2014-5 NBA Season Thread: We Are North American Ballerz

[OaklandIsBack]

Regarding the game winning jump shots… when you drive the lane there's going to be a lot of contact and a very difficult shot to finish. Its not a good idea to depend on a ref's whistle to win a game. It's not just jump shot vs lay up, it's one on one pull up jumper versus a shot in the lane against 3 or 4 defenders at a time when referees like to swallow their whistles

[FiddySicks]

I was reading this article this morning and discussing it with a few friends of mine.

http://deadspin.com/the-denver-nuggets-are-a-burning-clown-car-plunging-int-1683700757?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_facebook&utm_source=deadspin_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Halfway through our conversation, Shaw got s**tcanned.

What a bad read people had on that guy.

[Burkell007]

I was reading this article this morning and discussing it with a few friends of mine.

http://deadspin.com/the-denver-nuggets-are-a-burning-clown-car-plunging-int-1683700757?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_facebook&utm_source=deadspin_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Halfway through our conversation, Shaw got s**tcanned.

What a bad read people had on that guy.

Has there ever been a better gif that fits a team & article like that one?? Forgive me I'm on my phone so I can't repost the gif, maybe somebody can?

[SFGiants58]

I was reading this article this morning and discussing it with a few friends of mine.

http://deadspin.com/the-denver-nuggets-are-a-burning-clown-car-plunging-int-1683700757?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_facebook&utm_source=deadspin_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Halfway through our conversation, Shaw got s**tcanned.

What a bad read people had on that guy.

Has there ever been a better gif that fits a team & article like that one?? Forgive me I'm on my phone so I can't repost the gif, maybe somebody can?

That's just plain depressing.

[CLEstones]

Oh, I disagree. Bosh's number took a hit when he joined Miami. The last 4 years in Toronto, he was nearly a 20-10 guy. His LeBron-Era stats were closer to 17-7.

And I hate Wade but he's probably one of top 5 shooting guards of all time. Nothing borderline about that

To be honest, I think that is the classic case of top of mind. Just thinking of a few that could legitimately be ahead of Dwayne Wade (in no particular order):

• Michael Jordan
• Kobe Bryant
• Jerry West
• Allen Iverson
• George Gervin
• Pete Maravich
• Clyde Drexler
• John Havlachek

Now, if people want to hang their hat on the jaded and convoluted argument of "well he has more rings" or he has more championships... then we can debate that. But using ASG appearances in the current NBA landscape is an erroneous statistic.

When I think Hall of Fame... it truly needs to be some of the greatest of all time. When talking about Wade, his first title came when Shaq was still Shaq. His second and third championships, he was relegated to the second or third option and rattled with injuries.

He is a top 5 SG from the last 20 years (depending on who you consider SG). But saying all time I think is short-sighted. Right now, I think he is ahead of Tracy McGrady. He is a player that was at the top of the league for a good 4-7 years... but became a victim of injuries, amongst other things. Again, if you want to use the convoluted and jaded argument of "rings," then he is light years ahead of Tracy McGrady... but I think that argument holds some water... but not much.

Oh, I disagree. Bosh's number took a hit when he joined Miami. The last 4 years in Toronto, he was nearly a 20-10 guy. His LeBron-Era stats were closer to 17-7.

Yeah, I can't imagine how Bosh's numbers would take a hit playing in Miami from when he was playing on a team whose second best player was Andrea Bargnani

That was exactly my point. Someone previously said that Bosh's numbers thrived when he was with LeBron, which was actually the opposite. In his first year without LeBron, his points have gone up 3-4 per game, thus proving my point.

[CubsFanBudMan]

The Atlanta Hawks clinched a playoff spot Tuesday (March 3), earliest date since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls clinched at 52-6 on March 2.

Seems to be a trend, since the Indiana Pacers did it on March 5 last year, fastest since those same 72-10 Bulls.

Probably says a little bit more about the low-end teams in these past two situations.

[CLEstones]

The Atlanta Hawks clinched a playoff spot Tuesday (March 3), earliest date since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls clinched at 52-6 on March 2.

Seems to be a trend, since the Indiana Pacers did it on March 5 last year, fastest since those same 72-10 Bulls.

