[MidWest]

Well boys, now that the Bulls took care of business in Brooklyn, rumors are circulating in Chicago that Rose is thinking of coming back to face the Miami Heat. Bring on the Heat baby The Heat's train stops against Chicago who the Heat struggled against in the regular season. Once Rose comes back the Bulls will be virtually unstopable.

[cafedelmar]

I always liked Barnes, but Lakers never utilized him properly. They should've kept him and Odom. Hack-a-Dwight, although dominant in his position is still lacking in skill, like Shaq pointed out about his inability to post-up without elbowing the defender. It's sad, bit Lakers are a mess..

[InternationPlayboy]

(05-05-2013 12:36 AM)MidWest Wrote:  

Well boys, now that the Bulls took care of business in Brooklyn, rumors are circulating in Chicago that Rose is thinking of coming back to face the Miami Heat. Bring on the Heat baby The Heat's train stops against Chicago who the Heat struggled against in the regular season. Once Rose comes back the Bulls will be virtually unstopable.

I heard otherwise, that he wasn't coming back this series, but open to the idea if they get past miami (yeah right).

[Belize King]

(05-04-2013 02:12 AM)LoveBug Wrote:  

Grizzlies/Clippers just seem interchangeable... Both very good, not top 1 tier teams with numerous young talent pieces, that will end up around the same record every year

Name a top tier team in the West. Golden State is the sixth seed. OKC doesnt have Westbrook. Would you put 1K on OKC to beat the Grizz? They barely beat Houston.

I see the Gtizz taking out OKC then falling to the Spurs. I love this year's playoffs. Crazy shit.

[InternationPlayboy]

Yeah, lots of injuries this year, making things interesting. Unless both Wade and Lebron get injured though, I just don't see a team having a chance. Not even the spurs. I say they take Chicago in 5, I'd put money on 6.

[Cr33pin]

[Jules D. McMillan]

Jules' 2nd Round Playoff Predictions

I was going to write this last night, but I decided to go party instead. So I'll write it now:

Western Conference

(5)Grizzlies V Thunder(1)

I thoroughly enjoyed watching the Grizzlies bully the overrated Clippers over the last four games in the last round, as I won 300 bucks in the process. It only reaffirmed my belief that fundamental, high IQ basketball beats fast-paced, highlight style basketball every single time. The Clips were tissue paper soft when push came to shove, which is why they're at home right now. Much respect to Chris Paul though. The dude has a lot of heart.

The injury to Russell Westbrook obviously makes this series a lot less interesting. The Thunder don't have enough offensive weapons to put consistent pressure on the Grizzlies. So unless Durant is able to average 40-50ppg against the Grizzlies stingy, number one ranked defense, the Grizzlies will win in 6.


(6)Warriors V Spurs(2)

As a Laker fan, I can't be mad at the Spurs for destroying my injury-depleted Lakers in the 1st round. I applaud them for not letting any of the Laker drama, particularly in Game 4 of that series, distract them from getting the job done. They were all business from start to finish and our D-league team couldn't hang. Get well soon Kobe.

I must say I am surprised that the Warriors made it past the 2nd round. I knew Steph Curry was good, but I didn't know he was that good. I also didn't know the Nuggets would disappear on the defensive end of the floor, but give the Warriors their props.

This matchup, however, is a nightmare for the Warriors. The now well-rested, more healthy Spurs are too good in terms of perimeter defense. They are too experienced in handling pressure playoff situations, and too well-coached for the Warriors.

Just about all of the matchups, outside of the Curry matchup, goes in the Spurs favor. I don't see them allowing Curry to do whatever he wants like the Nuggets did the first 4 games of last series, and who will guard Tim Duncan in the post? Nobody. Spurs in 5.

Eastern Conference

(5)Bulls V Heat(1)

You have to admire the way the Bulls play. Great intensity, toughness, heart, rugged play, determination are what defines this team, and you have to credit a team that carries those factors as part of their identity.

The Bulls have made life difficult for the Heat over the past few years. They are one of the very few teams in the league that successfully exploit the Heat's two biggest weaknesses: rebounding & lack of size. Noah & Boozer will pretty much have their way vs the Heat's bigs this entire series on the boards and in the interior. I don't believe Chris Bosh and Birdman are tougher than the bigs of the Bulls.

The Bulls also are the only team that doesn't allow Lebron James to do whatever he wants. He'll get his numbers, but he'll work for everything he gets. And as evidenced in the 27-game win streak snap game, the Bulls have no problem sending Lebron to the ground a few times to make that point clear.

