2018-2019 NBA Regular Season Thread

[WiggyRuss]

There are alotta Steelers fans that live in & around Cleveland. You telling me they don't go to bars wearing their Steelers gear? If that's what you're saying you're lying.

i am sure they do but they dont call themselves Cleveland fans. lol

 

[WiggyRuss]

The Bucs traded for a coach and ended up facing his old team who didn't change the play calls (of course, the ever thoughtful Raiders). They crumbled soon afterwards.

The Saints brought in a new coach and veteran (and future HOFer) QB at the same time and got to the superbowl after their 4th season together. Are you implying the Browns have their coach for the next 4 years already in place (or a future HOF QB)?

more important than their coach they have the right GM who will pick the next coach.

The problem with the Browns has been they cant pick talent and waste all their picks.

This year alone they have 3 of the top rookies in the NFL in Mayfield, Ward and Chubb.

Add that to Garrett- who is already one of the bests defensive players isn the league, and young talent like Peppers, Ward, Ogunjobi, Schobert etc. and the base is clearly there

tehy have one of the youngest teams in the league, a rookie QB and have won 4 of their last 5 games.

The most important thing by far ahs been Baker-- and how he has changed the narrative and the "same old Browns" mentality.

Rothlisberger is not going to be playing much longer, Dalton is mediocre, and Baker is better than Jackson.

The Browns will soon have the best QB in the AFC North, and already have the best defensive player, and tons of young talent. This is clearly, finally, a a team on the rise.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Only because they know they have no shot at Lebron and already have Baker. That's a huge non-choice of a choice, lol.

not even close.

its a football city for a reason.

 

[Wamu]

i am sure they do but they dont call themselves Cleveland fans. lol

You truly are a very special kind of insane homer.

I'd bet money I saw the Browns live before you did (1981).
I'd bet money I saw the Indians live before you did (1980).
I'd bet money I saw the Cavs live before you did. (1982).

Only in your twisted & delusional world am I not a Cleveland sports fan. It just pisses you off for some bizarre reason that the Cavs aren't my # 1 NBA team.

What's next? Will you give me shit for being a UNLV hoops fan even though I was a season ticket holder when I lived out there?

 

[msgkings322]

not even close.

its a football city for a reason.

It's amusing how your new narrative is all football, basketball doesn't matter...now that the Cavs are back to awful forever and the Browns are finally pointing the right way.

Why you post this here instead of in the NFL forum I have no idea. Well actually I do have an idea LOL

 

[WiggyRuss]

It's amusing how your new narrative is all football, basketball doesn't matter...now that the Cavs are back to awful forever and the Browns are finally pointing the right way.

Why you post this here instead of in the NFL forum I have no idea. Well actually I do have an idea LOL

i am one of the biggets basketball fans, comparatively in the city.....i am just saying what the over-all mentality is.

 

[WiggyRuss]

You truly are a very special kind of insane homer.

I'd bet money I saw the Browns live before you did (1981).
I'd bet money I saw the Indians live before you did (1980).
I'd bet money I saw the Cavs live before you did. (1982).

Only in your twisted & delusional world am I not a Cleveland sports fan. It just pisses you off for some bizarre reason that the Cavs aren't my # 1 NBA team.

What's next? Will you give me shit for being a UNLV hoops fan even though I was a season ticket holder when I lived out there?

good for you.

I am sure you are 100% telling the truth.

But you cant be a Celtics fans first and foremost over the Cavs and call yourself a Cleveland fan. Its simply not possible.

If I was a fan of the Indians, Cavs and Steelers- i am not a Cleveland fan and would never even try and claim to be. its ridiculous to even try and say otherwise.

You cant root for a team of another city over a Cleveland team and call yourself a Cleveland fan- that just doesnt even make sense.

 

[DorianRo]

Nice game Lebron. Showed up and abused by Wall who spends more time at the club than on a basketball court

 

[DJ]

This is why James Dolan runs the Knicks and the Garden without apology

 

[DJ]

hell I am a Cleveland fan and huge Baker fan and i would give the nod to Mahomes....but Baker is not too far behind and there are not too many QB's in the league looking forward that I would trade straight up for Baker.


