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NBA
May 1, 2019 2:51:31 GMT
B.E. likes this
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 1, 2019 2:51:31 GMT
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NBA
May 3, 2019 13:07:48 GMT
Post by Kapitan on May 3, 2019 13:07:48 GMT
Another big win for Philly. If they can keep Embiid healthy and get something more out of their bench, this could be a very, very good playoff run for them. But I do worry about the bench. Seems they traded it away their depth to get Butler and Harris.
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NBA
May 3, 2019 20:55:27 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 3, 2019 20:55:27 GMT
After seeing most Sixers' games this year, I thought I had a pretty good grasp on the team. However, they are proving me wrong. Fortunately. I thought (think?) that Toronto was the better team. Of course there is a long way to go in this series. Embiid is certainly looking spry and healthy (knees) this week which is essential if they're going to make a run. Jimmy Butler is finally making an impact, and the chemistry is looking better. Yeah, the bench is thin; Brett Brown is actually giving T.J. McConnell's minutes to Butler. But Mike Scott and James Ennis are playing their best basketball of the year. The key's gonna be Embiid's health, though.We'll see what happens on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the 76ers lost an assistant coach:
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NBA
May 3, 2019 22:22:59 GMT
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Post by Kapitan on May 3, 2019 22:22:59 GMT
I have no doubt Philly has the better roster at the top: starting 5 is no contest. But depth, yeah, that could be the issue, especially with Joel Embiid apparently permanently in injury-management mode for the coming decade.
Monty Williams is a good coach. Will be interesting to see how he is affected by annoying, intrusive Robert Sarver. But hey, Booker & Ayton (and Josh Jackson) aren’t a bad place to begin.
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NBA
May 6, 2019 22:22:32 GMT
Post by B.E. on May 6, 2019 22:22:32 GMT
Season is on the line for the Celtics. Will be interesting to see how they perform.
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NBA
May 6, 2019 22:54:11 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 6, 2019 22:54:11 GMT
Season is on the line for the Celtics. Will be interesting to see how they perform. Marcus Smart has been cleared to play tonight, but you don't know how effective he'll be.
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NBA
May 6, 2019 23:06:20 GMT
Post by Kapitan on May 6, 2019 23:06:20 GMT
At least he'll try.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 0:45:04 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 9, 2019 0:45:04 GMT
These Lakers are something else:
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NBA
May 9, 2019 1:32:46 GMT
Post by B.E. on May 9, 2019 1:32:46 GMT
These Lakers are something else:
How great would it be if the Lakers hired David Blatt?
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NBA
May 9, 2019 1:41:10 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 9, 2019 1:41:10 GMT
These Lakers are something else:
How great would it be if the Lakers hired David Blatt? Ha ha! This might be of interest to the Kapitan, but I heard on one of the morning sports talk shows that the Lakers were even considering bringing in Tom Thibodeau as a "defensive guru" assistant coach.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 14:19:57 GMT
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Post by Kapitan on May 9, 2019 14:19:57 GMT
I find the Lakers situation remarkable … and not in a good way. They have been sufficiently bumbling in so many areas over the past decade or so that even when they find themselves in good situations, they find ways to ruin them. Starting late in Kobe’s career, I felt they regularly screwed up strategically. Giving him his final contract, which I want to say was something like two years, $50 million, was ridiculous: everyone knew he couldn’t produce on the court at a level commensurate with that deal, and simultaneously the deal hamstrung them from bringing in other good talent. They couldn’t decide on how they’d play, who they’d be, so they went through head coaches the way bad franchises (which I know something about!) do: after Phil, you had Mike Brown, Bernie Bickerstaff, Mike D’Antoni, Byron Scott, and Luke Walton since 2011. They began stockpiling young talent only to lose or deal much of it away with very little to show for it. Do you recall what they got for (all-star) D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle, Larry Nance, Jordan Clarkson, Thomas Bryant, or Ivica Zubac? Their lack of strategy meant their retained young talent—down to Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Kyle Kuzma—spent the past few years sometimes getting experience as future cornerstones but other times backing up veterans like Rajon Rondo, Kentavious Caldwell Pope, Nick Young, JaVale McGee, etc., in an attempt to appease Lebron or squeeze out a few wins for … what purpose? The result is that they might not have enough talent to make the major, max-level trade they’ve wanted (e.g. Anthony