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xaxat

By xaxat
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Ashforth
Ashforth

So I'll be the turd in the punchbowl. All of the news is about how great and wonderful Kobe was. Sure, he was a phenomenally talented athlete and apparently supported good causes. But he was also, in

twoods
twoods

Nobody is glossing over the alleged rape. In every single article I’ve seen (ESPN, NY times, SI, etc) there was a paragraph about his checkered past. It’s in the third or fourth paragraph, not in the

AimingforYoko
AimingforYoko

WNBA is 99% vaccinated, 0 positive tests this season. It's almost like there's a correlation.

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LexieLily

LexieLily

On 7/6/2021 at 10:26 PM, Lady Whistleup said:

Guess Suns going all-in on the Hack-a-tekoumpo strategy.

Starting it early tonight. Is it really a good look for the two-time MVP to be purposefully hacked?

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

1 minute ago, LexieLily said:

Starting it early tonight. Is it really a good look for the two-time MVP to be purposefully hacked?

I mean ... it's one of those things where the only solution is to become better at free throws. It's hard to watch but I understand why they do it. There's never going to be a Hack-a-CP3 strategy. 

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LexieLily

LexieLily

Just now, Lady Whistleup said:

I mean ... it's one of those things where the only solution is to become better at free throws. It's hard to watch but I understand why they do it. There's never going to be a Hack-a-CP3 strategy. 

Then why did Shaq and Dwight never get better?

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

1 minute ago, LexieLily said:

Then why did Shaq and Dwight never get better?

Shaq was famously stubborn and hard to coach. He also said that his issue was mental -- there's a video where he talked about a high school game where all his FT woes started.

Dwight Howard sort of transitioned well into being a role player where this sort of thing is less important.

And just as I'm typing this, he is hacked again and misses both FT's.

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Carey

Carey

Seasons almost over.  Looks like everyone will get better rest, and then normal rest  to by 2022.

However, injuries are still part of the game.  As ofr Game 2, while the score wasn't close, this series shows that Milwaukee isn't that outmatched. JMO. Now, if Phoenix steals a game prior to next Friday, that's bad news for the Bucks. I think the Suns will still have to double their efforts (despite a 2-0 series lead) on the road.  Looks like CP3's MVP to lose (unless he doesn't win the Finals, of course)

Now, if Phoenix wins Game 3, they better win Game 4.  None of that "win in front of your fans" nonsense!

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emma675

emma675

It's technically Olympics-related, but since the Olympics basketball thread isn't open yet...Matisse Thybulle of the 76ers just posted his first "Road to Tokyo" vlog highlighting his journey on the Australian Olympic basketball team. It's funny, it comes pretty much a year to the day he posted his first NBA bubble vlog last summer. He continues to be one of the funniest, sweetest, dorkiest players out there (with abs of steel, damn; there's a quick shirtless shot in this latest vlog). 

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

13 minutes ago, emma675 said:

It's technically Olympics-related, but since the Olympics basketball thread isn't open yet...Matisse Thybulle of the 76ers just posted his first "Road to Tokyo" vlog highlighting his journey on the Australian Olympic basketball team. It's funny, it comes pretty much a year to the day he posted his first NBA bubble vlog last summer. He continues to be one of the funniest, sweetest, dorkiest players out there (with abs of steel, damn; there's a quick shirtless shot in this latest vlog). 

I just watched it. He's adorable. I hope the Sixers work with him to increase is offensive game instead of using him simply as a defensive role-player. I've seen him hit three's before -- it's not like he can't hit them.

In other news, Suns are back at the Hack-a-tekoumpo strategy.

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

Piss poor effort from Devin Booker tonight. He had a bad shooting night but asked to be subbed out in the middle of the 4th and only played 29 minutes. You know Kobe or Kevin Durant or MJ would have stayed in until the game was truly unwinnable. CP3 stayed in till the game was truly unwinnable. In order to be elite IMO you have to have a "I'm going to drag my team to a win or die trying" attitude.

