From Distance: Dinosaurs are Fun
2019-06-01four point play….
1. With the Raptors’ Game 1 victory, the nonsense about the Warriors being better without Kevin Durant has come to screeching halt. Good.
2. I don’t know about you folks, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching Pascal Siakam go right through Draymond Green in transition.
3. It will still be a series, regardless of who wins Game 2, and that is fun. I feel like the Warriors will win, but my brain actually has the Raptors. Now that is certainly a new and strange perspective.
4. Boogie and Iggy are almost as important to the Dubs as Durant’s return. Well, they are also important. Let’s go with that. Check this edition of Cavs: the Vlog to hear more thoughts on the 2019 NBA Finals.
Toronto being Toronto in the clutch. Ughh. No KD, no Thompson, no Looney and still no win. They’re probably done.
With KD still out, Klay with an iffy hammy, Looney injured, and that box & 1 working, your take is Raptors are done after 1 loss?
Gotta cut out the stupid fouls.
Why wouldn’t they foul Green before the Iggy three. I mean make him make 2 shots at the line. Anyway, super clutch shot by Iguodala.
Agreed
I agreed with JVG, silly shot by Iggy that went in. If he misses, Raps have a real shot.
And Kawhi almost had a steal. Thought the Raps played that sequence well.
Only a bad shot if he misses… 😁
I thought they should have fouled Bray as soon as they crossed half court and he had the ball…
Wowwwwww Raptors were so close
Lol. Steph duuuuumb.
Idiotic foul by Lowry
Sooo dumb.
That’s a total flop by van Vleet. I mean it’s karma for curry, but it’s bad flop. Good no clear path call.
Classic Warriors actions all half long – 4 on 3 once Curry gets trapped in the PnR -> Draymond just picking the Raptors apart. Or using Curry as the screener and off ball cuts to the hoop for easy 2s because the defender is too afraid to come off of Curry.
Klay with a significant limp..
This is still a game. The beginning of the fourth with Curry out is the opportunity for the Raptors to get back in the game.
Kawhi with three or four steps. Shouldn’t have gotten continuation
It’s gone awfully cold in the North right now… Kawhi needs to take over before this gets out of hand
I’m shocked they just called 2 moving screens on Gasol…
I am as shocked as the Raptors right now. 14 0 run to start the half won’t win you many championships.
Raptors completely falling asleep while Cousins initiating the offense on two possessions.
Curry has had a couple nice floater off the glass finishes
Raps fans too late to get back to their seats and the Warriors make a quick run.
VanVleet is like Delly 3.0
I think he is better than Delly. Delly is a better pick n roll ball handler but that’s it. VanVleet is a better shooter, defender and finisher than Delly and is just as gritty.
Eh. It’s a good matchup for vanvleet. Someone small enough he can guard. Delly is a much better rebounder, and can guard bigger players. Delly is a better passer and screen setter but Van Vleet is a much better shooter and finisher, especially in the clutch. Delly always overclubs the clutch j.
The refs are keeping Golden State in the game. That last foul on Curry to close the half was ridiculous, along with some others. I don’t think Golden State has enough to win though. Their lack of depth (and their laughable decision to sign Boogie instead of another shooter and defender on the wing this summer with their exception) has come back to bite them at last. Only hope is for the Raptors to lose their head, but I don’t believe Kawhi will let them.
Feel like the Raptors should be up by 10+. Will be interesting to see if Iguodala is able to return – ? possible concussion based on his reaction.
Raptors bench outscoring Dubs’ 19-4.
Dubs really lucky to be down five.
God these refs…
Klay and these freaking whistle happy refs keeping this a game at the half…
Curry made a three. Thank God he must be feeling better.
Passing illness…
The NBA playoff’s favorite game: what injury/ illness/ ailment is hobbling Steph this moment?
Exactly what I was thinking. Has there been a Finals where we didn’t wonder how much Steph Curry is injured? I don’t believe so. If he is struggling then he is clearly injured. Now we have taken it to the next level. He doesn’t appear to have a lot of energy. I mean come on.
I know. It’s ridiculous today. He’s perfectly healthy and has just seemed checked out for most of the first half. His body language has ben terrible.
Refs really ‘keepin’ it fair’ for GS so far…
Cousins with a rough start – getting targeted in the PnR and picks up 2 early fouls
JUDE SO GLAD THAT YOU ARE SEEING KIDS “SHOOTIN ” HOOPS OUTSIDE —–JUST DON’T SEE IT WHERE I RESIDE : (
Been seeing a lot of “Would you trade for Capella?” chatter. Again. The Cavs don’t need more big men. Larry Nance is the center of the future. I kind of hate bigs who can’t shoot unless they’re elite, and Capella isn’t. He’s good not great and I don’t see any further evolution to his game.
And he has four years that graduate from 15-18 mil per remaining. No thanks. Not at that price/length.
Stumbled on an interesting Cavs stat.
Cedi shot 33.7% on catch and shoot 3s this year.
He shot 43.8% on 3s after taking 2 dribbles.
Not a huge sample size of two dribble 3s, but still thought it was interesting…especially with my arguement that he shoots 3s better when he’s bot able to overthink it.
I hope the Laker interest in CP3 rumors are true. I think that trade will get the Lakers back where they should be — at the top of the NBA…
Wonder what Houston would want for CP3. Kuzma and Ingram plus a second rounder?
I think the second rounder would suffice…
I would take that trade in a heartbeat if I were the Rockets – salaries don’t match up though.
If the Lakers have/use cap space, the salaries do not have to match.
