The NBA

[Crashcourse]

That's interesting, because some former NFL players were charged with the same type of fraud.

[Just Here]

I've updated my previous post with links to the DOJ press release and indictment.

 

1 hour ago, Crashcourse said:

That's interesting, because some former NFL players were charged with the same type of fraud.

Hmm.  Wondering if there's a direct connection between the two conspiracies (e.g., either discovered during the first investigation or volunteered by an NFL defendant), or something else, such as the processing company for the NBA's plan deciding to take a closer look and finding suspicious claims.

For example, some of the dental claims involved the same procedure -- on the same exact teeth -- on the same dates and at the same office.  I wouldn't be surprised if the processing company's internal fraud section had database queries that searched for these types of suspicious claims.

(endodontic therapy = root canal)

[xaxat]

Kyrie is going to have to make a decision.

Brooklyn Nets say Kyrie Irving won't play, practice until eligible under local COVID-19 vaccination mandate.

Edited October 12, 2021 by xaxat

[Danny Franks]

Maybe Kyrie can join Jon Gruden and they can have a nightly talk show on Fox, where they alternate between pushing anti-vaxx conspiracies and whining about cancel culture.

[isalicat]

Only 24 hours to go to the start of the new NBA season! YAY! Nets already been crowned (apparently even without Kyrie!) and the old and slow Lakers are still favored out west...to all of which as a Warriors fan I can just say: Bwah ha ha ha ha ha!

[emma675]

My beloved Sixers are bringing the off court DRAH-MA today. Doc Rivers kicked Ben Simmons out of practice for not participating enough and then the org suspended him one game. I've never liked Simmons much, he seems to not handle criticism well, not work to improve the areas of his game that are lacking, and surrounds himself with people who cater to his every need, and the way he and Rich Paul have handled themselves during this mess isn't improving my opinion of him at all. I get not wanting to play in a place where you don't feel you fit in anymore, but how does trying to hold out most of the pre-season, caving because you needed the paycheck, and then half assing it at practice to the point where you're thrown out help your trade value at all? I would not be surprised if Simmons' camp suddenly announced an injury to help him avoid playing in Philly at all.

[Magog]

Tonight is the start of the 2021-22 NBA Season. Thankfully, both games are on TNT tonight. 

First game is the bum ass Nets (without Kyrie? - Is he even playing tonight?) vs the World Champion Milwaukee Bucks. I hope that James Harden enjoy watching the Bucks getting their Championship Rings & rising their Championship Banner before the game because that is certainly not going to happen in Brooklyn this time next year.

The Second game is Those vile disgusting Warriors vs LeBron & the rest of the Lakers. Some people (mainly ESPN) are hoping this could be a WCF preview. Hopefully, that will not happen because that will be absolute torture for me. I don't want to have to be forced to root for the Lakers. I will always root for LeBron to do well, but there is no way that I will root for the rest of the Lakers or that team.

I really hope that we don't end up with a Nets - Lakers Finals or a Nets - Warriors Finals.

 

40 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I would not be surprised if Simmons' camp suddenly announced an injury to help him avoid playing in Philly at all.

Gee, I didn't know that you can get injured showing no heart, having no brains, & being a very sucky NBA player. If this loser ever plays in Philadelphia again (with the Sixers or somewhere else), the Philly crowd better BOO his sorry ass & make sure that he never forgets it. 

[Sile]

I would rather watch all 712 Twilight movies in a row than watch a Lakers-Warriors game. 

After I finish enjoying the Bucks, I'm done for opening night!

[SuburbanHangSuite]

7 hours ago, emma675 said:

Doc Rivers kicked Ben Simmons out of practice for not participating enough and then the org suspended him one game.

I swear Doc Rivers is no better than Brett Brown.  KIck him out of practice?  Shiiiiiiiitttttt.  I would've sent his ass to the other side of the gym and told him to shoot free throws for the entire practice session since his bitchass refuses to shoot them in the offseason. 

[Sile]

9 minutes ago, SuburbanHangSuite said:

I swear Doc Rivers is no better than Brett Brown.  KIck him out of practice?  Shiiiiiiiitttttt.  I would've sent his ass to the other side of the gym and told him to shoot free throws for the entire practice session since his bitchass refuses to shoot them in the offseason. 

