NBA Playoff Recap 5/28: The Final Stand.

The Magic Vs Boston. The Final Stand.

At home with the crowd behind them and a huge upset loss in Orlando, the Celtics nice and motivated, came into game 6 out to prove a point. That is exactly what happened, no excuses about it, the Celtics came in and punched the Magic in the mouth. They told the Magic, pack up and get your bags, because your going home. With all the support in the world, and krypto-nate showing a rare appearance, it was no surprise that the Celtics came out and dominated.

Dwight did all he could do.

These are the same Celtics that everyone ruled out of the title, because they just couldn’t get it going. Now I am NO Celtics bandwagon fan, I am actually a Suns and Magic fan, but you never count out a team that is full of previous championship winners and vets. Anyone with a basketball IQ will tell you that. That is what made them so dangerous in this series, they have been there and done all that before. They have been in a situation in where they had to rely on a Paul Pierce iso or a Rando-KG pick-n-roll, they knew they were going to win, and it showed.

Krpto-Nate came up big when they needed him.

They jumped out to a huge 30-19 lead, and never looked back. Nate Robinson was huge after only scoring 6 points in the whole series, he went on to have a solid 13 points of the bench. (I am petitioning for a “please play krypto-nate more” chant.) He was huge, even tried to dunk on Dwight “superman” Howard. That just shows, the Celtics just weren’t afraid tonight. The Magic played well, just it was too late. Dwight had a fantastic series as did Vince Carter and JJ Redick, (who better play a ton  more next year, he just does everything right), but with a disappearing act done by Rashard Lewis and Vince shooting the ball poorly, the Magic just seemed to be digging a bigger and bigger hole for themselves this whole season.

He proved he could lead them through the Eastern Conference Playoffs, now through a NBA Final?

The Celtics seemed to dominate the whole series and it showed in the final game, they deserved the Eastern Conference Championship. Rando deserved to show everyone he could lead this team, who by the way solidified his spot as a top 5 PG in the game. Good luck in the finals,  Good Luck The Big 3,  Good Luck Rando and Doc, and last but not least Good Luck Bill Simmons.

NBA Playoff Recap 5/24: Magic Avoid Broom Service.

GAME FOUR

2nd-seed Orlando Magic vs. 4th-seed Boston Celtics

(96-92)

The Magic and the Celtics started off hot, and I mean scorching hot. Both teams made shots back-and-forth. The Magic were pretty balanced in scoring with Matt Barnes leading the way. He made 2 threes in the 1st Quarter alone, plus 1 deuce, ending with 8 points. Jameer Nelson had 7 points and 3 assists. Dwight Howard with 6 points. The Truth, Paul Pierce scored 12 1st Quarter points. I have nothing to say about the 2nd Quarter, since most of the happenings happened in the other half. Magic lead 51-47 after 2 Quarters.

3rd Quarter starts Matt Barnes makes the 1st bucket of the 2nd half with 11:20 ticks in the clock. A scuffle between Kevin Garnett and Dwight Howard ensued. Only KG was given a technical. Celtics’ fans didn’t like it one bit. But, they were fired up. The crowd shouted chants of ‘Defense!’. The Celtics put it in their mindsets. Results were Defense turning into Offense. Kevin Garnett had his game-face on and he looked motivated. Sadly, he went 0/7 until the end of the game. Ray Allen scored 7 points in the 3rd Quarter alone. Dwight Howard also scored 6 , with some 3 rebounds.

The 4th Quarter was one hell of a quarter in the last few minutes, Glen Davis contributed alot and the Celtics thought they could win the game. Jameer Nelson and Dwight Howard worked together, and they seem to know what the other was doing. They take an 85-78 lead after the combined effort. Paul Pierce would rally the crowd for one last time, with a strong flush to the basket. It followed with a Ray Allen three, and an And-1 from the Truth. Game was again tied. Rajon Rondo, who was pretty quiet in the game, stealed the orange away from Jameer Nelson. And Celtics’ fans knew the game-winning shot would go to the hands of Paul Pierce. Ray Allen found an open shot. Sadly, Paul Pierce wanted an isolation play. Magic doubles him, he loses the handle and we head to Overtime–the 1st Overtime of the 2010 NBA Playoffs.

Overtime, no one scores after 2:18 minutes. Until, Jameer Nelson made back-to-back threes. Ray Allen would release his skills from his arsenal, shooting 2 threes too. In the end, Dwight Howard was too much. He would ice the game at 96-92 with an And-1. Paul Pierce also was nothing in that OT. In the end, the Magic celebrate a well-deserved win. Game 5 is on Wednesday.

PHOTO CREDITS

1) Elsa/Getty Images

Follow Mark on Twitter:

@InOutNBAMacGelo

NBA Playoff Recap: May 10th, 2010

Yes, two teams taste the Conference Finals and two teams earn an unpleasant downfall..

