2012 NBA Finals

My favorite play of the game? Durants pass to Collison in the 4th quarter which Collison then dunked. Just when you think you got Durant, he pulls off such a smart play like that.

Durant is the most likeable star in the league. One of the most likeable stars in the history of the league. What is there to dislike about him?

One thing I cant stand about Durant is that he looks so f**kin stupid when he dunks. s**t just dont look right

Scary stuff http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/45592/almost-40-points-almost-no-drama

I've learned my lesson about putting too much stock in one game. This is going to be a six or seven game series. LA, I think in the second half OKC gave the Heat a damn good shot. They played great in the second half. Their defense stepped up also. I want to see a really good series, so I'm hoping Wade actually shows up and starts being a slasher again. His shot selection was questionable. Even if OKC wins two games at home I think it'll go six.

I want to see Lebron go into beast mode. That might be their best chance. It is pretty obvious that Wade is hurt or just isn't playing as good as we have came to expect. Sure he has some good games every now and then in the playoffs but he has been inconsistent.

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
OKC played at their best in the 2nd half, and Miami played at their worst in that half. If OKC is playing Thabo for long stretches, they are forced to keep Harden on bench, so him not having a good game is more of a result of that. I don't think any team can play at their best for the whole game. OKC played at their best for longer stretches than Miami did. I expect Bosh in starting line up in game 2 and Miami to put in a better effort for 48 minutes.

I think Miami's 1st half was more aberrational than OKC's 2nd. Guys like Battier & Chalmers were making damn near everything they tossed up, and even Bosh mixed in a 3. I even commented in the thread that it was just a difference in shot-making...I felt like OKC was getting better looks than Miami was, they just weren't knocking them down. And I feel like Harden's minutes were limited because he was ineffective, more so than the other way around.

Miami might give a better effort, but IMO not a good sign when guys like Battier & Chalmers play like that and you still lose by double digits.

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by 49ersMyLife:
OKC played at their best in the 2nd half, and Miami played at their worst in that half. If OKC is playing Thabo for long stretches, they are forced to keep Harden on bench, so him not having a good game is more of a result of that. I don't think any team can play at their best for the whole game. OKC played at their best for longer stretches than Miami did. I expect Bosh in starting line up in game 2 and Miami to put in a better effort for 48 minutes.

I think Miami's 1st half was more aberrational than OKC's 2nd. Guys like Battier & Chalmers were making damn near everything they tossed up, and even Bosh mixed in a 3. I even commented in the thread that it was just a difference in shot-making...I felt like OKC was getting better looks than Miami was, they just weren't knocking them down. And I feel like Harden's minutes were limited because he was ineffective, more so than the other way around.

Miami might give a better effort, but IMO not a good sign when guys like Battier & Chalmers play like that and you still lose by double digits.

I think it all comes down to having the ball in your play makers hands when it becomes crunch time. The problem with the Heat is they have 2 guys that should have the ball in their hands and this is causing both them to shy away from taking the neccesary shots and making the proper passes. Instead of complimenting each other as Westbrook and Durant do, James and Wade kind of get in each others way. They both are playmakers and they both should be the #1 guy on their respected teams. But when you have two #1 guys, who do you go to? To me their is just a huge imbalance in the equation. These two need to figure out how to play together as a unit, not only that but how to get other guys involved with easy inside shots, not some drive the lane 3 point bucket. But drive the lane, find a cutter and get the easy two. Or just drive the lane and score, both more than capable of doing it, but they don't.

I actually think this comes down to poor coaching though. The teams often looks lost and uncomfortable out there, and if you don't have a head coach that can make adjustments, you are more than likely going to lose in the NBA Finals.

I was rooting for Heat to defeat Celtics again and it happened (but I dislike both teams). Now, I wanna see Thunder SWEEP the Heat so I could LOL at the look on LeBron's disappointed face! Maybe he could give another arrogant, sarcastic quote after losing again like last year.

