The Swamp

Is this more or less embarrassing than the wheelchair stuff?

While I acknowledge that they have an old, flawed roster, the Cavs gotta start thinking about a coaching change, right? Their effort is routinely pathetic and if Lue can’t get them to play hard or play any semblance of defense, what exactly is his value?

Joe K wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2018 4:14 pm While I acknowledge that they have an old, flawed roster, the Cavs gotta start thinking about a coaching change, right? Their effort is routinely pathetic and if Lue can’t get them to play hard or play any semblance of defense, what exactly is his value?

Allowed them to scapegoat David Blatt?

Am I crazy for thinking that this is the year the Raptors can win the East?

Pruitt wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2018 8:38 pm Am I crazy for thinking that this is the year the Raptors can win the East?

Nope. They have a legit shot unless Cleveland gets its act together.

DSafetyGuy wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2018 8:18 pm

Joe K wrote: ↑Sat Jan 20, 2018 4:14 pm While I acknowledge that they have an old, flawed roster, the Cavs gotta start thinking about a coaching change, right? Their effort is routinely pathetic and if Lue can’t get them to play hard or play any semblance of defense, what exactly is his value?

Allowed them to scapegoat David Blatt?

Pretty much. Keep in mind that in the 2015-16 season, Blatt had a better regular season record before getting fired than Lue had after the change. And that's despite Blatt being without Irving for most of his games. Blatt also did a great job in the 2015 playoffs considering how injury riddled they were. I just haven't seen anything to make me think Lue is even an average NBA coach. His best move, playing Jefferson to go to a more switchy, wing-centric lineup in the 2016 Finals, was something he lucked into as a result of Love's concussion. And that Finals comeback was mostly about LeBron and Kyrie going absolutely crazy in Games 5 and 6.

rockets beat the warriors improving to 17-0 when cp3 harden and capella all play, with 2 of those 17 being against golden state. western conference finals could be amazing if we make it uninjured

I'm pretty convinced the Rockets are the only threat to Golden State. With the Harden/Paul 2-two-headed monster, and the opportunity to always have a ++ playmaker on the court, the Rox may be able to exploit the Warriors' bench lineups in a series. Kerr always plays a deep rotation, which is generally a strength, but it gives Houston 12-15 minutes per game where they could take advantage. (In contrast, I love OKC's starting five now that Melo has taken a back seat to Westbrook and George, but the Thunder isn't nearly deep enough to hang with Golden State for a full series.)

going to see the Thunder and Wizards tomorrow night for the hell of it. I'm off this week and have never been to an NBA game, so I figured I'd drive to OKC and use some Marriott points. Hopefully I can snag something not upper deck for <$50. Upper deck tickets are <$20 but I'd rather not be in the nosebleeds.

And there's a bar three blocks away from the arena that has 200+ taps. Shouldn't be terrible.

You know they're still not over Seattle yet, right?

Ryan wrote: ↑Wed Jan 24, 2018 11:07 am You know they're still not over Seattle yet, right?

Thought about wearing a Mariners hat

Brontoburglar wrote: ↑Wed Jan 24, 2018 5:44 pm

Ryan wrote: ↑Wed Jan 24, 2018 11:07 am You know they're still not over Seattle yet, right?

Thought about wearing a Mariners hat

I bet it would go right over their collective head.

Congrats to Bradley Beal, the new Worst Player On the Coolest All-Star Team Ever. He replaces 1987 Jeff Malone.

Knowing nothing, I would have confidently guessed someone would say Oladipo there.

Wirh LeBron's team reuniting Kyrie with himself and Love, and Durant with Westbrook, it makes me nostalgic for the good old days of the 2015-16 season when there were 3+ actual title contenders. Unfortunately we won't see that again until the Warriors succumb to injuries or the luxury tax.

<--- Mournfully listening to all 9 parts of Shine on You Crazy Diamond in memory of Boogie's Achilles.

I don’t watch a ton of NBA regular season when it’s not Philly, but this is the second time in the last few years I saw live a major star going down with a major injury, the first was Paul George when he got Theismanned by the stanchion. Sorry Boogie.

These guys too important to line up on the baseline to pick squads? Would be pretty cool to do that and hand out jerseys on the court. No coaches allowed. Buyins divided up postgame at midcourt.

Ryan wrote: ↑Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:51 pm Congrats to Bradley Beal, the new Worst Player On the Coolest All-Star Team Ever. He replaces 1987 Jeff Malone.

hey now, I just watched him drop 41

(I really, really want an NBA team in Kansas City now. dammit that was fun and I'm already figuring out how to get back to OKC later this season)

((beer was not cold at the bar. but I ate four meals at Whataburger in the span of 16 hours. don't @ me jealous people))

Roberson's injury last night was bad. that probably does it for the Thunder's incredibly slim chances of getting past both the Rockets and Warriors. they need him on the perimeter.

Woj Bomb

The Clippers and Pistons have agreed on a deal to trade Blake Griffin for Tobias Harris, Avery Bradley, Boban Marjanovic, a first-round and a second-round draft pick, league sources tell ESPN.

