NBA Season 2017/18

[pk500]

LeBron has benefited by playing in the Eastern Conference, which has been weaker and more shallow than the West for most of his career.

I hear an echo in here.

Yes, you made that very good point to me. I'm leasing it. Thanks.

[Rodster]

The Warriors are just too good for anyone to have a chance at beating them. Harden goes insane during the first game while Steph Curry just defers to KD and he easily drops 37 points and they blow out Houston in game 1. Some are even going as far as to say the Warriors are the greatest NBA team ever.

Meanwhile the shorthanded Celtics are 2-0 against the Cavs. Last night Lebron dropped 42 and that still wasn't good enough. How good would Boston be with Hayward and Irving? I can't see Lebron staying in Cleveland next year.

[pk500]

The Warriors are just too good for anyone to have a chance at beating them. Harden goes insane during the first game while Steph Curry just defers to KD and he easily drops 37 points and they blow out Houston in game 1. Some are even going as far as to say the Warriors are the greatest NBA team ever.

Did you watch the first game? Harden's stat line may have been the most deceiving sh*tty game of the playoffs.

Harden tried to beat the Dubs single-handedly once he got hot. It was total iso-ball, with CP3 and Ariza growing roots on the perimeter waiting to even see the ball, let alone touch it. Ariza and Paul both sniped at Harden toward the end of the game, presumably at his lack of ball movement.

Houston has a chance to be competitive with Golden State if it moves the ball. The Rockets may get swept if Harden continues to be a black hole of isolation.

[wco81]

Celtics future is now.

They got so many young players who've improved, just over the course of this season.

More depth than any other team.

[dbdynsty25]

Celtics future is now.

They got so many young players who've improved, just over the course of this season.

More depth than any other team.

It's amazing. And they get two All-Stars back next year.

If Phoenix uses their #1 pick on Ayton, I want them to trade for Rozier, badly. He'd fit perfect on Phoenix if Ayton is the pick.

That said, I want Luka! Think he fits the modern NBA better especially with two other wings the same size. Switch everything!

[Rodster]

Did you watch the first game? Harden's stat line may have been the most deceiving sh*tty game of the playoffs.

Harden tried to beat the Dubs single-handedly once he got hot. It was total iso-ball, with CP3 and Ariza growing roots on the perimeter waiting to even see the ball, let alone touch it. Ariza and Paul both sniped at Harden toward the end of the game, presumably at his lack of ball movement.

Houston has a chance to be competitive with Golden State if it moves the ball. The Rockets may get swept if Harden continues to be a black hole of isolation.

Yeah I was watching it until the copyright gods knocked down the stream.

But yeah I forgot to mention Harden tried to be a one man show. Today he had the nerve to rag on his teammates, "I can't do it all by myself".

We'll see if he decides to involve his teammates in game 2.

That said, I want Luka! Think he fits the modern NBA better especially with two other wings the same size. Switch everything!

That's the obvious choice since the HC is from Slovenia? Hey take back Dragic since they're both from the same country. I can't believe the Heat gave up two picks for Dragic. He's been good but he's no Kyrie Irving or game changer although he did have his moments during the season.

[wco81]

There’s some rumor that Suns will offer Capela a max RFA contract.

That would allow them to pick Doncic or some other player.

But would Sarver pay $25-30 million to Capela when he could get Ayton on a rookie deal?

[Rodster]

It's nice to see the NBA paying more attention to international players. The NHL and MLB both try and find talent outside of the US.

[dbdynsty25]

There’s some rumor that Suns will offer Capela a max RFA contract.

That would allow them to pick Doncic or some other player.

But would Sarver pay $25-30 million to Capela when he could get Ayton on a rookie deal?

The downside of Ayton is his defense. If the Suns get Doncic, they will need to get a defensive minded center from somewhere. They have 18 mil available now, and can easily get to 30ish if needed. I'm all for it. Sarver...maybe not. The Suns also have the 16th pick and the 31st...along with Miami's first next year. So lots of assets to move around if needed.

