NBA thread 2018-2019 v. Raptors are Champs

[T-ski]

going to pat myself on the back for this one....

the Raptors just rid themselves of a non-efficient chucker with a bad contract who really didn't move the needle.  Moving Poeltl and the 1st shouldn't affect them to much.  If Kawhi plays its a big win.

don't understand the Spurs side of it.  If thats the best deal they could get they didn't try hard enough.

[Lonk]

http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=26969480

Drake's celebration. Best part if at the 34 second mark lol

[Destiny Of Chaos]

Sixers came the closest to beating the Raptors. Embiid is still taking it hard.

[Samsara]

Congrats to the Raps and their legion of fans.

A few takeaways:

Really unfortunate about Klay. Dynamite player, and I love his attitude and will to play and give it everything.

Even with Klay, I am pretty confident the Raptors would have won. Lowry was incredibly hot in the first, and then was steady the rest of the game. Klay was hot, and who knows if he would have cooled in the 4th. Maybe, maybe not. Either way, the Raptors earned the win, and deserved the title. Injuries are what they are. Remember how the Warriors won their first title in this run...Love and Irving were injured. Ultimately, you have to pay the piper.

Draymond Green. Man, you all know I really don't like this guy, but his ability level is undeniable. I think on a lesser team, he's not as impactful. However, last night he balled. Like crazy. But he got out of control. Obviously, he stupidly called time out. It is what it is. But he had like what, EIGHT turnovers? And the whining. EVERY. DAMN. CALL. Honestly, the refs were generous with him and didn't T him up. But they should have, at least twice. Green is talented, but he has a screw loose, and he needs to tighten it. My respect for his ability level is higher, but we'll unfortunately now see how dominant he can be when the team is just him and Steph Curry next year.

Fred Van Fleet -- gotta love stories like his. Dude is a baller, and has worked his ass off. A ton of respect. Here's hoping this is the first of many successful campaigns for him. I see him becoming the Raptors starting off guard next year, and ultimately, taking over for Lowry when his contract runs out.

Lowry - that first quarter was one for the ages. I've always liked his grit. He's not a superstar, but he has flashes, and he really left it all out there.

Leonard - I don't think he'd be back, but I like how he laid in the weeds most of the game, and then started to take over late in the game. That's a bit Kobe-like. Smart to conserve his energy. Wherever he goes (or if he stays) that man is a demon.

Anyway, congrats again, Raptors fans! Bring on the offseason, and bring my Wolves D'Angelo Russell!

[Destiny Of Chaos]

Woj is reporting that the Pelicans and Lakers have agreed on a Anthony Davis trade.

[Anguyen92]

Now, I don't know too much about the value of things in the NBA, but this seems like a lot of assets the Lakers are giving up right?

https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1140023139142971392

The Pelicans have agreed to a deal to trade Anthony Davis to the Lakers for Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Josh Hart, and three first-round picks – including the No. 4 overall in 2019 Draft, league sources tell ESPN.

[Azyiu]

Sometimes I hate being in Asia, because I am always first to sleep and last to know, lol.

Well, so let see how the LeBron / AD experiment will be like. Hopefully it won't turn out to be D12 v2.0, a slightly stiff price to pay for AD though.

[T-ski]

Lakers better hope Davis re-signs after one year or they will be a 15 win team for years to come.

[Azyiu]

Lakers better hope Davis re-signs after one year or they will be a 15 win team for years to come.

I thought all non-Lakers fans want to see us suffer? Lol! 

[Samsara]

Regarding the AD trade, I think both teams got exactly what they needed.

