DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum NBA Playoffs + Cavs Draft

I loved him in NBA2K9.

I fantasy drafted him to Boston, and between him and Jason Kapono I ruled with spot up 3s

Like when he played with Nash?

I agree ... better than complimentary player .... not good enough to be the guy.

I like Granger too. I think he has the potential to be pretty valuable.

This Philly-Boston game....

mfw

the EC playoffs are bringing back the mid-90s playoff basketball.

in all the wrong ways

OKC is putting some major hurt on the Lakers halfway through the 3rd. Sucks a little because I like Mike Brown and I like Ramon Sessions, but OKC has to be the team to advance.

Anyone a believer yet?

OKCs got this

Impressive win.

I actually thought Artest would give Durant fits and the combo of Bynum and Gasol would be too much. I know its only one game, but it just doesn't look like LA can keep up with OKC. Too much firepower.

I'm a believer.

Laker fan panic mode here in L.A.

I was watching the game with my girlfriend's brother (a Laker fan). After it was over he looked at me and said, "Go Chargers, when does football season start?"

Ron Artest scares me.

They showed an interview he did, and all he can take from this, is that, in a game involved Durant and Kobe, everyone is talking about him...



I feel bad for Mike Brown, He would have been better off finding a young team that needed some direction (Like Collins and Philly) and teaching them some Defense...

I understand why he took that job. But he'll likely fail (aka, not win a title) and it'll likely be his last, as he will once again be the scape goat...

Mike Brown could get a better job than Charlotte. That's just silly talk.

with the Lakers, you never know. but, I think he gets another year there regardless.

Just curious....why do yu guys think Mike Brown is a good coach?

I'm just not seeing it.

I don't think Calipari will go anywhere til after 2013-2014 season.

If you look at the recruits we're going to land in the 2013 class, he'd be crazy to leave that.

I understand what you're saying better now.

I'm not sure he could grow into that guy though. He's been coaching a long time now.

He strikes me as a really quality assistant but is missing some of the ingredients to be a quality head coach.

I don't know why people assume LeBron wants Calipari as his coach.

It's been denied by both Calipari AND LeBron on numerous occasions.

Calipari WILL go back to the NBA at some point.

It will NOT be to coach LeBron in Miami.

I think Kobe and crew just wanted them to move Brian Shaw over a seat so nothing changed, except the fact that Kobe would be running the team instead of Phil...

I think Brian Shaw is gonna be a fine coach, but even he wasn't stopping that freight train last night.

Kyrie wins Rookie of the Year

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving is the NBA's Rookie of the Year, winning the award with the same ease he showed dribbling past defenders this season.

Irving received 117 of 120 possible first-place votes from a nationwide media panel of 120 writers and broadcasters. Irving finished with 592 points, way ahead of Minnesota's Ricky Rubio (170) and Denver's Kenneth Faried (129), who was third.

Faried, San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard and New York's Iman Shumpert received the other first-place votes, denying Irving's bid to become the fourth player to win the award unanimously.

The 20-year-old is the second Cleveland player to win the award, joining LeBron James in 2004.

The No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, he was clearly the league's top first-year player, leading all rookies -- and the Cavs -- in scoring with 18.5 points per game. He also led all rookies in field-goal percentage (46.8), was second in assists (5.4) and became one of just six rookies in league history to average at least 18 points and five assists.

However, it was the other elements of his game -- a nasty crossover dribble, a fearless desire to get to the basket, and a clutch, cold-blooded instinct in the fourth quarter that separated him from the others.

Irving, who played only 11 games at Duke before turning pro, regularly took over games down the stretch for the Cavaliers. He kept them competitive and in the playoff race until mid-March, when the team's front office decided to build for the future by trading his backup, guard Ramon Sessions, to the Los Angeles Lakers for a first-round draft pick.

Once Rubio went down with a season-ending knee injury, Irving became the runaway favorite to win rookie of the year honors.

And beyond his impressive statistics, Irving brought hope to the Cavaliers and Cleveland fans, who have spent the past two seasons trying to move past James, who left as a free agent before he could bring them their first league title.

Irving appears to be the major piece the Cavs can build around, and they plan to get him some help next month, with three of the top 34 picks in the NBA draft. The Cavs got lucky and won the draft lottery a year ago, paving the way for them to select Irving.

He was clearly the perfect choice.

Despite having a limited training camp because of the labor lockout, Irving started the opener for coach Byron Scott, who has formed a strong bond with his young star. He believes Irving has just scratched the surface of his potential.

"The progression of Kyrie from Game 1 to Game 50 probably exceeded everyone's expectations," Scott said. "I don't think anyone expected him to do what he did this season."

Although it was assumed Irving would start the season opener, Scott didn't inform him until the day of the game so as not to pamper the playmaker. But Irving had earned the job and it didn't take him long to show the Cavs and the rest of the NBA that stardom would be in his future.

In just his third game, he had a chance to hit a game-winning layup at Indiana but rolled his shot off the rim. Still, Irving's desire to take the last shot in a pressure-packed moment made a huge impression on his teammates and coaches, who joked they were sure he wasn't just 19 years old.

A month later in Boston, with his father, Drederick, sitting in a courtside seat, Irving had perhaps the defining moment of his season. With the Cavs down by two, Irving, ignoring his failure in a previous situation, drove to the basket, split two defenders and flipped in a left-handed layup to beat the Celtics.

The next day he handled his heroics with humility that was on display all season.

"Just a shot," he said.

Irving arrived with none of the superstar trappings. There was no entourage or multimillion-dollar shoe contract, no cameras chronicling his every move. Irving chose to blend in. He stepped away from the spotlight.

At the Rising Stars game during All-Star Weekend in Orlando, Irving made all eight 3-pointers to win MVP honors. Posing for a photograph afterward, Irving lowered the crystal he was presented and told the photographer, "Make sure you get the Cleveland" on the front of his jersey.

"That wasn't a publicity stunt at all," Irving said when the season ended. "I just wanted to make sure they got the Cleveland uniform in it. We're not as publicized as everybody else."

Irving's modesty rubbed off on everyone around him.

"He is just a fantastic kid," Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert said. "He's got a great heart. He is genuine. He loves basketball. He loves people. People love being around him. He's humble. He's a great guy."

Quote:

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At the Rising Stars game during All-Star Weekend in Orlando, Irving made all eight 3-pointers to win MVP honors. Posing for a photograph afterward, Irving lowered the crystal he was presented and told the photographer, "Make sure you get the Cleveland" on the front of his jersey.

---

love that

I think unless Rubio took Minny to the playoffs, This was Kyrie's award to lose..

And once Rubio went out, as did any doubt he'd win it...

Were we really in the playoff hunt for that long?

We were in the discussion for the 8th seed until we traded Sesh and the Knicks started winning following D'Antoni's resignation.