New Album & The Beginning of Basketball Season

[jadis]

The 2020 NBA title will always have an asterisk behind it due to the pandemic bubble.

(I can say this now that the Clippers have fallen by the wayside.)

Agree. And like my NBA soul-mate and anti LeBum mate Christoph would say, we do not care a rat-ass who wins as long as it's not LeBum. With due apologies to Steve and the Lakers fan whose team was 'hijacked' by the bum as an instrument for his own glory. He is just so lucky to get all this 'motivations' he needed to win this thing. I mean, who in the past who finished 2nd in the MVP race has more news bits than the actual winner?
And 85-16 is a resounding wallop of a victory for Giannis, who is now looked as more of a loser than lebum because his team got ousted.

 

[JackD201]

I think the Clipps even if they don't make any changes will still be a force next year. As disappointing as they were this year. No team in the league that can say they aren't afraid of them because you never know what version of the team might show up that night. Now if somehow they can get back the fire to be disciplined and consistent, we'll likely see a real contender. In a way, the pressure is now off of them. Either they shrink or get a much needed chip on their shoulders. Roster wise all that seems to be missing is a mobile big. This looks to me what limited their defensive repertoire making them very predictable. Too much reliance on individual defensive talent.

Besides, there really isn't much they can do. No picks and assets with, now, low perceived value. They have no choice but to learn to gel. i don't see Balmer blowing things up after what he's already poured in. Honestly I think what he SHOULD have done is make moves to bring the team to Seattle.

 

[jadis]

I think the Clipps even if they don't make any changes will still be a force next year. As disappointing as they were this year. No team in the league that can say they aren't afraid of them because you never know what version of the team might show up that night. Now if somehow they can get back the fire to be disciplined and consistent, we'll likely see a real contender. In a way, the pressure is now off of them. Either they shrink or get a much needed chip on their shoulders. Roster wise all that seems to be missing is a mobile big. This looks to me what limited their defensive repertoire making them very predictable. Too much reliance on individual defensive talent.

Besides, there really isn't much they can do. No picks and assets with, now, low perceived value. They have no choice but to learn to gel. i don't see Balmer blowing things up after what he's already poured in. Honestly I think what he SHOULD have done is make moves to bring the team to Seattle.

Seattle Clippers, Jack?

 

[Steve williams]

I think the Clipps even if they don't make any changes will still be a force next year. As disappointing as they were this year. No team in the league that can say they aren't afraid of them because you never know what version of the team might show up that night. Now if somehow they can get back the fire to be disciplined and consistent, we'll likely see a real contender. In a way, the pressure is now off of them. Either they shrink or get a much needed chip on their shoulders. Roster wise all that seems to be missing is a mobile big. This looks to me what limited their defensive repertoire making them very predictable. Too much reliance on individual defensive talent.

Besides, there really isn't much they can do. No picks and assets with, now, low perceived value. They have no choice but to learn to gel. i don't see Balmer blowing things up after what he's already poured in. Honestly I think what he SHOULD have done is make moves to bring the team to Seattle.

Not so sure Jack. I feel this was their best chance. Next year will have so many young stars that the league will have a lot of contenders

 

[christoph]

Agree. And like my NBA soul-mate and anti LeBum mate Christoph would say, we do not care a rat-ass who wins as long as it's not LeBum. With due apologies to Steve and the Lakers fan whose team was 'hijacked' by the bum as an instrument for his own glory. He is just so lucky to get all this 'motivations' he needed to win this thing. I mean, who in the past who finished 2nd in the MVP race has more news bits than the actual winner?
And 85-16 is a resounding wallop of a victory for Giannis, who is now looked as more of a loser than lebum because his team got ousted.

Nicely said

 

[christoph]

Agree. I was asked this question by an old friend who is also an NBA fan, when all fingers were pointed at Doc. "What happened to the over-achieving crew last year with Gallinari, Shai Alexander, Shamet, Lou and Harrell both coming off the bench?"They even won 2 games against the Warriors in the playoffs and both of them were at the Oracle Center. It should mean Doc 'can' coach, right? Hard to argue with that, and if that is true, then the addition of PG and the Claw simply means the first year is a 'jelling' year. Same as the bolter to South Beach first year, his powerhouse Heat team lost to Dallas.

You are probably right and you and I just had too high hopes

 

[christoph]

I think the Clipps even if they don't make any changes will still be a force next year. As disappointing as they were this year. No team in the league that can say they aren't afraid of them because you never know what version of the team might show up that night. Now if somehow they can get back the fire to be disciplined and consistent, we'll likely see a real contender. In a way, the pressure is now off of them. Either they shrink or get a much needed chip on their shoulders. Roster wise all that seems to be missing is a mobile big. This looks to me what limited their defensive repertoire making them very predictable. Too much reliance on individual defensive talent.

