NBA Playoffs

[colhusker]

7 hours ago, jason2486 said:

 

LeBron has led 9 teams to the Finals (CLE 5 times), won 3. How often did KD do that before joining GSW. LeBron never went to a team that just set a league record for wins. I actually hated it when he went to Miami, and although I still liked him as an individual, I rooted against the Heat his 4 years there. However, I can't totally blame him if he leaves again. I hope he stays, but when you have a guy on your team who doesn't even know the score at the end of the game, that's gotta be frustrating.  If he plays bad or average, they typically don't win.

So what matters is the number of wins a team has before a guy goes there?  

[atskooc]

Just now, colhusker said:

So what matters is the number of wins a team has before a guy goes there?  

That is apparently the most important factor. 

[HuskerFever]

I'm confused. During the NBA Finals, there was more buzz on here about some player who moved teams 2 years ago and almost nothing about the series itself. Whether or not it was a moral or immoral decision to move to a better team, the Warriors still would have beat the Cavs without KD. That's the most glaring part of it all, in my opinion. The East has been a far cry from the West in terms of the depth of the top 8 teams that make the playoffs.

[Huskerpapa]

People tend to forget the NBA dominance displayed by the Boston Celtics from 1957 through 1970.  They won 11 championships.  ELEVEN.   They had the dominant team, with some exceptional players and coaches (Auerbach, Russell, Howell, KC and Sam Jones, Nelson, Havelacek, Cousy, Heinsohn and others) but you could argue that they did not have the very best players.  That said, they were and are the prototypical super team.  Perhaps the best team EVER put together.  And they put together the team through draft and trades.

 

So the way it occurs today may be a bit different, but the appearance of super teams have been with us for decades or perhaps a century.   One word, Yankees.

 

 

Edited June 9, 2018 by Huskerpapa

[atskooc]

2 minutes ago, Huskerpapa said:

People tend to forget the NBA dominance displayed by the Boston Celtics from 1957 through 1970.  They won 11 championships.  ELEVEN.   They had the dominant team, with some exceptional players and coaches (Auerbach, Russell, Howell, KC and Sam Jones, Nelson, Havelacek, Cousy, Heinsohn and others) but you could argue that they did not have the very best players.  That said, they were and are the prototypical super team.  Perhaps the best team EVER put together.  And they put together the team through draft and trades.

 

So the way it occurs today may be a bit different, but the appearance on super teams have been with us for decades or perhaps a century.   One word, Yankees.

 

 

Free agency wasn't a thing those Celtics had to worry about. The only way to build a team was through trades and the draft. What else were they going to do?

[aphilso1]

19 hours ago, Handy Johnson said:

I remember when KD played his one year at Texas, they came in here and beat us by a point. Sons- a- bitches...

 

I was standing courtside in the student section for that game.  I remember walking away and saying KD would never make it in the NBA 

 

In fairness, I didn't anticipate him creating the template as the ultimate lanky 6'10" SG/wing.  I figured he'd need to bulk up and play PF, and knew he was too soft of a player to do that.  So I was kind of right in way...he DIDN'T make it in the league as a PF...because the league evolved and no longer really even has many traditional PF anymore...

[aphilso1]

So, hot take from a guy who was a casual NBA fan and is getting closer to just not caring at all anymore:

The Warriors are ruining the league.  It's not entirely their fault, but as a generality I blame them for why me and lots of people like me are walking away from the NBA.

 

1. They've worn out their welcome.  Most casual fans only find dynasties interesting when it's a Goliath (Lakers, Yankees, Alabama, Barcelona soccer, etc) that can be toppled by either a) David or b) another Goliath.  It's not their fault that they're a small-ish market team with no history, but I know a LOT of people that didn't watch the Finals but would have if it had been the Lakers or Celtics going for their third title in four years.  Parity would be even better. 

2. Style of play.  This is purely subjective, but the Splash Brothers style of offense is incredibly boring to watch.  I'm a young guy (31), but hate the new style of play that has overtaken the league.  It was interesting when it was only a handful of teams doing it, because it allowed for some interesting clashes of styles.  But now that most NBA games just feel like a 3 point shooting contest (ugh...), I've literally stopped watching all NBA games other than playoffs.  And again, I know a bunch of people with the same opinion. 

