San Antonio Spurs Guard, Tony Parker (34 yrs) ruptured his left quadriceps tendon last night in the 4th quarter versus the Houston Rockets. It was a non-contact injury. He could not put any weight on the leg when it occurred after jumping to drive a floater over Rockets’ Patrick Beverley. Teammates, Dewayne Dedmon and Dejounte Murray carried him off the court.
The team has announced that he will miss the remainder of the Playoffs.
The series is now tied at 1-1 and will go to Houston for the next 2 games, starting this Friday.
This was a devastating blow to the Spurs and probably the end of a brilliant Playoff era.
Although Tony averaged 10.1 points-per-game in the regular season, which was his lowest since his rookie 2001-2002 season, when it’s the Playoffs he steps up, regardless of his age.
He averaged the 2nd highest points for the Spurs during the Playoffs so far with 15.9. Don’t forget he helped to send the Grizzlies home with 27 points and Vintage Tony P play.
The Spurs have no money to buy a guard in the off-season and cannot apply for a career-ending injury until 1 year after the injury.
The Spurs will be likely to look to Patty Mills to step up, but besides scoring, he has a lot of maturity to do with regards to facilitating ball movement and plays.
It’s surely sad to see him go out like this. A timeline on his possible return is not yet determined.
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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Isaiah Thomas and the Boston Celtics took care of the Washington Wizards on Sunday, even with IT losing a tooth during the game. They play Game 2 tonight.
Cavs vs. Raptors
The Cavs were pumped from very early in the game versus the Raptors. Check out how they set the tone below.
Watch “Kyrie Irving off the Backboard alley oop to Lebron James – Cavaliers vs Raptors Game 1” on YouTube here:
Another highlight was Shumpert’s disrespectful dunk over the Raptors’ Ibaka.
LeBron and the Cavs were so relaxed that they had time for fun and games in the 3rd Quarter.
Watch “LeBron James Pretends To Drink Fans Beer After A Foul | Cavaliers vs Raptors R2G1 | May 1, 2017” on YouTube here:
The game ended with the Cavs beating the Raptors 116-105.
Spurs vs. Rockets
The Rockets embarrassed the Spurs with a 126-99 bowout victory. They hit 22 3s and it was the Spurs’ worst post-season loss at home.
What happened?! The Spurs did not play their style of basketball. They played too fast pace, which hurt their offense resulting in many missed shots.
The realist in me says the Spurs can get 1 game, maybe 2 in this series. But if the Spurs really want it and they rise up and play like a Playoff team, slow down the pace and run their offense, they have a chance.
Warriors a.k.a Dubs vs Jazz
The Jazz closed out the LA Clippers in Game 7 in LA on Sunday. So the Dubs are stuck with the Jazz whether they like it or not. The Dubs’ concern? They wanted the Clippers because there is no night life in Utah.
Dubs play Jazz tonight.
On another note, where will CP3 go as a free agent this summer?!
Stay tuned!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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The Raptors sent the Bucks packing in 6 with a late 3-pointer by former Spur, Cory Joseph. They will move on for a rematch with the Cavs in the Playoffs.
Nothing but respecr shown between the two oldest players on the court who still played well this series. Vince Carter (L) and Tony Parker (R).
The San Antonio Spurs also move on from a spectacular series with the Memphis Grizzlies. Last night it was veteran, Tony Parker who stepped up big time with 27 points. Kahwi Leonard who played more minutes led the team to victory with 29 points.
Game 7s look doubtful for Round 1. If Suga had to choose 1, I would go with CP3 and the Clippers forcing a Game 7.
Here’s your Schedule for tonight! Enjoy!
Photo: ESPN Scorecenter
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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Round 1 of the Playoffs have begun and we have already had 2 upsets. The Bucks beat the Raptors at home and the bigger story is the Bulls beating the Celtics in their house as well. However, even though the Bulls is the number 7 seed going into the Playoffs and the Celtics is number 1, the match ups are competitive. You cannot ignore the talent and experience of Rondo and D. Wade and the freshness and hunger of Jimmy Butler. This should be an interesting series.
The Pacers have kept close to the Cavs but have failed twice to overcome them. They don’t have what it takes to beat the Cavs this year.
