2024 NBA Season

[jakelyson]

Which teams are still not in the top 8 of their conference that you expect to be there? In the East, we have the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat while Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers made it already. Or is the Chicago Bulls line-up not worthy of a playoff spot?

The west is too crowded with good teams. Probably only 3 to 4 teams do not have the potential of landing in the top 8. Sad to see the Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers are losing most of their games now. There are still 70+ games for each team though, plenty of time but they better start showing and making necessary adjustments now.

In the west, I would have liked to see the Lakers and the trailblazers to be in the top eight positions. But at the same time, it is also true that they have not played well. And the performance that they have shown, it is honestly not expected to see them in the top eight. I did want them to be up there, but I cannot say that they deserve to be up there.

I think the situation in the east is well summarised by you. Chicago Bulls, and Miami Heat both were expected to be in the top eight in my opinion. I want to say that the Chicago Bulls lineup are not widely to play in the playoffs. But at the same time, they also did not play like they are worth it, to be honest.

Without Lonzo Ball, I do not think that the Chicago Bulls have any expectations to reach the Eastern Conference Finals. It is not that the other players are not good but the competition in the East just got bumped up. Prime Tatum and Brown in Celtics, Prime Giannis in Bucks. Then there's Harden and Embiid for 76ers and the trio in Brooklyn Net. The Bulls can still reach the playoffs but without Ball, they cannot move past the first round.

Blazers and Jazz are now feeling the pressure of the real competition, especially on the west side. They needed the right adjustment
to keep their campaign to move forward to the playoff.

Or they just need their main man back. For the Trail Blazers, they need Damian Lillard to get back and be fully healthy.

For the Jazz, they need Mike Conley. They are starless and losing Mike Conley because of injury really hurt their offense and defense. They are still performing really well though, just not enough to beat a really good team. Unlike before, they still have a chance to beat star-laden team.

They have won their last 2 games but it's not enough to get up to rank 10 in the western conference because their rivals there are already won double digits way ahead of them. For now, they are getting serious and might improve their rank in the upcoming weeks before the end of this year and might gonna get different positive outcomes after that because they are starting to play effectively these past few days. LBJ even surpassed Magic Johnson in all-time Assists and he could still play and stretch that record furthermore to be able to give the upcoming NBA stars to even come close to it.

It is worth noting that some teams perform about the same at the moment as there is only 2 wins difference between the teams in 10th place and 13th place in the Western Conference standings. So if Davis and LeBron stay healthy as long as possible, the Lakers will still have a good chance to reach the playoffs, even despite their poor performance at the beginning of the season.

That is a big IF though. For Davis and Lebron, it is not if they will get injured. It is when. They are very injury prone that every time, Davis or Lebron have a hard fall to the floor, fans are praying they get up and are not injured. 71 games still left in the season, that is still a lot of games. My hope is that they don't get long-lasting injuries that will sideline them for months. If one of them gets sidelined for a long time, prime AD is getting wasted. They need to max his playing time without risking him getting injured to maximize his value on his prime years.

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[gagux123]

We cannot deny that Davis is prone to injury, and even if he is one of the greatest players but he is still part of the team, and we know what would happen to the Lakers if he gets injured again. The Lakers just gambled for Davis and traded their young players for him, and why would the Pelicans trade him? That's because of the said issue, he is prone to injury.

There was one time that the Lakers won the championship because Davis was healthy at that time, but in the succeeding seasons, it was all struggle for the Lakers as Davis was injured most of the time.

This season, Davis is quite healthy, so let's hope he'll stay that way.

Well, I also share this kind of view. AD was one of the standout players of previous NBA seasons, I believe that in the current scenario he is still an important player for the Lakers, and that depending on his situation, he could be a key player for the team, along with other players, such as e.g. LJ, Beverley, Schröder, Westbrook and others
I believe that in the future the Lakers team will be able to have a significant improvement in the season if they continue with this performance.

[harizen]

The Lakers just gambled for Davis and traded their young players for him, and why would the Pelicans trade him? That's because of the said issue, he is prone to injury.

That's not the reason mate why Anthony Davis was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers:

a) Anthony Davis requested a trade and he shows interest to be part of the Lakers team. New Orleans Pelicans is suc*s in surrounding Davis with a good bunch of role-player teammates for years that's why it just makes sense for him to ask for a trade.

b) Lakers just did a good job of trading their young players because having a young core seems not effective to them. Honestly, they tried to build a young core team and give chances to their young players to show what they got. The Lakers are playing with full young cores for several seasons and they didn't even make it to the playoffs until LeBron James came to the franchise. The Lakers are also taking advantage of LeBron's still on prime-performance that's why they try to acquire a Superstar-level to be part of the team and it's a timing that Davis wants to be a Laker. The Celtics even try to talk with Davis but he's not interested.

