SimWorld Presents: The Race to Greatness (A SimWorld NBA2K Dynasty)

**ronyell** · 02-03-2016, 11:39 PM

SimWorld TV (Live Media Stream)

Watch live video from SimWorldGaming on www.twitch.tv

**Rta** · 02-08-2016, 03:11 PM

Re: SimWorld Presents: The Race to Greatness (A SimWorld NBA2K Dynasty)

Yes! Finally!

**ronyell** · 02-12-2016, 01:11 PM

April 13th, 2016

There are many stories that evolved post all-star weekend but lets face it... the headline story that has had a firm grip on the NBA has been the Golden State Warriors and their record breaking season. Although I am sure we could go on & on about what they accomplished even after the all-star break; we’ll leave that to the professionals (insert Mr. Adam Jones here). Instead, lets take a look at the top team stories in each conference, giving the least emphasis to Golden State.

THE HEADLINERS:

After hosting all-star weekend, the city of Toronto took it a step further; clinching the top seed in the east. Despite playing without DeMarre Carroll until late March & having their steady center Jonas Valanciunas miss a good amount of time; Dwane Casey rallied his troops to give up only 90.6 PPG (which led the league). With a late season signing of veteran center Jermaine O’Neal, the Raptors are considered a threat by many insiders.

The Cavs made some moves just before the trade deadline, shipping Varejao & Mozgov to Minnesota for Nikola Pekovic & Damjan Rudez (who they later waived) but they did not stop there on their quest to bring a championship to Cleveland. Just two days later they sent the newly acquired Pekovic, Iman Shumpert, Richard Jefferson & a 2016 2nd round pick to Atlanta for sharpshooter Kyle Korver, Tiago Splitter & Thabo Sefolosha. And just two days after that they lost Mo Williams for the remainder of the year to a dislocated patella. 2nd place in the east will only be accepted if they bring home the gold.

Miami remained unable to deal their jagged tempered center Hassan Whiteside but still managed to surprise many with a 3rd place finish in the east. Wade managed to stay relatively healthy and the entire team pitched in at times leading this team to the 4th best defense in the NBA. Goran Dragic looked much like the Dragic of last year through the latter part of the season & Luol Deng started to show glimpses of his former self as well. Slow & steady was the case for the Heat both figuratively & physically.

Despite missing both Brandon Jennings & Reggie Jackson for extended periods of time, Stan Van Gundy sparked something in this young Pistons team (just after the all-star break) that has brought the city of Detroit back to the days of old… & that something is defense. In what seems to be the theme in the east; the Pistons sported the third best defense in the association giving up only 93.2 PPG. Defense by committee was the plan but getting consistency out of Andre Drummond was the key. As he led the league in rebounding; Stan Van Gundy said the reason for their first 50+ win season since 2008 was Andre’s rim protection. Watch out for Detroit basketball in the playoffs as Charles Barkley has picked them to come out of the east… go figure.

The good news… Rose remained healthy & is ready for the playoffs. The bad news… The Bulls finished 3rd in their division behind not only Cleveland but also the Pistons. The real news… the Bulls convinced Ray Allen to join the team for some extra firepower heading into the playoffs. The Bulls looked like they had found their identity in the second half of the season but the injury to Mirotic’s elbow may prove to be more of an issue than imagined as he will not be on the playoff roster. Never the less the Bulls are in the playoffs again, hoping to make noise & pickups of veterans Ray Allen & Samuel Dalembert won’t hurt at all.

THE REST:
Atlanta maintained a 4th seed despite giving away Kyle Korver & Tiago Splitter & not managing to move Teague or Horford. Boston made it in to the playoffs and picked up Spencer Hawes in exchange for Jonas Jerebko along the way. The Knicks are back in the playoffs which is good news even if only as an eight seed. The Hornets were brought back to earth. The Pacers brought back Lance Stephenson. The Bucks & the Wizards seasons went totally wrong & the Magic, Nets & Sixers' seasons went just as expected.

