2024 NBA Season

[Reid]

Their head coach will not be replaced if he does not commit a violation.

he was suspended for this coming season
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/23/boston-celtics-suspend-head-coach-ime-udoka-for-upcoming-season.html

So let the assistant coach handle the job, and let's see if he can still make Celtics a great team.

Let's hope so.
Here's a statement of Joe Mazzulla.

"It's not about carrying on from one person," Mazzulla said during the team's media day here in the Boston suburbs. "It's about carrying on the identity of our players. We had our struggles early last season, but at our best, we knew what our identity was. It was our defense, it was our buy-in from a defensive standpoint, and then it was sharing the ball and moving quickly on the offensive end.
"So as much as we can stick to the things we were great at last year, and then find areas to improve along the way, I think is the right way to go."

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34671406/jaylen-brown-boston-celtics-set-put-our-best-foot-forward-interim-coach-joe-mazzulla
Marcus Smart:

"Joe has been here. He knows the scheme, he knows the players, so it makes it a little bit more easier to adjust to a guy that's been here and knows you."

I doubt they will have a problem with Joe. 3 years being an assistant coach from Brad Stevens to Udoka.
Most players of the Celtics know him as they didn't change their roster that much. This could be Joe's time to shine if ever he manages to put the Celtics in a good position this season.

[inthelongrun]

Giannis Antetokounmpo just called Stephen Curry the best basketball player at the moment. Meanwhile, ESPN's NBArank released its top 100 players for the 2022-2023 season. Here are the top 5;

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
2. Nikola Jokic
3. Luka Doncic
4. Joel Embiid
5. Stephen Curry

It's pretty interesting and exciting who will be the better players in the coming season. Embiid and Curry might not be able to compete to become top 1 since they are also surrounded by very good players too. And I am glad that Jamal Murray is back to help Jokic and the Nuggets. Luka Doncic and the Mavericks are probably the weakest team out of these top players and their teams.

It's not surprising anymore that Giannis will be at the top of ESPN's list or any sports outlet's listings, the man has improved a lot since he was drafted way back 2013 and still continues to dominate the league. The NBA is becoming much more interesting this coming season because almost each team have grown stronger. Although I cannot agree that Luka Doncic is the weakest out of these top players, in my own ranking, Luka is much better than Jokic.

I agree with the rankings, stats wise Giannis is leading all the way. I think Jokic is better than Luka but only by a slight margin, so maybe you are right too especially since Jamal Murray is back which means some stats might be taken off this season. My comparison earlier was actually between Dallas and Denver. I think Denver Nuggets have a better line-up for next season. I expect Luka's stats to continue rising especially since he is the only superstar on the team. And the fact that he is becoming more experienced at this very young age he already reached the western conference finals without much help.

[Ziskinberg]

Giannis Antetokounmpo just called Stephen Curry the best basketball player at the moment. Meanwhile, ESPN's NBArank released its top 100 players for the 2022-2023 season. Here are the top 5;

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo
2. Nikola Jokic
3. Luka Doncic
4. Joel Embiid
5. Stephen Curry

It's pretty interesting and exciting who will be the better players in the coming season. Embiid and Curry might not be able to compete to become top 1 since they are also surrounded by very good players too. And I am glad that Jamal Murray is back to help Jokic and the Nuggets. Luka Doncic and the Mavericks are probably the weakest team out of these top players and their teams.

It's not surprising anymore that Giannis will be at the top of ESPN's list or any sports outlet's listings, the man has improved a lot since he was drafted way back 2013 and still continues to dominate the league. The NBA is becoming much more interesting this coming season because almost each team have grown stronger. Although I cannot agree that Luka Doncic is the weakest out of these top players, in my own ranking, Luka is much better than Jokic.

I agree with the rankings, stats wise Giannis is leading all the way. I think Jokic is better than Luka but only by a slight margin, so maybe you are right too especially since Jamal Murray is back which means some stats might be taken off this season. My comparison earlier was actually between Dallas and Denver. I think Denver Nuggets have a better line-up for next season. I expect Luka's stats to continue rising especially since he is the only superstar on the team. And the fact that he is becoming more experienced at this very young age he already reached the western conference finals without much help.

What we are basing here is the individual performance, well, Curry would not win an MVP award as the top favorites are the ones carrying their respective teams. However, as a fan, my definition of a great player is the one that could make his team better and could carry the team to achieve the ultimate success, which for the Warriors is winning the championship.

