2016 NBA Off-Season Thread part 2

[WiggyRuss]

Hoping for a Dodgers/Injuns World Series.

I'd be good with Cubbies/Injuns, but I'd hate that the Cubbies went through my Dodgers to get there and I wouldn't know who to pull for.

totally agree with both sentiments.

I like both teams- the Dodgers and the Cubs. To be honest- id prefer to see the Dodgers as- Kershaw is one of my favorite baseball players ever (along with Mike Mussina, Orel Hershiser, Vladimir Guerero and a whole lot of Indians)- plus i dont think the dodgers are quite as good s the Cubs....

A Cubs/Indians World Series with all the plot lines- Theo vs. Francona, the historic losing streaks, etc. would be a lot of fun though. E Specially since both cities are pretty close by.

 

[trojanfan12]

I like both teams- the Dodgers and the Cubs. To be honest- id prefer to see the Dodgers as- Kershaw is one of my favorite baseball players ever (along with Mike Mussina, Orel Hershiser, Vladimir Guerero and a whole lot of Indians)- plus i dont think the dodgers are quite as good s the Cubs....

Agree. Dodgers definitely aren't as good as the Cubs. What gives the Dodgers a chance is that they never stop coming at you. To beat them, you have to outlast them. Roberts is on a roll with some of the crazy moves he's making. Brings in his closer in the 7th inning and his ace (who just threw 110 pitches in game 4) gets the save.

A Cubs/Indians World Series with all the plot lines- Theo vs. Francona, the historic losing streaks, etc. would be a lot of fun though. E Specially since both cities are pretty close by.

Yeah, the teams with the longest World Series droughts. What's not to like about that?

 

[WiggyRuss]

Agree. Dodgers definitely aren't as good as the Cubs. What gives the Dodgers a chance is that they never stop coming at you. To beat them, you have to outlast them. Roberts is on a roll with some of the crazy moves he's making. Brings in his closer in the 7th inning and his ace (who just threw 110 pitches in game 4) gets the save.



Yeah, the teams with the longest World Series droughts. What's not to like about that?

Dodgers remind me of the Indians in some ways- though- obviously the payrolls are a little disparate.

Francona and Roberts are both making great moves and each team is just seeming to fill itself to win- very good chemistry among the players on both teams.

Should hopefully be a good series between the Dodgers and Cubs. I will def. be watching tonight. I was so impressed with Kershaw coming into the game the other night after pitching with 1 days rest. Pretty crazy. It definitely doesnt help to set up their rotation for this series though....If the Dodgers make it past the Cubs it will because they just absolutely outwilled and outlasted them.

This Blue Jays lineup is just amazing. Just talent wise- and guys that can hit it out of the park- i think its better and scarier than Bostons. Donaldson is ridiculous. He is the scariest hitter the Tribe has faced in the postseason- apologies to Big Papi. Miller is just unreal though- he TORE up though middle of that lineup though- striking out 5 of the 6 batters he faced. That is disgusting.

 

[trojanfan12]

Dodgers remind me of the Indians in some ways- though- obviously the payrolls are a little disparate.

Both are full of grinders that just keep playing no matter what.

Francona and Roberts are both making great moves and each team is just seeming to fill itself to win- very good chemistry among the players on both teams.

Francona is an awesome manager. Always liked him. I thought Roberts would be pretty good, but I'm a little surprised at how good he has been as a rookie manager.

Should hopefully be a good series between the Dodgers and Cubs. I will def. be watching tonight. I was so impressed with Kershaw coming into the game the other night after pitching with 1 days rest. Pretty crazy. It definitely doesnt help to set up their rotation for this series though....If the Dodgers make it past the Cubs it will because they just absolutely outwilled and outlasted them.

This Blue Jays lineup is just amazing. Just talent wise- and guys that can hit it out of the park- i think its better and scarier than Bostons. Donaldson is ridiculous. He is the scariest hitter the Tribe has faced in the postseason- apologies to Big Papi. Miller is just unreal though- he TORE up though middle of that lineup though- striking out 5 of the 6 batters he faced. That is disgusting.

I'm definitely gonna be watching the ALCS as well. I think both series should be pretty decent. I'm taking Injuns and Cubbies in 6 (but hoping I'm wrong on the latter. lol)

 

[Heatles84]

totally agree with both sentiments.

