NBA 2018/2019

[BigMark]

You called his winkie average in that thread I resuscitated.

[HairOfTheDog]

Ah, I see.

[Midwest Spy]

HotD, I’ve been coming around lately when it comes to being a fan of the NBA.

First and foremost, from my perspective, my TWolves traded Jimmy Butler, picking up Robert Covington and Dario Saric from the 76ers.

The drama surrounding my club has disappeared, and young stars (in the making) Karl Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins are beginning to thrive without Butler there to kick them.

My club is 7-2 since the trade happened (11-11 overall), including last night’s 128-89 beat down of the San Antonio Spurs.

Derrick Rose is playing at a very high level for us, and this season looks promising again.

As for the rest of the League, if Steph Curry could sit out every other game, it may seem like everyone else has a chance.

Even if that doesn’t happen, I’m watching and enjoying this season so far.

[HairOfTheDog]

I'm so glad your Wolves are finding their groove again MS.

Rose is an excellent player and I know you've been invested in the KAT and Wiggins for a couple of years.

Hopefully, the trade will be the catalyst to take your team to the finals soon.

The Spurs are a good team, but the Wolves really dominated them; younger and stronger.

I'm surprised by how much Houston is struggling so far this season.

The Lakers actually have a winning record now with LeBron on board (11-9). That's gotta feel good for L.A.

Steph is magic, no doubt. But, the Raptors are really tearing it up and will be tough for the Warriors to beat, in my opinion.

Kawhi Leonard is a great and versatile player, and he's also got strong support in Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka, and Jonas Valanciunas (plus a solid bench, from what I've seen).

This season is definitely less predictable than the last few and fun to watch. I don't get to see too many of the games, but check out the clips when I can and will dive in full when the play-offs kick into gear.

[Duchess]

I'm not nearly as familiar with b-ball as I am football and I have a question. Is sitting a player the same as benching a player? I ask because I just saw a headline saying the Lakers are sitting King James for the remainder of the season.

[HairOfTheDog]

I'm not nearly as familiar with b-ball as I am football and I have a question. Is sitting a player the same as benching a player? I ask because I just saw a headline saying the Lakers are sitting King James for the remainder of the season.

It's not like a penalty for poor performance in this case.  LeBron has elevated the Lakers.  But, since LA doesn't have a chance of making the playoffs and he's not 100% healthy, I think the coach probably decided to let LeBron rest and heal before next season.

[Duchess]

LA doesn't have a chance of making the playoffs and he's not 100% healthy, I think the coach probably decided to let LeBron rest and heal before next season.

Gotcha! I didn't want to read too much into it given I don't know that sport but I was taken aback by the headline. 

[HairOfTheDog]

Finals



The Toronto Raptors will challenge the Golden State Warriors in game 6 of the Finals playoffs tonight in Oakland, CA.

The Raptors lead the Warriors 3 - 2 going into tonight's game.  Kawhi Leonard has been outstanding for Toronto, as have Kyle Lowry, Marc Gasol, and Serge Ibaka.

[HairOfTheDog]

If the Raptors win tonight, they'll take the league championship title away from the Warriors who've won it three of the last four years. It would be the first league championship for the Raptors.  They've been an NBA franchise for 23 years.

If the Warriors pull off a win and tie the series tonight , the 7^th and final game will be played in Toronto on Sunday.  

The Warriors are playing without two-time league MVP Kevin Durant who's out with an achilles injury.  Big man Kevon Looney is also unfortunately injured, but will likely try to play in tonight's do or die showdown.

The Warriors will need Steph Curry and Klay Thompson to be in top shooting form.  Play-maker/defender Draymond Green is always a force to be reckoned with...........but he needs to keep his hot head cool so as not to foul out.

On a side note,  this will be the last season game the Warriors play at Oracle Arena in Oakland. They'll be moving to a new self-funded stadium with all the bells and whistles in the Mission Bay district of San Francisco next season. (https://www.businessinsider.com/chase-ce...fferings-4).

[HairOfTheDog]

The Raptors are the new NBA champs. 

They played so well, they really earned the title.  

Kawhi Leonard is the league MVP. Last year he was injured and traded from the Spurs, after leading San Antonio to the 2014 championship and playing for the Spurs for 8 seasons.  Toronto got the best of that trade alright.

Kawhi is only the third player to win league MVP while playing for two different teams.  The other two are Kareem and LeBron.

I'm hoping Kawhi stays with Toronto for next season.

[Maggot]

********TORONTO!!!********

[HairOfTheDog]

My friend from Fullerton moved to Toronto about 20 years ago.  He's so stoked.  I've only been there once many years ago, but loved it.


Raptors fans react inside Jurassic Park, outside of  Toronto's Scotiabank Arena, as they watch the Raptors defeat the Golden State Warriors on the wide screen.

After the Raptor's win last night, McDonald's locations throughout Ontario gave away 80,000+ boxes of french fries in celebration. 

The victory parade goes down on Monday in Toronto.  That's gonna be a hell of a party, no doubt.  

The parade will start at Exhibition Place and travel on Lake Shore Boulevard, then north on York, University Avenue and Armoury Street and end at Nathan Phillips Square.

[HairOfTheDog]

Kawhi Leonard ^ deserved the MVP title, hands down.  The Raptors have been a good team for some time, but the acquisition of Kawhi (and head coach Nick Nurse) took them to champion level in one season.


Kyle Lowry ^ is deserving of a lot of celebration too.  He's stuck it out with the Raptors for six years and played his heart out.  It's really cool to see him achieve his dream of bringing the trophy to Toronto.  Lowry scored 26 points last night.

Anyway, It will be interesting to see if winning the title will influence Kawhi's free agency decision.  He's free to leave Toronto or can opt to stay with the Raptors.

[HairOfTheDog]

Free Agency for ²⁰¹⁹⁄₂₀₂₀ Season

Some of the best players in the league are up for free agency in the ²⁰¹⁹⁄₂₀₂₀ season.  

The teams that have budget to acquire a star player like Kawhi Leonard when free agency starts on June 30^th are the New York Knicks $72.9M, Los Angeles Clippers $59.7M, Brooklyn Nets $54.6M, Dallas Mavericks $52.2M, Atlanta Hawks $50.6M, Indiana Pacers $48.8M, Los Angeles Lakers $41.8M.  

Aside from Kawhi, Warriors Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson are up.  Hopefully, Klay's knee injury which took him out of last night's championship game isn't too serious. 

Durant will likely have to sit out next season due to his achilles injury, but I think teams would still pay big to catch him while they can if he chooses to leave Golden State.

Celtic (formerly with the Cavs) Kyrie Irving is also up for free agency starting June 30^th.  LeBron James reportedly really wants him in L.A.  That would be a game changer for the Lakers, I think, but there are rumors that the Nets already have him hooked.  We'll see.

Full list of players up for free agency:  https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2019-...rs-market/