Author Topic: The NBA thread (Read 1520671 times)

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3660 on:** January 22, 2012, 10:21:59 PM »

Quote from: pilonv1 on January 22, 2012, 05:04:27 AM

Knicks are straight up broken. Need to blow that shit up ASAP.

I thought they should have desperately tried to get CP3 and get rid of Amare. I like Amare as a person but you can't have that many players on a team not playing defense. Especially when its all your stars.

And for some bizarre reason Amare is shooting 41%. I've only seen like 1 or 2 knicks games this year so I don't know what the problem is but this dude is a career 53%. No way he should be that low.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3661 on:** January 22, 2012, 10:24:35 PM »

The problem with Amare is simple - he needs a good PG. With a great PG like Nash, he's unstoppable in the PnR. With Toney fucking Douglas, he's quite mediocre. He needs to get the ball in the right places, like almost all good men.

pilonv1 · « **Reply #3662 on:** January 22, 2012, 11:45:41 PM »

Bigger problem is that Melo is a giant black hole under D'Antoni. New coach and a real PG and they'd be a lot better off.

Amare is invisible because he's not getting the ball, which is why a good PG is so vital. He went 22 minutes (all of 4th Q and 2 OTs) without taking a shot v the Nuggets

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3663 on:** January 23, 2012, 12:49:03 PM »

I watched that Lakers Pacers game last night. The Pacers are a scrappy squad.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3664 on:** January 23, 2012, 11:24:51 PM »

If they can trade some of that depth for a star (Danny Granger hasn't looked like one in a while...), they can be pretty damn good.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3665 on:** January 24, 2012, 12:15:41 AM »

Vince Carter rehabing

http://thehoopdoctors.com/online2/2012/01/vince-carter-rehabs-at-the-strippers-pics/

Also

Beezy · « **Reply #3666 on:** January 24, 2012, 01:26:43 AM »

pilonv1 · « **Reply #3667 on:** January 24, 2012, 05:35:06 AM »

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3668 on:** January 24, 2012, 05:46:55 AM »

Carter did similar shit in Toronto as well - he was caught dancing on stage at some rap concert while missing games, didn't he?

Flannel Boy · « **Reply #3669 on:** January 24, 2012, 11:26:21 AM »

edit:

Dancing on stage during a Nelly concert as the Raptors were actually playing a game.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3670 on:** January 24, 2012, 02:21:18 PM »

I really like how the Bulls are playing. And Rip Hamilton has been a great pickup for them.

Scoring 14 a game and shooting over 50%.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3671 on:** January 25, 2012, 08:56:18 PM »

Yeah, Bulls are very very solid. Hamilton is a huge offensive upgrade, Boozer seems sprightlier. They're still weighted too heavily towards defense IMHO but that's a quality problem.

Re: the Amare discussion: Hollinger says he seems to have lost his first step, which is limiting his effectiveness in isos. I haven't really seen that (perhaps those plays are just not being called for him as much) but if so, it really slams NY's window shut. He'll be tough to trade with those uninsurable knees. D'Antoni deserves some blame there, for running him into the ground pre-Melo.

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #3672 on:** January 25, 2012, 09:14:38 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on January 24, 2012, 02:21:18 PM

I really like how the Bulls are playing.

Chicago and OKC have both been playing great this season, not surprising that they were the two youngest contenders from last season.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3673 on:** January 25, 2012, 09:17:00 PM »

Lakers Clippers tonight. CP3 may play.

Lakers are 10-8 and 8 of their next 9 games are on the road where they are 1-6.

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #3674 on:** January 25, 2012, 09:48:53 PM »

Clips better win tonight. I've invited my Kobe jocking friends over to watch the game. I'm gonna be the only Laker hater here. It'd be sweet to see their tears but I don't have a good feeling about the Cilps' chances tonight. Lakers will be a lot more desperate and it's their "home court" tonight.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3675 on:** January 25, 2012, 10:26:58 PM »

The Knicks are god damn awful. Carmelo Anthony is shooting 40%. (.396 to be exact)

Denver on the other hand is Denver 12-5.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3676 on:** January 25, 2012, 10:58:50 PM »

Lakers bigs starting to get annoyed.

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/7499122/los-angeles-lakers-pau-gasol-wants-more-interior-touches

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3677 on:** January 25, 2012, 11:18:47 PM »

Because of what Gasol said in that article they are purposely going to Gasol tonight.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3678 on:** January 26, 2012, 01:05:20 AM »

Good intense game but it looks like the Lakers will take it. They played tough defense down the stretch.

