2020 End of Season / Playoffs

[The Great One]

If the Celtics played with the same kind of intensity they did against the Raptors they would've beaten this Heat team easily.

The only interesting storyline in this Lakers/Heat series is who gets the MVP, LeBron or AD?

[MixxAOR]

I hope Lebron is not going to come out with some corny shit like "Job is not finished. We are not happy" enough of theatrics

[S.R.]

Heat got the stretch of Lakers missed they needed but couldn't do anything with it. LA got their buckets with a lot more ease all night. A 10 point game but I'm not sure LA was ever really threatened.

​​​​​

[DanH]

They want out of a valid contract to play in X city and leave for Y. That's voiding the contract to play for team X unless traded, not the (financial) terms of the contract.

My position is players should play out their contract under the terms of their contract. Unless they want to allow teams to cut under performing players which you know will never happen.

And I didn't say anything about getting out of contract in order to be paid more. It was in response to you saying "teams get to carry rookies for 4 years way below their market value"
Yes, if that's the contract they sign and collectively bargained for.

Players can make so much money in endorsements now. What if the top 5 players decided to play for $1 a season or just below market value enough to fit under the salary cap, just to win chips. That wouldn't bother you?

I like MJ and Giannis attitude far better. I want to be number 1 by beating number two, not colluding with him.

But they don’t want out of the contract! They want to be traded, which is an ability included in the foundation of that very contract!

It would bother me if players did that and if they did I would be mad at the right people - the NBA teams and owners who actively pushed to get maximum salaries implemented in the CBA.

Again, point me to a single time a player has not played out their contract. Ever. If you accept that teams have the right to trade players because it is in the CBA why is it so difficult to accept that the players can have similar agency. Everyone in every one of these cases is acting within their rights within the CBA. It just rarely gets to the point of legalities because everyone knows just keeping an unhappy player against their will is not best for anyone.

[golden]

But they don’t want out of the contract! They want to be traded, which is an ability included in the foundation of that very contract!

It would bother me if players did that and if they did I would be mad at the right people - the NBA teams and owners who actively pushed to get maximum salaries implemented in the CBA.

Again, point me to a single time a player has not played out their contract. Ever. If you accept that teams have the right to trade players because it is in the CBA why is it so difficult to accept that the players can have similar agency. Everyone in every one of these cases is acting within their rights within the CBA. It just rarely gets to the point of legalities because everyone knows just keeping an unhappy player against their will is not best for anyone.

I think Deaner was suggesting a situation where the player wants out of the city he signed the contract with, as a form of passively threatening to withhold services. If a guy wants out, his heart really isn't in it anymore, and that's a toxic no-win situation for the franchise. Obviously, none of these guys literally "want out of their contracts" after securing maximum bag.

That's basically what happened with VC, Kyrie, Melo, AD, .... Sometimes the GM is smart enough to run the auction skillfully. Sometimes they aren't.

[G__Deane]

If the Celtics played with the same kind of intensity they did against the Raptors they would've beaten this Heat team easily.

The only interesting storyline in this Lakers/Heat series is who gets the MVP, LeBron or AD?

Media is already setting up Davis as the MVP.
Finals are meh and the worst in recent memory. Almost unwatchable

[007]

LeBron has two total turnovers so far in the series lmao

[DanH]

I think Deaner was suggesting a situation where the player wants out of the city he signed the contract with, as a form of passively threatening to withhold services. If a guy wants out, his heart really isn't in it anymore, and that's a toxic no-win situation for the franchise. Obviously, none of these guys literally "want out of their contracts" after securing maximum bag.

That's basically what happened with VC, Kyrie, Melo, AD, .... Sometimes the GM is smart enough to run the auction skillfully. Sometimes they aren't.

Right. That’s my point though. What is particularly wrong about that?

The player signs a contract with that team with the understanding that they can be traded. So if the team trades the player, fine, that was understood to be a possibility when the contract was signed. You know what else is a possibility when the contract is signed? The player can retire, not play in the NBA anymore, and the team doesn’t have to pay him (but is still stuck with the cap hit). The player can even decide to unretire as soon as their contract would have been up and become a free agent! The player can suddenly become terrible at basketball, and still get paid. The franchise can be relocated to another city, and the player has to go with them. And guess what else? If the player decides they don’t want to be there anymore, there is nothing stopping them from telling the team that and the two working together to make that happen. There is a rule about the player publicly demanding a trade. Not demanding a trade, just doing it publicly.

