NBA Regular Season & Playoffs 2018-19 Thread

Hitch2222

First D2 player in 14 years to potentially get drafted.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26170877/div-ii-player-hinton-declares-nba-draft

The gap within D1 is massive but this is so rare. Some D2 schools will be better than D1 but it's an insane achievement if if happens

Paully D

LeBron’s minutes to be limited for the remainder of the season.

Sensible decision really.

LuckyLloyd

Paully D wrote: »

LeBron’s minutes to be limited for the remainder of the season.

Sensible decision really.

Makes sense. Very important off season for everyone involved. LeBron isn’t dragging the Lakers version of the 2007 Cavs to the finals; nor is he leading a 1 - 3 comeback in the finals while topping out in points / assists / rebounds / steals / blocks. He’s not going to be that player at 35+ nor should he be. There’s got to be a significant element of front office skill and a competent coach to compete.

Hitch2222

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Makes sense. Very important off season for everyone involved. LeBron isn’t dragging the Lakers version of the 2007 Cavs to the finals; nor is he leading a 1 - 3 comeback in the finals while topping out in points / assists / rebounds / steals / blocks. He’s not going to be that player at 35+ nor should he be. There’s got to be a significant element of front office skill and a competent coach to compete.

He can still be the best player on a championship team I think but he definitely needs some younger players to carry the regular season load to allow him to get there.

Something along the lines of 66 games, 32 mins per game, 20-6-6 while sharing the ball handling role with someone else seems like a fair ask

Paully D

Hitch2222 wrote: »

He can still be the best player on a championship team I think but he definitely needs some younger players to carry the regular season load to allow him to get there.

Something along the lines of 66 games, 32 mins per game, 20-6-6 while sharing the ball handling role with someone else seems like a fair ask

It’ll take a huge shift in mentality for him to do that though. Will he be willing or even able to give up that much control? I could see him getting extremely frustrated.

rebelyell99

The officiating in the thunder and clippers game last night was a disgrace , Westbrook's and George fouled out of the game and half there fouls were disgraceful calls .I guess the NBA needs at least one L.A team in the playoffs well there certainly helping there chances gifting them wins like this .

killwill

Gwynplaine wrote: »

LBJ gets way too much air time. Congrats to him on passing MJ on scoring list, but it took over 100 games more to do it. Lakers have no hope of making the playoffs.
Rockets for the championship this year.

Over 100 games more but 1300 shots less.
With over 2,000 more rebounds and almost 3,000 more assists.

Comparisons of these two players will go on forever but it is ridiculous as they played in two totally different eras.
People will say that the league was way more physical when MJ played but these days the athleticism is at an all time high.
They were both freaks of nature in their own leagues and that is good enough for me.

Hitch2222

killwill wrote: »

Over 100 games more but 1300 shots less.
With over 2,000 more rebounds and almost 3,000 more assists.

Comparisons of these two players will go on forever but it is ridiculous as they played in two totally different eras.
People will say that the league was way more physical when MJ played but these days the athleticism is at an all time high.
They were both freaks of nature in their own leagues and that is good enough for me.

You make a point that I think is the most dismissed during these arguments. People try to make it an argument about absolute ability which is so difficult to do as the game has evolved over time.

Personally I think it should he viewed more on relative ability. I'm not saying the way in which people will rank players will change much but comparing the best players to their contemporaries offers a far greater insight into where they place than attempting to compare Kobe vs West, Shaq vs Wilt etc.

Carcharodon

We really still doing the MJ & LBJ thing, there is full blown season underway, leave that stuff for the Skips of the world.
I really don’t understand what people expected out of Lakers this year either, this is pretty much how it should go, they could be a little better but not by much

Hitch2222

Carcharodon wrote: »

We really still doing the MJ & LBJ thing, there is full blown season underway, leave that stuff for the Skips of the world.
I really don’t understand what people expected out of Lakers this year either, this is pretty much how it should go, they could be a little better but not by much

Ah come on now, any time that a team goes from not having a Top 50 player in the league on their roster to having a Top 3 player while little else changes are bound to get significantly better.
They've significantly under performed largely because of LBJs injury.

