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An All-Time Great Hiding in Plain SightHow Kevin Durant has walked the line between greatness and anonymity in the Western Conference finals ![[image loading]](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NcwTu-kCLzNVJ2QDIKVgeqXWoc0=/0x0:3000x2000/920x613/filters:focal(1213x155:1693x635)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/59810655/KD_warriors_getty_ringer.0.jpg)
When Kevin Durant initiates a play just one foot past the half-court line, defenses are pulled uncomfortably beyond areas of coverage they’re accustomed to occupying. Maybe in the next 15 years, there will be an infestation of 3-point-shooting giants comfortable serving as the ball handler in a pick-and-roll 46 feet away from the basket, and defending that far out will be a fundamental reality. For as much as Durant has sublimated himself within the Golden State framework, it’s become clear that he’ll never be an extension of the Warriors’ narrative that began four years ago. He is, as World Peace suggests, the line of demarcation between a time when the Warriors were “bad for basketball” for championing a radical perimeter-oriented game and the present, when they’ve become a villain on par with any in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for “ruining the sport” with an incomparable wealth of top-level talent. On a tier of their own, the Warriors have eliminated the stakes. Durant is the eraser. But from our vantage, the second-best player on earth (who often flirts with being first) remains an outsider, stuck between the two worlds he wants to inhabit. It’s not just that Durant’s isolations often appear at odds with the kind of tricky, off-ball rapport the Warriors have spent years refining in each other’s company. (Durant has had 79 isolation possessions throughout the playoffs; Steph Curry is second on the team with 14.) It’s the distance he’s put between himself and the expectations that a phenomenally talented professional athlete at the apex of his career is seemingly consigned to live up to. He wants to be the league’s torch-bearer once LeBron James makes his eventual descent from the summit. He also just wants to be one of the guys: a cog in an immaculate machine but not the conductor. Perhaps the role he has in these Western Conference finals is the one he had in mind all along: KD is averaging 33.3 points on 53-43-100 shooting splits in the series, easily the best player on the floor whenever he’s in the game, yet, somehow is often relegated to being the thankless hero.
TR
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The thing that has been missing on this Cavs roster for a while is a second playmaker. It's clear that Tyronn Lue is not going to implement the kind of motion offense that allows the offense to flow without really much playmaking talent.
So you need playmaking. Lebron is your only guy, that's too much of a burden on him. He likes it that way I'm sure, and it's good for his legacy, but not if it makes him lose games because he tires out.
Out of the Kyrie trade they got back interesting pieces but never the playmaker they needed (and that Kyrie was).
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On May 24 2018 22:40 Jerubaal wrote:Show nested quote +On May 24 2018 21:22 Twinkle Toes wrote:
This is really the worst team Lebron could have at this point in his career.
There was some hype after the trade that they got younger and more athletic but that has not been realized at all.
Love is a now you see me now you dont type of player.
Korver is hitting his shots but Lue is not putting him in rotation as often as he should.
He is practically alone in this playoffs. He should be less Kobe and more Magic at this point. If he was not the primary scorer, he would be able to focus on all the other little things.
He does that too but I think he gets frustrated when JR and others don't perform as well and Lebron again resorts to heroing in the game. If only Love and JR were dependable enough, they could go toe to toe with the Rockets or even GSW.
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An All-Time Great Hiding in Plain Sight
Skimmed through the article. Durant really set himself up for that. I'd say he's fine with not getting the kind of love and attention usual superstars do.
On May 24 2018 22:59 Twinkle Toes wrote:Show nested quote +On May 24 2018 22:40 Jerubaal wrote:On May 24 2018 21:22 Twinkle Toes wrote:
This is really the worst team Lebron could have at this point in his career.
There was some hype after the trade that they got younger and more athletic but that has not been realized at all.
Love is a now you see me now you dont type of player.
Korver is hitting his shots but Lue is not putting him in rotation as often as he should.
He is practically alone in this playoffs. He should be less Kobe and more Magic at this point. If he was not the primary scorer, he would be able to focus on all the other little things. He does that too but I think he gets frustrated when JR and others don't perform as well and Lebron again resorts to heroing in the game. If only Love and JR were dependable enough, they could go toe to toe with the Rockets or even GSW.
JR has to sit, plain and simple. Give most of his minutes to Hood or something. The only reason it's not done is because they have to manage his ego.
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On May 24 2018 22:49 ZenithM wrote:
The thing that has been missing on this Cavs roster for a while is a second playmaker. It's clear that Tyronn Lue is not going to implement the kind of motion offense that allows the offense to flow without really much playmaking talent.
So you need playmaking. Lebron is your only guy, that's too much of a burden on him. He likes it that way I'm sure, and it's good for his legacy, but not if it makes him lose games because he tires out.
