It's that time of year again - the fun starts tomorrow!

Eastern Conference

(1) Atlanta vs. (8) Brooklyn

(2) Cleveland vs. (7) Boston

(3) Chicago vs. (6) Milwaukee

(4) Toronto vs. (5) Washington

Western Conference

(1) Golden State vs. (8) New Orleans

(2) Houston vs. (7) Dallas

(3) LA Clippers vs. (6) San Antonio

(4) Portland vs. (5) Memphis

uPtoWnNY said:

It's that time of year again - the fun starts tomorrow!

Eastern Conference

(1) Atlanta vs. (8) Brooklyn

(2) Cleveland vs. (7) Boston

(3) Chicago vs. (6) Milwaukee

(4) Toronto vs. (5) Washington

Western Conference

(1) Golden State vs. (8) New Orleans

(2) Houston vs. (7) Dallas

(3) LA Clippers vs. (6) San Antonio

(4) Portland vs. (5) Memphis

sticky


I'll root for the Toronto Raptors

Graycap23 said:

(4) Portland vs. (5) Memphis

Memphis has homecourt...I say Grizzlies in six.

uPtoWnNY said:

Graycap23 said:

Memphis has homecourt...I say Grizzlies in six.

Is Gasol out or in?

Hey! That's my job to post this.

(8) Brooklyn Nets vs. (1) Atlanta Hawks

(7) Boston Celtics vs. (2) Cleveland Cavaliers

(6) Milwaukee Bucks vs. (3) Chicago Bulls

(5) Washington Wizards vs. (4) Toronto Raptors

(8) New Orleans Pelicans vs. (1) Golden State Warriors

(7) Dallas Mavericks vs. (2) Houston Rockets

(6) San Antonio Spurs vs. (3) Los Angeles Clippers

(4) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (5) Memphis Grizzlies*

*Note: Portland is seeded fourth due to winning the Northwest Division, but Memphis has earned home court advantage due to a better regular season record.

Hawks in 5

Cavs in 5

Bulls in 6

The Wiz in 7 (Gonna be a VERY hard-fought series. Looking forward to this one in particular)

Warriors in 4

Blazers in 7

Mavs in 7

Spurs in 5 (Spurs always seem to have the Clips' number in the playoffs.)

.

Anybody here watching Stanley Cup Playoffs as well?

[Edited 4/18/15 9:54am]

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Washington Wizards 93 Toronto Raptors 86 F/OT

Coming into this series, veteran Paul Pierce was asked how Toronto stacked up as a potential championship contender, and Pierce replied, "I don't think they have it yet." As would be expected, the Raptors and their fans didn't take kindly to those comments, and they were determined to let Paul Pierce know that. They would jump off to a good start, though the field goal percentage for both teams was underwhelming through the entire game. But in the second quarter, the Wizards would jump out to take the lead, thanks to the play of Pierce and Bradley Beal, who would finish the game with 16 points. Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry struggled in this game, scoring only seven points on 2 for 10 shooting from the floor and getting into foul trouble early. The Wizards would lead by as much as 15 points early in the fourth quarter, but Toronto would make a furious comeback thanks to their bench. Lou Williams hit a couple of 3-pointers to get the Raptors back within striking distance, and Greivis Vasquez would tie the game on a critical 3-point shot with 25 seconds left. John Wall had a chance to win the game for Washington in regulation, but he missed on his drive to the basket, and the game went to overtime.

In overtime the Wizards took over. They went on a 7-0 run to start the period and played stifling defense, causing the Raptors to miss their first seven shots. In fact Toronto didn't score in overtime until DeMar DeRozan made a driving dunk with just 29 seconds left. Paul Pierce led the Wizards with 20 points, scoring five of those points in overtime while Nene scored 12 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Amir Johnson led Toronto with 18 points while DeMar DeRozan scored 15 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and dished out six assists but shot only 6 for 20 from the floor.

Washington leads series 1-0.

[Edited 4/18/15 16:56pm]

Western Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

New Orleans Pelicans 99 Golden State Warriors 106

The Golden State Warriors came into this series as the heavy favorites to advance to the NBA Finals from the Western Conference, and they did not disappoint. They were led by Stephen Curry, the leading candidate for this year's MVP award, who scored 34 points including four 3-pointers. Klay Thompson added 21 points while Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut applied their defensive prowess to the Pelicans. Green would finish with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists while Bogut finished with 12 points and eight rebounds. Golden State led by as much as 25 points late in the third quarter, but New Orleans would stage a huge comeback effort that fell short. Anthony Davis led New Orleans with 35 points, seven rebounds, and four blocked shots while Qunicy Pondexter added 20 points, nine rebounds, and six assists.

