A40:
Imagine Nick Wright calling Nikola Jokic a pretend superstar. This man is a disgrace and a cancer to sports punditry

A40:
I will have a problem with anybody with two working eyes calling Nikola Jokic a pretend superstar.

I don't hate him. He's just an all-round terrible pundit. Period

A40:

That's on offense. Me I know the drill. Any big that can even stand in the middle and can make smart decisions with the ball will easily crush the zone

What of defense? You could see apart from Game 2 in this Nuggets series they had really few uncontested 3s. I struggle to remember any point the Heat had any transition buckets.

On paper the Celtics have the better defense than Denver and yet in 5 games they were held under 100 4 times.

The Jaylen and Jayson dynamic IMO was a bigger problem. Especially with Jaylen's school boy handles.

Now on paper you would think two big two way wings the perfect scenario but the more I look the more I have to ask if it's a Kawhi and PG scenario. Two guys that basically do the same thing and cannot play off each other. Jokic and Murray had more assists to each other in Game 3 than Tatum and Brown did to each other the entire series. That was another huge problem

A40:




I want to hear what that charlatan Nick Wright has to say later on

A40:
I don't see it in Harden, AD as #1 guys that can lead a team to a title. Even Embiid has not showed that yet in my eyes

I have a little more faith in Jokic and Giannis

A40:
People are always hung up on athleticism. Power, muscle. Dem forget say ogbon ju agbara lo. This is why I ranked Jokic higher than Embiid as the league's best Center and niggas were arguing with me on other platforms

A40:



40stradamus

A40:
Denver might phuck around and be the new Golden State.

So they have Jokic, Harris, Trey Lyles, Jamal Murray, Monte Morris, Malik Beasley, Michael Porter Jr who should be healthy and then Manute's son as well on mostly cheap deals. Now if they could just offload Will Barton and Mason Plumlee they would be perfect. The issue is what do with Millsap who would be a useful veteran mentor, do they pick up that heavy team option for one year or try to get a marquee FA with that money

Khanben:


He already said if he wins he automatically dethrone Giannis as the best player in the league

A40:
He's not serious. Someone that wrote off the Nuggets all year and worse kept questioning Jokic's ability. For someone that prides themselves on being smart and a basketball kinikankinikan how could you not tell that Jokic was an incoming HOFer.

From the first day I saw him 16/17 he was can't miss. The talent was unmistakable. Even if I was a pundit paid to talk badly about him I wouldn't cos you would be phuckin up my credibility when he easily proves me wrong

Khanben:


Embiid needs to learn what it means to have a mismatch. If you are playing against guys like Jokic, Lopez and Gorbert I have no issues with you taking 10 jump shots. But if a team is leaving AL or Bam on you 1v1, dude get your ass into the post and eat

A40:
Some of it is also mentality. He's more skilled than Bam and yet he's been outperformed by Bam and most other bigs he faces. I think he gets coddled getting all those whistles in the regular season that come playoff time he doesn't know how to act when calls don't go his way.

He's also low on accountability which makes it hard for him to do better and stop taking those dumbass jump shots. I see he talks a good game but when it's crunch time he folds

Khanben:


Tatum and Brown have a lot of growing to do, Brown needs either develop a tighter handle or if he cannot learn how to score with less dribbles. As for Tatum this is the 2nd year in a row the team has struggled in zone coverage, if non of the big men can do the inside work, he has no choice but to learn how to post up, he needs to take one for the team.
Watching that Heat vs Celtics series I truly believe if you switch Luka and Tatum the Celtics will win in 5, because you are not deploying that zone with such success against Luka


PS: can you see anywhere Jalen improved from last finals appearance to this season, I cannot see any? He had the same handling issues in the conference and nba finals last year

A40:
A part of me wonders if the Celtics can go for a guy like CP3. Just someone to run that offense the proper way.

I don't know that Brown is going to develop a handle overnight and Tatum has committed to 3pt spamming. The reason I hate 3pt spamming so much is because of how much it hurts the rest of your game.

Just like the death of tiki taka the league is slowly moving away from 3pt spamming.

Can you imagine if the Nuggets had relied on 3pt shooting this series? They would lose

Just look at Tatum and MAGA Mike as you said. These are guys that are big but cannot post, no footwork. All they do is jump and shoot, catch and shoot. Once their 3s don't fall they cannot do anything else.

Jaylen did not improve anywhere either. This dude cannot go left. You just wonder what new wrinkle he can add to his game this late, maybe they just get a proper PG so there's less scenarios where Brown is forced to handle the ball and make things happen.

larride:
First in NBA history.

joshboo:



Wait So Jokic is already Greater than KD and Giannis in your Books??

donlittle25:
Birdman when will your team will s championship?

