We talk the Portland Trail Blazers free agency moves, the NBA's social justice marketing, and more!

Hosts

• Andres Alvarez (@nerdnumbers)
• Produced by Brian Foster (@boxscorebrian)

Sources

You can watch us live at twitch.tv/nerdnumbers; we usually go Tuesday or Wednesday at 9:30 pm EST. Follow us on Twitter and we'll keep you posted!

Please subscribe to Channel NerdNumbers on YouTube and like us on iTunes!

Video Show

Show Notes

The Portland Trail Blazers

As always, we love Real GM for their pages on NBA contracts and transactions.

Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum.

With CJ McCollum's extension, the @trailblazers now have the highest-paid backcourt in the NBA. #CashBrothers 💰 pic.twitter.com/6Dg0GvXiIX

— StatMuse (@statmuse) July 26, 2016

This show I mention a few "in-progress" article ideas I have. The first, the highest paid player on each NBA team. Lillard is an interesting one, as I think he was worth the contract he's on, but his first season on it he did not live up to it.

I discuss some of the issues with the most overpaid players articles. Namely, you should look at the contract the player signed and their performance/age/etc. at the time of signing the deal, not their current production. Funny, I know!

The Blazers are actually in decent shape. We loved their offseason moves last season. Their poor moves this offseason, luckily, aren't enough to offset those. Additionally, Evan Turner and Festus Ezili were both good acquisitions. The Blazers made some bad moves, but currently, their good moves have outweighed those.

I talk about the notion of "floor spacing." Namely, the idea that players shooting ill-advised shots improve their team's offense. First, in the NBA the board essentially "resets" every possession. So, a bad shot last possession doesn't directly impact the next play. This is unlike baseball or football where prior plays affect things like runners on base and field position. I do think there is floor spacing, but it's players like Klay Thompson, who demand the defense cover them, or they'll get a high percentage shot. Or, it's players like Chris Paul (and Steve Nash back in the day) who will get a good shot or a great pass.

We note that C.J. McCollum is a below average player. Of course, good on him for getting his four-year $106 million deal.

Players like Klay and Steph will say they have no problem deferring to Durant on the Warriors. Of course, history shows that NBA players aren't always happy sharing the ball.

We have a brief discussion on the "impoliteness of subtweeting." I have a slightly different take on this. Tune in to hear.

We discuss advice I'd give as a sports agent for an NBA player. I'd say follow the "J.R. Smith curve." Namely, find the highest number of shots you can take that won't get you benched and take every single one of them.

https://t.co/HadV7hf8NY
Player takes more shots and gets paid much more money.
And the word is takes. As in "takes" from teammates.

— David Berri (@wagesofwins) July 25, 2016

One problem with McCollum's deal is the length. Four years, really? Another odd deal in this area is Luol Deng, the Lakers' highest paid player. Why did they give him a four-year contract?

Moe Harkless was signed for $10 million a season. It looks like he's been injured and been playing out of position. If he bounces back, it's not a bad deal.

I talk the "NBA 2k problem." This is when you see a team make a poor move, but assume they have a plan for a trade or move. Sadly, the reality is more than likely your font office doesn't know what it's doing.

I compare the Blazers to the Knicks with Jason Kidd and Tyson Chandler. They're good right now, but their contract situation is set to put them in a rough spot in two seasons, but they're good for now.

Article idea #2 - "Things that can bite us next season." There are players/moves we've bashed harshly. As Brian notes, a couple may pan out. For example, DeMarcus Cousins could turn into a star. Brad Beal could overcome injury and play great. DeMar DeRozan could make a John Wall jump. There are lots of ways to be "wrong" about predictions.

Dion Waiters is still overpaid on his two-year $6 million deal. Still, it's amazing in this cash heavy offseason that a top-five pick didn't even get a mid tier contract. It's even funnier next to undrafted Tyler Johnson's deal.

We bash the Brad Beal deal for $127 million over five seasons.

Article Idea #3 - reviewing the Gladwell podcast on Wilt's free throws.

How does Aaron Brooks still have a job? What is Larry Bird thinking this offseason? Brian notes that Aaron Brooks seems likable and doesn't command a lot of salary. That would be fine, except he tends to get lots of minutes and that hurts his team's odds of winning.

NBA Social Issues

We talk some of the social issues with the NBA and WNBA right now. Obviously a nuanced discussion, so tune in.

• The NBA pulls the All-Star game for Charlotte over House Bill 2.
• Hornets minority owner Felix Sabates said some less than favorable things about the NBA taking the game out of Charlotte.
• Michael Jordan is donating a million dollars in response to recent shootings.
• Three WNBA teams were fined for wearing shirts supporting both Black Lives Matter and the police officers in recent shootings. Luckily the WNBA has rescinded those fines.
• Trevor Noah had a great segment on taking sides in these tragedies.

Good job to Zach Lowe getting re-signed by ESPN. With the recent talent drain, this was a good job by ESPN to hold him.

We talk how Nintendo is already making mistakes with Pokemon GO, a prediction we said was completely possible on last week's show.

Shout Outs

Brian shouts of Twitch.tv broadcasting the DNC.

Brian shouts out a great video of Wilt Chamberlain's defense.

Brian shouts out a great article from the undefeated about Prince's late-night challenge against Charlie Murphy.

I shout out Joe Biden's malarkey speech and this great gif from LizzLocker.

Malarkey! #DemsInPhilly pic.twitter.com/Eq7TUyaxHU

— LizzLocker (@Lizzs_Lockeroom) July 28, 2016