2021-22 NBA Thread: Bill Simmons furiously recording 2.5 hour long pod about how Boston is still better than Golden State (2 Viewers)

[Frostillicus]

Oh stop. You were in the playoffs 4 short years ago.  You act like you've never seen the post season, Sally Field.  Try being a Mariners fan for a minute.  

4 years?  I've had farts that lasted longer than that. 

Of the four major sports, the Wolves have the worst winning percentage in history for any team. 

Take that, Griffey!

 

[Major]

This thread is giving me a laugh.  Thanks Wolves!

 

[General Malaise]

Of the four major sports, the Wolves have the worst winning percentage in history for any team. 

Take that, Griffey!

Wolves have been to the post season 9 times in 33 years.  Do the math for the Mariners please.  I'll wait. 

 

[Frostillicus]

Oh stop. You were in the playoffs 4 short years ago.  You act like you've never seen the post season, Sally Field.  Try being a Mariners fan for a minute.  

4 years?  I've had farts that lasted longer than that. 

Also: 

The Twins have lost 18 straight post season games. Not series. Games.

The Vikings are 0 for 4 in Super Bowls and are 0 for 4 in NFC championship games in my lifetime.

The Gopher basketball team has made 1 Final Four and won 1 Conference Title. Both were lated vacated because of cheating. They are the only long standing Big Ten team who has never made the Conference Tournament Finals.

The Gopher football team hasn't been in the Rose Bowl since 1961.

I can go on.

 

[Frostillicus]

Wolves have been to the post season 9 times in 33 years.  Do the math for the Mariners please.  I'll wait. 

Everyone makes the playoffs in the NBA, which is why it's so remarkably bad that the Wolves have made it barely a quarter of the time. 

And you can't make me do math. 

 

[General Malaise]

Also: 

The Twins have lost 18 straight post season games. Not series. Games.

The Vikings are 0 for 4 in Super Bowls and are 0 for 4 in NFC championship games in my lifetime.

The Gopher basketball team has made 1 Final Four and won 1 Conference Title. Both were lated vacated because of cheating. They are the only long standing Big Ten team who has never made the Conference Tournament Finals.

The Gopher football team hasn't been in the Rose Bowl since 1961.

I can go on.

The Twins won World Series in your prime so you don't get to whine about them. Your most vivid sports memories are Twins reigning supreme.  Try being a kid growing up a Texas Rangers fan and then moving to Mariner country.  

Regardless, congrats on winning a *checks notes* play-in game to make it to the *checks again* first round of the NBA playoffs where you haven't been since *looks again, furrows brow* 2018.  I'm very happy for you.  Good luck.  But settle the hell down on the 'woe is me' schtick.  

 

[Frostillicus]

The Twins won World Series in your prime so you don't get to whine about them. Your most vivid sports memories are Twins reigning supreme.  Try being a kid growing up a Texas Rangers fan and then moving to Mariner country.  

Regardless, congrats on winning a *checks notes* play-in game to make it to the *checks again* first round of the NBA playoffs where you haven't been since *looks again, furrows brow* 2018.  I'm very happy for you.  Good luck.  But settle the hell down on the 'woe is me' schtick.  

I never said "woe is me"!!!!! I was simply explaining why last night was such an explosive and emotional outlet for the team and fans. You're the one who decided to take it all personally, friendo.

 

[General Malaise]

I never said "woe is me"!!!!! I was simply explaining why last night was such an explosive and emotional outlet for the team and fans. You're the one who decided to take it all personally, friendo.

Right, and I simply asked after clicking the link in here "What exactly are they celebrating" and you had to clutch your pearls and say "You too"? 

Then your explanation went into this diatribe that took me to an understanding that you've suffered a playoff drought for all of 4 years.  C'mon, Frost.  

 

[AAABatteries]

I expected the Hawks to win but not this kind of blowout.  Hopefully, it gives Nate the ability to rest guys for the Cavs, to then lose to the Heat.

 

[caustic]

I think the Wolves being excited about a postseason win is cool. On the other hand, Lamelo doing his 3P celebration while down 23 in a win-or-go-home game…Come on man 

 

[Mister CIA]

Mama tried, I suppose.

https://twitter.com/spurs/status/1514401885129740290?t=ZigWhfVykpF8leTRx2eEGw&s=19

GO SPURS GO!

 

[Frostillicus]

Right, and I simply asked after clicking the link in here "What exactly are they celebrating" and you had to clutch your pearls and say "You too"? 

