December 2019 General NBA Game Thread
- Thread starter Ale Xander
- Start date
lol.
Hope you got to see the end of regulation for Kings at Spurs. Belinelli hit a buzzer beater three to send the game into OT.
Flipped over - hence my post above. Pop drew up an amazing play to get that clean look.
That seems to be the Twitter speculation. It sucks - Hood has been decent for Portland.
Back to the TWolves/OKC game...
View: https://twitter.com/AndrewDoxy/status/1203164305404911617?s=20
View: https://twitter.com/AndrewDoxy/status/1203164305404911617?s=20
I need to understand the whole Alex Caruso phenomena. He is a decent rotation guy but his popularity seems to outshine his actual skills. Or maybe I am looking at the wrong things.
Analytics darling (top 10 of all players in defensive impact by some metrics), great help defender, puts up a big highlight play every couple games, and he looks like an accountant. Make no mistake, he is a GOOD player but him being good has just taken him being a meme from last year to new levels.
Wasn't he the guy who introduced himself to Lebron during some stoppage in play during a game? Love him for that.
16-game basketball is so different than 82-game basketball (h/t Draymond) that rings/finals appearances do matter, especially when the player is on a team built to be able to do that. Obviously Harden gets some slack for having had to go against the Dubs juggernaut, but Giannis really needs to show that he can carry a team in a playoff setting.
Kawhi pretty much plays anti-2019 basketball. And he's still carrying a dead leg. He's not dumb. His sights are set on may and june.
That bucks roster though, woof. They're a perfect reconstruction of that hawks crap from years back. Congrats to Boston or Toronto, someone is gonna get the honor of pulling the "upset".
Did that Hawks team have the best player in the league and the reigning MVP? I must have missed that. Milwaukee is really, really good; anyone dismissing them is making a big mistake.
I mean; the thing about those Hawks teams is that they had good depth but lacked a true, superstar alpha to take over in the playoffs. The Bucks are the opposite of that, they have the superstar alpha but may not have enough depth for it to work in the playoffs. I guess Bud is the coach, so that counts for something.
Last edited:
I don't think people are dismissing the Bucks, and I agree that the Hawks comparison is not apt. I do think that their superstar alpha has to prove that his lack of shooting ability isn't an exploitable defect in the playoffs. That doesn't seem particularly controversial, especially when we just went through the same thing last year (dominant regular season point differential, created with the exact same scheme). Then Giannis got to the playoffs, where Toronto limited him decently, as did Boston in the one game before their star completely disengaged from the team.
If you woke me up next July and said that the Bucks had won the championship, I wouldn't be shocked. But I also wouldn't be shocked if you told me they had lost in the 2nd round. NBA playoff basketball differs in substantive ways from regular-season basketball, and most of the ways in which it differs aren't great for what the Bucks do.
Shorter version: go watch Giannis' highlights from the Clippers game yesterday and count how many times Kawhi was the primary defender. Kawhi was stuck on Wesley Matthews or Korver almost every play that Giannis scored. The Clippers let Zubac got caught on an island against Giannis multiple times without helping. That simply wasn't playoff basketball, and is completely unrepresentative of what the Bucks will face come April. To paraphrase Ryan Tannehill: enjoy your regular season trophy, guys.
Last edited:
Giannis is also only 25, so it might be a little early to judge him on whether or not he's got rings.
The Bucks have been a dominant team by every measure through the 1st Quarter of the season, 2nd offensive rating and 1st defensive. Crazy to write them off imo.
The Bucks have been a dominant team by every measure through the 1st Quarter of the season, 2nd offensive rating and 1st defensive. Crazy to write them off imo.
Giannis averaging over 6.5 triples per game and making them at a 36.5% clip over last two weeks. https://www.ccn.com/giannis-antetokounmpos-3-point-range-looks-real-and-the-nba-should-be-terrified/
Hate to quote someone from the ESPN broadcast, but I think he was correct when he said the best single trait that Giannis has is not that he plays hard every game but that he plays hard every possession. I wouldn't be surprised if he could drag the rest of MIL to the championship.
I agree that if he's hitting 3s for real, then that changes things. 2 weeks at 36% doesn't do it for me yet, but we shall see.
