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

[tone wone]

Prince taking 13 shots and all from 3 is hilarious.

We know how Reaves-D'lo not being able to play together is a problem for a that lacks shotmaking, but AD-Bron-Rui not being able to play together is kinda a problem as well. It's a big reason Prince plays so much. Rui is basically LeBron's backup. The coaching staff clearly doesn't think he play the 3 so its actually hard to get him on the floor with both AD and Lebron.

27 games end and I still don't know who fits best next to James and Davis.

[RRR3]

People keep saying Ham isn’t a bad coach as if a team with LeBron and AD healthy all year and an at least functional rotation should be 8th in the west. If you don’t think Ham is bad you must not think LeBron or AD are that good because they’ve been mostly healthy and this team still is pretty mediocre (there is no player single-handedly destroying the team like WB to blame anymore either). This is a good roster, they are underachieving. Just for tonight, Ham was playing LeBron at center, letting the Knicks hunt Reaves in the end, and playing Taurean Prince almost 40 minutes despite him struggling. He consistently doesn’t call timeouts when needed, uses the Budenholzer method of leaving the 3pt line open to protect the paint despite that often biting them in the ass, does not spam P+R nearly enough, way too much iso ball in close games, is slow to make in game adjustments (not guarding Exum even after he had hit 6 threes for instance) and clearly does not look at lineup data. He also never fouls late in games when needed despite this costing them I don’t even know how many games the last few years. I’m not sure how can anyone can watch his offense that has Christian Wood looking like he can’t score and think it’s competent. If LeBron and AD had been out a lot it would be one thing but you can’t be struggling this badly when they’re both healthy. Please stop saying I’m just “hating” on Ham when I’m identifying legitimate things he’s doing wrong. Coaches who do poorly are open to criticism.

[MyUniBroDavis]

People keep saying Ham isn’t a bad coach as if a team with LeBron and AD healthy all year and an at least functional rotation should be 8th in the west. If you don’t think Ham is bad you must not think LeBron or AD are that good because they’ve been mostly healthy and this team still is pretty mediocre (there is no player single-handedly destroying the team like WB to blame anymore either). This is a good roster, they are underachieving. Just for tonight, Ham was playing LeBron at center, letting the Knicks hunt Reaves in the end, and playing Taurean Prince almost 40 minutes despite him struggling. He consistently doesn’t call timeouts when needed, uses the Budenholzer method of leaving the 3pt line open to protect the paint despite that often biting them in the ass, does not spam P+R nearly enough, way too much iso ball in close games, is slow to make in game adjustments (not guarding Exum even after he had hit 6 threes for instance) and clearly does not look at lineup data. He also never fouls late in games when needed despite this costing them I don’t even know how many games the last few years. I’m not sure how can anyone can watch his offense that has Christian Wood looking like he can’t score and think it’s competent. If LeBron and AD had been out a lot it would be one thing but you can’t be struggling this badly when they’re both healthy. Please stop saying I’m just “hating” on Ham when I’m identifying legitimate things he’s doing wrong. Coaches who do poorly are open to criticism.

1. 14-8 taking out the 3 games AD was out or had to leave early, including the pacers game.

2. AD and Bron both have had bad stretches, neither have been top 5 level guys this year but have shown they can be. Brons slowed down a bit past few weeks and AD had a horrible stretch after the miami game

3. They were hedging, at the end when Brunson was hunting Reaves he didn’t score as well as he did on reddish, no one was able to guard him on the team tonight

4. Late game fouling or trying to go for a steal is basically either way 90% of the time a loss and as far as I know we’ve done better in those situations than the historical average. If ur talking about fouling down 3 that comes down to a belief think but neither situation is objectively better especially with our free throw struggles

Ham isn’t perfect and some criticisms are valid, but if you think he’s the worst coach you’ve seen you haven’t seen anybody, he’s a decent coach, has issues some of us don’t like but that’s it. Going on a tirade after every lost game about him and radio silence whenever something good happens doesn’t move anyone, he’s shown he’s a decent coach in games where they hard gameplan (IST + playoffs last year) and the only guy that’s outdone him in that situation is Malone whose probably the 2nd best coach in the league

