2021-22 Around the NBA Thread

[Yuma]

I wish Alex Caruso the best... just not against the Suns.

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Literally when he first played in the NBA he was one of the worst players I have ever seen. He has improved 1,000%. Honestly, over several seasons, I give him props for improving his game so much. I am glad he's out of LA. He was that hustle guy a contending team needs. It's funny to say, Alex leaving hurts them at the hustle level.

 

[Mainstreet]

Literally when he first played in the NBA he was one of the worst players I have ever seen. He has improved 1,000%. Honestly, over several seasons, I give him props for improving his game so much. I am glad he's out of LA. He was that hustle guy a contending team needs. It's funny to say, Alex leaving hurts them at the hustle level.

I respect Alex Caruso because he is all about effort.

 

[HeavyDevil]

I wish Alex Caruso the best... just not against the Suns.

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During our series with the Lakers, my brother nicknamed Caruso "Baby Voldemort".

 

[AzStevenCal]

During our series with the Lakers, my brother nicknamed Caruso "Baby Voldemort".

Not bad but I think I would have gone with Wormtail.

 

[Mainstreet]

During our series with the Lakers, my brother nicknamed Caruso "Baby Voldemort".

Somehow I missed out on Harry Potter but I looked it up the image so I know what you are referring too.

 

[95pro]

Somehow I missed out on Harry Potter but I looked it up the image so I know what you are referring too.

you’re not the only one

 

[Mainstreet]

Jared Dudley to join the Mavericks coaching staff. Yea Jared!

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[Yuma]

Wishing Jared the best! Over/Under on his weight since he no longer has to work out as a coach?

 

[Hoop Head]

I like Dudley a lot. I'm a little surprised he's going to Dallas to coach but I guess it makes sense since Kidd was an assistant in LA. Kidd also coached him in Milwaukee. I'd be surprised if Jared isn't a head coach within 5 years though. He has a good mind for the game.

 

[Mainstreet]

The Mavericks may have been wise to hire Jared as he explains how to defend Luka.

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[Mainstreet]

It looks like Paul Millsap would be content to be a third big or a small ball 5 for a good team but he appears to be looking for more than the minimum.

The team most rumored to have interest is the Warriors per a report by Jake Fischer August 24, 2021 of Bleacher Report.

 

[Mainstreet]

Top active ten active players with the highest winning percentage. Yeah, Chris Paul is on there at #10.

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[Mainstreet]

ESPN has reportedly take Rachel Nichols off the The Jump and all NBA programming.

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[Hoop Head]

Well there's a story that's sure to follow that move. I'm surprised, not disappointed though.

 

[JCSunsfan]

ESPN has reportedly take Rachel Nichols off the The Jump and all NBA programming.

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I think the girl who replaced her is better. More professional. RN always had more of a TMZ vibe to her than a real commentator interviewer.

 

[95pro]

I think the girl who replaced her is better. More professional. RN always had more of a TMZ vibe to her than a real commentator interviewer.

I'm sure they're taking into account other factors too like race and age, body condition. Nichols kept everything real casual, but honestly people dont tune in to see or listen to her.

 

[Mainstreet]

I really don't follow ESPN commentators /programs much unless it's right before or after a game.

I do follow the professional drafts which they carry.

I'm not into a lot of opinion stuff.

 

[Hoop Head]

ESPN has been generic for years with their presentation and personalities. No one is engaging or entertaining enough to get viewers to tune in regularly.

On top of that Sportscenter has been replaced by a combo of Twitter/YouTube as far as providing instant highlights and scores. No one has to wait until 8:30 to see what happened in the sports world that day anymore. They can get updates on what they care about with the the swipe of their fingers in seconds.

Other than actual live sports, ESPN is largely a product of an outdated time. Its crazy how quick it became outdated but they didn't help themselves by sticking to the way things had always been done rather than updating things for a more on the go world.

 

[Mainstreet]

I might watch ESPN more if they had segments where they mostly covered active news stories about a particular sport. Maybe they do but I simply don't follow it.

For example if they had Adrian Wojnarowski and other analysts on for a couple of hours daily covering NBA news with none of the fluff I might be interested. The world of twitter has spoiled a lot of fans including myself. I want news quick and fast. I'm not looking to be entertained.

 

[AzStevenCal]

ESPN has been generic for years with their presentation and personalities. No one is engaging or entertaining enough to get viewers to tune in regularly.

On top of that Sportscenter has been replaced by a combo of Twitter/YouTube as far as providing instant highlights and scores. No one has to wait until 8:30 to see what happened in the sports world that day anymore. They can get updates on what they care about with the the swipe of their fingers in seconds.

Other than actual live sports, ESPN is largely a product of an outdated time. Its crazy how quick it became outdated but they didn't help themselves by sticking to the way things had always been done rather than updating things for a more on the go world.

Actually I think ESPN has changed considerably from it's origins but maybe it's not as apparent if you mostly watched them in the 90's? They've changed so much IMO that they drove away long time viewers such as myself several years ago.