I actually think that the "playing hard every possession" thing isn't a super encouraging indicator (if I were a MIL fan). In the playoffs, everybody plays hard. Again, watch the clips from last night. The defensive plan the Clippers were using is so far from what they'd actually use in a playoff series that it's a joke.
I am not dismissing Milwaukee. I am willing, however, to die on the hill that their net rating is masking some flaws that will only show up in the 16-game season.
Yep, and to put a fine point on it, a white accountant. He sort of fits the old Hoosiers stereotype of the hard-working, overachieving white guy -- I think we've moved past that stereotype some, but it's still a figure that clearly appeals...hence his cult status. The funny thing with Caruso is he's genuinely a good player, as you say -- excellent defensively, high IQ on the offensive side (he works really well with LeBron), and he has some really good hops -- those dunks of his are no joke. I can see him continuing to improve on the offensive side. He definitely deserves praise as an undrafted, then G-Lg guy who has made good, but the "Caruso MVP" chants, etc, still have a lot to do with skin color, imho.
Genuinely good player is overstating it a bit. He's an NBA player, but his numbers overall put him around replacement level. And he's almost 26.
Last edited:
Meh, I think it's his overall goofiness more than the fact that he's white. If he was his same skill level but looked like Gordon Hayward, I think he'd be a fan favorite (yes, partially because of race), but wouldn't be nearly as meme-able.
a goofy white guy, for sure.
I mean you think White Men Can't Jump would have been a hit if Woody Harrleson were not white?
OTOH, Javonte Green would be a cult hero if he were white.
No need to call this, because no advantage was gained. It's irrelevant. you wouldn't want to impact the game by calling a violation that doesn't give anyone a real advantage.
Refs have no choice but to call the untucked shirt, it's a clear violation of the rules. You can't have players just blatantly violating the rules in front of everyone, that would turn the game into a farce.
Except no one made the first claim. The ref didn't overlook it he clearly just missed it...you can see his head snap over when the defensive player starts complaining. It's true it wasn't a big deal since it was a blow-out game, but that's just putting things in perspective.
I can't even say I blame the ref much. Sure he's supposed to be watching the ball...but in that point of the possession it's not unreasonable to relax just a bit and scan elsewhere.
I can't even say I blame the ref much. Sure he's supposed to be watching the ball...but in that point of the possession it's not unreasonable to relax just a bit and scan elsewhere.
Kevin Porter Jr. with a two arm flex following a dunk with his team trailing the Sixers 108 to 64 with 11 minutes remaining in the 2nd Half.
I said this before but the fact that he can't get to the rim at all really puts a handicap on his best skill which is passing since he really can't drive and kick, or run a pick and roll effectively. I wonder if New Orleans would experiment with him a bit as the screener; he is pretty big and it would allow them to use him similar to how the Warriors use Draymond on offense; allow him to catch the ball at the free throw line and use his vision to make the next pass to the open man.
I made a sizeable bet pre-draft that his 2nd contract would be under $10M AAV, and it’s looking less crazy every year.
Obviously not a great bet at the time, but I was fed up with people gushing about his stats without actually watching how those stats were generated and wanted to take a hot take-ish position.
His entire game felt like a giant troll sent by god to fuck up the Kevin Peltons of the world.
I just checked Giannis’ per 36 numbers (he’s playing only 31.4 mpg this year, largely because the Bucks have been crushing everyone and creating tons of garbage time).
35.3 pts (on .616 true shooting)
15.0 rebounds
6.2 assists
1.5 blocks
1.5 steals
+16.0 points per 100 possessions on-court
My word.
35.3 pts (on .616 true shooting)
15.0 rebounds
6.2 assists
1.5 blocks
1.5 steals
+16.0 points per 100 possessions on-court
My word.
Harden is averaging an insane 38.5 ppg (on more efficient scoring than Giannis) and Doncic has a legit shot to average 30/10/10 (on far more efficient scoring than Westbrook in his MVP season), so those two guys will get some noise for MVP, but both of those guys are average to awful on the defensive end, while Giannis is on the short list for DPOY. Just an incredible amount of talent at the top of the league (Lebron and Davis will rightfully split the LA vote), but Giannis has to be the strong favorite at this point.
Giannis' one weird wart this season has been FT shooting. At a point his career when most players start settling into peak FT shooting form, he's putting up 59.3% from the stripe — a fairly shocking regression from his peak 76-77% in his age 22-23 seasons.
