ChiCubsFan

I believe there around somewhere around 100,000 ACL surgeries per year. Another 700,000 total knee arthroplasties per year. So let's not pretend that debilitating injuries only happen to pro athletes. For every Carson Palmer or Bill Walton, there's 1000's of regular people living with chronic pain issues.

Speculation is it will take 12M, similar to the Kemba Walker deal in Charlotte. That would be fine with me. I'm pretty sure that's what Butler wanted before the extension deadline, but the Bulls only wanted to give him Gibson money ($8-$9M). I'm worried if he has a really strong offensive season, it may cost more like $14-$16, similar to what Chandler Parsons got. You know he will be first or second team all-defense again, and I wouldn't be surprised if he makes the all-star team. Those things, along with an increasing salary cap, may result in a team or two wanting to overpay this off-season.

Nothing makes more sense. What he said means nothing. He's an idiot. He sat out because he shouldn't have been playing. He even played when he shouldn't have been in the Milwaukee game. This. It's a complete non-issue. Rose is just really dumb, which we already knew. He's sitting when he is injured and should be sitting. And playing when he is healthy enough to play. He just said stupid things that aren't even true. I think he was trying to downplay his ankle injuries and just stated that he's looking at the big picture with his health rather than gutting out regular season games. He should have said something about wanting to ensure his health for a deep playoff run rather than wanting to ensure his health so he can take his kids to the movies in 10 years. He's just dumb.

I know it's early in the season, but I'm worried Butler is going to cost us a lot of money (max or close to max). Really wish we would have locked him up to an extension around 10-12M/year. I'm sure his efficiency will tank as the season goes on, but he looks like a much more confident player on the offensive side of the ball so far this year. And Derrick is getting him some really great looks in the few games they've played together.

The inner meatball in me is loving this. I want them to suck for all eternity.

What the hell are you talking about? He missed the '12 playoffs after one of his ACLs tore apart in game 1. It's 8 games into the season. Who cares if Derrick plays everyone of them? He played a lot of basketball over the summer and I'd actually prefer he sit some games out. They have enough, along with Thibs, to get a top seed even if Derrick only plays 50-60 games. As long as he plays enough to get in rhythm with his teammates come playoff time, I fully support sitting some games out. Especially when playing 4 in 5 nights after he just rolled both his ankles.

Yeah, that comment is nuts. He looked much less than 100%, but effort definitely wasn't the issue. Also I really wish passes that directly lead to a shot attempt that results in a foul, would count as assists. That might help Tryptamine better assess Derrick Rose's effort level on a given night.

I DVRd that ESPN broadcast. I still like JVG, but my god, that broadcast was terrible. If I have to hear one more discussion about the triangle offense and how the Knicks will have to be patient to learn it, but then get all new players next year that better fit the system, I'm going to rip my ears off. Internal ear canal and all. Great game. Taj was the best player on the court. By far. Pau looked good. Brooks fit the CJ/JL3/Nate/DJ mold perfectly and will excel in his role. I'm sure he'll make a nice salary somewhere next year. I'm also excited to see Brooks and Rose play together some. Dunleavy did a great job on Melo, although their offense was terrible and the Knicks never really looked to iso Melo. He missed a lot of shots on the offensive side, but that'll happen. McD looked good. Solid defense, made the right decision most of the time, looked less hesitant than he did most preseason. I think he's going to be a real nice player, especially once he adds some strength in the offseason. That pull-up 3 he hit in the 4th Q when we were up like 30 was pretty awesome. Loved the chest bump with Joakim afterwards. Noah needs some more time to get into better shape, but moved a lot better out there today. Played well defensively and it's nice to not have to rely on him for offense. Mirotic played well for the most part. Needs to head-fake less and shoot more, but I think that'll come as the season moves on. Kirk was pretty bad until garbage time, but at least he'll give you a consistent effort on the defensive side and can take some ball-handling pressure off of Rose. Rose looked pretty good. Was great in transition. Made a lot of good decisions (especially in the 2nd half) and created a lot of easy shots for his teammates. Mid-range shot looked nice, but the 3 ball looked as bad as ever. It was nice that we were able to rest Rose, Joakim, and Pau. I hope our second unit keeps dominating teams so this can become the norm throughout the regular season. Hopefully our offensive efficiency was partially real and not just terrible Knicks defense. Can't wait for Friday.

