The NBA Charles Barkley saying he wanted to punch Draymond Green in the face. LMAOOO.

The Raptors are still reliving what happened in 2016 & 2017. They should have won last night but the Cavs are inside their heads.

By far they are the better team this year, especially when it comes to defense and it wasn't just Lebron--Tristan came off the bench and played well as did Green. JR also had 20 points.

Warrenboy I definitely agree. I think the Cavs are totally in the Raptors heads. I hope they can shake it off and get a win next game.

I was hoping it'd be the same thing with my Warriors vs the Rockets (provided both teams make it to the next round). I thought that with the Warriors taking them out easily in years past that they might still be in their heads. But the Rockets look like a team that fully believes they are the best and ready to prove it. I really hope we get that matchup.

Curry saved our ass last night. If he didn't play, the series would be 1-1 right now. Durant and Klay were both cold for most of the night. As for Curry coming off the bench, I loved it. I felt Kerr used it kind of like a time out. Both Kerr and Gentry know that if either team gets momentum and goes on a run you have to stop it quickly. When Kerr put Curry in the Pelicans had gone on a run to take a good sized lead. Did you hear the crowd when Curry went to the scorers table? And then when he hit his first shot, a long range 3 pointer? It was amazing, and just what we needed.

Raptors are the better team but Cass have the GOAT. Makes for a competitive series.

I've seen Jurassic World. The Raptors need to make their next meal out of that old goat !

Rockets-Warriors series is going to be epic ! The winner of that series will win it all. My money is still on the Rockets.

Utah snagged a win. Houston has now given up their home court advantage.

Both Toronto and Houston, actually. ^

You can't go into a 2nd round play-off game and not respect your opponent. That's what the Rockets did last night. They just felt like they could turn it on at any moment and pull it out. Well, Donovan Mitchell is a heck of a player. But Jae Crowder did something really stupid at the end of the game. He got into James Harden's face and made him mad. The game was already over at that point, but Harden will remember that. I fully expect Harden to torch the Jazz for 50 next game. Rockets will still win in 5. They have been a very good road team all year.

I still say Rockets-Raptors. But I"m less confident about the Raptors.

That doesn't speak to highly of Harden. These guys are professionals. Someone getting in his face should have no impact on how he performs the next game. If it does, does that mean that he wouldn't give full effort without that incident?

Looks like LeBron put on a clinic lat night, I wouldn’t be feeling so good about the Raptors chances @Warrior15

I"m not so sure it was the Cavs playing well as it was the Raptors playing poorly. Mentally Toronto just can't handle them. Very disappointing. I think I'm going to stop predicting games and just enjoy the show.

@Warrior. None of you guys or gals give LeBron fair credit for his role in the game, he sores over 40 points has a bunch of rebounds and assists, yet it’s the Raptors choked, just like always this guy is in the thick of it, and if the Raptors choked it’s because LeBron got his hands around their collective throat.
I guess the haters gonna hate.

I give all the credit in the world to LeBron--my comments concerning the Cavs center around a lack of team defense, in part due to so many new faces brought over 2/3 into the season. If you don't know the guy you are playing with it's hard to play defense.

Additionally ( and I realize after yesterday this statement seems off base) I've never been a big Kevin Love fan and he is basically your 2nd option in the offense.

I've been a Cavs fan since most of the people on this board were wearing diapers but the Raptors are not playing smart. Pushing the ball hard upcourt and taking advantage of the size they have, making Love defend, is how to beat Cleveland and they are not doing either.

^^^One more point to remember Cleveland now has a 2-0 series lead and now the games switch to Cleveland, I’d say that might be the most compelling indication that the Cavs will probably make it into the finals again!

It's better team vs. GOAT. So far GOAT is winning.

Looks like the Pelicans aren’t gonna just lay down, they might make it a series, we’ll see tomorrow night how it’s gonna go.

Anthony Davis poses a real threat to the Warriors. They just don't have anybody to match up to him. But I have a feeling Steve Kerr will come up with a plan. Golden State just has too many weapons.

The Rockets came out and made a statement against the Jazz. They didn't like getting shown up by a rookie in Game 2. Defense won that game, which sounds weird when talking about the Rockets. They made Donovan Mitchell look like a rookie in Game 3.

^^^Do we give LeBron a broom tonight ?

I'm done with making predictions. No sweep tonight though. You gotta win 4 games and this is just #3. But the next two are in Cleveland, so the Raptors better make some changes or their season not gonna last much longer.

No sweep tonight the question is do they get a broom tonight? If they win tonight Cleveland is going to have a ton of pressure to finish the series at home, and as we’ve seen LeBron seems to thrive when the pressure is, on most of the time.

The Cavs can go broom shopping. The only reason that the Raps' collective heart will make it to Cleveland is that the Cavs already have it. One of the games will be within single digits, the other is going to be decided by at least 15. Just not sure which will be which.

That comment about giving LeBron a broom comes across as racist.

Don't they have a regular janitorial staff to take care of sweeping duties? I can't imagine they would ask the GOAT to do it even if it isn't specifically addressed in his contract.

^^^Snowflake *,}

^^^ Racist ;-}

^^^Eggbeater ;)

^^^Snowflake *,}......

millennials who take offense to everything you say even if it doesn't apply to them. They feel the world owes them something because they always been handed everything, including participation trophies their whole lives.

Somebody must have one 8th place in the don't potty in your diaper at kindergarten..........:--)

^^^ Using your definition of snowflake, my mistake was using the term on a guy, who's as old as dirt ; D

won...not one...........damn spell check........how old is flagooner? I always assumed he was some young whippersnapper......I'm the old guy in this group.

^^^How old are you whippersnapper ? I'm 64 .

60

He’ll @Warrenboy you’re just a young whippersnapper yourself, ;) just to let you know the mummies in King tuts pyramid are younger than that snowflake;)

Warriors couldn't buy a bucket last night. Thompson and Durant still look cold out there. Meanwhile Anthony Davis and company looked amazing. Mirotec was pulling up from Curry range and hitting threes. Anthony Davis was beating the entire Golden State team on the boards, Holiday was all over the place, and Rondo's assist totals continue to skyrocket. I pray that game 4 is much more competitive.

