The 2005-2006 NBA Season Discussion Thread

Now I can get my hopes up! That was an alright game all throughout, but especially in the last few minutes. It had me on the edge of my seat.

If the Spurs can pull off a win on Monday, I'll probably be the happiest person on these here forums. The 24 season finale, the Alias series finale, and a win by the Spurs. Life couldn't get any better!

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Both teams that I thought would win tonight won. The Pistons still aren't playing their best, but played better at the end. I think the Pistons could blow out the Cavs in game 7, if they play like they should play and get behind the crowd. If not, nothing is a given, because the Pistons are playing like garbage.

I think the Mavs/Spurs game 7 will be down to the wire again. Either team could walk out of there, but I always take home teams in game 7's unless I think the home team is a total fraud.

Clippers/Suns game 7 should be fun as well. Again, either team could win this game. Again, I like the Suns for the same reason as above.

The way I see it is(and please share your's as well):

Most likely winner of all the game 7's: Pistons
Most likely road team to win: Mavs

Predictions: Pistons, Spurs, Suns.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Now that the Spurs are back in this series and have forced a Game 7, I think they will take the series now. I thought the injuries would be too much for them to overcome, but they have really shown their fortitude and playoff experience in these past two games. The Spurs are my pick to win that game.

Also, the Pistons really showed their toughness against Cleveland last night. They only had 3 offensive rebounds in the first 3 quarters of that game but added 8 more in the 4th quarter. That Detroit crowd is gonna be HOSTILE on Sunday. I can't wait. I hope the Pistons blow the Cavs out.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by bishop743

I hope the Pistons blow the Cavs out.

Aw, Game 7 blowouts are never fun for me to watch ... it's like anti-climactic.

I want the three Game 7's to be tightly contested and down-to-the-wire

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Timberwolf

Aw, Game 7 blowouts are never fun for me to watch ... it's like anti-climactic.

I want the three Game 7's to be tightly contested and down-to-the-wire

heh, sorry bro, doesn't look like you're gonna get your wish. :P It turned into a blowout late in the game. LeBron James has been horrible in the second half.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Yeah, I'm watching it right now too.

Pistons are blowing this one wide open. Cavs can't buy a basket.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

79-61?

Geez.


Lots of freethrows from when I watched (2nd quarter) - overall it wasn't a great 7th game. I wanted more excited but it ended up a lop-sided victory.

I miss buzzer-beater victories in the 7th game...

How ya doing, buddy?

Yep, nothing too exciting, especially for a Game 7. Hopefully the other two Game 7s turn out to be more exciting than this.

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Lots of boring basketball. It just ain't the same without the lakers in the mix. I just hope to GAWD that we dont get the Spurs and Pistons in the finals again where the outcome of the series will be determined by freethrow desperaty. Tomorrow's game 7 will be much better, though. fo suuure.

FELIPE NO

Whew (Pistons fan here).

I knew they'd pull it off, but sometimes I think they stop trying in the middle of important games in order to give me heart attacks. They've dug holes like this before, but they always seem to get out of them. I really hate it when they stop trying, since I think they probably could've gotten closer to 66-68 games this season if they hadn't flipped the switch to off, but that doesn't matter as much as a championship in the end.

Yeah, the Pistons-Cavs game 7 wasn't too exciting, but they had to show that their trademark defense still existed (hey guys, .31 field goal percentage). It's not what makes for legendary playoff basketball, but it was a statement to the rest of the teams still in the playoffs.

I can't feel too bad for LeBron here, though. What he's done at 21 (won a playoff series, made the best team in the league sweat out a game 7) is just amazing. And you know that bastard's going to run off with championships and MVPs down the line, so sorry if I can't sympathize here. But damn, that team is going to be a nightmare if they get shooters that aren't so streaky and some defenders.

The game 7s in the Western semis should be pretty exciting. I'm looking forward to a great day of basketball tomorrow. Hoping that the Spurs and Clippers (c'mon, the franchise deserves a damn break) win tomorrow. That'll bring it one step closer to the grudge Finals rematch I've been waiting for. I'll grant that the first four games in last year's finals kinda sucked, but games 5 and 7 were just great (even though the Pistons lost both. Grah).

If the Spurs and the Suns win, the teams in the conference finals will be the exact same as last year, which is kinda weird. Has that happened before?

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

The Pistons are a juggernaut, but if they play against the Heat the way they did against the Cavs, they won't be making it to their 3rd straight NBA Final. What's amazing is, since 2003, the Pistons are 11-1 in playoff elimination games. That one loss, of course, coming at the hands of the Spurs in Game 7 of the finals last year (a game that they should have won, btw). That's an incredible stat. As far as LeBron James goes, he had a great rookie playoff campaign.

Tonight's Game 7 matchups are surely going to be more exciting and entertaining. I still don't know who to take in the Suns-Clippers game, but I'm pretty confident that the Spurs will defeat the Mavs tonight. Even with Jason Terry back in the Dallas lineup, I think the experience and savvy of that San Antonio team will pay huge dividends for them down the stretch tonight.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by bishop743

The Pistons are a juggernaut, but if they play against the Heat the way they did against the Cavs, they won't be making it to their 3rd straight NBA Final. What's amazing is, since 2003, the Pistons are 11-1 in playoff elimination games. That one loss, of course, coming at the hands of the Spurs in Game 7 of the finals last year (a game that they should have won, btw). That's an incredible stat. As far as LeBron James goes, he had a great rookie playoff campaign.

