CMan's NBA First Round Recap

The first round play of the 2013 NBA playoffs are history with the Bulls game 7 victory over Brooklyn tonight. Here is a quick recap of the first round series and how my predictions fared.

We'll start in the East:

Miami vs Milwaukee. (Heat 4-0)

As I stated in my preview the Bucks, an under .500 regular season team, had no business in the playoffs and they proved me right by losing in a mostly uncontested sweep to the Heat. Miami hardly broke a sweat in the four games and looks like they are prepared to repeat as NBA Champions.

New York vs Boston. (Knicks 4-2)

The Celtics fought hard and played pretty well all series even managing a win in New York in game 5. However they lost the first 3 games and no team has recovered from a 3-0 first round deficit. The Knicks went on to win game 6 in Boston,  after losing 2 in a row,  to close out the Celtics 4-2.

Indiana vs Atlanta. (Pacers 4-2)

The Hawks were who I thought they were despite winning their first two home games to tie the series at 2-2. The loss in game 5 was to much too handle and they only partially showed up in game 6 in Atlanta. My guess, vacation plans were already in process. Atlanta continues to be a Major league city that plays well in all sports during the regular season but falters when it matters.

Brooklyn vs Chicago. (Bulls 4-3)

This series went as predicted. The Bulls and the Nets played a tough, nail biting series with both teams winning games on the others court. I predicted if the Bulls can get the series to a game 7 they would win, and they did. The 4 vs 5 match up is always a pick-em and this one didn't disappoint. It was the only series to go 7 games in the first round.

With the Bulls victory I go 4-0 in the East. I didn't fare as well in the West. No one saw the Warriors coming or the sudden loss of All-Star Russell Westbrook in OKC.

Now, The unpredictable West:

Oklahoma City vs Houston. (Thunder 4-2)

The loss of Westbrook sent shock waves through the entire NBA family. It's tough enough for the players to adapt to playing without their on court leader, imagine being Thunder Head Coach Scott Brooks. An NBA coach uses the 82 game regular season to fine tune the starting and reserve rotations for the playoffs, all of that preparation is thrown out. The game 3 win by OKC in Houston was an emotional one and put the Thunder up 3-0 in the series. Then reality set in as Houston wins games 4 and 5 with relative ease. It took good coaching and a gut check by the Thunder team to pull out a game 6 win in Houston. It took an entire team effort and that's what the Thunder got. With Westbrook,  this series is a sweep. No rest for the weary, The Grizzlies come calling tomorrow.

San Antonio vs Los Angeles Lakers. (Spurs 4-0)

The loss of Kobe Bryant in the season finale was devastating to the Lakers. Kobe guaranteed they would make the playoffs, and they did, but they were never going to beat the Spurs without him. It would have been an uphill battle with Bryant. In fact, the Lakers were so depleted by the end of the series even their own announcers weren't sure who was on the court. The result, a painfully easy sweep for the Spurs and it came with and extended rest for one of the oldest teams in the playoffs.

Denver vs Golden State. (Warriors 4-2)

I don't think very many people saw this coming with the possible exception of Warrior head coach Mark Jackson. Denver won a tight game 1 at home by 2 and then Golden state reeled off 3 consecutive wins going away. I don't think Denver knew what hit them. Perhaps the loss of Gallinari hurt more than I originally though or the Nuggets were looking past the Warriors. Denver managed to win game 5 at home put it only postponed the inevitable game 6 victory by the Warriors at home.

Los Angeles Clippers vs Memphis. (Grizzlies 4-2)

This series went a lot like my prediction. Tough, hard fought contest with a lot of pushing and shoving. At times it looked as if the Clippers Blake Griffin and the Grizzlies Zach Randolph were involved in an MMA championship fight.  However, I thought the Clippers would pull it out. I thought wrong. No one wants to play Memphis in a series, they are stingy defensively and they are...well...thugs. And, the Clippers were banged up going in. After winning the first two games in LA, holding Memphis to 91 each game, the Clippers looked good for a series win, however, once the Grizzlies got back to Memphis it all changed. Four games later and the Clippers were going on vacation.

