2011 NBA Playoffs Thread

[Lorenzo]

I'm completely shocked. I said before I gave the Lakers about a 90% chance to win this game, and then I fully expected them to go on and dominate from there. I never even considered the slightest possibility that the Mavs could sweep.

All season long actually I have just figured the Lakers were coasting along waiting to flip the switch and then when they did that against New Orleans I said; 'there it is.'

Props to the Mavs, that took major guts to close the 4th that strong. Dirk appears to be on a mission. It's not over yet though, we'll see how much fight the Lakers have left in them in game 4.

good post. I thought this game was 50/50 before tonight. while I know that the lakers were desperate to win(and their play showed it) dallas was also desperate to win. the experience of the mavericks roster is too strong for them to take a 2-0 lead for granted. remember they had a 2-0 lead on portland in the last series. I thought it was very interesting that in spite of phil starting that big lineup...the mavs still had a lead after one in large part because of nowitzki.

I disagree with kobe's press conference. he makes it seem like they gave this game away, but I don't see that. If they had one bad play that lost the game I'd say maybe. But they did nothing down the stretch to deserve to win and dallas did everything to deserve to win. I saw one side step up late in the 4th quarter and will themselves to victory. the mavericks closer closed out the game and had support. the lakers closer did not and had no help from his guys. mavs took that game from them.

 

[D-Dogg]

I disagree with kobe's press conference. he makes it seem like they gave this game away, but I don't see that. If they had one bad play that lost the game I'd say maybe. But they did nothing down the stretch to deserve to win and dallas did everything to deserve to win. I saw one side step up late in the 4th quarter and will themselves to victory. the mavericks closer closed out the game and had support. the lakers closer did not and had no help from his guys. mavs took that game from them.

When you have a 6 point lead late, and you can't close the game, that's giving it away. Lakers controlled most of the second half, then got stupid at the end.

Lamar was terrible in the last 2 minutes...he held the ball on the wing far too long, kicked to Kobe with 5 on the clock and then jumped around because he was open...of course he was, there was no time on the clock.

Pau is the goat of this series, 100%. He simply isn't here, and at this point he might not be here next season. What a freaking doof. He had two really good back to back plays, and then went back into his shell. Can't win if Pau is sleeping out there.

 

[Lorenzo]

Lakers with the stupid foul again after not fouling to save the clock. If your going to try and stop them, you can't commit dumb fouls when the shotclock is running down. That's twice in this series. First one was Gasol.

that was a dumb foul by fisher. but I think he was trying hard not to give terry a shot. he had just made one. the ref almost looked like he dredded making that call, but he had to.

 

[D-Dogg]

that was a dumb foul by fisher. but I think he was trying hard not to give terry a shot. he had just made one. the ref almost looked like he dredded making that call, but he had to.

Kobe made the dumbest foul, hacking Kidd after he got caught in the air and had to pass it to Pau's back, then fouls Kidd at halfcourt out of frustration..err.."trying to make something happen". That either gave the lead up or got it within one...I don't recall. Something bad.

 

[Lorenzo]

When you have a 6 point lead late, and you can't close the game, that's giving it away. Lakers controlled most of the second half, then got stupid at the end.

Lamar was terrible in the last 2 minutes...he held the ball on the wing far too long, kicked to Kobe with 5 on the clock and then jumped around because he was open...of course he was, there was no time on the clock.

Pau is the goat of this series, 100%. He simply isn't here, and at this point he might not be here next season. What a freaking doof. He had two really good back to back plays, and then went back into his shell. Can't win if Pau is sleeping out there.

again...this is denial lol. the game is 48 mins. dirk is the best closer in the 2011 playoffs so far. I don't know the numbers, but the dude is scoring a lot in the 4th quarter of these games. the guy is at his best in the 4th quarter and the mavs have spot shooters around him that will make you pay if you double him. the lakers couldn't stop it. they picked their poison.

if you have a 6 point lead you better keep scoring. and the lakers have gone cold down the stretch of all three games. to me that's not giving it away. that's one team winning and one team losing.

