2017 NBA Playoffs

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I’ll be completely honest. I didn’t watch Game 4 between the Cavaliers and Celtics last night. I attended the Lynx game at the Xcel Energy Center.

Let’s write this based on the box score.

Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving was on fire, finishing with 42 points, shooting 15-for-22 from the field, 4-for-7 from the 3-point line and 8-for-9 from the free-throw line.

But that LeBron James guy wasn’t bad, either. He finished with 34 points, six assists and five rebounds.

Odd fact: Cleveland had just seven points from its bench which isn’t a great thing. But the Cavs won 112-99 to take a 3-1 lead in the series. So that's good, if you're a Cavs fan that is. 

The Celtics miss Isaiah Thomas, judging from this box score I am looking at. No player scored more than 19 points. That was Avery Bradley who shot a dreadful 7-for-19 from the field and 1-for-7 from the free-throw line.

Rebounds were a very big thing. The Cavs had 37. The Celtics had 29.

 Game 5 is set for Thursday at 7:30 p.m. in Boston. The game will air on TNT.

about-last-night-the-uncle-drew-show

About Last Night | The Uncle Drew Show

With last night’s 129-115 road win over the San Antonio Spurs, the Golden State Warriors are headed to their third-straight trip to the NBA Finals.

The Warriors will trot to the NBA Finals after going 12-0 through the first three rounds. In other words, the Warriors are on a 12-game winning streak against literal playoff teams - not playoff-caliber teams like we say in the regular season. Real-life playoff teams because, you know, it's the playoffs.

In fact, the Warriors are on a 13-game winning roller coaster (with all ups and no downs) since they beat the Lakers on the last game of the season. In fact x 2, the Warriors have won 27 of their last 28 games. To say this team is hot is like saying Pizza Rolls are delicious. This team is at its peak and Pizza Rolls are a culinary revolution.

We don’t know who the Warriors will play in the Finals yet, although we have a pretty good idea considering the Cavaliers are up 2-1 on the Isaiah Thomas-less Boston Celtics. If the two teams do match up against each other for the third-straight season, it will make up for how “eh” the playoffs have been so far.

It’s hard to say the Warriors aren’t the favorites even though the Cavaliers won it last season. I mean, in the offseason, Golden State only added a top-5 player in the entire league. Ho-hum. Welcome to the team, Kevin Durant!

No matter what happens, Game 1 of the Finals will be played on Thursday, June 1 at 8 p.m. on ABC in Golden State. Can’t wait.

The Spurs got swept. That’s not fun for them. But they’ll be fine because they have Kawhi Leonard. Leonard didn’t play in the final three games of the series. When he did play, he was a +21 before leaving with an ankle injury. If the Spurs aren’t a top-3 team in the West next season, I’d be shocked.

Fun fact: Leonard’s last tweet came on July 6, 2015 and it was promoting a swag board. So, there’s that.

Tonight, the Cavaliers try to take a 3-1 lead over the Celtics at home. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on TNT. 

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About Last Night | The Warriors Are Going Back To The NBA Finals

The Celtics closed out a seven-game series last night against the Wizards with a 115-105 win in Boston.

Who led the Celtics, you ask? Isaiah Thomas had 29 points. That was nice. Marcus Smart had a nice all-around game off the bench with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. But the true hero was Kelly Olynyk. Olynyk finished with 26 points, five rebounds and four assists off the bench while shooting 10-for-14 from the field and 4-for-5 from the free-throw line.

For Monday night at least, it was Kelly’s world. We were just living in it.

This tweet below can’t be real life . . .

Wall finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds, but shot just 8-for-23 from the field and 1-for-8 from the 3-point line. In the fourth quarter, he couldn’t get anything going.

Bradley Beal did his best to carry Washington with 38 points, but it wasn’t enough.

For the Celtics, they get the reward of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals. Yay!

Game 1 is set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. The game will air on TNT.

For the Wizards, they should be proud of their season. They were one game away from making it to the Eastern Conference Finals, which is more than what was expected of them to start the season. At the same time, it’s hard not to be bitter about how this series ended. With a core led by Wall and Beal, though, they’ll be just fine.

Tonight, we’ve got Game 2 of the Spurs at Warriors. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on ESPN.

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About Last Night | Kelly Olynyk To The Rescue

The San Antonio Spurs were up by 20 at halftime against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday afternoon. Done deal, right?

You probably already know the answer to this.

The Warriors came back and outscored the Spurs 71(!) to 49 in the second half to come away with a 113-111 win.

It’s worth noting that Kawhi Leonard didn’t play past midway through the third quarter due another sprained left ankle. And if Leonard could play, the Spurs probably would have won. In 24 minutes, he finished with 26 points and eight rebounds.

But he didn’t play and the Spurs lost Game 1.

Draymond Green and Klay Thompson combined for just 15 points. That’s not good. Steph Curry and Kevin Durant combined for 74 points. That is good and why the Warriors won.

Game 2 is set for Tuesday at 8 p.m. in Golden State. The game will air on ESPN.

