Topic: 2019 NBA Pre-Season - page 1334. (Read 924163 times)

I expected the odds to be closer since Durrant is already playing at a high level but I can also understand why the bookies had Jazz at 1.7 while Nets at over 2. Mitchell is playing really well carrying his team to double digit wins in the past three games.

Discard Irving's recent performance since he is still not allowed to play home games.

It looks like there are no major injury to both sides so this shouls be an entertaining game.

Yes, I also agree with that, our current era of the NBA I confess that it is more "soft" compared to the seasons of the 80's or 90's.
Exactly, you said the perfect word, IMPACT... I also believe Jordan has more impact for the Bulls than when LeBron was in Cleveland or the Heat (in his prime).
I imagine that for LJ to be able to become a GOAT and pass MJ, he needs to prove he's worthy by carrying the Lakers or maybe the Cavs to the NBA Finals, overtake Abdul Jabbar in more points scored, and win some more MVP awards. and FMVP.

In the current situation in the NBA these days, I believe that is possible, but he will have to work hard to prove he is worthy of it.

Let's see what the NBA seasons in the future hold for us.

Nets are going to be hosting Jazz home tonight. And I see that bookmakers are favouring Jazz to win this game. But it is a slight odd difference between them too as Nets are in a great shape as well. They have started to play stronger recently and they are getting the products of their efforts for sure. Especially Irving has done an incredible work recently. For example, the game that he scored 60 points in was unbelievable. It was career-high points for him. I'm still waiting for him to start playing in home games too. Then, they can be awesome as before.

Jordan would be insane in any era.  It's hard to make the case against either of them.  In the end though, Jordan got more rings and more scoring titles and that's what fans want to see.  I'd also rather watch tapes of Air Jordan's highlights over LeBron's any day of the week.  Jordan existed in the era right before social media and didn't share his opinions on things so he was almost mysterious to most people.  Like a figure that you got to see on the court but that's it.  Even today he's not your typical celebrity...  LeBron on the other hand likes to share his opinions and have his life accessible to people, so I think he seems less mythical than Jordan. 

Good for him, however, the excitement is not that high because the Lakers are losing games so it's not good to celebrate the success of one person in a team while the team are in serious struggle this year. Lebron could drop 30+ points in a game because he is the top scorer, and sometimes he can make more than that especially when Westbrook struggles on making shots.

I have always said that it isn't always about being the best scorer, or best passer, or best stats. Even in today's era, if Lebron ended up with a few more rings (which he could have between all those finals) it is not about winning, or stats or anything like that.

Some players just have some aura to them and that makes them the best player ever for most people. Jordan for example has 6 rings, awesome right? Bill Russel has 11, never seen him considered GOAT, why? Because he won his rings in "bad era" and why would Jordans 6 be treated differently? Or Kobes 5? Robert Horry has like 7. All things considered, Jordan has less points than Malone, and yet we all know who was better.

We can agree to disagree.  Lebron started earlier than Jordan as well.  Lebron is great no doubt, but the goat that's not just a given if he passes Kareem.  Jordan unretired and won 3 championships and dominated.  As good as the era was (magic, Hakeem, Ewing, reggie, barkley, Malone, etc etc) he was undeniable the best player on the court always.  And like I said different era, now aways no one plays d and hand checks are fouls.  Jordan in this era would be insane.

LeBron James made history after his away performance against the Washington Wizards. LeBron James became the second highest scorer in NBA history by increasing his regular season career total to 36,947. Although the LA Lakers did not show the desired performance this year LeBron became a giant with his performance in his team.

As a team, the Lakers are flat.

The fact that the bulk of their team is extremely old means that the team is not driven mentally to comeback - as there is nothing else to prove. Obviously, physically these people aren't in their peak condition either.

It would be interesting to see how the offseason goes for the Lakers. AD may well leave in pursuit of a better destination.

I didn't really think the addition of WB would be that good before the start of the season but I didn't expect them fighting for a chance in the play-in tournament.

It looks like Lebron will be thanking the guy who suggested this format soon since it's their only chance for playoffs. There was a time when he said that guy should be fired hehehe.

Yes, I also agree that Dennis Schröder has quite a contribution to the Rockets. He gave a new and fresh air to the young team's offense. I think he plays like Rondo, which is what Houston needs IMHO.

