Around the league thread 2021-2022

[Lipoli390]

Hey Monster - Did you see that my guy Myles Turner had 40 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks tonight? :)

[Monster]

Hey Monster - Did you see that my guy Myles Turner had 40 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks tonight? :)

Hey Lip stats on NBA 2K or whatever don't count. ;)

Well after that performance I guess the Pacers are out on Simmons and the poor Lip's dream of Myles Turner on the Wolves is dead. Just kidding Lip will stop at nothing to get Myles Turner. He is obsessed with that guy.

[Monster]

Houston put a hurt on OKC. Just looking at who OKC is putting out there...wow that team is gonna be really bad.

[Lipoli390]

Great to see the Sixers lose even though I can't stand the Nets.

It's also great to see the Lakers getting trounced by the Suns. Unfortunately, I haven't watched the game so I haven't seen drama I've been reading about. What's next for LeBron if the Lakers don't win a championship this season? Does he try to assemble another super team somewhere else?

How about Torontos' Scottie Barnes. 25 points and 13 rebounds tonight. Most pundits thought they took Barnes too high at #4. Masai Ujiri is a smart dude and probably the best PBO in the NBA.

Masai is further proof that it ultimately comes down to having an eye for talent. The best PBOs have it and the worst ones don't. Honestly, Rosas had a good eye for talent. He made a mistake with Culver, but he was actually trading up for Garland. His mistake was stupidly giving up an asset without knowing for sure he could get the talent he identified and then stubbornly refusing to trade back in. Otherwise, we've seen his eye for talent repeatedly in his signing of drafting of Naz Reid, Jordan McLaughlin, Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels. I wouldn't be surprised if Bolmaro gets added to my list by this time next year. I also see his trade for Beasley as another example of Gersson's keen eye for young talent. And while I didn't like the DLO deal, there's no denying DLO's talent. Rosas could be frustrating and was apparently difficult to work with. But he left us a lot of talent and a really good head coach.

[Monster]

Great to see the Sixers lose even though I can't stand the Nets.

It's also great to see the Lakers getting trounced by the Suns. Unfortunately, I haven't watched the game so I haven't seen drama I've been reading about. What's next for LeBron if the Lakers don't win a championship this season? Does he try to assemble another super team somewhere else?

How about Torontos' Scottie Barnes. 25 points and 13 rebounds tonight. Most pundits thought they took Barnes too high at #4. Masai Ujiri is a smart dude and probably the best PBO in the NBA.

Masai is further proof that it ultimately comes down to having an eye for talent. The best PBOs have it and the worst ones don't. Honestly, Rosas had a good eye for talent. He made a mistake with Culver, but he was actually trading up for Garland. His mistake was stupidly giving up an asset without knowing for sure he could get the talent he identified and then stubbornly refusing to trade back in. Otherwise, we've seen his eye for talent repeatedly in his signing of drafting of Naz Reid, Jordan McLaughlin, Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels. I wouldn't be surprised if Bolmaro gets added to my list by this time next year. I also see his trade for Beasley as another example of Gersson's keen eye for young talent. And while I didn't like the DLO deal, there's no denying DLO's talent. Rosas could be frustrating and was apparently difficult to work with. But he left us a lot of talent and a really good head coach.

Getting Vanderbilt in that deal was pretty good too. I was a bit KBD fan but man that was a good swap.

Barnes is averaging a double double.

As for the Lakers...hate them or whatever but that team has some legit talent on it and I think they do actually have some guys that are solid compliments. They mostly need to stay healthy but there is a lot of egos on that squad.

[Lipoli390]

Hey Monster - Did you see that my guy Myles Turner had 40 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks tonight? :)

Hey Lip stats on NBA 2K or whatever don't count. ;)

Well after that performance I guess the Pacers are out on Simmons and the poor Lip's dream of Myles Turner on the Wolves is dead. Just kidding Lip will stop at nothing to get Myles Turner. He is obsessed with that guy.

Yep. The dream is over. It sustained me throughout the long often frustrating off-season, but now I'll have to move on. My new obsession? - Bismack Biyombo.

[kekgeek]

Just some things from tonight:

Lakers start 0-2. Players fighting on the bench. That team has so many huge personalities from Lbj, AD, Westbrook, Melo, Rondo, Dwight, DeAndre. They have to tier talent but if it goes bad this will explode.

Raptors destroyed the Celtics. Scottie Barnes went off. I honestly believe the Celtics will be fighting to make the play in game and I thought that before the season.

Knicks are really deep

Hornets win again. The wolves and Hornets must be pumped with their 2nd year rookies.

Pelicans get crushed again. Wolves need to work then tomorrow. Should start the year 3-0. At worst need to split.

Rockets crush the Thunder. How much is it that the Wolves D was just that good on Wednesday.

Really happy the NBA is back.

[Lipoli390]

Houston put a hurt on OKC. Just looking at who OKC is putting out there...wow that team is gonna be really bad.

I guess I was a bit premature when I declared the Rockets the worst team in the NBA. I wasn't think about the Thunder at the time. But as bad as the Thunder obviously are, the fact that the Rockets demolished them lends a little more significance to the Wolves opening night win.

[Monster]

Hey Monster - Did you see that my guy Myles Turner had 40 points 10 rebounds and 3 blocks tonight? :)

Hey Lip stats on NBA 2K or whatever don't count. ;)

Well after that performance I guess the Pacers are out on Simmons and the poor Lip's dream of Myles Turner on the Wolves is dead. Just kidding Lip will stop at nothing to get Myles Turner. He is obsessed with that guy.

Yep. The dream is over. It sustained me throughout the long often frustrating off-season, but now I'll have to move on. My new obsession? - Bismack Biyombo.

You need help. lol

Edit: Or maybe another hobby. Have you considered forging your own sword? Maybe blowing some glass with Stephen Weatherly?

[SameOldNudityDrew]

Barnes looks great. It all comes down to that jumpshot. If he can hit that consistently, he could really be Kawhi-like (stylistically, not saying MVP-level great necessarily) with a dash of Draymond's grab-and-go game, picking up assists in the open floor. High-motor. Great size and physical tools. The thing I kept hearing over the offseason was that a major selling-point for him was actually his off-the-court personality. Apparently, everybody loves the guy and he's a total team player. With Barnes, OG, and Siakam, that team has a few big two-way wings now, and that's the kind of player everybody wants.

This rookie class is going to be interesting. As exciting as it was watching our defense in that Rockets game, it was also kind of exciting seeing Jalen Green. The Beal comparisons are legit. He's not nearly as fluid an athlete as LaVine, which is where that comparison falls flat. But man, he is quick and aggressive and skilled at finishing. His handle looks great for a 2 guard. Kind of looks like a way more athletic Jamal Crawford or Lou Williams mixed in there with that Beal. His jumpshot looks a bit weird. He kind of pops up like a frog, and his shooting hand has a kind of weird, sideways motion. If that's not an issue though, yeah, I could see him becoming a big time scorer. He didn't have a great game against us, but you can see the talent there. The question is going to be on the defensive end. He and Porter will be fun to watch, but yeah, they are gonna lose a lot of games this year!

Also, not a rookie, but I just need to say (again) how much I love Ja Morant. Everybody does, I know. But watching him play is such a joy. Just the way he moves is so aggressive and stylish and fearless. It's honestly beautiful. His small size will limit him, especially on the defensive end, but it also makes him that much more impressive to watch. He's like a much more athletic Iverson. Pound for pound, I don't think there's any doubt he's the most athletic guy in the league right now. If you haven't yet seen his highlights from the opener this season, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aTXYeEFqr8check it out. If you don't like watching that, you don't like basketball.