New York, New York! Bringing a championship home

[PointGuard]

LOL re Metta World Peace.

[zike_42]

Any chance of a late player entry to the draft? I don't even have to be that good (much like reality!)

6-11 Centre

Art Stevenson out of University of Houston

No worries, the more the merrier. It's good because we now have a starting five with someone at C.

And PG, with a name like Cort Majishun I couldn't think of anyone else

[zike_42]

Dallas, TX – With enough evidence to take the matter to court, Dallas Mavericks owner Mike English has pleaded not guilty to child slave labour charges at the Dallas County Court. Prosecutors have asked for no bail as Mr English is wealthy enough to leave the country but the judge declined, setting bail to $10 million. If found guilty, Mr English could be spend a maximum of 10 years in jail as well as heavy sanctions against his Mavericks team, where the incidents took place. General Manager Yaxley McMillan had no comment for reporters as the team is gearing up to defend their championship, which may be in jeopardy if Mr English is convicted. More news to come.

[zike_42]

2025 NBA Playoffs

Eastern Conference
#1 New Orleans vs. #8 Orlando
#2 Cleveland vs. #7 Detroit
#3 Toronto vs. #6 Chicago
#4 Charlotte vs. #5 Philadelphia

Western Conference
#1 Dallas vs. #8 Seattle
#2 Portland vs. #7 Milwaukee
#3 Utah vs. #6 Golden State
#4 Houston vs. #5 Nevada

After losing the first meeting against the Sonics we handsomely won the next two to win the season series.

Western Conference First Round – Seattle vs. Dallas

Point Guard
Bret Davis vs. Matt Brown
15.6 points, 6.0 assists, 4.2 rebounds vs. 11.7 points, 11.6 assists, 4.5 rebounds

A good match up here, as Davis is a top 20 PG talent. He is an above average scorer, passer and defender for a PG but he just isn’t as good as Brown. The Playoff Warrior loves the post season and should continue his fine form this season.

Winner - Dallas

Shooting Guard
Travis Grigsby vs. Jacob Alexander
15.4 points, 5.8 assists, 5.8 rebounds vs. 17.7 points, 1.7 assists, 4.2 rebounds

Grigsby has come out of nowhere, averaging a very nice stat line this season. He is only an average defender so Alexander should get his points but if the Sonics want to cause the massive upset Grigsby will be a huge part of it.

Winner - Seattle

Small Forward
Andrew Owens vs. Sean Gilmore
16.6 points, 2.0 assists, 6.7 rebounds vs. 14.2 points, 1.9 assists, 5.1 rebounds

The big trade addition, Owens has had a poor season by his standards. To add to those stats he is only shooting 35% on the season. But make no mistake, Owens is a deadly player and Gilmore will have his hands full trying to slow him down.

Winner - Seattle

Power Forward
Carl Farmer vs. Marcus Randle
14.1 points, 1.2 assists, 8.0 rebounds vs. 19.2 points, 1.2 assists, 9.5 rebounds

Marcus Randle is a superstar, no doubt about it. He can score, stretch the defence, rebound and defend with the best. He will need to be at that high standard against Farmer who is an amazing defensive player. He is probably the best rebounder in this series and has extremely quick hands and like Grigsby before, Farmer will need to play out of his mind to cause an upset.

Winner - Dallas

Centre
Donnie Hankins vs. Andre Drummond
11.6 points, 0.9 assists, 7.0 rebounds vs. 18.7 points, 1.3 assists, 8.0 rebounds

With the departure of Travis Ross, Hankins has had to step up and be a good player. Good, not great. Unfortunately for him, Drummond is an elite player and should eat him for breakfast.

Winner - Dallas

Bench
Marlo Graham, Darryl Iacona, Stanley Carter vs. Iman Shumpert, Joe Duggins, David Forney

Usually the Mavericks have the best bench in their playoff match-ups but not in this case. Graham is an up and coming and if Owens wasn’t in Seattle then he would be starting while Iacona and Carter are serviceable backups. Dallas’ stocks have dropped a little because of the injury to Tristan Thompson but David Forney has been fantastic off the bench, giving them much needed scoring on very efficient numbers.

Winner – Draw

Prediction – Dallas in six. This Sonics team may trouble the defending champions but Dallas’ talent should shine through.

