NBA - the King passes Cap, but his team are still crap.

[Wilbur]

Sports gambling and its constant advertising is bad for athletes:  https://defector.com/bradley-beal-would-like-gambling-related-insults-kept-to-a-minimum

Also, Bradley Beal seems like the most emotionally stable player in the interview room of anyone in the league right now.  He chats honestly with reporters, and he doesn't hassle them (too much) for their dumb questions, etc.

[Tywin et al.]

1 hour ago, DMC said:

In terms of your second question, that's the point.  The Wolves gave up the farm for Gobert.  I don't want the Magic to do the same for a mediocre/situational player.  Which is, sorry, what he is.  Gobert is not even close to Luka and Jaylen Brown's level, so that's the difference.

Not that long ago I'd take him over Brown, but it's a fair point. My only contention has been it's impossible to judge this year because everything that could go wrong has gone wrong injury wise sans Ant suffering something catastrophic*. Like just for tonight we might be out six of our best eight players and literally all three bigs. So hammer the Lakers over cause this will probably be ugly.

*Watch that happen in a few hours just because...

Quote

I don't know, but I'd really like to find out!  The Magic punted on this the last time the had the chance with Shaq and Webber - traded the latter for Penny.  If they win the lotto, which is only a 9 percent chance, they absolutely should draft and play Wemby and see what happens.  Like, seriously, a frontcourt of Wemby, Paolo, and Wagner?  Good luck people!

It's a bit hard for me to picture, but hey, the key to being a great GM is building a team that's ready to be the next evolution. I joked around here years ago that the Bucks were smart to build a completely different kind of team while everyone else seemed like they were trying to make a lesser version of the Warriors, and if not for the Middleton injuries they could have maybe had a threepeat. But that was a lucky take more so than a smart one.

Unrelated, I've seen a few people suggest that the Mavs should call whoever gets the first pick and offer Luka straight up for it. Now that would truly be fascinating (in a vacuum I wouldn't do it on either side, but I get the appeal for the Mavs, especially if Luka wants out).

[DMC]

12 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

My only contention has been it's impossible to judge this year because everything that could go wrong has gone wrong injury wise sans Ant suffering something catastrophic*.

Yeah, sure, maybe Gobert will eventually work out for the Wolves.  Just saying it's not the type of trade I'd ever want the Magic to make.  Again, I'd probably take Kessler over Gobert straight up right now.  Now that's definitely unfair - there's no way anyone knew the 22nd pick would be as good as he has been in his rookie season - but still.

17 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

I joked around here years ago that the Bucks were smart to build a completely different kind of team while everyone else seemed like they were trying to make a lesser version of the Warriors, and if not for the Middleton injuries they could have maybe had a threepeat. But that was a lucky take more so than a smart one.

I think it's pretty intuitive once you realize what you with in Giannis, you surround him with shooters.  Which of course is what the Bucks did.  That doesn't seem too special in terms of insight.  They lucked out on Holiday, and then lucked out even more on Brook Lopez becoming as good as he is late in his career. 

But..that's the thing.  Would either Holiday or Lopez look as good as they do if they weren't on Giannis' team?  I highly doubt it, especially with the latter.  Which, again, is why I definitely would not pay Khris Middleton how much he probably thinks he's worth, and will probably get.  Like, dude's name is an indication of his mediocrity -- Middleton.

That's what truly elite players do - make their teammates better.  It is a concern that Luka has not really done this - I would have expected him to at this point.  But crazy thing about Luka is he's still so fucking young.  Sometimes I think we're expecting too much from a 24-year-old.  It's the curse of being so good so young.  LeBron went through the same thing.

27 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

Unrelated, I've seen a few people suggest that the Mavs should call whoever gets the first pick and offer Luka straight up for it.

I wouldn't trade Wemby for Luka no matter what.  But that's just me.  Luka is a liability on defense, and that only promises to increase as he ages.  Whereas Wemby....

[Tywin et al.]

16 minutes ago, DMC said:

Yeah, sure, maybe Gobert will eventually work out for the Wolves.  Just saying it's not the type of trade I'd ever want the Magic to make.  Again, I'd probably take Kessler over Gobert straight up right now.  Now that's definitely unfair - there's no way anyone knew the 22nd pick would be as good as he has been in his rookie season - but still.

I still think that's a stretch in isolation, but over the course of the next few years that might turn out to be true. I had never heard of the guy when we drafted him, but he seemed like a good fit even if it wasn't a move for right now. 

But trading him and the picks isn't just the half of it. Three of the Lakers seven key players were massive contributors on the Wolves last year. Losing that also really sucked.

Quote

I think it's pretty intuitive once you realize what you with in Giannis, you surround him with shooters.  Which of course is what the Bucks did.  That doesn't seem too special in terms of insight.  They lucked out on Holiday, and then lucked out even more on Brook Lopez becoming as good as he is late in his career. 