Cavs have that series wrapped up. The Raptors are the regular season gurus and the playoff chokers. LeBron has too much experience in the postseason to be missing around with those bums. He'll be awaiting the Western conference champs in the final. I just don't believe in either Boston or Philly taking them out. If Boston had Kyrie and Heywerd then I'd change my tune.

Can't wait for the games on Sunday!

Raptors are getting frustrated, game is getting chippy again. I think the Cavs are doing a good job controlling the tempo, it’s still in the third period. Looks good right now for Cleveland.

GOAT

^^^^^^I had a feeling I was gonna see that comment. Can't lie, that last shot was epic. He really is the best of our generation, clearly. And definitely a sound argument for him being the GOAT. But I won't touch it, I'll just watch everyone else debate it until the end of time. Or until LeBron like player comes along. Since 2003, haven't seen any.

Definitely one of the great ones, the end to that game was epic !

@TFP. Debate? There is no debate. LeBron is the GOAT.

^^^@flagooner whist better LeBron James at basketball or Donald J. Trump at POTUS ?
;)

Certainly LeBron

For basketball he is the GOAT.
For President, Reagan is THE GOAT.

^^^ Wait a minute. Aren't you the guy that was saying SJG's posts are full of useful information ?

Yes. 'Twas I.

And when you consider that, remember my tagline.

I think for presidents either Washington or Lincoln would be considered the Gold Standard.

I agree they would be in the discussion, but much is simply due to the circumstances/times in which they presided.

^^^Same is true about LeBron James

But if one were to say it they would be wrong

And if Two or three or many were to say it would they all be rong;)

Now you understand.

Thanks for clearing that up for us, now would you be kind enough to PM me the winning lottery numbers for next Saturday.

Who’s watching Cleveland tonight?

I am. And it looks like that old farm animal is going to advance. Did you get him a broom ?

I didn't want to be accused of jinx them, so I held of the purchase.

^I ordered a broom on Amazon.com said same day delivery, this sweep is complete.

So now the semi finals are set Cleveland v Boston starts Sunday Warriors v Rockets on Monday does anybody not expect the finals to be a rematch Cavs v Dubs ?

Cleveland would have had a more difficult time with the 76ers........as a Cavs fan I was pulling for the Celtics.

I'm not making any predictions anymore after Toronto laid an egg against the Cavs. But I don't think that either East team can beat either West team.

^^^Thats a prediction;)
I’m expecting a rough, competitive finalswith lots of fouls, and lots of flopping I won’t pick until the first or second game is played

Any Boston Celtics fans out there ? They just dismantled Lebron and the Cavs. Imagine how good the Celtics would be if they had their Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward playing.

The Celtics look like a team w/ a plan - the Cavs look in disarray - this appears to be a Celtics vs LeBron matchup, a good-team vs a good-player - i.e. I don't think LeBron will have enough-help to overcome a team

They played pretty soliddefense on LeBron. The shots he took looked like desperation shots and they always had the double team ready in case he tried to drive in the lane. Plus everybody on the Celtics was shooting the ball well.

I'm just glad this series is already better than that sorry Raptors series. That was probably the most disappointing series I ever watched from a number one seed.

Cant wait till tomorrow! Nervous, anxious, all that!

Any thoughts now that the WCF have started?

Scott Foster being a ref is not sitting well with me. He gambles on games and it's documented. Did anyone see last night's moment when Foster replayed the tape and changed KD's OBVIOUS 3 pointer to a regular 2pt field goal? Even the commentators were wondering how he could do that. It was odd.

Houston gave up home court advantage.

This finals will be full of threes, but I'm not quite sure it will be as amazing a series as people initially thought. Harden had over 40, and Steph had a subpar game compared to his standards, and the Warriors still won. Yikes.

GS just has too many weapons for any team to contend with - and in addition they also do the little things (hustle, play defense, solid bench, good coach and front-office) - they have stars and are also a well-rounded unselfish team

How long can they keep it together before salary demands force a dismantling?

Who? If you're talking about the Warriors, it's odd that instead of talking about the topic, you're talking salaries and being dismantled. Kinda shows how mad some fans are that the Warriors are so great. They also have salary cap space, so they will be fine.

Salary is probably gonna be an issue going forward unless GS is willing to pay a probably astronomical luxury-tax

I'm not mad at all and don't know why you think I am. I want their run to last because they are the most entertaining team to watch.

I just assume that in a salary cap league that a stockpile of immense talent will become cost prohibitive as contracts mature.

How far forward are we talking?

Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson's salaries expire AFTER next season (2018-2019). The Warriors' salary cap will be over 100 million by then so I'm sure they'll both sign another contract.

Draymond Green's contract extended to the 2019-2020 season. (So is Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala's)

Steph Curry's contract extends until the 2021-2022 season, so he's sticking around for a while.

As long as they're still winning, which I assume they will be, looks like the core group will be together for at least the next few years. Some will retire as Warriors, I bet.

The contracts arent the issue. Its the endorsement money and the tv money. They take pay cuts for their contracts because wtf, they still gonna get paid anyway.

Well I agree, I was just pointing out to the people are surprisingly thinking GS is going to be "dismantled" and lack salary space any time soon. Steph is contracted through 2022, KD is most likely going to sign a 4 year deal after this season, and I don't see Klay or Draymond going anywhere. If anything, Iguodala might be traded during his last contract year if they need to free up space. But the Fab four are going to remain intact, idk why that's questionable.

And yep. Steph is with Under Armour, KD is with Nike, and Klay is with some Chinese shoe line (smart move).

I"m licking my wounds after last night. I really had hoped the Rockets were going to play the Warriors before Curry got healthy. Now, the Warriors have just too many weapons. Looks like another championship for Golden State. But after the season, Durant is gonna want his money. He's already said he's not taking a pay cut this time. I think he wants like $40MM a year.

^ I thought I had heard that too. Doesn't he have an opt out year soon?

He's going to opt out during this off-season, so that he can re-sign a more lucrative contract with the Warriors. This was most likely his plan when he first signed with them, pending his success, and he already has a championship and finals MVP. So he will negotiate a new contract with the Warriors this off-season for more money. Probably a four-year deal, which would be more lucrative than a two year. I'm sure the contract is already in the works. This is a no-brainer. It was already planned out.