Davis). But they could still entice someone via free agency, right? I mean, that’s why they brought in Magic Freakin’ Johnson! But Magic Johnson unexpectedly quit because he didn’t want to have to force Jeannie Buss to fire Luke Walton, who was then fired anyway. Meanwhile, in the past few seasons, we’ve seen max level free agents sign in places like OKC (both Westbrook and George). And now they’ve been spurned by both of their coaching candidates and are digging deeper into the pool of available candidates. What do the Lakers really have right now? PG: Lonzo Ball is a brilliant passer, good defender, and a solid court leader. He also has the most insufferable father since Murry Wilson and is hurt all the time. SG: Nothing. SF: Lebron James remains one of the best players on earth. He also is almost like the player equivalent of hiring Larry Brown or Doug Collins as your coach: development ends and you go all-in with as many vets as possible. Brandon Ingram is beginning to look like a really good NBA player, and he’s young enough that he can still get a lot better. Plus his improvement hints that he WILL get better, not just be a bundle of wasted potential (a la Andrew Wiggins). PF: Kyle Kuzma can play here or at center and score points. He won’t defend. At least not well. C: Nothing. How is this team going to get back to the playoffs, much less the finals? And maybe capping it off, Stephen A. Smith was screaming (because he only ever screams) that he hears Jeannie Buss is being advised to trade Lebron. You know what? I’d strongly consider it.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 15:57:54 GMT
via mobile
Post by Kapitan on May 9, 2019 15:57:54 GMT
I was thinking this morning, four of the most interesting offseasons in the NBA are going to be coming from the league’s traditional powerhouse franchises: Boston, Los Angeles Lakers, New York, and Philadelphia. Clearly they aren’t entering on equal terms, as New York was abysmal, the Lakers were mediocre to bad, and Boston and Philly were second-round playoff teams (or potentially better, in the case of Philly, though I doubt it). But they are all facing really big decisions that could dramatically alter their near futures for better or worse. The Lakers, I talked about above. They might revert to truly terrible status, which would be just a disaster for that franchise considering they spent the past two years or so positioning themselves to be a powerhouse again. Or they could pull off one or two key moves and be right back in the mix for a top 4 seed, if not a dominant team. Boston has quietly come to a similar point. For a few years they have obtained tons of draft picks, using some on what is now good young talent, trading some, but still with plenty to spare. Yet they might lose (in order of likelihood) Marcus Morris (unrestricted free agent), Terry Rozier (restricted free agent), Kyrie Irving (opt out), and Al Horford (opt out). Another of their purported stars, Gordon Hayward, was more bad than good this season coming off his injury, and wasn’t ever a real superstar to begin with. This season seems to have messed with both Jaylen Brown’s and Jayson Tatum’s heads. And there is STILL the Anthony Davis trade chatter/spectre. New York has been awful to mediocre for … well, 20 years, more or less. Yet there is young talent in Dennis Smith, Alonzo Trier, Kevin Knox, Frank Ntilikina, and Mitchell Robinson. Not a bad start. And that’s before you take into account the likelihood that they bring in some free agents, as a KD-Kyrie or KD-Kemba pairing has been more than rumored. Will we see another disastrous summer of overpayments, as we so often have with New York? (Amar’e Stoudamire, Joakim Noah, etc.) Or do things finally come together? There is now even some talk that they’ll sign Kyrie and KD outright and deal for Anthony Davis. That would make an instantly interesting team, though you’d have to presumably give up the likes of Zion (assuming it’s #1), Knox, Smith, and Robinson. Philadelphia, like Boston, seemed near the end of “the process” and ready to reap rewards, but this season’s trades really jumbled the picture there as well. So now we’ve got their two best players not really great playing together because one can’t shoot and frankly one is always sick or hurt. Then their next best two players are both unrestricted free agents who will want max deals. The fifth best player is a mid-thirtysomething guard, which begs the question of how much longer he’s going to be a quality player, especially on defense. Many of their other high picks and prospects are either gone or long gone. (Markelle Fultz, Landry Shamet, Dario Saric, Jahlil Okafor, and even back to Nerlens Noel) It’s entirely possible that three or even four of those Big Five from this roster are gone next season. It’s one thing when teams like Atlanta, Milwaukee, or Orlando have pivotal summers ahead. But it’s very interesting when we’re taking about arguably the league’s historical Big Four.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 19:58:04 GMT
via mobile
Post by Kapitan on May 9, 2019 19:58:04 GMT
KD out the rest of the series. It’s going to be really interesting to see whether the Warriors can close out without him, especially since he has been their only (mostly) consist scorer in the playoffs.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 20:34:04 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 9, 2019 20:34:04 GMT
