Re: General NBA Thread

[illiniguy]

I think the fact that Jennings was miserable (personally) in Europe will detract people a lot more.

 

19 years old, a couple of million, in Europe for 1 year. How do you become miserable?

 

You're away from everyone you know, have a grueling schedule you're not used to, and get [expletive] upon by teammates and coaches who think you need to be put in your place.

Plus your paycheck doesn't always come on time, if at all. Also don't even try to complain about it because your American and they don't care. I have a few friends play over seas and a lot of them weren't very happy at all while over there making good money.

Also anyone else see the Louisville recruit got 2 points and 1 board the other night?

[CubbieBum]

I think the fact that Jennings was miserable (personally) in Europe will detract people a lot more.

 

19 years old, a couple of million, in Europe for 1 year. How do you become miserable?

 

You're away from everyone you know, have a grueling schedule you're not used to, and get [expletive] upon by teammates and coaches who think you need to be put in your place.

Plus your paycheck doesn't always come on time, if at all. Also don't even try to complain about it because your American and they don't care. I have a few friends play over seas and a lot of them weren't very happy at all while over there making good money.

Also anyone else see the Louisville recruit got 2 points and 1 board the other night?

 

Jennings also wasn't getting a bunch of playing time and for no real reason. Most Americans who play over there have said at one point or another that there is a very big prejudice against Americans and everyone is open with their hatred, including teammates.

[JonJayCutler]

Magic beat a 4-0 Suns team by 22 points tonight. I love this team.

[CubbieBum]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

[illiniguy]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

[CubbieBum]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

 

In the course of a season you will have plenty of 10 pt losses. Even the best teams will. I hate the near heart attack/anger I end games with when you lose by one in overtime.

 

Would you rather the Cubs lose by 1 in the 12th inning on a walk off or lose by 3 in nine?

[Garwilly]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

 

In the course of a season you will have plenty of 10 pt losses. Even the best teams will. I hate the near heart attack/anger I end games with when you lose by one in overtime.

 

Would you rather the Cubs lose by 1 in the 12th inning on a walk off or lose by 3 in nine?

 

Did I have the Cubs and the run and a half, or the opponent less the run and a half?

[illiniguy]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

 

In the course of a season you will have plenty of 10 pt losses. Even the best teams will. I hate the near heart attack/anger I end games with when you lose by one in overtime.

 

Would you rather the Cubs lose by 1 in the 12th inning on a walk off or lose by 3 in nine?

We got painfully close in '03 to the world series. I would take that anyday over what happened in 06. Which scenario did you prefer?

 

No matter what, I would rather be in the game. A ten point loss in the NBA might not even be a close game.

[CubbieBum]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

 

In the course of a season you will have plenty of 10 pt losses. Even the best teams will. I hate the near heart attack/anger I end games with when you lose by one in overtime.

 

Would you rather the Cubs lose by 1 in the 12th inning on a walk off or lose by 3 in nine?

We got painfully close in '03 to the world series. I would take that anyday over what happened in 06. Which scenario did you prefer?

 

No matter what, I would rather be in the game. A ten point loss in the NBA might not even be a close game.

 

You can't compare a season of success to a single game in a league that plays 82/162 games. If you're talking about division titles and playoff success then of course I would rather come close than lose big. However a single game when there are so many doesn't mean a whole lot.

[illiniguy]

Rockets lose by one in overtime to the Lakers. I would rather get beat by 10 than by 1 in overtime.

That's absurd. I'd much rather know I was a shot here or a break there from winning than not be in the game.

 

In the course of a season you will have plenty of 10 pt losses. Even the best teams will. I hate the near heart attack/anger I end games with when you lose by one in overtime.

 

Would you rather the Cubs lose by 1 in the 12th inning on a walk off or lose by 3 in nine?

We got painfully close in '03 to the world series. I would take that anyday over what happened in 06. Which scenario did you prefer?

 

No matter what, I would rather be in the game. A ten point loss in the NBA might not even be a close game.

 

You can't compare a season of success to a single game in a league that plays 82/162 games. If you're talking about division titles and playoff success then of course I would rather come close than lose big. However a single game when there are so many doesn't mean a whole lot.

Eh, I can kinda see your point. When I am playing in the game I want it close, if I am watching I hate to lose close so I kinda get it I guess.

[CubbieBum]

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boxscore;_ylt=AkBjM3qQ0Tjac6qSXKNWpi2QvLYF?gid=2009110610

 

take that imb

[SouthSideRyan]

FREE MULLENS

[Mike Aller]

Wow, I didn't realize Ariza was doing that well. He could end up being the better pickup rather than Artest.

