2023 NBA Off-Season: The Season Begins Now (Or As Soon As KD Says It Does)

[Kingspoint]

Your 1st Place in the Western Conference Portland Trailblazers win again!!!

[KoryMac5]

Will Dallas/Cuban ever get Luka enough help to compete for NBA titles?

If so it make take a few years. Right now they’re paying a combined $56 million to Spencer Dinwiddie, Tim Hardaway Jr., and David Bertans. It’s crazy they rank 8th in the NBA for total team salary.

I am shocked they didn't pursue another ballhandler...Doncic's usage rate is unreal and not sustainable. Brunson and Dinwiddie were able to lighten his load last year but Brunson is now in NY and they have not replaced his production. Diwnwiddie has been a nice find he came off the bench last year and is now starting leaving a void. I would expect them to make a move by the deadline but they really don't have much to give. Bad contracts and limited picks...

[KoryMac5]

Your 1st Place in the Western Conference Portland Trailblazers win again!!!

Grant has made a world of difference for them...nice deal for Portland.

[KoryMac5]

Nets are desperate to create any interest in Simmons...

Supposedly they are fabricating stories of teams being interested in him...one being Dallas which ended up being denied quickly.

[Rojo Rijo]

Nets are desperate to create any interest in Simmons...

Supposedly they are fabricating stories of teams being interested in him...one being Dallas which ended up being denied quickly.

It's wild that of the 3 least desirable big contract players in the NBA, the Nets have 2 of them.

[SteelSD]

Nets are desperate to create any interest in Simmons...

Supposedly they are fabricating stories of teams being interested in him...one being Dallas which ended up being denied quickly.

I fear it's only a matter of time before we see Simmons going up against Le'Veon Bell in a sideshow boxing match. After the fight, they can swap stories about how sitting out a season was a real boon to their careers.

Oh, and Simmons will lose. While he has the height and reach advantage, it's easy to predict that4 the first punch Bell lands will knock Ben out cold. After all, everyone knows Simmons can't take a shot.

[Kingspoint]

HOU forces DAL into 43 missed "3"'s!!! 43!!! Mavs were like an addicted gambler trying to recoup their losses.

Knew there were some signature wins coming soon for the Rockets. This is definitely one of them. Their tenacity was too much for the slow-footed, sloth-like Mavs.

[Kingspoint]

Grant has made a world of difference for them...nice deal for Portland.

He becomes eligible for a new contract in about a month. I imagine it will happen quickly and be in the neighborhood of 4 yrs/$112M-$120M.

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153!!!

What? Nobody noticed how many points the Kings put on the Nets in regulation?

[Kingspoint]

Will Dallas/Cuban ever get Luka enough help to compete for NBA titles?

If so it make take a few years. Right now they’re paying a combined $56 million to Spencer Dinwiddie, Tim Hardaway Jr., and David Bertans. It’s crazy they rank 8th in the NBA for total team salary.

The bench PG problem could be solved by trading a 2027 2nd for Dennis Smith, Jr. or offering a 2023 2nd for Seth Curry, as the NETS need future assets. Wouldn't be a bad idea to make both moves as Curry would be a regular rotation player who is also proven in the playoffs, while Smith would be an ideal choice for the Bench. Both Guards play Defense, too. Rozier has returned and Ball is due any day, so Smith is expendable. As far as the Nets, everyone should be expendable. Smith returns to DAL in a more favorable light than we he left. Talk about having a chip on his shoulder. He'll play inspired. Same goes for Curry.

[Kingspoint]

HOU forces DAL into 43 missed "3"'s!!! 43!!! Mavs were like an addicted gambler trying to recoup their losses.

Knew there were some signature wins coming soon for the Rockets. This is definitely one of them. Their tenacity was too much for the slow-footed, sloth-like Mavs.

Back to that HOU/DAL game.

It was in DAL, in-state rival, and the Mavericks were historically bad. I don't know how many records they set for futility, but 30.4 percent shooting has to be close to their worst in franchise history, while also being close to the best Defense in Houston's history. The number of missed "3"'s has to be an NBA record by the MAVS, in addition to a franchise record. DAL had 27 more shot attempts than the Rockets and still made four fewer FG's!!!!

Houston had 17 more blocked shots Defensively than the MAVS, but because they don't count those as Turnovers, Dallas only had 6 turnovers. A blocked shot that leads to the team that blocks the shot getting the ball should register as a Turnover, but it doesn't. Houston, on the other hand, was given credit for having committed 17 more Turnovers than the MAVS, but when you add in blocked shots, it was probably closer to even, with not every blocked shot leading to a change of posession, of course, but the intimidation factor was devastating to the minds of the Mavs. No wonder they couldn't hit any shots, as they were first too worried about where an attempted block was coming from. If this was 3-D chess, the Mavs had all of their pieces on the bottom level while the Rockets were spread around everywhere and at all heights. Dallas could only see in one-dimension while Houston operated, what seemed to Dallas to be, out of three or four dimensions.

Luka didn't play in this one. It should open Cuban's eyes that something must be done to give him Offensive help and more ball-handling as KoryMac said.

[Kingspoint]

In the OKC/WAS game, it was so tight, that no team led by more than 3 points the entire 4th Quarter (8 lead changes).

[Kingspoint]

Nothing like playing Orlando (or the Lakers) for trying to breathe life into a season. The T-Wolves are thankful tonight.

Remarkable comeback by the Knicks tonight in Denver. Coming down from 10 late to take a 5 pt lead only to have Denver tie it up with a minute to go. Anybody's game.

Warriors still can't play a lick of Defense, and they have all of their Starters for all of this season. They have no bench, but the Starters can't play Defense, either (not that Curry ever could). Warriors still winless on the Road (Road wins and Defense are all about effort...their starters haven't had to give the Defensive effort for years early in the season as they always had veterans to do this for them). Kerr has a challenge for them. Can't write them off, of course, as they only need to finish in the Top-10 in the West to be significant come playoff time.

[Kingspoint]

Knicks had not won in DEN since 2006, a 14-game losing streak.

Signature win for the Knicks.

[Kingspoint]

In the 22 minutes that Mathurin was on the floor for the Pacers tonight, the team was -13. In the 26 minutes he was off the floor, they were +25. All season long this has been the case. He can't play a lick of Defense, but, he can surely score. Force-fed the minutes, he's going to do nothing but improve Defensively, eventually, you would think. More focus that direction would certainly help him long-term.

Turner plays 31 minutes, they win again. The problem has been when Turner was not on the floor, but they were still a +2 in those 17 minutes. No Defense at the rim for Charlotte tonight as IND comes from 13 down to win by 12.

[Kingspoint]

Steph Curry scored 50 points tonight. Big Deal.

In the 36 minutes he was on the floor tonight, his team was a -14. In the 12 minutes he was off the floor, they were +3.

[Kingspoint]

Sacramento has the best record in the Western Conference over their last 10 games, while they also have the longest winning streak in the Conference, too.

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Only 2-1/2 Games separate 1st from 9th in the Western Conference.

3 Games separate 1st from 3rd in the Eastern Conference.

[Kingspoint]

Suns are 0-3 against the Eastern Conference. Jazz are 1-3. Kings are 5-1.

[Kingspoint]

BOS is 3-0 against the Western Conference. Cavs are 1-4. Pistons are 2-0. MIL is 4-1. Bulls are 0-4.

[texasdave]

The Rockets blocked 19 shots all told last night against the Mavs. Surprisingly, that was not a team record. That was not even a team record for Houston for the 16th of November. On 11/16/84, they blocked 20 shots versus the Denver Nuggets......and lost the game 119-102. Dallas starters were 2-24 (8.3%) from beyond the arc.

[M2]

In the 22 minutes that Mathurin was on the floor for the Pacers tonight, the team was -13. In the 26 minutes he was off the floor, they were +25. All season long this has been the case. He can't play a lick of Defense, but, he can surely score. Force-fed the minutes, he's going to do nothing but improve Defensively, eventually, you would think. More focus that direction would certainly help him long-term.

Turner plays 31 minutes, they win again. The problem has been when Turner was not on the floor, but they were still a +2 in those 17 minutes. No Defense at the rim for Charlotte tonight as IND comes from 13 down to win by 12.

Mathurin is scoring 25.5 ppg on his per36 and he has a .563 eFG%. He's looking like a steal. To what you said, he seems like a willing defender even if he's not effective at it yet. Seems like he has a strong drive to be a top dog too.

[M2]

Steph Curry scored 50 points tonight. Big Deal.

In the 36 minutes he was on the floor tonight, his team was a -14. In the 12 minutes he was off the floor, they were +3.

Steph is having a stellar year, on +/- too. The Warriors are way off key, but it's not Steph. He's been carrying them.

[Rojo Rijo]

Nothing like playing Orlando (or the Lakers) for trying to breathe life into a season. The T-Wolves are thankful tonight.

Remarkable comeback by the Knicks tonight in Denver. Coming down from 10 late to take a 5 pt lead only to have Denver tie it up with a minute to go. Anybody's game.

Warriors still can't play a lick of Defense, and they have all of their Starters for all of this season. They have no bench, but the Starters can't play Defense, either (not that Curry ever could). Warriors still winless on the Road (Road wins and Defense are all about effort...their starters haven't had to give the Defensive effort for years early in the season as they always had veterans to do this for them). Kerr has a challenge for them. Can't write them off, of course, as they only need to finish in the Top-10 in the West to be significant come playoff time.

Nothing against Minnesota but Orlando was without Paolo and Wendell Carter and continues to be without Cole Anthony.

[M2]

Nothing against Minnesota but Orlando was without Paolo and Wendell Carter and continues to be without Cole Anthony.

Even with them healthy, the Magic look like they have work to do in translating talent into wins. Ross is the only guy older than 24 who's touched the court. They're sort of the classic young team that's going to make a lot of mistakes. Suggs seems like he's showing flashes, though he needs to be more secure with the ball. Bol has been a steal.

[Kingspoint]

Nothing against Minnesota but Orlando was without Paolo and Wendell Carter and continues to be without Cole Anthony.

They have been better all season with Paolo off the floor. Like Mathurin, he can score, but he can't play a lick of Defense. Again, force-fed the minutes, he should eventually get better Defensively, and more focus by him at that end would improve his game and his team results at a more dramatic rate. It's been a bummer about Anthony. Would really like to see him play every game every year. He's such a spark. They picked the right player in Paulo, no doubt.

And, of course, Fultz still has so much upside.

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Steph is having a stellar year, on +/- too. The Warriors are way off key, but it's not Steph. He's been carrying them.

He's carrying them to an 0-8 record on the road. That's something to hang your hat on, the worst record of all 30 teams in the NBA....dead last. It's not a small sample size anymore.

[Kingspoint]

Steph is having a stellar year, on +/- too. The Warriors are way off key, but it's not Steph. He's been carrying them.

He's -6 +/- on the 8 Road games so far this season. Yeah, that's stellar, all right. Stellar crappy. Oh, and that's "per game", so multiply that by 7 (number of games he played) and you get -42 +/- for the season on the road. So, the Warriors are giving away 6 points per game on the road every time he steps on the floor.

Blazers have only 3 players with a negative +/- on the road so far this season, Nurkic (-3.8 in 5 games), Keon Johnson (-7.0 in 2 Games) and Nassir (-2.0 in 8 games). They are led by Rookie Jabari Walker (3.4 in 5 games), Justice Winslow (2.7 in 7 games), Rookie Shaedon Sharpe (2.1 in 7 games) and Anfernee Simons (1.8 in 6 games). The rest are Dame (1.2 in 5 games), Trendon Watford (1.4 in 5 games), Jeremi Grant (0.7 in 7 games), Josh Hart (0.4 in 8 games), Drew Eubanks (0.0 in 8 games), Greg Brown III (8.0 in 1 game) and John Butler, Jr. (8.0 in 1 game).


Curry's Net Rating is -9.7 led by that stellar Defense of 122.6.

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional?Location=Road&dir=A&sort=TEAM_ABBREVIATION

If the Warriors can't figure out how to win on the Road, they aren't going to make the playoffs. As of right now, they are on the outside looking in. How long before they start pointing fingers and they get in another fight?

Andrew Wiggins is -10 in 7 games (-70 total)
Draymond Green is -7.3 in 7 games (-51 total)
Klay Thompson is -3.0 in 7 games (-21 total)
JaMichael Green is -6.7 in 7 games (-47 total)
Jordan Poole is -6.4 in 8 games (-51 total)
Kevon Looney is -3.1 in 8 games (-25 total)
Ty Jerome is -3.2 in 6 games (-19 total)
Jonathan Kuminga is -3.4 in 5 games (-17 total)
James Wiseman is -6.0 in 6 games (-36 total)

Curry's -42 total is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. His average per game is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. (Patrick Baldwin, Jr. is -6.4 in 2 games for a -13 total.)

[Assembly Hall]

Mathurin is scoring 25.5 ppg on his per36 and he has a .563 eFG%. He's looking like a steal. To what you said, he seems like a willing defender even if he's not effective at it yet. Seems like he has a strong drive to be a top dog too.

My plan for the Pacers to tank has been put on hold.

[Kingspoint]

My plan for the Pacers to tank has been put on hold.

But, by force-feeding him minutes, they will lose more often because of it and he'll get better faster.

They seem determined to trade Turner.

[M2]

He's carrying them to an 0-8 record on the road. That's something to hang your hat on, the worst record of all 30 teams in the NBA....dead last. It's not a small sample size anymore.

Eight games is microscopic. And didn't he lead them to another title last year? I think he did. He's scoring 31.5 on a .647 eFG%. That's off-the-charts excellent. He's got a +/- per 100 of 7.5, and an on-off of 23.2. His O rating is 132 vs. a D rating of 114. Steph's doing pretty much everything a human can do. Klay is the one struggling, and Poole is the guy collecting empty calories. Mostly, they've got to sort out the 2nd unit and can't count on Klay to lead it while Steph's catching a breather.

[M2]

Curry's Net Rating is -9.7 led by that stellar Defense of 122.6.

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional?Location=Road&dir=A&sort=TEAM_ABBREVIATION

We've been over this. No serious human should use the NBA.com version of O and D rating. They are abominations. In the real world, Steph is +18 on net rating. Stop using bad statistics.

[Betterread]

He's -6 +/- on the 8 Road games so far this season. Yeah, that's stellar, all right. Stellar crappy. Oh, and that's "per game", so multiply that by 7 (number of games he played) and you get -42 +/- for the season on the road. So, the Warriors are giving away 6 points per game on the road every time he steps on the court.

Curry's -42 total is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. His average per game is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. (Patrick Baldwin, Jr. is -6.4 in 2 games for a -13 total.)

If these numbers signify poor performance, they must be team related. Curry is absolutely dominating play when he is on the court. He will have some bad games and even a slump each year lasting a few games, but that is not the case right now.
The Warriors are a mess while they figure out rotations, plays and schemes with a few new players. But that is not because of Curry.

[Kingspoint]

Eight games is microscopic. And didn't he lead them to another title last year? I think he did. He's scoring 31.5 on a .647 eFG%. That's off-the-charts excellent. He's got a +/- per 100 of 7.5, and an on-off of 23.2. His O rating is 132 vs. a D rating of 114. Steph's doing pretty much everything a human can do. Klay is the one struggling, and Poole is the guy collecting empty calories. Mostly, they've got to sort out the 2nd unit and can't count on Klay to lead it while Steph's catching a breather.

Change the subject when it suits you. You're better than that. I'm talking about road games for the Warriors from the beginning, nothing else. First you bring up total games, now you bring up last year. Then you bring up total games again as you try to change the subject three times. WOW!!!

A fifth of the season (there's only 41 road games) is not microscopic. As Stan Van Gundy said more than a week ago, "It's not like it's 5 games, when he was flat out stating that the first 8 games of a season are substantial, and now we're talking about 8 road games, which comes out to 16 games if it was even out.

