NBA 2019 Playoffs Thread

[LarBrd33]

On paper, the Warriors should sweep with or without Durant.

Aged like a nice wine!

I stand by it.  On paper, they should sweep with or without Durant. 

They should be ashamed of themselves for losing Game 1.  Disgraceful. 

Side note:  Siakam would make nice centerpiece for an Anthony Davis trade if the Raptors can manage to keep Kawhi and set themselves up to fight Philly/Bucks for ownership of the Eastern conference for the next several years.

[LarBrd33]

If Durant can somehow step in to save the Warriors that might actually cement his legacy.

They don't need him.  They should still own the Raptors in this series.  Way too much talent on the Warriors.

[mr. dee]

If Durant can somehow step in to save the Warriors that might actually cement his legacy.

They don't need him.  They should still own the Raptors in this series.  Way too much talent on the Warriors.

That's what people said in 2016

[gouki88]

On paper, the Warriors should sweep with or without Durant.

Aged like a nice wine!

I stand by it.  On paper, they should sweep with or without Durant. 

They should be ashamed of themselves for losing Game 1.  Disgraceful. 

Side note:  Siakam would make nice centerpiece for an Anthony Davis trade if the Raptors can manage to keep Kawhi and set themselves up to fight Philly/Bucks for ownership of the Eastern conference for the next several years.

I just don't know where you expect the improvement to come from without Durant. Klay played a completely average and normal game, and Curry was a force offensively. Draymond had another triple double too. They're a turnover-prone team who really can't adjust to Kawhi playing as more of a facilitator, as their defence collapses on him instantly. It hurts them that Curry is a poor defender and Gasol finds ways to sneak out to the 3 point line without Bell following him.

They don't need to though, considering they own both teams as of now. Especially true when both Philly and Milwaukee could lose big pieces. All assuming Kawhi even stays.

[SparzWizard]

If Durant can somehow step in to save the Warriors that might actually cement his legacy.

They don't need him.  They should still own the Raptors in this series.  Way too much talent on the Warriors.

Iggy is 3 years older now and look like he's hobbling. Livingston doesn't seem explosive anymore. They NEED Durant to compete with Toronto. The Raptors are way too deep for them to handle. Gasol/Siakam/Ibaka is too much for Draymond Green to handle. VanFleet can give them trouble off the bench. Lowry has yet to show up offensively but he will get his spotlight in these Finals.

[RodyTur10]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

[RodyTur10]

If Durant can somehow step in to save the Warriors that might actually cement his legacy.

They don't need him.  They should still own the Raptors in this series.  Way too much talent on the Warriors.

Iggy is 3 years older now and look like he's hobbling. Livingston doesn't seem explosive anymore. They NEED Durant to compete with Toronto. The Raptors are way too deep for them to handle. Gasol/Siakam/Ibaka is too much for Draymond Green to handle. VanFleet can give them trouble off the bench. Lowry has yet to show up offensively but he will get his spotlight in these Finals.

Yes, the supporting cast makes the difference. Golden State (without Durant and Cousins returning from injury) has two go-to-scorers with Curry and Thompson. Toronto has two as well with Leonard and Siakam, who aren't much lesser. Especially when Siakam is playing like last night. So the advantage there isn't that big for GSW.

Then compare the main supporting cast of both sides:

Toronto: Lowry, VanVleet, Green, Ibaka, Gasol

vs

Golden State: Livingston, Iguodala, Green, Bell, Looney

Draymond Green and Kyle Lowry are the 3rd options, but the Raptors have the better players overall in this group even though I like Looney's play. There's a clear advantage for Toronto on many levels (defensive, offense, shooting(!), passing, athletism).

That doesn't mean that this series are guaranteed to be in the pocket of the Raptors (we ourselves know enough about overreacting to winning the first (or first two) game). What I dare to say is that the Warriors will need either Durant or Cousins coming back (into form), Curry going into god-mode or they need to find a way to stop Siakam. It won't come by just playing better as a team, since the Raptors are much deeper and have a reliable supporting cast.

Golden State have played some other players spot up minutes, who don't have a big role yet (Cook, McKinnie, Jerebko, Cousins, Bogut) and Toronto has played Powell regularly in previous series, but only played 5 minutes yesterday

[Ogaju]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

that is part of the problem...too many draft picks led to Danny doing the draft and stash thing

[Who]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

[CelticsElite]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

zizic is a rotation player on the cavs


6/4 in 14 mpg isn't bad at all. Its his 2nd year

[Briantir]

Reports Kawhi is leaning heavily towards re-signing with the Raptors short term...

1-2 Years and year 2 player option


All hail Masai he has the biggest set of balls out of all the GM's

[SparzWizard]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

Speaking of third-string bigs, whatever happened to Daniel Theis. It's like after his career high 22/5 back in December he became irrelevant and stashed away forever. He was a key player for the Celtics in the 17-18 season before tearing his ACL.

[gouki88]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

Speaking of third-string bigs, whatever happened to Daniel Theis. It's like after his career high 22/5 back in December he became irrelevant and stashed away forever. He was a key player for the Celtics in the 17-18 season before tearing his ACL.

It seems like he lost quite a bit of explosiveness after getting injured. Even after the ASB this year he was genuinely abysmal. Wasn't hitting his threes, wasn't rebounding much offensively and was being abused by bigger bigs. Sad that he declined like he did

[gouki88]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

zizic is a rotation player on the cavs


6/4 in 14 mpg isn't bad at all. Its his 2nd year

He was hovering around 8/5.5 for this year too as a bench big averaging under 20MPG. He picks his shots well and is a solid rebounder. I think he'll be a solid bench big for the foreseeable future

[Who]

If only Ainge thought about drafting Siakam with that 23rd pick and not Ante Zizic... 

Drafting Zizic was a defensable move (I supported it anyway  ), however using the 16th pick to draft Yabusele was a really weird one. That was a mistake in my opinion and not just in hindsight. Maybe Danny was too much fixated on getting draft-and-stash prospects? Even the best GM's make mistakes.

I was the other way around.

I did not like Zizic. I did not think he had the quickness / agility / mobility necessary to be a good NBA player and that the odds were always stacked against him making good in the NBA. I preferred Zubac because he at least had real size (7-2 vs 6-10) to help compensate for limited mobility.

Yabusele I understood and accepted. He had good quickness and very good mobility for a guy his size (6-7, 260lbs or whatever he was). He showed some range on his jumper, he could pump fake and line drive, good transition player. He had the physical talents necessary to matchup physically and athletically against NBA players but was lacking in know-how & fundamentals. He had real talent to build upon. He just hasn't worked hard enough to fulfill that potential.

zizic is a rotation player on the cavs


6/4 in 14 mpg isn't bad at all. Its his 2nd year

The Cavs are pathetic. Zizic wouldn't play on a good team. He only gets that playing time because of how bad the Cavs are.

Zizic is not a good player. He is defense is terrible and his offense is limited.