Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

[23]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

[VAWereWolf65]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

I think Aron Baynes gets dunked on more than anyone in the NBA, and he knows it too.

That’s why i have so much respect for him. He goes out there and does everything he can to try and stop the other team from scoring, even if it means he gets dunked on

[23]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Honestly i dont think he really cares.

It was a nice dunk though

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[jeebs9]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

This is something that in been saying all year long about Gianni's overall game. He need to take a good amount of spot up jumpers during the game. It can change their whole offense around if he can knock down 1-2 a game.

https://youtu.be/xoVW4mEZfqs

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[3304Life]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Just kill us off Indy so I can enjoy my summer this year. This season has been so bad.


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[Vni]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Just kill us off Indy so I can enjoy my summer this year. This season has been so bad.


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Let's do it

[VDusen04]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

I think Aron Baynes gets dunked on more than anyone in the NBA, and he knows it too.

That’s why i have so much respect for him. He goes out there and does everything he can to try and stop the other team from scoring, even if it means he gets dunked on

Right on. I thought he was great while he was in Detroit. He's a brute who knows he's a brute and doesn't hold any weird misconceptions where he thinks he's too good to be dunked on. He accepts that it's his job to get in the way and mix it up and he holds himself to that.

He stops a lot of those plays before they even have a chance of happening. It's just the ones that slip through are the ones we remember. I guess that's the story of every rim protector who ever existed.

[cam21224]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Harden was a scoring punch off the bench, one who’s production was nearly mimicked by even Martin and they had two guys in the line up who could score 50 a night. Ibaka gave them a rebounder and a shot-blocker that they needed.

Biggest problem with the trade was Ibaka didn’t improve, arguably regressed overtime, and Harden’s high usage in Houston made it look like they shipped off an MVP level player for nothing although he would have never gotten those same numbers playing behind KD and Russ


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Harden was more than a scoring punch off the bench, he was arguably their best playmaker and a second PG/Ball handler at the time something Martin never was in his career and never would become there. Comparing them production wise based on points averaged is laughable at best considering Harden still had room to grow.

No matter how you spin it trading Harden to keep Ibaka because they paid Perkins was flat out dumb and was called that immediately and it only got worse from there as Ibaka regressed and drifted further away from the basket before he eventually got traded.

No one saw Harden becoming MVP level but the guy was good at the time and potential was through the roof even after not showing up that finals against the Heat, was basically chalked up as being young needing to learn more and how the young big three of OKC would be back on that stage soon.

Hardens potential > Ibaka potential at that time

If Harden wins MVP this year, OKC had three guys who would go on to win this award but didn't even give their core another chance to compete and grow together after making the finals for paying Perkins and dishing out money to Ibaka when bigs that can block and rebound would of been easier to replace and wind up not even keeping him.

Anywho Good **** Indy keep it going !

[RedSceptile]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Oj before you reply to cam, make sure you spoiler it bruh. Don't wanna be scrolling for ten hours

[ProfessaPackMan]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

I can’t front, I was one of the people who supported the trade at the time.

But that was partly because people started going OVERBOARD with the hyperbole after his first week.

Dre remembers that lmao

[ojandpizza]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Everyone knew Harden had more potential and was going to be a good player, the point is OKC didn’t need that. They just needed a good 6th man, Harden was maybe the best in the league at that role but they weren’t going to pay so much money for that to keep that and in turn weaken their lineup. It has less to do with Harden and more to do with OKC. Had he shown up in the finals they likely win it all, but he didn’t play well and the value perceived from Ibaka at the time was that he could grow into a player that fixed their weaknesses. Harden didn’t fix any of their weaknesses, they didn’t need another scorer, another player to have the ball in his hands and have to figure out minutes, another guy who couldn’t protect the rim or defend LeBron.

They keep Harden they’ve got the best “big 3” in the league going forward easily. Still cant rebound, still don’t have a wing defender, still don’t have off ball shooters, still have a small front court, still have no rim protection, etc. They tried to fix their weakness, it just didn’t work out in hindsight.


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[23]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

I can’t front, I was one of the people who supported the trade at the time.

But that was partly because people started going OVERBOARD with the hyperbole after his first week.

Dre remembers that lmao

OMG man two weeks in and dudes had the MVP chants going on... it was crazy.

Nobody started picking MVP candidates that early until that mess started.

[23]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

OKC let Harden go over 4 million.

Now that franchise will probably never reach the finals ever again.

That was a fiscal decision bad on the level of the Phx Suns owner being cheap.

[King_B_Mack]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Stop it OJ. Stop bro. There is no defending that trade.

Spoiler

First of all, Harden was not tired of being in OKC. He wanted to either start or get paid what he thought he was worth and OKC wasn't willing to do either because they ****ed up with Kendrick Perkins. They offered Harden 4 years $54 million. His max would have been $60 million. So they let $6 million dollars decide to move him because they were too stupid not to sign Kendrick Perkins to a contract extension before he ever put on an Oklahoma City Thunder jersey. All that mess you just laid out about rim protection and what they gained with Ibaka is irrelevant because they could have still gotten that and kept Harden but they blew it by paying Perkins for no damn reason.

Everybody knew the league was headed towards a lockout and looking to make it harder for teams in big markets to just spend and spend and were going to do something with the luxury tax. They knew that, knew Harden and Ibaka still needed to get paid and yet they STILL paid Perkins. With Perkins' salary and Harden's qualifying offer, the Thunder were looking at nearly $73 million dollars in payroll heading into 2013-14 close to $3 million over the luxury tax line. Looking at 2014-15 where Harden's salary technically comes off the books the Thunder were at $64.5 million in salaries. If he accepted the contract they offered him they'd be paying him around $13.5 million annually and put their total salary at around $78 million. Had they given him the $60 million max that he wanted with what they were giving Perkins his average annual salary would have been $15 million and put their salaries at $80 million for the year, now $22 million over the salary cap and $10 million into the luxury tax. With the new luxury tax provisions in the CBA they would have been paying about $25 million or more on top of the $80 million they already owed bringing them to $105 million in payroll.

Whereas if you take Perkins' $9.2 million that he was owed off the books and gave Harden the max he was asking for, their salary goes to $71 million so they only have to pay $1.50 for every dollar over the tax they spend. They very well could have kept Harden and Ibaka addressing the issues you talked about.

[ojandpizza]

Re: Eastern Conference Playoffs - 1st Round Discussion Thread

Team thought Jackson and Martin would provide everything Harden gave them off the bench without hurting their lineup. And that’s exactly what happened. They won 13 more games the following season and were the 1 seed for the only time with that group. Would have made it back to the finals had Westbrook not gotten hurt in the playoffs.


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