GremlinFool
Member
Lakers will win 67.
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2012 NBA Offseason |OT2| Lakers Fans Despise Freedom.
- Thread starter Rodeo Clown
- Start date
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Say this for Thunder fans. It's fun to be the good guys and underdogs, which they will be in the Heat-OKC-LAL rivalry.
Simmons completely undermines his "winner" award for Nuggets GM. He just created another team he can't beat. If he stays out of it, OKC is the lone WC powerhouse in 2 years. He just doubled his degree of difficulty w/o getting enough back to overcome it. Nuggets are losers, not b/c they didn't make their team better, but b/c they just built a concrete ceiling on their playoff potential
Simmons completely undermines his "winner" award for Nuggets GM. He just created another team he can't beat. If he stays out of it, OKC is the lone WC powerhouse in 2 years. He just doubled his degree of difficulty w/o getting enough back to overcome it. Nuggets are losers, not b/c they didn't make their team better, but b/c they just built a concrete ceiling on their playoff potential
Fenderputty
Banned
We lost two of the games to OKC because Kobe went into hero mode chucking up shots and giving the game away. It wasn't like OKC was some amazing offensive juggernaut that we couldn't contain. We just got better defensively too. They'll funnel everyone from the perimeter to the paint where Dwight will be waiting instead of a who know's who's going to show up Bynum.
I think the X factor here is Kobe honestly. He's probably going to have to make the biggest adjustment out of all the players on the team.
It will be interesting to see how the end of the games are ran. If the ball is in Nash's hands, I love our chances. If Kobe still demands to be a hero and doesn't get a long with Dwight then it's going to be Kobe, Shaq, Malone and the Glove all over again.
EDIT: it's not going to be our bench that hills us. Resigning Hill and adding Jamison at least make our bench average instead of atrocious.
I think the X factor here is Kobe honestly. He's probably going to have to make the biggest adjustment out of all the players on the team.
It will be interesting to see how the end of the games are ran. If the ball is in Nash's hands, I love our chances. If Kobe still demands to be a hero and doesn't get a long with Dwight then it's going to be Kobe, Shaq, Malone and the Glove all over again.
EDIT: it's not going to be our bench that hills us. Resigning Hill and adding Jamison at least make our bench average instead of atrocious.
Boombloxer
Member
For Perkins, someone mentioned he shot 33/9 with 70% fg last time?
And for the YNB vs Nash, it is only an athletic advantage. Matters less in the playoffs.
Although I'm going to enjoy watching Nash show him how to actually be a PG from the opposite side.
How many times will you see d12/Pau/Kobe get the rock immediately after being open vs Durant holding his hand up for a wide open three while YNB dribble-drives into 3 guys, leaps in the air and either turnover or attempts to dump it down low, followed by Durant just going *sigh* like you do at your baby bro because you know that he doesn't know any better?
For crunch-time? They'll probably share duties. An end game scenario where either Kobe, Nash, or Dwight lobs are available is basically a 2K cheat code.
What are you talking about?
Both the Heat and the Spurs literally ignored Ibaka completely unless he was 7ft from the rim.
And Scotty Brooks is actively encouraging Westbrook to stay dumb, Harden to stay free on defense, and no one has told KD to get his 6'10 ass in the post yet. Yal just got ran off the court by a team that relies on Mario Chalmers to hit clutch shots. Come on, man.
darkside31337
Tomodachi wa Mahou
Really don't see the Rockets being that bad, they were a .500 team last year. I think they'll be around there this year as well.
madmaxx350
Member
Like Boston was in 2010 w/ no Dwight to protect the rim...
Zeus Molecules
illegal immigrants are stealing our air
Or they can take it easy get a decent player to help speed up that rebuild. This year is a draft full of SG's why not try to get a really good one. If they get in the late lottery its a good tank.
Colonel Nasty
Member
Im pretty sure Boston lost that year. And all of a sudden Bynum is trash? Because all season I heard he was as good as Dwight....
Jake Tower
Banned
No! TANK MUST HAPPEN.
GremlinFool
Member
Westbrook has a habit of playing idiotically on both ends of the floor - gambling and overplaying balls, recklessly fouling, jacking up ridiculous shots - when he gets outplayed on offense. His decision-making was beyond impaired during the first two games of the Spurs series when he was forced to run through boundless screens. Nash dissecting Westbrook and the OKC defense will infuriate him to no end, begetting even more unnecessary, boorish mistakes.
OKC will lose in 5 to LA. It's lunacy to suggest otherwise.
OKC will lose in 5 to LA. It's lunacy to suggest otherwise.
Shit, if George Karl can reign in McGee (and he did tremendous work on him with the little time they had together last season) then Denver might give OKC a run for its money too.
Memphis gonna get smacked though lol
madmaxx350
Member
But they beat Miami to reach the Finals...
Future PhaZe
Member
Just be humble about this and accept the fact that your team is officially the underdog.
You won 3 games by like a point with two huge melt downs by the Lakers.
And we're going to pretend that adding Steve Nash and Dwight Howard wouldn't make the Lakers the favorites?
Cmon son
madmaxx350
Member
actual numbers and Walton coming to the rescue again.
Colonel Nasty
Member
WAT? The Heat Big 3 have been together for two years and been to the finals both times.
