NBA 2024-25 NBA Season

[Filthy Dangles]

Just wait until Bronny comes in and leads the Lakers to the NBA Final.

That dude couldn’t lead an AAu team to a championship

 

[Stylizer1]

yes, 2013-2018 was the worst stretch in lakers franchise history. no big name FA was willing to sign with them until lebron

You mean they couldn't buy a championship. I would say Lebron wasn't much of a rescue. It was more about having the spotlight on him/access to Hollywood/being considered a Laker great, which he won't be..

A month ago, the media had the Lakers going to the WCF. Now they are in a downfall and it’s ’well, lakers need more pieces’.

Which one is it then?

Lebron deserves to be on a losing team considering he always jumps ship when his team has exhausted every possible dollar and asset to make him happy.

He will go down as the greatest ball hog of all time.

 

[Terry Yake]

You mean they couldn't buy a championship. I would say Lebron wasn't much of a rescue. It was more about having the spotlight on him/access to Hollywood/being considered a Laker great, which he won't be..

isn't that the whole point of free agency? he absolutely rescued the franchise. the lakers were going nowhere before he signed

 

[Stylizer1]

isn't that the whole point of free agency? he absolutely rescued the franchise. the lakers were going nowhere before he signed

Other than a covid chip its been been pretty bad.

 

[Terry Yake]

Other than a covid chip its been been pretty bad.

could've been better if lebron and pelinka hadn't blown up a title winning team to bring westbrick in

 

[HisIceness]

You know, I could probably miss 75 3s too. I look forward to my 5 yr $50 million any day now

 

[Terry Yake]

You know, I could probably miss 75 3s too. I look forward to my 5 yr $50 million any day now

imagine paying to go watch two bad teams just chucking up 3 after 3

 

[Jack Straw]

Embiid with his third broken face and now McCain, probably leading the pack for RotY, needs meniscus surgery.



Someone needs to start sacrificing live chickens or something to get this curse on the Sixers lifted.

 

[Stylizer1]

could've been better if lebron and pelinka hadn't blown up a title winning team to bring westbrick in

Did they win a title, yes but there were circumstances. They played 20 less games had a break did a seating tournament and won. Would have been a lot different if they played 82 and won it. I think The Lakers caught lightning in a bottle more than they were a true caliber contender.

 

[Terry Yake]

Did they win a title, yes but there were circumstances. They played 20 less games had a break did a seating tournament and won. Would have been a lot different if they played 82 and won it. I think The Lakers caught lightning in a bottle more than they were a true caliber contender.

yeah, that's just pure cope. they were #1 in the west at the time of the shutdown and had just beaten the bucks and clippers in back to back games. not to mention they were the 3rd best defensive team in the league. you could maybe make that argument for miami, but the lakers were a top 3 team all season

 

[Stylizer1]

yeah, that's just pure cope. they were #1 in the west at the time of the shutdown and had just beaten the bucks and clippers in back to back games. not to mention they were the 3rd best defensive team in the league. you could maybe make that argument for miami, but the lakers were a top 3 team all season

We both know regular season means nothing. Were they good, yes, but that last 20 games is when teams start turning it up for the playoffs. One off games don't mean anything to a 7 game series. Their chip is between a NBA cup and a real chip.

2 of Lebron 4 championships came from shortened season.

 

[Terry Yake]

We both know regular season means nothing. Were they good, yes, but that last 20 games is when teams start turning it up for the playoffs. One off games don't mean anything to a 7 game series. Their chip is between a NBA cup and a real chip.

2 of Lebron 4 championships came from shortened season.

and if your team had won, you'd be calling it the hardest championship ever

like i said, pure cope

 

[Stylizer1]

and if your team had won, you'd be calling it the hardest championship ever

like i said, pure cope

My team did win when GS were all injured and we had Leonard for 1 season. I know if GS was healthy we wouldn't have even won a game. History books will mark it as a chip but it's not like we defeated one of the greats at full strength.

If Toronto won in the bubble I would have been the first one to say "yeah, but". Short cuts are short cuts no matter who takes them and for what reason...........like only going to teams who can afford to buy championships.