Durant already publicly said he doesn't want to take another pay cut or else "they'd be taking advantage of him." He's going to get the max from GSW. Klay said that he will be taking a pay cut to stay with GSW. His shoe deal makes up for loss in contract money

I think GSW might run into some trouble starting the 2019 season. Iguodala's contributions won't be worth that money. I don't think they'll get as lucky in filling out their roster these past couple seasons when they're going to be paying two guys max money. Draymond will probably want a max or near max once his contract is up. He's been underpaid and will continue being underpaid the next couple seasons. He's supposedly a great team player so we'll see how it plays out but I don't see GSW being as dominant as the past couple seasons. Watch out for some of those young teams that were eliminated in the playoffs

I think GSW might run into some trouble starting the 2019 season. Iguodala's contributions won't be worth that money. I don't think they'll get as lucky in filling out their roster these past couple seasons when they're going to be paying two guys max money. Draymond will probably want a max or near max once his contract is up. He's been underpaid and will continue being underpaid the next couple seasons. He's supposedly a great team player so we'll see how it plays out but I don't see GSW being as dominant as the past couple seasons. Watch out for some of those young teams that were eliminated in the playoffs

^Yup.

When Durant opts out to sign again with the Warriors (which is pretty much a given), he might have the option of signing the biggest deal in NBA history.

If he signs for five more years, he will start at 37M or so, and eventually be getting almost 50M a year at the end of his contract. If he signs a four year, he'll start around 35M per year and end up just below 44M per year at the end of his contract. He could sign a two or three year deal, but that would be taking a pay cut.

Their luxury tax bill is probably already pretty high, it'll obviously get higher after that, but it is cost-effective when you're winning titles; ticket sales are in higher demand thus they can and will raise the prices. Same for merchandise, (etc) and prime TV slots for nationally televised games, as well as more viewers. It's a win/win.

^that last post of mine was a "yup" towards your previous post, not the more recent one.

I don't think Draymond is overpaid. Before Steph signed his contract last off-season, Draymond was paid more than him. Draymond got a huge pay raise after their first current-era championship. I see him renewing a contract again as well.

And regarding Iguodala, I already said I expect him (out of anyone) to be traded at the last year of his contract to make room for more money. This will also help Draymond get a pay raise if he feels it is necessary.

Underpaid* not overpaid.

Are the Warriors going to have a billion dollar payroll ??? How much can the team afford ???

I think right now they're at about 135M. I think they're the highest spending team besides maybe the Cavs.

Remember signing a huge contract is broken down into contracted years, so no way they are getting close to a billion.

Like I said, teams who consistently make it to the finals gain revenue from higher ticket sales, merchandise, more national television appearances, more viewers, more press and media coverage, etc. You have to spend money to make money. When you sign people like Steph, for example, you get what you pay for --- expensive contracts but more success and revenue.

But start adding up the contracts that you just said are going into place. $50mm for Durant, $40mm for Curry, $30mm for Daymond, $20mm for Klay. Thats $140mm and it's just 4 players. OK, maybe not a BILLION. But it's a lot.

I'm in your camp in that I think Draymond is overrated as a player but he's a max contract/near max contract player in this current league. He's getting $17,469,565 next season and $18,539,130 the season after. That's Tristan Thompson money. I think he's somewhere around a Blake Griffin (including the fact that he's regressed as a player). He's getting $31,873,932 next season and $34,234,964 the season after

Yes, but look at the talent Blake is playing with vs the Warriors.

I'm sure Draymond will negotiate higher when his contract is up, but he signed a pretty good deal after the 2014-15 season.

-----

"Thats $140mm and it's just 4 players. OK, maybe not a BILLION. But it's a lot."
They're already at 135M with their regular cap around 100M, which will only go up. I've already explained their paths of revenue (why else do you think the Cavs and Warriors are the highest salaried teams?) AND a way to free up monetary space (Iguodala trade by his final contract year).

I don't look at contracts in the context of "it was good when he signed it." I look at it as a player playing over/under his value and that's that. When Curry signed his contract, it was a good deal especially factoring in he had injury issues. He certainly wasn't a $12,112,359 player in 2016-2017. Also, Blake Griffin has regressed as a player. He's not as athletic as he used to be and his shooting is still suspect. I wouldn't have given him the max but he's a max level player in this league to some teams. Draymond will get a similar contract (perhaps more) but I do not think he's a max level player on most teams. His skill set allows him to thrive in GSW and he'll have a lot of leverage when he signs his next contract. I personally would not give him the max but GSW might have to. I have a feeling he might give a team friendly deal (like Klay supposedly will when his next contract is due)

Blake Griffin is not the type of player you can win a championship with as your 1st or 2nd best player. He's a star player but not a superstar. He had his chance but just did not evolve enough as a player. At least his free agency was timed well and got paid

But I thought the luxury tax escalates, not just by how much the team is over but also based on how long they remain over it.

I don't what the financial impact to GSW is or will be because I don't research it, but my assumption is that it will soon become unsustainable without retooling a bit.

I hate salary caps and luxury taxes.

Salary caps are important in sports especially the NBA. Without it, you'd see some teams with most of the stars (basically becoming all-star teams. You, as a fan, do not need to concern yourself with the luxury tax as that's coming out of the owner's pockets. Joe Lacob is a billionaire but he's just barely one. He's definitely no Paul Allen or Steve Ballmer. It'll be interesting to see how deep into the luxury tax they will be willing to go

The Warriors are an all-star team right now. And 3/4 of their current all stars were drafted by them.

Actually, the luxury tax escalates exponentially if you're a repeat offender like the Warriors and Cavs. They have to pay over $4 for every $1 they are over the threshold (which is actually something like around $20 million over the cap). By the end of Durant's next contract (assuming he signs at least a 4 year deal), if all the other expensive players are still there, the Warriors could be spending well over $200 million (even close to $300 million) in luxury taxes and another $200 million in player contracts.

I don't think winning compensates for that.

