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2019-20 NBA Thread: new forum, same great taste (5 Viewers)

Long Ball Larry said:
None of us are perfect and we all have different issues that we have to get to and saying that is my right as an American. Doesn't mean I that hate my country, it means I want to address things.

We can play this game all we want and go all over the map. The world is a complex place and there's more gray than black and white.
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I hear you. Just a hard squad to get excited about now. All the build-up from AD leaving, to the draft lottery, to drafting Zion and two other 1st rounders, good front office hires (?), improved medical staff (?), etc. It's been a big drop. The Pelicans weren't supposed to start the season quite this rough, I don't think.

Maybe I'm stupid about the NBA, but I thought the Pelicans were destined to be a 7 or 8 seed this year. Was counting on maybe .400 ball until the first of the year or so, and then an uptick to a solid .600+ squad to ride out the season. Maybe like 17-24 record over the first half, 27-14 second half. Something like that. 

I went and looked just out of curiosity. The Cavaliers didn't have a winning record until LeBron's third year with the team (2005-06).

 
Simmons just released “the book of basketball 2” — on podcast. The first episode is “the secret” :mellow:  

 
Doug B said:
I hear you. Just a hard squad to get excited about now. All the build-up from AD leaving, to the draft lottery, to drafting Zion and two other 1st rounders, good front office hires (?), improved medical staff (?), etc. It's been a big drop. The Pelicans weren't supposed to start the season quite this rough, I don't think.

Maybe I'm stupid about the NBA, but I thought the Pelicans were destined to be a 7 or 8 seed this year. Was counting on maybe .400 ball until the first of the year or so, and then an uptick to a solid .600+ squad to ride out the season. Maybe like 17-24 record over the first half, 27-14 second half. Something like that. 

I went and looked just out of curiosity. The Cavaliers didn't have a winning record until LeBron's third year with the team (2005-06).
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just so you know, that was a quote from Steve Kerr when asked about the China situation...

 
Doug B said:
I hear you. Just a hard squad to get excited about now. All the build-up from AD leaving, to the draft lottery, to drafting Zion and two other 1st rounders, good front office hires (?), improved medical staff (?), etc. It's been a big drop. The Pelicans weren't supposed to start the season quite this rough, I don't think.

Maybe I'm stupid about the NBA, but I thought the Pelicans were destined to be a 7 or 8 seed this year. Was counting on maybe .400 ball until the first of the year or so, and then an uptick to a solid .600+ squad to ride out the season. Maybe like 17-24 record over the first half, 27-14 second half. Something like that. 

I went and looked just out of curiosity. The Cavaliers didn't have a winning record until LeBron's third year with the team (2005-06).
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definitely never destined for that.  They were expected to be in that mix, but I would say that they were generally expected to be in the mix for anyone between 7 and 11.  People were overly hyped for Zion for sure.  Obviously his absence isn't helping.   They brought in a lot of nice pieces, but it just takes a while to get it all to fit together right.   One thing that is a little surprising, though also may take a long time to get together, is how bad the defense is.  Bzdelik is widely regarded as one of, if not the best defensive coach in the NBA.  But that will also take some time to figure out and get them to know how to work.

 
Craig_MiamiFL said:
Brandon Ingram is the only reason they've been competitive in any games this year. 
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Ingram is definitely playing well, but c'mon.  Jrue Holiday is a top 10 defensive player and can seemlessly play the 1, 2, or 3 alongside any other combination of talent around him.  He's underrated big-time by too many NBA fans.

General Malaise said:
Zach Collins will be out for the year with a torn labrum.  Blazers' team having a rough go.
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That's a bummer.  I really like his energy on defense and he has nice inside moves and a developing 3.  He was fouling too often on defense and was learning when to create his offense, but I really liked what I saw from him at the 4 early on.  The Blazers may need to pull out another Enes Kanter like pickup this season.

 
trader jake said:
Ingram is definitely playing well, but c'mon.  Jrue Holiday is a top 10 defensive player and can seemlessly play the 1, 2, or 3 alongside any other combination of talent around him.  He's underrated big-time by too many NBA fans.

