Categories
Uncategorized

Knicks Morning News (2024.04.10)


  • New York Knicks vs Chicago Bulls Apr 9, 2024 Box Scores – NBA.com
    [NBA.com] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 23:16:00 GMT
    1. New York Knicks vs Chicago Bulls Apr 9, 2024 Box Scores
    2. New York Knicks vs. Chicago Bulls Prediction, Preview, and Odds – 4-9-2024
    3. Game Thread: New York Knicks at Chicago Bulls, April 9, 2024
    4. Best NBA Player Props Today – April 9
    5. New York Knicks vs Chicago Bulls Prediction, Odds and Picks


  • Jalen Brunson scores 45 as Knicks’ magic number to clinch top-6 spot down to one with win over Bulls – New York Post
    [New York Post] – Wed, 10 Apr 2024 02:49:00 GMT
    1. Jalen Brunson scores 45 as Knicks’ magic number to clinch top-6 spot down to one with win over Bulls
    2. Knicks 128-117 Bulls (Apr 9, 2024) Game Recap
    3. Scenes from another Brunson banger to win in the Second City
    4. 10 observations: Jalen Brunson lifts Knicks past Bulls
    5. Jalen Brunson’s 45 points lifts Knicks to 128-117 win over Bulls


  • Bojan Bogdanovic showing why he could be potential Knicks secret weapon in playoffs – New York Post
    [New York Post] – Wed, 10 Apr 2024 00:34:00 GMT
    1. Bojan Bogdanovic showing why he could be potential Knicks secret weapon in playoffs
    2. Breaking down the improved play of Bojan Bogdanovic
    3. Knicks $20M ‘Trade Prize’ Could Be Benched for Playoffs
    4. Knicks-Pistons Trade Impact: Analyzing Key Trades
    5. Knicks Need To Find More Minutes For Bojan Bogdanovic


  • OG Anunoby rounding back into form at perfect time for Knicks – New York Post
    [New York Post] – Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:03:00 GMT
    1. OG Anunoby rounding back into form at perfect time for Knicks
    2. Knicks Notes: Anunoby, Bogdanovic, Burks, Hart, Thibodeau
    3. Knicks Notes: OG Anunoby’s return, missed opportunity to climb Eastern Conference standings
    4. OG Anunoby using Knicks’ final 5 games to ramp-up for playoffs
    5. Knicks’ OG Anunoby back after 9-game absence, scores 12


  • Does Stephen A. Smith even know who plays for the Knicks? – Awful Announcing
    [Awful Announcing] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 16:37:32 GMT
    1. Does Stephen A. Smith even know who plays for the Knicks?
    2. Analyst hails Grimes recent Knicks play, but hes been a Piston for months
    3. OUCH! Stephen A. Smith Praises a Knicks Player for His Recent Performance Not Realizing Hes Been Off the Team for Months
    4. Stephen A. Smith Gives Awful Announcing A Piece Of His Mind After Being Called Out For Embarrassing Knicks Mistake
    5. Stephen A. Smith Roasted for Mistaking Knicks Starter for Ex-Player


  • NBA Playoffs: Bucks Tiebreaker Scenarios – Brew Hoops
    [Brew Hoops] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 16:00:00 GMT

    NBA Playoffs: Bucks Tiebreaker Scenarios


  • Torrey Craig’s wild self alley-oop attempt goes horribly wrong for Bulls – New York Post
    [New York Post] – Wed, 10 Apr 2024 02:27:00 GMT
    1. Torrey Craig’s wild self alley-oop attempt goes horribly wrong for Bulls
    2. Andre Drummond Astounds NBA World by Interfering With Bulls Teammate’s Self Alley-Oop
    3. Bulls fall to Knicks thanks to comedy of self-induced errors
    4. A mistake-filled game the team has to ‘move on’ from: 3 takeaways from the Chicago Bulls’ loss to the Knicks
    5. Ugh. Watch Chicago Bulls blow 3-on-0 fast break.


  • Is Alex Caruso playing tonight? Latest injury update for Knicks vs Bulls April 9 – Daily Knicks
    [Daily Knicks] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 11:00:04 GMT

    Is Alex Caruso playing tonight? Latest injury update for Knicks vs Bulls April 9


  • Raymond Felton says the Derrick Rose Flu was real: It was crazy how many people was getting sick when it was time to play Chicago – Basketball Network
    [Basketball Network] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 23:27:39 GMT

    Raymond Felton says the Derrick Rose Flu was real: It was crazy how many people was getting sick when it was time to play Chicago


  • Nate Robinson Bats for Knicks to Trade Julius Randle for Former No.1 Pick – Heavy.com
    [Heavy.com] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 23:43:11 GMT

    Nate Robinson Bats for Knicks to Trade Julius Randle for Former No.1 Pick


  • Jalen Brunson’s elite status is impossible to deny – New York Post
    [New York Post] – Tue, 09 Apr 2024 23:46:00 GMT
    1. Jalen Brunson’s elite status is impossible to deny
    2. Jalen Brunson Is the Superstar Knicks Fans Have Been Waiting For
    3. How Knicks can counteract the defensive attention on Jalen Brunson come playoff time
    4. Jalen Brunson’s ascent to MVP candidacy continues with another masterclass against Bucks
    5. Jalen Brunson’s evolution is even more important with Julius Randle out

  • 175 replies on “Knicks Morning News (2024.04.10)”

    As much as I hate Boston, I find it crazy that they took ZERO foul shots in a game. The refs this year are really something.

    Edit: although the Bucks only took 2!

    That’s insane! šŸ˜®
    Bucks committed 4 fouls in total, which is 1 foul per quarter!? How is this even possible? Was it like an all star game, with no defense whatsoever?

    Thibs trimming rotation is kinda sillyā€¦ does anyone else think so?ā€¦ and I ultimately think no Precious minutes is a problemā€¦ he should have a ā€œrun wildā€ stretch every game and guard shooting bigs for spots here and there ā€¦ eye test onlyā€¦ has he been playing ā€œless goodā€?ā€¦ sure ā€¦ but still.

    The race for seeding in the east is so close, itā€™s reasonable for Thibs to go for the win. Home court is definitely worth fighting for. And if Bogey was hurting that explains a lot too.

    @wojespn
    After an MRI, Giannis Antetokounmpoā€™s left Achilles tendon is fully intact and his return to play will come with how quickly his left calf strain heals, sources tell ESPN.

    Glad it’s not a tear. I never want to see players get hurt like that. But there’s definitely more uncertainty for the Bucks now.

    I didnā€™t realize the Bucks donā€™t have their own pick until 2031. Sheesh.

    They still owe two firsts and two swaps to New Orleans for Jrue!

    So according to B-Ref, the Knicks’ most likely seed is #3 (49% chance). They also have a 25% chance at the #4 seed.

    Here are B-Ref’s odds for the 6th seed opponent (they don’t do conditional probabilities, so the odds are likely slightly different when conditional on the Knicks winning the #3 seed):

    Indiana: 42%
    Orlando: 14%
    Philly: 13%
    Cavs: 12%
    Miami: 12%

    Things should be clearer tonight after the MIL-ORL and MIA-DAL game (and Cavs to a lesser extent).

    It hopefully won’t matter, but it’s a little crazy that the NBA scheduling overlords managed to have the Knicks play back-to-backs in different cities against rested opponents twice in the last 10 days of the season.

    I didnā€™t realize the Bucks donā€™t have their own pick until 2031. Sheesh.

    They still owe two firsts and two swaps to New Orleans for Jrue!

    They owe a first to us too, and itā€™s only top four protected.

