OKC vs Indy is a blessing in disguise for media narratives and fan discussion

[pete clemenza]

Maybe I've missed it but where has Frank sold the fanbase that capspace in 27 is the golden goose? It's essential that team manage their cap so they have increased flexibility to try and build depth. Now I think it's valid to question whether he's the person to build with that flexibility. The team took a shot (he wasn't the GM, Doc was I'm pretty sure) that every other team would have taken and missed. Then it was compounded by the new CBA. That's not on the front office.

Player development is obviously going to be more important than ever going forward. Clippers picks are so late that they're at an even more disadvantage. Because they're taking fliers on guys. I know you love your chucking bums and Diabate but all the complaining you do about letting BB Jr or KPJ go you don't give team credit for what they did with Mann (they fukked up by overpaying him in the hope he could be used as matching salary and uktimatt had to trade him to clean up their books) and Zu. The team is in a holding pattern not because I think they're going to sign Lamelo or Trae Young but because what else are they supposed to do with no picks?

I give them credit for Zu and Mann. But we got a GM that screams out "we're going to get younger and more athletic" every off-season, but then he ships out and waives all the young players and brings in nothing but washed dudes at the trade deadline. And you got Ty Lue on top of it all week couldn't develop a roll of film of it was 80's and so here we are. I'm just trying to figure out what the plan is. They yell out everything to tickle our ears but do the exact opposite. We're the oldest team in the league for a reason. That's not me making sh*t up or wishing upon a star. That's reality.

 

[KFBF]

I give them credit for Zu and Mann. But we got a GM that screams out "we're going to get younger and more athletic" every off-season, but then he ships out and waives all the young players and brings in nothing but washed dudes at the trade deadline. And you got Ty Lue on top of it all week couldn't develop a roll of film of it was 80's and so here we are. I'm just trying to figure out what the plan is. They yell out everything to tickle our ears but do the exact opposite. We're the oldest team in the league for a reason. That's not me making sh*t up or wishing upon a star. That's reality.

What do you think the plan should be these next three years? Obviously tanking is not an option as the team doesn't control their picks.

 

[Devil Plisken…CMS]

The well us drying up though. All the sh*t we got by with for the past 6-7 is about to be over with if not already. Tryouts with old former stars like Paul Pierce, Hedo Tukalou, Rondo, Grant Hill, John Wall, Danny Granger, Westbrook, etc. - are over with, that era is out of the league. Ballmer buying 2nd round draft picks- over with. Unrestricted star free agents galore- now 95% are all locked up with current teams. Depending on buyout players to move the needle - done. I can go on and on. There's no shortcuts and cheat codes anymore. Big market - small market, you got to put in work on every facet now. Make a good trade, hit on a pick, develop a player or two, have a back up big, a back up point guard, etc.

That era will never be done

That’s how the league works man. From Al Horford on The Cs to Jamal Wilkes on The Lakers & Ray Allen on The Heat.

Old stars get repurposed to fit alongside young talent

 

[Dorian Breh]

OKC tanked for nearly a decade

Now they have a team full of lottery picks on rookie deals

Not sure how that counters the “tanking is the only way to compete” narrative

 

[SEVEN3084]

OKC tanked for nearly a decade

Now they have a team full of lottery picks on rookie deals

Not sure how that counters the “tanking is the only way to compete” narrative

*2 years ish

 

[DoubleJ13]

OKC tanked for nearly a decade

Now they have a team full of lottery picks on rookie deals

Not sure how that counters the “tanking is the only way to compete” narrative

Nearly a decade

 

[Hacksaw Jim Thuggin]

Yall need to stop with the 'casual ' fan nonsense....

What does that even mean....

Ive been watching the nba longer than probably most of you have even been alive....but if I don't want to sit on here everyday and debate I'm not a 'real fan'?

Who came up with this?

 

[Canada Goose]

Yall need to stop with the 'casual ' fan nonsense....

What does that even mean....

Ive been watching the nba longer than probably most of you have even been alive....but if I don't want to sit on here everyday and debate I'm not a 'real fan'?

Who came up with this?

Boxing fans started the "casual" fan concept. They had a legit grip too there was a bunch of idiots who didn't watch any Boxing cards unless Floyd Mayweather was fighting and then complained that his fights were boring months go by those same causals don't watch any Boxing until Mayweather fights again and they compain about his fights being boring all over again!



Eventually the causal concept spread to the other sports... and even in forms of entertainment that isn't sports I've seen Coli posters call people casual amine and causal Hip Hop fans You just know them nikkas look like Norbit IRL

 

[jwonder]

I don't think I recall a redneck finals ever. Both squad fans have the most inbred looking fans. Can't tell who is worse.

But OKC has a squad. I expect them to win it all. So hard to beleive this was the team that had Harden, Westbrook, and Durant and didn't win shyt.

 

[nieman]

You're missing the point. This Finals is the Kryptonite to all the bad media narratives and discussions. For example, Shams said there's going to be a ton of player movement this off-season during draft time. Normally that's more than enough to send the fans and media heads into a complete frenzy, but this Finals tells us that player movement won't mean sh*t in the end if these teams don't have a deep bench.

