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2021 NBA PLAYOFFS MEGA THREAD

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Y'all really have to stop with the Super Team stuff. There are no Super Teams in the league right now. Not a single one.

There are only 5 Superstar players. LeBron, Steph, KD, Kawhi, and now Giannis. That's it.

People always talk out of both sides of their mouths when talking about Super Teams and it's mostly because you have grudges towards certain players.

Nobody cares if you don't like a certain player or players personally but you can't have it both ways.

Cavs fans of all people really look silly crying about which players play where and what championships matter and which ones don't.

The Nets are not a Super Team. Kyrie and James Harden are not Superstars.

The Clippers are not a Super Team. Paul George is not a Superstar

The Lakers are not a super team. Anthony Davis is not a Superstar.

The Bucks are not a super team. Giannis is the only Superstar.

The Warriors are not a super team. Steph Curry is the only Superstar.

All of those teams have All Stars, MVPs, All NBAers, Champions, Finals MVP's, and max contracts out the ass.

None of them are Super Teams though.

A Super Team is a team with multiple Superstars.

None of those teams have multiple Superstars. The only two teams who can even come close to being considered Super Teams are the 2013 Miami Heat and the 2018 and 2019 Warriors.

When LeBron joined Miami, Wade was already a Finals MVP and a Superstar. LeBron did not have a title before going to Miami. They lost that first year in 2011. He was not cemented as a Superstar until he won that first title in 2012. That's what made the 2013 Heat team a Super team. They had two Superstars at that point and they still lost in 2014 to a team that was not a super team in the 2014 San Antonio Spurs. Tim Duncan was the only superstar on that team.

When KD joined the Warriors Steph Curry was already a superstar. KD was NOT. KD elevated to superstar status after they won in 2017. That made the 2018 and 2019 Warriors a super team. They had two superstarts at that point with KD and Steph.

None of these other teams are super teams and a lot of these players are not superstars. Stop throwing those titles around all willy nilly.
 
The Lakers can't pay him. Which is honestly probably where the conversation just ends. I don't think he's going from 44 million to the MLE next season. Call me crazy.

There's other stuff, like relying on AD to be healthy and LBJ to still be the best (which he isn't). The rest of the roster is pretty mediocre.

But I mean if he's willing to play for the MLE then why not Brooklyn?? Or Milwaukee? Or The Clippers?

Doesn't KCP/Harrell/Kuzma work if he opts in? Not saying that's a wise move, but many said AD to LA wouldn't happen either. If an NBA player wants to go somewhere, he typically gets his way.

With that said, obviously no indication he does aside from his friendship with LeBron.
 
Doesn't this kind of sound like 2016? Is ours hollow too?
For me personally, with the benefit of hindsight, I’d much rather have been a fan of a team like Milwaukee or Dallas in ‘11 than the Cavaliers in 2016. Most of the guys on that ‘16 team can go fuck themselves, as far as I’m concerned. I’d trade their Finals victory for a Tribe title in ‘16 in a heartbeat. At least that team was actually built from scratch.
 
Can this safely put Giannis above AD and Durant as alpha dogs? I don't think there is any comparison between them. Giannis freaking willed that game last night from both sides of the floor in a total dominant performance. Really something to behold.

Why is Anthony Davis in the conversation? He is not on their level.

And Kevin Durant is still a whole level above Giannis. That just shows how good KD is. If anything Giannis is catching up to Kawhi but he's not in KD's review mirror yet.
 
Awesome series and season.

That’s the most I’ve enjoyed watching basketball league-wide in quite some time.
Def a great season.

‘17 was the height of the league imo.

The league is clearly at its best when the majority of its talent is centralized in one hot coastal market and there is a slightly lesser team to play foil to its dominance.

But league wide parity is fine in a way too.
 
Why is Anthony Davis in the conversation? He is not on their level.

And Kevin Durant is still a whole level above Giannis. That just shows how good KD is. If anything Giannis is catching up to Kawhi but he's not in KD's review mirror yet.

Which playoff series did Durant play as well as Giannis just did in the finals? Giannis just put in one of the most dominant performances ever and KD shot some 3's over guys while being a part of your definition of a super team.

Durant doesn't have half of Giannis' heart. We will see if Durant can come close next year.
 
Y'all really have to stop with the Super Team stuff. There are no Super Teams in the league right now. Not a single one.

There are only 5 Superstar players. LeBron, Steph, KD, Kawhi, and now Giannis. That's it.

People always talk out of both sides of their mouths when talking about Super Teams and it's mostly because you have grudges towards certain players.

Nobody cares if you don't like a certain player or players personally but you can't have it both ways.

Cavs fans of all people really look silly crying about which players play where and what championships matter and which ones don't.

The Nets are not a Super Team. Kyrie and James Harden are not Superstars.

The Clippers are not a Super Team. Paul George is not a Superstar

The Lakers are not a super team. Anthony Davis is not a Superstar.

The Bucks are not a super team. Giannis is the only Superstar.