 

[Lorenzo]

When you have a 6 point lead late, and you can't close the game, that's giving it away. Lakers controlled most of the second half, then got stupid at the end.

Lamar was terrible in the last 2 minutes...he held the ball on the wing far too long, kicked to Kobe with 5 on the clock and then jumped around because he was open...of course he was, there was no time on the clock.

Pau is the goat of this series, 100%. He simply isn't here, and at this point he might not be here next season. What a freaking doof. He had two really good back to back plays, and then went back into his shell. Can't win if Pau is sleeping out there.

maybe pau is the doof. but he's getting shown up by dirk. dirk is scoring on him and he is not scoring on dirk like most people said.

without the doof kobe doesn't have 5 rings.

 

[Bert]

The headline on ESPN is funny.

"Time to panic in LA?"

Uhhh you're down 3-0 in a series, when is the appropriate time to panic if not now?

 

[D-Dogg]

again...this is denial lol. the game is 48 mins. dirk is the best closer in the 2011 playoffs so far. I don't know the numbers, but the dude is scoring a lot in the 4th quarter of these games. the guy is at his best in the 4th quarter and the mavs have spot shooters around him that will make you pay if you double him. the lakers couldn't stop it. they picked their poison.

if you have a 6 point lead you better keep scoring. and the lakers have gone cold down the stretch of all three games. to me that's not giving it away. that's one team winning and one team losing.

How in the world is it denial? And even more so, denial lol?

And how can you in one breath say "if you have a six point lead you better keep scoring" and then when the Lakers didn't keep scoring you say "to me that's not giving it away." You even admit it's the Lakers going cold (when really it was them taking ridiculous shots and stagnating the offense). It isn't like the Mavs clamped down on D in the last four minutes...if they had I'd be more than willing to give them kudos. No, the Lakers took and missed shots, and then made VERY stupid fouls and returned to the poor defensive rotations of game 2. THAT = giving it away.

 

[D-Dogg]

maybe pau is the doof. but he's getting shown up by dirk. dirk is scoring on him and he is not scoring on dirk like most people said.

without the doof kobe doesn't have 5 rings.

that's awesome. With the doof he doesn't get 6.

In the moment. The past is the past.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

The headline on ESPN is funny.

"Time to panic in LA?"

Uhhh you're down 3-0 in a series, when is the appropriate time to panic if not now?

At the start of OT in game 4.

 

[desertdawg]

Lakers in 7.

 

[desertdawg]

Lakers in 7.

That's a joke.

 

[Bert]

At the start of OT in game 4.

lol Maybe a little panic is what the lakers need though. It worked for these guys.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[desertdawg]

Sell him some Jordans.

Thanks a lot homie, my Lady sides with you on this and you just gave her ammo.

She scored it 5/5.

 

[Cheesebeef]

How in the world is it denial? And even more so, denial lol?

And how can you in one breath say "if you have a six point lead you better keep scoring" and then when the Lakers didn't keep scoring you say "to me that's not giving it away." You even admit it's the Lakers going cold (when really it was them taking ridiculous shots and stagnating the offense). It isn't like the Mavs clamped down on D in the last four minutes...if they had I'd be more than willing to give them kudos. No, the Lakers took and missed shots, and then made VERY stupid fouls and returned to the poor defensive rotations of game 2. THAT = giving it away.

this is TOTAL denial. this Mavericks team has TAKEN this series. They have been clamping down on D, forcing the Lakers (ahem KOBE and his 2-10 in the second half) into bad shots/turnovers and making every big shot needed.

sorry, but what we're seeing is one team playing championship ball and another team being out-classed, plain and simple.

giving it away is ridiculous.

 

[slinslin]

This is too funny. Dallas will sweep them. Kobe will tank it in game 4. Kobe will ruin every bit of chemistry he has had in the past with his teammates, blaming them for the sweep. Following this and the Lakers will end up trading away their whole roster or have a next year full of drama.

 

[D-Dogg]

this is TOTAL denial. this Mavericks team has TAKEN this series. They have been clamping down on D, forcing the Lakers (ahem KOBE and his 2-10 in the second half) into bad shots/turnovers and making every big shot needed.

sorry, but what we're seeing is one team playing championship ball and another team being out-classed, plain and simple.

giving it away is ridiculous.

