Smart money is on the Cavs winning the finals. I feel like if I were to make a bet, that is who I would bet on.
Smart money is on the Cavs!? Says who!? I'd put my money on whoever wins the Western Conference Finals (even as much as I loathe the Warriors and Spurs)!
Wow the Warriors complain about us running up the score and Curry and Thompson are shooting 3's in the last minutes against the Clipper scrubs? Little hypocritical....
I just feel like there are two teams from the west which are at that championship level, while the Cavs are the only such team in the east. I think the cabs run through the east while it's really undecided between the Spurs and Warriors. In other words the odds that the Cavs are in the finals is higher than the odds the Warriors/Spurs are in the finals.
Okay, but I'm not confident enough to pick the winner of the WCF. Which team are you putting money on, SA or GSW?
I completely agree with this. The spurs have enough talent this year to compete with the Warriors, and with Pops on the bench, I give them a slight edge.
That gives the Blazers a 2.5 game lead over the 9th spot, with 8 games to go. Although the 5th is still obtainable, 3.5 games is a stretch with only 8 games left. Possible, but unlikely. GSW would not be fun to face. SAS would be interesting primarily to see us face LaMarcus. I'd love to see us take him down! I think we have a fighting shot against OKC, but they're playing pretty good of late....
5th seed is very likely. Grizzlies won't win more than 3 of their 9 remaining games the rest of the way. If we go 6-2 (6 games at home), the 5th seed is ours.
IS there anyone else here who has part of themselves wanting to see us face the Spurs, just so we cant flaunt the playoffs in LMA's face? "See? You left and they said we sucked. But here we are, facing you in the playoffs!" "Now see LMA, if you would have stayed, we would be the team who can contend with GSW and you would have become the greatest Blazer ever...." Man I think they win, just like Riverman said, but I sooo want them not to, just so LMA can start second guessing himself... "Hmm, left one of the best players in the league to come win a title. When I left they said the Blazers would suck, but they don't... and I didn't win a ring and this team is on its downside and the Blazers are on the up. Hey Pop. Can I be traded to the Blazers?"
then Neil accepts the trade but flips him for something better so that he may never dawn a blazers jersey again
I agree with this sentiment, but strongly disagree with the wish/desire that he should have remained a Blazer or that we'd be better if we could get him back. I LOVE the fact that we're basically in the same spot we were in last season after "losing" LMA. If we still had LMA I don't think we'd be any better than 4th seed, and wouldn't get any further than the 2nd round. I'll gladly take the 6th seed and one-and-done without LMA, than the 4th seed and a 2nd-and-out with LMA. We went as far as we could have gone with LMA, and we're now better set up to go further in the coming years. If we could beat the Spurs in the first round that would be second only to winning a championship. The delusional fan in me holds out a small hope that we could pull it off through sheer will and desire. But my brain knows better, so I suppose I'd rather not give LMA the satisfaction of being on a team that beats us in the POs.
Or the Spurs win it all and he says "well, blazers are still in the play-off, good for them ! I still made a great decision considering I now have this ring !"
Oh I agree with you too. I just think that his weak mind will wander to that type of thinking, and start second guessing himself if they don't win. I like beating them in the playoffs even better though and it would be a pretty close second behind that ring.