2015-16 NBA Eastern Conference OFFICIAL THREAD

[WiggyRuss]

My god the Nets suck.

there are so bad- and the thing is- they are just beyond screwed.

Honestly- its SOO bad.

bskballer- they owe Boston their first rounder next year (2016 draft) TOTALLY unprotected--- the next year Boston gets to SWAP picks with them (2017)- so if they are really bad Boston sitll gets to take that pick and give the Nets their own which will be like 15th or something...then the NEXT year they owe Boston ANOTHER unprotected first round pick (2018).

The next time the Nets get their own pick without it in danger of being swapped is 2019. They simply CANNOT rebuild through the draft.... they are BEYOND screwed.

 

[WiggyRuss]

The Sixers play hard. I really watched Nerleans Noel and hes a good player. 18 and 12 tonight with 5 STEALS....hes a great athlete. Hes too young and not good enough yet to be a really good defender but hes gonna get there. I think its gonna take a while- at least 2 more years after this one- but I think Nerleans Noel will make an all star game or two in his career.

I like Brent Brown as a coach too. HE has them playing hard. He has them shooting threes- which they dont have great personnel for yet - but there getting better. They stole Stauskas.

So- after all these moves etc....what do the Sixers have?
PG- Kendall Marshall, Isiah Canaan, TJ McConnell (who looked decent tonight starting because of injury)
SG- Nick Stauskas, Jakar Sampson (I think they stole Stauskas)
SF- Jeremi Grant, Robert Covington (and Dario Saric
PF- Nerleans Noel, Carl Landry
C- Okafor, (embiid is obviously injured)

extra picks- its so hard to figure out- Obviously they own that Lakers pick, they own the Thunders 1st rounder this year, they are owed a pick form the Kings in 2018 that is top 10 protected plus they have the right to swap picks with the kings these next 2 years, they have a Magic first rounder in 2017, and a SHIT LOAD of 2nd rounders- like a TON....so they have like 4 or 5 extra first round picks over the next 4 years- one of which is the Lakers valuable one.

So thats what they have---- What do I think has value and in what order?

1. Jahlil Okafor- I was not a huge fan in the draft- but i gotta say after watching him twice in the last week he has looked good- hes not intimidated and has some moves.
2. Nerleas Noel- I think hes gonna be really good eventually defensivly, on the boards and finishing- if he develops an outside shot- which he NEEDS to do at some point- I see a couple all star games
3. 2016 Draft picks- they have their own and in all likelihood the Lakers top 3 protected pick--- thats 2 picks that are likely in the top 8- PLUS OKC's....say they get pick 5 (their own), pick 8 (the Lakers) and pick 25 (OKC)- thats a pretty nice collection of picks to either trade or take guys or use to maybe trade up and get a stud.
4. Dario Saric- I think he will be a good NBA Small forward- which is EXTREMELY difficult to find- hes not coming over this year obviously- and might not even come over next year- but when he does he will be a difference maker and plug a huge hole in the SF spot
5. Nick Stauskas- Stolen from the Kings- precisely the type of 3 point shooter and floor spacer they needed to add. Why the kings took a SG when they already took Ben McLemore so high like a year or two before is just stupid- but thats the Kings - their loss is the Sixers gain.
6. Joel Embiid- at this point its not looking good. Burning the #3 pick in the middle of a rebuilding project is catastrophic. Even if he comes back- what would his role be? Okafor looks like a real pro and has a good head on his shoulders and while hes not hte athlete of Embiid- he seems like a guy you can rely on - even if he isnt like this explosive dude that makes insane plays. Does Embiid have any value?

Anyway- besides a TON of 2nd rounders and some pick swaps and some other probably mediocre first rounders- thats what they have to show form their rebuilding thus far- --- Okafor, Noel, Saric, Embiid, Stauskas, The Lakers pick and of course their own high pick in this years draft.

 

[Demonjoe93]

6-1 start. Much better than last year's start.

 

[Bolts]

5. Nick Stauskas- Stolen from the Kings- precisely the type of 3 point shooter and floor spacer they needed to add. Why the kings took a SG when they already took Ben McLemore so high like a year or two before is just stupid- but thats the Kings - their loss is the Sixers gain.

Kings are not what you'd call "smart" when it comes to drafting players.

 

[HurricaneDij39]

Built Not Bought. Pacers beat the Heat, just as the basketball gods wanted it to be in spite of some late sloppy play by us.
@bksballer89

 

[WiggyRuss]

Mo Williams with another 18 and 8....what a great pick up for like 2 million...

Richard Jefferson continues to play really good ball. 3/3 from 3 and 17 points overall. Tristan with another 11 boards in 23 minutes.