    It hopefully wonā€™t matter, but itā€™s a little crazy that the NBA scheduling overlords managed to have the Knicks play back-to-backs in different cities against rested opponents twice in the last 10 days of the season.

    Not to mention extra games against the Bucks and the Celtics due to the IST.

    You know what would be great for the Knicks? Having a guaranteed 5 days of rest while four teams are playing for survival. The Knicks are one win away from accomplishing that.

    Considering that they have gotten there after losing their other all-NBA player, remaking their roster with two significant trades, and playing without their DPoY-candidate C and star wing acquisition for over a month, and with two expected rotation players from DET woefully underperforming (or performing exactly how Ben R predicted), I find the ongoing criticism of Thibs’ mnutes/rotation methodology to ring rather hollow. Barring any significant developments during the next 3 games, our roster is pretty healthy going into the playoffs except for a) a freak injury sustained by Randle that had nothing to do with overuse and b) the typical dings that happen over a long season, like Josh’s wrist.

    One look at the standings should be enough to quell some of the petty criticism. One single loss more would have us at risk of falling into the play-in, and possibly needing to play two desperation games just to face the Celts in the first round.

    I didnā€™t realize the Bucks donā€™t have their own pick until 2031. Sheesh.

    They still owe two firsts and two swaps to New Orleans for Jrue!

    Banners hang forever, though. And it’s not like they imploded immediately after that title. They’re still very good, even if this season has become much messier than they expected when they made the Dame trade. I’d certainly take that fate over, say, the NY Giants flukily winning that second title over the Pats and then being an utter embarrassment for most of the next decade-plus.

    (Situations aren’t identical, I know, since Giants already had the first title a few years earlier, and imploded due to general arrogance/incompetence rather than the result of a few all-in trades that came back to bite them later. But I always think of that team in terms of, “Would you be willing to endure a long period of awfulness if you got a title first?”)

    That extra Bucks game in Milwaukee is literally the tiebreaker.

    Weā€™re actually up 2-1 in the head-to-head if you only count regular season games. Weā€™re down 3-2 on account of drawing them twice in the IST.

    @ShamsCharania
    Calves are undeniably tricky and these type of strains have timetable of at least one-to-two weeks. But rehab will determine a length of time for the two-time NBA MVP.

    Not to mention extra games against the Bucks and the Celtics due to the IST.

    As someone who is still a bit bummed that we did not win the IST, remember that those extra Bucks/Celts games came because we won an extra game to qualify. And at the moment, every W seems important.

    Playing to the bitter end in game 82 to secure home court is sort of okay by me, but far less important than avoiding the play-in. We have the second-best road record in the East. In the three playoff series we have played in the Thibs-Leon era, we won the series we started on the road and lost the two we started at home.

    If Giannis is not back for a first round matchup against Philly, I do not see the Bucks having a remote shot. He’s probably the only aspect of that matchup that favors the Bucks.

    “But I always think of that team in terms of, ā€œWould you be willing to endure a long period of awfulness if you got a title first?ā€”

    Had we won a title during the Ewing years, that would be a better question. But because you have to go back to Clyde and Willis, its sort of a no-brainer. I can’t imagine a single team in a great city hungrier for a single championship no matter what the cost than the Knicks.

    This is how I see it ending

    2 NYK 49-33
    3 CLE 49-33
    4 ORL 48-34
    5 MIL 48-34
    6 IND 47-35
    7 PHI 47-35
    8 MIA 46-36

    I’m sticking with this.

    The key game is Orlando at Milwaukee tonight. I’m counting on the Bucks laying an egg coming off a big win/big injury.

    The hardest game to predict is Indiana at Cleveland. I went with the home team in my projection. But if the Pacers win that’s a four way tie for 3rd.

    “If Giannis is not back for a first round matchup against Philly, I do not see the Bucks having a remote shot. Heā€™s probably the only aspect of that matchup that favors the Bucks.”

    It’s quite possible that a) their opponent will be someone other than Philly and b) our opponent will be Philly. Without Giannis, I don’t think the Bucks can beat anyone in round 1. With a reasonably healthy Embiid, the Sixers are a formidable first round opponent.

    I am pretty alarmed at the prospect of playing either the Heat or the Sixers in round 1. My least favored seed is the #2. If it turns out that way, bring it on, but it wouldn’t be ideal. But the Sixers might also sneak into the 6 seed.

    Franz Wagner being out for Orlando is a big deal, I think Milwaukee beats them at least tonight.

    Iā€™d certainly take that fate over, say, the NY Giants flukily winning that second title over the Pats and then being an utter embarrassment for most of the next decade-plus.

    That Giant team has won 4 Super Bowls and lost one since 1986. How many do NY fans believe they are entitled to? Included in those are three of the larger Super Bowl upsets this side of the 69 Jets.

    As a guy who could recite 20 of the 22 starters on the 1960 Giants without looking it up I feel even with the dark late 60s- early 80’s debacle and the last 10 or so seasons, my fandom has been richly rewarded.

    Would you prefer to be a Minnesota Viking fans whose teams have been mostly competent since Bud Grant, yet got left at the altar a half dozen time whilst never sipping from the cup?

    In poker this is known as “Entitlement Tilt.”

    Didn’t realize Wagner was out, Al. That does throw a wrench in things.

    But this Bucks team without Giannis is so sorry. Short of Lillard going off for 60, I just don’t see how they can beat a good team (even a shorthanded one).

    Alan, I wish the Giants didn’t have to be so embarrassing the next ten years, but I’d still take that trade. Beating the Pats twice was a much needed rubber stamp for posterity. Plus that NFC title game in San Francisco is low-key one of the best games in NY sports history.

    I am pretty alarmed at the prospect of playing either the Heat or the Sixers in round 1. My least favored seed is the #2. If it turns out that way, bring it on, but it wouldnā€™t be ideal. But the Sixers might also sneak into the 6 seed.

    I’m not sure alarmed is the right word. Without their 2nd best player for most of the season and the playoffs, sitting 3rd after 79 games is pretty remarkable. The fact remains, as currently constituted the differences between the 2nd seed and the 8th seed is 4 games after 79. All these teams are quite close. The only real upset would be Boston getting knocked off.

    If the Knicks got knocked off by any of the top 8 today, I’d be very disappointed, but not stunned.

    Guys if we can’t be the Philadelphia 76ers then we’re total frauds.

    I happen to think we are not, and we’ll smoke them. But if we are, let’s find out now.

    All this fear of Philly is unseemly.

    I just heard about entitlement tilt for the first time on Lex Oā€™s poker vlog yesterday.

    I wonder what this season will do to Dameā€™s rep. I know what it should do to Docā€™s.

    I am at total peace with whatever happens. Best Knicks season of the millennium is locked in already.

    Plus that NFC title game in San Francisco is low-key one of the best games in NY sports history.

    Which one do you refer? The Matt Barr last second FG in 1990 that led to the Buffalo upset or the Eli Manning take a savage beating and keep on ticking game?

    The Sixers with a healthy Embiid are 30-8, they’re a very good team. How healthy Embiid is now is an open question though.

    The Bucks are 3-3 without Giannis this year, surprisingly

    How does that break down with and without Doc?

    Macri:

    ‘[Brunson] also matched Ewingā€™s career Knicks total of 45-point games with six. Patrick played 1039 games for the franchise over 15 years. Brunson has played 141 games over two.’

    I’m also at total peace with this lovely season. If we lose, and at some point we most likely will, we won’t be total frauds, no matter when it happens. Of course, I’d like for it to not happen at all…

    I just heard about entitlement tilt for the first time on Lex Oā€™s poker vlog yesterday.

