Talk Elections

Didn't see one of these, so I guess I'm gonna start one (the season already started). Go Blazers!

Bold Prediction: Blazers win it all


Lakers are extremely overrated: Their Bench is terrible and LeBron is aging and aging fast . This is the classic case of looks good on paper but doesnt work

Rockets are another team that look good on paper but wont work though for different reasons.  I just dont think Westbrook and Harden can coexist with each other and due to that I see the Rockets getting bounced out in round 1

Warriors wont have Klay so they wont be a contender


The East will be going back to being 2nd fiddle to the West.





The Top 3 teams in the West IMO will be the Clippers, Blazers and Nuggets. I think Blazers with Nurk get passed the Nuggets in 6 games and then they upset the Clippers in the real NBA Finals(The WCF)

People dismiss the Blazers cause of what happened in the WCF but people forget the following factors .
Jusuf Nurkic a huge part of a our team was injured and his backup Enes Kanter was playing with an inured shoulder in both the WCSF and WCF.


Our best Player Damian Lillard was playing with separated ribs in games 2-4 which is why he was very ineffectual that series. Despite all that 3/4 games were very close. If Lillard was healthy that series easily goes to 6 maybe 7. If the full Blazers team was healthy we win that series.

Well that didn't age well. There goes our home opener streak, sigh...

It’s just one game , and we still don’t have Nurk back (While in the playoffs we will) and it will take a few weeks for the team to fully gell .


The Nuggets are also one of the 3 best teams in the West and last season beat us in 3/4 regular season games

Really puzzled about the Bulls coming out of last night. On one hand, this team is SO much more watchable than the Bulls have been in a long time. Lots of reason for optimism.

On the other hand, how in the world do you lose to Charlotte?

Good to see the Celtics back on track.

True, but I'm still concerned b/c of Nurk being out. We could definitely get a bad draw in the first round, we'll have trouble against either LA team and maybe even Houston or Utah.

Though I hope we make a trade sometime. We could probably grab someone good (Gallo, LMA, Love) for some expiring salary, and with Nurk back we would be really dangerous.

But if this trade goes through, we'll have a real shot at a championship:
http://tradenba.com/trades/rkEa6XW5r

PG: Lillard, Simons
SG: McCollum, Hood (could also play SF)
SF: Gallo, Hezonja, Little
PF: Aldridge, Collins, Tolliver
C: Nurkic, Labissiere, Gasol

That lineup is stacked, and frankly that trade is very possible (OKC would do it for the pick, and we could probs fork over Nassir and/or a pick to SA in addition, though if Hassan continues to play well it may not be needed). If I were Olshey I would be pushing this hard. It's about damn time to win it all.

100% agree our weakness is at PF And this trade would more then solve . If this trade goes through I would say we would be the favorites to win it all as we would have the best functional backcourt in the league (The rockers backcourt is better on paper but not functionally and Klay is out for the year ) and best front court in the league  along with an amazing best bench .

Agreed on most points, but mayyyyybeeee not the best bench. Hood, Simons, and Collins could be solid, but the rest of the bench is meh. I'd take the LAC bench with Williams and Harrell over them.

On todays game - ugh, are we actually going to lose to the Kings, I mean, Ant is looking good but CJ's scoreline is crap. Sigh.

I think it will take at least 3-4 weeks for this team to gel . It always takes team while to gel when you have 3-4 transactions.

Clippers with Kawhi, despite loss to Suns without Paul George have a slight advantage over Lakers to win it all😎

Cavs! Oh wait, we suck. Let's have a good year.
Clippers over Bucks in 6

I was a Warriors fan, but the Warriors became soft without KD; as a result, Curry could not even last a mnth and breaks hand. He isnt worth the 200M the paper its written on

Bulls continue to be massively confusing. Unsure how they appear to be playing much better basketball, but at the same time cannot close out games to save their lives.

Now, since Brady, who is doing Under Armour with Tom Brady and Cam Newton, Curry can be called the goat, like his friend Brady. For doing a KD move and his team is down by 20. As a result, of no interior present, with absence of KD, which Draymond fails at

How did we lose to a freaking Furkan Korkmaz buzzer beater?

On the bright side, the Warriors are probably going to miss the playoffs now, so one more spot for us!

You don’t need to worry , many teams start out slow then contend :



The 2006 Heat didn’t start out that great yet they won a title , the 2011 Heat didn’t start out good and they went to the finals , the 2015 Cavs didn’t either and they made the finals .

