Moderators: bwgood77, Qwigglez, lilfishi22
SunsRback4Good wrote:Celtics lead Nuggets 96 to 82 with 4 min remaining in the game. Do you believe in miracles???
Celtics on a 31-3 run in last 9 minutes.
SunsRback4Good wrote:TouchPassDario wrote:SunsRback4Good wrote:Celtics lead Nuggets 96 to 82 with 4 min remaining in the game. Do you believe in miracles???
Celtics on a 31-3 run in last 9 minutes.
Funniest part was Jokic coming in did NOTHING to stem the tide. He actually got benched with 4:20 left with Den only down 14 and with the ball. He got absolutely owned and literally stood in backcourt to argue on three straight transition run outs for Boston. Lolllllll
Yeah, I noticed him upset and arguing a ton of times this game. It reminded me of 3/4th of Lakers roster constantly harping at refs in the playoffs. Lebron in particular like a sniper just took out one of his teammates.
Revived wrote:
Everybody getting dunked on yesterday.
WeekapaugGroove wrote:
Murray officially out. Brutal for Denver. They are still a good team and Morris can shoulder a lot of this load but obviously can't go super nova like Jamal can when he's cooking.
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WeekapaugGroove wrote:
Murray officially out. Brutal for Denver. They are still a good team and Morris can shoulder a lot of this load but obviously can't go super nova like Jamal can when he's cooking.
Sent from my SM-G986U using RealGM mobile app
1. Denver Nuggets (↑Previously 2nd), 34-19, +5.0 net rating
Weekly slate: Win over Pistons, Win over Spurs, Win over Spurs, Loss to Celtics
Good lineup: Jamal Murray | Will Barton | Michael Porter Jr. | Aaron Gordon | Nikola Jokic
Stats: 133.9 offensive rating | 100.0 defensive rating | +33.9 net rating | 90 minutes played | 4th most used lineup
Why it’s important: This is the lineup the Denver Nuggets went all-in on at the trade deadline, and early returns have it shredding opposing teams. The offense has been historic. The defense has been tremendous. The level of competition has been significantly lower than what they’ll face consistently in the playoffs, but the confidence the Nuggets are building with this lineup is huge. They’ve looked otherworldly with these five.
Bad lineup: Facundo Campazzo | Will Barton | Michael Porter Jr. | Aaron Gordon | Nikola Jokic
Stats: 116.7 offensive rating | 134.3 defensive rating | -17.6 net rating | 34 minutes played | 8th most used lineup
Question that arises: So what happens if Jamal Murray isn’t the NBA bubble version of himself or if he can’t stay on the court? It’s a little concerning that his knee has kept him out for a few games recently, but it hopefully won’t be a long-term issue for Murray and the Nuggets. But you see the difference in a small sample size of the difference in Murray being in the lineup and Facundo Campazzo as the other guard. Not a huge concern as of right now, but something to keep an eye on.
2. LA Clippers (↑Previously 6th), 37-18, +6.8 net rating
Weekly slate: Win over Blazers, Win over Suns, Win over Rockets, Win over Pistons
Good lineup: Patrick Beverley | Paul George | Kawhi Leonard | Nicolas Batum | Serge Ibaka1
Stats: 118.3 offensive rating | 101.7 defensive rating | +16.7 net rating | 264 minutes played | Most used lineup
Why it’s important: While I’d probably like to see Marcus Morris in the lineup in place of Patrick Beverley or Nicolas Batum when it gets to crunch time, this is one of the most balanced attacks the Clippers can throw at opponents. The combination of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George has proven to often be too much. Serge Ibaka gives them a stretch-big without sacrificing defense. Beverley plays the nuisance and Batum brings a lot of basketball IQ to the next pass when it’s needed. This lineup has overperformed for the Clippers all season.