Put another way: 23 games into the season, Giannis has missed more free throws (101) than the entire Golden State Warriors team (98), despite playing one game fewer. (The Baby Dubs' one bright spot this is that they're leading the league in FT%, a fairly impressive feat given the absence of the best FT shooter of all time in Steph plus two more great ones in KD and KT).
Or put another way: "if my aunt had balls," alert, but if Giannis shot his free throws like Harden (.876), he would have 70 more points this season — which would bump his numbers up 38.8 points per 36 on .677 true shooting.
Overall, agreed with your MVP list. Right now, in order, I'd go Giannis, Harden, Doncic, LeBron, Siakam.
(Fwiw, LeBron is crushing the Brow by net on-off, +10.1 to -7.3, and while much of that may be attributable to the units they play in, the Lakers' current MVP should not really be in question).
Put another way: 23 games into the season, Giannis has missed more free throws (101) than the entire Golden State Warriors team (98), despite playing one game fewer. (The Baby Dubs' one bright spot this is that they're leading the league in FT%, a fairly impressive feat given the absence of the best FT shooter of all time in Steph plus two more great ones in KD and KT).
Or put another way: "if my aunt had balls," alert, but if Giannis shot his free throws like Harden (.876), he would have 70 more points this season — which would bump his numbers up 38.8 points per 36 on .677 true shooting.
Overall, agreed with your MVP list. Right now, in order, I'd go Giannis, Harden, Doncic, LeBron, Siakam.
(Fwiw, LeBron is crushing the Brow by net on-off, +10.1 to -7.3, and while much of that may be attributable to the units they play in, the Lakers' current MVP should not really be in question).
Last edited:
Especially odd considering Giannis is averaging a career high in 2p fg% and close to it in 3p fg% (he had a better average as a rookie, but this year is more impressive because he's only 5 3pm away from his total as a rookie).
I know its considered terrible form to praise the Lakers and LeBron around these parts and its also mandatory to acknowledge that they have beaten some bad teams en route to their 21-3 record (of course, this doesn't apply if we are discussing other teams with good records). However they are 9-1 over their past ten games and that stat line that Davis and James put up tonight is pretty impressive. They scored 82 points going 32-49 from the field (~65%). Bron had 13 assists too.
The Lakers are pretty deep, and the way both Davis and James are playing is extremely impressive. I know how good each is and their potential fit was undeniable. But its still pretty amazing seeing it work in actual games.
There is a lot of basketball left to play and many things can happen. However if we get a Clippers/Lakers WCF, I expect that to be an epic series. If that were taking place right now, it would be very difficult for me to not take the Lakers.
The Lakers are pretty deep, and the way both Davis and James are playing is extremely impressive. I know how good each is and their potential fit was undeniable. But its still pretty amazing seeing it work in actual games.
There is a lot of basketball left to play and many things can happen. However if we get a Clippers/Lakers WCF, I expect that to be an epic series. If that were taking place right now, it would be very difficult for me to not take the Lakers.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoYZf-lBF_U&ab_channel=MobbDeepVEVO
Sorry - besides Mobb, I define deep as a roster that features proven NBA talent down the line. The Lakers are top heavy like almost all other true contending teams, past and present. But beyond Davis and LeBron, they have a pretty accomplished group of versatile veterans. You can match up with most teams given their two stars but the rest of that squad has enough length as well as athleticism to go against any style.
Don't get me wrong btw, the Clippers are insanely deep to me as well. The scary thing about them is that I don't think we've seen them play at close to their peak whereas I think this is probably near the Lakers ceiling.
I completely disagree. They are overwhelmingly top heavy. Lebron visited the good docs this summer so it wont matter but if either go out, they arent a playoff team.
I don't know, Rondo, Kuzma, Howard, Caruso is a pretty good bench. Obviously if James or Davis goes out they're much weaker, but what contender can you not say that about?
I watched some of the Portland game the other night and one thing that jumps out is that they're huge. James/Davis/Mcgee or Howard is a massive frontline, and they're starting two 6'5 guards in KCP and Green. Seems like size is back in the NBA.
