(03-09-2022, 06:13 AM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]https://streamable.com/oop6a8
I spent some time thinking about the issue. I have to say, comparing to Europe, USA players are extremely soft. I think Westbrook received less than 10 % of stuff players in Europe face and I don't see much whining here. Of course it is not nice from people to say bad things about players, but on the other hand the sports involve high emotions which are sometimes difficult to control.
In its basic essence, the sports are played for its spectators. And it is the spectators who should be in essence driving the way. Spectators are emotionally involved which also leads them to spend (a lot of) money for tickets, merchandise and many other things involved. Without this emotions, there would be much less money involved. So where do we draw the line? Are we expecting the spectators to sit silently and clap when the big monitors tell them to or are we allowing them more? How much more? Either we like it or not, the games from ancient times are used to release feelings and frustrations so that nuances of every day life come easier. So that people forget a bit about those worries. Are we sure we want to take that away?
I think NBA has become extremely player driven. Perhaps to an extent too much. Players naturally would want that they are untouchable gods that people are allowed only to cherish. Yesterday we had Gobert whining about words coming from Mavs bench, today we have Westbrook complaining about insults from fans. But I don't think it works this way. I think this is part of the job. They get paid huge amounts of money mostly coming from fans that will never earn anything near what they are making. Fans that have a hard time understanding why a player paid 50 mil per season has a trouble hitting a jumper anywhere near average rates or contribute to winning basketball. Why can't such a player adjust his game. Why such a player doesn't have a problem collecting his check but has a problem delivering what he is expected to based on such a reward.
Based on all this I agree with the comment in the video. I am sure it is not nice for Westbrook kids to hear bad things being yelled at their dad. But, it is just part of a well paid job.
(03-09-2022, 08:26 AM)omahen Wrote: [ -> ]I spent some time thinking about the issue. I have to say, comparing to Europe, USA players are extremely soft. I think Westbrook received less than 10 % of stuff players in Europe face and I don't see much whining here. Of course it is not nice from people to say bad things about players, but on the other hand the sports involve high emotions which are sometimes difficult to control.
But what you describe is mostly match day pressure by paying "emotional in the moment" customers in the stadium in Europe, which is 1-3 times a week. Europe simply does not have the insane amount of BS artist media that do nothing else, but bully and harrass players publically at every opportunity without any substance. The abuse Westbrook receives through the media is utterly absurd. If you acted like that toward colleagues in a real job, you´d be fired five times over. Assholes like Bayless, SAS or the whole Twitter brigade are getting paid millions to be professional trolls. That culture simply does not exist in European sports.
(03-09-2022, 08:46 AM)Mavs2021 Wrote: [ -> ]But what you describe is mostly match day pressure by paying "emotional in the moment" customers in the stadium in Europe, which is 1-3 times a week. Europe simply does not have the insane amount of BS artist media that do nothing else, but bully and harrass players publically at every opportunity without any substance. The abuse Westbrook receives through the media is utterly absurd. If you acted like that toward colleagues in a real job, you´d be fired five times over. Assholes like Bayless, SAS or the whole Twitter brigade are getting paid millions to be professional trolls. That culture simply does not exist in European sports.
On the flip side, European players aren't being paid $30-40M per year to play. Average Premier League salary is $3.9M while the NBA is $7.9M. They are all still people, but they are very highly paid people,
who when it comes to basketball, haven't been told "no" a lot. I imagine the people that sit close enough for the players to hear what they're saying haven't been told "no" a lot in their lives as well.
New Athletic Power rankings:
https://theathletic.com/3154150/2022/03/...-30-teams/
Dallas at 6th place up from 10th. Here is their writeup:
Quote:[b]6. Dallas Mavericks (Previously 10th), 39-25, +3.6 net rating[/b]
[b]Weekly slate: [/b]Win at Lakers, Win over Warriors, Win over Kings
[b]Clutch profile:[/b] 18-16 | Offense: 104.5 (20th) | Defense: 119.2 (29th) | -14.7 net rating (26th)
[b]Go-to guy:[/b] Luka Doncic | 68 points on 54 shots | 48.1/22.7/84.6 shooting splits | 11 assists, 4 turnovers
[b]Potential liability:[/b] Jalen Brunson | 38 points on 35 shots | 37.1/11.1/78.6 shooting splits | 11 assists, 4 turnovers
It doesn’t really make sense how awful the Dallas Mavericks have been in the clutch this season when things go poorly for them, but even with that horrendous net rating, they have a winning record. The Mavs are playing as well as anybody right now, and Doncic has been on a tear since he worked his way into shape. I would expect that to start carrying over into their end-of-game situations when things get tight. To their credit, they’ve won seven of their last nine games that have triggered clutch situations, so this impressive team turnaround can be felt throughout all aspects of the game. Luka has been very good in the clutch, even though he still can’t knock down these 3-pointers. Brunson has been surprisingly mediocre at knocking down shots, but he’s still playing pretty well in the clutch, creating for others.
