2024 NBA Season

[Pamadar]

Watching some Pat Bev's interview and it's a good one, his relationship with Lebron, his defense with Westbrook and others. You can check it out here, interesting as he is now a Lakers and what he can add and bring to the table for the team.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbhjNlH35E8

Hopefully, he can be a reason to change the tide of the Laker's destiny since they were in a drought for the last two years due to some injuries and not winning enough games. The dude might not be a star player but can really contribute with the defense because he knows what his role is and he can boost the Laker's defense when he is on the court. It might be not the same years when the Lakers were dominating the league but still, with the star players on their rosters the chance is still high even though they still fixing their game chemistry.

Going back again to the narrative on their last championship, they have guys like Caruso and KCP that can play defense. Last year, it was all veteran but there's none of a defense that Caruso offer when he was with the Lakers. And perhaps this is the reason why they get the services of Pat Bev to be the anchor in their defense because we've seen him play that hard when he was with the Wolves. Yes he might not be the super star but he can still contribute on other facets of the game. So he will be a big boost for the Lakers this season. Maybe he will be task to shutdown players like CP3, Booker or even Luka and of course Steph Curry in the West alone.

And Pat Beverly knows his roles once he starts practicing and playing for the lakers, he doesn't need to contribute

in terms of offense, I mean not a task for him to score, but if possible or he has an open look, why not? He can shoot a ball
and he can go straight to the basket.

But the main goal is for him to bring the defense high, additional entertainment for the fans and who knows, maybe he's the
lucky pick by the lakers for this new season.

[Japinat]

I agree, let's say we give Westbrook a chance this season, if he improve under coach Ham then good for the Lakers. If not, then for sure in the middle of the season we might see him get traded. And there are rumors that Ham wanted Pat and Russ play at the same time. So it will be an interesting combination to see them both in the floor. Two high octane players, gonna be fun.

I think Los Angeles Lakers are always open to giving Westbrook a chance.

However, if things really not worked out and they see Westbrook is really struggling in his role or anything, it will be hard for the Lakers to trade him in the middle of the season as here in the off-season, they can't even find a good trade package from other teams. Maybe much more difficult during the off-season.

If they will decide to keep Westbrook, they should risk on him the whole season and just work on trading him the next off-season.

I'm kind of curious though what Darvin Ham's strategy for Westbrook, so I guess we will see it soon. But if in any case that plan fails, the Laker's have Patrick to take take Westbrook's role.

According to some report that Darvin Ham plans to put both Westbrook and Pat Bev in the starting line up and play together side by side.
Also, there are rumors that Pat Bev and Westbrook had conversations already. I guess they are now building a chemistry and forget their beef before.
Pat Bev seems to have a good professionalism towards his teammates and Westbrook seems a nice guy as well. I hope this will work out for the Lakers this season.
If AD avoids any major injury this season, I believe the Lakers could successfully run this roster again next season.

That's indeed good if those reports and rumors will turn out exactly true, Pat Bev and WB playing side by side is surely an interesting sight to see together with Lebron and AD. But they still need a reliable 6th man so that the team can still be dangerous if one of the main line-ups is resting.

Anthony Davis's health plays an important role for the team because if he won't be around, Lebron will again take heavy load for that.

[freedomgo]

We've got some rumors about Carmelo Anthony. He's likely to go with the Boston Celtics. He's a potential signee for them.

I thought he will go to the Knicks, not sure how he will fit in Boston though, probably what he has given to the Lakers, off the bench and then maybe had a good shooting night, 20+ ppg in he stay with them throughout the season. And it's good to see still play and the Celtics need a veteran like him in the bench.

The Boston Celtics should just mind their own business and neglect the ongoing trades in the league, their present roster is already proven in any given circumstances and the fact that they are now an experienced team makes them more dangerous. What they should do is to improve and not add to it because it could potentially destroy what they've built.
Carmelo Anthony is without a doubt a good asset who averages double digits per game but he won't fit in the Celtics system.

