NBA 2018-19, Part IV: Pete and Threepeat are sitting on a fence

[M2]

1st round playoff matchups are:

MIL-DET
TOR-ORL
PHI-BKN
BOS-IND

GSW-LAC
DEN-SAS
POR-OKC
HOU-UTA

And, far as I'm aware, every team is banged up. Can the Warriors be beaten?

[WVRed]

Honestly surprised Joerger got fired by the Kings. What is Divac doing?

[Kingspoint]

Honestly surprised Joerger got fired by the Kings. What is Divac doing?

He couldn't put his personal feelings aside.

I'm guessing Ast GM Brandon Williams and long-time director of media relations, Chris Clark supported Joerger enough that it got them canned, too.

[Kingspoint]

I understand the Grizzlies letting go of Bickerstaff, though he didn't do anything to deserve it any more than Lionel Hollins did anything to deserve his letting go by Memphis. They are going through a complete rebuild and that might require a different kind of HC than Bickerstaff.

This is a knock on Divac, though. The Hall of Fame selection must have gotten to his head like a bottle of steroids did to Bonds'.

Joerger just built himself a great resume, while setting up another HC a juicy opportunity. If Divac gets Luke Walton, it will all work out well for Sacramento, but it's still a knock on Divac.

Very strange how it happened...moments after Divac signed a 4-yr extension.

[M2]

Honestly surprised Joerger got fired by the Kings. What is Divac doing?

He's got whatever Portland paid him to pull all his best players for the 2nd half of last night's game. So he should be fine.

On a more serious note, I think finishing at least .500 meant something to them, and they didn't. They also might have felt their team was capable of making a late run for a playoff spot (which was a popular notion).

[Kingspoint]

He's got whatever Portland paid him to pull all his best players for the 2nd half of last night's game. So he should be fine.

On a more serious note, I think finishing at least .500 meant something to them, and they didn't. They also might have felt their team was capable of making a late run for a playoff spot (which was a popular notion).

Sacramento's career minutes of the players on the floor were about 10 times more than the Blazers.

It was impressive what Simons did, and he did it against Fox, Hield, WCS, Bagley, Ferrel, everyone they threw at him.

[M2]

Sacramento's career minutes of the players on the floor were about 10 times more than the Blazers.

It was impressive what Simons did, and he did it against Fox, Hield, WCS, Bagley, Ferrel, everyone they threw at him.

I don't care what their career minutes were, the Kings put out a trash team in the 2nd half. Good for the Blazers coming back like they did, but it doesn't happen if Fox, Hield & friends play in the 2nd half.

[Kingspoint]

Congratulations to Terry Stotts on winning Western Conference Coach-of-the-Month for April and March, after also winning it for February, sweeping the Post-All-Star Awards

Guess Stotts deserves some Coach-of-the-Year votes after guiding his team to 3rd in the Western Conference for the 2nd straight season, exceeding National expectations both seasons.

This was his third 50+-win season. Ramsey only had one, while Adelman also had three.

This was Stotts' 7th Coach-of-the-Month Award.

Go Blazers!!!!

[Revering4Blue]

He's got whatever Portland paid him to pull all his best players for the 2nd half of last night's game. So he should be fine.

On a more serious note, I think finishing at least .500 meant something to them, and they didn't. They also might have felt their team was capable of making a late run for a playoff spot (which was a popular notion).

Simply too much missed time for Bagley and Giles, of whom the wily veteran, Koufos couldn’t come close to covering for his absence.

[Kingspoint]

I don't care what their career minutes were, the Kings put out a trash team in the 2nd half. Good for the Blazers coming back like they did, but it doesn't happen if Fox, Hield & friends play in the 2nd half.

They played rotation players in the 2nd half.

[M2]

They played rotation players in the 2nd half.

And they were awful. Frank Mason, Troy Williams and Yogi Ferrell were the worst of the bunch. Maybe they were mentally checked out, but they got beat 74-44 by a six-man bench team. That's a collapse worthy of the Washington Generals.

[ScotlandRed]

MVP - Harden
Rookie - Doncic
Defensive - Gobert/George

All NBA 1 - Embiid - Giannis - George - Harden - Probably Steph

[Kingspoint]

And they were awful. Frank Mason, Troy Williams and Yogi Ferrell were the worst of the bunch. Maybe they were mentally checked out, but they got beat 74-44 by a six-man bench team. That's a collapse worthy of the Washington Generals.

They were not awful. Joerger played a 12-man rotation all season and most of those players who played in the 2nd half were positive contributors to their season and were instrumental in getting them their 39 wins and their quality wins. They were especially instrumental in getting Sacramento out to a positive start and a winning attitude early in the season and it's part of what got Divac and Joerger into a philosophy struggle. They are good players who are experienced for the most of them, and even Frank Mason had more experience this year than Skal, Simons and Trent. Simons had about 8 minutes this season that wasn't garbage time, while Trent and Skal had none for Portland.

Those 2nd half players would beat Portland's 6 players 80% of the time, but Portland's 6 were on an incredible high and were extremely motivated.

When Sacramento was up 20 with 3 minutes left in the 3rd and had hit their 17th '3' of the night, I told my father-in-law that they are going to start missing them and Portland only needs to hit a couple and it's a 14-pt game and then it's anybody's game. That's exactly what happened. I said they'd keep firing them because they had been going in, and that's exactly what happened. Sacramento didn't hit another '3' for the next 10 minutes. Ballgame.

Sacramento's players were tired at the end of game 82.

Not for one second did Sacramento's players or Joerger check out. They tried like heck to win the game but could not stop the steamrolling Portland '6', who were very fresh after not playing all season.

[M2]

They were not awful. Joerger played a 12-man rotation all season and most of those players who played in the 2nd half were positive contributors to their season and were instrumental in getting them their 39 wins and their quality wins.

He didn't bench his entire starting lineup for second halves all season long. This was not a matter of "rotation." It was Fox, Hield, Barnes, Bjelica and WCS taking a seat and watching a farce. If this had been anything like a a regular game, they'd have each gotten 15-18 minutes more.

Not for one second did Sacramento's players or Joerger check out.

That's exactly what they did. Their offseason started 24 minutes early. And Joerger was content to let his starters cool their heels while it happened. Didn't really matter to him or the Kings. Meant a lot to the Blazers, so good for them. Yet don't sit here and pretend Sacramento's starting unit, which mopped the court with the Portland 6 in the first half, wouldn't have put that game to bed if it had played.

[Kingspoint]

He didn't bench his entire starting lineup for second halves all season long. This was not a matter of "rotation." It was Fox, Hield, Barnes, Bjelica and WCS taking a seat and watching a farce. If this had been anything like a a regular game, they'd have each gotten 15-18 minutes more.



That's exactly what they did. Their offseason started 24 minutes early. And Joerger was content to let his starters cool their heels while it happened. Didn't really matter to him or the Kings. Meant a lot to the Blazers, so good for them. Yet don't sit here and pretend Sacramento's starting unit, which mopped the court with the Portland 6 in the first half, wouldn't have put that game to bed if it had played.

I was there. You were not.

Sacramento's players and Joerger did not check out.

You are 100% wrong!