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

Great news for Zion Williamson fans.  In his interview today he says he feels great, is "moving faster and jumping higher."  Hard to believe but he seems positive and excited for the season.  I can't wait to see him throwing down some monster dunks and bullying the rest of the NBA.  He's the first player since Shaq that I feel is completely unstoppable in the paint and the most exciting dunker I've seen since Shawn Kemp.  You can see his interview below for today's Pelican's media day.  Nothing but great news here and exactly what you want to hear as a Zion fan.  Can't wait until next month...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnNG3BZocNM

Yeah, he has a lot of enthusiasm this coming season and it seems that the Pelicans are really looking to make a good run with him healthy. Only he seems to be in the fighting weight, I mean yes he can jump even with the heavier weight he got but it's better if he will slim down so that he can elevate more. Still, he is a force to reckon even if he decided to play one on one, or playing low post. So it's very exciting to see Zion back once again with latest hype and for sure, new highlights.

[Jating]

Their head coach will not be replaced if he does not commit a violation.

he was suspended for this coming season
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/23/boston-celtics-suspend-head-coach-ime-udoka-for-upcoming-season.html

So let the assistant coach handle the job, and let's see if he can still make Celtics a great team.

Let's hope so.
Here's a statement of Joe Mazzulla.

"It's not about carrying on from one person," Mazzulla said during the team's media day here in the Boston suburbs. "It's about carrying on the identity of our players. We had our struggles early last season, but at our best, we knew what our identity was. It was our defense, it was our buy-in from a defensive standpoint, and then it was sharing the ball and moving quickly on the offensive end.
"So as much as we can stick to the things we were great at last year, and then find areas to improve along the way, I think is the right way to go."

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34671406/jaylen-brown-boston-celtics-set-put-our-best-foot-forward-interim-coach-joe-mazzulla
Marcus Smart:

"Joe has been here. He knows the scheme, he knows the players, so it makes it a little bit more easier to adjust to a guy that's been here and knows you."

I doubt they will have a problem with Joe. 3 years being an assistant coach from Brad Stevens to Udoka.
Most players of the Celtics know him as they didn't change their roster that much. This could be Joe's time to shine if ever he manages to put the Celtics in a good position this season.

Yeah, I guess he really knows the player very well, it's just a matter of adjustment for them because of his new role. And I guess it's more on the players side, the scandal took a toll on them.

And so we will see how the Celtics will do and hopefully the same system will bring them to the finals once again. And yeah, it's time for him to show that he can be a lead coach and maybe see some improvements under Joe this new season.

[danherbias07]

Although he is no longer in his prime, I think he can still distribute and score. We have seen some glimpse of his old self with the Nets last season.

And the recent was at Euroleague. Slovenia may have not won the championship this time but he did great there when Luka Doncic needs some time to rest. Yeah, 20+ minutes should suffice since they have lots of guards.

Has anyone of you heard or read an article about Danny Green being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies? I mean there sure is an article about it, but it was not too loud and popular for everyone to notice lol.
I was a bit surprised after seeing Danny in Memphis uniform during the media day.
Regardless of his age, he can still drain threes and defend well. I'm happy for him as he landed to a promising young team.

I read this yesterday but just like you said it was not that loud as Danny is not in the prime of his career anymore. He is now considered a veteran so this might be the last $10m contract he could get unless he finds some way to be that sharpshooter again that was once feared by his defenders.
Defense. Yes, he will be helpful but I think the Grizzlies have better plans on how they can maximize his usage.

[mirakal]

I have read news that the Celtics players were caught off guard about Ime Udoka's case. Majority of them found the news in twitter like Jayson Tatum and so they are confused.

And then they are talking about how excited they are to come back this new season to do it all over again and duplicate what they have accomplished - go to the finals. But it seems that the players are affected by it and they are taking about the 'process', as they will be coach by Joe Mazzulla.

Losing one player in a team especially if that player contributed so much last season is a big loss.
Losing a coach who helped you reach the NBA Finals in his first year is much more.

Udoka's absence will be felt that's for sure. Mazzulla's way of coaching them will be different. When they already find a perfect coach for the team then sh*t happened. In the media day, you can see them really confused and kinda sad because of what happened. With this loss, I don't know if they will still be the top picks in winning the title. We don't know how Coach Mazzulla coach a team but let's give him also a chance. Maybe, just maybe he can do well or perhaps better than Coach Udoka.

