The 2010/2011 NBA Season Thread

[w.axl.rose]

such a good day 

[LongGoneDay]

Holy shit what a game.
PP's got some balls taking that shot in LBJs face, on an off shooting night overall for him.

Series is far from over though.
C's have been in similar position before and took their foot off the gas, can't afford to do that.
Don't want this thing going back to Miami.
Good news is they managed to win on the road even with an off night from Rondo and Pierce.

Nice to see Pietrus finally show up.

I can't sleep after these games!

[Bodhi]

Great news...as long as the Heat don't win the title I am good.  It would be great for a small market team to win it, or for Boston to win it with a well balanced group of veterans.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

Holy shit what a game.
PP's got some balls taking that shot in LBJs face, on an off shooting night overall for him.

Series is far from over though.
C's have been in similar position before and took their foot off the gas, can't afford to do that.
Don't want this thing going back to Miami.
Good news is they managed to win on the road even with an off night from Rondo and Pierce.

Nice to see Pietrus finally show up.

I can't sleep after these games!

Why?  He's THE TRUTH!  That's what separates him from LeChoke.  Te heart of a champion.  Never being afraid to fail.


*Disclaimer: I still hate the Celtics with every fibre of my being. 

Let's go Western Conference!

[LunsJail]

I think it's OKC's title to win now 

[LongGoneDay]

I think it's OKC's title to win now 

They certainly look scary as hell.
Durant is the best offensive player in the game today, and there is no close second.
You simply can't guard him.

I was hoping the Spurs had another run in them. Amazing what they were able to accomplish, reinventing themselves, but they ran into a buzzsaw once OKC figured out how to slow down Parker.
Would have loved to see a Duncan vs KG finals before this incarnation of Celts/Spurs ride off into the sunset!

Definitely not taking Miami for granted though. I'm not buying all of what the media is selling.
4 days ago Miami was the second coming of the Dream Team, now they have to blow it up.
As much as I hate the fact Lebron came into the league having to earn nothing, because Stern decided they should market him as the next MJ, I think he's being unfairly criticized in this series.
Wade is the one who has not held up his end of the bargain thus far. He was one of my favorite players to watch, but seems to cry more and more as time goes about non calls.

Anyways, hope my C's close it out, but it's far from a sure thing..

[w.axl.rose]

yup

[tim_m]

Celts really shit the bed tonight.

[faldor]

Celts really shit the bed tonight.

Not sure that's really a fair assessment.  Lebron James simply went off.  Even if the Celtics played well, that would have been tough to overcome.  He was just on another level.  He heard all the doubters and went out to prove a point last night.  Point taken.

This series has been predictably unpredictable since game 4, at least if you listen to the "experts".  Vegas had it right last night, but most people had the Heat buried and the Celtics wrapping it up.  That's dangerous territory for the C's, who have been known to fall asleep at the wheel in close out games before.  They usually do better the second time around.  Hopefully that trend continues, and I'm sure the "experts" will do another 180 and pick the Heat for game 7.  I wouldn't blame them.  At home, for game 7, with Lebron playing as well as he has.  That's a pretty good combo.  You figure the NBA would prefer a Lebron/Durant showdown over the cagey vets vs. the young upstarts.  I just hope the refs let it play out on the floor.  They've actually done a very good job at that from game 3 on. 

I think Wade has to step in game 7 in order for the Heat to win.  As good as Lebron is, I don't think he can do it alone, AGAIN.  That would be asking a lot of him.  Wade has been quite average all series long.  It's strange to say, but the Heat right now resemble Lebron's Cavs teams quite remarkably.  If he doesn't get some help the Celtics have a good chance.

[LongGoneDay]

I actually think shitting the bed is the correct term to describe the C's last night.
It almost seemed like they believed what all the "experts" were saying, about Miami being dead and buried, like all the C's needed to do was show up.
They never did. Offensively or defensively. Came out flat, and stayed that way the majority of the game.
They actually played better than the score indicated in the second half of the third, thought they had a great opportunity to close the gap, but blew shots they normally hit.
Overall though, just can't understand them walking the ball up the floor out the gate over and over. PP not attacking the rim. It's maddening, but I'm used to it.
We know they never do anything easy. Refs have let them play the past few games, (aside from some brain dead technicals). Hopefully that trend continues.

C's still have a great shot, but could be a mute point if PP doesn't get going. Not sure if it's injury/guarding Lebron or what, but he's going to have to take it to another level to win on the road, and if they are lucky enough to get there, to have any shot vs OKC. KG will need to return to form as well. Off night for him.