Game one was won in the third quarter; as we blow open the game with a 41-26 term to take first blood 118-98. Jacob Alexander was hurt by the pre-series write up and took Travis Grigsby to school with 34 points and 8 rebounds while Marcus Randle played second with 23 points in the win. It was Donnie Hankins who was the best for the Sonics surprisingly, with 14 points and 13 rebounds, offsetting Andrew Owens’ terrible night of 5/19 shooting for 12 points.

Dallas leads 1-0

Is it 2015? It seems that way because Kevin Durant turned back the clock in the Blazers’ 120-110 win over Milwaukee. The all time scoring leader went 16/22 from the field, 8/12 from three and 13/14 from the line for a massive 53 points, his highest by far all season.

It was almost the same scenario in game two but the blow out quarter was the second, as we explode for 34 points to the Seattle’s 17 to win both our home games 123-99. The third quarter was also a blowout (34-20) but the damage was already done. It was a two man wrecking crew with Marcus Randle putting up 33 points and 8 rebounds and Matt Brown handing them out with 11 points, 22 assists and 7 rebounds as the team shot 57% from the field. Travis Grigsby was the best with 19 points and 7 assists but Stanley Carter could have had a great game instead of just a good one with 10 points and 7 rebounds off the bench, but shot 2/10 from the foul line.

Dallas leads 2-0

Last season was the first time in Seattle’s short history (this time around) that they have made the playoffs and they got bounced in the first round. So as you might expect, this team is roaring to win. Marlo Graham had a blinder with 27 points off the bench while Bret Davis went 8/11 for 23 points before fouling out. After not getting to triple figures in the first two games the Sonics got to 108 in game three, but again fell short, and again the damage was done in the third quarter. We outscored the home team 38-25 to take a stranglehold on the series 116-108. Matt Brown was the reason why Bret Davis fouled out with an amazing 30 point, 11 assist and 8 rebound performance to lead the team. Andre Drummond also had a great one with 28 points and 10 rebounds to neutralize Donnie Hankins. Sean Gilmore knocked his head going for a drive and may miss the next game with a concussion.

Dallas leads 3-0

With a very nervous crowd the Sonics responded in game four, getting out to a 31-19 first quarter lead behind Stanley Carter off the bench as Carl Farmer was hampered with foul trouble. Luckily for us we woke up and won the next three quarters to sweep the series 114-99. Jacob Alexander put Travis Grigsby to bed with 31 points while David Forney got the start for concussed Sean Gilmore and took full advantage with 21 points and 10 rebounds on 5/7 shooting, going 10/12 from the line. Matt Brown was again special with 16 points, 17 assists and 7 rebounds. Carter was the leader for Seattle with 15 points and 9 rebounds as Farmer fouled out in 16 minutes. Bret Davis and Travis Grigsby both had shockers, combining to shoot 9/34 for 28 points in the loss.

Dallas wins 4-0

There was another sweep as #4 Houston dismantled #5 Nevada in four games. A couple of days later #1 New Orleans booked their ticket to the next round with a 4-1 win over #8 Orlando but no-one was talking about the Hornets as #7 Detroit upset #2 Cleveland in five games as John Johnson averaged 29.0 points on 52% from the field in the series. #2 Portland moved on with a 4-2 win over #7 Milwaukee with Kevin Durant averaging 28.7 points per game in the series to turn back the clock. The biggest news of the day was #6 Golden State upsetting #3 Utah in six games and the Jazz have some questions that need to be answered in the future. So there were two series that went the distance but both the higher seeds went through, with #4 Charlotte dispatching #5 Philadelphia and #3 Toronto squeezing past #6 Chicago.

[OzzieLaker]

Can I see my man Terry McKenzie's stat line?

[zike_42]

Can I see my man Terry McKenzie's stat line?

I'm going to do a preview of all six of the guys here and what their strengths/weakness etc are after the playoffs, but here is Terry's stats -

21.9 points, 3.0 assists, 13.2 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 1.3 steals

And anyone else who wants to know a little more about their players, here are their stats as well -

Cort Majishun - 26.1 points, 8.0 assists, 6.2 rebounds, 1.0 block, 1.5 steals
Kenneth Long - 21.9 points, 3.1 assists, 7.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks, 1.3 steals
Chris Jones - 29.6 points, 10.2 assists, 9.9 rebounds, 0.7 blocks, 2.5 steals (in England)
Jack Dawkins - 21.3 points, 4.3 assists, 7.5 rebounds, 0.7 blocks, 0.5 steals
Art Stevenson - 14.2 points, 2.3 assists, 8.5 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, 0.6 steals

[PointGuard]

And PG, with a name like Cort Majishun I couldn't think of anyone else

LOL...yeah, actually I was kind of proud of myself for coming up with that name for a PG.

