West Conference playoff thread

[Q-is-here]

Lakers keeping this game interesting!

[Coolbreeze44]

Thank you Denver, keep it going.

[Coolbreeze44]

DLO needed only 26 minutes to post a minus 25 in game 1. No other Laker was worse than -8 in a game the Lakers lost by 6.

[Lipoli390]

DLO needed only 26 minutes to post a minus 25 in game 1. No other Laker was worse than -8 in a game the Lakers lost by 6.

The same DLO we saw here — one game he’s great and carries the team for stretches, then the next game he’s horrible. Consistency is such an important factor in assessing a player’s value. It’s hugely valuable to know what you’re going to get from a player game to game and a player’s statistical averages don’t necessarily give you insight into that. One of KAT’s strengths in the regular season is that his production has always been highly consistent. Unfortunately, he hasn’t shown that level of consistency in the playoffs. We’re saw a nice level of consistency from Edwards this past season and Jaden was highly consistent, especially on the defensive end.

[Lipoli390]

After watching the first half of the Nuggets-Lakers game tonight, I’ve come away with two broad conclusions. First, there’s a good chance the Lakers and Heat both end up in this year’s NBA finals. Second, there are no great teams in the NBA this year.

The idea of a Lakers-Heat finals is weird. The Lakers finished 7th, only 4 games over .500. The Heat finished in 8th place, 6 games over .500. Yet, here they are playing in their respective conference finals and looking like they could win. The Nuggets and Celtics are clearly the two most talented teams of the four remaining. But they are both flawed. I think the problem with the Celtics is part coaching and part the youth of their two top players - Tatum and Brown. The Nuggets seem too dependent on Jokic. Murray, Porter and Gordon are very good, but not good enough to combine with Jokic to form a great team. One thing I’ve noticed with Denver is that they don’t have a guard or wing who is really good at breaking down defenses and scoring on dribble penetration in the half court.

It’s good that these matchups are so competitive. But it’s disappointing that the League doesn’t have any truly great teams.

[Q-is-here]

After watching the first half of the Nuggets-Lakers game tonight, I’ve come away with two broad conclusions. First, there’s a good chance the Lakers and Heat both end up in this year’s NBA finals. Second, there are no great teams in the NBA this year.

The idea of a Lakers-Heat finals is weird. The Lakers finished 7th, only 4 games over .500. The Heat finished in 8th place, 6 games over .500. Yet, here they are playing in their respective conference finals and looking like they could win. The Nuggets and Celtics are clearly the two most talented teams of the four remaining. But they are both flawed. I think the problem with the Celtics is part coaching and part the youth of their two top players - Tatum and Brown. The Nuggets seem too dependent on Jokic. Murray, Porter and Gordon are very good, but not good enough to combine with Jokic to form a great team. One thing I’ve noticed with Denver is that they don’t have a guard or wing who is really good at breaking down defenses and scoring on dribble penetration in the half court.

It’s good that these matchups are so competitive. But it’s disappointing that the League doesn’t have any truly great teams.

I think the talent and coaching is as good as ever and therefore it's really hard for a team to just lap everyone.

[Lipoli390]

I wrote at halftime that Murray’s not good enough. Then he explodes in the 4th quarter and ends up with 37 points. Usually it takes weeks, months or even years to find out I’m wrong. In this instance, it took 30 minutes.

[BloopOracle]

D'Angelo Russell's first two Western conference final games

9.0 PPG
43.4% TS
36.8% FG
12.5% 3PT
-41

[Monster]

D'Angelo Russell's first two Western conference final games

9.0 PPG
43.4% TS
36.8% FG
12.5% 3PT
-41

Now do Vanderbilt

[FNG]

D'Angelo Russell's first two Western conference final games

9.0 PPG
43.4% TS
36.8% FG
12.5% 3PT
-41

Now do Vanderbilt

Or Beas?