The NBA

[baldryanr]

You're telling me a late second round pick who likely wouldn't have been drafted if his last name was Smith isn't lighting it up?  Well, I, for one, am shocked.  Shocked, I tell you.

[Magog]

Bronny actually played pretty well for a change last night. He scored 12 points & helped the Lakers get their first win in the Summer League. Lakers 87 - Hawks 86. Also, he finally made a 3 pointer after 16 tries.

Bronny James BEST Summer League Game 12pts FULL Highlights (Lakers 87 - Hawks 86)

Edited July 18 by Magog

[Is Everyone Gone]

Team USA demolished Serbia yesterday. Jokic scored well but the rest of the team didn't have the USA depth.

[Magog]

Another good game from Bronny last night. Scoring 13 points with 3 assists in another Lakers victory. After a bad start, Bronny has put in a couple of good games. Bronny is playing better at this moment than Alex Sarr (sucky ass Washington Wizards) currently. Alex Sarr went scoreless on Wednesday Night (0-15) in a loss & he scored only 2 points (1-6) last night in a win.

Bronny James scores 13pts in BEST Summer League Game FULL Highlights (Lakers 93 - Cavaliers 89)

 

Somehow, I will not be surprised if Bronny plays better & has a better rookie season than Alex Sarr in the upcoming NBA Season.

Edited July 19 by Magog

[Magog]

I know that some of you guys are very disappointed that LeBron will be the male flag bearer in the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics. I'm not one of them. I'm certain that he will appreciate this honor during his probable last trip to the Olympics.

BTW, the Miami Heat are the winners of the 2024 NBA Summer League. Yay.

Edited July 24 by Magog

[Is Everyone Gone]

1 hour ago, Magog said:

I know that some of you guys are very disappointed that LeBron will be the male flag bearer in the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics. I'm not one of them. I'm certain that he will appreciate this honor during his probable last trip to the Olympics.

BTW, the Miami Heat are the winners of the 2024 NBA Summer League. Yay.

No Lebron is a good choice. Congrats to him. Giannis will also be the Greek flag bearer and Dennis Schroeder the German flagbearer.

From a logistical standpoint being an NBA player is a good flag bearer because they're so tall so everyone can see them.

Also among totally mindless but happy news, apparently Kevin Durant and Angel Reese are dating?

[Carey]

IIRC, everyone that's part of the USA Olympic team (not just basketball players) were thrilled that James got the nod.  For me, regardless of whatever, that is a great thing.

Unlike the NBA (TV contract to be specific), someone actually made a decision that makes sense

[baldryanr]

4 minutes ago, Carey said:

IIRC, everyone that's part of the USA Olympic team (not just basketball players) were thrilled that James got the nod.  For me, regardless of whatever, that is a great thing.

The athletes vote on who gets to do it, so it would be kind of odd if the team was annoyed.  Lebron's been on multiple Olympic teams, so it's not like he's a newbie.

[Carey]

7 minutes ago, baldryanr said:

The athletes vote on who gets to do it, so it would be kind of odd if the team was annoyed.  Lebron's been on multiple Olympic teams, so it's not like he's a newbie.

It sure would have been weird if the team wasn't happy about it.  TBH, the haters in and out of the media are the ones livid.  Nobody in the league or here I don't believe.

 

My issue with the league that I sort of referenced was related to their handling of their coverage in a period where the NFL is picking off all of their decent TV spots amid their ratings dominance.  To be brief, the NBA on TNT (with the star-studded Inside the NBA) was one of the greatest things on television.  Despite a recent 24-hour period on how that might not be dead, it's the end of the road for coverage of the NBA on TNT after all these years.  While I didn't comment on last months reports on Charles calling it quits, I don't think it makes sense for him to "start over" elsewhere at this point.

Probably no sense in commenting on what the ratings will look like going forward, until the conclusion of the 2027 NBA Finals.  If it goes in a positive direction, alright.  However, it took a hit over the postseason.  Not great, especially since there are several that are irate over the fact that the NFL will be doing their thing on Christmas every year going forward.  To add insult to injury, the latter is about to put its most important game during a weekend that has been "reserved" for the NBA during their all-star weekend (Presidents Day).