    It is the most important hurdle to overcome if you want to be a winning poker player (or gambler), The notion that you deserve to win, and then lose your equanimity when you Aces get cracked by Deuces must be deconstructed. When you won with those same aces they pushed you 100% of the pot when you were only entitled to 82% of it. One out of 5.5 time those aces are going to lose, and if you can’t accept that with a knowing smile, find another way of making money.

    Guys if we canā€™t be the Philadelphia 76ers then weā€™re total frauds.

    I happen to think we are not, and weā€™ll smoke them. But if we are, letā€™s find out now.

    All this fear of Philly is unseemly.

    This line of reasoning doesn’t seem to comport with rational thought. Philly is 30-8 when Embiid plays which makes them a serious threat to win it all. They are 15-27 without Embiid. The fear of Philly with a healthy Embiid is completely rational.

    Of course, if one were setting Thibs and Rose for a fall…. then it becomes more understandable statement…..

    https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/sixers-record-with-and-without-joel-embiid-this-season

    Before Embiid went down, the Sixers’ high water mark was 29-13 and Embiid was on his way to a second MVP.

    Since then, not only has the supporting cast had time to better define their roles, but they have acquired Hield and Lowry. And since then, we lost our all-NBA PF.

    pagliacci says:
    April 9, 2024 at 20:48

    I feel a loss and an OG setback coming on

    Forget about JB, with this fantastic reverse-jinx call Pags was the real MVP of the game, great job! šŸ˜€

    Good win, we were awake from the start this time and it was nice to watch OG getting more involved on offense (while Mitch’s still moving in quicksands most of the time, he needs to shed some weight fast to regain confidence on his ankle).

    To me JB is a 1st team All-NBA (with SGA, Luka, Giannis and Joker) but there’s a real chance he’ll succumbs to politics (cough, StephenCurry, cough, and don’t forget Tatum) and end up in the 2nd…

    For what’s worth (zero), I think both OG and I-Hart will re-sign and we’ll try to bring in a big fish in the summer, with the peace of mind allowed by knowing that with Julius back this team will be a contender nonetheless…

    About playoffs positioning, I’m with Z-Man on the ā€œbe careful what you wish forā€ team, the Basketball Gods are touchy…

    Yeah, Hubert, it’s specifically that the Giants were 2000s Knicks-level incompetent almost immediately after Super Bowl 46, because it convinced a lot of people that their way of doing things was working, as opposed to the team being held together by spit, baling wire, and the sheer force of will of Eli and Justin Tuck. A refusal to examine some fundamental rot in both the roster and the nepotistic decision-making process instead led to idiocy like hiring Bob Neptune’s all-time favorite sports executive, Dave Gettleman.

    The Sixers with a healthy Embiid are 30-8, theyā€™re a very good team.

    They’ve been a very good regular season team every single year since, like, 2018.

    They’ve also choked, underperformed, and/or embarrassed themselves in the playoffs every single year since, like, 2018.

    The 76ers not contenders. It would be like losing to Don Flamingo in Mike Tyson’s punch out. If we can’t beat them, we’re miles away from being miles away.

    Theyā€™ve been a very good regular season team every single year.

    This is true but there will then be the one playoffs where it all clicks for them.

    Some of their past choke jobs were when they had Simmons. Maxey is still relatively new to the team. That changes the dynamic for them.

    Dallas lost in the finals. Then lost in the first round after winning 60 games. Then had several seasons where they lost in the playoffs and people created the narrative that Dirk was soft and Dallas were chokers. Then they won at title.

    Saying stuff like they always choke – it’s a narrative.

    Which one do you refer? The Matt Barr last second FG in 1990 that led to the Buffalo upset or the Eli Manning take a savage beating and keep on ticking game?

    The former is front-and-center in the great NY sports moments. The latter is the one I referred to as “low key one of the best moments”. It doesn’t get talked about much in the pantheon but it was incredible.

    Those were different teams with different players and a different coach it doesn’t matter except that Joel isn’t durable

    This is true but there will then be the one playoffs where it all clicks for them.

    I truly doubt it. Playoff Embiid is real by the numbers. It’s not a narrative like Dirk, who was always incredible in the postseason.

    I’m not expecting it to be easy, but we should beat this team. And if we can’t, we’re further back in the process than we think.

    Doc is 4-13 in his last 17 elimination games. Removing him from Philly and sticking him in Mil is one of the more interesting dynamics at play, right up there with the play-off healths of Joel and Giannis, and who throws whom under a bus should there be disappointment.

    Theyā€™ve been a very good regular season team every single year since, like, 2018.

    Theyā€™ve also choked, underperformed, and/or embarrassed themselves in the playoffs every single year since, like, 2018.

    The 76ers not contenders. It would be like losing to Don Flamingo in Mike Tysonā€™s punch out. If we canā€™t beat them, weā€™re miles away from being miles away.

    Maxey wasn’t on the roster in 2018 so I’m not sure of that relevance. Maxey has become a prime time player the last 18 months and anything before that and even later before the Harden trade is largely irrelevant.

    Since this thread has a Giant bent today, they had an old pretty good coach who said, “You are what your record says you are,” and with Embiid playing, they have the best record in the league. That DeFacto makes them a huge threat, if Embiid is healthy when they play.

    It tortures reason to argue the opposite side that it would be some damning series loss to lose to Philly with Embiid. Especially without our second best player. I get your narrative and predisposition that anything that demeans Thibs and Rose is kewl, but come on….

    Also curious… what is a Don Flammingo?

    Iā€™m not expecting it to be easy, but we should beat this team. And if we canā€™t, weā€™re further back in the process than we think.

    Same goes for the Heat, too.

    These are the tests we should all want at this stage of the team’s development. I don’t want to easy-matchup our way to the conference finals just so we can say we made it to the conference finals. That shit is meaningless.

    Beating Philadelphia or Miami I think adds real value to our growth process. Be the 2 seed. Embrace the challenge.

    The former is front-and-center in the great NY sports moments. The latter is the one I referred to as ā€œlow key one of the best momentsā€. It doesnā€™t get talked about much in the pantheon but it was incredible.

    Eli had some outstanding performances in big games, but the beating he took and performed superlatively in that game can be put up against any QB of all time. If Eddie Futch was coaching the Giants instead of Coughlin, he would have thrown in the towel….

    I think we have enough history with Thibs and Brunson already that we know they are going to approach every opponent the same way, and won’t care if it is Philly or Miami or Indiana.

    There’s a certain boring yet reassuring character to this team that I really enjoy, every interview they say the right things, never get too high, don’t play mind games or play into the media, just go out there and play hard.

    So whoever is the opponent, I’m confident. Whatever happens this season I’m happy with, it’s been great to watch and we have a real core that is going to compete and won’t ever be an easy out.

    Maxey has become a prime time player the last 18 months and anything before that and even later before the Harden trade is largely irrelevant.

    This was my main point. Their most famous choke jobs came with Simmons and Doc. Those guys are gone and Maxey has emerged as a true star player. If Embiid is healthy, betting on them choking again seems foolish.

    Hubert, you realize you are taking the optimistā€™s case about Philly. Are you sure you are feeling alright?

    This past Saturday evening I went to see a symphonic performance of Richard Strauss’ Don Juan. To show how sick I am. while watching the conductor I visualized Jalen Brunson leading the orchestra.

    I think from now on I’m calling Brunson “Maestro” for the way he leads, teaches, probs around the defense making beautiful music on the floor.

    The opponent I donā€™t want is Miami, for the obvious reasons:

    1. Theyā€™re a dirty team that uses maiming as a defensive strategy

    2. Spoelstra is a better coach in a seven game series than Thibs

    Philly isnā€™t a particularly well coached or balanced team, they just ride the 11 BPM superstar as much as they can, and while Embiid is a great player, he has not shown the ability to carry the team on his back in the playoffs. The Bucks have Doc Rivers so theyā€™re beatable.

