BobSaccamanno

The football player we have who is an especially damn good basketball player is Javon Swinton. Stud.

Interesting article on power rankings. https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-power-rankings-lakers-reload-for-title-defense-bucks-add-talent-warriors-nets-enter-as-wild-cards/

From what I’ve seen, Theis to me is a pretty solid backup big.

I doubt anyone will agree with me but I don’t think Hayward is worth $30 M per year for four years. What confirms it is that the Hornets paid that. They are one of the most bumbling franchises in all of North American sports. As for Hayward, take into account his age and history, and that’s an ill advised contract from the Hornets perspective, IMO. We won’t need to look at that in two years and use hindsight. We can see it now, today. He is a nice player but he’s gone into folk hero status.

So do the Celtics have $30 M to sign free agents now?

I agree. I thought the Bulls would get smarter by getting Gar Forman out. I didn’t like the pick at four. I thought they would either get Dani or trade up to 2. I suppose they are hoping the kid can be like John Collins but he really doesn’t strike me as a winner. That roster is a total cluster. Nothing fits, and they don’t have guys with the winner gene. Regarding the Bears, both the head coach and the GM have got to go. I am sorry but trading up for Trubisky when Mahomes and Watson went later is a “clean your office out on the spot” situation. He’s Grigson-level dumb. That’s a defining moment that is fireable and then they get Foles? That guy is such a stiff. It should tell you something when three other organizations have cut him loose. He is really bad. The head coach has no idea what he’s doing. They’ve already won too many games to get Lawrence or Fields but you need an organizational enema to get the decision makers out of there to get it fixed. The Bears are a core league franchise and the right guys can fix this. Nagy and Pace are not worthy and don’t fit.

Best of luck with the business! That’s really cool.

I expected Pritchard to go in the second but I love the pick. If he proves to be quick enough to defend, I think he will be solid. I saw him play a few games late at night and he was outstanding at that level. I don’t have his stats in front of me but I think he really takes care of the ball and can shoot lights out. He’s got an edgy attitude, and I tend to love edgy guys like that. Brown and Smart are my favorite Celtics but Pritchard will be up there for me. Guys that make the tough/clutch, team oriented play. Winners.

I agree with you on their depth. Let’s see who they round off the roster with before we make a judgment. Bogan is a far better asset than Hill by the way. He was a hot commodity. I saw one listing where was rated the fourth best player available.

I thought that too. I think the analytics guys have studied draft picks. After a handful of guys in each draft, they tend to be overvalued. The minute you drive the kid off the lot, his value dips. I think the math guys have figured that out. I think what you’re seeing is the devaluing of draft picks.

Who do you guys like in the draft? Mediocre draft. The two guys I like at the top are Wiseman and Dani Avedija. Wiseman I believe is undervalued because people poo poo bigs. He is crazy long and mobile. I expect him to be an impact guy as he gets stronger. I’m enamored with Dani based on the clips I saw. Very skilled guy at 6’10 and I think he will defend unlike a lot of EP players. If the Chicago Bulls get him, that’s a steal. They’ve been a mess but with Gar Forman gone, they may get resurrected although it will take time. Their parts are disjointed and don’t remotely fit well together. I do think Markkenan can be better than he has shown. Maybe Donavan brings that out. I have my doubts on Edwards and Ball. Just not my cup of tea in terms of winning. The other guy I like is Halliburton. Down the list, there are a ton of guys who are interchangeable. From about 12-25, I’m not sure how much of a difference there is.

I’m not buying what you’re selling. Last year, teams built the wall defense to stop Giannis. But other than Middleton, nobody could come through and get buckets. Bledsoe is complicated. He’s first team all defense and a good regular season player. But when Giannis needed guys to take pressure off him in the playoffs, everyone tightened up. Now they got Bogdan who is his buddy from Europe along with a tough two way player in Holiday. Those guys address elements that were severely lacking. As far as finishing out the roster, they will get guys who want to win. That happened last year and you would expect it again. There are guys who want to contend and there’s opportunity to play there. I’d much rather see Milwaukee be competitive and get some more fresh blood like Toronto. I agree with KoB, as usual, as they will need a wing defender who is tough. Maybe somebody in the mold of one of the Morris twins. It sounds like Giannis is staying. I saw that on Twitter so it must be true. They were playing it coy to make Miami and Dallas hesitate to spend this year.

That’s fine, but they are still taking advantage of deep pockets. If Kershaw were on Cleveland or Cincinnati or KC, he’d be gone. Betts is quite an exception don’t you think? What’s his contract $350 M? Another rich team in the Bosox wouldn’t even pay for him. Are the Indians giving out that contract? And he played great for the Dodgers. They may not have won without him. My whole point here is that baseball does not have an even playing field. Football does. Basketball kind of does, but I’d like to see small market teams keep the guys they develop. I like to see all markets benefit. I’m not just saying that because I am from Indiana either. Take college football. Who here isn’t bored by Clemson, Alabama, OSU, and Georgia or LSU every GD year being in the playoffs? It’d be fun to have it change up.

