2013 NBA Season News and Discussion

[Skarsguard]

Well Popovich came out with coach of the year. Can't really agree with this though seeing as coach Thib's dealt with a lot more and came out ahead.

Maybe my bulls can pull a rabbit out of the hat and win the whole thing to make up for this

Spurs have the highest point percent after a timeout which of course speaks about coaching performance and I don't think there is any better coach in the NBA that is better at half time adjustments...having said that and being a Spurs fan I would have gave the award to the Pacers coach I mean who does he have.

---------- Post added 2012-05-01 at 07:34 PM ----------

Don't be dissin on T-Mac without the butloads of injuries he had he probably would have ended as the best scorer a couple of more times. Speaking of injuries, D. Rose seems to be heading the way of Brandon Roy. I really hope the Bulls don't rush him back he needs to be 1000% before he can play competitive again.

I don't think comparing Durant to T-Mac is "dissin" him or me saying he didn't play D because he didn't. I was a big T-Mac fan its crazy because he makes league min or something like that now I don't know what happened to his game besides the injuries it has to be something mental going on.

[conscript]

Well Popovich came out with coach of the year. Can't really agree with this though seeing as coach Thib's dealt with a lot more and came out ahead.

Maybe my bulls can pull a rabbit out of the hat and win the whole thing to make up for this

The Bulls are a young team that should have been able to easily adapt to the compressed schedule. The Spurs are led by guys who are near retirement and have been playing for over a decade. The compressed schedule should have killed them. Instead they ran off three double digit win streaks, absolutely dominated teams over the last month of the season (their average margin of victory over their last 20 or so games is absurd), and managed the roster better than any team in basketball. No one with that kind of veteran ladened roster showed anywhere near the management skills Pop did. He controlled his players minutes and games played like crazy (to the point where they sacrificed massive win streaks for rest). He transitioned his team from being one that won on the defensive end to one that was one of the best offensive teams in the NBA overnight. That in itself is a ridiculous change especially to have it be that successful. Thibs did a great job overcoming Rose's myriad of injuries this year. The fact that they won the East is a serious testament of his ability to get the most out of his role players (and a serious testament to the (we don't really care about the regular season" of the Heat). Thibs deserves props (except for his brutal overplaying of players in games that are decided but in fairness Rose's ACL didn't explode because of fatigue and could have happened anytime, but why even risk it), but the job Pop did this year is insane.

Amar'e's injury was so bad that apparently part of his hand was literally hanging off lol. He had to have surgery yesterday to repair a muscle in his hand. At least he didn't do it with his shooting hand as that could have been seriously career threatening from as bad as the injury sounds.

Amar'e's is an amazing word by the way.

---------- Post added 2012-05-02 at 09:09 AM ----------

Spurs have the highest point percent after a timeout which of course speaks about coaching performance and I don't think there is any better coach in the NBA that is better at half time adjustments...having said that and being a Spurs fan I would have gave the award to the Pacers coach I mean who does he have.

The Pacers have about half a dozen NBA caliber starters. Granger, West, George, Hill, Barbosa, and Hibbert are all NBA caliber starters. Monty Williams for the Hornets would have been my pick after Pops. The Hornets have no one. Kaman is their highest caliber player and he is probably a rotational big man on most teams (or a starter because there are like 6 NBA Centers nowadays). Gordon is fantastic but he missed almost the entire year. Yet the Hornets managed to not be embarrassing and played nearly every game close all year. Imagine what Monty Williams could do on an actual team. I think he should quit and take the Clippers inevitable opening next year.

[Niyari]

Pop had to deal with the same stuff. They lost Ginobili in the third game of the season (their most important player at the time) and yet they managed to salvage the season.

[Skarsguard]

[/QUOTE]The Pacers have about half a dozen NBA caliber starters. Granger, West, George, Hill, Barbosa, and Hibbert are all NBA caliber starters. Monty Williams for the Hornets would have been my pick after Pops. The Hornets have no one. Kaman is their highest caliber player and he is probably a rotational big man on most teams (or a starter because there are like 6 NBA Centers nowadays). Gordon is fantastic but he missed almost the entire year. Yet the Hornets managed to not be embarrassing and played nearly every game close all year. Imagine what Monty Williams could do on an actual team. I think he should quit and take the Clippers inevitable opening next year.[/QUOTE]

IDK the Pacers don't have a single Superstar or really even a big star they just have 5 guys that are good but there not great. Nobody thought that the pacers was going to have the record that they had and I bet not many people outside Indiana thought they were going to make the playoffs before the season started.

