NBA the slenderman cometh.

[Tywin et al.]

20 minutes ago, DireWolfSpirit said:

They aint getting many takers on picking up his money already, this will probably make him such a negative asset they will have to include picks or something to move him. 

Pay me to take that contract scenario imo.

I thought he had a better deal to move, but shit, it's bad. Including the player option which I'm sure he'll take he's owed almost $140M over the next three years. Given his injury issues and decline in play he's going to be hard to move. The Bulls might be better off keeping him until the last year of his deal if they're going to have to pay to unload him. They're not going anywhere in the East and need assets so attaching picks to him to get rid of him seems like a bad idea. 

26 minutes ago, DMC said:

I dunno, I think the Wolves have the opportunity to compete this year - and are currently the better team (Magic had to come back from a 17 point deficit).  Of course, that makes sense considering KAT and Gobert are in their primes -- albeit, I get what you mean in that Edwards and McDaniels are at pretty much the same stage as Orlando's guys.

Seemed to me the Wolves could use a point guard too.  Conley looks pretty limited.  I still remember seeing him in a OSU/UF game with Oden and Noah/Horford/Brewer on UF.  Crazy to me that two of them are still in the league considering how long ago that seems.

Conley has actually been really good for the team. KAT and Gobert aren't natural leaders and he's a calming presence on the court. I think Ant will be able to lead the team soon, but he's still really young. And as you mentioned the collapse issue. That's been the main problem with this team for a few seasons. They tend to have one really bad quarter every few games. Just for example, they should have beat Memphis two years ago in the playoffs, but three terrible quarters in four of the losses sank them. You're right to say they need to find a new PG given Conley's age, but I don't see them making any serious moves outside of the buyout market.

I think realistically both the Wolves and Magic's goals should just be get to the second round and then see what happens.

[DMC]

1 minute ago, Mr. Chatywin et al. said:

You're right to say they need to find a new PG given Conley's age, but I don't see them making any serious moves outside of the buyout market.

I mean, for the future, sure, but I was just thinking this year for depth/insurance.  While I don't doubt Conley's been great for the team, it would behoove them to acquire some type of depth at the 1 right now.  Watching last night, I wasn't even clear who his backup was.  

[Tywin et al.]

30 minutes ago, DMC said:

I mean, for the future, sure, but I was just thinking this year for depth/insurance.  While I don't doubt Conley's been great for the team, it would behoove them to acquire some type of depth at the 1 right now.  Watching last night, I wasn't even clear who his backup was.  

The team has three wings that can play like Draymond does and Ant is capable enough as well. The back up PG is okay. I think like the Magic they need another shooter cause when Ant, Kat and Naz get cold at the same time bad things happen. 

[DMC]

1 minute ago, Mr. Chatywin et al. said:

The team has three wings that can play like Draymond does and Ant is capable enough as well. The back up PG is okay. I think like the Magic they need another shooter cause when Ant, Kat and Naz get cold at the same time bad things happen. 

Fair enough.  Just thought I'd want something more solid there considering the elevated likelihood Conley could go down due to his age.  Like you said, nothing flashy or anything, but maybe look at the buyout market after the deadline.

[Slurktan]

NBA should take the idea from of the NHL All star game.  Have 32 players (conferences, or 32 best doesnt matter) school yard pickem for 4 teams of 8.  Have a mini tourney with real cash incentive.  Boom all star game fixed.

[DMC]

20 minutes ago, Slurktan said:

NBA should take the idea from of the NHL All star game.  Have 32 players (conferences, or 32 best doesnt matter) school yard pickem for 4 teams of 8.  Have a mini tourney with real cash incentive.  Boom all star game fixed.

Considering they just added the in-season tourney I don't think there'd be much support for this among players nor owners.  Plus the NBA ASG's main appeal are the dunk and 3-point contests anyway.

[Tywin et al.]

Despite being from MN I don't know much about hockey. The only ASG event I care about turning on is the Home Run Derby and even that is just okay. I will say though I like some of the funny things the NFL has done even if I'm not going to go out of my way to watch them. 

[BigFatCoward]

There were 6 60 point games in the 90s, 10 each in the 2000 and 2010s. There have been 5 since 1st January. 

 

Edited February 4 by BigFatCoward

[Tywin et al.]

90's pace of play was really slow and the overall shooting wasn't good. An 84-79 game score was common. Plus the 90's lacked a lot of overall talent. The game today isn't as fast as it was in the 60's, but there is a sharp uptick compared to the last few decades and the quality of players has also vastly improved. There's probably at least 25 players that could give you a 50 burger on a hot night.

 

Edited February 4 by Mr. Chatywin et al.

[DireWolfSpirit]

Still think the 3pt play has become too easy for these offenses. The degree of difficulty needs to increase to the point where the extra (3rd) point is warranted.

I still maintain my minority position argument that Chamberlain's 100 pt game record will fall unless there are adjustments.

[Argonath Diver]

Man it really sucks to be a Bulls fan the last couple years. Coby White has been hot and maybe even has taken a step up into near All-Stardom. Other than that, this is a complete disaster of an organization from the Owner down to Benny the Bull bricking his half-court throws. 

Other than the woeful Hornets, I think the Bulls are absolutely in the worst position in the sport moving forward. Truly dark times.

[DMC]

3 minutes ago, Argonath Diver said:

Other than the woeful Hornets, I think the Bulls are absolutely in the worst position in the sport moving forward. Truly dark times.

