The Syndicate

Any basketball fans out there? I myself am not a big fan of the sport but I have to admit that Golden State's dominance has gotten me to tune in to a few of their games. That Stephen Curry isn't a very intimidating guy just to look at him but boy does he control the court!

Anywho, feel free to post here about NBA action. The playoffs are coming up soon, which is usually when I pay the most attention to basketball.

Warriors are amazing. I always liked Steph Curry and Klay Thompson shares my birthday so I can't complain. I'm enjoying their play.

Still hoping that OKC find a way to take them out over 7 in the West Finals, though.

I follow college b-ball a little bit, but not the NBA.

All I know is that people around here love the Spurs. Apparently they're good or something.

MovingPictures07 wrote:All I know is that people around here love the Spurs. Apparently they're good or something.

They're excellent on defense but their coach is unpredictable. This is why I don't play the Spurs or the Spurs' opponents in DFS.

How about the wizards. With that said I love all D.C teams but I don't really watch basketball. It takes away from hockey.

Bass_the_Clever wrote:How about the wizards. With that said I love all D.C teams but I don't really watch basketball. It takes away from hockey.

I like John Wall. He's a reliable player.

Epignosis wrote:

Bass_the_Clever wrote:How about the wizards. With that said I love all D.C teams but I don't really watch basketball. It takes away from hockey.

I like John Wall. He's a reliable player.

He has made a huge difference in Washington.

I love epi. All about the money.

Golden wrote:I love epi. All about the money.

I turned $12 into almost $400 in six weeks and blew it all in six days.

I know this isn't NBA, but did anyone else follow the Cincinnati-UConn men's basketball game today?

It was amazing. UConn won 104-97 in four overtimes, and each team kept making clutch shot after clutch shot. The most amazing of all was Cincinnati took an 88-85 lead with .8 seconds left in 3OT, and a freshman from UConn banked in a shot from 3/4 court (about 60 ft).

I can't really be disappointed after a game like that. Both sides played valiantly and gave the viewers a real treat. Hopefully Cincinnati can still make the Tourney though.

I don't follow college sports.

I'm excited for the Magic / Kings game, even though there's no Nikola Vucevic (my favorite player) or DeMarcus Cousins tonight.

Also, I'm wagering the most I've ever wagered in one night tonight. I told the kids if I win, I'll buy them all the DLC for Smash Bros. They are rooting for me.

And if you lose, there goes the N64.

Epignosis wrote:Also, I'm wagering the most I've ever wagered in one night tonight. I told the kids if I win, I'll buy them all the DLC for Smash Bros. They are rooting for me.

Whats the wager?

Golden wrote:

Epignosis wrote:Also, I'm wagering the most I've ever wagered in one night tonight. I told the kids if I win, I'll buy them all the DLC for Smash Bros. They are rooting for me.

Whats the wager?

$201 spread across nineteen contests. I'm losing all of them.

But that's only because I have over half my team playing during the late games.

I feel pretty good right now.

Epignosis wrote:

Golden wrote:

Epignosis wrote:Also, I'm wagering the most I've ever wagered in one night tonight. I told the kids if I win, I'll buy them all the DLC for Smash Bros. They are rooting for me.

Whats the wager?

$201 spread across nineteen contests. I'm losing all of them.

But that's only because I have over half my team playing during the late games.

I feel pretty good right now.

And now I don't. One of my players got injured midway through and Damian Lillard, who has put up huge numbers against the Warriors the past two times, was a clunker.

Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

I've always wondered this about various sports. Cincinnati is the same way; they have baseball, football, and hockey, but not basketball.

MovingPictures07 wrote:

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

I've always wondered this about various sports. Cincinnati is the same way; they have baseball, football, and hockey, but not basketball.

Cincinnati does not have an NHL team. Columbus does but not Cincinnati.

G-Man wrote:

MovingPictures07 wrote:

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

I've always wondered this about various sports. Cincinnati is the same way; they have baseball, football, and hockey, but not basketball.

Cincinnati does not have an NHL team. Columbus does but not Cincinnati.

Oh, well, shows how much I know about hockey. They do have a hockey team, but it must be minor league then.

I'm pretty well-versed in minor league hockey too, so I just checked. No NHL team and no AHL team (top-tier minor league) but Cinci does have the Cyclones. They're an ECHL (Eastern Coast Hockey League) team. The ECHL feeds into the AHL, which feeds into the NHL. The ECHL is the only second-tier minor league for hockey that carries any clout with the NHL Players Association, so it's possible for you to see players on the Cyclones who were drafted by an NHL team.

A lot of times the ECHL is the home for college players who were overlooked in the NHL draft or walk-ons who want a shot at earning their way up to the big leagues. It's a tough road but a few famous NHLers got their start in the ECHL, which is always awesome to see. I believe the Cyclones are a farm team for the Nashville Predators in the NHL, who forced a Game 7 against the Anaheim Ducks last night. I'm not sure which AHL team is the bridge between the two though.

