MarkR

I'm really losing faith in cj.

I'm at the Dodgers game. Kershaw never broke 91 on the gun. Fans are freaking out here.

YESS!!!!!! That has all the same attributes of the KB scoring on the Rizzo shot to right in Game 7!!!

How is Almora considered a potentially elite defender in CF if he runs like a lineman at the Combine?

Feels like the gun is off tonight. Teheran's stuff *looks* faster than the 92-95 he's been sitting at.

if that was his concern, he wouldn't be in boston either You don't think Boston can/will compete in the next 5 years? Better chance there than in Utah and its not even close.

There is no way this is a 30 win team as currently constructed. They'll be awful.

How valuable are future picks from a team that you're dealing a superstar for? The Nets trade is obviously the best example of a team that got beyond desperate and forfeited 10 years of viability for 1 year of a potential run. That trade is looked at as the biggest deal of buffoonery ever. Look at the Demarcus Cousins deal. The Kings got a future first round pick in this draft and it ended up being number 10. A good spot to draft a quality player, but not a franchising changing position. Who's the star talent traded at the deadline in the last five years that yielded an amazing return? Again, looking at the Cousins deal, people thought the return was pretty weak. That's the nature of deals in the NBA. Star players aren't going to be bring back what we think they're worth. Again, would I have preferred a package that SSR said he would have done for Butler a couple pages ago? Of course. The Bulls would have too, but if its not there, its not there. And you're seeing what the market will offer you for a top 15 player (George) in their year before FA and its not pretty. Then, if you still want to keep Butler, is he, as a 29 year old, going to be worth a supermax deal? The Bulls clearly didn't love Jimmy enough to offer him that years down the road and look at him as the franchise cornerstone for the next Bulls Championship run.

His value isn't going to go up from a trade perspective. By bringing back the same group of players, you're staring at a team that is going to be too competitive for any sort of meaningful impact player in the draft next season. Now Jimmy would be 1 year away from free agency and his value is going to be lower. Paul George, a superior player to jimmy, just netted a horsefeathers package that ties up a ton of money to a decent nba starter and no draft picks for any future hope for the pacers. Their trade was bold and while I wish they hadn't included 16, I don't think the trade gets done without it.

Bulls sign Justin Holiday from the Knicks. I think there's some hindsight that needs to be seen here after the turd return for Paul George as well. Quite simply, the offers we all WANTED weren't there. Who really Garpax is dumb enough to turn down two (or hell, even 1) studly picks for a guy who is not likely going to be here the next time the Bulls will be competitive. I get the frustration with Dunn, but he's going to get a chance to play here. You'll get a much better indicator of him than what we saw in Minnesota. Might he be awful? Sure, there's a chance of that. But Dunn played in Minnesota and was drafted to be a point guard on a team that already had a well-established guy ahead of him on the depth chart. Thibs' disdain for rookies is well-documented. Dunn would have had to be off the charts good to buck that trend. How many rookies come in and make that kind of impact immediately? Point is, he'll get a chance here and I'm stoked for it. IIRC, he was universally loved coming out of Providence. Zach Lavine could definitely be a quality piece (not saying he's going to be the alpha dog on a future championship) that contributes to the success in the future. I didn't like selling the second round pick, but honestly think its getting more and more criticism than it really merits. Teams sell picks constantly in the second round. If you loved Jordan Bell, great. He was a great high energy guy that could thrive in a team where he just has to be a pest. The Bulls need guys with skill. That's not him. He would get no run here. Not after they re-invested in Felicio and (hopefully not...) Mirotic. I think their offseason has been really good thus far with a clear and concise direction, but I think that much of the angst comes from what we all perceived Jimmy was worth and bought into the rumors about what teams with serious assets like Boston would offer. They're a chickenshit organization who's about to have to pony up for their quality role players or let them go. They've blown it. They could've had Jimmy and tried to de-throne LeBron but they're taking the 10 year approach. Good for them. I hope it bites them in the ass, but their unwillingness to deal to date shows they weren't serious contenders for Jimmy anyways. Go Bulls. Love this direction they're heading. I feel like I might be the only one...

LOL @ Jett Bandy. He's so so so so bad behind the plate.

Zo is no good in RF

I feel like I'm the only person who doesn't despise the Kapman. Honestly, he's one of the few podcasts I listen to regularly. I figured your Lou Malnati's gig was a bit too crazy for you to post on a message board but welcome Mrs. Kaplan! LOL. Well played.

I feel like I'm the only person who doesn't despise the Kapman. Honestly, he's one of the few podcasts I listen to regularly.

The last 10 years is full of success stories of teams who traded up in the first round to take QBs: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000655172/article/trading-up-to-draft-qb-hasnt-worked-well-for-teams

Yep. I haven't given up faith in Javy. But he shouldn't be playing right now. He definitely shouldn't be facing any reliever with a fastball/slider repertoire when we are narrowly losing late in a game. And he absolutely shouldn't be taking playing time away from those two (mainly Almora). The Almora/Jay combo works great. And Jay seems like he can fill just about any role. He'll give you a good AB. He can come off the bench and hit. He can play wherever you need him in the outfield. I want Albert getting a ton of playing time, though. Let's see what he's got. I have a feeling he's going to prove to be a really valuable player. Javy... you're gonna have to prove it. You still have skills we can use in a more limited role. I mean, he's like the perfect defensive replacement, especially considering Zobrist would be in the lineup. And he can fill in all over. But if he wants to play as much as he did last year, then he's going to have to improve at the plate and earn it again. I really felt like the offseason was the time to maximize on his value. That'd be a hard sell to the fans who absolutely love him, but his game has such glaring weaknesses that its difficult to count on him in the lineup. Obviously, the offense has struggled quite a bit offensively so far, but the two other questionable areas, CF and RF, have exceeded those expectations. Its difficult to trade a budding young star in the middle of the season, but if Javy has a hot month or two with good numbers, while still showing some of those things that make it difficult to rely on him long term offensively, they have to consider dealing him. Nobody is saying Happ is going to be a sure thing, but Javy's a cheap and proven commodity in baseball that should carry a lot of value to address issues this team will have going forward after this season.

HOT TAKE: Isaiah Thomas is a rich man's Ben Gordon and is not good enough to be the best player on a team to win a championship.

I have two kids (5 and 4). That gives me nightmares to think about. Just a horrifying tragedy.

I hope he's 2017 Oscar Tavares You can always count on Durwood to be the worst at everything and never be funny.

Prison Break got really bad in seasons 3 and 4.

Why?

Some of us waited and Finishline has rewarded our wallets with nice stuff at great prices: http://www.finishline.com/store/fan-gear/mlb/chicago-cubs/_/N-1xctpjr?mnid=fangear_mlb_chicagocubs

It sounds like Evanstonian is more upset the Cubs cut off a very valuable revenue stream than he is about losing his tickets. I, for one, (as a season ticket waiting list member who lives out of the country, wouldn't THAT be interesting!?) welcome the Cubs decision.

This is similar to me. Attended probably 8 games. How many seats did you have? And I assume you were allowed to renew? Be careful how you answer, Bruno. If you say you were allowed to renew, he's gonna call his rep and throw your ass under the bus to save his own.

This is similar to me. Attended probably 8 games. How many seats did you have? And I assume you were allowed to renew? Be careful how you answer, Bruno. If you say you were allowed to renew, he's gonna call his rep and throw your ass under the bus to save his own.