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Has the NBA become a joke?

Ipartiedwithhopgood

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Jan 20, 2011
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Cavs just simply cut Drummond he goes to Lakers. This guy is like a top 25 player maybe? Or close to it? Could lead league in rebounding if he played? Why does Cleveland even have a team if they are cutting this dude?

Aldridge on the down side but Spurs cut him just because and he joins Griffin who also got cut just because and they go to Nets.

Is this good for the league? Why wouldn't these guys just wait until rings are on Ebay and buy them there?

It just looks embarrassing to see guys go buy rings when they aren't ancient yet. Maybe Griffin is washed up, and maybe Aldridge is getting there. But Drummond?
 
The teams I follow these days are Atlanta, Dallas, Charlotte, Memphis, New Orleans. I couldn't care less about what happens at the top of the standings.
 
Drummond is really not that good of a player if you really dive into the numbers. He is the worst finisher in the league and that’s not an exaggeration, his percentages are so bad and he takes so many shots close to the rim. Yes, he gets a lot of rebounds, but if you dive into the numbers he doesn’t boost a teams rebounding by being in their team. To add onto that he refuses to play a supporting role and is an emotional guy. He’s not even a top 50 player IMO. Not a great defender outside the paint, just no game outside the paint except he’s a bad finisher. He’s a center that shoots 47% from the floor and doesn’t take 3’s or anything outside the paint.

The reason they cut him is no one was willing to trade Jack shit for him.
 
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Drummond is really not that good of a player if you really dive into the numbers. He is the worst finisher in the league and that’s not an exaggeration, his percentages are so bad and he takes so many shots close to the rim. Yes, he gets a lot of rebounds, but if you dive into the numbers he doesn’t boost a teams rebounding by being in their team. To add onto that he refuses to play a supporting role and is an emotional guy. He’s not even a top 50 player IMO. Not a great defender outside the paint, just no game outside the paint except he’s a bad finisher. He’s a center that shoots 47% from the floor and doesn’t take 3’s or anything outside the paint.

The reason they cut him is no one was willing to trade Jack shit for him.

Alright. I'm buying what you are selling. So you are saying the Lakers have added a shitty piece here then. I'll trust you over my draft kings level of following it
 
Alright. I'm buying what you are selling. So you are saying the Lakers have added a shitty piece here then. I'll trust you over my draft kings level of following it
Drummond has total value as a player if he can just calm the fvck down and not be a hot head and have an ego. He has a knack for defensive rebounding and having a guy of his stature down low defensively is nice when David needs a break.

I think this offseason when he’s trying to get a new contract will reflect what I’m saying though. The league is moving away from guys like him. There’s a reason the Pistons trade him for a bag of potato chips and the Cavs couldn’t even find a trade for him.
 
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Yeah now the Lakers have their own big three as well, though the Nets still seem to attract more hatred. Strange though, clueless people are acting as if Drummond isnt better than Griffin and Aldridge combined.
 
I live in Houston ..
NBA is a joke right now.

Better get Cade Cunningham. He is an even better version of Ben Simmons.


LaMarcus would have stayed with the Spurs...
But ultimately the Spurs are trying to rebuild somewhat and KD needs some dogs there with him.
LaMarcus and KD are very close.

Houston has a poor owner than is a fvcking moron. Not sure it's an indictment on the league, other than the fact the NBA let him buy the team.

And yeah the buyout market sucks, but Drummond isn't that big of a pickup.
 
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Houston has a poor owner than is a fvcking moron. Not sure it's an indictment on the league, other than the fact the NBA let him buy the team.

And yeah the buyout market sucks, but Drummond isn't that big of a pickup.

Don't know about all that...
His family actually has a shady past. They were running around with Sam Maceo during the Free State of Galveston period. Running illegal gambling halls. Maceo actually gave the Fertittas what he had in the Houston area.

But he has been hit hard. The Golden Nugget casino in Lake Charles was hit hard in Hurricane Laura.
Not even mentioning how COVID took a big hit on his restaurant business.

The guy is actually a brilliant business man. Were given a few things from his family but created an empire.
 
