NBA Finals Thread

[Horatio]

And JR Smith is done. Richard Jefferson outscored him and Shumpert in both games.

 

[NielsisGood]

I didnt say it would GS and Cleveland are 1-2, and SA is a distant 3rd but clearly 3rd. SA will have to get younger and hope GS suffers injuries thats their only hope.

I mean I agree that they're 3rd but like you said, It's such a distant 3rd that it's not relevant for as long as they share the same conference with possibly the most stacked team ever.

 

[BUConn10]

The problem with this super-superteam in GS is that it encourages other teams to make over the top additions just to compete, either that or wait it out until they collapse which would leave a crap product in the league for the time being.

 

[MadDogRevival]

People are going to forget about this wimpy KD joining the super team talk when he retires with 5-6 rings and 3-4 Finals MVPs, pushing himself into top 5 talk.

No they won't.
KD will be remembered as the great player who took the easiest road he could find, and then appropriated a team that wasn't his to take, all in the name of false glory that he doesn't deserve and that won't be his. He'll be viewed as the guy who couldn't win, and only got to one finals, until he joined a team that was already the best team in the world. Sad, but true. I lost respect for him, as a basketball player (not as a person), when he chose to go to GS.
He'll also be remembered as the guy who, by pussing out and going to GS, took the only really enjoyable thing left about the NBA - the post season and finals in particular, and ruined them.

He can win 10 rings with GS and that won't change.

Regarding the game tonight - I didn't even watch it, and I haven't missed an NBA finals game in about a decade. Neither interesting nor impressive nor entertaining.

Silver lining - any non-GS fans who are also UConn fans now know what it feels like to play the UConn women's team in one of their up years.

 

[Walker11]

No they won't.
KD will be remembered as the great player who took the easiest road he could find, and then appropriated a team that wasn't his to take, all in the name of false glory that he doesn't deserve and that won't be his. He'll be viewed as the guy who couldn't win, and only got to one finals, until he joined a team that was already the best team in the world. Sad, but true. I lost respect for him, as a basketball player (not as a person), when he chose to go to GS.
He'll also be remembered as the guy who, by pussing out and going to GS, took the only really enjoyable thing left about the NBA - the post season and finals in particular, and ruined them.

He can win 10 rings with GS and that won't change.

Regarding the game tonight - I didn't even watch it, and I haven't missed an NBA finals game in about a decade. Neither interesting nor impressive nor entertaining.

Silver lining - any non-GS fans who are also UConn fans now know what it feels like to play the UConn women's team in one of their up years.

Didn't read

 

[mauconnfan]

No they won't.
KD will be remembered as the great player who took the easiest road he could find, and then appropriated a team that wasn't his to take, all in the name of false glory that he doesn't deserve and that won't be his. He'll be viewed as the guy who couldn't win, and only got to one finals, until he joined a team that was already the best team in the world. Sad, but true. I lost respect for him, as a basketball player (not as a person), when he chose to go to GS.
He'll also be remembered as the guy who, by pussing out and going to GS, took the only really enjoyable thing left about the NBA - the post season and finals in particular, and ruined them.

He can win 10 rings with GS and that won't change.

Regarding the game tonight - I didn't even watch it, and I haven't missed an NBA finals game in about a decade. Neither interesting nor impressive nor entertaining.

Silver lining - any non-GS fans who are also UConn fans now know what it feels like to play the UConn women's team in one of their up years.

So that will hurt the legacy of Lebron too then I assume? I mean his was handpicking his Miami team and kicked his home city to the curb from what I remember. Which one is worst? I know which one I think, KD had a choice and didn't bring anyone with him he just did what a FA could do, he earned the choice. Not his fault and not Lebrons it's the NBA.

Actually I am seriously asking MadDog as I have very little insight to the NBA. No clue but it would seem KD is getting an unfair tag.

 

[traitor71]

Didn't read

It could be condensed to "shakes fist at cloud". I can only imagine the outrage if he takes less money to keep a winning team together. You know sacrificing money for winning is horrible now even if it is what I grew up hearing that "greedy athletes" should do more of.

I also don't understand this idea that "other teams are now forced to get guys so they can compete". Wow, you mean that teams may have to try and get better? What a terrible concept....

