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NBA 2022-2023 Season Thread


Mitch Cumsteen

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3 hours ago, Cornpop said:

Balance? What are you basing this on?

It's more of a near future prediction. There are a lot of East teams that are up-and-coming with great young talent under 30. Boston, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Atlanta and Philly all have bright futures, but I only see a few teams like that in the West. Mavs, Pelicans and Grizzlies are going to be great for a while, the other young teams have a long way to go to figure out if they struck gold or pyrite. I think the long term outlook of the league is going to favor the East considerably. The Nuggets still need to figure out what to do with that Porter contract. 

The West feels like it has a lot of older guys about to retire or fall apart, Lebron, CP3, Dame, Westbrook, Curry, Klay, Kawhi and Paul George seem to be towards the end of their ability to carry a team. They will also be more vulnerable to injuries and need more "load management" to stay active. That attrition is going to make the gap between the top 3 in the West and the bottom 12 considerable in the near future. 

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Great SI article on why the Grizzlies failed in Vancouver:

 

 

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It was one of those hinge points in Steve Francis’s life. He would be transitioning from college to the pros, from unpaid to paid. Just as Francis’s unlikely backstory—a rough childhood, a junior college transfer, a transcendent season at Maryland—was rocketing around the basketball cosmos, so, too, was speculation he was going to be the first pick in the 1999 NBA draft, the new backcourt star of the Bulls as they rebuilt from the Michael Jordan era.

 

 

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For all the players who worry about whether they’ll be drafted, the great suspense for Francis was learning where and for whom he would be working. Better still, the draft was being held at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C., a few miles from where Francis had been raised by his grandmother, in Takoma Park, Md. At the event, his agents were flanked by his Reebok representatives, who were flanked by publicists. A huge mural of him— “Godzilla-size,” as the Washingtoniancharacterized it—covered a wall adjacent to the arena.

 

 

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But an evening that should have marked one of the great highlights in Francis’s life broke unhappily. With the No. 1 pick, the Bulls selected Elton Brand. When Francis was then chosen second, he wore the look not of a soon-to-be NBA millionaire, but of a man conscripted to serve in a foreign land.

Which, essentially, he was.

Francis was selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies, an expansion team in 1995 located in what by any measure was—and is—one of the Great Cities of the World. The franchise was about to make Francis its centerpiece and wealthy almost to the point of abstraction.

 

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Francis, though, could not even fake joy. As the draftee slumped to the lectern, NBA commissioner David Stern sidled up and gently encouraged him to smile. Which Francis did not. He’d never before left the U.S., and he wasn’t pleased about the prospects of doing so for this job.

During what was supposed to be a giddy welcome interview, Francis was asked by the Grizzlies’ flagship radio station what he knew about Canada. And he minced no words. “It’s cold. It rains a lot. It takes all your money.” Francis told an interviewer: “Hopefully tomorrow when I wake up I’ll be happy.” 

 

https://www.si.com/nba/2022/11/15/vancouver-grizzlies-daily-cover

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Great SI article on why the Grizzlies failed in Vancouver:
 
 
It was one of those hinge points in Steve Francis’s life. He would be transitioning from college to the pros, from unpaid to paid. Just as Francis’s unlikely backstory—a rough childhood, a junior college transfer, a transcendent season at Maryland—was rocketing around the basketball cosmos, so, too, was speculation he was going to be the first pick in the 1999 NBA draft, the new backcourt star of the Bulls as they rebuilt from the Michael Jordan era.
 
 
For all the players who worry about whether they’ll be drafted, the great suspense for Francis was learning where and for whom he would be working. Better still, the draft was being held at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C., a few miles from where Francis had been raised by his grandmother, in Takoma Park, Md. At the event, his agents were flanked by his Reebok representatives, who were flanked by publicists. A huge mural of him— “Godzilla-size,” as the Washingtoniancharacterized it—covered a wall adjacent to the arena.
 
 
But an evening that should have marked one of the great highlights in Francis’s life broke unhappily. With the No. 1 pick, the Bulls selected Elton Brand. When Francis was then chosen second, he wore the look not of a soon-to-be NBA millionaire, but of a man conscripted to serve in a foreign land.
Which, essentially, he was.
Francis was selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies, an expansion team in 1995 located in what by any measure was—and is—one of the Great Cities of the World. The franchise was about to make Francis its centerpiece and wealthy almost to the point of abstraction.
 
Francis, though, could not even fake joy. As the draftee slumped to the lectern, NBA commissioner David Stern sidled up and gently encouraged him to smile. Which Francis did not. He’d never before left the U.S., and he wasn’t pleased about the prospects of doing so for this job.
During what was supposed to be a giddy welcome interview, Francis was asked by the Grizzlies’ flagship radio station what he knew about Canada. And he minced no words. “It’s cold. It rains a lot. It takes all your money.” Francis told an interviewer: “Hopefully tomorrow when I wake up I’ll be happy.” 
 
https://www.si.com/nba/2022/11/15/vancouver-grizzlies-daily-cover

They failed because they didn’t establish Big Country in the post
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Trae needs a better shooter than Dejointe next to him. This isn't going to work in the playoffs. 

