2024-25 NBA Season / Playoffs | Page 37 | Syracusefan.com
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2024-25 NBA Season / Playoffs

Zelda Zonk said:
I don’t understand. That would displace the discussion over rigging the lottery, but how does it disincentivize teams from tanking? If you don’t have a playoff team, you’ll still tank, to get the best possible pick. The very worst team would get the #1, but other teams would still be competing for the next best set of picks. And it’s not every year that there’s a consensus #1.

I also don’t think it’s such a bad thing that not so bad teams still have a chance at top picks. They are trying. Nearly making the playoffs sorta indicates you are committed to winning and have committed money/resources. Which, to me, is a good argument in favor of those teams having a chance at a generational talent. Some franchises are just poorly run, the owners don’t spend, and the fanbases are weak. Why reward that?

It’s kind of a matter of philosophies.

I think I do favor a more stringent statistical or structural rule to maybe have the worst five or so teams eligible for the 1 (and maybe 2), and then a different weighting system for the rest.

I think it may be different with basketball vs football and baseball because one player can have much more of an impact, and baseball and football drafts are much longer and teams pick based on specific needs, not necessarily the highest rated prospect. If you don’t need a QB, you’re not drafting a QB even if he’s the best player. In hoops, you’re drafting Flagg no matter who’s on your roster.
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But in football you are trading the pick if you’re first and there’s a great qb prospect.

Definitely though the value of one basketball player is higher than the other sports (though I would probably say a great qb is equal to a great nba player)
 
Knicks411 said:
But in football you are trading the pick if you’re first and there’s a great qb prospect.

Definitely though the value of one basketball player is higher than the other sports (though I would probably say a great qb is equal to a great nba player)
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NBA teams can trade down, too, no? Like, didn't the Mavs guy say they're not going to trade the 1?
Yes, you're right— a great QB is big, but i think there's maybe less certainty about whether a QB is really going to amount to a superstar. When they do get it right, though, yeah. What i was trying to say, though, was... if you're Washington and already have a young stud QB, if you had the first pick and Cam Ward was at the top of everyone's board, you're not drafting him. Whereas if you're any team in the NBA and you have an all star at Flagg's position, you're still drafting him. You'd just shift one player or the other to a different forward position or somesuch.
 
Pacers had more experience and judgment than Cleveland. The Cavs will learn from this. This is one of those typical "lose early, come back with a vengeance" scenarios, since they have so much young talent under contract, and have made such great strides in the last couple years.

Tatum blowing out his achilles should be the end of the Celtics. I have great respect for what the Knicks have done, but boy, they would be so much better with another big man, and a couple scorers in their second unit. Enjoy the ride, but they seem a couple pieces short of a championship team.

That's what they have to figure out in the offseason, without really any draft picks or assets. Hopefully they will find some people who want to play with them for veteran's minimum, or midlevel exceptions, if they have any.
 
The other thing I would say about the series so far; it's terrible that Steph Curry got hurt. Jimmy Butler had that 30+ game, but unfortunately they wasted that effort, and are now in a world of trouble.

Thunder / Nuggets is a good matchup. Kind of reminds me of Pistons / Knicks. I think OKC will see it through and make the Finals. Knicks have a great chance, too.
 
Zelda Zonk said:
I don’t understand. That would displace the discussion over rigging the lottery, but how does it disincentivize teams from tanking? If you don’t have a playoff team, you’ll still tank, to get the best possible pick. The very worst team would get the #1, but other teams would still be competing for the next best set of picks. And it’s not every year that there’s a consensus #1.

I also don’t think it’s such a bad thing that not so bad teams still have a chance at top picks. They are trying. Nearly making the playoffs sorta indicates you are committed to winning and have committed money/resources. Which, to me, is a good argument in favor of those teams having a chance at a generational talent. Some franchises are just poorly run, the owners don’t spend, and the fanbases are weak. Why reward that?

It’s kind of a matter of philosophies.

I think I do favor a more stringent statistical or structural rule to maybe have the worst five or so teams eligible for the 1 (and maybe 2), and then a different weighting system for the rest.

I think it may be different with basketball vs football and baseball because one player can have much more of an impact, and baseball and football drafts are much longer and teams pick based on specific needs, not necessarily the highest rated prospect. If you don’t need a QB, you’re not drafting a QB even if he’s the best player. In hoops, you’re drafting Flagg no matter who’s on your roster.
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Oh it won’t prevent tanking, but it will prevent people claiming things are rigged. Not that I think it’s rigged, but apparently a lot of fans do. That said I’m kind of angry Dallas got the first pick because I think Nico and ownership are a bunch of buffoons.
 
