2024 NBA Season and Playoffs

[jpotter33]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

[Neurotic Guy]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

If it were LAL, NY, or Boston that landed Admiral, Duncan, and Wemby there’d be no doubt that the fix was in.  Shows that sometimes strange things happen without foul play.  I’m glad he’s in the West, but eventually teams will need a Wemby stopper to have a chance.

[radiohead]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

The mid range jumper and dagger three were beautiful to see! Can’t wait to see how he fares against the Celtics D.

[celticinorlando]

Is it me or is anyone else not really impressed with the Suns? I get they are missing Beal but they are not a good defensive team at all.

Also all these guys missing puts more on KD which will not help down the stretch.

[Who]

Is it me or is anyone else not really impressed with the Suns? I get they are missing Beal but they are not a good defensive team at all.

Also all these guys missing puts more on KD which will not help down the stretch.

Trading Ayton for Nurkic was a huge mistake.

[Goldstar88]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

If it were LAL, NY, or Boston that landed Admiral, Duncan, and Wemby there’d be no doubt that the fix was in.  Shows that sometimes strange things happen without foul play.  I’m glad he’s in the West, but eventually teams will need a Wemby stopper to have a chance.

Victor going to the Spurs was the best thing for the league. They need Webanyama to be a star. Billions of dollars are on the line. Having him go to a stable organization like the Spurs where you have Pop and then Duncan/Robinson as mentors gives him the best chance to succeed. SA already had a young, talented core with Vassell, Johnson, and Sochan, which takes some pressure off of him. I’m glad Victor went to the Spurs, but I’m not convinced that it was luck of the draw.

[Vermont Green]

Is it me or is anyone else not really impressed with the Suns? I get they are missing Beal but they are not a good defensive team at all.

Also all these guys missing puts more on KD which will not help down the stretch.

Trading Ayton for Nurkic was a huge mistake.

There was more to the trade than that, PHX got Jusuf Nurkic, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little and Keon Johnson.  That is quite a bit of depth.  I like Ayton and agree that they will probably miss him more than they think but I get the trade and I don't think that is their main problem.

But PHX shot 50% from 3, and lost.  I think things are going to be complicated for PHX.  I don't think Beal is going to fit well.  They still have a lot to figure out and haven't had everyone playing to work on it yet.  I would not give up on them just yet though.

[perks-a-beast]

Is it me or is anyone else not really impressed with the Suns? I get they are missing Beal but they are not a good defensive team at all.

Also all these guys missing puts more on KD which will not help down the stretch.

Trading Ayton for Nurkic was a huge mistake.

I completely agree. I wasn’t opposed to PHX moving Ayton for the right package - If I were them I would have tried to work something out with Indy for a package centered around Turner, or with Atlanta for something involving Capela. What they got is a pu pu platter of misfits and outcasts - none of whom I see helping them much in the playoffs. Major L for Phoenix. Thought it was an excellent summer of acquisitions for them until the trade.

[celticinorlando]

Not sure the Suns are deep enough to withstand all the injuries they are going to have

[Phantom255x]

I think the Suns have a similar problem as the Celtics. Their frontcourt depth is just super thin

[tazzmaniac]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

If it were LAL, NY, or Boston that landed Admiral, Duncan, and Wemby there’d be no doubt that the fix was in.  Shows that sometimes strange things happen without foul play.  I’m glad he’s in the West, but eventually teams will need a Wemby stopper to have a chance.

Victor going to the Spurs was the best thing for the league. They need Webanyama to be a star. Billions of dollars are on the line. Having him go to a stable organization like the Spurs where you have Pop and then Duncan/Robinson as mentors gives him the best chance to succeed. SA already had a young, talented core with Vassell, Johnson, and Sochan, which takes some pressure off of him. I’m glad Victor went to the Spurs, but I’m not convinced that it was luck of the draw.

Why does the NBA need Wemby to be a star?  What billions of dollars are on the line?  Wemby could be a complete flop or a great success and it wouldn't make much difference to the NBA or its bottom line.  There are already lots of foreign players in the league.  4 of the top 10 players are foreign (Giannis, Embiid, Jokic and Luka).  Now if Wemby were Chinese or Indian that would be a big deal. 

Who is the best white American NBA player now?  Who was the last white American NBA player in the top 10?  The big difference maker would be if Chet Holmgren or Cooper Flagg become a star.  If either of them becomes a top 10 player that could be worth billions. 

[Goldstar88]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

If it were LAL, NY, or Boston that landed Admiral, Duncan, and Wemby there’d be no doubt that the fix was in.  Shows that sometimes strange things happen without foul play.  I’m glad he’s in the West, but eventually teams will need a Wemby stopper to have a chance.