[mirakal]

It's not irrelevant.  Cp3 doesn't crash the paint anywhere near Westbrook.  That's where russ can create and wreck havoc on games but it also gets him in bad position.  Just pointing out both have different styles you can't compare the 2.  And yeah of course he lost a step at his age but I'd bet on the side of west having an off year.  Think he comes back better this year.

Yes, I agree with you. Even though it's clear that CP3 is really much more effective in the team last season compare to what Westbrook is giving, we can't conclude right away that Westbrook is totally not useful. Westbrook is disciplined in his body that he didn't even experience major injuries even how athletic is. Usually, an athletic player is prone to injury but Westbrook is not.

He just needs to fully become mentally prepared to somehow return to his usual performance. Not the same during his prime but a Westbrook that can adjust his gameplay and be helpful to his teammates.

I'd say that he is still worth the chance to prove his capabilities this coming season and have the same faith that coach Darvin Ham gave to him. We never know, Westbrook might be more effective this time because he knew that this is his last chance to prove his worthiness in the league as this is his last season too before he lands in free agency.

I agree, let's say we give Westbrook a chance this season, if he improve under coach Ham then good for the Lakers. If not, then for sure in the middle of the season we might see him get traded. And there are rumors that Ham wanted Pat and Russ play at the same time. So it will be an interesting combination to see them both in the floor. Two high octane players, gonna be fun.

Latest I see in the trade is that free agent Markieff Morris has agreed with the Nets,  it's a one year deal so for good him.

Things have change now because it really seems that the Lakers management is eager to send off Westbrook before the training camp commences. Darvin Ham cannot prevent that from happening as the management is in the money business while trying to avoid paying Westbrook in the last year of his contract.

[stadus]

I agree, let's say we give Westbrook a chance this season, if he improve under coach Ham then good for the Lakers. If not, then for sure in the middle of the season we might see him get traded. And there are rumors that Ham wanted Pat and Russ play at the same time. So it will be an interesting combination to see them both in the floor. Two high octane players, gonna be fun.

I think Los Angeles Lakers are always open to giving Westbrook a chance.

However, if things really not worked out and they see Westbrook is really struggling in his role or anything, it will be hard for the Lakers to trade him in the middle of the season as here in the off-season, they can't even find a good trade package from other teams. Maybe much more difficult during the off-season.

If they will decide to keep Westbrook, they should risk on him the whole season and just work on trading him the next off-season.

I'm kind of curious though what Darvin Ham's strategy for Westbrook, so I guess we will see it soon. But if in any case that plan fails, the Laker's have Patrick to take take Westbrook's role.

According to some report that Darvin Ham plans to put both Westbrook and Pat Bev in the starting line up and play together side by side.
Also, there are rumors that Pat Bev and Westbrook had conversations already. I guess they are now building a chemistry and forget their beef before.
Pat Bev seems to have a good professionalism towards his teammates and Westbrook seems a nice guy as well. I hope this will work out for the Lakers this season.
If AD avoids any major injury this season, I believe the Lakers could successfully run this roster again next season.

That's indeed good if those reports and rumors will turn out exactly true, Pat Bev and WB playing side by side is surely an interesting sight to see together with Lebron and AD. But they still need a reliable 6th man so that the team can still be dangerous if one of the main line-ups is resting.

Anthony Davis's health plays an important role for the team because if he won't be around, Lebron will again take heavy load for that.

Austin Reaves can be considered as their 6th man even if the kid is yet to prove that he can produce good numbers every game for the team but he is already proven to be more reliable than Westbrook especially at times when it is badly needed, Reaves was there trying to step up his game and he is consistent for that.

[Kasabus]

If AD avoids any major injury this season, I believe the Lakers could successfully run this roster again next season.

That's right, actually even if Westbrook were struggling last season but as long as AD were healthy, most likely Lakers will still have a shot in the NBA finals. With Lebron and AD leading the team, we've seen that before already when they won a championship.

Next season is going to be the last chance of this tamdem I believe, if they will still fail, most likely a trade is gonna happen.