1st-seed Los Angeles Lakers vs. 5th-seed Utah Jazz (111-96)

Lakers played Game 4 with a purpose. The Lakers, which Deron Williams dubbed as a championship-team, ended the 1st half with a 17-point lead. The Jazz made the game much more interesting cutting the lead to 5 during the 3rd with Carlos Boozer‘s lay-up. The reigning champions would play some excellent ball and would finally close-out the Jazz in the 2nd-round.

With this win, the Lakers clinch another appearance in the Western Conference Finals, their 3rd-straight. The Lakers were lead by Pau Gasol, who had 33 points and 14  rebounds. Kobe Bryant ended with 32 points. Utah Jazz Forward Carlos Boozer went cold, he shot 4/11 from the field, ending with 10 points and 14 rebounds. The Los Angeles Lakers now earn a 6-day rest. They meet the Phoenix Suns in the Conference Finals.

2nd-seed Orlando Magic vs. 3rd-seed Atlanta Hawks (98-84)

For the 4th-time in this series, the Magic blowout the Hawks. The Magic started tremendously ending the 1st Quarter with a 34-23 lead. And the Magic would continue from there. They shot 55.4% as a team. Vince Carter lead the way with 22 points and Jameer Nelson would add 16 points and 9 assists. Dwight Howard had 13 points while grabbing 8 rebounds and swatting away 4 shots. Atlanta Hawks Forward Josh Smith scored 16 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. Jamal Crawford lead all the Hawks in scoring with 18 points. The Magic are now enjoying another early rest as they await who there next competitor will be, the Boston Celtics or The Cleveland Cavaliers.

PHOTO CREDITS:

1) Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images

2) Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

3) Scott Cunningham/NBAE/Getty Images

Socialize with Tim on Facebook:

Tim Lacson

NBA Playoff Recap: May 6th, 2010

3rd-seed Atlanta Hawks vs. 2nd-seed Orlando Magic (98-112)

The 1st Quarter belonged to the Orlando Magic, as Dwight Howard, who ended the night with 29 points, 17 rebounds and a block, played significant. The Magic had a 5-point lead after time expired in the 1st. But, it will all change during the 2nd Qtr, as the Hawks went to Al Horford, who scored 14 of his 24 points in the 2nd Quarter. Jamal Crawford played well in the 2nd Quarter; He later ended with 23 points. The Hawks finished the 2nd Quarter with a 30:17 point ratio. Joe Johnson was quiet during the game, but he surprisingly scored 19 points, 7 came from the FT line.

The 2nd half continued in Magicland. And the Magic will not stop playing GREAT. Vince Carter lead all scorers during the 2nd half with 20 points, despite being cold in the 1st half. Jameer Nelson, also a main contributor during the game ended with a 20-point performance, which includes the buzzer-beating floater bank shot. (What a Word!)

In the end, the Magic went on a tear from a long-distance, and would put the Hawks away on another blowout. Series now shifts to the ATL. Go Magic!

The Magic now have a 2-0 lead in the Conference Semifinals.

PHOTO CREDITS:

Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

Follow Mark on Twitter:

@InOutNBAMacGelo

NBA Playoff Recap: May 4th, 2010

3rd-seed Atlanta Hawks vs. 2nd-seed Orlando Magic (71-114)

The Atlanta Hawks and the Orlando Magic were a match during the 1st Quarter, but in the 2nd the Hawks got a bit rusty as Dwight Howard started his “Superman Night” during the 2nd. He scored 21 points, grabbing 12 rebounds, and swatting 5 shots. Vince Carter added 20 points and 3 assist. The Atlanta Hawks‘ Josh Smith scored 14 points to lead his team while Zaza Pachulia scored 12 points. The Hawks shot very cold in the game. In the end, the Magic were able to finish with a 46 point-victory in the series-opener. We hope this series gets more interesting in the next few games. We would like to give CONDOLENCES to the HAWKS.

5th-seed Utah Jazz vs. 1st-seed Los Angeles Lakers (103-111)

A Game 2 for the Los Angeles Lakers, they played great from start to finish. Kobe Bryant scored 30 points and had 8 assists and Pau Gasol had 22 points while grabbing 15 rebounds. If it wasn’t for Utah Jazz Forward Paul Millsap, the Jazz would not be this close to the lead. Paul scored 26 points and snatching 11 rebounds, 8 of which were offensive boards. Carlos Boozer and CJ Miles had 20 points apiece. There is something I have to point out, it is the rebounding ratio. The Lakers grabbed 58 rebounds to the Utah Jazz‘s 40 rebounds. Lakers win big time. Game 3 is on Saturday.

1 game tomorrow, readers.

PHOTO CREDITS: 1) Doug Benc via Getty Images

2) Andrew D. Bernstein /NBAE via Getty Images

Socialize with Tim on Facebook:

Tim Lacson