***The Official 2018-19 NBA Thread***

"AGuyNamedAlex wrote:

Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.

Guess you've never read Romeo and Juliet.

"phinswolverinesrockets wrote:

Here is live look at Miami Heat fans: pic.twitter.com/QGGEMQjvdn

— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) November 19, 2018

L.M.A.O!!!

Here he is to defend his hero! Lol. We all have bandwagon fans. Just like how half of the rockets fan base left when Lin did.

Wasn’t able to watch Pelicans/Knicks, but I’m here to eat crow.

"GARDENHEAD wrote:

Wasn’t able to watch Pelicans/Knicks, but I’m here to eat crow.

I wanted the pels to win and your band of braindead dimwits couldnt do that right. Im trying to tank for Zion and in the meantime we just beat back to back playoff teams beating the Celtics Wednesday night and then the seguls errr pelicans last night.

dz31u

Something tells me Lakers nation ain’t tweeting this gem out.

Wow. That’s hilarious.

"vmarcilfan75 wrote:

Wow how time flies...Heat fans were on top of the world few years ago. :chuckle:

It was well worth it. That was 4 of the most entertaining years of professional sports I've had as a fan. And unless there are some Warriors fans in here, the rest of you guys probably won't ever know what it's like.

Boik, I know you've been beating the Zion drum for a while now, and it seems like most of the country has jumped on the bandwagon. I've watched him a couple of times now, and he certainly is a specimen, but I still worry about how good he'll be in the NBA without a jump shot. In the NBA there will be other grown men, and superior athletes. He'll still be one of (if not THE) best athletes on the floor, but I wonder if his strength and athleticism will not be quite as dominant. I mean, look at a guy like Kenneth Farried. I know Williamson has some other attributes that Farried doesn't, but Farried is a physical freak without a jump shot, which led to him becoming an afterthought in today's NBA. So what is it about Zion that makes you think he'll be a star even without a jumper?

"sports24/7 wrote:

Boik, I know you've been beating the Zion drum for a while now, and it seems like most of the country has jumped on the bandwagon. I've watched him a couple of times now, and he certainly is a specimen, but I still worry about how good he'll be in the NBA without a jump shot. In the NBA there will be other grown men, and superior athletes. He'll still be one of (if not THE) best athletes on the floor, but I wonder if his strength and athleticism will not be quite as dominant. I mean, look at a guy like Kenneth Farried. I know Williamson has some other attributes that Farried doesn't, but Farried is a physical freak without a jump shot, which led to him becoming an afterthought in today's NBA. So what is it about Zion that makes you think he'll be a star even without a jumper?

You can develop a jumper. Michael Jordan came in to the league with a work in progress jumper. While Zion won’t become MJ, I see no reason the jumper on an 18 year old can’t be developed. I mean if that’s your biggest qualm then what of Lebron, Kobe, Jason Kidd, or even guys like Blake Griffin who developed good or good enough jump shots? What I’m saying is, the jumper will come with work and time.

What makes me think he will be a star? Have you watched his games? Forget that he looks like a man amongst boys at Duke, the manner in which he plays is dominant. He’s the alpha. Even with guys like Barrett and Reddish who on other teams would easily be the #1 option, they feed off Zion. They feed off his energy, off his ability to draw defenses attention. While the post game is out of style, his game would be a tremendous compliment to KP. His 45 inch vertical allows him to contest and block shots from taller players.

"sports24/7 wrote:

It was well worth it. That was 4 of the most entertaining years of professional sports I've had as a fan. And unless there are some Warriors fans in here, the rest of you guys probably won't ever know what it's like.

This was an incredible gentlemen like burn.

"Boik14 wrote:

You can develop a jumper. Michael Jordan came in to the league with a work in progress jumper. While Zion won’t become MJ, I see no reason the jumper on an 18 year old can’t be developed. I mean if that’s your biggest qualm then what of Lebron, Kobe, Jason Kidd, or even guys like Blake Griffin who developed good or good enough jump shots? What I’m saying is, the jumper will come with work and time.

