Around The League 2023-2024 Season

Last night had a lot going on while we sat and watched.  Yes, the most important to us was that the 26ers lost at home.  Here we come into the same arena tonight.  Time for PHI's first 2-game losing streak of the season.  Deal with it.  Time to take back 1st place in the East and stay there to the end of the season.      

Mavs were also annihilated by NOP.  When I fast-forwarded to about mid-way through the 3rd quarter, I don't think I saw NOP miss a shot for about 10-12 minutes.  Or at least it seemed that way.  And DAL couldn't hit the broad side of the barn.  Oh well.  Enjoy Kryrie.  Shooting Star Mavs.    

Clippers made their game close with DEN but only sans Harden.  Lue trying to find positives and that's what a coach does.  But he's going to have to spend a lot of time looking at that tape to see anything that is working.  0-6.  Let's not forget that Jamaal Murray for DEN was not present either.  Now Reggie came in and took his place.  He put up 18 points plus all the dirty work.  There may be some positive things Ty could pull from this game as progress.  He's grasping right now.  He's asking how can adding one person be such a train wreck.  Check the recent history there, Mr. Lue.    

Now, this all does comes down to coaching.  Ty is the right one for this job although he's going to have to call on his inner-Phil Jackson to manage all those egos.  Like Phil or not because he got in our way a couple of times, but Phil managed the big egos really well.  The success or failure of the Clippers will rest on Ty's shoulders.  The problem is, the media is all out in front of what he should be doing, offering their priceless advice every step of the way.  Now if Ty makes a move (or any move for that matter) it's going to be compared to what is out there right now which is to bring Hardhead off the bench.  Can Mr. Ego bigger that the universe with no Title handle that for a real chance to win a championship?  We'll see.  I'll push all-in on absolutely not.  Can't change your stripes, James.  Too late.

We're also guilty of taking KL, PG, RW and JH in our minds and placing these four superstars back 5-10 years ago but looking on the floor at the present and expecting the same.  This would have been a great Fab Four ten years ago.  But now?  I don't think so, Tim. Looks good on paper, but the paper says 0-6 since the arrival of Party Crasher.
               
Should be interesting re: Draymond.  Looks like it should be at least a couple of games for the choke hold.  

db

A fight broke out at the GSW-Wolves game, less than 2 minutes in.

Some crazy footage here.  Shows the initial scrap, and then one of Draymond Green putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold.

Gotta be some serious suspensions coming for Draymond.


https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2023/11/14/23961732/draymond-green-rudy-gobert-chokehold-warriors-wolves-nba?fbclid=IwAR0dPSnVVKT6Wona0J7OuI2TSjECkiMIRkTs61a_l6rsH65b_rdZyEb6-ZM



Bob


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RosalieTCeltics wrote:I see Draymond was at it again.  This guy may be vital to that team but he is an animal.  He deserves to be suspended for at least 3 games if not more.  He just thinks he can physically hurt people and get away with it. Sick of his game

Rosalie,

Playing the Devil's Advocate:

The other side of that coin is the fact that many fans, here and elsewhere, have been clamoring for a guy just like him due to the loss of our "tuff guys", Marcus and Grant.

If anyone tangled up with Tatum or Brown for most of the length of the floor and nobody stepped in to stop it, there would be he11 to pay. I know what Cow would call our team, a bunch of "female kitties".

What I saw was that Draymond Green sees the kerfuffle, steps in to stop it, puts the guy in a headlock and ends the attack on one of his team's stars.

Now, every time a fan here demands we do a repeat of McHale's clothesline, or some similar physical attack on another player, because "we're not tuff enuf", we are essentially asking for a Draymond of our own.

DA Part 2:

It looks like Klay started the whole thing by having his hand in Gobert's  [edit: Jaden McDaniels] throat/neck area, possibly grabbing his jersey.  Just watch the beginning to see how it starts.

They get across half court, [edit: Gobert enters the fray], Draymond sees his guy getting man-handled by a much bigger guy and steps in.