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #3679 on:** January 26, 2012, 02:38:41 AM »

Worst basketball party ever. Fuck those Lakers homers. They were whining about every call and complaining about the Clips playing dirty. I'm gonna take it out on them next time we play.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3680 on:** January 26, 2012, 07:33:50 AM »

Just watched Lakers - Clippers, and got thinking about young Vince Carter and current Blake Griffin. Probably thanks to that crazy spinning lay-up Blake had, which is the sort of play Vince used to make in his first couple of seasons. Like Blake now, VC used to rely a lot on athleticism and mid-air creativity to score. They both could do a pretty good imitation of all kinds of moves, but neither had/have any kind of go-to move at that point. And neither of them could or would play any kind of consistent D.

Needless to say, as a Blake fan, this was a very troubling line of thought, especially when you add in the fact that he is terrible from the line (and that's something which tends NOT to improve over time...).

Basically, although Blake does a ton of things amazingly well, I'm not seeing much that he does better than he did last year, and I think it's only a matter of time before this starts to get exposed. Teams really should be fouling him harder and more often. He doesn't have either the free throw shooting or the go-to move to counteract it. Also, he's just not all that long for a PF - he's listed at 6'10'' but looks 2 or 3 inches shorter than that to me.

This is not doomsaying or anything like it - I think he's easily 2nd team NBA. I'm just getting over that period of omg excitement and starting to see where his ceiling probably is.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3681 on:** January 26, 2012, 09:45:49 AM »

I think the future is still pretty open for him. He just needs to keep working on his post game and consistently being able to knock down the mid range J.

As far as freethrows, he's never going to be amazing there but he should strive to at least hit Chris Webber level who also came into the league as a shit free throw shooter but was generally in the 70% range during his Sacramento years.

pilonv1 · « **Reply #3682 on:** January 26, 2012, 06:30:24 PM »

Blake looks shorter because he has short arms.

Also nice to see BSPN talking about Love to LA the day after he signs an extension. Gutter trash journalism.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3683 on:** January 26, 2012, 07:19:09 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on January 26, 2012, 09:45:49 AM

I think the future is still pretty open for him. He just needs to keep working on his post game and consistently being able to knock down the mid range J.

As far as freethrows, he's never going to be amazing there but he should strive to at least hit Chris Webber level who also came into the league as a shit free throw shooter but was generally in the 70% range during his Sacramento years.

What you have to keep in mind there is that Chris Webber and Karl Malone were like the ONLY notable players to ever significantly boost their FT% from the kind of number Blake is currently at. The vast majority work with FT coaches for years and never make much of an improvement.

I think as spectators and fans we often fall into this trap of wanting to believe that players we like will be able to paper over their weaknesses over time. It's definitely true for some players, with certain of their weaknesses. But they almost never turn into the sort of high level D&D character we envision. Amare is an example: for years, people have been saying that if only he could work on his D, he'd be 1st team All NBA etc. But he never has. He's not even slightly better. He just hates to foul, always has. If he gets 2 fouls, he'll basically stop any pretense at D. (On the other hand, his mid-range jumper has improved a hell of a lot...)

I'm definitely pulling for Blake to continue to improve, but just trying to be realistic. He may never impact the overall game the way Dwight Howard or Tim Duncan do/did.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3684 on:** January 26, 2012, 07:30:09 PM »

Quote from: pilonv1 on January 26, 2012, 06:30:24 PM

Blake looks shorter because he has short arms.

Also nice to see BSPN talking about Love to LA the day after he signs an extension. Gutter trash journalism.

A 4 year (not 5) extension with an opt-out after 3 years. Keep in mind that no-one has ever EVER turned down that rookie contract extension Love signed. Working in an early opt-out is a pretty clear signal that he wants out IMHO. Not sure what was going on there but it's bad business. Even if they want to trade him, a longer contract will be preferable to any suitors.

Mandark · « **Reply #3685 on:** January 27, 2012, 02:23:39 AM »

Don't forget Tyson Chandler. Also Brendan Haywood got a personal coach and jumped 20% before he was injured for a year/traded to Dallas/got a fat new contract. So it's not unheard of, even if it's unlikely.

On Amare: I've only seen a couple NY games, but I wouldn't be surprised if he is slowed down. Towards the end of his Suns career, when he was fully recovered, he was able to create really good shots for himself in isos, and was a beast carrying the team when Nash was on the bench or gassed. That's in contrast to his first couple years back from injury, when he was definitely relying on Nash to set him up. If he's fully healthy and at his peak, he should be putting up good numbers regardless of the PG. Could be bad news for the Knicks.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3686 on:** January 27, 2012, 02:39:56 AM »

How could I have forgotten Brendan Haywood! Slap me on the ass and call me a bad little boy Mandark, you filthy beast.

20% sounds like a big improvement but for someone shooting around 50%, they really need more like a FIFTY % improvement to get to the point where hack-a-xxx is no longer viable.