I like both teams- the Dodgers and the Cubs. To be honest- id prefer to see the Dodgers as- Kershaw is one of my favorite baseball players ever (along with Mike Mussina, Orel Hershiser, Vladimir Guerero and a whole lot of Indians)- plus i dont think the dodgers are quite as good s the Cubs....

A Cubs/Indians World Series with all the plot lines- Theo vs. Francona, the historic losing streaks, etc. would be a lot of fun though. E Specially since both cities are pretty close by.

I think this is the first World Series where I'm content with any of these teams winning. Here's my order of preference:

1) Cubs - It's been what now? 107 years since they've won? After Bartman and other "events" they need this badly.
2) Dodgers - This is typically because of family ties as I have family out in the Bay (not sure how they're not Giants fans).
3) Indians - Another fanbase that fits the mold of Cubs fans and that '97 World Series had to hurt as I was on the other side of it and I even felt bad for them. Plus, I like Francona.
4) Bluejays - Don't really care if they win.

 

[bksballer89]

A great day in the sports world as Chris Broussard is no longer an employee at ESPN

 

[Bulletz]

A great day in the sports world as Chris Broussard is no longer an employee at ESPN

Headed to FS1 too. Is Skip really the only person that will listen to him anymore?

 

[bksballer89]

Headed to FS1 too. Is Skip really the only person that will listen to him anymore?

I don't get why basketball analyst go to FS1. Nobody watches FS1 for basketball. They don't even carry games. If you leave ESPN, you better go to Turner or work for a specific team

 

[WiggyRuss]

IT is good to get Smith signed and in cap. I am kinda surprised it was resolved as fast as it was since Tristans holdout actually went longer last year.

Now the Cavs have their team. I really like the addition of Dunleavy.

Think of all the shooting the Cavs have now--- Kyrie and JR are excellent 3 pt shooters in the back court. Frye, Dunleavy, Love make up one of the best combo of front court shooters I have ever freaking seen. LeBron and Kyrie and even Love (if and when he gets touches in the post), are going to have plenty of space to operate with inside.

I think that McRae should be a contributor this regular season. I guess we will see how he does if he deserves any post season minutes. You never know- an injury or something could totally change things and how much PT a guy gets. I have heard good things about Felder- but expecting a rookie to contribute on a championship team - especially a 2nd rounder- is usually asking a lot.

Should be interesting to see how it goes. October 25th is less than 2 weeks away. Seems crazy. Seems like the Cavs just won the Finals yesterday.

It should be a fun season- and the pressure usually associated with being the defending champions was pretty much totally lifted off the Cavs shoulders with Durant going to GSW- which is awesome. Dont get in a big pissing match for home court- just have the Cavs do their thing- and show up to the postseason healthy with a LeBron that is ready to go just like last year.

 

[WiggyRuss]

I don't get why basketball analyst go to FS1. Nobody watches FS1 for basketball. They don't even carry games. If you leave ESPN, you better go to Turner or work for a specific team

probably got a boat load of cash- that and ESPN is cutting salary.

ESPN really really fucked itself when it signed some long term deals for broadcast rights. Their subscriber base was huge and they felt it would continue to grow- instead they seriously miscalculated because now a lot of people are ditching cable and just having net flix or watching TV on their computers etc....they owe the different sports leagues like the NFL VAST VAST sums of money- but their subscriber base is plummeting- so they have no choice but to cut back in other ways.

the exodus from ESPN in recent years has been staggering- Skip, Simmons, Cowherd, Golic- the fat one- is supposedly leaving soon, -- TONS more that are on the next level down. They are pretty screwed.

Why all that talent is headed out the door at ESPN

Yet ESPN’s problems go deeper than the loss of a few hosts and talking heads. After years of raking in gargantuan profits, its lucrative empire is threatened by upheaval in the media and technology businesses.


The most obvious disruption is cord-cutting, the movement of TV viewers away from cable subscriptions, most notably to Internet streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. ESPN, founded in 1979, has been disproportionately affected by the trend; last fall, it surprised the TV industry by revealing that it has lost 7 million subscribers over the past two years, a sizable chunk of its base of nearly 100 million.

