Nba '06-'07 - Page 11

it took Jordan 7 seasons to even get to the finals. Lebron did it in 4 with a vastly inferior supporting lineup.

and Lebron had 24 points and 10 assists in Game 4. hardly gettin schooled. givin all the credit to Bowen is ridiculous. it took a whole team to "shut down" Lebron, which they barely even did.

anyway, Lebron ain't the next Jordan. Lebron is the first Lebron.

PLUS, did anyone else notice Coach Pop standing around on the court with arms folded, pretty much scowling as the rest of the team celebrated their win? he cracks me up.

At best the Pistons would have made the playoffs in the Jordan years.

Good for LeBron for making the finals but it really means nothing. There maybe one or 2 on the current roster that would be with him if he ever won the Championship. Team still needs alot of building.

Tell that to the 86 Celtics. Nobody really ever stopped Jordan. Pistons did it the best by fouling him hard every time he touched the ball but Jordan, even on the sucky teams, got his and helped everyone else.

I think the Spurs have to be considered a "great" team in spite of the league being mediocre at best. Now I would not put them on the same level as some of the teams you mentioned, but those were some of the best teams in the history of the league.

I agree that the athletes are better, but the knowledge of the game seems to have diminished. However, this trend doesn't appear to exist in the foreign player. Some friends and I were talking about this about six years ago, and a few of us predicted that, eventually, the best players in the league would be foreigners. They just seem to have a better concept of the game. I think the MVP has been a foreign player for the last 4 years or so. And the three best players on the best team this year were also foreign.

Before you said you didn't hate LeBron specifically, just hype in general... but it sure feels like you have some crazy need to prove to everyone that LeBron (specifically) sucks and is not worth the hype.

That's right, pull out the old, "nobody can disprove this cross-decades matchup so I can just state how it would have been as fact." Now, I'm not saying you're wrong, that is when I WAS an NBA fan, back in the 80s and 90s, and I felt like it was better basketball, but I'm not sure if it was that much better (i.e., the current Pistons possibly not making the play-offs).

??? Doesn't it (combined with the regular season) mean that the Cavs are at least a top 2 team in the East?

So wait... combined with your previous statement... it means nothing that LeBron got a team of nobodies to the NBA finals all by himself? That sounds pretty good to me.

Now, I'd argue that there are more like 3-5 guys currently on the Cavs that could contribute towards a Championsip team (some with decent minutes off the bench).

Jordan was a better all-around scorer by his fourth season (and before that), but Jordan was what, 3 years older? Plus, LeBron gets more rebounds and assists. I think the Jordan comparisons are a little strange if people are trying to compare him as a player to Jordan. They are much different players stylistically. Now, if you want to compare them as basketball forces (i.e., was John Stockton more valuable to his team than David Robinson was to his), I think LeBron has the potential to be as valuable to his team as Jordan was.

I did say potential because he certainly hasn't achieved that status yet, but I don't understand why so many people rag on James. He is an All-Star who is a very unselfish player. I firmly believe that if was more selfish his numbers would look a lot more like Jordan's (more points, less assists), although he'll likely never be as good as Jordan was defensively, but he could have just as much offensive impact as Jordan (remember, he'd have been a senior in college this year, so there is a lot of time for him to develop further).

Were the New England Patriots a great team?

Look at who the competition was in the West during the Spurs' run. Then look at the competition the Lakers faced back in the 80s. The Lakers may have had tougher Finals opponents, but the Spurs faced the tougher road to get there.

He doesn't suck and he isn't worthy of the Jordan hype. They should really compare him to Kobe.

Not really. Look at Allen Iverson. He got Philly to the Championship and never got back because Philly never got him any decent help. Now Cleveland has more time to get LeBron players but there is no guarentee that they will find the right combo of players or get a secondary star. And with the teams in the West you will need atleast 3 solid players to compete.

And getting them to sign with Cleveland could be tough. Just ask Ichiro
ouch.

Talent-wise they're probably not among the great dynasties. But given the increased importance, or at least the perception of importance, that the head coaching position in the NFL carries, especially defensively, and then coupling that with emphasis on QB play, and seeing how the Pats have Belichick and Brady in those spots, their dynasty is going to look a lot more impressive historically unless the Spurs rattle off a few more.

Well that's sorta what I was saying, in terms of the talent of the league has increased overall, in my opinion... and yet the Spurs don't seem like a great team. And for clarity, I don't go to the extreme of guys like Walton, who act like the Spurs couldn't even come off the bench for the Lakers/Celtics of the 80's, let alone compete against them. I think they could definitely compete... I just don't think they're quite at that level. Which, again, I wouldn't even bring up except now they have FOUR, and I am still under the impression that the league is getting athletes who are the cream of the crop.

They could compete. And get their asses kicked. The 80s Lakers/Celtics/Pistons would have mopped the floor with most of the NBA champions from from the mid to late 90s onwards; with perhaps the exception of the Lakers squad that went 14-1 in the playoffs a few years back.

How many Spurs' players would have started for any of those teams? One?

The only teams that qualify are the Bulls, Rocket, and the Spurs. The 95/96 Bulls won 72 games and I believe they led in scoring and defense. You saying they couldn't compete? Or do you just mean the Rockets?

5 of the last 6 MVPs have gone to foreign players (KG being the exception). Before 2002, the only foreign MVP was Olajuwon (1994).

You can also argue that playing international basketball vastly helps improve U.S. players (Bruce Bowen played in the French league for four years...he probably didn't learn how to play his style of stifling defense at Cal State). It's definitely a purer system than the current NBA.

Word is Kobe still wants out of L.A. If the Lakers are going to move him, they'll need to do it before the upcoming draft.

According to insider reports, Kobe wants to go to either Chicago, New York, or Phoenix. Obviously Phoenix will not happen...and New York doesn't have anything the Lakers would want...which leaves Chicago the only real possibility of the three.

I still don't think I see this happening, but the next few weeks will be very interesting to watch.

As much as it pains my soul to say it . . . at least Finley got a ring. Good to see Cubans' cash doing something useful.

I read somewhere that inscrutable officiating is the biggest controversy the League has faced since the cocaine era. While the Finals weren't an out and out demonstration of this (the better team did win), I would have to agree. There is no consistency, there is no follow through. Tim Duncan feels threatened by a ref, and the ref is gone till after the Spurs win a title. Bitter? A little. You must consider, Joey Crawford called a tech on the Mavs in the 03 WCF before the game even started.

Stu and Stern need to leave. If they can't fix something as simple as playoff seedings or conference parity, I can't see them fixing the rotten core of officiating.

Why wouldn't Kobe want Dallas?

I can't see Paxson giving up the store for Kobe. Gordon would be a given but they would also want Deng. Not sure they could pull it off. Don't really want Kobe anyway. If he comes then I guess I'll adjust.
And in 10 years the East could be the power conf. It may suck now but it evens out.

interesting idea on Kobe to Chicago
And the deal
That's a deal I can get behind. No point in getting Kobe if you are left with what the Lakers have or worse.

The Lakers got nothing for Shaq. I don't see them making this same mistake again.