I dunno, they have an opportunity to tank pretty soon even with LaVine's albatross.  DeRozan comes off the books this summer.  It should be incumbent on them to get some draft capital back while taking on little if any future money.  I think that should be doable, but we'll see.

Lonzo Ball still has a player option for next year, but in that way he'll be an expiring contract.  Which, even if he never comes back, could be of use.  And then, the only other large contract they have is Vucevic - who certainly still has trade value and is on a reasonable contract.

All of this is to say, if they commit to tanking and focusing on getting top picks the next two/three drafts, they can get to that blank slate status pretty quickly.  Frankly the only real obstacle is ownership and/or the "feeling" they should always try to compete as the third largest market.

[BigFatCoward]

8 hours ago, DireWolfSpirit said:

 

I still maintain my minority position argument that Chamberlain's 100 pt game record will fall unless there are adjustments.

I think Jordans play off record 63 is definitely gone by the end of the decade. The play in tournament making it possible for even worse teams to make the playoffs makes it more and more likely. 

[Argonath Diver]

10 hours ago, DMC said:

I dunno, they have an opportunity to tank pretty soon even with LaVine's albatross.  DeRozan comes off the books this summer.  It should be incumbent on them to get some draft capital back while taking on little if any future money.  I think that should be doable, but we'll see.

Lonzo Ball still has a player option for next year, but in that way he'll be an expiring contract.  Which, even if he never comes back, could be of use.  And then, the only other large contract they have is Vucevic - who certainly still has trade value and is on a reasonable contract.

All of this is to say, if they commit to tanking and focusing on getting top picks the next two/three drafts, they can get to that blank slate status pretty quickly.  Frankly the only real obstacle is ownership and/or the "feeling" they should always try to compete as the third largest market.

I generally dislike the idea of complete tanking for draft position with the flattened lottery odds. That said, I've been a staunch advocate of abandoning the garbage ass LaVine/DeRozan/Vucevic trio the moment Lonzo's career ended. Multiple draft pick capital is what the Bulls need. They got rid of picks to acquire Vucevic (I just vomited a bit in my throat) so our actual position in the lottery isn't as vital.

Unfortunately for my opinion - one that is shared with a vast stretch of angry Bulls fans - Karnisovas has insisted every year since he took over that Reinsdorf wants to shoot for the playoffs. It's 100% about the money, not an actual attempt at a championship. I picked us at 12th in the East preseason and I feel rather confident I'll be close to right.

[DMC]

1 hour ago, Argonath Diver said:

I generally dislike the idea of complete tanking for draft position with the flattened lottery odds.

Back in my day they just called it rebuilding.  

[Chad Vader]

The Knicks are actually watchable again. Besides that anomaly year we had with Melo and Woodson as coach this is the best team in quite some time. Brunson/Randle combo is really good and Donte Di is a nice piece.

[Tywin et al.]

8 hours ago, Argonath Diver said:

I generally dislike the idea of complete tanking for draft position with the flattened lottery odds. That said, I've been a staunch advocate of abandoning the garbage ass LaVine/DeRozan/Vucevic trio the moment Lonzo's career ended. Multiple draft pick capital is what the Bulls need. They got rid of picks to acquire Vucevic (I just vomited a bit in my throat) so our actual position in the lottery isn't as vital.

I get the frustration, but that unit before Ball's injury was the top seed in the East and looked really competitive. At the time they did a pretty good job building a very solid team. It was derailed by injuries, not front office incompetence. 

Also, in the category of worst positions, Detroit would like a word. Cade's career hasn't been bad, but it hasn't translated into winning and he's also already an injury red flag. And they are going to have to pay him. Ivey has been a disappointment so far which suggests they're just not good at developing talent. The rest of the roster more or less sucks. They have the worst record in the league in a bad draft year and there's no evidence that they can turn things around in the next few years. The Pistons are a tier one dumpster fire. 


In other news, Embiid's injury is worse than previously reported, he needs surgery and could be out for the season. 

[BigFatCoward]

I normally hate gimmicks, but this looks kind of fun. 

https://www.google.com/amp/story/s/syndication.bleacherreport.com/amp/10108065-video-nba-unveils-led-court-to-be-used-during-2024-all-star-weekend.amp.html

[Tywin et al.]

This is why the Wolves aren't real contenders. They consistently dominate three quarters of a game and then have one where they vomit all over themselves.

Edited February 7 by Mr. Chatywin et al.

[Argonath Diver]

I can see the pessimism regarding your Wolves and these repeated collapses - despite dominating teams week after week. DeRozan was a foul magnet, and Coby White continues to impress me despite his comically short T-Rex arms.

As per the Bulls' situation, I think games like this are a nightmare situation. A great win against a real contender, helping pad the United Center's #1 nightly attendance, just gives our front office more reason to keep its collective thumb up its ass for the last 24 months. Lonzo was never coming back. The Vucevic trade was an absolute disaster whose sole defense at the time was "It brought in DeRozan".

I was one of many who said LaVine's max contract would be a major failure, but I honestly didn't expect it just two seasons in. He's been a consummate professional for the team, but they should have traded him last off-season like so many diehard Bulls fans thought they should. He asks out this year, politely, and garners zero trade interest except the Lakers' pathetic package. Now it's too late and we'll have 65 million dollars in street clothes for the foreseeable future. Pat Williams fucking sucks and always has and won't get better. I haven't seen a single rumor that the front office is willing to trade anyone. It's a catastrophically bad situation. Note that I'm ranting this hard after one of the best wins of the season. I hate being a Bulls fan but I have been since being an 80s kid staring at MJ on a blurry fat TV.