2022-2023 NBA Season Thread

[wildturkey]

Just really weird stuff. As fan as Jaylen Brown. Don't know much about him so he could be into that stuff. But at first he didn't distance himself from Kayne & Donda sports. It took him a day or two. Not the best of looks.

Yeah, that's part of why I had in mind about him possibly being on that Farrakhan garbage. Nation of Islam spouts a ton of antisemitic garbage and when the Kanye stuff came out, Brown shrugged it off and really only left his affiliation with Kanye after a ton of outside pressure. He's also anti-vax, and the Nation of Islam has put out a ton conspiracy crap about vaccines too. He's not outspoken with more the nonsense like Kyrie is, but there's some small pieces here or there over the last couple years where I'm raising my eyebrow to him.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

It doesn't appear to be about the draft picks...it looks like it's about cap space for the off-season. If memory serves, every trade they've looked at so far has at least 1 player in it who has a contract that extends beyond this year. With the cap space they will have, they could possibly add 2-3 shooters in the off-season.

Personally, I would go ahead with the Turner/Hield trade because I think Hield is a guy they would possibly pursue in the off-season anyway and Turner is good insurance if AD has to miss a lot of time and also would allow AD to play the 4 more which he prefers.

The only reason I can think of to not do it would be if there is a FA that they would prefer over Hield that they think they can get.

Also, based on what has been reported out here, they think that teams will start looking to tank for VW and will start looking to move players earlier than they normally would. That could provide them with a couple of shooters with contracts that expire this year, preserving cap space for the off-season.

Eh….

I think it’s way more likely you get a deal for guys with multiple years left, like Rozier with Gordon or Oubre.

Thats still a win…..imo

But, like you said….

Id do the Indy deal.

Its not without risk.

But, if Ham is already talking about Lebron at the 5, it’s pretty clear your current bigs are underwhelming.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

5 games in and I'll say this......Ham is a lot quicker to make adjustments than Vogel.

Does not matter what the question is, Lebron at the 5 is not the answer.

He’s the one guy you can’t afford to wear down at the end of games nor for the season.

Plus, we saw this movie last year.

It wasn’t a blockbuster hit.

More like a horror show or maybe a comedy.

 

[wildturkey]

If the money is comparable, they can get Kuzma back.

Trent Jr would be perfect for them.

But, Toronto probably wants to keep him.

Despite what my guy @DJ thinks….

Bringing back Josh Hart would be great too.

He can defend 1, 2 and 3’s and has shot 37% from 3 the last 2 Seasons.

Gotta think Dillon Brooks could be gone as well.

Bane gonna get a bag, eventually.

I think I'm more with what Stakes is saying. 2023 class isn't that great. Even going after the role players you're talking about, it's not a given you could get any of them. With the state of the organization as is, you're probably gonna have to overpay to get them too. If you're Kuz or Trent Jr (or their agent), you look at the Lakers, know they are desperate, know that the team could still be a mess next year and could be into the future given the front office, you're gonna ask for extra money to make up for that. Like a player might take 12 mil a year for other teams but would ask for 15 from the Lakers. Team is in a bind, make them pay. And because of that, waiting to sign FAs is likely more risky than just trading for players. With a trade, at least you have them under contract and if any are expiring, you can go over the cap to keep them via bird rights.

Looking over everything, the roster, the cap situation, all the potential moves to be made in the summer and following year, the prudent thing to do is not just trade Westbrook (which should be a given), but entertain offers for Anthony Davis. Say you can get Hield/Turner or Rozier/Hayward for Westbrook. If you trade Davis as well, the return you get for him paired with the Indy or Charlotte return should be enough to make you competitive ( definitely better than now) for the next 2 to 3 years. It'd boost your depth tremendously, which is the Lakers biggest obstacle. All the moves Pelinka has made the last 2 years as killed the depth and there's very limited options to improve the team without a major overhaul (trading Davis). They should at least field offers for him just to see what the options are.

 

[Retroram52]

Lakers at some point will win some games- and if they make a big trade they can still salvage the season- but if say LeBron or Davis gets hurt- and they decide to sit on the assets- the fact that New Orleans owns the pick swap might just come back to haunt them in a major major way.

the nightmare is that the pick turns into a high level all star. The absolute nightmare is with the flattened lotto odds they somehow win the #1 pick. That would be a disaster of epic proportions.

i dont want to get on my high horse too much- since the Cavs owe a ton of unprotected picks and pick swaps now--- and things often change fast in the NBA- but at least they look really good and are super young, and have an owner willing to spend major $ to keep the team together if they prove themselves worthy of it.

There is one Scenario that includes a lot of "ifs" that the Lakers can still get a top 10 Lottery pick if they qualify for the Lottery selections. And the way things are going, they will qualify by virtue of crappy record.