[faldor]

I actually think shitting the bed is the correct term to describe the C's last night.
It almost seemed like they believed what all the "experts" were saying, about Miami being dead and buried, like all the C's needed to do was show up.
They never did. Offensively or defensively. Came out flat, and stayed that way the majority of the game.
They actually played better than the score indicated in the second half of the third, thought they had a great opportunity to close the gap, but blew shots they normally hit.
Overall though, just can't understand them walking the ball up the floor out the gate over and over. PP not attacking the rim. It's maddening, but I'm used to it.
We know they never do anything easy. Refs have let them play the past few games, (aside from some brain dead technicals). Hopefully that trend continues.

C's still have a great shot, but could be a mute point if PP doesn't get going. Not sure if it's injury/guarding Lebron or what, but he's going to have to take it to another level to win on the road, and if they are lucky enough to get there, to have any shot vs OKC. KG will need to return to form as well. Off night for him.

I agree they obviously didn't play well.  And that is upsetting.  But Lebron had about as good a first half as one could have, and that continued on in the second half.  That's tough to overcome.  Not impossible, and they have done it before.  But I give a lot of the credit to Lebron last night, more so than the Celtics not showing up.

I think with Pierce's struggles, it's more him having to deal with Lebron on a nightly basis than his ailing knee.  He's not close to 100%, but he's healthy enough to still get it done.  But we've seen him struggle against Lebron before.  It's not easy having to guard him for an entire series.  It would take a lot out of a man, I'd imagine.

As much as I hate to admit it, Chris Bosh really does make them a better team.  I always thought he was vastly overrated, and still do.  But without him they have NOBODY in the frontcourt you have to respect.  He at least gives them somewhat of a presence.  I'm not saying he's the reason KG struggled last night, but KG has been outplayed by Bosh before.  It's not as one sided a matchup as some would lead you to believe.  He definitely neutralizes things to a certain extent.

[LunsJail]

I agree with Faldor. The Celts had NO answer for Lebron's dominance and knew it from the get go. That being said, Lebron needs help in Game 7. He can't do all that again by himself.

[LongGoneDay]

I agree with Faldor. The Celts had NO answer for Lebron's dominance and knew it from the get go. That being said, Lebron needs help in Game 7. He can't do all that again by himself.

Lebron had an amazing game, no doubt about it, but the C's simply did not show up.
They didn't push it, they walked the ball up the court, ran the clock down, let Miami get into their sets.
Not gonna win like that. The quality shots that they did get, they missed.

Hit some of those shots and it's a whole nother ball game, Miami can't run like they want and need to.
Miami are great front runners, can't afford to spot them big leads and expect to claw back, especially with our non existent bench.

Bosh is a boost, but he's not stopping KG.
He was missing easy shots, he will be fine come game 7.

Lebron is a streaky shooter, not expecting him to shoot that well two games in a row.
Really, Celts can normally live with him shooting those outside shots, would actually prefer it, cause he's not typically that great a shooter.
Unfortunately he was a one man army doing it all last night.

C's can still win when Lebron goes off, that's essentially their game plan.
Let LBJ get his, contain Wade/Bosh etc.
Can't stop them all, gotta pick your poison.

C's wasted a huge opportunity, and now will have to live with the consequences of playing on the road, where LBJ and Wade will be getting their home town calls.
I don't expect them to win, but I expect they will be more ready/focused than last night.
Hopefully it'll be a good game.

[tim_m]

It was definitely a combination of the two. James was on fire and the Celts simply were going through the motions. Like they just expected the Heat to rollover and play dead. The Celts couldn't even get easy layups to fall last night. The hoop could've been ten feet wide and they would've found some way to miss it the way they shot last night. I do expect that they'll rebound for game 7 and expect it to be similar to game 3-5 and could go either way.

[faldor]

It was definitely a combination of the two. James was on fire and the Celts simply were going through the motions. Like they just expected the Heat to rollover and play dead. The Celts couldn't even get easy layups to fall last night. The hoop could've been ten feet wide and they would've found some way to miss it the way they shot last night. I do expect that they'll rebound for game 7 and expect it to be similar to game 3-5 and could go either way.

Yeah, obviously the Celtics didn't come out with that killer instinct last night that I would've liked to see.  But I don't think they exactly mailed it in either, or took the Heat lightly.  Lebron got off to a hot start and the Celtics tried to withstand the blows.  They did a pretty good job of doing so in the first half.  Keeping the deficit around 10 points, which is nothing in the NBA.  But every time they cut the lead to under 10 Lebron would have an answer and push it back to 12 or 13.  I think it just got to the point in the second half where they didn't believe they could win that night.  Lebron was just too much and he wasn't going to let them get back in the game.  It's rare an NBA game is as wire to wire as that one was.  There's usually a number of runs on each side, but the Heat had answers for everything the Celtics threw at them.

