2004 Nba Playoffs

[Jimmy]

It'll be #3 Detroit Pistons vs #1 Indiana Pacers in the East, and

#2 Los Angeles Lakers vs #1 Minnesota Timberwolves out west.

[James]

I would really like to see the Pacers and T-Wolves face off in the finals, but i have a feeling that won't be the outcome of the two series'.. :(

[Jimmy]

Actually I'm predicting a Pistons vs Lakers Finals. I could be wrong about the Pistons though.

[Colin]

I think it will be the Pacers and Lakers. I am hoping it is the T-Wolves and Pistons with the Pistons coming out on top.

[sfft_2108]

I am predicting Lakers in 5 and Pistons in 7. Then i really want the Pistons to win. But i don't see that happening in the finals. Lakers in 5.

[James]

Originally posted by Hurricane@May 21 2004, 12:11 PM
Actually I'm predicting a Pistons vs Lakers Finals.
Me too. I was just saying i would like to see the T-Wolves and Pacers face off. Pacers could possibly be in it, but i dont know, thats a tough call. However, the lakers and twolve series, i think we all know who the winner of that one is already.. but then again, the twolves have been doing VERY good, especially towards the end of the season, but then again so did the spurs.... so we'll see.

[Jimmy]

Well the Timberwolves still have a slight chance against the Lakers, with their a few of their own players with playoff experience: Spreewell has been to the Finals, Cassell won a couple of rings, and Madsen has three with the Lakers. But most of all, they have home-court advantage, which could help them. But they'll need to hold serve on their own court as I don't see them taking a game in Staples Center. If the Lakers take one in Minnesota, then it's really over.

If the Lakers win game one, then they sweep the series.

[Colin]

Originally posted by Hurricane@May 22 2004, 02:39 AM
If the Lakers win game one, then they sweep the series.
Wow I think that is taking a stretch. IMO the T-Wolves have a chance, but Cassell and Sprewell need to play well. Even if the Lakers do win game one, I think the Wolves will at least win one game. If Minnesota does win the series (could happen), I think the East has a chance whether it is Indiana or Detroit.

[Jimmy]

That's just my prediction and yes I might be wrong but I highly doubt it.

The Timberwolves are not capable of stopping Shaq or Kobe and thusly the Lakers. They just wrapped up a grueling seven-game series against the Kings before starting another one against the Lakers, while the Lakers had almost a week of rest. Fatigue is a big factor in the playoffs.

The Lakers are refocused, revitalized, and they know exactly what their playing for.

[Colin]

Derek Fisher has really been stepping up for the Lakers and is a key player for them. I still believe the Wolves will take one from the them, but I could be wrong.

The Pistons-Pacers matchup should be a fun one to watch. I think this series could go either way.

[Colin]

Well the Timberwolves tied up the series even with Cassell going down with an injury. THey are going to need him if they want to win the series though.

The Pacers stole one from the Pistons the other night, but Rasheed Wallace is guaranteeing a win tonight. We shall see...

[Jimmy]

Wallace has now backed up his word tonight thanks to Tayshaun Prince's spectacular play of the year and perhaps one of the greatest plays in the history of the post-season when he swatted away Reggie's potential lay-in.

[Colin]

That game was great. I thought Reggie has going to put that in easily, but then out of nowhere comes Tayshaun Prince to swat it. Luckily he didnt get injured. At least Rasheed didnt make a fool out of himself thanks to Prince.

[Jimmy]

The Lakers have made a return trip to the NBA Finals thanks to 6 for 6 from downtown by Kareem Rush, who was dynamite in game 6 -- something Steve Kerr did that sent the Spurs to the Finals last year.

[Colin]

Well this is definately not what I wanted to happen. I believe the Pistons will close out the Pacers and than lose to the Lakers in 6. I believe the Pistons will win at least one. That is if they win the series against the Pacers.

[Jimmy]

The 2004 NBA Finals are set!

Detroit Pistons vs Los Angeles Lakers -- a rematch of the 1988 NBA Finals

The Lakers get home court with their better regular season record. The teams split their season series at one apiece.

[Colin]

It should be fun to watch, but I think the Lakers have it in the bag! Hopefully the Pistons will surprise me!!

[Jimmy]

Well surprise -- the Pistons take the first game and home court advantage in the Finals. Pistons lead 1-0.

[Colin]

Wow, great win for the Pistons. I am still not convinced that they can win it, but it is looking good. I cant wait for the next game.

[Jimmy]

Lakers have tied the series at one apiece and are now just three games away from their fourth title of the decade. Shaq and Kobe came up remarkably huge, scoring the last 16 points of the game.