As far as your poor understanding of who uses the nba.com O and D Ratings, NBA Coaches do, as I've listened to them quote them over and over and over and over again as barometers of how their teams are doing and where they want their teams to be as far as goals. Don't lessen it for what it is. It's one stat, but it is one that is looked at with a studying eye if you are an NBA Head Coach. All of your "humans" don't qualify as knowledgeable as far as what's important when it compares to NBA Head Coaches.

I quoted my source, btw, for the Warriors' 8-game Road Defensive Ratings to date for this season. Where's yours to support your "made up" +18 Net Rating for the Warriors' Road games this season?


You can't sugarcoat it Betterread, Curry is as much at fault for the 0-8 record as is Green, Wiseman, Poole and Wiggins, while Thompson isn't helping much, either. Curry isn't making those around him better on the road, or the evidence would be there. Instead, all of the evidence shows that he's helping in the chaos.

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If these numbers signify poor performance, they must be team related. Curry is absolutely dominating play when he is on the court. He will have some bad games and even a slump each year lasting a few games, but that is not the case right now.
The Warriors are a mess while they figure out rotations, plays and schemes with a few new players. But that is not because of Curry.

It's physically impossible to dominate play when you are averaging -6 every single road game. The opposite is happening. Curry is being dominated and the bottomline is point differential.

[M2]

Change the subject when it suits you. You're better than that. I'm talking about road games for the Warriors from the beginning, nothing else.

That's a ridiculous subset to be cherrypicking. So it's not changing the subject. It's telling you that you're being absurd.

And, again, the NBA.com O and D ratings are junk. There are good other ones out there. Your refusal to use them leads you down blind alleys and causes you to say painfully obtuse things.

Oh, and here's the RAPTOR ratings (which are pretty well respected) - https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/nba-player-ratings/. They back up what every other holistic stat is telling you: Steph is having a dynamite season so far despite the Warriors grinding their gears.

[Betterread]

Looks like the Portland - Brooklyn game was good one. Looks like Nurkic traveled on the bucket and-one to tie the game at 107.

[BuckeyeRed27]

How many games do the Warriors have to lose until we can make the full circle trade and have the Cavs send Love and some picks for Wiggins?

[RichRed]

The Wiz have been fairly solid, starting 8-7 with some wins (and close losses) against good teams.

Just wanted to get that on the record before they go on the inevitable 5-15 run.

[Betterread]

Bol Bol has really improved. If you squint, he reminds me a little of KD, if he went to the basket more.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Bol Bol has really improved. If you squint, he reminds me a little of KD, if he went to the basket more.

How hard do I have to squint?

[Betterread]

How hard do I have to squint?

A little bit more than usual. Like the difference between squinting in your deerstand for movement, and going for a hike in grizzly bear inhabited territory and squinting to ascertain whether that moving black shape is a grizzly.

[BuckeyeRed27]

A little bit more than usual. Like the difference between squinting in your deerstand for movement, and going for a hike in grizzly bear inhabited territory and squinting to ascertain whether that moving black shape is a grizzly.

About a month ago I was at a lake in Maryland and I took my dog for a walk in the woods at this state park. The first day I got to a fork and turned left and just ended up in a camping area. The next morning I turned right and went up a hill and after about half a mile I got to a sign that said “Unpermitted Hunting Area”. I walked about 20 steps past it, realized I was wearing a black jacket, and quickly turned around.

[M2]

A little bit more than usual. Like the difference between squinting in your deerstand for movement, and going for a hike in grizzly bear inhabited territory and squinting to ascertain whether that moving black shape is a grizzly.

And then you realize it's a postal worker and you're in your living room. Been there.

[Fil3232]

The Kings, yes, the Kings look really competent and fun. Their offense is humming and the defense is coming along (by the eye test, not the rankings…yet). Fox has elevated his game to All Star caliber, Sabonis is Sabonis, Huerter is playing really well, and Barnes/Monk/Murray/Metu/Mitchell provide solid pieces across the court. Playoffs might be on the horizon!

[M2]

The Kings, yes, the Kings look really competent and fun. Their offense is humming and the defense is coming along (by the eye test, not the rankings…yet). Fox has elevated his game to All Star caliber, Sabonis is Sabonis, Huerter is playing really well, and Barnes/Monk/Murray/Metu/Mitchell provide solid pieces across the court. Playoffs might be on the horizon!

The definitely should land in the top 10. Sabonis and Fox seem to have excellent chemistry. Huerter's been a pure assassin, shooting .510 from 3.

[Rojo Rijo]

Bol Bol has really improved. If you squint, he reminds me a little of KD, if he went to the basket more.

Bol Bol is what a lot of people thought Thon Maker was going to be.

[15fan]

Huerter's been a pure assassin, shooting .510 from 3.

Hawks had to move someone to go after Murray. But their 3% has been abysmal so far and no Huerter is definitely part of that. Whenever Bogdonovich comes back it should improve, but until then the Hawks ought to go more midrange like they did in Milwaukee rather than trying to trade 3s like they in the 3q vs Boston.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Cavs made it a little too interesting against Charlotte but got the job done.

[M2]

The Jazz beat the Suns 134-133 in regulation in the Doug Moeiest game of the week. Lauri Markkanen dropped 38. Devin Booker scored 49 in a losing effort.

In other action, Zack LaVine went 1-14 tonight. Woof. Yet Terry Rozier went full playground, heaving up 33 shots (and only making 11). Looks like Rozier tried unsuccessfully to trade baskets with Darius Garland, who scored 41.

[SteelSD]

Against the Bucks, Philly began the game without Harden and Tobias Harris. Tyrese Maxey left at halftime with what appears to be a right ankle injury, after blitzing Milwaukee with 24 first-half points. Yet the Sixers found a way to end up on the right side of a 110-102 win, with both Niang (17 points) and Shake Milton (15 points) contributing off the bench to support Embiid's game-high 32 points. Due to being short-handed, Rivers was forced to play Paul Reed with Embiid, which is something that should happen more often against teams with lanky skilled forwards. And, as usual, Reed locked down Giannis.

Speaking of Giannis, he went full Ben Simmons mode from the line, missing a dazzling 11 of his 15 attempts, to the joy of Sixers fans in the stands- who got free Chick-fil-A to go with the win. After the game, Giannis apparently REALLY needed to shoot himself some more free throws, and this happened:


https://youtu.be/He6D58aetZs

Apparently, Montrezl Harrell wanted to get his own workout in- on his home court- but Giannis wouldn't respect Harrell's request that he leave. So Harrell stole the ball (well done!). By the time Giannis got a new one, the court workers were doing their jobs (the audacity!), leading to the Greek freak's tantrum. I don't dislike the guy, but that's just a really bad look.

[texasdave]

Why is Montrezl Harrell getting so few minutes?

[KoryMac5]

Against the Bucks, Philly began the game without Harden and Tobias Harris. Tyrese Maxey left at halftime with what appears to be a right ankle injury, after blitzing Milwaukee with 24 first-half points. Yet the Sixers found a way to end up on the right side of a 110-102 win, with both Niang (17 points) and Shake Milton (15 points) contributing off the bench to support Embiid's game-high 32 points. Due to being short-handed, Rivers was forced to play Paul Reed with Embiid, which is something that should happen more often against teams with lanky skilled forwards. And, as usual, Reed locked down Giannis.

Speaking of Giannis, he went full Ben Simmons mode from the line, missing a dazzling 11 of his 15 attempts, to the joy of Sixers fans in the stands- who got free Chick-fil-A to go with the win. After the game, Giannis apparently REALLY needed to shoot himself some more free throws, and this happened:


https://youtu.be/He6D58aetZs

Apparently, Montrezl Harrell wanted to get his own workout in- on his home court- but Giannis wouldn't respect Harrell's request that he leave. So Harrell stole the ball (well done!). By the time Giannis got a new one, the court workers were doing their jobs (the audacity!), leading to the Greek freak's tantrum. I don't dislike the guy, but that's just a really bad look.

Most of the great players are really borderline psychotic when you look at it...I would think he will look at this in the AM and be regretful.

[SteelSD]

Why is Montrezl Harrell getting so few minutes?

Some of the Sixers bench pieces (Thybulle, Paul Reed) don't stretch the floor well enough, so having them and Harrell on the floor at the same time creates spacing nightmares. Alternately, others (Milton, Niang) aren't good enough defensively to support Harrell's shortcomings on that side of the ball. Adding to that, there are some lineups with him are exceptionally small.

His best role is probably as a spot-starter when the Sixers load manage Embiid, albeit only when the Sixers are at full health.

[BuckeyeRed27]

The Jazz beat the Suns 134-133 in regulation in the Doug Moeiest game of the week. Lauri Markkanen dropped 38. Devin Booker scored 49 in a losing effort.

In other action, Zack LaVine went 1-14 tonight. Woof. Yet Terry Rozier went full playground, heaving up 33 shots (and only making 11). Looks like Rozier tried unsuccessfully to trade baskets with Darius Garland, who scored 41.

I still can’t believe the Jazz are doing this.

[SteelSD]

Most of the great players are really borderline psychotic when you look at it...I would think he will look at this in the AM and be regretful.

That would be a change, then, because he's already responded to it with this:


"I don't know if I should apologize because I don't feel like I did anything wrong, except the ladder just fell. I feel like it's my right for me to work on my skills after a horrible night at the free throw line. I think anybody in my position that had a night like me would go out and work on his free throws. And if they didn't, they don't really care about their game."

Other than the "I don't know if I should apologize..." (yeah, you should) and "...it's my right..." (not your court, dude) garbage, I don't disagree with anything he's saying IF he's on his home court. It's clear that he has a case of the yips and desperately wants to work them out. But to interfere and potentially injure workers who are trying to ready the court for a game being held the next day? That takes a certain level of "entitled" I really can't comprehend, and don't care to. I wonder if the Bucks don't need to re-think their strategy of acquiescing to his every desire by doing things like employing his brothers as professional basketball's highest-paid cheerleaders. And yeah, I think that's Thanasis with his pom-pons all aggrivated with Giannis in the video.

[KoryMac5]

That would be a change, then, because he's already responded to it with this:



Other than the "I don't know if I should apologize..." (yeah, you should) and "...it's my right..." (not your court, dude) garbage, I don't disagree with anything he's saying IF he's on his home court. It's clear that he has a case of the yips and desperately wants to work them out. But to interfere and potentially injure workers who are trying to ready the court for a game being held the next day? That takes a certain level of "entitled" I really can't comprehend, and don't care to. I wonder if the Bucks don't need to re-think their strategy of acquiescing to his every desire by doing things like employing his brothers as professional basketball's highest-paid cheerleaders. And yeah, I think that's Thanasis with his pom-pons all aggrivated with Giannis in the video.

Now it becomes a bad look...based on the statement.

He has to understand it's not his court and the guys there are getting paid to do a job so they can go home too.

[Mutaman]

Good thing Portis was in the locker room and didn't hear about this. Otherwise Harrell would have gotten hurt and Bobby would have gotten suspended.

[texasdave]

Not good news for Philly. https://www.nba.com/news/76ers-tyrese-maxey-foot-injury

[SteelSD]

Good thing Portis was in the locker room and didn't hear about this. Otherwise Harrell would have gotten hurt and Bobby would have gotten suspended.

Jesus, man. It's not his court and, frankly, I don't think anyone should be terrified of Bobby freakin' Portis, much less Harrell. Portis' entire rep is built off sucker punching a teammate.

And just so you know, Giannis wasn't just preventing the stadium workers from taking the nets down. They had limited time to change over the entire court. Like rip it up and put down a new design in time for today's game. You'd be furious if a visiting player did what Giannis did on your home court.

My wife has always said there's a moment where you can tell famous people have gone crazy. In this case, it got caught on film.

- - - Updated - - -


Not good news for Philly. https://www.nba.com/news/76ers-tyrese-maxey-foot-injury

No worries. We can't have nice things.

[Mutaman]

Sixers should just call it a night tonight. Let their beloved stadium workers take the nets down early and get home to their families.

[goreds2]

Been a great 76ers game. Have a chance to tie it with 4 seconds remaining. Taking a timeout.

[goreds2]

76ers lost by just three. Not bad with 3 starters out. Fun to watch at the end even with the loss.

[Mutaman]

Harrell had a big game tonight-3 points. Hopefully he still has some energy left to make sure no Timberwolves are trying to get in some post game shooting practice.

[SteelSD]

Sixers should just call it a night tonight. Let their beloved stadium workers take the nets down early and get home to their families.

Yeah, I'm sure you'd love it if a Burger King employee popped behind the McDonald's counter and messed with your end-shift fry vat cleaning. You could call Bobby Portis and whine that they stole your fry basket. Maybe he'd bring the lesser Antetokounmpo freeloaders to cheer you up with something from Bring it On. You could all do spirit fingers together!

[SteelSD]

76ers lost by just three. Not bad with 3 starters out. Fun to watch at the end even with the loss.

Valiant comeback from 20 points down. Had the win possibly, but a good chase down block on Melton. That being said, I'm not sure there's a team in the league that can turn the ball over 22 times and win. The officiating was crap tonight (Natalie Sago was borderline incompetent), but there were far too many errant passes. Just hope Embiid's ankle is ok.

[Boston Red]

Utah won at Portland last night?!? What on earth is going on?

[BuckeyeRed27]

Utah won at Portland last night?!? What on earth is going on?

Phoenix and at Portland on a back to back. That’s just legit hard.

[M2]

Utah won at Portland last night?!? What on earth is going on?

Malik Beasley might be the 6th man of the year so far.

[M2]

The World Cup got me thinking for a moment about international basketball. Canada potentially has a killer team. They've got:

SGA
Andrew Wiggins
Jamal Murray
Bennedict Mathurin
Lu Dort
RJ Barrett
Brandon Clarke
Shaedon Sharpe
Dwight Powell
Kelly Olynyk
Dillon Brooks
Chris Boucher

That's a crew that could get after it.

[KoryMac5]

Sacramento drops 137 on Detroit...Mike Brown has them playing wide open.

[texasdave]

Sacramento has allowed 118.5 points per contest over their last 6 games, and won them all. Their offense has been high octane over that same span, ringing up 131.5 per contest.

[M2]

There was a Klay Thompson sighting today in Houston. He went off for 41 against the Rockets. Maybe we can chalk that up to the opponent, but good news for the Dubs if that guy starts showing up.

Cleveland held a Jimmy Butler-less Miami to 87. I'm wondering if Bam Adebayo becomes available if this continues to go wrong. He's a great complementary player, but he's got nothing to complement.

Ben Simmons had his best game for the Nets in a win over the Ja-less Grizzlies.

I'm thinking Mikal Bridges is why no matter who else is in the Suns lineup, they're always kind of good.

No Jokic, no Murray, no Gordon, but the Nuggets beat the Mavericks on the road.

[dubc47834]

He's -6 +/- on the 8 Road games so far this season. Yeah, that's stellar, all right. Stellar crappy. Oh, and that's "per game", so multiply that by 7 (number of games he played) and you get -42 +/- for the season on the road. So, the Warriors are giving away 6 points per game on the road every time he steps on the floor.

Blazers have only 3 players with a negative +/- on the road so far this season, Nurkic (-3.8 in 5 games), Keon Johnson (-7.0 in 2 Games) and Nassir (-2.0 in 8 games). They are led by Rookie Jabari Walker (3.4 in 5 games), Justice Winslow (2.7 in 7 games), Rookie Shaedon Sharpe (2.1 in 7 games) and Anfernee Simons (1.8 in 6 games). The rest are Dame (1.2 in 5 games), Trendon Watford (1.4 in 5 games), Jeremi Grant (0.7 in 7 games), Josh Hart (0.4 in 8 games), Drew Eubanks (0.0 in 8 games), Greg Brown III (8.0 in 1 game) and John Butler, Jr. (8.0 in 1 game).


Curry's Net Rating is -9.7 led by that stellar Defense of 122.6.

