[BlacK_HazE]

Usually like to place a unit on predicting how many games each series will go.. Everyone is saying Heat/Spurs in 6 or 7, I think this year is all about Lebron's revenge vs San Antonio from 07.. Heat are the better team and I expect Wade/Bosh to play much better in this series. '12 Thunder > '13 Spurs. Just my thoughts, best of luck to everyone!

[ticklz]

There have been eight teams to sweep their rivals in the NBA Finals. It happened in the following years:

• 2006-07 San Antonio Spurs 4-0 Cleveland Cavaliers
• 2001-02 Los Angeles Lakers 4-0 New Jersey Nets
• 1994-95 Houston Rockets 4-0 Orlando Magic
• 1988-89 Detroit Pistons 4-0 Los Angeles Lakers
• 1982-83 Philadelphia 76ers 4-0 Los Angeles Lakers
• 1974-75 Golden State Warriors 4-0 Washington Bullets
• 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks 4-0 Baltimore Bullets
• 1958-59 Boston Celtics 4-0 Minneapolis Lakers

i dont know if 7-1 is high enough to take a shot

[BIGSACK]

I see the heat wins in 5. Spurs is very likely to take game 3

[LowRollin]

worst bet of the playoffs

[BlacK_HazE]

worst bet of the playoffs

It's usually the ones that look bad, that end up hitting.. not advising anyone to put a lot of $ on it, just giving my opinion.. At least I'm not calling it a lock like half of the retards would on this site..

[upscope]

It's usually the ones that look bad, that end up hitting.. not advising anyone to put a lot of $ on it, just giving my opinion.. At least I'm not calling it a lock like half of the retards would on this site..

It's a lock this series is not a sweep

[BlacK_HazE]

It's a lock this series is not a sweep

NOTHING is a lock

[pip2]

I don't think the Heat even want to sweep. They're not so much interested in getting a championship as they are interested in getting a championship while expending the least possible amount of effort. They won't even really start playing hard until they get beaten at least once by the Spurs. It was fortuitous last year that the Thunder beat them in the first game of the series...

[rawzay]

Spurs in 6. Wade is basically a role player at this point and Bosh isn't going to outplay Duncan. Parker just destroyed Conley, Allen and Gasol and is gonna run a layup drill against Chalmers, Cole and Birdman Birdman.

[Heist]

There have been eight teams to sweep their rivals in the NBA Finals. It happened in the following years:

• 2006-07 San Antonio Spurs 4-0 Cleveland Cavaliers
• 2001-02 Los Angeles Lakers 4-0 New Jersey Nets
• 1994-95 Houston Rockets 4-0 Orlando Magic
• 1988-89 Detroit Pistons 4-0 Los Angeles Lakers
• 1982-83 Philadelphia 76ers 4-0 Los Angeles Lakers
• 1974-75 Golden State Warriors 4-0 Washington Bullets
• 1970-71 Milwaukee Bucks 4-0 Baltimore Bullets
• 1958-59 Boston Celtics 4-0 Minneapolis Lakers

i dont know if 7-1 is high enough to take a shot

I forgot about the Spurs beating LeBron in 06-07 for the title. LeBron wants revenge?

For the record: Absolutely zero chance the Heat sweep.

1. Spurs guard play is much better than the Heats. I do agree that Wade can turn it on when he needs to but he is still operating at 60 - 75% tops. He will be guarded by either Tony Parker or Danny Green who were both able to shut down the more dangerous Steph Curry. They wore Steph out with screens and tons of ball rotation which will wear on Wade over the series and frustrate him. Chalmers and Cole are non-factors as far as I am concerned. Chalmers' floater lay-ups are sporadic and only hit when he's on which isn't often. The Spurs space the floor so well and have dribble penetration kick out dialed in as well as a fierce pick and roll game that is effective with a multitude of PG+PF/C combinations. The Spurs perimeter game is more fluent because of the issues they cause down low which leads to opens threes which virtually any guard, or center (Bonner) can hit.

