OT: 2018-19 NBA Thread.

[FlashUNC]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

I think I'd go Klay on Kawhi (who is clearly only about 75% himself) and Iguodala on Siakam. Dray can take Gasol/Ibaka so you can switch any PNR and KD/Curry on Lowry/FVV/Danny Green.

I agree that putting either of the injured guys on the hyper fast-twitch Siakam is asking to get burnt and/or reinjured. Kawhi is also an otherworldly athlete, but he seems to want to use patient technique and raw strength to generate space.

Also, since I forgot to say this earlier:

Completely untethered Steph Curry is the best Steph Curry, even if you're rooting for the other team. What a performance.

Kawhi definitely looks like he's measuring his efforts offensively, and only asserting himself on that end opportunistically, and when the team needs a calming force to get them a bucket. The Sixers-series iso-heavy stuff has mostly disappeared. They're feasting with Gasol at the elbow doing his Jokic impersonation. And Fred Van Vleet Sr continues to be the greatest shooter alive.

Last night's Curry was total Davidson-era, vintage Curry, but also a stark reminder of why you can only drag a team so far, transcendent as it may have been. It was a little surreal seeing the role reversal from the 2015 Finals of a one-man Warriors show going against the onslaught of a deep team flying around from all corners.

And I learned last night while I find Drake insufferable, I'll take whatever he does over random rich white dude pushing Kyle Lowry for no reason. The Warriors courtside fans did themselves no favors last night.

[RonW87]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

And I learned last night while I find Drake insufferable, I'll take whatever he does over random rich white dude pushing Kyle Lowry for no reason. The Warriors courtside fans did themselves no favors last night.

I was so happy when that fan pushed Lowry. He plays better when he's angry.

[Jaybee]

Raps/Ws at even odds to win the series now.

Crazy.

[jtakeda]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

Raps/Ws at even odds to win the series now.

Crazy.

It’s nice that game 4 is tomorrow—I like the 2 day break vs 3 day

[Jaybee]

Originally Posted by jtakeda

It’s nice that game 4 is tomorrow—I like the 2 day break vs 3 day

For fans, definitely. I'm sure the W's would like one more day to Klay/KD healthy.

I'm most excited that the most likely outcome from this point is a 7 game series. More basketball is always better.

[jacobslide]

Here's hoping A) the Warriors get healthy, and B) the refs are significantly better from here on out.

[Jaybee]

Any specific ref complaints? Maybe Ibaka's 2 goaltends that weren't called? Seriously, I think the refs have been largely insignificant in terms of impact this series, even if the Foster-Malloy-Brothers trio definitely made themselves known (and those 3 were always going to do that). Relative to the quality of play, I think the officiating has been fairly consistent, mostly non-noticeable, and had zero impact on the outcome of any of these games.

The ref pool at this point is pretty much the 12 guys who are the best on the planet at officiating basketball. They are still humans and make mistakes, but it doesn't get much better than this absent an overhaul of the entire officiating system. If you're complaining about the refs at this point, you should have to watch the last 3 minutes of Texas Tech/Virginia in perpetuity.

[jtakeda]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

For fans, definitely. I'm sure the W's would like one more day to Klay/KD healthy.

I'm most excited that the most likely outcome from this point is a 7 game series. More basketball is always better.

I’m a warriors fan. But I’m also a sports fan in general. 7 game > anything.

Sweeps are boring

[Jaybee]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

And I learned last night while I find Drake insufferable, I'll take whatever he does over random rich white dude pushing Kyle Lowry for no reason. The Warriors courtside fans did themselves no favors last night.

Oh yay.

That RRWD has a minority stake in the team.

[bshell]

Wow. We're watching different games if you think the officiating has not had an impact.

I'll give you consistent though.

[FlashUNC]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

Oh yay.

That RRWD has a minority stake in the team.

Yup, Jimmy from Degrassi is way more tolerable than that dipwad.

[Jaybee]

Originally Posted by bshell

Wow. We're watching different games if you think the officiating has not had an impact.

I'll give you consistent though.

Do you think it's really tilted the series in one direction or the other? Sure, W's fans can list, probably correctly, numerous instances of Curry getting mugged offball, Pascal being handsy, Gasol moving screens, questionable Lowry charges, the two obvious missed goaltends in G3. Similarly, Raps fans can cite numerous instances of Dray/Bogut moving screens, Iggy with both hands full of Siakam's jersey, Kawhi not getting calls going to the basket, Lowry blocking fouls that should have been charges, and on and on.

The point isn't that the officials have gotten every call right - they haven't, and until we have AI doing it, they never will. The point is that they haven't meaningfully affected the outcome. There's no call or series of calls that if they go the other way, make this series anything other than 2-1 Raptors right now. What has mattered in this series so far is the quality of play and the available personnel. Officiating pales in comparison to that in terms of impact.

Just one guys opinion.

[jacobslide]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

Any specific ref complaints? Maybe Ibaka's 2 goaltends that weren't called? Seriously, I think the refs have been largely insignificant in terms of impact this series, even if the Foster-Malloy-Brothers trio definitely made themselves known (and those 3 were always going to do that). Relative to the quality of play, I think the officiating has been fairly consistent, mostly non-noticeable, and had zero impact on the outcome of any of these games.

The ref pool at this point is pretty much the 12 guys who are the best on the planet at officiating basketball. They are still humans and make mistakes, but it doesn't get much better than this absent an overhaul of the entire officiating system. If you're complaining about the refs at this point, you should have to watch the last 3 minutes of Texas Tech/Virginia in perpetuity.

The two Ibaka goaltends, the basket interference on Bogut, the offensive foul on Cook where he knocked in to Lowry, were all painfully bad misses and at big times.

[jacobslide]

Originally Posted by Jaybee

Do you think it's really tilted the series in one direction or the other? Sure, W's fans can list, probably correctly, numerous instances of Curry getting mugged offball, Pascal being handsy, Gasol moving screens, questionable Lowry charges, the two obvious missed goaltends in G3. Similarly, Raps fans can cite numerous instances of Dray/Bogut moving screens, Iggy with both hands full of Siakam's jersey, Kawhi not getting calls going to the basket, Lowry blocking fouls that should have been charges, and on and on.

The point isn't that the officials have gotten every call right - they haven't, and until we have AI doing it, they never will. The point is that they haven't meaningfully affected the outcome. There's no call or series of calls that if they go the other way, make this series anything other than 2-1 Raptors right now. What has mattered in this series so far is the quality of play and the available personnel. Officiating pales in comparison to that in terms of impact.

Just one guys opinion.

I didn't expect a win last night for the Warriors, but taking 9 points off the board coupled with a couple travels on Kawhi and Siakam that weren't called a different game could've happened - all seemed to be rally killers.

[jacobslide]

I'll be curious to see what the L2M report says, though most of the bad calls seemed to happen earlier in the game. The L2M report from game 2 had what 4 or 5 missed or incorrect calls. That is a lot in my mind. One every thirty seconds, on essentially every other possession?