That's a bummer.  I really like his energy on defense and he has nice inside moves and a developing 3.  He was fouling too often on defense and was learning when to create his offense, but I really liked what I saw from him at the 4 early on.  The Blazers may need to pull out another Enes Kanter like pickup this season.
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Jrue is great, but hasn't been good. Because of the new talent and a slow/hurt start, it ain't his team yet as it should be. He gotta step up before the big'un comes back

ETA: Blaze can have Enes back, far as i'm concerned. Celts are soft & weak in the middle (is there anything worse than hoping Noah chooses your team?), but theyre soft, weak & slow w Kanter there.

 
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trader jake said:
Ingram is definitely playing well, but c'mon.  Jrue Holiday is a top 10 defensive player and can seemlessly play the 1, 2, or 3 alongside any other combination of talent around him.  He's underrated big-time by too many NBA fans.
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I'm not discounting Jrue. I'm a fan. He's also missed 2 games and shooting 37% from the field. He's not been anything but average (at best) this year so far  :shrug: . There's been times he's been very very good during his career (i.e. when he and Rondo swallowed up the Blazers backcourt in the 2018 playoffs). He simply hasn't been good THIS SEASON at all to date........on either end. 

Brandon Ingram is the lone reason why they've even been competitive in these games this season. I mean it's not even debatable if you watch the games. There's not been a single team that has been able to stop him. His usage rate is 28%.....if anything, that's not enough. He's one of the most enjoyable offensive players in the league IMO to watch. If he's able to continue to hit from deep at anywhere near the rate he is now, he's going to be in the conversation for best offensive player in the game really really soon. There won't be a level teams will be able to stop him at. No one can stop his midrange or getting to the bucket already. The kid just turned 22 (!!!) and still obviously has room to fill out his body.

Defensively as a team they're not stopping anyone.........with or without Jrue this season.  They've allowed under 115 points ONCE in 7 games!!!!!!

If you want to go back and watch the 5 games Jrue's played in this year and tell me in which of those 5 games he's played well defensively, I'll be happy to listen. :lol:  I can guarantee you you aren't finding any games. He's not been good this season to date. (Which is all I'm saying.....I'm not discounting/disagreeing about his career resume or how he's been perceived in the past).

 
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Are the Lakers going to keep jerking around without a point guard or is Lebron going to take matters into his own hands and stop this foolishness?

 
Craig_MiamiFL said:
If you want to go back and watch the 5 games Jrue's played in this year and tell me in which of those 5 games he's played well defensively, I'll be happy to listen. 
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Jrue was very good defensively in the home opener against the Mavs.  One of the single best defensive moments of the season thus far was him locking down Porzingis in the post in back-to-back possessions in the 4th quarter.

That said, I agree with the majority of your post. Excellent points on the Pels overall.

 
RUSF18 said:
I can't believe he was able to base a book - and sell a ton of them - on such bull#### that he got from Isiah effing Thomas of all people.
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The Book of Basketball was awesome.  Pat Riley's "the disease of more" is legit when it comes to building a long-term winner in basketball IMO.  It's what makes an all-timer like Tim Duncan somehow underrated or why a player like Robert Horry may be a better fit next to a superstar than another all-star player.

As far as the podcast series, I can understand why it's not for everyone.  The opening pod and interview with Steve Kerr didn't bring anything brand new to the table, but I enjoyed the breakdown of Steph Curry and his updated spot on the all-time list.  Also liked the audio clips woven in.  Haven't listened to the rewatchable breakdown of GSW over OKC in game 6 a few years ago, but that match-up is a huge sliding doors game.  One I find myself going back to.  Very interested to listen to this series moving forward myself.

 
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RUSF18 said:
I can't believe he was able to base a book - and sell a ton of them - on such bull#### that he got from Isiah effing Thomas of all people.
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The book had plenty of eye roll moments, but overall I enjoyed it 10 years ago. That was right about as Simmons was peaking as a sports personality and his shtick hadn't worn thin, at least for me. I have zero desire to listen to his new podcast though.

