NBA Season 2011-12 Thread

[Brando70]

The Heat are definitely the team to beat. The Thunder have the three-headed talent to match them, and the Bulls (if healthy) have the defensive capability to beat them, but neither of those teams has the same combo of star power and solid role players.

As for Lin, he had a bad game. I agree with Barkley that he's probably physically and mentally exhausted after the last couple of weeks. The break will give him time to recharge. Wednesday's game is more indicative of his talent than last night's loss.

[wco81]

Hmm, Chris Brown?

Well maybe not so unexpected from a league where one of the biggest stars is Kobe Bryant.

[icvu42]

Mike D'Antoni resigns from Knicks.

Would love to see Phil Jackson come in...but I have a sick feeling Isaih Thomas will be coming back.

Rick

[Rodster]

Mike D'Antoni resigns from Knicks.

Would love to see Phil Jackson come in...but I have a sick feeling Isaih Thomas will be coming back.

Rick

That's a shame because Mike's a good coach. Well the answer is the Lin and Melo combo didn't work as some feared. I say Lin will go before Melo unless the rumors are true that there could be a Howard - Melo trade in the works.

[Brando70]

Are there any NBA coaches with PhDs in family counseling?

[dbdynsty25]

That's a shame because Mike's a good coach. Well the answer is the Lin and Melo combo didn't work as some feared. I say Lin will go before Melo unless the rumors are true that there could be a Howard - Melo trade in the works.

I will AGAIN disagree with you. He's not THAT good of a coach. When he was successful it's because he had Steve Nash running his offense (yes PK, lickin' the balls again). He doesn't know how to adapt, he runs an 8 deep rotation thus ruining guys for the playoffs, doesn't trust rookies, and sticks to his no D policy. He's not a good coach, he was just put in a VERY good situation in Phoenix with 4 all stars (Stat, Nash, Marion, Joe Johnson)...and they got progressively worse as the talent dwindled. He just doesn't know how to adapt to his teams strengths. Nash is proving even with a horrible supporting cast, he can run a good offense...so clearly with all of the all-stars, Nash was a much bigger catalyst than D'Antoni could ever be. This ain't Italy.

Melo and Stat co-existing are a bigger deal since Stat lost a step and Melo is a ballstopper. So that's not all Mike's fault, but if he was such an offensive genius he should have been able to figure it out.

[pk500]

That's a shame because Mike's a good coach. Well the answer is the Lin and Melo combo didn't work as some feared. I say Lin will go before Melo unless the rumors are true that there could be a Howard - Melo trade in the works.

I will AGAIN disagree with you. He's not THAT good of a coach. When he was successful it's because he had Steve Nash running his offense (yes PK, lickin' the balls again). He doesn't know how to adapt, he runs an 8 deep rotation thus ruining guys for the playoffs, doesn't trust rookies, and sticks to his no D policy. He's not a good coach, he was just put in a VERY good situation in Phoenix with 4 all stars (Stat, Nash, Marion, Joe Johnson)...and they got progressively worse as the talent dwindled. He just doesn't know how to adapt to his teams strengths. Nash is proving even with a horrible supporting cast, he can run a good offense...so clearly with all of the all-stars, Nash was a much bigger catalyst than D'Antoni could ever be. This ain't Italy.

Melo and Stat co-existing are a bigger deal since Stat lost a step and Melo is a ballstopper. So that's not all Mike's fault, but if he was such an offensive genius he should have been able to figure it out.

LOL on the nut lick, DB.

DB is spot-on. I know Stephen A. Smith isn't the most popular guy on ESPN, but the guy is really well connected and on point about the Knicks with his work at ESPN New York.

Stephen A. predicted yesterday on "First Take" that D'Antoni would be gone as the head coach of the Knicks before next week. Bingo. Stephen A. also said D'Antoni isn't as effective of a coach as his win-loss record indicates because he flat-out refuses to adapt his offensive system to the players around him, just as DB said. Bingo.

