NBA 2019-20: Hoopingest place on earth

[Revering4Blue]

Boston and Toronto can end their series today and get some rest for Round Two.

That would be important if they weren't playing each other.

Miami closing out Indiana may be important, but I don't think Brooklyn has any more surprises left, and Miami's depth means they need rest less than other squads.

Indiana's done. A (finally) healthy Miami would have been a difficult enough of a match-up for a healthy Indy team, but damn near impossible without Sabonis and Lamb. Even then, Spoelstra would have simply placed Dragic and three shooters around Bam, and that would have been that.

[Revering4Blue]

I want to be on the record very clearly.....I disagree with all of you in regards to Wiseman. He is good....may end up being very good, but those top picks actually have a big salary now and will impact the cap. I almost universally would argue that it will be a poor choice to invest in a traditional big with those early picks unless we are talking about a guy like AD when he was at UK. Just look at recent drafts.....

- 2015, 5 of the Top 10 picks were traditional bigs in Towns, Okafor, Porzingis, Cauley-Stein and Kaminsky. While we can point out that Towns and Porzingis are very talented, have either made an ounce of difference for the teams that drafted them 5 years later? Both are now on max contracts, and are not close to being the best player on a contender. I would not bet on Wiseman being as good as either....to be honest. Russell who was taken #2 has already been an All Star and carried a team into the playoffs....and Booker (#13) is an All Star and on the path to superstar.

- 2016, 4 of the Top 10 picks were traditional bigs in Bender, Chriss, Pöltl and Maker. No reason to even comment on those....but Sabonis was taken #11 and the best of the group....but is he a game changer for a team? Simmons, Ingram, Brown, Hield and Murray were all Top 10 picks...and all have shown the ability to move the needle for their teams.

- 2017, no bigs were taken in the Top 5, and the ones taken in the back half of the Top 10 Isaac, Markkanen and Collins have all been contributors....but I would argue they are less traditional bigs than Wiseman. Clearly, Bam taken @ #14 has been the best big taken....but was he worth a Top 3 salary those first 4 years? Tatum and Fox clearly were...

-2018, 5 more bigs in the Top 10 in Ayton, Bagley, Jackson, Bamba and Carter. It is early, but which one will be an All NBA level player? Jackson maybe? Ayton maybe? We know that Ayton and Bagley were poor selections just for the fact they were taken over Luka.....but they along with Jackson were taken over Trey Young who is clearly on track to be a difference maker.

In 2020, it is almost a requirement to have the ball in your hands to truly move the needle....and Wiseman has never exhibited the type of ball skills needed to be a unicorn big in the NBA. We saw Wiseman play 3 collegiate games...South Carolina State, University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and Oregon who held him to 14 points and a Memphis loss. That is the guy that you want to lock in for around $50 Million over the next 4 years....the same guy that Oscar Tshiebwe embarrassed during their final summer of AAU? I will take a Guard, Wing or even combo forward over a traditional big at the top of any draft.

OK, just wanted to be on the record....clearly.

Several really good points here. Additional thoughts:

- Oddly enough, the two best players from the '14 draft were both reputed to be traditional bigs: Embiid and Jokic, who,even without the benefit of hindsight, would have been off the board by pick #10 had today's pace-and-space era been in full swing by then - That season ('14-'15) is when today's NBA landscape began to take shape.

- I'll grant you Poetl as a traditional big in '16, but Bender, Chriss and Maker? Not so much, as all were reputed to possess the skill-sets of modern bigs. Maker, in particular, looked as though he was ready to break into the regular rotation following a relatively strong playoff showing in'18. Alas, it didn't happen.

- As for the '18 bigs, only JJ Jr and Bamba were reputed to possess at least a reasonable perimeter skillset, while protecting the rim. I'm not suggesting that he'll reach it, but, IMHO, Bamba's ceiling is actually higher than the other 'traditional" bigs in his class, but he obviously has a LONG way to go.

Whether Wiseman becomes a unicorn big or peaks as the current version of Bamba remains to be seen. But I remain unconvinced that anyone else (assuming they keep the pick) makes more sense for the Warriors at #2, save for possibly Toppin. Then again, this is not a "normal" draft ceiling-wise. For example, I would normally consider Okongwu a reach for Charlotte at #3. But within the context of this lower-ceiling-filled draft, it's a reasonable pick assuming Okongwu comes close to replicating Bam's skillset at the NBA level.

[adkindo]

Boston and Toronto can end their series today and get some rest for Round Two.

That would be important if they weren't playing each other.

Miami closing out Indiana may be important, but I don't think Brooklyn has any more surprises left, and Miami's depth means they need rest less than other squads.

think the 0-3 teams will lay down just to get out of the bubble? 1-2-3 Cancun as the great Nick Van Exel once said...

[adkindo]

He's untested, but perhaps Talen Horton-Tucker, with his 7' wingspan could be a factor defensively, beginning next season.

I was not happy about that pick (Dort was one of the guys I wanted)....mostly because I thought it was just the Lakers doing Lebron/Klutch a favor.....but supposedly he has impressed the Lakers.

[SteelSD]

Well that was predictably brutal. Still, of the teams I follow, I'd already seen a more embarrassing playoff loss this year when the Pens lost to a team that shouldn't have even been in the NHL playoffs.

Now I'll sit back and anxiously wait to see how deep the Philly front office/coaching cuts are going to be; probably not being satisfied with anything less than "total carnage".

Then I think I'll adopt Miami for the rest of the playoff season.

[M2]

Well that was predictably brutal. Still, of the teams I follow, I'd already seen a more embarrassing playoff loss this year when the Pens lost to a team that shouldn't have even been in the NHL playoffs.

Now I'll sit back and anxiously wait to see how deep the Philly front office/coaching cuts are going to be; probably not being satisfied with anything less than "total carnage".

Then I think I'll adopt Miami for the rest of the playoff season.

The brutal thing for Philly is there's no particular reason to think they've got a brighter future than the team that swept them. Unless something major changes, they're not beating that Celtics team. It wouldn't have been wrong to fire Brown on his way back to the dressing room. The 76ers need a much better coach and a franchise-altering move.

[M2]

Luka Doncic is already a legend.

[Stray]

Luka with a cool 43-17-13 line

[KoryMac5]

Luka with a cool 43-17-13 line

Oscar and Barkley are the only 2 to have done that in the playoffs before...Mavs with a huge win with no Porzingas.

[dubc47834]

Luka is quickly becoming my favorite player!

[texasdave]

Luka was spectacular. I also noted that Paul George, once again, proved that he is no James Harden.

[adkindo]

Luka Doncic is already a legend.

if his career goes as expected....that could be his Craig Ehlo clip on his highlights

[Boston Red]

This Jazz/Nuggets 4th quarter is fantastic. Big shot after big shot after big shot. Mitchell with the latest one.

[adkindo]

Spider Mitchell is clutch! Denver on the ropes....

[adkindo]

I think this playoffs...the bubble with be the point in time we look back at as the period that a new generation took the reigns of the league. I mean Lebron or Kawhi may win a title this year....but it feels pretty clear that the under 25 groups is ready to elevate into legitimate superstars.