NBA TV to air approximately 1,500 hours of total playoff coverage with 195 hours of live studio coverage throughout 65 days of “wall-to-wall” action
Participants:
Kevin McHale, NBA TV analyst
Greg Anthony, NBA TV analyst
Albert “Scooter” Vertino, Vice President of Content, NBA Digital
McHale on the importance of Indiana Pacers forward Danny Granger: “For Indiana to really have a chance, [Danny] Granger has to shoot a high percentage and really be active on the offensive end, not just settling for threes.”
McHale on the role Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand in the Playoffs: “For Philadelphia to have a chance against the Heat, they [can’t] turn it over, they have to pack the paint and Elton Brand is really going to have to go off. He’s going to have to dominate whatever big man they put on him, whether it’s Bosh or whoever they choose to put on him. Brand is really going to have to carry the day for Philadelphia.”
McHale on the appeal of the Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks matchup in the Playoffs: “Boston [versus] New York is the star-studded series that everyone’s going to want to watch.”
McHale on defense for the Boston Celtics: For the Celtics, who have been really up and down, really inconsistent over the past few weeks, they’re going to have to get their defense back. Their defense is going to have to carry them in this series.”
McHale on the impact of Amare Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups for the New York Knicks: “Any time you have Amare [Stoudemire], Carmelo [Anthony] and Chauncey [Billups], you have the chance to make the games close. All of those guys can have big shots down the stretch.”
McHale on the importance of playing strong in the final minutes of games against the New York Knicks: “If you’re Boston, you’d hate to get into a two or four point game with a couple minutes to go when you’re looking down the barrel of Amare Stoudemire. Carmelo Anthony is also a great finisher and Billups is Mr. Big Shot.”
McHale on Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard: “I think Dwight [Howard] has to control the paint. With Atlanta, they’ll get “jump-shot-happy” and they can’t really get jump-shot-happy if there is a big center in there blocking shots. If Dwight can get in there and hold down the paint, it really bodes well for Orlando.”
McHale on the importance of controlling the ability of the Atlanta Hawks to take jump-shots: “I like the fact that with Dwight Howard in the backline, it will force Atlanta to shoot a lot of jump-shots. Watching the series last year in the second round, that really got into Atlanta’s head and they quit attacking and Orlando swept them and looked good doing it.”
McHale on his favorites in the Eastern Conference: “Of course, I’m picking all the favorites; Chicago, Miami, Boston and Atlanta.”
Anthony on the matchup between the San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies: “I think the San Antonio [versus] Memphis matchup is very compelling because Memphis has had a lot of success against San Antonio, particularly the last two games in March.”
Anthony on San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan playing well in the Playoffs: “I think it’s going to be very important that we see the old Tim Duncan and not the old Tim Duncan. Throughout the regular season, [the San Antonio Spurs] kind of put him in cruise control and he has not been a focal point of their offense, but I think he’s going to have to have more say.”
Anthony on the strength of the San Antonio Spurs bench: “I think the thing that differentiated San Antonio this year is their play from the bench. They’ve been unbelievable when you think of the impact that [Gary] Neal, [George] Hill and DeJuan Blair has had for this basketball team. I think their bench is going to have to play well.”
Anthony on how the San Antonio Spurs should approach their matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies: “A lot of the things that Memphis does well is their ability to penetrate and attack in the paint. The old San Antonio teams that were winning championships were much better under the rim. Now, they’re not nearly as good and much more offensively oriented.”
Anthony on how the possible loss of Andrew Bynum could affect the Los Angeles Lakers in the Playoffs: “If you’re Los Angeles, obviously facing the potential loss of Andrew Bynum, you’ve got to assume that he’s probably going to miss a couple games in this series. They could not have gotten a more favorable matchup to have him miss a few games than [they did] against New Orleans.”
Anthony on the defensive capabilities of the New Orleans Hornets: “From New Orleans’ standpoint, this is a series where Kobe can really get aggressive offensively. [New Orleans] doesn’t defend the two-guard position very well and I just don’t see New Orleans having enough offense to contain the Lakers. Defensively, New Orleans has been good all season long, but it’s really more about their ability to control tempo with their offense. Los Angeles is a team that doesn’t turn it over a lot and I just don’t know if they’re going to have enough on that end to beat Los Angeles.”
Anthony on the confidence of the Dallas Mavericks entering the Playoffs: “I don’t care how anybody wants to sugarcoat it, but the reality is that this team has had some significant failures in the postseason and I think they’re going to matchup against a team in Portland that is going to have a lot of confidence in playing against them and has had some success.”
