NBA 2019-20 thread.

Dame quote tweeted it.

 

Not at all surprising.

 

And y’all question my basketball acumen. Stephen A fucked up big time. He showed his complete domineering idiocy. Coward or cowherd? Dumbest son of a bitch not in the trump administration. Lack of athleticism? Why not just say white boys ain’t allowed

 

I'll give the Sixers credit -- usually the coach saddled with losing through the rebuild is fired as soon as they get some pieces in place. They actually let Brett Brown keep coaching the team once they had some talent.

I mean, he didn't appear to be any good at it, but it's nice that they let him try.

That team is a MESS. Someone's got their work cut out for them. (I''m guessing it's Ty Lue if he doesn't end up in New Orleans.)

 

Eh, like a lot of coaches, it's hard to tell how much he held them back and/or helped them. The roster doesn't fit together perfectly - Simmons and Embiid both need access to the paint to be successful, and the trade for Harris and the signing of Horford look like big whiffs by the front office. Brown couldn't get through to Jimmy Butler, but that doesn't make him unique as far as coaches go.

The Sixers are in a weird position. Whoever the next coach is, I'd probably give them a year with the current roster to see if they could make it work. You're probably not going to get fair value for Simmons or Embiid in a trade, and the other pieces on the roster have negligible or negative value.

 

So we are no longer to trust The Process?

 

I’m sorry but Harris is no better than 3 or 4 th option. It’s hindsight but Butler would’ve been much nicer with Simmons out. Embiid has to shoot better, he got 30 but was 8-18.

The Process has matured and it’s nice but they need someone to set a tone and to get others to follow. No one is following Embiid (not his fault).

 

That ship sailed a couple years ago, once the Colangelos were hired as "advisers," and they were happy to dip into the asset stockpile to win some more games. Not that I think Hinkie was flawless as a GM, but I was kind of interested to see what would happen if he truly had free reign for 10 years or so. And it's kind of odd - Its not like the Sixers have made Knicks-level blunders here, as most of their individual moves can be defended. But they tried to speed things along and probably ended up shortening their window as a result.

 

They pick Tatum and not Fultz and things are very very different. Him busting out was the real killer.

 

Lue works well with superstars. Simmons can be one. Embiid acts like one - and I like him - but isn’t on that top shelf of players.

If I’m Philly, I dial up Jay Wright and see how much it would take.

 

Athleticism is generally overrated in basketball. Russell Westbrook’s athleticism is not overrated. Leonard’s neither. But it’s still a skill game, and Doncic’s offensive skill level is obscene.

 

I don't think you even need to blame that on hindsight. They didn't want to give max money to a guy Butler's age so instead they gave it to a younger guy who isn't nearly as good. Tobias Harris is that classic guy where everyone says "somebody's going to give him the max," so someone screws up and gives him the max. Seems to me that if someone is worth the max you should at least notice them when they're on the floor.

Hinkie and "The Process" get way more respect than they deserve. To drag a franchise down as badly as he did for as long as he did and end up where they did is maddening and totally unnecessary.

The Hinkie era started by trading Jrue Holliday, an all-star, for the rights to Nerlins Noel, who was awful. They use a number 3 pick on Embiid -- good move --and another number 3 pick on Jahlil Okafor, who was useless. They used a number one on Ben Simmons, who is defective but very good, and another on Markelle Fultz, who is just defective. (And that was a garbage pick when they made it, not just when he subsequently forgot how to shoot. Boston couldn't wait to unload that number one pick.)

They consciously put together the worst team imaginable for five solid years. As a reward they ended up with two guys... and they can't play next to each other.

Meanwhile the Warriors, Raptors and Bucks built champs and title contenders over roughly the same period with nothing but mid-level picks and without humiliating themselves in the process.

Embiid is incredibly frustrating. He should be absolutely dominant but just doesn't seem to want to put in the work.