Anthony Davis MVP

Banedon has it right. King is harmless fun. His catch phrases are much too forced these days (really since probably his 2nd year announcing), but he still frequently adds entertainment. Funk, on the other hand, is the worst. He completely miss-calls plays 5+ times per game and then doesn't realize it until a good 30 seconds later. Drives me nuts. All that said, I'll usually watch the national broadcast when given the opportunity. I enjoy JVG, although I think a lot of people dislike him.

It is. One of my first thoughts on seeing the pics was that the 2006 bleacher expansion was money wasted. Though I have no idea if the revenue from the added seats already recouped the cost of that renovation. Extremely rough back of the napkin - If they actually sold every single one of those additional 1900 bleacher tickets, which they obviously didn't, let's say they averaged $35 a seat conservatively (in part to make up for unsold seats)...that's 1900 x $35 x 81 games x 9 seasons = $48.5M (not including the, what, 3 playoff games?) wonder what they actually spent This also doesn't include the extra beer, foam fingers, and whatnot sold.

Helps a lot. Moreno was a nice complement to Millers outside running. Expect even more read option.

Because the Dolphins have absolutely terrible coaching. Quick example: Rodgers down 4 trying to drive to take the lead. Dolphins get a sack fumble on 3rd and long that is recovered by the Packers. Now 4th and about 9, the fans are going crazy and Rodgers is clearly struggling to get the play in. With about 11 seconds left on the play clock and the Packers not even lined up yet, Philbin calls a timeout. Of course Rodgers regroups and then throws for the first down. Constant time management things like that coupled with a guaranteed crappy offensive start to the game every single week, is usually too much to overcome. Dolphins lead the league in fewest 3 and outs, yet can't put up points consistently. As mentioned, the defense should be elite with all the talent they have, but it's not. They get pressure and make plays, but often crumble at the end of close games.

He can get that way, but when he's playing well (2nd half of Pats game, 2nd half of Packers game, Raiders game) he goes through his progressions and often finds his 2nd and 3rd options. At times he can look like the best QB in the league, and at times he looks like it's the first time he's ever played quarterback. He's a great athlete (WR in college) and often uses his legs to keep plays alive. They like to force feed Wallace, and at times he has ball security issues. I'd be surprised if Wallace doesn't have a fumble or 2 in this game. Jarvis Landry (2nd round pick out of LSU) is coming off a great game, but he's not anything too special. Lamar Miller can make plays and the combination of him and Moreno will be tough to stop, especially if Moreno is healthy. The Dolphins have been running a lot of read option lately and the Bears haven't been the best at stopping it, so look for the Dolphins to use it early and often. The Dolphins have a terrific defense. Olivier Vernon and Cameron Wake are probably the best pair of DEs in the league. They can really pressure the QB. Brent Grimes is a terrific CB (#2 per PFF last year). Cortland Finnegan is pretty terrible these days and whoever he is guarding should have a monster day (probably Jeffrey). I think the Bears are going to have a tough time running the ball and will have some issues protecting Jay, but overall they should be able to move the ball via the pass and put up points. As both a Bears and Dolphins fan, this game will be a bummer either way. Both teams really need a win. I'd go Bears 27-24.

Mirotic's defense was better than expected. Rose was terrific. Gasol was solid. Taj needs to learn to pass still.

lions

Cincinnati +2.5 is ridiculous.

What $40 QB would you not want to start?

Going to Vegas this weekend. Someone please talk me out of putting way too much money on the Bears +3.

Yeah that's my question, I'm a few months away from my 2 year contract running out and want to extort as much as I can ASAP. Well my thing is that my contract is up in the spring, and I'm planning on "cutting the cord" when that contract is up. I'm more than happy to take free things from them as long as I'm not locked in longer. I did, but I'm not sure if I would have had to if I didn't do the equipment upgrade. They made no mention of it until I upgraded to the genie.

how'd you pull that off? and here i was feeling good about getting my usual $15 for 3 months of xm by asking to cancel this morning. Threatened to cancel because I don't get the Pac-12 Network and the Dodger Network (lol). They also dropped my bill by $25/month to match Time Warner. Just did the same today. Dropped my bill by about $30/month, got free Sunday Ticket Max, and a free upgrade to the Genie so my wife can record even more crap. Also got a Genie mini thrown in, which I guess allows me to pause and rewind live TV in a 2nd room now. I was pretty surprised by how easy it was.

I'd like to see the data. Obviously with such a small sample size the difference has to be fairly large to be significant, but did they see any trends?

Masterson?

So do we still have to work out a trade? Do the Marlins still have the ability to pull him back? I missed it and don't want to comb through cat pics to find the info earlier in the thread.

Can't wait for CRABS in September! Castro, Rizzo, Alcantara, Baez, Soler