2013-14 NBA Season Thread

[sterlingice]

I didn't hear about the Lin-Harden thing but the defense from the Rockets so far this season has been miserable. It's all about taking chances because there are two giant trees in the middle. The problem is - it's not like Howard or Asik can keep up speed-wise with guards so they just find some open space and knock down shots. Gambling doesn't hurt you too much in college where most kids can't hit the open shots consistently but not in the NBA. Harden's D has been atrocious: he's just been ole'ing people consistently.

SI

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Good

Write this season off...tank properly and get that high pick.

No such luck. I think they hired a coach too competent to allow that to happen. I'm feeling a 5-10 pick.

[larrymcg421]

Crazy ending in Miami. Heat were up on the Celtics by 4 with under 2 secs left. C's cut it to 2 and foul Wade with .6 seconds left. He misses the first free throw, then tries to intentionally miss the second one, but misses the rim completely, so no time goes off the clock. Jeff Green receives a cross court inbounds pass and somehow makes a ridiculous three over LeBron to win the game.

[molson]

Jeff Green winning shot

Jeff Green's AMAZING Buzzer-Beater vs Miami (11.09.2013) - YouTube

[Neon_Chaos]

Thats what you get for dicking around with your freethrows Dwyane.

[Desnudo]

Utah chalking up an amazing -13 point differential in the wane for wiggins race

[whomario]

Just a very young team, think they´ll still win some games later in the year. That bench is a bad joke, but other than that there isn´t a lot of blame to go arround. It´s not really tanking imo, simply deciding to see what they have first before spending money. What good would it have been to bring in high salary players before this offseason ? Or to keep Jefferson/Millsap when you have 2 guys like Kanter/Favors behind them ?


Spurs absolutely dominating the Knicks at MSG. This turned really ugly really fast. Were up nearly 40 early in the 4th.
Boris Diaw is an amazing player to watch and there´s not many players who could draw that observation (even if it´s just by me ) putting up a 4/1/1 in 25 minutes (after starting off the season surprisingly agressive, often as the small ball center/PF). It´s a shame he didn´t land on a team like the Spurs a few years earlier, where no one cares that he doesn´t like to score.

The player impressing me most early on is Anthony Davis btw, that kid is an absolute freak. Could be a blend of Garnett/Duncan when he´s fully developed. Is an amazing defender (whose blocks turn into Fastbreak points more often than anybody elses i´d guess, often he blocks the shot and then scores on the other end), runs the floor ridiculously hard and fast and on offense he not only has a good looking jumpshot but also has what you can only describe as "guard skills" with the ball in his hands. Needs to become a better passer, but his ability to keep his dribble and get to the basket as a big is pretty impressive.

[sterlingice]

I saw that line he put up the other night against the Lakers and if the speed of the NBA is starting to slow down for him, then Davis is going to be a treat to watch for the next few years

SI

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

No such luck. I think they hired a coach too competent to allow that to happen. I'm feeling a 5-10 pick.

I have a bad feeling you're right, which will mean limbo and another dogshit team.

Failing at tanking - why am I not surprised.

[Neuqua]

That Anthony Davis vine posted on deadspin is............... odd.

[whomario]

Been doing that twice a game this season, Love and Brewer are a perfect match in that regard.

Rubio with a Triple double. Still can´t shoot the ball well enough, but other than that he looks great. His defense has been spectacular along with his passing (and it´s not just the assists, the guy has so many hockey-assists due to making the right pass 99% of the time).

[Ironhead]

Stout defense from Bargs.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

I have a bad feeling you're right, which will mean limbo and another dogshit team.

Failing at tanking - why am I not surprised.

Wiggins and Randle do look a class above at 1-2 based on early returns, but the draft's projected to be deep enough you might get a superstar in the 3-7 range.

[Neuqua]

Ugh, Rose limps out of the game.

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by Neuqua

Ugh, Rose limps out of the game.

Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be back in 2-3 years.

[jbergey22]

Timberwolves are going to regret not giving KLove that final year. This team looks like a potential 4/5 seed in the West this year. Long time coming.

[Blackadar]

Shows what I know. I bash the Celtics and they win 4 in a row.

