<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:georss="http://www.georss.org/georss" xmlns:geo="http://www.w3.org/2003/01/geo/wgs84_pos#" > <channel> <title>Los Angeles Lakers | America's White Boy</title> <atom:link href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/tag/los-angeles-lakers-2/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com</link> <description></description> <lastBuildDate>Wed, 17 Oct 2018 16:49:58 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en-US</language> <sy:updatePeriod> hourly </sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency> 1 </sy:updateFrequency> <image> <url>https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/cropped-WhiteBoyFavicon-32x32.gif</url> <title>Los Angeles Lakers | America's White Boy</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com</link> <width>32</width> <height>32</height> </image> <itunes:new-feed-url>http://feeds.feedburner.com/americaswhiteboy/BvSW</itunes:new-feed-url> <site xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">47489525</site> <item> <title>2018-19 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/10/17/2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 17 Oct 2018 16:49:58 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Denver Nuggets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Golden State Warriors]]></category> <category><![CDATA[houston rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[minnesota timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Oklahoma City Thunder]]></category> <category><![CDATA[portland trailblazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[prop bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[san antonio spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports betting]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[utah jazz]]></category> <category><![CDATA[basketball]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Houston Rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Minnesota Timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Portland Trail Blazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Prop Bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[San Antonio Spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Utah Jazz]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=15310</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The Golden State Warriors are the best team in the NBA and they added a few more elites players that are looking for a ring. The balance of power was already in the Western Conference’s favor, but they tipped even more in their favor this offseason. LeBron James will play his first season in the […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/10/17/2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference/">2018-19 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/regular-season-wins-2018-19-western-conference-NBA-old-timey-basketball.jpg"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-15311" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/regular-season-wins-2018-19-western-conference-NBA-old-timey-basketball.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="442" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/regular-season-wins-2018-19-western-conference-NBA-old-timey-basketball.jpg 493w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/regular-season-wins-2018-19-western-conference-NBA-old-timey-basketball-226x300.jpg 226w" sizes="(max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>The Golden State Warriors are the best team in the NBA and they added a few more elites players that are looking for a ring.</p> <p>The balance of power was already in the Western Conference’s favor, but they tipped even more in their favor this offseason.</p> <p>LeBron James will play his first season in the West after signing with the Los Angeles Lakers.</p> <p>Can LeBron push the Los Angeles Lakers to 49 wins?</p> <p>Here are our over/under season wins total picks for the NBA’s Western Conference.</p> <p><span id="more-15310"></span></p> <p><strong>Dallas Mavericks – 34 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Mavs have one of the oldest rosters in the NBA…and the roster is shaped for a time that no longer exists. Nearly every team in the league is playing smaller, and once all healthy, Dallas will have two near-seven footers playing most of the game. I like rookie SG Luka Doncic and second-year PG Dennis Smith Jr., but they are a few pieces away from hitting 35 wins.</p> <p><strong>Denver Nuggets – 47 1/2 Wins – UNDER</strong></p> <p>The Nuggets are the anti-Mavs, as they have one of the youngest rosters in the NBA. I like what they have done the last two or three drafts. Rookie SF Michael Porter Jr. could end up being the steal of the 2018 NBA Draft. The Nuggets should make the postseason, but the Western Conference is stacked. I don’t see them getting to 48 wins, but it will be close.</p> <p><strong>Golden State Warriors – 62 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Warriors are stacked and they will add DeMarcus Cousins once he heals up from an Achilles injury. I don’t see them winning less than 63 games.</p> <p><strong>Houston Rockets – 56 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The reason I believe the Warriors will win 63 games is because they will need to keep up with the Rockets. They added SF Carmelo Anthony, which will give them another shooter (but not much defense). They will need Anthony to pitch in a little on that end since the Rockets lost SF Trevor Ariza and PF Luc Mbah a Moute. I still think they eclipse 57 wins.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Clippers – 37 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Clippers are missing a star. They have a lot of role players, but you’re not going to win many games in the West with Danilo Gallinari as your best player. They are just marking time this season in hopes they can get one of the big free agents next offseason. I don’t think they will hit 37 wins in such a stacked division.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Lakers- 48 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>LeBron will suit up in the purple and gold this season. He brought some veterans with him to mix with the Lakers young talent. He will need PF Brandon Ingram, PF Kyle Kuzma and PG Lonzo Ball to take their game to the next level. LeBron hasn’t always been kind to young talent, but he will need to play nice. I think they will surprise a lot of people and get to 49 wins.</p> <p><strong>Memphis Grizzlies – 34 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Grizzlies are really just starting their rebuild. They won’t call it that, but they are far away from putting together a playoff-caliber team. They will need PF Chandler Parsons contract to end, so they can get some depth. Memphis is really Mike Conley, Marc Gasol and a hodgepodge of youth and Gatorade League talent.</p> <p><strong>Minnesota Timberwolves – 41 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>Minnesota has been in the news a lot lately. SG Jimmy Butler doesn’t get along with C Karl-Anthony Towns and wants out. Towns signed a huge extension and Butler knows there isn’t enough left in the cupboard for a Wiggins max extension and his own huge contract. I expect Butler will end up in Miami at some point. Minnesota should get a nice return with NBA-ready talent. They should get enough talent back in a Butler deal that will get over the 42-win mark.</p> <p><strong>New Orleans Pelicans – 45 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Pelicans signed PF Julius Randle away from the Lakers. It was an underrated move and he will play well next to C Anthony Davis. I also like acquiring C Jahlil Okafor. I think he just needed a change of scenery. He was great at Duke, but thanks to ‘The Process’, he has been a pawn in the system. </p> <p><strong>Oklahoma City Thunder – 48 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Thunder did the near-impossible by signing SF Paul George to a long-term extension. No one thought that was even possible when the Pacers first shipped him to the Thunder. OKC cut Carmelo and used his salary to sign some role players. Their bench is revamped and think they will be a 50-win team in 2018-19.</p> <p><strong>Phoenix Suns – 29 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Suns have some exciting young talent, but as I said before, the West is stacked. Phoenix could be a player in a couple years, but they will probably sit near the bottom of the league this season.</p> <p><strong>Portland Trail Blazers – 42 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Trail Blazers have a playoff-caliber team this season. They are one of the deepest teams in the Western Conference. They even have some young talent that could be moved at the trade deadline to acquire some veterans. I’m taking the over.</p> <p><strong>Sacramento Kings – 26 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>I’m going against the grain and taking the over. They have some interesting young talent like PG De’Aaron Fox and C Harry Giles. Rookie Marvin Bagley III may turn into something, but may need a year or two coming off the bench. He will learn from one of the best PF of his generation, Zach Randolph.</p> <p><strong>San Antonio Spurs – 43 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Spurs aren’t very deep, but their starting-five is pretty darn good. They traded SG Kawhi Leonard and SG Danny Green to the Raptors for SG DeMar DeRozan, and then saw PG Tony Parker leave via free agency and SG Many Ginobili retire. Coach Pop has to do his best job to get this team to the playoffs. They may make the postseason, but they could miss the over by a game or two.</p> <p><strong>Utah Jazz – 49 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Jazz come into the season with basically the same roster. The only difference is that they lost SF Jonas Jerebko and replaced him with rookie SG Grayson Allen. Utah made a pretty good run in the postseason last year. They only won 48 games last season and I think they will win at least two more this year.</p> <h2><em id="__mceDel">Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>!</em></h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114"></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&linkname=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2F2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference%2F&title=2018-19%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/10/17/2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference/" data-a2a-title="2018-19 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/10/17/2018-19-nba-season-wins-over-under-western-conference/">2018-19 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">15310</post-id> </item> <item> <title>2018 NBA Trade Deadline Recap</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/02/08/2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 09 Feb 2018 04:01:27 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[cleveland cavaliers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[derrick rose]]></category> <category><![CDATA[detroit pistons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Doug McDermott]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dwyane Wade]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Elfrid Payton]]></category> <category><![CDATA[George Hill]]></category> <category><![CDATA[isaiah thomas]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sacramento Kings]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[trade deadline]]></category> <category><![CDATA[utah jazz]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Cleveland Cavaliers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Derrick Rose]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Detroit Pistons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Isaiah Thomas]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Trade Deadline]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Utah Jazz]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=13212</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The 2018 NBA Trade Deadline really kicked off when the Los Angeles Clippers traded superstar power forward Blake Griffin to the Detroit Pistons late in the night. The Clippers got a king’s random in return. Many thought DeAndre Jordan would be next to leave the Clippers, but he stayed put. Other big trades that happened […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/02/08/2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap/">2018 NBA Trade Deadline Recap</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2018-NBA-Trade-Deadline-Isaiah-Thomas-Cleveland-Cavaliers-Derrick-Rose-Dwyane-Wade.jpg"><img decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-13213" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2018-NBA-Trade-Deadline-Isaiah-Thomas-Cleveland-Cavaliers-Derrick-Rose-Dwyane-Wade.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="392" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2018-NBA-Trade-Deadline-Isaiah-Thomas-Cleveland-Cavaliers-Derrick-Rose-Dwyane-Wade.jpg 559w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/2018-NBA-Trade-Deadline-Isaiah-Thomas-Cleveland-Cavaliers-Derrick-Rose-Dwyane-Wade-255x300.jpg 255w" sizes="(max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>The 2018 NBA Trade Deadline really kicked off when the Los Angeles Clippers <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2018/01/31/blake-griffin-trade-pistons-clippers-stan-van-gundy-doc-rivers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">traded superstar power forward Blake Griffin</a> to the Detroit Pistons late in the night. The Clippers got a king’s random in return. Many thought DeAndre Jordan would be next to leave the Clippers, but he stayed put.</p> <p>Other big trades that happened in-between the Griffin deal and today were Nikola Mirotic going to New Orleans for a mess of veteran and picks. I also think <a href="http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2018/02/08/knicks-willy-hernangomez-trade-malpractice/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Charlotte’s acquisition of center Willy Hernangomez</a> could be huge. He’s a talented guy, but was stuck behind some talented bigs on the Knicks.</p> <p>Today’s trades didn’t disappoint as much as previous years’ trade deadlines. There were a couple really nice trades and a ton of depth trades.</p> <p><span id="more-13212"></span></p> <p><strong>Three-Team Deal</strong><br /> <em><strong>Cleveland</strong></em> receives George Hill, Rodney Hood and draft rights to Arturas Gudaitis<br /> <strong><em>Utah</em></strong> receives Jae Crowder, Derrick Rose and right to swap 2nd Round picks with Cleveland in 2024<br /> <strong><em>Sacramento</em></strong> receivers Iman Shumpert, Joe Johnson, Miami’s 2020 2nd Round Pick, draft rights to Dimitrios Agravanis & cash</p> <p>This was a huge message to the rest of the league that the Cavs want to get younger and could possibly be trying to build for life without LeBron James. I know he said he’s in Cleveland for the long haul, but I feel like <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/2018/02/08/lebron-james-cleveland-cavaliers-free-agency-isaiah-thomas-trade" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his attitude towards the Cavs is extremely fluid</a> and changes often. I really like Hill and Hood and are both guys that can flourish without being ball-dominant. This trade is win for the Cavs, neutral for the Kings and the Jazz seems to be the loser.</p> <p><em><strong>Los Angeles Lakers</strong></em> receives Isaiah Thomas, Channing Frye and Cleveland’s 2018 1st Round Pick<br /> <em><strong>Cleveland</strong></em> receives Jordan Clarkson & Larry Nance Jr.