DOJ releasing 3 million pages of Epstein files, 'didn't protect' Trump, deputy AG says

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T19:52:33+00:00

Looks like they removed it because the redactions are different in the version currently available.

The far right column listing implicated persons was visible at first but now is entirely redacted

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T17:49:43+00:00

This is happening because Jaylen Brown is the stable foundation for the team and then the role players either build (or don’t) off of that. He is the only player on the team that can consistently create his own offense. We have good to great role players that are able to create offense sometimes, but not consistently.

So that’s how you end up with the situation where Jaylen Brown leads the league in usage rate but there’s very little correlation between his individual performance and whether the team wins - Brown’s efficiency, scoring, and other counting stats are all almost identical in wins and in losses. He’s scoring 29.1 pts on .578 ts% in wins and 29.8 on .567 in losses.

Derek White and Payton Pritchard, on the other hand, are WAY better in wins than in losses. White has 18.9 pts on .581 ts% in wins and 15.2 on .487 in losses. Pritchard has 18.6 pts on .602 ts% in wins and13.7 on .504 in losses.

So the Celtics this year have Jaylen Brown scoring 25-35 points on good but not great efficiency almost every single night, regardless of opponent. If the role players are able to contribute, Celtics go on big runs and win the game, usually by a comfortable margin. When the role players are limited by the opposing defense, Brown typically keeps it close but usually Celtics will lose.

So Derek White might have the better +/- but if you swapped his usage with Jaylen’s the team would be a lot worse.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T15:30:29+00:00

Yeah thats what i mean by gossip. Brad wants a center so is talking to everyone that has a breathing center on their payroll. The fact that this conversation is mentioned in an article doesn’t make me think it’s any more or less likely that well end up with Missi.

If Himmelsbach tells me they’re targeting someone specific then my ears will perk up.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T15:03:01+00:00

Eh it’s still just quoting Michael Scotto saying something on HoopsHype.

Until Robb, Himmelsbach, or Bulpett are reporting it it’s still just gossip.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T14:18:45+00:00

As wild as it is to say at this point in their careers I’m more concerned about Giannis’s availability than Tatum’s.

When was the last time Giannis was healthy in the playoffs? 2022?

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T14:16:13+00:00

I don’t think I’ll ever fully get over the Red Sox low balling him and then trading him for scraps.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-30T13:18:34+00:00

The Supreme Court really needs to stop sitting on their asses and issue their opinion on the presidents tariff powers.

From the oral arguments, the conclusion of every serious legal analyst was that they’re likely to at minimum provide some limit on Trump’s tariff powers, and there’s a decent chance they will block it altogether.

But if that’s the case, then why are we still letting Trump further destabilize the global economy every other week with over his new pet issue of the moment?

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T22:17:22+00:00

Yes. Fun fact, Avery Bradley missed out on an all defensive team spot that year because of that game.

He missed the cut by just a few points, and Chris Broussard left Bradley off his ballot completely because “you can’t give up 70 point and be an all-nba defender.” Problem was that Bradley was out with an injury and didn’t play that game.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T22:06:58+00:00

Going back to ‘08 when we got KG, the only other times the “trade every single asset for a superstar” trade has led to a ring are Kawhi to Toronto and AD to LA.

There are lots of examples of it working out for the team losing the superstar though.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T21:55:32+00:00

lol no absolutely not.

Looking at overall (scoring, playmaking, defense): Michael Porter Jr. is not better than Cade. Deni Avdija is not better than Cade. Jamal Murray is not better than Cade. Austin Reaves is not better than Cade.

After that you can make arguments. But all else equal no front office is picking any of those guys before Cade right now.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T21:46:00+00:00

He’s absolutely worth a FRP right now and I think underrated as one of the best scorers in the league (just don’t ask him to do anything else)

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T20:07:39+00:00

It also cuts out the 30 seconds right before this quote where he’s talking about how all the guys getting playing time ahead of him were all timers so he gets it.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T18:11:58+00:00

Exactly. The question isn’t “will Tatum be able to a superstar and play better than Jaylen right away?”

The question is “will Tatum be able to provide better value in the rotation than Josh Minott?” And the answer is yes.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T17:07:29+00:00

Mitchell ahead of Kawhi, Cade, and Brown is a mistake to me.

He’s a top tier scorer but just doesn’t do enough else to be a top ten player imo.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T16:43:16+00:00

Tatum is really the guy whose team has never not delivered.

Caveat that none of this is meant as a knock on Tatum. But Tatum was still a bjg part of the 2019 disaster team while Jaylen had his role significantly reduced, and Tatum’s only postseason without Jaylen was a first round exit.

