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Post by sandman on Nov 20, 2019 22:06:01 GMT -5
The Mavs just put up 142 against the Warriors.
I remember when anything over 110 was a good offensive night. Now 110 is like average.
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Post by sutureself on Nov 21, 2019 0:20:02 GMT -5
I've been thinking lately I'm afraid this is going to happen to DeRozan in a couple years. He can't play defense and his offense is isolation without him being much faster, and he scores inefficient in the mid-range. If he loses even a little bit he could be done real quick.
Crazy to think Spurs have lost 7 in a row and just lost to the Wizards. Some of DeRozan's stats don't look too bad, still averaging 21+ a game on over 52% from the floor. But he hasn't hit a single 3 all season and Spurs have been really bad defensively. The one thing that really leaped out to me when we traded DeMar was we became a lot more versatile. In the past we always had to hide him on the secondary perimeter guy defensively, and offensively he couldn't space the floor. Suddenly with DeMar gone, every guy in our starting lineup could shoot the 3, and we could switch everything defensively without having to worry about hiding him. As much as he did to help legitimize the Raptors, the team's looked a lot better without him.
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Post by scully19 on Nov 21, 2019 9:22:44 GMT -5
Losing the 7th in a row to the Wizards feels like the end of the line for the Spurs. I thought they would be doing better this year getting their PGs back, but they appear much worse. They started the season in talks for an extension with DeRozan but I am not sure they do it now. Might be the end of Pop real soon.
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Post by haisan on Nov 21, 2019 10:37:16 GMT -5
Has there ever been a time in the NBA when so many of the best players were picked so far back in the draft? Imagine an All-Star game featuring the best NBA players under 30 years old, lottery picks versus non-lottery picks. Non-lottery would probably win, wouldn't they? Lottery Picks | Non-Lottery | Anthony David | Kawhi Leonard | Luka Doncic | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Damian Lillard | Pascal Siakam | Kemba Walker | Fred Van Vleet | Karl-Anthony Towns | Rudy Gobert | Devon Booker | Clint Capela | Donovan Mitchell | Malcolm Brogdon | Sabonis | Nikola Jokic | Ben Simmons | OG Anunoby | Joel Embiid | Terence Davis |
(Yes, this is a total homer list. No, there aren't any Celtics on it besides Kemba.) I'm sure I'm missing a few obvious names ... but it would still make for a fascinating showdown.
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Post by Pseudonym on Nov 21, 2019 11:03:39 GMT -5
The NCAA did such a good marketing job that Doncic's play in Europe damn near became an indictment on him going into the draft. I think that there are a few market inefficiencies in the draft. Teams swing too far for potential.
-Playing AGE vs. actual age (Siakam) -Skill sharpening vs. skill creation (FVV's and OG shooting improvements v. DeRozan shooting 3s altogether) -Cultural biases (Doncic)
The Raptors seem to be able to look at the player for solely what they are and ensure that their fundamental positional skills are always there; a deep emphasis on two-way players. Not if Simmons can shoot he'd be a monster, but if X Player can clean up his mechanics, we will have a smart sharpshooting 2-way player on our handDeRozan progressively began to look more and more awkward here. They don't worry about a prospect really fitting into an archetype. Everyone they've brought in has a great motor and can defend. And the one weak defender, Thomas, is such an amazing shooter that his (potential) value is unquestioned.
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Post by blueyoda on Nov 22, 2019 22:13:34 GMT -5
Man, that looked bad for Kemba. Hope he's alright and recovers soon.
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Post by scully19 on Nov 25, 2019 10:24:34 GMT -5
From a Raptors perspective I thought best case scenario would be them signing Tabias Harris to a max deal. He doesn't really fit great on that team and locks up a bunch of their money that it really hurts them as they try to setup the team around Simmons and Embiid. It sure seems to be coming true as they seem to be way less than they should be at this point and by all accounts their offense is just terrible (I haven't actually watched them at all until tonight's game). Why they decided to mortgage the whole future that was beautifully outlined with complimentary players and moving them for win now mode on a team as far as possible from winning now is beyond me and seems to have been a terrible move. Now that Embiid and Simmons are about to move into their max values by next year their flexibility goes to zero.
