Around the NBA: Playoff Edition #2

[TheSuzerain]

The problem is the cap. Only 5 players in the league are worth a "max", yet every team in the league has a max player (or 2 or 3) on their roster.

So you have 25+ overpaid guys hurting their teams' chances of beating a top-5 max player's team (overpaid, relative to the cap, perhaps not in terms of salary figure -- NBA revenue and market should decide what's fair for their celebrity player).

Basketball should have no salary cap. Make somebody pay $100m salary for Lebron if they want to.

Of course, then you'd have LAL/NYK/BRK/GSW just buy up all the best talent and not think twice.

So then... The only way the league can stay interesting with 32+ teams is if they start doing a multi-tier league, where the bottom half are playing for some stakes, or they just open up the number of tournaments and completely redesign the NBA format.

They're trying to maintain the legacy of the NBA, but we're in a new age. Unlike hockey, soccer, football and baseball.... basketball is a sport that has drastically evolved in terms of rules, style and global interest.

I've shot ideas before although each has its risks and flaws. Maybe shorten the season, add teams (including international - central America, Mexico), contain divisions or conferences to just their groups for a month (limits travel), and feature inter-division matches as special tournament/light-cup games.

Let teams compete for more mid-season accomplishments, before the 8-12 BEST teams have a playoff/championship at the end.

Unrestricted cap, remove the lottery, open up the league, basically adopt a Euro Soccer format.

Competetive basketball is my favorite thing to watch, but somehow the NBA has become one of the most tiresome products in the entire landscape of sports. So many unmemorable games just pass by each week, it's a shame.

It's nice getting a chance to beat the best player in the world 4x a year (Lebron), but the novelty wears off a day later when you realize it's a semi-pointless game in an 82-game season. Then you hit the playoffs and get destroyed anyway.

You're wrong. There are far more than 5 players worth a max.

Max's are generally the best value contracts in the league. Along with good players still on their rookie deals.

[TheSuzerain]

I don't see how you can say he's fading fast and then cite the player he was FIVE years ago. That's fading slow.

Ten to four is a big drop! But he did shoot 40% on 3s, there is that to be said for him. I don't think he's much of a difference maker these days; I'd rather spend my money elsewhere, for somebody with a higher ceiling who is getting better each year. But yeah, I can see how Ibaka could be useful to a good team with a specific need, to go that one step further. Not sure if that is turning out to be Toronto, and it is surely not us.

If we are building around Jimmy, Ibaka certainly fulfills our specific need.

Ibaka exists to complement perimeter stars.

[kyrv]

The problem is the cap. Only 5 players in the league are worth a "max", yet every team in the league has a max player (or 2 or 3) on their roster.

So you have 25+ overpaid guys hurting their teams' chances of beating a top-5 max player's team (overpaid, relative to the cap, perhaps not in terms of salary figure -- NBA revenue and market should decide what's fair for their celebrity player).

Basketball should have no salary cap. Make somebody pay $100m salary for Lebron if they want to.

Of course, then you'd have LAL/NYK/BRK/GSW just buy up all the best talent and not think twice.

So then... The only way the league can stay interesting with 32+ teams is if they start doing a multi-tier league, where the bottom half are playing for some stakes, or they just open up the number of tournaments and completely redesign the NBA format.

They're trying to maintain the legacy of the NBA, but we're in a new age. Unlike hockey, soccer, football and baseball.... basketball is a sport that has drastically evolved in terms of rules, style and global interest.

I've shot ideas before although each has its risks and flaws. Maybe shorten the season, add teams (including international - central America, Mexico), contain divisions or conferences to just their groups for a month (limits travel), and feature inter-division matches as special tournament/light-cup games.

Let teams compete for more mid-season accomplishments, before the 8-12 BEST teams have a playoff/championship at the end.

Unrestricted cap, remove the lottery, open up the league, basically adopt a Euro Soccer format.

Competetive basketball is my favorite thing to watch, but somehow the NBA has become one of the most tiresome products in the entire landscape of sports. So many unmemorable games just pass by each week, it's a shame.

It's nice getting a chance to beat the best player in the world 4x a year (Lebron), but the novelty wears off a day later when you realize it's a semi-pointless game in an 82-game season. Then you hit the playoffs and get destroyed anyway.

Kind of warrants its own thread. Only sport with a forced max. They could get rid of the max but that would likely require a hard cap, which I'm good with that also.

I think the euro soccer format though would be a disaster. Even more dividing haves and have nots.

[Proven_Winner]

Cavs and Warriors might not lose a game in the playoffs before meeting in the Finals.

The league is far too stratified right now. Making entire seasons pointless.

You have to wonder with the new cba and the fact that home teams can offer the ultra max, it might start getting guys to stay with their own teams.

The NBA would be so much more competitive if you had more teams built like the Rockets and the Spurs.

I think it's a more of a band aid. Guys who are on bad teams or consistently losing teams (like ATL or us) May be willing to give up millions to jump teams for a title. How long do you have to be with a team to receive the ultra max? If it's for a significantly long time (more than 2 years) then maybe it will be a fix instead of a band aid.

[MrSparkle]

Basketball should have no salary cap. Make somebody pay $100m salary for Lebron if they want to.

Of course, then you'd have LAL/NYK/BRK/GSW just buy up all the best talent and not think twice.

Team salary cap but no individual cap is the way to go. You'd still have some superteams with guys willing to take less, but only sometimes and they would break up before too long -- money talks very loudly.