No question Melo is a selfish, sullen ball-stopper. I don't think the guy ever will win an NBA title as a team leader. He might get a ring in the twilight of his career as a role player, but that's about it. Still, Mike D' needed to find a better way to blend the skills of his changing talent pool than putting all of his trust on an inexperienced, unknown point guard who caught fire.

I liked Coach D'. But this will be a HORRIBLE move if Dolan returns his Prodigal Son, Zeke, to the bench at the Garden.

[Rodster]

The only problem I have with the above is that with Melo out of the lineup and Lin playing the Knicks were rolling with that group of players and there was camaraderie. The thing that changed was when Melo came back. So Mike D's offense worked with those players, so his offense was working and they should have stuck with what worked. We were all asking if the Knicks would revert back to their old ways once Melo came back and they did.

So I don't see why he should be the scapegoat in this? The Knicks organization has been a mess for years much like the Dolphins.

[pk500]

The only problem I have with the above is that with Melo out of the lineup and Lin playing the Knicks were rolling with that group of players and there was camaraderie. The thing that changed was when Melo came back. So Mike D's offense worked with those players, so his offense was working and they should have stuck with what worked. We were all asking if the Knicks would revert back to their old ways once Melo came back and they did.

So I don't see why he should be the scapegoat in this? The Knicks organization has been a mess for years much like the Dolphins.

Rod, blaming the coach is the blueprint of all pro sports franchises when the team plunges into the sh*tter. Who's going to be the fall guy, the guy for whom the team traded away part of its core and is paying a king's ransom or the coach? Who's going to go, the guy whose replica jersey has sold by the tens of thousands or the guy on the sidelines in the Hugo Boss suit?

Still, D'Antoni didn't adapt his system to fit the biggest superstar on the team.

[Rodster]

I realize that but i'd can sh*t the superstar if the team is clicking the way it was. They were starting to roll. I saw an article the other day that exploited Melo's habits like trying to stay out of the paint waiting for the feed so he could take a jumper. I guess it should work both ways then.

If the coach needs to adapt to the players then the player especially the superstar should adpat to the coaches style too.

How about LeBron and Bosh. Both have had to change their style of play to fit Spo's offense and it's worked. Granted Spo's style has also changed so both player and coach have had to adapt some to each other. I guess my point is Melo's style stayed the same other than being less selfish.

[dbdynsty25]

I realize that but i'd can sh*t the superstar if the team is clicking the way it was. They were starting to roll.

Go take a look at the teams NY played when Melo was out and they were "rolling"...you'll see the main reason right there. Not a chance in hell the Knicks are successful w that lineup when they actually play some legit competition.

[Rodster]

I realize that but i'd can sh*t the superstar if the team is clicking the way it was. They were starting to roll.

Go take a look at the teams NY played when Melo was out and they were "rolling"...you'll see the main reason right there. Not a chance in hell the Knicks are successful w that lineup when they actually play some legit competition.

Maybe not playoff material but at least they were winning. OK so here's a legit question. Say you're Coach D, the team has chemistry and is winning albeit against weaker teams but is winning. Why not build the team to the Coach's style? Lin, Stat, and Chandler were clicking with Mike D's offense. So why not add more players to fit that style of play?

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/story/2 ... rick-ewing
"Last February, when the Knicks traded for Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony, there was at least one voice within the organization that wasn’t quite in favor of the move—coach Mike D’Antoni. The reason was obvious: Anthony is simply not the kind of player who works well in D’Antoni’s floor-spreading, pick-and-roll offense.

One fellow former coach told Sporting News that, around the time the deal was made, D’Antoni told him, “With this trade, I don’t know how much longer I will be able to stay here (in New York).”

[vinny-b]

have to side with Rod on this.

moving Carmelo Anthony should've been Step #1. He's proven useless to this team and the franchise.


far as D'Antoni, would've rather taken my chances with him the remainder of the season (and Anthony moved in a trade). As it stands, now everyone knows exactly what the Knicks will be in 2012. NOTHING

[Rodster]

Why is it the Dolphins and Knicks have so much in common even though they are in different sports? Ooh I know, both F.O.'s are run by goofballs.