11-1 in elimination games, with the sole loss being last year Game 7 Finals loss -- that IS really incredible.

I remember all these Pistons comebacks. Remember back in 2003, when they were down 3-1 to the Orlando Magic, and Tracy McGrady was already looking and talking about the next round. Man, T-Mac got owned when the Pistons won it in 7.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

They were down 3-2 against the Nets on route to their championship as well. And they recovered last year after going down 2-1 to the Pacers and 3-2 to the Heat. They're just incredibly resilient.

And I remember that series against Orlando. McGrady was an absolute beast the first few games.

Speaking of McGrady, here's hoping that he makes a recovery from his injuries (same with Amare). I always hate to see great players have their careers cut short by injuries (Grant Hill was one of my favorites for a long time. He'd probably be a Hall of Famer if not for injuries. Same probably goes for Penny Hardaway).

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Goubot

Speaking of McGrady, here's hoping that he makes a recovery from his injuries (same with Amare). I always hate to see great players have their careers cut short by injuries (Grant Hill was one of my favorites for a long time. He'd probably be a Hall of Famer if not for injuries. Same probably goes for Penny Hardaway).

McGrady's back is a chronic problem. He probably doesn't have too many years left in him -- even he has said so himself.

It's too bad. Because T-Mac, when healthy, is a damn beast. He gets more lift on those jumpshots than anybody I've ever seen, even on shots from way beyond the arc -- he shoots 30-foot bombs like he's shooting regular jumpers. His arms are insanely long, and he's got massive hands. He's got a blindingly quick first step, and sick athleticism. The only weakness in his game is his defense, which is more of a mental thing than physical.

I smell an animated .gif coming...





I always tell people that the Raptors kept the wrong cousin.

December 9th, 2004 - Rockets vs. Spurs: One of the most amazing things I'd ever seen in basketball.



Edit: This is not McGrady related. But does anyone love the TNT crew as much as I do. Peanut butter jelly time ... Peanut butter jelly time...

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

TNT crew is great. Charles is one of my favorite all-time people in sports. Kenny Smith is great and Ernie Johnson isn't bad either.

Plus the announcers and analysts are top notch as well.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Yeah, I always try to watch games on TNT when they available on the channel. The only time I'll watch another channel over them is when a local station is covering a Spurs game, since they're always going for the Spurs while making their commentary (plus, Sean Elliot is usually always one of the commentators).

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I love the TNT crew. They all bring great chemistry to the broadcast. Also, I really like that Charles Barkley is brutally honest and outspoken with his opinions. Very few announcers, broadcasters, reporters, ect. are like that.

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Barkley is awesome and the whole crew has good chemistry and a lot of inside jokes (Kenny Smith gloating over having rings, stuff like that). I don't think any of them are particularly insightful (especially Magic, who likes to spout cliches left and right), but they're definitely entertaining.

For in game commentating, I like former coaches a lot, especially ones that will explain to you the sets that teams are running. Hubie Brown is especially good at this. Doug Collins usually knows what he's talking about as well.

On the flip side, I also think Bill Walton is really funny. Sure, he's a dumbass, but he's mostly around for entertainment value. His use of exaggeration is great. "That was the worst pass in the history of Western civilization!"
"That was the best dunk in the history of this franchise!", etc

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Goubot

On the flip side, I also think Bill Walton is really funny. Sure, he's a dumbass, but he's mostly around for entertainment value. His use of exaggeration is great. "That was the worst pass in the history of Western civilization!"
"That was the best dunk in the history of this franchise!", etc

haha, yeah Bill Walton is hilarous at times. I also crack up when he uses his trademark "HORRRRRRRRRIBLE!!!". Hubie Brown and Doug Collins are very knowledgeable of the game and they are great as commentators. Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller are getting pretty good as well. I miss John Thompson though.

Jim Huber's features are nice as well.

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Bill Walton is the king of exaggerations. Everything to him is the worst _____ in the history of the NBA.

Tim Thomas took a shot against the Lakers that Bill Walton said something like "That was the worst shot in the history of the playoffs." Yea, ok Bill, lol.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Okay, the Mavs are just torching the Spurs (shooting 85% as of this post). This is ridiculous, no one shoots that high on the Spurs for an extended period of time. It can't really keep up. I think.

In spite of that, the Spurs are only down 14 because they've been to the line so often. This hot shooting is probably a fluke, but I'm not so sure now.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

...and then the third period happened. Yikes. Spurs went CRAZY!

The Mavs got a BIT of their lead back, but THAT was pretty scary.

Whew...whether I'll be elated by a Mavs win or saddened by a Spurs win...I'm gonna be EXHAUSTED. What a show this series has been.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Daaaaaaaaaamn. Watching the Spurs come back from that deficit was highly entertaining. Great basketball here. God damn it, this should be the conference finals. The current playoff seeding is ridiculous.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Damn, I come from the excitement of the 24 finale to the excitement of this game! Overtime? Man, I don't think I can last that long! I'm already worn out from that 4th quarter!

How ya doing, buddy?

OH.
WOW.

Yeah, it took an overtime, but...

Finally.
FINALLY.

The Mavericks win over the Spurs, 119-111.

Can't say too much, because - as predicted - I'm WORN OUT. So...I will leave with a silly joke instead.

How was this series comparable to a great suspense novel?
It kept you guessing until the very end.

MAVS! MAVS! MAVS!


FELIPE NO