[OzzieLaker]

Wow, 'Wizard' Jones looks an absolute star in the making. I'll happily claim 'best rebounder and shot blocker' out of the six, though

[zike_42]

2025 NBA Playoffs

Eastern Conference
#1 New Orleans vs. #4 Charlotte
#3 Toronto vs. #7 Detroit

Western Conference
#1 Dallas vs. #4 Houston
#2 Portland vs. #6 Golden State

We won the season series 3-1 but this should be a great series as both teams love to run. In the four games played the average score was 124-109 in our favour, with a 150-116 game in November. Look for some very high scores here.

Western Conference Semi-Finals – Houston vs. Dallas

Point Guard
Kyrie Irving vs. Matt Brown
30.0 points, 3.8 assists, 5.0 rebounds vs. 15.3 points, 16.3 assists, 6.3 rebounds

It must be the Houston air because Kyrie Irving has come alive in Texas. He was an outstanding player in Cleveland but he is a bonafide MVP candidate for the Rockets now. With Jay Warren doing the bulk of the passing Irving has been given the green light to shoot, and he hasn’t disappointed. Irving is Houston’s most important player so if Brown can slow him down then Dallas will be on easy street.

Winner - Houston

Shooting Guard
Jay Warren vs. Jacob Alexander
12.3 points, 9.3 assists, 5.8 rebounds vs. 26.5 points, 2.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds

It should be Warren vs. Brown and Irving vs. Alexander because the two real match-ups are completely different. Warren is a good player and above average distributor but his defence is only average. He averages nearly three steals a game which is near the top of the league but he gambles a lot and gets out of position quickly, which Alexander will pounce on instantly.

Winner - Dallas

Small Forward
James Swygart vs. Sean Gilmore
14.5 points, 2.8 assists, 6.0 rebounds vs. 14.7 points, 2.3 assists, 6.3 rebounds

At 6’10” Swygart is a monster SF and his long arms and quick feet make it hard for oppositions to get past him. Gilmore is a quality scorer but he will have his hands full (again) trying to get past the guy who has been on five squads in only four years.

Winner - Draw

Power Forward
Leonard Hale vs. Marcus Randle
21.8 points, 1.8 assists, 9.3 rebounds vs. 23.0 points, 1.3 assists, 8.5 rebounds

Leonard played out of his mind against Nevada as poor John Nemitz bore the brunt against a raging bull. That should stop against one of the best post defenders in the league who also went on a tear in the previous series. Look for Randle to stop Hale in his tracks.

Winner - Dallas

Centre
Dwayne Knight vs. Andre Drummond
15.8 points, 1.8 assists, 7.8 rebounds vs. 14.8 points, 0.5 assists, 7.5 rebounds

Another Rocket who had a great series, Knight is going to struggle badly here. At only 6’9”, 222lbs he is just too small to excel against the nine times All Defence team member. Drummond didn’t have to do much last series but he should have some fun here.

Winner - Dallas

Bench
Jason Jefferies, Ryan Smiley, Tre Hines vs. Iman Shumpert, Joe Duggins, Ricardo Marquardt

Having Smiley on the team is a huge plus for the Rockets as their other two point guards will be starting, so Smiley giving them rest is imperative. Jefferies is a good defensive big man but other than that they aren’t that deep. Look for the Mavericks’ bench to widen leads with the starters having a breath.

Winner – Dallas

Prediction – Dallas in five. If Kyrie Irving can explode (which he is known to do) then this could be an upset; if Matt Brown/Iman Shumpert stifle Irving it will be a very quick exit.

Leonard Hale lived up to his hype with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 4 blocks but that was negated by Marcus Randle’s 24 points and 15 rebounds. Where the game was won was in the backcourt, as Matt Brown and Jacob Alexander combined for 41 points, 17 assists and 12 rebounds compared to Kyrie Irving and Jay Warren’s 24 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists on 8/34 shooting as we took first blood 113-81 in a quick and painless drubbing. Irving had a night to forget, going 5/22 for only 17 points.

