Does Warriors, Phoenix, Change Thinking...

[Bricklayer]

What do you hang your hat on as far as team focus? The Mavs who everyone thought were in a class by themselves, look at their season record are quickly being embarrased by a scrappy fast/small team that barely made it into the playoffs and hasn't been there in some time. What can you honestly say is the way to build your team besides saying to have variety and being deep ala a Texas teams like the Mavs and Spurs with lots of tools in their arsenals.

The rules for building a title team have NEVER vaired, quite possibly in the entire history of the NBA, although might have been a one year burp here or there.

1) control the paint, means all kinds of things, means shotblocking, rebounding (particualrly DEFENSIVE rebounding), post offense, post defense, rotation and prevention of penetration etc. You build inside out.

2) find a true blue superstar who is the best player on the court night in and night out (unless faced wiht another superstar) and warps the game + drags his teammates along

3) have a pace, a system, and conviction in it. Know what your game is, who your #1 option is, #2, how you want to play, when you are playing "your game".

Them's the rules. Them's ALWAYS been the rules. Can maybe get by with mediocrity in one area in exchange for superiority in another, but all that does is make you a particularly weak likely one and done champion.


Dallas is struggling with both #2 and especially #3 right now. And Avery's lack of committment to principle #1 in Game 1 is looming large at this point. But Dirk has not been the best player in the series, and that "versatility", theoretically so prized, is being used against Dallas by Don Nelson the same way he used to frustrate ouor "versatility" when he was coaching the Mavs. Difference is, or at least a huge difference, that our near superstar of that era both accomplished #1 and demolished the Mavs inside as #2. Made #3 alone not enough until we lost him to the knee.

 

[Kingster]

This argument is silly. Golden State barely beat Dallas last night. It is not like they are absolutely dominating them. Just looking at the body language of the whole Dallas team they did not look like they thought they could win the game. If Dallas wins last night, the series is tied 2 - 2 and we aren't having this discussion. No one on the Dallas team wanted to shoot the ball. The only reason they are losing this series is mental. Golden State is fun to watch. But they aren't going to win a championship with the team they have now.

Golden State is on the verge of, "the greatest upset in NBA history" (Grant) and you say it's, "silly". I'd like to know what you think is serious.

 

[BRad1055]

If the Warriors win it will be the biggest upset in NBa playoff history.

 

[Kingster]

Dallas don't have a punishing scorer in the post so them playing big doesn't help. Dirk is a jump shooter. A guy like SAR could be going off on Golden state right now in fact SAR got 23 and 14 against them just a few weeks ago and he wasn't the #1 scorer. Somebody like SAR on Dallas right now would be owning GS.

I think SAR would have a heart attack if he played at this pace for more than 20 minutes a game.

 

[VF21]

Golden State is on the verge of, "the greatest upset in NBA history" (Grant) and you say it's, "silly". I'd like to know what you think is serious.

He said the argument was silly and backed it up with reasons. I'll summarize for you...He's basically positing that it's more Dallas beating themselves than the Warriors pulling the greatest upset of the modern era.

Quoting Grant Napear, by the way, is a lot like quoting Bill Walton. Just MHO, of course.

 

[Bricklayer]

If the Warriors win it will be the biggest upset in NBa playoff history.

Sure...well, probably. The Warriors have been causing the Mavs fits for the last few years. But yeah, #8 seed over a 67 game winner in a 7 game series is hard to beat.

But that's not the issue. Be a fun upset, but in the end, unless you are the Warriors/Mavs, so what? It knocks out probably the favorite to win it all, but if before the playoffs had started oyu had predicted the Suns, Spurs or even Pistons to win it all, people would hardly have raised an eyebrow. And that's the extent of the effect. Think anybody in Utah/Houston is routing for the Mavs to come back so that they don't have to face the fearsome Warriors? Hardly. Its a nice upset, but it doesn't lead anywhere.

P.S. Might, however, cause a shakeup in Mavs land -- our fortunes turned sour when we lost a series in 7 games against a 60 game winner after losing our best player to injury...the mental impact for the Mavs of losing this series against a vastly inferior opponent while completely healthy has to be far greater (although it should be noted last time this happened the Sonics shook it off nicely and came back to challenge the Bulls in the Finals).

 

[VF21]

P.S. Might, however, cause a shakeup in Mavs land -- our fortunes turned sour when we lost a series in 7 games against a 60 game winner after losing our best player to injury...the mental impact for the Mavs of losing this series against a vastly inferior opponent while completely healthy has to be far greater (although it should be noted last time this happened the Sonics shook it off nicely and came back to challenge the Bulls in the Finals).

