(LOCK THREAD) The LeBron James- 23-24 NBA Thread - 40K POINTS+(Part 1)(NO INSULTING)

[tone wone]

One positive, this is the best AD'S looked offensively since his foot injury last December.

[zimpy27]

Reaves and Reddish need to swap

[toodles23]

Followed that OKC game with a stinker.

3's n layups approach only works if you actually make your layups and actually take 3's. He only got up 2 threes and his finishing has been off since the Indy game. If he's gonna cut middies out of his game then he has get up more 3s. Honestly, he should never attempt fewer than 5.

Bad approach=bad results.

Obviously he's adjusted to his diminished athleticism incredibly well, but you could really tell he's not prime Lebron anymore on a lot of his finishes today. There were a number of times where he didn't have quite enough burst and/or elevation to get a good layup up in situations he absolutely would have when he was younger. He was pushing hard in transition early in the game and putting in a lot of effort on defense, he might have gotten fatigued early.

Definitely agree that he needs to get more threes up.

Also, I wonder if it might have helped to not spot the Celtics a 12-0 lead with that garbage starting lineup in a game they lost by 11? Yes Lebron's athleticism is diminished, but it certainly didn't help that he was trying to finish in a bunch of traffic because of the terrible spacing. It's like Ham has completely missed the last 10-15 years of evolution in basketball strategy.

[MyUniBroDavis]

Followed that OKC game with a stinker.

3's n layups approach only works if you actually make your layups and actually take 3's. He only got up 2 threes and his finishing has been off since the Indy game. If he's gonna cut middies out of his game then he has get up more 3s. Honestly, he should never attempt fewer than 5.

Bad approach=bad results.

Obviously he's adjusted to his diminished athleticism incredibly well, but you could really tell he's not prime Lebron anymore on a lot of his finishes today. There were a number of times where he didn't have quite enough burst and/or elevation to get a good layup up in situations he absolutely would have when he was younger. He was pushing hard in transition early in the game and putting in a lot of effort on defense, he might have gotten fatigued early.

Definitely agree that he needs to get more threes up.

Also, I wonder if it might have helped to not spot the Celtics a 12-0 lead with that garbage starting lineup in a game they lost by 11? Yes Lebron's athleticism is diminished, but it certainly didn't help that he was trying to finish in a bunch of traffic because of the terrible spacing. It's like Ham has completely missed the last 10-15 years of evolution in basketball strategy.

He Said his knee was messed up or something right?

This Vando + cam stuff is nasty

[Fadeaway_J]

Followed that OKC game with a stinker.

3's n layups approach only works if you actually make your layups and actually take 3's. He only got up 2 threes and his finishing has been off since the Indy game. If he's gonna cut middies out of his game then he has get up more 3s. Honestly, he should never attempt fewer than 5.

Bad approach=bad results.

Obviously he's adjusted to his diminished athleticism incredibly well, but you could really tell he's not prime Lebron anymore on a lot of his finishes today. There were a number of times where he didn't have quite enough burst and/or elevation to get a good layup up in situations he absolutely would have when he was younger. He was pushing hard in transition early in the game and putting in a lot of effort on defense, he might have gotten fatigued early.

Definitely agree that he needs to get more threes up.

Also, I wonder if it might have helped to not spot the Celtics a 12-0 lead with that garbage starting lineup in a game they lost by 11? Yes Lebron's athleticism is diminished, but it certainly didn't help that he was trying to finish in a bunch of traffic because of the terrible spacing. It's like Ham has completely missed the last 10-15 years of evolution in basketball strategy.

Never mind the last 10-15 years, he apparently missed the first quarter of the game he was already coaching!

I think this goes back to the continued overrating of Vando. This is isn't a Draymond or AK-47 whose defensive impact is so wide-ranging that you find ways to keep them on the floor even if they might be hurting you offensively. Vando can guard quicker perimeter players and... that's about it. He isn't great against stronger wings, or protecting the rim, or defending the post, or even defensive rebounding. So Ham puts him out there despite his offensive ineptitude to "lean into the defensive identity", yet he's not even that impactful defensively except under specific circumstances.