THE HEADLINERS:

NBA record tying 72 wins, 10 losses. NBA record 41-0 at home. Steph Curry… MVP for the 2nd year in a row. Steph Curry... NBA record 12 steals in one game, February 20th. Steph Curry... NBA record 13 threes in one game, March 19th. NBA record 448 threes made in a season. A 15.7 point differential & led the league in PPG, APG, 3MPG, 3PT%, & 2nd in the league in FG% & SPG.

Oklahoma City makes at least one more run before they are possibly left without their two mega stars. Even though a record 61-21 stills sits you 11 games back of 1st place in the west; at least it’s still good for 2nd. Durant & Westbrook carried this Thunder team but it was not just a two-man show. Ibaka, Adams & especially Enes Kanter played major roles in this team’s success. Second only to Golden State in point differential, the Thunder looked unstoppable at times offensively. The only flaw that was shown at times was their defense and the possibility of an injury either of the two stars at any moment.

The steady Spurs flew under the radar as usual. After their blistering start, Coach Pop (in Coach Pop fashion) rested his players many times throughout the latter part of the season, landing them in the 3 seed instead of the second although I’m sure no one is really stressing that. Kawhi continued his climb to the upper echelon and the Spurs faithful continued to do what they do best... win. Aldridge looks ready for the playoffs and Coach Pop got a good look at Boban Marjanovic & Jonathon Simmons late in the season (don’t be surprised if they see action in the playoffs).

Dwight Howard is still a Rocket & after a lackluster first half, the Rockets caught fire after the all-star break losing only 6 games afterward. James Harden was still the motor offensively but a re-emphasis on defense from interim head coach J.B. Bickerstaff seemed to be the steering wheel. Houston slowed down their tempo a bit and stood pat on any trade deadline moves & it looks to have paid off heading into the playoffs.

After the Blake Griffin saga and the Clippers managing to win without him; they found themselves stumbling into the playoffs as a 7th seed after losing 21 of their final 29. Despite Chris Paul playing like an MVP, the Clippers lacked consistency from anyone else, especially when J.J. Redick was out for the month of March. LAC moved Jamal Crawford to Dallas for Devin Harris & was able to unload Lance Stephenson to Indy to get C.J. Miles & Lavoy Allen in return but they both missed most of the second half of the year due to injury. Hampered by many other injuries, not counting their time without Blake really sent them spiraling. But now they are healthy & hopefully they can salvage this season.

THE REST:
The Kings fought their way into the playoffs with George Karl, DeMarcus Cousins & Rajon Rondo but without Rudy Gay (out for the year with a torn Achilles). The Grizzlies grinded their way to 5th place with both Gasol & Randolph missing time, but they did sign Larry Sanders at season’s end. The Blazers snuck in at the eight spot as the Mavs fell out of contention after an injury riddled second half to the season. The Nuggets, T’Wolves, Jazz, Pelicans & Suns all dwelled the bottom as hard as humanly possible. And the Lake Show managed to lose their swag (dealing Nick Young to the 76ers) along with Kobe “Farewell Tour”.

NBA League Leaders - Updated: Apr 13, 2016
Points Per Game		PPG	Assists Per Game		APG
	1. Stephen Curry	27.3		1. Rajon Rondo	10.2
	2. Kevin Durant	26.9		2. Russell Westbrook	9.8
	3. Lebron James	25.9		3. John Wall	7.8
	4. Damian Lillard	24.1		4. Chris Paul	7.8
	5. Demar DeRozan	24.0		5. Ricky Rubio	7.6
Rebounds Per Game		RPG	Steals Per Game		SPG
	1. Andre Drummond	15.5		1. Rajon Rondo	2.0
	2. DeAndre Jordan	13.8		2. Stephen Curry	2.0
	3. Kevin Love	12.7		3. Damian Lillard	1.9
	4. Pau Gasol	12.2		4. Kemba Walker	1.8
	5. Demarcus Cousins	12.0		5. Russell Westbrook	1.7
Bocks Per Game		BPG	Field Goal Percentage		FG%
	1. DeAndre Jordan	3.9		1. DeAndre Jordan	.646
	2. Andre Drummond	2.9		2. Kenneth Faried	.585
	3. Anthony Davis	2.8		3. Andre Drummond	.583
	4. Hassan Whiteside	2.7		4. Dwight Howard	.579
	5. Dwight Howard	2.6		5. Enes Kanter	.576
Three Point Percentage		3PT%	Free Throw Percentage		FT%
	1. Stephen Curry	.466		1. Stephen Curry	.921
	2. J.J. Redick	.464		2. Kyle Korver	.913
	3. Klay Thompson	.454		3. Kevin Martin	.897
	4. Kyle Korver	.449		4. Isaiah Thomas	.884
	5. Khris Middleton	.445		5. Chris Paul	.882

