NBA: *** 2024 NBA thread ***

[HFCS]

Magic also has 4 of the top 5 assist games in the NBA Finals with 19, 20, 20, and 21 assists. Hali's only had one in double digits at 11.

I think he's making a strong case for recognition though, and a lot are noticing.

I compare TH mostly to the way Kidd and Nash led their teams and specifically offenses, Tyrese is longer than either of them which allows him to do some different things, but none of those guys are physically imposing like Magic was. None of them, not even Magic, ever had a shot making playoffs or even career like TH has already done at at 25 years old.

Sure it wasn't like any team with Kidd or Nash was automatically a championship contender (the way absolute beasts like prime LeBron/MJ and today's Jokic would be even with so so supporting casts), but they were good enough to be in the mix with decent supporting cast as pass first leaders. Kidd won one as a vet although not "the star" anymore and Nash probably would have won a title in his prime if not for imho the worst disciplinary decision in American sports history.

 

[NATEizKING]

 

[Pope]

Magic also has 4 of the top 5 assist games in the NBA Finals with 19, 20, 20, and 21 assists. Hali's only had one in double digits at 11.

I think he's making a strong case for recognition though, and a lot are noticing.

Magic played 9 NBA Finals (4 of which he lost) and this will be Tyrese's 1st. Magic also got to pass the ball to Kareem Abdul Jabbar and James Worthy.

 

[Pope]

Tyrese is gonna blow everyone's mind with another game/series winning last second shot Sunday night and walk away with the Series MVP award.

 

[CycloneRulzzz]

Not sure what's nastier the slam or Hali's pass.

 

[NENick]

Reading through the in game posts. Jesus, do some of you even enjoy the game or do you just ***** and moan about the refs all game long? Complaining about every call is lame as hell, I could swear some of you have never watched basketball at any level before and don’t realize there are tons of close calls that can go either way.

Take a break from complaining, pour a drink and kick back and watch the game. I guarantee you’ll be happier.

New here? Lol

 

[Pitt_Clone]

How do you not call the and 1 there.

 

[Frak]

Tyrese is gonna blow everyone's mind with another game/series winning last second shot Sunday night and walk away with the Series MVP award.

IF the pacers win, mvp probably comes down to who has the better game 7…Siakem or TH. If OKC wins, it’s definitely SGA.

I get the Hali criticism. Superstars can’t just disappear for a couple games in the finals. He sometimes plays too passive and can be a liability on defense at times. I think the late game heroics kind of thrust him into being one of the faces of the league. And he’s just not there yet. He’s still a top 20 player, just not top 5. Needs to be more consistent. That said, he’s still the best ISU nba player ever and the consistency will come.

 

[ScottyP]

I love Tyrese, but Siakam probably deserves MVP if Pacers win. He has been the most consistent.

 

[CHim]

I love Tyrese, but Siakam probably deserves MVP if Pacers win. He has been the most consistent.

He is consistent on offense and defense. Hali is good at times on defense but when you see someone going 1v1 at the end of the game you trust Siakam more than Hali in general.

 

[Pope]

No doubt Siakam gets his points every night and the Pacers wouldn't be where they are now without him. Tyrese is a totally different kind of player. Tyrese elevates the entire team (including Siakam) when he's in the game.

The Pacers decided two years ago to build their entire franchise around Tyrese, and they went out and got the type of players who fit Tyrese's style of play (including Siakam).

If you could go behind the doors and ask the Pacers management who their most player is, they'd tell you it's Tyrese.

 

[MJ271]

Magic Johnson only averaged 18ppg in NBA Finals for his career in a high scoring era so I don't think an 18 point game is remotely "bad" for a Kidd or Nash or Tyrese or Magic type of plyer. If Tyrese has 10+ assists in Game 7 I'll feel good about Indiana's chances regardless of how much he scores. If he has 25 and 3 assists I'd probably assume they lost.

