0 comments by Matt Zemek on 4/26/2016
For Chris Paul, the morning of Tuesday, April 26, 2016, must feel like “The Morning After.” For most observers of the league — as fans and chroniclers — the same feeling exists. For a few teams, however, this Tuesday morning doesn’t bring with it the scent of carnage or rubble, but opportunity. So much of […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 4/25/2016
The first round of the 2016 NBA Playoffs hasn’t necessarily featured an unending stream of bad basketball. No, it would be much too simplistic to say that the quality of play has been relentlessly poor. The Miami Heat played two beautiful games to take a 2-0 lead on Charlotte. The Detroit Pistons showed how bright […]
NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 25: Head coach Mike Budenholzer of the Atlanta Hawks looks on during the first round of the 2015 NBA Playoffs against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on April 25, 2015 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
0 comments by Matt Zemek
The loser of the Boston Celtics-Atlanta Hawks first-round series was always going to face an unpleasant offseason, but Mike Budenholzer is now in a position where failure could sting even more than previously imagined. Playoff series acquire a given appearance on paper, but as soon as Game 1 unfolds, the context can — and often […]
0 comments by Bart D
In today’s world, the immediate, visceral reaction to anything these days seems to be, “Where can I find the negative and harp on it?” When it comes to the NBA playoffs, there have been a few blowouts. So obviously, throw the whole thing out. Also, toss in some free college, while you’re at it. — Twitter […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
It is virtually impossible — on Monday, April 25, 2016 — to sit in front of a keyboard or any other place on this planet and declare that Byron Scott is a coach other NBA organizations should want. Given the way Scott completely mis-coached the Los Angeles Lakers — who necessarily fired him Sunday night […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 4/24/2016
We’ve played at least three games in all four Eastern Conference playoff series, making our way through this spread-out first week of the postseason. Should anything we’ve seen this week truly surprise us? If we are surprised, it says more about us and our expectations than these teams and their players. Truly, nothing from any […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
After Game 2 of his first-round Eastern Conference playoff series against the Miami Heat, Charlotte Hornet coach Steve Clifford had a lot to say. Looking back on that statement, it’s very hard to contest the essential truths of Clifford’s points. Charlotte scored 16 more points than the ice-cold Heat, frolicking to victory on a day […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 4/23/2016
https://soundcloud.com/crossover-chronicles/john-cannon-with-sf-chronicle-columnist-bruce-jenkins Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle has covered the Golden State Warriors and the NBA for over 40 years. We talked several times last spring as the Warriors made their championship run, and I thought he would be the ideal guest to start our collection of 2016 playoff podcasts. In this episode, we […]
0 comments by John Cannon on 4/22/2016
There’s an old saying about NBA playoff competitions: “The series doesn’t start until someone loses a home game.” Never has that been less true than in the Golden State-Houston first-round series. Houston “held serve” by winning its first home game Thursday night, so by the old axiom, everything is going according to plan. In reality, […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
Scott Brooks might have enabled the Washington Wizards to win the Eastern Conference championship in the NBA coaching carousel for 2016. (The Minnesota Timberwolves won the Western Conference title when they hired Tom Thibodeau.) That notion — specifically, that the Wizards might have done something better than any other team in the East — is […]
0 comments by Bart D
When they write the obituary on the 2015-2016 Indiana Pacers’ season (soon), it’ll read like an annual employee review under the “Employee Strengths” section where it says “shows up to work in uniform on time.” That’s about all the Pacers have going for them after a Game 3 evisceration by the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 4/21/2016
The Miami Heat have been the best team in the NBA over the past five days, in which all 16 playoff teams have played two games. You saw that coming during the regular season, didn’t you? If you say yes, you are either a family member of someone in the Heat organization… or you’re a […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
You could choose to view Steve Clifford in a negative light after Game 2 of the Eastern Conference first-round series between his Charlotte Hornets and the Miami Heat. More precisely, you could choose to negatively view both the quality of Clifford’s coaching, since his team is getting smoked. You could also choose to perceive Clifford’s […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 4/20/2016
Earl Watson isn’t a splashy hire for the Phoenix Suns. He will coach his first NBA game (as a permanent head coach) at the age of 37. He’s been an assistant coach for only two years since his playing career ended, and only one of those was spent in the NBA Jason Kidd showed that […]
Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry, center, and coach Steve Kerr smile during a timeout during the first half in Game 2 of a first-round NBA basketball playoff series against the Houston Rockets Monday, April 18, 2016, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
0 comments by John Cannon on 4/19/2016
As the 2016 Golden State Warriors’ season unfolded, the optimism always had one caveat. A significant injury to Steph Curry would mean all bets were off. Any other injury, even one as damaging as the ankle sprain that cost Andre Iguodala 17 games late in the season, could be dealt with. Take Curry off the […]
