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Vanquish
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 Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 2:42 pm Post subject: Is the West Overhyped? |
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This just came to me, while I was reading the ESPN thread. Lebron dragged a CAVS team with really just one other all-star all the way to the nba finals. Further, they were one bone-headed JR smith play from winning game 1 away against the mighty warriors.
Yet, him coming to the lakers does not instantly make us at least a playoff team because the West is so much stronger than the East?
I agree that the West is stronger but I think the extent of the perceived disparity seems kind of ridiculous.
The only real team in the West, which I think is head and shoulders above anyone else are the Warriors. I think the best in the east are at least comparable - or maybe just slightly weaker - than the rest of the western playoff teams.
Boston is stacked. Toronto was the number one seed last year and for this year at least they added Kawhi. Philly has Embiid and Ben Simmons? I think it's pretty hard to believe that these 3 teams will not have a competitive series with any Western conference team beside maybe the Warriors. |
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Harlemlakerfan
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:21 pm Post subject: |
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I think so. It's not that the west is so strong, it's just that the east is so bad.
I'm thinking about all of the west teams that we played last year, without lebron and with injuries.......there is no team that I don't have confidence that we can beat, outside of GS. I have zero fear of any team. |
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Inspector Gadget
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:26 pm Post subject: |
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| Harlemlakerfan wrote: | I think so. It's not that the west is so strong, it's just that the east is so bad.
I'm thinking about all of the west teams that we played last year, without lebron and with injuries.......there is no team that I don't have confidence that we can beat, outside of GS. I have zero fear of any team. |
The Warriors aren’t world beaters |
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where24happens
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:28 pm Post subject: |
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| Boston, Toronto, and Philly should all be good. Other than that, there might be 10 or 11 Western teams that are better than the East's 4th best team, the West is loaded. |
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Vancouver Fan
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:32 pm Post subject: |
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| Inspector Gadget wrote: | | Harlemlakerfan wrote: | I think so. It's not that the west is so strong, it's just that the east is so bad.
I'm thinking about all of the west teams that we played last year, without lebron and with injuries.......there is no team that I don't have confidence that we can beat, outside of GS. I have zero fear of any team. |
The Warriors aren’t world beaters |
Nah, they've only won 3 out of the last 4, went to 4 straight finals, have 4 all stars on the team in their primes, 2 mvp's and play the most cohesive basketball in the league.
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Villain6Activated
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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| Inspector Gadget wrote: | | Harlemlakerfan wrote: | I think so. It's not that the west is so strong, it's just that the east is so bad.
I'm thinking about all of the west teams that we played last year, without lebron and with injuries.......there is no team that I don't have confidence that we can beat, outside of GS. I have zero fear of any team. |
The Warriors aren’t world beaters |
yeah they are wtf. They're one of the best teams assembled in NBA history.
But someone is going to knock them off the throne eventually (not this season though). And what better team to knock em off then the (bleep) Lakers.
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Vanquish
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 4:54 pm Post subject: |
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| where24happens wrote: | | Boston, Toronto, and Philly should all be good. Other than that, there might be 10 or 11 Western teams that are better than the East's 4th best team, the West is loaded. |
True, but how many of the West's teams are legitimate threats for a championship?
For me, the west have a bunch of above average teams that really have no shot at a championship. So yeah, there are a bunch of teams in the west capable of putting up 40 plus wins in the regular season but - I think - will go out with a whimper in the playoffs. If I were to give grades to the West, there are a lot of B+ teams, but not really many A grade teams.
I think boston and toronto have a better shot of winning the whole thing - if golden state suffers injuries - than a lot of the western teams, such as the wolves, pelicans, okc and even the jazz. |
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VicXLakers
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 4:55 pm Post subject: |
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the least is a step above the g league  |
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Vanquish
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 5:19 pm Post subject: |
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| VicXLakers wrote: | | the least is a step above the g league |
To my mind, it doesn't matter that the east has more bad teams, the number of teams that can legtimately win a championship in each conference is more or less equal.
Ignoring us since I am biased towards the lakers, I would go with 3 (GS, Hou, and the Spurs since Pop does miracles). Portland wins a lot of regular season games, never has made noise in the playoffs. Minny, OKC, Den, Pelicans? Don't really think so. Utah? Its a stretch but maybe.
