NBA 2008-09 Regular Season Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Kirk Tsai]

Solomon: No end in sight for McGrady soap opera | NBA Basketball | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle
I saw this story linked earlier in the day about T-Mac, but it doesn't mention that he might be out for the season. The story seems to say that the team and Mcgrady are not in agreement on his status.

Count me in as one who is baffled by the Suns' apparent desire to trade Amare Stoudamire. The Suns would like to save money--no news there--and...what, rebuild around Nash (35 years old) and Shaq (soon to be 38)? Even if they clear out money for the 2010 sweepstakes, will any big name free agent that wants to win sign there after seeing how the management has botched this team? Is there any resemblance of logic in that front office? Disgusted Suns fans should bring some posters to All Star weekend to denounce Sarver and Kerr on national TV.

Nate Robinson is a very exciting player, but I hope he doesn't take 20 attempts for one dunk in the contest again.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I would love to see the Pistons get Amare Stoudamire. Detroit is one of the rumored trading possibilities. Supposedly it would take Rasheed Wallace (expiring contract) and a young player. It would be great if Phoenix would take Amir Johnson, but somehow I don't think they would settle for him and would instead want Rodney Stuckey.

 

[Ockeghem]

I would love for Stoudamire to come to Boston. I've been wondering who they might give up for him. As for Marbury, Boston isn't going to pursue until he's clear from the Knicks, if then.

If I were Detroit, I wouldn't give up Stuckey -- no way. Wallace? Maybe. From what I've read on this Board, Wallace doesn't fit the style of play that Detroit is trying to put on the floor these days. How about Stoudamire for Mahorn, Laimbeer, and Dumars?

 

[Ockeghem]

That was a gutsy win by the Celtics last night. They found themselves trailing by fifteen (65-50) midway through the third quarter, and chopped five points off the halftime deficit (eleven) by the end of the third. And in the fourth, they held Dallas to 17 points -- the second time in as many nights that they've held a home team to that total in the final quarter. Nowitzki was great (37 points); however, he somehow missed seven of eight shots down the stretch. And Rondo had a triple double (19, 15, and 14, I believe).

The Lakers, Celtics, and Cavaliers are heading into the final 26-30 games of the season, each with a chance to win 60 games. I mentioned before that I don't know if this has ever happened before in a single season. I do know that the Celtics and 76ers had identical 62-20 records back in the early 1980s, but I don't believe any other team reached the 60-win plateau that year.

I can't emphasize enough how in today's NBA game the homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs is a huge psychological edge. I believe Boston needs it to have any chance of defeating Los Angeles in the finals (if both happen to get there, which is by no means a foregone conclusion).

My projections for the four best records in the NBA, which are based on games remaining, the opponents each team still has to play, and the number of road games left on their respective schedules, are as follows:

1. Los Angeles Lakers: 69-13
2. Boston Celtics: 67-15
3. Cleveland Cavaliers: 66-16 (This was Boston's league-leading best record last year!)
4. Orlando Magic: 63-19

This has the potential of being precedent-setting. With thirteen losses at present, I cannot see the Magic losing ten more games (59-23) the rest of the way. I also cannot see the Lakers losing more than three games, unless they lock up the best record well before then, rendering the final half dozen or so games moot.

The Lakers have a few toughies left (Charlotte comes to mind), and they have more road games than the other teams. But their recent road trip (6-0) may have shown just how good they are when they step up their game. The Lakers do have three games in four nights after the all-star game, but I don't expect them to lose more than one of those (Atlanta, Golden State, and New Orleans). They get Denver and Phoenix on the road as well, but they should take those. They do get the Trailblazers in Portland on March 9 (and again on April 10), and the Blazers should be geared up for those home games. They also get the Rockets in Houston on the 11th, which IMO is a game Houston must win as a confidence builder; the next night they play at San Antonio, which could be a victory for the Spurs. The Lakers also get the Hawks in Atlanta in late March, but I've got to think that the Lakers will send a strong message in that one. The most interesting game for me will be when the Lakers play Charlotte on March 31. The Bobcats have won six of eight (or is it seven of eight?) from Los Angeles. Very odd. The Rockets travel to Los Angeles on April 3, but I've got to believe that the Lakers will take that one.

The Celtics have some tough games left on this six-game road trip (Utah -- a tough home team, Phoenix, and Denver come to mind). They also have two more games against Cleveland (one in Boston and then in Cleveland), and they have Orlando at home. They also have some 'iffy' road games against the likes of New Jersey (their recent back-to-back wins against the Nets notwithstanding) and the Bulls. They've handled Chicago well this season, but these kinds of games worry me late in the season. The Celtics also get the Spurs in San Antonio. This won't be an easy game, obviously. And we get the Magic one more time in Orlando, as well as the Hawks once more in Atlanta. Both of these games will be wars. The Celtics get the Bobcats the night after Charlotte has played the Lakers. And the Celtics have something to send to the Bobcats for their trash-talking after the 'Cats defeated them in Charlotte in overtime.