**miz468** · 02-12-2016, 02:53 PM

Re: SimWorld Presents: The Race to Greatness (A SimWorld NBA2K Dynasty)

Good stuff here yellz.

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

**AdamJones113** · 02-12-2016, 02:59 PM

April 13th, 2016

If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em

Steve Kerr has the best of both worlds. There are few who can claim entrance to the 72-win club; after this season, only two rosters. And Steve Kerr has been an integral part of both. He played a full 82 games for the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls, shot .515% from beyond the arc, and won a championship with what many have, until now, considered the best team of all time. Now, he is the coach of the second team to reach that fabled standing; all that awaits is a championship.

It didn't look good on March 30. The Warriors fell, surprisingly, to the Utah Jazz, who finished 32-50, at the bottom of the Northwest Division. Feeling the blues, Golden State needed to go 7-0 against teams with winning records, including two away games at San Antonio and Memphis. The Warriors were 36-0 at home with 5 games remaining. Kerr rallied his troops. And what elite troops they were.

Steph Curry set an an NBA record, nay, blew it out of the water, by hitting 448 threes... 162 more than the (his) previous record of 286. Curry led the league in points per game with 27.3 and steals per game with 2.0 (tied with Rajon Rondo). His 3-point shooting percentage and free throw shooting percentage both led the league. Steph Curry stamped his name on the seasonal record book and his name on the game record book, with an NBA record 12 steals in a February game and 13 three pointers made in a March game.

Curry did not do it alone, of course; the Warriors would have come nowhere near their record-tying mark had Curry tried to make the team his. Four players averaged over 13 points, with Harrison Barnes scoring 13.9 points to go with 5.5 rebounds and his customary solid defense. Klay Thompson finished with 21.1 points per game and drained the second-most three pointers in the league. Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston were a perfect pair of the bench. Individual players might win games, but it takes a team to go 72-10. The Warriors redefined that "team."

Perhaps the player who most exemplifies how the Warriors changed the NBA is Draymond Green, nominally a power forward, with the body of a small forward, and the heart of a champion. Green scored 16.4 points and grabbed 10.6 rebounds per game, an impressive double-double to begin with, as the front man in the Warriors' small-ball lineup. But it's his 6.4 assists—8th in the NBA, the top seven all point guards—that show how efficient and compatible this Warriors team is (for comparison, Curry averaged 5.5 assists). The willingness to trust in a power forward, a second-round draft pick at that, shows that the Warriors haven't been affected that the praise and pride they've earned.

Kerr's troops had been rallied. They stood, 71-10, in the home locker room at Oracle Arena, minutes before tip-off against the Memphis Grizzlies, whom they had defeated days earlier. He praised the team they were, the team they had become, the team they would be. He told them that it didn't matter how it turned out, what record they finished the season with. He thanked the team and Luke Walton, who had coached the team early in the season when Kerr was recovering from a surgery. Then he paused, and grinned. "What am I saying?" he asked. "This is the best team I've ever been a part of. Let's get history."

The Warriors, of course, won that game, and are poised to win 16 more en route to their second consecutive NBA Championship. The West stands in the way; there's no bigger bulls-eye than the one on the Warriors' back. But Golden State knows all about accuracy. The Bulls lost only 3 games en route to their Finals' win. There's still plenty of time for the Warriors to beat them, but, as Mr. Steph Curry himself says: "You don't have to live anybody else's story."