The question right now is what are the chances that AD will not get injured? Because after the title that he got in the Bubble, he has been very inconsistent and unreliable because of injuries. He's very fragile that you can't rely on him. I'll just hope for him to be healthy all throughout the season and in the playoffs but will not be surprised if he will get injured because it is what is happening to him for the last 2 seasons.

The chances of the Lakers winning a title will be higher if AD will not get injured and Westbrook will improve and adjust. I believe that Lebron can still win a title with the Lakers. Just give him good teammates that will help him. I agree that this upcoming season will be the last chance not only for AD but also for Westbrook and if they still fail then they will be traded.

But that always has been a problem with AD ever since he came to the league. He is very talented but his availability is limited because of injury. Maybe there is something wrong with his physical training or something, but they have to do something about it. He is still very young so he should not be easily injured like this. Westbrook can have chemistry with AD and Lebron if they can play together more and that all relies on AD not getting injured.

He should try asking Lebron about that and what he should do to avoid long absences in the league whenever he gets caught by an injury, for sure Lebron can share some idea to AD because Lebron has managed to withstand some injuries that often times require long time to heal.

The Lakers won't be dominant if AD get caught by an injury this upcoming season again because there's no other young big man in the team that could replace him anytime if needed. Lebron will end up carrying his role again if that happens.

[wheelz1200]

I agree, let's say we give Westbrook a chance this season, if he improve under coach Ham then good for the Lakers. If not, then for sure in the middle of the season we might see him get traded. And there are rumors that Ham wanted Pat and Russ play at the same time. So it will be an interesting combination to see them both in the floor. Two high octane players, gonna be fun.

I think Los Angeles Lakers are always open to giving Westbrook a chance.

However, if things really not worked out and they see Westbrook is really struggling in his role or anything, it will be hard for the Lakers to trade him in the middle of the season as here in the off-season, they can't even find a good trade package from other teams. Maybe much more difficult during the off-season.

If they will decide to keep Westbrook, they should risk on him the whole season and just work on trading him the next off-season.

I'm kind of curious though what Darvin Ham's strategy for Westbrook, so I guess we will see it soon. But if in any case that plan fails, the Laker's have Patrick to take take Westbrook's role.

According to some report that Darvin Ham plans to put both Westbrook and Pat Bev in the starting line up and play together side by side.
Also, there are rumors that Pat Bev and Westbrook had conversations already. I guess they are now building a chemistry and forget their beef before.
Pat Bev seems to have a good professionalism towards his teammates and Westbrook seems a nice guy as well. I hope this will work out for the Lakers this season.
If AD avoids any major injury this season, I believe the Lakers could successfully run this roster again next season.

That's indeed good if those reports and rumors will turn out exactly true, Pat Bev and WB playing side by side is surely an interesting sight to see together with Lebron and AD. But they still need a reliable 6th man so that the team can still be dangerous if one of the main line-ups is resting.

Anthony Davis's health plays an important role for the team because if he won't be around, Lebron will again take heavy load for that.

Austin Reaves can be considered as their 6th man even if the kid is yet to prove that he can produce good numbers every game for the team but he is already proven to be more reliable than Westbrook especially at times when it is badly needed, Reaves was there trying to step up his game and he is consistent for that.

Reaves is a good kid to come off the bench, but I wouldn't consider him over west rook on any day.  He will get exposed if he has to play 30-40 minutes.  Coach put him in optimal spots, but now that teams have tape on him they will plan and shut him down.  Westbrook although spotty last year again will figure out how to beat defenses designed to slow him down.  Feel like betting on some westbrook props

[Jating]

^^ Well if he came out like he was still in his prime, then Westbrook is going to explode this seasons. And he knows it, he better play good otherwise Lakers is going down again and all criticism is on him, not Lebron not the new coach. He should get healthy this off set, train his body not to get injured and hopefully he can still be the Westbrook that we all know. So that is a good combo, Westbrook and Reaves off the bench, giving the Lakers the needed offense specially in close out games.