Brad Stevens has them playing hard. I don't think they're for real, but they're playing hard. Their schedule has been really easy thus far - besides Miami (4-3) they haven't played anyone with a winning record. The Minny - Houston - Spurs - Pacers - Atlanta stretch coming up will test that team. Still, I didn't think they'd win 4 in a row all season.

Better yet, some of the guys might start looking like viable trade pieces. Jeff Green is looking like that viable 2nd or 3rd scorer with 17/4/2. Brandon Bass is a good locker room guy who is averaging 12.5/5. Crawford is 11/4 in only 24 minutes per game - a PER of 22.3 - and could act as a scoring spark off the bench. If these guys keep this up, they'll be valuable commodities at the trade deadline.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Shows what I know. I bash the Celtics and they win 4 in a row.

Brad Stevens has them playing hard. I don't think they're for real, but they're playing hard. Their schedule has been really easy thus far - besides Miami (4-3) they haven't played anyone with a winning record. The Minny - Houston - Spurs - Pacers - Atlanta stretch coming up will test that team. Still, I didn't think they'd win 4 in a row all season.

Better yet, some of the guys might start looking like viable trade pieces. Jeff Green is looking like that viable 2nd or 3rd scorer with 17/4/2. Brandon Bass is a good locker room guy who is averaging 12.5/5. Crawford is 11/4 in only 24 minutes per game - a PER of 22.3 - and could act as a scoring spark off the bench. If these guys keep this up, they'll be valuable commodities at the trade deadline.

Failing at tanking properly - your 2013-2014 Boston Celtics.

Why am I not surprised. Ainge should have put a caretaker coach in place for this year, or else told Stevens explicitly that he wouldn't be judged on the W-L record of this year.

[Blackadar]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Failing at tanking properly - your 2013-2014 Boston Celtics.

Why am I not surprised. Ainge should have put a caretaker coach in place for this year, or else told Stevens explicitly that he wouldn't be judged on the W-L record of this year.

Stevens has a 6 year, $22m guaranteed contract. Financially he's untouchable. Plus, he knows he was hired for a long-term rebuilding job and isn't accountable to W-Ls this year.

Still, I'd rather the team try hard rather than pull an ML Carr 15-67 tanking season.

[Ronnie Dobbs3]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Failing at tanking properly - your 2013-2014 Boston Celtics.

Why am I not surprised. Ainge should have put a caretaker coach in place for this year, or else told Stevens explicitly that he wouldn't be judged on the W-L record of this year.

Do you get any joy whatsoever out of following sports?

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Stevens has a 6 year, $22m guaranteed contract. Financially he's untouchable. Plus, he knows he was hired for a long-term rebuilding job and isn't accountable to W-Ls this year.

Still, I'd rather the team try hard rather than pull an ML Carr 15-67 tanking season.

True. I disagree though. I was thinking 2-80 sounds about right.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Ronnie Dobbs3

Do you get any joy whatsoever out of following sports?

I do. I'm not really "following" the Celtics this year though, seeing as they ought to be trying for an 0-82 record.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Stevens has a 6 year, $22m guaranteed contract. Financially he's untouchable. Plus, he knows he was hired for a long-term rebuilding job and isn't accountable to W-Ls this year.

Still, I'd rather the team try hard rather than pull an ML Carr 15-67 tanking season.

Yes, I'm sure Stevens and Ainge had this conversation. Maybe even brought up Tim Duncan. Stevens seems too principled to do something like that. Plus intentionally losing develops terrible habits.

I thought they would lose naturally through poor talent levels.

[molson]

It's hard for me to get too worked up over the 2017 NBA season (or whenever the Celtics are supposed to be magically be good if they lose on purpose this season). I'd rather just have the surprisingly good season, and not lose the year of real development for the guys you want to keep, and not damage the trade value of the guys you don't, rather than throw all that away for a mystery player X who may or may not be good at some point in the future (if you win the lottery, that is). Edit: It's been a good decade or so for Boston sports and winning championships, but I learned long before that if your entire enjoyment of your team depends on them winning the whole thing, you're going to be pretty disappointed pretty much all the time.

Of course, I'd much rather just have a real lottery so this conversation doesn't have to occur every year.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

I do. I'm not really "following" the Celtics this year though, seeing as they ought to be trying for an 0-82 record.

The very reason the lottery is such a good thing in the NBA. I think November is a bit early to start the "tanking" process

[molson]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

Maybe even brought up Tim Duncan.

