Mega Thread The Official Bigfooty 2020 NBA Finals Thread - the LA Lakers v the Miami Heat

Who do you think will be the 2020 NBA Champion?

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How do the Lakers approach the Heat?

Rockets was no big men, Denver was smash Jokic with all big men.

Heat have done a lot of scoring at the rim but Dragic and Herro in particular are going to meet some huge bodies at the rim. Herro is going to get bullied. A couple of Lakers are going to have to chase Robinson, Dragic and Hero around.

Bam dominated the boards against the Celtics - he is not going to get that against the Lakers.

Does Dwight get serious minutes? If Bam is guarding AD who is guarding Dwight? And if Bam is guarding Dwight who is guarding AD?
 
QuietB said:
How do the Lakers approach the Heat?
Click to expand...

Assuming Dragic, Robinson, Butler, Crowder, Bam with Herro and Iggy getting big minutes like today it depends what Miami's strategies are.

LA are predictable. They go through LeBron, they go through AD or sometimes they go through playoff Rondo. Or David Caruso if they have to. So far they've played Portland (Dame), Houston (beard) and Denver (Jokic/Murray) who are also fairly predictable.

In the ECF Dragic scored 29, Butler 24, Robinson 20, Herro 37, Crowder 22, Bam 32. Miami can win without Bam having a big game inside, or without Herro/Robinson going full Steph and Klay, or without their star in Butler being the man. They don't have the star power of LA, but they do have more avenues to scoring. They also have reasonable 1 on 1 matchups for LeBron and AD. Will be an interesting series tactically. LA's tactics at any given time are basically pick 3 players that best complement LeBron and AD in shutting down whoever the opposition have on the court then the big 2 will score most of the points on offence. Miami don't have that luxury so have to balance stoppers vs scorers, bigs vs smalls etc. more.
 

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Snarls Barkley said:
Absolutely astonishing effort from Miami to get to the finals this season. Unbelievable the transformation they've made from last year to this year. Think a lot of people were surprised when Jimmy Butler decided to sign there, I thought there was a roadmap for them to become good once they got some of those bad contracts (James Johnson, Olynyk, Waiters, Winslow) off the booksu but thought they'd struggle to go far this season, first round at best. Bam, Herro and Duncan Robinson have exceeded anything I could possibly expect from them this season and Jimmy and Dragic have provided great experience.

Incredible work from Spo and Pat Riley to get them to the Finals this year. It's hard to see the Lakers not winning but hope they give them a real show, didn't give Miami much hope against Milwaukee either so hope they prove me wrong again.

Think they are going to be a good chance at signing Giannis as a free agent in 12 months time, things looking very promising for them
Click to expand...

I changed my mind fairly fast after replying

Gianni's would be a nice fit with the shooting of herro. Robinson. Plus bam
 
Scotland said:
Assuming Dragic, Robinson, Butler, Crowder, Bam with Herro and Iggy getting big minutes like today it depends what Miami's strategies are.

LA are predictable. They go through LeBron, they go through AD or sometimes they go through playoff Rondo. Or David Caruso if they have to. So far they've played Portland (Dame), Houston (beard) and Denver (Jokic/Murray) who are also fairly predictable.

In the ECF Dragic scored 29, Butler 24, Robinson 20, Herro 37, Crowder 22, Bam 32. Miami can win without Bam having a big game inside, or without Herro/Robinson going full Steph and Klay, or without their star in Butler being the man. They don't have the star power of LA, but they do have more avenues to scoring. They also have reasonable 1 on 1 matchups for LeBron and AD. Will be an interesting series tactically. LA's tactics at any given time are basically pick 3 players that best complement LeBron and AD in shutting down whoever the opposition have on the court then the big 2 will score most of the points on offence. Miami don't have that luxury so have to balance stoppers vs scorers, bigs vs smalls etc. more.
Click to expand...

Interesting Miami only really played a 7 man rotation

Plus hill for 5 min in their last game

McGee seems in the bad books playing 2 min v Howard's 35. Not started the last 4 games. (Morris 2 Howard 2)
 
When our beloved leader peternorth came to me with a request to write a comprehensive analytical preview of the 2020 Finals, I was honoured. I thought about it long and hard...



… and ultimately decided to do what I always do in these situations, a contribute a bunch of nonsense instead (sorry, Pete). Enjoy!



