Milwaukee Bucks 2010/2011

[jjkoestler]

I don't think you can say that the Heat are the Yankees of the NBA as they actually have to work with a salary cap. I have no idea how the Heat will actually be able to fill an entire roster. Their 6th man will probably be the equivalent to most team's 12th man.

[thablingster]

The best part about that letter is the mental image of Mo Williams trying to lead the Cavs to an NBA championship.

[fondybrewfan]

So why exactly should everyone hate LeBron because he left Cleveland? Yeah it sucks for Cleveland but it is pretty obvious that LeBron left because he didn't think the Cavs were anywhere close to winning a championship. He took significantly less money at Miami, if thats not an indictment on Cleveland's front office I don't know what is.

 

And Gilbert comes across as a 4 year old complaining that his big brother stole his favorite matchbox car. The guy is a millionairre and the owner of an NBA franchise and he acts like a buffoon. I am sure his current players and and players he want to sign will really like the fact that he he threw the best player the franchise has ever had completely under the bus. The guy had 5 years to build a championship team around LeBron and what did he do? He got Mo Williams and an over the hill Shaq.

[crewcrazy]

The Heat will probably get 60 wins in the regular season, but they'll be lucky to get past Boston, Orlando, or even Chicago in the playoffs. Right now they have no point guard, no rebounders, and no bench. The Triumvirate is going to have to play a ton of minutes for them to be as good as everyone thinks they will be, and by the time you get to the playoffs, they're going to be out of gas. I'd be shocked if the Heat made the Finals in 2011, let alone won it.

 

Of course, if the Heat don't win it in 2011, Spoelstra becomes the scapegoat and gets fired.

[Roscoe Chill]

If Lebron didn't think that the Cavaliers were anywhere close to a championship, then he must think that he couldn't do it without Wade and/or Bosh. So, you could be right fondybrewfan. But that would be an indictment on himself as the go to player/leader. The Cavs had the best record in the NBA last year, and have already been to the Finals with Lebron. When one of these three guys gets hurt for the first time, it will be interesting to see them fold.

[Hofbraunhaus]

I couldn't agree more Fondy. While I am not a huge Lebron fan and the espn special last night was absolutely ridiculous, it is nice to see a superstar choose a team based on perceived chance to win a championship over money. I think it is going to be fun to watch Lebron, Wade, and Bosh play together although that will probably only last half the season since every nationally televised game will have the Heat. However, I can't really criticize the Cavs fan's reactions since it wasn't too long ago that I had a similar reaction when a certain QB left.

[JJHardy7]

I couldn't agree more Fondy. While I am not a huge Lebron fan and the espn special last night was absolutely ridiculous, it is nice to see a superstar choose a team based on perceived chance to win a championship over money. I think it is going to be fun to watch Lebron, Wade, and Bosh play together although that will probably only last half the season since every nationally televised game will have the Heat. However, I can't really criticize the Cavs fan's reactions since it wasn't too long ago that I had a similar reaction when a certain QB left.

 

I know a bunch of people are complaining about the coverage, but I don't know if that is LeBron's fault. It is the perfect time in sports right now to have some crazy coverage on this. There isn't a ton going on that the average sports fan cares about. It was rather pathetic to see/hear/read all about it. It was hard to avoid.

 

I do think LeBron pulled a few stunts here and there. I think it is a bit different than anything we've seen because he's an Ohio guy. How many times does a player of this stature play for his hometown team? I know there have been a few, but how many leave for less money, etc? The one thing I didn't like is the fact that apparently LeBron didn't return any messages to Cleveland after the season. If he was a little bit more responsive, maybe Cleveland would have done a sign and trade. Even Amar'e Stoudemire wanted the Suns to get something back and they did a sign and trade. LeBron had to make his decision, but the Cavs are totally screwed now.

 

Also, I really wish the NBA wouldn't allow players to contact teams and reach agreements before they actually can sign. I'm not saying any player would've gone to the Cavs, but now that most of the prizes are signed/agreed there isn't much left that they can do this off-season to improve the team.

[hawing]

My favorite part of the letter is the comic sans.

I just finally saw the letter before visiting this thread. I dislike Comic Sans in most applications and this is yet another, so I'm glad you poked at that. Plus it's got quite a psycho "bad breakup" vibe going.

 

So...Angry Dan Gilbert. Imagine if he'd been the Brewers' owner when CC bolted for the Yankees (albeit without prime-time spectacle).

[I Heart Brewers]

JJHardy7[/b]]I know a bunch of people are complaining about the coverage, but I don't know if that is LeBron's fault. It is the perfect time in sports right now to have some crazy coverage on this. There isn't a ton going on that the average sports fan cares about. It was rather pathetic to see/hear/read all about it. It was hard to avoid.

Yes, but the coverage that he could control - that unbelievably arrogant ESPN special 'The Decision' - was all him. He could have pulled the plug on that. I had no problem with any coverage up until then because it was for the most part out of his control. The guy is an egomaniac just based on that display last night. The spotlight is going to shift throughout the season from him, to Wade, to Bosh. In Cleveland he was 'the man', now he's a superstar piece to the puzzle in Miami.