 

[Terry Yake]

My team did win when GS were all injured and we had Leonard for 1 season. I know if GS was healthy we wouldn't have even won a game. History books will mark it as a chip but it's not like we defeated one of the greats at full strength.

If Toronto won in the bubble I would have been the first one to say "yeah, but". Short cuts are short cuts no matter who takes them and for what reason...........like only going to teams who can afford to buy championships.

lebron took a shortcut joining a lakers team that had been one of the worst teams in the league for 5 seasons prior?

did you expect the highest profile player in the league to have signed with the hornets or pistons?

 

[Stylizer1]

lebron took a shortcut joining a lakers team that had been one of the worst teams in the league for 5 seasons prior?

did you expect the highest profile player in the league to have signed with the hornets or pistons?

But the lakers went from the worst to first no? They were willing to buy who ever they could to win. It doesnt always work but how many teams can offer what the Lakers can. There's a reason why he went to LA and Miami. Going back to Cleveland was a vanity project were he though he could lead them to multiples but couldn't.

He could have tried winning in Washington.

 

[Terry Yake]

But the lakers went from the worst to first no? They were willing to buy who ever they could to win. It doesnt always work but how many teams can offer what the Lakers can. There's a reason why he went to LA and Miami. Going back to Cleveland was a vanity project were he though he could lead them to multiples but couldn't.

He could have tried winning in Washington.

they went from 11th in the west in 17/18 to 10th in 18/19 with lebron to 1st in 19/20

lakers didn't "buy" AD though. they traded three up and coming young players and a bunch of picks for him. after lebron and AD, the third and fourth highest paid guys on that team were danny green and KCP. not exactly guys you "buy" titles with

no serious player who cares about winning is signing with washington

 

[Stylizer1]

they went from 11th in the west in 17/18 to 10th in 18/19 with Lebron injured and a veteran roster to 1st in 19/20 with AD. They Also added Dwight Howard, Danny Green, Markieff Morris , Rondo from the year before. These 4 players contributed almost 30 points a game on that run.

​

In his first year they signed a bunch of players to 1 year contracts knowing they were going to need the cap space to bring in AD.

They bought Lebron and A.D. and filled out the rest of the roster from the players they got over 2 seasons on cheap contracts because Lebron and A.D. made up more than half of the cap.

 

[Terry Yake]

they went from 11th in the west in 17/18 to 10th in 18/19 with Lebron injured and a veteran roster to 1st in 19/20 with AD. They Also added Dwight Howard, Danny Green, Markieff Morris , Rondo from the year before. These 4 players contributed almost 30 points a game on that run.

​

In his first year they signed a bunch of players to 1 year contracts knowing they were going to need the cap space to bring in AD.

They bought Lebron and A.D. and filled out the rest of the roster from the players they got over 2 seasons on cheap contracts because Lebron and A.D. made up more than half of the cap.

trading your future for a star is not "buying" a title. it's a gamble more than anything because no one can tell the future. the clips and the SGA trade is a great example of that same gamble gone wrong.

bringing in those vets was just good managing by pelinka to address certain needs. again, not "buying" anything. if that was the case, then every title is bought because every championship team is comprised of key guys brought in via FA

 

[Stylizer1]

Anyway you acquire superstar players and surround them with competent vets willing to take pay cuts because its their best chance at winning a championship is the definition of buying a championship. The opposite would be drafting your stars and building a solid roster around them with depth and gradually earning your way to a championship. All of the great teams did this with the exception of the Lakers. Boston was the first modern day team to assemble a team through trades/free agency to win a championship. Pierce was in the league 9 seasons and made it to the east finals once early in his career. Garnett and Allen both were in the league 12 seasons and were on teams that had already peaked and were going into a rebuild. They struck lightning in a bottle and were a championship caliber team for the next 4 seasons. Houston with Olajuwon and Drexler tried adding Barkley and that didn't work. When Drexler retired the brought in Pippen which also failed. They were trying to maintain a level of play with an aging roster. Golden State drafter Green, Curry, and Thompson and built a roster around them. They won a championship. I remember it like it was yesterday Lebron saying they needed to add another player to compete and he was calling out his owner. The media were all saying Carmelo Anthony was going to go to Cleveland. GS turned around and added Kevin Durant. San Antonio drafted Robinson, Duncan, Parker, Ginobli, Elliot, etc.