I wonder if being kicked out of practice was necessary for him to be suspended without pay, since that's the only reason he showed up anyway.

You'd think that he'd want to show off being a good soldier with improved play so somebody, ANYBODY would actually trade him for a draft pick and a ham sandwich (no fixins).

[emma675]

The rumor is Simmons was already half assing it at practice, Doc asked him to run a defensive play, Simmons refused, and Doc told him to leave. And before that, Simmons was refusing to speak with anyone at practice, players, coaches, and even a security guard who said hi to him. What on earth makes him think this attitude will help him or appeal to any team interested in a trade? I've seen 3 year olds throwing temper tantrums that are more mature than him.

[cambridgeguy]

8 hours ago, Sile said:

You'd think that he'd want to show off being a good soldier with improved play so somebody, ANYBODY would actually trade him for a draft pick and a ham sandwich (no fixins).

There's no way he can play well - he has completely burned his bridges with his teammates and the fans are going to give him hell every time he touches the ball.  I wonder if he's going to claim mental health issues and go away during the season. 

[mojoween]

On 10/18/2021 at 9:27 PM, isalicat said:

Only 24 hours to go to the start of the new NBA season! YAY! Nets already been crowned (apparently even without Kyrie!) and the old and slow Lakers are still favored out west...to all of which as a Warriors fan I can just say: Bwah ha ha ha ha ha!

The Warriors are not mine, but in a matchup against the Lakers I will root for the Warriors 12 out of 10 times.

So I know that those Warriors winning has upset one of us, but I am DELIGHTED.  Also pissed, because in ESPN Radio’s top five plays of the day they still shoehorned in a damn LeBron highlight.  From a game that they lost.  

[Lady Whistleup]

Russell Westbrook is ASS. My god.

[Magog]

5 hours ago, mojoween said:

So I know that those Warriors winning has upset one of us, but I am DELIGHTED.

That would be me thank you very much. Thankfully at least, we didn't get a half court buzzer beater from Steph for ESPN to fawn over.

4 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Russell Westbrook is ASS. My god.

Its only the first game of the season. It is nothing to worry about & its not worth making a big deal out of it. He will be fine. LeBron will also be his usual self I'm not worried about him.

Edited October 20, 2021 by Magog

[Danny Franks]

16 hours ago, emma675 said:

The rumor is Simmons was already half assing it at practice, Doc asked him to run a defensive play, Simmons refused, and Doc told him to leave. And before that, Simmons was refusing to speak with anyone at practice, players, coaches, and even a security guard who said hi to him. What on earth makes him think this attitude will help him or appeal to any team interested in a trade? I've seen 3 year olds throwing temper tantrums that are more mature than him.

I think it's fairly clear that Simmons doesn't really give a toss about basketball. He's just a very tall, very athletic guy who realised it was a path to getting rich and famous. This dude has not developed one bit in his years in the NBA, and now he'd rather sabotage his own career than admit he needs to actually work hard.

The Sixers should just cut him and move on. He won't catch on with another team, he doesn't have the attitude or the application for it. He'll demand too much money, then just become a professional celebrity.

5 hours ago, mojoween said:

The Warriors are not mine, but in a matchup against the Lakers I will root for the Warriors 12 out of 10 times.

So I know that those Warriors winning has upset one of us, but I am DELIGHTED.  Also pissed, because in ESPN Radio’s top five plays of the day they still shoehorned in a damn LeBron highlight.  From a game that they lost.  

I'm delighted too. I love the Warriors, and think they play basketball in a way that is admirable, fun and deserving of success.

I want to see Steph to get another ring, I want to see Jordan Poole develop into an all-star, I want to see Klay come back and be as good as he was.

[Crashcourse]

Is there an available Kardashian/Jenner woman left because Ben Simmons would be perfect for one of them.  He'd be a former NBA player (they seem to like NBA players) and I think he'd love to be in the celebrity spotlight.   I don't know what else he could do.

