NBA ReDraft Playoffs 2nd Round: 1) Westwood vs. 4) Bondi Beach

[PatsSoxKnicks]

Another thing I'd like to point out is who is Westwood's #2 scorer? I realize Lebron is hands down the best player in the NBA but remember, he left Cleveland because they failed to get him any help (i.e. a legit #2). And so I question who Westwood's #2 option is. It can't be Ryan Anderson as his shots are all created for him and a very large portion of his shots are just spot up shots. That might work well with Lebron but again, he's not creating any shots when Lebron needs a rest.

Then you have George Hill, who averaged less than 10 ppg on the year. Wes, who averaged 13.7 ppg and Camby, who averaged 5 ppg. And as great as Anderson was last year, he averaged 16.1 ppg.

FYI, Lebron's Cavs teams usually had either 5-6 players scoring over 10 ppg (like in 08-09) or had Mo around 16-17 ppg with 2 others over 10 ppg. This Westwood team has Ryan Anderson in that Mo role with only 1 other starter over 10 ppg. And Lebron's Cavs' teams didn't have any starters averaging only 5 ppg. Basically, this Westwood team is a poor mans' version of those Cavs teams, which never won because Lebron never had help.

So basically, Westwood is relying on Lebron to score like 40 a game just to get to 100 points. It's what he wanted to escape in Cleveland because he had to do all the work. And worse, at least on those Cleveland teams, Mo could create his own shot but here his #2 option in Ryan Anderson can't even do that.

What Bondi plans to do is we will do what those Celts teams who usually beat Cleveland did- Lebron will get his points but we'll shut everyone else down. And don't forget, we have Thabo on Lebron and he should be able to at least hold him below his averages. I don't think Lebron could average 40 on Thabo for a whole series.

Finally, as mentioned in the write-up, we have a huge advantage up front in addition to having a huge advantage at the PG position. So thats 3 BIG advantages to compare with Westwood having Lebron and no other advantages at any other position. Think about it, they PG and C are significantly worse then our PG and C, our PF is quite a bit better than their PF and our SG rotation is better than their SG, who had his worst season this past year and unlike ZBo, he's got no injury excuse.

[PatsSoxKnicks]

Also, I know I left out Westwood's bench so you guys may be thinking, well those guys can make up the remaining points that the starters lack. Except their bench players didn't score that much last year either.

You have Hinrich, who had a down year and a 9.2 PER last year and averaged just 6.6 ppg. You have Cook who averaged just 5.5 ppg. You have Webster, who also had a down year and averaged 6.9 ppg with only a 10.0 PER. In addition, both Hinrich and Webster were below average shooting the 3 last year (both under 35%). Then you got Mozgov, who averaged 5.4 ppg and I'm not even gonna bother with Darko, who was awful offensively last year (46% TS%, less than 5 ppg).

The only player who can somewhat score on their bench is Hickson, who also averaged less than 10 ppg. But his 50.1% TS% doesn't exactly scream bench scorer.

Finally, Cook also shot less than 35% from 3. So to sum that up, their bench has no above average 3 point shooters. So they have Lebron and no one on their bench who can space the floor for him. For the whole team, they have 2 players who averaged more than 10 ppg. For god sakes, Jason Smith on our bench averaged more points per game than 2 of their starters and all of their bench

[PatsSoxKnicks]

Also, ZBo appears ready to bounce back after last year:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news...yche-in-shape/

As I mentioned in our last matchup, he played through pain in the playoffs and he rested immediately after to let it fully heal. The other thing to remember is that he's never really jumped that high off the ground to begin with so an MCL injury is less of an issue for someone like him vs. say a Blake Griffin (random example) who relies on his athleticism.

[KnicksorBust]

Bondi Beach. They have a huge advantage at PG and in the frontcourt and they have a worthy defender to make LeBron work.

[NYMetros]

I like Bondi more as a complete team.

[Corey]

I like Bondi as well. Kyrie is the much better point guard, they have a considerably better front court, and Thabo is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league.

I do like the Lebron team as it was constructed, but this is a poor matchup for them.

[DR_1]

Lol half the people who voted for westwood are heat fans

[Mile High Champ]

Lol half the people who voted for westwood are heat fans

I knew that was coming. People can't be objective and nobody has even tried to defend their vote.