 

[FartMan69]

No they won't.
KD will be remembered as the great player who took the easiest road he could find, and then appropriated a team that wasn't his to take, all in the name of false glory that he doesn't deserve and that won't be his. He'll be viewed as the guy who couldn't win, and only got to one finals, until he joined a team that was already the best team in the world. Sad, but true. I lost respect for him, as a basketball player (not as a person), when he chose to go to GS.
He'll also be remembered as the guy who, by pussing out and going to GS, took the only really enjoyable thing left about the NBA - the post season and finals in particular, and ruined them.

He can win 10 rings with GS and that won't change.

Regarding the game tonight - I didn't even watch it, and I haven't missed an NBA finals game in about a decade. Neither interesting nor impressive nor entertaining.

Silver lining - any non-GS fans who are also UConn fans now know what it feels like to play the UConn women's team in one of their up years.

Same thing was said about Lebron when he went to Miami. People were mad for a while and stopped caring after a few great finals performances. You will too, or you won't but you don't really matter so who cares.

 

[FartMan69]

This was a team that drafted extremely well and found players to fit their system. The 2nd best player in the league was a FA and they signed him. Not seeing how people are outraged, we even have one poster on here calling for a league intervention.. So a team with enough cap space shouldn't be able to sign a player because they're already too good?

 

[tzznandrew]

This was a team that drafted extremely well and found players to fit their system. The 2nd best player in the league was a FA and they signed him. Not seeing how people are outraged, we even have one poster on here calling for a league intervention.. So a team with enough cap space shouldn't be able to sign a player because they're already too good?

Right. The Warriors are the anti-Heat.

I get that people think it affects competitive balance. They're over-reacting. This team will draw great ratings, will perform well, but certainly won't win as much as people are making out. Things happen (injuries, upsets, etc.).

 

[HuskiesAllDay]

The hating is directed at kd not golden st

They're hating on Durant for taking the easy road and signing with the team that just beat him. Rather than try to make his team better and try to get it done. It's not like he was on a bum team. He left a team that made it to the conference finals.

 

[Kitaman]

And JR Smith is done. Richard Jefferson outscored him and Shumpert in both games.

JR Smith salary (bonuses, endorsements, and apparel aside) is equivalent to Curry's: 12.8 mil to 12.1 mil respectfully. Ponder that. And the Cavs have the highest NBA payroll with 1/4 of salaries going to Lebron (that's okay though).

Linky

He is unsuccessfully guarding Curry by the way. Curry is up for negotiations after this season, so I expect a phenomenal Series from him, followed by a substantial financial reward/reset.

Anyway the JR 'done' part will wait 3 years (unless there's an escape clause) because his salary for 2019/20 will be at 15.6 mil. Cavs need a nice combo guard to play along Kyrie, JR ain't it. When you look at their roster its not impressive at all plus they have no real trade bait.

If the Cavs can do the impossible and win the Championship, then Lebron and MJ will both have been born from the same planet.

 

[polycom]

This Warriors team will not win 3 championships as it is currently assembly. Unless Steph and Durant say we aren't going to take money from the Warriors and they'll only take endorsement money.

People are going crazy about a team that wont be together for 3 years.

 

[Dogdeacon]

The hating is directed at kd not golden st

They're hating on Durant for taking the easy road and signing with the team that just beat him. Rather than try to make his team better and try to get it done. It's not like he was on a bum team. He left a team that made it to the conference finals.

I wish KD was still on OKC from my personal entertainment standpoint, but to hold animosity towards him for exercising a totally logical personal choice for better place, management, teammates and competitive chance does not make sense to me. The beef between KD & Russ can't be ignored nor can Westbrook going into full ballhog mode. To me this was a smart logical choice much like Ray Allen leaving the Celtics for the Heat or LeBron joining Heat and rejoining Cavs and the downside on competitive balance is the NBA's and fan's problem not KD's problem. We would have gotten better Western finals between the Warriors and OKC if Durant stayed and the finals likely between the Warriors and Cavs would have been more competitive, so I get the frustration - but the move to Golden State is and was so clearly the smarter move I cannot see hating on KD for it.