[MyUniBroDavis]

Vandos issue is he also sucks at finishing so it’s not like he works that well cutting, he can’t shoot, is a normal passer, so there’s literally nothing there on offense

[Fadeaway_J]

Vandos issue is he also sucks at finishing so it’s not like he works that well cutting, he can’t shoot, is a normal passer, so there’s literally nothing there on offense

Yeah his finishing is atrocious which removes the only feasible benefit he could provide as an offensive player.

[Colbinii]

Vandos issue is he also sucks at finishing so it’s not like he works that well cutting, he can’t shoot, is a normal passer, so there’s literally nothing there on offense

Yup.

He worked fine with Towns on the Wolves because, well, Towns spaces the floor as a 5. When you have LeBron and AD as relatively non-spacers, there really isn't room for Vando.

Maybe people don't get it, but this roster 3-7 is very weak. Guys like Prince, Reddish, Dlo, Hayes, Rui and Vanderbilt are all players you want as your 6-8 guys at best on a playoff rotation. The talent level is just so weak.

Denver is rolling out KCP/Gordon/MPJ as their 3-5 who compliment their stars perfectly, have varied skill-sets and are well-rounded players.

Boston just blows LAL out of the water. Imagine if they traded a 1st for White in 2022

Timberwolves have Towns as their 3rd best player and someone like Naz Reid is at the level of Reaves while their 4th best player, McDaniels, is better than Reaves.

Then teams like the Clippers and Thunder are simply better 3-8 with guys like Harden/Zubac/Mann/Westbrook and Williams/Dort/Wallace/Williams/Joe.

Mavericks are comparable to the Lakers with Williams/Lively/Hardaway Jr.

Suns are a mess. Houston is a year away but they have some nice pieces. Pelicans are talented but have some roster issues with fit.

So yeah, right now the Lakers are in a Mavericks/Lakers/Suns/Rockets/Pelicans/Warriors tier, and that goes to #11 in the West.

And don't sleep on the Grizzles. They can go 34-20 to finish out the season with 43 wins. 34-20 is LESS than their Win% the past 2 seasons.

So when is the move happening? Just bring in LaVine already. He is the most talented player they can get.

Or see if you can get some actual players who can impact a game like Kelly Olynyk. Call Portland about Jerami Grant and maybe you can get him AND keep your 1st for another move.

But this roster isn't going to cut it, and with 12 teams trying to truly win this year, you can't wait until February to make a move.

[MyUniBroDavis]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

[Fadeaway_J]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

What does "fine" mean though? I don't see a repeat of that WCF run as remotely realistic if they barely squeak into the playoffs again. The conference was unusually cooperative last year.

[Colbinii]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

What does fine mean? The Lakers are in a tier of 8-12 out West.

[Tracymcgoaty]

Either DLO or Reaves need to be traded.

I vote for DLO because Reaves has proven he ups his game come playoff time.

DLO has a history of coming out flat.

We need a competent backup big and a two way guard.

Gabe was supposed to be that but something about Miami players destroying their body when traded.

Get on that phone Rob.

[trickshot]

Either DLO or Reaves need to be traded.

I vote for DLO because Reaves has proven he ups his game come playoff time.

DLO has a history of coming out flat.

We need a competent backup big and a two way guard.

Gabe was supposed to be that but something about Miami players destroying their body when traded.

Get on that phone Rob.

D'lo is the ultimate anti-intangibles guy. Not to say he's a liability, it's just that he barely plugs any holes. You can't even play him as a 6th man because Reaves does that better.

[McBubbles]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

What does fine mean? The Lakers are in a tier of 8-12 out West.

I was just about to ask myself. Not the first time I've seen "Stop worrying, the Lakers are fine" throughout this thread, but what does "fine" mean? They're not fine for anything anyone would consider a positively outcome for the season lol, so I don't really understand what that means.

[Colbinii]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

What does fine mean? The Lakers are in a tier of 8-12 out West.

I was just about to ask myself. Not the first time I've "Stop worrying, the Lakers are fine" throughout this thread, but what does "fine" mean? They're not fine for anything anyone would consider a positively outcome for the season lol, so I don't really understand what that means.

Fine means that instead of beating Minnesota in the Play-In like last year, they lose because Minnesota was missing key players in the game

And then the Lakers are swept in the 1st round against Denver

[McBubbles]

Either DLO or Reaves need to be traded.