</p> <p>I really like this trade for both teams. Cleveland gets younger and the Lakers get some veterans with playoff experience for their youth to learn under. <a href="http://www.latimes.com/sports/lakers/la-sp-lakers-cavaliers-trade-20180208-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Thomas could be a game-changer</a> for the Lakers (if healthy). I think Cleveland got a possible future stud in Nance Jr. His dad was a star for the Cavs back in the day and he comes back to the area where he grew up. He should have every opportunity to make a difference in the rotation. Also, the Lakers also dumped enough future money that they could go after two max players this offseason.</p> <p><em><strong>Miami</strong></em> receives Dwyane Wade<br /> <em><strong>Cleveland</strong></em> receives Miami’s protected 2024 2nd Round Pick</p> <p>Cleveland was clearly dumping money and made a deal to appease Wade. He goes back to his old team and will be greeted with open arms. <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/dwyane-wade-trade-grades-heat-get-back-their-hero-cavs-do-the-honorable-thing/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cavs were planning to reduce his role</a> soon and he wanted out. He’s not the player he used to be, but he will sell tickets for the Heat. </p> <p><strong>Three-Team Deal</strong><br /> <em><strong>Denver</strong></em> receives Devin Harris & LAC’s 2018 2nd Round Pick<br /> <strong><em>New York</em></strong> receives Emmanuel Mudiay<br /> <strong><em>Dallas</em></strong> receives Doug McDermott & Portland’s 2018 2nd Round Pick</p> <p>Denver receives a veteran point guard with an expiring contract, so they will be getting very little out of this deal. The Knicks could be hoping they find lightning in a bottle by trying to shine up Mudiay again. He was a top-seven pick in 2015, so he has skills, but his shot is broken. He was reduced to a reserve role in Denver. I almost feel sorry for Dougie McBuckets. He will be on his fourth team in as many seasons. He’s a restricted free agent this Summer, so he could move on again. I would love to see the Pacers make a play for him.</p> <p><em><strong>Phoenix</strong></em> receives Elfrid Payton<br /> <strong><em>Orlando</em></strong> receives Miami’s 2018 2nd Round Pick & right to swap 2nd Round picks with Charlotte</p> <p>Orlando shed a player that was drafted by the previous front office regime. He hasn’t really lived up to being a Lottery pick. He’s not an accurate shooter and his defense isn’t tight. Phoenix doesn’t have much to lose. They lost point guard Isaiah Canaan to a broken ankle and needs someone to handle the ball. He’s a restricted free agent this Summer. The Suns also just gave up random 2nd Round picks they’ve acquired from other teams in other deals. Phoenix thinks Payton is worth kicking the tires on.</p> <p><strong><em>Memphis</em></strong> receives Brice Johnson, Detroit’s 2022 2nd Round Pick<br /> <strong><em>Detroit</em></strong> receives James Ennis</p> <p>Memphis just acquired Johnson last week and he never suited up once for them before they sent him to Detroit. Ennis was a rotation guy for Memphis and adds depth to Detroit. I think he’s mostly just seen as an expiring contract, but he’s an expiring contract that can help in meantime.</p> <p><strong><em>Sacramento</em></strong> receives Bruno Caboclo<br /> <strong><em>Toronto</em></strong> receied Malachi Richardson</p> <p>The Kings just moved Richardson to the Raptors to be able to receive a guy back they can just release. Caboclo was a surprise pick a few years ago (Kings also <a href="https://www.hoopsrumors.com/2018/02/kings-to-waive-georgios-papagiannis.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released Georgious Papagiannis</a> today). Caboclo was seen by some scouts as a <a href="https://hashtagbasketball.com/toronto-raptors/content/bruno-caboclo-will-it-ever-be-worth-the-wait" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Brazilian Kevin Durant’</a>, but it hasn’t panned out. He hasn’t been able to add enough weight to his body, which would be necessary to make a difference in the NBA. I have no idea what Toronto will do with Richardson, who has been a bust since being drafted in the first-round in 2016.</p> <p><strong><em>Chicago</em></strong> receives Noah Vonleh & cash<br /> <strong><em>Portland</em></strong> receives draft rights to Milovan Rakovic</p> <p>Speaking of first-round busts, Vonleh finds himself on his third team since being drafted 9th overall in 2014. He’s a guy who just left college too early. You can’t blame him really since I doubt he would have improved his draft stock by staying, but he could have developed his game at Indiana. He’s a restricted free agent this Summer and the Bulls will have the right to match any offer. As far as Portland is concerned, this just frees up 3.5 million of cap space and puts them below the tax threshold.</p> <p><strong><em>Atlanta</em></strong> receives Sheldon Mac & cah<br /> <strong><em>Washington</em></strong> receives Atlanta’s protected 2019 2nd Round pick</p> <p>Mac tore his Achilles tendon and turned his non-guaranteed contract into a guaranteed one. This trade just dumps Mac’s contract and reduces Washington’s luxury-tax bill (for the time being). It also freed up a roster spot that could be used on a player who will be a free agent after ‘buyout season.’</p> <p><strong><em>Brooklyn</em></strong> receives Dante Cunningham<br /> <strong><em>New Orleans</em></strong> receives Rashad Vaughn</p> <p>Vaughn was only in Brooklyn for a day or so before being flipped to the Pelicans. New Orleans needed a perimeter shooter and Vaughn can fill that role. Cunningham has been wanting out of New Orleans for awhile. I think he landed in a really nice spot for a guy with Cunningham’s skills. The Nets will start him and will get every opportunity to fill up the boxscore.</p> <p><strong><em>Detroit</em></strong> receives Jameer Nelson<br /> <strong><em>Chicago</em></strong> receives Willie Reed and right to swap Detroits’s 2022 2nd Round Pick</p> <p>Nelson and Reed have both already been traded this month. Nelson was in the Nikola Mirotic trade and Reed was in the Blake Griffin trade. They were clearly both secondary pieces in their deals. Nelson will stablize Piston’s point guard position with Reggie Jackson injured. Ish Smith and Dwight Buycks will be more than adequate backups behind Nelson. He also had previous playing experience under head coach Stan Van Gundy when he was on the Magic many years ago. Both Reed and Nelson are unrestricted free agents this Summer.</p> <p><strong><em>Miami</em></strong> receives Luke Babbitt<br /> <strong><em>Atlanta</em></strong> receives Okaro White</p> <p>Babbitt goes back to Miami where he spent last season. He has a veteran minimum contract and Atlanta was looking to free up a roster spot. White is expected to be released. This was a garbage trade.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114"></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a></em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&linkname=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2018%2F02%2F08%2F2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap%2F&title=2018%20NBA%20Trade%20Deadline%20Recap" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/02/08/2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap/" data-a2a-title="2018 NBA Trade Deadline Recap"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2018/02/08/2018-nba-trade-deadline-recap/">2018 NBA Trade Deadline Recap</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">13212</post-id> </item> <item> <title>2017-18 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/10/16/2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 17 Oct 2017 01:20:50 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Denver Nuggets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[houston rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[memphis grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[minnesota timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Oklahoma City Thunder]]></category> <category><![CDATA[portland trailblazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[prop bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[san antonio spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports betting]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[utah jazz]]></category> <category><![CDATA[basketball]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Golden State Warriors]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Houston Rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memphis Grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Minnesota Timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Portland Trail Blazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Prop Bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[San Antonio Spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Utah Jazz]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=12664</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The NBA regular season kicks off tomorrow. The Celtics are at Cleveland and the Rockets travel to the defending NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors. Both are must-watch games for any NBA fan. Picking regular season over/under prop bets in the NBA’s Western Conference takes some skill this season. You have unbelievably stacked teams like […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/10/16/2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/">2017-18 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-18-NBA-Western-Conference-Over-Under-Regular-Season-Wins-old-man-funny.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-12666" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-18-NBA-Western-Conference-Over-Under-Regular-Season-Wins-old-man-funny.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="468" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-18-NBA-Western-Conference-Over-Under-Regular-Season-Wins-old-man-funny.jpg 472w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/2017-18-NBA-Western-Conference-Over-Under-Regular-Season-Wins-old-man-funny-213x300.jpg 213w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>The NBA regular season kicks off tomorrow. The Celtics are at Cleveland and the Rockets travel to the defending NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors. Both are must-watch games for any NBA fan.</p> <p>Picking regular season over/under prop bets in the NBA’s Western Conference takes some skill this season. You have unbelievably stacked teams like the Warriors, Thunder and Rockets, but you have to factor in the chances teams will rest their stars in a few games this season. A team that has already ‘been there, done that’ like the Warriors and Spurs, will probably rest their guys. The Thunder who legitimately look like they are having fun this preseason, have something to prove and may not rest as many stars.</p> <p>Can rookie Lonzo Ball push the Los Angeles Lakers to 34 wins?</p> <p>Here are our over/under season wins total picks for the NBA’s Western Conference.</p> <p><span id="more-12664"></span></p> <p><strong>Dallas Mavericks – 35 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Mavs won 33 games a season ago, even after many of their impact players missed time due to injuries. They had to sign PG Yogi Ferrell from the D-League and actually struck gold with the young man. Many expect <a href="https://sportsday.dallasnews.com/dallas-mavericks/mavericks/2017/10/15/national-writers-dennis-smith-jr-poised-rookie-year-campaign" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rookie PG Dennis Smith Jr. to contend for the Rookie of the Year award</a>. He will have every opportunity since he is their starting point guard. I expect Dallas to win 37 games or more.</p> <p><strong>Denver Nuggets – 45 1/2 Wins – <i>OVER</i></strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.yardbarker.com/nba/articles/nikola_jokic_a_throwback_superstar_for_the_modern_era/s1_13132_24756992" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Denver C Nikola Jokic became a superstar</a> last year. He had a monster year and looks like he could be a guy to build around. They also have big men PF Mason Plumlee and C Juan Hernangomez. They also added Paul Millsap this offseason. They will be a beast in the paint. SG Gary Harris and PG Jamal Murray should continue to improve and become stars in this league.</p> <p><strong>Golden State Warriors – 67 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>A team winning 68 games in a season is beyond rare. The fact that the Warriors are expecting by Vegas to win that many games shows how insanely stacked the Warriors are this season. That being said, Golden State knows what it takes to win a championship, this squad has won it twice in three seasons. The one season they lost, they went after the Bulls 72-10 record. I’m sure many blame going into the playoffs tired. They will rest their guys more than expected. They will win, at most 67 games.</p> <p><strong>Houston Rockets – 56 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.chron.com/sports/rockets/article/Rockets-Chris-Paul-says-he-s-ready-for-gametime-12279952.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Rockets added PG Chris Paul</a> to a 55-win team. Paul has been in this league for a long time, but he’s still a All-Star level player. SG James Harden played nearly every game last season. He also put up monster numbers in the second-half of the year. Everything will have to be near-perfect for them to once again hit 55 wins. I expect Harden and Paul to get rest down the stretch this year. They will still be a 50+ wins, but I don’t see them hitting 57, which will be needed to get paid.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Clippers – 44 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>Losing/trading Chris Paul was a huge blow to the Clippers, but they added some nice complementary pieces this offseason. PGs Patrick Beverley and Milos Teodosic will be sharing Paul’s old responsibilities. <a href="https://deadspin.com/i-cant-stop-watching-these-lovely-milos-teodosic-passes-1819441277" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Teodosic is a passing artist</a> and should be fun to watch. I’m also curious to see how well SF Danilo Gallinari, PF Montrezl Harrell and C Willie Reed will do on their new team. Many expect the Clippers to drop 7+ wins without Paul. I expect they will finish around last year’s win total of 51.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Lakers- 33 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I’m not on the PG Lonzo Ball bandwagon. The kid is really good, but he’s not going to be a game changer right away. They will need points this season since PG D’Angelo Russell and SG Nick Young are no longer on the team. It might be too soon for <a href="http://www.ocregister.com/2017/10/14/lakers-brandon-ingram-breaks-out-of-slump-just-in-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SF Brandon Ingram</a> to be ‘the man’ in Los Angeles. He is still putting on weight to his spindly frame. The Lakers are just running down the clock until next offseason when they hope to entice SF Paul George or even SF LeBron James to suit up in the purple and gold.</p> <p><strong>Memphis Grizzlies – 37 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Western Conference is stacked this season. Many more players arrived from the East to get away from LeBron. This team was built around C Marc Gasol, PF Zach Randolph and PG Mike Conley for so many years. Randolph bounced out of town and the Grizzlies haven’t found a replacement. They will also miss the defense and leadership of SG Tony Allen. Memphis is a team in transition and I don’t see them hitting the 38-win mark.</p> <p><strong>Minnesota Timberwolves – 47 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Twolves are a fun team to watch. I actually liked them last year, but that team only won 31 games. The additions of SG Jimmy Butler and PG Jeff Teague cranks this team up a few notches. They did have to give up some young assets for Butler, but <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/jimmy-butler-leading-young-timberwolves-way-knows-142620511.