(yes I added the III for the char limit lol)

With the Heat having a lukewarm start and Bam/Jimmy taking alot of heat from this sub, I'm surprised as to how little criticism Scary Terry seems to get so far. On a good night he's average and on a bad night he's been pretty terrible. After having a hot start in the Hornets last year and kinda finding his rhythm with the Heat late in the season before his injury, I had higher hopes for him entering this year. I'm aware he tends to be streaky in terms of performance but am I missing something considering the lack of criticism he's been getting compared to Bam and Jimmy?

The shooting numbers r impressive but the real leap he's taken has been how well he's seeing the floor. He's turned into the best passer on the team while handling teams doubling better than past seasons

Here's the proposal I have been workshopping:

Teams that make it out of Group play, every win in the Elimination Round gets added to your Win total at the end of the regular season.

IE last year, the Lakers would've gotten +3 wins (QF, Semis and Championship) taking them from a 47 win Play-In team to a 50 win Playoff AQ'er.

On top of this they should go away from conference splits and create the Groups based off the previous year's First to Worst Win %'s.

And you can do away with the extra games that the non Elim teams have to play that leads to an unbalanced schedule.

Game Threads Index (November 13, 2024):

This season, in clutch time, Darius Garland has showcased exceptional efficiency, scoring 28 points on 78.6% shooting from the field, 60% from three-point range, and a perfect 100% from the free-throw line. His playmaking has also been valuable, with 5 assists and only 1 turnover, while his defensive contributions include 1 steal, 2 blocks, and 4 defensive rebounds. Garland’s efforts have contributed to a +36 plus/minus in clutch situations, underscoring his impact and composure under pressure.

A lot was made of RJ looking a lot better last season once he got traded to Toronto. And he did. He finally stopped being one of the most inefficient high usage guys in the league, shooting by far a career high 55% from the field. He also started shooting well from the 3 point line at 39% something he has rarely done in his career (that said somehow he had by far a career low shooting 62% from the line if you don’t count his rookie season). Some made this out to be he was playing better back home in Canada and this would be a new and improved RJ moving forward.

But the start of this season he’s regressed and is back to RJ we saw in New York for a long time and is honestly looking worse in a lot of ways.

It’s obviously early but his Toronto sample size wasn’t a huge one either so it’s hard to make out what exactly RJ is. Is this a fluke and he’ll come back to his real Toronto form soon? Or was his post trade deadline run with Toronto the actual fluke?

I made the post on Ant a few days ago that many of you pushed back on, saying he was a bit up his behind right now and I stand by it, as what we saw in the Miami game was embarrassing. Last night was a pretty poor team effort from Minnesota, as they came out absolutely unprepared to meet the energy the Blazers came forth with and were exceedingly sloppy early.

The Blazers shot at an outlier rate from 3 but they were allowed to get comfortable with the lack of force on the opposing side and with turnovers allowing them to get out in transition. The Wolves ended up with over 20 turnovers. Randle was very poor on both ends of the floor, Gobert got outplayed by both Clingan and Williams, and Ant even in scoring 26 didn't make an impression upon the game.

The Wolves are 6-5 and have had flashes of very good basketball but have not put many if any full games together. Naz has been perhaps the Wolves' most consistent player and he's been a beast. Conley hasn't always been his usual solid rock and has been a bit passive as well offensively. Obviously the Wolves made a huge trade prior to preseason and it will take them some time as a unit to find their sea legs and adjust and we can't expect them to hit their stride until later in the season but there are some concerning signs right now of a team that's not locked in and may not have a consistent way of winning games. They have some issues on both ends right now, but what's notable is how much their defense has dropped from last season. Not just performance wise, but engagement wise also.

What do you all think about Minnesota's season thus far and where they currently stand as a team?

New ESPN story: It took three weeks, but Joel Embiid’s season is officially underway. And, after 26 minutes on the court, it ended like last season did: with a loss at home to the New York Knicks.

https://x.com/TimBontemps/status/1856764527431291018?t=OK-_AcvagqsBlk2B-oyhXw&s=19

Can anyone help me understand the call last night during the final minute of the Heat/Pistons game. Detroit scored and a timeout was called. I understand that Spo called timeout and the Heat had no timeouts which led to a technical foul.

Why did Detroit regain possession after the technical? What am I missing? Even the Heat broadcasting team was confused.

Warriors have already shown in 2022 they can win if you surround Steph and Dray with great role players. And this team seems to be deep but there is clear weak spot at 5. TJD is too small and cant shoot( cant space the floor). Claxton is not great shooter either but would bring their already great rebounding onto a new level and he is a bigger lob threat. Turner would help with spacing which they need because they always have at least 2 non shooters on the court

Curry would have 5 rings and Bron would only have 3 and wouldn’t have his best ring ever. I also think curry would be in conversations as a top 3 player ever if he had 5 rings right now

NBA Cup prize money increases for 2024:

Players on winning team of championship: $514,970 each

Players on losing team of championship: $205,988 each

Players on losing team of semifinals: $102,994 each

Players on losing team of quarterfinals: $51,497 each

Last season, NBA Cup prize money amounts were: $500,000; $200,000; $100,000; $50,000 Reason for the increase this season: Prize money tied to growth of basketball-related income (BRI)

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I've watch 2-3 games per day since the preseason and wanna give Silver his flowers.

Since the All Star Game fiasco last year, refs have been calling games MUCH better & more consistently. Other than a few outliers, game flow has been exponetially improved. This has led to much better defensive play which has tempered the ridiculous scoring.

These early season games haven't felt like tuneups like in decades past. Far more intensity in games this season compared to recent past. Balance between scoring & defense seems spot-on.

Instant replay feels sorted & not taking too long for the most part.

First in-season NBA Cup games felt like playoff atmosphere.

League feels balanced and exciting.

Honestly, it feels like Silver has finally balanced so many competing goals and the NBA feels almost perfect right now.

Silver and the League take a lot of criticism, often it is warranted. But I think Silver has mostly gotten things right and gameplay feels really good. Dude deserves some praise.