Basketball On The Internet.

THERE was a time, not so long ago, when many Australian NBA fans were jumping onto that Golden State Warriors' bandwagon.

Coach Mark Jackson had built the group to a certain level, Steph Curry and Klay Thompson were becoming notorious as the "Splash Brothers" and you had to like them not only for their skill and entertainment value, but also as second generation NBA stars on the trails blazed by their respective fathers Del and Mychal.

And, of course, we had a vested interest with Australia's very own Andrew Bogut anchoring the middle, bringing his high basketball IQ, passing skills and defensive intimidation.

The team's growth was steady and evident and when Steve Kerr stepped into the coaching role, the whole shebang went up a level.

Lakers fans who'd become Heat fans were paying attention again too.

They won that 2015 championship in style, albeit against a depleted Cleveland Cavaliers team drawing extraordinary efforts from another of our own, Matthew Dellavedova.

But somewhere along their record-breaking 2016 regular season, Steph Curry needlessly chewed on his mouthguard once too often for me. Smacked his chest and pointed to the heavens once too many times.

Draymond Green had become Draymond Knee-ing and somewhere the line between showmen and show-ponies became blurred.

I thought it was just me, being jaded, but I found many others also disenchanted with the antics.

When Bogey went out injured in that series and the Cavaliers came from 1-3 down to historically win the championship, whatever lesson in humility which could have accompanied the Warriors' demise quickly was lost in signing superstar Kevin Durant.

So here we are, Utah Jazz eliminating the consistently under-achieving Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the Western Conference to advance to a showdown with the show-offs.

With his 12 points in today's series clincher, our own Joe Ingles became the first Australian in NBA playoffs history to score double-figure points in Game 7 of a playoff series.

Joe (above) additionally played a significant defensive role on JJ Redick, while Dante Exum also made the most of his minutes.

Suddenly, there's another team for Aussies to follow in the Western Conference - that is for anyone who has overlooked Patty Mills and the San Antonio Spurs. though Lord knows why you would.

Do we expect Utah to cause a boilover?

Hell no. But the Jazz will have a hugely entertaining red-hot go. And that's the way most Aussies like their teams to play.

 

EASTERN CONFERENCE
SEMI FINALS

Boston Celtics v Washington Wizards
Boston 123, Washington 111
Boston leads 1-0

Cleveland Cavaliers v Toronto Raptors

FIRST ROUND

No. 1 Boston Celtics v No. 8 Chicago Bulls

Boston 102, Chicago 106
Boston 97, Chicago 111
Boston 104, Chicago 87
Boston 104, Chicago 95
Boston 108, Chicago 97
Boston 105, Chicago 83

Boston advances 4-2

No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers v No. 7 Indiana Pacers

Cleveland 109, Indiana 108
Cleveland 117, Indiana 111
Cleveland 119, Indiana 114
Cleveland 106, Indiana 102

Cleveland advances 4-0

No. 3 Toronto Raptors v No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks

Toronto  83, Milwaukee 97
Toronto 106, Milwaukee 100
Toronto 77, Milwaukee 104
Toronto 87, Milwaukee 76
Toronto 118, Milwaukee 93
Toronto 92, Milwaukee 89

Toronto advances 4-2

No. 4 Washington Wizards v No. 5 Atlanta Hawks

Washington 114, Atlanta 107
Washington 109, Atlanta 101
Washington 98, Atlanta 116
Washington 101, Atlanta 111
Washington 103, Atlanta 99
Washington 115, Atlanta 99

Washington advances 4-2

 

WESTERN CONFERENCE

SEMI FINALS

Golden State Warriors v Utah Jazz

San Antonio Spurs v Houston Rockets

FIRST ROUND
No. 1 Golden State Warriors v No. 8 Portland Trail Blazers

Golden State 121, Portland 109
Golden State 110, Portland  81

Golden State 119, Portland 113

Golden State 128, Portland 103

Golden State advances 4-0

 

No. 2 San Antonio Spurs v No. 7 Memphis Grizzlies

San Antonio 111, Memphis 82

San Antonio 96, Memphis 82

San Antonio 94, Memphis 105

San Antonio 108, Memphis 110 (OT)

San Antonio 116, Memphis 103

San Antonio 103, Memphis 96

San Antonio advances 4-2

No. 3 Houston Rockets v No. 6 Oklahoma City Thunder

Houston 118, OKC 87
Houston 115, OKC 111

Houston 113, OKC 115

Houston 113, OKC 109

Houston 105, OKC 99

Houston advances 4-1

 

No. 4 Los Angeles Clippers v No. 5 Utah Jazz

LA Clippers 95, Utah 97
LA Clippers 99, Utah 91
LA Clippers 111, Utah 106
LA Clippers 98, Utah 105
LA Clippers 92, Utah 96
LA Clippers 98, Utah 93
LA Clippers 91, Utah 104

Utah advances 4-3