Anthony on standout players in the Dallas Mavericks/Portland Trail Blazers Playoffs series: “I’m interested to see the impact that Brandon Roy could have. Dallas, with Dirk Nowitzki still playing at a high level, he may not be the best player in this series. I think LaMarcus Aldridge has a chance to really make a statement in terms of the type of player he is going to be in the future in this series.”
Anthony on the chances of the Portland Trail Blazers defeating the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the Playoffs: “This is a series that I think Portland has a legitimate chance to win and I can only imagine what would happen in Dallas if they were to somehow get knocked out in the first round.”
Anthony on how to prepare to play the Denver Nuggets: “Denver is one of those teams that is difficult to prepare for because they don’t really have one guy you can focus on or that you want to take away. Ordinarily, that would create problems for you but I think that when you look at it from Oklahoma City’s standpoint, they’re a team that likes to get out and run and I think the style they’re going to play in this series is going to benefit them.”
Anthony’s pick in the Oklahoma City versus Denver Nuggets Playoffs matchup: “I like [Oklahoma City] against Denver. I thought this was the one time that Denver would have the most difficulty matching up with. I like Oklahoma City in this series, although I think it will be very competitive.”
Anthony on the Orlando Magic versus Atlanta Hawks series: “Sometimes in the postseason you get a favorable matchup and you can be really effective. I think that this is one where Joe Johnson could have a pretty big series for Atlanta. I’m expecting it. Joe’s a one-on-one player, I think he’s going to get a lot of opportunities in the pick-and-roll to attack [Orlando Magic guard] Jason Richardson. I think he can have success in this series. I’ll be interested to see how he responds.”
McHale on how the Atlanta Hawks can be successful in the Playoffs: “For me, Al Horford is going to have to make shots. He’s going to have to suck [Orlando Magic center Dwight] Howard out of the paint some and that will allow [Atlanta Hawks guard] Joe Johnson to be able to put the ball the floor, attack, get in the paint, get some shots and get some easy ones. Last year in the Playoffs, it was all jump-shots, isolations, fighting the clock and ugly basketball by the Hawks versus Orlando.
McHale on how Orlando can advance in the Playoffs: “If you’re Orlando, you look at what worked for you last year in the Playoffs and you don’t change a thing.”
Anthony on how the Playoffs matchup between the Orlando Magic and the Atlanta Hawks may change from last year’s: “This is not the same Orlando team that we saw a season ago so I’ll be interested to see how this matchup actually plays out.”
McHale on his perception of the Miami Heat during the regular season: “They’ve been a team that, to me, has been looking for their real identity all year long.”
McHale on the defensive capabilities of the Miami Heat: “To me, when Miami turns up their defense, they get turnovers especially on the perimeter and above the free-throw line. They are off and running and I think they become the most explosive team in the league. They’re attacking and getting after it. They look really good.”
McHale on how the Miami Heat might cope with a dwindling bench rotation: “I have a feeling that as the bench rotation shortens down a little in Miami, you’re going to see a lot more of [Chris] Bosh at the five, LeBron [James] at the four, a couple shooters and Dwyane Wade on the floor with those guys making plays, but still that’s not a very big, physical, knock-you-down type of team.”
McHale on wanting to see the Miami Heat in the Playoffs: “They’ve had great stretches, but yet I still want to see them in the Playoffs. It’s all about matchups.”
Anthony on Miami Heat’s reliance on their star players: “They still rely so much on their great stars… They have not developed their supporting cast the way I would have liked. I’ve always said that Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich and Doc Rivers do a great job of making sure they use the regular season to prepare for the postseason and I didn’t see the same type of performance beyond Dwayne [Wade], LeBron [James] and Chris [Bosh].”
McHale on experiencing the Playoffs firsthand as a player: “You can bring in Larry Bird to Bill Russell to Kareem Abdul Jabbar or Magic Johnson and tell [the players] what it’s going to be like, but it’s one of those things that you’ve got to experience. You’ve got to go out there and you’ve got to understand that every possession becomes magnified. You can’t make silly mistakes… You’ve got to go out there and play with much more focus.”
McHale on the importance of force in your game: “The only way that you take on force in the NBA is with more force by you. You can’t take on force by backing up.”
McHale on the determination exhibited by the teams in the Playoffs: “You can go in and think ‘we pounded this team in the regular season, they’re just going to roll over on us.’ No one rolls over in the Playoffs.”
