2013-2014 NBA Thread - IND @ WAS and OKC @ LAC on ESPN

[awm412]

 
You know why KD wasn't on Lebron? Because he can't guard Lebron. Lebron exerted his energy trying to stop a guy who's on a historic hot streak and still put up 34 points himself. Durant had a great game. But have him guard Lebron all day and cut that point total by 10 easy. 

 This ^^ (Partially).  I don't know how much it would have decreased KD's scoring total, but he definitely would have been more tired.  He would get a decent rest on some defensive sets, and then be juiced up on offense. Although, I do think KD is capable of guarding Lebron some of the time. It's not like Lebron would have had more trouble scoring if he was covered by Durant.  There's a reason they didn't have KD guard Lebron more.  I got the same impression as many other though.  At the end of the game, I was pretty surprised that Lebron had more points than KD.  Lebron had some great shots, but KD just seemed to hit everything.  I don't know if it's because I was also caught up in the "oh my God KD is doing whatever he damn well pleases on offense," but I thought he was outscoring Lebron (until I saw final stats).  Either way, I hope these teams make the finals because the head-to-head between these two could push them both to perform at a crazy high level.

 

[dt43]

Furious mami

HAHA!

Anyway, was excited for last night's match up because I'ma fan of both. Durant is on some other ish right now. So fun to watch.

However, the Bron haters crack me up talking about he got cooked, and so forth. I guess the same can't be said about Durant getting cooked because Durant BARELY guarded him. ESPN posted the possessions and i think Durant only guarded him like nine times or something. I BET if Lebron had only guarded Durant that little, dudes in here would be talking about how scared he is and blah blah.

 

you are just saying that cause you are a victim of being caught in the moment

Lol I am saying that because I saw KD score in Lebrons face everytime he wanted to when Lebron was on him.


Lebron had 34 points but he was not covered by KD for the majority of the game. Lebron was on KD for the majority of the game on D and either got shook or had a jumper drilled in his grill.

You know why KD wasn't on Lebron? Because he can't guard Lebron. Lebron exerted his energy trying to stop a guy who's on a historic hot streak and still put up 34 points himself. Durant had a great game. But have him guard Lebron all day and cut that point total by 10 easy. 

Did either of you watch the game? KD was switched off Lebron because he picked up 3 quick fouls early on, not because "he can't guard Lebron" (and the fouls weren't from guarding Lebron, just general random fouls)

Advanced stats have Durant as one of the best wing defenders in the NBA this season, pretty sure he can guard anybody reasonably well.

 

[doublehh03]

Pretty much.

The Lebron haters won't see that. HOWEVER, if it was the other way around, GURANTEE dudes would be talking about how Lebron didn't want it with KD and was scared to guard him, etc.

Dudes acting like Bron wasn't on THE best player for majority of the game last night and STILL had a good game in his own right. Normally, with these "epic" matchups, both star players wouldn't guard each other, until maybe the 4th. Gotta take that into account.

That's not the point. Durant is an all-time offensive great. No one is going to check him. He came in averaging 29-30 points v. Lebron. Lebron can't check him period. But he tries to defend him. 12-23 is one of the "poorer" games shooting-wise for Durant during this streak. Lebron actually does an overall good job v. Durant more than most other specialists out there. 

But the moment you put Durant on Lebron, bam it's a foul. Durant simply can't check Lebron to begin with due to the size difference. Lebron would foul him out in like a quarter. He's too skinny for Lebron. So nobody should expect Durant to be on Lebron for more than short stretches. 

Lebron actually tried last night defensively but some of the shots Durant made were simply "unguardable." Nothing you can do about deep 3s in your face. But what killed the Heat were the 10 fastbreak points that Durant got to get him into that rhythm. 

 

[carltonjunior]

Dudes acting like Bron wasn't on THE best player for majority of the game last night and STILL had a good game in his own right. Normally, with these "epic" matchups, both star players wouldn't guard each other, until maybe the 4th. Gotta take that into account.

 

[awm412]

 
LeBron went 2-6 with 8 points with KD guarding him. He got blocked once, or I believe so, IN THE POST.

KD denied LeBron the ball in the post A LOT and several time LeBron couldn't get anything on him so he just passed the ball.

