DLeethal wrote:I think there are two paths - you keep Mitch and draft a PF/C to replace Precious and he walks. Or you keep Precious and work to trade Mitch - basically like we did when we signed DDV we knew the writing the was gonna be on the wall for some of our guard depth.

You’re right it’s got to be one or the other. Mitch is just so tough to rely on. Having Achiuwa comes in so handy for that. Either way I expect only Mitch or Achiuwa to be back as a backup to Hartenstein and us to draft a big man along with bringing back Sims for depth.

Knixkik wrote:

DLeethal wrote:I think there are two paths - you keep Mitch and draft a PF/C to replace Precious and he walks. Or you keep Precious and work to trade Mitch - basically like we did when we signed DDV we knew the writing the was gonna be on the wall for some of our guard depth.

You’re right it’s got to be one or the other. Mitch is just so tough to rely on. Having Achiuwa comes in so handy for that. Either way I expect only Mitch or Achiuwa to be back as a backup to Hartenstein and us to draft a big man along with bringing back Sims for depth.

So now we are salary dumping Mitch?

SergioNYK wrote:

Nalod wrote:

EwingsGlass wrote:

DLeethal wrote:

Nalod wrote:We like an army that keeps going forward with fewer and fewer.
At some point its gonna be over. This does not feel like a championship run. Too much grinding.
Slam me for not believing. Not like I won't be rooting like hell for them to beat Indy. I think they can.
If not its not like they lose from lack of effort or grit.
Hate that Mitch is now toast. Teams need the good fortune of healthy players. Shit happens.

I don’t think even the biggest homers thinks we can take Boston. It would be a complete Cinderella story if that happens.

We can take Boston.

Can we take Indy? Precious should be ok vs Isiah Jackson who killed us when Miles was out. Jalen smith still gets minutes also.
We are playing guys big minutes and we wearing down. Im not second guessing Thibs. He extracts a lot from his teams. Thats how we roll.

I haven't seen any evidence that we are wearing down. Mitch going out with this injury is more on Embiid's dirty play and him returning from surgery and being injury prone. Mitch didn't even play a lot of minutes. Same with Bogey - flukey injury. Maybe we will wear down but I haven't seen anything that says we will. Especially Josh Hart. He's the most energized and has played with the highest motor in the 4th. And Brunson has owned the 4th quarter too.

The aggregate includes flukes and Embiids dirty play. Not sure it was that exact moment that did him in. He played a few more games. He had a nice ally opp vs indy.
I admire the grit this team is showing but the minutes do add up. Winning a chip does require a bit of luck as well.
My fanboy is tempered by a reality. This party ends with us winning the last game of the season or not. When that happens? I don't know.
Indy might be an ankle turn away from being cooked also.
No bigger stage for Precious or Simms to shine. They will go after iHart to get him fouled out.
Indy gig is they go deep in the bench. No suprise there. We don't. Think Nurse is not kicking himself for sitting Hield as much as he did? Maybe.
Im not second guessing Thibs and suggesting if he do this or that we are better. We got here doing it his way.
We should Beat Indy. We up 1-0. We hold serve tonite and go up 2-0 we firmly in control. Gives us breathing room and margin of error space.
Thats ****ing obvious. One game at a time. They sort it all out on the court and we yell at the tv.

This team has defied Logic this whole season. So many changes as well. Fanboys like us are not reliable predicters. Talking heads in media kind of go with the obvious.
I say "**** happens" which is my way of dealing with things rather than "blame". Take the good with the bad. Joel is home and knicks are not. Thats enough for me.
Mitch wants revenge? Its his to exact if he so chooses. Maybe he was emotional when he said it. I gather he had an x-ray that was not favorable.

That mean trade him? Dump him? I don't know. I start by resigning iHart and then run it back. Do we consolidate our picks into one and move up and grab someone our FO is quite confident of and he is our back up? Good change iHart moves on for many reasons. His wife is from Texas and they having a baby. Maybe she wants to be there? Spurs grab him to play with Wemby is a reality. they have the money. Dallas I doubt goes there and Rockets have Sangun. Teams can and do make space all the time.
Lets get thru this series. The Draft and July will be here soon enough.

Nalod wrote:We like an army that keeps going forward with fewer and fewer.
At some point its gonna be over. This does not feel like a championship run. Too much grinding.
Slam me for not believing. Not like I won't be rooting like hell for them to beat Indy. I think they can.
If not its not like they lose from lack of effort or grit.
Hate that Mitch is now toast. Teams need the good fortune of healthy players. Shit happens.

Masked Chandler coming off the top rope on Nalod's neck. Dolan in the first row cheering

Chandler wrote:

BigDaddyG wrote:

KnickDanger wrote:Dayum. Really looks like it will be a 7 man rotation now. Grateful we have Precious on deck. I know there's a clamor for them, but barring blow outs which don't seem to be in the cards, I don't see Alec or Shake getting off the bench. Maybe for good reason.

The Alec I knew was about that high pressure playoff life. I wouldn't be surprised if this version had one solid game in him. Shake can pressure the rim, which is something this team forgets to do while Hart and JB are resting. This guy's gotta rest at some point, whether it's by defensive lapses or scrub slopping a few here and there.

I'm in this camp. A lot will depend on the situation and on how he has been practicing but he at least was capable of game altering stretches. Precious too

issue will be whether the game altering stretch is a good one

I feel like a struggling vet, getting benched, then getting re-inserted into a playoff game when his team needs him is a recipe for the kick in the ass they needed. We just saw it with Buddy Hield and to a lesser degree Cam Payne who didn't play much first few games. I have faith that if Burks was inserted in, and not asked to play PG, he would step in an deliver in his small role. Even Bogie looked like a renewed player in game 1 versus his regular season stints.

Nalod wrote:

EwingsGlass wrote:

DLeethal wrote:

Nalod wrote:We like an army that keeps going forward with fewer and fewer.
At some point its gonna be over. This does not feel like a championship run. Too much grinding.
Slam me for not believing. Not like I won't be rooting like hell for them to beat Indy. I think they can.
If not its not like they lose from lack of effort or grit.
Hate that Mitch is now toast. Teams need the good fortune of healthy players. Shit happens.

I don’t think even the biggest homers thinks we can take Boston. It would be a complete Cinderella story if that happens.

We can take Boston.

Can we take Indy? Precious should be ok vs Isiah Jackson who killed us when Miles was out. Jalen smith still gets minutes also.
We are playing guys big minutes and we wearing down. Im not second guessing Thibs. He extracts a lot from his teams. Thats how we roll.

We are not as good without Mitch.
However, we can definitely take Indy.
Helps that Turner is a perimeter guy.
Put Simms or Precious on him out there.
The next man up must step up.
Thibs is playing what gives us the best chance to win.
So noone can complain about the last mile of a marathon.
Most would love to be in this position in terms of playing time.

VDesai wrote:I'm not sure if Jericho knows where he is half the time. He has a long way to go before he can replicate Mitch.

I'm guessing he knows where the dispensaries are.

Just a joke....