Everyone One-One

For those teams who lost Game 1 at home, winning Game 2 was the right way to balance the ship. That is why it is never a good thing to panic in DTTF just after one game.

LeBron James (headband version) and the Cavs showed in Game 2 that they can dominate the Bulls even without Kevin Love, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert (for part of the game). For me, that rightly corrects the ship. If it was a near-win and not a trashing, then I'd start worrying about the Cavs. Now they only need to steal Game 3 to control this series, or at least Game 4 to keep their chances high. If not, it's a Game 5 sudden mass-picking for The King.

The Rockets just barely took the win from the Clippers in Game 2. While the 4th quarter was a convincing win for the Rockets, it was not without the stains of the 2nd and 3rd quarters when it looked like they'd lose again against a CP3-less Clippers. This is still a series shrouded in mystery. Most of DTTF would want the Clippers to lose because we've lost their major player(s) from Round 1. If they advance, it will be disastrous for the Conference Finals and The Finals in terms of starting to pick from the winners earlier than planned.

And then there's the Wizards without John Wall. That's a big worry. If he continues to sit through games injured, the Hawks will take this series earlier than the expected 7 games.

Meanwhile, the return of Mike Conley has given life to the Grizzlies, especially to the PRA of his buddy Zach Randolph. Truly the absence/presence of a key player makes all the difference. They are still expected to lose this series, but heck they will not go down without striking a nerve down the Warriors' spine.

Tentative picks for Game 3:
Friday: Jimmy Butler, vs D-less JR Smith
Saturday: Bradley Beal, while Wall is out

You may change my mind.

Comments

  1. Wouldn't Jimmy still be guarded by LeBron... And JR would run around after Dunleavy?

    Either way Friday is a tough pick... I'm waiting on the thoughts of others!

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    1. actually i'm thinking of not pocking butler coz he just won most improved. most of these awardees stink up on the very next game.

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  2. Friday Pick: James Harden

    I agree with your strategy of picking Butler. It makes sense for a lot of reasons, and I was tempted to go with Butler, but my plan is to take Harden here. Harden shows up on the road in the playoffs. I feel like the Clippers will take a lead in the game, and that will put a bigger emphasis on Houston to feed the ball to their top scorer. A lot. I'm picking Harden because I want to get the biggest game imaginable from him, and I think this is when it will be. And the good news for me is that he's going to be a cold pick, so if I'm right that will be a huge move.

    If the Rockets do advance, I'd be in the same position I'm in with the Clippers, and I already have a plan in place. From the Clippers, I have Jordan, Crawford, Barnes, and Redick. From the Rockets, I will have Ariza, Smith, Jones, and Brewer. That's solid enough. In the east, I'm a bit more worried about making an error, since I think one of 3 teams have a shot at going to the Finals (anyone but the Wizards). So I'll wait on Butler and Gasol for later.

    Saturday Pick: Bradley Beal

    I was prepared to pick Conley here, but with the Grizzlies winning, I'd better not pick their only remaining quality pick too soon. I like Beal to have a great game carrying their offense. This leaves Wall (when back to healthy), Gortat, and Conley as must picks all the way up to possible game 6's. I'll decide on how to arrange them as the series progress. If the lower seeds win their home games, this will get ugly quickly.

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    1. I almost forgot, tonight's pick. I was super excited to pick Kevin Love this year in DTTF, so here's my chance. Even though I like Cleveland to advance, I don't expect I'll need Love in the future rounds, so I'm willing to make the pick now. I'm hoping for a 0+ from Love tonight.

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    2. haha!
      ... and then love appears in game7 of the finals fully pre-announced and scores 30 points, grabs 20 rebounds and flings 5 of those fullcourt passes he make. :P

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    3. I didn't post yesterday with a no game day, however I just said Tangent's reason of why it was okay to pick a player out from the playoffs (even though his team is still in) as there were no games!

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  3. Well, Smith yesterday was pretty much a bust. If I had started at the top with Harden or Howard, I would sit pretty good. I tried the Smith option, he had 14 PRA at the half and didn't show up in the second half. Was he hurt? Or has aceee07 put a hex on him?

    For tonight I will repeat my pick from sunday (hehe).

    Then? All the series are tied. I still think in the West the winners are more or less clear, it will be Warriors - Clippers in the conference finals. In the East? No idea.

