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NBA Finals 2017

#41
GregC said:
Everyone forgets about the Celtics doing it first with Pierce, KG, and Allen.
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Houston tried it with Clyde, Charles, Hakeem. Except they were better off without that knucklehead Charles.

Durant, he cheated. He went and joined a team that already won. Not as big an accomplishment in my opinion. Also of importance here is some background on my comments; I do not like the NBA and have not watched a single game since 2008.
I was at that last Sonics game, watching the shell of a team that scumbag Clay Bennett tore apart to make worthless. Alienating fans and former players. Gah, my blood is starting to boil just typing it out.

-Mike
 
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#42
If CP3 replaces Tony Parker the spurs could be a pretty good team, especially if Aldridge takes the next step and ups his game. He's not good enough right now. That'd be some decent star power. But, hey, for me, I'll take the dynasty. Maybe we can hit a quadruple! (I'm only slightly serious...)

Still, I would like to see more parity in the East. If Boston works out the right guys and evaluates talent properly they are gonna be the closest thing to a challenge. It's not like they were this year. Maybe two lotto pick rookies will set the game on fire. Who knows...
 
#43
Actually, in the east, I would worry the most about the Pelicans. They are just a Westbrook (cough) and a few role players away. Cousins and Anthony Davis are a HUGE front court, imagine Westbrook with those guys, or even CP3 to make a big 3 and a good 4th player and you are looking at a formidable team.

TOOL460002 said:
If CP3 replaces Tony Parker the spurs could be a pretty good team, especially if Aldridge takes the next step and ups his game. He's not good enough right now. That'd be some decent star power. But, hey, for me, I'll take the dynasty. Maybe we can hit a quadruple! (I'm only slightly serious...)

Still, I would like to see more parity in the East. If Boston works out the right guys and evaluates talent properly they are gonna be the closest thing to a challenge. It's not like they were this year. Maybe two lotto pick rookies will set the game on fire. Who knows...
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#44
MJ5150 said:
Houston tried it with Clyde, Charles, Hakeem. Except they were better off without that knucklehead Charles.

Durant, he cheated. He went and joined a team that already won. Not as big an accomplishment in my opinion. Also of importance here is some background on my comments; I do not like the NBA and have not watched a single game since 2008.
I was at that last Sonics game, watching the shell of a team that scumbag Clay Bennett tore apart to make worthless. Alienating fans and former players. Gah, my blood is starting to boil just typing it out.

-Mike
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I'm not going to go so far as to say Durant cheated. But I think LeBron's comments about Durant have been fairly generous during the Finals, especially since Durant (along with just about everyone else, of course) criticized James for hooking up with Wade and Bosh in Miami.

Imagine the savaging LBJ would have gone through if he had left the Cavs in 2010 to join the Celtics, who he'd just lost to, or GSW after the 2015 Finals.
 
#45
Another potential superteam could be the Lakers, THIS year. LBJ could be on his way out and off the the west coast. Paul George has already said that he wants to play for the Lakers who have a lot of cap room. With the 2nd pick and all that young talent who would become better players with those 2 around them, the Lakers could be great again also. I'm calling it right now that both those guys end up with the Lakers this year.
 
#46
Don't forget Steph Curry. He averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 9.4 assists in the Finals, while being the smallest guy on the floor most if not all of the time. And all the while not whining or complaining or being envious of Durant's success. Curry, the two-time league MVP, was clearly there to be the best teammate he could be and help the Warriors win the title.

All things considered, this may be his best performance.
 
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#47
FilterFunk said:
Don't forget Steph Curry. He averaged 26.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 9.4 assists in the Finals, while being the smallest guy on the floor most if not all of the time. And all the while not whining or complaining or being envious of Durant's success. Curry, the two-time league MVP, was clearly there to be the best teammate he could be and help the Warriors win the title.

All things considered, this may be his best performance.
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Curry and Durant make each other better.
 
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#48
GregC said:
I'm not going to go so far as to say Durant cheated. But I think LeBron's comments about Durant have been fairly generous during the Finals, especially since Durant (along with just about everyone else, of course) criticized James for hooking up with Wade and Bosh in Miami.

Imagine the savaging LBJ would have gone through if he had left the Cavs in 2010 to join the Celtics, who he'd just lost to, or GSW after the 2015 Finals.
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THATS IT! I'm showing these posts to Draymond.
 
