Author Topic: NBA 2016-2017 PreSeason Discussion Thread  (Read 5883 times)

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Re: NBA 2016-2017 PreSeason Discussion Thread
« Reply #30 on: October 21, 2016, 11:13:14 PM »

Offline jpotter33

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Portland at Golden State on NBATV right now. Golden State's defense looks shoddy and easily broken down with ball movement, and their shot selection is as horrible as it's ever been with quick, contested threes. Portland up 19-6 early.

I know you're a Warriors doubter, jpotter, but wait for the regular season. What they are, we've never seen it before. There will be lulls (like right now), but they're going to obliterate everyone. The only things that could possibly derail them would be 2 catastrophic injuries or a complete Draymond meltdown.

People underestimate how important chemistry and fit are for a team, which is weird given that we're better than the sum of our individual talents due primarily to chemistry and fit. They also devastated their depth and hurt their defense to sign Durant, which was a big reason for their domination last year. I think people just see the big names and get all excited without actually considering how those part fit together both in playing style and attitude.

They'll be good, but they won't be as dominant as last year. They'll go through some growing pains in the beginning, too, and I'm betting we put a beating on them in their like 12th game of the year in Boston.

Re: NBA 2016-2017 PreSeason Discussion Thread
« Reply #31 on: October 21, 2016, 11:39:13 PM »

Offline max215

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Portland at Golden State on NBATV right now. Golden State's defense looks shoddy and easily broken down with ball movement, and their shot selection is as horrible as it's ever been with quick, contested threes. Portland up 19-6 early.

I know you're a Warriors doubter, jpotter, but wait for the regular season. What they are, we've never seen it before. There will be lulls (like right now), but they're going to obliterate everyone. The only things that could possibly derail them would be 2 catastrophic injuries or a complete Draymond meltdown.

People underestimate how important chemistry and fit are for a team, which is weird given that we're better than the sum of our individual talents due primarily to chemistry and fit. They also devastated their depth and hurt their defense to sign Durant, which was a big reason for their domination last year. I think people just see the big names and get all excited without actually considering how those part fit together both in playing style and attitude.

They'll be good, but they won't be as dominant as last year. They'll go through some growing pains in the beginning, too, and I'm betting we put a beating on them in their like 12th game of the year in Boston.

Depth: Iggy, Livingston, West is a stellar trio off the bench. If one other guy emerges for them (McCaw, McGee, Looney, Clark), they'll have the best bench in the league.

Defense: Draymond (one of the two best defenders in the league), Klay (excellent), Iggy (amazing), Livingston (very solid), KD (dominant when he has to be), Curry (fine in a team concept). They do seriously lack rim protection. It's their only on-court weakness.

Fit: This is not the Heatles. This is not developing a system that will fit 4 of the top 20 players in the league. This is taking the one of the best teams in history, one with one of the most devastating offensive systems in history, and inserting one of the most dominant shooters/scorers of all time. This is taking Harrison Barnes and replacing him with an all-time-great.

Chemistry: This is the only thing that could really destroy them. Rim protection will be an issue, but they'll survive it. Chemistry, on the other hand, could prove catastrophic. Ethan Strauss's piece may have been slightly sensationalized, but Draymond clearly causes some real problems. If he loses it, which he seems capable of, the consequences could be extreme. Maybe Draymond makes life hell for KD and he leaves next year, maybe he's so bad that Curry leaves. I can foresee scenarios in which chemistry proves disastrous. However, I think the winning will likely be enough. They'll win...all the time...and everyone will be happy.
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Re: NBA 2016-2017 PreSeason Discussion Thread
« Reply #32 on: October 21, 2016, 11:59:41 PM »

Offline jpotter33

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Portland at Golden State on NBATV right now. Golden State's defense looks shoddy and easily broken down with ball movement, and their shot selection is as horrible as it's ever been with quick, contested threes. Portland up 19-6 early.

I know you're a Warriors doubter, jpotter, but wait for the regular season. What they are, we've never seen it before. There will be lulls (like right now), but they're going to obliterate everyone. The only things that could possibly derail them would be 2 catastrophic injuries or a complete Draymond meltdown.

People underestimate how important chemistry and fit are for a team, which is weird given that we're better than the sum of our individual talents due primarily to chemistry and fit. They also devastated their depth and hurt their defense to sign Durant, which was a big reason for their domination last year. I think people just see the big names and get all excited without actually considering how those part fit together both in playing style and attitude.

They'll be good, but they won't be as dominant as last year. They'll go through some growing pains in the beginning, too, and I'm betting we put a beating on them in their like 12th game of the year in Boston.

Depth: Iggy, Livingston, West is a stellar trio off the bench. If one other guy emerges for them (McCaw, McGee, Looney, Clark), they'll have the best bench in the league.

Defense: Draymond (one of the two best defenders in the league), Klay (excellent), Iggy (amazing), Livingston (very solid), KD (dominant when he has to be), Curry (fine in a team concept). They do seriously lack rim protection. It's their only on-court weakness.

Fit: This is not the Heatles. This is not developing a system that will fit 4 of the top 20 players in the league. This is taking the one of the best teams in history, one with one of the most devastating offensive systems in history, and inserting one of the most dominant shooters/scorers of all time. This is taking Harrison Barnes and replacing him with an all-time-great.

Chemistry: This is the only thing that could really destroy them. Rim protection will be an issue, but they'll survive it. Chemistry, on the other hand, could prove catastrophic. Ethan Strauss's piece may have been slightly sensationalized, but Draymond clearly causes some real problems. If he loses it, which he seems capable of, the consequences could be extreme. Maybe Draymond makes life hell for KD and he leaves next year, maybe he's so bad that Curry leaves. I can foresee scenarios in which chemistry proves disastrous. However, I think the winning will likely be enough. They'll win...all the time...and everyone will be happy.

Depth: Iggy and Livingston are good, but West is toast. He was largely garbage last year for San Antonio. None of the others really look ready to seriously contribute. Clark can shoot, but that's about it.

Defense: You're being *very* generous with your descriptions lol Green and Iggy are both elite defenders, but Klay is largely overrated. He's a good defender, but he's not what many make him out to be, especially on team defense and rotations. And Durant is definitely not dominant either. There are times he's very average on the defensive end, and usually he's only slightly above average, if that. Steph is absolute garbage defensively. I have no idea how he's got the reputation as a good defender. He can't keep anything in front of him, as evidenced by Lillard going off on him and driving past him at will tonight, though the same thing is happening on the other side of the floor with Lillard, too. As for rim protection, I thought Zaza was an excellent pick up for them, but he's also looked toasted all this preseason. They'll be an above average defensive team, but they won't be nearly as dominant as they were last year. They might not even be a top-10 defensive team this year.

Fit: Stylistically, they fit together perfectly with their respective games. But fit is also a mental and emotional fit, and there's one saying that comes to mind with this group - too many Chiefs and not enough Indians. I think we'll see that bear out in one way or another throughout the season, regardless of whether they're exceeding expectations or failing them.

Chemistry: Agreed, and we'll ultimately just have to wait and see how that pans out. The thing about winning with Durant though is that he's won in every area except the Finals, so where "winning" was good enough for someone like Love to resign, who was coming from a losing environment, only the title will be good enough for Durant. But I ultimately expect Durant to stay there, because it doesn't seem his style to move on from GS after one year. I could see them trading Klay for a Bradley-like player (which I still hold is the most obvious trade in the NBA that should go down - Golden State would be absolutely unbeatable with that lineup) before I see KD leaving. Green is too important for them to consider trading, and it's hard to see Steph going anywhere.