A Few Thoughts On The NBA Playoffs So Far
Mamba mentality came through on Sunday. Not so much yesterday.
By Jamie Mah @grahmamah
When the NBA playoffs began, I had a sneaking feeling that this would be the Lakers year. With Anthony Davis on board to help shoulder the load, LeBron finally got the second banana he needed to bring a championship back to LA. With Sunday night’s dramatic buzzer beating win, it was starting to look like my early assumption would come to fruition.
Then last night’s loss happened. I still stand by my belief that the Lakers will win the title, but oh man, this series with Denver is far from over.
For most of the season this Lakers All NBA duo shared the spotlight as they pushed LA to the top seed in the Western Conference, something they hadn’t achieved in ten seasons. Finding fuel between these two would not be hard, as both men had plenty to prove, with legacies hanging in the balance.
For Davis, it was his chance to demonstrate to his critics, that when surrounded with the right teammates and a proper sidekick (sorry Jrue Holiday, you’re good, but not that good), he could unleash his immense talent and lead a winning team. It’s hard not to forget that he’s only played in 26 playoff games and that he’s just 26 years old. This could be the beginning of a dominant stretch for himself and the Lakers. Sunday night’s game winner was why you trade for a guy like him, even if you gave up more than you should have in doing so — winning even one title trumps any negatives in the long run.
As for LeBron, well, he knows his time is ending here. He has max three years left before I see him hanging things up. He’s looked dominant at times in these playoffs, Sunday’s first quarter being a notable standout. While at other times, he’s looked a tad slow and sluggish. This is to be expected. He’s 35 and playing with over 50,000 minutes on his legs. He’s been smart in picking his spots. Which is why Sunday’s game winner by Davis was so monumental for this team’s psyche. LeBron knows he can win and lead. Davis, however, hasn’t so far. There’s a difference between dominating in the regular season versus in the playoffs. James Harden is a cautionary tale of what a fake superstar looks like. For a while there, Davis looked to be headed for a similar trajectory. His Pelicans teams were never that good and part of that failure lands on him. LeBron knows this and is comfortable enough in his own skin in understanding that he needs Davis to believe he’s the man. Davis can put up the stats and the big shots. It’s LeBron, however, who controls the strings. How he goes, the Lakers go.
But for all their strengths, last night’s loss to Denver highlights many of their weaknesses. The Lakers lack shooting in so many ways and when the shots aren’t falling, things begin to look ugly. Rondo was great defensively yesterday, but it’s hard spacing the court with himself, Caldwell-Pope and JaVale all on the floor at the same time. Kuzma was a complete non factor as well and they’ll need his offence to give them a boost just as Jerami Grant did for Denver last night. It can’t all be LeBron and Davis, someone else needs to step up. It’ll be interesting to see what adjustments Coach Vogel makes here. I’d opt for more pick and roll with Davis and LeBron and I’d urge LeBron to play more bully ball in the post. Denver’s well coached and Murray is a stud who can light it up once he gets going. He’s what the Lakers should focus on heading into Game 4. Jokic is going to get his no matter what, but keeping Murray in check will bold well for their chances moving forward. This series, again, is far from over. Another win by Denver and this could get really interesting.
Anyways… here are some of my thoughts on both Conference Finals series so far, the rest of the playoffs in general, the All NBA teams and a few other topics.
Jimmy got game. Jimmy is the man. Jimmy is sweet on Jimmy.
When I think of Jimmy Butler and the bravado he exudes, I’m always reminded of the Jimmy character from Seinfeld. I can just see him in practice going up to Bam and Tyler with the ball, screaming in their faces while he showboats how great he is. I could be wrong about this, but I doubt I am. The guy has confidence in spades and how he’s helped foster and change this Heat team has been remarkable. With gritty Pat Riley style defence and a willingness to share the ball and spotlight with his young teammates, specifically Bam, Butler has shown a maturity he longed to exhibit when he played in Chicago, Minnesota and Philadelphia. He’s found his team and the non believers better get on board because unless Boston can summon a big Game 4 performance, this team is headed to the Finals.
He may be fourth on the shot chart for this Heat team in this series, which speaks more to his team first attitude than to his talent, but even still, let’s not forget what he can do. His Game one 40 point barrage versus the Bucks was the stuff best players crave to do for their squads. He pulled out all the stops with that one. Pretty floaters, turn around mid range daggers and long range three’s. It was beautiful to watch him dissect the league’s best defence. He doesn’t have LeBron or Kawhi type talent, but he sure is damn good.
If they’re too advance, the Heat may need a game or two from him like this in this series. I suspect Game four to be just that.
Jimmy is fun to watch. Jimmy wants you to know this.
Nikola Jokic is a beast.