From the Pelicans' perspective, they have a franchise and city that generally loves their sports, but has a hard time retaining they people (at least basketball). By shedding one incredible, top-5 talent, they've secured their basketball future for the next 15 years, and put them, most likely, in the playoffs for those next 15 years. All of those picks, and the options that the Pels have, pretty much assure them of having a steady stream of talent coming into the Big Easy. And next year, with Zion, the 4 pick (Garland or Culvert most likely), and then Ingram, Ball, Hart, and most importantly, Jrue Holiday, I see them being a 7 seed in the West. And they will only get better and deeper from there. David Griffin pulled off the absolute best deal he could ever hope for, and has positioned the Pels to be a force for the long term.

From the Lakers' perspective, much like the Yankees in baseball, its all about having major stars, with a couple of homegrown talents. Now the Lakers have arguably two of the top five players in the NBA...and they compliment one another. PLUS, they have a homegrown talent in Kuzma, who is going to be a stud. They also have cap room to sign either a max guy, or a couple of non-max FAs to play. So in other words, they'll probably have five quality starters, and a thin bench. But they are banking on finding gems in the second round, and on players who simply will sign for the vets minimum to play with AD and Lebron. Assuming those two are healthy, or relatively healthy, they'll assure the Lakers of being a contender. And don't scoff at the notion that people will flock to play with them on a discount -- they WILL. It always happens, and the Lakers brass knows it. Sure, they mortgaged the long term. But think about it. Say AD re-signs with the max after this season. Then he and Lebron have two more years together, with Lebron still being a force. Lebron then retires. 40 mil comes off the cap, AD is still just 30 at that point. So they literally have Magic and Kareem again, with Kuzma serving third banana role ala Worthy. People will come. They always do.

I think it was a huge win-win for what both teams are trying to accomplish. Looking at the deal without the filters of each team, I think New Orleans got the better of things, but again, I think both organizations have different goals and mindsets about how to get there.

Man, I love the offseason. Bring on the draft and all FA drama. I can't get enough! Go Wolves, find a way to get D-Lo! Hopefully the Nets want a sign and trade. LOL. I know, pipe dream, but I am holding onto it.

[bosk1]

In other news, I this move:

The city of Toronto is celebrating the Raptors’ first victory in franchise history and ahead of Monday’s parade, the Warriors took out a full-page ad in the Toronto Star to congratulate the champions.

“The Golden State Warriors congratulate the Toronto Raptors on their historic achievement and bringing the 2019 NBA Championship to the City of Toronto,” the ad reads, with a photo of Steph Curry hugging Kyle Lowry after Game 6 of the Finals.

Source:  https://www.yahoo.com/sports/warriors-take-out-fullpage-ad-in-toronto-star-to-congratulate-raptors-parade-nba-finals-142912934.html

[Samsara]

Classy move by the Warriors.

[axeman90210]

I'll be very curious to see what the Nets roster looks like after free agency is settled. There's been a lot of buzz lately about momentum picking up for Kyrie to come to Brooklyn and potentially try to pair him with Kevin Durant (though I'm not sure how much Durant's injury changes that). There's also been talk of mutual interest between the Nets and Tobias Harris. I don't think they'd try to sign Kyrie and re-sign D'Angelo Russell, but I guess we'll see soon enough. Been a long time since the Nets has been as attractive of a destination for free agents as they are now, thanks to the culture Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson have created and some of the supporting players they've developed.

[pg1067]

In other news, I this move:

The city of Toronto is celebrating the Raptors’ first victory in franchise history and ahead of Monday’s parade, the Warriors took out a full-page ad in the Toronto Star to congratulate the champions.

“The Golden State Warriors congratulate the Toronto Raptors on their historic achievement and bringing the 2019 NBA Championship to the City of Toronto,” the ad reads, with a photo of Steph Curry hugging Kyle Lowry after Game 6 of the Finals.

Source:  https://www.yahoo.com/sports/warriors-take-out-fullpage-ad-in-toronto-star-to-congratulate-raptors-parade-nba-finals-142912934.html

I want to say that the Chicago Blackhawks did something like this after the Kings beat the Hawks in the 2014 Western Conference Finals (or maybe the Kings did it when the Hawks beat them in 2013).  Either way, very classy move.


