'25-26 NBA Thread

[GB Warrior]

Two minimum.

Which means getting only two firsts while also throwing in Jaylen is a colossal failure by the Celtics.

[MuggsyB]

Which means getting only two firsts while also throwing in Jaylen is a colossal failure by the Celtics.

Yes.  That's an F trade for the Celtics. 

[WhiteTrash]

I guess the experts who predicted Billy Donovan would have to pick from multiple NBA HC jobs were not actually in the know.

He's a nice guy and I wish him well rebuilding his career in SA.

[BM1090]

I guess the experts who predicted Billy Donovan would have to pick from multiple NBA HC jobs were not actually in the know.

He's a nice guy and I wish him well rebuilding his career in SA.

Just because he didn't get hired doesn't mean he didn't have options.

I have no idea, but a lead assistant for SAS would be more attractive than coaching Sacramento for a lot of people.

[cheebs09]

I guess the experts who predicted Billy Donovan would have to pick from multiple NBA HC jobs were not actually in the know.

He's a nice guy and I wish him well rebuilding his career in SA.

It's why you always have to make the call to him. He might just accept.

[JWags85]

This is an awesome analytics breakdown on Jaylen Brown and why his value might not have been what Muggs and others online expected...

https://x.com/databallr/status/2072840519890391207?s=46

[MU82]

He was pretty valuable in the 2024 NBA Finals ... but he's no Playoff P.

[MuggsyB]

This is an awesome analytics breakdown on Jaylen Brown and why his value might not have been what Muggs and others online expected...

https://x.com/databallr/status/2072840519890391207?s=46

JWags, I think analytics can be super misleading.  If you took Brown off of the Celtics last year how many wins do you think that team gets?  Their record without him has to be looked at in a much more nuanced fashion.  I'm not saying he's a top 5 or even top 10 player but what Boston got in that trade, especially when you compare it to other players, is a complete joke.  The two most important stats imo are durability and wins.

[GB Warrior]

JWags, I think analytics can be super misleading.  If you took Brown off of the Celtics last year how many wins do you think that team gets?  Their record without him has to be looked at in a much more nuanced fashion.  I'm not saying he's a top 5 or even top 10 player but what Boston got in that trade, especially when you compare it to other players, is a complete joke.  The two most important stats imo are durability and wins.

You take Jaylen off the team and you have 60M to spend on other talent surrounding an elite bench unit

[MuggsyB]

You take Jaylen off the team and you have 60M to spend on other talent surrounding an elite bench unit

I get that and that's why they made the trade. Although "elite bench unit" is inaccurate besides Pritchard. 

[GB Warrior]

I get that and that's why they made the trade. Although "elite bench unit" is inaccurate besides Pritchard. 

They outpaced 28 other teams in Net Rating by nearly two points. They were so good that they probably hurt Jaylen's value because his on/off splits were so mediocre. They weren't as good as they were in 2024 because some of them had to start more games in Tatum's absence. But they were an elite unit.

[MuggsyB]

They outpaced 28 other teams in Net Rating by nearly two points. They were so good that they probably hurt Jaylen's value because his on/off splits were so mediocre. They weren't as good as they were in 2024 because some of them had to start more games in Tatum's absence. But they were an elite unit.

Pritchard was probably the best bench player in the league amd Sammy can cook from distance.  Maybe no one has an elite bench come playoff time but they didn't come across as being dangerous other than PP. 

[Uncle Rico]

Pritchard was probably the best bench player in the league amd Sammy can cook from distance.  Maybe no one has an elite bench come playoff time but they didn't come across as being dangerous other than PP. 

They're white, too, which is great for Boston fans

[Billy Hoyle]

Pritchard was probably the best bench player in the league amd Sammy can cook from distance.  Maybe no one has an elite bench come playoff time but they didn't come across as being dangerous other than PP. 

Ok, we talked about bands we saw before they became big. Well...

