Around the NBA - the 2020 Playoff Edition!

Good points. There’s a reason that Dame thought the team had a shot at a title run before the start of the season. Hey, Moe and Meyers are both UFA’s. Bring them both back and watch @Mediocre Man blow a gasket.

 

There’s some irony in the fact that Meyers Leonard is on teams that successively are playing in the WCF and the ECF. Kind of interesting that Kanter is on the opposing team and that neither of them are getting much time on the court.

 

So Boston playing with a little more urgency this evening.

 

Spo looking like he’s been sitting by the pool quite a bit.

 

Boston is showing us the value of having multiple guys between 6'6 and 6'9 who can all dribble, pass, and shoot, while also being able to defend.

these are the kinds of guys we desperately need and should target in the draft/FA/trades.

 

either he or kanter (aka our center rotation in the playoffs last season) will be in the finals this year.

who imagined that happening last summer

 

also showing the value of having the #3 pick in consecutive drafts for two of the most impactful players in their lineups.

 

I think we're going to see another Lakers/Celtics final.

 

Might be the only way the NBA can make a little money back?

 

Celtics just look like a better team tonight.

 

Jimmy Butler won't let the Heat loose.

 

Are Meyers and Butler that close that they sit next to each other and discuss the game?
There were times players said in Portland that Meyers was one of the most knowledgeable players on the team about other players and scouting reports.

 

That blows my mind with how clueless he looks on the court at all times. That being said, I've always been better at ideas than their practical application so maybe it's just a case of that or it could just be performance anxiety.

 

Seems like a lot of teams have 2-3 guys who fit that criteria better than anyone on our roster. Such a huge disadvantage.

 

Bam, Butler, and Jokic are no where near the level AD is. They've had good playoff performances, im not basing AD on these playoffs alone.

 

ok...I don't disagree

what I was talking about was how it could be that Denver was better than the team Portland beat in the playoffs 18 months ago. Jokic was 23, Harris was 24, and Murray was 21. Their individual trajectories were just starting their upward arcs; same for the trajectory of the core. They just had a much bigger slope of upside ahead of them. Dame is 30 and CJ is 29. And Nurkic is 26. The two teams were extremely close in development last season. It would be expected that Denver had more room for improvement

that doesn't mean Blazer players can't get better. Dame certainly upped his game from last season to this one, but CJ sure appears to have plateaued. Nurkic has room for improvement and he really needs to maximize that

 

I do think Jokic is near the level of AD but I don't think they are on the same level AD is much better when you look at both ends of the floor. I definitely don't see any of the other guys being anywhere close to AD (Bam and Murray are ridiculous to even be talking about, that's just recency bias). AD is the best besides LeBron and Giannis who are obviously on a different level than everyone else at this point.

 

Which is exactly why I was ecstatic that we even MADE the playoffs.