ZoomSlowik

Awful D by Dallas right now. Funny that they haven't caught on that Lebron is going to pass every time right now.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jun 9, 2011 -> 09:58 PM) It sucks the Heat are going to win. Jinx attempt?

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jun 9, 2011 -> 01:24 PM) The Mavericks don't have that and they're in decent shape to beat the Heat. I have to agree with this. The Mavericks are hanging in there with Kidd, Terry and Barea combining for about 88 MPG, and Dirk isn't exactly a defensive stud either. The Mavs aren't nearly as athletic as Miami, but they're hanging around because they have guys that can actually make shots. You don't have to have the 97 Bulls defensive lineup to stay in games against them. If you play decent team defense and can actually execute an offense down the stretch, you have a shot. The Bulls can't do the latter right now, it's all on Rose to manufacture shots. It's not like they have a bullet-proof defense right now anyways; Boozer is a huge liability and Rose and Noah still have lapses. You could easily play someone like Martin 35 MPG and bring Brewer off the bench when you need stops, plus maybe then you'd actually be able to give Deng a break now and then.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jun 5, 2011 -> 09:48 PM) Well this series is over. The team that wins game 3 in the finals when it was 1-1 coming in has never lost. I'm going to go put a large wager on the Mavs to win game 3 now. Though seriously, it wouldn't surprise me if they got a lot of similar calls to those last few minutes so the league can avoid the Heat going up 3-1 with the last two on their floor.

This series is funny so far. Basically any time someone makes a few jumpers, that team goes on at least an 8-0 run.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jun 2, 2011 -> 01:05 PM) Wade has no equal at his position. Not even Kobe. It's fruitless in trying to find the perfect 2-guard to match-up with him. But give me the ultra-athletic, consistent 25 PPG scorer that at the very least has the ability to be a good defender as my starter and then go with a Brewer or defensive minded 2 as the bench guy. Not the other way around. He's not going to average 25 a game playing with Rose. He took 22 shots per game last year and 20 per game this year to get those points. No one else on the Warriors took even 15 shots per game this past year. Their pace also helps as the Warriors got 4 more possessions per game than the Bulls did this year. Someone that doesn't need the ball in their hands to produce points would be a much better fit. Someone like Kevin Martin (Martin idea is a registered trademark of Steve9347 INC) or Danny Granger that can hit open shots. Martin and Granger both only took 16 shots per game last year, and their efficiency could go up a lot with more open jumpers create by Rose. Ellis wouldn't benefit from that nearly as much as he's not a good jump-shooter and relies on the drive like Rose. Someone like Ellis that relies on the drive and an iffy jumper simply isn't going to be as efficient playing with a similar player. It works with Lebron and Wade because they're both high efficiency players that are capable of scoring 30 PPG on a season. Neither Rose nor Ellis fits that category yet.