[stopbeingdumb]

How do the Hawks lose to a Rondo and Allen less Celtics. Such a bad team. And the Knicks, just break that team up now, it's a failed run. Celtics/Heat EC finals.

[Jibjabb]

But you could say the same thing about Jordan except that Lebron actually passes the ball (again not a Lebron fan) I grew up watching Jordan and everything you hate about Lebron, Jordan did the same thing except people love Jordan. I'll say this about Lebron there isn't a person in the NBA that can defend every position,is as fast and strong,can take it to the post and play the perimeter like Lebron does. I mean really like him or hate him Lebron can shoot,pass,post,play perimeter,and dribble as good if not better then anybody in the league.

Im not a big Jordan fan despite living in Chicago my whole life. Jordan was better than Lebron and didnt hype himself up like Lebron did though. He was just as arrogant, but when the moment came Jordan delivered big time. He lived up to his expectations as a great player. Anyways I highlighted the things completely wrong about what you are saying about Lebron. Shoot/Post/Dribble is just a no... I can name about 50 players who can shoot better than Lebron. His post game is very mediocre, he worked on it in the off season cause it was so bad, it got better but its still nothing to speak home about compared to players who live in the post. As for dribbling Lebron isnt known for handles, he gets past people with athleticism, strength, and burst, when have you ever seen Lebron cross anybody? Wade is a much better ball handler than James.

His defense is so overrated it makes me sick. Can he play defense? sure he can but he gets so much credit for being this unbelievable defender just because hes a superstar player. There are much better defenders who arent superstars but guys like Kobe/Lebron will get more credit than they deserve over the every day type players, some of those players are only on the team cause they can lock down defensively. If your point is hes a better defender than Durant/Nowitzki/Rose than yes I agree with that. Defense isnt exactly what gives people MVPs though, Steve Nash is prime example as hes flat out awful at it and he won twice.

IDK the Pacers don't have a single Superstar or really even a big star they just have 5 guys that are good but there not great. Nobody thought that the pacers was going to have the record that they had and I bet not many people outside Indiana thought they were going to make the playoffs before the season started.

There was no reason for them to miss the playoffs Id say a vast majority said theyd be in it, maybe not the 3 seed but easily in it. They made it last year and they got better signing David West in the offseason. Just looking at the East in general theres no team that did miss people wouldve projected to be better

This notion of having "no one" is getting ridiculous. Did Dirk average 100 ppg? Did he single handedly defend Portland, OKC, LA and Miami? What he lacked in perceived star power on his team, he had more than enough in team play. The Pistons followed this exact philosophy in 2004.

It was in response to the comment of everybody needing a big star to help the main player. Obviously he cant score everything but in the playoffs he carried such a huge load without another star to ease it. Think Allen Iverson when they made the Finals. Cept Dallas won it. Dirk and Terry blew the game for them the other day though, which is a big disappointment. Watching the teams play Dallas still looks like the better team to me, yet they are probably going to lose in 6 or 7.

---------- Post added 2012-05-03 at 12:44 AM ----------

Im so on board the Spurs bandwagon, they are just mauling the Jazz right now and I think are the best team to beat the Heat, which automatically makes me love them. Also would make my playoff prediction seem smart. GO SPURS GO

[TheOne]

Is anyone else seeing the Pacers in the Conference Finals? I know the Magic aren't much of a team without Howard, but seriously, these Pacers can play good solid team ball.

[Pendulous]

Well the Spurs won by 31 points.

....This is the playoffs, right? Not "NBA team vs. 12-year-olds"? Sigh...maybe next year.




...Probably not.

[Skarsguard]

Yeah there's people that can do stuff better then Lebron. I mean S.Nash can pass better then Lebron,K.Durant has a prettier shot then Lebron,Chris Paul can dribble better then Lebron,D.Howard can play post better then Lebron.But let me ask you this can S.Nash guard a power forward,can Chris Paul play the post,Can Durant power inside the lane with 3 people in it,and can D.Howard run the plays if need be . I'm not saying Lebron is the best defender in the league but hell he's pretty good and the fact that he can defend every position... not since Magic has really anybody been able to do that. Lebron can dribble better then most power forwards and Centers that's for sure he's not a guard or anything but if you ask him to play guard he could. Again not a Lebron fan I'm just saying he is probably the most complete player since Magic.

