Hoosierhoopster

Troy should land somewhere, he’s done a lot to prove himself. Pacers could use him on the wing.

That sucks - but glad it’s not a knee. meanwhile, pretty clear the Cavs are a lot better now, manhandling the C’s in Boston

That's fair, no doubt. It's true that LeBron has been holding Cleveland hostage, but then again with Gilbert, maybe he should. Still, there are those stories about how he brings his guys on the plane, etc. and how Kyrie didn't like that -- his teams are very much about him, and as great a player as he is, and as well as he sees the game, maybe the all-about-LeBron thing is catching up with him. Anyway, will be interesting to see if all these moves (I've never seen a team make this many trade-deadline moves) can work this deep into the season. Some "experts" see Cleveland as the team to beat now in the East, others see Cleveland as a big question mark on chemistry and fit, should make for an interesting next couple of months.

Kyrie wanted out at the beginning of the summer and it had nothing to do with LeBron committing -- he wanted away from LeBron so he could pave his own path. And why do you think LeBron constructed that team? He has been fighting with Gilbert for a while now, including about Gilbert's failure to make good moves -- and then who did Gilbert fire earlier this year, and why, and how did that go over with the players, or for that matter everyone in the NBA? I don't think you're really following the Cavs.

I don't know, Gilbert is an idiot, and he and LeBron have not been on good terms for a bit now, while the Cavs have largely failed to put a good team around LeBron, this year, while he took them and every other team he's played on for multiple years now to the Finals. And yes, he brought the Cavs their championship, which is as much as any Clevelander could ask for. I'm not trying to come off like a big LeBron fan, but he's pretty deserving and Dan Gilbert is a nimrod. Just look at how this season started, the 'front office' moves he makes are moronic.

My bet is the Spurs. He loves Pop, the Spurs were already looking at trading Green today, and a LeBron/Kawhi team will compete.

Yes I can see all of that re IT, and yes, I feel bad for him. He was a stud last season, maybe it's still unclear what the long term outlook is on his injury. Cavs have been trading like crazy today, now they have George Hill and Rodney Hood, while trading Wade (back to Heat), Shumpert, and Crowder (another high level player who is getting shipped around), and Rose (to Utah). Cavs are probably a decent bit better now. Hill (if he stays healthy) adds both very good D to go with excellent outside shooting, and another ball handler, and Hood can score. So looks like LeBron holding the Cavs' organization to the fire forced them to get better, fwiw. Whether it's good enough, I don't know. That's a lot of change to accommodate at this point in the season, but the Cavs were really struggling, obviously, and especially on D.

Not Hoosiers-related, but wow, Cavs just dealt I Thomas (and Channing Frye) to the Lakers. For Nance and Clarkson. Thomas has gone from leading the C's to the East Finals and being one of the most prolific scorers in the League to getting tossed out by the Cavs while being mid-way through getting his legs back under him.

I didn't know, thanks for posting that. This season's injuries are crazy. All kinds of players, and especially top flight players, getting serious injuries. Something in the water??

^^ I don't know, he gave Troy a contract with Houston. It's just that he's a young player on a loaded team that is probably headed for a showdown with GS in the West Conf Finals. Playing time in the G League is a good thing, and great to see he is excelling. 7 3's!

But then the Pacers' playoff chances just got better -- http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/22263710/washington-wizards-star-john-wall-undergo-knee-procedure

It's not that it's a lost art, it's that it's a less efficient shot and the League is moving away from it, particularly the long 2. The bank shot is a lost art, but there are multiple players still shooting 2's (DeRozan, etc.), while they're shooting less of them and especially the long 2.