Nobody expected it and even the franchise didn't see the coming but they don't have any choice because a rule is a rule, Ime Udoka is not exempted even if they really need him. It's Ime Udoka's fault because he didn't weigh things correctly and became selfish, anyway, I can already imagine the heavy burden that has been passed to the new coach. The management is giving him a high standard after what the team accomplished last season.

[freedomgo]

I have read news that the Celtics players were caught off guard about Ime Udoka's case. Majority of them found the news in twitter like Jayson Tatum and so they are confused.

And then they are talking about how excited they are to come back this new season to do it all over again and duplicate what they have accomplished - go to the finals. But it seems that the players are affected by it and they are taking about the 'process', as they will be coach by Joe Mazzulla.

Well, they have no choice but to accept the reality, no more Udoka this season and probably the succeeding seasons as well, but they have a job to do, it's an unfinish job, they reach the NBA finals, it's time for them to win this time.

There's plenty of time to make the adjustment, the current coach is the assistant, so I'm pretty sure he is very much aware of the system and he just need to implement it, we were impressed by Udoka's performance last season, but he made a big mistake, so he has to face the consequences.

I also believe that assistant coach can work it out since he was there when they play the entire last season, adjustment wise they
don't have a lot unless the new coach has a new approach.

But to my understanding, Brad Stevens will be there for them. He knows how to deal with this and even the new head coach will
takeover. The final decision will still need to work with him.

Boston almost made it, just a step away to win a title, but GSW is really inspired not willing to give it up yet.

Yes, Joe Mazzulla was there but Udoka was the mastermind and the one who is calling the shots why the Celtics reached that far, they almost got a chance but it's just that the Warriors are more capable and much more experienced. I'm thinking that Mazzulla and the management will always keep in touch with Udoka so that he can still call the shots behind the scenes because they cannot deny that they still need him.

Rumors says that the Celtics are now finding a new head coach but I seriously think that it's not true. The franchise will just sit and wait until the suspension ends because Ime Udoka is already proven.

[jossiel]

It was one of the good teams as usual but unexpected injuries really come and that's making them like lessened in the court.

But as you have said, it is true that despite with those injuries from their main players, they still have role players that would be able to rely on.

They are scarier this season because they are fully healthy, the good thing with the Clippers is their 2nd unit can match the 1st unit of the other team, and the starters will surely not be forced to play heavy minutes because they have a good 2nd unit. Kawhi, hopefully he will stay healthy so we will again see him in the playoffs.

Having those good bench players really secures the team for not having that trouble whenever their roster, the first unit or their main has some issues or injuries.

They can rely on their bench players but not all teams are like this. That's why they're putting their whole force to their main and key players and not a lot to their bench players.

[sana54210]

Boston Celtics has a new coach? I read it on the news that the assistant coach would be the temporary head coach? Is there a change of heart in Boston's management now? If the assistant coach becomes the temporary head coach and he remains a very good friend of Ime, things aren't as hard as we think it is. Ime and him can talk all the time on the things to do, the players to focus and so on. But maybe all of Boston from the owners to the staff, janitors and the fans hated Ime already.

He will be the interim coach maybe because it's too late to hire a new one since the upcoming season is almost here. Regardless if they are friend or not, he had to do a better job as their new coach. He also had some bad reputation himself but I guess the Celtics have given him the benefit so they get him as a assistant and now the interim and probably a permanent one if he do a great job this year. And I doubt that Ime can go back to his previous job with the Celtics or if any NBA team will get hire him.

I am sure that they are going to hire someone else eventually. It is not that easy to find a coach for NBA teams because there are certain coaches out there which gets a job no matter what, and you try to hire those coaches if you could and if you can't then all the others are a risk that you take.

I understand that going from NCAA route and hiring a head coach from a good team there would be ideal for them, because there aren't many free agent big name ones available right now, but that would still be a risk that they take. I suspect they will take their time before they decide, interim coach decision was because of that, so that they could take their time to find the perfect candidate.

[OgNasty]

Rumors says that the Celtics are now finding a new head coach but I seriously think that it's not true. The franchise will just sit and wait until the suspension ends because Ime Udoka is already proven.

I don't know.  The rumors I'm hearing about what took place are pretty wild.  I've mentioned before that the sex escapades went beyond what most expect happened and involved players as well.  I think Udoka is done in the NBA.  I think he's probably headed for a divorce as well.  I'd bet his next job will be outside of the United States.  Until cancel culture goes away, guys like Udoka are going to have a very tough time finding themselves employment once it's made public that they're deviants who exploit their position for personal wants. 