It does... Merchandise, TV broadcasting, more viewers, sponsors, ads, ticket sales, media promotion, etc. Plus the team that wins the title gets a couple million to be dispersed amongst players and staff.

It's mind boggling the $$$ these players are making

it is a lot of bread; however, i dont think theyre very happy. they chase the same hoes like the kardashians. they cant go anywhere without being harassed by fans. People they know always asking for favors. more than 50 of them go broke after they retire. the money is nice, but the cage/price of fame is too high.

Let’s go Celtics!!! Halfway there.

Amen, fish sticks!!!!

^ "it is a lot of bread; however, i dont think theyre very happy. they chase the same hoes like the kardashians"

We must be miserable. We chase the same cumdumpsters and don't have that kind of $$$$

Yeah I guess I too would be pretty-miserable making $40-million per year

"Yeah I guess I too would be pretty-miserable making $40-million per year"

Yeah. I'd be miserable too if I were paid tens of millions to play a sport I love.

@ Nina

Do you realize how many new INCREMENTAL sales would be required to increase the BOTTOM LINE by $200M?

That is a huge number.

"@ Nina

Do you realize how many new INCREMENTAL sales would be required to increase the BOTTOM LINE by $200M?

That is a huge number."

I'm not sure I'm following your logic. Why does the bottom line have to be INCREASED by $200 million, if we are talking about contracts breaking down annually?

The Warriors market themselves, and I'm not sure how much I would consider incremental. They have two of the most popular current NBA players on their team; they expect to make money off that, and they do.

Also, how did we come up with the $200 million dollar figure for the Warriors' bottom line? Did you do a spreadsheet calculation, or is this just a rough estimate?

It is easier for the Warriors to market themselves because of their star power, smoothly operating office, huge success, and quite frankly their location. I have no idea what the dollar figure is on their TV deal, but I'm going to estimate that it alone is at least $50M per year, or 1/4 of this $200M bottom line... on television deals alone --- not even including money for making it to the second round, or conference finals, or winning the championship, or raised merch sales, or ticket prices, or sponsors, or regular team promotions.

I don't know why this is even an issue here, to be quite honest. I'm more excited about tonight's game, and seeing the Warriors hopefully repeat, than to rehash microeconomics and business 101.

Maybe I don't understand this correctly...

If they get imposed a $200M luxury tax, isn't that taken straight from the team's profits?

There may be some tax breaks for it like being a charitable contribution, I don't know. But even if that is the case, the net would still be a lot of $$$$ to have to recoup.

The $200M was brought up in another post and I thought I had heard that number of the radio a few months ago.

What I mean by incremental..
Example: if their TV deal is $50M as you estimate, and it would have been $45M if they didn't go above the cap. The incremental revenue would only be $5M.
In addition

Ah forget it. We'll just see how it plays out.

I'm more into just enjoying the games.

Are the Celtics really this good? If they had Kyrie and Gordon Hayward on the floor they'd be shockingly good - if they make the finals, and even without those guys, they look capable of giving Warriors or Rockets a run.

"What I mean by incremental..
Example: if their TV deal is $50M as you estimate, and it would have been $45M if they didn't go above the cap. The incremental revenue would only be $5M."

Ok... Wow. I'm trying to wrap my brain around this ever-changing logic of yours, so bear with me...

How is their TV deal being $50M instead of $45M because they went over the cap an incremental sale? They are offered higher TV deals because of how much success and popularity they generate. It has nothing to do with their cap except for that exceeding their cap gives them room for higher contracts which leads to that success and popularity...

Then, you are now talking about incremental revenue when at first you said incremental sales. Which is it? In a market as huge as that franchise, there is no way sales and revenue can mean the same thing.

Yeah, $200 million was brought up in another post, and so was Draymond making $30M a year when right now the most his contract will allow him is 18.5M on his last contracted year. Then suddenly he's going to jump to a $30M/yr start off on his new contract, a year after KD and Klay just renewed their contracts? Not likely. That person also said KD will be making 50M a year. That's only going to happen if he signs a 5 year contract, and even then, he will only make that amount (or just under it) on his last contracted year.

Make it make sense.

I admit I wasn't very articulate in trying to explain it, but it doesn't matter.

They could run up a luxury tax of $1B and it wouldn't matter in your mind because they would just sell more tickets than they have seats and more merchandise to cover it.

The Celtics are a star team, as opposed to a team of stars.

They win because they are all hungry and constantly bust their asses on the floor.

It also didn't hurt a bit that they shot 85% from the charity stripe last night!

No, flagooner, you just don't understand economics, at least in relation to successful NBA franchises. To you, sales = revenue and you make up magic numbers.

Well, the Warriors are certainly going to be getting yelled at by Kerr during halftime... what a mess.

I still don't understand how/why James Harden can commit offensive fouls regularly by pushing off and never get called for it. ANY other player in the league would get called for the same push-offs Harden commits.

@ Nina

I think Papi is developing a crush on you.

"I admit I wasn't very articulate in trying to explain it, but it doesn't matter."
^I know, because I explained it for you.

"They could run up a luxury tax of $1B and it wouldn't matter in your mind because they would just sell more tickets than they have seats"
^No, let me explain it very simply for you to understand. VERY simply. Let's pretend the Warriors have 100 seats in their arena, at $1 a piece. They sell out, obviously. 100 seats at $1 generates them $100. Let's play along with your little 'sell more tickets than they have seats' comment; let's say they do that, and sell 10 more tickets at the same dollar price. They have now made $110. Ok... Now let's change the scenario a bit. They don't sell more tickets than they have seats. They sell 100 tickets because they have exactly 100 seats. But, since they won the title last year, they increased their ticket prices by 15%. Now every ticket costs one dollar and fifteen cents ($1.15). They sell out. That generates them $115 dollars. That is more than the year before they won the championship, and everyone who bought a ticket gets a seat. $115 > $110 > $100. Get it?

"and more merchandise to cover it."
Actually, this is even simpler than the ticket scenario because, yes, they can put more merchandise up for sale, because they are the defending champions, so people will buy it. They can raise the price on the merchandise, too, and people will still buy it.

I forgot. Stripper math.