I vote for DLO because Reaves has proven he ups his game come playoff time.

DLO has a history of coming out flat.

We need a competent backup big and a two way guard.

Gabe was supposed to be that but something about Miami players destroying their body when traded.

Get on that phone Rob.

D'lo is the ultimate anti-intangibles guy. Not to say he's a liability, it's just that he barely plugs any holes. You can't even play him as a 6th man because Reaves does that better.

Might have good locker room intangibles, homies love him apparently. Doesn't translate to the court though.

Saw some people saying that Lebron has ruined another all star lmao.

[nzahir]

Vandos issue is he also sucks at finishing so it’s not like he works that well cutting, he can’t shoot, is a normal passer, so there’s literally nothing there on offense

Yup.

He worked fine with Towns on the Wolves because, well, Towns spaces the floor as a 5. When you have LeBron and AD as relatively non-spacers, there really isn't room for Vando.

Maybe people don't get it, but this roster 3-7 is very weak. Guys like Prince, Reddish, Dlo, Hayes, Rui and Vanderbilt are all players you want as your 6-8 guys at best on a playoff rotation. The talent level is just so weak.

Denver is rolling out KCP/Gordon/MPJ as their 3-5 who compliment their stars perfectly, have varied skill-sets and are well-rounded players.

Boston just blows LAL out of the water. Imagine if they traded a 1st for White in 2022

Timberwolves have Towns as their 3rd best player and someone like Naz Reid is at the level of Reaves while their 4th best player, McDaniels, is better than Reaves.

Then teams like the Clippers and Thunder are simply better 3-8 with guys like Harden/Zubac/Mann/Westbrook and Williams/Dort/Wallace/Williams/Joe.

Mavericks are comparable to the Lakers with Williams/Lively/Hardaway Jr.

Suns are a mess. Houston is a year away but they have some nice pieces. Pelicans are talented but have some roster issues with fit.

So yeah, right now the Lakers are in a Mavericks/Lakers/Suns/Rockets/Pelicans/Warriors tier, and that goes to #11 in the West.

And don't sleep on the Grizzles. They can go 34-20 to finish out the season with 43 wins. 34-20 is LESS than their Win% the past 2 seasons.

So when is the move happening? Just bring in LaVine already. He is the most talented player they can get.

Or see if you can get some actual players who can impact a game like Kelly Olynyk. Call Portland about Jerami Grant and maybe you can get him AND keep your 1st for another move.

But this roster isn't going to cut it, and with 12 teams trying to truly win this year, you can't wait until February to make a move.

If we are fine with moving off of Rui, then Grant works

I watched most of the game, but I think Rui missed 4 or 5 wide open 3s in a row at some point

Never too confident when he shoots them tbh

I am not for getting Lavine though if we cant figure out a wing to replace Rui and getting a backup big

If you can get both, then do it, but hard to do with the salary

[Asianiac_24]

As great as LeBron had been (definitely relatively to his age), I feel like AD is more important to the team

[MyUniBroDavis]

The team is fine but Vando is a situational piece that can also be a worst in the league level impact guy on offense if you don’t know when to use him and some of these lineups are ridiculous.

Hayes shouldn’t play over Wood most of the time, if they aren’t hedging he isn’t better at anything lol

Dlo gotta go though

When Bron and AD are in the playoffs if they can get there healthy has always been how it is, we saw a worse version of this team go to the WCF with both of them hobbled pretty badly, but getting them there in a good position might be annoying if things keep up

We’ll be fine, losing to the Celtics with a bad lebron game and dumb lineup decisions shouldn’t suprise anyone theyre the best team in the league atm lol

What does "fine" mean though? I don't see a repeat of that WCF run as remotely realistic if they barely squeak into the playoffs again. The conference was unusually cooperative last year.

I agree that team wouldnt do that this year but Lebron and AD were both on one foot, bron in particular

[GSP]

As great as LeBron had been (definitely relatively to his age), I feel like AD is more important to the team

Does anyone doubt that tho......Its been obvious Ads been teams most valuable for a couple seasons now

specially w/ Reaves and Dlo now Ad has ballhandlers and playmakers when Bron is out so offense can still be good enough

But when Ad is out the defense is cooked Bbq chicken