The NBA 2018 Offseason Thread
 

OFFSEASON TIME!

There are still two HC positions open in Detroit and Toronto.

Landon? Probably not, doesn't make sense with Lebron chasing rings still

Anybody else see this? J.J. Hickson accused of a home invasion / armed robbery.

https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/...FFXT4CwUxecrL/

LA Clippers send Austin Rivers to Washington Wizards for center Marcin Gortat

Adding the personality of Austin Rivers to the Wall/Beal combo is at least interesting.

Oh yeah, I forgot about the Morris twin. Should be good times.

Gonna miss Austin Rivers.

Wait, no, no I won't.

I always thought that playing for a coach with a kid on the team and a daughter who bangs players would make for a weird ass dynamic.

I hate the Wizards GM but I like that he was able to move Gortat without giving up assets. Rivers is deservedly maligned, but he is a good scorer and an excellent option of the bench. Be interesting to see how Troy Brown develops, but I like that the Wiz are stocking up on 3 and D dudes like Oubre, Porter, Satoransky, etc..

where do you think Lebron will end up? I think he'll stay in Cleveland.

I say this as a Cavs fan - I hope LeBron creates a superteam somewhere and racks up 3 or 4 titles. If it's Cleveland, great. If it's not, completely understand.

Hopefully in Philly!

Dante Exum could be a nice signing for someone. Offer him a full midlevel and see if the Jazz match. He's been hurt a lot, but he's only 22.

Somebody (see Dallas) is really going to pay DeAndre Jordan more than $24 million this offseason?

Hmph

I don't think he's ever going to be the player I thought he would be after his junior performances for our national team, but if he can hit .400 of his 3s and play lock down D while staying healthy he's going to be in the NBA a long time. The 'staying healthy' part is the real wildcard.

Didn’t he only have a freak shoulder injury and an ACL tear?
?

Yea my thought as well. I love DJ, one of my favorite players to root for in the league, but I have no idea what he and his agent are thinking there.

When you have been in the league for four years but have played less than two seasons of games, freak injuries or not, that is something to question.

Bogut was another Aussie who had no specific recurring injuries, just a series of freak injuries throughout his career that saw him miss tons of games. Not to the extent of Exum though.

Not for 2018-19, but if he wants to sign a multiyear contract with Dallas or somebody maybe that extra guaranteed money is worth lowering his potential.monetary ceiling. Or maybe he really is interested in signing with Golden State for a year then re-entering the market next summer when many more teams have cap space. He's always seemed like somebody who wants to be wanted, and once you've already earned $100 million I imagine it's a lot easier to look past strict dollar amounts when deciding your next job.

Bogut, who broke his leg in the first few minutes of his first game with the Cavs in 2017? Naw, that guy's injury prone too. There are only so many "freak injuries" you can suffer before a pattern starts to emerge.

I just don't see how giving Chris Paul a four-year deal at 40 million dollars a year is a good idea

Just replace CP & 40 with Paul George & 30whatever and you've got my NBA thought of the night.

I think both signings are defensible. The Rockets now have to trust their medical staff to get him though what six more playoff wins? If they are able to do that and win a title, all of the money on the back end is worth it.

The George signing is not the problem in OKC. It is not necessarily championship worthy but Westbrook/George/Adams is a pretty good core. The corpse of Melo, that is the problem. How many 1st rounders do you attached to Melo's contract to get him the hell out of OKC?

I am interested in what the Lakers do now. I will have to go back and take a look at what the proposed deals were for George were last year. The assumption of a 2018 deal with George being inevitable so why part with anything of value to get him in a 2017 trade with the Pacers seems to have backfired. How sure are they that Kawhi is going to LA in 2019?

Oddly as a Thunder fan I was more excited by the re-signing of Grant. I thought someone might take a chance and overpay him. Glad he stayed, and curious to see how he grows. I think he has pretty solid potential.

I was kind of hoping to see the Suns go after VanVleet. I thought he’d be a fun PG stopgap for them.. not sure I understand Ariza there that much.

I think I’ve reachsd the point where I’m tired of the Kawhi drama and just want that over with.

I’d love to see LeBron end up in Philly I think. I think that’s a team that’d be really interesting to watch.. although I still think Simmons and LeBron is an odd pairing. Could the Sixers afford to sign Redick also?

sixers could probably try to trade Covington or Bayless(or stretch-cut bayless), and then use that money to sign JJ and LeBron. JJ would have to be renounced in order to make any kind of cap space but it's doable.