When my time ends on Planet Earth, I'll still wonder how the Turner guys never got one chance at working an NBA Final.  Maybe it's not baffling at all, but to me it sure is!

 

[grommit2]

The Olympic team coach actually sat Tatum for an entire game? 
Really?
Is Kerr deliberately trying to insult one of the top 5 players in the game?
Geez...I used to respect Kerr.  That Mickey Mouse move is really inappropriate. 🤪

[baldryanr]

Remember when Charles Barkley said he was going to retire?  Well,

 

[Carey]

Here is the ESPN article that focuses on Charles Barkley sort of doing a 180.

TBH, I think it's good news, especially when it comes to some overlooked details (TNT and CBS teaming up for March Madness).  I guess if a lawsuit plays out, maybe the new NBA deal isn't final.  IDK.

As mentioned, Chuck (who'll be 62 in six calendar months from now) is a big deal when in comes to television personalities in the history of television.  He is under contract for another 8 years.  Probably made no sense to announce a retirement when he did, other than to help TNT maintain the rights for the league.

Money does talk, but IMO, the team of Chuck, Shaq, Ernie, and Kenny can continue elsewhere.  They really do not need a TV package for that to happen.  Finally, I do think Barkley is rather loyal.  Amid his diss on ESPN, I don't think anyone could get him unless they brought along the other three.  Sir Charles wasn't about to do a deal where it's him but with Malika, Stephen A, Perk, and Wilbon.  Or with NBC, Maria over EJ.  Not to disrespect Taylor, but Ernie, Charles, the Jet, and O'Neal are very close.

Of course, it probably would not have mattered anyway since Ernie has no plans of "starting over" a.k.a. going elsewhere at this point.  He still does work in other sports.  Plus as mentioned, TNT is getting more sports, including the French Open, and some coverage of the new CFB Playoff.

For me, nothing lasts forever; I've trended toward doing away with my viewership of studio shows.  Just something I've decided to do at my age since I've followed a lot of people in the past.  No time to focus on someone new.  If I was a couple decades younger that would be different.

[Magog]

Here are the Christmas Day games for the upcoming 2024-2025 season. 

Spurs - Knicks:  I'm only here for Wemby & its not surprising that ESPN & Adam Silver would have us suffer once again by putting the rotten scummy Knicks again on Christmas. 😠 There is nothing special or magical about the Knicks playing at MSG at Christmas. 😠

Timberwolves - Mavericks: That game sounds very enjoyable to me. 

76ers - Celtics: Meh.... And didn't we get this game last Christmas? At least, we won't have to deal with that loser James Harden bringing his usual brand of suck like last season. He's now doing that to the Clippers.

Lakers - those Warriors: Another dose of LeBron & Steph being Steph on Christmas. Yay 😒. Another chance for ESPN/ABC to show their usual bootlickiing to Steph & those Warriors. 🤬  I know that ESPN is very very happy that their hero was a major help in that game against Serbia with his 36 points with 9 3-pointers. 🤬

Nuggets - Suns: The Suns are going to suck this upcoming season so I don't know why we have to be subjected to their suckiness on Christmas. 😒

Edited August 9 by Magog

[Magog]

Opening Night for the 2024-2025 season is about 2 months away & here are the 2 games on Opening Night to start the season.

Knicks at Celtics : I hope that the Knicks fall flat on their faces on that night & many more after that this season.

Timberwolves at Lakers : An upcoming Superstar (Anthony Edwards) vs the present Superstar (LeBron James). Hopefully, the Lakers will make watching the Spectrum Sportsnet Lakers Postgame Show very entertaining this season.

[Carey]

On 8/15/2024 at 3:19 PM, Magog said:

Knicks at Celtics : I hope that the Knicks fall flat on their faces on that night & many more after that this season.

New York didn't extend Randle as of present time, did they?

If Dolan feels the need to be more involved than he was not too long ago, it might be a safe or decent bet that they will fall flat on their faces.  But not before "falling with the faces bouncing on the floor" a ton of times before settling there.  Every night

 

[roseha]

On 8/6/2024 at 8:08 PM, Carey said:

Here is the ESPN article that focuses on Charles Barkley sort of doing a 180.

