#at least marc got rightful king instead of her. i think that’s fair

[lannisterdaddyissues]

wait what why does only marc have rightful king. how did morgan inherit aether from inigo when i haven't even reclassed him to lord yet???

[zebrabaker]

The Goddess of Life, The King of Death; Chapter 5.

This is it, folks, the wedding hath arrived! Grab thy tea, and prepare thy selves!

Marinette tried not to scream upon her fifth introduction where the first question was ‘are you really the goddess of flowers?’. Her Nona had taken on the role of her guardian, and was making introductions for her. Gina was in on the plan, and had been a huge help so far. Then, Chloe came over and grabbed her hand, dragging her to a circle of her former classmates. Chloe dropped her hand, and dared away, probably to gossip more. Alya and Lila were absent, likely getting ready for the ceremony. Nino wasn’t there either. Probably going over his speech.

Rose was the first to step forward, and wrapped her in a tight hug.

“It’s so nice to meet you after all this time! What’s your favorite flower this week? I love roses, and daisies, and well, all flowers! I spend a lot of time on every new variety, and yours are all so pretty!” Marinette giggled at the petite blonde’s exuberance.

“It’s nice to meet you too. I rather like gladioli and chrysanthemums. They’re both lovely, and are some of the only flowers that grow in the Underworld.” Rose gasped.

“I never even thought about how difficult it must be to garden in the Underworld!” Juleka stepped forward, and whispered something in Rose’s ear. Rose beamed, and wrapped her arm around Juleka. “I just realized I never introduced myself! I’m Rose, and this is my girlfriend, Juleka! I’m goddess of Flowers, and she’s the Goddess of Shadows, Darkness, and Sapphic love!” Juleka waved a little, peaking out from behind her bangs. “This is Luka, Juleka’s older brother, the God of the Moon and Stars.” Luka pressed a light kiss to her knuckles, and Marinette smiled. She used to have the biggest crush on Luka, but had gotten over it not long after meeting Felix. He winked, and she froze. She had forgotten about his ability to hear anyone’s heart song. He had always told her that she had the most beautiful heart song he had ever heard, and that he would always be able to pick it out.

“A pleasure, your Majesty. How fairs Lady Allegra?” Marinette breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t going to out her. Not yet, at least.

“She’s quite well, Lord Luka.” He nodded and stepped back into the crowd, letting Alix glide forward on her skates.

“Nice ta meet ya! Name’s Alix, Goddess of Speed!” She glanced Marinette up and down, before sighing. “You’re not another girly-girl, are ya?” Marinette struggled not to snort.

“Luckily, I’m able to prank like a pro.” Alix raised an eyebrow.

“We’ll see.” She stepped back, and Mylene took her place.

“Hello, Your Majesty. I’m – “

“Lady Mylene, Goddess of Compassion. I’ve heard of you from several spirits. They say that you visit mortals in their last moments when no one else can or will. My husband and I cannot thank you enough. Souls who have someone there at the end are more likely to pass on, instead of becoming ghosts and haunting the living. Ghosts cause a great deal of paperwork.” Mylene blushed heavily, shrinking in on herself, until Ivan placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Thank you, your Majesty. It’s nothing, really. I just can’t bare the thought that anyone would ever be alone in their last moments. This is my husband, Ivan, the God of Strength.” Ivan merely nodded. She nodded back. The two stepped back into the crowd, and Max stepped forward.

“Your Majesty, it is a pleasure to meet you. As god of information, I was wondering if you could tell me more about your domain. It was my understanding that Rose was the Goddess of Flowers.” He adjusted his spectacles and pulled out a notebook and pen.

“I am Goddess of Mourning Flowers. Lilies, gladioli, carnations, chrysanthemums, orchids, hydrangeas, daffodils, and tulips are some of my more popular creations. I’m rather proud of peace lilies. My domain is actually how I met Allegra, who introduced me to Felix.” Max nodded, and took a few steps away, muttering to himself about nuance in domains and his next research project. Nathaniel took a step forward, shyly.