Nets' Ben Simmons sidelined indefinitely with nerve impingement in his back - Yahoo Sports

I'm shocked - shocked I tell ya - this guy NEVER gets hurt. A real iron man.

https://sports.yahoo.com/nets-ben-simmons-sidelined-indefinitely-with-nerve-impingement-in-his-back-215533920.html

Steve....You mean really, he never is healthy, right!!! What a deal he made, hope he saved his money that is the last big contract he will ever get. It almost is a shame, he does have such talent.......Unbelievable

REPORT: Mark Jackson has been dismissed from his job at MSG and the Knicks have banned him from the team plane.

“MSG Network planned on having Jackson occasionally fill in for Clyde Frazier this season, but Knicks management, led by team president Leon Rose, put a kibosh on the arrangement in part due to an old quarrel with Jackson and an assistant coach, according to sources.”


Bob


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There is no doubt about it in my mind. Some of these young players have annointed themselves long before truly accomplishing anything. Davis is good, no doubt, but I have seen him shrink in many instances. Dave Cowens never gave up, was a true soldier, and awesome. So those who do not like comparing, I will......as Cowens has.....and say I only wish he was around now!

Always a great evening of basketball when Celtics play elite and win while the Lakers shoot themselves in the foot, play poorly and lose! Happy Days are here again!!

db

So how happy were Philly fans with Embid last night after the game when, either tongue in cheek or not, he proclaimed the Celtics the best team??? This guy is a piece of work, we are in his head

cowens/oldschool,

Yeah, thanks Ja.  This is all on you, my man.  Only you can prevent forest fires.  

I think it will be interesting to see how he hits the court come Game 25 or 26 or whatever it will be.  I'm pretty sure behind the scenes in Memphis this has reached the stage where it's one and done.  Upon return, anything that even sniffs slightly out of line or character with Ja bringing nothing but his very best efforts and it will be blowup city a.k.a. Goodnight Ja, we hardly knew ye.  That will be sad.     

db

Also tonight, the Clipper have yet another chance to continue their impressive implosion streak! This time vs. HOU in LalaLand. HOU is hot. Added bonus. Ime's at the helm. Should be worth staying up until 1am for this one unless HOU runs them out of the gym early. Gotta love League Pass, the record and fast-forward button!

db

cowens/oldschool wrote:

RosalieTCeltics wrote:There is no doubt about it in my mind.  Some of these young players have annointed themselves long before truly accomplishing anything. Davis is good, no doubt, but I have seen him shrink in many instances.  Dave Cowens never gave up, was a true soldier, and awesome.  So those who do not like comparing, I will......as Cowens has.....and say I only wish he was around now!

Sabonis is a 6’9” lefty, good player always considered him a poor mans version of Dave Cowens, without elite jumping ability. Cowens would be wrecking a lot of these wannabe’s right now!!!

Sabonas dominated Anthony Davis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUBX2aGYjPQ&ab_channel=ZHHighlights

cowens/oldschool wrote:Poor Memphis Grizzlies

Just read Smart will be out for a few games with ankle sprain. Adams out for year, no Brando Clarke, no Ja Morant and worse record in WC. Has markings for a wasted season, I’d seriously consider tanking this season.

Cow,

According to the Memphis Grizzlies Smart will miss 3-5 weeks with a left foot sprain.

Wouldn't it be something if Smart misses more games than Porzingis and Jrue is kicking tail?


Bob


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Too bad for Marcus, if I remember correctly he had a balky ankle injury that took him out of alot of games last year

Ime's team and Thib's team are the only ones in the NBA defending slightly better than us. We leave all 27 other teams in the dust.

Regarding Draymon, speaking as a medical professional, they are DANGEROUS. He could have ended not only Gobert's career but also his life. Windpipes are easy to crush. Kids, do not try this at home.

https://www.complex.com/sports/a/brad-callas/knicks-owner-james-dolan-resigns-nba-board-of-governors?fbclid=IwAR0T_zdEYqjIaw7XzGWSZUb2eD4vR2IK5zX4UGnW5ejKQZb91gNGAyhsz2g



Knicks Owner James Dolan Resigns From NBA Board of Governors Positions, Says League ‘Neither Needs Nor Wants My Opinion’


The news arrives after Dolan targeted NBA commissioner Adam Silver in a recent lawsuit filed against the Toronto Raptors.


