The Official 2015-2016 NBA Regular Season Thread

[wustin]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

I haven't seen any other Bucks game, but based on the way they've played the Warriors twice, it's hard to believe they're 10-18.

Did you not see their game with the Lakers. Their shots just seem to fall against the Warriors. They got away with a lot of penetration in the first half because the Warriors had to use Speights since Bogut was out and Ezeli was in foul trouble.

[miami_fan]

Am I the only one hoping Clippers/Rockets goes is a 4 1/2 hour 4 quarter game with a battle of Hack A DeAndre versus Hack A Dwight?

[wustin]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

Am I the only one hoping Clippers/Rockets goes is a 4 1/2 hour 4 quarter game with a battle of Hack A DeAndre versus Hack A Dwight?

It's not fun to watch but it wouldn't be happening if bigs could shoot free throws. If anything it should be a huge motivator to improve free throw shooting but Jordan shoots it at like 39% this season lol. All you have to do is shoot over 50% and the hacking stops.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by wustin

It's not fun to watch but it wouldn't be happening if bigs could shoot free throws. If anything it should be a huge motivator to improve free throw shooting but Jordan shoots it at like 39% this season lol. All you have to do is shoot over 50% and the hacking stops.

I don't think it is that simple. I believe if it was, Jordan would have gotten better at it by now.

Ever since Shaq was in the league, I always thought it was harder for bigger guys to shoot free throws, because their fingers and hand size are relatively bigger than the ball and requires a greater level of dexterity to skillfully and consistently shoot a free throw.

So unfortunately we're probably going to be seeing this for a while.

[stevew]

It's not like Nowitski or Durant are small guys tho. I'm probably never going to watch a game featuring Dwight or Jordan ever again though. Too many clangs

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by stevew

It's not like Nowitski or Durant are small guys tho. I'm probably never going to watch a game featuring Dwight or Jordan ever again though. Too many clangs

Actually Duncan was terrible at free throws to start his career. I know he has improved, but I am betting he isn't great at it now either, at least in comparison to most basketball players.

I think a lot of it is also what you did as a kid learning to play. Europeans often come over here highly skilled, which tells me they probably learn to shoot more consistently at a younger age than many American players do, who are raised up through the whole AAU "and one" mentality, which is all about athleticism and not as much basketball fundamentals.

Reasons for this aside, though, I totally get not watching Dwight/Jordan games (although as I recall, you don't much like the Clips anyway, so what are you missing? )

[stevew]

Between Harden and Howard the Rockets are definitely my #1 do not watch team these days. And yeah, I pretty much hate the clippers as well so I'm totally not missing much there.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by stevew

Between Harden and Howard the Rockets are definitely my #1 do not watch team these days. And yeah, I pretty much hate the clippers as well so I'm totally not missing much there.

Yeah, I am not fond of watching the Rockets either. Harden is one of the more "meh" superstars I have seen in a while. Reminds me of Melo.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by wustin

Did you not see their game with the Lakers. Their shots just seem to fall against the Warriors. They got away with a lot of penetration in the first half because the Warriors had to use Speights since Bogut was out and Ezeli was in foul trouble.

Well, not staying at the strip club until 4am also helps.

Tim Duncan shot 66% as a rookie, and never worse than 60% for a season. I 100% think the NBA needs to do something to crack down on hacking for entertainment value alone, but I'm not convinced it's the "right" thing... DeAndre Jordan and Andre Drummond are freaks of nature in the best sense, but they literally can't throw a ball into a cylinder half the time from 10 feet away. What exactly is the point of basketball and why should we give more advantages to people who already hit the genetic lottery?

[Brian Swartz]

Duncan's worst year was 59.9%, most of his bad years are in the low 60s. Bad, but nowhere near Drummond/Howard/Jordan bad. These days he tends to shoot in the low-mid 70s, which is just a hair below-average in the NBA.

I can buy that it's harder for a big player to improve or be good at it. I can't buy that they just absolutely can't shoot in the 55-60% range at least.

Originally Posted by Vince Pt. II

I haven't seen any other Bucks game, but based on the way they've played the Warriors twice, it's hard to believe they're 10-18.

