Around the NBA - the 2020 Playoff Edition!

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tlongII said:
We've had too many injuries. At full strength I think the Blazers are better.
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Until see what moves are made this offseason, I don’t have an opinion as to whether the Blazers will be better or not. I’d say that both Jokic and Murray improved significantly this year, which probably would have given the Nuggets the edge this year even if the Blazers had been healthy. If the Blazers had been healthy, they wouldn’t have had Whiteside or Melo.
 
tlongII said:
Dame/CJ beat them just last year so I don't know why it's so difficult to convince you.
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Dame/CJ (since he became a starter) have a total of 14 Playoff wins and got swept multiple times including two gentleman's sweep, Murray/Jokic have allready 15 total Playoff wins. Jokic is 25 and Murray is 23 years old. So no you can't convince me even though Portland beat Denver last year
 
tlongII said:
We've had too many injuries. At full strength I think the Blazers are better.
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teams are almost never at full strength by the time the playoffs arrive. Denver doesn't have Will Barton right now. The Lakers don't have Avery Bradley or Dion Waiters. Boston doesn't have Gordon Hayward. Meanwhile, Rodney Hood may very well never be the same player, Matthews sure wasn't; Ariza is 35 and might not even be on the team next season (whenever that is); and Zach's upside may be mostly a mirage. Melo might not be back either. And those are all role players

meanwhile, Denver has improved because they had a real young core last year, were in their first playoffs, and gained that experience. Portland was at the same spot 5 years ago. They don't have that kind of natural upward traction like Denver has; Portland has already climbed that slope and ended up where they are now
 
Denver lives and dies by the three. Just like many other teams including the Blazers.
They shot terrible from the 3 last night.
 
Haven't heard much from the ownership of this team of late? Especially after the end of the season.
Maybe I missed it?
 
Jody Allen is going to sell this team,” writes Jaynes. “I’m not sure when, because it probably has to await the untangling of all of Paul Allen’s assets….The people operating this franchise have always assured everyone that it isn’t for sale, but I think that’s what you have to say in order to keep potential free agents, advertisers, sponsors and even fans comfortable with their investment in the team….Nobody knew Paul Allen was buying the team until he sat down at his first news conference…I expect the same thing to happen in the next year or two — only Jody Allen isn’t likely to be there…But she’s going to sell. And you can take that to the bank.”

I remember how much of a surprise it was when Paul acquired the team.
Wonder if we will be surprised before long?
 
Hoopguru said:
Jody Allen is going to sell this team,” writes Jaynes. “I’m not sure when, because it probably has to await the untangling of all of Paul Allen’s assets….The people operating this franchise have always assured everyone that it isn’t for sale, but I think that’s what you have to say in order to keep potential free agents, advertisers, sponsors and even fans comfortable with their investment in the team….Nobody knew Paul Allen was buying the team until he sat down at his first news conference…I expect the same thing to happen in the next year or two — only Jody Allen isn’t likely to be there…But she’s going to sell. And you can take that to the bank.”

I remember how much of a surprise it was when Paul acquired the team.
Wonder if we will be surprised before long?
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I just hope if it we are sold (I agree that it will likely happen within this decade), that the next owner doesn’t move the team.

If it does, bye NBA... and for the love of Christ let’s get the NHL here.
 
UKRAINEFAN said:
Thought this was kind of interesting also:
"Mike Trudell: In his pregame session, Frank Vogel pointed out that Denver presents a different challenge from Portland in screen/roll action due to Nikola Jokic. They trapped Lillard high on the floor, but if you do that to Murray, he can feed Jokic, an incredible passer."
Is it just passing or is it also he is a better midrange shooter and also more fluid getting to the basket from the key?
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Weren’t we able to break the traps and punish the clippers when they schemed for taking dame out?2016? Plumlee was the difference. Denver was able to pair him with Jokic often quite successfully and utilize him in the joker’s roll as the hub up top.
He is a free agent. Always thought though limited offensively he or Kyle Anderson would make opponents pay dearly for trapping dame.
 
