NBA 2019-2020

mazhar13

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The Lakers are no good offensively. They're bottom 10 in the league for 3P%. No team has won a title being that bad for a long time (if ever?). I think Portland will win this series.
They're so predictable offensively. I don't know if they'll reach the Finals unless their coaching staff draw up some plays rather than let LeBron carry their attacks.
 

elmo

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Lakers aren't making it out of the West.

Their bigs sucks, non existent 3 point shooting and over reliance on LeBron will ruin their season.

Literally everyone knows the best way to build a LeBron team would be to fill it with shooters and yet the Lakers just didn't bother.
 

elmo

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They're so predictable offensively. I don't know if they'll reach the Finals unless their coaching staff draw up some plays rather than let LeBron carry their attacks.
That's on LeBron.

There's a reason why every team he's on results in him dominating the ball and dictating the offense. He won't give up control over the offense.
 

ZDwyr

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Kawhi basically screwed them by waiting so long in FA. They filled out the roster with odd pieces that don't work that well with LeBron.
 

mazhar13

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That's on LeBron.

There's a reason why every team he's on results in him dominating the ball and dictating the offense. He won't give up control over the offense.
It's insane because when he's not on the ball, the rest of the team don't have a clue on what they need to do except for Davis. Heck, both Danny Green and KCP are offensively useless in the Lakers with LeBron. :lol:
 

Sarni

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That was surprisingly smooth and we were quite decent on defense. Davis shot horribly, it’s been this way for the entire bubble so more than just one game slump. It’s just one win for now, Lakers are still huge favorites and will probably win it in 6 but good to see we can keep it competitive.
 

Beans

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Best game of the bubble. Back and forth and lots of drama.

Dame was unconscious. He is serious.

Melo was Huge for them tonight. He has been a fantastic addition for this team.

CJ was simply pathetic. He could not buy a shot this game. Could just be every time I watch but CJ just does not scream "star player for me" I very well could be wrong though as I dont follow Portland enough but every time I watch him thats the vibe I get.

Welp it's all in Portlands hands now.

Dame got that mentality that I love in a player. Let his team down vs clippers and got clowned for it and then goes and drops 51 and then 61. Dude is a baller.

Where do you think he ranks amongst the all time best Portland players of all time?
Best Trailblazer ever, only Clyde Drexler compares.
 

WeePat

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Wow the Lakers shooting stats are horrible :lol: I don't care who wins the NBA as long as it's not them, they're the Liverpool of basketball
Lakers in the NBA. Cowboys in the NFL. Liverpool in the PL.

Same energy.
 

WeePat

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Rockets lead OKC by at least 15 points since the second quarter or something. Convincingly dominant night for them.
 

Zen

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Lakers in the NBA. Cowboys in the NFL. Liverpool in the PL.

Same energy.
Any other forum and that Liverpool would be Man Utd...... actual true story.
And well, usually it's the Pats.

Pats-Lakers-Yankees-Utd ultimate glory hunting teams, still stunned by how many support those 4 and casually in denial at their own glory hunting. You should be reasonably loyal to a location in your American teams at least....

Hey I'm quite open about my Bulls(and well picking Utd was easy even if it was a father thing) glory hunting, but at least I took on the Blackhawks, Cubs and Bears too...
 

Nani Nana

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Jokic is a serious player, seems to combine the physicality of Nemanja Vidic with the passing range of Paul Scholes.
 

Skåre Willoch

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Any other forum and that Liverpool would be Man Utd...... actual true story.
And well, usually it's the Pats.

Pats-Lakers-Yankees-Utd ultimate glory hunting teams, still stunned by how many support those 4 and casually in denial at their own glory hunting. You should be reasonably loyal to a location in your American teams at least....