[Colin]

I think the Lakers are just destined to win the championship. Fisher hitting that shot against us and now Kobe with that shot last night. Hopefully the Pistons have not lost their confidence and can get back to winning at home.

[Jimmy]

At this point, history favors the Lakers to win the Finals.

[Jimmy]

The Pistons lead 2-1 in a 20-point blowout laugher over the Lakers. Let's see if the Lakers can respond in game 4.

[Colin]

Great way to comeback for the Pistons after that terrible loss in game 2. I actually think the Pistons will win this. With Karl Malone not healthy, it will help the Pistons even more.

[Jimmy]

I never thought I'd say this, but don't count out the Lakers yet. They still know what it takes and know how to find ways to get the job done one way or another. Although they have a good reason to be concerned now, they'll try to bounce back like they've done all season; and the Pistons still have to win two more games.

[Colin]

I dont think you can ever count the Lakers out.

[Colin]

Another victory for the Pistons last night. I saw that the Lakers are now blaming the refs. I think they are alittle frustrated. I cant wait for the game tomorrow. I hope the Pistons can finish this at home. THat would be nice to see.

[Jimmy]

Both teams face a part of history going against them:

For the Lakers, obviously no team in Finals history has ever comback from a 3-1 deficit.

For the Pistons, no home team has ever won all the middle three games (3, 4, and 5) in the Finals since the 2-3-2 format.

We shall find out tomorrow night which team or if either team will make NBA history.

[Colin]

Wow those are some pretty interesting facts. Where do you get this stuff?

[Jimmy]

I've been following the NBA for a long time (since 1986), so I've known about the middle three games in the 2-3-2 format.

About the 3-1 deficit, I've been hearing about that from the broadcast. If you pay really close attention to the broadcast frequently, they'll point out all these vital information.

[Colin]

Well Detroit has won it easily. Larry Brown gets his first NBA championship I believe which is well deserved. Chauncey Billups won Finals MVP. It was a great year and playoffs. I cant wait for next year!!

[Jimmy]

Not only did the Pistons win the 2004 NBA Championship, but they have now made NBA history by being the first team EVER to win all three middle games at home.

Congratulations to the World Champions Detroit Pistons!

What made this championship so special to its recipient was that this team was built, by Joe Dumars, with off-the-shelf players, who would have otherwise had unremarkable careers; there is no superstar on the team -- just a collection of average players individually at best joining forces to form a force to be reckoned with.

And one more piece of information: Of the rookies this season....Lebron, Carmelo, Chris, and Dwayne...., who would have ever thought that Darko Milicic would have been the first in his class to win the championship. In fact, Darko currently has more championships (1) than HoF'ers Malone and Payton combined (0).

As for the disappointing Lakers, could this be the end of the Shaq/Kobe/Phil empire? What will happen to Karl and Gary? What will become of this team in the future?

[Jimmy]

Originally posted by VC15SA@Jun 16 2004, 04:04 AM
It was a great year and playoffs.
It would have been even a better year if one of our Texas teams had won it all.

[Colin]

Originally posted by Hurricane+Jun 16 2004, 04:10 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Hurricane @ Jun 16 2004, 04:10 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-VC15SA@Jun 16 2004, 04:04 AM
It was a great year and playoffs.
It would have been even a better year if one of our Texas teams had won it all. [/b][/quote]
Very true. I'm happy that it wasnt the Lakers though.

[James]

finally, i got to watch a game! lol and what a great game it was. any game where the lakers lose is a good game to me. Especially when its the whole season thats at stake. Congrats to the Pistons!

[Jimmy]

Now that the season has come to a conclusion, any ideas on what could happen in the off-season? Last year's off-season was practically a $2 billion game of poker -- perhaps the busiest in recent history.

Indications are that this year's could be almost as active. Any ideas on what the Spurs might do? One thing is certain: They need to re-sign Manu to keep their young core nucleus together. Also they'll want to get another shooter to make up for the loss of Steve Kerr or Stephen Jackson. I've been hearing talks about a Tracy McGrady trade to the Spurs, but I'm not sure if I want to see that happen for a good reason. Other than that, I see nothing else the Spurs need to do; they'll be set once again to contend.

Encouraging Note (depending on how you look at it): According to ESPN, the Spurs are the odds on favorite to win the '05 title.

[Colin]

Well I heard the Spurs might go after Stephen Jackson and bring him back. Other teams want Manu, but I'm not sure about signing him a max offer. He doesnt even start. I wonder who we'd trade to get T-Mac? I think it would be very interesting if we went after him. Only time will tell though....It should be interesting.

