Tag: 2011 NBA Playoffs (Page 10 of 16)

      Bulls bounce back, take Game 2

      May 4, 2011 /
      Derrick Rose (1) of the Chicago Bulls shoots against the Atlanta Hawks during the second half of Game 2 of their NBA Eastern Conference second round playoff basketball game in Chicago, May 4, 2011. The Bulls won the game 86-73. REUTERS/John Gress (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      Derrick Rose accepted the MVP award in a pregame ceremony and played like a MVP to help the Bulls win Game 2. He didn’t play great, mind you — 25 points on 10-of-27 shooting, 10 assists, six rebounds and eight assists — but he played like the Bulls’ most valuable player. Chicago needs him to score, so he scores. Right now, the Bulls aren’t getting the kind of production they need from Carlos Boozer, who should be an 18/10-type of guy, but is shooting 40% from the field and averaging under 11 points per game in the playoffs.

      Joakim Noah was outstanding (19 points, 14 rebounds and three steals), but the Bulls aren’t going to get that kind of scoring production out of him on a nightly basis. Luol Deng (14 points, 12 rebounds) was his steady self, but he’s not good enough offensively to be the Bulls #2 option on that end of the floor.

      Based on what I’ve seen of the Bulls this postseason, I don’t see them getting by the Heat in a potential matchup next round. Without solid production from Boozer, they are too dependent on Rose to score and he can’t pour in 30 points every night.

      External Sports, NBA

      LeBron dominates down the stretch in Heat win

      May 3, 2011 /
      Miami Heat’s LeBron James celebrates after scoring against the Boston Celtics during fourth quarter of Game 2 of their NBA Eastern Conference basketball playoff series in Miami May 3, 2011. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      LeBron James scored 24 points over the final 16:35, hitting 8-of-12 shots, which helped the Heat turn a nip-and-tuck game into a snoozer down the stretch. (Miami won, 102-91.) LeBron was so sharp in the third and fourth quarters that it makes me wonder if he was extra-motivated after finding out that he finished third in this year’s MVP voting. For their part, Dwyane Wade added 28 points and eight boards, while Chris Bosh chipped in with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

      The Heat were +10 in made free throws, which was the difference in the game. Otherwise, the numbers were pretty even. That’s not an indictment of the officiating — the Heat simply attack the rim more (and better) than Boston, which is at its core a jumpshooting team. Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce combined to go 15-of-38 (39%) from the field for 36 points. That’s not going to get it done.

      External Sports, NBA

      Bill Simmons on Russell Westbrook’s struggles

      May 3, 2011 /
      Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook dribbles against the Denver Nuggets during the second half in the Western Conference Playoffs-First Round game four at the Pepsi Center in Denver on April 25, 2011. Denver avoided a sweep by Oklahoma City winning 104-101. UPI/Gary C. Caskey

      I have been harping about Russell Westbrook’s play at the point for the last few games and it’s nice to hear that Bill Simmons is seeing the same things I am. Here is his take on the Westbrook/Durant dynamic as part of his salute to “The Wire.”

      Sorry, I’m not done with Westbrook yet. Oklahoma City has enough talent to win the 2011 title — it’s sitting right there for them — but it’s going to hinge on how Westbrook runs the show. There’s a game beyond the f**king game and I don’t think he can totally see it yet. He’s learning on the fly. A crash course, if you will. I don’t trust him yet. Stephon Marbury never found that balance between scoring and creating; Allen Iverson only found it when they moved him off the ball. Can Westbrook find it on the fly? Either way, Durant’s unreal fourth quarter in Game 5 was the best reality check possible: He basically hired Brother Mouzone and Omar to shoot Stringer Westbrook. We’ll see if he comes back from the dead.

      That reminds me, I thought Chuck and Kenny did a spectacular job of breaking down Westbrook’s struggles in Game 5 — he took some heat for the first time (for Game 4) and it clearly affected him, but as Kenny pointed out (I’m paraphrasing), if you want to be great, you need to learn how to handle being the hero and being the goat. That’s the final stage for a basketball player. Durant struggled earlier in the season, took some heat, questioned himself a little, and ultimately, it made him stronger. Now it’s Westbrook’s turn. To be continued.

