CelticsStrong
Around the League => Around the NBA => Topic started by: crimson_stallion on October 21, 2017, 10:26:28 PM
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At the risk of being an overreacting drama queen, the Cavs and Warriors are both looking decidedly human this year..
The Cavs had to fight to beat us without Hayward and Morris by one possession in the opener, had a nice victory against the Bucks yesterday, and now just lost by 20 points to the pathetic Orlando Magic.
The Warriors lost to Houston in the opener, struggled to beat the lowly Pelicans yesterday, and are now down by 12 to the thoroughly mediocre Grizzlies - they are 2:46 away from starting the season 1-2.
These teams are both looking extremely beatable right now. I predicted the Cavs would struggle (due to high risk of injuries and the poor fit of the roster) but the Warriors struggles have been very perplexing to me.
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The losses are surprising but it's so, so, so early. Golden State in particular just seem bored, and why wouldn't they be?
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The losses are surprising but it's so, so, so early. Golden State in particular just seem bored, and why wouldn't they be?
Curry didn’t look bored throwing that mouthpiece in the referees direction! :laugh:
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it's this kinda logic that led people to believe Olynyk and Crowder were untradeable...
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The losses are surprising but it's so, so, so early. Golden State in particular just seem bored, and why wouldn't they be?
Curry didn’t look bored throwing that mouthpiece in the referees direction! :laugh:
Lol fair - shoulda said bored and arrogant. But definitely look like they're kinda mailing it in so far. Which would still get this roster about 60 wins, mind you.
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As always, wait until 20 games into the season before drawing any conclusions.
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I think the shortened preseason and training camps had something to do with it.
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Obviously you can't draw major conclusions 3 games in to the season...
But lets be honest. Golden state did not look like this 3 games into last season, or the season before that, or the season before that. They didn't really have any stretches where they really showed obvious signs of weakness. And while it may well be true that they are just "bored", even if this is true that's a significant thing - it could be an indication that they just aren't at hungry/motivated as they were the past few seasons, and that could be enough to open up the door for a team like the Spurs or Thunder to knock them off their pedestal. Obviously we won' be able to say anything conclusively until much more time goes by, but the signs are worth seeing anyway.
As for the Cavs, I'm not at all surprised. Before the season even started, the fit of their parts did not look good. A starting 5 featuring Rose, Wade, Lebron and Tristan Thompson (5 guys who are not good outside shooters) had me seriously concerned about their ability to stretch the floor. Then (almost as if they were reading my mind), they announced that they would start Crowder at PF instead - which only opens up a whole other can of works because we all know Crowder isn't capable of playing the 4 full time effectively, but that is the desperation move they had to make in order to get some spacing on the court. Pick your poison, basically, so they did.
Then you factor in the overall age and injury history of their top 6 guys - it's concerning to say the least. Rose, Wade and Love have been injury prone their entire careers and Thomas is coming off a major injury - and Rose just got injured again (right on cue). Lebron has been impressively healthy and is "only" 32, but has more mileage on that body then a lot of 35 year old guys in this league - it's only a matter of time before his body starts to break down with the 38-40 minutes he's constantly forced to play. Wade is 35, and that is very old for a guard with a slashing game that relies heavily on athleticism - he gets in the paint a lot, he hits the floor a lot, and that body is basically a ticking time bomb.
That Cavs team has the potentially to be significantly worse then last year's team, and don't be surprised if exactly that happens. They struggled miserably in the preseason (0-4) and have struggled now in the regular season when the games have actually counted. They aren't going to be a BAD team obviously - you can lock them in for one of the top teams in the East. But they might not be the top 2 seed lock-in that many people assume they will be...and they may not be, by any means, a certainty for the finals.
it's this kinda logic that led people to believe Olynyk and Crowder were untradeable...
This statement is irrelevant and makes absolutely zero sense in the context of this thread.
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The losses are surprising but it's so, so, so early. Golden State in particular just seem bored, and why wouldn't they be?
Curry didn’t look bored throwing that mouthpiece in the referees direction! :laugh:
Lol fair - shoulda said bored and arrogant. But definitely look like they're kinda mailing it in so far. Which would still get this roster about 60 wins, mind you.
