Official 2008-2009 NBA Thread

[MurcieOne]

http://www.nba.com/games/20090115/CLECHI/recap.html

 

The Cavs also lost to the Wizards in the regular season... do you think they would avoid a sweep? I don't. I think LeBron would up his game and terrorize us for four games and our season would be done.

 

I just don't think we'd win a game or make it a series against the Cavs with Lebron and Mo Williams.

 

 

 

 

[MurcieOne]

The only thing Paxson failed to deliver on in the deadline was unloading Hinrich, if he did that and got expiring contracts in return id be behind him 100%. That being said, this Bulls team is definitely playoff quality now, and should be next season as well enough time for Paxson to make his big splash in the 2010 free agent market. If he fails that off-season to land a big player, he has to be gone.

 

I think you have to grade Pax based on his drafts and his FA signings... the trade stuff is too hard to gauge accurately. I mean, how do we know there was an actual possibility to move Kirk? If nobody wanted Kirk... how do we blame him for being unable to move him? I'm not sure thats fair.

 

However, his drafts have been from good to bad

 

03 -- Hinrich -- Kirk is a solid but not spectacular player. he will basically be an expensive but great back-up PG for DR1.

04 -- Gordon, Deng -- you have to say this was a good draft for the franchise, these two guys have played as above average NBA players and help this franchise make the playoffs for the first time since the Jordan years.

05 -- no picks

06 -- Tyrus, Sefolosha -- as of today... you'd have to say this was a pretty big failure. Pax traded Aldridge for Tyrus and LA has outplayed him every year. Pax passed on Brandon Roy. Sefolosha is gone, never played consistently, and will likely result in a pick lower than where he was drafted.

07 -- Noah -- issues off the court, inconsistent on the court, the book is still out but Noah's ceiling doesn't look particularly high.

08 -- DR1 -- we got the top pick, Pax chose wisely.

 

FA SIGNINGS

 

Ben Wallace -- paid too much, this move set the franchise back when it didn't work out.

Malik Allen -- no comment

Joe Smith -- played well for half a season, didnt have much impact

Adrian Griffin -- no comment

Andres Nocioni -- Noce gave solid effort the entire time he was here. He was erratic, but he was a cheap signing initially and along with the 04 core helped get this franchise out of the cellar -- so noce is probably Pax's best FA signing

 

Overall you'd have to give Pax a failing grade, because the moves he has actually made have been poor more often than not. The lack of trades might be because we dont have many quality assets to trade! That you can trace back to Pax, but as was stated... he'll have to make better in 2010, convince a bigtime FA that Chicago is a good choice.

 

my .02

[whitesoxfan101]

To me, the analysis of John Paxson's tenure here is pretty simple. I think we can all agree that even if the Bulls make the playoffs, they will lose in the first round to one of the east powers. Assuming that to be accurate, at the end of this year, John Paxson will have been GM here for 6 seasons (he was hired shortly after Jerry Krause's resignation following the 2003 season) and his teams will have won one playoff series. I understand he inherited a mess, but the interited mess he had to deal with has been cleaned up for a long time, and one playoff series win in six seasons is unacceptable, especially for a franchise like the Bulls.

[Balta1701]

To me, the analysis of John Paxson's tenure here is pretty simple. I think we can all agree that even if the Bulls make the playoffs, they will lose in the first round to one of the east powers. Assuming that to be accurate, at the end of this year, John Paxson will have been GM here for 6 seasons (he was hired shortly after Jerry Krause's resignation following the 2003 season) and his teams will have won one playoff series. I understand he inherited a mess, but the interited mess he had to deal with has been cleaned up for a long time, and one playoff series win in six seasons is unacceptable, especially for a franchise like the Bulls.

1 playoff series win and presumably 4 playoff births if they make it this year though right?

[daa84]

man the mavericks really have to be kicking themselves for trading harris

[rangercal]

man the mavericks really have to be kicking themselves for trading harris

 

Mark Cuban still doesn't have any regrets about Jason Kidd/Devin Harris deal

http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/20...ny-regrets.html

Edited February 26, 2009 by rangercal

[GoodAsGould]

Mark Cuban still doesn't have any regrets about Jason Kidd/Devin Harris deal

http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/20...ny-regrets.html

 

Yeah that trade never made much sense. It was basicly a move just to make a move because Kidd isnt good anymore. My friend who is a big Mavericks fan was super pissed when it happened.

[DBAHO]

Yeah that trade never made much sense. It was basicly a move just to make a move because Kidd isnt good anymore. My friend who is a big Mavericks fan was super pissed when it happened.

It was basically a panic move by Cuban after the Lakers got Gasol and the Suns got O'Neal.

 

If the Nets can get a decent PF in the draft, they'll put up a better challenge for the playoffs next season.

 

Went to the Knicks vs. Magic last night. A few thoughts;

 

Nate Robinson is a dirty little player who makes the most of any contact on the offensive and defensive end. Still with his scoring impact off the bench, he'll get a MLE deal from some team when his contract is up.

 

Larry Hughes was horrible. Didn't make a shot, got booed, and tried to drive on J.J Redick and the ball when out of bounds when he tried to lay it in. The ultimate insult I woul have thought.

 

The Magic were good defensively for 3 quarters and had the game in hand, and then they got lazy. Nate hit a 3 with a minute left from an inbounds pass, and Stan Van Gundy went absolutely nuts at Courtney Lee. SVG is fun to watch.