“Hello. I’m Nathaniel, the God of Art.” He was redder than his hair, and retreated quickly. Marc stepped up.

“I’m Marc, God of Writing. Would you mind telling me how you met Felix? I’m trying to write a love story, but I’m out of inspiration. I’ve asked everyone I know how they met their significant other.” Marinette beamed.

“I was living in a small cottage near the River Styx- “

“BORING!” A voice yelled, and Kim stepped forward. “Hello, beautiful! My name is Kim, god of competition!”

X0X0X

Felix followed Natalie to a shadowed corner, where his father was seated, sipping a flute of nectar, Felix sat, and the two sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, before Gabriel broke the silence.

“Tell me about your…wife.” Gabriel watched his son over the rim of his glass. Felix’s eyes glazed, and his pallid skin flushed.

“She’s everything, Father. She’s kind, and compassionate, and witty, and sarcastic and wonderful. She can bake and cook and sing, and she managed to start a small garden. In the Underworld. Once, I watched her help the soul of a mortal boy who had died of a plague when he was looking for his cat. They spent four hours looking for the cat. Within half an hour, the boy was smiling and giggling. Her eyes shine when she’s happy, and when she gets lost in thought they change colors to match murky waters. When she thinks or focuses really hard, she gets a little wrinkle in between her eyebrows, and her tongue sticks out just a little. Her laughter sounds like tinkling bells, and when she laughs really hard her nose wrinkles a little bit, right on the bridge, and she snorts just the tiniest bit. When I met her, I was frozen. She’s stunning, father. I can’t imagine life without her.” He sighed. “She and Allegra are practically sisters, and her and Claude act like they were separated at birth. Together, she and Alain have pranked Claude at least once a week for the last six years. She had Cerberus giving her rides around the kingdom is just a month. He doesn’t even let me ride on his back, Father. She’s just…perfect.” Felix watched his wife from across the room, his eyes full of warmth and love. Gabriel nodded. That was exactly how he felt about his wife, the Lady Emilie. Yes. This girl, if his son spoke the truth, would be a perfect daughter in law.

Suddenly, Felix stood, chair scraping against the ground.

“Excuse me, father, I need to go.” He grit out, and Gabriel raised an eyebrow. He watched his son go, and nodded in comprehension when he saw what was going on. Kim, the god of competition, was attempting to flirt with Queen Persephone. Gabriel stood, and quickly followed his son, clamping his hand on his shoulder.

“I’ll help you, son. His actions are most uncouth.” Felix shot him an odd look, before nodding. Father and son were striding across the villa, to where Queen Persephone was clearly losing her temper. A small crowd was trying to subtly watch, to see how the young queen would react. When they had reached the edge of the crowd, they were able to hear what Kim was saying.

“You really are lovely. Why you’re married to Hades of all gods is beyond me.” He tried to grab her hand, but she snagged a flute of nectar off a tray, making it so that he couldn’t grab her hand without spilling nectar everywhere.

“I’m not sure what you mean, Lord Kim.” She demurred; eyes narrowed slightly. Felix could see the tension in her shoulders.

“He’s got a stick up his rear, ya know? I can’t imagine ever being stuck with someone like that.” Kim scoffed, before jumping. She had shattered her glass, which was now leaking nectar through her clenched fist. This was going to be fun to watch.

“I’m sorry, ‘stuck�� with him? He is my husband. If I did not wish to be with him, I would not be with him. I have known him TWO DECADES, and he has never been cold or cruel to me. He is kind and sweet and the biggest romantic I’ve ever known. And need I remind you, Lord Kim, my husband is one of the three rulers! He out-stripes you in every possible way. I recommend you learn to think before you speak.” Her voice was sharp and cold, like a dagger of stygian iron. The crowd tittered, as Kim turned red.

Kim opened his mouth to respond, but there was the ringing of a great bell. Adrien was standing on a platform, holding a large bell in one hand.

