***Around The League 2020 Bubble Thread***

[Klomp]

LeBron is a very unique player who doesn't really play a position. He never has. IMO if you are going to define him the closest I can come up with is a swing forward with better ball handling skills than most PGs. Call him a SF/PF or whatever. Davis and LeBron is not small ball. Can they go bigger sure. Still it's not small ball.

Every player on the court plays a position. Roles and labels can change based on personnel and systems, but they're still playing a position.

Not if they're playing positionless basketball. I hear that term all the time these days. With the Wolves 1-3-1 it's a PG three wings and a big. Is the big a center? A PF? Does it matter?

Those are positions

[KGdaBom]

Every player on the court plays a position. Roles and labels can change based on personnel and systems, but they're still playing a position.

Not if they're playing positionless basketball. I hear that term all the time these days. With the Wolves 1-3-1 it's a PG three wings and a big. Is the big a center? A PF? Does it matter?

Those are positions

Semantics Klomp. They are basketball players. Is wing a position? It's kind of a definition. What position is LeBron really? He can play all five spots and play all five well.

[Jedzz]

Ignoring the fact that Davis and LeBron are probably the best small-ball duo of bigmen in the entire league.

This sounds like the beginning of the type of fairytales that we tell children so they can fall asleep at night. Only this one might scare them awake. Once upon a time two 250 pound nearly 7 ft monsters entered the home of midgets and said..."fee fi fo fum, I smell some tiny smallball dumdums."

I thought about working "fact!" in there somewhere but I'll save word for when we are talking real facts.

If your story here has any fact laced within it's because the Lakers have the option of an even larger Center if they wanted. But as good as that player is, he has never been accused as being as good as Davis/Lebron at much. The argument could be made they simply needed Davis' combinatino of size and abilities for leverage to take over this series with as many minutes as they could find for him. Before Rosas came to MN nobody claimed MN was playing locked in smallball, but they still used Towns as a Center. Plenty of teams using Davis sized Centers and they don't automatically get called a small ball team.

If say the Lakers sat Davis and MacGee down, and let Lebron be the sole big, I might buy the Lakers going small ball bit more.

The small-ball bit often has more to do with who is at PF than who is at C, usually sliding a more traditional SF down to PF. It works whether the C is actually a C or is just a PF. Oversized or not, LeBron is a SF and has been for his whole career. So when he plays PF sometimes, yes people are right to call it a small-ball lineup.

Now we are claiming small ball is only "sliding a traditional SF down to PF" and has nothing to do with not using Two Massive bigs anymore. First I would describe it as sliding a SF up to PF, just my way of talking. But using two BIGS isn't small ball. They clearly used size to overpower Houston on both O and D. But yes there is no escaping the fact that Anthony Davis can also play like a SF or drive like a guard. Just like Lebron, only AD is even larger. If anything maybe it is something entirely new or an upside down smallball poundcake.

[Worm Guts]

Small ball is about valuing skill over size, not that size in itself is some sort of impediment. LeBron is obviously as skilled as anyone and probably the perfect small ball big. Anthony Davis is more of a conventional big, although he is also very skilled.

[KGdaBom]

Small ball is about valuing skill over size, not that size in itself is some sort of impediment. LeBron is obviously as skilled as anyone and probably the perfect small ball big. Anthony Davis is more of a conventional big, although he is also very skilled.

Size and skill is most advantageous. If the skill is equal give me the taller, longer, bigger player every time. An extremely skilled 5'3" player like Muggsy Bogues is going to have a tough time being more valuable than a slightly less talented 6'5" player.

[Jedzz]

Small ball is about valuing skill over size, not that size in itself is some sort of impediment. LeBron is obviously as skilled as anyone and probably the perfect small ball big. Anthony Davis is more of a conventional big, although he is also very skilled.

You guys are really stretching this too far. Only "valuing skill" is now smallball. Give it rest.

Cant wait till Wiseman shows everyone he's got ball skills and we start claiming Wolves are playing small ball with Towns and Wisemen because they can both drive a net.

[Worm Guts]

I wouldn’t say the Lakers are playing small ball, but LeBron has never been considered a “big”. They are playing an extra wing, as opposed to 2 conventional bigs.

