Good matchup out in Denver, with the #1 and #2 seeds matching up. Ja wearing the mask.
Saw a game out there once, btw. Nice arena to watch a game.
Saw a game out there once, btw. Nice arena to watch a game.
2022-23 NBA Game Thread
- Thread starter Deathofthebambino
- Start date
I was there last night, first time back in the US in a few years, for a business trip. Great arena and crowd; they are loving this run.
The thing that stood out even more live was how depressing the Nuggets are without Jokic in the game. The entire arena was just chewing nails waiting for him to come back. (Although they put together a great early 4th stretch without him to take control).
Welcome back. Must have been a fun game to be in Denver for. The Nuggets had significant advantages on the boards, points in the paint and fast break points. It looks like their 2nd half defense was stingy with Memphis getting 22 and 17 points in the 3rd and 4th respectively. Not sure if the mile high home court advantage was in play.
Sorry if this was posted; I ran a quick search and didn't see it. Ben Taylor (Thinking Basketball) broke down a part of the almost-historic Clippers-Kings game from the other night. Shows a bunch of actions that teams use to get guys open.
One of his points that applies to the Cs is that JMazz has said a couple of times that hard pushes in transition go a long way to creating open 3Ps as teams have to figure out matches on the fly. That's probably one of the reasons IMO why when the Cs slow down their offense, their results are not nearly as good. Pace pace pace.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8bSEU7gAwI
One of his points that applies to the Cs is that JMazz has said a couple of times that hard pushes in transition go a long way to creating open 3Ps as teams have to figure out matches on the fly. That's probably one of the reasons IMO why when the Cs slow down their offense, their results are not nearly as good. Pace pace pace.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8bSEU7gAwI
I understand that Harden isn't popular around these parts but this is a beast performance.
Edit: The Bucks aren't going to run the table!
Edit: The Bucks aren't going to run the table!
He has been incredible. The talent the nets had. What a waste that was.
Somewhere on the Sons of Sam Cassell folks are questioning the Bucks’ killer instinct given that defensive meltdown in the fourth.Bucks give up a 48 point 4th. YOu think their fans are worried about losing hte 1 seed?
Yeah, and I’m assuming Budenholzer could’ve prevented it all by calling more timeouts. He’s in over his head!Bucks give up a 48 point 4th. YOu think their fans are worried about losing hte 1 seed?
MIL lost despite hitting 50% (17-34) from 3P.
PHI went 18-37 (almost 49%).
I mention this because on Lowe's podcast, Doris Burke mentioned that Coach Bud had tweaked MIL's defensive schemes to try to prevent 3Ps(citing, among other teams, BOS) and during their run, they had given up 4th fewest 3Ps.
PHI went 18-37 (almost 49%).
I mention this because on Lowe's podcast, Doris Burke mentioned that Coach Bud had tweaked MIL's defensive schemes to try to prevent 3Ps(citing, among other teams, BOS) and during their run, they had given up 4th fewest 3Ps.
Come on, bro. I get it, I get it, 2018 was like 20 years ago. But prime Harden was something else.
I watched the highlights, Harden looked quicker than he has for 3-4 years. Made me nostalgic.
is Coach Bud going away from drop?
I thought I saw both Giannis and Brook retreat to the paint on D most of the time?
The 76ers offensive performance was otherworldly, they hit everything in Q4. Not much the Bucks could do when every trip ended up with a basket or FTs. Embiid missed a pair of FTs (WINGZ for the fans!), other than that it was POINTz-palooza
The Bucks started the season off 9-0 and their 16 game win streak just ended. In between, they were 20-17, just over .500 in nearly half a season's worth of games. Middleton is back and playing more, but he's not playing well (not remotely resembling the guy who made the all-star team 3 times in the last 4 years). An easy comparison for Celtics fans would be 2019 Gordon Hayward, still a long way away from fully recovering despite occasional flashes. Giannis is having his least efficient season statistically since before he started winning MVPs. They just ripped off a massive winning streak and it feels like their main rival has been just treading water for months, but they wake up today just half a game ahead Boston.
