AROUND the NBA:

[HoosierDaddyKid]

https://x.com/FoxNews/status/20597692931...2?ref_src=



Talk about egg on your face.

[michaeltex]

https://x.com/espn/status/2059779672968249851


Adam Silver will implement an AI automated system to review calls.

No chance for controversy here...

[RoyTarpleysGhost]

[Charania] Breaking: The NBA's Board of Governors has passed new anti-tanking rules that include expanding the draft lottery from 14 to 16 teams, a relegation zone where the bottom 3 teams get penalized with lessened chances for the No. 1 pick, and flattened odds, sources tell ESPN.

[loki]

[Charania] Breaking: The NBA's Board of Governors has passed new anti-tanking rules that include expanding the draft lottery from 14 to 16 teams, a relegation zone where the bottom 3 teams get penalized with lessened chances for the No. 1 pick, and flattened odds, sources tell ESPN.

Free agency? Dead.
Trade market? Too expensive to add more than one good player.
Draft? Completely random.

I'm surprised only Memphis opposed this.

[KillerLeft]

[Charania] Breaking: The NBA's Board of Governors has passed new anti-tanking rules that include expanding the draft lottery from 14 to 16 teams, a relegation zone where the bottom 3 teams get penalized with lessened chances for the No. 1 pick, and flattened odds, sources tell ESPN.

I'm pretty surprised this passed. Excited to see if it helps, but surprised it passed.

[Chicagojk]

[Charania] Breaking: The NBA's Board of Governors has passed new anti-tanking rules that include expanding the draft lottery from 14 to 16 teams, a relegation zone where the bottom 3 teams get penalized with lessened chances for the No. 1 pick, and flattened odds, sources tell ESPN.

So memphis has the Utah pick next year but now it can't be top 5 because the Jazz have had two top 5 picks.     Top 5 is pretty random too.  I saw Sam Vecenie name the last 10 #5 picks....a lot of spares.    

I am sure there are rules and laws, but I would have given the NBA major props if they made these changes for this year.   That would have been awesome.   Next year and maybe the year after that, lacks a true franchise player at the moment.    This is the year where they should have done something.

[KillerLeft]

So memphis has the Utah pick next year but now it can't be top 5 because the Jazz have had two top 5 picks.     Top 5 is pretty random too.  I saw Sam Vecenie name the last 10 #5 picks....a lot of spares.    

I am sure there are rules and laws, but I would have given the NBA major props if they made these changes for this year.   That would have been awesome.   Next year and maybe the year after that, lacks a true franchise player at the moment.    This is the year where they should have done something.

This season certainly played a role in getting us to this place. This is the draft that encouraged so much tanking that they finally resolved to make changes, so that's something.

[Scott41theMavs]

This season certainly played a role in getting us to this place. This is the draft that encouraged so much tanking that they finally resolved to make changes, so that's something.

As some of the execs have groused (in spite of voting in favor of this), this was a special year and the extremity of the tanking was anomalous. Common sense would help, Silver.

[Knutsen]

https://www.nba.com/stats/draft/combine-...ar=2018-19

Brunson is 6'1 without shoes.

https://www.nba.com/stats/draft/combine-...ar=2009-10

Curry is 6'2 without shoes.
They are literally one inch different in height.
Brunson has better wingspan but shorter standing reach, but both are one inch difference.

And Brunson is much stronger and sturdier - I‘d define small not only in height, but also in widths and strength. 

So yes, Curry is definitely small. And my ironic take made all the sense!

[HoosierDaddyKid]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7316575...er-status/


Knicks center Mitchell Robinson has suffered a broken right pinky finger.
No timetable for his return.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

The Nos. 9 and 10 play-in seeds in each conference receive two lottery balls each, and the losers of the 7-8 play-in games receive one lottery ball each. Previously, the league drew odds for only teams with the bottom four records in the league, while the other 10 lottery teams were ordered by inverse record. Under this proposal, all 16 teams would be in the drawing -- one that, sources said, likely will be done live next year, either going from 1 to 16 or, like it is unveiled currently, from 16 to 1 to build more suspense.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Shams Charania: Sources said the Grizzlies voted against the new lottery reform solely because of the new rule disallowing a team from picking top 5 in 3 consecutive years. As @BobbyMarks42 says, the Grizzlies have the more favorable 2027 first-rounders over Cleveland, Minnesota, and Utah, and because the Jazz again have a top-5 pick this year, their 2027 first-round pick cannot be in the top 5 under the new rules.

