NBA Thread 2019-20

[forgetful]

I thought I saw the wink, so I'm glad I wasn't just seeing things. But we don't know what he was winking at. Maybe somebody said something to him.

Agreed. No idea who he was winking at, figured it was someone saying something to him and him replying (I tried to lip read and failed). Just found it weird.

[MU82]

Is now the time to theorize again, as so many numb-nuts did, that the Warriors are better without one of the three best players in the world?

[StillAWarrior]

Is now the time to theorize again, as so many numb-nuts did, that the Warriors are better without one of the three best players in the world?

What do you know, Warriors fans?  It’s almost like being down a starter or two in the NBA Finals can affect the outcome. Who’d have thunk it?!

[Silkk the Shaka]

What do you know, Warriors fans?  It’s almost like being down a starter or two in the NBA Finals can affect the outcome. Who’d have thunk it?!

I know, missing Draymond & Bogut in 2016 just wasn't the same team, it didn't really count

[Dr. Blackheart]

Is now the time to theorize again, as so many numb-nuts did, that the Warriors are better without one of the three best players in the world?

Crapshoot, hey?

[ATL MU Warrior]

The reffing in this game is atrocious.

[forgetful]

The reffing in this game is atrocious.

Down the stretch things were absurd.

The ball was clearly outside the cylinder on the only angle that had a clear view.

VanVleet had both arms wrapped around Curry holding him, they call the illegal screen against Cousins instead. Should have been a no call.

So much terrible officiating in this game.

[DegenerateDish]

Nick Nurse with just an atrocious job of taking the back to back timeouts. I don’t know if the media will talk about it, but I thought it as soon as he called the first timeout, the Raptors were in trouble. No idea what he was doing there, absolutely awful.

[forgetful]

Nick Nurse with just an atrocious job of taking the back to back timeouts. I don’t know if the media will talk about it, but I thought it as soon as he called the first timeout, the Raptors were in trouble. No idea what he was doing there, absolutely awful.

Thought the same thing. They were on a role, had all the momentum, the Warriors were way out of sync...and Nurse calls a timeout. Utterly unacceptable from an NBA coach.

[wadesworld]

Nick Nurse with just an atrocious job of taking the back to back timeouts. I don’t know if the media will talk about it, but I thought it as soon as he called the first timeout, the Raptors were in trouble. No idea what he was doing there, absolutely awful.

Posted this elsewhere:

Couple things.

1) Kawhi goes on a personal 8-0 run to go up by 6 with 3? 2? minutes left in the game. Kawhi has the ball at the top of the key and Nick Nurse calls a timeout...and then another timeout before they even inbound the ball. Did Nick Nurse really call 2 timeouts to take in "the moment" as the building was rocking and they had all the momentum?

2) I was listening to a podcast with Brian Windhorst, Zach Lowe, Ramona Shelbourne, and a couple other people immediately after game 4 and they were questioning where KD is, basically saying he should be playing and wondering if there's friction between him and the rest of the Warriors and that's why he's not out there (even though the doctors hadn't cleared him to play...). Now he comes back and quite possibly tears his achilles. Maybe that's why he wasn't playing? This, people claiming Harden (whose playing style I can't stand) "quit" on his team when he plays 1 bad game in a series, etc. Yet nobody has made a peep about Kawhi literally faking an injury for an entire season to quit on the Spurs.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Raptors fans are crap.

[MU82]

Terrible timeouts by Nurse, and then terrible offense on every possession after that.

5 close calls at the end of the game, all went against Warriors.

Cousins absolutely was moving and put his body into VanVleet. In a high school game, it's an easy moving screen call. Maybe in college, though possibly not in that situation. But the NBA lets its big men do that all game long without calling it. I mean, just about every possession. And as wades said, VanVleet was holding Curry.

The offensive interference call ... I thought it was a good call as I watched it live but the replay seemed to show it was off the rim on the one angle. But I believe the rule states that it has to be conclusive proof to overturn a call, and if an angle or two were inconclusive, does that mean they have to stick to the call? That's what Javie said, and I assume he knows the rule and how to interpret it. Tough call, but maybe they got it "right" in the context of the NBA replay rule?

The goaltending call on Cousins was an easy one. The ball obviously hit the backboard before the block. Not sure why any Warriors were upset about that one, although Cousins was probably feeling picked on.

Green double-dribbled. Correct call.

Leonard definitely traveled. No, he didn't move his pivot foot after he finally planted, but he took 3 steps, and pretty big ones at that, beforehand.

All that ... and the Warriors won anyway. Respect to them. Huge shots by Thompson and Curry, good defense by Iguodala, and good defensive game plan by Kerr.

And shame on folks for questioning KD's competitiveness and heart without concrete evidence.

[4everwarriors]

Like eye sed, a novice, aina?

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

I have been impressed by Nurse these playoffs.  He was terrible at the end of the game.

[forgetful]

The offensive interference call ... I thought it was a good call as I watched it live but the replay seemed to show it was off the rim on the one angle. But I believe the rule states that it has to be conclusive proof to overturn a call, and if an angle or two were inconclusive, does that mean they have to stick to the call? That's what Javie said, and I assume he knows the rule and how to interpret it. Tough call, but maybe they got it "right" in the context of the NBA replay rule?

Here's my problem with it, and maybe it is simply a fact that people don't understand perspective. The view that showed it was clearly off the rim was the only angle to give you an accurate view. The others, because of the angle, and how perspective works are going to make it look closer to the rim than it was.