That's my point though. It's not like he had a degenerative knee condition or something - he just continuously picked up unrelated injuries that saw him miss extended time. I think he should have been playing about 15-20 lbs lighter than he did to match his style of play (in the Bucks days, anyway) - his build just increased his odds of injury. I think Exum is the same, but on the other end of the spectrum.

I don't really see LeBron and Ben Simmons as a good match either. Simmons' numbers would fall through the floor.

And Markelle Fultz. I don't think there's enough ball for all of them, and the team would generally be very short of shooters.

Lebron reportedly to the Lakers.

Unless the Spurs are ready to help out the Lakers I don't think this puts him much closer to a title than he was in Cleveland.

If nothing else, it puts his run on Finals appearances in jeopardy. Strange signing, but I assume Lakers are about to pull the trigger on some other pieces now.

I agree. Paul George will be there also. So that may change thisngs a bit.

And coming out of the West is, obviously, wat more difficult. Im surprised he didnt go to Philly.

His previous moves made sense from a pure basketball standpoint. This seems to be more about maximizing his income as he gets toward the end of his career. He's stated his goal is to own a team one day and playing and marketing himself in LA is probably the best way to reach that goal.

PG13 already said he was staying in OKC

Well so did DeAndre in 2015;)

They'll likely get Kawhi next year and have a pretty nice team.

Lebron has won 3 titles. He's getting older. And there is no team he could join (and get paid) that would come close to the Warriors. So now he gets to live in L.A., do movies and stuff, and make a lot of money.

It's been awhile since the Lakers actually landed a big name in basketball FA

Hoping Gilbert melts down again and the board of governors forces him to sell the team.

Not sure what it means but heard that Leonard would resign with Philly if he is traded there. It wasn't a local story so I don't know what to make of it. If it was local I would write it off as just more wishful thinking.

Of course also hearing Lebron met with Philly today and may announce his decision tomorrow. The hopeful side of me wants both of those to be true.

I doubt anybody truly knows what Kawhi would do, including resigning with Philly. He certainly isn't going to leak that out right now. It is kinda like the report that Klay would take less money to resign with US. His dad, a radio guy, laughed and said that ain't no source

Well, #2 is off the board.

And yeah, I doubt anyone outside Kawhi & his uncle know what he wants to do, and I'm not sure I'd trust his word even if he said it.

(PS I guess Dallas did offer the same $24m DeAndre Jordan turned down in his player option... and the NBA office will still pretend tampering doesn't happen :) )

Lance Stevenson to the Lakers lol.

Cedi Osman has some big shoes to fill.

Should be fun to see the first LeVar meltdown now it's not Lonzo's team

Guess Lebron is tired of losing the finals, so he doesn't want to get anywhere near them.

I'm surprised he signed that long of a deal. That's the part to me that indicates his priorities aren't the same as they were. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Also: LeBron, Lance Stephenson, and Lonzo Ball on the same team(assuming no other deals shake that up). Oh, the books that are going to be written about this. Luke Walton's gonna earn his money.

No, I get that. I'm taking a more macro look at it. Yes, perhaps all of Bogut's injuries are freak injuries, sure. But he gets a LOT of freak injuries. At some point, you have to stop talking about bad luck and start talking injury prone.

I saw something where he a quote was attributed to him about being glad LeBron is leaving so he can get his team back.

I saw something where a quote was attributed to him about being glad LeBron is leaving so he can get his team back.

Will he, or will he be pushed out the door by at least next seasons trade deadline?

Also, they just signed Javale McGee, and have still been linked to both Boogie & Nerlens Noel. Though I do think there's a decent chance Lonzo is traded in a Kawhi deal if the Spurs decide to trade him.

Not NBA, but one of the worst brawls I’ve seen in a game tonight in the Australia vs Philippines. One Aussie was on the ground being laid into by about 10 Philippines players.

And the Philippines team smiling and taking selfies afterwards. Unbelievable.

Where were his teammates?

The 4 on the court where down the other end, with the bench being held back. No Australia’s came on from the bench, and Luc Longley the assistant coach had to run down and get the Aussie off the ground.

No one realised he was on the ground until he was being mobbed.

Wonder if this somehow played a part in that strangeness?

