2017 NBA Playoffs Thread

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Thu Apr 13, 2017 8:17 am

I'll start this off with my picks for the regular season awards and postseason prediction:

Rookie of the Year: Malcolm Brogdon

Embiid needed to play about 15 more games to get my pick. Dario Saric will probably win this, but I'd give it to Brogdon because he was a solid contributor to a playoff team.

Coach of the Year: Mike D'Antoni

No team exceeded its preseason win total over/under more than the Rockets. They finished second in the NBA in offensive efficiency, so it was another offensive masterpiece from D'Antoni.

Sixth Man of the Year: Andre Iguodala

Eric Gordon probably win this but I'll take Iguodala because he's the second best defender on the league's #2 ranked defense. He's also efficient on offense, which helps keep their offensive machine humming.

Most Improved Player: Giannis Antetokounpo

I'll go with the Greek Freak over Nikola Jokic on the theory that improving from a really good player to a superstar is especially impressive.

Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert
Draymond Green will probably win this, and is a deserving choice. But I'll take Gobert because he's clearly the league's best rim protector and isn't a cheap shot artist.

MVP: James Harden

Two months ago I would've picked LeBron, but after the Cavs mailed in the second half, I can't do that. Kawhi is also a strong candidate, but I think it comes down to Harden and Westbrook. Despite their defensive deficiencies, they generated so many points through scoring or assists that I think they should finish 1-2. Harden is actually an easy choice for me over Westbrook. The factor that I can't get past in comparing the two is offensive efficiency. Harden is a substantially more efficient scorer than Westbrook, his passes have lead to higher value shots by his teammates (the NBA keeps a stat called "points per potential assist" that measures this), and the Rockets have been miles better than the Thunder -- both overall and especially on the offensive end.

As for my postseason picks, I'll take:

Celtics over Bulls in 5
Cavs over Pacers in 5
Raptors over Bucks in 7
Wizards over Hawks in 7
Warriors over Blazers in 5
Spurs over Grizzlies in 4
Rockets over Thunder in 5
Clippers over Jazz in 7

Celtics over Wizards in 7
Cavs over Raptors in 7
Warriors over Clippers in 6
Spurs over Rockets in 5

Cavs over Celtics in 6
Warriors over Spurs in 5

Warriors over Cavs in 5
Finals MVP: Draymond Green

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Thu Apr 13, 2017 9:43 am

Celtics over Bulls in 6
Cavs over Pacers in 5
Raptors over Bucks in 6
Wizards over Hawks in 6

Wizards over Celtics in 7
Cavs over Raptors in 7

Cavs over Wizards in 5

Warriors over Blazers in 5
Spurs over Grizzlies in 7
Rockets over Thunder in 7
Jazz over Clippers in 6

Warriors over Jazz in 6
Spurs over Rockets in 6

Spurs over Warriors in 7

Spurs over Cavs in 6

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 4:34 pm

Ugly ugly ugly.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 7:10 pm

Sitting down for the latest spurs beatdown of the Grizzlies in the playoffs. At least I will always have 2011...

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 7:13 pm

Grizzlies are starting Vince Carter and also Wayne Selden - they signed Selden a month ago to cover injuries.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:11 pm

tennbengal wrote:Sitting down for the latest spurs beatdown of the Grizzlies in the playoffs. At least I will always have 2011...

Well I'm glad I didn't post anything encouraging during the first 10 minutes of this game!

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:11 pm

Raptors are now 1-11 in Game Ones.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:21 pm

The Spurs are re-accommodating this poor team right now.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:24 pm

Rex wrote:
tennbengal wrote:Sitting down for the latest spurs beatdown of the Grizzlies in the playoffs. At least I will always have 2011...
Well I'm glad I didn't post anything encouraging during the first 10 minutes of this game!

Word. Spurs v rockets in round 2 may be epic.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:43 pm

Pruitt wrote:Raptors are now 1-11 in Game Ones.