I was thinking this morning, four of the most interesting offseasons in the NBA are going to be coming from the league’s traditional powerhouse franchises: Boston, Los Angeles Lakers, New York, and Philadelphia. Clearly they aren’t entering on equal terms, as New York was abysmal, the Lakers were mediocre to bad, and Boston and Philly were second-round playoff teams (or potentially better, in the case of Philly, though I doubt it). But they are all facing really big decisions that could dramatically alter their near futures for better or worse. The Lakers, I talked about above. They might revert to truly terrible status, which would be just a disaster for that franchise considering they spent the past two years or so positioning themselves to be a powerhouse again. Or they could pull off one or two key moves and be right back in the mix for a top 4 seed, if not a dominant team. Boston has quietly come to a similar point. For a few years they have obtained tons of draft picks, using some on what is now good young talent, trading some, but still with plenty to spare. Yet they might lose (in order of likelihood) Marcus Morris (unrestricted free agent), Terry Rozier (restricted free agent), Kyrie Irving (opt out), and Al Horford (opt out). Another of their purported stars, Gordon Hayward, was more bad than good this season coming off his injury, and wasn’t ever a real superstar to begin with. This season seems to have messed with both Jaylen Brown’s and Jayson Tatum’s heads. And there is STILL the Anthony Davis trade chatter/spectre. New York has been awful to mediocre for … well, 20 years, more or less. Yet there is young talent in Dennis Smith, Alonzo Trier, Kevin Knox, Frank Ntilikina, and Mitchell Robinson. Not a bad start. And that’s before you take into account the likelihood that they bring in some free agents, as a KD-Kyrie or KD-Kemba pairing has been more than rumored. Will we see another disastrous summer of overpayments, as we so often have with New York? (Amar’e Stoudamire, Joakim Noah, etc.) Or do things finally come together? There is now even some talk that they’ll sign Kyrie and KD outright and deal for Anthony Davis. That would make an instantly interesting team, though you’d have to presumably give up the likes of Zion (assuming it’s #1), Knox, Smith, and Robinson. Philadelphia, like Boston, seemed near the end of “the process” and ready to reap rewards, but this season’s trades really jumbled the picture there as well. So now we’ve got their two best players not really great playing together because one can’t shoot and frankly one is always sick or hurt. Then their next best two players are both unrestricted free agents who will want max deals. The fifth best player is a mid-thirtysomething guard, which begs the question of how much longer he’s going to be a quality player, especially on defense. Many of their other high picks and prospects are either gone or long gone. (Markelle Fultz, Landry Shamet, Dario Saric, Jahlil Okafor, and even back to Nerlens Noel) It’s entirely possible that three or even four of those Big Five from this roster are gone next season. It’s one thing when teams like Atlanta, Milwaukee, or Orlando have pivotal summers ahead. But it’s very interesting when we’re taking about arguably the league’s historical Big Four. I agree with your assessments.
To me, the biggest surprise has been Boston. It was just a year ago this week that they dominated the Sixers who were supposed to be their biggest "rival" for the next five years. They had the best young nucleus in basketball and a hot new coach to lead them. If I was Danny Ainge, I would try to calm things down a bit. I don't think it's time to panic. First, I would make sure Kyrie is either in or out. Despite all of his annoying complaining, I think he will be in. I'm not familiar with Boston's salary cap situation, but I would try to keep as many of their existing players as possible, nail their 1st Round draft pick, and go from there.
The other surprise would be the Lakers. I still don't think there were/are as bad as their record, and I think they are only one superstar away from doing something next year. You lose Lonzo Ball and Lebron James for a quarter of the season and guess what, you're gonna lose a lot of those games. I also think the Lakers have some nice young talent. Keep that young talent together, get back a healthy Ball and James, make the right choice of head coach - and sign a top free agent - and the Lakers will be fine.
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NBA
May 9, 2019 20:40:54 GMT
Post by Sheriff John Stone on May 9, 2019 20:40:54 GMT
KD out the rest of the series. It’s going to be really interesting to see whether the Warriors can close out without him, especially since he has been their only (mostly) consist scorer in the playoffs. And it's ironic that one of the main reasons the Warriors signed Boogie Cousins was to be a kind of insurance policy. Now they could really use him. Is Cousins done for the year?
I'm gonna predict that the Warriors will still win the series without Durant. However, my predictions lately haven't been very good.
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