As far as the Davis trade, I am REALLY not looking forward to listening to sports talk radio at lunch and on my way home.

[Samsara]

I'll be very curious to see what the Nets roster looks like after free agency is settled. There's been a lot of buzz lately about momentum picking up for Kyrie to come to Brooklyn and potentially try to pair him with Kevin Durant (though I'm not sure how much Durant's injury changes that). There's also been talk of mutual interest between the Nets and Tobias Harris. I don't think they'd try to sign Kyrie and re-sign D'Angelo Russell, but I guess we'll see soon enough. Been a long time since the Nets has been as attractive of a destination for free agents as they are now, thanks to the culture Sean Marks and Kenny Atkinson have created and some of the supporting players they've developed.

My hometown is literally 15 minutes from Tobias'. If I were the Nets, I woulidn't bother with Irving. I'd look to re-sign D.Lo, and then sign Tobias Harris, and keep adding. Don't subtract for Kyrie and his bad knees.

As a Wolves fan, I totally want them to go all-in on Kyrie, so we have a chance at D.Lo. But if I'm the Nets, it would be really stupid to let D.Lo go. Just resign him to the max, and sign Tobias. I've watched the Nets from afar, as I am a huge fan of Caris LeVert. They have something special. Don't break it up for Kyrie. Keep your PG and keep growing.

[axeman90210]

I'm feeling about the same. If signing Kyrie instead of DLo means they get KD as well then I don't think you can pass that up, but if they're going to sign Harris I'd rather see them keep Russell.

[jingle.boy]

In other news, I this move:

The city of Toronto is celebrating the Raptors’ first victory in franchise history and ahead of Monday’s parade, the Warriors took out a full-page ad in the Toronto Star to congratulate the champions.

“The Golden State Warriors congratulate the Toronto Raptors on their historic achievement and bringing the 2019 NBA Championship to the City of Toronto,” the ad reads, with a photo of Steph Curry hugging Kyle Lowry after Game 6 of the Finals.

Source:  https://www.yahoo.com/sports/warriors-take-out-fullpage-ad-in-toronto-star-to-congratulate-raptors-parade-nba-finals-142912934.html

Classy indeed... too bad you posted this literally right after there was a shooting at the rally - about a 100 yards from where jingle.son and I were standing.  Detailed post below.

First, the good.  What a turnout!!!  The City was predicting 1.5M-2M people for the parade and rally.  Estimates are now that it was more like 3M. 

Pics of the massive crowds during the parade:









Now that not so good ... from that last pic, imagine all three surrounding streets, and the back half of the square (area under the arches) emptying out in a span of a couple of minutes.

The parade was supposed to start at 10am, run about a 4 mile route, and end up at City Hall / Nathan Phillips Square, with the rally starting somewhere around 12:30.  Jingle.son and I arrived around 8am, and found a decent enough spot at Nathan Phillips Square, standing on the area that is normally a shallow water feature (ice rink in the winter) that was boarded up with plywood.  Well, the City did a shit planning job on the parade route - no barriers, so the 1M+ people taking that in were filling the street, and it took 5.5 hours for the busses to get to the rally.  Organizers hadn't planned for this, and didn't have a 5 hour 'party' planned for the Square.  So, it was pretty much 60k+ people standing around for 5 hours.  Some people in the front of the square had been there since Saturday/Sunday.  Here was the scene:



The stage is at the top of this pic, and the square is essentially split into two sections, separated by the TORONTO (which are about 7' high).  Jingle.son and I were about 3/4 of the way back in the area behind TORONTO (on a direct line behind the N). 

