Jump to content

NBA 2017/2018 Season


Mentor

Recommended Posts

I was about the say, who do you think will win it, but i think everyone knows who will win it, the only thing stopping the Warriors winning it is injuries or lack of interest/passive attitude. They have not started the league particularly well, but everyone expects them to figure it out.

 

That said i think the Cavs are on paper better this year despite losing Irving, but that is on paper. From the games i saw this year they have not been ultra impressive, but eventually i think they will figure out their rotation and Isaiah will also come back from his injury. With Haywood's injury in Boston, i think that means they most certainly should be winning the East, especially this year as it is ultra weak.

 

From my Lakers i expect an exciting season, we will probably not make it to the playoffs, but at least we will play with some passion this year, something we have not seen for a while.

 

I also think this will be the season that Giannis becomes a perennial MVP candidate, he could miss out because his team sucks balls, but he will have monster numbers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was about the say, who do you think will win it, but i think everyone knows who will win it, the only thing stopping the Warriors winning it is injuries or lack of interest/passive attitude. They have not started the league particularly well, but everyone expects them to figure it out.

 

That said i think the Cavs are on paper better this year despite losing Irving, but that is on paper. From the games i saw this year they have not been ultra impressive, but eventually i think they will figure out their rotation and Isaiah will also come back from his injury. With Haywood's injury in Boston, i think that means they most certainly should be winning the East, especially this year as it is ultra weak.

 

From my Lakers i expect an exciting season, we will probably not make it to the playoffs, but at least we will play with some passion this year, something we have not seen for a while.

 

I also think this will be the season that Giannis becomes a perennial MVP candidate, he could miss out because his team sucks balls, but he will have monster numbers.

 

I agree with this for the most part. I think Kyrie is an upgrade from Isaih from an overall player perspective.

 

Don't sleep on the Clippers Blake has improved every year and it should be interesting to watch the clips in the utra stacked western conference.

 

Philadelphia will be really fun too, I expect them to be a top 5 team in the east this year between simmons and Embiid they have the talent hopefully whoever there coach is has a heck of a squad to be at the helm of.

 

Goodluck to my Kings (I think DeAaron Fox is better than Ball or Fultz)

 

NBA is turning into an americanized version of Euro Soccer the best players go play on the best teams creating a very top heavy league with little to no parity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The way Blake has been playing if he can stay healthy and make the playoffs he might just win the MVP this year.

 

The warriors are winning it this year and the next year. Even if they lost one of their big 4 I still think they win. But the thunder and rockets make it interesting at least.

 

I've been impressed with Lonzo so far. His shooting is what I thought it would be but his passing, rebounding, and even his defense have looked solid. I wouldn't build around him due to the poor shooting and below average athleticism but he's looking like a great piece to have.

 

Despite having basically zero expectations my suns have still managed to disappoint me. Nobody has stood out thus far and the whole bledsoe situation is just atrocious. Did we hire Phil Jackson and I missed it somehow?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Honestly, I think the only game I've watched is The Lakers/Clippers I think last week, I did just watch the Green/Beal fight footage.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Honestly, I think the only game I've watched is The Lakers/Clippers I think last week, I did just watch the Green/Beal fight footage.

heres a breakdown of the fight:

https://www.sbnation.com/2017/10/28/16563882/warriors-wizards-fight-suspension-draymond-green-bradley-beal-kelly-oubre-jr

 

I watched the two Magic games on the League Pass free preview. I'll probably catch the games when they play the Bulls this year too. Other than that, I wont see any NBA games this year unless the Magic make the playoffs.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been impressed with Lonzo so far. His shooting is what I thought it would be but his passing, rebounding, and even his defense have looked solid. I wouldn't build around him due to the poor shooting and below average athleticism but he's looking like a great piece to have.

 

 

Lonzo has been ok, but the hype is over exaggerated for sure. Comparisons to Magic are simply humorous to say the least, Magic was a player that can play multiple positions (probably all of them), he was a much stronger leader from the onset and even Lonzo's strong point (his passing) is still some way off what Magic was doing from year 1. I think Lonzo is more like a poor man's version of a young Jason Kidd, not as dynamic but a good passer, better than average rebounder for a PG but his shooting has been very inconsistent, similar to what Kidd was when he started off. I think he will slowly develop his shot, we know he can shoot, just that wacky shooting motion is not helping him in the NBA. He also lacks the explosiveness at the moment when going to the rim and often get's blocked. I think his defensive effort is better than some people expected as well.