Lakers are favored to win title by betting odds

Yeah, yeah, I'm just incredibly frustrated that we could be 5-1 right now if we just got a few more points.

https://news.yahoo.com/ap-source-carmelo-anthony-return-033617015.html

...and thus it has come to this.

How do you spell desperation?

M-E-L-O

With Collins injured , we had to sign some forward . Anyway it’s a non guaranteed contract

Thought about going to the Portland-Pels game tonight for Melo's big debut, but NO has nine guys on the injury report and apparently Lillard isn't going to play, so it's basically an exhibition game at this point.

On paper, Melo looked awful.  Live, he was merely bad.  Conversely, on paper, Whiteside looked decent, but live he was awful.  Play the kids and tank.

...yeah. This is looking increasingly like a lost year for us. Let's develop Simons and Little, get Love, Aldridge or Griffin, and come back next year and win it.

Going full tank and nabbing Wiseman would also be nice lmao

Lakers and Clippers look good, one them will ensure Los ANGELES get a title this yr

Rodney Hood's out with an Achilles, now. This season has been an absolute dumpster fire. Not sure if we should trade for a third option or tank for the future, with Hood out what we have left isn't a playoff team. Not even sure if OSR can spin this :/

Yah you are right and it sucks really badly , like ugh . Anyway even if we did get to the playoffs , without a player like Hood we wouldn’t get far and probably exit in the 1st round . I think at this point we have to trade for Love or Aldridge or this season will be a repeat of 2017

Timberwolves lose due to an untucked jersey. (https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28241505/after-chaotic-end-regulation-thunder-shock-timberwolves-ot)

Lakers and AD faultered to Pacers, but Paul George and Leonard are still and LA team, no one is gonna beat both teams 4×a in playoffs. Either one is good to go as a title contender, and Leonard is already champ😎😎😎

omg we beat the rockets lol

i'm stunned

Went to the game tonight and saw how badly the refs Jobbed the Blazers . At the end of the game when Lillard was taken out (because the game was basically over ) he screamed at the refs and got a T and we all cheered Lillard loudly than the entire crowd including me starting chanting Referees Suck because they did .

RIP Kobe man....

What a game , just what a game . Lillard also honored Kobe in the best way possible , score 40+ points and get a win

Tribute to Kobe at ALL-Star and then he will be inducted into Hall of Fame this yr. Now, all we need is the Kobe statue outside Staples

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Punjabi bros represent!

Aaron Gordon was robbed

This.

Btw, OSR, do you think it's tank time yet? At this point, even if we make the playoffs, we're just going to get thumped by the Lakers. And, the West is close enough that we could get a seriously good draft pick if we tried hard enough.

I wouldn’t tank but I wouldn’t go all in for the playoffs too . Just get everyone rested for next season

Thing is, if you're gonna do it (miss the playoffs) you might as well do it right :/

Agreed with you on the resting part. If one of our Big Three gets another long term injury I'll scream.

True but Lillard wouldn’t allow that .

Pels have to make up a lot of ground on Memphis, but the schedule isn't hard and if Zion and Ingram stay relatively healthy they could do it.  The playoff experience would be more beneficial to them than to someone like Portland.

Well, I've seen 3 Pel-Blazers games now and skewed by the fact the Blazers haven't played well in any of them, but Melo still looks like an inefficient albatross and Whiteside magically gets numbers without seeming to be of use, especially if he has to pretend to leave the lane.  Get healthy, get a high pick and send Melo and Whiteside on their way.

NBA season suspended. Rudy Gobert tested positive for coronavirus and they stopped the Thunder game from tipping off once they found out.

Someone check OSR.

Jerry Sloan is dead.

https://twitter.com/Joshua_Newman/status/1264234561979813888

This season is cursed, after David Stern and Kobe Bryant are gone, season suspended and now Jerry Sloan and Patrick Ewing.

Patrick Ewing is dead?

He was diagnosed with COVID-19 he hasn't died afaik.

Ewing is still alive and hopefully will continue to be, the phrasing of A2020s post did force me to google .

Good news Ewing is out of the Hospital

Interesting. So the Blazers (with Nurkic and Collins) definitely still have a chance, though it's an uphill climb, certainly.

Why didnt they think of this for March Madness?  I guess this will be the Wrld we live in until there is a vaccine

The NCAA academic year ends June 30, so a hypothetical 68 team March Madness that began in say July would not be feasible.