 

It was strange, he wanted to show how selfless and about team he was by signing with Miami yet his actions last night contradicted his decision. It was all about him. Maybe I'm wrong and he can separate the two personas on and off the court. I'm doubting it though.

 

 

[homer]

Lebron is more Scottie Pippen than he is Michael Jordan.

[JimH5]

Will Leitch nails it:

 

http://nymag.com/daily/sports/2010/07/lebron_react_never_has_being_a.html

 

Man, I miss him on deadspin.

[dpapo]

Since Florida does not have State taxes, Lebron is not going to be giving up as much money as it looks. I have the feeling that the 3 players pretty much knew they wanted to sign for the same team for a while now, if they could make it work. Might have considered other possiblities just to cover all the bases, but I think they all pretty much knew what they wanted to do already. And there was no reason Lebron couldn't have joined Wade and Bosh when they had their press conference in Miami, except Lebron wanted to have the attention and the show on ESPN.

 

EDIT: Also, I've seen people write that he didn't thank the Cleveland fans. I didn't see his interview and announcement last night , so maybe someone else who saw it would know for sure. If he didn't, then that really makes him look bad. Heck, even Suppan thank Brewer fans and he was booed a number of times by Brewer fans. Here is an example that someone wrote that was put in the Cleveland Plains Dealer,

 

"In this whole hour-long special, LBJ did not specifically thank the fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers or, for that matter, the people of Northeast Ohio.By all means, we have reason to be upset, but within reason. Any reasonable fan can see that he is going to a potentially amazing team. A chance like that rarely comes around in anyone's lifetime. So it's not like he's just chasing the money.But is it too much to expect him to be grateful and gracious towards the fans that have supported him his entire life? He thanked Paul Silas. He thanked the University of Phoenix and Vitamin Water. He did not thank his hometown fans. This more than anything, enrages me."

[trwi7]

So why exactly should everyone hate LeBron because he left Cleveland? Yeah it sucks for Cleveland but it is pretty obvious that LeBron left because he didn't think the Cavs were anywhere close to winning a championship.

I don't think anyone would care that he was leaving Cleveland if he just did what everyone else did. Give a press release saying you're leaving Cleveland and then do an interview and that's that. Obviously Cleveland fans would care because they're going to suck now, but what rubs a lot of people the wrong way is the rip the hearts out of Cleveland fans on national TV and just acting like a douche throughout the whole thing.

[RU Rah Rah]

Right now they have no point guard, no rebounders, and no bench. The Triumvirate is going to have to play a ton of minutes for them to be as good as everyone thinks they will be, and by the time you get to the playoffs, they're going to be out of gas. I'd be shocked if the Heat made the Finals in 2011, let alone won it.

I'm wondering about this, too. They have almost nothing beyond these three very good players. I'm not an NBA GM, but don't you need a decent PG to be able to compete?

 

If you look at the Boston blueprint, the "Big Three" had an excellent supporting cast, including Rondo. I can't see how Miami is going to put together something comparable.

[Gobias Industries]

My thoughts on the last 24 hours:

 

-Good news on the Gooden deal. I basically had accepted the fact that it was 5 yrs guaranteed. Anything less now is gravy.

 

-What can be said about Lebron's decision that hasn't already been said. Quite shocking. I personally wanted to see him go to the Knicks.

 

-With D Wade and Lebron on the same team, I doubt we'll see LRMAM traded. He's our best perimeter defender by far.

 

-Dan Gilbert is gonna really, really regret guaranteeing the Cavs will win a championship before the Heat. That still cracks me up every time I read it. He needs to blow it up, rebuild thru the draft and create cap space. If he doesn't, they'll toil in mediocrity for the next decade. Lebron's gonna win a championship in the next five years. He needs to get a grip. Which brings me to my next point....

 

-I think Hammond will make a run at AV and Delonte. Michael Redd's expiring and probably Ersan (I'd much rather throw in a unprotected first rounder. Ersan took a paycut to come back to milwaukee specifically) for those two would solidfy this team as a legit contender. Delonte could handle backup pg duties, and AV gives us the two of the best big man defenders in the league.

[trwi7]

Rondo averaged 10.5/4/5 when Boston won the championship with a .515 TS% in 30 minutes. He wasn't that great.

 

Chalmers in his second year which is where Rondo was when Boston won it all averaged 7/2/3.5 with a .519 TS% in 25 minutes.

 

He's not going to need to handle the ball with Wade and LeBron there. Just needs to work on his outside shot and defense and he'll be a great fit there. They also traded Beasley to Minnesota so that creates more cap space.

