2020-2021 NBA Game Thread

Cesar Crespo

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Don't look now but Lonzo is up to .431/.401/.757 for the year. 28/37 from the line, 89/222 from 3.

FT % by year
.451, 32/71
.417, 20/48
.566 43/76
.757 28/37

What's the biggest gap in FT% shooting from career low to career high? 34% has to be up there.

3 PT shooting
.305
.329
.375
.401.

NO is going to keep him. If by some slim chance they don't, I think he's going to play with his brother.
 

Sam Ray Not

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Pacers 18-4
Celtics 15-2

How many SoSHers did we lose to hara kiri in between? :)

Edit: whoops, wrong thread, but you get the jist.
 

Sam Ray Not

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Blake Griffin memorial performance o' the night: in five minutes of game time, Kelly Oubre just threw down five ferocious dunks.

Almost all of them courtesy of Draymond, who put up 7 pts, 7 reb, 8 ast in the first quarter (Steph's gravity says hi, too).
 

Kliq

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Draymond: 11 pts, 12 reb, 19 ast
Draymond and Curry have one of the most unique player relationships in NBA history. Their game together is so very specific; Curry would be great regardless, but his link-up with Draymond when it comes to off-ball screens and moving without the ball is really special.
 

Sam Ray Not

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Update on the Steph v. Dame FT% race for you, Kliq (the two were a combined 18-18 tonight):

Dame .936 (219-234)
Steph .941 (176-187)

Pretty insane. CP3 still has 'em both beat, tho: .962 (76-79).
 

Kliq

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Update on the Steph v. Dame FT% race for you, Kliq (the two were a combined 18-18 tonight):

Dame .936 (219-234)
Steph .941 (176-187)

Pretty insane. CP3 still has 'em both beat, tho: .962 (76-79).
I'm looking at the all time record and it's crazy that Jose Calderon made 151 of 154 free throws (98%) in 08-09. The next year he only shot 79%. CP3 would need to make his next 75 free throws just to have a chance.

I think sheer volume is going to do Dame in; just too many times for him to get knocked to the ground going into the paint and tightening up his shoulder or something.
 

Imbricus

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Maledon with 12 assists last night; that's Haliburton territory. Will be interesting to see how he develops, as a later pick with a lot of upside. And Draymond had 19 assists. That had me looking up the single-game record: 30, by Scott Stiles.
 

AMS25

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Maledon with 12 assists last night; that's Haliburton territory. Will be interesting to see how he develops, as a later pick with a lot of upside. And Draymond had 19 assists. That had me looking up the single-game record: 30, by Scott Stiles.
As a Thunder fan, I've been pleasantly surprised by Maledon. Actually, I've been pleasantly surprised by a number of players on the Tankin' Thunder. Of course, several were picked up from the NBA scrap heap -- Isaiah Roby, Kenrich Williams, Justin Jackson, etc.. It's funny to hear the fans of other teams refer to the Thunder as a G-League team just because OKC's roster is full of unknowns. "We lost to a G-League team!" But, they're a scrappy group and fun to watch. We know the Thunder are tanking, but the coach and players don't.
 

azsoxpatsfan

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Update on the Steph v. Dame FT% race for you, Kliq (the two were a combined 18-18 tonight):

Dame .936 (219-234)
Steph .941 (176-187)

Pretty insane. CP3 still has 'em both beat, tho: .962 (76-79).
One of CP3s misses came two nights ago when the suns were down 2 with like 0.6 left to play and one more ft attempt so he missed on purpose which is kinda wild
 

Sam Ray Not

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One of CP3s misses came two nights ago when the suns were down 2 with like 0.6 left to play and one more ft attempt so he missed on purpose which is kinda wild
Wow, thanks for the info. That’s a big deal when you’ve only missed thrice!

In a just world, intentional misses wouldn’t count as FTA, anymore than buzzer heaves count as 3FGA, or “gentleman’s shot clock violations” at the end of games count as turnovers. WTF is wrong with NBA scorekeeping? Stats are supposed to inform, not mislead.
 

terrynever

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Wow, thanks for the info. That’s a big deal when you’ve only missed thrice!

In a just world, intentional misses wouldn’t count as FTA, anymore than buzzer heaves count as 3FGA, or “gentleman’s shot clock violations” at the end of games count as turnovers. WTF is wrong with NBA scorekeeping? Stats are supposed to inform, not mislead.
Ben’s 3-pt FG percentage would be a lot higher were it not for his buzzer-beaters from mid court!
 

terrynever

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Cavs prevail despite 42 from Embiid. Doc’s son-in-law shot 1-for-13 tonight in 39 minutes. Simmons swished a 25-footer at the buzzer, his second trey of the season!
 

Euclis20

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Atlantic division currently has the 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 seeds in the East. The East/West disparity remains as bad as ever, but the Atlantic is looking like the best division in the NBA.
 