Dallas leads 1-0

Like in the series against Seattle, we broke open the game in the third quarter with a 35-24 margin to get out to a double digit lead, led by Andre Drummond’s 38 points and 14 rebounds. That all changed when Kyrie Irving work up and went into God Mode, scoring 17 points in the final term to steal the game 128-123. Irving had a magical game, going 11/21 from the field for 37 points, 9 assists and 6 rebounds as his partner in crime, Jay Warren, chipped in 20 points, 11 assists, 6 steals and 5 rebounds. What killed us was our foul shooting, as the Rockets went 41/50 (82%) while we had a terrible time at 27/43 (62%). Yes there was a hell of a lot of fouls in the game, both teams combining for 61 fouls.

Series tied 1-1

Home court advantage was short lived for the Rockets, as we bite back in another ‘defence optional’ game, winning 129-114 to take the series lead. Andre Drummond was again a star with 30 points and 11 rebounds but got help from Jacob Alexander’s 28 points and Joe Duggins’ 21 points and 8 rebounds off the bench. We again shot poorly from the stripe, going 27/51 or 52% which just isn’t good enough. Kyrie Irving and Dwayne Knight were the top scorers for Houston with 27 points each while Jay Warren had an up and down night, going 2/14 for 6 points and 12 assists.

Dallas leads 2-1

Talk about a track meet. Both teams only had one quarter each where they didn’t score 30 points or more as again both teams shot over 40 free throws each. The big names came out to play tonight which dazzled the Houston crowd as Kyrie Irving scored 29 points and handed out 8 assists while Jay Warren might not have scored much but he did have a very complete stat line of 6 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals, 5 assists and 7 turnovers. Our stars were right on the money, as Marcus Randle and Andre Drummond combining for 67 points on 27/37 shooting and 14 rebounds as we took both games away from the Rockets with a 139-124 win. We shot exactly 51%, and I mean exactly, going 51/100 for the game. We actually shot well from the foul line, going 32/43 for 74%.

Dallas leads 3-1

All but one of four series finished tonight. And yes, our series was one of them. I would try and make it sound like we lost and then pull a great performance out at the end but when the Rockets didn’t have a single lead and shot only 39% from the field it’s pretty much done and dusted. Marcus Randle was again hot with 35 points while Matt Brown was agonizingly close to a triple double and a 5x5 with 10 points, 19 assists, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 steals. Those five blocks are now a career high in a game. Joe Duggins even got into the action with 22 points and 11 rebounds as Andre Drummond fouled out early. Kyrie Irving went full circle, shooting badly in the first game and shooting badly in the last going 8/24 for 20 points and while there were six Rockets in double figures Irving was the only one over 12 points.

Dallas wins 4-1

Those other series that finished were #1 New Orleans taking care of #4 Charlotte and #6 Golden State continuing on their Cinderalla run, beating #2 Portland in five games. #7 Detroit will also continue their run, beating #3 Toronto in a nailbiting seven games to move on to play the New Orleans juggernaut.

[zike_42]

2025 NBA Playoffs

Eastern Conference
#1 New Orleans vs. #7 Detroit

Western Conference
#1 Dallas vs. #6 Golden State

We swept the season series in no small part of focusing on shutting down Ledaryl McMillian. I know that’s an easy thing to say and extremely hard to put into place but we have the perimeter defenders to do it.

Western Conference Finals – Golden State vs. Dallas

Point Guard
Ledaryl McMillian vs. Matt Brown
32.1 points, 6.8 assists, 4.3 rebounds vs. 11.6 points, 15.9 assists, 5.8 rebounds

If Brown was up against it last series he is in for a world of hurt now. Granted he did slow down Kyrie Irving and will be looking to shut down the Buzzsaw. Everyone and their dog knows about Ledaryl McMillian, the 23 year old superstar who puts his team on his shoulders and carries them over the line.

Winner – Golden State

Shooting Guard
Charles Canady vs. Jacob Alexander
13.6 points, 7.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds vs. 24.3 points, 2.4 assists, 5.4 rebounds

Just like with Houston, the Warriors have their primary ballhandler at SG. This helps because Canady is 6’6” and can guard other SGs while McMillian is a measly 6’0”, 179lbs and would get eaten alive by Alexander. The newest Dallas starter has been on a tear recently and should carry a fair bit of the offensive load for the Mavericks.