Probably says a little bit more about the low-end teams in these past two situations.

Yeah... it seems there are more "super teams" as opposed to more evenly distributed talent... especially in the East. The West seems to be a little more spread out. The East is very top heavy.

[buckeye]

The Atlanta Hawks clinched a playoff spot Tuesday (March 3), earliest date since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls clinched at 52-6 on March 2.

Seems to be a trend, since the Indiana Pacers did it on March 5 last year, fastest since those same 72-10 Bulls.

Probably says a little bit more about the low-end teams in these past two situations.

Yeah... it seems there are more "super teams" as opposed to more evenly distributed talent... especially in the East. The West seems to be a little more spread out. The East is very top heavy.

Seems it's been that way for quite some time now. I've gone back through the NBA Standings the past decade plus and really the west has always had more depth for teams. The east has been top heavy with the bottom teams making it in the playoffs would've never made it out west.

[Xist2inspire]

The Atlanta Hawks clinched a playoff spot Tuesday (March 3), earliest date since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls clinched at 52-6 on March 2.

Seems to be a trend, since the Indiana Pacers did it on March 5 last year, fastest since those same 72-10 Bulls.

Probably says a little bit more about the low-end teams in these past two situations.

Yeah... it seems there are more "super teams" as opposed to more evenly distributed talent... especially in the East. The West seems to be a little more spread out. The East is very top heavy.

I don't think "super teams" are a problem anymore (if they ever were), even in the East. The only Eastern conference team that could kinda qualify as one is Cleveland. For some reason, Eastern conference teams have been plagued with bad management, bad lotto selections (it seems like the West drafts better/smarter), and failed team-building projects. So when an Eastern conference team actually gets its' act together and fields a half-decent team, it's fairly smooth sailing.

[Saint Zephyr III]

What compounds this is that for many of these teams, they're nowhere near being able to make an immediate improvement. Notice that every time an asset became available, somehow the West teams were the ones in a position to get someone like Josh Smith or Rajon Rondo. Not only are the West teams built to last, but they're wisely kept open availability or have savvy enough management to get even better.

[HedleyLamarr]

I wouldn't exactly call Josh Smith an asset.

[CLEstones]

The Atlanta Hawks clinched a playoff spot Tuesday (March 3), earliest date since the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls clinched at 52-6 on March 2.

Seems to be a trend, since the Indiana Pacers did it on March 5 last year, fastest since those same 72-10 Bulls.

Probably says a little bit more about the low-end teams in these past two situations.

Yeah... it seems there are more "super teams" as opposed to more evenly distributed talent... especially in the East. The West seems to be a little more spread out. The East is very top heavy.

I don't think "super teams" are a problem anymore (if they ever were), even in the East. The only Eastern conference team that could kinda qualify as one is Cleveland. For some reason, Eastern conference teams have been plagued with bad management, bad lotto selections (it seems like the West drafts better/smarter), and failed team-building projects. So when an Eastern conference team actually gets its' act together and fields a half-decent team, it's fairly smooth sailing.

There was the original super team... Boston in the PGA era. That kinda started the Big 3 trend. During that time, Cleveland and Orlando were considered super teams... but maybe not by the 2015 standards. Shortly thereafter, the Nets signed/traded for Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, and Gerald Wallace, with Brooke Lopez already on the roster... who later acquired Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Jason Terry.

Miami was the first to form a REAL super team in 2010. But during that time, the Lakers traded for Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. The Thunder had Durrant/Westbrook/Harden/Ibaka, although that was home grown. The Rockets now have both Harden and Howard. Carmello and Stoudemire were in NY. There has been a huge trend in talent accumulation.

I do agree, the west just seems to manage everything better... except the last 4 years in Cleveland. I hate to sound like a homer, but Chris Grant and now David Griffin made tons upon tons of shrewd trades - along with ridiculously good "luck" - to make Cleveland legitimate. I don't really know the reason why... the only thing the West really has in common is the good weather... I guess except for Minnesota. Maybe the owners have deeper pockets and can absorb worse contracts/deals in the short term to pay off in the long term?