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they needed someone with playoff experience like Butler</a>. This one will be close, but I’m taking the slight over, which would mean the Timberwolves would be a 4th or 5th seed in the Western Conference playoffs.</p> <p><strong>New Orleans Pelicans – 39 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I would love to pick the over here cause I love PF Anthony Davis and C DeMarcus Cousins…but they lack depth in about every other position. They’ve made some bad signings like SF Solomon Hill last offseason, but I do like the addition of SG Tony Allen. They need a lot of help to be a playoff team.</p> <p><strong>Oklahoma City Thunder – 53 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Thunder added <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/paul-george-feeling-right-home-nbas-compelling-team-153109981.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SF Paul George from Indiana</a> and SF Carmelo Anthony after he accepted a buyout from the Knicks. They will be added to MVP PG Russell Westbrook and C Steven Adams. I would have loved for them to added a couple more shooters this offseason, but I think they should be all right. The Thunder have something to prove and they will be gunning for the Warriors, so I don’t expect the stars to rest many games this season.</p> <p><strong>Phoenix Suns – 29 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Suns have a lot of young talent. You can just go on and on about the expectations of certain players. <a href="http://arizonasports.com/story/1256990/suns-marquese-chriss-aware-flaws-moving-forward/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">PF Marquese Chriss</a> impressed me a lot last season. I also like what PF Alan Williams brought to the table. I am interested in how much SF Josh Jackson will improve this team. He’s already an NBA-level defender, but the offensive skills are’t quit there yet for the rookie. This will be another of experience for the Suns, but I don’t see them cracking 30 wins.</p> <p><strong>Portland Trail Blazers – 42 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The midseason addition of <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/jusuf-nurkic-says-trail-blazers-have-to-fix-trash-defense-become-bad-boys/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">C Jusuf Nurkic</a> breathed life in the Blazers. They went from a perimeter-based offense with a lot of three-pointers to a physical style. They didn’t have anyone that could do that in the paint. I absolute believe this will be a 43+ win team this season.</p> <p><strong>Sacramento Kings – 28 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Kings won 32 games last year, but they had C DeMarcus Cousins for most of those games. They added PG George Hill, PF Zach Randolph and <a href="http://www.sacbee.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/ailene-voisin/article177355221.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EuroLeague champion SF Bogdan Bogdanovic</a>, which all three should play major roles this season. I’m sure the under pick is popular, but I really, really like Bogdanovic. Teams will sleep on them and I think they’ll squeak out a few extra wins.</p> <p><strong>San Antonio Spurs – 53 1/2 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Spurs are a nearly an automatic 54+ win team. They added <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/basketball/news/spurs-rudy-gay-shows-off-all-around-game-tuesday/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SF Rudy Gay</a> and have faith coach Pop can motivate Gay for the first time since his college days. Also, PF LaMarcus Aldridge had a rough shooting season last year. I heard he has been working on it this offseason. I have little worry that the experienced veteran and fix that issue.</p> <p><strong>Utah Jazz – 41 Wins – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Jazz lost SF Gordon Hayward and PG George Hill to free agency and that stung quite a bit. They added PG Ricky Rubio to take over as point guard and went internally to find Hayward’s replacement with SF Rodney Hood. The Jazz won 51 games last year and a ten win decrease could happen without Hayward and Hill, but let’s not forget that they still have <a href="http://www.sltrib.com/sports/jazz/2017/10/16/can-rudy-gobert-improve-on-last-years-all-nba-season-it-would-be-a-mistake-to-doubt-him-quin-snyder-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">C Rudy Gobert</a>. I’m pegging them for 42 wins and fighting for the 8th spot in the West.</p> <h2><em id="__mceDel">Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>!</em></h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114"></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F10%2F16%2F2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&title=2017-18%20NBA%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/10/16/2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/" data-a2a-title="2017-18 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/10/16/2017-18-nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/">2017-18 NBA Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12664</post-id> </item> <item> <title>Which Team Will Land Paul George?</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/06/19/which-team-will-land-paul-george/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 19 Jun 2017 08:43:09 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[boston celtics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[cleveland cavaliers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Denver Nuggets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[indiana pacers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Philadelphia 76ers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[phoenix suns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Boston Celtics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Cleveland Cavaliers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA Draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Paul George]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Phoenix Suns]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=12011</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>As a fan of the Indiana Pacers, I knew this day was coming, but I wasn’t ready.  Paul George made it official, he wants out of Indianapolis. He wants to head back home to Southern California and play for the Los Angeles Lakers. Pacers new general manager Kevin Pritchard has a huge issue on his […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/06/19/which-team-will-land-paul-george/">Which Team Will Land Paul George?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Paul-George-NBA-Indiana-Pacers-trade.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-12020" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Paul-George-NBA-Indiana-Pacers-trade.jpg" alt="" width="333" height="491" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Paul-George-NBA-Indiana-Pacers-trade.jpg 461w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Paul-George-NBA-Indiana-Pacers-trade-203x300.jpg 203w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>As a fan of the Indiana Pacers, I knew this day was coming, but I wasn’t ready. </p> <p><a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/sources-paul-george-tells-pacers-plans-leave-franchise-prefers-joining-lakers-191520531.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paul George made it official, he wants out of Indianapolis</a>. He wants to head back home to Southern California and play for the Los Angeles Lakers. Pacers new general manager Kevin Pritchard has a huge issue on his mind. Do they let him play next season, hope he makes the All-NBA team, so they could offer him much more money than any other team, or do they trade him now for some picks and/or another established star?</p> <p><a href="http://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=5325352" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In 2010, Pritchard lost his job in Portland</a> for a few dumb moves (and drafting Greg Oden over Kevin Durant). I’m sure he assumed a day when he needs to figure out the George problem would come, but probably didn’t think the news of George wanting out of town would leak before the 2017 NBA Draft.</p> <p><span id="more-12011"></span></p> <p>The Pacers have touched base with every team in the NBA. They want to move George as soon as possible, they will have an idea if they need to bring in more draft entrants in for workouts more picks in this year’s draft. </p> <p>There has already been one team that has leaked their interest in Paul George, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/2017/06/18/report-paul-george-pacers-leave-free-agency-los-angeles-lakers/407232001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Cleveland Cavaliers</a>. They hope if he gets a taste of playing with LeBron James, he won’t want to play with the Lakers after next season. The problem is that the Cavs don’t have a ton of young players or picks, so a package would probably be Kevin Love and a few late-first round picks.</p> <p>Let’s go through some other teams that could offer the most and are willing to risk losing him after one season with the team.</p> <p><strong>Philadelphia 76ers</strong> – They wanted George before the trade deadline last season and probably offered the Pacers more than they can offer right now. They traded the Celtics for the #1 pick and gave up quite a bit. The Pacers could still get a young player and future picks if the Sixers wanted George.</p> <p><strong>Denver Nuggets</strong> – Denver was another team that offered up the moon for George at the trade deadline last season. I don’t see them offering anything close to what a few other teams could offer. They basically just have picks to offer. Unfortunately, they would have had two first-round picks if they didn’t trade one with<a href="https://www.denverstiffs.com/2017/2/12/14591736/report-denver-nuggets-trade-jusuf-nurkic-to-portland-trail-blazers-for-mason-plumlee-nba-deadline" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Jusuf Nurkic to Portland</a>.</p> <p><strong>Boston Celtics</strong> – The Celtics were the third team that offered a ton of young players for George late last season. The Celtics gained another future draft pick when they traded down just two spots. I think Boston is the front-runner for George if they package a few picks and Jaylen Brown.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Clippers</strong> – I think they are the dark horse here. I’m sure George wants to play for the Lakers, cause he grew up as a fan. If he just wants to play in Los Angeles, the Clippers could risk losing him across hallway to the Lakers. The Clippers don’t have much youth to offer, but possible Blake Griffin and a whole bunch of future picks. It would almost be a guarantee to re-sign Chris Paul…and possible lure another big free agent to challenge Golden State.</p> <p><strong>Phoenix Suns</strong> – They have a ton of backcourt youth, which the Pacers lack at the moment. I could see them trading the #4th and #32 picks in this year’s draft and maybe Devin Booker and/or Marquese Chriss. It’s a lot to give up, but the Suns need some experienced small forwards.</p> <p><strong>Los Angeles Lakers</strong> – This is the destination that makes the most sense. They pretty much got a guarantee that they are getting Paul George next season. Unfortunately, they face a pretty large issue. They would need to clear around $20 million so they can offer George a max contract. They could trade the Pacers next year’s first round pick, Julius Randle and D’Angelo Russell, which has fallen out of favor. They could kill two birds with one stone. They may need to let Randle go anyway if they want to make room for George…and Russell is one more mess up away from being dumped somewhere.</p> <p>If I wanted to ranks these suggestions in order of them actually happening, I would list them as:</p> <ol> <li>Boston Celtics</li> <li>Los Angeles Lakers</li> <li>Cleveland Cavaliers</li> <li>Philadelphia 76ers</li> <li>Phoenix Suns</li> <li>Los Angeles Clippers</li> <li>Denver Nuggets</li> </ol> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114"></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&linkname=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F06%2F19%2Fwhich-team-will-land-paul-george%2F&title=Which%20Team%20Will%20Land%20Paul%20George%3F" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/06/19/which-team-will-land-paul-george/" data-a2a-title="Which Team Will Land Paul George?"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/06/19/which-team-will-land-paul-george/">Which Team Will Land Paul George?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">12011</post-id> </item> <item> <title>‘America’s White Boy’ 2017 NBA Mock Draft</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/05/24/americas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 24 May 2017 08:45:40 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[boston celtics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Duke Blue Devils]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Jayson Tatum]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Josh Jackson]]></category> <category><![CDATA[kansas jayhawks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[kentucky wildcats]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Lonzo Ball]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Malik Monk]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Markelle Fultz]]></category> <category><![CDATA[mock draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[ucla bruins]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Boston Celtics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Jason Taytum]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kansas Jayhawks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kentucky Wildcats]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA Draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[UCLA Bruins]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=11898</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>Just like we did for the NFL Draft, we are here to release our 2017 NBA Mock Draft. A lot can change before June 22nd. Many expect the Celtics and Lakers to get plenty of calls until then. The biggest possible trade that could happen could be the Pacers trading Paul George to the Celtics […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/05/24/americas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft/">‘America’s White Boy’ 2017 NBA Mock Draft</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Markelle-Fultz-Lonzo-Ball-NBA-Mock-Draft-2017.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-11904"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-11904" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Markelle-Fultz-Lonzo-Ball-NBA-Mock-Draft-2017.jpg" alt="Markelle Fultz Lonzo Ball NBA Mock Draft 2017" width="333" height="420" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Markelle-Fultz-Lonzo-Ball-NBA-Mock-Draft-2017.jpg 593w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Markelle-Fultz-Lonzo-Ball-NBA-Mock-Draft-2017-238x300.jpg 238w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>Just like we did for the <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/04/25/americas-white-boy-2017-nfl-mock-draft/" target="_blank">NFL Draft</a>, we are here to release our 2017 NBA Mock Draft.