It's one thing to add star players to an aging veteran team to put them over the top and another to completely wipe out the teams players and futures to bring a roster meant to win today. Even the Lakers of the 70's and 80's built most of their core through the draft while Abdul-Jabar was on still on the roster.

It's always a gamble.

 

[Terry Yake]

Anyway you acquire superstar players and surround them with competent vets willing to take pay cuts because its their best chance at winning a championship is the definition of buying a championship. The opposite would be drafting your stars and building a solid roster around them with depth and gradually earning your way to a championship. All of the great teams did this with the exception of the Lakers. Boston was the first modern day team to assemble a team through trades/free agency to win a championship. Pierce was in the league 9 seasons and made it to the east finals once early in his career. Garnett and Allen both were in the league 12 seasons and were on teams that had already peaked and were going into a rebuild. They struck lightning in a bottle and were a championship caliber team for the next 4 seasons. Houston with Olajuwon and Drexler tried adding Barkley and that didn't work. When Drexler retired the brought in Pippen which also failed. They were trying to maintain a level of play with an aging roster. Golden State drafter Green, Curry, and Thompson and built a roster around them. They won a championship. I remember it like it was yesterday Lebron saying they needed to add another player to compete and he was calling out his owner. The media were all saying Carmelo Anthony was going to go to Cleveland. GS turned around and added Kevin Durant. San Antonio drafted Robinson, Duncan, Parker, Ginobli, Elliot, etc.

It's one thing to add star players to an aging veteran team to put them over the top and another to completely wipe out the teams players and futures to bring a roster meant to win today. Even the Lakers of the 70's and 80's built most of their core through the draft while Abdul-Jabar was on still on the roster.

It's always a gamble.

rondo and avery bradley were the only vets on that roster who took paycuts compared to their last contracts, and bradley didn't even play in the bubble. rondo originally signed for 1 yr 9 mil prior to 18-19 and then re-signed for 2 years 5 mil prior to 19-20. bradley signed for 2 yrs 9.7 mil. green was owed 14.6 mil. dwight was brought in last minute when cousins got hurt. morris was signed for cheap using the disabled player exemption they got because of cousins injury. so at the end of the day, rondo was the only difference maker on that team who took a paycut to join the team

so the lakers should have just stayed the course and continued missing the playoffs instead of making a trade that'd turn them into contenders....just because?

the 04 pistons core were all acquired via trades with the exception of tayshaun prince. do you have an issue with how they built that team?

 

[Stylizer1]

rondo and avery bradley were the only vets on that roster who took paycuts compared to their last contracts, and bradley didn't even play in the bubble. rondo originally signed for 1 yr 9 mil prior to 18-19 and then re-signed for 2 years 5 mil prior to 19-20. bradley signed for 2 yrs 9.7 mil. green was owed 14.6 mil. dwight was brought in last minute when cousins got hurt. morris was signed for cheap using the disabled player exemption they got because of cousins injury. so at the end of the day, rondo was the only difference maker on that team who took a paycut to join the team

so the lakers should have just stayed the course and continued missing the playoffs instead of making a trade that'd turn them into contenders....just because?

the 04 pistons core were all acquired via trades with the exception of tayshaun prince. do you have an issue with how they built that team?

Nope because we are talking about how the Lakers bought their championship. The Lakers went out and got the best player in the league and then got the best big man in the league. I can't imagine a scenario where that wouldn't catapult you ahead of 95% of the league over night. Did the pistons add the 2 of the best players in the league? No. Did they build a championship caliber team, yep. They took a way bigger gamble and it paid off. Ben Wallace and Billups, were not established. Rashid Wallace and Hamilton were Allstars. Dumars built a team.