Old glory no matter again o

Khanben:


Tatum and Brown have a lot of growing to do, Brown needs either develop a tighter handle or if he cannot learn how to score with less dribbles. As for Tatum this is the 2nd year in a row the team has struggled in zone coverage, if non of the big men can do the inside work, he has no choice but to learn how to post up, he needs to take one for the team.
Watching that Heat vs Celtics series I truly believe if you switch Luka and Tatum the Celtics will win in 5, because you are not deploying that zone with such success against Luka


PS: can you see anywhere Jalen improved from last finals appearance to this season, I cannot see any? He had the same handling issues in the conference and nba finals last year

A40:
Definitely a flaw on his game. The Nuggets did not bite on those fakes all series which meant Jimmy had to work for every bucket. Not sure he crossed 30 in any game and it was a huge reason why

birdman:


I missed this game, but I think that is Butler's feature, not a flaw. Its why he will always be an all star. But he will never be a super star imo. The fuundamentals that he knows, he owns them and maxes them out. But you know what you gon get every night

A40:
I guess you can call it that. Jimmy as far as I'm concerned has maxed out his talents. 2 NBA Finals and a Game 7 conference Final as the best player on his teams.

30th picks are simply not supposed to go that far.

The question really now for the Heat is can Jimmy coexist with another superstar. I know the new CBA will make it nigh impossible to create a Superteam but I don't think it will be fair if we never get to find out if Jimmy is just the plucky underdog or is he a guy capable of winning it all with another superstar or All NBA level player

birdman:


Wasnt he initially a Chicago Bull, back in the day with D Rose? I think he has the personality type that will play hard wether he is #1 or #2 . He might request a trade, but he gon max out on the court in the meantime

birdman:


Im enjoying denvers ring at the moment. couldnt happen to a better city, easily the best quality of life in yankee, and the best cultured people. I found it hard to support them when I lived there though. AI was on the team, and every weekend e go enter club scoop up all the chicks. I was glad to see the brother leave town

Speaking of which, Melo gon feel low today, all that pride and noise, no ring. If he had been a little humble and worked things out with the front office, I think he would have retired a nugget

Roland17:


From what we have seen Butler has a unique personality and thrives ONLY in certain situations that is catered towards that personality. He has the tendency to be disruptive in the locker room in certain situations

Chicago Bulls
He wasn't regarded as a good locker room guy in Chicago, he had issues with Rose and Noah which ultimately led to him being traded to the Sixers. He tried to usurp the leadership of Rose and Noah causing disruption and a divided locker room. Infact, he asked that players not interact around certain members of the coaching staff/ leadership.

Sixers
The same issue plagued him in Philly. He couldn't get along with other players except Embiid and had several disrespectful arguments with coach Bret Brown. Remember the 'Tobias over me" comment? while legitimate, buttresses the point about him being disruptive in the locker room.

donlittle25:
Honestly forgot about melo. This buttress someone point on this thread about European being loyal to their teams than Americans.

Melo left denver and went to the knicks? wetin you wan do there? Fashion? Anyways, we don see am now. Among that class, he is the only one without a ring.

birdman:



wow. I missed all that. I wonder if he is the one udonis kept referring too frustrating his voice in the lockeroom

birdman:



His wife Lala was from new york, and I think she was a model at the time, so it sorta made sense. Even she admitted everything started falling apart after that trade, the spotlight was too bright. Plus imho, its a very bad idea to move back into your wife's family's sphere of influence. Women will say there is nothing wrong with it, but I have never seen it work out well for the marriage. Cut dem strings and keep em cut.

birdman:


Wasnt he initially a Chicago Bull, back in the day with D Rose? I think he has the personality type that will play hard wether he is #1 or #2 . He might request a trade, but he gon max out on the court in the meantime

Roland17:


From what we have seen Butler has a unique personality and thrives ONLY in certain situations that is catered towards that personality. He has the tendency to be disruptive in the locker room in certain situations

Chicago Bulls
He wasn't regarded as a good locker room guy in Chicago, he had issues with Rose and Noah which ultimately led to him being traded to the Sixers. He tried to usurp the leadership of Rose and Noah causing disruption and a divided locker room. Infact, he asked that players not interact around certain members of the coaching staff/ leadership.

Sixers
The same issue plagued him in Philly. He couldn't get along with other players except Embiid and had several disrespectful arguments with coach Bret Brown. Remember the 'Tobias over me" comment? while legitimate, buttresses the point about him being disruptive in the locker room.

donlittle25:
Honestly forgot about melo. This buttress someone point on this thread about European being loyal to their teams than Americans.

Melo left denver and went to the knicks? wetin you wan do there? Fashion? Anyways, we don see am now. Among that class, he is the only one without a ring.

birdman:



His wife Lala was from new york, and I think she was a model at the time, so it sorta made sense. Even she admitted everything started falling apart after that trade, the spotlight was too bright. Plus imho, its a very bad idea to move back into your wife's family's sphere of influence. Women will say there is nothing wrong with it, but I have never seen it work out well for the marriage. Cut dem strings and keep em cut.

donlittle25:
No be the marriage wey don end be that?

I tell people all the time, Never move in with a woman, or leave a city and move to her city. That nonsense rarely works, I have never seen it work honestly. Dude didn't make a smart decision .

Btw, Melo wore 15 at Denver, same as jokic, I wonder what happens.