I like the Magic comparisons because he's the best example of how to be a superstar while still being a distributor. For comparison between all the guys you mentioned, here are their averages through their first 37 playoff games started in their careers (Tyrese's current number):

	Age Range	PPG	APG	RPG	TOPG	FG%	3P%
Tyrese	23-24	18.1	8.6	5.3	2.2	47	35
Magic	20-23	17.5	9.3	10.6	3.7	50	12
Kidd	23-28	15.4	9.4	6.6	3.3	40	23
Nash	23-28	16.4	7.2	3.6	2.8	44	46

Obviously it's tough to compare across eras and such, but Tyrese pretty clear fits among that group.

IF the pacers win, mvp probably comes down to who has the better game 7…Siakem or TH. If OKC wins, it’s definitely SGA.

I get the Hali criticism. Superstars can’t just disappear for a couple games in the finals. He sometimes plays too passive and can be a liability on defense at times. I think the late game heroics kind of thrust him into being one of the faces of the league. And he’s just not there yet. He’s still a top 20 player, just not top 5. Needs to be more consistent. That said, he’s still the best ISU nba player ever and the consistency will come.

I'm curious and excited to see how Tyrese comes out next season. I truly believe that his stretch in the first half of last season was more than just a flash in the pan (averaging 24/4/13 on 50/40/87 shooting in the first 35 games). But between his all-NBA push last year, the playoff run, the Olympics, and the Pacers' early-season injuries giving him a heavier load, Tyrese really hasn't had a chance to rest in the last year and a half since he had his initial injuries last season. Even beyond his recent calf issue, I'd bet that his previous hamstring and back issues are still affecting him some.

At the same time, I doubt he'll ever average those volume numbers again other than in a small stretch, since guys like Nesmith and Nembhard have improved, and those numbers were pre-Siakam. But at the very least, Tyrese's playoff shooting has been uncharacteristically inefficient, and I think he can/will grow there.

 

[Fitzy]

Tyrese is the most valuable player for the Pacers overall, but outside of the late-game heroics, Siakam has been better for the six games of the Finals so far. I think the only way Tyrese can win FMVP (in a Pacers G7 win) is if he has a big game / makes another huge game-winning shot, and Siakam has a quiet night too.

 

[rosshm16]

Out of how many chances though? I'd be surprised if it was more than 8

I counted by hand on Wikipedia quickly and could have made a mistake, but there's been 19 Game 7's in the Finals in NBA history and the road team has won four times, most recently in 2016 (Cavs-Warriors; I feel like the Warriors had a bunch of injuries in that series but could be misremembering).

Game 7's are relatively rare recently. There were 14 of them in the first 40 years of the NBA (1947-1988), and Sunday will be only the sixth time in the last 38 years.

 

[CyberJJJ]

The **** SGA gets away with is comical.

When was the last time he got called for an offensive foul for using that left arm to push off the defender to create space? If they are going to call the defenders for bumping him, they have to call that too. SGA has a great midrange game, but often uses that push off to create space, or creates body contact and moves backward to call the foul. I don't gripe the defensive fouls, but he seems to get cart blanche as an offensive player.

 

[cyclonespiker33]

When was the last time he got called for an offensive foul for using that left arm to push off the defender to create space? If they are going to call the defenders for bumping him, they have to call that too. SGA has a great midrange game, but often uses that push off to create space, or creates body contact and moves backward to call the foul. I don't gripe the defensive fouls, but he seems to get cart blanche as an offensive player.

I really don't understand why the Pacers aren't doing it all the time. It can't be called with how often SGA is doing it.

 

[rosshm16]

It's easy to have a great midrange game when you can just shove the defender back three feet to create an open jumper.

 

[CyberJJJ]

Bradley was wrapped up. Terrible missed call.

Interesting change that Bradley is getting the back up minutes instead of Robinson. Bradley has been more effective. Although the most effective lineup might be Toppin at the four and Siakam playing center.

 

[CyberJJJ]

I love Tyrese, but Siakam probably deserves MVP if Pacers win. He has been the most consistent.

MVP is generally tied to offense, but I LOVE the defense Nembhard has been playing on SGA even with the refs allowing SGA to push off.

 

[SolterraCyclone]

Yeah I was telling my family last night, this is basically a carbon copy of Nuggets series. That is foreboding for Game 7 unfortunately