      The Thunder aren’t going to beat the Grizzlies (who are simply on a mission right now) if Westbrook doesn’t learn how to play point guard on the fly. He seemingly hasn’t learned how to exercise good shot selection or set his teammates up in three years, so it’s doubtful that he’s going to be able to learn it in three games.

      External Sports, NBA

      NBA Playoffs: Dogs & cats living together, mass hysteria!

      May 3, 2011 /

      I’m always reminded of this classic quote from “Ghostbusters” whenever anything weird happens.

      On the heels of the Grizzlies’ win in Game 1 over the Thunder (after upending the #1-seeded Spurs in the first round), both the Hawks and Mavericks won on the road last night against the Bulls and Lakers, respectively.

      The Hawks broke a 15-game second round playoff losing streak by winning in Chicago. Here are the highlights:

      Rose’s twisted ankle at the end is obviously worrisome for the Bulls, who could normally overcome a Game 1 loss to the Hawks if he were healthy.

      Joe Johnson (12-of-18 from the field, 5-for-5 from 3PT for 34 points) was on fire throughout the game. Where was the vaunted Chicago defense that has shut players down all season?

      In Los Angeles, the Mavs overcame a 16-point deficit with a 17-4 run over five minutes in the third quarter. Pau Gasol had a bad finish to the game, fouling Dirk Nowitzki on an inbounds pass with under 0:20 to play with the Lakers up one and then he turned the ball over attempting to hand the ball to Kobe on the ensuing possession. (Kobe was really at fault because he was trying to draw the foul on his defender instead of making sure he got the ball.)

      Either way, the Lakers are down 0-1 and the Mavs have stolen home court advantage in the series.

      Here are the highlights:

      The only higher seed to win Game 1 in the semis is Miami. Go figure.

      External Sports, NBA, Video

      Grizzlies upend Thunder, take Game 1

      May 1, 2011 /
      Oklahoma City Thunder center Kendrick Perkins (5) moves to the lane against Memphis Grizzlies’ forward Zach Randolph (50) during the first half of Game 1 of the second round of the Western Conference NBA basketball playoff in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, May 1, 2011. REUTERS/Steve Sisney (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      This Memphis team deserves a lot of credit. The Grizzlies are playing some very good basketball right now on both ends of the court. In Sunday’s Game 1, they allowed Kevin Durant (33 points) and Russell Westbrook (29 points) to get theirs, but they turned the Thunder over 18 times, which led to a +11 margin in shot attempts, and that turned out to be the difference in the game.

      I’ve been harping on Russell Westbrook for a while, but the more I see him play, the more I realize that he’s simply not a point guard. He should play off guard a la Dwyane Wade. That way, he’d still be able to be a big part of the offense, but he wouldn’t be responsible for handling the ball all the time and setting his teammates up, two things that he struggles with. He had seven turnovers and 14 missed shots, so there’s 21 possessions where the Thunder didn’t score. He also gets stuck defensively on ball screens, and if he was playing more off guard, he’d be chasing screens off the ball, an area at which he excels. That said, the Thunder passed on Ricky Rubio and Stephen Curry in the ’09 draft and they don’t seem poised to move Westbrook off the ball anytime soon.

      But back to the Grizzlies. Zach Randolph may be playing the best basketball in the playoffs right now. He scored 34 points and snagged 10 rebounds, while Marc Gasol went for 20-13 on 9-of-11 shooting. What’s interesting about this pair is that they wouldn’t be in Memphis if not for owner Michael Heisley’s decision to trade Pau Gasol to the Lakers a few years ago. Marc Gasol came over in the trade, but no one thought he would develop into the all-around big man that he has become. The Grizzlies were able to afford the trade for Randolph since they had the cap space left by the Pau Gasol trade.

      At the time, the acquisition of Randolph didn’t look very promising considering he was overpaid and underachieving. But he has settled in nicely in Memphis and the duo have formed one of the best one-two frontcourt punches in the league. The Pau Gasol trade was still terrible on paper, but it has since worked out for both teams (albeit more so for the Lakers).

      Game 2 of the series is on Tuesday night on TNT.

      External Sports, NBA

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