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Official April NBA thread - WNBA Draft is April 5th, Bish!

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Ninja Scooter said:
duncan's not gonna get any healthier so if Spurs fans want to play the injury card they better be worried cause he aint gonna be any better come playoff time.
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QFT

I honestly believe the Spurs could go out to the Mavs. Not because the Mavs are a better team (they aren't), but because of the injuries. And even if the Spurs manage to limp to the finals, the Pistons will be there 100% healthy and with home court advantage.
 
God damn. I still can't believe none of the starting Pistons have missed a game due to injuries. I guess when you have the lowest amount of points in the paint, that's going to happen.

EDIT: I think Ginobili is an amazing player and all, but he wouldn't get injured as much if he just stopped flopping.
 
the Spurs will be fine. They have a great bench to back up the starters. Van Exel was suppose to be out the remainder of the regular season with an injured elbow, but when Parker was hurt that game, he came back and played well, plus you have Beno on the bench ready to play. Brent Barry can score when he's playing some good minutes, Horry is there, Rasho can play some D, but the X factor is Finley. If he doesn't go into one of his slumps, he can go off for 20. Sure Tim is a huge part of the team, but if he just scores 10 points and grabs 10 boards, the rest of the team can step up.

I'm not afraid of the Mavs nor the Suns. The Clippers and Grizzlies are the teams to watch out for. The Clips could job the rest of the season and end up in the 6th spot vs. Denver. The Clips have the better record and would have homecourt :o

I think the Nets can beat the Pistons in a 7 game series in the battle of the 2 teams who have won the east the past 4 years!

For Bill Walton and Steve "Snapper" Jones, I'm Jobber... Thank you for reading this post.Good Night From NEO-GEO
 
jobber said:
the Spurs will be fine. They have a great bench to back up the starters. Van Exel was suppose to be out the remainder of the regular season with an injured elbow, but when Parker was hurt that game, he came back and played well, plus you have Beno on the bench ready to play. Brent Barry can score when he's playing some good minutes, Horry is there, Rasho can play some D, but the X factor is Finley. If he doesn't go into one of his slumps, he can go off for 20. Sure Tim is a huge part of the team, but if he just scores 10 points and grabs 10 boards, the rest of the team can step up.

I'm not afraid of the Mavs nor the Suns. The Clippers and Grizzlies are the teams to watch out for. The Clips could job the rest of the season and end up in the 6th spot vs. Denver. The Clips have the better record and would have homecourt :o

I think the Nets can beat the Pistons in a 7 game series in the battle of the 2 teams who have won the east the past 4 years!

For Bill Walton and Steve "Snapper" Jones, I'm Jobber... Thank you for reading this post.Good Night From NEO-GEO
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Wow, not afraid of the Mavs and Suns, but scared of the Clippers and Grizzlies? And you think the Nets can defeat the Pistons? The Clippers and the Grizzlies will never make it past the first round, the only teams the Spurs have to worry about are the Mavericks and the Suns, and Detroit would win a series with the Nets in 6. It will come down to the Mavs and Spurs in the second round, whoever wins that wins the championship, and it is going 7 games.
 
I can bring Tim Duncan´s injury anytime I fucking want because he is TIM DUNCAN, not one of the Mavs scrubs.

Plus he has been playing injured all season long, not sitting out like a pussy, missing just one game I think. He also played on two bad ankles during the playoffs where the Spurs won the fucking title. So when he gets blasted I feel the need to defend him because people rather bash him when he is down and overlook the effort he has put into the whole deal. He has done something important, unlike guys like Howard. If it was a guy like Dirk, then you´d have a point, eventhough he hasn´t done anything really important either.

Anyway, on Jobber´s account, I can see why he thinks the Clippers especially could be a bigger threat and his name is Elton Brand. A dominant inside presence that can give a hobbled Duncan real trouble. The Mavs and Suns still don´t have any inside game and if people think their games will be enough to beat the Spurs 4 times during a playoff series, they´re dead wrong, unless Duncan drops dead.
 
DMczaf said:
Lebron ends the Nets' winning streak, after losing to the Knicks wtf :lol
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:lol Sports is funny that way. It was odd for me to see Vince falling apart the way he did in the last few minutes, particularly since he'd had such a strong game for the first three and a half quarters. He just looked really anxious with his shots down the stretch. On the bright side, it was good to see Bron stepping it up in the 4th quarter, shutting his haters the fuck up. It was a fun game to watch though, between the two most in form teams in the league. Too bad it probably won't be a playoff matchup.