1601423687410.png VS. 1601424528676.png




Miami Heat

Record: 44-29

Playoffs: Defeated Pacers (4-0), defeated Bucks (4-1), defeated Celtics (4-2)

Special Powers:
  • Beating up on the green machines of the East in Milwaukee and Boston proves that they ought to be invulnerable to kryptonite
  • Impervious to playing in front of no fans, based on vast experience
  • Abundance of whiteys on roster means their players are less likely to be shot at by police
  • Can claim underdog status, thereby undermining peternorth 's incessant attempts to shift favouritism away from his beloved Lakers

Weaknesses:
  • Will be unsettled by actually receiving neutral support, although they battled through this strange phenomenon against the Celtics
  • After getting used to Kabooms and the occasional Bam, now will have to cope with Mike Breen's 'Bangs'. Could be one Adam West appearance away from total shellshock
  • Lakers coach Frank Vogel likes to play smashmouth basketball – this bodes poorly for Miami's Goran Dragic
  • Everyone knows that a good super Herro always has an Achilles heel


Los Angeles Lakers

Record: 52-19

Playoffs: Defeated Blazers (4-1), defeated Rockets (4-1), defeated Nuggets (4-1)

Super Powers:
  • Can create a team of Super-friends seemingly at will
  • In times of great need can push their 'Stern memorial button’, making them temporarily immune from referee's whistles
  • Employing Dwight, McGee, Rondo, Kieff, Dion and JR means that they can play their Joker card six times in a single game
  • Enjoy the benefit of an endless font of wisdom from a respected elder




Weaknesses:
  • Unlike lawn bowlers and the KKK (not to be associated with Kyle Kuzma), the Lakers lose their magic powers when they dress in all white
  • Like many modern Hollywood superhero movies, they can become overexposed, cliched and predictable, forcing audiences to head for the exits or read a book instead
  • Like Willy Wonka and the ladies on Tinder before them, the Lakers can sometimes have trouble guarding against small men
  • Rumours abound that relieving the Lakers of their many headbands will also remove some of their special powers, although LeBron has partially alleviated this issue by gluing his hair headband to his head

1601426533393.png

Pictured: the headband Lakers. Believe it or not, that's Anthony Davis on the ground and semi-injured.




The Magic (no, not Earvin) Numbers


We here at Bigfooty don't piddle about in the shallow end of the pool. If you want meaningless stats that won't tell you anything about how the games will really go down, by all means go and read the likes of Zach Lowe and Kirk Goldberry. That's not what we're about though.

Here, we're prepared to dive deep down and go for the gold. Hold on to your britches and prepare to be more amazed than LeBron James after a foul is called on his team. These are the Bigfooty Magic Numbers.

PS. Compulsive punters please note: these are not the numbers to this week's Tattslotto or the quaddie at Flemington.
PPS. Please gamble responsibly. And if you can't gamble responsibly, at least try to pay back your debts.


64 – the number of games the Lakers have won this season. That equals their three-season aggregate of wins between 2014 and 2017.

64 – the average number of minutes most Lakers fans spent watching their team during these years

27, 538 – the number of times Kobe Bryant will be brought up during these Finals, despite the fact that the only current Laker he ever played with is Dwight – and they hated each other.

0 – the amount of percentage extra the Lakers will give in order to win a championship to honour Kobe. The Lakers knocked the Blazers out of the playoffs on the day Cliff Robinson died, so you can see that 'doing it for ____’ narrative really doesn't hold water. The team that wins will do so because it is the better team, not because of some supernatural mission.

76 – could be the number of daily sweep jokes that Philly fans had to endure from their Celtic brethren. But actually, 76 refers to the number of total wins these two teams posted between them last season. A year is a long time in football basketball.

6 – the number of losses these two teams have suffered between them in the playoffs on their way to waltzing into the Finals. Unconfirmed rumours also suggest that six is the number of hologrammatic virtual crowd members that JR Smith has offered to give the pipe to, so far without success.

3,000 – the number of 'lifelong’ Heat and Laker fans this board can expect to visit over the next 10 days

3 – the total number of posts made on this board made by Heat and Laker fans in 2015

98 – the percentage of peternorth posts that will either lambast the Lakers for being silly or claim underdog status for his Lakers

21 – the total number of Finals appearances made by the current Lakers squad (Lebron 9, J.R. 4, Green 3, McGee 2, Rondo 2, Dwight 1)

10 – the total number of Finals appearance made by the Heat roster (Iggy 5, Haslem 5)

5 – the number of years since Haslem has regularly played basketball, despite continuing to draw a salary. Nice work if you can get it.

1 – the number of championships each competing team has won dubiously with the help of refs this millennium (2002, 2006). Don't expect it to happen again.

