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The Official NBA/Basketball Thread

https://streamable.com/4914

It's absurd.  Kanter's reaction is priceless.

That was his 12th 3-pointer of the game (ties the NBA record also held by former Raptor Donyell Marshall and Kobe Bryant).  He also set the NBA record for most 3-pointers in a single season during this game.  He now holds the #1, #2, and #3 best 3-point shooting seasons in the history of the league.  He is completely unguardable at this point.
 
A pretty good night for the NBA.

Firstly, Kobe in his final game scores 60 and guides the Lakers to a come from behind win. Sure it helps that he played 42 minutes and had his teammates feeding him the ball at every opportunity, but it's impressive nonetheless. What a way to go out.

And then the Warriors break the '95-'96 Bulls record for wins in a season with their 73rd. I don't think a championship is a foregone conclusion for them by any means though. I predict that they'll meet the Spurs in the Western Conference final and that should be a great, close series.
 
Nice way for Kobe to finish his career, even if it was on 50 shots. As for the Warriors, that's a damn impressive run. Seeing them face the Spurs in the WCF should be an interesting series. Duncan, Ginobli, and Parker seem to be treating this as 1 final run.
 
Re:  NBA playoffs.  No Curry, No problem.

Golden State Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets 115-106 sans Stephen Curry who was nursing an ankle sprain.  Golden State leads 2 games to 0 as the series now shifts to Houston Thursday.


Source:    Sportsnet
 
The play to end the Spurs/Thunder game was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. 
 
Nik the Trik said:
The play to end the Spurs/Thunder game was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.
Click to expand...

Seriously...what was that?  How was that not a foul on the inbounder there?  Shaq and Barkley were saying they've never seen that before and its likely the ref had no idea what to do...
 
Here is a good video (view) of the Spurs Ginobili being literally shoved.

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2016/05/atrocious-officiating-thunder-spurs-game-2-nba-playoffs-final-possession


Plus, the refs admit they erred:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/playoffs/2016/05/03/thunder-spurs-game-2-refs-admit-wrong-call-frantic-ending/83861540/
 
OKC Thunder take Game 1 with a 108-102 win over the Golden State Warriors in the WCF.

http://www.nba.com/2016/news/features/scott_howard_cooper/05/17/oklahoma-city-thunder-surprise-golden-state-warriors-in-game-1/
 
You never want to say never but the Warriors are getting their butts straight kicked.
 
How this happened?  Well, it just did:

OKC 118  Golden State  94.    Thunder lead series 3 games to 1.

Read on:
http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/thunder-rout-warriors-take-commanding-3-1-series-lead/'
 
NBA/CBA rules governing salaries & cap need  changing:

The maximum salary rules:
For players with zero-to-six years of service (Tier 1), the slot is 25 percent of the cap. Players with seven-to-nine years (Tier 2), the slot is 30 percent, and for players with 10-plus years (Tier 3), the slot is 35 percent.

...the league and players negotiated a lower percentage of basketball related income that would be used to define a maximum salary. If the league used the 25 percent Tier 1 max slot during this current season, the max number would have been $17.5 million; but the negotiated lower percentage is $16.4 million

For cap purposes, the best way to calculate a max salary slot is 23.4 percent (Tier 1), 28.1 percent (Tier 2) and 32.8 percent (Tier 3).

The Rose Rule:
in 2011, it also introduced a little-known rule named after All-Star Derrick Rose. The rule was named after Rose because he earned first-team All-NBA honors in 2010-11 and was also selected by fans to play in the All-Star Game in 2011 and 2012 while still on his rookie contract.

If a player on his rookie contract accomplishes one of the following ? (1) earns All-NBA first-, second- or third-team honors twice, (2) is voted an NBA All-Star starter by the fans twice, or (3) named NBA MVP ? his salary slot will be eligible for the Tier 2 maximum salary (30 percent) when the extension begins in his fifth season.

Teams do have the right to negotiate the percentage of a max salary slot as long as it falls between 25 percent and 30 percent in the first year of the extension if the player reaches the criteria set forth above.

Problems with the rule:
First, to have a possible salary increase dictated by a fan vote is absurd. All-Star fan voting has turned into a popularity contest instead of an exercise in rewarding a player for his performance.

There is also a wide discrepancy between being voted first-team All-NBA and third team. A player such as George shouldn?t be eligible for the same salary as LeBron James (first-team honors) just because he earned a lesser All-NBA honor in consecutive years.

Finally there is no room to negotiate or amend the criteria, only the percentage earned.

The elite company:
Since the current CBA in 2011, nine players have been eligible for a salary increase under the Rose rule, with Lillard being the latest to achieve the criteria.
Blake Griffin and Rose are operating as Tier 2 max-salary players, and Lillard's and George?s percentage increases were negotiated in their contracts.

Oklahoma City tabbed Westbrook as their ?designated player max.? The tag allowed Westbrook to receive a five-year max extension (not including the fourth year on his rookie scale) while allowing the Thunder to have luxury tax flexibility going forward.

A case in point: comparisons & implicarions...

