NBA 2012-13 Discussion

[SmoothieX]

I used to love watching hoops growing up, but have lately had little interest until playoff time. For whatever reason, I'm fired up for it again this year.

How awesome would a Heat-Lakers final be?
Do the Spurs and Celtics have anything left in the tank?
Are the Knicks for real?
Are the Thunder here to stay?
When will Rose be back for the Bulls?

Lots of good story lines this season.

[tomalak301]

SmoothieX wrote:

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I used to love watching hoops growing up, but have lately had little interest until playoff time. For whatever reason, I'm fired up for it again this year.

How awesome would a Heat-Lakers final be?
Do the Spurs and Celtics have anything left in the tank?
Are the Knicks for real?
Are the Thunder here to stay?
When will Rose be back for the Bulls?

Lots of good story lines this season.

I too am excited for the Season to start, probably because the NHL is in such a crappy state. Of course whenever a sport starts it's season, I look forward to it, but for someone who lost interest in the NBA quite a bit (due to some factors like the Warriors sucking or some players with a me me me attitude), I'm looking forward to the season getting going.

Don't know what to expect from the Warriors this year. I hear they have improved but we'll see. The key is for Curry to stay healthy (Which is hard for him to do) and hopefully they can get a bottom seed. Of course if I listen to everyone else, we're heading towards a Lakers/Heat finals, but I hope not.

[Alidar Jarok]

SmoothieX wrote:

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Are the Thunder here to stay?

If the Harden trade is any indication, they don't want to be.

I think the Heat and Celtics will still be the best two teams (even with the loss of Ray Allen, the Celts have moved to become younger while still competitive).

I'm curious to see how the Sixers do once Bynum is healthy. That's a team that went from undersized athleticism where their best player came off the bench to possibly one of the biggest teams in the east (and got better at the three).

Out west, the Lakers obviously got better, but I'm curious to see who emerges with them. Probably the Thunder, but I can only think they've gotten worse with that trade.

[Borgminister]

Spurs probably aren't going anywhere, Thunder either. Boston will make some noise if they gel, and Rivers is a great coach, so it is possible. L.A. is not automatic; I've heard grumblings about the Princeton offensive scheme stifling Nash's strengths, and you never know about Howard. Should be an interesting season though!

[Danny99]

So another NBA season is upon us.

The hometown Raptors will still suck and the contenders are still limited to a handful of teams with the biggest pocketbooks.

Snore. See you this time next year.

[Borgminister]

Hey Toronto will be fun to watch.

[SmoothieX]

Green is my favorite color, and I love the parquet floor, lived near Boston for years. Somehow never made it to the TD Wanknorth Garden.

[gblews]

After the Lakers acquired Nash and Howard this past summer, every time I thought of the Purple and Gold I'de get this tingle...until I thought about Mike Brown. It has long been my belief that in professional team sports (especially the NBA) in order to lead effectively and win at the highst levels, the players need to either fear or respect the head coach. I don't think the Lakers fear or respect Mike Brown -- at least so far. But it is still very early, thank God. D12 starting to look like D12 -- 33 and 14 rebounds last night (in second straight loss ).

The Thunder shot themselves in the foot trading Harden. That guy killed the Lakers and the Mavs last season in the playoffs. This is what I was trying to tell our resident Thunder fan last season -- your front office has to want a championship as badly as the fans do. The Thunder F.O. appears to place profit ahead of rings. So much the better for us. BTW, last night Harden put up 37 and 12 assists for the Rox. The Thunder may have traded themselves 2 or 3 years into the past.

Look for Bynum to start slow with the Sixers (he always does) but I think he will end up having a monster season.

Actually, Warriors could be a factor this season. They have a pretty nice team on paper. Now thye even have some size with Bogut, and they are trying to actually defend.

The Lakers may finish the season as the 3rd or 4th seed in the west (if things are flowing), but from there they should be able to reach the Finals -- IF things are flowing. That is a pretty big "if" right now.

[gblews]

Danny99 wrote:

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The hometown Raptors will still suck and the contenders are still limited to a handful of teams with the biggest pocketbooks.

