Bucks win NBA Title!

 

The Milwaukee Bucks came back from a 2-0 deficit to win the NBA Championship 4-2.  I was rooting for the Bucks which makes this all the more fun for me.  The Bucks had to wait 50 years between championships.  That's a crazy long time for any fan base.  That said Phoenix goes home having still never won it all.  I do feel for them.  They have great fans and such good players who were equally deserved.  

But Giannis wasn't going to be denied.  This was definitely a team effort but enough can't be said about what he did in the series.  He was incredible.  If he doesn't go 17-19 at the free throw line in game 6 that game has a completely different feel, and maybe outcome.  I'm happy for him, Middleton, Lopez and all the Bucks.  When Giannis signed long term with Milwaukee it was a win for small market teams and it was hard not root for these guys.  Fun series to watch.

Fun post series note: Devin Booker, Kris Middleton and Jrue Holiday flew together to Japan to join Team USA.  I know there was probably some awkwardness to it but I hope in the moment of just them they could all enjoy themselves.  

Atlanta Hawks Advance to the Eastern Conference Finals

 The Atlanta Hawks advanced to only their second Conference Finals in like 50 years with a gritty 4-3 series win over the 76ers.   It took everything the Hawks could muster but it secured a shot at the Milwaukee Bucks who come in after their own seven game series with the Brooklyn Nets.  At first glance the Bucks are deeper and seem to have the edge as is to be expected but the 76ers were the same going into that series.  I, and probably every other Hawks fan, would love to see Trey Young hit a higher percentage this series.  He is a great facilitator and fun to watch while also able to make a fan cringe.  Those 28-30 foot threes are great when they go in...but as exciting as they are he isn't Steph Curry.  Still he is the reason the Hawks are where they are and will be a huge part of what the Hawks accomplish against Milwaukee. My keys to the series is shooting.  The Hawks have a bunch of shooters and as we see with any team when they are hot they are hard to beat.  If not they can still win by being aggressive going to the basket but the Bucks are good rim defenders.  Should be fun.   I'm excited and can't wait to see what the series brings.  

2020-2021 Atlanta Hawks Quick Look

New unis aren't the only thing Atlanta Hawks fans have to look forward to this season.  They won the offseason with the additions of Bogdan Bogdanovic, Danilo Gallinari, and Rajon Rondo.  Once healthy they'll also have Clint Capela to add to the mix when he is healthy.  He was pcked up in a really good trade last year.  On paper this is an excellent roster but you don't win trophies for best offseasons.  There are still plenty of questions like where some players will play, having enough minutes and basketballs to go around, and what does all this do to the younger players this team had been developing.  That's about as negative as it gets.  I'm excited to see what this team can do.  Trae Young is a superstar talent and he finally has talent around him.  This is still a young team so if they figure it out they could compete for a few seasons to come and in the Eastern conference there's no reason to think they won't.  Hopefully I'll get the chance to see this team play this year.  I have to admit I'm a little giddy.

 

 

2020-2021 Portland Trail Blazers Quick Look

 I'm a little late on this but didn't the season sneak up on all of us.  Portland did well in the bubble last year after getting Jusif Nurkic and Zach Collins back but were still the #8 seed.  They were greatly overmatched against the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers in the playoffs and were out after their first round loss.  This year they add Robert Covington and Derrick Jones Jr. and get back Rodney Hood while Zach Collins should be healthy at some point.  While I'd love to think they'll make great strides this year with a healthy team I think they are  probably a #6 seed waiting to happen.  To get in the top four of the western conference it will take a huge change on the defensive end.  These guys can score but defensively they struggle.  Hopefully Convington and Jones Jr. can help them on the perimeter but it'll take more than two guys to turn this around.  I'm looking forward to seeing what the rest of the season brings.  Portland is fun to watch and you have to expect Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum to be studs again.  Nurkic is so good too.  If this team doesn't make strides I'll be curious to see if management makes some type of change.  Go Blazers!