Topic: 2019 NBA Pre-Season - page 951. (Read 919296 times)

Good to know that Russell Westbrook has found a way to contribute to the Laker's win. It seems that the slash against WB has died down a bit since the Lakers are winning again. Hope he can focus more in his game now that he is not receiving too much criticism from social media.

He is not scoring that much with the minutes he is given but at least he is consistent with assists and rebounds. I guess that is his new role now in the Lakers. Just let Davis be the main man and be the role player coming from the bench. It is working so he should get used to it.



That is right. I checked and even though they did not make it to the playoffs last year, the Lakers were still able to net $316 Million in income. Not bad for a team not making it to the playoffs. Lebron is still a cash cow even though his production in the court has slowed down. Now I understand why the Lakers extend his contract even though he is prone to injury now and cannot carry the team. They plan to milk this cow as long as possible.

However, they are winning at those teams with below .005. The real test is against those teams that are currently playing well right now in the season. It's good though that they are winnings and that's what matters.

I also hoped that Anthony Davis's dominance in their last 3 games will be consistent.

I also like to give credit to Russell Westbrook for their recent winnings. He have lots of good assists on those games and some of those aren't even simple dish.

Yeah, it's a combination of those factors, they have a new coach with a new system. There is no pressure from the management unlike before, they have tons of superstars and very good player but they failed to reach their potential.

And now the atmosphere is different in the locker room and probably in the front office. And for sure, they are very happy that they have made that trade, letting go of Mitchell and Gobert and then some, and just leaving Clarkson now as their number one option.

The rotation is good for a team that doesn't have a superstar because everyone is given the chance to play with their might whenever they've been on the floor. There's no mentally on them that the superstar should work hardly because he's getting paid the most and he should get the most playing time too.

Their coach Will Hardy is also still a young man, 34 years of age, and then coaching the team at its best. I agree that he should be credited for their wins but I guess that's always been there whenever they get to win.

Another thing perhaps is that there are no pressures from this guy, they just have to play night in, night out. We already see the potential of Jordan Clarkson in the Jazz, winning 6th man of the year award. But when they start to rebuild, he was not one of those who are traded. So they explore things with Jordan and it seems a very effective as they are winning games and the ball rotation is very high. Unlike before wherein all the ball is on the hands of Mitchell trying to create plays for the team.

Curry is actually doing amazing things at the moment. He is playing on a different level than everyone else. I want to point out his statistics:

32.3 points
7.1 assists
6.7 rebounds
44.7% three-pointer
63.8% two-pointer
79% true shooting

Curry is the only short player to top true shooting list, and he does it with an average of 32+. How unbelievable this is can't be understood because of the warriors' win rate, but this is one of the craziest efficiencies we've seen recently. The main thing is that it looks like he can continue. His middle distance, which he used much more this year and got almost as much efficiency as the layup, is already a great finisher in the hoop, and he is at his best level as he is constantly concentrating because the team is going bad in shooting.

I think the team will recover somehow by trading or by producing a solution from within. Then the mvp race will be between curry, tatum and luka.

We should also realize that NBA is as much about winning as it is about being a business. Los Angeles could lose many games, and yet they are still Los Angeles, remember those last Kobe years and afterwards until Lebron came, they were missing playoffs for like 7 years or something, and yet they were profitable business, and with Lebron and another title, even if they end up with just 30 wins this year, they will be a greatly profitable business for TV income, advertisements, and tickets etc, because Lebron is there.

We need to grow up and realize players have value more than what they bring as stats, they are just money making machines and that’s what matters.

That specific situation seems to work them at best because they are not following any lead and play of a superstar that will need them to adjust accordingly. Jordan Clarkson is their only all-star player but there's nobody standing above them, as we can see, they are playing fairly as everybody seems to be touching the ball and contribute whenever they have the chance.

Jazz got lucky they were not able to trade him. He is performing very well and is in his prime right now. He will be carrying this team to the playoffs. I do not expect them to get past the 2nd round since they are in the West, but even just reaching the playoffs is already a good achievement for them.

Clarkson still has two years (including this year) with the Jazz. I wonder if the Jazz will extend his contract if he continues to show this kind of game with them. Or will they still trade him and continue with the original plan of rebuilding this team? He is still very young and can elevate to a superstar status if he continues to show improvement.

The management must be very happy with the Jazz now, I'm sure they didn't expect a rebuilding team to be at the number 1 spot now. They are for real, they loss some games but they also come back strong. number 1 in the West and 2nd overall, that's a great achievement so far.

Team play is very important and the Jazz are showing that every game, no superstar, they'll create their own, but no one did the ball hogging like Mitchell did in the past.

I reckon that they are about to trade him, it's just that they are not getting any good package in return that's why he wasn't traded. Who knew that the newly renovated team will work so fine, they are expected to tank this season but the opposite thing happened as they are now leading the Western Conference. Anyway, there's no need to give so much hopes on this roster because they are just new and it won't be a big deal if they will choke in the playoffs.

