Board 8 > NBA playoffs - where Devin Booker happens

(+) Yeah! (+)

Wow I've actually seen people complain that the lottery was rigged

San Antonio winning is pretty solid proof that it wasn't...!

Yeah theres plenty more valuable franchises that were in the lottery than the Spurs, its just a funny coincidence that they got a 1 after not being in the lottery forever

fun directions otherwise with Scoot and Miller, and maybe even a Thompson bro manages to sneak in over one of them

no way do scoot and miller not go 2/3 in some order

Apparently, James Harden is *drumroll* expected to opt out.

Imagine that.

Emeraldegg posted...

no way do scoot and miller not go 2/3 in some order

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say "no way." If any franchises would be dumb enough to say, for example, "We're set at PG, we don't need another one." I'd think Portland and Charlotte would be pretty far up there. Or maybe Charlotte takes Scoot and Portland either falls in love with Amen's upside or has massive concerns with Miller's character or something.

But I would be shocked if that happens, no doubt.

Portland is supposedly open to trading the pick away

_PandaMaster_ posted...

Apparently, James Harden is *drumroll* expected to opt out.

Imagine that.

https://twitter.com/bleacherreport/status/1658876918987358224?s=46&t=KxmrVWJE5gBVeoLrbfgaPg

"Competitive team"
"Basketball freedom"

Lol

_PandaMaster_ posted...

https://twitter.com/bleacherreport/status/1658876918987358224?s=46&t=KxmrVWJE5gBVeoLrbfgaPg

"Competitive team"
"Basketball freedom"

Lol

Well, if the Houston rumors are true, what could they theoretically get for a package centered around #4 and, like, Green or KPJ that would make them "competitive"?

That would be a very dumb thing to do but it's not like that's stopped teams before.

Portland has a history of passing up all-time greats in the draft

Harden was always going to opt out even if he stays with the Sixers because that's how he gets the most guaranteed money

As for what Houston could get, maybe some sort of deal with the Raptors? Target OG or Siakam or something along those lines.

It's hard to evaluate the trade value of Jalen Green. That is going to vary massively between teams

I do like the OG fit. Mikal Bridges might also be an interesting one?

Houston might just decide not to rush things at this point, too. Harden might have been a pipe dream contingent on Wemby. And/or maybe they really like their odds of getting a guy they love at #4.

I think the pricetag on Mikal is going to be obscenely high. I'd like him on the Magic and have been advocating a trade for him for years at this point but it would take a lot for the Nets to move him after how he played post trade

I think Portland has more merit on getting one of those types of players with the 3 if they are dead serious about going all in on Dame

Scoot would also be the kind of player Toronto kinda needs

https://twitter.com/BillSimmons/status/1659021944501719041

really hope this is the year Jimmy Butler finally gets a championship

I feel he's deserving of one

Tatum kills the Sixers, next game looks like he's never played basketball in his life

KommunistKoala posted...

Tatum kills the Sixers, next game looks like he's never played basketball in his life

well he looked that way for about 3 quarters of Game 6 too

also Heat in 5

lol celtics

Please let Miami just sweep this

KommunistKoala posted...

Tatum kills the Sixers, next game looks like he's never played basketball in his life

that was more a fourth q thing. looked good in the first half

but this game was just classic spo. guy goes into halftime down 9 and just annihilates us coming out of the locker room

Miami, Denver, and the Lakers are all unbeaten at home in the playoffs so far.

The Celtics are 4-4.

SHINE_GET_64 posted...

really hope this is the year Jimmy Butler finally gets a championship

I feel he's deserving of one

It feels like it Jokic's year, and I think he and the Nuggets deserve it. I'm not going to lose any sleep if the Heat win, but I'm basically always going to back a team that has never had a championship win.

https://twitter.com/BucksFilmRoom/status/1659164908305383427

Just to help my Celtics friends prepare for what lies ahead

There was Magic/Heat game this season that the Heat won despite never leading in regulation and being down double digits in the 4th. And it was 100% just pure Jimmy Butler doing playoff Jimmy Butler shit and it was so frustrating because it was like why the fuck are you doing this against us in like February

So I totally get it. Granted it's a lot easier for him to do it against the Magic than a good team but I know the feeling from watching. It's like wait how the fuck did we lose that game.

