Betrayer
-
Posts
1,716 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
2
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Store
Articles
Everything posted by Betrayer
-
I think it's the archetype that people (myself included) like. We see a poor man's Cam Johnson if he could stay healthy. People talk about how Troy added shooting and defense to the team in the offseason, but those players are mutually exclusive since the shooters can't defend and vice versa. Livers was our only chance at a classic 3&D player.
-
Is he in a boy band during the offseason?
-
Portland figured it out. Trade for a vet and some assets, then move the vet for another vet and some assets, and repeat. Meanwhile Pistons still sitting on Bogie as if he’s part of the rebuild.
-
Totally agree about 1 & 2 needing to happen for the restoration to make sense. I'm just not sure it happens this year since Cade just turned 22 and hasn't even played 82 games, and Duren is still 19. That's why I think 30 is more realistic, although I hope you're right and they get to 35. I'd love to see that kind of acceleration of their growth. Not sure if they'll be involved in the Lillard fallout, because that's really just Holiday at this point. But, I think the entire NBA trade market has been on hold waiting for the Lillard trade to finalize. To some extent they may still be waiting on the Harden trade, but maybe you'll see things loosen up and hopefully the Pistons will make a move. I'm hoping they capitalize on Bogie's value and use that trade to move one of Wiseman, Bagley, or Killian. Then again, we're awfully close to media day and training camp, so they may just open the season with this roster.
-
Last year the 35 win teams (there were 2 of them) were better than 6 other teams. While I'd love to see the Pistons get there, trying to find those 6 other teams is where this gets tough to imagine. If that happens, then I think it'll mean three things: 1. Cade is that guy - He'll have to take a Haliburton-like leap this year and be a fringe All-Star. 2. Another young player takes a huge leap - My bet would be on Duren, since he and Cade will make a nice duo in the Pick and Roll game. I'm imagining a 15 pts and 15 rebounds machine while greatly improving his defensive awareness. A lot to ask of a 19 year old though. Speaking of defense... 3. The Defense has to be greatly improved - We don't have a superstar scorer (Curry, Luka) or an unstoppable matchup nightmare (Giannis, Embiid), so we HAVE to improve from 29th to middle of the pack on defense. That's a huge jump and it means defensive growth from all the youngsters as well as probably trading Bogie to bring in a wing that can defend well.
-
Whenever I wonder how much the team will improve this year I have to remind myself that we're replacing Killian Hayes and CoJo with Cade Cunningham and Monte Morris. Just let that settle in. Killian played 8000 minutes and was one of the worst players in the league by a wide margin. CoJo is a bottom third of the league backup. They also sat or benched Bogie, Stewart, and even Duren for long stretches to end the season last year while rolling out G-League lineups with guys like Omaruyi, Hampton, Rhoden, and McGruder. Not saying they're going to win 35, just that we can't really think of them in terms of their win total from last year when we consider the injuries and intentional tanking they did.
-
He's after Klay's roster spot.
-
Also, only averaging 55 games played the past 4 seasons.
-
Mr Glass Unfortunately the 65 game minimum for winning NBA season awards doesn't extend to the Rookie of the Year. Odd choice.
-
I don't think people are enamored with Livers so much as they are with the archetype he represents - a 3 and D player with positional versatility. I don't need Bogey's scoring versatility with Cade, Ivey, Morris (and even Ausar) handling the ball. In fact, some of Bogey's worst moments were those 4th quarter iso-ball situations. What I need is better defense around my core players and Bogey's simple catch and shoot ability. That's why people like Liver's archetype. If not him, then maybe someone we get back in the Bogey trade (or a different trade to balance this roster, considering how many expirings we've collected). It's not about the specific player, more about the archetype and the fact that you aren't winning games with a Ivey + Bogey combo that gave up 123 ppg when they were on the court together last year. That, and the fact that Bogey's value won't ever be higher than it is today makes trading him now the right move. As for Ivey, I think being off-ball will help him a ton this year. He's going to get easier shots when Cade's on the court and secondary ball-handling duties when the defense has already been bent or in transition. I could very easily see him being this team's leading scorer with Cade as the cerebral leader (like a Hamilton and Billups combo).
-
Defense vs Shooting Troy said it best. "You can't shoot your way to the top in the NBA. It starts with defense." People love to talk about Golden State, but even with two of the best shooters of all time, we always forget just how good the defense was on those championship teams. That said, my point is not to forsake shooting. What I'm saying is that a combination of Livers and Harris can give you Bogie's 30 minutes per night and replace him as a catch and shoot player. The shooting balances out and you'll gain defense. That's a net positive already and on top of that you gain assets (or another player) from trading a guy who doesn't factor into this team's future and whose usage/value are only going down from their current high point of his career. As for the Ivey comments... First, Ivey had a better 3P% than Mathurin last year (34.3% vs 32.3%). He did that while being the primary offensive initiator playing with G-League players who didn't need to be guarded, while Mathurin was fed off-ball shots. Second, Ivey was in the 88th percentile on catch and shoot threes. That means he was excellent as an off-ball shooter and he figures to get a lot more of those opportunities this year with Cade's return. Third, Ivey showed notable improvement in shooting (and multiple other areas) as the season went on, whereas Mathurin regressed, shooting just 22% from three in his last 10 games. I'll grant you that Sharpe had a better stroke than Ivey last year (36%), but again, he got spoon fed open looks whereas Ivey shouldered the load on a team where practically nobody else had to be guarded. With a year in the books Ivey looks like the best off-ball shooter in this young core, so we can probably drop the outdated pre-draft misconception that the catch-and-shoot 3-ball is going to be one of his issues in the league. Ivey's problems are on the other end of the court, and those struggles simply add to the case that we can't have two guys that don't play defense in the starting lineup. If Troy values defense as much as he claims, then it's a no-brainer to move Bogie while his value is high and work to change the defensive culture of this team.
