Official 2015 Offseason Thread

[Catman 380]

ESPN tied themselves to twitter culture a long time ago. They make SC focused on what is trending on the internet and then beat it to death on the broadcast. So now that they are tied to a platform that is all about instant news, hence the piling up of errors and sloppy articles.

[Fultz4thewin 2,464]

The issue is really multifaceted.

 

1.they moved from content reporting to content manufacturing so that they have a steady stream of filler for their multiple platforms. That's why during dead periods they have one of their talking heads say something stupid. "Colin Kaepernick might be the best quarterback of all time" or they exacerbate minor issues "Chip Kelly is a racist". This is the Fox news model that every 24 hour news station adopted. This creates a echo chamber of stupid.

 

2. They put all of their decent content behind a pay wall.

 

3. They let their relationships with the leagues effect their content. This makes the reporting very vanilla

 

4. Their long form content such as OTL portrays itself as old school reporting like 60 minutes but searches for and publishes a specific narrative and not necessarily truth.

 

5. They like the idea of analytics so they put a mandate out to create a measurement for something in every sport(QBR, FPI, etc). To do this, most of the time they commandeer an already created metric and tweak it so that it's theirs. That creates a bastardized measurement that doesn't really work the way anyone intends to use it. They make everyone use this measurement despite the fact it's usually ineffective.

[jec 427]

What's even worse than the ESPN website itself is the comment section. It's full of morons. Like, it's cringe worthy to read.

[Fultz4thewin 2,464]

What's even worse than the ESPN website itself is the comment section. It's full of morons. Like, it's cringe worthy to read.

 

And that's who they cater to. Those are the people who click things. Idiots.

[Catman 380]

Good points by all.

 

24 hour news is really a horrible horrible thing.

 

6 weeks until preseason.

[fan for too long 2 535]

Has anybody heard what progress Aaron has made with his broken Jaw? Is he able to practice yet?

 

And yes Espn, has sucked for years. Catering to the lowest common denominator, as does Fox, CNN, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

[liamnado 2]

Has anybody heard what progress Aaron has made with his broken Jaw? Is he able to practice yet?

 

He's been in the gym, according to his instagram. Not sure to what extent tho.

 

Instagram Link

[The Neighborhood Bully 266]

The Orlando Magic have one of the most exciting young rosters in the league, but at times it's easier to focus on what they don't have: a superstar. Even with talented former first-round picks at every position, Orlando's roster is a series of gambles that will define the next several years.

 

None of those gambles is more important than shooting guard Victor Oladipo. The former No. 2 overall pick has made steady progress early in his career and stands as the Magic's best shot at having a legitimate All-Star in the next couple years.

 

Already a strong perimeter defender thanks to his elite athleticism, prototypical size (6'4, 210 pounds) and motor, Oladipo's upside has always been tied to his offensive skills. Can he shoot? Can he run the pick-and-roll? Those are the doubts that Oladipo has needed to overcome. Entering Year 3 of his career, his efforts have been a work-in-progress.

There's reason to be excited, however, and not just because Oladipo's rise could coincide with the Magic becoming relevant again. During a Team USA scrimmage last week, the 23-year-old broke out with 25 points, nine rebounds and five assists in just 23 minutes of playing time. Even if nobody played any defense, his confidence was apparent:

http://www.sbnation....-breakdown-2015

[The Neighborhood Bully 266]

If there’s one thing you can bank on with the addition of Skiles, it’s that the Magic will improve defensively. Skiles has an amazing track record of taking over horrible teams and quickly transforming their defenses from awful to elite. I threw together this chart to really illustrate the defensive impact that Skiles has had on each of his previous teams. An asterisk indicates that the team made the playoffs.

 

 

This is extremely impressive. Skiles has repeatedly proved that he can inherit a below-average defense and turn it into one of the best in the NBA. Aside from Phoenix where he had prime Jason Kidd and surging defensive force Shawn Marion, Skiles hasn’t exactly had ideal defensive personnel. That ’04-05 season in Chicago looks even more remarkable when you consider Eddy Curry and a 36-year-old Antonio Davis started a combined 122 games. Skiles’ Bucks teams had a good defensive anchor in Andrew Bogut, but they lacked other consistent defensive weapons (apologies to Luc Mbah a Moute). Skiles makes his impact by hammering his sound defensive principles into his players’ minds and getting them to completely buy in. I wasn’t there when Skiles interviewed with the Magic executives, but I could imagine that his pitch went something like this:

 

“Listen, I made the playoffs with John freakin’ Salmons as my leading scorer. Let me come on in and work my magic (pun fully intended) and we’ll turn this group of uber-athletic freaks into an elite defense and a playoff birth in no more than two years. How’s that sound Mr. Hennigan?”

http://isportsweb.co...-orlando-magic/

[fan for too long 2 535]

He's been in the gym, according to his instagram. Not sure to what extent tho.

 

Instagram Link

Thanks, going for that Elfrid look, :creaturedance:

[Magicman28 295]

ESPN hasn't been watchable since the early 90's. I remember in the morning before school watching the REAL Sportscenter and seeing all the highlights from every game...Even with teams without winning records, superstars, or big markets.

[Catalina Maria 64]

[/size]http://isportsweb.co...-orlando-magic/

 

I can't believe the amount of people who underestimate Skiles would be influence on this team. The visual you shared should make a lot of people realize what is to come very soon. I didn't realize that in two years he converted all his teams into a number 2 position. People say his teams never go far into the playoffs, but LOOK at the teams he was working. ALL his teams OVER-achieved. He takes MEDIOCRE roster teams and maximizes their capabilities. I think we have a team of future all-stars with a GM who knows how to build a team for the LONG-term. We also have a team of no-nonsense no-primma donnas. Gone are the days of Baby Dwight and Wince. Welcome to the age of Easy P and Dipo!