NBA '08 Playoff Thread

Ah, yes he did. I had forgotten.

1981, right?

That makes Karl even more worthless.

 

yes and yes

 

Most importantly, they need to keep Mike Woodson. He's a solid guy who took over a trainwreck of a team ... maybe not the greatest coach in the world, but he's going to give you all he has and players are going to play hard for him.

 

Watching this series, you just have to wonder how much the emphasis the Celtics put on the regular season might be catching up to the team right now. I mean, they basically played with a "playoff intensity" for all 82 games. There was no "taking it to another level" when the playoffs started. Whereas, other teams have raised their energy level and don't appear to be as worn down from a long season.

Again, I fully expect the Celtics to win this series. But this doesn't bode well for a series against a physical Cleveland team and a physical Detroit team (assuming seeds hold to form), down the road.

 

If Atlanta comes back to win this series, does this mean Boston Bill finally hangs himself?

 

Tripp, we've seen that done a hundred times. The Pistons have made a regular habit of it, the Lakers have done it before ... a lot of groups have. And you're right, I said it earlier in the season ... if they're worn out and have to defend LeBron James for seven games -- that could be a problem.

 

The Mavs are screwed, period. They'll try to blow this team up over the summer, but the only players on the roster with value (Dirk and Brandon Bass) are the ones Cuban will want to keep. The good young players went to the Nets, and all that's left is a bunch of spares.

Stackhouse is flat-out done. Kidd and Terry are showing their age, Dampier's disappearing act on a nightly basis is well-documented, and Josh Howard seems to like the bong more than the hoop. Howard's fall from grace is stunning — he was an all-star a couple years ago. Devean George's resume consists of one solid NBA Finals — he's a stiff, and he's still one of the Mavs' better defenders.

The rest? Eddie Jones will pick up a $2 million player option, and the Mavs will let J.J. Barea, George, Jamaal Magloire, Juwan Howard and Tyronn Lue go.

Dirk, Howard and Dampier are under contract through 2011 and Terry through 2012. The line forms to the left if teams want to trade for Dirk, but for the other three, Cuban's stuck with them — to the tune of $57 million in 2010-11. No GM in the league will want to take on those salaries in a trade.

The Mavs can renew through the draft, you say. Psych! The Nets own those now for the next two years.

This feels like 1989 all over again. Of course the difference is that injuries and Roy Tarpley's drug troubles scuttled the team back then, but we all know what happened next — a rapid descent to near-record suckdom between 1992-94. And that was when the Mavs were nowhere near in the salary-cap hell they're in now.

Of course, Avery will be one taking the fall. Some of it's his fault, but not all of it.

The only good thing about the situation is, Shawn Bradley and Michael Finley finally come off the books this summer and Kidd is out after next year. And it'll be a contract year for Bass.

 

Boston definitely isn't ready for primetime. There's no excuse for a "dominating" 1 seed to have these sort of problems against a young squad with virtually no playoff experience outside of Bibby and Johnson. They could and probably will close it out in six but I don't think anyone outside of West Roxbury thinks they are going to beat the fighting Lebrons.

 

Straight jacket material -- the lot of you.

 

No, no, no. And no.

This team finished 8 games under .500. 19th best record in the league, closer to the worst record in the league than the best.

As you're seeing over the past couple games, they have talent. They should be better than 37-45. Much better. But, to get there, they need a new coach, a new system. With Woodson, they're destined to be middle of the pack at best. Bring in the right guy, and this team can step up to a more elite status.

Hopefully, the Hawks owenership are smart enough to not make franchise decisions based solely on the previous two games.

 

Nice to see John Lithgow again passing the buck to his player, ignoring his past history of teams collapsing under his leadership.

 

I guess a guy who's improved that shitbomb of a team each and every season he's been there can't get the job done. Apparently higher win totals every season makes him destined for the middle of the pack. Give me a break.

And on that note, I'm finished talking about the Hawks. Unless Dominique returns or they actually pull off this upset.