NBA 2012

[Noj]

Tony Parker is playing out of his mind. Go Thunder. Go Spurs.

[Dave James]

I think David Stern just had make-up sex with the New Orleans Hornets.

[Big Wheel]

Another crazy night as Rajon Rondo puts up an absolutely insane 44/8/10 while playing all 53 minutes, maybe the best game of his career, but the Celts still lose in OT.

As for the officiating...I thought there were a few questionable no-calls but it wasn't as bad as some are saying. The one where Wade brushed Rondo's face was a missed call but it certainly wasn't a hard shot like some have been saying - looked like the bottom of his hand just grazed him. The Celts came into the game determined not to let Wade and James score in the paint but this often meant committing lots of fouls on the drivers, so I don't see how the foul disparity that lots of people have been yelling about is inherently unfair.

[BruceW]

Celts must win next two at home and decisively to have a shot at winning East.

[Aggie87]

As for the officiating...I thought there were a few questionable no-calls but it wasn't as bad as some are saying. The one where Wade brushed Rondo's face was a missed call but it certainly wasn't a hard shot like some have been saying - looked like the bottom of his hand just grazed him. The Celts came into the game determined not to let Wade and James score in the paint but this often meant committing lots of fouls on the drivers, so I don't see how the foul disparity that lots of people have been yelling about is inherently unfair.

I think the officiating affected the outcome of this game. That overtime play where Wade knocked Rondo in the head should have been a foul, resulting in two (likely) made free throws. And the continuation of play wouldn't have happened, so the Heat wouldn't have made that basket - that's a 4 point swing on one missed call. In a game that the Heat won by 4 points.

Also, the play later where Wade kicked Garnett should have been called an offensive foul. Instead, Garnett is called for the foul, and Wade gets the free throw and 3 point play. With the correct call, those 3 points don't go on the board either.

[Soulstation1]

Hell yeah

The Spurs lost

Thank you Lord

[Bright Moments]

big game for the heat tonight!

[Noj]

Go ugly super physical game that wears both teams out terribly. Preferably triple OT games the rest of the way for Miami and Boston.

[Soulstation1]

LOL

KG busting out some push-ups during the game yesterday

[Soulstation1]

Also I'm not sure when Rondo does that tricky shit with ball behind his back if that's a travel or palming the ball

It's gotta be one or the other

Edited June 2, 2012 by Soulstation1

[BruceW]

it is legal. He is in mid step when it looks like a pass and it becomes a shot as he finishes that mid step and is entitled to another half step for shooting. In other words, passing or shooting the move is legal. If he just holds the ball, it is a travel; if he dribbles again he has "palmed" or double dribbled.

[Soulstation1]

It would only be legal if he plays for the Lakers

Lol

[Soulstation1]

Damn

Orlando Woolridge dies at 52YO

[PHILLYQ]

I think I want to send my glasses to Jeff Van Gundy. he needs better glasses desperately and mine are pretty powerful. There was a play late in the Celtics/Heat game where Garnett was called for a foul and JVG was saying he didn't see it. On the play, Garnett locks his arm on LBJ, then grabs LBJ's hand with his free arm, and when LBJ tries to pull his arm out Garnett gives LBJ a shoulder to the chest. By my count Garnett committed three fouls on the play, but JVG doesn't see a foul. I have no rooting interest in the series, but I'm seeing more and more why Garnett was voted by NBA players in the top three of dirty players. That was one small sequence, but Garnett did many other questionable plays that were not called.

[Big Wheel]

I think I want to send my glasses to Jeff Van Gundy. he needs better glasses desperately and mine are pretty powerful. There was a play late in the Celtics/Heat game where Garnett was called for a foul and JVG was saying he didn't see it. On the play, Garnett locks his arm on LBJ, then grabs LBJ's hand with his free arm, and when LBJ tries to pull his arm out Garnett gives LBJ a shoulder to the chest. By my count Garnett committed three fouls on the play, but JVG doesn't see a foul. I have no rooting interest in the series, but I'm seeing more and more why Garnett was voted by NBA players in the top three of dirty players. That was one small sequence, but Garnett did many other questionable plays that were not called.

Agreed. What I don't understand is that James was in a virtually identical situation in OT, locked arm-in-arm with his man, and instead the refs call it on James and he fouls out of the game.

It's hard not to come out of game 4 feeling very pessimistic about Dwyane Wade, like he's turning into a younger version of Kobe Bryant. The final fallaway 3 should have never been taken - the play appears to have been drawn up as an open look for Mario Chalmers, yet Wade deliberately dribbled in a way that made it impossible for him to pass to Chalmers during the brief moment he was open, then heaved a terrible off-balance 3 at the buzzer.

