The NBA Offseason Has Been Guano Crazy. Again! - by Ben Galli

Follow on twitter @bengalli33

Well hot diggity damn.  The NBA off season already took us to the woodshed to give us that good ol’ good old. (yeah, I’m not exactly sure what that means either but Imma roll with it)  And it’s still not over. That’s because Russell Westbrook looks to be taking his ultra modern, hip fashion sense to where it should be more appreciated like Miami or New York or (squints at unsubstantiated clickbait sports sites) Detroit?

And before I could write anymore on the subject, the latest bomb erupted.  Russell Westbrook had indeed been traded and to Houston of all places. And for Chris Paul of all people.  And for enough 1st round picks that OKC has now acquired up to 15 of them over the next 7 drafts. Now, relationships are really important in basketball just as in real life. Sometimes it works out and sometimes people choose the wrong situation.  But that ‘wrong’ situation wasn’t always the wrong choice at the time.

Back when Kevin Durant (2007) and Russell Westbrook (2008 along with Serge Ibaka!) were the last first round picks for the Seattle Supersonics, it was obvious who the future of the soon to be Oklahoma City Thunder (damn you Clay Bennett) was going to be.  And then in 2009, the Thunder drafted one James Harden in the 1st round with pick 3. That’s right, they drafted 3 future MVP’s back to back to back. In a couple years, it was KD and Russ’ show but James Harden was the mistress. Or the side piece as our post modernist youths would call it.  

He became the 2012 6th Man of the Year, taking a backseat to a KD and Russ led team that would go all the way to the NBA Finals after making short work of the Dallas Mavs (4-0), L.A. Lakers (4-1), and San Antone Spurs (4-2), the last 3 Western Conference Champions*.  But by the next season, he was gone. The speculation was that the Thunder couldn’t afford the luxury tax that extending Harden would lead to. As well as that he, Durant, and Westbrook couldn’t end up existing together in a starting five. And finally, that Westbrook (the one who would always be ‘married’ to Durant) just had better prospects for their future together. 

*Technically, these 3 franchises had represented the West in the previous 13 Finals.

And now, after Durant unceremoniously left Westbrook right after teaming up to blow a 3-1 lead against the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 Western Conference Finals, Westbrook came back to his old mistress after a couple years of playing the field.  Short lived affairs with Victor Oladipo and Paul George* didn’t work out and Westbrook, now looking sheepishly like the one who was driving them all away, ran back to the old flame that welcomed him with open arms.  

*The second time a superstar left Russ for the hottest trending player in the NBA.

But I digress.  This write-up was supposed to be about the guy who was really behind all of this happening.  The guy who’s off court actions and premeditations are taking on a legendary status. That Guy Kawhi who may have saved the NBA.  But that article will have to come another day, friend(s). That yours truly can start writing in the late morning with a topic in mind, take a siesta, then return later only to find that everything changed again is a testament to how volatile this NBA offseason has been.  Markers need reset, end goals need realigned, false prophet NBA reporters need roasted.

The two main questions from the Westbrook-Paul trade is will the Westbrook-Harden pairing work and what will happen to Chris Paul. When Paul got traded to Houston, the same questions arose regarding his compatibility with Harden. I said at the time “But both these guys are unselfish and used to playing with players that want the ball so that should work out fine.” And it actually did albeit not for long. After two years, the honeymoon swoon faded and Chris Paul’s nagging and stubbornness on playing basketball the right way didn’t mesh well with James Harden always coming home late at night and free-spirited usage rate.

But although it would seem to be a match made in hell for reasons like this and this, both Harden and Westbrook have strong motivations to make this work. Harden has his old flame back as he enters the downturn of his career and Westbrook, on his 3rd superstar marriage might finally realize that he has to ask the man in the mirror to change his ways. I suspect these two will figure out how to make it work and I think this will mean Westbrook deferring more to Harden while also practicing discipline in his shot selection.

The sadder story is poor Chris Paul. Many casual fans may not realize that Chris Paul is one of the greatest point guards of all time. Any discussion of ‘greatest little man in NBA history’ must include him. And the guy can still play although he’s lost a step in his old age which probably foretells more injury ramifications. Paul just wants to win and he knows how to play winning basketball. If only his teammates cared as much as he does. And without another star, let alone superstar, in OKC, Paul isn’t a happy camper.

