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Not really related to anything but Darren Wolfon is a tub who looks like he got a double-chinned pumpkin for a head.
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May 21, 2017 22:11
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Here is my big dumb opinion about the thunder's season The 2016-17 season was the most emotional season in the young Thunder history. It was filled with highs as grandiose as a stripper with Iverson at TGI Fridays and lows as heartbreaking as the power cutting off in the middle of writing a paper which you did not save. Before we go into the season let’s recap what happened the previous season, OKC fired hc Scotty Brooks and replacing him with Florida Gator hc Billy Donovan. Billy would finish his first NBA regular season with a record 55-27 and with the most forth quarter leads blown ever in a single season by a team. The inconsistencies of the Thunder caused people to really doubt they would be able to beat the second seed Spurs in the western conference semifinals. The inconsistent play would continue for the first two games of the first round where after the loss to Dallas something just clicked. The Thunder roll through Dallas the next 3 games, then slay the Spurs in 6. Back in the wcf they go up 3-1 on a 73 win Warrior team by playing the best team ball they have ever played as a franchise then it went down hill. OKC blows a 3-1 lead by losing 3 straight to the Warriors in those games they went 13/30 (this is good), 3/23 (holy gently caress that was so bad), and 7/27 (this is bad) from 3. That ended the 2015-16 Thunder campaign where the never ending topic of Durant’s free agency will finally be decided. The Draft OKC does not have a first round pick as it was traded to acquire Dion, but that did not stop Presti from getting his guy. OKC trades fan favorite Serge Ibaka to Orlando for Victor Oladipo, Ersan Ilyasova, and Domantas Sabonis. This by all means was a good trade at the time and still is in hindsight, but it was and is still sad not to see serge in the a Thunder uniform. Free Agency Durant’s decision is the topic that is being talked about at all times. Where was he going to sign? Was he going to stay in OKC? Leave for Boston? Leave for Golden State? The speculation was up the ying yang. During the free agency frenzy, Al Horford was highly considering to join up with KD and Russ to create an unbelievable trio. That trio would not come to be as Al signed with Boston, then the unbelievable happened. On July 4th, 2016 Kevin Durant tells the world he is signing with Golden State. This sent a shock through the sports world and heartbreak to all Thunder fans. How could this be? How could a person go to the team that was his biggest competition? This caused a ripple effect making Russ having to decide his free agency a whole year early. Russ would sign an extension with the Thunder making every narrative that was ever written about OKC turn inside out. Durant was supposed to be the one that stayed with OKC and Russ was supposed to be the one to run to California. To make room for the extension, Presti and Thunder nation had to say good-bye to Dion. In August OKC traded 2 second round picks to Denver for Joffrey “The Big Croissant” Lauvergne. The Season The roster day one of the season: Starters Russell Westbrook PG Victor Oladipo SG Andre Roberson SF Domantas Sabonis PF Steven Adams C Reserves Enes Kanter PF/C Kyle Singler TRASH Ersan Ilyasova PF Semaj Christon PG Alex Abrines SG Nick Collison DAD Anthony Morrow SG Joffrey Lauvergne PF Cameron Payne PG (hurt) This roster would not stay the same for long because on Nov 1, 2016 (3 games into the season) OKC trades Ersan Ilyasova and a conditional first round pick to Phili for Jerami Grant. OKC start the season with an unexpected 6-1 record (the loss coming from the Warriors that game was uh not pretty to say the least). In this beginning stretch, Russ did not show that this task of carrying the team was too big he showed that he was more than capable of doing it and did so guns blazing with stat lines like 33/16/11, 32/9/12, and 51/10/13. This trend would continue all season but the level of play that surrounds him would change game by game quarter by quarter. There was no consistency with this team they would go on stretches where the offense looks unstoppable and then with snap of the fingers they can’t hit a layup. Those issues were even more prevalent when Russ would leave the game for a moment. The bench would lose so many leads and create big deficits over the course of the season. Durant returns to OKC The biggest game of the year ends in a loss of 16 but it felt closer and tense the entire time. Russ goes off with a 47 point game, Dre goes in the face Durant, and Russ and Durant exchange words. The fans went in on the this game. They were cheering and booing all game; came with signs and even a costume showing their displeasure with Durant’s decision. The loss was sad and predictable but the game provided a much needed emotional release for both the team and the fans. Dre vs KD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syd0LgM0SGw Russ jawing at KD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLKdH416VLg Russ highlights https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjAFaUJo33Y https://twitter.com/BenGolliver/sta...warriors-return https://twitter.com/TimBontemps/sta...warriors-return Trade Deadline On Feb 23, 2017 OKC traded Cameron Payne, Joffrey Lauvergne and Anthony Morrow to Chicago for Taj Gibson, Doug “McBuckets” McDermott, and a 2018 second-round pick. This trade was just a highway robbery by Presti. Presti was able to get a very good versatile big man and a young shooter who is good at off-ball movement for scraps lmao. End of the Regular Season OKC was in the hunt to get that coveted 4th seed till