Id rather have Baker than Allen of Buffalo, Tannehill of Miami, Darnold of NYJ, Jackson of Bmore, Dalton of Cincy, Bortles of Jville, Mariota of Tenn, Keenum of Denver, Carr of Oak, Dak of Dallas, Eli of NYG, Smith/McCoy of Wash, Trubiskey of CHI, Cousins of Minn., Winston of TAmpa, Rosen of ARI, Garapollo of San Fran

There are older QBs that are better than Baker like Rivers, Rothlisberger, Brees, Brady--- all of who id rather have in the short term, but all I would not trade Baker for considering the long term and that its doubtful any of those guys plays more than another couple years. I think the youngest one of those guys is like 37....

As for the young guys- id rather have Mahomes, but Goff, Wentz, Watson, Luck would all be tough decisions because of injury concerns/performance. Wentz and Luck have had major injuries in multiple years. Goff has tons of weapons and looks great at times but has also struggled at times.

Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Russell Wilson, Matt Stafford, are all arguable.

AT NOT TOO FAR BEHIND.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Nice game Lebron. Showed up and abused by Wall who spends more time at the club than on a basketball court

ehhhh....Wall actually tried because he is probably auditioning for a trade....lol.....and really...its not that hard to beat Bell like a drum point guard to point guard.

the funny thing about the Wiz is that they actually do have a modicum of talent- Wall is really talented. Beal is really talented. Porter is a decent/solid SF. Its just they have no heart and no work ethic and no leadership. Their playeres basically are what make a lot of people ahte modern day pro sports.

but when Wall is motivated and healthy he can still play at a very very high level and with Wall and Beal the Wiz easily had 2 of the 3 best players on the court.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Nice game Lebron. Showed up and abused by Wall who spends more time at the club than on a basketball court

plus with Ingram and Rondo out that end of the Lakers rotation starts to get a lil dirty.....Svi playing 28 minutes, KCP playng 27, Wagner playing 17.....even Ball playing 34.....ick.

 

[DJ]

Ian O'Connor is a good writer.

 

[WiggyRuss]

It's amusing how your new narrative is all football, basketball doesn't matter...now that the Cavs are back to awful forever and the Browns are finally pointing the right way.

Why you post this here instead of in the NFL forum I have no idea. Well actually I do have an idea LOL

i wil ltell ya- this is sad in so many ways but it is no less true:

 

[WiggyRuss]

...and will be in a dysfunctional situation for his entire Browns career. It comes with the territory.

Joe Posnanski's Browns diary: The Baker Mayfield Effect

i know most people dont have the athletic- but this is from Joe Posnaski- who used to be one of the big writers at SI before going to The Athletic

@Mecca beware- blocks of text coming...shield your eyes!

:::

But here’s the miracle of sports.

Sometimes it takes only one player.

This is something I’ve argued about with a couple of different friends regarding the movie “The Natural.” The New York Knights were a joke, they were terrible, last place, the only even decent player was a prima-donna, the manager was genial but overmatched, the owner wanted them to lose for sinister reasons, the lead scout was signing 38-year-old rookies from nowhere, things were as bad as they could be.

Then Roy Hobbs shows up and suddenly the team is not just good but awesome, practically unbeatable.

I have a friend who says that’s ridiculous. He insists: One player couldn’t turn around an atrocious team THAT much no matter how good he is. And I’ve argued with my friend for years because I think you can underestimate the power of one player.*

*You can disprove my friend’s broken theory with two words: LeBron. James.

But now I have direct proof. Baker Mayfield is direct proof. The Browns were beyond repair. I mean, you can’t say this enough times: They went winless last season and BROUGHT BACK THE COACH. And this year started more or less the way last year ended. In Week 1, they forced SIX turnovers at home and couldn’t figure out how to win. In Week 2, as mentioned, they blew the game in New Orleans because they didn’t have a competent kicker (though this should not overshadow the fact that they did some amazingly dumb things).

In Week 3, they were flailing around against the Jets.

And then — Baker Mayfield entered the game.

