Basketball Thread

[theeboredone]

Reports varying that Dwight Howard will be ready at the earliest...a week after season starts to sometime in December.

 

[prisonchild]

i never understood why whoever made that starting 5 picture has dwight at the 4 and gasol at the 5...

i wish the lakers many misfortunes this season

 

[The Real Gamer]

As Spiderman once said:

"With great power comes great responsibility...

...

And a lot of haters."

Ofc he didnt actually say that last part but we all know he was thinking it.

 

[theeboredone]

Howard is not expected to be back at the latest by Christmas. That means Gasol will be playing center. Hilarity will ensue if you're not a Laker fan.

 

[theeboredone]

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8280001/oklahoma-city-thunder-agree-serge-ibaka-extension-report

So 12 million a year if you balance it. Something tells me his contract might be back loaded, whereas Harden might be front loaded? That way, you can keep both players possibly.

42 million invested going into the 2014 season into KD, WB, and Ibaka. Another 7 on Perkins.

 

[theeboredone]

I love my shoes...

 

[Hot_ArmS]

Im getting the $300 lebrons for my bday

 

[theeboredone]

Gonna track your progress? Sounds pretty neat, but the price is too steep for me. I actually wanted the Kobe VII White Elites, but those are almost 200.

 

[BEHR]

Houston Rockets.

and those shoes are tight.

 

[theeboredone]

I know a lot of you have watched bball breakdown videos before. Here are three to watch.

Ray Allen Effect on Miami: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_KRNocRvRY

Dwight Howard/Nash Effect: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxafGcM95KA

Nash Effect: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kW86Uv7DaSw

 

[The Real Gamer]

Man the Lakers are gonna be so much fun to watch next season I can't wait.

Actually lot of teams have improved this off season... Lakers and the Heat are better for obvious reasons, Celtics are looking to improve with key role players like Terry, Lee, and the return of Jeff Green, the Thunder now have another year of experience under their belts and will be hungry as hell after their Finals loss, the Knicks have a really solid defensive squad now and should have more chemistry, the Nets went from a lottery team to a top 5 seed in the East, 76'ers now have a low post threat in Bynum, the Nuggets somehow got even deeper with the addition of Iggy, the Timberwolves are likely to make the playoffs, the Clippers should be better with another year of CP3/Griffin, etc.

Next season is gonna be so kick ***. I really wish Rose was back though.

 

[Jane]

rose is the only bad news in an otherwise really promising 12-13 season. the regular season cant come fast enough. and why did the nets all of a sudden become a top 5 team? what changes did they make? besides the east getting nerfed as a whole that is.

 

[theeboredone]

The Nets got Joe Johnson. Arguably best back court duo in the game next to Kobe and Nash.

Speaking about Rose, this picture always makes me laugh lol.

 

[The Real Gamer]

Also 2 other key players in Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace barely played at all last season.

D Will
Joe Johnson
CRASH (Gerald Wallace)
Kris Humphries
Brook Lopez

That's a damn good starting 5 arguably a top 3 starting 5 in the East. Defensively that line up leaves a bit to be desired but offensively you can't really get much better if you're not a super team. Not sure how long it will take for them to mesh though.

 

[CableCho57]

damn that lineup does look stacked

kris humphries coming off a great season too

anyone else super excited to see brandon roy??

 

[theeboredone]

I am, but I don't think (obviously) he'll be himself. Those knees...I wonder if they are still gonna limit his minutes or what.

Was playing 3 on 3 yesterday late last night at the gym. Our 6th member was some 10 year old asian girl. I had to guard her, and didn't really do much on either side of the ball. Unfortunately, the 6'4 guy on my team enjoyed swatting every shot she took to the rim lmao.

 

[Hot_ArmS]

Wow you bullies

10 yr old
Asian
girl


The worse trifecta for basketball

 

[The Real Gamer]

Crippled 10 year old Asian girl would have made it worse.

 

[soap]

I don't mind when girls play with us. As long as they are serious and actually trying. I can't stand when dudes bring their sandbagging girlfriends to the court.

 

[theeboredone]

I will give her this. She is a pure shooter from 3 and has a quick first step. When I was her age, I couldn't even shoot that far lol.

