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Poll: Will The Lakers Beat The Thunder?

May 13th, 2012 at 10:30am CST by Daniel Seco

Fresh off their victory over the Nuggets on Saturday evening, the Lakers will head to Oklahoma City on Monday for Game 1 of the second round of the playoffs to take on the Thunder. A re-energized Pau Gasol has the Lakers looking dangerous even against a heavily-favored Thunder squad.

The return of Metta World Peace in the final game of the series proved to be critical to the Lakers' success against the Nuggets and could potentially be a difference maker against the Thunder. The Lakers will also need improved play from Ramon Sessions or he could continue to lose minutes to Steve Blake, who put together an outstanding performance Saturday night at the Staples Center. Andrew Bynum showed flashes of brilliance at times against Denver but still needs to prove that he can play at a high level for an entire series, not just a few games.

What do you think? Will Kobe's supporting cast be able to come through against the likes of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden as they did against the Nuggets in Game 7?

Poll: Which Team Is Playing The Best Basketball?

May 7th, 2012 at 10:30pm CST by Michael Pina

Yesterday we asked which player was having the most impressive first round, and most of you believe it’s Celtics forward Paul Pierce. Tonight we’re wondering which team is playing better team basketball? Who looks to be on the right track towards winning the championship?

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Who’s Had The Most Impressive Postseason?

May 6th, 2012 at 3:45pm CST by Michael Pina

Now that we’re eight days into the 2012 NBA playoffs, and each team has played at least three games, we ask which player has been the most impressive? There are several big names who’ve stepped up, and some others who’ve struggled. Who’s been the best?

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Poll: Will The Heat Sweep The Knicks?

May 2nd, 2012 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

After a dominant performance in Game One, the Heat took a 2-0 lead over the Knicks on Monday, prompting an outburst of frustration that will sideline Amare Stoudemire for Game Three. Stoudemire spoke to reporters about his injured hand today, saying there's a "great chance" he'll be back on Sunday, though reports earlier today suggested Amare could miss the entire series.

Of course, whether or not Stoudemire plays again this season may depend on how long the series lasts. With the Knicks in disarray, Chris Perkins of Sheridan Hoops writes that winning the series in even five games would be a disappointment for Miami. The other three series in the East are all tied at a game apiece, so the Heat could benefit from the extra rest if they can finish the Knicks off quickly.

What do you think? Will Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks bounce back from the fire-extinguisher incident to make a series of it? Or will the Heat finish off New York in four?

Poll: Will The Spurs Get Upset Again?

April 25th, 2012 at 6:40pm CST by Michael Pina

Last night, in what basically amounted to a play-in game for the Western Conference's eighth seed, Utah took advantage of their deep front court and home crowd to defeat Phoenix. The Jazz are now scheduled to face off against the number one seeded Spurs. With last year's tough first round loss to Memphis fresh in everybody's mind, this sets up a very interesting first round series. Utah's great strength is their very skilled front court, headed by Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap, Derrick Favors, and Enes Kanter. Last year the Spurs struggled against the Grizzlies dynamic duo of Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. Will history repeat itself?

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Poll: James Harden Or Serge Ibaka?

April 23rd, 2012 at 12:25pm CST by Luke Adams

The Oklahoma City Thunder will face an interesting predicament next season, as both James Harden and Serge Ibaka enter the final season of their rookie contracts. With stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook already signed to long-term max deals, the team will try to find a way to lock up the rest of its core. An excess of talent is certainly a good problem to have, but it won't be easy for the Thunder to bring all their players back — Durant and Westbrook alone are slated to earn $30MM+ in 2013/14, the first year in which luxury-tax penalties increase.

Harden has made great strides in each of his first three seasons, earning his first All-Star berth and scoring 16.8 PPG on .491/.390/.846 shooting in 2011/12. His 21.1 PER this year raises his career average to 17.2, and he's become arguably one of the top shooting guards in the NBA and the odds-on favorite for Sixth Man of the Year.

