2018-2019 NBA Regular Season Thread

[tlance]

Wiz down 21 at half in Dallas.

I will ask this once again. Why didn't they get rid of Brooks again? @tlance @wildturkey

Why did they hire Brooks?

To lure KD.

It didn't work. Time to move in.

But, Brooks is far from the only problem there.

 

[tlance]

Duke would beat the Wizards

How were they ranked 4?

WTF are the pollsters smoking?

In terms of talent, this group could be in all time conversations.

 

[shopson67]

@bksballer89 @tlance , @shopson67 , @Wamu , @WiggyRuss , @CitySushi ..

You guys gonna watch Duke vs Kentucky?

I want to see Zion in live action against other top guys.

Frightening thing is, he's not even the best player on that Duke roster.

I saw a few minutes in the second half after Duke was already up 20. Not enough to really evaluate. Wanted to watch Syracuse, but by the time I got to it online, they were already up quite a bit, so it didn't hold my interest.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Kyrie is still whining about Murray taking a meaningless shot to get 50 points last night? Grow the hell up and get over it.

this coming from kyrie is just so hypocritical

this is the same guy that threatened to have surgery and sit out a season if he wasnt traded while he was still under contract for 2 years.

Kyrie was mad that Murray outplayed him and the Celtics lost another game. Boo hoo.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Slow starts in the west are never good unless you can go on a ridiculous run like Utah did in the last 50 games

you are exactly right. If you start slow in the West you need to go on an absolute tear at some point to make up for it if you want to have solidify a playoff spot and not have to sweat it out.

 

[WiggyRuss]

I expected them to be top 5....

Eventually they MAY get there- i dont think so but its possible

but think of how much talent that LeBron had in Miami or Cleveland.

Kyrie was top 30 easily right off the bat and only got better. Love was easily top 25 when he got to Cleveland. By year two Kyrie was top 20 and Love was still top 30.

In Miami Wade was arguably top 10 (or even higher) and Bosh was top 20.

Right now who is the 2nd best player and 3rd best player on the Lakers?

Do they have a guy who is top 50 after LeBron?

And LeBron, as great as he is- is not the same guy that was just a defensive menance and one of the best athletes in NBA history like he was in his age 24-27 years in Miami, or even in Cleveland. That attacking defense i nMiami was insane with LeBron and Wade and co. just bullying and overwhelming people with their athleticism. In Cleveland the 3 pt shooting and offense was just a beauty to behold on some nights and would just bury teams before they even had a chance.

Those blowouts and easy wins that we saw- where LeBron sat out the 4th qtr- those arent going to be happening very often in LA. They dont have the firepower to get up by that much that often and dont have a Love or Wade or Kyrie or Bosh to pass the baton to so LeBron can rest.

Tehre is not a huge difference between age 25 LeBron and age 34 LeBron when LeBron wants to ramp it up---- but he just cant do it and give that type of effort as consistently as he could when he was in his twenties.


The Lakers have an un-experienced coach who has already drawn flak from the front office. They have a ton of young guys they are relying on. They have a ton of vets on 1 year deals that they are relying on- many of them a crazy. Last year if a young guy got hurt- they could just sit out- like Ball or Ingram- because it didnt matter. Now there is pressure to play. Now- if the Lakers lose- those guys will be getting the blame (or Walton)- because the blame rarely, if ever falls on LeBron's shoulders. We have already seen Rondo lose his mind and be disruptive.


Compare that to a team like the Blazers or Spurs who have basically had great roster continuity, have multiple top 50 players, have good (or great) coaches..etc., and have multiple vets that have been to the playoffs. Neither team is relying on young guys like the Lakers. In fact- i dont think there is one team in the league with realistic playoff aspirations that is relying on young guys as much as the Lakers.

Right now the Blazers are 2-1 against the Lakers and the Spurs are 2-0. If either team wins 1 more game against hte lakers they own any tie breaker.

 

[shopson67]

But they said Jimmy is a bad guy

Not to nitpick, but Jimmy bought the ticket. He didn't loan him a plane, lol. Butler does not own private jets.

 

[WiggyRuss]

5-on-5: The Lakers' real problems, and how to solve them

1. What's your biggest takeaway from the Lakers' first 10 games?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN: We can talk about the palace intrigue, or whether a collection of vets on one-year deals could mesh with LeBron and the kids, but the truth is that for all the Lakers' pomp and star appeal, they win and lose basketball games the same way as everyone else in the league. And the Lakers are losing basketball games right now because they play an indifferent brand of defense and get outworked badly on the glass.