FIBA WORLD CUP ASIAN QUALIFIERS: Australia apologizes over Philippine Arena incident | ABS-CBN Sports

edit to add: No, I'm not suggesting any sort of legitimacy to that connection. I'm just wondering if somehow it was a factor in what sounds like base thuggery.

Rambulan sa Fiba Philippines VS Australia Fight!!!! Literal na suntukan!!! - YouTube

Embed link isn’t working, but there’s some footage.

I doubt it. It did cause some Twitter controversy today. Bigger factor was 30 point 3rd quarter lead we had on their home court.

for the curious, there's also some fan-shot footage in the link of the fight story on that site I linked the decal story from

9 Philippines players ejected. Took 30 minutes to decide. Going to be some lengthy suspensions.

DolA

Game is not cancelled.. playing 5 on 3... ridiculous.

Where's Collin Sexton when you need him?

Having seen some footage of the start of the melee it's maybe a little more balanced than it initial seemed. Well, the on-the-court part was. It got uneven pretty quickly once one bench cleared.

And, uh, what's up with what appears to be almost hockey style boards in front of the Phillipine bench? From the looks of it, they had to hop the boards to rush the court.

edit to add: 24/7 sports has the clip I'm talking about (from Aussie TV best I can tell) but I won't link here 'cause I think that's one of the sites that makes threads go haywire here.

Well as a Pacers fan, I'm glad to see James leave Cleveland and join the madness that is the West. Maybe now they can actually get by the Cavs in the Playoffs. And added bonus, Golden State can take out the Lakers before the Finals, so Pacers don't have to face him at all.

The initial retaliation foul from Kickert was bad and suspension worthy, but what happened to Sobey on the ground with the mob (as well as the thrown chair to the back of his head) was pretty sickening. Philippines hosting the 2023 world cup, could be interesting.

Honestly, after that, they shouldn't be hosting anything IMO.

Reportedly add Rondo to the mix.

Nerlens Noel to the Thunder.

Lakers renounced Randle

Lebron is a pretty bad GM.

Depends on who Cleveland adds. There's a pretty good chance that nobody gets by the Cavs in the playoffs … because they'll be in the lottery.

I said two years ago the Lakers needed to trade Randle while his stock was still fairly high. Now this shit. JFC.

Too early for LBJ to demand a trade? I'm still assuming there is one big name deal in the works, because otherwise this is looking worse than Cleveland 2017-18. Hard to picture a PG less suitable for an LBJ team than Rondo.

To be fair, there's a pretty good chance the entire Eastern Conference will end up in the lottery.

Lonzo and Rondo has to be among the worst point guard combos you could place with LeBron.

I assume that means they think Ball will be included in a trade for Kawhi, but still makes little sense. Is D-Wade next? Waiting for Carmelo to get bought out?

Also, that whole brawl is looking even worse, from the coach in the previous huddle - Anton Tioseco on Twitter: "Video proof (thanks to @radnovales )… " - to seeing pictures of what seems to be a cameraman punching an Aussie player in the face & a fan throwing that chair. Is FIBA as corrupt as the IOC/FIFA, or is there a chance the Philippines will be seriously punished?

Now that I've had time to calm down, I agree that the worst part of all this is the combination of fans, staff, and even team officials who got involved. IMO any fan in the clip throwing punches or stomping should be charged with assault. Any official should be banned. Security should be sacked. Refs should be disciplined for not trying to separate players initially.

Also the way the Philippines carried on in the 30 mins after while it was reviewed was particularly disgusting - not to mention the way the coach and PG Romeo spoke after the game - the guy that came swinging at Maker from behind early in the fracas.

I suspect it will be fines and suspensions from FIBA - Kickert and Maker will miss some games (in particular Kickert), but does any NBA team want their highly paid players to risk it on a court in that atmosphere? There was expected to be 50,000 fans in the arena that game but it was probably closer to 20k thanks to the high ticket prices... Could have been much worse with a huge crowd, because it looked like it was on the verge of being even worse than it turned out to be - which itself was really bad.

Plus, everything I've read -- which I know rumors are flying like crazy, but -- says the Spurs aren't interested in Lonzo. They like Kuzma, Ingram, etc. but Lonzo not so much. Which makes sense. I just can't see Popovich dealing with a distraction like LaVar, who would be constantly throwing a fit about this that and the other.