Golden State is poised to finish their story, their season: the best story in NBA history.

**AdamJones113** · 02-14-2016, 01:29 AM

April 13th, 2016

Playoffs?? Playoffs???

The NBA Playoffs are never short of story lines. But until this year, of course, the NBA Playoffs were short of record-tying teams from the regular season. The Warriors come into the playoffs once again with home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, once again with a huge bulls-eye on their back; but this time, they've also got history to compete with. But there's never been a team more ready for playoff ball; Golden State did it all last year and looks poised to do it again.

In the Eastern Conference, conversely, it's all about the unknowns. The New York Knicks won just enough, 40 times, to qualify as the East's 8th seed—a far cry from their worst-in-conference finish last season. They'll have a chance against the Toronto Raptors, seeded 1st for the first time in franchise history... who have also lost in the past round the past two years. The Detroit Pistons, the 5th seed, won 52 games in a huge turnaround from their 32 last year. They're up against Atlanta, less stellar than last year, but more battle-weary and ready.

All teams have an equal chance, but some teams' chances are more equal than others. Let's take a look at the individual match-ups.

1-Golden State Warriors (72-10) vs. 8-Portland Trail Blazers (43-39)

We can talk about how CJ McCollum has thrust himself onto the national stage with his scoring prowess. We can talk about how Damian Lillard is a clutch playoff performer. We can acknowledge that the Blazers' front court is a little slow. But we can't avoid the fact that Golden State might be the best team in history and should have minimal trouble wiping the floor with their West-coast competitor. Golden State outmatches Portland at every position and should have an easy time advancing.
Pick: Golden State Warriors

2-Oklahoma City Thunder (61-21) vs. 7-Los Angeles Clippers (43-39)

Well, an upset could happen. Russell Westbrook isn't 100%. Los Angeles, despite slipping in the second half of the season, fought hard in the final hour and landed a playoff spot. But then again, the Thunder feature Kevin Durant and a great supporting cast including Serge Ibaka and, off the bench, Enes Kanter and his very strong season. Chris Paul is as good as any point guard in the league, but the Thunder just have too much—and an incredible 33-8 home record vs. a 19-22 away record for the Clippers—to not move on.
Pick: Oklahoma City Thunder

3-San Antonio Spurs (59-23) vs. 6-Sacramento Kings (47-35)

The Kings are back in the playoffs thanks to Rajon Rondo's NBA-leading 10.2 assists per game and DeMarcus Cousins' 26. 9 points and 12.0 rebounds per game. But the Spurs are, well, the Spurs. They're tested and deep. Parker and Duncan are rested, Kawhi is sharp as ever... and LaMarcus Aldridge figures to eat up Kings' rookie Willie Cauley-Stein. The Spurs, 32-9 at home, shouldn't have much trouble against a talented, but young, team.
Pick: San Antonio Spurs

4-Houston Rockets (48-34) vs. 5-Memphis Grizzlies (48-34)

The Rockets and Grizzlies are very evenly matched. Both have (surprisingly, for the Rockets) gotten into the playoffs thanks to tough defense: both allow around 95 points per game. The Rockets have the star power, with James Harden (23.3 points per game) and Dwight Howard—who thought he'd still be around by this time of year? The Grizzlies are deep. The only thing separating the two? Houston is on fire, losing only 6 games since the all-star break, while Memphis has lost their last three games. In the playoffs, it's always better to be hot than not.
Pick: Houston Rockets

1-Toronto Raptors (58-24) vs. 8-New York Knicks (38-44)

Home court advantage throughout the conference playoffs heads north of the border for the first time in history, as the Raptors rode the league's best defense (just above 90 points allowed per game) to the top spot in the East. The Knicks are just one season past a last-place finish in the East, so just being here is a pleasure. And with ever-dangerous Carmelo Anthony and rookie sensation Kristaps Porzingis, the Knicks could make some noise. But the Raptors, led by the nearly unstoppable back court duo of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, should make it past the 1st round for the first time in years and take advantage of their home court advantage.
Pick: Toronto Raptors