Hey I'm quite open about my Bulls(and well picking Utd was easy even if it was a father thing) glory hunting, but at least I took on the Blackhawks, Cubs and Bears too...
Yeah, it's fascinating. There's nothing wrong with glory hunting if you follow a sport casually, though. Supporting winning teams is more fun than supporting losing teams, if all you do is watch the super bowl and a few games in the postseason every year. But I agree about the geography. You might start out following the Bulls as you did, but then you've actually made the decision to take on the other teams as well. Unless the city doesn't have a team in a different sport, then it's fair game.

I started out supporting the Boston Bruins in the NHL in the mid 90s, and got "lucky" when I started watching NFL and NBA (and some post season MLB) years later. I didn't even know Boston was a part of New England at that age.

I wonder what happens when teams suddenly move to a completely different city, though. Like the Sonics moving to Oklahoma City, or the Rams moving to St Louis and then back to LA again. Do you keep supporting them, or do you try to find a new team? If so, how do the people from St Louis choose a new team? And Seattle, do they suddenly support the Blazers because of the geography? Surely not?
Tough to stay loyal if your team suddenly moves 2000 miles away. Would I support Manchester United if they suddenly became Budapest United? Probably not :lol:
 

ThierryHenry

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Watched the Rockets and Lakers today. Good fun.

I think the Rockets make it to the WCF. Genuinely think they the look the best out of the four teams on their side of the draw. The Lakers shooting is just dreadful (both from 3 and from the FT line). 93 yesterday - that's the first time Portland have let in less than 100 in the bubble, and only the second time they've let in less than 115. That can't be a team who makes beats the Rockets or the Clippers even if they can get through this series.

Is there something about Danny Green that I'm missing? He looks rubbish every time I watch him.
 

Skåre Willoch

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Jokic is a serious player, seems to combine the physicality of Nemanja Vidic with the passing range of Paul Scholes.
Skinny Jokic is the real deal. He's such a fun player, and he can do it all really. Just needs to toughen up a bit more on defense, and he'll be a real MVP candidate next year (even though he's already a what, top 5 candidate?).
 

WeePat

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Any other forum and that Liverpool would be Man Utd...... actual true story.
And well, usually it's the Pats.

Pats-Lakers-Yankees-Utd ultimate glory hunting teams, still stunned by how many support those 4 and casually in denial at their own glory hunting. You should be reasonably loyal to a location in your American teams at least....

Hey I'm quite open about my Bulls(and well picking Utd was easy even if it was a father thing) glory hunting, but at least I took on the Blackhawks, Cubs and Bears too...
On reflection, Lakers are probably closer to United than Liverpool, but the Cowboys are definitely the NFL's Liverpool. Over the top media coverage, fawning over every little nonsensical to come out of that franchise.

Yeah, it's fascinating. There's nothing wrong with glory hunting if you follow a sport casually, though. Supporting winning teams is more fun than supporting losing teams, if all you do is watch the super bowl and a few games in the postseason every year. But I agree about the geography. You might start out following the Bulls as you did, but then you've actually made the decision to take on the other teams as well. Unless the city doesn't have a team in a different sport, then it's fair game.

I started out supporting the Boston Bruins in the NHL in the mid 90s, and got "lucky" when I started watching NFL and NBA (and some post season MLB) years later. I didn't even know Boston was a part of New England at that age.


I wonder what happens when teams suddenly move to a completely different city, though. Like the Sonics moving to Oklahoma City, or the Rams moving to St Louis and then back to LA again. Do you keep supporting them, or do you try to find a new team? If so, how do the people from St Louis choose a new team? And Seattle, do they suddenly support the Blazers because of the geography? Surely not?
Tough to stay loyal if your team suddenly moves 2000 miles away. Would I support Manchester United if they suddenly became Budapest United? Probably not :lol:
See I was into basketball before I got into hockey and American football. The Rockets were my team when I was in school because of Tmac. When I started developing an interest in the NFL I tried the whole follow the rest of the Houston's sports teams thing, but I just couldn't warm to the Texans, so I decided it had to take it's own natural course. There was something about them Saints man, Drew Brees, Sean Payton etc that drew me in (no pun intended). Hockey came much later after I spent a year working in Montreal.
 

