Seems Haynes now is reporting that the Team asked Dame to sit the last 10 games and call it a Calf Injury.
TBH, I was surprised the league didn't look harder at the Blazers last season, as it was a blatant of a tank job as anyone else's. Not sure why only Dallas got busted but the horse is kind of outta the barn now. A retroactive tanking investigation just makes league administration look even more stupid and manipulated.......
A. Other than Haynes’ bit of attempted revenge over the Lillard/Heat trade fail, we haven’t seen anything saying that there is an investigation by the league. B. Shutting a star player down when there’s no realistic chance of making the playoffs is done all the time. C. What the Mavs did was more egregious: deliberately shutting down multiple players to ensure losing a play-in game in order to prevent losing their first round pick. D. The Mavs got fined $750K. That seems like more than any penalty the league would hit the Blazers with if they did actually start an investigation.
Not sure this is the right place for this, but it's a response to the same bullshit Haynes story, so fuck it:
I think this was all planned by Dame. Didn’t he say he would say things to hurt the franchise on the way out if he wasn’t treated fairly? Doesn’t mean it isn’t true, but this is Dame’s last arrow. Hope we don’t lose a first. But at this point what’s done is done. I imagine it will be a second and some $$ if the league investigates and finds that tanking occurred. Hopefully they somehow punish Miami due some reason too just for fun
If there WERE such a thing as a "tanking investigation" then half the fucking league would be shitting their pants.
At most the Blazers lose some cash. I think having Sharpe/Scoot on the roster is worth kicking some cash in that will be disbursed to NBA Charities.
My fear is that the League makes an example of us. It's low cost as we're a bottom-of-the-barrel franchise.
That Casablanca scene is so versatile, especially with the near omnipresent corruption in our institutions these days.
What I am seeing is "accused." Saw Detroit mentioned too. Detroit Pistons and Portland Trail Blazers Accused of Tanking in NBA Key points: The Detroit Pistons and the Portland Trail Blazers have been accused of tanking by holding out players with injuries. Fans are negatively affected by tanking, as they may not see star players in action during games they attend. The article suggests replacing the NBA draft lottery with a tournament to discourage tanking. The Detroit Pistons are currently facing scrutiny over tanking accusations and suspicious injuries to key players. The team had the worst record in the league last season but ended up slipping to the 5th spot in the NBA draft. The Pistons’ veteran players mysteriously suffered late-season injuries, causing some to speculate that the team intentionally held them out to increase their lottery odds. Similar tanking tactics were also revealed in a recent article about Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers. The issue of tanking raises concerns among fans who pay for tickets, expecting to see their favorite players in action, but end up watching inexperienced substitutes. https://bvmsports.com/2023/09/29/de...land-trail-blazers-accused-of-tanking-in-nba/
Where this gets tough is that by the end of the season, NO ONE is feeling great. Every player is playing through pain, through bumps and bruises. Making the decision to preserve them rather than telling them to play through pain is one of judgment, and gives you plausible deniability.
