Topic: American Sports

Well with Bryce benched, maybe Carolina will be better now... its hard to imagine they could be worse.

@sorteddan Yeah, surprised by some of these results. Eagles are letting me down also. My pre-season picks so far are looking bleak. Kansas City is still on the winning edge, but just barely. Losing Pacheco might prove to be a problem for them too.

The lack of major dynasties in today’s NFL (KC aside) is credited for the popularity of the league. Fans of any team can come into each season with hope because good teams can’t stay good for long and bad teams can turn things around really quickly.

Man, hard to make much sense of the early NFL season. I really don’t know who to believe in. There’s not a lot of consistency. It’s only 3 games but very few teams have played well three times in a row.

As a Chargers fan, time to sim to next season I think. Herbert, Slater, Alt and Bosa all hurt in that Steelers game. As of typing I have no idea what the extent of those injuries are, but based on initial reporting in the game it seems like getting some of these guys back is at best case scenario gonna be around the end of October / beginning of November, but we could be looking well beyond that. I think we kinda knew the Chargers were a house of cards this season, but it really became evident when Slater went out and the offence just absolutely nose dived. I hope at least once in my life I get to watch a Chargers season play out that isn't altered by Herbert getting injured.

@Pizzamorg I know they say “injuries are part of the game” but it is frustrating how an injury (or two, or ten) can just ruin an entire season for a team.

The injury bug has hit several teams already. I’m not sure why, but it seems like players get injury a lot more regularly in recent years.

I suppose that is fair @Th3solution but when its always your QB who is basically 90% of the reason your team even works to begin with, its just so frustrating. You look at the opposite extreme, Stafford is working with an offence that is like 90 percent third stringers (or worse) cause they have been absolutely decimated on the injury front and is still pulling wins over the biggest teams in the league cause you got your elite QB still in there. And I suppose its funny cause their opponents, the Niners, are like the third scenario where you build a team that is basically QB agnostic but then all the weapons start getting hurt, your QBs lack of elite skills in any one area are exposed and they can't carry.

@Pizzamorg Yes, usually a QB injury is the most devastating, except for the ‘QB agnostic’ teams, like you say. And it does highly depend on the quality of the backup. Philadelphia won their Super Bowl with the backup Foles, but that’s going to be the exception rather than the rule.

At some point if the player keeps getting hurt, it might be time to consider moving on from him. I don’t follow the Chargers that closely so I didn’t realize Herbert is that injury prone.

And then there's the curious case of Tua Tagovailoa, who almost seems to exclusively hit his head and nowhere else on his body, despite being hit about as many times as Tannehill was behind that old Dolphins line.

Update: The Dolphins were just awful to begin with. The gameplan seems to be tailored to Tua so much that a QB that isn't him doesn't know how to run the offense. I guess that falls on Mike McDaniel to fix. Which given the quality of the Dolphins this season (their only win has come against the only team that hasn't won a game so far this season), I have absolutely zero confidence in him to do so. Looks like it's yet another year of mediocrity.

Titans didn't even need a jar of mayonnaise to win vs the Dolphins. It was like the classic offense. Just run on every down, and run some more and kick field goals and eventually they will get bored of you and let you score a few TD's

They should just run the offence that they switched to when Levis is back, tbh. Just let him hand it off until he calms down a bit. Play action will be his friend, and no more shotgun.

To be fair, he can throw it really hard and a nice tight spiral as he picks out defenders, though. So one day, who knows, he may evolve into eggs benedict.

@Malaise I’m with you on Rodgers. At least on his having to tolerate prima Donna-ism vs what he’s going to actually bring to the table. Some players are worth the headache and circus they bring with them, but Rodgers is past his prime and honestly was never worth it, imho.

@Malaise @th3solution any chance of going in to more detail about what happened and is happening at the Jets? It sounds like a lot.

As for the sports with round balls, now the Celtics have banner 18, I think this season they are going to unleash the insane ball movement that was kind of kept secret last year at times. Seen a few hints of it in pre season, and whatever happens this year, if they play the kind of champagne basketball I know they are capable of, it will be something special to watch.