3. Increased viewership of other sports, specifically soccer.  This is happening at a time when it's easier than ever before to order your sports programming a la carte via streaming subscriptions.  No longer are the days of quasi-monopolies where a sports league can be the only show for a season.  So if the NBA is boring, I can subscribe to MLS (which is the fastest growing professional sports league in America, BTW) or any number of international soccer leagues.  English Premier League, for example, runs on close to the same calendar as NBA/NHL.  

 

As it is, I'd rather watch a regular season MLB, MLS, Premier League, or Bundesliga game over a regular season NBA game.  But it's getting to where I'd rather watch a regular season game in one of those leagues rather than a playoff game in the NBA.  The style of play is unappealing, and the outcome is not in doubt.  So why watch?

[jason2486]

Colhusker, atskooc, you guys are both clearly KD fans or dislike LeBron, which is your choice, no problem, but you're missing the point.  Season's over, back to Husker hoops!

[khoock]

In my opinion, college hoops is 10x harder to watch and a much uglier game. Aside from Nebrasketball and March Madness, i watch zero. But can watch NBA all day. But to each his own.

[jimmykc]

I gave aphilso and Huskerpapa up arrows because I also respect the skills of players in the NBA ( James and Durant are two of the best I have ever seen and good guys to boot) but find the NBA teams to be incredibly boring to watch. Get a matchup, drive , take three steps, get fouled and perhaps have it called, kick out and shoot a three (usually made), then go to the other end and see the same thing. Anyone who watched Cousey, Russell, Magic, Bird,etc. perform can appreciate the  dramatic flair which has left the NBA building. 

[HuskerFever]

38 minutes ago, aphilso1 said:

So if the NBA is boring, I can subscribe to MLS (which is the fastest growing professional sports league in America, BTW) or any number of international soccer leagues.  English Premier League, for example, runs on close to the same calendar as NBA/NHL.  

 

As it is, I'd rather watch a regular season MLB, MLS, Premier League, or Bundesliga game over a regular season NBA game.

 

Obviously a very subjective topic. And I share some of the same thoughts as you. But we're seeing trends where NFL is slowing down (still #1 and is a long ways from losing the reigns), NBA is quickly creeping up to that #2 spot, MLB is slowing down a lot (still #2), MLS is drastically growing (overpassing NHL if you include international league viewership), and the NHL has been stagnant for many years.

 

As boring as you might think it is, I foresee NBA will be a dominant fixture in American (and especially Chinese) culture for decades to come.

[Handy Johnson]

Well, speaking for the "Get off my Lawn" crowd, trying to stack a team is hardly anything new. The Sixers tried to do it in the late 70's bringing in World B Free & George McGinnis to play with Dr. J, Doug Collins, Harvey Catchings etc. It is remarkable LeBron has played in 8 straight Finals, but his teams were never pushed by anyone else in the East. My interest in the league is waning as well, just not enuff good teams, and I've ALWAYS preferred the College game. 

[bleujay]

that warriors team is unbeatable when both curry and durant are playing well. lebron leaving cleveland this summer will make things interesting again.  whoever he goes to will put up a good fight, and I think the celtics are right there as well if their young talent continues to improve and they are retained.

 

i am an NBA fan and I will admit I was bummed out when Houston was eliminated. Very boring to watch lebron get his ass handed to him every summer by steve kerr

[khoock]

3 hours ago, HuskerFever said:

I'm confused. During the NBA Finals, there was more buzz on here about some player who moved teams 2 years ago and almost nothing about the series itself. Whether or not it was a moral or immoral decision to move to a better team, the Warriors still would have beat the Cavs without KD. That's the most glaring part of it all, in my opinion. The East has been a far cry from the West in terms of the depth of the top 8 teams that make the playoffs.

Series is tied 2-2 if KD isnt a Warrior, in my hypothetical opinion.

[royalfan]

I agree, I don't think Warriors are better without Durant(assuming they don't have other people with that massive amount of money, which they obviously would)

[Huskerpapa]

3 hours ago, atskooc said:

Free agency wasn't a thing those Celtics had to worry about. The only way to build a team was through trades and the draft. What else were they going to do?

