Don’t you just love how the narratives of the NBA playoffs change game-to-game? Prior to Game 4, the talk was of LeBron James’ post theatrics and Paul George holding on for dear life. With the series tied 2-2, now there’s talk if Miami can even win the series. Hence the reason we’re bringing back our open thread house party for Game 5 tonight in South Beach.
Is Lance Stephenson’s Game 4 a flash in the pan or a sign of things to come? Will Miami keep making Roy Hibbert look like Roy Chamberlain? Will “Evil LeBron” make an appearance tonight? Will Dwyane Wade use deer antler spray and abandon the over-the-hill glorified YMCA player he’s resembled much of the postseason? Will the crazy lady who flicked off Joakim Noah dare try to do the same with David West? Will Chris Bosh actually grab a rebound? Will the Pacers bottle their defensive intensity from Tuesday night?
In NBA playoff history, with the series tied at two, the winner of Game 5 has gone on to win the series 83% of the time. The most recent exception to this rule? The 2012 Miami Heat (although it’s not exactly the finest stat to play Russian Roulette with).
As a special attraction to our playoff coverage, we’re offering PLAYOFF BADGES! Here’s how it works:
1. “For each Playoff post, you can perform two out of three different activities: share on Twitter, share on Facebook, or drop a comment. Or you can just drop two comments to count as your two activities.
2. Each time you participate you earn a new badge.
3. Each badge lets you work up the ranks of the Playoffs. Your first badge will be the Milwaukee Bucks, but you can eventually work your way up both East and Western Conferences on your way to the NBA Trophy badge. How often you share determines how many badges you earn. Good luck!