“Esteemed guests, I ask you all to proceed to the back garden, and find the seat with your name on it! The ceremony will commence in ten minutes!” He poofed away the bell, and turned to lead the procession. Felix slipped through the throngs of deities, and placed his hand on the small of her back.

“It’s me. Let me help you, dearest.” He murmured in her ear, prying her hand open. Marinette hissed, glancing down at the shards embedded in her skin, ichor leaking out of cuts and abrasions. He kissed her pulse point, and vanished the glass. He kissed the back of her palm, healing the many cuts. He gently ran his finger over the cuts in her gloves, repairing them. He then kissed her knuckles, making the stains from ichor and nectar vanish. He tucked her now healed hand into the crook of his elbow, and guided her into the garden.

They passed the deities trying to find their seats, and made their way to the front row. Felix scanned the seats, and found the two chairs next to his father, with Marinette between the two men. Adrien was standing at the altar, beaming to the point he was glowing slightly. Shimmering red glow that grew too bright to look at. When the glare had faded, Queen Tikki was standing, hands folded, behind a rosewood pulpit. Her dress was red, and her blue eyes shimmered with joy. Her delicate wings were folded, tucked against her back, twitching occasionally in excitement. She clasped a hand on Adrien’s shoulder, and addressed the gathering.

“Gods and Goddesses of Olympus! Today, we are gathered here to celebrate the union of the goddess of life and the god of the sun, our future Queen and King! In just two centuries, they will take over ruling Olympus with their chosen council! However, political matters can wait till after the wedding! For now, bring in the bride!”

There was a bright light from the back, and all assembled turned in their seats to see Lila coming down the aisle. Her dress was a shimmering gold, her veil so short it barely covered her eyes. She was smiling demurely, and moving in a way that indicated great anticipation. Marinette clutched Felix’s arm tightly, bracing herself. Her bond with Adrien was weak, barely a frayed thread, but this ceremony was bound to snap it completely. This was going to hurt.

Lila reached the altar, and handed her bouquet to Alya. She ascended the stairs with grace, and clasped Adrien’s hands in her own. Queen Tikki giggled a bit, before setting a hand on Lila’s shoulder.

“A very funny joke, Lady Lila, but where is Princess Marinette? Come now, send in the bride!” Tikki returned her gaze to the doors from whence Lila had emerged, before frowning. She turned to Adrien. “Where is she? Can someone go check on the bride? It’s likely just a few pre-wedding jitters.” Lila grit her teeth in a smile, before placing a hand over Queen Tikki’s, which still rested on her shoulder.

“Queen Tikki? Have you grown ill? It’s me, Lila, the next Goddess of Life and Creation.” Tikki scowled, and ripped her hand away.

“You dare attempt to deceive me? I have been Queen longer than you have been alive, girl! Tell me, where is Marinette?!” Tikki’s scarlet hair was beginning to float, her eyes shining a cold cobalt. Lila attempted to step away, but Tikki grabbed her by the elbow in a vice-like grip.

“No one knows! When she was outed as the Goddess of Lies and Deceit twenty years ago, she ran away!” Alya burst out, clearly scared.

“What…did you just say?” Tikki’s gaze turned from the struggling Lila to Alya, who’s eyes snapped to meet the Queen’s.

“She was outed as the Goddess of Lies and Deceit, so she ran away. Had she even told us, we could have forgiven her eventually, but she ran away. Lila told us she was planning to lie, and pretend to be the next Goddess of Life and Creation. Not like we would have fallen for it anyway.” Alya scoffed. Tikki growled, before taking a deep breath. She dropped Lila, who landed on her rear. Before the girl could stand, Tikki snapped her fingers, and Lila was cuffed by her wrists the altar.

“Trixx!” She called, the single syllable ringing through the air. A shimmering ball of orange appeared next to Queen Tikki, before morphing into a woman with auburn hair and purple eyes, wearing an orange chiton. She had a fluffy fox’s tail, and long, pointed ears, tipped with black.

“What’s the matter, Tikki?” The principality of Illusion, Lies, and Deceit asked, glancing around. “Where’s your successor? This is her wedding, is it not?”