What makes me think he will be a star? Have you watched his games? Forget that he looks like a man amongst boys at Duke, the manner in which he plays is dominant. He’s the alpha. Even with guys like Barrett and Reddish who on other teams would easily be the #1 option, they feed off Zion. They feed off his energy, off his ability to draw defenses attention. While the post game is out of style, his game would be a tremendous compliment to KP. His 45 inch vertical allows him to contest and block shots from taller players.

I've only watched a couple of games, that's why I'm asking. I just look at the skill set and worry about his ability to do the same thing in the NBA.

As for the jump shot, while he definitely COULD develop one, do you think he HAS to if he's going to become a star? Because if so, that's a leap of faith. The guys you mentioned developed jumpers, which took their games to the next level. But that doesn't mean it works out for everyone. Again, I'm not trying to dump on the guy. I know you've been on the bandwagon since before the season started, so I wanted to get your take on what makes him special. Now that the Heat are in the lottery equation, this becomes relevant.

"sports24/7 wrote:

I've only watched a couple of games, that's why I'm asking. I just look at the skill set and worry about his ability to do the same thing in the NBA.

As for the jump shot, while he definitely COULD develop one, do you think he HAS to if he's going to become a star? Because if so, that's a leap of faith. The guys you mentioned developed jumpers, which took their games to the next level. But that doesn't mean it works out for everyone. Again, I'm not trying to dump on the guy. I know you've been on the bandwagon since before the season started, so I wanted to get your take on what makes him special. Now that the Heat are in the lottery equation, this becomes relevant.

I think his floor is basically Blake Griffin, which is 20 and 10 type guy, only an ok foul shooter, weakness on the perimeter and may not be great in the playoffs. His ceiling though...ridiculousness.

I don’t necessarily think he needs the jumper to become an all star type. He needs the jumper if he wants to be a top 5 player in the league.

If you want safe Cam Reddish is safe. He’s likely to be a slightly taller Klay Thompson imo. RJ Barrett is probably similar to Andrew Wiggins. Romeo Langford is likely going to be a strong two way play whose offense still has to develop more. Quentin Grimes is a player I really like a lot as well and reminds me of Paul Pierce; it’s not super flashy but it’s effective. But you kind of know what those guys are going to be. Really good players. Could be all stars. Zion could be great if he wants it.

"sports24/7 wrote:

It was well worth it. That was 4 of the most entertaining years of professional sports I've had as a fan. And unless there are some Warriors fans in here, the rest of you guys probably won't ever know what it's like.

I’m a Laker Fan so I know how it feels since the 80s :beer:

"vmarcilfan75 wrote:

I’m a Laker Fan so I know how it feels since the 80s :beer:

I meant in this lifetime, lol.

"Boik14 wrote:

I think his floor is basically Blake Griffin, which is 20 and 10 type guy, only an ok foul shooter, weakness on the perimeter and may not be great in the playoffs. His ceiling though...ridiculousness.

I don’t necessarily think he needs the jumper to become an all star type. He needs the jumper if he wants to be a top 5 player in the league.

If you want safe Cam Reddish is safe. He’s likely to be a slightly taller Klay Thompson imo. RJ Barrett is probably similar to Andrew Wiggins. Romeo Langford is likely going to be a strong two way play whose offense still has to develop more. Quentin Grimes is a player I really like a lot as well and reminds me of Paul Pierce; it’s not super flashy but it’s effective. But you kind of know what those guys are going to be. Really good players. Could be all stars. Zion could be great if he wants it.

I'm just delving into this draft class as I didn't think Miami would be much of a player (and I'm still skeptical that they won't win enough to find themselves at the end of the lottery, or even a 1 and done playoff team). To me, Barrett's skill set is the most exciting. I'm ok with the Wiggins comp if we're talking about talent. His limitation is between the ears, IMO. If Barrett has his head on straight with that kind of ability, he could be a star. Langford, and Kevin Porter are guys I like around where the Heat sit currently.