In the West, The Trailblazers held their own versus the Warriors but the Warriors are just in a different class. They will keep the Warriors on their toes this series though.
The Jazz upset the Clippers to take Game 1 but I think these teams will go back and forth like the Hawks and Wizards in the East. They are the number 5 and 4 seeds respectively.
The Rockets rolled over OKC in Game 1. Suga believes OKC has what it takes to upset them but they have a lot of work to do.
The Spurs rolled over the Grizzlies in a Game 1 blowout. Game 2 was more competitive though, where the Grizzlies chipped away a 26-point deficit to a 4-point deficit. The Spurs regrouped and stretched the lead again to win and go up in the series 2-0.
During the game there was visible frustration from Zach Randolph for not getting foul calls, but it was their Coach Fizdale who was the most upset of all.
He went on a huge Post-game tirade on the Refs and is likely to get fined.
Watch “Grizzlies Coach David Fizdale was ABSOLUTELY TRIGGERED and GOES OFF on the referees!!” on YouTube here:
Coach Fizdale’s data does raise eyebrows but he should have quit while he was ahead. It’s not like he was playing a team like the Cavs. He was playing a team with class as well. ‘Kuwiet Kawhi’ is definitely not the type to cry for free throws. It just happens he got a lot.
Coach Fizdale has a ring from being on the Coaching staff for Miami so those Refs better recognize.
I assume they will come out hard at home. Hopefully the data is more reasonable for the rest of their series.
We’ll be looking out for the ‘They’re not gonna ROOK US’ T-shirts.
Tonight’s Schedule:
Photo: ESPN Scorecenter
Enjoy!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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There was another showdown in the NBA last night with the two top teams in the West, The Golden State Warriors who currently hold the top spot and the San Antonio Spurs who are close behind.
San Antonio had a blazing start scoring 15-0, holding the Warriors scoreless for about 4 straight minutes and eventually stretched to a 22-point lead. But their guns were out too early and eventually they started missing and their defense broke down. Warriors creeped back in the 2nd quarter closing the gap to 3 points. They took over in the 3rd and the Splash Brothers were unstoppable. David West who the Spurs sold to the Warriors this season looked like he had a chip on his shoulder and was on fire. Their bench was deep and everyone was scoring and Klay was exceptional with defense as well. The Spurs just did not have enough answers.
The Warriors erased a 22-point deficit and beat the Spurs 110-98, just one day after the Spurs routed the Cavs 103-74. The Spurs sent a message to the league on Monday night and the Warriors answered last night, even without KD.
With the Splash Brothers getting their groove back, the depth of their bench and the overall talent of that team, they look like the NBA Finals’ Winner. Get back on that court KD because that ring will finally be yours…and your Mom’s.
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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First of all, Suga would like to Congratulate Dirk Nowitzki of the Mavs for joining the 30,000 points club and being the 1st International Player to do so. He joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. Who is the closest NBA player in line to try and join the club? LeBron James. He may take about 63 more games to do so based on average points per game. Other players are way off with hundreds of games more to go.
Photo: SLAMonline
Now to the meat of the matter. It’s almost Playoff time and teams on the chopping block are striving for every win they can get.
How are The Finals looking?
Eastern Conference
Suga believes the Cavs are going straight to the Finals again. The teams on the East continue to be weak and King James and the Cavs are just too good right now. Despite their last 3 consecutive losses, they turn it up when they need to. The closest contenders, currently a close 2nd in the East are Isaiah Thomas and the Celtics. They beat the Warriors Wednesday night without KD but they aren’t consistent enough. They should give the Cavs a run for their money though.
Main concern for the Cavs
The main concern for the Cavs has been not enough time to rest their star players. The plan to do so got a dent with them obtaining Warriors’ Andrew Bogut.
How so?
Photo: Black Adam Schefter
He’s so fragile. Bogut fractured his tibia within minutes of his team debut and will be out for the rest of the year. Kevin Love is still out and J.R Smith is just returning after an injury to his finger. However, they added Deron Williams and Kyle Korver. Coach Lue has already started to implement a system to trim minutes for Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson whose defense game has stepped up majorly this year with 70 blocks and he still has more games to go this season.
