Kyrie to Boston rumors heating up. Deal nearly complete

[Blotch]

LOL.

Clearly you don't post here much. The list is a lot longer than that unless all you care about is scoring. There is a lot more to basketball.

Yeah I know. Only two of those guys are elite scorers.

If all I cared about was scoring, I'd have George, Thomas, Irving and Harden on that list.

 

[tlance]

Harden and Wall? Harden and Wall?

Antetekoumpo? Really? KAT? Embiid? Porzingas? Can you get back to me when they play their first playoff games?

Harden and Wall, LOL.

What has Kyrie ever led anybody to?

 

[CitySushi]

Gonna have to agree to disagree.

Harden is a slug. I wouldn't take him over 30 other guys in the NBA.

Well if that's the way you feel, no point in arguing then.

 

[flyerhawk]

Take a guess how many all-nba 1st teams Harden was making in the shadow of superstars?

Just as many as Irving.

I don't know what to tell you here. I hate James Harden. Such a fraud player. Did you see the way that choad mailed in that elimination playoff game?

He plays worse defense than Isaiah Thomas.

I hate Harden. Hate him.

That's cool that you hate him. That doesn't change that he is a consensus franchise player.

So you think that Kyrie is going to be a 1st team All-NBA player with the Celtics this year now that he is away from the yoke of Lebron James?

 

[CitySushi]

What has Kyrie ever led anybody to?

Lead the Cavs straight to Anthony Bennett.

 

[Blotch]

No. Not even close. They get swept by Golden State if they somehow make it past Cleveland.

Long term, you have hitched your wagon to either Tatum or Brown becoming a superstar. Might happen, but I think Bagley and Porter are both more likely to get there. Combining the Laker and Net picks would have given the Celtics a really good chance to get 1 or 2. Now? They need to hit exactly 2 and they have 1 bullet to get there.

They "need" to hit exactly 2?

They're in a dead-heat with the Cavs to reach the Finals. This coming season.

They don't "need" to hit anything.

Whatever you may think? Danny Ainge thinks Tatum and Brown are future superstars.

And we can debate the merits of rankings, but Hayward and Irving are top 20 guys on anybody's list.

The Celtics could be in the Finals this season with Tatum and Brown coming off the bench.

Very few teams are better set up for the now and for the long term.

 

[Blotch]

That's cool that you hate him. That doesn't change that he is a consensus franchise player.

So you think that Kyrie is going to be a 1st team All-NBA player with the Celtics this year now that he is away from the yoke of Lebron James?

"consensus franchise player"

I assure you, the Rockets wouldn't be any worse if you switched Harden and Irving.

 

[tlance]

Giannis was in the playoffs this year. I'm pretty sure I said that KAT, Embiid, and Porzingas COULD be depending on how they played this year.

Hilarious that you dismiss Harden. 1st team All-NBA for the last 3 years. MVP finalist.

John Wall didn't have the luxury of playing with Lebron James.

Also,

Kyrie's absolute max ceiling is Harden. Harden is the player he is most similar to.

Like @CitySushi said though, Harden is better because he elevates teammates. Kyrie doesn't.

 

[bksballer89]

This thread is straight comedy now

 

[CitySushi]

For Harden's argument, look at the roster he took to the WCF in 2015. They won 56 games that year.

Dwight Howard was their second best player.
Then Trevor Ariza
Then a smattering of guys who were at best marginal role players and/or no longer in the NBA.

 

[tlance]

They "need" to hit exactly 2?

They're in a dead-heat with the Cavs to reach the Finals. This coming season.

They don't "need" to hit anything.

Whatever you may think? Danny Ainge thinks Tatum and Brown are future superstars.

And we can debate the merits of rankings, but Hayward and Irving are top 20 guys on anybody's list.

The Celtics could be in the Finals this season with Tatum and Brown coming off the bench.

Very few teams are better set up for the now and for the long term.

Sure. This last part is true.

But, they would have been set up even better for the future with the assets they had before this trade.

As for the present?

It doesn't matter. They have no shot at beating Golden State. Truthfully, they aren't beating a super motivated LeBron either.