    So, who to pick for Friday? I missed the boat on Shumpert, even with an injury in the second half I would have preferred his 23 to Smith's 15. I won't pick James or Irving yet, and everybody else on the Cavs is more luck than anything. I picked Noah and Rose from the Bulls. So let's turn to the West series.

    I picked Griffin and Smith. When to pick who from the H&H crew? Harden in the first game on the road? Howard and save Harden for an elimination game? For a home game? Hmm...
    It has to be one of these two.

    I would wait a little but then I run the risk of being too late again. Or I would pencil in one of 'em, but then I wouldn't dare changing that pick again, so I have to think about it.

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    1. pencil one of em in. then think about it.

      btw, saturday's game are early

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  4. Are you serious ...I won't be able to use Jon wall this year ??

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  5. First of all... Are you sure JR Smith won't play??? I thought he has only 2 games of suspension...
    Second. I always try to pick the best players, but this time I will make a guess and pick two players I think they can produce the best playing home... The thing is they got me the fewest PRA last years...

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    1. He means Jr Smith will play again and won't be able to guard Butler

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    2. JR comes back from susp and plays G3

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  6. After every series has now completed their first two home games for one of the two teams, the roles now get switched and the other team hosts two home games. After that occurs maybe we will finally have some resolution as to what teams will be going forward to the next round(s), because right now it is totally up in the air. Golden State should still eventually win, although now it is going to go longer than anticipated, and the Clippers should eventually emerge victorious, as even without one of their best players (Chris Paul), they came very near sweeping the Rockets in the first two games at home. If/When Chris Paul does return, that should easily be enough for the Clippers to move on.

    Cleveland got a big win to level their series 1-1, as they trounced the Bulls, and Washington after winning Game #1, lost both John Wall and Game #2, and now head home. It will be interesting to see how the Wizards deal with the loss of Wall, and how effective they will be vs. Atlanta with his absence. As of now, who knows how long John Wall will even be out, as reports vary, and the likelihood of his return and especially when, seems totally up in the air.

    For best pick(s) of the night, seems like that came out of the Houston vs. LA Clippers game. Blake Griffin obviously had the best score (53 PRA), but Dwight Howard (43 PRA) and James Harden (42 PRA) had big games for a Houston team, that seems likely to eventually lose, at least how things have looked so far for them, despite the Game #2 home win. Also Trevor Ariza (30 PRA) Jamal Crawford (29 PRA) were decent picks to make, as they might not get that high again. Probably best to save the Clippers player though, especially if you already used some of, or gutted their roster already.

    My pick of Iman Shumpert, 20 PRA at the half, looked headed for an outstanding performance. Unfortunately he got hurt right after halftime and only ended up with 23 PRA total. This was highly disappointing. Also Terrence Jones now decided to show up with 19 PRA (roughly his normal average) instead of the hideous 8 PRA performance I got out of him when I played him (Net Loss of -11 PRA).

    This game is so incredibly frustrating and infuriating at times!

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  7. It's deja vu all over again, as the same two series square off again after the off day for the Playoffs, the only thing different is two new venue changes. The other two series gets an extra off day. This is quite a rare thing to happen, don't really know why they did this.

    For tonight, I will stay away from the Cleveland vs. Chicago series, and watch another game to see what the Bulls do tonight at home. Cleveland has only two real must pick players, you definitely don't want to pick them from them too early, in case they move on to Round #3, especially with so few decent picks to make from their team. Picking Iman Shumpert wasn't a huge deal as he was replacing another starter in the lineup. Otherwise that would not have been recommended had Shumpert been the starter especially with Cleveland winning (and in a blowout). The Bulls do have around 7 solid options though, and if you need to go there, you can pick a couple if you have to, and still survive the next round(s) in all likelihood if they get there.

    So with the above in mind, I will pick from the Houston vs. LA Clippers game. If Chris Paul does not start, I might go with Austin Rivers, his replacement at home. In Austin Rivers case, he is very expendable, as if/when Chris Paul returns, Austin Rivers will be going back to doing next to nothing. Hopefully if I do end up with Rivers, he doesn't fall flat on his face again, but with him being at home, he should do better. If that does not happen and Chris Paul starts, I will go with Trevor Ariza instead. Trevor Ariza should be good for 25-30+ PRA, if everything goes as planned, at least that is what I hope will happen.

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  8. Hardin, Howard, or Pau Gasol?
    I've used Smith from Rockets, unfortunately, & Rose from Bulls. Leaning towards Howard, but in recent years in DTTF he has not got me very good PRA. Thoughts & suggestions?

