Official 2016 NBA Off-Season Thread: Westbrook staying in OKC for 3 more years. Confirmed MVP

I used my friend’s League Pass a few years ago. Yeah, you can’t watch local or nationally televised games on it. So if you are local, chances are you can’t use League Pass to watch your team. At least live. I don’t know if you can watch the recording.

It’s obvious Odom wanted to go out from this. Just months ago a video dropped of him blaming the media and other people for ruining his life. I fail to see how. Knicks signed him to a 2-year deal last year but he got cut months later for doing stupid shit. He could have rolled out a few more years in the league and then build a brand from his off-court celeb status. Instead he got caught up in drugs and the life.

Just use a proxy server. Even for past games you’ll be blackout still so if you don’t like setting up the proxy probably not good for you

i think that’s an extremely broad overview.

dude was caught up in it long before kardashians, and maybe it should have been expected seeing how many right hooks he’s been hit with. dudes had a hard life, despite being a celeb and sports star. he’s tried to turn it around multiple times and kept boomeranging back whenever shit went south. i mean, think of how he was when the lakers ditched him… he’s obviously craving something good and stable in life but can’t seem to keep it straight.

i’m not going to act like i understand whatever pressures he’s had and how i’d deal with them, but i know personally the whole “suck it up and enjoy your money” argument about this isn’t that simple. dude had a ton of demons and years of bad mental conditioning, and that can be more crippling than any injury you can have on the court.

^You’re being way too kind. Geo saying some dumb ignorant shit.

Most people don’t know shit about addiction, depression, and PTSD. People like Odom become addicts because that’s how they’ve learn to cope.

Nothing I said was dumb. He got waived by the Knicks because of “professionalism concerns.” You can’t fucking blame everything on depression and life troubles. He ruined that situation for himself. And then he comes out and blames the media for shit he’s done to ruin himself.

Don’t be a sap. The only reason Odom was in a brothel blowing money on hookers and blow is because he decided to go in the first place. You can’t blame every stupid decision on demons. That’s a copout.

So we’re calling TMZ media now?

Not only that, but I don’t think you realize the extent this man has not been left alone. Every 2 weeks his name shows up in a magazine. In Louisiana.

Let me repeat that.

His NAME. Keeps showing up in magazines (whether it relates to a Kardashian or not, but usually a Kardashian) dissecting his life. Every 2 weeks. For the past 3 years. In Louisiana.

This nigga lived in Los Angeles. You think niggas weren’t constantly bothering him 24/7? You think having your issues being dragged into the light, having your phone being blown up, being stalked, and being made a mockery of on a weekly basis either on television or in a magazine didn’t contribute to being even more fucked up than he already was?

What type of part of the hate game is this? He made mistakes yes, but to think the media didn’t contribute in any way shape or form (especially after he left the league, but is still relevant because of Khloe for some godforsaken reason) is fucking asinine.

The only asinine thing is people thinking 1) It was fine for him to do something unprofessional enough to warrant getting waived from the Knicks (of all teams) and 2) It’s fine for him to blame the media for said action.

It’s like ya’ll are living in some bizarro world where someone shouldn’t be held accountable for their actions because of “life hardships.”

I have a newsflash for you: you’re only enabling people who do these things, because it makes them believe it’s okay to do since it “isn’t their fault.”

I have a cousin exactly like Odom. Drugs are his m.o. because of depression. I saw this kid kiss his gf, then drive with me to a strip club, asking me for money to pay a stripper he got a bj from. He spent years in jail for attempting to rob a bank. If it weren’t for people like me forcing him to change his ways, he’d be dead. Odom didn’t have enough people in his ear steering him down a path he should be on.

If Odom robbed a bank and blamed the media for it, ya’ll would probably be here saying this shit still.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zlo2bG5vBs

I bet Kobe gave the Kardashians that stare when he went there and saw the cameras because they did not seem to stay too long, not Khloe from all reports she is still there but her family and the cameras.

fixed

Nigga.

In what way, shape, or form, was your cousin constantly getting media coverage, getting stalked, and having his business (IE, Mistakes, so also getting judged for them) shoved down the throats of the entirety of America?

My nigga.

We’ve seen stronger people than Odom over the years commit suicide/drug overdose because of external pressures.

And most of them didn’t have the same severity of problems (Or which never got reported on) Lamar has had.

So, let me know. Was this nigga never supposed to leave the house (cuz they probably cased that shit too)? What family did this nigga have again to have his back? Same family they ain’t even show up to his son’s funeral? I mean, his friends all have lives (and/or is still playing ball). What were they supposed to do? Babysit the nigga? You tell me how?

What women was going to help him? Some random thot? What dude? Some nigga who looked at him like a meal ticket (and Odom was apparently the guy who attracted them types of niggas like flies)?