I've come to believe that sometimes there are just bad matchups, and sometimes for reasons not at all obvious. Clippers, for example, are a bad matchup for the Spurs because they can fairly easily neutralize SA's strengths. There are a lot of things I don't understand about basketball, but it does seem clear to me that it's often more complicated than 'Team X is a lot better, so they should win'.

[nol]

Originally Posted by whomario

The fact that he, as one of the leagues most devastating PnR players, refused to be a PnR player in a league catered to that style really tells you all you need to know about his priorities.

Or, that it would take a really special amount of resolve and determination to bust your ass to become one of the best few players in the NBA at a very young age, have your idols in the game and the general public still demean your accomplishments because of the way you play, and not want to try to cater to that.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Tim Duncan shot 66% as a rookie, and never worse than 60% for a season. I 100% think the NBA needs to do something to crack down on hacking for entertainment value alone, but I'm not convinced it's the "right" thing... DeAndre Jordan and Andre Drummond are freaks of nature in the best sense, but they literally can't throw a ball into a cylinder half the time from 10 feet away. What exactly is the point of basketball and why should we give more advantages to people who already hit the genetic lottery?

Away from the ball fouls on those guys are the biggest issue IMO. They shouldn't change anything when it comes to fouling those players when they have the ball, but if the league simply called the rule on the books it should change the hack-a-whoever approach.

If an Off-the-Ball Foul is committed in the last 2 minutes of the Final Period against a player who is not in possession of the ball and is making no attempt to receive, or get in position to receive the ball; the player who was fouled will shoot 2 Free Throws

That's the current rule on the books. I think it should be expanded to any point in the game and instead of 2 shots cut it to 1 shot. Basically, treat like the old illegal defense call.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I was actually looking up something else about Dwight Howard and noticed an amusing the in the Google results.

There were 5-6 stories about the whole 8 kids with 8 different mamas thing ... and his Biography.com listing, which comes up with a search headline of "Dwight Howard - Children's Activist, Famous Basketball PLayer"

Yeah, sounds like he's "active" alright

[stevew]

Sounds like his condom failure rate is higher than his free throw percentage.

[Brian Swartz]

So as of Christmas day, the difference between #2 seed in the East and not making the playoffs is a whopping two games. Slightly larger margin there in the West :P.

[whomario]

The Spurs 2nd unit is really, really fun to watch Only the Spurs can find 7 guys who are not only good players, but all also incredibly good at (at least) one thing. Marjanovic is my new drug against Yao-Withdrawal-Sndrome

I find it a bizarre sight that at 12-20, the Wolves are actually kinda sorta in the race for the 8th seed (Utah at 13-17 and trending downwards)

[Vince, Pt. II]

My buddy suggested changing free throws from fouls once you're in the bonus. Essentially, his point is that if you foul someone who is outside the three point line, they get three free throws.

Sounds intriguing, though I'm not sure of the ramifications, especially early in the game.

[Vince, Pt. II]

So the Rockets lost to the Warriors without Steph Curry, Harrison Barnes, Festus Ezeli, and Leandro Barbosa. While the Warriors were on the second night of a road back-to-back. Is that more a castigation of the Rockets, or an impressive win for an injury-plagued squad?

I've been having a hard time believing the Rockets are this bad this season as-is, but man, losing to a Warriors team this depleted seems pretty bad.

[wustin]

They are a solid team without those 4 players. Their lost to Dallas was because Klay couldn't make a basket and Barea turned into Steph Curry.

Also Rockets' have atrocious defense. Draymond is a great passer, but you can't let him get 16 assists.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Draymond with his third consecutive triple-double tonight.

Edit: which made me look up the record, which is Wilt Chamberlain with 9 consecutive triple-doubles. Oscar Robertson is second with 8. That seems crazy.

[Groundhog]

TBH, I'm kinda surprised Oscar Robertson doesn't hold the record with more than Wilt, given he averaged one for a season.

[BishopMVP]

Been doing a ton of year-end evaluations/predictions of kids I coach, so I wanted to check in on some other predictions. (Edited with current projected win totals, before last night's games.)