[jreg]

I can name about 50 players who can shoot better than Lebron.

Wanna start naming them instead of relying on hyperbole? Is he as good as Dirk, Durant, or Allen? No, but he's been pretty consistent. Last season, he was only behind Dirk in shot percentage from the 16 - 23 foot zone. I cringe every time he settles for a 3 though.

His post game is very mediocre, he worked on it in the off season cause it was so bad...

And this is the misconception - career-wise, he's actually not bad in the post. He excels in drawing double/triple teams and then passing it out to the open man from the post. However, because he looks so awkward on the block, people naturally assume he sucks at it. His problem was that he never really had a go to move and that he never did it enough when he really should be doing it far more often. He's shown flashes of brilliance this year, but he still needs work.

...it got better but its still nothing to speak home about compared to players who live in the post.

Truth.

As for dribbling Lebron isnt known for handles, he gets past people with athleticism, strength, and burst, when have you ever seen Lebron cross anybody? Wade is a much better ball handler than James.

His ball handling isn't very good but it's not that bad either. His biggest problem is when he neglects his ball speed; since he's pretty tall, when the ball is on its way up, he's vulnerable to steals.

His defense is so overrated it makes me sick. Can he play defense? sure he can but he gets so much credit for being this unbelievable defender just because hes a superstar player.

It might be talked about a lot - more so than you'd like - but it's not overrated in the slightest. According to 82games, he has kept his assignment to 10 PER which ranks as fourth best in the league. He also routinely defends a variety of positions including the occasional center - Pau Gasol can attest to this.

It was in response to the comment of everybody needing a big star to help the main player. Obviously he cant score everything but in the playoffs he carried such a huge load without another star to ease it. Think Allen Iverson when they made the Finals. Cept Dallas won it. Dirk and Terry blew the game for them the other day though, which is a big disappointment. Watching the teams play Dallas still looks like the better team to me, yet they are probably going to lose in 6 or 7.

Fair enough but I'd still say Dirk had plenty of help from great team play. It's pretty evident this year that missing those few defensive pieces is hurting. If he had the same team as last year, I honestly believe the Mavs would be up 2 - 0 on the Thunder. He definitely ripped through the post season though. Beast.

Im so on board the Spurs bandwagon, they are just mauling the Jazz right now and I think are the best team to beat the Heat, which automatically makes me love them. Also would make my playoff prediction seem smart. GO SPURS GO

I think Lakers could make a push too just based on how well they are playing right now. Memphis too but that game 1 collapse was pretty bad.

[Windry]

How do the Hawks lose to a Rondo and Allen less Celtics. Such a bad team. And the Knicks, just break that team up now, it's a failed run. Celtics/Heat EC finals.

You know, honestly I think the Knicks are going to win game 3 without Amar'e (I did pick Heat to win in 5), and that's going to be incredibly bad for the locker room. I think most viewers and fans are already leaning towards trading Amar'e, and if the Knicks were to win a game while he's out... we'll never hear the end of it.

[Jibjabb]

Fair enough but I'd still say Dirk had plenty of help from great team play. It's pretty evident this year that missing those few defensive pieces is hurting. If he had the same team as last year, I honestly believe the Mavs would be up 2 - 0 on the Thunder. He definitely ripped through the post season though. Beast.

Oh definitely I never denied the fact that Chandler, Barrea, even Stevenson helped them out to win those series and games. With the same exact roster last year they prob would be 2-0 and probably would have home court as well. If you watched TNT the other night they had a big talk about this and its sort of where Im coming from, Charles Barkley was saying to Shaq that the only reason the "others" as Shaq calls them can do well and are sometimes significant is because the superstar allows them to do it. Without the superstar they wouldnt have these open shots, they wouldnt have the opportunities to make big impacts. So a lot of times in the media and even among some fans I hear things like Chandler or Terry is the reason Dallas won. Which makes me bang my head on the wall. I get wanting to give props to other guys that contribute but if were all being honest we know it is mostly because the superstar player. Barrea is a prime example, the reason he was able to drive is cause the other teams big never even got a foot off of Nowitzki so once he gets around the pick its an easy lane to the hoop

I am very close to changing my mind about the Lakers. All year long I said they are not a contender dont believe the hype. But since watching Bynum's emergence this year and the trade of removing Fischer I am tempted to view them as a legit threat. I will be curious to see how they deal with most likely OKC in the 2nd round.