I agree it’s not as egregious as the Yankees. That’s why I threw on the “to an extent.” I also respect their drafting and farm system as they drafted Seager, Lux, Buehler, Will Smith and more. But small markets could never afford the Betts contact. So i think we have to acknowledge that the Dodgers do take advantage of having deep pockets. They spend money. Smaller market teams don’t have that kind of payroll.

I hope Giannis signs the Supermax. I just think it’s more fun that way. I think small market teams developing is good for the sport. In that same football market, you wouldn’t have to worry about Favre or Rodgers leaving and no one cares that they stay in the same small market. Or 18 playing in Indianapolis. And both franchises won Super Bowls. Baseball is the opposite. You have the Yankees and to an extent the Dodgers buying themselves into contention every year. That’s tedious.

The Suns have a good nucleus. Paul, Booker, Saric, Ayton. Some young guys like Bridges. The question is whether Paul will stay healthy. They will need an alpha lead guard for the long term. But I understand the deal. They want a savvy veteran to show the young guys the way.

Good thoughts. He seems sincerely intrigued by IU. The reason I say that is that his quotes aren’t just fluff. You know when a kid has been trained to say vague positive things about a school, it looks good until you break down what he says, which is essentially nothing. But, here, he put some meat on the bones with good reasons he likes IU. My sense is this a kid to go all out for because it may be mutual interest. And I like that he’s smart and knows the game.

Congrats. Really happy for you guys. May you have a long and happy marriage. You know what’s on deck, now? Lol

If Archie deems him worthy, I have no problem with him getting a scholly even if we have two other top point guards. With 13 schollies, there is a spot or two free for the the tough, team oriented, run-through-a-brick-wall kid. I like Archie’s emphasis on multiple point guards. Playing them together can work and be a challenge to the other teams. Having a third in Smith might seem odd, but like I said, with 13 schollies, I think it can be done. I think he’d be great for the culture unless I’m reading the kid totally wrong.

I’m so jealous. I’d absolutely love to be in a war room during the draft. You wouldn’t even have to pay me. Frankly, I’d especially love this for football.

They are obviously crowded at his position.

Good interview. Seems like a smart player with a good understanding of the game. His high school has produced some serious talent. Luckily it hasn’t been a pipeline to one school. We definitely need at least one—if not two—bigs in that class. I think he said he’s interested in business and marketing. Boy, do I have a school for him!

Good looking couple, Btown. You bring up the cool factor in our membership lol.

Fair enough. I never would have touched Ellis. He’s got a loser’s game to me. But that team that gave Miami all it could handle in its heyday was a creation of Larry’s. Lance was a really nice piece there and Larry saw something in him. Lance has fallen off a cliff and it coincides with not being around Larry. He also resurrected Jalen who was drifting before Larry got him. West, like you said. Being the architect of that team was pretty strong to get that far. This was a total revamp from the Reggie/Davises/Smits crew. And that team didn’t win it all, but as a coach, Larry had them humming on all cylinders and believing. I think he’s got a good basketball mind. In the end, there were some problems but that would gloss over some of his earlier successes. I think one of his best attributes is taking a player, relating to him, and getting him to believe in an optimal game for himself. And because he is who he is, players pay attention. And it transcended any race. Sure, we can agree the end might not have been ideal but other GMs have gotten some things wrong, Pat Riley included.

I know you’ve been on record about your view on Larry. I obviously highly respect your view and see your POV. I just think it’s very difficult to literally go from one roster to another without falling into the abyss. Even the Lakers and Celtics have fallen apart at times. He rebuilt the franchise without getting a chance to draft at the top even once. Maybe in a way that was counterproductive but I still weigh that heavily. I’d have to spend the time to recall all of his moves but I do recall thinking in real time that he made some wise choices too. The end may have been rough but the very good things he did carry heavy weight in my mind. Anyway we can agree to disagree. I will agree that my opinion is colored by my fondness for Larry who is my all time favorite player. Quick Larry story. My brother and my nephew (who is a good high school player now) was in an opponent‘s arena in corporate seats pretty close to the court. Long before the game started, he saw Larry nearby in another row. He started walking over and the security guard said don’t bother Larry! Keep in mind that the arena wasn’t very full yet. Anyway, the security guard looked away and my brother made a beeline for Larry. All it took was my brother to say he was from Indiana and mention that we went to his camp when we were kids, and Larry was incredibly nice and engaged in a great conversation. Larry may not be media savvy but he’s very loyal to fellow Hoosiers.