Basketball from a fans perspective

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This was not what was to be published

I trashed the story intended to be published, it dealt with Anthony Davis and his role on the Lakers but that is no longer required since he’s been traded. On Saturday evening I along with members of Laker Nation were treated to a thrilling 128-112 victory over the Knicks, the game was played in MSG no less. I awoke Sunday morning with news of a blockbuster trade that sent AD to the Mavs for Luka Doncic. There are others involved, however, for our purpose these two are the keys to the trade.

After catching my breath I decided to go over the trade as I see it. The pause on my part was to collect MY thoughts without being influenced by the talking heads of ESPN and others. What you are about to read are my thoughts and views, I cannot say they cover all the issues however they are not influenced by anyone. It’s possible you might note a thing or two I missed, that’s okay. With that here goes, Age-Lakers advantage Doncic is a veteran but turns 26-years old this month, AD will turn 32 in March. Offense-for me this is a draw, both athletes skill set offensively is at or near the same level although Doncic has point guard skill. Defense-Mavs are receiving a player who earns votes for DPOY annually. Doncic as talented as he is only an average defender. Conditioning-this is a draw for these reasons, AD is always suffering knick-knack injuries as Shaq might say. They have kept him out of the lineup for periods of time. One of the knocks on Doncic is the issue of conditioning, it’s reported he fails in this department.

Intangibles-This is the most difficult area in advance of seeing both on the court in the same jersey. Will there be a problem on the court assuming LeBron remains the court leader? I believed there might be a problem with point guard Kyrie Irving added to the Mavs but he and Doncic appeared to blend their game, can the same occur for the Lakers? What remains-The Lakers have a bunch of moving parts but no genuine center, that must be addressed soon, we guess that might soon be resolved. As for the long term it would appear Doncic should have 10 more productive years, AD at most 5-6 years. In this regard it would appear the Lakers are the overall winner in the trade acquiring a franchise player prior to LeBron retiring.   

Another trade

De’Aaron Fox moving in a three team trade is not a blockbuster but it is interesting, nonetheless. Fox had made it known to Kings management he wanted out. In addition his destination turns out to be San Antonio and becoming a teammate of Wemby, the question now how is this trade going to affect the Spurs going forward. Fox is listed as a point guard but is really more a combo guard, does he move true point guard Chris Paul? What about Stephon Castle who moved into the starting lineup at the shooting guard, he is also more a combo guard. It will be interesting to see how this eventually works out due to another rumor, the possibility of Paul heading to the Lakers.

Bits n Pieces 

Ja Morant of the Grizzlies is ineligible for any post season honors, of course my statement excludes an NBA Championship. I am reminding some of you that the NBA now has in place a qualification number, I’m not picking on Morant it was noted by an ESPN article. Every athlete must play a minimum 65 games, unless they meet the number they are not eligible for any post-season honors. From where I sit it’s fair, I am unable to name a name however I’m sure it occurred in the past. An athlete playing less games than stipulated but rewarded with an NBA honor. I’m not attempting to take anything away from any player, games played should be a qualification number.

I’m sure there will be other similar moves but to my knowledge this is the first name I’m aware of. In anticipation of broadcast changes It was announced Reggie Miller will leave his duties at TNT after the 2024-25 season is complete. He will begin working for NBC Universal in its NBA coverage for the 2025-26 season. Of course you were aware earlier of this news, the TNT ensemble Inside the NBA will move to ESPN with the departure of TNT as an NBA broadcast partner.

Anytime a discussion on Duke basketball occurs this season it begins with Cooper Flagg. Of course it’s likely Flagg will be the first draft choice in the June NBA Draft. From there the conversation probably moves to freshman guard Kon Knueppel, it’s possible but unlikely freshman Khaman Maluach will be mentioned. Maluach is a “raw” 7 foot 2 250 pound center originally from South Sudan, he attended the NBA Academy Africa before heading for the U.S. and Duke. Despite his limited play don’t be shocked to hear his name in the June draft should he declare. 

Is the NBA in the future for Mexico?

The question of Mexico City in the NBA is just that…a question. Adam Silver commissioner of the NBA has mentioned expansion and three cities have been in the conversation Seattle, Las Vegas and Mexico City. I’ve gone back and forth on this issue and to be quite honest I’m unsure if the NBA is headed south of the continental United States. Unlike our northern neighbor Canada basketball is not the attraction in Mexico City, soccer (football), boxing and baseball appear to be the sports of choice. I make this statement despite the fact the NBA has regularly scheduled games in Mexico City. As for developing talent perhaps Karim Lopez might be the future for Mexican basketball.

Lopez has been profiled previously but just in case you may have missed the account this one is new. He’s a 203.2 cm (6 foot 8) 97 kg (213 pound) small forward, despite the fact he’s only 17-years old Lopez has international experience. He’s played for the New Zealand Breakers in the NBL for two seasons and says his ultimate dream one day is to play in the NBA. Lopez will not be available until 2026 so I decided to check several mock draft sites. Due to the fact we are discussing 2026 I could only locate one mock site nbadraftroom.com, this site has Lopez ranked in the number 12 position. Lopez was born and grew up in Hermosillo a city of 800,000 in the northwest portion of the nation. From this point forward hopefully we can attempt to track the progress of Lopez and follow his footsteps as he contends to play in the NBA.