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#49
bholder said:
Hate to say it, but LeBron is starting to look a bit old and merely human (as opposed to superhuman). Still amazing of course, but the passing of the torch looks pretty inevitable.
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Somewhat disagree with this. I recognize that he's 32, which is past the peak for virtually any basketball player, and that he looked tired at the end of a couple games.

However, he carried a heavy load. He played almost 3 minutes per game more than any Golden State player (even Durant)--he had to, given Cleveland's dreadful plus/minus when he was on the bench. He also scored nearly as many points as Durant while shooting 56% overall and 39% from 3--the latter was the same percentage as Curry, by the way. And of course, he became the first player in Finals history to average a triple double--33.6 pts., 12.0 rebs, 10.0 assists. (He also tied for the team lead in blocks.)

I'm not sure the torch is ready to be passed yet. Without a doubt, KD stepped up big time--he outscored everyone, and played excellent D as well. But he's not the facilitator or rebounder that James is, and of course having the reigning two-time MVP and two more current All Stars out on the wing opens up things for Durant in the middle. James, unfortunately, didn't get much help from his shooters (other than Game 4) despite setting them up time and time again.

Time will tell. In 3 years, maybe Durant takes the torch. Not yet, IMO.
 
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#50
This is the NBA finals result that I care about! Way to go, Klay!! (And don't forget the defense he played while his offensive slump was going on.)

Klay%20with%20flag_zpsnjucrltq.jpg
 
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#54
FilterFunk said:
I'll say this about Durant - whatever anyone thinks of his decision to join the Warriors, he wasn't simply an important cog in the machine. He played clutch in the Finals, became the Finals MVP, and proved that he wasn't just there to show up and collect a ring.
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He also played hard at both ends of the court,plus he fit in will with the unselfish, team oriented style of Dubs basketball.
 
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#58
Interesting article on the "Durant Ring Bash". [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
If you want to say Durant "chased a ring", fine. So did LeBron - leaving Cleveland to go to Miami, instead of "sticking with his team and making them better".
In the end, both got rings, and I'd be hard pressed to say that they didn't work 100% to get them. Or that they don't deserve to be champions.

For years I watched the Dubs stink, and never make a move for a star player. Trades would come and go. Hot players would hit the market and I'd think "maybe now the Dubs can get someone who can make the team competitive". Nothing, nada, zip.
The core of the Warriors team is home grown. They traded for one star in the past many, many years. And he came in, and he fit. Not many stars would.
Steph Curry, one of the greatest players of this generation, was entirely willing to give up glory, points, and recognition to share the stage. And so was Durant. That's pretty rare in the wild world of sports.
How many stars did Cleveland trade for? I forget if it's 2 or 3.

Oh, right, and free agency. That means "can go anywhere the athlete wants (and can make a deal)", not "can only go where I think he should go". At least it did last I checked. Sorry, I can't let Google hire me as a VP because I'm already a VP at Bing, so I must make Bing work. Said no executive ever.

Want to whine about the NBA? Work on getting better in the Eastern conference, because it's been "one great team and a lot of "pretty far down the ladder" over there for years, whereas the West has been very competitive for most of the 10 years that I've paid attention. For quite a while, the #9 team in the West (missing the playoffs entirely) had a better record than the #3 or #4 team in the East.

I'm done now.
 
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#59
slobake said:
He was there to be part of a great team, to make Warriors fans happy. He as also there to create controversy, jealousy and discontent in other NBA Fans. :)
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Ah, OK.
Let's not be fooled though here friends. Players are in this for one thing, and one thing only. Money.

It's real easy for one of these clowns to sit in front of a microphone and say stuff like 'I'd play this game for free, I love it so much'. Of course they'd say that as there is zero chance of that ever happening.

-Mike
 
#60
MJ5150 said:
Ah, OK.
Let's not be fooled though here friends. Players are in this for one thing, and one thing only. Money.

It's real easy for one of these clowns to sit in front of a microphone and say stuff like 'I'd play this game for free, I love it so much'. Of course they'd say that as there is zero chance of that ever happening.

-Mike
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How do explain players like West going to the Warrior and taking less money than he could have gotten elsewhere? There are also players who have said they are willing to take less money if it means adding good players who can make them a better team.
I admit that some of the salaries are outrageous and that I can't afford tickets to see the Warriors but I wouldn't call NBA players clowns. Oh, there may be some but in general I would say that description doesn't fit.
 
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