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#166
01-17-2019, 12:55 PM
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Thoughts on the Dubs Legacy...
There is an antecedent for the Dubs sucessful blueprint. The similarities are almost eerie: an undersized PG (and back to back MVP) with surreal artistry, a front court of athletic and undersized big men and wings who could score at will from all over the place.
This was the "Seven Seconds or Less" Phoenix Suns of the mid-Aughts. Nash was a creative genius. Stoudemire could jump through the roof. Marion was Draymond Green, and I would argue, even better defensively. (Although not as skilled a passer) Diaw and Barbosa (considered the fastest player in the NBA in his prime) could fill the bucket up quickly. So how come they never won a championship? The reason is obvious: they ran smack dab into the Spurs at the height of their Tim Duncan Dynasty. When did the Warriors face such a cohesive, talented team en route to their championships? The answer, unfortunately, is never. As a fellow Forumite recently opined, the Cavs were a "fetid corpse" of a franchise dragged from the depths of mediocrity by the greatness of Lebron James. In fact, I'll argue that there have been only three great "teams" over the past twenty years, with the salient characteristics being a recognized leader, an obvious chemistry, a blueprint for success, and a championship: the 2003-2007 Spurs, the 2004 Pistons, and the Warriors. As a Dubs fan since the heyday of Run TMC (favorite play from those days: Rooney putting his head down and going to the hole) I hope someone can challenge the Dubs in a meaningful way. If Cousins comes back and is capable of going 15-8-3, then I think it's realistically game over. If not, I think there's two teams that could challenge. I think the Bucks, Nuggets, and Sixers are still too callow. Giannis might be the best player in the league, Jokic is an offensive genius, and the "Ben and Joel" show have at least one championship in their future. Just not now. I disagree with Jaybee about the Raptors. I think that, in order to beat the Warriors, you need a solid "old-school" defensive presence (like Duncan or Wallace) in the middle. I just don't see that from Valunciunas. IMO, that leaves the Thunder and Celts. Steven Adams is just a beast. He doesn't shoot the three like the "New Age" centers, but he could do some real damage to the Dubs inside. I love the guy. Interesting article on him here: https://www.google.com/amp/www.espn....3fplatform=amp Paul George is a strong contender for the MVP, defensive genius Andre Roberson is coming off the DL, and then there's the King of the Triple Doubles: Westbrook. If Westbrook goes 13 for 30, OKC is sunk. But if he goes for 20-25 with over a dozen assists, and resists playing "hero ball," I think OKC can give the Dubs problems. In the East, you have to wonder, *** is going on with the Celts? They have a very skilled center (the criminally underrated Horford) and seven guys who could easily score 20 points a game, including ... Kyrie Irving. And perhaps there's the problem. Off the top of my head, there are three players I would pay to watch: Curry, Westbrook, and Irving. Irving has a sh*tload of talent around him. Why aren't the Celts kicking ass all over the place? Perhaps its because Irving hasn't harnessed his considerable skills to the betterment of his team. If he can learn how to do that (quickly) I'd say the Celts would be fantastic matchup for the Dubs. I hope, as hoops fan first and foremost, that it happens. Much better for the NBA, and a truer litmus test for the Dubs' legacy. 
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#169
01-18-2019, 12:33 PM
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I am, nominally, a Thunder fan from some time I spent in OKC a couple years ago. As such, it pains me to say this, but they aren't a threat to the W's.
They still have (despite giving up 130+ in 4 of the last 5 games) the league's best defense, a defense that would presumably only get better with the addition of Roberson (though who knows when that's going to happen or if he will still be his all-world self on the defensive end). The D is not the issue - no team (except maybe the Raps) is prepared to switch 1-5 like OKC and I still think there is something to be explored from Jerami Grant at 5 lineups that are ultra-long and bouncy. The issue is perimeter shooting. Paul George deserves to be in the conversation (crowded though it is) for an all-NBA forward slot. He and Terrance Ferguson are the only rotation players over 35% for 3FG. Alex Abrines is theoretically a spacer who demands defensive attention, but he hasn't played in over a month now. PatPat seems washed, Grant is having a career year, but still doesn't demand respect as a stretch 4. You'd much rather have him taking a three than blowing by you and yamming on your head. Abdel Nader, I guess, has some promise? Check on that again in May. Schroeder is a really good backup PG, and maybe not someone who should be on the floor in a tight playoff game. And all that brings us to the elephant in the room - Russ. God knows I love him, but he is historically bad at 3FG for the volume he shoots. Literally the worst in history. He's never been great, but he has reached serviceable, which is fine when you have his ability to get into the lane. This year, even his normally reliable FT line pullup has abandoned him, he's shooting career lows at the rim, and a career 80+% FT shooter can't even hit a FT. Defense's are giving him the Tony Allen treatment. He's had one knee surgery before this season and a serious ankle sprain during it, so maybe there's some lingering there, but it's hard to avoid the fact that he is a 30 year-old PG who relies almost exclusively on athleticism. The track record there is... not great? Ultimately, there are just too many non-shooters in their best 8 players to hide against a playoff level defense. PG is going to have 3 dudes on him while everyone else dares TFerg and Russ to beat them from deep. I know this is true because Luke Walton explicitly mentioned it in a between quarter interview last night. On top of all that, they have a really rough stretch of 20 or so games coming up, almost all against top 5 seeds in either conference. So anyway, if you read all that, the point is this: Thunder... nah.
