NBA Season 2024-25

[SparzWizard]

Knicks had this game in the bag until late in the 4th.

Ugh, Lakers are really this good esp in the clutch. Celtics are gonna their hands full on Saturday.

[Donoghus]

Apparently Lebron & Stephen A. Smith got into it a bit last night.

https://x.com/TheDunkCentral/status/1898001134163255691

[Donoghus]

https://awfulannouncing.com/nba/mark-cuban-luka-doncic-trade-mavericks-comments.html

Mark Cuban on Mavericks trading Luka Dončić: ?Get a better deal?
"...if we had gotten four unprotected No. 1s and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation."

By Michael Dixon on 03/07/2025

What did Mark Cuban think about the Dallas Mavericks trading away Luka Dončić? We now have an answer to that question.

Cuban, the former principal owner (and current minority owner) of the Mavericks, discussed the move in an interview with Jonah Javad of WFAA, Dallas? ABC affiliate. When asked if he was upset about the trade, Cuban had an easy response.

?Yeah, of course,? he said. Cuban elaborated more, noting that his issue wasn?t strictly in the Mavericks trading Dončić but what they did ? or more to the point, did not ? get in return.

?I?ve said this before, if the Mavs are gonna trade Luka, that?s one thing. Just get a better deal,? he said. ?No disrespect to Anthony Davis. But I still firmly believe, if we had gotten four unprotected No. 1s and Anthony Davis and Max Christie, this would be a different conversation.?

Cuban also declined to answer the hypothetical question of whether he would have made the deal.

?I?m not gonna go there,? Cuban said. ?It doesn?t even matter.?

When Davad brought up how Cuban ?dapped up? Dončić?s father when the Mavericks and Lakers played in Los Angeles, Cuban did compare the move to a critical one that that happened under his watch, while also noting the differences.

?There was a connection,? Cuban said. ?Just because we traded someone ? like, I still talk to Steve Nash. I went through this before when Steve Nash left and then won two MVPs, right? The good news is we went to the Finals and won a championship. So I?ve been through something, but there wasn?t social media back then. So it wasn?t quite the same. But you?re gonna make mistakes. I think the biggest challenge that the Mavs have right now is there?s nobody who?s really outgoing to communicate. And it?s not so much what you do, it?s how you communicate why you do what you do.

?What makes sports different than every other industry, you know, Google has, Texas Instruments has a record quarter, nobody throws a parade,? he added. ?When you win, if fans are passionate enough to show up in 100-degree weather and line the streets, then you gotta expect when things don?t go the way they want, they?re gonna be just as passionate in response.?

[boscel33]

I saw a picture from 2018 where Dallas selected Luka and Brunson, and they're both gone now.  Whose a worse GM, the Mavs or the Bruins?
 #mismanagement

[jpotter33]

The Brunson injury will be interesting to see how it affects the standings. We?re essentially locked into the 2 seed now, but the Knicks could potentially risk falling to the 4 seed and having Milwaukee pass them, which would be less ideal for us with the Bucks being a worse matchup for us while also having a shot at knocking off the Cavs in the second round.

Though that?s still unlikely, as the Knicks are essentially 4 games up on the Bucks due to winning the season series, with 1 head to head matchup remaining. Ideally, it stays Cavs, Celtics, Knicks, Bucks, Pacers, Pistons, as that would set up a great second round with us having a better matchup in the Knicks or Pistons and Cleveland having two more difficult matchups for them, as compared to the Knicks who they?ve dominated.

[Phantom255x]

The Brunson injury will be interesting to see how it affects the standings. We?re essentially locked into the 2 seed now, but the Knicks could potentially risk falling to the 4 seed and having Milwaukee pass them, which would be less ideal for us with the Bucks being a worse matchup for us while also having a shot at knocking off the Cavs in the second round.

Though that?s still unlikely, as the Knicks are essentially 4 games up on the Bucks due to winning the season series, with 1 head to head matchup remaining. Ideally, it stays Cavs, Celtics, Knicks, Bucks, Pacers, Pistons, as that would set up a great second round with us having a better matchup in the Knicks or Pistons and Cleveland having two more difficult matchups for them, as compared to the Knicks who they?ve dominated.

Yeah personally I want to try and avoid playing any of CLE/MIL/IND until the ECF. I love our chances against everyone else and the path should be a bit easier (though I'd still like to avoid DET/IND first round, which could still be a possibility).

[keevsnick]

The Tank Race for 5-7 positions in the lottery is going to be a "good" one. You have TOR at 20-42 and then BRK and PHI both at 21-42. PHI pick is top 6 protected, so getting down to 5 would be huge for them.

Top six in the eats look wrapped up, just need to figure out the order 3-6. Likewise 7-10 seem wrapped up as well with the Bulls now 3.5 up and the 11-13 teems actively tanking.

The West play in could get interesting, with Dallas decimated PHO has a shot if they can stop throwing up all over themselves.