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twoods

twoods

As a Lakers fan I remember Kobe pouting when he got pulled out of a game that the Lakers were losing by a lot because he actually thought he would will them to a win. This is why us fans loved him- because we knew at the end of the day he left it all out there and never gave up, and he hated losing more than anyone.

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Carey

Carey

I can't blame Kobe there, especially in an era where (his) critics or people in general won't shut up about one's work ethics.  Today's audience would say he "quit" on his team and didn't finish things out and "lose with class" despite an impossible to overcome deficit

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

17 hours ago, twoods said:

As a Lakers fan I remember Kobe pouting when he got pulled out of a game that the Lakers were losing by a lot because he actually thought he would will them to a win. This is why us fans loved him- because we knew at the end of the day he left it all out there and never gave up, and he hated losing more than anyone.

I don't actually agree with Kobe's mindset because IMO he drove himself to early retirement by not healing from injuries. I know he played for 20 years, but he was a shell of himself after his Achilles tear, and then he didn't rest very long and then proceeded to blow out his knee and shoulder. Those injuries effectively ended his career and I wonder if he could have had even one or two more good seasons had he not pushed himself so much. 

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LexieLily

LexieLily

(edited)
25 minutes ago, emma675 said:

I know it's just warm up, exhibition games but Team USA needs to get it together. 

What do these games count for if anything? Is it like the NBA version of preseason?

Edited by LexieLily
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emma675

emma675

6 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

What do these games count for if anything? Is it like the NBA version of preseason?

Pretty much. I think they are mostly to give teams who don't play together often (like USA) a chance to get a few games in together before the real thing. I fully expect them to turn it on during the Games and dominate but this was a fun little confidence boost for Australia. 

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cambridgeguy

cambridgeguy

12 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

I don't actually agree with Kobe's mindset because IMO he drove himself to early retirement by not healing from injuries. I know he played for 20 years, but he was a shell of himself after his Achilles tear, and then he didn't rest very long and then proceeded to blow out his knee and shoulder. Those injuries effectively ended his career and I wonder if he could have had even one or two more good seasons had he not pushed himself so much. 

It's all about the narrative.  You like Kobe?  Wow, what a baller.  All the greats have that iron will.  Screw load management or any of that crap - you get paid so you go until you drop.  Hate Kobe?  God, what a selfish, egotistical jackass who's hurting his team by playing ineffectively and jacking up bad shot after bad shot. 

And in my opinion the quality that makes guys like Kobe great is also what makes them a massive pain in the end since they're always the last ones to know they don't have it anymore.

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Rootbeer

Rootbeer

10 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Pop is such a lazy coach. He's acting like this is summer league. Some of the rotations he has going are mind-boggling.

Considering the calibre of the talent on the team, Pops ought to be able to rotate the ball boy and the locker room attendant into the mix and the team would still crush virtually any opponent.

I think it is more that, as noted above Team USA  has not played together and is still getting a feel for things and, all of the players, KD included, are simply not going to go all out balls to the wall for an exhibition. KD knows where his bread is buttered, and risking serious injury in a pre-Olympic exhibition by playing at top level is just not something he'd do.  He's got more than a gold medal in play here.

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

6 hours ago, cambridgeguy said:

It's all about the narrative.  You like Kobe?  Wow, what a baller.  All the greats have that iron will.  Screw load management or any of that crap - you get paid so you go until you drop.  Hate Kobe?  God, what a selfish, egotistical jackass who's hurting his team by playing ineffectively and jacking up bad shot after bad shot. 

And in my opinion the quality that makes guys like Kobe great is also what makes them a massive pain in the end since they're always the last ones to know they don't have it anymore.

See I'd rather Kobe have had one or two more good quality years than what ended up happening which was he played through injuries until his big Achilles tear. Then he injured himself again and again by not resting his body. By the time he retired he had sort of become a chucker -- throwing up bad shot after bad shot. His efficiency went down so much.

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cambridgeguy

cambridgeguy

It figures that the Clippers would end up with a superstar who also happens to be an injury prone enigma who's moving into his 30s.  Would anyone be surprised if his recovery ends up taking longer than expected?

