Good win by the Dubs, think they can beat the Rockets if they aren't physically incapacitated by Game 4

I only watch NBA playoff games. Wow, that one was a roller coaster ride. Great game. Will the respective ages of the players decide it….or experience?

*I always thought rebounding was one of the fun parts of the game. I took note of Steven Adams 12 boards in 20 min. played.
*Jimmy Butler does not look 230 lbs. Draymond and Dillon Brooks do.

The worry about the Rockets coming into the playoffs was that they couldn't execute well enough in the half-court to score in crunch time, and that their youth and inexperience would lead to a lot of turnovers/mistakes. Check and check in Game 1.

They should have better games than this, but yeah I think the Warriors can win and right now it's advantage to them. The age/rest issue is less pronounced in the first round due to the multiple days off.

This series looks like the trope where the cagey vets make fools of the younger more athletic. But I haven't seen Houston play and- although relentless- they look totally disorganized on offense.

The defense gave Houston fits, Steph is getting younger, and the Warriors front office can't find a rim protector to save their lives.

The Denver- LA series is really high level incredible pace with lots of glittering stars though Jokic probably cost his team the game last night with his sloppiness. Kahwi otoh was killer

Btw this is a Non Neo Liberal Basketball Thread. Please stay in your lane

Houston is a terribly poor shooting team.
But they are able to make up for that with a ton of boards and second chance attempts.

The Good for the Warriors:

Houston only scored 22 total points on 22 second chance attempts

Houston is young and inexperienced in the playoffs compared to the wily vets of Golden State.

The Bad for the Warriors:

How much longer are starters like Fred VanVleet going to go 4 - 19 and Jallen Green 3 - 15?

Unreal that Joker averaged a Triple Double in the regular season:

29.6 points (3rd); 12.7 Rebounds (3rd); 10.2 Assists (2nd)

Podz under the weather and Butler will not return after landing on his butt really hard in Q2 with a tailbone issue.

Pat Spencer and Kuminga in the game.
Spencer with 9 already.

Probably best to punt on this game. Already got your road win.

This is like a pick up game. Ugly

Go Rockets (Clutch City)

Go Bears Forever

I told my friend that the warriors needed quite a few things to go their way in order to win game 1, including some miraculous shots by Steph and some poor flubs by rockets, and they still didn't win by that much.

I said the Rockets would go back to the tape, figure it out and beat the Warriors in the series.

Now, I wasn't expecting an injured Jimmy Butler, but how are Warrior bulls feeling now?

I suppose they'll be able to say, "we would have been champions is it wasn't for Butler getting hurt."

Jalen Green, from Fresno, is what we had hoped Kuminga would become.
Dude was awesome.

Steve Kerr is going to have bled the Ws dry. Steph, Butler, Draymond are old. What do we have after that? Rebuild City.

Expect some very lean years in an attempt to win the lottery jackpot for the next stars.

These senior years are simply wringing out profits for Steph's entertainment value, which remains very high!

You know those permanent Vegas Acts, where aging stars set up residency banking on folks that pay a premium simply to have the experience? Well, that's how I view the current warriors squad: pay your money, go to Chase in order to see Steph do Steph things. And it's comforting to see Draymond, too. We become reminded of the 4 straight titles appearances. Fun!

But as for winning?
That expired long ago.

But go, definitely go! Go to see the show, because his greatness will soon be over.

Magic G Anthony Black takes a free throw facing "The Wall." (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

"The Clippers host the Nuggets tonight in the inaugural playoff game at the Intuit Dome, where Los Angeles will unleash its unique home-court advantage: The Wall.

Opponents shot just 73.4% from the line this season when facing The Wall, which would have ranked dead last in the NBA and was well below what they shot on the other end of the floor (76.1%),

The Clippers' advantage grew as the pressure mounted later in games, with opponents shooting an abysmal 67.7% against The Wall in the second half.."
YahooSportsAM


ASU's Curtain of Distraction

concordtom said:

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I told my friend that the warriors needed quite a few things to go their way in order to win game 1, including some miraculous shots by Steph and some poor flubs by rockets, and they still didn't win by that much.

I said the Rockets would go back to the tape, figure it out and beat the Warriors in the series.

Now, I wasn't expecting an injured Jimmy Butler, but how are Warrior bulls feeling now?

I suppose they'll be able to say, "we would have been champions is it wasn't for Butler getting hurt."

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I don't think they have enough to win a title, but to beat the Rockets? Yes.

Obviously that's out the window if Butler is unable to play.

sycasey said:

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concordtom said:

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I told my friend that the warriors needed quite a few things to go their way in order to win game 1, including some miraculous shots by Steph and some poor flubs by rockets, and they still didn't win by that much.

I said the Rockets would go back to the tape, figure it out and beat the Warriors in the series.

Now, I wasn't expecting an injured Jimmy Butler, but how are Warrior bulls feeling now?

I suppose they'll be able to say, "we would have been champions is it wasn't for Butler getting hurt."

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I don't think they have enough to win a title, but to beat the Rockets? Yes.

Obviously that's out the window if Butler is unable to play.

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I think that anyone who has followed the Warriors this season, and especially since the acquisition of Jimmy Butler knows full well that the Warriors are a different team with him and were 24-7 with him during the rest of the regular season and since his acquisition had the #2 or #3 best record in the West.

With Butler, they literally reversed their penchant for turnovers, not getting to the line, and as a team increased their free throw percentage. Their offense went from 18th in the NBA to 9th with him after just 19 games.

In other words, they weren't playing like a #7 seed.
Anyone that attempts to "discount" that hasn't been paying attention.

Pure accident. Thompson tripped trying to rebound his own miss. Draymond was boxing out and did not push him.
https://www.si.com/nba/video-appears-to-clear-draymond-green-of-blame-for-jimmy-butler-s-hard-fall-vs-rockets

Well that was unexpected. Great win without Jimmy and Houston doesn't look quite ready for prime time

Rockets offense went to sleep in crunch time once again. Again, this was the thing people worried about with them.

Rockets lack discipline. A close game in the last few minutes doesn't favor them. They also appear to have a couple of crunch time chokers.

At 6'2 GPII's reverse dunk looked effortless. I suppose a 38.6" vertical helps with that.

Curry is just spectacular. He's worth the price of admission alone.

sycasey said:

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Rockets offense went to sleep in crunch time once again. Again, this was the thing people worried about with them.

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Yup.
Warriors have Championship battle-tested pedigree.

Assists: Warriors 26 - 19

Points in the Paint: Warriors 44 - 38

Second Chance Points: Warriors 18 - 11

Free Throws: Warriors 12 - 15 / Houston 14 - 24

Rebounds: Houston: 51 - 45

The play: The first game-winning, buzzer-beating dunk in NBA postseason history

That was Aaron Gordon.
The pride of Archbishop Mitty, where he led the Monarchs to 2 State Championships.

Either an unbelievable pass or crappy shot by the Joker.

Anarchistbear said:

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Either an unbelievable pass or crappy shot by the Joker.

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Joker said it was a pass


Go Bears Forever

bearister said:

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The play: The first game-winning, buzzer-beating dunk in NBA postseason history

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I love how James Harden is in the picture but wasn't even close to defending it.

bear2034 said:

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bearister said:

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The play: The first game-winning, buzzer-beating dunk in NBA postseason history

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I love how James Harden is in the picture but wasn't even close to defending it.

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Ball-watching away from the ball again, always Harden's issue on defense.

bearister said:

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So you're saying the Dubs have a chance…

Jimmy Butler time on a night Curry didn't give them much