The 2010/2011 NBA Season Thread

[Bodhi]

Phoenix had Barkley,Kevin Johnson ,Danny Ainge and Dan Majerle
Who did Phoenix beat?? Magic was gone with aids... Portland were old.... Houston were just coming into their own...
They wouldn't stand a chance against Kobe/Shaq Lakers, 08-09 Lakers or last seasons Celtics or this year's Mavs.

maybe not Kobe/Shaq Lakers, because that team was successful not too long after the downfall of the NBA which was after the 98 Finals.  So that team could have rolled with the big boys and probably would have won titles in the 90's.  But the 08-09 Lakers were far from a great team, the Suns could have played with any of those teams you mentioned.  Keep in mind, it depends what year we are playing in.  In 2011 when you cant play defense anymore sure the Suns would have struggled against these teams.  But in 1995, do you honestly think Dirk is getting those looks at the basket OR to the free throw line like he does today?  Not happening.  He would have gotten manhandled.

[D]

U really think Charles barkley at 6'6 could guard dirk? no way

[SpecialAgentCooper]

U really think Charles barkley at 6'6 could guard dirk? no way

Barkley was good enough to show up a so-called super-star like Dirk...Barley was just better and played with more talented guys in the leauge...and yes the NBA was more talented than it is now...im not really sure how people can even argue that.


Coop

[gnr-4-ever]

38 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, 1 Block, 59% FG. ZERO Turnovers!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kE0W03l8CY

How's that for a stat line?

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

LeWon'tEverTakeTheLastShowEVER will always suck balls no matter what.

[crow316]

How's that for a stat line?

Im more impressed with his 2.2 points in the 4th quarter of the Finals....

[SpecialAgentCooper]

Im more impressed with his 2.2 points in the 4th quarter of the Finals....

LoL...true that!   


Coop

[AxlsMainMan]

Celtics vs. Heat should be a slobberknocker.

[Eazy E]

Great matchup... lots of big names - hopefully Bosh can come back at some point and mix it up!

[faldor]

Celtics vs. Heat should be a slobberknocker.

Big C's fan, but they are so banged up I don't see how they can continue on.  Bosh being out is somewhat of a neutralizer, but still.  Ray Allen is far from 100% and Avery Bradley is out for the season, so that leaves them quite thin at guard.  I think it could be a competitive series though and wouldn't be shocked if the Celtics pulled off the upset.  Either way though, I don't see how either team has a shot in the finals.  The Heat would obviously have a better chance, but the West seems to be the superior conference by far once again.

[pilferk]

Celtics vs. Heat should be a slobberknocker.

Big C's fan, but they are so banged up I don't see how they can continue on.  Bosh being out is somewhat of a neutralizer, but still.  Ray Allen is far from 100% and Avery Bradley is out for the season, so that leaves them quite thin at guard.  I think it could be a competitive series though and wouldn't be shocked if the Celtics pulled off the upset.  Either way though, I don't see how either team has a shot in the finals.  The Heat would obviously have a better chance, but the West seems to be the superior conference by far once again.

Also a big C's fan.

Not holding out much hope for this series.  They looked SERIOUSLY overmatched last night.

If Bosch is back for the finals...I think the Heat could handle the Spurs.  Not sure about OKC, though.

[LongGoneDay]

Still plenty of basketball left, but yeah, so far the C's look tired.
Both teams being healthy, my pick would be the Celts. Unfortunately their plan went to hell before the season began when Green went down.
The Big 3 ended up being healthier than the young guys brought in to afford the aging vets more rest.
Losing Avery is real tough to swallow, because he can essentially neutralize Wade. Celts can focus on making LBJ a jump shooter...

No excuses though, Heat are banged up as well. I still think the C's have a shot as currently constituted.
Miami has no answer for KG, and Bosh coming back doesn't change that.
I don't see Rondo missing 9 layups again, and PP won't go out this quietly. Miami also can't count on the production they got out of Miller and Battier.
As horrible as the C's played, they were still within striking distance most of the game. It's maddening to watch, but it's nothing new, they seemed to play in spurts.
Can't afford to do that against Miami. Gotta play the duration.
Sucks watching the possible end of Ray's Celtic run like this. Too bad Pietrus has been a bust. I was expecting a bit more from him.

Anything can happen, but in my opinion, the only team left capable of beating the Spurs anyways is OKC.

[faldor]

The Celtics have been a highly inconsistent bunch in these playoffs.  They can't seem to put together 2 good games in a row.  On the plus side, they usually don't play poorly in 2 straight games either.  So if that trend continues, game 2 should be more competitive.  And not to blame the refs, but it seemed like the Celts were destined to lose that opening game one way or another.  Again, the refs weren't the reason they lost.  Miami clearly was the better team, but they did receive SOME help along the way.

[LongGoneDay]

Amazing performance by Rondo last night.
Free throws kept Miami in the game. Celts didn't get the whistles that counted though, when Wade almost decapitated Rondo on one end, or when he drop kicked Garnett at the other end, and somehow ended up with a 3 point play instead of an offensive foul. Refs managed to miss that, but their eyes didn't fail them when they T'd up KG for walking away from Jones who hit him in the face. Good catch. Almost as good as the T they gave Doc for saying "Come on Eddie" the night before. Hate to harp on the refs, but if the NBA wants any credibility at all whatsoever they need to clean this mess up. It's gone on way too long, and everyone knows it. The NBA picks it's superstars, and protects them. Paul Pierce is in the same class as Wade and James defensively, unfortunately for him, the NBA doesn't see it that way. He doesn't get the superstar calls.