I don't think people meant KD can't guard Lebron at all.  I think it's that they don't think he could do it for the entire game.  Once KD gets worn down/more tired, Lebron's strength, especially in the post or driving to the hoop, is going to become more of an issue for KD.  Another reason KD isn't guarding Lebron all game is because the Thunder need him fresh for offense.  Other player's were hitting shots, but obviously they are leaning on him super hard for a bulk of the scoring.

 

[onetrust]

 This ^^ (Partially).  I don't know how much it would have decreased KD's scoring total, but he definitely would have been more tired.  He would get a decent rest on some defensive sets, and then be juiced up on offense. Although, I do think KD is capable of guarding Lebron some of the time. It's not like Lebron would have had more trouble scoring if he was covered by Durant.  There's a reason they didn't have KD guard Lebron more.  I got the same impression as many other though.  At the end of the game, I was pretty surprised that Lebron had more points than KD.  Lebron had some great shots, but KD just seemed to hit everything.  I don't know if it's because I was also caught up in the "oh my God KD is doing whatever he damn well pleases on offense," but I thought he was outscoring Lebron (until I saw final stats).  Either way, I hope these teams make the finals because the head-to-head between these two could push them both to perform at a crazy high level.

LeBron went 2-6 with 8 points with KD guarding him. He got blocked once, or I believe so, IN THE POST.

KD denied LeBron the ball in the post A LOT and several time LeBron couldn't get anything on him so he just passed the ball.

Yeah, KD is just SICK to watch right now on some "damn this dude is lights out from ANYWHERE on the court." I LOVE how he just takes the ball from out of bounds, walks up to the other end of the court and J's in anybody, including Bron's, face!

 

[MVP]

Eh, Bron has been coasting on defense all season. He actually tried last night and couldn't do a damn thing with KD. If they didn't double KD so much early, he probably would have dropped 40. The refs called them ticky tack fouls on KD early when he was guarding Bron decently and they switched him off. Great back and forth between them last night though. Yea, KD may have been slightly more fatigued if he had to guard Bron all game, but he didn't exactly exert as much as Bron did offensively to get his points with all the driving Bron did and PJ3 was making Bron take and make tough shots. KD's were coming so effortlessly.

 

[carltonjunior]

 

[awm412]

Yeah, KD is just SICK to watch right now on some "damn this dude is lights out from ANYWHERE on the court." I LOVE how he just takes the ball from out of bounds, walks up to the other end of the court and J's in anybody, including Bron's, face!

His confidence is just super high.  You can see it on his face and in his body language.  Every time he would pull up, I'd just assume it was going in lol.  Hecalso hit some great shots falling sideway off the dribble.

 

[dt43]

View media item 774873
My Wizards can never get over .500

And we got KD up next -___-

Speaking of the Wizards, a belated GG for last night. I enjoy watching your team play. Wall and Beal are both real nice players. I'm not sure what exactly the team needs to get to the next level, but with that backcourt, they should be a playoff team in the East for a while.

What we need is a new coach. It's still a shock to me that Wittman has a job in the NBA, his career record is 160-305 (easily the worst among active coaches).. can't stand that buffoon

Blake is becoming one of my favorite players to watch, as an opposing fan seeing him grab a rebound and go coast-to-coast like prime Barkley is scary

 

[black migo]

Did either of you watch the game? KD was switched off Lebron because he picked up 3 quick fouls early on, not because "he can't guard Lebron" (and the fouls weren't from guarding Lebron, just general random fouls)

Advanced stats have Durant as one of the best wing defenders in the NBA this season, pretty sure he can guard anybody reasonably well.

The same advanced stats that had fisher as a top defender last year advanced stats is killing the game & yall dudes swear by it too

 

[doublehh03]

 
You know why KD wasn't on Lebron? Because he can't guard Lebron. Lebron exerted his energy trying to stop a guy who's on a historic hot streak and still put up 34 points himself. Durant had a great game. But have him guard Lebron all day and cut that point total by 10 easy. 

Durant had 3 fouls. 2 were on Lebron. Are you guys even serious with this? Durant in his career had NEVER guarded Lebron for more than 6-8 possessions in a GAME. And a game usually has what? 55-60 possessions per team?

Durant would be on the bench if he had to guard Lebron all game. Brooks knows that. 