Golden State leads series 1-0.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Milwaukee Bucks 91 Chicago Bulls 103

Derrick Rose came into this series making his first playoff appearance in three years after a series of devastating knee injuries while the Bucks were appearing in the playoffs after having the worst record in their franchise history last season. The Bucks would hang tough early on, but the Bulls would turn up the heat in the second quarter thanks to the play of their backcourt; particularly Derrick Rose, who had a solid game driving to the basket, and also from Jimmy Butler, who lead all scorers with 25 points. Rose would finish with 23 points and seven assists, and Aaron Brooks added 13 points off the bench. The Bulls took a nine point lead into the half and more or less cruised to victory after that, though they were sloppy at times. Khris Middleton led Milwaukee with 18 points while Ersan Ilyasova added 15 points. Michael Carter-Williams struggled in this game, scoring only nine points on 4 for 13 shooting from the floor while Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 12 points but got into foul trouble early.

Chicago leads series 1-0.

With a healthy Rose, a Cavs-Bulls semi-final series could be epic.

Western Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Dallas Mavericks 108 Houston Rockets 118

The Houston Rockets finished with the second best record in the Wesxtern Conference coming into the playoffs, but Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban was not impressed. While he praised Houston guard James Harden for his skills and thought he was worthy of the MVP award, he pretty much said he was all the Rockets had.

Well, the Rockets came out firing, jumping to a huge lead in the first quarter, and they led by as much as 14 early in the second quarter. But the Mavs would come storming back to take the lead briefly thanks to the play of Dirk Nowitzski and Rajon Rondo, who would finish with 24 and 16 points in the game respectively. But Houston would take the lead going into the half, and they would not relinquish their lead, though they were never able to completely put the Mavs away. James hardedn scored 24 points, most of which came from the free throw line, but it was his supporting cast who stepped up. Houston had seven players in double figures in scoring, including 19 points from Terrence Jones, 16 points from Jason Terry, who also hit a few critical 3-pointers to keep the Rockets ahead, and 15 from Corey Brewer. Dwight Howard scored 11 points, grabbed five rebounds, and blocked five shots, but got into foul trouble early. Monta Ellis scored 16 points for Dallas while Tyson Chandler scored 11 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in a losing effort.

Houston leads series 1-0.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Boston Celtics 100 Cleveland Cavaliers 113

Though Lebron James has made five NBA Finals appearances and won two NBA titles, most of his teammates were experiencing post-season play for the first time in their NBA careers. Fortunately for the Cavs, much of the Celtics roster was equally green with regards to the post-season. This would become evident later on, but in the beginning of this game the Celtics hung tough, leading by as much as eight points early in the second quarter. But the Cavs would get going thanks to their two superstars who were making their post-season debuts. Kyrie Irving scored 30 points in this game including five shots from behind the 3-point line while Kevin Love added 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Cleveland would lead by as much as 20 points in the third quarter, but Boston would make a couple of runs thanks to Isaiah Thomas, who led the Celtics with 22 points. They got to within six points but Cleveland would go on another run to extend the lead to 15 points in the fourth quarter. The Celtics would get no closer then ten points after that as the Cavs would cruise to victory. Lebron James scored 20 points in this game while dishing out seven assists. Evan Turner and Kelly Olynyk each scored 12 points for Boston in a losing effort.

Cleveland leads series 1-0.

If I'm Brook Lopez, I'm furious at the guards for not getting me enough touches. It was ridiculous - Lopez, has a smaller man on him yet he doesn't get the ball. There should be a fight in the Nets locker room right now. Shaq, Isiah and Rick Fox pretty much said the same thing.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Brooklyn Nets 92 Atlanta Hawks 99

The Atlanta Hawks came into the payoffs as the top teams in the Eastern Conference, finishing a full ten games ahead of the next best team, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Nevertheless, they felt they were being slighted by the mainstream sports media, as most of them picked the Cavaliers to advance to the NBA Finals. So they were determined to show the country how strong they were.

