Around the NBA III

[MartinToVaught]

Can we please fire Frank now? The level to which he got fleeced by OKC is even more unconscionable now than it already was.

[Ballings7]

Can't wait to watch this later

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[Ballings7]

What the heck is this? Insanity!

Wow..

Luv the controversy and shake up though, as a fan of the league -- incredible

Dallas are warped.

I can't see AD/Kyrie, being reliably good enough to get back to the Finals again. Maybe, they are definitely both A-level talents and stars.. but would lean towards no.

Lakers are not winning anything this year or next until they get better defensively, mainly at big, and at the guard spot.

Obviously mostly about the longer-term with Luka in LA, and to have the "torch" passed for the league and the Lakers well-being; while reaping the fun-factor with LeBron and Luka together.. trying to put together a lighting in a bottle situation short-term.

Add: LeBron I bet plays two more seasons past this one, maybe even three.

Can't wait to see some of the reactions to this over the next week or so haha

Reaves/Luka/LeBron (plus Vincent from bench) isn't getting it done, and the role-wings/hybrids they have aren't reliable enough because they aren't proficient enough as shooters, or declining.

Maxi Kleber will help up front and help on the wing, but he's more in the mold of Vanderbilt, better shooter though. Not a true "big".

Be interesting to see what they do, but defense is still going to be an issue for the Lakers till they balance out, improve the roster more. Maybe they have another move in play.

[og15]

What the heck is this? Insanity!

Wow..

Luv the controversy and shake up though, as a fan of the league -- incredible

Dallas are warped.

I can't see AD/Kyrie, being reliably good enough to get back to the Finals again. Maybe, they are definitely both A-level talents and stars.. but would lean towards no.

Lakers are not winning anything this year or next until they get better defensively, mainly at big, and at the guard spot.

Obviously mostly about the longer-term with Luka in LA, and to have the "torch" passed for the league and the Lakers well-being; while reaping the fun-factor with LeBron and Luka together.. trying to put together a lighting in a bottle situation short-term.

Add: LeBron I bet plays two more seasons past this one, maybe even three.

Can't wait to see some of the reactions to this over the next week or so haha

Reaves/Luka/LeBron (plus Vincent from bench) isn't getting it done, and the role-wings/hybrids they have aren't reliable enough because they aren't proficient enough as shooters, or declining.

Maxi Kleber will help up front and help on the wing, but he's more in the mold of Vanderbilt, better shooter though. Not a true "big".

Be interesting to see what they do, but defense is still going to be an issue for the Lakers till they balance out, improve the roster more. Maybe they have another move in play.

I would assume that DFS would slide in to a starting role

[Ballings7]

Watch on YouTube

More fun.

Loved the Simmons podcast posted earlier.. with Russillo and Mahoney.. amusing, good points, and lol'ed bunch of times. The raw reactions are great.

What the heck is this? Insanity!

Wow..

Luv the controversy and shake up though, as a fan of the league -- incredible

Dallas are warped.

I can't see AD/Kyrie, being reliably good enough to get back to the Finals again. Maybe, they are definitely both A-level talents and stars.. but would lean towards no.

Lakers are not winning anything this year or next until they get better defensively, mainly at big, and at the guard spot.

Obviously mostly about the longer-term with Luka in LA, and to have the "torch" passed for the league and the Lakers well-being; while reaping the fun-factor with LeBron and Luka together.. trying to put together a lighting in a bottle situation short-term.

Add: LeBron I bet plays two more seasons past this one, maybe even three.

Can't wait to see some of the reactions to this over the next week or so haha

Reaves/Luka/LeBron (plus Vincent from bench) isn't getting it done, and the role-wings/hybrids they have aren't reliable enough because they aren't proficient enough as shooters, or declining.

Maxi Kleber will help up front and help on the wing, but he's more in the mold of Vanderbilt, better shooter though. Not a true "big".

Be interesting to see what they do, but defense is still going to be an issue for the Lakers till they balance out, improve the roster more. Maybe they have another move in play.

I would assume that DFS would slide in to a starting role

Probably, yes + the Luka relationship. He'll have to with Max Christie gone, who has become a solid 3/D wing.

I have heard DFS isn't the same defender anymore as on Dallas, but we'll see once he settles into LAL more.