[dbdynsty25]

D'Antoni wanted to send Melo to NJ for D-Will. Dolan refused. Game over.

[Brando70]

http://aol.sportingnews.com/nba/story/2 ... rick-ewing
"Last February, when the Knicks traded for Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony, there was at least one voice within the organization that wasn’t quite in favor of the move—coach Mike D’Antoni. The reason was obvious: Anthony is simply not the kind of player who works well in D’Antoni’s floor-spreading, pick-and-roll offense.

One fellow former coach told Sporting News that, around the time the deal was made, D’Antoni told him, “With this trade, I don’t know how much longer I will be able to stay here (in New York).”

That's a failure on the coach as well as management. Obviously GMs and coaches, while they don't always have to agree, have to be in synch to a certain extent. A GM shouldn't get players his coach doesn't want or believe in. At the same time, a coach automatically thinking he can't win with a player like Anthony is not a very good coach. Many teams have won championships with prima donnas on them. Good coaches know how to handle them.

A coach with D'Antoni's attitude, where he has to have the exact right mix of players, should be coaching in college instead of the NBA.

[dbdynsty25]

A coach with D'Antoni's attitude, where he has to have the exact right mix of players, should be coaching in college instead of the NBA.

Now we're getting somewhere. This is the entire reason that D'Antoni got ousted from the Suns. They were still a playoff team when he "resigned", so obviously if it's not his way, it's the highway. If you remember back...when he was hired by the Suns, he was given the interim GM tag as well so he could construct the team however he wanted. That lasted a little over two years. As soon as Kerr was hired (a buddy of Robert Sarver from back at the U of A), his days were numbered because his philosophy didn't mesh with Kerr's. Same old story with Mike. I know a lot about what went on "behind the scenes" in Phoenix that I can't really divulge, but he's a problem if he isn't in control. Exhibit #2...NY Knicks. He's done in the NBA.

[Diablo25]

D'Antoni wanted to send Melo to NJ for D-Will. Dolan refused. Game over.

I'd take that deal in a heartbeat if I were the Knicks.

[Rodster]

moving Carmelo Anthony should've been Step #1. He's proven useless to this team and the franchise.


far as D'Antoni, would've rather taken my chances with him the remainder of the season (and Anthony moved in a trade). As it stands, now everyone knows exactly what the Knicks will be in 2012. NOTHING

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/blog/ken-b ... hey-wanted
D'Antoni resigns: Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks both got what they wanted

[fsquid]

I realize that but i'd can sh*t the superstar if the team is clicking the way it was. They were starting to roll.

Go take a look at the teams NY played when Melo was out and they were "rolling"...you'll see the main reason right there. Not a chance in hell the Knicks are successful w that lineup when they actually play some legit competition.

did beat the Lakers and the Mavs in there. At the end of the day, the trade last year was just stupid and ownership caving into public demand for Melo. One Stephen A Smith was the one leading that charge in the New York media last year.

[wco81]

Ric Bücher was on local radio here.

He said Dolan overruled the basketball people, because he didn't want to see Melo, a hometown hero, go to the Nets.

Knicks gave up some good role players in that trade and the Nuggets didn't collapse without Melo.

[vinny-b]

--

[vinny-b]

Ric Bücher was on local radio here.

He said Dolan overruled the basketball people, because he didn't want to see Melo, a hometown hero, go to the Nets.

Knicks gave up some good role players in that trade and the Nuggets didn't collapse without Melo.

hopefully, the Knicks will trade Lin (to a team i like), and i can go back to hating them.

A loser organization who will forever be the Bricks.

[greggsand]

Andrew Bynum taking is game to a whole new level this week. I was always a critic, but he's been impressive as hell. I say lakes keep him.

[dbdynsty25]

Andrew Bynum taking is game to a whole new level this week. I was always a critic, but he's been impressive as hell. I say lakes keep him.

No one questions his talent...tho the Lakers should trade him though while his value is high. He's one wrong step away from another crazy knee injury.