    Itā€™d be satisfying to beat the Heat but Iā€™d rather just avoid that meat grinder.

    Hubert, you realize you are taking the optimistā€™s case about Philly. Are you sure you are feeling alright?

    I have historically been one of the most optimistic people on this board. Often I’m even further ahead than Swifty.

    Y’all conflate criticism with pessimism.

    Also curiousā€¦ what is a Don Flammingo?

    He’s a character in Mike Tyson’s Punch Out who (like Philadelphia) was far short of the final boss.

    The Nuggets are Mike Tyson.

    Boston is Soda Popinski.

    Giannis is the Bald Bull.

    The Heat are the Great Tiger.

    And Philadelphia is Don Flamingo. He looks great but if you hit him clean one time he’d stay dazed and never recovered.

    That could be Hubert. Iā€™ll try to think about that in the future

    I have historically been one of the most optimistic people on this board.

    At first reaction…jeez…but:

    Hubie’s Oct 24th win prediction: “45 wins, the 5 seed, and a first round victory over 4th seeded Philadelphia followed by an unsatisfying pasting at the hands of the top seeded Celtics. That is my full prediction.”

    Hard, very, very hard to fault you Hubie. And will not hold a Celtics’ upset against you…

    that’s funny…now that i think about it…did anyone willingly choose Don Flamingo when playing that game…he was like the least likable of them all…

    The 76ers playoff chances all depend on Embiidā€™s health. The matchup Iā€™d really like to see is the 76ers vs Boston. Iā€™m a KP fan but imo he canā€™t handle a healthy Embiid. Embiid is too strong. If anyone can KO Boston it would be a healthy 76ers team firing on all cylinders at the right time and Embiid having a huge series. But thatā€™s strictly a matchup Iā€™d like to see. The 76ers are nowhere near as good and could easily lose to a few other teams, especially if Embiid is not 100%.

    Iā€™m worried about Philadelphia. In recent years Embiid came into the playoffs beaten up by the season, and he was coached by Doc Rivers. This year heā€™s in the same boat as OG. Heā€™s recovered from his injury, has a few games to get into game shape, and probably doesnā€™t have any other miscellaneous dings because they had time to heal. Nick Nurse may not be the best coach in the league, but heā€™s clearly a competent playoff coach.

    Alan have you played any of the Fallouts?

    No, I’ve never been a gamer, other than a brief period in the 80s when I had a ColecoVision, and then playing Tekken with my college roommate.

    I didnā€™t realize the Bucks donā€™t have their own pick until 2031. Sheesh.

    They still owe two firsts and two swaps to New Orleans for Jrue!

    They are paying 3 coaches at the same time.

    They have Doc signed on for multiple years (ugh).

    They have several key players at that age where they are either already beginning a slow decline or ready to start and they are signed on for multiple years at high cost.

    Giannis is showing the first signs of his body (knee and now calf) having some issues.

    They have almost no pick ammo.

    They are playing poorly.

    IMO, they probably would have been better off if they never fired Bud and stayed with Holiday. They won a championship and were still competitive when healthy. Middleton being hurt was the problem last year. They needed changes, but they should have just tweaked instead of going all in on Lillard. All they did in that deal was swap defense for offense, take on more money, and give away assets. Sometimes trying to keep the star happy can really blow up your face. If they don’t have a good showing in the playoffs, IMO, they should blow that team up totally.

    I have often said the Giants are basically the ultimate test of the “flags fly forever” truism. They won two absolutely incredible titles, and have been mind bogglingly incompetent in ways that were glaringly obvious ex ante basically ever since. Nevertheless, I’m solidly in the camp that says they bought themselves, like, 50 years of forgiveness. I mean, ruining the Patriots’ undefeated season alone might be the coolest thing any team I root for has ever done.

    Last night I started reading the book Alan posted about the other day, and basically can’t put it down. Highly, highly recommend.

    I’ve already said my piece on potential first-round opponents–Embiid looks pretty damn good, so we should view the Sixers as a top-5 team by net rating that added Buddy Hield at the deadline. Would be a fuckin’ shitty reward for getting the 2 seed if you ask me!

    Because of Thibs Cultureā„¢ I doubt we’ll engage in any gamesmanship as far as seeding goes, and I find myself weirdly on board with that for similar reasons to Bruno. You can’t avoid the good teams forever anyway. Plus, 50 would be really cool given everything we’ve dealt with…

    Heā€™s a character in Mike Tysonā€™s Punch Out who (like Philadelphia) was far short of the final boss.

    The Nuggets are Mike Tyson.

    Boston is Soda Popinski.

    Giannis is the Bald Bull.

    The Heat are the Great Tiger.

    And Philadelphia is Don Flamingo. He looks great but if you hit him clean one time heā€™d stay dazed and never recovered.

    I think you’ve got it all wrong on Philly. You fight Don Flamenco twice in Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out. On the first fight, he is a complete pushover. After one punch to his face you can get an infinite combo by just alternating rights and lefts until he goes down, and repeat until TKO. This represents the Doc/Simmons/pre-Maxey Sixers.

    Much later in the game, you see him again as one of the opponents leading up to Mike Tyson and he is MUCH tougher and less predictable. This is the current Sixers.

    The Celtics are Mike Tyson, an all-time great team where our margin of error would be virtually zero.

    Nugs are Super Macho Man, the reigning champ before Mike.

    The Heat are Bald Bull in his second appearance, where he had a very unusual quirk. Instead of getting knocked down when you depleted all his stamina, he would spontaneously regain a little and keep fighting you. The only way to actually knock him down is to perfectly time a gut punch during his signature move, the bull rush.

    The current Bucks are Popinski, who has the same body graphics as Super Macho Man but is much less resilient, tough, and consistent.

    The Pacers are Great Tiger, with a confusing gimmick offense that I’m confident we could figure out, especially with Hali less than 100%.

    The Magic are Mr. Sandman, a tough defensive fighter who has good answers to most of our tricks.

    The Cavs are King Hippo, seemingly tough but won’t get up once we knock them down once.

    There really isn’t enough basketball analysis done using NES games as an analytical framework, we need to get a trend started.

    IMO, they probably would have been better off if they never fired Bud and stayed with Holiday.

    I agree with this assessment. They won a chip with Bud and Holiday and their identity was built around being a tough-minded defensive team. They lost that when they traded Jrue for Dame.

    I mean they weren’t the only team to lose to Miami last year and Bud was going through some pretty bad personal stuff during that series, so it seemed cold blooded and bad karma to fire the dude after he helped coach them to a title just because they had an early round exit.

    They had the picks to make a couple of mid level moves to shore up the rotation and strengthen what they already had going for them. I feel like whenever a team tries to “address” an issue by going in a different direction it ends up backfiring bc it makes takes away their strength but never addresses the weakness enough to make up for it. It’s like when The Suns traded for Shaq. Too big of a move in a different direction that the team loses it’s identity.

    yeah…i killed many brain cells since the early 90’s…but now its coming back to me…and Pags has it down pretty good…i spent way too many hours on that and Goal!….the hockey game was pretty good too as far as i can remember…was tough to beat the russians…

    We have iHart and Mitch to throw at Embiid with Sims waiting in the wings if they both get into fouls (although Thibs will probably, mistakenly, go with Precious there).

    OG can guard Maxey and switch to Embiid when necessary.

    They don’t have a PF who can punish us for playing small with Hart, Tobias Harris is a joke, and an off-ball shooter like Hield is better for Donte than a PoA guard.

