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spurs or okc will beat miami 4 out of 7 times.
that said, i dont know that the thunder can get past the spurs pick and roll. the thunder have ZERO pick and roll defense. that is why they dont want to see the clippers either. cp3 plays PNR with blake for lobs all game. thunder would beat the clippers BUT it would not be as easy as it should be. clippers dont move the ball to shooters like the spurs can.
the spurs have so many guys who can hit the outside shot. i have seen this coming since 2008. the spurs have been transitioning the team adding shooters. the defense is still there, as long as duncan is there its going to be there but adding greens defense and leonards defense to the wings, it looks pretty good. the numbers are not what they used to be BUT the pace is quicker so that is built into the game. spurs used to hold teams to mid to upper 80's now is lower 90s but the defense hasnt left them.
all that said lebron and wade are going to have their work cut out for them. wade still seems to be breaking down some to me. to many games in a short period, to many minutes maybe? its on lebron 100% in a thunder/heat series i see bosh-ibaka being the winning/losing matchup. durant and westbrook/harden = lebron and wade. all the other misc guys balance out. the real Xfactor to me is the PF spot. can ibaka keep bosh in check? if he can then its anyones game, and who ever can make those clutch free throws or that big shot wins the series. is it lebron or is it durant?
on the other side of the coin, spurs dismantle the heat with wave after wave of PNR and outside shooters. the spurs let lebron OR wade get theirs, bosh and tim are a wash if not leaning towards tims defense over bosh's offense. parker will own whom ever they throw at him, and once wade/lebron start guarding him, its going to free up manu/green/neal. who is miami going to use to guard leonard/jackson.
the spurs, the more i watch seem to be a miss match for the heat all day long.
ok im rambling, stayed up to late last night and up to early so ehhhh
I'm not so sure if Ray Allen doesn't get healthier, that Boston won't shock the Heat. I think they have almost as good a chance as anyone. Rondo's going to cause a lot of match up problems for the heat. Chalmers is a decent guard, but what will he do with Rondo. Plus, I got to give Doc Rivers his share of props. The dude can coach. Saving KG and (hopefully) Paul Pierce is fine from last night. They say he is. This is going to be a tough series. I say don't sleep on the Celtics. They've been under the radar all season and they know that it is now or never with their big three.
If the Heat get by the Celtics, and that is a big "if", I think they are going to posess many challenges by any three fromt the west, OkC, The Lakers, and the Spurs. I personally think that any of these teams can beat the Heat. I am just not completely sold on the Heat. They still look like they have closing issues. Meaning, wondering where the ball is going to go in the last seconds. Giving it to Wade was a bad choice in my mind. Lebron was hot and Wade was cold. It was not a sound decision.
But what the heck do I know...
Honestly, I'll be surprised if the Heat win it all. Their not as deep as people think. Plus Wade and Lebron are too similar. I can see any of the three teams I mentioned beat them..That's just my two cents.
I'm not so sure if Ray Allen doesn't get healthier, that Boston won't shock the Heat. I think they have almost as good a chance as anyone. Rondo's going to cause a lot of match up problems for the heat. Chalmers is a decent guard, but what will he do with Rondo. Plus, I got to give Doc Rivers his share of props. The dude can coach. Saving KG and (hopefully) Paul Pierce is fine from last night. They say he is. This is going to be a tough series. I say don't sleep on the Celtics. They've been under the radar all season and they know that it is now or never with their big three.
If the Heat get by the Celtics, and that is a big "if", I think they are going to posess many challenges by any three fromt the west, OkC, The Lakers, and the Spurs. I personally think that any of these teams can beat the Heat. I am just not completely sold on the Heat. They still look like they have closing issues. Meaning, wondering where the ball is going to go in the last seconds. Giving it to Wade was a bad choice in my mind. Lebron was hot and Wade was cold. It was not a sound decision.
But what the heck do I know...
Honestly, I'll be surprised if the Heat win it all. Their not as deep as people think. Plus Wade and Lebron are too similar. I can see any of the three teams I mentioned beat them..That's just my two cents.
The Celtics have to get past the Hawks first and then the Sixers. I think we are getting ahead of ourselves talking about the Eastern Conference Finals right now for the reasons below.
1. The Hawks still have Games 5 and 7 at their place which means if the Celtics lose tonight the pressure is on them to win in Game 6 at Boston or they have a Game 7 in Atlanta
2. Even though the Celtics will have the home court advantage over the Sixers, the sixers will be playing with "house money" and won't be expected to win another series from this point on so they could basically play basketball like they are in the park.
I agree that with Bosh being out, now is the time for Lebron to truly take the reins and prove all his doubters wrong.
There are still too many people who think he doesnt have the makeup to pull this off----now is the time to quiet them.
Im not sure how the Heat compensate for the loss of Bosh-----increased playing time for Battier, Miller, or does Haslem now truly step up and get back to his talent level of past years.
In any event, Lebron now has to become a little more selfish and demand the ball more----he hasnt done that much this year, but unless somebody else steps up, thats what he needs to do.
Not sure if anyone realizes this but Lebron now gets a PASS for not winning the title since Bosh is out and the Heat are not expected to win the title
No he doesn't, especially if he doesn't play better. So far he is playing well, but if he lays an egg at an point like he did last year, it won't matter. That's the pressure you put on yourself when you say, not 1, not 2.......
It just shows you how stupid that whole scene was. No matter how good you are, there are certain things you can't control, which includes injuries. Players like this take going to the championship for granted, but it is never a given.
No he doesn't, especially if he doesn't play better. So far he is playing well, but if he lays an egg at an point like he did last year, it won't matter. That's the pressure you put on yourself when you say, not 1, not 2.......
It just shows you how stupid that whole scene was. No matter how good you are, there are certain things you can't control, which includes injuries. Players like this take going to the championship for granted, but it is never a given.
The Heat are not good enough to beat the Spurs without Bosh
The Heat are not good enough to beat the Spurs without Bosh
after last night - they may not be good enough to even beat the Pacers!
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