64 Comments

A win in Boston is as likely as a loss. If the Dubs show up ready to rumble, they can at least give Boston a good game, win or lose. That's what we all want to see, a good game. Maybe the defensive emphasis will be on not reaching in and fouling and will become a part of their preparations. Mindfulness is always appropriate on and off the court.

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Well... a good game is the main thing we want to see. However, I for one want to see a win too!

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I'm perfectly OK with a Tatum 4-27 performance and a win, thank you very much. We need to start stacking some W's to get solidly in the top 6.

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Other way around, right? A win is the main thing we want to see; a good game is gravy. Don’t think anyone here would complain about a 40+ point laugher in which the starters sat the 4th Q?

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Now that you put it that way, yeah, you're right!

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OK, so last time I said positive things were bubbling below the surface, but not showing up in the win column... it was after the first or second win of a a 5 game winning streak.

I still say positive things are bubbling, and hopefully starting to crack the surface. Steph is back, Andrew is looking more spry, Jordan is looking much better, Klay is balling out, the bench as a whole isn't getting crushed, JK should be back, JMG/JW are soon back too...

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We have not won two consecutive road games yet. So, is Thursday’s game already a predictable loss? Or will the spell be broken?

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Probability has no memory, and there’s no such thing as spells, so…

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Lol nothing like climbing up the rankings while not playing. Go Dubs!

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It’s crazy!

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And like a knife it cuts both ways 😬

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The key is to never play.

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The key is to never think..........unless you have to for immediate action.

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Twice in a week...lol

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Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

u gotta luv it...Steph back in form, back in the WH, and as a bonus...DUBs slide smoothly back in 6th in West....lol

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Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

76ers beat the Clippers 120-110. Clippers fall to 23-23 and the Warriors move to #6 in the West.

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Jan 18, 2023Liked by Eric Apricot

Was watching the second half of that game, and got to see the new amazing NBA grifter move, not once, but twice:

If you’re dribbling the ball with your non-shooting, and your opponent has their arm away from their body, you can slip your shooting hand under their hand, and then go into your shooting motion!

Saw Norm Powell and James Haren do this…

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76ers beat the Clippers, not Warriors.

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Goddammit, not another typo. I hate it when that happens.

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No biggie, we all knew what you meant...that is why the edit feature in here is so great...

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I tried to replace the following blanks with other team and other player but miserably failed😭😭😭

"( )are always welcome in this White House," Biden said Tuesday. He also honored ( ) as "one of the great sportsmen of our time."

He said ( )"reflect America" with their style of play, showcasing "constant motion, with individual freedom and personality that comes together as one team, a team that plays with joy, with drive to be their best."

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/35467707/president-biden-vp-harris-welcome-warriors-white-house

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Nuggets beat the Blazers 122-113. Blazers fall to 21-23 and #11 in the West while the Nuggets move to 31-13 and 0.5 games above the Grizzlies.

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Spurs beat the short-handed Nets 106-98.

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Jan 18, 2023Liked by Eric Apricot

The thing about E1P's is that when the game is slowed down enough I can see and follow way more of what's going on than in real time that it's crazy to think that in real time the game slows down for the elite players playing it. It's like Draymond lives inside E1P time!

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author

I know I work here and stuff, but man… I loooove these! Great content and I always walk away smiling from the E1P experience. Thanks Apricot!!

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Jan 18, 2023Liked by Eric Apricot

Hey I think we all loooove these! Working here probably gives you an even higher appreciation, knowing EA as you do.

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Jan 17, 2023·edited Jan 17, 2023

I'm a wee bit irritated with the new NBA app. I wanted to rewatch the game, and lo and behold, they don't have the full game available.

There is something that says it is 'all plays', but what it actually is are Washington's offensive plays, and not even all of those.

What a load of dung the new app is.

