2018 NBA Playoffs Thread... (Nuggets, coach, foul, game)
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Who wants to bet on whether Westbrick will stay behind to shake the hands of the Jazz. While I admire Westbrick's fighting spirit, I despise his utter lack of sportsmanship. This guy storms off the court whenever his team loses. Unbelievable he has supporters that excuse this childish behavior.
And that’s why I waited to comment on the Thunder choking. Thunder are really the “big 2” though...George and Westbrook (Adams is ok). The rest of the team is nothing special.
Rockets finish off Wolves... 67-45 in the second half.
What happened to the Jazz?
This was definitely a huge moment that really turned the momentum in favor of OKC:
Quote:
The game, however, turned when Jazz centre and key rim protector Rudy Gobert had to be benched with foul trouble midway through the third, allowing the Thunder's Westbrook to go on a 20-point tear.
At the end of the third quarter the scores were locked up 78-78 and Westbrook, fellow All-Star Paul George and New Zealand centre Steven Adams kept the momentum going for the victory.
It was tied for the third biggest comeback in playoff history.
Allen Iverson was on ESPN First Take yesterday and he was very confident that Westbrook would play even more aggressive and come up with the win, while the ESPN guys were saying Westbrook should play safer and let the game come to him.
AI was correct.
Rockets finish off Wolves... 67-45 in the second half.
At least the Wolves put up a little puppy whimper by winning 1 game. Puts it in perspective that they still have a ways to go in order to be a serious contender.
So, how the hell did things change so quickly and so drastically for both teams? Well, one big factor in Oklahoma City’s comeback is who wasn’t on the floor for the bulk of it.
Jazz center Rudy Gobert — the presumptive Defensive Player of the Year and the sport’s premier deterrent to would-be drivers — missed more than half of those final 20-plus minutes with foul trouble after first picking up his fourth foul with 9:23 to go in the third quarter on what looks like an awfully questionable call:
The Jazz were up 21 when Gobert picked up his fourth, bumping him out of the game and sliding power forward Derrick Favors up to the five spot … where he would promptly pick up two more quick fouls, sending him to the bench with 6:42 to go and the Thunder now down 16. Westbrook and George kept attacking during third-string center Ekpe Udoh’s brief appearance, knocking three more points off the lead before Jazz coach Quin Snyder rolled the dice by reinserting Gobert with just over five minutes still remaining in the third, betting that the French rim protector would be able to steer clear of a fifth foul long enough to stem the Thunder tide.
He lost that wager on two fronts. First: Gobert wasn’t defending as attentively as he normally does, wanting to avoid that fifth foul, which allowed OKC to further chip into the lead. Second: Gobert did earn No. 5 after grabbing an offensive rebound, trying to go back up with it, and hooking Thunder defender Alex Abrines on his post move. That sent Gobert to the bench for the rest of the quarter with Utah holding a 10-point lead; after a Westbrook 3-pointer three minutes and 11 seconds later, that lead was gone.
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