Tonight, we’ve got Game 7 between the Wizards and Celtics in Boston at 7 p.m. The game will air on TNT. 

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About Last Night | Curry And Durant Lead Comeback

Thursday’s Game 6 between the Spurs and Rockets was not a good game. In fact, it was a horrible game.

The Spurs (who didn’t have Kawhi Leonard) beat the Rockets 114-75 to close out the series.

It was a big night for LaMarcus Aldridge, who finished with 34 points and 12 rebounds. It was not a big night for James Harden, who finished with 10 points while shooting 2-for-11 from the field and 2-for-9 from the 3-point line.

The Spurs are now rewarded with the Golden State Warriors, a series in which the Spurs will absolutely need Leonard.

Game 1 is set for Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in Golden State. The game will air on ABC.

For the Rockets, it was a great season and they performed better than we thought they would. It’s just kind of disappointing their season ended on such a sour note with their star player disappearing.

Tonight, we’ve got the Celtics at Wizards in Game 6. The Celtics have a 3-2 series lead. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN.

about-last-night-not-the-game-6-we-were-hoping-for

About Last Night | Not The Game 6 We Were Hoping for

The Celtics beat the Wizards 123-101 on Wednesday night in Boston.

With the win, the Celtics take a 3-2 lead in the series.

Avery Bradley had 29 points to lead Boston, while Al Horford put up 19 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Somehow Marcus Smart, who is like 5’6, had 11 rebounds off the bench.

For the Wizards, they shot just 38.5 percent from the field and 24.1 percent from the 3-point line. That’s not good enough to win.

The real probably here is that while this series is as tight is it can be after five games, there hasn’t been a signature game yet. The closest game was Boston’s 129-119 home win in Game 2. GIVE US A CLOSE GAME! The average game in this series has been decided by 17.8 points which is kind of ridiculous.

Game 6 is set for Friday at 7 p.m. in Washington. The game will air on ESPN.

Tonight we’ve got the Spurs at Rockets in Game 6. The Spurs have a 3-2 lead. The game will air at 7 p.m. on ESPN. I’ll take the Rockets. Any place in Chicago I should watch this game at? Holla at me. 

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About Last Night | Why Can't We Have A Close Game In The East?

minsflood

In what might have been the most-entertaining game of the 2016-17 postseason thus far, the Spurs came away with a 110-107 overtime win over the Rockets to take a 3-2 lead Tuesday night in San Antonio.

It was a huge win for the Spurs, but it was probably a bigger loss for the Rockets.

Kawhi Leonard didn’t play down the stretch for the Spurs (ankle) and the Rockets let the trio of Patty Mills, Jonathan Simmons and the he-will-play-forever Manu Ginobili beat them.

The final play of the game, a Ginobili block on James Harden, was kind of the perfect end to a roller coaster of a game for Houston. That one play exhibited just how Houston collapsed in the final 10 or so minutes.

Depth is going to hurt the Rockets without Nene. Houston only played seven players on Tuesday night and by looking and its roster, it’s hard to see that changing. Maybe Montrezl Harrell? I don’t know. The Rockets will have to play small ball from here on what which will be a challenge against LaMarcus Aldridge (who finally had a solid game, finishing with 18 points and 14 rebounds).

James Harden led Houston with 33 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, but also had nine turnovers.

Ginobili was a +8 in 32 minutes and finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists. He’s not as good as he once was, but he’s as good once as he ever was.

For the Spurs to close out the series in Houston, they’ll need something similar. Although chances are Leonard won’t shoot 8-for-21 from the field again.

Game 6 is set for Thursday in Houston at 7 p.m. The game will air on ESPN.

Tonight, we’ve got the Wizards at Celtics at 7 p.m. in Boston on TNT. I’ll take the Celtics.

about-last-night-big-win-for-spurs-huge-loss-for-rockets

About Last Night | Big Win For Spurs, Huge Loss For Rockets

The Warriors beat the Jazz 121-95 Monday night in Utah to wrap up the series sweep.

Golden State will advance to the Western Conference Finals with a perfect 8-0 record through the first two rounds.

None of this is really a surprise, but I thought Utah would be able to steal at least one game. But nope. That was dumb of me. Maybe it was just my love for the heroic Joe Ingles.

The Warriors did Warriors things, having four players average 14 or more points in the series, led by Kevin Durant’s 24.5 points, 8.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game while shooting 50 percent from the field.

Utah losing George Hill hurt a ton. With Hill, who knows? Maybe Utah is able to steal at least a game. But instead Utah relied on Shelvin Mack and Dante Exum, who shot 37.5 and 41.7 percent from the field, respectively.

The big win for the Warriors is they get plenty of rest before going up against either the Spurs or Rockets in a series that will likely go seven games.

For Utah, the future is plenty bright with young stars like Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert. Plus, Quin Snyder is one heck of a coach. I have a feeling this is just the beginning for the Jazz.

Tonight, we’ve got the Rockets at Spurs in a series all knotted up at 2-2. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on TNT.

about-last-night-no-surprise-warriors-sweep

About Last Night | No Surprise, Warriors Sweep

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