Luol Deng is hurt as well. His eye is badly swollen. SO it is now: Dragic, Udrich, Wade, Deng, Whiteside, McBob, Bird, OUT. that is more than half the active roster. Good news is that Dragic and Udrich are a couple of games away, Wade is too...Deng is tough, he is at least out a couple games now, but Hassan is likely out for at least the season if somebody will tell him he can get paid anyway.
Yeah sorry, we just arent going to agree on any of this. Kareem may have been on the back end of his career but hes gotta be 65ish now and still no one can block that damn hook shot. Position scarcity of the C position > any small stat advantage Draymond may have much of which I would assume comes as a passer. I mean many of those last 8 or so years Kareem was still averaging 20+ PPG and 8 rebounds with good assists steals and blocks numbers. His efficiency numbers remained strong, particularly his eFG%. And one other thing about a Jabbar vs Draymond comparison...could Draymond do it on a team that played differently then GSW? I didnt want the Knicks giving him big money if he got to free agency because Im not sure he fits a half court offense as a 3rd or 4th option. KAJ was a great player with Milwaukee and a great player with the Lakers winning championships with both teams. Sorry, like I said, point guards dont have long term runs. Isiah couldnt maintain it, Magic needed Worthy and KAJ as well as supporting players like Scoot and Cooper. I loved Magic as a player because he was the original Point forward with his size. Hands down Id take him over Curry. Tell me why Curry will have the long term run other PG's couldnt have? Why is he going to maintain this when many really good or great PG's slow down in their early 30's? Whats Riley's address? Ill send one of them rats there. Havent seen a rat in there since Isiah was canned though.
BTW, went back and forth on twitter with the one and only OJ McDuffie just now. Talking Heat basketball.
It's the NEW NBA. They play Pirahna defense..while hitting you over the head with 15 threes per game. Simple formula. He isn't gonna forget how to shoot.
Not buying it. His game isnt just based on being a great shooter, its based on quickness and speed which fades quickest as you get older.
Shooting goes away last. he can shoot when falling out of bed, crapping on the toilet, anywhere. A screen gets set. He shoots. Golden State has a heavy assist laden offense. He is not Hero Balling out there. Golden State is #1 in Assist Ratio, and threatening an NBA record in that regard too. This is the consummate..TEAM.
BTW, all these Spurs believers out there...why am I getting such a ****ty price on the Dubs to repeat? (+150)
Yeah the threat of Curry shooting from 10 feet behind the line just cripples a defense. There's no scheme that can cover Curry that far out AND recover fast enough for their elite ball movement. I literally don't know if there is a way to stop them. My only question with them is how they'd work without one of Steph / Klay / Draymond. Or even Iggy, really. Seems like each part of the machine is crucial - so if they ever lose a main guy to injury I'm not sure how they respond. Not saying they won't still be amazing. I'm just trying to find some sort of hope as a Cavs fan.
Section, do you see the Heat standing pat or making a move to get a shooter. I'm not sure if they have any real assets, but that hasn't stopped Riley in the past. I realize the injury situation is bad, but the play on the court has been even worse (even when they were somewhat healthy).
You see.. I disagree..before the injuries, they were top 5 in Def. and Top 11 in Off. That's what they are. A borderline 50 win team, but likely 46 to 48 wins. What they were obviously lacking for consistency in their game was a shooter. Hopefully as a stretch 4 or SG. I think Pat Riley will absolutely go in the market to add a piece, but it will be a trade of expirings. Pat Riley won't harm their flexibility this summer.
Ethan Skolnick just broke news that Kevin Love was almost traded last season to Phoenix. I. Thomas was the main piece they were getting back. Cavs backed out last minute.
Yikes that trade sounds awful. Heard it was Thomas, Morris, and something else. Morris is a headcase - Thomas is Diet Kyrie and isn't helping with defense. Say what you want about Kevin Love but I don't see how that trade makes the Cavs better. I think a Kevin Love / Derrick Favors trade makes an insane amount of sense for both teams.