Then your explanation went into this diatribe that took me to an understanding that you've suffered a playoff drought for all of 4 years.  C'mon, Frost.  

I don't wear pearls.

 

[DJackson10]

if you are so confident this is the case with the guys/situations you mention....why not bet that way...?

Because Vegas will win no matter what. I'm not a better anyway. I think betting should stay in Vegas 

 

[Frostillicus]

Uh oh guys. I just saw a clip that in the locker room last night the Wolves were throwing gatorade on everyone and celebrating. 

 

[DJackson10]

Oh stop. You were in the playoffs 4 short years ago.  You act like you've never seen the post season, Sally Field.  Try being a Mariners fan for a minute.  

4 years?  I've had farts that lasted longer than that. 

Try being a Sacramento Kings fan though. Those folks have been through some stuff. Hell trying being a San Diego Fan 

 

[DJackson10]

Also: 

The Twins have lost 18 straight post season games. Not series. Games.

The Vikings are 0 for 4 in Super Bowls and are 0 for 4 in NFC championship games in my lifetime.

The Gopher basketball team has made 1 Final Four and won 1 Conference Title. Both were lated vacated because of cheating. They are the only long standing Big Ten team who has never made the Conference Tournament Finals.

The Gopher football team hasn't been in the Rose Bowl since 1961.

I can go on.

San Diego hadn't seen a Chargers SB app since the 9Os and lost their team, 

Padres haven't been to the playoffs in forever. No Hockey or Basketball team. San Diego college wise sucks. 

Yeah we get it Minny sports teams struggle for success WE GET IT but it's not like there hasn't been others. 

If you want we can take this into world soccer. Plenty of teams struggling worse. 

 

[Capella]

San Diego hadn't seen a Chargers SB since the 9Os and lost their team, 

Padres haven't been to the playoffs in forever. No Hockey or Basketball team. San Diego college wise sucks. 

Yeah we get it Minny sports teams struggle for success WE GET IT but it's not like there hasn't been others. 

If you want we can take this into world soccer. Plenty of teams struggling worse. 

San Diego fans (presumably) get to live in San Diego though 

 

[DJackson10]

San Diego fans (presumably) get to live in San Diego though 

Only good thing. It's why they aren't as miserable as Mine Fans honestly. I mean MINN sees some success only to watch their teams choke in the end 

 

[DJackson10]

Also today is a pretty emotional day. KAT lost his mom 2 yrs ago to COVID. Not sure if that played a part in his bad game last night or not. Just something to think about and remind us we're all here debating a stupid game while there's people out there who have lost loved ones and others to this Pandemic and other things including senseless violence etc. 

 

[ShamrockPride]

Zion better have his ### in gear for next season, Pelicans could legit be a top 4 West seed over a full season together.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

According to some guy on Twitter, this is the first nationally televised Spurs game this season. The Lakers had 42. 
 

 

[General Malaise]

Zion better have his ### in gear for next season, Pelicans could legit be a top 4 West seed over a full season together.

This is the same Pelicans team that finished 10 games under .500, right?  

I certainly hope your not pinning your hopes on CJ "Step out of bounds" McCollum with this belief. 

 

[General Malaise]

But nobody watches film in the NBA like CJ. 



5 star doosh magoo

 

[Jayrod]

Meanwhile, in NOLA....Pels were up 22, but the Spurs cut it to 9.

Rooting for the Spurs so my postseason predictions could remain perfect.

Oh, and the Celtics haven't won a championship since I became a fan, so I can totally understand all of the Minnesota suffering stuff.  I feel ya, dog! oundsfisttochest: 

 

[Jayrod]

According to some guy on Twitter, this is the first nationally televised Spurs game this season. The Lakers had 42. 
 

I did just tell my son that I don't think I've seen Murray play all season.

And I was annoyed with the sheer volume of Lakers games on TV, but they were usually in the late night slot so I needed to get to bed anyway.

 

[General Malaise]

6 point game and Blazer fans have a pulse!  

 

[jvdesigns2002]

This is the same Pelicans team that finished 10 games under .500, right?  

I certainly hope your not pinning your hopes on CJ "Step out of bounds" McCollum with this belief. 

