Around the League: 2022-23 Season 3.0

[blargh]

Why did the Warriors even make those lottery picks? They had no interest in EVER using Wiseman, Kuminga, and Moody. They should have just traded them for established vets like they wanted to all along.

I think they were planning for a contingency where A) Klay never came back, and B) Draymond continued to sharply tail off like he did a couple of years ago. Then they were led astray by Klay actually making it onto the floor, and Green having a bit of bounceback. But both guys are just not good enough to be a core of a contending team anymore.

[blargh]

Why did the Warriors even make those lottery picks? They had no interest in EVER using Wiseman, Kuminga, and Moody. They should have just traded them for established vets like they wanted to all along.

I think they were planning for a contingency where A) Klay never came back, and B) Draymond continued to sharply tail off like he did a couple of years ago. Then they were led astray by Klay actually making it onto the floor, and Green having a bit of bounceback. But both guys are just not good enough to be a core of a contending team anymore.

[blargh]

I’m a little more optimistic about the Knicks. Brunson is a true star so that’s a big puzzle piece to have settled. Grimes & Hart seem like playoff caliber wings. They own a ton of picks so with some shrewd GMing they should be able to reorganize their roster & dump a bad contract.

This will be a huge summer for them but hopefully they keep playing the long game like they’ve been doing recently.

I think a lot of you are higher on Jalen Brunson than I am. He’s good; he can be the emotional leader of a championship team, like a Kyle Lowry. But if he’s your most talented player, you’re going nowhere.

[Kobblehead]

Read on Twitter

If im Grizz, im trading Ja. I dont care how good he is. He’s not even THAT good.

Yeah, he's a wankster. He'll never be a "get it" guy.

His last two stints in the playoffs have been underwhelming, as well.

[mjkvol]

I’m a little more optimistic about the Knicks. Brunson is a true star so that’s a big puzzle piece to have settled. Grimes & Hart seem like playoff caliber wings. They own a ton of picks so with some shrewd GMing they should be able to reorganize their roster & dump a bad contract.

This will be a huge summer for them but hopefully they keep playing the long game like they’ve been doing recently.

I think a lot of you are higher on Jalen Brunson than I am. He’s good; he can be the emotional leader of a championship team, like a Kyle Lowry. But if he’s your most talented player, you’re going nowhere.

Add second and third guys better than Randle and Barrett, and he is easily a PG that can win a championship. He balls out in the biggest games, something that isn't easy to find in players, as we've found out in the last decade and a half. He's not on the level of a Doncic, but the Mavs would be a lot closer to serious contender had they had the foresight to keep Brunson and build around those two.

[Kobblehead]

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/suns-parting-ways-with-head-coach-monty-williams-after-four-seasons/

So a finals appearance followed by two second round exits gets Monty fired.

Some organizations are very serious about competing for a championship.

If they turn around and hire Udoka, I'm going to be disappointed.

[mjkvol]

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/suns-parting-ways-with-head-coach-monty-williams-after-four-seasons/

So a finals appearance followed by two second round exits gets Monty fired.

Some organizations are very serious about competing for a championship.

If they turn around and hire Udoka, I'm going to be disappointed.

Didn't the Rockets hire Udoka?

[Kobblehead]

Add second and third guys better than Randle and Barrett, and he is easily a PG that can win a championship. He balls out in the biggest games, something that isn't easy to find in players, as we've found out in the last decade and a half. He's not on the level of a Doncic, but the Mavs would be a lot closer to serious contender had they had the foresight to keep Brunson and build around those two.

Yeah, and to add onto the bolded point, someone like Jamal Murray is another example. At first glance, he seems like an above average starting SG who is a pseudo star at best. And then the playoffs come around and he's 25 ppg on 47% shooting.

Some guys thrive in pressure moments and those are the guys you want to identify and bring onto your roster.

[Kobblehead]

Oh okay, I missed that.

[Kobblehead]

Coming off last year's playoffs, the Nuggets were still able to get Bruce Brown for just 2 years, $13m. That was a steal.

[ProcessDoctor]

Yea Grizz need to sell on Ja ASAP.

[mjkvol]

Yea Grizz need to sell on Ja ASAP.

True, but they'd be getting pennies on the dollar right now.

[Kobblehead]

The sad part is that he hasn't even begun his $206m extension yet. Year 1 starts this summer.

[ProcessDoctor]

Yea Grizz need to sell on Ja ASAP.

True, but they'd be getting pennies on the dollar right now.

I think you can already label him a sunken asset though. I don't think his value will go up.

[Negrodamus]

You keep Ja, obviously. You just overpay for PJ Tucker like vets to keep him in line (if they’re willing to go to a non-contending team for a nice payday).

[M2J]

The Original Jimmy trade could be the best trade in our franchise history. The problem is.. the Jimmy trade part 2 is definitely the worst trade in our franchise history.

If you're going franchise history... the best trade was Wilt, and the worst was Barkley. IMO.

Moses? He gave us a ring

Adding Tatum to Joel could've led to multiple

[Kobblehead]

Given that Embiid was in place, I'd rather have Fox over Tatum as the #2.

Tatum is a better #1 than Fox. But the G/C two-man game has been a filthy combination in NBA history. Look what Fox just did with Sabonis. Imagine what he and Embiid would look like.

[Embiid P]

If you're going franchise history... the best trade was Wilt, and the worst was Barkley. IMO.

Moses? He gave us a ring

Adding Tatum to Joel could've led to multiple

We never had a chance at Tatum. Part of the terms of the trade with Boston was that Colangelo wouldn't take Tatum at #1.

[Embiid P]

The Original Jimmy trade could be the best trade in our franchise history. The problem is.. the Jimmy trade part 2 is definitely the worst trade in our franchise history.

Not really considering Jimmy essentially forced his way out of Philly but at least had the decency to let us do a sign and trade to get something in return for him. In those cases, you're not going to get much for a player no matter how good he is.

[Iverson Armband]

The Original Jimmy trade could be the best trade in our franchise history. The problem is.. the Jimmy trade part 2 is definitely the worst trade in our franchise history.

Not really considering Jimmy essentially forced his way out of Philly but at least had the decency to let us do a sign and trade to get something in return for him. In those cases, you're not going to get much for a player no matter how good he is.

Miami didn’t have the cap space to sign him outright that year. It just worked out perfectly because Miami really wanted him, he really wanted to be in Miami and we didn’t want to lose him for nothing.