The Official NBA Season Thread: Season Starts Now

we should sell, this team has run its course.
Always been a Scottie Barnes skeptic, and this season has only added to it.

Fred, Pascal are in their primes now, and by the time we find a real star to pair them with,
they will be too old.

we should tank, blow it up now.
I can’t see the team as constructed getting past the 1st rd. Major trades are necessary. Masai and Bobby hold their share of the responsibility too for this last offseason.

Zubac ate us alive, we need a real centre, and a real pg and back up pg. bench is nonexistent.
 
Rudy gotta be the softest shot blocked of all time. Man was scared to even attempt to block Zion. You getting dunked on anyway.

There was no reason for him to jump anyway with that level of effort. He has the defensive yips. Got out of Salt Lock City and forgot how to protect the rim. He’s proving to be just a warm body out there and it’s not even the playoffs yet. This shouldn’t be a 1.5 out of the play-in nearing the 1/2 way point of the season but they are and a lot of it falls on his shoulders.
 
Wild one playoff series and crazy off season changed the narrative. KD is him.

I heard mad NBA Marks say he isn’t in the MVP discussion because of the trade request.
 
Fully expecting Philly to fall back a bit reintegrating HIMrese

Decisions gotta be made regarding Melton and Tae Bo Tuck. I’d rather go with the 3 guards and bring PJ off the bench and swap depending on the matchup

I think the closing lineup will include Melton over Tucker. Maybe in defensive possessions of close games, you will see Tucker instead of Maxey then switch out every dead ball.
 



Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Roster injuries, not just to Beal, but to Delon Wright and Rui Hachimura as well, pushed the Wizards into that December nosedive. And, of course, that fired up the fake trade machines.

I’ve learned to never say never. But I’m pretty sure the Wizards are not trading Beal to the Lakers for Westbrook and the Lakers’ 2027 and/or 2029 first-round picks. Let’s try to think this through logically. (I know the preceding sentence is ridiculous to type this time of year.)

Washington is supposed to trade its three-time All-Star guard, to whom it just gave a quarter of a billion dollars and hasn’t traded during the last three seasons, when it could have, for a bushel of young players and/or picks, to L.A. for Westbrook — who would be here approximately three months before, again, moving on — and one or both of L.A.’s remaining tradeable future picks? And those picks would be used to draft two young men who are, as of this writing, around 14 and 12 years old, respectively? Do I have that right?

Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ GM, has to ask about players around the league, including Beal, to see if they’re available. That’s his job. But we don’t all have to take the bait like a Northern Pike in Lake Minnetonka, do we?

The Wizards have actually bought into the notion that they can add at the deadline, not subtract — most likely a small forward who can defend and score some. (Yes, that sounds like KCP to me too.) But Washington just doesn’t have enough information yet about its current roster, when healthy.

I am fine with Washington re-signing Kuzma. But if the Wizards make a deal for, say, Atlanta’s John Collins, I’d understand that too.

Kuzma’s a better player than Collins. But not by a prohibitive amount. Collins is 26. Kuzma’s 27. Kuzma is averaging a career-best 21.6 points per game on a career-high 47 percent shooting from the floor; Collins is only averaging a paltry 12.3 PPG this season. But he’s been on the trading block for months, having been marginalized in Atlanta since his heyday in 2019-20, when he averaged 21 and 10 for a Hawks team that was starting its rebuild around Trae Young. Collins wants more touches, something that’s difficult with Young, Atlanta’s two-time All-Star, dominating the ball.

And, Collins is in the second year of his five-year, $125 million deal (player option for 2025-26). He’s locked in for the next two-plus seasons at very reasonable dollars for a plus-level power forward. Beal’s locked in, of course, with his max deal. All that would remain in that scenario is for the Wizards to re-sign Porziņģis, who will almost certainly opt out of his current deal, too, at season’s end and hit unrestricted free agency.

The Wizards have shown a pulse as they’ve finally started getting healthy again. They’ve beaten the (admittedly, Devin Booker-less, both times) Suns twice and the vastly improved Kings and the very good 76ers in the last week-plus. They are still nowhere near good enough to challenge Boston, Milwaukee or Brooklyn; they’ll be lucky to get back into the top eight in the East. But they can’t start over again; at some point, they have to put a core group together, leave it alone and see how far it can go. That hasn’t been the case around here since John Wall last had a non-torn Achilles.

“Mug me or marry me, Shakes. I’m too tired for anything else,” Minnie Driver tells her old friend, who surprisingly showed up on her doorstep as she got home from work, toward the end of the criminally underrated film, “Sleepers.”