100 – the percentage chance that fans of each team will accuse the other of being favoured by the refs



Bonus Magic Numbers for Degenerate Gamblers (not that this board condones such things)


1/3 - The Lakers win

300/1 - The Lakers win without any officiating help

5/1 - peternorth finally succeeds in filling an entire page in this thread with his posts alone

2/1 - JR Smith and Dion Waiters get high on gummy on the team bus at the celebratory parade

4/1 - JR Smith and Dion Waiters get high on gummy while sitting on the bench in an actual game

7/1 - Goran Dragic loses some teeth as LeBron drives to the hole

1/5 - Dragic is called for a defensive foul on said play.

25/1 - Jimmy Butler invites Andrew Wiggins and Brett Brown into the rooms if the Heat win

2/1 - Butler trolls them on Twitter instead

3/1 - Markieff Morris starting a fight at some point in the series

1/1 - Odds of that fight being picked with Kendrick Nunn, Chris Quinn or someone of that height

5/1 Dwight mistakes Eric Spoelstra for Spoelstra's wife and tries to impregnate him



1601428108284.png

Pictured: a catfish, yesterday



Vox Pops (no, not the coach)


In this age of social distancing it can become easy to be insular. However, we here at Bigfooty have taken inspiration from Lou Williams and the Royal Commission Quarantine Inquiry and have decided to spread the blame love around.

Please enjoy the thoughts of a selection of guest experts in these exclusive interviews:



yyz2bDU.gif


Well here we are, random anonymous Cleveland fan. The team that robbed you of Lebron the first time, vs the team that robbed you of LeBron the seoncd time around. Thoughts?

< Quiet sobbing >

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up painful memories. Look, on one side you have former Cavalier buddies LeBron, JR and Dion Waiters. And on the other side it's just Jae Crowder really with any Cleveland connections. So, it's 3 vs 1.

Did you say 3-1?

No, no, I definitely did not. Quick, let's change course and get someone in who is a proven gender neutral...


1601428754057.png



Well, Justin. You've, uh... represented both these franchises in the past. Care to give us your thoughts on this year's Finals match-up?

Sorry, ordinarily I'd love to... but I actually have a prior commitment.

Oh, OK. You're not working on another album, are you? Cos, you know, we're good.

No, it's not that...

The AFL is flying you over to sing a duet with Mike Brady for the Grand Final? Possibly in something that is meant to look like the Batmobile? I hope you didn't say yes?...

No, although feel free to pass my number along to this Mike Brady, whoever he is. Work is kinda slow at the moment. The reason I can't do it is that me, Kevin Durant and Westy Bogan have a conference call to decide which team we should bandwagon next.

Uh huh. Well, good luck with that. However, I think perhaps we need a little basketball expertise in here, so why don't we get the thoughts of former player, coach and all-round entertainer...





Brian, how are you? People might forget that before you rode Shaq's coat-tails played in Orlando and LA, you were actually a member of the Heat. Remember those days fondly?

After my Boston contract I did breach
I took all my talents to South Beach
And although I tried to go with the flow
I lost my starting job to a guy named Bimbo

Um, OK. Look Brian, we're a pretty simple bunch at BigFooty – do you think you could keep your answers straightforward?

When I was the coach of Nuggets Nation
I had to reach a younger generation
When my Denver players didn't pay attention
My scouting reports - I went and rapped them!

Sigh. Can you at least give us a coaches’ critique of the offences our two Finals combatants run?

I preach the gospel and the choir
Of every Phil Jackson coaching tree hire
Don't diss my track before you buy it
A triangle offence: you should try it!

Ugh, I haven't heard rhymes that bad since some tone deaf idiot wrote the Fremantle club song. If we're going to indulge horrible rap impressions, we may as well get another Los Angeles and Miami alumni in here...





Shaq, you won championships with both these fine franchises. Plus, you started out your career in the Orlando bubble. I cannot think of a more appropriate person to give us a learned perspective and nuanced preview of this epic Finals match-up. Your thoughts, big fella?

Ho, ho ho! Hee, hee, hee! Ha, ha, ha!

Shaq? What's going on? What's so funny?

My boy JaVale McGee! Aahahahahaha!

Er, yeah. JaVale now plays for the Lakers, bringing championship pedigree from the Dubs – what of it?

What a bum ass! Hahaha! He actin like he's a G, but really he's dumb-ass McGee!

That's it, these celebrity interviews are over. I swear, sometimes I think that I'd get a better basketball preview out of some pleb on Bigfooty.



Bigfooty Pleb Prediction:

peternorth 's mastery of the dark arts proves too strong, as he reverse-jinxes the Lakers all the way to a championship. Pels fans will get salty congratulate the Lakers on a season well played.



