Author Topic: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?  (Read 12066 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #45 on: January 24, 2020, 04:16:07 PM »

Offline PhoSita

  • NCE
  • Robert Parish
  • *********************
  • Posts: 21835
  • Tommy Points: 2182
On the subject of who is and is not a contender, for what it's worth:


- Bucks are #1 defense and #1 offense ... they're the juggernaut, though as I said I have reservations about Coach Bud teams

- Lakers are #4 offense and #3 defense ... I hate their depth but they're unquestionably very good

- Utah is #5 on offense (!) and #8 on defense, which makes them a borderline contender.  But there are reasons to question their playoff credibility.

- Boston is #6 on offense (a tiny hair behind Utah) and #5 on defense, so a borderline contender, arguably.  Youth and lack of a MVP type makes it fair to question their playoff abilities, but Brad has taken them deep in the past with less talent.


Other notables:

- Clippers are #9 on offense and #9 on defense ... there are reasons to think they could jump up a level in the playoffs given their personnel

- Dallas is the #1 offense but #18 on defense; I dont' take them seriously as a playoff team

- Houston is similar in that they are #3 on offense and #15 on defense; maybe that improves in the playoffs with a shorter rotation but I doubt it

- Toronto is #2 on defense but #13 on offense ... if Siakam or Lowry got hot for a couple rounds they could be dangerous, but I don't think they have the juice to make a deep run

- Philly is similar to Toronto ... #4 on defense but #20 on offense.  I think they're doomed without a major trade to fix their offense.
You’ll have to excuse my lengthiness—the reason I dread writing letters is because I am so apt to get to slinging wisdom & forget to let up. Thus much precious time is lost.
- Mark Twain

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #46 on: January 24, 2020, 04:55:38 PM »

Offline mmmmm

  • NCE
  • Rajon Rondo
  • *****
  • Posts: 5308
  • Tommy Points: 862
G Williams, needs to hit open shots, if in the future he can become a + 30% 3pt shooter he could be a key contributor off the bench


Just FWIW:  Ever since Grant _finally_ hit his first 3PT shot (Dec 9th), getting the monkey off his back, he has shot 39.3% on threes.

So his current season average of 20.3% is perhaps a bit misleading and not really representative of his abilities as a shooter.
An addendum to this, at his current volume of shots we should have a decent sample to determine his shooting ability in approximately 4 more years.  ;)

Very true.
NBA Officiating - Corrupt?  Incompetent?  Which is worse?  Does it matter?  It sucks.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #47 on: January 24, 2020, 05:01:33 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
We are one good starter away from title contention (at center).

How are we defining "good starter"?

Because Daniel Theis has shown that he fits really well with the other starters (i.e. the team's core offensive players), can hold his own on defense even on switches, spaces the floor, and isn't an offensive liability so long as he's not expected to create for himself or others.

Short of adding a very expensive or talented two way player at the 5, I'm not sure what sort of starting caliber player you would find who would not take away as much as they add.

Let's say a top 15 center

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #48 on: January 24, 2020, 05:03:43 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #49 on: January 24, 2020, 05:06:44 PM »

Offline gouki88

  • NCE
  • Red Auerbach
  • *******************************
  • Posts: 31552
  • Tommy Points: 3141
  • 2019 & 2021 CS Historical Draft Champion
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.
What makes you think Milwaukee isn’t elite, or even the best Eastern team, despite them crushing the league?
'23 Historical Draft: Orlando Magic.

PG: Terry Porter (90-91) / Steve Francis (00-01)
SG: Joe Dumars (92-93) / Jeff Hornacek (91-92) / Jerry Stackhouse (00-01)
SF: Brandon Roy (08-09) / Walter Davis (78-79)
PF: Terry Cummings (84-85) / Paul Millsap (15-16)
C: Chris Webber (00-01) / Ralph Sampson (83-84) / Andrew Bogut (09-10)

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #50 on: January 24, 2020, 05:08:33 PM »

Offline Monkhouse

  • Paul Silas
  • ******
  • Posts: 6932
  • Tommy Points: 814
  • A true Celtic plays with heart.
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

???  ???

Out of all teams in the East, you chose 76ers over the Bucks?
"I bomb atomically, Socrates' philosophies and hypotheses
Can't define how I be dropping these mockeries."

Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
It's based on your perspective, quite simply
We're the same and we're not; know what I'm saying? Listen
Son, I ain't better than you, I just think different

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #51 on: January 24, 2020, 05:11:07 PM »

Offline celticsclay

  • Reggie Lewis
  • ***************
  • Posts: 15739
  • Tommy Points: 1386
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

 :o what? You realize the season started months ago right? Philly is currently missing two starters, has struggled horrifically on the road and against good teams and has starting lineup that doesn't work. Yet you have them above the Bucks? You got the Hornets making the playoffs too? I acknowledge anything could happen in the playoffs, and the 76ers may make a big trade also, but this take makes no sense right now.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #52 on: January 24, 2020, 06:14:51 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

???  ???

Out of all teams in the East, you chose 76ers over the Bucks?

1 - Elite defense
2 - Elite rebounding
3 - Elite main man in Embiid

Philly are far from a perfect team but so is everyone else in the East. I like them most mainly due to these three factors. And also:

4 - Four lower level stars around Embiid in Horford, Toby Harris, Josh Richardson and Ben Simmons.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #53 on: January 24, 2020, 06:17:32 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.
What makes you think Milwaukee isn’t elite, or even the best Eastern team, despite them crushing the league?

I thought their team last year was better. They'll have a harder time competing in the playoffs this year without Brogdon or Mirotic. They are less versatile. Less able to deal with adversity. The two Lopez' makes them slower and more vulnerable.