    On the other side of the ball, who does Philly have to throw at Brunson? I don’t know who their top perimeter defenders is, but I don’t think it’s anyone who will pose a challenge. Not that it’s mattered who Brunson faces.

    Of all the teams in the first round, Philly might scare me the least. Doesn’t mean they aren’t incredibly dangerous, but I think the matchups favor is more than Miami, Boston, or Indy. Even Orlando with their defense could flummox our 1-man offense.

    IMO, they probably would have been better off if they never fired Bud and stayed with Holiday.

    Given that trading for Dame was likely partly motivated by keeping him away from another EC contender, they should have factored in the risk of a does-not-fit-our timeline Holiday being rerouted back to the EC. Kept Dame from Miami, got Dame, Holiday to Celts was not unforeseeable if the first 2 happened, unless you were laser focussed on not letting the team that beat you last year get better.

    Been busy a bit but I came here to comment on the bigs. I see that many of you saw what I saw but differently. Mitch is not well. Some of you say he’s out of shape. I see him laboring. He’s not attacking on defense like he normally does, he can’t really jump and every so often he grabs his knee. I don’t think it was his “shape”, I think it’s pain.

    As for Precious, I hope it’s just rest right now. If Mitch doesn’t improve we’ll need him. He’s got bounce.

    I want the 2 seed and I think, had Randle, Mitch, Jalen, yada yada not gotten hurt all at once, the Celtics wouldn’t be coasting today.

    I donā€™t want to easy-matchup our way to the conference finals just so we can say we made it to the conference finals. That shit is meaningless.

    I’m with Hubert on this. What does it say to get a good draw and avoid tough teams so we get to a later round? Not much, if your ultimate goal is a championship. Let’s find out who we are. We would be in a better position to extrapolate what we’d be with Julius and make decisions in the off-season of just how aggressive we need to be in the trade market.

    Only exception is the Heat, because of injuries.

    Also, I’d note that Philly built that good early season record with a cupcake schedule. It may not be indicative of how good they truly are.

    Much later in the game, you see him again as one of the opponents leading up to Mike Tyson and he is MUCH tougher and less predictable. This is the current Sixers.

    Great recollection of the second Don Flamingo! Totally forgot about that.

    But sorry I’m not buying that Tyrese Maxey makes the Sixers better than Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons, and James Harden did.

    This is the worst roster Philadelphia has brought to the playoffs in the entire Process era.

    Look, if you prefer the Orlando Magic, I get it, but these guys are bums. If you don’t believe me just ask any Sixers fan.

    Rama and Hubie, I don’t really get this take. Every team that’s making the playoffs is going to be dangerous, and all of them could beat us. We’re not discussing Celtics vs. Wiz here. Yes, some teams might match up better or worse with us, and some have somewhat questionable hearts, so trying to figure out best options is a fun intellectual exercise; but the playoffs are always a crap-shoot (look at last year!), and this year it really feels like almost everything and anything’s at play.

    Embiid is worse overall in the playoffs then you’d expect based on his regular season production, but it’s more he’s been wildly inconsistent than he’s always worse in the playoffs. He’s had some very good series and some real stinkers.

    Philly’s best perimeter defender is Melton, but I think he’s missed like half the year with back injuries

    I remember that when Milwaukee traded for Dame lots of analysts said they might not be better in the regular season but Dame would help them in the playoffs because you need scorers who can create their own shot more in the playoffs. I was and am very skeptical of this. You also need a good defense in the playoffs. Now the rubber is about to hit the road. I bet very few of those analysts will, umm, ā€œrememberā€ their prediction if the Bucks lay an egg in the playoffs somehow.

    The benefit of playing the matchup game is that you may get a better barometer of where your team is at and what your weaknesses are.

    The more rounds we go, the more data we gather on the strengths and weaknesses of our team. If we beat a punching bag team at the bottom of the East in round 1 and get destroyed by Boston in round 2, then you don’t learn much about the team except that there’s a massive talent gap between us and the other teams. If we squeeze a round in against a relatively even matchup, it gives us a better idea of where our weaknesses lay and how to correct them.

    It’s not the most important thing, but it has some value.

    the hockey game was pretty good too as far as i can rememberā€¦was tough to beat the russians

    That game was the best bc they had you choose your team based on fat, skinny, and regular guy. Fat Guy was unstoppable but if you had too many of them you could never get the puck.

    Phillyā€™s best perimeter defender is Melton, but I think heā€™s missed like half the year with back injuries

    Completely forgot about him. I’m a pretty big fan of his game actually, but a bit below elite with some flaws in the rest of his game.

    Rama and Hubie, I donā€™t really get this take. Every team thatā€™s making the playoffs is going to be dangerous, and all of them could beat us. Weā€™re not discussing Celtics vs. Wiz here. Yes, some teams might match up better or worse with us, and some have somewhat questionable hearts, so trying to figure out best options is a fun intellectual exercise; but the playoffs are always a crap-shoot (look at last year!), and this year it really feels like almost everything and anythingā€™s at play.

    I start with the assumption that, while we’re good, we won’t win the championship this year. But we could win the title next year. So I want these playoffs to be a building block. I’d rather win a 7 game series against the Sixers or Heat and bank that experience than beat up on Cleveland, which I already know we can do.

    And if we lose to Philly, who then loses to Milwaukee, who then loses to Boston, who then loses to Denver, that’s very informative. It tells me maybe it’s not a good idea to make an all in move this summer.

    I’m going with the Derek Jeter philosophy when it comes to who to play, “The game is on the schedule. We have to play it. We might as well win it!”

    You play who is on the schedule and let the cards fall as they might. There’ll be time enough for countin… when the dealin’s done.

    I donā€™t want to easy-matchup our way to the conference finals just so we can say we made it to the conference finals. That shit is meaningless.

    There’s no easy match up path to the conference finals unless we were supposed to face the celtics in the second round and they somehow got knocked out early. The fact that we can debate about Philly vs. Orlando vs. Cleveland vs. Indiana vs. Miami to me shows that there isn’t much difference. Even thinking Cleveland will be easy because we beat them last year is possibly wrong thinking.

    That’s why we should secure the 2nd seed so we can have home court in 2 rounds. Who we face is largely irrelevant. Every team we could potentially face has strengths and weaknesses.

    The one advantage of getting to the ECF through an easier path is it does give the group more playoff experience together.

    Alan have you played any of the Fallouts?

    ah, DR ed, not directed towards me but – well, this seems like the best inroad for me in to todays thread…

    i played Fallout 3 like CRAZY…got all the DLC’s (really liked the spaceship one)…

    i have a serious weakness towards wanting to check in every room and box while playing these type games…Fallout 3 was, at the time, by far the best game i had ever played…

    played a bit of Fallout 4 and Fallout: New Vegas, but after hundreds of hours in Fallout 3, i got tired of it…

    looking forward to the amazon series…

    man, they put in some crazy storylines which forced you to make some tough decisions during gameplay…

    i’m already hooked on one mmorpg (elder scrolls) so i never tried out Fallout 76…

    And if we lose to Philly, who then loses to Milwaukee, who then loses to Boston, who then loses to Denver, thatā€™s very informative.

    This isn’t really informative though. Like you can think we’re worse than Philly who is worse than Milwaukee who is worse than Boston who is worse than Denver but at the end of the day this logic isn’t really correct. Who knows how any of those teams would do against each other in a 7 game series and it says nothing about how all of these teams will be the following season.

    Atlanta got to a conference finals one year and then was a first round exit the next year. The league has more parity than it has ever had right now. Suns made the finals and then go out in the first round the next year. Lakers win it all and then lost in the first round the next year.