“Apparently not.” Tikki spat. “Your successor decided that she was unhappy with the honor that had been bestowed upon her, and wanted what was not hers.” Trixx frowned in confusion before her eyes widened, her ears pinned back against her head. She wheeled on her heel, baring her teeth at the cowering Lila.

“What did I tell you?” Lila just cowered away, and Trixx growled low in her throat. “I warned you not to try to deceive other principalities, least of all those older than you! You foolish girl! Where has she gone?” Trixx asked Tikki, eyes full of worry and concern.

“They don’t know.” Tikki crossed her arms, glaring at the assembled. “Lord Thomas, Lady Sabine, come here.” From the back row, her parents rose, making their way up the aisle, hands clasped tight. “Where is your daughter?” Her Papa frowned, glaring at Adrien. He, like his wife, was in on the plan, and all for it. No one hurt his daughter.

“She is safe and happy, your Majesty.” Tikki sighed, shoulders slumping.

“Very well. I will expect a full report on her whereabouts later. Trixx, take them to a guest room in the palace, and warn Plagg.” Trixx nodded, and curtseyed slightly. She set a hand on each of her parent’s shoulders, and disappeared the way she had come. Lila, fool that she was, tried to salvage the situation.

“Tikki, please! She’s gotten to you too! I’m the next Goddess of Life and Creation! You gave me my first domain a ye- “Lila was cut off with a sharp slap. Her head snapped to the side, and her hand went to her reddening cheek.

“As Trixx warned you, filth, your powers have no effect on those older or more powerful than you. I will deal out your punishment later.” Tikki snapped her fingers, and a heavy muzzle clamped over Lila’s mouth. Tikki wheeled on Adrien, hair floating, wings flaring.

“You shall face punishment as well, Adrien, future principality of the sun. You should have been easily able to tell the truth.” She snapped, and Adrien was cuffed like his precious bride.  Tikki wheeled to face assembly once more.

“Did none of you see the earth dying? Crops wilting, humans dying, disease and plague spreading? I had just assumed my dear Marinette had yet to gain full control of her power, but to hear she has been chased out by you fools? I am disgusted with all of you. For now, until I know the full extent of this matter, you will all be placed under house arrest. No one leaves the mountain except the foreign royals and Lady Gina, as she will need to act as messenger. Everyone go home. This wedding is over.” The queen spun on her heel, her cloak flaring out behind her as she vanished. 

This was not how Marinette had pictured this going…

[jodyedgarus]

The Eastern Conference Battle Just Escalated Quickly

chris.herring (Chris Herring, senior sportswriter): While there wasn’t the blockbuster deal that some thought might come at Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, there were plenty of moves — and non-moves — that affected each of the top teams in the East and will factor heavily in the playoff race from here on out.

And on the flipside, there are a handful of teams that aren’t in contention that made trades I liked for their future. (And one that did almost nothing, which confuses me.)

This is insane, by the way:

The Hornets, Jazz, Timberwolves, Spurs … That's it for teams who did nothing? 26 teams making moves? Phew …

— Sean Deveney (@SeanDeveney) February 7, 2019

neil (Neil Paine, senior sportswriter): Chris, this has to be up there with the most active deadlines ever.

chris.herring: So what stood out to you all as the deadline came and went? The trades themselves are over, but a number of teams seem likely to keep an eye on the waiver wire for big names that could become available via buyout.

I have to be honest: I loved Milwaukee’s trade for Nikola Mirotic.

neil: Yes, a week ago, the Bucks were third-best in the East in our ratings. Now they are No. 1. (At least, in terms of full-strength rating.)

chris.herring: They took four second-rounders and the spare parts they got in deals from the past couple of days to get a stretch big who fits their offense perfectly.