To me, the west has a lot of regular season wonders, but I would take both Boston and Toronto - and maybe Philly if they progress - over most teams in the west other than the top 3, if I'm betting on a championship.
Considering how stacked those disgusting green leprechauns are together with the fact that they probably has the best coach in the league, I think they can actually win if golden state suffers an injury to one of their big 4.
Last edited by Vanquish on Fri Aug 03, 2018 5:22 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Aeneas Hunter
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 5:19 pm Post subject: Re: Is the West Overhyped? |
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| Vanquish wrote: | This just came to me, while I was reading the ESPN thread. Lebron dragged a CAVS team with really just one other all-star all the way to the nba finals. Further, they were one bone-headed JR smith play from winning game 1 away against the mighty warriors.
Yet, him coming to the lakers does not instantly make us at least a playoff team because the West is so much stronger than the East? |
Let's talk about this, because it is the nub of your argument. Lebron had a monster season (given his age) last year, and the Cavs won 50 games. It took 47 wins to make the playoffs in the West. The Cavs were 15-15 against the West.
Do the Cavs make the playoffs in West last year? Maybe, but maybe not. I understand that Lebron took the Cavs through the East in the playoffs, but the Cavs had to qualify for the playoffs first. |
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Vanquish
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 5:26 pm Post subject: Re: Is the West Overhyped? |
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| Aeneas Hunter wrote: | | Vanquish wrote: | This just came to me, while I was reading the ESPN thread. Lebron dragged a CAVS team with really just one other all-star all the way to the nba finals. Further, they were one bone-headed JR smith play from winning game 1 away against the mighty warriors.
Yet, him coming to the lakers does not instantly make us at least a playoff team because the West is so much stronger than the East? |
Let's talk about this, because it is the nub of your argument. Lebron had a monster season (given his age) last year, and the Cavs won 50 games. It took 47 wins to make the playoffs in the West. The Cavs were 15-15 against the West.
Do the Cavs make the playoffs in West last year? Maybe, but maybe not. I understand that Lebron took the Cavs through the East in the playoffs, but the Cavs had to qualify for the playoffs first. |
True but you have to admit lebron was on cruise control for most of the season and the cavs were dealing with major injuries. If last year's Cavs were on full strength, I don't think they have trouble making the playoffs even in the west. I see the Cavs as that kid who barely scraps by on the pop quizzes in class because he doesn't really care. Yet aces the final exam because that's the one that really counts.
Looking at game 1 of the nba finals, Lebron nearly pulled a kobe and took down the GS all star squad on the road by himself. He was only done in by a dumb teammate who couldn't remember the score.
The gist of my argument really is that I see the West as a lot of regular season teams who pile on the wins in essentially the meaningless section of the nba season. Even though the bar for the playoffs was 47 wins in the west, the teams got there by winning the games they were supposed to. The majority of the Western Conference Teams didn't really show that they could beat any team in any given night. Compare this to the 3 peat lakers who would regularly lose games against bottom feeder teams but win games against the top teams in the league.
In the Playoffs, there was hardly any suspense. I don't think I really thought for a moment that the WCF would be anything but Hou vs GS.
Likewise, this year come playoff time, I'm not actually impressed by really any Western conference team outside of golden state and Hou. I think the Lakers - even in their current flawed form - can take and win against any of them just because we have Lebron.
Last edited by Vanquish on Fri Aug 03, 2018 6:13 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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unleasHell
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 5:59 pm Post subject: |
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Jim Morrison said it: "The West is the Best"
Back in 1967, and even though he's been dead for 47 years and 1 month...
I gotta believe he was right...!
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Aeneas Hunter
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 7:02 pm Post subject: Re: Is the West Overhyped? |
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| Vanquish wrote: | | True but you have to admit lebron was on cruise control for most of the season and the cavs were dealing with major injuries. |
No, I don't have to admit that. Lebron led the league in minutes played and had one of the best seasons of his career given his age. He basically dragged the Cavs into the playoffs. Kevin Love got hurt, but he still played 59 games. Isiah Thomas was hurt when they traded for him.
