Kevin Burner Durant And Flat Earth Kye Irving Have Wants
Goodbye, Pacers
Wants are not needs, but if the people on the end of the wanting hold much of the leverage, it’ll become a must from those who can provide it.
According to multiple reports, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving want the Brooklyn Nets to chase a “higher profile” coach instead of keeping Jacque Vaughn. This is reportedly happening despite the fact Vaughn has garnered a lot of internal support from the franchise, with Sean Marks kicking the tires on bringing back the coach for another run.
It would make sense for the Nets to give Vaughn another go at it, especially given the context of the season. While every team in the league dealt with the pandemic, and the riddles it brought, Vaughn was forced to carve a path in the Eastern Conference without his two best players — the two who, allegedly, want him to go the way of the dinosaurs.
In the report, it is said Durant and Irving want a larger fish in their Brooklyn pond. Gregg Popovich’s name is tossed out there… as is Tyronn Lue’s since those two names should be in the same tier of coaches.
The latter of the two actually makes sense, even if we can giggle at the idea it’s “Hall of Fame coach or Lue” Durant and Irving are after. He’s a better tactician than given credit for, is known to handle superstar players well, and has navigated high expectations before when he coached the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Popovich makes far less sense, even if he’s the better coach. Durant and Irving, while terrific players, aren’t exactly known to take criticism all that swimmingly. When you’re as good as those two, that’s usually normal.
Still, if “free thinking” Kyrie and social media KD have a tendency to dislike constructive criticisms, maybe Pop just isn’t their guy.
To be fair to both of them: When people casually, if not vaguely, claim the stars handle critiques as well as I do the alarm clock in the morning, they’re usually referring to instances off the hardwood. Durant’s burner, or Kyrie’s conspiracies, or Durant’s social media in general, or Kyrie’s “outside the box thinking” that — while likely making for a great YouTube video — is closer to troublesome than genius. (There are direct exceptions)
Nonetheless, the Nets would be wise to listen to their two best players even if they disagree. The franchise invested a lot into both men, and for good reason, making it silly to fail letting their voices be heard during the offseason.
In any case, this might be a be careful of what you wish for you situation; not only for KD and Kyrie, but for the Brooklyn Nets. They wanted the pair — together — and this is what you get with this specific package deal.
The Indiana Pacers Are Out
When a team loses its series in the NBA Playoffs, are they allowed to immediately leave the Disney Bubble or do they need to quarantine in some place before being allowed home? Like, go somewhere few people purposely visit in order to depressurize like someone comping up from a submarine… like Cleveland or something.
Circling back, the Pacers are toast. Not even the good kind with butter and cinnamon. After falling to the Miami Heat on Monday, getting swept in the first round of these strange Playoffs, Indiana has some big decisions to make this offseason.
I’m not massive-overhaul-guy. There’s only so much better a team can get from one season to the next without landing a top-tier superstar like a Durant, LeBron James, etc. None of those guys are in the cards for the Pacers, so all this whispering about moving on from Myles Turner in order to… Well, that’s the thing. I don’t know what it would lead to. Moving on from Turner in effort to get who or do what that’s actually better?
The grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Not to mention, kids, a lot of Indiana’s best players happen to be on the younger side. Sometimes, if not often, it’s better to let the young core fail a few times together, allowing them to grow as one, than it is to keep tinkering with who is in said core.
"He was our best player this year," said Nate McMillan of Domantis Sabonis. "Once you get in the playoffs, you need everybody. ... It was just a tough adjustment for us."
It’s also worth noting fans and/or media can bash Myles Turner all they want, but given the team had to play without Domantis Sabonis (Baby Boner), a bit of leeway should be given.
But what do I know? I’m writing words on a laptop while laying on a comforter with Halestorm playing in the background. I’m probably not the best guy to take roster advice from.
LeBron Continues To Speak
"I know people get tired of hearing me say it, but we are scared as Black people in America," James said following the Lakers' Game 4 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. "Black men, Black women, Black kids, we are terrified."
For anyone who owns a social media account, you know what’s going to happen next. One group of people are going to applaud LeBron’s bravery for speaking out on an important issue. The other folk, they’re going to create memes and claim The King has no place to speak on such matters since he makes millions of dollars playing a game.
James’ comments came in the wake of the Jacob Blake shooting. Like several other superstars the last few months, James is using his platform to speak on social justice matters. From BLM to protests to police brutality, these postgame interview topics have been as connected to the NBA season as the games themselves.
This Cam Newton In New England Thing Might Just Work
"He's an extremely hard-working player; first guy in, last guy out. He's studied hard and has spent a lot of extra time learning the offense. I've been very impressed with that. He's a very skilled athlete."
That’s a quote from Mr. Grumpelstiltskin himself, Bill Belichick. In the grand scheme of things, a head coach saying positive stuff about a QB isn’t all that shocking, but this continues the long trend of optimism coming out of New England in regards to Cam Newton.
Listen, I don’t know how Cam’s body is holding up or if that run of super-inaccuracy was directly correlated to injuries or whatever. What I do know, however, is that Peak Newton is a thing to behold, wildly fun, and is capable of carrying poop teams to places they don’t deserve to go.
This Cam Newton In New England Thing Might Just Fail
“We’ve got a very competitive competition at a very competitive position at the quarterback spot. It will be interesting to see how everybody does.”
That’s a quote from perfectly normal human Bill Belichick. And now my brain hurts given the praise he gave Newton above, but now he’s whispering other gunslingers’ names I’ve literally never heard of.
I’m so confused; though that might say more about me than anything happening with the Patriots. I know what PATRIOT WAY people will tell me: Billy B is just hyping all his QBs so he could later trade one of them for a first round pick, a package of fries, and the first season of The Expanse on DVD.
If so, awesome. If not… we really pretending (Insert Whoever The Hell The Other Pats’ quarterbacks are) happen to be equal to Cam Newton?
Even a broken, beaten down Cam? I refuse to believe it.
Email of the Week
Oh, man. Even robotic emails from some manpower-styled company want me out of the Internet Scribbling Industry.
Anyway, when they say Collections Representative, does that mean I get to punch someone in the kneecap if they’re short eight bones because the Lakers failed to cover or?
Follow ClutchPoints on Twitter - Facebook - Instagram - YouTube
Joseph used to write a bunch of things for places like Forbes, FRS and others. Now he’s ‘the man’ in management. A big old loser. A washed, leathery face, too. Here’s his own newsletter.