 
Duh Bulls :lmao:  

Man what an FN joke. Outscored (so far) 32-6 in the 4th (2 minutes left). Comeback was done with AD sitting. Bulls were up 13 going into the 4th 

 
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Craig_MiamiFL said:
Duh Bulls :lmao:  

Man what an FN joke. Outscored (so far) 32-6 in the 4th (2 minutes left). Comeback was done with AD sitting. Bulls were up 13 going into the 4th 
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DId you watch that game until the very end?  Just curious in case you noticed this is as well. As a person that used to play a ton of basketball growing up--the end of that game bothered me.  Chicago made a 3 to cut the Laker lead to 6 with somewhere around 20 seconds to go.  They did not press or go for a steal or a quick foul at all.  Was very weird to see a team literally concede a game that wasn't completely out of reach. 

 
jvdesigns2002 said:
DId you watch that game until the very end?  Just curious in case you noticed this is as well. As a person that used to play a ton of basketball growing up--the end of that game bothered me.  Chicago made a 3 to cut the Laker lead to 6 with somewhere around 20 seconds to go.  They did not press or go for a steal or a quick foul at all.  Was very weird to see a team literally concede a game that wasn't completely out of reach. 
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Nope. Stopped paying attention to their game with a few minutes left. Deficit was still double digits. Just an awful awful 4th.

There was a point I want to say in the 2nd quarter where the Bulls 2nd unit had more points than the whole Laker team. Their 2nd unit is actually better than its been in awhile. Problem is their team is very young and not very good right now. 

 
wikkidpissah said:
That was like a heavyweight match last nite w Young Prince v the King, but is it the smartest thing to have the kid guard LeLoad when he's running your offense, too? Anyway, the young'un showed serious chops & stones in a valiant effort. Nowhere near the two-man game from LeBrow i was expecting from their love connection during the exhib season. Are they star-turfing already? 
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EYLive said:
I don't understand any of that.
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@wikkidpissah and @EYLive, sorry for the late response.  I have been out of pocket for a while.  Anyway, hope this helps:

The game on Friday night between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks was a great contest featuring LeBron James vs. Luka Doncic.

However, he is questioning the coaching strategy of having Doncic guard LeBron while having to be the primary playmaker for the Maverick's offense.  Despite that questionable decision, Doncic played an exceptional game while facing a tough opponent with a lot of quality play throughout the contest.

Also, he expected to see a better combination of plays and success from LeBron and Anthony Davis considering the way they played so well together in the pre-season.  He is wondering if they are starting to have conflict with one another over who is the better player and leader of the team.

 
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EYLive said:
Is this confirmed? Interesting that they chose the Bucks instead of the Blazers to sit him.
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:shrug:  that's what it said on the espn crawl last night.

guessing that they care less about a non-conference game and a game that is one of their likeliest to lose anyway?

 
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I can’t believe I’m writing this but, after having watched every Lakers game this year, one of the key factors to their success so far is...Dwight Howard. 

I have no idea how long it will last because I don’t trust this guy and he is notorious for getting moody and taking long spells off. But right now he is willing to do all the dirty work, fighting for the rebounds. And when he gets an offensive rebound he’ll put it back in if it’s an easy dunk; if it isn’t he will pass it back and allow a reset of the offense, which is new. 

Howard (and McGee, but especially Howard) is allowing AD to play 10-14 feet from the basket, where he is basically money. 

 
Mike Conley acknowledged that he's still adjusting to playing with his new teammates in Utah after spending the past 12 years in Memphis.

"Oh yeah, it’s kind of a little bit out of my routine because I’ve had to watch more film on us than I can on the other teams because I’m still learning," said Conley. "I’m still used to throwing pocket passes [to Marc Gasol]... I’ve got a big guy now [in Rudy Gobert] who can go get it. I can throw pocket passes, but it’s a little different. We’ve got lob threats and shooters around." Conley also said he's still learning the terminology in Utah, which helps explains the slow start for the vet.
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Did he leave his shot in Memphis too??

Imagine the Jazz they were getting an upgrade at the point with shooting :lol:  

 
The Heat lost to the Lakers by 15 on their worst shooting night of the year, only 35%. At 6-3, I still think they're a playoff team.

In other news from Twitter

UPDATE: Dion Waiters is the Heat player who had medical emergency on team plane, I’ve confirmed. Waiters overdosed on “gummies,” sources say, and was passed out when plane landed. He had a seizure when he was finally woken up, I’m told. Waiters was listed out tonight (illness)

 
Leeroy Jenkins said:
Ugh. Lead all game and blew what, a 15 point lead?
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like @Courtjester said it was actually a 21 point lead in the 4th. Embiid looked pretty crappy too with his 8 turnovers. think it is good they lost these 3 in a row, think they may have been smelling themselves too much, probably healthy to know they still have work to do

 
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