Cavs just simply cut Drummond he goes to Lakers. This guy is like a top 25 player maybe? Or close to it? Could lead league in rebounding if he played? Why does Cleveland even have a team if they are cutting this dude?

Aldridge on the down side but Spurs cut him just because and he joins Griffin who also got cut just because and they go to Nets.

Is this good for the league? Why wouldn't these guys just wait until rings are on Ebay and buy them there?

It just looks embarrassing to see guys go buy rings when they aren't ancient yet. Maybe Griffin is washed up, and maybe Aldridge is getting there. But Drummond?

Drummond is an inefficient, volume rebounder who is a complete liability late in games and is totally incapable of stretching the floor. There’s a reason the Cavs went out and got a replacement and there’s a reason they couldn’t find a trade partner despite weeks of trying. Guys like him and Whiteside simply don’t have a place in the league anymore unless they are willing to play for or near the veteran minimum.

Griffin and Aldridge are both well past their prime and can’t go more than a month without getting hurt.
 
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There's talk up north about whether the Timberwolves, who are f***ing awful, should trade Karl Anthony-Towns..............

"I mean...yeah, if your goal is to suck AND not have any good players on your roster, then yes trade him."

That's why the NBA is trash. Its a bunch of poorly run organizations circle jerking amongst themselves scrambling to field a competitive team (in their minds) because the top players decided to all go join a select handful of teams.

I watched the NIT Championship this weekend between Memphis and Mississippi State. It looked more like the And 1 Streetball Championship, than an NCAA D1 Basketball Tournament game, or in more relevant terms, a poor man's version of an NBA game.....except the NBA just has taller players posing as guards jacking stepback 3s because it's too easy for them.
 
Yeah now the Lakers have their own big three as well, though the Nets still seem to attract more hatred. Strange though, clueless people are acting as if Drummond isnt better than Griffin and Aldridge combined.
Andre Drummond is trash. He’s a pretty good test of casual versus deep NBA fans. The guy is really a bad offensive player, can’t guard on the perimeter, and just gets a lot of rebounds but doesn’t make his teams better rebounding teams by him being out there, he just stays down low so much and grabs a ton of boards, the one good area of his name. He should not be included in any kind of big 3. There’s a reason the Cavs couldn’t find a trade for him.


I would be shocked if he gets a big offer from any team this offseason.
 
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Andre Drummond is trash.

The guy has lead the league in rebounding 4 times and has a career 15ppg avg... 2x All-Star..settle down you're overboard.

If he was as hopeless as you're describing him there is no f'ing way Lebron would let him on the team.

No it's not a big 3 either.
 
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The guy has lead the league in rebounding 4 times and has a career 15ppg avg...settle down you're overboard.

If he was as hopeless as you're describing him there is no f'ing way Lebron would let him on the team.

No it's not a big 3 either.
I think his value as a player is a lot lower than people think it is. The rebounds are cool but they’re mostly defensive and he just doesn’t help a teams rebounding numbers when he’s on the court as significantly as you would think. He’s pretty bad at most other areas of the game.

I think the biggest issue with him in my opinion is Andre Drummond thinks Andre Drummond is a top 20 player when that is so clearly not the case and he’s the worst finisher in the league for any big man by far.

After seeing him on my team for so many years Drummond just feels like an empty stats guy. He takes a lot of shots and hits some, and gets some easier defensive rebounds but isn’t the monster that a Rodman was. He’s just not the kind of guy that leads to winning basketball. So, yeah he’s not trash per say, but the Lakers aren’t suddenly OP with this move. The Lakers ideal lineup to me in crunch time has Drummond on the bench and Davis at the 5.
 
Yeah it is clear rebounding is no longer that important in today's NBA, which just feels strange to say out loud. I think this adds to the sort of sham the league has become. Drummond has the #1 rebound rate which makes him an elite specialist in one category, today's NBA just de-values the category with how games are played. Guys just launch 3s. Another reason the game is a joke, though some fans might enjoy 3 pt shoot-outs, to each their own.

My main point is pretty accomplished players are simply getting waived and joining title contenders not to be part of a big 3, but to just buy themselves a ring in whatever lesser role they accept.
 
