Yes I know that GS is on the verge of doing the unthinkable. It would be the first time since the league has gone to a 7 game first round that a #8 would have advanced. It was done twice when the first round was a 5 game series.

Notwithstanding GS possible upset of Dallas, I for one would like to see the first round eliminated so that there are two rounds before the Finals.

Yes, sometimes the 4th and 5th seed teams have a very good series and maybe even the 3rd and 6th seed teams. However, it has been rare indeed that the 5th - 8th place seed team has advanced to the NBA Finals. I remember a Houston team, I believe with Hakeem that was not among the top 4 seeds that won it all, but that may have been the only time that has happened. If not it could not have happened more than one or two other times.

The first round is a waste and a bore. All it does it create the chance for an injury to a star player on one the top 4 seeded teams before the real competition begins.

On top of that the season is long enough, 90 games including exhibition games even before the playoffs begin. That means well over 100 games for the NBA finalists.

I say do away with the farcical first round. So this year last year's NBA champ would not have made the playoffs. Big deal. The Cardinals are probably not going to make the playoffs this year.

:hoops:

When our team is strong, your's is a compelling argument. They keep all of these teams so that interest (attendance) remains high for more cities later in the year. Playoff hopes added more excitement (and fans) to MSG and helped Isiah keep his job. The baseball playoffs are more pure and several very good teams are kept away. As a Lions fan, I wish the playoffs included about 30 teams (just kiddin)...........good grief, We don't make it even with 30 teams.....................

I agree with that. Cut down the number of games...make the regular season mean a bit more.

I would cut down the regular season before the playoffs. They don't need to shorten the length, but reduce these ridiculous 3 games in 4 night stretches.

I would cut down the regular season before the playoffs. They don't need to shorten the length, but reduce these ridiculous 3 games in 4 night stretches.

Average NBA salary this year is around $5,200,000. That makes for over $63k a regular season game. I'm o.k. with three games in four nights. I'd say they're lucky there are no double-headers. :ohwell:

FYI - $63k is about the two thirds mark for U.S. household incomes - two thirds of U.S. households make less in one year than the average NBA player makes in one night.

I just think that there are too many games, too bunched together, and the quality of play suffers for it.

Less games = more meaningful games

The average salary is defined as a percentage of revenues (if I remember correctly). They would see a drop in gross salaries if the # of games were reduced.

I just think that there are too many games, too bunched together, and the quality of play suffers for it.

Yeah, and something I just thought of is how those intense stretches compare to the playoffs, relative to other sports. Football plays once a week during the regular season, and again in the playoffs. Baseball is roughly once a day, 5 or 6 days a week, both in the regular season and in the playoffs. But even though we talk a lot about back-to-backs in the NBA regular season, plus the occasional crazy four games in five nights stretch, those things have basically nothing to do with the playoffs.

I think the first round show be a 5 game instead of 7....:nerd2:

just sayin.

Never. You'd have a bunch of elite teams and the rest competing for the wrost records so that they have the best chances in the lottery.

The first round is fun. Golden State vs. Dallas is a perfect example.

The best part is watching the agony of defeat for me-first players like Kobe... who by the way had 1 assist last night even though he virtually touched the ball on every single Lakers' possession.

I would have to say no. Shorten the regular season before shortening the playoffs. One of the challenges of winning the title is having to be able to beat an inferior team in the first round and still have the energy to beat your opponents in the later rounds. I like our playoff format, even with a best-of-seven first-round format. It makes you have to balance conserving energy in the first round without taking the series for granted. Some teams (like ours - ugh) decide that means to sleepwalk through the first round, some decide that means to blow out your opponent and dispatch them as quickly as possible (of course, we did sweep, but I felt we let Orlando hang around way more than necessary). This makes it interesting to see the different teams' strategies, and it gives teams a chance who struggled part of the year but still can compete (like the Warriors or Nets). I like our format precisely because it is different than all the other sports, and with more teams and no "wild cards", etc it makes it feel like it's a grander showcase as a whole, even if any particular game is not as intense as single games can be in college basketball or the NFL, etc.

The first round is fun. Golden State vs. Dallas is a perfect example.

The best part is watching the agony of defeat for me-first players like Kobe... who by the way had 1 assist last night even though he virtually touched the ball on every single Lakers' possession.


Agreed with your points..........
I wonder what kind of team Kobe would assemble if he were the coach/GM.....................

Agreed with your points..........
I wonder what kind of team Kobe would assemble if he were the coach/GM.....................

Cloning would surely be involved.

I have a strong feeling he would field a better team than Kupchak has.

Top 6 get in.

Top 2 get a bye

bottom 4 play best of 5 series 3 vs 6 and 4 vs 5.

#8 Warriors beating #1 Mavs should put an end to this argument.

Probably depends on whether you're a Mavs or Warriors fan. :)

But, yeah, a #1 going down is way fun as long as they're not your #1.

I was talking about the argument that the first round should be eliminated because the series are never in doubt. Yea, I'm sure the Mavs would have liked to skip the first round. :)

yup. Just like when seattle fell to Dikembe and dikembe was holding onto that ball. Just cuz it rarely happens doesn;t meant that it won't. And its all the more special because of it.

yup. Just like when seattle fell to Dikembe and dikembe was holding onto that ball. Just cuz it rarely happens doesn;t meant that it won't. And its all the more special because of it.


Hmmm..I guess that's true.

The first round is fun. Golden State vs. Dallas is a perfect example.

The best part is watching the agony of defeat for me-first players like Kobe... who by the way had 1 assist last night even though he virtually touched the ball on every single Lakers' possession.

Get him someone legit and he would pass more. Lamar? There is something wrong with him all the time.

Get him someone legit and he would pass more. Lamar? There is something wrong with him all the time.

Lamar had 33 points!!! and Kobe didn't have anyone to pass to?

Kobe made 13 FGs and the rest of the Lakers had 30. Ball hog doesn't begin to describe it. Meanwhile, he's shooting < 40% and turns the ball over 6 times. Assist to turnover ratio of 0.16???? Sucks.

4 rebounds and 1 steal to go along with it in 46 minutes played against a team that doesn't exactly specialize in defense.


Maybe he is part of the problem.

According to David Stern, the first round was extended so that upsets would not happen:

David Stern was asked how he felt about the 8th seed Warriors defeating the top-seeded Mavericks.

"They were never supposed to," said Stern. "The four out of seven was supposed to make sure that the better team won."Of course he probably didn't phrase that answer as well as he could have, and is dissembling if he did, but?