2. The Spurs bigs are a greater presence than Indiana's big men. Tim Duncan has been playing fantastic ball in the post and can guard Miami's Center and help on the driver without any issues. Tiago, Diaw and even Bonner have proven that they are able to handle their own in the post. LeBron's drive is nasty and his dish out of the paint are insane, but I don't think it's enough when their three point shooting squad has fallen off the face of the earth this playoff series.

3. LeBron James: We all know what he's capable and who he is. We all know how he can ignite an offence or defense but will he be able to out coach veterans on the court like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu? They have an ever omniscient presence of what needs to be happening on the court and how to react to certain sets. What Tom Thibedeau and the Chicago bulls did to Miami the games that they beat them is reason enough to believe that the Miami Heat is very vulnerable to a well operated fundamental basketball system. Popovich has better players than the beat up Bulls who almost took Miami, he has very solid players at every position with a deep deep bench, and he has control over his team which is something which will be crucial in tight games. LeBron ISO won't be half as efficient as it was in Indiana.

penetrating sweep... Spurs in 6 - 7.

[Mac4Lyfe]

^^^Heist nailed it. Spurs are a better version of Chicago. The Heat have problems with skilled PG's that can break them down and not turn the ball over. Then you have Duncan, Splitter and Diaw who will attack the paint. I still like Miami in 6 because I think they will have the advantage of the refs/Sterns wishes. That said, I see NO WAY the Heat get a sweep here. They have been playing very poor basketball the last month or so. They were very fortunate that they played awful teams and an average Indy team in the playoffs.

[BlacK_HazE]

I forgot about the Spurs beating LeBron in 06-07 for the title. LeBron wants revenge?

For the record: Absolutely zero chance the Heat sweep.

1. Spurs guard play is much better than the Heats. I do agree that Wade can turn it on when he needs to but he is still operating at 60 - 75% tops. He will be guarded by either Tony Parker or Danny Green who were both able to shut down the more dangerous Steph Curry. They wore Steph out with screens and tons of ball rotation which will wear on Wade over the series and frustrate him. Chalmers and Cole are non-factors as far as I am concerned. Chalmers' floater lay-ups are sporadic and only hit when he's on which isn't often. The Spurs space the floor so well and have dribble penetration kick out dialed in as well as a fierce pick and roll game that is effective with a multitude of PG+PF/C combinations. The Spurs perimeter game is more fluent because of the issues they cause down low which leads to opens threes which virtually any guard, or center (Bonner) can hit.

2. The Spurs bigs are a greater presence than Indiana's big men. Tim Duncan has been playing fantastic ball in the post and can guard Miami's Center and help on the driver without any issues. Tiago, Diaw and even Bonner have proven that they are able to handle their own in the post. LeBron's drive is nasty and his dish out of the paint are insane, but I don't think it's enough when their three point shooting squad has fallen off the face of the earth this playoff series.

3. LeBron James: We all know what he's capable and who he is. We all know how he can ignite an offence or defense but will he be able to out coach veterans on the court like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu? They have an ever omniscient presence of what needs to be happening on the court and how to react to certain sets. What Tom Thibedeau and the Chicago bulls did to Miami the games that they beat them is reason enough to believe that the Miami Heat is very vulnerable to a well operated fundamental basketball system. Popovich has better players than the beat up Bulls who almost took Miami, he has very solid players at every position with a deep deep bench, and he has control over his team which is something which will be crucial in tight games. LeBron ISO won't be half as efficient as it was in Indiana.

penetrating sweep... Spurs in 6 - 7.

I think I disagree with almost everything you said... The Spurs are no where near as dominant as Indy was down low.. check the stats. Ranked last in offensive rebounding

[hotelis]

worst thread ever. 0% chance

[Heist]

I think I disagree with almost everything you said... The Spurs are no where near as dominant as Indy was down low.. check the stats. Ranked last in offensive rebounding

Offensive rebounding? They're not a crashing team, nor are they the most athletic either.

How about their schedules?
Spurs = Lakers -> Warriors -> Memphis
Indiana = Atlanta -> Knicks -> Heat

The Spurs dominated in all of their series with the exception of a small blemish in the warriors game due to a red-hot Steph Curry.

