The intense and excitement is in the air as spring rises which only means the NBA playoffs are going on.
The first round Game 1s brought surprises across the board as the Chicago Bulls witness their Most Valuable Player, Derrick Rose, go down in the late minutes against the Philadelphia 76ers with a torn ACL.
The costly injury to Rose has changed the picture in the Eastern Conference playoffs as the Bulls are close to zero percent to win the NBA championship this year.
The clear favorite to come out of the East is now the Miami Heat as it has been tearing up the New York Knicks with a 33-point win in Game 1.
The Knicks have felt the frustration with their 12 game losing streak in the playoffs as Amar'e Stoudemire punched the glass window of a fire extinguisher after the Game 2 loss.
The Boston Celtics are still hanging around as they were able to split the first two games against the Atlanta Hawks as the series heads back to Boston.
The Celtics are still showing they are capable of competing as Paul Pierce led the team to the victory as the team was without its starting guards, Rajon Rondo (who is serving a suspension) and Ray Allen (who has been out with an ankle injury).
In the last series in the East, the Orlando Magic are playing without its superstar center, Dwight Howard, as it has split the first two games with the Indiana Pacers as the series heads back to Orlando.
The Pacers are a young team as they were able to surprise the league this season with an impressive start but the team is inexperience in the postseason and winning the series against the Magic will be an accomplishment for Indiana.
Now the excitement swifts West as the playoff series in the Western Conference has been amazing as always.
The San Antonio Spurs came out swinging and dominating throughout the season as they were able to lock up the top spot in the West and draw a first round match against the Utah Jazz.
The Spurs are gliding through the Jazz and the series is looking to be one-sided and the Spurs will eventually end it in four.
The up and coming Los Angeles Clippers made a big impression in Game 1 versus the Memphis Grizzles as the Clippers were able to come back from 21 points and beat the Grizzles on the road.
The Grizzles have the edge in the series as they made noise last postseason with their first round upset against the Spurs, but with the task of beating the Clippers and Zack Randolph trying to come back from an early season injury, the Grizzles will have a tough time getting passed the Clippers.
The other Los Angeles team, the Lakers, have had their doubts from critics throughout the season but the Lakers are looking great as the postseason moves along.
The Lakers are being pulled by Andrew Bynum, who had a triple double in Game 1 against the Denver Nuggets, and Kobe Bryant, who had 38 points in Game 2 against the Nuggets, and at the same time the Lakers offense is looking solid as the defense is impressive.
The Lakers aren't the clear favorites in the West but they are making it known that they are out to kill and win another NBA championship.
The Lakers are deadly with a healthy Bryant, a dominating Bynum, a skilled Pau Gasol and a supporting cast of talented players such as Ramon Sessions, Matt Barnes, Steve Blake, Metta World-Peace, Devin Ebanks and Jordan Hill.
The last series in the West is between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the defending champion, Dallas Mavericks, the series looks like last year's second playoff series against the Mavericks and Lakers as the first two games could have went either way.
The Thunder lead the series 2-0 at the moment but the first two games have been so close that the Mavericks could have been leading 2-0 right now or at least the series could have been heading back to Dallas tied at one.
The Mavericks are not done yet in the series but they have to find a way to hold late leads because this series can easily go seven games and it would not be a surprised if Dallas wins the series.
The first games of round one have been finalized and it is only the beginning so as the first rounds play out and the postseason continues, the intense and excitement will rise to new stressful levels for the NBA fans.
And on a side note, the Lakers and Heat will be the teams to meet in this year's NBA finals as the Lakers edge the Heat for the championship in seven games.
Showing posts with label kevin durant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kevin durant. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Saturday, May 1, 2010
The Lakers beat their future competitors
The thunder has cleared for the Los Angeles Lakers and the path to a repeat has taken a new jazz tune.
The Lakers took care of business last night in Oklahoma City and put away the Thunder in six games to move on to the western conference semi-finals, and a match up against the Utah Jazz.
For a sixth game, the OKC Thunder fought hard and gave the Lakers one last offensive surge, only to fall a point short from forcing a game seven in Los Angeles.
The Lakers are moving on, but the Thunder are not gone for good.
A team that surpassed its expectations and grew up in front of our eys in six games; have made a name for themselves in the years to come.
The OKC Thunder are the real winners of this series against the defending champs. They played their hearts out and proved they can beat any team in the NBA and can go much further into the playoffs in the coming years.
With the trio combo of Kevin Durant, Russel Westbrook and Serge Ibaka and the supporting cast made up of Jeff Green, James Harden and Nick Collison, only makes this team one big free agent away from being a NBA championship contender.
They have shown they can score at will, defend when called upon and play with the best anywhere.