Either way, it looks like a strong draft. It's a good year to have a lottery pick. That's why if I'm running the Heat I trade guys like Dragic, Ellington, and Olynyck. They'll never "tank", but those guys won't be around when the Heat are competitive again, so might as well get some value for them now, and if you end up losing more games and getting more lottery balls, that's not so bad.

"sports24/7 wrote:

It was well worth it. That was 4 of the most entertaining years of professional sports I've had as a fan. And unless there are some Warriors fans in here, the rest of you guys probably won't ever know what it's like.

On the other side of that, as a Spurs fan, I've enjoyed years of following a competitive and victorious team. The 2014 victory over the Heat, following those horrific last second losses, was the most memorable of my life. It's been nice to support a franchise that has been continuously successful while the Dolphins have been anything but successful. Now the Spurs big three have all moved on and it's a new era. I'm looking forward to see what Pop can do with the Spurs 2.0 but the thought of his retirement has me pondering what it might be like for a small-franchise operation to lose that generational coaching talent. I hope his successor can bring success... enjoying it while it lasts though, even if the Spurs are struggling this year.

"Galant wrote:

On the other side of that, as a Spurs fan, I've enjoyed years of following a competitive and victorious team. The 2014 victory over the Heat, following those horrific last second losses, was the most memorable of my life. It's been nice to support a franchise that has been continuously successful while the Dolphins have been anything but successful. Now the Spurs big three have all moved on and it's a new era. I'm looking forward to see what Pop can do with the Spurs 2.0 but the thought of his retirement has me pondering what it might be like for a small-franchise operation to lose that generational coaching talent. I hope his successor can bring success... enjoying it while it lasts though, even if the Spurs are struggling this year.

Being a Spurs fan has to be pretty great. It's like the Heat organization, with more sustained success. You didn't necessarily have that 4 year period of a team like the Heatles, but for over a decade you knew you had a shot to win the title damn near every year. That, and you have maybe my favorite professional coach of all time. Certainly my favorite outside of Miami teams.

"Galant wrote:

On the other side of that, as a Spurs fan, I've enjoyed years of following a competitive and victorious team. The 2014 victory over the Heat, following those horrific last second losses, was the most memorable of my life. It's been nice to support a franchise that has been continuously successful while the Dolphins have been anything but successful. Now the Spurs big three have all moved on and it's a new era. I'm looking forward to see what Pop can do with the Spurs 2.0 but the thought of his retirement has me pondering what it might be like for a small-franchise operation to lose that generational coaching talent. I hope his successor can bring success... enjoying it while it lasts though, even if the Spurs are struggling this year.

The spurs deserved success. I still remember how bad that team was for before David Robinson and Sean Elliott. Their futility was their for a while too. As a Knick fan the only year i couldnt stand them was the year they beat my 8th seed upstart Knicks because Camby and a still hurt Ewing couldnt do much with Timmy D and Robinson even though the Spurs really had no one who was able to stick Houston and Sprewell that series as Van Gundy ran baseline screen after baseline screen.

"sports24/7 wrote:

I'm just delving into this draft class as I didn't think Miami would be much of a player (and I'm still skeptical that they won't win enough to find themselves at the end of the lottery, or even a 1 and done playoff team). To me, Barrett's skill set is the most exciting. I'm ok with the Wiggins comp if we're talking about talent. His limitation is between the ears, IMO. If Barrett has his head on straight with that kind of ability, he could be a star. Langford, and Kevin Porter are guys I like around where the Heat sit currently.

Either way, it looks like a strong draft. It's a good year to have a lottery pick. That's why if I'm running the Heat I trade guys like Dragic, Ellington, and Olynyck. They'll never "tank", but those guys won't be around when the Heat are competitive again, so might as well get some value for them now, and if you end up losing more games and getting more lottery balls, that's not so bad.