[MyUniBroDavis]

We’re a solid team when healthy, are we anything like top contenders? Probably not

If you assume Bron goes top 1-3 mode once the playoffs hit, and AD does his thing, then the Celtics/bucks/Clippers/Nuggets all probably still clear us, we probably have to trade Dlo or Rui or both if we genuinely keep having to sit Dlo in the fourth or this is just the role we want Rui to play going forward

[RRR3]

Malone took years to figure out Jokic should start consistently and be the focal point and you’re calling him the second best coach in the league lmaoo. Well if those are your standards no wonder you think Ham is ok. People really have a hard time accepting authority figures can be incompetent.

[trickshot]

How does a LeBron team have such a broken half-court offense for nearly 3 years? He’s one of the best scorers and passers ever and yet the half court offense on this team is 22nd-25th since the 2020 title. It’s confusing, reflects very poorly on LBJ, and the biggest reason why they won’t win another championship.

Sadly plays a different game and different type of usage. Great opportunity to make the point that Lebron-ball was incredibly underrated as an elite winning tool. Almost becoming OP in 4 shooter lineups. After 11 only elite offensive systems like GS and Spurs really matched up head to head.

[trickshot]

Lakers need to take seeding even more serious this year. They probably even win the chip last year if they didn't basically have to play three straight conference finals. The 8th seed is just such a hard run. Top seeds only really have to overcome 1 tough matchup, max 2. Three is brutal.

[Fadeaway_J]

Malone took years to figure out Jokic should start consistently and be the focal point and you’re calling him the second best coach in the league lmaoo. Well if those are your standards no wonder you think Ham is ok. People really have a hard time accepting authority figures can be incompetent.

No, we just have a hard time accepting your default position that most of the coaches in the NBA are incompetent.

[MyUniBroDavis]

Malone took years to figure out Jokic should start consistently and be the focal point and you’re calling him the second best coach in the league lmaoo. Well if those are your standards no wonder you think Ham is ok. People really have a hard time accepting authority figures can be incompetent.

If you understand basketball whatsoever you would know the Nuggets probably have the best run offense in the league and know how to target everything lmao. People learn

You clearly have 0 idea about anything Xs and Os related lmfao this is hilarious

[MyUniBroDavis]

Malone took years to figure out Jokic should start consistently and be the focal point and you’re calling him the second best coach in the league lmaoo. Well if those are your standards no wonder you think Ham is ok. People really have a hard time accepting authority figures can be incompetent.

No, we just have a hard time accepting your default position that most of the coaches in the NBA are incompetent.

Nah I’m sure anonymous poster RRR3 would be a top 10 coach in the league

[MyUniBroDavis]

On a serious note if you think the idea that the Nuggets staff being one of the best coaching staffs in the league is laughable you basically have 0 understanding of anything basketball related lol

[khaltheball]

Prince taking 13 shots and all from 3 is hilarious.

We know how Reaves-D'lo not being able to play together is a problem for a that lacks shotmaking, but AD-Bron-Rui not being able to play together is kinda a problem as well. It's a big reason Prince plays so much. Rui is basically LeBron's backup. The coaching staff clearly doesn't think he play the 3 so its actually hard to get him on the floor with both AD and Lebron.

27 games end and I still don't know who fits best next to James and Davis.

Rui is awful , it’s crazy how poor he plays despite the tools. Everytime he gets the ball on offence n it’s not a wide open dunk or 3 bad stuff happens : clunking into a midrange brick . Can’t rebound , can’t guard the perimeter so can’t play the 3, and not like he can offer big man defense euther really . Cannot wait till I have to stop hearing lakers fans in other places tell me he should play more. It’s low-key shocking he’s a complete ball stopper too on offence.

