Warriors-Cavaliers IV

[B-Fly]

Once again, the Warriors are likely huge favorites. I just don't know what the Cavs can possibly hope to do on defense against Durant, Curry and Klay. LeBron maybe wills them to two wins, some way, somehow. Tristan Thompson is probably barely playable against the Warriors - just use up hard fouls early on Durant and hopefully get some extra possessions on offense. Don't even bother defending Draymond on the perimeter. I think they need to hope that Green and Nance can step up big against Durant, and Hill and Smith have to force Curry and Klay into bad shots (many of which they'll make anyway). Obviously LeBron will have to expend energy on the defensive side as well, but he needs his guys to play the best they've ever played on defense and then just find their spots on offense so LeBron can kick out when he can't just bull all the way to the rim.

[hacko]

Once again, the Warriors are likely huge favorites. I just don't know what the Cavs can possibly hope to do on defense against Durant, Curry and Klay. LeBron maybe wills them to two wins, some way, somehow. Tristan Thompson is probably barely playable against the Warriors - just use up hard fouls early on Durant and hopefully get some extra possessions on offense. Don't even bother defending Draymond on the perimeter. I think they need to hope that Green and Nance can step up big against Durant, and Hill and Smith have to force Curry and Klay into bad shots (many of which they'll make anyway). Obviously LeBron will have to expend energy on the defensive side as well, but he needs his guys to play the best they've ever played on defense and then just find their spots on offense so LeBron can kick out when he can't just bull all the way to the rim.

They need to make the game ugly and pound them on the boards ( that is where tristen comes in) and someone has to be robin to Lebron ( K love or ...) this is where we will miss Kyrie. I don't give us much of a chance but I have seen stranger things. GO CAVS!!!!

[Judge Jude]

last night's game was so pitiful in terms of entertainment that I may skip this series entirely unless LeBron wins 2 games.

amazing that people paid big bucks to watch an amateur three-point shooting contest.

[DMT]

last night's game was so pitiful in terms of entertainment that I may skip this series entirely unless LeBron wins 2 games.

amazing that people paid big bucks to watch an amateur three-point shooting contest.

Agreed, it was awful. I sat out until the Semis and most of the games were pretty bad.

[B-Fly]

Agreed, it was awful. I sat out until the Semis and most of the games were pretty bad.

I thought the first half was a lot of fun to watch. Particularly the Haren-to-Capela alley oops and Eric Gordon drives, and PJ Tucker's hard-nosed play was inspirational. Then came the second half and the 27 consecutive missed three pointers.

[DMT]

I thought the first half was a lot of fun to watch. Particularly the Haren-to-Capela alley oops and Eric Gordon drives, and PJ Tucker's hard-nosed play was inspirational. Then came the second half and the 27 consecutive missed three pointers.

True, the 1st half was fun, but the 2nd half was so terrible it made the 1st half fade quickly from memory.

[Hi.I'm.Mandy]

True, the 1st half was fun, but the 2nd half was so terrible it made the 1st half fade quickly from memory.

things more entertaining than the second half:


1.01 watching paint dry

1.02. watching someone else watch paint dry

[The Feral Slasher]

I don't watch much NBA action since the Sonics left Seattle. I had visitors in town from the Bay area so saw the game last night. It is so different from 15-20 years ago, and not in a good way from my perspective. Maybe they need to move the 3 point line back or maybe I'm just a grumpy old man. Or maybe both

[chancellor]

I don't watch much NBA action since the Sonics left Seattle. I had visitors in town from the Bay area so saw the game last night. It is so different from 15-20 years ago, and not in a good way from my perspective. Maybe they need to move the 3 point line back or maybe I'm just a grumpy old man. Or maybe both

Embrace the power of "and".

[The Feral Slasher]

Embrace the power of "and".

Get off my lawn !!

[The Feral Slasher]

i am curious if there are people who find the Current NBA style entertaining ?

[Judge Jude]

the ratings and attendance are good

it's a form of Stockholm Syndrome


once you buy into the idea that this is the sport you love, a fan will talk himself into enjoying anything:
- the same Final 4 years in a row
- the same guy on one side 9 years in a row
- a team deliberately losing for YEARS
- more and more teams following that lead now
- a Game 7 where a "great" team can miss 27 consecutive 3-pointers
- no point in the majority of teams even showing up for the season, if having any chance to go deep in the playoffs is a goal
- no point in more than a few teams doing same, if winning it all is a goal

if you asked fans 10 years ago if this is what they wanted....

