A Wolverine will get an NBA ring!
Now that we're down to 4 teams in the NBA finals, it is guaranteed that a Wolverine will get a ring!
Dallas: Tim Hardaway Jr. and Trey Burke
Golden State: Jordan Poole
Boston: Nik Stauskas
Miami: Duncan Robinson
That's all I got, it's pretty cool and good luck to the all the guys!
This is great! Related to this, but what has happened to Duncan? He went from being a starter and a 3-point assassin to almost the last man off the bench. Is he injured?
Max Strus took his spot because he's a better defender and more fearless shooter.
He came back down to earth from three and he's not good enough elsewhere to make up for it (and they have other options in Strus and Herro).
By season three point %:
19-20: 44.6%
20-21: 40.8%
21-22: 37.2%
That 19-20 season always felt unsustainable. 37.2% is also a little on the low side probably too.
But when you're getting minutes to do one thing at an elite level, it's gonna be hard to keep getting minutes if you're not doing it at an elite level.
You can make a living shooting 40%. But in the playoffs you'll get hunted on defense.
Michigan's Fellowship of the Ring... hope they all play well and enjoy the ride.
This is very cool!
I wonder if Michigan has the most former players (5) left in this final 4. I'm too lazy to check but bet there's a good chance.
THJ has been out for months and will miss the rest of the season, but he's still in line for a ring if Dallas wins.
Side note: What an interesting Final Four. No overwhelming favorite in the bunch should make for some exciting basketball.
Yeah, should be entertaining.
This has been a weird postseason. Really good first round. Second round with a lot of game 6/7s but not many close games. Lots of blowouts.
Hopefully closer games from here on out.
My money is on the Warriors over the Celtics.
Some years the NBA title feels like fait accompli almost from the beginning of the season. It's not terribly fun; major upsets in the playoffs just aren't that common relative to other sports. One might argue that there's a strength to that, the winning team generally being "better" and "deserving." But for the more casual fan it's a bit less entertaining.
But when there's kind of a free-for-all, even if it winds up going to a team that could launch a dynast, it's fun. Because it's untrod ground. Also fun: When the presumed champion actually goes down, such as when Cleveland took down GSW a few years ago.
I haven't been able to give the NBA much bandwidth this year, but I hope to tune in a bit to see what happens. Because we really don't know, and that's fun.
That's cool!
Only Poole will see real minutes. Duncan might get an occasional run of 3 mins like he did Thursday.
the older JB players never seem to translate to having big NBA careers, although is mercurial for sure.
I'm rooting for Jordan Poole and Duncan (hopefully he can get off the bench!)
Pretty cool!!! Would particularly love to see TH Jr., TB, or Stauskas get a ring.
As a Knicks fan, I can't bring myself to root for Boston or Miami, plus Stauskas and Duncan don't even play.
THJ is hurt and Burke is out of the rotation (we have been foiled by Jalen Brunson again!). So, by process of elimination...
I'm going to go with the budding star on one of the most fun teams to watch and that's Jordan Poole. He legitimately has a shot to win Finals MVP. That would be cool.
He also plays with a guy named Steph Curry. Not sure if y'all have heard of him but he's pretty fun to watch too.
Why take rivalries more seriously than rooting for alums when your team isn't taken seriously in said rivalries in the first place?
Still love the Bull, but as a now longtime Dallas resident who watched THE SHOT from Trey live, it would be most gratifying to see the two Mavericks get one. Poole though would play a significant role if the Warriors hoist the LOB Trophy. Looking forward to the WCF like few nba series I can recall in my adult life