They gave away game 1, legit. Coasted and everyone on the planet knew it.

They had this game, then went stupid. That wasn't the Mavs dude, it was the Lakers. Mavs did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING DIFFERENT in the fourth. The Lakers deviated completely from their plan.

Clamped down my ass. That's funny. I suppose they forced the Lakers into making ridiculously untimely fouls to give free throws, too? Oh, wait. I suppose they forced the Lakers to ignore the post? Oh wait, there was Drew camped deep in the lane. I suppose they forced the Lakers to lose helpers for help defenders on defense, leading to open threes? Oh wait. That was all them too.

Dallas WON game 2. Flat out won it. Lakers gave away game 1, and just gave away game 3. Dallas simply hasn't screwed up, while the Lakers have looked like Keystone Cops in crunch time of two games. THAT is shocking, but it is not the Mavs taking it.

The Mavs taking it would be both teams tearing it up and the Mavs making great defensive plays to get key stops, then hitting big shots. It is NOT Pau fouling Dirk at half court for the go ahead free throws. Or Kobe fouling Kidd at half court because he got caught in the air and threw the ball at Pau's back instead of shooting it and letting Pau rebound, giving Kidd free throws to get the Mavs back within 1. Or Fish fouling Terry at the end of the shot clock after Phil decides NOT to foul to extend the game and rather to play defense and go for the stop. Those are gift-wrapped "come take my lunch money" plays that are textbook definition of "GIVING IT AWAY."

Mavs haven't taken anything - they've simply watched the Lakers implode, and said "damn, we used to do that." Then they won the games.

Clamped down on D. Freaking hilarious. I guess they clamped down on the Lakers D too, to make them go away from what was working earlier and start slacking off shooters and losing people in switches again, right? Phil addressed this in his postgame...the Lakers clamped down on idiocy in the last 2 minutes...THAT is the only clamping that took place.

 

[Cheesebeef]

They gave away game 1, legit. Coasted and everyone on the planet knew it.

They had this game, then went stupid. That wasn't the Mavs dude, it was the Lakers. Mavs did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING DIFFERENT in the fourth. The Lakers deviated completely from their plan.

Clamped down my ass. That's funny. I suppose they forced the Lakers into making ridiculously untimely fouls to give free throws, too? Oh, wait. I suppose they forced the Lakers to ignore the post? Oh wait, there was Drew camped deep in the lane. I suppose they forced the Lakers to lose helpers for help defenders on defense, leading to open threes? Oh wait. That was all them too.

Dallas WON game 2. Flat out won it. Lakers gave away game 1, and just gave away game 3. Dallas simply hasn't screwed up, while the Lakers have looked like Keystone Cops in crunch time of two games. THAT is shocking, but it is not the Mavs taking it.

The Mavs taking it would be both teams tearing it up and the Mavs making great defensive plays to get key stops, then hitting big shots. It is NOT Pau fouling Dirk at half court for the go ahead free throws. Or Kobe fouling Kidd at half court because he got caught in the air and threw the ball at Pau's back instead of shooting it and letting Pau rebound, giving Kidd free throws to get the Mavs back within 1. Or Fish fouling Terry at the end of the shot clock after Phil decides NOT to foul to extend the game and rather to play defense and go for the stop. Those are gift-wrapped "come take my lunch money" plays that are textbook definition of "GIVING IT AWAY."

Mavs haven't taken anything - they've simply watched the Lakers implode, and said "damn, we used to do that." Then they won the games.

Clamped down on D. Freaking hilarious. I guess they clamped down on the Lakers D too, to make them go away from what was working earlier and start slacking off shooters and losing people in switches again, right? Phil addressed this in his postgame...the Lakers clamped down on idiocy in the last 2 minutes...THAT is the only clamping that took place.

this is such denial. they've PUMMELED you in EVERY FOURTH QUARTER. that's where games are won in the NBA. for pete's sake, you're on the verge of GETTING SWEPT WITH HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE. give credit where credit's due. this is ridiculous.

what a sore freaking loser.