Chris Paul will be bought out or traded.  But he has over $120 million left on his 3 year contract and the notoriously averse to spending Thunder ownership is extremely unlikely to spend near that kind of sum just to see him walk away.  A trade seems imminent. One that might shake things up YET AGAIN in an offseason that’s less than 2 months old. Rumors have the Heat as a potential suitor. At least there, he has someone else that can match his determination to win in Jimmy Butler.  But how the Heat can trade for him after making a slew of trades to be able to afford Butler comes into question. An unlikely buyout would most assuredly see Paul signing a league minimum or exemption with the Los Angeles Lakers to join banana boat chum LeBron James but I see his most likely destination being South Beach which would propel the Heat to Eastern Conference contendership status.  

Oh my.  #thisleague

Rapture for the Raptors and the Empire Strikes Back - by Ben Galli

As the NBA pantheon of bloggers and sportswriters and twitter trolls rushed to publish their freshest takes on how much this meant for Toronto as a franchise, a city, and an entire country; in less than 48 hours (or what I assume is one Canadian night), Toronto lost the NBA spotlight.  Just another indication that mainstream America only “fake” cares when it comes to our neighbors and their silly sports.

Great show Canada but no matter how many great comedians you have making it big on sketch comedy shows, you’ll never be bigger than Hollywood. And so it was approximately 43 hours after Toronto started celebrating an amazing and well deserved title, that the King laid down the decree that would alter the NBA’s entire 2019 offseason.  So at the risk of losing some words on how the Raptors won their first title of all time and deeper analysis of how the offseason will play out, here are some varied thoughts on the present insanity that is the National Basketball Association.

First, hats, I mean tuques off to Toronto.  Just a lot of success stories all around. Masai Ujiri, the President of Basketball Operations fired the eventual coach of the year/winningest coach in franchise history, Dwane Casey, before trading an all time favorite in DeMar Derozan for a Kawhi Leonard that had only played 9 games the previous season coming off a mysterious injury and would most likely not stay more than one year.  His moves put Toronto in this position. Kawhi Leonard showed how dominating and clutch he can be, carrying Toronto to an extremely impressive championship run. A lesser team would not have been able to take advantage of Golden State’s various injuries but Fred Van Vleet showed that anyone who sounds like the heir to a vacuum cleaner business can outplay even Steph Curry on a truly world stage.  

That was late Thursday night.  By Saturday afternoon, the sports world got rocked by news many were hoping for.  The Lakers had traded most of their young talent and 3 first round draft picks for Anthony Davis, the 26 year old player with the 3rd highest PER in NBA history (behind MJ and LeBron).  This. changed. everything. The Lakers, a southern California reality show as much a dumpster fire as you could imagine, just flipped a switch and turned off months of really, really bad press to become the preeminent NBA title favorite.

First off, it must be said that this trade really does stand out.  Both teams seemed to get what they wanted out of them. New Orleans got a historical haul including the 4th pick in this year’s draft and the Lakers did something that’s rarely been done before, trade for a superstar entering his prime.  Frankly it’s very reminiscent of when the Lakers traded Milwaukee for Kareem Abdul Jabbar who had the Lakers as one of his “chosen destinations”. For as much potential was sent New Orleans’ way, affording them a wealth of options on how to move forward with Zion Williamson, the Lakers got the one thing better: realized potential.

Most of the draft picks the Pels get will be in the 20’s most likely but if even one slips through, it could have major payoff.  A bigger win for Los Angeles was the ability to keep Kyle Kuzma. Some, myself included, would rather have Lonzo but admittedly, Kuzma makes more sense for this Lakers squad. Lonzo’s body and shot unfortunately haven’t yet proven dependable and it was Kuzma who repped the Lakers at the lottery with a ‘Hand of the King’ pin on his lapel.  He may have been the only one playing this Lakers version of game of thrones. The lessons with Kobe really paid off.