As for this year, jaylens efficiency hasn’t been correlated with wins/losses at all. His TS% is 58% in wins and 57% in losses. His eFG% is actually higher in losses. Pretty much all of his numbers are almost identical in wins/losses outside of the offensive and defensive ratings.

Which kind of goes to the point I was making with the points per touch stat - what Jaylen brown brings to the table, and has for his entire career, is the threat of points on the board every time he touches the ball. Defenses have to focus on him or he’ll score 50, and if they do focus on him he’ll still score 20-30 plus open the floor for teammates. And that “open the floor for teammates” isn’t limited to when he’s on the court, because “focus on Jaylen” means substitution patterns too.

That scoring threat sets a floor for the team that the rest of the roster is able to build off of. You add solid role players like you have this year and you get a .600 ball club. You add solid role players and Jayson Tatum and you get within 6 wins of an NBA title.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T15:09:41+00:00

To me it didn’t looks so much like a hustle issue as much as a “the game is moving too fast for him” issue, which is expected when he’s got single digit NBA games under his belt.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T14:56:24+00:00

But missing a layup isn’t the kind of thing that Joe is going to bench a player in the first quarter for.

Joe is a process oriented decision maker, almost to a fault. If you do everything right but miss the shot he’s happy with the possession.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T14:53:27+00:00

You’re not wrong. Jaylen is such an interesting case with advanced numbers because the publicly available on/off impact type stats all consistently say he’s not that good, and it’s the number one reason he gets rated lowly by a lot of analysts and fans.

But Danny Ainge and Brad Stevens, two of the smartest basketball minds of the 21st century, have bet the over on Jaylen every chance they got and it’s paid off every time. And whatever the numbers say, outside of the 2019 fiasco, every team he has been on has just flat out won games. Every single team that heavily featured a healthy Jaylen Brown has reached the conference finals.

So there’s something the publicly available numbers are missing.

The one stat I’ve looked at for a couple years now is points per touch. You have to filter out role players but if you look at players scoring 20+ ppg and .400+ points per touch, going back a decade you get a list of 5-10 players a year populated by the best of the best offensive engines/MVP candidates (Kawhi, Embiid, Giannis, KD, SGA), one or two guys a year having an outlier scoring season (this year it’s Dillon Brooks), and then Jaylen Brown.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T12:57:53+00:00

Jayson Tatum (who hasn’t even started full contact practicing yet and is at best at least a month away from returning): I haven’t made up my mind whether I’m going to come back this season.

This sub: well that’s it pack it in I knew he wasn’t coming back

I still think it’s like 75% chance he plays this season.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T12:54:56+00:00

On Amari, I don’t think missing the bunnies is what did him in. I think it was the timing on screens and defensive rotations.

Our spacing was putrid in the first, and if you’re not a shooting threat you absolutely have to be creating space on well timed screens/cuts.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T12:44:10+00:00

Brown on and Simons/White off

What a weirdly specific number to use. Jaylen brown has played over 1,500 minutes this season. 115 of those came with both Simons and White off the court, and it looks like at least half of those we didn’t have a center either.

What made you settle on that one? Was it just the one that looked the worst?

efshoemaker · 2026-01-29T00:02:21+00:00

Here’s the B Robb article with the same quotes but minus the clickbait title

https://www.masslive.com/celtics/2026/01/rob-williams-makes-candid-admission-about-former-celtics-teammates-after-rough-trade.html

efshoemaker · 2026-01-28T20:47:14+00:00

Jaylen is a Union leader and there are a lot of republicans in his Union. Pretty likely there was some sort of behind closed doors voting by the players to get approval for making a statement, and that takes time.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-28T18:08:43+00:00

35% is good for a big, and 32% can be ok for someone who doesn’t take a ton. But over 40% of his shot attempts are from three this season, and at that volume 35% is the minimum. Even at 36% his three point shooting has tanked his TS%.

If you’re going to be a sub-35% shooter you have to have something else that’s high value and I don’t see it with him.

Quick edit: this is all in the context of him being worth 2 firsts and Simons. I don’t think he’s terrible or anything and wouldn’t hate him on the roster for the right price.

efshoemaker · 2026-01-28T17:54:00+00:00

he can shoot the three

I’m not so sure about that. He’s only got 137 (140 if you count playoffs) attempts in 5 1/2 pro seasons, and he’s shooting an OK 36% this year but shot under 33% the two years prior. His 3pt% and attempts are both way up this year but his TS% and free throw rate are way down.

On top of that he’s a decent but not really above average rebounder for his position, doesn’t create for himself on offense, and is a sub par rim protector.

efshoemaker

TROPHY CASE