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional?Location=Road&dir=A&sort=TEAM_ABBREVIATION

If the Warriors can't figure out how to win on the Road, they aren't going to make the playoffs. As of right now, they are on the outside looking in. How long before they start pointing fingers and they get in another fight?

Andrew Wiggins is -10 in 7 games (-70 total)
Draymond Green is -7.3 in 7 games (-51 total)
Klay Thompson is -3.0 in 7 games (-21 total)
JaMichael Green is -6.7 in 7 games (-47 total)
Jordan Poole is -6.4 in 8 games (-51 total)
Kevon Looney is -3.1 in 8 games (-25 total)
Ty Jerome is -3.2 in 6 games (-19 total)
Jonathan Kuminga is -3.4 in 5 games (-17 total)
James Wiseman is -6.0 in 6 games (-36 total)

Curry's -42 total is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. His average per game is topped only by the Greens, Wiggins and Poole. (Patrick Baldwin, Jr. is -6.4 in 2 games for a -13 total.)

How many games has your boy Dame played this year? Thats right, guess it's not Dame Time yet!!! At least Curry is on the floor contributing.

[Boston Red]

Mike Conley is out two weeks with a knee strain. He's been pretty great so far this year, so we'll see if the Jazz can continue their magical run with him on the bench.

[dubc47834]

Utah won at Portland last night?!? What on earth is going on?

Maybe that's the reason for KP's silence!

[Bourgeois Zee]

Cleveland held a Jimmy Butler-less Miami to 87. I'm wondering if Bam Adebayo becomes available if this continues to go wrong. He's a great complementary player, but he's got nothing to complement.

This is, IMO, great evidence that Tyler Herro is more valuable than you want to accept.

[texasdave]

San Antonio has lost 10 of 11. Their only win came against the Milwaukee Bucks.

[M2]

This is, IMO, great evidence that Tyler Herro is more valuable than you want to accept.

They're an overall negative when he's on the court and went 4-6 before he got injured. I'm not looking at Herro as a critical factor in moving them in either direction.

[KoryMac5]

Jason Kidd just can’t help himself…for some reason he doesn’t feel the need to play Wood more than 25 mins per game it’s mind boggling at this point.

Mavs might be the team most likely to implode if he can’t figure the rotation out.

[Bourgeois Zee]

They're an overall negative when he's on the court and went 4-6 before he got injured. I'm not looking at Herro as a critical factor in moving them in either direction.

And yet, they've fallen apart without him.

And for most of those 10 games, it was he and Adebayo, but not Butler.

Herro's a better player than you give him credit for. (Or grief, as the case may be.)

[Mutaman]

San Antonio has lost 10 of 11. Their only win came against the Milwaukee Bucks.


And Giannis/Jrue did not play in addition to the normal absence of Middleton and Connaughton. Although I recall Milwaukee beat OK City w/o these guys.

[M2]

And yet, they've fallen apart without him.

And for most of those 10 games, it was he and Adebayo, but not Butler.

Herro's a better player than you give him credit for. (Or grief, as the case may be.)

They're 4-6 with him and 3-4 without him. Butler played in 8 of those 10 Herro games. Scored 21.5 (more than Herro). Butler's got a superior +/-, Net Rating and PER this season. I'm not seeing where Herro's a critical factor. I mean, if you want to argue he'd help. Sure, he'd help. I just don't think he'd help a lot, and they need a lot of help.

- - - Updated - - -


San Antonio has lost 10 of 11. Their only win came against the Milwaukee Bucks.

After an early flirtation with competence, they have hit their stride.

[Bourgeois Zee]

They're 4-6 with him and 3-4 without him. Butler played in 8 of those 10 Herro games. Scored 21.5 (more than Herro). Butler's got a superior +/-, Net Rating and PER this season. I'm not seeing where Herro's a critical factor. I mean, if you want to argue he'd help. Sure, he'd help. I just don't think he'd help a lot, and they need a lot of help.

I'm definitely not saying Herro is as good as Butler. IMO, Butler is an All-Star level player who's been a deserving All-NBA player at least a few seasons in his career.

But you shortchange Herro, dismissing him as a JAG. He's better than that.

[Mutaman]

Giannis breaks out of mini slump.

[M2]

I'm definitely not saying Herro is as good as Butler. IMO, Butler is an All-Star level player who's been a deserving All-NBA player at least a few seasons in his career.

But you shortchange Herro, dismissing him as a JAG. He's better than that.

He's a heat check guy who doesn't defend much and will start to be wildly overpaid next year. I actually love irrational confidence players (e.g. Bones Hyland, Jordan Clarkson) because they add a chaos element to the game. I just don't think Herro's a foundational player. If he was due to make half his future contract, he'd be in the take-what-he-gives-you-on-a-given-night-and-be-happy bucket.

[Fil3232]

If you’re not enjoying the Light The Beam fun in Sactown you’re missing out. It’s the funnest, dumbest thing ever. I love it.

[Betterread]

He's a heat check guy who doesn't defend much and will start to be wildly overpaid next year. I actually love irrational confidence players (e.g. Bones Hyland, Jordan Clarkson) because they add a chaos element to the game. I just don't think Herro's a foundational player. If he was due to make half his future contract, he'd be in the take-what-he-gives-you-on-a-given-night-and-be-happy bucket.

I generally agree with you on Herro (some of his heat checks are so hot they transcend opponent and importance of game variables and that is very valuable).
But there is another Miami player that is paid way out of proportion to his production, and that is Kyle Lowry. He makes $28 M, and Max Strus makes under $2 millii, and strus is a better ball player, he plays better team ball and he tries harder on defense and rotations.
I wouldn’t even take him for Dlo, and I want to move Dlo so badly, I would do spare parts for him.

[Kingspoint]

Maybe that's the reason for KP's silence!

Oh, not at all. No silence, though Portland has struggled recently with effort, mostly from the man in the middle, Nurkic. Nurkic has been terrible, horrible, awful, any way you want to put it, over the last four games (no counting tonight) where Portland lost 3 of 4. Portland beat SAS, a game they didn't earn, they lost to the NETS, a game they gave away, they had nothing left in the tank when they faced DAL at the end of their road trip, and they looked like they were the team on the 2nd of a back-to-back instead of UTA. They've lost some of their Defensive intensity over the last 10 days. Tonight at MIL, Nurkic finally showed up, but only in the 1st Half. They are just in the middle of the most difficult part of their season that has them flying more miles over five weeks than most teams fly in 15 weeks. It comes to an end the 2nd week of December, where I had as a goal for POR to be 1 game above .500. They are playing with house money right now as they are ahead of that goal, which gives the team a chance to rest Dame's thigh injury for at least a month with him returning sometime in the 2nd Half of December. By then, Peyton will have been playing for a couple of weeks, so Dame's minutes are well used until he gets back.

On to CLE Wednesday, the second of four on the road, where the hope is to split the trip (the others are @BKN, who just beat us, and the NYK).

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San Antonio has lost 10 of 11. Their only win came against the Milwaukee Bucks.

Those first few wins were with smoke and mirrors (as I mentioned when they were still at .500).

[Kingspoint]

Mike Conley is out two weeks with a knee strain. He's been pretty great so far this year, so we'll see if the Jazz can continue their magical run with him on the bench.

They should, as their success is a team-wide success, not reliant on one player.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Went to the Cavs Hawks game tonight. Fun game, certainly both playoff teams.

First time I’ve got to see Trae live. He’s an excellent rim finisher. He was making tough shots over Allen and Mobley all night, really impressive stuff.

Lavert is hurt and Cedi Osman took his minutes and took advantage. 23 points and hit a clutch 3 to basically seal it.

[M2]

It's not surprising the Celtics and Bucks are at the top of the East. However, the Cavs, Pacers, Wizards and Hawks right behind them is a combination of rising and curious.

[Kingspoint]

It's not surprising the Celtics and Bucks are at the top of the East. However, the Cavs, Pacers, Wizards and Hawks right behind them is a combination of rising and curious.

The Pacers are the interesting ones.

The John Collins' rumors are in the air again, specifically with the Collins to Sacramento discussions. Collins to the Pacers would be good, too.

[M2]

The Pacers are the interesting ones.

The John Collins' rumors are in the air again, specifically with the Collins to Sacramento discussions. Collins to the Pacers would be good, too.

I don't get the persistent Collins rumors. Is he pissed that he's not a main option? Do the Hawks not like him? Does he just hate Trae?

[Kingspoint]

The biggest surprise of the Blazers' season so far has been the emergence of Drew Eubanks. They no longer need to address the backup Center position.

The thought was that Hart and his $12.5M contract would be moved at the dealine for a quality backup Center, but Eubanks has been much better than Nurkic for most of the season, while Nurkic has been getting worse and Eubanks has been getting better over the last three weeks.

Nurkic will improve as he continues to work under Billups' system. But, with the emergence of Eubanks, not only is there not a dropoff when Nurkic comes off the floor, but for the last three weeks, the middle has been much better on both ends of the floor, especially on the Defensive end of the floor.

The 2nd biggest surprise has been the effectiveness of Jeremi Grant,... no matter who he is on the floor with, though he's much better with Eubanks than with Nurkic. Grant is playing like an All-Star on both ends of the floor and has been the best player on the team, with Dame being the 2nd best.

The 3rd biggest surprise has been the play of Justice Winslow, who does everything asked of him from playing PG to guarding the best big or the best guard or the best forward on the other team. He doesn't commit turnovers, he moves the ball as good as anyone on the team, while his Defense is excellent. Winslow can't be signed until the off-season, but resigning him needs to be a priority, one that Chauncey will fight for (he'll fight for keeping Hart, too, but he'll lose that one as Hart will cost twice as much).

From what I've seen so far this season, though I've seen very little of the other Rookies, Shaedon Sharpe has been the most efficient Rookie in the NBA so far if you look at each player's entire game and their personal impact towards winning games. Sharpe has very few negatives, where it's been very few times he's had to come off the floor because of poor play, while most top rookies don't come off the floor for their poor play. Sharpe has earned every minute and is playing better than Simons is playing. His responsibilities are far fewer, so if he had Simons' responsibilities, he'd probably fail miserably at it. That has to be taken into account, which is why he's been able to be so efficient. But, he's still getting around 20 minutes per game with the minutes being highly effective, better than NBA average.

While Josh Hart has struggled Offensively, he's started to pick it up the last three games. With Dame out a month, that trend will continue as more will be asked of him Offensively. But, more than any other player on the team this season, if there's a play to be made, Josh Hart is the one who's there making it. Nobody plays harder than he does and he does it for 32 minutes non-stop every game. Yes, Dame will be out for a while, but this team is so much more than Dame with Hart, Winslow and Eubanks playing so well. We can't improve the franchise by moving him for a draft pick or another player at the deadline. Better to play out the season and see how far we can go in the playoffs (I still think the NBA Finals) and let him walk in the off-season than to get cheap and try to convert his contract into someone who won't contribute as much as he will in 2022-23, but will give the franchise an asset for later seasons.

Keon Johnson has now missed 8 games in a row with no sign of his return. He was just starting to play well when he got injured. Little continues to benefit from this missed playing time, along with Trendon Watford. Blazers' players are very interchangeable as most can play 3 or 4 positions. Watford needs minutes now. Peyton needs them when he returns. So, Dame being out is not a bad thing, especially with us having already won 10 games.

Lots of work to do, lots of improvement to make, successes to discover, one game at a time.

- - - Updated - - -


I don't get the persistent Collins rumors. Is he pissed that he's not a main option? Do the Hawks not like him? Does he just hate Trae?

I think it's a cap issue with them prioritizing monies elsewhere.

[KoryMac5]

I don't get the persistent Collins rumors. Is he pissed that he's not a main option? Do the Hawks not like him? Does he just hate Trae?

He's the 4th option now on that team...behind Trae, Murray, and Hunter. He also makes 23.5 million to be that option.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/mortenjensen/2022/11/13/its-time-to-trade-john-collins-so-he-can-grow-elsewhere/?sh=4c5c1e8a5a68

[M2]

The 76ers reminding people why they're supposed to be good. No Embiid, no Harden, no Maxey and they beat the Nets' full squad. Tobias Harris scored 24, De'Anthony Melton added 22 and Philly had a 49-35 rebounding edge (including 20 ORBs).

[SteelSD]

Philly, down Harden, Maxey, and Embiid beat a full-strength Nets team, and pretty handily. Tobias Harris, even nursing a sore hip and rolling his ankle during the game, came out of his offensive coma to drop a game high 24 points, with 22 from Melton (6-10 from deep), and a 19-point/10 board game from a guy the announcers called "Patrick" Reed for most of the first half. The commentators learned B-ball Paul's first name in the second half as he just dominated the offensive glass and played rock-solid defense, finishing with a game-high +21. Thank goodness that P.J. Tucker did as well, holding Kevin Durant to only 14 shots, because Tucker hasn't hit a shot in four games.

As for the Nets...what a poorly-constructed marshmallow-soft team. Simmons seems interested in defense, although his most memorable contribution was to give the Sixers' crowd free chicken. But the rest of that squad is almost laughably inept, if not completely allergic to the concept. Three 6'10 or taller players in the starting lineup, but Brooklyn got out-rebounded on the offensive glass 20 to 4 (by a bad offensive rebounding team), leading to a 49 to 35 total boards gap in Philly's favor.

The Sixers will need to get similar contributions from the bench tomorrow night, as Embiid will miss another game with a tweaked ankle suffered against the T'Wolves.

[Revering4Blue]

The 76ers reminding people why they're supposed to be good. No Embiid, no Harden, no Maxey and they beat the Nets' full squad. Tobias Harris scored 24, De'Anthony Melton added 22 and Philly had a 49-35 rebounding edge (including 20 ORBs).

After dusting off the proverbial mothballs, Paul Reed was also impressive tonight.

Simply put, barring significant injuries playoff time, there are no excuses for Doc. There are enough elements on the bench to either produce and/or be part of a trading deadline package for further help.

As for the Nets, is TJ Warren ever going to be healthy enough to see the floor? He definitely could help, and must eventually.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[M2]

Someone break up the Kings. They went into Memphis tonight and got a road win.

[Betterread]

Philly, down Harden, Maxey, and Embiid beat a full-strength Nets team, and pretty handily. Tobias Harris, even nursing a sore hip and rolling his ankle during the game, came out of his offensive coma to drop a game high 24 points, with 22 from Melton (6-10 from deep), and a 19-point/10 board game from a guy the announcers called "Patrick" Reed for most of the first half. The commentators learned B-ball Paul's first name in the second half as he just dominated the offensive glass and played rock-solid defense, finishing with a game-high +21. Thank goodness that P.J. Tucker did as well, holding Kevin Durant to only 14 shots, because Tucker hasn't hit a shot in four games.

As for the Nets...what a poorly-constructed marshmallow-soft team. Simmons seems interested in defense, although his most memorable contribution was to give the Sixers' crowd free chicken. But the rest of that squad is almost laughably inept, if not completely allergic to the concept. Three 6'10 or taller players in the starting lineup, but Brooklyn got out-rebounded on the offensive glass 20 to 4 (by a bad offensive rebounding team), leading to a 49 to 35 total boards gap in Philly's favor.

The Sixers will need to get similar contributions from the bench tomorrow night, as Embiid will miss another game with a tweaked ankle suffered against the T'Wolves.
Philly Bench is showing up and competing - two games in a row with Maxey and Embiid out (who cares if Harden’s out - the offense with him leading it is super boring Isoball). BBall Paul, and the Milton/Melton backcourt are balling out. It’s not a long term thing, and Philly fans will want to forget that the backup backcourt is shooting WAAY better than the starting backcourt but when everybody’s healthy it will give Philly options if Harden chokes again in the playoffs.

[Kingspoint]

Miami-Dade County has filed a motion in federal court to immediately terminate the FTX Arena naming rights agreement, Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press tweets. The Heat and Miami-Dade County chose to sever ties with cryptocurrency giant FTX after the company filed for bankruptcy.