Having seen the look on Mark Cuban's face, I strongly suspect he's already figuring out how much money he's going to have to spend to "fix" his team.

 

[Kingster]

The rules for building a title team have NEVER vaired, quite possibly in the entire history of the NBA, although might have been a one year burp here or there.

1) control the paint, means all kinds of things, means shotblocking, rebounding (particualrly DEFENSIVE rebounding), post offense, post defense, rotation and prevention of penetration etc. You build inside out.

2) find a true blue superstar who is the best player on the court night in and night out (unless faced wiht another superstar) and warps the game + drags his teammates along

3) have a pace, a system, and conviction in it. Know what your game is, who your #1 option is, #2, how you want to play, when you are playing "your game".

Them's the rules. Them's ALWAYS been the rules. Can maybe get by with mediocrity in one area in exchange for superiority in another, but all that does is make you a particularly weak likely one and done champion.


Dallas is struggling with both #2 and especially #3 right now. And Avery's lack of committment to principle #1 in Game 1 is looming large at this point. But Dirk has not been the best player in the series, and that "versatility", theoretically so prized, is being used against Dallas by Don Nelson the same way he used to frustrate ouor "versatility" when he was coaching the Mavs. Difference is, or at least a huge difference, that our near superstar of that era both accomplished #1 and demolished the Mavs inside as #2. Made #3 alone not enough until we lost him to the knee.

Oh, come on. The game has changed, and you're totally ignoring it. The old game didn't have a 3 point shot, didn't have the expanded lane, didn't have the illegal defense, didn't have the ticky-tack calls on the guards. No way in HADES do the Warriors have a chance with the old game. They would be swept 4-0 with the old game. With the new game, they are up 3-1 over the #1 seed, the team with the best record in the entire NBA, the team many were predicting to win it all. This could be the greatest upset in NBA history. And you're saying everything it is as it always has been? (By the way, Dallas outrebounded the Warriors last night by a zillion, and they still won.) As for Dirk, he hasn't been as great as usual in this series because the pace is too freaking fast for him. Anybody watching these games can see that. The only chance that Dallas has is to slow down it down to Dirk-pace. But that's easier said than done.

And another thing that makes the Warrior's performance so significant: their bench has been mediocre at best. I've heard Dallas's bench lauded as the deepest in the NBA. That makes the Warrior's results so far that much more significant.

 

[BMiller52]

Sure...well, probably. The Warriors have been causing the Mavs fits for the last few years. But yeah, #8 seed over a 67 game winner in a 7 game series is hard to beat.

But that's not the issue. Be a fun upset, but in the end, unless you are the Warriors/Mavs, so what? It knocks out probably the favorite to win it all, but if before the playoffs had started oyu had predicted the Suns, Spurs or even Pistons to win it all, people would hardly have raised an eyebrow. And that's the extent of the effect. Think anybody in Utah/Houston is routing for the Mavs to come back so that they don't have to face the fearsome Warriors? Hardly. Its a nice upset, but it doesn't lead anywhere.

P.S. Might, however, cause a shakeup in Mavs land -- our fortunes turned sour when we lost a series in 7 games against a 60 game winner after losing our best player to injury...the mental impact for the Mavs of losing this series against a vastly inferior opponent while completely healthy has to be far greater (although it should be noted last time this happened the Sonics shook it off nicely and came back to challenge the Bulls in the Finals).

IMO Cuban might make some crazy moves that seem like a knee jerk reaction or whatever you call it. I could see him do something crazy like trading for Ron, or trading Josh Howard, or firing Avery...

 

[Bricklayer]

Oh, come on. The game has changed, and you're totally ignoring it. The old game didn't have a 3 point shot, didn't have the expanded lane, didn't have the illegal defense, didn't have the ticky-tack calls on the guards.

What in the heck are you talking about?

I fear your wild enthusiasm over a fun little series has unhinged you a bit.

Teh 3pt shot has been around in the NBA for 25 years. The expanded lane? Only in internatinal ball. Illegal defense? How long have you been watching? The illegal defense rules are far more LAX now then they were until about 5 years ago when you had to play man defense and could not lurk in the paint. The "ticky tack" calls on the guards being this oft-cited boondoggle while the top teams in teh league continue cruisng along and winnign titles with their Wallace's, Shaq's, Duncan's anchoring the middle.