 

[husky429]

I wish KD was still on OKC from my personal entertainment standpoint, but to hold animosity towards him for exercising a totally logical personal choice for better place, management, teammates and competitive chance does not make sense to me. The beef between KD & Russ can't be ignored nor can Westbrook going into full ballhog mode. To me this was a smart logical choice much like Ray Allen leaving the Celtics for the Heat or LeBron joining Heat and rejoining Cavs and the downside on competitive balance is the NBA's and fan's problem not KD's problem. We would have gotten better Western finals between the Warriors and OKC if Durant stayed and the finals likely between the Warriors and Cavs would have been more competitive, so I get the frustration - but the move to Golden State is and was so clearly the smarter move I cannot see hating on KD for it.

I think it was a good decision, but I also think it's a sign of weakness as a player. Put KD on the world's greatest team and they get better. Woop dee doo. Put LeBron on most any team in the league and they instantly contend for a title.

Almost seems like he's given up on being the best player of this generation with this move. I wasn't ready for kd to concede that just yet.

 

[Rocktheworld]

So someone tell me how MJ would have "willed" his teams to beat these Warriors

 

[lange10]

I think it was a good decision, but I also think it's a sign of weakness as a player. Put KD on the world's greatest team and they get better. Woop dee doo. Put LeBron on most any team in the league and they instantly contend for a title.

Almost seems like he's given up on being the best player of this generation with this move. I wasn't ready for kd to concede that just yet.

Let me preface this by saying Lebron was pretty soft for leaving Cleveland the way he did and forming a super team. However, he was there for 7 years and the Cavs did nothing to surround him with talent. At a time where championships are everything to a mans legacy he jumped ship and created a super team. Lebron was the best player in the world, Dwade was top 5, and Bosh was probably top 15-20. An unreal group of talent. Yet, despite the talent, it was an unproven commodity and they had to figure out how to make it work.

Durant on the other hand joined a proven commodity. Arguably one of the greatest teams ever in the history of the NBA (probably THE greatest if the Cavs don't come back from down 3-1 last year). How did they get to the finals? By beating a Durant led OKC that absolutely choked and blew a 3-1 lead. He had them at his fingertips and blew it! So he jumps ship and joins that team? The team that won 73 games. The team that was 1 win from going back to back. The team that he choked against when he was 1 win away from another face off with Lebron in the finals.

Lebron made a decision that was pretty soft...but Durant? Chicken .

 

[Lefty2one]

This Warriors team will not win 3 championships as it is currently assembly. Unless Steph and Durant say we aren't going to take money from the Warriors and they'll only take endorsement money.

People are going crazy about a team that wont be together for 3 years.

Durant already said he'd take a paycut to stay there.

The role players will change and depth will probably become an issue like it was for Miami but they're going to be able to keep their Big 4 together. Veterans flocked to Miami for minimums to chase a ring and be a part of something special, the same thing will happen with GSW.

IMO the big question will be Klay when he hits FA in two years but I don't see him going anywhere. I don't think he cares about being "the guy" or anything like that and I'm sure he loves life in the Bay Area.

 

[Excalibur]

So that will hurt the legacy of Lebron too then I assume? I mean his was handpicking his Miami team and kicked his home city to the curb from what I remember. Which one is worst? I know which one I think, KD had a choice and didn't bring anyone with him he just did what a FA could do, he earned the choice. Not his fault and not Lebrons it's the NBA.

Actually I am seriously asking MadDog as I have very little insight to the NBA. No clue but it would seem KD is getting an unfair tag.

KD had a 3-1 lead on the team that he eventually joined. He left a legitimate contender behind to join the team he couldn't beat. LeBron kicked a dysfunctional franchise to the curb.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Remember OKC had the super team before the Warriors emerged and pooped the bed by trading Harden, in the aftermath I think Durant spent years learning that it was very difficult to coexist and win with Russell Westbrook. Even when they made it work there were going to be moments when Russ went into hero ball mode and those moments cost games. Then Ibaka was gone as well BEFORE Durant made his decision. Twice OKC chose not to run it back, they got worse the first time and both at time of trade and in retrospect, Oladipo for Ibaka made them worse. OKC ruined their own NBA finals team before Durant left.

