[Wojnarowski] ESPN Sources: The Cleveland Cavaliers are hiring Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson as the franchise’s next head coach and sides are working on a contract that’s expected to be completed soon.
How often do trades in the second round involve a pick from the first round? Imagine being picked in the first, celebrating during the evening, only to find out next afternoon that you're actually on another team.
The 2024 Celtics won their conference by 14 games, which was the biggest margin by any NBA team since the ____ Warriors won the Western conference by 16 games.
That was a great season which ended unfortunately a bit on a sour note, with Rick Barry allegedly quitting on the team in the last game of the Western Conference finals, though he's denied it ever since...
Oh I see. I completely misunderstood the question then haha
Let's see, I don't know if any of the Kerr Warriors won the 1st seed by 16 games but I remember the 15 Warriors beat a franchise record of regular season wins from a Rick Barry Warriors team. So the 75 or 76 Warriors?
"Chris Paul, if he actually makes to free agency, would draw interest from the Clippers as well as the Lakers...But I'm told interest in bringing him to the Lakers might not be unanimous within the organization despite Paul's well-chronicled friendship with LeBron James."
Yeah gobble them all up so the Warriors don't get them. 🤨
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illuminati
6 hr. ago
sewsgup
[Woo] "Amid what has been regarded by NBA scouts and executives as a down year for draft talent, big men have been trending up boards... as many as eight centers could hear their names called in the first round, up from one true center in 2023 (Dereck Lively, No. 12 overall) and three in 2022—"
Refs are often a bit, uh, unpredictable, in the W games, but that ended up being an exciting game. Sky would have felt awful if they lost because of all those missed FT.
Is anyone else intrigued by the PG situation? Siakam gets his max ext done in a day. Meanwhile Clips and PG max ext talks is radio silence. Then reports Sixers interest is waning and they are looking other directions with their 55mil in cap space. Then rumors he could opt in for a trade so you can’t just look at cap space teams as options.
My intrigue on if Warriors could be a dark horse started peaking on Thursday & now fan buzz has picked up steam in last 24. It still feels like a long shot but I think it’s a possibility. I could see Steph and Dray talking to PG and trying to recruit.
I am not much of a fan of Paul George. A lot of frosting but no batter. I felt way more confident after the Wiggins trade that he could flourish in the right environment. Not the same with PG,
Most notable difference is that Wiggs was 24-25 when we traded for him, where PG is now 34. Well that plus the fact that PG is the much better, more consistent player of the two. But we’d be getting him on the downslope, whereas we got Wiggs right at the beginning of his peak.
Theoretically, we could send the Sixers Draymond and Wiggins (both pretty nice fits there) for a future pick or something, then sign PG outright with capspace…
Sort of. I actually like PG a lot but losing Dray and Wiggs hurts botgh offense and defense. I am also hanging out here on a pretty deserted Wiggins island believing that he can get most of the way back to '22 form and of so then he is a much more valuable asset and makes the team much better, offensively and defensively, than anything we could get for him right now.
Luckily Harden is the one that has an expired contract and PG13 has an opt-in so we wouldn't have to hard-cap ourselves if we did the trade. At this point, it's really up to Philly. If they want him, he's theirs. Hopefully, both make up their minds before Wednesday.
If we did do the trade, we would need to go out and get Ringo John, too.
It would be like the Raptors in 2019. In my opinion, you get a legit shot at a title, you take it. But I can defintely see why people wouldn't to give up major assets for an injury-prone possible-rental.
I think the biggest difference between 2019 and this year is that most of the league essentially stopped trying to contend once KD joined up, which gave all-in moves significantly higher upside with so fewer other contenders (and especially if the Dubs ran into injuries). Right now there is such an overwhelming amount of parity that unless we are making an all-in trade to become some unstoppable juggernaut, I really dont think mortgaging the future to go from a 5% title chance to a 10-15% is really worth it
This is a fair assessment to make. Parity levels are high and young guns are getting primed.
I don’t think there’s one move than can make the Warriors an instant favorite title contender. But to me that’s ok, there are moves out there that could put them in the mix (PG potentially being one). I just wanna see them play good ball and be in the mix.
