Proudfeet

Isn't that standard for most rookies, especially the one and dones though? Ausar Thompson, the outstanding defensive rookie shared above needs to as well. Think its just a time/age thing. Unless there is something special about Giannis's trainer?

Agreed. There's a lot to learn and he's still young. And generally, I find that players who sat their first year due to injury seem more immediately ready to contribute than the newly drafted rookies. Not sure how Holmgrem is doing so far, but I thought that players like Griffin benefited from that year off. Re: Thompson twins. They are actually from Overtime Elite. Sorry for the mistake, but think they are essentially the same. Thanks for the background explanation of the team.

The thing is, from where I'm standing, the expectations for Wembanyama are much higher than that. I'm not expecting him to hit the ground running from the first game, but I thought he'd be further ahead given the hype and his resume, having played professionally and being on the national team. As I said, he looks really raw. It doesn't even look like he has a basic go to move. It's not like he's Thabeet or anything, but so far all he has going for him is his length and relatively good athleticism. I'm not saying he's going to be a bust, he'll probably become a lot better just bulking up slightly, but he looks more like a fresh graduate with good academic qualifications than a seasoned middle manager. Also, the Spurs might not be good, especially with Vassell out, but they generally look more fluent without Wembanyama. I don't know if its a coaching issue, but it looks really stilted when he is in. And I don't know why he's on the perimeter most of the time. Feels like he can be a little closer to the basket even when Collins is in. @Arakasi Wilbur has already shared that on the previous page. Not sure if the Thompson twins are going to develop their shot anytime soon when they spent the past year doing that. Or maybe the shooting coaches on the Ignite are just terrible?

I'm struggling to see what the hype over Wembanyama is about. Its still early, but he looks really raw considering his hype and resume. Honestly, at this point, I think the Spurs are better without him. Especially if they insist on playing him on the perimeter.

What I'm reading is that Ty Lue wants him to be more selfish and be himself. Seems like what they want is his peak. Apparently they didn't learn anything from the Lakers a couple of years ago.

Eh, his logic is pretty heavy on hindsight as well. Think is it still focusing on what rather than why and how. You're not going to get good shots just by passing across the court. You need to draw defenders first. And how do you do that? I mean, he's not wrong. The Mitchell and Gobert Jazz did nothing but cross court passes that remarkably didn't result in many turnovers and became the number one offense, but they also collapsed in the playoffs. Also, a solid part of that number one offense is due entirely to Mitchell heroics. I think that teams should play to their strengths. Its ultimately just resource management. Whether you get space from a cross court pass or if you clear one side of the court for your star player to work one on one, you should lean on the one that most reliably gets your results and be ready to adapt if it doesn't. Not to mention that sometimes it just comes down to shot making. That same career and season 30% player that you deliberately leave open might air ball open corner threes and shoot 15-20% one night and make 70% of the same shots the next. It evens out in the long run, but in single games or even a short series, a hot streak might be all it takes for an upset.

Other than Westbrook and maybe George, I think that each of them could elevate a team by themselves then. George had his unfortunate injury that might have stunted his peak, but its not that inconceivable. Still, that was then. And even then, I'd have doubted the fit with Harden and Westbrook even though they made the Finals as teammates. Plus George and Kawhi also play the same position. Even if it isn't a big deal to play up or down one position, you'd like a more natural fit.

Dallas wins Opponent standings by conference Spurs (13th) Nets (10th) Grizzlies (15th) Bulls (13th) Hornets (11th) Magic (7th) Clippers (11th) Losses Nuggets (1st) Raptors (8th) Its still early, and most teams haven't separated themselves from the pack in the middle, but so far it seems they've just had a favourable schedule. I thought the Clippers were doing fine before the trade. Westbrook was even shooting well. Maybe they weren't good enough to win, but Harden's defense outweighs any benefits they might get offensively. Unless he finally decides to put in some effort?

It would be a better product, but I think its very clear that the owners and probably the players as well prefer to have more money. Speaking of which, seems that there are already a lot of injuries this early into the season. I guess some were carried over from the previous season, but its unexpected considering how early it is. Wonder how it cares to previous seasons. Doesn't feel like they are gaming the new injury rules for rest either as they are projected to miss multiple games. Think Robert Williams has to get surgery (again) too. Might be why Boston were willing to part with him if they didn't trust him to stay healthy.

I don't know, Luka seems to sulk a lot. That and him being extremely ball dominant doesn't seem particularly likeable. I haven't seen Luka with Kyrie, but I don't have that impression of him willing to play off the ball with Brunson. Well, if the Sixers had 2018 Harden, they'd probably do just fine too. That's not what I meant. I was trying to ask if you guys think Luka would be in the same situation, having had a similar career maybe 10 years later. Its not like Harden had a bad career too, thought he was pretty close that year against the Warriors superteam when Chris Paul injured his hamstring. Has an MVP, maybe could have had two.