 

[onetrust]

That's not the point. Durant is an all-time offensive great. No one is going to check him. He came in averaging 29-30 points v. Lebron. Lebron can't check him period. But he tries to defend him. 12-23 is one of the "poorer" games shooting-wise for Durant during this streak. Lebron actually does an overall good job v. Durant more than most other specialists out there. 

But the moment you put Durant on Lebron, bam it's a foul. Durant simply can't check Lebron to begin with due to the size difference. Lebron would foul him out in like a quarter. He's too skinny for Lebron. So nobody should expect Durant to be on Lebron for more than short stretches. 

Lebron actually tried last night defensively but some of the shots Durant made were simply "unguardable." Nothing you can do about deep 3s in your face. But what killed the Heat were the 10 fastbreak points that Durant got to get him into that rhythm. 

That's not the point. Durant is an all-time offensive great. No one is going to check him. He came in averaging 29-30 points v. Lebron. Lebron can't check him period. But he tries to defend him. 12-23 is one of the "poorer" games shooting-wise for Durant during this streak. Lebron actually does an overall good job v. Durant more than most other specialists out there. 

But the moment you put Durant on Lebron, bam it's a foul. Durant simply can't check Lebron to begin with due to the size difference. Lebron would foul him out in like a quarter. He's too skinny for Lebron. So nobody should expect Durant to be on Lebron for more than short stretches. 

Lebron actually tried last night defensively but some of the shots Durant made were simply "unguardable." Nothing you can do about deep 3s in your face. But what killed the Heat were the 10 fastbreak points that Durant got to get him into that rhythm. 

Naw, i agree with you. THat was my point, was that Bron actually TRIED to guard Durant for the majority of the game which in turn, he wasted a TON of energy on. Whereas, Durant didn't guard Bron as much. At the end of the day, both can't guard each other and if both are hot, nobody is going to be able to guard them one on one.

 

[awm412]

The only and I mean ONLY reason KD wasn't guarding LeBron the whole game was foul trouble early, and one off of what looked like a clean block. If you was watching the low post during the game with KD guarding LeBron you could see LeBron couldn't get position to catch the ball at all, his post ups were mostly on Thabo. I also don't buy this "KD would be too tired to score" idea either.

This is why I want them to play in the finals.  KD has improved his overall game a lot since they faced off in a series.  The finals would give us all a great look at stuff like this.  We'd get to see whether KD could guard Lebron for almost entire games since foul trouble will probably only matter in a few.  We could also see if Lebron could find a way to slow down Durant.  It would be great to watch.

 

[carltonjunior]

Energy is too much of a factor in this discussion. These are professional athletes.

 

[shoeking2101]

Now I may be wrong, but Didn't Lebron have 34 on 60% shooting or something while guarding Durant?

 

[doublehh03]

 
 This ^^ (Partially).  I don't know how much it would have decreased KD's scoring total, but he definitely would have been more tired.  He would get a decent rest on some defensive sets, and then be juiced up on offense. Although, I do think KD is capable of guarding Lebron some of the time. It's not like Lebron would have had more trouble scoring if he was covered by Durant.  There's a reason they didn't have KD guard Lebron more.  I got the same impression as many other though.  At the end of the game, I was pretty surprised that Lebron had more points than KD.  Lebron had some great shots, but KD just seemed to hit everything.  I don't know if it's because I was also caught up in the "oh my God KD is doing whatever he damn well pleases on offense," but I thought he was outscoring Lebron (until I saw final stats).  Either way, I hope these teams make the finals because the head-to-head between these two could push them both to perform at a crazy high level.

+1. We are watching 2 of the greatest of all time in their primes right now (Well Lebron is coasting till the playoffs, but he got up for last night's game). 

There's no point in arguing who can guard who b/c they can't guard one another.  The reason i'm watching them is the banter and the back and forth, which they briefly provided late at the end of the 3rd quarter.

If Fish didn't make that 3, I think we would have gotten a great 4th quarter. Ugh

 

[awm412]

I also can't wait to see what happens when Westbrook comes back.  I don't know if he will slow Durant's scoring down a bit at first until they gel again or if they'll just become completely unstoppable offensively (which I guess they already kind of are lol)

 

[julius wrek]

I don't know what game people were watching...