Skåre Willoch

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On reflection, Lakers are probably closer to United than Liverpool, but the Cowboys are definitely the NFL's Liverpool. Over the top media coverage, fawning over every little nonsensical to come out of that franchise.



See I was into basketball before I got into hockey and American football. The Rockets were my team when I was in school because of Tmac. When I started developing an interest in the NFL I tried the whole follow the rest of the Houston's sports teams thing, but I just couldn't warm to the Texans, so I decided it had to take it's own natural course. There was something about them Saints man, Drew Brees, Sean Payton etc that drew me in (no pun intended). Hockey came much later after I spent a year working in Montreal.
I'm not judging, really. I have plenty of friends who do the same, but most of them make it a mission to not support any of the usual suspects in a sport. A friend of mine ended up supporting the Redskins (or Football Team?) because he "disqualified" the Pats, Broncos, Giants, Steelers, 49ers and the Cowboys. He likes maroon, so that's how he ended up with WFT. He's a St Louis Blues fan, and just didn't "feel" the Rams at all.

Rockets, Saints and Canadiens is quite a combo, though!
 

SportingCP96

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KCP in 30 minutes Had 1-1-1

How do you have those numbers in a professional level and playing for a team like the lakers?

That is just god awful.
 

Florida Man

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KCP in 30 minutes Had 1-1-1

How do you have those numbers in a professional level and playing for a team like the lakers?

That is just god awful.
I wasn’t able to watch the game but seems like everyone for the Lakers were completely off their game. They will bounce back.
 

Zen

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Tough to stay loyal if your team suddenly moves 2000 miles away. Would I support Manchester United if they suddenly became Budapest United? Probably not :lol:
Yeah.... I get that, did know someone who's from St Louis and supported all his local teams, not sure he was happy about the Rams - not sure if he gave them up or not. Should get in contact to query him about it.

I think if you took the Chicago away from the teams I follow, I'd just follow the sport and not a specific team anymore, despite the fact the distance makes little difference to me anyway, I've just found a sweetspot for Chicago now. Same with you're example with United.... it wouldn't be right for me, and I'm not sure I could casually start supporting say Everton properly - only other reasonable North West team I've kinda liked. I guess it's risk they take, I don't think the Seattle fanbase followed OKC massively, they just took the risk and found a bigger new fanbase instead + some hanger overs on top. Theres obviously a lot that goes into it.
 

mazhar13

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Is there something about Danny Green that I'm missing? He looks rubbish every time I watch him.
He's supposed to be great defensively and contribute to opposition turnovers. Offensively, he doesn't necessarily have as much productivity, but he's energetic and a good cutter, and he's supposed to be a decent 3-point shooter though has been poor at that this season.

One problem with the Lakers is that their defensive transition is not that good (they're last in opponent fast-break points and 20th in opponent points off turnovers), so the effort that Green puts in tends to go to waste somewhat.
 

JJ12

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Why the feck aren't Sky showing all play off games. Was looking forward to watching the Raptors after the Leafs ruined my life.
 

ThierryHenry

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Why the feck aren't Sky showing all play off games. Was looking forward to watching the Raptors after the Leafs ruined my life.
The NBA League Pass is only £43 for the rest of the season. You can then watch everything live/ on replay through that.
 

H10

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Would Davis be better off as the centre? He needs to be in and around the paint more than shooting 3's and jumpers.
 

mazhar13

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The Nets started off very strong and exploited our slow start. They blew us out of the park in the first quarter as we were too slow to assert ourselves. After that, though, we upped our intensity and made them less comfortable, and were it not for the refs letting them get away with contacts, the game could have been closer for longer stretches of the game.