Under Dumars Wallace won defensive player of the year and Corliss Williamson won 6th man of the year. That's scouting. They traded Stackhouse who was 1 season removed from finishing 2nd overall in scoring averaging 30 points a game for Richard Hamilton who was not as good but fit in the system better. again, scouting. Now, Clifford Robinson was a solid 12 year NBA vet with not much hardware but good numbers. Bring in Larry brown was the perfect move.

The year Detroit won Richard Hamilton was their highest scorer with 17.6 points a game. Ben Wallace was their only Allstar that season. If that wasn't enough they went on to beat a team with Shaq, Kobe, Malone, Payton, and Fisher.

For 5 Seasons the core of that roster stayed together and they had a lot of success.

There could not be a better example of building a team that won a championship the right way. Comparing that to what the Lakers did is not the same thing.

 

[Terry Yake]

Nope because we are talking about how the Lakers bought their championship. The Lakers went out and got the best player in the league and then got the best big man in the league. I can't imagine a scenario where that wouldn't catapult you ahead of 95% of the league over night. Did the pistons add the 2 of the best players in the league? No. Did they build a championship caliber team, yep. They took a way bigger gamble and it paid off. Ben Wallace and Billups, were not established. Rashid Wallace and Hamilton were Allstars. Dumars built a team.

Under Dumars Wallace won defensive player of the year and Corliss Williamson won 6th man of the year. That's scouting. They traded Stackhouse who was 1 season removed from finishing 2nd overall in scoring averaging 30 points a game for Richard Hamilton who was not as good but fit in the system better. again, scouting. Now, Clifford Robinson was a solid 12 year NBA vet with not much hardware but good numbers. Bring in Larry brown was the perfect move.

The year Detroit won Richard Hamilton was their highest scorer with 17.6 points a game. Ben Wallace was their only Allstar that season. If that wasn't enough they went on to beat a team with Shaq, Kobe, Malone, Payton, and Fisher.

For 5 Seasons the core of that roster stayed together and they had a lot of success.

There could not be a better example of building a team that won a championship the right way. Comparing that to what the Lakers did is not the same thing.

but they built their team through trades and FA. same thing the lakers did. and by your logic, that's "buying a championship" rob pelinka also built a team. he landed a big name FA, traded for a second star, and built the roster with depth pieces and role guys. didn't know that was some foreign concept

you said the opposite of that is drafting your stars, building depth around them, and gradually working towards a title. do the pistons fit that description? nope

 

[Stylizer1]

but they built their team through trades and FA. same thing the lakers did. and by your logic, that's "buying a championship" rob pelinka also built a team. he landed a big name FA, traded for a second star, and built the roster with depth pieces and role guys. didn't know that was some foreign concept

you said the opposite of that is drafting your stars, building depth around them, and gradually working towards a title. do the pistons fit that description? nope

Everywhere Lebron goes they try to get as many stars as they can to stack the deck. What Detroit did was trade away their only star and built a solid team void of stars. What Detroit did was a common thing in sports, all sports in fact. You mix and match pieces over the coarse of seasons to try and get the mix right. What the Lakers did was manipulate their way into acquiring A.D. because they new they would get him to play with Lebron. Just like Lebron knew before hand he was going to Miami to play with Bosh and Wade. Over night super teams who win right out of the gate because they stack the deck. That is not what Detroit did.

 

[Terry Yake]

Everywhere Lebron goes they try to get as many stars as they can to stack the deck. What Detroit did was trade away their only star and built a solid team void of stars. What Detroit did was a common thing in sports, all sports in fact. You mix and match pieces over the coarse of seasons to try and get the mix right. What the Lakers did was manipulate their way into acquiring A.D. because they new they would get him to play with Lebron. Just like Lebron knew before hand he was going to Miami to play with Bosh and Wade. Over night super teams who win right out of the gate because they stack the deck. That is not what Detroit did.

the 2019-20 lakers were not a super team lmao. if that's the case, then every team in NBA history with two stars on the roster is a super team

were the lakers not supposed to do what was needed to win a title? they had just signed 33 year old lebron. would it have been smarter to wait and hope that their young talent developed into stars quickly? or trade those pieces for another star in order to become instant title contenders? i'll give you a hint, every GM in the lakers position would have done the same exact thing. and if they hadn't, they likely would have been canned not long after