Bad lineup: Patrick Beverley | Luke Kennard | Kawhi Leonard | Nicolas Batum | Serge Ibaka
Stats: 101.5 offensive rating | 110.9 defensive rating | -9.5 net rating | 33 minutes played | 11th most used lineup
Question that arises: Can the Clippers survive without their two stars on the floor? Remove Paul George from the lineup and replace him with capable shooter/playmaker Luke Kennard and it’s still a disaster for the Clippers this season. It has a small sample size, so we won’t say this is definitely a bad lineup for them, but the Clippers will need to find consistent success when it comes to staggering the minutes of Leonard or George without the other.
3. Phoenix Suns (↔Previously 3rd), 37-15, +7.0 net rating
Weekly slate: Win at Rockets, Win over Jazz, Loss at Clippers, Win over Wizards
Good lineup: Chris Paul | Devin Booker | Mikal Bridges | Cameron Johnson | Deandre Ayton
Stats: 117.4 offensive rating | 105.7 defensive rating | +11.7 net rating | 126 minutes played | 3rd most used lineup
Why it’s important: The Suns have a very interesting lineup here that has been very successful this season. It’s their normal lineup they’d have with Jae Crowder as the 4, except they’ve put the second-year forward Cam Johnson into the mix. Johnson has been surprisingly competitive on defense for such an inexperienced NBA player. And his shooting feels far more reliable than what Crowder gives most nights. They can remain flexible on both ends of the floor while providing a lot more shooting.
Bad lineup: Chris Paul | Devin Booker | Mikal Bridges | Jae Crowder | Dario Saric
Stats: 90.8 offensive rating | 93.4 defensive rating | -2.6 net rating | 34 minutes played | 7th most used lineup
Question that arises: Can this team get away with Deandre Ayton not being in the game? The interior depth for this team isn’t really there. Ayton has been inconsistent at times this season, but backing him up with stretch bigs like Dario Saric and Frank Kaminsky leaves a lot to be desired on defense. In the playoffs, they can’t play Ayton 40-plus minutes, and there will be some times he’s in foul trouble. How do they get by when even their stretch-big lineups struggle to score?
4. Utah Jazz (↓Previously 1st), 40-13, +9.5 net rating
Weekly slate: Loss at Mavs, Loss at Suns, Win over Blazers, Win over Kings
Good lineup: Donovan Mitchell | Joe Ingles | Royce O’Neale | Bojan Bogdanovic | Rudy Gobert
Stats: 123.6 offensive rating | 103.3defensive rating | +20.3 net rating | 196 minutes played | 4th most used lineup
Why it’s important: It’s odd to see one of the best lineups from the Jazz not include Mike Conley, but in analyzing some of the best teams in the Western Conference, competing against lineups full of wings is key. The Jazz have done that with this lineup this season, which has obliterated just about everybody they’ve faced. While it’s done extremely well defensively, being able to handle both (healthy?) Los Angeles teams and a bigger Denver lineup will be challenging.
Bad lineup: Donovan Mitchell | Jordan Clarkson | Royce O’Neale | Bojan Bogdanovic | Rudy Gobert
Stats: 96.4 offensive rating | 110.6 defensive rating | -11.4 net rating | 66 minutes played | 8th most used lineup
Question that arises: Will this team be able to count on Jordan Clarkson in the postseason? This is the same lineup as before, but with a different key reserve. Clarkson has been trailing off quite a bit over the last couple of months, and we’re starting to see some vulnerabilities if he’s not hitting an insane percentage of his 3-pointers. We may see less of him in the playoffs if he’s not hitting.
lilfishi22 wrote:My biggest fear going into the playoffs was going in without shoring up our frontline, which we didn't do at all. As much as Ayton has shown us he can step up against good teams, it's just not possible to pay him 48mpg. Saric on the other hand seems to have fallen into a slump that every time there is some glimpses of hope he'll climb out of it, he'd fall back in again. So without a reliable big behind Ayton giving up a productive or at least a net-neutral 15mpg, it's going to be a real challenge for us.