Originally ESPN was about the game (or the match etc.) and the people involved but it didn't just focus on the bad stuff nor did it revolve around the on air personalities at the expense of the sports they were covering. The network(s) covered a lot of sports but they really focused on the major US sports and while they always spent more time talking about the big clubs, they kept you up to date about the smaller city franchises too.

As I recall it wasn't until the mid to late 80's or so that they gradually started shifting their focus towards just the Lakers or the Yankees or the Cowboys or the quarterbacks or the slam dunks or the number one picks - unless of course there was a controversy or a situation that they could convince the audience might be a controversy and then anyone was fair game even if it involved the lesser clubs or players.

Anyway, the Network has many flaws, the one that bugs me the most is the instant overreaction crap they live on. Dallas loses opening weekend, they spend hours discussing whether Jerry Jones should fire the Head Coach. Lebron sits out a game and they argue over whether his career is finished or not. A 19 year old rookie makes a basket from half court and they argue over whether he's the greatest shooter of all time. One team wins the first game of a series, they talk like the series is over and then argue about who is to blame for the failure. It's just lame.

 

[95pro]

Actually I think ESPN has changed considerably from it's origins but maybe it's not as apparent if you mostly watched them in the 90's? They've changed so much IMO that they drove away long time viewers such as myself several years ago.

Originally ESPN was about the game (or the match etc.) and the people involved but it didn't just focus on the bad stuff nor did it revolve around the on air personalities at the expense of the sports they were covering. The network(s) covered a lot of sports but they really focused on the major US sports and while they always spent more time talking about the big clubs, they kept you up to date about the smaller city franchises too.

As I recall it wasn't until the mid to late 80's or so that they gradually started shifting their focus towards just the Lakers or the Yankees or the Cowboys or the quarterbacks or the slam dunks or the number one picks - unless of course there was a controversy or a situation that they could convince the audience might be a controversy and then anyone was fair game even if it involved the lesser clubs or players.

Anyway, the Network has many flaws, the one that bugs me the most is the instant overreaction crap they live on. Dallas loses opening weekend, they spend hours discussing whether Jerry Jones should fire the Head Coach. Lebron sits out a game and they argue over whether his career is finished or not. A 19 year old rookie makes a basket from half court and they argue over whether he's the greatest shooter of all time. One team wins the first game of a series, they talk like the series is over and then argue about who is to blame for the failure. It's just lame.

too many hot takes

 

[Yuma]

ESPN is like MTV, great early on, then MTV quit playing music videos! Best when ESPN was early on covering many sports, and was actually world wide. Now it's just the same stories all day long. Their shows are stupid for the most part. I want news, not opinions from 1,000 people on a certain story. Tell me actual news from many more sports. I like Premier League Soccer. It's followed by most of the world. They have epic things happening this season. You would hardly know the top two, arguably, best players of all time were switching teams. Or any related stories to those stories. There's lots of news out there they chose to ignore.

 

[PDXChris]

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Great trade for all teams. Portland gets a legit PF finally, Chicago got a 1st rounder and a great bench player who plays defense and can finish at the rim and Cleveland got a soft Euro! Love it!

Also, the Bulls second 5 might be better than last year's starting 5!

PG Coby White
SG Alex Caruso
SF Jones Jr
PF Marko Simonovic
C Tony Bradley

Plus a couple of young guys at the end of the bench to develop.
Ayo Dosunmu
Tony Brown Jr.
Javonte Green

 

[Mainstreet]

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Great trade for all teams. Portland gets a legit PF finally, Chicago got a 1st rounder and a great bench player who plays defense and can finish at the rim and Cleveland got a soft Euro! Love it!

Also, the Bulls second 5 might be better than last year's starting 5!

PG Coby White
SG Alex Caruso
SF Jones Jr
PF Marko Simonovic
C Tony Bradley

I like what Cleveland gets in the trade the most... Lauri Markkanen.

 

[AzStevenCal]

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Great trade for all teams. Portland gets a legit PF finally, Chicago got a 1st rounder and a great bench player who plays defense and can finish at the rim and Cleveland got a soft Euro! Love it!

Also, the Bulls second 5 might be better than last year's starting 5!

PG Coby White
SG Alex Caruso
SF Jones Jr
PF Marko Simonovic
C Tony Bradley

I think you might be overrating Jones Jr a bit. He played pretty solid defense the 2 or 3 years he was in Miami but I wasn't impressed by him in Portland.

All the players involved have flaws but I like the trade better for both Cleveland and Portland right now. Granted, the Bulls got a protected first and a second rounder so the true loss or gain won't be known for awhile. Derrick is still only 24 so maybe he raises his game considerably from here on but if the Jones of the past is the best you get from this deal, I think you're going to be very disappointed down the road.

Regardless, Markkanen had to go, and this trade notwithstanding, the Bulls have had a very strong offseason.