NBA 2014/15 Season Thread

[Meacon Keaton]

If you get a Bulls jersey, be sure to get the one that says Derek Rose Mr. Glass.

[Maxx]

They don't put titles on the back of jerseys.

[Plubby]

Who will make it back to the post season first? The Knicks or the Lakers?

I think we know the answer to that. THE KNICKS FUCKIN' RULE!

I've actually been to New York, so might be a good shout.

Join us! THE KNICKS' FUCKIN' RULE!

[Meacon Keaton]

They don't put titles on the back of jerseys.

But it's likely the only title he'll get.

[DMN in the House]

They don't put titles on the back of jerseys.

But it's likely the only title he'll get.

I didn't know he was going to play for the Knicks.

[LL!]

Who will make it back to the post season first? The Knicks or the Lakers?

I think we know the answer to that. THE KNICKS FUCKIN' RULE!

I've actually been to New York, so might be a good shout.

Join us! THE KNICKS' FUCKIN' RULE!

At what? Surely, there's an "at" after "rule".

[gunnar hendershow]

Yeah, the Celtics rivals are without a single doubt the Lakers. I mean....we don't particularly care for the Knicks but, then again, who does nowadays?

I've always thought 76ers were the Celtics only real conference rival.

[DMN in the House]

Yeah, the Celtics rivals are without a single doubt the Lakers. I mean....we don't particularly care for the Knicks but, then again, who does nowadays?

I've always thought 76ers were the Celtics only real conference rival.

I feel like for the Celtics and the Lakers it's a little different than most teams. Because of their success, a lot of teams really dislike them, and the fans of those teams consider themselves rivals of Boston and LA, but the Celtics/Lakers fans don't. It's probably even more extreme with Boston, because the Lakers do tend to rotate through Western Conference rivals based on who ever else is good, such as 'rivalries' over the last few decades with San Antonio, Sacramento, Utah, and, to an extent, Portland, plus the ever present 'little brother' thing with the Clippers, while Boston doesn't really have that, whether that's because the rest of the East isn't strong or what have you.

The NBA is also kinda weird, especially compared to the other major NA sports, in that so few of the rivalries seem to have any hatred behind them. There's no Yankee/Red Sox or Denver/Oakland. I don't expect every sport to be like the NFL where practically every team has multiple heated rivalries and then one main rival (or, in the case of the AFC West/NFC East/NFC North an entire division full of main rivals), but the NBA is severely lacking. There's Boston/LA, and then I'd be hard-pressed to name another one. The 90s was better for that, because New York/Miami was good, NY/Indiana, things like that, but it's not like that now.

[Benjamin]

Do other teams really dislike LA / Boston that much? I feel like it's just a case of they being the most successful, so fans of the less successful teams will find some reason or other to hate them. I find that's similar in the NFL and the MLB as well. They may not have huge rivals, but that's also due to their recent drop in quality as well.

 

Oh and also, KG is back with the Wolves, and is probably going to retire there.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Benkid

[Maxx]

Everyone hates the Lakers.  Its just a bit dormant right now because they've been pretty awful for the last two years.  Everyone hates them for the reasons you just stated, that's generally how sports works, if a team is successful for several years in a row, no one outside of their fanbase is going to like them.  Seems like you're really underestimating how petty people can be.  Fuck the Patriots.

I still want the NBA to switched to an AL/NL, AFC/NFC set up, instead of their East/West structure.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Maxx

[Plubby]

Everyone wants to pick the tallest poppy.

[Your Mom]

Yeah, the Celtics rivals are without a single doubt the Lakers. I mean....we don't particularly care for the Knicks but, then again, who does nowadays?

I've always thought 76ers were the Celtics only real conference rival.

I feel like for the Celtics and the Lakers it's a little different than most teams. Because of their success, a lot of teams really dislike them, and the fans of those teams consider themselves rivals of Boston and LA, but the Celtics/Lakers fans don't. It's probably even more extreme with Boston, because the Lakers do tend to rotate through Western Conference rivals based on who ever else is good, such as 'rivalries' over the last few decades with San Antonio, Sacramento, Utah, and, to an extent, Portland, plus the ever present 'little brother' thing with the Clippers, while Boston doesn't really have that, whether that's because the rest of the East isn't strong or what have you.