[Kingspoint]

You try to run with Sacramento and you're going to lose the game.

Fox is hitting his "3"'s this season. That makes him as lethal as any player in the NBA.

Heuter is one of the top-five pure shooters in the NBA.

Murray was by far the most advanced player to enter the league from his draft class.

Sacramento still needs another big, but if they add Collins, then Collins will have to play some Center, along with Murray playing some "3" when Collins plays "4", and Barnes plays less. Ideally, they need to find a way to trade for Olynyck, not Collins, if Utah will let him go at the trade deadline, which they should, I would think.

I know Rashaun Holmes didn't mesh well with Sabonis on the floor at the same time last season, but I don't understand why Holmes can't be a functional backup Center for them. Looks like they are just going to run you to death with Metu and, especially, Lyles, when Sabonis or Murray are on the bench. Murray always makes the right play. He's a phenomenal Rookie and should get Rookie of the Year. His games don't get watched by 95% of the country, so he's at a huge disadvantage there. He also does so many things that don't show up on the scoreboard, as they say.

[Kingspoint]

And, this is why no team will ever win another post-season tournament with Rudy Gobert on it. Quin Snyder did the best anyone could possibly do, and took a team with Gobert on it as far as he could go, but Gobert is so over-rated. There's so much more to basketball than blocked shots and dunks.

"Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert wants to hear more supportive, rather than fickle, fans in the home crowd, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes. Minnesota has won four straight games, but has heard plenty of boos from the home crowd, including during Monday’s win over Miami. “I just don’t appreciate people that come in to boo your team,” said Gobert, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition. “When you’re a fan, you’ve got to support your team in the tough or the good moments. There’s no team in NBA history that only had good moments, so if you’re not going to support us in the tough moments, just stay home.”"


Sorry, Betterread, but until Gobert is gone, MIN will never win a playoff series. They would actually become a much better team if he was injured during the entire playoffs. They they would win at least one series, if not more.

[Kingspoint]

So many players aren't accountable for themselves to their teammates. It's so nice to hear someone speak like this. Don't get me wrong, as I think most players are accountable, but way too many are not at all, and it's the Stars that are the least accountable.

"Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has come to the realization that he needs to do the dirty work to live up to his contract, Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes. “Offense for me should be on autopilot,” Porter said. “I should be focused on the intangibles, the defense, the rebounding, the dirty work. Then that just involves you in the game. If you’re struggling on offense and you’re also not rebounding or playing defense, then it’s like, ‘Why is he out there right now?'”


Of course, as a Blazer fan, I don't like seeing this. It's scary to think what level Porter will rise to as he improves every year.

[Betterread]

You try to run with Sacramento and you're going to lose the game.

Fox is hitting his "3"'s this season. That makes him as lethal as any player in the NBA.

Heuter is one of the top-five pure shooters in the NBA.

Murray was by far the most advanced player to enter the league from his draft class.

Sacramento still needs another big, but if they add Collins, then Collins will have to play some Center, along with Murray playing some "3" when Collins plays "4", and Barnes plays less. Ideally, they need to find a way to trade for Olynyck, not Collins, if Utah will let him go at the trade deadline, which they should, I would think.

I know Rashaun Holmes didn't mesh well with Sabonis on the floor at the same time last season, but I don't understand why Holmes can't be a functional backup Center for them. Looks like they are just going to run you to death with Metu and, especially, Lyles, when Sabonis or Murray are on the bench. Murray always makes the right play. He's a phenomenal Rookie and should get Rookie of the Year. His games don't get watched by 95% of the country, so he's at a huge disadvantage there. He also does so many things that don't show up on the scoreboard, as they say.

Sacramento won because Ja Morant flexed and gave the "too small" gesture while trailing with 5 seconds left, then missed the potential game tying free throws. Yeah, he’s the future of the association.

- - - Updated - - -


So many players aren't accountable for themselves to their teammates. It's so nice to hear someone speak like this. Don't get me wrong, as I think most players are accountable, but way too many are not at all, and it's the Stars that are the least accountable.

"Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has come to the realization that he needs to do the dirty work to live up to his contract, Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes. “Offense for me should be on autopilot,” Porter said. “I should be focused on the intangibles, the defense, the rebounding, the dirty work. Then that just involves you in the game. If you’re struggling on offense and you’re also not rebounding or playing defense, then it’s like, ‘Why is he out there right now?'”


Of course, as a Blazer fan, I don't like seeing this. It's scary to think what level Porter will rise to as he improves every year.

Porter might say those things but he doesn’t consistently do them.

[Betterread]

And, this is why no team will ever win another post-season tournament with Rudy Gobert on it. Quin Snyder did the best anyone could possibly do, and took a team with Gobert on it as far as he could go, but Gobert is so over-rated. There's so much more to basketball than blocked shots and dunks.

"Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert wants to hear more supportive, rather than fickle, fans in the home crowd, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes. Minnesota has won four straight games, but has heard plenty of boos from the home crowd, including during Monday’s win over Miami. “I just don’t appreciate people that come in to boo your team,” said Gobert, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition. “When you’re a fan, you’ve got to support your team in the tough or the good moments. There’s no team in NBA history that only had good moments, so if you’re not going to support us in the tough moments, just stay home.”"


Sorry, Betterread, but until Gobert is gone, MIN will never win a playoff series. They would actually become a much better team if he was injured during the entire playoffs. They they would win at least one series, if not more.
They’re booing the team when they see poor effort levels. Seems justified to me. The Twolves are working on a number of individual and team aspects that are not good enough right now. But these comments from Gobert remind me of similar comments from last year at the same time of year by Dlo.

[M2]

On the basketball side, the problem with Gobert seems to be he's clogging up the spacing for Ant and KAT. He needs a Brook Lopez pick-and-pop game, or he's going to keep being in the way.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Since LeBron has gone down, Anthony Davis has gone full-on All-World.

4th in the league in PER, 1st in rebounding, and a ridiculous 3.8 steals + blocks per game.

That works out to a career-high (15 games) offensive rating of 123 and a 103 defensive rating.

If you're working on your 1st team All-NBA team, AD should probably be your top center.

[Fil3232]

Since LeBron has gone down, Anthony Davis has gone full-on All-World.

4th in the league in PER, 1st in rebounding, and a ridiculous 3.8 steals + blocks per game.

That works out to a career-high (15 games) offensive rating of 123 and a 103 defensive rating.

If you're working on your 1st team All-NBA team, AD should probably be your top center.

Good to see AD playing well but he’s got to do it for a lot longer to supplant Embiid or Jokic as All-NBA center imo.

- - - Updated - - -

That Kings/Grizz game last night was playoff-type intense. Big monkey for the Kings to get a win against Memphis, especially in Memphis. I thought the refs weren’t doing many favors for Sacramento either.

[M2]

Good to see AD playing well but he’s got to do it for a lot longer to supplant Embiid or Jokic as All-NBA center imo.

Also, AD's case is going to be far less compelling if the Lakers finish deep in the lottery.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Also, AD's case is going to be far less compelling if the Lakers finish deep in the lottery.

His numbers are, 15 games into the season, dominant.

From Andrew Lopez, on another dominant All-NBA type player so far this season:


In last Wednesday's game against the Washington Wizards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left. It was the fourth tying or go-ahead 3-pointer he has hit in the final five seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime in the past two seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. That's twice as many as any other player during that span. Another Stats & Info nugget: Gilgeous-Alexander became the second player to record 10 games of 30 points and 50% shooting in his first 14 games of the season -- joining Wilt Chamberlain, who did it in 1962-63.

[M2]

His numbers are, 15 games into the season, dominant.

They are, but he'll have a Boogie Cousins type of case while I'm guessing a few of the league's dominant centers will be on top teams.

[SteelSD]

Good to see AD playing well but he’s got to do it for a lot longer to supplant Embiid or Jokic as All-NBA center imo.

Especially since Anthony Davis is a damned power forward, not a center.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Especially since Anthony Davis is a damned power forward, not a center.

I'd ask you to watch a Lakers game, but why subject yourself to needless pain? Take my word for it-- he's playing center this season.

[Kingspoint]

Good to see AD playing well but he’s got to do it for a lot longer to supplant Embiid or Jokic as All-NBA center imo.

- - - Updated - - -

That Kings/Grizz game last night was playoff-type intense. Big monkey for the Kings to get a win against Memphis, especially in Memphis. I thought the refs weren’t doing many favors for Sacramento either.

The Sacramento franchise has many "hurdles" to overcome in order to build their success. A big win on the road against a playoff team is one of them. It builds a confidence that carries itself throughout the team for future games.

[M2]

I'd ask you to watch a Lakers game, but why subject yourself to needless pain? Take my word for it-- he's playing center this season.

It's a big part of why he's playing better. He's taking more than 60% of his shots from inside of 10 feet. He's made peace with being an oversized human without a lot of shooting range. Just be unstoppable around the basket.

[Kingspoint]

Look at the T-Wolves!

Jumping out to a 27-10 lead in Indianapolis against the scorching-hot Pacers.

[Kingspoint]

POR not solving anything against CLE. Cavs on a 30-9 run right now. POR timeout.

[SteelSD]

I'd ask you to watch a Lakers game, but why subject yourself to needless pain? Take my word for it-- he's playing center this season.

I've had the misfortune of watching them play. I'm not a big believer that a forward becomes a center just because he's the tallest guy on the floor.

I do, however, sometimes feel that I need to give that Reaves kid his allowance when I see him. He looks like Jake Guentzel's little brother, which is scary because Guentzel doesn't look old enough to have one of those.

[Betterread]

Look at the T-Wolves!

Jumping out to a 27-10 lead in Indianapolis against the scorching-hot Pacers.

Good win for the Twolves. Pacers are a good team, particularly at home. Turner and Mathurin were very good. First time I have seen Mathurin, and he was impressive. Halliburton got outplayed by Dlo, which was a nice surprise.

[Kingspoint]

One of the most effective moves of the off-season was Sacramento signing Malik Monk and the Lakers not finding a way to do so.

Monk has been fantastic for the Kings and is as much responsible for their success as Sabonis, Fox, Heurter or Murray.

[KoryMac5]

If Boston is going to shoot like that from 3 they are going to be tough to beat....

[Bourgeois Zee]

If Boston is going to shoot like that from 3 they are going to be tough to beat....

Brown looks to have taken that step forward in his development. 15 games into the season, he's one of a few who look to be on whole new levels.

That's largely the reason why Boston's been so good.

[Bourgeois Zee]

I've had the misfortune of watching them play. I'm not a big believer that a forward becomes a center just because he's the tallest guy on the floor.

They announce him as the center in the opening lineups, he plays in the middle of the floor most of the time, he defends the other team's center. He's leading the league in rebounding and is second in the league in blocks behind Brook Lopez-- I mean, I'm not sure what your claim here really is. In every conceivable way, he's been the Lakers' center since opening night. From AD himself, (https://twitter.com/SpectrumSN/status/1589858294205587456) talking about the differences between "then" (a couple of seasons ago) and "now" (this season):


“It was a little different because I was able to roam a lot. I was playing the 4 then, JaVale was playing the 5 and Dwight [Howard] was playing the 5, so guarding the perimeter and knowing I got them guys behind me or weak-side helps, getting blocks on the weak side. Now when I’m at the 5, I’m the one in action – pick-and-rolls, one guarding the post, things like that. We were flying around, we were really good defensively. We’re really good defensively this year as well. I think roles just changed a little bit as far as me as far as positions. In ’19-20 I was a roamer where I can be on whoever the 4 is and roam around and help protect everyone. It’s tough for me to do that when I’m guarding the 5.”

Notice how he's used against Phoenix here-- he's the guy in the middle of the floor setting the pick, then rolling or popping. That's typically the job of the center in most offenses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZWbmcBRoFE

It's the exact same role Joel Embiid plays in Philadelphia and Jokic plays in Denver.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2TLhRsoQeY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PJGN0CiTMQ

[SteelSD]

And that, folks, is why you can't count on bench players to be starters over time. The Sixers, getting to their Charlotte hotel at 1:30 AM, and with no Maxey, Harden, Embiid, Thybulle, and half the rest of the team banged up, played like zombies after a promising first quarter to drop an eminently winnable game to a really bad Hornets squad. Turnovers- 19 of them, some terrible, others confusing (do officials really know what travelling is?)- reared their ugly head again. Still clearly sleepy, Philly left shots short all night from point-blank range out past the three point line.

P.J. Tucker finally hit a shot, finishing with what seems like a November-high 3 points while setting records for offensive futility. At his current level of production, the Sixers really need to consider bringing him off the bench- starting him only situationally- because he's been a complete black hole offensively. They'll suit up again tomorrow night for the first of two home games against Orlando, the second of which is the first half of a back-to-back (their fourth in about two weeks) against Atlanta, which smells like a schedule loss given how banged up they are right now. I expect the Sixers to go W/L/W/L for a while until they get reasonably healthy, unless Embiid continues to play out of his mind.

[SteelSD]

They announce him as the center in the opening lineups, he plays in the middle of the floor most of the time, he defends the other team's center. He's leading the league in rebounding and is second in the league in blocks behind Brook Lopez-- I mean, I'm not sure what your claim here really is. In every conceivable way, he's been the Lakers' center since opening night. From AD himself, (https://twitter.com/SpectrumSN/status/1589858294205587456) talking about the differences between "then" (a couple of seasons ago) and "now" (this season):

Anthony Davis is a power forward. But he's very tall. You have a good Thanksgiving.

[goreds2]

The injury riddled 76ers just now won in Orlando 107 to 99.

[Kingspoint]

The injury riddled 76ers just now won in Orlando 107 to 99.

Sixers are 2nd in the NBA in catch-and-shoot 3-pt percentage. So, they have guys who can shoot throughout the team.

[Mutaman]

Lopez had 6 blocks tonite. Got me wondering as to the record-17 by Elmore Smith.

[Mutaman]

As in Philly, folks messing with Giannis' post game free throw routine in Milwaukee.

18982

[SteelSD]

The injury riddled 76ers just now won in Orlando 107 to 99.

Shake nearly had a triple-double, finishing with 24 points, 9 boards, and a career-high 10 assists. He also had a couple good defensive moments. That being said, his handle still makes me cringe and Orlando attempted to exploit that by double-teaming him out past the top of the key in the second half, with some success. P.J. Tucker had another 0-for game, finishing with 0 points in 25 minutes. After starting, Tucker was on the pine for the final minutes of the game, when Rivers usually rotates his starters back in. Those minutes went to Georges Niang, who clearly worked hard in the offseason on both his defense and driving to the basket. Niang had one end-of-quarter drive against Bol Bol where he hit a spin-o-rama, looking more like an SUV than a mini-bus. De'Anthony Melton was a defensive menace again- finishing with four steals, Tobias ended up with a 23 point/10 board double-double, and Montrezl posted one of his better lines of the season while finishing a team-high +16. Paul Reed couldn't breathe without being called for a foul, picking up his 6th late in the game. But he also had 6 offensive boards, so we'll forgive him. The officials, however...ew.

OMG, is Orlando a tall team- with four of the five starters ranging anywhere between 6'10" and 7'2". I'm just not sure the pieces fit together. And while I know that Jalen Suggs is capable of having good games, he didn't look a lot like an NBA player in his 19 minutes last night, finishing with a Tucker (0 points). Paolo Banchero, however, did look like a real NBA player and is already getting veteran "Star" foul calls on the offensive side of the ball. If he improves from deep, he's going to be a problem. I heart Franz Wagner's game and motor. Bol Bol was also interesting, but I think the starting lineup might be better with either he or Mo Bamba coming off the bench. Regardless, there wasn't any "quit" in that team last night, that's for sure. Played hard until the very end. Philly will see them again tomorrow.

