***2021-2022 NBA Season Thread***

[Going Commando]

I read that if it's just a bone break, no nerve or blood vessel damage, they can put screws and plates on the bones and get they will heal back even stronger than they were before.

So Rose's injuries were probably even worse than PG and he looks like he's made it back.

[Renegade7]

Oh, man, I don't wish that on anybody, I don't care what team they play for...

[Sticksboi05]

Paul George is in shock. That was absolutely horrific. Reminds me of that Louisville kid who broke his leg in the NCAA tourney.

 

Reminds me of out last franchise QB and Lawrence Taylor.

Edited August 2, 2014 by Sticksboi05

[ixcuincle]

damn paul george son get well 

[KuNiT21]

When this happened to that Louisville kid, I went down for the count for a good 30 minutes.  Started sweating profusely, then I get real nauseated, and boom I pass out.  I am glad I did not see this last night.  I hope Paul George is ok and has a speedy recovery.  And I hope I don't see this image on facebook, or any other type of gallery.

[skinfan2k]

You know, thinking about it, I thought the basket support bases were awfully close to the actual base line.  ****ing FIBA rules.

 

the NBA just put in new backboards a few years ago to help the guys. 

[TradeTheBeal!]

Damn.  Mojo to Paul George.  Get well soon.

[Going Commando]

That injury wrecks Indy's season. Indy was the favorite to win the East and a top 3 seed IMO. They were the team with the most playoff experience and continuity. Do they even make the playoffs now?

That leaves the East truly wide open. Toronto could win it. Cleveland and Chicago might win it. Washington could win it. Hell, Toronto is probably the one seed now.

[EvilMonkeyBoy]

That injury wrecks Indy's season. Indy was the favorite to win the East and a top 3 seed IMO. They were the team with the most playoff experience and continuity. Do they even make the playoffs now?

That leaves the East truly wide open. Toronto could win it. Cleveland and Chicago might win it. Washington could win it. Hell, Toronto is probably the one seed now.

The pre-PG injury Pacers and a Toronto team that did nothing to improve(for next year, I like their prospect grabs long-term) in the offseason were/are at the top of your list in the East?

I'm just not seeing it, man.

Edited August 2, 2014 by EvilMonkeyBoy

[JoeWolf990]

Paul George will be physically fine.

 

The injury is not career altering at all. Its just gruesome looking, so it disgusts everyone, but the injuries Rose had were more career altering than George.

 

 

 

Wall did not play well at all last night.

[No Excuses]

The top of the East is easily Cleveland and most likely Chicago if Rose is indeed still as good as he was pre injury. I think the Wizards are probably third but we need Wall or Beal to really take the next step to be a top contender. Star power still is what ends up being the biggest deciding factor in the playoffs.

[Momma There Goes That Man]

Wish PG a speedy recovery. Brutal injury but a break isn't the worst thing to come back from. He will be ok.

The top of the East is easily Cleveland and most likely Chicago if Rose is indeed still as good as he was pre injury. I think the Wizards are probably third but we need Wall or Beal to really take the next step to be a top contender.

This is how I would break the top of the East down as well

[TheItalianStallion]

Ouch! Team differences are put aside when team USA plays. Get well soon Paul. The east is sooo wide open this year.

[Going Commando]

The pre-PG injury Pacers and a Toronto team that did nothing to improve(for next year, I like their prospect grabs long-term) in the offseason were/are at the top of your list in the East?

I'm just not seeing it, man.

I think Toronto's entire 10 man rotation is coming back from last year. They've got more continuity than anyone else. Their improvement will come from within, Ross, Valanciunas, and DeRozan are all going to get better. Those guys are around 24, about the time NBA players become who they are. And Lowry is still in the middle of his prime. I think they're in the sweet spot of that run. Add to that everyone else except Washington and Charlotte are going through pretty huge identity changes this season, plus the crappy divsion. If they get a home heavy opening schedule I think they can rip off a great start like Indy did last season. And I suspect DeRozan is poised for a big time season.

Pre-Paul George loss, Indy was the most senior and battle-tested good team left in the East.

[EvilMonkeyBoy]

I think Toronto's entire 10 man rotation is coming back from last year. They've got more continuity than anyone else. Their improvement will come from within, Ross, Valanciunas, and DeRozan are all going to get better. Those guys are around 24, about the time NBA players become who they are. And Lowry is still in the middle of his prime. I think they're in the sweet spot of that run. Add to that everyone else except Washington and Charlotte are going through pretty huge identity changes this season, plus the crappy divsion. If they get a home heavy opening schedule I think they can rip off a great start like Indy did last season. And I suspect DeRozan is poised for a big time season.

Pre-Paul George loss, Indy was the most senior and battle-tested good team left in the East.