Where the Bulls will fall in this series is on the perimeter. They simply have too many injuries to key players. From the injuries to Rose & Hinrich, to the illnesses to Nate Robinson, Taj Gibson, Luol Deng(is he out of the hospital yet?), the Bulls don't have enough healthy bodies to beat this Heat team.

This series won't be easy by any stretch. The Bulls will push the Heat hard, but ultimately it won't be enough. Heat in 6.

(3)Pacers V Knicks(2)

The Knicks have recently proven themselves to be the cocky, immature, overrated team that they really are. Apparently they don't believe in respecting their opponents.

Offensively, the Knicks are too stagnant at times and they fall into the isolation game of having Carmelo Anthony jack up outside shots instead of moving the ball and attacking the basket. J.R Smith can also be notoriously inconsistent at times which hurts their offense.

The good news for the Knicks is that the Pacers are also a stagnant offensive team. With their best player Danny Granger out, the Pacers offense has become inconsistent, especially on the perimeter. Where the Pacers will have the advantage is in the post with Roy Hibbert and David West. Carmelo will be presumably forced to guard one of those players, which will take a lot of energy out of him on offense.

With Danny Granger, I would pick the Pacers to win this series. Without him, they don't have enough and will fall short...unless Hibbert suddenly becomes a 30 & 15 type player. Knicks in 6 tough games. It wouldn't surprise me if this series goes 7.

[InternationPlayboy]

I'm saying okc in 7
Spurs in 6
Miami in 5
Knicks in 6

[Professor Fox]

Amazing finish, KD so clutch.

[JayMillz]

Memphis choked, especially at the free throw line.

[InternationPlayboy]

Yep, nice win for okc, impressive.

[Belize King]

Knicks barely passed the Celtics who can't shoot and defense isn't as good as the Pacers. I take Pacers in 6. I was disappointed that the Pacers let the Hawks beat them twice, but the Knicks do not run plays and J.R. Smith is running cold. Unless Smith catches fire, Pacers will take care of the Knicks.

I would put $300 on Pacers in 6.

[InternationPlayboy]

(05-05-2013 03:55 PM)TexasMade Wrote:  

Knicks barely passed the Celtics who can't shoot and defense isn't as good as the Pacers. I take Pacers in 6. I was disappointed that the Pacers let the Hawks beat them twice, but the Knicks do not run plays and J.R. Smith is running cold. Unless Smith catches fire, Pacers will take care of the Knicks.

I would put $300 on Pacers in 6.

What do you mean the Knicks barely passed the Celtics? They beat them in 6. Wouldn't barely passing them be a good game 7?

[at350zguyy]

(05-05-2013 02:16 PM)Jules D. McMillan Wrote:  

Jules' 2nd Round Playoff Predictions



(5)Bulls V Heat(1)

You have to admire the way the Bulls play. Great intensity, toughness, heart, rugged play, determination are what defines this team, and you have to credit a team that carries those factors as part of their identity.

The Bulls have made life difficult for the Heat over the past few years. They are one of the very few teams in the league that successfully exploit the Heat's two biggest weaknesses: rebounding & lack of size. Noah & Boozer will pretty much have their way vs the Heat's bigs this entire series on the boards and in the interior. I don't believe Chris Bosh and Birdman are tougher than the bigs of the Bulls.

The Bulls also are the only team that doesn't allow Lebron James to do whatever he wants. He'll get his numbers, but he'll work for everything he gets. And as evidenced in the 27-game win streak snap game, the Bulls have no problem sending Lebron to the ground a few times to make that point clear.

Where the Bulls will fall in this series is on the perimeter. They simply have too many injuries to key players. From the injuries to Rose & Hinrich, to the illnesses to Nate Robinson, Taj Gibson, Luol Deng(is he out of the hospital yet?), the Bulls don't have enough healthy bodies to beat this Heat team.

This series won't be easy by any stretch. The Bulls will push the Heat hard, but ultimately it won't be enough. Heat in 6.

Bosh isn't tougher than the Bulls big guys, but he sure as hell is crafty. He gets Gibson to bite on the shot fake a lot. Study some film on that individual matchup and you'll see.

I love the way Birdman plays. Similar style game to Noah, but way more athletic. He's tough as nails, and definitely a lot tougher than Carlos Boozer on the defensive end.

[InternationPlayboy]

Birdman's cool as hell too. Super humble. I met him a couple years ago at a nightclub in Aspen. I'm a big fan.

[TheBulldozer]

Thoughts on today's officials in the NY-Indy game?

The Garden was in near mutiny at points.

[TheSlayer]

(05-05-2013 05:31 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Thoughts on today's officials in the NY-Indy game?

The Garden was in near mutiny at points.