If stripper math is what it takes for you to understand, I'm glad to be that stripper.

Let's make it simple, without numbers.

If they get hit with a higher luxury tax than they had the previous year, that difference is an incremental expense.

If they don't offset that with incremental profit it will hurt their bottom line.

That is all I'm saying.

Nina, your avatar picture is deceiving.

You went from talking about incremental sales, to incremental revenue being the same as sales (which it is not), and now you are talking about incremental expenses. Or did you mean incremental cost? Sales, revenue, and expenses are all different things. This is a circus. Stop throwing around the word "incremental."

Successful teams generate money. Successful teams with good management allocate their money properly. That is why the Warriors are a top 5 (maybe even top 3) most financially valuable team in the NBA. Their pockets are fine.

Yeah, but that are getting the asses handed to them tonight !!! Go Rockets !!!!

Doesn't matter, the Warriors still have home court advantage now.

They need to take Curry out. He does not look 100% healthy right now and the Rockets are taking advantage of him.

Nina,

I'm gonna concede early on this one. Too much Warriors tonight for the Rockets. I guess Curry wasn't hurt after all. On to game 4.

Curry must have read Nina's post here. He's like 'oh really???'. While they did attack him on defense early I'm glad he was able to show why we still gotta have him out there.

Too much firepower indeed. Glad Curry showed he can still drive and launch with the best of them. Plus I'm glad that those 3 pointers that were dropping for the Rockets in game 2 didn't fall tonight.

Onward to game 4!

I knew he'd come back after such a poor performance the previous game. I thought he'd have about 30... He ended with 35.

I know the Warriors got blown out in game 2 by twenty-something, but they murdered the Rockets last night. Beat them by 41. That should never happen during a 1&2 seed matchup. James Harden was playing zero defense, I'm fine with that.

I guess it was a mental thing for Steph... his threes once again were not falling, so he made some nice layups instead... then the threes started falling and it was the Steph show during the 3rd quarter.

Have the Rockets ever lost by this much during a playoff game?

^
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=worst+houston+rocke…

Anytime you have tremendous talent on both sides, blowouts are going to happen regardless of seeding. The 85 Finals (LA/Boston) had two of the best teams in history and that series consisted of two blowouts (including the opening Memorial Day massacre) for the home teams on their first home game, two close games and two double digit wins. All it takes is for one team to be off and the other to be hot and that's it.

This series isn't close to evenly matched though. The Rockets threw in the towel by the end of the third quarter and their bench is terrible (besides Gordon) compared to Golden State (Livingston, Young, McGee, West) which actually isn't saying much. Twenty points shouldn't be insurmountable, but against Golden State when they're hot, it pretty much is.

Damn James just had another 40 point game I believe they said it was his sixth of these playoffs, and the series is all even again !

Nina has a hot avi. Plus this thread needs more comments.

Cavs and Celtics is going 7 for sure if Boston wins the next game. Boston can't win on the road. Good series nonetheless.

All I have to add to this is LeBron is untucking believable, the weakest supporting cast he has ever had and still in the thick of it. If he idoesnt get the MVP I don’t know who should get it.

Enjoy watching the GOAT while you still can. Father time always wins.

^

LeBron has actually gotten better and is 33. He might not even start declining until he hit his mid-late 30s. You usually see drop-offs once players hit 30

Big game tonight. If Warriors win, then the playoffs are basically over and Golden State will be crowned champ. Houston wins, they have the home court advantage back. No predictions here. But this one is the biggest NBA game of the year.

I'll give a prediction. GSW in another pasting.

^^^^^I like this prediction. So far it's playing out.

Houston didn't score not one point until like 6:53 left in the first. That's ridiculous

Agree. GSW in this one. The Rockets are a good team but a little gimmicky to beat the Warriors.

James Harden is so lazy, defensively. And I'll repeat myself if I already talked about how be gets to the basket... pushing off with his right elbow. All the time.

I believe in the Warriors, but the closeness of this game has me shook right now.

In a good way, I guess. Games should be interesting.

"pushing off with his right elbow. All the time."

Lol. In his defense, so do a bunch of other players. It rarely gets called.

Rockets win ! Tied 2-2 going back to Houston.

The question is are the Warriors as good as they were last year or is Houston a better team than they are getting credit for?

Houston is better than what they get credit for. I still feel whomever wins the West is going to win the championship.

Doesn't stop me from rooting for the Cavs and they already went further than I thought they could this year.

I have tickets to the game Friday in Cleveland.

^I too am rooting for the Cavs, what I said very early in this thread about James going on a rampage, appears to be what is fueling them. If they win or lose, James deserves the MVP.

James Harden will win the MVP award this year. That award is for the regular Season. It should include the playoffs, but it doesn't. Then the Championship Series will have a Finals MVP. I'm definitely not a "fan" of Lebron, but have been impressed by the way he has carried his team this year.

"Lol. In his defense, so do a bunch of other players. It rarely gets called."

Thanks for coming to his defense, because he doesn't play any (lol)

And you know damn well that James Harden is norotious for committing offensive fouls that never get called. That's how he makes it to the basket. Same form ever time, with his right elbow point out like a knife.

I agree that he will win MVP this year. Whatever. As long as a Warrior wins finals MVP, I'll be happy.

@Nina you would have enjoyed watching the the late sixties early seventies Knick’s they raised throwing elbows to an art hell Debusschere, Bradley, and Earl Monroe used a sharpening stone to hone their elbows, damn, even The great MJ and Larry Bird did more damage than Harden.

Great quote by Curry following last night's game:

"If you can shimmy on somebody else, you gotta be alright getting shimmied on."

"The great MJ and Larry Bird did more damage than Harden."

That's because the league was allowed to be more physical then. Now, you can't breathe without a foul called, except Harden can elbow his way to the paint. He does it every time he drive to the basket. And if someone defends him while he does that, THEY will get called for the foul. I know he pays money to bang ugly chicks but is he really paying good money so suck the refs off, too?

And last night's game made me sick. I literally woke up this morning and puked. I'm sure part of it was the mixture of wine and beer. But part of it was the disgust I felt having to relive last night in my mind.