But..that's the thing.  Would either Holiday or Lopez look as good as they do if they weren't on Giannis' team?  I highly doubt it, especially with the latter.  Which, again, is why I definitely would not pay Khris Middleton how much he probably thinks he's worth, and will probably get.  Like, dude's name is an indication of his mediocrity -- Middleton.

That's what truly elite players do - make their teammates better.  It is a concern that Luka has not really done this - I would have expected him to at this point.  But crazy thing about Luka is he's still so fucking young.  Sometimes I think we're expecting too much from a 24-year-old.  It's the curse of being so good so young.  LeBron went through the same thing.

I just meant I found it interesting how they were trying to build a super long, athletic team when everyone else seemed to be going small. They were doing something different, and this is before Giannis became Giannis. And in that five year period where the Warriors were kings the Bucks I believe went 4-6 against them with a few close losses. 

Quote

I wouldn't trade Wemby for Luka no matter what.  But that's just me.  Luka is a liability on defense, and that only promises to increase as he ages.  Whereas Wemby....

The flipside is Luka is already one of the 3-5 best players in the world and Wemby has all the risks that come with the super giants, plus he's beating up doormats. I'd still go all in on him, but that trade is not as crazy as it sounds unless you're weighing the salary of Luka and that he's probably an asshole to deal with. 

Or that he might also be a high floor but not high ceiling guy. Except you can't even say that this year.

 

[DMC]

16 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

I just meant I found it interesting how they were trying to build a super long, athletic team when everyone else seemed to be going small. They were doing something different, and this is before Giannis became Giannis. And in that five year period where the Warriors were kings the Bucks I believe went 4-6 against them with a few close losses. 

Yeah, that's definitely a thing - the copycat nature in sports.  The Bucks were smart enough not to do that - and were rewarded accordingly.  Deal with the personnel you have, don't try to fit it into whatever the other guys are successful at at the time.  Frankly that's a good lesson throughout any walk of life.

18 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

The flipside is Luka is already one of the 3-5 best players in the world and Wemby has all the risks that come with the super giants, plus he's beating up doormats. I'd still go all in on him, but that trade is not as crazy as it sounds unless you're weighing the salary of Luka and that he's probably an asshole to deal with. 

To be clear, I'm not weighing the salary.  And Wemby isn't beating up doormats.  He's playing in France's LNB Pro A, which is one of the best international leagues in the world.  It's certainly better than the NCAA at this point.  And that's why he's so hyped up -- it's very rare for someone as young as him to be that dominant against high quality (and frankly adult) competition.

[Slurktan]

33 minutes ago, DMC said:

To be clear, I'm not weighing the salary.  And Wemby isn't beating up doormats.  He's playing in France's LNB Pro A, which is one of the best international leagues in the world.  It's certainly better than the NCAA at this point.  And that's why he's so hyped up -- it's very rare for someone as young as him to be that dominant against high quality (and frankly adult) competition.

You mean like Luka?

[DMC]

3 minutes ago, Slurktan said:

You mean like Luka?

Exactly!  It was ridiculous Luka wasn't the first pick in the 2018 draft.  The difference?  Wemby is 7'4".  The last person with his profile coming into the draft was Lew Alcindor.  Luka could never match that.  Hell, the only reason LeBron did is because he already looked like he was 35 during the McDonald's All-American Game.

[Tywin et al.]

And like clockwork, the team the league needs to win gets all the calls in rapid succession when down in the 4th. 

[Tywin et al.]

The corporate money is safe.

Perhaps I spoke too soon. It's shocking those were the only FTs the Wolves got in the second half despite the Lakers fouling like crazy and the refs just shrugged. 

Edited April 12 by Tywin et al.

[Ramsay B.]

Yeesh. Weakass foul call right there.

[Tywin et al.]

6 minutes ago, Ramsay B. said:

Yeesh. Weakass foul call right there.

THAT WAS THE WEAKASS FOUL FOR YOU? 

When the Lakers were dead the refs gave them six or seven consecutive touch fouls while ignoring everything they were doing that was identical. 

Edited April 12 by Tywin et al.

[BigFatCoward]

I did not see Atlanta winning at all. One game is all it took to blow my bracket. 

[Ramsay B.]

I’m at work and only watched the last like 3 minutes of regulation. 

[Tywin et al.]

8 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

I did not see Atlanta winning at all. One game is all it took to blow my bracket. 

Wait, you do brackets for this?

7 minutes ago, Ramsay B. said:

I’m at work and only watched the last like 3 minutes of regulation. 

Lakers were dying entering the fourth and were in the bonus two or so minutes into the quarter, all but assuring the Wolves couldn't defend. And the Wolves were attacking the rim and getting nothing despite AD getting a ton of calls just falling down from minimal contact. 

