NBA Playoff Thread

No, Ron is not Kobe.....Not saying that he is....But he is a very good player in this league, he has a reputation of making big shots, and he's got that New York swagger of not being afraid of the moment. So wide open, you take that shot. You aren't going to get a better shot at any point of the possession, so why not take it. If he makes it, the game is over and everyone is talking about how gutsy a shot it was. That's why it isn't a bad one just because he misses it.

 

It's a bad shot because it is a bad shot under the time-score circumstances, regardless of the geographic source of his swagger. He's shooting less than 25% from 3 point range for the playoffs and missing a quick shot was the easiest was the easiest was of letting the Suns have a chance. Miss a shot with 5 seconds left on the clock and the Suns have only 35 or so seconds left to make up a 3 point deficit. Make a shot then and the game is almost certainly over.

Also, Ron Artest has never been a big shot maker. From his time at St. John's, he has always had the tendency to take quick outside shots when he feels ignored.

That said, great hustle on the put back.

 

Anyone who doesn't think that was a bad shot by Artest is crazy. Just a terrible, terrible decision. And the game wasn't over if he makes it, either. A lot can happen in a minute.

Sager cracked me up during the post-game with Artest.

Artest: Say Queensbridge. Just say it.
Sager: Queensbridge
Artest: Yeahhhh (walking away)
Sager: You think your boys in Queensbridge understand the shot clock? (or something similar)

Hilarious.

 

Yea, I don't know how you can defend that, especially since the Suns tied the game on a posession that took them three shots to do so. They would have had to foul after their next possession even if the Lakers ran the shot clock out and missed.

 

You're kidding. Yeah, "at some point" you've got to keep playing without worrying about the clock. But that "point" is not when you're protecting a three point lead with 60 seconds left, you've just gotten a fresh new shot clock to burn, you've got other offensive options like Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol on the floor, and you've been shooting like crap from that range. It was a dumb shot to anyone who has basic understanding of clock management, probability and strategy.

Out of curiosity, have you ever had a critical thought about a player? Seems like every post I've seen from you has been slobbering, fawning or apologizing for NBA players. Starting to think you're a player association plant.

 

Not a player plant and I definitely criticize when I feel its warranted.....maybe u didn't go back far enough. I definitely feel that LeBron got way too much unfair criticism so maybe that's what you're talking about.

 

You can argue all day about whether that 3 attempt by Artest was a mistake, but he made a hell of a basketball play on the game-winner. If you see a replay, watch where he starts when Kobe puts that shot up and where Artest collects the ball and scores from. When 99 percent of the players in the league (including just about everybody else on the floor) would be playing spectator, Artest is coming from the 3-point line to crash the glass the instant the ball was leaving Kobe's hand.

 

No team in any sport in the past 20 years has won more games in the final half-second than the LA Lakers. They are truly the most blessed team in sports.

Maybe Jack Nicholson has some magic left in him after all.

 

Possible thread-jack but I feel it's gotta be said...

With the whole Wilbon & Webber vs. Van Gundy dust-up, why don't I hear any studio hosts and former players call out Mike Brown for his playoff failures with Cleveland? If the Celts lose tonight, will these analysts go after Doc Rivers with the same knives they are going after Van Gundy?

I can only imagine what they would be saying about Van Gundy if he was Phoenix's coach last night and would have lost on Artest's putback (great play by Artest -- tough break for Phoenix. Trying to box out for an airball is beyond difficult)...

 

I don't think the Suns would have won that game in overtime anyway. Just got the feeling Kobe was going to take over in OT.

 

The whole problem with Van Gundy is that he's a head case. No matter how good the Xs and Os, the guy is hard to take seriously because he talks so funny and acts like a girls high school coach on the sidelines. Oh, and looks like Ron Jeremy.

 

Compare SVG with the other "elite" coaches in the NBA. Phil Jackson, Rivers, Popovich, Pat Riley (sorry, he will come back next year) -- those four will NOT get fired. The only four in the league.

Van Gundy will, eventually, get canned in Orlando. He is the ideal coach for a young team, with guys at 24 or 25, because of his manic sideline demeanor. Put him with a veteran team and they'll tune out. Once Shaq hit Miami, that happened during 2005-06 -- he undermined him and went to Riley, who then decided, "hey, now that Stan has taken them from the grease fire I left him in 2003 to the ECF, I'll take it back over."

Compared with Phil Jackson, of course SVG is hyper. It's easy to hand out books and be the Zen Master when you have had the best player every year since 1989.