NBA 2025-26 Season Thread: THE NY KNICKS ARE CHAMPIONS! BING BONG!
Lettuce NBA!
and lettuce lol @ James Harden
The Ray Allen shot sets up the greatest revenge story and redemption arc of all time though
True. 2014 Spurs revenge championship was cathartic.
Kawhi did the right thing. Clippers made a couple of questionable signings i guess over the last 5 years but honestly that team was set up pretty well for a several year run. Injuries just crushed them.
Kiwi is my favorite player to watch outside of Steph though so I might be a bit biased. The raptors likely dont repeat
I mean, he could have just signed with LAC from the start and not forced them to blow their whole wad for PG…
Only2days,
Your post is long so im not going to quote it, but Siakam absolutely should have won ECMVP. He was more consistent than Haliburton (who certainly played well) and he had a couple of his own big games that carried Indy. Either one was fine, its not like Siakam would have been robbed if Haliburton got it but I really felt Siakam was the more important player throughout, Offensively and defensively.
Pistons didn't exactly roll through the East either, the Nets and Pacers series were very competitive.
Nets were the worst possible matchup for Detroit. Pistons were the greatest defense ever but trying to stop prime Jason Kid in transition defense was insanely hard. Plus Kidd could D up Billups really well.
Pistons vs Pacers were the two best teams in the NBA. People thought it was a ****** fight at the time cuz of the low scores but the Pacers would've slaughtered the Lakers too. 2004 was the closest the Pacers have ever come to winning it all although they probably had the best team in 2005 before the malice at the palace ruined everything.
re: happiness if Pacers win, there is still a nonzero portion of the NBA fanbase that holds distaste for OKC as a franchise for what they did to the city of Seattle. Until Seattle gets a new team (and that team experiences some actual success) I'll be a crotchety old guy and be one of them. I get it's not apples to apples, but the Baltimore, Indianapolis, Cleveland NFL hate triangle shows an example of this timeline at least somewhat.
Nets were the worst possible matchup for Detroit. Pistons were the greatest defense ever but trying to stop prime Jason Kid in transition defense was insanely hard. Plus Kidd could D up Billups really well. Pistons vs Pacers were the two best teams in the NBA. People thought it was a ****** fight at the time cuz of the low scores but the Pacers would've slaughtered the Lake
don't disagree with this particularly until the end. Pacers were closer in 98 than in 04. If Rik Smits wins a jump ball in the 4th quarter of Game 7, the Last Dance has a very different ending.
Paradoxically, their only finals appearance ranks, what, 6th in their best chances to win a title? Probably had a better shot in 94, 98, 04, 05, 13. Nobody was beating Shaq in 2000.
Only2days,Your post is long so im not going to quote it, but Siakam absolutely should have won ECMVP. He was more consistent than Haliburton (who certainly played well) and he had a couple of his own big games that carried Indy. Either one was fine, its not like Siakam would have been robbed if Haliburton got it but I really felt Siakam was the more important player throughout,
yeah I disagree....People just overthink this stuff sometimes.
The Pacers don't push the ball relenlessly because they have a smart coach, they push the ball relentlessly and have 1 of the best offenses in the league because of Haliburton. He is the engine of it all. Siakam is a nice player but Haliburton gravity makes that whole team go, he is the identity of it. It would be like giving it to Kenyon Martin over Jason Kidd.
Not to mention he had 1 of the most iconic shots in NBA history in gm 1 and 1 of the best conf finals games in NBA history in gm 4. 21-10.5-6 and sub 2 TOs vs 25-5-3, even the raw numbers don't even tilt Siakam way.
Nets were the worst possible matchup for Detroit. Pistons were the greatest defense ever but trying to stop prime Jason Kid in transition defense was insanely hard. Plus Kidd could D up Billups really well. Pistons vs Pacers were the two best teams in the NBA. People thought it was a ****** fight at the time cuz of the low scores but the Pacers would've slaughtered the Lake
yeah easy to say when the Pistons are smashing the Lakers in gm 5 and the series is over but just saying why the line was the way it was. The east wasn't gonna get respect until something like that happened with the way '99-03 went and the type of superstars Kobe/Shaq were.