LeBron found his 3 pt shot for the first time this season tonight. 31 points .. 13 assists...this Cavs team really moves the ball a lot better than last years team did early on in the season. Golden State and Cleveland are #1 and #2 in assists per game right now.

Built Not Bought. Pacers beat the Heat, just as the basketball gods wanted it to be in spite of some late sloppy play by us.
@bksballer89

i gotta tell Heat fans something....

Amare Stoudemire is cooked. He has a 1 way ticket to the GLue Factory. He is done for.

 

[Shoveyjoe]

Built Not Bought. Pacers beat the Heat, just as the basketball gods wanted it to be in spite of some late sloppy play by us.
@bksballer89

Built not bought? What have you built? Oh that is right jack shit. Hey where were the "basketball gods" when Miami was whooping the Pacers asses in the playoffs almost every year? What a fucken joke.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

Mo Williams with another 18 and 8....what a great pick up for like 2 million...

Richard Jefferson continues to play really good ball. 3/3 from 3 and 17 points overall. Tristan with another 11 boards in 23 minutes.

LeBron found his 3 pt shot for the first time this season tonight. 31 points .. 13 assists...this Cavs team really moves the ball a lot better than last years team did early on in the season. Golden State and Cleveland are #1 and #2 in assists per game right now.

i gotta tell Heat fans something....

Amare Stoudemire is cooked. He has a 1 way ticket to the GLue Factory. He is done for.

Agree about Mo and Amare.

Although Amare is just a roster vet minimum spot, it's still a spot that was Beasleys last year.
Beasleys back in China dropping 40-50 a game.
While obviously his NBA production isn't near that, it's more then Amare offers.
Maybe I'll get to see Beasley round 4 when he's eligible to come back.
By then Amare will prob be on crutches.

I'm not going to lie though. Although of course I'd always rather have Beasley, I though Amare was good for 10-15 minutes a game.

And, since the Heat have been cautious with him, and he's only played in the Cavs game which really was a bench cluster fuck, maybe in the right spots he'll produce something.

 

[Black Adam]

He flat out said they were going to break the Bulls record.....Mecca. Surely you remember that. And he also stated it on here last summer when we joined tHoop. I wish I remember which thread it was so I could post it here.

BINGO...!!

 

[Black Adam]

Built not bought? What have you built? Oh that is right jack shit. Hey where were the "basketball gods" when Miami was whooping the Pacers asses in the playoffs almost every year? What a fucken joke.

Shovey...!!!

How the hell you been, bro...?

 

[Ragingcroc]

Pistons beat the Suns and go to 4-1.

The trade with the Suns is looking better and better. Marcus Morris is scoring 17.8 ppg on 45% FG and 41% 3 PT% as the second shot creator behind Reggie Jackson on 5 mil/year.

The Reggie Jackson deal is looking ok. He is doing a good job creating a lot of the offense and getting some of his own shots. Behind him, we are horrible at PG and don't have any shot creators besides Marcus Morris.

The good thing is we are playing amazing team defense this year. Shooting can come and go but if you play defense you have a chance every night.

 

[DJ Fieri]

Pistons beat the Suns and go to 4-1.

The trade with the Suns is looking better and better. Marcus Morris is scoring 17.8 ppg on 45% FG and 41% 3 PT% as the second shot creator behind Reggie Jackson on 5 mil/year.

The Reggie Jackson deal is looking ok. He is doing a good job creating a lot of the offense and getting some of his own shots. Behind him, we are horrible at PG and don't have any shot creators besides Marcus Morris.

The good thing is we are playing amazing team defense this year. Shooting can come and go but if you play defense you have a chance every night.

5 games in is really early still.

 

[trojanfan12]

Russell going 6/9 is certainly an encouraging sign. The playmaking will come to. I just really liked this guy outta the draft because of his court vision, his athleticism, his ability to step it up when the game gets close.

And like I said- I would have taken Randle 3rd behind Parker and Wiggins in the loaded draft of a couple years ago. Randle is raw. He just is. Hes left handed- and his right hand is rough at this point. But I will tell ya- he has some GREAT athleticism. He seems like a great 4 in todays game because hes big enough to cover just about any 4 out there but hes also quick enough to play those small ball power forwards. Thats really important in todays game. Hes a ferocious rebounder too but he is also kinda slick with the ball...

Congrats to the Lakers on their first win...the Nets suck - but ya gotta start some where and I really do like how Randle and Russell are getting a ton of run and look pretty good. Those 2 are basically what this season is about for the Lakers I think.

Agree.