[Rodster]

Hmm, from what i've read Phoenix gets Miami's 2018 1st rd pick and their 2021 1st rd pick. Isn't their an NBA rule disallowing teams trading successive 1st rd picks 2 years in a row?

[dbdynsty25]

Hmm, from what i've read Phoenix gets Miami's 2018 1st rd pick and their 2021 1st rd pick. Isn't their an NBA rule disallowing teams trading successive 1st rd picks 2 years in a row?

Yes there is. Phoenix almost had Milwaukee's pick too this year which would have been right after Miami's. Turns out that coin flip allowed Milwaukee got to keep their pick until next year. But yes, there is a rule against trading successive 1sts.

[jLp vAkEr0]

As a Celtics fan I'm just bathing in excitement.

[pk500]

Celtics future is now.

They got so many young players who've improved, just over the course of this season.

More depth than any other team.

It's amazing. And they get two All-Stars back next year.

If Phoenix uses their #1 pick on Ayton, I want them to trade for Rozier, badly. He'd fit perfect on Phoenix if Ayton is the pick.

That said, I want Luka! Think he fits the modern NBA better especially with two other wings the same size. Switch everything!

Nice problem for Phoenix to have. Neither guy will turn out to be Anthony Bennett.

I would worry about fitting Hayward and a healthy Kyrie into Boston's great current mix if not for the Celtics' greatest strength -- Brad Stevens. He's the second-best coach in the NBA, and only a drawer full of rings separates him from Pop.

[pk500]

As a Celtics fan I'm just bathing in excitement.

Happy for you, Javi!

[wco81]

As a Celtics fan I'm just bathing in excitement.

As young as Brown and Tatum are, Celtics may have to win between now and when Brown becomes an RFA in June/July of 2020.

After this season, they have to decide on whether to keep Smart, which could be a tough decision, depending on if he gets other offers, though it's good for the Celtics that there are a few teams with cap space.

But after the 2018-2019 season, it starts to get really difficult. Rozier is due and Kyrie and Horford both have player options:

http://www.spotrac.com/nba/boston-celtics/yearly/cap/

If Kyrie opts-in at 21.3 million for for 2019-2020 and Horford opts in at $34.2 million for that season, it's still a lot of money that the Celtics are going to have to pay Kyrie, Horford and whatever they give to Rozier. Say they give him $10 million that year. So it would be $65 million for Kyrie, Rozier and Horford for 2019-2020 season.

But if Kyrie has another all-star year next season, $21.3 is too little for him so he'd likely opt out. For Horford, $34.2 million for 2019-2020 is a healthy salary but he may have been the best Celtics player in the playoffs. He will be 33 on 6/3/19 so he may want another big payday. If he has a poor season next year, then he'll obviously opt in. But if he's a key starter on another team which wins at least 55 games and makes a deep run in the playoffs, he's going to probably ask for $30 million for a couple more seasons.

Do the Celtics extend him at age 33 or would he have to say sign for $15-20 million a year? For him, taking that much less would just be saving the ownership luxury taxes. They don't need him to take a big cut to bring in some big free agent.

So June and July of 2019 will be a big offseason for the team.

Then after 2019-2020, Brown will be an RFA. He's on a path to get the kind of deal that Wiggins got. He'd either have to suffer a serious injury or be willing to take a lot less than what the market would bear. I don't know how many teams will have cap space but the way he's produced this year, he's on a path to become an all star in the next couple of seasons.

Also Hayward will have a player option for 2020-2021 at $34.2 million. If he returns from injury and plays well the next couple of seasons, he could well opt out and look for the super Max. Whether he opts in or out, it's going to be expensive for the Celtics either way for 2020-2021.

June 2020 could be another big offseason if Kyrie and Horford didn't opt out in June 2019.

Then after 2020-2021 Tatum will be an RFA. Like Brown, barring injury, he's going to get at least $25 million a year if not more. He's also on the way towards all-star level seasons.