[baller101200]

Anyone who voted, can you at least defend your vote.

Baller what about you, I know you have hated our team from the start but maybe you care to share.

I don't hate your guys' team at all... I'm actually surprised you guys didn't get a higher seed. In my mind, I just see this being one of those "****, we're playing Lebron" type series. Thabo is a great defender, one of the best; I just don't see him being able to play Lebron 40-45 minutes a night for an entire 7 game series.

I think this is a really close matchup, with Lebron pushing me slightly toward one side.

[PatsSoxKnicks]

I don't hate your guys' team at all... I'm actually surprised you guys didn't get a higher seed. In my mind, I just see this being one of those "****, we're playing Lebron" type series. Thabo is a great defender, one of the best; I just don't see him being able to play Lebron 40-45 minutes a night for an entire 7 game series.

I think this is a really close matchup, with Lebron pushing me slightly toward one side.

He was talking about Mr. Baller, the mod heat fan, not you. He's been on our team the whole re-draft. And now he might be butthurt that we advanced further then him

[PatsSoxKnicks]

I don't hate your guys' team at all... I'm actually surprised you guys didn't get a higher seed. In my mind, I just see this being one of those "****, we're playing Lebron" type series. Thabo is a great defender, one of the best; I just don't see him being able to play Lebron 40-45 minutes a night for an entire 7 game series.

I think this is a really close matchup, with Lebron pushing me slightly toward one side.

Yeah but what about the surrounding cast? As I said, other than Ryan Anderson, they have practically no scoring options. Wes was ok this year but he had a down year. But those are the only 2 players besides Lebron to average more than 10 ppg this year. Even Bron's Cleveland teams had more scoring then that. His bench doesn't have a single double digit player on it. And also, his bench didn't shoot the 3 well this year. So as I said, we'll let Lebron get his points, but he can't play 1 on 5 (as his Cleveland teams found out against Boston) and even if he does get his points, he has Thabo on him, so he's not gonna go completely off. And no one else on Westwood's team is a #2 option. Ryan Anderson should be a #3 option and Hill the #4 option. Instead, their both miscast in bigger roles then they should be.

Anyways, reference my posts above for more detail.

[Swashcuff]

I applaud you Baller for making backing your selection. Why isn't anyone else doing it?

[el hidalgo]

bondi beach. i always root for the underdogs

[baller101200]

He was talking about Mr. Baller, the mod heat fan, not you. He's been on our team the whole re-draft. And now he might be butthurt that we advanced further then him

Oh, my bad.

[baller101200]

Yeah but what about the surrounding cast? As I said, other than Ryan Anderson, they have practically no scoring options. Wes was ok this year but he had a down year. But those are the only 2 players besides Lebron to average more than 10 ppg this year. Even Bron's Cleveland teams had more scoring then that. His bench doesn't have a single double digit player on it. And also, his bench didn't shoot the 3 well this year. So as I said, we'll let Lebron get his points, but he can't play 1 on 5 (as his Cleveland teams found out against Boston) and even if he does get his points, he has Thabo on him, so he's not gonna go completely off. And no one else on Westwood's team is a #2 option. Ryan Anderson should be a #3 option and Hill the #4 option. Instead, their both miscast in bigger roles then they should be.

Anyways, reference my posts above for more detail.

I actually think Matthews suffered from being on a Portland team that just completely imposed last season. He's actually a very solid player, and if Portland can somewhat get back on track, I think he'll be able to bounce back as well. While Lebron may not have a true #2 options, I think he's got three solid player there that he can turn into his #2.

I'd think of it as the situation with Mo Williams. Mo is a solid player, but he had no business being an all-star, and he never will be again. But that's how insanely good Lebron is; he can make a solid player good, and a good player great. At least in my opinion he can. And that's what I think he'd be able to do with a semi-underrated Anderson.

Like I said earlier, the fact that you guys have Thabo is huge because it keeps Lebron from absolutely destroying this series.

You guys absolutely have the more balanced team, and I've actually been close to swaying my opinion on this series... But the Lebron effect has me convinced that he would advance past this series with a, at the very least, serviceable supporting cast.