NBA 2010-11 Regular Season and Playoffs!

Rat Boy wrote:

Maybe they should take a step back and realize there's no such thing as loyalty in professional sports.

I will never, ever understand people's unalienable right to complain about these things. Just suck it up, Cleveland.

trueheart78 wrote:
Rat Boy wrote:

Maybe they should take a step back and realize there's no such thing as loyalty in professional sports.

I will never, ever understand people's unalienable right to complain about these things. Just suck it up, Cleveland.

Doesn't take away from the fact that hes a douche.

My evidence? besides the lame commercial trying to defend himself.... Hes a Yankees and Cowboys fan.... If we could take a survey of douchiness and correlate it against supporting either team it would be high. Combine the two and it would be astronomical.

I don't even like Kobe much but I'm really pulling for the Celts/Lakers to keep him at bay long enough for the Durant era to really take off. At first I thought this would be bad for basketball as it would make things lopsided but after thinking about it if he never wins a title by doing this it might be the greatest thing ever.

jowner wrote:
trueheart78 wrote:
Rat Boy wrote:

Maybe they should take a step back and realize there's no such thing as loyalty in professional sports.

I will never, ever understand people's unalienable right to complain about these things. Just suck it up, Cleveland.

Doesn't take away from the fact that hes a douche.

My evidence? besides the lame commercial trying to defend himself.... Hes a Yankees and Cowboys fan.... If we could take a survey of douchiness and correlate it against supporting either team it would be high. Combine the two and it would be astronomical.

I don't even like Kobe much but I'm really pulling for the Celts/Lakers to keep him at bay long enough for the Durant era to really take off. At first I thought this would be bad for basketball as it would make things lopsided but after thinking about it if he never wins a title by doing this it might be the greatest thing ever.

This. He's been exposed. He's a major douche. His friends (Maverick Carter, etc.) are worse. He could have gone to Miami and done it so much better. There would have been no "The Decision". Less whining in Miami. No allegations of quitting or his mom getting it on with Delonte West. And this commercial he made never would have happened.

It all would have never happened had he just told Cleveland his heart wasn't in it and he wanted out. Given them time to plan for a future without him.

The response commercial is right on. He had the power and the juice to convince ESPN to give up an hour of commercial time and debase their brand. Certainly he could have just told Cleveland he was gone, let them swing some trades and moved on like any other free agent.

I love that word, "quitness". Anyone who has ever played basketball and can read body language has to know he quit on Cleveland in that Celtics series. He just did. He was mentally checked out. Trying to find a reason to leave.

We have our own situation brewing here in Portland as Brandon Roy continues to mope around the court.

jowner wrote:
trueheart78 wrote:
Rat Boy wrote:

Maybe they should take a step back and realize there's no such thing as loyalty in professional sports.

I will never, ever understand people's unalienable right to complain about these things. Just suck it up, Cleveland.

Doesn't take away from the fact that hes a douche.

My evidence? besides the lame commercial trying to defend himself.... Hes a Yankees and Cowboys fan.... If we could take a survey of douchiness and correlate it against supporting either team it would be high. Combine the two and it would be astronomical.

I don't even like Kobe much but I'm really pulling for the Celts/Lakers to keep him at bay long enough for the Durant era to really take off. At first I thought this would be bad for basketball as it would make things lopsided but after thinking about it if he never wins a title by doing this it might be the greatest thing ever.

As much as the fans will talk about him abandoning them, the hatred doesn't come from the rejection. It's the total douche baggery he pulled in the process. I thought the video they made was a perfect response to his PR. Absolutely perfect and spot on.

Yeah I hadn't looked up the video response, but the showed the whole thing on SportsNation today. Can't argue with anything in it.

Here's hoping they lose in the playoffs, preferably in the east so I don't have to watch them in the finals.

Kobe's Black Ops commercial is way cooler.

Mamba.

That is a fantastic response video.

Meanwhile:

Beat Chicago - "WOOO WE'RE GOING TO WIN THE EAST!"

Lose to Philly - "OH GOD FIRE D'ANTONI IT'S GOING TO BE ANOTHER 15-WIN SEASON"

I may be exaggerating.

But seriously NY, the only people on the planet convinced that Amar'e is a #1 on any team, are Amar'e, and deluded fans. Even the Knicks front office isn't that ridiculous, assuming they're going to go hard after Carmelo. If we notch 35+ wins, it's a good year. The Knicks are still at least a year or two, and one more marquee player away from being in the thick of it in the East.

That commercial is clever, but I'm not sure how I feel about actual civilians shooting at each other and the idea that we all have "soldiers in us". You mean, like the soldiers actually dying in the field?