The Warriors are not a super team. Steph Curry is the only Superstar.

All of those teams have All Stars, MVPs, All NBAers, Champions, Finals MVP's, and max contracts out the ass.

None of them are Super Teams though.

A Super Team is a team with multiple Superstars.

None of those teams have multiple Superstars. The only two teams who can even come close to being considered Super Teams are the 2013 Miami Heat and the 2018 and 2019 Warriors.

When LeBron joined Miami, Wade was already a Finals MVP and a Superstar. LeBron did not have a title before going to Miami. They lost that first year in 2011. He was not cemented as a Superstar until he won that first title in 2012. That's what made the 2013 Heat team a Super team. They had two Superstars at that point and they still lost in 2014 to a team that was not a super team in the 2014 San Antonio Spurs. Tim Duncan was the only superstar on that team.

When KD joined the Warriors Steph Curry was already a superstar. KD was NOT. KD elevated to superstar status after they won in 2017. That made the 2018 and 2019 Warriors a super team. They had two superstarts at that point with KD and Steph.

None of these other teams are super teams and a lot of these players are not superstars. Stop throwing those titles around all willy nilly.
Giannis brought it up, not us.

You’re narrowly defining Superstars and superteams. Whatever. The fact remains that All-Star caliber players are teaming up, taking less pay in some instances and taking the easy route. Giannis thinks those players have an easier road and I agree with him.
 
"I could go to a super team and do my job and just win a championship"- Giannis the GOAT

Shots fired at literally everyone.

Durant is about to go off on Twitter….
This is amazing.

Giannis is so easy to root for, standing up to all the frauds that make up the NBA today. He became my favorite player after signing his extension, now even more so. He represents everything that is right about sports and the way things should be. A mid-round pick from Greece playing in Milwaukee, he's the epitome of an underdog.

This title is a win for the entire Midwest and small markets everywhere. Gives me some hope for the future. If Giannis wins a few more titles in Milwaukee while washing away this garbage superteam era, he'll be the GOAT in my eyes.
 
Def a great season.

‘17 was the height of the league imo.

The league is clearly at its best when the majority of its talent is centralized in one hot coastal market and there is a slightly lesser team to play foil to its dominance.

But league wide parity is fine in a way too.
Leaguewide parity is my preference. I enjoy not knowing who we're going to see in the finals.
 
Y'all really have to stop with the Super Team stuff. There are no Super Teams in the league right now. Not a single one.

There are only 5 Superstar players. LeBron, Steph, KD, Kawhi, and now Giannis. That's it.

People always talk out of both sides of their mouths when talking about Super Teams and it's mostly because you have grudges towards certain players.

Nobody cares if you don't like a certain player or players personally but you can't have it both ways.

Cavs fans of all people really look silly crying about which players play where and what championships matter and which ones don't.

The Nets are not a Super Team. Kyrie and James Harden are not Superstars.

The Clippers are not a Super Team. Paul George is not a Superstar

The Lakers are not a super team. Anthony Davis is not a Superstar.

The Bucks are not a super team. Giannis is the only Superstar.

The Warriors are not a super team. Steph Curry is the only Superstar.

All of those teams have All Stars, MVPs, All NBAers, Champions, Finals MVP's, and max contracts out the ass.

None of them are Super Teams though.

A Super Team is a team with multiple Superstars.

None of those teams have multiple Superstars. The only two teams who can even come close to being considered Super Teams are the 2013 Miami Heat and the 2018 and 2019 Warriors.

When LeBron joined Miami, Wade was already a Finals MVP and a Superstar. LeBron did not have a title before going to Miami. They lost that first year in 2011. He was not cemented as a Superstar until he won that first title in 2012. That's what made the 2013 Heat team a Super team. They had two Superstars at that point and they still lost in 2014 to a team that was not a super team in the 2014 San Antonio Spurs. Tim Duncan was the only superstar on that team.

When KD joined the Warriors Steph Curry was already a superstar. KD was NOT. KD elevated to superstar status after they won in 2017. That made the 2018 and 2019 Warriors a super team. They had two superstarts at that point with KD and Steph.

None of these other teams are super teams and a lot of these players are not superstars. Stop throwing those titles around all willy nilly.
Well that's an awful take.

Calling the Nets, where Kyrie and KD forced themselves to via free agency, not a super team--even after they got James Harden--is quite a stretch.

But, considering your infatuation with them, I'm not surprised.
 
Which playoff series did Durant play as well as Giannis just did in the finals? Giannis just put in one of the most dominant performances ever and KD shot some 3's over guys while being a part of your definition of a super team.

Durant doesn't have half of Giannis' heart. We will see if Durant can come close next year.

Did you watch the 2017 and 2018 Finals? The 2017 and 2018 Cavs would sweep both teams that played last night. A straight up sweep. KD was as good as LeBron in both of those series and we know how good LeBron was.

Durant doesn't have half of Giannis' heart. We will see if Durant can come close next year.