2-Cleveland Cavaliers (56-26) vs. 2-Boston Celtics (44-38)

These two know each other well. Last year's first-round matchup was the same; that ended with a Cleveland sweep and a Kevin Love back injury that would keep him out of the rest of the playoffs. The Cavs want one result to be the same, and luckily for them, they've got the team—a new-look roster—to do it. Isaiah Thomas has had a great season as the go-to option for the Celtics, but there's no reason Boston should be anything more than a stepping-stone for the Cavaliers.
Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers

3-Miami Heat (56-26) vs. 6-Chicago Bulls (48-34)

Miami had an incredible season, using veterans and rookies both to win the Southeast Division and earn the 3rd spot in the playoffs. They were steady, implacable, and healthy. The Bulls lost Nikola Mirotic to an elbow injury. Dwyane Wade is one of the greatest shooting guards of all time. Derrick Rose has glass ankles. You see where this is heading? The Bulls are going to make a return to their old, tenacious ways, and Jimmy Butler will lead an improbable Chicago team to the next round.
Pick: Chicago Bulls

4-Atlanta Hawks (53-29) vs. 5-Detroit Pistons (52-30)

The Hawks cooled down a little bit from their scalding, best-in-East performance last year. The fire went northwest to Detroit, where the Pistons improved by 20 games on last year's record. Andre Drummond led the league with 15.5 rebounds per game and the Reggie Jackson acquisition proved to be gold for the Pistons. The Hawks are deep up front and have Jeff Teague at the point... but it's time to hop on the Charles Barkley bandwagon, at least for this round. The Jackson–Drummond pick-and-roll will see Detroit through to round 2.
Pick: Detroit Pistons

**TheEmanHTX** · 02-15-2016, 04:59 PM

April 13th, 2016

Four years ago today, on April 13, 2012, the NBA's Board of Governors unanimously approved
the decision to relocate and rename the newly christened Brooklyn Nets.

It is rumored that rap icon and media mogul Sean "Jay-Z" Carter
played a key role in getting the full confidence of the Governors;
it was overheard during the vote that "no one wanted to line up in the Jigga man's crosshairs."

**TheEmanHTX** · 02-15-2016, 07:20 PM

April 14th, 2016

**ronyell** · 02-16-2016, 02:26 AM

April 25th, 2016

How Did We Get Here You Ask?

Well... let's start out east:

(1)

vs

(8)

After Lowry dropped 35 in a win in game 1 & DeRozan 31 in a win in game 2, it looked like an early exit was in store for the New York Knicks... but in New York's first playoff home game in three years; Melo & Porzingis had a signature game combining for 51 points to win game 3. Then in game 4 the Knicks defense held the Raps superstar backcourt to just 25 points total (Lowry 16 & DeRozan 9) with a win. But in a return home, they got back to business holding Melo to just 10 points in game 5 & then just 6 points to seal the series on the Knicks home floor in game 6.

(4)

vs

(5)

Maybe Charles Barkley knew what he was talking about for once. Detroit dominated Atlanta at home in game 1 where Al Horford was owned by Andre Drummond. Even though Atlanta lost game 1; game 2 is where everything fell apart. Atlanta gave up 7 point lead in the final 1:39 of the game after going ice cold from the field in the previous 7 minutes of the 4th quarter. Ultimately Brandon Jennings hit what would be the game winning jumper with 2 seconds left as the Pistons picked up the one point win. Reggie Jackson owned game three scoring 27 in a Detroit win & game 4 saw a game high 28 points from Marcus Morris to finish off the not-so surprising sweep.

