2025 NBA Season

[ChiBitCTy]

These Chicago Bulls are frustrating. I can’t believe I didn’t put money on the Milwaukee Bucks tonight as they were -4.5 favorites, and the Bulls per usual can’t perform against good teams, especially the Bucks whom might be the best team in the East. No Lavine tonight was difficult but this was just straight embarrassing.

[dwyane36]

....
I think John Wall is a better basketball player at this stage in their careers and would likely do more than Westbrook could,

He probably is but I'm talking from a team player perspective. I think Westbrook is better than him in that regard.

I wouldn't say that Westbrook is a team player because sometimes he doesn't worry about losing the ball on the court. I mean, he's more concerned about his stats than the team's final score. For example, there was a game in which he made 10 turnovers trying to make another triple-double, and the problem is that this was not the only case this season.

[danherbias07]

Came here for discussion of the teams as I am looking for insights how they will be performing inside the court. Betting a lot this season. So small clues would help.   Sometimes you can get valuable insights from the eyes of the bettors here that you can't read from the sports websites. People here are very active with what they have to say, I can say that.

Welcome to the NBA thread bro. Enjoy. It's true, a lot of insights here came from fans that had been following the game for years so yes, you will find a lot of helpful tips if you are betting. Also, check the other thread for more insights and some good tips from other members.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5091185.0

Jazz almost lose that game against the Grizzlies. What are they doing? No Ja Morant, no Dillon Brooks. That should have been a blowout game if they played great defense. They are known for it but yet they lack the defensive energy now, maybe because of their losing streak and the effect of the bad loss against the Warriors.
Anyway, they won but it went overtime. Grizzlies are strong on both main and bench players. The playoffs will be more entertaining.

[LogitechMouse]

These Chicago Bulls are frustrating. I can’t believe I didn’t put money on the Milwaukee Bucks tonight as they were -4.5 favorites, and the Bulls per usual can’t perform against good teams, especially the Bucks whom might be the best team in the East. No Lavine tonight was difficult but this was just straight embarrassing.

I feel sorry for the Chicago Bulls this season like so much sorry for them.

They are at the top at the start and at the mid of the season and even reached top 1 and DeRozan has been a candidate for the MVP as well. Now that we are approaching the end of the season, injuries here and there. Lonzo, LaVine and Caruso have injuries. 3 out of their 5 main players are injured.

I still remember when I said that its good that the Bulls aren't facing any injuries but I was wrong. Their key players got injured at the worst time possible and now the playoffs is coming, I doubt that they can win in the first round against whoever team they will face with their key players out.
The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament. The Eastern Conference's top 10 also is already there as well. Now lets just wait for the last games to be over and watch the play-in. Lakers are out.

[onetwostep]

The Milwaukee Bucks played very well, I thought they would win the game, but I didn't think it would make such a difference. For the Bulls, DeRozan stood out with his 40-point performance, but the other players on the team didn't contribute much to the score and it was a tough game for the Bulls.
Again, the whole team played well in the Bucks, if they continue like this, they can get very good results in the upcoming matches

[OgNasty]

The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament. The Eastern Conference's top 10 also is already there as well. Now lets just wait for the last games to be over and watch the play-in. Lakers are out.

I wouldn't have thought that was possible at the beginning of the year.  Crazy that when the team needed him the most, LeBron is on the sidelines because he rolled his ankle.  At least Westbrook is out there fighting for his team.  Seems pretty typical of what the haters have come to expect when times get tough.  I don't want to believe that the NBA is getting passed to a new generation, but this Lakers team doing as bad as they did this year is a pretty good indicator.  Now we watch and see if LeBron's strategy of sitting out games while he has a 0.1 points per game lead over Joel Embiid works out for him.

[Yogee]

....
I think John Wall is a better basketball player at this stage in their careers and would likely do more than Westbrook could,

He probably is but I'm talking from a team player perspective. I think Westbrook is better than him in that regard.

I wouldn't say that Westbrook is a team player because sometimes he doesn't worry about losing the ball on the court. I mean, he's more concerned about his stats than the team's final score. For example, there was a game in which he made 10 turnovers trying to make another triple-double, and the problem is that this was not the only case this season.

Don't get me wrong. I am comparing him with John Wall in the "team player" department.

The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament...