Those rules applied in the days when EVERY team scored 100ppg, EVERY ngiht. They applied in the 60's when Bill Russel won you titles. In the 70's when Wilt, Kareem, Cowens, Unseld, Walton etc. won you titles, in the 80's when Kareem, Moses, Parrish won you titles, in the 90's when Duncan, Hakeem, Shaq, Rodman, Mailman, Barkley etc. slammed around in there, and right through this century as every title has gone to a team with at least one, and normally multiple, outstanding bigs.

And there's always a new crop of "everything's changed" people out there. And it never does. Because the key factors -- the hoop is 10' off the ground at the back of the paint -- never do.

P.S. an historical note BTW -- this is hardly the first upset or near upset that Don Nelson has engineered. He's like a knuckleballer -- will never be the best, but alwasy has a chance to mess you up, no matter how good you are.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Whatever you wish. You put the prediction out there; I'm saying I'll revisit it. I'm beginning to believe you just try and cover ALL the bases so you can claim to be right. Evidence the plethora of trade deals.

I'm bookmarking it too, but first I need to know one thing: Is this a money back guarantee??? If I go out and buy some Mavs gear, plane tickets and tickets to the remaining games to root them on and they lose will Smills refund my money?

Otherwise, what exactly is a guarantee worth?

Back to the topic at hand, I agree with those that think this is largely mental and perhaps has a lot to do with Nellie coaching against his old team. I know football is not the best comparison to basketball but the most recent thing I can think of is when Gruden coached against the Raiders in the Super Bowl and absolutely destroyed them by exploiting weaknesses that nobody else knew existed. Nellie knows this team inside and out and that's an extreme advantage for the Warriors in this series.

As for the Suns they've yet to win anything of significance so I'm not sure they've proven anything other than that you can win a lot of regular season games. But I think any team with a possible 3 time league MVP is going to do that.

 

[ParniValjak]

What do you hang your hat on as far as team focus? The Mavs who everyone thought were in a class by themselves, look at their season record are quickly being embarrased by a scrappy fast/small team that barely made it into the playoffs and hasn't been there in some time. What can you honestly say is the way to build your team besides saying to have variety and being deep ala a Texas teams like the Mavs and Spurs with lots of tools in their arsenals.

God help us who have no cohesiveness and focus, coach, crappy contracts, etc. I really think the Suns will win it all, besides having an incredibally fast and atheletic team, they have 3 or more All-Stars in Nash, Stod., Marion, also 6th man of the year in the speedster Barbosa. A good lock down wing man in Bell, and a good big man who isn't that big at 6'8" in Diaw. The only team that can beat the Suns is the Suns themselves, if they play their game I don't see anyone beating them, you need to slow them down and make them play your game or play outstanding lock down defense to have a chance. There are quite a few guys on the team that you don't know who the heck they are, but they are very deep 8-9 man rotation.

Suns are constucted differently to Warriors. As Bricklayer said, Suns have a stud big man. Warriors small ball might get them out of the first round but not much further. Suns have a high octane offence but they also have a legitimate dominant big in Amare.

Take Amare out of that line up and you are left with a team that just can't go all the way regardless of how much talent they have assembled.

 

[LPKingsFan]

Reading this thread again scares me. I bet the 6'7 athlete thing was Geoff's plan all along, too: trot out a lineup of Salmons, Martin, Garcia, Artest and SAR and hire Nelson to run them off into oblivion--then the Maloofs screwed things up by insisting on Whiz, then Muss as a compromise.

 

[SacTownKid]

They're not useless at all. If anything, they're the antidote to teams like the Warriors (especially the Warriors)

Dallas keeps losing because they don't have any low-post presence to punish the Warriors for having an undersized lineup. Also, a big man eats up the rebounds and should create huge rebounding disparities.

Exactly. If the Warriors make it to round 2 and meet the Rockets or the Jazz for that matter, they're toast.

 

[VF21]

I'm bookmarking it too, but first I need to know one thing: Is this a money back guarantee??? If I go out and buy some Mavs gear, plane tickets and tickets to the remaining games to root them on and they lose will Smills refund my money?

Otherwise, what exactly is a guarantee worth?

My point exactly.

Back to the topic at hand, I agree with those that think this is largely mental and perhaps has a lot to do with Nellie coaching against his old team. I know football is not the best comparison to basketball but the most recent thing I can think of is when Gruden coached against the Raiders in the Super Bowl and absolutely destroyed them by exploiting weaknesses that nobody else knew existed. Nellie knows this team inside and out and that's an extreme advantage for the Warriors in this series.

