The 2014-2015 NBA Season Thread. Lock It Up Please: The Golden State Warriors Are The Champions

[ryanjumpman420]

Hawks needs to drop the blue red and white and go back to they older color scheme.
NBA does need to drop the sleeves , are they even popular among fans . Never seen someone wearing a sleeved jersey irl...

They've already leaning towards it. Bringing the old Pacman logo back on their arena floor. Agreed tho. I'd love to see them go back to the red 80s uniforms from the Nique days permanently.
View media item 1428039View media item 1428040

 

[onetrust]

Kobe would shoot 500 free throws after that kind of performance, LeBron takes a selfie.

No, Kobe would've posted some stupid quote and had dudes acting like he's SO focused and deep and have dudes saying, "Lebron would've just laughed it off and went clubbing."

 

[ryanjumpman420]

Keep it simple Houston. View media item 1428045

 

[lawdog1]

Speaking of jerseys, now that we've seen the Chinese New Year special unis, if I'm Latino, I'm feeling kind of slighted. The CNY unis were completely new designs that included design elements related to the occasion. Meanwhile, the Noche Latino uniforms are just the regular ones with "el" or "Los" sewed on the front. Unequal treatment if you ask me.



(not serious)

 

[steebie j]

Keep it simple Houston. View media item 1428045

their best jersey by far

Hated the pajama jerseys of the late 90s early 2000s but that court was dope. But yea we need new jerseys. The ones now look like one of those fake starter jerseys u see at Walmart.

 

[do work son]

need these jerseys back

 

[mgrand15]

Lebron probably posted that more for the kids that follow him on IG.

It's why I don't mind Kobe's "character" nowadays. If there's a player exaggerating maniacal focus, work ethic, and will to win - at the very least, kids are going to try to emulate that. A lot of players work hard but few play it up and talk about it like Kobe does. Wish more people did. Kids that play BBall need more guys like Kobe - not guys like Melo who talk more about their brand and future.

 

[blastercombo]

No, Kobe would've been on the sidelines in a sling

Fixed

 

[hometownhero]

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...k-it-off-cavaliers-missed-free-throws-rockets

Bron firing shots? 

 

[tomdiginson]

need these jerseys back

This is hideous.

 

[keel252]

Hawks needs to drop the blue red and white and go back to they older color scheme.

Yea the red/blck/yellow joints were fly.

 

[dman14]

View media item 1428058

 

[blastercombo]

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...k-it-off-cavaliers-missed-free-throws-rockets


Bron firing shots? 

If he is, he's missing anyway

 

[antidope]

 

At the top left womans face.

Sleeved Jerseys are dope IMO

 

[ryanjumpman420]

need these jerseys back

red and white from 80s were much better than those IMO

 

[Air Pope]

Soooo everyone hates LeBron again now? Or....




Sidenote: his IG pic is childish man

 

[jumpman ii]

Sleeve Jerseys suck but so does Jay-Z

 

[awwsome]

need these jerseys back

Would pay for a Harden jersey.

 

[youngwolf]

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...k-it-off-cavaliers-missed-free-throws-rockets


Bron firing shots? 

If he is, he's missing anyway

 

[johnnyredstorm]

wanted to write a kris middleton article but someone beat me to the punch so i wrote one about the jazz instead

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2380625-utah-jazz-are-the-best-young-team-in-the-nba

some tweets n shot charts that only show up in the link were used

Spoiler

The Utah Jazz may not have a winning record, but the pieces are there to be a very good team for a long time.

With the emergence of Rudy Gobert alongside Derrick Favors' development and Gordon Hayward's consistency, the Jazz have one of the most talented frontcourts in the NBA.

Utah's backcourt is still raw, but Trey Burke, Alec Burks and Dante Exum are talented enough to take the next step in time. If the Jazz can add another skilled wing during the offseason, the franchise will be dangerous in 2015-16 and a darkhorse to make the NBA playoffs.

The Jazz only have three players over the age of 25—Trevor Booker, Joe Ingles and Elijah Milsap—and none of them are guaranteed to be with the organization at the conclusion of this season. Youth has troubled the franchise at times in 2014-15, but it is precisely the reason why they could become the NBA's most challenging team for the foreseeable future.



An Exciting Frontcourt

Bart Young/Getty Images
Gobert, Favors and Hayward are three all-star talents that will continue improving with experience.

The 7'1" 245-pound Gobert is 22-years-old; the 6'10" 262-pound Favors is 23; and the 6'8" 225-pound Hayward is 24. Each athlete complements each other perfectly.

Gobert is becoming a premier defender with exceptional shot blocking ability. Favors—now playing the 4—is a reliable rebounder and scorer on the block that is developing a solid jump shot. And Hayward is the team's best overall player with an ability to create shots for himself and his teammates, dishing 4.2 assists per game.

Favors isn't a slouch either, as a playmaker:


Via ESPN.com, Hayward has a 7.86 WAR which is third-best in the NBA amongst small forwards and is good for 6.0 win shares, via Basketball-Reference.com. Favors checks in with the 14th best WAR amongst power forwards with 4.29 alongside 6.0 win shares. Gobert has the 10th best WAR at the 5 with 3.02 and is also good for 5.4 win shares.

