NBA 2023 CAPSTONE **DENVER NUGGETS FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP**

[Samsara]

Anyone who follows the NBA shouldn't be surprised at that. Boston has a reputation for that, particularly regarding the Celtics.

I'm not saying I subscribe to that, but the reputation is there. And where there's smoke, there's usually fire.

Timberwolves won a game! WOW. Of course they did it with their opponent missing two of their three best players, and the other one, Darius Garland, dropped 51 on 'em, but a win is a win.

[King Postwhore]

Anyone who follows the NBA shouldn't be surprised at that. Boston has a reputation for that, particularly regarding the Celtics.

I'm not saying I subscribe to that, but the reputation is there. And where there's smoke, there's usually fire.

Timberwolves won a game! WOW. Of course they did it with their opponent missing two of their three best players, and the other one, Darius Garland, dropped 51 on 'em, but a win is a win.

I hate that.  Racism is everywhere.  It's not localized.  I hate that a few rotten apples spoils it for all us good apples.

[T-ski]

Is this Giannis “ladder incident” a thing?

If I’ve learned anything over the last ten years it’s that you shouldn’t give Giannis any more motivation than he already has. Montrez Harrell just made a bad mistake.

[King Postwhore]

Prince Harry and Catherine at the C's game tonight.

[T-ski]

Prince Harry and Catherine at the C's game tonight.

Shouldn’t they be at the Kings game?

[King Postwhore]

Only if. They are in Boston for something I don't even know or care about. Lol

[TAC]

Celts just beat the Nets, and Durant & Irving immediately left the bench and headed to the locker room while the rest of the Nets shook hands with the Celtics.
Fucking pussies.

[bosk1]

Celts just beat the Nets, and Durant & Irving immediately left the bench and headed to the locker room while the rest of the Nets shook hands with the Celtics.
Fucking pussies.

Well, when you've won that many championships together, you've kind of earned the right to do that.

[TAC]

Celts just beat the Nets, and Durant & Irving immediately left the bench and headed to the locker room while the rest of the Nets shook hands with the Celtics.
Fucking pussies.

Well, when you've won that many championships together, you've kind of earned the right to do that.

Such manly men.

[King Postwhore]

It pleases me that they did that.

[bosk1]

If it pleases you it pleases me.

[King Postwhore]

We are pleased.

[Lonk]

https://m.youtube.com/shorts/baNWf7r8dJ0

Curry...he's just on a league of his own 

[TheOutlawXanadu]

Celts just beat the Nets, and Durant & Irving immediately left the bench and headed to the locker room while the rest of the Nets shook hands with the Celtics.
Fucking pussies.

It's really wild what's been happening in Brooklyn. One of the really funny things to me is how Durant has publicly called out just about everyone on the team, including their role players, but hasn't called out Kyrie.

[Samsara]

Durant and Irving...man, those two deserve each other. Bunch of absolute idiots, with Kyrie obviously the more insane one.

[Samsara]

So the Timberwolves have been struggling. Not surprisingly, either. They are without four rotation players, including two starters. Thankfully, they've won the last two games and are back at .500.

The last two games have been an epiphany for future All Star Anthony Edwards. I know everyone tracking this thread knows who he is. But let me tell you, this kid...at 21, he's just going to be really, really, special. Last year, they wanted to put the ball in his hands and have DLo play off the ball. He resisted. At 20, and although gifted, it was obvious that he just wasn't ready to be given the keys yet. The game was too fast. He had to develop a bit more.

Well, this season, in particular the last few games, he's been forced to be that Lebron, Jordan, Kobe like offense initiator. And he's flourished. A legit triple-double threat. And now he's finally relishing it. Dropped 37 pts, 11 assists and 7 rebounds in a win against the Bulls last night, and had 19/8/8 the game before. He's enabled the team to play wide open (despite the injuries), and it is working. For those of you with fantasy teams, I am sure Edwards is on a team. But if you can acquire him, he may be worth the look. My guess is, even when the team is fully healthy, Point Ant will be the new normal. It has also helped D'Angelo Russell explode in recent games. He's so effective off the ball, where he can look for his shot and then make great secondary passes.

I'm anxious to see what happens once Gobert, Prince, McLaughlin and finally, Towns, are all back. 30 games in, and they are at .500. If at game 41, they are say 22-19, I feel good about their chances. The Wolves are deep. And although they lost another rotation player last night (Naz Reid), Nate Knight stepped in and gave them double digit points and a bunch of rebounds.

Anyway, get Edwards if someone is open to trading. He's about to go off like he did last night.

[crazy climber dude]

As we approach the halfway point of the season (by numbers of games played, not the all star break), the MVP race is heating up. Jokic and Doncic have been the biggest movers....with both players almost averaging a triple double on the season. It's commendable that a center is averaging double digit assists, as well as a point guard doing the same with rebounds. Luka's 60 point triple double the other night went a long way to boost his place on the ladder....as well as vaulting him to a gaudy scoring average of almost 34 points per. Jokic is third in the league in assists, and 14th in steals....from the center position.

