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Official NBA 2018-2019 Thread


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Most of the Raptors fans share that unhappiness. :(

 

I don't know enough about the game or Leonard (beyond the headlines) to have a valid opinion, but my FB is blowing up with as much anger as Canadians seemingly can generate. ;)

Among other things, Lowry and DeRozan are friends and like playing together.

 

dB

:snax:

 

:keys:==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <==:rawk:

 

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Most of the Raptors fans share that unhappiness. :(

 

I don't know enough about the game or Leonard (beyond the headlines) to have a valid opinion, but my FB is blowing up with as much anger as Canadians seemingly can generate. ;)

Among other things, Lowry and DeRozan are friends and like playing together.

 

dB

 

That I knew... just don't really follow the game outside the Raptors highlights. Frankly, not seeing Kyle and DeMar in the post-game press conferences is gonna be sad. :(

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I saw someone post on FB that they were happy the Raptors were losing the "dead weight" that was DeRozan and even if Leonard splits after the season, they will be rebuilding with a good group. :idk:

 

I do know that we're big fans of Lowry after his stint in Houston and am glad to see how much better he has become.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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  • 4 weeks later...

It's official.

 

Dkfhz8iV4AIJELn.jpg

 

But I thought this column put it best.

 

Is he willing to sacrifice himself for the Rockets?

 

Is he willing, for the first time in his underwhelming 15-year career, to fully recognize his limitations and give in to the greater good?

 

 

Anthony's words and demeanor during the Rockets' official rollout will mean something.

 

If he gets it entering Year 16, he'll say that he'll gladly come off Mike D'Antoni's bench if that is what's best for his new team. That all he wants to do at this point in his career is win his first title. That the Rockets already have a very good thing going and the last thing he wants to do -- after all the frustration and endless rumors in Denver, New York and OKC -- is screw it up.

 

Oklahoma City always felt forced and never was right. Melo recently acknowledged that fact but his devotion to his own legacy didn't help the Thunder's cause. He also still sounded like it was all about him.

 

The Rockets don't do this if they don't believe it can work. There were assurances made on multiple sides. Paul can publicly and privately push Anthony. Harden has one more on-court ally after falling to the Warriors yet again.

 

The Rockets must back D'Antoni the entire way and can't be afraid to move on from Melo if this Morey experiment is failing.

 

Warriors, Warriors, Warriors. Surviving the West, then winning the first NBA title in this city since 1995. That's all this should ever be about.

 

The Rockets are too good to allow Melo to drag them down. After 65 wins and being up 3-2 in the Western Conference finals, they're still trying to be great.

 

If Anthony gets this right and what a big "if" that is -- it'll be the best thing on the hardwood that's ever happened to one of the best pure scorers in NBA history.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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If I have said it already in this thread, my apologies. But here's what I think.

 

I *hope* that Morey, D'Antoni, Harden, and Paul know what they're doing. They really seem to think they can make it work. I have my doubts, just like the rest of you guys. The pattern isn't good. They're the pros, I'm just a guy who watches the games and sometimes understands the analyses!

 

Melo will likely have to drop his ego and "give in to the greater good" as the column says. I don't know if he's capable of that.

 

At the very worst, I hope he doesn't distract the team if things don't work out and he rides the pine. They should do very well without him, hopefully even better with him.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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I hate to be negative, but I do not see the Melo thing working out at all.

 

Again (I'm not looking back but I KNOW I must have posted this before) I just don't get the Melo thing. Like, at all. The guy is so one dimensional at this point. The Rockets have plenty of scoring firepower, and now you add a guy who plays ZERO defense, is a epic ball stopper, and eschews coming off the bench. What could possibly go wrong? You put together a team like they have (and honestly, their big problem is that right now GS is looking like one of those "teams for the ages" squads) and MELO is your missing chess piece? When they DO play Curry and Co. whomever Melo is charged with guarding is going to light his butt on fire.....

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Melo will likely have to drop his ego and "give in to the greater good" as the column says. I don't know if he's capable of that.

:roll:

I am an optimist and like to think that people are capable of maturing. Maybe if he truly realizes that this is his last shot to go all the way, he'll do what D'Antoni, Harden, and CP3 tell him is best.

