brianstl Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 How about limiting it to the players from the 80s and 90s. Since that's the era we've been talking about. Two that jump out at me are Iverson and Sprewell. How many of the 15 guys on the first through third All-NBA teams shot under 44.9% this season? Two, Harden and Westbrook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majerus mojo Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 The Warriors certainly benefited from not having to play either the Spurs and Clippers (that Spurs/Clippers first round series was a Finals caliber duel), not to mention drawing an injury decimated Cavs in the finals. That said, they earned top seed in the loaded Western Conference by finishing ELEVEN games ahead of the pack - and never faced elimination on their way to winning the title - playing a team style that emphasizes defense and passing. What else do you want from them? They just dominated the best conference the league has ever had. They led by more than 15 points in 55 different games this season (incl. playoffs), and won them all. CLE was banged up, but that was an almost transcendent performance from Lebron. Not hard to put them in the top 10 all-time as far as teams go, and that's before you get to all the analytics which are extremely favorable to GS in any context. On top of that they basically revamped the league with their playing style, which is sure to be the model going forward. Pretty impressive stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby Metzinger Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 They just dominated the best conference the league has ever had. They led by more than 15 points in 55 different games this season (incl. playoffs), and won them all. CLE was banged up, but that was an almost transcendent performance from Lebron. Not hard to put them in the top 10 all-time as far as teams go, and that's before you get to all the analytics which are extremely favorable to GS in any context. On top of that they basically revamped the league with their playing style, which is sure to be the model going forward. Pretty impressive stuff Let's not forget that Steve Kerr was just the guy they needed, as well. Mark Jackson was not the answer in Oakland. In fact, I'm not so sure he's the answer on ESPN/ABC's coverage of the Finals, either. Stan van Gundy is better than Jeff and Mike Breen is a poor man's Kenny Albert, only because there's really no substitute for his old man,Marvelous Marv. Bring back Mike Fratello. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3star_recruit Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 Two that jump out at me are Iverson and Sprewell. How many of the 15 guys on the first through third All-NBA teams shot under 44.9% this season? Two, Harden and Westbrook. I've got one question and then I'm done. Is there a reason you keep skipping around the period 1981-1993, the heyday of NBA basketball, and the period we're clearly talking about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianstl Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 I've got one question and then I'm done. Is there a reason you keep skipping around the period 1981-1993, the heyday of NBA basketball, and the period we're clearly talking about? Nobody played or was allowed to play good defense for much of that era and that was by design. The league knew offensive first basketball would sell and help it recover from the drug scandals that had plagued the league. Ignoring the fact that everything from the rules to how officials were told to officiate the game were changed to benefit offense would be like ignoring what steroids did to power numbers in baseball. You had the resetting of the 24 second clock after all violations, advancing of the ball after timeouts, tech fouls for illegal defense, 3 point shot added to the game, changed the rules on zone defenses, and the clear path rule added. The refs started giving continuation on shots, started to relax the traveling call and started letting players turn the ball over when dribbling. All this was added to game in that era to help offensive numbers. It took a decade for defensive strategy to catch up. It was my favorite time to watch NBA basketball because of the offense, but that was because of what the rules and rule enforcement did to the game. It wasn't because the players were better than the players playing today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheChosenOne Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 I personally would like to see a return to officials enforcing the rules and seeing skill trump strength and physicality. With their decimated roster, the Cavs essentially turned to playing football in the playoffs. Lebron is a beast and so dominating, but watching the biggest guy on the court run at the hoop at full speed does not do it for me, Cleveland's offense was atrocious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonwich Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 I personally would like to see a return to officials enforcing the rules and seeing skill trump strength and physicality. And I'd like world peace and an end to hunger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills16 Posted June 19, 2015 Share Posted June 19, 2015 http://pbs.twimg.com/media/CHG7lNLWcAEKdOV.png Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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