NBA Offseason Thread

[fathom]

And the Cleveland owner is another rich prick moron. He needs to shut the f*** up as well.

 

greg, I'm not saying you're wrong, but don't you always say that Ozzie can say whatever he wants cause he's made a lot of money in his life?

[DrunkBomber]

That kind of comment just makes no sense to me. Kobe is the one douche always trying to one-up MJ. He was crying after winning 3 titles already and demanding a trade from LA to a better situation. He only stayed in LA because he got a top 15 player given to him in Pau Gasol. This would have been no different if Bosh actually wanted to play in Cleveland.

I dont mean we all of a sudden are huge Kobe fans and want him to go down as the GOAT, we just realize he has the best shot to beat Miami and in turn he gets his 6th ring with his most impressive championship yet and that makes him a lot easier to compare to MJ then his current 5 rings. The reason I mentioned Bulls fans is simply because MJ was on the Bulls. Believe me we are not alone here. Everyone is going to be rooting for Miami to fail, not just Chicago.

[HuskyCaucasian]

The Score has a sports marketing/image guy on right now

Summery

• Uncomfortable to watch
• "Ultimately Backfired"
• Never would have suggested "The Decision"
• Didn't think the "presentations" idea was wise, became a circus
• Thinks this whole thing was possibly plotted out long ago
• James' "no pressure" comment was extremely damaging ("it will haunt him"), Jordon would never have said that
• Kobe is becoming the hero of the NBA (He's done a great job at rebuilding his image)
• Some will forgive James with time if he wins titles

[DrunkBomber]

Miami is going to be on national TV for just about every single game. Miami will be in the playoffs every single year, and LeBron will be the best player on the floor for likely at least 1 or 2 championship teams. LeBron's marketing hit here might take a dive, but worldwide places like China will immediately take him to the top as they have done with Kobe after his titles. LeBron can make a killing off of foreign marketing, and that's assuming the bandwagon fans in America turn their noses up at LeBron for joining Dwyane Wade, which is a big assumption when the dust settles.

Where did you pick this up? Just about every game on national tv?

[Rowand44]

Where did you pick this up? Just about every game on national tv?

I mean, you don't have to be a genius to know that any opportunity a network can get to put Miami on national television, they're going to jump at.

[BigSqwert]

Have you been waiting to get your very own LeBron James Fat Head? Now's the time, especially if you want him in a Cavaliers uniform.

 

Fat Head is offering a drastic discount on the removable wall graphics featuring James about to deliver a slam dunk. The price? $17.41. The reason? That's the year Benedict Arnold was born.

 

Oh yea, Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert owns Fat Head.

 

via

[Rowand44]

via

I heard that on ESPN. f***in hilarious.

[Steve9347]

Wow, New Jersey Nets just offered TYRUS f***ING THOMAS 5/40 ($8 million per) in an offer sheet.

 

The Russian Billionaire strikes foolishly.

[BigSqwert]

Wow, New Jersey Nets just offered TYRUS f***ING THOMAS 5/40 ($8 million per) in an offer sheet.

 

The Russian Billionaire strikes foolishly.

Off topic: That particular Sox logo always bothered me. Probably because I have OCD but it looks like it was drawn free hand.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Wow, New Jersey Nets just offered TYRUS f***ING THOMAS 5/40 ($8 million per) in an offer sheet.

 

The Russian Billionaire strikes foolishly.

Holy Crap! I'm declaring myself eligible for the NBA.

 

Anyone want a 6'4" PF with good passing skills and on the court basketball instincts? I'm available.

Edited July 9, 2010 by Athomeboy_2000

[Steve9347]

I think I'm done with the NBA. Seriously. The same mistakes get made over and over... blatantly obvious mistakes, such as giving Tyrus Thomas $40 million to be the least efficient player on the court.

 

Then there's the whole issue with managing your franchise into the ground in the hopes of doing what the Heat did that will become the norm more and more. Seriously. The best team next year will be so because they got themselves to 3 players under contract headed into this offseason.

 

Unreal. At least the Celts traded for their monster roster.

[HuskyCaucasian]

@WojYahooNBA - Tyrus Thomas has reached agreement on 5-year, $40 million contract to stay with Charlotte, league sources say.

[Brian]

Simmons, nuff said

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story...=simmons/100709

[Steve9347]

@WojYahooNBA - Tyrus Thomas has reached agreement on 5-year, $40 million contract to stay with Charlotte, league sources say.

They must have matched, or he got it wrong originally.

 

Either way, bad bad bad bad bad contract.

Edited July 9, 2010 by Steve9347

[DrunkBomber]

I mean, you don't have to be a genius to know that any opportunity a network can get to put Miami on national television, they're going to jump at.

What opportunities are you talking about? Did they start selling the rights to air individual games nationally or is ESPN, TNT or ABC going to air close to 80 games in mostly prime time slots?