It’s sad AD is playing his best ball lately hitting jumpers too n tesm is 1-3 Lebron isn’t playing as well and outside reaves who’s a sg who can playmake bring forced into pg ; the rest of the team is so poor. Super out on Dlo , don’t care much about impsvt numbers. Same impact numbers that tell you Dlo is equal to Jamal last regular season then you see what happens in playoffs , he’s so unreliable n not a real offensive option . Can’t be like give dlo the ball he’ll create ****: midrange contested pull ups maybe . I really thought Pelinka must’ve had a reason to pick Dlo over Conley but seems it was just age or Pelinka being a dummy like usual . Bulls are playing better so can’t see them moving Caruso with lavine. Just hoping they’re not too far behind n somehow Pelinka makes a good move for once. Your 3/4th highest paid guys not closing or getting starter minutes over minimum guyd is not a recipe for success .

[khaltheball]

People keep saying Ham isn’t a bad coach as if a team with LeBron and AD healthy all year and an at least functional rotation should be 8th in the west. If you don’t think Ham is bad you must not think LeBron or AD are that good because they’ve been mostly healthy and this team still is pretty mediocre (there is no player single-handedly destroying the team like WB to blame anymore either). This is a good roster, they are underachieving. Just for tonight, Ham was playing LeBron at center, letting the Knicks hunt Reaves in the end, and playing Taurean Prince almost 40 minutes despite him struggling. He consistently doesn’t call timeouts when needed, uses the Budenholzer method of leaving the 3pt line open to protect the paint despite that often biting them in the ass, does not spam P+R nearly enough, way too much iso ball in close games, is slow to make in game adjustments (not guarding Exum even after he had hit 6 threes for instance) and clearly does not look at lineup data. He also never fouls late in games when needed despite this costing them I don’t even know how many games the last few years. I’m not sure how can anyone can watch his offense that has Christian Wood looking like he can’t score and think it’s competent. If LeBron and AD had been out a lot it would be one thing but you can’t be struggling this badly when they’re both healthy. Please stop saying I’m just “hating” on Ham when I’m identifying legitimate things he’s doing wrong. Coaches who do poorly are open to criticism.

The wood thing is baffling n while I’m in the middle on ham I’m confused why he’s been so bad

Also to unibro: Bron is 5th in epm this year AD is 8-9th after being much lower to start the year he’s been top 3-5 in impact lately . Yeah Bron scoring looks meh but even that spurs loss he was a net positive with playmaking alone .

[Ian Scuffling]

This may just be who the Lakers are. Two great players, both with glaring issues (one health and age, the other health) and a bunch of meh players outside of them. And with those obvious issues for the two great players, I think inconsistency is what we're going to see from them. The fact that James is still a top 15 player in this league is incredible, though. And the fact, that on certain nights, he can still be arguably the best player in the league is unbelievable. I'm just enjoying this ride, before it eventually has to come to an end. Maybe, my expectations for this team weren't as high as some others. I'm still pissed that Pelinka blew up a title team.

[Colbinii]

I think the Lakers have a terrible roster outside of LeBron/AD.

D'Angelo Russell and/or Austin Reaves are the 3rd/4th best players, but they are both somewhere in the 75-100 range of the NBA [Being Optimistic], and that's just not good enough for a title team in today's NBA unless all the pieces click perfectly, which we saw during the IST games.

Guys like Rui are much worse players than someone like Kyle Anderson in a vacuum of what you want from a larger Wing who can't shoot consistently.

Cam Reddish was a Minimum FA who could have bee had by 29 other teams.

Taurean Prince was an end-of-rotation player for the Timberwolves last year and is a 15-20 MPG player playing 30 MPG.

I like Vanderbilt AND Vincent, both of whom have missed substantial time. They are going to help the defensive identity, but the question remains can Reaves/D'Angelo provide enough offensively to outweigh their mediocre defense? Because that's the end goal with the current roster.

I am not sure what Ham is supposed to do here. This isn't a Top Tier roster in the NBA.

[Heej]

Malone took years to figure out Jokic should start consistently and be the focal point and you’re calling him the second best coach in the league lmaoo. Well if those are your standards no wonder you think Ham is ok. People really have a hard time accepting authority figures can be incompetent.

No, we just have a hard time accepting your default position that most of the coaches in the NBA are incompetent.