 

I am not holding my breath. I am hoping this season is as fun as the last one was. :idk:

 

[i mean, really. What do you expect me to do? The Rockets are my favorite team so I gotta go with it. :D As long as I don't hate it as much as the T-Mac era, I'll be okay. I wish T-Mac back then was as mature as he seems to be now.]

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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Mike DAntoni says Carmelo Anthony is willing to come off bench

 

Mike D'Antoni understands the doubts, the questions the Rockets' addition of 10-time All-Star Carmelo Anthony on Monday raised with many. He had questions, too. But to the Rockets' coach, they have been answered.

 

Anthony was a free agent when he made his decision to join the Rockets official, signing his one-year, $2.4 million contract Monday. He chose to accept the kind of role he could find with the Rockets, largely playing as a power forward, possibly coming off the bench, certainly in support of other stars rather as the No. 1 option as he had been through most of his career.

 

His willingness to not just accept, but to choose his place in the Rockets' mix was all D'Antoni needed to hear.

 

"I understand some of the naysayers," D'Antoni said. "I understand the question marks going into it. I would be worried about it if there were no conversations. But those have been answered sufficiently. Now, we'll have to adjust. I'll have to adjust a few things to get the best out of Melo and he'll have to adjust his game to play with us the best he can. That's normal things it took Chris (Paul) and James (Harden) about an hour and half to get solved.

 

"I go back to the Olympic experience and they want to play for the team, the name on the front of the jersey instead of the name on the back. That makes it easy, when you have talented players. You can't make something out of nothing. We can make something out of something. These guys got something."

 

 

"We'll see what performs best. What makes the best rotation and how to get the best out of them. Whether he starts or doesn't start, and he said it, is a moot point. We'll make that decision as we go forward. Maybe he starts the game, maybe he doesn't.

 

"We had to make sure that everybody's on the same page and he definitely, definitely is. We all have the same vision and want to get this thing done and beat probably the best team in NBA history. We can't afford a misstep or take things for granted and say 'we'll work things out.' When we talked about his vision and our vision and it matched up."

 

With that," D'Antoni called adding Anthony "a no-brainer." The questions might have been valid, but more than a month before training camp will begin, D'Antoni considered them answered.

[emphasis mine]

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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I hate to be negative, but I do not see the Melo thing working out at all.

 

Again (I'm not looking back but I KNOW I must have posted this before) I just don't get the Melo thing. Like, at all. The guy is so one dimensional at this point. The Rockets have plenty of scoring firepower, and now you add a guy who plays ZERO defense, is a epic ball stopper, and eschews coming off the bench. What could possibly go wrong? You put together a team like they have (and honestly, their big problem is that right now GS is looking like one of those "teams for the ages" squads) and MELO is your missing chess piece? When they DO play Curry and Co. whomever Melo is charged with guarding is going to light his butt on fire.....

 

They lost Trevor Ariza, so they really could have replaced him with someone who is a great perimeter defender. Instead, they get Melo.

 

Melo could score, once upon a time, but he is slowing down with that as well. In the NBA, the guy has been a meathead and perennial ball stopper, and the Rockets seem like a more cerebral share-the-ball play-good-defense get-up-and-down-=the-court sort of team. I really don't get it at all.

 

Regardless, the upcoming season should be interesting. The Rockets will be interesting, the Lakers will be interesting (I don't know that they'll be good, but they'll be interesting :D ), and who fills the void in the East (Celtics, most likely) will be interesting.

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They lost Trevor Ariza, so they really could have replaced him with someone who is a great perimeter defender. Instead, they get Melo.
Morey is pretty good at finding players other teams overlook. James Ennis could be an example of that.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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They lost Trevor Ariza, so they really could have replaced him with someone who is a great perimeter defender. Instead, they get Melo.
Morey is pretty good at finding players other teams overlook. James Ennis could be an example of that.

 

Cool.

 

I hope on the Lakers' end, they are good at getting something going too. One sports journalist described the new-look Lakers as "The Island of Misfit Toys". It is an odd combination. A passionate combination, but an odd one, with them seemingly trying to collect every annoying player in the NBA.

 

They overlooked Steven Adams from OKC. :D

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A passionate combination, but an odd one, with them seemingly trying to collect every annoying player in the NBA.

 

They overlooked Steven Adams from OKC. :D

:roll:

 

It will be interesting to see what the Lakers can do. I'm guessing they're thinking that with Lebron leading, everything/everyone else will line up.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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Melo is on a 1-year deal for a reason. ;)

 

That will either give him an incentive to play with a championship caliber team or pad his retirement account. :laugh::cool:

 

 

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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  • 2 weeks later...