[hitlesswonder]

Miami is going to be on national TV for just about every single game. Miami will be in the playoffs every single year, and LeBron will be the best player on the floor for likely at least 1 or 2 championship teams. LeBron's marketing hit here might take a dive, but worldwide places like China will immediately take him to the top as they have done with Kobe after his titles. LeBron can make a killing off of foreign marketing, and that's assuming the bandwagon fans in America turn their noses up at LeBron for joining Dwyane Wade, which is a big assumption when the dust settles.

 

I agree. People that say he'll never be considered the greatest player ever are likely to look foolish. Lebron is going to have long career and probably will win more championships than Jordan. Moreover, as you say, he will be on TV all the time and he will be the best player on the Heat. In time, after a lot of winning and a of pro-Lebron media, I think people will say that Lebron cared more about winning than making people happy (that will be the spin at least). By the time James career is done, a lot of people will believe he was in fact the GOAT. Winning and modern media desperate to cover "the greatest ever" will cover up any sin committed last night.

[LittleHurt05]

I think I'm done with the NBA. Seriously. The same mistakes get made over and over... blatantly obvious mistakes, such as giving Tyrus Thomas $40 million to be the least efficient player on the court.

 

Then the owners b**** and b**** about how the players make too much money and will threaten to lockout next year. That is all after they give Tyrus $40 mil, Brendan Haywood $55 mil, Travis Outlaw $35 mil, etc., etc.

[Soxbadger]

I doubt that Ill look foolish, but we can come back to this thread in 10 years.

 

Lebron wont be considered the greatest player of all time.

 

If he is, I will change my icon in his honor.

[thxfrthmmrs]

I never said he was a bad defensive player, just not a really great one. He is nowhere close to Dwight, a true game-changing big man that makes his entire team better. Four other guys on the Cavs put up the same defensive rating he did, and they finished 7th as a team. No one would even know who he is if he didn't play for the Cavs.

 

The Cavs won 60 games because of Lebron. He did basically everything for them on offense and was a huge part of their defense as well. That roster works entirely because of Lebron, without him they're not a very good team.

 

Now you're just making s*** up on the "not being a closer part". Did he not single-handedly beat the Pistons by scoring like 20 of their last 24 points in the conference finals? Did he not hit a ridiculous buzzer beater against Orlando to win game 2 last year? He's just fine as a closer, maybe if his team was good enough to keep them in the game when he's averaging 38-8-8 like he did in the Magic series last year he wouldn't have left. No one can do it by themselves.

 

A lot of it is Mo and Jamison's fault, they were ghosts in the playoffs. Jamison only averaged 12-7 against Boston and shot 3-16 from the arc while getting destroyed by an aging Kevin Garnett (almost 19 PPG at a 52% clip). Mo was 4-19 from the arc in the Boston series and only averaged 13 points on 41% shooting while Rondo was putting up 21-12 against him. That was after Mo shot 39.6% against Atlanta and Orlando the previous year.

 

Lebron didn't have a good series against Boston either by his standards, but it's hard to win by yourself. That's the difference between Lebron and Kobe right now: when Kobe shoots 6-24 in game 7 of the finals, his team finds a way to bail him out.

 

 

i am sorry, but you tried to prove me wrong when I said he was one of the best defensive big in the league, and you tried to give s*** and say he can't block shots. well he can't but he is a good help defender, good physical defender, hustles, full of energy, and does the little things to annoy the offensive player, those qualities can not be measured by the stat sheet. Basketball is much more than stats.

 

Stats wise, his on/off court for defense is -5.2 points, meaning the team gives up 5.2 more point if he is off the court. FYI, lebron was at -.9, and howard was only -3.6. I am not saying he is better than howard, though people have argued in the past season. but, if the guy was in contention for DPOY the whole season, and finished in all second team defense only because he didn't play too much minutes, I don't think it's a stretch to call him one of the defensive big in the game.

 

This is what Adrian Wojnarowski, one of the better writers today, had to say about lebron:

 

The Championship of Me became the Championship of Flee, because LeBron James doesn’t believe he can be the centerpiece of a title team. He needed Dwyane Wade, a closer, far more than Wade needed him.

 

I am not the only crazy soul here who thinks Lebron is not a great clutch player. The pistons moment and the only buzzer beater he hit vs Magic was nice, but that was about it.

 

He was and will never be Kobe or Jordan when it comes to performing in clutch. Duncan was show successful because he mans up when it mattered, such as hitting a 3 point( i believe it was) against lakers with 0.4 left, only to have fisher hit a buzzer beater on the other end, and hitting a 3 pointer against the Suns to force over time. Those shots were normally not within his range. Guys like Horry and Fisher are celebrated for the same characteristics, but frankly, lebron was doesn't have it. He just want to be part of something, he doesn't want to be something.

 

[whitesoxfan99]

He was and will never be Kobe or Jordan when it comes to performing in clutch. Duncan was show successful because he mans up when it mattered, such as hitting a 3 point( i believe it was) against lakers with 0.4 left, only to have fisher hit a buzzer beater on the other end, and hitting a 3 pointer against the Suns to force over time. Those shots were normally not within his range. Guys like Horry and Fisher are celebrated for the same characteristics, but frankly, lebron was doesn't have it. He just want to be part of something, he doesn't want to be something.