[Baofeng]

Just in,



https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1565424787446439941

So it seems that the Cavs have acquired Mitchell now, as they trade Lauri Markkanen, Ochair Agbaji, Collin Sexton. So the drama has ended for Mitchell. Now the Jazz has a lot of future draft picks from the Rudy Gobert trade to T'Wolves and now from the Cavaliers, Utah are rebuilding. They still have Clarkson and Conley in the lineup. Maybe the two will remain as Jazz for whoever knows up to when.

[dwyane36]

He should try asking Lebron about that and what he should do to avoid long absences in the league whenever he gets caught by an injury, for sure Lebron can share some idea to AD because Lebron has managed to withstand some injuries that often times require long time to heal.

The Lakers won't be dominant if AD get caught by an injury this upcoming season again because there's no other young big man in the team that could replace him anytime if needed. Lebron will end up carrying his role again if that happens.

I think Davis and the Lakers' medical staff are well aware that they need to make some adjustments to minimize the chance of another injury. However, it's worth noting that the schedule of NBA games is very tight, and this is a huge stress for the body of any player. Unfortunately, the trend is that Davis is far too injury-prone as he has missed more than half of the season for two years in a row, and that could happen again next season.

[chaser15]

Utah are rebuilding.

The most insane rebuilding I think I've witnessed so far. They are giving up their young and currently prime 25-year-old key scorer for future draft picks. I don't see how rebuilding takes place on that decision to trade their main scorer. Rebuilding with young cores isn't really an effective way to compete in the league.

If only they surround Mitchell with good role players instead, then that's what I called rebuilding.

I hope their decision will really bring a good future for the Utah Jazz. Cavaliers, I think the winner of this trade.

[OgNasty]

Just in,



https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1565424787446439941

So it seems that the Cavs have acquired Mitchell now, as they trade Lauri Markkanen, Ochair Agbaji, Collin Sexton. So the drama has ended for Mitchell. Now the Jazz has a lot of future draft picks from the Rudy Gobert trade to T'Wolves and now from the Cavaliers, Utah are rebuilding. They still have Clarkson and Conley in the lineup. Maybe the two will remain as Jazz for whoever knows up to when.

The AP is also reporting that: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/ap-source-cavaliers-acquiring-all-star-g-mitchell-from-jazz/ar-AA11n19T

I am shocked by this.  Sending Mitchell to Cleveland is almost a punishment.  He'll be able to thrive individually I guess, but I don't see him ever having a chance to play for a championship there.  It looks like they got back young players and picks to rebuild with, but nothing I'd be excited about as a Jazz fan.  This seems like a lose-lose for everyone involved.  I really don't understand why Utah didn't make a deal with the Knicks instead.

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

Utah are rebuilding.

The most insane rebuilding I think I've witnessed so far. They are giving up their young and currently prime 25-year-old key scorer for future draft picks. I don't see how rebuilding takes place on that decision to trade their main scorer. Rebuilding with young cores isn't really an effective way to compete in the league.

If only they surround Mitchell with good role players instead, then that's what I called rebuilding.

I hope their decision will really bring a good future for the Utah Jazz. Cavaliers, I think the winner of this trade.

Well they have given Gobert and then Mitchell, so for sure it's a huge change in the Salt Lake City as this season we will see a brand new team. And I also wouldn't be surprised if Clarkson, Bogdan and Conley and veteran Rudy Gay in the trading block prior to the start.

Seems that Utah win this one? agree or disagree?

As mentioned, they got lots of options and hopefully they got lucky those those draft picks. This is like OKC all over again, when they traded, WB and then PG and get a lot of future picks.

[wheelz1200]

Just in,



https://twitter.com/wojespn/status/1565424787446439941

So it seems that the Cavs have acquired Mitchell now, as they trade Lauri Markkanen, Ochair Agbaji, Collin Sexton. So the drama has ended for Mitchell. Now the Jazz has a lot of future draft picks from the Rudy Gobert trade to T'Wolves and now from the Cavaliers, Utah are rebuilding. They still have Clarkson and Conley in the lineup. Maybe the two will remain as Jazz for whoever knows up to when.