I have to cosign on this, too. More than a few times, the camera has focused on Nelson right after the Mavs did something less than spectacular and you could almost see the little yellow feathers sticking out of the corner of his mouth. He KNOWS those players and it's definitely a factor in this matchup.

 

[Smills91]

I'm bookmarking it too, but first I need to know one thing: Is this a money back guarantee??? If I go out and buy some Mavs gear, plane tickets and tickets to the remaining games to root them on and they lose will Smills refund my money?

Otherwise, what exactly is a guarantee worth?

Back to the topic at hand, I agree with those that think this is largely mental and perhaps has a lot to do with Nellie coaching against his old team. I know football is not the best comparison to basketball but the most recent thing I can think of is when Gruden coached against the Raiders in the Super Bowl and absolutely destroyed them by exploiting weaknesses that nobody else knew existed. Nellie knows this team inside and out and that's an extreme advantage for the Warriors in this series.

As for the Suns they've yet to win anything of significance so I'm not sure they've proven anything other than that you can win a lot of regular season games. But I think any team with a possible 3 time league MVP is going to do that.

Why does this become a one-sided bet...I just promise you that Dallas will win this series, if they don't then I'll eat crow. But I don't understand where you get off thinking that bets are one-sided just because I have the odds stacked up against me.

 

[Entity]

Kingster I have argued with Brick this same point for about 3 years. Now I see it his way over this past season I payed attention. Shooting and running is great and fun but, when it comes down to it the Paint is the key. You See Dallas can't dominate the paint so therefore GS is running them to death. Now when either team meets up with a dominant post player offensive or defensive they will lose. Dallas only beat the Spurs last year because Duncan was not even 70%. If I had to pick a team right now it would be Detroit. They have swagger, size, experience, and talent to beat any team in the playoffs.

Basically you will NEVER win a championship without a stud down low. We came close with Webber and Vlade. Since they left we have only sniffed the playoffs. Like Brick said look at your previous champs and take a gander at their frontline and even the backups for the frontline.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Why does this become a one-sided bet...I just promise you that Dallas will win this series, if they don't then I'll eat crow. But I don't understand where you get off thinking that bets are one-sided just because I have the odds stacked up against me.

I think you missed my point since you've withdrawn the guarantee that you can't back up but substituted it with a promise that you have no ability to keep

I don't want to bet you, I was just funnin a lil bit. Cheers!

 

[Superman]

I think the Suns can win it all.

I think they can, simply because they have Nash and Stoudemire. But I wouldn't pick them in a seven game series against the Spurs or the Pistons.

Why wouldn't they be able to?

Because when they have to play a team that can punish them for not playing consistent defense and just pound the ball down low on them, they sputter. Everytime. Having a legitimate post presence and players that can hit jump shots when the big man passes out of the double team is what has hurt the Suns the past three seasons. This is their best shot this year, but I'm still not picking them.

And even if they do win it all, it would be an anomaly. There hasn't been a championship team in several decades that played the way the Suns play.

Amare is a beast around the hoop and Bell is a great lock down wing defender. Barbosa with his quickness is also very hard to guard as well as can and will get in front of people, Marion too is quick and athletic etc. Playing good defense is not all about being athletic, but it sure does help, next is actually making a concerted effort to do it and have your team do it as well.

I agree with what you say, but I don't think anyone would call the Suns a very good defensive team. Their game plan is to outscore you. They're so potent offensively that it's actually a good game plan, but if you have the ability to reduce the number of possessions and shoot a high percentage, then you take them out of their game plan, and then their strengths are minimized.

Teams that win many times are very cohesive and I don't see too many teams as cohesive as the Suns. Look how many times Nash and throw a no look pass in the air and get the ball to his teammate for a wide open look, look at him getting 20 assist games, that doesn't happen by accident. Sure Nash is an amazing player, but his team sure helps him out as he does for them!!!
Bottom line, this team is a lot of fun to watch, not only for their athletism, but also their cohesiveness and the degree to which they work together as a well oiled machine, not a scrap heap like our team!!!

I think they're exciting and entertaining, but they have their warts, and major ones, too. Compared with just about every other NBA champion in history, they aren't built to win in the playoffs. When matched up against a team that can make them alter their game plan (like San Antonio or Detroit), they fall short.

Maybe this is their year, but I don't think that should mean we try to build our team like they've built their team. I don't think it's a good formula for a championship team.

