[NBA] Unofficial Discussion Thread

[Jating]

At this current era, not anymore.
I mean, we've seen lots of top pick who became bust in NBA history. Players like Anthony Bennett, Kwame Brown, Michael Olowokandi, and of course let's not forget the great Greg Oden.

Imho, Oden had good potential. I think if he had not initially been so injury-prone, he could have become one of the top centers in the league.
But I agree, a top draft pick doesn't guarantee a player anything, just like a last draft pick isn't a verdict for a player. A good example is Isaiah Thomas, who was selected last in the draft but still succeeded in the NBA.

Greg Oden is a rare case though, he has been playing already but when he enters the NBA is become suddenly a glass player. We haven't seen this case of players entering the league, sure there are bust like Candy man and Kwame Brown, but this two was able to play at least and have a career.

But Oden was very different, so imagine him and Brandon Roy teaming up and have a run during their partnership (although Roy has also that rare case in his knees forcing him to quit as well).

Speaking of Brandon Roy, I've seen a video online a few months ago with regards to some of our current superstars and they said that Brandon Roy is one of the best examples of "A Superstar in the making, but injuries ruined his career." Not the exact words, but the point is Brandon might've carried the Blazers on his prime and possible to get a title with him and Oden, but both of them got injury-prone that ruined both of their careers. It's unfortunate for them to end up in that situation, but that's just how it is.

He is already a superstar back then, yeah, it's possible that he might have brought the Blazers in the finals with Oden back then. But remember that Kobe Bryant is also coming out as a superstar and so it's hard to see them getting a win against the Lakers that time in the playoff.

As for Isaiah Thomas, he became a superstar when he's on the Celtics, and nobody expected him to be the main guy of the Celtics TBH, not even me. On the flipside though, just like what happened with Roy and Oden, injuries ruined his career as well and until now, he doesn't have a guaranteed contract on any teams. Maybe it's time for him to play overseas isn't he?

It's a different case for IT though, yeah he become a superstar with the Boston Celtics carry the team and the he got injured. However, Boston keep pushing him to play when he should be resting and they didn't full disclose what kind of injuries IT had. And when his injury got worse and can no longer play, Celtics traded him. That's why IT has animosity with the Celtics up to this day because it cost his entire NBA career by what Boston did to him.

[Baofeng]

As for Isaiah Thomas, he became a superstar when he's on the Celtics, and nobody expected him to be the main guy of the Celtics TBH, not even me. On the flipside though, just like what happened with Roy and Oden, injuries ruined his career as well and until now, he doesn't have a guaranteed contract on any teams. Maybe it's time for him to play overseas isn't he?

Periodically, I see news about him practicing with one NBA team or another. So, I don't think he's going to give up trying to get back to the NBA, although it's obvious that with each passing year, it's becoming an increasingly difficult goal for him. By the way, in the last 4 seasons, he played only 53 games in the NBA.

He had sign with Phoenix last season if I recall it correctly, but not sure if he had played or not.  I think he can still ball though, he was once very great player as well, but due to injuries he was out and was not able to be the same version.

Yeah, why not played overseas, I think teams in Asia or in Europe can still value a player like Thomas. He is a good guard during his prime, can shoot the ball and make great passes.

[LogitechMouse]

As for Isaiah Thomas, he became a superstar when he's on the Celtics, and nobody expected him to be the main guy of the Celtics TBH, not even me. On the flipside though, just like what happened with Roy and Oden, injuries ruined his career as well and until now, he doesn't have a guaranteed contract on any teams. Maybe it's time for him to play overseas isn't he?

Periodically, I see news about him practicing with one NBA team or another. So, I don't think he's going to give up trying to get back to the NBA, although it's obvious that with each passing year, it's becoming an increasingly difficult goal for him. By the way, in the last 4 seasons, he played only 53 games in the NBA.

He had sign with Phoenix last season if I recall it correctly, but not sure if he had played or not.  I think he can still ball though, he was once very great player as well, but due to injuries he was out and was not able to be the same version.

Yeah, why not played overseas, I think teams in Asia or in Europe can still value a player like Thomas. He is a good guard during his prime, can shoot the ball and make great passes.