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Post by sutureself on Nov 27, 2019 0:44:13 GMT -5
www.poundingtherock.com/2019/11/26/20983960/demar-derozan-defense-san-antonio-spurs-worst-defender-leagueIt's almost a bit painful to read, since I used to be a fan of the guy. But this article really shows just how bad DeMar has been on defence the past few games, especially giving up on plays in transition and being completely clueless with help D. I know in modern NBA it's easy to cherry pick a few plays here and there to paint a guy as a bad defender. But this article really shows, to me, why it's almost been addition by subtraction for the Raptors moving away from DD.
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Post by scully19 on Nov 27, 2019 9:21:29 GMT -5
I don't think it's "almost" to be honest. DeMar is now becoming very scary for any team to sign and he needs to understand he is against basically everything the new league is looking for. You need to be exceptional on offense to be just an offensive player. Wings more than anything need to be able to play on both sides of the ball. You need to shoot from 3. There has been a lot of talk on multiple podcast now about the Spurs because of how bad they have been, and the focus is largely around DeRozan and Aldridge and what to do with them. DeMar when he went to the Spurs was told he doesn't need to change his game, but to just stick with what you're good at and comfortable with. I don't know how a team like the Spurs would say something like that, but that might have been the worst thing to tell this guy. Clearly the Raptors were forcing him to shoot 3s.
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Post by sandman on Nov 27, 2019 10:14:40 GMT -5
I wonder who goes first, the core of the team or Pops.
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Post by haisan on Dec 9, 2019 23:38:29 GMT -5
Geez, look at the last-10 games for the top of the East: Bucks: 10-0 (well, 15-0 now) Celtics: 7-3 Heat: 7-3 76ers: 8-2 Raptors: 7-3 Pacers: 7-3 Nets: 8-2
That's pretty brutal, just trying to keep up. No one is generating any separation, except the Bucks.
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Post by sutureself on Dec 11, 2019 2:23:54 GMT -5
RealGM stub says Portland might be interested in Kevin Love and Danillo Gallinari. I'm assuming it would be one or the other. But can you imagine how hilarious it would be to watch a Melo/Gallinari/K-Love frontcourt try to play defense?
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Post by scully19 on Dec 11, 2019 13:07:24 GMT -5
I see an article today on the Pacers potentially being contenders when Oladipo comes back and I have to scoff at the idea. It is amazing what can be sold to people when you take record completely out of context. This made me think of the article of are they real or not I posted before that uses their schedule to tell you if they are. www.theringer.com/nba/2019/12/9/21002092/real-or-not-jazz-76ers-raptors-pacers-warriorsFor those who don't want to read: Jazz - Harder schedule so far, easiest remaining. Will get better record. 76ers - Good record, 29th easiest schedule so far, record is not as good as it should be and they will struggle a bit now to keep up with the rest of the top East teams not names milwaukee. Raptors - One of the hardest so far, one of the easiest remaining. Good record (although as we know not that great against top teams), they should rise further in the east. Pacers - Easiest so far, hardest to come. They look much better than they are right now and unless Oladipo comes back fully ready they are not going to keep up in the east top teams. Warriors - One of the easiest now, one of the hardest left. This horrible record they have was a gift so far, it only gets worse. Hint, Pacers are a no.
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Post by sutureself on Dec 16, 2019 19:47:07 GMT -5
I'm really interested to see what the Heat end up doing. Dragic expires this off-season at 19 mil, and they have a bunch of players that expire next year at around 12-15 mil each (James Johnson, Dion Waiters and Kelly Olynick.) So I wonder if they'll want to keep their cap space open for next year and try to convince Giannis or whoever the consolation prize ends up being from that FA class, to come join Jimmy Butler and a bunch of good young players on the last year of cheap deals (Adebayo, Nunn and Herro). If they move Justise Winslow it's possible they'll have two max slots open plus Butler and those guys. I'm guessing that's the way they'll go. But there's a small chance too they could go all-in this year and try to use some of the dead weight players under contract for two more years like James Johnson and Dion Waiters, and leverage them and a draft pick for one of the so-called untradeable contract guys like Chris Paul or Kevin Love. There were reports of interest in Paul this off-season but that was before Nunn stepped in and looked like a decent starter. Love would probably be a good fit next to a good defensive C and good perimeter defenders as a guy who can space the floor a bit and facilitate.