Tonight, there is an important game in the East. Heat vs 76ers. Heat will probably be missing Butler due to injury. And 76ers also missing Embid, to keep him fresh for the playoffs. Last game between these teams, 76ers scored amazingly low, 82 points. Let's see if they can have good offense this time. But I expect a low scoring game, although a good one to watch.

If it's still on his prime, maybe he can carry the load, but he is also aging and the team that he's competing is no longer an average

team, all franchise is upgraded with loaded stars playing side by side. It's not the same when he is still in the east, during those periods that

He can simply carry the offense and win the game. The only hope to continue moving forward is for AD to play back and help the team.

Without him, the chance of early exit might happen, Lakers is not well organized until this date.

Yes, I just saw that clip where Lebron was frustrated slamming the ball three times and even said "God damn it!" against the Raptors. No technical foul was called but that says it all. It's like Cleveland all over again with JR Smith. He just cannot find the player that will be a big help to him and lessen the load. It's AD but not yet available.
One player is not enough, in a team of 15, someone should do better.


 

Houston lost at home again, but the contribution of young talents were significant. Especially Alperen Şengün played very well. He came off the bench and played 12p 9r 3a. Dennis Schröder also changed the mood of the team. Jalen Green wasn't in his day, he shot very badly. Houston could have a better season next year with a good rookie pick.

Before even worrying on what would be the their outcome on playoffs with Davis, let's first discuss what would be their situation or can they even survive in the play-in tournament without Davis and judging by the looks of it, it's not that certain that they will eventually survive the play-in.

And let's say that they have successfully got a seat in the playoffs because they survived. There is a high chance that they will face the Phoenix Suns at the preliminary rounds and we quite knew what would be the result even if AD was there.

Tatum could deliver that score anytime, it's just that J. Brown gets better and better and that makes the Celtics a better team now. Boston now jumps to number 4 in the East, and if they will maintain that rank, they'll get the home-court advantage in the 1st round. While the Nuggets with that loss, they dropped to number 7, which puts them in danger to play the play-in tournament if they cannot bounce back.

Denver Nuggets got an unfortunate loss against Boston Celtics in their home game. Celtics were the side being favoured though but I still didn't expect Nuggets to give up early. But they really did. Nuggets' performance in the second quarter was very poor and the quarter score was 16-35 for them. This could be the main reason for this loss by 104-124. Jokic had an impressive effort as always but there is still no other player to accompany him to reach victories. And for Celtics, J. Brown and J. Tatum were really great by scoring 30 points both.

Same here, with the way they are playing, it only tells that they have a bigger problem within. Lebron James is not happy anymore, although he continues to make a consistent contribution to the team, in fact, he had better stats this season compared to the last but unfortunately that doesn't benefit the team, he has to work hard in order to win but still fail.

That is a question mark but as of this moment, they dropped to the 10th spot tied with the New Orleans with 30-41 win-loss record. The Spurs are 2 and a half games below them and if they will continue to play inconsistently within their next games, there is a chance that even Spurs might clinch to the 10th spot (hope it won't happen though). I just browsed the remaining schedule of the Lakers and it seems that they have one of the toughest schedules because in their 11 games, 8 of them are against playoffs team like PHI, DAL, CLE, GSW, UTA, PHX and DEN (twice). They need to play consistently and as one if they really want to enter the play-ins because right now, I don't think that they can enter the playoffs without going to play-ins.

It looks like Davis will be their savior "once again". We are expecting that if he comes back, the morale of the team will come back and will play better than how they are playing right now. Now with regards to them going into the play-in tournament, as of now they are hanging at the 10th spot though I believe that they can still enter the play-ins (for some reasons). With the Lakers clinching the playoffs, chances are low especially if some of them aren't healthy. All of them must play during play-ins and playoffs (if they make it).

Very true. It's now or never. Even at play in tournament the other teams will give them a lot of trouble and they need 2 wins if they want to be part of the eight. If Spurs keeps on winning they might be in a bigger trouble because that is the 11th seed which means they are out.
Let's say they will stay at 10th. They win against the Pelicans but the bigger wall will be there. Either the Nuggets, Timberwolves or the Clippers preventing them to move forward.
I don't expect too much with the Lakers anymore. I may have also given up with the expectation of a big come back 20 games ago.