lawai'a said:
Weren’t we able to break the traps and punish the clippers when they schemed for taking dame out?2016? Plumlee was the difference. Denver was able to pair him with Jokic often quite successfully and utilize him in the joker’s roll as the hub up top.
He is a free agent. Always thought though limited offensively he or Kyle Anderson would make opponents pay dearly for trapping dame.
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the Clippers did it some, and was a reason they went up 2-0 and won both games by 20 points. At that point it was a mismatch.

but their Dame defense was effective because they had Chris Paul defending Dame straight up and were able to trap using the mobility of Blake Griffin, Jordan, and Mbah a Moute. When Paul and Griffin got injured, their Dame defense fell apart.

and no, I don't agree that players like Plumlee or Kyle Anderson are the key to unlocking Dame-centric defenses. Batum didn't help in 2015 against Memphis; Evan Turner didn't help in 3 playoffs; Nurkic was healthy against the Pels and against the Lakers and that didn't make a difference

the Blazers are not going to be able to cheap-screw their way out of this with a different role player. They need another elite talent who can run the offense while forcing the defense to react. They need a player good enough to punish unbalanced defenses, and they simply haven't had anybody like that to shoulder some of Dame's burden. That's the key
 
wizenheimer said:
teams are almost never at full strength by the time the playoffs arrive. Denver doesn't have Will Barton right now. The Lakers don't have Avery Bradley or Dion Waiters. Boston doesn't have Gordon Hayward. Meanwhile, Rodney Hood may very well never be the same player, Matthews sure wasn't; Ariza is 35 and might not even be on the team next season (whenever that is); and Zach's upside may be mostly a mirage. Melo might not be back either. And those are all role players

meanwhile, Denver has improved because they had a real young core last year, were in their first playoffs, and gained that experience. Portland was at the same spot 5 years ago. They don't have that kind of natural upward traction like Denver has; Portland has already climbed that slope and ended up where they are now
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Try looking at the positive for a change. Veterans don't have the same upside, but they're often the difference makers in the playoffs, where experience and demeanor have elevated importance.
 
I don't know why you guys are continually surprised about how the NBA is rigged. I have been watching this shit for 30+ years. It's theater. It's the WWE.
 
batum was checked out, kyle anderson is light years better at play making than turner or nurkic and superior at attacking the basket from above the key too IMHO. yes i would love to see a talent upgrade, but with our assets this offseason, it may end up being tweaking of the current roster, not dramatic change. some of plumlee's passing highlights are from game two of the clipper series when stotts made the adjustment to use him to attack the clips and we started seeing success. plumlee rebounding the ball and driving it up the floor was successful too. anderson does that a lot for memphis with the added bonus of him having a near 3:1 assist to TO ratio. some blasts from the past here to share.
“I think Plumlee's a guy who's good at reading,” McCollum told SI.com in January. “We do a lot of back screens and slips and stuff like that. He's good at making that backdoor pass.”

The most effective way to combat the trap, though, is to circumvent it entirely. At first that might seem impossible; Lillard and McCollum are Portland’s best shot creators, and the pick-and-roll is central to the way they generate offense. Stotts was able to tweak that balance beginning in Game 2 to feature fewer straight pick-and-rolls and more varied possessions for both Lillard and McCollum. There aren’t many NBA teams that could afford to take the ball out of the hands of their two best ball handlers (who double as the team’s two highest-usage scorers) mid-series and adjust course so smoothly. Portland is exceptional because Plumlee is, too—a rare big who, for stretches of this series, has effectively ran point:
the Blazers are not going to be able to cheap-screw their way out of this with a different role player. They need another elite talent who can run the offense while forcing the defense to react. They need a player good enough to punish unbalanced defenses, and they simply haven't had anybody like that to shoulder some of Dame's burden. That's the key[/QUOTE]
Then, on those occasions when the Blazers did run pick-and-roll (or dribble hand-offs that simulated the same action), Plumlee put on his Draymond Green hat and began making plays from the short roll:
Some of these possessions were back-breakers for the Clipper defense. Portland’s choice to operate through Plumlee didn’t just defuse the trap. It served to weaponize two non-shooters (Plumlee and Maurice Harkless) whom L.A. had thought it safe to disregard in its tailored defense for the series. Plumlee’s playmaking emergence in Games 2 and 3 brought doubt to that premise. So much of playoff basketball lives in the tension between process and result. When those two are aligned (as was the case in Game 1), you see the Clippers fully invested in a specific plan of disruption. Plumlee’s operations suggested a weakness within it. Every baseline finish from Harkless made that weakness real and immediate in the thick of a competitive game.


