..Chris Paul took another step towards his 1st finals appearance by taking the Suns to a 3-1 series lead in a slug-fest vs the Clippers.

The Hawks look to respond to an embarrassing loss, while the Bucks hope to carry momentum on the road in Atlanta.

Let's go!


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

Haynes reporting he’s really unhappy plus his weird tweets. Shit could get real soon.

before Harden last year guys generally only requested trades in the last year of their deals, Dame has 4 more years(well 3+1 option), who wants to pay 35 y/o Dame Lillard $54mil?

Giannis stayed at the crib, and ate his motherfocking liver!

Lebron learned from magic punk ass, and this generation is copying
Lebron. Getting coaches fired and shit.

Mike stayed at the crib!

so they could move around like they wanted.

Now you guys guys with multi-year deals asking for trades

He wanted Spo fired, but Riley told him to sit the fock down.

traditionally, owners traded you when they were done with you. players have the power now. that's who folks come to see.

dame shoulda been left. aint no chips in Portland.

but you can't leverage your status and ability to enhance your legacy and earnings? only brain dead losers think loyalty is noble. it's doubly stupid when the loyalty is one-way

Players have always had freedom to move wherever. It’s called FA.

It’s about winning on your own foundation, and not looking to build some
type of super club.

Jordan built from the bottom, Giannis is doing the same thing. Wade did it. Dirk did it.
Tim Duncan did it. Bird did it. Kobe did it.

The true GOATs got better each year, and played with what they had.

80's lakers didn't draft all those players. kobe didn't even get drafted by the lakers. He won chips because of FA with Shaq, Gasol, and others. teams made moves to get the players they wanted and it happened to work in a some of cases.

the rabbit has the gun now. FA wasn't always as flexible for the players. it's a new day. ain't nobody waiting a bunch of years to wait o when they can try winning now by going somewhere else. it may have worked for GS, but didn't do much for Philly, Portland, or most other teams.

super teams have always existed. it was just matter of who put them together. the bulls had 3 of the top 50 players ever. one of them wasn't drafted by the bulls. kareem wasn't drafted by the lakers.

He didn’t even start in his first year. He didn’t come over as a superstar player.
His superstar status was created as a laker. No one had any clue as to how good
he was going to be...


The Bulls Dynasty was built out of the draft. Jordan, pippen
Grant, king, Armstrong...all drafted. Rodman came over after
winning rings with the Pistons, and that was after the bulls had
already won three rings. The first bulls big three was Jordan, Pippen, and
and Grant.

So I disagree, super teams built through FA was not a thing
prior to the 2000s. It really started with the lakers of 2004 with
Malone, Payton, Kobe and Shaq, and it has been out of control ever
sense.

In this era, Superstar players are in their primes and bouncing before winning
anything with the team that drafted them....

wack sauce. Win some shit first, then bounce. Come in as a Champion.

>
>So I disagree, super teams built through FA

so you only dislike super teams when the players make it happen? again, they've always existed by the team's choice.

Kobe was a star, but unproven on the nba level. he would've gotten there sooner had it not been for old school coaching at that time.

either way, the players should have more control over where they play than previous generations. it just makes sense.

>
>>
>>So I disagree, super teams built through FA
>
>so you only dislike super teams when the players make it
>happen? again, they've always existed by the team's choice.
>
>Kobe was a star, but unproven on the nba level. he would've
>gotten there sooner had it not been for old school coaching at
>that time.
>
>either way, the players should have more control over where
>they play than previous generations. it just makes sense.
>

Yep. They should. And there's no reason to believe that players haven't always been pushing on mobility boundaries whenever they could.

Laying on narratives can allow people to ignore the actual NBA history. Just looking at the Lakers franchise alone shows you multiple goofy star player-getting trades, star-based coach firings, and the alleged 'super team-building' that I keep hearing about the 'evil and ever terrible' Lebron James bringing into prominence all on his own. For my money, a bunch of these back in the day dudes would not have played for Cleveland 2x. Kareem didn't go back to the Bucks. Chuck didn't go back to Philly. He weaseled his way to Houston with Dream and Pippen AND THEN HE LOST (and Horry won everywhere except Phoenix cuz that trades was turrible).