Ellis and Rose in the same backcourt is a bad idea. Monta is basically a poor man's Rose, why bother when the Bulls have the real thing? They both need the ball, neither can consistently hit outside shots, and neither can guard the 2 (realistically, Monta can't guard anyone). At least Lebron and Wade defend and they are both capable of shooting 50% from the floor on the year, Rose and Ellis were both around 45%. The Warriors are actually 6.6 points BETTER per 100 possessions when he is not on the floor. That's pretty impressive considering no one on that team plays any defense.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ May 27, 2011 -> 11:16 AM) and contraction has floated about. It might be a bargining ploy, but I think it's possible. (My personal opinion is that each league (except maybe the NFL) needs to trim 2-6 teams. Getting rid of the Kings and Hornets should absolutely happen given their ownership situations. You could easily make a case for Charlotte too, or Memphis and Indiana if you stretched it a bit (though those two teams seem to be headed in the right direction). The only problem with that is it would give the NBA a chance to rig a contraction draft and put Chris Paul in either New York or LA.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ May 27, 2011 -> 08:03 AM) Kobe doesn't seem happy in L.A. He wasn't even consulted with in the Mike Brown acquisition. Any chance he could be traded to us? None. It's the same thing as 2007, the Lakers will add pieces long before they move him.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ May 27, 2011 -> 03:06 AM) Chicago Gets: Iguodala, Howard Phoenix Gets: Brewer, Boozer, $3M (Bulls) Magic Get: Asik, Gibson, Songalia, Watson, Lucas, Pargo, Bobcats Pick, Both Bulls 1st Rounders, Second Rounder, $3M (Bulls) Philly Gets: Carter, Redick, Second Rounder (Via Phoenix), $3M (Bulls), Future Bulls First, Future Second Rounder (Bulls) Why Chicago: Team becomes Rose-Iguodala-Deng-Noah-Howard-Watson-Korver-Bogans. Resign Kurt and Rasual for the bench.. The starting five has two ball handlers, 3 guys who are OK to Good from 3pt, a rebounding monstrosity, a center with some post moves, and Noah to get clean up points/hit the Tornado. Also, that starting fives defense would be like the Bench Mob's on crack. Why Phoenix: Get an athletic SG to put next to Nash and a PF not named Warrick for Nash to toy with if they feel like they can make one last run at the West. $3M for the pick. Why Magic: Getting two, young, cheap defensive studs in Asik and Gibson, along with expiring contracts which clear up payroll (which Orlando desperately needs), 3 first rounders and a second rounder to help build again, and $3M to help with cap more. Why Philly: Get a huge expiring in Carter, allow Turner to be the man in Philly with AI2 gone, get a shooter for Turner to use in Redick, a pick, $3M in cash, and of course picks. Damnit GarPax, get this fantastical pipe dream done. This was a rather long post for something that has about as much chance of happening as me starting at SG for the Bulls next year.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 26, 2011 -> 11:15 PM) I may have presented it wrong, but it meant that they have more shooters. After the stars, the Bulls have Deng & Boozer. With Dallas, you have Terry/Kidd/Marion/Peja that can all hit shots if needed. The other Bulls showed they couldnt. And that doesnt count Barea. They're about 7 deep with guys that are at least some threat to score. That is one thing they definitely have over the Bulls. However, they're also nowhere near as good defensively as the Bulls. None of Kidd, Terry, Peja and Barea are guys you want to put on Wade or Lebron, which limits their options. Marion and Stephenson aren't exactly lockdown guys either. I'm not saying they have zero chance, I'd just pick Heat in 6.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 26, 2011 -> 11:03 PM) I know their defense does not compare to the Bulls, although I think I'd prefer Chandler over Noah at this point. But their offense is clicking and on fire. They have 5 guys who can easily put up 20 points, while the Bulls only had 3, and that s a huge difference. Plus, DRose got shut down by LeBron's height, that won't work on Dirk. It should be a good, exciting series. I don't want Cuban to win a title, but it's better than LeBron winning. They do? Obviously Dirk and Terry, but who are the other 3? Marion is third on their team in scoring in the playoffs at 11.2. Now they have some good shooters, so that gives them a big edge over what the Bulls have, but it's not like Kidd or Peja are going to be carrying them to a title.

QUOTE (Brian @ May 26, 2011 -> 10:52 PM) It seems like nobody is giving Dallas a chance. I don't get that. They have a better offensive supporting cast than we do and play good enough defense. I think it will be a fun series. I can't say I agree with this. Terry is a bit better than Deng as a #2, but who is their next option? They have a bunch of okay guys around Dirk, no one that can carry them. They don't have anything close to the wing defenders the Bulls have either, Bogans and Brewer gave Wade fits. Marion might have been able to give Lebron trouble 5 years ago, I kind of doubt it now. Terry and Peja certainly have no chance, and Stephenson is fairly average and awful offensively. The only way I see Dallas having a chance is if they just shoot the lights out. That's the only edge I think they have over the Bulls. Miami is a more athletic team than them by a wide margin.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 26, 2011 -> 10:26 PM) I don't get comments like this. Boozer has a lot of playoff experience, and Thibs couldn't even play him in the 4th quarter. The Bulls/Thibs just pissed down their leg too much in the 4th quarter in all but the first game. This is a good point. It's not the first time around for Rose, Deng or Noah either.

How many of those "Heat fans" are wearing stuff that still has tags on it?

This whole line of discussion is funny. Look around the league, 90% of the post players don't have a post game.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ May 26, 2011 -> 02:37 PM) I don't understand this. And you're not the only person that says this. Because their three best players are superstars they're less inclined to try as hard as a bunch of roleplayers? Jordan, Pippen and Rodman ring a bell? LeBron's d has infinitely improved over the last few years. Wade has always been a good defensive player. Bosh played for a s***ty Toronto team. So nobody noticed his defensive abilities (think Ron Harper when he was with the Clippers). I agree on the other two, but Bosh rightfully took some s*** for his defense. Even he said that he wasn't used to having to work on rebounding and defense before coming to Miami. He's useful in pick and roll situations because of his length and mobility, but he's not exactly going to out-work and out-muscle you for space down low. Then again, the Raptors didn't exactly do him any favors by making Andrea f***ing Bargnani his starting center the past few years. Even paired with a slug like Rasho Nesterovic that's at least an actual center and not a SF, their defense was passable.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ May 26, 2011 -> 02:14 PM) Miami was the 5th most efficient defense during the regular season, and that was without Wade etc for stretches of time. Im not sure why anyone thought Miami would be anything but a top tier defense, which is why the Bulls horrific offense is really being exposed. In fact Miami's defense efficiency is only down a point (which is better) in the playoffs. The Bulls defense is up a point and their offense is down 3 points (worse). In the playoffs you have to score points, the Bulls dont score points because of how the Bulls play. Lebron being a monster just makes it harder for the Bulls to get the easy points they rely on, but the major problem is that the Bulls can not shoot from the floor with any consistency. if you cant make jump shots, you arent going to beat a team like Miami. This is what worries me: there's no real reason to expect this roster to consistently hit jumpers. Korver is the only guy on the roster that can consistently hit open jump-shots, and he has to play in spots because of his defense. Virtually everyone else on the roster is average or worse as a shooter, especially from behind the arc. It's compounded by the fact that pretty much none of these guys can create their own shot. Obviously Rose can, Deng and Boozer will on rare occasions, and everyone else is strictly catch-and-shoot. That makes it pretty hard to have a top-tier offense. Rose has shown he can pull shots out of nothing, but the other players have to make them. That's the only thing the Cavs did right when they had Lebron: they surrounded him with guys that can actually hit open 3's. They have to remedy that to some extent this off-season. You can't just sit there looking surprised when Keith Bogans and Luol Deng miss open 3's.

QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ May 23, 2011 -> 02:34 PM) Some odd matchups. Would have liked to see UConn get UK or Vandy instead of Arkansas. No s***, instead of two really solid games with UK and Alabama playing Pitt and UConn you get four relatively one-sided games. Not smart scheduling.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ May 19, 2011 -> 04:28 PM) What RPG game shoudl I be focusing on? I dont like the ones where you just hit attack and wait. Or I could just take Myst out for my old Apple and become frustrated for hours at a time. After reading this, Mass Effect 2 maybe? I'm normally not an RPG guy, but I'm having some fun with it. It still plays mostly like an RPG, but while you're waiting for the powers to cool down you can still use your guns.

QUOTE (Brian @ May 19, 2011 -> 04:56 PM) Kanter is a ?, isn't he. I would be more confident in Knight because we know what he is and have seen him play. Kanter hasn't played much against good competition the past few years. They're all question marks to some extent... Irving- The safest pick of the group, but he may not have the greatest upside. He's not the freakish athlete that Rose/Westbrook/Wall/Rondo are, so he has to be ultra-efficient and shoot it well. Is he Mike Conley or Chris Paul? That's obviously a huge difference (I'd say somewhere in between). Williams- He was a stellar college player, but will he be able to find a niche in the pros? He's in the dreaded 'tweener area where he doesn't quite have the size or perimeter experience to be either a full-time 3 or 4. Will he settle in as a stretch-4 like David West or develop enough skills to do one or the other? Or is he going to be a harder working Michael Beasley that doesn't quite fit at the next level? Kanter- He seems to have the kind of size and skill that teams crave up front and is actually willing to bang inside, but people haven't seen him as much. Where would he rank if he'd been eligible in college? The consensus seems to be he'd be #1 or #2, but it's largely speculation. I'm sure the executives will know a lot more about him than we will. Knight- Is he really a PG? He didn't have a good assist/turnover ratio in college and had a subpar field goal percentage. His decision making needs a lot of work. Will he get in the paint enough in the pros or settle for jumpers? The tools are there, but he has to make some major improvements. Walker- Less than ideal size, and for all his hype he wasn't a particularly efficient scorer. Will he be able to finish against the trees in the pros? Will his jumper become a bigger weapon? His upside seems relatively limited. It gets even spottier after that. Maybe one of the Euros can play, but I don't really know. If it were me, I'd take the one relatively sure thing in Irving and then hope I can get Kanter at #4. If that doesn't work, I don't know. Vesley sounds like he has potential, but I don't know about his buyout. Maybe Biyombo because he'll at least be able to defend and rebound by most accounts. 4 is a terrible spot in this draft since there's only 3 relatively solid prospects. Edit- LOL, I just looked at nbadraft.net. I swear I didn't look when I came up with those comparisons earlier in this post even if no one will believe me.

QUOTE (Brian @ May 19, 2011 -> 04:36 PM) I was thinking Irving going #1 until Jalen Rose made a good point yesterday. You have 2 of the first 4 picks, maximize them. Take Williams number #1 that Brandon Knight as your future PG at #4 instead of Irving at #1 and a ? at #4. That's not really a good point since it implies that Brandon Knight isn't a question mark. Since the teams at 2 and 3 don't really need a PF, they could wind up with Irving and Kanter, who just might be the two best players in this draft.

I'd say Kanter probably won't make it to #4, but the teams at 2 or 3 are fairly set at the PF spot and one never knows with Kahn.

I don't know if Irving will be a franchise savior, but he should be a solid PG. If he had gone to LA, it would have been a different story though. Irving with Blake and Gordon as running mates and Kaman/Jordan inside would have been a damn good young team. But no, Donald Sterling REALLY needed to save that money.

Classic Clippers. They give up an unprotected first to dump Baron Davis and it turns out to be the #1 pick.