That scenario is this: If a trade partner gives the Lakers a 2023 First Round pick in their soon to be dealings (That probably would be the piss-poor run Charlotte club, if anybody) in trades, then they will swap their own pick with NO and used the obtained First Rounder to make their lottery positioned selection. So "if" the Lakers can pull that off, then they have a chance to enter into the Wembanyama sweepstakes with somebody else's pick! Impossible, maybe. A slight probability? Yes, it's there, albeit a very small one indeed.

 

[Wamu]

Yeah, that's part of why I had in mind about him possibly being on that Farrakhan garbage. Nation of Islam spouts a ton of antisemitic garbage and when the Kanye stuff came out, Brown shrugged it off and really only left his affiliation with Kanye after a ton of outside pressure. He's also anti-vax, and the Nation of Islam has put out a ton conspiracy crap about vaccines too. He's not outspoken with more the nonsense like Kyrie is, but there's some small pieces here or there over the last couple years where I'm raising my eyebrow to him.

Holy crap. That's crazy. Didn't know he was brainwashed like that. As far as him being anti-vax. About done with all those jackass. It's already been proven the vaccines greatly reduce the risk of several illness/hospitalization. And anyone that incorrectly thinks any of the vaccines offer 100% protection have a screw loose.

 

[trojanfan12]

Eh….

I think it’s way more likely you get a deal for guys with multiple years left, like Rozier with Gordon or Oubre.

Thats still a win…..imo

But, like you said….

Id do the Indy deal.

Its not without risk.

But, if Ham is already talking about Lebron at the 5, it’s pretty clear your current bigs are underwhelming.

Yeah, I think AD being out yesterday showed that as far as bigs...if AD is out, they're screwed.

Like I said, I don't mind them being patient, but if they want to try to turn this season around, they can't be so patient that they miss their chance.

The only risk I see in the Indy deal is Turner's health. He's missed about as much time as AD over the past 2 seasons. But his contract expires this season, so they could just not re-sign him.

Hields 3 point percentage has dropped each of the past 3 or so years...but it's still been around 37% which is far better than anyone the Lakers have.

Hield, at a bit over $18 million would eat up a little more than half of their projected cap space, but they could still add a couple of good role player in the off-season to help with depth.

 

[Shanemansj13]

Only a franchise like the Cavs could waste him

Trade him to Boston

Is switching teams helping his mental weakness? Doubting it but would rather judge at season end. A lot of guys just aren’t cut out for the league bc they are mentally weak

 

[Stakesarehigh]

I think I'm more with what Stakes is saying. 2023 class isn't that great. Even going after the role players you're talking about, it's not a given you could get any of them. With the state of the organization as is, you're probably gonna have to overpay to get them too. If you're Kuz or Trent Jr (or their agent), you look at the Lakers, know they are desperate, know that the team could still be a mess next year and could be into the future given the front office, you're gonna ask for extra money to make up for that. Like a player might take 12 mil a year for other teams but would ask for 15 from the Lakers. Team is in a bind, make them pay. And because of that, waiting to sign FAs is likely more risky than just trading for players. With a trade, at least you have them under contract and if any are expiring, you can go over the cap to keep them via bird rights.

Looking over everything, the roster, the cap situation, all the potential moves to be made in the summer and following year, the prudent thing to do is not just trade Westbrook (which should be a given), but entertain offers for Anthony Davis. Say you can get Hield/Turner or Rozier/Hayward for Westbrook. If you trade Davis as well, the return you get for him paired with the Indy or Charlotte return should be enough to make you competitive ( definitely better than now) for the next 2 to 3 years. It'd boost your depth tremendously, which is the Lakers biggest obstacle. All the moves Pelinka has made the last 2 years as killed the depth and there's very limited options to improve the team without a major overhaul (trading Davis). They should at least field offers for him just to see what the options are.

100 percent this.

Trading AD and russ plus picks gives you probably four or five pieces you can build around Lebron.

 

[Shanemansj13]

If the money is comparable, they can get Kuzma back.

Trent Jr would be perfect for them.

But, Toronto probably wants to keep him.

Despite what my guy @DJ thinks….

Bringing back Josh Hart would be great too.

He can defend 1, 2 and 3’s and has shot 37% from 3 the last 2 Seasons.

Gotta think Dillon Brooks could be gone as well.

Bane gonna get a bag, eventually.

Hell yeah! Tank with no pick all for giving Kuz big money. That would be hilarious

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

There is one Scenario that includes a lot of "ifs" that the Lakers can still get a top 10 Lottery pick if they qualify for the Lottery selections. And the way things are going, they will qualify by virtue of crappy record.