Indiana has been in a dog fight in each of their series with the has-been's of Atlanta, Carmelo doing his be LeBron rendition and then got an edge with the Heat because they literally have no inside presence other than "The Birdman" who is a complete non-factor on and off the ball against a formidable defense.

Once again, rebounding?
Spurs are 4th in own rebounding. Not the strongest in rebounds allowed but that's attributed to the teams that they played over the course of their playoff run.
http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/te...rt/avgRebounds

Again, the Spurs have a very balanced and different attack. Looking at rebounds is only indicative of so much.

You're a clown if you think Indiana had a shot at the Spurs.

[BlacK_HazE]

Offensive rebounding? They're not a crashing team, nor are they the most athletic either.

How about their schedules?
Spurs = Lakers -> Warriors -> Memphis
Indiana = Atlanta -> Knicks -> Heat

The Spurs dominated in all of their series with the exception of a small blemish in the warriors game due to a red-hot Steph Curry.

Indiana has been in a dog fight in each of their series with the has-been's of Atlanta, Carmelo doing his be LeBron rendition and then got an edge with the Heat because they literally have no inside presence other than "The Birdman" who is a complete non-factor on and off the ball against a formidable defense.

Once again, rebounding?
Spurs are 4th in own rebounding. Not the strongest in rebounds allowed but that's attributed to the teams that they played over the course of their playoff run.
http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/te...rt/avgRebounds

Again, the Spurs have a very balanced and different attack. Looking at rebounds is only indicative of so much.

You're a clown if you think Indiana had a shot at the Spurs.

That was only 1 of the many statements in which you made that were wrong.. sorry im at work i will write a full response when im off, but another point your inaccurate about is Chris Bosh.. Bosh since joining the heat vs san antonio has avg 24.6 ppg and has shot 63% from the field and has done very well down low.

[Seto]

Offensive rebounding? They're not a crashing team, nor are they the most athletic either.

How about their schedules?
Spurs = Lakers -> Warriors -> Memphis
Indiana = Atlanta -> Knicks -> Heat

The Spurs dominated in all of their series with the exception of a small blemish in the warriors game due to a red-hot Steph Curry.

Indiana has been in a dog fight in each of their series with the has-been's of Atlanta, Carmelo doing his be LeBron rendition and then got an edge with the Heat because they literally have no inside presence other than "The Birdman" who is a complete non-factor on and off the ball against a formidable defense.

Once again, rebounding?
Spurs are 4th in own rebounding. Not the strongest in rebounds allowed but that's attributed to the teams that they played over the course of their playoff run.
http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/te...rt/avgRebounds

Again, the Spurs have a very balanced and different attack. Looking at rebounds is only indicative of so much.

You're a clown if you think Indiana had a shot at the Spurs.

What are you talking about? Steph only lit it up in game 1 and the Warriors lost that.

In both games the Warriors won, Steph shot 7-20 (game 2) and 7-15 (game 4)... Hardly extraordinary. Had they had a healthy Bogut and a healthy Curry (not even talking about David Lee), the Warriors could have won that series IMO.

And "dominating" that Laker team doesn't count. Milwaukee may have beaten them in a 7 game series.

[Seto]

I think I disagree with almost everything you said... The Spurs are no where near as dominant as Indy was down low.. check the stats. Ranked last in offensive rebounding

Completely agree. I'm not saying Wade is better than Curry at the moment but shutting Wade down is very different than shutting Curry down... If you think Parker can guard Wade you're kidding yourself. Wade would destroy Parker.

[Menses]

I dun blame you for laying this...I suspect it will be 5 games as Miami and Stern will lay down for game 3...but it is definitely going to be a shorter series than most people think.....its worth a shot though....

[Menses]

Spurs in 6. Wade is basically a role player at this point and Bosh isn't going to outplay Duncan. Parker just destroyed Conley, Allen and Gasol and is gonna run a layup drill against Chalmers, Cole and Birdman Birdman.

Spurs do not lay down and were defeated by Miami minus James and Wade...earlier this year.

http://espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400278818

Parker struggled going 4 for 14....guarded by Norris Cole.....If Spoelstra decides to stick Lebron on him....I suspect game 1 will be a blow out.....