Yeah i think this is the way to go. Get a hard cap for teams but no max salaries for players. Makes it harder for superstars to team up.

I can get down with that, but it'd be interesting to see the owners still bid out of control and end up with DeRozans and Conleys making $45m salaries and punishing their team cap.

[kyrv]

Team salary cap but no individual cap is the way to go. You'd still have some superteams with guys willing to take less, but only sometimes and they would break up before too long -- money talks very loudly.

Yeah i think this is the way to go. Get a hard cap for teams but no max salaries for players. Makes it harder for superstars to team up.

I can get down with that, but it'd be interesting to see the owners still bid out of control and end up with DeRozans and Conleys making $45m salaries and punishing their team cap.

That's hockey and football do it. There is no system that will prevent bad contracts, though non or less guaranteed contracts make players try a little harder to play well.

[GetBuLLish]

Mark Jackson is so annoying when he constantly praises players for flopping and creating contact for ticky tack foul calls.

[stilldropin20]

wow. utah moves that ball well. they look amazing right now.

[stilldropin20]

wow. on talent, utah has no business in this game. none. at. all.

but they moved the ball and without the ball for 42 minutes now just need to play defense and make shots for the final 4-5 minutes and can steal a game.

btw, is joe ingles a free agent. if we (can) trade Jimmy for CJ Mccollum and sign james johnson and joe engles.

[stilldropin20]

terrible call on ingles. but it is steph curry. and he is joe ingles, i guess.

[Repeat 3-peat]

wow. on talent, utah has no business in this game. none. at. all.

but they moved the ball and without the ball for 42 minutes now just need to play defense and make shots for the final 4-5 minutes and can steal a game.

btw, is joe ingles a free agent. if we (can) trade Jimmy for CJ Mccollum and sign james johnson and joe engles.

what?

[dumbell78]

terrible call on ingles. but it is steph curry. and he is joe ingles, i guess.

That was an easy foul call.

[dumbell78]

Have to root for LeBron this year. Durant has turned into a bigger bitch.

[Leslie Forman]

Basketball should have no salary cap. Make somebody pay $100m salary for Lebron if they want to.

Of course, then you'd have LAL/NYK/BRK/GSW just buy up all the best talent and not think twice.

Just have a very punitive luxury tax. That is more effective than anything - just look at this franchise for proof of that.

If Ballmer or Prokhorov want to blow $300million or something for a year, hey go ahead - most of that money's actually going to the other teams.

[stilldropin20]

wow. on talent, utah has no business in this game. none. at. all.

but they moved the ball and without the ball for 42 minutes now just need to play defense and make shots for the final 4-5 minutes and can steal a game.

btw, is joe ingles a free agent. if we (can) trade Jimmy for CJ Mccollum and sign james johnson and joe engles.

what?

rondo/Val/payne
CJ/Wade/grant
Engles/zip
James Johnson/niko
rolo/chris/niko

im down wit dat! 2 great shooters and 1-2 good shooters on the floor at all times. 3-4 tough nosed defenders on the court as well with those shooters(some of them the same guy).

team ball!! ball movement. these guys will play for each other and make each other better. James and CJ and even wade and rondo can all get shots and play make. that team wins 45 games. 6 seed. ECF's. fa sho!

[Just_Bullz]

Durant seems to provide that extra gear when things are not going well for gsw. Hope they win this season and javale gets his ring.

[Southpaw]

Team salary cap but no individual cap is the way to go. You'd still have some superteams with guys willing to take less, but only sometimes and they would break up before too long -- money talks very loudly.

Yeah i think this is the way to go. Get a hard cap for teams but no max salaries for players. Makes it harder for superstars to team up.

I can get down with that, but it'd be interesting to see the owners still bid out of control and end up with DeRozans and Conleys making $45m salaries and punishing their team cap.

Some owners will do that for sure, then cry on the next CBA meeting that their franchise is losing money

[R3AL1TY]

Durant showed why he will be very important against the Lebrons. If Curry or Klay go on a drought, Durant can carry the team.

[RedBulls23]

Durant showed why he will be very important against the Lebrons. If Curry or Klay go on a drought, Durant can carry the team.

It will be hard for the Cavs To double Curry and on Top of that, Kyrie will have to defend Curry. They won't be able to hide him on a Harrison Barnes type.

[the ultimates]

wow. on talent, utah has no business in this game. none. at. all.

but they moved the ball and without the ball for 42 minutes now just need to play defense and make shots for the final 4-5 minutes and can steal a game.

btw, is joe ingles a free agent. if we (can) trade Jimmy for CJ Mccollum and sign james johnson and joe engles.

what?

rondo/Val/payne
CJ/Wade/grant
Engles/zip
James Johnson/niko
rolo/chris/niko

im down wit dat! 2 great shooters and 1-2 good shooters on the floor at all times. 3-4 tough nosed defenders on the court as well with those shooters(some of them the same guy).

team ball!! ball movement. these guys will play for each other and make each other better. James and CJ and even wade and rondo can all get shots and play make. that team wins 45 games. 6 seed. ECF's. fa sho!

Why not just add Johnson and Engles to compliment Jimmy? You move Jimmy out for a worse player in CJ and you only get a 4 win difference. Hell this Bulls roster would have been 4-5 games better if the young players wouldn't have been so hot and cold or Rondo wasn't terrible the majority of the season.