NBA Thread

[BADGERVOL]

12 minutes ago, IU Scott said:

Yes it is watered down because there are plenty of players on rosters that are not NBA quality players.  With 24 teams the talent would be dispersed more evenly and every team would have a few quality players.

Totally agree with you Scott, it’s watered down. Only in a watered down league can you be first round draft picks year after year based on pure raw athletic ability and stick on teams. 

[Billingsley99]

7 hours ago, 5fouls said:

You know, after PG had made a commitment to be in OKC, he could have said no to Kawhi.  Just don't like the way he (PG) operates at all.

 

Another great opportunity for him to be a great ROBIN!!😀

[Zuckerkorn]

Haven't cared for the NBA for years now.  I guess I'm just not a fan of the league, but am (was) a fan of a team.  Today's NBA is about forming a few loaded teams and hyping (pimping) the heck out of them.  Small market teams may occasionally draft or acquire a highly talented guy, but it's only inevitable that he will not be there for long.

For those that like the NBA, that's fine and good for them.  I see it more as a few Globetrotter teams and a bunch of Washington Generals teams (only the Generals DO get to win games when they don't really count).

[milehiiu]

SIAP

Zion Williamson: Pelicans  bench No. 1 NBA draft pick 

[5fouls]

Anyone else rooting for an epic fail for both pieces of the L.A. experiment?

[IU Scott]

Pretty bad that the off season is way more entertaining the actual season in the NBA

[NotIThatLives]

And 

 

CBS saying heat 1st, orlando, and someone else but heat ha e said they are interested.  I'd watch Butler and Westbrook.  Maybe they would get into it.  

[IU Scott]

22 minutes ago, NotIThatLives said:

And 

 

CBS saying heat 1st, orlando, and someone else but heat ha e said they are interested.  I'd watch Butler and Westbrook.  Maybe they would get into it.  

What would the Heat have to trade for him maybe Winslow as the key piece but they don't have that much else.

[Seeking6]

10 hours ago, IU Scott said:

What would the Heat have to trade for him maybe Winslow as the key piece but they don't have that much else.

Most of the articles I read this morning suggest the Heat but the one I read that made the most sense was with Minnesota. Basically sending Wiggins to OKC.

[NotIThatLives]

10 hours ago, IU Scott said:

What would the Heat have to trade for him maybe Winslow as the key piece but they don't have that much else.

From bleacher report 

Cobbling together workable Westbrook-to-Miami deals is difficult. The Heat are hard-capped after the Butler sign-and-trade and have yet to officially duck the luxury-tax threshold. They need to broker a salary dump (Goran Dragic) or waive-and-stretch Ryan Anderson's partially guaranteed deal ($15.6 million).

Getting Westbrook to Miami is more tenable if OKC doesn't demand short-term cap relief. Both Anderson and Dragic are expiring contracts, and the Thunder can extract more value if they're willing to take on money that spills into 2020-21.

Sending back Anderson with one of James Johnson (two years, $31.4 million), Kelly Olynyk (two years, $25.7 million) or Dion Waiters (two years, $24.8 million) would be ideal for the Heat. That'd leave them to scour the market for a Dragic dump (Dallas!) and steer clear of the luxury tax.

Whether they have the supplementary assets to sell the Thunder on that framework is a different story. Oklahoma City would still be inside the luxury tax and responsible for cutting costs elsewhere.

Bam Adebayo or Tyler Herro are nice buffers, but their salaries make it more difficult to evade the tax, and the Heat cannot offer up a first-round pick until 2025. Oklahoma City now controls their selections in 2021 (unprotected) and 2023 (lottery-protected).

Still, unless the Thunder stumble into a suitor peddling more immediate relief, the Heat have to be considered an option. They're star-hungry and unsettled at point guard, and any package they put together will wind up saving Oklahoma City a ton of money beginning in 2020-21.