I think the Nets could beat anyone in the east except for Detroit. The Pistons have to be seen as the favourite...they're two time eastern conference champs, have the best team D, the best home record, and know what it takes to play in the playoffs. Having said that the Nets are probably the only team to have beaten them twice this season (if someone else has, I can't think of them) including a win in Motown, have three frontline players who can win games by themselves, and their team defense has been as good as anyone's in the last month and a half. So I think they could defintely make a go of it in a matchup with Detroit, if they could get that far.

As for the Spurs, someone else is gonna have to step it up and be a consistent goto guy for the Spurs, in case Duncan falters offensively. TD's arguably more important to the team on defense than scoring wise, so Gino or Parker have to be consistent with their scoring output in the starting lineup, while Finley or Van Exel get it done off the bench. I think they can get back to the final, but even with a healthy Duncan it isn't gonna be a picnic. I think the Mavs are for real...their team defense is leagues better then anything they've had the last few years, and Nowitzki when he's on is probably the most unguardable player on the planet. I think Denver could cause some problems as well, particularly if they could steal a series win on the road.
 
BatiGOOOOOOL said:
I can bring Tim Duncan´s injury anytime I fucking want because he is TIM DUNCAN, not one of the Mavs scrubs.

Plus he has been playing injured all season long, not sitting out like a pussy, missing just one game I think. He also played on two bad ankles during the playoffs where the Spurs won the fucking title. So when he gets blasted I feel the need to defend him because people rather bash him when he is down and overlook the effort he has put into the whole deal. He has done something important, unlike guys like Howard. If it was a guy like Dirk, then you´d have a point, eventhough he hasn´t done anything really important either.

Anyway, on Jobber´s account, I can see why he thinks the Clippers especially could be a bigger threat and his name is Elton Brand. A dominant inside presence that can give a hobbled Duncan real trouble. The Mavs and Suns still don´t have any inside game and if people think their games will be enough to beat the Spurs 4 times during a playoff series, they´re dead wrong, unless Duncan drops dead.
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then on top of being a complete homer your other problem is you really dont know anything about the mavs. the way duncan has been playing this year and the way the rest of the spurs have stepped up, howard is just as important as duncan. but hey he isnt a spur so i guess his injury was irrelevant :lol
 
Howard is a great player. There's a reason why the Spurs wanted him during Draft Day. But comparing his importance for the Mavs to Tim Duncan's importance to the Spurs is beyond ridiculous.
 
But Howard was out of the lineup entirely, while Duncan was still in the Spur's line up. 80% of Duncan is better than 0% of Howard. And Howard has not been the only player to miss games for the Mavs.
 
Shinobi said:
:lol Sports is funny that way. It was odd for me to see Vince falling apart the way he did in the last few minutes, particularly since he'd had such a strong game for the first three and a half quarters. He just looked really anxious with his shots down the stretch. On the bright side, it was good to see Bron stepping it up in the 4th quarter, shutting his haters the fuck up. It was a fun game to watch though, between the two most in form teams in the league. Too bad it probably won't be a playoff matchup.

I think the Nets could beat anyone in the east except for Detroit. The Pistons have to be seen as the favourite...they're two time eastern conference champs, have the best team D, the best home record, and know what it takes to play in the playoffs. Having said that the Nets are probably the only team to have beaten them twice this season (if someone else has, I can't think of them) including a win in Motown, have three frontline players who can win games by themselves, and their team defense has been as good as anyone's in the last month and a half. So I think they could defintely make a go of it in a matchup with Detroit, if they could get that far.

As for the Spurs, someone else is gonna have to step it up and be a consistent goto guy for the Spurs, in case Duncan falters offensively. TD's arguably more important to the team on defense than scoring wise, so Gino or Parker have to be consistent with their scoring output in the starting lineup, while Finley or Van Exel get it done off the bench. I think they can get back to the final, but even with a healthy Duncan it isn't gonna be a picnic. I think the Mavs are for real...their team defense is leagues better then anything they've had the last few years, and Nowitzki when he's on is probably the most unguardable player on the planet. I think Denver could cause some problems as well, particularly if they could steal a series win on the road.
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The Jazz(!) also beat Detroit twice this year.
 
timmy said:
The Jazz(!) also beat Detroit twice this year.
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So did Gilbert Are ...er Washington

It doesnt matter though playoffs in any sport is another season thats just the nature of the game gotta forget the regular season and see who came to win.
 