 

[Lefty2one]

Let me preface this by saying Lebron was pretty soft for leaving Cleveland the way he did and forming a super team. However, he was there for 7 years and the Cavs did nothing to surround him with talent. At a time where championships are everything to a mans legacy he jumped ship and created a super team. Lebron was the best player in the world, Dwade was top 5, and Bosh was probably top 15-20. An unreal group of talent. Yet, despite the talent, it was an unproven commodity and they had to figure out how to make it work.

Durant on the other hand joined a proven commodity. Arguably one of the greatest teams ever in the history of the NBA (probably THE greatest if the Cavs don't come back from down 3-1 last year). How did they get to the finals? By beating a Durant led OKC that absolutely choked and blew a 3-1 lead. He had them at his fingertips and blew it! So he jumps ship and joins that team? The team that won 73 games. The team that was 1 win from going back to back. The team that he choked against when he was 1 win away from another face off with Lebron in the finals.

Lebron made a decision that was pretty soft...but Durant? Chicken ****.

Yep, there are many differences between what KD and LeBron did. Miami's two biggest question marks were depth and chemistry. There are no question marks for these Warriors. I love 80s/90s NBA but c'mon, this is the best team in the history of the NBA.

KD's move is still mind-boggling, especially from a guy like him. He's the last player in the league I expected to pull a stunt like that. I thought he was an old school competitor. Nope...

I'm sure most people will forget about LeBron and KD's moves when discussing their legacy but personally, not that anyone cares, I won't.

 

[NielsisGood]

No they won't.
KD will be remembered as the great player who took the easiest road he could find, and then appropriated a team that wasn't his to take, all in the name of false glory that he doesn't deserve and that won't be his. He'll be viewed as the guy who couldn't win, and only got to one finals, until he joined a team that was already the best team in the world. Sad, but true. I lost respect for him, as a basketball player (not as a person), when he chose to go to GS.
He'll also be remembered as the guy who, by pussing out and going to GS, took the only really enjoyable thing left about the NBA - the post season and finals in particular, and ruined them.

He can win 10 rings with GS and that won't change.

Regarding the game tonight - I didn't even watch it, and I haven't missed an NBA finals game in about a decade. Neither interesting nor impressive nor entertaining.

Silver lining - any non-GS fans who are also UConn fans now know what it feels like to play the UConn women's team in one of their up years.

Everything you said would apply to LeBron too if you're looking to spin that narrative. People were (very prematurely) comparing LeBron to MJ a few days ago, doesn't seem like the whole "left his team for a better situation" deal has really hurt Lebron's legacy, has it?

 

[polycom]

So someone tell me how MJ would have "willed" his teams to beat these Warriors

He would of started a fight.

 

[Lefty2one]

KD had a 3-1 lead on the team that he eventually joined. He left a legitimate contender behind to join the team he couldn't beat. LeBron kicked a dysfunctional franchise to the curb.

That's a big part of what sucks about KD's move, while he created his super team he also killed one of the West's contenders and most entertaining teams. So bad...

As much as I hated The Decision when it happened I also recognized that it was great for the NBA, it was going to be wildly entertaining. A lot of people were questioning their depth, Spo's coaching, etc. They were the villains, it was great theater. This GSW team is just blah. There is no theater, no drama. We're going to enter another NBA dark age like we had in the early 2000s. The league is going to be boring as hell for the next few years.

 

[Blaneylover]

In theory, there is no way that Cleveland could do this. The 73 win team from last year who lost in the final due to Green's suspension and Curry's lingering injury added Kevin Durant. Despite this fact, I clung to the hope that Cleveland would find a way to make this a series and maybe even pull it out. I then watched games 1 and 2. I now hope that Cleveland gets the series back to Golden State for Game 5. When the Warriors get it going, they are really fun to watch. Essentially Cleveland has had to pick its poison. They tried to stop the 3's in game 1 and Durant had a dunk exhibition. They tried to play straight up last night and there was a three point shooting exhibition. Durant is a HUGE match-up nightmare for them. The only guy who can really guard him is Lebron and you can't have him expend that type of energy on the defensive end when he has to be the offense.

Warriors in 5.