fanboyslim

I watched the USA-Spain game a few days ago and despite many players not being yet in shape it was a surprisingly competitive game (Spain 81 - 90 USA). Some impressions: - Team USA is better than advertised. The players seem to have bought into Pop's schemes and move the ball around constantly. Even Kemba, who you'd think would have the green light to shoot whenever he wanted, was always looking for the open man (he had 8 assists, which with FIBA rules is amazing). - Team USA has a lot of offensive power. They opened a 15 point lead early in the 2nd on the back of a couple of scoring runs that seemed effortless (however see below) and they kept it for most of the game. - Both teams were playing with 14 players and had to cut 2 before the WC, so they played the back benchers a lot of minutes. The thing is, the Spanish back benchers were far, far worse than the American ones. And those two scoring runs took place when Spain fielded an all-bench lineup, so there's a bit of a question mark of what will happen when rotations get tightened in the actual competition. - Team USA dominated the boards (42-20), but I'd like to see how they fare against a really long team like Serbia and Lithuania. - Team USA had some trouble when Spain tightened their defense. Especially against zone defenses, where they seemed to struggle a lot. Spain doesn't use zone defense as much as other FIBA teams, so this is something for Team USA to work on. - Donovan Mitchell is on a mission. The guy clearly has something to prove. Beyond what the box score says (which is good) he was active everywhere. Incidentally, so is Ricky Rubio. He got 5 steals in the game and is Spain's top scorer through 4 preparation games. - De'Aaron Fox quit the team but didn't that he played the least of all available players (Marcus Smart didn't play) and amounted to nothing I think he would have been cut anyway. - I don't know why Brook Lopez doesn't play more minutes. He can shoot the FIBA 3 pretty much at will. - The Hernangomez brothers are still on vacation. - Marc's not fat. Since we don't have a Marc Gasol Body Fat Check thread anymore I felt obligated to share that.

Earth, year 2158. As the spaceships carry the last remaining inhabitants off the barren surface of the planet to a new life in the Outer Colonies, one final message is sent to HyperTwitter: @grizzfan291840 I told you the Grizzlies were going to leave Memphis!! I TOLD YOU!!!!

They play on 9/3

I think the goal is what you just said: saving some money from the buyout. That can be achieved by Howard agreeing to a smaller buyout and/or by getting salary set-off once Howard signs with the Lakers. For instance, let's say Howard agrees to a $3.5M buyout. We'd be on the hook for this amount, saving $2.1M. Then he signs with the Lakers for the minimum ($2.6M for a 10+ year veteran). We'd get an additional set-off of $2.6M minus $1.4M (1-year minimum salary) divided by 2, or $800k. So we'd save a total of $2.9M. The Lakers would only carry $1.6M (2-year minimum salary) into their cap, and Howard would make a total of $6.4M in 2019-20. A win for everyone. I'm not 100% sure of the set-off amount (is it calculated from the total new salary or from the 2-year minimum limit?), but the point is if both teams and the Grizzlies reach an agreement on the terms of Howard's waiver it can be financially beneficial for everyone.

I think the buyout option only plays out if nobody else is interested in a trade.

Spain is not at full strength either. Several veterans (Pau, Ibaka, Mirotic, Rodriguez) skipped the WC due to various reasons, and the next generation of good players is not there yet (Spain won the Euro under 18 championship a few weeks ago, keep an eye on tournament MVP Santi Aldama who will play for Loyola next season). It'll be a fun game to watch anyway.

FIFA WC is in June-July, FIBA WC is in September. It's not like they overlap or anything. And TV ratings do care a lot about NBA (and Euroleague) players. But you're right, FIBA doesn't care. That's why they created the FIBA qualification windows in the middle of NBA and Euroleague competition too.

Holy crap. I feel really bad for the guy.

The US Celtics! Jokes aside, it's a young team full of committed people, and with Pops coaching and most other teams not at full strength they're still the favorites by a mile.

To be honest, I can picture Jokic drinking bears.

But they just announced "China Women Waxed Canvas Lunch Bag For Food Unisex Vintage suppliers"

I think FIBA shot itself in the foot moving the WC to the year before the Olympics. If they have to choose, most players would rather skip the WC knowing there's a shot at the Olympics (which have a pull that goes beyond the basketball competition) just a year ahead. Besides, with the new CBA and the shorter contracts, there are more players involved in free agency every year. I personally think USA Basketball should have stuck with the previous policy that in order to go to the Olympics you had to commit to a full (4-year) olympic cycle. That would definitely scare away a number of superstars (especially those who have already played in the Olympics) but you would still have a team of very high level and very committed players. After all, winning an Olympic gold gets you one foot in the HoF.

It’s been the same with other relocated franchises sporting vintage uniforms

Them's fightin' words!

Correct. If we don't pick his option he's still has contract for the 2019-20 season. We'd have to waive him and eat his salary to free his roster spot.