https://www.si.com/nba/2016/04/29/nba-playoffs-portland-trail-blazers-mason-plumlee-damian-lillard
 
lawai'a said:
batum was checked out, kyle anderson is light years better at play making than turner or nurkic and superior at attacking the basket from above the key too IMHO. yes i would love to see a talent upgrade, but with our assets this offseason, it may end up being tweaking of the current roster, not dramatic change. some of plumlee's passing highlights are from game two of the clipper series when stotts made the adjustment to use him to attack the clips and we started seeing success. plumlee rebounding the ball and driving it up the floor was successful too. anderson does that a lot for memphis with the added bonus of him having a near 3:1 assist to TO ratio. some blasts from the past here to share.
“I think Plumlee's a guy who's good at reading,” McCollum told SI.com in January. “We do a lot of back screens and slips and stuff like that. He's good at making that backdoor pass.”

thick of a competitive game.


https://www.si.com/nba/2016/04/29/nba-playoffs-portland-trail-blazers-mason-plumlee-damian-lillard
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I know those were highlights, but just from one series, that's impressive. That's fun basketball!
 
UKRAINEFAN said:
I know those were highlights, but just from one series, that's impressive. That's fun basketball!
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https://www.nba.com/nuggets/news/denver-nuggets-film-study-mason-plumlee-passing-080919

more plumlee love and a bunch more highlights from his time in denver since trade.
article published edit last august 2019
"The 29-year-old center posted a 19.7 assist percentage last season, which fell just short of his career-high of 19.8 percent back in, you guessed it, 2016-17. Plumlee’s elite assist percentage ranked in the 94th percentile in the 2018-19 season, which continued a trend he has developed throughout his career. Plumlee’s assist percentage has placed him in the 87th percentile or higher every year since the 2014-15 season, according to Cleaning the Glass."
 
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lawai'a said:
batum was checked out, kyle anderson is light years better at play making than turner or nurkic and superior at attacking the basket from above the key too IMHO. yes i would love to see a talent upgrade, but with our assets this offseason, it may end up being tweaking of the current roster, not dramatic change. some of plumlee's passing highlights are from game two of the clipper series when stotts made the adjustment to use him to attack the clips and we started seeing success. plumlee rebounding the ball and driving it up the floor was successful too. anderson does that a lot for memphis with the added bonus of him having a near 3:1 assist to TO ratio. some blasts from the past here to share.
“I think Plumlee's a guy who's good at reading,” McCollum told SI.com in January. “We do a lot of back screens and slips and stuff like that. He's good at making that backdoor pass.”

The most effective way to combat the trap, though, is to circumvent it entirely. At first that might seem impossible; Lillard and McCollum are Portland’s best shot creators, and the pick-and-roll is central to the way they generate offense. Stotts was able to tweak that balance beginning in Game 2 to feature fewer straight pick-and-rolls and more varied possessions for both Lillard and McCollum. There aren’t many NBA teams that could afford to take the ball out of the hands of their two best ball handlers (who double as the team’s two highest-usage scorers) mid-series and adjust course so smoothly. Portland is exceptional because Plumlee is, too—a rare big who, for stretches of this series, has effectively ran point:
the Blazers are not going to be able to cheap-screw their way out of this with a different role player. They need another elite talent who can run the offense while forcing the defense to react. They need a player good enough to punish unbalanced defenses, and they simply haven't had anybody like that to shoulder some of Dame's burden. That's the key
Click to expand...
Then, on those occasions when the Blazers did run pick-and-roll (or dribble hand-offs that simulated the same action), Plumlee put on his Draymond Green hat and began making plays from the short roll:
Some of these possessions were back-breakers for the Clipper defense. Portland’s choice to operate through Plumlee didn’t just defuse the trap. It served to weaponize two non-shooters (Plumlee and Maurice Harkless) whom L.A. had thought it safe to disregard in its tailored defense for the series. Plumlee’s playmaking emergence in Games 2 and 3 brought doubt to that premise. So much of playoff basketball lives in the tension between process and result. When those two are aligned (as was the case in Game 1), you see the Clippers fully invested in a specific plan of disruption. Plumlee’s operations suggested a weakness within it. Every baseline finish from Harkless made that weakness real and immediate in the thick of a competitive game.


https://www.si.com/nba/2016/04/29/nba-playoffs-portland-trail-blazers-mason-plumlee-damian-lillard[/QUOTE]
Gosh, I love those black jerseys.
 
