Around the League 2020 Playoffs

[MrDollarBills]

Damn, I've never seen an accident like this... Tobias going straight up to help take away a shot and getting his legs freakishly pulled right out from under him.
https://streamable.com/b5mev4
https://streamable.com/qcoaf0 (replay)

Fortunately he had the presence to get his left arm under him, helping break the fall. Otherwise...

He's fine, but I still think that he should have went to the hospital. That was a brutal headshot

[therealbig3]

Luka is just different man. He really comes the closest to LeBron James for me. Decent but not special as an outside shooter (yet), inconsistent from the line, but the vision/passing/ball handling/creativity/IQ/ability to run point at 6'7"...LeBron really is the only other player I can think of that can do that. And then also like LeBron, he's so big and strong and knows exactly how to use his strength and body to ward off the defender and finish around the rim like they aren't even there.

I just don't see Luka being able to match LeBron's defensive ability, because he just doesn't have the physical gifts that LeBron does, but he also has the ability to be a better shooter than LeBron, because his form is clearly a lot better and will lend itself to 35%+ from 3 and 85%+ from the line. At which point, he's literally unstoppable offensively.

Luka vs Giannis is gonna be the debate of the 2020s.

[MrDollarBills]

Luka is just different man. He really comes the closest to LeBron James for me. Decent but not special as an outside shooter (yet), inconsistent from the line, but the vision/passing/ball handling/creativity/IQ/ability to run point at 6'7"...LeBron really is the only other player I can think of that can do that. And then also like LeBron, he's so big and strong and knows exactly how to use his strength and body to ward off the defender and finish around the rim like they aren't even there.

I just don't see Luka being able to match LeBron's defensive ability, because he just doesn't have the physical gifts that LeBron does, but he also has the ability to be a better shooter than LeBron, because his form is clearly a lot better and will lend itself to 35%+ from 3 and 85%+ from the line. At which point, he's literally unstoppable offensively.

Luka vs Giannis is gonna be the debate of the 2020s.

Luka is probably the most overall skilled player in the NBA next to Lebron. Athletically he doesn't hold a candle to him but otherwise, the guy is a savant....and he's still a kid in basketball years. He's a frightening talent. Reminds me of Magic Johnson with better shooting ability but not as flashy of a passer.

[MrDollarBills]

Well, I'm glad that the Nets dodged a bullet in regards to Tobias Harris.

4 playoff games, making 32 million dollars: 15pts 10rebs 4asts on 38% from the field, 13% from downtown. 46% TS.

Philadelphia is **** ed

[gigantes]

Luka is just different man. He really comes the closest to LeBron James for me. Decent but not special as an outside shooter (yet)...

Hmm, I do see him as a pretty special shooter. He's demonstrated in games that he has tremendous range and touch, which is only reinforced seeing him on the practice court.

I think maybe the difficulty players like he, LeBron and Harden face is that they use up so much of their mental and physical energy in so many ways, that even with good shot mechanics, they don't have the luxury that purer shooters have of being able to focus more of their energy on fewer tasks. If that makes sense. For example, I'm thinking that if Luka had less responsibilities in the offense, his shooting would naturally jump right up there, given his existing talent and form.

I guess PG's like the Curry's, Nash, etc kind of break my theory, but maybe being smaller and the fact that shooting is a higher priority for a PG than a wing help explain it.

On a side note, I'm wondering if Dzanan Musa will be able to learn from Doncic'... how to use good footwork to overcome being a mediocre NBA athlete... getting one's shots off uncontested and becoming a better passer. etc. Because it's hard to see Musa having much of an NBA career unless he gets a lot better at stuff that Luka has long since mastered.

[vincecarter4pres]

Luka is just different man. He really comes the closest to LeBron James for me. Decent but not special as an outside shooter (yet), inconsistent from the line, but the vision/passing/ball handling/creativity/IQ/ability to run point at 6'7"...LeBron really is the only other player I can think of that can do that. And then also like LeBron, he's so big and strong and knows exactly how to use his strength and body to ward off the defender and finish around the rim like they aren't even there.

I just don't see Luka being able to match LeBron's defensive ability, because he just doesn't have the physical gifts that LeBron does, but he also has the ability to be a better shooter than LeBron, because his form is clearly a lot better and will lend itself to 35%+ from 3 and 85%+ from the line. At which point, he's literally unstoppable offensively.

Luka vs Giannis is gonna be the debate of the 2020s.

Luka is probably the most overall skilled player in the NBA next to Lebron. Athletically he doesn't hold a candle to him but otherwise, the guy is a savant....and he's still a kid in basketball years. He's a frightening talent. Reminds me of Magic Johnson with better shooting ability but not as flashy of a passer.

