NBA 2012 Regular Season Thread

[Zack_of_Steel+ 3,014]

Zack_of_Steel+ : (17 April 2013 - 07:42 PM) Durant didn't play in 14 4th quarters this year and only averaged 18 shots per game.

 

Zack_of_Steel+ : (17 April 2013 - 07:43 PM) Fuck Melo's chucking bullshit; Durant deserved 4 straight scoring titles.

 

 

At least he hit his 50/40/90. =/

[JetsFan4Life 542]

Utah loses....LAKERS ARE IN!!!

 

Now let's get this win against Houston and set up Lakers/Spurs please.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

Thank GOD the Thunder play on Sunday. I may be able to go to the game if I can find affordable tickets.

[JetsFan4Life 542]

Lakers get the seventh seed.

 

Will post a playoff thread when the schedule is posted.

[BwareDWare94 723]

You know...I'll gladly give the Lakers the 7 seed, because this game should have been over in the third quarter.

 

Let's not even talk about the gratuitous amount of free throws that Harden should have had in the last 5 minutes of regulation and throughout OT. Howard and Gasol got away with MANY fouls when James drove to the hoop and...nothing.

 

I understand that you don't want to give him any freebies, but that does not mean you get to look away from obvious fouls when he earns free throws. Fuck the officiating in tonight's game. It was awful. Not even close to the reason Houston lost, but it certainly contributed.

 

Congrats, LA. You earned the 7 seed with a side of having it handed to you.

 

Especially in the last minute or two of OT when James drove to the hoop, Howard went up straight, and then hacked at James' shooting hand and got all hand, but no foul. That was just fucking awful.

 

However--Houston should have ran away with this game. No Kobe. No Nash. No excuses, Houston. You earned your 8 seed. You earned your 4-1 exit from the first round of the playoffs. Not only could you not beat a depleted Phoenix team, you couldn't axe an LA team that had no business on the same floor as you with scrubs playing at positions 1-3. Fuck you, Houston. Fuck you.

 

Hey...you know that superstar we supposedly have? #13, James Harden...who was Jodie Meeks driving on for the dagger jam in tonight's game? James friggin' Harden.

 

James has to learn to play defense. All year we've lost games because of his lack of focus on the defensive end in close situations. Houston either hangs 110-130 and wins easily, or loses close because their big name studs (Harden, Lin) don't play defense. Fuck off.

 

I love and hate this Rockets team. They are exciting, and Chandler Parsons is fucking awesome, but the rest? They are their own undoing. They are their own weakness. Fuck this. I don't even think I'm going to watch Houston in the playoffs. 4-0 most likely, 4-1 at best. Goodnight and safe driving. See you around Halloween, Rockets.

[JetsFan4Life 542]

There were quite a few times Gasol got mauled and they called nothing...

 

 

Edited April 18, 2013 by JetsFan4Life

[BwareDWare94 723]

There were quite a few times Gasol got mauled and they called nothing...

 

He doesn't earn free throws like James does, though. At least give me that. Harden attacks, attacks, attacks. People think he gets a ton of freebies, but truth be told he earns most of his free throws.

 

Concede that the officiating was quite obviously favoring LAL for the last 10 minutes. You have to. A blind man could have seen it.

 

I don't recall any specific "maul Pau" plays, but I do recall Greg Smith (he played very well tonight) rejecting his ass on a jump shot.

 

On another note, I fully expect LAL to take San Antonio to at least 6. Best of luck.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

NBA playoffs. Finally. I love the Pistons and all, but thank God that's over.

 

Now I'm hoppin on the GSW and Miami Heat Bandwagon for the playoffs. Lebron for his 2nd PLZKTHX.

[BwareDWare94 723]

NBA playoffs. Finally. I love the Pistons and all, but thank God that's over.

 

Now I'm hoppin on the GSW and Miami Heat Bandwagon for the playoffs. Lebron for his 2nd PLZKTHX.

 

Golden State has the shooting (Curry, Thompson) and the post presences (Lee, Bogut, Landry) to make a run. I love this team. I think they beat a depleted Denver team.

[JetsFan4Life 542]

He doesn't earn free throws like James does, though. At least give me that. Harden attacks, attacks, attacks. People think he gets a ton of freebies, but truth be told he earns most of his free throws.

 

Concede that the officiating was quite obviously favoring LAL for the last 10 minutes. You have to. A blind man could have seen it.

 

I don't recall any specific "maul Pau" plays, but I do recall Greg Smith (he played very well tonight) rejecting his ass on a jump shot.