Suga Finally Anoints LeBron James as King
Oh and yes I said it earlier, King James. The rain is going to pour and the gates are going to open because I have finally put some ‘respek’ on his name and anointed him. Timing is everything though and he anointed himself before his time, that is, before he even got a ring. I still do not think he is better than MJ, so let us not get carried away folks.
If and when LeBron and the Cavs reach The Finals this year, it would be LeBron’s 7th straight Final! I’m sure everyone would agree that is quite commendable.
There may be many times he may not be able to hit the game-winning shot and a lot rests on Kyrie but Kyrie and the team could not keep winning without him.
The best players are usually arrogant but they aren’t usually babies crying, falling to the floor and begging for calls from the Ref after every little hit or shove. So quit being a baby LeBron and you will get some more respect from Suga.
Photo: USA Today
Western Conference
The Warriors have acquired Matt Barnes but at the same time have lost Harrison Barnes, Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli, Leandro Barbosa and Marreese Speights. They therefore have no BIGS in the paint. The Splash Brothers are no more because Steph Curry and Klay Thompson no longer play in sync as they used to and they are not unstoppable. Both Klay and Curry have been very inconsistent with scoring and something seems off with the overall chemistry of the team. Even with Kevin Durant (KD), Suga doesn’t see a Super team. I see a weaker team.
Hold up, I should say without KD because right now KD is sitting it out with a Grade 2 MCL Sprain after his teammate, Zaza Pachulia fell on him while his knee was hyperextended in a game on February 28th. Grade 2 MCL Sprains normally take about 6 weeks to heal but the Warriors say he will be re-evaluated in 4 weeks and could return before the end of the season.
Following KD’s injury, the Warriors suffered back to back defeats, which hasn’t happened since 2015. They suffered back to back losses again Wednesday night after they lost to the Celtics. KD was shooting the best in his career and led the team in points and rebounds per game. Sadly he can no longer be in the race for MVP because of his injury.
Suga thinks karma will come around to bite KD for going to the Warriors and all the players they sacrificed just to get him will go in vain.
If not the Warriors then who?Â
The San Antonio Spurs of course. They are currently in 2nd spot close behind the Warriors. They had a tough loss against OKC last night, especially when Kawhi Leonard had to go to the Locker room after getting hit in the head. They weren’t themselves last night but you have to keep in mind they were on a 9-game winning streak. They play the Warriors tomorrow night at 8:30pm!
Once the Spurs play to full potential they are quite hard to beat. This was proven on Wednesday night when they beat the Kings after overcoming a 28-point deficit with both LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi out resting. That win showed their Coach, Gregg Popovich all fired up. A sign they are going for that #1 spot in the West.
Also note that with veteran Gasol, Aldridge and Kawhi, they have BIGS in the paint.
The Spurs clinched an NBA record with their 18th straight 50-win season on Wednesday night.
Current Eastern & Western Conference Standings
Photo: ESPN Scorecenter
Race for MVP
Photo: www.foxsports.com
LeBron is in the race for MVP with James Harden of the Rockets, Russell Westbrook of OKC and Kawhi Leonard of the Spurs. It depends on how they define MVP but Suga thinks all roads lead to LeBron James for MVP, the Stats King.
To break it down briefly, let’s look at LeBron vs. Harden.
LeBron has better numbers from the field and 3-point line over Harden. He is actually better than KD and even with Steph Curry at the 3-point line. Let’s not even talk about Harden’s record for turnovers this season. Rockets’ defense improves when Harden is off the court. No MVP for him this year.
LeBron vs. Kawhi
Despite averaging 0.4 points more per game than LeBron, Leonard is a less efficient scorer. He shoots 5.1% worse from the field and 1.3% worse from the 3-point line.
Kawhi is known for his strong defense but surprisingly, the stats show that the Spurs are better defensively without him on the court.
Since the stats show that Rockets and Spurs do better and/or still win with Harden and Leonard off the respective teams, that rules them out for MVP in my books.
That now leaves LeBron vs. Westbrook.
Kudos to Westbrook for not crumbling after a bad break up. He has shown tremendous effort and focus in every game he plays and as a result, has led OKC to a spot they are likely to keep or move up by one to head to the Playoffs without KD. He does not have a good team and regardless of if they miss shots or good opportunities he hasn’t cursed them yet. He has shown he has prepared mentally for each and every game.