-
Oh, I completely agree that people who do their time should be able to get a second chance. My issue is that I don't think either of these players will (or have) "done their time" because of who they are and the fact that the NBA is all about the bottom line. I also think that when your job is a very public one, where people look up to you and you carry the reputation of the company on your shoulders, the company should go out of its way to make a statement about zero tolerance on issues like this that seem to be a recurring problem with athletes.
-
It should, but Bridges is back with the Hornets and he'll play this season after a 10 game suspension to start the year. I'm not expecting anything different from the KPJ case.
-
Scary stuff. Apparently he broke her vertebrae by choking her. They might call that assault but choking someone until their neck breaks sounds a lot like attempted murder. Sickening that Bridges is back in the league, and unless the league takes a stand I'm sure KPJ will be back in the league at some point as well. It's all about the money.
-
Bagley/Wiseman There are a few options. You could package one of them with Bogie (although I'm saving that honor for Killian) for a solid return. Alternatively, if you want to sell them solo you could get a 2nd rounder and/or another project player at a position of need (SF/PF). There are always teams that need a big and Bagley has shown he can put the ball in the hoop in a bench scoring role. Either player is an 'ok' to 'solid' backup big, but you can't have both of them on your team needing minutes when your starting big is also 19 years old and needs 30+ minutes a game too. That makes you do stupid things like trying to play one of them at PF next to another one of them. No. No. No. Harris I've heard a number of people say that Harris is probably washed, and I'm not sure why. Sure, he's overpaid. No, he's not a starter anymore. But that's a far cry from being outright cut by the worst team in the league. Last year was his first year back from injury on a team that was an absolute mess. He still shot 43% from three and had a 61.8% eFG. His defense is average to poor, but the defensive numbers are still better than 90% of the Pistons players from last year and it's clearly better than Bogie's. If I trade Bogie, I just need a guy who can come in and give me 18 minutes per night shooting 40% from three - he can do that. As to Livers, I need to see him stay healthy. Theoretically, he does exactly what you need from a role player - shoot and play good team defense. I like his contribution when he's on the court. Doesn't get in the way, shoots it pretty well, makes smart plays, and plays solid defense. Health is the question. Either way, Bogie is coming off the best season of his career, his usage is going down this year, and he's not a part of the future. Smart asset management means selling high. I'm ok with rolling the dice on a combination of Harris and Livers to replace most of Bogie's minutes if Ausar comes to camp looking like a "must play".
-
I think between Harris and Livers, it'll be good enough. Bogie has more in his offensive bag than those two, but we don't need that usage from him this year. If we're just relegating him to spot up 3 point duty, I'd rather have someone out there who can play better defense and move Bogie while his value is at its highest. We were second worst in the league on defense and somewhere around 20th on offense. Having Cade and Morris at PG instead of Killian and CoJo will help the offense immensely, but we aren't winning many games allowing 118 ppg and we aren't fixing that with Bogie playing Forward 30 minutes a night. I think we could see lineups with Ausar at the 4, especially if they run any smallish lineups with Stew at the 5. If Stew's shot is legitimate (around 35%) that would leave Ausar as the only non-shooter and he could play the role they used for Hami last year when they finally figured out that he works his best magic in the dunker spot and cutting. Ausar is taller, longer, more equipped to guard most 4s, better with the ball, and a better rebounder than Hami. Could be a nice way to ease him into the lineup as his shot comes along. I realize I'm discounting Bagley and Wiseman at the 4, but that's because I don't want to see it. Ever. In fact, I hope they trade one of them before camp and bring in someone like McGee (unfortunately, he just went to SAC) who can be the veteran bench big we thought Noel would be for us last year.
-
I could see them pushing harder to made the Bogie trade if they feel Ausar is ready to start.
-
There's no need to continue an investigation into someone who's retired and therefore there's no need to talk publicly about anything the investigation might have uncovered. No bad press for the NBA.
-
That classic rivalry between the Spurs and Thunder.
-
I really hope this personal attack hits Morey right in the ego and he decides to be the first owner to call a player's bluff. Harden opted in - let him sit out the year if he doesn't want to play. Oh, and since it's the last year of his contract it means he isn't actually considered to have fulfilled that year, so he still belongs to the team next year if he decides not to show up this year. This trend of players signing a contract or opting in to get the most money and then immediately deciding they want to be traded - and to which team - has to end. Of course, we all know what will happen because the 76ers don't want to lose Embiid on top of this...
-
I always remember Barkley calling Vince Carter, "Half Man, Half a Season" in response to his "Half Man Half Amazing" tagline. Same goes for AD.
-
Great to see. I can't wait for the season to start. Is it October yet?
-
I hope TNT picks up JVG. He was entertaining. Maybe they can replace SVG so I don't have to get PTSD flashbacks every time I hear his voice coming through my tv.
-
Yay! and damn!
-
Feels a lot like the Dave Chappelle Rick James skit. Draymond: "I don't just hit people" Also Draymond: "Yeah, I hit him"
