Woj Analyzes the New NBA Landscape

[Czvosec]

It would be nice if the whole NBA would agree to stop overpaying bigs. Maybe there wouldn't be such a struggle to keep it under the cap then...like Roy Hibbert gets a max contract...how many big guys are better than Hibbert? I would say a whole lot so how many more max contracts are we going to be seeing? I mean if Hibbert gets a max contract, then if I was Varejao, Boozer, Noah, Lopez, Horford, or Monroe, I'd think I'd be max contract worthy too.

They can't. It's called collusion, and it is illegal...























(Can't wait for the dozen posts that quote this saying, "LeBron, Wade, and Bosh did it.")

[B3team]

It would be nice if the whole NBA would agree to stop overpaying bigs.

They did. It's called the current CBA. Some teams just haven't gotten the memo yet.

[Frank Reynolds]

It's not necessarily that Wade will be washed up, it's the motivation of key guys like Ray Allen, Udonis Haslem, Mike Miller, Shane Battier etc. They have all won rings, they're probably gonna get another this season. How many times are they going to put themselves through it? I'd think that a lot of them would consider retirement, end on a high note.

Sure Wade is getting old, but he's not going to just vanish, he's too good of a basketball player. The real question is fit on the court. It's the question: are James and Wade more synergistic of a tandem than LBJ and Irving?

LBJ and Wade are very similar players. As Wade gets older, LBJ has to shoulder even more of a load. The load on James is only going to get heavier in South Beach. The scales are going to tip and eventually LBJ has to look out for himself again.

It's not about loyalty to Wade, James did exactly what was expected of him. He delivered Wade his 2nd championship. Nobody in South Beach could hold anything against him.

Not that LBJ is loyal to Miami's fans or anything like that. LBJ is never going to be loyal to any fans. He thinks about his own interests first, and in the interest of his health, his chances at titles, teammates, his image.... It's all gonna tip back to Cleveland. Rich Paul is the guy who wants to repair LBJ's image. Rich knows this, and LeBron sees this too.

Remember Marvel Comics put out that cartoon LBJ signed off on? The idea was that in the future LBJ came home and won Cleveland a ring. Should we put ANY stock into this? It is rather strange. Remember when LeBron didn't come out in the player introductions the night Baron Davis stuck a dagger of a performance in Miami's side? LBJ must really care about what people think of him. Windy said when LeBron first glimpsed the fans burning his jersey, it hurt James deep inside.

LBJ has been quoted as saying that Irving is the real deal, he's a true talent. Eventually LBJ has to realize, the only way he's ever gonna be elevated to Michael Jordan status is to win at home. Come play with Kyrie, nobody would give him shit about needing to seek out superstar teammates to win. Irving is his free pass, he'd be every bit the superstar but the media would camouflage it with the "return to home" narrative.

Most importantly, LBJ has to realize that be and Kyrie Irving would be the most talented tandem to ever play the game. Bold statement, I know, here me out:

LBJ is the apex of physical talent, he's the most gifted player in the history of the game. Physically the only other one in his realm is Wilt Chamberlain.
Kyrie Irving is the pinnacle of basketball skill. He's more than adequate physically, but skill wise he's in CP3 Kevin Durant territory.

Maybe they wouldn't play as well together as MJ Pippen, but best believe they'd be among the most talented duos in NBA history.

And unlike Wade and James overlapping games, LBJ and Kyrie's games were made for one another. Dude needs to realize this first and foremost. Think about the redemption narrative second. It'd be a great fit.

[Frank Reynolds]

Last thing I will say: if it's not in 2014, 2016 Rio Olympics: Kyrie and LBJ will both be starting on that team. LBJ will win a 3rd gold medal and it could be the season after. Don't kid yourselves LBJ is playing til he turns 40. He'll average 20ppg on 55% shooting too. Don't wanna hear he'll be too old. He's a freak of fucking nature. The apex of a Shawn Kemps nut fused with the power of rock crack that night deep inside Gloria.

[MDLT]

Maybe the super teams are ending and maybe they won't - we'll have to wait and see.

Hate to be debbie downer, but the next big time NBA free agent that signs in Cleveland will be the first. And unfortunately, Gilbert hasn't done anything yet - this team is the 3rd worst in the league.

We'll see how it goes but the Cavs aren't close to even turning the corner.

[daddywags]

Couple thoughts:

- Memphis was nowhere near a "super team." They were a decent playoff team and still are after the trades. Only they aren't capped out and over the luxury level now. How is that bad for them?

- Anyone who thinks LeBron would orchestrate an hour long TV show on ESPN with kids as his props and then later "change his mind" is, well, delusional, IMhO.

- LBJ coming back here in 2014 isn't far-fetched, but it's been beaten to death already. And there's no way we should build our team expecting it to happen.

[shoes22]

And unfortunately, Gilbert hasn't done anything yet - this team is the 3rd worst in the league.

We'll see how it goes but the Cavs aren't close to even turning the corner.