 

[mojorizen7]

LOL Lakers.
LOL spoiled Lakers fans that dont know how to accept a beatdown in progress.

 

[cly2tw]

I will now root for the Mavs to win the title against Celtics in the final!

 

[Cheesebeef]

this is such denial. they've PUMMELED you in EVERY FOURTH QUARTER. that's where games are won in the NBA. for pete's sake, you're on the verge of GETTING SWEPT WITH HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE. give credit where credit's due. this is ridiculous.

what a sore freaking loser.

seriously, this is like Suns fans continually saying they gave away games to the Spurs in the 2004-5 when we'd continually blow 3rd and 4th quarter leads. Games are won in the fourth quarter and considering that the Mavs have DESTROYED y'all in every fourth quarter, on the verge of a sweep, NOT giving them credit for CONTINUALLY taking the game while saying you gave it away is almost as stupid as saying the Heat wouldn't get to the Conference Finals because THE KNICKS MIGHT BEAT THEM.

 

[Cheesebeef]

LOL Lakers.
LOL spoiled Lakers fans that dont know when to accept a beatdown.

seriously... at least my friends (who are obnoxious laker fans to the EXTREME) gave credit where credit was due... to the team in the who continually rapes their ass in the fourth quarter when the game is decided.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Donald, let me ask you this... the Laker TAKE the title last year, or was it handed to them after the Celtics had a 3-2 lead, lost their starting C and then blew a 13 point lead late in Game 7?

 

[D-Dogg]

LOL cheese, you're a riot.

They've WON every fourth quarter. But the Mavs really haven't DONE anything in game 1 or 3 to dictate that. I just rattled off several stupid bonehead plays the Lakers made in those fourths...plays veteran squads who are defending champs just DON'T do. Stupid fouls. Bad decisions. Giving free throws.

I am giving credit where credit is due - the Lakers flat out lost the series on THEIR merits. Not on the Mavs. I effing wish I could nod to the Mavs for their stellar fourth quarter D (not any different than their first quarter D) but in reality the Lakers pulled an old-school Mavs choke job, twice. The Mavs are a very good team, and good enough to not allow LA to eff around and win. The Lakers blew it, and blew it HARD. That's a sick, sick feeling as a Laker fan. So stuff your "sore loser" garbage, it doesn't fly here. The losers are the lakers, and they DESERVED to lose. I would have much rather seen the Mavs TAKE the games from the Lakers than the Lakers give them away. Watching the Lakers make high-school kid decisions in a professional game is incredibly painful. Sore loser my ass.

I'll be rooting for the Mavs through the playoffs, because I love Dirk and I like Kidd. I'd like to see Terry dropped into a hole and covered with human excrement, but I love Dirk enough to overcome that feeling. But what I won't do is convey something to them which they did not earn...which is TAKING the games. The Lakers were the ones making mistakes they would have made in a vaccum. Mistakes they made against Cleveland before the ASG. Mistakes they made to close out the season.

If I come into your house, lay a twenty on the table and walk away, you can talk all day about how you "took" it from me, but you know for a fact that I gave it away. That's how games 1 and 3 went down. The Lakers gave it away, twice. The Mavs are a very good team, and are more than willing to kick the Lakers ass. Good on them.

No big whoop. Like I said before, I haven't felt this Laker squad would win a chip anyway, and we beat Boston in a game 7 last year for a back to back, so I'm more than stocked up on feel-good Laker highs. Now my May and June will be relatively free of nerve fraying nights.

 

[D-Dogg]

Donald, let me ask you this... the Laker TAKE the title last year, or was it handed to them after the Celtics had a 3-2 lead, lost their starting C and then blew a 13 point lead late in Game 7?

Not in game 7, the Lakers were fortunate. They really took nothing. The Celtics choked a bit, the Lakers rebounded well and that was about it. It was ugly, gut it out basketball. Both teams were choking like crazy, and it came down to rebounds. Nobody controlled that ending, really.

The Lakers took game 6. Edit-just like the Mavs took game 2.