Around The NBA : 2024-25 Season

[Ice Man]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Not sure how the overlords helped Boston. I doubt they made Philly & the Lakers take Fultz and Lonzo instead of Tatum, or the Bucks move Jrue so that they could get Dame. Now the Lakers ... hmmm. If I were a conspiracy theorist, yes for sure, I would start with the Luka trade. The Mavs' "rationale" never will make sense, no matter how often they provide it, nor can the trade process itself (let's talk only to one team, when we have among the league's most valuable properties) withstand scrutiny.

[ChiTownHero1992]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Surely the script leaked at the trade deadline:

LeBron called Adam Silver and said look i'm done, can't do htis anymore, but I need one more. Adam called Nico Harrison, told him give Lakers Luka or your family will disappear. Mavs trade Luka for Davis. Lakers win like 90% of their remaining games, with the narative as LeBron training Luka for the future.

Lebron carries Lakers to finals, to meet their dreaded enemy the Celtics. You'd have ESPN's self proclaimed-GOAT, in the greatest rivalry of all-time, on the grandest stage. With Lakers winning Game 7, on a LeBron mega-block, that he rebounds and tosses up the floor to Luka for a 3point dagger (this way the Narative is LeBron saved the game even though Luka hits game winner). Then in his finals MVP speech, he announces his surprise retirement.

He retires, and leaves the Lakers, but decides to return in October, to none-other than the Cavaliers, and helps that stacked team get to the finals over the Lakers. Thus gaining his 6th ring and the NBA fully claiming him to be the GOAT.

Credit: I did not come up with any of this, just combined all the seperate rants i've read on the board into one big one lol

[Jcool0]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Surely the script leaked at the trade deadline:

LeBron called Adam Silver and said look i'm done, can't do htis anymore, but I need one more. Adam called Nico Harrison, told him give Lakers Luka or your family will disappear. Mavs trade Luka for Davis. Lakers win like 90% of their remaining games, with the narative as LeBron training Luka for the future.

Lebron carries Lakers to finals, to meet their dreaded enemy the Celtics. You'd have ESPN's self proclaimed-GOAT, in the greatest rivalry of all-time, on the grandest stage. With Lakers winning Game 7, on a LeBron mega-block, that he rebounds and tosses up the floor to Luka for a 3point dagger (this way the Narative is LeBron saved the game even though Luka hits game winner). Then in his finals MVP speech, he announces his surprise retirement.

He retires, and leaves the Lakers, but decides to return in October, to none-other than the Cavaliers, and helps that stacked team get to the finals over the Lakers. Thus gaining his 6th ring and the NBA fully claiming him to be the GOAT.

Credit: I did not come up with any of this, just combined all the seperate rants i've read on the board into one big one lol

[jc23]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Not sure how the overlords helped Boston. I doubt they made Philly & the Lakers take Fultz and Lonzo instead of Tatum, or the Bucks move Jrue so that they could get Dame. Now the Lakers ... hmmm. If I were a conspiracy theorist, yes for sure, I would start with the Luka trade. The Mavs' "rationale" never will make sense, no matter how often they provide it, nor can the trade process itself (let's talk only to one team, when we have among the league's most valuable properties) withstand scrutiny.

ours is not to reason why. ours is just to complain and cry.

[ChiTownHero1992]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Surely the script leaked at the trade deadline:

LeBron called Adam Silver and said look i'm done, can't do htis anymore, but I need one more. Adam called Nico Harrison, told him give Lakers Luka or your family will disappear. Mavs trade Luka for Davis. Lakers win like 90% of their remaining games, with the narative as LeBron training Luka for the future.

Lebron carries Lakers to finals, to meet their dreaded enemy the Celtics. You'd have ESPN's self proclaimed-GOAT, in the greatest rivalry of all-time, on the grandest stage. With Lakers winning Game 7, on a LeBron mega-block, that he rebounds and tosses up the floor to Luka for a 3point dagger (this way the Narative is LeBron saved the game even though Luka hits game winner). Then in his finals MVP speech, he announces his surprise retirement.