I actually think this is a good trade for the Clippers. Griffin isn't in his prime any more due to injuries, and Tobias Harris and Avery Bradley are pretty good.

I also like the Clippers’ side of that deal better. I don’t think Griffin’s contract will age well.

That trade is horrible for the Pistons.

60-10-11 is a pretty good box score.

Giff wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 10:15 am 60-10-11 is a pretty good box score.

But his defense!

Harden should easily win the MVP this year if he stays reasonably healthy the rest of the way. Based on the traditional formula of individual stats, team success and importance to the team’s record, he’s the obvious pick. (Although I expect to see some irritating pieces pushing for Curry that use the word “gravity” a lot and ignore that his team is stacked enough that it has gone 11-2 with KD but no Curry.)

Given the desire these days of teams to stack their lineups with multiple superstars, it seems funny to remember OKC's desire to unload Harden.

sancarlos wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 2:55 pm Given the desire these days of teams to stack their lineups with multiple superstars, it seems funny to remember OKC's desire to unload Harden.

Ownership got cheap and wanted to avoid the luxury tax. But they would’ve had a great chance to win multiple titles in the 2013-16 timeframe if they kept Harden. And if that happened, Durant probably stays...

Joe K wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 3:23 pm

sancarlos wrote: ↑Thu Feb 01, 2018 2:55 pm Given the desire these days of teams to stack their lineups with multiple superstars, it seems funny to remember OKC's desire to unload Harden.

Ownership got cheap and wanted to avoid the luxury tax. But they would’ve had a great chance to win multiple titles in the 2013-16 timeframe if they kept Harden. And if that happened, Durant probably stays...

but then I'd be a real bandwagon hopper

Brontoburglar wrote: ↑Sun Jan 28, 2018 9:24 am Roberson's injury last night was bad. that probably does it for the Thunder's incredibly slim chances of getting past both the Rockets and Warriors. they need him on the perimeter.

I like the idea of the Thunder swiping Tony Allen off waivers if/when the Bulls waive him.

If guys being made to look silly off a dribble is your thing, then you loved last night.

So after the Cavs' latest embarrassing performance, Brian Windhorst wrote a column in which he strongly suggested that LeBron is half-assing it out of a form of pre-trading deadline protest against the Cavs front office's (i.e., Dan Gilbert's) inability to land a big star. It seems LeBron is particularly mad they've held onto the Nets' 2018 first rounder instead of flipping it. That's all well and good, but I don't think there's any combination of moves that the Cavs can, or could have made, that would close the gap with the Warriors. (A problem with a league where only the Warriors and perhaps Rockets can win the title barring injuries to Curry or Durant is that it puts a whole bunch of front offices in difficult spots.) And trading away that Nets pick for a rental doesn't seem advisable without assurances that LeBron would re-sign. I had thought the Cavs would rally come playoff time, and they did have an 18-1 stretch earlier this year. But I'm increasingly thinking that they will half-ass their way to a playoff loss to someone like Indiana or Toronto, since LeBron would rather have a real offseason than get swept in the Finals.

They should trade LeBron.

mister d wrote: ↑Sun Feb 04, 2018 11:32 am They should trade LeBron.

He has a full no-trade clause (not that they'd do it anyway). But I'd be very curious what the return would be for a LeBron rental. I'm also becoming increasingly convinced that if he leaves in the offseason, he's headed to Houston. That's the obvious choice as it would give him the opportunity to play with one of his closest friends (James and Paul are godfathers to each other's' children) on a team that could actually win a title in year 1. This year's Rockets team is 23-3 when both Paul and Harden are in the lineup, so they're by far the best option if LeBron wants to try to enhance his legacy by winning more titles. (Even if the Lakers or Clippers could somehow sign both LeBron and Paul George, I still think they're well behind Golden State.) Daryl Morey would need to work some magic to open up room for a max contract, but I think he would be able to do it if he gets a commitment.

1. Interesting to think how radically different LeBron would be perceived if just one game in the 2016 Finals had gone differently.

2. If he does go to Houston, will be fun to see which of the players there "sources" say LeBron doesn't like circa January 2019.

Also, I like Isaiah Thomas, and it’s hard to see him struggle so much post-injury. But man is it absurd for him to be calling out teammates when he’s probably been the worst player in the NBA this season. The comparative abilities of Brad Stevens and Ty Lue to mask Thomas and Irving’s defensive deficiencies speaks volumes to their coaching.

I wish they would trade IT before deadline. He's awful. You get nothing of course but needs to be gone.

I have to be the guy to defend IT? He gets two full months of playing before you draw any conclusions whatsoever.

If he was keeping his mouth shut I'd absolutely agree with you.

A_B wrote: ↑Sun Feb 04, 2018 6:18 pm If he was keeping his mouth shut I'd absolutely agree with you.

Same here. I like Thomas and he was incredible last year. (He’ll never be a good defender but his offense was MVP-level.) So I agree that he deserves time to round into shape. But he really shouldn’t be calling out teammates (especially Kevin Love) when he’s struggling this badly.