I wouldn't have thought that was possible at the beginning of the year.  Crazy that when the team needed him the most, LeBron is on the sidelines because he rolled his ankle.  At least Westbrook is out there fighting for his team.  Seems pretty typical of what the haters have come to expect when times get tough.

I don't know about the hating stuff but there are also a lot of people who honestly thought Lakers would struggle since the beginning of the season because of how the roster was built or assembled. I had my doubts as well but I kind of expected them to make the playoffs or play in tournament.

I don't want to believe that the NBA is getting passed to a new generation, but this Lakers team doing as bad as they did this year is a pretty good indicator.

Maybe two or three years from now before we can truly say the torch has passed.

Now we watch and see if LeBron's strategy of sitting out games while he has a 0.1 points per game lead over Joel Embiid works out for him.

Isn't it the other way around now? 30.4 for Embiid while 30.3 for James.

It would look probably look bad on him if he goes for the scoring title for the remaining games. He'll take most of the shots for sure and probably ignore if they win or not.

[yazher]

I wouldn't have thought that was possible at the beginning of the year.  Crazy that when the team needed him the most, LeBron is on the sidelines because he rolled his ankle.  At least Westbrook is out there fighting for his team.  Seems pretty typical of what the haters have come to expect when times get tough.  I don't want to believe that the NBA is getting passed to a new generation, but this Lakers team doing as bad as they did this year is a pretty good indicator.  Now we watch and see if LeBron's strategy of sitting out games while he has a 0.1 points per game lead over Joel Embiid works out for him.

Now it's finally over for them and there will be no chance to get the championship this season better luck next year for them. Can't wait to watch playoff games we are a few games away to watch it once again and it could be any team from both coasts to win the championship this year and most likely the Suns have a strong or high chance to win this year's western conference championship if the Memphis Grizzlies won't have a chance against them in the playoffs.

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament. The Eastern Conference's top 10 also is already there as well. Now lets just wait for the last games to be over and watch the play-in. Lakers are out.

I wouldn't have thought that was possible at the beginning of the year.  Crazy that when the team needed him the most, LeBron is on the sidelines because he rolled his ankle.  At least Westbrook is out there fighting for his team.  Seems pretty typical of what the haters have come to expect when times get tough.  I don't want to believe that the NBA is getting passed to a new generation, but this Lakers team doing as bad as they did this year is a pretty good indicator.  Now we watch and see if LeBron's strategy of sitting out games while he has a 0.1 points per game lead over Joel Embiid works out for him.

I think it's more of the Lakers already giving up their playoff hopes that's why they opt to sit Lebron. So it's officially over, not sure how James are going to take this because for sure the haters are going at him at his social media accounts. It's just bad chemistry in the beginning including the coaching staff. Hopefully this will fuel him next year, and remain with the Lakers and shuffle their players again to established a playoff contender team.

[karabiber]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

[Yaunfitda]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

The Lakers predicament is already a given fact, it's just a matter of time before it will be official that they will not make it to the playoffs this year.

For the Suns, it's going to be interesting how far they will go this season. They put up a season best in their franchise history and hopefully they can make it to the finals again and at least have CP3 his first ring in his storied career.

[magneto]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

The Lakers are honestly so bad this season, it's not funny.

There is a real chance that LeBron/AD leaves this offseason through a trade of sorts. I'm not sure why any other team would take them but they would potentially offer some upside for championship contenders that have the cap space.

Either way, at least the other L.A. team (Clippers) will be making the play-in tournament. Hopefully they can win a few series.

[ChiBitCTy]

These Chicago Bulls are frustrating. I can’t believe I didn’t put money on the Milwaukee Bucks tonight as they were -4.5 favorites, and the Bulls per usual can’t perform against good teams, especially the Bucks whom might be the best team in the East. No Lavine tonight was difficult but this was just straight embarrassing.

I feel sorry for the Chicago Bulls this season like so much sorry for them.

They are at the top at the start and at the mid of the season and even reached top 1 and DeRozan has been a candidate for the MVP as well. Now that we are approaching the end of the season, injuries here and there. Lonzo, LaVine and Caruso have injuries. 3 out of their 5 main players are injured.

I still remember when I said that its good that the Bulls aren't facing any injuries but I was wrong. Their key players got injured at the worst time possible and now the playoffs is coming, I doubt that they can win in the first round against whoever team they will face with their key players out.
The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament. The Eastern Conference's top 10 also is already there as well. Now lets just wait for the last games to be over and watch the play-in. Lakers are out.