    But sorry Iā€™m not buying that Tyrese Maxey makes the Sixers better than Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons, and James Harden did.

    You write this like all three of them played together at the same time.

    And if we lose to Philly, who then loses to Milwaukee, who then loses to Boston, who then loses to Denver, thatā€™s very informative. It tells me maybe itā€™s not a good idea to make an all in move this summer.

    There is a passage in Act IV of Julius Caesar where Cassius says to Brutus. “You make no use of your philosophy.”

    Last year, Thibs lost to the 8th seed, he didn’t lose to the NBA finalist. Now, we will be instructed that we suck if we lose to Philly and they don’t win the championship.

    How we do in the playoffs has little bearing if we should make a move for a major player IN HIS PRIME. If a sensible deal shows itself that makes sense for the long term, do it… if not, don’t.

    IMO, they probably would have been better off if they never fired Bud and stayed with Holiday.

    100% this…i do appreciate watching them stumble and bumble some of their moves though…

    in the past it didn’t really make much sense to hate on other teams that we might meet in the playoffs – cuz, we weren’t making the playoffs and didn’t have much a shot at advancing…

    that is not the case today, i’d really like to see the bucks crash and burn this post season…

    be honest pags, you had to look up most of that info on Mike Tyson’s Punch Out šŸ˜›

    if not – dang that is some memory you have…

    I always thought even supped up Don Flamingo was pretty easy to knock out.

    King Hippo was kind of tough the first time you faced him. He was the first one I ever had a chance to get beaten by and even after I figured him out if you were off on the timing at all he’d get ya.

    Bald Bull the second time was really hard. Then, of course, Sandman was TOUGH. But once you figured him out, he was beatable.

    The dude I could hardly ever beat was Super Macho Man. I just could never get over that hump.

    Ironically enough, if I used the cheat code to get straight to Tyson, I figured out how to beat him. Tyson was, of course, insanely fast and if he hit you, you were done. But the pattern was easy enough to figure out and once you did, you could beat him. But I could never quite figure out the rhythm of Super Macho Man.

    Whatever happens in the playoffs is not going to be all that informative because Randle is not playing. My opinion of this team and its future is not gonna change if they lose in the 1st rd or make the Conference Finals. I just want them to play as many games as possible because playoff basketball is amazing to watch but making declarations about this team’s future prospects based on their playoffs performance this year without Randle isn’t totally fair.

    As a little kid I was so excited when I finally found out how to easily knock out King Hippo.

    Just for clarity, itā€™s Don Flamenco! Not Flamingo. But good analogy!

    They’ve used both “Don Flamenco” and “Don Flamingo” interchangeably today. Since I literally have no idea what the hell they’re talking about, it didn’t make a difference to me. I did doubt that it was “Don Flamingo,” though.

    Last year, Thibs lost to the 8th seed, he didnā€™t lose to the NBA finalist. Now, we will be instructed that we suck if we lose to Philly and they donā€™t win the championship.

    Last year Thibs lost a tough series to the NBA finalists after he engineered a superb first round win over the favored Cavaliers.

    This isn’t some kind of set up, Bob. The Sixers are legitimately one whole level away from the Celtics, Thunder, Nuggets, etc. If we can’t beat them, it’s a helpful recalibration of expectations.

    A team that loses in 7 games to the Celtics, for instance, should consider making an all in move. A team that loses to the team that loses to the team that loses to the Celtics should probably take a different path. That’s all.

    If I remember correctly, Don Flamenco was from Spain and did a little Flamenco dance as a part of his shtick

    be honest pags, you had to look up most of that info on Mike Tysonā€™s Punch Out šŸ˜›

    if not ā€“ dang that is some memory you haveā€¦

    Nope… games from that era are fresher in my mind than anything made in the last 25 years. šŸ™‚

    The original Punch Out started off with Glass Joe, Kid Quick, and Bald Bull. That’s the only one I remember, and I never got past Bald Bull.

    Damn that’s some Bearenstain bears shit. I could have sworn it was Flamingo. But it is Flamenco.

    I guess his build and dance moves just always reminded me of a Flamengo as a kid.

    The dude I could hardly ever beat was Super Macho Man. I just could never get over that hump.

    Ironically enough, if I used the cheat code to get straight to Tyson, I figured out how to beat him. Tyson was, of course, insanely fast and if he hit you, you were done. But the pattern was easy enough to figure out and once you did, you could beat him. But I could never quite figure out the rhythm of Super Macho Man.

    I agree, SMM can be super tough depending on how many rotations he does in his 360 punch. I believe it can go up to 11, which is super hard to dodge.

    The original Punch Out started off with Glass Joe, Kid Quick, and Bald Bull. Thatā€™s the only one I remember, and I never got past Bald Bull.

    Sounds like you played the arcade version, notable for its digitized voice samples (rare in the early 80’s!) and dual screens in a vertical alignment.

    Despite the far inferior tech, the NES version was actually a much better game due to its responsive controls and tighter gameplay.

    Damn thatā€™s some Bearenstain bears shit. I could have sworn it was Flamingo. But it is Flamenco.

    Flamenco is a reference to a Spanish tradition of folk music/dance, fitting in with the theme of all opposing boxers being some form of racial caricature except Mike Tyson. It was a different time!

    Amusingly, in the arcade version Soda Popinski was a little more on-the-nose, instead bearing the name of Vodka Drunkenski.

    A team that loses in 7 games to the Celtics, for instance, should consider making an all in move

    What do you consider an all in move?

    Rose seems to be open to anything. He tried for a big move with Mitchell, but the cost exceeded his price point. He paid more for the Maestro, DDV and IHart than anyone on the open market and seems quite vindicated. He paid what some consider an exorbitant price for OG, some think it cheap, some think he paid a fair price.

    He seems to have assembled a fine roster in a fairly short time while keeping most of his powder dry. He doesn’t seem to make crazy moves. If an all in player becomes available (a true all in player), I hope he offers a fair price no matter how we do in this year’s playoffs without Randle.

    Great. Now we’ve got the hybrid “Flamengo,” too, as if the confusion between “Flamingo” and “Flamenco” wasn’t already enough. Seriously……. What the hell are you guys even referencing?

    And of course now referring to Brunson as “The Maestro” cannot help but remind me of the Seinfeld episode where Elaine was dating some dude who insisted on being addressed by that moniker. šŸ™‚

    arcade version? shit…i was in my twenties at that time…stoned on my couch…if I couldn’t play it in my living room…it wasn’t happening…

    if we’re talking arcade…we need to go back to space invaders and galaxion…i was in a saturday morning league at a place called “Starship Galaxy”….years later they busted that place up cuz of all the drugs being dealt there…we had to move to the AMF bowling alley down the street…that was when “asteroids” was king…

    What do you consider an all in move?

    Anything that takes us over the second apron.

    @KeithSmithNBA
    Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis, Jayson Tatum and Xavier Tillman are all questionable for tomorrowā€™s game vs the Knicks.

    I don’t hate that.

    Fantastic work on the punch out characters today, Pags. You really took it to another level.

    During the first covid lockdown I picked one of these:

    https://www.8bithero.co/products/nes-classic-edition?currency=USD&variant=45846900768981&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&stkn=f69659a9c16d&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI89aTmci4hQMVxkRHAR3ugw6yEAQYBCABEgKO9PD_BwE

    Played a lot of Punch Out, Kid Icarus, Legend of Zelda, Castlevania. Was disappointed there was no Contra, though. That was the first game I ever had.

    I donā€™t hate that.

    I kinda do. I was looking forward to a statement win.