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#170
01-18-2019, 12:43 PM
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So I guess I'm not quite sure what "an old school defensive presence in the middle" does for you against the W's? Their best lineup is specifically predicated on the fact that if your center can't switch and at least get a hand in Curry/KD/Klay's face after they come off a Draymond screen 28 feet from the basket, then the game is effectively over. The list of 5's that can do that is really short - Capela's ability to do that helped push the WCF to 7 last year. Ibaka, Miles Turner, Capela, Davis, Horford is kinda the list of true 5's that can do that. Adams can kind of do it against teams who are not the Rox or W's. Really good defensive centers like Gobert and Embiid who don't like to get much above the foul line just get roasted. Most teams just punt and go small.
Anyway, this is why I'm buying the Raps. Valanciunus and Greg Monroe will see next to zero burn in a hypothetical Dubs series. You'll see a bunch of Ibaka at the five, and their rarely used but awesome over limited sample size Siakam at the 5. They are one of the few teams in the league that can put a 5 man lineup on the floor with no defensive weak spots and no shooting holes.
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#171
01-18-2019, 05:55 PM
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The Dubs have had 14 losses this year. I'd argue that only four of them have come against teams with non-traditional centers: the Nuggets with the wizardry of Jokic, the Bucks with Giannis and up tempo system to match the Dubs, and the Raptors with an Ibaka/Siakam combo.
The rest of the losses have come against teams with traditional centers who are anchored (more often than not) to the post. Including Zubac (?) from the Lakers who ate the Dubs up in the paint, going nine of ten from the field, and finishing with 18 and 11. I'd never heard of him until the night he smacked the Warriors around...
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#172
01-19-2019, 10:51 AM
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Here comes the coronation...
Cousins went for 14 and 6. In fifteen minutes. Shot a few threes, showed a nice spin move under the basket, and tussled with Gortat. I'm happy for the guy. Is it good for the NBA? I don't think so. Would the "Showtime" Lakers have such a vaunted legacy if it weren't for the Celts? Or vice versa?
I really hope Kyrie Irving remembers that there's a "P" in front of the "G" in his position and not an "S." If that happens, I think there's a chance of a good series...
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#174
01-29-2019, 03:30 PM
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This line made me pass coffee through my nose: "if the Lakers don’t get Davis—if they miss the last best chance they’ll ever have to pair a still-great LeBron with that good of a teammate—it will be because Magic Johnson fell for the hype surrounding a tryhard third guard with a broken jumpshot whose dad suckered everyone into believing he was Steph Kidd."
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#175
01-29-2019, 04:51 PM
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 What do you even do here? Best shooter in league history is coming around a screen with a clean look, screener's defender can't drop any further. Bell is rolling to the basket, and Myles Turner (guarding Boogie) should probably tag him, but Boogie is a career 37% shooter on 3's above the break. Maybe Turner can stay and a wing defender can take the roller, but then your options are leave KD open in the corner or leave Klay open in the corner. Unguardable.
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#176
01-29-2019, 08:41 PM
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#177
01-29-2019, 09:00 PM
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NOP absolutely needs to wait until July if they can to pull Boston into the mix. Then the question is "would Boston give up Tatum for a possible 1 yr rental of the best big in basketball.". This would force every other team to up their offers. Boston clearly has the best asset collection. None of LALs prospects excite me. In related news Howard Beck had a nice theory on the Zach Lowe podcast about how the NBA's success has neutered the supermax, and I think he is right.
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#179
01-31-2019, 07:17 PM
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They're willing to let Davis sit a year while they mull their options and if he wants to sign as a free agent in 2020 in LA, he's welcome to do that. But the reality is Boston's offer will demolish anything anyone else can muster between players and picks, with the only hitch being whether they commit now to including Tatum or not. But Boston would need some assurance from the Brow he's not a rental and he's staying. Which is also part of their pitch to get Kyrie to stay and not bolt for New York, now that they've cleared the decks to sign two max deals. The Lakers kids have slumped together at the worst possible time. Heck, the Lakers probably wish they still had D'Angelo Russell with the way he's playing lately. He'd be far more valuable as a trade chip for Davis than Ball/Kuzma/Hart combined.
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#180
01-31-2019, 07:51 PM
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Linear Mode