[Skarsguard]

Oh definitely I never denied the fact that Chandler, Barrea, even Stevenson helped them out to win those series and games. With the same exact roster last year they prob would be 2-0 and probably would have home court as well. If you watched TNT the other night they had a big talk about this and its sort of where Im coming from, Charles Barkley was saying to Shaq that the only reason the "others" as Shaq calls them can do well and are sometimes significant is because the superstar allows them to do it. Without the superstar they wouldnt have these open shots, they wouldnt have the opportunities to make big impacts. So a lot of times in the media and even among some fans I hear things like Chandler or Terry is the reason Dallas won. Which makes me bang my head on the wall. I get wanting to give props to other guys that contribute but if were all being honest we know it is mostly because the superstar player. Barrea is a prime example, the reason he was able to drive is cause the other teams big never even got a foot off of Nowitzki so once he gets around the pick its an easy lane to the hoop

I am very close to changing my mind about the Lakers. All year long I said they are not a contender dont believe the hype. But since watching Bynum's emergence this year and the trade of removing Fischer I am tempted to view them as a legit threat. I will be curious to see how they deal with most likely OKC in the 2nd round.

The reason why the Lakers are looking good is because there bigs match up against Denver who's biggest player is 6'10 when you got Bynum and Gasol at 7 foot 280 there's not much that Denver can do. I think against the Spurs,Memphis and OKC there not going to just waltz in and push people around like there doing now.

[Shalamahara]

i think lebron james should win MVP..i mean,how many other players do YOU know that their Acting skills are as good as their basketball skill..i mean comon!! its a no brainer....

yea james sux,at least he knows if basketball doesnt work out,he can always go into hollywood.With all those flops,im sure they could find a place for him there

[conscript]

i think lebron james should win MVP..i mean,how many other players do YOU know that their Acting skills are as good as their basketball skill..i mean comon!! its a no brainer....

yea james sux,at least he knows if basketball doesnt work out,he can always go into hollywood.With all those flops,im sure they could find a place for him there

He is a triple threat, offense, defense, and flopping. It is really impressive. I'm a LeBron fan, now that he isn't killing the Pistons, but even I will admit he is a big flopper. But hey, so is the entire NBA. The officiating is so incredibly horrid that everyone flops constantly and gets the calls. Chris Paul is another epicly great flopper like LeBron. I just love it when the refs give calls on LeBron even with small contact whether he flops or not. I don't know if you have ever seen LeBron in person, but the dude is enormous. He is my height and weight, but whereas I am fat he is 110% muscle. You could swing a bat at the guy and barely knock him off his feet. It is comical to think that a guy built like him can go flying from slight contact.

The NBA needs to do something this offseason, and should have done it during the lockout, to address the growing flopping epidemic and the horrible refereeing in general. A week or two ago Reggie Evans took one of the biggest flops in NBA history. The refs called a Flagrant 2 against the guy who "hit" him but knocked it down to only a personal foul after reviewing it like they do with flagrant fouls. They should have called a foul or a tech on Evans for flopping since there was no contact at all to even justify a personal foul on the other guy. But as far as I know they don't have the capability to call flops so floppers are never punished. The NBA needs to start handing out techs for flopping just like the NHL does for diving (although there isn't a single NHL fan that will tell you the refs call diving nearly enough. They usually only call it in conjunction with a penalty on the other team like a hook and an embellishment which cancel each other out which makes no sense at all). Refs also need to actually call fouls that they see, not what they think they see or what they assume is happening. They also need to call fouls on jumpshooters that jump directly into their defenders or kick out their legs every time they take a jumper. The shooters get so many calls on that nonsense it is awful.

[Skarsguard]

Manu always flops you can run by the man and he will flop around like a fish out of water.

[Blueobelisk]

HEHEHE guys. Knicks are leading since they are in MSG. I couldn't get cheap enough seats for today's game + I had a final today so I didn't go. Cheapest tickets are $176.

I'm still looking for tickets for Sunday.

I love the way New Yorkers are shouting asshole for Lebron James hahaha, I'm screaming that to my TV too.

[buck008]

The Knicks were going to win one at MSG, or at east make a good run at one anyway.

For all those claiming LeBron James is the worst flopper, I have but two words for you: Hedo Turkgalo.

[Jibjabb]

Lebron's best supporting actress


I dont think Lebron is the biggest flopper either (as a Bulls fan ive seen Omer Asik do some hilarious ones) he might be the biggest flopping superstar however

[Skarsguard]

Lol Bosh he probably needed a breather.