 

Kobe Bryant as a great closer, my favorite myth in the world. More like incredibly mediocre and overrated as a closer. http://www.slate.com/id/2255932

Edited July 9, 2010 by whitesoxfan99

[ZoomSlowik]

Man, I was just looking over the Eastern Conference, and I might have to take back some of my comments on how the Heat won't win 70 and the Cavs won't crack 30. There is some serious TRASH at the bottom of the conference. A quick countdown with lineups:

 

15) Wizards: Wall/Arenas/Thornton/Jianlian/Blatche

 

A rookie PG, a proven cancer and three bad players. Yikes. At least they have Kirk!

 

 

14) Nets: Harris/Lee/Williams/Thomas/Lopez

 

They won 12 games last year and aren't last. That says a lot. Bad wing players, Harris is injury prone.

 

 

13) Raptors: Calderon/DeRozan/Hedo/Bargnani/?

 

No idea who plays center, and now their best rebounder/post threat is gone.

 

 

12) Pacers: Ford/Dunleavy/Granger/Murphy/Hibbert

 

REALLY bad D, some good shooters though. I kind of feel bad for Granger, I really like him as a player.

 

 

11) Knicks: Douglas/Chandler/Gallinari/Amare/Curry?

 

Basically traded Lee for Stoudemire. No depth (just Walker), no center, little defense. I kind of like Gallo and Amare.

 

 

10) 76ers: Holiday/Turner/Iguodala/Brand/Speights

 

They look better than they are, probably trading Iggy. Too many SF's, Young is a starter on most teams.

 

 

9) Cavs: Williams/West/Jamison/Varejao/Ilgauskas

 

Do they have a shot on further analysis? Have you seen these other teams? 35 wins might do it. They need a SF, Jamison at the 3 is less than ideal.

 

 

8) Pistons: Stuckey/Hamilton/Prince/Villanueva/Monroe

 

Awful interior defense, but at least they have some legitimate players.

 

 

7) Bobcats: Augustin/Henderson/Jackson/Wallace/Mohammed or Ajinca?

 

Kind of weird putting a team with S-Jack and Wallace as their two best player solidly in the playoffs. Would help if Felton or Chandler came back (the latter more because of that question mark at the C slot)

 

 

6 Legitimate playoff teams- Heat, Magic, Celtics, Bulls, Hawks and Bucks

[ZoomSlowik]

Kobe Bryant as a great closer, my favorite myth in the world. More like incredibly mediocre and overrated as a closer. http://www.slate.com/id/2255932

 

I'll add on to that simply by linking to this "clutch stats" page from 82games.com. Notice who sits in the #1 slot in +/- and points/48 by a good margin.

 

Clearly that Lebron guy sucks when it matters

[thxfrthmmrs]

I agree. People that say he'll never be considered the greatest player ever are likely to look foolish. Lebron is going to have long career and probably will win more championships than Jordan. Moreover, as you say, he will be on TV all the time and he will be the best player on the Heat. In time, after a lot of winning and a of pro-Lebron media, I think people will say that Lebron cared more about winning than making people happy (that will be the spin at least). By the time James career is done, a lot of people will believe he was in fact the GOAT. Winning and modern media desperate to cover "the greatest ever" will cover up any sin committed last night.

 

too bad he will take a BIG hit compared to the days with the Cavs, and Jordan had better stats and higher PER than he did before.

 

Also, he won't be known for winning with a team he built around him. Great player like Jordan, Kobe, Magic, Bird are recognized as great by winning with their team. but douche Lebron had to join forces on somebody else's team with a guy who already won without him to try to win a ring. He will be given far less credit than Jordan did even if he wins. If a guy can't win with a team that is built around him, had to go join other superstars to win, how is he better than guys who created a dynasty with the team he has?

 

You don't see Jordan say oh yea let me go join Hakeem or Isaiah or Ewing because I can't win on my own. He built a dynasty with his own team, he deserves way more credit than Lebron

 

Plus, it's not a given that Lebron will win more than 6 rings, or it's not a given that he is clearly that much better than Wade on the team while putting up Jordanesque numbers.

 

Cross him off the GOAT conversation.

[Jordan4life_2007]

I don't give a damn about advanced statistics in this case. If there's 10 seconds left in the game and I need a basket to win, I'm givin' the rock to Kobe 10 times outta 10 over Lebron. Anybody who says otherwise needs to quit watching basketball and take up Lacrosse as a hobby or something.

[Rowand44]

I don't give a damn about advanced statistics in this case. If there's 10 seconds left in the game and I need a basket to win, I'm givin' the rock to Kobe 10 times outta 10 over Lebron. Anybody who says otherwise needs to quit watching basketball and take up Lacrosse as a hobby or something.

Seconded.