Fair enough. I like their continuity and know they pulled off a great run last year but I'm just not sold on Casey as a guy who will get Ross and Valanciaunas to the next level of their careers, i feel in particular they've done a terrible job developing Jonas.

Pacers were almost as bad on offense as the Roseless Bulls when it mattered, they did nothing to provide more of a scoring punch in the offseason and they lost their most versatile player to Charlotte. You really expecting Hibbert to get his head on straight?

[Going Commando]

The top of the East is easily Cleveland and most likely Chicago if Rose is indeed still as good as he was pre injury. I think the Wizards are probably third but we need Wall or Beal to really take the next step to be a top contender. Star power still is what ends up being the biggest deciding factor in the playoffs.

Yeah, but everyone thought the Lakers were going to be title favorites the year they got Dwight for the same reason: unmatched top end talent. The team will still suck beneath Cleveland's top guys. They'll still have no foundation for playing good defense. They'll still have to learn how to win on the road and finish games, that takes time. And Kyrie and Love have never played a full season nor made the postseason before. Rookie NBA coach. I see Cleveland starting slow, catching fire midseason, then fading late. And honestly, getting to 50 wins would be a huge success for them. That's a 17 win improvement from the year before, that's huge. A one seed would probably require a 22-25 win improvement. That's a tall order no matter who they add. I think they're a year away.

As for Rose, despite how fast he looked last night, I don't think it likely he'll go back to being who he was. Or even a legit AS this year (although I think it's a lock he gets voted in as a starter seeing as how it happened last year even though he only played 10 games). I think ~66 games played, 18-19 PPG on 40% shooting, and a 16-17 PER season is realistic for Rose. That helps Chicago no doubt. But I also think regressions from Gibson and Noah are realistic. Really don't see Chicago getting 80 games from both of them again. For the Bulls to really run away with the conference, I think something like Doug McDermott blowing up and being a ROTY candidate will have to happen. Get their offense out of the dregs.

Chicago got pushed around at home by us in the postseason. That's the team people think will approach 60 wins and get a one or two seed? I have a really hard time accepting that.

It's strange, but the three teams with the most continuity and pre-built chemistry right now are Toronto, Washington, and Charlotte. Wizards are the best road team in the conference too. I Washington and Toronto get off to a fast start and end up being the one and two seed.

[EvilMonkeyBoy]

As for Rose, despite how fast he looked last night, I don't think it likely he'll go back to being who he was.

I also think people overlook how much his athleticism has to do with his abilities as a passer. He's never had phenomenal court vision and most of his assists are of the drive n dish variety. If he can't do that with the same effectiveness I expect him to be a 4-5 APG kind of PG, which won't get it done.

[Warhead36]

Ugh that Paul George injury is just gruesome! I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Hope he makes a swift recovery.

[Momma There Goes That Man]

The Bulls are likely improved from last season even without Rose. If he's quick enough to get into the paint and collapse a defense they're going to be a lot better than last season when their shooters basically had nothing helping them out.

That's not counting any offense Rose gives you. He will make things easier for the rest of that team even if he isn't 2010-11 Rose.

Edited August 3, 2014 by Momma There Goes That Man

[EvilMonkeyBoy]

If he's quick enough to get into the paint and collapse a defense they're going to be a lot better than last season when their shooters basically had nothing helping them out.

I'm kind of with you but like I've said I've got serious concerns about the way they're gonna space the offense and divide the minutes up with that glut of PF/C types they have on the roster.

Edited August 3, 2014 by EvilMonkeyBoy

[Momma There Goes That Man]

I'm kind of with you but like I've said I've got serious concerns about the way they're gonna space the offense and divide the minutes up with that glut of PF/C types they have on the roster.

True, they definitely have their work cut out for them. It's going to be a lot of fun watching the competitive races in the East this year for a change

Edited August 3, 2014 by Momma There Goes That Man

[Gamebreaker]

Wall's scrimmage performance was disappointing and weird. He didn't his game at all. He came in with the second unit, and basically deferred to limited players who can't create their own shot or have any passing ability. When he did start trying to drive and dish he was mostly out of control. He played better in the second half, but Lillard outplayed him, as well as Rose, Kyrie, and Curry.

I don't think he makes the team, but Beal still has a shot. I also thought Parsons was awful, but he'll likely make the team now that George is done.

[Going Commando]

Wall's scrimmage performance was disappointing and weird. He didn't his game at all. He came in with the second unit, and basically deferred to limited players who can't create their own shot or have any passing ability. When he did start trying to drive and dish he was mostly out of control. He played better in the second half, but Lillard outplayed him, as well as Rose, Kyrie, and Curry.

I don't think he makes the team, but Beal still has a shot. I also thought Parsons was awful, but he'll likely make the team now that George is done.