(2)

vs

(7)

The Cavs took care of business. Lebron, Love & Irving were just too much for the C’s to compete with. Isaiah Thomas gave a valiant effort but star power was in full effect in game 1 as the Cavs won behind King James’ 34, 6 & 9. Game 2 saw Kyrie Irving take the lead scoring 29 to lead the Cavs to a win. Game 3 saw the Celtics hit only 32% of their shots in route to a 102 – 78 loss at home. Game 4 was a great game with Evan Turner leading the way for the Celtics as they won with a total team effort in Boston but they just didn’t have enough firepower at the end of the day as the Cavs won game 5 in convincing fashion.

And now out west…

(1)

vs

(8)

Portland came out like gangbusters in game 1 getting 42 from Damian Lillard & 32 from McCollum. When the smoke cleared this game saw a combined 71 three-pointers attempted (an NBA playoff record) and more importantly a Portland win on the Warriors home court where they hadn’t lost a game dating back to last season. But that was the end of the Cinderella story for Portland as Kerr put the clamp down on “D” & accelerated the “O”. Golden State buried the Blazers 122 to 79 in game 2 & held the Lillard/McCollum combo to a combined 23 points. Game 3 saw the Warriors put up 139 points in a lopsided victory. In game 4 Steph Curry tallied a triple-double (29 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists) & a 116 -107 win & game 5 saw Curry (39 points) outscore Portland’s starting backcourt (24 points) by himself in route to a series clinching win.

(4)

vs

(5)

Dwight Howard’s big donut was the story of game 1 as he ended the game with 0 points and an on-court altercation with James Harden. In spite of that, the Rockets won easy; 102 – 82 behind James Harden’s 30. In game 2 Memphis brought “The Grindhouse” to H-Town as they held Houston to only 72 points and a loss at home. Game 3 was all Houston from the jump as they won 111 – 99. Game 4 was more of the same as Harden dropped 37 & Dwight chipped in 18 in the Houston win. Game 5 came down to a Harden turnover with 5 seconds to go to ice a win for a Memphis team that did not deserve to win that one (Memphis won 91 – 90). After a post-game tirade by Dwight Howard about not receiving touches in game 5; Dwight Howard led the Rockets to a game 6 win, scoring a game high 25 on a game high 17 attempts from the field.

(3)

vs

(6)

After what looked like it may turn into a series in a nail-biting game 1 win by the Spurs… turned into business as usual. The Kings kept it close in game one losing by only three behind Cousins’ 33. And in spite of Demarcus Cousins putting up another monster game in game 2 (50 points, 15 rebounds), the Spurs won game 2 by three. The Kings made an extremely dramatic run of it in game 3 losing by only one in this one as the Spurs veteran leadership showed through. And in game 4 all but Cousins (48 points, 12 rebounds, 7 assists) looked defeated from the tip as the Spurs finished the sweep with a 119 – 99 victory in Sacramento.

So that end us here… tomorrow… two game 7’s.

(3)

vs

(6)

Game 1 was ugly. Slow paced, not much offense and the Bulls opening the series with a win in Miami. Chicago won game 2 in decisive fashion as well as Hassan Whiteside got tossed in the 4th quarter after catching Gasol with an elbow. Miami in turn went into Chicago and won a testy, hard fought battle 91 – 86 in game 3. Miami tied up the series at 2-2 in game 4 behind scrappy play by Beno Udrih who played the 4th quarter after Coach Spo benched Dragic. Bosh dropped 34 in game 5 but the great pick-up of Ray Allen late in the season proved to be a good one as Ray knocked down 2 clutch threes late in the game to lead Chicago to a win & a 3-2 lead in the series. Game 6 saw desperation from all Miami players in rotation as they won with 5 players scoring over 17 to tie up the series at 3 a piece.

