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NBA Offseason 2015: You can't spell Dynasty without some of the letters in Aldridge


Maithanet

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I went to bed right after the Finals, so I missed the discussion. Before game 6 someone asked Lebron what he would do if he won MVP in a GS victory. He said he wanted the championship, not the MVP. I thought that Lebron congratulating Curry and Kerr with 10 seconds left and then booking it out of there once the game ended was a clear signal that he meant it, and that he really did not want to win MVP in a losing effort. It would have been hard to get him out of the locker room to even accept the trophy. While Lebron obviously was the "most valuable", I think awarding it to a losing player just doesn't make any sense.



The Warriors should enjoy this championship, because while they are a young team, it is going to be really tough to raise that trophy again. There are a lot of guys on that team that want to get paid, and I'm not sure they can manage it long term. Green is a really good player, but he does not deserve a max contract. I don't know the details about the other guys contracts, but it is going to be hard to keep such a talented squad together beyond next year.



And the West just keeps loading up. This is a desperate year for OKC with Durant being a free agent next year - they need to give him a reason to stay. The Spurs have a lot of balls in the air, but rumor is they're looking to reload and try and get Timmy one more championship (which, for those keeping count, would be his sixth). The rest of the West is going to have a tough time beating GSW, although none of them are really going away (aside from Dallas, who might be fading now that Dirk is nearing the end).



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This is why I have trouble imagining any free agent realistically wanting to go to the West. It was damn hard to make the playoffs this year... and one of the teams on the outs was the one with two MVP candidates and a lottery pick in this year's draft! Anthony Davis is widely regarded as the biggest up and coming star in this generation, and his team was the 8th seed by a hair.

If you're a team like Phoenix or LA who wants to get back up in the mix, where is your hope for a team to slip out? Do you think Dallas will be down long? San Antonio was the 6 seed, but was one win away from being the 2 seed.

If I was a free agent, I'd be grabbing pretty much any team in the East. Sure it will be tough to get past the Cavs, but at least you have a realistic shot of being able to make the playoffs.

Anywho... now I can turn full attention to the real goal of getting 8 players drafted. :bang:

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This is why I have trouble imagining any free agent realistically wanting to go to the West. It was damn hard to make the playoffs this year... and one of the teams on the outs was the one with two MVP candidates and a lottery pick in this year's draft! Anthony Davis is widely regarded as the biggest up and coming star in this generation, and his team was the 8th seed by a hair.

If I was a free agent, I'd be grabbing pretty much any team in the East. Sure it will be tough to get past the Cavs, but at least you have a realistic shot of being able to make the playoffs.

Yeah, I actually think this is a factor in favor of Durant-to-DC. Durant has seen how grueling the regular season is, and that if he were in the East, he would virtually have a free pass to the second round. Yes, Cleveland is good, but as things stand now any team that wants to win a championship needs to go through Cleveland. It would be pretty nice not having to go through two of San Antonio/LAC/Houston/GSW first.

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The East-West thing is a legit point, but all signs point towards reseeding in the future anyway. For starters, the competition aspect is troubling, but more importantly in terms of it actually happening, you're getting playoff series that no one cares about in the East until the finals. Non-competitive series that no one cares about lose money for everyone involved, and that's going to drive chagne. So I don't think fleeing to the East to try to get an easier path is a viable option.


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The East-West thing is a legit point, but all signs point towards reseeding in the future anyway. For starters, the competition aspect is troubling, but more importantly in terms of it actually happening, you're getting playoff series that no one cares about in the East until the finals. Non-competitive series that no one cares about lose money for everyone involved, and that's going to drive chagne. So I don't think fleeing to the East to try to get an easier path is a viable option.

Maybe, but if a couple of stars went from West to East, that would prettymuch solve the problem and there would be no need to reseed. I'm not convinced that the re-seed is really going to happen, it seems like a permanent solution to a temporary problem.

EDIT: Imagine if Anthony Davis signs with Chicago and KD signs with DC. All of a sudden you now have 3 legit contenders in the East, and the West no longer has so many playoff teams they don't know what to do. Yes, the bottom of the East is still weak, but that's a minor problem really.

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Imagine if Anthony Davis signs with Chicago and KD signs with DC. All of a sudden you now have 3 legit contenders in the East, and the West no longer has so many playoff teams they don't know what to do. Yes, the bottom of the East is still weak, but that's a minor problem really.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kS_qLzPWVg

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I thought the re-seeding was not to be among all 16 teams, but rather just making sure that a division winner with 10 less wins than a runner up doesn't wind up as the 2 seed "just because."

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I thought the re-seeding was not to be among all 16 teams, but rather just making sure that a division winner with 10 less wins than a runner up doesn't wind up as the 2 seed "just because."

That was the re-seeding that has been approved. It is possible that some year in the future the East/West split will be abolished. But I personally doubt it.

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The Warriors should enjoy this championship, because while they are a young team, it is going to be really tough to raise that trophy again. There are a lot of guys on that team that want to get paid, and I'm not sure they can manage it long term. Green is a really good player, but he does not deserve a max contract. I don't know the details about the other guys contracts, but it is going to be hard to keep such a talented squad together beyond next year.

I keep seeing them being compared to the 2013 Seachickens, which seems like a fairly apt match. There is no way they can afford to keep all that talent for long. That bench is just insane when you think about it. Much of there 2nd team would be starting on many other NBA teams.