The officiating was actually not bad. That's one of the benefits of watching the game with JVG because he loves to point out bad calls. They were allowing physical play both ways and the Knicks players were acting "Who?Me?!!!" on every call. Both the teams were called for 21 fouls each and shot 26 and 23 FTs respectively for Indiana and NYK.



Things will probably tighten up in the second game and the game will be less physical.

[TheBulldozer]

Yeah it's a totally different experiencee watching live. The Knicks got beat up really good off the ball. I felt like the Knicks got to the basket and ran into Hibbert over and over again. It's so touch and go to determine if it's a foul or not with the size of Hibbert.

In the biggest game of basketball this city has seen in 13 years, it was definitely an electric atmosphere. The Garden basketball experience is so unique in that you've got 70 year old Jewish men cursing in Hebrew, sitting next to the first generation immigrant taxi driver.

Though in all te years I've been going the Garden was as angry and as riotous as I've ever seen it over some calls.

Agreed JVG calls it like it is and talks from experience.

[TheSlayer]

Yeah, watching it live is a different experience. Must have been really exciting watching it live at MSG. How much are the playoff tickets there?

Watching it on TV definitely allows you to see the replays and the calls. Most of the Hibbert calls were actually fine except for a couple of them. And JVG is always the first to point out bad calls. I think the next game will be much tighter and that should benefit the Knicks.

Melo needs to step it up though. Dude's shooting 36% for the playoffs now. A telling stat: Lebron missed 22 shots in the entire series against the Bucks and Melo missed 18 today.

PS. It's definitely on my to do things list : catch a game at MSG.

[JayMillz]

PJ is gone. Is Mike Woodson next???

[goodfella]

(05-05-2013 05:31 PM)MaleDefined Wrote:  

Thoughts on today's officials in the NY-Indy game?

The Garden was in near mutiny at points.

I was also at game 1 yesterday, Pacers simply out played the Knicks. Hibbert ate up Chandler in the post, he needs to pull down more boards than the 3 he grabbed. Those 2nd chance opportunities come up big when Melo and Smith are not shooting efficiently. I love Felton's play in the playoffs I would have like to seen him drive to the basket more in 2nd half, but overall his play has been strong.

In terms of the officiating, as fan at the game I also have a hard time making heads or tails on some foul calls. All I know is that Melo has been bounced around like a pin ball these games especially yesterday.

[Joga Bonito]

Can't believe people call Melo the best scorer in the game. These whole playoffs he's just been jacking and not looking to make plays for his teammates at all. Shot an abysmal percentage yesterday.

[Belize King]

Knicks have no movement in their offense. 90% iso. Tyson might come down to set a screen. That shit won't fly with the Pacers D. We will see but I stand by my Pacers in 6.

Since the suspension, J.R. has been playing like garbage. If he doesn't get right it's gojng to be tough. Shump is the shit though. Him and Tyson come tonplay every game. They play within their abilities.

[Jules D. McMillan]

I feel like changing my pick in the Knicks/Pacers series. The Pacers aren't the Celtics, you won't see them running out of energy and having 23-pt second halfs in games. If the Knicks don't make three pointers, they're toast. This is the problem with building a team around three point shooting alone. When you face a tough, physical defensive team and the threes are dropping, you have nothing else to fall on. The Knicks are overrated.

(05-05-2013 03:59 PM)at350zguyy Wrote:  

(05-05-2013 02:16 PM)Jules D. McMillan Wrote:  

Bosh isn't tougher than the Bulls big guys, but he sure as hell is crafty. He gets Gibson to bite on the shot fake a lot. Study some film on that individual matchup and you'll see.

I love the way Birdman plays. Similar style game to Noah, but way more athletic. He's tough as nails, and definitely a lot tougher than Carlos Boozer on the defensive end.

I saw what Bosh did to Gibson throughout the 2011 playoff series. But Bosh's matchup won't be against Gibson, it would be against Noah and he doesn't bite on shot fakes. Noah is also one of the most versatile bigs in the game on defense because he's able to guard both the perimeter and interior.

Birdman is a bench player, which means he won't go against Boozer, he'll likely go against Gibson and he's no softie on the boards.

[InternationPlayboy]

(05-06-2013 09:34 AM)iWin Wrote:  

Can't believe people call Melo the best scorer in the game. These whole playoffs he's just been jacking and not looking to make plays for his teammates at all. Shot an abysmal percentage yesterday.

Well he technically was the best scorer during the regular season...

http://stats.nba.com/?GameScope=Season&P...ory=Points

Second best in the playoffs...

http://stats.nba.com/?GameScope=Playoffs...ory=Points

This may have something to do with why people are saying he's the best scorer.