General NBA thread

[jgb191]

The Miami Heat taking a major gamble on trading for Giannis....what a risk for the Heat; I hope Pat Riley knows what he's doing.

[TheCatalyst31]

The Miami Heat taking a major gamble on trading for Giannis....what a risk for the Heat; I hope Pat Riley knows what he's doing.

It's great for the Bucks, given that everyone knew a Giannis trade was coming. Herro is a hometown guy and they have lots of pieces for a rebuild. I agree on the Heat though; they have a short window to win now and are in a lot of trouble if they can't make it happen.

[bing101]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-29/bob-iger-joshua-kushner-explore-bid-for-nba-expansion-team

Note there are proposed plans for an NBA team in Las Vegas.

[jgb191]

Every NBA offseason is a billion-dollar game of poker to see which team has the best hand.  It's simple, discard the players you don't want and replace them with new cards...I meant new players that are discarded by other teams.  Is there a variant of poker where you could directly trade cards with one of your opponents?

This might be one of the more active poker game in recent memory....LeBron leaves the LA Lakers; Giannis, Jaylen Brown, Jamel Morant, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and many more traded.  Several more players signed with new teams as free agents.  Brace yourself: I have a feeling all these player movements could lead to a big shakeup in next year's playoffs.

[Ted$8roadFan]

I had no idea Bill Chisholm, the new owner of the Boston Celtics, would morph into a John Henry/analytics nerd so quickly. No way Brad Stevens makes this trade without pressure from the top.

[jgb191]

How about a game of Buy or Sell:

A:  Jaylen Brown will make the Philadelphia 76ers title favorites for next season?  Buy or Sell?  My guess is 'Buy'

B:  The Sixers acquiring Jaylen Brown will make it irresistible/attractive for LeBron to join the team? Buy or Sell?  My guess is 'Buy'

C:  The return of Kawhi Leonard make the Toronto Raptors title favorites for next season?  Buy or Sell?  My guess is 'Sell'

D:  The return of Tyrese Haliburton make the Indiana Pacers title favorites for next season?  Buy or Sell?  My guess is 'Sell'

No way Brad Stevens makes this trade without pressure from the top.

Reminds me of Nico Harrison:  he was pressured by the Mavs owners to get rid of Luka so he reluctantly pulled the trade knowing perfectly well what Luka meant to fans all over North Texas.  Nico was going to be the fall guy either way trade or no trade.

[hotdogPi]

"Buy or sell" makes no sense without a starting value. If you think it's somewhat but not overwhelmingly likely and it's at 84¢, you probably want to sell.

[jgb191]

"Buy or sell" makes no sense without a starting value. If you think it's somewhat but not overwhelmingly likely and it's at 84¢, you probably want to sell.

Or we can call it 'Fact' or 'Fiction' if that makes better sense.

[bing101]

LeBron James joining Philadelphia 76ers for record-extending 24th NBA season  - https://www.reuters.com/sports/lebron-james-joining-philadelphia-76ers-record-extending-24th-nba-season-2026-07-24/?utm_source=braze&utm_medium=notifications&utm_campaign=2025_engagement

[Max Rockatansky]

None of Lebron's options seemed particularly great or better than sticking with the Lakers.  He is coming off the worst statistical year since his rookie season.  I'm sure he's good for 20-25 points a game (especially away from Doncic) but it won't be enough elevate a team like Philadelphia into an actual contender.

I wonder how fast the cut for Bronny James is coming now? 

[jgb191]

Spurs made Victor Wembanyama the highest paid Spurs player in franchise history at more than a quarter-billion (with a 'b') dollars.

[Ted$8roadFan]

The Sixers will be arguably the most watched and compelling franchise this coming season. But it's far from guaranteed they'll win the finals, or even get there.

[bing101]

The Sixers will be arguably the most watched and compelling franchise this coming season. But it's far from guaranteed they'll win the finals, or even get there.

Well we have to wait and see how the Sixers fare in going after the New York Knicks as a factor how this is going. 

[Max Rockatansky]

The Sixers will be arguably the most watched and compelling franchise this coming season. But it's far from guaranteed they'll win the finals, or even get there.

Well we have to wait and see how the Sixers fare in going after the New York Knicks as a factor how this is going.

The Sixers will be lucky to be a top four seed in the east. 

[bing101]

https://apnews.com/article/lakers-sale-kushner-iger-12-billion-d5058bb845d87873e23e270a6bb9be9f?utm_source=app&utm_medium=android_share&utm_campaign=copy_link

Here is more this time the LA Lakers is sold to Bob Iger and Kushner.

[JayhawkCO]

https://apnews.com/article/lakers-sale-kushner-iger-12-billion-d5058bb845d87873e23e270a6bb9be9f?utm_source=app&utm_medium=android_share&utm_campaign=copy_link

Here is more this time the LA Lakers is sold to Bob Iger and Kushner.

Nothing nefarious to see here...

[Ted$8roadFan]

$12b for the Lakers. Unbelievable.

[Henry]

It's going to be interesting how Lakers fans will react when LeBron returns. They're probably going to boo out of betrayal (sort of like how Cavs fans did when he left the first time--having signed with the Heat at the time--and yet they were friendlier the second time around whenever he visited with the Lakers, mainly because of the 2016 championship). I wouldn't have guessed the 76ers as his "last decision," but I can live with that, as he has no reason to return to Cleveland and potentially mess up the good thing they have there, because why go back to a team with which you have nothing left to prove?

[TheHighwayMan3561]

It's going to be interesting how Lakers fans will react when LeBron returns. They're probably going to boo out of betrayal (sort of like how Cavs fans did when he left the first time--having signed with the Heat at the time--and yet they were friendlier the second time around whenever he visited with the Lakers, mainly because of the 2016 championship). I wouldn't have guessed the 76ers as his "last decision," but I can live with that, as he has no reason to return to Cleveland and potentially mess up the good thing they have there, because why go back to a team with which you have nothing left to prove?

I feel the situations aren't really that comparable. LeBron was the hometown Akron kid in Cleveland, a town starved for a hero where he had one Finals appearance loss and then a number of bummer playoff exits after that, then had a very intentionally overly-inflated dramatic public exit to go to Miami that was a big slap in the face to the NE Ohio region. LA is a much bigger market with a lot more going on, and he brought them a title anyway as well.

[Max Rockatansky]

It's going to be interesting how Lakers fans will react when LeBron returns. They're probably going to boo out of betrayal (sort of like how Cavs fans did when he left the first time--having signed with the Heat at the time--and yet they were friendlier the second time around whenever he visited with the Lakers, mainly because of the 2016 championship). I wouldn't have guessed the 76ers as his "last decision," but I can live with that, as he has no reason to return to Cleveland and potentially mess up the good thing they have there, because why go back to a team with which you have nothing left to prove?

I feel the situations aren't really that comparable. LeBron was the hometown Akron kid in Cleveland, a town starved for a hero where he had one Finals appearance loss and then a number of bummer playoff exits after that, then had a very intentionally overly-inflated dramatic public exit to go to Miami that was a big slap in the face to the NE Ohio region. LA is a much bigger market with a lot more going on, and he brought them a title anyway as well.

The Lakers fan base never really latched onto Lebron like they did with players from previous championship teams. 

[Ted$8roadFan]

They'll give him a warm ovation, as they should.