    We’ve got plenty of statement wins. What we need now are wins, period, and preferably ones that aren’t too taxing on what is now an eight-man rotation ā€”Ā and a seven-man rotation on nights when Bogey doesn’t have it or isn’t feeling well.

    (For a while, it seemed we were going to have an eight and a half man rotation, with Precious playing spot minutes. But Thibs has already moved away from that, even as Mitch is still clearly laboring.)

    Stefan Bondy
    @SbondyNBA
    Julius Randle had successful surgery yesterday, according to a league source.

    Ian Begley
    @IanBegley
    Julius Randle is listed out due to surgery on NBA injury report. Per league sources, Randle had successful surgery on his right shoulder yesterday. Knicks have said heā€™d be re-evaluated in 5 months.

    I donā€™t hate that.

    Boston knows that the two most dangerous opponents in the East are the Knicks and Philly, so they are doing their utmost to give us the #2 seed so one of them gets knocked out in the first round (it would have helped to beat the Bucks yesterday though).

    Sorry but the idea that we should only do an all in move if we can hang with the Celtics is silly.

    The lakers didnā€™t even make the playoffs when they first had LeBron and made an all in move for AD and won a title the next year. The suns didnā€™t make the playoffs and made their all in CP3 move and then made the finals.

    Sorry but the idea that we should only do an all in move if we can hang with the Celtics is silly.

    I actually agree with this. The Celtics will have a pretty tough time keeping this team together for very long because they gave the biggest contract in NBA history to Jaylen Brown, who is probably about their 5th best player.

    They are already slated to pay 84m in luxury tax next year assuming Jrue picks up his 40m player option (he will). Tatum, White, and Holiday expire the following year and Tatum/White will then cost what Brown does.

    Fantastic work on the punch out characters today, Pags. You really took it to another level.

    During the first covid lockdown I picked one of these:

    Thanks Hubs! Old video games are my first passion — I actually only became a basketball fan from playing NBA Jam in 1993!

    I’m far too much of a purist for something like the NES Classic unfortunately. It uses a fairly shitty emulator and there area lot of flaws in terms of minutiae like input lag, an oversaturated and blocky picture on modern TVs, etc. My main hobby before I had the kid was building basically the ultimate emulation setup on my PC for all systems up to the PS3 era.

    I use advanced video shaders that require a $1,000+ GPU to make my 4k monitor simulate the characteristics of a CRT from the 90’s, which makes those games look a hundred times better. It’s basically what Thibs would be like if he was into video games.

    These days I’m mostly too tired to enjoy gaming once the kid is in bed, but this thread is triggering my nostalgia. Maybe I’ll play a little tonight.

    Thereā€™s obviously different types of all in moves and some we should make no matter what. Iā€™m not suggesting we refuse Giannis if we canā€™t beat the Sixers. Iā€™m just thinking we shouldnā€™t trade picks and go over the 2nd apron for a backup PG.

    I’m not sure if I missed any discussion on Nate Robinson’s need for a kidney transplant, but it sounds like the situation is getting a little more desperate. You would think a young healthy former athlete would have some advantages on the priority list relative much older individuals in poor health for other reasons also, but he’s having a tough time finding a match. One of my best friends and my cousin both had kidney transplants in 2023.

    @TommyBeer
    Bucks announce Giannis Antetokounmpo is dealing with a left soleus (calf) injury and will miss the remaining three games of the regular season and receive daily treatment and evaluation.

    Calf strains are pretty serious. It’s a distinct possibility that Giannis is unavailable in round 1, and even if he comes back healthy he is vulnerable to re-injury and even an achilles tear. See: Kevin Durant.

    On another note, anyone with advice on how to sell a bunch of baseball cards?

    If you want to finish 2nd root for the Magic. If youā€™re scared of the 76ers root for the Bucks.

    First of all, we need to win out. Thatā€™s not easy at all. We play three games in less than seventy hours. That secures at least the three spot for us. Second place is better than third, of course. If we win out, then the Bucks need to lose two games, which means I am definitely rooting for Orlando tonight.

    Jrue got a nice payday, that’s a big deal for a guard who is going to be 34 in June

    If Orlando loses tonight I believe the Knicks are guaranteed the 3rd seed if they just win 2 out of their last 3 games.

    A two seed definitely looks better than a three seed, but Iā€™m just rooting to make sure we are in the top four and have home court in the first round. We also have to keep playing hard so that the team maintains its mentality.

    I’m still a bit surprised myself how well he’s playing owen…that global rating is definitely a wow kind of thing…

    I keep thinking these other teams will figure a way to shut him down, it’s just not happening right now…

    Well, Boston may get their favorite matchup for the first round. šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚I think they will win the series this time, but I do hope Miami beats them up nicely! The fragile Porzingis versus dirty Bam Adebayo? Oh my! šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚

    Those fools gave us Brunson. It cost us a second rounder, if I remember correctly. I’m good with that! šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚šŸ˜‚

    Sadly, the Dallas pick is looking like #24 or somethingā€¦

    Dallas was a lottery team last season, but Steve Mills/Scott Perry allowed Dallas to protect the pick.

    Those fools gave us Brunson.

    I like that way of thinking…a pick in the teens would have been nice too, can’t have everything I guess…

    Bucks up 14 at halftime, I’m hoping Orlando drops to 6th so they would be the Knicks 1st rd matchup.

    Iā€™m eating some serious crow on the Mavs. I thought their deadline moves helped, but at one point in the season I was more worried about our pick than thinking they could get healthy and put it all together like this. Iā€™m not sure anyone in the west wants to face Doncic and Kyrie.

    Philadelphia actually has a pretty clear path to finish ahead of Orlando if this score holds.

    Z-man, what years are your cards and what condition? You can check ebay sold and completed listings for comparables.

    I have a decent baseball card collection but none of the cards are graded. Best card I have is a Ronald Acuna Topps Chrome Gold Refractor Rookie Card.

    jazzfunk, my 70yo brother sent a box with a whole bunch of cards, all seem to be in excellent condition, some seem pretty valuable, like Nolan Ryan, Pete Rose, Reggie Jackson, Steve Carlton, Seaver with the Reds…. He wants my son to take it on as a project and they will split the profits. Thanks for the advice!

    i have a card collection somewhere, smaller boxes so easier to lose track of than the comics – at this moment, i think they’re under one of the kids’ bed…

    think i collected most of the yanks ’78 team…some basketball and baseball cards from the 90’s…got jeter greensboro hornets and shaq rookie cards, got some football cards too, sports illustraded number 1 sitting somewhere…

    i like to collect stuff, never really thought about the value of the stuff, now i mostly just wonder where i can fit the stuff in the house…i have 1,000’s of comics, spawn number 1 and some other cool books…

    one of these days i’ll catalog all of it…yeah right…

    sadly i don’t ever sell stuff, throw it away or give it away…hope it doesn’t pile up and take too much room…

    Z-man. Nolan Ryan cards stand above most cards from the 70ā€™s. Sharp corners, good gloss, centered Ryans should be graded. All the early Ryans (1968 rookie, 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1972) in top condition command triple figures at the very least. If the condition of the other Hall of Famers is so-so, offer them in mixed lots. Collectors love surprises and will bid up vintage lots from the 70ā€™s and earlier. Facebook marketplace draws a good collector base. COMC is another solution to sell cards without too much effort. There are many auction houses – Huggins and Scott, for example which will sell a ā€œshoebox collectionā€ for decent money.

    Iā€™ll give anyone a dollar if they can name the 8 players that played for the Grizz tonight without lookingā€¦

    I bet the Grizz, among others, to win it all at a big price. This is the most injury riddled season I can recall. Iā€™m going to be a sucker and play them back next year.