[Big Wheel]

Regarding the above Van Gundy sequence, my sense is that one of the subjects that no basketball pundit wants to take an unconventional stance on is a sort of weird orthodoxy about low post play. Under this way of thinking, the NBA made a questionable decision in speeding up (read: wimpifying) the game by instituting defensive 3 seconds rules, cracking down on hand-checking, etc., allowing quicker small players to become ruthlessly effective as penetrators, so the only "fair" way to compensate for this is to allow big men on both sides of the ball to get away with anything and everything in the paint short of obvious flagrants in the name of "tough physical low-post battle". When was the last time you heard a commentator call a player out for playing over-aggressively on the block?

Edited June 4, 2012 by Big Wheel

[Noj]

The tendency of teams in close games with the clock winding down to place the ball in one player's hands and have him go one-on-five rather than draw up/have prepared a smart offensive set which creates an open look via screens and ball movement is a really stupid one. The NBA wants every star to be Michael Jordan. Guess what? They're not Michael Jordan.

The refs are crooked and stink. There were terrible calls both ways throughout the whole game. The players play dirty and the refs call baffling nonsense while ignoring all types of obvious calls. David Stern is hurting the game and has been for a while. He and his refs should be kicked to the curb.

[Aggie87]

I think I want to send my glasses to Jeff Van Gundy. he needs better glasses desperately and mine are pretty powerful. There was a play late in the Celtics/Heat game where Garnett was called for a foul and JVG was saying he didn't see it. On the play, Garnett locks his arm on LBJ, then grabs LBJ's hand with his free arm, and when LBJ tries to pull his arm out Garnett gives LBJ a shoulder to the chest. By my count Garnett committed three fouls on the play, but JVG doesn't see a foul. I have no rooting interest in the series, but I'm seeing more and more why Garnett was voted by NBA players in the top three of dirty players. That was one small sequence, but Garnett did many other questionable plays that were not called.

SI.com's Ian Thomsen felt that was a James foul, not a Garnett foul - here's his description of the play today: "...and then when Boston was seeking to reclaim the lead, James would hook his left arm under Garnett's right armpit and pull Garnett down on top of him. If a footballer for Liverpool (the team James owns in a minority role) had done such a thing the press in England would have decried it as a "cynical" foul, but in our country it goes down as ingenuity."

[PHILLYQ]

I think I want to send my glasses to Jeff Van Gundy. he needs better glasses desperately and mine are pretty powerful. There was a play late in the Celtics/Heat game where Garnett was called for a foul and JVG was saying he didn't see it. On the play, Garnett locks his arm on LBJ, then grabs LBJ's hand with his free arm, and when LBJ tries to pull his arm out Garnett gives LBJ a shoulder to the chest. By my count Garnett committed three fouls on the play, but JVG doesn't see a foul. I have no rooting interest in the series, but I'm seeing more and more why Garnett was voted by NBA players in the top three of dirty players. That was one small sequence, but Garnett did many other questionable plays that were not called.

SI.com's Ian Thomsen felt that was a James foul, not a Garnett foul - here's his description of the play today: "...and then when Boston was seeking to reclaim the lead, James would hook his left arm under Garnett's right armpit and pull Garnett down on top of him. If a footballer for Liverpool (the team James owns in a minority role) had done such a thing the press in England would have decried it as a "cynical" foul, but in our country it goes down as ingenuity."

OK, he gets an old pair of my glasses. What I saw was Garnett hooking arms frequently, and on that particular play Garnett initiated the contact & also grabbed LBJ's hand and gave LBJ a shoulder.

[Soulstation1]

Is the Mamba playing for the LA Kings???

[Soulstation1]

Hope OKC can survive the 4th quarter vs the Spurs

[Soulstation1]

Thought the Spurs would pull off the win............

Biggest win in OKC history?

[BruceW]

Man, those young guns are hungry!

[PHILLYQ]

Spurs had plenty of chances to win but couldn't make shots and OKC did. I watched most of the 3rd and all of the 4th, good game, both teams had chances and it was hard-fought but not chippy.

[Jim R]

Westbrook was out of control down the stretch, otherwise the Spurs don't cut into that 13-point lead. I agreed with Reggie... get the ball to DURANT. OKC is fortunate that Harden hit a few big shots. Spurs offense was uncharacteristically inefficient for too many stretches (especially in the first half).