Chris Herring, FiveThirtyEight:That their horrible defense -- which was tied for 12th in efficiency last season but sits 23rd in the league now -- is putting far too much pressure on their offense, which is still figuring out exactly how to operate with the world's best player at the helm. That includes James himself, who hasn't looked active enough on the defensive end of the floor. This feels way too much like last season's Cleveland Cavaliers, struggling to keep their heads above water because of how bad they were on defense. Tyson Chandler, at this point in his career, won't fix this.

Tim Bontemps, ESPN: Let's cheat and go with two: They are the league's most entertaining team, and they're exactly what I expected them to be. They have a ton of interesting and quirky personalities, plenty of drama, a quick pace and a terrible defense -- making for lots of close, high-scoring games. But they also are a team with a ton of new pieces that need time to jell with one another, so their being under .500 through 10 games isn't a surprise. And with the way their roster was constructed, a team around 10th in offense and in the bottom 10 in defense feels spot on.

3. Fact or fiction: The Lakers need James to make more of an impact.
Bontemps: The same theory from the previous answer applies to this one. Is LeBron James playing as hard as he can? No. But he's also approaching 34 and has put approximately a billion miles on his body. He isn't going to be going all out in November. At the same time, James can't turn this roster of non-shooters into shooters, non-defenders into defenders and can't add the extra competent 7-footer or two the Lakers for some reason didn't sign this summer. One thing he could, and arguably should, do is play some center -- but he never was going to do that, and the Lakers knew that, too.

Arnovitz: Fact? The guy is averaging 27 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists, yet James ranks only 13th in usage rate; he hasn't finished outside the top 10 since his rookie season. It's interesting, because this isn't exactly the 2010-11 Heat, when he played with a bunch of ball-dominant teammates. So unless someone else on that roster can morph into a high-volume, high-efficiency, playmaking force, the Lakers will need a little more. But where they could really use more impact from James is on the defensive end. The Lakers' new facility in El Segundo is tricked out with all kinds of cool stuff, but there's no time machine.

and the biggie:

Pelton: They could certainly expect more from him this season. James' assist rate is down dramatically, and while that might be by design given the Lakers' intent to use him more as a finisher than as the creator he was in Cleveland, that hasn't yet translated into improved efficiency. Add in his inconsistent defensive effort and James has thus far been less effective than at any point in the past decade. Naturally, better production from James would make the Lakers more formidable.

 

[Raw_Bee808]

 

[Black Adam]

ok, so how 'bout them Cavs...?

lol you spending so much time trying to drill us...

 

[Mecca]

I saw a few minutes in the second half after Duke was already up 20. Not enough to really evaluate. Wanted to watch Syracuse, but by the time I got to it online, they were already up quite a bit, so it didn't hold my interest.

Dude, Zion is a frightening prospect.

He is a brick Shit house with ridiculous ups and agility.

But!!!!!!

One Summer of skipping workouts and hitting up fat burgers and you could have Stanley Roberts, Tractor Trailer on your hands.

But, I would take that gamble....lol

 

[Raw_Bee808]

 

[Raw_Bee808]

 

[Mecca]

5-on-5: The Lakers' real problems, and how to solve them

1. What's your biggest takeaway from the Lakers' first 10 games?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN: We can talk about the palace intrigue, or whether a collection of vets on one-year deals could mesh with LeBron and the kids, but the truth is that for all the Lakers' pomp and star appeal, they win and lose basketball games the same way as everyone else in the league. And the Lakers are losing basketball games right now because they play an indifferent brand of defense and get outworked badly on the glass.

Chris Herring, FiveThirtyEight:That their horrible defense -- which was tied for 12th in efficiency last season but sits 23rd in the league now -- is putting far too much pressure on their offense, which is still figuring out exactly how to operate with the world's best player at the helm. That includes James himself, who hasn't looked active enough on the defensive end of the floor. This feels way too much like last season's Cleveland Cavaliers, struggling to keep their heads above water because of how bad they were on defense. Tyson Chandler, at this point in his career, won't fix this.

Tim Bontemps, ESPN: Let's cheat and go with two: They are the league's most entertaining team, and they're exactly what I expected them to be. They have a ton of interesting and quirky personalities, plenty of drama, a quick pace and a terrible defense -- making for lots of close, high-scoring games. But they also are a team with a ton of new pieces that need time to jell with one another, so their being under .500 through 10 games isn't a surprise. And with the way their roster was constructed, a team around 10th in offense and in the bottom 10 in defense feels spot on.

3. Fact or fiction: The Lakers need James to make more of an impact.
Bontemps: The same theory from the previous answer applies to this one. Is LeBron James playing as hard as he can? No. But he's also approaching 34 and has put approximately a billion miles on his body. He isn't going to be going all out in November. At the same time, James can't turn this roster of non-shooters into shooters, non-defenders into defenders and can't add the extra competent 7-footer or two the Lakers for some reason didn't sign this summer. One thing he could, and arguably should, do is play some center -- but he never was going to do that, and the Lakers knew that, too.