Besides, there really isn't much they can do. No picks and assets with, now, low perceived value. They have no choice but to learn to gel. i don't see Balmer blowing things up after what he's already poured in.

You are also probably right

Honestly I think what he SHOULD have done is make moves to bring the team to Seattle.

Sorry, this I don't understand?

 

[JackD201]

There was some talk about Seattle wanting to have a team again after the Sonics moved to OKC. Seattle being Microsoft's base, may were hoping Ballmer would bring the Clipps there. Well, hopes were dashed when IIRC Ballmer decided to build a facility for his team in LA. Maybe he got caught up in the challenge of being THE team in LA. We know how that turned out Somehow I was just thinking how things could be different if a tteam had its own home. Perhaps lacking that in itself is the curse.

 

[JackD201]

Not so sure Jack. I feel this was their best chance. Next year will have so many young stars that the league will have a lot of contenders

I still think they are a first round threat Stevie. We can count Houston and OKC out if the former gets blown up and the latter loses CP3 which is likely as is reported. Punchers chance in the second round too. It just really depends if they gel. We've seen how badass they can be on good nights against good teams. The frustration was how bad they were against teams with losing records. I don't see the Pels and the Grizzlies making that leap quite just yet. Zion's health remains suspect and Jrue is a coveted trade target. Neither do I see POR making any major strides. Utah looks stuck in geosynchronous orbit. I'm not even sure about the returning Dubs until we see what they do over the winter (that sounds so weird).

 

[christoph]

There was some talk about Seattle wanting to have a team again after the Sonics moved to OKC. Seattle being Microsoft's base, may were hoping Ballmer would bring the Clipps there. Well, hopes were dashed when IIRC Ballmer decided to build a facility for his team in LA. Maybe he got caught up in the challenge of being THE team in LA. We know how that turned out Somehow I was just thinking how things could be different if a tteam had its own home. Perhaps lacking that in itself is the curse.

Thanks for the explanation

 

[jadis]

I still think they are a first round threat Stevie. We can count Houston and OKC out if the former gets blown up and the latter loses CP3 which is likely as is reported. Punchers chance in the second round too. It just really depends if they gel. We've seen how badass they can be on good nights against good teams. The frustration was how bad they were against teams with losing records. I don't see the Pels and the Grizzlies making that leap quite just yet. Zion's health remains suspect and Jrue is a coveted trade target. Neither do I see POR making any major strides. Utah looks stuck in geosynchronous orbit. I'm not even sure about the returning Dubs until we see what they do over the winter (that sounds so weird).

I can see where you're coming from Jack, re the Clippers. I think all is not lost for the next season. This bubble effect debacle of Doc is what I would personally call a 'freak' loss, something in the local lingo we call 'contrapelo'. Team A beats Team B, Team B beats Team C, but Team C always beats Team A. Something like a team has got the other's number. Flashback to 2015. Clips beat the defending champions Spurs in a fantastic and thrilling 7 game series. Then move on to face the Rockets, got up 3-1 and shockingly lost in 7 games, they should have won that since the consensus is the Spurs were better than the Rockets. While the Clips were eliminated by the Nuggets, deep inside I feel that had they won and faced the Lakers, the first 2 games will be even in their favor. That strength they shown when they were at their meanest machine look would show up, I'm guessing. And it would be a real clash of the titans series and not a sportswriters 20-1 vote for the Lakers to win over Denver. The Clippers' problem were the same as in 2015 when they couldn't stem the tide of a tsunami force that even a forgotten Josh Smith was throwing in 3s from all over for the Rockets. Now they also couldn't counter that barrage of long shots from Murray, Jokic, Porter and Harris. Once your opponent beat you that way, there is not much to do, even coaching-wise. So probably the argument to keep the present coaching staff is that they know to play strong but they have to prepare for an avalanche attack next year. Not that I am favoring Doc, but as I mentioned, he did coach the undermanned Clips last season to 2 road wins in the playoffs and built a 3-1 lead, and even led by 21 and 19 in games 5 an 6 and maybe 14 in Game 7. The losses, I chalk up to 'contrapelo'. It's like a natural disaster. Just my armchair thinking.