BY BRAD CALLAS
Nov 21, 2023



New York Knicks owner James Dolan has resigned from multiple positions he held across various NBA board committees.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports Dolan—who also owns the New York Rangers as well as Madison Square Garden Sports and Madison Square Garden Entertainment—stepped down from the NBA's influential advisory/finance and media committees in a July memo sent to NBA commissioner Adam Silver.

"Given all that has occurred lately, I have come to the conclusion that the NBA neither needs nor wants my opinion," Dolan wrote in the memo, which was also sent to the league's 29 other owners.

Dolan added, "My hope is that the Knicks will be treated equally and fairly as all other NBA teams. As you know, I am very busy with all my duties at MSG family of companies. I need to apply my time where I can be most productive."

The news is the latest chapter in the increasing tension between Dolan and Silver.

Earlier this week, the Knicks filed a motion in their recent lawsuit against the Toronto Raptors. Filed in August, the lawsuit is seeking more than $10 million in damages for the alleged theft of confidential files, which the Knicks claim a former employee took from the team to their latest job with the Raptors.

The Knicks' latest court filing is in response to a motion from the Raptors, which was filed Oct. 16 and asked Silver to serve as an arbitrator for the dispute.

According to documents obtained by the New York Post, the lawsuit asks that Silver refrain from delivering a ruling on the matter due to his "close relationship" with Toronto minority owner Larry Tanenbaum, who also serves as the league’s Chairman of the Board of Governors.

“In his capacity as Chairman, Tanenbaum serves as Silver’s boss and exercises control over and heavily influences Silver’s continued employment and salary,” the Knicks stated.

The lawsuit continued, “Tanenbaum and Silver also have a close relationship. Among other things, Tanenbaum has been described as ‘a close ally of Commissioner Adam Silver.’ Silver himself described Tanenbaum as ‘not just my boss as the chairman of the board of governors, but he’s very much a role model in my life.’"


Bob
MY NOTE:  Truth be told Knicks fans don't need or want his opinion either.

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Larry Tanenbaum's older brother, Joey, was a dear friend of mine for 20 years. Joey ran the steel company which created Larry's wealth. Instead of buying sports teams, Joey donated $326M to charities. A finer person I have never known. He died a few years ago, but his 90 year-old wife Toby and I talk regularly. Later on I'll share a hilarious story about Joey. Off to work now.

If Dolan is seriously asking where he should be spending his time most productively for MSG Entertainment ($1.28 Billion), given that your Knicks team for some crazy reason(s) is worth considerably more than all the other NBA teams by several billion dollars ($6.6 Billion) and since time is money, you may be an idiot by simply uttering that statement.  It would explain an awful lot though.  Be proud of yourself for creating and maintaining way beyond anyone's wildest dreams and expectations from a totally crappy team since the early 70's. God Bless the American Way!!      

Quit whining and act like a billionaire owner!  

db

Joey Tanenbaum owned and ran the 2nd largest steel fabrication company in Canada. As he told the story to me, one day he received a call from the Pentagon: "Tanenbaum, we're building a new submarine with missiles that are 2.11 meters in diameter. We need launch tubes for them, but no American company can fabricate that size now. Can you do it?"

"Sure," Joey said. "just send me the exact specifications."

Well, Joey could not meet those specs, but he knew someone who could. In Russia.

He called his friend there, and said, "Boris, I got an order for a big pipeline, and I need help fabricating it. Can you make  xxx amount of pipes, xxx meters long, xxx meters in diameter for me? with these specs?"

Turns out Boris could meet those specs, and eventually he shipped to Joey in Toronto all the launch tubes needed for America's new Trident subs. Joey then trans-shipped them down to New London, Connecticut or Newport News, VA or wherever the subs were being built.

A week later Joey gets a call from the Pentagon. "Tanenbaum, what the hell is this? Those missile tubes came in crates with Russian markings!"

Joey responded, "Well, you didn't tell me I couldn't subcontract the job. The Russians built them to spec and were none the wiser."

So that's how that went. true story. BTW, each Trident missile cost $71M. I bet the tubes weren't cheap either.