2011 NBA Playoffs!

Ice Cream Jonsey · Post by **Ice Cream Jonsey** » Sun May 15, 2011 9:41 pm

The world is there for the taking, Oklahoma City!!

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Tue May 17, 2011 7:38 am

Seven reasons to watch Oklahoma City Thunder in NBA Playoffs (usatoday.com)

I hate how to rest of the country views Oklahoma. "This time, the road to the NBA Finals goes through an oil field on Route 66." Why couldn't they have mentioned one of our half-a-dozen Starbucks locations? Or the fact that we finally got a Jack-in-the-Box? Gosh, they forgot to mention our cowboy boots, spurs (wait, that's San Antonio), ten gallon hats and stockyards. Wait, no; they did mention stockyards!

"Lately, the basketball has been even more impressive than the stockyards."

Sigh.

Ice Cream Jonsey · Post by **Ice Cream Jonsey** » Tue May 17, 2011 8:50 pm

I am going to guess that the main reason I will go to Oklahoma will be for game expos and the arcade at your house, so my personal list of Oklahoma-related cliches will involve old computer hardware.

"The Thunder are more explosive than the 'Star Trek' vector game by Sega!"

(For non-Flack readers: The Star Trek vector arcade game by Sega catches on fire all the time.)

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Tue May 17, 2011 9:07 pm

Flack wrote:The OKC move to the Western Conference Finals, where (let's be realistic here) the Mavericks will most likely roll over them. The Thunder are a fast team but the Mavs have the experience and the Dirk.

As I suspected, the Mavericks made it loud and clear that the Thunder have no answer for Dirk Nowitzki. None. I think by the end of the first half, every defensive Thunder player was in foul trouble. Dirk, towering above the Thunder, walked out of the arena with a whopping 48 points, setting an NBA record for the most free throws in a row in a playoff game (24 of 24). Every time the Thunder double-teamed Dirk, he kicked it out to Kidd or Barea who both scored at will.

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Thu May 19, 2011 9:08 pm

Well, well, well.

In game 2, Dirk Nowitzki scored 29. That sounds like a lot, but in game 1, he scored 48. The Thunder definitely shifted their defense and fronted Dirk all night long. 29 points, we can deal with.

The Thunder was down by 11 and then Kevin Durant did this to 7' Haywood.

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Thunder went into the half up by two, pulled ahead in the third and stayed ahead in the fourth. The big story was the benching of Westbrook the entire fourth quarter, who bumbled a end-of-third quarter play and spent several minutes jawing at Thunder coach Scott Brooks. Business is business, and with bench players like Harden dropping 25 points, the 22-year-old Westbrook may have learned a lesson tonight.

Both series are now tied 1-1.

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Sun May 22, 2011 7:58 pm

It really is like there are two completely different Thunder teams. There's the team that goes out there and dominates their opponents. We saw that team in game 2. And then there's the team that goes out and nothing goes right for them. That's the team we saw in game three.

What the Mavs showed in game three was that they don't need Dirk to score to win. Don't get me wrong; they need Dirk, but when he's having an off night, or when defenders double team him, there are always at least three or four shooters on the floor waiting to nail shots like machinery.

At one point the Thunder were down by 21 (or more) and were shooting 0-15 from downtown (I think the final was 1-17 of three pointers). The best free throw shooting team in the league missed free throw after free throw. Somehow they only lost by six. It felt like sixty.

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Mon May 23, 2011 9:19 pm

Yeah, I don't even know. Fuck basketball. I'mma start watching hockey tomorrow.

pinback · Post by **pinback** » Tue May 24, 2011 5:30 pm

lololololol

At least it wasn't boring!! :D XD XD :D X:DXX:DX:D:X:D:XD:

Flack · Post by **Flack** » Tue May 24, 2011 6:10 pm

So who are these Lightning guys? Maybe I'll start watching them. I actually have a Blackhawks shirt in my closet somewhere. Maybe we can get the Thunder to ... wait, do they let black people play hockey? I'm still green on the rules.

Ice Cream Jonsey · Post by **Ice Cream Jonsey** » Wed May 25, 2011 11:32 pm

Well, shit.

The only advice I can give you, Flack, is to embrace this loss. Let it hurt. Let the hate flow through you.

When my favorite team, the team that I love as much as you seem to love the Thunder, finally won something, believe me - it was all the sweeter because they not only got their fucking heads caved in for 30 years (which is analogous to the Thunder not existing for 30 years) but also because they lost in the NFC Championship game to the Bears a few years before.

ALL THE SWEETER.

Now let's nail our draft picks and reload for next year! I just read something that seemed to imply that Mike Brown is going to be the Lakers coach. That's the most preposterous , obviously-fake story I've seen about the NBA all season, but we can write off Los Angeles until he goes. This means the west is again wide open and .. and .. RELOAD!!!!

Ice Cream Jonsey · Post by **Ice Cream Jonsey** » Wed May 25, 2011 11:34 pm

Flack wrote:So who are these Lightning guys? Maybe I'll start watching them. I actually have a Blackhawks shirt in my closet somewhere. Maybe we can get the Thunder to ... wait, do they let black people play hockey? I'm still green on the rules.

Black people are allowed to play hockey, yes. For a while they either had to be goalies like Grant Fuhr, or goons like Donald Brasheer, but they opened things up a few years ago when they realized they had to, because it's fucking hockey.