Brought up the fact that they engaged in an epic tank job to get Ron Mercer and 1/2 a season of Chauncey Billups?

[Vince, Pt. II]

Originally Posted by jbergey22

Timberwolves are going to regret not giving KLove that final year. This team looks like a potential 4/5 seed in the West this year. Long time coming.

So many good teams in the West though. Who are they passing? We'll call San Antonio, Oklahoma City and the Clippers the top three teams. Is Minnesota ready to hang with the likes of Memphis, Golden State and Houston? Unfortunately, being an up-and-comer in the West means hoping like hell for a 7-8 seed.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Blackadar

Shows what I know. I bash the Celtics and they win 4 in a row.

Brad Stevens has them playing hard. I don't think they're for real, but they're playing hard. Their schedule has been really easy thus far - besides Miami (4-3) they haven't played anyone with a winning record. The Minny - Houston - Spurs - Pacers - Atlanta stretch coming up will test that team. Still, I didn't think they'd win 4 in a row all season.

Better yet, some of the guys might start looking like viable trade pieces. Jeff Green is looking like that viable 2nd or 3rd scorer with 17/4/2. Brandon Bass is a good locker room guy who is averaging 12.5/5. Crawford is 11/4 in only 24 minutes per game - a PER of 22.3 - and could act as a scoring spark off the bench. If these guys keep this up, they'll be valuable commodities at the trade deadline.

Originally Posted by Blackadar

More like Sullinger's busy winning pie-eating contests; Jeff Green is inconsistent; Hump isn't any good; Vitor had one decent game out of 4.

Even with Rondo, tanking is the way to go. Get Pressley some time and see if he's any good. If so, showcase Rondo and get some more trade chips at the deadline.

Like I said back then when you broke down that incredibly ugly end of game sequence that wasn't close to the Celtics best crunch-time lineup, to the point it looked like Brad Stevens was trying to throw the game. Courtney Lee and Gerald Wallace should not even be on the floor at that point, let alone initiating the offense, and Avery Bradley should be out there, but playing off ball and not running the offense.

Jeff Green's been that player since last year when Rondo went down... put up 17/5/3 the last 3 months on 49% shooting with a healthy number of 3's. It's why he was such a frustrating player to watch before then - getting to the rim and scoring looks easy for him when he attacks, and he shows a willingness and ability to match up as effectively against LeBron as anyone in the league, which makes it all the more frustrating when he would spend long stretches looking disinterested against lesser teams. The plan always was to see if he could make a leap to legitimate building block this year, which is why I assumed Stevens was tanking when he kept him on the bench at the end of the Milwaukee and Detroit losses, but it appears more like that was just a one-off fluke.

I love Avery Bradley for his psychotic on-ball defense, but it's always been very clear he's not a PG, so it's not a surprise they've done better once Stevens moved him to the 2 and let someone else be the primary ball-handler. We'll see how his shooting ends the year - I'd love nothing more than for last year's 40% showing to just be an aberration due to his injury, but I'm skeptical.

Sully's always looked fat going back to Ohio State, but he's efficient and can rebound and it's no coincidence we're doing better since his minutes were doubled. Never say never with Ainge, but I don't think any of those 3 players are looked at as trade pieces like the other veterans.

Pressey I have no faith in based off consistently choking at the end of games in college, but he does have NBA measurables and Rondo was basically accused of throwing games when at Kentucky too.

Kris Humphries isn't good, and isn't a long-term piece, but he's a competent NBA rotation player who can rebound really well, so it's weird to see him do well in the 2 games with 20 minutes and then immediately go back to DNP-CD.

Vitor I may have slightly prematurely jumped the gun on, but again, not sure how a guy puts up 12/18/6 blocks in his 2nd NBA game then plays 6:04 and 2:41 in games the next week.

Jordan Crawford's weird. He has that rep as a Nick Young-type gunner, but that's more due to the high number of shot attempts per minute than his game. When you watch him he's still crazy high usage and might be the most aggressive player in the league going 1 on 3 or 2 on 5 in transition, but he actually looks to pass a shocking amount compared to his rep and his assist numbers have always backed that up. Having him start and play 30+ minutes a game at PG is stretching it, but he really is our best option there right now.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

So many good teams in the West though. Who are they passing? We'll call San Antonio, Oklahoma City and the Clippers the top three teams. Is Minnesota ready to hang with the likes of Memphis, Golden State and Houston? Unfortunately, being an up-and-comer in the West means hoping like hell for a 7-8 seed.