He retires, and leaves the Lakers, but decides to return in October, to none-other than the Cavaliers, and helps that stacked team get to the finals over the Lakers. Thus gaining his 6th ring and the NBA fully claiming him to be the GOAT.

Credit: I did not come up with any of this, just combined all the seperate rants i've read on the board into one big one lol

Again, I didn't come up with the non-sense just simply combined all of it that i read on this very board lol

[MrSparkle]

The Mavs implosion is the strangest thing in sports. Before this Luka trade, you could argue they were almost irrationally (Dallas??) one of the most respected and desirable sports franchises. Has any player ever asked for a trade out of that town? Not that I can remember.

I guess the firing of Carlisle and Cuban’s sale/loss of influence were both steps in the wrong direction, but the trade was bonkers. As unlucky as this series of injuries was… at no point in the last 7 years would I try to convince any owner that Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving were 2 reliable center-pieces for a championship team, especially as they approach their mid-30s. You can’t help but feel bad for all basketball fans in north TX.

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

[Muzbar]

The Mavs implosion is the strangest thing in sports. Before this Luka trade, you could argue they were almost irrationally (Dallas??) one of the most respected and desirable sports franchises. Has any player ever asked for a trade out of that town? Not that I can remember.

I guess the firing of Carlisle and Cuban’s sale/loss of influence were both steps in the wrong direction, but the trade was bonkers. As unlucky as this series of injuries was… at no point in the last 7 years would I try to convince any owner that Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving were 2 reliable center-pieces for a championship team, especially as they approach their mid-30s. You can’t help but feel bad for all basketball fans in north TX.

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

Calling it now, Mavs fall out of play-in spot and 'win' lottery as a "thanks" for trading Luka to the Lakers, similar to when New Orleans traded Anthony Davis and then won the lottery to draft Zion.

*places tinfoil hat on head*

[MrSparkle]

The Mavs implosion is the strangest thing in sports. Before this Luka trade, you could argue they were almost irrationally (Dallas??) one of the most respected and desirable sports franchises. Has any player ever asked for a trade out of that town? Not that I can remember.

I guess the firing of Carlisle and Cuban’s sale/loss of influence were both steps in the wrong direction, but the trade was bonkers. As unlucky as this series of injuries was… at no point in the last 7 years would I try to convince any owner that Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving were 2 reliable center-pieces for a championship team, especially as they approach their mid-30s. You can’t help but feel bad for all basketball fans in north TX.

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

Calling it now, Mavs fall out of play-in spot and 'win' lottery as a "thanks" for trading Luka to the Lakers, similar to when New Orleans traded Anthony Davis and then won the lottery to draft Zion.

*places tinfoil hat on head*

If that does happen, I'll buy tinfoil too!

[Ice Man]

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

On the bright side, Dallas and Philly make me feel good about our future. Things could be worse.

[MrSparkle]

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

On the bright side, Dallas and Philly make me feel good about our future. Things could be worse.

Well, I dunno- Embiid’s not done till he’s done. Maxey’s a young star. PG13 might be declined, but I think ditching the podcast and focusing on his game is a good idea. He’s talented enough to have a last hurrah.

It all depends on that pick. If they get a top-4, I’m not counting out a motivated, healthier Sixers squad. Lonzo showed the impossible recovery. Dunno if Embiid’s state is as bad.

But yeah- owning our picks and having a cleared cap is preferable at this point.

[BullChit]

The Mavs implosion is the strangest thing in sports. Before this Luka trade, you could argue they were almost irrationally (Dallas??) one of the most respected and desirable sports franchises. Has any player ever asked for a trade out of that town? Not that I can remember.

I guess the firing of Carlisle and Cuban’s sale/loss of influence were both steps in the wrong direction, but the trade was bonkers. As unlucky as this series of injuries was… at no point in the last 7 years would I try to convince any owner that Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving were 2 reliable center-pieces for a championship team, especially as they approach their mid-30s. You can’t help but feel bad for all basketball fans in north TX.

They don’t have all their picks, they don’t have cap space and they don’t have any high value young prospects. Crazy.