Gregk961

Carcharodon wrote: »

We really still doing the MJ & LBJ thing, there is full blown season underway, leave that stuff for the Skips of the world.
I really don’t understand what people expected out of Lakers this year either, this is pretty much how it should go, they could be a little better but not by much

By far the most tiresome debate in sport. Messi v Ronaldo is beaten to death aswell but at least they are playing at the same time, and are both still active.

Carcharodon

Hitch2222 wrote: »

Ah come on now, any time that a team goes from not having a Top 50 player in the league on their roster to having a Top 3 player while little else changes are bound to get significantly better.
They've significantly under performed largely because of LBJs injury.

Fair enough, won’t knit pit your metrics but I thought it was pretty clear that it was all about next season and year after, not this year. Don’t know why people seem surprised or even upset

Hitch2222

Carcharodon wrote: »

Fair enough, won’t knit pit your metrics but I thought it was pretty clear that it was all about next season and year after, not this year. Don’t know why people seem surprised or even upset

Oh definitely but I think this was the year he needed to endear himself to Kawhi or any other available player and let's face it, he's done himself/Lakers far more harm than good.

Their assets trade value has lowered as we know they're on the block, new coach is needed and he's had a substantial enough injury. Lakers needed this year to create a positive narrative moving forward and that hasn't happened.

On a side note, I thought Harden was a lay for MVP but I think he's making strides once again in light of OKC dropping to 4th. It's still Giannis's to lose though.

Morrison J

It's definitely straight up Giannis v Harden. I think Harden should win it but Giannis will win it. Harden doing himself no harm the last couple of weeks with the way he has the Rockets playing though. They've got a n outside chance at the 2 seed. They get that and I'm not sure anyone can really deny giving him the award.

Hitch2222

Morrison J wrote: »

It's definitely straight up Giannis v Harden. I think Harden should win it but Giannis will win it. Harden doing himself no harm the last couple of weeks with the way he has the Rockets playing though. They've got a n outside chance at the 2 seed. They get that and I'm not sure anyone can really deny giving him the award.

Why do you think Harden over Giannis?

I think the Rockets have improved most notably due to the better play of CP3 but on individual performance and contribution to his team on both ends of the floor, Giannis should be a lock imo

Morrison J

Hitch2222 wrote: »

Why do you think Harden over Giannis?

I think the Rockets have improved most notably due to the better play of CP3 but on individual performance and contribution to his team on both ends of the floor, Giannis should be a lock imo

Mainly for the fact Harden hasn't had Paul and Capela for long stretches of the season and still has his team in contention for the second seed. What he did winning those games with an out of form Gordon as his next best player beside him, dragging the Rockets to wins on a historic scoring run was pretty special imo. If you watch Harden his defense is actually pretty good this year too. That's the usual case made against him.

I have no problem with Giannis winning it for the record. Just think Harden should be pipping him given the circumstances he was thrown in. The Rockets really should've fallen apart but Harden dragged them through on his own basically. It's a very close race though no doubt.

You could make a legit case that Harden could be going for his 4th MVP in a row this year. I still find the amount of disrespect he gets a bit staggering. Great player.

Hitch2222

Morrison J wrote: »

Mainly for the fact Harden hasn't had Paul and Capela for long stretches of the season and still has his team in contention for the second seed. What he did winning those games with an out of form Gordon as his next best player beside him, dragging the Rockets to wins on a historic scoring run was pretty special imo. If you watch Harden his defense is actually pretty good this year too. That's the usual case made against him.

I have no problem with Giannis winning it for the record. Just think Harden should be pipping him given the circumstances he was thrown in. The Rockets really should've fallen apart but Harden dragged them through on his own basically. It's a very close race though no doubt.

You could make a legit case that Harden could be going for his 4th MVP in a row this year. I still find the amount of disrespect he gets a bit staggering. Great player.