So no, I don't buy your premise. The Cavs might have made the playoffs in the West, or they might not. Lebron couldn't play any more minutes or play any better over the course of a season.
Maybe we have a better roster than the Cavs. We shall see. But no, Lebron is not a magic ticket to the playoffs in the West. The West really is that good and that deep. |
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Vanquish
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 7:19 pm Post subject: |
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Cool, agree to disagree 
Eastern teams and Lebron aside, our rag tag team of rookies last year did take a game from Hou in the regular season and lost another after 2 OT. I don't think this was atypical. There were a lot of games where we were in it until the 4th quarter where we collapsed because of a lack of an experienced closer. Didn't we have a really good stretch around jan/feb where we were winning 66% of our games?
So I wouldn't say that I think Lebron is a magic formula. I just think he is what that will push us over the top, the missing ingredient if it were. I think there is already talent within the lakers, they just need a little push to realise their full potential. |
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lakersken80
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| Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2018 8:59 pm Post subject: |
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| The east was bad for so long that most of their teams got high draft picks. That is what is going to put back competitive balance into the league. |
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jonnybravo
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| Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2018 1:56 am Post subject: |
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West 3-8 is freaking WILDLY overrated. It's almost silly. Yeah, you'll win 48 wins yo. You beat up on the East. We won 35 with a cast of 1st and 2nd year players MOST OF WHICH WERE HURtt!!!!!!!!!!! Oh and btw, we got Lebron James an a couple of other guys.
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Aeneas Hunter
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| Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2018 5:54 am Post subject: |
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| Vanquish wrote: | Cool, agree to disagree
Eastern teams and Lebron aside, our rag tag team of rookies last year did take a game from Hou in the regular season and lost another after 2 OT. I don't think this was atypical. There were a lot of games where we were in it until the 4th quarter where we collapsed because of a lack of an experienced closer. Didn't we have a really good stretch around jan/feb where we were winning 66% of our games?
So I wouldn't say that I think Lebron is a magic formula. I just think he is what that will push us over the top, the missing ingredient if it were. I think there is already talent within the lakers, they just need a little push to realise their full potential. |
That's a different subject. We aren't just adding Lebron to last year's roster. We dumped Randle and Lopez (and a few lesser pieces) in the process, and brought in Rondo, McGee, Stephenson, and Beasley. Basically, half the roster is new. It will be a different team that will play differently. I think we should be good enough to make the playoffs, but then I expected last year's roster to contend for the playoffs this year without any major changes.
The point is that the "We just needed a little push" argument ignores the fact that we discarded two of the major pieces from last year's team, as well as a number of the lesser pieces. This is a reshuffle, not a continuation. You need to evaluate this roster with Lebron on its own merits and not think of it as "last year + Lebron." If this team clicks, we should make the playoffs with relative ease. If it doesn't click, Lebron is not your magic ticket to the playoffs. The West is way too tough for that.
One other note -- For 10+ years, I've been hearing the Lebron haters talk about how he is a choker who fades away in crunch time. Now, every time I hear people talk about what a great closer he is, I roll my eyes. |
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venturalakersfan
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| Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2018 11:16 am Post subject: |
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| Inspector Gadget wrote: | | Harlemlakerfan wrote: | I think so. It's not that the west is so strong, it's just that the east is so bad.
I'm thinking about all of the west teams that we played last year, without lebron and with injuries.......there is no team that I don't have confidence that we can beat, outside of GS. I have zero fear of any team. |
The Warriors aren’t world beaters |
Actually they are, they are probably the best team ever. The most wins in a season and so far 3 titles in 4 seasons. I think that the West goes 6 deep and the East only goes 2 deep. The West is stronger and that includes the best team in the league.
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PengShow
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| Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2018 1:03 pm Post subject: |
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West has the 2 best teams in the NBA in the Warriors and Rockets.
I'd say Celtics come 3rd with the Raptors not being far behind with a healthy Kawhi. The rest of the spots is up for grabs, there wasn't much in it last season after the top 2 in the West.
All the playoff teams were separated by a few wins. |
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audioaxes
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| Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2018 10:12 am Post subject: |
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hate the Celtics but if healthy I think they are the 2nd best team in the NBA IMO
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