That scenario is this: If a trade partner gives the Lakers a 2023 First Round pick in their soon to be dealings (That probably would be the piss-poor run Charlotte club, if anybody) in trades, then they will swap their own pick with NO and used the obtained First Rounder to make their lottery positioned selection. So "if" the Lakers can pull that off, then they have a chance to enter into the Wembanyama sweepstakes with somebody else's pick! Impossible, maybe. A slight probability? Yes, it's there, albeit a very small one indeed.

The Jazz offered the Lakers a 2023 1st round pick, allegedly.

The Lakers declined.

Obviously, it would be a late pick from a team expected to make the playoffs.

Outside of trading Davis, there is no scenario that brings you back a lottery pick short of the team whos pick you receive losing their starting lineup for the season.

There would be pick protections for that sort of thing.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

Yeah, I think AD being out yesterday showed that as far as bigs...if AD is out, they're screwed.

Like I said, I don't mind them being patient, but if they want to try to turn this season around, they can't be so patient that they miss their chance.

The only risk I see in the Indy deal is Turner's health. He's missed about as much time as AD over the past 2 seasons. But his contract expires this season, so they could just not re-sign him.

Hields 3 point percentage has dropped each of the past 3 or so years...but it's still been around 37% which is far better than anyone the Lakers have.

Hield, at a bit over $18 million would eat up a little more than half of their projected cap space, but they could still add a couple of good role player in the off-season to help with depth.

If they stay patient too long, the Season could be lost.

Thats really only a problem because of Lebrons age and the pick swap.

Still, you could just set stuff up for next Season, like the Clippers did with the Powell\Covington deal.

Didnt really help us last year.

Jury is still out on this one.

But, they were able to nab useful players for basically nothing.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

Holy crap. That's crazy. Didn't know he was brainwashed like that. As far as him being anti-vax. About done with all those jackass. It's already been proven the vaccines greatly reduce the risk of several illness/hospitalization. And anyone that incorrectly thinks any of the vaccines offer 100% protection have a screw loose.

I think Jaylen has more of an issue with the mandate. Which given what we now know isn't a crazy stance necessarily.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

100 percent this.

Trading AD and russ plus picks gives you probably four or five pieces you can build around Lebron.

Building around a 40 year old is insane, unless it’s Lebron.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

I think Jaylen has more of an issue with the mandate. Which given what we now know isn't a crazy stance necessarily.

Yep.

People should have a right to decide what does, and does not, go into their body.

But, business should have the right to decide who does, or does not, get to work for their company if they pose a preventable health risk to others.

Freedom of choice goes both ways.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

I think I'm more with what Stakes is saying. 2023 class isn't that great. Even going after the role players you're talking about, it's not a given you could get any of them. With the state of the organization as is, you're probably gonna have to overpay to get them too. If you're Kuz or Trent Jr (or their agent), you look at the Lakers, know they are desperate, know that the team could still be a mess next year and could be into the future given the front office, you're gonna ask for extra money to make up for that. Like a player might take 12 mil a year for other teams but would ask for 15 from the Lakers. Team is in a bind, make them pay. And because of that, waiting to sign FAs is likely more risky than just trading for players. With a trade, at least you have them under contract and if any are expiring, you can go over the cap to keep them via bird rights.

Looking over everything, the roster, the cap situation, all the potential moves to be made in the summer and following year, the prudent thing to do is not just trade Westbrook (which should be a given), but entertain offers for Anthony Davis. Say you can get Hield/Turner or Rozier/Hayward for Westbrook. If you trade Davis as well, the return you get for him paired with the Indy or Charlotte return should be enough to make you competitive ( definitely better than now) for the next 2 to 3 years. It'd boost your depth tremendously, which is the Lakers biggest obstacle. All the moves Pelinka has made the last 2 years as killed the depth and there's very limited options to improve the team without a major overhaul (trading Davis). They should at least field offers for him just to see what the options are.

Bro, Kuz was so depressed, he’d come back at cost.

But, concede.

That would be the prudent thing to do for any rational front office.

But, that kinda excludes you.

Because no front office subscribes to the Star model of team building like the Lakers.

I think the Shaq deal is one of the few times you went against that sentiment…..

 

[Stakesarehigh]

Building around a 40 year old is insane, unless it’s Lebron.

I'd have suggested they trade Lebron but they extended him lol.

 

[Mecca of the “B” Team]

I really ……CANNOT with this motherfucker sometimes.

Silence is golden.

No, that’s way too polite.

Please, shut the fuck up, you goddamn narcissist.
This is what a Organization wanting to win at any cost looks like.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

I really ……CANNOT with this motherfucker sometimes.

Silence is golden.

No, that’s to polite.

Please, shut the fuck up, you goddamn narcissist.

The second post should have been the response.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

Kyrie could really use someone to help him package his message. Because he fucking sucks at it.