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Post by Springer on Dec 19, 2019 21:59:01 GMT -5
This. is. gold! https://www.reddit.com/r/torontoraptors/comments/ec69wx/kevin_hart_derozan_episode/
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Post by haisan on Dec 21, 2019 11:30:52 GMT -5
Does anyone else think the 76ers are potentially like the 1989 Bulls? Amazing talent, but they need a coach who knows how to fit the parts together (as Phil Jackson did). I think Nick Nurse could make Philly a frickin' scary team.
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Post by scully19 on Dec 25, 2019 22:43:02 GMT -5
Russell Westbrook is actually a bad basketball player now. The Rockets just lost to the Warriors G league team because they doubled Harden and Westbrook went 11-32 including 0-8 from 3. He can't shoot but still acts like he can which makes him an anchor on the team. I think he's actually a negative basketball player at this point and they would be better offer with Austin Rivers on the court with Harden.
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Post by freewheel on Dec 25, 2019 23:47:05 GMT -5
Westbrook's has played basketball like a one man army and for the most part it has worked for him. Not perfect but not terrible either. However part of any sports career is how you age. Can you change as your physical gifts diminish and as your knowledge grows. You can be a Stackhouse, Jabbar, Stockton and play till 40 or you can be an Iverson, Marbury, Sprewell and be out of the league before your time. Westbrook's looks like he's approaching the time to make some changes in how he sees his place in basketball.
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Post by Springer on Jan 3, 2020 12:48:56 GMT -5
And on this episode of What Players can do when their father isn't meddling: LaMelo Ball just donated one month of his NBL salary to the victims of the Australian bushfires.
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Post by haisan on Jan 3, 2020 23:49:20 GMT -5
Fyi, the Truehoop article on David Stern was really excellent. Not the usual fluff. It has a real edge and is all the better for it. www.truehoop.com/(Can’t Link because it’s a pay site, but for now the Stern article is free).
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Post by haisan on Jan 13, 2020 23:09:37 GMT -5
Damn. SGA with a 20-20-10 today (and 1 block). On 0.67 shooting.
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Post by sandman on Jan 16, 2020 23:22:40 GMT -5
So apparantly some dude at the Knicks game hit a half-court shot.
His reward?
A car? Nope.
A 100K? Nope.
A beautiful model wife? Nope.
Front court season tickets? Nope.
Scratch tickets? Yes.
Yes. Scratch tickets.
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Post by scully19 on Jan 18, 2020 7:53:50 GMT -5
1000 worth of scratch tickets, so not even a lot. He already scratched them as well and he got 500 bucks for it total. Pathetic Knicks can't not be a joke.
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Post by sandman on Jan 25, 2020 11:43:35 GMT -5
Rumors about potential locker room issues in LA over Kawhi and George's preferential treatment.
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Post by coach on Jan 25, 2020 13:17:53 GMT -5
Leonard won't like that. He just got rid of all that drama in SA. He doesn't like distractions. Had a nice triple double against Miami too BTW. He got what he asked for so I expect he will do his best to ignore. Or maybe drama just follows him around and the Raptors got off lucky.
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Post by sandman on Jan 25, 2020 17:09:52 GMT -5
The NBA is filled with drama queens and entitlement.
I think we are lucky in the sense that our roster seems to put winning ahead of ego's. It seems like our group of players is more professional in their approach to the manner. I'm sure some were bothered a bit by Leonard's load management last season but ultimately they knew it was for a good cause.
I can see it being an issue on teams where they don't have that same level of commitment to winning.
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Post by sutureself on Feb 14, 2020 0:23:33 GMT -5
I don't have anywhere to put this, but made me lol. Old news but I'm always up for some Bargnani bashing
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Post by haisan on Feb 14, 2020 4:55:28 GMT -5
An oldie but a goodie.
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Post by scully19 on Feb 16, 2020 0:36:11 GMT -5
Aaron Gordon got utterly robbed. Wade looked like he was running off the judge podium as he gave his homer pick the win. If the whole crowd is booing after a double overtime dunk contest of all 50s then you know you fucked up.
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Post by Springer on Feb 16, 2020 2:49:48 GMT -5
And Dwight was a waste of a spot. Sooo many better young dunkers in the league. The dunk contest has turned into a joke.
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