Cleveland has some tough games at Houston and then San Antonio in a couple of weeks, and they get Detroit at home. In years past, I would have said that the Detroit game was a gimme for the Pistons, but this year they haven't looked like the formidable team of the past few years. The Cavaliers also have to play the Hawks down in Atlanta, which is a game that the Hawks should win. Cleveland comes to Boston on March 6, and then the Cavaliers have the Heat at home the next night. I think this could be a chance for the Cavaliers to lose a couple of consecutive games, which is something they've only done once this season (the Lakers and Celtics have each done it at least twice thus far).

BTW, I guarantee that Los Angeles will lose on April 5. Any takers? Try me. I'll give you 10,000 to 1 odds on a hundred bucks.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

Well, all three of those guys -- Mahorn, Laimbeer, and Dumars -- are still with the organization, so it could work.

Rasheed Wallace is gone when his contract expires at the end of the year anyway (the reason he would be attractive to Phoenix), so giving him up is not a big deal. I wouldn't feel good about giving up Stuckey, either. I just don't think that a player like Amir Johnson or Jason Maxiell would draw enough interest from Phoenix, and Rip Hamilton's salary is too big to make it work with the salary cap unless the Suns threw in another player with a fairly hefty contract.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Let me guess -- Lakers vs. Clippers?

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Did y'all catch the end of the Heat/ Bulls game? I don't think I've ever seen anything like it.

With 6 seconds left and the Heat up by 3, Ben Gordon(?) got fouled while taking a trey and hit all three free throws to tie the game.

The Bulls intercepted the Heat's inbounds pass and called timeout.

The Heat intercepted the Bulls' inbounds pass and called timeout.

Shawn Marion inbounded the ball to D-Wade, who immediately led Marion with a semi-no-look backwards pass on the way to the basket. Dunk with 1 second left, Heat win!

That was the coolest ending to an NBA game since, well, those mirror-image fouls in the Cavs-Pacers matchup a couple of days ago.

 

[Ockeghem]

Aaron,

Yep, Powe seemed to be the only one who could guard Nowitzki. I'm not sure what he was doing differently, but Garnett et al. were having much trouble with him, even in the paint.

Yeah, the thing that astounds me about Rondo is his rebounding capability. I mean, how does he do it? I have to attributed it to his quickness. I don't think his leaping ability is David Thompson-like.

And yes, you're right about the L.A. question.

 

[Ockeghem]

Both of which occurred in what, 0.8 seconds?

 

[Aaron Silverman]

Now look what's happened!

 

[Aaron Silverman]

It's partly his quickness at getting to the ball and partly the fact that each arm is about 6 feet long.

 

[Ockeghem]

Wow. Marion, Banks, and Bosh. Could be interesting....

Re: Rondo--

Yeah, the announcers during the Celtics / Mavericks game mentioned his long arms last night. I loved seeing Rondo hit a couple of jumpers, too. That part of his game needs improving, and if he keeps shooting, he may get there.

 

[Andy Sheets]

Looks like McGrady is going to get the microfracture surgery and is shutting down for the season. Unfortunately he apparently didn't bother informing the team of this and they had to find out through the media. Oops. I suppose the bright side is that the team will have some closure on the issue and they can finally plan on not having him, instead of the status changing every other day.

 

[Kirk Tsai]

That destroys all those trade rumors, including McGrady going to the Nets for Vince Carter. I also wonder if this will be it for T-Mac. The list of players who come back from microfracture surgery successfully is something like a handful. Amare is the most obvious success, but he was one of the youngest ever to undergo such a surgery. T-Mac will be on the wrong side of 30 soon, and was already showing signs of decline before this year.

 

[Ockeghem]

Some interesting trades as the deadline approached. Boston traded O'Bryant (and Cassell earlier) for future considerations. ESPN is saying that all they have done is opened up a spot on their roster. I think that something is going on, but I'm not exactly sure what it is. Marbury? I don't think anything has changed. We'll see.

 

[Andy Sheets]

Why would the Celtics want Marbury? I can't see them repeating if they're in a tight game and "Starbury" starts waving off Garnett and Pierce because he's the Greatest Point Guard in the World.

The Suns lost Amare for the season with an eye injury. When he finally comes back he needs to do like Rip and keep his protective gear on nonstop just in case.

 

[Ockeghem]

Because he would be the best ball-handler off the bench, and he can shoot relatively well.

 

[Ockeghem]

How about the Jazz? They've defeated the Lakers and Celtics in succession. Both games were in Utah, but that is still quite an accomplishment.

I hope Garnett's injury is not serious.

 

[Aaron Silverman]

The Celtics played very poorly on offense (not to mention missing a ton of free throws) last night and were without KG for more than half the game, and Utah still barely pulled out the win. The Jazz are still missing Boozer though.

I didn't see their game with the Lakers, so I don't know how they played that time.

 

[Ockeghem]

The Celtics are up by nearly forty points with around 2:30 to go in Denver. Huh? With their tough game (loss) in Utah, their rout of the Suns in Phoenix, and now this game, I'm starting to think that when Garnett comes back, he ought to be part of their second unit, known affectionately by Celts fans as the 'green team.'

I realize the Nuggets aren't at full strength, but this is the same team that handed the Celtics their first home loss of the season back in the early part of the season, right before Boston won nineteen straight. Then again, a few weeks ago, I believe the Nuggets were drubbed by forty by another team. I can't figure it, as Denver is 20-6 at home, and 37-19 overall. Not too shabby.