DENVER NUGGETS (2) vs OKC THUNDER (2)
This, dear readers, is what you call a series - not a semifinals' matchup where one team is making a mockery of their opponent, i.e. Indiana v Cleveland.
My main criticism of Denver's performance in Game 4 is, why didn't they play Westbrook down the stretch? Besides injuries, for the past couple of season this team has suffered from what I would refer to as a lack of energy. The biggest concern when KCP left was, how would Braun fit into the starting role? He seems to have adjusted marvelously, better than expected even. But playing him down the stretch of a close game like this instead of Westbrook, like I don't see the logic.
Remember that all five of Denver's current starters were on that 2023 championship team. So maybe it can be argued that they aren't really hungry like that. They're not feening, like Westbrook or maybe OKC. But perhaps this is all part of that conspiracy against Russell that I mentioned in the last post.
INDIANA PACERS (3) vs CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (1)
It's now getting the point where I'm like, maybe the Pacers really are just better than the Cavs. Indiana also dominated Cleveland during the regular season. Maybe it isn't that they're "better" per se but more like that one team who for whatever reason the Cavs can't beat. Even the Jordan Bulls and the Shaq + Kobe Lakers had issues like that, but I think, you know, the NBA was more on their side.
Remember that Spida, a couple of those seasons he was in Utah they had the best regular season record also but then flunked in the Playoffs. I've been theorizing, for years, that the powers-that-be have something against the Cavs. But "41-point halftime lead" and shit like that, damn. It's embarrassing, especially when you're the 1 seed.
So imagine you're a Knicks' fan, and you pay who knows how many dollars to attend Game 4 @ MSG, only to have your day ruined, like your team not even compete. On the other hand, you're a Pacers' fan, pay the same amount of money maybe to attend Game 4 @ the Gainbridge Fieldhouse and, along with thousands of other revelers, have the time of your life. Shit is real in the NBA, like on a financial level.
If Mitchell can't play in Game 5, that may be a good thing for Cleveland, in that it would make them focus more on the interior, with those bigs being the one advantage or factor they have that most other teams don't. But on the low, with rotation players like Turner, Toppin and Siakim, the Pacers are actually one of the taller teams also.
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE: ORLANDO MAGIC
Mentioning KCP made me think of the easily-forgettable Orlando Magic. Going after Kentavious last offseason was a brilliant move, if they would have complimented it by also edifying their frontline. Oh well. I couldn't understand how pundits thought that he alone would move the needle (and at the time were even implying that he's a better player than Westbrook!), but anyway, I'm imagining that Cs may be the most coveted position, around the league, this coming offseason.
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