Anthony Davis
Before the season started Anthony Davis seemed to be a shoo-in for a Tier 2 max salary in 2016-17, with the Pelicans coming off a playoff berth and Davis earning his All-NBA honor and being voted by the fans to the 2015 All-Star Game.

But after failing to be voted by fans to the All-Star Game, Davis was left off the All-NBA teams by the media. Although Davis statistics mirrored last season, his team missed the playoffs, he was shut down in mid-March with shoulder and knee injuries, and a strong forward class left him on the outside looking in.

Davis        Current salary    Earning All-NBA
2016-17        $21.52m      $25.85m
2017-18        $23.14m    $27.79m
2018-19        $24.75m    $29.72m
2019-20        $26.37m    $31.66m
2020-21        $27.98m    $33.61m
Total              $123.76m  $148.63m

Pelicans cap implications:
Davis' $21.5 million cap figure will count toward New Orleans' books for next season. With $65 million guaranteed contacts and Ryan Anderson?s free-agent cap hold ($12.75 million), New Orleans currently has $8.6 million in cap room. If Davis had earned an All-NBA honor, the cap room would be cut in half.

Damian Lillard.
Trail Blazers and Lillard negotiated a lower percentage than the maximum 30 percent allowed by the NBA.

In Lillard?s case, earning All-NBA honors will see his salary next season change from $21.5 million to $23.7 million.

Lillard        Tier 1 max    Earning All-NBA
2016-17        $21.52m      $23.73m
2017-18        $23.14m      $25.51m
2018-19        $24.75m      $27.29m
2019-20        $26.37m      $29.10m
2020-21        $27.98m      $30.85m
Total              $123.76m    $136.48m

Trail Blazers cap implications:
With the additional $2 million of salary added from Lillard?s revised cap figure, the likely scenario is Portland with $14 million in room, including the free-agent cap holds of Leonard, Harkless, Crabbe and Henderson.


https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/the-rose-rule--why-it-needs-to-change-150439168.html
 
Man. I thought they were done but...once they start hitting shots there's really no stopping them. It'll be a heck of a finals with everyone healthy.
 
Warriors  98  OKC  88.  Warriors win series 4 games to 3.

Congrats to Golden State on being crowned Western Conference champs!

Great series.  Too bad for the Thunder, but leading this WCF 3 games to 1 and then allowing the Warriors to come back and win it all...that brings questions and more questions on the how more than the why.

Story:
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/golden-state-beat-oklahoma-city-reach-nba-finals-052521561--nba.html
 
Has to be said it's a little fun watching someone do to Cleveland what the Cavs did to the Raps.
 
Golden State  110  Cleveland 77.  Warriors lead series 2 games to 0.

There's no way in stopping the Splash brothers from finding the net in droves, only this time, in this series, the Warriors didn't need all of their points from Curry & Thompson.  There was Draymond Green,  Andre Iguodala, Andrew Bogut, & co. 

When all of the Warriors pitch in, there's hardly anyone capable of stopping this great team, winning as they have been all season long.  Oh yes, the OKC Thunder seemed destined to dethrone Golden State, but, look again....the Thunder imploded for want of a better term.  Golden State was well, Golden State.  Yes, Curry and Thompson & the team.

Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.  Need we say more?  Looks like the Cavs are the reincarnation of the Toronto Raptors versus the Cleveland Cavs as in the Cavs versus the Warriors as in.....oh, forgedaboudit.

Series now shifts to Cleveland.  LeBron James & co. will need all the magic they can concoct and figure out a way to beat Golden State,

Game 3 goes Wednesday.

Story:
http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/warriors-crush-cavaliers-take-2-0-series-lead-nba-finals/
 
Cleveland  120  Golden State  90.  Warriors lead series 2 games to 1.

What a difference home court makes.  Spurred by a boisterous & raucous crowd, the Cleveland Cavs outplayed, outperformed, and outhustled a bewildered Golden State team that obviously didn't see this coming in the words of their coach.

"They just punched us right in the mouth," Kerr said.

With LeBron James leading the charge with 32 points, and contributions by Kyrie Irving, who finally came alive, with 30 pts., and Toronto native Tristan Thompson playing an instrumental role, the Cavs decimated Golden State's defence and made it generally miserable for Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green to get anything much going.

The Cavs were without the services of Kevin Love, sitting out due to a concussion he suffered in Game 2, and has yet to be cleared to play.

Cleveland has been dominant all season and in these playoffs when playing at home.  The edge automatically sent to the Cavs on that count alone.  Only because it's The Finals, the championship and the team is Golden State, the best team in the league bar none.  By winning Game 3, the Cavs made believers out of the skeptics, particularly LeBron James.

So far, so good.

Game 4 goes Friday in Cleveland.


http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/cavaliers-dominate-warriors-win-game-3-nba-finals/
 
Warriors Draymond Green suspended for flagrant foul in Game 4. Will not play in Game 5 (Monday).


http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs/2016/story/_/id/16151747/draymond-green-golden-state-warriors-suspended-game-5-nba-finals-cleveland-cavaliers
 
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