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yes, it's trash. Guys pulling up and launching 3s from all over the place, rule changes have neutered the defenses, and almost no competitive fire or meaningful rivalries anymore - it's all one big friends and family intramural event now for the most part.
 
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I think his value as a player is a lot lower than people think it is. The rebounds are cool but they’re mostly defensive and he just doesn’t help a teams rebounding numbers when he’s on the court as significantly as you would think. He’s pretty bad at most other areas of the game.

I think the biggest issue with him in my opinion is Andre Drummond thinks Andre Drummond is a top 20 player when that is so clearly not the case and he’s the worst finisher in the league for any big man by far.

After seeing him on my team for so many years Drummond just feels like an empty stats guy. He takes a lot of shots and hits some, and gets some easier defensive rebounds but isn’t the monster that a Rodman was. He’s just not the kind of guy that leads to winning basketball. So, yeah he’s not trash per say, but the Lakers aren’t suddenly OP with this move. The Lakers ideal lineup to me in crunch time has Drummond on the bench and Davis at the 5.

This is very well said.
 
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What harms the NBA’s marketability is that there is almost zero parity and this results in over 60% of the league constantly going into tank mode. This turns off the NFL type of fan that wants to root for a team, and not players.

The way to achieve parity though would be for the NBA to cut down on its bread and butter which is the playoff best of 7 format.

The reason why NFL teams don’t tank in the same fashion as NBA teams is that a one and done tournament means that every participant has a chance to make noise and potentially take it all. A .500 NBA team knows that even if by some miracle they win their opening series, they are not going to beat 4 consecutive better teams in a best of 7. Teams and fans alike buy into this, which creates interest all season long and into the playoffs. NFL teams floating around at 8-8 will make win now moves to get to 10-6, where as a .500 NBA team is a complete disaster and those teams look to unload assets to get to the bottom of the standings and try again.

But the NBA’s primary revenue drivers are regular season gate revenue and playoff TV deals, so cutting down on the amount of playoff games they can sell to the networks is just not going to happen, and the NBA will continue on as is. In fact if anything expansion and further watering down the league is more likely.
 
What harms the NBA’s marketability is that there is almost zero parity and this results in over 60% of the league constantly going into tank mode. This turns off the NFL type of fan that wants to root for a team, and not players.

The way to achieve parity though would be for the NBA to cut down on its bread and butter which is the playoff best of 7 format.

The reason why NFL teams don’t tank in the same fashion as NBA teams is that a one and done tournament means that every participant has a chance to make noise and potentially take it all. A .500 NBA team knows that even if by some miracle they win their opening series, they are not going to beat 4 consecutive better teams in a best of 7. Teams and fans alike buy into this, which creates interest all season long and into the playoffs. NFL teams floating around at 8-8 will make win now moves to get to 10-6, where as a .500 NBA team is a complete disaster and those teams look to unload assets to get to the bottom of the standings and try again.

But the NBA’s primary revenue drivers are regular season gate revenue and playoff TV deals, so cutting down on the amount of playoff games they can sell to the networks is just not going to happen, and the NBA will continue on as is. In fact if anything expansion and further watering down the league is more likely.

Agree with all of that.

But it's a bit of a chicken or the egg. Maybe the regular season ratings, and therefore TV deals and marketing dollars, would be higher if the regular season actually meant something. If teams didn't start tanking halfway through the season. Maybe enough to offset the fewer playoff games.
 
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Agree with all of that.

But it's a bit of a chicken or the egg. Maybe the regular season ratings, and therefore TV deals and marketing dollars, would be higher if the regular season actually meant something. If teams didn't start tanking halfway through the season. Maybe enough to offset the fewer playoff games.

I think it would but from the league’s perspective it is a big risk and one that they are probably not willing to take. All 4 American sports leagues print money, some more than others, but all are doing just fine. You won’t see any dramatic risks to the bottom line to appease the more engaged fans looking for a better product since well watch anyway.
 