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Well, Lebron couldn't pull of the greatest ship' of all time. :( Oh well, they will be back and I cannot stand the fact that he got beat playing with this team. Its his luck, if Irving and Love are healthy I think Cavs won this easy. They had GS on their heels the first 4 games and not enough offensive weapons to put em away. Such a shame for the city of Cleveland. Hats off to the Warriors though, and have a feeling they will be back again. Curry is a beast, they just need to keep the pieces around him.

So, I think Cleveland needs to get their bench younger and that's a hard thing to do if you want some valuable bench guys. They only have so much money, and the vet minimum is always inticing. But, there are younger vets out there. Need shooters and bangers, resign Thompson, lock up Love and Mosgov and they have a legit chance to extend Bron's finals streak a few more years. Just wish he adds some W's instead all these L's.

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What saddens me is that history will look at his 2-4 record and he will get almost all of the blame, despite rarely being the reason for the finals loss.

Hey, I just came from a funeral and that's exactly what everyone was saying today...a day later. He choked, he's only in the finals because he plays in the East, blah, blah, blah. Simply put, Lebron had a series for the ages, and the Cavs had nothing else to add to it. Its a shame really.

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I put exactly one of LeBron's finals losses on him (2011). He lost to the better team each and every other time (2007 Spurs, 2014 Spurs, 2015 Warriors).

I agree.

Hey, I just came from a funeral and that's exactly what everyone was saying today...a day later. He choked, he's only in the finals because he plays in the East, blah, blah, blah. Simply put, Lebron had a series for the ages, and the Cavs had nothing else to add to it. Its a shame really.

I am sorry to hear that, are you feeling okay?

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Hey, I just came from a funeral and that's exactly what everyone was saying today...a day later. He choked, he's only in the finals because he plays in the East, blah, blah, blah. Simply put, Lebron had a series for the ages, and the Cavs had nothing else to add to it. Its a shame really.

Hmmm, i wan to discuss basketball but...funeral. My condolences.

That said, i can't believe anyone is saying LeBron choked. That's ABSURD.

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I don't expect KD to leave OKC. But there's a chance, and I am hoping he does.

However, I do expect Anthony Davis to leave New Orleans, and when he does, I think he'll head East.

There's 3 legit reasons KD could join the Wizards:

1) Hometown - We'll see if the pull to DC is anywhere near as strong as Lebron's to NE Ohio.

2) Eastern Conference - I'm not at all convinced the Wizards were better than the Thunder this year (even with Durant hurt). But when you play in the Eastern Conference that level of ability gets you to the 2nd round (and should have honestly gotten you to the ECF) whereas in the Western Conference, that level of ability just means you're watching the playoffs at home. Also the Western Conference just got the top two picks in next year's draft. This dynamic won't change for a half a decade at least. Yeah in the Eastern Conference you have to get past Lebron. But you still have to in the Western Conference too. The only difference is you also played 2-3 50-60 win teams before that.

3) Roster composition - There's no question Westbrook is better than anyone on the Wizards. But there's also zero doubt in my mind John Wall is a better compliment to Durant. And Beal's the cherry on top. They'd have the perfect complimentary skillsets at 1-3 and watching the Warriors take home the title, that's the most important thing in today's NBA.

Of course there's 3 good reasons not to go: Keep playing with a fellow top 8 player in the NBA, continue playing for an organization that has clearly been better run (and one with a WAY better GM) and most of all because he strikes me as a loyal guy to begin with. But if OKC doesn't win the title next year, and I don't expect they will, I think moving to the Eastern Conference is a savvy move at that point in his career. And though I'm biased, I think DC is the best landing spot beyond even sentimental reasons.

ETA: Everything I think I'm out on dreaming about Durant on the Wizards...you pullllllll me back in.

ETA2: And if we want to get depressing, there's always the chance Durant is never the same player again. Foot injuries on 6'11" guys are nothing to take lightly.

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3) Roster composition - There's no question Westbrook is better than anyone on the Wizards. But there's also zero doubt in my mind John Wall is a better compliment to Durant. And Beal's the cherry on top. They'd have the perfect complimentary skillsets at 1-3 and watching the Warriors take home the title, that's the most important thing in today's NBA.

The problem is that the Wizards big men are all getting old and ineffective. Gortat did not play well in the playoffs, and he's not getting any younger. We didn't get a shot at Cleveland, but matching up with Thompson is pretty worrisome. So while Wall-Beal-Durant is a delightful trio (better than Cleveland's, IMO), I'm not sure it would really be enough. But then I'd love to see them try.

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The problem is that the Wizards big men are all getting old and ineffective. Gortat did not play well in the playoffs, and he's not getting any younger. We didn't get a shot at Cleveland, but matching up with Thompson is pretty worrisome. So while Wall-Beal-Durant is a delightful trio (better than Cleveland's, IMO), I'm not sure it would really be enough. But then I'd love to see them try.

Yeah Nene seems to be aging in dog years. At least next year is his last on the books. I do think Gortat has another year or two of peak productivity as a small ball 5 (God, let us hope Wittman has figured out this is where the game has gone). It's vital he doesn't decline rapidly because he's on the books for 3 more years. Still not sure what happened to him in the Atlanta series...

But you go small ball, you only need 1 of those guys on the court at a time. Heck, maybe Seraphin can fill that role. Or you can find someone in free agency/draft. You really need one guy who can rim protect and make 15 footers. But at least having a weakness in that area isn't the death sentence it used to be if you're smart about it*.

*Corollary - The WIzards are rarely smart about it.

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