 

Courtney Lee is a very smooth player, and the Magic really hit on this pick. Can drive to the hole well, plays good D, and can hit the open J. Exactly the type of polayer the Bulls need to draft this off-season if they're going to lose Ben Gordon.

[rangercal]

pretty cool

http://blogs.chicagosports.chicagotribune....isit-obama.html

Bulls to Visit Obama

K.C. Johnson

 

 

WASHINGTON --- The Bulls are scheduled to meet President Barack Obama Thursday afternoon in the Blue Room of the White House.

 

"A great honor for the Chicago Bulls organization," said Steve Schanwald, executive vice president of business operations. "The President has been a fan of the Bulls for many years and we are very appreciative of this opportunity to say hello to him and pay our respects."

 

David Axelrod, a former Tribune reporter and senior advisor to Obama, is a longtime Bulls season-ticket holder.

 

[whitesoxfan101]

1 playoff series win and presumably 4 playoff births if they make it this year though right?

 

Correct, but this isn't baseball. Just making the playoffs means something in baseball, but not so much in basketball where just over half the teams make it every year.

[Jordan4life_2007]

Correct, but this isn't baseball. Just making the playoffs means something in baseball, but not so much in basketball where just over half the teams make it every year.

 

It's hard for me to come up with anything less significant than making the playoffs as a 7th or 8th seed in the NBA.

 

And what do people think of the Celtics signing Marbury? I think it's a great move. There's virtually no risk for the Celtics, as they can cut him without it hurting their pockets one bit. I don't see Marbury causing any problems, at least for the rest of this year, as he knows he's playing for his next contract. And the talent has never been a question. It's amazing how the Celtics went from having no bench to arguably the deepest in the league with Marbury, the recently acquired Mikke Moore, House, Allen, Davis and Powe.

[DBAHO]

It's hard for me to come up with anything less significant than making the playoffs as a 7th or 8th seed in the NBA.

 

And what do people think of the Celtics signing Marbury? I think it's a great move. There's virtually no risk for the Celtics, as they can cut him without it hurting their pockets one bit. I don't see Marbury causing any problems, at least for the rest of this year, as he knows he's playing for his next contract. And the talent has never been a question. It's amazing how the Celtics went from having no bench to arguably the deepest in the league with Marbury, the recently acquired Mikke Moore, House, Allen, Davis and Powe.

KG's gotta keep Starbury in line.

 

I think he could do more harm than good though, which as a Magic fan pleases me.

[Balta1701]

KG's gotta keep Starbury in line.

 

I think he could do more harm than good though, which as a Magic fan pleases me.

IMO it depends a lot on whether or not he takes good minutes away from Rondo. A-la Cassel last year.

[DBAHO]

IMO it depends a lot on whether or not he takes good minutes away from Rondo. A-la Cassel last year.

He shouldn't. At points, Rondo has carried that team this season.

 

Marbury shouldn't get more than 10 mins a game, unless they want to keep Rondo fresh down the stretch (which wouldn't be a bad idea actually).

[Balta1701]

He shouldn't. At points, Rondo has carried that team this season.

 

Marbury shouldn't get more than 10 mins a game, unless they want to keep Rondo fresh down the stretch (which wouldn't be a bad idea actually).

Keeping him fresh down the stretch would be quite a bit different from how Rondo was treated last season. He got the same treatment as the Bulls give their kids when Cassel showed up, and it hurt the Celts a fair amount. Rondo's play suffered because every time he made a mistake he was looking over his shoulder to see if he was going to be taken out, and Cassell didn't give them as much as Rondo was giving them in the first place.

[ZoomSlowik]

Keeping him fresh down the stretch would be quite a bit different from how Rondo was treated last season. He got the same treatment as the Bulls give their kids when Cassel showed up, and it hurt the Celts a fair amount. Rondo's play suffered because every time he made a mistake he was looking over his shoulder to see if he was going to be taken out, and Cassell didn't give them as much as Rondo was giving them in the first place.

 

Yeah, the Celtics really paid for it, what, with the 66 wins, NBA title and All-Star caliber play from Rondo this season.

[MHizzle85]

Good read on the NBA & it's financial troubles.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story...=simmons/090227

[lostfan]

Hasn't Marbury basically f***ed up the chemistry of every team he's ever been on?

[DBAHO]

Hasn't Marbury basically f***ed up the chemistry of every team he's ever been on?

Yep.

 

If he does it again, they'll kick him off, but I hope it would at least disrupt their rhythm as a Magic fan.

[MurcieOne]

Bulls about to tip off against the Wizards in DC. Obama sitting courtside for the first half.

 

It's a road game that we absolutely win, this Wizards team is pretty miserable.

[Balta1701]

Bulls about to tip off against the Wizards in DC. Obama sitting courtside for the first half.

 

It's a road game that we absolutely win, this Wizards team is pretty miserable.

And on this day...the Bulls really, really ought to dominate. Just for the guys.

[lostfan]

That kid sitting on Obama's right probably has no clue he's sitting next to the president.

[MurcieOne]

were getting throttled.

[kjshoe04]

were getting throttled.

fact

[MurcieOne]

That kid sitting on Obama's right probably has no clue he's sitting next to the president.

 

i believe he is a midget secret service agent.