My buddy was a HS coach and coached in the same conference as Pritchard, so I went to see what the hype was about and took a friend's son who my coach friend and I were bith doing hoops training for. Throughout the first quarter Pritchard was unimpressive, turnovers and missed shots and West Linn trailed. I said to the kid I was with (a HS player himself) "he's not Pac 12 talent he'll be at Portland State in two years." West Linn starts pressing in the second quarter and abolutely blows LO out of the gym - they won by 30. Pritchard ends up with 45...and sits for the last 6 minutes of the 4th quarter. I was happy to ad.it I was wrong and not cut out to be a basketball scout! The next time I saw Pritchard in person he came off the bench in garbage time to drop 19 points in the fourth quarter ina blowout of the Blazers.

[MuggsyB]

4 years, 273 mill for Donovan Mitchell?   Maybe it's me but I don't see any evidence he is capable of leading a team to a title. 

[JWags85]

4 years, 273 mill for Donovan Mitchell?   Maybe it's me but I don't see any evidence he is capable of leading a team to a title. 

The last 2 years he's been 1st and 2nd Team All-NBA, the unquestioned top dog in Cleveland, and the Cavs have went a combined 116-48, and lost to a freak run hot streak Pacers team and a juggernaut of a Knicks team on a heater.

Thats the kind of player you give a max deal to.  He hasn't had the supporting cast to win a title but he's absolutely good enough to be that guy as a scorer and play maker.  There was more evidence on him being good enough to lead a team to a title than there was for Brunson up until the playoffs this year.

[MuggsyB]

The last 2 years he's been 1st and 2nd Team All-NBA, the unquestioned top dog in Cleveland, and the Cavs have went a combined 116-48, and lost to a freak run hot streak Pacers team and a juggernaut of a Knicks team on a heater.

Thats the kind of player you give a max deal to.  He hasn't had the supporting cast to win a title but he's absolutely good enough to be that guy as a scorer and play maker.  There was more evidence on him being good enough to lead a team to a title than there was for Brunson up until the playoffs this year.

The Cavs got swept by tbe Knicks if memory serves. 

[GB Warrior]

4 years, 273 mill for Donovan Mitchell?   Maybe it's me but I don't see any evidence he is capable of leading a team to a title. 

Give it 2 years and he'll be traded to Philly in a salary dump for an over-the-hill Jaylen Brown.

[JWags85]

The Cavs got swept by tbe Knicks if memory serves. 

Yea and Mitchell averaged 28/4/4 while Harden shot 35% for the series while also going well under his season assist numbers, Mobley forgot how to rebound, and the Cavs got next to nothing from their bench.

Spare me the snarky responses when your casual understanding of the NBA is snap judgements based on your supposed eye test...and your eyes, as they pertain to the NBA, most closely resemble that of Mr Magoo.

[MuggsyB]

Yea and Mitchell averaged 28/4/4 while Harden shot 35% for the series while also going well under his season assist numbers, Mobley forgot how to rebound, and the Cavs got next to nothing from their bench.

Spare me the snarky responses when your casual understanding of the NBA is snap judgements based on your supposed eye test...and your eyes, as they pertain to the NBA, most closely resemble that of Mr Magoo.

His team wasn't competitive vs NY.  That's the only stat that means diddly squat. 

[WhiteTrash]

The Cavs got swept by tbe Knicks if memory serves. 

Yeah, but only on the scoreboard. The advanced stats had the Cavs in a sweep. 

[MU82]

His team wasn't competitive vs NY.  That's the only stat that means diddly squat. 

The Celtics didn't do diddly squat after taking a 3-1 lead over the Sixers. Ipso fatso, Jaylen Brown isn't good, and the Celtics were lucky to get Playoff P for him, right?

[Scoop Snoop]

Spare me the snarky responses when your casual understanding of the NBA is snap judgements based on your supposed eye test...and your eyes, as they pertain to the NBA, most closely resemble that of Mr Magoo.

Oh, this is really good JWags. Kudos!

[MU82]

Kawhi trade is not a done deal ... due to the NBA's ongoing investigation into the salary-cap cheating that Pablo Torre won a Pulitzer Prize for uncovering.

[The Sultan]

Kawhi trade is not a done deal ... due to the NBA's ongoing investigation into the salary-cap cheating that Pablo Torre won a Pulitzer Prize for uncovering.

I watched something this morning where Pablo asks...what has changed since June 30 when the trade was announced? Is the NBA about to conclude its investigation and announce penalties against Kawhi and/or the Clippers?