Originally Posted by bishopmvp

Over/Unders by conference:

East
-----
Cavaliers 56.5 UNDER (59.0)
Bulls 49.5 (51.3)
Hawks 49.5 (49.2)
Heat 45.5 (50.7)
Raptors 45.5 (47.8)
Wizards 45.5 OVER (38.5)
Bucks 43.5 UNDER (31.9)
Celtics 42.5 OVER (45.8)
Pacers 42.5 (45.8)
Pistons 33.5 OVER (44.5)
Hornets 32.5 (41)
Magic 32.5 (44.5)
Knicks 31.5 (37.5)
Nets 28.5 OVER (24.1)
76ers 21.5 (8.9)

West
-----
Warriors 60.5 (77.2)
Spurs 58.5 (68.3)
Thunder 57.5 (56.3)
Clippers 56.5 UNDER (51.6)
Rockets 54.5 (38.7)
Grizzlies 50.5 (43.3)
Pelicans 47.5 UNDER (27.3)
Jazz 40.5 (37.3)
Mavericks 38.5 OVER (45.8)
Suns 36.5 (26.6)
Kings 30.5 (33.8)
Lakers 29.5 UNDER (18.8)
Blazers 26.5 (33.2)
Nuggets 26.5 (28.1)
Wolves 25.5 (28.1)

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Saving my quick predictions here so I can make fun of myself later. Wizards look great on offense, Celtics have the deepest bench in the league (some would even say it includes 80% of our starting lineup!), and I'm not sure if the Nets make some dumb trade to add another overpriced veteran, but I don't think they'll cut Joe Johnson and they'll pick up some cheap wins down the stretch to try and avoid the ignominy of giving Boston a top 5 pick while other EC teams are tanking. In the same vein, Detroit will be the team that's still competing for that 8th spot down the stretch and ending up high 30's. On the flip side, the Cavs are banged up to start and LeBron knows the regular season doesn't matter. Not sure he'll take a full sabbatical again, but he saves his body and doesn't go out all out every night. Bulls/Hawks/Heat have high ceilings but so many question marks I don't like picking them. Toronto could implode, but the Atlantic Division is bad enough and Kyle Lowry good enough if he stays healthy 45 seems about right. Really interested to see if they try to build around Valanciunas or Masai looks to trade him for someone who fits their style better. I think Charlotte and Orlando will try for 8th even though they have little chance, but they'll try long enough it's hard to pick them below 32 in a bad conference. Knicks are the same with the added lack of their 1st round pick, so no incentive to pack it in. Don't think Carmelo gets traded in season though - so many more options available with all the cap space opening up after the draft.

I only really like the Mavs to go over out West. I know people are picking them to fall hard, but Rick Carlisle will will them to stay in the race unless Wesley Matthews is less than 100% all season. I don't quite like the Clippers as much - I feel like they're complacent about the regular season now. Pelicans are too thin and banged up, even if Anthony Davis counts as 1.5 guys. And I just can't wait to see how hard Kobe is forcing smiles and trying to be a leader until he snaps on Randle/Russell for rookie mistakes (or just Nick Young for being Nick Young.) A ton of people are jumping hard on the Jazz bandwagon, but like I said I don't see a point guard, and Zach Lowe is saying Rudy Gobert is looking a little tired after his summer workload. Suns should go over, but terrible chemistry could do them in. Breaking up the Morris twins is a gamble, and maybe a clean break from both would've been a better option. Blazers/Nuggets/Wolves are all young and should play fast enough they'll be in enough games to win 1/3rd of them, especially when they get a few cheap wins against older teams who don't want to match their energy.

