NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Thought we needed a new thread for the new season. Still no fans in the seats, but hopefully this will be the final season impacted by COVID-19!
The defending champion Los Angeles Lakers entered the season as the clear favorites to repeat, but if the first week of the season is any indication, several teams appear ready to make repeating very challenging.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Christmas Day Games....
- The Heat looked strong in knocking off the Pels 111-98
- The Bucks bounce back from a loss with an easy win over the Warriors. Warriors look like a lottery team again.
- The Nets look in midseason form and a legit championship challenger with the win over the Celtics 123-95. Kyrie and Durant look lethal early.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Lakers grab their fist win on the season beating the Mavs 138-115
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Richard Jefferson dropping a 69 joke on live tv today was pretty funny. Dude isn't bad tho, needs some polishing but he offers a ton of valuable insight during games.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
adkindo
Lakers grab their fist win on the season beating the Mavs 138-115
Dallas is in trouble outrebounded 53-27
Second chance pts Lakers with 38...Dallas 0
Ouch
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Tonight, James Harden has a legitimate chance to score 100 points against the Blazers. He could easily take 50 shots.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Games I'm looking forward to tonight:
Minnesota @ Utah
How much have the young TWolves progressed as a team? How much defense will KAT be able to provide? Can Malik Beasley succeed where Damion Lillard didn't? I suspect he might-- unless the Minnesota rotation has changed. (That's a fascinating group of wings and guards, IMO.) For Utah, are they going to jack up 50 threes again? How fun would that be?
Rockets @ Portland
Harden's back, but it's away. (I'd give even money as to boos at home.) With only nine players, he'll have to play a lot. And shoot a lot. We'll get a rather large taste of David Nwaba, who showed quite a bit of promise last year in Brooklyn before he got hurt. Ben McLemore, Jae'Sean Tate, and Sterling Brown are the only other wings/ guards on the roster. Bruno Caboclo, PJ Tucker, and Christian Wood are the bigs, along with KJ Martin, Jr.
Suns @ Kings
How much better will Chris Paul make the Suns? These are the games they need to win to succeed. De'Aaron Fox needs to shoot better. Marvin Bagley needs to be better. These Kings are fun though. The game might be one of those 150 - 140 game. Booker might go for 40.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
@Zee,
Orlando/Washington could be an interesting divisional matchup.
And I cannot believe, at least on some level, that I am typing this: I have more than a passing interest in the Cavs/Pistons and Thunder/Hornets games given the talent-level similarity between the aforementioned opponents. Sure, the Kevin Love vs. Blake Griffin matchup lacks the appeal of the past, but it somehow still appeals to me. I'm also curious to see if Vernon Carey and Nick Richards, who I believe has a higher ceiling than Carey, receive minutes with Zeller out.
And, granted the Bulls and Grizzlies aren't exactly murderers row - with the Grizz missing at least two key players - but it's still impressive that a severely depleted Hawks team is 2 and 0.
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Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
POR already is in panic mode because of their atrocious basketball on both ends of the floor the last three games (four if you count the last SAC game). If they lose to the 9-man Rocket rotation, they will be at a low-point that almost screams for desperation.
Pre-season games shouldn't matter, but in this situation, they do. It's not an over-reaction to say there's major problems that don't seem fixable if they lose tonight. If they win tonight, they will have proven nothing. It's a terrible spot to be in. All they can do is win tonight, hopefully easily, keep their heads bowed down, and get back to the practice floor for at least one practice before going to LA for two games.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
I know it's early and the Pacers have yet to play a serious opponent, but Domantas Sabonis is in a mood.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
At this point I think the only question left to ask is if the Cavs are going to win the East or if they are going to win the whole thing?
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
The "RJ Barrett looks a lot better" honeymoon lasted exactly one game. He went 2-15 tonight.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
BuckeyeRed27
At this point I think the only question left to ask is if the Cavs are going to win the East or if they are going to win the whole thing?
I'm not sure they can take the Spurs in the finals.
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Appears the Magic are on pace to win 82 games....
Re: NBA 2020-21: The Final Covid-19 Season?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
M2
I know it's early and the Pacers have yet to play a serious opponent, but Domantas Sabonis is in a mood.
Early returns suggest that 1)Nate Bjorkgren is the home run HC hire that this franchise needed. 2) Bjorkgren`s system agrees with the players, as it extracts every bit of potential from all of them, including Sabonis. 3) Bjorkgren has already gotten more production from McBuckets - who is every bit the shooter that Duncan Robinson is, and also a better athlete - than his predecessor. 4) The narrative of Sabonis and Turner not fitting together remains bunk.
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