Arnovitz: Fact? The guy is averaging 27 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists, yet James ranks only 13th in usage rate; he hasn't finished outside the top 10 since his rookie season. It's interesting, because this isn't exactly the 2010-11 Heat, when he played with a bunch of ball-dominant teammates. So unless someone else on that roster can morph into a high-volume, high-efficiency, playmaking force, the Lakers will need a little more. But where they could really use more impact from James is on the defensive end. The Lakers' new facility in El Segundo is tricked out with all kinds of cool stuff, but there's no time machine.

and the biggie:

Pelton: They could certainly expect more from him this season. James' assist rate is down dramatically, and while that might be by design given the Lakers' intent to use him more as a finisher than as the creator he was in Cleveland, that hasn't yet translated into improved efficiency. Add in his inconsistent defensive effort and James has thus far been less effective than at any point in the past decade. Naturally, better production from James would make the Lakers more formidable.

Apologies in advance to anyone who is offended.

I will take my timeout because this needs to be done.



Puuuuuhlease!

Just stop it.

All of this junk you posted could be 100% true.

From what I read, it is.

But Ffs, you need to change the station.

If you insist on coming off as a jilted lover, Post a link, not this wall of text.

90% of the people here aren't going to read this.

Hell, I dig you and I barely skimmed the Shit once I saw the subject and noticed you are the one who posted it.

 

[Mecca]

@trojanfan12 I know any appearance of racially charged rhetoric is frowned upon.

But, I feel like you guys set me up by even adding that Ninja emoji.

I avoided taking that shot for MONTHS.

* crawls back under bridge to await execution *

 

[Black Adam]

Apologies in advance to anyone who is offended.

I will take my timeout because this needs to be done.



Puuuuuhlease!

Just stop it.

All of this junk you posted could be 100% true.

From what I read, it is.

But Ffs, you need to change the station.

If you insist on coming off as a jilted lover, Post a link, not this wall of text.

90% of the people here aren't going to read this.

Hell, I dig you and I barely skimmed the Shit once I saw the subject and noticed you are the one who posted it.

simply trolling at it's (non)finest...

 

[WiggyRuss]

Apologies in advance to anyone who is offended.

I will take my timeout because this needs to be done.



Puuuuuhlease!

Just stop it.

All of this junk you posted could be 100% true.

From what I read, it is.

But Ffs, you need to change the station.

If you insist on coming off as a jilted lover, Post a link, not this wall of text.

90% of the people here aren't going to read this.

Hell, I dig you and I barely skimmed the Shit once I saw the subject and noticed you are the one who posted it.

oh i am sorry. I did not realize I had a gun to your head forcing you to read an article from ESPN. I will put the gun away and try not to offend your delicate sensibilities. lol

 

[WiggyRuss]

simply trolling at it's (non)finest...

yes trolling is posting an article by ESPN.

Some people just hate to see the truth laid out in black and white- and attack the messenger.

You would do well on the Trump media team.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Apologies in advance to anyone who is offended.

I will take my timeout because this needs to be done.



Puuuuuhlease!

Just stop it.

All of this junk you posted could be 100% true.

From what I read, it is.

But Ffs, you need to change the station.

If you insist on coming off as a jilted lover, Post a link, not this wall of text.

90% of the people here aren't going to read this.

Hell, I dig you and I barely skimmed the Shit once I saw the subject and noticed you are the one who posted it.

"junk"

its a great day when you can say an article posted by ESPN is "junk", and that even though "it might be true" it bothers you.

instead of whining and complaining- just do what you did, dont read it.

The Lakers are the biggest story in the NBA- maybe inall of sports- and its an article on why many highly paid and respected writers believe they had a slow start

is it factual? Yes

is it relevant? yes

so stop whining.

What Makes a Story Newsworthy?

What Makes a Story Newsworthy?

1. Timing

2. Significance

3. Proxmity

4. Prominence

5. Human Interest

absolutely hits all of those factors.

but you dont like it. "MOOOOOOOOOOOOM Wiggy is posting aobut the Lakers again- the most significant story in all of sports in the last calendar year!!!" WAAAAH WAAH. Never expected you to be a crybaby too.

 

[Mecca]

oh i am sorry. I did not realize I had a gun to your head forcing you to read an article from ESPN. I will put the gun away and try not to offend your delicate sensibilities. lol

It's not that.

I post anti Shit everyday.

But, you are trying to force feed us your position by posting the entire article.

I'm not trying to be your mother or to be a asshole.

But, your agenda is so transparent and it's annoying.