[The Feral Slasher]

the ratings and attendance are good

it's a form of Stockholm Syndrome


once you buy into the idea that this is the sport you love, a fan will talk himself into enjoying anything:
- the same Final 4 years in a row
- the same guy on one side 9 years in a row
- a team deliberately losing for YEARS
- more and more teams following that lead now
- a Game 7 where a "great" team can miss 27 consecutive 3-pointers
- no point in the majority of teams even showing up for the season, if having any chance to go deep in the playoffs is a goal
- no point in more than a few teams doing same, if winning it all is a goal

if you asked fans 10 years ago if this is what they wanted....

I will put that one down under "yes, I love the NBA"

[OaklandA's]

Yes, the quality of play in these Conference Finals was substandard, but the quality of play in the earlier rounds and especially during the regular season was very good. Hopefully the last couple of games were just a fluke.

As for how many teams have a chance to win it all, I don't think it was any better during the Bulls' run in the 90s or during the Lakers/Celtics runs in the 80s. MLB, NFL, and the NBA all have this same "issue" where only a few teams are legitimate title contenders in a given year. But as long as those teams change over time, I don't see that as a problem. It's not like Cleveland and Golden State have been dominating the sport for decades; both teams were terrible just five years ago.

No teams are trying to deliberately lose games - we saw this year the mixed emotions of fans when teams like Atlanta and Orlando won games in the final week of the season that hurt their potential draft position. And these are generally not multi-year situations either - high lottery teams this year like Atlanta, Memphis, Chicago, and Dallas were all strong playoff teams for years until recently. Teams like the Knicks, Kings, Magic, and Suns didn't enter the year trying to lose - it just worked out that way. But I am sure they will enter the 2018-19 season trying to make the playoffs.

Only one team can be champion, and only two can make the finals, but that doesn't mean it's a wasted season for everyone else. Winning a playoff series can be exciting (see Philly, Utah, New Orleans). Just making the playoffs can be exciting (see Minnesota, Milwaukee, Indiana). I think a lot of fanbases had a pretty exciting year, even if they didn't win it all.

[Hi.I'm.Mandy]

Yes, the quality of play in these Conference Finals was substandard, but the quality of play in the earlier rounds and especially during the regular season was very good. Hopefully the last couple of games were just a fluke.

As for how many teams have a chance to win it all, I don't think it was any better during the Bulls' run in the 90s or during the Lakers/Celtics runs in the 80s. MLB, NFL, and the NBA all have this same "issue" where only a few teams are legitimate title contenders in a given year. But as long as those teams change over time, I don't see that as a problem. It's not like Cleveland and Golden State have been dominating the sport for decades; both teams were terrible just five years ago.

No teams are trying to deliberately lose games - we saw this year the mixed emotions of fans when teams like Atlanta and Orlando won games in the final week of the season that hurt their potential draft position. And these are generally not multi-year situations either - high lottery teams this year like Atlanta, Memphis, Chicago, and Dallas were all strong playoff teams for years until recently. Teams like the Knicks, Kings, Magic, and Suns didn't enter the year trying to lose - it just worked out that way. But I am sure they will enter the 2018-19 season trying to make the playoffs.

Only one team can be champion, and only two can make the finals, but that doesn't mean it's a wasted season for everyone else. Winning a playoff series can be exciting (see Philly, Utah, New Orleans). Just making the playoffs can be exciting (see Minnesota, Milwaukee, Indiana). I think a lot of fanbases had a pretty exciting year, even if they didn't win it all.

Not sure how long you have been watching hoops...but I'm curious what you think of the style of play. I've probably only watched 5 or 10 NBA games in the last 10 years and it is kind of shocking to compare it to the game 30 years ago. Not to say that either one is better. it's hard for me to enjoy watching half the shots go up from beyond the 3 point line and pretty much zero plays in the post. Are the last 2 games of the rockets-warriors typical of NBA games nowadays ? Anyway, i'll try to catch a game or two of the finals, hopefully they will be competitive.