Agreed on Amare being bad news...with his knees and the minutes he has played, I think it's much more likely that this is the new normal for him rather than being solely a PG problem. He should still be shooting over 50% from the field though, any decent starter-quality NBA PG should be able to serve that up no sweat.

Flannel Boy · « **Reply #3687 on:** January 27, 2012, 08:32:43 AM »

I think he meant 20 percentage points. His FT% went up 18.7 PP (.548 in '07 to .735 in '08) and up 34%.

But his FT% is odd. For six seasons it's around 55-60%, jumps to .735, and then falls all the way down .362.

Mandark · « **Reply #3688 on:** January 27, 2012, 01:34:04 PM »

Quote from: Flannel Boy on January 27, 2012, 08:32:43 AM

I think he meant 20 percentage points.

Yep. Jumping from ~50% to ~70% is enough to punish hacking schemes and make a significant boost in scoring if you're likely to draw a bunch of fouls like Griffin.

As for Haywood, in the summer before his FT% jumped there were stories about him spending the offseason with Dave Hopla working on his form. I had a Wizards ticket package back then and during shootarounds free throws were the only shots he'd take.

He was injured the next year, and traded to the Mavericks the year after that, where he regressed to his career norm. Then his second year in Dallas his percentage cratered. Since sports fandom is half backseat psychology, I'll say that Haywood, who has been given as many motivational benchings as anyone in the league, started being truly awful at the line after the Mavs gave him that huge extension.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3689 on:** January 27, 2012, 08:12:42 PM »

Heat versus Knicks tonight. Wade is back.

Flannel Boy · « **Reply #3690 on:** January 27, 2012, 09:53:29 PM »

Quote from: Mandark on January 27, 2012, 01:34:04 PM

Since sports fandom is half backseat psychology, I'll say that Haywood, who has been given as many motivational benchings as anyone in the league, started being truly awful at the line after the Mavs gave him that huge extension.

Why did the Magic match the Mavs' offer sheet for Marcin Gortat. :/

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3691 on:** January 27, 2012, 10:32:44 PM »

There have been some amazing Miami Alley-oops in this game.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3692 on:** January 27, 2012, 10:56:34 PM »

Also pretty funny. This was KG after the Celtics big comeback last night. He was pumped. BAR FIGHT!

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #3693 on:** January 28, 2012, 02:43:19 AM »

My favorite dunk of the night.

It was interesting to see the Knicks keep it close without Melo.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3694 on:** January 28, 2012, 07:04:34 AM »

I think we've officially entered the 'LeBron can't be guarded one-on-one in the post' phase of his career. (insert 4th quarter joke here) Wade was spectacular as well. I think a few strategic breaks like Wade had (and Dirk is having now) will pay off down the road for teams foresightful enough to take them.

The KG thing was hilarious. I'm glad as a fan that he can still get that excited by a regular season game.

The Knicks kept it close, sure, but only by basically shooting nothing but 3s. It might work once in a while but that's never going to scare the Heat or anyone else in a series. They're just not good enough shooters for that.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3695 on:** January 28, 2012, 12:19:19 PM »

Quote

And a deeper look into Stoudemire's stat line explains why his production has fallen off a cliff: He can't hit a shot. With a quarter of the season in the books, the 29-year-old power forward has shot 42.6 percent from the floor.

How bad is that? Consider this: Over the past 40 years, it's only happened three times that someone at his height or taller (6-foot-10) shot this often (15 shots per game) and this badly (42.6 percent). And the three players who achieved the sorry feat (Clifford Robinson, Derrick Coleman and Toni Kukoc) each shot at least 120 3-pointers in those seasons. Nearly all of Stoudemire's shots have come from inside the arc.

In other words, a traditional big man has never shot this much and this badly in about half a century. You'd have to dial it back to Nate Thurmond in the mid-60s to find a precedent.

Quote

Let's start with the stuffed shots, which is alarming coming from a guy who used to make a living by dunking on mere mortals. Only Derrick Rose got blocked more times than Stoudemire last season according to Hoopdata.com, but this season Stoudemire's blocked rate has only increased -- drastically. On the season, Stoudemire has been blocked on 10.2 percent of his shots, which is up from 8.1 percent last season. The average power forward gets swatted on 7.1 percent of his shots.

Quote

And that jump shot? The news gets worse. Synergy Sports tracking tells us that 101 of Stoudemire's 244 field goals are jump shots. Of the 66 players with at least 100 jump shots this season, only Tyreke Evans and DeMar DeRozan have a lower effective field goal percentage (which accounts for the added value of a 3-pointer) than Stoudemire's 32.7 percent rate. If Stoudemire was compensating for his eroding athleticism by migrating to the perimeter, that would be one thing, but the Knicks simply can't survive with these abysmal results.