Cant Wait

yup its gonna be really exciting

Since my pistons have been eliminated, I am supporting the Mavericks because I have a soft spot for Euros Even with Darko :( . In the east, then Miami in the East cause my boy Duncan Robinson

Bucks v Lakers finals here we go again. However, this does nothing to help sports world in recovering money from lost merchandizing, sports memorabilia is getting hit hard.

The full restart schedule was announced tonight:

https://twitter.com/KevinOConnorNBA/status/1276656116047454209

The NBA reseeding schedule might be the most anti climactic thing ever. Already, the NBA has the worst regular season in sports, and now we are going to have games that don't count for stats but sort of count for like four mediocre teams that can't win anything anyway. I could never be bored enough to tune into that. NHL insta knock out is going to be incredibly thrilling going up against this. You have to be single mindedly focused on an opponent.

The bubble is turning into a disaster, Rondo says he is too injured to play. It was a disaster to begin with, playing without fans and not in their home stadiums. Westbrook now has Covid 19.

Free Woj bro

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29536798/sources-tom-thibodeau-finalizing-5-year-deal-coach-new-york-knicks (https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29536798/sources-tom-thibodeau-finalizing-5-year-deal-coach-new-york-knicks)

The Knicks are finalizing a five year deal with former Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves Head Coach Tom Thibodeau.

As a Knicks fan, I don't love this hire. I don't hate it, but I do feel they could have done better than a retread who has been fired by two other teams.

If I were the owner/GM of the Knicks, I would have hired Becky Hammon (she's currently an Assistant Coach for the San Antonio Spurs, and has New York ties, having played for the New York Liberty of the WNBA), Patrick Ewing (former Knicks legend, now coaching at Georgetown), or Shaka Smart (currently the Head Coach at Texas). Of those three, I'd have gone with Ewing, a New York legend, who seems to enjoy coaching (at least if his time at Georgetown is any indication.

Why hire Ewing?  He hasn't exactly set the world on fire as coach at Georgetown. 

Honestly, it's Ewing's strengths as a recruiter that are keeping Georgetown afloat at the moment.

Ewing hasn't been a massive recruiter at Georgetown, his classes have ranked #31 #55 and #41. If we compare this to the former head coach John Thompson III, who had Georgetown ranked at #44 in 2017, #113 in 2016, #28 in 2015. It's not really a big step up in their recruiting ranking between the two, and if we compare that to Michigan head coach and former NBA player Juwan Howard, whose first-class ranked #15, while his predecessor John Beilein had classes ranked at #64 in 2019, #11 in 2018, and #43 in 2017. For the 2021 class we have Michigan at #6 and Georgetown at #49

It's much easier to sell recruits on Michigan than it is on Georgetown.

Snooze fest. Lakers are favored for title but without Rondo, a ligitiment PG, they are gonna be in trouble.  Sports is a snooze fest without fans, that's why all the Patriots opted out of Football due to Covid 19 and Football isnt great without Pat's, that's why Belichick and Edelman are still there.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/31/us/nba-magic-national-anthem-trnd/index.html

One brave person

Is basketball going straight to the playoffs like hockey, or are they finishing the regular season first?

yes.  they are currently playing an abbreviated regular season (not all teams are there) and then into the playoffs.

Tore his ACL the next game.  Not that they are connected.

NBA is a complete bore without fans, it's not played outdoors, without fan participation,  its boredom. Also, not any mascot or cheerleaders

Mascots and cheerleaders are ridiculous.

Clippers are gonna win the title due to Paul George and Kawhi Leonard,  and Anthony Davis probably leaves Lakers, after season. He hates the idea of a bubble

The NBA Playoffs're going to begin on Monday. The real fight is coming.

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My picks:

Eastern Confrerence

Bucks defeat Magic

Pacers defeat Heat

Celtics defeat 76ers

Raptors defeat Nets

Conference Senifinals

Bucks defeat Pacers

Raptors defeat Celtics


Eastern Conference Finals

Bucks defeat Raptors


Western Conference

Lakers defeat Trail Blazers

Rockets defeat Thunder

Nuggets defeat Jazz

Clippers defeat Mavericks

Conference Semifinals

Lakers defeat Rockets

Clippers defeat Nuggets

Western Conference Finals

Lakers defeat Clippers

NBA Finals

Bucks defeat Lakers

A little late but...