Restated, I wish folks wouldn't allow this 'every major star needs to be polarizing' era to make them hate guys now when the same shit has been happening for like forever. It was just a matter of how they worked their way onto the teams they wanted to be on with the folks they wanted.

I always like this one for starters when folks say 'name one', the 1971 Lakers with Elgin Baylor (if you know you know), Jerry West (the fucking logo), and Wilt Chamberlain (100 points, way more women than that, some of his stats for seasons were RIDICULOUS) all on the same team. 33 wins in a row. 69-13. Title. Oh, and this group lost in the finals together so you can't even say they got together and won every year as a way to excuse them being together:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1971%E2%80%9372_Los_Angeles_Lakers_season#:~:text=The%20Lakers%20defeated%20the%20New,record%2033%2Dgame%20winning%20streak.

winning a championship with the team that drafted them.

Kareem won a chip with the Bucks, and then went to the lakers.
Charles Barkley was old with a bad back when he went to the Rockets.
And Pippen left the Bulls after winning 6 rings, and his back was shot as
well. Bulls weren’t going to pay him what Houston put on the table.

That’s the difference.

Russell
Hakeem
Jordan
Magic
Kareem
Duncan
Bird
Zeke
Wade
Kawhi
Kobe ( traded as a rookie)
Dirk
Curry


They won with the team that drafted them prior to leaving ..for those that left.

management generally made those trades happen. the players may have been more loyal, to a degree, but it was a different business model. the team was more likely to call the shots and ship players whenever and where ever.

gradually, the stars have gotten more power of the last few decades. I'm good with it. the culture has shifted. you can lament about how things were better back in the day, but were they? staying in a place where those no chance at winning is usually fruitless.

we're in a new space where folks want to move asap to make things happen for themselves. I'm good with it.

I've hit him with this multiple times over the last year, at least.

He's consistently presented a pro-ownership, anti-labor stance in these discussion. This is right in line with that. This is a thing with him.

I'm positive he's white.

The very definition of corporate and capitalism...lol

I’m totally the opposite. Wild..lol


Giannis in Milwaukee brings revenue to African Americans in the those
communities..as well as publicity, contracts and other opportunities.


So who is really the conservative here? ..lol

sources please.

if players decide their current org isn't the best situation, then they should have the authority to do so.

I’m about players doing it with their own squad, and leading their own team,
instead of jumping ship to join up with other superstar players.

That’s my argument. I’m not against player empowerment....It’s like
what Jordan said. I was trying to destroy my opponents, not join up with them.

And you take issue with players taking their destiny into their own hands, improving their situations by taking opportunities that present themselves.

You're also making simplistic arguments about winning for the team that drafted them.

Which means that you're prizing player loyalty to the team, even as you're ok with teams building teams out as they see fit.

You like your players to win when they're at the mercy of management.

You don't like them to win when they're able to put themselves in the same sort of prime position that teams with competent/fortunate management have.

This shit is transparent. At every turn, everything you say highlights your desire for players to win under circumstances where they have little/limited control over the team around them.

This isn't a matter of opinion, or up for debate or discussion.

It's what you're actually saying.

I’m for David slaying Goliath.

I think you like me. You love focking with me. You think I’m cute, don’t you?

Sorry, homie, I only buy pink cookies.

his perspective is from that time. he can't really guide anyone today on how to manage an nba career. based on how he runs his org, he clearly would side with you on this. the options are not the same as when he played.

if players from prior generations could do what these players are doing, they would have done so.

Half, even?

If not, do the bulk of your friends and family consist of white conservatives?

Your conservative capitalist leanings aren't exclusive to white people, but goddamn if they're not prevalent.

So, are you white?

Pro-Corporate stance? LOL

More like doing it on your own ability, and beating down the empire
and super teams.

You’re really the empire, corporate guy...because that is who and what
super teams serve.....

