2017-18 NBA Basketball

Houston has a strong and established coach which would not put up with his chit and team crushing ball hogging stat chasing champion killing play. If he would play a position to help a team, maybe he could find redemption in his old age, but he wants to be a point guard who chokes when it counts, and hardin sharing the ball with Paul has been a challenge, but James would suck that team into his quick sand.......none and done.

Bulls lose to Pacers. Valentine mediocre play, and Niko shutting down because he wants to be traded......what a mess. Hopefully, some of these young kids can get clear of the titanic.

Jimmy's story is a heartbreak, but the kid just kept doing his best. He is a big Country fan, and I love that he has made the big time with this video.

Butler owns James in the last eight games. James needs to find the cavs some defensive help. They are mediocre at their best day and absolutely terrible most days.

Butler was guarding Wesbrook and George and scored 26.....they were chanting MVP in MN, but I think that is way premature. He has to get the timberwolves to the Western finals this year even to be considered top five, but what I think a MVP should be is exactly what Butler represents.....unselfish play, tenacity on defense, and growing leadership which involves hard work and the desire to win. He has had to fight for everything in his life, and he is one of the most positive people. Some of these young players are simply gold for the NBA.

James cannot play team defense anymore. Love is at the top of the key and his man easily gets a step on him and James instead of closing off the lane, just stands there. They go to time out and James is yelling at his coach and the team, blaming them for his lack of defense. This has been the reality for four years, but the broadcasters are only concerned about stats and offense. Toronto or Boston will beat the Cavs in the East. They are old. IT is a little guy who cannot play defense, and I do not think his hip is fixed. Rose is messed up with injuries. Love is soft. Wade is old. James destroys teams, but this team and the coach are just a rag tag collection with no team cohesion. It is obvious why the best player on the Cavs wanted out........James will NEVER make the top ten best players.....NEVER.....his defense is awful, and the more he plays.......that is all people will see.

His post game interview about the Cavs defense must have hit a sore spot with James because he was very rude to the reporter who asked about defense. I have documented for four years how he no longer is playing defense and players are getting that first step on him. We see highlight films of him blocking shots off the glass after a players has gotten around him thinking that is good defense.....it is not......the players are blowing right by him. It is insulting to real basketball fans that a ball hogging team killing player who has not been playing a lick of defense the last four years would even be considered as a top ten all time player. He is the mailman with two rings, mostly because he had to surround himself with players who could carry his team killing antics.

I am not a James hater. He is a better human being than Jordan could ever be, and he has been a role model for kids. He is a good man who plays great basketball, but the truth is there has been a fifteen year weakness in the East where terrible basketball was played and mediocrity was elevated to greatness. The talented young players who have entered the league in the last five years has made James virtually irrelevant and many of his contemporaries are going to pass him on the all time list. Curry and Durant for sure, but more to come. He cannot be coached, and all the speculation of where he will go will not change that he will take a team down for the remainder of his career.

Timberwolves have been getting plenty of national tv exposure as they are playing tonight on espn. Big game to beat their divisional competition and Portland has made the playoffs the last four years. Butler is getting a lot of national press.

He deserves it. A star at both ends of the floor.

They are a very good TEAM. Hell, Ball has more votes than Butler for an all star. That is the beauty of Butler. He plays team ball, plays top ten defense, and has ice water in his veins at crunch time. When he came the press had built him up as the salvation even though Wiggins and Townes are all stars which could have ended badly but for the first six weeks Bulter sat back and fed them and played second fiddle........until they had a few losses, and then he simply said.....nope every game counts and we cannot squander any game.....hard work.

I have watched Wiggins this year. He scoring is down, but his defense is getting better with every game. This kid could be amazing if Butler gets this unit playing aggressive hard work team defense. He never smiled last year, but Butler has Wiggins smiling and having fun winning. He and Crawford work great together and what I like best is Butler driving hard to the basket and Townes man has to drop, and he simply kicks it back for a long two or three, and Butler is in Prime rebounding position. They are just about the best in the NBA on two point percentage, and have cut their three point shots from last year significantly down. Gibson is the unsung hero of this team. Hard work, great defense, and tenacious on the boards. The Bulls gave both of those players up for absolutely nothing. Thibs will keep them playing defense. I am really excited about this team.

It is hilarious that the Bulls who were suppose to tank this year are winning a few games and will NOT get a good lottery pick. Mediocre and no path to greatness. We will see what they do in the NIKO trade, but he is the one they should be hanging onto, but they blew that with the way they handled the fight. The front office keeps putting incompatible players on the floor, and you can get they will be a five hundred team for years.....no rebuild until they flush management out of the front office, but fred needs to go now.

The cavs have no defense. They played an adequate offensive game, but when the fourth quarter came, the Warriors could walk to the basket. Champions.....how about a team that should not even make the playoffs. All the MVPs and all stars cannot carry the weight of James whose idea of defense is to watch somebody blow around him and he blocks the ball from behind the player......about 1 out of 5 times. Nobody wants to tell the truth about his defense, but anybody who knows basketball knows this man cannot guard people anymore.

Many people are looking at the stats on the MVP, and suddenly Jimmy Butler is in the discussion. His impact on a team is amazing, and few players have turned around a franchise like he has this year.

He is top three on impact on offense and defense.

http://www.espn.com/nba/statistics/rpm/_/sort/RPM

2seaoat wrote:The cavs have no defense.  They played an adequate offensive game, but when the fourth quarter came, the Warriors could walk to the basket.  Champions.....how about a team that should not even make the playoffs.  All the MVPs and all stars cannot carry the weight of James whose idea of defense is to watch somebody blow around him and he blocks the ball from behind the player......about 1 out of 5 times.  Nobody wants to tell the truth about his defense, but anybody who knows basketball knows this man cannot guard people anymore.

The Cavs ran out of gas...

The Cavs probably will not win the east. Boston really plays great defense, Irving is clearly the best player for the Cavs the last two years. They are not even relevant in any discussion of today's NBA.

I am angry at the NBA for waiting so long to punish the Houston players. There needs to be a clear message that the direction of the last month has to stop.

Meh... they're basketball players. The only real punch ever thrown was Rudy tomjohnovich (sp?).

Tell that to Niko. The violence has been escalating at the same time disrespect for refs increases. The NBA has to change the direction of this disrespect. Make some examples. Sorry, this has gotten old.

All about the money and keeping players.

SIL is at the Clippers/Denver game. Stadium attendance around 50%. He got a seat in row 7. Dammit!

James is turning on his assistant Ty Lue. Blaming Lue for his lack of defense. OK beat them by 24 points. Disgraceful to see James screw up a play and then walk back on defense. Totally his assistants fault.

Gsw vs Hou on abc right now. Hardin starts hot.

Another 40 point 1st quarter for Houston.

Gsw close to 3 points w 1.5 mins left. Harden runs the whole shot clock off and sinks a 3... lol.

But I doubt he can do it in the playoffs.

Edit: it's worth noting that curry wound up isolated on Hardin... average d at best.

Nobody is going to beat the Warriors in a seven game series. The wolves won without Butler against a very good Toronto team, and I think they are starting to jell, but to beat the Warriors......going to have to be some injuries.

I feel pretty good identifying how bad James had become on defense four years ago, but it is hilarious everybody blaming the entire team for bad defense.....it starts with James.