Well, the Pelicans and the Grizzlies are bad matchups for them.
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If the Pelicans could find any sort of decent wing, they'd be a powerhouse.
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If the Pelicans could find any sort of decent wing, they'd be a powerhouse.
I disagree. Powerhouse Rand tend to have nice benches and elite coaches... Gentry is the worst
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At the risk of being an overreacting drama queen, the Cavs and Warriors are both looking decidedly human this year..
Shortened preseason simply means teams do not have their act together yet. It means nothing, I still think the CAVS and WARRIORS are the two best teams. We, too, are better than we have played.
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If the Pelicans could find any sort of decent wing coaching and front office, they'd be a powerhouse.
Fixed
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Let's just remember last year the Warriors lost their first game by 29 points (to the Spurs), won 4 straight against mostly bad teams, and then lost to the Lakers by 20. They then ripped off 12 straight and never looked back.
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Barring injury, this league is still dominated by GSW.
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As long as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Durant are all healthy and coached by Steve Kerr, the Warriors will 99% be in the Finals.
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More like 99% to win the finals. The cavs are even worse off matching up against them this year (as are we even if we had Hayward)
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More like 99% to win the finals. The cavs are even worse off matching up against them this year (as are we even if we had Hayward)
Even without the Hayward, I think the Celtics have a better chance of beating the Warriors than the Cavs.
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As long as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Durant are all healthy and coached by Steve Kerr, the Warriors will 99% be in the Finals.
I think Luke Walton kinda proved Kerr is a bit over rated. He also lost them the finals a couple years ago by pushing them into winning the last few games of the season for a record, and not for playoff spots.
OKC and Huston go much better and Mini,Memp, and Portland could all be teams that give them issues during the season. It's early but I think more teams are ready for them this year and done with bowing to their superteam, and they are going to at least make it very tough for them this season.
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As long as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Durant are all healthy and coached by Steve Kerr, the Warriors will 99% be in the Finals.
I think Luke Walton kinda proved Kerr is a bit over rated. He also lost them the finals a couple years ago by pushing them into winning the last few games of the season for a record, and not for playoff spots.
OKC and Huston go much better and Mini,Memp, and Portland could all be teams that give them issues during the season. It's early but I think more teams are ready for them this year and done with bowing to their superteam, and they are going to at least make it very tough for them this season.
Let's reemphasize what SparWiz said.
The Warriors will 99% be in the finals if they are healthy. It's still their league and everyone else is just playing in it.
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As long as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Durant are all healthy and coached by Steve Kerr, the Warriors will 99% be in the Finals.
I think Luke Walton kinda proved Kerr is a bit over rated. He also lost them the finals a couple years ago by pushing them into winning the last few games of the season for a record, and not for playoff spots.
OKC and Huston go much better and Mini,Memp, and Portland could all be teams that give them issues during the season. It's early but I think more teams are ready for them this year and done with bowing to their superteam, and they are going to at least make it very tough for them this season.
Let's reemphasize what SparWiz said.
The Warriors will 99% be in the finals if they are healthy. It's still their league and everyone else is just playing in it.
I wouldn't put it that high if all of their competition is also healthy. The West will provide at least 2 very tough match-ups for every team including the Warriors. Houston, San Antonio, Oklahoma City and maybe even Minnesota or Denver (especially if they acquire Bledsoe) could all push the Warriors and possibly even win a series against them. If they are pushed in the West and the Cavs cruise through the East, I think the Cavs could also push them and possibly win (especially if Thomas looks fairly similar to last year once he comes back). That doesn't mean those are likely outcomes or that the Warriors aren't heavy favorites, but the odds are much better this year than last year that they lose a series in the playoffs.
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More like 99% to win the finals. The cavs are even worse off matching up against them this year (as are we even if we had Hayward)
Even without the Hayward, I think the Celtics have a better chance of beating the Warriors than the Cavs.
I think Cavs have made some terrible moves, rely on aincient players and have no defense, but can not agree that statement if they have Lebron, Love, Thompson and Crowder and we don't have Hayward. (Cavs would get smoked worse than the 5 gamer last year though)