I dont think they are better than Houston once Houston gets rolling but I can see them right there with Golden State and Memphis. Dallas would probably be in that mix as well.

With the Lakers and Denver falling off I think it leaves room for a surprise team or two this year. It is maybe too soon to count Denver out but they have a lot of injury concerns right now and that defense will be awful until McGee comes back.

[Vince, Pt. II]

It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. Warriors fans have dreams of unseating the Clippers and getting a top 3 seed, but they also seem to cling to the nice playoff run and forget that the Warriors were nine games worse than the Clippers last year. A healthy Bogut + Iguodala + growth and development from Barnes, Thompson and the rest of the youngsters is a big gain...but I'm not sure if it's enough to make up nine games, especially since I think the Clippers are better this year too.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. Warriors fans have dreams of unseating the Clippers and getting a top 3 seed, but they also seem to cling to the nice playoff run and forget that the Warriors were nine games worse than the Clippers last year. A healthy Bogut + Iguodala + growth and development from Barnes, Thompson and the rest of the youngsters is a big gain...but I'm not sure if it's enough to make up nine games, especially since I think the Clippers are better this year too.

I think the Wolves this year and Warriors are very similar teams now that the wolves brought in a talented shooting guard. The Warriors are more efficient offensively with Curry and Thompson but I think the Wolves rebound better. Defensively the Warriors are stronger as long as Bogut stays healthy. Depth wise I dont think either team can lose Curry, Love, Lee, Rubio, Peko, or Bogut and not have a serious fall off. Iguodala was a nice addition but I dont feel he will be a very big part of the offense unless they get out in transition. Similar to Brewer for the Wolves.

We shall see.

[Chief Rum]

What shooting guard? Martin?

[Vince, Pt. II]

I'm also not sold on Houston. I think they'll be a playoff team, but their defense is terribad.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

What shooting guard? Martin?

Yes, Kevin.

[whomario]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

What shooting guard? Martin?

Sure he isn´t a first option, but compared to that horror show the Wolves trotted out at SG over the last few years he is a signinficant upgrade.
And so far, it´s evident that him and the Wolves style of play is a perfect match.
And Corey Brewer is a great fit as well. Martin/Brewer/Budinger could be a really decent 2/3 rotation.

Wolves still need another shooter and the bench sucks (similar to the Blazers last year so far in that the starters are basically top5 in the league but the bench bottom 5) but both things Budinger might be able to help with, Turiaf also looked good when he played and should be back soon.

Of course Budinger hasn´t really played in a long time, so you´ll have to see how he looks.

[Blackadar]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Like I said back then when you broke down that incredibly ugly end of game sequence that wasn't close to the Celtics best crunch-time lineup, to the point it looked like Brad Stevens was trying to throw the game. Courtney Lee and Gerald Wallace should not even be on the floor at that point, let alone initiating the offense, and Avery Bradley should be out there, but playing off ball and not running the offense.

Not entirely disagreeing, just discussing...

I don't think they were trying to throw the game. I think so of the preseason performances were so abysmal that Stevens was trying to figure out who to put out there during the end of the game. For example, Gerald Wallace looked ok during preseason and now looks dreadful. Jeff Green looked dreadful during the preseason and now looks good. I was figuring that if that was the best the Cs could throw out there during crunch time they might not win 10 games all year. It's turning out that Stevens may have found a few combinations that click during the actual games.

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Jeff Green's been that player since last year when Rondo went down... put up 17/5/3 the last 3 months on 49% shooting with a healthy number of 3's. It's why he was such a frustrating player to watch before then - getting to the rim and scoring looks easy for him when he attacks, and he shows a willingness and ability to match up as effectively against LeBron as anyone in the league, which makes it all the more frustrating when he would spend long stretches looking disinterested against lesser teams. The plan always was to see if he could make a leap to legitimate building block this year, which is why I assumed Stevens was tanking when he kept him on the bench at the end of the Milwaukee and Detroit losses, but it appears more like that was just a one-off fluke.

I love Avery Bradley for his psychotic on-ball defense, but it's always been very clear he's not a PG, so it's not a surprise they've done better once Stevens moved him to the 2 and let someone else be the primary ball-handler. We'll see how his shooting ends the year - I'd love nothing more than for last year's 40% showing to just be an aberration due to his injury, but I'm skeptical.

Sully's always looked fat going back to Ohio State, but he's efficient and can rebound and it's no coincidence we're doing better since his minutes were doubled. Never say never with Ainge, but I don't think any of those 3 players are looked at as trade pieces like the other veterans.

The question mark with Green was could he do that without Pierce or Garnett available to take the heat off of him. It appears that he can, which makes him a bargain at his salary. He certainly is frustratingly inconsistent given his talent level.

I like Bradley's game too. He's being misused right now, but the kid's defense is invaluable. He's a younger, better version of Tony Allen. I think that's an undervalued trait in the NBA.

Sully even said he was fat this year. I like his potential though.

As you said, "never say never with Ainge". I think they're more likely to move Bass and/or Crawford than Green, but I think Green may get the most interest at the trade deadline. Personally, I think the Cs should showcase and then move him. He's already 27 and by the time the rest of the pieces of this team can come together, he'll be on the downside of his career. Rondo's assists could mean he's valuable until his mid-30s, but I don't see that with Green. So I think he may go during the deadline, even moreso than Rondo.

I don't think Bradley will get offers that indicate his true value and Sully has too much potential to move so early. He's 20/10 on a per-36 basis already this year and while I'm not a big fan of per-36, it still shows he's producing at a nice rate even while working himself into shape.

And after Pitino, I wouldn't trade away a guy like Sully. They could have had a decade of Tracy McGrady and Chauncey Billups. That's the making of a damn good team. Instead they got nothing from '97 from not picking the right guys and then giving up on Billups after a month.

I also think Crawford is a potential showcase. He's only 25, has an expiring contract and can score. If he continues to sheds that "selfish" tag and shows he can work within a team game, the Cs will get a lot of feelers on him. If he can keep up his averages from the last 4 games (13 ppg, 6 assists), he could be very attractive to a bunch of teams as a combo guard and the first guy off the bench.

I think we'll know a lot more in two weeks. Bobcats and Blazers (5-2) at home, then 5 out of 6 on the road against some very good teams. If the team is still performing well (even if they're not winning), then maybe the Cs have something. If not, it's the "Showcase for Trades" game and then tank the last half of the season.

[nol]

Originally Posted by whomario

Sure he isn´t a first option, but compared to that horror show the Wolves trotted out at SG over the last few years he is a signinficant upgrade.
And so far, it´s evident that him and the Wolves style of play is a perfect match.
And Corey Brewer is a great fit as well. Martin/Brewer/Budinger could be a really decent 2/3 rotation.

Wolves still need another shooter and the bench sucks (similar to the Blazers last year so far in that the starters are basically top5 in the league but the bench bottom 5) but both things Budinger might be able to help with, Turiaf also looked good when he played and should be back soon.

Of course Budinger hasn´t really played in a long time, so you´ll have to see how he looks.

Yeah, the bench is just too bad. I was a Kevin Love hater early in his career, but he's gotten so much better and is 100% legit now. There's just no way he and Martin can keep up the insane starts they've had for the entire season, and they'd pretty much need to in order to get homecourt, and I don't see them winning a series without it. I can see them losing in the first round in one of those series that has a ton of good games in it, like their matchup with the Clippers the last night.

[whomario]

Martin misses the game with Illness, Wolves still drop 124 on the Cavs Love with 33/8/6 (for the season he´s at 26/15/5), Brewer scores 37 and Rubio has 16/6/16 with 3 steals (3.4 for the season).

76ers beat Houston even with Carter-Williams out, Wroten a TD, James Anderson with 36.
For the Rockets, Asik played just 4 minutes off the bench, Harden missed the game.

Grizzlies drop to 3-5, be interesting if and when they shake things up.
Nets drop to 2-5 ...

Jazz win their first game.

Andrea Bargnani had 11 rebounds !!!

[Chief Rum]

Heh... Surprised you mention all that, whomario, but don't mention probably the biggest game of the night, Thunder versus Clippers.

Good win for the Clips. Admittedly OKC was missing a couple bigs, but a good win nonetheless. Last year, OKC swept the Clips.