But, like I said earlier, the worst aspect of this deal from Boston's point of view is that they have now significantly increased the odds the LeBron remains in Cleveland after next summer.

 

[flyerhawk]

"consensus franchise player"

I assure you, the Rockets wouldn't be any worse if you switched Harden and Irving.

Well you can assure me but I still completely disagree with you.

 

[Blotch]

What has Kyrie ever led anybody to?

Damn, you're right. Irving has never won anything.

 

[flyerhawk]

Also,

Kyrie's absolute max ceiling is Harden. Harden is the player he is most similar to.

Like @CitySushi said though, Harden is better because he elevates teammates. Kyrie doesn't.

And Lebron might be the best player at elevating the talent around him in the league right now. He made the game easier FOR Kyrie, not the other way around.

I could agree to an extent that Harden is a bit of fool's gold and I don't like how he tends to shrink in the playoffs. But there is no question he is a top 10 player and you would need to look really hard to find an objective observer who would say that Kyrie is even close to that.

 

[Blotch]

Sure. This last part is true.

But, they would have been set up even better for the future with the assets they had before this trade.

As for the present?

It doesn't matter. They have no shot at beating Golden State. Truthfully, they aren't beating a super motivated LeBron either.

But, like I said earlier, the worst aspect of this deal from Boston's point of view is that they have now significantly increased the odds the LeBron remains in Cleveland after next summer.

Almost none of that makes any sense to me.

You sound like a Celtics hater.

No team in the NBA has a shot at beating Golden State. So why should any team even try?

33 year old LeBron with the mileage of a 37 year old is just going to run over everyone again.

I don't think so.

The Cavs are worse than they were last year and Boston is much, much better.

That series is a coinflip right now.

 

[Blotch]

And Lebron might be the best player at elevating the talent around him in the league right now. He made the game easier FOR Kyrie, not the other way around.

I could agree to an extent that Harden is a bit of fool's gold and I don't like how he tends to shrink in the playoffs. But there is no question he is a top 10 player and you would need to look really hard to find an objective observer who would say that Kyrie is even close to that.

Other than the 5,000 reporters across national sports media who have all said it the past month, sure.


"He played with LeBron, by default, he sucks without him"


Imagine if we applied that logic to Harden when he played with Westbrook and Durant?

Yeah. Think about that.

 

[ericd7633]

Yes, I do. I think there are about 8 guys that are borderline 7-10.

Irving is one of them.

There's literally nothing to back him up being a top 10 player. So continue being wrong, I guess.

 

[tlance]

Almost none of that makes any sense to me.

You sound like a Celtics hater.

No team in the NBA has a shot at beating Golden State. So why should any team even try?

33 year old LeBron with the mileage of a 37 year old is just going to run over everyone again.

I don't think so.

The Cavs are worse than they were last year and Boston is much, much better.

That series is a coinflip right now.

I am not a Celtic hater at all.

In fact, I was a supporter of every one of Ainge's moves until last night. They were stockpiling assets and had the best chance of any team in the NBA to eventually catch up to GS. But, they are a near perfect team and you can't make a mistake like this if you want to get on their level.

I am an objective poster who calls it like I see it. You are clearly drinking the cool aid.

 

[WiggyRuss]

Almost none of that makes any sense to me.

You sound like a Celtics hater.

No team in the NBA has a shot at beating Golden State. So why should any team even try?

33 year old LeBron with the mileage of a 37 year old is just going to run over everyone again.

I don't think so.

The Cavs are worse than they were last year and Boston is much, much better.

That series is a coinflip right now.

coin flip?

cmon now.

The Cavs dealt Kyrie- not LeBron.

 

[flyerhawk]

Other than the 5,000 reporters across national sports media who have all said it the past month, sure.


"He played with LeBron, by default, he sucks without him"


Imagine if we applied that logic to Harden when he played with Westbrook and Durant?

Yeah. Think about that.

Well the evidence is pretty clear. Without Lebron on the the Cavs were bad. They were terrible without Irving as well but they are were a non-playoff team bad with Kyrie on the court and Lebron off.

I wouldn't say he sucks without Lebron but Lebron certainly made him a better player.