 

[Steve williams]

I can see where you're coming from Jack, re the Clippers. I think all is not lost for the next season. This bubble effect debacle of Doc is what I would personally call a 'freak' loss, something in the local lingo we call 'contrapelo'. Team A beats Team B, Team B beats Team C, but Team C always beats Team A. Something like a team has got the other's number. Flashback to 2015. Clips beat the defending champions Spurs in a fantastic and thrilling 7 game series. Then move on to face the Rockets, got up 3-1 and shockingly lost in 7 games, they should have won that since the consensus is the Spurs were better than the Rockets. While the Clips were eliminated by the Nuggets, deep inside I feel that had they won and faced the Lakers, the first 2 games will be even in their favor. That strength they shown when they were at their meanest machine look would show up, I'm guessing. And it would be a real clash of the titans series and not a sportswriters 20-1 vote for the Lakers to win over Denver. The Clippers' problem were the same as in 2015 when they couldn't stem the tide of a tsunami force that even a forgotten Josh Smith was throwing in 3s from all over for the Rockets. Now they also couldn't counter that barrage of long shots from Murray, Jokic, Porter and Harris. Once your opponent beat you that way, there is not much to do, even coaching-wise. So probably the argument to keep the present coaching staff is that they know to play strong but they have to prepare for an avalanche attack next year. Not that I am favoring Doc, but as I mentioned, he did coach the undermanned Clips last season to 2 road wins in the playoffs and built a 3-1 lead, and even led by 21 and 19 in games 5 an 6 and maybe 14 in Game 7. The losses, I chalk up to 'contrapelo'. It's like a natural disaster. Just my armchair thinking.

I totally disagree. Call it a freak loss if you want. The reality is the best team in the NBA was up 3-1 to Denver and lost the last 3 games. They were outplayed, outclassed and out coached. They looked tired and poorly prepared Denver got in their heads and ratttled them.
I agree about them making it through the first round but Denver and Dallas are contenders. Having seen Ja Morant play I think Grizzlies have potential. If Clippers stand pat with their team due to lack of draft choices they are going to have to get one decent trade or a free agent

I said there will be upsets and indeed there have been.
I think that the Mavs have great potential

 

[Steve williams]

we now know Giannis has arrived.......his card fetched more $$$$$ than LeBron's card

Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie card fetches $1.812 million at auction, highest ever for modern-day basketball card

NBA Twitter and media reports

https://www.nba.com/article/2020/09/21/giannis-antetokounmpo-rookie-card-1812-million

 

[christoph]

I said there will be upsets and indeed there have been.
I think that the Mavs have great potential

There have been quite a few upsets
Just not the one I wanted to see (yet?)

 

[christoph]

we now know Giannis has arrived.......his card fetched more $$$$$ than LeBron's card

Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie card fetches $1.812 million at auction, highest ever for modern-day basketball card

NBA Twitter and media reports

https://www.nba.com/article/2020/09/21/giannis-antetokounmpo-rookie-card-1812-million

That can only mean one thing:
I guess that an anonymous bidder (certainly not Lebum himself, but maybe someone with a clear task ) will (have to) buy LeBum's card for at least 2 millions

 

[Steve williams]

That can only mean one thing:
I guess that an anonymous bidder (certainly not Lebum himself, but maybe someone with a clear task ) will (have to) buy LeBum's card for at least 2 millions

Haha

 

[Steve williams]

There have been quite a few upsets
Just not the one I wanted to see (yet?)

TBH Christoph I am not so certain anymore that you will see that upset

IMO at the present moment the MVP of the playoffs is AD

 

[christoph]

TBH Christoph I am not so certain anymore that you will see that upset

IMHO you were just overly modest.
I was never convinced that the Lakers will be one of those upsets.
I just hoped

IMO at the present moment the MVP of the playoffs is AD

In this regard, we absolutely agree

 

[Steve williams]

IMHO you were just overly modest.
I was never convinced that the Lakers will be one of those upsets.
I just hoped



In this regard, we absolutely agree

I truly believed that the Clippers would beat the Lakers and emerge as the winner of the west

All bets are off now as watching the Lakers play in their last 3-4 games they seem to be well poised with one goal in mind. They have that fire in their eyes

having said that I watched with fingers clenched the last game where Nuggs as always overcame the big deficit and clawed their way back to lead with 2.9 seconds in the game until AD drained the 3. So on any given day any team can beat any other team. The playoffs however are best of 7 . The only team that worries me (sorry Phil) is the Heat as they are playing so well and also with gutsy determination

 

[Steve williams]

I enjoyed reading that Michael Jordan has formed his own NASCAR driving team with Bubba Wallace as the driver

I did a quick check on Michael's net worth........$1.6B !!!

Not bad for the GOAT

LeBron is worth about $500M