As a Laker fan I have no complaints at all so far. It's exciting for the teams in contention, but the league seems even more top-heavy this year. We had a few exciting up-and-comers the last couple of years like the Thunder, Bucks, and Bulls. I know it's early in the season yet but does anyone see any teams like that on the horizon? I don't.

Also, I know the season already started, but would anyone be interested in a Fantasy basketball league?

Since we're two weeks in, I thought I'd throw up the Standings. Might do this 2x a month and get a feel for how the season is going.

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK

Boston 6 2 0.750 0.0 5-1 1-0 4-0 2-2 6-2 L 1
New York 3 4 0.429 2.5 3-3 1-2 1-2 2-2 3-4 L 2
Philadelphia 2 5 0.286 3.5 2-5 1-0 1-3 1-2 2-5 W 1
New Jersey 2 5 0.286 3.5 1-5 0-0 2-3 0-2 2-5 L 5
Toronto 1 6 0.143 4.5 1-1 0-1 1-2 0-4 1-6 L 5

Central W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK
Cleveland 4 3 0.571 0.0 4-2 0-0 1-2 3-1 4-3 W 3
Chicago 3 3 0.500 0.5 1-2 1-0 3-1 0-2 3-3 W 1
Indiana 3 3 0.500 0.5 2-2 0-1 2-1 1-2 3-3 W 1
Milwaukee 3 5 0.375 1.5 3-1 1-0 2-2 1-3 3-5 W 1
Detroit 2 6 0.250 2.5 1-4 0-1 2-2 0-4 2-6 L 1

Southeast W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK
Orlando 5 1 0.833 0.0 4-1 3-1 4-0 1-1 5-1 W 4
Atlanta 6 2 0.750 0.0 4-1 1-1 2-1 4-1 6-2 L 2
Miami 5 3 0.625 1.0 4-1 1-0 3-1 2-2 5-3 L 1
Washington 1 4 0.200 3.5 1-4 0-2 1-1 0-3 1-4 L 2
Charlotte 1 6 0.143 4.5 1-4 0-1 0-3 1-3 1-6 L 3

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Northwest W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK

Portland 6 3 0.667 0.0 2-2 0-1 3-1 3-2 6-3 W 1
Utah 4 3 0.571 1.0 2-3 1-1 2-1 2-2 4-3 W 2
Denver 4 4 0.500 1.5 4-2 1-0 2-1 2-3 4-4 L 2
Oklahoma City 3 3 0.500 1.5 1-2 1-1 1-2 2-1 3-3 L 1
Minnesota 1 7 0.125 4.5 0-4 0-0 1-2 0-5 1-7 L 6

Pacific W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK
L.A. Lakers 8 0 1.000 0.0 7-0 3-0 6-0 2-0 8-0 W 8
Golden State 5 2 0.714 2.5 4-1 1-1 4-0 1-2 5-2 W 1
Sacramento 3 3 0.500 4.0 1-2 0-1 1-2 2-1 3-3 L 2
Phoenix 3 4 0.429 4.5 2-4 0-1 1-2 2-2 3-4 L 1
L.A. Clippers 1 7 0.125 7.0 1-7 0-1 1-3 0-4 1-7 L 3

Southwest W L PCT GB CONF DIV HOME ROAD L 10 STREAK
New Orleans 7 0 1.000 0.0 4-0 2-0 4-0 3-0 7-0 W 7
San Antonio 5 1 0.833 1.5 3-1 1-1 2-1 3-0 5-1 W 4
Dallas 4 2 0.667 2.5 2-2 0-1 2-2 2-0 4-2 W 1
Memphis 4 4 0.500 3.5 4-3 1-0 2-1 2-3 4-4 W 2
Houston 1 5 0.167 5.5 1-5 0-2 1-2 0-3 1-5 W 1

Not a great copy+paste, but semi-readable. Important bit is the first two numbers.

Surprises so far? New Orleans not losing. Portland leading the NW? I sure thought it would be Denver/OKC fighting for that one. Orlando 5-1, Miami 5-3?

And the Cavs are still leading the Central? Is the rest of the division that bad? I thought the Bulls were going to be better?

OK, it's only two weeks. Nothing extremely surprising yet, and it's still way too early to get excited or worried if your team is good/bad.

OK, it's only two weeks. Nothing extremely surprising yet, and it's still way too early to get excited or worried if your team is good/bad.

This.

It is way too early to really know how the year is going to shake out. Here's some random thoughts on the early action.

I do like how NO is buying into Monty Williams defense first game plan. A healthy and motivated Chris Paul doesn't hurt either.

Portland has a decent record at this point but really needs their bigs back and they need to find out how best to keep/get Brandon Roy healthy.

Lakers look really really good.

Early results on Bosh are decidedly negative. I'm going to stay in the wait and see camp. Not all players instantly gel.

Fripper wrote:

Lakers look really really good.

