I mean, if you're gonna hate so much on Giannis, how about give him his due for a 28-20-5 monster game?
No, it was a stupid response game for him, and their dominance in these past two games makes the lack of a sweep for the stupid Bucks even worse, especially because it's looking like the Raptors are definitely going to sweep. If anything these past two Bucks games have only increased the cost of the Bucks losing that first game.
Hope the Rockets blast off today, though I had that series at 4-2 Houston starting off, but would take anything less for them to advance. Last game was a good win too, as Harden didn't really play that well, they had to come back being down at half, and their defense played really well, so perhaps things will fall in line for the Rockets. Also had the Celtics at 4-2, but Philly has played pretty trash since losing Ben. Fortunately, the Celtics have done little in the way of costing me much (except yesterday by not hitting the over), and have largely won me money.
As someone who thinks that even if the Rockets can hang with the Lakers, they will also need to play against the NBA and the refs, I have been doing a bit of thinking about the ideal finals matchup for the league, and the narrative really seems to be there most for the Clippers (assuming there are really only the two LA teams competing in the West and the top three in the East, though I'll toss in Houston below just because). Obvi the 1 v 1 is a draw, but I do still feel like the Bucks are a beatable 1 seed, more than the Lakers are, at this point. Anyhow, these are the permutations I've arrived at.
Lakers v Bucks - 1 v. 1, Giannis v. Lebron in the battle of MVP candidates, storied Lakers franchise brought back to title contention by the greatest player of all time, etc. There are a few different angles here.
Lakers v. Celtics - Obvi the historic rivalry, but outside of that there's nothing else really here.
Lakers v. Raptors - Nothing.
Clippers v. Bucks - Tough to find anything here outside of Giannis v. Leonard, which might be enough on its own. The Clippers look like the strongest team in the West when everyone is healthy, but I also don't trust Paul George, as was talked about a lot yesterday, and his poor play I will attribute to costing me what should have been a sure win in taking Clips second half money line after Luka went down.
Clips v. Celtics - Doc v. Celtics. Leonard v. Celtics. This is potentially the most compelling match up to me from a narrative standpoint, at least of what I see to be realistic options, and may make for a compelling series, though the Celtics might still be a year or two away.
Clips v. Raptors - Very obvious Leonard story line here. He brought Toronto the title last year, left for the Clippers, and can do the same the very next season with his new team. This is compelling to me in the sense that it's the match up I'd most like to see.
Rocks v. Bucks - Harden v. Giannis makes this must watch, especially since James has rightfully called out Giannis for playing on easy mode because of his body build. Harden should also be MVP, obvi. Since the tiff between Harden and Giannis was public, it's an angle that's an easy sell for two of the league's best, so, while I am biased in wanting to see this, I think the NBA can lean on star power in the same way they could with a Lakers v. Bucks match up.
Rocks v. Celtics - No obvious compelling narrative.
Rocks v. Raptors - No obvious compelling narrative. America v. Canada?
I put a little action on a Lakers v. Bucks series before the restart because it was still positive odds and it seems very clear that the NBA would want James in the finals more than anyone, but I do think there's enough there for the Clippers to disrupt this/not cause a lot of intervention. Thinking about tossing a little on Clippers v. Raptors and Lakers v. Celtics now though just because I can see the NBA being pretty happy with both of those match ups (especially that Lakers v. Celtics, though I'm sure they'd prefer if the Celtics had a huge name draw outside of just Tatum, who is very good, but not the same electrifying name to put up against James in the way Giannis would be).
My friend asked me a couple of weeks ago if the Raptors last year are the worst team to win the title in the modern NBA, and he might be right. Seemed to be Dallas a number of years back was he other candidate to hold the title.