No Leonard? No Problem! Spurs Win Series in Game 6

It can only be described as the weirdest close out game that I have ever watched in my entire life. In a game that you almost expect the Rockets to win because Kawhi Leonard is not playing due to injury, it can really only be said that James Harden did not show up to the game. It’s almost as if he didn’t want to play because he took just 11 shots the entire game scoring just 10 points. He went 2-11 from the field (hitting just 2-9 from the three point line). The Rockets shot 29% from the field and 33% from three. Was Harden injured? No, I don’t think he was. He played 37 minutes in the game and just really never showed up. On the other hand LaMarcus Aldridge showed up in a huge way. He picked up the slack lost from not having Leonard on the court scoring 34 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. The Spurs went big on the Rockets starting Aldridge, Gasol, and Simmons all at the same time.

Avery Bradley Carries Celtics Past Wizards in Game 5

What this game really boiled down to is that the Celtics shot nearly 53% from the field. Isaiah Thomas might have had an off night by his standards but everyone else kind of picked up the slack for him. The player of the game has to go to Avery Bradley though with 29 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. His points led the Celtics to a 123-101 victory over the Washington Wizards. John Wall who is always the in game leader for the Wizards had just 21 points on a 7 for 17 night and his team only shot 38.5% from the field. If they are going to get past the Celtics then they are going to have to shoot better than this. They cannot lose another game so it should be interesting to see what happens back in DC on Friday.

Spurs Take Game 5 In Overtime

Something tells me that the Rockets have lost the wind in their sails after Game 5. In the final seconds of overtime Manu Ginobili blocked James Harden from behind which will honestly go down as one of the best blocks in NBA playoff history. The referees continue to be as bad as ever (though I guess you could say they make bad decisions on both sides) and this game was no different. The problem with this game though is that I feel like it was a series defining event. Whoever won this game was most likely going to go on to win the series. Check out the post game press conference with James Harden. You can tell he is tired of everything already.

Curry, Thompson and Durant Lead Warriors to Sweep Series

The Warriors have managed to stay perfect through two straight series in the playoffs. This is nothing too special as there have been several teams do this in the past. This is starting to feel like the 2001 Los Angeles Lakers run in which they rattled off 12 straight wins only to lose their first game in the finals. The Jazz managed just 37% from the field while the Warriors shot over 50% which was the main difference in the game. Gordon Hayward managed to put up 25 points off 21 shots which is a pretty poor game by his standards. Shelvin Mack had the best game with 18 points off of 11 shots shooting 50% from three. Outside of the start of the game, the Jazz really only made it a competition for about a minute in a half. After that the Warriors took over. By the end of the first quarter the score was 39-17 with the final score being 121-95.

Harden and Rockets Blow Out Spurs in Game 4

This game was not even close from pretty much the beginning. It looked like a Warriors/Jazz game for the most part. The Spurs closed the game to 4 points by half time but once the second half started the Rockets just took over eventually running over the Spurs with a 125-104 victory. The issue for the Spurs during this game was the lack of three point shooters available compared to the Rockets. The Spurs shot just 30% from three which would normally not be a killer but they shot over 20 three pointers in the game which pretty much put the nail in their coffin. Now it’s not surprising that they had to do this because the Rockets were hitting them from everywhere. The Rockets made 19 three pointers taking a page from the Warrior’s playbook and using analytics to win this game. Eric Gordon shot 67% from three point land and so did Trevor Ariza while on the flip side the San Antonio Spurs had four players who shot 0.0% from three.

Cavaliers Sweep Series In Close Game 4 Win

At halftime you would have thought this game was over as Cleveland was up 13 points and looking like they were ready to close out the series. By the middle of the 4th quarter the Raptors had retaken the lead and were trying to hold off the inevitable. Enter LeBron James who scored 35 points and shot 50% from the field. He hit 5 times from behind the arch and nearly had a double double with 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Kyrie Irving woke up and scored 27 points and had 9 assists. For the Raptors Ibaka, Joseph, and DeRozan all had over 20 points in the game but it was still not enough to stop the Cavs from taking the series. The Cavs complete the sweep and win the game 109-102.

Warriors Take 3-0 Lead Off Big Game From Durant

So Game 3 really didn’t disappoint and this is much more of what you might have expected in this series. The back and forth, low scoring, more defensive oriented game. The Jazz were able to neutralize Klay Thompson and Steph Curry for the most part but left Durant to “get his” and boy did he. Kevin Durant shot 58% from the field off 26 shots. He scored 38 points to lead all scorers in the game while at the same time managing to grab 13 rebounds as well. Gordon Hayward had a big game for the Jazz scoring 29 points and he managed to get to the free throw line quite a few times but it still wasn’t enough to get past the Warriors. This series seems all but over at this point with the Warriors continuing to stay perfect in the playoffs winning the game 102-91.

4th Quarter Leads Cavs to 3-0 Lead In Series

LeBron James once again scores 35 points in the win last night. He shot over 56% from the field and 50% from three point land. He had 8 rebounds and 7 assists to go with his points. He truly is looking like an MVP for his team. Kyrie Irving had another off night shooting just 33% from the field and 20% from three point land. DeMar DeRozan finally showed up, messed around, and scored 37 points off 23 shots. Like I have been saying though they are going to need more rebounds, more effort, more of everything in order to keep up with the fast pace that Cleveland brings to the table. Cavs end up taking a 3-0 lead in the series winning the game 115-94.

Spurs Retake Home Court With Game 3 Win On The Road

LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs in scoring with 26 points a piece while Leonard ended up adding 10 rebounds and 7 assists to that total. Aldridge shot 60% from the field and managed to make the most out of his minutes last night. Patty Mills also had a big game coming off the bench despite a poor shooting night. James Harden was probably the story of the night though scoring a game high 43 points in the losing effort. He shot 50% from the field but couldn’t do much on the defensive end. I don’t see the Rockets lasting much longer in this series as they have had their hearts ripped out here. The Spurs win this one 103-92.

Gordon Hayward Isn’t Enough to Stop the Warriors in Game 2

Gordon Hayward led all scorers with 33 points but it wasn’t enough to stop the band of Warriors who showed up to give their fans a game. The Jazz did manage to put up 100 points but even 100 points won’t get it done against the Warriors. The boys in gold showed up shooting nearly 50% from the field once again. They decided to go with their smaller line up as Pachulia only played 9 minutes the entire game. Iguodala stepped up and scored 10 points of 5 for 12 shooting. The game was never really in question as the Warriors took the lead 19 seconds into the game and never looked back after that. It was a 16 point game by the end of the first quarter, 10 point game at halftime, 10 point game at the end of the 3rd quarter and the Warriors end up taking the game 115-104.

Sports Dude