NBA Season 2015-16

[Rodster]

Yeah I just read that as well. That's what happens when you have Harden and Howard. It's still early but Spo in Miami better produce a winner especially with that lineup or he could be sharing beers with McHale.

[DivotMaker]

The Rockets have some excellent players, but they are INDIVIDUALS, not a TEAM. THAT is what has them struggling and got McHale fired.....

[Rodster]

The Rockets have some excellent players, but they are INDIVIDUALS, not a TEAM.

Agreed, wasn't Harden the guy who said he didn't need a specific PG that the Rockets were all about him, Howard and a third player? I forgot the PG they dissed/pissed off? I wanna say it was Dragic but not i'm not sure.

[wco81]

Harden played great last year, taking difficult step back jumpers.

They need more offense.

They could use Parsons now, though they didn't want to pay him.

But now they need to find another big scorer.

[dbdynsty25]

Harden played great last year, taking difficult step back jumpers.

They need more offense.

They could use Parsons now, though they didn't want to pay him.

But now they need to find another big scorer.

That was the point of Ty Lawson.

[pk500]

That didn't take long.....

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/14160 ... vin-mchale

Not too surprising. McHale was on the hot seat last season before the Rockets made their run to the Western Conference Finals. Still, there's always been an undercurrent that McHale isn't the greatest coach.

The slow start gave Rockets' management the ideal chance to fire McHale. Expect to see an analytics-based coach or the typical Pop disciple. Houston GM Daryl Morey is one of the biggest devotees of advanced metrics in the NBA.

[wco81]

Morey is also the guy who said how great Jeremy Lin was, and gave him a ridiculous contract.

Then they trade him away in a season or two.

Sounds like he gives out good quotes so he gets a lot of publicity but his teams never win titles. Just like Billly Beane.


Problem with analytics is now you have a bunch of nerds from other disciplines like business getting into pro sports management. No background in sports whatsoever but they figure since they did well on Fan Duel, they can do it in real life.

[Rodster]

Good article and collection of videos on what Porzingis does well for a rookie.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-bas ... -long-time

[pk500]

I agree, WCO. The pendulum has swung WAY too far in pro sports toward metrics. Seat of the pants doesn't cut it anymore, but there must be a better combination of metrics and intuition bred by winning experience.

Metrics are more important in baseball because there is no salary cap, especially for small-market teams. They need to find a way to excel despite smaller payrolls.

That's not an issue in the NBA. And it certainly won't be next season, when the cap skyrockets:

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12461 ... se-nba-set

[wco81]

Bulls at Suns game sounds like they're playing in Chicago.

A lot of fans wearing Bulls jerseys in those court side seats.

[pk500]

Bulls at Suns game sounds like they're playing in Chicago.

A lot of fans wearing Bulls jerseys in those court side seats.

No doubt. Heard boos when a Suns' player was on the free throw line!

[dbdynsty25]

Fairweather Phoenix. Gotta love it.

[Brando70]

Those are the intelligent Chicagoans who have fled for warmer weather!

A nice start for Hoiberg with the Bulls. They need to get better at maintaining their leads, but always good to get a win on the first game of the circus trip. They have to see if they can get Mirotic out of his rut, though, otherwise they need to shift back to Noah and Gasol starting. They can't afford to have the deficit of a a soft defensive front court if Niko isn't scoring.

[pk500]

Called shot: Golden State's win streak will end either tonight against the Clippers or tomorrow night against the Bulls. Both games on national TV.

Golden State has been living on the edge too much in the last week. They'll trip up tonight or tomorrow night and then probably rip off seven or eight straight wins.

Excited for the Knicks-OKC game tomorrow night. OKC is struggling a bit with injuries, but this game still will be a nice barometer of the Knicks' progress. Knicks are far more enjoyable to watch this season, as at least they have a competent NBA roster and are playing hard and together for Fisher.

[pk500]

Philly committed 31 turnovers last night, just four fewer than its number of field goals made.

So how is that rebuilding project going again in the City of Brotherly Love? You can't blame Brett Brown. He's being told to paint the Sistine Chapel with crayons.

Hinkie is a complete joke.

[dbdynsty25]

Those are the intelligent Chicagoans who have fled for warmer weather!

A nice start for Hoiberg with the Bulls. They need to get better at maintaining their leads, but always good to get a win on the first game of the circus trip. They have to see if they can get Mirotic out of his rut, though, otherwise they need to shift back to Noah and Gasol starting. They can't afford to have the deficit of a a soft defensive front court if Niko isn't scoring.