To me at least the lottery class is strong, particularly the first 6-7 picks (depending who declares of course). It falls off some after that. The depth of the class is average imo. But if you can get one of the 3 duke guys, Nassir Little, Grimes or Langford, youre Gucci at that point

"sports24/7 wrote:

Being a Spurs fan has to be pretty great. It's like the Heat organization, with more sustained success. You didn't necessarily have that 4 year period of a team like the Heatles, but for over a decade you knew you had a shot to win the title damn near every year. That, and you have maybe my favorite professional coach of all time. Certainly my favorite outside of Miami teams.

Last season's debacle with Kawhi hurt. It looked as though the FO had hit it out of the park again by acquiring Kawhi as a rookie no-one particularly cared about and seeing the coaches help develop him into a top player in the league and the future of the franchise after the big three. I bear no ill will towards him, I hope he's done what will make him happy, but it felt maybe like a heavier blow than most because SA has built its success on drafting well and maximising/developing talent in house. The coaching and player development is really the engine driving much of the Spurs success, in combination with forward thinking drafting, and a culture first approach. SA is never going to be a big pull for free agents, which makes losing talented players all the more frustrating. Pop wouldn't cry about it though. So I can't either.

It's been a pleasure watching DeMar this season, and though I don't have high post-season hopes, seeing the old man Pop work with these younger, next Gen Spurs, has been really enjoyable. It's a shame Murray is out for the season, but we'll hopefully get our first round pick back soon, and some other injuries out of the way, and see what this mix of vets and misfits can create.

My greatest wish for the Dolphins is that they could cultivate the same, "pound the rock" culture that Pop and Spurs have. They've been a model franchise for sustained success. I wonder if Pop feels like learning how to coach football? :)

"Boik14 wrote:

The spurs deserved success. I still remember how bad that team was for before David Robinson and Sean Elliott. Their futility was their for a while too. As a Knick fan the only year i couldnt stand them was the year they beat my 8th seed upstart Knicks because Camby and a still hurt Ewing couldnt do much with Timmy D and Robinson even though the Spurs really had no one who was able to stick Houston and Sprewell that series as Van Gundy ran baseline screen after baseline screen.

Robinson was the reason I became a Spurs fan, albeit towards the middle/back end of his run. Over in the UK it was difficult to watch any games because it was early internet days, so nothing online really, and the games were all late night. NBA fever was moving through my circle of friends and while Jordan and the Bulls were rocking along, the Magic with Penny and Shaq drew attention, and my brother was enamoured with Barkley, the Sun, but also Shawn Kemp and the Sonics, none of them had that appeal. It was Robinson, this super-athletic giant who was also a man of character that really appealed. So I became a Robinson fan, and with that a Spurs fan. They weren't up to much as a team back then, but Robinson was amazing, and I was generally surprised when they started to find success. As I said, it had been hard to follow the team the way we can now. Getting hold of results etc was difficult. Next thing I know they've drafted some guy called Tim Duncan, and they're starting to dominate. That was a nice surprise. Then more additions came - who-is-he? sort of picks - Ginobili, Parker - and a legend was born. Really satisfying to see how they came together and find the success they did.

As for the Heat, since it was hard enough to follow my preferred team I lost track of them for a while. They were actually something like my second favourite team, in a way, because during my younger years of following ball Miami were Tim Hardaway and Alonzo Mourning, both favourites of mine. Tim might have been my favourite PG in that era, and Alonzo was another quality guy but with a hard-nosed edge to him. Loved me the big centres of that era. So when the Heat morphed later on, it was unfamiliar territory for me. But they'll always have a soft spot in my heart, and Spo goes down as great coach in my book. I gained new respect for him as I watched the Heat and Spurs go at it for those few years of semi-rivalry.

Here's to hoping both teams can make it back there again soon!

"Galant wrote:

Last season's debacle with Kawhi hurt. It looked as though the FO had hit it out of the park again by acquiring Kawhi as a rookie no-one particularly cared about and seeing the coaches help develop him into a top player in the league and the future of the franchise after the big three. I bear no ill will towards him, I hope he's done what will make him happy, but it felt maybe like a heavier blow than most because SA has built its success on drafting well and maximising/developing talent in house. The coaching and player development is really the engine driving much of the Spurs success, in combination with forward thinking drafting, and a culture first approach. SA is never going to be a big pull for free agents, which makes losing talented players all the more frustrating. Pop wouldn't cry about it though. So I can't either.