As for mortgaging the future. The way I’ve come to think of it is there’s an nba draft in 2028. Also one in 2029, 2030, etc, etc. There’s only one Steph. Now they should be smart with assets and not throw everything away in desperation haha. But trading a fair chunk of assets is fine with me to give Steph some high caliber talent.
The picks are more likely to be lotto picks than not were we to stand pat, which ups their value immensely. Add in that you'd need to trade some salary just to get the deal to even be legal, and I'm not sure if we can lose some win now talent (Dray, Wiggs, etc) plus whatever rebuild equity we have (picks, Kuminga) to really up our chances much. I also dont think Ballmer, who has infinite money and an enormous ego, is really up for dealing PG for rebuild-mode anyway tbh
Hopefully, any picks that we give up are going to be protected, even if it's top-10 or top-5. I don't think we're going to be mediocre any time in the near future. We're either going to max out with Curry, or suck for a year or so after until we can get a great FA or draft pick. We'll have almost unlimited cap space post-Curry if we do it right.
With very few dominant years left in Curry, I would take that risk (although if they asked for Kuminga, I'd first make sure that PG13 would take a big, but short-term extension, and try to get some better compensation by involving a 3rd team). I think our title chances, especially because a PG13 trade would almost definitely not be our only/last move, would be improved dramatically (33%+?). There's also a (slight) chance that Klay comes back, but they structure his contract so we can aggregate players and still do the PG13 trade. If we can somehow do it without Kuminga, then it's a fairly easy choice (for me). Lots of ifs, though.
This is what makes sports amazing (in a good way)! I see things 180 degrees differently. The playoffs showed us (or me, anyway) that there is no title in the offing if you are relying on 34+ year old players. The key players in the finals were Tatum (25), Brown (27), Kristaps (29), and Jrue (33) on one side, versus Luka (24), Kyrie (33--and he did NOT play well), and, well . . . the team underperformed. But the Mavs got there.
From this I do not see how we can call Dray a win-now player, and certainly Klay is not a win-now player. Dray and Klay are "won-before players" (kinda like Kyrie). They have so many miles on them that they are possibly nice complements, but to contend you need younger players doing most of the heavy lifting. So the win-now strategy would be to let Klay walk and go 100% on the youth movement--JK, Moody, Podz, TJD, bring Lonzo in after he gets bought out, maybe get LMark....from Utah if that's possible. Steph's the only one of the dynastic big-three that one can pencil-in for 28-32 minutes a game of high-level play.
I think trying to supplement Dray (and even Klay) with same-age players is the wrong direction to go.
Dray is much more valuable that Klay currently (although both are declining). Ironically, this will eventually reverse over the next few years as Dray declines athletically to the point where his body can't react fast enough to play defense (and Klay becomes late-stage Ray Allen). But both will lose a lot of value.
I also want to see Steph get one more, and would gladly sell off several years were it to be a likely outcome. But between the miserable new cap rules, the win-now players we'd likely have to ship out, and the extreme likelihood of flaming out to injuries before surviving 4 rounds with such an old group (assuming PG is part of it), I would be surprised if any book/projection model had us anywhere near 33%+
No offense to you personally, but I am a Warrior fan first and not a Steph fanboy who places him above everything and forgets about the practical realities of putting together a competitive basketball team going into the future. WIN NOW is comparable to suicide now for the Warriors. Holding on to past glory can have deleterious effects that will hurt the team for years to come. Just look at where they are now and how hard it is for this team to regain its splendor. Player cults are becoming a thing of the past. If you have no balanced team you are in trouble and unlikely to go far. There is an occassional exception but it doesn't outweigh the realities of life and is not the norm.
I'd love for Perks to explain how it could be done, because it is potentially more than fan buzz:
> Building off of this, the Warriors, Knicks, and Magic are three teams that do in fact have interest in Paul George, league sources told @ClutchPoints.
> Some around the league are wondering if the Thunder and Heat would consider pursuing George if he departs LA.
Not sure if Clutchpoints is really that reliable of a source though. Just because you have "NBA" at the end of your Twitter handle doesn't make you a legit reporter lol.
I would also love to see what a hypothetical trade & cap breakdown would look like haha!
Potentially would take a third rebuilding team to take expiring salaries with picks while possibly dishing a quality player to the Clips (ex. ATL with Dejounte)
This is a good point. No way Clips want to blow it up completely (yet). They would have to have a plan to pivot to putting new pieces around Kawhi if PG wants out. The ball is in PG’s court.