HomeRunBaker

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You can tell a lot about whether an NBA coach “gets it” and Monty Williams just failed in that regard. Random out of bounds play near end of 3Q......he uses up his one challenge! Of course the replay clearly shows the ball was indeed off of Phoenix. Zero concept of risk/reward.
 

jon abbey

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Atlantic division currently has the 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 seeds in the East. The East/West disparity remains as bad as ever, but the Atlantic is looking like the best division in the NBA.
DIvisions really don't matter at all in the NBA as we all know, but the Pacific is currently a collective 31 games over .500 and the Atlantic is 20 games over.
 

benhogan

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You can tell a lot about whether an NBA coach “gets it” and Monty Williams just failed in that regard. Random out of bounds play near end of 3Q......he uses up his one challenge! Of course the replay clearly shows the ball was indeed off of Phoenix. Zero concept of risk/reward.
does it really matter when playing the Wolves?

22-11 Suns, Monty deserves some credit.
 

HomeRunBaker

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does it really matter when playing the Wolves?

22-11 Suns, Monty deserves some credit.
Not sure what the opponent in a 5-point game has to do with altering optimal game management.

It’s a players league. I give Paul and Booker the majority of the credit in that order. It’s Paul’s team.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Sacramento trying hard as they can to blow this game to Charlotte. 2-7 from line in 4Q with Fox and Bagley each missing both on their two-shot fouls in final minute. 9-pt lead is now 2.
 

HomeRunBaker

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INCREDIBLE!!!!!

Hield misses one of two FT’s, Hornets down 2, Monk beats his man off the dribble, gets fouled at the rim and finishes!! Converts the FT to take 1-pt lead w/ 1.4 sec. Kings inbound to Hield who launches a 55-footer that was on line and bounces off the rim!!

As Rocco used to say......What a product!!!!!
 

radsoxfan

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Sacramento trying hard as they can to blow this game to Charlotte. 2-7 from line in 4Q with Fox and Bagley each missing both on their two-shot fouls in final minute. 9-pt lead is now 2.
Crazy win for the Hornets.

42 points from PJ Washington wasn't exactly expected.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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That was ugly. Sacramento is likely going to move one or more of Bjelica, Barnes or Holmes. They have only won once - the game prior to this against the Pistons - in their last 11 games.
 

Imbricus

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Houston a miserable 4 for 45 from 3 last night. That might be this year's worst showing? They'll draft high this year, especially with Wood out.
 

jon abbey

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Houston a miserable 4 for 45 from 3 last night. That might be this year's worst showing? They'll draft high this year, especially with Wood out.
They played so badly that the Grizz beat them by 49 despite Ja only going 2-8 for 6 points in 26 minutes.
 

HowBoutDemSox

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Houston a miserable 4 for 45 from 3 last night. That might be this year's worst showing? They'll draft high this year, especially with Wood out.
OKC has swap rights this year on their pick, top four protected, so they’ll need some lottery luck or it won’t necessarily be as high as their record would suggest.
 

Tony C

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I'm not a big "fire the coach" guy, but Luke Walton does not seem to be very good at his job. The Kings aren't great, obviously, but they have young talent that doesn't seem to be developing and their defensive system is...not a system.
 

Kliq

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I'm not a big "fire the coach" guy, but Luke Walton does not seem to be very good at his job. The Kings aren't great, obviously, but they have young talent that doesn't seem to be developing and their defensive system is...not a system.
The thing about the NBA today is that pretty much every team as talent. Even some of the dregs of the league will have some guys that can really score. You can look at Sacramento's roster and say that you like a lot of these guys (Fox, Hield, Barnes, Haliburton, Bagley) and you think they should be better; but if they don't have proper coaching and they don't have a real scheme, they are not going to win many games. It's really impossible to win games just based on talent because every team has talent.
 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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The thing about the NBA today is that pretty much every team as talent. Even some of the dregs of the league will have some guys that can really score. You can look at Sacramento's roster and say that you like a lot of these guys (Fox, Hield, Barnes, Haliburton, Bagley) and you think they should be better; but if they don't have proper coaching and they don't have a real scheme, they are not going to win many games. It's really impossible to win games just based on talent because every team has talent.
I think good coaching is mostly getting teams to buy in on the defensive end. As we've seen this year, NBA defensive schemes are pretty complicated and rely on good deal of "connectedness" (people moving to the rights spots simultaneously) once someone is beaten off the dribble. A team that buys in defensively is probably going to the playoffs (see: Thibs). A team that doesn't is probably getting their coach fired.
 

Kliq

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I think good coaching is mostly getting teams to buy in on the defensive end. As we've seen this year, NBA defensive schemes are pretty complicated and rely on good deal of "connectedness" (people moving to the rights spots simultaneously) once someone is beaten off the dribble. A team that buys in defensively is probably going to the playoffs (see: Thibs). A team that doesn't is probably getting their coach fired.
Yeah, people will say that coaching doesn't matter, and it probably doesn't matter as much when you have just top, top talent like Brooklyn or the LA teams do, but for like, 25 teams in the NBA it makes a big difference, especially for the bottom 15 teams or so. All of those teams have some talent, so the difference is going to come in player development and scheming. Walton hasn't been able to do that, while someone like Thibs, Borrego, Jenkins, etc. have.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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They should try and move them all. Staple Hield to one or more of them too.
I actually think that Sacramento is stuck with Hield. I mean, they can staple him to Haliburton or Fox but they wouldn't do that. I doubt anyone trading for their other pieces wants any part of that contract. And to be clear, I don't hate Buddy Hield. He is just vastly overpaid for what he does - he is essentially a bench scorer.
 