I fight and support the underdog...the small markets.

While you're at it, explain to me my rationale behind said stance.

Please cite sources.

Like, who trades for that contract and can provide anything that comes close to value? I know the Knicks always come up in these situations, but they have anything that they're willing to give up that the Blazers want? I can't see the Blazers taking Simmons for Dame. I also have a hard time seeing the Blazers trading Dame to anyone in the West. I've read the Heats have the young assetts, but can they get the salaries to match?

I would be pretty shocked if the trade happens this off-season.

Pairing him with a shooter like CJ seems ideal IMO.

and stay away from sideline reporting lol. He was absolutely terrible asking questions during and after games.

Dame is a left coast dude...can't see him playing in the east.

,

It’s been well over a decade, but the day you’ve waited for is here.

lol, jokes aside, dude is doing *really* well. I thought he had potential, but I didn’t think he’d be this good this soon.

I’m impressed with his development. He’s better than I thought he would be at this point.

Like it was made simply for the sake of Lebron wanting to surpass MJ somehow.

It’s a movie for children.

The first one was groundbreaking and did numbers....

You got that VEX Covid variant I see....get your antibodies up,
and shake that shit off.

Because you are bugging ..hard.

you make a habit of whining and playing victim, when you feel like someone came at you in a way you don’t think was coo or fair. Here you go, though, throwing Vex name in on some bullshit. Next time you ask someone why they called you a name or some other shit, I hope a string of LOLs ensues.

>It’s a movie for children.

…Lola Bunny was their first crush.

tough to beat

It opens things up for Giannis. Giannis can have 30 and they will still lose...

Losing Hunter and Bogdonavic being injured really thwarts the Hawks having any chance of sustained success now.

crazy if that was a factor in the series

But yeah, it doesn't look good for the Hawks as of right now.

They needed that other guy knocking down shots late last night, and Bogie's usually that guy.

No message

I was a bit of a skeptic about Trae coming into the NBA, because he couldn't finish at the rim, he didn't defend, and I wondered how the physicality of the game would affect his offensive prowess, if maybe his game was too one-dimensional to really become the All-Star people wanted him to become.

But what is he today?
Top 3 ball handler in the NBA.
Top 3 live dribble passer in the NBA.
Top 5 deep 3 shooter in the NBA.
And maybe most importantly, #1 floater in the NBA.

You combine those things, and he's just... an offensive genius. No way around it. And now the Hawks are getting pieces around to help him. The wings can shoot and, outside of Bogie, mostly defend. The bigs defend (not enough credit is given to John Collins for the major defensive improvement he's shown this year) and are elite rim runners, which is great when your PG is a wizard in the pick-and-roll.

I think the Hawks have to find a way to re-sign John Collins and extend Huerter. If they do that, I think this is sustainable and they can have a Top 4 team in the East for the next few seasons. So many of their key pieces are 23 and under. Even Capela is only 27 and has a few years left of being great at what he does.

now?

Just a few months ago, people were talking about Trae not getting along with teammates, and Trae being uncoachable, etc.

The dominant narrative was that Hawks made a generational mistake whiffing on Luka, but now people are asking a lot of the same questions about Luka that they were asking about Trae earlier. Lol.

We'll see how it plays out over the course of their careers, but at this point, both teams did great with their choice.

Both will be great players.

Luka is going to be a stat monster who does a ton of stuff in every area on offense.

But Trae is a better playmaker, and might be a better leader, who knows how to lead a team and make his teammates better. He already seems to have a better knack for closing the show and putting opponents away while Luka can fade.

I think Trae has better team success and more Finals appearances and/or chips than Luka.

Luka can obviously improve though with better teammates and guidance from the right coach, just like Trae has.

It's gonna be a fun debate for a while.

almost nobody would've agreed with that

I think Trae was still trying to figure out what he was until Nate came on board. Now, he plays more efficiently, he plays with ferocious swagger, and he delivers big time.

>but now people are asking a lot of
>the same questions about Luka that they were asking about Trae
>earlier. Lol.