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Got a panic flash right now that the Warriors might consider trading PBJ. All the reasons most Ws fans would prefer to send out Wiseman, Rollins, or JGreen than Baldwin are the same reasons other GMs would demand Baldwin: four seasons of cheap team control, high character, at least one highly projectable NBA skill as a natural shooter with a crazy high release point.

Would Presti send us Mike Muscala (6-11 lights out shooter and solid rebounder, passer, and shotblocker who has rated as a total stud by advanced stats for three straight seasons) for say, PBJ and Rollins? Would anyone here do that?

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Jan 17, 2023·edited Jan 17, 2023

Muscala stats:

14.5 mins, 5.9 points, 42.8% FG, 37.4% threes, 80% FT

3.1 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.5 blocks, 0.4 blocks, 1.8 fouls

Thunder isn't playing him a lot of minutes, and it's probably because of his lack of speed and/or defense.

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Muscala has played 20 minutes/game for only two seasons in his career, 5-6 years ago. Otherwise, he's a guy you can use for 15 minutes (his career average), and he's decent but not more than that from what I've seen. Not trading PBJ's potential for that.

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Yeah … I’d try to hold back PBJ, too. Just noting that all the reasons we want to keep PBJ are reasons why he probably has a decent amount of trade value. And the converse is true for the guys we’re eager to part with.

What’s intriguing (to me) about Muscala is that he might be gettable without giving up PBJ, Moody, or Wiseman. OKC’s imperative to develop the kids has left him further out of their rotation than his extremely positive play warrants. Maybe something like Rollins, JGreen, and a second rounder gets it done?

As for the 15 mpg thing: his ability/willingness to play 10-20 mpg off the bench is a feature to me, not a bug. All I want on this roster is a ~15 mpg skilled, smart, versatile big who brings some of what we lost with Otto/Bjelly and is clearly better (right now) than JGreen, Wiseman, and PBJ. Muscala is exactly that, imo.

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I don't think JMG can be traded to same team twice in 1 year.

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Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

Yeah I like that deal better. Muscala makes JMG unnecessary, Rollins hasn't shown enough, and we have enough youth that we don't need the second rounder. Muscala makes $3.5M with a club option for next season so he wouldn't just be a half-season rental. JMG makes $2.6M and Rollins $1M this season so the salaries work. I guess OKC does it to get out of the salaries a year sooner and maybe take a flier on Rollins.

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I would be all about this trade. JMG doesn't help us much from what I've seen, and Rollins is taking up space. While second rounders are nice, it's a luxury we shouldn't hold out for considering the utility of a player like Muscala.

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Or because he’s 31 and they’re in full developmental mode. Check out his on-off numbers below. Or if you want to look at D alone: he’s been a big plus for them on that end. Opponent points per 100, with Muscala on court v off:

2020-21: -11.4

2021-22: -4.7

2022-23: -7.6

Where are you seeing anything about a lack of defense?

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I can't imagine giving up a high upside big man with shooting chops for a rental of veteran Muscala, whose rebound rate is actually pretty low if I'm reading the stats right (11.2%) and whose career average assists per 36 is exactly 2. Tell me what I'm missing, Sleepy?

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Rebounding is nothing special but 7.4, 7.8, 7.8 per 36 over the past three seasons is solid for a sniper who puts up as many threes as he does (8-10 attempts per 36 over the past three seasons).

You might also be missing his net on -off numbers the last three seasons:

+12.1

+10.4

+15.4

That’s insanely good, even on a bad team.

FT%, 3FG% and 3FG volume suggest a legitimate sniper, not just a guy who occasionally makes em like JGreen or Zach Collins, or a guy who may *some day* be a threat from deep like Wiseman.

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Okay. The picture you paint for me is of an okay role player who fills a need (big). I would involve Rollins and Moody in trades for that person, but not Wiseman or PBJ.

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Eek. I would not trade Moody for him! My personal order of untouchability among the young’uns goes: (Poole), Kuminga, Moody, Baldwin, Wiseman, Rollins.