Pistons actually didn't get much respect the next year either, they were like +270 vs the Spurs despite being defending champs. And that series basically came down to Bob Horry going god mode in game 5.
yeah I disagree....People just overthink this stuff sometimes.The Pacers don't push the ball relenlessly because they have a smart coach, they push the ball relentlessly and have 1 of the best offenses in the league because of Haliburton. He is the engine of it all. Siakam is a nice player but Haliburton gravity makes that whole team go, he is the identity of it. It would be li
Yeah, pretty clearly this.
I'm not going to go through and check now, but towards the end of the season, it was noted that the Pacers were like 20-2 when Haliburton scored 20+. At the same time, the Pacers were basically like 16-14 when Pascal scored 20+. There's lots of reasons for this, but the theme is pretty simple: Tyrese is the engine that makes the Pacers go. You shut him down, you shut down the team. Pascal is a player that's elevating the team from "Top 4 team in the East" to "Eastern Conf champion" but without Hali, they're probably a play in team.
Kawhi was also coming off two years of barely playing and being a weirdo on top.
The price in picks for a star has gone through the roof since then, but it’s still pretty crazy to think how little the Raptors paid for him.
There was some arguments that Popovich spite traded him to Toronto because he knew Kawhi would be unhappy in Canada.
Imagine a universe where Kawhi re-upped for a 1+1 with player option after he titled in Toronto (which as Chilltown has said he would've been very wise to do) --- then they 2-peated with another win the next season.
So, SGA remained on the Clippers.
NBA Butterfly Effect is Amazing!
And Kawaii winning 2+ chips in TO puts him in top 10 all time/goat SF conversation
Yeah, pretty clearly this.I'm not going to go through and check now, but towards the end of the season, it was noted that the Pacers were like 20-2 when Haliburton scored 20+. At the same time, the Pacers were basically like 16-14 when Pascal scored 20+. There's lots of reasons for this, but the theme is pretty simple: Tyrese is the engine that makes the Pacers go. You shut him
That stat doesn't tell you much tbh. What's the pacers record when either scores less than 20? In this series Hali pretty much disappeared in the losses which isn't an admirable trait.
There was some arguments that Popovich spite traded him to Toronto because he knew Kawhi would be unhappy in Canada.
Fiction narrative stuff. It was much more about not trading him to a western conf team. People like TD and Manu paused their lives and came to help Pop recover after he had a stroke. The guy was GOAT at treating his players well.
Has any young team with no mainstream stars from a small market that’s never won much/anything ever been this big a favorite for the championship in any sport?
Ravens over Giants? Astros first win?
The Reggie Jackson A’s might even be a better comp than the 2000 Ravens except for they were big underdogs to the Reds in the ‘72 WSOB.
yeah easy to say when the Pistons are smashing the Lakers in gm 5 and the series is over but just saying why the line was the way it was. The east wasn't gonna get respect until something like that happened with the way '99-03 went and the type of superstars Kobe/Shaq were.
True. I was just talking about why the Pistons had a relatively tough time making the finals. Jason Kidd was a nightmare and the Pacers were really good.
Pistons actually didn't get much respect the next year either, they were like +270 vs the Spurs despite being defending champs. And that series basically came down to Bob Horry going god mode in game 5.
I would say the series came down the Sheed leaving Horry open for the game winner in game 5. Sigh. Will never hold it against him tho. The Pistons never win it without Sheed and it's a travesty his jersey is not hanging in the rafters. I didn't know Spurs were that big of a favorite but I definitely agree they should've been favored. The magic sauce to the 04 Pistons was they were the deepest team in the NBA. One of the best benches ever comparable to Pistons 89 historically great bench. They could roll with a 10 man rotation like a college team so everybody could play out of their mind for 48 minutes. They lost most of that bench in the off-season. We basically were working with only 1 viable bench guy, McDyess. I loved McDyess but our bench was weak that year and that's why I would've bet on the Spurs. I would've expected the line to be Spurs -150 tho.
