OT: NBA Playoffs

[husky429]

wow that T was horse

Softest T ever.

Despite a hot garbage night shooting, Kemba still manages to come up clutch. Absolutely outrageous

 

[OldBosd]

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

Softest T ever.

Despite a hot garbage night shooting, Kemba still manages to come up clutch. Absolutely outrageous

It wasnt even like he shouted or directed it at the ref. Bizarre

 

[Ratso]

can’t believe i’m the celtics

kemba won that’s all that matters

 

[superjohn]

Kemba is so clutch.

 

[HitDog]

expect a reverse blowout game 2. so predictable

nailed it

 

[Ratso]

he’s the most important player
on that team. you don’t have smart hitting those shots without a leader

 

[champs99and04]

6 for 18 looks a lot better than 3 for 15 even when you take the clutchness/degree of difficulty out of it.

 

[auror]

It wasnt even like he shouted or directed it at the ref. Bizarre

NBA has made a concerted effort to get rid of the demonstrative call complaining. They've singled out the air punch and have been calling it automatically all year. That didn't change when the Bubble started, and in fact, there have been 2 other high profile examples of the air punch being called a T during the bubble playoffs, one of which in a high leverage spot.

Tatum knows this. Tatum has to have enough focus not to do it.

The NBA even has it as an example on the rules website, including that it doesn't matter that it's away from the ref.

Technical Foul, Overt Gesture, “air punch” directed away from official | NBA Video Rulebook

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

NBA has made a concerted effort to get rid of the demonstrative call complaining. They've singled out the air punch and have been calling it automatically all year. That didn't change when the Bubble started, and in fact, there have been 2 other high profile examples of the air punch being called a T during the bubble playoffs, one of which in a high leverage spot.

Tatum knows this. Tatum has to have enough focus not to do it.

The NBA even has it as an example on the rules website, including that it doesn't matter that it's away from the ref.

Technical Foul, Overt Gesture, “air punch” directed away from official | NBA Video Rulebook

yeah, they were saying that's how it was being called all season. Fair enough.

 

[Ratso]

donovan mitchell though

superstar

 

[Kenny11]

Just give kemba a few good young players and he goes undefeated in the postseason. Seen this before!

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Nice game by Celtics. Raptors should play Ibaka and Gasol together more. It will take defensive pressure off Gasol and create matchup problems when they had the ball. Gasol doesn't have a lot of miles left in him, but the Raptors are a pretty average team if Gasol is not playing significant minutes. They have to figure out a way to keep him on the court.

It is worth noting that the Heat literally tried to give Goran Dragic away in July 2019, and NO ONE wanted him. That is a situation where every GM in the NBA looks stupid, including the Heat's. I have always liked Dragic. He isn't a great player, but he puts up enough big games that defenses have to pay attention to him, and he is mentally tough.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Don't let the close score deceive anyone, the Nuggets/Jazz game was tough to watch. Both teams were trying hard to lose, the Jazz just tried a little harder.

 

[uconnbaseball]

Don't let the close score deceive anyone, the Nuggets/Jazz game was tough to watch. Both teams were trying hard to lose, the Jazz just tried a little harder.

Denver is too talented to play as underwhelming as they did in this series. Why are they playing the Craig dude? They would get unjustifiably killed by the media, but they should consider firing Malone. A better coach would have had that team win in 5.

Toronto played well. Great win by the Celtics today. Still think Toronto steals a game or two but Boston can go the distance this year.

 

[jkfer98]

I really think Miami matches up well against Milwaukee. They're scrappy and have a bunch of guys who can light it up on a given night.

Celtics should be able to put this series away in 5. Toronto just doesn't have enough bucket-getters.

 

[Mr. French]

It wasnt even like he shouted or directed it at the ref. Bizarre

From everything I’m seeing, that is a strict rule they’ve emphasized- T up the air punch.

You can argue about doing it in that moment but a rule is a rule - Tatum needs to be a bit cooler. If you argue that’s a dumb rule to be so strict on, I can agree on that.

Edit: didn’t see @auror post saying the same thing.

 

[TheRealKBuks]

Softest T ever.