LOL. Yeah..especially to Cavs fans. Favors is a ready made defender, scorer, rebounder, all around perfect fit and you get to dump your "issue" on Utah. Favors is also younger. You are not going to get a GREAT fit trade for Love at this point. It's gonna be a package with one decent piece that makes the Cavs deeper.
Utah needs scoring and a Love / Gobert pairing is perfect for them. They've been looking for a star forever. Houston w Monty and Terrence Jones could be interesting. Disagree on Loves value since he's locked up.
Hmmm, bait much? I'm a Spurs fan, but if you're asking if I believe that they'll win it all this year? I won't take that bet. I wouldn't have at the start of the year and I won't know. This season is just plain messed up. What Steph Curry is doing is messed up. What the Warriors have done so far is messed up. A lot of what the Spurs have done is messed up. All I can tell you is that the Warriors are, obviously, for real, and they seem to have the heart and soul to win it again. I'm surprised by the Spurs success but I'm conscious that they've had one of the softest first half schedules of any on the league, maybe THE softest. So I take their record with a pinch of salt. I also remember a few years back where the Spurs rolled through the regular season only to get ousted by the Grizzlies in the 1st round. Can the Spurs beat the Warriors? Yes. Definitely. Are there lots of other factors that could interrupt the Spurs' plans, Warriors' plans, and everyone else's plans - absolutely. There's a lot of ball left to play. I really have no idea what to expect from this post-season, so for now I'm just along for the ride, enjoying the games, and hoping to see greater and greater consistency from the Spurs - especially the ability to quit with these super slow starts. Problem is, the Spurs traditionally don't come alive until after the 'rodeo-weekend' road-trip. So I can't even expect to know where things will be at this point. As for your odds - you've got to expect that right? Apart from the Spurs who else would/could you pick to even contend with the Warriors? One, maybe two teams - maybe? Then factor in the toughness of Western team getting through the gauntlet, and then consider how stupidly superior the Dubs have been, and how different they are, and I don't think anyone is going to give you good odds for what has seemed like a forgone conclusion. Look, if Curry shows consistent injury or weariness, then they'll look more vulnerable - or if they lose Green or maybe Klay, otherwise, they're a force to contend with. I will say this though - if the Spurs do find a way to beat the Warriors - I'll be all over this board for a week!
What I am saying is that, everywhere I turn, there are people telling me that the Spurs are going to dethrone the Dubs. So I then log on to Bovada and expect to see +200 or +250 on the dubs to repeat, and I then find them to be an overwhelming favorite to win it all again. So are all these people just talking and not putting their money where their mouth is?
Can't tell you. What I can tell you is that I think they've got the depth, adaptability, experience, talent and coaching to pull it off, but there are far too many what-ifs to consider to say they 'will' do it. Ask me again right before their series starts in the post-season.
Nothing like bringing eight healthy players (one regular starter) to a nationally televised Eastern Conference showdown.
There's nothing in detail that I'm allowed to post here, so you're free to not believe me, but to say "almost" or that "Cavs backed out last minute" is a pretty large overstatement from everything I have read.
Tyron Liverson and David Lue. Maybe now Blatt can go live out his dream of becoming a fighter pilot, which is much less stressful than being an NBA coach.
Somehow I doubt that Blatt was coaching the Cavs to play hero isolation ball for entire games. Somehow I think a big trade is in the makings as well because this roster is a bunch of guys that need the ball and have different agendas. Somewhere Pat Riley is pouring himself a drink and smiling.
This is what Lebron wanted, he wanted to be in control of basketball operations which is why he left to Cleveland. Even when the Cavaliers are on top they are still dysfunctional.
I'd rather be running the Heat long term than the Cavs. I mean Lebron is making idiots of the front office, ownership and coaching staff right now.