Besides saving the Lakers future and possibly LeBron’s, this trade along with the tragic Warriors injuries really changes the outlook on the upcoming free agency season.  The Lakers look a lot more enticing now with multiple superstars and have an outside shot of landing yet another one while Kevin Durant’s injury forced absence for next year has given pause to both teams and free agents alike on planning their futures.  Here’s my outlook:

Kawhi Leonard:  aka Saviour of Franchises.  At this moment in time, Kawhi Leonard can do no wrong.  After a historical playoff performance, Kawhi’s at the top of the world and this year’s free agency list.  Obviously, Toronto would love to keep him. But Kawhi is obliged to no one. I think he gone. And I think we’ll see him next in Los Angeles.  And for as much financial and career sense it would make for Kawhi to team up with LeBron and AD and win forever with the Lakers, Kawhi seems to be the guy that’ll take the path less chosen.  Or simply whichever path he wants to take. I think he becomes the biggest star in Clippers history (sorry Michael Olowokandi).

Kyrie Irving:  aka Destroyer of Franchises.  Kyrie Irving can take credit for much of the state of the current NBA. It was he who forced a trade out of Cleveland which severely crippled LeBron’s chances at winning more titles there.  Cleveland has not recovered. He then brought his whimsical musings and third eye to Boston. Before this season, he reiterated his commitment to resigning with Boston long term but all indications have him strongly considering the Brooklyn Nets with the Lakers as of late making a run for his services.  This really puts a crimp in Danny Ainge’s style. Kyrie’s not a guy that can really be figured out because I doubt he would ever tell you who he really is.(that’s deep, yo) With Durant’s injury, a possible team-up in Brooklyn seems unlikely but if I had to guess, Kyrie’s still going to New York’s Clippers.

Kevin Durant:  What a tough break for KD.  Almost makes everyone want to start rooting for him on his comeback.  He ends his Warriors run with a loss, albeit his injury was a large part of that, and doesn’t catch LeBron with 3 rings.  His return from a ruptured Achilles tendon may make a lot of people question the wisdom in offering him a max but offer him they will. And that would be the right move.  I think Durant, knowing next year is a lost year, is ready to move on from the Bay Area, a successful but tumultuous time in his career. And there will be hope now for a fan base that scarcely believes there’s any left existing. Kevin Durant will sign with the Knicks*.

*Watch for the Clippers as a dark horse.

Klay Thompson:  Let’s not waste words on Klay Thompson. Incredible shooter but does anyone really care? He’ll sign with Golden State.

Kemba Walker:  Kemba can get a $221 million dollar supermax extension with the Charlotte Hornets or try to sign with a team with a better chance of contending for a championship, or, or go back home to New York.  The Lakers have been reported as targeting Kemba and he seems to be a good 3rd option for them after Kawhi and Kyrie (although it’s not likely either sign with the Lakers). But Walker leaves around $80 million on the table if he signs with another team.  If Kemba values winning soon, he might come to LA but I think he’s gonna stick with the team he came up on, similar to a Dame Lillard.

Jimmy Butler:  For a good amount of time over the last couple years, Jimmy Butler was the aggressive ying to Kyrie’s passive yang approach to terrible leadership.  Butler was not doing himself any favors as teams and fans alike began souring on him. His past season in Philadelphia apparently helped smooth that image and Butler will have a few suitors. I think Philly and the Lakers will come calling and I think Dallas may make a surprise offer.  I think Butler’s best move is resigning with Philly where they showed promise last year. If the Lakers are desperate for a 3rd superstar, Jimmy Buckets might find himself there but it may be wiser for the Lakers to spend their cap space on several high quality role players.

Cavs Draft - There’s still this Thursday’s NBA Draft which seems like an outdated way of building a contender but remains a very important night for the smaller market have-nots of the NBA.  The Cavs didn’t get the luck of the draw this year but are in solid position with the 5th pick. The top 3 are considered set with Zion, Ja Morant, and RJ Barrett expected to be selected. The 4th pick will be chosen on behalf of New Orleans via the Lakers trade although it appears they may be shopping that pick to another team as we speak.  

I think if they do find a trade partner, Darius Garland (son of former NBAer Winston Garland) is most likely to be the 4th pick.  I think if New Orleans keeps the pick, they’re more likely to draft Jarret Culver, the Texas Tech hero. I think if Garland is available, that might be the pick with the best upside for the Cavs.  If Garland is taken, I think they’ll take the safer pick in Culver but should strongly consider Duke’s Cam Reddish who disappointed alongside his equally highly touted Duke Big 3 members but has high upside.

