NBA Thread

[KoB2011]

34 minutes ago, Hoosier51 said:

As much as I loathe giving George any credit he had a really good game from the looks of it. I expect him to crap the bed in the next game since he had a good one tonight. 

 

He was phenomenal. He’s actually been really good ever since Leonard went out in these playoffs, just had a couple really bad moments at really bad times. 

[Hoosier51]

6 hours ago, KoB2011 said:

He was phenomenal. He’s actually been really good ever since Leonard went out in these playoffs, just had a couple really bad moments at really bad times. 

Hopefully those really bad moments continue in the next game lol.

[rico]

6 hours ago, KoB2011 said:

He was phenomenal. He’s actually been really good ever since Leonard went out in these playoffs, just had a couple really bad moments at really bad times. 

According to CBS, Paul played the game of his life.

[dgambill]

8 hours ago, KoB2011 said:

He was phenomenal. He’s actually been really good ever since Leonard went out in these playoffs, just had a couple really bad moments at really bad times. 

He has been up and down with his shooting. Tonight he really got hot and it just was like a snow ball going down hill but overall while if you just look at his stat line it looks great he hasn't done it in the most efficient manner most games. 44% shooting overall and 34% from 3 to go along with 3.5 turnovers per game. During the season he avg 47% and 41% from 3. In my opinion he settles too much. The guy is like 6'9 with guard handles...he needs to continue driving and getting into the lane if he wants to be at his best....then spotting up for 3. Aggressive Paul is the best Paul. I think that is what makes him so difficult to understand. He has had so many great playoff performances and then put up some mystifying duds in crucial moments. Which PG will continue to show up. I do think he is at his best without Kawhi. When he takes on that primary threat it forces him to be aggressive and assert himself instead of playing off Kawhi's game. I'm not buying this narrative that the Clippers aren't good enough to win without Kawhi. They are loaded even without him. Your telling me a team of Paul George, Reggie Jackson, Patrick Beverly, Nic Batum, M Morris, T Mann, Kennard, Zubac, Cousins, and Rondo don't have enough fire power? I know it's without Kawhi and Ibaka but my lord that is a loaded team!

Edited June 29, 2021 by dgambill

[rico]

1 hour ago, dgambill said:

He has been up and down with his shooting. Tonight he really got hot and it just was like a snow ball going down hill but overall while if you just look at his stat line it looks great he hasn't done it in the most efficient manner most games. 44% shooting overall and 34% from 3 to go along with 3.5 turnovers per game. During the season he avg 47% and 41% from 3. In my opinion he settles too much. The guy is like 6'9 with guard handles...he needs to continue driving and getting into the lane if he wants to be at his best....then spotting up for 3. Aggressive Paul is the best Paul. I think that is what makes him so difficult to understand. He has had so many great playoff performances and then put up some mystifying duds in crucial moments. Which PG will continue to show up. I do think he is at his best without Kawhi. When he takes on that primary threat it forces him to be aggressive and assert himself instead of playing off Kawhi's game. I'm not buying this narrative that the Clippers aren't good enough to win without Kawhi. They are loaded even without him. Your telling me a team of Paul George, Reggie Jackson, Patrick Beverly, Nic Batum, M Morris, T Mann, Kennard, Zubac, Cousins, and Rondo don't have enough fire power? I know it's without Kawhi and Ibaka but my lord that is a loaded team!

You just made me a Clips fan!  LOL

[rico]

I see Pippen is still pissed about Phil benching him and drawing a play for Kukuc...