</p> <p>A lot can change before June 22nd. Many expect the Celtics and Lakers to get plenty of calls until then. The biggest possible trade that could happen could be the Pacers trading <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/trading-paul-george-to-lakers-or-celtics-arent-only-options-for-limited-pacers/" target="_blank">Paul George to the Celtics</a> for a large package of prospects and the #1 overall pick. Will it happen? I’d say there’s only about a 20% chance right now.</p> <p>Here is the ‘America’s White Boy’ 2017 NBA Mock Draft.</p> <p><strong>1. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Boston Celtics</span> – Markelle Fultz – PG – Washington Huskies</strong> – Fultz is the consensus best player in the draft. Even though Washington was a bad team last year, it should bring up too many red flags. In baseball, they call a prospect that can do everything a ‘five-tool player’…and Fultz is the equivalent in basketball. He has hops, he can shoot, he is very good defensively and has the size for his position. It will be interesting to see how he will play with Isaiah Thomas, but it can be done. This pick is very desirable, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Boston gets a mother lode for it if they trade it.</p> <p><span id="more-11898"></span></p> <p><strong>2. Los Angeles Lakers – Lonzo Ball – PG – UCLA Bruins </strong>– As much as I would avoid Lonzo Ball just because his father will cause many headaches, his talent is hard to ignore. He’s only working out for the Lakers and the Lakers like him, so I don’t see them passing on him. If they do, he can thank his father, <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/lavar-ball-responds-to-criticism-by-bringing-up-kyrie-irvings-late-mother/" target="_blank">Lavar Ball</a>.</p> <p><strong>3. Philadelphia 76ers – Josh Jackson – SF – Kansas Jayhawks </strong>– I like Jackson more than Ball in this draft. Jackson is such a athletic player that the Sixers can place him next to Joel Embiid & Ben Simmons. I do wish he could shoot a little better, but he can learn. His natural tools are enough to get him by until he becomes a better jump shooter.</p> <p><strong>4. Phoenix Suns – Jayson Tatum – SF – Duke Blue Devils</strong> – The Suns have a lot of young players that I think will turn their team around very soon. Tatum has been one of the top prospects since he was in high school. If he lands in Phoenix, they will be a much better team right out of the gate.</p> <p><strong>5. Sacramento Kings – De’Aaron Fox – PG – Kentucky Wildcats</strong> – Fox would be an upgrade over the point guards the Kings had last season. It could take him a season or two to add some muscle. He’s very skinny, but he will be very good defensively right out of the gate.</p> <p><strong>6. Orlando Magic – Malik Monk – SG – Kentucky Wildcats</strong> – I love Monk. He has a sweet stroke and is a game changer. He has the ability to be the best player on the court, but he also disappears if he doesn’t start out getting some touches. The Magic need more perimeter shooters and Monk will help.</p> <p><strong>7. Minnesota Timberwolves – Jonathan Isaac – SF – Florida State Seminoles</strong> – Isaac would be a great complement to Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. He’s a stretch-four who can come in and protect the rim. I can see him taken a few picks earlier than #7 as well. His stock is rising.</p> <p><strong>8. New York Knicks – Dennis Smith Jr. – PG – NC State Wolfpack</strong> – Smith was a one-man machine at NC State last year. The rest of the team wasn’t very good, so they fell short of making the NCAA Tournament. The Knicks need someone to replace Derrick Rose. I could also see them draft Lauri Markkanen to pair with Porzingis, but I think Smith will be their guy.</p> <p><strong>9. Dallas Mavericks – Lauri Markkanen – PF – Arizona Wildcats</strong> – The Mavericks could have the next Dirk Nowitzki with Markkanen. He’s seven-foot-tall with deep range. He may need to beef up his lower body to be effective in the low-post.</p> <p><strong>10. Sacramento Kings – Frank Ntilikina – PG – France</strong> – I know the Kings already drafted point guard Fox in the first round, but doesn’t it sound like something the Kings would do? Ntilikina is very young and could grow on a roster that is very shallow and raw. He needs to hit the gym to turn his body into an NBA body.</p> <p><strong>11. Charlotte Hornets – Justin Jackson – SF – North Carolina Tar Heels</strong> – The temptation for Michael Jordan to draft a Tar Heel every year must be very high. He has mostly avoided many Tar Heels since Sean May, but Jackson would be a nice pick here. They need a slasher and Jackson is mostly just a slasher right now. He will need to work on his jumper and range.</p> <p><strong>12. Detroit Pistons – Donovan Mitchell – SG – Louisville Cardinals</strong> – The comp for Mitchell has been Victor Oladipo with better ball control. I think that’s a fair comparison. Mitchell is NBA-ready and will be immediately effective on defense.</p> <p><strong>13. Denver Nuggets – OG Anunoby – SF – Indiana Hoosiers</strong> – Anunoby has the biggest range to where he’s expected to be selected in the draft. I think #13 is the earliest he could be taken and I could even see him slip into the late 40’s. It might suit the Nuggets to trade back. The Nuggets need perimeter defense, but I’m not sure they can get it here unless they pick Anunoby.</p> <p><strong>14. Miami Heat – Ivan Rabb – PF – California Golden Bears</strong> – Rabb is another guy who has a big range where he could be drafted. He should be a first-rounder and this is about the earliest I’ve seen him in any draft. I love Rabb during his freshman season, but I didn’t see a ton of him last year. He did add some weight and became a better shooter. Rabb would be a nice replacement for Chris Bosh.</p> <p><strong>15. Portland Trailblazers – Zach Collins – C – Gonzaga Bulldogs</strong> – Portland acquired Jusuf Nurkic and flourished. I would see Collins being effective playing next to him. The Blazers would have a fantastic interior defense.</p> <p><strong>16. Chicago Bulls – Luke Kennard – SG – Duke Blue Devils</strong> – The Bulls need someone to play with Jimmy Butler. Kennard could create space for Butler. He has insane range and can drive the basket as well.</p> <p><strong>17. Milwaukee Bucks – Jarrett Allen – C – Texas Longhorns</strong> – The Bucks couldn’t decide which center they liked the most last season. John Henson and Greg Monroe took turns starting. They need Allen to develop into a NBA-ready center. He’s a big guy who has length and is athletic.</p> <p><strong>18. Indiana Pacers – John Collins – C – Wake Forest Demon Deacons</strong> – Collins does all his magic at the rim on offense and defense. He is a very good rebounder and had the highest PER in college basketball last season. He works hard for rebounds and should work very well with Myles Turner.</p> <p><strong>19. Atlanta Hawks – Harry Giles – C – Duke Blue Devils</strong> – Giles didn’t make much of an impression at Duke. He missed a ton of games and didn’t look healthy until near the end of the season. I do worry about his knees. He was once the top prospect in this past freshman class. It is a little of a gamble and could be taken by a team with more than one first round pick.</p> <p><strong>20. Portland Trailblazers – Hamidou Diallo – SG – High School</strong> – Okay, I know very little about Diallo. He was planning on going to Kentucky, but was able to enter the draft due to him turning 19 before the season. He has a 44 1/2 inch vertical leap, so a lot of teams are giving him a look. I thought Thon Maker was a late-first round pick last season, but jumped up due to mystery. Diallo could have the same luck and be picked in the lottery.</p> <p><strong>21. Oklahoma City Thunder – Terrance Ferguson – SG – Adelaide (NBL)</strong> – Ferguson skipped college and played overseas for a season after high school. He has all the physical abilities and is a much better shooter than expected. He could open up space for Russell Westbrook once teams fear Ferguson’s shooting depth.</p> <p><strong>22. Brooklyn Nets – Justin Patton – C – Creighton Bluejays</strong> – If Patton is there at #22, I think the Nets will pool the trigger. I heard they like T.J. Leaf as well, but Patton could become a very good big man. Brooklyn is struggling for prospects after swapping first round picks with Boston for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett. That trade will doom them and they won’t be competitive for a few more years.</p> <p><strong>23. Toronto Raptors – Bam Adebayo – C – Kentucky Wildcats</strong> – The Raptors need to replace Serge Ibaka, who will be a free agent this Summer. Adebayo is a great rebounder and can score points in the paint.</p> <p><strong>24. Utah Jazz – Jonathan Jeanne – C – France</strong> – Do the Jazz draft another Rudy Gobert? Jeanne is 7’2 with the biggest wingspan in the draft at 7’6 1/2. I haven’t heard if Jeanne is expected to play in the NBA next season or play another season in Europe. The Jazz could have a steal if he turns into 75% of what Gobert has become.</p> <p><strong>25. Orlando Magic – Ike Anigbogu – C – UCLA Bruins</strong> – Anigbogu didn’t get the ball a lot with Lonzo Ball and T.J. Leaf on the court. Anigbogu has some low-post skills and is excellent on the offensive glass.</p> <p><strong>26. Portland Trailblazers – Tyler Lydon – SF – Syracuse Orange</strong> – Lydon would be a very good bench player right out of the gate. He would need to add muscle to be a starter. He can do a little bit of everything, but isn’t elite at anything.</p> <p><strong>27. Brooklyn Nets – T.J. Leaf – PF – UCLA Bruins</strong> – Leaf could go much earlier than this, but this draft is filled with guys with his skill-set. He could be a nice stretch-four for a team. He could develop even more with the Nets. He will get minutes immediately starting in October.</p> <p><strong>28. Los Angeles Lakers – Jordan Bell – PF – Oregon Ducks</strong> – Bell has quick feet and is one of the best defensive big man in this draft. He put up a few crooked numbers in the blocks column last year. He has the skills to do the same in the NBA.</p> <p><strong>29. San Antonio Spurs – D.J. Wilson – PF – Michigan Wolverines</strong> – I love Wilson. It took him a little time to develop, but he is a good rebounder, scorer and underrated passer. Michigan wouldn’t have made it to the NCAA Tournament without Wilson’s play in the Big Ten Tournament. He should go earlier, but the Spurs always end up with a good player at the end of most NBA Drafts.</p> <p><strong>30. Utah Jazz – Semi Ojeleye – SF – SMU Mustangs</strong> – Ojeleye has an NBA body and is fast. He had one of the best 3/4 court sprints at 244 pounds. He has deep range and would be a coup if he fell to the Jazz at #30.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p> </p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&linkname=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2017%2F05%2F24%2Famericas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft%2F&title=%E2%80%98America%E2%80%99s%20White%20Boy%E2%80%99%202017%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/05/24/americas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft/" data-a2a-title="‘America’s White Boy’ 2017 NBA Mock Draft"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2017/05/24/americas-white-boy-2017-nba-mock-draft/">‘America’s White Boy’ 2017 NBA Mock Draft</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">11898</post-id> </item> <item> <title>‘2016-17 NBA Rookie of the Year’ Betting Odds</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/19/2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 19 Oct 2016 15:35:41 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Ben Simmons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Buddy Hield]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dario Saric]]></category> <category><![CDATA[gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Joel Embiid]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kris Dunn]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[minnesota timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[New Orleans Pelicans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Philadelphia 76ers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[phoenix suns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[prop bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports betting]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[basketball]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Brandon Ingram]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Marquese Chriss]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Minnesota Timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Phoenix Suns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Prop Bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Rookie of the Year]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=11076</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>This year’s field for Rookie of the Year is wide-open in the NBA after #1 overall pick Ben Simmons suffered a season-threatening foot injury this preseason. In order to be a true Rookie of the Year candidate, you need to be able to accumulate the kind of ‘sexy’ stats like points and rebounds. It also […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/19/2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds/">‘2016-17 NBA Rookie of the Year’ Betting Odds</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/marquese-chriss-phoenix-suns-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds-NBA.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-11078"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-11078" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/marquese-chriss-phoenix-suns-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds-NBA.jpg" alt="marquese-chriss-phoenix-suns-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds-nba" width="333" height="428" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/marquese-chriss-phoenix-suns-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds-NBA.jpg 417w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/marquese-chriss-phoenix-suns-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds-NBA-233x300.jpg 233w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>This year’s field for Rookie of the Year is wide-open in the NBA after #1 overall pick Ben Simmons suffered a season-threatening foot injury this preseason.</p> <p>In order to be a true Rookie of the Year candidate, you need to be able to accumulate the kind of ‘sexy’ stats like points and rebounds. It also helps if your team improves by double-digit wins.</p> <p>I don’t think defense-first players can truly win a rookie award, since voters are mostly just looking at the ‘back of the basketball card’ stats.</p> <p>Will one of the Philadelphia Sixers win the Rookie of the Year award with Ben Simmons due to miss an extended amount of time?</p> <p><span id="more-11076"></span></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Buddy Hield</span> – <em>New Orleans Pelicans</em> – 7/2</strong></p> <p>Hield was a late-bloomer at Oklahoma and wasn’t a lights-out shooter the first time he stepped foot on campus. I think he will be the same kind of player in the NBA. I don’t see him winning the Rookie of the Year award, but could be an All-Star a few years into his career. I think his <a href="http://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/basketball/news/pelicans-buddy-hield-misses-all-six-three-point-attempts-tuesday/" target="_blank">shooting will be streaky</a> his rookie year.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Kris Dunn</span> – <em>Minnesota Timberwolves</em> – 4/1</strong></p> <p>Dunn is a guy who might be my favorite to win Rookie of the Year. People think <a href="http://hoopshabit.com/2016/10/19/minnesota-timberwolves-kris-dunn-starting-would-be-best/" target="_blank">he should start at point guard immediately</a> over incumbent Ricky Rubio. He’s a better shooter and could get some nice open looks with Andrew Wiggins on the wing and Karl-Anthony Towns in the paint.