[Phantom255x]

The Tank Race for 5-7 positions in the lottery is going to be a "good" one. You have TOR at 20-42 and then BRK and PHI both at 21-42. PHI pick is top 6 protected, so getting down to 5 would be huge for them.

Top six in the eats look wrapped up, just need to figure out the order 3-6. Likewise 7-10 seem wrapped up as well with the Bulls now 3.5 up and the 11-13 teems actively tanking.

The West play in could get interesting, with Dallas decimated PHO has a shot if they can stop throwing up all over themselves.

Call me crazy but Blazers might have a real shot at the 10 seed. Like you said, Suns are 3-7 in their last 10 and Blazers look way more motivated and hungry than PHO and DAL (the latter is more due to injuries but still)

[celticsclay]

The Brunson injury will be interesting to see how it affects the standings. We?re essentially locked into the 2 seed now, but the Knicks could potentially risk falling to the 4 seed and having Milwaukee pass them, which would be less ideal for us with the Bucks being a worse matchup for us while also having a shot at knocking off the Cavs in the second round.

Though that?s still unlikely, as the Knicks are essentially 4 games up on the Bucks due to winning the season series, with 1 head to head matchup remaining. Ideally, it stays Cavs, Celtics, Knicks, Bucks, Pacers, Pistons, as that would set up a great second round with us having a better matchup in the Knicks or Pistons and Cleveland having two more difficult matchups for them, as compared to the Knicks who they?ve dominated.

Yeah personally I want to try and avoid playing any of CLE/MIL/IND until the ECF. I love our chances against everyone else and the path should be a bit easier (though I'd still like to avoid DET/IND first round, which could still be a possibility).

Wow, why so high on Indiana? I would much rather face them than the knicks.

[keevsnick]

The Tank Race for 5-7 positions in the lottery is going to be a "good" one. You have TOR at 20-42 and then BRK and PHI both at 21-42. PHI pick is top 6 protected, so getting down to 5 would be huge for them.

Top six in the eats look wrapped up, just need to figure out the order 3-6. Likewise 7-10 seem wrapped up as well with the Bulls now 3.5 up and the 11-13 teems actively tanking.

The West play in could get interesting, with Dallas decimated PHO has a shot if they can stop throwing up all over themselves.

Call me crazy but Blazers might have a real shot at the 10 seed. Like you said, Suns are 3-7 in their last 10 and Blazers look way more motivated and hungry than PHO and DAL (the latter is more due to injuries but still)

FWIW PHO also has the toughest remaining strength of schedule, and by a fair margin. Of their remaining 20 games only three are against teams below .500, 7 are against top-3 seeds.

Making up 4 games on any team with only 20 to go is somewhat difficult, but Portland has a shot.

[Who]

OKC are not playing SGA, J-Dub, Chet, or Hartenstein and are up 6 nearing halftime against the Blazers.

Update: Oh goodness, that 6 point lead with 3 minutes left in the half became an 18pts lead for OKC. Without any of their star players. Trashing Portland who are an in-form team.

[Phantom255x]

The Brunson injury will be interesting to see how it affects the standings. We?re essentially locked into the 2 seed now, but the Knicks could potentially risk falling to the 4 seed and having Milwaukee pass them, which would be less ideal for us with the Bucks being a worse matchup for us while also having a shot at knocking off the Cavs in the second round.

Though that?s still unlikely, as the Knicks are essentially 4 games up on the Bucks due to winning the season series, with 1 head to head matchup remaining. Ideally, it stays Cavs, Celtics, Knicks, Bucks, Pacers, Pistons, as that would set up a great second round with us having a better matchup in the Knicks or Pistons and Cleveland having two more difficult matchups for them, as compared to the Knicks who they?ve dominated.

Yeah personally I want to try and avoid playing any of CLE/MIL/IND until the ECF. I love our chances against everyone else and the path should be a bit easier (though I'd still like to avoid DET/IND first round, which could still be a possibility).

Wow, why so high on Indiana? I would much rather face them than the knicks.

Not me. I fully acknowledge IND has been inconsistent this season and there's a reason they aren't a Top-4 team in the East. But this team did give Boston the toughest battle out of the 4 opponents (even though it was a sweep) and I also think IND has the wing defenders to actually give us some fits. Mathurin is healthy, and Toppin is back for them too.

I was worried about NY for a while but not anymore. KAT is a bad matchup against us, and Bridges has turned out to be overrated and can't hang at all with the Jays. Brunson can try but they aren't beating us with a one-man show. Knicks are also 0-9 against OKC/LAL/BOS/CLE. If we play them in a series with HCA I feel it's an easy gentleman sweep. Against IND? Probably 6 games.

[SparzWizard]

Could the Cavs possibly tie the '95 Bulls record 72-10? They're currently 53-10 right now

[Goldstar88]

Could the Cavs possibly tie the '95 Bulls record 72-10? They're currently 53-10 right now

I?m going to go with No.

[Roy H.]

Could the Cavs possibly tie the '95 Bulls record 72-10? They're currently 53-10 right now

I?m going to go with No.

Also, that's not the record.