This is exactly who I was thinking of as the closest comparison, though I don’t know I’ve ever seen a player quite like him. He’s like Magic Johnson meets Brandon Roy.

[MrDollarBills]

Luka is just different man. He really comes the closest to LeBron James for me. Decent but not special as an outside shooter (yet), inconsistent from the line, but the vision/passing/ball handling/creativity/IQ/ability to run point at 6'7"...LeBron really is the only other player I can think of that can do that. And then also like LeBron, he's so big and strong and knows exactly how to use his strength and body to ward off the defender and finish around the rim like they aren't even there.

I just don't see Luka being able to match LeBron's defensive ability, because he just doesn't have the physical gifts that LeBron does, but he also has the ability to be a better shooter than LeBron, because his form is clearly a lot better and will lend itself to 35%+ from 3 and 85%+ from the line. At which point, he's literally unstoppable offensively.

Luka vs Giannis is gonna be the debate of the 2020s.

Luka is probably the most overall skilled player in the NBA next to Lebron. Athletically he doesn't hold a candle to him but otherwise, the guy is a savant....and he's still a kid in basketball years. He's a frightening talent. Reminds me of Magic Johnson with better shooting ability but not as flashy of a passer.

This is exactly who I was thinking of as the closest comparison, though I don’t know I’ve ever seen a player quite like him. He’s like Magic Johnson meets Brandon Roy.

That's a perfect comparison. Luka's craftiness with the ball is definitely Brandon Roy like

[TheNetsFan]

I forget which analyst said it on twitter, but Luka is the closest thing we've seen to Magic Johnson since Magic Johnson.

[MrDollarBills]

The Toronto Raptors have discussed the possibility of boycotting games following the continued acts of police brutality against Black people in the United States.

Jacob Blake was shot multiple times in the back by police in Wisconsin on Sunday. Blake has survived but is paralyzed from the waist down.

"I'm pretty sick to my stomach to have to sit up here and talk about this again," said Norm Powell.

Toronto opens up their second round series against the Boston Celtics on Thursday.

"I think it’s been talked about," Powell said about a potential boycott of games. "I think everybody is at the point of sitting up and saying, ‘Black Lives Matter’ and sitting up and having these discussions in Zoom calls. That’s not getting the job done. Taking a knee for the anthem, that’s not getting the job done. It’s starting to get washed out."

"I'm in a different place today, emotionally speaking. It's starting to feel like everything we're doing is just going through the motions, nothing's changing," Fred VanVleet said.

"What are we willing to give up? Do we actually give a f--- about what’s going on?”

Marcus Smart said the Celtics have also discussed boycotting.

"We haven't confirmed anything but it's definitely something in the back of our minds," said Smart.

This is EXACTLY what Kyrie was talking about prior to the restart and people gave him hell for it. He was right.

[gigantes]

This is EXACTLY what Kyrie was talking about prior to the restart and people gave him hell for it. He was right.

He was right, but we still need to figure out how NBA players (and everyone else) can best help with BLM awareness and positive change. Is it staying home, boycotting games, taking knees, playing through, raising voter awareness or what? Some from column A and some from column B, maybe?

I would have hoped Chris Paul and Iguodala (and maybe even Adam Silver) could have helped organise the players and maybe found some collective BLM initiatives during the time off, but AFAIK little has happened on that front. I hope I'm dead wrong on that, though. But the fact that LeBron said today / yesterday that NBA players are still afraid of the police was heart-breaking and disturbing to me. After all the attention and incidents these past few months, after Portland protesters staying strong to this day just like HKers, what's really changed in terms of the process?

This isn't the right thread for this, but I have to think everyone with awareness pulling together to vote out Trump in November has to be the main goal here. That's a huge shot in the arm for BLM right there, even if it only means the federal govt stops conspiring with corrupt police depts across the nation as a first step. NBA players and anyone else helping to make that goal happen would be great.

[MrDollarBills]

This is EXACTLY what Kyrie was talking about prior to the restart and people gave him hell for it. He was right.

He was right, but we still need to figure out how NBA players (and everyone else) can best help with BLM awareness and positive change. Is it staying home, boycotting games, taking knees, playing through, raising voter awareness or what? Some from column A and some from column B, maybe?

I would have hoped Chris Paul and Iguodala (and maybe even Adam Silver) could have helped organise the players and maybe found some collective BLM initiatives during the time off, but AFAIK little has happened on that front. I hope I'm dead wrong on that, though. But the fact that LeBron said today / yesterday that NBA players are still afraid of the police was heart-breaking and disturbing to me. After all the attention and incidents these past few months, after Portland protesters staying strong to this day just like HKers, what's really changed in terms of the process?