So the #1 takeaway as always, damn Vegas does an awesome job. At the same time, and I swear I didn't do this intending to brag, 7 out of 10 right now! (although plenty could still flip) Maybe I should've taken nol's advice and actually put some money down

The mistakes are always more fun to analyze, so looking at the three I'm "getting wrong", Cleveland looks like I thought they would, missed Kyrie for 90% of the year, and they're still on pace for 59 wins? Yikes... Kevin Love's just fitting in so much better this year, and the addition of competent wings really has been more important than the loss of Kyrie. Although I think LeBron could dial it back another notch and let Kyrie/Love figure some things out so they fall slightly under, this team's getting the 1 seed and winning the East. The Wizards I completely don't get. John Wall looks like he's taken that next step to borderline 1st team all-NBA player every time I watch him, Otto Porter's looked like the same player who broke out last spring (at least the last few weeks) and they're still floundering at .500. There's something I'm not seeing here - I love Paul Pierce, but saying they miss his leadership seems a little too cheap. The Nets are still under, but just like I was telling every Celtics fan dreaming about Ben Simmons those first couple weeks the Nets are coming around, and will pass a few tanking teams in that March/April stretch run. Maybe that brutal Jarrett Jack injury changes things, and maybe enough teams do stay in the playoff race long enough to bank more wins before flipping to 2016-2017 mode, but they've still got a couple players. Forget Brook Lopez, who's untradeable due to contract/injury, Thaddeus Young deserves to get traded to a contender and he'll probably stay stuck in that purgatory.

East outliers I didn't see coming - Charlotte/Orlando/to a lesser extent NY. The Knicks are the easiest - no one saw Porzingis being this good right away, and Robin Lopez is really growing on me. Unselfish, defense/boxing out, that weird little brother offensive game highlighted by his scoop hook shot from the waist? I love it. I actually think it makes even more sense for them to trade Carmelo now that Porzingis looks like a future franchise player. Melo's still valuable, he's still good (and for a realistic Celtics trade, that Nets pick, + David Lee's contract + like Terry Rozier & James Young would make a ton of sense for both sides... if Cleveland wasn't looming and making it a dumb idea by Boston to push any chips in yet), and by the time KP hits that stage Melo will be well on the decline, and you no longer need him for any "face of the franchise" reasons. The fans would totally buy into building around Kristaps. Orlando I see two things. Dusting off Channing Frye immensely helped their spacing (and I still don't understand why Phoenix let him go when they were trying to accelerate their rebuild, or why he got so little burn last year in Orlando), and separating/staggering Oladipo/Payton's minutes was a bold move that really works. You know, who cares who starts if 3 guards all play 32 minutes? Why would an OKC ever sit Russell Westbrook and KD at the same time, and bring them back in at the same time? Charlotte's the weirdest - I don't know if they'll keep it up (and they've already taken a large step back recently), but as much as I love so many parts of his game holy shit MKG's absence really improves that team. I always mocked my UConn friends that love Kemba Walker because shoot-first PG's who shoot below 40% are a detriment to the team, not a good player... but all of a sudden you add more spacing on that floor and he's up to 44% now. I thought he was in that hero ball range like JR Smith/Nick Young where he would just take 40% shots regardless of shot clock, or teammates, but maybe he really was much more hamstrung by his teammates than I realized. (Healthy) Nic Batum getting dropped into their laps also helps.

Western conference clearly I blew it on GS and to a lesser extent SA, but I'm never going to apologize for not picking any specific NBA team to win 60+ games! (And sorry GS fans, I'm still taking the under on them winning 77.2 games ) The Rockets dysfunction is well-known and not worth re-hashing. You build your team around super talented flakes like James Harden and Dwight Howard, sometimes you'll get burnt I guess. Everyone knew the Memphis slide was coming eventually, but it's happened sooner than anticipated. With New Orleans, even though I got the under, I certainly did not see this bad a team. Maybe I'm overrating the brow a little bit, because that's now 2 respected coaches who can't quite seem to get him to dominate every game like I think he can. I know they didn't have NBA perimeter players for a month+, but how does he not have a dRtg below 100 yet in his career? Why is he shooting 2 3's a game, or long jumpers, when he shoots 29% on them and should eat teams alive on the offensive glass? He's the ultimate rare freak 7 footer that should be crashing the offensive glass every time but can still manage to get back in transition defense. When AD (or Nerlens Noel) is out on the perimeter shooting long jumpers this pace and space stuff has gone too far. Everyone's binky Utah still might end up Over, but the Rudy Gobert injury happened, and even before that you see the problems inherent in building a team around big players but not having a true PG. Burks, and Hood, and especially Hayward are all really good players, but this team is one competent true PG away from reaching whatever potential they have (and I'm really intrigued to see it as a counter to all the teams pushing smallball). If Andre Miller was 3 years younger he would've been perfect... Jarrett Jack too until Sunday. Maybe Jose Calderon's a fit if NY does trade for future assets? And then we reach the Suns...