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Joel Embiid</span> – <em>Philadelphia 76ers</em> – 5/1</strong></p> <p>Embiid is coming off a career-threatening foot injury and also had back issues in college. I doubt we will see Embiid play in many back-to-back games with Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor sharing time in the front-court. The Sixers don’t need to rush Embiid and I don’t expect a huge year from him out of the gate.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Ben Simmons</span> – <em>Philadelphia 76ers</em> – 5/1</strong></p> <p>At the minimum, Simmons will miss three months of the season after undergoing surgery to repair a Jones fracture of a metatarsal on his right foot. There’s a quiet whisper that his agent may not want him to play at all since Jones fractures are slow to heal. If he does come back by February and no rookie has really done well, I guess it is conceivable he could still win ROY award, but I don’t think he will play much this season.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Brandon Ingram</span> – <em>Los Angeles Lakers</em> – 11/2</strong></p> <p>Ingram has a chance to be ‘the guy’ in Los Angeles after his teammates have all but labeled D’Angelo Russell a snitch. Ingram needs to gain about 30+ pounds to his thin frame to just be able to survive the long NBA season. I think he needs even more weight to be the kind of player the Lakers need him to be long-term. I don’t see him as a Rookie of the Year candidate.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Dario Saric</span> – <em>Philadelphia 76ers</em> – 16/1</strong></p> <p>Saric is an interesting candidate. He was a draft & stash player during ‘The Process’. He can play ‘point forward’ and if Simmons was healthy, Saric wouldn’t be used much in that role. He could really take advantage of the playing time while SImmons is out and win the Rookie of the Year.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Thon Maker</span> – <em>Milwaukee Bucks</em> – 20/1</strong></p> <p>Maker seemed to have come out of nowhere the year before the NBA Draft and he is still pretty much a mystery. Maker was a stud in Summer League, but he hasn’t put up very good numbers this preseason. He is getting double-digit minutes, but he still appears to be getting his footing in the NBA. His rookie year may just be a long transition period.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Jamal Murray</span> – <em>Denver Nuggets</em> – 20/1</strong></p> <p>If Gary Harris struggles with injuries this season, Murray will benefit from the extra playing time. Murray is a great shooter, so he could put up more points than a handful of players higher on this list, but I don’t think he’s more than just an outside darkhorse for the award.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Denzel Valentine</span> – <em>Chicago Bulls</em> – 20/1</strong></p> <p>Valentine is a good overall player, but he’s already dealing with a nagging ankle injury. I don’t think he excels in the kind of cumulative stats that could win him the ROY award.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Wade Baldwin IV</span> – <em>Memphis Grizzlies</em> – 28/1</strong></p> <p>Baldwin is a talented player, but Memphis has a backcourt logjam. It would be hard for Baldwin to be considered for a Rookie of the Year award unless Mike Conley goes down with a major injury.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Marquese Chriss</span> – <em>Phoenix Suns</em> – 28/1</strong></p> <p>Chriss might be my favorite long shot to win Rookie of the Year. The Suns don’t have a stacked frontcourt, so Chriss has succeeded this preseason. Brandon Knight and Eric Bledsoe are sure to feed him the ball. The more I write about him, the more I think he has a shot.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Kay Felder</span> – <em>Cleveland Cavaliers</em> – 50/1</strong></p> <p>Felder is fun to watch and he will get a lot of buzz due to more of a national audience watching his games (…because LeBron). Felder is already my pick to win the 2017 NBA Slam Dunk competition. I think he is barely on the radar for Rookie of the Year.</p> <h2><em id="__mceDel">Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</em></h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&linkname=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F19%2F2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds%2F&title=%E2%80%982016-17%20NBA%20Rookie%20of%20the%20Year%E2%80%99%20Betting%20Odds" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/19/2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds/" data-a2a-title="‘2016-17 NBA Rookie of the Year’ Betting Odds"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/19/2016-17-nba-rookie-of-the-year-betting-odds/">‘2016-17 NBA Rookie of the Year’ Betting Odds</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">11076</post-id> </item> <item> <title>NBA: Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/09/nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 09 Oct 2016 09:38:51 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Golden State Warriors]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[memphis grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[minnesota timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Oklahoma City Thunder]]></category> <category><![CDATA[portland trailblazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[prop bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[san antonio spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports betting]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[utah jazz]]></category> <category><![CDATA[basketball]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Gambling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memphis Grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Minnesota Timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Portland Trail Blazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Prop Bets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[San Antonio Spurs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Utah Jazz]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=11025</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The NBA regular season kicks off at the end of the month…and I can’t wait. The offseason seemed to be gone in a blink of an eye. A ton of money was thrown around and some players are a few pounds of cash heavier. NBA owners will want another ‘amnesty clause’ in the next CBA […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/09/nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/">NBA: Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NBA-2016-17-season-wins-over-under-funny-Western-Conference-basketball-old-guy.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-11026"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-11026" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NBA-2016-17-season-wins-over-under-funny-Western-Conference-basketball-old-guy.jpg" alt="nba-2016-17-season-wins-over-under-funny-western-conference-basketball-old-guy" width="333" height="421" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NBA-2016-17-season-wins-over-under-funny-Western-Conference-basketball-old-guy.jpg 536w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/NBA-2016-17-season-wins-over-under-funny-Western-Conference-basketball-old-guy-237x300.jpg 237w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>The NBA regular season kicks off at the end of the month…and I can’t wait.</p> <p>The offseason seemed to be gone in a blink of an eye. A ton of money was thrown around and some players are a few pounds of cash heavier.</p> <p>NBA owners will want another ‘amnesty clause’ in the next CBA to bail themselves out from some of these deals. There are some guys who should have been wearing ski masks when signing their new deals.</p> <p>The Golden State Warriors won the Western Conference last season and are early favorites to repeat this season. Any sleepers out there worth a bet?</p> <p><span id="more-11025"></span>Here are our over/under season wins total picks for the NBA’s Western Conference.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Dallas Mavericks</span> – 38 1/2 Wins – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I guess anything could happen when you have PF Dirk Nowitzki on your roster, but the Mavericks aren’t very deep. I also don’t like the SF Harrison Barnes signing. If you piece that with them losing SF Chandler Parsons, this team looks like just a below-average Western Conference team.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Denver Nuggets</span> – 37 – <i>OVER</i></strong></p> <p>The Nuggets won 33 games last season and I can see them winning a few more games this season. If they can get at least 75 games from a healthy SF Danilo Gallinari, the Nuggets could almost be a .500 team. I think this is an over, but it’s close.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Golden State Warriors</span> – 66 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Warriors added megastar SF Kevin Durant this offseason, so I have a feeling the Warriors will once again win 70+ games this season. I have no qualms about this pick at all.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Houston Rockets</span> – 44 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Rockets were a .500 team with Dwight Howard and will probably have the same record without him. They should be a pretty good three-point shooting team, but nothing else catches my eye.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Los Angeles Clippers</span> – 53 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Clippers are roughly the same team as last year. They are a perennial 56-win team, so that’s where they will probably end up again.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Los Angeles Lakers</span>– 24 1/2 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>The Lakers are a team in transition. Kobe Bryant is retired and the Lakers are just a team full of young dudes. Many thought PG D’Angelo Russell should be the team leader, but from all reports, <a href="http://thebiglead.com/2016/03/30/dangelo-russell-nick-young-secret-recording-iggy-azalea/" target="_blank">his teammates hate him</a> for being a snitch. The Lakers have some pieces, but the Lakers should probably bottom-out again to get another top lottery pick.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Memphis Grizzlies</span> – 42 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Grizzlies were killed by the injury bug last season and still managed to win 42 games. It’s nearly impossible for the team to have that many injuries again this year. I think this is an automatic over in my eyes.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Minnesota Timberwolves</span> – 40 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Twolves are a fun team to watch. They are sound for a defense as young as they are and are great on the fast break. I think Minnesota will make a big jump this season.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">New Orleans Pelicans</span> – 37 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I want to like the Pelicans since my boy Lance Stephenson signed there this offseason. I wish he was back on the Pacers so I can watch him with ease. The Pelicans aren’t very deep and to win 37 wins in the NBA this season, you need a little more depth.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Oklahoma City Thunder</span> – 43 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>The Thunder will be without SF Kevin Durant and PF Serge Ibaka this season. They are attempting to replace those men with SG Victor Oladipo, PF Ersan Ilyasova and rookie PF Domantas Sabonis. Oh man, it could be a long season. As long as PG Russell Westbrook stays healthy, I think this team can still win 44+ games. I worry about his health since he doesn’t have much help. I am counting on C Steven Adams to take another leap in his development.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Phoenix Suns</span> – 30 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I should love this team since I’m a fan of Kentucky basketball. The Suns have five ex-Kentucky players on this team. Unfortunately for the Suns, all of them are guards and you can’t play them all at the same time. There’s no way this team wins 30 games this season.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Portland Trail Blazers</span> – 45 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>I’m on the Portland bandwagon! I have loved SG C.J. McCollum since college and he’s such a pure scorer. He’s exactly the kind of wing player PG Damian Lillard needs to push the Blazers into the postseason. I like a lot of the young pieces on Portland like SG Allen Crabbe and C Meyers Leonard.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Sacramento Kings</span> – 34 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>I really hate to bury the Kings again, but what the hell is this team doing? They have a great center in DeMarcus Cousins, a sold wing Rudy Gay and they reunited the 2007 UCLA backcourt duo of Darren Collins and Arron Afflalo…but that’s about it. They have too many front-court players on their roster during a time in which real NBA contenders are trying to play small ball. Can they just fire their owner?</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">San Antonio Spurs</span> – 58 1/2 – <em>OVER</em></strong></p> <p>Tim Duncan retired this offseason and the Spurs did a solid job by signing C Pau Gasol and PF David Lee to replace him. The Spurs won 67 games last year while they battled the Warriors for the best record in the NBA. I don’t think they will focus as much on trying to get homecourt in the Western Conference…although they will win 59+ games.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Utah Jazz</span> – 49 – <em>UNDER</em></strong></p> <p>Utah is an improved team after acquiring PG George Hill, SF Joe Johnson and C Boris Diaw. I also think players like SG Rodney Hood and PG Dante Exum will improve on the court. A nine-win jump is a pretty big jump. I think they will come a win or two short of 49 wins.</p> <h2><em id="__mceDel">Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</em></h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&linkname=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F10%2F09%2Fnba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference%2F&title=NBA%3A%20Season%20Wins%20Over%2FUnder%20%E2%80%93%20Western%20Conference" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/09/nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/" data-a2a-title="NBA: Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/10/09/nba-season-wins-overunder-western-conference/">NBA: Season Wins Over/Under – Western Conference</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">11025</post-id> </item> <item> <title>The Ten Worst NBA Contracts Signed this Offseason (So Far)</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/</link> <comments>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/#comments</comments> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2016 18:53:29 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Austin Rivers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Evan Turner]]></category> <category><![CDATA[harrison barnes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[memphis grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[miami heat]]></category> <category><![CDATA[mike conley]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[New Orleans Pelicans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[portland trailblazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[free agents]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Harrison Barnes]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Hassan Whiteside]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Hot Stove]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Luol Deng]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memphis Grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Miami Heat]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mike Conley]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Offseason]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Portland Trail Blazers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Solomon Hill]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=10750</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>We knew this NBA offseason would have a lot of buzz since many top players would hit free agency on July 1st and the fact that the salary cap will hit a historic high of $94.143 million for the 2016-17 season. Even though we expected a lot of money to be thrown around, it just […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/">The Ten Worst NBA Contracts Signed this Offseason (So Far)</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Solomon-Hill-2016-NBA-offseason-bad-contracts.jpg" rel="attachment wp-att-10751"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-10751" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Solomon-Hill-2016-NBA-offseason-bad-contracts.jpg" alt="Solomon Hill 2016 NBA offseason bad contracts" width="333" height="395" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Solomon-Hill-2016-NBA-offseason-bad-contracts.jpg 575w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Solomon-Hill-2016-NBA-offseason-bad-contracts-253x300.jpg 253w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 333px) 100vw, 333px" /></a>We knew this NBA offseason would have a lot of buzz since many top players would hit free agency on July 1st and the fact that the salary cap will hit a historic high of $94.143 million for the 2016-17 season.</p> <p>Even though we expected a lot of money to be thrown around, it just didn’t really sink in until we saw the quality of players getting such huge contracts.</p> <p>This list isn’t an indictment on the players getting literally a ton of cash, but an indictment on the owners spending frivolously. I guarantee their actions during the first few days of the 2016 NBA offseason will make them cry poor when this labor agreement expires. I have a feeling they may need another amnesty clause if spending continues this recklessly.</p> <p><span id="more-10750"></span></p> <p><strong>1. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Solomon Hill (4 years/$48 million)</span> – <em>New Orleans Pelicans </em></strong>– The <a href="http://www.indycornrows.com/2015/11/2/9659908/report-pacers-decide-not-to-exercise-solomon-hills-fourth-year-player" target="_blank">Indiana Pacers declined the team option on Solomon Hill</a> before the start of last season. The option would have only paid Hill $2.3 million for the 2016-17 season. Hill languished on the bench all last season for the Pacers. He never really got much action until the postseason. The Pelicans still wanted to spend $12 million a season for a player that can’t dribble, rebound or shoot consistently.</p> <p><strong>2. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Bismack Biyombo (4 years/$72 million)</span> – <em>Orlando Magic</em></strong> – Biyombo has been compared to Serge Ibaka since he was drafted in 2011. Well, he will finally gets to play next to him this season in Orlando. Biyombo is another player that got paid from his short playoff performance. I’m not a fan of paying up for a small window of high-quality play. It’s too much of a risk. I really dislike this contract for Orlando.</p> <p><strong>3. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Evan Turner (4 years/$70 milion)</span> – <em>Portland Trail Blazers</em></strong> – I almost put Turner #1 on this list, but I decided that Hill and Biyombo just slightly deserved to be ranked higher. Why would anyone pay Turner this much money to play basketball? He did have his best overall shooting season of his career, but his game has way too many holes to be getting paid this much money. Portland rarely makes many mistakes in free agency, so this signing still confuses me.</p> <p><strong>4. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Tyler Johnson (4 years/$50 million)</span> – <em>Brooklyn Nets</em></strong> – First off, Johnson is a great NBA story. He worked hard after going undrafted and after two seasons of part-time success, he is getting a huge payday. Johnson has only started seven NBA games in his career and has only appeared in 68 games total. Even if NBA scouts love his tools, ‘prospects’ don’t get paid this kind of money. (At the time of this post, the Nets have just <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources--nets-to-sign-tyler-johnson-to--50m-offer-sheet-145854260.html" target="_blank">signed Johnson to an offer sheet</a>. The Miami Heat can match, but the offer has a poison pill in it, so I doubt they can afford to match).</p> <p><strong>5. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Austin Rivers (3 years/$35 million)</span> – <em>Los Angeles Clippers</em></strong> – Austin Rivers is awful. He only got this payday because his daddy is in control of the roster. Rivers wouldn’t even sniff the rotation on any team other than the Brooklyn Nets and Clippers.</p> <p><strong>6. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Harrison Barnes (4 years/$94 million)</span> – <em>Dallas Mavericks</em></strong> – It’s easy to look good when you’re playing on a super stacked team. Barnes only looked good in about half the games he played for Golden State last season. He was <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/2016/6/18/11965612/harrison-barnes-statistics-bad-warriors-nba-finals-2016" target="_blank">beyond awful in the NBA Finals</a>. This signing won’t get Dirk another ring in Dallas.</p> <p><strong>7. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Hassan Whiteside (4 years/$98 million)</span> – <em>Miami Heat</em></strong> – Whiteside bounced around the world after being drafted by the Kings years ago and getting cut. His defense is what brought him back into the league. He has done really well in his short time with the Heat. He’s not worth this type of cap hit. Teams are playing smaller and starting Whiteside may not be beneficial against a handful of NBA teams. You need to be effective against every team in the league if you’re making nearly $25 million a season.</p> <p><strong>8. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Matthew Dellavedova (4 years/$38 million)</span> – <em>Milwaukee Bucks</em></strong> – Dellavedova made a name for himself during the 2015 NBA Playoffs. There were high hopes for him heading into last season, but he didn’t live up to his play in the previous year’s postseason. He was barely in the rotation near the end of this year’s championship run. He’s a ‘three and D’ player and I don’t know about paying a guy like that nearly $10 million a season.</p> <p><strong>9. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Luol Deng (4 years/$72 million)</span> – <em>Los Angeles Lakers</em></strong> – Deng’s numbers have declined in nearly every season since he was traded from the Chicago Bulls. The Lakers do need veteran leadership and Deng will bring it…but at a steep premium.</p> <p><strong>10. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Mike Conley (5 years/$153 million)</span> – <em>Memphis Grizzlies</em></strong> – I don’t hate, hate this signing like I do the others, but since this is the biggest contract in NBA history…and it was given to Mike Conley, means it’s automatically in the top ten. Conley turned out to be a much better pro than I thought he’d be when he left school a year or two too early. Unless you’re a top ten player in the league, I don’t condone spending 1/3 of your salary cap on said player.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&linkname=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2016%2F07%2F05%2Fthe-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far%2F&title=The%20Ten%20Worst%20NBA%20Contracts%20Signed%20this%20Offseason%20%28So%20Far%29" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/" data-a2a-title="The Ten Worst NBA Contracts Signed this Offseason (So Far)"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/">The Ten Worst NBA Contracts Signed this Offseason (So Far)</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <wfw:commentRss>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2016/07/05/the-ten-worst-nba-contracts-signed-this-offseason-so-far/feed/</wfw:commentRss> <slash:comments>2</slash:comments> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">10750</post-id> </item> <item> <title>It’s Okay to be Happy about the Roy Hibbert Trade</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/07/06/its-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 06 Jul 2015 08:46:02 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[indiana pacers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Paul George]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Roy Hibbert]]></category> <category><![CDATA[trade]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=9745</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>I’ve been an Indiana Pacers fan as long as I can remember. It was great during the Reggie Miller years, but after the ‘Malice at the Palace’, it became really difficult. Not only is your favorite team look at as ‘thugs’, but the years after it was just a mess. After years of drafting ‘high […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/07/06/its-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade/">It’s Okay to be Happy about the Roy Hibbert Trade</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/roy-hibbert-funny-indiana-pacers-trade.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-9746 alignright" alt="roy hibbert funny indiana pacers trade" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/roy-hibbert-funny-indiana-pacers-trade.jpg" width="326" height="402" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/roy-hibbert-funny-indiana-pacers-trade.jpg 517w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/roy-hibbert-funny-indiana-pacers-trade-243x300.jpg 243w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 326px) 100vw, 326px" /></a>I’ve been an Indiana Pacers fan as long as I can remember. It was great during the Reggie Miller years, but after the <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2014/11/16/pistons-malice-palace-brawl-commissioner-artest-adam-silver/19138239/" target="_blank">‘Malice at the Palace’</a>, it became really difficult. Not only is your favorite team look at as ‘thugs’, but the years after it was just a mess.</p> <p>After years of drafting ‘high character’ guys and signing ‘safe’ players, things finally turned around for the Pacers when they were lucky enough to draft Roy Hibbert, Paul George and Lance Stephenson. Things didn’t work out with Lance in the long-term, but there was hope for George and Hibbert to be a part of the team for a long time.</p> <p>Well, everything went bad in a hurry.</p> <p><span id="more-9745"></span>I’m here to tell you that even though Hibbert was a big part of the Pacers recent success, it’s okay to be happy he’s no longer on the team. It doesn’t make you a fair-weather fan.</p> <p>Professional sports is big business. Yes, you get attached to players since they bring so much joy as a fan, but sometimes you just have to detach yourself, fast, like ripping off a band-aid.</p> <p>Hibbert had some <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIVyhx8e-Jw" target="_blank">big moments</a>, but let’s not forget his <a href="http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/04/roy-hibbert-benched-indiana-pacers-playoffs" target="_blank">horrible play during the 2014 postseason</a>. He just pouted that he wasn’t getting the ball much. Fingers were pointed at Lance Stephenson for all the chemistry issues, but Hibbert’s thin skin could have been the main issue.</p> <p>The Pacers won’t get much in return in the <a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/07/04/report-lakers-actively-discussing-trade-for-roy-hibbert-with-pacers/" target="_blank">Roy Hibbert trade</a> (probably 2nd rounders and European guys that will never sniff the NBA), but their real return is cap space. They were able to sign Monta Ellis and re-sign Rodney Stuckey and LaVoy Allen.</p> <p>Contrary to the picture <a href="http://www.si.com/nba/2015/07/02/indiana-pacers-david-west-free-agency" target="_blank">David West painted of the franchise</a>, the future is bright in Indiana. Paul George will be healthy and the new up-tempo pace fits more his style. I also believe first-round draft pick Myles Turner could turn out to be the steal of the draft. He has nice range and can space the floor.</p> <p>I agree with <a href="http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2015/07/04/doyel-roy-hibbert-trade-biggest-win-pacers-offseason/29719423/" target="_blank">Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel</a>, the Hibbert trade is the biggest move the Pacers could have made this offseason. I believe it’s a bigger transaction than the Spurs signing of LaMarcus Aldridge. This trade will have a bigger overall impact. You’d be amazed how much a team can improve when you simply rid themselves of a player that didn’t want to be there.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em></em><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&linkname=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F07%2F06%2Fits-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade%2F&title=It%E2%80%99s%20Okay%20to%20be%20Happy%20about%20the%20Roy%20Hibbert%20Trade" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/07/06/its-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade/" data-a2a-title="It’s Okay to be Happy about the Roy Hibbert Trade"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/07/06/its-okay-to-be-happy-about-the-roy-hibbert-trade/">It’s Okay to be Happy about the Roy Hibbert Trade</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">9745</post-id> </item> <item> <title>Are the Lakers Planning a Big Move this Offseason?</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/30/are-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 30 Jun 2015 13:11:18 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[D'Angelo Russell]]></category> <category><![CDATA[DeMarcus Cousins]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Goran Dragic]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Julius Randle]]></category> <category><![CDATA[kevin love]]></category> <category><![CDATA[kobe bryant]]></category> <category><![CDATA[lamarcus aldridge]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kevin Love]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kobe Bryant]]></category> <category><![CDATA[LaMarcus Aldridge]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=9721</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The Los Angeles Lakers were an embarrassment last season. After major injuries to Julius Randle and Kobe Bryant, the roster was full of D-League talent and aging veterans. If you pay close attention to sports betting odds, the current outlook for next season doesn’t look great either. The Lakers are not used to being in […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/30/are-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason/">Are the Lakers Planning a Big Move this Offseason?