This isn't the right thread for this, but I have to think everyone with awareness pulling together to vote out Trump in November has to be the main goal here. That's a huge shot in the arm for BLM right there, even if it only means the federal govt stops conspiring with corrupt police depts across the nation as a first step. NBA players and anyone else helping to make that goal happen would be great.

Chris Paul was talking about voter registration, and doing something in that area. Lebron got the LA Dodgers to open up their stadium to be a polling location on voting day, and he was doing work in Florida to help pay off fines that ex felons have on their books in order for them to be able to register to vote (which is horse ****, because a poll tax is supposed to be unconstitutional). LeBron so far has put his money where his mouth is, but we honestly don't know what other players are doing because some of them may do it quietly.

I mean, LeBron is only reflecting the general climate that most Black people feel in America in general, the police are just lynching Black people and no one is doing anything to prevent this. the players are starting to see that it doesn't matter if you take a knee, or wear a message on your jersey...Americans don't care about us. The cops will continue to kill us with impunity, because they know that they can get away with it.

Obviously, voting Trump out is imperative. But no one believes for a second that the injustice will end once Biden is voted in.

The problem will continue to fester and fester until escalation occurs, and then things will become even more dangerous in the country. It's only a matter of time before the extremists make their presence felt. and then what?

[LOUiS-D]

But no one believes for a second that the injustice will end once Biden is voted in.

The problem will continue to fester and fester until escalation occurs, and then things will become even more dangerous in the country. It's only a matter of time before the extremists make their presence felt. and then what?

And remember at the moment the right wing establishment from the media to grass roots organisations is focused on making the current government look good. Imagine the lengths they'll go to when they actively stand to benefit from amplifying chaos and the appearance of government incompetence. You can vote Trump out of office but you still have to live with his base, some of whom may just be there for conservative values. Others believe he's the christ figure Q, figthing a war against a global cabal of satan worshipping paedophile cannibals. The division is deep and ugly. Social change has to be fought for, because you can bet it will be fought against.

[MrDollarBills]

But no one believes for a second that the injustice will end once Biden is voted in.

The problem will continue to fester and fester until escalation occurs, and then things will become even more dangerous in the country. It's only a matter of time before the extremists make their presence felt. and then what?

And remember at the moment the right wing establishment from the media to grass roots organisations is focused on making the current government look good. Imagine the lengths they'll go to when they actively stand to benefit from amplifying chaos and the appearance of government incompetence. You can vote Trump out of office but you still have to live with his base, some of whom may just be there for conservative values. Others believe he's the christ figure Q, figthing a war against a global cabal of satan worshipping paedophile cannibals. The division is deep and ugly. Social change has to be fought for, because you can bet it will be fought against.

The whole thing with Trump being a crusader against a satanic pedophile cult is hilarious.











Meanwhile his old running buddy Jeff is somewhere burning in hell, waiting for him to come keep him company.

the sad part is, that crap about Trump/Q isn't just far right wing kookery, I've had to mute folks that I know on my facebook who you would consider to be politically American Left leaning because they believe it too. People are losing their damn minds and facts/truth are giving way to propaganda, memes and conspiracy theories. No one bothers to fact check things anymore, they'll see someone share some complete bull **** and accept it as truth.

[Prokorov]

But no one believes for a second that the injustice will end once Biden is voted in.

The problem will continue to fester and fester until escalation occurs, and then things will become even more dangerous in the country. It's only a matter of time before the extremists make their presence felt. and then what?

And remember at the moment the right wing establishment from the media to grass roots organisations is focused on making the current government look good. Imagine the lengths they'll go to when they actively stand to benefit from amplifying chaos and the appearance of government incompetence. You can vote Trump out of office but you still have to live with his base, some of whom may just be there for conservative values. Others believe he's the christ figure Q, figthing a war against a global cabal of satan worshipping paedophile cannibals. The division is deep and ugly. Social change has to be fought for, because you can bet it will be fought against.

beyond BLM, there is an enormous issue with the divide in the country. its 50/50 split and everyone needs to have a 100% strong stance on everything. there is not a single thing in this country that is not politicized. even wearing masks during a global pandemic of an extremely contagious virus.

this country is headed in an inevitable path of destruction. and other countires... china, russia are actively taking part on social media spreading memes to trigger both sides to hate each other more. They are preying on our egos. misguided sense that americans are experts on all things.

it will take an enormous collapse before real change and probably a civil war, which seems like its coming sooner then later and maybe already happening in places like portland

[Prokorov]

The idea that Trump can basically run unopposed and unanimously get the RNC bid for presidential candidate shows just how immoral this country is.

like, the guys is obviously and often apologetically open about being a racist, bigot, narcissist. he is the lowest form of trash imaginable. it is not a stretch to put him in the same bucket as people like hitler. and that is not to downplay how horrible hitler was but to underscore trumps level or hate and narcissism.