 

They have three 2nd rounders, Dexter Pittman a huge center, Jarvis Varnado and Da'Sean Butler. That's already seven players plus the $5-6 million remaining in cap space. They could split that up for a couple players or get one player using that space and then get a bunch of veterans minimum ring chasers. I wouldn't be shocked if Kurt Thomas went there and he'd be a pretty good fit for them. He can hit the jumper which won't clog the lane when LeBron and Wade drive or when Bosh is posting up.

 

They'll easily be able to fill out the roster. They already have seven players with a decent amount of cap space remaining.

 

Pat Riley is the master.

[Baldkin]

If worst comes to worst, they can sign another shooter and let LeBron play-point forward. I honestly think that's the spot he'd be best suited to play.. facilitator instead of having to make every single play all the time like he did in Cleveland.

 

The Lakers have had Derek Fisher, I wouldn't exactly call him a good point guard. LeBron and Wade are about 2 steps above anyone Boston brought to the table, even in 2008. Pierce was probably the 3rd best of the group of 6, then Bosh and Garnett being pretty close to equal.

For 2011, I'd say Miami would have the best 3 players in a series vs Boston. Maybe I'd take Rondo over Bosh, but I doubt it.

[Gobias Industries]

I was just gonna make the same parallels between Chalmers and Rondo. I figured he wasn't that good when they won it all.

 

And let's not forget that this Big 3 is just entering their prime. Bosh is the worst of this big 3, and he's probably better than any of the 3 from Boston.

 

Forgot about their second rounders too. Butler will be serviceable if he's healthy, and Varnado has the potential to be a pretty good garbage man. I know nothing about Pittman. But as long as he can catch, he should be able to get 5 lay-ins a night.

 

Riley is a master indeed.

[M Skjellyfetti]

My favorite part of that letter was all the random quotation marks. Some of them made sense in a way, but some of them were completely pointless and made no sense whatsoever. I totally think Dan Gilbert comes out of this looking like a complete tool.

[JJHardy7]

Yes, but the coverage that he could control - that unbelievably arrogant ESPN special 'The Decision' - was all him. He could have pulled the plug on that. I had no problem with any coverage up until then because it was for the most part out of his control. The guy is an egomaniac just based on that display last night. The spotlight is going to shift throughout the season from him, to Wade, to Bosh. In Cleveland he was 'the man', now he's a superstar piece to the puzzle in Miami.

 

I'm sure ESPN hated having to air that 'special' last night...

 

I agree it wasn't needed, but I'd imagine ESPN was more than happy to air it...

[JoeHova]

[quote author=RU Rah Rah wrote:

 

[/b]I'm not an NBA GM, but don't you need a decent PG to be able to compete?

No. The Lakers have won 2 titles in a row with trash at the point. Chalmers is already better than what they had, plus Wade and LeBron are both among the best passers in the league.

 

Their bigger problem will be a guy who can legitimately play center. I think they're good on the perimeter, especially if Mike Miller joins the team. No team has any combination of perimeter players anywhere close to LeBron, Wade, Miller and Chalmers. Even if they add the worst guard in the NBA (Jennaro Pargo? Royal Ivey?) to fill out the rotation they are still way ahead on any other team. If they get a competent player like Jason Williams or Carlos Arroyo instead, that would be excellent.

 

As for big men, Joel Anthony is horrible and useless and I hope he leaves. That would leave the Heat with just Bosh and their 2 2nd round bigs, Dexter Pittman and Jarvis Varnado. I'm actually pretty high on both of those guys but it's a tall order to expect a 2nd round big man to be able to contribute much in his rookie year. Ben Wallace would probably be the ideal pickup but I don't know if he would be interested in Miami or in taking the minimum. If not him, Kurt Thomas or perhaps even Kwame Brown would a nice pickup. Udonis Haslem is undersized and would likely eat up the Heat's 2011 MLE but he wouldn't be necessarily be a horrible option either.

 

Really, if the Heat come out of this somehow with Miller, Arroyo, Williams, Wallace, Haslem, and Thomas to go with the big 3 and Chalmers, they won't lose 5 games. Miller is rumored to be happening. Wallace and Haslem probably aren't too likely but the other guys could happen (they've all played for the Heat before and are likely looking at near minimum deals wherever they sign).

[I Heart Brewers]

JJHardy7]I'm sure ESPN hated having to air that 'special' last night...

 

I agree it wasn't needed, but I'd imagine ESPN was more than happy to air it...

So that absolves James of being egotistical? My argument wasn't against ESPN. It was against James as a human being and his lack of integrity last night.

 

[Gobias Industries]

Damn. I didn't even think of the Ben Wallace option for the Heat. He'd be a good fit. He also owns Bogut.

[JJHardy7]

So that absolves James of being egotistical? My argument wasn't against ESPN. It was against James as a human being and his lack of integrity last night.

 

I didn't say that. It is a two way street, but I just don't think LeBron begged to have this. For all we know, ESPN came to LeBron and asked him to do it this way. I've mentioned he should not have done it. So I'm not saying he should have done it this way, but at the same time ESPN was probably thrilled to do it/that he accepted it.

[trwi7]

Adrian Wojnarowski is awesome.