Like I said before the game, hammer the team the league needs to win. The Wolves got exactly three FTs in the second half on the last play, the Lakers had five and were in the bonus right away. That's not an accident unless you also believe Clarence Thomas was not corrupted at all by accepting massive private gifts over two decades. The money runs everything.

Or were the Qataris reasonable hosts for the World Cup. Come on... 

Edited April 12 by Tywin et al.

[DMC]

19 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

I did not see Atlanta winning at all. One game is all it took to blow my bracket. 

Gotta reiterate Ty's question - why do you have brackets for play-in games?  Like, is that a thing now?

[Relic]

26 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

That's not an accident unless you also believe Clarence Thomas was not corrupted at all by accepting massive private gifts over two decades. The money runs everything.

Or were the Qataris reasonable hosts for the World Cup. Come on... 

Time to put down the booze and get some sleep... 

[Tywin et al.]

2 hours ago, DMC said:

Yeah, that's definitely a thing - the copycat nature in sports.  The Bucks were smart enough not to do that - and were rewarded accordingly.  Deal with the personnel you have, don't try to fit it into whatever the other guys are successful at at the time.  Frankly that's a good lesson throughout any walk of life.

Was holding off on replying until after the game, thought I am still pissed off because this keeps happening. Just call it straight. I get I got stuck rooting for a shit team from a midsize market, but does it have to be that obvious when we all know the league offices care about which teams advance? There's probably not a huge bias against the Wolves, but when you know how much more money the league makes if the Lakers advance.... Golden State failing two years ago hurt everyones' pocketbook and arguing otherwise is silly.

It's really just a square pegs in round holes scenario. The Bucks played their hand masterfully and frankly I cheer them on because if nothing else it brings my cousins' joy. I won't post it here, but a pic of those adorable kids being given game worn shoes from Giannis courtside is pretty fucking cool. At the time the older one was like 11-13 and they were the size of her torso.
 

Quote

To be clear, I'm not weighing the salary.  And Wemby isn't beating up doormats.  He's playing in France's LNB Pro A, which is one of the best international leagues in the world.  It's certainly better than the NCAA at this point.  And that's why he's so hyped up -- it's very rare for someone as young as him to be that dominant against high quality (and frankly adult) competition.

Again, this is where I have to trust the analysts. My understanding is the league he's playing in isn't actually that good, but in tournaments with the other young players he's destroying him. I believe he completely fucked up Chet a year or so ago. The comment was not to cast doubt on him, just that a straight up trade with Luka is not silly unless you're all in.

[BigFatCoward]

29 minutes ago, DMC said:

Gotta reiterate Ty's question - why do you have brackets for play-in games?  Like, is that a thing now?

I had predicted play in games leading into the playoff bracket. Just for my own edification, not as part of a competition. 

[Tywin et al.]

20 minutes ago, Relic said:

Time to put down the booze and get some sleep... 

Nope. The refs hit the quick whistle as expected to bail out a team the league needed to advance.

Also, not much drinking, I've been suffering from a serious viral infection for over a week now and I thought maybe I'd get something to be happy about. Idk how anyone could view the first few minutes of the fourth and see anything else. Not even making this about my team, but come on, we know these leagues all have a level of rigged built in. That it's so consistent in the NBA should stand out. I'm not saying they want NY or LA to win the title every year, but do you really think they'd be happy with the last four teams being the Pacers, Kings, Toronto and Portland? We all know they will not make nearly as much if it's Lakers vs. Knicks and every person at every level knows it too. 

 

Edited April 12 by Tywin et al.

[DMC]

18 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

Was holding off on replying until after the game, thought I am still pissed off because this keeps happening. Just call it straight. I get I got stuck rooting for a shit team from a midsize market, but does it have to be that obvious when we all know the league offices care about which teams advance? There's probably not a huge bias against the Wolves, but when you know how much more money the league makes if the Lakers advance.... Golden State failing two years ago hurt everyones' pocketbook and arguing otherwise is silly.

I understand you are angry the Wolves lost - I didn't watch the game but it doesn't surprise at all if they got dicked over by the refs - but..how is this in any way a response to what you quoted from what I said?  C'mon man, let's maintain some forum on this..forum!

18 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

Again, this is where I have to trust the analysts. My understanding is the league he's playing in isn't actually that good, but in tournaments with the other young players he's destroying him.

The analysts you are trusting are wrong.  Again, the LNB Pro A is the top league in France and consequently one of the best leagues in the world.  Your assertion here is uninformed. 

Also, I don't really know what you're saying with "in tournaments with other young players he's destroying him."  Like, maybe that's a typo and you mean he's destroying them?  If so, ok, how's that a bad thing?

13 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

I had predicted play in games leading into the playoff bracket. Just for my own edification, not as part of a competition. 

Ah.  That makes more sense.  Didn't know you were so into it.

Edited April 12 by DMC
Uninformed, not uniformed