Byron is taking a little bit of a hard line with Russell and making him earn everything. Pretty much of all the Lakers players have been praising Russell's court vision in practice, he just needs to start having it carry over to the games. Like you said, it'll come. Kobe seems to have taken a real interest in helping him too. Has spent time teaching him how to break down tape, insight into running the team,etc. and when they are both on the bench at the same time, Russell is usually sitting right next to him.

Yeah, Randle is raw, I think the game is starting to slow down a little for him and he's looking like he'll be really good. He's quicker than I thought he'd be. If he can hit the mid-range jumper with any kind of consistency, he's going to be a tough cover.

Agree too that this season is about the development of Russell, Randle and the continued development of Clarkson. The Lakers are going to have a ton of cap space, but in today's NBA, top FA's don't seem as inclined to go to a team and wait a couple of years while a team is built around them.

The win wasn't pretty and the Nets are turrible, but a win is a win, especially on the road.

 

[trojanfan12]

Built not bought? What have you built? Oh that is right jack shit. Hey where were the "basketball gods" when Miami was whooping the Pacers asses in the playoffs almost every year? What a fucken joke.

An appearance by the mysterious Shovey. What's up?

 

[WiggyRuss]

Pistons beat the Suns and go to 4-1.

The trade with the Suns is looking better and better. Marcus Morris is scoring 17.8 ppg on 45% FG and 41% 3 PT% as the second shot creator behind Reggie Jackson on 5 mil/year.

The Reggie Jackson deal is looking ok. He is doing a good job creating a lot of the offense and getting some of his own shots. Behind him, we are horrible at PG and don't have any shot creators besides Marcus Morris.

The good thing is we are playing amazing team defense this year. Shooting can come and go but if you play defense you have a chance every night.

The Jackson contract is of course an "overpay"- what was it 5 years 70? 14 million? With the cap going up- thats not THAT bad though- with how the K is structured its probably like 12 this year and like 16 in the last year which makes it even more palatable. And seriously- if you as a team like a player and think he has room for imprvoement and he means a lot to your team- KEEP HIM...especially in markets like Clveland and Detroit where free agents dont exactly flock to in droves.

My question to you is- what is up with Brandon Jennings? What would your plan be for him if you were the Pistons GM?

And lastly- Andre Drummond is a BEAST....if the Pistons are a solid team this year the guy is going to be top 8 in the MVP race. HEs just that damn good- 25 and 29 the other night? Hes a GREAT GREAT player. Letting Monroe walk for nothing kinda sucks- I would have dealt him- but opening up those shots and that post position for Drummond and getting a shooter at the 4 like Illysova is CLASSIC SVG....get your DOMINANT center and a stretch 4 to give him space.

And good point with Morris too- the HARDEST position to find a good player in the NBA? SMALL FORWARD- you got a small forward wh ois in the top half of the league at his position probably for NOTHING.....Pistons definitly have a shot to make the playoffs if this keeps up. We as basketball fans should have probabl seen it coming to a certain extent with SVG taking over and having his Dwight 2.0.

 

[ChrisGar15]

The Jackson contract is of course an "overpay"- what was it 5 years 70? 14 million?

I read a good article someplace recently about Pistons -- and SVG's control & vision. It talked about how SVG really liked Jackson and was willing to commit to him and build around him & Drummond. It will be interesting to see how Pistons work out over the next couple of years ... if it goes well, SVG should get a lot of credit. (difficult decisions like cutting Josh S -- which looks much smarter now, letting Monroe walk, giving Jackson a bunch of $$$, and committing to the "wrong twin".)

 

[ChrisGar15]

I just watched the recorded Wizards / Celtics game. Celtics not only won -- but they completely beat down the Wiz. Any team headed to the Boston Garden better to show to play. The Wizards weren't ready to play.

I still don't think the Celtics are good -- but no team can go to Boston and mail it in. The Celtics should be get the 7th or 8th seed. I still think Ainge is just trying to "pile up asset" to make a big move in 1-2 years. (I'm sure he'd like to get a key free agent -- then cash in on role players & picks.)

 

[bksballer89]

Built Not Bought. Pacers beat the Heat, just as the basketball gods wanted it to be in spite of some late sloppy play by us.
@bksballer89

Built not bought is still one of the lamest slogans in sports

 

[Shoveyjoe]

What's up gentlemen. It has been a long time. Hope all is well. Heat look like a few games above .500 team. Can't complain we had a great run. Hopefully the lakers and heat get back to where they were sooner rather than later. Would be fun.

 

[HurricaneDij39]

Built not bought is still one of the lamest slogans in sports

Why? Other than Monta Ellis and David West, when have the Pacers ever built a team around free agency?