[HedleyLamarr]

Cleveland would still be a dumpster fire if it weren't for LeBron coming back and privately begging the Cavs' brass to supply him with better talent in one offseason.

Cleveland hasn't exactly been knocking on the door of the playoffs during LeBron's absence. It took the Hawks losing a key player for 50 games and a late losing streak to give the appearance that the Cavs were near the 8th seed.

[CLEstones]

I don't know about dumpster fire. Wiggins is looking legit. Pairing him with Kyrie would have only made him better. The Cavs wouldn't be contending for the 2 seed this year... But they would definitely be in the playoffs.

[The_Admiral]

Our hero, ladies and gentlemen.

[CubsFanBudMan]

The Bulls are likely petitioning the NBA to revoke the mandatory press conferences for the injured as we speak.

[OaklandIsBack]

I do agree, the west just seems to manage everything better... except the last 4 years in Cleveland. I hate to sound like a homer, but Chris Grant and now David Griffin made tons upon tons of shrewd trades - along with ridiculously good "luck" - to make Cleveland legitimate.

The only thing that has made Cleveland a contender this year is the birthplace of the league's best player

[CLEstones]

I do agree, the west just seems to manage everything better... except the last 4 years in Cleveland. I hate to sound like a homer, but Chris Grant and now David Griffin made tons upon tons of shrewd trades - along with ridiculously good "luck" - to make Cleveland legitimate.

The only thing that has made Cleveland a contender this year is the birthplace of the league's best player

So you think the acquisition of numerous first round picks that allowed the Cavs to trade for expiring contracts, minor pieces, and key rotation players doesn't play into it at all? Or the fact that they drafted decently over the passed 4 years? Just to say that LeBron returning to Cleveland - and nothing else - made the Cavs contenders is extremely ignorant.

[truepg]

I do agree, the west just seems to manage everything better... except the last 4 years in Cleveland. I hate to sound like a homer, but Chris Grant and now David Griffin made tons upon tons of shrewd trades - along with ridiculously good "luck" - to make Cleveland legitimate.

The only thing that has made Cleveland a contender this year is the birthplace of the league's best player

So you think the acquisition of numerous first round picks that allowed the Cavs to trade for expiring contracts, minor pieces, and key rotation players doesn't play into it at all? Or the fact that they drafted decently over the passed 4 years? Just to say that LeBron returning to Cleveland - and nothing else - made the Cavs contenders is extremely ignorant.

No they didn't. Dion freaking Waiters and Tristan Thompson at number 4.

[CLEstones]

I do agree, the west just seems to manage everything better... except the last 4 years in Cleveland. I hate to sound like a homer, but Chris Grant and now David Griffin made tons upon tons of shrewd trades - along with ridiculously good "luck" - to make Cleveland legitimate.

The only thing that has made Cleveland a contender this year is the birthplace of the league's best player

So you think the acquisition of numerous first round picks that allowed the Cavs to trade for expiring contracts, minor pieces, and key rotation players doesn't play into it at all? Or the fact that they drafted decently over the passed 4 years? Just to say that LeBron returning to Cleveland - and nothing else - made the Cavs contenders is extremely ignorant.

No they didn't. Dion freaking Waiters and Tristan Thompson at number 4.

I didn't say they drafted great. As you bolded... they drafted decently. Hindsight being 20-20, there were picks they should have made over Waiters and Thompson. But considering the hit on Kyrie and Wiggins, when, at the time, both drafts were hotly contested between Irving or Williams and Wiggins or Parker. The Bennett pick won't really materialize into anything for another couple of years, but it was one of the worst draft classes in recent memory. Not only that, although Tyler Zeller isn't a stud, he is a nice starting/rotation center. Thompson is having a fantastic year playing his role along side LeBron. And Waiters was turned into Shumpert and JR Smith, who have been 2 perfect additions to the Cavs.

Yes, players like Kennith Farried, Klay Thompson, Jonas Valciunis, Kawhi Leonard, and Andre Drummond fell passed the Cavs... but those players aren't exactly setting the league on fire either. Thompson and Leonard may be the best of the bunch, but I don't think I'd put them in the top 20 players in the league. Its hard to say they drafted poorly over the last 4 years... they didn't hit EVERY pick, but no team ever does.