Although I'll admit that it's an interesting look that they have. Sort of funky and hard to figure out. Just don't see it doing much over multiple playoff series. 

Edited by ztejas
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Giannis's side of the story is given in an ESPN piece today. Basically he was trying to get some FTs up after the game b/c he didn't shoot well. He wanted to shoot 10. He was at 7. Montrezl Harrell, known POS, argued with him and took the ball away from and left the court. Giannis went and got another ball and when he came back these dudes were trying to do whatever they do after a game. He asked  them to move the ladder for a few minutes, they refused, he knew this was a bullshit flex by poser Philly fucks and moved the ladder. He shot his couple of FTs and went to the locker room. Nonstory but if there are any villains they live in Philly.

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6 hours ago, SilasCoade said:

Giannis's side of the story is given in an ESPN piece today. Basically he was trying to get some FTs up after the game b/c he didn't shoot well. He wanted to shoot 10. He was at 7. Montrezl Harrell, known POS, argued with him and took the ball away from and left the court. Giannis went and got another ball and when he came back these dudes were trying to do whatever they do after a game. He asked  them to move the ladder for a few minutes, they refused, he knew this was a bullshit flex by poser Philly fucks and moved the ladder. He shot his couple of FTs and went to the locker room. Nonstory but if there are any villains they live in Philly.

Michael Jordan Reaction GIF

Edited by ztejas
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Giannis was acting like an entitled dickhead. His image is fairly untarnished - he can weather some shit like this. 

Anyone defending this as normal behavior or something acceptable to do following a loss at an opposing team's arena needs to not chime in. 

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Philadelphia - a city with such tremendous credibility when it comes to sports organizations and fans not acting like total trash.

Well they’re employees trying to do their job and go home. Why should they have to stay late because giannis didn’t do his? Personally if it was me? I’d love to be the ball boy(not like that) to Giannis. I’d happily stay late as long as he wanted. The guy working may also not give 2 shits who giannis is and wanted to get out

I can’t believe I’m sticking up for something Philly
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13 minutes ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:


Well they’re employees trying to do their job and go home. Why should they have to stay late because giannis didn’t do his? Personally if it was me? I’d love to be the ball boy(not like that) to Giannis. I’d happily stay late as long as he wanted. The guy working may also not give 2 shits who giannis is and wanted to get out

I can’t believe I’m sticking up for something Philly

If someone came up to Giannis and told him: hey, we need you to please leave the court, we're having an event after the game, instead of Montrez Harrell's scrub ass cursing him out, i think it may be a little better received and the request would be granted.

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If someone came up to Giannis and told him: hey, we need you to please leave the court, we're having an event after the game, instead of Montrez Harrell's scrub ass cursing him out, i think it may be a little better received and the request would be granted.

Probably right. But all 3 parties end up looking bad here
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Just noticed this still shot of Giannis's follow through on his free throws in the game. I worked a lot with my son's shooting form from the time he was like six and it was always nice. Elbow in, make the L, pop it, off hand still, shooting hand in the cookie jar.

This spring and summer he was stroking that thing. Then school starts and we go to the gym to get shots up a couple days a week and he starts doing this shit with his off hand pronating like Giannis is doing here. Big drop in consistency and of course now he's in high school so I don't know shit and he's always done it that way.

Right, so cool story bro, but whoever is responsible for working with Giannis on his shot has one very easy fix right there that will improve his consistency a ton.

giannishittyform.jpeg

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17 hours ago, ztejas said:

Giannis was acting like an entitled dickhead. His image is fairly untarnished - he can weather some shit like this. 

Anyone defending this as normal behavior or something acceptable to do following a loss at an opposing team's arena needs to not chime in. 

This. An opposing player is not entitled to use the court/field for practice after the game, especially in the pros. You lost, GTFO and go home

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14 minutes ago, Cornpop said:

This. An opposing player is not entitled to use the court/field for practice after the game, especially in the pros. You lost, GTFO and go home

No one said he was entitled. Players do this all the time. Montrezl Harrell acted like a douche. Philly staffers went Philly. But a ladder fell over. 

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Curry had a similar freakout in Houston during the playoffs a couple years ago. I don't remember if he was trying to get in before or after the game but I do remember the consensus was the rockets were being dicks and they fucked around and found out.

Edited by SilasCoade
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3 minutes ago, Cornpop said:

He was acting entitled and Harrell is always a douche. 

This is true, but let's put that entitlement into context. He was in a basketball facility attempting to work on basketball skills as an elite basketball professional. Within the gym he IS entitled. If he acted like that at a restaurant he's a dick. In the gym, he's right to expect some deference.

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44 minutes ago, SilasCoade said:

This is true, but let's put that entitlement into context. He was in a basketball facility attempting to work on basketball skills as an elite basketball professional. Within the gym he IS entitled. If he acted like that at a restaurant he's a dick. In the gym, he's right to expect some deference.

At his home gym he IS entitled 

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