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I think it would but from the league’s perspective it is a big risk and one that they are probably not willing to take. All 4 American sports leagues print money, some more than others, but all are doing just fine. You won’t see any dramatic risks to the bottom line to appease the more engaged fans looking for a better product since well watch anyway.

Oh I agree. It's not changing. Ever. As a business, why take a risk when at best, you'll end up with the same revenue.
 
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yes, it's trash. Guys pulling up and launching 3s from all over the place, no defense being played, and almost no competitive fire anymore - it's all one big friends and family intramural event now for the most part.
Which is funny because whenever someone does try hard in a game, or tries to be competitive, the other team will gang up on that guy to stop him until everyone goes back to their nonchalant, passive-aggressive play until late in the 4th qtr when they start trying and ONLY if it's within 10 pts.
 
Which is funny because whenever someone does try hard in a game, or tries to be competitive, the other team will gang up on that guy to stop him until everyone goes back to their nonchalant, passive-aggressive play until late in the 4th qtr when they start trying and ONLY if it's within 10 pts.

Idk if teams were gunuinely mailing it in night in and night out, you would see more parity, but the better teams do win close to 75% of the time.
 
It's been awful. Completely unwatchable. More and more people are finally coming around to it. I don't know why it takes people so long to see this stuff and for a general consensus to be achieved to the point that change is made. Wish it's get back to being compelling. NBA used to be great entertainment. But that was a long time ago in a galaxy far far away.
 
It's been awful. Completely unwatchable. More and more people are finally coming around to it. I don't know why it takes people so long to see this stuff and for a general consensus to be achieved to the point that change is made. Wish it's get back to being compelling. NBA used to be great entertainment. But that was a long time ago in a galaxy far far away.

A Nets-Lakers final with both teams at full strength would be a great watch if you are a fan of the sport. But the average sports fan is not going to get jacked up to root for or against the Nets with Kyrie the Flat Earther who doesn’t feel like the regular season is worth his time or for the Lakers with LeBron, the biggest douche in sports.
 
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A Nets-Lakers final with both teams at full strength would be a great watch if you are a fan of the sport. But the average sports fan is not going to get jacked up to root for or against the Nets with Kyrie the Flat Earther who doesn’t feel like the regular season is worth his time or for the Lakers with LeBron, the biggest douche in sports.

I think a lot of fans just aren't into the super teams approach. I get what you're saying about personalities maybe some of that too. I can't be the only person shaking my head at guys averaging double doubles buying rings. But maybe I am.
 
I think a lot of fans just aren't into the super teams approach. I get what you're saying about personalities maybe some of that too. I can't be the only person shaking my head at guys averaging double doubles buying rings. But maybe I am.

The Super Team approach wouldn’t bother me if there was a chance for these teams to lose. A 7 game series just makes it too tough for major upsets. You turn the playoffs into a best of 3 and it will get very interesting.
 
Andre Drummond is trash. He’s a pretty good test of casual versus deep NBA fans. The guy is really a bad offensive player, can’t guard on the perimeter, and just gets a lot of rebounds but doesn’t make his teams better rebounding teams by him being out there, he just stays down low so much and grabs a ton of boards, the one good area of his name. He should not be included in any kind of big 3. There’s a reason the Cavs couldn’t find a trade for him.


I would be shocked if he gets a big offer from any team this offseason.

Nah hes definitely not trash, in the proper system with right role, he can definitely be Lakers big three together with Lebron and Davis. The Cavs cant find a trade partner since his contract is too big with just 1 year left, and teams have to give up valuable assets to match the contract while he may just walk in off-season.
 