Steven Adams, Victor Oladipo and Enes Kanter showed their potential last night in a win vs. the Spurs. When it’s Playoff time, could OKC rise a dark horse? We’ll see because that was just one game and they played versus the Spurs’ bench in the 4th. This puts us back to the MVP race between Russ and LeBron.
Last night Russ tied Wilt Chamberlain’s record of 31 for the 2nd most Triple-Doubles in a season. Congrats to Westbrook but LeBron’s shooting is still better at 53.8% vs. 41.9%. LeBron is first for Field Goal Percentage in the league and Westbrook is way behind.
Also keep in mind that Westbrook is on a team that may not make it to 50 wins this season. MVPs are usually on teams that made 50 or more wins during the regular season
LeBron is universally accepted as the best NBA player in the world and the fact remains that when LeBron takes a breather, especially if Kyrie’s game isn’t on point, the Cavs fall flat. The same occurs with OKC without Westbrook. The difference? The Cavs are an excellent team with LeBron and OKC is a good team with Westbrook.
Excellence wins the race and so may LeBron for MVP.
Let’s see how it all plays out. Don’t you just love this game?!
By: Gabrielle Burgess
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The Falcons destroyed the Packers, beating them 44-21 to head to the Super Bowl.
The Packers failed to score in the first half due to a fumble followed by 2 interceptions. They also failed to convert huge opportunities to intercept when they were unable to recover a loose ball, mistimed a jump in the end zone and dropped the ball in the end zone, which was followed with a touchdown by the Falcons, ending the 1st half 24-0.
Defense was poor for the Packers and has been throughout the Playoffs. The players had butterfingers and even though Rodgers had more rushing yards than his teammates, he couldn’t win it by himself.
Photo: ESPN Scorecenter
The Patriots rolled over the Steelers as expected with a win of 36-17. They are heading to the Super Bowl for a record 9th time.
Will the Vegas Pro prediction of the Falcons winning it all come through? Suga thinks it is possible. They got young, fresh legs.
In other Sports news, Serena Williams moves on to the Quarterfinals of the Australian Open and Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Cavaliers last Saturday night in Cleveland in OT 118- 115!
LeBron James failed to make the game-winning shot that caused the game to go into OT, he missed more crucial clutch shots and created a turnover. Kevin Love missed his shots as well, including the very last possession when the Spurs defense slipped up and he was left wide open for the 3-point shot. Kyrie Irving made the usual clutch shots in OT but it wasn’t enough.
The Cavs didn’t even play the full Spurs team. The Spurs are currently without Pao Gasol, who is out for 4 to 8 weeks and Tony Parker, who has an injured foot. So the game belonged to Kawhi Leonard who scored a Career high 41 points. It was his 1st game over 40 points.
Stay tuned. Sports season is on a high until June!
By: Gabrielle Burgess If you liked this article, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
The Cavs got their Championship banner raised for the first time last night and routed the Knicks 117-88.
LeBron James scored a triple double that included 19 points, but it was Kyrie Irving who was their highest scorer with 29.
The Golden State Warriors’ ‘Super team’ was in action versus the San Antonio Spurs but did not look so super. They still don’t have anyone to defend in the paint especially since they traded Bogut! Not a good look with all eyes on them since they got KD.
The Spurs destroyed them with Kawhi Leonard scoring 35 points.
The result?
I love this Game!
By: Gabrielle Burgess If you liked this blog, follow Suga Lifestyle or like the Suga Lifestyle Facebook page.
The Cavs await the Raptors or Heat for the Eastern Conference Finals after sweeping the Hawks. The Raptors-Heat series is drawn 2-2 and they will play in Toronto tonight at 7pm. The Heat players have been plagued with injuries but they still managed to level the series. Can D-Wade win it for them again?
The Warriors should beat the Trail Blazers in California tonight at 9:30pm to advance to the Western Conference Finals. They will await the winner of the Spurs-OKC series.
On Sunday, Durant came alive in the 4th quarter, the Spurs fell apart and KD won the game for his Momma, who is the real MVP. OKC leveled the series at 2-2.