Ode to an NBA Summer - by Ben Galli

So we're nearing the end of the Craziest NBA Offseason Ever of All Time Oh How Nutso Was That!  Now of course there are still free agency deals to work out and available free agents, but barring major trades, most of the big news has happened.  And it has happened with a bang.  We've had broken promises, rejected apologies, spurned owners, teammates, agents, and the most creative use of emojis Paul Pierce and I have ever seen.  And that was just the DeAndre Jordan Saga.   It was getting to NFL levels of media coverage, something I think will become more and more the case in the years to come.  

Just a word here on how prevalent social media has become in the sportsworld (and let's face it, everyworld).  Think back to how you heard about offseason news in the past.  I remember a time where you'd wait for Sportscenter or read the paper the next morning.  There was a time beyond still that sometimes you didn't hear the best stories until Sports Illustrated did an article or a book was written about a player or team.  That could take years.  Now it's a story every few minutes on Twitter or on the ticker on any sports channel.  It's created competition for stories and breaking them and although it may lead to some gratuitous reporting, it's been Christmas in July for NBA fans on Twitter.  

Spurs Equal Instant Favorites, The Bell Tolls for the Lakers

The best available player in free agency was Portland power forward LaMarcus Aldridge.  Perhaps the best mid-range game big in the NBA (think younger Tim Duncan), Aldridge allowed 7 suitors to woo him.  The Spurs had been billed as the early favorites due to Aldridge being from Texas and his admiration for Tim Duncan.  The Mavericks were another supposed front runner as Aldridge was born and went to high school in Dallas.  

Then all of a sudden some reported the Lakers had emerged as front runners and would get the first chance to present to the All Star.  Minutes after their meeting though, it was reported that they focused too much of their presentation talking up the marketing and financial opportunities of living in LA.  Didn't spend a lot of time on basketball.  When Aldridge asked Kobe his opinion, the Mamba responded with a Pau Gasol comparison that was apparently not to LaMarcus' liking.  The Lakers and Kobe had put their foot in their mouth.  

Aldridge went on to meet with Houston, San Antonio, Phoenix, Dallas, and Toronto with a late fly-in from Pat Riley and Miami that came as a surprise to many.  Aldridge had a meeting with the Knicks scheduled but he cancelled that, further illustrating the general malaise Phil Jackson and the Knicks seemed to be stuck in*. In news illustrating that the Lakers still had something going for them, they were able to convince Aldridge to meet them for a 2nd time for a basketball focused discussion.  Kobe Bryant was not to be present.

As most of you know, Aldridge went on to sign a max deal with San Antonio citing how he fit into their system and how they pitched him as Duncan's replacement.  Aldridge was not very exposed nationally out in the Pacific Northwest but his addition automatically makes the Spurs the front-runners for the World Title since they signed Kawhi Leonard to a max deal as well.  With Duncan and Ginobli coming back, most of their core sticking together plus the addition of David West (who took $11 million less to sign with them), teams will be hard-pressed to take the Spurs out.  The Spurs made history when they handed off the coaching duties of their Summer League team to former WNBA star Becky Hammon and it paid off when their 1st round pick from last year became their newest successful player development story, winning the Summer League MVP.

Many used the Aldridge signing to announce the death of the Lakers mystique but they rebounded with some nice pickups and with Kobe set to retire after next season, they're looking at 40-45 million in cap space next year.  Something tells me they won't strike out again especially after drafting Ohio State star guard D'Angelo Russell who can dish out some of the best passes you'll ever see.   

*I do want to make a comment about New York's offseason.  It hasn't really been that bad.  Porzingis shows a lot of promise and could become a more athletic Dirk in 2 years.  Jerrian Grant will be a solid NBA player and Arron Afflalo is actually pretty decent.  54 million to Sideshow Robin might be a bit much but he is the definition of serviceable. The Knicks are building depth and it remains to be seen what kind of star they can add to that.  