(03-09-2022, 09:04 AM)ItsGoTime Wrote: [ -> ]On the flip side, European players aren't being paid $30-40M per year to play. Average Premier League salary is $3.9M while the NBA is $7.9M. They are all still people, but they are very highly paid people, who when it comes to basketball, haven't been told "no" a lot. I imagine the people that sit close enough for the players to hear what they're saying haven't been told "no" a lot in their lives as well.
The players don´t pay themselves. Neither do they trade themselves to a team. Just because somebody makes a lot of money, doesn´t mean he doesn´t deserve to be treated with any sort of human decency. We long crossed that line with Westbrook.
The only question is whether you think Westbrook plays hard and tries his best?
He´s 33 years old.
He´s shooting 0.4/2.2 percentage points below his career averages from the field. He´s -4.2/+0.2/-1.5 in points, assists, rebounds below his career averages.
I don´t even know what people expect?
I´d say he plays pretty much like you´d expect from a 33 year old that has always given 100% for 14 straight years.
Fans seem to have this weird idea in their head that as long as you try hard enough you can change your ability to shoot, defend, rebound, pass, court vision etc. Bascially everything that makes you the player that you are. Sure players do get better and improve in certain areas with professional training, but almost nobody makes it to the NBA without already working incredibly hard and yet half the players drafted still can´t shoot or defend at the highest NBA level.
Is it Westbrook´s fault that LeBron is old and can only play one end of the floor or in quarter spurts? Or that the Lakers made awful front office decisions, including his trade? That Anthony Davis is very injury-prone. Do we get endless coverage that Davis is a weak person, that is out eight weeks every time he turns an ankle or stubs his big toe?
(03-09-2022, 09:53 AM)Mavs2021 Wrote: [ -> ]The players don´t pay themselves. Neither do they trade themselves to a team. Just because somebody makes a lot of money, doesn´t mean he doesn´t deserve to be treated with any sort of human decency. We long crossed that line with Westbrook.
The only question is whether you think Westbrook plays hard and tries his best?
He´s 33 years old.
He´s shooting 0.4/2.2 percentage points below his career averages from the field. He´s -4.2/+0.2/-1.5 in points, assists, rebounds below his career averages.
I don´t even know what people expect?
I´d say he plays pretty much like you´d expect from a 33 year old that has always given 100% for 14 straight years.
Fans seem to have this weird idea in their head that as long as you try hard enough you can change your ability to shoot, defend, rebound, pass, court vision etc. Bascially everything that makes you the player that you are. Sure players do get better and improve in certain areas with professional training, but almost nobody makes it to the NBA without already working incredibly hard and yet half the players drafted still can´t shoot or defend at the highest NBA level.
Is it Westbrook´s fault that LeBron is old and can only play one end of the floor or in quarter spurts? Or that the Lakers made awful front office decisions, including his trade? That Anthony Davis is very injury-prone. Do we get endless coverage that Davis is a weak person, that is out eight weeks every time he turns an ankle or stubs his big toe?
I guess what I was mostly trying to say was, it's all filthy rich people problems, on both sides of this argument. I don't have much of a dog in the fight either way.
(03-09-2022, 09:53 AM)Mavs2021 Wrote: [ -> ]The players don´t pay themselves. Neither do they trade themselves to a team. Just because somebody makes a lot of money, doesn´t mean he doesn´t deserve to be treated with any sort of human decency. We long crossed that line with Westbrook.
The only question is whether you think Westbrook plays hard and tries his best?
He´s 33 years old.
Is it Westbrook´s fault that . . . .
Seems like we could replace the name Westbrook with Biden or Trump or Obama or even Bush/Clinton/Bush and have an even more productive conversation. But this is America. There are no thought police here (though some try). And we revel in our freedom to be dumb at the top of our lungs.
Yes, sometimes it’s bad, hurtful, counterproductive, or worse. But that’s how we became the birthplace of ideas.
Westbrook, by the way, is free to orchestrate a buyout on the cheap and then re-sign for a reasonable amount with OKC. They love him there. They’d worship him for choosing them over the payday. And his family would love basketball again. A horrific financial sacrifice like that? It would still leave him holding a fat, fat bag ‘o cash.
Your take is welcome too. But it doesn’t seem realistic to me. Not in a culture where ordinary Joes are accustomed to questioning the integrity of vaccines, and activists think they can tell their political allies where they can and can’t get chicken sandwiches.
Boston and Jayson Tatum are hotter than fish grease. Tatum scored 44 pts after scoring 54 the previous game, in a 115-101 over the Hornets. They've won 17 out of their last 20. Dallas is at Boston Sunday. Should be a good matchup the way both teams are playing even though Dallas shit the bed tonight.
(03-10-2022, 02:52 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status...m5ltcpAAAA
Good for Moses. The more you watched him, the more you realized he has a long way to go. But if he works hard and keeps at it, he has a chance. He is a very good offensive rebounder and can really run. He just needs to firm up the rest of the game. Being someone a coach can count on is where he needs to focus on...rotations, limited mental mistakes, help side D, finishing inside are the less glamorous things, but will probably decide how long he is an NBA player. I was curious if he was going to go to the G-league team.