Yeah it sucks but here’s the thing, the Bulls for the past 10 years or so have been terrible and lead under terrible leadership, now the Bulls are at least at a point where they’ve now got competent management and coaching. They’ve got to start somewhere and they are now FINALLY on their way to being a competitive team. You’ve got to have a mega star to win a championship and they don’t have that so it’s honestly expected.

[Pamadar]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

The Lakers predicament is already a given fact, it's just a matter of time before it will be official that they will not make it to the playoffs this year.

For the Suns, it's going to be interesting how far they will go this season. They put up a season best in their franchise history and hopefully they can make it to the finals again and at least have CP3 his first ring in his storied career.

What a good accomplishment being added to the Sun's franchise. Moving to the next round will be more exciting

lots of tough competitors who also got the same chances to chase the title, though the good thing with the Suns,
they are playing with almost the same  system and also same individuals who are playing together.

Aiming for that same result that they have accomplished last WCF. Hopefully, this season they'll be able to achieve
and bring the first title to the Phoenix fans..

[carlisle1]

Trading Westbrook is going to be next to impossible.  They will either have to take on a longer contract for a player some other team doesn't want or package WB with young talent and/or draft capital so that another team will take on Westbrooks contract.  Either way Lakers are in a lose/lose situation.

Before trading Westbrook, they should replace Vogel first. The Lakers can give a chance for Westbrook to get back in his shape. When Lebron James and Anthony Davis are healthy and playing alongside Westbrook, the Lakers have a good record.

The problem is their backup players and the distribution of playing time which is in Voge's role.

Trade their role players, and find good role players too. No need to be a former All-star or what. That can solve their chemistry issues.

I agree with the Vogel part, it seems that he has lost his touch already, we have seen that the small lineup is a failure, with Lebron playing at times the center position, it's not going to work because teams now are going to abused that mismatch. If he has ditch this one out early when it is not working and inserted Dwight or even DJ when he was still a Lakers, maybe the outcome should have played differently.

2 or 3 tries if the system won't work better to change the strategy, but with Vogel small lineups he just compensates LeBron with

his individual stats, not sure if he's the coach, or it was LeBron who's placing players that will surround him inside the court.

I really hope that Lakers management will see what are the lapses and how they'll be able to work it out and be strong next season.

All ends with Lakers, early exit of the season..

[LogitechMouse]

These Chicago Bulls are frustrating. I can’t believe I didn’t put money on the Milwaukee Bucks tonight as they were -4.5 favorites, and the Bulls per usual can’t perform against good teams, especially the Bucks whom might be the best team in the East. No Lavine tonight was difficult but this was just straight embarrassing.

I feel sorry for the Chicago Bulls this season like so much sorry for them.

They are at the top at the start and at the mid of the season and even reached top 1 and DeRozan has been a candidate for the MVP as well. Now that we are approaching the end of the season, injuries here and there. Lonzo, LaVine and Caruso have injuries. 3 out of their 5 main players are injured.

I still remember when I said that its good that the Bulls aren't facing any injuries but I was wrong. Their key players got injured at the worst time possible and now the playoffs is coming, I doubt that they can win in the first round against whoever team they will face with their key players out.
The Lakers-Phoenix game is over and the Phoenix won 121-110.
With this loss and the win of the Spurs, the Lakers are officially out of the play-in tournament. The Eastern Conference's top 10 also is already there as well. Now lets just wait for the last games to be over and watch the play-in. Lakers are out.

Yeah it sucks but here’s the thing, the Bulls for the past 10 years or so have been terrible and lead under terrible leadership, now the Bulls are at least at a point where they’ve now got competent management and coaching. They’ve got to start somewhere and they are now FINALLY on their way to being a competitive team. You’ve got to have a mega star to win a championship and they don’t have that so it’s honestly expected.

IMO, its the injuries that lead them to where they are at this moment.
They already got a good coach, good players and a good management overall. Its just that injures ruined their season.

I think the combination of Ball, LaVine and Derozan plus Caruso and Vucevic can be consider a playoff team already and best a championship team. They don't need a mega star IMO because they can just pick on their current players right now and build at team on them and at the same time develop. Ball is better right now compare to where it was when he is still in Lakers and I think there is more room for improvement and if he succeeds, he might be an all-star someday. I agree with you though that the Bulls have been very terrible for many years. The last time I see the Bulls as a playoff contender team is when Rose, Noah, Boozer and Deng are still there.