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

2 hours ago, cambridgeguy said:

It figures that the Clippers would end up with a superstar who also happens to be an injury prone enigma who's moving into his 30s.  Would anyone be surprised if his recovery ends up taking longer than expected?

Aww I like Kawhi. He might be an enigma off the court but when he plays he's a killer. When he gets hot the other team is in for a miserable night.

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emma675

emma675

11 minutes ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

I like poppovich but this is just a shitty response to a reporter doing their job.  

https://nypost.com/2021/07/13/gregg-popovich-has-testy-exchange-with-reporter-after-team-usa-loss/

 

I hate it when coaches or players snap at reporters doing their jobs. I get it, they get asked the same questions over and over and it's probably extremely annoying after a loss, but it's not like this is new or any big secret. You can give a succinct response without being an asshole and as long as Poppovich has been doing this, he should know better. 

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Sile

Sile

To be fair, Popovich has been this way for years (Belichick is a teddy bear in comparison) and I think reporters sometimes provoke him on purpose in order to get a personal soundbite.  He does not suffer fools gladly and I like that about him.

Sometimes I think they actually have a pool going in the media room to see who can be the first one to make Pop lose his shit.

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DrSpaceman73

DrSpaceman73

23 minutes ago, Sile said:

To be fair, Popovich has been this way for years (Belichick is a teddy bear in comparison) and I think reporters sometimes provoke him on purpose in order to get a personal soundbite.  He does not suffer fools gladly and I like that about him.

Sometimes I think they actually have a pool going in the media room to see who can be the first one to make Pop lose his shit.

But it was a fair question and has to be asked as much as he didn't like it.  This is not one to just provoke him.  

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xaxat

xaxat

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1 hour ago, Sile said:

To be fair, Popovich has been this way for years (Belichick is a teddy bear in comparison) and I think reporters sometimes provoke him on purpose in order to get a personal soundbite.  He does not suffer fools gladly and I like that about him.

I heard an interview with Doris Burke and she talked about doing halftime interviews with Pop. My impression from that interview is that there are reporters who his banter is performative and friendly. For others it is bullying. It seemed like Doris felt she was in the later. And she is certainly no fool.

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

2 hours ago, DrSpaceman73 said:

But it was a fair question and has to be asked as much as he didn't like it.  This is not one to just provoke him.  

Also it's the sort of question that can be answered easily: "This is a brand new team that has only been together for a week, and many of them are coming off playoff runs. Their bodies are tired. They need some time to gel and also I'd rather them play hard in Tokyo rather than injure themselves in exhibition games." Simple. How easy is that?

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DrSpaceman73

DrSpaceman73

2 minutes ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Also it's the sort of question that can be answered easily: "This is a brand new team that has only been together for a week, and many of them are coming off playoff runs. Their bodies are tired. They need some time to gel and also I'd rather them play hard in Tokyo rather than injure themselves in exhibition games." Simple. How easy is that?

Yes exactly.  Even if you dont believe and if people don't buy it (it's debatable) that's an obvious acceptable answer.  

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Sile

Sile

(edited)
2 hours ago, xaxat said:

I heard an interview with Doris Burke and she talked about doing halftime interviews with Pop. My impression from that interview is that there are reporters who his banter is performative and friendly. For others it is bullying. It seemed like Doris felt she was in the later. And she is certainly no fool.

That's a shame, because Doris is the best!  She is the only person I can stand to listen to on ESPN.  If true, at least I know it's not because she's a female as Pop is probably the least misogynistic person in the NBA.

1 hour ago, Lady Whistleup said:

Also it's the sort of question that can be answered easily: "This is a brand new team that has only been together for a week, and many of them are coming off playoff runs. Their bodies are tired. They need some time to gel and also I'd rather them play hard in Tokyo rather than injure themselves in exhibition games." Simple. How easy is that?