[KoB2011]

2 hours ago, dgambill said:

He has been up and down with his shooting. Tonight he really got hot and it just was like a snow ball going down hill but overall while if you just look at his stat line it looks great he hasn't done it in the most efficient manner most games. 44% shooting overall and 34% from 3 to go along with 3.5 turnovers per game. During the season he avg 47% and 41% from 3. In my opinion he settles too much. The guy is like 6'9 with guard handles...he needs to continue driving and getting into the lane if he wants to be at his best....then spotting up for 3. Aggressive Paul is the best Paul. I think that is what makes him so difficult to understand. He has had so many great playoff performances and then put up some mystifying duds in crucial moments. Which PG will continue to show up. I do think he is at his best without Kawhi. When he takes on that primary threat it forces him to be aggressive and assert himself instead of playing off Kawhi's game. I'm not buying this narrative that the Clippers aren't good enough to win without Kawhi. They are loaded even without him. Your telling me a team of Paul George, Reggie Jackson, Patrick Beverly, Nic Batum, M Morris, T Mann, Kennard, Zubac, Cousins, and Rondo don't have enough fire power? I know it's without Kawhi and Ibaka but my lord that is a loaded team!

They are good enough to win without Kawhi because of the injuries others have. You can make a pretty strong case this series should be 3-2 Clips or even over, but the Suns executed better (I’m being very kind with my phrasing) than the Clips in close games. 

[dgambill]

13 minutes ago, rico said:

I see Pippen is still pissed about Phil benching him and drawing a play for Kukuc...

Guy needs to sell books and liquor.  

[rico]

9 minutes ago, dgambill said:

Guy needs to sell books and liquor.  

I think he needs to lay off the liquor...

[FKIM01]

1 hour ago, rico said:

I see Pippen is still pissed about Phil benching him and drawing a play for Kukuc...

Isn't that pathetic?  He looked like a baby then and he looks like a baby now.  Why you would tarnish a pretty good legacy with those displays of immaturity is beyond me.  If Pippen was statistically a better shooter, I'd at least understand the tantrum, but I don't see it looking back at his stats.  They both shot at about the same level, so why he'd think it was an automatic that the play would be drawn up for him is beyond me.

Great player and he undoubtedly helped Jordan win titles, but he just looks petty holding onto this perceived slight.

[BobSaccamanno]

Kukoc hit the shot.  So who was right?  Pippen deserves to be marked by that play.  It will follow him for the rest of his life, and deservedly so.  There’s consequences.  He took a stand.  Congratulations. Now pay the price for the rest of your life and in your legacy.  Hope it was worth it.  

Then calling Phil a racist 25 years later is weak.  Say it in real time so it can be dealt with live, not on memorex.  He is just not a bright guy.

Edited June 29, 2021 by BobSaccamanno

[rico]

12 minutes ago, FKIM01 said:

Isn't that pathetic?  He looked like a baby then and he looks like a baby now.  Why you would tarnish a pretty good legacy with those displays of immaturity is beyond me.  If Pippen was statistically a better shooter, I'd at least understand the tantrum, but I don't see it looking back at his stats.  They both shot at about the same level, so why he'd think it was an automatic that the play would be drawn up for him is beyond me.

Great player and he undoubtedly helped Jordan win titles, but he just looks petty holding onto this perceived slight.

I don't want to offend any Bulls' fans or NBA fans in general, but imo Pip is the one of the most over-rated guys in NBA history.  The quintessential coat tail rider in my book.  

[Billingsley99]

1 hour ago, dgambill said:

Guy needs to sell books and liquor.  

And popcorn

 Pippen is a douche bag

[BobSaccamanno]

I will add, I liked Pippen as a player because I love defense and he was superb at that end.  But he deserves the baggage he carries.  The play where he sat was unbelievably bad.  But he makes it worse because he proves that he truly doesn’t comprehend it. 

If he threw himself at the mercy of the fans, people would be more forgiving.  We give people the benefit of the doubt and give people second chances.  But he hasn’t remotely handled it that way.  His comments prove he doesn’t get it.  

As for Phil’s decision, I’d take Kukoc in a game of Horse over Pippen. And Pippen was great in transition but he wasn’t a one on one scorer or a great shooter.  

[FKIM01]

54 minutes ago, BobSaccamanno said:

As for Phil’s decision, I’d take Kukoc in a game of Horse over Pippen. And Pippen was great in transition but he wasn’t a one on one scorer or a great shooter.  

