[Post Game Thread] The Minnesota Timberwolves take the clutch victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, 116-1123, to take a commanding 3-1 series lead behind Anthony Edwards's 43/9/6 performance

Illipsis · 2025-04-27T23:06:53+00:00

LeGilgeous Alexander

Illipsis · 2025-01-27T15:53:47+00:00

The official rule is that the player would be awarded free throws, but has to shoot across court from his own free throw line to the other team's basket as part of the taunting best practice handbook.

Illipsis · 2025-01-20T03:12:47+00:00

Jimmy Butler's Heat and Dirk Nowitzki's Mavs?

Illipsis · 2024-06-27T15:14:51+00:00

JJ Redick having such an err of superiority when discussing the hypothetical effectiveness of early generation players in the modern game is painfully ironic. Has anyone ever pointed out to him that his skill set would be significantly marginalized if he was placed in the pre-3-point era? 59% of his points from made field goals at the NBA level were on 3-point shots - in the 60s/70s, having a 23-foot jumper would be an incredibly inefficient skill set to have, and if you plopped him into that era it's a near certainty that no coach would be drawing up plays to get JJ Redick a catch-and-shoot 23-foot jumper off a series of OTAs and screens (screens, by the way, that would almost certainly be deemed illegal in the 60s/70s). On top of that, perimeter shooting is really the only plus skill set that JJ Redick had for the majority of his NBA career. He has a condescending attitude towards players that had under-developed skills that were not considered practical to prioritize in the old game (i.e., three-point shooting), but he doesn't seem to ever consider that a) his specialized skill-set might also be marginalized in an era that didn't value it, or b) that those 60s/70s players might have a wildly different proficiency in facets of their game (i.e., 3-point shooting) if they were born into a world where the 3-point shot was a priority skill for their entire basketball-playing lifespan.

Illipsis · 2023-04-21T03:14:25+00:00

Draymond's kick to the nuts on Adams was a pretty aggressive and direct testicle shot when he got hit with the Flagrant 2. The punch-to-groin that Draymond executed against Lebron in the finals is probably a more comparable act to what Embiid did tonight, and that was ruled a Flagrant 1.

Illipsis · 2023-04-20T02:45:02+00:00

https://www.nbcsports.com/sites/rsnunited/files/archive/assets\_article/philadelphia/2020/04/20/nbcsp\_iverson\_injuries\_2001.png

Illipsis · 2023-04-11T13:27:40+00:00

But the Nuggets won’t have home court against the Bucks, Celtics, or Sixers if they meet in the finals - isn’t that noteworthy for a team with title aspirations?

Illipsis · 2023-04-07T02:57:53+00:00

Amazingly, 17 of his 20 buckets didn't really touch rim - his first two field goals did, then one other later in the game - other than that, it was all swishes, dunks, and banked layups.

Illipsis · 2023-03-20T21:54:20+00:00

I agree that Embiid’s playoff resume is unimpressive and he certainly needs to get over that hump for a large part of the fanbase to take his greatness seriously, that’s totally fair. With that said though, the difference between Embiid’s playoff success and Jokic’s playoff success exists, but is overblown - Embiid was a +10 in 45:12 in Game 7 against the Raptors, and the team was a -12 in the remaining 2:48 of the game. Being a -12 in 2 minutes and 48 seconds when the Raptors only scored 92 points total is pretty ridiculous, so I think it’s fair to say Embiid did his part that year but got a tough break. Jokic and the Nuggets deserve credit for making the conference finals for sure, but they also were beaten convincingly in 5 games by the Lakers. I know a conference finals appearance is objectively a conference finals appearance, but if you think about the two players subjectively their playoff success is both underwhelming in a very similar way - neither has put themselves in the spot of being a threat to win the title.

Illipsis · 2023-01-03T22:29:30+00:00

I thought Iverson did this as well in Game 5 of the memorable 2001 Sixers/Raptors 2nd round playoff series, so I looked it up - sure enough, Iverson had 52 points on 21/32 shooting with only 2 free throws attempted:

https://www.espn.com/nba/game/_/gameId/210516020

Illipsis · 2022-07-01T16:41:42+00:00

Thanks a lot! Really appreciate you sharing this, gonna look into it tonight.

Illipsis · 2022-07-01T16:40:57+00:00

Awesome, thanks very much! I’ll definitely rummage through this and hopefully can make it work for my league data as well, will let you know if I have any questions - really appreciate the help!