 

On another note, I fully expect LAL to take San Antonio to at least 6. Best of luck.

 

Yep such favoritism. Like a kicked ball that wasn't called on the last possession in regulation that Houston eventually tied the game on? Or the back court violation toward the end of overtime?

 

Harden drives a lot that's about the only point I'll concede.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

He doesn't earn free throws like James does, though. At least give me that. Harden attacks, attacks, attacks. People think he gets a ton of freebies, but truth be told he earns most of his free throws.

 

 

As someone who watched Harden play for 3 years...no he doesn't.

[Zack_of_Steel+ 3,014]

Harden doesn't just Eurostep like Manu...

[blotsfan 2,112]

I got my Thunder-Rockets series so I'm good. I jus hope it's more like the last one instead of the first two (as in good games, not neccesarilly rockets wins).

[BwareDWare94 723]

As someone who watched Harden play for 3 years...no he doesn't.

 

As much contact as his drive forces...yes, he does. Watching a lot of his replays on called fouls, there is contact.

[Bay 2,003]

As someone who watched Harden play for 3 years...no he doesn't.

 

Is it me or does Harden not try to earn the 3-point play and shy away from the contact?

 

Also looks like he flails

[Guest Phailadelphia]

As much contact as his drive forces...yes, he does. Watching a lot of his replays on called fouls, there is contact.

 

Contact that HE creates. He doesn't get fouled in the sense that a guy is grabbing his arm or something. Like last night he got foul shots by running straight into a guy.

 

Is it me or does Harden not try to earn the 3-point play and shy away from the contact?

 

Also looks like he flails

 

Yeah, he extends his arms and carries the ball low for a reason - everyone swipes at it and as soon as they do he flails his arm upwards. Contact. Foul. Free throws. Every time. How many other players do that? None come to mind that do it as frequently. KD used it a lot at the start of the year but he's cut down on it a lot because refs stopped calling it. Most players cradle the ball because they're trying to score + protect the ball, not draw fouls.

 

If you go back and watch Harden vs the Thunder they don't bite on that shit because they practiced against him for 3 years. They know what he's doing. Dwight FINALLY caught onto it in the 2nd half of last night's games. He started putting his hands straight in the air, jumping straight in the air, and daring Harden to run into him...and he did. And didn't get the calls anymore. I don't know how other teams haven't caught on to this yet. And I'm not even saying it's a bad technique. It gets easy points. But pretending he's not creating contact rather than being legitimately fouled by opposing teams? Hah!

 

Edit: I was annoyed by this when he was with the Thunder too, for the record. But watching last night's game as a completely unbiased spectator, I saw more clearly what he's doing. There was one instance on a sorta fast break where the guy defending him is turned sideways or not even facing Harden and Harden has a lightly contested layup if he wants it...but he doesn't take it. Instead he drifts right into the back of the Lakers player and throws his hands in the air. Foul + free throws.

Edited April 18, 2013 by Phailadelphia

[Zack_of_Steel+ 3,014]

Harden's flailing gets him points and it's something, as a fan of the team he's on, you will gladly take, but it does get annoying to watch.

 

Here's a good video of him flinging his arms up in a V shape in order to get the foul.

 

 

Like Phail said, Durant used to do it quite a bit, but he's really cut down on it.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

NBA playoffs. Finally. I love the Pistons and all, but thank God that's over.

 

Now I'm hoppin on the GSW and Miami Heat Bandwagon for the playoffs. Lebron for his 2nd PLZKTHX.

 

Amen. I think the Suns have been tanking the last 40 games, and if they don't give a shit... it's really hard for me to give a shit.

[Bucman 891]

Cavs in talks with Mike Brown about coming back. If they do that, I'm finding a new team or giving up on the NBA all together.

[Guest Phailadelphia]

Check some of these quotes by KD in the latest SI. The way he combines analytics with his work ethic is insane.

 

This week’s Sports Illustrated cover features Thunder forward Kevin Durant, surrounded by his words that read, at first, like a venting promise.

 

“I’ve been second my whole life,” Durant tells SI‘s Lee Jenkins in a profile that will hit newsstands on Thursday. “I was the second-best player in high school. I was the second pick in the draft. I’ve been second in the MVP voting three times. I came in second in the Finals. I’m tired of being second. I’m not going to settle for that. I’m done with it.”

 

That quote perfectly sums up the inherent frustration involved in operating at the highest of levels in LeBron James’ world. Is anything ever good enough when James keeps raising the bar?