A myth perpetrated by owners who want to continue putting the squeeze on the players so they can make a bigger profit despite rampant incompetence when it come to building a winner.

It is not about how much money an owner has, it is about knowing how to put together a winner. Give most of the owners in the league the Lakeer's or Knicks' revenue base and those owners would remain as big losers as they are now.

[Alidar Jarok]

gblews wrote:

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Look for Bynum to start slow with the Sixers (he always does) but I think he will end up having a monster season.

Well, he is injured

I'm curious to see how the team looks with him in. They looked good without him in Denver, but they still are a chameleon team with no true superstar. It'll be good to see Bynum as a force to be reckoned with.

[Borgminister]

What the heck is wrong with Howard?

[Dorian Thompson]

Yes, the Thunder still wants to be. Harden wasn't going to stay. He'd have become a restricted free agent and the Thunder would have gotten nothing for him. The salary he was demanding would have put the Thunder waaaaay over the luxury tax. Presti isn't willing to do that. He made an offer that would have already put them over the limit; Harden turned it down. $55 million wasn't enough and that was as high as Presti was willing to go. They'd been negotiation for 3 months. Harden's agent kept telling him to turn it down, so he did. Presti said he'd trade him and Harden thought he was bluffing.

The Thunder's going to be fine. I'm surprised at all this death knell talk. The two first round picks and the second round pick they acquired will put them in a good position for the future. Presti isn't willing to mortgage the future; that's always been his business model and he sticks to it. Time will tell if it was the right decision, but Harden wasn't going to score 45 points a game with the Thunder because he wouldn't have been starting. Good luck to him in Houston. He has his 80 million and a starter's role. Good luck to Houston. If it doesn't work out for them, they have zero wiggle room in their salary structure for the next couple of years. The Thunder does. We've all been saying for the past year that we would probably lose Harden. It wasn't a shock. It is what it is.

[gblews]

Alidar Warlock wrote:

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Well, he is injured :

I know. I meant after he comes back from the injury. It might also be compounded somewhat by having to learn a new system. He might not start to really get rolling until January. But I still think he is highly motivated this season -- stuff to prove and all -- and will have a great season.

Borgminister wrote:

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What the heck is wrong with Howard?

Nothing. He is still working his way back into basketball shape after the long layoff. He wasn't able to work out normally this past summer at all. He was in foul trouble last night against the Clips. Against the Blazers a couple of nights earlier he had 33 and 14.

Dorian Thompson wrote:

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Yes, the Thunder still wants to be. Harden wasn't going to stay. He'd have become a restricted free agent and the Thunder would have gotten nothing for him. The salary he was demanding would have put the Thunder waaaaay over the luxury tax. Presti isn't willing to do that. He made an offer that would have already put them over the limit; Harden turned it down. $55 million wasn't enough and that was as high as Presti was willing to go. They'd been negotiation for 3 months.

Umm, and of such decisions are championships won and lost. No doubt -- the Thunder made the right economic decision, but was it the right basketball decision? Harden was a special player for the Thunder. It wasn't just his scoring, it was the way he scored -- getting to the cup against double teams and shot blocking centers. And not only would he get the basket, he'd also get the demoralizing "and 1". Harden was also a "starter" for this team. He was a player who helped define who the young Thunder were. Trading a player like this can sometimes do more damage than what is seen in the stat columns. Think; the Celts trade of Perkins to the Thunder. Ironic, huh.

The Thunder's going to be fine.

Oh yes, absolutely. They still have a great young core plus a year of experience deep in the playoffs -- but "being fine" isn't the goal, is it? The question is, can they win a championship as currently constructed and without Harden.

Presti isn't willing to mortgage the future; that's always been his business model and he sticks to it. Time will tell if it was the right decision, but Harden wasn't going to score 45 points a game with the Thunder because he wouldn't have been starting.

Again, if the goal is giving yourself "wiggle room" for the future and not "mortgaging the future" then the Thunder made the right move, but the question is, when it comes to winning a championship this -- did this move help them.

[1001001]

Mike Brown is out in Los Angeles.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--la...GlvbnM-;_ylv=3

[Borgminister]

Enter Phil Jackson.