But yeah, I don't think I broke a sweat that game. Pretty sure my teammate did.

 

[HoChiMinhTrail]

I don't mind when girls play with us. As long as they are serious and actually trying. I can't stand when dudes bring their sandbagging girlfriends to the court.

used to play wit this girl down the street, girl was like a lil tom boyish girl playin that point like ***** mugsy bogues. **** was mad hard to defend

 

[theeboredone]

I haven't seen Rudy, but have heard a lot about it. Didn't know about this though.

Spoiler

 

[genhutalla]

I definitely one to talk about the last NBA finals. Lebron James is definitely the best even Wade and Bosch. Oh how I love their team. So, I would always fight for Heat.

 

[shadrach kabango]

Also 2 other key players in Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace barely played at all last season.

D Will
Joe Johnson
CRASH (Gerald Wallace)
Kris Humphries
Brook Lopez

That's a damn good starting 5 arguably a top 3 starting 5 in the East. Defensively that line up leaves a bit to be desired but offensively you can't really get much better if you're not a super team. Not sure how long it will take for them to mesh though.

Brook Lopez is one of the worst players in the NBA.

Also, there was a study going around TrueHoop last year that when you have two or more players who cannot shoot, your lineup becomes terrible, less than the sum of the parts. That lineup only has one shooter.

Deron Williams was flat-out terrible last year. He wasn't even a Top 10 PG. He has to prove he's still elite.

And then throw in the massive age-related attrition. And the fact that no one in that lineup is a plus-plus defender. The Nets are mediocre.

 

[BEHR]

^^^^^^lol wut

The Brooklyn Nets are going to be legit. top 5 in the east.

D-Will- had a ****ty squad last year so his stats will deflate, but regardless of that he is a top pg in the league.
Joe- he is an all star caliber player when he is hot and gets going other then that that SG position is strong.
Gerald- is the most consistent player on the team next to Kris, he can score,he can defend,he can rebound
Humphries- he is going to be a rebound machine since brook cant do it I see him getting alot of double-doubles next year.
Lopez-True he wont rebound or defend well,but he is going to score, there arent many dominant defending C's in the league so it doenst matter. HE is a top 5 offensive center in the league.

 

[theeboredone]

I've always questioned Deron Williams' consideration for super star status. I thought he did really well back in Utah, because he was part of a "system" established by Sloan. He had a good set of players around him, and ever since he got to the Nets, he seems to have been struggling to do anything relevant.

 

[shadrach kabango]

The Brooklyn Nets are going to be legit. top 5 in the east.

The East, outside of Miami, is terrible. There are literally 12 teams who could be top 5 in the East. The Nets are closer to Toronto than they are to, say, Chicago.

 

[BEHR]

The East, outside of Miami, is terrible. There are literally 12 teams who could be top 5 in the East. The Nets are closer to Toronto than they are to, say, Chicago.

You cant be serious, looool

1.Miami
2.Chicago
3.Boston
4.Brooklyn
5.Indiana
6.Philadephia
7.New York
8.Toronto/Milwaukee/Cleveland/Atlanta

^^Thats just my prediction if Anything the lowest placement Brooklyn will get is 6 in the East.


Brooklyn on paper is better then the other teams below them.

 

[The Real Gamer]

No way Chicago finishes top 3 unless if Rose comes back sooner than expected. Plus they don't have the Bench Mob anymore.

In my opinion...

1. Heat
2. Celtics
3. Pacers
4. Knicks
5. Nets
6. 76'ers
7. Bulls
8. Hawks

The Bulls are the biggest question mark for me. It's very hard to determine how well they'll play without Rose now that most of their key bench players are gone.

Shadrach I think you're underrating the Nets. D Will is going to elevate his game now that he actually has a team. I also expect Joe Johnson to have a good year (he hated playing on the Hawks) and play at an All-Star level. You can't deny that a D-Will/Johnson back court is damn good (arguably a top 3 best back court in the NBA) if both players play to their potential. Humphries is a rebounding machine that can give you 13+ points a game. Wallace is a solid all around player that can also give you 13+ points a game. Brook Lopez sucks at defense and rebounding but he's another really solid offensive player that averaged over 20 points in the '10-'11 season.