(2)

vs

(7)

In what was a very physical game (5 technical fouls & 1 flagrant on Steven Adams), the dynamic duo of Durant & Westbrook got some help from Dion Waiters (23 points) to lead the Thunder to a 117 – 99 game 1 win at home. In game 2 the Thunder looked like they were sleep walking through the game defensively and it ultimately cost them the game as they lost 114 – 110. Game 3 looked like the Westbrook show as he locked in yet another triple-double but didn’t get much help from anyone other than KD… Thunder lose game 3 to go down 2-1 in the series. In game 4 KD & Russ put the Thunder on their backs & carried them to a victory with 34 & 27 points respectively. This is also the game that saw OKC coach Billy Donovan put Durant on Chris Paul defensively & boy what a difference it made. Game 5 started out with Durant covering Paul again and despite the Thunder’s struggles offensively; they blew out the Clips 107 – 80. In the game 5 post-game interviews Doc called out Blake Griffin saying “I thought we had stars on this team other than Chris [Paul]” & Blake responded by scoring 16 of the Clippers first 18 of the game in route to a 101-86 win to lead to a deciding game 7.

Tune in tomorrow at 7:00pm EST on ESPN (http://www.twitch.tv/simworldgaming)
for the the double-header

**TheEmanHTX** · 02-16-2016, 10:25 AM

April 26th, 2016

In 1988, on this day in NBA history, the League decided to make a change towards better officiated games,
by adding another referee to the court, to the 3-man configuration we are all very familiar with now.

After the announcement, 10-yr veteran referee Joey Crawford said, "This will absolutely kill my ability
to overstep my authority if I have to confer with TWO guys now." How wrong he was.

**TheEmanHTX** · 02-16-2016, 01:03 PM

April 26th, 2016

**x_NBA_x** · 02-16-2016, 02:38 PM

Re: April 26th, 2016

I shall be tuning in to watch the games at 7:00 EST.

**AdamJones113** · 02-17-2016, 12:15 AM

April 28th, 2016

Rapid Reaction: Clippers Shock Thunder, Heat Shut Down Bulls

Los Angeles Clippers 113, Oklahoma City Thunder 104 (Clippers def. Thunder 4-3)
As Paul Pierce said, "We always have that pride. We always believe in ourselves, that we can go out there and win no matter the situation." Speaking immediately after the Clippers' harrowing defeat of the second-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder, he was more than correct. Los Angeles battled to the end, pulling away late in the 4th quarter and even then needing a big three-pointer from JJ Redick with 38 seconds to play to seal the deal. Blake Griffin led the upset with a team-high 30 points and 13 rebounds, while CJ Miles made a big impact with 22 points. Oklahoma City got 31 points from Kevin Durant and 24 points and 12 assists from Russell Westbrook, but it wasn't enough to salvage a series that was troubling from the outset.
The Clippers have earned themselves a date with the third-seeded San Antonio Spurs, whom the Clippers defeated in 7 games in round 1 last year. This marks the third year that the Clippers have won a first-round series in the full 7 games (def. San Antonio in 2015 as a 3-seed, def. Golden State in 2014 as a 3-seed). That's an accomplishment—whether good or bad. Los Angeles lost each of the ensuing series.

Miami Heat 98, Chicago Bulls 78 (Miami def. Chicago 4-3)
Despite scoring 26 points and grabbing 13 rebounds, Jimmy Butler couldn't pull his bedraggled Bulls team through to the second round as Chicago shot a paltry 38% from the field en route to a first-round exit. The Miami Heat held the 6th-seeded Bulls to a meagre 31 points in the first half and 51 at the end of the third quarter, marking their first playoff series win since an Eastern Conference Finals defeat of the Indiana Pacers in the 2014 playoffs. Chris Bosh scored 26 points and added 8 rebounds for the Heat, while Dwyane Wade scored 23 and tacked on 5 boards and 5 assists. Hassan Whiteside was instrumental in the victory, scoring 11 points while grabbing a series-high 19 rebounds (to go along with a game-high 5 blocks).
The Heat set a date with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in round 2 in a matchup that carries with it much drama and history. They've survived a rough 7-game series here, but whether they can execute against Cleveland's talented roster, one that matches up very well against Miami, remains to be seen. For Chicago, it's back home to rest and recuperate in anticipation of next year's season—one that promises to come not without little change.

**ronyell** · 02-17-2016, 12:39 AM

April 28th, 2016

SimWorld Presents: The Race to Greatness (A SimWorld NBA2K Dynasty)

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