[Guest]

Wow, I didn't realize Ariza was doing that well. He could end up being the better pickup rather than Artest.

 

There's no doubt in my mind that Ariza is going to put up better numbers this year than Artest but that doesn't mean he's the better pickup. I'm not saying he isn't but with McGrady and Yao out, Ariza is one of the first two or three options on that ream when he would normally be No. 4 or 5. Artest doesn't need to score with the Lakers. He'll have games where he'll get 20-30, but with Kobe, Pau (when he returns), Odom and Bynum, Artest isn't going to be a 20 point scorer and might not be a 15 point scorer.

[Mike Aller]

Wow, I didn't realize Ariza was doing that well. He could end up being the better pickup rather than Artest.

 

There's no doubt in my mind that Ariza is going to put up better numbers this year than Artest but that doesn't mean he's the better pickup. I'm not saying he isn't but with McGrady and Yao out, Ariza is one of the first two or three options on that ream when he would normally be No. 4 or 5. Artest doesn't need to score with the Lakers. He'll have games where he'll get 20-30, but with Kobe, Pau (when he returns), Odom and Bynum, Artest isn't going to be a 20 point scorer and might not be a 15 point scorer.

I can agree with that. I guess I mean Ariza is a much better fit for a depleted Rockets team than Artest would have been.

[CubbieBum]

Wow, I didn't realize Ariza was doing that well. He could end up being the better pickup rather than Artest.

 

There's no doubt in my mind that Ariza is going to put up better numbers this year than Artest but that doesn't mean he's the better pickup. I'm not saying he isn't but with McGrady and Yao out, Ariza is one of the first two or three options on that ream when he would normally be No. 4 or 5. Artest doesn't need to score with the Lakers. He'll have games where he'll get 20-30, but with Kobe, Pau (when he returns), Odom and Bynum, Artest isn't going to be a 20 point scorer and might not be a 15 point scorer.

I can agree with that. I guess I mean Ariza is a much better fit for a depleted Rockets team than Artest would have been.

 

One thing I know for sure based on what I have seen is Ariza is better at making his own shot. Artest in order to create has to hold the ball for 20 seconds. Ariza moves very well without the ball and is pretty quick (surprised me) for his size so he is able to drive pretty well. Artest is all power but is slow enough that he never burns a guy. His drives always end with him trying to power through for the basket.

[Warpticon]

If Ariza being quick surprised you, you didn't know anything about Ariza. Ariza is a monster athlete with long arms, crazy hops, and tremendous speed and quickness for a 6'8" man. He disrupts passing lanes and generally wreaks havoc on defense away from the ball. He's not a fantastic man defender, but he's good, and he was improving as of last year.

 

He scored most of his points with the Lakers on lobs, breaks, putbacks, pick & rolls, and the occasional jumper, so I wasn't expecting him to put up big scoring numbers based on ability to create his own shot. he's been surprising so far in that regard. Most surprising is his taking over 6 3's a game and making 46%. I figured he could probably hit 33-36% or so of them picking his spots--enough to be a threat when open, but not somebody you check for as a perimeter threat--but he's been fantastic from downtown. I don't think he'll stay at 46% long term, but it looks like he's put even more work into his shooting and can be an actual weapon from the outside...which will just open up his inside game that much more.

[CubbieBum]

If Ariza being quick surprised you, you didn't know anything about Ariza. Ariza is a monster athlete with long arms, crazy hops, and tremendous speed and quickness for a 6'8" man. He disrupts passing lanes and generally wreaks havoc on defense away from the ball. He's not a fantastic man defender, but he's good, and he was improving as of last year.

 

He scored most of his points with the Lakers on lobs, breaks, putbacks, pick & rolls, and the occasional jumper, so I wasn't expecting him to put up big scoring numbers based on ability to create his own shot. he's been surprising so far in that regard. Most surprising is his taking over 6 3's a game and making 46%. I figured he could probably hit 33-36% or so of them picking his spots--enough to be a threat when open, but not somebody you check for as a perimeter threat--but he's been fantastic from downtown. I don't think he'll stay at 46% long term, but it looks like he's put even more work into his shooting and can be an actual weapon from the outside...which will just open up his inside game that much more.

