NBA Playoffs 2023

[mr. dee]

Playing at altitude after long series cannot be easy. Heat could get swept. How nice would it be to have a PG that distributes the ball?

A guard like that would be wasted on this roster since our moronic coaching staff keep initiating their offense with Tatum and Brown.

[kraidstar]

Wilbon on the ESPN postgame: "Miami went 'Boston' tonight with their shots."

We are a laughingstock

[Goldstar88]

Jokic is the ultimate run stopper. Every time you need to go to bucket, throw in to him. C's haven't had that since the KG days.

Him and Murray a very good tandem.

I saw somewhere - maybe RealGM Forums - an argument being made that Jokic & J Murray were the best 1-2 punch the league has seen since Shaq and Kobe.

I am struggling to think of others that were better.

Maybe LeBron and AD.

Jokic is great, but Jamal Murray? He’s never even been an all star. Hate to say it, but Prime Lebron and Wade is probably the best duo since Kobe and Shaq.

[Atzar]

Miami isn't winning s*** if their main offensive strategy is for Bam to take 25 fadeaway twos. 

The idea is to make Jokic work at both ends; I get that.  I would contend that fadeaways don't accomplish that goal though.  Denver doesn't mind giving those up and Jokic really doesn't have to work very hard to give a token defensive effort against them.  All you're doing is outsmarting yourself into low-value shots.  Bam either needs to be physical and put pressure on the rim, or the gameplan needs to go through somebody else. 

[Atzar]

Jokic is the ultimate run stopper. Every time you need to go to bucket, throw in to him. C's haven't had that since the KG days.

Him and Murray a very good tandem.

I saw somewhere - maybe RealGM Forums - an argument being made that Jokic & J Murray were the best 1-2 punch the league has seen since Shaq and Kobe.

I am struggling to think of others that were better.

Maybe LeBron and AD.

Jokic is great, but Jamal Murray? He’s never even been an all star. Hate to say it, but Prime Lebron and Wade is probably the best duo since Kobe and Shaq.

Curry and KD is another one. 

[hpantazo]

Miami's in trouble. Their best hope is that Herro can come back soon and make a big enough impact to avoid a sweep.

[Who]

Jokic is the ultimate run stopper. Every time you need to go to bucket, throw in to him. C's haven't had that since the KG days.

Him and Murray a very good tandem.

I saw somewhere - maybe RealGM Forums - an argument being made that Jokic & J Murray were the best 1-2 punch the league has seen since Shaq and Kobe.

I am struggling to think of others that were better.

Maybe LeBron and AD.

Jokic is great, but Jamal Murray? He’s never even been an all star. Hate to say it, but Prime Lebron and Wade is probably the best duo since Kobe and Shaq.

Curry and KD is another one.

Curry and KD is a great one. I kept thinking Curry & Draymond or Curry & Klay and I didn't like either one over Jokic & J Murray. Yes, Curry and KD, definitely better.

Undecided on LeBron and Wade. Wonderful individual players but they didn't work together as well. They didn't complement each other as well. A big reason why they only won 2 out 4 rings despite having the most loaded team in the league all 4 years.

[Phantom255x]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

[Who]

Miami isn't winning s*** if their main offensive strategy is for Bam to take 25 fadeaway twos. 

The idea is to make Jokic work at both ends; I get that.  I would contend that fadeaways don't accomplish that goal though.  Denver doesn't mind giving those up and Jokic really doesn't have to work very hard to give a token defensive effort against them.  All you're doing is outsmarting yourself into low-value shots.  Bam either needs to be physical and put pressure on the rim, or the gameplan needs to go through somebody else.

Bam isn't a skilled enough scorer to pick apart Jokic's weaknesses. Not a reliable enough jump-shooter. Jokic can play off of him and use his size. This also reduces Bam's driving threat. Bam is not a smooth post player. Jokic can easily handle him inside.

Bam ain't much of a scorer. On many strong playoffs teams, he'd be the 4th option.

[mr. dee]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

They'll make excuse like they have no business in the finals because they are 8th seeded team.

[Who]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

It is pretty amazing. Jimmy Butler just led his team to his 2nd finals appearance. How man guys have done that?

This is Karl Malone & John Stockton territory.

[Phantom255x]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

It is pretty amazing. Jimmy Butler just led his team to his 2nd finals appearance. How man guys have done that?

This is Karl Malone & John Stockton territory.