BatiGOOOOOOL said:
Howard is a great player. There's a reason why the Spurs wanted him during Draft Day. But comparing his importance for the Mavs to Tim Duncan's importance to the Spurs is beyond ridiculous.
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why do you act like duncan is a shadow of his former self this season? his numbers are lower than his career average but not by much at all. his career average in points not counting this season is 19 and a half points. his average this year is 18 and a half. his career rebound average not counting this season is 12.1 and this year he is grabbing 11.1 so he is averaging a whopping 1 less point and 1 less rebound a game. wow, just fuck wow.

so is he that important to the spurs or not? if he is as important as you say he is while at the same time is having as bad an off year due to injury that you make it seem that he is, then the spurs would not be the #1 team in the west. however since they are still the #1 team in the west then that pretty much confirms he either isnt off his game as much as you believe or he simply isnt as vital to the team as he was the last few years. the latter is the only logical conclusion because #1 the spurs have added alot of key players especially this offseason plus parker and ginobli have matured as players and #2 numbers prove his stats this year are a fraction off his usual numbers.

can't have it both ways, sorry. after all of that about duncan you're still talking about a guy who played over 20+ more games than howard so logic alone would tell you an injury to duncan that shaves 1 point and 1 rebound off his average but still allows him to play in every game is far less damaging than an injury to howard that completely removes him from over 20 games.
 
bionic77 said:
Is being a Bradyphile or Jordaphile a choice?

I will ask this question in the NFL thread as well.
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0743284003.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg


*buys another copy*
 
I sure hope the Magic can keep the chemistry going into next year. As a lifelong fan of the Magic, it warms the cockles of my heart to see the team play so well and enjoy each other. There appears to be light at the end of the tunnel we've been in since 4 brick Nick.
 
tralfazz said:
I sure hope the Magic can keep the chemistry going into next year. As a lifelong fan of the Magic, it warms the cockles of my heart to see the team play so well and enjoy each other. There appears to be light at the end of the tunnel we've been in since 4 brick Nick.
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I think this is my first post in this thread, woot.

I have to agree, tralfazz. I am also a life-long Magic fan and I havnt enjoyed Magic games like the last several weeks since the "Heart & Hustle" group years ago. The reason why I've been watching Magic games lately isn't because they are winning, but it is because I like to watch the team. They try hard and are exciting to watch. Nelson and Howard are going to be dominant in the coming years...they just need to stay together.

"Steve-o" was a horrible, horrible player for the Magic and I am glad the Knicks were dumb enough to take his sorry butt. The group the Magic have right now is excellent. The guys really do seem to enjoy playing with eachother. I've noticed they actually stand and clap from the bench, I havn't seen that in a long time. They are FINALLY fun to watch again.

Also, I doubt they can make the playoffs, though it would be great for the franchise and the city, but they are making one heck of a run at it. Three games out with some teams dropping towards them.
 
Dodged a bullet there. But with Manu out it was definitely a quality win against a good team.

This team needs to snap out of it. They're really lagging out there on the court as of late.
 
Woo, there are other Magic fans on the forum! :D Lifer here as well and boy is it great to see the boys playing so well. Even if we dont make the playoffs, things are definitely on the up and up. I really hope Grant Hill retires... we need the salary cap room to make a run at a big free agent SG in the offseason. He's already fleeced us for enough money over the years..
 
Meier said:
Woo, there are other Magic fans on the forum! :D Lifer here as well and boy is it great to see the boys playing so well. Even if we dont make the playoffs, things are definitely on the up and up. I really hope Grant Hill retires... we need the salary cap room to make a run at a big free agent SG in the offseason. He's already fleeced us for enough money over the years..
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I have 2 thoughts on this. We really aren't that far off. We just need some time. We've got unbelievable chemistry. We are 10 deep, kinda like the Kings from a few years ago. Most of our core guys are under 25 with Howard, Ariza, and Darko all 20. If we add a great player we might make that leap but I'm afraid of another McGrady / Francis situation. As I said I haven't felt this good about the team in years. I'd like to see them add a Reddick or Roy as a shooter and see what happens. Let the team gel some more. It'd be a huge mistake to draft Morrison if given the opportunity, beacuse I think his personality would clash.
 