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

And the Sacramento Kings win again, I think they are for real this season, 7 players in double digit, means the ball is being shared equally.

I really like how they play defense on the last 9 minutes of the game when the lead was cut down to single digit. Give to Davion Mitchell for putting a good defense on Zach Lavine, although he scored 41 points, Davion make him work with all the points he had to make specially in the 4th quarter.

[OgNasty]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

[Sanitough]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

Yes, I saw the game and he was very efficient. Davis just unleashed his true self, dropping this kind of stats will give him a shot of winning the season's MVP. Lakers just keep winning guys, this is a good sign that their system was created and it's very effective.

[Yamifoud]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

Yes, I saw the game and he was very efficient. Davis just unleashed his true self, dropping this kind of stats will give him a shot of winning the season's MVP. Lakers just keep winning guys, this is a good sign that their system was created and it's very effective.

That's the best game of Davis so far this season, Dropping 55 points is already impressive, but adding 17 rebounds? come on, this guy was possessed, he will be playing like this, Lakers will likely win the NBA Finals again.

[Yogee]

It looks like the Pelicans are slowly showing their strength as well and that's without Ingram. Zion probably enjoying himself as one of the team's facilitators much like how Giannis is with the Bucks. That kid has some court vision and he will be a serious threat to any team if he could add some of the craftiness and touch of big guys like Jokic.

[yazher]

That's the best game of Davis so far this season, Dropping 55 points is already impressive, but adding 17 rebounds? come on, this guy was possessed, he will be playing like this, Lakers will likely win the NBA Finals again.

I haven't seen their game today but I watch the highlights and it is as if Davis has become his old self again he is completely outscoring his rival in that game and Porzingis cannot stop him from scoring in the paint as well. The thing is, he always gets a good feed from his teammates especially when he is close to the basket. Most likely if they played such a high-level performance, there's no problem with them climbing to the playoff tree and competing in the NBA playoffs this season, and with this another win, they climb up to number 12 in the western conference.

[Jating]

That's the best game of Davis so far this season, Dropping 55 points is already impressive, but adding 17 rebounds? come on, this guy was possessed, he will be playing like this, Lakers will likely win the NBA Finals again.

I haven't seen their game today but I watch the highlights and it is as if Davis has become his old self again he is completely outscoring his rival in that game and Porzingis cannot stop him from scoring in the paint as well. The thing is, he always gets a good feed from his teammates especially when he is close to the basket. Most likely if they played such a high-level performance, there's no problem with them climbing to the playoff tree and competing in the NBA playoffs this season, and with this another win, they climb up to number 12 in the western conference.

Right, it seems that Davis has found his second wind in his career, although he is still young, he seems to be damage and prone to injury.

But in the last 10 games, he has rejuvenated his career even has a string of 30+ points and 10+ rebounds. Now he has 55 points with 17 boards. We haven't seen the numbers for a big man for years. Not sure Dwight Howard did it the last time or Shaq, but definitely, in the last couple of seasons, this number is unheard of. Now they are slowly climbing up in ranks so that is a good thing to see for the Lakers  But they still need to at least go number 8 before the all star break.

[LogitechMouse]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

Yes, I saw the game and he was very efficient. Davis just unleashed his true self, dropping this kind of stats will give him a shot of winning the season's MVP. Lakers just keep winning guys, this is a good sign that their system was created and it's very effective.

That's the best game of Davis so far this season, Dropping 55 points is already impressive, but adding 17 rebounds? come on, this guy was possessed, he will be playing like this, Lakers will likely win the NBA Finals again.

From 2-8 to now 8-2. I'm sure Coach Ham is very happy with the improvement of his team.

Aside from that, he's happy that he's successful in transitioning Davis from a Power Forward to an efficient Center and now is dominating the league in these past games. Davis performance tonight is the first Laker to do a 50-point 15-rebound and 70% FG since Wilt in the 60's. I thought that he will stop and will be less efficient after those 3 30-point games, but it seems that I'm wrong and he is still doing it. I watched the highlights and his poster against Porzingis and Gafford is just out of this world.

Now with regards to them winning the NBA Finals, they must climb the ladder first. Yes, they are 8-2 on their last 10 games but still they are now at the 12th spot, and nothing has changed. The good thing though is that the Lakers are only 2 games behind the 6th seeded Warriors, so every win is very important for the teams in the West because their standings are really close. Just look at the Jazz where they got the top spot but after losing consecutive games, they are now on the 9th seed.

[Distinctin]

Now with regards to them winning the NBA Finals, they must climb the ladder first. Yes, they are 8-2 on their last 10 games but still they are now at the 12th spot, and nothing has changed. The good thing though is that the Lakers are only 2 games behind the 6th seeded Warriors, so every win is very important for the teams in the West because their standings are really close. Just look at the Jazz where they got the top spot but after losing consecutive games, they are now on the 9th seed.

