NBA Playoff Schedule 2015: Updated TV Info and Picks for Conference Finals
Usually a hotbed of competitive intrigue, the NBA conference finals have instead proved disappointingly anticlimactic.
After playing the Golden State Warriors tough on the road, the Houston Rockets folded at home. Down 3-0, they now must pull off another improbable comeback, this time against a team that hasn't lost three straight all year.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, nobody besides LeBron James can stay healthy. Even without Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, No. 23 has proven more than enough for the Cleveland Cavaliers against the equally hobbled Atlanta Hawks
At this point, it'd save everyone time to fast-forward to a Warriors-Cavaliers NBA Finals showdown. Before reaching that endpoint, each team must finish the deal, with Golden State getting the first crack at a series-clincher Monday night.
| Tuesday, May 26 | Hawks | Cavaliers | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | CLE |
| Thursday, May 28 * | Cavaliers | Hawks | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | -- |
| Saturday, May 30* | Hawks | Cavaliers | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | -- |
| Monday, June 1* | Cavaliers | Hawks | 8:30 p.m. | TNT | -- |
| Monday, May 25 | Warriors | Rockets | 9 p.m. | ESPN | HOU |
| Wednesday, May 27 * | Rockets | Warriors | 9 p.m. | ESPN | GS |
| Friday, May 29 * | Warriors | Rockets | 9 p.m. | ESPN | -- |
| Saturday, May 31 * | Rockets | Warriors | 9 p.m. | ESPN | -- |
Game 4 Preview: Warriors at Rockets
Although the Rockets exited the Oracle Arena empty-handed, they lost two competitive games by a combined five points. Heading into Saturday's Game 3, they still harbored realistic hopes of settling the score at home.
Instead, they were bludgeoned into submission during a 115-80 slaughtering. NBA on ESPN categorized it among the all-time embarrassing conference finals home efforts:
This incredibly marks Houston's third loss by 25 or more points this postseason. One of the last four squads standing is now 8-7 with a minus-35 point differential while the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers watch from home.
Anyone still buying into the false perception of Golden State as a soft shooting squad received a rude awakening. In a dreadful offensive display, Houston went 28-of-83, making only five of 25 three-point attempts.
Even unguarded, the Rockets couldn't get the ball through the net. They continued their poor free-throw shooting with 12 misses during 31 attempts.
On the other hand, Draymond Green, Andrew Bogut and Festus Ezeli went a combined 18-of-30 for 39 points. Houston head coach Kevin McHale lamented the poor display to ESPN.com's Calvin Watkins:
"I mean, we’re down 2-0, we had two tight games [in Oakland], and I was surprised that we didn’t come out with more. I thought we’d come out with a little more juice, and it seemed like things got a little tight defensively. They tightened it up, we couldn’t make some shots and then we just -- they drove us all night long. They got the ball and just attacked our paint.
"
Game 3 also presented a tale of two stars. Coming off of two sensational performances, James Harden went ice-cold from the court, making only three field-goal attempts during the rout. Stephen Curry, meanwhile, retroactively validated his MVP honors by scoring a super-efficient 40 points on 19 field-goal attempts.
| Harden | 17 | 3-16 | 1-5 | 10-11 | 3 | 4 | -31 |
| Curry | 40 | 12-19 | 7-9 | 9-10 | 5 | 7 | +33 |
“The shooting is hard to describe because I don't think we've ever seen anybody shoot the ball the way Steph does off the dribble, off the catch,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr told ESPN.com's Ethan Sherwood Strauss after Game 3. “Seven-for-nine from 3, I mean, it was remarkable, just a tremendous performance.”
Curry is now averaging 29.9 points per game this postseason with a 62.6 true shooting percentage, per NBA.com. After draining seven three-pointers on Saturday, he surpassed Reggie Miller for the most threes in a single postseason, doing so in far fewer games at a more efficient clip, per NBA TV:
Going into a fresh Game 4, Harden won't stay as cold as a white walker, while Curry is unlikely to stay on a level of fire hard to sustain on NBA Jam, yet alone reality. A more evenly matched battle of superstars will harvest another competitive bout.
The last time Houston lost big, it won by 21 the following game, fending off Los Angeles during an elimination game. Its style produces volatile results, and there's no finer wake-up call than realizing there's no tomorrow after the next loss.
Don't be surprised to see the Rockets prolong the series despite Saturday's humiliating display. Just don't expect them to extend the series past five games. Maybe six at most if they heat up behind the arc.
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