AROUND the NBA:

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Rick Carlisle: ‘One of the pictures from the 2011 finals was one where Jason Kidd was picking up full court against LeBron James. So, we were going to be full court, we were going to make nothing easy, and we were going to be persistent. We were always going to be there. We had a zone defense that we developed during the previous summer to prepare for that season, and Tim Grgurich was a big part of that. Now, Grg came on board with us that year. You know Grg well, and Grg is, to me, really the godfather of modern player development, and he's just a charismatic figure on a coaching staff. And so, we knew our zone was going to have to give us some help in that series because the matchups just weren't there. We had Peja Stojakovic, who had played well in the previous series against the Lakers, but the matchups were very difficult against Miami, and so the zone had to help us there.’

[DallasMaverick]

Shaquille O'Neal says Knicks had 'a lot of luck' winning 2025-26 championship: If you don’t get that tip, it’s over… you don’t win that game… If dumb ass De'Aaron Fox don’t f***ing try to score with 8 seconds left… If they don’t let the 29-point lead go. I’m just saying y’all won, but you had a lot of luck

YouTube

I think we could say the same about pretty much any champion in the past 20 years.  Just a bounce here or there...

[Knutsen]

I think we could say the same about pretty much any champion in the past 20 years.  Just a bounce here or there...

Was about to say the same. With the exception of the Warriors in their best seasons, they didn’t need luck - you needed luck to beat them.

[FireNicoHarrison]

Agree with both.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

AJ Dybantsa says he WANTS to guard Luka Doncic "I just want to be on like an ISO island. This sounds crazy, but I want to be on an ISO island and just really see if he's moving that slow." (Via @RoadTrippinShow)

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Carlisle coached Doncic during the Slovenian superstar's first three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks, witnessing his rapid transformation from a highly regarded European prospect into one of the NBA's best players. "I said this during the year, from a talent standpoint and ability and everything else, he's the most unique player I've ever worked with," Carlisle said. "He's just so good. And he's a killer, you know? He's a killer competitor, too."

BasketNews

[Scott41theMavs]

AJ Dybantsa says he WANTS to guard Luka Doncic "I just want to be on like an ISO island. This sounds crazy, but I want to be on an ISO island and just really see if he's moving that slow." (Via @RoadTrippinShow)

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(Getting out the popcorn) Dis gun be guud.

[mvossman]

Was about to say the same. With the exception of the Warriors in their best seasons, they didn’t need luck - you needed luck to beat them.

I would say that Boston team didn't need any luck.  They mowed through the playoffs not letting any team get more than 1 win.

The Nicks were lucky in the sense that they ran into a young team not quite ready.  Both The Nicks and they Spurs were lucky OKC had a couple of key injuries, or they probably would have repeated.

[windjc]

I would say that Boston team didn't need any luck.  They mowed through the playoffs not letting any team get more than 1 win.

The Nicks were lucky in the sense that they ran into a young team not quite ready.  Both The Nicks and they Spurs were lucky OKC had a couple of key injuries, or they probably would have repeated.

Please. The Spurs fought through as many injuries at OK.

[numnuts23]

Please. The Spurs fought through as many injuries at OK.

OKC was missing 2 of it's top 5 players....I'm not sure how SA was close to that? 

A healthy Williams and Mitchell would have made a huge difference for them and likely got them past the Spurs.

[windjc]

OKC was missing 2 of it's top 5 players....I'm not sure how SA was close to that? 

A healthy Williams and Mitchell would have made a huge difference for them and likely got them past the Spurs.

Well let’s see if they win it this year.

[Mavs2021]

I would say that Boston team didn't need any luck.  They mowed through the playoffs not letting any team get more than 1 win.

The Nicks were lucky in the sense that they ran into a young team not quite ready.  Both The Nicks and they Spurs were lucky OKC had a couple of key injuries, or they probably would have repeated.

And the Thunder were lucky Nico is such a d******* or the Mavs would likely have repeated.

[Mapka]

I would say that Boston team didn't need any luck.  They mowed through the playoffs not letting any team get more than 1 win.

The Nicks were lucky in the sense that they ran into a young team not quite ready.  Both The Nicks and they Spurs were lucky OKC had a couple of key injuries, or they probably would have repeated.

You could argue Luka having problems with the calf was like the "key injuries" OKC had.
But realisticly Kyrie being bad and Boston shootin out of their mind were the main reasons they got that title.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Well let’s see if they win it this year.

I wouldn't count them out. They'll be in the hunt. Depends on health and luck like everyone else.

[FireNicoHarrison]

AJ Dybantsa says he WANTS to guard Luka Doncic "I just want to be on like an ISO island. This sounds crazy, but I want to be on an ISO island and just really see if he's moving that slow." (Via @RoadTrippinShow)

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You will be cooked young kids.

[HoosierDaddyKid]

NBABase: Bill Simmons: "One of the things I was fascinated by was, 'Why did they let this guy buy the team? Why let "El Cheapo" [Tom Dundon] get in there?' Apparently they only had two offers [for the Portland Trail Blazers sale] ... I just don't think they had a lot of people that wanted to buy in."

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

Bam Adebayo names his top 5 players of all time: Kobe Bryant, Steph Curry, Michael Jordan, Kevin Durant, Tim Duncan. No LeBron James. Josh Smith says Bam Adebayo is SALTY that LeBron didn’t come to Miami and that’s why he left him off his top 5 players list: “He prolly mad Bron didn’t come down there to South Beach and mess with him. He salty man. Might be a little salty man. Salt kills snails, not players.” (Via @NightcapShow_)

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[HoosierDaddyKid]

The NBA appears to have had dueling weddings on Saturday, Aug. 1 — and a Garden villain used his to troll the Knicks. At Tyrese Haliburton’s, 50 Cent — who appears to be an Indiana Pacers fan and has been going to games for years — performed “I Get Money,” which produced the famous “I Run New York” line in the hook. The ceremony was shortly after Haliburton and his fiancée, Jade Jones, officially tied the knot in late July at a legal ceremony at an Indiana courthouse. Wedding bells are ringing for Donovan Mitchell and Coco Jones ... the Cleveland Cavaliers superstar and Grammy-winning R&B singer are officially husband and wife!!! The happy couple tied the knot Saturday in front of their closest family and friends ... and judging by the first photos and videos from the celebration, the reception is already an unforgettable party. Plenty of A-listers showed up to celebrate the happy couple, too ... including NBA stars Jaylen Brown and Bam Adebayo, along with power couple Ciara and Russell Wilson.

New York Post

[HoosierDaddyKid]

Mike Vorkunov: New medical study examining Achilles tears in the NBA said there was some correlation to increased workload in the 10 and 15 games before a player tore their Achilles. It found that players who got hurt averaged more minutes in the 10 and 15 game periods before the injuries than their season average. The study said: "No significant associations were identified between (Achilles tear rupture) occurrence and age, player position, role, early sport specialization, or measures of schedule congestion."

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[cow]

Mike Vorkunov: New medical study examining Achilles tears in the NBA said there was some correlation to increased workload in the 10 and 15 games before a player tore their Achilles. It found that players who got hurt averaged more minutes in the 10 and 15 game periods before the injuries than their season average. The study said: "No significant associations were identified between (Achilles tear rupture) occurrence and age, player position, role, early sport specialization, or measures of schedule congestion."

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I'd love to see the correlation between these injuries and distance traveled.  That's harder to quantify compared to the past as those measurements are relatively recent, but the evolution of offenses has increased player mileage and even still, I'm sure average distance traveled varies team to team.