Tobias Harris is a more complete player than Mirotic, but the fact that they could get the deal done without giving up much on the personnel side was really impressive.

natesilver (Nate Silver, editor in chief): What stood out to me is that the biggest losers of the whole trade deadline period were the Lakers and the Celtics, even though they didn’t make any moves. (Well, the Lakers traded for Mike Muscala, but I’m not sure that counts.)

tchow (Tony Chow, video producer): It doesn’t.

chris.herring: The Sixers could have benefited from a deal like Milwaukee’s.

neil: Yes, the Sixers gave up a ton in that Harris deal.

tchow: The thing that stood out to me is it seemed like Toronto, Milwaukee AND Philadelphia all made moves with the assumption that their time is NOW. They all seem to believe they can win, if not the NBA Finals, then at least the East. Now, obviously, all three of them (four if you include Boston) can’t make it out on top, so it’ll be interesting to see who, if any, regrets these moves at the end of the season.

natesilver: The Celtics were the biggest losers because all three of the other Eastern contenders made trades that make them much tougher outs. Obviously Philly gave up a lot more to do it than Toronto or Milwaukee did, and I agree that the Mirotic trade is the best of the three.

chris.herring: That’s interesting, Nate.

natesilver: The opportunity cost of not making a move is pretty high if you’re Boston.

Especially if they’re now underdogs to make it out of the second round, which won’t help their case for keeping Kyrie Irving.

chris.herring: I actually didn’t feel like Boston was a massive loser here. On the one hand, yeah, they didn’t change the roster. But they also seem to have played a role in Anthony Davis not being moved, which is a win in some ways, no? I guess it depends on whether you’re looking at short-term (which you probably have to, since the Celtics are a contender) vs. long-term/summer.

neil: Certainly Davis staying in play for the summer is a win for Boston, although Davis’s agent and his father have said he’s not interested in signing long-term in Boston.

natesilver: My thing is like: Kyrie has very openly flirted with the idea of leaving. And both the Knicks and the Clippers, two of the most attractive destinations, have totally cleared their books in way that make them very plausible fits for him.

chris.herring: That’s certainly true

natesilver: The Celtics have to fade a lot of risks: AD openly griping about going there, Kyrie not leaving, the Knicks getting the No. 1 (or maybe the No. 2?) pick — in which case their offer for AD could be pretty darn attractive — and maybe none of the Lakers players having a breakout in the playoffs, which would make them more attractive trade assets, too.

chris.herring: All completely fair.

tchow: Yea, if the Celtics get knocked out in the first round or even the second round of the playoffs this year, I feel like they’re going to really regret not making any moves before this deadline.

natesilver: Like, what if the Celtics had traded for Tobias Harris as a rental?

chris.herring: Maybe I’m just of the opinion that the Celtics doing nothing AND watching AD get dealt to the Lakers would’ve been worse for them.

natesilver: The weird thing about Boston is that they don’t have any obvious weaknesses, so they’re a little hard to improve unless you’re actually getting a star. But still…

chris.herring: I don’t know if I would have liked them dealing for Harris, who is kind of a taller Jayson Tatum with less upside, given their difference in age.

neil: Are the Lakers even going to MAKE the playoffs?

tchow: Maybe? Right now, we project them to be a 9 seed.

chris.herring: That’s a good question, Neil.

natesilver: We have them as 2-to-1 underdogs, although they’re going to benefit from the Clippers semi-tanking. And maybe our numbers don’t account for motivation, as much.

tchow:

neil: Hard as it is to believe a LeBron James team misses the playoffs.

chris.herring: The Clippers are interesting because even after dealing Harris, they aren’t by any means in a bad spot.

natesilver: Yeah, the Clippers have a lot of guys on expiring contracts, so they have incentive to play hard.

In the abstract, the Kings are not tanking, but our numbers hate Harrison Barnes, so that trade didn’t help their chances at all.

chris.herring: I didn’t like that deal for the Kings.

I like that they’re going for it. But I didn’t love trading Justin Jackson.

The Bulls’ deal for Otto Porter was better, IMO.

neil: But it also felt like the Lakers and AD overplayed their hand a little here. It felt like an orchestrated effort to bully the Pelicans into trading a generational player for less than attractive prospects. And the Pelicans didn’t blink.