But then you have Jayson Tatum averaging over 30 points as well....along with 8 boards. And Giannis....he is always stellar, at almost 32 ppg and a lofty 12 rebounds. And now KD.....at almost 30 points as well, and is 7th in the league in blocks. 

I think what helps Jokic and the last three here is the success of their respective teams. Nuggets, Bucks, Celtics and now the blazing hot Nets are all toward the top of their conference. Some might argue that Dallas hovering around .500 should be a feather in Luka's headband....in that he is carrying the heaviest load.

There are other players to consider....including on that is hurt right now (Curry), and one who continues to excel at a very high level despite his senior status (James). Ja Morant is in the discussion. As is a newcomer to this level of play.... Gilgeous-Alexander. And Embiid having another excellent season...leading the league at 34 ppg. Or how about how Donovan Mitchell has helped the Cavs? Not just with his play, but his leadership.

[Azyiu]

I'd say Jokic and Luka are my picks for the top 2 MVP candidates, with Tatum a distant third.

Meanwhile, the Nets have quietly won 11 in a row, and are now the #2 seed team in the East as of this writing. Guys recovering from injuries and Kyrie's return certainly help their improvement, but it seems they have developed some chemistry after the tumultuous early season. Do you guys think Nash was such a lousy coach all along? Or is Jacque Vaughn a legit COY candidate?

As for my Lakers, Pelinka should be fired, but he won't be. For whatever weird reasons, Jeanie Buss has always been way too nice or too buddy-buddy to her employees. Magic was the only time she really "fired" someone, but I thought that sentiment was mutual. At this point, I would really like to see us just stay put til the end of the season. Then let Russ' $47M off the book, followed by a proper house cleaning and start over. We need to stop giving out those 1-year deals for guys to prove themselves for a better contract down the road. Let's start with a 2-year or 3-year with a team option kind of deal, and develop some sort of chemistry.

I think some of us knew AD wouldn't stay healthy as much as we like him to be when we traded for him. We just have to accept the fact he may give you 50+ games a season, and hopefully, he can stay in one piece during the playoffs, that's all. 

[T-ski]

Luka and Tatum will be the two on the top of voters lists. They don’t like to hand it to the same guy if they can avoid it so Giannis and Jokic won’t receive as many votes.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

As for my Lakers, Pelinka should be fired, but he won't be. For whatever weird reasons, Jeanie Buss has always been way too nice or too buddy-buddy to her employees. Magic was the only time she really "fired" someone, but I thought that sentiment was mutual. At this point, I would really like to see us just stay put til the end of the season. Then let Russ' $47M off the book, followed by a proper house cleaning and start over. We need to stop giving out those 1-year deals for guys to prove themselves for a better contract down the road. Let's start with a 2-year or 3-year with a team option kind of deal, and develop some sort of chemistry.

I think some of us knew AD wouldn't stay healthy as much as we like him to be when we traded for him. We just have to accept the fact he may give you 50+ games a season, and hopefully, he can stay in one piece during the playoffs, that's all. 

Yea, the Lakers front office has been committing borderline malpractice for over a decade now. Don't get me wrong, AD and LeBron deserve criticism for pushing for Westbrook, but the front office should have been smart enough to refuse. It's really wild how Buss runs that franchise and the people who she allows to influence her.

[Lonk]

That Westbrook contract was/is ridiculous.

Mitchell put up a career night yesterday. There have been a couple of individual high scoring games lately, it's been fun to follow.

[Azyiu]

Mitchell put up a career night yesterday. There have been a couple of individual high scoring games lately, it's been fun to follow.

Monday night was crazy. Aside from Mitchell's 71 pts, Klay scored 54 pts and there were 3 other 40-pt scorers that night. It has to be a historic night in league's history.

[T-ski]

Giannis pit up 55 last night, three straight games over 40 points.

[crazy climber dude]

Giannis pit up 55 last night, three straight games over 40 points.

Yes, completely ridiculous. Even for him.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

As amazing as these performances are, I can't help but feel less impressed by them than I used to. Even as recently as a decade ago, it was very rare to see a 50-point game. Now it happens quite often over the course of the season. Don't get me wrong, it's still amazing and the Mitchell one was genuinely ridiculous by any standard. I just think the NBA's offense-to-defense ratio is a bit unbalanced right now. Part of that is rules but I also wonder if basketball has essentially been broken (not in terms of being bad but in terms of people figuring things out) by the rise in skill and floor spacing from shooting.