[hotelis]

Spurs do not lay down and were defeated by Miami minus James and Wade...earlier this year.

http://espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=400278818

Parker struggled going 4 for 14....guarded by Norris Cole.....If Spoelstra decides to stick Lebron on him....I suspect game 1 will be a blow out.....

parker - smaller, much quicker and running through many screens wearing lebron down. how about that for a blowout?

[BlacK_HazE]

I forgot about the Spurs beating LeBron in 06-07 for the title. LeBron wants revenge?

For the record: Absolutely zero chance the Heat sweep.

1. Spurs guard play is much better than the Heats. I do agree that Wade can turn it on when he needs to but he is still operating at 60 - 75% tops. He will be guarded by either Tony Parker or Danny Green who were both able to shut down the more dangerous Steph Curry. They wore Steph out with screens and tons of ball rotation which will wear on Wade over the series and frustrate him. Chalmers and Cole are non-factors as far as I am concerned. Chalmers' floater lay-ups are sporadic and only hit when he's on which isn't often. The Spurs space the floor so well and have dribble penetration kick out dialed in as well as a fierce pick and roll game that is effective with a multitude of PG+PF/C combinations. The Spurs perimeter game is more fluent because of the issues they cause down low which leads to opens threes which virtually any guard, or center (Bonner) can hit.

2. The Spurs bigs are a greater presence than Indiana's big men. Tim Duncan has been playing fantastic ball in the post and can guard Miami's Center and help on the driver without any issues. Tiago, Diaw and even Bonner have proven that they are able to handle their own in the post. LeBron's drive is nasty and his dish out of the paint are insane, but I don't think it's enough when their three point shooting squad has fallen off the face of the earth this playoff series.

3. LeBron James: We all know what he's capable and who he is. We all know how he can ignite an offence or defense but will he be able to out coach veterans on the court like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu? They have an ever omniscient presence of what needs to be happening on the court and how to react to certain sets. What Tom Thibedeau and the Chicago bulls did to Miami the games that they beat them is reason enough to believe that the Miami Heat is very vulnerable to a well operated fundamental basketball system. Popovich has better players than the beat up Bulls who almost took Miami, he has very solid players at every position with a deep deep bench, and he has control over his team which is something which will be crucial in tight games. LeBron ISO won't be half as efficient as it was in Indiana.

penetrating sweep... Spurs in 6 - 7.

New series, new matchups, etc.. I'm not saying the Pacers would've beat the Spurs in a 7 game series, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the Heat match-up much better against the Spurs than they did vs Indiana. I find it funny that you act like the bigs the Spurs have (Splitter, Duncan, Diaw, Bonner) are so much better than the Pacers, or even the Heat for that matter. Are they better? Yes, but don't act like Haslem, Bosh, Birdman can't hold their own down low and that the Spurs are light years ahead of them.. They've performed well in the past against the Spurs and I don't see it being as much of a mismatch as it was with Indiana or as much as you try to make it out to be.. & then you go on to assume that Chalmers/Cole will be "non-factors".. I can tell you don't watch the Heat much.. As someone else previously stated, the Heat beat San Antonio in the regular season in a game in which Lebron/Dwade sat out vs a fully healthy Spurs squad (excluding Ginobli). In that game they forced the Spurs to commit 12 TO's and Cole forced Parker into shooting 4 of 14 from the floor. They lost to the Heat's bench that game so you are very foolish to assume that Parker will be running lay up drills over them.. Anyone who bets a series (or players) to perform the exact same way they performed in the previous series is a f****** idiot. Yeah the Heat's outside game wasn't so hot against the Pacers but how do you know Battier, Allen, Chalmers, etc will continue to miss wide open 3s? Do you have a crystal ball? And then of course, turning to the worst part of your argument which is your failure to mention the biggest advantage of either team on the floor, Lebron James.. "will he be able to out coach veterans on the court like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu"? is this even a question? The Spurs don't have an answer for LBJ.. whose going to guard him? Leonard? A guy who is outweighed by 35 lbs and gives up 4 inches to LBJ? I'd like some of whatever your smoking sir.. Paul George > Kawhi Leonard. Not to mention defensively LBJ will guard whoever appears as the best offensive threat in each game. I could very well see him guarding Tony Parker if its as much of a mismatch as you assume. And it would be very similar to what we saw when he shut down a much better Derrick Rose in the 2011 ECF. The way I see it, the only way the Spurs win is if DWade/Bosh are no shows again, but I don't see that happening. This is the Finals, & I expect we will see Dwade perform much better with Green on him. The Thunder team (who beat the Spurs in the WCF last year if I'm not mistaken) with Harden/healthy Westbrook/KD IMO are much better than this years Spurs team and look how they did last year.. Spurs have a better coach, but other than that good luck! And those who think coaching makes that big of a difference in a game are just stupid to begin with imo.. It's usually the kids who have never played sports at a serious level that think coaches make that big of a difference.. Ever see that live look-in on the huddle they do after TO's. Any retard with basic basketball knowledge can say what these jokers say/do. 3 f****** trips in a row to the finals and you guys act like the heat should be scared or something..Still haven't lost back 2 back games since early January. How long will it take people to realize not to fade the heat?

