The apple time thing isn't actually real:
View: https://x.com/WorldWideWob/status/1339452254902992896
View: https://x.com/WorldWideWob/status/1339452254902992896
Team USA 2024
- Thread starter ifmanis5
- Start date
The 2-way forwards pod is awesome, and a big reason I'd be comfortable arguing for Tatum as a a top 2 or 3 player.
Thinking Basketball is great, had interesting insights about Tatum's value and backed away at the last second from drawing uncomfortably non-consensus conclusions from that analysis.
it was weird hearing them talk about how valuable his switch ability was in the finals and talking about how curry has aged and steadily declined in impact metrics and…. then put curry over tatum.
It's not just the switchability and defense: they were talking about how valuable it is to have a 2-way wing who can create offense, and how Tatum is in a league of his own in that regard.
Tatum is elite at drawing 2 to the ball, especially off drives. He's better at it than Luka imo, and it lets the Celtics have a great offense with a lot of players who are secondary or tertiary creators around him.
I thought the same thing. Curry is still a fantastic player, but it's hard to say he is a better player than Tatum at this stage of his career, when you consider the complete nature of Tatum's game, as well as his health and durability while playing high-leverage minutes.
To me, Jokic and maybe Giannis are the only people I'd put ahead of Tatum at the moment. I think @TomRicardo had it right in his tiers--those are the clear three superstars in their prime that have shown they can deliver consistently at the highest level.
I don't know. We can appreciate the good work that someone does and still discount them for dumbass takes like putting SGA and Luka above Tatum.
It's weird to me how consensus the "Luka as #2" take still is.
View: https://twitter.com/TheHoopCentral/status/1811516156643279102
“Have you talked to JB at all?” Jayson Tatum: “Ah, no.” “Is it tough not having Jaylen here?” Jayson Tatum: “Yeah. I mean, there’s so many guys that could, you know, take that last spot or whatever. So, yeah, it is.”
“Have you talked to JB at all?” Jayson Tatum: “Ah, no.” “Is it tough not having Jaylen here?” Jayson Tatum: “Yeah. I mean, there’s so many guys that could, you know, take that last spot or whatever. So, yeah, it is.”
Jaylen looking pretty happy here lol
View: https://twitter.com/NoaDalzellNBA/status/1811551697321197831
View: https://twitter.com/NoaDalzellNBA/status/1811551697321197831
I thought the "Two-Way" portion was great but the distinction between "Wing" and "Forward" didn't really land for me. I think this year's Cs team showed that it doesn't really matter how big guys are - the more players a team has who are positive on both ends of the floor, the better off the team is, and, insofar as one of their themes go, really make roster-building a lot easier. For example, they wouldn't call DWhite a "Two-Way Forward" but having him on a roster does allow flexibility in putting together the other players. It's when a team has more than one guy who is a problem on either end of the floor that things become problemmatic.
It also seems to me that any player who is positive defensively is going to be able to guard more than one position. Maybe Gobert and some small guard who is great on-ball but not really much else are the exceptions, but most plus defenders are plus defenders because they have versatility.
Still, the podcast overall was very good.
There's something qualitatively different about guys who can credibly (or elitely) guard 1-5 and rebound, like Draymond, JT, Anunoby.
It's usually thought of as a defensive thing, but Tatum takes it even further by being able to occupy tons of different roles on offense.
That versatility is at the heart of basketball, and I think does make that type of guy uniquely valuable, in a way I thought Thinking Basketball did a good job of verbalizing, and that should factor more into raw player value rankings.
(Interestingly, it does show up in impact stats, where Tatum has long been loved).
The epitome of this was Peak LeBron, who had ridiculous, ridiculous impact stat value and won a ton no matter the team. Good team? They win the title. Mediocre team? They're going to the Finals.
Guards, smaller wings, and centers just haven't had that type of impact. Even Jordan needed Pippen, and Pippen was such an elite forward that he nearly took the Bulls back to the Finals when MJ sat out.
It's just a uniquely valuable position, particularly when the forward is also a creator on offense.
Tatum is the only true two way positionless player in the NBA. In the Finals Tatum was playing point center.
Honestly looks like he's having the time of his life post-Finals, and also enjoying being Very Mad Online in his relax time.
A relatable star.
She was the KPJ victim
4th overall pick a few years back
Released a 3rd time on 6/28 of this year
I guess trading up from 4th pick to 3rd pick will still cost you, but can still be worth it.
You can stream France v Serbia live on the NBA YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/live/akU9ETGWM_8?si=qWugx2-LPGxi97up
Thanks. I just watched highlights. Raftery sounded like Hubie Brown. Except 90s Hubie Brown. And my brain broke.
This makes sense (Booker has a much higher ceiling if a slightly lower floor than Booker, while Tatum is probably the best all-around player on the team), but I'd be surprised if these two both start when the real games begin. Even if it's not the ideal starting lineup based on fit and talent, deferring to the vets probably doesn't move the needle in terms of results because the worst possible lineup for team USA is still the best in the world by a decent stretch.
That's not a move we've really seen from him before, if anyone is looking for reasons to be fired up about next year.
If Durant isn't playing, you would want to start Tatum and have Ant be the sixth man.
Australia is up next?
I fully expect that decades from now, when I'm in a rocking chair in some nursing home, I'll still be watching Patty Mills destroy the US National Team in international competition
I fully expect that decades from now, when I'm in a rocking chair in some nursing home, I'll still be watching Patty Mills destroy the US National Team in international competition
Giddy had a PnR and got Edwards on his hip - just like Luka did over and over and over against MIN. Ant must have PTSD by now.
The Embiid/LBJ/JT/Ant/Curry doesn't have a lot of movement.
But JT with the baseline drive to a flush! Who needs movement?
The Embiid/LBJ/JT/Ant/Curry doesn't have a lot of movement.
But JT with the baseline drive to a flush! Who needs movement?
Currently Steph-Tatum-Embiid-Lebron-Ant on the floor. That's 5 of the top 7 players in the NBA, right? Incredible collection of talent.
Ball sticks a lot with Ant and Embiid.Giddy had a PnR and got Edwards on his hip - just like Luka did over and over and over against MIN. Ant must have PTSD by now.
The Embiid/LBJ/JT/Ant/Curry doesn't have a lot of movement.
But JT with the baseline drive to a flush! Who needs movement?
Probably not. There's Joker, Giannis, SGA, and the "best player in the NBA"* Luka Doncic for 4 guys who would probably be on that list.
*see his thread for the uninitiated.
USA outscoring Australia 24-6 from 3P line, which is basically the margin right now.
Australia outscoring US 28-10 in the paint. Jock Landale has 13 for Australia, it's leading scorer so far.
Australia outscoring US 28-10 in the paint. Jock Landale has 13 for Australia, it's leading scorer so far.
Yeah, I was thinking Jokic and Giannis. I would have a hard time picking SGA or Luka over any of those guys, maybe Ant, but I guess most recent MVP voting would disagree. And I'm not going into that Luka thread.
Anyone know where I can get a good box score of these games? The only one I've been able to find is from the USA basketball website, which somehow does include individual points (don't make me do math).
I missed most of this game, but good to see Tatum and Holiday lead the team in assists.
I missed most of this game, but good to see Tatum and Holiday lead the team in assists.
Also, Ant is overdribbling way too much, you can see that he struggles reading different coverages.
Thanks, I just now realized that you have to scroll to the right to see points. Still a pain, but workable.