Quote

As my Insider colleague Bradford Doolittle pointed out, Stoudemire's game has changed dramatically this season -- and it's not for the better. Much of Stoudemire's immense value is generated from the pick-and-roll game, where his dynamic athleticism can be leveraged by a crafty point guard. The only problem is that the Knicks don't have one. His offense resulting from the pick-and-roll has dwindled from 9.9 percent last season to 4.8 percent this season. Amazingly, just 14 of Stoudemire's 284 points have directly resulted from a pick-and-roll catch on the move. In his heyday with Steve Nash, he could tally 14 points off the pick-and-roll by halftime.

Flannel Boy · « **Reply #3696 on:** January 28, 2012, 03:05:24 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on January 27, 2012, 10:56:34 PM

Travel.

Phoenix Dark · « **Reply #3697 on:** January 28, 2012, 11:19:11 PM »

What happened to Ron Artest? I've only seen one Laker game this year, but every time I look at the box score I see him doing pretty much nothing

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3698 on:** January 28, 2012, 11:25:02 PM »

His shooting from distance is pretty poor and that's all he's pretty much capable of at this point in his career and in this specific scheme. Most of his shots are bailout 3's or jumpers when somebody kicks it to him or when the other team has left him wide open.

Sometimes he gets physical and intense and still contributes based on those qualities but he's pretty much just at the very end of his career. This is his 15th season so age and his skills diminishing have just caught up with him.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3699 on:** January 29, 2012, 12:06:12 AM »

Yeah, his foot speed has deserted him completely. He can still bother people with his strength a bit when he can stay close to them but anybody near his height is able to just go right by him. He's been a liability on both ends for quite a while.

Either that or he's gone back to swigging cognac in the locker room at halftime

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #3700 on:** January 29, 2012, 12:51:25 AM »

Artest needs to lose some weight. His creaky joints can't keep up with so much muscle. It's pretty hard to play SF with a single digit vertical.

etiolate · « **Reply #3701 on:** January 29, 2012, 01:11:33 AM »

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3702 on:** January 29, 2012, 02:58:58 PM »

Heat versus Bulls at 3:30

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3703 on:** January 29, 2012, 05:21:38 PM »

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3704 on:** January 29, 2012, 05:43:40 PM »

Very good game if you aren't watching. Playoff quality. Lebron and Rose are both playing great.

Fifstar · « **Reply #3705 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:02:51 PM »

WTF @ the six attempts to get the basket

TakingBackSunday · « **Reply #3706 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:04:35 PM »

The Heat are doing their best to lose this game

Fifstar · « **Reply #3707 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:04:35 PM »

Oh shit

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3708 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:05:31 PM »

Lebron being Lebron. Tossing up shitty shots here down the stretch.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3709 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:06:21 PM »

Wow.

Fifstar · « **Reply #3710 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:07:40 PM »

Bulls didn't have the lead once this game...

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3711 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:08:34 PM »

Fucking Lebron james. Man has no clutch in him at all. :'(

TakingBackSunday · « **Reply #3712 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:12:08 PM »

this shit's hilarious

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3713 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:14:29 PM »

Intense game. Clearly the two best teams in the East. I don't think Miami is honestly much better than Chicago. I think the teams are alot closer than last year. Should be interesting come playoff times.

TakingBackSunday · « **Reply #3714 on:** January 29, 2012, 06:33:48 PM »

It got really sloppy in the last 5 minutes. Lebron was the only Heat player that seemed to give a shit, oddly enough.

Bosh played well, I'll say.

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3715 on:** January 29, 2012, 07:34:38 PM »

Bosh has legit played well this season. No one can question that. Lebron had a great game outside of forcing a couple of dumb shots down the stretch. And I mean this is just ridiculous

Lakers versus Minnesota should be a fun game.

Cormacaroni · « **Reply #3716 on:** January 29, 2012, 08:28:51 PM »

Quote from: Stoney Mason on January 29, 2012, 05:21:38 PM

WHAT

WHAT!

Stoney Mason · « **Reply #3717 on:** January 29, 2012, 09:07:54 PM »

T'Wolves tied it up in the 4th after being down 18 earlier in the 3rd quarter.

edit: Lakers strong enough to close it out. Good game for Kobe.

Great Rumbler · « **Reply #3718 on:** January 29, 2012, 10:11:57 PM »

Mavs/Spurs game was insane. Spurs had a chance to win at the end of regulation and end of overtime and they couldn't pull it out.

Smooth Groove · « **Reply #3719 on:** January 30, 2012, 12:24:33 AM »

Bron needs to set up on the left side more often. When he's on the right, he tends to settle with his shite fadeaway j bcuz it's harder to finish at the rim with his right.

News:

Author Topic: The NBA thread (Read 1520671 times)