It's been a pleasure watching DeMar this season, and though I don't have high post-season hopes, seeing the old man Pop work with these younger, next Gen Spurs, has been really enjoyable. It's a shame Murray is out for the season, but we'll hopefully get our first round pick back soon, and some other injuries out of the way, and see what this mix of vets and misfits can create.

My greatest wish for the Dolphins is that they could cultivate the same, "pound the rock" culture that Pop and Spurs have. They've been a model franchise for sustained success. I wonder if Pop feels like learning how to coach football? :)

The deal that they got for Kawhi was pretty impressive when you consider he's on the last year of his deal, and you see guys like Jimmy Butler going for a couple of role players. Personally, I didn't think they'd get that much.

"sports24/7 wrote:

The deal that they got for Kawhi was pretty impressive when you consider he's on the last year of his deal, and you see guys like Jimmy Butler going for a couple of role players. Personally, I didn't think they'd get that much.

Yeah it wasn't fun waiting to see what happened.
DeRozan was a win. Although losing Danny Green too made me a little angry.

"sports24/7 wrote:

I'm just delving into this draft class as I didn't think Miami would be much of a player (and I'm still skeptical that they won't win enough to find themselves at the end of the lottery, or even a 1 and done playoff team). To me, Barrett's skill set is the most exciting. I'm ok with the Wiggins comp if we're talking about talent. His limitation is between the ears, IMO. If Barrett has his head on straight with that kind of ability, he could be a star. Langford, and Kevin Porter are guys I like around where the Heat sit currently.

Either way, it looks like a strong draft. It's a good year to have a lottery pick. That's why if I'm running the Heat I trade guys like Dragic, Ellington, and Olynyck. They'll never "tank", but those guys won't be around when the Heat are competitive again, so might as well get some value for them now, and if you end up losing more games and getting more lottery balls, that's not so bad.

I haven’t had the time to watch too much college ball outside of the Longhorns and canes, but you’re right, we’ll probably be picking somewhat high so I need to get on it. We’re currently sitting with the 6th worst record, and i hate to say it in Dwades last season, but I hope the losses continue. Let Dwade shoot 20 times a game.

And I get the RJ Barret/Wiggins comp, but I would be surprised if RJ isn’t the better nba player.

A recent sound bit from Popovich is being discussed right now. It's nothing new for Pop, but with things being as they are, its an interesting and possibly controversial (light) question.

The 3 point shot. He's never liked it but he's had to adjust to it. The video and quotes are below.

“These days there’s such an emphasis on the three because it’s proven to be analytically correct,” Popovich offered with what appeared to be a sneer. “Now you look at a stat sheet after a game and the first thing you look at is the threes. If you made threes and the other team didn’t, you win. You don’t even look at the rebounds or the turnovers or how much transition D was involved. You don’t even care. That’s how much an impact the three-point shot has and it’s evidenced by how everybody plays.”

“I hate it, but I always have,” Popovich said even as he’s adjusted over the years. “I’ve hated the three for 20 years. That’s why I make a joke all the time (and say) if we’re going to make it a different game, let’s have a four-point play. Because if everybody likes the three, they’ll really like the four. People will jump out of their seats if you have a five-point play. It will be great. There’s no basketball anymore, there’s no beauty in it. It’s pretty boring. But it is what it is and you need to work with it.”

These came from a story looking at the 3 pointer here - https://www.nba.com/bulls/news/how-has-three-point-shooting-changed-game

Jalen Rose jumped in on it:

It an interesting question, but what can be done about it, realistically? No one is removing the 3 point line, so I think the only conceivable change that could be made is to move it backwards... or forwards. Either make 3's more difficult to try to bring their influence back down to previous levels, or make them easier so that there's less of a difference in terms of spacing the court, making them a little easier to defend ,and not needing as elite three point shooters.

Thoughts?