2020-21 NBA Playoffs (Quarterfinals ongoing)

1st round (Game Seven) Mavs 111-126 Clippers

Ah, man Kawhi was so great and the whole Clipper supporting cast really came to play, this was easily the most complete team game they played in the entire series. The game was close for about 30 mins and right around the time I was noticing just how good all the Clippers had been playing, that was when Luke Kennard got hot, eventually handed it over to Reggie Jackson, and the Mavs couldn't keep up and it was over. Kawhi was perfect, man, in the last two games, just ice cold fucking perfect. He made every hustle play and every smart play and stroked jumpers and controlled the game CP-style. He was awesome, no mistakes, just pure killer. PG was good, too, a reminder that when he brings it, he's a great second banana. Marcus Morris for better and worse is a dude that plays with total confidence and he was hitting in the 1st half, a big contributor. Terence Mann ran around making plays, he was great in the last two games, too. Reggie Jax was spotty in the 1st half, but had some nice buckets in the 4th quarter and Kennard filled it up off the bench (the way he was supposed to). 

Luka was amazing but Kawhi was also amazing and his posse had more to offer, so the 4th quarter was unexpectedly cakewalk-ish. I kinda liked what the Mavs were doing with Boban (though I think I would've liked it better with someone other than Boban) and Boban had a nice offensive game (not so much at the other end). Dorian Finney-Smith played hard working defense but no one else made any kind of difference. Porzingis went 6-12, perfect from FT, 11 boards, 2 steals, no turnovers and...I forgot he was out there most of the time (*). Luka is about to sign his big extension this summer, I hope they can find a way to upgrade the roster. (**)

2nd rd (2 games) Bucks 0-2 Nets

Yipes, my pick of Bucks in 6 does not look...uh....possible at this point. I hate to be that guy: it's Middleton, dude, he went badly cold in the first two games and just killed any hope of offensive momentum. If he gets back on track, I think the Bucks can still get back into this (but it would take a major collapse for the Nets to lose in 6 now). If Giannis can rely on scoring from the wings, then his attack can shred the Nets; Claxton is gonna be rough but when he's right, Giannis is capable of fouling out half that roster. If the Nets keep shooting this good (Harden hasn't even played yet (***)), then they should probably take a game in Milwaukee and wrap this in 5. But I think the Bucks can gut out two wins and keep this series going. 

2nd rd (Game One) Hawks 128-124 Sixers

The Hawks so thoroughly dominated the Sixers in the first half that looking back I wonder if the Sixers weren't intentionally letting the Hawks take their best shot. Philly's defense was brutal and that is precisely what I expected them to be best at. Could be that they were sacrificing a game to get the real dirt on how the Hawks look. Well, in the 1st half they looked gooood. Everybody was draining shots, Trae was just about untouchable and the Sixers kinda sucked at everything. The Sixers went on a furious run--that 4-point differential doesn't suggest what a one-sided game this was until about the last five minutes or so--and made it look close but this game wasn't close. They dropped Game One at home but I still think the Sixers are the better team and while I don't mean to suggest the Sixers are immortal or that the Hawks won't have another Klay-and-Steph kinda half, but the Sixers should figure out how to outscore the Hawks more often than not. I think I said Sixers in 6 (if Embiid is healthy) and I think I'll stick with that (as long as Embiid stays healthy). 

2nd rd (Game One) Nuggets 105-122 Suns

Somewhere in the 3rd quarter of this game, it kinda struck me that the two offenses were both potent and reliable enough that I expected each game of this series to be relatively tight all the way through, didn't really think anyone would get more than about 10-12 point lead. Right around the time, the Suns got hot (er, hotter, they were already playing great) and the Nuggets went cold. The Suns were able to get a nice lead and keep stretching throughout the 4th quarter--precisely what I thought would not happen between these two squads. Oh well, perhaps it won't happen again. Jokic v Dame in 2019 was one of my favorite NBA series lately and this still has the potential to be like that. I still think though that the two squads are similar and evenly matched. I initially said Nuggets in 7--but that was because I was thinking they had home court. I think the Suns are a perhaps slightly deeper roster and since they have the home court, I'll change it to Suns in 7. 

2nd rd Clippers-Jazz

In the last two games the Clippers definitely looked like the team they were always supposed to be. If Kawhi is going to be this masterful, then they're going to be in every series; and if PG and co. can pitch in the way the did taking four of the last five from the Mavs, then they can win and keep winning. The Jazz are a team that know what they are, they're not growing up before our eyes or struggling to figure it out, they are who they are. Could be the Clippers are ready to be better than what they've been--which might be better than the Jazz--but even still I think the Jazz are gonna be a tough out. I think the Jazz can get the shots they want and if they're hitting, they can bury the Clippers. I think the difference is Kawhi: specifically, can the Jazz outlast him in a Game Seven? I'm gonna say yes and take the Jazz in 7.

(*) That's the danger of Porzingis: even when he's playing hard and playing well, he still adds virtually zilch to this team. When he was a kid there was so much weird raw potential but I think the reality is he's a unique athlete that's so-so at basketball. I think he's a trade-able asset (a big paycheck star, a freak to look at but will win zero games--isn't that exactly what OKC has their eye on for the next two years?) but the Mavs need to bring back something tangible and I'm not sure anything like that is available, so I thinks its 50-50 whether he's back next year. 

(**) Cuban suggested the other day that he had no intention of firing Rick Carlyle and I think that is the correct thing to do and the correct way to think about it: change for the sake of change just creates an atmosphere of drift. If a great candidate emerges, I can see Cuban reevaluating the coaching spot but until that happens, I think Carlyle is still the right coach for this team.

(***) My gut is Harden was sitting Game One anyway and just wanted to make a show of it. I don't think he ever intended to play, he was just stirring up some drama. Perhaps if they can script their drama, they can keep under control. Discuss: could creating chaos instead of letting create itself turn out to be a brilliant move?