Yeah, I think they've answered the depth issue pretty resoundingly. The center duo of Howard/McGee has been a perfect complement to AD and LeBron. Rondo has upped his game considerably and Caruso is ferocious defensively and on 0 plays well off of the stars. Bradley and Caldwell-Pope have been a pretty good duo, too.
Their problem is that Kuzma seems to have flatlined. He's still bad defensively and he's very inefficient with the ball. I'd even say he's regressed. Nor do they have a big wing to take on guys like Paul and Leonard. They've only had the one game vs the Clippers but I suspect the Clippers match up very well against the Lakers. They talk about Iguadola (sp?) as a pick up to fill that in but, a, I doubt the Grizzlies give him away and, b, I suspect he might be a bit over the hill.
Still -- the Lakers are really good. I thought they'd be good, but...the AD-LeBron combo has gelled quicker than one would think. And for all the hate LeBron gets, he's really pulled that club together.
Their problem is that Kuzma seems to have flatlined. He's still bad defensively and he's very inefficient with the ball. I'd even say he's regressed. Nor do they have a big wing to take on guys like Paul and Leonard. They've only had the one game vs the Clippers but I suspect the Clippers match up very well against the Lakers. They talk about Iguadola (sp?) as a pick up to fill that in but, a, I doubt the Grizzlies give him away and, b, I suspect he might be a bit over the hill.
Still -- the Lakers are really good. I thought they'd be good, but...the AD-LeBron combo has gelled quicker than one would think. And for all the hate LeBron gets, he's really pulled that club together.
Clippers easily handled the Pacers in Indy tonight
Sabonis 18pt / 22 rebs / 4 assists plus 14
Turner 5pts / 5rebs / -21
Domantas will be part of the All-Star team discussion this year. Turner is struggling with this 2-BIG lineup
Sabonis 18pt / 22 rebs / 4 assists plus 14
Turner 5pts / 5rebs / -21
Domantas will be part of the All-Star team discussion this year. Turner is struggling with this 2-BIG lineup
Last edited:
As of 12/8/19, the Lakers had the league's second best net differential at +9.1.
They were second in eFG% and 11th in eFG% against. Of their 21 wins, its true that 16 of them have been against weaker teams (of the Celtics 17 wins, 11 were against sub-500 teams) but they include squads like the Kings, Thunder, Suns, Blazers, TWolves, etc who aren't that far below .500 and can give anyone a game on a given night. Their three losses are to the Clippers, Raptors and the Mavericks.
I won't argue that the Lakers have had a relatively easy schedule but the idea that they are a paper tiger seems odd. The "top heavy" argument is valid but so too is chilidawg's observation that this is how NBA rosters are typically structured. I just don't subscribe to the idea that they will go out easy in the playoffs. On the contrary, teams with concentrated talent are dangerous because, as everyone knows, rotations shorten and then its your best players/actions against the other guys.
They were second in eFG% and 11th in eFG% against. Of their 21 wins, its true that 16 of them have been against weaker teams (of the Celtics 17 wins, 11 were against sub-500 teams) but they include squads like the Kings, Thunder, Suns, Blazers, TWolves, etc who aren't that far below .500 and can give anyone a game on a given night. Their three losses are to the Clippers, Raptors and the Mavericks.
I won't argue that the Lakers have had a relatively easy schedule but the idea that they are a paper tiger seems odd. The "top heavy" argument is valid but so too is chilidawg's observation that this is how NBA rosters are typically structured. I just don't subscribe to the idea that they will go out easy in the playoffs. On the contrary, teams with concentrated talent are dangerous because, as everyone knows, rotations shorten and then its your best players/actions against the other guys.
Nemanja Bjelica is the most clutch player in the NBA on Sundays and Mondays in early December.
View: https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1204241885138690049?s=20
View: https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1204241885138690049?s=20
Second most clutch player in the NBA is Derrick Rose:
View: https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1204242299066044417?s=20
View: https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1204242299066044417?s=20
Nice road back to back for the Kings at Dallas and Houston.
The Pelicans PBP guy has a set of pipes. Hire him when Marv retires. Wish he would have gotten into that buzzer beater a little more even if it was the Pistons.
The Pelicans PBP guy has a set of pipes. Hire him when Marv retires. Wish he would have gotten into that buzzer beater a little more even if it was the Pistons.
Oh master of the fake trade, tell me that there's a Langford plus fodder and picks trade that Indiana would consider for Turner.