I'm not sure if Embiid made the trip to Orlando, but he missed his third game in a row last night after it was expected that he might be out only two. It may be that the Sixers won't have him on the court until they return home to play the back end of (another) back-to-back against Atlanta.

[SteelSD]

As in Philly, folks messing with Giannis' post game free throw routine in Milwaukee.

18982

Awww, it's so cute that Giannis has Thannis and Alex on the court with him for his post-game workout. Is the guy under the basket there to defend the brothers against random feral stepladder attacks? One can't be too safe I suppose...

[M2]

A quick look at the scoring differential leaders:

Phoenix: 7.3
Boston: 6.9
Cleveland: 6.7
New Orleans: 5.6
Milwaukee: 4.6
Dallas: 2.7
Indiana: 2.3
Philadelphia: 2.3
Sacramento: 2.0
Utah: 1.7

Thoughts:

- I would argue this is telling you which teams are the most dangerous better than W-L.
- Milwaukee's kind of scary given that they haven't had Middleton and they've been banged up.
- Check out that gap behind them. That's the distance between good and elite.
- Utah's been dropping like a stone of late. Don't expect them to last in the top 10 much longer.
- Cleveland and Nola look like they're for real. Dallas is due to go on a run.
- Way to go Pacers.
- The Suns and Celtics are going to be tough to beat. I underestimated both of them.

[texasdave]

Denver has played just 6 home games so far, as opposed to 13 on the road. Still, they are just one-half game out of the top spot in the West.

[M2]

Denver has played just 6 home games so far, as opposed to 13 on the road. Still, they are just one-half game out of the top spot in the West.

And they have two key players still finding their form after a year off. Top contenders definitely should have gotten more distance on them before they snap into form and play more home games.

[Kingspoint]

DEN is a full 1 game out.

Denver has played just 6 home games so far, as opposed to 13 on the road. Still, they are just one-half game out of the top spot in the West.

POR has played 8 home and 12 on the road, soon to be 9 and 14. They are only 2 games out, pending what happens this afternoon in BKN. And Dame has only played 9 games, with Simons, Nurk, Hart and Winslow all having missed multiple games.

[SteelSD]

Both Philly, still without it's top 3 stars, and Orlando started out blistering hot from the field, but the Sixers maintained that pace to turn a fairly close first-quarter into a laugher by halftime. Shooting 65% from the field with 72 points in the paint against a significantly taller opponent, the Sixers rung up 133 points on only 77 shots and cruised to a 30-point win. Leaving early to nurse an injured ankle, P.J. Tucker again posted 0 points and now has one made field goal in his last 7 games. I heard something about Tucker being close to Dennis Rodman's career "record" of most 0-point/30 minute games. I don't hate Tucker with the passion of a million burning Al Hofords, but damn. Thankfully, Philly got season-high point performances from starters Tobias Harris (27 pts) and Shake Milton (29 points), with Furkan Korkmaz (17 points) and Danuel House Jr. (19 points???) both coming off the bench to hit their own season-highs.

Paul Reed pitched in his second double-double of the season with 12 points, 13 boards, and a game-high +28. So we'll forgive his five turnovers, aquired by dribbling. Please stop, Paul. Please. And I'm actually terrified every time Danuel House leaves his feet on a drive to the rim, because I don't know whether the landing will result in his wife being widowed. Just about every body part except his feet hit the floor when he comes down. And Georges Niang had three more nice drives to the hoop; one a nifty and-one reverse layup. It's like watching a mini-bus doing a wheelie.

[KoryMac5]

Mavs to sign Kemba Walker...good move if he is healthy. I know his knees were pretty bad in NY so we will see. They have lost 4 straight and are grasping at anything before they drown.

[Kingspoint]

I simply don't understand this one.

Lakers by 3-1/2 over the Pacers tonight in LA.

The Lakers have won 5 of 6. Big deal! Three were over the Spurs and one over the Pistons. If the three worst teams in the league have to play each other, somebody has to win. While DET has played much better lately, they haven't played well enough to be even average as a team in the NBA. The Spurs have been playing like a bottom-three team in the league for the last 16 games. They look destined to have the worst record in the league.

[Kingspoint]

Siakam returns to TOR's lineup tonight after a long absence. He doesn't have to face Jarret Allen, who will miss tonight's matchup.

76ers still short-handed, but will probably find a way to win again. They play the Hawks, who are also short-handed.

[Kingspoint]

The ghost of the former HC of the San Diego Conquistadors entered the body of Ivaca Zubac against the Myles Turner-led Pacers last night to the tune of 29 Rebounds, 31 points on an .824 FG%, 3 Assists and 3 Blocks. The only part of Zubac to show up was the 3-3 FT shooting. A showing like that Defensively by Myles Turner didn't encourage the Lakers brass to pull the trigger on the 2027 and 2029 1st Rd picks without conditions. Turner has another chance tonight to show what he's made of. The endorsement differences between Indianapolis and Los Angeles are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Turner should give everything he has tonight. (Hield missed 8 of 9 "3"'s and 11 of 14 shots altogether last night....he and Turner both blowed big-time and were the main two reasons why the Pacers lost last night. They were obviously thinking ahead to tonight's game vs the Lakers.) It sucks that this one isn't on television, especially with all of the force-fed crappy games we get of the Lakers anyway.

[Kingspoint]

Mavs to sign Kemba Walker...good move if he is healthy. I know his knees were pretty bad in NY so we will see. They have lost 4 straight and are grasping at anything before they drown.

That would be a much better fit for Walker. There was zero chance of things working out well in Boston.

[Kingspoint]

The Rockets continue to pick up quality wins as that franchise develops a strong foundation.

[Kingspoint]

As of January 6, Jerami Grant will be eligible for a veteran extension worth up to $112.65MM over four years. The offer will certainly be made. It's an $8M/yr amount more than his last/current contract. We'll see if it's enough, or if POR is going to have to go into a bidding war over the Summer for a 5-year deal at a higher per year amount.

[Kingspoint]

The Bulls, sitting at 8-11, have four games remaining on their road trip.

Where is a win going to come from?

They play @UTA, @PHO, @GSW and @SAC.

[Kingspoint]

November 27th, 2022 at 9:41am CST by Luke Adams

Nets forward T.J. Warren is targeting a December 2 return vs. Toronto, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Instagram video link). That would mean Warren would remain sidelined for three more games before making his season debut at home on Friday. Warren, who signed with Brooklyn as a free agent during the offseason, has been on the shelf since December 29, 2020 due to foot problems, so if he can make it back this week, it would be his first NBA game action in nearly two years. Although the Nets haven’t confirmed Charania’s report, the team has been sharing positive updates on Warren’s rehab process. Most recently, head coach Jacque Vaughn said on Friday that the veteran had progressed to a “mix of five-on-five with coaches and players,” per Mark W. Sanchez of The New York Post.

Warren was one of the NBA’s most impressive players during the 2020 bubble in Orlando, averaging 31.0 PPG in six games to increase his season-long scoring average for 2019/20 to a career-high 19.8 PPG on .536/.403/.819 shooting. The Nets presumably aren’t expecting to see that version of Warren right out of the gate following such a lengthy absence. But even if he’s not quite his old self, the 29-year-old is capable of providing a boost to the club’s offense, and he has the size and athleticism necessary to guard multiple positions on defense.

[Kingspoint]

Another slow start for the T-Wolves,...down 23-10 after 6 minutes. When are they going to figure things out? Their record is fine, but it seems like they should be so much better, while they have lost some terrible games to teams that aren't very good.

[Kingspoint]

One analysis regarding MIN:

November 26th, 2022 at 9:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rudy Gobert understood that the Timberwolves‘ adjustment wouldn’t be easy after shaking up their roster to acquire him from Utah, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Not only did Minnesota give up five players in the deal, the team committed to an entirely different style of play with Gobert clogging the middle and forming a modern-day Twin Towers alongside Karl-Anthony Towns. Nineteen games into the season, Gobert’s concerns have been proven correct. The Wolves are a game above .500, but they’ve had some ugly losses along the way, including Friday’s at Charlotte, where it’s seemed like the pieces don’t really fit together. “Each bad game, they’re going to be ready to talk. That’s great. We love it,” Gobert said before the season began.

“That’s part of the process. Nothing great comes easy. If it was going to happen in one game, that wouldn’t be worth having. We gotta work hard and work every night to get better.” After a 5-8 start, Minnesota had strung together five straight wins before Friday. But perimeter defenders have been relying too much on Gobert to bail them out after their man drives by, Krawczynski observes, and the chemistry between Gobert and D’Angelo Russell on the pick-and-roll remains a work in progress. “Sometimes, you know, passes are tough. Sometimes I fumble it,” Gobert said. “Most of the time, I get it and something good happens. As long as we can keep that trust and I can try to put myself in the right spots for him to find me and whether it’s that pocket pass or that lob, any pass actually, just trusting me.”

[Kingspoint]

While clearly the Pacers significantly improved once Myles Turner returned, a lot of the success is being credited to the dynamic Haliburton...

November 26th, 2022 at 8:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pacers were expected to be one of the NBA’s worst teams before the season began, but they’re fourth in the East after 18 games, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. The turnaround that led to the 11-7 start began in February with a trade that brought Tyrese Haliburton from the Kings. The electrifying 22-year-old guard quickly took charge of his new team. “He immediately saw the opportunity to be the leader of a franchise,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He never looked at if it was just his thing just by virtue of being here. He knew he had to do the right things, put the work in, not skip steps. He’s done everything we could have asked. … Haliburton has been a godsend for this franchise.”

Haliburton is putting up numbers that should have him in contention for an All-Star berth with 19.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and a league-leading 11.1 assists per game. He’s creating good shots for his teammates, and he’s running the show with a relaxed demeanor that keeps everyone at ease. “There’s a lot of authentic people in this room,” Haliburton said. “And a lot of people who feel like we have something to prove. We don’t come with a lot of egos. We’re a lot of young guys who feel like we have a lot to prove to ourselves and others and understanding the best way for us to prove anything is to win. And obviously guys have a chip on our shoulder. Every major writer in America, it feels like, put us 15th in the East and 30th in the NBA.”

[Kingspoint]

Another wife who thinks she should be a voice on social media....

November 26th, 2022 at 7:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

Gordon Hayward‘s wife has accused the Hornets of failing to protect injured players, writes Bryan Fonseca of The New York Post. Robyn Hayward criticized the franchise via her Instagram account. Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Friday night that Gordon Hayward has suffered a fracture in his left shoulder that will keep him out indefinitely. Robyn Hayward pointed out that the team called it a left shoulder contusion, which isn’t nearly as serious. “He actually has a fractured scapula… that they had him play with last game… that’s why he couldn’t move his arm up in the last game,” she wrote. “… Everyone who knows Gordon knows he has one goal and that’s to win and play the right way, he’s the most truthful player/person you’d find. If he’s not going to play it’s for something more than a bruise.”

Robyn promised to “stop there and not get into prior things,” but she shared the story of another Hornets player who had a similar experience. “I’m over them not protecting players. Just was talking with a young player’s mom, and she was saying the same thing,” she added. Injuries have been a recurring problem for Hayward since he suffered a fractured tibia and dislocated ankle in 2017. He played 44 and 49 games in his first two seasons with Charlotte after being acquired in a trade and has appeared in 11 so far this season. He’s making a little more than $30MM this year and has one season left on his contract at $31.5MM.


I can't blame her. Her husband's pulling in $30M per season. She wants to see that continue and she knows as well as anyone that it won't if he's having major injuries. Her Sugar Daddy is losing his sweetness.

[Kingspoint]

There was a rumored chance that Fultz would make his debut yesterday against the Sixers (they got blitzed by 30). But, even in the blowout loss, he wasn't given an opportunity to enter the game. I assume they didn't activate him.

Well, he's not in the starting lineup tonight against the Nets. They are paying Fultz $16.5M this season. Next season's contract of $17M is not gauranteed (he gets $2M if let go). ORL needs to see what they have in Fultz. They can't keep paying this guy to sit in street clothes every game.

ORL is still waiting on Cole Anthony to return.

I would think that Fultz has to be nothing less than impressive for ORL to gaurantee next year's contract. With his injury history, the gamble of paying another $17M for someone with his bad history isn't worth it to me, unless Fultz demonstrates that he has All-Star potential in him. Of course, how effective he works with Banchero means everything.

[Kingspoint]

Hawks have all of their injured players playing tonight. They looked strong in the 1st Quarter. We'll see if they can all last through four Quarters, especially with P J Tucker doing what he can physically against them. Embiid should make a lot more than his 4 Attempts at the Free Throw line he's had in his 12 minutes.

[Kingspoint]

That was an awful long time. Landry Shamet missed seven games while in the Concussion Protocol. He returned for 15 minutes in that 1-pt win at home over the Jazz Saturday.

[Kingspoint]

Embiid with the clutch bucket to give the Sixers the lead by one with 18 seconds left!

[Kingspoint]

Embiid with the clutch bucket to give the Sixers the lead by one with 18 seconds left!

He gets the Defensive Rebound on the other end and then calmly knocks down two free throws with 4 seconds left to give them a lead of three.

MVP!

MVP!

[goreds2]

With Embiid back, the 76ers win again. 4 out of 5

[Kingspoint]

Yes! What a finish by the Pacers!!!

- - - Updated - - -


He gets the Defensive Rebound on the other end and then calmly knocks down two free throws with 4 seconds left to give them a lead of three.

MVP!

MVP!

Should have said he snatched the alley-oop out of the air and said, "Give me that!"

[Kingspoint]

A. D. was phenomenal tonight, btw. He's been tremendous, as others have mentioned, lately.

- - - Updated - - -

Mathurin proved himself in front of LeBron tonight.

Buddy Hield melted away for the 2nd night in a row. Lakers may not want him. Try to make a trade just for Turner and let them keep Hield.

[M2]

With Embiid back, the 76ers win again. 4 out of 5

Pretty impressive they're putting together this run without Harden or Maxey. Tobias Harris suddenly can play basketball again.

Elsewhere:

- Rudy Gobert apparently doesn't phase Kristaps Porzingis much as the Unicorn dropped 41 en route to to a 142-127 win.
- Last game Tatum sat. Tonight Brown sits. Doesn't matter, Celtics keep crushing everyone.
- KD is starting to get frisky. He scored 45 tonight, though it's not like the Magic who's playing defense.
- Toronto held Cleveland to 88. I don't think anyone enjoys seeing the Raptors on the schedule.
- SGA is 50-144 from the floor over his last six games. Seems like he's bored and just chucking up shots because his team is helpless.
- Jokic went 32-12-8 in 27 minutes vs. the Rockets. Jamal Murray scored 31 in 25 minutes. Pure practice game.
- The answer to Kingspoint's earlier query is the Bulls' next win would be against Utah, tonight.
- I get the distinct impression tonight's Suns-Kings game was fantastic.
- Andrew Nembhard plunged a dagger into the Lakers tonight (though Tyrese Haliburton deserves credit for the hustle rebound, drawing the entire Laker defense to him and then finding Nembhard with the pass).

[Kingspoint]

Pretty impressive they're putting together this run without Harden or Maxey. Tobias Harris suddenly can play basketball again.

Elsewhere:

- Rudy Gobert apparently doesn't phase Kristaps Porzingis much as the Unicorn dropped 41 en route to to a 142-127 win.
- Last game Tatum sat. Tonight Brown sits. Doesn't matter, Celtics keep crushing everyone.
- KD is starting to get frisky. He scored 45 tonight, though it's not like the Magic who's playing defense.
- Toronto held Cleveland to 88. I don't think anyone enjoys seeing the Raptors on the schedule.
- SGA is 50-144 from the floor over his last six games. Seems like he's bored and just chucking up shots because his team is helpless.
- Jokic went 32-12-8 in 27 minutes vs. the Rockets. Jamal Murray scored 31 in 25 minutes. Pure practice game.
- The answer to Kingspoint's earlier query is the Bulls' next win would be against Utah, tonight.
- I get the distinct impression tonight's Suns-Kings game was fantastic.
- Andrew Nembhard plunged a dagger into the Lakers tonight (though Tyrese Haliburton deserves credit for the hustle rebound, drawing the entire Laker defense to him and then finding Nembhard with the pass).

