Somebody had to start this thread...Playoffs?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Hmm.. As the Harden slump continues, will he be tempted to remove the beard to change things up? :)

God, I hope so. Harden is one of the most annoying players in the NBA in my book. Don't get me wrong, I think he's really good, but his dumb beard and the way he manufactures fouls bugs the hell out of me.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Hmm.. As the Harden slump continues, will he be tempted to remove the beard to change things up? :)

God, I hope so. Harden is one of the most annoying players in the NBA in my book. Don't get me wrong, I think he's really good, but his dumb beard and the way he manufactures fouls bugs the hell out of me.

I'm down on Harden too...he's a perfect guy to get entangled in the Kardashian mess. And I hate the manufactured fouls too.

But here's the definition of a ridiculous homer...I love it when KMart goes foul-hunting :thumb: !

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I (and many pundits) may have buried the Trailblazers too early, because they look like they may belong in the middle tier of teams battling for the last four playoff spots. Tonight they won in Utah by 18, and Lillard put up 35...he's starting out the season in MVP form. I still think they are overachieving, but it's difficult to ignore them after two impressive road wins over the Wolves and the Jazz.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Hmm.. As the Harden slump continues, will he be tempted to remove the beard to change things up? :)

God, I hope so. Harden is one of the most annoying players in the NBA in my book. Don't get me wrong, I think he's really good, but his dumb beard and the way he manufactures fouls bugs the hell out of me.

I'm down on Harden too...he's a perfect guy to get entangled in the Kardashian mess. And I hate the manufactured fouls too.

But here's the definition of a ridiculous homer...I love it when KMart goes foul-hunting :thumb: !

Heh, yes, I couldn't agree more!

As for Kmart, he's sort of a classic "can't live with him, can't live without him" kind of player for the Wolves. I'd love nothing more than for him to become redundant, but that requires LaVine to play the 2 and do it just as good or better than him.

[m4gor [enjin:6667447]]

I (and many pundits) may have buried the Trailblazers too early, because they look like they may belong in the middle tier of teams battling for the last four playoff spots. Tonight they won in Utah by 18, and Lillard put up 35...he's starting out the season in MVP form. I still think they are overachieving, but it's difficult to ignore them after two impressive road wins over the Wolves and the Jazz.

I would say they will fall off bigtime later in the season, i think that is in general big problem of Stotts that his team is peaking way too early, i expected them to do well in first few months (still thought we would beat them with kind of start we had)

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

I (and many pundits) may have buried the Trailblazers too early, because they look like they may belong in the middle tier of teams battling for the last four playoff spots. Tonight they won in Utah by 18, and Lillard put up 35...he's starting out the season in MVP form. I still think they are overachieving, but it's difficult to ignore them after two impressive road wins over the Wolves and the Jazz.

I would say they will fall off bigtime later in the season, i think that is in general big problem of Stotts that his team is peaking way too early, i expected them to do well in first few months (still thought we would beat them with kind of start we had)

I heard that Stotts "peaks too early" with his wife too,just a rumor.

[m4gor [enjin:6667447]]

I (and many pundits) may have buried the Trailblazers too early, because they look like they may belong in the middle tier of teams battling for the last four playoff spots. Tonight they won in Utah by 18, and Lillard put up 35...he's starting out the season in MVP form. I still think they are overachieving, but it's difficult to ignore them after two impressive road wins over the Wolves and the Jazz.

I would say they will fall off bigtime later in the season, i think that is in general big problem of Stotts that his team is peaking way too early, i expected them to do well in first few months (still thought we would beat them with kind of start we had)

I heard that Stotts "peaks too early" with his wife too,just a rumor.

thx for info :-)

[Monster]

After this last game...hmmm

playoffs

Maybe not crazy

I will say this team so far has exceeded my expectations in a number of ways. It's been a heck of a start and it's not like everyone has been hitting on all cylinders. I am planning on just enjoying the ride.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

We're now 8 games in and I'm going to adjust my playoff tiers. You guys were right about Houston...they have righted the ship and won four in a row. They belong in the "can't miss" category, which now is made up of 5 teams...Thunder, Warriors, Clippers, Rockets and Spurs. All but the Rockets have already assumed their rightful places at the top of the standings. I am still not impressed with what I'm seeing in Memphis, so I'm leaving them in the middle tier.

Lillard's emergence as an MVP candidate has moved Portland out of the bottom tier, so they now join the teams in the middle battling for the bottom three spots. Denver is 3-4, but I don't see them in the hunt...they stay in the bottom tier with the Lakers and Kings.

So, that leaves 7 teams fighting for the final 3 playoff spots...Wolves, Griz, Trailblazers, Mavs, Pelicans, Suns and Jazz. with the Griz most likely to move up. Right now the Wolves are tied with the Jazz and ahead of the rest, and those 6 teams will continue to be the teams I cheer against! The Pelicans are seriously broken at 1-6 and giving up 113 PPG...I still think their injuries may sabotage their season. None of the other teams look like world-beaters and all have noticeable flaws.

It's on!


(unless Ricky's knee is really an issue, in which case, we join the Lakers and Kings)

[Porckchop]

For this team to make the playoffs we need a second year player , an Injury prone pg and a rookie Center to play well each and every night. Not just well, but carry this team. I just think that's a lot to expect. Towns will most likely wear down in the back half of a long 82 game season and Ricky will most likely miss games ( already missed one) .
I think next year is the year we make it and it may be a bigger jump than just sneaking in.