I wonder if Luka is going to end up the same way as Harden. Think they are really similar in their deficiencies, maybe outside of the rumoured partying which somehow didn't stop Harden from dominating the regular season with the more demanding schedule. Can start with Ibaka. Think he is a free agent now if he hasn't retired.

I think this is a consequence of being in win now mode and neglecting to develop players. You keep trading for veterans and don't develop young players and your assets dwindle as your draft picks are either traded away or stuck at the end of the bench and your veterans start to slow down. They only have Mann and Zubac. They did get Hyland from the Nuggets, but he didn't manage to break into the rotation last season. Not sure if they're playing the rest of their roster any meaningful minutes. As far as adding Harden goes, even assuming he plays well, I'm not sure what the fit is between the four stars and who gets the ball. Are we just going to watch Harden bounce the ball while Kawhi and George chill on the sides? I think if you trade for Kawhi and George, you should all in on the both of them instead of constantly trying to find the magic point guard to make them work. If Tatum and Brown can work in Boston with whatever point guards they had, maybe they should try changing the coach instead.

Think the Suns were also rushing to make the deal before the CBA got signed so that they can avoid the new restrictions.

He's still long even if he doesn't look athletic. Said it before, but its not like he's doing the same thing while Lowry sized.

True. Looking at it again, it was released in January for consoles and the release now is after localisation and porting to Steam. Yeah, I'm getting it regardless, but the part I'm sore about is that its not really new content. The DLC is characters from previous or other games. Sure, there is work involved, but the first set of DLCs were released a week after release and the second set a fortnight after the first set. They were basically complete on release. Its not something that should equal the price of the base game. And taking a closer look at it, seems like they left out some of the previously added DLC characters too.

How much do new games cost nowadays? I'm looking at Disgaea 7, and while the base game costs a somewhat reasonable $50, the DLCs for the past protagonists adds up to the same price making it a hundred for the complete game. Haven't felt this ripped off since I bought the G Pro Superlight which is somehow worse than the original G Pro Wireless despite being significantly more expensive and didn't even come with USB C which they finally included in the Superlight 2.

Tatum and Brown need to work on their turnovers. Holiday should be an upgrade over Smart on that front, but he's not going to solve that problem, while losing Robert Williams opens up a new problem. Not sure what was up with Porzingis in Dallas, but he either couldn't or wouldn't play center. Horford is getting older each year and is undersized to begin with. I don't think having a solid defensive backcourt can make up for that if they can't rely on Porzingis. Anyway, they probably still need a backup big regardless. Hopefully they try and get someone reasonably fresh rather than some veteran.

Just to be sure we're on the same page, I'm referring to situations like three games in four nights, or late game to early game with travel on back to backs. Not that teams don't factor in strength of schedule when deciding which games they want to punt on their schedule, but that comes after these situations arise. If you're referring to teams randomly resting guys then no disagreements there. Rest them in home games if they really need to.

The scheduling that leads to a team resting 3+ starters is probably a throwaway game even with the starters. Might as well roll the dice with the bench.

That's not the point. Players taking games off is a problem. Fine. Its his job to come up with a solution. Adopting the Nike slogan and telling players to Just do it isn't much of a solution. It's addressing the symptom not the cause. Maybe they are at their limits with easing the scheduling, but this is the equivalent of giving up. Anyway, what I suspect will happen is that teams will just come up with more colourful injury reports. We'll see how effective it is.

Speaking of rest, just saw that the NBA is making it harder for teams to rest players. The gleam is wearing off Silver as time goes on. Would like to see teams carry on as usual and challenge the NBA to fine them. Perhaps with Ballmer and the Clippers taking the lead.

I don't know about Team USA, but the Warriors are pretty good to watch. Its not like they are the Mitchell led Jazz where its cross court pass after cross court pass until someone is open or they pass it to Mitchell to force something. Or the Zion and four statues Pelicans. Also, when the top MVP candidates are Jokic/Embiid/Giannis, and the top pick is Wembanyama, maybe its too late to say that there is no value for 7 footers? Plus, offense aside, they also have value for their defense and rebounding, as evidenced over the last page or so with the loss of teams USA and Canada blamed on size. Think its not so much that there is no value in post skills but rather players aren't proficient enough after they shifted emphasis to the three. Not sure what Gobert's excuse is though.

Are there any significant rule differences? The obvious one is the three point line, but what other rules do players have to adapt to?

I disagree. Putting aside practical concerns such as not having enough sales to justify continuing, how would you feel if your employer told you that your notice period needs to be extended? They can't manage without you and they'd like to get your replacement in and trained before you go. Not to mention that a forced or rushed conclusion would likely result in a poorer product. Is it worth it? Or even simpler, lets have a chapter briefly summarising the present and end it with the protagonist considering their future. The end.

I don't get the situation. Was he trying for a 4 point play to tie? Otherwise, shooting percentages aside, in a 2 possession game with the shot clock off, surely the priority is for the fastest play (not the three)?