Rockets unload Ryan Anderson in four player trade with Phoenix.

 

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has traded forward Ryan Anderson and guard DeAnthony Melton to Phoenix in exchange for forward Marquese Chriss and guard Brandon Knight.

Anderson always seemed to slump towards the end of the season and the playoffs, making himself useless and not worth his contract. Hopefully Knight will be healthy and useful after slumping hard for the Suns. But in the end, I think the big thing here is money. Anderson was a big chunk for the Rockets and they might be able to unload either or both of these guys by Oct 31 if they don't work out.

 

Meanwhile, Geoff, you get Ariza and Anderson! Good luck.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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Meanwhile, Geoff, you get Ariza and Anderson! Good luck.

Unfortunately, I don't have room for them at my place. Maybe the Suns can put them up.

 

But seriously, I don't know what to make of the trade. Each player has an upside and downside. I'm hoping for the best, but guessing mediocrity with prevail.

 

Best,

 

Geoff

My Blue Someday appears on Apple Music | Spotify | YouTube | Amazon

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Meanwhile, Geoff, you get Ariza and Anderson! Good luck.

Unfortunately, I don't have room for them at my place

:D
But seriously, I don't know what to make of the trade. Each player has an upside and downside. I'm hoping for the best, but guessing mediocrity with prevail.
I don't know where the Suns are right now and what they're up to. It's too bad to see them floundering around in the west like they have been.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...

The Lakers are about 2-5, I think, and reporters are already asking Lebron how much more patience he has. It took almost halfway through the season for his superstar teams to begin gelling, and they're asking him about his Island of Misfit Toys, a weird combination of people like Javale McGee, Lance Stephenson, and Rajon Rondo along with a bunch of 20 year olds, how much more patience he'll have.

 

 

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The Lakers are about 2-5, I think, and reporters are already asking Lebron how much more patience he has. It took almost halfway through the season for his superstar teams to begin gelling, and they're asking him about his Island of Misfit Toys, a weird combination of people like Javale McGee, Lance Stephenson, and Rajon Rondo along with a bunch of 20 year olds, how much more patience he'll have.

 

The sad reality of an instant gratification society. The Lakers should be 49-0 right now. :laugh:

 

Of course, the media has a job to do in asking the questions and being a superstar, LBJ brings a certain amount of press baggage with him. :cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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Looks like Houston is playing out as people expected.

 

Hopefully they get healthy and get it turned around.

This has been painful. I've been wondering if they're experiencing the "Melo Curse," even though Melo himself isn't doing too badly. The rest of the team has been ice cold. To go from such a high-powered and high-scoring offense to this, well, it's bizarre. I could live with them needing to figure out the defense with all the changes, but when Eric Gordon can't hit a three to save his life, there's a creek and they're up it.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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Raptors fans are already deeply in love with Kawhi Leonard. Even though hes only played half a dozen games, theyre chanting MVP, MVP every time he goes to the free throw line. His game looks as good as anybodys whos ever played for Toronto. Kyle Lowrys playing out of his mind to impress him. New stud, new coach, lots of good young talent....maybe, maybe, maybe this year will be special.

“True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country.”
― Kurt Vonnegut

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Houston will probably pick it up. I don't know about the addition of Melo. I think that's a bit of a mistake, but maybe it works out.

 

The Raptors with Kawhi seems like a winner for sure.

 

So this is the thing that's got sports journalists in Los Angeles chattering now. Apparently Magic Johnson laid in to Luke Walton for their 2-5 start (they're now 3-5, I believe, because they just beat the Trailblazers). The press picked up on this and won't shut up about it even though Magic is not exactly warm and fuzzy, and has apparently had numerous discussions with Walton since the beginning of the season. However, since ESPN picked up on this, it's the subject of non-stop speculation.

 

Fueling this is Coach Lue being fired from the Cavaliers. Some are thinking that they might want to bring Lue aboard, especially since Walton was a Jim Buss/Mitch Kupchak hire before Magic/Pelinka took over.

 

However the Lakers do, it will not be a boring year. Between having odd personnel, which people have referred to as The Island of Misfit Toys, and all this other nonsense, it's not gonna be boring in Lakerland.

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