The Bulls looked good...Phoenix couldn't shoot for sh*t and I think Knight and Bledsoe still get out of control a little too often. They are still young so it comes out occasionally and when that happens, especially in the 4th when Butler is hitting EVERYTHING, it's tough to overcome. Speaking of young, that was the turning point in the 4th...when Butler got the rookie Booker up in the air. Those were killer. The Bulls are still the Bulls and they play good D most of the time. Mirotic looked good in the first quarter and then disappeared. It was funny, at halftime I said, damn Butler has had a quiet half...I didn't even really notice him out there. Woops.

And Bulls fans always travel well. Went to a Clips game last year agains them and it was half and half too. So clearly those are the smart ones.

[Diablo25]

Philly committed 31 turnovers last night, just four fewer than its number of field goals made.

So how is that rebuilding project going again in the City of Brotherly Love? You can't blame Brett Brown. He's being told to paint the Sistine Chapel with crayons.

Hinkie is a complete joke.

Not a fun game to watch . I remain patient.

[pk500]

Philly committed 31 turnovers last night, just four fewer than its number of field goals made.

So how is that rebuilding project going again in the City of Brotherly Love? You can't blame Brett Brown. He's being told to paint the Sistine Chapel with crayons.

Hinkie is a complete joke.

Not a fun game to watch . I remain patient.

Your name must be Job.

[dbdynsty25]

Called shot: Golden State's win streak will end either tonight against the Clippers or tomorrow night against the Bulls. Both games on national TV.

Well, 23 points down at one point, you might have been right, but the Clippers are still the Clippers. You've always got the Bulls.

[Rodster]

The Miami Heat have lucked out this so far this season. Pretty much every teams best player has been sidelined during Heat victories. DMC was the latest casualty and SAC still made it close. Here's hoping the Heat can utilize Dragic better than what we've seen so far this year. They aren't playing to his strength's and instead are back to playing ISO and half court ball. The passing has dropped down with players just standing around waiting for the ball. When they pass dynamically in the game they pile up the points cause everyone gets touches.

[pk500]

Called shot: Golden State's win streak will end either tonight against the Clippers or tomorrow night against the Bulls. Both games on national TV.

Well, 23 points down at one point, you might have been right, but the Clippers are still the Clippers. You've always got the Bulls.

Yep. I really thought last night was it for the streak. Nice rally.

I'm not rooting for the Warriors' streak to end. It's a lot of fun to follow, and this might be the most enjoyable team to watch in North American stick-and-ball sports. I just think the combination of back-to-back games and some narrow escapes in the last week will spell the end of the great opening run tonight. The Running of the Bulls.

[Brando70]

I think the streak is great for the NBA, too. I hope the Bulls end it, but I don't think Rose will play tonight and they are missing Aaron Brooks. That means AARP member Kirk Hinrich will start and be backed up up by E'Twaun Moore. That doesn't bode well facing the Golden State back court, especially because Hinrich and Moore can't drive and score the way Rose and Brooks can.

This is also pretty amusing, the Warriors running against the 96 Bulls in a 2k simulation:

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-bas ... old-school

[wco81]

Charles Barkley still ticked off that teams don't punish the small lineup teams, particularly the Warriors.

Says Blake Griffin posts up too high and showed clips from the 4th quarter.

Clippers problem was that they let Warriors make 8 of 9 3-pointers in the 4th quarter, including several wide open looks.

But if only Blake could muscle in more layups, the Clippers would have won trading baskets for 3-pointers?

It's not the '90s any more Charles.

[dbdynsty25]

The Bulls played a great 42 minutes. Then GS turned up their pressure and the Bulls got really flustered. Ballgame. That defensive intensity is what makes me think the Dubs can actually break the Bulls record. Even when they don't play great they can still pull it out. Impressive.

[wco81]

Called shot: Golden State's win streak will end either tonight against the Clippers or tomorrow night against the Bulls. Both games on national TV.

Well, 23 points down at one point, you might have been right, but the Clippers are still the Clippers. You've always got the Bulls.

Yep. I really thought last night was it for the streak. Nice rally.

I'm not rooting for the Warriors' streak to end. It's a lot of fun to follow, and this might be the most enjoyable team to watch in North American stick-and-ball sports. I just think the combination of back-to-back games and some narrow escapes in the last week will spell the end of the great opening run tonight. The Running of the Bulls.

Warriors tough it out. Green and Curry were running on fumes on the second of a back to back. Bench wasn't productive so they had to play minutes.

Butler and Kwahi Leonard are the best 2-way players in the league. Even without Rose, the Bulls were the best team the Warriors have faced. They haven't played Cavs, Spurs or Thunder yet though.

Denver isn't going to be easy either, going up to play in elevation after these two games and only a day in between before going to Denver.