2022-23 NBA Season Thread

[pwaldo]

Yep. It's now indisputable. Kevin Love made the right decision. He wanted to play and win immediately this year, and both have happened. 5 threes, 12 rebounds, +13, a key contributor in the Heat's advancing game.

Sorry I doubted ya, Kevin! You were right.

It is another reason why I can't stand people who put Giannis as an NBA top whatever great already. I know recency basis and all that but it seems like every year a player gets picked as will finish as a top 15 player of all time. They try to shove like 12 guys into the top 5 all time. Basically if Giannis was able to shoot free throws like a normal person and not a very subpar basketball player the Bucks would have won that game. It is a huge hindrance and one that people don't like to talk about because it isn't flashy but his free throw game is basically non existent. Other than Shaq (and that did hinder his career) I've never seen a box score so poor on shooting free throws from an "all time" great player. It seems like all the players in the NBA can't shoot free throws consistently well anymore but it matters and really shows during playoff time.

[WilyWestbrook0]

It is another reason why I can't stand people who put Giannis as an NBA top whatever great already. I know recency basis and all that but it seems like every year a player gets picked as will finish as a top 15 player of all time. They try to shove like 12 guys into the top 5 all time. Basically if Giannis was able to shoot free throws like a normal person and not a very subpar basketball player the Bucks would have won that game. It is a huge hindrance and one that people don't like to talk about because it isn't flashy but his free throw game is basically non existent. Other than Shaq (and that did hinder his career) I've never seen a box score so poor on shooting free throws from an "all time" great player. It seems like all the players in the NBA can't shoot free throws consistently well anymore but it matters and really shows during playoff time.

I was actually a big doubter of the Giannis hype early in his career. I laughed when his Prizm RCs started going for $2,000 on eBay when graded a mere 9 (this was his regular RC, mind you, not even one of the parallels!). This IIRC was early in the pandemic in 2020 when card prices were just nuts. I remember selling one (and the 2013-14 Prizm set) right before PSA put a hold on grading, and right before the price started dipping drastically, at about $1,500.

About a year after that, he did impressively lead the Bucks to a title, and shot FTs well in the final game of the Finals. But the RC prices never returned to that absurd level.

I'm also not sure he'll ever lead a team to a title again, or shoot FTs that well again. He's a phenomenal athlete, great finisher, good defender, decent passer, and actually a much more likable guy than, say, LeBron -- but LeBron is a much more well rounded player who's always had superior court vision/passing, and developed a better shot than Giannis.

Anyway I'm rooting for a Nuggets/Heat final, lol. I'm admittedly tired of Steph and LeBron even though they're clearly the best players of the last decade or so in the NBA. I'm also tired of Durant, and I've never liked the Knicks (though I respect their grit). If the Heat don't make it, I'm ok with the Celtics, mainly because my late mom was a lifetime Celts fan who saw lots of potential in Tatum his rookie year before she passed in 2018. I also don't like Embiid despite his great talent.

So please let's see a Nuggets/Heat final lol.

[qman316]

Giannis is one of the best players in the league right now but for sure his lack of an outside jumper and deficiencies at the free throw line hurt his overall value on the court. I also never bought into he is a top 15 player all time… he has one title and his career is/should be a long way from over so if you want to say he is on pace to be a top 15 player all time I’m cool with that but to say he’s already there not even close with only one title!

Im not a Lebron fan at all so I’m definitely tired of seeing him in the playoffs, I have a little warriors fatigue as well but at least they are fun to watch with their style of play. But I would love to see nuggets or suns in the finals against the heat or Celtics.

[pwaldo]

Giannis is one of the best players in the league right now but for sure his lack of an outside jumper and deficiencies at the free throw line hurt his overall value on the court. I also never bought into he is a top 15 player all time… he has one title and his career is/should be a long way from over so if you want to say he is on pace to be a top 15 player all time I’m cool with that but to say he’s already there not even close with only one title!

This happens all the time with the new hot player winning. I still remember people saying KL could get into the top 15 of all time if he won a title with the Clippers. I mean some of these people have like 100 players in the top 15. Funny thing is not too many people were saying that about Tim Duncan and he's one of the few recent guys who you can easily make a case for.

Also the narrative that I'm seeing people push if the Warriors beat the Lakers and win another title is a little interesting. Maybe it is just because of the Lebron hate but you have people ready to jump on the Curry for top whatever all time and ready to start a is Curry better than Lebron argument. Way too early on that one and I don't even see how you can make that one and I don't even like Lebron. Seems like people like to jump on the amount of NBA championships whenever they want in these arguments. They just rotate between MVPs, championships, etc. whenever it fits their argument on that day.

[WilyWestbrook0]

So the Bucks fired Coach Bud after the disastrous first round playoff exit to the Heat, and Joel Embiid indeed got the season MVP award.

Second round series are all tied up now 1-1 apiece except the Nuggets/Suns, where the Nuggets have won both so far. Depending on how these series go, I may catch a game or two if they reach game 6. Only one I'm following more closely atm is the Heat/Knicks to see how Love does. They play tomorrow and I'm going to try and catch it, as I have the first two games.

[pwaldo]

So the Bucks fired Coach Bud after the disastrous first round playoff exit to the Heat.

Ouch!

Who had the worst week Bud or Bud Light?

Seriously though what is with all these NBA stars getting hurt left and right in the playoffs? I don't recall it ever being this prominent before. And it isn't like the stars are all old because most of them are still pretty young for a NBA player.

[WilyWestbrook0]

I wonder if today's pace of game is too hard on the body? Maybe the training methods need to change?

Looks like I'll need to catch the Suns and Nuggets series as it's now tied and the box score tonight looks like it was an epic battle. Jokic had 53 but Booker had another monster night and Durant finally helped him out -- they each had 36.

[WilyWestbrook0]

Yikes, my late Mom's Celtics are down big in the 4th. They're at home, too. But big props to Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey (also Danuel House, who I remember watching in college years ago and being impressed with his BB IQ...thought he could be a very serviceable role player in the NBA, and despite being undrafted -- I remember he was projected to be late 2nd round -- he proved me right).

Have to say...I don't particularly like Embiid's personality. I hate the troll persona, and I also hate the flopping he does. But regardless of whether or not I like him, I have to objectively admit that was a huge performance from him, drilling a big 3 and getting a huge fastbreak block in the 4th. He and Jokic have shown that skilled bigs are here to stay in the 2020s NBA. In fact this is very much a skilled wing/skilled big era right now -- most good teams have both. And Embiid I thought was deserving of his MVP -- he's just a tremendously versatile big, can definitely tell he studied Hakeem Olajuwon. Surround him with a good shooter like Maxey, just like Hakeem had guys like Sam Cassell, Mario Elie, Kenny Smith, and Vernon Maxwell -- and the Sixers are tough.

[pwaldo]

There are 8 teams left and I can basically have imagined all 8 winning a championship this year (except for the Knicks) so they are seemingly really close in ability with who they all have left on their teams. But in the history of the NBA the NBA Finals have had the Lakers, Celtics, or the Warriors in the Finals a ridiculously high percentage of the time. So I'll go with one of them being in the NBA Finals again this year. Also outside of the Denver Nuggets all the remaining teams are from really good/big markets so the NBA has to like that one.

[bakemeister52]

Hope the Celtics can hang on and still win against the 76ers! I think Miami is the team to beat in the East! Not a Lakers fan and hoping the Nuggets can get it done!

Bake