As long as they will qualify for the playoffs, there's a huge chance that they'll win the championship. The Lakers are doing pretty well, great teams are beaten by the Lakers and they are very happy with each other, a happy coach, and happy players, that's the recipe for success. Though it's still too early to conclude I'm already seeing a great future for this roster.

[Kelvinid]

Now with regards to them winning the NBA Finals, they must climb the ladder first. Yes, they are 8-2 on their last 10 games but still they are now at the 12th spot, and nothing has changed. The good thing though is that the Lakers are only 2 games behind the 6th seeded Warriors, so every win is very important for the teams in the West because their standings are really close. Just look at the Jazz where they got the top spot but after losing consecutive games, they are now on the 9th seed.

As long as they will qualify for the playoffs, there's a huge chance that they'll win the championship. The Lakers are doing pretty well, great teams are beaten by the Lakers and they are very happy with each other, a happy coach, and happy players, that's the recipe for success. Though it's still too early to conclude I'm already seeing a great future for this roster.

Still a long way to go, they are still not in the position now that will ensure them a playoff spot. It's better if they will not anymore in the rank that requires to participate in the play-in tournament, that means they need to be at least in the top 6. Well, with Lebron's experience, he can always carry the team, and with Davis playing like he is on his prime, they'll be a problem to their opponents.

[Oasisman]

Now with regards to them winning the NBA Finals, they must climb the ladder first. Yes, they are 8-2 on their last 10 games but still they are now at the 12th spot, and nothing has changed. The good thing though is that the Lakers are only 2 games behind the 6th seeded Warriors, so every win is very important for the teams in the West because their standings are really close. Just look at the Jazz where they got the top spot but after losing consecutive games, they are now on the 9th seed.

As long as they will qualify for the playoffs, there's a huge chance that they'll win the championship. The Lakers are doing pretty well, great teams are beaten by the Lakers and they are very happy with each other, a happy coach, and happy players, that's the recipe for success. Though it's still too early to conclude I'm already seeing a great future for this roster.

Too early to tell, but I have to agree. It seems like Westbrook embracing his new role is now finally clicking. He have to give up his scoring opportunity to help his team win, with extra efforts assisting, defending, and other hustle that can't be listed on the stat sheet.
While AD has suddenly came back to life, when everyone thought he'd gradually slowdown and eventually become washed earlier than expected, but based on the games he have showed currently, it seems like he's becoming more improved than his last performances.
Lakers fan suddenly came back to life.

[danherbias07]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

Yeah! Damn, he is not really stopping from being hot.
Porzingis and Gafford were there protecting the rim and yet AD was making everything in the painted area. There was even a moment when the dunking competition was heating up between both teams. 
All I could say is, it was a fun game. Very competitive. AD not trying to lose which is cool.
I bet the fans watching in DC were all satisfied with every penny they paid for the ticket.

[Baofeng]

Anthony Davis just put in the best game of the year in helping the Lakers beat the Wizards 130 to 119. Anthony Davis had 55 points and 17 rebounds on only 30 shots. LeBron had a pretty good night as well with 29 points. It was all Davis tonight though as he showed how dominant he can be. I hope he can stay healthy and keep this streak rolling.

Yeah! Damn, he is not really stopping from being hot.
Porzingis and Gafford were there protecting the rim and yet AD was making everything in the painted area. There was even a moment when the dunking competition was heating up between both teams. 
All I could say is, it was a fun game. Very competitive. AD not trying to lose which is cool.
I bet the fans watching in DC were all satisfied with every penny they paid for the ticket.

Yes, it was very competitive game specially in the 4th quarter,  and all throughout, AD vs KP, good matchup but it was obviously AD dominating him KP and Gafford inside the paint.

There were even a moment in the game wherein AD brings the ball coast to coast and score a 3 point play.

I will be very much satisfied watching the game in DC, even if I'm a fan of the Wizards,  .

[carlisle1]

Now with regards to them winning the NBA Finals, they must climb the ladder first. Yes, they are 8-2 on their last 10 games but still they are now at the 12th spot, and nothing has changed. The good thing though is that the Lakers are only 2 games behind the 6th seeded Warriors, so every win is very important for the teams in the West because their standings are really close. Just look at the Jazz where they got the top spot but after losing consecutive games, they are now on the 9th seed.

As long as they will qualify for the playoffs, there's a huge chance that they'll win the championship. The Lakers are doing pretty well, great teams are beaten by the Lakers and they are very happy with each other, a happy coach, and happy players, that's the recipe for success. Though it's still too early to conclude I'm already seeing a great future for this roster.