From CBS

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/thunder-to-consider-trading-russell-westbrook-per-report-heat-among-three-teams-that-could-make-sense/

[BADGERVOL]

15 hours ago, Zuckerkorn said:

Haven't cared for the NBA for years now.  I guess I'm just not a fan of the league, but am (was) a fan of a team.  Today's NBA is about forming a few loaded teams and hyping (pimping) the heck out of them.  Small market teams may occasionally draft or acquire a highly talented guy, but it's only inevitable that he will not be there for long.

For those that like the NBA, that's fine and good for them.  I see it more as a few Globetrotter teams and a bunch of Washington Generals teams (only the Generals DO get to win games when they don't really count).

I honestly thought that up to even a few years ago. But I’ve always thought the Spurs as a small market team was the only that could do it...then after Golden State, Toronto, and the Bucks, etc.and then larger market teams like Atlanta, Chicago and New York struggling to be good or consistently good...well it opened my eyes to the fact that I couldn’t simply say “oh the whole league is the Big Market teams and superstars going to those teams. That isn’t supported by the reality of the past 10 years.

Other negatives about the NBA night still have validity such as watering down talent, skill being replaced by “potential,” etc all seem to have something to them in my opinion.

[Hoosierhoopster]

The Bucks are terrible though. 

😁

i’ve been a team fan as opposed to an individual player fan for the most part in watching the NBA but today’s game has made that more of a challenge at times. A fair criticism.

However, going into this season the “parity” is back and both conferences will have great competition and story lines. 

In the West, the Clippers are now a title contender, and snagging Kawhi and PG, both Laker targets, they prevented the super team that would’ve killed competition. Whatever you think of what the Clippers, Kawhi and PG did, that’s a good thing. 

Then you have Denver and Portland, both smaller markets and both realistic title contenders, along with Houston (big market) and maybe GS at least fighting it out in a competitive West. 

The East is less competitive top to bottom but that’s changing and not with the big market teams. Bucks will be fighting it out with Philly, but the Pacers could be in the hunt if Vic gets back healthy, that team is now built very well and its young guys are maturing, Toronto will still be good, Celtics should be better imo and are still not a finished product, Miami will be interesting with Butler, and after next season the Nets will have Durant joining Kyrie, to a team that played well and made the playoffs last year. 

Very interested to see how the Bucks return and how Philly returns, both are a little different now but could be title contenders. Would bet on seeing improved  shooting from Giannis, he is one of the hardest working players in the League 

[NotIThatLives]

And Utah in the west probably improved as much as anyone out there.  

New power rankings

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-power-rankings-kawhi-leonards-new-look-clippers-vault-to-no-1-lebron-james-lakers-3rd-raptors-warriors-plummet/

[Zuckerkorn]

3 hours ago, BADGERVOL said:

I honestly thought that up to even a few years ago. But I’ve always thought the Spurs as a small market team was the only that could do it...then after Golden State, Toronto, and the Bucks, etc.and then larger market teams like Atlanta, Chicago and New York struggling to be good or consistently good...well it opened my eyes to the fact that I couldn’t simply say “oh the whole league is the Big Market teams and superstars going to those teams. That isn’t supported by the reality of the past 10 years.

Other negatives about the NBA night still have validity such as watering down talent, skill being replaced by “potential,” etc all seem to have something to them in my opinion.

As I recall San Antonio got it all going in a unique way.  They were bad and drafted a star (David Robinson), then a short while later he had a season ending injury and they pulled off a coup by tanking (or were just that bad without him), got lucky and parlayed that into getting Duncan.  Bang.  Two stars.  I can't think of many, if any, times a truly small market team traded for a superstar (let alone two).  I do give props to SAS for continuing to be contenders (or nearly so), well after DR and TD were done.

Seinfields line about "rooting for laundry" was about MLB, but IMO applies to the NBA.

But, hey what do I know?  The league is profitable for the owners, the players make obscene amounts of money, and there's plenty of people to watch the games and fork over big dollars to attend games.  I'm just not one of them.

[Hoosierhoopster]

In addition to Utah, I don’t know how I forgot to mention Dallas in the West, now with Porzingis. 

The West is just nuts 

[KoB2011]

5 hours ago, Hoosierhoopster said:

In addition to Utah, I don’t know how I forgot to mention Dallas in the West, now with Porzingis. 