Which unfortunately is the primary style of discourse in nba talks

does a great job 'hiding' Trae defensively so he doesn't have to guard the best wing option the other team has, which helps a ton with not having Trae bogged down with excessive fouls or expending a good deal of energy on the defensive end of the court.

Wow.

It’s over. No one else can keep Ayton in check.

Why the fuck not?

Ibaka and Zubak out. Oturu the only other center on the roster, to small to handle Ayton.

Cuz bout to shine.

He done sat on the pine and watched Mann and Reggie Jackson add at least one zero to their upcoming paydays....all he gotta do is hold it together for one game and drop 25 and 14, and somebody will sign him to more money than he should get.

Literally walks the ball up court. Pulls up on fast breaks. Over dribbles to the point of exhaustion. And his jumper is broke.

when he came back from COVID. That not even a joke, either. He looks like a different person, compared to the last series.

Suns have zero big man depth behind Ayton. Giannis can get Ayton in quick foul trouble. Bye bye, Suns.

and the NBA still went with the shortened guidelines to get him back as soon as possible.

.

That's why they gonna lose.

Refs have been wildly uneven, but if you wanna close out a series? Fuck the refs.

Hmm.

Talk your stuff Jeff

>Hmm.

I heard it, understood exactly what he meant, then thought about how it’s 2021 and I’m gonna hear about this again. I closed my blinds and kept watching. I’m guessing apology then go on with the hoopin while a group of pitchfork folks pull JVG’s file and try to convince everyone that he’s horrible and needs to be fired and thrown in a cave. And then DT will be in some city somewhere with folks there listening to whatever he’s saying. And Fox News and cnn will still be on tvs in the gym.

in the second half!!

Superstar.

and I’m talking about Lavine ole light bright ass

I still take Phoenix, but if Kawhi hadn't gone out, man

These fans are really in his head.

no superstar is needed. Atlanta is just like the Clippers. They have a squad
full of players who can flat out score and get their own shot.

Danilo can drop 30
Bogs can drop 30
Lou can drop 30
Huerter can drop 30
Collins can drop 30
And Cam plays all over the court.

So losing Young will only give another skilled player on the
team an opportunity.

Let’s see if they can keep it up in the second half.

Shit is gonna have to start late and be less games or something.

The Bucks were the last team that were pretty much unscathed until now. God, I hope the Player’s Association pressures them on this.

because they want full schedule money.

stepping on a foot..

coming down awkward on one foot..

I could see if it was hamstrings popping left and right but this is just part of the game.

>stepping on a foot..
>
>coming down awkward on one foot..
>
>I could see if it was hamstrings popping left and right but
>this is just part of the game.
>

we've never seen this many injuries to star players and important role players. sure there are always some freak injuries here and there, but I also think freak injuries are more likely to occur when you rush the schedule.

From what I've read despite the injuries the ratings have been good

Injured super stars is never a good thing but I can't be the only person enjoying these role players coming out of the woodwork