[gigantes]

@MDB,
That's why I mentioned the word "collective." Individual good deeds and smaller collective efforts help, but organizing more of the players and the populace is imperative IMO. More of an Obama-level effort when he was getting out the vote, for example.

If and when Biden wins (and god help this de facto 3rd-world nation if he doesn't), then progressive, organised pressure has to be applied in order to take the next step, like continuing to defund the police and placing those monies in orgs that are more appropriate at handling various situations, like domestic crises, life-counselling, etc. Stuff that cops aren't well trained to handle, which covers a host of sins at this point. Also hopefully figuring out what to do with police unions, because those seem to be a huge part of consistently enabling wretched cop behavior.

.

I certainly don't agree that nobody's doing anything about BLM and that 'Americans don't care about black people.' That's just flushing away a long history of Americans putting their lives, capital and welfare on the line in order to stand up for black rights.

Btw, what Portlanders and other groups around the nation have been doing for months now is incredible and all but unprecedented in American history AFAIK. Indeed, plenty of people in those struggles have become permanently maimed, traumatised or worse in order to keep the spotlight on BLM and police brutality. That's not nothing, man.

Still, as I see it, the problem is that all such effort, life-risking and caring wasn't enough to turn the overall tide. The racists, elitists and indifferent capitalists (etc) keep mobilising counterattacks, disinformation, and manipulative govt programs in order to hit back and maintain the status quo.

.

You know the other day I was reading an historical novel set in 1725 (written by an actual historian, Thomas Fleming), and I was reminded that nothing's really changed in this land. Chasing power, privilege and money is still the order of the day, and taking advantage of others, ignoring their human rights, and downright falsely condemning them is still common practice.

Meanwhile, a bunch of European nations seem to have moved on from such colonial thinking towards far better social - economic arrangements on the whole, making this nation look foolish, cruel and even barbaric by today's comparison. Why did America not evolve in these ways?*

But until more Americans are willing to delve in to this stuff and face certain realities, I don't know how much is really going to change. So BLM and related causes are going to be a hard sell in some ways, even though for most people it should be in their ultimate self-interest, similar to not destroying the planet.

* Not saying there weren't strong efforts made at the highest levels, for example the GOP for the first 50-60 years, the Roosevelts, LBJ, etc.

[MrDollarBills]

But no one believes for a second that the injustice will end once Biden is voted in.

The problem will continue to fester and fester until escalation occurs, and then things will become even more dangerous in the country. It's only a matter of time before the extremists make their presence felt. and then what?

And remember at the moment the right wing establishment from the media to grass roots organisations is focused on making the current government look good. Imagine the lengths they'll go to when they actively stand to benefit from amplifying chaos and the appearance of government incompetence. You can vote Trump out of office but you still have to live with his base, some of whom may just be there for conservative values. Others believe he's the christ figure Q, figthing a war against a global cabal of satan worshipping paedophile cannibals. The division is deep and ugly. Social change has to be fought for, because you can bet it will be fought against.

beyond BLM, there is an enormous issue with the divide in the country. its 50/50 split and everyone needs to have a 100% strong stance on everything. there is not a single thing in this country that is not politicized. even wearing masks during a global pandemic of an extremely contagious virus.

this country is headed in an inevitable path of destruction. and other countires... china, russia are actively taking part on social media spreading memes to trigger both sides to hate each other more. They are preying on our egos. misguided sense that americans are experts on all things.

it will take an enormous collapse before real change and probably a civil war, which seems like its coming sooner then later and maybe already happening in places like portland

A white supremacist shot and killed 2 protesters last night. Violence is inevitable in the United States.

[MrDollarBills]

The idea that Trump can basically run unopposed and unanimously get the RNC bid for presidential candidate shows just how immoral this country is.

like, the guys is obviously and often apologetically open about being a racist, bigot, narcissist. he is the lowest form of trash imaginable. it is not a stretch to put him in the same bucket as people like hitler. and that is not to downplay how horrible hitler was but to underscore trumps level or hate and narcissism.

He hasn't gone full blown Hitler yet but if he somehow wins re election, it's all but a guarantee.

It speaks more about the utter decay of The Republican party that he ran unopposed. 4 years ago you had ppl like lindsey graham, ted cruz, and nikki haley trashing Donald Trump for being a racist bag of garbage. Now they all lick his boots.

[MrDollarBills]

I AM PROUD OF THE BUCKS!!! HELL YES!!

[gigantes]

Truly... truly awesome.

My faith in this country has been shaken to the core the last few months (idiots avoiding masks is the other main issue), and this is one small but significant step back in the right direction. Just... wow.