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2024-25 NBA Thread: Finals return after 3-month hiatus (157 Viewers)

cheese said:
scoobus said:
Now that's a choke. Pacers just bring it out in teams.

Odd decisions from Daigneault, Ajay Mitchell out of nowhere, no bigs down the stretch for I have no idea what reason.

Chet played like shiiiiiiiiiit.
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Ya I have no idea how much of what happened in game 1 is sustainable, but if there is 1 thing to be concerned about for OKC, it's Chet. He was unplayable. Couldn't keep with the pace, couldn't guard anyone on the floor, made 0 impact on offense, didn't ORB or get back when his teammates missed. Pacers will always start Turner because he's such a big part of the team and respect reasons, but they figured out quickly Obi at the 5 was giving OKC big problems. Both OKC big guys were trying to rim protect when the Pacers big guys are just spotted up in the corner. That shot is too efficient to not care about. I thought Hartenstein at least punished them on the glass and with a few offensive moves though.

I know way less about all the non-Pacer teams so I found out what everyone else already knew. Man SGA was awesome. He shoots over the top of people as if he is way taller than he is. Nembhard is an elite defender and his contests were barely bothering SGA at all. He shot them like he was wide open. Ultimately, he didn't get enough help and he missed a couple shots down the stretch, but I thought he was awesome.

Nembhard was great on offense down the stretch. He was decisive and aggressive and he made shots when his team needed another scorer. He's shown for 2 straight years that he can elevate his game in the playoffs. The 3 to make it 108-105 was just unguardable.
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That's what this is going to come down to. Jalen and Chet weren't the 4th and 5th best players on the court like they need them to be to win. OKC's a damn good team, but besides for the lockdown defense in the first half, there were a decent number of potentially worrying trends especially if Indy settles down (Haliburton admitted he was nervous in the first half). Maybe it was just first game jitters like Haliburton, but the Turner matchup is bad for Chet since he wants to collapse to protect the rim, not play the pop, they don't have a fantastic match-up with Siakim, and Nesmeth matches Jalen's athleticism. Short of playing the two bigs together, OKC seems like they have a matchup problem with the bigs.

That puts a lot of pressure on SGA and I'm guessing Carlisle is more or less fine if all that happens is he goes 1v1 all game and OKC stagnates for stretches on offense.
 
I kinda think Hartenstein should start over Chet and get more of the one big minutes. Hart is going to be more effective on offense in this series which is where OKC needs to improve. Jdub has to be better and I think he will be, he started to find a groove in the 4th.

I thought it was a huge mistake for Daigneault to go small as long as he did to finish the game. The most worrying thing for me personally is that Daigneault is a solid coach but Carlisle is an all-time great coach. That’s a big Indy advantage.

I don’t think OKC fans were in the same boat with most of the national media and other fans in terms of thinking this was gonna be easy. Indy is the best team they’ve played in the playoffs by far and I really think it’s a toss-up at this point. Excited for Sunday.
 
Zow said:
OKC is weird because they're the clear favorite but I actually found myself rooting for them last night because their fans aren't spoiled and I frankly think they deserve the title.
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Still bitter about the Sonics but they consistently seem to have great crowds for the playoffs. Nobody to hate in this one really.
 
Desert_Power said:
Zow said:
OKC is weird because they're the clear favorite but I actually found myself rooting for them last night because their fans aren't spoiled and I frankly think they deserve the title.
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Still bitter about the Sonics but they consistently seem to have great crowds for the playoffs. Nobody to hate in this one really.
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Despite Sonicgate. I'd root for the OKCs if the Pacers weren't the opponent
 
Desert_Power said:
Zow said:
OKC is weird because they're the clear favorite but I actually found myself rooting for them last night because their fans aren't spoiled and I frankly think they deserve the title.
Click to expand...
Still bitter about the Sonics but they consistently seem to have great crowds for the playoffs. Nobody to hate in this one really.
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I was in OKC and a friend who is a diehard and season ticket holder invited me to go to a Thunder game. This was early on during the Durant days. I told him I was going to wear a Sonics jersey and he stipulated that I shouldn't do that or I'd get booed and he'd deal with the consequences long after the game. That started my ire with their soft, shirt matching, hillbilly contingent :poop:
 
Major said:
Desert_Power said:
Zow said:
OKC is weird because they're the clear favorite but I actually found myself rooting for them last night because their fans aren't spoiled and I frankly think they deserve the title.
Click to expand...
Still bitter about the Sonics but they consistently seem to have great crowds for the playoffs. Nobody to hate in this one really.
Click to expand...

I was in OKC and a friend who is a diehard and season ticket holder invited me to go to a Thunder game. This was early on during the Durant days. I told him I was going to wear a Sonics jersey and he stipulated that I shouldn't do that or I'd get booed and he'd deal with the consequences long after the game. That started my ire with their soft, shirt matching, hillbilly contingent :poop:
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wtf, why would people in okc be against recognizing the sonics heritage? I would get it if you were wearing an Okc jersey in Seattle.
 