 

It also helps a lot that teams are drawn out of position by Brooks a lot. I've watched 3 of the games so far and Brooks will essentially flash into the lane blowing past his guy. If the defense slides over he dishes, if it doesn't he makes a running hook shot that he is really good at. A lot of times the defense slides over and guys like Ariza are left open.

[imb]

Man, [expletive] scola

[CubbieBum]

Man, [expletive] scola

 

hahaha yeah he's somewhat of a Kramer. If he's on your team you love him, if not you hate him. He whines a lot and does a lot of borderline dirty stuff. Sometimes his whining goes overboard and I get annoyed with it. In the playoffs last year he got on my nerves because he was complaining about something on every play.

[imb]

Man, [expletive] scola

 

hahaha yeah he's somewhat of a Kramer. If he's on your team you love him, if not you hate him. He whines a lot and does a lot of borderline dirty stuff. Sometimes his whining goes overboard and I get annoyed with it. In the playoffs last year he got on my nerves because he was complaining about something on every play.

 

i actually love him and landry, but not when we go against them.

 

actually, with mcgrady in a suit, the rockets have a pretty likable team. I love aaron brooks far too much.

[CubbieBum]

Man, [expletive] scola

 

hahaha yeah he's somewhat of a Kramer. If he's on your team you love him, if not you hate him. He whines a lot and does a lot of borderline dirty stuff. Sometimes his whining goes overboard and I get annoyed with it. In the playoffs last year he got on my nerves because he was complaining about something on every play.

 

i actually love him and landry, but not when we go against them.

 

actually, with mcgrady in a suit, the rockets have a pretty likable team. I love aaron brooks far too much.

 

Brooks is my favorite and our best PG since ... ever. He is a lot of fun to watch. I would say he is hands down the quickest player in the league.

[illiniguy]

Man, [expletive] scola

 

hahaha yeah he's somewhat of a Kramer. If he's on your team you love him, if not you hate him. He whines a lot and does a lot of borderline dirty stuff. Sometimes his whining goes overboard and I get annoyed with it. In the playoffs last year he got on my nerves because he was complaining about something on every play.

 

i actually love him and landry, but not when we go against them.

 

actually, with mcgrady in a suit, the rockets have a pretty likable team. I love aaron brooks far too much.

 

Brooks is my favorite and our best PG since ... ever. He is a lot of fun to watch. I would say he is hands down the quickest player in the league.

Steve Francis was way better than Aaron Brooks when he first got to Houston.

[CubbieBum]

Man, [expletive] scola

 

hahaha yeah he's somewhat of a Kramer. If he's on your team you love him, if not you hate him. He whines a lot and does a lot of borderline dirty stuff. Sometimes his whining goes overboard and I get annoyed with it. In the playoffs last year he got on my nerves because he was complaining about something on every play.

 

i actually love him and landry, but not when we go against them.

 

actually, with mcgrady in a suit, the rockets have a pretty likable team. I love aaron brooks far too much.

 

Brooks is my favorite and our best PG since ... ever. He is a lot of fun to watch. I would say he is hands down the quickest player in the league.

Steve Francis was way better than Aaron Brooks when he first got to Houston.

 

True. Stevie Franchise was why I stayed a Rocket fan after Barkley retired. Up until that point I had always rooted for whatever team Barkley was on. Although Rockets fans and fans in general used to argue whether Francis was really a PG who a just a SG who handled the ball a lot. KInda of like when AI started getting called a PG.

 

And the difference isn't as great as you would think (surprised me when I looked it up). Francis averaged 21 pts in 41 minutes in his peak years to go with almost 7 assists. Brooks is averaging 18.3 and 7.7 in 36.7 minutes. Take that rate to the 41 minutes Francis played and you get 20.4 pts and 8.6 assists. Plus Francis shot in the low to mid 40's while Brooks is shooting .488.

[illiniguy]

 

True. Stevie Franchise was why I stayed a Rocket fan after Barkley retired. Up until that point I had always rooted for whatever team Barkley was on. Although Rockets fans and fans in general used to argue whether Francis was really a PG who a just a SG who handled the ball a lot. KInda of like when AI started getting called a PG.

 

And the difference isn't as great as you would think (surprised me when I looked it up). Francis averaged 21 pts in 41 minutes in his peak years to go with almost 7 assists. Brooks is averaging 18.3 and 7.7 in 36.7 minutes. Take that rate to the 41 minutes Francis played and you get 20.4 pts and 8.6 assists. Plus Francis shot in the low to mid 40's while Brooks is shooting .488.

Brooks has played 7 games this year, lets see if he can keep this pace up a bit first.