[Jimmy]

Jackson is currently under contract with the Atlanta Hawks, so they'll need to trade for him.

I think Manu is worth re-signing for the max. He may not be a starter, but he brings a really good energy and spark off the bench and was vital in that last title run. The Spurs do need a good 2-guard -- perhaps T-Mac but they'll have to trade to get him as well.

[Colin]

I heard Bruce opted out of his contract. Is this true?

[Jimmy]

The post-season is beginning to look interesting.

There is turmoil, confusion and chaos in lakerland: Kobe, Gary and Karl opted out of their deals, Phil is not coaching anymore, and now Shaq want out of LA through trade.

http://www.dailynews.com/Stories/0,1413,20...2222325,00.html (http://www.dailynews.com/Stories/0,1413,200~28541~2222325,00.html)

In addition, T-Mac reportedly shows interest in being traded from Orlando.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=1824663

This could be even a wilder offseason than last year if this keeps up.

[Colin]

I really don't see Shaq leaving, but he just might. If he does go, I think Kobe will stay unless he is already signed. It should be interesting to see what happens to Tracy McGrady.

[Jimmy]

If Shaq does leave, Kobe's chances of remaining could be better than ever. It'll leave Kobe in charge of LA, which is what he wanted and where he wanted to stay; and with Shaq's blockbuster contract off their books, that should give them more room to sign Kobe and possibly acquire other quality players.

[Colin]

I heard Houston is the front runner for T-Mac's services. They might make a deal that includes Francis, Mobley, and more. Orlando wants to make a trade before Thursday's draft though.

[Jimmy]

Here is something on the possibilities of options the Lakers have of trading Shaq.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/stor...avid&id=1825532 (http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=aldridge_david&id=1825532)

[Jimmy]

Check this out!

http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/...S0620TWENTT.htm (http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/sportstoryS0620TWENTT.htm)

Not only would this be unbelievable but also unprecedented (and proabably unlikely)!

[Colin]

I think Dallas would have to give up Dirk to complete one of those deals.

[Jimmy]

There would need to be multiple teams involved for this deal to happen; the Mavs cannot pull this off alone. And chances are, the other teams will want to try their shot at Shaq or T-Mac.

[Colin]

Charlotte Bobcat's Expansion Draft-

- Lonny Baxter from Washington
- J.R. Bremer from Golden State
- Primoz Brezac from Indiana
- Maurice Carter from New Orleans
- Re-announed Predrag
- Desmond Ferguson from Portland
- Marcus Fizer from Chicago
- Richie Frahm from Seattle
- Brandon Hunter fromBoston
- Jason Kapono from Cleveland
- Zaza Pachulia from Orlando
- Aleksandar Pavlovic from Utah

Very young team. I think they should of chose Antoine Walker to use as trade bait.

[Colin]

NBA Draft 2004

ROUND 1

1. Orlando Magic
Dwight Howard | F | Atlanta SW Christian HS
2. Charlotte Bobcats (via LA Clippers)
Emeka Okafor | F | Connecticut
3. Chicago Bulls
Ben Gordon | G | Connecticut
4. Los Angeles Clippers (via Charlotte)
Shaun Livingston | G | Peoria (Ill.) HS
5. Dallas Mavericks* (via Washington)
Devin Harris | G | Wisconsin
6. Atlanta Hawks
Josh Childress | F | Stanford
7. Chicago Bulls (via Phoenix)
Luol Deng | F| Duke
8. Toronto Raptors
Rafael Araujo | C | BYU
9. Philadelphia 76ers
Andre Iguodala | G | Arizona
10. Cleveland Cavaliers
Luke Jackson | G | Oregon
11. Golden State Warriors
Andris Biedrins | C | Latvia
12. Seattle Sonics
Robert Swift | C | Bakersfield (Ca.) H.S.
13. Portland Trailblazers
Sebastian Telfair | G | Lincoln (N.Y.) H.S.
14. Utah Jazz
Kris Humphries | F | Minnesota
15. Boston Celtics
Al Jefferson | F | Prentiss (Miss.) H.S.
16. Utah Jazz (via New York/Phoenix)
Kirk Snyder | G | Nevada
17. Atlanta Hawks (via Det./Den./Milw.)
Josh Smith | F | Oak Hill Academy
18. New Orleans Hornets
J.R. Smith | G | St. Benedict's (N.J.) Prep
19. Miami Heat
Dorell Wright | G | South Kent Prep (Conn.)
20. Denver Nuggets
Jameer Nelson | G | Saint Joseph's
(Traded to Orlando Magic)
21. Utah Jazz (via Houston)
Pavel Podkolzine | C | 7-5
(Traded to Dallas)
22. New Jersey
Viktor Khryapa | F | Russia
(Traded to Portland)
23. Portland Trailblazers (via Memphis)
Sergei Monia | G | Russia
24. Boston Celtics (via Dallas)
Delonte West | G | Saint Joseph's
25. Boston Celtics (via Detroit)
Tony Allen | G | Oklahoma State
26. Sacramento Kings
Kevin Martin | G | Western Carolina
27. Los Angeles Lakers
Sasha Vujacic | G | Slovenia
28. San Antonio Spurs
Beno Udrih | G | Slovenia
29. Indiana Pacers
David Harrison | C | Colorado