That kinda shit alway gets me on the verge of tears tbh

Fingers crossed he's lucky as shit even if he can't play again


~~~~~~~~~
"This is the streets, and I am the trap." � Jay Bilas
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/archive/contributor/517
Hip Hop Handbook: http://tinyurl.com/ll4kzz

He was just such a monster in HS. Struggled to find his role with RJ and Zion in college, and unsurprisingly has struggled with a similar transition to the pros early on... but he's been a net positive defender since he arrived in the league, he's been pretty successful at creating space and finding his shots, and if he can figure out how to make his shots actually go in... well, that'd be fucking great, lol.

point out one person anywhere ever who said Tyler Herro was gonna be Steph Curry

You can tell it's something he's constantly working on and it's not 2nd nature yet.

Because he doesn't have that instant confidence to just throw up the shot before he knows 100% whether he manipulated the defender or not.

There are times when it looks like he's legitimately surprised to see how much distance he created off the dribble, and then he has no choice BUT to shoot it. Lol.

line up the shot

On that open three he had in the corner, he checked his feet before shooting

When he jab stepped into the key on the drive and then stepped back, it looks like hesitation but I think he is a shooter that benefits from the extra time setting up

What in the fuck this year

>What in the fuck this year

They won’t shorten the season.

But, the nba will do something. Maybe less back to backs. Maybe a little more space even when it’s not b2b. And if they don’t, they can look forward to more load management and ‘don’t ask me why, I’m just out’ 3-week disappearances. And it won’t just be the enigma folks.

But they’ll do something. This season is an injury festival. The list of hurt dudes would be a pretty dope all star team at least. And even if some of these injuries fall into ‘freak accident’ territory, the narrative is already laid out to put pressure on the nba.

This is beyond fucking awful.

The nba ain't doing that shit again unless the players giving back some money, which they haven't wanted to.

https://sports.yahoo.com/report-bucks-fear-giannis-antetokounmpo-130335471.html

hope they're just speculating.

that was a bad hyper-extension

the amount of force pushing his knee back like that HAD to have consequences that are not immediately felt after injury

He has huge heart trying to come back out to the sideline, but the fact he went back meant he recognized the level of the injury eventually

remember when Klay tore his…he walked to the back, came back out and shot his free throws, then walked back again.

Or will Cliff show up to the game.

But they’ve gotta do it now.

The numbers show it and the eye test. Big game for him tonight.

Like clearly, you cannot say they’re better without CP3 or Kawhi, but the eye test in a small sample size is something

even though they are “better” on paper with more talent

https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1410330506487492612?s=20

no surgery needed, no full tear but probably a partial tear or just loosening of a ligament, which takes a long time to heal

Shit, given his freak-dom he could miraculously return this season, but I donno.

if he misses the rest of the playoffs, that's sucks, but I'm glad it sounds like there's no permanent damage. That shit looked super painful, awkward and scary.

.

.

Maybe they haven’t surrendered after all.

"clips giving up, ty lue throwing in the towel"

*clips go on 10-0 run*

"ok i guess maybe not"

*suns go on 8-0 run*

this Suns team is reminiscent of the Thunder team that came back down 3-1 from San Antonio who ultimately lost to Miami. Obvious difference is Chris Paul was the change agent in Phoenix, but watching Booker and Ayton become what they've become these playoffs is a thrill. (Same goes for Trae Young)

Refs gotta stop falling for that shit.

disgusting.

This dude is the president of the PA.

Flopping around and doing dirty shit.

Ayton a mile away

about to get tossed in the fryer, with him, if he doesn’t get it going.

I havent seen enough Clippers games to know but....damn

.

.

Chirping all series and now youre mad

I hope we get this Chris Paul in the finals. This was a master class in whippin ass

Showed on the replay..

It’s was quick..probably called him a bitch.

Beverly isn’t innocent....but he has never done anything like that.

https://streamable.com/uif88v

.

ventriloquist lessons smh

https://imgur.com/a/cfaLufR

I'm happy for him

.

Yea.

Play better and show some sportsmanship.

Ah well

He can coach better than that, and the clippers can play way better than that.
Paul wasn’t even trying...you can tell at the beginning of this game.

Suns get to go to the chip... Clippers get the respect for making it a series,
and PG redeems himself.

Everyone wins.