On a night where Nebhard wasn't playing that well, he was nails when it mattered. That speaks volumes. And, yes, it was Haliburton grabbing the tipped-out pass and scrambling (he traveled, but who cares) around until he found the right shooter....just in time.

It won't show up in the boxscore, traditionally anyways, but Jalen Smith was tremendous tonight. Whenever a play needed to be made to shift momentum back to the Pacers or to keep the Lakers from getting into a rhythm, Jalen Smith (and Haliburton, too) came up with a play to make something positive happen. In his 24 minutes, he was a team-best +12. That +/- doesn't mean a lot on a particular night, necessarily, but in this case, it matched the performance. When he was on the floor, no matter who his teammates were or who the opponents were, the Pacers were outplaying the Lakers.


That Chicago game was interesting as Marrkanen (did I spell it right, or should I just refer to him as Marrksman from now on?), who was questionable and looked like he might miss his first game of the season, instead, not only played, but started out on fire with four or five "3"'s in the 1st Half. Chicago withstood the assault and patiently outplayed the Jazz for their first win in Utah since 2015.

[Kingspoint]

Cole Anthony is off the injury report ahead of Wednesday's matchup with the Hawks.

Anthony is back after 16 straight absences, and his return coincides with Markelle Fultz's season debut. Jalen Suggs is out, so both Anthony and Fultz could see minutes in the 15-20 range for their first games back.

[goreds2]

Cole Anthony is off the injury report ahead of Wednesday's matchup with the Hawks.

Anthony is back after 16 straight absences, and his return coincides with Markelle Fultz's season debut. Jalen Suggs is out, so both Anthony and Fultz could see minutes in the 15-20 range for their first games back.

I wish Mr. Fultz could have made it as a 76er. Plus, he is a good guy off the court.

Markelle Fultz, Mother Ebony Host Fultzgiving Dinner Distribution Event for Eatonville Community


I think it’s huge – just to let them see that we are all the same,” Fultz said. “We are all human. We all go through issues. We all go through problems. And just letting them know they have somebody that believes in them and (are) always going to be reaching out to the community.”

His devotion to community service began long before becoming an NBA player. He remembers distributing food at shelters on and around many Thanksgivings during his youth in Maryland.

https://www.nba.com/magic/news/markelle-fultz-mother-ebony-host-fultzgiving-dinner-distribution-event-for-eatonville-community-20221121

[Kingspoint]

Curry takes five steps like he's at a hoe-down and then he whines when they call traveling?

That's one of many reasons why I hate Curry with a passion.

Warriors now 2-9 on the Road.

[M2]

That's one of many reasons why I hate Curry with a passion.

That and he murders your team, and he's little-brothered Dame for his whole career. BTW, those are viable reasons for a fan to hate a guy. I get it. I hated Larry Bird. Steph literally changed the game and brought back high-octane offense. Also seems to be the most universally popular athlete in a long time. That's a bit of a lonely island you've picked for yourself.

[dubc47834]

Curry takes five steps like he's at a hoe-down and then he whines when they call traveling?

That's one of many reasons why I hate Curry with a passion.

Warriors now 2-9 on the Road.

Yeah...and how'd them Blazers do last night???

[BuckeyeRed27]

Going to the Cavs 76ers game tonight.

Unfortunately Allen is out, so Embiid might get 60. Fortunately Mitchell and Garland can score enough to cancel that out, should be fun.

[texasdave]

It's looking as if the Celtics are not going to be missing Ime Udoka all that much. 17-4 and counting.

[goreds2]

Going to the Cavs 76ers game tonight.

Unfortunately Allen is out, so Embiid might get 60. Fortunately Mitchell and Garland can score enough to cancel that out, should be fun.

I bet you are having fun with the Cavs up by 21 at halftime. I need to try and catch a 76ers game in person someday.

[M2]

It's looking as if the Celtics are not going to be missing Ime Udoka all that much. 17-4 and counting.

Yeah, I thought that would be a factor for them and it hasn't manifested at all. The only difference is now they score like crazy too.

[SteelSD]

I bet you are having fun with the Cavs up by 21 at halftime. I need to try and catch a 76ers game in person someday.

Cavs shot 16 for 17 from the floor in the 2nd quarter. Everything they were chucking up went in. Not much you can do about that. Nine threes in a row between the 2nd and 3rd quarter. Made the clueless officating a complete non-factor.

[M2]

I'm watching the Celtics-Heat. Miami has been hovering behind Boston most of the 2nd half as Jaylen Brown was on the bench with foul trouble. When they finally got him and Jayson Tatum on the floor together again it got unfair and they're going to win comfortably. Tatum has 49. Brown has 26 (in 28 minutes).

[Mutaman]

Good one at the Garden. Old time basketball. Giannis fouled out and Mitchell Robinson had 20 rebounds but Grayson Allen with the big shot for the win and the cover.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Cavs shot 16 for 17 from the floor in the 2nd quarter. Everything they were chucking up went in. Not much you can do about that. Nine threes in a row between the 2nd and 3rd quarter. Made the clueless officating a complete non-factor.

The 2nd quarter was indeed crazy. Cavs were hot, but the 76ers didn’t show any interest in playing defense and , Embiid looked disengaged even before they got run off the court.

Give them a bit of a break since Maxey and Harden weren’t there…but I think that’s a team in serious trouble.

[M2]

Most interesting thing to me tonight is Wendell Moore started for the Timberwolves (a win over the Grizz). He didn't do much in his 20 minutes (7-3-2), but it's only his 5th game and it indicates they like what they see from him.

[Betterread]

Most interesting thing to me tonight is Wendell Moore started for the Timberwolves (a win over the Grizz). He didn't do much in his 20 minutes (7-3-2), but it's only his 5th game and it indicates they like what they see from him.

His first real NBA Minutes. First Fg and first 3pt Fg. With five players out due to injury somebody had to play and he was doing well in G League. He outrebounded Gobert (1). He looked alright to me.
Memphis outrebounded min 59-29. 30 Fts to 19 for Min. But they had 29 turnovers (stat sheet says 24 but it is wrong).
I swear that Jah gets four free throws every game for merely walking onto the court.

[SteelSD]

The 2nd quarter was indeed crazy. Cavs were hot, but the 76ers didn’t show any interest in playing defense and , Embiid looked disengaged even before they got run off the court.

Give them a bit of a break since Maxey and Harden weren’t there…but I think that’s a team in serious trouble.

Nah. The Sixers have won 7 of their last 10, even including last night, while dealing with injuries to Maxey, Harden, Embiid, and Tobias Harris- who, after attempting to make a go of it (and playing horribly), left last night's game with an illness. Any team is going to look bad when everything the opponent chucks at the basket goes in regardless of how well the defense plays. Philly played some good defense last night, forcing 18 turnovers and holding Cleveland to 25 or fewer points in three of the four quarters. That's usually a winning formula if you can hit a shot and if the opponent doesn't put up 44 points in the other quarter. The ball just went in at an astounding rate for the Cavs in that second quarter, and the Sixers couldn't hit anything. Make or miss league. Way it goes. Gotta' just nod to your opponent when that happens and move on.

Things might have looked somewhat better for Philly had Cleveland not been allowed to camp out in the lane on both sides of the ball all night long. That was clearly a plan defensively given that they picked up three defensive three second violations (could have been 30 of them). Credit to the Cavs for finding a risk/reward exploit. And Embiid was engaged enough to pick up a tech (almost got tossed) for rightly demanding that he shouldn't be consistently mugged by the three guys camped out in the lane the entire possession. Overall, I think the officiating has been better this season, but that crew stunk. That didn't cause the loss, but it certainly exacerbated things.

[Rojo Rijo]

Fultz looked good in his limited return to action last night. With him and Anthony back that will likely push Suggs into a lesser role. Not sure what the future will look like for Orlando. The roster is loaded with top draft picks and talent yet we still have one of the worst records in the league.

[BuckeyeRed27]

Nah. The Sixers have won 7 of their last 10, even including last night, while dealing with injuries to Maxey, Harden, Embiid, and Tobias Harris- who, after attempting to make a go of it (and playing horribly), left last night's game with an illness. Any team is going to look bad when everything the opponent chucks at the basket goes in regardless of how well the defense plays. Philly played some good defense last night, forcing 18 turnovers and holding Cleveland to 25 or fewer points in three of the four quarters. That's usually a winning formula if you can hit a shot and if the opponent doesn't put up 44 points in the other quarter. The ball just went in at an astounding rate for the Cavs in that second quarter, and the Sixers couldn't hit anything. Make or miss league. Way it goes. Gotta' just nod to your opponent when that happens and move on.

Things might have looked somewhat better for Philly had Cleveland not been allowed to camp out in the lane on both sides of the ball all night long. That was clearly a plan defensively given that they picked up three defensive three second violations (could have been 30 of them). Credit to the Cavs for finding a risk/reward exploit. And Embiid was engaged enough to pick up a tech (almost got tossed) for rightly demanding that he shouldn't be consistently mugged by the three guys camped out in the lane the entire possession. Overall, I think the officiating has been better this season, but that crew stunk. That didn't cause the loss, but it certainly exacerbated things.

Yeah the refs were fine. Like I said I’ll give Philly a bit of a pass due to missing guys, although Cleveland was also missing Allen, Love and Stephens and started a guy I don’t think has played this season yet so.

Mitchell and Garland could do whatever they wanted and yes there was a team defense aspect going on with Embiid, but Mobley also did a fantastic job.

[dubc47834]

Another L for the Blazers!

[KoryMac5]

Good one at the Garden. Old time basketball. Giannis fouled out and Mitchell Robinson had 20 rebounds but Grayson Allen with the big shot for the win and the cover.

Allen killed the Mavs the other night...he fits really well with that Bucks team.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Booker went off again last night. 29 ppg and distributing well in Paul's absense. The Suns haven't skipped much of a beat without Point God.

Might be the MVP so far this season.

(Steel will be by shortly to explain why Booker's actually a small forward, though.)

[SteelSD]

Yeah the refs were fine. Like I said I’ll give Philly a bit of a pass due to missing guys, although Cleveland was also missing Allen, Love and Stephens and started a guy I don’t think has played this season yet so.

Mitchell and Garland could do whatever they wanted and yes there was a team defense aspect going on with Embiid, but Mobley also did a fantastic job.

The officiating was trash. Multiple balls out of bounds off Cleveland that were handed back to them. Refs repeatedly starting at each other over not knowing what to do. Phantom foul calls on one end. Missed on the other. Cleveland allowed to build permanent small communities in the lane at both ends, which was the extent of their "team" defense on Embiid. When the Cavs messed up and forgot to plant a second and third guy in the lane, it was layup/layup/dunk for Joel, who was apparently so "dinengaged" that he was still diving for ball while playing all 12 minutes of a game that was long before lost. Again, better officiating wouldn't have tilted the scales in the Sixers favor, but at least it wouldn't have added to the perfect storm.

And the idea that Cleveland would have somehow been better with some missing role players on the court? You really think that they were going to do better than 60.8% from the field and 51.7% from deep? Maybe just instead enjoy the game for what it was while knowing that teams have games- both wins and losses- at least a couple times every year.

[SteelSD]

Booker went off again last night. 29 ppg and distributing well in Paul's absense. The Suns haven't skipped much of a beat without Point God.

Might be the MVP so far this season.

(Steel will be by shortly to explain why Booker's actually a small forward, though.)

No, Booker is a guard. Now tell me what Karl Anthony Towns is.

[Betterread]

No, Booker is a guard. Now tell me what Karl Anthony Towns is.

“He’s a riddle wrapped up in an enigma” (Winston Churchill)
In basketball terms, he’s a power forward with lower than average foot speed but better than average shooting ability (except for 2022) and he’s a center without enough ballast and who can’t pick and roll or set even average picks. So he’s like Anthony Davis, without Davis’s defense but with more shooting.

[Bourgeois Zee]

No, Booker is a guard. Now tell me what Karl Anthony Towns is.

This year? He's a power forward.

[BuckeyeRed27]

The officiating was trash. Multiple balls out of bounds off Cleveland that were handed back to them. Refs repeatedly starting at each other over not knowing what to do. Phantom foul calls on one end. Missed on the other. Cleveland allowed to build permanent small communities in the lane at both ends, which was the extent of their "team" defense on Embiid. When the Cavs messed up and forgot to plant a second and third guy in the lane, it was layup/layup/dunk for Joel, who was apparently so "dinengaged" that he was still diving for ball while playing all 12 minutes of a game that was long before lost. Again, better officiating wouldn't have tilted the scales in the Sixers favor, but at least it wouldn't have added to the perfect storm.

And the idea that Cleveland would have somehow been better with some missing role players on the court? You really think that they were going to do better than 60.8% from the field and 51.7% from deep? Maybe just instead enjoy the game for what it was while knowing that teams have games- both wins and losses- at least a couple times every year.

I very much enjoyed the game. Yes I do think Cleveland could have done even better if their starting All Star center, another regular starter and the first guy off the bench were available, although it did go well without them.

Like I said in the first post, I think Philly is in a little bit of trouble and I didn’t like what I saw from them, with the caveat of they were certainly missing a couple pieces.

[SteelSD]

This year? He's a power forward.

No. He's a center playing out of position. Do you that one of the guards in a three-guard offense suddenly becomes a forward?

[Bourgeois Zee]

No. He's a center playing out of position. Do you that one of the guards in a three-guard offense suddenly becomes a forward?

You're pulling a 75 semantic argument here, Steel, and it's tiring.

KAT is playing PF. He might be, in your opinion, playing out of position, but he's playing power forward.

How do I know?

On offense, he plays at the spots wherein a power forward typically operates. On defense, he defends the other team's power forwards. When he's announced in the starting lineup, they call him a power forward. On the All-Star list and on ESPN stats page (and the NBA's), he's listed as a power forward.

Your opinion doesn't mean jack squat about whether he should be a center or not. The fact is, he's playing power forward.

[SteelSD]

I very much enjoyed the game. Yes I do think Cleveland could have done even better if their starting All Star center, another regular starter and the first guy off the bench were available, although it did go well without them.

I see. So how many additional shots do you think Cleveland hits in that video game second quarter with those guys playing? All 17? Or do they still miss one? Do they shoot 75% for the game and 65% from three? You think Jarrett Allen- who Embiid often uses as a chew toy (39+ pts. in four of their last six meetings, 30+ in six of the last eight)- is going to hold Philly to 60 points rather than 85? C'mon.


Like I said in the first post, I think Philly is in a little bit of trouble and I didn’t like what I saw from them, with the caveat of they were certainly missing a couple pieces.

That's not what you said in the first post. You said they were in "serious" trouble. Same thing I heard last season as Brooklyn became instant NBA champions after beating Philly by 29 points. I've said the same thing now that I did then- those games do happen over a long NBA season and there's really nothing to be learned from them other than that.

[SteelSD]

You're pulling a 75 semantic argument here, Steel, and it's tiring.

KAT is playing PF. He might be, in your opinion, playing out of position, but he's playing power forward.

How do I know?

On offense, he plays at the spots wherein a power forward typically operates. On defense, he defends the other team's power forwards. When he's announced in the starting lineup, they call him a power forward. On the All-Star list and on ESPN stats page (and the NBA's), he's listed as a power forward.

Your opinion doesn't mean jack squat about whether he should be a center or not. The fact is, he's playing power forward.

No. Just because there are five traditional positions for a basketball team, that doesn't mean a player becomes something he's not just because he's slotted in one of them on the scorecard or otherwise. We've seen a center guard power forwards (actual power forwards) before, but that doesn't make Al Hoford a power forward, for example. It just makes him a center who has to play out of position. Towns is a good offensive center playing out of position and has nothing but "center" skills defensively. That's not semantics. That's just how it is.