He doesn’t look like a basketball player, but he sure as hell can play like one. He runs weird and he can barely jump, but wow can he pass. Plus, he has some of the best bully ball around. At times he makes Anthony Davis, one of the best defenders in the league, look pedestrian. He can shoot the three when he wants, and those flip shots are incredible. It’s been wonderful to see his growth and maturity these past few seasons. The Nuggets have a gem and paired with Murray, they could have a killer duo for years to come. Incredibly, they seem to really enjoy playing with one another. The chemistry they show in their pick and roll game is one Kawhi and PG should try to emulate next season. It’s a thing of beauty.
Bam saves the day.
One of my least favourite things about the NBA over the past decade has been the erosion of defence in favour of offence. The league made some changes, starting in 2004 when they removed hand checking as a way of eliminating the low scoring games we were witnessing in the early 2000s. It was an understandable move by the league at the time. I mean, look at the scores of some of these games. Sheesh!
Therefore, because of these changes and the increasing influence of analytics, the game has come wide open as teams and players have taken what was once thought of as ridiculous — shooting 35 foot 3’s — and made them normal. You can thank Steph Curry for a lot of this too.
Hey, I’m not complaining too much about all of this. Guys shooting from the moon are fun to watch and crazy to witness. This is still one of the best games I’ve ever seen, and one of the craziest finishes as well.
But… all this offence has affected the other half of the game, one you barely see being played until this time of year — deep into the playoffs. It’s why those high octane offences from Houston never make it to the Finals, because when push comes to shove, you need defence to win games. This is where guys like Bam make their mark. He’s long, athletic and quick at recovering in a help situation. Jimmy is the heart of this team, but Bam is their best player. ESPN’s Senior Writer Zach Lowe wrote a wonderful piece on him this past February, which I highly recommend you check out. Miami has a bright future ahead of them and a possible Finals berth in the making. This block on Tatum in Game 1 could be the start of something big for this franchise.
Kawhi should have stayed in Toronto. He’s a moron.
I’ve said it a million times this past year to friends who will listen, or even those who won’t. WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU LEAVE A CHAMPIONSHIP LEVEL TEAM AND NOT WANT TO REPEAT?!?!?
Kawhi I get it, you’re from Los Angeles. The weather is really nice and oh the food is delicious, but fuck man, you just won a title with a team that stayed intact fully and even got better. Why would you leave that? Gasol, Ibaka, Lowry and VanVleet were all only signed for one more season. Why not roll it back on a one year deal, try to repeat and go from there? Did you not at least want to see if that was possible? You left a title on the line. Jordan is the only other player to have done this, and he had his reasons — father had just been murdered, he was burnt out; they had just won a three peat. But you? What have you proven outside of telling the world that you are the best player in the world? Did the love Canada gave you last season not make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? Yeah, it’s cold in Toronto, but come on man, it’s only one year, you owe it to yourself to have at least tried. All Toronto needed in that 7 game slog of a series was a wing who could go toe to toe with Tatum. A guy 6’8" in height, who could break down a defence and lock down his man on the other end. Oh wait? You’re that missing link. They went to Game 7 WITHOUT YOU… DON’T YOU THINK THEY COULD HAVE WON IT WITH YOU??????
But no, you thought you were better served with Paul George as your sidekick. Have you seen his playoff resume of late? This was the cat you wanted to team up with, he and Lou Williams? Are you kidding me? Now look at you. You got bounced by a fat kid and a sharp shooting Canuck — in the second round!!! Bravo! Hope you’re happy watching LeBron hoist your Finals MVP trophy in 3 weeks. Idiot!
Rant over.
They got most of the All NBA selections right for a change.
You’d be surprised how often they screw this shit up. Durant on the second team. Curry on the second team. Kobe on the third team. I mean, come on, guys. It’s easy. Pick the five best guys and let’s do this.
LeBron breaking the record for most selections was cool. He’s a stud and well deserved of the honour. Luka making first team was so right I can’t help but wonder if this is the first of 12 straight for the young stud.
However, if I’m to quibble a little, I’d move Harden down to the second team and move Jokic up to take LeBron’s spot and I’d move LeBron to Guard, which is what he truly plays these days. Harden drives me crazy, as you can see.
I’d also have put Lowry on instead of Westbrook. One of them plays defence, the other stands around. That should count.
LeBron being upset about the MVP
Now this was pure gold in every way.
He’s right to be upset. He’s the best player in the league. He should have more MVPs. Just like how Shaq should too. Kobe as well. Nash shouldn’t have any and boy does Dirk not deserve his from 2007. The worst is Derrick Rose’s from 2011.
The point here is — voters are dumb.
You know your award looks stupid when you give it to a guy who’s been eliminated from the playoffs when you should have given it to the guy who’s about to win the title. It happens so often it’s crazy.
Speak the truth Bron, maybe one day they’ll learn.
Finals prediction: Lakers in 6 over the Heat
Win one for Kobe!!!