The team finally gets on stage around 3:30, and after all the intros, the Mayor is doing his schtick, and then the back 1/2 crowd starts stampeding.  The shooting was just outside the square, in the bottom right corner of that pic.  So, imagine about 15,000 people already shoulder-to-shoulder now running like hell (from right to left), and nobody knowing why really.  Considering the city had a vehicle 'event' about a year ago (a car ran down pedestrians on a busy sidewalk), I'm trying to scan for a vehicle plowing thru the crowd and trying to decide which *way* to run. jingle.son thankfully had the presence of mind to grab his backpack (where my keys were), and luckily we didn't really get separated. After about 30 seconds or so, things seem to be settling down a little.  I'm trying to scan the crowd to see where the 'danger' is - I can't see any cops really rushing around acting frantic, and some in the crowd were looking in an area back behind the square. 

Couple of pics that show how empty it got - in about 30 seconds.





A few minutes later, jingle.son and I try to make our way back to an area where we can see the stage, because as I said, there didn't seem to be any danger.  Some people were saying gunshots, but I could see a few cops just observing and walking around, so I figured there wasn't anything to be too concerned about - as did a lot of others, as the back 1/2 filled up again.  So we end up pretty much under the 'left' arch, about 1/2 back.  Then a minute or so later, ANOTHER stampede, and jingle.son and I got seriously separated in it.  Fortunately, he found me, and at that point, we got the fuck out of dodge.  Headed down to the train station, and caught the train home.  As were were leaving, THAT's when we saw a shit-ton of cops all frantic and running around on the streets surrounding the Square.  The surrounding streets (which had also been PACKED) were virtually empty.

Apparently 4 people shot (non life-threatening), but the cops did take down the suspects pretty quick.  Some twitter vids show it, but again, they don't really do justice to the palpable fear that also swept over that area of the crowd.  They did stop the rally for a moment to make an announcement about an emergency - I suspect out of concern that the WHOLE crowd didn't start seeing tweets about a shooting and then a full-fledged panic sweep over the crowd.

https://twitter.com/CityNews/status/1140713635091746818 (this is what jingle.son and I got caught up in)

https://twitter.com/mnizamdin7/status/1140710644389490693 (one of the side streets that was PACKED not 1 minute before)

https://twitter.com/jpags/status/1140707542114414593

The 5th video down in this report is the best I can find.  https://globalnews.ca/news/5400259/shooting-toronto-raptors-championship-parade/

So yeah, that sucked.  Left the house at 5:30am, got home at 8pm, and got about 2 minutes of the rally after standing around for 7.5 hours just waiting.

But, we've got a cool story to tell at least!   

[Samsara]

Jingle, glad you and your son are OK. Scary shit.

People need to stop fucking shooting people.

[Azyiu]

Jingle, glad you and your son are OK. Scary shit.

People need to stop fucking shooting people.

I second that... why people do such a thing, especially at such happy and historic event for the city of Toronto?

[bosk1]

I'll never understand you Canadians and your obsession with guns.



But seriously, all of this:

Jingle, glad you and your son are OK. Scary shit.

People need to stop fucking shooting people.

I second that... why people do such a thing, especially at such happy and historic event for the city of Toronto?

[Lonk]

So AL Horford doesn’t want to return to Boston. If Al and Kylie leave, don’t see Boston as contenders anymore unless they bring someone else in.

[TAC]

So AL Horford doesn’t want to return to Boston. If Al and Kylie leave, don’t see Boston as contenders anymore unless they bring someone else in.

Kyrie is gone. They weren't contenders WITH Kyrie.

Not sure Al really makes a difference either way. If they renounce one more contract, they can bring in a Max player this year. It's probably best to have the $$ flexibility. Al really did them a favor.


That said, that guy was a true professional.

[TAC]

@ Chad.. I thought I commented earlier today. I guess not..



HOLY SHIT DUDE!