The worst part about that post is the assumption that Malone's development completely stagnated since then too. I'm just gonna unsubscribe from any of RRR3's hot takes on coaching man. My man sounds like those casuals who think they can take NBA players in 1v1s LMFAOOO. Everybody is just trash to them lol

[Heej]

How does a LeBron team have such a broken half-court offense for nearly 3 years? He’s one of the best scorers and passers ever and yet the half court offense on this team is 22nd-25th since the 2020 title. It’s confusing, reflects very poorly on LBJ, and the biggest reason why they won’t win another championship.

Because this MF can't actually shoot off the dribble to scare bigs in drop and can't create a consistent mid-range shot if his life depended on it lol. Then he just gives the ball to Austin Reaves who couldn't make a skip pass if his life depended on it and tries to make a career of hitting contested garbage buckets

[Colbinii]

How does a LeBron team have such a broken half-court offense for nearly 3 years? He’s one of the best scorers and passers ever and yet the half court offense on this team is 22nd-25th since the 2020 title. It’s confusing, reflects very poorly on LBJ, and the biggest reason why they won’t win another championship.

Because this MF can't actually shoot off the dribble to scare bigs in drop and can't create a consistent mid-range shot if his life depended on it lol. Then he just gives the ball to Austin Reaves who couldn't make a skip pass if his life depended on it and tries to make a career of hitting contested garbage buckets

I think Empire needs to look at the roster, compare it to the Top 20 offenses and ask why he would seriously expect this Lakers team to be better than those teams.

[Heej]

How does a LeBron team have such a broken half-court offense for nearly 3 years? He’s one of the best scorers and passers ever and yet the half court offense on this team is 22nd-25th since the 2020 title. It’s confusing, reflects very poorly on LBJ, and the biggest reason why they won’t win another championship.

Because this MF can't actually shoot off the dribble to scare bigs in drop and can't create a consistent mid-range shot if his life depended on it lol. Then he just gives the ball to Austin Reaves who couldn't make a skip pass if his life depended on it and tries to make a career of hitting contested garbage buckets

I think Empire needs to look at the roster, compare it to the Top 20 offenses and ask why he would seriously expect this Lakers team to be better than those teams.

Yeah...well we all know how this Lakers brain-distrust ended up playing all the assets they were gifted. But I do think there's a criticism to be made about LeBron and AD in that over multiple iterations they've always led middling halfcourt offenses. It's hard to unlock AD as a lob threat if LeBron isn't scaring bigs into stepping up on the screen. This is why DLo and AR are so disappointing lol. Cuz they both have the shooting and ballhandling to do it but the first one lacks the urgency to get downhill while the latter lacks the vision to do anything so the only thing either are good for is burping up contested middys.

Idk I'm out on Austin Reaves. He's not a closer either. Dudes going to get hunted in any premiere playoff matchup just like FIBA. This team needs to sell high on him

[EmpireFalls]

How does a LeBron team have such a broken half-court offense for nearly 3 years? He’s one of the best scorers and passers ever and yet the half court offense on this team is 22nd-25th since the 2020 title. It’s confusing, reflects very poorly on LBJ, and the biggest reason why they won’t win another championship.

Because this MF can't actually shoot off the dribble to scare bigs in drop and can't create a consistent mid-range shot if his life depended on it lol. Then he just gives the ball to Austin Reaves who couldn't make a skip pass if his life depended on it and tries to make a career of hitting contested garbage buckets

I think Empire needs to look at the roster, compare it to the Top 20 offenses and ask why he would seriously expect this Lakers team to be better than those teams.

They have LeBron James. The GOAT, no?

Such a player should never ever be below average in offense.

And Anthony Davis, who is an elite off-ball threat (lobs, seals, offensive boards). And, while I was willing to excuse the abominable Russ-disaster because of his cancerous tendencies and their total lack of role players as a result of the trade, they now have 3 good shooters in DLo Reaves and Prince out there for the most part. That should be enough to be a competent NBA offense.

The lack of rim pressure from anyone but LBJ is highly alarming, the movement is inconsistent, the help beaters are rarely there, the shooting is not crisp, it just looks ugly watching them most of the time.