tralfazz said:
I have 2 thoughts on this. We really aren't that far off. We just need some time. We've got unbelievable chemistry. We are 10 deep, kinda like the Kings from a few years ago. Most of our core guys are under 25 with Howard, Ariza, and Darko all 20. If we add a great player we might make that leap but I'm afraid of another McGrady / Francis situation. As I said I haven't felt this good about the team in years. I'd like to see them add a Reddick or Roy as a shooter and see what happens. Let the team gel some more. It'd be a huge mistake to draft Morrison if given the opportunity, beacuse I think his personality would clash.
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Yeah, it would be nice to pick up a shooter. Hedo has played great lately, but we need to get a young guy started with this team. Hedo scares me, since he is a shoot-first player and some of his shots are absolutely insane. Tonight he had a few shots that were just stupid.
We do have one of the best benches in the league, so plugging holes will be easy. Although he isn't really well liked in the papers here, Weisbrod left the Magic with excellent TEAM players. I was sad to see him go. His only "mistake" was Francis, but who knew they would turn out the way it would. Especially after his little friend was traded, but I digress.

I'd love to see them pick up Reddik, but will he be around by the time the Magic draft? They way they are playing, they are hurting themselves at a higher draft pick.

After next season, I think there are several big-name players that will be free agents, but picking the right one will be tough. Putting the right player on the team would do amazing things for an already very good team.
 
Netrunner2k2 said:
Yeah, it would be nice to pick up a shooter. Hedo has played great lately, but we need to get a young guy started with this team. Hedo scares me, since he is a shoot-first player and some of his shots are absolutely insane. Tonight he had a few shots that were just stupid.
We do have one of the best benches in the league, so plugging holes will be easy. Although he isn't really well liked in the papers here, Weisbrod left the Magic with excellent TEAM players. I was sad to see him go. His only "mistake" was Francis, but who knew they would turn out the way it would. Especially after his little friend was traded, but I digress.

I'd love to see them pick up Reddik, but will he be around by the time the Magic draft? They way they are playing, they are hurting themselves at a higher draft pick.

After next season, I think there are several big-name players that will be free agents, but picking the right one will be tough. Putting the right player on the team would do amazing things for an already very good team.
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After everything has passed I'm convinced Weisbrod was brought in to play bad cop on the McGrady situation; there was no doubt he had to go. I never understood the Francis deal, you trade one cancer for another and then trade Cat, who was playing great for another cancer.
The good thing Weis did was get out of the way on talent evaluation. Smith and Tward have been head and shoulders above Gabe. They screwed up the Vazquez pick temporarily but they made the right choice on Howard, flat out stole Meer and Darko and picked up two solid benchers in Arroyo and Ariza plus cap room. I'd love to see Fran come over. I'd also like to see them grab Augustine in the 2nd round as I think he is another Brad Miller.
 
timmy said:
The Jazz(!) also beat Detroit twice this year.
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:lol What the shit...




DaddyZ said:
All this Vince love...do people remember what he does in the playoffs? Opposite of succeed.
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Sadly Vince has only made three trips to the playoffs in his career (he missed the '02 playoffs due to injury), winning one series against the Knicks in '01 where he made some huge shots down the stretch at MSG. He also had a 50 point game against the Sixers, dropped a playoff record 10 threes, and had another 47 point game in the seven game battle against AI that was probably the best matchup I've ever seen. So while he's hardly Michael Jordan, he's hardly been the opposite of succeed either.




Netrunner2k2 said:
His only "mistake" was Francis, but who knew they would turn out the way it would. Especially after his little friend was traded, but I digress.
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Eh...that was easy to predict. "Franchise" has been an overrated, punk ass bitch from minute one. Ask anyone who lives in Vancouver.
 
tralfazz said:
They screwed up the Vazquez pick temporarily but ... I'd love to see Fran come over.
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Fuckin Vazquez.. to add insult to injury, the guy is born on the same damn day as me (May 1st, 1983). Bastard.
 
Shinobi said:
"Franchise" has been an overrated, punk ass bitch from minute one. Ask anyone who lives in Vancouver.
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a-francis-063099.jpg

"Hopefully, when I wake up tomorrow, I'll be happy," said Francis, who has never been to Canada. "I feel relieved now more than happy."

boogeyman_44769.jpg

"Fine. You've been cursed to bounce around the league from team to team, never succeed in the playoffs, then finish your career with Starbury! Happy now, bitch?"

fuckyoustevefrancis6lr.jpg

"...shit."

potblock.jpg

"The Pot Block wins again!"
 
Kobe is just as much of a role player as Nash or Billups. It's just that he doesn't play the kind of role that wins a lot of games.
 
Bron is CLEARLY well above Kobe for MVP.

He's the difference between a playoff team and trash.