Too early to tell, but I have to agree. It seems like Westbrook embracing his new role is now finally clicking. He have to give up his scoring opportunity to help his team win, with extra efforts assisting, defending, and other hustle that can't be listed on the stat sheet.
While AD has suddenly came back to life, when everyone thought he'd gradually slowdown and eventually become washed earlier than expected, but based on the games he have showed currently, it seems like he's becoming more improved than his last performances.
Lakers fan suddenly came back to life.

Nothing to say with how you are pointing the way both Davis and Westbrook impress the Lakers fans, the expectations from both of them
are now being filled and they are really playing real game and not just for the stats.

I like how coach Ham gives them the credit, though it's not just them and LeBron, but as a whole, Lakers team is really improving now
they adjust with both defense and offense that giving them the win.

We might see more wins for them if they will continue playing without any injury. The season is still early and there are a lot of possibilities
to happen, looking forward to more healthy competition.

[mirakal]

We might see more wins for them if they will continue playing without any injury.

Most definitely as their performance will not change anymore with the same roster. Why they are already good now because of the right adjustment they made and since they find it working, so there's no need to adjust again.

The season is still early and there are a lot of possibilities
to happen, looking forward to more healthy competition.

No one would hope for an injury as we all like to see a healthy competition, Lakers without Davis is not gonna win in the playoffs, so let's hope that Davis will finish the season healthy.

[Reid]

I think they have done multiple experiments with or without AD and Lebron and we know what the result is, meaning either can't be missed as it will be a disaster.

Maybe. It could be the lack of shooters on why the effectiveness is so low. It's difficult for them to spread the floor and we saw how congested it is below the rim when AD is trying to penetrate, thankfully Lebron's shooting is getting better too.

And they found the perfect the combination of just bringing Westbrook at the bench. I like to point out the Pat is also being aggressive as far as his offense goes, he is shooting good in 3 and some dribble penetration. I guess there is a sense of urgency for them or for the players to really perform very well because there could be missed opportunity or at least they will know where to fit in when Davis or Lebron is out.

Or because they can be traded anytime, that is why performance should be in higher level.

The season is still early and there are a lot of possibilities
to happen, looking forward to more healthy competition.

No one would hope for an injury as we all like to see a healthy competition, Lakers without Davis is not gonna win in the playoffs, so let's hope that Davis will finish the season healthy.

Yes. That very obvious. This is like their bubble championship where he said, "It's all on me." after a loss against the Heat.

[YuginKadoya]

They were criticized hard, it's just normal to see them playing hard to win to prove that they are not a bad team. It's okay if they will not meet our expectations but at least they will be a competitive team this season. With or without Lebron, I think hey are very competitive, as long as they have Davis, Lakers is going to be a tough opponent.

The Lakers are one of the inconsistent teams at the beginning of the season, which was 5 consecutive losses before they won against the Denver Nuggets, for me what I am seeing for the Lakers they are getting pretty much good on the last games they have with or without Lebron James, playing for the game, we all knew what Anthony Davis can do, Lonnie Walker IV and sometimes Austin Reaves is pretty much breaking though with their potential, For me if it weren't for Anthony Davis the Lakers is not really a remarkable team,

When Lebron James can not play and have an injury, many in the Lakers have to stand up in their game Anthony Davis has a great time dealing with the defense and offense inside while Russell Westbrick is showing what he can still do, while I have seen Austin Reaves making progress for the team, if this continues I think Lebron James would like to have companions to rely on because right now I really think Lebron James doesn't care anymore, maybe he is more focus on getting that dumb record to be break than to win the game, for me pretty much with or without Lebron Lakers have now know their chemistry,

That's what Phil Jackson said and maybe he was correct on saying he has more hope to Westbrook than him.

Lebron James has a target for this season, and he will not stop playing until he breaks that record for me I have seen his worst and for me right now this is his genuine target right now nothing more, and he doesn't really care if they could win the championship or not, as long as he is able to achieve that target record, he is just good in getting those, and lastly just waiting for his kids to make it to the NBA and play with him, pretty much he doesn't care if the team would likely win a championship or not, but I think if his kids would be playing with him, I think that will be his boost to eagerness in getting the championship again,

I understand that you look at the Warriors that way and seems interesting for you to see that they are taking their time to prepare their players, and for the record, I have no doubts at all that they can still reach the playoffs this season. But, I doubt that they will have that chance to at least defend their title on the Finals, not with the current roster they have now. We never know, at the end of the day, only one of us will get it right

Well, it is still too early, to say the least, for me, this is what I am seeing what the Warriors are doing, and for me, If Jonathan Kuminga will get used to playing an overall minutes time then I think he will be on top shape, for me Kuminga has the speed and athleticism in being a mini Giannis Antetoukoumpo and if he gets to use in making the right decision inside the court, he can be an elite player someday, and right now he is on target with his three's for me in no time this 19 years old will surely make a breakthrough, if not this season, the next season of the NBA,