I'd rather cavs play raptors on round two than bucks. The Greek freak is legit.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 9:46 pm

Also, I really dig Paul George. He's a player.

DC47 · Post by **DC47** » Sat Apr 15, 2017 10:44 pm

I been out. Who Pistons got first round?

duff · Post by **duff** » Sun Apr 16, 2017 6:36 am

DC47 wrote:I been out. Who Pistons got first round?

Adam Silver.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Sun Apr 16, 2017 7:53 am

Impressive performance by the Jazz last right, winning on the road without Gobert. But that injury probably dooms them. Even though it sounds like he dodged a bullet and avoided significant ligament damage, they probably need him to win the series.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Sun Apr 16, 2017 7:51 pm

I bet the bulls wish they had the veteran presence of Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah right now!

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:42 am

That was a nice ass whuppin last night.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Mon Apr 17, 2017 7:57 pm

Looks like the Cavs timed that Kevin Love "injury" perfectly.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Mon Apr 17, 2017 8:30 pm

Rex wrote:Looks like the Cavs timed that Kevin Love "injury" perfectly.

Not following.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Mon Apr 17, 2017 9:19 pm

The Cavs are playing with fire by repeatedly giving up big 4th quarter runs to their opponents. I still think they'll get through the East, but that's a pretty dangerous habit to have.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Wed Apr 19, 2017 9:44 pm

That game was peak Westbrook. 50 points, triple-double, but less than 40% from the field and not passing to anyone down the stretch.

Ryan · Post by **Ryan** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 8:08 am

Since 2008, 279 players have attempted between 1 and 42 shots in their playoff career.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 8:35 am

Ryan wrote:Since 2008, 279 players have attempted between 1 and 42 shots in their playoff career.

I know the last player before Westbrook to attempt 43 shots in a playoff game was Michael Jordan in 1993 -- in a triple-overtime game in which he played 57 minutes. At least on NBA Twitter, some are still pointing to Westbrook's positive +/- last night as defense of how he played. But even though he had a positive on/off rating -- which is due at least in some part to their lack of a competent backup -- I thought how he played in the 4th quarter was indefensible. Guys like Roberson, McDermott and Grant were finishing plays early in the game, but Russ just made no effort to involve anyone else down the stretch. Even against a so-so defensive team like Houston, having one guy dominate the offense to such an extreme degree is just not a viable strategy.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 8:43 am

I caught most of the 3rd and a big portion of the 4th. I went upstairs intending to turn it on to watch finish, but I didn't, even though I felt pretty confident Houston was going to win.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 9:14 am

That was a nice win. Up 2-0 with Ryno 0-the series from 3. I'll take it.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 8:49 pm

The cavs may win this game but you HAVE to put kyrie back in when it becomes a free throw contest.

Pruitt · Post by **Pruitt** » Thu Apr 20, 2017 9:52 pm

Raptors came out tonight like they'd just arrived from happy hour. And it got worse. Convinced that Casey is not a top-shelf coach.

Brutal. And to make things worse, once the Bucks went up by 30, my wife put on some Lifetime movie.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 7:03 am

Woo hoo, the Grizzlies won't get swept! Fun to see the Memphis crowd get one more night to be excited about that team - the window is almost closed, but that group has been a part of a lot of fun for the city.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 10:10 am

tennbengal wrote:Woo hoo, the Grizzlies won't get swept! Fun to see the Memphis crowd get one more night to be excited about that team - the window is almost closed, but that group has been a part of a lot of fun for the city.

Feel free to take that series to 7 games.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 10:22 am

Giff wrote:
tennbengal wrote:Woo hoo, the Grizzlies won't get swept! Fun to see the Memphis crowd get one more night to be excited about that team - the window is almost closed, but that group has been a part of a lot of fun for the city.
Feel free to take that series to 7 games.

Would be awesome to do that to them, yes.