Natebishop3 said:
I don't know why you guys are continually surprised about how the NBA is rigged. I have been watching this shit for 30+ years. It's theater. It's the WWE.
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This right here, which is usually a more veiled insinuation than the absolute bullshit you are spitting, is one of the most foolish things I hear as a sports fan from anyone, let alone another sports fan. These are titans of business that own these teams that are competing businesses. There would be no reason that Mark Cuban would ever put up with this, there is no reason that Paul Allen would have for all of those years, the list goes on and on. If this were rigged why would it be Boston of all places that would have all of those rings. New York, LA (who I realize has a ton of rings), Chicago, Philly, Dallas, the Bay Area, DC and Houston are all bigger media markets than Boston. DC is the 7th biggest media market and has most of Baltimore the 26th biggest routing for them and we know what kind of success they've enjoyed. San Antonio is the 31st biggest media market in the U.S. yet they had a dynasty. The Knicks haven't won a championship in almost 50 years, well over the amount of time you've been watching the game. That's the most marketable team in the biggest media market in the country. The government pays attention to cheating in sports (see the steroids era in MLB and Tim Donaghy). Do you think the NBA as visible as they are would risk the exposure to such a scandal? Do you think the people at the top of the league would risk so much money, their reputations and jail time? Do you think that in an organization as huge as the NBA with the media scrutiny on it that no email or shred of evidence to support your accusation would have turned up in the thirty fucking years you've been watching "this shit"? Do you even think?
 
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e_blazer said:
Until see what moves are made this offseason, I don’t have an opinion as to whether the Blazers will be better or not. I’d say that both Jokic and Murray improved significantly this year, which probably would have given the Nuggets the edge this year even if the Blazers had been healthy. If the Blazers had been healthy, they wouldn’t have had Whiteside or Melo.
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They would have had Zach, Nurk, and Hoodie. WAAYY BETTER!
 
tlongII said:
They would have had Zach, Nurk, and Hoodie. WAAYY BETTER!
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And it's logical to think a much much improved Zach and Nurk with Hoodie not to mention that Bazemore may have been very effective backing up the 2 and 3 as apposed to starting. If Nurk is healthy, who knows what we do with Moe and Meyers... maybe still trade them or we keep them and have that much more depth. It's hard to say but what is easy to say is that we would have been worlds better than the team that we saw do so well in the bubble if this team wasn't absolutely devastated by injuries this season.
 
blazerkor said:
And it's logical to think a much much improved Zach and Nurk with Hoodie not to mention that Bazemore may have been very effective backing up the 2 and 3 as apposed to starting. If Nurk is healthy, who knows what we do with Moe and Meyers... maybe still trade them or we keep them and have that much more depth. It's hard to say but what is easy to say is that we would have been worlds better than the team that we saw do so well in the bubble if this team wasn't absolutely devastated by injuries this season.
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Good points. There’s a reason that Dame thought the team had a shot at a title run before the start of the season. Hey, Moe and Meyers are both UFA’s. Bring them both back and watch @Mediocre Man blow a gasket. ;)
 
There’s some irony in the fact that Meyers Leonard is on teams that successively are playing in the WCF and the ECF. Kind of interesting that Kanter is on the opposing team and that neither of them are getting much time on the court.
 
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e_blazer said:
Good points. There’s a reason that Dame thought the team had a shot at a title run before the start of the season. Hey, Moe and Meyers are both UFA’s. Bring them both back and watch @Mediocre Man blow a gasket. ;)
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Leonard may have championship experience after this postseason
 
illmatic99 said:
Boston is showing us the value of having multiple guys between 6'6 and 6'9 who can all dribble, pass, and shoot, while also being able to defend.

these are the kinds of guys we desperately need and should target in the draft/FA/trades.
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also showing the value of having the #3 pick in consecutive drafts for two of the most impactful players in their lineups.
 
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