NBA Game 5 Picks

LAC (+5) at OKC (UNDER 212.5)

(WINNERx2!)
BJ: Last game was very telling for any hardcore basketball fan. We all know that Kevin Durant is an amazing player and, for the most part, everyone can agree that Russell Westbrook is also amazing. Hell, during that last game, I was about to go on a rant saying that Westbrook was the third best player in the NBA! They were dominating that game, with a roster that really shouldn't be competing with a stacked squad like the Clips! That's how I know Westbrook is good. Yeah the Thunder were fine when he went out, but remember last years playoffs? No Russ, no rings. As this game was playing out, I thought to myself, "What point guard does Westbrook NOT totally negate?" Tony Parker struggles against him, Conley struggles against him, pretty much any small, traditional point guard struggles against Russell Westbrook. Unless you match him with an athlete like Derek Rose (which won't be happening), John Wall, or Eric Bledsoe, you're basically fucked. That's a game changer! Think of how many teams NEED their point guards to be their best player now? When Russ comes in, that shit goes out the
window. But then....the fourth quarter happened. The Clippers came back on a huge effort by the Point God, Chris Paul. I love CP3 and I know a lot of people hate him because he flops a lot and complains to the refs. WHATEVER. Plenty of dudes do that, that's another conversation entirely. CP3 really does own the fourth quarter by dominating the offense. He gets the ball where it needs to be, makes shots and rarely messes up. Sometimes his greatness isn't apparent as he's usually injured or coming off an injury and definitely isn't explosive or extremely quick. What you get with Paul is possibly the smartest player in the game when it comes to time of possession, spacing and most importantly, who should have the ball in crucial minutes. This is something you will never get with Westbrook. At the end of the game, CP3 was a true, great point guard and the Clippers won!

Westbrook: 27 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals. 10/22 shooting, 4 turnovers.
Paul: 23 points, 10 assists 5 rebounds, 4 steals. 10/23 shooting, 1 turnover.

Similar numbers, totally different players. So maybe I was wrong about Westbrook dominating traditional point guards, or maybe CP3 is just that damn good. Either way, it looks like these two are going to play to a draw, which brings me to game 5. The Thunder are rattled. They lost that game due to poor coaching and too much Westbrook down the stretch. When it comes down to it, Kevin Durant is the problem. That's right, the guy that put a monster 40 last game, is the reason the Thunder will lose game 5. Durant is a very good player, the league MVP even! But he doesn't have that angry streak, mean streak, whatever you want to call it. Look at Catz's article from yesterday on LeBron. When he saw that the Nets were parading around like they just won the title, he knew LeBron was silently pissed the fuck off. He also called LeBron going off for 50 points and that was something we both knew was in play, because LeBron does not take losses lightly! He elevates his game and single-handedly pushes his team through the next game. Durant does not have that, yet. I know I'm in the minority when it comes to Durant, but he isn't going to be the guy that gets his team pumped up for this game! It's going to be Westbrook, and Westrbook is going to dominate the ball, take crazy fuckin shots and basically ruin the game while Durant stands in the corner waiting for someone to pass to him! It's an awkward, non-balanced trend that has been visible for years.

Tomorrow, when the Thunder need Kevin Durant the most, they'll look for him to take the big shots and they'll find him standing in the corner, silent, arms to his side, while Russell Westbrook drives to the rim for a rage and energy fueled lay in that will most definitely result in a turnover.

WAS (+5) at IND (OVER 181)

(WINNER)(P)
CATZ: Well trying to follow that is like listening to a One Direction cover band, it's fuckin rough. So all I'm gonna say is the Wizards won't go out like no bitch tonight, scoring a bunch of points and winning this ball game outright.