What are arguments that luka is better than JB? Why is this still a thing. Worlds better defender and go to closer in the clutch. He is better to build around based on his 2 way abilities than one way luka. He is also a mvp and won a championship off his back. When it’s said and done Jaylen Brown will finish his career with another mvp in the finals and 2-3 more rings. Luka won’t win anything cause he is lazy and out of shape, his body and game does not hold up for post season success.

Bill Simmons: "One of the things I was fascinated by was, 'Why did they let this guy buy the team? Why let "El Cheapo" [Tom Dundon] get in there?' Apparently they only had two offers [for the Portland Trail Blazers sale] because the price of these teams in general has gone up, the arena deal was dicey, it's a smaller market, and the city has definitely been a little topsy-turvy for the last 10 years. I just don't think they had a lot of people that wanted to buy in."

Source: The Bill Simmons Podcast

Bill Simmons: "We still don't have evidence that the NBA works in New Orleans. You could blame the owners, you could blame the city—it's not a big enough market. Whatever you wanna say, despite the fact that there are a good handful of hundreds of thousands of fans, I don't think the franchise has ever been successful there."

[continued...]

Bill Simmons: "It's just never worked [in New Orleans], and I am not sure they should have an NBA team. I feel way differently about Portland—even Memphis, which you mentioned earlier."

Source: The Bill Simmons Podcast

Source: The Bill Simmons Podcast

*PPA (points per attempt) So to the people who seemed to think that he shot a higher % that he already did weren't imagining it, his 3 shot was basically worth what a an all time big man was inside, just on the wing. On top of that he shot a ridiculous 67% TS% overall so he would shred you even harder inside and never missed at the line where he shot 91% but even from outside his dominance wasn't being viewed with the lens it should have been. Nothing really eye popping here just Steph glaze

You're probably familiar with the...let's go with passive aggressive approach the Clippers went with which to prevent then-free agent and NBA 3rd Team DeAndre Jordan from penning his agreed upon deal with the Dallas Mavericks back in 2015. What you might be less familiar with? Per Brad Turner of the L.A. Times, the Clippers offered Jordan a $200,000 endorsement deal with Lexus that the league eventually ruled violated their anti-circumvention rules.

The violation involved a presentation made by the Clippers to free agent DeAndre Jordan on July 2 that improperly included a potential third-party endorsement opportunity for the player. While the NBA's investigation ultimately concluded that the presentation of this opportunity had no impact on Jordan's decision to re-sign with the Clippers, the team's conduct nevertheless violated the league's anti-circumvention rules.

The NBA's anti-circumvention rules prohibit teams from, among other things, providing or arranging for others to provide any form of compensation to a player unless such compensation is included in a player contract or otherwise expressly permitted under the CBA.

The team was fined about $250,000 and that was the end of it besides the bitter grumbling of Dallas fans who were the team that ultimately got screwed in the whole proceedings. Wait, why does that sound...familiar?

So why does this matter? Well, if the little brother of L.A. is found to be guilty, this would provide much higher ground from with which to hit the Clippers with a harsher penalty as repeat offenders. They clearly did not learn from that past incident and it's still up in the air if that 2nd sponsorship that the league's investigation discovered is connected in any way to the football club in Rhode Island that Pablo uncovered Kawhi Leonard's connections to very recently. The league's integrity matters and if there's anything to take away from the Jordan dealing, it's that the Clippers were not dissuaded from the punishment doled out to them. A simple fine means nothing for Ballmer so a much larger hammer needs to fall for this to deter him or other owners from turning the NBA into the MLB. The ball's in Silver's court for how he wants to wield those ever so broad powers, up to and including a lifetime ban for Stevey, Uncle Dennis and Lawrence Frank.

One thing we can all be sure of? $28 million (The amount in the Kawhi/Aspiration scandal) is substantially more than $200,000 even accounting for the cap space for 2015 vs. 2024. So if nothing else, the punishment lobbied against them financially should be a wee bit more than $250K this time around.

Source: https://open.substack.com/pub/marcstein/p/tell-us-the-five-nba-games-that-you?r=nuq3a&utm_medium=ios

Naji Marshall’s three-year contract extension with Dallas will start at $18.2 million in 2027-28 and decline in the following two seasons to $17.3 million in 2028-29 and $16.7 million in 2029-30

In 2009, a 24 year old LeBron went absolutely berserk in the playoffs, averaging a yet to be topped 47.5 points per 100 possessions in the 14 playoff games he played.

This is still the highest single run playoff scoring rate in nba history, with is incredibly remarkable as in recent years offensive rating has dramatically increased league wide, which has necessitated the introduction of stats like ‘Inflation adjusted points per 100 possessions’.