So, I ended the Western Conference 2-2. My overall record stands at 6-2, not too bad. I think it just proves that the West is by far the stronger conference. Keep in mind though, it only takes one team to win it all.  Looks like Buster and I will tie in the first round. Stay tuned for my second round picks!


For Buster.

Thunder Update 7: Final Two Games

The Oklahoma City Thunder now has a one game lead over the San Antonio Spurs for the best record in the Western Conference. With a win over the Sacramento Kings tonight the Thunder will clinch the one seed for the first time since moving to Oklahoma City. Getting the one seed in the playoffs is a huge step forward for this organization. It shows that even as good as a season that we had last year, there is still much room for improvement. The Thunder are really coming along as a team and cleaning up the sloppy mistakes they were making a month ago. Oklahoma City has had a solid season of basketball, but they are peaking to their best ability right before playoff time. This is exactly what needs to happen in order for the Thunder to get another shot at the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.

The Thunder’s last game was against Portland in Oregon. Oklahoma City won by a score of 106-90. The Thunder swept the season series winning all four games, and scoring over 100 points three of the four victories. Russell Westbrook played an outstanding game scoring 33 points, 17 of which came in the third quarter. Oklahoma City clinched their third straight division title after the game when the Mavericks defeated the Nuggets 108-105 in overtime. Durant recorded 16 points and 5 rebounds as he “joked” around through the majority of this game. Reggie Jackson was the second leading scorer on the night with 17 points. Jackson also had 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

There are only two games remaining in the regular season, both are at home for the Thunder. As if it wasn’t important enough to finish out the season on a win streak, now the Thunder need a must win in order to clinch the one seed. The Thunder has played very well this season against the Kings as they lead the season series 2-0. The Kings are still in their normal state of being as they continue to struggle this season. Sacramento has a record of 28-52 and is currently on a two game losing streak. If the Thunder plays a decent game they will come out of this with a win and the number one seed in their pockets. Almost the same situation as the game against the Kings, the Thunder will play the Milwaukee Bucks at home on Wednesday night for the final game of the regular season. Neither of these teams matches up well against Oklahoma City. If the Thunder does not finish the season on a win streak, I think it is safe to say that it will be more than just a disappointment.

If you do not already know that Kevin Durant does not care about the scoring title at all, then I will go ahead and tell you now. Durant bluntly said in a press conference regarding Carmelo Anthony about the scoring title “he can have it!” Durant could care less about winning his fourth scoring title if it means that his team will be better as a direct result of it. Durant is currently in second place in scoring in the league with 28.1 points per game, just .6 behind the leader Carmelo Anthony. It is nearly impossible for Durant to win it at this point, even if he wanted to. Serge Ibaka is currently the leagues leader in blocked shots with 3.06 per game and will most likely stay that way through the remainder of the season. Russell Westbrook is tied for sixth in the league in assists with 7.5 per game. With the ability of Durant to score thirty points on any given night, with Ibaka to defend the paint better than anyone else, and Russell not only scoring but sharing the ball, there is no reason why the Thunder should not be able to make another run for the NBA Title.


Here are the current standings through 80 games:
*4/15/13 Note Worthy: Oklahoma City takes a one game lead over the Spurs for the best record in the West.
Eastern Conference Standings:

Atlantic:
New York(53-27)
Brooklyn(47-33)
Boston(41-39)
Philadelphia(33-47)
Toronto(32-48)

Central:
Indiana(49-31)
Chicago(43-27)
Milwaukee(37-43)
Detroit(28-52)
Cleveland(24-56)

Southeast:
Miami(64-16)
Atlanta(44-36)
Washington(29-51)
Orlando(20-60)
Charlotte(19-61)


Western Conference Standings:

Southwest:
San Antonio(58-22)
Memphis(54-26)
Houston(45-35)
Dallas(40-40)
New Orleans(27-54)

Northwest:
Oklahoma City(59-21)
Denver(55-25)
Utah(42-38)
Portland(33-37)
Minnesota(30-50)

Pacific:
LA Clippers(54-26)
Golden St.(45-35)
LA Lakers(44-37)
Sacramento(28-52)
Phoenix(24-56)

Thunder Update 4

The Oklahoma City Thunder are now on a game two game win streak heading into tonights game against the Suns. The Thunder still have the second best record in the NBA with a record of 37-12, behind the San Antonio Spurs who have a record of 39-11. Oklahoma City will play tonight in the Peake at 7:00PM. The Suns will come into the game with a 17-33 record. They are currently on a one game losing streak.