I expect the Celtics to play better, not sure it will be enough though.  As of this morning I had a pretty good feeling about them winning, but I think I've swayed over to the Heat.  Lebron knows game 6 will mean nothing if they don't pull out the victory tomorrow.  I think they find a way to get it done.  It's been a pleasure watching this Celtic team.  They've got a lot of heart and they've exceeded my expectations for the season regardless of what happens tomorrow night.  And I'm not going to play the "they're too old" or "they're too banged up" card, because they're not.  They should have already won this series, and can still do so tomorrow.  The Heat are not a better team.  I thought they were before the series started, but they haven't shown that in these 6 games.  But, I just think this time Lebron gets it done.  Next series?  Well that's a different scenario.  They have NO shot against the Thunder unless some awfully strange things happen.  Let's see what happens tomorrow night first though.  Hopefully it's a good one.

[tim_m]

It was definitely a combination of the two. James was on fire and the Celts simply were going through the motions. Like they just expected the Heat to rollover and play dead. The Celts couldn't even get easy layups to fall last night. The hoop could've been ten feet wide and they would've found some way to miss it the way they shot last night. I do expect that they'll rebound for game 7 and expect it to be similar to game 3-5 and could go either way.

Yeah, obviously the Celtics didn't come out with that killer instinct last night that I would've liked to see.  But I don't think they exactly mailed it in either, or took the Heat lightly.  Lebron got off to a hot start and the Celtics tried to withstand the blows.  They did a pretty good job of doing so in the first half.  Keeping the deficit around 10 points, which is nothing in the NBA.  But every time they cut the lead to under 10 Lebron would have an answer and push it back to 12 or 13.  I think it just got to the point in the second half where they didn't believe they could win that night.  Lebron was just too much and he wasn't going to let them get back in the game.  It's rare an NBA game is as wire to wire as that one was.  There's usually a number of runs on each side, but the Heat had answers for everything the Celtics threw at them.

I expect the Celtics to play better, not sure it will be enough though.  As of this morning I had a pretty good feeling about them winning, but I think I've swayed over to the Heat.  Lebron knows game 6 will mean nothing if they don't pull out the victory tomorrow.  I think they find a way to get it done.  It's been a pleasure watching this Celtic team.  They've got a lot of heart and they've exceeded my expectations for the season regardless of what happens tomorrow night.  And I'm not going to play the "they're too old" or "they're too banged up" card, because they're not.  They should have already won this series, and can still do so tomorrow.  The Heat are not a better team.  I thought they were before the series started, but they haven't shown that in these 6 games.  But, I just think this time Lebron gets it done.  Next series?  Well that's a different scenario.  They have NO shot against the Thunder unless some awfully strange things happen.  Let's see what happens tomorrow night first though.  Hopefully it's a good one.

Did they get it under ten? I thought ten was the closest they were able to get late in the third quarter. Either way, they were never really in the game. I hope they can come through tomorrow and beat the Heat. If not i guess i'll have to pull for OKC.

[SpecialAgentCooper]

The Celtics knew they had to be rested and ready if the Heat came out too strong in this game and they did. I think game 7 will be much more of a GAME than this was



Coop

[tim_m]

Celts really blew that one. 

[faldor]

Celts really blew that one. 

Again, not sure that's a fair assessment.  Yes, they had a lead at halftime.  That means NOTHING in the NBA.  They were tied going into the fourth.  The NBA is all about the 4th quarter.  Usually anything that happens in the first 3 is inconsequential.  The Heat were the better team in the end.  They could play from behind.  The Celtics could not.  2 of the games the Celtics won in the series they had to fight tooth and nail to hold off the Heat.  Miami had more dominant stretches in the series and even though the Celtics SHOULD have won the series, Miami deserved it.  If that even makes sense, which I'm not sure it does.  I'm not bitter though.  The C's did as well as I could have expected this year.  This is probably the end of the road for the "big 3".  They gave us Celtic fans plenty of fine moments.  Nothing to be ashamed of.

I still think the Heat have NO CHANCE against OKC.  I give it 6 games at the most, more likely 5 though.

[tim_m]

Celts really blew that one. 

Again, not sure that's a fair assessment.  Yes, they had a lead at halftime.  That means NOTHING in the NBA.  They were tied going into the fourth.  The NBA is all about the 4th quarter.  Usually anything that happens in the first 3 is inconsequential.  The Heat were the better team in the end.  They could play from behind.  The Celtics could not.  2 of the games the Celtics won in the series they had to fight tooth and nail to hold off the Heat.  Miami had more dominant stretches in the series and even though the Celtics SHOULD have won the series, Miami deserved it.  If that even makes sense, which I'm not sure it does.  I'm not bitter though.  The C's did as well as I could have expected this year.  This is probably the end of the road for the "big 3".  They gave us Celtic fans plenty of fine moments.  Nothing to be ashamed of.

I still think the Heat have NO CHANCE against OKC.  I give it 6 games at the most, more likely 5 though.

They definitely had a chance to win it. They just all the sudden couldn't make a basket again and at the most crucial point of the game the 4th quarter. I tend to agree with you that they don't have much of a chance against OKC. That team is a buzzsaw. They look scary good.