Now answer the three-guard question. Does one of them become a small forward simply because the small forward position exists? Or is it due to the fact that he is forced to guard an actual small forward? Do two of the three become small forwards if one is guarded by a 3 on offense while another takes one on defense? Or instead, are all three still actually still just guards?

[Bourgeois Zee]

No. Just because there are five traditional positions for a basketball team, that doesn't mean a player becomes something he's not just because he's slotted in one of them on the scorecard or otherwise.

I'm guessing you would have insisted Magic was actually a center because he was tall. Or he was actually a point guard when he took Kareem's spot in the Finals.

Please.

Your take makes absolutely no sense.

If a guy is playing the position on both ends of the court, that's his position. Full stop. It's absolutely moronic to insist it isn't because he might have played another position this one time or has skills that better suit another position (in your opinion).

[M2]

I'm less interested in determining KAT's current taxonomy than in whether he and Gobert fit on the floor together. He is chasing guys around on the wing way too much on defense and Gobert clogging the lane means KAT doesn't have the drive option when he's out on the arc. He's a weird hybrid player who's not being allowed to lean into his weirdness.

[SteelSD]

I'm guessing you would have insisted Magic was actually a center because he was tall. Or he was actually a point guard when he took Kareem's spot in the Finals.

No, Magic was a point guard. He didn't become a center because he played out of position for a game.

He was very tall, though, so I understand your confusion.


It's absolutely moronic to insist it isn't because he might have played another position this one time...

I agree. It would be quite stupid to insist that Magic Johnson was a center because he covered for Kareem that one time.

Thank you for that. LOL.

[Bourgeois Zee]

No, Magic was a point guard. He didn't become a center because he played out of position for a game.


It would be quite stupid to insist that Magic Johnson was a center because he covered for Kareem that one time.


He was a center for that game, Steel. Just as AD is a center this season. Just as KAT is a power forward this season.

Positions are flexible.

That you can't seem to see that is... well, it makes sense, actually.

I expect nothing more from your basketball "expertise."

[SteelSD]

I'm less interested in determining KAT's current taxonomy than in whether he and Gobert fit on the floor together. He is chasing guys around on the wing way too much on defense and Gobert clogging the lane means KAT doesn't have the drive option when he's out on the arc. He's a weird hybrid player who's not being allowed to lean into his weirdness.

KAT is like a more athletic version of Brooks Lopez who can't possibly use any of it because Rudy Gobert provides a roadblock for Towns when he's not chucking up threes. Honestly, on the T-Wolves, Gobert probably should be a back-up center to spell Towns when he sits, maybe spot-starting to provide extra rim protection against teams with quick slashing guards and other teams who have considerable length up front. That'll never happen, but it's a very poor fit.

[SteelSD]

He was a center for that game, Steel. Just as AD is a center this season. Just as KAT is a power forward this season.

Positions are flexible.

That you can't seem to see that is... well, it makes sense, actually.

I expect nothing more from your basketball "expertise."

No, players are flexible. What's truly inflexible is your dogmatic reliance on the idea that players must all occupy one of five different positions on a basketball court. That's just not the way it works, particularly in today's game. Guarding an opposing center and/or being defended by one for a game and BEING a center aren't the same thing, just as a center being guarded by and defending Draymond Green doesn't turn them into a power forward (nor does it turn Green into a center).

Don't worry though. Stay calm. It's ok for a forward to guard a center or for a guard to hang with a small forward.

Still waiting for your answer on the three-guard lineup. Here's some help- if it's a "three-guard" lineup, then none of those is a forward or a center. I'll wait patiently for you to think through that.

[M2]

KAT is like a more athletic version of Brooks Lopez who can't possibly use any of it because Rudy Gobert provides a roadblock for Towns when he's not chucking up threes. Honestly, on the T-Wolves, Gobert probably should be a back-up center to spell Towns when he sits, maybe spot-starting to provide extra rim protection against teams with quick slashing guards and other teams who have considerable length up front. That'll never happen, but it's a very poor fit.

Yep. It's a mess. Yet, if we take it as a given Wolves head honcho Tim Connelly doesn't want to give himself a swirlie, then Gobert is sticking around. So I think the only way out of the bear trap Connelly's constructed for himself is to trade KAT. That can't happen until next summer, but I think KAT's going to hit the market.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Still waiting for your answer on the three-guard lineup. Here's some help- if it's a "three-guard" lineup, then none of those is a forward or a center. I'll wait patiently for you to think through that.

It's funny that you think you're being clever here, Steel. Well, more sad than funny, but I'll play:

- In your three-guard lineup, does the coach call all three of them guards?
- In your three-guard lineup, do they defend other guards AND play the offensive position of a guard?
- Do NBA and sports sites peg them all as guards?
- Do they call themselves guards when referring to position?
- Do other players call them guards?

If so, they're guards.

Hey, you know what? That's exactly the paremeters of Anthony Davis as center and KAT as power forward.

Both players switched positions this year. That happens sometimes in the NBA. You may want to read up on it.

I know, I know. Thinking is hard. Like your Sixers, you might get there someday. But today, apparently, is not that day...

[Kingspoint]

He was a center for that game, Steel. Just as AD is a center this season. Just as KAT is a power forward this season.

Positions are flexible.

That you can't seem to see that is... well, it makes sense, actually.

I expect nothing more from your basketball "expertise."

You have to play each of them differently, just as A. D. was referring to. I'd love it if Grant was playing the "3" like Durant has played most of his life.

When Winslow plays the 1, he plays it comepletely differently than when he plays the 2, or when he plays the 3 or when he plays the 4. Each time, his assignments and responsibilities and level of aggressiveness are different. Same goes for Josh Hart or anybody else.r

Unfortunately, some people only know how to play one way (Simons....shoot the ball and look like crap in every other aspect of your game), regardless of the position assigned to them. What was great about Magic in that game, was that he played Center like a Center, not like a PG playing Center.

[Kingspoint]

The Blazers are practically back to that horrible pre-season form. Their Defense has to be bottom-five in the NBA right now, while their Offense has to be bottom-10. There's a lot of laziness and there's little cohesion, while Chauncey Billups has been the biggest problem. His rotations have been ridiculous, while he doesn't hold Simons accountable for anything.

[Kingspoint]

That and he murders your team, and he's little-brothered Dame for his whole career. BTW, those are viable reasons for a fan to hate a guy. I get it. I hated Larry Bird. Steph literally changed the game and brought back high-octane offense. Also seems to be the most universally popular athlete in a long time. That's a bit of a lonely island you've picked for yourself.

The complete opposite. Dame's highest average per game lifetime is against the Warriors. He's dominated them his entire career. Blazers have always played the Warriors better than most teams in the NBA. Bring 'em on. Always look forward to playing and beating them.

- - - Updated - - -


Yeah...and how'd them Blazers do last night???

See my above post.

[SteelSD]

It's funny that you think you're being clever here, Steel. Well, more sad than funny, but I'll play:

- In your three-guard lineup, does the coach call all three of them guards?
- In your three-guard lineup, do they defend other guards AND play the offensive position of a guard?
- Do NBA and sports sites peg them all as guards?
- Do they call themselves guards when referring to position?
- Do other players call them guards?

If so, they're guards.

Hey, you know what? That's exactly the paremeters of Anthony Davis as center and KAT as power forward.

Both players switched positions this year. That happens sometimes in the NBA. You may want to read up on it.

I know, I know. Thinking is hard. Like your Sixers, you might get there someday. But today, apparently, is not that day...

So three guards can play for one team at the same time, even when the opponent doesn't have three guards playing at the same time? Or is the third guard only a guard if the other team has three guards on the floor at the same time? Or does it not matter as long as the coach CALLS them guards? Or if the coach doesn't call them guards, are they guards if they call themselves guards, or then only if listed on ESPN (careful you don't get bit...) as guards? And if their opponents call them forwards, will they suddenly stop being guards?

Or, instead, aren't guards really just guards regardless of who they defend and where they stand on the court on offense? How about two centers? Or three forwards? They can't stand in the same spot at once, but can certainly be on the floor at the same time.

You've had at least a couple posts now where you've nuked your own premise. So yeah, I'm just having fun with it at this point. Probably be best if we both disengaged, so I'll give you the opportunity to do so.

[M2]

The complete opposite. Dame's highest average per game lifetime is against the Warriors. He's dominated them his entire career. Blazers have always played the Warriors better than most teams in the NBA. Bring 'em on. Always look forward to playing and beating them.

When have the Blazers beaten the Warriors? You're hallucinating.

Here's their head-to-head, including playoffs - https://www.landofbasketball.com/games_between/stephen_curry_vs_damian_lillard.htm. You're looking forward to 8-26 while Steph drops a 32-5-7 on you?

[SteelSD]

Yep. It's a mess. Yet, if we take it as a given Wolves head honcho Tim Connelly doesn't want to give himself a swirlie, then Gobert is sticking around. So I think the only way out of the bear trap Connelly's constructed for himself is to trade KAT. That can't happen until next summer, but I think KAT's going to hit the market.

Yeah, I dunno. It's almost as if the T-Wolves grabbed Gobert with the idea of saving some wear and tear on Towns, with the idea that he'd continue to rip threes at 40%+. But that hasn't happened. The T'Wolves offense is taking 3.5 fewer shots per game than last season and, while they weren't a good team from deep last year (35.8%), they're tragic this season (32.6%). I'll have to defer to Betterread as he's watched far more of their games than I have, but I wonder if opposing teams are simply better able to close out on Towns this season, as I have to think they're not as afraid of drives to the hoop.

[SteelSD]

When have the Blazers beaten the Warriors? You're hallucinating.

Here's their head-to-head, including playoffs - https://www.landofbasketball.com/games_between/stephen_curry_vs_damian_lillard.htm. You're looking forward to 8-26 while Steph drops a 32-5-7 on you?

Steph Curry career vs. Portland: +256
Damian Lillard career vs. Golden State: -81

Head-to-head: Career

19019

[M2]

Steph Curry career vs. Portland: +256
Damian Lillard career vs. Golden State: -81

It's brutally lopsided. And Dame is a great player. He's going to the HOF, but Steph and GS have mopped the floor with him.

Allow me to add a non-direct stat that I think properly frames their relative greatness:

Portland's playoff W-L during the Dame era: 22-40
Golden State's playoff W-L during the Steph era: 102-44

[Betterread]

Yeah, I dunno. It's almost as if the T-Wolves grabbed Gobert with the idea of saving some wear and tear on Towns, with the idea that he'd continue to rip threes at 40%+. But that hasn't happened. The T'Wolves offense is taking 3.5 fewer shots per game than last season and, while they weren't a good team from deep last year (35.8%), they're tragic this season (32.6%). I'll have to defer to Betterread as he's watched far more of their games than I have, but I wonder if opposing teams are simply better able to close out on Towns this season, as I have to think they're not as afraid of drives to the hoop.

Wolves definitely aren’t shooting threes as well as last year. Why is Towns is shooting lower than average? I think he is forcing threes. He is very skilled, but he has a stubborn streak where at times he will keep shooting even though he’s missing and he will keep driving into traffic, even though it’s not working. If he ever values unpredictability (like Luka) he will make a jump in effectiveness, but I don’t know if that will ever happen.

He also has smaller, but more mobile forwards guarding him this year, and they can contest his shots a little closer. I think that is affecting his shooting.

Also, while Beasley was expendable, he was good at shooting threes. Every team needs a Beasley, or Hield.
Also, the Twolves offense has too much isoball or possessions without a pass. It’s as if Dlo, Ant and KAT all have to take “turns” and when it’s their turn, they’re shooting no matter what. They’re not the only team that does this, but it’s not working for them.

[dubc47834]

Steph Curry career vs. Portland: +256
Damian Lillard career vs. Golden State: -81

Head-to-head: Career

19019

Damn...those are overwhelming stats. Fellas, its the eye test. Anyone can see that Dame owns Steph. Steph gets his stats in garbage time. Come'on guys, you can't see it!!!

[Betterread]

When have the Blazers beaten the Warriors? You're hallucinating.

Here's their head-to-head, including playoffs - https://www.landofbasketball.com/games_between/stephen_curry_vs_damian_lillard.htm. You're looking forward to 8-26 while Steph drops a 32-5-7 on you?

Yeah, but Dame is chill and Steph is a fake holy roller.

[texasdave]

KAT is out for the next 4-6 weeks with a calf injury. So, solving the dilemma can be put on hold.

[Rojo Rijo]

KAT is out for the next 4-6 weeks with a calf injury. So, solving the dilemma can be put on hold.

Or we could have a what is Kyle Anderson debate?

[Bourgeois Zee]

Or we could have a what is Kyle Anderson debate?

He's Slo-Mo.

(And a forward. Of both persuasions.)

Now, Steel might well post that because he was a center in high school and a guard in college, it's impossible for him to now be a forward. He might go one to insist that because Joel Embiid once guarded him, he has to be a center, and that he's far too good with the ball to be anything but a guard. He might then poke fun at someone who'd point out, rightfully, that Anderson is named as a forward on basketball-reference, in NBA statistics, and in lineups when he starts. That all gets ignored, of course. Interviews with and comments by coaches that talk about how he's a great help at both forward positions? Nah, that's ignored too.

And yet... We all know Slo Mo is a forward.

Of both persuasions.

[M2]

He's Slo-Mo.

Should have been a pitcher.

https://i.makeagif.com/media/4-16-2014/TAY0La.gif

[Bourgeois Zee]

Should have been a pitcher.

https://i.makeagif.com/media/4-16-2014/TAY0La.gif

Pretty sure the Reds tried to bring that pitch back-- and it did not end well.

[SteelSD]

He's Slo-Mo.

(And a forward. Of both persuasions.)

Now, Steel might well post that because he was a center in high school and a guard in college, it's impossible for him to now be a forward. He might go one to insist that because Joel Embiid once guarded him, he has to be a center, and that he's far too good with the ball to be anything but a guard. He might then poke fun at someone who'd point out, rightfully, that Anderson is named as a forward on basketball-reference, in NBA statistics, and in lineups when he starts. That all gets ignored, of course. Interviews with and comments by coaches that talk about how he's a great help at both forward positions? Nah, that's ignored too.

And yet... We all know Slo Mo is a forward.

Of both persuasions.

It's really weird. I continually show you kindness, like when I had to explain that the DSL isn't a winter league played in Japan, and like this thread, where I offered up a ceasefire after seeing you start to contradict your own arguments. Yet, instead of showing some appreciation and walking, you keep asking for more attention. It's quite insane.

[M2]

Yeah, but Dame is chill and Steph is a fake holy roller.

So we should kick back some beers with Dame and watch Steph play basketball.

[Bourgeois Zee]

It's really weird. I continually show you kindness, like when I had to explain that the DSL isn't a winter league played in Japan, and like this thread, where I offered up a ceasefire after seeing you start to contradict your own arguments. Yet, instead of showing some appreciation and walking, you keep asking for more attention. It's quite insane.

You realize this is an ad hominem fallacy, right? An error in logic meant to manipulate the perception of others. When you can't attack the claim, you attack the man.

I've noticed that you do this quite often when you realize you've been proven wrong.

[SteelSD]

You realize this is an ad hominem fallacy, right? An error in logic meant to manipulate the perception of others. When you can't attack the claim, you attack the man.

I've noticed that you do this quite often when you realize you've been proven wrong.

Well, I'll be sure watch out for that the first time you're not on the wrong side of one of our debates.