Oklahoma City won a big game against Golden State on Wednesday night. The Thunder have won two out of the three last games against the Warriors. The Thunder won the first meeting 119-109, and then lost the second meeting 104-99. The Thunder have won by a total of 30 points in the past two meetings against the Suns. The Thunder will be fighting the number one seed in the playoffs tonight and for the best record in the NBA. As for the Suns, well they are playing to stay out of last place in the West.

Kevin Durant is still the leading scorer in the NBA. He has the lead and it seems like it is growing every game. On my last Thunder Update, Durant was only is the by .2 points. Durant is now averaging 29.3 points per game, to Anthony's 28.5 points per game. Our other leaders are Serge Ibaka who is in second place in blocks with 2.9 blocks per game, and Russel Westbrook who is in fifth place with 8.2 assist per game. Russel Westbrook has hit the 400 mark in assists, to go along with Kevin Durant's outstanding 1436 points on the season. Serge Ibaka(or should I say Iblaka) has 137 blocks, and 382 rebounds.

Here are the current standings through 49 games:
*2/8/13 Note Worthy: Indiana passes Chicago for first place in the Central Division.
Eastern Conference Standings:

Atlantic:
New York(31-16)
Brooklyn(29-20)
Boston(26-23)
Philadelphia(21-27)
Toronto(17-32)

Central:
Indiana(31-19)
Chicago(29-20)
Milwaukee(25-23)
Detroit(18-32)
Cleveland(15-34)

Southeast:
Miami(32-14)
Atlanta(27-21)
Orlando(14-35)
Washington(13-35)
Charlotte(11-37)

Western Conference Standings:

Southwest:
San Antonio(39-11)
Memphis(30-18)
Houston(27-24)
Dallas(21-28)
New Orleans(16-33)

Northwest:
Oklahoma City(37-12)
Denver(32-18)
Utah(28-22)
Portland(25-24)
Minnesota(18-28)

Pacific:
LA Clippers(35-16)
Golden St.(30-19)
LA Lakers(23-27)
Phoenix(17-33)
Sacramento(17-33)

Thunder Update 2

The Thunder took a loss today in their last game of this six game road trip against the LA Lakers in the Staples Center. The Thunder now have a record of 34-11, which is ties San Antonio for the best record in the league. The Thunder will play in Oklahoma City on Thursday against the Memphis Grizzlies. Oklahoma City will head into this game being well rested and prepared due to their three day break. As for Memphis, who has a record of 28-15, will head into the game with a two day break. Memphis lost in a big way today against New Orleans.

Kevin Durant still leads the league in scoring, averaging 29.5 points per game. KD's average puts him with a .5 lead over Carmelo Anthony who is in second place. Russel Westbrook is in 5th place in the league for assist, he is averaging 8.3 assist per game. His 8.3 assist per game is a career high for him. Russ is bound to move up in the standings due to the injury of Rajon Rondo. Serge Ibaka is in second place behind Larry Sanders for blocks. Serge averages 2.76 blocks per game, while Sanders averages 3.12 blocks per game.

Despite the Kendrick Perkins and Russel Westbrook struggling in the last few games, the Thunder still hold the first place spot in the Northwest division. Perk and Russ are due for a big game this Thursday, and will be very much needed in order to get a W in the Peake. After Thursday, the Thunder will play again on Saturday at Cleveland.

Make sure for live updates of the Oklahoma City Thunder you follow my Twitter account @OKC_Tweets