Luka
Reaves
DFS
LeBron
Hayes

Their line up is going to be less than ideal and worse off defensively, till the summer, or they get another decent big.. Rob Williams maybe. Hopefully not Kessler, would make them too good too soon ; ). Wouldn't be surprised if Reaves is moved and they try harder to balance out their roster.

I think this season is more like "lets see how much we can do and look to next season", though.

[Captain Ballmer]

Fox' Spurs debut was great. They are definitely ascending for rest of season.
Max Christie put on a clinic on his Mavs Debut. AD will be back in a game or two.
Lakers got Mark Williams as well.
Sacto get Valanciunas too. Bad first outing for Zach Lavine but their offensive ceiling is unmatchable comparing us.
Warriors got Jimmy.
All those below us getting better... Waiting minny and Suns to make moves.

We are about to drop out of Play-in if this is the final team.

[TrueLAfan]

Fox' Spurs debut was great. They are definitely ascending for rest of season.
Max Christie put on a clinic on his Mavs Debut. AD will be back in a game or two.
Lakers got Mark Williams as well.
Sacto get Valanciunas too. Bad first outing for Zach Lavine but their offensive ceiling is unmatchable comparing us.
Warriors got Jimmy.
All those below us getting better... Waiting minny and Suns to make moves.

We are about to drop out of Play-in if this is the final team.

I dunno. There’s a lot of moves that could really help teams, but have a pretty good chance of going sideways as well. A lot of deck chair shuffling,

Sacramento is (to me) a good example. Lost De’Aaron Fox, which is a huge blow. But he wasn’t going to stay and—how can I say this fairly?—may not have wanted to give 100% in his last few months with the team. Zach LaVine is a big step down, but a lot of that is health related. Fox plays; LaVine has more chronic injuries and misses more games. But LaVine, other than last year, has played in 80-85% of his team’s games too. He’s very good, just not as good.

But the Kings also picked up Valanciunas for Cidy Sissoko—who is a 15th man—and two second round picks. Thing is, the Kings got three second round picks in the Fox/LaVine trade, so they’re one up. And they also got three future first round picks. The one from Charlotte this year is protected, and will probably convert to two second round picks. So, overall, the Kings traded

De’Aaron Fox
Kevin Huerter (a salary dump, really)
Sidy Cissoko

For

Zach LaVine
Jonas Valanciunas
2 first round picks
3 second round picks

How do you rank or measure that? De’Aaron is a young guy that could be a superstar but had not been playing well (or hard) and wasn’t going to stay. LaVine is more of a risk, but when he’s playing well—and he’s playing well this year—is a star player. Valanciunas is a quality big that allows Sabonis to move to the position he prefers to play at and gives them a huge lineup. And, well, two first round picks and three seconds. Good deal? Bad deal?

Seems like a lot of deals are like this—good from one perspective, depending on health factors. Mark Williams, for another example, is a great player … when he plays. But he doesn’t play. I mean, he really doesn’t play. We complain about Kawhi’s availability … Kawhi played more last year than Mark Williams has played in his career. It could be a great move for the Lakers. It could absolutely not work out because of availability or chronic injuries that lead to lesser effectiveness (Williams has had injuries to his back and feet which is …. Ominous). Lots of huge, major moves. But It’s really hard for me to get a read on all the trades and long term value.

[Ballings7]

Like the Mark Williams move for LAL.. but they certainly gave up quite a bit to get him. Should work out pretty well for the Lakers in the longer-run though. Just not sure about his defense.

Good point about Williams being out often. Forgot about that.

Fox for the Spurs is going to be great and very fun to watch.

[Ballings7]

Cavs getting DeAndre Hunter is pretty big. Like that for them a lot. Fills the void of a big wing they needed that can score + defend.

https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/279167/Cavaliers-Acquire-DeAndre-Hunter-From-Hawks-For-Caris-LeVert-Georges-Niang-Three-2nds-Two-Swaps

[Captain Ballmer]

All I'm seeing that Memphis ready to SuperMax Jaren Jackson Jr so that thay gave M.Smart away for free, also attached their 2025 1st rd pick with it. Smart's money for next year off the hook so Jaren's supermax extension will kick in. They also save money to stay under the lux tax. Their cheap owner.. It comes to the question that soon JJJ supermaxed, don't think JA extended. JA will be D'aaron Foxed by the Grizzlies as around 2026 summer.