In my view the answer is more like "they're wasting too much time gawping in disbelief that their flops aren't being rewarded and they're not getting "star" calls when somebody so much as dares to lay a finger on them.

And I think he knows it, which is also grinding his gears but he can't really call out the team full of prima donnas that he has been assigned.

Can you tell I'm not a fan of Team USA?  At least as far as the OIympics go,  Since Serbia didn't qualify, I'm all about Slovenia this time!

56 minutes ago, Lady Whistleup said:

But Pop hasn't been that great of a coach for several years now. I think Tim Duncan retiring and Kawhi forcing his way out and also his wife passing away took something out of him. The Spurs are not fun to watch now.

Definitely his wife passing away has a lot to do with it.  Plus this new generation isn't really equipped to deal with the "do your job and it's all about the team" philosophy of the Spurs.  Never really been a Spurs fan, but David Robinson was just the epitome of a first class player as well as a human being.

Edited by Sile
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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

Pop and the Spurs were doing well though as long as Kawhi was on the team. I remember fans back in the day saying how unfair it was that first Pop had Tim Duncan, then he had another "can do anything" player in Kawhi. 

But that relationship fell apart, Kawhi left, and it hasn't been the same since. 

Anyway I think this fretting is all for naught. Team USA will get a strong guard in Devin Booker, it'll find its rhythm like it always does and win gold.

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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

2 minutes ago, emma675 said:

Oh, great. Hopefully this doesn't impact the teams they've recently played. I wonder if he's vaccinated?

His wife is an anti-vaxxer. Apparently reddit had screengrabs of her IG stories where she tried to say Hank Aaron died bc of the covid vaccine.

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Magog

Magog

(edited)

That was a fun game to watch tonight. Now this series is really up for grabs.

I wish that we could see more of that Deer District. It was just as fun watching the energy & excitement of Jurassic Park (Raptors) a couple of years ago. Does Phoenix has something like that over there?

Even though I still like him a lot, I haven't noticed or cared that LeBron isn't involved in any capacity in this years Finals. Though, ESPN & Undisputed keep trying to bring him up for any reason during these Finals AND won't leave him alone.

Edited by Magog
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Lady Whistleup

Lady Whistleup

2 minutes ago, Magog said:

That was a fun game to watch tonight. Now this series is really up for grabs.

Even though I still like him a lot, I haven't noticed or cared that LeBron isn't involved in any capacity in this years Finals. Though, ESPN & Undisputed keep trying to bring him up for any reason during these Finals.

Well the Space Jam movie is getting very poor reviews ...

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Carey

Carey

7 hours ago, Lady Whistleup said:
7 hours ago, Magog said:

That was a fun game to watch tonight. Now this series is really up for grabs.

Even though I still like him a lot, I haven't noticed or cared that LeBron isn't involved in any capacity in this years Finals. Though, ESPN & Undisputed keep trying to bring him up for any reason during these Finals.

Well the Space Jam movie is getting very poor reviews ...

To be fair, that movie is somewhat opposite over stuff such as F9 and Black Widow.  Plus, both movies are part of a particular (and separate) franchise that are usually released in May.  Nevertheless, "Space Jam 2" sucks and it has no excuse, including a possible conflict

 

Game four was very good.  Nothing against the decisive games, but this one had the ingredients of a classic.

 

I'm still sticking with Phoenix.  I never mentioned the total games played which I think isn't that necessary whenever people need to pick a winner (though it makes for a nice tie-breaker of sorts).  You just never know what Milwaukee team will show up.  I can see them "punting" on Saturday and then having enough in the tank to win with not much rest between a recently rare Tuesday to Thursday spot for what would be the final two games of the NBA Finals

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LexieLily

LexieLily

Re: Bradley Beal: What is the protocol for the health and safety protocols for the Olympics? If it's the standard 10-14 days, that takes him past the timeframe of the first real game in Tokyo. And what about the rest of the team?

I hoped Phoenix would win yesterday and make it a shorter series, only because the longer this goes the less days/time Booker, Middleton and Holiday have to rest and get themselves to Tokyo.

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