nba playoffs aka the 'offs (which includes the 'ins) 2021

the degree to which he outplayed gobert in the same match up is pretty shocking

offense > defense

he def outplayed gobert but the jazz were badly outcoached in that series. no one was put in a position to succeed.

yeah if a team is going to basically play only guards and wings, it's gonna be really hard to stop them on offense, that's kinda the whole point. but you need able to hurt them on the other end and ayton could do that. that said, he also moved his feet on the perimeter better and was a more willing/better contester imo. reggie jackson went cold in the second half last night and i thought a lot of it was ayton making jackson shoot over him.

alright I'm really trying to talk myself into a Bucks win tonight. no Giannis is gonna change so much for them as the Bucks have led the playoffs in rebounds and 2pt%, but they're also doing really poorly in 3pt% and FG% which I hope will improve since on paper they're not a bad shooting team? plus I've also noticed that the Bucks play up/down to their competition - I know this is small sample size/Sportscenter shit but the Bucks do seem pretty motivated & feisty in elimination games & matchups vs. the team that knocked them out last year, hoping Game 5 at home knowing a win will at least get you back to Milwaukee counts

hard one to predict. if trae plays that will be tough.

if Trae plays they won't get suffocated so much by the Hawks D though

lou will suffocating people???

assuming trae is out again middleton will be the best player on the floor. jrue prob the second best. and they're at home. it would be a very bad loss

Being completely uncompetitive in playoff games they should win is kind of their signature. But they also must feel like their backs are against the wall which usually brings out their best. Idk weird energy going into this game

i feel optimistic that giannis' absence is going to compel the bucks' other scorers to level up

well the whole genius of pat bev, as it were, is that he’s the one under control and getting under someone else’s skin, goading them into techs and ejections while never crossing the line. but when he’s the one shoving someone in the back it all kinda falls apart and he just looks like a petulant asshole. you can’t ever get out pat bev’d if you’re pat bev

― J0rdan S., Wednesday, June 30, 2021 11:56 PM

this was a good post and honestly a guide for life tbh

you can't ever get out mookieproof'd if you're mookieproof

nba playoffs baby

Now officially no Trae Young or Giannis Antetokounmpo for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. https://t.co/siDlpDOuaU

— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) July 1, 2021

If Trae played game 4 Giannis probably wouldn’t have gotten hurt, crazy how an official being a little close to the line changed the entire series

I wanna believe this is the night Brook Lopez has the game of his life

Well that first sequence was exactly what I wanted to see in game 4 and didn't -- Lopez gets a block, Bucks hustle down to the other end and attack the rim for a layup instead of dicking around and then clanking a poorly placed three with 2 on the shot clock.

Well this is a nice start

bucks amped up

Trade Giannis

Ladies and gentlemen Brook Lopez

Because I'm a ninny I'm afraid that was the turning point, Lopez goes up for his third or fourth easy dunk and gets stripped, suddenly the Hawks are executing again

And suddenly Bucks can't shoot and the Hawks are beating them for rebounds

not sure i can watch this, it's two teams whose entire thing is having one guy and both of those guys are out

milwaukee has more than one guy cmon

feels like this could just go 7 based on homecourt advantage--big factor when the talent is pretty flat.

put some respkht on khris middleton's name

they mostly have one guy xp

I mean one way to look at it is Milwaukee’s worst shooter is off the court and they score 36 in a quarter

they have 3 other guys who have been all-stars! two guys on the all-defense teams of the last two years!

xp

That said I still anticipate this game being incredibly stressful, outside of like 5 quarters it feels like the Hawks have been in control

not saying giannis being out makes them better, but they play 5 out with that starting lineup having portis in there. i mean they COULD play better offense as a team if giannis wasnt the lead ballhandler, but they HAVE to play this way now.

this is somehow the exact game bobby portis is meant to play in

I wanna believe this is the night Brook Lopez has the game of his life

― Guayaquil (eephus!), Thursday, July 1, 2021 7:31 PM (fifty minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

so far so good

Jfc Milwaukee gotta stop making dumb mistakes like that

Look I refuse to believe they could blow a 20 point lead at home but they’re still doing all the shit that allows that to happen

unnerved when you get confident tbh

Yeah watching these games in a state of constant panic has worked well so far

Btw they’ve shot under 25% from 3 in the first half yet again

They’re finally getting a game where Jrue and Khris are playing well at the same time

the stars have finally aligned my friend

I know it’s one home game vs. a Hawks team without Trae but it really feels like this team + an MVP should never have a first half like they did in Game 4

Ok is it just me or are the Hawks like 5 of the same player right now

nah that's ilx

it really feels like this team + an MVP should never have a first half like they did in Game 4

I mean tbf I cannot remember seeing them play a half that bad

I wanna believe this is the night Brook Lopez has the game of his life

― Guayaquil (eephus!), Thursday, July 1, 2021 7:31 PM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

just wanna remind everybody I made this happen

106 of the bucks 123 points were scored by 4 guys

Brook has a 0.1% chance of making the HOF according to BB Ref, feel like his chances doubled tonight

lol

goddamn these playoffs have been a rollercoaster