I have confidence that the Warriors can and most likely will win the remaining two games that they must in this series... but if that doesn't happen I'll probably be getting severe anger-driven nosebleeds while I watch them play Houston next year. And I don't get nosebleeds.

The league is not near as physical now. Remember the Bad Boys of Detroit ? Mahorn and Rodman would get thrown out of every game they played now.

Rockets may be in trouble. Chris Paul injured his hamstring. Without him, Harden gets out of control. And Eric Gordon was playing well above his normal level last night. He's not good enough to depend on. I fully expect Golden State to come out firing on all cylinders at the next game.

Next question is Can the kids from Boston ever win a road game ? Lebron is looking tired but I'm not sure the Celtics can win a game outside of the Garden.

Doesn't matter if Boston can win a home game if they have home court advantage. All they gotta do to advance is win their homes games if they have home court. I haven't followed the east so idk the rankings at all.

And you forgot to throw Bill Laimbeer in there. He used to bow to the crowd during away games when he fouled out. He gave no fucks.

Some gsw fans are blaming quin cook and steve kerr for them losing. I think thats absurd. I blame durant.

And boston will not win a playoff road game this year. They will win game 7 and 1 or 2 in the finals in boston. They will lose in 5 or 6 no matter who they play.

Well what I'm saying is, they don't have win a home game. I thought they have home court advantage. If they do, all they have to do is win their home games. If they do that, it doesn't even matter if they lose ALL the away games.

Oh wait chessmaster, I think I misunderstood what you meant. You meant they will win the ECF but lose the finals regardless if it's GSW or HOU because either west team has home court?

I have had a few glasses of Pinot Grigio, and smoked weed all day, and then started smoking some thc oil so I'm completely stoned right now.

^yes. Boston has to win a road game in the finals either way and they cant.

Right, I get it now.

Case in point. They lost 3 games in Cleveland and 3 in Milwaukee. No way they win in oakland or houston. They will win game 7 though against cleveland just cuz(cuz Cleveland sucks).

I don't know. The best teams or players play just as well at home or on the road. Heck, Jordan seemed to play even better on the road (Finals against the Laker, Blazers, Suns and the second one against the Jazz), although he never played a Finals game 7.

I went to the game last night and had very good seats......the Celtics got way past the point of physical and for whatever the reason fouls were not being called. You see a lot that I never noticed even on TV when you are right on the court. I think the strategy is Boston knows they are the younger and deeper team and the constant beating wears down an older team. Truthfully had I been JR or Kyle last night I probably would have gotten myself thrown out of the game by slugging someone in retaliation.

GOAT

Fantastic effort by Lebron last night. But he looked really tired after that game. If somehow the Cavs can beat the Celtics in Boston, King James won't have anything left in the tank for the Finals.

This is what I said near the beginning of this thread, any team that has LeBron James playing for them should never be counted out untill the last second on the game clock expires and the buzzer rings. OTOH as great as the Warriors are, they don’t have a single player that is going to shut down the opposition.
If Cleveland wins this series I don’t think Golden State or Houston will win this years finals.
I could be wrong we’ll see what happens.

twentyfive---I think it is going to come down to the first quarter. Either Boston has been getting off to great starts or Cleveland is sleep walking in Q1 but if the Cavs are even after Q1 they have more than a fighting chance. Game 7 is where experience plays the largest role during the playoffs.

I don't know how the game appeared on TV but you could see the frustration mounting with the Celtic coaching staff ( actually we could hear it) but you could also see the Cavs were getting winded about halfway through the fourth quarter.

And the officiating was awful--everyone, including a few Celtic fans that were near us, could not believe what they were getting away with on holding, and pushing off.

Damn. Houston with a 39 point 1st quarter.

Still a game thankfully. Houston is shooting us out of the fucking gym right now.

Lol I don't think so.

Klay Thompson once again with the huge game 6 on the brink of elimination. Plus the Rockets 2nd half was abysmal. Their point totals per quarter started high then took a dive, ending with a measly 9 points in the 4th.

It's all down to tomorrow and Monday to set the stage for the finals! So glad that Monday is a holiday.

Cavs don’t have Kevin Love tonight, it’s gonna be a slog, look for an old fashioned brawl at the Boston garden. If Boston falls behind early, LeBron is going to get fouled all night.

GSW administered a beatdown after that 1st qtr.

Damn about 3 minutes left we have ourselves a game, this one has been hard fought by both teams!

Who is that guy wearing #23 for the Cavs? He's gotta be the best to ever play this game.

Unfuckingbelievable !
I don't think there has ever been a greater achievement in sports, LeBron James MVP THE UNDISPUTED GOAT

GAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaahh!

There. I feel a little better after that primal scream.....

Wait. No, I don't :-(

I think the case can be made that James deserves the MVP, as much as anyone in the league, but if the Rockets don’t make it past the Warriors tonight then there is no doubt that James is more deserving, if the Rockets make the finals it will be a tough decision and Harden will most probably win it because it seems sentiment is on his side.

I dislike James Harden, but he will be the league MVP this year. The Cavs struggled too much, weren't a high seed, traded away half their team, had a whole bunch of drama from beginning to end of the regular season. LeBron does not deserve the award this year.

^Not only disagree with that, because it is just wrong and shows that you are a LeBron hater. He kept them in the hunt all season despite the turmoil that you so accurately describe, look at where they are now, about to begin another NBA final series, win or lose, with out him they’d be sitting at home watching some other team getting ready to play the finals!

25 - The MVP award that is given at the end of the year is for the NBA regular season. Performance in the playoffs has nothing to do with that award. There is another award for the Finals MVP.

James Harden basically has already won the MVP award. The used to give it out during the playoffs but now they have an awards show to announce it.

And yes, I am a Lebron hater. But that has nothing to do with this comment.

^ So you don't think he was more valuable to Cleveland than Harden was to Houston, SMH,,at the very least do you think Cleveland would be in the playoffs if LeBron wasn't playing for them ?
Logic man, just think logically !

You are not listening. It's a regular season award. Cleveland finished 4th is the weaker Eastern Conference. That's not very good.

^i listened just fine you aren’t listening, I also get it, but you aren’t getting my point.