Also if the Nets have floor spacing issues with the above mentioned 5 then all they need to do is have Wallace come off the bench in place of a shooter. Overall that's a solid team that will make the playoffs in the East as long as they can avoid the injury bug.

 

[BEHR]

Oh yeah true I forgot Rose will be gone for a while. lool

yeah that drops them alot.

 

[shadrach kabango]

1.Miami
2.Chicago
3.Boston
4.Brooklyn
5.Indiana
6.Philadephia
7.New York
8.Toronto/Milwaukee/Cleveland/Atlanta

The East is so bad I could make a serious case that Washington or Toronto will be top 3 seeds.

Chicago has a strong chance to impress because of coaching + defense. Their off-season moves have been terrible. Losing Rose hurts but isn't the end-of-the-world because he was/is overrated; Bulls had the best point differential in the NBA when he sat out last year. But giving up Brewer/Korver was inexcusable; Brewer may be the most underrated player in the NBA, and their replacements are trash.

Noah/Deng/Gibson/Boozer core 'do. And Thibs. Their biggest problem is what do they do if anyone gets injured?

Celtics in the same position. Worst offseason ever. Jeff Green is a bum, Terry isn't much better. But Stiemsma/Bradley are fine, and if they continue that success with Sullinger they'll be in a decent position. Their attrition risk is just so huge, though, over an 82-game season.

Nets are the definition of mediocre. They won't be elite on offense or defense, and their coach is Avery Johnson. Their bench is AIDS. They're also playing Wallace and Johnson out of position; Johnson should be at the 3 and Wallace at the 4. And they are mitigating Johnson's strength, which is shot creation, by playing him with D-Will.

Speaking of, he hasn't been close to elite for two years now. There's a strong case to be made that Utah made him look a lot better than he was. Since joining the Nets he's shooting 39.7 percent. You can't handwave that away.

The pieces don't fit. Slow perimeter foot speed with no rim-protector? Everyone is going to score on this team. And the offense won't be good enough to make up for it.

Pacers are decent, probably t3 by default. But their upside is overrated. Hibbert/Hill pretty much are who they are; 26-year-olds do not substantially improve. Their bench is markedly worse without Collison. If Paul George doesn't turn into a star this team isn't all that hot.

Philly, another team with potential with a terrible off-season. Their defense is going to be in big trouble. Brand was one of the best defenders in the NBA. Best post defender according to Synergy. Created turnovers. Good on pick-and-rolls. Long reach. Andre Igoudala is more productive than Bynum. They have a huge problem on the wing now; Evan Turner is a bust. It's Jrue Holiday's team, and while I like him, is he really going to take the leap? Personally I think he will, but the rest of the team is AIDS.

If Valanciunas is as good as hyped the Raptors can be as good as any of these teams. Raptors have the best PG rotation in the NBA. Too bad their wings are AIDS, save Landry Fields.

If John Wall wasn't AIDS maybe we could talk about the Wizards.

So: 1. Miami 2. Atlanta 3. Indiana 4. Boston 5. Chicago 6. New York 7. Brooklyn 8. Philadelphia

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Hawks as a #2 seed? o.0

Anyways, the Portland Trailblazer curse has claimed yet another victim... Elliot Williams has recently suffered from a season-ending achilles tear. http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1204539

 

[tko112]

So: 1. Miami 2. Atlanta 3. Indiana 4. Boston 5. Chicago 6. New York 7. Brooklyn 8. Philadelphia

please tell me you're kidding about the Hawks being #2

the Hawks getting the #2 seed, let alone making the playoffs this year, would be equivalent to the Bobcats and/or the Magic making the playoffs THIS season, its not gonna happen

even though the Hawks finally traded away Johnson's big contract, which was their intentions, they got some average players in return, the only good acquisition they got this summer was Lou Williams and maybe Korver

but in order for the Hawks to even have a chance to make playoffs this season, J-Smoove would need to have an MVP season, and even if that happens, I don't foresee the Hawks going into the playoffs

and since people seem to be doing it, I might as well throw my hat in those predictions:

Eastern Conference:
1. Miami Heat
2. Brooklyn Nets
3. Indiana Pacers
4. Chicago Bulls
5. New York Knicks
6. Philadelphia 76ers
7. Boston Celtics
8. Milwaukee Bucks

only reason I put the bulls that high is bcuz of how well they can play w/o Rose, though the Bulls may end up lower than I expect

Western Conference (cuz i felt like doing it):
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Oklahoma City Thunder
3. San Antonio Spurs
4. Memphis Grizzlies
5. Los Angeles Clippers
6. Denver Nuggets
7. Minnesota Timberwolves
8. Golden State Warriors

 

[BEHR]

The East is so bad I could make a serious case that Washington or Toronto will be top 3 seeds.

