Around the NBA: 2020-21 Season

[Grodoboldo]

Is Toronto actually worse this year or they are just in a tough part of schedule?

1-5 No big deal or something going on?

Siakam is a head case.

Siakam is good. But I think that a non-shooting, tertiary creator at best, strictly PF as your (supposedly) best player just isn't that good of a proposition.

[FriedRise]

Yea I don’t get it. They won 53 last year. I can’t imagine losing Gasol and Ibaka would affect them THAT much.

Siakam looks to be either having a super slow start or a major regression.

[MrSparkle]

Yea I don’t get it. They won 53 last year. I can’t imagine losing Gasol and Ibaka would affect them THAT much.

Siakam looks to be either having a super slow start or a major regression.

I can. Marc ran a lot of offense out the post, was a defensive anchor, and Ibaka duplicated the effort while he rested. They had 48 min of high-IQ, high-quality center play.

Also they were on that championship high. Last year’s team overachieved.

Probably a good chance to nab a new building block in the draft.

[kodo]

Yea I don’t get it. They won 53 last year. I can’t imagine losing Gasol and Ibaka would affect them THAT much.

Siakam looks to be either having a super slow start or a major regression.

Siakam has looked this way since the 2nd half of last season & the playoffs. His play to start this season are basically his bubble #s. This may be his normal.

https://streamable.com/f5sm5o

[TheStig]

I'll take Bags for Marks.

Then Bags and Carter can pretend they are at Duke again! Awe!


Sent from somewhere you've never been.

Ha yes. Follow-up with a Grayson Allen trade and we just might have to put GarPax back at the helm.

no, it's missing an Iowa state guy.

[Chicago-Bull-E]

Knicks won again, have a winning record and have wins against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

Thibs has the guys rolling.

[The Force.]

So far it looks like PHX & ORL took significant steps forward and TOR & DEN took significant steps back.

Also it's looking like Jaylen Brown is early frontrunner for MIP, Embiid for MVP, Gobert/Davis for DPY, Ball/Hali for ROY, and Steve Clifford/Monty Williams for COY.

[kodo]

If you gave MIP now I think it has to go to Julius Randle. He's gone from a guy no team really wanted to putting up Lebron/Doncic type numbers. Averaging 22 / 11 / 7, and leading the team everyone made fun of, the Knicks, to the 5th best record in the East.

[The Force.]

Randle has been balling but his improvement isn't as drastic as Jaylen Brown. It's still early and I expect these numbers to come down to earth but Brown is averaging damn near 7pts more per game and went from shooting 48% to 58%.

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[MGB8]

Knicks won again, have a winning record and have wins against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

Thibs has the guys rolling.

Thibs with young players willing to buy-in is a big thing. He didn't have that in Minnesota - KAT and Wiggins too soft and/or hard-headed. It looks like he has it in NY. They aren't going to be contenders - not enough raw talent - but they'll over-achieve and IMO very possibly make the playoffs at the bottom and be a really annoying team for stop top seed to deal with.

[FriedRise]

Read on Twitter

But they winning!

[MAQ]

Why is so much of a stink being made of Trae Young's foul drawing technique? Specifically the stopping in front of a trailing defender to get a foul called? He's not the first superstar point guard to do this exact move. Chris Paul did it for years. Usually on the break, and not in a half court set. But regardless, CP3 used the exact same move with the same result for years. And hes just the guy I remember seeing do it first. Theres probably more offenders.

[Southpaw]

A Thibs led team with players who are willing to buy in will always produce Ws in the regular season. Love that dude.

I'd put a call to SAC about Bagley if I were AKME. He had a solid first 2 seasons and he'd be a good buy-low, redemption candidate for us.

[VolumePoster]

A Thibs led team with players who are willing to buy in will always produce Ws in the regular season. Love that dude.

I'd put a call to SAC about Bagley if I were AKME. He had a solid first 2 seasons and he'd be a good buy-low, redemption candidate for us.

Carter for Bagley makes some sense. And serendipity points as well.

Carter is having a better season, but Bagley has more potential in a faster paced perimeter oriented nba.

What do people think about a fit with Lauri?

[MrSparkle]

A Thibs led team with players who are willing to buy in will always produce Ws in the regular season. Love that dude.