TBH, I think it's good news, especially when it comes to some overlooked details (TNT and CBS teaming up for March Madness).  I guess if a lawsuit plays out, maybe the new NBA deal isn't final.  IDK.

As mentioned, Chuck (who'll be 62 in six calendar months from now) is a big deal when in comes to television personalities in the history of television.  He is under contract for another 8 years.  Probably made no sense to announce a retirement when he did, other than to help TNT maintain the rights for the league.

Money does talk, but IMO, the team of Chuck, Shaq, Ernie, and Kenny can continue elsewhere.  They really do not need a TV package for that to happen. 

 

Just catching up and saw this post.  I do think there's a good chance that Inside continues in some form.  As has been speculated elsewhere, it might be possible for them to present a fun weekly show with the TNT crew even if they can't  broadcast the games.  I agree that Ernie isn't going anywhere and glad that Charles is loyal to him and TNT, I imagine the others will feel the same.    Here's hoping that Inside continues in some format beyond next year.

[Magog]

I know that you guys & (especially) ESPN are absolutely thrilled that a couple of days ago, those Warriors extended Steph's contract for one yr worth $62.6 Million. His contract will now end in 2027. Yay. 😠

Even though, Steph is happy that he got that contract extension,  he would of been much more happier if those Warriors would of used that some of that money to resign Klay Thompson. 

Steph, that douchebag Joe Lacob, & those Warriors are about to find out the hard way this upcoming season just how much they're going to miss Klay Thompson.

[Salacious Kitty]

I'm a Klay stan, but I will be the first to tell you that his injuries seem to have caught up with him. He isn't the same guy he once was, and I don't think he ever will be. I do wish him the best at Dallas. 

[baldryanr]

The Warriors barely made the play-in with Klay, so it's not like they lost the key to their championship aspirations.

Steph's at the point in his career where he's just padding his numbers, so kudos to him for grabbing another giant payday like Kobe did in his last Lakers years.  He and Lebron aren't going to be grabbing a fifth ring unless they plan to take a paycut and play the role of human victory cigar.  Being the hero and MVP of the Olympics is a fitting exclamation point for their legacies.

Edited August 31 by baldryanr

[Magog]

I haven't heard very much from LeBron for about a month. Its been kind of a blessing in disguise. 

In other news, the wretched scummy Knicks made a trade with the Timberwolves last night. The Knicks are getting Karl Anthony Towns from the Timberwolves. The Timberwolves are getting Julius Randle & Donte DiVincenzo from the Knicks. The trade is still a work in progress. But, it should be finalized in the coming days.

[AimingforYoko]

Both teams needed something to take the next step. We'll see if this is a win-win trade.

[baldryanr]

They're the Knicks and Timberwolves, so history says it probably won't be.

[AimingforYoko]

Sadly wagging my finger: Dikembe Mutombo dies of brain cancer at 58.

R.I.P.

[Notabug]

5 minutes ago, AimingforYoko said:

Sadly wagging my finger: Dikembe Mutombo dies of brain cancer at 58.

R.I.P.

Truly a life well lived.  He was a giant both on and off the court.

[emma675]

Dikembe's son Ryan posted a beautiful tribute to his dad here. What a wonderful man on and off the court.

[atomic]

Wow, truly so sad about Mutombo. He played his last five seasons with my Rockets and even into his 40's he was such a defensive force when he subbed in for Yao. And who he was as a person made me even more grateful that he wore our uniform. Someone with such a bright spirit and left such a lasting impact on the world through his humanitarian efforts.  Rest easy and thanks for everything, Deke. 

[baldryanr]

In news that should be shocking to no one, Kawhi is out indefinitely

He's the Bill Walton of the 21st century.  We can only imagine what he would have been able to put together if he wasn't made of glass.

The Clipper are also screwed for the rest of the decade because they don't control their 1st round pick.  Two are gone (26 and 28).  25 and 27 are swaps with the Thunder, so that means they're likely getting picks at the end of the first round.  29 is a top 3 protected swap with the Sixers.

Edited October 17 by baldryanr

[Carey]

Colin Cowherd said (I think on Friday) that he wouldn't put Kawhi in the Hall Of Fame.  I did agree with his reasoning, but not before being a little surprised there.