EC:

Bucks over Magic in 5

Heat over Pacers in 6

Celtics over 76ers in 5

Raptors over Nets in 4

Bucks over Heat in 6

Raptors over Celtics in 7

Raptors over Bucks in 7

WC:

Trail Blazers over Lakers in 6 (realistically, Lakers over Trail Blazers in 5, lol)

Thunder over Rockets in 7

Nuggets over Jazz in 6

Clippers over Mavericks in 6

Trail Blazers over Thunder in 6 (alternatively, Lakers over Thunder in 5)

Clippers over Nuggets in 7

Clippers over Trail Blazers in 5 (or Clippers over Lakers in 6)

Finals:

Clippers over Raptors in 6

Lakers didnt sweep Trailblazers, they lost important Gm of series, 1st game

HAHA! RIP CITY! BLAZERS IN 6!!!

(inb4 we lose in 5 but whatever)

The Clippers lost today as well, LA arent a lock to win title

UPDATED PREDICTIONS

EC:

Bucks over Magic in 5

Heat over Pacers in 64

Celtics over 76ers in 54

Raptors over Nets in 4

Bucks over Heat in 6

Raptors over Celtics in 7

Raptors over Bucks in 7

WC:

Trail Blazers over Lakers in 6 (realistically, Lakers over Trail Blazers in 5, lol)

Thunder over Rockets in 7Rockets over Thunder in 6

Nuggets over Jazz in 6

Clippers over Mavericks in 6

Trail Blazers over Thunder in 6 (alternatively, Lakers over Thunder in 5)Lakers over Rockets in 6

Clippers over Nuggets in 7

Clippers over Trail Blazers in 5 (or Clippers over Lakers in 6)

Finals:

Clippers over Raptors in 6

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The refs robbed the Blazers today straight up . They were a total disgrace tonight

Of course, the NBA needs ratings, we saw the samething with Warriors, the Cali and Bucks teams and Celts and Raptors generate ratings.

They're not gonna Blazers or Magic win

The Doncic 3 in OT at the buzzer to beat the Clippers capped the most exciting sports event in the Covid era. Paul George has gone totally MIA too.

Luka Enakoprovnost has made NBA sports league again with great great potential.

Clippers are gonna go 7 games with Dallas

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29732808/sources-philadelphia-76ers-fire-coach-brett-brown-7-seasons (https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29732808/sources-philadelphia-76ers-fire-coach-brett-brown-7-seasons)

The 76ers have fired Head Coach Brett Brown.

Speculation is circulating around former Cavaliers Head Coach Tyronn Lue, and Villanova Head Coach Jay Wright.

It's a Lakers league right now, just like it was a Warriors league, its gonna be hard for any team to beat Kuzma, LBJ and Davis

What is your opinion of Dame Dolla

The only teams that can wear down LBJ, Kuzma and Davis are Celts, Raptors or Bucks. All the other teams cant wear them down. You have to have 3 all stars, Blazers have 2 with Lillard and Melo

Just like the Knicks in 1990s were the only team to wear down Jordan, Rodman and Pippen

Only the Suns and Kings could have been dumb enough to pass on him in the 2018 draft.

At least Ayton is pretty good... that Bagley pick is gonna haunt Kings fans for the rest of time.


Also shoutout to my bubble Nets for winning the same number of playoff games as the Sixers and the Pacers!

NBA is gonna be suspended,  no way Lebron sets out the BLM since he lead it. It's a difficult decision since they are in line to win title. But there wont be a parade due to social distancing anyways

Bucks boycott their games. I wasnt watching it anyways

Here's hoping BLM shuts professional sports in the U.S down again.

LeBron doesn't want to lose again and the Lakers are vulnerable. An LA championship was never inevitable. MJ, whom never lost in the finals, is consequently considered the better player.

Lebron isnt a Shooting guard, he is a Small Forward and being in a bubble isnt the same as playing in a home arena. The players cant leave and be with families, the whole idea of a bubble was Mark Cubans idea to get NBA back, and it wasnt smart. They cant have a whole season with all 32 teams in a bubble next Feb

Also, they cant even lead a BLM  from a bubble.

LeBron James is the defecto point guard OC on the Lakers, especially without Rondo and Bradley.