 

But Jenkins’ profile reveals a Durant who has fully embraced that frustration as a means to self-improvement. There isn’t a hint of “woe is me” whining in Durant’s declaration; he’s too busy searching for ways to reach the summit.

 

That process includes first-hand observation of James, a study that has unfolded over multiple years, drifted into the world of advanced statistics and resulted in a friendship, but one that has only fueled their competitive tension.

 

“That’s my guy,” Durant says. “I looked up to him [James], and now I battle him.”

 

…

 

“I don’t watch a lot of other basketball away from the gym,” Durant says. “But I do look at LeBron’s box score. I want to see how many points, rebounds and assists he had, and how he shot from the field. If he had 30 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, I can tell you exactly how he did it, what type of shots he made and who he passed to.” Durant and James take flak for their friendship, but it is based on a mutual appreciation of the craft. They aren’t hanging out at the club. They are feverishly one-upping each other from afar. “People see two young black basketball players at the top of their game and think we should clash,” Durant says. “They want the conflict. They want the hate. They forget Bird cried for Magic. A friend was getting on me about this recently, and I said, ‘Calm down. I’m not taking it easy on him. Don’t you know I’m trying to destroy the guy every time I go on the court?’ ”

 

It’s one thing to pay lip service to the shot charts and numbers; it’s quite another to employ a personal stat geek and to memorize situational shooting statistics. Durant, we find out, has done both of those things, and more.

 

Kevin Durant sat in a leather terminal chair next to a practice court and pointed toward the 90-degree- angle at the upper-right corner of the key that represents the elbow. “See that spot,” Durant said. “I used to shoot 38, 39 percent from there off the catch coming around pin-down screens.” He paused for emphasis. “I’m up to 45, 46 percent now.”

 

…

 

Durant has hired his own analytics expert. He tailors workouts to remedy numerical imbalances. He harps on efficiency more than a Prius dealer. To Durant, basketball is an orchard, and every shot an apple. “Let’s say you’ve got 40 apples on your tree,” Durant explains. “I could eat about 30 of them, but I’ve begun limiting myself to 15 or 16. Let’s take the wide-open three and the post-up at the nail. Those are good apples. Let’s throw out the pull-up three in transition and the step-back fadeaway. Those are rotten apples. The three at the top of the circle — that’s an in-between apple. We only want the very best on the tree.”

 

The takeaway feeling is that Durant exists these days entirely within the “edge” that elite athletes often talk about, and it’s enough to make you wonder how he stays sane, given James’ all-encompassing dominance, and whether the mean streak he’s shown this season is a negative by-product of all that built-up tension. Jenkins explores, concluding that Durant hasn’t fundamentally changed, even if he has evolved.

 

Previously, if power forward Serge Ibaka blew a box-out, Durant would tell him, “It’s O.K. You’re going to get it next time.” But the stakes had risen. “You want to get to the Finals again, and you think everything should be perfect, and it’s not,” Durant says. “So I’d scream at him and pump my fist.”

 

Durant has picked up 12 technical fouls this season, more than twice as many as his previous career high, and he was ejected for the first time, in January, after arguing with referee Danny Crawford. “I’m rubbing off on him,” says Thunder center Kendrick Perkins, who keeps a standing 2 a.m. phone call with Durant every night to discuss the state of the team. “He’s getting a little edge on.” The techs dovetailed neatly with Nike’s “KD is Not Nice” marketing campaign, but they still don’t fit the recipient. Even after the ejection, Durant stopped to high-five kids sitting over the tunnel. “People get it confused and think you have to be a jerk to win,” he says. “But we all feed off positive energy. I’m a nice guy. I enjoy making people happy and brightening their day. If someone asks me for an autograph on the street, I don’t want to wave him off and tell him, ‘Hell, no.’ That’s not me. The last few months I’ve calmed down and had more fun. We can still get on each other, but there’s another way.”

 

In sum, the piece winds up whetting the appetite, especially as a Heat-Thunder rematch looms as a very real postseason possibility. There’s plenty more to process, including details about how Durant improved his ball handling, thoughts from teammates on how he’s honed his game during his six-year career and what the James Harden trade meant for Durant’s offensive role. Click here to subscribe to Sports Illustrated, and be sure to follow Jenkins on Twitter.

[Favre4Ever+ 4,476]

Kinda surprised the Suns let Blanks go. Thought we were buying into him and his approach. Very relieved we aren't going that route. Maybe we can actually bring in some talent...