It was a good game, and props to the Celtics for winning on the road after a historic blowout loss at home, without their best player no less, but saving the playoffs? Does anyone think the Celtics have a chance in hell? Instead of a sweep its going to be a gentleman’s sweep. Lebron had a terrible game. Don’t see that happening again.
Oh I don’t care if they win the series. But before that game we were possibly looking at the worst NBA playoffs of all-time.
That game illustrated why the Celtics should take Fultz. Thomas is a fantastic offensive player, but he has been killing the Celtics defense in this series.
I had forgotten how painful it can be to watch LeBron on offense when things aren’t flowing well. 15 seconds of dancing around in isolation, then pass out to someone 40 feet from the basket to try to make something work. Oof.
As crappy as these playoffs have been, the only saving grace would be the clash of the titans in the Finals. If the Cavs aren’t as invincible as they appeared (in the playoffs) before last night, then the Warriors will make short work of them.
It might be pretty rough. It sounds like the Cavs had problems late in the season blowing leads, and overcoming big deficits appears to be a specialty of the Warriors.
The Cavs have a problem with getting complacent when they’re up big. All the factors in play last night – coming off the blowout, finally playing at home, Celtics losing IT – exacerbated the problem. I expect last night will be the last time we see it this season.
The other factor was that they could just put Thomas in a high ball screen with LeBron, and LeBron was owning him for cheap and easy scores whenever they wanted/needed a bucket. With Thomas off the court, the defender on that high ball screen is a lot larger and more athletic and gives LeBron more trouble.
I expect the Cavs will have an answer in game 4, as another factor was the way they gave up the lead they had built (but that lead never approached the margins in games 1 & 2). Still, in this series, it certainly appears as if the Celtics may be better served (especially defensively) with Thomas out.
The Cavs also had no idea who to key on with Thomas out.
Not all that into the NBA Playoffs this season. Its looking like Cleveland has no answer for the Warriors. Well at least until now…
I have to say that The Fumble is the most appropriate title for the video segment at that linked page.
It’s legal in Cali!
I am hoping that the Cavs can channel whatever the fuck they were able to do last year going back to Cleveland. Does not seem likely though. Warriors last year + Durant…a history making regular season team that literally added a top 5 player better than anyone on their roster.
Also, thus far at least, non-banned Green, non-injured Curry…
Certainly not for lack of trying!
Last year I watched intently, but for some reason the finals isn’t grabbing me this year. I suspect it’s the same finals teams multiple years in a row combined with playoff fatigue combined with the scheduling of the games (I hate that all the finals games are at night, most at 9 PM Eastern). I even forgot when game 2 was being played so I watched a recap the next morning.
To bring it back on-topic, Dubs in 5!
Could be the fact that the entire post-season has been a foregone conclusion, including these Finals (most likely). You can watch it for the spectacle, but it’s certainly lacking suspense.
There was a couple series I enjoyed (Jazz/Clippers, Celtics/Wizards) but even then, you knew whoever advanced was just going to get obliterated by GSW/Cleveland. The Spurs/GSW may have been somewhat competitive, but sadly we’ll never know.
The root of the problem is that basketball is a 5-person sport. It (normally) only takes 3 superstars to make a championship team. Once upon a time a team had to draft and trade to try to collect the right number of stars, until LeBron said ‘hey guys, let’s go to -hmmm Miami? Yeah Miami!’
When one team manages to get 3 superstars through drafting and then has the audacity to add another one through free agency, everyone gets upset.
I think what the hot takes are missing is that this unique situation is a result of the edge-of-your-seat excitement of a collective bargaining agreement. The players association rejected the cap smoothing proposal in the summer of 2015, which caused a one-time cap spike that allowed an MVP to join an established Big 3 without leaving a hundred million dollars on the table. This team was borne out of a quirk in some unionized labor discussions. Can you feel the thrill?
Professional sports always walk a fine line between human drama and the cold reality of business, and this kind of shatters the illusion. It’s as dry as a legal proceeding.
It doesn’t upset me though. KD told me that if I was bored I shouldn’t watch, so I’m not.
Wasn’t it Boston that first pulled that trick? They made major moves to build the “Big Three” and lock in a championship. LeBron just saw that it worked and followed suit. Now the Warriors have taken it one step further and crushed the “big three” concept by adding one of the best players in the NBA to an already championship level roster.