Man...clippers ain’t come out strong for this game. Dudes were going
through the motions...and PG was passive as hell.

PG only took 15 shots for the whole game.

And Jackson only took 12 shots.

Thats all you need to know.

PG is a sucka

..all the drama, but it turns out the Clippers were more bark than bite when it counted.

CP3 put on a masterful show as lead troll in dismantling the Clippers (most notably living rent free in Pat Bev's head).

HardBottoms will get roasted for sure.




*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

I’m rooting for Trae and Nate....now that Giannis is out.

Waiting for you to fry them the way you did the Lakers

I’ll wait

You know I’m a bulls fan. How are you enjoying your vacation?....
still working on that tan?

>You know I’m a bulls fan.

How are you enjoying that long ass playoff- and title- drought?

Make all the vacation cracks you want.

We've got 6 titles and 7 Finals appearances since MJ retired.
With three different teams, no less, though Kobe was key to 5 of them.

We've gone through a couple of rebuilds since then- and we've always managed to get back to winning a title at some point.

The Bulls? Not so much.

Same goes for the Clippers.

You can talk all that mess all your want, but we're closer to another title than the Bulls- are chances are at least as good as the Clippers, the health of each respective team notwithstanding.

*shrug* don't care

Watch The Last Dance for the 12th time.

i'm sure all the players who cp kicked in the nuts over the years aren't all that mad either.

if there's a time for a push like that it's when your season is over and you literally have nothing to lose (besides cash). cp said some sly shit and bev wasn't having it. he lost his cool and it's a bad look considering the L, but it probably felt pretty damn good to bev and the many others who would have loved to punch cp in his face thought his career.

Then he should have squared up or something.

A push from the back? Bitchmade

and i'm not debating the bitchmade factor. i'm just not mad at it *shrug*

cp3 is in everyone's good graces right now and rightfully so. but man, he pulled a lot of bitchmade shit throughout his career as well.

if you dish it you have to be able to take it and bev couldnt take it. he showed his hoe card.

I can’t stomach him anymore.

His histrionics on the court are just too much, and he is a very
dirty player. He tries to portray himself as a stand-up basketball player,
but it’s all a script.

He got way too annoying to me.

and you don’t have to be mad to think what he did was cowardly. A dude who never stops talking, got that turned up by someone…talking? Maybe he should have gotten mad, earlier and taken the responsibility of stopping Chris from busting their asses. All the histrionics, all game long…and that’s how he went out.

..I think most players around the league want a guy like Pat Bev on their roster, but that doesn't excuse his behavior in game 6.




*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

Later for him.

.

then mocked him

There is no defending what he did last night

I was surprised the NBA didn't suspend him after he celebrated bouncing CP3 off the floor

I really hope he gets suspended

You don't have a problem with it because it's a little guy and alot of people hate CP3

If you're condoning his actions...think about how might have a different result if other players are involved

That was cowardly.

BTW, CP3 ain't say $hit to him...just made eye contact...

There are people who want to see him in the streets. He has punched players
in the dick with his fist several times. So I don’t think anyone truly cares about
him being pushed to the ground, or cares about anyone having sympathy for him.

Let someone hit you in your gonads...are you really going to be concerned about
that person getting pushed to the ground?

Thank you, Pat.

About everything.

You're consistently the single dumbest, idiotic, transparently ball fondling apologist for teams/players you love, with the same mind-meltingly asinine approach to teams/players you don't like.

You're such a fuckwit caricature of real person that you should be banned for life on GP, because you're the absolute worst this board has to offer, and have been for awhile.

NOW, with that said...

Before you get all riled up about that stream of accurate and well-earned vitriol?

Relax. I'm just saying what people are thinking, and would like to say to you at nearly every turn.

Of course, the problem with that train of thought is that most people have an internal filter that, while things can and do get chippy, ensures that things don't go beyond chippy. So maybe I should recognize those boundaries, and not say exactly what's on my mind whenever I see the nonsense you say.

That people may dislike you, and may want to tell you in more pointed and direct ways what they think about your, uh... creative opinions on things, has no bearing on whether or not they should.