Originally posted by JiksJuicy:
I think it all comes down to having the ball in your play makers hands when it becomes crunch time. The problem with the Heat is they have 2 guys that should have the ball in their hands and this is causing both them to shy away from taking the neccesary shots and making the proper passes. Instead of complimenting each other as Westbrook and Durant do, James and Wade kind of get in each others way. They both are playmakers and they both should be the #1 guy on their respected teams. But when you have two #1 guys, who do you go to? To me their is just a huge imbalance in the equation. These two need to figure out how to play together as a unit, not only that but how to get other guys involved with easy inside shots, not some drive the lane 3 point bucket. But drive the lane, find a cutter and get the easy two. Or just drive the lane and score, both more than capable of doing it, but they don't.

I actually think this comes down to poor coaching though. The teams often looks lost and uncomfortable out there, and if you don't have a head coach that can make adjustments, you are more than likely going to lose in the NBA Finals.

I actually alluded to this on the previous page, in that Durant's skill set allows he & Westbrook to vibe off of each other in a way that LeBron & Wade can't. When Westbrook has the ball in his hands, is Durant a threat? ABSOLUTELY. Because he's able to run off screens, cut, and if he gets open, he can catch and shoot from 15-18 feet out. If LeBron has the ball in his hands, what's Wade doing? Usually just standing behind the 3 point line, because he's not effective at the things that Durant's effective at. The same is true of LeBron when Wade has the ball. The only part where I disagree with you is the idea that they're more than capable of doing it. I don't think they are.

It's not on Spoelstra, IMO. The team looks "lost and confused" because they essentially do two things on the offensive end...attack the rim & shoot spot up 3 pointers. There's a large portion of the court that they're not that all effective in. (mid range)

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by JiksJuicy:
I think it all comes down to having the ball in your play makers hands when it becomes crunch time. The problem with the Heat is they have 2 guys that should have the ball in their hands and this is causing both them to shy away from taking the neccesary shots and making the proper passes. Instead of complimenting each other as Westbrook and Durant do, James and Wade kind of get in each others way. They both are playmakers and they both should be the #1 guy on their respected teams. But when you have two #1 guys, who do you go to? To me their is just a huge imbalance in the equation. These two need to figure out how to play together as a unit, not only that but how to get other guys involved with easy inside shots, not some drive the lane 3 point bucket. But drive the lane, find a cutter and get the easy two. Or just drive the lane and score, both more than capable of doing it, but they don't.

I actually think this comes down to poor coaching though. The teams often looks lost and uncomfortable out there, and if you don't have a head coach that can make adjustments, you are more than likely going to lose in the NBA Finals.

I actually alluded to this on the previous page, in that Durant's skill set allows he & Westbrook to vibe off of each other in a way that LeBron & Wade can't. When Westbrook has the ball in his hands, is Durant a threat? ABSOLUTELY. Because he's able to run off screens, cut, and if he gets open, he can catch and shoot from 15-18 feet out. If LeBron has the ball in his hands, what's Wade doing? Usually just standing behind the 3 point line, because he's not effective at the things that Durant's effective at. The same is true of LeBron when Wade has the ball. The only part where I disagree with you is the idea that they're more than capable of doing it. I don't think they are.

It's not on Spoelstra, IMO. The team looks "lost and confused" because they essentially do two things on the offensive end...attack the rim & shoot spot up 3 pointers. There's a large portion of the court that they're not that all effective in. (mid range)

I disagree on the last part. Yes their offense is essentially attack the rim and shoot spot up 3 pointers, but Wade more specifically IS able to hit the mid range jumper IMO, Bosh is more than capable as well. I'm not saying Wade can be as good as Durant at running off screens, cutting, and getting open, but he damn well can do those things effectively. And I do put a huge chunk of blame on Spoelstra, this roster has a lot more potential as far as running plays (especially from post play through Bosh/Lebron) and he needs to put his foot down and make things happen, this is only the NBA finals, you came up short in this same situation last year, SHOW ME you learned from that.

