Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Discussion of the league and of our favorite team.
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carey
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Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by carey »

Nationally televised games this week

Monday: Philly @ Miami 7:30 PM EST NBATv, S.A. @ L.A. Clippers 10:30 PM EST NBATv
Tuesday:Milwaukee @ New Orleans 7:30 PM EST TNT, S.A. @ L.A. Lakers 10:00 PM EST TNT
Wednesday: Orlando @ Boston 7:30 PM EST ESPN, Miami @ L.A. Clippers 10:00 PM EST ESPN
Thursday: Philly @ Milwaukee 8:00 PM EST TNT, Houston @ L.A. Lakers 10:30 PM EST TNT
Friday: Toronto @ Indiana 8:00 PM EST ESPN, Portland @ Utah 10:30 PM EST ESPN
Saturday: L.A. Lakers @ Golden State 8:30 PM EST ABC
Sunday: Boston @ OKC 3:30 PM EST PM EST NBATv, Utah @ Houston 7:00 PM EST NBATv

NBA News

Sources: Rockets shopping Capela to East teams - https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/286 ... east-teams

Embiid 1 of 11 as 76ers' spiral in East continues - https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/286 ... vs-celtics

Lowe: NBA trade talk and what might happen before the deadline - https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/286 ... n-deadline
• The Cavs appear to have very little market for Kevin Love right now, sources say. Everything is malleable until Thursday's deadline, but nothing appears serious on the Love front at this moment. The wild card was always Phoenix. The Suns are hard to predict. Rivals struggle to get a feel for the Suns' objectives.

They are four games out of the No. 8 spot, and Robert Sarver, their owner, has made no secret over the past few years of his ardent desire to snap their streak of postseason absences. They have Tyler Johnson's $19 million expiring contract, all of their own first-round picks, and a bundle of $3 million-$6 million contracts to use as filler. Playing time patterns suggest they do not conceive of Dario Saric as their long-term starting power forward.

Right now, there isn't a ton of Phoenix noise, but you always have to watch out.
NBA Power Rankings Week 16: Raptors, Blazers climb as Jazz fall - https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/285 ... -jazz-fall
Go Suns!

Og Snus!

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BlueMikey
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by BlueMikey »

K-Love wouldn't be terrible if the Suns were a bit more competitive, but you might be dealing with the corpse of K-Love in the last year or two of his contract for no real reason (get his contract on the hook just to get blown out in the first round of the playoffs?). Maybe still worth it to have another veteran presence assuming you don't have to give up too much. But Lowe is right, if the Suns do this, it is out of Sarver's desperation and failure to understand anything at all, like the rest of his ownership tenure.

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Mori Chu »

BlueMikey wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 1:45 pm
K-Love wouldn't be terrible if the Suns were a bit more competitive, but you might be dealing with the corpse of K-Love in the last year or two of his contract for no real reason (get his contract on the hook just to get blown out in the first round of the playoffs?). Maybe still worth it to have another veteran presence assuming you don't have to give up too much. But Lowe is right, if the Suns do this, it is out of Sarver's desperation and failure to understand anything at all, like the rest of his ownership tenure.
Hi Mikey, good to see you posting. Kevin Love is surprisingly only 31; he has 2 years left on his deal after this current season. I don't think it is too risky to keep him until he is 33. The key question to me would be, what would we give up to get him? If the market for Love is as cold as the current rumors suggest, could we hold out and give up only marginal assets like mediocre youngs and a heavily protected pick(s)?

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Flagrant Fowl
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Flagrant Fowl »

The wild card was always Phoenix. The Suns are hard to predict. Rivals struggle to get a feel for the Suns' objectives.
Them and me both.
Send me a PM if you're interested in joining the phx-suns.net fantasy basketball league.