Lebron could play another 30 years and never foul out of one playoff game, never mind two in 3 games, simply because he is Lebron James, and the league decided to coddle him from day one. Time to eliminate the superstar calls, and call fouls based on the action, not the player. They clearly play favorites and it's a joke.

Rant over.

Blown calls aside, it was a hell of a game. Holy shit Rondo was on fire, and earned his points.
Good to see Ray show signs of life. If this is the last year of the big 3 it has been a pleasure to watch.
I dont' expect to see a collection of players as talented and unselfish play for the same team ever again, so I'm not taking it for granted.
Too bad they couldn't stay healthy, because they could have been looking at 2 or 3 championships, but same can be said for a few other teams as well.

Series isn't over yet, gotta hold serve at home though.

Still feel that this is the Spurs year. I feel Miami would be overmatched, aside from a little help from the refs, which they'll no doubt get.
Not sure it's enough though.

It's crazy, if Miami or LA was riding the win streak San An is on it would be front page news, but they are a blip on the radar.
Never understood it. Consummate professional, and one of the best players to pay the position in Duncan, 4 for 4 in Finals appearances. Two of the most exciting players in the NBA in Ginobli and Parker. One of the better coaches. Still, people would rather talk about Lebron, who so far has only proven he can lose the big game with the best of them. Not typically a Lebron basher by the way. He is a freak of nature, and I appreciate his ability on the basketball court. Just wish he earned the calls he gets night in night out, instead of walking into the NBA with the respect of Michael Jordan, that's all.

Rant officially over.

[Eazy E]

Rant over.

I'm sure the refs didn't favour the Celtics against Atlanta or Philly.   

Rondo was unbelievable last night... but I think Boston is done.  They gave it their best shot and Wade & James still pulled through.  The bigger question for me seems to be, with the team starting to gel without Chris Bosh - how do you reinsert him into the lineup if he gets healthy?  I think it could cost them a game or two to adjust back to playing with Chris... against the Spurs that might be too much & they won't be able to recover.  On the other hand, you need SOMEONE to face up against Duncan.

Spurs look way too good right now... agreed the media would be losing their minds if Miami was on a 20 game win streak, 10 in the playoffs.

[faldor]

Rant over.

I'm sure the refs didn't favour the Celtics against Atlanta or Philly.   

Rondo was unbelievable last night... but I think Boston is done.  They gave it their best shot and Wade & James still pulled through. 

The favored team always gets the majority of the calls.  That's just the way it is in the NBA.  Although the refs did call a ticky tack foul on Paul Pierce to foul him out of game 7 IN Boston against the Sixers.  That's not really showing much favortism to the home team, or the star of the team to boot.  They would NEVER do that to Lebron.

I don't really have a problem with the Heat getting 20 more FT attempts than the Celtics, or whatever it was.  But as LongGoneDay said, it's laughable that Lebron James NEVER commits a foul.  The man must be the best defensive player in the history of the game if that's the case.  He's ALL over the court, in on EVERY play, yet he NEVER commits a foul?  Something doesn't add up there. 

The Celtics were the better team last night.  They deserved to win and even the series at 1.  BUT, they didn't.  And they played about as well as they can and still it wasn't enough to win.  That proves that winning in Miami is not going to be easy if they even return.  Miami is clearly the better team, I have no argument there.  But this series should be even.  We'll see how things play out in Boston.  Will the refs be a little more fair and keep favoring the "home" team?  Will Boston be spent after laying it all on the floor in game 2?  Will the Heat smell blood and go for the kill in game 3?  All these questions and more will be answered tomorrow night.

Just to be clear, I don't blame the refs for losing game 2.  If Ray Allen makes that WIDE open 3 in transition with 4 minutes left the C's are up 8.  Instead he misses, Heat get the rebound and cut the lead to 3.  If KG gets the rebound with 15 seconds left in regulation instead of Lebron who knows what would've happened.  Though I would've liked my chances the way Rondo was playing.  Point is, as well as the Celtics played, they didn't make enough plays down the stretch.  They let the Heat off the hook big time, and the refs had nothing to do with THAT.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

I wish bad things upon David Stern and Adam Silver.

[LongGoneDay]

Lebron could play another 30 years and never foul out of one playoff game, never mind two in 3 games,

Has it been 30 years already?
Never thought I'd see the day! Crazy game. Celts did what they do. Play well, build a big lead, coast, let the lead slip away.
They will need to keep their foot on the gas the full 48 if they want to steal one on the road.
Bosh coming back isn't a huge concern. KG should continue to own that matchup.
Ray Ray's moving around well. PP was putting together a nice game before he fouled out for the 3rd time this postseason.
Clutch 3 by LBJ.
Wade almost gave me a heart attack. Daniels knew what was coming and still fell for it.

[tim_m]

And a Lebron James team once again one game from being bounced!

[SpecialAgentCooper]

ya im smilin ...the heat cant even stop a beat up Celtics team


Coop