Victor going to the Spurs was the best thing for the league. They need Webanyama to be a star. Billions of dollars are on the line. Having him go to a stable organization like the Spurs where you have Pop and then Duncan/Robinson as mentors gives him the best chance to succeed. SA already had a young, talented core with Vassell, Johnson, and Sochan, which takes some pressure off of him. I’m glad Victor went to the Spurs, but I’m not convinced that it was luck of the draw.

Why does the NBA need Wemby to be a star?  What billions of dollars are on the line?  Wemby could be a complete flop or a great success and it wouldn't make much difference to the NBA or its bottom line.  There are already lots of foreign players in the league.  4 of the top 10 players are foreign (Giannis, Embiid, Jokic and Luka).  Now if Wemby were Chinese or Indian that would be a big deal. 

Who is the best white American NBA player now?  Who was the last white American NBA player in the top 10?  The big difference maker would be if Chet Holmgren or Cooper Flagg become a star.  If either of them becomes a top 10 player that could be worth billions.

Simple, Webanyama is the most hyped prospect since Lebron James. He’s already generating a ton of intrigue. Look at all the Spurs games that are nationally televised this year.

Wembanyama's debut was the most-watched opening night game in 11 years, according to the NBA, with 2.99 million viewers.

You don’t think that makes a difference to the NBA’s bottom line? 

[Celtics2021]

Man, Wemby is going to be a problem. Dominating this game down the stretch with 33, 9, 2 and 2 blocks and 1 steal.

Granted - it's Phoenix with literally zero interior D playing KD at Center, but still.

EDIT: Now at 38 and 10 two possessions later after nailing a top of the key three off the curl and a quick pull midrange at the free throw line. Unbelievable.

If it were LAL, NY, or Boston that landed Admiral, Duncan, and Wemby there’d be no doubt that the fix was in.  Shows that sometimes strange things happen without foul play.  I’m glad he’s in the West, but eventually teams will need a Wemby stopper to have a chance.

Victor going to the Spurs was the best thing for the league. They need Webanyama to be a star. Billions of dollars are on the line. Having him go to a stable organization like the Spurs where you have Pop and then Duncan/Robinson as mentors gives him the best chance to succeed. SA already had a young, talented core with Vassell, Johnson, and Sochan, which takes some pressure off of him. I’m glad Victor went to the Spurs, but I’m not convinced that it was luck of the draw.

Why does the NBA need Wemby to be a star?  What billions of dollars are on the line?  Wemby could be a complete flop or a great success and it wouldn't make much difference to the NBA or its bottom line.  There are already lots of foreign players in the league.  4 of the top 10 players are foreign (Giannis, Embiid, Jokic and Luka).  Now if Wemby were Chinese or Indian that would be a big deal. 

Who is the best white American NBA player now?  Who was the last white American NBA player in the top 10?  The big difference maker would be if Chet Holmgren or Cooper Flagg become a star.  If either of them becomes a top 10 player that could be worth billions.

I don’t think they need Wemby to be a star, per se, but the league is shortly going to lose a generational player in LeBron, who has global appeal, and it would like to have a new generational player to take up the reins.  Wemby has the best chance to be such a player.  I’m not sure it’s better for the league that he’s in San Antonio, but I think the argument is he’s more likely to reach his potential if he starts his career in that environment rather than a chaotic environment like Mew York or LA, and while I’d consider that unproven, it’s a defensible position.

[obnoxiousmime]

It's not a debate that the NBA will always want superduperstar players. They are in competition with all the other pro sports for eyeballs. Having a generational player who does things no previous player can do generates interest and publicity for the league, regardless of their nationality.

What IS a debate is whether having such a dominant player is good from a competition perspective. The league has enjoyed the relative parity that has existed since the Warriors and LeBron have gotten older. If Wembanyama is as good as he already appears to be, it shouldn't be difficult for the Spurs to craft a very good team around him and be contenders sooner rather than later. It's not that people don't appreciate greatness or dynasties, but I don't think anybody wants a championship to feel too easy or a foregone conclusion before the season even starts.

[Celtics2021]

It's not a debate that the NBA will always want superduperstar players. They are in competition with all the other pro sports for eyeballs. Having a generational player who does things no previous player can do generates interest and publicity for the league, regardless of their nationality.

What IS a debate is whether having such a dominant player is good from a competition perspective. The league has enjoyed the relative parity that has existed since the Warriors and LeBron have gotten older. If Wembanyama is as good as he already appears to be, it shouldn't be difficult for the Spurs to craft a very good team around him and be contenders sooner rather than later. It's not that people don't appreciate greatness or dynasties, but I don't think anybody wants a championship to feel too easy or a foregone conclusion before the season even starts.

I’m not sure that’s necessarily true.  The Jordan Bulls monopolarity was very popular.