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Thoughts watching the NBA Finals...

NUMBERICA said:
In addition to that Wade, James, and Bosh aren't that old. In addition to all of the MLE free agents they're going to acquire annually (provided such a provision exists in the future).

The Heat are going to be perennially in the finals. Orlando's rotting, Chicago's not going to suddenly get wing play worth a damn, and Boston is fooling themselves.
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Not to mention that nasty Boozer contract will limit the Bulls for the next 4 years.
 
LunaticWolf said:
Miami is going to hit the Boston effect.

Great your first year, then only good after. They won't look as good once teams figure out how they can defend them.
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Couldn't disagree more.

Boston was old. KG, Ray Allen , and PP were all seasoned vets who had a ton of mileage. Miami's big 3 are all very young. Oh and Miami is an attractive big market which has a very favorable tax system. Miami is going to be scary for the next 5+ years
 
Catchall said:
I know this is kind of a no-duh comment, but it's obvious that it takes elite athletes to win in this league--I mean, real physical specimens who physically dominate and create immediate mismatches.

Watching Wade and James take over in the 4th quarter, they made everyone else look like they were walking in sand. The Mavericks just don't have anyone who can compete with them physically, even though Dirk is a highly skilled player. The Mavs are a good team. They have shooters, spread the floor and have improved interior defense, but I don't see how they can win this series.

The Lakers' dynasty was Kobe and Shaq--two dominant athletes at their positions that no one could match up with or contain.

It makes me wonder if there is any point drafting a player who isn't an elite athlete. What's the point of drafting, say, a Klay Thompson or Jimmer Fredette if they're just going to get blown away by better athletes? That's why I see the excitement around players like Derrick Williams, Bismack Biyombo, Jan Vesely, Alec Burks, etc., because they're at least explosive athletes who will be impossible to stop if they get their act together.

Maybe it's okay to have a center who isn't super athletic if he's got great size and skills (e.g., Marc Gasol and maybe Enes Kanter), and maybe it's okay to have a faciliator like Gordon Hayward, a Jeff Hornacek-meets-Shane Battier role player. But the rest of the team had better be thoroughbred athletes. When the game is on the line, it's the big-time athletes who make the big plays.

Yours truly,

Captain Obvious
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While I expect the Heat to win the series, I think you're closing the door too soon on the Mavs. The game could easily have gone the other way last night; I'd say Miami was a far cry from dominating.

You're never going to get a team made up of thoroughbred athletes. Successful teams are a combination of superstars, all-stars (or high quality players), and role players. It's a long stretch to say that outside of James and Wade, Miami is a bunch of thoroughbreds. Bosh is an All-star, but not a superstar. Miller and Haslem are good role players. The rest, meh, easily replaced.

While I think it definitely the goal to get a superstar, or at least all-star quality player, at #3, odds say you won't get this at #12. A solid rotation player is a reasonable expectation there. Keep in mind, that who you get at #12 is as likely to be matched up against the opponent's second team than against James and Wade, in which case, Jimmer may in fact be a good pick there. (I'm not advocating for Jimmer.)

Unfortunately, the odds are that the Jazz, and 80% or more of the other teams in the league, won't have a legit shot to compete for the Championship against the superstar-led juggernauts like the Heat, but that's pretty much the way's its always been in the NBA. Of all the major professional leagues, it's the one with the least amount of parity. They can, however, field a competitive and quality team that fans can rally around. (Unlike others, while I'd really like to win the championship, I'm not obsessed with it. I don't see it as necessary to validate the team or my support of it or to enjoy being a fan.)
 
It was Game 1 on Miami's court. The Mavs can still win the series.

One hopes that their model still works -- that you can win a ring with just one superstar plus lots of depth. That's still more doable for most teams, including the Jazz, than being that one team that signed/re-signed the top three free agents, two superstars and a star, of a particularly strong offseason.
 
billyshelby said:
Personally, I'll be shocked if Dallas doesn't win game 2. They missed a lot of easy shots, although they got a little flustered with Miami's D as well. Miami will always have the advantage so long as Lebron and Wade play well. But I think Dallas is going to find ways to make them play games they don't want to and will beat them. I'm saying Dallas wins game 2 and wins in 6.
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2-3-2 format in the finals. did you mean "wins in 5"?
 
I think you can beat, or at least compete with Miami if you have two bigs like Derrick Favors dunking on everything and making every other aspect of the game completely irrelevant.
 
Beantown said:
One of the most winning teams and champions in the last 10 years.. the San Antontio Spurs disagree with this thread.

As do I.

Its about defense, you need a team to play team defense and be able to play REALLY good defense in the 4th quarter and clamp down on a team.

Also dont forget Miami tied a record 11 NBA three pointers for a Finals game. Shooting helps....ALOT.
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But if you look at how James and Wade dominated defensively in the 4th quarter, this is part of it. Elite athletes make big plays on both sides of the ball. I honestly don't know if the Spurs could slow down James and Wade in this year's playoffs. The Mavs have been playing pretty good team defense this year, so did the Bulls.
 
Dwill_PwnasaurasRex said:
I wouldn't exactly say elite, they just knew how to maximize their athletic abilities to help them.
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Exactly. Before Duncan developed his bag of tricks, I saw him get dominated by Greg Freakin' Ostertag in the Rocky Mountain Review. Elite Athletes NEVER get dominated by Ostertag.

Ginobli is a Soccer Player that can twist and turn and put the ball through the hole always keeping his shoulders square. His footwork is precise. He is like a Jimmer with length and decent defensive instincts. He is not an athlete like Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, or Durrant.

Parker, I've got nothing. I have always hated his game. I hate the run to the basket, flop, and hope for the foul. If he were an athlete he would finish like Allen Iverson, who although I wasn't a huge fan, never flopped for the foul.
 
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