I think they don't give it to LeBron because they are considering naming the award after him.

It's like when MJ was the alpha dog and before he was displaced as the GOAT.
MJ deserved it every year then just as LeBron has for the past decade.

Twentyfive it's the same deal with Houston. Without Harden, how far would they get? Would they have been the #1 seed in the tougher Western conference? I get what you're saying with LeBron, but all his heroics this year have surfaced mainly in this postseason. Harden was plainly more dazzling in the regular season.

Both Houston and Cleveland would be screwed if both those players were to get injured. I agree that Cleveland would be worse off, but that's not the only factor for which MVP is awarded. Harden had averaged more points per game and his team finished 1st overall in the NBA record wise. That's why I also think it'll go to Harden.

@TFP you did get my point thank you, read my qualifier that said if the Rockets lose.

People really believe LeBron should be the regular season MVP? He played all 82 games. As Warrior15 stated the best they could do was 50 wins playing the vast majority of games in a weaker conference. He had a decent supporting cast with Love, Thompson, Green, Smith, Hill et. al. They even had IT, Derek Rose and Calderone for small stretches, even if it was obvious who the real "point" was.

Harden played out of his mind and elevated his team the entire season. Paul misses a big chunk of the season and didn't play very big minutes when he did play (around 31 mpg). Outside of Paul, there were no All-Star caliber players on that team. Eric Gordon might be their next best player and he comes off the bench. Him or Capela who had a breakout season. Ariza and Tucker might not even start on most teams. Yet they won 65 games, better than the loaded Warriors, in a harder conference. I'd be surprised if it wasn't unanimous, but there is often that one hold out in the press.

I won't get drawn any further into this discussion other than to say Paul, Gordon, and Capella are all better than Love (the second best player on the Cavs).

Replace Harden with LeBron and that team would have the best record in the league. Replace LeBron with Harden on the Cavs and they are lucky to get a 7 seed in the East and probably won't make the playoffs.

^Exactly.

I don't even know if Chris Paul and LeBron could even mesh on the same team considering how much they both dominate the ball, although the same was said of Harden and Paul but Darryl Morey definitely knows what he's doing. I don't really know how either would mesh on the other teams if they were to switch teams. I don't think the two teams are all that different in overall talent, except that both teams were built around their best player.

I will say that if the two teams as we saw them switched conferences, the Cavs in the west would likely not even get 47 wins and miss the playoffs. Think about that, a LeBron led team playing with him playing every game missing the playoffs. Or they get bounced in the first round playing against the Warriors even without Curry. The Rockets on the other hand might get 74 wins and cruise to the Finals. This speaks more of the level of play these two teams brought in the regular season rather than their talent on paper.

If the Rockets do pull off the upset, i guess we'll get to see how good they actually are. That one other superstar (it is unfortunate Paul might not even play another game) does make a huge difference (in the playoffs) and their defense is underrated.

"Not only disagree with that, because it is just wrong and shows that you are a LeBron hater"

No 25, it's just being objective. Especially since right now, James Harden is more of my enemy than LeBron and I'm still saying Harden will win league MVP.

Also, last I heard, Chris Paul's status has been bumped up to a game time decision. He will probably play, probably limited minutes.

If he can play at all in game 7, he's playing. This is the real Finals. Even he hurts himself more and seriously, if they win the game, the Rockets still have a decent chance of beating the Cavs without Paul. Heck, they might even beat the Warriors without Paul.

We’ll soon find out won’t we.

@TDD at the very least LeBron plays defense Harden half of the time lags behind on the back court so he doesn’t have to go all out to get back to score, sorry Harden as good as he is is not the King, who plays both sides of the ball with full intensity.

I'm getting reports that Chris Paul will not play. I'm trying to confirm this.

It's been confirmed, although I'm still very surprised.

Yep. Chris Paul is out. So the MVP is going to have to play like the MVP. Otherwise, Golden State is going to win another championship.

Harden will have to play like LeBron has been in the post-season, but some of LeBron's better games than his 34+ pt average (I think?)

GSW has to play defense and find their rhythm, and they'll win. Iggy being out sucks, but you have 4 current all stars and a deeper bench. GS should win this, even though away games 7 are tough --- LeBron just did it.

This is the time when champions show themselves.

Early 1st-quarter - HOU def the aggressor and GS throwing up contested prayer 3s

They need better ball movement. They're settling.

Reminds me of game 6. Houston should be up big but it's only 4 pts.

GS needs to drive to the basket more and not just play behind the 3-pt line

GS needs to have someone else other than Harden beat them

GS needs to start driving to the basket, they’re looking for their range, too dependent on the three ball.

HOU is playing street-ball and GS is playing in the Catholic league

It looks like the Warriors were all smoking reefer before the game.

As a Rockets fan, I'm not going to get too excited until after the 3rd quarter. GS seems to come out after half and explode. That's what happened last game.

HOU has no respect and no fear for GS

The most offensive rebounds HOU had in an entire game for the whole season is 12 - they have 11 O-rebounds in the 1st-half.

HOU 9 2nd-chance points - GS 0

Klay Thompson is getting abused by Harden like he got abused by Kyrie Irving 2-years ago

Warrior15 you're a smart guy. The good news for you is we seem to always cool down in the 4th quarter. Gonna be a nail biter, that's for sure.

This shit here is getting real

Fuck. The Rockets have missed 23 straight 3-point attempts. I'm amazed it's still close.

GS has too much fire-power for HOU to let them get ahead in the 2nd-half

Warrior that's what I'm worried about. It's still close. You guys finally broke the string of missed 3s. It's within 10, anybody's game. Shit is nerve-racking!

Not nerve racking anymore. Thanks for being dead wrong about the finals teams, Warrior15. How ironic that your name is Warrior, yet you're a Houston fan. Ah well, it's been a hell of a series.

I'm pretty damn happy right now. I bet the GOAT isn't. If I lived in Nina's city and she was dancing tonight I'd hit the club and blow $600 on her just on the strength she's a Warriors fan.

Finals bound again!!!!!!!

James Harden is good but he's no Lebron James !

Twentyfive that's for damn sure. Yet still he's gonna get the MVP award.