Originally Posted by nol

"Terrible" trades update: Brandon Knight is averaging 20-5-4 and coexisting pretty well with Bledsoe.

So I avoided this initially because I feel it comes off as overly antagonistic, but as long as I'm going over my past positions, you still claiming this? Anyone still want to say Phoenix made the right move there?

The Knight-Bledsoe pairing has been awkward, and has created some minor locker-room tension, according to sources familiar with the matter. Both thrive as lead ball-handlers, and Knight has bristled over the years whenever anyone has labeled him as something other than a pure point guard.

I'm not even saying Knight's a bad player, but this is why you don't trade a probable top 7 pick just to pay max money to a 22y/o who 2 separate teams have already given up on. IT4 is an example of a player that 2 teams gave up on who is thriving, but that was trading a late 1st round pick for him and paying him $6.5m/y, not $15m/y. And I know that Lakers pick is still 50% likely to end up in the top 3 and be rolled over to next year, but ironically the signs of life they're showing right now make that less likely, as does Phoenix's complete collapse. And Phoenix technically is only 5 games out still, and they can blame it on the Bledsoe injury all they want, but this was happening before that happened. Though who knows, I love his attitude as a fan, but maybe Bledsoe is the real problem there - based on armchair psychoanalysis I can't imagine he's the easiest teammate to get along with. (Although the real answer is the owner. Get off Robert Sarver's lawn kids. So freaking happy the Celtics have Grousbeck etc that give support where/if needed, but stay out of the way and let basketball people make the decisions.)

[nol]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

So I avoided this initially because I feel it comes off as overly antagonistic, but as long as I'm going over my past positions, you still claiming this? Anyone still want to say Phoenix made the right move there?

Yep, I still think Brandon Knight is better to have than some 2017 mid-late lottery pick (aka a high schooler) when the rest of the Suns' key players are in that 23-26 age range.

Philadelphia could've traded Carter-Williams for Knight straight up, and people killed them for doing the opposite.

I have no clue how you would single out that move in the first place when you are talking about an organization that spent like $50 million on Tyson Chandler, who is having his worst season as a pro while also taking playing time from the highest draft pick on Phoenix's roster, and salary dumped rotation players to chase a free agent who was extremely unlikely to sign and just as unlikely to make them a title contender had he signed.

Pretty similar situation in Milwaukee, too. Goes to show the perils of hastily declaring your team's rebuild over after winning 40-ish games in a season and then making drastic changes because you believe you're "just one player away."

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Thaddeus Young deserves to get traded to a contender and he'll probably stay stuck in that purgatory.

I've been a fan of Young ever since he came in the league. Doesn't really have a typical NBA game or position, but does a little bit of everything. Some of those Sixers squads weren't awful, but I hope he finds his way to a decent team now that he's entering what should be his prime.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by nol

Pretty similar situation in Milwaukee, too. Goes to show the perils of hastily declaring your team's rebuild over after winning 40-ish games in a season and then making drastic changes because you believe you're "just one player away."

I feel like this is a 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' situation. If you are in that 40-win zone, you're drafting low enough that you have to get lucky to get a true impact player, but you clearly need more than just a year of development (typically) to get over the hump. So you either go all-in to take the next step...or you do nothing. It seems much easier to defend an attempt to make your team better than to defend standing pat.

[nol]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

I feel like this is a 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' situation. If you are in that 40-win zone, you're drafting low enough that you have to get lucky to get a true impact player, but you clearly need more than just a year of development (typically) to get over the hump. So you either go all-in to take the next step...or you do nothing. It seems much easier to defend an attempt to make your team better than to defend standing pat.

Except it's highly debatable that signing someone for big money who does not fit in with what previously brought the team success is any kind of reliable way to make a team better, or even as good as it previously was if you have to give up players to make it happen. If Milwaukee and Phoenix had done nothing this past offseason, it's very likely that both teams would be better! Even if those teams took a step back due to the league figuring them out, they'd be in the same position as they currently are but with more cap space and more opportunities to see the strengths/weaknesses of the future building blocks.