BACK TO THE DUBS —–THEIR 2016 TEAM WAS MUCH STRONGER ( MINUS 2019 DURANT ) —ESPECIALLY THEIR BENCH——FATHER TIME HAS CAUGHT UP TO THEM A LITTLE —-ALSO THINK TEAMS ARE BETTER PREPARED ON HOW TO PLAY AGAINST THEM——-AND THE “FEAR FACTOR / INTIMIDATION ” ISN’T AS PRESENT NOW AS IT WAS BACK THEN
They had a much better 7-11 on their bench in 2016.
Durant out now exposes that. And Iggy was younger.
2016 was an all time bench.
……………AND YES CEDI I HAD THE NAME ” MONKEY ARMS ” : )
GREAT DNA PASSED ON TO ME : ) !!!——ONE THING I HAVE SEEN ( OR NOT SEEN ) HAVE COMMENTED TO MANY OTHER COACHES -(ESPECIALLY MY AGE ) IS THE LACK OF KIDS “SHOOTIN HOOP ” IN THEIR DRIVEWAYS / OUTSIDE——–SEE MANY RIMS UP / BUT NO KIDS ————MAN WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP THERE WAS A GAME ALL DAY LONG ………GOES FOR BASEBALL TOO SIGH : (
Disagree i live in Parma now and I see it all the time. A house 2 blocks down from me actually has a key and 3 point line painted in their driveway. They have a huge night light rig atracked to their pole and i see them playing even late at night. Kids too.
AGE: OLD HEIGHT 5″ 11″——WING SPAN / 6″ 6″ —–YES IT WAS A DEFINITE PLUS FOR ME !! 3 PT SHOOTING —RT HAND / A…..LH / C—YES AMBIDEXTRIOUS MID RANGE —–BOTH HANDS / B HANDLES —B PASSING / B FREE THROW SHOOTING / MARK PRICE % DUNKING / DOES NOT REGISTER——C / COULD THROW IT DOWN IN COLLEGE —-ONLY THING I DUNK NOW IS A DONUT LAYUP/ B- HARD FOULS / B DIRTY SCREENS / DEPENDENING ON THE OPPOSING TEAM / PLAYER ——-TENDENCY FOR ” LEG TO KICK OUT ” AGAINST CERTAIN PLAYERS OFFESIVE I.Q. / A——“JUST SHOOT THE ROCK… Read more »
Feel like dunking at 5’11” even with a 6’6″ wingspan is very impressive athletically. I don’t think most NBA players can dunk at that height. At least I can’t think of many.
Best I could do at 5’10” in high school was grab rim with my fingers one handed. And grab isn’t exactly right. Basically could just get the top of my palm to the rim. I would have needed another foot vertical or arm length to have any chance of dunking. Maybe more because I couldn’t palm it.
Dunking at 5’11 is impressive. Definitely.
you would be a fantastic rock climber in a different life!
+7 ape index WOW
At like 5’9″ in early highschool i could sometimes just barely touch rim. By the end of highscool I was 6’3″, but had given up on sports, got way into music, and gained 50 pounds. Grabbing the net was rough. I was always super short as a kid and my brother was 6’5″. If I knew I was going to get almost as tall, I never would have lazied out of sports. Was a pretty decent ball handler, but a great shooter. When I was 12 I beat 18 year olds 1v1 playing in the diveway by shooting from the… Read more »
I did have A.C. come to our badketball camp when I was a kid. Really wanted to be Mark Price as a kid. I was getting their on the handles (sloppy between the legs, great behind the back, ok crossover), really happy with my shooting for a kid (from practicing 100s a day in my driveway), pretty good FT, but hated and embarrassed that I had to jump. Pretty good passer for driveway ball, with a great behind the back pass. Succeeded in crunch time wins by driving to a layup by dribbling between an older and better defenders legs… Read more »
This is fun
As soon as the Raps made the Finals, I thought this was likely. Maybe a 2+1 or something like that…
Hope so.
Liked that a lot, Ben. The Raps surprised me, and I thought the crowd caught Golden State off guard a bit. Also thought they were feeling out the Raptors too much and the game got away from them. But all the credit to Toronto for a fantastic game. The time off really worked out well for Toronto who got rest without getting out of rhythm. Iove you, Ben, but I’d take the 2016 cavs over anyone.
We’ll see what the Dubs look like with a better rhythm. Should be a fun series.
Have to agree on the 2016 cavs. I’d argue that the Raptors are probably a more consistent defensive team. But the cavs could be very good at their peak. I also don’t think the raptors have anywhere near the capability to score in the half court as the 2016 cavs. Siakam probably doesn’t have another game like that. Warriors were downright lazy on some closeouts on Gasol, Siakam, and Van Vleet. Their transition d was completely disorganized (rust likely). Raptors made some extremely fortunate shots. Furthermore, I’d argue the 2016 Warriors were a much better defensive team and offensive team… Read more »
I think this Raptors team is better suited against the Warriors than the 2016 Cavs were… but also think the 2016 Cavs would have beaten this Raptors team.
Had Lue played his best guys instead of sticking with Iman and Mo, I would agree with you. Both the 2016 and 2017 Cavs would be very difficult for anyone to match up with. That 2017 Dubs team was absurd though.
Durant unlocks every lineup.
The 2016 Dubs were obviously great, but they were susceptible to wing size. The Raps are not. We shall see what happens with the Raptors. They could fall apart. But their defenders are all brilliant. Game plans and look better when no one makes a mistake.
The talk around GS being better without Durant is some of the most laughable nonsense regarding the NBA the entire season. Because GS is still really good without him doesn’t mean better. Pointless to even debate it.
If the Raps can take game two, I love their chances. So much depends on when Durant comes back. Even if he’s not 100% he’ll probably make a big difference – he can still shoot.