I think 4th MVP but not in a row. He should have won Stephs first and Russ's but will end up underrated for sure. His defence may have improved but Giannis is on a different level and can defend 5 positions.

Harden held Rockets up but what's harden has done doesn't look better than what Giannis has done for Bucks imo. Even when controlling for conference strength Giannis adds more wins I think

Morrison J

Chemistry issues pretty clear to see in Golden State

https://twitter.com/cjzero/status/1104943642261770241?s=19

jonok28

Morrison J wrote: »

Chemistry issues pretty clear to see in Golden State

https://twitter.com/cjzero/status/1104943642261770241?s=19

Draymond has been a pain in Steve Kerr's ass since Kerr came to the Warriors, he's an abrasive player who is outspoken and Kerr has made it known that he has had problems with Green in the past. I wouldn't be surprised if they let Draymond walk when his contract is up, he has not been the same player the last year or so.

kmart6

Some context to it from a poster on reddit:

Context: Draymond checked out of the game with 5:49 left. He had just thrown a great pass to Curry, who hit both free throws to put the Warriors up 96-95. This is not unusual in a close game - it's his last rest before he will finish the game. The Suns then went on a run, and took a 9-point lead. Part of that run happened with Draymond sitting on the scorer's table. Kerr elected to not stop the action to get him back in, so Draymond was just sitting on the scorer's table with one leg propped up for about 2-3 minutes of real time, probably 1:30 of game time.

When Draymond finally checked back in, the Warriors were still down by about 9. He had a dejected look on his face when he checked in, but he still played hard, and the Warriors' defensive intensity picked up with Draymond working hard in the PnR at the point of attack. Suns eventually called a timeout after a McKinnie free throw, getting Booker back in the game after a brief rest with the Warriors having pulled to within 5.

Kerr says this - clearly "I'm so ****ing tired of Draymond's ****" - right after Draymond passes by him on the way to the bench after the Suns called timeout with 1:35 of game time remaining and the Warriors down 111-106 after McKinnie's FT.

So, pretty clearly, Draymond said something to Kerr as he passed by. Very likely a criticism of Kerr's late-game management - leaving Draymond off the floor too long. If I'm Draymond, the quote would be "Damn, that's a GOOD coach down there, calling time out and getting his guy back in."

LuckyLloyd

Adds a bit of grist to the narrative for their inevitable title run I suppose. They’re just so stacked that their “chemistry” can be far from perfect.

Angliru

Scenes if Draymond demands to be traded and Durant and Klay don't re-sign. We can dream...

Carcharodon

Angliru wrote: »

Scenes if Draymond demands to be traded and Durant and Klay don't re-sign. We can dream...

I’d probably cry a little but to be honest all I want is Curry and Klay long term
Was never under the illusion Durant was going to be long term and Dray is always going to be volatile, I think Durant probably annoys him a bit

Klay called out the poor Oracle crowd last night l, said they were too quite, well that’s what you get when you price out the die hard fans Klay

irishguitarlad

Westbrook was told to "get down his knees like you used to" by a Utah fan and his wife last night. Despicable behaviour really and what makes It worse is that the Jazz interviewed the fan after the game. They also only got a warning and were allowed to return to their seats. Apparently this isn't the first time this has happened at a Jazz game and a lot of NBA players hate playing there. Those type of fans should be banned for life. More needs to be done.

Hitch2222

irishguitarlad wrote: »

Westbrook was told to "get down his knees like you used to" by a Utah fan and his wife last night. Despicable behaviour really and what makes It worse is that the Jazz interviewed the fan after the game. They also only got a warning and were allowed to return to their seats. Apparently this isn't the first time this has happened at a Jazz game and a lot of NBA players hate playing there. Those type of fans should be banned for life. More needs to be done.

I wouldn't doubt Westbrook for a minute that the guy said that but I don't know if there is any proof he said anything, did you see any?
Obviously the video of Westbrook is everywhere, it's a shame but I suspect Westbrook will be cited to some degree over this and the fan gets off if no evidence exists.