Ibaka, meanwhile, isn't the scorer than Harden is, but he's averaging 10+ rebounds per 36 minutes for the third straight season, and is leading the league in blocks with an incredible 3.7 per game. His 17.5 career PER is actually slightly better than Harden's mark, and he's a legit contender (and David Aldridge's pick) for the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year award.

GM Sam Presti says the team will do everything it can to ink extensions for Harden and Ibaka, and perhaps one or both players would accept slightly below-market deals to keep playing for a perennial title contender. I think retaining both is possible, perhaps at the expense of Kendrick Perkins, but let's say circumstances prevent the Thunder from keeping both players. If you're Presti, which player is your top priority? Who do you re-sign to play alongside Durant and Westbrook long-term? Harden or Ibaka?

Poll: How Would A Suspension Impact Lakers?

April 22nd, 2012 at 5:43pm CST by Daniel Seco

Metta World Peace attacked Thunder guard James Harden on Sunday afternoon with a vicious elbow to the side of the head after World Peace scored on a dunk near the end of the second quarter. The blow caused Harden to collapse on the ground, writhing in pain. World Peace unsuccessfully attempted to convince officials that he was merely celebrating his thunderous two-handed slam with the raucous Lakers crowd.

As a result of his actions, World Peace was ejected from the game for a Flagrant 2 while Harden was treated for concussion-like symptoms and did not return in second half. Given World Peace's notorious history involving violence, many talking heads including Magic Johnson and Jon Barry concluded it would be appropriate for the former St. John's star to receive a suspension for his actions. With the Lakers set to conclude their regular season on Thursday against the Kings, it would not be unlikely for a potential suspension of World Peace to extend into the playoffs.

Poll: Which UK Prospect Will Be The Best Pro?

April 17th, 2012 at 6:39pm CST by Sean Highkin

On Tuesday, NCAA champion University of Kentucky's full starting five declared for the 2012 NBA draft. Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb, and Marquis Teague will all be going pro, with Davis expected to be the first pick overall. Which of these highly-touted prospects do you think will have the best NBA career?

Poll: Will The Nets Land A First-Round Pick?

April 17th, 2012 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

As they prepare to move from New Jersey to Brooklyn this summer, the Nets are in an interesting situation. With cap space to spare, the team will be looking to retain potential free agents like Deron Williams, Brook Lopez, and Gerald Wallace. How much room the team has to re-sign its own players and pursue other free agents will depend on its luck in the coming weeks though.

The Nets have a chance to land two picks in the top 20 of what's expected to be a deep draft. However, there's also a possibility that the Nets end up with zero first-rounders. New Jersey's own pick is ticketed for Portland if it doesn't end up in the top three, while the Rockets' first-rounder will only be sent to the Nets if it's not in the top 14.

As Hoops Rumors' tentative draft order shows, the Nets are currently tied with the league's sixth-worst record, and the Rockets are tied with the Suns for the eighth seed in the West. Our order, which doesn't account for tiebreakers, actually shows the 32-29 Rockets at 17th overall, but the 32-29 Suns hold the playoff tiebreaker, moving the Rockets up to 14th. So if the season ended today and everything held to form, the Nets wouldn't own a first-round pick.

With just a handful of games left in the season, how do you see the Nets' draft prospects lining up? Will New Jersey luck out and jump into the top three with its own pick? Will the Rockets edge out the Suns and Jazz to earn a postseason spot, handing their pick to the Nets? How many first-rounders do you think the Nets will hold when June arrives?

Poll: Whose Injury Will Have The Largest Postseason Impact?

April 15th, 2012 at 3:15pm CST by Michael Pina

With recent comments from Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy suggesting Dwight Howard‘s chances of playing in this year’s playoffs is “50-50” due to a herniated disc in his back (Twitter link), and Lakers star Kobe Bryant sitting out his fifth straight game today with a shin related issue, we ask which key player’s injury will have the largest impact on several contenders trying to make their run at the championship.

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