Town Hall Playoffs Round 2

[Mike Lowry]

Eastern Conference Game 7s
Who wins?
Why?

Rules: 1 point if you give thoughtful answers, which I will award after the timer ends for responses. The timer ends for responses at the moment the corresponding week's Sim is run.

Note: Use approximately 5 sentences as your bare minimum for 1 point. If you write 3 long, complex sentences, you'll still get a point. If you write 5, 3 word sentences, you will not get a point. Don't @ me.

Due: Due by the tipoff of Round 2 - Game 7

[WigNosy]

Eastern Conference Game 7s
Who wins?

While I would love to see more upsets, I'm going to have go with Boston and Indiana here.

Why?

Is it too simple to say "home court advantage?" Look at the playoffs so far...
Denver had homecourt advantage and beat Dallas.
Portland had homecourt advantage and beat L.A.
New Jersey did NOT have homecourt advantage and beat Milwaukee... but three of those wins came by a combined 4 points.
Cleveland had homecourt advantage and beat Chicago.
Denver did NOT have homecourt advantage and beat Phoenix... but Phoenix was missing league MVP Magic Johnson for the first four games.
Portland had homecourt advantage (by virtue of a better record; ignore the seeds) and beat San Antonio.

So we've seen 6 playoff series... the team with homecourt has won four of the six, and I would call missing the league MVP extenuating circumstances for Phoenix so I'd really call it 4 of 5 and throw out the Phoenix loss. That makes away teams 1-4 in playoff series. New Jersey got lucky in three one-possession wins against Milwaukee; but they are 1-6 at Boston this year (including the playoffs) and I just don't see it happening for them. Likewise, Cleveland is 1-5 at Indiana this season and those odds tell me to bet on Indy. I think we've all seen this year you can't discount home court and neither Cleveland nor New Jersey is scary on the road (Indy IS scary on the road).

[greepleairport]

I've loved the performance of Cleveland, taking the best team in the league to game 7, but it ends here. The Pacers are too good to lose in the semis. Both teams have stolen a game on the road in this series, but I think homecourt advantage prevails for the NPBSL's best team. Indy should roll by a decent margin, say 7 points or more.

I got Jersey! Jersey has been a beast in these playoffs. They were the lowest seeded team and took out the highest seeded team that didn't get a bye. I don't see why they can't do the same against Boston. It has been a very evenly matched series, with both teams winning by close and wide margins, but i just got chocolate thunder ftw.

[Mike Lowry]

I'm going with Boston and Indiana based solely on game planning.
I really appreciate RPF and JLMarines for their ability to put together strong teams with great talent season after season.
I think they have both come to understand how to acquire and develop talent, but I haven't seen them win it all.
I do like the talent in Jersey, as evidenced by my many trade inquiries, but I think this game will play in Boston's style.
They'll keep the fouls and rebounds close, and separate with ball movement.
Big game from Kareem of course
While I have seen AngryBanana raise a couple banners, I don't think anybody in the league is as good as getting more from less than PaulyP.
This Indiana team is no slouch, but I wouldn't call it a juggernaut either.
The record they put up, and the run they're making comes down to having a game plan that they can execute.

[Mike Lowry]

@WigNosy
@greepleairport
@Mike Lowry
+1 point