Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Discussion of the league and of our favorite team.
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carey
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Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by carey »

Nationally televised games this week

Monday: Philadelphia @ Orlando 7:00 PM EST NBATv, Brooklyn @ Portland 10:00 PM EST NBATv
Tuesday: Houston @ Milwaukee 8:00 PM EST TNT, Washington @ L.A. Lakers 10:30 PM EST TNT
Wednesday: Indiana @ OKC 8:00 PM EST ESPN, L.A. Lakers @ Utah 10:30 PM EST ESPN
Thursday: Denver @ Houston 8:00 PM EST NBATv
Friday: Indiana @ Boston 7:00 PM EST NBATv
Saturday: Philadelphia @ Minnesota 8:00 PM EST NBATv
Sunday: Charlotte @ Golden State 8:30 PM EST NBATv

NBA News

Celtics projecting confidence as losses pile up - http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2635 ... es-pile-up

Tom Ziller on what's left to be decided in the playoff race.
* Home court advantage in the Celtics-Pacers series in the first round.

* The 6-7-8 seeds in the East are unstable, and in theory any of the Nets, Pistons, and Heat could be caught by the chasing Magic (2.5 out of No. 6) or Hornets (3.5 out of No. 6). 538 thinks the Pistons and Nets have really strong chances of holding on, but the Heat might be in danger to the Magic (1 game back).

* The No. 1 seed in the West. The Warriors lead Denver by a half-game. Similarly, the Rockets and Blazers are still fighting over the No. 3 seed, which probably means avoiding Golden State until the West finals.

* The Nos. 5-8 seeds in the West could go in any order between the Clippers, Thunder, Jazz, and Spurs. It might be wide open until the last two or three days of the season. All will make the playoffs, but one of them is going to get saddled with the Warriors in Round 1.

* The third worst record in the NBA. This is a big one. The Knicks and Suns have basically locked in two of the three worst records in the NBA, which means a 14% shot at the No. 1 pick each. Cleveland is in position for the third worst record, but the Cavaliers are only two games worse than Bulls. Don't get cute, Cleveland! Finish weak!

* Two picks are at stakes in the middle of the lottery pack. The Mavericks are currently the sixth worst team in the NBA, and the Hawks nab their pick if it's outside the top five. The lottery will determine what happens there. But the Grizzlies lose their pick to the Celtics if it's outside the top eight, and Memphis could bolster their chances by losing. They could still realistically finish anywhere from 6th to 9th worst.

* And finally, the NBA has had at least one team win at least 60 games every non-lockout season since 2001. The Bucks need to go 5-3 or better to get there. But there's more incentive to rest than to close strong. So we'll see.
Flannery's Sunday shootaround: The Denver Nuggets are the NBA’s anachronistic contender - https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2019/3/24/ ... hootaround

The case for Harden as repeat MVP - https://www.thedreamshake.com/2019/3/23 ... as-nba-mvp

Are the Hawks good? - https://www.peachtreehoops.com/2019/3/2 ... o-analysis
Go Suns!

Og Snus!

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Shabazz
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Shabazz »

MVP is really a coin-toss for me. Harden and Giannis are both having unreal seasons and either would be worthy.

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Mori Chu »

Shabazz wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 11:05 am
MVP is really a coin-toss for me. Harden and Giannis are both having unreal seasons and either would be worthy.
I just hate the way Harden plays. All the juking and faking to try to bait the refs into calling fouls. Plus, the Rockets got off to a genuinely awful start partly due to the fact that Harden always shows up fat to start the season. Give me Giannis any day of the week.

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Split T
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Split T »

Giannis has had Milwaukee #1 in the nba pretty much all season. Plus his stat line is ridiculous and he’s also a top 5 defender. He’s an easy pick for me.

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Shabazz
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Shabazz »

Harden is having a historic season scoring the ball. Only Jordan (once) and Wilt ever averaged more PPG. He's averaging 8.2 more PPG than second place (!) + chipping in 7.5 APG. Regardless of their start, Houston is 3rd in a more difficult conference despite Paul and Capela missing significant time.

I'd probably lean Giannis, too, but it's not easy.