To hear some tell it, out of spite.

chris.herring: There were a handful of things that played out today that I didn’t understand.

tchow: Fellow Justin Jackson fan here, checking in.

chris.herring: Toronto’s deal for Marc Gasol was interesting. He’s a former defensive player of the year but has slowed down. You deal Jonas Valanciunas, Delon Wright, CJ Miles and a second-rounder for him. I don’t know how much better that makes the Raptors. Maybe Gasol is less of a defensive liability, but Valanciunas could beat up on second-string bigs pretty well. And I like Wright’s versatility at times.

What did our projections have on that one? The way the Raps handled deadline was interesting. You kept hearing Lowry’s name floated around, etc.

neil: Our projections still like Gasol quite a bit. Mainly for his defense.

chris.herring: Also, to Nate and Neil’s question about the Lakers, at this point, I’m more interested in how the youngsters play from now on. Many of them had never been through this, with it being public that they’re all for sale. How they respond, how hard LeBron pushes himself and how much the Lakers push him will say a lot about whether they’re in the playoffs. It may not be totally worth it for LeBron to push himself to the limit, given how old he is and how slim a chance they have of taking out the West’s contenders.

natesilver: I think literally every player on the roster other than LeBron was rumored to be going to New Orleans at some point, which can’t have helped with morale.

chris.herring: Exactly.

neil: Probably no coincidence they lost by 40+ on Tuesday.

chris.herring: YUP.

natesilver: Plus, the Lakers’ plan B isn’t that bad. Sign Klay Thompson or something this summer, give the young guys more chance to develop, and be opportunistic; there are still several ways you could end up with AD, and if you do, you’re going to have a lot more assets to surround him and LBJ with.

chris.herring: Some teams surprised me by not making a deal today. I thought Atlanta — with guys like Kent Bazemore, Jeremy Lin — could have dealt away a vet to get something in return. Utah seemed to want Mike Conley, yet Memphis decided not to trade him just yet.

But I love Orlando getting Markelle Fultz. They badly need someone at point guard. So I like the first-round pick as a gamble there.

tchow: But our projections HATE Fultz, Chris.

chris.herring: Of course. He hasn’t been good yet!

neil: I don’t think anybody’s projections know what to do with Fultz.

natesilver: Fultz isn’t a guy that projection systems are set up to deal with.

neil: Right.

chris.herring: One team that continues to confuse me some is Houston. They kind of cheaped out. Moved James Ennis for very little. Picked up Iman Shumpert, but also dealt away Nik Stauskas right after landing him in a trade. All seemingly to stay beneath the luxury tax. Those guys could’ve been useful. Maybe not great, but useful. On a team with a ton of injuries and little depth.

It would be interesting to know how James Harden views that sort of thing as he’s doing everything by himself, damn-near.

natesilver: Shumpert with good coaching/management could be an interesting fit. But yeah, Daryl Morey is sort of a home run hitter, and this felt like him fouling off a few pitches instead.

chris.herring: True. They’ve always been bold, when it comes to certain things, that boldness pays off. They washed their hands of Carmelo Anthony a lot earlier than some would have, but they turned things around shortly after. Now the Lakers are interested in picking Melo up off the waiver wire, apparently.

tchow: Speaking of Melo, Chris, in the beginning of the chat, you mentioned something about buyouts, and I keep hearing NBA circles talking about a robust or much coveted buyout market this time around. Who are some of the players that are being circled right now? I have no idea why it’s “robust.”

chris.herring:

The Lakers plan to evaluate the full buyout market once it takes shape, but Carmelo Anthony is expected to be among the considerations too, league sources tell ESPN.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 7, 2019

Not everybody has been bought out yet. But there are a few key ones, Tony. Among them: Robin Lopez, who’s thought to be headed to the Warriors. Wesley Matthews, who sounds set on Indiana.

natesilver: What if Houston traded Chris Paul for the Lakers’ young guys this summer?

Not that crazy if AD goes elsewhere, right?

chris.herring: I don’t think the young Lakers shoot well enough to put them around Harden.

