The 2013-14 NBA season

dcfaithful

81 wrote:

Jazz blow. :?

and we probably will for a couple of seasons... we're stacked with young talent. The one thing Utah has on their side right now is time. I think we'll be a top 8 team again in 3 seasons.

Having said that, how long do we let Corbin increase his losing record with Utah? :? New coach next year?

dcfaithful

Much needed win last night against New Orleans for Utah.. Between last night and Feb 1, they have 11 home games and 4 road games. Utah needs to make good on all the home court advantage and win some fucking games, damnit!

South of Seattle

dcfaithful wrote:

Much needed win last night against New Orleans for Utah.. Between last night and Feb 1, they have 11 home games and 4 road games. Utah needs to make good on all the home court advantage and win some fucking games, damnit!

Hey you guys are .500 now

But you know who's on top of the Western Conference now

81

How the hell are the hawks losing :?

polaris_x

81 wrote:

How the hell are the hawks losing :?

it's like chuck said - team has no half court offense ... all isolation plays ... i watched the first quarter last nite and it was ugly ... decided to go see mission impossible instead ...

81

polaris_x wrote:

81 wrote:

How the hell are the hawks losing :?

it's like chuck said - team has no half court offense ... all isolation plays ... i watched the first quarter last nite and it was ugly ... decided to go see mission impossible instead ...

they got the lob play.

joe johnson is over rated...or at least way over paid.

they have no heart

but how the hell do you beat miami a couple of days ago, then lose to them with lebron and wade on the sidelines. makes zero sense.

polaris_x

81 wrote:

they got the lob play.

joe johnson is over rated...or at least way over paid.

they have no heart

but how the hell do you beat miami a couple of days ago, then lose to them with lebron and wade on the sidelines. makes zero sense.

jj is definitely overpaid ... probably the worst contract in basketball now ... they need to play tmac more ... atlanta also beat miami on the second night of a back to back for the heat ... hawks were fresh ...

81

if you can't beat miami without lebron and wade....with as much talent as the hawks have on the roster...it's time to make a change.


not sure how much tracey played last night, but he did bang his knee vs. the bulls a couple of nights ago.

The Juggler

well demarcus cousins got his first coach fired this week:

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/ ... -as-coach/

westphal clearly should have handled this better but cousins' is such a punk. i'm glad the sixers didn't draft his immature ass last year.

81

The Juggler wrote:

well demarcus cousins got his first coach fired this week:

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/ ... -as-coach/

westphal clearly should have handled this better but cousins' is such a punk. i'm glad the sixers didn't draft his immature ass last year.

next up....hawks coach

The Juggler

81 wrote:

The Juggler wrote:

well demarcus cousins got his first coach fired this week:

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/ ... -as-coach/

westphal clearly should have handled this better but cousins' is such a punk. i'm glad the sixers didn't draft his immature ass last year.

next up....hawks coach

the hawks are frauds every year

81

in other news.....D Howard has more reboounds than anybody but Rodman (96/97 season) in the first 7 games of a season

Thoughts_Arrive

Congratulations to LeBron James for getting engaged. His fiancé now leads the family with 1 ring.

81

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

Congratulations to LeBron James for getting engaged. His fiancé now leads the family with 1 ring.

The Fixer

81 wrote:

Thoughts_Arrive wrote:

Congratulations to LeBron James for getting engaged. His fiancé now leads the family with 1 ring.

I think the heat are genius. Prentending their guys are injured to rest them during this condensed schedule. gonna pay off come playoff time . they are gonna win it all

more teams should be resting guys during these back to back (and sometimes another back)

81

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/ba ... 7181.story

K.C. Johnson

10:58 p.m. CST, January 5, 2012
In the 1997-98 season, as Michael Jordan moved from 34 years old to 35 and from five championships to six, he averaged 38.8 minutes per game.

How come nobody questioned the Zen Master about overtaxing his stars?

Phil Jackson leads Tom Thibodeau in coaching championships 11 to one, which Thibodeau earned as an assistant with the Celtics. Those Celtics, it should be noted, played the 31-year-old Paul Pierce and the 33-year-old Ray Allen 35.9 minutes per game en route to the 2008 title.

The point is: Stars get leaned on in the NBA. It's a time-tested practice, used last season by the Mavericks as the 32-year-old Dirk Nowitzki logged 34.3 minutes per game and even the 37-year-old Jason Kidd averaged 33.2.

