Wolverines in the NBA/PISTONS/NBA in general

[lineygoblue]

I'll give the Wings and Tigers a ray of hope because they're still owned by the Ilitch family, and they like winning. They like championships too. The Tigers made a good move, albeit a late one by getting rid of Avila. Nice guy, but not a good GM. They've got to have more than a good draft. And I think Stevie is bringing the Wings around, but IMO its still a wait and see. The Wings were allowed to wallow in total suckdom for a long time before Stevie came back. He's still got a big job in front of him to contend for Stanley again.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Lol Laimbeer was such a dirty motherfucker.

The dude even managed to get a video game named after him and it sucked balls. If some kid brought it over to your house you kicked his ass out immediately.

[iam416]

The best thing about that is that it was probably just a common foul. Perhaps they each got T'd up afterward, but the foul itself was, "dust yourself off and take your two FTs" -- whereas today it'd a suspension.

Heh. The thing about Laimbeer is that he was a damn good player who was one of the early big guys who could pick and pop (tip of the cap to Jack fucking Sikma). But he's remembered for his thuggery which, to be fair, he completely embraced.

[THE_WIZARD_]

Funny thing here is how M fans probably embraced the thuggery...now they rail on WWCAW and MSU thuggery...

[Mike]

That’s back when the NBA was faaaaaaaantastic!

[froot loops]

The NBA is even better now.

[crashcourse]

NBA is a joke compared to the 70s 80s and 90s

[lineygoblue]

The rules in the NBA now are constructed to fit their 'stars'.

Back in the day it was more about the fans.

[iam416]

Heh. I mean, heh. The game today is all about scoring and the ridiculous range shooters have. That IS fan-friendly. And, for that matter, allowing stars to shine is fan-friendly.It's way more like early to mid=80s in terms of scoring, just w/ way more 3s than 2s as opposed to say, 1984. Scoring was roughly the same.

The 90s through about 2010 -- ballpark -- were horrific. Offense was way less.

So, if you're golden age is Magic-Bird with tail end being Pistons-Bulls, then today is much more like that in terms of scoring. In particular, Magic-Bird. If you loved the Spurs-Nets final (where 1 team scored more than 100 -- the Spurs scored 101), then, yeah, it's different.

[THE_WIZARD_]

"Chicks dig the long ball"

Mark McGwire circa 1998

[Dr. Strangelove]

[froot loops]

The rules in the NBA now are constructed to fit their 'stars'.

Back in the day it was more about the fans.

Yeah gramps, it was always better 40.years ago.

[lineygoblue]

Heh. I mean, heh. The game today is all about scoring and the ridiculous range shooters have. That IS fan-friendly. And, for that matter, allowing stars to shine is fan-friendly.It's way more like early to mid=80s in terms of scoring, just w/ way more 3s than 2s as opposed to say, 1984. Scoring was roughly the same.

The 90s through about 2010 -- ballpark -- were horrific. Offense was way less.

So, if you're golden age is Magic-Bird with tail end being Pistons-Bulls, then today is much more like that in terms of scoring. In particular, Magic-Bird. If you loved the Spurs-Nets final (where 1 team scored more than 100 -- the Spurs scored 101), then, yeah, it's different.

I thought basketball was better when points were earned by ball movement and team work. Setting picks, running screens, moving without the ball. On defense the lane was protected even when zone defenses were not allowed. Now, there is no such thing as a good defensive NBA team.

I haven't watched any NBA games since before the pandemic, so I'm not an authority. From what I see on the sports networks via highlights, its not what I'd pay a lot of money to go and watch. I thought some of the Bird/Magic matchups were classic. Neither backed down from the other, and both had times when they played (gasp!) defense. Larry Bird shot more daggers than anyone I can remember. Magic's Lakers won games by running their opponent off the floor. Those were great players and great teams. And great men.

Shoot me. I liked the NBA back when. I don't like it now. Even without their self-serving politics, its not a watchable game for me anymore.

[iam416]

Either you like the 3-pt game or you don’t. Or you’re like me and are “meh” about it. But the guys today can shoot. They’re not more inherently skilled, but the acceptable range of shooting has expanded and they practice their asses off shooting 25-footers.

[lineygoblue]

Either you like the 3-pt game or you don’t. Or you’re like me and are “meh” about it. But the guys today can shoot. They’re not more inherently skilled, but the acceptable range of shooting has expanded and they practice their asses off shooting 25-footers.

I don't really disagree with this. The Isiah/Chuck Daly Pistons could drop 3's, but they prefered to work the floor. Isiah, Vinnie and even Laimbeer could drop 3's, but it wasn't their primary focus. They still worked the ball inside and controlled the lane. On defense, if you dared to drive the lane on them, you were likely to eat an elbow. It kept guards out of the lane.

I admit, I liked that kind of ball better than just inbounding the ball to someone like Steve Curry or James Harden, and have them take 4 steps past half court, and hit a 3. I don't know why people lay down so much money to watch a game like that.