There's 3 problems why not many teams sign him.
His age, his injury-prone body, and his height.

He's not becoming any younger and we know that. He's 35 years old currently and aside from that, he's past injuries are still a hinder for him getting signed from any NBA team. There's a 3rd problem and that's his height. With his height, he can't even be a PG for the team. I mean if I'm the GM, I would choose a PG that's taller than him because in that way, he can defend way better.

Him going overseas would be the best option for now, and I know we've seen a video coming from him in his Instagram, but I don't think that it will be enough for him to get a contract in the NBA. Despite his short height, I'm pretty sure that he can still play outside the NBA, and will play more minutes there.

[Baofeng]

As for Isaiah Thomas, he became a superstar when he's on the Celtics, and nobody expected him to be the main guy of the Celtics TBH, not even me. On the flipside though, just like what happened with Roy and Oden, injuries ruined his career as well and until now, he doesn't have a guaranteed contract on any teams. Maybe it's time for him to play overseas isn't he?

Periodically, I see news about him practicing with one NBA team or another. So, I don't think he's going to give up trying to get back to the NBA, although it's obvious that with each passing year, it's becoming an increasingly difficult goal for him. By the way, in the last 4 seasons, he played only 53 games in the NBA.

He had sign with Phoenix last season if I recall it correctly, but not sure if he had played or not.  I think he can still ball though, he was once very great player as well, but due to injuries he was out and was not able to be the same version.

Yeah, why not played overseas, I think teams in Asia or in Europe can still value a player like Thomas. He is a good guard during his prime, can shoot the ball and make great passes.

There's 3 problems why not many teams sign him.
His age, his injury-prone body, and his height.

He's not becoming any younger and we know that. He's 35 years old currently and aside from that, he's past injuries are still a hinder for him getting signed from any NBA team. There's a 3rd problem and that's his height. With his height, he can't even be a PG for the team. I mean if I'm the GM, I would choose a PG that's taller than him because in that way, he can defend way better.

Him going overseas would be the best option for now, and I know we've seen a video coming from him in his Instagram, but I don't think that it will be enough for him to get a contract in the NBA. Despite his short height, I'm pretty sure that he can still play outside the NBA, and will play more minutes there.

At least he can continue to play on the sports that he love. As far playing in the NBA, he is really out of his prime and so he can't go and catch with the regular guards. It's only CP3 who can still have that game despite being in the league for 20 years, his only goal is to still chase the ring, but I doubt he can do it with San Antonio Spurs.

Thomas history is unique but then again, we have seen worst players being drafted very high but underperformed eventhough they didn't get injured early on their careers.

[dwyane36]

At least he can continue to play on the sports that he love. As far playing in the NBA, he is really out of his prime and so he can't go and catch with the regular guards. It's only CP3 who can still have that game despite being in the league for 20 years, his only goal is to still chase the ring, but I doubt he can do it with San Antonio Spurs.

Thomas history is unique but then again, we have seen worst players being drafted very high but underperformed eventhough they didn't get injured early on their careers.

If we compare their styles, Thomas prefers to score more, while Paul prefers to give a lot of assists. I think this is one of the reasons why Paul is still in demand in the NBA while Thomas is not.
As for Paul and his new contract with the Spurs, it's obvious that he can't contend for a ring with a team like that.

[Jating]

At least he can continue to play on the sports that he love. As far playing in the NBA, he is really out of his prime and so he can't go and catch with the regular guards. It's only CP3 who can still have that game despite being in the league for 20 years, his only goal is to still chase the ring, but I doubt he can do it with San Antonio Spurs.

Thomas history is unique but then again, we have seen worst players being drafted very high but underperformed eventhough they didn't get injured early on their careers.

If we compare their styles, Thomas prefers to score more, while Paul prefers to give a lot of assists. I think this is one of the reasons why Paul is still in demand in the NBA while Thomas is not.
As for Paul and his new contract with the Spurs, it's obvious that he can't contend for a ring with a team like that.