When a ball is tipped out of bounds, they look for one clear angle, and make the call based on that. They don't care if there is a different angle that may suggest otherwise. Javie, and the officials seemed to make up a new rule on the spot, that all angles need to be conclusive. That isn't how they have ever done it, and had to rely on bad angles, with biased perspective to come to their conclusion.

[StillAWarrior]

Here's something that I was thinking about during the game last night that just blew my mind:  Kevin Durant was selected one pick after Greg Oden.  How is that possible when Oden has already been retired for 23 years?  Then again, Oden was 37 when he got drafted, so I guess it kind of makes sense.

[MU82]

I have been impressed by Nurse these playoffs.  He was terrible at the end of the game.

Ditto. With about 2 minutes to go, I was thinking that Nurse maybe didn't "oat-coach" Kerr, but that he matched him quite well. But then ...

Here's my problem with it, and maybe it is simply a fact that people don't understand perspective. The view that showed it was clearly off the rim was the only angle to give you an accurate view. The others, because of the angle, and how perspective works are going to make it look closer to the rim than it was.

When a ball is tipped out of bounds, they look for one clear angle, and make the call based on that. They don't care if there is a different angle that may suggest otherwise. Javie, and the officials seemed to make up a new rule on the spot, that all angles need to be conclusive. That isn't how they have ever done it, and had to rely on bad angles, with biased perspective to come to their conclusion.

I think it all had to do with the call on the floor. If they had called a good tip-in, that wouldn't have been reversed, either. Kind of like Sam's shot. If it had been called no good on the floor, I'm 99.9% sure they would have said there wasn't enough evidence to overturn.

But yes, it looked like a good tip to me.

[JWags85]

I have been impressed by Nurse these playoffs.  He was terrible at the end of the game.

Nurse and Kerr are both very good coaches with different strengths, but both were BAD at times last night.  Kerr's strength is his man management, but also pulling the right levers when it comes to subsitutions and lineups.  I get that GS is pretty injured and he was trying to find rest for his stars into the end of the game, but he almost blew the game and the series running out Jordan Bell and Quinn Cook for as long as he did with McKinnie in crunch time.  They had no offense and Bell was getting abused defensively.  You steal minutes with that lineup in the 3rd quarter or first few min of the 4th.  Not under 5 min when Toronto is gelling for a final push.

What an incredible f-ing game though.  I can't stand Leonard, but his T-1000 stretch where he scored 10 straight was insane.  The response from the Warriors was equally amazing.  They never fail to impress me with the extra pass. Curry rebounding his missed 3 and immediately finding Klay on the wing for the trey.  The whipped swing pass from Draymond that made me get out of my seat before Klay did his side step dagger 3.  Just gorgeous.  And the Warriors completely locking down on that final possession.  Just awesome basketball on both ends.

[forgetful]

It's absolutely crazy how different officials treat Curry and Klay, compared to any other player. They are grabbed, held, hacked, pushed, etc on every possession with or without the ball, with no calls. Absolutely crazy what they let defenders get away with when guarding them.

There was just a possession where both Curry and Klay were flat out grabbed when they got free on a screen. Klay almost ended up turning it over because his arm was being held/pulled. Curry scored anyway.

Go to the other end, and VanFleet was lightly bumped coming off a screen, immediate whistle.

It's constantly that way, during the regular season now and the playoffs. Don't understand it.

[MU82]

It's absolutely crazy how different officials treat Curry and Klay, compared to any other player. They are grabbed, held, hacked, pushed, etc on every possession with or without the ball, with no calls. Absolutely crazy what they let defenders get away with when guarding them.

There was just a possession where both Curry and Klay were flat out grabbed when they got free on a screen. Klay almost ended up turning it over because his arm was being held/pulled. Curry scored anyway.

Go to the other end, and VanFleet was lightly bumped coming off a screen, immediate whistle.

It's constantly that way, during the regular season now and the playoffs. Don't understand it.

Well, they do get some calls. I mean, Klay twice was given 3 FTs when fouled on 3-pointers in a way that often isn't called. I certainly don't think they were screwed tonight.

It just wasn't their title to win. Overcoming the loss of Durant and Thompson against a team as good as Toronto ... too tough.

I'm glad to see a new champion, and IMHO it's kinda cool that it's the team from Canada.

[DegenerateDish]

NBA offseason with two max players headed for free agency with a torn Achilles and likely an MCL/ACL tear make for crazy days ahead. With the West now kinda wide open, be really interesting to see what happens with Anthony Davis.

[JWags85]

Well, they do get some calls. I mean, Klay twice was given 3 FTs when fouled on 3-pointers in a way that often isn't called. I certainly don't think they were screwed tonight.

The only person I think who can gripe about the officiating is Cousins. He got a call or two towards the end of the game, but my god he gets beaten up inside without a whistle. It’s shocking.

Raptors tried to give that game away multiple times. Just too much to overcome. Happy for Lowry and Gasol. Leonard can shove it.

FA gonna be wildly interesting. Kyrie to Brooklyn is the first “unexpected” domino

[DegenerateDish]

Klay torn left ACL.

[Galway Eagle]

Anybody see Demar Derozan is trying to take some credit?

[MUfan12]

Toronto guarded like Huggy's Cincy teams. Beat the hell out of you and hope that they can't call them all.

Free agency is gonna be wild.