Durant's first foul was a charge drawn by Battier,

the second was on LeBron attempt (which looked like he got all ball).

KD was pulled at 2 fouls...

Durant was seeing doubles from jump, and at times, triples...and it didn't matter.

He made the right plays, which resulted in finding the open man, or gettin' that hockey assist.

Julius F. Wrek

 

[hand2handking]

im most impressed with lamb he can potentially be the piece that puts them over the top i think a game like last night will be big come playoff time in terms of his confidence

 

[doublehh03]

Naw, i agree with you. THat was my point, was that Bron actually TRIED to guard Durant for the majority of the game which in turn, he wasted a TON of energy on. Whereas, Durant didn't guard Bron as much. At the end of the day, both can't guard each other and if both are hot, nobody is going to be able to guard them one on one.

That's why it's all about the playoffs man. Lebron would get up for these types of games, but he still doesn't go all out. And his team is in coast-mode. 

You know they're coasting when the Heat are the 8th worst defensive team this month, and for the most part of the season. Their offense is fine. They're just chilling until facing the Pacers in the Finals.

But I do think this is the first game that will kick-start Lebron's MVP campaign. He's going to try now a little bit more jsut to spice it up LOL.

But Durant man. Never seen someone so graceful offensively. Last was my boy T-Mac. Walk the ball down and just raise up with those 3s. 

 

[coldcity]

my boy LamBO was goin off

 

[datznasty]

17 KD fgs defended by Lebron vs 6 LeBron fgs defended by KD is just an issue of personel. I mean, the Thunder have a lineup of guys to throw at LeBron. It's just not necessary to put KD on LeBron full time when you can put Sef on him (who got cooked in the first half but did better in the 2nd and finished with 6 steals) who is a defensive specialist, in fact the lineup of Jackson, Sefolosha, Durant, Jones 3, Ibaka arguably has 4 guys who can switch onto him any given possession and at least matchup athletically. That said, Bron still finished with 34 on 12-20fg and 9-9fts. You do what you can, sometimes better offense > good defense. Both guys made a number of shots that couldn't have been defended any better than they were. The numbers no longer support the narrative that KD can't guard LeBron, he did more than fine in his limited possessions against him. His foul trouble in the 2012finals was less about the fact he was guarding LeBron and more him picking up dumb fouls reaching on other plays' drives and questionable charges on Battier/Haslem undercuts.

I also can't wait to see what happens when Westbrook comes back. I don't know if he will slow Durant's scoring down a bit at first until they gel again or if they'll just become completely unstoppable offensively (which I guess they already kind of are lol)

Russ will be understandibly rusty, KD won't score 45 pts every other game anymore as you integrate a ~30% usage player back into the lineup, and it will reignite the are the Thunder better without Westbrook, does KD like playing with Westbrook, does Westbrook ever pass the ball, is Westbrook a championship PG chatter again.

 

[doublehh03]

 
This is why I want them to play in the finals.  KD has improved his overall game a lot since they faced off in a series.  The finals would give us all a great look at stuff like this.  We'd get to see whether KD could guard Lebron for almost entire games since foul trouble will probably only matter in a few.  We could also see if Lebron could find a way to slow down Durant.  It would be great to watch.

Trust me, Durant will NEVER guard Lebron more than short stretches. just trust me on that. 

Fatigue and foul trouble are huge factors for him and Brooks. 

 

[dt43]

Did either of you watch the game? KD was switched off Lebron because he picked up 3 quick fouls early on, not because "he can't guard Lebron" (and the fouls weren't from guarding Lebron, just general random fouls)

Advanced stats have Durant as one of the best wing defenders in the NBA this season, pretty sure he can guard anybody reasonably well.

The same advanced stats that had fisher as a top defender last year advanced stats is killing the game & yall dudes swear by it too

Which stats? Post them (you won't, because you're talking out of your ***)

Synergy, which actually shows video of each defensive play (the videos are fake right?), shows Durant being a better defensive player than Lebron in opponent PPP, isolation, pick and roll defense.. as well as blocks, rebounds, on/off (the Heat defense is better with Lebron off the floor) and more.


If you think Durant hasn't been a good defender this season it's clear you don't watch ball (but you're Black Migo, so no one is surprised by that). His length bothers opposing players, and he has been great at rotations and help defense .