Perhaps. But, also perhaps this is an anomaly, meaning a top heavy team wins again. The problem is also that with a new team winning each year, it throws trends out of the windows, so pretty much everyone has to be left to do the legwork on their own. Most execs won't like it. hell, casuals don't like in either.

The league, the team suits and casuals don't like parity. They like the appearance of parity. While good for the game overall, you can't sell or market teams that no one cares about. You can't even increase discussion for casuals if there's no type of narrative outside of actual basketball that they don't care about. They can't sell this as David vs Goliath, Clash of the Titans, Changing of the Guard (old vs young), Flash vs Substance, Cinderella Story, Shootout, Storybook Ending, Hard Nose Defensive Prowess...or any other tropes. This means that the media has to actually research the teams, the players, to cultivate a good discussion. If it's just basketball, interest will wane, unfortunately. This also means that no one will even be talking about either of these teams 1 week (being generous), after they win. The story will once again shift to whatever happens with the former superstars names.

 

[who_better_than_me]

I don't think I recall a redneck finals ever. Both squad fans have the most inbred looking fans. Can't tell who is worse.

But OKC has a squad. I expect them to win it all. So hard to beleive this was the team that had Harden, Westbrook, and Durant and didn't win shyt.

I don’t know about OKC, but Indiana is a mulatoe capital

 

[IsThatBrothaMouzone?]

No matter how you feel about OKC vs Indy, all of the media and casual fanbase narratives are being completely thrown out of the window. Yes they're smaller markets and certain casuals will tune out because of this, but with these two teams and how they're constructed, also with the new CBA and its restrictive aprons, it throws off and makes most NBA topics sound dated and obsolete. Big 3's and filling in the roster with old hired guns/vagabond players are essentially dead so "team up" scenrios and the discussion that it generates sounds like yesterdays news. What's there to talk about with Bron & Luka if players 6-15 on the roster aren't playable in the post season? KD can't form a Big 3 anymore and if he's to have any more success before he retires he'll need to join a Minnesota type squad and give Ant support as a 2nd option. Curry can barely make through a first round series that goes 7 games and was done in round 2.

The superstar unrestriced free agent is damn near a unicorn and a ghost in this modern NBA. Any star worth a damn is under a max contract with their current team so to get a star it takes a big trade with mutliple teams involved. Zion, JA, and a few others didn't take the mantle so it appears that a plethra of future true stars aren't even in abundance like in years past. Our Clippers' GM Lawrence Frank, who's still chasing the ghost of the SGA/PG trade to this very day, is trying to sell the fanbase on open cap space in '27 & '27, but there's nobody out there that's going to save the team. Unless we want to throw $50 million a year at Trae Young or LaMelo Ball just to say we're doing something. All the star chasing teams have to develop players now. This is the final frontier and honestly, it's kind of refreshing. There was a reason ESPN kept mentioning SGA and NAW were cousins... they didn't have sh*t else to discusss or alternate fill in banter. Everybody has to do homework now from the teams all the way to the announcing booth. We've all said and there's numerous posts on how the NBA media is sh*t and the worst in pro sports. This series might steer it in the right direction.

Facts.

It's also why I'm convinced the Luka thing was led by Silver/Nike/ESPN etc.

They knew LA was in a bind and needed a future superstar anchor. Quid pro quo. Nico gives up Luka without asking for too much and Dallas gets Flagg.

Obviously the Lakers have a more storied history.....but Dallas has been much better at building a team from the ground up.

They take the 3-J's and dismantle it to create Nash/Finley/Dirk. From zeroes to a very good but flawed team.

Then they let Nash/Finley walk and build a title contender around Dirk. Team falls short so they reload AGAIN and build a championship squad around Dirk.

Then....they draft an undersized PG (Brunson), add a dynamic Euro (Luka) and go from the lottery to the WCF.

Get rid of Brunson and retool around Luka...and they reach the NBA Finals. No matter who has been in charge, they've shown an ability to build from scratch. This is EXACTLY why they didn't want the Wizards or Hornets getting the top pick. Proof of concept. Whatever Flagg is, Dallas will make good use of him even if he's not generational.

 

[Dorian Breh]

*2 years ish

2 years? They started tanking after KD. They took a break when they turned their tanking assets into Paul George. Then went back to tanking.

 

[In The Zone '98]

2 years? They started tanking after KD. They took a break when they turned their tanking assets into Paul George. Then went back to tanking.

Remember the parade they had for him re-signing in OKC.

Then he took the first charter outta there to LA

 

[FTBS]

OKC tanked for nearly a decade

Now they have a team full of lottery picks on rookie deals

Not sure how that counters the “tanking is the only way to compete” narrative

The only player that they got from that tanking is Chet. They made a prescient trade that netted them their top two players and have done a masterful job at putting pieces around them via FA and trades. Tanking was a part of an overall great strategy not the strategy itself.