And as far as the Warriors are concerned, they barely even made the playoffs. If they pull off the upset - and I'm hoping they do - it would be one and done for them. The Rockets will likely beat the Jazz, and they'd lose to the Rockets. Even if they didn't, they don't stand a chance against the Spurs or the Suns. They are not a championship caliber team. Just a great storyline that will grab a paragraph or two in the history books, if they finish this series off with a win.

 

[VF21]

I think they can, simply because they have Nash and Stoudemire. But I wouldn't pick them in a seven game series against the Spurs or the Pistons.

I agree with what you say, but I don't think anyone would call the Suns a very good defensive team. Their game plan is to outscore you. They're so potent offensively that it's actually a good game plan, but if you have the ability to reduce the number of possessions and shoot a high percentage, then you take them out of their game plan, and then their strengths are minimized.

I think they're exciting and entertaining, but they have their warts, and major ones, too. Compared with just about every other NBA champion in history, they aren't built to win in the playoffs. When matched up against a team that can make them alter their game plan (like San Antonio or Detroit), they fall short.

So, to sum up, the Suns are the perfect fodder for the Pistons in the NBA finals?

Works for me.

 

[Kingster]

Kingster I have argued with Brick this same point for about 3 years. Now I see it his way over this past season I payed attention. Shooting and running is great and fun but, when it comes down to it the Paint is the key. You See Dallas can't dominate the paint so therefore GS is running them to death. Now when either team meets up with a dominant post player offensive or defensive they will lose. Dallas only beat the Spurs last year because Duncan was not even 70%. If I had to pick a team right now it would be Detroit. They have swagger, size, experience, and talent to beat any team in the playoffs.

I don't think Detroits going to do it. If either Phoenix or the Warriors played them, I think both teams would beat them. Detroit doesn't have a dominant offensive low post player and I think you'd better have that against either one of those teams. I think Webber would be a big zero against both of those teams. Wallace doesn't have it mentally or emotionally to go down low. So what's left? Just Phoenix or Golden State going to the races...

My emphasis on quickness, speed, and athleticism in assessing talent is not "all or nothing", absolutist argument. It's about weighting more heavily the factors of quickness, speed, athleticsm, and underweighting height. Although I will say, I think the door to Petrie's office should read: NO SLOW GUYS WANTED (even if they are 7'2").

This is how I would weight the non-skill factors in assessing player talent:
(In the past, I might have weighted the factors as .50-.50)

Quickness/Speed/Athleticism: .65
Height: .35

Assume 10 is the highest score for each category. Therefore, 10 is the highest total score. When I assess Hibbert, it would be:

Quickness/Speed/Athleticism: .65 x 3 = 1.95
Height: .35 x 10 = 3.5

Total: 5.5

A little above average for the NBA. Seems about right. He's not good enough offensively to punish a smaller, quicker team. He's not fast and quick enough to give them significant problems on the defensive end. I think he'd blow a gasket in a running game with either Phoenix or the Warriors.

No one's disagreeing about having a dominant big man. But that's a straw man: how many teams ever do get that dominant big man? And who wouldn't? Yeah, I think I'd probably take a young Shaq or Kareem over say, any of the 6'8" guys in the league.

Basically you will NEVER win a championship without a stud down low. We came close with Webber and Vlade. Since they left we have only sniffed the playoffs. Like Brick said look at your previous champs and take a gander at their frontline and even the backups for the frontline.

Not entirely correct. Robert Parish wasn't a dominant center. Golden State won without a dominant center. Detroit again didn't have a dominant center -Wallace isn't. Moreover, all that is in the past. New rules, new game. With those new rules, the dominant center becomes less important in the future than in the past. Or maybe, the definition that we have concerning what is in fact "dominant" becomes different. Maybe the "dominant" center will not be as tall, but will be more athletic.

 

[Superman]

I don't think Detroits going to do it. If either Phoenix or the Warriors played them, I think both teams would beat them. Detroit doesn't have a dominant offensive low post player and I think you'd better have that against either one of those teams. I think Webber would be a big zero against both of those teams. Wallace doesn't have it mentally or emotionally to go down low. So what's left? Just Phoenix or Golden State going to the races...

This Warrior craze is amazing. All of a sudden, the 8th seeded team everyone had getting swept in the first round is capable of beating a team with one of the best defenses in the League, with an offense that can score inside, outside, and from midrange? The Warriors are exploiting the Mavs weaknesses, and are doing a great job at it. But they are still not good enough to beat a team with an inside presence. In fact, the Mavs are playing like wusses, and that's the major reason the Warriors are beating them.

