***Official 2024-2025 NBA Thread***

[KC_Connection]

Season starts tonight with Knicks and Celtics followed by Lakers and TWolves.

Will history be made early in the 2nd game?

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Reaves struggled badly against their length and physicality the entire series. It was noticeable. He was a fraction of the player in that series that he was in the regular season. It certainly does make me doubt whether he can be an actual #3 on a contender; he wasn’t great the previous postseason either.

Yeah - it was the physicality.

Which is a little strange because he's never shied away from that. He's generally been a pretty gritty player and as guards go, he's not small. He's been prone to absorbing abuse out there and battling through it. In that 45 point game he had against Indiana they beat the absolute shit out of him and he just kept coming.

Not sure why, but he looked absolutely done with that about midway through game 2. He just was not willing to absorb the punishment anymore.

There's a decent argument to make that the Lakers could keep Luka, James, Reaves, Rui and maybe DFS -- jettison the ENTIRE rest of the roster -- and be in better shape for next season.

And Jaxson Hayed probably cost himself $30 million this series. Maybe more. I mean what an absolute disaster. He may be a league minimum guy after that effort.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Tatum is half the player those other three are. And by the fact that you’ve listed Jokic first, I can only assume that’s an admission that he’s the best player in the league.

I would rank it like this..

1. Giannis
2. SGA
3. Jokic
4. Tatum
5. Ant

Tatum is a great player. Its time everybody gives him his due.

[KC_Connection]

Originally Posted by BWillie

I would rank it like this..

1. Giannis
2. SGA
3. Jokic
4. Tatum
5. Ant

Tatum is a great player. Its time everybody gives him his due.

Jokic is clearly first on any list. He's been the best player in the league for about a half decade now.

Tatum belongs on no list, he's carried on one of the more stacked teams ever assembled.