They started the season 3-16 as they were decimated by injuries- ingram missed time; Zion out; Graham was dinged up..etc.  Since that start- they finished they were over 0.500 and much of their winning started when they gave herb jones a bigger role and when they acquired CJ.  A lineup with Jonas; a healthy Zion; ingram; McCollum; herb Jones or devonta Graham is pretty solid

 

[General Malaise]

They started the season 3-16 as they were decimated by injuries- ingram missed time; Zion out; Graham was dinged up..etc.  Since that start- they finished they were over 0.500 and much of their winning started when they gave herb jones a bigger role and when they acquired CJ.  A lineup with Jonas; a healthy Zion; ingram; McCollum; herb Jones or devonta Graham is pretty solid

Ok, so who in the West falls off so New Orleans is the 4 seed?

 

[General Malaise]

And I apologize for asking because I honestly don't know, but when is Zion Williams expected to play in a game?  And why has he missed so many games in his career?  What are his ailments and when can we expect him to play regularly?  

 

[jvdesigns2002]

Ok, so who in the West falls off so New Orleans is the 4 seed?

I never said that I’d put them top 4- but they could easily be in that mavs- Jazz- nuggets tier. I think they easily could be in that 3-6 range in the West— which often times isn’t separated by many games

 

[jvdesigns2002]

And I apologize for asking because I honestly don't know, but when is Zion Williams expected to play in a game?  And why has he missed so many games in his career?  What are his ailments and when can we expect him to play regularly?  

That’s the big question mark. He’s an explosive player that is frankly too heavy for his playing style.  If he can manage his weight/size- he should be able to mitigate his injuries. So far- that hasn’t been the case. Foot/leg/knee issues.. etc

 

[nysfl2]

San Diego hadn't seen a Chargers SB app since the 9Os and lost their team, 

Padres haven't been to the playoffs in forever. No Hockey or Basketball team. San Diego college wise sucks. 

Yeah we get it Minny sports teams struggle for success WE GET IT but it's not like there hasn't been others. 

If you want we can take this into world soccer. Plenty of teams struggling worse. 

Super Bowl?!?!? I'd just take a playoff win.

/Lionsfan

 

[ShamrockPride]

Ok, so who in the West falls off so New Orleans is the 4 seed?

To jump back in here as I made the statement...and obviously this is optimal scenario, (i.e. Zion can play MOST, let's say 3/4 of a season), I think they could top out as a 3 seed.

Phoenix isn't going anywhere, and GS will be at the top as long as anyone can imagine. I would expect Memphis to take a slight step back next year. I think they caught some fire this year, regardless they'll be a 48-50 win team at worst from here on out. I think Nola will be right in that middle mix with teams like Dallas and Denver.

But again, it's all on Zion and his conditioning, ability to lose weight. He's a superstar when he's on the floor. Zion/CJ/Ingram is a pretty nasty trio, and their games don't really overlap much, they all have their own lane and could complement each other well. Again, this is all in theory, as they haven't all played together yet.

 

[Toby2ElectricBugaloo]

Ah, I see people are comparing notes on sports fan futility?

*stretches, cracks knuckles, sighs heavily*

It has been 44 years since the Washington Wizards won 50 games in a season.

Anyway, celebrate all you can, Minnesota fans earned it and life is too short. My favorite moment in 4+ decades of Wiz fandom is John Wall celebrating on the scorer's table after winning Game 6 at home in a conference semifinal series they lost in 7 games.  

 

[Nathan R. Jessep]

Meanwhile, in NOLA....Pels were up 22, but the Spurs cut it to 9.

Rooting for the Spurs so my postseason predictions could remain perfect.

Oh, and the Celtics haven't won a championship since I became a fan, so I can totally understand all of the Minnesota suffering stuff.  I feel ya, dog! oundsfisttochest: 

Mannn... whew! We blew so many games like that in the last couple seasons. This is not that same team. Willie Green has these boys playing all out and believing in themselves. They are learning how to finish games. It's awesome to see after having our hearts ripped out so many times in blowing big leads in the closing minutes. 

And I just gotta say in general, I don't get the "play-INs aren't playoffs" aspect. The regular season is over. It's post-season no matter what you want to call it. And if you've watched all of the play-ins, these games 100% matter to the teams and their fanbases. It's playoff atmosphere all the way.  I was pumped to see the crowd that turned out and made noise at the Pels game yesterday!  Winning cures a lot of problems. 

 

[Nathan R. Jessep]

And I apologize for asking because I honestly don't know, but when is Zion Williams expected to play in a game?  And why has he missed so many games in his career?  What are his ailments and when can we expect him to play regularly?  

jv addressed the latter points, but as for the first question, they haven't officially ruled him out to play if we make it to the best-of-7 against the Suns, but otherwise he's still listed as "out indefinitely." 