Revived wrote:lilfishi22 wrote:My biggest fear going into the playoffs was going in without shoring up our frontline, which we didn't do at all. As much as Ayton has shown us he can step up against good teams, it's just not possible to pay him 48mpg. Saric on the other hand seems to have fallen into a slump that every time there is some glimpses of hope he'll climb out of it, he'd fall back in again. So without a reliable big behind Ayton giving up a productive or at least a net-neutral 15mpg, it's going to be a real challenge for us.
Yeah and playoffs usually become a slow grind it out series where less calls are called and it’s more just about physicality. Saric can’t box out much most SFs in the NBA much less NBA caliber Cs. I think decent backup Cs will just toss aside our wings (without foul call) and kill us on the boards.
At some point if Saric continues his struggles into the playoffs (like he has after the AS break) then I think they have to experiment with going Craig at the 5 spot because he defends the rim and boxes out better than Saric does. Hopefully if Nader is back by playoffs then Nader can simply take up Craig’s PF spot (which was Nader’s role before anyway).
lilfishi22 wrote:Unless it's something Monty is keeping up his sleeve, going small in the playoffs might be doable in spurts because our wings are pretty long but it's certainly not a Draymond at the 5 kind of situation since no one is that good a defender. One of our biggest strengths is being able to play Ayton even when teams go small because he's good enough to hold his own on switch outs most of the time. Without Ayton and a productive Dario, I am pretty worried.
WeekapaugGroove wrote:
Murray officially out. Brutal for Denver. They are still a good team and Morris can shoulder a lot of this load but obviously can't go super nova like Jamal can when he's cooking.
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Bogyo wrote:lilfishi22 wrote:Unless it's something Monty is keeping up his sleeve, going small in the playoffs might be doable in spurts because our wings are pretty long but it's certainly not a Draymond at the 5 kind of situation since no one is that good a defender. One of our biggest strengths is being able to play Ayton even when teams go small because he's good enough to hold his own on switch outs most of the time. Without Ayton and a productive Dario, I am pretty worried.
So we should try it in regular season when the stakes are not so high. Right?
lilfishi22 wrote:Tim Connelly should've won at least one Exec of the Year award. The amount of gold he's found in the draft and virtually every core piece in their team as been drafted or was used as a major piece in trades. That being said, I think JJ has it in the bag. To go from a somewhat competent team last season following a 19 win season, to now being #2 in the league is not too dissimilar to when Colangelo won it with the Suns in 2004, although 03 Suns was worse than our team last season.
Bogyo wrote:WeekapaugGroove wrote:
Murray officially out. Brutal for Denver. They are still a good team and Morris can shoulder a lot of this load but obviously can't go super nova like Jamal can when he's cooking.
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They will likely add Austin Rivers. Better than sitting on their hands. That FO is tha sht. GM of the year in my book, sorry JJ.
Saberestar wrote:Bogyo wrote:WeekapaugGroove wrote:
Murray officially out. Brutal for Denver. They are still a good team and Morris can shoulder a lot of this load but obviously can't go super nova like Jamal can when he's cooking.
Sent from my SM-G986U using RealGM mobile app
They will likely add Austin Rivers. Better than sitting on their hands. That FO is tha sht. GM of the year in my book, sorry JJ.
Do you think that signing Austin Rivers is a good move?
He is close to be out of the league, I did not even know that he was on the Knicks at the start of the season. Then they traded him for basically nothing and he was waived by the Thunder.
The Nuggets GM did really bad moves last off-season. Jerami Grant is no longer with the team and he was entering his prime, he is killing it for the Pistons.
Miles Plumlee is a better backup C than any of JaMychal Green or McGee and the money spent is about the same.
Millsap was retained for $10M when he probably only deserves a minimun contract at this point of his career. That money could have gone to Grant.
Craig for the minimun is great and they did not want him back. That is another mistake IMO.