Kobe's the differnce between a bad team and a bad team with a little excitement. If Kobe gets it he should rightfully give it up McGrady. That guy's a master at personal glory on a shit team.
 
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Houston Rockets center Yao Ming broke his left foot when another player stepped on it late in the first quarter against Utah on Monday night.

The Chinese star appeared to be injured when Utah's Andrei Kirilenko stepped on his foot while the two were under the basket. Yao got the offensive rebound and converted the three-point play after Kirilenko was called for a foul.
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capthtr10401090304nuggetsrocke.jpg


"Yao? Yao...speak to me........"

capt.pda10504060449.rockets_trail_blazers_basketball_pda105.jpg
 
I was in the library furiously hitting F5 on ESPN scoreboard. What the hell. We needed a game winning shot by Dirk to beat the Clippers? They're a great team and all, but 75-73? That's an Indiana-Memphis score.
 
"How many games are the Magic out of the playoffs, Hedo?"
capt.doa10904110231.hawks_magic_basketball_doa109.jpg


"But you guys have won how many in a row?"
capt.doa10104110020.hawks_magic_basketball_doa101.jpg


"Wow, that's a nice run.. how many do you expect to run that to before the season is over?"
capt.doa10204110021.hawks_magic_basketball_doa102.jpg


"Dwight -- one more question. What will happen to the team or player who tries to prevent you guys from winning out?"
capthtr10401090304nuggetsrocke.jpg
 
Meier said:
"How many games are the Magic out of the playoffs, Hedo?"
capt.doa10904110231.hawks_magic_basketball_doa109.jpg


"But you guys have won how many in a row?"
capt.doa10104110020.hawks_magic_basketball_doa101.jpg


"Wow, that's a nice run.. how many do you expect to run that to before the season is over?"
capt.doa10204110021.hawks_magic_basketball_doa102.jpg


"Dwight -- one more question. What will happen to the team or player who tries to prevent you guys from winning out?"
capthtr10401090304nuggetsrocke.jpg
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:lol

The Magic are awesome the last 15 or so games, I really hope they make it although the chances are pretty low. I am glad Hidayet Turkoglu is playing good, because he and Mehmet Okur are our 2 big guys in the upcomming world cup in Japan. Anyway I am totally rooting for the magic now!!!
 
BirdBomb said:
why do you act like duncan is a shadow of his former self this season? his numbers are lower than his career average but not by much at all. his career average in points not counting this season is 19 and a half points. his average this year is 18 and a half. his career rebound average not counting this season is 12.1 and this year he is grabbing 11.1 so he is averaging a whopping 1 less point and 1 less rebound a game. wow, just fuck wow.

so is he that important to the spurs or not? if he is as important as you say he is while at the same time is having as bad an off year due to injury that you make it seem that he is, then the spurs would not be the #1 team in the west. however since they are still the #1 team in the west then that pretty much confirms he either isnt off his game as much as you believe or he simply isnt as vital to the team as he was the last few years. the latter is the only logical conclusion because #1 the spurs have added alot of key players especially this offseason plus parker and ginobli have matured as players and #2 numbers prove his stats this year are a fraction off his usual numbers.

can't have it both ways, sorry. after all of that about duncan you're still talking about a guy who played over 20+ more games than howard so logic alone would tell you an injury to duncan that shaves 1 point and 1 rebound off his average but still allows him to play in every game is far less damaging than an injury to howard that completely removes him from over 20 games.
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Career scoring avg 19.5ppg? Where are you getting those numbers chief? Are you counting college or Team USA? Because neither of those apply as far as I'm concerned. His NBA scoring average is 22.1ppg, so yeah...he's hurting. On top of that, his numbers are deceptive. Where his injury really bites us is when the Spurs play the 2nd game of a back to back. In those games, Duncan's scoring average is around 14ppg. THAT my friend, makes a huge difference. When he gets to rest his foot between games his production is a lot better, which is why I'm interested to see how far the Spurs go in the playoffs since there are no back to back games.

I don't discount Howard's importance to the Mavs. Obviously his absence is having a bigger impact than Duncan's lower numbers, since he's completely out. I think anyone trying to say it the other way around is bogus. However, if Duncan were to miss games, then its a completely different story.
 
All NBA First Team

G - Wade
G - Bryant
F - LeBron
F - Nowitzki
C - Duncan (I know)

MVP - James
MIP - Diaw
6th Man - Mike Miller
ROY - Chris Paul
COY - D'Antoni
DPOY - Kirilenko
 
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