Jake Fischer: The NBA still has to finalize some final mechanisms, sources say, regarding how the new draft lottery will truly unfold, most importantly, what would happen if a team does draw a top-five pick for a third year in a row, or the No. 1 pick in consecutive years.


Jake Fischer: The uncertainty surrounding the NBA's new draft lottery format, plus it's three-year probationary period, will spark different reactions from front offices. One general manager told me, "I'm not trading any picks beyond 2029." More @TheSteinLine here: http://tinyurl.com/45m57axf


Jake Fischer: As I currently understand it, if the Jazz's 2027 first rounder that's owed to Memphis, and can't be top five next year, were to land at No. 5, it would be slated at No. 6. But there's also the possibility that the league would just discard that outcome and draw again for No. 5.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Victor Wembanyama also needs to be a dominant defensive force, considering Oklahoma City connected on 49% of its shots with him on the court in Game 5, which ranks as the best field goal percentage a team has achieved so far this postseason against the 22-year old, according to ESPN Research. Widely proclaimed the best player currently in the NBA, Wembanyama needs to show it for San Antonio to stave off elimination. And though he has shocked observers with a seemingly otherworldly skill set, Wembanyama ultimately needs to figure out how to showcase those qualities on a more consistent basis for the upstart Spurs to knock off the defending champs, led by a two-time MVP. -- Michael C. Wright

[KillerLeft]

This might be a dumb question because I'm too lazy to look everything up right now, but I wonder...could this voted change potentially IMPROVE the Mavs' draft situation over the next few years?

[dirkfansince1998]

https://x.com/GaryParrishCBS/status/2060084786157477916

Memphis traded Jaren Jackson Jr. for a package that included a 2027 first-round pick from the Jazz that could theoretically be the No. 1 pick. That was part of the trade. And the NBA just undid it less than four months later. Now it can't even be in the top five. Ridiculous.

Inclusion of traded picks has no impact on a teams decision to tank. Just Silver deciding to screw/reward certain teams.

[Smitty]

This might be a dumb question because I'm too lazy to look everything up right now, but I wonder...could this voted change potentially IMPROVE the Mavs' draft situation over the next few years?

For next year, sure. Nothing really changes for the swaps in ‘28 or ‘30.

https://thesmokingcuban.com/mavericks-pj...ery-reform

[dirkfansince1998]

Game 7 it is. Given the options I still want the Spurs to win but I think a healthy OKC team is more likely to beat the Knicks. And I really don't want the Knicks to win it all. I guess likeable teams don't win or stop being likeable when they start to win (Pacers would have been a nice story last year).

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Game 7 it is. Given the options I still want the Spurs to win but I think a healthy OKC team is more likely to beat the Knicks. And I really don't want the Knicks to win it all. I guess likeable teams don't win or stop being likeable when they start to win (Pacers would have been a nice story last year).

I don't want those "cocky" Knicks or their fans to win either. I hope it's another 53 years before they get another chip.

[Mavs2021]

What a surprise that this series goes to seven games. The National Entertainment Association is so predictable. This also gives another East team a chance to steal the title from a tired West team, basically the only way the East ever gets to eat.

[Knutsen]

Game 7 it is. Given the options I still want the Spurs to win but I think a healthy OKC team is more likely to beat the Knicks. And I really don't want the Knicks to win it all. I guess likeable teams don't win or stop being likeable when they start to win (Pacers would have been a nice story last year).

I‘m really loving the Spurs right now - only because of how much dislike I have for the Thunder. 

I guess that would be the same against the Knicks, but from experience I can’t always predict who I would end up rooting for. 

If OKC makes the finals? I‘ll probably end up a Knicks fans for these couple of weeks.