In the Knight trade, people thought Phoenix got absolutely robbed because of how overrated the value of Carter-Williams (he won ROY and averaged some amount of points/rebounds/assists, must be a future star!) and the Lakers' pick (they'll start playing better down the stretch and give away the pick, and if not they'll definitely be good enough to trade the pick away in 2015-16 - Kobe comes back and he's still good!) were at the time. Now that things have become a bit more clear, the trade had risks and benefits for each team involved, which I'd said at the time. If the #9 pick or whatever in 2017 ends up being a better player than Brandon Knight, that would be due to teams with higher draft picks really screwing up more than the Suns incorrectly judging the future value of the pick.

[wustin]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Pelicans 47.5 UNDER (27.3)

lol

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by nol

Except it's highly debatable that signing someone for big money who does not fit in with what previously brought the team success is any kind of reliable way to make a team better, or even as good as it previously was if you have to give up players to make it happen. If Milwaukee and Phoenix had done nothing this past offseason, it's very likely that both teams would be better! Even if those teams took a step back due to the league figuring them out, they'd be in the same position as they currently are but with more cap space and more opportunities to see the strengths/weaknesses of the future building blocks.

In the Knight trade, people thought Phoenix got absolutely robbed because of how overrated the value of Carter-Williams (he won ROY and averaged some amount of points/rebounds/assists, must be a future star!) and the Lakers' pick (they'll start playing better down the stretch and give away the pick, and if not they'll definitely be good enough to trade the pick away in 2015-16 - Kobe comes back and he's still good!) were at the time. Now that things have become a bit more clear, the trade had risks and benefits for each team involved, which I'd said at the time. If the #9 pick or whatever in 2017 ends up being a better player than Brandon Knight, that would be due to teams with higher draft picks really screwing up more than the Suns incorrectly judging the future value of the pick.

Fair points, but when you say they'd be better, do you mean better than they are right now, or better than they were the prior year? Eventually you have to make SOME kind of move.

I totally understand the value of standing pat, I'm a Warriors fan. Looking back and wondering what would have happened had they actually traded for Kevin Love is terrifying. At the same token, the Monta Ellis / Andrew Bogut trade was an absolutely huge turning point and equally terrifying at the time.

[nol]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

Fair points, but when you say they'd be better, do you mean better than they are right now, or better than they were the prior year? Eventually you have to make SOME kind of move.

I meant than right now. Both Phoenix and Milwaukee could've taken a step back from last season and still been competitive (and in some cases, it wouldn't have automatically meant the players are now worthless or that all is doomed; sometimes it's a reversion of luck or teams around the league are just getting up to play you more than they did the previous year). If most a team's good players are in their early to mid twenties, those players' development over the course of a year or two will make more of a difference one way or another than just about any trade or free agency signing (especially if you're making one just to say you did).

Lionel Hollins just got fired and Billy King stepped down as GM in Brooklyn. It'll be interesting to see which names come up here.

[whomario]

The Gift that keeps on giving:



release the Boban !

[wustin]

I don't think the Warriors will reach 67 wins this season. They turn the ball over too much and Walton looks like a deer in headlights whenever the team is in a slump.

Also Curry should not be taking half court shots with over 15 seconds left on the shot clock. The defense will let you take that kind of shot any time you want so go set up a play for a better look instead.

[wustin]

lol Vegas had Warriors losing to the Cavs tonight...

[Vince, Pt. II]

I don't think this is what the Cavs had in mind when they said this was to be a statement game.

[whomario]

Originally Posted by wustin

I don't think the Warriors will reach 67 wins this season. They turn the ball over too much and Walton looks like a deer in headlights whenever the team is in a slump.

Also Curry should not be taking half court shots with over 15 seconds left on the shot clock. The defense will let you take that kind of shot any time you want so go set up a play for a better look instead.

so, about that ... The Warriors came out flat a couple times (and did so early in the season as well), like any team not constructed out of Robots would in an 82 game season. And the term "slump" is to be used veeery loosely when talking about the Warriors, who created some insane Expectation with their play.

