NBA '08 Playoff Thread

I'm pretty sure that the Lakers would be happy if every game came down to whether its Rondo/Cassell/House hitting the open J.

 

Right, and with Allen, Pierce and Garnett the Celtics should be able to prevent that from happening.

 

Exactly -- LA's going to give whoever the Boston PG is that shot every single time. And why shouldn't they? But like Boobie said, Boston has the unique option of relying on three other guys who SHOULD be able to come up with something in the clutch.
That is unless Pierce gets the "I'm Michael Jordan" thing in his head where he thinks he's some phenomenal money player when it matters and refuses to allow things to flow rather than just slop to the hoop on a wing and a prayer.

 

Anyone get the sense that beyond all the hype, KG is just another jump shooter like the Mailman, not a true power forward. He's got great range and all, but when you see how late in the 4th he went to the left block and shot that jump hook over Gasol, I wonder, why not go to that at least 50% of the time?

As for the Lakers, how about giving Gasol a shot low in the blocks instead of always high at the elbow? He looked down there against Duncan, I would think he could take Perkins.

 

Actually when Garnett came into the league the big thing was that he was going to change the way the 3 way played. But I think he's about as true a power forward as they come. I agree with you about pounding the thing down there, though. But I think the main reasons they didn't was because LA's going to defend that hard, and Pierce went into his tunnel vision mode for a bit.
I don't like how Garnett wanders though at times. During certain parts of a game, sure, it's fine. But when you need a hoop, get down there and demand it. That's the one part of his game I'm critical of. Otherwise, I think he's fantastic.

 

Simmons had a good point about Garnett today -- he's been pretty critical and compared him to Malone in a negative light -- but the point was the difference is that he can still impact games with his defense and rebounding. That's one you have to say for him -- he never mails one in. Everyone always demands he shoot more, but last night that wasn't the problem; wasn't he 6-21 or something? I know he's supposed to be a superstar, and I think he is, but he's at his best as a facilitator and getting his looks in the flow of the game. He's just not a give me the ball, I'm going to take over type guy. If that knocks him down a peg or two in some people's eyes so be it. But it's worked pretty well so far this year for him.

 

i'm not getting to watch so can somebody explain why boston is already down 21?

 

Garnett's problem is that he's a 6-11 power forward yet at times plays like he's a 6-5 shooting guard. He too often settles for jumpshots when he should spend most of the time using his size and quickness to get to the basket, or at least closer to it.

 

Lamar Odom woke up, Lakers are nailing shots, Celtics are missing shots, refs are--as usual in this league-- consistantly horrendous.

 

Love seeing Larry David by Laker bench. Makes it feel like a Curb episode.

 

This Celtics fanboi is tempted to shut this game off and pop in a Curb DVD.

With such a big lead, this crowd is practically dead. Must be the countless celebrities flooding the arena.

 

I hope Boston fans didn't actually put on a DVD...