I mean, this nigga couldn’t even get therapy without some camera getting shoved in his face.

Even on his deathbed NIGGA STILL HAS HAD CAMERAS SHOVED IN HIS FACE.

And you’re telling me he ain’t have the right to get mad at the media? Who keeps plastering his problems everywhere? Who keep dragging his name through the mud? Who keeps stalking him?

What type of fuckery is this?

What type of blinders do you have on my nigga? Not everyone who leaves or is traded from the Miami Heat is a gotdamn judas my nigga.

This nigga had problems. The magnitutde of which I don’t even want to contemplate, some shit I’ll never go through. He made mistakes. Ain’t no one denying that. Realizing this nigga had REAL problems, no support system (Or team), and having his mistakes blasted 24/7 across the nation, AND getting exploited, AND getting no money from getting exploited (on TV) does not mean niggas are excusing his mistakes. It’s called understanding why a nigga does/did dumb shit.

But acting like the media ain’t contribute to his downward spiral is just as asinine as excusing his mistakes.

Why do people make things out to be so black and white? He doesn’t get a pass, but it’s not entirely his fault.

he did cocaine

he took viagra

[details=Spoiler]
and he still couldnt keep up with the kardashians [/details]

This, it is still his fault and external factors are also at play.

K. So basically the media put a gun to his head and forced him to not be professional and get himself fired. The media is to blame for him going to a brothel.

Yeah, the media is to blame for all of Odom’s decisions, right? He’s not the one making the choices.

Ya’ll are ridiculous.

And btw, this is coming from a person who’s dealt with depression, had terrible thoughts, was on Zoloft for awhile and seeing counselors/shrinks.

I repeat: you can’t fucking blame every action you do on depression. And you can’t fucking blame the media or any other outside factor for that matter, either. If you think it’s okay, then you’re part of the problem when it comes to people like this.

Every decision you make in life is your fault. This isn’t a videogame: no one is controlling you. No one is forcing you to do anything against your will.

This is a big problem in society. People overlook this and cast the blame on “demons” and other bullshit. We pray for the person that makes bad decisions because “he/she didn’t know any better.”

eh, i don’t want to get into all this too much in an nba thread, but most acts of self destruction are cries for help. its hard when you don’t have the people around you to make the changes you need, but you’d be surprised how little people know or care about mental health: just look at backlash concussions get and how many people have a “Suck it up” mentality with the nfl still. i’m in the bay area and there is a sizable contingent that think chris borland is a pussy.

its hard to have the right support group and if that’s the case, you find solace in people who want to take on your issues, and sadly most of those are leeches, dealers, and seedier types. maybe kardashians were just another self destructive step. Its harder to pin point selfdestructive mentalities guys like odom who have been trained their whole life to put on a happy face, because usually their outbursts are dramatic but very brief in between a majority of the time where everything appears normal.

mental health is a huge issue and people still act like its as “suck it up and be responsible for your actions” type shit. you need a good support group and people who will take you out of bad situations and actual help… not something that heals over time without focused action. outside of making it in the nba, he’s been kicked around most of his life without anyone to support him. yes, ultimately he’s responsible for his actions, but under contextualizing why he made those actions to make it seem like he deserved (or was attempting to get said result) it is wrong.

two people at the same time crash into each other while speeding on the freeway and kill themselves and their passengers. its easy to say “both were driving unsafe, so they both deserved to die”. One could have been a drunk driver who just didn’t give a fuck, but the other guy might have been trying to get a seriously injured buddy or pregnant wife to a hospital or something. i think its probably worse to say that odom planned for this binge to take him out. you’re making a ton of of assumptions on himself and his character, kicking dude when he’s pretty much been down and out his whole time on earth.

I said multiple times it’s a shame he didn’t have the right people around him to help him through his problems. No one said he should’ve just “sucked it up” and got through them himself. But at the same time, does that mean you can blame mental health or the media for actions you make with a clear conscious? No, it does not.

Odom was in that brothel for 3 days. He knew what he wanted to do while there. Excess sex and drugs is never good for the mind or body (well… maybe just the latter).

It’s pointing out the obvious, not kicking someone when they’re down. No one should expect to survive when you go on a drug binge like that.

I don’t think it will matter much, as long as they stay healthy of course. It’s still basketball. A good starting 5 can play 38 minutes, if healthy and not old, like the Thunder. They got enough shooting to keep teams honest, but we’ll see what happans and how dominant Russ and KD will be.

@Geo
I think the Wolves are not as good as Utah or Dallas (if they get healthy players back rather quickly) yet. Though they maybe get quite a bit better by the end of the year. Wiggins hopefully added to his ballhandling during this off season and Rubio can shoot at least 40%.