by zike_42 » Fri Aug 09, 2013 6:13 am
2028 NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference
#1 Miami vs. #4 New Orleans
#2 Washington vs. #3 Toronto
Western Conference
#1 Utah vs. #5 Portland
#2 Dallas vs. #3 Nevada
We again lost the season series 1-2 and those two losses were blowouts, this is going to be tough.
Western Conference Semi-Finals – Nevada vs. Dallas
Point Guard
Darren Banks vs. Nashon Smith
13.6 points, 8.8 assists, 5.0 rebounds vs. 16.0 points, 8.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds
Two of the smaller elite point guards in the league, they are both way under 180lbs. That hasn’t stopped them from excelling and should be a fantastic match-up. Smith will look for his shot more so if Banks can stop him this could be a win for the Neon.
Winner - Draw
Shooting Guard
Matt Brown vs. Kelly Pryor
15.0 points, 9.0 assists, 4.2 rebounds vs. 17.8 points, 1.2 assists, 4.8 rebounds
On talent alone Matt Brown wins this but Pryor is a massive six inches taller and over 40lbs heavier which steers it back to even. Pryor was excellent in the first round and will continue to play well. A problem for the Mavericks is the Neon’s passing ability, as both Brown and Banks turned the Spurs around with their deft assists.
Winner - Draw
Small Forward
Ryan Garris vs. Jack Dawkins
12.8 points, 2.4 assists, 6.8 rebounds vs. 27.0 points, 5.2 assists, 8.4 rebounds
The biggest match-up of the series. If Garris never scores over double digits and holds Jack to below his average then it’s a win for the Neon. They need to slow him down if they want to win this series and if Jack goes off then it should be lights out for Nevada.
Winner - Dallas
Power Forward
John Nemitz vs. Joe Duggins
17.8 points, 1.6 assists, 11.0 rebounds vs. 7.8 points, 1.8 assists, 8.6 rebounds
The best player on the Neon should take apart Duggins, who is slowly being usurped from the PF spot by Julius Hobbs. Don’t be surprised if Duggins gets in foul trouble early and Hobbs plays the majority of the minutes here. Former #1 pick Nemitz was outstanding against San Antonio and should do the same here.
Winner - Nevada
Centre
Andre Drummond vs. Emmett Emerson
12.6 points, 1.2 assists, 9.0 rebounds vs. 19.8 points, 1.2 assists, 6.4 rebounds
Even though Drummond is 34 years old and on the downward end of his career, he is still an above average defender and should give Emerson trouble all series long. Another must win match-up for the Mavericks as Emerson is their second best scorer.
Winner - Draw
Bench
Greg Lavin, Ian Ransom, Michael Howland vs. Julius Hobbs, Casey Floyd, Isaac Holdan
Lavin has been great off the bench, giving the Neon some much needed size (6’6”) at both guard positions but Ransom and Howland are pretty average. As said before, Hobbs is coming along very nicely while Floyd and Holdan have been huge surprises for the Mavericks.
Winner - Dallas
Prediction – Dallas in seven. You might have been wondering where 2025 All NBA Third Teamer Mike Joseph was in all of this, but the bad news for Neon fans is that he tore his ankle a while ago and will be out for a long, looooooooong time which is great news for the Mavericks.
Going up against another 50 win team is strange enough but when it against a team that stacks up against us really well I’m a little worried. I’m not worried about our fans though, as they always come to our games in droves and will never let us down. It is again a sell out as we averaged just 200 less people than a sell out for the regular season so if this game wasn’t a sell out I would be worried. Jack shot terribly, going 10/28 from the field for 33 points and 9 assists as Joe and Emmett doubled up. The problem was that we just couldn’t get any momentum, getting down by as much as 15 points in the third term as Matt Brown had no mercy for his old team with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists for Nevada. We never say die though, as the team raced back with a 27-18 last quarter before a Jack Dawkins missed contested mid range jump shot at the buzzer doomed us to a solitary point loss, 110-109. Darren Banks had 21 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds but it was Ryan Garris who stole the show, with only 22 points but held Jack to a very inefficient game.
Nevada leads 1-0
This team was out for blood, we don’t want to get down 2-0 to an elite team. The first quarter was close with Nevada holding a slim three point lead but in the second we ramped up the pressure to hold a five point margin at the main break. I wasn’t in the locker room for half time but someone must have said something because we came out like a house on fire, blasting the Neon with a 39-21 third term to bust the game open and cruise to a series tying 106-89 win. Jack was pissed with his game one performance and had 37 points on 12/25 shooting tonight while Joe Duggins only scored 7 points he did rip down 17 rebounds. Kelly Pryor was very quiet last time but was not going to be silenced now, scoring 19 points in the win. Matt Brown and Darren Banks were again the stars for the Neon, combining for 38 points, 14 assists and 6 rebounds in the loss.
Series tied 1-1
The last two seasons the Neon have made the second round and they would love to break their wall and make it to a conference final this year. Jack didn’t want anything to do with that, scoring 34 points and handing out 9 assists but the rest of his team weren’t there, shooting 33% from the field as we went down in the series again 104-90. Casey Floyd (0/10 FG) and Kelly Pryor (1/10 FG) were the worst of the bunch. Ryan Garris seems to be able to stick with Jack for a little while, putting up 22 points and 11 rebounds but the Neon hit 11 three pointers and shot 51% from the field as we just weren’t in this game.
Nevada leads 2-1
We really need to win this game; we need to get our home court advantage back. However, Ryan Garris had other ideas. Not only did he hold Jack to 5/19 shooting for only 16 points he poured in 38 points and 9 rebounds himself as the Neon push us to the brink with another flogging, 107-83. Darren Banks had 19 points, 14 assists and 6 rebounds while limiting Nashon Smith to one of the worst shooting nights I have ever seen in my career, going 1/17 for 5 points and 11 assists. It’s do or die now.
Nevada leads 3-1
Both Eastern Conference series’ have finished in sweeps, as #1 Miami took care of #4 New Orleans while #2 Washington swept aside #3 Toronto in four games.
This is it; win and stay alive or lose and go home. Luckily it’s on our home court but there is a lot of nervous energy around the arena. In fact it was a very nervous game all around, as both teams shot less than 44% from the field. Ryan Garris came down from his super high with only 11 points while John Nemitz shot 0/12 from the field for 6 points and 13 rebounds. On our side, Jack went 9/28 from the field for a very inefficient 34 points and 9 rebounds while Joe Duggins went ¼. As you can see, many missed shots. All except for our guards, as Kelly and Nashon combined for 39 points, 13 assists and 8 rebounds as we stay alive with a 107-98 win to extend the series.
Nevada leads 3-2
Game six, just like game five – we need to win. It’s been done before and I have a good feeling about this. Emmett has a good feeling as well, putting up 25 points and 11 rebounds for the game as we get out to a 28-22 first quarter lead to hush the crowd. Jack and Ryan Garris cancel each other out, combining to shoot 15/46 as neither really stamped their authority on the game. The person that did stamp everything was Greg Lavin, who had just been moved into the starting line-up instead of Matt Brown and hit seven three pointers on his way to 27 points to knock us out of the post season 110-86. After the first quarter it wasn’t even close as the Neon outscored us 88-58 in a bruising display as the benches were emptied very early. Damn.
Nevada wins 4-2
The Portland/Utah series went the distance but the top seed pulled through, as Utah extinguished the Portland fire with a 114-98 win with Bret Davis leading the way with 31 points, 15 assists and 8 rebounds.