Chicago has a strong chance to impress because of coaching + defense. Their off-season moves have been terrible. Losing Rose hurts but isn't the end-of-the-world because he was/is overrated; Bulls had the best point differential in the NBA when he sat out last year. But giving up Brewer/Korver was inexcusable; Brewer may be the most underrated player in the NBA, and their replacements are trash.

Noah/Deng/Gibson/Boozer core 'do. And Thibs. Their biggest problem is what do they do if anyone gets injured?

Celtics in the same position. Worst offseason ever. Jeff Green is a bum, Terry isn't much better. But Stiemsma/Bradley are fine, and if they continue that success with Sullinger they'll be in a decent position. Their attrition risk is just so huge, though, over an 82-game season.

Nets are the definition of mediocre. They won't be elite on offense or defense, and their coach is Avery Johnson. Their bench is AIDS. They're also playing Wallace and Johnson out of position; Johnson should be at the 3 and Wallace at the 4. And they are mitigating Johnson's strength, which is shot creation, by playing him with D-Will.

Speaking of, he hasn't been close to elite for two years now. There's a strong case to be made that Utah made him look a lot better than he was. Since joining the Nets he's shooting 39.7 percent. You can't handwave that away.

The pieces don't fit. Slow perimeter foot speed with no rim-protector? Everyone is going to score on this team. And the offense won't be good enough to make up for it.

Pacers are decent, probably t3 by default. But their upside is overrated. Hibbert/Hill pretty much are who they are; 26-year-olds do not substantially improve. Their bench is markedly worse without Collison. If Paul George doesn't turn into a star this team isn't all that hot.

Philly, another team with potential with a terrible off-season. Their defense is going to be in big trouble. Brand was one of the best defenders in the NBA. Best post defender according to Synergy. Created turnovers. Good on pick-and-rolls. Long reach. Andre Igoudala is more productive than Bynum. They have a huge problem on the wing now; Evan Turner is a bust. It's Jrue Holiday's team, and while I like him, is he really going to take the leap? Personally I think he will, but the rest of the team is AIDS.

If Valanciunas is as good as hyped the Raptors can be as good as any of these teams. Raptors have the best PG rotation in the NBA. Too bad their wings are AIDS, save Landry Fields.

If John Wall wasn't AIDS maybe we could talk about the Wizards.

So: 1. Miami 2. Atlanta 3. Indiana 4. Boston 5. Chicago 6. New York 7. Brooklyn 8. Philadelphia

The Raptors wont be making the Playoffs, and Brookyln being mediocre please? Im a Houston Rockets Fan thats mediocre. The Brooklyn Nets are going to get the 3-5 Fifth seed easy. and Atlanta getting second that is ridiculous I wouldnt be surprised if they missed the playoffs they have no stunning players other then Smith.

 

[BEHR]

My final Eastern Conference

1.Miami
2.Boston (Only putting them so high cause I think Rondo will have a career year and they have vet experience)
3.Brooklyn Nets
4.Indiana Pacers
5.New York Knicks
6.Chicago Bulls
7. Philadelphia 76ers
8.Atlanta/Milwaukee/Cleveland


Western Conference
1.Los Angeles Lakers
2.Oklahoma City Thunder
3.San Antonio Spurs
4.Los Angeles Clippers
5.Memphis Grizzlies
6.Denver Nuggets
7.Dallas Mavericks
8.Utah/Phoenix/Houston/Minnesota/Golden State

 

[Masmasher@]

West will be.
lakers
thunder
spurs
grizzles
clippers
mavs
everybody else


east will be.
heat
celtics
76rs
indiana
nets
knicks
everybody else


east is rubbish lol.
nets are overrated.
heat will be here for a few more years.
bulls cannot score i said this last year they barely can hit upper 80s in scoring and without rose they are anemic.
knicks are still trying to find themselves which with amare will be lols play defense fool i dont care how healthy you are.
indiana middle of the road they get better based on the off season maybe.
76rs got better like it or not they have found a way to get up there in the playoffs and even though the 76rs vs celtics was one of the worse playoffs series in nba history.
celtics have doc rivers... will find a way to get them into the second spot in the east maybe even the finals the only team i see that has half a chance against the heat

 

[shadrach kabango]

please tell me you're kidding about the Hawks being #2

Why don't you try some logic?