OKC didn't have Maynor last year. He's not some big name player or anything like that, but he has a huge impact on that team simply because he gets the ball out of Westbrook's hands and allows Harden to play the SG like God intended. With him coming off the bench instead of Fisher, OKC improves dramatically.
Does a zombie apocalypse start in Minnesota next year or something?
MorisUkunRasik
Member
Celts weren't in the finals in 2010, they lost to LA in 08/09 and The Heat didn't have Bron/Bosh til 2010/2011.
Fenderputty
Banned
That's what I'm' hoping for. Though even as a Kobe fan, I will openly admit he has a habbit of going into hero mode. We've lived and died by Kobe for a long, long time now. The biggest transition any player will have to make next year is Kobe. It will be intestesting to see if he's willing to share duties or now. I have hope though. If he's willing to share it with anyone, it's Nash.
Did I ever claim I'm proud of how the team played against Miami?
All I said is that Perkins and Ibaka are valuable pieces and should help us against the Lakers. Perk provides at least some resistance to Dwight, while Ibaka is already a beast and still improving on both ends.
Edit: and as you mentioned, Maynor's return makes our bench go from mediocre to fantastic.
Man if Karl can stabilize that brain of his to some of that playoff form we saw, he would be a god. He had good stretches where he wasn't as dumb as Ibaka.
benjipwns
Banned
Yeah, a nice backup SG when they have two and a half on the roster is really going to help them contend.
Just punt the last year the luxury tax is favorable, see if Rose can come back and put you over, then you can gut the team. Rose is humble enough to not raise a fuss.
Boombloxer
Member
Yea, Maynor's return can't be understated either.
madmaxx350
Member
Yea, you're right and I meant Bron's Cavs.
It's nice that you guys have a bench you consider mediocre when they give you way more than 27 pts a game ...
I only brought up Miami because you kept going on saying that their interior passing improved when its simply not the case - every good team that OKC faced ignored Ibaka completely. Like they should.
Ibaka is the most overrated defensive player in the league too. For every block he gets, he gives up two shot opportunities and a rebound. He's even worse than Keon Clark in that regard. Shit, Ibaka was getting pants'd by everyone with a pump fake last year.
StickSoldier
Member
fuck, I think all of us could run an organization better than most of the gms currently in the NBA. I still can't wrap my head around this trade....Fuck
Iron E Man
Member
It'll make Jerry money so he doesnt give a fuck.
Future PhaZe
Member
McGee was just as dumb for the Nuggets as he was for the Wiz.
Of course he was due for a few good playoff games. All dude had to do was focus for like 5 games and he was going to get 10mil + a year for it.
With money in his pockets there are no fucks left to give.
Of course he was due for a few good playoff games. All dude had to do was focus for like 5 games and he was going to get 10mil + a year for it.
With money in his pockets there are no fucks left to give.
And he's still only 22 and has a great work ethic. To suggest that he won't improve dramatically is foolish.
This is also a possibility...
George Karl is the guy to get it done though. I also think that Faried's 2nd year should be interesting as well. If dude learns how to play some defense, then yamotherfuckinghoo.
Knux-Future
Banned
McGee gave fucks before?
All you have is next year.
Is OKC really going to keep both and dole out 100 mil between those 4 guys when its already clear that Ibaka is the worst of all of them? When he's 28, sure - but that's far into the future and he didn't show that much of an improvement considering he's one of the most ignored and uncontested players in the league last year.
MorisUkunRasik
Member
Nice stretch of games:
Nov 18 HOU
Dec 2 ORL
Dec 4 HOU
Dec 7 OKC
Jan 17 MIA
Nov 18 HOU
Dec 2 ORL
Dec 4 HOU
Dec 7 OKC
Jan 17 MIA
wut
StickSoldier
Member
seriously, if the lakers don't win the finals this year i'm gonna be so surprised.
Miami and OKC are pretty pretty good, this isn't exacty early 2000s talent pool for the Lakers to dominate
Colonel Nasty
Member
HO-LY SHIT.
They probably should've fired Brooks.
Shit, they didn't even have to replace him with Phil... I honestly think Pringles would be a better fit than Brooks.
ClovingWestbrook
Banned
Why? I am not expecting them to win it.
The real REAL prize of this whole situation has been the Lakers getting rid of Andrew Bynum. THAT is the real gift to LakersNation. That we were able to get Dwight in addition is just the cherry on top.
I don't really believe in that team so maybe it's my cynical side showing. I think it's pretty safe to say they lose a core member after this coming season then things would decline further from there.
MorisUkunRasik
Member
His "fuck the critics, just do you!" philosophy is holding them back.
I trust in Presti to make the right moves. Heck, it might be best to trade Ibaka for perimeter shooting and try to beat LA from the outside in.
I'll definitely admit that the Dwight trade put OKC in a tough spot, because using our amnesty on Perkins (a widely-discussed solution to our cap issues) isn't very realistic now unless Cole Aldrich turns out not to suck (and all indications are that he does).
The fight for the 1-seed is going to be fierce this year. Whoever gets it gets to avoid the other two top seeds until the WCF.
ReturnOfTheRAT
Member
Eyenga spoke too soon.
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