The NBA is also kinda weird, especially compared to the other major NA sports, in that so few of the rivalries seem to have any hatred behind them. There's no Yankee/Red Sox or Denver/Oakland. I don't expect every sport to be like the NFL where practically every team has multiple heated rivalries and then one main rival (or, in the case of the AFC West/NFC East/NFC North an entire division full of main rivals), but the NBA is severely lacking. There's Boston/LA, and then I'd be hard-pressed to name another one. The 90s was better for that, because New York/Miami was good, NY/Indiana, things like that, but it's not like that now.

Bulls/Pistons

[thatshortguy]

Bulls/Pistons?!  That's like a bartender offering you Jäger or Hot Damn. Even if you get up to trying it, you won't make it past the first round.

[gunnar hendershow]

Everyone hates the Lakers.  Its just a bit dormant right now because they've been pretty awful for the last two years.  Everyone hates them for the reasons you just stated, that's generally how sports works, if a team is successful for several years in a row, no one outside of their fanbase is going to like them.  Seems like you're really underestimating how petty people can be.  Fuck the Patriots.

I still want the NBA to switched to an AL/NL, AFC/NFC set up, instead of their East/West structure.

The East/West structure is very dated at this point.  Especially since you have teams like New Orleans and Memphis that call the West home.  I'm surprised they haven't pushed for it since they'll have more enjoyable playoff series instead of the last 5 years of the East finals being the only thing worth a damn in that conference.

[Meacon Keaton]

I think they should abolish conferences. Have all 30 teams together. You play each team once at home and once on the road, giving us a much needed shorter season of 58 games. Then you take the sixteen best teams and throw them into the playoffs.

You get rid of teams getting into the playoffs with a losing record in one conference, and teams with winning records missing in the other. You get rid of uneven scheduling. You have a much easier template for tie-breakers.

And that's coming from me, who is a hardcore traditionalist when it comes to pretty much every sport.

[gunnar hendershow]

The 58 game regular season will never happen because of the amount of money the league would lose, NBA tickets already cost a pretty penny and reducing home games by 12 will make them cost even more.  And less ad revenue from TV, you see why even though everyone knows 82 games is stupid they won't step down from it.

Maybe they should take a note from soccer and have the teams participate in an in-season tournament like the FA Cup and Champions League to make up the difference.

[thatshortguy]

Expand the playoffs. Everybody already complains that everyone makes it in, so make it where everyone goes in.  Expand by four teams for extra $$$.

Edited July 8, 2015 by thatshortguy
Completely threw math out the window with the original post.

[Benjamin]

The playoffs are long enough already :/ 

I've always thought an in-season competition that was a knockout tournament would be fun. It would give the lesser teams something to strive for as well. 

The NHL still employs East/West conferences, right? 

[Meacon Keaton]

The 58 game regular season will never happen because of the amount of money the league would lose, NBA tickets already cost a pretty penny and reducing home games by 12 will make them cost even more.  And less ad revenue from TV, you see why even though everyone knows 82 games is stupid they won't step down from it.

Oh I get why they won't do it. I'm just thinking of ways to make things more balanced, fun for fans, less exhausting for the athletes.

[VerbalPuke]

Bulls/Pistons?!  That's like a bartender offering you Jäger or Hot Damn. Even if you get up to trying it, you won't make it past the first round.

Hey how many titles does Atlanta have? HAH

Pistons/Celtics in the 80s, fucking hated each other. Pistons/Pacers in the 00's, remember the Palace Brawl?

Actually, a lot of teams were the Pistons rivals in the 80s because we were hated. The Celtics definitely, but the Bulls like Srar said, and the Lakers. For some reason the NBA doesn't retain those rivalries beyond how relevant a team is where as the Yankees/Red Sox, Bears/Packers, or U of M/Ohio State are always considered major rivalries even if one or both teams are shit.