Team could pay all these players and go for rings for the next 3-8 years. But if you don't pay Kyrie, Horford and Hayward a cent more than they're making this season, which is $76-78 million, you're going to have to give 8-figure salaries to Brown and Tatum for sure after 2 and 3 more seasons and possibly Smart starting next year and Rozier starting the following year.

$20 million each to Brown and Tatum, $10 million each to Smart and Rozier and you're talking around $120 million for these 7 players. And those are very conservative salaries for them. They will likely demand more from the Celtics and get them from other teams.

You could argue that Celtics have to win between now and when Brown becomes RFA. Team could pay luxury taxes to keep him but it really depends on what happens with Kyrie and Horford, what kind of extensions they take and to a lesser extent, how much they pay to keep Smart and Rozier.

The owner may have said "whatever it takes" but if they draft rookies over the next couple of years who perform well, it seems likely the team will let some players go or try to trade them.

[Rodster]

2 upsets in the making.

[pk500]

2 upsets in the making.

Are they? Houston and Boston are higher seeds.

I could hear the argument that a Houston win is an upset. The Warriors are the defending champs and looked strong during the first two rounds.

But Cleveland just barely escaped a very ordinary Indiana team in the first round and has a ton of flaws. Plus Brad Stevens is a FAR better coach that Ty Lue.

[AcemanPR]

Wouldn't call Houston or Boston winning upsets. Golden State has been hit with injuries the 2nd half of the season. It is definitely throwing them off. Cleveland has LeBron and, um, yeah Cleveland has LeBron. Boston has a much deeper team. I believe both series will go 7 games. And they both could be epic game 7s, but regardless how things pan out, I pick whichever western conference team wins the finals in 5.

[pk500]

Wouldn't call Houston or Boston winning upsets. Golden State has been hit with injuries the 2nd half of the season. It is definitely throwing them off. Cleveland has LeBron and, um, yeah Cleveland has LeBron. Boston has a much deeper team. I believe both series will go 7 games. And they both could be epic game 7s, but regardless how things pan out, I pick whichever western conference team wins the finals in 5.

For whatever reason, Houston also is forcing Golden State into far more isos and far less passing than normal. The Dubs we see in this series are not the Dubs we saw in recent series or during this season.

[jLp vAkEr0]

Feels like a great day for qualifying to the NBA Finals!

[Rodster]

2 upsets in the making.

Are they? Houston and Boston are higher seeds.

I could hear the argument that a Houston win is an upset. The Warriors are the defending champs and looked strong during the first two rounds.

But Cleveland just barely escaped a very ordinary Indiana team in the first round and has a ton of flaws. Plus Brad Stevens is a FAR better coach that Ty Lue.

Wrt Boston, yeah it's still considered an upset seeing that both their "star players" Irving and Hayward are both out for the season and Al Horford while some consider a solid veteran is not one would consider elite and a game changer and the rest of the lineup is young unproven talent. Agreed on Stevens vs Lue (Lebron's appointed coach).

Everyone expected the Warriors to be WCF and NBA Champs with that lineup and their coach. But the feel good story has to be D'Antoni and CP3 "maybe" getting to the NBA Finals.

[Rodster]

As young as Brown and Tatum are, Celtics may have to win between now and when Brown becomes an RFA in June/July of 2020.

how much they pay to keep Smart and Rozier.

Marcus Smart is already saying he's worth more than 12-14 million p/y and he wants his payday this summer.
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba- ... 4-million/

[pk500]

I told a friend of mine after the Celtics won Game 5 that there was no way in hell Cleveland would lose Game 6 at home and no way in hell LeBron would lose a Game 7.

Since I'm on a hot streak, there's also no way in hell Golden State loses Game 7 tonight.

Warriors-Cavs IV lies ahead.

[Pete1210]

If Chris Paul can play I think Houston has a chance.

[DivotMaker]

If Chris Paul can play I think Houston has a chance.

He’s out.

Looking grim for H town