This is true. If this really is Phil's last year, I can see them continuing to play this well, and being extremely motivated in the playoffs.

Also, before I posted I hadn't watch last night's Heat highlights. What a collapse and what a comeback by the Jazz. Heat up 22 in the 2nd. Even up 7 with a couple minutes to go. Jazz 3s raining down. Jazz tip in at the buzzer to tie. Jazz win in OT.

Portland is an interesting case. Just a year ago I thought LaMarcus Aldridge was a bum and Roy was an injured, but valuable player. Now Roy is moping around, unable to play with Miller and the unit with Cunningham, Armon Johnson, Rudy Fernandez, Batum and LA / Camby is boss. They were incredible last night. Fast breaking. Something we haven't seen in Portland since Roy arrived. For a long time I thought the problem was McMillan. I still think it is to a large extent. But the bigger problem looks to be Roy. He's whining, he's moping and he's not playing well. Meanwhile LA has been a monster in some games and that team looks good when they run.

Aldridge IS a bum and Roy is overrated. Portland isn't going anywhere unless some players change their personalities. They have a bunch of guys with great talent and skills but the wrong attitudes.

Well I've never seen this before. Orlando-Utah is on both ESPN and FSN Florida at the same time.

LeapingGnome wrote:

Aldridge IS a bum and Roy is overrated. Portland isn't going anywhere unless some players change their personalities. They have a bunch of guys with great talent and skills but the wrong attitudes.

In Aldridge's defense (I just threw up in my mouth saying that, so please understand this is a new realization for me) he is working harder. He is trying to get to the hole more. He's rebounding. He's better.

Roy is not whining. Roy is answering questions as best he can as to his "downturn" (19.2 pts per game) early in the season. A lot of this comes from the drama beat writer Jason Quick loves to create.
Roy is gimpy at the moment, he may or may not get better. To the questions, he's said I'm not my younger self I need more rest. That's not whining that's reality.
Aldridge on the off season dedicated himself to be more physical. It's paying off. The pick on pop I hate is still there, but he dramatically improved is post game and his physicality to the post. LA is still not where I'd like him to be, but he's a heck of a lot closer.

John Wall had a triple double, and 6 steals. Damn.

Stele wrote:

John Wall had a triple double, and 6 steals. Damn. :shock:

It'd be even more impressive if the league weren't already replete with excellent, multitalented PGs. He's looking a lot like Derrick Rose, with perhaps more of a penchant for cleaning glass.

Still, you figure the Wizards should have a pretty good stretch in a couple years mainly due to him. Colin Cowherd says he'll never be a champion because of the whole dancing thing, though.

I was about to say the same thing about point guards. Look at Russell Westbrook. He's taken a big leap this year. 22/8/6 averages and he's, on some nights, the team's leading scorer.

On Roy again, we have to agree to disagree, I suppose. I don't fall into the "soccer mom" Blazer fan camp, so I've been down on Roy most of his career. Mostly because I think the fact that we run our entire 4th quarter offense as isolation for him is ridiculous and it's cost us more games than it's won for us. And he's been complaining ever since Miller showed up that he needs the ball more / can't play the same with the lineup as its constituted. Unfortunately when that lineup doesn't include him and does include a running point guard they look like a much better team.

I don't fall into the "soccer mom" Blazer fan camp

Guilty as charged. I believe he's been vocal about his role which is different than whining. I think he had a rough start integrating with Miller at first but that they have a good relationship now. Finally I think that these are a group of high character, hard working, talented guys who have put together a couple really good seasons. It's a refreshing change after suffering through several seasons of underachievers and delinquents.

I just wish the Thunder were still the Sonics so the I-5 of hate could exist once more.

I wish the Thunder were the Blazers. If I'm being completely fair and rooting for better basketball, then by and large I enjoy watching the Thunder more than the Blazers.

Celtics putting the hammer down on the Heat right now. Up 14 in the 2nd.

Stele wrote:

Celtics putting the hammer down on the Heat right now. Up 14 in the 2nd.

So awesome. The Cavs are 1 or 2 games behind the Heat.

This after the epic collapse against the Jazz. One of the more fun season for all these subplots.

Yeah this one's over. Celtics made another statement tonight. And Ray Allen has still got the touch.

And the Lakers went down. Only one unbeaten left.

Good game for the Nuggets, but the Lakers really blew it. Only down 4 with 50 seconds left and jacked up back to back 3s. Could have taken it inside and tied it up easily.

Fripper wrote:

Uh-oh

Sad but true.

Poor guy.

maxox wrote:
Fripper wrote:

Uh-oh

Sad but true.

Poor guy.

I jinxed it. Poor guy indeed. From my exposure to GO I really like the guy and wish him all the best. My hope is one day he's able to get right and show off his talents.