He could be just another point guard with the Spurs, however, we can say that his game is also declining already. He is no longer in his prime and I doubt that he can really help the Spurs to bring a championship.

The West right now is very tough majority of the teams are very competitive. However, the experience that Paul can bring to them, with coach Pop and him, they are going to be a good mentor for Wemby and the rest of the new and very young players in their roster.

[dwyane36]

He could be just another point guard with the Spurs, however, we can say that his game is also declining already. He is no longer in his prime and I doubt that he can really help the Spurs to bring a championship.

The West right now is very tough majority of the teams are very competitive. However, the experience that Paul can bring to them, with coach Pop and him, they are going to be a good mentor for Wemby and the rest of the new and very young players in their roster.

Of course, Paul is no longer a top point guard, and it's no surprise because he is already 39 years old. Many players his age have already finished their careers in the NBA, except for LeBron, who doesn't want to get old.
And I think Coach Pop is one of the reasons why Paul decided to join the Spurs. At least it would be a great experience for Paul to play under such a great coach, especially if he decides to become a coach himself.

[Jating]

He could be just another point guard with the Spurs, however, we can say that his game is also declining already. He is no longer in his prime and I doubt that he can really help the Spurs to bring a championship.

The West right now is very tough majority of the teams are very competitive. However, the experience that Paul can bring to them, with coach Pop and him, they are going to be a good mentor for Wemby and the rest of the new and very young players in their roster.

Of course, Paul is no longer a top point guard, and it's no surprise because he is already 39 years old. Many players his age have already finished their careers in the NBA, except for LeBron, who doesn't want to get old.
And I think Coach Pop is one of the reasons why Paul decided to join the Spurs. At least it would be a great experience for Paul to play under such a great coach, especially if he decides to become a coach himself.

Yes, it's possible as well that coach Pop will mentor him and who knows, maybe in the future he can be a coach for some teams. We have seen great players transition from players to coach and win rings even if they didn't win in the NBA.

Also there could be a possibility that he might be offered a job in the front office if he retires for good. As far as I know, Tim Duncan has a job in the front office with the Spurs. Maybe they could open up new position just for Chris Paul to be in their front office to develop their players as Chris Paul has a ton of experience under his belt.

[LogitechMouse]

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Yes, it's possible as well that coach Pop will mentor him and who knows, maybe in the future he can be a coach for some teams. We have seen great players transition from players to coach and win rings even if they didn't win in the NBA.

Also there could be a possibility that he might be offered a job in the front office if he retires for good. As far as I know, Tim Duncan has a job in the front office with the Spurs. Maybe they could open up new position just for Chris Paul to be in their front office to develop their players as Chris Paul has a ton of experience under his belt.

Is CP3 a good player? Yes. He will not be called a Point God for no reason at all.
Is CP3 a good coach if he will ever become? Nahh I don't think so, but I believe he will be a good mentor to those young Spurs players.

If CP3 still wants to have an impact on his team, he should focus more on developing those young players. At this current stage of his NBA career, a title isn't a priority for him anymore. I believe what's his priority right now is to develop Wemby to be a better player - far better than our current superstars. We've seen his capabilities in his first season, and I expect him to develop even more as long as he will not be injured. Aside from that, he can mentor those young players as well to become a better especially their Point Guard which is right now, Tre Jones.

Paul doesn't need a front office job IMO as long as he mentors the players. A veteran minimum deal would be a good one for him since he's 39 years old already.

[Captain Corporate]

CP3 could be a decent coach, we have so many coaches in the NBA that nobody even knows about, there are so many teams that eventually one could hire him when he decides to be a coach, plus on top of that there is a huge NCAA level that he could just go to, he could manage a college team if he wants to, there are os omany divisions and teams that he could find a place very easily. I think he could be decent, not good, not great, but not terrible neither, given good enough team he could do fine. If you hire him for his first job as a rookie coach for a rebuilding tanking team, you will see him doing terrible, but as his first ever job, why give him a great team as well. So its tough, not everyone gets what Steve Kerr gets, hence I think its going to be tough for him on his first years.