What can Phoenix or Golden State do to keep Webber from being a factor? Double team him? Everyone on the Pistons can shoot, and Webber is an expert at passing out of the double team. Deny him the ball in the post? That means someone has to sag off of a shooter.

Detroit is great at making teams take tough shots and keeping them off the offensive glass, and they play the passing lanes well enough to keep their opponents' assist/TO ratio to a minimum (1.4/1.0). All this contributes to their ability to slow the game down to a pace their comfortable with. That's how they were able to go on the road and force 22 Suns turnovers, holding them to just 83 points. Webber didn't have any trouble keeping up with the Suns in that one; had a nice, well-rounded game with 17 points and 9 rebounds in almost 40 minutes.

They don't have to have a "dominant" force inside, in the historical sense (see: Shaquille O'Neal, Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwan, etc.) The Bulls were able to do it without a dominant inside force. Of course, the Pistons don't have MJ, but they have a well-rounded team, and they have two players that can and will consistently score with their backs to the basket in Webber and McDyess. Those players will cause matchup problems all over the floor.

The Suns can beat the Pistons. It's a rough matchup for the Suns because the Pistons have an identity and they play their game, no matter what. But the Suns can beat them in a seven game series. The Warriors can't, and we probably won't see the Warriors face the Pistons in a seven game series this year, because they're not good enough to make it out of the West.

 

[Smills91]

The Warriors suck and will manage to lose this series, I can't wait to see it happen either.

 

[Entity]

Are you just making up words? I never said Center. I said Frontline. Parish had Bird and Wallace had well Wallace. PhX may well have chance because they have Amare who can play the post. Also as far as your assesment numbers and calculations of how YOU rate players is well..... (just leave it at that well). A dominant Center is NEVER less important. Take Shaq 6 years ago or Hakeem in his prime and GS PHX Dallas all get swept in 4.

 

[Kingster]

So, to sum up, the Suns are the perfect fodder for the Pistons in the NBA finals?

Works for me.

LOL! I think the Suns would have their way with Detroit. Webber playing Phoenix would be hilarious. The poor guy would have to another knee surgery after the first game. Wallace never has shown the fortitude to score down low. I don't see them matching up.

 

[VF21]

LOL! I think the Suns would have their way with Detroit. Webber playing Phoenix would be hilarious. The poor guy would have to another knee surgery after the first game. Wallace never has shown the fortitude to score down low. I don't see them matching up.

Since I was replying to Superman, I'll use some more of his stuff to respond...

Detroit is great at making teams take tough shots and keeping them off the offensive glass, and they play the passing lanes well enough to keep their opponents' assist/TO ratio to a minimum (1.4/1.0). All this contributes to their ability to slow the game down to a pace their comfortable with. That's how they were able to go on the road and force 22 Suns turnovers, holding them to just 83 points. Webber didn't have any trouble keeping up with the Suns in that one; had a nice, well-rounded game with 17 points and 9 rebounds in almost 40 minutes.

They don't have to have a "dominant" force inside, in the historical sense (see: Shaquille O'Neal, Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwan, etc.) The Bulls were able to do it without a dominant inside force. Of course, the Pistons don't have MJ, but they have a well-rounded team, and they have two players that can and will consistently score with their backs to the basket in Webber and McDyess. Those players will cause matchup problems all over the floor.

Now, he does say this:

The Suns can beat the Pistons. It's a rough matchup for the Suns because the Pistons have an identity and they play their game, no matter what. But the Suns can beat them in a seven game series.

I'd love to see a Suns/Pistons final because of the drastic differences in the two styles of play. I was kidding - a little - about the "fodder" comment, which is why I used the winking emoticon.

 

[Kingster]

Reading this thread again scares me. I bet the 6'7 athlete thing was Geoff's plan all along, too: trot out a lineup of Salmons, Martin, Garcia, Artest and SAR and hire Nelson to run them off into oblivion--then the Maloofs screwed things up by insisting on Whiz, then Muss as a compromise.

I don't know if Petrie had a plan. He ended up with a schitzo team - 1/2 slow as molasses, the other athletic. It's like he couldn't make up his mind what he wanted.

 

[Smills91]

The Warriors suck and will manage to lose this series, I can't wait to see it happen either.

1 down 2 more to go.

 

[Warhawk]

1 down 2 more to go.

So, have you broken your arm patting yourself on the back over a prediction that isn't even halfway true yet?

 

[Kingster]

1 down 2 more to go.

If they come back and win the next 2, all I can say is, I hope you're as right about your icon as you are about your prediction!