Out of the Kyrie trade they got back interesting pieces but never the playmaker they needed (and that Kyrie was).
and scorer most importantly, especially on times when Lebron is out.
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On May 24 2018 23:00 Twinkle Toes wrote:Show nested quote +On May 24 2018 22:49 ZenithM wrote:
The thing that has been missing on this Cavs roster for a while is a second playmaker. It's clear that Tyronn Lue is not going to implement the kind of motion offense that allows the offense to flow without really much playmaking talent.
So you need playmaking. Lebron is your only guy, that's too much of a burden on him. He likes it that way I'm sure, and it's good for his legacy, but not if it makes him lose games because he tires out.
Out of the Kyrie trade they got back interesting pieces but never the playmaker they needed (and that Kyrie was). and scorer most importantly, especially on times when Lebron is out.
Yeah for me "playmaker" here meant some guy who can get you buckets and/or buckets for others. These days in the NBA, with the kind of offense the Cavs are running, those 2 go hand-in-hand.
The only star that doesn't "make plays" might be Klay :D.
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On May 24 2018 23:00 ZenithM wrote:Skimmed through the article. Durant really set himself up for that. I'd say he's fine with not getting the kind of love and attention usual superstars do.
This is why he talks about it as the hardest road, which blogbois misunderstood and are memeing incorrectly.
I really think if KD performs as projected, he has a legitimate shot at top 5. 2 or 3 more titles with GSW, at least another one as FMVP, have a Lebonesque prodigal son return with OKC (or even Seattle) and win at least 1 more.
Time heals all things. Kobe was a psycho monster with fake "work ethic" persona who was a ballhog, rapist, Shaq-outer, and practically Hitler before it was in fashion. As far as reputations go, that's as low as you can get. But a few championships and a mellowing down of his personality and now he is the most loved exNBA player of all.
KD really needs a good PR team.
On May 24 2018 23:04 ZenithM wrote:Show nested quote +On May 24 2018 23:00 Twinkle Toes wrote:On May 24 2018 22:49 ZenithM wrote:
The thing that has been missing on this Cavs roster for a while is a second playmaker. It's clear that Tyronn Lue is not going to implement the kind of motion offense that allows the offense to flow without really much playmaking talent.
So you need playmaking. Lebron is your only guy, that's too much of a burden on him. He likes it that way I'm sure, and it's good for his legacy, but not if it makes him lose games because he tires out.
Out of the Kyrie trade they got back interesting pieces but never the playmaker they needed (and that Kyrie was). and scorer most importantly, especially on times when Lebron is out. Yeah for me "playmaker" here meant some guy who can get you buckets and/or buckets for others. These days in the NBA, with the kind of offense the Cavs are running, those 2 go hand-in-hand. The only star that doesn't "make plays" might be Klay :D.
Yeah.
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How does this not reflect on Lue's coaching?
There was a post game presser after the a Sixers game when someone asked him why he is still playing Hood and he just shrugged it off. Other than Lebron single handedly willing the team and Love and the players showing up in game 3 and 4, I don't see any coach thing that he does in terms of adjustment and strategy.
If Rivers struck gold with the Big 3 in Celtics, Lue is a leprechaun who got lucky to be in Lebron's team despite his obvious deficiencies.
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I mean, of course Durant didn't mean it was the hardest way to get a championship, but it's still a funny thing to say in this context ;D. And something he probably shouldn't have said.
I do think time will heal things. But it's kind of disappointing right now how such a great player (and good dude too, you never hear about anything truly bad he might have done) is not held in the regard he deserves. He should be at a Lebron level of acclaim, skill-wise.
Instead his own local fans turn to him "taking too many shots" or breaking the flow of the offense or whatever when the team loses. I've legit read claims that the team was better and more true to itself before he got there.
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Yeah, it was just such a low hanging fruit that you can't blame the fans making fun of it as well.
It's really a simple case of bad PR. I don't know what's up with the Nike dynamics, but they should do to KD what they have done to Lebron. Lebron was also hated and was a bumbling noobie early in his career, but Nike (and what ever else group is involved) stepped in hard to manage his image, which has done wonders for him. He always says safe and friendly things to the press, does great things to the community, speaks out on political and social issues without leaning hard on the left. He has a few missteps here and there but in general, he is a role model on how to build a successful NBA career not only talent-wise but also PR wise.
On a slightly related note, this might be what Kawhi's team (family) are aiming at.
But KD should really work it out.
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Doc Rivers got an extension from the Clippers. i think its well deserved.
http://www.nba.com/article/2018/05/23/la-clippers-doc-rivers-agree-contract-extension
ESPN's Real Plus Minus continues to be adjusted and refined.
i found this interesting.
the NBA's all defensive teams almost completely match the Defensive Real Plus Minus rankings.
the 1 incorrect fact in this giant tweet is about Dejounte Murray. He only played 21.5 minutes a game.
otherwise, its pretty impressive.
i think the stat is good at identifying the very best and the very worst. it is ineffective at assessing the difference between 1 player who is above average and another player who is somewhat worse.