True. I like Butler myself. I just find it odd he never seems to get any criticism from the media at all. Not like KD, Tatum, Doncic, AD, etc if they have even one bad game. If Boston lost today and JT had 13 you know the media would rip Tatum about it

Still a ways to go, but if Miami’s role players revert to their usual selves then Butler better be prepared to go off the next 4-5 games or it’s over quick

[gouki88]

Jokic is the ultimate run stopper. Every time you need to go to bucket, throw in to him. C's haven't had that since the KG days.

Him and Murray a very good tandem.

I saw somewhere - maybe RealGM Forums - an argument being made that Jokic & J Murray were the best 1-2 punch the league has seen since Shaq and Kobe.

I am struggling to think of others that were better.

Maybe LeBron and AD.

Jokic is great, but Jamal Murray? He’s never even been an all star. Hate to say it, but Prime Lebron and Wade is probably the best duo since Kobe and Shaq.

Curry and KD is another one.

Curry and KD is a great one. I kept thinking Curry & Draymond or Curry & Klay and I didn't like either one over Jokic & J Murray. Yes, Curry and KD, definitely better.

Undecided on LeBron and Wade. Wonderful individual players but they didn't work together as well. They didn't complement each other as well. A big reason why they only won 2 out 4 rings despite having the most loaded team in the league all 4 years.

I also think knocking Murray for accolades is wrong, given his level of play in the playoffs is so often above All-Star level. Compare his play with Brown, as a more awarded #2 option, for example. 

KD & Curry is the best since Shaq & Kobe. Jokic & Murray is there alongside LeBron & Wade a tier below.

[CelticSooner]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

It is pretty amazing. Jimmy Butler just led his team to his 2nd finals appearance. How man guys have done that?

This is Karl Malone & John Stockton territory.

True. I like Butler myself. I just find it odd he never seems to get any criticism from the media at all. Not like KD, Tatum, Doncic, AD, etc if they have even one bad game. If Boston lost today and JT had 13 you know the media would rip Tatum about it

Still a ways to go, but if Miami’s role players revert to their usual selves then Butler better be prepared to go off the next 4-5 games or it’s over quick

Butler doesn’t get much heat (pun intended) because he has a ceiling. Going to need a better costar than Bam to get over the hump. Looking at you Philly!

[Who]

Butler with a ferocious 13 points tonight

If Miami loses in 4 or 5 will there be excuses made for Butler or will he actually get criticized like many other stars would?

Baffles me how much criticism he escapes from the media

It is pretty amazing. Jimmy Butler just led his team to his 2nd finals appearance. How man guys have done that?

This is Karl Malone & John Stockton territory.

True. I like Butler myself. I just find it odd he never seems to get any criticism from the media at all. Not like KD, Tatum, Doncic, AD, etc if they have even one bad game. If Boston lost today and JT had 13 you know the media would rip Tatum about it

Still a ways to go, but if Miami’s role players revert to their usual selves then Butler better be prepared to go off the next 4-5 games or it’s over quick

I was thinking of Jason Kidd - another guy who led his team to two NBA Finals. Another guy who was a dodgy jump-shooter like Jimmy Butler is. Another guy who largely escaped criticism when he had a bad night.

I wonder if it is partly about the jump-shooting. People just don't respect Jimmy as a perimeter scorer. Great slasher. Great at getting to the FT line. Good midrange shot. Dodgy outside shot. Just not going to be as consistent as other top scorers. More up and down. Like J Kidd with his dodgy shot.

And then partly respect for his non-scoring game. Even if Jimmy doesn't shoot well, if he doesn't score well, Jimmy will still play All-League level defense, give you strong rebounding, give you good ball-handling and playmaking. Heck, Jimmy is basically Miami's PG. He is their main playmaker. He is dominant player outside of scoring so even when he doesn't score he still helps the team. Similar to J Kidd.

Also, there is never a lack of effort. A lack of focus. Lack of intensity. Guys never question Jimmy on that. Guys never questioned J Kidd on that. They do question other guys. Say Carmelo Anthony. Does he work hard enough on defense? Does he pass the ball enough? Does he settle for low percentage shots too often? How badly does he want to win? Will he dive for that loose ball? Jimmy will. J Kidd will.

Also, not playing in NY, BOS or LA helps. Miami an easier going market to play in. Newer fan base. Easy going crowds at their arena.