A second whammy is coming from within the cable industry itself. Cable operators have long fumed that ESPN and its multiple clone channels are the most expensive for them to license, a cost that is passed along to subscribers in the form of ever-rising monthly cable bills. They have responded by offering lower-priced tiers of channels — known as “skinny bundles” — that usually don’t include the ESPN suite of networks. This has become an attractive option for some viewers, who don’t want to pay for channels they don’t watch.

While ESPN still has the rights to NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball and college football games, all of the cord-cutting and skinny-bundling has cut into the revenue streams that have long showered ESPN with money.

It has responded by cutting costs. In October, it announced the layoffs of about 300 employees, or about 4 percent of its staff. A few days later, it shuttered Grantland, a literary sports and pop culture website founded by Simmons.

Holding down costs is also why ESPN has drawn the line in bidding to keep its personalities.

 

[Bulletz]

probably got a boat load of cash- that and ESPN is cutting salary.

ESPN really really fucked itself when it signed some long term deals for broadcast rights. Their subscriber base was huge and they felt it would continue to grow- instead they seriously miscalculated because now a lot of people are ditching cable and just having net flix or watching TV on their computers etc....they owe the different sports leagues like the NFL VAST VAST sums of money- but their subscriber base is plummeting- so they have no choice but to cut back in other ways.

the exodus from ESPN in recent years has been staggering- Skip, Simmons, Cowherd, Golic- the fat one- is supposedly leaving soon, -- TONS more that are on the next level down. They are pretty screwed.

Why all that talent is headed out the door at ESPN

Other than live sports and SC, Cowherd had really been the only thing worth watching there for years.

Edit: Baseball Tonight is good too.

 

[bksballer89]

I don't think ESPN or anyone is mad about Broussard leaving. He sucks. I call this addition by subtraction

 

[WiggyRuss]

Other than live sports and SC, Cowherd had really been the only thing worth watching there for years.

i liked Grantland before they forced Simmons out. Buster Olney is a good baseball reporter. College Game Day is really good. Baseball Tonight used to be really good, its still decent.

most of it is trash though. The worst is Mathew Berry- that subhuman can eat shit and die.

 

[Bulletz]

i liked Grantland before they forced Simmons out. Buster Olney is a good baseball reporter. College Game Day is really good. Baseball Tonight used to be really good, its still decent.

most of it is trash though. The worst is Mathew Berry- that subhuman can eat shit and die.

I just edited for Baseball Tonight as you posted. I think Gameday is aiight, can't stand Howard though.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

trim the roster? who got trimmed off the roster? lol 2 guys that didnt even see the court in the NBA Finals? Id take Dunleavy over Delly or Mozgov ANY DAY.

they are bringing back the ENTIRE team- EXCEPT for adding Mike Dunleavy who they stole from Chicago for nothing.

Starting lineup:

PG- Kyrie Irving,
SG- Jr Smith
SF- LeBron James
PF- Kevin Love
C- Tristan Thompson

bench:
1. Iman Shumpert
2. Richard Jefferson
3. Mike Dunleavy
4. Channing Frye
5. Chris Anderson
6. Tony Douglass
7. Jordan McRae
8. Mo Williams (still has not officially retired and IS on the roster)
9. Kay Felder
10. The Champ (James Jones)

uhhhhhhhhhh....... not only that- but they still have a gigantic trade exception and have the ability to add a player that way or through a buyout sometime in the spring like they did with Frye last year.

Kevin Love, Mike Dunleavy, and Channing Frye are 3 of the best big man shooters in the entire league- and Griffin had been working on geting Dunleavy and Frye for yearS before adding them since hte believes they are a perfect fit with LeBron.

If this team stays healthy they are going to the Finals and will have a great shot to win it against anyone that gets there---- as long as they are healthy and get a little luck- as any Champion needs.

Now its time to roll!!!!!! Just make sure no one gets hurt in the preseason.



IF the Indians can somehow pull through in this ALCS- On October 25th the Cleveland Indians will be playing Game 1 of the World Series at home and across Gateway Plaza the Cavs will be opening up the season and receiving their World Champion rings. Now THAT will be a night I will be downtown!!!!! Truly unbelievable.

Yes.
The roster is thinner.
Delly filled his role nicely and Mozgov is a true C who the Cavs gave up quiet up bit to get.
All last year you continued to point out he was injured. Then once he left, according to you he just sucks.

Are the losses something that can't be overcome?
Of course not, but neither was the Heat getting rid of Mike Mller, yet you've carried on for 2 years as that's a big part of why James left.