I agree that the Clips probably won't blow it up yet. At the same time, building around Kawhi is risky because he has problems staying healthy. So my guess is the Clippers bring Harden back and make an effort to keep PG at least for another year or two. Then they'll have a decent core even when one of those guys is injured, which Kawhi will be at some point.
Fun fact: the Warriors (rightfully) declined a Klay for PG trade in 2017.
PG in 2017 on Pacers trade offer to Warriors (after he was dealt to Thunder): "Yeah, I was aware of it. I would've looked forward to it, of just being in a good situation and a chance to compete for a championship. But it didn't happen. It's still fun to team up with a special talent and have a chance to compete against that team."
Warriors could only get PG via trade. And then he'll likely be on some kind of minutes restriction in Kerr's system. Because otherwise PG isn't making it to the finals healthy, or available.
I think the 2020 Lakers are better than the 2019 Raptors tbh. For me, the 2020 Lakers were the best championship team since the 2018 Warriors UNTIL the Celtics came along and made it a real debate.
It's a hypothetical so not too much to debate, I like the question though. My case for the Raptors is that from a theoretical perspective they went 9 deep with two-way players around a true superstar and their road to the championship was brutal with the best version of the Bucks (imo, since they had Brogdon) and Sixers (imo, since they had Butler) and Warriors in their way.
Howard Beck in the latest Ringer offseason gabfest…
Q: What’s one made-up trade you desperately want to see?
Beck: Let’s get nuts: LeBron James to the Golden State Warriors for … whatever it takes. (I trust Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Rob Pelinka to figure out the details.) At this stage of their careers, Curry (age 36) and James (39) need each other if they want to chase another ring before retirement. The Lakers, as constructed, have no shot of contending. The Warriors, as constructed, have a thin chance, at best. But a Curry-James partnership could be electric, even at this late stage of their careers. And the Warriors are better positioned to acquire James than the Lakers are to acquire Curry.
> Beck: Let’s get nuts: LeBron James to the Golden State Warriors for … whatever it takes.
Sleepy, the messenger, is just transmitting the message, and I never intend to disparage the messenger anyway. That said, this is the rare post that justifies a "Dislike" button.
Bridges would be a fine pick but the Warriors already have a lot of role players and are still small especially if Looney and Saric are gone as expected.
Reports are Looney's full $8M will be guaranteed. We'll know for sure in a week. If so, I think he'll stay here at least until the trade deadline, if not the whole season. But hey, maybe they'll trade him. It's not a S&T, so nobody gets capped.
Re-posted on GOATS to set the record straight, and sooth my troubled soul; beg forgiveness for my oversight....
By the way, the more I think about it, I am doing a great injustice to a NYC-born GREAT who did more for revolutionizing exciting motion/movement in the game than just about anybody else. I am talking about my CHILDHOOD idol whose number I proudly wore as a teen, #14, Celts legend, BOB COUSY. Initially, his game was RECEIVED poorly at a time of static set shots; in fact, it defined one of the earliest uses of the term ''showboating'' in NBA bball. Eventually, it freed player dribbling, shooting motion and creative artistry. Beloved by fans, he was MVP, perennial AS, scoring 20 ppg and leading the league in assists AND PPG, the last, a 1st time for a PG....his running, one-handed ''floaters'' were also memorable ambidextrous shots, as were his behind-the-back, ambidextrous, dribble-CROSSOVERS...BOB is one of the eldest legends alive, in his 90s now, and one of only 4 players who have been voted on every iteration of NBA ALL-TIME TEAMS.
I was a big Cousy fan too. I got to meet him in the mid-late '60s when he visited the sports camp where I was captain and point guard on the basketball team, so I even got a few tips about seeing the court, reading the defense, and finding open teammates. He was great with us kids that day.
The crazy running hookshots from the top of the key and career .446 TS might not play that well today, but *relative to his era* I think you can probably make a case for Cousy as the greatest small player of all time not named Wardell — for all the reasons you note. Seems like he was a true game-changer in some of the ways Steph has been.