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Split T
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Split T »

Ya, Hardens scoring has been crazy...yet he still trails Giannis in win shares.

Giannis is putting up 27/12/6 with 1.5 blocks and 1.3 steals with a ts% of .644

I tried to find out if anyone has ever had a comparable season in regards to ast rate, reb rate, stl rate, blk rate and ts%.

Long story short, nobody has. If I dropped the assist rate and block rate down quite a bit, KG, Jokic, and Cousins show up, but with ts% in the .560 range.

Giannis is not that far off from prime Shaq, only he handles the ball, hits his free throws, can defend the perimeter, and has the makings of a jumpshot.

Harden is a fantastic offensive player who has taken full advantage of the modern game and analytics and would be the front runner in an offensive player of the year award, but he doesn’t impact much defensively.

So essentially, Harden is a 10 on offense and a 7 on defense.
Giannis is a 9.5 on offense and a 9.5 on defense.

Giannis wins!

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Mori Chu »

I agree with the folks pointing out that Giannis is much better on the defensive end. Harden is having one of the most exceptional offensive seasons in NBA history, but he is a total sieve on the other end of the floor.

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Superbone
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Superbone »

Giannis probably gets it since Harden already has one and it's the previous one at that.
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Split T
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Split T »

Superbone wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 1:48 pm
Giannis probably gets it since Harden already has one and it's the previous one at that.
Ya, the vote should probably be somewhat close, but it won’t because harden already won. Giannis will probably run away with it.

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Shabazz
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Shabazz »

Marty [Mori Chu] wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 1:21 pm
I agree with the folks pointing out that Giannis is much better on the defensive end. Harden is having one of the most exceptional offensive seasons in NBA history, but he is a total sieve on the other end of the floor.
He's not nearly as bad as he used to be.

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Indy
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Indy »

Shabazz wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 3:25 pm
Marty [Mori Chu] wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 1:21 pm
I agree with the folks pointing out that Giannis is much better on the defensive end. Harden is having one of the most exceptional offensive seasons in NBA history, but he is a total sieve on the other end of the floor.
He's not nearly as bad as he used to be.
And nobody here was making that argument when Nash was winning MVPs. It was all about how important he was to the team.

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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Mori Chu »

I don't think I have a double-standard about Nash vs Harden. They were both bad defenders, and yes, a bad defender can still be the MVP. But Nash had an immense impact on making his teammates better with his passing, his shooting, and his leadership. Harden is also an exceptional player, but Giannis is nearly as impactful on offense and MUCH more impactful on defense, for a team that has had a much better season. That's why Greekfreak wins to me.

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In2ition
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by In2ition »

I think when he wants to be Harden is an excellent defender.
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carey
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by carey »

Harden also is not revolutionizing the way the game is played. You can argue the reverse with his boring ass iso game.
Go Suns!

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JeremyG
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by JeremyG »

Nobody has ever averaged 36/7 in NBA history.
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Cap
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Cap »

JeremyG wrote:
Mon Mar 25, 2019 5:25 pm
Nobody has ever averaged 36/7 in NBA history.
Nobody but Wilt (5x), Elgin and Michael has ever averaged 36/anything.

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The Bobster
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by The Bobster »

Jusuf Nurkic suffered a compound leg fracture last night similar to the one suffered by Paul George -

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/2636 ... -fractures
Author of The Basketball Draft Fact Book: A History of Professional Basketball's College Drafts
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LazarusLong
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by LazarusLong »

Horrific. I think the reaction by the Nets players says it all.
Window is open again ... blue skies ahead?

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Superbone
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Superbone »

Yep, horrible and it really affects Portland's playoff hopes. It's a darn shame.
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Mori Chu
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Re: Around the League: Week 24 3/25-3/31

Post by Mori Chu »

Don't watch the replay if you are even slightly squeamish about injuries. It's up there with the Paul George and Shaun Livingston injuries and just behind the Kevin Ware one for most awful to see. You can even hear the injury as a loud awful sound. Just horrible. You hate to see that happen in the end of a mostly meaningless OT game right before the playoff stretch.

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