The Bucks are in good shape, but no one is as good as they look at their best, and the Bucks aren't the juggernaut that just went 5+ weeks without a loss.
The Bucks are in good shape, but no one is as good as they look at their best, and the Bucks aren't the juggernaut that just went 5+ weeks without a loss.
No idea what the schematic adjustments were; Doris just mentioned that they are concentrating on trying to minimize 3Ps and protect the rim. Would be quite a feat if they could achieve it, particularly given Lopez in the middle.
Have there ever been four scorers as elite as KD, Booker, Luka and Kyrie on the floor at the same time (outside of the all-star game)?
Edit: you could say peak Warriors v peak Cavs, since LeBron and Steph beat all those guys except KD in terms of scoring volume + efficiency. But I guess I’m talking more scoring skill, or sheer number of scoring moves in their bags. The PHX—DAL foursome is insane in that regard.
Edit: you could say peak Warriors v peak Cavs, since LeBron and Steph beat all those guys except KD in terms of scoring volume + efficiency. But I guess I’m talking more scoring skill, or sheer number of scoring moves in their bags. The PHX—DAL foursome is insane in that regard.
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Agree. The Celtics, Nuggets and Grizzlies have all looked unbeatable in stretches too, but
- it's hard to maintain that for a full season
- it's really hard to maintain that against playoff opponents who are scheming and iterating constantly to take you out of those grooves
Milwaukee is a good team, and a strong title contender, but the Sons of Giannis board would have a plenty long thread about their reasons for playoff concern.
Eh feel like Booker isn’t good enough to get in anyone’s at Luka’s level’s head.
That wasn't contested (after he gently removed the defender from the area), that's as bad a miss as you'll see considering the circumstances.
A Chris Paul team isn't winning a title. Someone will get hurt, probably Paul, actually. And Durant, too.
Never has a player so deserved to have his career highlight be scoring 70 points in a double digit loss, in the midst of a 24 win season.
Luca and Booker have history. It’s probably the closest thing to a hated rivalry that we have in this league right now. Aside from that, not a fan of Doncic being the final possession iso guy when you have Kyrie on the floor who is the better shot creator and shooter especially against the 2023 version of Paul.
I'd definitely rather have Luka making the play there. Kyrie is a slightly more efficient scorer, but Doncic is much better at finding teammates for an open look (if that's what the play calls for). Interestingly, Paul wasn't on the floor for that final defensive play.
On a final second shot when you’re dribbling the clock down you really are looking to score in that spot. During the course of the game a large part of Doncic’s productivity comes from drawing fouls but that isn’t likely at end of game shots that generally result in a jumper after gaining separation. Kyrie is the far better scorer in a matchup against Paul in that spot.
That’s kinda what I mean too. The better shooter was off watching the play with grandpa shading him. He definitely did create the best possible look you’d want.
This is why it's hard to take you seriously. Paul wasn't even in the game on that possession.
I haven't seen too much of the warriors this year, but every time I do it seems like they all hate playing with Kuminga on offense. Maybe I'm seeing something that isn't there (or I just haven't watched them enough), but it's an odd look.
Curry exploded in the 4th quarter (19 points and 3 assists), but man is this warriors team just a shadow of themselves on the road. I wrote a few months back that all they needed to do was get into the playoffs and they'd be the favorite in the West, but they are 7-24 on the road. This isn't some early season scheduling quirk, they have by far the worst road record of any team in playoff contention (the only teams with more road losses are Charlotte, Detroit, San Antonio and Houston). This doesn't seem like a team ready to win a bunch of road playoff games, but fingers crossed the current standings hold - Suns/Warriors would be a fantastic first round.
This important fact should be noted as part of the context for this GSW@LAL game. LA on a Saturday night seems like it has a bunch of celebration options, especially if you have some dough.
I wonder if LeBron ordered extra bottles last night.
I wonder if LeBron ordered extra bottles last night.
Nets up 30
Celtics awoke their WING-attack. I wouldn't be shocked to see them hold on to the 6th seed
Celtics awoke their WING-attack. I wouldn't be shocked to see them hold on to the 6th seed