It certainly has no bearing on whether or not *I* should.

Because I shouldn't.

I'm sure you'll agree.

In fact, I know you agree, because time and again you've pissed and moaned about people getting rough with you on these here boards, in ways that are usually just chippy, but rarely- if ever- the equivalent of shoving you in the back.

Now, if you can't grasp how or why this is analogous to what Beverly did last night, and relevant to your, erm, charitable take, you're truly a lost cause, if not a full blown troll.

And in that case?

Perhaps my attempt to provide you with a relevant illustration shouldn't be taken as tongue in cheek as intended.

Even when something is spelled out for you, in clear, nuanced detail, you cannot bring yourself to think past your emotionally driven perspectives.

So, the charitable take here is, you're just acting. Pretending.

Putting on a bit of a show with this wacky sports buffoon character you've created, and rather than starting a podcast or youtube channel, this is your chosen medium.

So, honest question here:

Is All Stah a character, and this is all just a performance?

I mean no one seems all that pissed but he deserves to be doubly embarrassed for having got smoked on his home floor and for pushing another dude from behind. If you’re that bout it tell Chris to turn around then push him

Stop.

>I mean no one seems all that pissed but he deserves to be
>doubly embarrassed for having got smoked on his home floor and
>for pushing another dude from behind. If you’re that bout it
>tell Chris to turn around then push him

Yes.

Anyone who has ever played any amount of ball knows that was Patrick losing his cool cuz he knew it was over.

Patrick is super lucky he didn't mess around and hurt Paul with that shady shit. Folks would be having a much different convo if so.

And Patrick might still be salty that he was just a piece of the trade that landed him in LA and Paul in Houston. MAYBE. And now, Paul is teams removed from Houston and still all up in Patrick's life. That has to be annoying to a guy who lives his on-court life constantly annoyed and being annoying. He plays hard and has improved his game over the years. That's cool. He's almost obviously a bitch. That's not cool.

a team celebrate this hard for just making the Finals since Heat-Celtics lol

I'm happy for Monty

Happy for CP3 and the whole squad but they looked like they won it all last night.

https://uproxx.com/dimemag/steve-ballmer-thigh-grab-celebration-clippers-suns-video-reactions/

Clippers are a strange lot, all around. LOL


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...

A few times. One guy in their group hit a shot off a tree that ricocheted into another guy's nuts. Guy I know said it was wild watching a billionaire hysterically writhing on the ground laughing at a nut shot. He's definitely got some strange energy lol

Young stars are ascending, the old guard are fading and/or being injured.

... I do think it's worth noting that the teams that are built around roles rather than built just stacking talent NBA 2K style are the ones really shining here. Teams like Phoenix, Atlanta, and Milwaukee are built to have balanced and well-defined roles, and they run actual plays designed in schemes that are built to fit that roster.

Meanwhile, teams like Philly, Portland, Dallas, and I'd argue the Clippers just don't run too much offense beyond "give the ball to a star"-- which works if you have the depth of talent that a healthy Brooklyn or a healthy Lakers have, but doesn't really unless your stars are 2 or 3 of the 10-12 best players on Planet Earth. And many of the players around those stars, a few exceptions notwithstanding, just kind of get lost in the mix.

This does lead me to wonder whether, long term, we see more Toronto-esque break-throughs beyond the usual suspects, simply because, in general, more front offices are getting smarter and players, in general, are getting increasingly skilled-- especially at shooting, the great equalizer.

But yeah, a fully healthy Nets and Lakers would've been the Finals favorites regardless, so we also can't pretend like having 2 or 3 of the 10-12 best players on Planet Earth isn't the primary way to bring home the trophy, lol. It still is and still will be.

(Side note: I don't think it's a coincidence that Paul George generally played better in the playoffs without Kawhi. Once he can tell "my role is The Guy," he knew how to stay active, what to do, etc. He looks more passive, less confident when sharing the floor with Kawhi in the playoffs. I think back to Indiana PG, and I kind of wonder if PG, kind of like Jimmy Butler in a way, only reaches peak effectiveness if he's The Guy.)

The timing for both guys being hurt was unfortunate, and I'm not trying to be callous or be happy they missed playing time, but both dudes have histories of getting hurt.