Utah's frontcourt isn't exactly dominant just yet, but when coupling the trio's youth with their performances, there's a lot to be excited about. Hayward and Favors are averaging 19.5 and 16 points per game, respectively, alongside 4.9 and 8.2 rebounds per game.

The emergence of Gobert after the all-star break has catapulted the organization into becoming a much better team defensively.


Gobert's numbers may appear modest—7.1 PPG, 7.6 RPG and 2.3 blocks per game—but he's contributed that stat line in only 22.7 minutes per game.

The trio of Gobert, Favors and Hayward leads the franchise in wins produced with 9.09, 7.24 and 7.04, respectively, via Box Score Geeks.

If Utah's guards can take the next step, the Jazz have powerhouse potential in the NBA.



A Tantalizing Backcourt

Burke, Burks and Exum haven't exactly progressed as well as some would like. The 23-year-old Burks has been the most consistent guard, scoring 13.9 PPG and dishing 3.0 APG to go along with 4.2 RPG, but he's been afflicted with the injury bug.

The 22-year-old Burke has been good for 13.1 PPG and 4.6 APG, but aside from his turnover percentage of 10.7, his advanced stats have been lackluster. He has a negative-0.28 WAR to go along with only 1.8 win shares and a 0.0 value over replacement player. He's also only shooting 37.7 percent from the field, which is unacceptable for a point guard with as much potential as he possesses.

Burke may never be a prolific 1, but he's a good enough scorer and playmaker to start in the NBA for a decade. He has a 2.72 assist-to-turnover ratio, and he's solid in the pick-and-roll—getting to the basket with ease. His inefficiency scoring wise could be attributed to his need to be stronger at the rim and smarter with his shot selection, as displayed by this shot chart:

http://on.nba.com/10ot4VU
Burke may need to put on some more muscle to finish better at the rim and be closer to the league average, and he needs to cut back on some of the threes as he's attempting five per game.

He also has the tendency to take off-balance shots at times, as seen in the video below at the 34 second and 1:02 marks. Although he makes both shots, it's a habit that needs to be addressed to ensure more consistency.


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Once Burke's issues are corrected, he will get much closer to fulfilling his potential as a starting point guard.

The 19-year-old Exum has also struggled this season, despite his talent. At 6'6" 190-pounds, the Australian rookie has tremendous reach and athleticism at the 2 and is capable of being a playmaker once he adapts fully to the NBA.

Exum is crafty and possesses the intangibles to become a very good player in this league, but his youth and inexperience is certainly weighing on his performance thus far.

His midrange game is also virtually nonexistent—as seen in the shot chart below—which doesn't help his 35.0 field goal percentage on 4.8 attempts.

http://on.nba.com/10otfAC
If Exum can develop into a solid shooter from the perimeter and be more effective in the mid-range—whether in catch and shoot opportunities or pull-ups—he can become the perfect compliment to Burke and Hayward.

Exum is already an above-average finisher at the rim, and he's capable of getting into the paint and feeding others, once his perimeter game comes together, Utah will be a very difficult team to guard.



Missing Piece

Via NBA.com, the Jazz have the sixth-best field goal percentage from less than five feet, knocking down 61.0 percent of those shots. From 15-19 feet however, Utah is eighth-worst, shooting 38.9 percent from the field. The Jazz are also 11th-best from 25-29 feet knocking down 34.6 percent of those shots.

Utah needs another perimeter scorer that can be effective from the mid-range. If the Jazz can add a wing that is capable of consistently knocking down shots from 15-29 feet, the organization will be primed for prominence.

The franchise, since the departure of Enes Kanter, is becoming one of the NBA's better defensive teams.


The low block presence is there with Gobert and Favors, Utah just needs that extra shooter that can come off screens and space the floor.

In a limited sample size, Burks has shown the potential to fill that void, as indicated by the graphic below:

http://on.nba.com/10DA1DC
But the guard's durability has been questionable, playing in more than 65 games only once in his career.

Once Utah addresses that need, whether through free agency or the NBA draft, the franchise will be poised to reach the next level. The Jazz have done an excellent job retaining their young talent—inking Burks to a four-year contract extension worth over $42 million to go along with the four-year $63 million offer sheet for Hayward that was matched and the four-year $50 million deal Favors signed in 2013.

The organization has one of the best young cores in the NBA. With Favors, Hayward, Burks, Burke, Gobert and Exum locked up for the next few seasons, chemistry will continue developing and success is inevitable.

Utah has quietly put together the best group of athletes with potential that can become a headache for teams around the NBA.

 

[lawdog1]

View media item 1428058

Those wacky Italians

 

[don ramon]

Soooo everyone hates LeBron again now? Or....




Sidenote: his IG pic is childish man

he's so unlikable

 

[awwsome]

View media item 1428058

NT HOF'er.

 

[hometownhero]

 

http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...k-it-off-cavaliers-missed-free-throws-rockets


Bron firing shots? 

If he is, he's missing anyway

If Harden's fondness for strippers and pros is true, that shot may have been nothing but net....mj shrug

 

[lawdog1]

I don't hate LeBron at all, but there's just no way around the fact that some (maybe even a lot) of the stuff he does, especially off the court, is really lame.