Let's Go Nugs!
Both teams going on big runs when down double digits. Jokic got some good rest in the 2nd quarter so hopefully he's strong down the stretch.
Edit - Booooooooooooooo
 
Last edited:
cuseattle said:
Let's Go Nugs!
Both teams going on big runs when down double digits. Jokic got some good rest in the 2nd quarter so hopefully he's strong down the stretch.
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They’re gonna wish they didn’t let this one go. Huge missed opportunity.

They were up 9 and then a bad Gordon drive led to a transition 3, and then they went forever without a basket.

Shooting 41% which includes 17-25 from Jokic is… something.
 
Cusefan0307 said:
Michael Porter Jr has been awful in the playoffs.
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He has been - bad shoulder or not. The guy that kills them though in my opinion is Braun. On no planet is that guy a 40 minute a game player for a team with championship aspirations.
 
Knicks411 said:
Funny they never just rigged the lottery for the lakers when they were in the lottery every year.
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Three consecutive years. The picks were Julius Randle. D’Angelo Russell, and Lonzo Ball.
 
kirbivore said:
Three consecutive years. The picks were Julius Randle. D’Angelo Russell, and Lonzo Ball.
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I mean, people complained that it was rigged for Russell and Lonzo those years lol. ESPECIALLY with Boston and LA picking #1 and #2 and LA being gifted the LA kid.

Again though, I know it's not actually rigged lol, but the conspiracy theorists were definitely freaking out back then too.
 
Melancer46 said:
I mean, people complained that it was rigged for Russell and Lonzo those years lol. ESPECIALLY with Boston and LA picking #1 and #2 and LA being gifted the LA kid.

Again though, I know it's not actually rigged lol, but the conspiracy theorists were definitely freaking out back then too.
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It's just insane because no matter what happens people have their conspiracies ready. It's so tiring (so why am i engaging? Good question!)
 
Knicks411 said:
It's just insane because no matter what happens people have their conspiracies ready. It's so tiring (so why am i engaging? Good question!)
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Yep, every year you can argue conspiracy for like 10 of the 14 teams in the lottery lol.

Sidenote: looking back at past lotteries, the draft order not changing at all for the Simmons/Ingram draft is kinda nuts. The likelihood of that scenario playing out was basically identical to Dallas' chances of getting the #1 pick this year.
 
I saw an amazing stat (fact?) that this is the first time since the Nets moved to Brooklyn that they actually are making a lottery pick.

Melancer46 said:
Yep, every year you can argue conspiracy for like 10 of the 14 teams in the lottery lol.

Sidenote: looking back at past lotteries, the draft order not changing at all for the Simmons/Ingram draft is kinda nuts. The likelihood of that scenario playing out was basically identical to Dallas' chances of getting the #1 pick this year.
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The main takeaway I have (and that helps frame my thinking on this) is that any single individual outcome in the lottery is extremely unlikely. But there has to be an outcome!
 
Knicks411 said:
I saw an amazing stat (fact?) that this is the first time since the Nets moved to Brooklyn that they actually are making a lottery pick.



The main takeaway I have (and that helps frame my thinking on this) is that any single individual outcome in the lottery is extremely unlikely. But there has to be an outcome!
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Yeah, I think those three teams staying in place has to be the most likely exact outcome and it's still only a 1.8% chance lol
 
Does it make me a bad person if I take sinister delight every time someone is shown on the jumbotron and they reach for their cameraphone only for the image to switch to the next idiot before they can get a pic of themself?
 
Newhouser said:
He has been - bad shoulder or not. The guy that kills them though in my opinion is Braun. On no planet is that guy a 40 minute a game player for a team with championship aspirations.
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I’m not sure which is cornier: Braun asking for his minutes to be tied into Jokic’s or the coaching staff granting his request (technically two coaching staffs).
 
Newhouser said:
He has been - bad shoulder or not. The guy that kills them though in my opinion is Braun. On no planet is that guy a 40 minute a game player for a team with championship aspirations.
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I'm not really sure what Denver does with him. Completely different player but it's a little reminiscent of Eric Bledsoe where he's quite good in the regular season, but it's now 3 post seasons in a row that his shooting %'s have dropped off an absolute cliff. Like a 15% decrease every postseason.
 
Man, sucks that Curry went down. That would have been a good series. GS is clearly much much worse without him. Shocker..
 

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