LeBron's Power Trip and the Power of Love

While the Western Conference Arms Race garnered the most attention this offseason, the LeBrons held their own.  Much was made of LeBron opting out of his deal and allegedly planning not to sign until Tristan Thompson got his deal.  Using his leverage is not a new thing for LeBron but he wasn't going anywhere.  Eventually, LeBron signed a 2 year deal and will probably exercise his option to opt out after next year before signing the biggest contract in NBA history.  Thompson is yet to sign as the Cavs contemplate if they can offer the max to a guy who won't start. 

The big news for Cleveland (and the reason Tristan won't start) was the pool party depicted above that was apparently Bring Your Own Chair.  It led to a heart to heart between James and Kevin Love which subsequently led to Love signing a 5 year deal to stay in Cleveland.  The length of the contract came as a surprise to many including myself but it showed a lot about Kevin Love's character and desire to win.  Mo Williams was a later addition and satisfies Cleveland's need for a backup point guard.  There's still the opportunity to re-sign J.R. Smith and rumors of a trade for Jamal Crawford or Joe Johnson although those have died down.

The Cavs quest for a championship has Nick Gilbert's dad looking at a potential $18 million over the salary cap before any Tristan Thompson or J.R. Smith deal.  Far be it for me to try to explain how the luxury tax works in the NBA (long story short, you pay a fine if your team spends above the salary cap) but this article estimates the Cavs may have to pay nearly $140 million in luxury tax alone this year!  That would shatter the old record held by the Brooklyn Nets of a little over $100 million.  Isn't it awesome that all this money is just spent on sports?

To DeAndre or Not To DeAndre

NBA fans celebrated Christmas in July on July 8th of this year.  On July 3rd, DeAndre Jordan All NBA 3rd Team Center for the the Los Angeles Clippers agreed in principle to signing with the Dallas Mavericks.  League rules stipulate free agents cannot actually sign their contract until 12:01pm Eastern time on Thursday, July 9th.  There were rumors that Jordan wanted to play a bigger role on offense and that he was just tired of having to deal with noted jerkface perfectionist Chris Paul.  But then DeAndre began having second thoughts and gave Dwight Howard a run for the money for being the biggest baby in the NBA.  Twitter painted the picture and what pictures there were.

This led to an unparalleled display of tweeting from athletes.  Some laugh out loud clever and some just laugh at Paul Pierce.  

Pierce started of the twitter war with an image that left more wondering how old he actually was.

Then Clippers assistant coach Mike Woodson tweeted that he was swimming to Houston.  Not sure where he was that would have swimming as his most efficient means of transportation.  We will never get you, Mike Woodson.

Chandler Parsons was flying in.  God knows from where.  

J.J. Redick quickly responded indicating he was driving from his home in Austin to DeAndre's place in Houston.  

Blake Griffin got into the act but inexplicably was going to take a helicopter from his plane to a car.  

Then finally the big news erupted.  Chris Paul, he of the estranged relationship with DeAndre was going to make it.  Paul's may have been the funniest because just the day before, Paul was enjoying his vacation with pals LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Gabrielle Union on a banana boat..

Austin Rivers, the coach's son and new beneficiary of a $3 million plus 2 year contract from a team his DAD is the general manager of, tweeted something.  Yeah, me neither.

Twitter had its fun with it.  This continued on the whole day with Clippers players arriving en mass to DeAndre Jordan's home in Houston.  They were going to play video games and hang out until he could sign at 12:01am, so just after midnight.  This would also likely prevent the Mavericks interfering if the Clippers literally wouldn't let them in the house.  Blake Griffin tweeted this pic:

Later on in the evening, after it was established that DeAndre was going to stay in L.A. and was ignoring phone calls from Chandler Parsons and Mark Cuban, there were disputed reports from Chris Broussard that Mark Cuban was driving around Houston texting Jordan's relatives for his home address.  

But the rest of the night on twitter belonged to two of the greatest to play the game.  Not shy to social media, Kobe Bryant tweeted:

After Jemele Hill explained to him that all the kids were doing it. Kobe responded like you knew he would.

And then enter His Airness himself.  I don't think Jordan was trying to copy Kobe. I just think that Kobe's nearly psychotic obsession with being like Jordan has just led him to do what Jordan would do even before Jordan does it.  Michael (or whoever runs his Twitter (which might be Kobe)) had this to add:

And then a minute later, Jordan won the day.  

Yup, that's a goat.  As in Greatest Of All Time.  Hard to argue after a performance like that.