Despite a hot garbage night shooting, Kemba still manages to come up clutch. Absolutely outrageous

It wasnt even like he shouted or directed it at the ref. Bizarre

It is a soft T but that air punch has been an automatic tech all year long. By the letter of the law its absolutely a technical, but the League needs to make a change about this.

 

[RichZ]

Again, my interest in the NBA anymore is so little that I only turn it on when Kemba's playing, yet somehow I'd forgotten the game was on early, even though I had seen a note to that effect earlier in the afternoon. So I'm sitting there writing, and it suddenly struck me that it was almost 8pm. I clicked on ESPN expecting to check the box score post game, and there's still 3-plus minutes left. Close game with 3 minutes left? Sounds like Kemba-time! Turn it on and he nails a three. Two possessions later, it's step-back-city all over again! I wonder how many times he's done that exact thing during winning time in his career.

 

[Mr. French]

That Nuggets / Jazz game was great ... I know people are complaining about the low score but it was a battle. And I know at least some of the low score was attributed to refs suddenly calling the game like HS or college where guys were getting bumped and held ... not the new NBA by any means. They went throwback.

Plus, guys were really tired and playing HARD, I noticed tons of defensive rotations and things that you just don't see in a regular NBA game. The dudes were gassed when it came to rising up for a jumper.

Overall, still entertained, and the most entertaining last minute or so I've seen in a bit.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Denver is too talented to play as underwhelming as they did in this series. Why are they playing the Craig dude? They would get unjustifiably killed by the media, but they should consider firing Malone. A better coach would have had that team win in 5.

Toronto played well. Great win by the Celtics today. Still think Toronto steals a game or two but Boston can go the distance this year.

You may be right about Malone. I am not sure what to make of Denver. Jokic is excellent, and one of the best centers in the league. His game 7 performance (30 pts, 50%+ shooting, 14 boards) against the best defensive center in the NBA was amazing, especially considering that none of his teammates could throw the ball in the ocean. I like Jamal Murray a lot. He reminds me a little of Rip Hamilton offensively in that Murray is not the fastest guy on the court, but he can get good shots off when he is defended. I think a top defense like the Clippers can lock him down if they can focus on him. Hamilton needed Billups in the backcourt with him to win a title, but Murray doesn't have anyone to take the defensive heat off him on the perimeter.

Clippers are a tough matchup for the Nuggets. Murray is not a great defender, and I am not sure who he is going to cover in the next round. Against a team like the Lakers, I think Denver's strong bench would be an asset, but the Clippers go deep too.

But the main reason Denver won was because A) Snyder didn't use his bench enough, and B) Denver's bench is a lot better than Utah's. I don't like Clarkson as a 6th man on a team that wants to make a playoff run. I would play Niang more if I was Snyder, but despite the weak bench, Snyder has to figure out a way to keep his starters fresher. He can't play them 40 minutes a game for a 7 game series. Utah wore out each of the last 3 games. Snyder is a fine coach to get a team 45-50 wins when he has a talented team, but he is not a championship caliber coach. Utah has a championship caliber starting lineup, but needs the right coach and some bench help.

 

[superjohn]

That Nuggets / Jazz game was great ... I know people are complaining about the low score but it was a battle. And I know at least some of the low score was attributed to refs suddenly calling the game like HS or college where guys were getting bumped and held ... not the new NBA by any means. They went throwback.

Plus, guys were really tired and playing HARD, I noticed tons of defensive rotations and things that you just don't see in a regular NBA game. The dudes were gassed when it came to rising up for a jumper.

Overall, still entertained, and the most entertaining last minute or so I've seen in a bit.

And it was great seeing two big guys battling in the paint. There's two many shrimps now, sometimes you'll turn a game on now and everyone on the court is guards.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

There is more pressure on the Bucks than any other franchise. They are a small market team with the best record in the NBA, so they have to make this count. More importantly, they have to prove to Antetokuonmpo that they can win. I don't know if that means making the Conference Finals or NBA Finals, but losing to Miami in conference semis would be a bad signal to Giannis, and very bad for the franchise long-term

 

[HitDog]

I hate complaining about refs but those last 2 calls in The Bucks/Heat game we’re just wrong.. I guess the right team won so all is well.

 

[Mr. French]

The first one was questionable but you DO have to let a guy land safely. The second one was absolutely insane.