Heck, players can have no trade clauses. Teams can still ask the players to waive no trade clauses to be able to move them, it happens all the time. Not just that but trade kickers, guarantees, option years, all things that are in the player’s control that teams are well within their rights to ask if the player will take action on. And guess what? If the player says no, the team can take all sorts of punitive action, like waiving the player, bringing them off the bench so they don’t get minutes with the best players, sit them entirely so they don’t get to play at all...

It’s a two way street, and in all these cases players and teams both have plenty of leverage and it is basically always in both parties’ best interests to accommodate the request of the other. No team really wants to have a guy there who doesn’t want to be there. Why people get their backs up about players not “sticking to their contract” when they are completely fine with teams not doing so is just beyond me.

[G__Deane]

Was PG relatively happy playing in OKC before Kawhi came calling and suggested he not be happy and want out? If that's the case, that's the problem.

His numbers were actually down over his last 2 years in OKC and the 2 prior in Indiana but of course, he wasn't the 1B there. If you don't understand why fans (particularly in a small market team) aren't happy when a player wants out in the midst of a valid contract, I don't know what to tell you.

btw, there's weak rumors that PG could be shipped to the Nets to team up with Kyrie and Durant. If true and those players play anywhere near their healthy potential, you can forget the East for the next few years.

"It all started with Paul George having a tiff with Montrezl Harrell in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals. Harrell tried to address one of George’s clumsy turnovers, but he refused to take responsibility for it. It ended with Harrell telling him, “You’re always right. Nobody can tell you nothing.”

This brief argument blew way out of proportion and can now be the potential reason for George to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Josh McIntyre from Fox Sports explained, “At the exit interviews, and this is just what I’ve heard, Paul George did not get rave reviews from his teammates.”

“My source would not be shocked if Paul George was shipped out of town, and the potential landing spot is the Brooklyn Nets where he would then team with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. In exchange, the Clippers would get something along the lines of Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, and some sort of second-round Draft pick to balance out the rest of the deal,” said Josh.

[nba_4_life]

Was PG relatively happy playing in OKC before Kawhi came calling and suggested he not be happy and want out? If that's the case, that's the problem.

His numbers were actually down over his last 2 years in OKC and the 2 prior in Indiana but of course, he wasn't the 1B there. If you don't understand why fans (particularly in a small market team) aren't happy when a player wants out in the midst of a valid contract, I don't know what to tell you.

btw, there's weak rumors that PG could be shipped to the Nets to team up with Kyrie and Durant. If true and those players play anywhere near their healthy potential, you can forget the East for the next few years.

"It all started with Paul George having a tiff with Montrezl Harrell in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals. Harrell tried to address one of George’s clumsy turnovers, but he refused to take responsibility for it. It ended with Harrell telling him, “You’re always right. Nobody can tell you nothing.”

This brief argument blew way out of proportion and can now be the potential reason for George to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Josh McIntyre from Fox Sports explained, “At the exit interviews, and this is just what I’ve heard, Paul George did not get rave reviews from his teammates.”

“My source would not be shocked if Paul George was shipped out of town, and the potential landing spot is the Brooklyn Nets where he would then team with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. In exchange, the Clippers would get something along the lines of Caris LeVert, Spencer Dinwiddie, and some sort of second-round Draft pick to balance out the rest of the deal,” said Josh.

Pretty sure if that happens its gonna be like what happened with the GSW signed Durant, the new dynasty

[SkywalkerAC]

A two year dynasty?

[MixxAOR]

A two year dynasty?

word dynasty gets thrown out a lot.

[Puffer]

Pretty sure if that happens its gonna be like what happened with the GSW signed Durant, the new dynasty

Kinda depends on the three alphas getting along. Is somebody going to be happy being the third wheel? Serious question, I don't know the players and dynamics well enough to guess.

[golden]

Shai, Gallo + 5 FRPs for Dinwiddie & Levert? Lol. Lawrence Frank is toast if he trades PG for something like that.

They’ve got to ride it out and make PG the scapegoat if they don’t make the Finals next year.

[G__Deane]

Kinda depends on the three alphas getting along. Is somebody going to be happy being the third wheel? Serious question, I don't know the players and dynamics well enough to guess.

PG might be happy enough to be the Robin with a more guaranteed road to the finals. Not that I think that rumor is anything short of crazy fantasy stuff. No way Kawhi stands for it either, he would immediately load manage for half of next season