BTW Pistons were very fortunate to even get that far. Miami was the better team, especially given the refs/nba was rigging it hard not even allowing the Pistons to breathe on Dwayne Wade. But then Wade got injured and the rest is history.
That stat doesn't tell you much tbh. What's the pacers record when either scores less than 20? In this series Hali pretty much disappeared in the losses which isn't an admirable trait.
Yup. Im not arguing whether one is more valuable in an overall sense, just who had the better 6 games (or I guess the whole playoffs but specifically those 6). Siakam showed up nearly every night and while his total Statline isn't as impressive, he was their go to guy.
Honestly, he was flat out incredible in their tight games.
Portland was the best team in the NBA that year. They would've demolished the Pacers. NBA had to rig it hard in that game 7 4th quarter to enable the Blazers collapse.
True. I was just talking about why the Pistons had a relatively tough time making the finals. Jason Kidd was a nightmare and the Pacers were really good. I would say the series came down the Sheed leaving Horry open for the game winner in game 5. Sigh. Will never hold it against him tho. The Pistons never win it without Sheed and it's a travesty his jersey is not hanging
I know Louie Dampier, played ball with him (and your old so I suspect you know who he is) and while he was an assistant with the Nuggets he said Mcdyess was the most athletic dude he'd ever seen. Sang his praises. He also said Van Exel was the best practice player he'd ever seen too. Ha
Youre right, Wade was not allowed to be blown on in that playoff run. It was sick
Nets were the worst possible matchup for Detroit. Pistons were the greatest defense ever but trying to stop prime Jason Kid in transition defense was insanely hard. Plus Kidd could D up Billups really well. Pistons vs Pacers were the two best teams in the NBA. People thought it was a ****** fight at the time cuz of the low scores but the Pacers would've slaughtered the Lake
04 Pistons are definitely on the podium with the 69 Jets and especially the 70 Chiefs as teams that were big underdogs that actually should’ve been big favorites, with some hindsight sure.
There’s still 90yo men out there chuckling over those two Super Bowl scores.
I know Louie Dampier, played ball with him (and your old so I suspect you know who he is) and while he was an assistant with the Nuggets he said Mcdyess was the most athletic dude he'd ever seen. Sang his praises. He also said Van Exel was the best practice player he'd ever seen too. Ha
Youre right, Wade was not allowed to be blown on in that playoff run. It was sick
Hi Pat, too bad you & Louie ain’t walking through that door. Didn’t know Louie was born in Indy.
I know Louie Dampier, played ball with him (and your old so I suspect you know who he is) and while he was an assistant with the Nuggets he said Mcdyess was the most athletic dude he'd ever seen. Sang his praises. He also said Van Exel was the best practice player he'd ever seen too. Ha
Youre right, Wade was not allowed to be blown on in that playoff run. It was sick
Yeah I remember Mcdyess pre-injury. So explosive. He had first ballot HOF written all over him. He was still damn good after the injury but never the same.
Haliburton had a stinker in game 5 and Siakam didn't have any really bad games. That seems to be enough for people, this weird desire for 'consistency', like scoring 20 twice is *so* much better than scoring 35 and then 5. Can't see any other possible argument for Siakam: statistically it's Haliburton, Pacers were better offensively AND defensively with him on the court vs Siakam (obviously noisy as hell over 6 games but just another data point), he's the better player in general so any star power bias should go to him, he was better in clutch and had bigger moments, and as mentioned just overall importance to the entire game style, it all runs through him.
NBA Awards in general are borderline meaningless at this point IMO