Ja to Clippers seems Ballmeresque.

[KL2]

Smells fishy but we’ll see.

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So who is going to cut their center to gift them to the Lakers?

[MartinToVaught]

So who is going to cut their center to gift them to the Lakers?

They're too deep into the luxury tax to sign anyone worth a damn. If there's a conspiracy behind this, it's more likely to be simple regret over how much they were trading away for the one guy in the league who's more fragile than Kawhi.

Shenanigans like this aren't unheard of. The Orioles under Angelos were notorious for failing players over the slightest bump or bruise so they'd have an excuse to cheap out while still looking like they tried.

The other conspiracy would be the Hornets not being totally honest about Williams' health and trying to pull a fast one on the Lakers. Isn't that what happened to us with the Brogdon trade that we ended up backing out of a couple years ago?

On the other hand, Williams really is made of glass, so the most likely explanation is still that he failed legitimately.

[Ballings7]

So much for the next great athletic role-playing Lakers center/big.. that was going to be a good add for the Lakers in the least. Defensively he would of rounded out probably.

Luv to see it.

[og15]

So who is going to cut their center to gift them to the Lakers?

They're too deep into the luxury tax to sign anyone worth a damn. If there's a conspiracy behind this, it's more likely to be simple regret over how much they were trading away for the one guy in the league who's more fragile than Kawhi.

Shenanigans like this aren't unheard of. The Orioles under Angelos were notorious for failing players over the slightest bump or bruise so they'd have an excuse to cheap out while still looking like they tried.

The other conspiracy would be the Hornets not being totally honest about Williams' health and trying to pull a fast one on the Lakers. Isn't that what happened to us with the Brogdon trade that we ended up backing out of a couple years ago?

On the other hand, Williams really is made of glass, so the most likely explanation is still that he failed legitimately.

That would be more dishonesty, not a conspiracy.

Williams has played like 84 games in 2.5 seasons, him failing a physical is not surprising at all, and he's not the first guy to fail a physical and have a trade rescinded.

[Ballings7]

Read on Twitter

oof what a gut punch for Dallas.

After his big-time debut, too..

Maybe Norm' gets into the all-star game now ; )

[KL2]

Read on Twitter

[Roscoe Sheed]

Must be nice to be a laker fan- teams miss point blank lay ups and wide open 3s that they almost never miss against the clippers in clutch moments

[MartinToVaught]

Read on Twitter

Big of him to step away from the distractions and focus on that championship run... in late February, going on March... for a 12th-place, 20-win team that would have to leapfrog two other teams just to sneak into the play-in. I'm sure Sixers fans are thrilled to hear this.

The kicker is that when the season ends and they never stopped being awful, he'll be right back on his podcast talking that same old "it was never a ring-or-bust year" and "I'm not chasing championships, I only care about playing the right way" BS.

The truth, of course, is that it has nothing to do with the team. He's putting the podcast on hiatus because it's become too personally embarrassing for him. It's a face-saving move. He'd be better off either cancelling the podcast entirely or retiring as a player to focus on the podcast, since it seems like he can't manage both at the same time.

[Ballings7]

Kyrie out for season with torn knee acl

AD being shutdown


Dallas done for the year basically.

https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/279532/Anthony-Davis-Could-Be-Shut-Down-For-Remainder-Of-Season

https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/279525/Kyrie-Irving-Out-For-Season-With-Torn-ACL-In-Left-Knee

[esqtvd]

Eyewitness to Wilt's GOATness

The Hidden Truth About How Wilt Chamberlain Was Defended

"I would talk to Wilt about all the players pounding on him. Sometimes, he said he didn't notice it--he was so strong.

But I also believe that there were two sets of rules. By that, I mean because Wilt was so strong, the officials let the man guarding him get away with more--almost trying to equalize the game. I also believe that Wilt just took it because he didn't want to get thrown out, and because it had always been like that with him.

But I'd watch it and I'd get mad. It takes me a while to get my temper going, but when it does--look out. I'd see what the other players were doing to Wilt and what the officials were allowing, and I'd get more upset than if it were happening to me.
So I jumped in there. It wasn't that Wilt couldn't defend himself. If he ever got really hot, he'd kill people, so he let things pass. But I didn't have to worry about that. I was strong for my size, but I was not about to do anything like the kind of damage he would."
--Al Attles

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