 

[General Malaise]

jv addressed the latter points, but as for the first question, they haven't officially ruled him out to play if we make it to the best-of-7 against the Suns, but otherwise he's still listed as "out indefinitely." 

I hope he plays. NBA is better when the top talent plays.  But man, he sure reminds me of another big dude who went number one and almost never played.  As Bill Parcels says, the most important ability is AVAILABILITY and Zion flunks that test bigly. 

 

[CletiusMaximus]

jv addressed the latter points, but as for the first question, they haven't officially ruled him out to play if we make it to the best-of-7 against the Suns, but otherwise he's still listed as "out indefinitely." 

There was this somewhat hopeful clip from the pregame making the rounds last night. https://twitter.com/i/status/1514393580227469321

 

[Zow]

San Diego fans (presumably) get to live in San Diego though 

Yeah the fan experience at their stadium is absolutely delightful and a far cry from sitting in a Twins stadium in a parka in May. 

 

[Zow]

Super Bowl?!?!? I'd just take a playoff win.

/Lionsfan

Does it hurt less or more knowing you don't get playoff wins when you're handed generational talents like Barry and Calvin and get otherwise really good players like Stafford, Herman Moore, and Jason Hanson? 

Asking as a Vikings fan...

 

[Nathan R. Jessep]

There was this somewhat hopeful clip from the pregame making the rounds last night. https://twitter.com/i/status/1514393580227469321

Yep saw that! They showed it on the TV broadcast also. 

 

[Capella]

Super Bowl?!?!? I'd just take a playoff win.

/Lionsfan

You simply should sign the greatest QB of all-time to a team friendly deal. The wins roll right in baby. 

 

[DJackson10]

Super Bowl?!?!? I'd just take a playoff win.

/Lionsfan

One of my best friends her husband is from San Diego. She was married to a guy in the military stationed in Camp Pendleton. When they divorced this guy helped her out. He moved to philly where we're from to start a relationship. Tough time in SD as a sports fan. 

 

[Jayrod]

One of my best friends her husband is from San Diego. She was married to a guy in the military stationed in Camp Pendleton. When they divorced this guy helped her out. He moved to philly where we're from to start a relationship. Tough time in SD as a sports fan. 

Huh.

 

[SayWhat?]

And I apologize for asking because I honestly don't know, but when is Zion Williams expected to play in a game?  And why has he missed so many games in his career?  What are his ailments and when can we expect him to play regularly?  

Not sure on the exact ailments, but he’s  been listed in the box score of every game this year as “DNP - LBS”.  Not sure if that helps or not.  

 

[Anarchy99]

Blew a chance at free money yesterday. Different sports books had the Nets and Celtics each favored to win yesterday. Betting both would have guaranteed making $15 for each $200 bet.

 

[DJackson10]

Not sure on the exact ailments, but he’s  been listed in the box score of every game this year as “DNP - LBS”.  Not sure if that helps or not.  

I've heard people suspect he's pulling a James Harden where he looks out of shape and acts like he's injured but he's not hoping the team just trades him where he wants to go. Doesn't seem like he's interested in being in NO at all 

 

[Jayrod]

Blew a chance at free money yesterday. Different sports books had the Nets and Celtics each favored to win yesterday. Betting both would have guaranteed making $15 for each $200 bet.

Maybe because I followed the Celtics pretty closely (still that's a pretty well known team in a pretty well-known League), but I was surprised at the initial line making Brooklyn heavy favorites.

I watched that whole Cavs/Nets game and while Kyrie looked phenomenal and Durant did his normal stuff, the rest of the team was subpar until Brown got rolling at the end of the 4th.  It took some serious effort to put away a Cavs team missing arguably their 2 best players and relying on some young guns.

My point being, those initial lines seemed way off and I was really confused until I saw it move within hours to a more reasonable spot.  Just not sure how that happens in that industry, unless there was some intentionality to it.

 

[Encyclopedia Brown]

Rob Pelinka said that Vogel wasn't fired but that he "went from being the leader of the Lakers to part of our legacy."

Ooof.

 

[offdee]

Who plays the Cavs tonight.....Hornets or Hawks?

Online shows its the Hawks vs. Cavs.    Didn't the Hawks beat the Hornets the other night....why are they playing again?  Or is online wrong and it's the Hornets vs. Cavs tonight?