Event Around the 2025 NBA Draft & Offseason Madness!

All I know is that I am preparing for a lame duck season.

 

He has a better 3pt%, PER (Simons is below league average, better DBPM and actually makes his team better when he’s on the floor…unlike Simons, who is a -1

 

Oh he’s better but not for the price. He was second rookie team and that will be his highest honor. Toumani has already bested that. Bane will never get an all nba vote for 3 ufrp

 

It's a lot for Bane although the Orlando picks in 26', 28' and 30' are likely not lottery picks. But who knows...a lot can change in 5 years. Even then though I think the Phoenix 26' pick is probably going to be the best out of the bunch.

And here's some more Bane vs Ant data via Dunks & Threes EPM metric (widely considered the best publicly available all in one +/- metric).

Over the last 4 years....

Desmond Bane: 31.2 Estimated Wins (245 games)
Anfernee Simons: 15.4 Estimated Wins (235 games)

Bane is a better player and a much better fit alongside Suggs, Paolo, and Franz.

 

ORL fell apart like a cheap suit last year with injuries. Those picks might be decent. The PHX pick could be in the top 10 for sure.

 

The issue isn't that Bane is better than Simons. The issue is that Orlando gave them A SHIT TON OF UNPROTECTED PICKS.

 

Bane's a better player for sure. Don't think anyone's disputing that. Of course, they could have gotten Ant for 1 pick, so is he better than Ant and what you get with the other 3 and swap?

As for EPM, like with a lot of advanced stats, always feels like a lot of noise. When the defensive side of it lists Luka as better than guys like Lu Dort, Nesmith, Bridges, etc., I start to question what the stat is actually showing us.

 

Yeah - when I looked into EPM, Im really not impressed.

Honestly, I think WS/48 does a better job (although not perfect). Still have to take things with a big grain of salt

 

problem when you look at WS is, of course, guys on winning teams have higher WSs, because they "contributed" to more wins. But yes, lots of salt

 

Oh for sure. There's no perfect stat out there and yes the defensive stuff has some weird stuff going on. Like I'm sure Luka's defensive rebounding numbers are contributing a lot to what we are seeing here, especially when looking at him vs Dort. These stats are always going to struggle to adjust for teammate quality and context as well.

But yeah I posted those numbers to more so illustrate what the gap is. If you don't believe in EPM's value or any other on court +/- based metric (because all of them value Bane over Simons to a pretty high degree) I get it. Like you said they all are very noisy, but I think they do a better job capturing total on court value over a large sample over what our eyes or the traditional box score can do.

Orlando has also invested a lot of picks over the last 4 drafts late in the lottery with little to show but that have hit big enough on their core 3 high picks and saw Bane as a great opportunity to make a run in the next couple years with the East in a weird 2 year flux with all the major injuries and was willing to overpay in the long term.

It's risky, but I get it much more than trading for an expiring Simons.

 

But not for that price. That's what you're leaving out. Nobody at any time has said that Cronin was asking for more than maybe two firsts for Ant. They gave up FOUR firsts and a swap.

 

No I'm not and I'm well aware lol.

Posting the EPM stuff was to show how wide the gap is. Is that gap worth the three extra picks and the swap?...we will see. It's a big bet on Bane and being very good for the next 5 years, but I see the vision.

Didn't with Simons for them.

 

Joe better wake up
Sleepy joe
Joe isnt aggressive

stop talking like you’re in the room with Joe.
Nobody knows what kind of talks they have.

milk give you a reason they wanted Bane over Simons.
DEFENSE

Who fits the Magic identity better?
BANE

Simons is a one way player

 

I thought this was gonna be a haiku.

 

Joe Cronin sleeps still,
Phones ring, trade winds howl outside —
Silence fills the draft.

 

Happy Fathers Day everyone.

 

Holding pattern until we get a new owner. Then they'll decide which direction to go, IMO.

The last few years were about just cutting some salary and getting some young potential on the roster.

Billups got the extension because they don't expect him to do anything and he'll be easy for the incoming owners to move on from without blowback from the fans.

Everything has been done to make it appealing and easy for a new owner to come in and easily go whatever direction they want.

 

Not sure why some act like Joe “sleeps” on making moves. In the last two offseasons, he made sensational trades for Avdija and Camara who both have All Star potential.

 

just so we're clear ... that's gonna be his excuse this year?