And, as mentioned at the time, it was like that moment in “The Wizard of Oz” when we go from black and white to color. Every single thing about the Browns changed. Suddenly, everybody played with a new energy. Suddenly, receivers who had been dropping passes routinely were making dazzling catches. Suddenly defensive backs who had been passively letting everything happen were inserting themselves into plays....

And it was perfect. Kitchens in particular looks like a prodigy. But perhaps more to the point, the Browns were telling Baker Mayfield: “You be you.”

Since that moment, the Browns are 4-2, Mayfield is completing 71 percent of his passes with 13 touchdowns, five interceptions and a sterling 109.3 passer rating. Sometimes he looks like Brett Favre. Sometimes he looks like Drew Brees. Sometimes he looks like Brian Sipe (my old hero). Sometimes he looks like “Tom Pendleton” from “Heaven Can Wait.”

Always, he plays with intensity and energy and joy, and EVERYBODY feeds off of it. Mayfield did not have a great game against Denver on Saturday night. But he was good when he needed to be good. The final touchdown he threw — a two-yarder to Antonio Callaway — has become a viral video because of the way he gathered everyone for a second huddle, moved people around like he was director of “La La Land,” and made the touchdown happen.

Please understand, I’m not saying Mayfield has turned this team around by himself. Not at all. The game was won when second-year safety Jabrill Peppers — who, in 2017, looked like a lost soul — raced in for the walk-off sack.

Peppers has been playing brilliantly lately. Defensive end Myles Garrett has been playing brilliantly. Rookie running back Nick Chubb has been playing brilliantly, as has the entire interior offensive line. Everybody on the whole team, it seems, has kicked It up several notches. And it’s silly to give Mayfield the credit for all that.

I do believe he gets some of the credit. I believe part of it is his makeup, his energy, his zeal for football, his confidence. That stuff can make a difference. But I think the big thing is even more basic: Mayfield gives the Browns a real chance to win. It’s all well and good to say that everyone should play their hardest at all times, no matter who is the coach or quarterback. But we know ourselves, right? You’re a defensive end, exhausted beyond measure, and your team is down by six, you tell me — wouldn’t you give just a LITTLE bit more if you have faith that the team will win if you can get a stop?

Or, perhaps more accurately, wouldn’t you give just a LITTLE bit less if you know in your heart that your team isn’t coming back anyway?

Mayfield has given the Browns that winning feeling. Things seemed so bleak last year that it was easy to overlook the good and promising players on the team. It’s always like that for dreadful, losing teams. Good players get buried and also get discouraged. The right player can change a whole lot.

I’ll give you another movie example because, frankly, at this point, we might as well go all in. Have you ever wondered how at the end of Footloose, all those kids knew how to dance? I mean, the town hadn’t had a dance in years. But then, suddenly, Kevin Bacon shows up and everybody’s dancing up a storm, they’re having little dance-offs in the middle of the floor, confetti’s flying around, etc.

Baker Mayfield is Roy Hobbs. He’s Kevin Bacon. He’s not only playing great football himself. He’s reminding his teammates that, yes, they can dance.

 

[TurnUpTheHeat]

@TurnUpTheHeat sad news about Beasley. Seems like his mother is extremely sick. Knew something bad was going on when I saw the amount of games he missed for personal reasons.

Beasley attends Lakers game with ailing mother

That sucks.

 

[shopson67]

Joe Posnanski's Browns diary: The Baker Mayfield Effect

i know most people dont have the athletic- but this is from Joe Posnaski- who used to be one of the big writers at SI before going to The Athletic

@Mecca beware- blocks of text coming...shield your eyes!

:::

But here’s the miracle of sports.

Sometimes it takes only one player.

This is something I’ve argued about with a couple of different friends regarding the movie “The Natural.” The New York Knights were a joke, they were terrible, last place, the only even decent player was a prima-donna, the manager was genial but overmatched, the owner wanted them to lose for sinister reasons, the lead scout was signing 38-year-old rookies from nowhere, things were as bad as they could be.

Then Roy Hobbs shows up and suddenly the team is not just good but awesome, practically unbeatable.