[Samsara]

The bigger news with the Celtics is that apparently Horford and the Cs were going to hammer out a new contract. But then Al just decided (for whatever reason) to just go full bore into free agency. My guess tells me, Al probably wanted a 4 year, 85+ million deal. And when Ainge rightfully balked at committing that type of cash to a player who will be in his late 30s (I think 37) when the contract is up, Horford walked. The Celtics will miss Horford big time, but not statistically. He was good for 14-7-4. THey will miss his professionalism and example to younger players about hard work. It'll be interesting to see where Ainge goes now. I think you have to maintain that cap flexibility to sign Tatum.

[Samsara]

Let the drama begin. Conley going to Utah for spare parts, Utah's first rounder this year, and a future first rounder. Utah got better, but they are losing two first round picks for a guy whose a lot closer to 35 than 25. Wow. Memphis going all-in on Ja Morant, as expected, in the draft.

[T-ski]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

[TAC]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

Not at all.

[gmillerdrake]

Chad.....just Wow. I can’t imagine what you guys were feeling. Had to be weird as a parent, worrying about your son and also just trying to determine the best way to protect you both.

Glad you guys made it out unscathed.

[Samsara]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

Dude, I've got pizza on order, picking the kid up early, and she, my wife and I, will all be in our T-Wolves stuff. Draft Day is like Christmas. Party on!

[T-ski]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

Dude, I've got pizza on order, picking the kid up early, and she, my wife and I, will all be in our T-Wolves stuff. Draft Day is like Christmas. Party on!

when I told my wife about it she had the exact same reaction, except the opposite. 

[TAC]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

Dude, I've got pizza on order, picking the kid up early, and she, my wife and I, will all be in our T-Wolves stuff. Draft Day is like Christmas. Party on!

So you have the adult version?

[Nekov]

Summer free agency. You heard it here first. D'Angelo Russell (and his special Arizona Iced Tea) to Minnesota in a sign and trade that brings Dario Saric, Jeff Teague, and a pick to the Nets.

I guess with Saric gone and the rumors that the Nets are not sure about Kyrie, this is not happening

[bosk1]

Is it wrong that I have friends coming over to watch the draft Thursday night?

Dude, I've got pizza on order, picking the kid up early, and she, my wife and I, will all be in our T-Wolves stuff. Draft Day is like Christmas. Party on!

So you have the adult version?

No, I...I actually think he could fit into that one. 

[Samsara]

Summer free agency. You heard it here first. D'Angelo Russell (and his special Arizona Iced Tea) to Minnesota in a sign and trade that brings Dario Saric, Jeff Teague, and a pick to the Nets.

I guess with Saric gone and the rumors that the Nets are not sure about Kyrie, this is not happening

Not at all. Sign and trade is basically not going to happen, as the Nets wanted to shed salary. They are likely going to renounce Russell, which will leave him unrestricted. So all its a matter of is the Wolves shedding enough salary (which is essentially Teague) to offer a max deal to Russell. He and KAT are best friends, and have been talking about playing together. It's all a matter, IMO, if the Wolves finding a taker for Teague. My guess is - Phoenix. Teague has an expiring 19 million, which is all it will basically take.

TAC - love the onesie. I'd wear it. 

p.s. good draft by the Wolves. Saric doesn't fit, and getting rid of him and the 11th for Culver was a great move. My guess is, they probably wanted Garland, and that way didn't have to spend to get Russell. But now with Culver in the fold, I totally see them parting with Teague and bringing in a franchise PG who is young and on the upswing. Tentatively, this may be the Wolves starting 5:

Towns
Covington
Wiggins
Culver
Russell

That's pretty solid. Towns is a 25/15 guy, Covington is 14/7, Wiggins will be 20/4/3, Culver being a rookie, all I expect is 10/3/3, with good defense, and Russell will be 20/8 on the Wolves. The bench is full of wings, so the Wolves are athletic and will pay with a lot of pace. I like it. The key is ditching Teague, so we can get Russell. FIngers-crossed.

[Nekov]

Phoenix did everything wrong yesterday, so they might give you guys a hand with Teague. They can't be worse off than they are right now