2021-22 NBA "REGULAR" SEASON THREAD

xp i've been listening and i totally get nate's macro point but i think it misses the real life aspects of this...like if you were working on a team that was delivering really successfully and then you lost two of the best people who do a given job, and management was like it's ok we'll just lean really hard on the 3rd person that does that job because it's better for us to replace those two people next year or the year after......it's just not how things work in reality and that's probably for a reason.

the mavs would need some breaks i think. ultimately jumping from not winning a playoff round to i.e. the finals seems like too big of a leap. the suns did it but they had lots of injury luck along the way, no disrespect.

i don’t think they could beat a fully healthy suns or dubs team, i just think they’re playing a style that makes sense where the roles are defined and the defense seeming to be fixed. ideally the talent level would be upped & ultimately that feels like the step they’ll need to take but they have a clear identity which is a foundation you can lean on

if rubio didn't have the injury i presume this trade never happens?

yeah he was playing great for them and fit well

i don’t know, they’re different players who do much different things. they may have needed to figure out a different way to match the salary but still a possibility they go after a scoring wing

rubio will probably re-sign in cleveland, theyre basically just losing the ability to pay him while he recovers from injury

Spottie at 5:26 6 Feb 22

Speaking of reddish, does thibs just hate him or what

going out of his way to alienate a talented young high draft pick? doesn't sound like the thibs I know

lets do this baby

The Brooklyn Nets are open to a Ben Simmons and Seth Curry package in a James Harden trade, per @BillSimmons

(Via the Bill Simmons Podcast | h/t B/R) pic.twitter.com/mimwpP6YXK

— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) February 7, 2022

I'd prefer Danny Green go instead of Curry but I think I would ultimately do that. Curry got killed on D late in games against Atlanta last year.

The New Knicks are emerging as a ‘legitimate trade suitor’ for CJ McCollum, per @TheSteinLine

(Via https://t.co/OV8XTF4RUa) pic.twitter.com/0QUWm2ugFF

— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) February 7, 2022

good luck cracking thibs' starting lineup, cj

Murray and Lamelo are the all star fill ins for Dray and Kd

see this is why i never trusted the idea that the knicks actually had found a competent front office. no such thing is possible w/ james dolan as owner

I really like McCollum as a player and as a person, but the Blazers need to move him if they can find a trade that makes any kind of sense.

lol what the hell are the knicks going to do with cj mccollum

if the portland front office actually has a plan apart from dumping salary and going deeper into the tank, it should be obvious by mid-July. if no clear plan emerges, this just looks like the prelude to dame moving on and another rebuild.

can’t wait to see how dirt cheap the market for cj is after waiting five years for things to somehow just work out, feels like some matching salary and a second rounder?

I hope the pellies part with an unprotected first for cj. (/dreaming)

see this is why i never trusted the idea that the knicks actually had found a competent front office. no such thing is possible w/ james dolan as owner

― J0rdan S., Monday, February 7, 2022 5:17 PM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

relatively competent

they’re going to build a 48-win team around rj barrett and vets and furiously congratulate themselves for achieving competence

watching heat vs wiz tonight and bertans didn't get into the game until the heat were up 32 points. forgot he was even on their team. what a predictably horrible contract that turned out to be jeez

Kyrie Irving is only eligible to play in 10 of the Nets’ last 29 games this season because of the NY vaccine mandate.

The Nets are currently the 7-seed. 😶 pic.twitter.com/DzK5MPZnjz

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) February 7, 2022

trades

Atlanta and New York have joined New Orleans in the bidding for CJ McCollum, sources said. Plus more details on Portland, Indiana, Sacramento, Boston, Milwaukee and others around the league in our latest @BR_NBA trade deadline notebook: https://t.co/DQOSlNUnaV

— Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) February 8, 2022

New York remains active in exploring avenues to bolster its roster and compete for the Play-In tournament while clearing room for Cam Reddish in Tom Thibodeau's rotation. 

haha I love this, Thibs rotation is so set in stone that you literally have to wait until someone is traded or retires to get minutes

Why would you trade for him if you're not going to play him? It's just nuts.

sounds like the front office and coaching staff might not be 100% on the same page

interesting to see divincenzo in there wonder if the bucks dont want to pay him

Over the weekend, Boston offered Schröder to Milwaukee for Donte DiVincenzo, which the Bucks countered asking for Grant Williams, sources with knowledge of the discussions told The Athletic. Though sources said the Celtics balked at the offer, the teams continue to explore frameworks that include Williams.

celtics really need to be targeting connaughton tho, bring patty home

they could save money by having him play lucky too, just put the hat on during timeouts get out there with w tshirt cannon

guess this is happening

New Orleans is on verge of adding an accomplished vet and playmaker as the franchise aims to make postseason.

End of an era for the Trail Blazers and their McCollum-Damian Lillard backcourt. Portland worked to acquire assets in McCollum deal and send him to a good situation. https://t.co/or5Ay22rZ3

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 8, 2022

about three years too late

i don't really get it, i don't really get the pelicans overall, are they trying to build for the future or win now?

yeah they seem bad as an org

gotta think is is gonna end in a dame trade at some point, maybe ownership isnt ready and the front office is trying to backdoor their way into it by putting a definitively bad team out there

pelicans are just flailing. zion might not play at all this season and then he'll bolt as soon as possible.

yeah couldnt be more clear that he does not want to be on the pelicans

zions lucky that his storyline this year is like the 3rd weirdest thing in the league behind kyrie and ben.

lol yeah just keeping his head down

But not his weight

lol

its good the pelicans are trying to make the offs we need to keep them away from any more #1 picks

I love Connaughton but the man belongs in Boston

lol was just thinking about Zion the other day. like are we ever gonna see the dude ball or is this another Greg Oden situation? has anyone ever become a perennial all-star after missing this much of their first 2 seasons? idk maybe Blake Griffin but Zion's issues seem to run a little deeper

Hard to say with him but from my perspective it just looks like he’s trying to play as little minutes for the pelicans as possible. The red flags are piling up tho.

the thing about oden is he was never actually good, zion has been dominant when hes played

Offensively anyway

his defense has been a huge disappointment, one of many red flags as you noted

also oden had like a degenerative leg injury coming into the league, one leg was several inches shorter than the other or something. they feel like different situations

Portland worked to acquire assets in McCollum deal and send him to a good situation.

a good situation.......in new orleans?