The Bucks are beating up on teams in the regular season but the playoffs is a different animal. It is a best of 7 series where there is far more game-planning. Teams take things away from you.

I am just not convinced that Milwaukee has enough guys that can step up when that happens and help Giannis (and Middleton) get the team over the finish line.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #54 on: January 24, 2020, 06:21:20 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

 :o what? You realize the season started months ago right? Philly is currently missing two starters, has struggled horrifically on the road and against good teams and has starting lineup that doesn't work. Yet you have them above the Bucks? You got the Hornets making the playoffs too? I acknowledge anything could happen in the playoffs, and the 76ers may make a big trade also, but this take makes no sense right now.

Not phased by Philly's struggles because I always expected them to be inconsistent and have struggles during the regular season because of their uneven offense.

I also thought (prior to the season) that they would be a better playoff team than regular season due to their defensive talent, stellar rebounding, star man in Embiid and ability to create matchup problems with their size.

So neither of those things have changed. Nothing has changed in Milwaukee. Things have changed in Boston and I have added Boston to that group alongside Milwaukee and Philly whereas I thought they were down alongside Indiana and Toronto prior to the start of the season.

That I rate Philly as #1 in the East is just as much an indictment of the rest of the Conference (if not more) as it is praise for Philly.

I really do not believe anybody in the East has an elite team this year.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #55 on: January 24, 2020, 06:21:29 PM »

Offline gouki88

  • NCE
  • Red Auerbach
  • *******************************
  • Posts: 31552
  • Tommy Points: 3141
  • 2019 & 2021 CS Historical Draft Champion
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

???  ???

Out of all teams in the East, you chose 76ers over the Bucks?

1 - Elite defense
2 - Elite rebounding
3 - Elite main man in Embiid

Philly are far from a perfect team but so is everyone else in the East. I like them most mainly due to these three factors. And also:

4 - Four lower level stars around Embiid in Horford, Toby Harris, Josh Richardson and Ben Simmons.
I must be missing something. The Bucks have a better defence, are a better rebounding team, and have a better player in Giannis.

Their supporting cast for him is on paper inferior, but in game it is much more balanced and actually works to support Giannis - Embiid’s supporting cast thrives without him. Not to mention Bud is way better than Brown
'23 Historical Draft: Orlando Magic.

PG: Terry Porter (90-91) / Steve Francis (00-01)
SG: Joe Dumars (92-93) / Jeff Hornacek (91-92) / Jerry Stackhouse (00-01)
SF: Brandon Roy (08-09) / Walter Davis (78-79)
PF: Terry Cummings (84-85) / Paul Millsap (15-16)
C: Chris Webber (00-01) / Ralph Sampson (83-84) / Andrew Bogut (09-10)

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #56 on: January 24, 2020, 06:25:12 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I only view 2 teams as contenders - Clippers and Lakers.

I have Dallas in 3rd as a darkhorse candidate.

The East is fairly open with no elite teams. Just 3 very good teams who are not on a par with the top teams out West. I like Philly the most out of those 3 teams. They are my favourite to win the East with Boston and Milwaukee close behind them.

???  ???

Out of all teams in the East, you chose 76ers over the Bucks?

1 - Elite defense
2 - Elite rebounding
3 - Elite main man in Embiid

Philly are far from a perfect team but so is everyone else in the East. I like them most mainly due to these three factors. And also:

4 - Four lower level stars around Embiid in Horford, Toby Harris, Josh Richardson and Ben Simmons.
I must be missing something. The Bucks have a better defence, are a better rebounding team, and have a better player in Giannis.

Their supporting cast for him is on paper inferior, but in game it is much more balanced and actually works to support Giannis - Embiid’s supporting cast thrives without him. Not to mention Bud is way better than Brown

Agree that Milwaukee has the better star man. Disagree on the defense and rebounding. Philly are better at both when they are healthy. Milwaukee has just had better health throughout the year.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #57 on: January 24, 2020, 06:35:41 PM »

Offline Who

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 47136
  • Tommy Points: 2401
I just do not believe the Bucks are as good as their regular season indicate.

I like Boston ahead of Milwaukee too. The C's have more pieces (4 stars in Hayward, Kemba, Jaylen and Tatum). More guys who can change games (Smart too). Milwaukee too reliant on Giannis & Middleton.

I thought the Celtics should have beaten the Bucks last year as well but they blew that when they fell apart.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #58 on: January 24, 2020, 06:49:27 PM »

Offline nickagneta

  • James Naismith
  • *********************************
  • Posts: 48120
  • Tommy Points: 8794
  • President of Jaylen Brown Fan Club
Giannis is always healthy. Embiid rarely. That in itself, to me, makes Milwaukee the better team. Also a healthy Giannis is better than a healthy Embiid so that also pushes things in the Bucks favor to me.

Re: Are we one good bench piece away from title contention?
« Reply #59 on: January 24, 2020, 07:07:44 PM »

Offline GreenFaith1819

  • NCE
  • Reggie Lewis
  • ***************
  • Posts: 15402
  • Tommy Points: 2785
We are TWO Good "HEALTHY" Months away from title contention.

Make our run from April 2020 until June 2020.

This team WANTS to make up for that HORRIBLE mess they displayed to the world (and The Boston Faithful) in last year's playoffs.

They want to erase the past.

Last year's playoff was NOT BOSTON...it was a Horrid mirage.

I really believe we have the 15 guys on our team to make it happen.

We've seen greatness already from this team...this team ENJOYS playing with each other and it's genuine.

In just the last week or so we ALMOST beat MIL without JB...needed GH to make another bucket or two and we'd be 2-0 against them.

The Laker beatdown was NOT a fluke. This is what happens when this team is HEALTHY and DIALED in defensively.