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    1. Pau. Should bounce back from a stinker. Hope he gets more touches in G3.

      Not sure about Howard while 1-1

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    2. I had Crawford pick tonight. But I heard CP3 is starting, so I have to delete my pick. Now I have to pick another Rocket. Already used Ariza in G2 which was a good cold pick which both Howard and Harden were in foul trouble.

      So tonight I picked between Howard, Harden or Jones. I think Howard will be double team and Jones will be open getting to the basket. Or Harden, he could have a bounce back game. You DO NOT want to pick Harden facing an elimination game. He has killed me three times already haha.

      I hate to pick a big scorer since either team could win. But I also have to pick either (James/Irving) or (Pau/Butler). So you should go w/ either Ariza or the two Rocket stars. I will go with Harden b/c the Rockets showed they can't barely win w/o Paul in the game.

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  9. I pick Butler for tonight already but I think about change my choice. What do You think about Crawford? Or maybe any other suggest?

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  10. Butler 9 pra at half. Everybody please remind me in future not to pick awardees fresh off their trophies

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  11. Taong, you used up your 3 Bulls already? Shouldn't you keep Pau and Butler instead? I think the Bulls advanced b/c they have the size and defense. You still haven't picked a single Rocket, why not gamble and pick Ariza. He's having a good series against the Clippers. Just don't pick Josh Smith he has not played well against the Clippers.

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    1. everything is different before and after a game.

      of course bulls won.

      and ariza 1 pra in 13 minutes.

      can't win em all. i'd take my losses and move forward :)

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    2. Ariza plays better at home. Tried and tested for the past couple of years

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    3. It is Trevor Ariza's turn tonight to play like absolute garbage. He isn't even trying to score. and if you didn't see the minutes moving you would be hard pressed to prove he was even on the court in this game.

      Absolutely miserable performance for Trevor Ariza tonight. Everyone else on that team not named Dwight Howard isn't a whole lot better.

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    4. Josh Smith woke up though, and Terrence Jones should easily put up another 20ish PRA game. Just not on the nights that I pick these clowns. Then they put in their career worst performances.

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    5. Daytona, I 100% agree with you, it's like Josh Smith had a meeting with the DTTFs devil to be off the court almost the entire 2nd half and go 1/4 from the line the short time he was on the floor.

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  13. Well I got really good news and really bad news;
    the really good news is I picked Derrick Rose and he gave me 44, the really bad news is the last 3 PAR was a game winning basket, breaking a tie (and preventing overtime) and giving the Bulls a 2-1 lead. The Bulls past history against LBJ made me have to pick one of the Bulls Big 3 with the possibility of only 3 games left before that game winning shot, I did not take Paul Gasol since he did not look good last game and I made the mistake of taking Lowry thinking he had to bounce back and instead was only worse, so it was between Butler and Rose and my gut said Rose. Meanwhile LeBron James may end up being the pick if the Bulls end up advancing but I could not afford to lose one of their major players, of course the Cavs season may only have 2 games left.

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  14. Austin rivers. .. night of his life.. meanwhile I picked james harden. 16 1 10... and its a 30 pt gsme... what a waste

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    1. Jet gets ejected, I see houston 's coach, cant spell his name, talk to harden. I get my hopes up, next u know he comes in!!!! Woooot. I was hoping for at least 20/10 to salvage the night. He goes and makes a ft from a tech, makes a 3, grabs a board, and another 3. I'm beyond happy

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    2. Grabs another board and a dunk. ^_^

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  15. I'm going with Ramon sessions tomorrow..Does anyone think that's a bad idea ??

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  16. No new post? Am I too early?

    Harden last night, well, he obviously ended up with a 39, that is about okay, but not great. Redick would have been a great pick with a 33. Oh well.

    Tonight? I planned on picking Beal, but I'll switch to the last series I haven't touched until now, time to pick a Grizzly at home. Z-Bo will be it. Hope he continues to score and rebound some more.

    Tomorrow, it absolutely has to be Kyrie Irving. Not a good idea if the Cavs still advance, but if I don't pick him now it may be too late later. So Irving it is. May he remember to score and assist again.

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    1. With his ankle sprained, is this a good idea? If he records <20 PRA you can better pick someone else ( Lebron, even Thompson, JR) and wait for Irving to recover

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    2. Irving is hurt? Hey LBJ welcome back to your 1st stint in Cleveland lol.

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