Clippers will beat the Lakers and beat the East for the NBA title, that is my prediction

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Clippers or Lakers are gonna be champs, the way these series are going, there are 5 game series instead of 7, and its been that way since the Warriors have changed basketball, where Cali teams, Warriors, Lakers and Clippers are the only teams that can win title, when KD started free agency and Davis, George and Leonard, followed soon afterward to Cali

I swear if we end up with Lakers-Celtics...

Most people want Clippers here in LA to win, due to Kobe Bryant and Clippers need to win 1 title due to Lakers have so many. But, as for the nation, most states are rooting against Celts due to Patriots won so many titles.

But, you have hard up Laker fans here in LA, too that were former Warriors fans. We have to wait until Conference Finals

The NBA has been known for rigging things like the playoffs and the Draft Lottery to benefit certain teams before.

WC finals is gonna be Lebron v Steph Curry again.  Seth Curry is married to Doc Rivers' daughter. Lebron has proven to me that he is gonna win the title, and nothing is gonna stand in his way, even against the Clippers

Lebron wins title, Clippers and Celtics with JaysonTatum and Leonard don't have a prayer against Lebron

There're two team in LA: the LA Lakers (winners) and the LA Clippers (losers).

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/mike-dantoni-announces-he-will-not-return-as-rockets-coach-next-season/ (https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/mike-dantoni-announces-he-will-not-return-as-rockets-coach-next-season/)

Mike D'Antoni steps down as Rockets Head Coach.

So, the big questions I have are...will D'Antoni be coaching somewhere else next season (maybe Brooklyn, Philadelphia or New Orleans?), and who will Houston hire as his replacement (Tyronn Lue? Jacque Vaughn? Billy Donovan?)?

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Shocking! 

There’s only one team in LA. There are also some junior high kids that sometimes play pickup in their stadium

Literally nobody on the planet wants that dumbass stadium in Inglewood at this point. Juicing traffic to 11, gentrifying the area, sucking up land that they could build so much affordable housing on... for THAT

The NBA and MLB and the Dodgers are close to Kobe, they have dedicated their season to Kobe Bryant thats why they will win. Football is the only sport where a non Cali team will win it wil be Tampa, Saints, Packers, Chiefs or Ravens

That's why Mookie Betts signed a 12 year deal with Dodgers, he dedicated his career to Kobe. He didn't want to leave Los Angeles

The Los Angeles trifecta,  Dodgers, Lakers and Rams winning titles by dedicating season to Kobe is happening, with Nuggets being thumped. Rams can win Superbowl or 49ers due to fact Brees, Brady and Rodgers beating up one another and Ravens and Chiefa arent as scary like Brady with Pat's and both Cali teams went to Superbowl and Rams lost due to Cooper Kupp being injured
 
Then there is Dodgers, Mookie has gotten Will Smith to hit now, that's why they are sweeping everything

Lakers are gonna be a dynasty again since AD will stay in LA

Lakers going all the way!

Hard to believe but Gordon Hayward and his pornstache look like a game changer.

LA has the best teams in all sports

The Nuggets aren't the Rockets, the Nuggets are gonna compete with the Lakers, as the playoff teams aren't playing in front of fans and no home court advantate in a bubble

Nuggets had zero chance against LeBron😃😃

1 more victory LA since 2810, will have our title, Dodgers are losing, we don't have to worry any longer

The 2019-20 NBA season is over.

Lakers are NBA champions.

Good.

Good for LeBron, for Kobe's family and legacy and good to end this chaotic season.

Usually this time of the year, the 2020-21 preseason would be happening.

Great game Lakers and see you back in LA, where the title belongs. Lakers haven't lost back2back playoff games

Congratulations Lakers.

You won it for Kobe.

It's like the Red Sox winning the pennant in 2013. Anything else would have been wrong.

Yasss Lakers! <3

I am root primarily for the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA and honestly I would not have expected this.

This is for Kobe.

Dodgers can relax now, LA has a title, but they still want it and Braves choke in the playoffs and Astros aren't who they were in 2017 and Tampa Bay lost in the World Series before

The fact the Lakers now are tied at number 1 in amount of titles won makes me really upset

C'mon the Lakers or the Clippers were gonna win, no one in the East or West came compete and Kawahi Leonard and Danny Green left Toronto whom beat the Warriors to come to LA

Even Curry rooted for Lakers, Ayesha Curry is still close to Vanessa Bryant. LeBron and Curry rivalry is overstated

Tyler Herro followed one of my friends