No doubt.  Statistically, they were pretty close career-wise, but I'm guessing Pippen had a lot more point-blank looks playing with MJ.

[dbmhoosier]

2 hours ago, rico said:

I think he needs to lay off the liquor...

MJ maybe too.  Those eyes looked pretty yellow in The Last Dance.

[rico]

6 minutes ago, dbmhoosier said:

MJ maybe too.  Those eyes looked pretty yellow in The Last Dance.

That may be, but we ain't talkin' about Mike.  Pip is the one that blew shiite out of his pie hole.

Edited June 29, 2021 by rico

[dgambill]

11 minutes ago, rico said:

That may be, but we ain't talkin' about Mike.  Pip is the one that blew shiite out of his pie hole.

No doubt. I will say though "The last dance" was only ever made to make Michael look like even more of a hero. I don't think it did service to any of the other guys and certainly there were many shots taken at Pippen...without whom I'm not sure how many championships Michael would have won. Pippen is an a$$clown for sure but I'm not sure if Michael isn't just as much of one.

[KoB2011]

1 hour ago, rico said:

I don't want to offend any Bulls' fans or NBA fans in general, but imo Pip is the one of the most over-rated guys in NBA history.  The quintessential coat tail rider in my book.  

So for the folks that seem to agree with this, what does that mean about Jordan? Was the era the Bulls dominated that bad? Why didn't the Bulls have hardly any fall off when Jordan "retired" the first time? Why was Scottie so easily able to step in and play like an MVP in Jordan's place? 

 

[dgambill]

To get this back to relevant NBA conversations and not about guys that have are just trying to cash in on what little fame they have left.....the Suns vs Clippers presents an interesting question....who stands more to lose...Chris Paul or Paul George if their team flames out again? So many things go into both these guys and how they have led their team to this point but yet both have had significant struggles in this series...and both have legacies of coming up short.

[KoB2011]

31 minutes ago, FKIM01 said:

No doubt.  Statistically, they were pretty close career-wise, but I'm guessing Pippen had a lot more point-blank looks playing with MJ.

Wait.... Kukoc and Pippen are statistically pretty close? Are we saying they are similarly talented players? 

[KoB2011]

1 minute ago, dgambill said:

To get this back to relevant NBA conversations and not about guys that have are just trying to cash in on what little fame they have left.....the Suns vs Clippers presents an interesting question....who stands more to lose...Chris Paul or Paul George if their team flames out again? So many things go into both these guys and how they have led their team to this point but yet both have had significant struggles in this series...and both have legacies of coming up short.

This is a really tough question. I think since CP3 has less shots left at a title and he isn't being asked to do this without the teams best player I'd have to say he has more to lose. 

[dgambill]

1 minute ago, KoB2011 said:

This is a really tough question. I think since CP3 has less shots left at a title and he isn't being asked to do this without the teams best player I'd have to say he has more to lose. 

And from a legacy point of view if he doesn't get it done is it as big a hit to his career being he is well past prime CP3 or does this hurt PG more who is at or around the peak of his skill to not get it done?

[rico]

13 minutes ago, KoB2011 said:

So for the folks that seem to agree with this, what does that mean about Jordan? Was the era the Bulls dominated that bad? Why didn't the Bulls have hardly any fall off when Jordan "retired" the first time? Why was Scottie so easily able to step in and play like an MVP in Jordan's place? 

 

Good question.  And yes, they did fall off.  They would have been nothing if MJ didn't return.  

[dgambill]

4 minutes ago, rico said:

Good question.  And yes, they did fall off.  They would have been nothing if MJ didn't return.  

93-94 finished 55-27 (two games worse) 94-95 47-35 but they had lost all-star Horace Grant as well. It wasn't just losing MJ but it was they really didn't replace him with anything at all honestly. Kukoc wasn't really an MJ replacement. I'd say the Bulls didn't fall off too much. I mean let's look at every team Lebron has left and talk about a falling off lol.