I'd put a call to SAC about Bagley if I were AKME. He had a solid first 2 seasons and he'd be a good buy-low, redemption candidate for us.

Carter for Bagley makes some sense. And serendipity points as well.

Carter is having a better season, but Bagley has more potential in a faster paced perimeter oriented nba.

What do people think about a fit with Lauri?

Absolutely terrible.. but I think you're just gambling on a more athletic talent with more skills.

In all honesty, I can see Bagley going the way of J. Okafor - vet. min. in a few years.

Red flag central when a "HS/College phenom" is coming into his 3rd straight year of pro decline, can't string together 1 long stretch without injury, and on top of it, was, is and probably will be a bad defender.

But he is incredibly lanky, has quick feet, and has competent handles and shooting, so if buying pretty low was in the cards (ie WCJ, Lauri, Gafford, etc.), I'm listening. Totally not surprised if WCJ ends up having a better pro career (and not a very good one).

The post-Petrie Kings are the NBA's biggest tragedy. Would've thought Luka was a no-brainer slam dunk for a Serbian GM. OK - I realize Slovenians are a mildly different culture, but for crying out loud... Was Vlade not getting an inside pulse from his many European contacts and friends? The Kings are such a mess.

[Southpaw]

A Thibs led team with players who are willing to buy in will always produce Ws in the regular season. Love that dude.

I'd put a call to SAC about Bagley if I were AKME. He had a solid first 2 seasons and he'd be a good buy-low, redemption candidate for us.

Carter for Bagley makes some sense. And serendipity points as well.

Carter is having a better season, but Bagley has more potential in a faster paced perimeter oriented nba.

What do people think about a fit with Lauri?

It's a bad fit because they are both perimeter oriented PFs who are bad on defense and can't play the C. The reason to buy low on Bagley would be the same reason some teams will pay huge money for Lauri. Young bigs who showed potential and whose development was probably stunted by their teams. They both have had some injury issues too.

It's a gamble but the Kings have been so dysfunctional that I'd buy low on him and see how he does.

[R3AL1TY]

Knicks won again, have a winning record and have wins against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

Thibs has the guys rolling.

Julius Randle has been living up to his potential lately too.

[Dresden]

A Thibs led team with players who are willing to buy in will always produce Ws in the regular season. Love that dude.

I'd put a call to SAC about Bagley if I were AKME. He had a solid first 2 seasons and he'd be a good buy-low, redemption candidate for us.

Carter for Bagley makes some sense. And serendipity points as well.

Carter is having a better season, but Bagley has more potential in a faster paced perimeter oriented nba.

What do people think about a fit with Lauri?

It's a bad fit because they are both perimeter oriented PFs who are bad on defense and can't play the C. The reason to buy low on Bagley would be the same reason some teams will pay huge money for Lauri. Young bigs who showed potential and whose development was probably stunted by their teams. They both have had some injury issues too.

It's a gamble but the Kings have been so dysfunctional that I'd buy low on him and see how he does.

I watched some of the Kings/Warriors game last night, and from what I saw, the Kings just aren't making use of Bagley at all. His skills are his ball handling, his low post scoring, and possibly 3 point shooting eventually. He would also be in good in transition. He's primarily a scorer, and the Kings just aren't running any plays for him at all. He does not seem to be even a third option in their offense. He's getting the ball out at the 3 point line, but at the nba level, he doesn't have the handle to be able to beat smaller wings off the dribble.

He also needs to add muscle. In college, he was so much bigger and quicker than everyone that he could dominate just based on that. But here, he just gets pushed off balance inside, and he can't get to the off. glass either due to his lack of strength.

I think there's a lot there to build on, but he doesn't look like he's a good fit in SAC at all.

[DASMACKDOWN]

If Thibs coached here again, I wonder who would be the guy he plays for 40 mins a night.

For Thibs, ideally it would be Patrick Williams.

But given the experience and age, I would guess Wendell and Zach.

[MrFortune3]

Knicks won again, have a winning record and have wins against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

Thibs has the guys rolling.

Julius Randle has been living up to his potential lately too.

Randle has been pretty good since he was in NO. The light started to come on and with Thibs he's just given the go ahead to be himself.