I've read similar about Utah fans, apparently the most consistently disliked city by players. I recently went to see the Book of Mormon which is hilarious BTW but the religion is big in that area.
Apparently the area is over 50% Mormon so if that is anything to go by, I expect they're probably off the wall.

Carcharodon

irishguitarlad wrote: »

Westbrook was told to "get down his knees like you used to" by a Utah fan and his wife last night. Despicable behaviour really and what makes It worse is that the Jazz interviewed the fan after the game. They also only got a warning and were allowed to return to their seats. Apparently this isn't the first time this has happened at a Jazz game and a lot of NBA players hate playing there. Those type of fans should be banned for life. More needs to be done.

I’ve been to Utah, a strange bunch of people to say the least

irishguitarlad

Hitch2222 wrote: »

I wouldn't doubt Westbrook for a minute that the guy said that but I don't know if there is any proof he said anything, did you see any?
Obviously the video of Westbrook is everywhere, it's a shame but I suspect Westbrook will be cited to some degree over this and the fan gets off if no evidence exists.

I've read similar about Utah fans, apparently the most consistently disliked city by players. I recently went to see the Book of Mormon which is hilarious BTW but the religion is big in that area.
Apparently the area is over 50% Mormon so if that is anything to go by, I expect they're probably off the wall.

Yeah that's the thing, we only have a video of Westbrook responding, nothing with the guy shouting the abuse. Didn't Joseph Smith say that black people were the race of Cain or something?I suppose a good few still follow that view. The thing is though, why pay for a ticket to see a game that's played by a moajorjty of black people and then to shout abuse?

irishguitarlad

Carcharodon wrote: »

I’ve been to Utah, a strange bunch of people to say the least

They say it's a beautiful state though, that and Colorado.

Osmosis Jones

Utah fans have a reputation for this sort of thing, players routinely talk about the racist abuse they've faced from fans in that arena.

Matt Barnes: "I heard a lot of racial slurs [when I played in the NBA]. Especially in Utah. Very racial. More 'n-words' than black people in the city."

Stephen Jackson talking about the difference playing at home vs playing on the road in Utah during their 2007 playoff series: "Well, we're not hearing racial slurs, we're not hearing people wishing for me to go to jail. That's the difference for me."

Jason Richardson on hearing slurs from the Jazz fans in the same series: "That was something new. It shocked all of us," he said. "We weren't expecting that. I mean, [Jazz fans] were trying to get into our heads any way they can, but I couldn't believe anybody would stoop that low. It's nonsense."

Westbrook talking about an altercation in last season's playoff series: ""I don't confront fans, fans confront me, here in Utah, man, a lot of disrespectful, vulgar things are said to the players here with these fans. It's truly disrespectful. [They] talk about your families, your kids. It's just a disrespect to the game and I think it's something that needs to be brought up. I'm tired of just going out and playing and letting fans say what the hell they want to say. I'm not with that. If I was on the street, they wouldn't just come up to me and say anything crazy, because I don't play that ****."

And I think it needs to be noted that Utah is an extremely Mormon state, according to this study 67.7% of the Utah population are Mormon, the next closest is Idaho with 26.4% and then after that every remaining state is below 11%. Up to 1978 it was an official Mormon belief that black people have black skin because "their spirits were less valiant in the pre-existence." And according to wikipedia this theory was not officially contradicted by the church until 2013.

On top of all that, thanks to the fact that the Utah Jazz media team inexplicably interviewed the fan after the game people have found his twitter account containing since-deleted tweets such as these:

Carcharodon

irishguitarlad wrote: »

They say it's a beautiful state though, that and Colorado.

Yea, it’s pretty nice. People were generally very nice but I just find the whole place ironic or full of hypocrisy, no alcohol but everyone is walking around with a big gulp, have as many kids as you can, be poor and give all your money to the church, such a farce.

On Russel, the man gets so much abuse, it is absolutely shocking, let’s be honest, it’s because of how he dresses, his perceived attitude and he is black. You wouldn’t see Curry get that much hate.
You would be hard pressed to find a player over the years that plays as hard and honest every single night like Westbrook.