[KGdaBom]

Small ball is about valuing skill over size, not that size in itself is some sort of impediment. LeBron is obviously as skilled as anyone and probably the perfect small ball big. Anthony Davis is more of a conventional big, although he is also very skilled.

You guys are really stretching this too far. Only "valuing skill" is now smallball. Give it rest.

Cant wait till Wiseman shows everyone he's got ball skills and we start claiming Wolves are playing small ball with Towns and Wisemen because they can both drive a net.

Yep. KAT and Wiseman is small Ball. I love it. Just so you understand Jedzz I'm 100% in support of your post. The small ball fans keep moving the goal posts. Well Davis and LeBron is actually small ball.

[KGdaBom]

I wouldn’t say the Lakers are playing small ball, but LeBron has never been considered a “big”. They are playing an extra wing, as opposed to 2 conventional bigs.

LeBron may not be considered a big, but he is big.

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

[minimus]

Love this DEN team. They know their strengths, they play their strength. They trust their system. DEN decided to put all money on MPJ over Beasley and Juancho and it's clear why. I hope MIN will continue to develop young players in order to have always potential for internal improvements.

[Domejandro]

Anthony Davis and LeBron are traditional small-ball, I’m not understanding the controversy here. Was it not small ball when P.J. Tucker was at Power-Forward?

[KGdaBom]

Anthony Davis and LeBron are traditional small-ball, I’m not understanding the controversy here. Was it not small ball when P.J. Tucker was at Power-Forward?

PJ Tucker is 6"5" and was playing Center. That's small ball.
A Davis is 6'10" 254 and LeBron is 6'8" 260 that is not small ball.

[Calinks]

Love this DEN team. They know their strengths, they play their strength. They trust their system. DEN decided to put all money on MPJ over Beasley and Juancho and it's clear why. I hope MIN will continue to develop young players in order to have always potential for internal improvements.

They are fun! I'm still shaking my head at the Kings for not keeping Malone and Jorger, Malone looks like a great coach right now. Denver is also a feel-good story, they have fought and struggle for a while. Their hearts broke when we killed their playoff dream, They dusted themselves off though and have gotten so much tougher because of it, Really cool to see the progression.

[Domejandro]

Anthony Davis and LeBron are traditional small-ball, I’m not understanding the controversy here. Was it not small ball when P.J. Tucker was at Power-Forward?

PJ Tucker is 6"5" and was playing Center. That's small ball.
A Davis is 6'10" 254 and LeBron is 6'8" 260 that is not small ball.

When he was playing Power-Forward next to Clint Capela, was that still not small-ball?

The answer is that it still was, because small-ball is typically defined by small-forwards sliding over to Power-Forward. More extreme examples of small-ball, like Houston this season, do not change the entire definition of what small-ball means.

[KGdaBom]

Anthony Davis and LeBron are traditional small-ball, I’m not understanding the controversy here. Was it not small ball when P.J. Tucker was at Power-Forward?

PJ Tucker is 6"5" and was playing Center. That's small ball.
A Davis is 6'10" 254 and LeBron is 6'8" 260 that is not small ball.

When he was playing Power-Forward next to Clint Capela, was that still not small-ball?

The answer is that it still was, because small-ball is typically defined by small-forwards sliding over to Power-Forward. More extreme examples of small-ball, like Houston this season, do not change the entire definition of what small-ball means.

Houston is the epitome of small ball. The Lakers are not small ball by any stretch of my imagination.

[KGdaBom]

Tall guy Center Nikola Jokic leads Denver to a victory over the Clippers today. One more game. Winner moves on Loser goes to the golf course. I don't really feel bad for any of them.

[minimus]

Read on Twitter

Doc Rivers is the only coach in NBA history who lost 3-1 lead twice.

[minimus]

Tall guy Center Nikola Jokic leads Denver to a victory over the Clippers today. One more game. Winner moves on Loser goes to the golf course. I don't really feel bad for any of them.

[KGdaBom]

Tall guy Center Nikola Jokic leads Denver to a victory over the Clippers today. One more game. Winner moves on Loser goes to the golf course. I don't really feel bad for any of them.

Minimus can you explain the purpose of this pic? Was that Jokic as a child or something? I'm hoping you aren't posting it to be rude.