I think I mentioned to you, Sol, last year about watching out for some quick decision touch passes from big P, but we never really got to see that much of it. Hopefully it is a bigger part of the overall play this season. 5 top level stars relaxed and having fun with their talent under a bit less pressure is just a fun thing to watch.

And heads up: Jaylen Brown has bulked up a little, like Tatum did last year (and Brown was fairly built to begin with) and has decided that this year he will also be a playmaker 😅 so add to his scoring, his new found defensive prowess and taking on tough match ups, to thinking more about getting others going, could be yet another season where he steps up in new ways, to little or no acclaim from the league...

@Ravix As far as the Jets, they are just a mess in general. I think the way they handled Saleh was strange. There’s debate about him being escorted out by security, but I don’t doubt it. He was apparently not told he was fired basically a the same time news broke to the press and he was coming in prepared to coach this week. The owner has denied that Rodgers asked for Saleh to be fired, but he said he did talk to Rodgers first before he decided to fire him. I suspect Rodgers asked for him to be sacked because he did that in the past at Green Bay.

So I’m not sure what else is going on over in Jets-land. But my point was that Rodgers has had a lot of controversy surrounding him for a while and it just adds to the circus. He was pretty insensitive to Wilson when he replaced him last year and it came actors as unprofessional in what I saw. A lot of athletes are doofuses and poor teammates, so it’s not unique to him, but he’s also a big conspiracy theorist guy, dabbled in a few controversial social and political issues. Apparently was on a short list to be the running mate for RF Kennedy before he dropped out to throw his support for Trump. And like I say, if the guy was a world-beater still then it would be worth all the chaos he brings, but he is in no position to make demands after a 3 interception game like last week. Pretty sure Wilson never put up a stinker like that. I just think if you’re going to be critical of coaches and other players then you need to produce. Up to this point in his career he mostly has, but I think he’s fairly mid-tier now.

As for the Celtics —
I think Jaylon Brown should be the face of the franchise. Not Tatum. Celtics are going to be pretty awesome this year, but I wouldn’t sleep on the Knicks. KAT could potentially make things difficult in the East.

@Th3solution oh yeah, like I've said a few times, the championship is done so there's no pressure to win another, of course it would be fun to see a dynasty, but that'd just be greedy 😅 so yeah, the East should be a lot better, but these other teams will still have to prove they can do it as a team and in the playoffs, whereas Boston don't need to prove that anymore. There's always potential for superstar bust ups and players not working well together.

In the west how long do you think LeBron will enjoy the company of Reddick in LA? And do you think a "just play my son" conversation will happen sooner or later or will he even be in the squad? This popped into my head because of the Rogers/Jets thing, I don't think LeBron is necessarily like that with coaches... he might be (but it also might be media driven and it just always ends that way where someone has to be thrown under the bus when LeBron doesn't win) but being in LA and being very famous and having his son there is going to be some weird dynamic this year, you'd imagine. Sideshow potential?

"Three preseason games into his Lakers career, Bronny James has the unfortunate distinction of having the worst plus/minus among all 494 players to have logged a minute in the exhibition games"

This little tidbit stood out to me too, as Celtics bench and reserve players had incredibly high plus/minus' for the first few pre season games, that equated to something like outscoring teams by 60 per 100 possessions or something absurd like that. Over 100 assists in the 3 games too. Obviously it's pre season, but it's cool to see every player starting with the right attitude over Boston way.

As for Rogers, he and Kyrie a bit similar, Covid and little toes, something like that? You can just tell looking at Rogers that he is an *****. Was he a flat earther too? I feel like someone was, despite probably owning private Jets and travelling the globe 😂😂

@Ravix Honestly, LeBron came into my mind too in that discussion of superstars dictating administrative decisions. I think he’s still productive and a top player, but that Lakers team has turned into a hot mess since he’s been there. I liked Reddick as an analyst and commentator, but I have no idea if that will translate into being a good coach. It worked out for others who left the booth like Steve Kerr and Rick Carlisle, but I have my doubts about Reddick and although I think LeBron wants to win first and promote his son second, as soon as the Lakers stumble and have a losing record then the pressure will mount.