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/kobe-bryant-los-angeles-lakers-lamarcus-aldridge-nba-demarcus-cousins-kevin-love-goran-dragic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-9722 alignright" alt="kobe bryant los angeles lakers lamarcus aldridge nba demarcus cousins kevin love goran dragic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/kobe-bryant-los-angeles-lakers-lamarcus-aldridge-nba-demarcus-cousins-kevin-love-goran-dragic.jpg" width="331" height="480" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/kobe-bryant-los-angeles-lakers-lamarcus-aldridge-nba-demarcus-cousins-kevin-love-goran-dragic.jpg 460w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/kobe-bryant-los-angeles-lakers-lamarcus-aldridge-nba-demarcus-cousins-kevin-love-goran-dragic-207x300.jpg 207w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 331px) 100vw, 331px" /></a>The Los Angeles Lakers were an embarrassment last season. After major injuries to Julius Randle and Kobe Bryant, the roster was full of D-League talent and aging veterans. If you pay close attention to <a href="http://www.sportshandicapper.com/live-odds-comparison/" target="_blank">sports betting odds</a>, the current outlook for next season doesn’t look great either.</p> <p>The Lakers are not used to being in this position. They always just restock instead of doing a long-term rebuild. Kobe doesn’t have much time left, so he is certainly in management’s ear in hopes of winning one more title to tie <a href="http://www.landofbasketball.com/championships/players_with_most_titles.htm" target="_blank">Michael Jordan’s ring count</a>.</p> <p>They are now trying to free up enough cap space to make a run at some of this offseason’s top free agents. They gained $9 million more by <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources--lakers-jordan-hill-163456728.html" target="_blank">declining Jordan Hill’s team option</a>.</p> <p>Which free agents are the Lakers targeting this Summer?</p> <p><span id="more-9721"></span>There’s been a lot of chatter regarding a possible DeMarcus Cousins trade to L.A., but the <a href="https://twitter.com/mr_jasonjones/status/615583081123069953" target="_blank">Kings don’t appear to be ready to move their biggest star</a>. It will be an interesting couple weeks since <a href="http://www.si.com/nba/2015/06/29/kings-lakers-demarcus-cousins-trade" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated still believes</a> the talks are on-going. They could trade #2 overall pick D’Angelo Russell for Cousins. I will believe it when I see it. The Lakers need more than just Cousins to turn the team around.</p> <p>The biggest offseason splash they could make is signing LaMarcus Aldridge. He already owns a home in Orange County and playing in a bigger market appeals to him (maybe he wants to appear on shows more popular than <em>Portlandia</em>). The Lakers and Rockets appear to be the <a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/06/29/report-lamarcus-aldridge-leaning-toward-signing-with-lakers/" target="_blank">top teams in the race to sign Aldridge</a>.</p> <p>If the Lakers sign Aldridge, trading for Cousins would make more sense. A ‘big three’ of Aldridge, Cousins and Kobe would be interesting. They would need to free up some more cap space to make it work.</p> <p>Other free agents that could end up in Los Angeles are Kevin Love and Goran Dragic, but both could be long-shots. Love did opt-out in Cleveland, but looks like he could be headed back there once LeBron James makes it official that he’s coming back as well. As far as Dragic is concerned, Miami will make it their top priority to get him to stay there now that Dwayne Wade opted out.</p> <p>The Lakers could gift Kobe a team capable of one more shot at a ring…but would cost them long-term if they trade young talent like Russell or Randle to make it happen.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em></em><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&linkname=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F30%2Fare-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason%2F&title=Are%20the%20Lakers%20Planning%20a%20Big%20Move%20this%20Offseason%3F" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/30/are-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason/" data-a2a-title="Are the Lakers Planning a Big Move this Offseason?"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/30/are-the-lakers-planning-a-big-move-this-offseason/">Are the Lakers Planning a Big Move this Offseason?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">9721</post-id> </item> <item> <title>2015 NBA Mock Draft: Early Lottery Edition</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/02/2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2015 07:31:16 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[D'Angelo Russell]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Jahlil Okafor]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Karl Towns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[minnesota timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[mock draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba lottery]]></category> <category><![CDATA[new york knicks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Philadelphia 76ers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[2015 NBA Draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Emmanuel Mudiay]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Justise Winslow]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Karl-Anthony Towns]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mario Hezonja]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Minnesota Timberwolves]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA Draft]]></category> <category><![CDATA[New York Knicks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Trade Rumors]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Willie Cauley-Stein]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=9612</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>The 2015 NBA Draft has been hyped as a two-man draft with the top prizes being Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke’s Jahlil Okafor. I believe both big men will go onto have nice NBA careers, but this draft is deeper than most people think. I believe Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell and Duke’s Justise Winslow could […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/02/2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition/">2015 NBA Mock Draft: Early Lottery Edition</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Karl-Anthony-Towns-2015-NBA-Mock-Draft-Kentucky-Wildcats-Jahlil-Okafor.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-9613 alignright" alt="Karl-Anthony Towns 2015 NBA Mock Draft Kentucky Wildcats Jahlil Okafor" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Karl-Anthony-Towns-2015-NBA-Mock-Draft-Kentucky-Wildcats-Jahlil-Okafor.jpg" width="323" height="509" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Karl-Anthony-Towns-2015-NBA-Mock-Draft-Kentucky-Wildcats-Jahlil-Okafor.jpg 404w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Karl-Anthony-Towns-2015-NBA-Mock-Draft-Kentucky-Wildcats-Jahlil-Okafor-190x300.jpg 190w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 323px) 100vw, 323px" /></a>The 2015 NBA Draft has been hyped as a two-man draft with the top prizes being Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke’s Jahlil Okafor. I believe both big men will go onto have nice NBA careers, but this draft is deeper than most people think.</p> <p>I believe Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell and Duke’s Justise Winslow could both be future NBA All-Stars…but just like any other player, they need to be in the right situation to develop.</p> <p>Don’t worry international basketball fans, there’s plenty of overseas talent in this year’s draft. You have Croatian Mario Hezonja and Latvian Kristaps Prozingis as the top talents from Europe. Also, there’s an American high schooler Emmanuel Mudiay who went to China in lieu of going to college.</p> <p>Here’s our early 2015 NBA mock draft for the NBA lottery selection.</p> <p><span id="more-9612"></span></p> <p><strong>1. </strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em>Minnesota Timberwolves: Karl-Anthony Towns</em></strong><strong><em> (Kentucky)</em></strong></span><em> </em>– Duke’s Jahlil Oakfor played well enough in his freshman season at Duke to be the #1 pick, but Towns has the skills to be a more well-rounded offensive player than Okafor. There’s still some mystique that surrounds Towns since we didn’t see enough of him last year. Kentucky’s deep bench allowed them to sub guys in and out a lot. It’s rare these days to have a top freshman with any mystique left after being overexposed in college. It’s crazy to think Minnesota will have the last three #1 overall picks on their roster.</p> <p><strong>2. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Los Angeles Lakers: Jahlil Okafor (Duke)</em></span></strong><em> </em>– Just when you think the Lakers are done, something always happens and they bounce back on their feet. First it was trading for Kobe during the 1996 NBA Draft, then the lop-sided Pau Gasol trade and now Okafor. He’s the kind of low-post player that would help complement last year’s pick Julius Randle. If they land Okafor, the Lakers could send Kobe off with at least one more winning season before he retires.</p> <p><strong>3. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Philadelphia 76ers: D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State)</em></span></strong> – You never know what the Sixers are bound to do with this pick. They appear to be on a ten-year plan by picking players that are either injured and not ready to plan or foreign players they want to stash overseas. Russell is the kind of player that could keep them competitive, but do they even want that? They seem to want to tank every year. Emmanuel Mudiay could also be an option here.</p> <p><strong>4. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>New York Knicks: Emmanuel Mudiay (China)</em></span></strong> – Phil Jackson needs a dependable point guard to help run the triangle in New York. Mudiay has nice size for a point guard (6’5) and could help get the double-teams off Carmelo Anthony. He could develop into a point guard like Jrue Holiday, but needs a couple years to possibly to get to that level. Derek Fisher will have fun molding him into the point guard he needs playing next to Melo.</p> <p><strong>5. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Orlando Magic: Mario Hezonja (Croatia)</em></span></strong><em> </em>– Why would Orlando draft another guard after drafting Elfrid Payton and Victor Oladipo? Hezonja is excellent on the offensive end…he’s also 6’8, so he could defend small forwards. Orlando was one of the worst scoring teams in the NBA last season. They couldn’t take advantage of scoring opportunities and Hezonja will help them greatly in that area.</p> <p><strong>6. <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Sacramento Kings</span><em><span style="text-decoration: underline;">: Willie Cauley-Stein (Kentucky)</span> </em></strong>– The Kings could deal DeMarcus Cousins and still end up with Cauley-Stein to replace him. Cousins needs a change of scenery and on many nights, he looks like <a href="http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/02/demarcus-cousins-defense" target="_blank">he doesn’t care to play defense</a>.</p> <p><strong>7. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Denver Nuggets: Justise Winslow (Duke)</em></span></strong> – If Winslow slips down to Denver, they could get quite the steal. He has the ability to play defense right away while developing his offensive game on the job. He would be the best player on the board at this point.</p> <p><strong>8. <em><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Detroit Pistons: Kristaps Prozingus (Latvia)</span> </em></strong>– If Greg Monroe stays in Detroit, they could end up with one of the biggest front-courts in the NBA. They might be one of my sleeper picks to make noise in the East next season. Remember, Brandon Jennings was playing as well as any point guard in the NBA when he went down with a torn Achilles.</p> <p><strong>9. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Charlotte Hornets: Stanley Johnson (Arizona)</em></span> </strong>– Can Charlotte afford to pick Michael Kidd-Gilchrist 2.0 at #9? Johnson is a carbon copy of MKG coming out of college. Johnson did shoot better than expected at Arizona, but I’m not sure about his fit. Charlotte would end up having three solid defenders and wings would have a lot of trouble against them with MKG, Johnson and Lance Stephenson all on the court at the same time. I guess I’m more intrigued to see how well it translates on the court.</p> <p><strong>10. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Miami Heat: Kelly Oubre (Kansas)</em></span></strong> – The emergence of Hassan Whiteside has the Heat looking for a two-way player with scoring ability instead of a center. They could pass on someone like Myles Turner and go with Oubre. The Heat will need to build their team through the draft and Oubre could be productive right away.</p> <p><strong>11. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Indiana Pacers: Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin)</em></span></strong> – Turner could be an option here, but doesn’t Kaminsky look like a guy Larry Bird would love? The Pacers started playing a smaller lineup late in the season and the need for a big man like Hibbert at center is no longer a priority. They hope Hibbert will opt-out of his contract, but I expect him to stay…he’s not getting what he’s being paid anywhere else. Kaminsky has a nice outside-shot and can also get to the hoop. I want to see him on the Pacers.</p> <p><strong>12. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Utah Jazz: Myles Turner (Texas)</em></span></strong> – I believe Turner will be drafted at #12, but Utah won’t be the team drafting the big man. Utah has Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors, so there’s no need for Turner. A team will want to jump up to this spot for him.</p> <p><strong>13. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Phoenix Suns: Bobby Portis (Arkansas)</em></span></strong> – For a team with an excessive amount of guys 6’10 and taller, they suck at field goal percentage. It’s probably due to the Morris twins taking a few too many bad threes, but Portis is the kind of player that can grab those offensive rebounds. I love the fit a lot.</p> <p><strong>14. <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em>Oklahoma City Thunder: Devin Booker (Kentucky)</em></span></strong> – I see the Thunder having two choices with this pick. They could go with Booker who has one of the best three-point shots in this draft or go with a guy who come be an all-around sixth man in Wisconsin’s Sam Dekker. I’d personally go with Booker since he has more upside, but Dekker could contribute in more ways immediately.</p> <p>That’s it for this early NBA mock draft. We will have a full first-round mock draft for the 2015 NBA Draft closer to the draft.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em></em><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&linkname=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2015%2F06%2F02%2F2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition%2F&title=2015%20NBA%20Mock%20Draft%3A%20Early%20Lottery%20Edition" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/02/2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition/" data-a2a-title="2015 NBA Mock Draft: Early Lottery Edition"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2015/06/02/2015-nba-mock-draft-early-lottery-edition/">2015 NBA Mock Draft: Early Lottery Edition</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">9612</post-id> </item> <item> <title>Where Will Josh Smith End Up?