Around The NBA : 2024-25 Season

[Dan Z]

It’s so funny how stupid the national NBA media can be. There was so much fawning in the press over what PHX did to put all those guys together. And yet how many of us fans looked at it and said: “What the hell are they doing, playing 2K? That will never work, they don’t even look like a contender.” A lot.

What a predictably failed experiment.

The Rockets have swap rights with Phoenix so they now have a lottery pick. Haha.

I’ve been playing with tankathon and getting some funny results. HOU getting PHX’s top-4 pick, PHI dropping to 7 and giving to OKC. Half the FRPs are moving to other teams (mostly outside the top-10, but still). Should be a brutal/entertaining lottery night. The lamest scenario would be NOP, PHI, UTA and CHA going top-4, but odds are atleast 1 of the super-tanks gets knocked out.

Someone recently asked (I think on the general board): "Which team would benefit most from getting Flagg?".

Obviously I'm biased, but I said the Bulls. Adding Flagg to Giddey, Coby, and Matas would be great. He'd fit right in at PF and help the team take a leap forward.

I also added that the Spurs would benefit, but that depends on what you think of the word 'benefit'. The Spurs will be competitive with or without Flagg.

[MrSparkle]

Ooh yeah… I forgot PHX traded their 2031 unprotected FRP for 3 late picks (I guess in hopes of getting that Butler trade done). Saboteur GMing!

[kodo]

Unbelievable that Joker wasn't even consulted on the decision to fire Malone right before the playoffs.

“I knew a little bit before everybody," Jokic said. "And he told me, ‘We made a decision.’ So it was not a discussion. It was a decision, and he told me why. So I listened and I accept it.”

[NecessaryEvil]

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[dice]

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isn't a guy making 30 mil a year for his scoring doing what he's supposed to be doing?

[dice]

t’s so funny how stupid the national NBA media can be. There was so much fawning in the press over what PHX did to put all those guys together.

Those guys are paid for hits, not insight. Meaning they will always spend far too much time on fading stars with big-name recognition. My God, their verbiage on Melo going to Portland. Or Russ earlier this year to Denver.

it's 95% of sports fans, frankly. "get me the star whatever the cost, we'll figure out the rest later"

[kodo]

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Yeah the spirit of the award has completely changed.
In 2005 Bobby Simmons beat out Lebron James & Dwayne Wade for the MIP.
Simmons: 16 ppg 5 rpg 2 apg
Lebron: 27 ppg 7 rpg 7 apg

There's no way Simmons would have won MIP in today's media.

[step]

Yeah the spirit of the award has completely changed.
In 2005 Bobby Simmons beat out Lebron James & Dwayne Wade for the MIP.
Simmons: 16 ppg 5 rpg 2 apg
Lebron: 27 ppg 7 rpg 7 apg

There's no way Simmons would have won MIP in today's media.

Lebron went from 21ppg to 27ppg after his stellar ROY season
Simmons went from 7.8 to 16.4ppg

MIP has largely for some time gone to guys who've made large leaps in their game, aka role players jumping up into the star/superstar category.

While I agree somewhat with Kyle on the premise that 1 and 2 picks do have said expectations, that being said there is still a case at the rate of development (aka Ja). However, as for Tyler, nope. He's gone from 21ppg to 24ppg. Not sure what he's smoking there...

[Ice Man]

I hate to be that guy, but it's not clear to me that the media got it right in '05. As measured by per-36 figures, LeBron improved more than year than did Simmon'. Bobby probably won the award because his minutes doubled during the '05 season, which pumped up his per-game statistics, but for me playing more isn't really an "improvement." It's a team situation/coach's call.

This year, I think it's a wash between Cade & Tyler. They both are good candidates.

[MAQ]

I do not understand the argument for Tyler, but I also do not care enough to find out.

The year he won MVP, I thought Rose was going to get MIP (with dwight getting mvp) so i guess I don't have an issue with a number 1 overall pick getting it.

[MrSparkle]

Bobby Simmons. Man, took me a second to remember the guy.

[kodo]

I hate to be that guy, but it's not clear to me that the media got it right in '05. As measured by per-36 figures, LeBron improved more than year than did Simmon'. Bobby probably won the award because his minutes doubled during the '05 season, which pumped up his per-game statistics, but for me playing more isn't really an "improvement." It's a team situation/coach's call.

This year, I think it's a wash between Cade & Tyler. They both are good candidates.

That's the point I was making, Lebron definitely improved more than Simmons by stats and impact. And he didn't come in 2nd to Simmons, or 3rd. He came in 6th in MIP voting, behind Dan Dickau.

The spirit of the award was not to just have yet another award going to superstars, it was to recognize lesser known players in the league like Dickau, Primo Brezec, and Simmons who were all voted ahead of Lebron for MIP that year.

The year before the top MIP vote getters were all low drafted players. ZBo (19th), Boozer (2nd rounder), Posey (18th pick). The year before it was Arenas from the 2nd round, Matt Harping & Troy Murphy.

[RastaBull]

If we win final game and Hawks lose to Magic ... we have same record, who has the tiebreaker? Or do hawks have the 8th spot sealed up already?

(I kind of feel like Magic will probably rest guys since they have #7 sealed up, so Hawks will have an easy win at home).

[Dan Z]

Ooh yeah… I forgot PHX traded their 2031 unprotected FRP for 3 late picks (I guess in hopes of getting that Butler trade done). Saboteur GMing!

I wonder if Ainge will trade Markkanen this off season..?

[NecessaryEvil]

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[kodo]

It almost feels like the NY-Minny trade was the opposite of the OKC-CHI trade, both teams got worse.

[Ice Man]

It almost feels like the NY-Minny trade was the opposite of the OKC-CHI trade, both teams got worse.

Yep. Then the Knicks compounded the problem by swapping 5 picks for a $23 million role player. What a disaster that trade was.

[Wingy]

Apparently Jaylin Williams has 3 triple doubles in his last 3 starts. Man…be mindful fawning over triple doubles in the modern game.

[coldfish]

Ooh yeah… I forgot PHX traded their 2031 unprotected FRP for 3 late picks (I guess in hopes of getting that Butler trade done). Saboteur GMing!

I wonder if Ainge will trade Markkanen this off season..?

Markkanen quietly got his bag and went back to the old Lauri.

[kodo]

Ooh yeah… I forgot PHX traded their 2031 unprotected FRP for 3 late picks (I guess in hopes of getting that Butler trade done). Saboteur GMing!

I wonder if Ainge will trade Markkanen this off season..?

Markkanen quietly got his bag and went back to the old Lauri.

Ainge isn't looking like the genius people make him out to be. He had a core of Donovan Mitchell & Rudy Gobert and this rebuild doesn't look like much, and Lauri is only 1 year younger than Mitchell.

The draft picks are almost certainly won't be any kind of core for Utah. The first one will be the 29th pick, and a couple are pick swaps and Utah would not trade their pick for a Cleveland pick.

I guess the main "benefit" of the trade is to get Utah to be so bad they can draft high, but the actual trade is pretty poor. It's basically Mitchell for Sexton & Lauri (who had to be maxed), since the picks look unlikely to yield even NBA players.