2016 NBA Playoffs Thread [ARCHIVED] Basketball • Page 271

Neither player is a "kid" and neither player is an underdog. It's the two best teams in the NBA with the two best players in the NBA.

 

I mean I don't see why people keep saying it will be a sweep. Everyone said the Warriors would run roughshod through the Thunder after game one, and now here we are after one of the most competitive conference finals in recent memory. Regular season success doesn't necessarily indicate postseason success. I could see it going 6 games, though I still have the Warriors winning.

 

I don't think it'll be a sweep (pls don't let me eat these words), and also hope it isn't because I'm not prepared for all the shit LeBron is due to catch as if going to the finals 6 years in a row isn't incredible in it's own right

 

I'm proud to be the only one on Chorus.FM who still can't stand Lebron, and still loves the Warriors. Bring on the hate.

 

Spencer Hawes was rooting for the warriors while wearing a Sonics shirt last night. Hate that guy but love the action.

 

I think this is going to be an interesting series. The Warriors and Cavs have tons of momentum right now. I don't think there is any getting around the fact that Cleveland was absolutely destroyed by GSW in the regular season. That said, the positive spin from a Cleveland perspective is that the two teams were in totally different places for those games. GSW was on a mission and playing amazing ball. Cleveland were clearly still searching for their identity and their rotations. There is no getting around the fact that the Cavs team playing in the playoffs vs the regular season are totally different. And becoming more multiple with Frye is also a positive to their credit.

I think the Cavs will try their traditional starting lineup and see where that gets them. But, I would try to mix in Frye and Love together in order to render Festus and Bogut useless. That should free up driving lanes for looks at the rim or free throws. It would also allow LeBron to slide down in the office and go to work against Andre and Barnes. Between LeBron, Delly, Shump, and JR there has to be a livable solution for Curry and Klay. Easier said than done of course.

As a Cavs fan, I feel much better this year. There is no Chicago Blatt incident hanging over their heads and being brought up in interviews. There are no serious injuries for Kyrie and Love. JR is not in the middle of a shooting slump from the Eastern Finals. Shump isn't being played more minutes than we need him to. LeBron isn't gassed going into the series. Lue has rotations and lineups that make sense. Mozgov is not forced into a bigger role for a style of play that doesn't really fit him. Delly is not a marked man for some questionable incidents, or a starting PG for that matter. Most importantly, the team has picked the best time to get on a role.

All of that added up may not lead to a banner, but you have to at least feel better going in this time around. I was shocked we even won two games last year, all things considered. Hopefully they can double up their wins from last year.

 

Should be fun im excited that last series was so great

I'll say warriors in 6 again, do the repeat right

 

I'm gonna go with the Warriors in 6 as well. Should be a great series though with the Cavs coming in fairly healthy

 

I'm surprised most aren't giving the Cavs a chance. It's pretty obvious the Cavs we are watching now are not the Cavs we were watching during the GSW beatdowns. I'm interested to see how Lue works his rotations against the small ball lineup. And if I'm the Warriors I keep Iggy in the starting lineup to cover Lebron. Barnes won't be able to contain him and you can't really put Draymond on him if Love and Thompson are both out there.

All that said, Dubs in 6 or 7.

 

klove kicks green in the nuts in the first two minutes of game one, calling it now.

 

Man, Love is so soft. Draymond is gonna ruin him.

 

So does Verajao get a ring either way?

 

So if draymond breaks loves arm will it be a flagrant 1 or is that too heavy?

 

Draymond is gonna kick Love's balls up to his arms?

 

As recently as when Draymond put that reporter in their place for those stupid questions about the flooding in Houston, he seemed like a cool guy. It's crazy how much I hate him now lol.

 

Cavs in 6.

 

If they go on to win the championship, I don't see how they're not considered the greatest ever. Any distaste has to do with Curry's cockiness, how Green rubs people the wrong way (understandable) and the fact that they're a jump shooting team. Going back to back and setting the record for best start, most wins, 3 point shooting ALL of that combined is enough argument for me. It's nearly impossible to compare 80's best, 90's best, and current teams...I'm of the belief that athletes are faster, stronger, bigger, and more athletic than prior generations which makes the argument easier (in my opinion) even though the Bulls, Celtics, and Lakers may have accomplished more in their day. Today's game has close to a dozen elite teams whereas the previous era's only had a few.

 

Dubs in 7. Cavs now have full strength and the shooting from beyond the arc that eluded them last year...still think the Warriors are too special though.

 

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Ditto. Let the Cleveland drought continue...because it's HILARIOUS.

 

I never hated lebron.. in fact when people hate him it makes me like him more

 

Me and my brother made a bet on the series, I have Dubs in 6 or 7, he has Dubs in 4 or 5.

 

Easy: They had a worse play off performance than the other teams. They will have won one more regular season game than the Bulls, but lost far more than the same Bulls team in the playoffs. That only one more win the regular season, and multiple more losses in the playoffs, is why they will not be the best team of all time.

Today's game doesn't have 12 elite teams, for one, but I would also argue that because teams were more compact in the 90s the really good teams were all really good and full of far more great players. The talented were forced into compacted teams whereas now it's more spread out. The athletes being faster or stronger now doesn't matter when what the discussion is centered around who the best team of all time is — you can only play the teams in front of you. I'm not arguing who would win Warriors or Celtics of Bulls (although I'd take the Bulls), I'm arguing that when you look at the best season in Basketball history it's, now objectively, the '96 Bulls. They won the most games in the most dominating fashion.

 

I'm curious who the Bulls lost to in the regular season. The Warriors had some bad losses.