[Jating]

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Yes, it's possible as well that coach Pop will mentor him and who knows, maybe in the future he can be a coach for some teams. We have seen great players transition from players to coach and win rings even if they didn't win in the NBA.

Also there could be a possibility that he might be offered a job in the front office if he retires for good. As far as I know, Tim Duncan has a job in the front office with the Spurs. Maybe they could open up new position just for Chris Paul to be in their front office to develop their players as Chris Paul has a ton of experience under his belt.

Is CP3 a good player? Yes. He will not be called a Point God for no reason at all.

Yes, we can all agree with that.

Is CP3 a good coach if he will ever become? Nahh I don't think so, but I believe he will be a good mentor to those young Spurs players.

I don't think that we can judge him as a bad coach when we haven't seen him having that kind of role. So I disagree with you on that.

If CP3 still wants to have an impact on his team, he should focus more on developing those young players. At this current stage of his NBA career, a title isn't a priority for him anymore. I believe what's his priority right now is to develop Wemby to be a better player - far better than our current superstars. We've seen his capabilities in his first season, and I expect him to develop even more as long as he will not be injured. Aside from that, he can mentor those young players as well to become a better especially their Point Guard which is right now, Tre Jones.

I also disagree with you here. Why do you think he plays? Of course, he still want that championship experience. He could be a mentor to the young Spurs, but they should still chase to improved and their goal as a team is to win championship and that includes CP3 as he is part of San Antonio Spurs.

Paul doesn't need a front office job IMO as long as he mentors the players. A veteran minimum deal would be a good one for him since he's 39 years old already.

That's exactly the point, how can he mentors when he is no longer playing as he is 39 years old? So if Spurs wants to maximized him and be a mentor for them, then they should put him in the front office or at least a good for player development.

[Baofeng]

CP3 could be a decent coach, we have so many coaches in the NBA that nobody even knows about, there are so many teams that eventually one could hire him when he decides to be a coach, plus on top of that there is a huge NCAA level that he could just go to, he could manage a college team if he wants to, there are os omany divisions and teams that he could find a place very easily. I think he could be decent, not good, not great, but not terrible neither, given good enough team he could do fine. If you hire him for his first job as a rookie coach for a rebuilding tanking team, you will see him doing terrible, but as his first ever job, why give him a great team as well. So its tough, not everyone gets what Steve Kerr gets, hence I think its going to be tough for him on his first years.

And we have former players as coach right now like the Mavs Jason Kidd, and coach Doc Rivers of the Bucks. They have a lot of good experience under their belt and that could really help them became a good coach.

With Chris Paul almost playing 20 seasons in the NBA, so who knows, once someone hired him, we can truly see if his experience will translate into a good coach and who knows, it could be the closest thing for him to win a NBA ring.

[dwyane36]

What do you guys think about the Butler trade rumors that have been in the media more often lately? Apparently, a lot of teams might be interested in him if the Heat decide to trade him. For example, a duo of Butler and Curry with the Warriors or a trio of Butler, LeBron, and AD with the Lakers sounds good.

[Jating]

What do you guys think about the Butler trade rumors that have been in the media more often lately? Apparently, a lot of teams might be interested in him if the Heat decide to trade him. For example, a duo of Butler and Curry with the Warriors or a trio of Butler, LeBron, and AD with the Lakers sounds good.

Still speculation for me I guess, why would Butler leave Miami though, he had a good run with the team, although most of it's role players are gone now, but they can build another around him as their leader and then see how it goes for them.

I don't know if he can partner with another great player though, his personality is very competitive and so it's better for him to be just the franchise player and then surround himself with good and more role players to make the them better again just like when they reach the finals before.

[dwyane36]

Still speculation for me I guess, why would Butler leave Miami though, he had a good run with the team, although most of it's role players are gone now, but they can build another around him as their leader and then see how it goes for them.

The Heat and Butler have been deep in the playoffs a few times over the last few years. I'd even say there were times when the Heat were one step away from a title. But, unfortunately, they were unlucky and I personally think that the good moment for the Heat and Butler is already gone. I mean, Butler is already 35 years old, and building a new team around him doesn't sound very promising.