2024/2025 General Game Thread

[Albert Lergier 110]

11 hours ago, Forumreader said:

I missed the team early this season

And when p5 was out were Franz  was operating,

That was FUN! and we just got broken.

been a fan for 30 years now. 
 
This is not new, this is what magic basketball is about.

 

 

[Albert Lergier 110]

Is it over after last night, game # 64?

Next 5 on the road, versus Bucks, Rockets, Pelicans, Timberwolves and Cavs. Then Rockets at home.

[JJZFL 700]

2 hours ago, Luke_FfS said:

I'm so disgusted that I've even lost the will to comment.

(and no, we don't need good guards in the team, just ask Coby White that was one of the few few names connected to us before the deadline )

Giddey was traded also.  Would have loved to get him.  

[hootie249 317]

53 minutes ago, All Eyes On Me said:

Dead serious, as this point we should just shut down P and Franz and Tank too. We’re not going to miss the play-in being 7 games ahead with 17 games left, but the worse our record is the higher our lotto odds if we lose the play-in game. Need to start thinking past this season because best case scenario at this point from a winning games perspective is either playing Cleveland or Boston in the first round and getting swept in epic fashion.

Oh c'mon man you really can't be thinking this way. That was sorta ok in the past. Whatever happens the rest of the year they need that play in game and series for experience. Even if it's just to be shamed to work harder in the offseason.

[JJZFL 700]

2 hours ago, jackmccarthy96 said:

I actually blame Paolo for a lot of our losses. He is trying to do to much and be the hero at the end of games and forces shots. He is trying to get his stat wise and is putting up good stats at the expense of wins. He is a great talent and will be a top 5-10 player in this league in the next 5 years but I blame coaching for not managing him well at the expense of losses. Perfect example against the Miami Heat he is single handedly the reason we lost that game. He was forcing shots and it was clearly not his night and we went to OT and 2OT and he was forcing terrible shots that lost us the game. Franz played great that game and kept us in it to 2OT. Memphis game he forced shots too and poor coaching for not calling a time out at the end!

I give Paolo a pass. He is the guy (as well as Franz) and needs reps at trying to win the game and almost did it against the raptors the other night but when it is detrimental to the team, the coach needs to bench their best players and just say "hey its not your night, you'll get em next time". Its understandable coming off missing most of the season. He is and will become an elite player, he just needs to let the game come to him and not force the game.

 

Cole Anthony isnt good on defense but he is a bucket and can orchestrate an offense given a greater role. I think Mose has something personal against him that has hindered his growth. 

 

JI hasnt been shooting well but they need to play him more than the 16.3 minutes per game that he is averaging. I get it that he is an injury liability but why not push him to his limits at this point and see what happens. Was great 4 years ago when we were building the team around him before his bad injuries.

If he was given a bigger role I think he would shoot himself out of the slump. 

 

I agree with WCJ. He is good for some rebounds but never going to be a top 100 player.

 

Losing Mo is a huge loss for us. He is our enforcer and sets the tone for every game.

 

Mosely and the way the coaching staff operates under him are the problem. Fire Mosely and see what one of our assistants can do as an interim to develop for the rest of the year. Sacramento fired Mike Brown this year and they are doing great with their interim.

 

I don’t agree with everything in this post, but I’ve been posting concerns for a long time about how we become a two person team on offense at the end of close games, and that its not a high percentage strategy.  Yes they will make incredible shots and win sometimes, but the percentages are not in your favor over the long run.  
 

Nothing I’ve seen recently has changed this.  

[All Eyes On Me 1,329]

25 minutes ago, hootie249 said:

Oh c'mon man you really can't be thinking this way. That was sorta ok in the past. Whatever happens the rest of the year they need that play in game and series for experience. Even if it's just to be shamed to work harder in the offseason.

I’d agree with you if we were going to get healthy by the playoffs, but we’re not. Suggs and Moe ain’t coming back this year. We’re getting the play-in game regardless, we’ll see how the rest goes. I just know there’s something wrong with this team as constructed and it won’t be fixed til the off-season. Higher pick makes it easier to do.

[Soul Bro 1,501]

11 minutes ago, All Eyes On Me said:

I’d agree with you if we were going to get healthy by the playoffs, but we’re not. Suggs and Moe ain’t coming back this year. We’re getting the play-in game regardless, we’ll see how the rest goes. I just know there’s something wrong with this team as constructed and it won’t be fixed til the off-season. Higher pick makes it easier to do.

I don't think we shut down Franz and Paulo, but I do buy into the definition of insanity. Mose has to somehow adjust. Given what I'm reading, I'm worried Jalen and Mo won't be ready to start next year, so I think it'd be wise to further play and develop the young guys who likely will be here next year (i.e. AB, Jett, and TDS). For instance, let AB start and allow Franz to play point-forward. Maybe even start Jett or TDS. If a real playoff run is not probable, these young guys need reps. At this point, we need to pick a direction and stay consistent with it.

[zollman 51]

Yes AB needs to start and figure it out.. more TDS needed as well

[All Eyes On Me 1,329]

53 minutes ago, Soul Bro said:

I don't think we shut down Franz and Paulo, but I do buy into the definition of insanity. Mose has to somehow adjust. Given what I'm reading, I'm worried Jalen and Mo won't be ready to start next year, so I think it'd be wise to further play and develop the young guys who likely will be here next year (i.e. AB, Jett, and TDS). For instance, let AB start and allow Franz to play point-forward. Maybe even start Jett or TDS. If a real playoff run is not probable, these young guys need reps. At this point, we need to pick a direction and stay consistent with it.

I will give Mose credit for sticking with benching Harris. At the same time, him playing Caleb in crunch time of a close game where we needed a win was baffling.

[Shine88 114]

53 minutes ago, All Eyes On Me said:

I will give Mose credit for sticking with benching Harris. At the same time, him playing Caleb in crunch time of a close game where we needed a win was baffling.

Yeah, I didn't understand that at all. I think the guy is losing his mind.

Also, Wendell bringing the ball down instead of going straight up to tied the game was the most WCJ ish  ever.

We need to clean house and retool the roster.

[MagicMan1979 153]

1 hour ago, zollman said:

Yes AB needs to start and figure it out.. more TDS needed as well

I agree with you both.  AB and TDS are the only bright spots as far as our young role players.  Let’s get them experience while we try to win meaningful games. We have to make the best of a very bad situation.

[CTMagicUK 1,620]

I think if this season hadn't been such a disaster AB's development would be getting talked about a lot more positively than it has been. He kind of just gets lumped into the "Weltman sucks" conversation but I think he's shown real skill development year on year as a ball handler and downhill driver and it's allowed him to use his passing a lot more. His defense is generally excellent too even if he still commits dumb fouls too often.