Exactly how do you measure an NBA players level of heart? It's a silly argument that mostly rooted in fans jealousy and distain for players that they don't like.

You don't like what a certain player did? He must not have enough heart. You like what this player did? Oh he must be very passionate then.

lolololololololololol, I mean it's all really silly.
 
Did you watch the 2017 and 2018 Finals? The 2017 and 2018 Cavs would sweep both teams that played last night. A straight up sweep. KD was as good as LeBron in both of those series and we know how good LeBron was.



Exactly how do you measure an NBA players level of heart? It's a silly argument that mostly rooted in fans jealousy and distain for players that they don't like.

You don't like what a certain player did? He must not have enough heart. You like what this player did? Oh he must be very passionate then.

lolololololololololol, I mean it's all really silly.

You can't be serious. Durant played better this year than he did in those championship years. He didn't even have to do much of anything. I never saw a more tilted finals even San Antonio vs Cleveland.

He hit a couple closely guarded 3s. Those Warriors teams barely broke a sweat. He left because Warriors fans didn't even apreciate it.
 
Giannis brought it up, not us.

You’re narrowly defining Superstars and superteams. Whatever. The fact remains that All-Star caliber players are teaming up, taking less pay in some instances and taking the easy route. Giannis thinks those players have an easier road and I agree with him.

If it was that easy then why didn't Miami win 4 straight? Why did GSW lose 2 out of 5? Why didn't Brooklyn win this year?

There is no such thing as an easy path to a Championship.

And please don't paint a picture like these teams and front office don't have anything to do with how these teams are being built. A lot of these situations festered from teams being poorly managed and poorly coached.

Y'all want every player in the league to stay on one team and get rid of free agency? You want to get rid of max contracts?

All because you think players are taking the easy way out when every single season we see more and more proof that there is no easy way to win a Championship.

If you swap LeBron with any player not named Kobe, Shaq, Jordan, or Duncan on those Miami teams they don't win either of those titles.

Does GSW win back to back in 2017, 2018 with anybody else in the league not named Kevin Durant in those 2 years? probably not.

You're letting the success of like 2 players dictate the fate of the entire league. The league is bigger than and more than just the Superstar players and like I mentioned before there's only 5 of those dudes to begin with.
 
Doesn't this kind of sound like 2016? Is ours hollow too?

(I don't think ours or theirs in 2020 is/was)



I don't agree with this at all. That situation had to be really difficult from a mental standpoint no going home, no fans, limited interaction with family. From a hoops perspective, the home court the top seeds earned was thrown out the window. I actually think that's a pretty damn impressive ring. If we're placing asterisks, I'd put one on the postseason with an unprecedented number of injuries to superstar players. But I don't think we do that - a championship is earned by anyone who gets there.



I can't stand Durant but he's still above Giannis to me. It's being forgotton already, but there were many times throughout this series and postseason where Middleton, not Giannis, hit the big shot. I'd absolutely put Giannis over AD though.

Yeah, I just don't think it was as impressive as you do. The Lakers got 4 months for old man LeBron to rest up and AD to stay healthy prior to going into the bubble. Their path to the championship was also not that difficult as a bunch of random upsets happened that allowed them to avoid the Clippers and Bucks. It was basically it's own season/tournament that was entirely different from everything that happened in the 2019-20 season before that point. It's not a championship people will remember or care about. Record low ratings. Social justice sayings on the players backs of the jersey and all over the court. I mean, I don't expect LeBron dickriders and Lakers fans to agree, but I don't think most casual fans really think of it as anything more than the Covid-19 Disney Invitational Tournament.

The fact you'd say this year should get an asterisk over last is comical. So, I guess let's give 2019 an asterisk then for the Raptors basically winning because KD and Klay were hurt, or 2016 since Draymond was suspended a game and Bogut was hurt, or 2015 since Kyrie and Love were hurt. Injuries happen every season. The Nets stacked their roster full of extremely talented players, but they knew the risk that most of those guys are often injury prone. Can't cry asterisk because injury prone guys stayed being injury prone. Same with AD and Kawhi. Giannis got hurt and missed a few games too, and his team went 2-0 without him. Proving they're still a damn good team even without one of the best players in the league.
 
Well that's an awful take.

Calling the Nets, where Kyrie and KD forced themselves to via free agency, not a super team--even after they got James Harden--is quite a stretch.

But, considering your infatuation with them, I'm not surprised.

So signing with a team in free Agency is forcing your way there now?

So then tell me which teams where KD and Kyrie 'allowed' to player for that summer?

Y'all can't keep moving the goal post.

Kyrie is not a Superstar either. I've seen the same people talk shit about how he can't stay healthy complain that the Nets are taking an easy path to a title too. Well if Kyrie can't stay healthy how is it an easy path.

And The Nets got James Harden via trade. A very awful trade by HOU if I may add as well because they didn't get the 2nd or 3rd best players in that whole deal. I mean, look at how that team has been run. I'm not going to jump all over the players when some of these teams are horribly run franchises that make dumb ass decisions.
 

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