“I don’t think anyone is invalidating the 73 wins. It was an amazing accomplishment.”

I don’t think anyone is invalidating the 73 wins. It was an amazing accomplishment. What is being invalidated is the “one of the greatest teams ever” argument. The truth is, last year GS got incredibly lucky throughout the playoffs. In almost every round they played a team that had lost at least one key piece of its…

I don’t think it’s afraid but rather Russ, KD, and even Roberson (one of the premier perimeter defenders) are such freakishly athletic players that they can suffocate whatever GS tries to do on the outside, which is why a lot of their 3s feel like desperate heaves rather than the usual in-rhythm shots of confidence,…

I mean the guy deserves a ton just for getting through to Dion Waiters, which Scott Brooks wasn’t really able to do.

Yep, though to be fair, 5-6 weeks ago it didn’t quite seem like the Thunder were markedly better than last year’s iteration. The team has really coalesced since the start of the playoffs, and Donovan’s coaching has been a huge reason as to why.

As many noted sportswriters have pointed out, OKC’s switching defense was on-point yesterday, and GSW’s transition defense was a mess. I think a really interesting thing to pay attention to, going forward, is how good the small-ball counter of KD at PF with Ibaka at C can continue to be. Donovan’s resisted playing KD…

When you kick a man down under, you hear his scream, it sounds like thunder.

With some exceptions, of course:

I think the only thing you can say is that fights - actual fisticuffs - were more prevalent in the bad boy era. I guess you could say the lack of fights makes this era “soft” but it certainly doesn’t mean that the defense in this era is lacking

I agree that the hand check thing makes a huge difference. Otherwise defenses are much better now. Zone is legal, coaches actually have strategies and game plans for defense, they didn’t in the eighties. It was much more physical then, but more complex now.

this would be so good if the guy didnt look up and see where the ball is before he got hit

That one is definitely staged. No way a rubber ball actually knocks someone over. Also the guy in the hat looks up at the ball before it hits him. The first one is gold, though.

at least this should chill the “Donovan is in over his head” talk. Dude has done a brilliant job, peaking at the right time.

Adams is the MVP of this team. Dude is awesome. I’ve always liked him, but when he grew the zero-fucks-given hair, he became fantasy draftable. Running around with a big wad of cotton out one nostril is also a win.

I agree with all but your first point. He’s moved from “awful” territory to “barely passable” in the playoffs. He held his own in the Spurs series against Aldridge and Co, and while he looked overmatched in the first half last night, he was just fine in the second half.

I haven’t watched them much either but I agree. His rotations have been on point. Dunno about Waiters, maybe he’s finally come to terms with being a solid role player

Steph is a better defender and passer. The only thing Westbrook does better is rebound. And that is often to the detriment of his teams transition D. I should add Curry is a better pg defender. Westbrook may have more value as a defender because he can guard the 2. I like Westbrook too, but to say you would rather…

The Spurs had some pretty advantageous no calls in the 2nd quarter that far outweigh the no-call intentional foul by Kawhi. The Thunder are finally figuring out how to put the puzzle together and are playing far better as a team besides their star power. That is why they have beat San Antonio twice as much at home as…

Can we just step back and marvel at Steven Adams’ mutation into Kiwi DeAndre for a moment? 12 pts and 11 reb tonight, with a steal and an assist... 16/11 and 2 blocks in the Game 4 win, and even without a look from Peak Russy in the Game 3 debacle, hit all his FT and wound up with 11 boards. They can’t put Leonard on…

That was a bad call but the worse call was whistling Green for being tripped into Durant (by Adams) which broke the tie. That said, pretty entertaining game. Adams and Kanter have been impressive and Waiters has been surprisingly steady.