Winner - Dallas

Small Forward
Cederic Mapp vs. Sean Gilmore
14.4 points, 2.3 assists, 6.6 rebounds vs. 13.4 points, 2.0 assists, 5.5 rebounds

This is probably the most evenly matched match-up you could get. Both are 6’7”, both good scorers and rebounders while Gilmore is a better defender and Mapp is a better stealer. Expect this to be a stalemate.

Winner - Draw

Power Forward
Lynn McMillian vs. Marcus Randle
14.5 points, 1.5 assists, 5.6 rebounds vs. 24.2 points, 1.3 assists, 9.7 rebounds

Just like the last match-up but completely the opposite. Marcus Randle is better than McMillian in every category possible, except the other L.McMillian is an inch taller. Randle is breaking out this post-season and if he has a big series he could be thrown into the elite category.

Winner - Dallas

Centre
Willis Owens vs. Andre Drummond
10.9 points, 2.4 assists, 6.5 rebounds vs. 20.7 points, 0.8 assists, 8.0 rebounds

Willis Owens is a 6’9” PF masquerading as a C and will be caught out against Drummond. Against Dwayne Knight Drummond had a field day and that should continue here.

Winner - Dallas

Bench
Drew McAfee, Roderick Coleman, Ike Brown vs. Iman Shumpert, Joe Duggins, Ryan Robinson

The only Warrior bench player worth noting is McAfee, who is one of the best defensive centres in the league and should be starting. Other than that, Golden State’s second unit is woeful. Coleman and Brown would be 9th/10th men on other teams.

Winner – Dallas

Prediction – Dallas in five. Just like last time, if Ledaryl McMillian can unleash the saw then they might steal some games, other than that it should be an (relatively) easy ride for the defending champions.

Even though McMillian had 25 points and 8 assists he did shoot 9/24 from the field, and couple that with a FG difference of 51% to 39% adds up to a 112-90 win to the good guys. Andre Drummond led the way with 30 points and 11 rebounds but had some great contributions from Marcus Randle (21 points, 12 rebounds), Matt Brown (13 points, 24 assists) and Jacob Alexander (26 points). Charles Canady had a great game which was surprising with 26 points and 9 assists on a great 9/16 shooting.

Dallas leads 1-0

One play completely ruined game two. When Ledaryl McMillian went for a drive in the fourth minute of the game he made the basket and got the and one but he severely bruised his tricep and left the game and didn’t return. Three minutes played and he went off, sucking the tension out of the game. We went on to win 119-90 obviously but it really didn’t feel like a good win without the Buzzsaw. Andre Drummond, Jacob Alexander and Matt Brown combined for 75 points, 23 rebounds, 19 assists and 9 blocks in the win. Charles Canady tried to take the reins but tried too hard, going 2/14 from the field for 5 points and Willis Owens had 11 points and 14 rebounds on 5/16 shooting. One player that did well was Ike Brown, scoring 20 points off the bench but it just wasn’t enough.

Dallas leads 2-0

In a relief for all the Bay Area population Ledaryl McMillian suited up, surprisingly at SG. He only had 18 points as we got out to a 46-18 first quarter lead to completely stun the Warrior crowd. That lead grew to a whopping 56 points in the third quarter before the benches were emptied and Golden State put on a 34-12 last quarter run but it was too late, as we won 126-100. Marcus Randle, Andre Drummond, Jacob Alexander and Matt Brown combined for 91 points with all four of them getting to 20 points. This was domination, plain and simple.

Dallas leads 3-0

Ledaryl McMillian went 7/20 for only 16 points as we shut down the Buzzsaw to sweep the series 115-82. This wasn’t close, sure it was closer than last game but that is not hard. Marcus Randle showed his chops with 21 points and 18 rebounds as all five of our starters had 14 points or more. I don’t really have much to say about this game, just one sided all game and it’s time to get ready for the NBA Finals.

Dallas wins 4-0

In the East, Detroit stunned the Hornets in the first two games before New Orleans won both of their away games to draw level. Their class and experience was just too much for the Pistons and the #1 Hornets booked their sixth consecutive NBA Finals trip in six games.