Atlanta ProView: James Rules

photo Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James finishes a dunk against the Atlanta Hawks during the first half in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs Sunday, May 24, 2015, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

One of the first things they teach you in journalism school is to be impartial in your reporting. Thankfully, on this blog the rules go out the window.

Which brings us to the Atlanta Hawks-Cleveland Cavaliers NBA Eastern Conference Finals.

As a lifelong Hawks fan it's difficult, nearly impossible, to be impartial when it comes to certain aspects of a game... i.e. officiating (or lack thereof). So, I asked a few non-Hawks fans who are NBA saavy about the goings on during much of the Hawks-Cavs series and the results were interesting.

Of the 10 people I talked to, eight said with a straight face it was clear the NBA's worst nightmare was Atlanta knocking out His Highness and reaching the finals. To be honest, it's understandible. The league is salivating over a Warriors-Cavs showdown. James vs. Curry; Irving (and he will play) vs. Thompson.

Good stuff. Still, anyone who has watched James push and shove his way into the lane time and again with only one offensive foul in three games has to at least shake his head a bit. Remember "Jordan Rules?" Different era, same game.

I finally had to laugh at the end of regulation Sunday when James not only pushed Demarre Carroll to get to Jeff Teague on his potential game-winning shot, he lifted Carroll off the ground and managed to at least get Teague's attention. If you have the game DVR'd go back and watch it.

Now, it's the end of a game and you would rarely make that call in most circumstances. However, how many fouls have been called on the Hawks in this series for either being too aggressive going through screens or being too physical setting them?

Nearly as many as Matthew Dellavedova leg rolls. (Side note: the New York Post has compiled a few of Dellavedova's greatest hits here http://nypost.com/2015/05/25/here-are-matthew-dellavedovas-greatest-or-most-hated-hits/).

I think it was game two when James put his shoulder down and ran over Pero Antic, who, of course, was called for the foul. The one-sidedeness of the calls even prompted Reggie Miller to spout following a touch foul on James that he doubted that call would have been made on any other player on the floor.

OK, the NBA has its stars and they have to be protected. Right? I mean, LeBron is only 6-9 and 260 pounds, fairly fragile. He's let everyone know he's playing with multiple injuries (the refs have surely taken note), and he deserves an Oscar for all the drama time whenever he needs a break.

Look, James is an amazing player and he deserves all the accolades he gets. Put him any one of a dozen teams and they likely make the finals. Who else can you say that about?

But that's the point. He, like Jordan, doesn't need the help.

Tasmanian Devil

Dellavedova is a guy you would love to have on your team. He scraps and claws and dives and rolls... somehow always ends up around guys' legs. Does he do that in practice?

There's nothing wrong with sacrificing your body, and it's easy to see the guy has a rugby background. The best way to secure a loose ball is to throw your body between it and the person trying to take it away from you. Still, there has to be a point where someone has to tell the Aussie to tone it down on the rolling part.

The one bright spot out of all this is we finally found out what it takes to prompt Al Horford to get physical. If he attacked the backboards the way he did Dellavedova's back the Hawks might still be in this series.

At least the Hawks made him run through a few hard screens, including a dandy by Carroll that buckled Dellavedova's knees. Carroll, of course, was called for the foul.

Curious moves by Bud

Mike Budenholzer is a godsend for Atlanta, but as good as the coach has been there have been some unusual decisions in the playoffs when it comes to player rotation.

He sits Mike Scott for games at a time and then has him on the court with the season on the line Sunday. Yes, there were few options, but Scott's shoot-first mentality killed the Hawks in overtime.

Where was Dennis Schroder? The guard played a total of 3:38 Sunday. Shelvin Mack played 28 minutes, Scott 32 and Kent Bazemore 43. Schroder was 0-for-2 from the field and looked shaky with the ball. Still, with Kyle Korver out (thanks again, Tasmanian Devil), Carroll playing on one leg and Horford in the locker room, Schroder's ability to drive and kick could have made a huge difference, especially against an obvsiously-tired team.

Also, is Elton Brand dead? The Cavs once again killed the Hawks on the boards and even at his advanced age the big man can clean the glass. Mike Muscala played 10 minutes and grabbed exactly zero rebounds.

Hopefully, Bud can learn from this and the upcoming draft and free agency can bring in some more athletic big men.

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