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I’d switch Moody and Baldwin. Baldwin looks to me like a 6’10” version of Klay. He’s also got a big frame that looks like it’ll fill in without bulking up.

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Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

I agree about PBJ's build.

According to PBJ recently, he's 230 - 235 right now. I can see him playing at 250 and not being slowed down. That's a little less that Stevie Adams or Bam Adabayo. That's why I project PBJ as a stretch 5.

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Regarding Wiseman vs. Moody, I view Wiseman's ceiling as higher and I also have seen improvement in a couple key areas. I had seen Moody as having a high floor, but I'm not sure what improvement we've gotten (granted yes, very limited opportunity so far this season). I still think Moody could be a tremendous player. Not so sure about Rollins. Baldwin seems like he could be an absolute steal, and Kuminga is already someone I seriously miss when we play certain teams (young, long, athletic).

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I see Moody as a solid rotation player on playoff-level team, but I don’t see the “tremendous” potential.

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Jan 18, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

Sleepy,

I'm curious what you see in Moody that puts him ahead of PBJ.

I would guess that's not a popular opinion, given Moody's current struggles, and PBJ shooting as well as he has.

I'm not trying to argue the opposite point of view (I don't really have a strong feel for which one of them will be more successful). But from what I can see so far, Moody is going to top out as an OK to good 3-and-D guy.

I wonder if you are seeing something I've overlooked.

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They’re pretty even to me. PBJ’s ceiling seems higher; but I think best-case Moody is the more versatile defender who fits in more types of lineups. And Moody has shown he can do what he does over 1,000 NBA minutes plus 100 non-garbage playoff minutes, whereas all we have of Baldwin is 110 intriguing minutes that could be a mirage.

Also: Moody at age 19 destroyed the G-League, where Baldwin at the same age did not.

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I could just be less attached to potential, but I would flip Baldwin and Moody on your list and still be interested in that trade lol. I probably wouldn't do it at the end of the day, but the only untouchables for me are Poole and JK. Everyone else I'd at least think about it before clutching my trading cards and saying no.

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This is where I'm at, too. Maybe I'd feel differently if Moody were playing, but he isn't.

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Jan 17, 2023·edited Jan 17, 2023

I don't know Muscala much, but isn't he rather slow? [ edit: I might be thinking of someone else from past aeons ]

I'd rather keep PBJ and see what he can become. I also think he's probably the highest ceiling prospect (other than maybe Kuminga).

I guess we're going to have random trade ideas pop up and we'll just have to wait until the 9th to see what really happens (hopefully, nothing).

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Jan 17, 2023·edited Jan 17, 2023

By description, maybe? I wouldn't immediately say no at least. I think for me it'd be a deadline trade dependent on whether:

1) you think there's a buyout avail that gives enough that it's worth the roster spot.

2) JMG doesn't seem like he'll get up to speed in time

3) the team is still misfiring and the reason is very obviously bc we're too small (rn I sorta think the issue is our POA on D and a kinda tepid offense as peeps get healthy again).

If so, then grabbing someone who can reliably play 5 in a 4-out sounds really good to me. That would also consolidate some spots and open up for the 2-ways.

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Yeah, opening up spots is a big part of the appeal for me, as I want to guarantee both Lamb and Jerome.

Jerome also played with Muscala on OKC.

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Wiseman must have been saying that Poole three should've been a four-point play. To me it looked like he was too open to get fouled, but it's a good hand sign to have at the ready, I guess! 😉

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Curry fandom in true display in D.C. That little boy is like all of us fans. So cute.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhqzFsK2cwQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnBMRPVIs4Q

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Jan 17, 2023·edited Jan 18, 2023

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/35461898/amid-mvp-chants-charlotte-celtics-tatum-nets-51-points

Just feel like Steph would never do this (Take a shot in a game that was already decided just to get a statline he likes) and he should be MORE honored for it. He only believes in winning not in empty stats or records.

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