[Ron29301]

New series, new matchups, etc.. I'm not saying the Pacers would've beat the Spurs in a 7 game series, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the Heat match-up much better against the Spurs than they did vs Indiana. I find it funny that you act like the bigs the Spurs have (Splitter, Duncan, Diaw, Bonner) are so much better than the Pacers, or even the Heat for that matter. Are they better? Yes, but don't act like Haslem, Bosh, Birdman can't hold their own down low and that the Spurs are light years ahead of them.. They've performed well in the past against the Spurs and I don't see it being as much of a mismatch as it was with Indiana or as much as you try to make it out to be.. & then you go on to assume that Chalmers/Cole will be "non-factors".. I can tell you don't watch the Heat much.. As someone else previously stated, the Heat beat San Antonio in the regular season in a game in which Lebron/Dwade sat out vs a fully healthy Spurs squad (excluding Ginobli). In that game they forced the Spurs to commit 12 TO's and Cole forced Parker into shooting 4 of 14 from the floor. They lost to the Heat's bench that game so you are very foolish to assume that Parker will be running lay up drills over them.. Anyone who bets a series (or players) to perform the exact same way they performed in the previous series is a f****** idiot. Yeah the Heat's outside game wasn't so hot against the Pacers but how do you know Battier, Allen, Chalmers, etc will continue to miss wide open 3s? Do you have a crystal ball? And then of course, turning to the worst part of your argument which is your failure to mention the biggest advantage of either team on the floor, Lebron James.. "will he be able to out coach veterans on the court like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu"? is this even a question? The Spurs don't have an answer for LBJ.. whose going to guard him? Leonard? A guy who is outweighed by 35 lbs and gives up 4 inches to LBJ? I'd like some of whatever your smoking sir.. Paul George > Kawhi Leonard. Not to mention defensively LBJ will guard whoever appears as the best offensive threat in each game. I could very well see him guarding Tony Parker if its as much of a mismatch as you assume. And it would be very similar to what we saw when he shut down a much better Derrick Rose in the 2011 ECF. The way I see it, the only way the Spurs win is if DWade/Bosh are no shows again, but I don't see that happening. This is the Finals, & I expect we will see Dwade perform much better with Green on him. The Thunder team (who beat the Spurs in the WCF last year if I'm not mistaken) with Harden/healthy Westbrook/KD IMO are much better than this years Spurs team and look how they did last year.. Spurs have a better coach, but other than that good luck! And those who think coaching makes that big of a difference in a game are just stupid to begin with imo.. It's usually the kids who have never played sports at a serious level that think coaches make that big of a difference.. Ever see that live look-in on the huddle they do after TO's. Any retard with basic basketball knowledge can say what these jokers say/do. 3 f****** trips in a row to the finals and you guys act like the heat should be scared or something..Still haven't lost back 2 back games since early January. How long will it take people to realize not to fade the heat?

Tonight and moving forward will answer all of our questions. GL with your pick.