[dwyane36]

Yes, Joe Mazzulla was there but Udoka was the mastermind and the one who is calling the shots why the Celtics reached that far, they almost got a chance but it's just that the Warriors are more capable and much more experienced. I'm thinking that Mazzulla and the management will always keep in touch with Udoka so that he can still call the shots behind the scenes because they cannot deny that they still need him.

Rumors says that the Celtics are now finding a new head coach but I seriously think that it's not true. The franchise will just sit and wait until the suspension ends because Ime Udoka is already proven.

I agree with you. Udoka showed that his coaching skills were enough to bring the team to the final series. So the Celtics don't need a new head coach, and I hope these rumors aren't true. Honestly, I don’t even know how Udoka's suspension will affect the mental state of the Celtics players, but it's clear that the chances of the Celtics reaching the final series in the upcoming season will be much less than previously expected, at least I have some doubts that Mazzulla will be able to fully replace Udoka.

[passwordnow]

Until cancel culture goes away, guys like Udoka are going to have a very tough time finding themselves employment once it's made public that they're deviants who exploit their position for personal wants. 

This is particular for everything now, in general. The cancel culture really is a hard slash for those people that have been targeted by these people, fans and anybody from everywhere. In the field or mostly in the internet.
On the other sports I've seen, particular in esports, there have been the same allegations as this and the person involved that have been known in that field have been there for several years and it just took him a few tweets to get cancelled and eventually resigned out of the shame that it had made.

[Yogee]

....
Only he seems to be in the fighting weight, I mean yes he can jump even with the heavier weight he got but it's better if he will slim down so that he can elevate more.

It seems he's done his homework while he's out if you look at him in the interview posted by Og. It's the fittest Zion I've seen in a long time and it looks like he's mostly Mr. Muscle now. I bet his latest contract motivated him really well to get in a good shape hehe.

The Western Conference will get tougher if he plays more games.

[TravelMug]

....
Only he seems to be in the fighting weight, I mean yes he can jump even with the heavier weight he got but it's better if he will slim down so that he can elevate more.

It seems he's done his homework while he's out if you look at him in the interview posted by Og. It's the fittest Zion I've seen in a long time and it looks like he's mostly Mr. Muscle now. I bet his latest contract motivated him really well to get in a good shape hehe.

The Western Conference will get tougher if he plays more games.

True, last season is also good for them in my opinion, even without him, they surpasses others expectations. So what more if he comes back  healthy and with that kind of body, his other team members could also be motivated even more this season.

Any news on Jordan Clarkson though? I thought he is on the trading block after the Jazzz let go of Mitchell and they are rebuilding from ground up. And so they are willing to trade JC and Conley as well.

[Dave1]

Although he is no longer in his prime, I think he can still distribute and score. We have seen some glimpse of his old self with the Nets last season.

And the recent was at Euroleague. Slovenia may have not won the championship this time but he did great there when Luka Doncic needs some time to rest. Yeah, 20+ minutes should suffice since they have lots of guards.

Oh thanks to that, I haven't followed the Euroleague and I was not aware that he did play and contribute to this native country Slovenia with Luka.

And with that experience, I think he is still ready and prime for another great season in the NBA with that kind of performance. He could really be a good help to the Bulls when it boils down that they needed a experience point guard down the stretch.

[LogitechMouse]

Here's a statement of Joe Mazzulla.

"It's not about carrying on from one person," Mazzulla said during the team's media day here in the Boston suburbs. "It's about carrying on the identity of our players. We had our struggles early last season, but at our best, we knew what our identity was. It was our defense, it was our buy-in from a defensive standpoint, and then it was sharing the ball and moving quickly on the offensive end.
"So as much as we can stick to the things we were great at last year, and then find areas to improve along the way, I think is the right way to go."

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/34671406/jaylen-brown-boston-celtics-set-put-our-best-foot-forward-interim-coach-joe-mazzulla
Marcus Smart:

"Joe has been here. He knows the scheme, he knows the players, so it makes it a little bit more easier to adjust to a guy that's been here and knows you."

I doubt they will have a problem with Joe. 3 years being an assistant coach from Brad Stevens to Udoka.
Most players of the Celtics know him as they didn't change their roster that much. This could be Joe's time to shine if ever he manages to put the Celtics in a good position this season.