[nol]

Just got back a while ago from Clippers-Nuggets. Matt Barnes definitely showed why they pay him the big mid-level dollars since Ibaka was starting to get into a groove in the 2nd quarter. I don't know what the commentators were saying about that scuffle, but it seemed pretty weak for either guy to be ejected.

The Harden trade is kind of ironic since if you had told a GM 2-3 years ago that the Thunder would end up with Jeremy Lamb and Steven Adams (and Perry Jones, who they didn't acquire through that trade), they'd be likely to do it since each of those guys were projected top-3 picks at one time or another. It goes to show that this draft will probably be the exception that proves the rule where most of the players getting preseason hype will perform well enough to end up as the top picks in June.

[whomario]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

Heh... Surprised you mention all that, whomario, but don't mention probably the biggest game of the night, Thunder versus Clippers.

Good win for the Clips. Admittedly OKC was missing a couple bigs, but a good win nonetheless. Last year, OKC swept the Clips.

game wasn´t yet finished when i posted and then i had to leave the house. No offense intended

Thunder are off to a weird start. Just look at their +- ratings on nba.com. Every starter is a net negative (as well as Adams and Fisher), while Collison is a +8, Jackson +9, Lamb + 11 and jones a +14 (all per 100 possessions).

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by nol

Just got back a while ago from Clippers-Nuggets. Matt Barnes definitely showed why they pay him the big mid-level dollars since Ibaka was starting to get into a groove in the 2nd quarter. I don't know what the commentators were saying about that scuffle, but it seemed pretty weak for either guy to be ejected.

The Harden trade is kind of ironic since if you had told a GM 2-3 years ago that the Thunder would end up with Jeremy Lamb and Steven Adams (and Perry Jones, who they didn't acquire through that trade), they'd be likely to do it since each of those guys were projected top-3 picks at one time or another. It goes to show that this draft will probably be the exception that proves the rule where most of the players getting preseason hype will perform well enough to end up as the top picks in June.

I liked Harden as a player on the Thunder much more as well. Now he is basically a black hole and when he is off he isnt a huge fan of deferring to others. I think he has the ball far too much for the offensive talent on that team. Sometimes the offense needs to flow through Dwight.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Ironhead

Stout defense from Bargs.

[jbergey22]

Wow! How you can play basketball your entire life and look so clueless is an impressive accomplishment.

[Logan]

JR Smith's reaction (JR Smith!) is the best.

[Desnudo]

Originally Posted by jbergey22

Wow! How you can play basketball your entire life and look so clueless is an impressive accomplishment.

I love the complete hopeless exasperation from his teammate.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by whomario

game wasn´t yet finished when i posted and then i had to leave the house. No offense intended

Thunder are off to a weird start. Just look at their +- ratings on nba.com. Every starter is a net negative (as well as Adams and Fisher), while Collison is a +8, Jackson +9, Lamb + 11 and jones a +14 (all per 100 possessions).

Haha no offense implied. It just seemed funny for you to not comment on that one.

It has been a weird start for the Thunder, I agree. I think Westbrook being out the whole preseason threw them off because his presence on the floor, especially as the guy bringing the ball up, is such an impact.

Originally Posted by nol

Just got back a while ago from Clippers-Nuggets. Matt Barnes definitely showed why they pay him the big mid-level dollars since Ibaka was starting to get into a groove in the 2nd quarter. I don't know what the commentators were saying about that scuffle, but it seemed pretty weak for either guy to be ejected.

Barnes is huge for the Clips in the locker room and in providing toughness that some of the guys on the team have lacked it in the past. Obviously, getting Ibaka out of there is a trade off the Clips will take every time for losing Barnes.

Disappointed to see Barnes' tweet after the scuffle. I guess he felt the team didn't step up to support him? I am not sure what he saw that led him to put that out there. Griffin was going after Ibaka too and got a technical, so not sure if Barnes was upset that no one literally grabbed Ibaka and threw him to the hardwood? Weird. But then Barnes is kinda like that.

[whomario]

The early-offense Postup by Pek and especially Love is a terrific weapon with a guy like Rubio to suply the entry pass. All they have to do is go straight to the basket and just like magic the ball arrives at just the perfect moment. Beautiful to watch.

[Neon_Chaos]

Iggy goes Boom!

[Vince, Pt. II]

Wow. What a finish.