Also, huge props to him for still hanging in there at age 95! (96 in August). Hope he’s all there enough to have appreciated and savored the Cs’ 18th title, having been an integral part of the first six. ❤️ ☘️
I’m way too “young” to remember Cousy as a player, but old enough to have loved him as an announcer as a kid growing up in Boston. My friends and I still use his great term “French Pastry” — or “FWENCH PASTWYYY!!l” as we say it in honor of his great Brooklyn-meets-Elmer-Fudd accent — when attempting a fancy Steph/Kyrie-style dipsy-doodle shot on the playground…
# 14 was my Little League number ... always liked Bob Cousy's games and loved Tom Meschery as a Warrior. Very different styles. Both wore # 14 well.
When I played it was maybe with Meschery's tough wildness and Cousy's short stature and I did have a running hook shot. I honestly feel hook shots, if used judiciously, would be effective at any level.
See yah, Kenny.
Go to warriors
r/warriors
59 min. ago
NokCha_
emoji:baylogo:
[Wojnarowski] ESPN Sources: The Cleveland Cavaliers are hiring Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson as the franchise’s next head coach and sides are working on a contract that’s expected to be completed soon.
https://www.reddit.com/r/warriors/comments/1dneir9/wojnarowski_espn_sources_the_cleveland_cavaliers/
NBA Draft Second Round is coming on Thursday! Holy Toledo
EA....Much appreciation for the Bill King reference
How often do trades in the second round involve a pick from the first round? Imagine being picked in the first, celebrating during the evening, only to find out next afternoon that you're actually on another team.
Good question... my Quick Look at https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2023-nba-draft-trade-tracker-full-list-of-deals-with-chris-paul-on-the-move-damian-lillard-staying-put/ shows it occasionally does happen, but my vague memory is that all those trades were announced at the time of the first round pick, so even if they had to get a photo with the wrong hat, they knew quickly their destination...
OT: Warriors trivia. Fill in the season:
The 2024 Celtics won their conference by 14 games, which was the biggest margin by any NBA team since the ____ Warriors won the Western conference by 16 games.
‘76 Warriors!
Yes!
Finished 59-23; next best team in the west was the Sonics at 43-39.
Bit of a trick question, as I think even if you narrowed it down to that era, most would assume the ‘75 championship season.
Anyway, just wanted to give the ‘76 team a little love. Their 48 year-old record still stands. Suck it, ‘24 Celtics!
The luck of the....#14...charmed/smile
That was a great season which ended unfortunately a bit on a sour note, with Rick Barry allegedly quitting on the team in the last game of the Western Conference finals, though he's denied it ever since...
2016
Good guess, but the Spurs were also amazing that season. Warriors 73-9, Spurs 67-15.
Wait, the "most" by a team? Or the last amount of games by a team to win their conference?
But anyways, I still forget sometimes how the 2022 Warriors kinda ran through the Western Conference.
Though that 2017 team in 12 games was pretty good too....
Biggest conference-winning margin (in the regular season) since a certain Warriors team dominated the West by 16 games.
Nope, not 2022 (who were a #3 seed) or 2017 (who finished six games ahead of the Spurs).
Oh I see. I completely misunderstood the question then haha
Let's see, I don't know if any of the Kerr Warriors won the 1st seed by 16 games but I remember the 15 Warriors beat a franchise record of regular season wins from a Rick Barry Warriors team. So the 75 or 76 Warriors?
Whatever happens, I hope it happens either in the early morning, lunchtime, or late evening.
Sam Vecenie has posted his annual massive draft guide at the athletic (his top 100, ~122 pages of analysis).
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5579170/2024/06/21/nba-draft-2024-top-100-prospects-guide-bronny-james/
FWIW, here's how he rates the folks in the DubNation tournament:
22. Baylor Scheierman
38. Cam Spencer
40. Antonio Reeves
42. Oso Ighodaro
43. Jonathan Mogbo
45. PJ Hall
46. Tristen Newton
48. Quinten Post
49. Pelle Larsson
50. Jaylen Wells
51. Keshad Johnson
52. Jalen Bridges
53. KJ Simpson
56. Isaiah Crawford
61. Reece Beekman
62. Zyon Pullin
63. N'Faly Dante
64. Anton Watson
65. Dillon Jones
69. Isaac Jones
71. Blake Hinson
81. Jaylin Williams
83. David Jones
85. Branden Carlson
86. Jaedon LeDee
88. Dylan Disu
96. Jamison Battle
For me, Spencer, Mogbo, Post, and Larsson would be way more intriguing on this team than either of the finalists in our tourney
"Chris Paul, if he actually makes to free agency, would draw interest from the Clippers as well as the Lakers...But I'm told interest in bringing him to the Lakers might not be unanimous within the organization despite Paul's well-chronicled friendship with LeBron James."