Long Ball Larry said:
Major said:
Desert_Power said:
Zow said:
OKC is weird because they're the clear favorite but I actually found myself rooting for them last night because their fans aren't spoiled and I frankly think they deserve the title.
Click to expand...
Still bitter about the Sonics but they consistently seem to have great crowds for the playoffs. Nobody to hate in this one really.
Click to expand...

I was in OKC and a friend who is a diehard and season ticket holder invited me to go to a Thunder game. This was early on during the Durant days. I told him I was going to wear a Sonics jersey and he stipulated that I shouldn't do that or I'd get booed and he'd deal with the consequences long after the game. That started my ire with their soft, shirt matching, hillbilly contingent :poop:
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wtf, why would people in okc be against recognizing the sonics heritage? I would get it if you were wearing an Okc jersey in Seattle.
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I didn't get it either. I was going to cop a vintage Sikma jersey then offered to compromise with a Durant one but still a no go. 15 years later probably not a big deal but who knows. Buncha weirdos.
 
General Malaise said:
Love this! OKC fans are scrambling to figure out what happened and how they should fix it. :lmao:


Pays to have an experienced coach, I guess.
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Scrambling? There are 19 days between games there is no need to scramble. The biggest thing the Thunder need to fix is their field goal percentage.
 
msudaisy26 said:
www.cbssports.com

Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau over Jalen Brunson's usage, schematic shortcomings during NBA playoffs, per report

The lack of creativity late in games reportedly became a problem for New York's decision-makers
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
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kind of a no-win. if he changes what got them there, fans freak out that he changed what got them there.

he sticks with what got them there, which fans LOVED, loses and fans think he should have made changes.

damned if you do, damned if you don't.
 
So the history of the most overrated player isn't great. They usually have a really good season that year and then fall off after. Hopefully Hailburton bucks that trend.
 
Doris Burke, emphasizing how monstrous a block in the 1st quarter was, as she describes the replay going to the break:

"So what does the double big give you??!!! Shed, he said, we have to feel you at the rim tonight! Send that back, young son!!!"

Should be in all caps, that's how it sounded. Muted with 3:12 left in the first. The absolute worst, announcing a championship.
 
Harry Frogfish said:
Doris Burke, emphasizing how monstrous a block in the 1st quarter was, as she describes the replay going to the break:

"So what does the double big give you??!!! Shed, he said, we have to feel you at the rim tonight! Send that back, young son!!!"

Should be in all caps, that's how it sounded. Muted with 3:12 left in the first. The absolute worst, announcing a championship.
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Not a fan of Jefferson either. Terrible 🙉
 
Huge difference in effort and intensity in game 2 IMO. Hard to say whether that is just a product of a desperate team playing at home or what. OKC defense and rebounding competing for the ball at all times was impressive. Pacers defensive rotations were WAY slower than they have been all postseason. Hopefully just a down game and not a team just running out of gas.

Shai remains way better than anyone, maybe in the NBA, definitely in this series.

Carlisle doing a decent job of making Shai do everything. They basically use the same strategy every series and make you build the whole plane on both ends out of Giannis, Mitchell, Brunson, Shai. The other guys did wear down later in the series, but Shai seems unbothered so far. Maybe he is just going to go for 35 and 8 and face 20 screens and guard the ball every possession. If he is, tip your cap.

I would like to see more Nesmith on Shai. I'm certain they will keep trying things, but Nembhard cannot play as many minutes as Shai and Mathurin just doesn't have the basketball IQ to deal with Shai without fouling every second. As discussed above, the lack of help is definitely playing the long game, but the Pacers aren't getting many stops against him. The other guys on the Thunder are basically scoring off 2nd chances and run outs.

Haven't seen the numbers, but pretty sure the Pacers picked up full court way less and seemed like the slower paced team with OKC always getting back on defense. Extreme focus by OKC possibly tied to being down 1-0.

Not sure what to expect in game 3, but it obviously feels huge. Pascal has to dominate if we get stuck in a half court game. The defense has to get more stop and turnovers if we're going to push the pace. Pacers bench looked awful to me in this series after being decent all postseason. We might need big minutes very soon from the core.
 
cheese said:
Huge difference in effort and intensity in game 2 IMO. Hard to say whether that is just a product of a desperate team playing at home or what. OKC defense and rebounding competing for the ball at all times was impressive. Pacers defensive rotations were WAY slower than they have been all postseason. Hopefully just a down game and not a team just running out of gas.

Shai remains way better than anyone, maybe in the NBA, definitely in this series.

Carlisle doing a decent job of making Shai do everything. They basically use the same strategy every series and make you build the whole plane on both ends out of Giannis, Mitchell, Brunson, Shai. The other guys did wear down later in the series, but Shai seems unbothered so far. Maybe he is just going to go for 35 and 8 and face 20 screens and guard the ball every possession. If he is, tip your cap.

I would like to see more Nesmith on Shai. I'm certain they will keep trying things, but Nembhard cannot play as many minutes as Shai and Mathurin just doesn't have the basketball IQ to deal with Shai without fouling every second. As discussed above, the lack of help is definitely playing the long game, but the Pacers aren't getting many stops against him. The other guys on the Thunder are basically scoring off 2nd chances and run outs.