They headed back to San Antonio for a crucial Game 5 last night. OKC led the 1st quarter 22-16. Then it was all about the Spurs for the 2nd and 3rd quarter. But in the 4th, putting bad calls aside with acrobatics from Steven Adams and Westbrook swatting imaginary flies from his eye saying he was hit by Parker, the Spurs failed to make crucial shots. In particular, Aldridge and Parker. They went cold. While on the other side, Westbrook was hot and unstoppable. His athletisism was impressive resulting in steals and speeding through the paint. His last steal, then the and-1 in closing seconds sealed the deal for the Thunder’s Game 5 win over the Spurs. Westbrook ended the night with 35 points, 11 rebounds and 9 assists.
81% of the time, whoever wins Game 5 usually advances in the series. With Spurs’ performance during the season, they would have been expected to beat OKC. But it’s always about match ups. OKC has always been a serious threat to the Spurs. They lucked out with Ibaka’s injury the last time they met in the Playoffs. Now Ibaka may not be as much of a threat, but Westbook is unstoppable. When he is guarded by Kawhi, Durant will take care of everything else. If they happen to lock down those two, there are Waiters and Steve Adams who will do the job. Steve Adams’ game has improved tremendously. Someone should cut his hair. Old man river walk, Tim Duncan has to be present for the Spurs’ defense and to get crucial rebounds. Diaw is not playing as well who used to be a key part of the Spurs’ defense and facilitator for plays and magical ball movement. Danny Green works hard but is not where he needs to be yet for defense, then the Defensive Player of the year, Kawhi Leonard can’t do it all on his own. Ginobili is a ticking time bomb. Parker crumbles under pressure. West makes too many unnecessary fouls and Aldridge fails to make clutch shots. Leonard and Aldridge want it but the rest of the team seem comfortable with their previous rings and accomplishments. Let’s hope some desire to move forward is ignited and they can force a game 7.
Either way, the Golden State Warriors will beat whoever emerges as the winner and beat the Cavs as well, who will reach the Finals, to start their dynasty. Steph Curry is back and he came back scoring 40 points, 17 of which were in overtime. Or can OKC just upset everybody? They surely look hungry. Let’s watch and see.
There have certainly been some crazy endings to the last couple of games in the NBA Playoffs for both the East and the West recently.
Kyle Lowry of the Raptors made a crazy buzzer beater from the half court line the other night to force OT with the Heat but Dwyane Wade was on fire and they couldn’t hold him back. Heat won 102-96 to take the lead in the series 1-0.
Watch “Kyle Lowry Buzzer Beater to force overtime in Raptors vs. Heat Playoff Game!” on YouTube here:
Suga had Miami to win this series but with the recurrence of blood clotting in Chris Bosh’s left calf over the All-Star break keeping him out of the games, it will not be an easy task to overcome the Raptors. Their fate to meet LeBron and the Cavs is now at stake.
The Cavs – Hawks series will be dead. Cavs won easily 104-93.
But the last 13.5s of the Spurs-OKC game with OKC leading 98-97 in San Antonio was madness! So many things happened and no fouls were called for either team. The most obvious foul was the offensive foul on Ginobili on the inbound, players were scrambling all over the place and falling on the court and most hilariously, a Spurs fan (no it wasn’t Suga) grabbed the arm of OKC’s Steve Adams! Even though no fouls were called, at the end of the day, Ginobili should not have passed the ball to go for a 3. Shame on him. This win for OKC levelled the series 1-1. This will be the most exciting semi final series.
Watch “Dramatic Finish in San Antonio | Thunder vs Spurs | Game 2 | May 2, 2016 | 2016 NBA Playoffs” on YouTube here:
Watch “Spurs fan grabbed Steven Adams’ arm on the final possession Spurs vs Thunders” on YouTube here:
Last night, Trail Blazers led Warriors for the majority of the game with a 11-point lead into the 4th quarter. Lillard was on fire and Klay Thompson was not. Then Blazers forgot they had to play a 4th quarter and it all went downhill from there. They started to trail again.
Klay Thompson then started to make shots when it counted, ending the game with 27 points and the Defending Champs quickly erased the 11-point deficit in the 4th to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Trail Blazers have no chance.
Photo: www.nba.com
So what’s the status of the NBA 2016 Playoffs now?