The NBA is pretty amazing to watch right now. Last year's playoffs were very fun.
  • Drummond/Aldridge/Griffin - not going to start or close games for a playoff team, but they add depth. They're not really good (Drummond is the best of them, I suppose), but that doesn't mean they're trash that "Lebron wouldn't let on the team" or whatever is being thrown around. Depth has value.
  • The issue of buyouts is that it allows certain teams (contenders, especially those in desirable markets) to acquire depth pieces outside of all of the restrictions placed on team building (cap, luxury tax, hard cap, 10 day contract limitations, salary matching in trades, the Stepien rule, Bird rights, the numerous exceptions, etc... there's tons).
  • Buyouts are almost never determinative of anything, really. PJ Brown in 2008 comes to mind as someone whose marginal contributions helped his team to a title.
  • From a team building perspective, and ignoring things like your superstar's wants and desires, team building is not about players but about contracts. Buyout guys are universally on negative value contracts (else teams would trade them for value), and tend to be declining players on big contracts. Those players' reputations (at least to casual or non fans) vastly outweigh their actual value.
  • Players taking step back 3s from deep is not an indication that the league is a "joke."
  • 60% of the league is not, in fact, tanking, and recent changes to the draft lottery and the play in tournament (7-10 seeds have a mini-tournament to see who gets the 7 & 8 seeds) meant that it was a seller's market - few teams were willing to tank and trade current value for future value. Exceptions were Orlando (who blew up a perennial slightly below .500 team, finally) and Houston (their owner is dogshit, and Harden pulled a diet Vince Carter).
  • Minnesota should absolutely explore KAT's trade value. Doesn't mean they should trade him, but years (decades, even) of bad decisions have them strapped in as a terrible, expensive team that has a deficit of future assets. At least their new head coach was a smart hire; hopefully he turns out to be a good coach.
  • The league is highly competitive, especially this year where teams are so clustered (both in W-L and point differential). Some games do devolve into half-assed trying, but it's a long season and most games are pretty intense.
  • That said, with the rise in 3 point shooting, pace, and offense generally, scores tend to be more lopsided from game to game, but overall point differentials are not that high (i.e. there is parity).
 
  • Players taking step back 3s from deep is not an indication that the league is a "joke."

I think it's more about the amount of 3s taken per game that has become ridiculous.

Interesting data, the # of 3 pt shots taken per game has risen incrementally substantially each year the last 9 years.

35 3pt shots per game this year.

In 2012 it was 20 3pt shots per game.

 
I think it's more about the amount of 3s taken per game that has become ridiculous.

Interesting data, the # of 3 pt shots taken per game has risen incrementally substantially each year the last 9 years.

35 3pt shots per game this year.

In 2012 it was 20 3pt shots per game.


Its kind of funny how long it took for coaches to do the math on 3 pointers.
 
I think it's more about the amount of 3s taken per game that has become ridiculous.

Interesting data, the # of 3 pt shots taken per game has risen incrementally substantially each year the last 9 years.

35 3pt shots per game this year.

In 2012 it was 20 3pt shots per game.


I used to be bothered by it, but (and it's been a while since I looked at this, so maybe this doesn't hold true), the increase in 3s tends to come at the expense of midrange jump shots and, to a lesser extent, post ups. Midrange jump shots and 3s are basically the same shot, only one is much, much smarter (for most players in most circumstances) for a host of reasons. And most post ups are not the glorious Hakeem/McHale/Al Jefferson beauties, but the Chuckwagon-esque butt bumping until there's a foul or turnaround J. Yuck.

However, your post reminded me that the NBA has a terrible, terrible trend - BS foul drawing. Harden is the poster child, but guys like Lowry and (especially) Trey Young are masters are playing to the foul. It's garbage play, and the league needs to do a better job of cleaning up rules and refs that allow it. They've been proactive in the past with rule changes (very little hack-a-Shaq stuff now, although it's still there), so I'm a little hopeful. But it's almost as bad as the college block/charge calls, which are quite literally the worst thing in the universe.
 
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Yeah it is clear rebounding is no longer that important in today's NBA, which just feels strange to say out loud. I think this adds to the sort of sham the league has become. Drummond has the #1 rebound rate which makes him an elite specialist in one category, today's NBA just de-values the category with how games are played. Guys just launch 3s. Another reason the game is a joke, though some fans might enjoy 3 pt shoot-outs, to each their own.

My main point is pretty accomplished players are simply getting waived and joining title contenders not to be part of a big 3, but to just buy themselves a ring in whatever lesser role they accept.

Barkley did it in Houston, Malone and payton did it for the lakers. They all failed. It’s not new, but it is getting out of control imo.
 
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