Cesar Crespo

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Hornets are the 8 seed now. It’s happening.
They have a lot of young talent taking steps forward this year.

Some of the bad teams have so much young talent on their roster that if 1 or 2 guys take a step forward, the teams are suddenly good. The Hornets are probably in a better position than the C's going forward, honestly. They have a lot of cap space this summer but have choices to make on Graham and Monk. I'd guess Graham is all but gone but every game that passes, it looks more likely they'll want to keep Monk. It looks like he's in the midst of a breakout year but it's a 14 game stretch. He's been even better over the last 6 though, averaging 20.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 27.0 minutes on .489/.408/.773 shooting. PJ Washington has shown flashes but needs to find consistency. Bridges is a decent rotational player. Add in a generational talent like Ball, Hayward and apparently an elite shooter in Rozier and they are going to be very good for the next 3-4 years. They have enough money this summer to sign a max guy too, though I'm not sure how that effects Monk.

The C's youth is top heavy and is basically just the Jays The Hornets have 4 guys all 23 or younger on rookie deals contributing that should continue to get better. Ball considerably so. Of course, the C's do have a lot of youth so if one or two guys do take a step forward, they'll be in a better position than the Hornets. Hopefully that happens. If Romeo and Nesmith are both misses, it's gonna hurt. It sucks because it wasn't that long ago the C's were the young, up and coming team with tons of assets and picks. Now it's really just the Jays, Smart, the TPE and dreaming on Romeo and Nesmith to develop into useful rotational players while guys like Monk, Bridges and Washington already are. PP is fine and all but he'd be the oldest player on the list and has contributed the least to date. I'm not sure how much upside he really has.

There are a lot of young teams that could leapfrog the C's in a few years just from having their young players continue to develop. The Bulls have a nice young core and are competitive now. The Cavs have 3 pieces in place (Sexton, Garland, Allen) and possibly Okoro. Atlanta is loaded.

Long story short, if you combined the Hornets and C's, 7 of the top 11 players would be Hornets. They are much deeper. There would also be no bigs. I'd probably take TL myself. I doubt anyone would take Zeller.
Tatum, Brown, Smart, Kemba, Hayward, Rozier, Ball, Washington, Bridges, Graham, Monk. Not in order.

The youth bit wouldn't even be a problem if the C's were vet heavy but they are not. They are loaded with youth that is limited and/or not ready to contribute yet. It's amazing how shallow the bench is on this team... but again, add 1 or 2 players and you can go from shallow to deep. If AN was playing more like Miles Bridges this year, it would change the teams outlook drastically.
 

Cesar Crespo

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I actually think that Sacramento is stuck with Hield. I mean, they can staple him to Haliburton or Fox but they wouldn't do that. I doubt anyone trading for their other pieces wants any part of that contract. And to be clear, I don't hate Buddy Hield. He is just vastly overpaid for what he does - he is essentially a bench scorer.
They should be building around Fox, Haliburton and maybe Bagley. I know for a fact they are building around Fox. Fox and Haliburton is a very dynamic backcourt. I'm guessing Bagley is 30 years too late to be an impact player in the NBA but he has added the 3.

Keeping Hield around doesn't really impact their window.
 

HomeRunBaker

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Yeah, people will say that coaching doesn't matter, and it probably doesn't matter as much when you have just top, top talent like Brooklyn or the LA teams do, but for like, 25 teams in the NBA it makes a big difference, especially for the bottom 15 teams or so. All of those teams have some talent, so the difference is going to come in player development and scheming. Walton hasn't been able to do that, while someone like Thibs, Borrego, Jenkins, etc. have.
Agree with all this. There is such a difference in coaching a top tier team in how you manage stars versus coaching to get the most out of fringe players. They are two completely different skill sets. Guys like Doc Rivers are a rare breed.
 
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Kliq

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Steph significantly outplays Lillard (although they both missed one free throw!) but Carmelo of all people comes off the bench for 22 on 8/13 shooting, and Dame rallies to hit a go-ahead three with 14 seconds left and then draws a charge on Draymond to ice it.
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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That was a fun game. Lillard appears a bit gassed but all these guys must be.

I remain amazed at how Curry and to a degree which you noted upthread, Draymond have dragged this roster to 19 wins. I do wonder how many wins Curry alone is really worth this season. The advanced metrics, which are just flawed models, say around five but that feels really light.
 

Ale Xander

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Oh man Durant took Kyrie 2nd overall
I guess I get with keeping him happy

Lebrons team gonna roll

You can argue he has the best 5 1-5
 

Ale Xander

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"Utah Jazz slander"

Lebron screwed up the reserves so it's more even now depending how minutes are distributed