PG13 & Carmelo: 12 points combined in game 6

[perks-a-beast]

Absolutely unacceptable performances by two guys who view themselves as superstars. Don't expect this "super team" to stick together this summer. I got a feeling OKC may be mediocre to bad for a while and westbrook may want out. Amazing how much talent they've lost over the years to end up with such a sub par roster..

[hodgy03038]

Absolutely unacceptable performances by two guys who view themselves as superstars. Don't expect this "super team" to stick together this summer. I got a feeling OKC may be mediocre to bad for a while and westbrook may want out. Amazing how much talent they've lost over the years to end up with such a sub par roster..

Carmelo will opt in to his 28 million. Ouch!

[perks-a-beast]

Absolutely unacceptable performances by two guys who view themselves as superstars. Don't expect this "super team" to stick together this summer. I got a feeling OKC may be mediocre to bad for a while and westbrook may want out. Amazing how much talent they've lost over the years to end up with such a sub par roster..

Carmelo will opt in to his 28 million. Ouch!

Ouch is right. 

But if Paul George has any sense he'll ditch OKC and go to Lakers or 76'ers (scary how much cap space those two have to sign guys)

[SHAQATTACK]

Lakers will gladely take both Alex

its Lakers

Double Jeopardy

cA Cling

[Sophomore]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

[Green-18]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

I feel the same way but I don't think PG's performance is at all representative of what we would have seen in Boston.  Donovan was afraid to truly challenge those players and Westbrook has complete tunnel vision in big games.  It's not an excuse for PG but we can't underestimate the negative impact of a toxic environment.  Melo recently called out Westbrook after a game in early April.  He was also seen yelling at Mo Cheeks from the bench during their massive comeback in game 5.

Sacrificing any future for PG would have been the wrong decision.  Despite this I still believe he would have thrived under Stevens.

[rondofan1255]

PG has shown horrible body language on the court not only this year but also last year on Indy...

[ederson]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

I strongly believe that the culture of the team sets the tone

In Boston there is no way PG plays with less that 100% passion and commitment

And there is also no way that Stevens doesn't find a way to use effectively a player like PG 

[Tr1boy]

both are slowly becoming "over the hill" . I mean Melo was done 2 seasons ago

Someone will open up their pocket books for PG13... I think it will be a mistake.

[Green-18]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

I strongly believe that the culture of the team sets the tone

In Boston there is no way PG plays with less that 100% passion and commitment

And there is also no way that Stevens doesn't find a way to use effectively a player like PG

Thank you for saying this.  I certainly wouldn't change anything about the 2017 off-season but Paul George would have been the best version of himself in Boston.  People underestimate how rejuvenating it can be to play under strong leadership with a winning culture.  Let's not forget that we were at a crossroads with Paul Pierce until the epic off-season of 2007. 

[Tr1boy]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

I strongly believe that the culture of the team sets the tone

In Boston there is no way PG plays with less that 100% passion and commitment

And there is also no way that Stevens doesn't find a way to use effectively a player like PG

Thank you for saying this.  I certainly wouldn't change anything about the 2017 off-season but Paul George would have been the best version of himself in Boston.  People underestimate how rejuvenating it can be to play under strong leadership with a winning culture.  Let's not forget that we were at a crossroads with Paul Pierce until the epic off-season of 2007.

A great player doesn't excel in city 1, 2,3

Excels anywhere he plays

[Who]

Melo is not a superstar. He hasn't been for some time now. He is a Kyle Kuzma like player only with older legs and a self-destructive ego that is struggling to accept his new-found place in the league. Melo could be a fine 4th or 5th best player on a title team (4th best in OKC already) if he learned to accept his new limitations. Without that acceptance, he is a 15-20mpg bench player.

Paul George gets too much of a pass. His defense has fallen way off from where it was before the injuries yet everyone still talks about him as a great two-way player. He is not. He is good playing the passing lanes but is only a middle of the pack one-on-one defender and often gives lackluster effort & focus on team D. On offense, he doesn't attack his defender / the basket enough. He never did but even less since the injuries. Far too reliant on long range (often contested) jump-shots. Doesn't push himself (his talent) hard enough. Settles for good-enough most of the time (on offense, and on defense). George is still an All-Star talent but he is no longer a top 10 player in the league level player.

[Green-18]

So, so glad we did not mortgage our future to get PG.

I strongly believe that the culture of the team sets the tone

In Boston there is no way PG plays with less that 100% passion and commitment

And there is also no way that Stevens doesn't find a way to use effectively a player like PG

Thank you for saying this.  I certainly wouldn't change anything about the 2017 off-season but Paul George would have been the best version of himself in Boston.  People underestimate how rejuvenating it can be to play under strong leadership with a winning culture.  Let's not forget that we were at a crossroads with Paul Pierce until the epic off-season of 2007.

A great player doesn't excel in city 1, 2,3

Excels anywhere he plays

Your generalization completely ignores context.  I never implied anything about the caliber of player George is/was in my post.  It was all about George being the best version of himself.  I actually agree with your last post about how a team will overpay.  George is not the same player from before the major injury.  It's also unfair to ignore the Pacers two Conference Finals appearances with George as their best player.  The Pacers fought the best they could against the James, Wade, and Bosh Heat squad.

My main point is that the best version of George would have shown up in Boston.  As an overall player he was a 2nd tier star during his peak years.  By your definition of "great" I would eliminate ALL 2nd tier players from consideration.  This includes Paul Pierce from his prime.  There's certainly nothing wrong with defining greatness this way.  I just want to make sure we are on the same page.

Under this context doesn't greatness ultimately boil down to an ability to win anywhere regardless of circumstance.  By "win" I would argue that deep playoff runs every season are mandatory.  Under these circumstances you could raise question marks for every player in the league with the exception of LeBron.  I'm not sure you could put Harden, Davis, Leonard, or Curry on a random team and be guaranteed to win a playoff round every season.

[Beat LA]

both are slowly becoming "over the hill" . I mean Melo was done 2 seasons ago

Someone will open up their pocket books for PG13... I think it will be a mistake.

George will be 28 on May 2nd .

Melo is not a superstar. He hasn't been for some time now. He is a Kyle Kuzma like player only with older legs and a self-destructive ego that is struggling to accept his new-found place in the league. Melo could be a fine 4th or 5th best player on a title team (4th best in OKC already) if he learned to accept his new limitations. Without that acceptance, he is a 15-20mpg bench player.

Paul George gets too much of a pass. His defense has fallen way off from where it was before the injuries yet everyone still talks about him as a great two-way player. He is not. He is good playing the passing lanes but is only a middle of the pack one-on-one defender and often gives lackluster effort & focus on team D. On offense, he doesn't attack his defender / the basket enough. He never did but even less since the injuries. Far too reliant on long range (often contested) jump-shots. Doesn't push himself (his talent) hard enough. Settles for good-enough most of the time (on offense, and on defense). George is still an All-Star talent but he is no longer a top 10 player in the league level player.

While I agree with you on Melo as I believe that he needs to embrace the Mark Aguirre for the Bad Boys role moving forward, so to speak, I'm afraid that I have to completely disagree about your views on George.

Granted, he does drive to the basket less since his injury, but you're really underrating the guy, imo. Did you miss the playoff series against Toronto in 2016, which was his first postseason since his horrific injury, wherein he not only averaged 27.3 ppg, but also locked Derozan and was, by far, the best player in that series?

[footey]

Mello is toast.

George vastly over-rated. Looks pretty, but doesn’t produce wins. The team he left is better without him.

So glad Danny ignored the “trade the picks” for Paul George chatter last year.

#shortsighted
#thinklongtrem