they lost 4 straight to bad teams which they promptly responded to by winning 5 straight starting with the Spurs cause that makes sense. The additions of Taj and Doug made the team by improving the defense (especially when Taj was made starter) and increased spacing. They finished the season with a record of 47-35 and securing the 6th seed which is a pretty successful season considering all that went on around it. Post Season OKC played HOU in the first round of the playoffs losing the series in 5 games. The Thunder played a fairly good series imo. They defended Houston as well as they possibly could, but just could not score enough to secure victories. The bench continuously failed them and Oladipo was not able to get anything going really (he did have one solid game). It did not help that refs gave Houston a bunch of 3 free throw possessions for non-shooting fouls. End of Season Roster Starters Russell Westbrook PG Victor Oladipo SG Andre Roberson SF Taj Gibson PF Steven Adams C Reserves Enes Kanter C Doug McDermott SF Jerami Grant SF Alex Abrines SG Domantas Sabonis PF Kyle Singler TRASH Semaj Christon PG (debatable) Norris Cole HUSK Nick Collison DAD Josh Huestis SF End of Season Review This being the first season in the Russ only era was a good strong building block for the future. The team is young and heading in a good direction. My worries for the team are that Adams regressed this season and him not being able to get back on track (I personally believe he was not mentally ready for the responsibility handed to him when Serge was traded and a whole year with Taj by his side will ease his workload will do wonders); Victor Oladipo had a good season but was not aggressive enough. What I mean by that is there were many games that seemed he was not looking to attack the basket, which is a problem because he played his best when he was looking to attack. Sabonis was not good as a starter but once moved to the bench he looked way more comfortable. He showed he has the tools to become a solid player (needs to work on finishing with his off-hand and his 3pt shot). Alex Abrines the rookie who decided to join the team this season can flat out shoot the ball and am excited to see how he is going to improve after years of thinking he was not ever going to come over. Jerami Grant an early season addition to the team is very exciting to watch. He dunks and blocks hard which is all you can ask for a player really. Doug McDermott got to team up with his favorite player growing up that’s right his favorite player the legend himself NICK COLLISON. Nick is going to unleash a level of McBuckets we have never seen so y’all better watch out. Enes Kanter is a good basketball player who helps the team win (flaming take I know) and has defeated the evil Erdogan’s plan to capture him. The King of the Prairie Russ averaged a triple-double and is the MVP this is not a debate this is just plain facts. Off-Season Wishes They need to re-sign Taj, Dre, and Nick and if possible they need to get a backup PG (for the love of everything GET A COMPETENT BACK UP PG Presti). Season Highlights Here are some highlights in a season filled with highlights Dipo Dunk of the Year https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcSEdwoz2KY Full Court Nutmeg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rnCCLRMK-8 Shammgod https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osxe1GW8AKw Russ Poster on Capela https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMzQPY3mqsQ Russ clutch shot montage https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raDYzXmmQEA
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May 22, 2017 03:56
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Thunder should offer Nick Young a dumptruck of money because there's no such thing as a player who he can't get his offense next to and he showed he'll at least try to play defense if you keep him motivated to do it.
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May 22, 2017 05:46
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I agree about Nick Young. He should be a Lakers staple and eventually become coach Your team win more game when your center play defense so Deandre better center now than Karl Town
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May 22, 2017 07:26
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https://twitter.com/Super70sSports/status/866373571362390018
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May 22, 2017 08:21
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Metapod posted:Here is my big dumb opinion about the thunder's season I'm so pumped for Abrines year 2.
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May 22, 2017 17:48
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Dude has NEVER worn a good pair of jeans
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May 22, 2017 18:05
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DeimosRising posted:Dude has NEVER worn a good pair of jeans got no qualms with these tbh, especially on the jordan jean spectrum 
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May 22, 2017 18:07
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Cool Buff Man posted:got no qualms with these tbh, especially on the jordan jean spectrum Yeah those are fine and also definitely picked by the costume designer for that photo shoot, which since it looks like a dorm room I'm assuming is before he became so popular he made all his own decisions
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May 22, 2017 18:15
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DeimosRising posted:Yeah those are fine and also definitely picked by the costume designer for that photo shoot, which since it looks like a dorm room I'm assuming is before he became so popular he made all his own decisions He's a special denim boy.
