Should we trade kawhi at the deadline?

[Zainab]

No, trading for Kawhi to make that judgment call at mid-season would have been the most incredibly stupid thing Masai could do. The whole failing of this team over the past half decade has been regular season success not translating to the playoffs, so they made a move that said loud and clear "we do not give a flying crap about regular season success and this team will be judged on the playoffs alone".

Now, we are chugging along at the typical 50+ win pace, even with the various struggles stemming from a bunch of injuries (and an only-playoffs-matter approach of being very cautious with said injuries), and we should bail on the experiment before it has begun?

The only scenario Masai should even consider flipping Kawhi is if there is effectively a 0% chance this team outperforms the previous iterations in the playoffs. Personally, I think it would be incredibly foolish to believe that that is the case.

The voice of reason

[Shaolin Fantastic]

Can keep saying you don't care about regular season success but this team is not playing at a level that any championship team previously has been at. Additionally, if we don't have homecourt advantage in the east it becomes infinitely more difficult to get to the finals.

[DanH]

Can keep saying you don't care about regular season success but this team is not playing at a level that any championship team previously has been at. Additionally, if we don't have homecourt advantage in the east it becomes infinitely more difficult to get to the finals.

Really. It’s infinitely more difficult to win one series on the road than at home...

[golden]

Can keep saying you don't care about regular season success but this team is not playing at a level that any championship team previously has been at. Additionally, if we don't have homecourt advantage in the east it becomes infinitely more difficult to get to the finals.

Actually that's not true. Pretty much every Lebron Cavs team from 2014-2018 looked like crap at some point during the regular season. The 2011 Mavs were ranked 8th in both ORTG & DRTG during the regular season. 2009 Lakers were only 11th in ORTG. The 2006 Heat were 7th & 9th. And so on....

Oh, by the way, your Toronto Raptors were 2nd & 5th in regular season ORTG & DRTG last season. How'd that work out?

[Rudy Bargnani]

Can keep saying you don't care about regular season success but this team is not playing at a level that any championship team previously has been at. Additionally, if we don't have homecourt advantage in the east it becomes infinitely more difficult to get to the finals.

Right but if you want to win one day it’s better to have Kawhi on your team than not.
He hasn’t said he’s not resigning. You have his bird rights and a good team. You have to take the chance in my view.

[sanyo]

Is there still enough time to tank for Zion?

[golden]

Yeah, sports fans have become pretty sad these days. It's like: "guarantee me a championship, or else rebuild as soon as things aren't going your way." Nobody wants to see their teams play actual games anymore, no matter how good they are. Maybe it's the KD to GSW dispair effect, or millenials who are used to 'winning' participation ribbons, but damn... fans are different these days.

[Shaolin Fantastic]

Yeah, sports fans have become pretty sad these days. It's like: "guarantee me a championship, or else rebuild as soon as things aren't going your way." Nobody wants to see their teams play actual games anymore, no matter how good they are. Maybe it's the KD to GSW dispair effect, or millenials who are used to 'winning' participation ribbons, but damn... fans are different these days.

Do you watch any other sports besides the NBA?

This isn't true in professional soccer or in the NFL or in the NHL. This is because of the NBA's incentive structure. Cut the bullshit alt-right millenial hating crap, it's a tired act.

The NBA essentially has 5 zones and if you're not in zone 1 or 5 (or trending towards one of them) you're not playing the game correctly.

1.) Title contenders
2.) Good teams that aren't good enough to win the title
3.) Average teams (7-11, literally the worst place you can be in the NBA)
4.) Bad teams that aren't bad enough to get a superstar in the draft
5.) Really bad/rebuilding/tanking teams

The problem is Golden State have made it more difficult to be in that 1st group, and based on how we've played this year we're in the 2nd group (one of the best teams in that group, which has gotten quite large this year). So my point is, if we can't make an acquisition to push us from the top of group 2, into group 1 (which also gives us a much better chance of retaining Leonard and staying in group 1 longer), we should start thinking about how to set ourselves up to rebuild as best we can by getting the most in return for what we have.

My opinions here always get criticized as being crazy or whatever, but on almost every topic I've been correct.

[KHD]

Do you watch any other sports besides the NBA?

This isn't true in professional soccer or in the NFL or in the NHL. This is because of the NBA's incentive structure. Cut the bullshit alt-right millenial hating crap, it's a tired act.

The NBA essentially has 5 zones and if you're not in zone 1 or 5 (or trending towards one of them) you're not playing the game correctly.

1.) Title contenders
2.) Good teams that aren't good enough to win the title
3.) Average teams (7-11, literally the worst place you can be in the NBA)
4.) Bad teams that aren't bad enough to get a superstar in the draft
5.) Really bad/rebuilding/tanking teams

The problem is Golden State have made it more difficult to be in that 1st group, and based on how we've played this year we're in the 2nd group (one of the best teams in that group, which has gotten quite large this year). So my point is, if we can't make an acquisition to push us from the top of group 2, into group 1 (which also gives us a much better chance of retaining Leonard and staying in group 1 longer), we should start thinking about how to set ourselves up to rebuild as best we can by getting the most in return for what we have.

My opinions here always get criticized as being crazy or whatever, but on almost every topic I've been correct.

lol

[Rudy Bargnani]

Golden state is the only team in what you call category 1.
They are at risk of becoming mortals next year due to money/age/free agency. If we go back to their being 3–5 teams that could plausibly win the title having Kawhi Leonard on your team is a good thing.

I’m not clear if your argument is that he’s not going to stay or that the team with him will not be a title contender.

[golden]

Do you watch any other sports besides the NBA?

This isn't true in professional soccer or in the NFL or in the NHL. This is because of the NBA's incentive structure. Cut the bullshit alt-right millenial hating crap, it's a tired act.

The NBA essentially has 5 zones and if you're not in zone 1 or 5 (or trending towards one of them) you're not playing the game correctly.

1.) Title contenders
2.) Good teams that aren't good enough to win the title
3.) Average teams (7-11, literally the worst place you can be in the NBA)
4.) Bad teams that aren't bad enough to get a superstar in the draft
5.) Really bad/rebuilding/tanking teams

The problem is Golden State have made it more difficult to be in that 1st group, and based on how we've played this year we're in the 2nd group (one of the best teams in that group, which has gotten quite large this year). So my point is, if we can't make an acquisition to push us from the top of group 2, into group 1 (which also gives us a much better chance of retaining Leonard and staying in group 1 longer), we should start thinking about how to set ourselves up to rebuild as best we can by getting the most in return for what we have.

My opinions here always get criticized as being crazy or whatever, but on almost every topic I've been correct.

And if KD goes to the Knicks in the off-season and GSW doesn't want to give Klay or Draymond the max, then you've panicked your way out of category 1 prematurely.

Unless you're getting a top 5 player back, trading Kawhi would be like quitting your job to pursue your lifelong dream of climbing Mt. Everest, then getting to the base of Everest and then calling your boss and saying, "... hey, is it too late to get my old job back?"

[A.I]

Shaolin has been pushing the tank for ages and still hasn’t stopped even though we have Kawhi lol. I admire the persistence.

[Rudy Bargnani]

Should the Lakers trade Lebron? Should the Celtics trade kyrie?

[golden]

Should the Lakers trade Lebron? Should the Celtics trade kyrie?

Absolutely. And the Warriors should trade both KD & Curry because, you know, there's a 0.1% chance they don't win it all. Get an early start on the rebuild.

[RandomGuy]

Should RR trade Shaolin?