Exclusive The OFFICIAL 2019 NBA Offseason Thread

Well history tells us that the top-heavy teams usually win regardless. Their biggest roadblock is injuries...

 

Teams with good roster construction+talent win championships. Not teams with 3 dudes and a bunch of scrubs.

 

clearly, "likely" bonuses count against the cap and tax; they also count for determining when a team hits the apron

and for setting a team's Apron, it sure looks like all bonuses count, likely and unlikely:

"They use a slightly different calculation for determining the team salary in relation to the Apron (see question number 20). This applies to the Bi-Annual, Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level, and Taxpayer Mid-Level exceptions (see question number 25), and for Sign-and-Trade transactions (see question number 92). For these purposes they use the team salary as defined above, with the following modifications:

• All unlikely bonuses are included for contracts and extensions signed under the current CBA."
  
  

http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q13

so then, it sure looks like Nurk's 1.25M bonus would count against the apron

as far as whether his bonus counts against the cap and tax line this coming season:

"Performance incentives are classified as either "likely to be achieved" or "not likely to be achieved," with only the likely incentives included in the player's salary and team salary amounts. The determination of whether an incentive is likely or not likely is based on whether the criterion was achieved in the previous season. For example, if a player had seven assists per game the previous season, then an incentive based on seven assists per game would be classified as likely to be achieved, but one based on eight assists per game would be classified as not likely.All performance incentives are re-evaluated at the start of each season to determine whether they should be classified as likely or not likely to be achieved"

http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q74

so then, it would seem the only question is if Nurkic had the same incentives attached to every year of his contract or just the 1st season. That I don't know

 

LeBron giving AD #23, looks like he is going back to #6.

 

Fucking Washington

 

The teams with the best talent up top win (or make the finals, at least), historically. Warriors, Heat, Spurs, Lakers, Big 3 Celtics, etc.

Yes, there are exceptions, but if you look back in history you'll find overwhelming evidence that it's usually the top heavy teams battling it out in the finals...

 

Depth is overrated.

Toronto played 7 guys. Sometimes 8 when they’d get Norm Powell in.

GSW have never had a bench. It’s always been a bunch of guys on vet min and guys on rookie contracts.

The Bucks second unit was as good as a lot of teams starting 5s. They were one of the deepest teams I’ve ever seen. They lost 4 in a row to Toronto.

The only team who gave Toronto a run for their money was a team who sold the farm to get stars in their lineup. Philly had no bench and took Toronto to the last shot of game 7 by going after Jimmy and Tobias

 

Lakers: Please, please, please sign Kyrie to a max.

 

You're making your point wrong. Toronto won because they didn't just have three guys who could play. If one of the Laker three gets hurt, they might not even win a series in the playoffs.

 

What did they get back in return? I guess this is what happens when you don't have a GM.

 

If the Lakers sign someone like Kyrie, Kemba, Kawhi, etc, my guess is they will have a number of veterans willing to come play for the minimum and it won't be a bunch of back end scrubs.

 

A 22' second rounder from LA....basically a 50th or so pick.

And Wagner.

Jesus...

 

https://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources-kawhi-leonard-to-meet-with-lakers-clippers-184626379.html

Welp.

 

Same things that have been said the last couple summers.

 

Fuck the Wizards

 

This is literally false. Almost every champion in the past decade has been a team loaded with stars playing with scrubs, vet min guys, or one trick ponies. I would say the only team who didn’t were the Mavs and quite honestly that was simply one of the greatest finals performances of my lifetime by Dirk. The Spurs are also an exception, and by exception I mean no one will ever be able to replicate what they built as far as depth and culture , especially in this era.

First Heat Big 3 team started Mario Chalmers and Shane Battier. Had Norris Cole and Udonis Haslem as their 6th and 7th guys.

When they won in 2013 they were starting Mike Miller, who literally could barely run. It was Ray Allen, and an even older Shane Battier off the bench.

Cavs won a game 7 on Oracle with Tristan Thompson and JR Smith playing 40 minutes. Their two guys off the bench were Shumpert and a 100 year old Richard Jefferson.

Warriors bench has been AWFUL during literally their entire run.

No, I’m not making my point wrong. My initial post challenged Neil to “go for it” and make it happen. Toronto’s front office literally did that. They traded the face of their franchise and a coveted 1st rounder to secure Leonard. They also made it happen at the deadline by going and getting Marc Gasol.

 

LOL what??

Warriors have/had Iggy, Livingston, Speights, Barbosa, West, Young, Casspi, and others come off their bench.

Heat had Battier, Allen, Miller, Haslem, and Lewis.

Spurs?? Their whole concept was team. Duncan, Parker, Manu, Kawhi, Green, Diaw, Mills, Joseph, and that was just their 2013-14 run...

Boston and LA were LOADED too.

 

Good luck, no one wants to hear it.

Dviss and I posted about this in reaction to some posters treating Rich Paul much differently than... other... agents who do the same type of thing.

 

Check the top 3 players for each team in the finals for the last few decades.

Now compare that to the top 3 players for each other team in the conference during that year.

How often is it that the teams in the finals have the best top 3 in their conference?

 

Kawhi