</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/12/23/where-will-josh-smith-end-up/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 23 Dec 2014 09:50:47 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[dallas mavericks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[detroit pistons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[houston rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Josh Smith]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[memphis grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[miami heat]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sacramento Kings]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[stan van gundy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Dallas Mavericks]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Detroit Pistons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Houston Rockets]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Clippers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Memphis Grizzlies]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Miami Heat]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Stan Van Gundy]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=8812</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>Josh Smith finally ‘perimeter shot’ his way out of Detroit. The Pistons decided to cut him and if he clears waivers (and he will), they will be on the hook for the remainder of his contract…a hefty $26 million. Head coach and team president Stan Van Gundy put his foot down with this move. Smith […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/12/23/where-will-josh-smith-end-up/">Where Will Josh Smith End Up?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Josh-Smith-cut-detroit-pistons-nba-sad-houston-rockets.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-8813 alignright" alt="Josh Smith cut detroit pistons nba sad houston rockets" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Josh-Smith-cut-detroit-pistons-nba-sad-houston-rockets.jpg" width="320" height="467" /></a>Josh Smith finally ‘perimeter shot’ his way out of Detroit. <a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12066086/detroit-pistons-waive-josh-smith" target="_blank">The Pistons decided to cut him</a> and if he clears waivers (and he will), they will be on the hook for the remainder of his contract…a hefty $26 million.</p> <p>Head coach and team president Stan Van Gundy put his foot down with this move. Smith could get away with poorly shooting long jumpers when his head coach wasn’t involved with personnel. Detroit has a long way to go to rebuild. Dumping Smith was a smart, long-term decision for the franchise.</p> <p>Even though <a href="http://regressing.deadspin.com/josh-smith-has-been-so-so-so-so-bad-this-year-1674111326/+kylenw" target="_blank">Josh Smith is one of the worst players in the NBA</a>, teams are lining up to sign him once he clears waivers.</p> <p>Title contenders will be at the top of the list, since he will most likely sign a one-year deal and then hit free agency this offseason.</p> <p>Which NBA team will land Josh Smith?</p> <p><span id="more-8812"></span>Let’s make a list of the rumored NBA teams interested in him and the reason why Smith will either sign or decline.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Houston Rockets</strong></span> – He almost signed with Houston before signing with Detroit last year. Houston couldn’t make the money work. Since he’s getting his $26 million from Detroit, money shouldn’t be an issue this time.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Dallas Mavericks</strong></span> – Mark Cuban is putting together an interesting team in Dallas. They have a starting-five of Tyson Chandler, Dirk Nowitzki, Chandler Parsons, Monta Ellis and Rajon Rondo. That’s a sweet lineup. Smith could look at Dallas as being his best shot at getting a ring.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Miami Heat</strong></span> – They could get a few million in cap space once their Josh McRoberts disabled player exception gets approved by the league. It might not be approved in time.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Los Angeles Clippers</strong></span> – This would be another ‘best shot to get a ring’ signing. <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/los-angeles/clippers/post/_/id/7041/clippers-interest-in-josh-smith" target="_blank">ESPN’s Arash Markazi reported</a> they would cut Jared Cunningham if they signed Smith.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Memphis Grizzlies</strong></span> – There’s interest from them, but Smith would only get the veteran’s minimum.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Los Angeles Lakers</strong></span> – It would be shocking if he landed on the Lakers. They have a ton of cap space after this season and have the disability exception due to Steve Nash’s injury. Smith could easily sign elsewhere with a contender and sign with the Lakers this offseason.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Sacramento Kings</strong></span> – All offseason you heard about an ‘imminent’ <a href="http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/06/24/report-kings-pistons-taking-josh-smith-trade-hard-to-see-that-one/" target="_blank">Josh Smith for Rudy Gay trade</a> about to happen. Kings aren’t a contender and I don’t see Smith deciding to sign there.</p> <p>That’s basically all the rumored teams that have interest and the ability to sign him.</p> <p>The <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/10/22/2014-15-nba-team-preview-detroit-pistons/" target="_blank">Detroit Pistons</a> cutting Smith could be what he needs to get his game back to form. He needs to get back to working in the paint. He’s a horrible perimeter shooter and doesn’t appear to listen to his coaching staff. He’s not a guy you want making franchise money. If he signs with a contender he will come off the bench.</p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em></em><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&linkname=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F12%2F23%2Fwhere-will-josh-smith-end-up%2F&title=Where%20Will%20Josh%20Smith%20End%20Up%3F" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/12/23/where-will-josh-smith-end-up/" data-a2a-title="Where Will Josh Smith End Up?"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/12/23/where-will-josh-smith-end-up/">Where Will Josh Smith End Up?</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">8812</post-id> </item> <item> <title>2014-15 NBA Team Preview: Los Angeles Lakers</title> <link>https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/10/26/2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Bobby Roberts]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 26 Oct 2014 23:25:44 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[2014-15 NBA Team Preview]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Jeremy Lin]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Julius Randle]]></category> <category><![CDATA[kobe bryant]]></category> <category><![CDATA[los angeles lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nba]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sports]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Carlos Boozer]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Kobe Bryant]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Lakers]]></category> <category><![CDATA[NBA]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nick Young]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://americaswhiteboy.com/?p=8418</guid> <description><![CDATA[<p>I wonder if Kobe Bryant ever wonders if he should have retired after blowing out his Achiilles’ tendon? I’m sure it crossed his mind a few times in-between the gym and the bank…where he cashes those huge checks. He now finds himself trying to play with Swaggy P. The Lakers are expected to be near […]</p> The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/10/26/2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers/">2014-15 NBA Team Preview: Los Angeles Lakers</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Kobe-Bryant-OMG-Los-Angeles-Lakers-sad-mad-NBA-black-mamba.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class=" wp-image-8419 alignright" alt="Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers sad mad NBA black mamba OMG" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Kobe-Bryant-OMG-Los-Angeles-Lakers-sad-mad-NBA-black-mamba.jpg" width="329" height="392" srcset="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Kobe-Bryant-OMG-Los-Angeles-Lakers-sad-mad-NBA-black-mamba.jpg 593w, https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Kobe-Bryant-OMG-Los-Angeles-Lakers-sad-mad-NBA-black-mamba-251x300.jpg 251w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 329px) 100vw, 329px" /></a>I wonder if Kobe Bryant ever wonders if he should have retired after blowing out his Achiilles’ tendon? I’m sure it crossed his mind a few times in-between the gym and the bank…where he cashes those huge checks. He now finds himself trying to play with Swaggy P.</p> <p>The Lakers are expected to be near the bottom of the NBA standings. Does Kobe have a little magic left in him? If things go bad, how does Kobe handle losing?</p> <p>We will be posting a team preview for every team up until the start of the regular season.</p> <p>Here is the 2014-15 NBA season preview for the Los Angeles Lakers.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span id="more-8418"></span><em><strong>2013-14 Win/Loss Record</strong></em></span>: 27-55</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>Key Additions</strong></em></span>: PF Carlos Boozer, PG Jeremy Lin, PF Julius Randle, SG Wayne Ellington, PG Ronnie Price, PF Ed Davis, SG Jabari Brown, PG Jordan Clarkson & SG Roscoe Smith</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>Key Losses</strong></em></span>: PF Pau Gasol, PG Steve Nash, SG Jodie Meeks, C Chris Kaman, PG Jordan Farmar, PG Kendall Marshall, SG Kent Bazemore & SG MarShon Brooks</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>Projected Starters</strong></em></span>: Jordan Hill, Carlos Boozer, Wesley Johnson, Kobe Bryant & Jeremy Lin</p> <p><em><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Fantasy Sleeper</strong></span>: <b>PF Julius Randle </b></em>– Randle was a stud at Kentucky and now finds himself coming off the bench in Los Angeles. Carlos Boozer will start the season as L.A.’s starting power forward, but we will see how long that lasts. There’s a reason why Boozer started to lose minutes to Taj Gibson. He’s not as athletic anymore and can’t seem to finish at the rim. He shot 45% from the field last season, the lowest of his career. As the Lakers begin to fall down the standings in the Western Conference, Kobe will begin to call for a change. Randle will progressively average more minutes each month of the season.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Team Analysis</strong></span>: The Lakers were lost without Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash for most of the season. They banked one their veterans to carry the team full of relatively young and unknown talent. Pau Gasol missed a little time himself, but by that point, the season was lost. The Lakers ended up with starting lineups full of guys like Kent Bazemore and Kendall Marshall. Needless to say, they were not prepared for a Kobe-less season.</p> <p>The Lakers upgraded their roster by adding a couple veterans. Carlos Boozer and Jeremy Lin are dependable talents who have played in big games. Not exactly Shaquille O’Neal and Derek Fisher in their primes, but the roster couldn’t get much more worse than last season’s roster.</p> <p>If you think the Lakers will try to tank a few games here and there to actually keep their pick (Suns own rights to Lakers 2015 first-round pick from Steve Nash trade), you’re wrong. The pick is top-five protected, so the Lakers need land in the top five in the Lottery, or the pick goes to Phoenix. I don’t think Kobe has tanking in his DNA. The Lakers will win the games against teams like Philly, Orlando and the handful of other teams trying to dictate their high position in next year’s NBA Draft.</p> <p>This season is all about Kobe scoring as many points as fast as he can. He had a goal to surpass Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list. Kobe might have a little magic left and I wouldn’t be surprised if they accidentally won 35 games.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>2014-15 Wins Over/Under Betting Line</strong></span>: 32 (<i>Prediction: <strong>OVER</strong></i><b><i>)</i></b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>2014-15 Projected Win/Loss Record</strong></span>: 34-48 (13th in Western Conference)</p> <p><b><i><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/category/2014-15-NBA-Team-Preview/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE to read the rest of our 2014-15 NBA Team Previews</a></i></b></p> <h2>Follow us on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a> & ‘LIKE’ us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/AmericasWhiteBoy" target="_blank">Facebook</a>!</h2> <p><a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignleft" alt="sweetbob-author-pic" src="https://americaswhiteboy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/sweetbob-author-pic.jpg" width="114" height="114" /></a><em>About the Author…</em></p> <p><em></em><em>Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘<a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com" target="_blank">America’s White Boy’</a> and contributor at <a href="http://projectshanks.com" target="_blank">Project Shanks</a>. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, <a href="http://extramustard.si.com/category/hot-clicks/" target="_blank">Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks</a>, <a href="http://guyspeed.com/" target="_blank">Guyspeed</a>, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at <a href="http://twitter.com/sweetbob" target="_blank">@Sweetbob</a>.</em></p> <p><a class="a2a_button_facebook" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/facebook?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Facebook" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/twitter?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Twitter" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_email" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/email?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Email" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_reddit" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/reddit?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Reddit" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_copy_link" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/copy_link?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Copy Link" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_button_pinterest" href="https://www.addtoany.com/add_to/pinterest?linkurl=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&linkname=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" title="Pinterest" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a><a class="a2a_dd addtoany_share_save addtoany_share" href="https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=https%3A%2F%2Famericaswhiteboy.com%2F2014%2F10%2F26%2F2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers%2F&title=2014-15%20NBA%20Team%20Preview%3A%20Los%20Angeles%20Lakers" data-a2a-url="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/10/26/2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers/" data-a2a-title="2014-15 NBA Team Preview: Los Angeles Lakers"></a></p>The post <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com/2014/10/26/2014-15-nba-team-preview-los-angeles-lakers/">2014-15 NBA Team Preview: Los Angeles Lakers</a> first appeared on <a href="https://americaswhiteboy.com">America's White Boy</a>.]]></content:encoded> <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">8418</post-id> </item> </channel> </rss>