But that idea is still kind of fascinating. I don’t trust CP3 health-wise beyond this year — especially not with that money he’s making. So they would be smart to get something for him if someone is willing to give them a king’s ransom.

natesilver: The 76ers really need a buyout guy. The drop-off from their starting five to their bench is about as steep as you’ll ever see.

tchow: Scouring on NBA Twitter right now, and Wayne Ellington (Tar Heel!!) is another name that is being mentioned a lot.

chris.herring: Yeah. Ellington def isn’t playing with Phoenix, so he’s another — maybe to the Rockets, even. He waived a no-trade clause to leave Miami, so he’d probably only join a contender.

natesilver: Speaking of Philly, the Fultz move actually opens up some cap space, so they could decide to keep Harris and target another max guy if Jimmy Butler leaves.

chris.herring: That Harris deal was such a big, interesting move for them.

Being able to keep him as insurance depending on what happens with Butler — who isn’t my favorite long-term max option anyway — is huge. Harris is also a lot younger than people realize because Philadelphia is already his fifth team at age 26.

tchow: He’s only 26???

natesilver: I like it more for the Sixers than a lot of people do, in part because it gives them several different options going forward.

chris.herring: Yep.

natesilver: Also, if Ben Simmons is your point guard, you need forwards who can make a 3.

chris.herring: I was tough on them last year, but can we circle back to the Pistons right quick? Because they are seemingly punting on this season. They gave up Stanley Johnson for Thon Maker, which I don’t mind on its own. Thon could be good. But they dealt away a very decent/good player in Reggie Bullock to the Lakers.

neil: And according to our projections, Detroit has a 56 percent chance of making the playoffs!

chris.herring: THAT’S WHAT I’M NOT UNDERSTANDING

neil: Same.

chris.herring: Like, there’s a possibility they could be trading themselves out of the playoffs.

Now, maybe that risk isn’t terrible — especially now, with what happened with the Wizards.

neil: Making the playoffs is a pretty low bar, especially in the East. But Detroit has only done it once since 2009.

natesilver: Top to bottom, Detroit has to be in one of the worst situations in the league. They’re stuck in that in-between zone, but without very many young assets to pull them out of it.

chris.herring: As it stands, they still wouldn’t be in. And I feel like they hurt their chances, if anything

tchow: Yea, I was about to say. Detroit making the playoffs might be surprising, but if you look at the East, who else would be the 7 or 8 seed that seems more probable? 56 percent seems about right to me.

neil: The Wizards basically blew everything up. (Although I was a little surprised Bradley Beal wasn’t on the move.)

chris.herring: Miami. I trust Erik Spoelstra and that group more than Blake Griffin and the Blakettes.

natesilver: If the Pistons decide they want to blow things up, then I wonder if they’d consider moving Blake this summer.

chris.herring: I guess they probably want to build around him going forward. But yeah, Blake probably should be moved. He could make several teams really interesting.

tchow: Man, I feel so bad for Wizards fans.

chris.herring: Yeah. Speaking of the Wizards, I liked the Bulls jumping in on the Otto Porter situation. Some Bulls’ fans didn’t like it. But Chicago has done literally nothing to make itself more appealing to free agents this summer. So they sacrifice that space by getting Porter, who’s young. But they at least have a young vet who is decent on both ends to put around that young core.

natesilver: There are so many teams with max cap slots open that some of these “bad” contracts, e.g. Blake or CP3 or maybe Kevin Love, could start to look like assets.