Derrick Rose is 23 years old. He is averaging 36.9 minutes per game this season and, at age 22 last season, logged 37.4 minutes of playing time. That's less than Jackson played Jordan when Jordan was 12 years older.

Luol Deng is Thibodeau's true ironman, playing an average of 39.1 minutes at age 25 last season. This season, Thibodeau has increased that to 39.4 minutes per game, including a staggering stretch of 39 minutes, 35 seconds consecutively over two games Tuesday and Wednesday.

How does Deng feel about his workload?

"I love it," Deng told the Tribune. "It has helped my game."

For truer comparison's sake, Jordan averaged 40 minutes per game at Rose's age of 23 and 39 minutes at Deng's age of 26.

But this season's compressed 66-game schedule is different, right? Indeed, the Bulls are in a brutal stretch of four games in five nights, seven games in nine nights and nine in 12. Such stretches will challenge every team this season.

And how did the Jeff Van Gundy-led and Thibodeau-assisted Knicks handle the 1998-99 season, the last time a lockout shortened the schedule? The 27-year-old Allan Houston averaged 36.3 minutes in the 50-game season. More tellingly, creaky center Patrick Ewing, at age 36, played 34.2 minutes per game.

The Knicks advanced to the NBA Finals, losing to the Spurs.

Thibodeau isn't going to change. The same style that pleased fans en route to a league-best 62 victories and a surprise trip to the Eastern Conference finals is in place thus far this season. He treats every game the same, as a winnable moment, a chance to play a complete, 48-minute game.

The Bulls are the rare team that goes two deep at each position. And Thibodeau is the rare coach who consistently uses a 10-man rotation. But Rose and Deng are going to play — and play a lot.

"I'm fine with it," Rose said. "I told you, that's why I worked so hard in the offseason. I ran everywhere, worked on my conditioning. I felt a bit beat up at the end of last season, but that's because of the physical demands, not the minutes. I worked hard in the weight room, preparing my body for this season."

The Bulls took Thursday off in Orlando. Even last season, a normal 82-game marathon, Thibodeau rarely practiced on the road and never practiced following back-to-back games. He demands mental preparation and intensity at all times. But you don't sit on NBA benches for 21 seasons without recognizing the physical demands and adjusting accordingly.

"One of the biggest responsibilities as a head coach is knowing how to pace your team," Thibodeau said.

Accordingly, the Bulls will spend as much time in hotel ballrooms this season as a corporate businessmen, staging walkthroughs. They will become almost as bleary-eyed as Thibodeau breaking down game film on off-days.

But one reason Thibodeau can afford to ride his go-to players on game days is because of what he does on off-days.

"The thought that he pushes players too hard is laughable," veteran reserve Brian Scalabrine said. "He has everything planned out."

As for those who say Rose shouldn't have been in the game when he suffered his elbow injury, just ask the Lakers about double-digit leads with four minutes left. On Christmas Day, Mike Brown had three starters, including Kobe Bryant, and two key reserves in when the Lakers led by 11 with 3:44 remaining.

The Bulls won.

Granted, the Bulls' lead stood at 14 points when Rose went down. But the Pistons had been within 12 points 30 seconds before Rose's injury, which marked the first stoppage of play in that span.

It's valid to question why Rose remained in for the 2:23, although obviously athletic trainer Fred Tedeschi cleared him. The only counter to that remains: This is Thibodeau's way.

Last season, LeBron James averaged 38.8 minutes per game, Dwyane Wade logged 37.2 and Chris Bosh checked in at 36.3.

"Hey, Erik Spoelstra. How come you play your stars so much?"

Everyone does.

The Fixer

but the heat are sitting guys out for games. faking injuries.

it further proves how bad the nba is, but it's smart as hell. why make your stars play 4-5 meaningless games in a week??

more teams should do this.

Wobbie

mavericks going to the white house.....except for delonte west. he's banned. probably a good call.

polaris_x

The Fixer wrote:

but the heat are sitting guys out for games. faking injuries.

it further proves how bad the nba is, but it's smart as hell. why make your stars play 4-5 meaningless games in a week??

more teams should do this.

especially if you are expected to go deep in the playoffs ...

81

polaris_x wrote:

The Fixer wrote:

but the heat are sitting guys out for games. faking injuries.

it further proves how bad the nba is, but it's smart as hell. why make your stars play 4-5 meaningless games in a week??

more teams should do this.

especially if you are expected to go deep in the playoffs ...

sitting healthy players in jan. is fraudulent. i'd be pissed if i bought bulls tickets and D rose was on teh bench with a fake injury.... :x