Calling it now, Mavs fall out of play-in spot and 'win' lottery as a "thanks" for trading Luka to the Lakers, similar to when New Orleans traded Anthony Davis and then won the lottery to draft Zion.

*places tinfoil hat on head*

As far as tinfoil hat extrapolation goes that actually makes a horrifying amount of sense haha

[Ice Man]

Well, I dunno- Embiid’s not done till he’s done

Been there, done that with meniscus. Embiid has had two surgeries on his left knee for that, most recently in February 2024. The second one didn't take, now he needs a third. The third is unlikely to lead to a better outcome, because every time they go in there they take out more meniscus, so that it becomes ... drumroll ... bone-on-bone.

Plus, he weighs so damn much. Even somebody with healthy knees can start to run into problems while in their 30s while lugging around that much weight on a hard court.

I mean, sure, anything could happen. Philly has more chance of getting something from Joel than Dallas does from Luka. But it's quite a long shot.

[Ice Man]

Weak opponents and random chance are the biggest factor in this result, but it's nonetheless eye-catching: The Warriors, previously a .500 team, are +158 with Jimmy Butler on the floor, in the 10 games since he joined them.

[MrSparkle]

Weak opponents and random chance are the biggest factor in this result, but it's nonetheless eye-catching: The Warriors, previously a .500 team, are +158 with Jimmy Butler on the floor, in the 10 games since he joined them.

OKC is ahead of every team in the West, but I'm about ready to bet the Warriors (or even Lakers) have a last chip in them. Lebron, Curry, Dray and Jimmy can survive any playoff series if healthy. The 1-2 days of rest between each game and light travel schedule, vet ref calls, and youth inexperience is all in their favor.

Last year it looked like all the kids were ready to bury the old-timers for good, but the pendulum always swings. Sometimes a rough season and early exit is just what the really old stars need to recuperate and make their twilight run.

Lot will depend on the standings. 2-8 West seeds are a full-on gauntlet.

[Ice Man]

I would give a 40% chance to both OKC and the Lakers to advance the Finals, with the field getting the remaining 20%. OKC is obviously great and the Lakers are now that they have Luka.

[kodo]

we are getting a Lakers v Boston finals. The corporate nba overlords have spoken.

Not sure how the overlords helped Boston. I doubt they made Philly & the Lakers take Fultz and Lonzo instead of Tatum, or the Bucks move Jrue so that they could get Dame. Now the Lakers ... hmmm. If I were a conspiracy theorist, yes for sure, I would start with the Luka trade. The Mavs' "rationale" never will make sense, no matter how often they provide it, nor can the trade process itself (let's talk only to one team, when we have among the league's most valuable properties) withstand scrutiny.

ours is not to reason why. ours is just to complain and cry.

It's also terrible for the NBA. The entire population of the US doesn't watch Boston or LA. Just like the entire population of the US doesn't watch 2 college football teams or 2 basketball teams. People watch sports regionally. NBA watchers in Illinois watch the Bulls, in any season.

The best thing for the league is to have a major draw in every location, and CA = 1 location. Having a bunch of superstars (Steph, Lebron, Luka) in one state doesn't increase the ratings very much than if they had 1 superstar in CA. And a team like the Lakers get eyeballs no matter who is on it.

When Lebron left for LA many years ago, Silver said it was the single biggest cause for the ratings drop in the NBA the following year.

[Ice Man]

Steph just hit a 40-foot turnaround, rainbow 3, with a defender draped on him. Swish, no rim. Beyond ridiculous.

[jc23]

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[Ice Man]

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Chuck is smart. He knows that he doesn't get paid for his basketball knowledge. He gets paid for being a reality TV personality, in particular for taking shots at people.

[DASMACKDOWN]

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Chuck is smart. He knows that he doesn't get paid for his basketball knowledge. He gets paid for being a reality TV personality, in particular for taking shots at people.

He is absolutely right though. The National media treats the Lakers like they are their home team. They don't talk about anyone else. They never talk about what the Cavs are doing. What OKC is doing. Knicks are the biggest market, yet we haven't heard a peep about them. So they essentially tune out or alienate the majority of the league's fans because of it.