https://marcstein.substack.com/p/more-new-exclusive-nba-chatter-on
Yeah gobble them all up so the Warriors don't get them. 🤨
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illuminati
6 hr. ago
sewsgup
[Woo] "Amid what has been regarded by NBA scouts and executives as a down year for draft talent, big men have been trending up boards... as many as eight centers could hear their names called in the first round, up from one true center in 2023 (Dereck Lively, No. 12 overall) and three in 2022—"
https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/1dmp5dh/woo_amid_what_has_been_regarded_by_nba_scouts_and/
WNBA confuses me.
Taking a charge at center court?
A delay of game call while the ball is in play?
Refs are often a bit, uh, unpredictable, in the W games, but that ended up being an exciting game. Sky would have felt awful if they lost because of all those missed FT.
James Harden is a free agent. Will he re-sign with the Clippers? Which other team will try and get him?
And no, I don't want Harden in a Warriors uniform.
I think he stays with the Clippers. It's a good fit for the Beard and the team, and I have the impression they want him back.
On a vet min I'm in! But I can't see this even amounting to a feel it out call.
He'll at least get the TPMLE
Is anyone else intrigued by the PG situation? Siakam gets his max ext done in a day. Meanwhile Clips and PG max ext talks is radio silence. Then reports Sixers interest is waning and they are looking other directions with their 55mil in cap space. Then rumors he could opt in for a trade so you can’t just look at cap space teams as options.
My intrigue on if Warriors could be a dark horse started peaking on Thursday & now fan buzz has picked up steam in last 24. It still feels like a long shot but I think it’s a possibility. I could see Steph and Dray talking to PG and trying to recruit.
I am not much of a fan of Paul George. A lot of frosting but no batter. I felt way more confident after the Wiggins trade that he could flourish in the right environment. Not the same with PG,
Most notable difference is that Wiggs was 24-25 when we traded for him, where PG is now 34. Well that plus the fact that PG is the much better, more consistent player of the two. But we’d be getting him on the downslope, whereas we got Wiggs right at the beginning of his peak.
I'm thinking we should give Wiggins another chance. He might come into camp with a more competitive mindset after the Olympics.
Hear hear
Maybe. But I think it is more likely he'll come into camp physically and emotionally exhausted, and prepared to sleep walk through another season.
He’d likely come into camp in better shape than last season, especially if he was hampered by the broken ribs from the previous season.
50/50 either way.
Given his history, this year will be a stinker unless it’s a contract year.
I'll take the half that eats.
Theoretically, we could send the Sixers Draymond and Wiggins (both pretty nice fits there) for a future pick or something, then sign PG outright with capspace…
CP3 & Wiggs + picks for PG.
I mean we could be would likely not be any better, and probably worse.
You could be right. Guess it depends on how high you are on PG as a #2 scoring option.
Sort of. I actually like PG a lot but losing Dray and Wiggs hurts botgh offense and defense. I am also hanging out here on a pretty deserted Wiggins island believing that he can get most of the way back to '22 form and of so then he is a much more valuable asset and makes the team much better, offensively and defensively, than anything we could get for him right now.
I want to believe.
+1 right down the line. Exactly how I feel.
Luckily Harden is the one that has an expired contract and PG13 has an opt-in so we wouldn't have to hard-cap ourselves if we did the trade. At this point, it's really up to Philly. If they want him, he's theirs. Hopefully, both make up their minds before Wednesday.
If we did do the trade, we would need to go out and get Ringo John, too.
I'm wary about getting aging veterans after what I've seen in the NBA playoffs.
It would be like the Raptors in 2019. In my opinion, you get a legit shot at a title, you take it. But I can defintely see why people wouldn't to give up major assets for an injury-prone possible-rental.