    Philadelphia actually has a pretty clear path to finish ahead of Orlando if this score holds.

    I agree. Crazy but this is clearly the base case scenario now. Thank god we have two legit 7 footers + 6 fouls with Sims for this 1st round series.

    We getting Genos or Pats?

    Once you get past 1976 Topps, prices start to drop with a few exceptions. Look for the 1979 Topps Ozzie Smith Rookie. Carlton and Reggie prices also drop after 1972, but if the cards are sharp – definitely grade them – use PSA or SGC (which is also owned by PSA).

    I assume Orlando will win the final home game vs Milwaukee especially if that game is meaningless for the Bucks or if they don’t give a shit about 2nd or 3rd and rest Lillard. I guess Philly still could tie Indiana dunno what the tiebreaker is vs them though.

    Geo, in your comic book collection – look for Amazing Spider-Man # 129 with The Punisher.

    Looks like Indiana owns tiebreaker vs Philly. Philly I believe would own the tiebreaker vs Cleveland but it would take Cavs losing final game of season at home vs Charlotte.

    Love hearing about the Topps cards – my grandfather was the plant manager for then through the 60s and 70s. Gave me lots of boxes of packs of cards, which mostly I opened for the gun and threw the cards in 3 or 4 shoeboxes. Still have them somewhere… But doubt any of the cards are really valuable. There are too many to try to go online and figure out what’s what.

    You can get a monthly or even just a 15 day subscription to the Beckett price guide online to check out prices for your cards.

    It all comes down to the Pacers/Cavs game, Al. If Indiana wins, Philadelphia could finish 6th bc they win a head-to-head tiebreaker with Orlando. But Orlando would win a three way tiebreaker if Indiana loses.

    Rama, if your grandfather was a plant manager for Topps in the 60ā€™s and 70ā€™s – definitely look at your cards. Topps had several test card issues and limited sets which were not released widely and worth a lot. 1968 Topps 3D, 1961 Topps Dice Game cards, 1968 Topps test basketball, 1971 Topps Greatest Moments are a few of the sets to look for.

    Yeah Orlando will win any 3 team tiebreakers cause they’re gonna win their division. But they’d lose a head to head with Philly.

    Yet another update on magic numbers, assuming MIL wins [(ā€”) owns the tiebreaker]:
    Knicks: ā€” @BOS, BKN, CHI
    Bucks (MIL): 5 @OKC, @ORL
    Magic (ORL): 2 @PHI, MIL
    Cavs (NYK): 2 IND, CHA
    Pacers (IND): 2 @CLE, ATL
    No longer able to finish above us:
    Heat (NYK): 0 TOR, TOR
    Sixers(NYK): 0 ORL, BKN

    Looks like the Bucks magic number for the two seed is 1 over both the Knicks and the Magic. I think they are pretty much locks to hang on to the 2 seed.

    I also think that Philly has an excellent chance of finishing above the Magic, but as to the final order, the very real chance of a 3-4 way tie is muddling things up for me.

    Interesting scenario would be 3 way tie at 48-34 for 4/5/6 between Cavs, Pacers and Magic. Not sure who’d finish 6th between Cavs or Pacers in that scenario.

    I’ll say this, much to Hubert’s disapproval if it’s Knicks 76ers in 1st rd I assume most of the national pundits would pick Philly to win that series.

    just went to go check on the spiderman books jazzfunk šŸ™‚

    actually except for 3 “flashback” books – all my spiderman books are from the “Ultimate” universe where he teams up with other folks…of those books i really liked the Ultimate Six (re-imagining of the Sinister Six)…

    he also does this team-up with wolverine (marvel knights pub) that was interesting…

    most of my stuff is x-men related…boxes and boxes of the stuff…hulk, deadpool and a few other individual titles…also have some DC comics – JLA, Batman/Superman and a bunch of the Elseworlds books…

    the thing that really “re-hooked” me with comics was when they started printing glossy style books (like spawn) back in the mid 90’s…most of my collecting was from ’95 to ’05 where i was dropping $20 to $30 a week on comics…

    i was hooked šŸ™‚

    I had the new Fantastic 4 comics where it was Wolverine, Hulk, Ghost Rider and Spider-Man for just a few issues. Had a decent amount of X-Men, Wolverine and Spider-Man comics plus 1st ever Spawn issue. Lost all my comics unfortunately about 20 years ago and haven’t bought any since, nowadays just the occasional baseball and basketball cards.

    Minnesota is proving they donā€™t need Towns to compete. It may make sense to bring in a decent quality player that fills a need better, plus salary filler, plus some picks to replenish the assets they used in the Gobert trade for Towns. If itā€™s the right player they could wind up being just as good or better while improving their finances and long term position.

    Geo, those are all great books – you may want to see if you have a Wolverine #1 or a Siege #3.

    Lost all my comics unfortunately about 20 years ago and havenā€™t bought any since, nowadays just the occasional baseball and basketball cards.

    How did you lose your comics?

    I lost my comics too, but thatā€™s because I sold them to finance a bet on a horse that lost, but thatā€™s different. šŸŽšŸŽšŸŽšŸŽ

    I had the new Fantastic 4 comics where it was Wolverine, Hulk, Ghost Rider and Spider-Man for just a few issues.

    oh, that sounds so cool…breaks my heart a bit to hear about your books…re-reading the stories it’s easy to look back on when you first read it…

    just recently re-read the ultimate fantastic four where they introduced the marvel zombie universe (the negative zone)…

    i’m so surprised the never made a movie touching on the marvel zombie universe…it’s great…

    they did use it once in the What If series (season 1, episode 4 or 5 i think)…

    kind of bummed they’ve tagged pedro pascal as reed richards…he’s almost 50 now, way over-exposed, way…maybe this will be the fantastic four as they all go through mid-life crisis’s and whatnot…

    It’s really crazy how with 2 games left there are no sure things for specific seeds 2-8 in the East and 1-10 in the West. Has that ever happened before? Adam Silver must be happy!

    ha jazzfunk, ya got me on remote control now šŸ™‚

    looks like the earliest wolverine i have is issue #50, and i picked that up from a back issue rack because it related to the weapon x storyline (a favorite of mine from both wolverine and deadpool)…

    looks though like the series run i have is from around #125 and on…checked wolverine marvel knights, and that was from around issue #35…

    i do though have the earlier wolverine stories collected in reprint books…

    looking at Siege now…looks like it kicked off in 2010, about 5 year safter i started trying to waste a bunch of money on comics…

    i lost a comic collection i had around ’75…ma though the comics and the monster models i was making were rotting my brain…she threw them out, mostly remember at the time having hulk comics…

    it’s funny, after i lost access to the comics and monster stuff – i started an interest in the military/war stuff…much worse i believe…

    Very few feelings, back in the day, better than walking into a stationery store and spotting 2 or 3 standing racks of new comics next to a shelf displaying Mad or Cracked Magazine. Childhood heirlooms tossed like garbage, but moms everywhere kept their cookie tins full of buttons and random sewing stuff that remained unused for 50 years.

    I try not to think about the boxes of comics my mom threw out. Wish it had been the baseball cards instead… Though I actually read all my comics, a lot, so they probably weren’t in good condition and had no real value… Except to me…

    preach…yeah, I just got a flashback to the garbage can on Avenue D in Holbrook, NY containing my prized possessions from when I was 12…

    had some cool Wolfman and Frankenstein models too…

    the comic book bug really hit me hard with the release of: The Age of Apocalypse storyline…

    tame stuff by today’s standards…I remember though the series opening with Bishop, I think, walking through piles of skulls somewhere in the northwest, and learning more about the word culling…

    Comments are closed.