A_B · Post by **A_B** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 10:35 am

Rondo out indefinitely. He's been crucial in the series vs. Boston.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 10:56 am

Playoff LeBron does astounding things so often that we almost take it for granted. I know the Pacers aren't that good, but putting up a 40+ point triple-double, while leading a comeback on the road from a 25 point halftime deficit is pretty incredible.

Giff · Post by **Giff** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 11:01 am

Joe K wrote:Playoff LeBron does astounding things so often that we almost take it for granted. I know the Pacers aren't that good, but putting up a 40+ point triple-double, while leading a comeback on the road from a 25 point halftime deficit is pretty incredible.

Not as incredible as a 50-pt one when you lead your team to a 4th quarter collapse!

Post by **Shirley** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 11:02 am

Joe K wrote:Playoff LeBron does astounding things so often that we almost take it for granted. I know the Pacers aren't that good, but putting up a 40+ point triple-double, while leading a comeback on the road from a 25 point halftime deficit is pretty incredible.

The Cavs won that game? I saw the last few minutes of the first half and it appeared to be headed to a blowout.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 11:10 am

Shirley wrote:
Joe K wrote:Playoff LeBron does astounding things so often that we almost take it for granted. I know the Pacers aren't that good, but putting up a 40+ point triple-double, while leading a comeback on the road from a 25 point halftime deficit is pretty incredible.
The Cavs won that game? I saw the last few minutes of the first half and it appeared to be headed to a blowout.

LeBron went supernova in the second half and they started playing much better team defense. Remarkably, Irving and Love were on the bench for the entire fourth quarter. The lineup that sealed it was Deron Williams, Korver, Shump/JR, LeBron and Frye.

DSafetyGuy · Post by **DSafetyGuy** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 3:01 pm

Shirley wrote:
Joe K wrote:Playoff LeBron does astounding things so often that we almost take it for granted. I know the Pacers aren't that good, but putting up a 40+ point triple-double, while leading a comeback on the road from a 25 point halftime deficit is pretty incredible.
The Cavs won that game? I saw the last few minutes of the first half and it appeared to be headed to a blowout.

Guess we know who doesn't check out the scores on the front page.

Rex · Post by **Rex** » Fri Apr 21, 2017 3:07 pm

After two straight defeats in the Finals, I hope the Cavs go all the way this year.

Joe K · Post by **Joe K** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 9:56 am

So Chris Paul is destined to go to down as the one of the most criminally underappreciated players of all-time due to bad postseason luck, right? The "ringzzz" crowd will have a field day with his career, even though I think he'll end up as a top-5 point guard of all-time.

tennbengal · Post by **tennbengal** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 12:15 pm

Also, he's an asshole, so fuck him.

HaulCitgo · Post by **HaulCitgo** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 2:18 pm

Joe K wrote:So Chris Paul is destined to go to down as the one of the most criminally underappreciated players of all-time due to bad postseason luck, right? The "ringzzz" crowd will have a field day with his career, even though I think he'll end up as a top-5 point guard of all-time.

First I thought you were crazy but then I started counting and somehow the most important position in hoops has a really thin list of greats. Magic, presumably Oscar Robertson, though I never saw him play, and then Jason Kidd? Having trouble even completing this list.

Eta Stockton

sancarlos · Post by **sancarlos** » Sat Apr 22, 2017 2:32 pm

HaulCitgo wrote:
Joe K wrote:So Chris Paul is destined to go to down as the one of the most criminally underappreciated players of all-time due to bad postseason luck, right? The "ringzzz" crowd will have a field day with his career, even though I think he'll end up as a top-5 point guard of all-time.
First I thought you were crazy but then I started counting and somehow the most important position in hoops has a really thin list of greats. Magic, presumably Oscar Robertson, though I never saw him play, and then Jason Kidd? Having trouble even completing this list.

Eta Stockton

I'm not much of a basketball history guy, but how about Magic, Robertson, Kidd, Stockton, Bob Cousy, Isaiah Thomas, Lenny Wilkins, Mo Cheeks, Tiny Archibald, Steve Nash, Gary Payton... I think they were all point guards.