The AP is also reporting that: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nba/ap-source-cavaliers-acquiring-all-star-g-mitchell-from-jazz/ar-AA11n19T

I am shocked by this.  Sending Mitchell to Cleveland is almost a punishment.  He'll be able to thrive individually I guess, but I don't see him ever having a chance to play for a championship there.  It looks like they got back young players and picks to rebuild with, but nothing I'd be excited about as a Jazz fan.  This seems like a lose-lose for everyone involved.  I really don't understand why Utah didn't make a deal with the Knicks instead.

Because Leon rose was unwilling to package the young guys like ainge wanted.  Ainge is a psyco I give him credit but if I was a gm and I seen his phone number pop up I'd block him.  He wanted 6 firsts 4 of them unprotected and grimes/obi.  I would have told him to go scratch as well f em.

[jakelyson]

Utah are rebuilding.

The most insane rebuilding I think I've witnessed so far. They are giving up their young and currently prime 25-year-old key scorer for future draft picks. I don't see how rebuilding takes place on that decision to trade their main scorer. Rebuilding with young cores isn't really an effective way to compete in the league.

If only they surround Mitchell with good role players instead, then that's what I called rebuilding.

I hope their decision will really bring a good future for the Utah Jazz. Cavaliers, I think the winner of this trade.

Well they have given Gobert and then Mitchell, so for sure it's a huge change in the Salt Lake City as this season we will see a brand new team. And I also wouldn't be surprised if Clarkson, Bogdan and Conley and veteran Rudy Gay in the trading block prior to the start.

Seems that Utah win this one? agree or disagree?

As mentioned, they got lots of options and hopefully they got lucky those those draft picks. This is like OKC all over again, when they traded, WB and then PG and get a lot of future picks.

It will be a very long rebuilding process since they are starting from scratch. We cannot tell yet if it is a win for Utah. I guess when their picks comes in and they have good ones, not bust, then we can say they won the trades.

I wonder what prompted Jazz to rebuild this extreme. Since Gobert - Mitchell tandem is not working, I thought they would pick one and build around him and trade the other one. But they chose to rebuild from scratch. Did they really think Donovan Mitchell cannot give them a ring or at least get them to a finals? Or there is another reason unknown to us.

[wheelz1200]

Utah are rebuilding.

The most insane rebuilding I think I've witnessed so far. They are giving up their young and currently prime 25-year-old key scorer for future draft picks. I don't see how rebuilding takes place on that decision to trade their main scorer. Rebuilding with young cores isn't really an effective way to compete in the league.

If only they surround Mitchell with good role players instead, then that's what I called rebuilding.

I hope their decision will really bring a good future for the Utah Jazz. Cavaliers, I think the winner of this trade.

Well they have given Gobert and then Mitchell, so for sure it's a huge change in the Salt Lake City as this season we will see a brand new team. And I also wouldn't be surprised if Clarkson, Bogdan and Conley and veteran Rudy Gay in the trading block prior to the start.

Seems that Utah win this one? agree or disagree?

As mentioned, they got lots of options and hopefully they got lucky those those draft picks. This is like OKC all over again, when they traded, WB and then PG and get a lot of future picks.

It will be a very long rebuilding process since they are starting from scratch. We cannot tell yet if it is a win for Utah. I guess when their picks comes in and they have good ones, not bust, then we can say they won the trades.

I wonder what prompted Jazz to rebuild this extreme. Since Gobert - Mitchell tandem is not working, I thought they would pick one and build around him and trade the other one. But they chose to rebuild from scratch. Did they really think Donovan Mitchell cannot give them a ring or at least get them to a finals? Or there is another reason unknown to us.

There are many trams who opt for a complete blow up.  There is no point being a middling team forever.  Blow it up now they have 8 first round picks, plus their own and 2 pick swaps and some nice young players. 

Also what people don't understand is the top 2 picks in this draft are insanely good.  Scoot Henderson or Victor who is pretty much the most coveted pick since lebron.  If they strike gold and get to draft Victor then they have a ton of picks to build around him.  I can't blame them.

[Captain Corporate]

There are many trams who opt for a complete blow up.  There is no point being a middling team forever.  Blow it up now they have 8 first round picks, plus their own and 2 pick swaps and some nice young players. 