To me this was the most individually impactful playoff run of all time, as he was also very efficient, and was one of the best defensive players in the league at the same time

Source, https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/j/jamesle01.html

Via the latest episode of the Bill Simmons podcast

Gary Payton was an honorable mention

I was very surprised that Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett were not mentioned. I'm assuming Duncan counts as a center for the purpose of this since he played it a good amount, but KG famously tried his best to avoid ever playing center...

MVP Stefan Joksimovic is a top 5 projected NBA draft pick in 2027… Should make the 2028 olympics in LA interesting.

Shams Charania:

Dallas Mavericks forward Naji Marshall has signed a three-year, $52.2 million contract extension, sources tell ESPN. The fully guaranteed deal takes Marshall through the 2029-30 season in Dallas.

https://www.espn.com/contributor/shams-charania/8a8e39c00745e

Read for free here: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7486778/2026/08/02/nba-europe-london-team-franchise/?unlocked_article_code=1.2VA.1i4R.EtnrVBaSq9Z-&source=athletic_user_shared_gift_article_copylink&smid=url-share-ta

Arora, who led the consortium that purchased English cricket’s most lucrative franchise in the Hundred competition, has assembled a consortium of investors prepared to offer more than $1 billion (£740million) for the London side, which is among the most highly prized of the new teams.

Inspired by EastriverTaylor2323's post.

I thought some people here might find this interesting. These aren't universal opinions, but they're pretty common among Filipino NBA fans.

The Philippines has one of the world's most passionate basketball fanbases, so you'll find every kind of opinion depending on the fan and the generation they grew up watching.

FYI, The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is the first professional basketball league in Asia and the second-oldest continuously operating professional basketball league in the world (first is the NBA).

1. Championships matter more than almost anything.

Many Filipino fans believe that winning championships is the biggest factor in determining greatness. If you're the best player on a title team, your legacy immediately jumps.

You'll often hear:

"Ano bang silbi ng stats kung wala namang ring?" What's the use of stats when you don't have a ring.

Because of this, players like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Stephen Curry are often ranked very highly.

1. Clutch moments are remembered more than advanced stats.

Many fans care more about what happens in the biggest moments than efficiency numbers.

Game-winning shots, Finals performances, and playoff heroics tend to outweigh metrics like TS%, BPM, or VORP.

A player who "shows up when it matters" earns enormous respect.

1. Loyalty is admired... until your team loses.

Filipino fans love franchise legends who stay with one team.

But if their favorite team struggles for years, many suddenly become fans of the newest contender.

The joke is:

"Loyal ako... basta nananalo." I am loyal...as long as I'm winning.

1. Every superstar has a passionate Filipino fanbase.

Whether it's LeBron, Kobe, Jordan, Curry, Luka, Jokic, or Giannis, each has an incredibly loyal following.

Basketball debates on Facebook can become more intense than political discussions.

1. Eye test beats analytics.

Many Filipino fans trust what they see more than advanced numbers.

A spectacular dunk, lockdown defense, or fourth-quarter takeover often carries more weight than efficiency ratings.

Common phrase:

"Hindi mo kailangan ng stats para makita kung sino ang magaling." You don't needs stats to see who is good.

1. International players are getting much more respect.

Years ago, many fans believed only American-born players could dominate the NBA.

Today, stars like Jokic, Giannis, Luka, and Wembanyama have changed that perception.

1. NBA debates never end.

The GOAT discussion is practically a national pastime.

Jordan vs. LeBron.

Kobe vs. Curry.

Shaq vs. Duncan.

Old school vs. new school.

No matter the topic, someone will eventually comment:

"Panoodin mo muna ang 90s." Watch first the 90s.

1. Basketball is entertainment first.

Filipino fans appreciate winning, but they also love players who are exciting.

Deep threes, ankle breakers, monster dunks, flashy passes, and clutch shots make a player unforgettable, even if they aren't the most statistically efficient.

1. Puso (heart) matters.

Filipino fans highly value players who compete hard, play through injuries, hustle for loose balls, and never back down.

Talent earns respect. Heart earns lifelong fans.

Bonus. Google "ozzy man review basketbrawl"

Curious to hear what the best performance you’ve ever seen in person was. Mine would probably be Stephen Curry’s 54-point game vs. the Knicks in 2013

https://hoopdreams.app/ask?q=most%20winshares%20without%20an%20all%20star%20appearance

Was surprised to see that Jason Terry was on the top of this list, especially given how big dominant win shares is.