Leonard getting voted in is more probable than not, but as mentioned, he's never available.  Imagine being a coach, player, front office, and you have no idea if he'll be available.  That was a fair point from Colin.  It doesn't matter if you won several championship MVP awards.  If a great ability is availability and that's lacking, it would go against what the highest honor is (all) about.

Hopefully time will pass to where he'll be better, but I don't know for sure

[baldryanr]

Colin would have a stronger argument if the Basketball HOF was a small hall type where only the elite of the elite get in.  But that's not what it is, and unless Kawhi pulls a Pete Rose he's 100% in on the first ballot.

[Is Everyone Gone]

So in a rather interesting development, late-round draft pick Ryan Dunn has proven himself to be a rather unexpected offensive threat. Draft scouting had him as a pure defensive specialist, but apparently he worked all summer on his jumpshot and in pre-season went off for several games.

[Magog]

The new NBA Season begins tonight. Yay. Sadly, this will be the last season for TNT airing the NBA. I'm not even remotely excited about NBC & freaking Amazon airing the NBA next season. its like going from Wegmans & HEB to Kroger & Safeway. Tuesday & Thursday Nights are going to be free for me next season & I'm downright sad about that.

Game 1 is Knicks - Celtics. I hope that Stephen A Smith will go see the NY Liberty WNBA Champions Victory Parade on Thursday (Congrats to them, BTW) because he will never ever see a parade for the Knicks. it'll be Year 52 for the Knicks not winning an NBA Title. The same amount of years that it took Cleveland to win another sports title (1964 - 2016). I know that he is still very salty about that 2016 title, so because of that, I hope that he never ever see a Knicks Victory Parade.

Game 2 is Timberwolves - Lakers. Hopefully, Anthony Edwards will take that next step this season & get his team at least to the Finals. Since we're now comparing him to Jordan & he thinks very highly of Jordan, I except him to get the Timberwolves to the Promise Land sooner than later.

As for the Lakers, maybe we'll get lucky & Bronny will play tonight & quickly put an end to the spectacle of him playing with his dad, LeBron. I also expect Bronny to contribute to the Lakers & help them win a few games during the season. 

Hopefully, the Lakers will provide me some more entertainment for Spectrum Sportsnet Lakers Postgame Show. That show has become must-see TV for the past couple of seasons & hopefully that will continue this season.

Woj is not doing NBA stuff anyone & I didn't like him very much. So he really won't be missed. That Shams guy is going to be even more irritating as him. I already don't like him.

Overall, I wish everyone good luck to this season. Except for Steph, James Harden, Dillon Brooks, Jordan Poole, those vile Warriors, those scummy Knicks, Rockets, Suns, Wizards, & Raptors.

 

Edited October 22 by Magog

[Carey]

Well, the good news for New York is that the area will have a blast (or not) starting this weekend.  Just not in terms of basketball

[Magog]

Last night in the 2nd Quarter, Bronny got into the game for the first time with his dad LeBron. It was a very nice moment & thankfully it happened in the first game of the season. Sadly, Bronny didn't score any points, but it was good seeing him on the floor with his dad. Now, we need Bronny to score some points & help the Lakers win some games. BTW, the Lakers beat the Timberwolves 110-103.. Yay.

Edited October 23 by Magog

[baldryanr]

If the Lakers are counting on a late second round draft pick to come in and help them win then they're screwed.

[NUguy514]

3 hours ago, Magog said:

Last night in the 2nd Quarter, Bronny got into the game for the first time with his dad LeBron. It was a very nice moment & thankfully it happened in the first game of the season. Sadly, Bronny didn't score any points, but it was good seeing him on the floor with his dad. Now, we need Bronny to score some points & help the Lakers win some games. BTW, the Lakers beat the Timberwolves 110-103.. Yay.

There was absolutely nothing nice about that moment since Bronny is nowhere near NBA-caliber and wouldn't have been drafted by any team ever if not for his surname.  It was all about feeding Bron-bron's massive, entitled ego; he truly is the worst.  Once Bron-bron retires, Bronny will be cut by the Lakers and won't be picked up by any other team.  That poor kid will never be anything other than an albatross around the Lakers' neck.