I think the biggest difference between 2019 and this year is that most of the league essentially stopped trying to contend once KD joined up, which gave all-in moves significantly higher upside with so fewer other contenders (and especially if the Dubs ran into injuries). Right now there is such an overwhelming amount of parity that unless we are making an all-in trade to become some unstoppable juggernaut, I really dont think mortgaging the future to go from a 5% title chance to a 10-15% is really worth it
This is a fair assessment to make. Parity levels are high and young guns are getting primed.
I don’t think there’s one move than can make the Warriors an instant favorite title contender. But to me that’s ok, there are moves out there that could put them in the mix (PG potentially being one). I just wanna see them play good ball and be in the mix.
As for mortgaging the future. The way I’ve come to think of it is there’s an nba draft in 2028. Also one in 2029, 2030, etc, etc. There’s only one Steph. Now they should be smart with assets and not throw everything away in desperation haha. But trading a fair chunk of assets is fine with me to give Steph some high caliber talent.
The picks are more likely to be lotto picks than not were we to stand pat, which ups their value immensely. Add in that you'd need to trade some salary just to get the deal to even be legal, and I'm not sure if we can lose some win now talent (Dray, Wiggs, etc) plus whatever rebuild equity we have (picks, Kuminga) to really up our chances much. I also dont think Ballmer, who has infinite money and an enormous ego, is really up for dealing PG for rebuild-mode anyway tbh
Hopefully, any picks that we give up are going to be protected, even if it's top-10 or top-5. I don't think we're going to be mediocre any time in the near future. We're either going to max out with Curry, or suck for a year or so after until we can get a great FA or draft pick. We'll have almost unlimited cap space post-Curry if we do it right.
With very few dominant years left in Curry, I would take that risk (although if they asked for Kuminga, I'd first make sure that PG13 would take a big, but short-term extension, and try to get some better compensation by involving a 3rd team). I think our title chances, especially because a PG13 trade would almost definitely not be our only/last move, would be improved dramatically (33%+?). There's also a (slight) chance that Klay comes back, but they structure his contract so we can aggregate players and still do the PG13 trade. If we can somehow do it without Kuminga, then it's a fairly easy choice (for me). Lots of ifs, though.
This is what makes sports amazing (in a good way)! I see things 180 degrees differently. The playoffs showed us (or me, anyway) that there is no title in the offing if you are relying on 34+ year old players. The key players in the finals were Tatum (25), Brown (27), Kristaps (29), and Jrue (33) on one side, versus Luka (24), Kyrie (33--and he did NOT play well), and, well . . . the team underperformed. But the Mavs got there.
From this I do not see how we can call Dray a win-now player, and certainly Klay is not a win-now player. Dray and Klay are "won-before players" (kinda like Kyrie). They have so many miles on them that they are possibly nice complements, but to contend you need younger players doing most of the heavy lifting. So the win-now strategy would be to let Klay walk and go 100% on the youth movement--JK, Moody, Podz, TJD, bring Lonzo in after he gets bought out, maybe get LMark....from Utah if that's possible. Steph's the only one of the dynastic big-three that one can pencil-in for 28-32 minutes a game of high-level play.
I think trying to supplement Dray (and even Klay) with same-age players is the wrong direction to go.
For that matter, the Warriors good run started when Steph, Klay, Dray and KD were all in their 20s.
Dray is much more valuable that Klay currently (although both are declining). Ironically, this will eventually reverse over the next few years as Dray declines athletically to the point where his body can't react fast enough to play defense (and Klay becomes late-stage Ray Allen). But both will lose a lot of value.
I also want to see Steph get one more, and would gladly sell off several years were it to be a likely outcome. But between the miserable new cap rules, the win-now players we'd likely have to ship out, and the extreme likelihood of flaming out to injuries before surviving 4 rounds with such an old group (assuming PG is part of it), I would be surprised if any book/projection model had us anywhere near 33%+
No offense to you personally, but I am a Warrior fan first and not a Steph fanboy who places him above everything and forgets about the practical realities of putting together a competitive basketball team going into the future. WIN NOW is comparable to suicide now for the Warriors. Holding on to past glory can have deleterious effects that will hurt the team for years to come. Just look at where they are now and how hard it is for this team to regain its splendor. Player cults are becoming a thing of the past. If you have no balanced team you are in trouble and unlikely to go far. There is an occassional exception but it doesn't outweigh the realities of life and is not the norm.
