Monday Morning Media Roundup: November 2nd, 2020

Another week gone by, another deadline extended, and still no CBA agreement on paper just yet between the NBA and the players’ association. The good news is the appearance of good will on both sides of the negotiations as they continue to agree to minor extensions in their discussion horizon (the first deadline was October 31st and is now November 6th). The bad news is that every week that goes by is another week of uncertainty when it comes to things like free agency, trade season, training camp, some semblance of preseason, and then a regular season.

In some ways, pulling the 2020-2021 season off may prove to be far more of a logistical challenge than the Bubble. While the league pulled out all the Disney magic they could muster to seal the players off from the outside world, the principles underpinning the Bubble were relatively easy to enforce once everyone was inside: Quarantine upon arrival, test often, mask up, keep your distance, and reduce contact with those “outside” the Bubble. Compared to that, juggling 30 team schedules across 30 arenas and 30 different political jurisdictions for six or more months looks pretty risky. On top of that, players will probably be spending portions of their time in their home markets where they have the ability to roam more freely than they did in the Bubble. That balancing act between “living life” and maintaining discipline in the face of a pandemic we’re all faced with is now being introduced into the NBA’s equation. There are bound to be problems that crop up — it is a pandemic, after all — and the league’s preference for good PR raises the stakes.

It’s those weighty expectations that are likely drawing out discussions for both the owners and players.

Let’s roundup!

Election 2020: What motivates billionaire sports owners to donate to political campaigns? (ESPN)

Not sure if you guys were aware but there’s an election happening tomorrow! That’s exciting!

In honor of the great American pastime of casting votes, ESPN has a series of articles up doing a lot of the hard legwork of tracing the intricate web of money, influence, politics, and power that a lot of sports owners stand upon. Each individual has their separate reasons for why they contribute to political causes, and friend of the site/local billionaire Marc Lasry makes an appearance in this opening piece of the article series.

I appreciate the blurb about Lasry because it boils down to “political party powerbroker” which has its own connotations, but also means you get to apply enough pressure to have multiple former and current presidents — ostensibly the most powerful people humanity has ever known — over for some lasagna.

Let’s just make sure our cap sheet gets a nice heaping of lasagna too, Marc!

‘I had tears running down my face’: Kyle Korver discusses what led to Bucks’ playoff walkout (Yahoo)

Korver provided a few more details about the state of the team in the lead up to the now famous strike kicked off by the Bucks. From what he shared it does sound like the team was on the edge of some sort of action for awhile prior to the shooting of Jacob Blake. After that incident, however, momentum took on a life of its own as George Hill sat out, Sterling Brown joined him, and the rest of the team followed suit.

It remains the inflection point upon which Milwaukee’s season rests. Korver’s full interview right here:

Could an Accelerated Offseason Change the Way Teams Are Built? (The Ringer)

Methinks the answer to this question is yes, but while we all sit around grasping at straws we might as well introduce some expert opinion into the discussion. That’s where Rob Mahoney comes in. I continue to find the theory that a pressure-cooker free agency environment might help the Bucks acquire higher-level talent (at the expense of the wider free agency class). If, as Mahoney stakes out, only six-ish teams have legit cap space that means the vast majority of the league will have roughly the same cap exception tools on offer to players. Milwaukee’s mid-level exception can be competitive on a dollar-to-dollar basis with other rivals while offering a player the chance at a bit of post-season glory if they sign on the dotted line.

At least, that’s the idea. It still is Milwaukee and it still will be the winter. But the organization’s changed reputation should keep them on par when angling after any signings. Or we’ll just sign the other Lopez brother to a mid-level deal, who knows.

Disney searching for actors to play Giannis Antetokounmpo in upcoming film (NBA.com)

Sure, my Greek is a little rough around the edges, I’m 5’9” on a good day, and have hair like a discount version of Brad Pitt, but this sort of feels like my shot at a big break. Just imagine it, dear readers: Me, on the big screen serving a gyro to a passer-by on the far edge of a particular shot, an extra for now but with tons of promise.

A blog boy can dream, can’t he?

The Social Media Section

...pass

The rest of the Brew Hoop staff unanimously declared Mr. Scoop B to be an unreliable source, but we have content demands around these parts

Could’ve been doing that for us in the Finals, I swear

Hate it when Frank posts pictures of me/all of us

I love Giannis and I love Milwaukee, but this is being generous to a fault

Like, c’mon... this is less beautiful than Milwaukee? Let’s be real for a second

Hmmm, Robin for the USA men’s team Tokyo 2021???

It’d be extremely DJ for DJ to sustain a catastrophic injury standing around on kitchen countertops

Unfortunately for our loyal listeners we do not have a new episode of the Brew Hoop Podcast this week. The rest of your can release that breath you’ve been holding for a week with a well-deserved sigh of relief. However! We will be shooting to have on special guest, site overlord, trade maestro, my friend and yours Mitchell Maurer to recap his ongoing trade bracket, help lay out the cap realities facing the Bucks with (hopefully) a bit of context after a CBA adjustment is agreed to.

Or it’ll be me, Adam, and Kyle pretending we know anything. Fun.

Happy Monday!