I'm here... I missed the draft after i had entered it in for wednesday in my blackberry by mistake. I'll still be gunning to win but the fact is my team is not really roto friendly. We'll see.

tonight

United States11130 Posts

October 23 2009 22:43 GMT

#104

I've never even done roto before, so trial by error~

Judicator

United States7270 Posts

October 23 2009 23:34 GMT

#105

Hope the refs make it back for opening night or I might just skip the season and stick to college ball.

tonight

United States11130 Posts

October 24 2009 00:02 GMT

#106

On October 24 2009 08:34 Judicator wrote:
Hope the refs make it back for opening night or I might just skip the season and stick to college ball.

laff@college ball

HonestTea

5007 Posts

October 24 2009 01:59 GMT

#107

On October 24 2009 08:34 Judicator wrote:
Hope the refs make it back for opening night or I might just skip the season and stick to college ball.

Don't worry, the regular refs will be back for opening night, confirmed by no less than the New York Times.

Xeris

Iran17695 Posts

October 24 2009 19:13 GMT

#108

Here's hopefully a nice topic of discussion before the season begins.

Question: Does the preseason correlate to the regular season? And if so, how much? I.E, does a successful preseason translate into an awesome year?

What are your thoughts?

XaI)CyRiC

United States4471 Posts

October 24 2009 20:55 GMT

#109

I think it depends on the team and a lot of factors regarding their circumstances. Generally, preseason performance does not give a very good representation of regular season performance and shouldn't be relied upon.

More established teams that had a successful prior season are less likely to play their actual lineups because they already know how to play together and what those players are capable of. They're more likely to play players who have unknown value who they need to see how they'll play in an NBA setting, i.e. rookies or D-league prospects, and experiment with funky lineups/rotations that are unlikely to be used during the regular season. As a result, preseason performance for them is very unreliable and not very indicative of regular season performance. Classic case is the Lakers this season.

Teams that have injury concerns are also less likely to show anything indicative of the regular season because they'll be very cautious with how they'll use their important players. No coach wants to risk a key player getting hurt on meaningless preseason games. Example would be the Hornets and Wizards.

With regards to players, preseason is useful for getting a glimpse at young players who are/were expected to take a step forward during the offseason. It's useful to see if they've been working on their game, what kind of shape they're in, whether they've addressed any weaknesses, or just make a significant jump through their experience in the prior season. It's still not entirely accurate though as their opponents are typically not the other team's "regulars" and none of the teams are trying that hard. This works better for spotting warning signs, i.e. Dwight continuing to have a horrible FT%, Durant still generating almost no assists, etc.

Overall though, preseason should not be relied upon as anything more than a glimpse into players' potential. However, it's just a glimpse, and it's only of potential, neither of which are anything close to concrete or definite.

Judicator

United States7270 Posts

October 24 2009 22:33 GMT

#110

On October 24 2009 09:02 tonight wrote:

Show nested quote +

laff@college ball

Beats the lets stop the game every 3 seconds because there was contact NBA

XaI)CyRiC

United States4471 Posts

October 25 2009 00:36 GMT

#111

The NBA vs. NCAA argument has been done to death and it's basically a matter of taste. If you're talking level of talent and quality of execution and play, then the NBA is better no question. If you're looking for effort and heart and more team-oriented play, then the NCAA will likely appeal to you more.

Personally, I've never been interested in college basketball because I never went to a college that had a decent team and because it looks messy/sloppy when compared to what you see in the NBA. I also enjoy the incredible displays of the superior talent in the NBA, which college ball lacks.

Ace

United States16096 Posts

October 25 2009 04:50 GMT

#112

Indeed. A lot of that has to do with the NBA having extremely good coaching staffs and every team basically being able to run a play even when the other team knows what's coming. In college ball it's insanely frustrating to see offenses botch up simple pick and rolls, or calling isolation plays when the man on the wing is not a 3 point threat which makes a double on the iso credible. You just can't do that in the NBA and makes the game much more fluid.

HonestTea

5007 Posts

October 25 2009 06:50 GMT

#113

Everything said by Cyric and Ace, plus the whole "The NCAA is evil and exploitative and completely unfair to its athletes" moral objection.

Judicator

United States7270 Posts

October 27 2009 11:32 GMT

#114

Anyways, Blake Griffin out with a broken kneecap, do Indian spirits get stronger in proportion to how far into the season or how far into a player's career?

unknown.sam

Philippines2701 Posts

October 27 2009 12:11 GMT

#115

why am i not surprised griffin is injured :/

HonestTea

5007 Posts

October 27 2009 14:07 GMT

#116

HURRY UP SUN MOVE FASTER THE SEASON NEEDS TO STAAAAART

Manifesto7

Osaka27154 Posts

October 27 2009 14:49 GMT

#117

If you guys were hockey fan you would already be cheering/booing/ranting.

But since you're not, go read Bill Simmons.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmonsnflpicks/part1/091023&sportCat=nba

Xeris

Iran17695 Posts

October 27 2009 14:59 GMT

#118

btw guys I met Bill Simmons yesterday - I was one of the first ever to get his book on basketball + autograph and I got to talk to him for awhile HOHOHOHOHOHHOO

Judicator

United States7270 Posts

October 27 2009 15:09 GMT

#119

And the circle of life is complete for Xeris.

Mani should change his icon to a hockey stick instead of a hammer or sickle.

The Andrew Bynum part is hilarious.

HonestTea

5007 Posts

October 27 2009 16:17 GMT

#120

Mani, Mani, Mani. You and your sport that couldn't decide between two halves and four quarters, walzing in here like a big dog, thinking you can impress us with Simmons.

I mean, I love Simmons, but his angle has always been being a fan and not the most scientific or accurate observer/analyst of the game.

(Not that I wouldn't have a fanboy moment like Xeris did, but anyway...)

Anyways, here are my starting five for NBA material:

PG: Abbott at point with Arnovitz backing up at TrueHoop
SG: The volume shooter: Matt Moore at Hardwood Prox
SF: Flashy, irreverant, and entertaining production from Basketbawful
PF: Kelly Dweyer, The biggest NBA geek in the planet, puts in solid daily work at Yahoo!'s NBA blog - watch for his "Behind the Box Score" regular feature.
C: The foundation, and the originators: Lang Whitaker at SLAM Online

From there on, the bench will depend on your needs:
- Hollinger for Stat heads with ESPN Insider access who want something to disagree with
- FreeDarko would have definitely made it over Bawful in the SF spot, but ever since their book came out last year they havn't been prolific enough. This year they disapoint me by not even writing a season preview, after killing it in '07 with their fantastic EVERY PLAYER PREVIEW and then following that in '08 with the epic EVERY GAME PREVIEW. (BTW, buy the book)
- Two podcasts: The daily Basketball Jones, by Skeets and Tas Melas, and the long-form Disciples of Clyde by Ken Drews and Dan Filowitz.
- Hoopshype is for people who want to play Armchair GM
- Oh, and you know what? You Got Dunked On

Man, it's a miracle I get any work done.

And last but not least, The Most Important NBA Webpage of them All