McHale on the experience of playing in the NBA Playoffs: “This will be the best experience for the young Indiana Pacers. This is going to be fantastic. I’m looking forward to seeing how they react, but they’ve got to go through and there’s nothing like that experience in any form in any sport. The Playoffs are just way different, especially in the NBA. What a great opportunity for these young guys in Indiana to get that. That will help them so much next year.”
Anthony on Indiana Pacers rookie guard Darren Collinson: “He’s going to struggle with Derrick Rose and as a young player, you can’t let that affect your confidence and get you out of what your job is in running the team. What happens with young players oftentimes is when they get attacked or when their shot’s not falling, it affects the other areas of their game. It’s going to be critical for him to stay focused with what his objectives are as a player. It’s not about him beating Derrick Rose; it’s about him giving the Pacers a chance to beat the Bulls. If he can have that kind of a mindset, which I think he will, they could be competitive and make this interesting.”
McHale on Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard’s progress as an offensive player: “Dwight has improved his offensive game. He’s so much more patient right now. He’s going slower, he’s actually reading the defense and countering off the defense and what they did.”
McHale on Dwight Howard’s improvements over the course of the season: “I don’t have a vote, but if I did, I would think about him as Most Improved, which is crazy to say that a First-Team All-Pro player should get votes for Most Improved, but his offensive game is much better.”
Anthony on Orlando Magic as a three-point shooting team: “As much as Dwight [Howard] has improved and as great a player as he is, Orlando is still a three-point shooting team.”
Anthony on the Atlanta Hawks forcing Dwight Howard to be an offensive resource for Orlando: “I’ve never seen Dwight Howard take 30 shots in a game. If I were Atlanta, my game plan is to make him have to take [those shots]. I don’t know if Orlando could play a style where he would have to take that many shots in a game. I’ve never seen them do it and I don’t think they’re comfortable with it.”
Anthony on the pressure felt by the Orlando Magic going into the Playoffs: “This is one of those matchups from Orlando’s standpoint where they’re going to take a lot of pressure in the first game or two. No matter how good you are, this is still in essence a new team because of that blockbuster trade. If they don’t win that first or second game, you don’t know how they’re going to respond. I really think that Orlando, probably as much as anybody, in their first two games at home has a lot of pressure to put on and get up early because if they don’t, Atlanta is not the kind of team that you want to get confident.”
McHale on how the Denver Nuggets can beat a team with great players: “The key to beating a team that has superstars is that your five guys have got to be playing well, all at a high level, all unselfishly, all of the things that Denver has done up to this point after the trade.”
McHale on veteran teams being able to play at their highest level during the Playoffs: “I think that even though the competition is harder [in the Playoffs], even as veteran teams, you’re more apt to hit your ceiling more in the Playoffs just because of the rest between games [and] travel is limited.”
Anthony on the Lakers being able to reload in the first series of the Playoffs: “New Orleans is the best scenario for the Lakers in the first round to get healthy both physically and mentally.”
Anthony on the Denver Nuggets: “The Detroit Pistons won an NBA Championship without having, in essence, an All-Star but they had players with All-Star ability. Chauncey Billups, Rip Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace, those guys had ability to be All-Stars. Denver potentially has that [formula] but we won’t know until we see them in the post-season. They have very good talent and a tremendous coach in George Karl. There is nobody who does more, in terms of getting everything out of his talent, and I think they are going to play well.
McHale on the depth of the Denver Nuggets: “The thing I love about Denver is when you go 10 [players] deep, you’re going to find five guys that are playing well every night. The key to playing a team that has superstars is that those five guys have to play well, all at a high level, all unselfishly, all of the things that Denver has done up to this point after the [Carmelo Anthony] trade. Maybe Denver will become the blueprint for a lot of teams.”
Anthony on the confidence of the Lakers: “There are some really good teams in the Western Conference but I don’t think there are any great dominate teams. The Lakers look at everybody in the West as teams that they are better than. To have that internal confidence means a lot especially when you are the two-time defending champs.”
McHale on NBA TV: “[NBA TV] is the destination. NBA TV is where you go for basketball. The guys that work there are fantastic and they produce good quality shows every single night. When you want to know about basketball, you go to NBA TV. You watch the highlights to see what’s happening and you have in-game looks. I’m a basketball junkie and I turn on NBA TV to get everything I need to summarize an entire night of basketball…NBA TV is fantastic.”
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