Not sure if it was Rodgers who is a flat-earther, but I wouldn’t be surprised. 😅

One more three 😭😭😭

The difference in psychology of playing well and making shooting just look easy all game vs trying to specifically hit the 30th three point shot for 8 minutes to break the record is amazing 😅😅 okay, it was the bench players, but Pritchard and Hauser can hit threes with the best of them, and the other players are capable of hitting one, and yet because the record was on the line there were about 3 airballs and a bunch of really short misses haha

Very entertaining opening night, however 😁 and I'd say the passing was noticably crisper and much faster than I think New York expected or could deal with. I do think the Knicks will be a fun rival this year, and I hope the New York folks don't overreact to this spanking, as it is going to be a lot closer later in the season when they've had time to gel.

Oh, and I guess the absolute sideshow is next up, as LA is contractually obliged by the media, I suppose, to play a player who hasn't earned his spot on a team yet, just because it will make for a fun story on the next televised game. Man's son also plays sport (kind of 😛) join us live on TNT.

@Th3solution how are things out West in the NBA? So far all I've picked up is that LeBron is on some kind of heater. Perhaps Bronny being drafted there has given him those Dad super powers 😱

Eastwards, all I can think now is "Man, I love Payton Pritchard 😁 if anyone likes basketball, they gotta like this dude, and should definitely watch his highlights from last night.

I also quite like how Boston seem to be sponsered by "Shaq's Timely Stops" this year. Where in the last two games it got close, until 3/5 minute bursts of insane lock down defence turns those games into wins. Ignoring Dame, last night Giannis was getting everything he wanted and keeping the Bucks in it, looking like the Greek Freak, until he single handedly cost them the game by being absolutely shut down for 5 minutes, including bricking free throws like a true master, at the end of his bad run he pretty much missed the entire rim on his last free throw, as he just crumbled away. A particular highlight was getting rejected by Derick White who built a wall in front of him on the kind of drives to the basket that had been fueling them in the game. Once that element of their play was taken away it was game over, as Lillard padded his free throw stats 🙄

The refs were atrocious both ways too, like monumentally bad. It hurt the Celtics quite a bit until Tatum decided to get a technical and that kind of put them under the spotlight, but wow, just bad officiating all night. When both teams make a challenge within about 5 mins of the game starting you know it's going to be a weird one 😅

@Ravix I think it’s definitely too early to draw any large conclusions, but the West appears to be mostly made up of the same contenders as last season. But there are some big surprises so far — the Lakers, as you noted, and the Phoenix Suns, each led by aging Hall of Famers. But with LD at 36 and LeBron at 39, would you really want to bet that either of them can keep this up all season? I don’t. Especially KD. He’s a member of the commemorative “Get at least one major injury per year” Club along with Porzingis, Kawhi, Anthony Davis, and Zion Williamson. You can’t really count on some of these guys to make it through the year. Safe money is on all those guys to miss substantial time at some point and if the luck is bad, it’ll be at the end of the season when they’re needed the most, which is what typically happens. LeBron has been remarkably healthy for his career, so he might be fine, even at his old age. I look at him and I’m reminded of Karl Malone - a very similar body and stature of player, who was also extremely reliable, healthy, and playing at a high level even into his late 30’s and then at age 40 had a major injury (knee I think it was?) and that was the end.

So I still hold to my preseason predictions, that is — OKC to win the conference, along with Minnesota, Dallas, and Denver to all be in the mix. I think Phoenix and Memphis will be the surprises this season though and could make some noise, along with the Pelicans, Kings, and Rockets.

But OKC is the West’s Celtics. A team built too deep, too young, and yet now playoff seasoned. Also, although they added to the roster, they mostly just enhanced things around the edges and the core is intact and so young that they will no doubt be even better this year. Like the Celtics, have the depth to withstand major injuries, even from the starting lineup, unless SGA misses substantial time. He’s of course the preseason favorite for MVP.

