NBA! Talk About the Game Happens Here...

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

LeBron enjoys attention too much to sign an extension with the Cavaliers.  If he re-ups now then everyone will be talking about Dwyane Wade leading the 2010 free agent class, and the King will not abide people talking about someone else when they could be talking about him.

His mom sets the apple straight in the NY Post...

The hoops star's mother, Gloria, told Page Six it's not happening. "He's a hometown boy," she said.

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

Corey Maggette talks about Stephen Jackson's bad rep...

"Everyone takes away from Jack as a player because of the mishaps he's had off the court"

Yeah...I guess fighting fans in the stands is technically "off the court."

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

Bad news for Cavs fans...

The Chicago Bulls have a deal in place that would move Kirk Hinrich and the 17th pick to the Washington Wizards, freeing up enough cap space to pursue two maximum-salary players in this summer's free-agent market, sources with knowledge of the Bulls' plans said Thursday.

It wasn't immediately clear what Washington would send to Chicago in the trade.

The deal can't be officially consummated until July 8, when the Wizards will have room under the salary cap to absorb Hinrich's $9 million contract without having to send back anything of similar value.

Since it's a good-faith deal for the time being, there remains a chance it could fall apart. But according to one source, the Sacramento Kings are prepared to make a similar deal with the Bulls in the Wizards' stead if that were to happen.

Either way, moving Hinrich and the pick would push Chicago's space under the cap from $20 million to more than $30 million. That puts the Bulls on equal footing with the Miami Heat in pursuing not just one but two members of a free-agent class that is expected to include LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer, Amare Stoudemire and Joe Johnson.

It's going to feel so weird being a Bulls fan but I'm trying to warm up to it.

LeBron
Bosh
Rose
Noah

Looks pretty scary.

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

Can Kurt or Pat or someone who understands basketball better than I do dip over to the Jock itch isles for a sec and explain how it is even possible for the Heat to have room on their payroll for Lebron AND Wade AND Bosh?

Because they only have two other players under contract.   They basically dumped their whole team to attempt this trifecta.  So now they'll be maxed out on the salary cap and still need 7-10 players to fill out their roster, which they'll have to do at league minimum salaries.

I haven't researched it enough, but perhaps they still have a mid-level exception for next season (which would allow them about $6 mil extra to go over the cap for one player or they could break it up for more than one player).

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

Pat Riley has the juice to get some decent players to come play for not much money...The Heat will need it because they need a center.

[Moetown]

I guess it's good for the NBA to have so many hating on LeBron. Hate is better than indifference and will attract viewers who want to see him lose.

[bebopbalogna]

Can Kurt or Pat or someone who understands basketball better than I do dip over to the Jock itch isles for a sec and explain how it is even possible for the Heat to have room on their payroll for Lebron AND Wade AND Bosh?

Because they only have two other players under contract.   They basically dumped their whole team to attempt this trifecta.  So now they'll be maxed out on the salary cap and still need 7-10 players to fill out their roster, which they'll have to do at league minimum salaries.

I haven't researched it enough, but perhaps they still have a mid-level exception for next season (which would allow them about $6 mil extra to go over the cap for one player or they could break it up for more than one player).

this.  i heard them saying last night that they will NEED about 7 players just to fill the two-deep roster.  and virtually nothing left to pay them. i predict an epic fail ala bringing karl malone and gary payton to the lakers a few years back.  too many cooks in the kitchen and not a single expediter.

[Moetown]

The reason I hate this so much is it seems like cheating to me. There are a bunch of good players and a handful of superstars. To have Wade and James - not to mention Bosh - on the same team is as bad as having Gasol and Bryant on the same team. It's like having 2 Michael Jordans on one team. It isn't fair.

[bebopbalogna]

nobody but bamah was that high on gasol when the lakers picked him up. he was good, but nobody knew how good. lakers fans thought he was too thin to be a solid post guy.  his stock shot up a mile after playing with kobe for a year.

[Jeff]

My favorite part of this whole thing is the Cavs' owner's livid response... in Comic Sans font..

http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/gilbert_letter_100708.html

[bebopbalogna]

My favorite part of this whole thing is the Cavs' owner's livid response... in Comic Sans font..

http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/gilbert_letter_100708.html

"Some people think they should go to heaven but NOT have to die to get there."




all i could think of was the monster magnet lyric:

"some people go to bed with lucifer, then they cry, cry, cry when they don't greet the day with god...wooooohoooo!

if you want to spank your demons and make them pay, then baby, i'm your man of the hour."


i love this kind of ridiculousness!

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

I guess it's good for the NBA to have so many hating on LeBron. Hate is better than indifference and will attract viewers who want to see him lose.

He went to the dark side.  LeBron is a villain now.

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

nobody but bamah was that high on gasol when the lakers picked him up. he was good, but nobody knew how good. lakers fans thought he was too thin to be a solid post guy.  his stock shot up a mile after playing with kobe for a year.

Oh, I liked Gasol.  I thought the Laker's stole him and I was pretty upset about it.

[Poop Fresh-Herbed Pickles]

My favorite part of this whole thing is the Cavs' owner's livid response... in Comic Sans font..

http://www.nba.com/cavaliers/news/gilbert_letter_100708.html

Yeah, it's pretty damn funny...helped make a lot of people in Ohio feel a little better.  And there's the indication he's not through dumping shit on LeBron.  We'll see how much of the closet he cleans out on him next week.


One thing he didn't write in the letter, but said on the phone to a reporter 10 minutes later is that LeBron quit in game 2,4,5,&6 of the series against Boston.

I think that's been the hardest thing to take is the way he seemed to lose interest in that series.  It's like he felt the Cavs weren't good enough and he was ALREADY out of there.

His reputation is in the toilet right now.  Good luck being a supporting player if you can't take being the main man, LeBron.

[Moetown]

Winning it with the Cavs would've gotten in the way of his plans to win it with the Heat.