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Split T
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Split T »



Not sure how legit this guy is, but a few Suns show up as available

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djy2j
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by djy2j »

Mori Chu wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 3:10 pm
BlueMikey wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 1:45 pm
K-Love wouldn't be terrible if the Suns were a bit more competitive, but you might be dealing with the corpse of K-Love in the last year or two of his contract for no real reason (get his contract on the hook just to get blown out in the first round of the playoffs?). Maybe still worth it to have another veteran presence assuming you don't have to give up too much. But Lowe is right, if the Suns do this, it is out of Sarver's desperation and failure to understand anything at all, like the rest of his ownership tenure.
Hi Mikey, good to see you posting. Kevin Love is surprisingly only 31; he has 2 years left on his deal after this current season. I don't think it is too risky to keep him until he is 33. The key question to me would be, what would we give up to get him? If the market for Love is as cold as the current rumors suggest, could we hold out and give up only marginal assets like mediocre youngs and a heavily protected pick(s)?
Love for Okobo, Kaminsky, and Tyler Johnson works under the cap. Probably have to throw in a (highly) protected pick but I'd do that deal. I'm not sure how many offers Cle will have to sift through but they get out of his contract and get a young player and a pick.

I guess I'm to the point where we HAVE to do something to show Booker we are serious about trying to win. This losing culture needs to change. I'm done with collecting lottery picks every year. We don't know how to use them with both drafting or having them to use as assets.
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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Mori Chu »

djy2j wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 4:31 pm
Love for Okobo, Kaminsky, and Tyler Johnson works under the cap. Probably have to throw in a (highly) protected pick but I'd do that deal. I'm not sure how many offers Cle will have to sift through but they get out of his contract and get a young player and a pick.

I guess I'm to the point where we HAVE to do something to show Booker we are serious about trying to win. This losing culture needs to change. I'm done with collecting lottery picks every year. We don't know how to use them with both drafting or having them to use as assets.
I'd do that deal. I think our PF situation is bad enough that it would be a noticeable improvement for us. And I don't think it hurts our cap in any way that will really matter. I don't think we need to target any major free agents in the next 1-2 offseasons if we get Love and retain/develop our existing guys. And I think Love is just waiting to bust out for his next team and contribute when wins and losses matter again.

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Wally_West
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Wally_West »

Probably a pick? No. No one wants Kevin Love’s contract. There’s no need to add a pick. Johnson + filler to make the money work is more than enough. The Cavs would give a handjob to get out of Love’s contract. If they could get a pick, even a 2nd rounder, they would cry with happiness.

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Wally_West
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Wally_West »

it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they just waive the white flag with playoffs and trade Saric, Baynes and TJ for whatever they can get and hope they get decent lottery odds.

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ShelC
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by ShelC »

Wally_West wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:40 pm
it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they just waive the white flag with playoffs and trade Saric, Baynes and TJ for whatever they can get and hope they get decent lottery odds.
Not sure how that would would sit with Book.

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Wally_West
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Wally_West »

ShelC wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:47 pm
Wally_West wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:40 pm
it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they just waive the white flag with playoffs and trade Saric, Baynes and TJ for whatever they can get and hope they get decent lottery odds.
Not sure how that would would sit with Book.
It is what it. TJ and Baynes won’t be here next season and Saric most likely won’t be as well. You need to get what you can for them.

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INFORMER
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by INFORMER »

Mori Chu wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 3:10 pm
Kevin Love is surprisingly only 31; he has 2 years left on his deal after this current season.
Nope: three seasons. And that 3rd season is a huge problem. The Suns would have $100 million invested in Ayton, Booker, and Love for that season alone. And that's not including resigning Oubre after next season. There is very, VERY little money left over to field a winning team.
Trendon Watford. Please and thank you.

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Shabazz
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Shabazz »

Not sure this was mentioned on here, but TJ Warren fell in the Pacers' last game and had to be taken to the hospital for the resulting head injury. He missed tonight's game because of a concussion. No additional comment necessary.