Bonus Bits: Test your Superfan Knowledge!

Fancy yourself as Heat lifer or bona-fide Laker lover? Take our special quiz and be in the running to win a signed Josh McRoberts jersey. I can't remember if it's a Miami or LA one, but do it anyway.


Q: P.J. Brown was:

a) A Miami Heat power forward
b) A popular brand of cigarettes than turned your teeth a healthy brown
c) An accurate description of what happened after a particularly horrible nightmare when you were a kid

A, although we've all been there with C


Q: Harold Miner's nickname was:

a) 'Bishop'
b) 'Baby Jordan'
c) 'Never Date A'

I hate you for even looking here.


Q: The mid 1990s Lakers team was known affectionately as:

a) Team Cancun
b) Swan Lake
c) The Lake Show

None of the above. The correct answer is: The Team that Magic Johnson Ruined.


Q: When you're in the middle of a horror stretch as a glamour team, should you:

a) Cheat on your pop star girlfriends?
b) Tweet about your teammates cheating on pop star girlfriends?
c) Get mad and ostracise a rookie who tweets about a teammate cheating on his pop star girlfriend?

All of the above
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I’m in two minds on this. The Heat have been insanely good with their off ball movement based offence and are far better defensively than anything the Lakers have faced in the Playoffs. If the Heat played the iteration of the Lakers we’ve seen so far they win in 5 or 6 games. The big thing is though that to me it seems clear Lebron and probably even Davis have another gear to step up into.

I mean Lebron has only played 40 minutes once in these playoffs and I think he’s still capable of the level of play that saw him drag the 2018 Cavs to the finals.
 
peternorth said:
The fascinating thing is how will the Lakers deploy McGee and Dwight. The Heat have an athletic forward structure comprising of Butler, Crowder and Bam. They can play inside and out.
Click to expand...
Here's a hint

Javale won't see the court
 
Gonna be a fascinating series of hide the mismatch

Butler gets Bron and Bam will likely get Davis

Which means a while lot of foxing trying to hunt a mismatch

Miami can hide guys on Rondo and to a lesser extent Caruso

The play of Danny green and kuzma could decide this series
 
peternorth said:
The fascinating thing is how will the Lakers deploy McGee and Dwight. The Heat have an athletic forward structure comprising of Butler, Crowder and Bam. They can play inside and out.
Click to expand...

I don't think McGee should get any minutes the Heat are just to active without the ball plus Morris has been a super reliable shooter for them. They should definitely try Dwight as I expect they send Iggy/Crowder to him and leave Bam on Davis.

It's going to be very interesting how the heat defend this series. I doubt they can run the same zone as they did against the Celtics that had the guards on the back line considering the Lakers size.
stewie griffen said:
Gonna be a fascinating series of hide the mismatch

Butler gets Bron and Bam will likely get Davis

Which means a while lot of foxing trying to hunt a mismatch

Miami can hide guys on Rondo and to a lesser extent Caruso

The play of Danny green and kuzma could decide this series
Click to expand...

I’m not sure Butler will be given big minutes on Lebron. He or Iggy will probably switch onto him at the most important moments of the game but I expect Crowder to guard him for the majority of the series.

Not sure how many minutes Rondo will get. The fourth quarter of game 5 against Denver seemed like the Vogel and Lebron really tried to make sure they closed out the game and Rondo didn’t get on the court.

Agree a lot hinges on the ability of Kuzma, Caruso, Green and KCP’s ability to make open shots.
 
Ambrosia said:
I don't think McGee should get any minutes the Heat are just to active without the ball plus Morris has been a super reliable shooter for them. They should definitely try Dwight as I expect they send Iggy/Crowder to him and leave Bam on Davis.

It's going to be very interesting how the heat defend this series. I doubt they can run the same zone as they did against the Celtics that had the guards on the back line considering the Lakers size.


I’m not sure Butler will be given big minutes on Lebron. He or Iggy will probably switch onto him at the most important moments of the game but I expect Crowder to guard him for the majority of the series.

Not sure how many minutes Rondo will get. The fourth quarter of game 5 against Denver seemed like the Vogel and Lebron really tried to make sure they closed out the game and Rondo didn’t get on the court.

Agree a lot hinges on the ability of Kuzma, Caruso, Green and KCP’s ability to make open shots.
Click to expand...
Crowder moves like an arthritic elephant

they’ll have to concede and play butler in him otherwise they’ll go small and pop Davis in the corner and let bron waltz to the rim
 

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Mega Thread The Official Bigfooty 2020 NBA Finals Thread - the LA Lakers v the Miami Heat

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