I'm saying having the two rosters that with the highest level of talent in the starting lineup both crippled by injury... doesn't really happen much. Usually at least one of the most stacked teams makes it through.

And I think Brooklyn could've survived just a Kyrie injury and the Lakers to a lesser extent could've survived just an AD injury. But Brooklyn wasn't going to survive Kyrie *and* Harden hurt. And LA def had no chance with Bron also playing gimpy.

Because with a healthy Kylie the Nets would’ve beat the Bucks in no worse than 6, swept the Hawks or at worst won in 5, and likely swept the Suns

pretty deep.

games together yet people seem shocked that they weren't healthy in the playoffs

>Because with a healthy Kylie the Nets would’ve beat the
>Bucks in no worse than 6, swept the Hawks or at worst won in
>5, and likely swept the Suns

>games together yet people seem shocked that they weren't
>healthy in the playoffs
>
>>Because with a healthy Kylie the Nets would’ve beat the
>>Bucks in no worse than 6, swept the Hawks or at worst won in
>>5, and likely swept the Suns
>

I’m in this line. Their shaky injury history should’ve been baked into assumptions about what they could do. KD had one big injury true, but he was just coming off of playing lots of ball just before the injury. Kyrie? C’mon now. Then Harden played a lot but he was notorious for running out of gas or playing badly with nagging injuries. And then he added onto that by showing up openly fat to the beginning of the season to make sure any skeptic knew to doubt he’d finish the season strong. Then the hammy happened again as soon as the ‘real’ games started and here we are.

And it was an aberration last year due to the bubble.

merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily Laker’s was just a BUBBLE.

17 vs the 0 titles of the Clippers.

God knows how many Finals appearances to the 1 WCF of the Clippers.

Do you not see how ridiculous it is to use that as your basis to antagonize?

Because if the bubble were so easy, that means the Clippers couldn't even win the easy one, while the Lakers did what was expected.

Which means each team held to form. The Lakers won, as they should have, while the Clippers Clipped, as they do.

This isn't an insult to the Lakers, but it damn sure was a bad look for the clips to go out the way they did. Weren't they up 3-1?

lol. The Lakers won a chip, the Clips lost in round 2 after being up 3-1... and in your mind the focus should be on the Lakers winning an "easy" one the Clippers didn't even sniff.

Worse, you're serious about that.

Of course, the Bulls didn't even make the playoffs in either season. So there's that.

*watches Rondo and his son at midcourt*
*watches Bron spray champagne all over the locker room for his damn respect*
*watches you cry softly while you hug a Scottie Pippen Skybox card to remember the good times*

Ah well

You could pretty much throw seedings out the window once playoffs started. After the Nets/Lakers there were on clear favorites.

-A lot of the NBAs top players on the wrong side of 30
-Covid
-Compressed season adding to wear and tear
-Bubble season last year took a toll
-Dumb fucking luck leading to injuries
-Very short offseason, and what offseason there was it was still hard to get in proper training due to covid protocols.


This season was weird as fuck. Still counts in the record books if you win the chip, though.

It makes the series unpredictable and exciting instead of the team with their biggest star being the likely favorite.

Also, Bud and Nate gonna have to coach. Just seeing the schemes, rotations and adjustments are gonna be fun.

.

Nate told them they gotta hit first on the boards during the pre-game speech. They pretty much ignored him. Lol.

.

And he wonders why he didn’t get a max extension offer
He should have taken what they offered him.

it can’t be that.

There was one possession where he got caught down low not even guarding anybody and just stood there like fuck it. Didn't even attempt to pick up anybody.

https://twitter.com/JDumasReports/status/1410976218740973568?s=20

The Sixers have already fielded offers for Ben Simmons but continue to hold a stance that they will only trade him for an all-star caliber player. They most recently turned down a deal with the Pacers that included Malcolm Brogdon and a 1st round pick.

Those dudes crazy....how much do the think they are going to
get for Ben Simmons??

>They most recently turned down a deal
>with the Pacers that included Malcolm Brogdon and a 1st round
>pick.

Nvm he's opening up now.

surprised everyone. they better remove interim from Nate's title.

Hawks know they have a guy in Trae. Huerter stepped up too. If Reddish plays like today for next season, they're gonna be something to watch.

hawks defense couldn't stop much for the last 2 games. coach Bud finally figured out that his team outmatches the hawks.

hope phoenix wins.

..and their fans.


*skatin' the rings of saturn*


..and miles to go before i sleep...