I have a friend who says that’s ridiculous. He insists: One player couldn’t turn around an atrocious team THAT much no matter how good he is. And I’ve argued with my friend for years because I think you can underestimate the power of one player.*

*You can disprove my friend’s broken theory with two words: LeBron. James.

But now I have direct proof. Baker Mayfield is direct proof. The Browns were beyond repair. I mean, you can’t say this enough times: They went winless last season and BROUGHT BACK THE COACH. And this year started more or less the way last year ended. In Week 1, they forced SIX turnovers at home and couldn’t figure out how to win. In Week 2, as mentioned, they blew the game in New Orleans because they didn’t have a competent kicker (though this should not overshadow the fact that they did some amazingly dumb things).

In Week 3, they were flailing around against the Jets.

And then — Baker Mayfield entered the game.

And, as mentioned at the time, it was like that moment in “The Wizard of Oz” when we go from black and white to color. Every single thing about the Browns changed. Suddenly, everybody played with a new energy. Suddenly, receivers who had been dropping passes routinely were making dazzling catches. Suddenly defensive backs who had been passively letting everything happen were inserting themselves into plays....

And it was perfect. Kitchens in particular looks like a prodigy. But perhaps more to the point, the Browns were telling Baker Mayfield: “You be you.”

Since that moment, the Browns are 4-2, Mayfield is completing 71 percent of his passes with 13 touchdowns, five interceptions and a sterling 109.3 passer rating. Sometimes he looks like Brett Favre. Sometimes he looks like Drew Brees. Sometimes he looks like Brian Sipe (my old hero). Sometimes he looks like “Tom Pendleton” from “Heaven Can Wait.”

Always, he plays with intensity and energy and joy, and EVERYBODY feeds off of it. Mayfield did not have a great game against Denver on Saturday night. But he was good when he needed to be good. The final touchdown he threw — a two-yarder to Antonio Callaway — has become a viral video because of the way he gathered everyone for a second huddle, moved people around like he was director of “La La Land,” and made the touchdown happen.

Please understand, I’m not saying Mayfield has turned this team around by himself. Not at all. The game was won when second-year safety Jabrill Peppers — who, in 2017, looked like a lost soul — raced in for the walk-off sack.

Peppers has been playing brilliantly lately. Defensive end Myles Garrett has been playing brilliantly. Rookie running back Nick Chubb has been playing brilliantly, as has the entire interior offensive line. Everybody on the whole team, it seems, has kicked It up several notches. And it’s silly to give Mayfield the credit for all that.

I do believe he gets some of the credit. I believe part of it is his makeup, his energy, his zeal for football, his confidence. That stuff can make a difference. But I think the big thing is even more basic: Mayfield gives the Browns a real chance to win. It’s all well and good to say that everyone should play their hardest at all times, no matter who is the coach or quarterback. But we know ourselves, right? You’re a defensive end, exhausted beyond measure, and your team is down by six, you tell me — wouldn’t you give just a LITTLE bit more if you have faith that the team will win if you can get a stop?

Or, perhaps more accurately, wouldn’t you give just a LITTLE bit less if you know in your heart that your team isn’t coming back anyway?

Mayfield has given the Browns that winning feeling. Things seemed so bleak last year that it was easy to overlook the good and promising players on the team. It’s always like that for dreadful, losing teams. Good players get buried and also get discouraged. The right player can change a whole lot.

I’ll give you another movie example because, frankly, at this point, we might as well go all in. Have you ever wondered how at the end of Footloose, all those kids knew how to dance? I mean, the town hadn’t had a dance in years. But then, suddenly, Kevin Bacon shows up and everybody’s dancing up a storm, they’re having little dance-offs in the middle of the floor, confetti’s flying around, etc.

Baker Mayfield is Roy Hobbs. He’s Kevin Bacon. He’s not only playing great football himself. He’s reminding his teammates that, yes, they can dance.

Get his HOF bust ready; Baker is 6-6 with a last place schedule. They beat the mighty Jets, the Ravens (solid win), the Falcons (another team with only 1 quality win), the Bungles, the Panthers (in the midst of their 5 game losing streak) and the midling Broncos. Congrats, the Browns have elevated to mediocre!