An auspicious sign as Trae Young's first two threes in a Hawks jersey both fall about a foot wide of the basket.

So the Lakers can still trade Lonzo and Randal and maybe something else and get Boogie back and then still have the pieces to trade kuzma and Ingram for kwahi, correct? Pretty sure all of these moves are technically not completed yet.

Rondo/Kwahi/LeBron/Boogie/KCP is a pretty good crunchtime lineup. Plus you would have Josh Hart/Lance/javelle on the bench and some ring chasers(Jeff Green?). Def need a shooter, but Rondo is way better than he's being given credit for.

I just do not see Boogie and LBJ being able to co-exist on the one team.

Just saw a headline on my phone that said Boogie to the Warriors? How is that even possible?

Edit: 1 year, $5.3m, apparently.

In an effort to make sure the Lakers cannot assemble a super team, the NBA has essentially ruined itself with these rules.

Because we've all died and gone to NBA Hell.

Part of me wants the Cavs to dump everyone. But at the same time, it would be interesting to see if Kevin Love could become a superstar again.

I have no doubt that Love will average 25-15 again, just enough to keep the Cavs from a top 4 pick next season. IMO need to just move him now and rebuild.

Boogie to Warriors is just dumb. *shrug*

Brilliant move by GS. Now Cousins can deflect half of Draymond's technicals.

Magic failed today. Signing Rondo and missing Boogie

So far LBJ is looking like a fluke hole-in-one for Magic, compared to the other double-bogeys since.

After DAJ to DAL & Julius Randle to NO I was wondering who still had the money for Boogie. 1 year deal to prove he's healthy & re-enter FA in 2019 made sense, and I don't think anyone was actually offering him $15m+. So sure, why not?

Not sure if they had to do it to complete some other move, but Lakers renouncing Randle's matching rights this early seems like a bug mistake. Even if you're not inclined to match, NO might not have offered that quickly if he was still restricted.

Well, you'll still have the combination of rookie PG (who I like, but still) & Jordan Clarkson to run the offense through late in close games. Is Ty Lue smart enough to figure that out?...

The NBA is completely broken

Magic surrounded LeBron with The Land of Misfit Toys.

I dont really like the Cousins signing for Golden State. I mean they are already a well oiled machine in which adding a new part seems like a risk they dont need to take. As much talent as Boogie has he has never proved to be a winner in the NBA and New Orleans improved last year when Boogie went down. They already have a hard time getting Klay enough shots plus I think Boogie and Draymond are polar opposites as far as heart and determination.

Warriors were a lock to win it all anyway so I don't think the move really changes much. Maybe he helps, maybe not. Doesn't matter in this league.

Worst case the Warriors just cut Cousins and move on with their lives. Best case, well, see ya'll in the 2019 offseason folks because I have no interest in watching Team USA breeze through another season uncontested.

Meanwhile, Enes Kanter having a blast on Twitter

More
Adam Silver has agreed to a Mid Level Extension with the Golden State, league sources tell ME. ����

Wouldn’t be surprised if I see
BREAKING: Warriors just signed Thanos and John Wick to add to their bench for one year. Lol

Classic

Speaking of tweets ... wouldn't Embid's tweets about "do a Deandre Jordan and #TrustIt" violate tampering rules?

Or is that not a thing since Lebron is out of contract technically?

Am I the only one who remembers the Warriors being down 3-2 in the conference finals, and probably a healthy Chris Paul, another rolled ankle for Steph, or even just an average shooting night from the Rockets away from losing it? (Yes, I know the Rockets have gotten a little worse with Ariza signing elsewhere, but no one expected them to be a good as they were. Plus LeBron might still pair up with Kawhi & there are two pretty good, ascendant teams in the East.)

You guys are smart enough basketball fans to realize that Demarcus Cousins (especially the version coming off an Achilles injury who won't even be healthy until midseason) doesn't provide an immediate upgrade for Golden State (even healthy Cousins probably shouldn't even crack their crunch time lineup...), so why pretend last season was a fait accompli and the Warriors weren't pushed (even if it was only one team)?

Was watching live. The entire thing was pretty surreal.

It definitely fed into the fire before the game.

Rockets winning that series would have been one of the biggest upsets in NBA history. I just don't see that happening again. Especially with Paul a year older and Ariza gone.

The only chance a team has is injuries to two of the Warriors stars.