NBA season 2019/20
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As we finally approach the point of the season where teams start to build in to their runs, there are a few surprises on the table
The top of the East are flying. Bucks have 45 wins, and went 9-1 in their last 10. The Raptors have quietly strung together 14 wins in a row, the Celtics have gone 9-1 in their last 10... but the East also have 2 teams in the playoff spots with losing records
In the West the Lakers continue to lead. Denver have quietly got themselves to 39 wins. The Clippers are 3rd. then it's a log jam 4th to 7th. Looks like you'll need to be >.500 to make playoffs.
You can stick a fork in the Spurs in 10th and down, they are done for the year. The Blazers need Lillard to continue his tear to make up ground.
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@canefan said in NBA season 2019/20:
@Dice men against boys. A few of the ESPN pundits suggested a USA vs International team, I reckon it would be good fun
Love that idea. Straight off the bat you have Giannis, Embiid, Doncic, Towns, Wiggins, Simmons, Siakam, Horford, Gobert, Porzingis, Jokic available for the international team. Helluva stacked front court.
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@shark said in NBA season 2019/20:
@canefan said in NBA season 2019/20:
@Dice men against boys. A few of the ESPN pundits suggested a USA vs International team, I reckon it would be good fun
Love that idea. Straight off the bat you have Giannis, Embiid, Doncic, Towns, Wiggins, Simmons, Siakam, Horford, Gobert, Porzingis, Jokic available for the international team. Helluva stacked front court.
Kyrie Irving was born in Australia and apparently has dual citizenship, so he locks down PG. Dragic too
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safest bet in the NBA at the moment of for Spurs to be up at halftime, and lose.
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@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
safest bet in the NBA at the moment of for Spurs to be up at halftime, and lose.
Losing Kawhai will screw them for years to come
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@canefan said in NBA season 2019/20:
@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
safest bet in the NBA at the moment of for Spurs to be up at halftime, and lose.
Losing Kawhai will screw them for years to come
fuck up
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but yeah, that's the guy you build the team around, and he left. And we got fuck all in return.
There isn't any top level talent there at the moment. A couple of maybe guys, but at the "top" end LMA is 34, and everyone knows what DD is. The team needs a pretty hard reset. Not sure the Spurs will go the tank route though.
Pops a legend, but is old as fuck, and does he have the energy to build it all up again? Because the Spurs are a mile off.
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@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
but yeah, that's the guy you build the team around, and he left. And we got fuck all in return.
There isn't any top level talent there at the moment. A couple of maybe guys, but at the "top" end LMA is 34, and everyone knows what DD is. The team needs a pretty hard reset. Not sure the Spurs will go the tank route though.
Pops a legend, but is old as fuck, and does he have the energy to build it all up again? Because the Spurs are a mile off.
They got damn lucky getting the Admiral and Timmy in the draft. Did really well scouting Parker and Ginobili. They need a high draft pick to have a chance to draft a franchise player. They just aren't shit enough for that
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They are in the worst place of anyone, in a way. The mediocre middle. Good enough to compete night to night, but not good enough to go beyond the first round of the playoffs. Minnesota are in a similar boat, maybe Portland too.
Murray and Walker are good youngsters, LMA and DeRozan solid vets, but you can never see them reaching any heights, unlike say Memphis, Atlanta or New Orleans.
But the changes to the draft lottery work in their favour. If the ping pong balls go their way they could easily land a few top 5 picks in the next few seasons, which can turn things quickly if you draft well.
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The Spurs made Kawhai unhappy, somehow (edit as just looked it up to refresh my memory: issues around an injury the details of which are still murky). Don't make it sound like he just up and left for no reason. Not that I'm justifying his departure but it probably wasn't one way traffic. Then they idiotically thought they were getting a franchise player for a franchise player. Dumb.
The Spurs have done fuck all to rebuild from their golden era and have been in decline for a while. Like all teams in this position they either need to have a clear out and invest in a couple of new signings, or allow themselves to reach the bottom and draft well. But Pop won't want the first part of the latter to be the end of his legacy so prepare to scratch around in 30 win territory for a couple more years.
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@shark said in NBA season 2019/20:
Then they idiotically thought they were getting a franchise player for a franchise player. Dumb.
That's not how it went. Kawhi and the Spurs broke down totally. You can argue about what went on with the injury, but we will never really know. Did the Spurs not believe him or did Kawhi act like a petulant prick?
Who knows.
But the Spurs made the very best move they could. They wait a year and they get a zero return. They trade him when they did, they at least get something back. Of course Derozan isn't Kawhi, they knew that. But when Kawhi only has 1 year under contract, he's not that valuable as a trade piece.
