NBA Playoffs Season 2014-2015

[LooseCannon]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

That sounds like the exact opposite of buy low, sell high.  However much money you think BroLo is worth, I'd rather take that and throw it at his brother.

[mgent]

Good play by Butler, luck by Noah.

[Beat LA]

Brooklyn shouldn't be able to defend well enough to handle Atlanta. Yet here we are. Watching this series, it seems Brooklyn have the best player.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the Nets win in 6, tbh, and even thought so before the series began.  Atlanta's been a great regular season team and all, but when the game gets tight, who do they go to?  That's really the difference, imo.  Would you rather have Joe Johnson down the stretch or whoever it is on the Hawks?  Really, who is it?  I haven't watched them at all this year, so I'm going to guess Teague or Horford, right?  Both of the first two games could have gone either way, even with Deron Williams giving them anything, and Joe hasn't shot well at all yet in this series, so I'd be very concerned if I were Atlanta right now.

[Roy H.]

Noah is such a lousy scorer / finisher.

[MJohnnyboy]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

The upside of signing Brook is that it'd help guarantee the Nets are as bad as possible for the picks the Celtics own from them.

Imagine if the Celtics signed Brook and then went out and traded for -- surprise! -- Serge Ibaka.  OKC needs to retool and add some quality depth to their team to help take some of the pressure off Westbrook and Durant.  The Celts have picks and role players galore.  Could be a good fit, and Ibaka is exactly the kind of power forward you need if Brook Lopez is your starting center.

OKC's defense was almost historically atrocious after Ibaka went down. He's not going anywhere unless Durant and Westbrook jump ship.

I'm not saying it would be a smart move for them, but is it so far-fetched?  I don't think they can trade Westbrook and they certainly shouldn't trade Durant.  Ibaka is the most logical candidate to be sent out for multiple pieces to help them retool.

Exactly my point. Ibaka's not leaving unless OKC is blowing up their team by trading Westbrook and Durant and they aren't. I'm pretty sure they could trade Westbrook considering his value is at its highest its been in his career, but again they aren't going to.

To me it's pretty far-fetched for OKC to trade away the one guy that holds up their defense by himself. That's pretty illogical if you ask me.

EDIT:Also the Thunder added depth this year with Kanter, Augustin, Singler, and Waiters but they suffered from missing Durant for most of the season and Westbrook at the beginning. I think they are going to give that core a shot fully healthy before they make any moves.

[PhoSita]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

That sounds like the exact opposite of buy low, sell high.  However much money you think BroLo is worth, I'd rather take that and throw it at his brother.

Eh.  R. Lopez is a slightly better version of Ty Zeller.

Brook Lopez would be a gamble, and he'll still cost less than the typical All-NBA caliber 7 footer because of the risks inherent in signing him.

The Celtics are at a point where they'll need to take some calculated risks if they want to take things to the next level.

[PhoSita]

Noah is such a lousy scorer / finisher.

It's amazing just how valuable he is on both ends despite that, though.  Has there been anybody else like that since Ben Wallace?

[Beat LA]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

The upside of signing Brook is that it'd help guarantee the Nets are as bad as possible for the picks the Celtics own from them.

Imagine if the Celtics signed Brook and then went out and traded for -- surprise! -- Serge Ibaka.  OKC needs to retool and add some quality depth to their team to help take some of the pressure off Westbrook and Durant.  The Celts have picks and role players galore.  Could be a good fit, and Ibaka is exactly the kind of power forward you need if Brook Lopez is your starting center.

Please, god, no.

I'd be terrified, honestly.

But at the same time, when he's on, Brook is a legitimate 7 footer who scores 20 points a game and blocks shots.  Not an easy guy to fit into your roster, necessarily, but he's talented and productive.  Would be the best center for the Celts in a long while.

If you think that Love is a liability out on the perimeter, Lopez is a million times worse.  He has next to no lateral quickness or athleticism, and most of his points now come from that set shot where his feet don't leave the ground.  Add to that that he's never been a good defender or rebounder, plus his injury history, and I think I'll pass.  He's not even that good in the post, either, imo.  Maybe he hates Brooklyn so much that he's playing for a contract, who knows?

[PhoSita]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

The upside of signing Brook is that it'd help guarantee the Nets are as bad as possible for the picks the Celtics own from them.

Imagine if the Celtics signed Brook and then went out and traded for -- surprise! -- Serge Ibaka.  OKC needs to retool and add some quality depth to their team to help take some of the pressure off Westbrook and Durant.  The Celts have picks and role players galore.  Could be a good fit, and Ibaka is exactly the kind of power forward you need if Brook Lopez is your starting center.

Please, god, no.