Like I said, the Hawks were a 50-win team last season (prorated to 82 games) without their best player, Al Horford, for almost the entire season.

Al Horford is >>> Joe Johnson. Joe Johnson was the third best player on the team. Lou Williams replaces 80% of Joe Johnson.

Casual fans for the loss.

As for the West, I wouldn't be surprised if the Nuggets got the second seed. Their roster is scary good and perfectly set up for an 82-game season.

1. OKC
2. DEN
3. LAL
4. SAS
5. MEM
6. MIN
7. LAC
8. UTA

W
76rs got better like it or not they have found a way to get up there in the playoffs

No they didn't casualfan. They won last year based on an elite defense. They lost their two best defenders and replaced them with one above-average one (Bynum). They are replacing their best player (Iguodala) with a total non-factor (Evan Turner).

 

[The Real Gamer]

The Lakers/Thunder will definitely be gunning for that #1 seed cause both teams know they will most likely meet each other in the WCF. Gotta get dat home court advantage.

Its an interesting situation... Right now we have a trifecta of teams that are supposed to be better than the rest of the NBA: LA, OKC, and Miami. However, determining who the best of the 3 is gets complicated. The Heat are better than the Thunder because they're one of the few teams that can match OKC's athleticism (and utilize it better). Also, OKC can't really take advantage of the Heat's like of size in the paint. The Lakers can do exactly that. Miami's main weaknesses are 1) defending quick, crafty point guards (like Nash) and 2) interior rebounding. Lakers have all of the tools needed to exploit the Heat's weaknesses. But if there's any team that can beat the Lakers, I think it's the Thunder. Perkins is a good low post defender that can defend Howard pretty well while Ibaka can go toe to toe with Gasol. Westbrook can literally run Nash to the ground and Durant doesn't care about Howard anchoring the paint since he's such a good shooter.

So in my opinion the top 3 teams look like this...

Lakers > Heat
Heat > Thunder
Thunder > Lakers

 

[shadrach kabango]

The Lakers aren't set up exceptionally well for the season because their depth is predictably terrible and they have massive age factors to account for. Pau Gasol has been leveraged into the ground, minutes-wise, these past couple of seasons and seriously needs some rest. You know about Dwight and the back problem, but what about Nash's back problem away from the best training staff in the NBA? Now he's going to a training staff that couldn't get a handle on a toe for seemingly half a decade.

The Suns were managing Nash's minutes and he still kept locking up late in the season. Unfortunately they don't have the combined youth and talent of DEN/OKC and they don't have the depth of SAS. They could seriously struggle to net a top 4 seed.

I don't buy that the Lakers/Thunder are way better than the rest of the conference. How easily you casualfans forget that the Spurs were making history late in the season and carrying through the playoffs. Yes, the Thunder were the better team in the playoff series, but the Spurs were the much better team the preceding 45 games. Dismiss it at your own peril.

The Nuggets improved so much in acquiring Igoudala and getting rid of Harrington. They made about as big as an upgrade as you can make in the course of one trade. Kosta Koufos is set for a big year; they have the best big man rotation aside from the Jazz. McGee/Faried/Koufos/Mozgov, with Chandler as a small ball 4. Their home court advantage will again be vicious.

 

[The Real Gamer]

...Which is why I think the Lakers won't get the #1 seed. I think they'll finish 2nd or maybe even third depending on how much the Spurs have some left in the tank.

Also, stop calling everyone "casualfans" youre not some sort of basketball God with infinite knowledge. You dont see anyone else belittling you for your absurd predictions... Seriously though the Hawks as 2nd seed? I'd feel more comfortable betting on the Knicks having a higher seed, and for me that's saying something.