Toronto took a punt and it came off with a title (so many things could have derailed this!), but of course they then lost him as expected after a year.
Nothing more the Spurs could have done in the trade market.
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@shark I don’t think anyone that follows the NBA will ever think the Leonard/Spurs situation was one way. Some lay more blame to one party but there was issues both way.
On the DeRozan trade, I don’t think for one second the Spurs thought they were getting a franchise player. He was a very nice piece to go with LA but even insiders knew they needed another All-Star piece with a bit of edge to him, to be in that 1-4 bracket in the West.
It was a really bad situation from all accounts that left a sour taste in a lot of peoples mouths. Several back office people left soon afterwards as well.
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@shark said in NBA season 2019/20:
The Spurs have done fuck all to rebuild from their golden era and have been in decline for a while. Like all teams in this position they either need to have a clear out and invest in a couple of new signings, or allow themselves to reach the bottom and draft well. But Pop won't want the first part of the latter to be the end of his legacy so prepare to scratch around in 30 win territory for a couple more years.
To be honest, if I were a Spurs fan I'd gladly take a few scratchy years in return for what they've had since they drafted Duncan in the late 90s. To compete year after year after year, it's so far from what every other franchise has experienced. It's the most golden of golden eras.
They may as well push for the 8 seed in the West given the quality of the upcoming draft, and then maybe think about handing the keys over to the young core in 20/21 and saying goodbye to LMA, Demar, Mills etc.
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@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
but yeah, that's the guy you build the team around, and he left. And we got fuck all in return.
There isn't any top level talent there at the moment. A couple of maybe guys, but at the "top" end LMA is 34, and everyone knows what DD is. The team needs a pretty hard reset. Not sure the Spurs will go the tank route though.
Pops a legend, but is old as fuck, and does he have the energy to build it all up again? Because the Spurs are a mile off.
Least they got something for him, Toronto got zero for him , in fact you could argue that OKC got the trade value for Kawhai and George.
Yet Toronto are still thriving.Pop is a fluffybunny
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@Baron-Silas-Greenback said in NBA season 2019/20:
@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
but yeah, that's the guy you build the team around, and he left. And we got fuck all in return.
There isn't any top level talent there at the moment. A couple of maybe guys, but at the "top" end LMA is 34, and everyone knows what DD is. The team needs a pretty hard reset. Not sure the Spurs will go the tank route though.
Pops a legend, but is old as fuck, and does he have the energy to build it all up again? Because the Spurs are a mile off.
Least they got something for him, Toronto got zero for him
I think Toronto are more than happy with what they got in return for having Kawhai for a year
They went into it with their eyes open and got the big prize. Ujiri has done a great job keeping them right up there though
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@canefan said in NBA season 2019/20:
@Baron-Silas-Greenback said in NBA season 2019/20:
@mariner4life said in NBA season 2019/20:
but yeah, that's the guy you build the team around, and he left. And we got fuck all in return.
There isn't any top level talent there at the moment. A couple of maybe guys, but at the "top" end LMA is 34, and everyone knows what DD is. The team needs a pretty hard reset. Not sure the Spurs will go the tank route though.
Pops a legend, but is old as fuck, and does he have the energy to build it all up again? Because the Spurs are a mile off.
Least they got something for him, Toronto got zero for him
I think Toronto are more than happy with what they got in return for having Kawhai for a year
They went into it with their eyes open and got the big prize. Ujiri has done a great job keeping them right up there though
Almost everyone else from that champion roster stayed and got better. They are flying
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Sixers beat the Clippers in a very high quality game in Philly. Simmons with a triple double, Kawhi had 30.
You get the feeling if the Sixers can put it all together they could win the East. They've been mediocre thus far, but as this game showed their best is still very good indeed. Embiid stepped up, as did Richardson.
They equally could flame out and trade one of Embiid or Simmons before the start of next season.
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@barbarian said in NBA season 2019/20:
Sixers beat the Clippers in a very high quality game in Philly. Simmons with a triple double, Kawhi had 30.
You get the feeling if the Sixers can put it all together they could win the East. They've been mediocre thus far, but as this game showed their best is still very good indeed. Embiid stepped up, as did Richardson.
They equally could flame out and trade one of Embiid or Simmons before the start of next season.
They are the soap opera of the East right now
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@barbarian said in NBA season 2019/20:
@canefan said in NBA season 2019/20:
They are the soap opera of the East right now
They are the Nick Cage of the East. At their best they are Oscar worthy, but at their worst... may God have mercy on their soul.
If they lose in anything other than the conference finals Brown will be fired. Even that might not save him, although to be fair titles are not won in February so he'll be judged on the playoffs. Then they will allow a new guy a chance to get Joel and Ben playing well together before the last resort of trading one of them