All of those guys can still play obviously, but they get very expensive in the back half of their contracts.

tchow: Aren’t all those teams waiting for the summer though, Nate?

natesilver: Yeah, I think the summer is going to be totally wild. Dallas also cleared a max slot, or close to it.

chris.herring: Yeah! The Dallas situation was big. Last week, when we discussed them, we talked about how they didn’t have space. By moving Barnes now, they do. Accelerates the timeline quite a bit, which you obviously want to do now that you have Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis together.

chris.herring: LOL

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) February 7, 2019

The way the Pelicans handled this whole scenario is ridiculous.

neil: So petty.

tchow: The NBA is the pettiest league. But that’s also what makes it the best league.

chris.herring: Although the Lakers’ core wouldn’t have had me excited to make a deal, either.

neil: No, and I think part of it was New Orleans feeling like planting a flag for the small-market teams of the league. The Lakers can’t just have anyone they want whenever they want.

natesilver: If Lonzo Ball and Brandon Ingram had played, like, 20 percent better this season, everything would be so much easier.

neil: That’s definitely true.

chris.herring: I think the Pelicans’ social media team just called the Lakers’ offer the equivalent of the Fyre Festival.

sorry, but hard pass on the villas in the Bahamas

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) February 7, 2019

neil: I didn’t realize FuckJerry was referring to Jerry Buss.

Lol

tchow: LOL

natesilver: But maybe the Lakers deserve some blame for that. The chemistry around the team is really weird and there are a lot of mixed messages about what their objectives are.

chris.herring: Completely. I don’t think it was ever fair to assume they could get the deal done. But I do understand L.A.’s frustration if, as reported, they weren’t even getting counteroffers back from the Pelicans.

natesilver: A lot of the better deals of the past few years, like Paul George or Kawhi Leonard or on a smaller scale Mirotic today, are just about teams being opportunistic.

Instead of trying to call their shots.

chris.herring: Yeah. It would’ve been something had Milwaukee or Toronto been able to land Davis. Probably too big of a gamble for Toronto, and maybe Milwaukee didn’t have enough outside of Giannis.

But the gamble for PG paid off; especially considering OKC generally isn’t in play for the biggest free agents because of location.

natesilver: It was sorta funny that AD’s list included the Lakers plus three teams that didn’t really have pieces that fit.

neil: Yeah, there was another conspiracy theory floating around that that was to provide cover when eventually talks circled “back” to the Lakers.

chris.herring: Yeah. It was Lakers or bust this whole time.

natesilver: If the Knicks get the No. 1 pick, what are the odds they flip it for Davis? Gotta be at least 50/50, no? It just feels like a very clean transaction.

chris.herring: Nate, I think the Knicks would be very well-positioned if they win the lottery. They would have the No. 1 pick (Zion Williamson), two recent lottery guys — in Frank Ntilikina and Kevin Knox — AND the future first-round picks they just got from Dallas.

I don’t think too many teams can touch that. Not a whole lot in the way of players who can make a big, immediate impact. But Zion alone is something you can sell to your fans, as well as a boatload of future picks. And now that the Davis saga is being pushed out to the offseason — and with Boston perhaps being put in a weakened situation, given the lack of clarity around Kyrie — the team that wins the lotto could be best position to make NOLA an offer.

tchow: Circling back to things that did happen, outside of the AD saga, the story of these trades seems to be about the moves the top Eastern Conference teams made. FWIW, this is how the top of the East looked a week ago, compared to now:

neil: I love the East horse race this season! I think the favorite changed hands, like, three times in the last few days. Everyone is making their move now that LeBron is out of the picture.

chris.herring: As they should!

tchow: The King is gone — the throne is wide-open. It’s like “Game of Thrones” in the Eastern Conference.

chris.herring: I really do like the Mirotic trade for Milwaukee. When I tweeted about it, someone said, “Yeah, but how does he help them against Golden State?” Milwaukee hasn’t gotten out of the first round since 2000. They have a real chance to make the finals now, with an elite player, offense and defense and an explosive scheme that allows them to rain threes.

tchow: So. Many. Shooters.

neil: Right, Ray Allen and Sam Cassell were Bucks the last time they were in a spot like this.

chris.herring: Mirotic isn’t perfect. But he really helped AD and the Pelicans down the stretch last year. Can certainly help Milwaukee.

tchow: All right, enough about the trade deadline. Who’s ready for the All-Star draft?

Check out our latest NBA predictions.

from News About Sports https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-eastern-conference-battle-just-escalated-quickly/