Wizards fans can no doubt relate. It would be a very, very difficult July day if Kuzma leaves them at the altar because they didn’t know.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: HIM
Had to throw these on today in honor of ZeeOn’s big game :pimp:

67693944-B368-460E-BD2F-7521F8104413.jpeg
 
There are at least 2 ***** *** calls like this a night on Mitch when the refs have been on their bull.

 
Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Here’s what can’t be true on Feb. 8, 2023: the Wizards not knowing what they’re going to do about Kyle Kuzma.

That’s the day before the NBA trade deadline. And one of two things must be true by the end of that day: Kuzma has agreed to a long-term deal to stay in Washington, or the Wizards have a deal in place to move him.

Roster injuries, not just to Beal, but to Delon Wright and Rui Hachimura as well, pushed the Wizards into that December nosedive. And, of course, that fired up the fake trade machines.

I’ve learned to never say never. But I’m pretty sure the Wizards are not trading Beal to the Lakers for Westbrook and the Lakers’ 2027 and/or 2029 first-round picks. Let’s try to think this through logically. (I know the preceding sentence is ridiculous to type this time of year.)

Washington is supposed to trade its three-time All-Star guard, to whom it just gave a quarter of a billion dollars and hasn’t traded during the last three seasons, when it could have, for a bushel of young players and/or picks, to L.A. for Westbrook — who would be here approximately three months before, again, moving on — and one or both of L.A.’s remaining tradeable future picks? And those picks would be used to draft two young men who are, as of this writing, around 14 and 12 years old, respectively? Do I have that right?

Rob Pelinka, the Lakers’ GM, has to ask about players around the league, including Beal, to see if they’re available. That’s his job. But we don’t all have to take the bait like a Northern Pike in Lake Minnetonka, do we?

The Wizards have actually bought into the notion that they can add at the deadline, not subtract — most likely a small forward who can defend and score some. (Yes, that sounds like KCP to me too.) But Washington just doesn’t have enough information yet about its current roster, when healthy.

I am fine with Washington re-signing Kuzma. But if the Wizards make a deal for, say, Atlanta’s John Collins, I’d understand that too.

Kuzma’s a better player than Collins. But not by a prohibitive amount. Collins is 26. Kuzma’s 27. Kuzma is averaging a career-best 21.6 points per game on a career-high 47 percent shooting from the floor; Collins is only averaging a paltry 12.3 PPG this season. But he’s been on the trading block for months, having been marginalized in Atlanta since his heyday in 2019-20, when he averaged 21 and 10 for a Hawks team that was starting its rebuild around Trae Young. Collins wants more touches, something that’s difficult with Young, Atlanta’s two-time All-Star, dominating the ball.

And, Collins is in the second year of his five-year, $125 million deal (player option for 2025-26). He’s locked in for the next two-plus seasons at very reasonable dollars for a plus-level power forward. Beal’s locked in, of course, with his max deal. All that would remain in that scenario is for the Wizards to re-sign Porziņģis, who will almost certainly opt out of his current deal, too, at season’s end and hit unrestricted free agency.

The Wizards have shown a pulse as they’ve finally started getting healthy again. They’ve beaten the (admittedly, Devin Booker-less, both times) Suns twice and the vastly improved Kings and the very good 76ers in the last week-plus. They are still nowhere near good enough to challenge Boston, Milwaukee or Brooklyn; they’ll be lucky to get back into the top eight in the East. But they can’t start over again; at some point, they have to put a core group together, leave it alone and see how far it can go. That hasn’t been the case around here since John Wall last had a non-torn Achilles.

“Mug me or marry me, Shakes. I’m too tired for anything else,” Minnie Driver tells her old friend, who surprisingly showed up on her doorstep as she got home from work, toward the end of the criminally underrated film, “Sleepers.”

Wizards fans can no doubt relate. It would be a very, very difficult July day if Kuzma leaves them at the altar because they didn’t know.
Did Kyle Kuzma require this many paragraphs?
 
Looks like these Pelicans have been able to brainwash this young man at this current moment. :smh:

Winning and $40M in incentives can do that.

Have you been to New Orleans?

I also think he is being genuine because IMO it adds a lot more to your legacy if you win one in a non-championship market that drafted you like Dirk did, like Giannis did, Dame hopes to do, etc. than going somewhere like LA to win one the first chance you get. If you do that as “the man”, you’re essentially immortalized in the city which is big somewhere that NOLA that is sports town.
 
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