This is what I've been thinking as well.
Coach Udoka has been pretty impressive in his first year as a head coach of the Celtics, but Coach Mazzulla has been there for 3 years, and he already saw how Coach Udoka and even Coach Brad Stevens coached the team so I'm sure that he will do what's best for the team and what the team is excelling with and that is their defense.

Coach Mazzulla might not copy how Coach Udoka is handling the team but let's see how he will handle it. I'm pretty sure that he knows what he's doing. Celtics is one of the top defensive team last season, so we might see them focusing on it again but this time, with a different coach.

Rumors says that the Celtics are now finding a new head coach but I seriously think that it's not true. The franchise will just sit and wait until the suspension ends because Ime Udoka is already proven.

I also thought about that one, but I read an article just after releasing the suspension and it says that there is a chance that the suspension will not only for one year meaning the suspension might be either one year only or worse even longer. That's how bad what Coach Udoka did. Well, I will just hope for the best for him but if Coach Mazzulla will coach the team well this season, then I guess there is no reason for him to be replaced right?

[ChiBitCTy]

Was listening to local sports radio today and just heard about how Alonzo Ball , for the Chicago Bulls, is getting ready to have surgery soon, and while he expressed a certain level of optimism they did ask him if he thought there would be any change he didn’t come back in 2023 and he simply said that’s the “worst case scenario”. Local sports anchors were saying they wouldn’t count on him coming back at all. Pretty depressing for Chicago Bulls fans.

I think that's the reason why they signed Goran Dragic. The Bulls' management knew that the procedure taken by Ball was not enough so surgery is the only best solution to take that pain away.
A bit sad for Lonzo, this is the prime of his career where he could lead the NBA in assists and be on top of the point guard discussions.
Dragic will definitely be their main ball handler but I doubt he could play at full time so Dosunmu and Coby White should always be ready for a sudden substitution.

Yup exactly why they went out and got him. I remember the first (and last) time I ever played fantasy basketball I drafted Goran Dragic, this was like 2012ish , he was actually pretty solid. But that feels like an eternity ago and I just can’t can’t expect much out of the guy. It’s pretty depressing because the Bulls realistically don’t have a chance without a mega-star , and Ball likely won’t change that but we’ll never know until we get him in the lineup.

[Yaunfitda]

Was listening to local sports radio today and just heard about how Alonzo Ball , for the Chicago Bulls, is getting ready to have surgery soon, and while he expressed a certain level of optimism they did ask him if he thought there would be any change he didn’t come back in 2023 and he simply said that’s the “worst case scenario”. Local sports anchors were saying they wouldn’t count on him coming back at all. Pretty depressing for Chicago Bulls fans.

I think that's the reason why they signed Goran Dragic. The Bulls' management knew that the procedure taken by Ball was not enough so surgery is the only best solution to take that pain away.
A bit sad for Lonzo, this is the prime of his career where he could lead the NBA in assists and be on top of the point guard discussions.
Dragic will definitely be their main ball handler but I doubt he could play at full time so Dosunmu and Coby White should always be ready for a sudden substitution.

Yup exactly why they went out and got him. I remember the first (and last) time I ever played fantasy basketball I drafted Goran Dragic, this was like 2012ish , he was actually pretty solid. But that feels like an eternity ago and I just can’t can’t expect much out of the guy. It’s pretty depressing because the Bulls realistically don’t have a chance without a mega-star , and Ball likely won’t change that but we’ll never know until we get him in the lineup.

Well they have Zach Lavine before and then they added DeRozan, so they are still a pretty solid in my opinion and we can say that Lavine is their mega-star for now, so I wouldn't say it's depressing.

It's the chemistry that they need to build and they have it last season, They were almost on top of the East in the beginning and DeRozan had stretch wherein he had game winning shots.

But since Ball is not going to play, why not get a experience player in Goran Dragic.

[danherbias07]

Yup exactly why they went out and got him. I remember the first (and last) time I ever played fantasy basketball I drafted Goran Dragic, this was like 2012ish , he was actually pretty solid. But that feels like an eternity ago and I just can’t can’t expect much out of the guy. It’s pretty depressing because the Bulls realistically don’t have a chance without a mega-star , and Ball likely won’t change that but we’ll never know until we get him in the lineup.

But they did well last season until the injuries plagued their roster. The first 20 games was awesome and we saw Bulls' games that's almost like an All-Star game with high flying players.
I think what they need is to keep themselves healthy. Just like now, they are missing another important piece to becoming an effective team.
Goran's veteran perspective might also help the young guards, he doesn't need to play much, and guiding them will be a lot of help.