(03-10-2022, 02:52 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status...m5ltcpAAAA
Good for Moses. The more you watched him, the more you realized he has a long way to go. But if he works hard and keeps at it, he has a chance. He is a very good offensive rebounder and can really run. He just needs to firm up the rest of the game. Being someone a coach can count on is where he needs to focus on...rotations, limited mental mistakes, help side D, finishing inside are the less glamorous things, but will probably decide how long he is an NBA player. I was curious if he was going to go to the G-league team.
(03-10-2022, 02:52 PM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status...m5ltcpAAAA
Good for Moses. The more you watched him, the more you realized he has a long way to go. But if he works hard and keeps at it, he has a chance. He is a very good offensive rebounder and can really run. He just needs to firm up the rest of the game. Being someone a coach can count on is where he needs to focus on...rotations, limited mental mistakes, help side D, finishing inside are the less glamorous things, but will probably decide how long he is an NBA player. I was curious if he was going to go to the G-league team.
At the time, I was upset that the Mavs cut him over other options. Now, it is even more glaring how uneven our roster is and how few bigs we actually have. Particularly ones with size/rebounding/shotblocking. Definitely a hole in our roster. Good luck to him in CLE who is a team that is definitely flying in the other direction, with success, when it comes to small ball. They START 3 bigs!
So Minnesota lost and Utah was kind enough allowing Pop to become the coach with most wins in NBA history. I guess Dallas is pretty safe from play-in if they win at least one game against Minnesota. 3rd place is too far away, so the battle for positions 4-6 will likely be the story of the last part of the season for us.
(03-12-2022, 02:45 AM)omahen Wrote: [ -> ]So Minnesota lost and Utah was kind enough allowing Pop to become the coach with most wins in NBA history. I guess Dallas is pretty safe from play-in if they win at least one game against Minnesota. 3rd place is too far away, so the battle for positions 4-6 will likely be the story of the last part of the season for us.
Was just thinking the odds of falling to 7th.
That Minnesota game is a must win.
(03-12-2022, 02:45 AM)omahen Wrote: [ -> ]So Minnesota lost and Utah was kind enough allowing Pop to become the coach with most wins in NBA history. I guess Dallas is pretty safe from play-in if they win at least one game against Minnesota. 3rd place is too far away, so the battle for positions 4-6 will likely be the story of the last part of the season for us.
I wonder if there will be some jockeying for position among 4, 5 and 6 to try to get a specific matchup. I could see a team wanting the sixth slot to avoid Phoenix in the second round. You'd have to be kind of cocky to think this way, but is a Memphis or Golden State matchup in the first round really that much more difficult than Denver?
At the opposite end of the spectrum, if you go all out to get 4th and home court against Utah, there is no guarantee you'll get the Jazz. They could drop to sixth at the last minute and there we are playing Jokic in the first round. A healthy Phoenix scares me because they have more guys than our style of D can guard. Denver and Jokic scares me too as Powell has to have help rather than provide help as he often does against other centers. I don't see a dramatic difference between Utah, GS and Memphis. You have to beat someone good no matter who you play in the first round.
(03-12-2022, 07:17 AM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: [ -> ]I wonder if there will be some jockeying for position among 4, 5 and 6 to try to get a specific matchup. I could see a team wanting the sixth slot to avoid Phoenix in the second round. You'd have to be kind of cocky to think this way, but is a Memphis or Golden State matchup in the first round really that much more difficult than Denver?
At the opposite end of the spectrum, if you go all out to get 4th and home court against Utah, there is no guarantee you'll get the Jazz. They could drop to sixth at the last minute and there we are playing Jokic in the first round. A healthy Phoenix scares me because they have more guys than our style of D can guard. Denver and Jokic scares me too as Powell has to have help rather than provide help as he often does against other centers. I don't see a dramatic difference between Utah, GS and Memphis. You have to beat someone good no matter who you play in the first round.
I think Dallas really is not in a position to calculate who they want to play against. These things often backfire - look how it almost backfired against Clippers last season. Your team is a bit relaxed as in "we got the opponent we wanted and it will be easy peasy". The opponent on the other hand is fired up as "we will show them how wrong they were to chose us".
Personally I am way more affraid of Utah then Denver (unless Murray and MPJ come back in top form). Sure Jokic will be a problem against our centers, but I doubt they have any reserves left for playoffs. Even Jokic couldn't lift his game in previous years. He was actually a net negative in the playoffs in last two years. As good as he is he can be attacked on defense and the supporting cast without Murray and MPJ is really weak. I wonder how much toll the incredible effort he has to give in the regular season takes.
Utah on the other hand has a very good team imho. Utah offense is great so the key is if you can exploit their defense that leans on Goberts help defense. I am affraid if Mavs role players will be good enough to take Gobert out of the paint. Utah doesn't have as good regular season as last year, which I think is mostly due to more injuries. But they likely have their last chance to make a splash. Tensions are building up and another playoff collapse could mean the end of this team.
![[Image: FNnbVrmUcAAMQQf?format=jpg&name=large]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FNnbVrmUcAAMQQf?format=jpg&name=large)