Can't wait for OKC to take game 2.

"f**k you thunder, you can suck my dick!!"

Originally posted by vrabbit:

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by JiksJuicy:
I think it all comes down to having the ball in your play makers hands when it becomes crunch time. The problem with the Heat is they have 2 guys that should have the ball in their hands and this is causing both them to shy away from taking the neccesary shots and making the proper passes. Instead of complimenting each other as Westbrook and Durant do, James and Wade kind of get in each others way. They both are playmakers and they both should be the #1 guy on their respected teams. But when you have two #1 guys, who do you go to? To me their is just a huge imbalance in the equation. These two need to figure out how to play together as a unit, not only that but how to get other guys involved with easy inside shots, not some drive the lane 3 point bucket. But drive the lane, find a cutter and get the easy two. Or just drive the lane and score, both more than capable of doing it, but they don't.

I actually think this comes down to poor coaching though. The teams often looks lost and uncomfortable out there, and if you don't have a head coach that can make adjustments, you are more than likely going to lose in the NBA Finals.

I actually alluded to this on the previous page, in that Durant's skill set allows he & Westbrook to vibe off of each other in a way that LeBron & Wade can't. When Westbrook has the ball in his hands, is Durant a threat? ABSOLUTELY. Because he's able to run off screens, cut, and if he gets open, he can catch and shoot from 15-18 feet out. If LeBron has the ball in his hands, what's Wade doing? Usually just standing behind the 3 point line, because he's not effective at the things that Durant's effective at. The same is true of LeBron when Wade has the ball. The only part where I disagree with you is the idea that they're more than capable of doing it. I don't think they are.

It's not on Spoelstra, IMO. The team looks "lost and confused" because they essentially do two things on the offensive end...attack the rim & shoot spot up 3 pointers. There's a large portion of the court that they're not that all effective in. (mid range)

I disagree on the last part. Yes their offense is essentially attack the rim and shoot spot up 3 pointers, but Wade more specifically IS able to hit the mid range jumper IMO, Bosh is more than capable as well. I'm not saying Wade can be as good as Durant at running off screens, cutting, and getting open, but he damn well can do those things effectively. And I do put a huge chunk of blame on Spoelstra, this roster has a lot more potential as far as running plays (especially from post play through Bosh/Lebron) and he needs to put his foot down and make things happen, this is only the NBA finals, you came up short in this same situation last year, SHOW ME you learned from that.

Spoles effed up by not having James (MIA's best defender) on Durant. Brooks put their best defender on James and Sef made it difficult for James to post. I think with Westbrook...well...you live and die by Westbrook as long as you don't allow him to get the assists and allow that OKC offense to get easy dunks off of Westbrook's penetration. Go ahead and let him try to do it all and get that offense stagnant. Wade has got to do a better job on him and he actually got lazy a few times thinking Westbrook wasn't going to drive. Westbrook got 11 assists and 8 rbs. They must force him to be a jump-shooter/scorer and not have the all around influence he had in the game. He is the key to forcing OKC to stand and watch. It was a terrible defensive job altogether. Durant got some wide open 3's in the 4th which was sad.

I don't think Miami did better than they normally do on offense. Yes, their role players hit the early 3's but those were wide open 3's early on. Now take into consideration James and Wade went for a combined 1-5 on 3's whereas Durant alone went 4-8. They limited Durant's shot attempts but did not maximize how tough his shots were and once Battier was assigned the job, Durant got some easy shots.

If this Lebron shows up and Spoles lets him guard Durant in the 2nd half then it's over:

Originally posted by mug0mug:
Durant is the most likeable star in the league. One of the most likeable stars in the history of the league. What is there to dislike about him?

yah he's a good dude. I shall cheer for him except for when he plays the Lakeshow.

Now you got people like Stephen A. and Skip saying Durant's better than Kobe and Michael. I like the kid, but let's slow down on the oral fellatio.