The West is just nuts 

The West is insane. The top half or so of the East is also very good. The league is the least watered-down right now it has ever been.

Not trying to go there (okay, I am) but all of the traditional complaints folks have about the NBA are just crap right now. The league is absolutely as good or the best it has ever been. People that like basketball and boycott the NBA are missing out. The NBA is the best American team sport to follow right now and it isn't close IMO. 

[IUALUM03]

If you are Milwaukee, you have to at least consider Westbrook, right?  I mean, him and the Greek Freak, could compliment each other very well and open up the paint for him.

[BGleas]

9 hours ago, KoB2011 said:

The West is insane. The top half or so of the East is also very good. The league is the least watered-down right now it has ever been.

Not trying to go there (okay, I am) but all of the traditional complaints folks have about the NBA are just crap right now. The league is absolutely as good or the best it has ever been. People that like basketball and boycott the NBA are missing out. The NBA is the best American team sport to follow right now and it isn't close IMO. 

This...

[5fouls]

1 hour ago, IUALUM03 said:

If you are Milwaukee, you have to at least consider Westbrook, right?  I mean, him and the Greek Freak, could compliment each other very well and open up the paint for him.

Westbrook is a chemistry killer.  I see a desparate team taking him versus one that is already knocking on the door.

[cybergates]

On 7/6/2019 at 1:21 PM, Seeking6 said:

One word I want officially retired from all platforms at ESPN and other talking heads. "Sources" 

Every single sports journalist in America was dead wrong. Not one had an inkling this was going to happen. In fact my guess is Jerry West somehow let it be leaked that Raptors or Lakers stuff was solid to provide a smokescreen for the deal. No clue where this trade ends up historically but this has a Herschel Walker feel to it. 

To take it to another level, I saw on Friday that the Clippers were out and it was down to Lakers/Raptors. After the fact, there were reports that it was really the Raptors who felt they were out and Kawhi was heading to the Lakers unless the Clippers or Raptors traded for George (which obviously the Clips did).

[IUALUM03]

10 minutes ago, 5fouls said:

Westbrook is a chemistry killer.  I see a desparate team taking him versus one that is already knocking on the door.

Trust me, I am aware of the potential downfalls, but in a city like Milwaukee (just like Indianapolis), sometimes you need to take a risk a la Toronto.  I know Westbrook is not Leonard, but you would have a chance to pair Giannus up with another scoring punch, which they desperately need, and star.  Also, I really think Westbrook is capable of being more a team player.  He showed flashes last year, until PG got hurt and he was forced to do it all again.  I just think he could compliment that team well, as long as he didn't just chuck shot up, but played through GA.

[Seeking6]

Brogdon presser going on right now for Pacers intro. Really going to like this guy. His philanthropy, he acknowledged wanting to play for our coach and with leader of team Vic. One thing that struck me was that Pritchard specifically said this deal doesn't get done without Herb Simon. Mentioned he called Milwaukee owner himself. Not sure what to make of that. Hopefully one of the reporters asks him to explain.

[dwtaylor1055]

Nate confirmed 19-20 starting lineup will be:

Brogdon/Lamb/Warren/Sabonis/Turner.

 

This will be a very tall and long lineup! All except Sabonis are respectable 3 pt threats. 

[BADGERVOL]

3 hours ago, IUALUM03 said:

If you are Milwaukee, you have to at least consider Westbrook, right?  I mean, him and the Greek Freak, could compliment each other very well and open up the paint for him.

I’m a Bucks fan and I would be devastated if they traded for Westbrook. 

[btownqb]

3 hours ago, IUALUM03 said:

If you are Milwaukee, you have to at least consider Westbrook, right?  I mean, him and the Greek Freak, could compliment each other very well and open up the paint for him.

From a strictly on the court discussion... do they actually compliment each other that well though? Neither can shoot at all... both below 30% from 3 last year. Now they are both insanely athletic.. idk I guess I would need more proof than to say they'd compliment each other well.