[mojoween]

Ben Simmons is the one who went to LSU for one year, and the team was terrible and came nowhere close to the NCAA tourney, yeah?  I’ve always side-eyed him for that.

[emma675]

3 hours ago, Crashcourse said:

Is there an available Kardashian/Jenner woman left because Ben Simmons would be perfect for one of them.  He'd be a former NBA player (they seem to like NBA players) and I think he'd love to be in the celebrity spotlight.   I don't know what else he could do.

He already dated Kendall, lol.

Reddit had a picture of an old scouting report on Simmons at LSU and the scout's notes nailed him. It called out his lack of competitiveness in crucial games, said he needed things to revolve around him on and off court, and said he was often closed off to coaching or instruction. So basically he hasn't matured one bit since college. 

[Crashcourse]

59 minutes ago, emma675 said:

He already dated Kendall, lol.

Wow, I didn't know that. 😅

[Lady Whistleup]

Ben Simmons reminded me of what a well-known vocal teacher said once about staying in the music business. The music business is very bitchy, very competitive, and very harsh. The vocal teacher said "you have to really love it to stay in." I feel like Ben Simmons is an example of how if you don't love what you do and you're in a tough business, its going to show. I have no doubt that veterans like 'Melo or Dwight Howard love what they do.

[cambridgeguy]

On 10/20/2021 at 9:35 AM, Lady Whistleup said:

Russell Westbrook is ASS. My god.

Hey now, you're talking about one of the 75 (err, 76) members of the 75th anniversary team.  He's one of four on the Lakers, who arguably should have 5 but Dwight Howard didn't make the cut.  That's what happens when people don't like you Dwight.

[Lady Whistleup]

25 minutes ago, cambridgeguy said:

Hey now, you're talking about one of the 75 (err, 76) members of the 75th anniversary team.  He's one of four on the Lakers, who arguably should have 5 but Dwight Howard didn't make the cut.  That's what happens when people don't like you Dwight.

Personally I don't think AD should have made the all-75. Great promise but it's like he's spent most of his career injured.

[xaxat]

 

[Marley]

Interesting. He’s denying it all so far. I wonder what they have on him. Everyone always seems to deny things at the beginning but who knows.

[Lady Whistleup]

The Sixers and choking away double digit 4th quarter leads: name a more iconic duo.

[woodstock]

Condolences to Ernie Johnson and his family

[Lady Whistleup]

A lot of chatter over Zion Williamson's weight. He was never the lanky ectomorph that basketball so strongly favors (see: KD as a perfect example), but now he's gotten enormous. Hes still out with a foot injury.

 

Edited October 31, 2021 by Lady Whistleup

[cambridgeguy]

5 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

A lot of chatter over Zion Williamson's weight. He was never the lanky ectomorph that basketball so strongly favors (see: KD as a perfect example), but now he's gotten enormous. Hes still out with a foot injury.

He should talk to Shaq about what could happen when you start putting on the pounds.  It's too bad he's not with the Heat - Pat Riley would force him to lose some pounds.  Or maybe the better comp would be Barkley - when he showed up overweight Moses Malone just told him he was fat and needed to drop some pounds.  I'm not sure there's anyone on the Pelicans who could get away with doing that to Zion.

[Lady Whistleup]

3 minutes ago, cambridgeguy said:

He should talk to Shaq about what could happen when you start putting on the pounds.  It's too bad he's not with the Heat - Pat Riley would force him to lose some pounds.  Or maybe the better comp would be Barkley - when he showed up overweight Moses Malone just told him he was fat and needed to drop some pounds.  I'm not sure there's anyone on the Pelicans who could get away with doing that to Zion.

Well the thing is this. Basketball players are overwhelmingly ectomorphic in build. They actually eat a ton -- those bubble vlogs showed how much they ate every day. They;re big guys who need the fuel.

Think Zion is naturally just sort of chubby so he has to watch his weight but it is probably hard to see your teammates scarfing down five pancakes for breakfast and not gain any weight.

[Danny Franks]

Zion is clearly a guy who will always struggle with his weight, like plenty of other sportspeople who have some combination of annoying genetics, unhealthy diets, bad habits, a less disciplined nature and perhaps a less active life away from the sports arena.