Butler deserves it more than Jokic tbh

Leonhart4 posted...

https://twitter.com/BucksFilmRoom/status/1659164908305383427

Just to help my Celtics friends prepare for what lies ahead

hey we learned all this last year

The more research I do, the more I want the Spurs to use some of their ridiculous excess draft capital to trade into the late lottery for an extra pick and grab Cason Wallace.

I think I've settled on wanting the Magic to take Hendricks and Dick. Or if Dick isn't there then Hawkins or Sensabaugh or some other shooter

What do you think it would take to pry #11 away from the Magic, speaking of which? That's one of the slots it seems like SA can theoretically target.

They've got all their own firsts, plus protected picks from Chicago, Charlotte, Boston, and Toronto and a whoooole lot of seconds. They've also got those unprotected ATL firsts in 2025 and 2027 but I have a feeling they won't want to give those up, though I could see the 2026 pick swap being dangled.

https://www.si.com/nba/knicks/news/new-york-knicks-offseason-trade-joel-embiid-mvp-philadelphia-76ers

Would the Sixers REALLY blow it up and start The Process anew? Are the Knicks sniffing HOPIUM?

it's the knicks so no

The Knicks fans always believe they're getting a top tier Superstar and they never do

Lebron looking old tonight

MZero posted...

Lebron looking old tonight

Yeah, the fact that there's only one day of rest between games for the entire series is a noticeable advantage for Denver

nuggets have to win this one with how cold the lakers are from 3.

Lebron getting light contact (if any) and flailing halfway across the court and diving into the first row. Come on man!

he made up for it by throwing the game away in the final seconds

if you thought the Lakers looked old and tired tonight, just wait until they have to play on one night's rest after a travel day

Weird game. Lakers went ice cold in a bunch of stretches in the second half but still managed to cling to the lead until Murray went crazy in the 4th. And then the Lakers finally started hitting some shots to somehow get back in it right when I figured they were dead when Denver went up 12... until the last minute or so where they blew some good opportunities.

Malenia posted...

Butler deserves it more than Jokic tbh

Fair, but the Nuggets deserve it more than the Heat. It will be fun to see if they both make it to the finals.

the league office has to be rooting so hard for Lakers/Celtics

which makes me want to root just as hard for Nuggets/Heat

Honestly, they shouldn't root for that. It's so regressive. The notion of a Lakers/Celtics rivalry today makes no sense. At best it'd be a blast from the part, but really it'd be a reminder than the league has moved on from the 70s/80s and maybe the fans should too, if they haven't already.

That argument would be fine if it weren't the nuggets. NBA is fine with the Heat.

they're praying the nuggets don't win I guarantee you

I do not disbelieve. Which is what makes it problematic to me. The notion that they would rather preserve the old dynasties and rivalries than allow new ones to arise. This is why I'm a bit surprised that someone would say that San Antonio getting the first pick proves the lottery isn't rigged - The Spurs have a legacy. It's a smaller market, especially thanks to Texas being totally carved out, but it has a history of success that they want to maintain. The Hornets getting second pick might be proof it's not rigged, but the Spurs getting first of the possible options actually point towards rigging if it means anything at all.

As a Spurs fan, let me tell you, they might be winners, but they aren't popular and that's what the NBA actually cares about. They don't get big ratings (all of the non-Heat Finals the Spurs were in got poor ratings). They've never been able to shake the reputation that they're "boring" despite how fun they became when Kawhi was there.

Beat LA!

You could come up with a "rigged" narrative for, like, at least half the teams that could've won the lottery. If it was Charlotte, it'd be "Of course the long-suffering franchise gets the star to pair with marketable LaMelo while everyone's talking about the team getting sold." If it was Portland, it's "Oh, of course Dame gets his running mate - NBA wants to reward that small market team and player for loyalty." "Houston gets the big star to promote the Harden rumors." "Dallas gets another European superstar to team up with Luka." "Haliburton and Victor is must-see TV now."

Are those all less compelling "stories" than the whole San Antonio legacy narrative? I don't know, your mileage may vary on that. But people can find a way to support any theory for these sorts of things.

Anyway,
NBIceman posted...

Nuggets in 5 tbh.

If anything the evidence for rigging to me would be that teams that perennially live in the lotto have not been able to capitalize. Like if you already got a high lotto pick, it was like fuck you and you didn't get another high lotto pick and usually didn't land in the top 4 lotto at all (Sidenote I personally think they should draw all 14 slots not just the top 4, it's more fun and interesting that way!)

However, it absolutely isn't rigged. The way the odds work now, that's actually the likely scenario