[Azyiu]

As amazing as these performances are, I can't help but feel less impressed by them than I used to. Even as recently as a decade ago, it was very rare to see a 50-point game. Now it happens quite often over the course of the season. Don't get me wrong, it's still amazing and the Mitchell one was genuinely ridiculous by any standard. I just think the NBA's offense-to-defense ratio is a bit unbalanced right now. Part of that is rules but I also wonder if basketball has essentially been broken (not in terms of being bad but in terms of people figuring things out) by the rise in skill and floor spacing from shooting.

I don't think the game itself is broken, per se. Rather I think guys are much more skilled these days. Or should I say you MUST BE able to shoot the long ball to play in today's game. Back in the 90's there were big men who couldn't even shoot beyond 5 feet from the basket to save their lives. Nowadays we have very skilled big men like Jokic, Embiid, Giannis, KD etc. Many of these guys don't just shoot the ball, they play both ends too.

By the way, I don't know what's poorer. Scoring 54 points and no one seems to care outside of the Bay Area? Or getting beat by the lowly Pistons at home on a last-second 3? 

Meanwhile, very nice win by the Lakers without Walker, LBJ and AD. 

[Lonk]

As amazing as these performances are, I can't help but feel less impressed by them than I used to. Even as recently as a decade ago, it was very rare to see a 50-point game. Now it happens quite often over the course of the season. Don't get me wrong, it's still amazing and the Mitchell one was genuinely ridiculous by any standard. I just think the NBA's offense-to-defense ratio is a bit unbalanced right now. Part of that is rules but I also wonder if basketball has essentially been broken (not in terms of being bad but in terms of people figuring things out) by the rise in skill and floor spacing from shooting.

With rule changes, and the way the game has evolved into a 3-point league, it is only natural to see much more scoring than 15+ years ago. The floor is more open, making it easier to penetrate to the paint and score (most of the time), you have everyone on the floor able to take 3-point shot and have a reasonable chance of making it. Plus, the pace of the game is a lot faster than it was before.

I get what you mean though, scoring 50 is deff not as...difficult?, as it was in the 90's or 80's, but it's still fun to watch for sure.

[bosk1]

By the way, I don't know what's poorer. Scoring 54 points and no one seems to care outside of the Bay Area? Or getting beat by the lowly Pistons at home on a last-second 3? 

Well, on the latter, there's more to it than that.  Yeah, it was the Pistons.  But (1) they were still exhausted by the double OT the night before, (2) they are still missing half of their big 4 (3 of 4 after that BS double-tech), and (3) they've won 5 in a row, and sometimes in such a long season, you drop a winnable game here and there.  And it's funny--listening to a Kerr interview tonight, he wasn't bothered at all and said he felt like it was actually the right result.  He said the dubs were just exhausted and got outplayed from the opening tip, and while he was proud of his guys for battling to the end, he felt like Detroit deserved the win.  Having seen the game, I can't disagree.

[Samsara]

The All Star voting is ridiculous again. I mean, I realize fan vote only counts so much, but there is so much homer BS it's infuriating.

[Lonk]

The All Star voting is ridiculous again. I mean, I realize fan vote only counts so much, but there is so much homer BS it's infuriating.

I mean, we all know the starters are a popularity vote (remember they changed the rules because of Zaza a few years ago).

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Derrick Rose getting hundreds of thousands of votes for playing under 13 minutes a game, and hasn't played more than 51 games in a season since '17.   

[Azyiu]

Derrick Rose getting hundreds of thousands of votes for playing under 13 minutes a game, and hasn't played more than 51 games in a season since '17.   

I give Derrick Rose a pass for that. The guy just can't seem to avoid running in bad luck and injuries, yet he has been working as hard as his body permits him to return to the game.

[Samsara]

The voting is such BS. Absolute BS. Fans should be taken out of it completely. It shouldn't be a popularity contest. It should be about who is playing at an all star level.

All coaches (HCs and assistants) should vote for the all stars, with the rule that they cannot vote for anyone on their own teams. Then give fans, once the all stars are selected, the ability to vote who starts for each team. That would be fine.

[Lonk]

The voting is such BS. Absolute BS. Fans should be taken out of it completely. It shouldn't be a popularity contest. It should be about who is playing at an all star level.

All coaches (HCs and assistants) should vote for the all stars, with the rule that they cannot vote for anyone on their own teams. Then give fans, once the all stars are selected, the ability to vote who starts for each team. That would be fine.

I would get behind that, but it's still vulnerable to BS voting. At the end of the day, the All-Star games are mainly for the fans, there isn't much on the line, win or lose.

[LithoJazzoSphere]

Derrick Rose getting hundreds of thousands of votes for playing under 13 minutes a game, and hasn't played more than 51 games in a season since '17.   

I give Derrick Rose a pass for that. The guy just can't seem to avoid running in bad luck and injuries, yet he has been working as hard as his body permits him to return to the game.

You don't get awards based on effort though, "availability is the best ability" and all.  Even when he's been playing it hasn't been at an all-star level.  Might as well give Iguodola a spot too.