The OKC Thunder should not leave this series with its head down, because they won millions of people's hearts and respect, including the fans of the Lakers, who wished to cheer on the young team, but only hoped it was against another team.
They made the Lakers work for every point, every game and every win. They made people believe they had a chance to upset the champs.
Respect ... respect ... respect is the only word that comes to mind when I think about these guys. Durant has made me a fan of his and Westbrook has become a NBA all star in my eyes.
The players from Oklahoma City, are a team who came into the series against Los Angeles as the inexperience boys, and left the series as NBA veteran men looking to get back to the playoffs next season and finish what they left on the court last night.
This team was expected to make the playoffs this year and lose in the first round to the Lakers with no wins, but they were not expected to force the Lakers to a nearly seventh game.
The Lakers and the rest of the NBA now know they must acknowledge this team as a contender for now on.
The scariest fact about this Thunder team is that they are young and ready to improve.
The Lakers took care of business last night in Oklahoma City and put away the Thunder in six games to move on to the western conference semi-finals, and a match up against the Utah Jazz.
For a sixth game, the OKC Thunder fought hard and gave the Lakers one last offensive surge, only to fall a point short from forcing a game seven in Los Angeles.
The Lakers are moving on, but the Thunder are not gone for good.
A team that surpassed its expectations and grew up in front of our eys in six games; have made a name for themselves in the years to come.
The OKC Thunder are the real winners of this series against the defending champs. They played their hearts out and proved they can beat any team in the NBA and can go much further into the playoffs in the coming years.
With the trio combo of Kevin Durant, Russel Westbrook and Serge Ibaka and the supporting cast made up of Jeff Green, James Harden and Nick Collison, only makes this team one big free agent away from being a NBA championship contender.
They have shown they can score at will, defend when called upon and play with the best anywhere.
The OKC Thunder should not leave this series with its head down, because they won millions of people's hearts and respect, including the fans of the Lakers, who wished to cheer on the young team, but only hoped it was against another team.
They made the Lakers work for every point, every game and every win. They made people believe they had a chance to upset the champs.
Respect ... respect ... respect is the only word that comes to mind when I think about these guys. Durant has made me a fan of his and Westbrook has become a NBA all star in my eyes.
The players from Oklahoma City, are a team who came into the series against Los Angeles as the inexperience boys, and left the series as NBA veteran men looking to get back to the playoffs next season and finish what they left on the court last night.
This team was expected to make the playoffs this year and lose in the first round to the Lakers with no wins, but they were not expected to force the Lakers to a nearly seventh game.
The Lakers and the rest of the NBA now know they must acknowledge this team as a contender for now on.
The scariest fact about this Thunder team is that they are young and ready to improve.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Kevin Durant's MVP Thunder Season
The 2009-2010 NBA MVP should be Kevin Durant, because the man is pulling his Oklahoma City Thunder's team to possibly their first playoff appearance since moving from Seattle as the Supersonics.
Thus far Durant is averaging 29.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 2.9 apg, as the Thunder currently sit in the fifth seed of the Western conference with a record of 32-21.
Durant is averaging the same amount of points as LeBron James, who is leading all scorers with 29.9 ppg.
Many had expected the Thunder to make the playoffs this year, but not as good as possibly being the fifth seed or better.
Every year the Western conference is tight heading to the final weeks of the season, and this year is no surprise as it's the same.
From seeds 2-11, the teams are bunched up within 9.5 games apart, making it difficulty for any team to secure a playoff spot anytime soon.
The Los Angeles Lakers have secured the No. 1 spot since they acquired Pau Gasol two seasons ago, so no one is even trying to challenge the Los Angeles, but the Thunder can achieve any seed the wish.
Durant is valuable to be mentioned with James and Kobe Bryant for MVP and he should win since he is on the verge of putting his Thunders into the playoffs since the team moved to Oklahoma City three years ago.
Thus far Durant is averaging 29.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 2.9 apg, as the Thunder currently sit in the fifth seed of the Western conference with a record of 32-21.
Durant is averaging the same amount of points as LeBron James, who is leading all scorers with 29.9 ppg.
Many had expected the Thunder to make the playoffs this year, but not as good as possibly being the fifth seed or better.
Every year the Western conference is tight heading to the final weeks of the season, and this year is no surprise as it's the same.
From seeds 2-11, the teams are bunched up within 9.5 games apart, making it difficulty for any team to secure a playoff spot anytime soon.
The Los Angeles Lakers have secured the No. 1 spot since they acquired Pau Gasol two seasons ago, so no one is even trying to challenge the Los Angeles, but the Thunder can achieve any seed the wish.
Durant is valuable to be mentioned with James and Kobe Bryant for MVP and he should win since he is on the verge of putting his Thunders into the playoffs since the team moved to Oklahoma City three years ago.
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