He's going to have to adjust his lifestyle, at least a little, to make it easier to stay in shape. He doesn't have to be in game shape all the time, but blowing up and having to lose significant amounts of weight every year is not good for a person.

Oh, and the Knicks and Warriors are both top of the standings and clearly destined for the Championship series! A new era of joy and wonder in the NBA!

But really, both teams look good so far and the Knicks, in particular, look markedly improved with Walker and Fournier and with RJ Barrett's continued development. The Warriors still have Klay to come back, but it doesn't look like there will be too much urgency to force him back into lots of minutes, with Jordan Poole developing so well.

Edited November 1, 2021 by Danny Franks

[Lady Whistleup]

RJ Barrett's development has been the best pleasant surprise. He's like a lot of Kentucky guys in that it took him awhile to really become an offensive threat but he is now. (Coach Cal doesn't like his players to shoot too much.)

[xaxat]

The ESPN story about Suns' owner Robert Sarver is out and it is something. Lots of alleged incidents included, but the thing that sticks out for me is that he's one of those white guys who gets mad when people tell him he can't say the n word. That tells me all I need to know.

 

[LexieLily]

On 10/20/2021 at 5:35 AM, cambridgeguy said:

There's no way he can play well - he has completely burned his bridges with his teammates and the fans are going to give him hell every time he touches the ball.  I wonder if he's going to claim mental health issues and go away during the season. 

You called it. 

[emma675]

Luka magic saved the Mavs again last night as they were giving the game away to Boston. I wonder how long he'll stay in Dallas if the team around him doesn't get any better?

And between Covid, injuries, and Ben Simmons ravaging their team, the Sixers have managed to win. What a weird season already.

[Lady Whistleup]

Meanwhile the Lakers are off to a ROUGH start. Oh man.

[LexieLily]

2 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Meanwhile the Lakers are off to a ROUGH start. Oh man.

And I love it so much. Only two weeks into the season and the bloom is off the rose re: Westbrook and his fit with the team.

[emmawoodhouse]

5 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Meanwhile the Lakers are off to a ROUGH start. Oh man.

I watched part of their game against the Blazers last night. Hot mess express doesn't even begin to describe them. 🤣

[LexieLily]

35 minutes ago, emmawoodhouse said:

I watched part of their game against the Blazers last night. Hot mess express doesn't even begin to describe them. 🤣

The final score was NOT indicative of the game. Ha.

[emmawoodhouse]

1 minute ago, LexieLily said:

The final score was NOT indicative of the game. Ha.

Yeah, I caught it around the end of the 3rd quarter. The Blazers were up by 30. 

[LexieLily]

5 minutes ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Yeah, I caught it around the end of the 3rd quarter. The Blazers were up by 30. 

Yeah, lol, at one point it was 93-59. :p.

[emmawoodhouse]

Just now, LexieLily said:

Yeah, lol, at one point it was 93-59. :p.

That's about when I caught it..😂

[Lady Whistleup]

Russell Westbrook appears to be a wonderful person off the court but on the court he is the most frustrating player. He seems to not know his own limitations as he bricks or airballs one jumper after another.

[twoods]

I knew he would be a shitfest when the Lakers signed him. What a waste of Anthony Davis in his prime years. I doubt he signed up for this shit, but at least the Laker haters are enjoying it!

Edited November 8, 2021 by twoods

[cambridgeguy]

Scottie Pippen's memoir is out today.  I have a feeling MJ won't be a fan.

[emma675]

Quote

Scottie Pippen's memoir is out today.  I have a feeling MJ won't be a fan.

Someone please read it and give us the dirt! Anything that pisses MJ off is bound to be fun.

[DoctorAtomic]

I've only seen snippets on social media, but Pippen is *salty*. 

[NUguy514]

8 hours ago, cambridgeguy said:

Scottie Pippen's memoir is out today.  I have a feeling MJ won't be a fan.

But will he take it personally?

[emmawoodhouse]

[Crashcourse]

Steph and those Warriors!  Yessss!!!!!!! 😆

Seriously though, congrats, Steph.