Also what people don't understand is the top 2 picks in this draft are insanely good.  Scoot Henderson or Victor who is pretty much the most coveted pick since lebron.  If they strike gold and get to draft Victor then they have a ton of picks to build around him.  I can't blame them.

There are "some" reasons to be a middling team. I mean if you think that you are going to get great players with rebuilding and be better in the long run then you should do that. But I remember the "process" period of Sixers when they were so horrible that they broke the record of lowest wins and they were under 20 wins for many years in a row. During those years the ticket prices were %10 of what it is right now. You could have found tickets for as low as 8 bucks, even lower at last minute filling etc etc, and the trick is, since it was pretty empty and nobody went to games, you would get those cheap tickets and watch from very close to court seats. Hence, if you are terrible like Utah will be this year, it will be very hard to fill seats or make any profit, and if you keep on losing money then you can't sustain.

[Yogee]

Jazz - Cavs trade came out of nowhere. It's just one of those instances where speculations in traditional and social media becomes just noise hehe.

It may not be that ideal since Mitchell still has many years ahead of him but this also gives Jazz management a lot of wiggle room. They can still use those future draft picks as trading piece or maybe they plan to use it for themselves because they already have some prospects for the next three years. It would be nice if they could emulate what Warriors did.

[wheelz1200]

There are many trams who opt for a complete blow up.  There is no point being a middling team forever.  Blow it up now they have 8 first round picks, plus their own and 2 pick swaps and some nice young players.  

Also what people don't understand is the top 2 picks in this draft are insanely good.  Scoot Henderson or Victor who is pretty much the most coveted pick since lebron.  If they strike gold and get to draft Victor then they have a ton of picks to build around him.  I can't blame them.

There are "some" reasons to be a middling team. I mean if you think that you are going to get great players with rebuilding and be better in the long run then you should do that. But I remember the "process" period of Sixers when they were so horrible that they broke the record of lowest wins and they were under 20 wins for many years in a row. During those years the ticket prices were %10 of what it is right now. You could have found tickets for as low as 8 bucks, even lower at last minute filling etc etc, and the trick is, since it was pretty empty and nobody went to games, you would get those cheap tickets and watch from very close to court seats. Hence, if you are terrible like Utah will be this year, it will be very hard to fill seats or make any profit, and if you keep on losing money then you can't sustain.

Most of these owners own these teams as toys they are all usually billionaires already.  The trend is to blow the team up grab Youngs and picks.  Utah doesn't draw anyone to begin with they don't have a market like Philly so even as a middling team they don't get a ton of profit.  They need to be substantially good and they know with theor core it wasn't going to happen.  Nailing the draft once or twice with a mega star is needed and get a free agent or 2 to come in and play with them.

Mitchell is nice but he isn't an all pro.  Dude barely plays d.  Ainge got 3 picks, 2 swaps and a couple nice young players.  Trust me everyone of these teams wants to draft Victor W.  At 18 years old they do t make many players like him.

[jossiel]

We've got some rumors about Carmelo Anthony. He's likely to go with the Boston Celtics. He's a potential signee for them.

I thought he will go to the Knicks, not sure how he will fit in Boston though, probably what he has given to the Lakers, off the bench and then maybe had a good shooting night, 20+ ppg in he stay with them throughout the season. And it's good to see still play and the Celtics need a veteran like him in the bench.

The Boston Celtics should just mind their own business and neglect the ongoing trades in the league, their present roster is already proven in any given circumstances and the fact that they are now an experienced team makes them more dangerous. What they should do is to improve and not add to it because it could potentially destroy what they've built.
Carmelo Anthony is without a doubt a good asset who averages double digits per game but he won't fit in the Celtics system.

It's just like a replacement for Gallinari.

I think this is a good deal for them and if they want their roster to be full and finals ready again, they should fill every possible vacancy that they have due to injury.

A current player that's injured can't play for them and that's why the rumor is out for Melo to play for them and they're eyeing for him. But let's where this is leading.