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May 22, 2017 18:16
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Kibner posted:https://twitter.com/ESPNSteinLine/status/865616839036067841 How do you feel about them sticking with Gentry/Demps? Finch is a moreyball disciple IIRC. They tried to add him to Adelman's staff but he left for Minnesota, then he became the offense guy under McHale. The Rockets offense was pretty awful in terms of complexity while he was here, but who knows how much actual input he had. He also ran the corner offense in Rio Grande which might be the inspiration for the Jokic stuff and lead to some pretty interesting sets with Cousins/Davis. You can't really have a big man just sit in the high post anymore like the Rockets did back in the Adelman days but I feel like you can do a ton of cool poo poo with Boogie on the perimeter. chunkles fucked around with this message at 19:02 on May 22, 2017 |
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May 22, 2017 18:58
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chunkles posted:You can't really have a big man just sit in the high post anymore like the Rockets did back in the Adelman days but I feel like you can do a ton of cool poo poo with Boogie on the perimeter. Why not? If he's a good enough passer I see that as very compatible with modern spacing and off ball screening.
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May 22, 2017 19:07
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I'm pretty sure you can photoshop any Pacers front office employee in for MJ and that would literally be the Pacers of the past 5 years.
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May 22, 2017 19:42
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Laettner was the best ping pong player on the team, so imagine Jordan getting furious about Christian loving Laettner repeatedly owning him while Larry Bird slams michelobs and taunts him from the floor. Also the best NBA ping pong anecdote is that David Stern is apparently loving amazing at it
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May 22, 2017 19:53
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chunkles posted:How do you feel about them sticking with Gentry/Demps? I don't like Dell's big money moves. He's really good at the margins, though. Not sure how much is him and how much was ownership dictating certain things. I like the young vet strategy but the execution (mainly the Tyreke acquisition) has been lacking. There is room for an upgrade there, but I'm not sure the team will be able to find it. For Gentry, I dunno. He likes the ball-movement-heavy, taking early "good" shots, and pushing in transition. Even when the personnel doesn't fit it. I mean, yeah, that is a great style of offense to run, but not with the players he's had the last two seasons. I've said it before, but the Pels just haven't really had any "push the fast-break" threats other than Davis. Gordon and Anderson are trailers, Tyreke will always take the shot, Jrue is prone to turn the ball over under heavy pressure. This season was just a complete dearth of shot-makers. If they were to have made a change, they should have made it immediately after the season ended.
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May 22, 2017 20:02
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I'm on the fence about whether the Thunder should re-sign Roberson or Taj. I like Taj a lot and think they should try to keep him depending on the price, but the guy will be 32 this summer and I think someone out there would be willing to give him a decent contract. They have his bird rights though so re-signing him might be one of the only things they can do this summer. Andre Roberson depends on what kind of offer sheet he gets. I appreciate his defense, it was really good during the playoffs, but he also got mercilessly Hack-A'd out of playoff games and that is beyond embarrassing for a wing player. Some team is almost certainly gonna offer him at least $15 million a year I'm almost certain of it. If they want to sign basically anyone worth anything they need to shed a bunch of salary, so "competent backup PG" is a big ask, along with "dumptruck of money" for Nick Young. Enes Kanter is the most obvious dude to try to shed cause despite his skill IMO he has shown through the past two years of playoffs that he quite literally can't be played against the best teams in the league. Grant, Abrines, McDermott and next season probably Sabonis are all guys that have and will get playoff minutes over Kanter. Maybe some team would be willing to make neutral-ish trade for him, I dunno. There are a bunch of teams with salary that might wanna try to make the playoffs or at least improve that might take him without asking for much along with it, who knows. Even then, supposing they let Andre walk, re-sign Taj for less than his cap hold (let's say $10 million), trade Kanter and renounce Collison they will only be just under $5 million under the cap (that includes renouncing their trade exception which gets them $2.8 million I think, IDK how that works exactly). Still not really anything to work with.
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May 22, 2017 20:18
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Somehow I forgot that Doug McDermit got traded to OKC last year. I thought he'd be a Bull forever
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May 22, 2017 20:22
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yeah I'm not getting my hopes up with getting a good pg this season We need to keep Taj for at least one more season for Sabonis to get more seasoning and maybe just maybe be starter material. Also I'm like one of the few people on Earth who would be okay dre 15 mil per year because I believe his defensive ability is worth it. I'm pretty confident though that Presti and him will find a happy median. Cool Buff Man posted:Somehow I forgot that Doug McDermit got traded to OKC last year. I thought he'd be a Bull forever I'm still shocked tbh
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May 22, 2017 23:06
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https://twitter.com/WojVerticalNBA/status/866782684932182016
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May 22, 2017 23:38
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Welt Man with the power to be covered in oozing sores
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May 22, 2017 23:44
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Trevor Ariza is excited about baseball
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May 23, 2017 07:11
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I will always love Trevor Ariza.