They would ultimately lead for the rest of the game after the first minute of the game, but they didn't make it easy on themselves or their fans. They would jump out to a huge early lead and led by ten points at the half. But they came out flat in the second half, and Brooklyn would make several runs to get within three points, but Atlanta was able to fend off the Nets thanks to the deft shooting of Kyle Korver, who scored 21 points, 15 of them on five 3-point shots. Jeff Teague scored 17 points but got into foul trouble. Al Horford injuured his finger midway through the game, but he did return. Paul Milsap, who missed the remainder of the regular season due to a shoulder injury, looked rusty, scoring only six points on 2 for 10 shooting from the floor. Brook Lopez scored 17 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Nets while Thaddeus Young added 15 points. Joe Johnson scored 17 points, grabbed six rebounds, and dished out six assists, but shot only 6 for 17 from the floor.

Atlanta leads series 1-0.

Western Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

Portland Trail Blazers 86 Memphis Grizzlies 100

The Portland Trail Blazers limped into the playoffs, and the worst thing that could happen to them was to face the team that has dominated them for the past few seasons, the Memphis Grizzlies. Memphis swept this year's season series and has won 10 of the last 11 meetings between them. So if Portland was going to change their recent results, they needed to come out firing on all cylinders.

But that didn't happen. Memphis led the entire game, jumped out to a huge early lead, and never looked back. The Grizzlies were led by bench player Beno Udrih, whoc scored 20 points. Zach Randolph had 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Marc Gasol added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Mike Conley Jr. finished with 16 points and didn't even play in the fourth quarter. Jeff Green added 11 points. LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 32 points but shot 13 for 34 from the floor. Damian Lillard added 14 points but shot a disappointing 5 of 21 overall and 0 of 6 beyond the 3-point line. Nicolas Batum added 15 points. The final score was hardly indicative of the rout this game was.

Memphis leads series 1-0.

Western Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 1

San Antonio Spurs 92 Los Angeles Clippers 107

The San Antonio Spurs may be the defending NBA champions, but they found themselves having to win a series on the road thanks to their loss at the end of the regular season to the New Orleans Pelicans, which dropped them from a potential #2 seed all the way to sixth. The Clippers, on the other hand, are looking to advance beyond the second round of the playoffs. The Clippers would jump out to a sizable early lead in this opening series game, but the Spurs would come back to to take a brief lead in the second quarter. But the Clippers would rely on their two superstars, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, who sacored 58 of their 107 points in the game. Paul scored 32 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and dished out six assists while Griffin scored 26 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Jamal Crawford added 17 points off the bench. Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs with 18 points while Tim Duncan and Marco Belinelli each scored 11 points, and Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili each scored 10 points.

LA Clippers lead series 1-0.

Toronto Raptors guard Lou Williams was named the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year on Monday, becoming the first player in the team's franchise history to win the award.

Williams received 78 of a possible 130 first-place votes, winning by a comfortable margin over Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas, who received 33 first-place votes. LA Clippers giuard Jamal Crawford, who won the award the past two seasons, finished in third this time around with eight first place votes.

Willaims was picked up by the Raptors in a trade with the Atlanta Hawks during the offseason, who though he was dmaged goods after recovering from a torn ACL injury, and also to relieve slary cap space. But Williams would average a career-high 15.5 points in 80 games off the bench. He was particularly crucial to the team in December when star DeMar DeRozan went down for an extended period with an injury.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 2

Milwaukee Bucks 82 Chicago Bulls 91

After Derrick Rose had a solid game driving to the basket in Game 1, Milwaukee was determined to play much more physical defense on him in this game. And in the first half they did just that, holding Rose scoreless. In fact, neither team could shoot the ball particularly well in the first half, and at times it looked more like a hockey game than a basketball game. It would remain a back and forth affair through the first three quarters, but in the fourth the Bulls would make a 13-0 run thanks to Jimmy Butler, who scored 31 points in the game including 14 in the pivotal fourth quarter. Rose would finish with 15 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists. The Bulls would hang on to win by outhustling the Bucks, particularly off the boards. Joakim Noah grabbed 19 rebounds while adding six points, while Pau Gasol scored 11 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Khris Middleton led Milwaukee with 22 points while Michael Carter-Williams added 12 points.

Chicago leads series 2-0.

[Edited 4/20/15 19:44pm]

uPtoWnNY said:

If I'm Brook Lopez, I'm furious at the guards for not getting me enough touches. It was ridiculous - Lopez, has a smaller man on him yet he doesn't get the ball. There should be a fight in the Nets locker room right now. Shaq, Isiah and Rick Fox pretty much said the same thing.