I can't tell if this is better or worse for the Pistons, but I suspect it will be better. I'm not much of a Griffin fan (for those who don't like complainers, he's the #1 complainer in the League, and his behavioral issues are more than well documented -- how many guys have actually punched an assistant coach??), but pairing him with Drummond is a good move. He is better than Tobias Harris -- when healthy (and his health is never guaranteed, so that's another question mark), and as much as I like Bradely he wasn't playing great this season. This also may have the Pistons playing more inspired ball. I suspect the Pacers' playoff hopes did just get tougher, not easier, but there are reasons to see it both ways. Decent article on the trade here - http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/22258759/zach-lowe-blake-griffin-trade-future-la-clippers-detroit-pistons

What are you talking about, I mean, tonight Westbrook took 33 shots, twice as many as anyone else on the team.... Oh wait

It's too bad you can't face reality

Paul George replacing D Cousin on team LeBron, All Star Game. https://sportsnaut.com/2018/01/paul-george-replacing-demarcus-cousins-nba-star-game/

Could be -- but then also can't look at those comments in a vacuum. He was all about the Pacers, then Bird traded away and lost literally every single teammate he had, and ultimately brought in Teague, among others, at best, a mistake. Put yourself in his shoes for a minute, how much love do you have for a team that trades away (or loses, in the case of West, due to Bird's idiotic treatment of Hibbert) every one of your teammates, and "builds" a worse team? Pritchard has been doing great - now that Bird is gone. I don't really know if PG is capable of being a good leader, he may not be, but when making judgments, it's good to consider the circumstances.

I think you took me a little too seriously, that was tongue in cheek. K Thompson is clearly an outstanding player, any team would love to have him. Outside of kidding around, I'm just saying you can think Thompson can do what PG has done, but that's still speculation, as he's only been a second man, never a first.

It was after they lost to OKC. What PG has proven that Klay hasn't? Leading a team as the number one option and franchise player on both sides of the ball. There is literally no one in the League who will call Klay T a franchise player, because he isn't and has never been. Could he be, who knows? Klay came through on the biggest stage as a secondary player, playing with the MVP, and now two of them, that's entirely different. It's kind of silly to say Klay has proved what PG hasn't, isn't it?

Just a quick follow up, Brooks had something to say about PG: "He is one of the best in the league," Brooks said following the Wizards' 121-112 loss to the Thunder on Thursday, according to ESPN.com's Royce Young. "Guarding anyone on the floor is what makes him, well, not an All-Star, but we all know he is. He's the best two-way player in basketball." http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2756061-scott-brooks-says-paul-george-is-best-2-way-player-in-basketball Article goes on -- Through Thursday night's win over the Wizards—the Thunder's sixth straight—George is averaging 20.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and a league-leading 2.2 steals per game. The 27-year-old is also in the midst of shooting a career-best 41.7 percent from three. On top of that, George ranks first among all players in deflections per game (4.4) and fourth in loose balls recovered (1.7 per game). "There's a lot of players in the league that are great offensive players, but they're not great defensive players," Thunder head coach Billy Donovan said, according to the Associated Press' Cliff Brunt. "I think arguably, it would be hard to make a case either way of what end of the floor he's better on, offense or defense, because he's that special." Again fair points, but to me PG has proven what K Thompson can only be speculated to do.

Good discussion. And yes, no doubt Klay T is an exceptional 2-guard.

I think I agree with that, although with LeBron it's awfully close. He doesn't win that last title without Kyrie's outstanding Game 7, but then wasn't that the series when he led in basically every box category? Anyway, as to PG and Klay I was talking about the "primary player," the best player who leads the team. Klay's never been that, and at best it's an assumption that he could do it. It's one thing to be the player leading the team that the other team largely keys on, it's another to be shooting next to Curry, and now also Durant. Just having those guys on the floor creates tremendous space. Could Klay have been the Man for the Pacers and gone head to head with LeBron? I don't think so.

Fair debate there. Whether PG can be the primary player on a championship team is a question -- I think he could be, with the right players around him. He's flat out dominated in the playoffs, as the best player on the floor in various series (remember that Toronto series?). He's not LeBron, but then no one else is either. On the other hand, he may be that Pippin like player -- Pippin didn't and may not have been able to lead a team to a championship, but what a player he was. On Klay, again, he's only been a #2. He certainly helped GS win a title, but he didn't "win" it, he helped.

That is certainly fair Gleas. My thing with Klay is that he has never been the primary option, never a franchise player, never led his team -- he's always been second, or now third, to a League MVP -- Curry and now Durant. Could he be as productive, on both sides of the ball, if he didn't have those guys? I don't know, I don't think so (he's often inconsistent, one big game followed by duds), but I haven't seen it. With PG, we've seen him be the star and on both sides of the ball and with other strong players as well as with a weak cast.