The NBA Thread.

Nick Wright? I didn't even post what he had to say about it, but you're misrepresenting his stance either way. His stance was that the list of people with back to back MVP's is a super elite list of the best players of all time... and Steve Nash. He didn't feel that Jokic was deserving of the honor of joining that list.

Jokic as the clear MVP last season is revisionist history. Embiid and Giannis were both very much in the discussion, had better overall team performances, and were both SIGNIFICANTLY better defenders.

 

It’s still early, but rumors of James Harden’s demise appear to have been a bit overstated.

 

So many things to talk about with Lakers/Clippers last night. Where to begin?

 

• Let’s start positive. John Wall looked great. His fit with the Clippers is perfect, and he looks like he’s gonna thrive.
• Okay, now the negative - remember when the Lakers had the chance to trade for John Wall? LOL
• I can’t believe the Lakers extended Pelinka. The man deconstructed a championship roster and replaced it with this atrocious group. How atrocious is it? Well…
• They’re 19/85 from 3 so far this season. That’s 22% from 3, as a team, through 2 games. Everyone knows you win with LeBron by surrounding him with 3 point shooters. He might be the best 3 point shooter on the team.
• Russ, Beverly, and Nunn combined to go 1/25 from the field last night. That’s 4%.
• Russ and Beverly guarded Kawhi for large stretches of the game last night. Russ’s effort on defense has been better, but you’re never going to win games with those guys guarding bigger wings like Kawhi.
• Lonnie Walker IV, albeit not a terrible player, took 21 shots last night. For comparison, LeBron took 17 and AD took 16. That’s not a winning formula.
• I think Wenyen Gabriel has played like, 10 total minutes through 2 games despite being one of their only serviceable wings.
• AD has 0 assists through 2 games and seems intent on showing everyone he still can’t shoot.
• I just don’t know what they’re doing. Are they writing this season off and playing for next year, when Westbrook will be off the books, giving them cap space? Are they holding the Westbrook trade in hopes of getting better value as more teams start tanking? Are they just hoping the team will start hitting these open 3’s?

Hope is not a strategy, Rob.

 

Ja is pretty good at basketball.

 

“LeBron doesn’t have a left.”

 

The Jazz being 3-0 is so bizarre.

 

That joke never gets old.

 

The Lakers may be 0-5, but they’ve played a tough schedule and have a top tier defense.

Initially, I wasn’t sure the Hield/Turner trade would make them a contender, but I’m starting to think that it would. A top offense or defense with the opposite side just middle of the pack can contend. The addition of Hield and Turner with the subtraction of Russ doesn’t solve all of their problems on offense, but it can get them to middle of the pack. There’s literally nowhere to go but up offensively, and they can’t shoot this poorly from 3 forever.

I laugh about Pelinka’s extension every time I see this terribly constructed roster play.

 

Josh primo exposing himself to maids. deshaun assaulting “masseuses.” Starting to regret the Alamo.

 

Lakers still in panic mode at 1-5, but that's a good win over a solid Denver squad. Russ came off the bench and had a great game, the team shot really well from 3, and LeBron didn't even play that well. AD continues to be a force defensively and his effort/hustle appears to have improved.

A 1 game sample size doesn't mean much, but if they can make this whole "Russ of the bench" thing work, they should be headed the right direction. The question then becomes do you think you're good enough to contend if you move him at the deadline? Because if the answer is no, but they still feel they can make the playoffs with him, I probably just hold off on trading him and enjoy that expiring contract next offseason.

 

[uck fay] Kyrie.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34907857/nets-kyrie-irving-defends-post-antisemitic-movie

I get he's trying to be a "free thinker" (Though about 90% of people who try to label themselves this are usually bat shit nutjobs, Kyrie included.), but he's just consistently spouting gobbledygook faux intelligentsia nonsense from the realms of "This is what they won't tell you!" dungeons of YouTube. Irving, then, always doubles down on the matter with more feigned outrage or exasperation for the response to stuff he put out in the first place. Dumb shit like this from the article:

"I'm not here to argue over a person or a culture or a religion and what they believe," Irving said after the Nets 125-116 loss to the Indiana Pacers. "Nah, this is what's here. It's on a public platform. Did I do anything illegal? Did I hurt anybody? Did I harm anybody? Am I going out and saying that I hate one specific group of people? So out of all of the judgment that people got for me posting, without talking to me, and then I respect what Joe [Tsai] said, but there has a lot to do with not ego or pride of how proud I am to be [of] African heritage, but also to be living as a free Black man here in America, knowing the historical complexities for me to get here.

"So I'm not going to stand down on anything that I believe in. I'm only going to get stronger because I'm not alone. I have a whole army around me."

Gibberish nonsense with a touch of self-righteousness. What a [dadgum] idiot.

 

"My" guy Nick Wright agrees with you. I don't know anything about the movie/book Kyrie promoted, but I thought the responses on Twitter to Wright's tweets about Kyrie were interesting.

Lot of people brought up Bezos and Amazon allowing the film on their platform. A lot of people said his tweets sounded an awful lot like "shut up and dribble." I was caught off guard by how many people defended Kyrie and called Wright out for saying similar things to what you just posted above.

 

Steve Nash out. Woj claiming the decision was "mutual."

I wonder if the Nets are about to burn it down and would be more open to trading Kyrie at this point. Their team looks like it should be a playoff team on paper, but they just don't seem to have it.

 

Wow, definitely did not see that coming...

 

LeBron claims he's been in bed for the past 3 days. Maybe that's what causing his slow start, or maybe the decline has officially begun. His numbers (pts, assists, rebounds, etc.) are still strong, but his efficiency has taken a massive hit through 7 games.

For comparison's sake, he was 52% from the field last season and 36% from 3. He's currently 44% from the field and 23% from 3. It's his worst percentage from the field since his rookie season, and it's his worst percentage from 3 ever.

I get that slumps are a thing, but if he doesn't turn it around the next couple of games, I'm not sure how else to view this other than as an indicator of his decline truly beginning.