NBA playoffs: The Cavaliers were left for dead. Now, it feels like their series to lose.
picture from TheRinger
After dropping the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals in Boston, the Cavaliers were left for dead.
Now, after tying up the series in Cleveland, it feels like it is theirs to lose.
“I’ve put a lot of work in day in and day out with my body, working on my game every day, trying to put myself in the best condition I can be in the postseason,” said James, who passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most playoff field goals in NBA history during the game.
“It’s a hostile environment,” James added of Boston. We understand that. There’s no love in there if you don’t have on green. If you don’t bleed green, there’s no love for you. They have not lost a postseason game on their home court, so they’re going to be extremely confident.
“But if we play like we did in Games 3 and 4, we’ll have a good chance.”
Cleveland essentially won the game in the first quarter, going up 34-18 thanks to a 13-3 run to end it that blew things open for good. While Boston repeatedly would cut the lead to seven or eight in the second half, that initial cushion was enough for the Cavaliers to hold on and even the series.
Boston’s mission coming into these games was to keep James from getting to that point. For one of the first times in this magical season, the Celtics failed to accomplish something they set out to do.
Giving James a chance is never a good idea. Now we’ll see if he can take advantage of it.
GSW entered this series 24-3 in their last 27 playoff games. For the first time in 2 years ... the champ has been rocked by a heavy punch and is now in a real fight. This won't be a Mike Tyson KO of a series. Will Houston pull a James "Buster" Douglas? we'll find out this week. + Show Spoiler +
i'm better at boxing analogies than Reggie Miller and those guys on that Fox sports talk show
On May 23 2018 21:14 ZenithM wrote: Chris Paul will be that guy who still performs, while actually hurt, while Curry is systematically called "hurt" when he has an off night. JVG was right that he's one of the only guys we called hurt when he plays bad.
for whatever reason D'Antoni likes to have his excuses prepared pregame so that a loss can already be rationalized. D'Antoni is the guy leading the charge talking about Paul being hurt. Paul continues to say he is "fine".
Couldn’t find the thread because I hid sports section, thankfully search bar still works! I have been following basketball a lot recently, and I like it!
I woke up very surprised to the sight of Warriors losing at home right after their dominating performance. Right now I’m torn up: according to what I read Warriors didn’t play up to their usual level that night while Houston fought like madmen, so Warriors should be able to take the next on the road. However, it’s possible that they actually choke now that the series is back into Rockets’ favor (in term of home court advantage) and that the victory won’t be easily acquired.
What do you guys think?
About Cleveland vs Boston, I guess I want Cleveland to win because from a NBA beginner spectator Boston doesn’t seem to have any star players besides their injured one?
By the way, is it normal for players in the NBA to push their opponents that much? Almost every play I watch they seem to be doing illegal things :x
^ After 3-1 loss in 2016 finals, Lakers losing to Detroit, Houston winning in 1995, it's tough to claim absolute certainty. Momentum is a real thing and there are intangibles that swing the games suddenly. It might be that GSW were just lazy, or that HOU has been finally been unleashed, or they are even after all.
But wise money is on GSW flexing all their muscle and breezing through the finals.
On May 24 2018 06:07 Poopi wrote: Couldn’t find the thread because I hid sports section, thankfully search bar still works! I have been following basketball a lot recently, and I like it!
I woke up very surprised to the sight of Warriors losing at home right after their dominating performance. Right now I’m torn up: according to what I read Warriors didn’t play up to their usual level that night while Houston fought like madmen, so Warriors should be able to take the next on the road. However, it’s possible that they actually choke now that the series is back into Rockets’ favor (in term of home court advantage) and that the victory won’t be easily acquired.
What do you guys think?
About Cleveland vs Boston, I guess I want Cleveland to win because from a NBA beginner spectator Boston doesn’t seem to have any star players besides their injured one?
By the way, is it normal for players in the NBA to push their opponents that much? Almost every play I watch they seem to be doing illegal things :x
GSW is still the favorite, but I think it would be quite interesting to see Houston vs. Cleveland in the finals. It would certainly be more competitive than GSW vs. anyone
One thing the Celts need to work on in the offseason is that only Horford (among the bigs) consistently sets the kind of really effective screens that veteran bigs do. Guys like Bogut and Thompson are masters of the illegal screen, and Baynes would add a lot of value by mastering that (for instance).
Eh. If you let Nance do that, it means you have to let Morris do it, and then you have Nance in the 2nd row with a broken orbital bone and you can't call anything.
EPT![[image loading]](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/gqOtPzZLQR7jwiDVRwEz3FP_-xk=/0x0:3000x2000/920x613/filters:focal(1067x125:1547x605)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/59797337/lebron_defense_tjarks_getty_ringer.0.jpg)
Will Houston pull a James "Buster" Douglas? we'll find out this week.
![[image loading]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dd6kQ2hV4AA8ZKA.jpg)