Here in PA we've only got one ECHL team- the Reading Royals. They're the ECHL farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers, though, so I don't follow them. :P

G-Man wrote:I'm pretty well-versed in minor league hockey too, so I just checked. No NHL team and no AHL team (top-tier minor league) but Cinci does have the Cyclones. They're an ECHL (Eastern Coast Hockey League) team. The ECHL feeds into the AHL, which feeds into the NHL. The ECHL is the only second-tier minor league for hockey that carries any clout with the NHL Players Association, so it's possible for you to see players on the Cyclones who were drafted by an NHL team.

A lot of times the ECHL is the home for college players who were overlooked in the NHL draft or walk-ons who want a shot at earning their way up to the big leagues. It's a tough road but a few famous NHLers got their start in the ECHL, which is always awesome to see. I believe the Cyclones are a farm team for the Nashville Predators in the NHL, who forced a Game 7 against the Anaheim Ducks last night. I'm not sure which AHL team is the bridge between the two though.

Here in PA we've only got one ECHL team- the Reading Royals. They're the ECHL farm team of the Philadelphia Flyers, though, so I don't follow them. :P

Huh, interesting! All I know is that we had a team called the Cyclones; I went to one game as a kid, and that's about it. :P I didn't realize there were multiple tiers of minor league, but that makes sense.

Yeah, AHL and ECHL may be awkward to say but they still sound better than the nickname for NBA's minor league- The D-League. Seriously, was no one paying attention when they approved the name?

Do the Blues do well at drawing crowds? I know they've consistently been one of the stronger franchises over the last decade or so, but that doesn't necessarily mean they have tons of fans. The Rams bailed on St. Louis in large part because they had trouble filling the seats. St. Louis is supposedly a great baseball town though, and the Cardinals are as good as it gets so that's unlikely to ever change.

I'd say Pittsburgh can share the 76ers, but nobody wants them.

MovingPictures07 wrote:

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

I've always wondered this about various sports. Cincinnati is the same way; they have baseball, football, and hockey, but not basketball.

Cincinnati used to have a minor league basketball team, I think called the Cincinnati Royals. But that was a couple decades ago.

Metalmarsh89 wrote:

MovingPictures07 wrote:

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

I've always wondered this about various sports. Cincinnati is the same way; they have baseball, football, and hockey, but not basketball.

Cincinnati used to have a minor league basketball team, I think called the Cincinnati Royals. But that was a couple decades ago.

The Cincinatti Royals were not minor league. They are still in the NBA today, now known as the Sacramento Kings.

G-Man wrote:Random thought that has always baffled me- why don't Pittsburgh and St. Louis have basketball teams? They have baseball, football and hockey but not basketball. Well, St. Louis HAD a football team until just recently anyway. Are their population sizes too small or not diverse enough to support a basketball team or is there just no interest from sports fans in those cities for professional basketball?

St Louis had the Hawks before Atlanta. In fact, the Hawks only championship came in St Louis.

It's true that several cities don't have NBA teams, but there also teams in places that don't necessarily have other things, or not many - San Antonio, Salt Lake City, does Sacramento have any other major team? Milwaukee, Orlando, Oklahoma City...

There are other cities who would like an NBA team (most notably, Seattle)... but you need more than the city. You also need the NBA Board of Owners willing to expand, and right now they won't. So the only way to get NBA to a city that doesn't have it is for someone to buy a team and get permission from the Board of Owners to move the team. Because of what happened in Seattle, most owners since then (Sacramento and Milwaukee most recently) have taken time to find an owner who pays their asking price and agrees not to attempt to shift the team.

So for places like St Louis and Pittsburgh... they are likely out of luck for a while.

Go OKC! That's all.

Agreed. If OKC knocks off the Warriors and the Cavaliers blow it against Toronto, I quit. Never is there going to be a better opportunity.

I played this guy plenty in DFS.

Now he's dead.

Congrats Ohio people.

Go Cavs.

Go Warriors

I don't know why. Durant abandoned me. But I still want him to get a ring. David West too.

I hope the Warriors sweep the series just to keep it highlighted how much better the NHL playoffs were this year.

Kyrie Irving is now a member of the team I half-heartedly root for. I might just pay full attention this year.

I'm seeing a lot of reports from sources not known to b/s that Kobe Bryant has just died in a helicopter crash.

Fuck.

I can only imagine the folks at ESPN scrambling to confirm/refute this. They don't have it yet. The New York Post does; it originated from TMZ.

I’ve been searching all over for more sources to confirm this as well. This is stunning and awful if it’s true.

Seems to be true. ESPN's main site has it now.

Unbelievable.

That's stunning news. And didn't his wife recently give birth?

Fuck. I grew up a Celtics fan, but the “Lakers/Celtics” rivalry always seemed silly to me because I was introduced to it when Kobe was at his peak and the games were never even remotely competitive.

Woj is reporting that Gianna Bryant, Kobe's 13-year-old daughter was also on board. They were traveling to a game with another player and parent.

Epignosis wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 5:03 pm Woj is reporting that Gianna Bryant, Kobe's 13-year-old daughter was also on board. They were traveling to a game with another player and parent.

Yes. I have a live feed up of emergency responders, and I heard murmurs of a second Bryant daughter too. Unconfirmed.

What comes after awful?

Raptors and Spurs had back-to-back intentional shot clock violations to start the game.

LA fire department or has a news conference at 5pm EST (3 minutes from now).

Edit: They are late.