I hate when people say stuff like this. It's such short-sighted thinking. People always say "the win-loss record speaks for itself" when that isn't close to the actual situation. We are a much better team than we were in 2010-2011, even though the win-loss record is comparable. We have a great mix of young talent, cap room, draft pick assets, a shrewd GM thus far, and an owner that is willing to spend. The Cavs are an incredibly young team so they will naturally lose a lot of games for the time being. But that doesn't change the fact that we have one of the better situations in the league, and we're much closer to "turning the corner" than most fans believe.

[redscoon]

Did I miss the part where Rudy Gay was a really good NBA player? Sure, he has name recognition, but that Memphis team was not a contender and he is considerably overrated and certainly overpaid. When you kill all your flexibility by handing out huge contracts before you've established a championship core, you have to make these type of moves. I at least give credit to Memphis for recognizing they were in a bad spot moving forward and being proactive about making a change.

Winning in the NBA has always been about drafting well and making shrewd trades. The new CBA won't change that. The market will correct itself over time and player salaries will reflect that. The days of a 3rd big getting 10 mil a year and pretty good players getting max money may be over with the stiffer tax penalties, but smart organizations will win and those who make poor decisions will lose. Nothing different there.

[MDLT]

I hate when people say stuff like this. It's such short-sighted thinking. People always say "the win-loss record speaks for itself" when that isn't close to the actual situation. We are a much better team than we were in 2010-2011, even though the win-loss record is comparable. We have a great mix of young talent, cap room, draft pick assets, a shrewd GM thus far, and an owner that is willing to spend. The Cavs are an incredibly young team so they will naturally lose a lot of games for the time being. But that doesn't change the fact that we have one of the better situations in the league, and we're much closer to "turning the corner" than most fans believe.

I'm not denying they don't have potential, but the reality of the situation is they currently are quite bad, and need to acquire at least one other superstar, which is very difficult for any team.

Will Irving and future draft picks turn them into a contender? Maybe, maybe not. But they have a really long way to go still. Success for the Cavs is far from certain, is my broader point.

[theSTEREO.]

I hate when people say stuff like this. It's such short-sighted thinking. People always say "the win-loss record speaks for itself" when that isn't close to the actual situation. We are a much better team than we were in 2010-2011, even though the win-loss record is comparable. We have a great mix of young talent, cap room, draft pick assets, a shrewd GM thus far, and an owner that is willing to spend. The Cavs are an incredibly young team so they will naturally lose a lot of games for the time being. But that doesn't change the fact that we have one of the better situations in the league, and we're much closer to "turning the corner" than most fans believe.

And we have a franchise player so good, it must've been almost as hard for Grant to build a team around him designed to lose than it would have been to build a team that got 40 wins.

[Zone]

This is a terribly written article.

What I got out of it is Woj is jealous of Hollinger.

And Dan should have never written the comic sans letter---Just watching Lebron in the Decision, you could see he was not comfortable. I think he would have changed his mind....oh well.

Ahhh, I see you still have yet to stop blaming Dan Gilbert because you bought season tickets before Lebron made his decision. Or is it because Dan's a snake oil salesman (or whatever you used to call him)?

No personal attack involved here, just trying to keep some of the other members here from losing their collective shit over what you wrote and help them understand your slant

[STAT]

Last thing I will say: if it's not in 2014, 2016 Rio Olympics: Kyrie and LBJ will both be starting on that team. LBJ will win a 3rd gold medal and it could be the season after. Don't kid yourselves LBJ is playing til he turns 40. He'll average 20ppg on 55% shooting too. Don't wanna hear he'll be too old. He's a freak of fucking nature. The apex of a Shawn Kemps nut fused with the power of rock crack that night deep inside Gloria.

I really wish I never read this.

[Frank Reynolds]

I really wish I never read this.

Your'e welcome ; )

[jimpish26]

Wanna repost his comment here? I cannot seem to find it.

I think this is the post he was referring to by
Wine and Gold




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Re: The Lebron Safari 2014
Lebron will transition into a very very efficient point forward ...having him on a team with Kyrie will be a perfect fit offensively, and give our offense great dimensions intitiating outside or inside with great proficiency.
He has the potential to play at a high level, much in the mold of how I anticipated seeing Magic Johnson transition his game and play late into his 30's ... but we never got that opportunity.
By molding his game into one that allows him to play in more a point power forward type mold offensively. I see no reason to see him drop significantly in ability because his game has the diversity to do lots of things well as his physical abilities get effected by age.
The best attribute to tap into with age is game intelligence, and Lebron has loads of that. I think he'll be a player/coach later in his career and eventually become a very good head coach in this league.
That's how I would look for us to eventually tie him to us for the longterm... if Dan Gilbert decides he wants to do that. I have some things I found out a few days ago on just that. It's not a slam dunk he comes back here, even if that is Lebron's wish.
Some things need to happen to patch some things that have yet to be patched. Last edited by Wine and Gold; 01-30-2013 at 11:07 PM.

[blue_kahuna]

Bah blue balls!