Regardless, our bench came up strong in the 4th quarter, and despite having a poor start, Lowry came up real strong and drove us on to victory. The fact of the matter, however, is that our lack of size is a big weakness on both ends of the court. LeVert caused VanVleet several problems, and it required Siakam to slow him down. The lack of box-outs was also a concern, which was a contrast to the first game; our players were too willing to get to the ball first instead of being patient and boxing out the opposition.
 

Peyroteo

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Doncic and Porzingis are so much fun to watch. It's a shame they got the Clippers in the first round
 

Donut

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Amazing win by Dallas, and they could have been 2-0 if it wasn’t for that soft technical. They will still lose but they’ll be contenders in 2 years max.

Also, are Philly going to make major changes (i.e. trade Simmons) if they lose in the first round? They have to try something.
 

Sarni

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Wow great win by Mavs. I may have underestimated them. Same for Jazz, I thought Nuggets would find it easy yet it’s 1-1 and I’m not that convinced Nuggets will beat them now that Conley is returning.
 

Desert Eagle

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Any other forum and that Liverpool would be Man Utd...... actual true story.
And well, usually it's the Pats.

Pats-Lakers-Yankees-Utd ultimate glory hunting teams, still stunned by how many support those 4 and casually in denial at their own glory hunting. You should be reasonably loyal to a location in your American teams at least....

Hey I'm quite open about my Bulls(and well picking Utd was easy even if it was a father thing) glory hunting, but at least I took on the Blackhawks, Cubs and Bears too...
I got 49ers Lakers,Yankees and Utd. :drool:
 

mazhar13

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Amazing win by Dallas, and they could have been 2-0 if it wasn’t for that soft technical. They will still lose but they’ll be contenders in 2 years max.

Also, are Philly going to make major changes (i.e. trade Simmons) if they lose in the first round? They have to try something.
Dallas pushed the Clippers in Game 1, too. Porzingis getting ejected from the game was a huge turning point. In Game 2, Dallas upped their defensive intensity, and Porzingis freed up Doncic and Hardaway Jr. to do lots of damage. The refs weren't that good in Game 2 either, but instead of dropping their heads, they kept up their defensive intensity and started getting more calls in their favour as the match went on.

Regarding Philly, they tried to go all in this season but screwed up with the Horford deal. That made them let go of key pieces and useful players like JJ Redick and TJ McConnell. As promising as Josh Richardson has been, he isn't an instant Jimmy Butler replacement. All that effort to build up a championship-winning side is almost gone to waste. They now have to commit to Embiid and get players that aren't incompatible with him.
 

Skåre Willoch

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Regarding Philly, they tried to go all in this season but screwed up with the Horford deal. That made them let go of key pieces and useful players like JJ Redick and TJ McConnell. As promising as Josh Richardson has been, he isn't an instant Jimmy Butler replacement. All that effort to build up a championship-winning side is almost gone to waste. They now have to commit to Embiid and get players that aren't incompatible with him.
They totally screwed up with the Harris deal as well. No way is he a max player. Horford is on the decline. And they're stuck with both of them for a long time. Two untradeable contracts worth a ton of money, that. Both are on the books until 22/23 as well I think.

Also, Embiid doesn't have the mentality to become a proper superstar. He's Dwight Howard 2.0. All the talent to become as good as he likes and dominate the NBA for a decade, lacks the effort. He looked totally exhausted after 7 minutes in this game. That's not about lack of talent or skill or teammates, it's a lack of mentality. He doesn't put in the required effort in training. If he can't even step up during the playoffs, he'll be nothing but a footnote in history.
 

Zen

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Magic Howard was a great player, just seemingly casually throwing him under a bus there. Just because he didn't pull off the carry job and win them a ring - that run to the finals was all on Howard really - beating defending champs Celtics and fellow carry job man LeBron on the way. The games passed him by since he left the Magic though - so it's been hard for him to stand out much/at all and of course he's gonna get wildly frustrated with it. Most of the classic centers would be lost in todays game somewhat.