That's one of the main problems with today's game IMO, the big men don't get to shine at all, it's all about the guards/wing players.

Western Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 2

New Orleans Pelicans 87 Golden State Warriors 97

The Golden State Warriors more or less pulled away to a relatively easy victory in Game 1, but the New Orleans Pelicans would up a late fight in that game. That intensity followed them into game 2, as the Pelicans would jump out to an early 13 point lead on Golden State. But the Warriors would come roaring back in the second quarter to take a 3 point lead into the half. It would go back and forth in the third quarter, but it was Draymond Green's defense on Anthony Davis that would allow Golden State to secure the victory. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 26 points while Stephen Curry had 22 points and six assists. Anthony Davis scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Eric Gordon scored 23 points for a Pelicans squad that played with more poise and passion than it did in the series opener, but they still came up short.

Golden State leads series 2-0.

Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer was named NBA Coach of the Year today in a close vote. He guided the Hawks to the best regular season record in the Eastern Conference and the second best in the NBA. Their 60-22 record was also the best regular season record in franchise history.

Budenholzer received 67 out of a possible 130 first-place votes and 513 overall points, finishing ahead of Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who received 56 first place votes (471 points). Milwaukee Bucks coach Jason Kidd was a distant third, with one first-place vote and 57 overall points.

A longtime assistant in San Antonio who started as a video coordinator under San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, Budenholzer learned that he won the award when he received a phone call from Popovich on Monday morning.

Budenholzer thanked his mentor in an acceptance speech Tuesday afternoon at Philips Arena.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 2

Boston Celtics 91 Cleveland Cavaliers 99

The Cleveland Cavaliers found themselves having to work harder than expected against a scrappy young Celtics squad in game 1, and it turned out to be even more of the same in this game. Nevertheless, it was the King himself, Lebron James, who led the Cavs to victory. James scored 30 points, 15 of which came in the fourth quarter, while Kyrie Irving scored 26 points, and Timofey Mosgov added 16 points off the bench. Tristan Thompson grabbed 11 renounds off the bench. Isaiah Thoms led the Celtics with 22 points while Jared Sulliner added 14 points.

Cleveland leads series 2-0.

Eastern Conference Playoffs, 1st Round

Game 2

Washington Wizards 117 Toronto Raptors 106

The Toronto Raptors game into Game 2 with the unfortunate stat of never having won an opening playoff game, and once again they found themselves having to come from behind in order to win a playoff series. The Raptors would start out strong in this game, but the Wizards would go on a tear in the second quarter to take an 11 point lead into halftime. Toronto would come within a bucket midway in the third quarter, but then the Wizards exploded due to a monster game from their back court. John Wall scored 26 points and dished out 17 assists while Bradley Beal led all scorers with 28 points. Marcin Gortat added 16 points while Otto Porter Jr. added 15 points off the bench. The Wizards would lkead by as much as 23 points in the fourth quarter before Toronto made the score look more respectable than the game was in garbage time. DeMar DeRozan and Lou Williams each led the Raptors with 20 points apiece.

Washington leads series 2-0.

Holey MOLEY, did the Rockets ever put a beat-down on the Mavericks last night! 15 dunks, and it seemed like they came 15 in a row in the 3rd-4th quarter.

That was Phi Slama Jama reincarnated!

Abdul said:

uPtoWnNY said:

If I'm Brook Lopez, I'm furious at the guards for not getting me enough touches. It was ridiculous - Lopez, has a smaller man on him yet he doesn't get the ball. There should be a fight in the Nets locker room right now. Shaq, Isiah and Rick Fox pretty much said the same thing.

That's one of the main problems with today's game IMO, the big men don't get to shine at all, it's all about the guards/wing players.

The game definitely has changed - there aren't that many "classic" big men anymore. Now you have 7-footers who can shoot threes.

What was up with Rondo last night? He played like he had his head up his ass. He won't be long for Dallas, that's for sure.

uPtoWnNY said:

Abdul said:

That's one of the main problems with today's game IMO, the big men don't get to shine at all, it's all about the guards/wing players.

The game definitely has changed - there aren't that many "classic" big men anymore. Now you have 7-footers who can shoot threes.

What was up with Rondo last night? He played like he had his head up his ass. He won't be long for Dallas, that's for sure.

Rondo is going 2 play his way OUT of the NBA.