Congrats to James and JR though.
Once again Gilbert is demoted by James to take it up the ass.
Cavs overpaid greatly while bidding against nobody.

Didn't you say Gilbert wouldn't pay that much?

 

[Heatles84]

A great day in the sports world as Chris Broussard is no longer an employee at ESPN

Heard he got poached by Fox Sports.

 

[Heatles84]

probably got a boat load of cash- that and ESPN is cutting salary.

ESPN really really fucked itself when it signed some long term deals for broadcast rights. Their subscriber base was huge and they felt it would continue to grow- instead they seriously miscalculated because now a lot of people are ditching cable and just having net flix or watching TV on their computers etc....they owe the different sports leagues like the NFL VAST VAST sums of money- but their subscriber base is plummeting- so they have no choice but to cut back in other ways.

the exodus from ESPN in recent years has been staggering- Skip, Simmons, Cowherd, Golic- the fat one- is supposedly leaving soon, -- TONS more that are on the next level down. They are pretty screwed.

Why all that talent is headed out the door at ESPN

Yet ESPN’s problems go deeper than the loss of a few hosts and talking heads. After years of raking in gargantuan profits, its lucrative empire is threatened by upheaval in the media and technology businesses.


The most obvious disruption is cord-cutting, the movement of TV viewers away from cable subscriptions, most notably to Internet streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. ESPN, founded in 1979, has been disproportionately affected by the trend; last fall, it surprised the TV industry by revealing that it has lost 7 million subscribers over the past two years, a sizable chunk of its base of nearly 100 million.

A second whammy is coming from within the cable industry itself. Cable operators have long fumed that ESPN and its multiple clone channels are the most expensive for them to license, a cost that is passed along to subscribers in the form of ever-rising monthly cable bills. They have responded by offering lower-priced tiers of channels — known as “skinny bundles” — that usually don’t include the ESPN suite of networks. This has become an attractive option for some viewers, who don’t want to pay for channels they don’t watch.

While ESPN still has the rights to NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball and college football games, all of the cord-cutting and skinny-bundling has cut into the revenue streams that have long showered ESPN with money.

It has responded by cutting costs. In October, it announced the layoffs of about 300 employees, or about 4 percent of its staff. A few days later, it shuttered Grantland, a literary sports and pop culture website founded by Simmons.

Holding down costs is also why ESPN has drawn the line in bidding to keep its personalities.

Got hit up for an interview with ESPN last year (IT position). I took all of this into consideration as I saw that they were starting to cut employees. Thank god I never went through the interview process to get a job there. I'd probably would've been laid off.

 

[shopson67]

FS1's post-game crew is painful. ARod and Pete Rose, ouch. Of course, TBS isn't much better with Pedro Martinez.

 

[Heatles84]

i liked Grantland before they forced Simmons out. Buster Olney is a good baseball reporter. College Game Day is really good. Baseball Tonight used to be really good, its still decent.

most of it is trash though. The worst is Mathew Berry- that subhuman can eat shit and die.

I can't fathom a scenario where ESPN gets rid of College Gameday. Haven't seen the logistics, but I'm under the assumption that they're a huge money maker for ESPN given college football's popularity.

Also, glad that Golic's potentially leaving. Maybe we'll hear less of Mike Greeny from here on out as he comes across as an unknowledgeable douche bag.

And yeah, Matthew Berry's nitch is fantasy football - which I like to play, but who's really an expert on it? He's useless.

 

[shopson67]

I can't fathom a scenario where ESPN gets rid of College Gameday. Haven't seen the logistics, but I'm under the assumption that they're a huge money maker for ESPN given college football's popularity.

Also, glad that Golic's potentially leaving. Maybe we'll hear less of Mike Greeny from here on out as he comes across as an unknowledgeable douche bag.

And yeah, Matthew Berry's nitch is fantasy football - which I like to play, but who's really an expert on it? He's useless.

Yeah, the idea of fantasy football experts is pretty ridiculous. I'd like the see his W/L records in actual league play, and not in a goofball league against friends and family. FF experts are about as accurate as weathermen. They get the obvious stuff right but never answer for their gaffes.

Unfortunately, the daily/weekly leagues have added even more fantasy "experts" to the network, all of whom are about useless beyond reminding you to check your lineups, waiver wires, and injury reports.