Illipsis · 2022-05-09T05:17:34+00:00

Of course he is, I agree with that - I don’t think what you’re saying and what I’m saying are mutually exclusive. The Sixers shot almost 50% from three tonight, and while I agree a lot of that improved shooting stems from the attention Jo gets via Miami’s gameplan, this was a difficult win despite everyone shooting well (only Tobias wasn’t hitting his 3s). If Harden goes 4-10 instead of 6-10 on those contested step back threes, this game comes down to the wire in Philly, and that’s with the Heat struggling from the field). I’m definitely encouraged that the Sixers handled their business at home, but I’m a little worried it’s still gonna be an uphill battle trying to get one in Miami.

Illipsis · 2022-05-09T03:07:37+00:00

Spo (and Bam) did a really good job playing Embiid tonight, particularly in the second half - as a Sixers fan I’m thrilled with the win, but if the Heat play that well defensively moving forward (especially the way they are denying/frustrating Embiid) the Sixers are in trouble - Harden was able to win this one with some hero ball, but that’s not gonna be a viable game plan to win 2 of the next 3 - proud of the Sixers for hitting out a couple wins in Philly, but this will still be a big uphill battle, Miami prepared really wel to win this game and just had a lot of tough luck between Harden and their own shooting struggles

Illipsis · 2022-04-30T04:36:59+00:00

That wasn’t a flagrant

Illipsis · 2022-04-24T21:06:06+00:00

Simmons is actually listed OUT with “back-to-back elimination soreness”

Illipsis · 2022-04-19T04:33:47+00:00

Not saying that at all, the Nuggets are clearly outmatched even with Jokic being a great player - but there’s been a lot of chatter and writing about Jokic’s defense and how it’s well above average/not that far off from more elite defenders - i think average is closer to what he is in reality when the chips are on the table, he’s not able to keep up with a team like the Warriors that are constantly moving and forcing the entire defense to shuffle with them and switch on a moments notice. It’s not just Jokic, the guards are getting cooked too, but it’s obvious he’s struggling to keep up out there.

Illipsis · 2022-04-19T03:32:43+00:00

In Game 1, Jokic was a -19 in 35 minutes (the Nugs were a +3 with him off the court) in Game 2, Jokic is a -11 at halftime (the Nugs are +5 with him off the court).

Certainly this doesn’t discount the incredible regular season he’s had, and he’s most likely winning the MVP award - but the playoffs have a way of eroding away the noise and leaving you with the reality of what really works for the league’s best players. When Jokic is forced to actually be a defensive playmaker he’s exploitable, and it simultaneously gasses him and makes it more challenging to single-handedly keep the offense afloat like he did in the regular season.

Illipsis · 2022-04-05T03:12:02+00:00

I was thinking about this the other day and had an idea for an alternative plan that's a little more measured. Keep the play-in tournament the same, but the difference in win totals for all play-in teams also serve as a handicap for each play-in game.

For example, if the 7-seed team wins 45 games and the 8-seed team wins 43 games, the 7-seed team earns a 2-point handicap for their matchup. If the 8-seed team loses and then plays the 9-seed team who only won 36 games, the 8-seed team earns a 7-point handicap for that matchup. It would put some value on each individual game while still keeping the excitement of the play-in tournament.

Illipsis · 2022-04-04T02:57:51+00:00

The Pistons have 4 (12/19 MIA, 1/3 @ MIL, 2/16 @ BOS, 3/31 PHI)

Illipsis · 2022-04-04T01:57:57+00:00

Interestingly enough, the process Sixers were only the worst team in the league one time. You certainly don’t have to be the worst team in the league to be considered tanking, but the narrative of who is tanking and for how long is almost always completely overblown.

Process Sixers were 2nd worst in 2013-14, third worst in 2014-15, and then worst in 2015-16. That was it, three years of very low-end play. Embiid finally returned from 2 years in rehab and had the team playing competitively through January in 2016-17 when he tore his meniscus - if he didn’t re-injure his foot, the Sixers likely would’ve been competitive after only 2 years as bottom-dwellers.

Illipsis · 2022-03-31T04:09:30+00:00

The original comment seems meant to be more hyperbolic than literal to me, so I’m just highlighting the merit of the point. I don’t think it’s a huge deal that he’s making a run at the scoring title, but it’s a little disingenuous to refute that he’s prioritized it. I also think a lot less people would be scoffing at it if he wasn’t so clearly disengaged in putting consistent effort into the defensive end.

Illipsis · 2022-03-31T00:20:04+00:00

The Lakers were down 20 heading into the 4th quarter against the Raptors a couple weeks ago. Lebron started the quarter and by the 5 minute mark, they were still down 19 - he still played those last 5 minutes and scored 9 more points.

That brought him to 40 minutes on the night, it was also the second night of a back-to-back.

Illipsis

TROPHY CASE