I'd love for Perks to explain how it could be done, because it is potentially more than fan buzz:
> Building off of this, the Warriors, Knicks, and Magic are three teams that do in fact have interest in Paul George, league sources told @ClutchPoints.
> Some around the league are wondering if the Thunder and Heat would consider pursuing George if he departs LA.
https://x.com/BrettSiegelNBA/status/1804947644252410320
Not sure if Clutchpoints is really that reliable of a source though. Just because you have "NBA" at the end of your Twitter handle doesn't make you a legit reporter lol.
I would also love to see what a hypothetical trade & cap breakdown would look like haha!
Potentially would take a third rebuilding team to take expiring salaries with picks while possibly dishing a quality player to the Clips (ex. ATL with Dejounte)
Also if it requires George getting traded to the Warriors, hard to see the Clippers doing that unless they are looking to blow it up.
This is a good point. No way Clips want to blow it up completely (yet). They would have to have a plan to pivot to putting new pieces around Kawhi if PG wants out. The ball is in PG’s court.
I agree that the Clips probably won't blow it up yet. At the same time, building around Kawhi is risky because he has problems staying healthy. So my guess is the Clippers bring Harden back and make an effort to keep PG at least for another year or two. Then they'll have a decent core even when one of those guys is injured, which Kawhi will be at some point.
Warriors with PG is a definite title contender, imo. The fit is so utterly seamless. Basically just gambling on health at that point.
The idea of a Steph Moody PG Dray TJD lineup is very interesting.
The idea of a STEPH/KLAY/PG/DRAY/TJD is a 'SHIP....
And a death lineup of Steph-Moody-PG-JK (or Wiggs)-Draymond has a crazy high ceiling.
I assume they wouldn't be giving up both Wiggs and JK for him.
Fun fact: the Warriors (rightfully) declined a Klay for PG trade in 2017.
PG in 2017 on Pacers trade offer to Warriors (after he was dealt to Thunder): "Yeah, I was aware of it. I would've looked forward to it, of just being in a good situation and a chance to compete for a championship. But it didn't happen. It's still fun to team up with a special talent and have a chance to compete against that team."
Warriors could only get PG via trade. And then he'll likely be on some kind of minutes restriction in Kerr's system. Because otherwise PG isn't making it to the finals healthy, or available.
Who would win, 2020 Lakers or 2024 Celtics?
PG: Caruso vs Jrue (I'd take Jrue by far here as Caruso wasn't in his prime yet),
SG: KCP vs White (I'd take White here as he's just as good a defender/shooter but a better scorer/passer).
SF: Danny Green vs Jaylen Brown (Clearly JB)
PF: LBJ vs Tatum (I'd take James obviously)
C: Davis vs Porzingis (I'd take Davis obviously)
I honestly don't know who'd be the better squad.
I think the Celtics are the best champion since the 2019 Raptors
I think the 2020 Lakers are better than the 2019 Raptors tbh. For me, the 2020 Lakers were the best championship team since the 2018 Warriors UNTIL the Celtics came along and made it a real debate.
It's a hypothetical so not too much to debate, I like the question though. My case for the Raptors is that from a theoretical perspective they went 9 deep with two-way players around a true superstar and their road to the championship was brutal with the best version of the Bucks (imo, since they had Brogdon) and Sixers (imo, since they had Butler) and Warriors in their way.
Too bad Mitchell Robinson's FT% is Hack-A-Shaq level.
Howard Beck in the latest Ringer offseason gabfest…
Q: What’s one made-up trade you desperately want to see?
Beck: Let’s get nuts: LeBron James to the Golden State Warriors for … whatever it takes. (I trust Mike Dunleavy Jr. and Rob Pelinka to figure out the details.) At this stage of their careers, Curry (age 36) and James (39) need each other if they want to chase another ring before retirement. The Lakers, as constructed, have no shot of contending. The Warriors, as constructed, have a thin chance, at best. But a Curry-James partnership could be electric, even at this late stage of their careers. And the Warriors are better positioned to acquire James than the Lakers are to acquire Curry.
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/6/21/24182862/nba-trade-rumors-2024-offseason-free-agency-preview
> Beck: Let’s get nuts: LeBron James to the Golden State Warriors for … whatever it takes.