The Timberwolves are like the Knicks, unironically the team that they swapped staters with. They are also very deep, experienced veterans, and top echelon talent-wise but messed with the starting lineup and so there’s a big unknown if Randle will be the All-Star caliber player that will actually gel with Ant and company. Jury is still out.

The Mavericks are like the 76ers. Added a major piece with an older veteran who’s playing at a high level but doesn’t have to be the lead dog anymore. However, whether Klay Thompson can be a Robin to the Luka/Kyrie Batman, like Paul George with Embiid/Maxey, only time will tell. Large upside, but no guarantees they can all play together.

And Denver is probably like Milwaukee — have one of the top 5 players on the planet and are basically asking him to carry the whole team. Although I’m sure Jokic would rather have Lillard than Murray to be his sidekick. Either way, I think Denver unfortunately didn’t make enough moves to stay relevant and I don’t know if Jokic’s brilliance can carry them to the pinnacle again.

@Th3solution Celtics vs OKC then. Talk again in 7 months time 😅

Ah, I'm sure the East will wake up at some point and it will be tougher soon enough, but right now it seems like no one is actually up for the challenge and are sleepwalking into the season.

So far, it feels like we could still challenge and be successful vs anyone in the regular season without, say, Tatum and Porzingis playing at all. Which is a weird place for the league to be at. There's of course a lot of "big two and big three" type teams, but the Celtics are just a big team regardless of who the star each night is. Like how Miami play in the playoffs at times, where the whole team just clicks and gets it done, but all year round.

First game of the year we tie the all time 3's record, fourth game Pritchard levels Eddie House's Celtics record of 3's off the bench. We've outscored teams from three by a ridiculous number, and this year we aren't just jacking them up like 2 years ago, and even last year, at times, it got a bit jack up a three, but this year there's been about 4 bad threes taken, and some of those were just D White heat checks before subbing out 😅 at times they have gone away from the drive and kick, pass up a good shot for a great shot game, but these are quarter based instances, and are being quickly resolved. To be this far advanced in gameplay and execution in a season must be quite daunting for other teams, because they aren't going to suddenly forget what they've learned over the last few seasons with Mazzulla, and he will simply choke them out if they f*** up a couple of games in a row 😅 although I think his angry/dissapointed stare should do the trick before it gets to that.

A lot can go wrong, teams will still beat the Celtics, but man, it's fun to watch a team play like this and be a proper team.

It genuinely throws me when I see teams not make the extra pass or shoot wide open shots now. Hopefully we can kill off "hero ball" in the league.

I feel like Klay at the Mavs is a good fit though, as he is going to be getting wide open shots like the Celtics create, purely by being on the same court as Luka and Kyrie. He could provably just chill all season and get 7 threes a game.

@Ravix Yeah, I don’t think the Celtics have an alpha, that I can tell. To me their MVP is Brown, so would be the most missed, but there’s enough redundancy in the lineup to cover most of his skill set off the bench. Tatum is the face of the franchise but he’s not as consistent in my estimation as Brown is, just on the eyeball test. Tatum’s stats are better but you can’t put a number on Brown’s hustle.

I do have a hard time getting as into it at the early part of the season, especially when so many teams made a lot of player changes. It takes time to click, because yeah, it’s a team sport still. MJ set us back 50 years and made two generations of players want to be the heroes, but there’s too many good players now.

I think we mentioned it last season, but the current closest player with “Jordan-esque” solo dominance is probably Jokic. Also LeBron, but like I say, Father Time will catch him as some point this season. Jokic put Denver on his back and single handedly won them a championship 2 years ago, but he couldn’t get them out of the quarterfinals last year. Same with Giannis when they won their championship. If Jokic goes down, the Nuggets will be lucky to meet even the meager mediocrity that Milwaukee had last year without Giannis.
The best all-around teams are OKC and Boston. And I don’t think it’s really going to be close, but like I say, it’s so early and a lot can happen. Mazzulla might kill off too many of his players with his famous choke hold. 🤷🏻‍♂️