And Curry taking those shots is a large reason why opposing teams scramble like mad from the moment the Warriors take possession. It´s absolutely a fine line and in a vacuum some of his shots are downright stupid, but for every crazy missed shot there are 2 easy baskets created by the defenses reaction to those shots (not to mention the stupid shots he makes ).

[wustin]

Originally Posted by whomario

so, about that ... The Warriors came out flat a couple times (and did so early in the season as well), like any team not constructed out of Robots would in an 82 game season. And the term "slump" is to be used veeery loosely when talking about the Warriors, who created some insane Expectation with their play.

And Curry taking those shots is a large reason why opposing teams scramble like mad from the moment the Warriors take possession. It´s absolutely a fine line and in a vacuum some of his shots are downright stupid, but for every crazy missed shot there are 2 easy baskets created by the defenses reaction to those shots (not to mention the stupid shots he makes ).

I guess that Detroit game was a huge wakeup call, it was a needed loss I guess. Can't wait for the Spurs game on Monday.

And the Cavs are awful on defense. Love has no idea how to defend a screen and Klay had an awful shooting night but he killed them off all the pick and rolls and backdoor screens.

[RainMaker]

Got to see the Warriors in person last night. They sure are fun.

[whomario]

And Steph Curry has still only slipped barely below 30 ppg (29.9) while hitting the next best thing to 5 triples a game on 51/45/91 shooting percentages. He´s already over 2/3 to his own 3 point made record (and has made 50% more, 67 total, than Klay Thompsons who is No2).

[Vince, Pt. II]

I wonder how Steph will end up stacking up on a points per minute basis - he sits for huge swaths of games, and still ends up scoring a ton.

[nol]

If the season ended today, the Kings would be in the playoffs. They're 7-3 in January and Cousins is averaging 30.9 points, 13.8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.1 blocks during that time.

[Brian Swartz]

Seems to me there's a whole lot of over-reacting going on in all directions. Not to be contrary just for the sake of it, but ...

Originally Posted by whomario

so, about that ... The Warriors came out flat a couple times (and did so early in the season as well), like any team not constructed out of Robots would in an 82 game season

Truth on both sides here. Nothing to worry about with Golden State losing a couple of games certainly, but the fact that their defense has been inconsistent since the opening month(16th I think over an extended stretch) and the turnovers are things to be concerned about. Kudos to them for actually being concerned about it, and a big reason why they are as good as they are I think. They get it, and in general have their eye on the prize.

Originally Posted by wustin

the Cavs are awful on defense. Love has no idea how to defend a screen and Klay had an awful shooting night but he killed them off all the pick and rolls and backdoor screens.

Well, the Warriors can make most any defense look bad. That's why they are who they are . Cleveland's D is going to struggle against elite teams because of Love to an extent, but Golden State did have one of their worst offensive games earlier in the year against the same team. One game means ... pretty much jack at this point of the season, something all the overhype about Spurs-Warriors would do well to keep in mind. It's exciting of course because of how good the teams are, but it really doesn't matter a whole lot who wins or by how much in the grand scheme of things.

Anyway, if the Cavs' defense is 'awful', then the only half-decent defensive team in the league is the Spurs. They're 5th out of 30, and not far behind #2 which is presently Golden State. Just sayin'.

[Groundhog]

As someone who watches a lot of Cavs games, their defense is most definitely not awful - they just happen to match-up horribly with Golden State. Really, really horribly. I mean, with Green at the 4, very few teams matchup well with the Warriors, but with Love and Mozgov - two slow-footed guys who struggle against the speed and shooting ability the Warriors have on p'n'rs - the Cavs are particularly susceptible.

Cavs are a bad offensive team though, who get by on the fact that they have LeBron, Kyrie (once healthy and in shape), the occasional big game from Love, and a rotation of guys who are capable of putting points up in spurts.

I kinda hope the Cavs don't do anything drastic as far as trading away guys to get pieces they hope will matchup well with the Warriors specifically. Warriors are the best and deepest team in the league, and nobody the Cavs trade or trade for is probably going to change that. Hope that the Spurs or Thunder or someone beats them and just keep your guys together and hopefully healthy.