 

The steal of the draft so far to me is Kuzma, i did not see all the rookies play, but this guy has been on fire. Now with Nance out with an injury, he is also getting starting minutes, so i expect him to show what he is capable of. Their first game with Kuzma as a starter was a win, so lets see.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't go out of my way to watch NBA games but since I go to bed with TNT on, TNT is on the TV when I come home and if there's a game on, I'll watch it, watched the Lakers and Portland the other night.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Lonzo has been ok, but the hype is over exaggerated for sure. Comparisons to Magic are simply humorous to say the least, Magic was a player that can play multiple positions (probably all of them), he was a much stronger leader from the onset and even Lonzo's strong point (his passing) is still some way off what Magic was doing from year 1. I think Lonzo is more like a poor man's version of a young Jason Kidd, not as dynamic but a good passer, better than average rebounder for a PG but his shooting has been very inconsistent, similar to what Kidd was when he started off. I think he will slowly develop his shot, we know he can shoot, just that wacky shooting motion is not helping him in the NBA. He also lacks the explosiveness at the moment when going to the rim and often get's blocked. I think his defensive effort is better than some people expected as well.

 

The steal of the draft so far to me is Kuzma, i did not see all the rookies play, but this guy has been on fire. Now with Nance out with an injury, he is also getting starting minutes, so i expect him to show what he is capable of. Their first game with Kuzma as a starter was a win, so lets see.

 

I honestly thought the kid wouldn't do much other than pass but he's shown a better game than that but you're right the hype for this kid is way overblown. Magic himself made that comparison which is just ridiculous. The young Jason Kidd comparison is a good comparison. Obviously he won't reach the levels of Prime Kidd but a reasonable ceiling for him is Ricky Rubio. Which isn't bad but I'm sure it's not what L.A wants and definitely not with all the Magic comparison hype.

 

Lauri Markkanen - Rookie of the year - anyone?

 

Can only see Ben Simmons beating him

 

I think Fox and Smith jr. have an outside shot but it looks like a 2 horse race with Simmons no.1 and Lauri no.2 right now.

 

The Bucks trading for Bledsoe was a good move, they're absolutely loaded and should compete for the Eastern Conference Finals. I'm really excited for Bledsoe and the Bucks they're gonna be a fun team to watch. The Suns fumbled that entire situation and didn't end up getting much for him but at least everyone can move on now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I honestly thought the kid wouldn't do much other than pass but he's shown a better game than that but you're right the hype for this kid is way overblown. Magic himself made that comparison which is just ridiculous. The young Jason Kidd comparison is a good comparison. Obviously he won't reach the levels of Prime Kidd but a reasonable ceiling for him is Ricky Rubio. Which isn't bad but I'm sure it's not what L.A wants and definitely not with all the Magic comparison hype.

 

Jason Kidd was a solid NBA defender early in his career. Lonzo Ball is so far from being an adequate defender that he doesnt contribute anywhere near what Kidd did in his early career. Unless he can re-learn how to shoot he's going to be a bust.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jason Kidd was a solid NBA defender early in his career. Lonzo Ball is so far from being an adequate defender that he doesnt contribute anywhere near what Kidd did in his early career. Unless he can re-learn how to shoot he's going to be a bust.

Lonzo has shown good effort on the defensive end of the court and with his length he can be an average defender an in my opinion he's been close to average. The problem with Lonzo is his athleticism is below average in an era where guards and players in general are more athletic than ever. This is what will ultimately cause him to fall short of expectations imo. His defense will always suffer, he wont be able to finish at the hole, and unless he can develop his shot near Stephen curry levels he will always be a below average scorer. He'll be a good starter but I don't see how any team could put their future on this guys shoulders.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I honestly thought the kid wouldn't do much other than pass but he's shown a better game than that but you're right the hype for this kid is way overblown. Magic himself made that comparison which is just ridiculous. The young Jason Kidd comparison is a good comparison. Obviously he won't reach the levels of Prime Kidd but a reasonable ceiling for him is Ricky Rubio. Which isn't bad but I'm sure it's not what L.A wants and definitely not with all the Magic comparison hype.