True, but explain to me how they got the two best players from a San Francisco Don team that won 60 straight games and two national championships?  There were a lot of fans that thought there was some underhanded, no good stuff occurring.

 

But the point remains, it is easy to cast aspersions about what occurs and how it happened.  You can also blame players wo move about due to free agency or those that demand to be traded or refuse to sign; but that has been going on forever...it may be in different forms, but nonetheless less, it has been occurring. 

[HuskerFever]

42 minutes ago, khoock said:

Series is tied 2-2 if KD isnt a Warrior, in my hypothetical opinion.

 

36 minutes ago, royalfan said:

I agree, I don't think Warriors are better without Durant(assuming they don't have other people with that massive amount of money, which they obviously would)

 

Yeah, don't get me wrong, it's much more of a series. And even this year it should probably be a 4-1 or 4-2 sort of series that never happened. It certainly didn't help that Korver didn't make any noise late into the playoffs. But I just don't see the depth of talent of the Cavs roster to win the series against the Warriors this season, with or without KD.

[Silverbacked1]

6 hours ago, aphilso1 said:

 

I was standing courtside in the student section for that game.  I remember walking away and saying KD would never make it in the NBA 

 

In fairness, I didn't anticipate him creating the template as the ultimate lanky 6'10" SG/wing.  I figured he'd need to bulk up and play PF, and knew he was too soft of a player to do that.  So I was kind of right in way...he DIDN'T make it in the league as a PF...because the league evolved and no longer really even has many traditional PF anymore...

 

Thought the samething aphilso.... I remember the thread on that game/player was one I stood mine ground and got the second most red arrows shot at me.

[Handy Johnson]

On a lighter and more positive note, I renewed my season tickets yesterday, and could give a fat frog's a** where LeBron ends up (as long as it's not the Lakers) .

[atskooc]

9 hours ago, jason2486 said:

Colhusker, atskooc, you guys are both clearly KD fans or dislike LeBron, which is your choice, no problem, but you're missing the point.  Season's over, back to Husker hoops!

I am a fan of neither. I have watched a total of 2 1/2 NBA games this year. 

 

I just don't understand hating someone who improved his professional position (in sports or otherwise). He clearly didn't like (playing with) Russ, so he went to the best team he could. He made things better for himself. What's wrong with that?

 

So he made things harder for the other teams? So. What does he care about the other teams?

[Dean Smith]

1 hour ago, atskooc said:

I am a fan of neither. I have watched a total of 2 1/2 NBA games this year. 

 

I just don't understand hating someone who improved his professional position (in sports or otherwise). He clearly didn't like (playing with) Russ, so he went to the best team he could. He made things better for himself. What's wrong with that?

 

So he made things harder for the other teams? So. What does he care about the other teams?

You keep making capitalism comparisons on the board but I don’t think most people, and that includes most people in sports (except the owners) don’t look at sports that way. You could be right but I just don’t think most sports are looked at the same. 

[atskooc]

1 hour ago, Dean Smith said:

You keep making capitalism comparisons on the board but I don’t think most people, and that includes most people in sports (except the owners) don’t look at sports that way. You could be right but I just don’t think most sports are looked at the same. 

I would venture to guess NBA, NFL,  and MLB players look at it that way. 

 

It's their job. 

[bleujay]

3 minutes ago, atskooc said:

I would venture to guess NBA, NFL,  and MLB players look at it that way. 

 

It's their job. 

a lot of them don't, and it shows in them making dumb career decisions or taking less money. most of them understand they have fans with expectations.

[colhusker]

14 hours ago, jason2486 said:

Colhusker, atskooc, you guys are both clearly KD fans or dislike LeBron, which is your choice, no problem, but you're missing the point.  Season's over, back to Husker hoops!

Not a fan of either, just trying to find out why one guy changing teams makes him a d-bag and the other not so.

[HuskerFever]

Quite applicable to the conversation at hand here. KD doesn't care about taking the easy way out. In fact, he says he doesn't make enough money if the responsibility of having a fair league is put on him. Here's his thoughts:

 

https://sports.yahoo.com/kevin-durant-charges-ruined-nba-making-money-thats-164105770.html