[whomario]

Spurs blow out the Suns (who are admittedly not good) without Duncan and Parker. (and Manu playing 5 minutes and Aldridge scoring 7 points).

Boban with 17/14 and averages 25/15 per 36 minutes (on 61% shooting, 74% FT on 9 Attempts per 36). Guy is not going to hold up as a full time starter with that level of production long term i think (due to matchup issues and teams adjusting), but likely the best mop-up/bottom rotation/change of pace Big Man in the league and will be a solid guy for a few years after Duncan rides off into the sunset eventually. Its refreshing to see a guy like that actually get fed the ball and used rather than just being in there to take 6 fouls and occupy space. Go Spurs

[Ajaxab]

I don't know if the Spurs or the Warriors have the deepest bench, but if this piece is to be believed, the Spurs have by far the most productive bench.

I guess that helps them put up so many blowouts. I was surprised to see that SA had 11 25+ point wins before last night and 12 after the win over PHX. CLE was second with 4. GS had 3.

I'll be interested to see how Monday night's game goes. I think GS wins, but if SA should pull the upset, the top of the West might be up for grabs.

[wustin]

It shouldn't be considered an upset if SA wins. GS is the team to beat but I'm pretty sure a lot of people think that SA is the best team in the league.

[whomario]

To illustrate this in a more straight forward stat: Spurs actually have an average Margin of Victory of 14.53 currently, which would be the best in History over a full season. The other 3 teams above +12 are the 71/72 Lakers (12.28), 70/71 Bucks (12.26) and of course the 95/96 Bulls (12.24).
Warriors would be in 5th with their current +12.14

Spurs have just so many players, whose only defect is that they likely would struggle in a larger role/on higher minutes (due to age or natural limitations) but are perfectly suited for their current role. And as i said before, every one of their bench players is really, really good at some things on the court. (as in: Way better than even an average starter good) and complement each other and the starters very well.

[nol]

If the Warriors end up winning around 72 games and are favored over the Spurs in a playoff series, I'd definitely go with San Antonio. The regular season games between the two won't tell much either way.

As I said a few pages back, 72 wins is a grueling pace and it just takes a game or two to go from "OMG will they ever lose" to them being on the same pace as the other hot starts in league history. It works the other direction too; the Sixers are 5-8 in the last 13 games and would still do well to keep the Lakers out of the #1 lottery spot, but ending up with the worst record in NBA history is not going to happen.

[whomario]

as an aside: Has anyone read any explanation as to what group voted so damn ferociously for Zaza Pachulia as an All Star Starter ? Since Dirk has about 1/5 of his votes we can safely assume it was not Mavs Fans and since this is the first time this happened i somehow doubt it was his countrymen who suddenly became aware of his existence ...

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by whomario

as an aside: Has anyone read any explanation as to what group voted so damn ferociously for Zaza Pachulia as an All Star Starter ? Since Dirk has about 1/5 of his votes we can safely assume it was not Mavs Fans and since this is the first time this happened i somehow doubt it was his countrymen who suddenly became aware of his existence ...

Actually it does appear to have been based on a push from international voting, mostly from his native Georgia (and I do NOT mean Hawks fans that remember him).

You never know what will get viral suddenly, even when it never did before.

[whomario]

yeah, i just saw that after i posted (as it so often happens ...). But from what i saw it ended up being mostly ignorant teenagers retweeting from "Internet Stars".

The whole process is dumb as it is. I don´t mind naming the starters based on popularity, but it ought to be basketball fans votes, not random people out for retweets (or whatever).

Should not be that hard to connect in some way (going to the digital ballots of up until a couple years or three ago at least took some sort of effort)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by whomario

The whole process is dumb as it is. I don´t mind naming the starters based on popularity, but it ought to be basketball fans votes, not random people out for retweets (or whatever).

Should not be that hard to connect in some way (going to the digital ballots of up until a couple years or three ago at least took some sort of effort)

The NBA likely prefers to engage non-fans for this, that seems to be their general m.o. With them, pretty much everything is a marketing tool above all else.