[SteelSD]

Good game from Memphis tonight. Sixers got it within 5 points with about 4 min to go in the fourth, but then Shake started doing really dumb things with the basketball, in addition to driving into traffic. It's not going to show up in the box score, but every time Philly got got close, they'd come down the court and just throw the ball away. Frustrating. Overall, the game was pretty much decided by Steven Adams 10 offensive boards turning into points, and a major gap in bench contribution. It reminded me of the ill-fated Raptors playoff series a few years ago, that every time Embiid was taken out, the Grizz would go on a run. I will say that I'm about done with P.J. Tucker in the starting lineup. He's now reluctant to even shoot corner threes, which is his one job on offense. Memphis wasn't even guarding him in the corner; just relying on closeouts to spook him.

[Betterread]

He's Slo-Mo.

(And a forward. Of both persuasions.)

Now, Steel might well post that because he was a center in high school and a guard in college, it's impossible for him to now be a forward. He might go one to insist that because Joel Embiid once guarded him, he has to be a center, and that he's far too good with the ball to be anything but a guard. He might then poke fun at someone who'd point out, rightfully, that Anderson is named as a forward on basketball-reference, in NBA statistics, and in lineups when he starts. That all gets ignored, of course. Interviews with and comments by coaches that talk about how he's a great help at both forward positions? Nah, that's ignored too.

And yet... We all know Slo Mo is a forward.

Of both persuasions.

But he also leads fast breaks, brings the ball up, has a good handle and shoots threes at 40% this year. Those are guard skills and roles that notable guards like Marcus Smart cannot do.

[Bourgeois Zee]

But he also leads fast breaks, brings the ball up, has a good handle and shoots threes at 40% this year. Those are guard skills and roles that notable guards like Marcus Smart cannot do.

Guard skills are different than being called a guard lineups, by coaches, and by the league.

[KoryMac5]

Knicks got booed off the court today...Thibodeau probably is on borrowed time at this point.

[Kingspoint]

So we should kick back some beers with Dame and watch Steph play basketball.

Steph Curry sucks and is a crappy human being.

[Kingspoint]

For you dolts that don't know anything about the Blazers and continue to make nonsense comments because it fits your narative, here's Dame's career averages against every team.

Note how his highest average, LIKE I SAID, is against the Warriors at 28.5 per game.

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask?q=damian+lillard+average+vs+each+nba+team%2C+c areer

LIKE I ALSO SAID, his 2nd highest is against the Lakers at 28.4

[Kingspoint]

With Little (possibly out the rest of the season) out, Dame out, GPIII still out, Keon Johnson still out, Josh Hart out and Drew Eubanks out, six rotation players out, it was nice to get a win @ UTAH last night to stop the bleeding.

The WIN was also done in the same fashion as their early season wins, with Defense in the 4th Quarter, especially the last five minutes and clutch scoring in the 4th Quarter. They were also tremendous at taking care of the ball, with only 2 Turnovers in the 1st Half. The schedule from hell continues as they travel another 800-1000 miles for a back-to-back tonight against the Pacers. They then have three home games before they set out for 10 of 12 on the road to continue the schedule from Hell. If they can be .500 after all of this, they'll be set up great, to make a strong playoff run, where they can play the Warriors and kick their asses and knock them out of the playoffs because Steph Curry sucks.

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/blazers-record-vs-warriors

The Blazers' all-time record vs the Warriors is 129-109. Again, this is for the dolts who just like to mouth off when they don't know what the hell they are talking about.

[Kingspoint]

As far as recently, the Blazers tanked last season, so it doesn't matter.

They won the season series in 2020-2021.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2020_games.html


They won the season series in 2019-2020.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2020_games.html


They split the season series in 2018-2019.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2020_games.html


They won the season series in 2017-2018.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/POR/2020_games.html


So, they've been winning recently, too. But, why let facts get in the way of your narrative, M2? Just keep making things up like you normally do. You're so full of it.

[M2]

For you dolts that don't know anything about the Blazers and continue to make nonsense comments because it fits your narative, here's Dame's career averages against every team.

Note how his highest average, LIKE I SAID, is against the Warriors at 28.5 per game.

https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask?q=damian+lillard+average+vs+each+nba+team%2C+c areer

LIKE I ALSO SAID, his 2nd highest is against the Lakers at 28.4

You mean us dolts who just showed you how Steph and the Warriors beat Dame on the regular? Dame's 11-20 vs. the Warriors (https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/damian-lillard-record-vs-warriors#:~:text=Damian%20Lillard%20has%20an%2011, the%20Warriors%20in%20his%20career.) for his career during the regular season. He's 1-12 against them in the playoffs, with a ppg of 27.2. There's your facts. Also, GS swept the Blazers in the WCF in one of the seasons you just listed. LOL. I mean, if you want to be impressed by garbage points be my guest, but Steph scores more against the Blazers than Dame does against the Warriors AND Steph's team wins.

[Kingspoint]

When have the Blazers beaten the Warriors? You're hallucinating.

Here's their head-to-head, including playoffs - https://www.landofbasketball.com/games_between/stephen_curry_vs_damian_lillard.htm. You're looking forward to 8-26 while Steph drops a 32-5-7 on you?

You really don't know as much as you think you do. Not even close. There's a giant chasm between the two.

[M2]

Steph Curry sucks and is a crappy human being.

I'm sure they'll put that on his plaque in Springfield right next to where they note he changed the game, was the greatest guard of his generation and is one of the best of all time.

[M2]

You really don't know as much as you think you do. Not even close. There's a giant chasm between the two.

Please explain to us how great Dame and the Blazers are while Steph is outscoring him and the Warriors are going 26-8. I mean there is a giant chasm. It's just that your guys are a the bottom it like Wile E. Coyote.

https://media3.giphy.com/media/l3V0uUMTgbrSLoIj6/giphy.gif

[westofyou]

I'm sure they'll put that on his plaque in Springfield right next to where they note he changed the game, was the greatest guard of his generation and is one of the best of all time.

Steph is 4th in the league in 4th quarter points and 104th in 4th quarter minutes

[Bourgeois Zee]

Steph is 4th in the league in 4th quarter points and 104th in 4th quarter minutes

See! He's not great! The average of 4 and 104 is 54. Steph Curry is obviously the 54th best PG in the league. That's not a starter-- it's barely even a backup! Dame, by the way, has the most record sales among point guards in Portland. That's number one. Numero uno. Top notch. You guys think you know so much, but explain this to me: Nassir Little and Joseph Nurkic are a combined 13 feet, nine inches. That is the exact height of Bill Russell combined with Robert Horry (give or take a couple of inches). Between those two, they won almost 20 World Titles. Yet the Blazer pair haven't won any?! It's the refs that are to blame. They'd have already won a title every year since... Let's see, carry the one, divide by gold, raise to the power of Rasheed Wallace's jersey size... ever! Portland should have won every world title for at least the past 376 years.

You guys are stupid for not realizing this...

And Steph Curry sucks!

[KoryMac5]

Kingspoint would be a great heel in the WWE...

[SteelSD]

You mean us dolts who just showed you how Steph and the Warriors beat Dame on the regular? Dame's 11-20 vs. the Warriors (https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/damian-lillard-record-vs-warriors#:~:text=Damian%20Lillard%20has%20an%2011, the%20Warriors%20in%20his%20career.) for his career during the regular season. He's 1-12 against them in the playoffs, with a ppg of 27.2. There's your facts. Also, GS swept the Blazers in the WCF in one of the seasons you just listed. LOL. I mean, if you want to be impressed by garbage points be my guest, but Steph scores more against the Blazers than Dame does against the Warriors AND Steph's team wins.

To put things in perspective, KP is stating that the Blazers "tanked" last season; finishing with a winning percentage of .329. In comparison, Lillard's win percentage versus Golden State in his career games (RS and playoffs) is .279.

While a .279 WP isn't going to get you the top pick in the draft every season, it's likely to get a team into the top 5. That's how bad Lillard's record is against the Warriors. And that includes games Curry didn't play. When Curry and Lillard both play, it's even worse- .235; representative of records team have when they choose to be so bad that they're intentionally non-competitive.

[M2]

To put things in perspective, KP is stating that the Blazers "tanked" last season; finishing with a winning percentage of .329. In comparison, Lillard's win percentage versus Golden State in his career games (RS and playoffs) is .279.

While a .279 WP isn't going to get you the top pick in the draft every season, it's likely to get a team into the top 5. That's how bad Lillard's record is against the Warriors. And that includes games Curry didn't play. When Curry and Lillard both play, it's even worse- .235; representative of records team have when they choose to be so bad that they're intentionally non-competitive.

You dolt! Clearly you aren't watching the games when the Blazers are losing to the Warriors like it's their job to know what's REALLY going on.

[dubc47834]

Steph Curry sucks and is a crappy human being.

Obvious troll job, or you don't know squat about Curry. Either way, a horribly bad take!!!

[M2]

In a game that I suspect means something, New Orleans (with no Ingram) beat Denver (with no Porter) 121-106 thanks to 38 from Jose Alvarado. Yeah, you read that right. Jose Alvarado. Pelicans are for real.

[westofyou]

In a game that I suspect means something, New Orleans (with no Ingram) beat Denver (with no Porter) 121-106 thanks to 38 from Jose Alvarado. Yeah, you read that right. Jose Alvarado. Pelicans are for real.

That is the most points off the bench by any undrafted player since starters were first tracked in 1970-71.

It's also the most off the bench by any player in Pelicans history.

[M2]

That is the most points off the bench by any undrafted player since starters were first tracked in 1970-71.

It's also the most off the bench by any player in Pelicans history.

https://media.tenor.com/v2Y39S39cZkAAAAM/king-cake-baby-thumbs-up.gif

[texasdave]

Unibrow has amassed 41 points and 14 points with 11 minutes to go in the game.

[M2]

Unibrow has amassed 41 points and 14 points with 11 minutes to go in the game.

He is on a tear.

[M2]

The Celtics declare hunting season whenever they see Kyrie Irving. They make a point of finding him when he's defending and abusing him.

[texasdave]

Last 10 games for AD look something like this: 34.2 ppg and 15.4 rpg. Lakers have won 8 of those 10 contests. Yikes!

[Bourgeois Zee]

Last 10 games for AD look something like this: 34.2 ppg and 15.4 rpg. Lakers have won 8 of those 10 contests. Yikes!

He finished tonight with a double nickel and 17 rebounds.

That's... pretty solid.

His numbers are nuts. To be fair, it's against Porzingis. That kid didn't play defense at all.

Speaking of, I'm loving the Washington uniforms and court. That's some seriously cool style.

The highlights:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpRqAQddGcQ

[Kingspoint]

Rockets have only played 3 games against teams under .500. They are 2-1 in those.

18 teams have played 9 or more. Celtics have played 14.

https://www.espn.com/nba/standings/_/view/expanded

Rockets are going to probably start playing .500 for a couple of months. There's money to be made there.

[goreds2]

James Harden returns to 76ers Monday night, is on minutes restriction


The 76ers were able to keep their heads above water. For 14 games, James Harden was out with a right foot tendon sprain — both Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey missed games in that stretch as well (Maxey remains out) — and Philadelphia went 8-6 with a +2.9 net rating and the best defense in the NBA over that stretch.

Monday night in Houston, Harden returns.

https://sports.yahoo.com/james-harden-returns-76ers-monday-000317338.html

[Kingspoint]

James Harden returns to 76ers Monday night, is on minutes restriction



https://sports.yahoo.com/james-harden-returns-76ers-monday-000317338.html

Harden already made three "3"'s on two fouls while shooting a "3", and one made "3".

Through the first half, the game has played out to script. Embiid is unstoppable. The Rockets continue to struggle in giving up open three's in transition/turnover Defense (Sixers shooting 50% from "3" in the first half) (14 points off of Rockets turnovers for the Sixers), Rockets continue to get to the free throw line more than their opponent with their aggressive playing style (22 attempts to 11 for PHI), and the Rockets continue to battle to keep it close, actually leading by 1 at the Half. Sixers should focus more on getting Embiid a ton of shots inside as Sengun got two fouls early and had to come out, but they didn't take advantage of that against Bruno Fernando. In transition, continue to look for and take open three's for the Sixers, and the Rockets need to continue to be aggressive on drives to the basket, with or without Embiid and Tucker there to contest.

Harris 4-4 from "3" in the 1st Half.

KPJ shooting well in the 1st Half for HOU.

[Kingspoint]

HOU has a chance to win this game. They got Embiid's 4th foul while still in the 3rd. Good move not to take him out, though, and continue to let him do his 3rd Quarter damage to the Rockets.

Was hoping to see a few Steals from Harden as the young Rockets turn the ball over frequently, playing right into Harden's lane-jumping Steals.

While I was typing this they got Milton's 4th foul while still in the 3rd. That's huge, too.

Should come down to the last minute of the game before this gets decided.

I do see Harden either hitting a "3" or assisting on a "3" four times in the last two minutes to pull out the win.

Thought Eason would thrive in this one with much of his playing time coming with Embiid off the floor. Eason with 3 Steals and 16 points through 3 Qtrs. KMJ plays with effort about once every four or five games. He's always willing to shoot, but does basically nothing else. When he does give effort, his teammates really thrive. Tonight he's giving the effort.

Harris 6-7 from "3" through 3 Qtrs.

Sengun out early in the 4th with his 5th foul. That will help the Sixers a lot while Embiid remains out.

We've got Overtime. Porter misses a go-ahead "3", then blocks Harden's go-ahead "3", then Jalen missed a game-winning "3".

Got to give the experienced Sixers the huge advantage in Overtime, but the Rockets are at home, so who knows?

[Kingspoint]

Rockets did a tremendous job in transition Turnover Defense in the 2nd Half, giving up only 7 points off Turnovers in the entire 2nd Half, OT and first 3 minutes of the 2nd OT.

[SteelSD]

Good game from the Rockets. Well deserved win. The Sixers had their chances, but just couldn't help throwing the ball away at every opportunity. Harden was extremely rusty, to be kind, and Embiid was great...until about the last two minutes of the game. Both both shoulder a bunch of blame for poor execution in cruch time. Tucker was, as usual, useless and the bench was, again, awful. The worst part is that Philly was supposed to be managing Harden's minutes, but he ended up playing 38.

[Betterread]

Harden is cooked. He isn’t able to cook except on rare occasions. Cooked. If Philly wants to win, give his minutes to Milton/Melton.

[Kingspoint]

Good game from the Rockets. Well deserved win. The Sixers had their chances, but just couldn't help throwing the ball away at every opportunity. Harden was extremely rusty, to be kind, and Embiid was great...until about the last two minutes of the game. Both both shoulder a bunch of blame for poor execution in cruch time. Tucker was, as usual, useless and the bench was, again, awful. The worst part is that Philly was supposed to be managing Harden's minutes, but he ended up playing 38.

Yeah, 38 minutes was probably 12 more than what they wanted him to have. Hopefully, he's OK, and won't suffer an injury from it.

I was surprised how little Milton was used in the game. I don't remember him playing in the last 8 minutes of the 4th or either OT. They could have used his 3-pt shooting. He only took two all game.

You just can't miss 15 of 19 in a close game, and Harden didn't even try to attack the basket against a team that's poor around the rim Defensively, especially with Sengun being in foul trouble the entire game. There should have been 25 pick-and-roll's with Embiid alone. (In Dame's 1st game back yesterday, he was involved in 36 pick-and-rolls....and when he took a shot, he averaged 1.78 pts per attempt, the highest number on a pick-and-roll shot result of anyone in the league this season for a single game.) Eric Gordon's Defense is highly underrated, though, but it would be easy for Harden to switch Defenders so that he has a young guy defending the ball on a pick-and-roll.

[SteelSD]

Yeah, 38 minutes was probably 12 more than what they wanted him to have. Hopefully, he's OK, and won't suffer an injury from it.

I was surprised how little Milton was used in the game. I don't remember him playing in the 4th or either OT. They could have used his 3-pt shooting. He only took two all game.

I honestly thought that, at some point, they'd just use Tucker on an opposing big and go with Harden/Milton/Melton. That would have been preferable to the death-to-offense lineup they used with, IIRC, Tucker/Thybulle/House/Harden/Reed.