 

 

I doubt he will reach the levels of Kidd, people forget that Kidd was also a great defender, Lonzo is better than i expected, but nowhere near being a good defender, let alone great. He has impressed me mostly with his rebounding, i did not expect him to be a 6+ rebounder. I agree with JLP though, if he does not do something with his shot, he is going to probably be at most a rotation player (in other words a huge bust considering people compared him with Magic and Kidd), you cannot rely on simply flashy passing to make a career. I think that in this draft Lonzo is nowhere near the 2nd pick, he could actually be outside the top 9-10 rookies this year. It is amusing that ESPN ranked him 55th best player 1 above Carmelo BEFORE his first NBA game! Anyway, we ended up being lucky, we got Kuzma at least from the draft with the 27th pick, i think he will have a very good NBA career.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If Ball doesnt re-work the jump shot and become a decent shooter he would probably be a nice bench player if he were on a good team. A guy who can come off the bench and play either guard position and run your offense is not a bad player, unless you used the 2nd pick in the draft on him.

 

Aaron Gordon was a bad shooter in his first three years and spent last offseason reworking his shot mechanics and is now shooting very well both 3's and FG % (i'd call it unsustainable at the current %s but he can drop back 10% on either number and still be an elite shooter), so its possible.

 

As a side note, Aaron Gordon is a pretty good example on why the current NBA is broken. The Magic drafted and developed him for three years with mixed results. Now he's finally putting it all together and becoming an elite player, but is a RFA after this season. I hope he wants to stay in Orlando and signs a long term deal, but no one ever really does. I think best case for Orlando is he and Elf Payton sign for three more years and then leave. The "one and done" system has hurt both college and pro ball.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The thing is the NBA and the world had Lonzo as a top 55 player even before his first game and Magic hyped him saying he could/will become the new Magic. Expectations have dropped since he joined and people are saying he could be Kidd, but he is most likely what you are saying, in other words a potential borderline starter or 6-7 option on a top team.

 

As for the NBA, the whole system is broken and it will be getting worse. Money outside of their salaries is already bigger now than the actual salary itself, which is why top players sign to winning teams after getting their big payday of their second contract. Teams pretty much have no control over their own futures and frankly it is their fault because they are greedy fuckers with all their cap limits. There is a way to solve the situation for the bigger teams (i mentioned it in the past) with having more leeway on the contracts, allowing for bigger contracts in general, but that wont help the smaller teams.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lakers either gotta bench Lonzo or tell him DO NOT SHOOT. Has 0 confidence right now. This was the game. Lonzo vs my boy Simmons and he got destroyed.

 

Lonzo's shot mechanics need to be fixed. End of story. I get it, its hard to do but he was destined to plateau with that shot. He's a solid player but you have to have some form of jump shot in todays game unless you are a freak like LeBron in his prime.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Celtic's beat the Warriors. This really makes it even sadder that Hayward got injured because Boston has looked pretty good. They wouldn't have won but having a year under their belts, maybe adding some rebounding for next season and they could have been title contenders next year.

 

Funny thing was everybody laughing at them for not chasing stars and offering/trading for guys like Cousins and Carmelo. They were very smart in how they built their team IMO. No headcases or drama and a lot of young talent. As a Louisville fan, I'm hoping Rozier keeps improving

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Funny thing was everybody laughing at them for not chasing stars and offering/trading for guys like Cousins and Carmelo. They were very smart in how they built their team IMO. No headcases or drama and a lot of young talent. As a Louisville fan, I'm hoping Rozier keeps improving

 

Yeah chasing Carmelo or Boogie would have been dumb and would have been counter productive to the team's success, the only place those guys can go to and work imo is either Cavs because of Lebron or San Antonio because of Pop. People see the tremendous talent but they don't realize everything else that is coming with them. Signing Hayward was a great move and trading for Kyrie has turned out fantastic for them. It seems like every move Danny Ainge makes or every player he drafts is successful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...