I think they will lose again when Lebron James is back. Lebron's main target this season is to gather as many points in order to surpass Kareem Abdul‑Jabbar's all-time scoring record. If he managed to surpass Jabbar's record this season which is very doable, Lebron can play team-first next season during which they will be Westbrook-free and have $47 million which is a lot to spend on new players.

Anthony Davis is having momentum right now, he plays better when he is given the space and priority. It will be short-lived though once Lebron return's as the ball-handler and decision-maker. 

Their coach duty now is to guide them whenever they needed it and works as an extra pair of eyes and brain to let them know what they should do in between time outs, the rest are on the players as they are now more experienced than the last season and that is probably why they are now leading on ECF.

Their next game is still on the road versus the Bulls, if they will win this one which by the way have a high chance because the bulls are still chaotic righg now and sits below .400 pct. If that happens, they will break the Bucks win streak this season.

Yes, they seem fine on paper as their stats are steadily increasing but if you will watch them closely, you may think that they really lack something or it's just me? I can't just point out what it is. It's like AD needs someone who can play with him side-by-side and not only relying on LeBron when it comes to contribution.

LeBron is already an old news, and the league needs to accept that. He can't do big things anymore just to guarantee a win on their behalf, he is just in the league now to break another record but after that, I think he'll slowly rest because his age is catching him up already.

I imagine this is happening because LeBron James isn't overly concerned about the Lakers... I imagine he must have other priorities these days, I don't know, but that's just presumptuous on my part.

I imagine, if the Lakers start winning several games consistently, it might encourage the Lakers to play with more determination!
I believe the Lakers can easily reach the playoffs this season.

Anthony Davis is doing great again and the Lakers fans are celebrating because this is how they want it to be when AD playing like how he used to be in his prime, they are hard to beat, and actually this is good for them since they are focusing on him despite the others are saying that he is now prone to injury. LBJ seems a good addition in this kind of play by the Lakers but let's just hope that it won't change to streak loss when he back again because that would be a disaster and a huge regretful decision ever since they are on the momentum to regain back their rank as one of the contenders in the western conference.

It is odd though that he is the king but his team is winning more now that he is out. They have beaten Nets, Pistons,  and Spurs. They have better ball movement and the team plays better overall. If the Lakers will win against the Suns without Lebron, that will say a lot about his capability and leadership in the team. They may even say he is becoming a liability since he is just chasing stats right now.


It is good that you did not go for a parlay. This game messed up my parlay and just with 1 point as well. It is a sad lost by Mavs. I really thought that the Mavs will be able to seal this up since they are ahead when I last checked the score. I guess the Nuggets do not want to lose back-to-back.

Lebron's main concern now is his stats since he has a legacy to protect. Look what happen now to lakers where there's no LBJ on the court there rotation is quite good and for winning 2 consecutive game is morale booster to them. If they can still win on  3rd or even more games without him then I guess its for them to decide what will be the next plan on their rotation.

Here are the result of my picks for games today,

Phoenix Suns VS New York Knicks SCORE 116 - 95 - WIN

Just like I have though Jalen Brunson can not carry the team all alone, while Derrick Rose didn't do  that much, while the Suns have a good spread of points to them even though Chris Paul and the other main players did not play, they still got it going,

Houston Rockets VS Golden State Warriors SCORE 120 - 127 - WIN

From start to finish the Golden State Warriors has a strong lead, Klay Thompson was a monster and can not be stop he surely got 41 points, Andrew Wiggins got a solid 22 points, and Stephen Curry had a double-double performance of 15 assist and 33 points, Curry said on the interview that the beast is waking up,

Brooklyn Nets VS Memphis Grizzlies SCORE 127 - 115 - WIN

Dilllon Brooks can not carry the team alone and the absent of those main players has really a bad impact for the Grizzlies, while the Nets has a beautiful spread on points winning the game and just like I have said the Nets would win this surely,

Dallas Mavericks VS Denver Nuggets SCORE 97 - 98 - LOST

The only lost I attain, it is good that I didn't go with the Parley, and just went on with the regular bet, and go with the teams I think will win, Luca Doncic was stopped with just 22 points, while the Denver Nuggets even though they didn't have Nikla Jocic, DeAndre Jordan got 17 rebounds, while Nah'Shon Hyland got 29 points, winning the game, and I really did not expect the Denver to win at all,

But Klay though has to cover up Poole's scoring slump as he had a good game tonight.

As compare to Davis, who can't have a off night since Lebron is still out, and so he has to carry the bulk of the team's scoring and so far in 3 games he is on course and if I'm not mistaken, I've read that he is the first player since Shaq to have like 30 points + 10 or 15 more rebounds in 3 consecutive games. Not sure how long Davis can maintain his form, we already know how delicate his body is, but hopefully he won't get injured again so that we can see the West being competitive up to the 8 spot.