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May 23, 2017 15:38
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chunkles posted:Trevor Ariza is excited about baseball Sports are fun   hahaha we're playing the game
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May 23, 2017 17:52
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MourningView posted:Laettner was the best ping pong player on the team, so imagine Jordan getting furious about Christian loving Laettner repeatedly owning him while Larry Bird slams michelobs and taunts him from the floor. I remember reading that Jordan lost to Orlando Woolridge (I think) during his first or 2nd year and was so annoyed by it he bought a table and practiced until he got really good, so he probably gave Laettner a run for his money. I asusme they mean assistant GM as I'm pretty sure Ujiri is still the GM
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May 23, 2017 17:56
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El Gallinero Gros posted:I remember reading that Jordan lost to Orlando Woolridge (I think) during his first or 2nd year and was so annoyed by it he bought a table and practiced until he got really good, so he probably gave Laettner a run for his money. I think he's president of basketball operations but functionally does what we think of a GM as doing
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May 23, 2017 18:02
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Ujiri got a promotion awhile ago I think. He's President there now but he's basically still GM
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May 23, 2017 18:17
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Las Vegas Summer league tickets are now available 
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May 23, 2017 18:58
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cougar cub posted:Las Vegas Summer league tickets are now available If the Lakers draft Ball they might completely fill Thomas & Mack. I don't think I can go this year but consider this my annual urging of others to do so because it is extremely fun.
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May 23, 2017 19:33
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MourningView posted:If the Lakers draft Ball they might completely fill Thomas & Mack. Summer league games can be great or terrible messes or both at the same time. I fondly remember Andrew Bynum picking up his 7th personal in one such game.
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May 23, 2017 21:07
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C. Everett Koop posted:Summer league games can be great or terrible messes or both at the same time. I fondly remember Andrew Bynum picking up his 7th personal in one such game. I was at Oden's debut and he had like 8 before halftime
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May 23, 2017 21:38
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Is there somewhere on the internet that just lists NBA trades in reverse chronological order? It's hard to find something that's just trades that's nice and easy to navigate.
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May 23, 2017 22:04
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I decided to look up info on if he was fired or not, and it looks like I'll have to go back to not caring. Masai is a poo poo rear end fraud.
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May 23, 2017 23:23
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leftist heap posted:Is there somewhere on the internet that just lists NBA trades in reverse chronological order? It's hard to find something that's just trades that's nice and easy to navigate. i think BBrefs executive record will show this.
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May 23, 2017 23:27
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El Gallinero Gros posted:I remember reading that Jordan lost to Orlando Woolridge (I think) during his first or 2nd year and was so annoyed by it he bought a table and practiced until he got really good, so he probably gave Laettner a run for his money. My favorite Jordan is competitive at everything story is the one where he got cheating at cards when playing a college teammate's grandmother. Shame.
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May 23, 2017 23:30
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i know this may be homerish, but do you think Atl would be into Oladipo Kanter and 1st rder for Millsap and Hardaway? I love Millsap and want him on my team.
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May 23, 2017 23:38
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ButtWolf posted:i know this may be homerish, but do you think Atl would be into Oladipo Kanter and 1st rder for Millsap and Hardaway? I love Millsap and want him on my team. The hell would they do with Kanter and Dwight on offense?
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May 24, 2017 00:53
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And why would OKC get the two best players in the trade?
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May 24, 2017 00:56
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ButtWolf posted:i know this may be homerish, but do you think Atl would be into Oladipo Kanter and 1st rder for Millsap and Hardaway? I love Millsap and want him on my team. No
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May 24, 2017 00:58
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BIZORT posted:Ujiri got a promotion awhile ago I think. He's President there now but he's basically still GM Masai posted:
So yeah, basically senior assistant gm. One of the interesting things is that since the GM title is worth less than that on other teams it would probably rule out any big name outside hires. Which means the likely outcome is that someone within the org who is used to working in the system. That would put current Vice President of Basketball Operations Teresa Resch on the shortlist for the job.
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May 24, 2017 02:45
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https://twitter.com/basketballtalk/status/867432800793673728
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May 24, 2017 20:07
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