Haven't seen the numbers, but pretty sure the Pacers picked up full court way less and seemed like the slower paced team with OKC always getting back on defense. Extreme focus by OKC possibly tied to being down 1-0.

Not sure what to expect in game 3, but it obviously feels huge. Pascal has to dominate if we get stuck in a half court game. The defense has to get more stop and turnovers if we're going to push the pace. Pacers bench looked awful to me in this series after being decent all postseason. We might need big minutes very soon from the core.
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Great analysis here.

I agree on putting Nesmith on Shai more. Was surprised at how little they went to that. Isn't Nesmith nursing a bit of an ankle injury? I wonder if that has anything to do with it. He also got called out for a slow defensive rotation during the broadcast last night that led to a wide open three by Caruso.

Speaking of Caruso, I need to eat even more crow on that dude. He was incredible and their 2nd best player again last night. Always plays solid defense (although I'd content he fouls early in the possession more than they call and he still collects a lot of fouls), but his offense has been incredibly consistent and efficient. That's something he's clearly worked on these last few years and he has a ton of confidence right now and cannot be left open. You aren't going to run an offense through him, but defenses have to account for him now.
 
Jayrod said:
cheese said:
Huge difference in effort and intensity in game 2 IMO. Hard to say whether that is just a product of a desperate team playing at home or what. OKC defense and rebounding competing for the ball at all times was impressive. Pacers defensive rotations were WAY slower than they have been all postseason. Hopefully just a down game and not a team just running out of gas.

Shai remains way better than anyone, maybe in the NBA, definitely in this series.

Carlisle doing a decent job of making Shai do everything. They basically use the same strategy every series and make you build the whole plane on both ends out of Giannis, Mitchell, Brunson, Shai. The other guys did wear down later in the series, but Shai seems unbothered so far. Maybe he is just going to go for 35 and 8 and face 20 screens and guard the ball every possession. If he is, tip your cap.

I would like to see more Nesmith on Shai. I'm certain they will keep trying things, but Nembhard cannot play as many minutes as Shai and Mathurin just doesn't have the basketball IQ to deal with Shai without fouling every second. As discussed above, the lack of help is definitely playing the long game, but the Pacers aren't getting many stops against him. The other guys on the Thunder are basically scoring off 2nd chances and run outs.

Haven't seen the numbers, but pretty sure the Pacers picked up full court way less and seemed like the slower paced team with OKC always getting back on defense. Extreme focus by OKC possibly tied to being down 1-0.

Not sure what to expect in game 3, but it obviously feels huge. Pascal has to dominate if we get stuck in a half court game. The defense has to get more stop and turnovers if we're going to push the pace. Pacers bench looked awful to me in this series after being decent all postseason. We might need big minutes very soon from the core.
Click to expand...
Great analysis here.

I agree on putting Nesmith on Shai more. Was surprised at how little they went to that. Isn't Nesmith nursing a bit of an ankle injury? I wonder if that has anything to do with it. He also got called out for a slow defensive rotation during the broadcast last night that led to a wide open three by Caruso.

Speaking of Caruso, I need to eat even more crow on that dude. He was incredible and their 2nd best player again last night. Always plays solid defense (although I'd content he fouls early in the possession more than they call and he still collects a lot of fouls), but his offense has been incredibly consistent and efficient. That's something he's clearly worked on these last few years and he has a ton of confidence right now and cannot be left open. You aren't going to run an offense through him, but defenses have to account for him now.
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His ankle isn't right, but normally Nesmith's thing is on the ball defending. He struggles, healthy or not, at doing anything else on defense. Pacers normally prefer to let Nembhard be the roamer/disrupter and Nesmith guard the best player, but Nesmith isn't healthy and Nembhard just put on a master class on Brunson. The least they could do is use Nesmith when Nembhard is out of the game though.
 
While we’re waiting a week and a half for the next finals game, figured I’d get some input on the next nba draft type thing that I can run.

I’ve got two options for an all-time nba draft /ranking.

A - an all-time draft where we make different teams for each decade/era as well as an all-time team. Similar to what we did a couple years ago, but with a slight twist.

B - a consensus player ranking (like what’s been done for TV, books, Pink Floyd songs, albums, etc) where everyone submits their top 50-70 lists and I reveal the consensus rankings and we all make fun of each others lists. This one might be easier to do during the summer months.


I’ll try to also do something for just the 25-26 season later in the fall before the season starts if work doesn’t kick my butt again.
 
Yo Mama said:
While we’re waiting a week and a half for the next finals game, figured I’d get some input on the next nba draft type thing that I can run.

I’ve got two options for an all-time nba draft /ranking.

A - an all-time draft where we make different teams for each decade/era as well as an all-time team. Similar to what we did a couple years ago, but with a slight twist.

B - a consensus player ranking (like what’s been done for TV, books, Pink Floyd songs, albums, etc) where everyone submits their top 50-70 lists and I reveal the consensus rankings and we all make fun of each others lists. This one might be easier to do during the summer months.


I’ll try to also do something for just the 25-26 season later in the fall before the season starts if work doesn’t kick my butt again.
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I'm 100% game for either.
 
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