John still has a chance because they're playing Curry at the 2 apparently. But he was outplayed by the other PGs in that scrimmage, and Lillard looks like the most likely back up PG right now.

I think George's injury shook up the program a bit. Everyone took a break and evaluations based on the scrimmage are going to be incomplete. I wouldn't be surprised if they carry extra people than they originally planned into their next camp to further evaluate them.

One thing that seemed clear from watching the scrimmage is that there is a lot of work to be done in getting the chemistry and flow of the team together. Davis and George both looked really uncomfortable out there, and I think their inexperience in the format showed. You saw a lot of young guys that fluctuated from trying to do too much to deferring to the more senior players. Creates a lack of rhythm and you saw the ball get stopped a lot and a lot of out of control fast breaks leading to turnovers. It was like the players fell back into AS game mode.

If I were USA's coaches, I would take advantage of my depth to do a true 10 man rotation that would utilize first line, second line line up changes in order to manufacture on court chemistry as quickly as possible. Chemistry is going to be a problem for us. Too many new faces in camp. A 10 man rotation gets me through group play, where a smaller rotation would naturally emerge.

Natural go to options need to emerge for the team, and Durant, Curry, and Cousins seemed to naturally take the lead as the scoring options in that game. Rose can manage the starting offense with his patience and instinctive scoring ability, and he can provide the change of pace fast break scoring punch for them. If his conditioning is right.

I think Harden needs to be on the second line as the go to scorer for the unit that can kind of take charge and do his thing and manufacture that efficient offense out of thin air that ends runs and keeps opponents off balance. His steady presence on that line is more valuable than his creativity is too the starters. Curry as the starting SG works better IMO because he's a better 3 pt shooter and gives me two rock solid shooters on the court in him and Durant.

I also don't feel great about relying on Davis to be the second pillar of my team. He's going to foul and he doesn't have go to offense where I can just throw him the ball and say the clock's running out, do something! I don't think he's ready to be Durant's sidekick and my only credible body at center. I'm absolutely bringing Cousins and Faried if I'm Coach K, and I'm even thinking about Drummond/Plumlee too. With chemistry an obvious issue, Cousins gives me a huge safety valve on offense. My plays aren't being executed and my passing and shooting isn't sharp, I can throw him the ball in the post and have him do something. Plus Cousins and Faried give me the ability to control the glass and make something out of nothing on the offensive glass.

Faried is the perfect dirty work role player that makes things happen for all of the star teammates around him. He actually finishes his inside opportunities. He runs the floor better than all the other bigs. And he salvages bad offensive possessions and mediocre defensive ones with clutch rebounding. ****, with George out and Davis looking his age, I consider starting him. Faried is not going to be intimidated by the moment.

[Going Commando]

I didn't really like Mark Cuban's rant about the IOC and the World Cup after the Paul George injury.

First off, an NBA owner probably doesn't need to be casting stones about the corruption of the IOC when that league isn't that far removed from the Tim Donaghy scandal. The NBA isn't in it for the good of anyone but themselves either.

Second, the players want to play in this thing. The ones who don't, don't. A lot of players grow up dreaming about playing for Team USA in international competition. Saying the FIBA World Cup is just some scam to make the IOC money craps on that dream.

Third, it isn't like a high profile FIBA competition doesn't make NBA owners like Cuban tons of money by strengthening the brand of the league and their players worldwide.

[Destino]

Did he mention FIBA in his rant? I was confused reading it because he ripped apart the IOC, wanted the Olympics to be 21 and under, and wanted a basketball World Cup. The problem is that there already is a basketball World Cup and as far as I know it's not run by the IOC. Paul George was injured in a scrim preparing for it (not the Olympics) so I'm not sure what connection any of this has to the Olympics. Also the nba has already suggested that they want to downplay the Olympics by sending younger players and only sending the best teams for the FIBA World Cup.

What am I missing?

I'm pretty sure that basketballs international presence, and tournaments, are the direct result of the NBAs own actions. The league wanted to grow outside of US borders and they succeeded beyond anyone's wildest imagination. Basketball is now everywhere and growing rapidly. There are pro leagues popping up all over the world and while the quality isn't great, it's improving and more young athletes are finding their way to basketball. Consider that most of the international players in the nba currently where both before the basketballs explosion internationally. Imagine the number of players from all over the world that we'll see a generation or two from now.

Sure there is a drawback to sending highly paid stars that could get injured to tournaments like this, but they grow the game. If the nba is smart they'll grow their viewership and presence right along with it. If the EPL can find viewers in the US, the NBA should have an easy time finding an audience now that the sport is finding a welcome reception everywhere. They just have to figure out how to turn international interest into large reliable revenue streams.

Edited August 3, 2014 by Destino