[mirakal]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

The Lakers predicament is already a given fact, it's just a matter of time before it will be official that they will not make it to the playoffs this year.

For the Suns, it's going to be interesting how far they will go this season. They put up a season best in their franchise history and hopefully they can make it to the finals again and at least have CP3 his first ring in his storied career.

What a good accomplishment being added to the Sun's franchise. Moving to the next round will be more exciting

lots of tough competitors who also got the same chances to chase the title, though the good thing with the Suns,
they are playing with almost the same  system and also same individuals who are playing together.

Aiming for that same result that they have accomplished last WCF. Hopefully, this season they'll be able to achieve
and bring the first title to the Phoenix fans..

That was never an easy path for the Phoenix Suns to take and grabbing that wins while making a history was indeed a nice accomplishment.

The 2021-22 Phoenix Suns are officially the greatest regular-season team in franchise history after winning their 63rd game of the campaign.

Source

In fact, they accomplished two and the other one was they officially removed the LA Lakers from participating in the play-in tournament. Now that they just have 3 games left to play and the playoffs season is approaching, they can rest a bit and regroup again to practice for the playoffs season.

They have to prepare fully because there are also other top contenders like the Grizzlies and other top teams in the East who's also aiming the very same goal just like them. This will surely an interesting season, and maybe this time CP3 can have his ring.

[Reid]

In fact, they accomplished two and the other one was they officially removed the LA Lakers from participating in the play-in tournament. Now that they just have 3 games left to play and the playoffs season is approaching, they can rest a bit and regroup again to practice for the playoffs season.

They have to prepare fully because there are also other top contenders like the Grizzlies and other top teams in the East who's also aiming the very same goal just like them. This will surely an interesting season, and maybe this time CP3 can have his ring.

I hate injuries but it's part of the game. I just wish CP3 will stay healthy until the end of this post season. He is the big key to keep the Suns energy working. I saw him change the pace of the game whenever they are down and boost them back up. Without him the chances will be slimmer for the Suns although I think they can manage as long as whatever CP3 thought them will be used in the floor or mentally.
The Grizzlies is strong built by their long chemistry but I think having a veteran has an upper hand.

[wheelz1200]

Trading Westbrook is going to be next to impossible.  They will either have to take on a longer contract for a player some other team doesn't want or package WB with young talent and/or draft capital so that another team will take on Westbrooks contract.  Either way Lakers are in a lose/lose situation.

Certainly. Stats base he is down by a high percentage. His shooting is also unacceptable but he still have the agility to attack the paint which we can still witness up until now. Teams on the lower seeds now will just risk it with the draft for a younger player and not expensive rather than an old one with his contract intact.
A good comparison of a difference is CP3 and WB. Both do not have a championship yet and with high stats on their prime but I think most team owners would pick the former. Even OKC did great when CP3 was inserted in it and even went to the playoffs with no chemistry whatsoever just the leadership.

Most team owners?  Cp3 and/or Westbrook right now in their careers are at 2 completely ends of the spectrum.  Suns chance on a championship probably live and die with cp3, Westbrook does not provide any positive value for the Lakers.  I'd take cp3 with 3 times his salary then Westbrook at 1/3 his salary.  It's that drastic of a difference.

[wheelz1200]

The Suns emerged victorious from the Lakers game that LeBron James did not play. With 63 wins in 79 matches the Suns broke the organizational record. The Lakers on the other hand have suffered 48 losses in 79 games this season with poor performance. With this result the LA team did not have a chance to Play-in and said goodbye to the season.

The Lakers are honestly so bad this season, it's not funny.

There is a real chance that LeBron/AD leaves this offseason through a trade of sorts. I'm not sure why any other team would take them but they would potentially offer some upside for championship contenders that have the cap space.

Either way, at least the other L.A. team (Clippers) will be making the play-in tournament. Hopefully they can win a few series.

Every team would still take a stab at AD and lebron.  Lebron in the right situation is a monster still.  Lakers suck he can't overcome that with the likes of Monk and reeves shooting around him.  And AD, so long as he is healthy everyteam would welcome him in.  He isn't the issue.