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i feel like putting in a guy who doesnt even play half a game is a pretty poor choice
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to add to your point: Popovich is great at surgically employing part time players and hiding their weaknesses. so that makes Murray's selection all the more puzzling.
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On May 24 2018 23:04 ZenithM wrote:Show nested quote +On May 24 2018 23:00 Twinkle Toes wrote:On May 24 2018 22:49 ZenithM wrote:
The thing that has been missing on this Cavs roster for a while is a second playmaker. It's clear that Tyronn Lue is not going to implement the kind of motion offense that allows the offense to flow without really much playmaking talent.
So you need playmaking. Lebron is your only guy, that's too much of a burden on him. He likes it that way I'm sure, and it's good for his legacy, but not if it makes him lose games because he tires out.
Out of the Kyrie trade they got back interesting pieces but never the playmaker they needed (and that Kyrie was). and scorer most importantly, especially on times when Lebron is out. Yeah for me "playmaker" here meant some guy who can get you buckets and/or buckets for others. These days in the NBA, with the kind of offense the Cavs are running, those 2 go hand-in-hand. The only star that doesn't "make plays" might be Klay :D.
Klay and Draymond wouldn't be considered all-stars if they were playing on a different team. The Hawks also had 4 all-stars that one year they had 60+ wins. Aside from Horford, the other 3 weren't all-star level. Teams that play good team ball have their players' individual talents overrated.
Kyrie was great for the Cavs but had his struggles when Lebron was resting on the bench as well. My memory might be wrong, but I think he had his scoring explosions when Lebron was on the court as well.
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On May 24 2018 23:13 Twinkle Toes wrote:
How does this not reflect on Lue's coaching?
There was a post game presser after the a Sixers game when someone asked him why he is still playing Hood and he just shrugged it off. Other than Lebron single handedly willing the team and Love and the players showing up in game 3 and 4, I don't see any coach thing that he does in terms of adjustment and strategy.
If Rivers struck gold with the Big 3 in Celtics, Lue is a leprechaun who got lucky to be in Lebron's team despite his obvious deficiencies.
This, and other things, is why I don't actually believe it when people say, "this is a bad team". If Boston had put Tatum and Brown in the trade for Kyrie, IMO they would have looked like Clarkson and Nance look right now. Not that Clarckson and Nance could look as good in Boston, but this Cleveland environment which is some % Lebron and some % Lue renders productive players into potatoes. I'm not a huge Crowder fan or IT3 fan, but they were not a bad as they performed in CLE. Even DWade looked better once he left.
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Yeah, if Lebron left, this could still be an ok team, if they actually used Love correctly.
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lets not forget pre cleveland, kevin love was a 26 ppg guy.
On May 25 2018 05:35 Jerubaal wrote:
Yeah, if Lebron left, this could still be an ok team, if they actually used Love correctly.
problem is, nobody there knows how to play without lebron.
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On May 25 2018 06:01 zev318 wrote:lets not forget pre cleveland, kevin love was a 26 ppg guy. Show nested quote +On May 25 2018 05:35 Jerubaal wrote:
Yeah, if Lebron left, this could still be an ok team, if they actually used Love correctly. problem is, nobody there knows how to play without lebron.
Or, Lebron's playstyle limits them and turns them into ball watching players.
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https://twitter.com/journalsentinel/status/999696520780926977?s=21
BREAKING: The Milwaukee officer who first confronted Sterling Brown was suspended for two days.
The Milwaukee police officer who first confronted Milwaukee Bucks rookie Sterling Brown outside a Walgreens in January was suspended for two days, the Journal Sentinel has learned.
Two supervisors who later arrived, escalating the situation, were suspended for 10 and 15 days, sources said. Several other officers were reprimanded.
Police Chief Alfonso Morales has not named any of the officers disciplined, nor has he detailed which department rules they violated during their encounter with Brown.
The officer who questioned Brown about parking illegally across two handicap spaces at 2 a.m. Jan. 26 was Joseph Grams, the Journal Sentinel has confirmed.
Grams, who served as an Army Ranger, joined the department in 2015 and was paid about $49,000 last year.
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Morales again declined to give specifics about the discipline, citing legal concerns, but said retraining will be part of the department's response.
"If you believe that I'm not taking this case seriously, you're mistaken," Morales said.
Morales, who has been the city's top cop for four months, said he remained committed to community policing but said change will take time.
"This is leadership and that's what we're focusing on in changing our department," Morales said. "We have to be leaders out there. That's one of the violations in the code of conduct."
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EPT