Actually, now that I think about it, as a proud hater of Bron-bron and the Lakers, I hope Bronny plays at least 45 minutes every game.  That way, the Lakers lose a ton, and Bronny might be cut sooner so that he can go live his life doing something he actually wants to do and finds joy in.  Because basketball's not it for him.

Edited October 23 by NUguy514

[Carey]

Bronny is 6'1"?!

I don't mean to be disrespectful at all, and if I am for what I'm about to say, I apologize.  I guess due to having a life (other sports and whatever are happening year-round) to where I did not pay attention to that statistic

[baldryanr]

5 hours ago, NUguy514 said:

There was absolutely nothing nice about that moment since Bronny is nowhere near NBA-caliber and wouldn't have been drafted by any team ever if not for his surname.  It was all about feeding Bron-bron's massive, entitled ego; he truly is the worst.  Once Bron-bron retires, Bronny will be cut by the Lakers and won't be picked up by any other team.  That poor kid will never be anything other than an albatross around the Lakers' neck.

It was a triumph of nepotism.  Getting your kid a staff role is just garden variety nepotism, but what NBA player can drag their son, who is probably a marginal college starter, onto the team?  How many stars have the juice to pull that off?

[DoctorAtomic]

I don't know that I need to have the 76ers shoved into my tv this season if Embid and George can't even be ready for the first game of the regular season. 

[Carey]

The NFL and the NBA aren't exactly the same thing, but if there was ever a decent opportunity for the latter to emulate something, it would be to "flex" that game onto Netflix, Amazon Prime, Roku, or wherever.  That way, the league can have something people have to pay for with those same people not caring about it this time around

[Magog]

Suns 116 - Clippers 113 OT

That was a pretty nice game for 2 teams that are going to suck this season.

In a surprise to nobody, James Harden lost the game for the Clippers at the end by not only missing a free throw that would tied the game at 114, but also not catching the inbound pass at the Clippers last possession when being down by 3 (116 - 113). The Clippers should be use to this by now. There is going to plenty of that from James Harden this season.

[DoctorAtomic]

I'd certainly rather see a wider range of teams, but I only have the cable package and the usual streaming services, and I'm not springing for more. 

You'd think they'd want to showcase some of the younger stars or teams from time to time like Wemby or the Pacers. 

I didn't need to watch more than 5 Knicks games to know they weren't getting to the conference finals. 

[Salacious Kitty]

Hey @Magog! Your boy Draymond got teed up for the first time last night, apparently for yelling at a ref. I watched much of the game, but I missed his shining moment. 😂

Edited October 24 by Salacious Kitty
Autofill got me again! Didn't like teed

[baldryanr]

 

Kawhi's body just cannot withstand the grind required of a NBA player.  2020 was the last time he could have pulled off a deep playoff run on top of a reasonable number of regular season games played, and he needed the extra pandemic time off to do it.

[Is Everyone Gone]

Some rough injuries and it's only day 3.

James Wiseman tore his Achilles. 

Dejounte Murray broke his hand.

Isaiah Hartenstein also broke his hand.

As for nepo babies, in Lebron's defense, Bronny is not the only one. Giannis has dragged his marginally talented brother Thanasis into the Bucks as an end-of-bench player for years now.

[Carey]

At least Antetokounmpo collected.  The best shot Bronny has is being a member of the Boston Celtics ASAP

[emma675]

Woooo, the Mavericks look good out of the gate. Luka looks slim and motivated, Klay came out on fire and slots right into the team, Kyrie looks comfortable and relaxed, Lively and Hardy came out strong, and even Kleber, the perpetually injured, had some big plays. This could be a fun season if everyone stays healthy. 

[DoctorAtomic]

I expected Dallas to win, but I liked that the Spurs kept with them for a while. They missed some open shots, and I think they just ran out of gas.

[Is Everyone Gone]

On 10/25/2024 at 3:05 PM, DoctorAtomic said:

I expected Dallas to win, but I liked that the Spurs kept with them for a while. They missed some open shots, and I think they just ran out of gas.

The Mavs had a really rough game last night against the Suns. Just missing a bunch of shots, some poor defense, dumb fouls.

[atomic]

Why did they have to do D-Wade so dirty? 😭

 

[Carey]

If it wasn't for the jersey & the number included on it, I'd be wondering for a second why the Miami Heat honored Laurence Fishburne with a statue!