I'd be terrified, honestly.

But at the same time, when he's on, Brook is a legitimate 7 footer who scores 20 points a game and blocks shots.  Not an easy guy to fit into your roster, necessarily, but he's talented and productive.  Would be the best center for the Celts in a long while.

If you think that Love is a liability out on the perimeter, Lopez is a million times worse.  He has next to no lateral quickness or athleticism, and most of his points now come from that set shot where his feet don't leave the ground.  Add to that that he's never been a good defender or rebounder, plus his injury history, and I think I'll pass.  He's not even that good in the post, either, imo.  Maybe he hates Brooklyn so much that he's playing for a contract, who knows?

Brooklyn's been a pretty decent defensive team with him on the floor, though.  No, he can't defend the perimeter at all, but very few teams have centers that can take advantage of that.

Now, you can't just play him next to any old power forward and expect success.  Next to Olynyk he'd be a disaster.  Not sure about Sullinger.  I'd want the Celts to try and acquire a guy like Ibaka or maybe Taj Gibson.


The foot issues are a real red flag and that's the main thing that would give me pause.  But again, if the Celtics are gonna move forward and try to keep winning more games instead of rebuilding with high draft picks, I believe they have to take some calculated risks.  Leave it up to Ainge and the front office to make the right calculations.

[Beat LA]

Brook Lopez wants a big deal this off-season, methinks.  Been playing like an All-NBA caliber player for the past couple of months. 

How would everyone feel about the Celtics signing him to a 3 or 4 year deal this off-season for big money?  If he can stay relatively healthy (e.g. 60 games per year), he could be the starting point for a quality team.  On the other hand, if his foot / ankle issues continue ....

The upside of signing Brook is that it'd help guarantee the Nets are as bad as possible for the picks the Celtics own from them.

Imagine if the Celtics signed Brook and then went out and traded for -- surprise! -- Serge Ibaka.  OKC needs to retool and add some quality depth to their team to help take some of the pressure off Westbrook and Durant.  The Celts have picks and role players galore.  Could be a good fit, and Ibaka is exactly the kind of power forward you need if Brook Lopez is your starting center.

Please, god, no.

I'd be terrified, honestly.

But at the same time, when he's on, Brook is a legitimate 7 footer who scores 20 points a game and blocks shots.  Not an easy guy to fit into your roster, necessarily, but he's talented and productive.  Would be the best center for the Celts in a long while.

If you think that Love is a liability out on the perimeter, Lopez is a million times worse.  He has next to no lateral quickness or athleticism, and most of his points now come from that set shot where his feet don't leave the ground.  Add to that that he's never been a good defender or rebounder, plus his injury history, and I think I'll pass.  He's not even that good in the post, either, imo.  Maybe he hates Brooklyn so much that he's playing for a contract, who knows?

Brooklyn's been a pretty decent defensive team with him on the floor, though.  No, he can't defend the perimeter at all, but very few teams have centers that can take advantage of that.

Now, you can't just play him next to any old power forward and expect success.  Next to Olynyk he'd be a disaster.  Not sure about Sullinger.  I'd want the Celts to try and acquire a guy like Ibaka or maybe Taj Gibson.


The foot issues are a real red flag and that's the main thing that would give me pause.  But again, if the Celtics are gonna move forward and try to keep winning more games instead of rebuilding with high draft picks, I believe they have to take some calculated risks.  Leave it up to Ainge and the front office to make the right calculations.

I understand what you're saying, but here's my question - even though there are too many red flags with this next guy, would you rather take a risk on Upshaw, or Lopez?  It'd be interesting to see how Sullinger plays next to a shotblocker, although we could have had that this season if Ainge had gotten Whiteside.  Ugh.  Sorry for that, it's just that that move still really ticks me off, lol. *facepalm*

[cman88]

Sooo can someone explain to me why the sixers traded mcw? He looks like a real solid player. Playing well on the biggest stage. Oh but I forgot...their plan is to be as horrible as possible. Watch them trade noel because he might help them win games

[SHAQATTACK]

We could have won one game against Hawks or Bulls or Nets .....THEY SUCK COMPARED to Cavs and LeQueen

Bull can't put bucks away at home ...lame

[SparzWizard]

Can't believe the Bucks are going to steal one in Chicago.

But all playing thru NBA's hands for LeQueen and his Cavs to get their rest.

[Roy H.]

All of that "Rose is back to an MVP level" talk was so much nonsense.  His defense is lousy, but his offense has been wildly up and down. 

[Who]

All of that "Rose is back to an MVP level" talk was so much nonsense.  His defense is lousy, but his offense has been wildly up and down.

He is a middle of the pack starting PG (and that is being kind).