Just like no one in the world would take Russell Westbrook over LeBron, yet he won the award last year. And his team got bounced in the first round last year quite easily.

Houston's 1st-half offense was mostly on hustle (Harden doing iso taking l-on the whole GS team, out-rebounding GS, and getting to the lose-balls) - hard to keep that up for 4-quarters and maybe why they missed 27 3s in a row (gassed? )

This is why I love the Warriors so much. They have so many aspects to their game, they play defense, they have some of the best shooters in NBA history, from the smaller Curry to the tall lanky KD, they have so many guys who help emotionally (Draymond, Iggy, etc) and Draymond snags so many rebounds, steals, blocks, assists etc which is remarkable for his size. On top of that, they have CHEMISTRY.

I think a lot of guys on their team are genuine good souls. Like Klay. He remains focused during the games, and is professional, but can get silly. I remember him and a Draymond where stoned during their 2015 championship parade. But Klay seems like someone who would be a good friend. And Steve Kerr seems like he'd be my cool uncle.

HOU was 7/44 in 3s, kinda impossible to win like that - I think they said it was an NBA record for missed-3s in a game (37)

I was disgusted watching Houston shoot so many bricks. Ariza had 0 points in 40 minutes and 0 for 9 from 3. Ariza, harden, and Gordon were awful from 3. Even Gordon was their best offensive option and he was 2 for 12 or something from 3. Harden had 6 assists and 5 turnovers to Gordon's 6 assists and 1 turnover. The only guys that played decent were Gordon, Tucker and Capella. That was some of the worst offense I've ever seen, especially in the second half.

Yeah Papi, that's what Barkley said, a record for misses from three in a game seven. And you know him, he hates the jump shooting teams. Which is why he hates the Warriors. Yet still, here we are.

Wow, both game 7s were similar. The home team was playing more physical and aggressive and leading at the half. And then the home team turned into the mason's guild. Just laying brick after brick. Although to the Warrior's credit, a lot of those 3s were contested or forced. No where near the best shot available. Boston just couldn't land a shot into the ocean. And they both imploded in the second half.

Both home teams were undermanned (and the road teams as well, but nowhere as bad), but those games were winnable. Let's just say those kids weren't ready. Am disappointed in Harden and Ariza though. There's no reason for experienced vets like them to settle so often in a freaking game 7. I don't think Chris Paul will ever win a title. He's just cursed or something, like T-Mac and CWebb.

I'm afraid that not even the GOAT will be able to make this a competitive series. Just too much to carry.

I used to like Chris Paul until this year when I had chance to see him play more.

He is a cocky punk that is very inconsistent. He's very talented but also plays dirty and takes little cheap shots while feigning to be innocent as choirboy. He reminds me of John Stockton in that regard.

^I saw a gif of Chris Paul faking a foul so dramatically he fell to floor while doing more than a 360° ballerina spin and did a backwards summersault when he "hit" the floor.

I'm trying to find the somersault clip but idk if I will since I first found it as a gif, not a video clip.

After these finals LeBron will be 3 Finals Wins and 6 Finals losses. Jordan does have 6 in his Finals resume.....6 wins, 0 LOSSES

Lol to the people that think they can make a case that LeBron is better than Mike. Mike has more rings, more regular season MVP’s, more finals MVPs, never lost in the finals, averages more points than LeBron, better defender than LeBron. The only things LeBron does better than Mike is rebounds (he’s 3 inches taller than Mike, he better get more rebounds than Mike) and assists.

^ Coming from a guy who wasn't even born when MJ played for the Bulls. He was maybe 2 years old when MJ retired from the Wizards in 2003.

So he bases it all on highlight clips and cherry picked stats. Typical millenial having such a lazy argument.

You sound like a natural Skip Bayless if I do say so myself larryfisherman

@ larryfisherman......I could talk about how Jordan got every call under the sun for years. His award winning shot was a push off jumper and his drive was a five step after he hooked the defender to the basket (but then I am a long term Cavs fan so must be biased) The joke is why did MJ quit his passion to play professional baseball? Answer: Because everyone can walk in baseball.

So here is another thought process--who on the Cavs compares to Scottie Pippen?

Who compares to Dennis Rodman? Charles Oakley? Horace Grant?

^debating a tween about his version of old time basketball, priceless !

^ That's why I stopped when I did.

I can't make valid comparisons to George Mikan like you can 25, you old grouchy fuck.

^Who is George Mikan you older, but not as grouchy fuck. ;)

@flagooner, I saw your old tintype photos that you took, with Dr. James Naismith

LOL

It was worth a shot.............but I admit not much more than once and done....sad thing is I know who George Mikan is as well as Bob Cousy....:--)

I know Bob Cousy saw him at the old garden when they played the Knicks, but who the fuck is/was George Mikan?

Center @ DePaul for college and Lakers in the pros ( the team that gave the Lakers their name and it fit-Minneapolis) Let's face it the LA Lakers name is almost as bad as the Utah Jazz-which I also saw games with Pistol Pete when they were in New Orleans.

^Damn man you must be almost as old a flagooner;)

LOL---no need to get insulting......

Fuck both of you. And get off my lawn.

@warrenboy- Kevin Love averaged 25 pts and 15 rebounds a game the season before he joined LeBron, and now all of a sudden he’s garbage?Michael never had a big like that. Rodman averaged 7 pts a game for his career. Horace averaged 11 pts a game for his career. Oakley averaged 10 pts a game for his career. Are we really gonna say any of those guys are anywhere close to as good as Kevin Love? Kevin Love is a 5 time all star by the way. Chris Bosh was 23 pts and 11 rebs before he joined LeBron, then he was just average with LeBron. Wade led the ENTIRE NBA in points per game 2 seasons before he teamed up with LeBron, then with LeBron he wasn’t his self. When Scottie left the Bulls after Michael retired the second time, you saw what Scottie was with the Rockets and Blazers, just a good player.

It looks like to me that Jordan makes his teammates better, and LeBron as much.

I’m not even gonna bring up the fact that LeBron had to go join two other all stars in Miami to win his first two titles.

It’s a classic case of being prisoner of the moment.

^ You're a classic case of being a douche.