2017-18 NBA Thread

[33anda3rd]

I think cap rules are bad for distribution of elite talent in the NBA.

The Tier 1 guys, the elite of the elite like LeBron, KD, Steph. One of the reasons we have Durant in GS is that another team can't offer Durant meaningful enough money to play elsewhere. To get these guys to move to a team that's not already at the top, the money has to mean something. He's gonna take money or glory, and if money is the same everywhere else he'll take the glory route. (I almost made a disgusting pun there.) LeBron will make $52 million off the court this year, including his Nike deal that's valued over a billion in total plus deals with Coke, Intel, Beats By Dre, other endorsements plus he's partners with the Red Sox/Liverpool FC group and owns a sports agency with Rich Paul. Curry will earn $35 million from UA, plus Chase, Nissan, JBL. Durant $33 million from Nike, Beats, Alaska Airlines, some others. Cap limitations mean that a team like Phoenix or Sacramento or even Chicago/Brooklyn/NYK can't approach KD and go "We'll pay you $50 million a year for five years." These guys are arguably worth $50MM/year to a team, but cap limits mean they can't be paid that much. Might KD go to NYC and play with Zinger? Possibly, but not if the money is the same as playing with Steph and Klay and Dray in GS. Forbes says the top 10 NBA players this year will combine to make $242 million off the court. That's where their meaningful money is coming from, so keeping their faces in the NBA Finals means more to their biggest income sources than their NBA salaries.

The next tier down, Harden makes $20MM in endorsements, Russ $19MM, and so on. Kyrie has the 2nd best selling sneaker line among NBA players with Nike, he gets like $14MM for that.

I think this stuff obscures how we think about basketball player movement and contracts. Baseball, we talk WAR : money and it makes sense because there's no cap and a player can be paid closer to what he's worth. Also the free market can tell us what a player is worth on the open market since in this world something tends to be worth what someone will pay for it. In the NBA, if LeBron is worth 19 wins in an 82-game season, what's his real dollar value? $100 million? $80 million? It's a number that's probably 2-5X what any NBA team is allowed to pay him. For KD and Steph it's probably 2-3X. I don't think we will ever get the right math on WAR : $$$ in the NBA though because nearly all contracts are artificial. One big artificiality of them is the max deal. This offseason I'd assume both LeBron and Paul George decline their player options for free agency. They can basically both be paid the same max money. But LeBron is vastly more valuable.

[MAGA]

its always brushed off as a crazy conspiracy when the league actually has had an official convicted for fixing games. Its happened. Its naive to believe that's the only time its happened. Not saying it happened here. But it did.

[MrCrowesGarden]

[lukethedrifter]

its always brushed off as a crazy conspiracy when the league actually has had an official convicted for fixing games. Its happened. Its naive to believe that's the only time its happened. Not saying it happened here. But it did.

To be clear, you’re suggesting the possibility of an official fixing games, not the league? Same convicted ref has accused the league of “fixing”.
Accusations of a league fix on last nights game make no sense as it’s clearly in NBAs best interest to have more games not a GSW sweep.

[MAGA]

I know GSW are immensely popular and winning helps them. I can’t see a league fix though. Even if they’ve rigged things like draft lotteries in the past.

Official fix is possible. Wasn’t one of last night’s refs convicted of felony fraud? And another had interesting history with Donaghy?

[33anda3rd]

Is the claim that the fix is in because of the charge call turned into a blocking call? Because LeBron was 100000% for sure moving and that was a block not a charge.

The Cavs shot 22 free throws. The Dubs shot 20. If the fix was in the Dubs would have had a significant lead in FTs. In fact, of the 16 playoff teams, the Dubs are 12th in free throw attempts per game this postseason so they have been, if anything, getting the shorter end of the stick on foul calls.

Also, on the topic of LeBron/JR memes, this is incredibly NSFW but made me laugh my balls off today:

[SHOW]

I don't know why but "On God?" makes me bust out laughing even after thinking about this meme for 10 minutes.

[Socnorb11]

The NBA has always been epochal. Players inform teams, inform styles, inform eras. I don't think you can truly love the NBA through just your team. You have to find other things to love for when your team sucks or, even worse, is pretty good but not great. I watch so many more NBA games where I don't have a team-specific rooting interest than any other sport. The way specific players define generations is compelling to me. I get it if that doesn't appeal to people who want parity or only care about their hometown team, but like Luke said, if that's your deal, you probably should give up until your team drafts their LeBron.

I'm compelled by the way specific players define generations, too. I'm not sure why I'm expected to agree with every part of it though, without being told that I'm unreasonable, should seek intervention, and should stop watching the game entirely.

33 asked what was the difference between Chris Paul and Kevin Durant. Should guys like Bottenfield and myself just ignore his question, in order to avoid offending someone here? Is Kevin Durant's competitive nature off-limits?..... taboo? Bottenfield and I didn't bring it up. Isn't this a discussion forum, after all?

[33anda3rd]

Broncos I think the intervention joke isn't pointed at you, it's directed toward the folks who say they hate the NBA but can't stop watching and talking about the NBA.

To say no one brought up the KD thing is false. We wouldn't be talking about it if it hadn't ben brought up.

[lukethedrifter]

I was playing along with bottenfield who clearly seems to understand based on his recent responses.

[BottenFieldofDreams]

Broncos I think the intervention joke isn't pointed at you, it's directed toward the folks who say they hate the NBA but can't stop watching and talking about the NBA.

To say no one brought up the KD thing is false. We wouldn't be talking about it if it hadn't ben brought up.

I say [expletive] the NBA like a poker player would say [expletive] poker. It's sort of a play on the bear survival thing; the NBA hates me more than I hate it.

I watched maybe 45 NBA games this year. 43.5 of them were Blazers games. I could stop watching the NBA with incredible ease if it weren't for the Blazers, who've been woven into my DNA from childhood. I need something from the Blazers via the NBA, and I like basketball and sports; that's why I can't stop talking about it.

I'm not sure what kind of authority you think I have, but disapproving of someone's choices is radically different than disallowing them. Kevin Durant gets to make his choices. Do I have to cheerfully accept them? Silently endure being collateral damage when the league's second best player leaves for the best team ever, just crushing all hope over their knee like Bo Jackson's bat (the first year. and this year too, if they were performing anywhere near their ceiling)? Seems like as a fan of this entertainment industry I'm well within reason to criticize his choices and the impact, and even the disparity between his values/perspective and my own. If the Kevin Durants of the future make the same kinds of choices, I'm entirely totally expletived here in Portland, and a part of my life will almost certainly go unfulfilled. Hell, I won't even get to hope. Kevin Durant gets to do NBA however he wants on his side, and so do I from mine.

That's it, I promise.