ROUND 2

PK (OVR) TEAM NAME HT POS SCHOOL
1 (30) Orlando Anderson Varejao 6-10 PF Spain
2 (31) Chicago Jackson Vroman 6-11 C Iowa St
Notes: Jackson Vroman traded to Phoenix with cash and a future first-round pick for Luol Deng
3 (32) Washington Peter John Ramos 7-3 C Puerto Rico
4 (33) LA Clippers (from Charlotte) Lionel Chalmers 6-0 PG Xavier
5 (34) Atlanta Donta Smith 6-7 SF Southeastern
6 (35) Seattle (from LA Clippers) Andre Emmett 6-4 SG Texas Tech
Notes: Andre Emmett traded to Grizzlies for a future second-round pick and cash
7 (36) Orlando (from Phoenix) Antonio Burks 6-1 PG Memphis
Notes: Antonio Burks traded to Memphis for cash considerations
8 (37) Atlanta (from Philadelphia) Royal Ivey 6-3 G Texas
9 (38) Chicago (from Toronto) Chris Duhon 6-0 PG Duke
10 (39) Toronto (from Cleveland) Albert Miralles 6-11 PF Spain
11 (40) Boston Justin Reed 6-7 SF Mississippi
12 (41) Seattle David Young 6-5 G North Carolina Central
13 (42) Atlanta (from Golden State through Orlando) Viktor Sanikidze 6-8 SF Georgia
14 (43) New York Trevor Ariza 6-8 SF UCLA
15 (44) New Orleans Tim Pickett 6-4 SG Florida St
16 (45) Charlotte (from Milwaukee) Bernard Robinson 6-6 SF Michigan
17 (46) Portland Ha Seung Jin 7-4 C South Korea
18 (47) Miami Pape Sow 6-10 PF Cs Fullerton
19 (48) Sacramento (from Utah) Ricky Minard 6-4 SG Morehead St
20 (49) Memphis (from Denver through Orlando) Sergei Lishouk 6-11 PF Russia
21 (50) Dallas (from Houston through Denver) Vassilis Spanoulis 6-4 PG Greece
22 (51) New Jersey Christian Drejer 6-9 SF Spain
23 (52) San Antonio (from Memphis) Romain Sato 6-3 SG Xavier
24 (53) Miami (from Dallas) Matt Freije 6-10 SF Vanderbilt
25 (54) Detroit Rickey Paulding 6-4 SG Missouri
26 (55) Houston (from Sacramento through Utah) Luis Flores 6-1 SG Manhattan
27 (56) LA Lakers Marcus Douthit 6-11 PF Providence
28 (57) San Antonio Sergei Karaulov 7-1 C Russia
29 (58) Minnesota Blake Stepp 6-4 PG Gonzaga
30 (59) Indiana Rashad Wright 6-2 PG Georgia

[Jimmy]

They already have all this info and more on NBA.com and ESPN.com, including analysis and trades info.

[Jimmy]

BREAKING NEWS!!!

http://www.nba.com/rockets/

T-Mac has just landed in Houston in a blockbuster deal.

[Colin]

I think it is a great trade for Houston, but still a pretty good trade for Orlando.

[Jimmy]

I liked the team we already had with Francis and Mobley; It remains to be seen whether McGrady and Howard will make the Rockets better.

[Jimmy]

As if trading Francis/Mobley weren't enough for us Rockets fans, now Rudy T leaves for LA Lakers to be their head coach.

Speaking of the Lakers, Shaq agrees to a trade with Miami.

For news concerning the Spurs, they'll get Brent Barry for four years as well as resigning Bowen and Ginobili.

[Colin]

I was really hoping the Spurs would get Stephen Jackson back, but looks like he will be going to the Pacers via sign and trade. Barry is a good pick up though.

[sfft_2108]

Question, why are yall still talking bout the NBA in the Playoffs thread? LOL. Maybe we should start a Official NBA 2004-2005 Season Thread,(Hurrican you would like that wont you, cause of TN) lol.