 

[WiggyRuss]

Get his HOF bust ready; Baker is 6-6 with a last place schedule. They beat the mighty Jets, the Ravens (solid win), the Falcons (another team with only 1 quality win), the Bungles, the Panthers (in the midst of their 5 game losing streak) and the midling Broncos. Congrats, the Browns have elevated to mediocre!

dude they won 3 games the last THREE SEASONS combined. They have won 4 out of their last 5. I am telling you right now- its no longer business as usual. You can throw the past out the window. What happened before is not going to have any effect on what will happen going forward. I am not saying they are world beaters- the elite teams they have faced- New Orleans, Pittsburgh, San Diego, KC--- they have lost all those games (though they absolutely blew the Pittsburgh game and the New Orleans game).

With Baker as a rookie, some holes on the roster, and just tons and tons of young guys- they arent there yet. They just arent---- but they are close- and they can get there next year. I expect them to win between 9 and 11 games next year. Considering where they have been- that is amazing.

its no longer the Factory of Sadness. lol.

Baker changed everything.

 

[Shanemansj13]

Get his HOF bust ready; Baker is 6-6 with a last place schedule. They beat the mighty Jets, the Ravens (solid win), the Falcons (another team with only 1 quality win), the Bungles, the Panthers (in the midst of their 5 game losing streak) and the midling Broncos. Congrats, the Browns have elevated to mediocre!

Last place? The Browns have one of the toughest schedules in the NFL this year. There are A LOT of mediocre teams this year if you havent noticed other than the Saints. The Browns could easily have 9 WINS right how if it wasnt for having a very shitty kicker and one very blown call vs the Raiders. They also could have wins against Pitt, N.O. and then that Oakland game (the first down call was atrocious that would have sealed the game). Also, the Browns are one of the youngest teams in the league, they had 4 rookies starting on the offense alone (Qb, RB, WR, LT-Harrison). Going for 7 wins but could have been 10 is a very good jump for having won 3 games the past two seasons.

What is funny is having a stacked roster with borderline HOF’s at every position group and you lose to a lost Eagles team that looks awful on defense with a backup QB Seriously, how is the Rams defense so very very bad having the most talent in the league? If they dont win a Super Bowl this year it will be a failure.

 

[shopson67]

Last place? The Browns have one of the toughest schedules in the NFL this year. There are A LOT of mediocre teams this year if you havent noticed other than the Saints. The Browns could easily have 9 WINS right how if it wasnt for having a very shitty kicker and one very blown call vs the Raiders. They also could have wins against Pitt, N.O. and then that Oakland game (the first down call was atrocious that would have sealed the game). Also, the Browns are one of the youngest teams in the league, they had 4 rookies starting on the offense alone (Qb, RB, WR, LT-Harrison). Going for 7 wins but could have been 10 is a very good jump for having won 3 games the past two seasons.

What is funny is having a stacked roster with borderline HOF’s at every position group and you lose to a lost Eagles team that looks awful on defense with a backup QB Seriously, how is the Rams defense so very very bad having the most talent in the league? If they dont win a Super Bowl this year it will be a failure.

That is a last place schedule. That is how the NFL works. Any given team plays 2x in division, once vs a division in your conference and the other conference, and against the teams that finished where you did in your division in every other division. So, the Browns play the AFC North twice, the AFC West, the NFC South, and the teams that finished last in all other divisions.

Yes, the Rams have been disappointing the last few weeks. They survived their lackluster play vs the Lions, but have now lost two in a row. Luckily, they have what SHOULD be easy wins to get their offense straightened out left on their schedule. Hopefully they don't take the Cards and especially the Niners too easily. Their defense has been basically crap all season. Once a team doubles and triples Donald, the other linemen should have easy days 1 on 1 against their opposite OLs, but it hasn't worked out that way. The defense has a horrible problem of not holding their responsibilities and jumping out of their assigned lanes, and getting gashed via the run as a result.

Borderline HOFers at every position group is a big exaggeration. I count two right now unless you want to talk punter lol (Gurley, Donald).

5 youngest rosters in the NFL: Bengals (25.2), Browns (25.3), Cowboys (25.4), Rams (25.5), Jags (25.5).