Series Thread: 4 Atlanta Hawks (48-34) vs. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers (57-25)

[Demonjoe93]

Sign me up for a Atlanta/Miami ECF.

You down?

Hell yeah.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

Hell yeah.

I'm loving it (at least in my dreams).

 

[gordontrue]

can't blame ya, but I see the Heat throwing a serious wad o' cash that guy's way. and let's face it the guy's a great fit down there. still, nothing's etched in stone, I guess...

Whiteside will get the max this offseason. Heat will offer max... but so will several other teams.

No bird rights... so Heat can't pay Whiteside any more than any other team can.

But... you still have to give Miami the inside track considering the relationship they've built and I'm sure Whiteside has grown accustomed to living in Miami. I mean... its Miami. Especially lately, things seem to be good between him and the team.

Still, I'm curious if promises of being "the man" on a team is something that might lure him away.

 

[gordontrue]

Days between 1st and 2nd Round:

Cavs 8
Spurs 6
Thunder 5
Warriors 4
Hawks 4
Blazers 2
Raptors 2
Heat 2

This has been a very long 8 days. Finally! Excited for the game tonight!

 

[Demonjoe93]

Days between 1st and 2nd Round:

Cavs 8
Spurs 6
Thunder 5
Warriors 4
Hawks 4
Blazers 2
Raptors 2
Heat 2

This has been a very long 8 days. Finally! Excited for the game tonight!

I wonder how much that long break will impact the Cavaliers' performance tonight.

 

[gordontrue]

I wonder how much that long break will impact the Cavaliers' performance tonight.

Definitely a good chance they come out rusty. If that happens Game 1 will become a big opportunity for the Hawks.

You never know though. I'll be interested to see how they look in the 1st quarter.

 

[Heatles84]

Definitely a good chance they come out rusty. If that happens Game 1 will become a big opportunity for the Hawks.

You never know though. I'll be interested to see how they look in the 1st quarter.

Rust will certainly play a factor the first half. This will be the Hawks best chance to steal a game on the road. Because I predict game 2 will be an absolute blow out.

 

[Wamu]

The Cavs & Heat better take care of business. I think most people wanna see a Cleveland/Miami ECF.

 

[trojanfan12]

Whiteside will get the max this offseason. Heat will offer max... but so will several other teams.

No bird rights... so Heat can't pay Whiteside any more than any other team can.

But... you still have to give Miami the inside track considering the relationship they've built and I'm sure Whiteside has grown accustomed to living in Miami. I mean... its Miami. Especially lately, things seem to be good between him and the team.

Still, I'm curious if promises of being "the man" on a team is something that might lure him away.

The "Whiteside Sweepstakes" are going to be interesting. Miami doesn't have the cap space to just throw a max deal at him, so someone (likely an important player) will have to be let go. Also, while Miami isn't exactly old, they aren't young either, so there will be more changes within the next few years. Bosh's status is also a question mark.

As you point out, there will also be several teams (some from "destination cities") offering him max or close to max deals and the Heat don't have Bird rights.

I think the Heat will be the odds on favorite to retain him. I would expect that he will feel some obligation to stay in Miami because of the faith and effort that the Heat have put into turning him into the player he has become. Also, we all know that Riley can be very persuasive and seems to be able to find ways to improve the team when it doesn't seem like he can.

On the other hand, he may be able to be lured away by the promise of being a central part of a young, developing team that can be really good for a long time.

Also, considering that Lamarcus Aldridge doesn't want to play center and Timmy has to retire eventually, I wouldn't rule out the Spurs figuring out a way to clear enough cap space make a run at him, especially if Timmy decides to retire.

 

[bksballer89]

Rust will certainly play a factor the first half. This will be the Hawks best chance to steal a game on the road. Because I predict game 2 will be an absolute blow out.

I don't see the Hawks getting blown out in any game. They're much better than they were last year at this point

 

[bksballer89]

The Cavs & Heat better take care of business. I think most people wanna see a Cleveland/Miami ECF.

I prefer to see Atl/Mia actually

 

[gordontrue]

Also, considering that Lamarcus Aldridge doesn't want to play center and Timmy has to retire eventually, I wouldn't rule out the Spurs figuring out a way to clear enough cap space make a run at him, especially if Timmy decides to retire.

Holy crap. Its already unfair enough that they snagged Aldridge. If they snag Whiteside.... I don't even want to think about that.

 

[trojanfan12]

Definitely a good chance they come out rusty. If that happens Game 1 will become a big opportunity for the Hawks.

8 days is a long layoff in between playoff games. The Cavs will be rested, but likely rusty. The 4 days the Hawks had off is about perfect for getting rest, but remaining sharp.

Agree that if the Hawks are going to steal 1 in Cleveland, which I think they have to if they are going to make this series remotely interesting, this is the one.

 

[Wamu]

I prefer to see Atl/Mia actually

Oh I'm sure you would.

 

[trojanfan12]

Holy crap. Its already unfair enough that they snagged Aldridge. If they snag Whiteside.... I don't even want to think about that.

I don't want to think about it either.

At least the Cavs only have to play them twice in the regular season and then not again until the finals. The poor Western Conference teams will have to see them 4-5 times in the regular season and then have to go through them in the playoffs.

I'm sure that him becoming a Spur is likely a long shot, but you know they have several different plans in place to keep chugging right along as they eventually replace Timmy, Manu and Parker.

 

[Shanemansj13]

I think it is a good thing Miami and Toronto won, bc that means Cleveland will truly have to beat the next best in the East to prepare for the tough matchup in the West if they do beat Atlanta. I was hoping to see some upsets in a series but in the long run it will benefit the Cavs, just not sure how you can still prepare for GS or SA when both those teams are on a different level. Anyways, I hope this one is a sweep so they can get so more needed rest.

GO CAVS!

 

[Shanemansj13]

The Cavs & Heat better take care of business. I think most people wanna see a Cleveland/Miami ECF.

Yep. Miami-Cleveland and San Antonio-Golden State. Can't get much better than that.

 

[Heatles84]

I think it is a good thing Miami and Toronto won, bc that means Cleveland will truly have to beat the next best in the East to prepare for the tough matchup in the West if they do beat Atlanta. I was hoping to see some upsets in a series but in the long run it will benefit the Cavs, just not sure how you can still prepare for GS or SA when both those teams are on a different level. Anyways, I hope this one is a sweep so they can get so more needed rest.

GO CAVS!

This. Cleveland will go in as the underdog in the Finals whether it's the Warriors or Spurs. The Cavs ECF opponent will need to be tough as possible to gear them up for the Finals. Having an easy road to the Finals does them no favors.

 

[Shaqdaddy11]

Yep. Miami-Cleveland and San Antonio-Golden State. Can't get much better than that.

Yes it can.

Miami vs San Antonio or Golden State in the finals!

 

[LAD]

Days between 1st and 2nd Round:

Cavs 8
Spurs 6
Thunder 5
Warriors 4
Hawks 4
Blazers 2
Raptors 2
Heat 2

This has been a very long 8 days. Finally! Excited for the game tonight!

this is interesting because the Cavs were supposed to start the first round before the warriors and at the last minute it was changed because something to do with the arena not being available in Cleveland. Now they're also starting the 2nd round later than everyone else.