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O_Gardino
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by O_Gardino »

Mori Chu wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 3:10 pm
BlueMikey wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 1:45 pm
K-Love wouldn't be terrible if the Suns were a bit more competitive, but you might be dealing with the corpse of K-Love in the last year or two of his contract for no real reason (get his contract on the hook just to get blown out in the first round of the playoffs?). Maybe still worth it to have another veteran presence assuming you don't have to give up too much. But Lowe is right, if the Suns do this, it is out of Sarver's desperation and failure to understand anything at all, like the rest of his ownership tenure.
Hi Mikey, good to see you posting. Kevin Love is surprisingly only 31; he has 2 years left on his deal after this current season. I don't think it is too risky to keep him until he is 33. The key question to me would be, what would we give up to get him? If the market for Love is as cold as the current rumors suggest, could we hold out and give up only marginal assets like mediocre youngs and a heavily protected pick(s)?
To make the salaries work, we would have to send 3 players, I think. TylerJ and 2 of Baynes/Kaminsky/Cam/Bridges/Saric. If I'm sending over rotation players and taking back that contract, they have to give me picks.
The league needs heroes, villains... and clowns. -- Aztec Sunsfan

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The Bobster
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by The Bobster »

ShelC wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:47 pm
Wally_West wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:40 pm
it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they just waive the white flag with playoffs and trade Saric, Baynes and TJ for whatever they can get and hope they get decent lottery odds.
Not sure how that would would sit with Book.
Guess what? I don't really give a shit if he likes it or not. He's got four more years on his contract.

You can't cater to every good player on your team (he's really good, but he's not a star you build champions around). If he ever wants to play somewhere else he can play out his contract and sign somewhere else in 2024.
Author of The Basketball Draft Fact Book: A History of Professional Basketball's College Drafts
Available from Scarecrow Press at - https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780810890695

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Ring_Wanted
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Ring_Wanted »

The Bobster wrote:
Tue Feb 04, 2020 11:39 am
ShelC wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:47 pm
Wally_West wrote:
Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:40 pm
it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they just waive the white flag with playoffs and trade Saric, Baynes and TJ for whatever they can get and hope they get decent lottery odds.
Not sure how that would would sit with Book.
Guess what? I don't really give a s*** if he likes it or not. He's got four more years on his contract.

You can't cater to every good player on your team (he's really good, but he's not a star you build champions around). If he ever wants to play somewhere else he can play out his contract and sign somewhere else in 2024.
This is how you get your franchise even more in shambles. Dumping two competent players like Saric and Baynes does nothing for us. PHX should make a move exactly in the opposite direction: use assets to add talent that makes sense. In this era of social media and player empowerment, you don't alienate your only resemblance of a star. This doesn't mean giving out contracts like TOR was forced to by Vince Carter, but we are not in a position to waive any white flag. This franchise has tanked enough already (granted, with terrible results) and the only goal should be winning as many games as possible (the new lotto odds even encourage it).

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The Bobster
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by The Bobster »

You do trade them if you have no plans in re-signing them though. Hopefully for expiring contracts and picks, but if you're picking up a contract of more than a year, they had better be a useful player.
Author of The Basketball Draft Fact Book: A History of Professional Basketball's College Drafts
Available from Scarecrow Press at - https://rowman.com/ISBN/9780810890695

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Mori Chu »

I hadn't realized that the Wolves have lost 12 in a row. What a disaster. Are they the biggest disappointment in the league this year?

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by Mori Chu »

The 8th seed Grizzlies are 25-25 (.500) while we are 20-30 (.400). We're the 12th seed in the West right now, 5 games out of 8th, but only 4.5 games out of 14th.

https://www.espn.com/nba/standings

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O_Gardino
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Re: Around the League: Week 15 2/3-2/9

Post by O_Gardino »

Mori Chu wrote:
Tue Feb 04, 2020 8:17 pm
I hadn't realized that the Wolves have lost 12 in a row. What a disaster. Are they the biggest disappointment in the league this year?
Portland and GSW were in the western conference finals last year.
The league needs heroes, villains... and clowns. -- Aztec Sunsfan

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