Sleepy, the messenger, is just transmitting the message, and I never intend to disparage the messenger anyway. That said, this is the rare post that justifies a "Dislike" button.
It would guarantee that Curry would never surpass LeBron in titles, but it would also guarantee that LeBron would never surpass Curry . . .
https://media4.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExYzMyaDc3bHF4MzIwOTB5YmhwN3oyaWxydTJreWN6MWExZ3h3MW1pbSZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfYnlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/d6rGZmTP9ESis/200.webp
Steph will probably play a few more years than LeBron, so a small chance Steph could still win another.
I like that plan. The two make a devious pact and tie Kobe and Duncan at five. Then LeBron retires, and 38-39 y.o. Steph goes ahead and ties MJ. 😊
Ok, I'm sold.
Plus Steph winning Finals MVP over Bron would just be too sweet to turn down
LBJ would show up at the post-game presser with a cast on the basically broken leg he was playing on...
Or demand the league retroactively declare Steph as suspended for the entirety of the Finals and therefore inelligible for Finals MVP
#DANTE
Bridges would be a fine pick but the Warriors already have a lot of role players and are still small especially if Looney and Saric are gone as expected.
Get the sense Looney is expected to stay.
Reports are Looney's full $8M will be guaranteed. We'll know for sure in a week. If so, I think he'll stay here at least until the trade deadline, if not the whole season. But hey, maybe they'll trade him. It's not a S&T, so nobody gets capped.
GOGA TIME soon....anybody know where lil MAC is? WHEREVER he is, there is no doubt in my mind he is playing BIG....
Re-posted on GOATS to set the record straight, and sooth my troubled soul; beg forgiveness for my oversight....
By the way, the more I think about it, I am doing a great injustice to a NYC-born GREAT who did more for revolutionizing exciting motion/movement in the game than just about anybody else. I am talking about my CHILDHOOD idol whose number I proudly wore as a teen, #14, Celts legend, BOB COUSY. Initially, his game was RECEIVED poorly at a time of static set shots; in fact, it defined one of the earliest uses of the term ''showboating'' in NBA bball. Eventually, it freed player dribbling, shooting motion and creative artistry. Beloved by fans, he was MVP, perennial AS, scoring 20 ppg and leading the league in assists AND PPG, the last, a 1st time for a PG....his running, one-handed ''floaters'' were also memorable ambidextrous shots, as were his behind-the-back, ambidextrous, dribble-CROSSOVERS...BOB is one of the eldest legends alive, in his 90s now, and one of only 4 players who have been voted on every iteration of NBA ALL-TIME TEAMS.
I was a big Cousy fan too. I got to meet him in the mid-late '60s when he visited the sports camp where I was captain and point guard on the basketball team, so I even got a few tips about seeing the court, reading the defense, and finding open teammates. He was great with us kids that day.
The crazy running hookshots from the top of the key and career .446 TS might not play that well today, but *relative to his era* I think you can probably make a case for Cousy as the greatest small player of all time not named Wardell — for all the reasons you note. Seems like he was a true game-changer in some of the ways Steph has been.
Also, huge props to him for still hanging in there at age 95! (96 in August). Hope he’s all there enough to have appreciated and savored the Cs’ 18th title, having been an integral part of the first six. ❤️ ☘️
…
I’m way too “young” to remember Cousy as a player, but old enough to have loved him as an announcer as a kid growing up in Boston. My friends and I still use his great term “French Pastry” — or “FWENCH PASTWYYY!!l” as we say it in honor of his great Brooklyn-meets-Elmer-Fudd accent — when attempting a fancy Steph/Kyrie-style dipsy-doodle shot on the playground…
I knew there was a reason I liked you Dino. I too wore 14 because of Cousy.
Mine is still hanging from the rafters...in my ATTIC BEDROOM in my home on top of a mountain in GREECE....SACRED
# 14 was my Little League number ... always liked Bob Cousy's games and loved Tom Meschery as a Warrior. Very different styles. Both wore # 14 well.
When I played it was maybe with Meschery's tough wildness and Cousy's short stature and I did have a running hook shot. I honestly feel hook shots, if used judiciously, would be effective at any level.