Better jump over a bull?
Josh Norman:
LeBron in 2012:
Panels:
Second Half Only:
First Half
Monologue: Player empowerment may be hitting peak, but its roots go way back
How will owners respond to players using maximum leverage?
“Owners who have the ability to create relationships with players have a significant advantage” – MacMahon
“I don’t know what the fix it because as long as the monster TV check comes to all these owners all over the place, what are they really going to do? The idea of balance is good, the reality of it I don’t think is attainable in this moment in time. Players want to play with each other. They want to enjoy playing with each in the moment. Good luck to the league in trying to find a way to find balance” – Friedell
Nichols:
“Going into this season, the league is as balanced as its been in a long time. There’s a longer list of legitimate contenders” – MacMahon
How many teams can realistically win title next season?
“If Kawhi had gone to the Lakers, that would not have been good for the league. Him going to the Clippers, now you’ve got this great inner-city rivalry. The league is in a great place” – MacMahon
“I disagree with Cuban in this: I don’t believe we have a lot of super teams. We have a lot of very good teams, we have more balance than we’ve had in a while. But looking at the rosters and how these teams are set up, I don’t think there are that many teams that have a legit chance to win it all. They got a chance to win a lot of games” – Friedell
July 11, 2010 – JaVale McGee soaring high with the one-handed windmill dunk in summer league!
Hope Josh Hart is this competitive on the court next season?
wHY dO YOu aLWaYs NEeD nEw cONtRolErs? pic.twitter.com/G7golf9NJK
— Josh Hart (@joshhart) July 9, 2019
Best way to honor Kawhi?
So I decided to retire Kawhi Leonard’s jersey into the rafters of my house. #ThankYouKawhi @timandsid @WorldWideWob #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/ELFpHix3iO
— Kawhi Anunoby (@CaptMaverick85) July 8, 2019
Where does this rank on the all-time funky free throw scale?
“Awesome. Way up at the top” – Friedell
Would you try Kanter’s hot dog/pizza/mayo burger?
#CheatDay in style 😋 pic.twitter.com/ssTbNRqhea
— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) July 10, 2019
Impressed by Mitchell Robinson’s composure?
Nick Perkins (Lakers) was ejected
Moving on…
“You go into press rooms all over the NBA and a lot of people are talking more about the WNBA than I can ever remember and that part just shows how much the game continues to grow and the popularity involved” – Friedell
“The support from the NBA players. A lot of these guys are fathers with daughters of their own” – MacMahon
Nichols:
Cousins thrilled to join “Incredible” Lakers roster by Ohm Youngmisuk
Second Half
Better team next season: Clippers or Lakers?
Possible nickname for the Clippers new squad: “Lock City” (coined by MacMahon)
Youngmisuk: Clippers
“The exterior pieces around Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, they have great chemistry. Last year, they liked playing together. Kawhi and Paul should fit in seamlessly with what the Clippers do. Defensively, they are going to be so much better”
Friedell: Clippers
“Their defense is going to be nasty and so much fun to watch. They have Kawhi, Paul George and Lou Williams to go get a bucket whenever they need one. They are loaded. If they’re healthy, they’re going to win it all”
MacMahon: Clippers
“They have no drama on their team. They got the best bench in the league. Their two superstars come in and they are about their business. It’s going to be so tough to score against those guys. They go into this season as the favorites in the NBA”
“Sometimes supreme talent overrides chemistry. The Clippers just have both” – Nichols
Vogel: Report of LeBron playing PG is premature
“LeBron without doubt is going to handle the ball a lot this season and they know that. Their issue is: Who’s going to defend the PG and SG position? That’s where they get into a little trouble” – Youngmisuk
“I think there’s going to be a lot of load management for LeBron James and Anthony Davis” – Youngmisuk
“Who’s defending the opposing PG, especially in the Western Conference. You can’t ask LeBron to defend the opposing PG. Who he’s guarding is really what matters in terms of figuring out what lineup you start” – MacMahon
“LeBron is going to have the ball in his hands a ton. He’s going to make the plays. It’s how is that team going to defend top to bottom” – Friedell
Who should Lakers start at center: Boogie or JaVale?
“DeMarcus should start. JaVale can come off the bench as another rim-protector. But I would like to see Cousins play a lot with that second unit. He is ready to prove everybody wrong once again” – Youngmisuk
“Boogie is so motivated to show that he can do it. Him coming off the bench, giving that group a big offensive spark would be huge for what Frank Vogel and his staff want to set up” – Friedell
“I like the idea of Boogie as a backup and really run that offense with the second unit through him” – MacMahon
Boogie: “My goal is to play 82 games this season”
Nichols and Youngmisuk:
“Kawhi has changed a narrative for the league. No longer does anyone think you got to play 82 [games]” – Friedell
Lakers roster erase front-office drama?
“No. They’re happy that they got AD. We still don’t know how this roster is going to play together. There’s still a lot of questions” – Friedell
“This roster looks a lot better on paper. If they had convinced Kawhi Leonard to join, then maybe we can bend over backwards praising them” – MacMahon
Youngmisuk:
Nichols and Friedell:
Wave papi
Woj: Kelly Oubre Jr. agrees to 2-year/$30M deal with Suns
Averaged 17.0ppg in 40 games with Phoenix
“The Suns should have given him more years, but he was very smart to get a nice salary” – MacMahon
“The Suns are going to Suns, baby” – Friedell
Still liked it
Westbrook unliking IG photo of himself in Heat jersey mean anything?
Windy: KD forced Warriors to add 1st-round pick in sign-and-trade with Nets
“The Warriors had to do what they had to do. It’s all ego. They did not want to lose him for nothing. They now have an asset that potentially they can flip in the future in D’Angelo Russell. The league is controlled by egos” – Friedell
“In that sense, he did help his new team” – Nichols
ESPN (Zach Lowe and Bobby Marks): Kyrie and KD contracts have performance-based incentives
MacMahon and Friedell:
