NBA's most competitive decade: 80's or 90's?

[lefty]

Tough one

Discuss

[HarlemHeat37]

The 90's has the nostalgia factor, but it was a terrible era of basketball, tbh..sorry Lefty..

[Giuseppe]

I usually hate these kind of Threads, and I won't shilly-shally here, but, this is a fresh one.

[JoeTait75]

The 90's has the nostalgia factor, but it was a terrible era of basketball, tbh..sorry Lefty..

[NewcastleKEG]

Kinda tough to go against the NBA's ''golden age''

[LkrFan]

The '80s bar none. The league began to expand in the '90s and became pussified too much for my taste.

[Ashy Larry]

Getting out of the Eastern Conference in the 80s was no joke .... the Lakers really had it easy because after train fucking the Spurs and other Western squads, their toughest test came in the Finals ..... take away the Rockets and the Lakers are in the Finals for the entire 1980s

Boston and Filly had some great wars in those ECF as well .... still love Andrew Toney

[LkrFan]

Getting out of the Eastern Conference in the 80s was no joke .... the Lakers really had it easy because after train fucking the Spurs and other Western squads, their toughest test came in the Finals ..... take away the Rockets and the Lakers are in the Finals for the entire 1980s

Boston and Filly had some great wars in those ECF as well .... still love Andrew Toney

That Rockets series in '86 still burns me to this day. Then to watch Boston mop the floor with they ass was unreal. :(

[Koolaid_Man]

Kinda tough to go against the NBA's ''golden age''

I can see that we both agree that MJ's titles were won in an bullshit era...you're alright after all NewCastle :toast

[NewcastleKEG]

I can see that we both agree that MJ's titles were won in an bullshit era...you're alright after all NewCastle :toast
I simply speak the truth my dear lady

[LkrFan]

I simply speak the truth my dear lady

MJ was the LeHype of the '80s. He didn't win shit, but he had a sweet shoe deal. :lol

[Ashy Larry]

That Rockets series in '86 still burns me to this day. Then to watch Boston mop the floor with they ass was unreal. :(


They weren't winning even if they had beaten Houston. That entire year, they seemed to be pussy drunk off answering the demons in the previous and getting over the hump from that 1984 meltdown. That 1986 Lakers team was struggling against teams they should have squashed and just didn't seem right and it eventually caught up with them .........

That 1986 C's team was one of the greatest teams ever ... 40-1 at home does not suck

[Jacob1983]

Didn't the 70s have the most parity? Didn't teams like the Sonics, Bucks, Bullets, and Warriors win championships in the 1970s?

[baseline bum]

I can't rate the 70s all that highly for the NBA, since the ABA had lots of the best players. The ABA had the best scorers with Dr J, George Gervin, and David Thompson, not to mention guys like James Silas and George McGinnis. The NBA may have had Kareem, Walton, Unseld, Cowens, and Hayes, but the ABA had some really high quality bigs in Dan Issel, Artis Gilmore, Moses Malone, Maurice Lucas, Caldwell Jones, and Bobby Jones too. Then Walton's injuries just screwed the end of the decade out of its best basketball.

[NewcastleKEG]

80's > 90's > 60's > 2010's > 70's > 2000's

[TE]

Tough one... I'd lean toward the 90's.

[JamStone]

The 90's was a Jordan era. One of the most spectacular, but one of the dullest competitiveness-wise. At least the 80s were about two teams

80s had 2 megateams. But it also had a couple of other great championship teams, with Philly and Detroit. And other strong teams like the late 80s Portland teams that went to the Finals, Houston for a couple years in the mid 80s with Dream and Ralph, the Moncrief Milwaukee Bucks, and those early Walter Davis Phoenix Suns teams. Philly probably wins another championship in a different era, maybe Portland too. The depth of quality teams in the 80s was more than just Lakers-Celtics.

[lefty]

80s had 2 megateams. But it also had a couple of other great championship teams, with Philly and Detroit. And other strong teams like the late 80s Portland teams that went to the Finals, Houston for a couple years in the mid 80s with Dream and Ralph, the Moncrief Milwaukee Bucks, and those early Walter Davis Phoenix Suns teams. Philly probably wins another championship in a different era, maybe Portland too. The depth of quality teams in the 80s was more than just Lakers-Celtics.
True

It'S easy to assume the 80s were about 2 stacked teams - L.A and Boston, but a lot of teams were competitive and had good benches

Looking back at the 90's rosters...damn that's a lot of CBA players :lol

[cheguevara]

depends what you mean by competitive. If you mean rivalries then 80s no doubt. But if you mean as all around balanced league, then neither. Today's NBA is more balanced/competitive than back then.

[ambchang]

90s were one of the worst basketball eras. The West would have teams beat each other into a bloody pulp, only to charge into well-rested Bulls team that had to go through teams like the Knicks that would have been fodder in the West.

The league just started embracing the bad boy era, with teams hard-fouling instead of defending. Offenses were offensively dull, with little ball movement and an avalanche of isolation plays.

On the other hand, the 80s had great offense, no defense, and a whole lot of competitive teams

[Kamnik]

I was born in 1985 so I can't really contribute... But a really nice thread&reading for a change.

[stretch]

It's hard to judge the 2000-2010 era, because the first 3 years were so incredibly bad, but 2004-2010 was very good, competitive, full of talent and competition, to a point I think its comparable to about any era. A number of different teams won championships in that span (Detroit, San Antonio, Lakers, Miami, Boston), along different teams almost every year being runner-up (Lakers, Detroit, Cleveland, Dallas, Boston, Orlando).

[100%duncan]

I didn't get to watch 90's ball that much, but for you guys, 2000-present or 90's era?

[stretch]

The league just started embracing the bad boy era, with teams hard-fouling instead of defending. Offenses were offensively dull, with little ball movement and an avalanche of isolation plays.

On the other hand, the 80s had great offense, no defense, and a whole lot of competitive teams

This.

I get sick of people saying "teams don't play defense today, we used to foul the crap out of anyone that came into the lane back in the day. now THAT'S DEFENSE!!!!!"

That's not defense. That's just bullshit. Moving your feet to stay in front of your opponent, using your body to prevent the offensive player from getting to a spot, and forcing him into a low percentage shot or a turnover, is true defense. Holding them at the waist (hand checking) is just a cheap way for slow players to stick with fast players. Delivering a hard foul and starting a near fight doesn't accomplish anything either... at least not against anyone with balls. It might make weak, soft players stop driving, but anyone with nuts will keep going right at you.

[stretch]

I didn't get to watch 90's ball that much, but for you guys, 2000-present or 90's era?

2000-present, by far is more competitive and a better basketball era.

90s has a great nostalgia factor because of MJ, but it certainly is not as competitive, nor as full of talent as the 2000's have been.

[stretch]

depends what you mean by competitive. If you mean rivalries then 80s no doubt. But if you mean as all around balanced league, then neither. Today's NBA is more balanced/competitive than back then.

smelly lard-breath knows what he is talking about :wow

[100%duncan]

2000-present, by far is more competitive and a better basketball era.

90s has a great nostalgia factor because of MJ, but it certainly is not as competitive, nor as full of talent as the 2000's have been.

Agreed tbh. IIRC from the replays I've watched and vids from youtube, the east back then was weaker right? So the Bulls were always fresh in the Finals while the West teams were good to great at most. Right?

[baseline bum]

I personally love the 80s because of the superteams in LA, Boston, Philly, and Detroit. The west was garbage outside of LA, but man, the eastern playoffs were always awesome. Then the finals were ridiculous save those two years LA shit themselves and the year Philly was unbeatable.

[baseline bum]

Philly's was 83? There were two finals series that LA shit themselves, 84 (lol worthy) and 89 (lol hamstring)

I meant when they shit themselves in '81 and '86 and we had to watch Houston get cornholed by the Celtics. Even though 89 was a sweep, I remember the games still being pretty decent. And 84 is one of the best series in NBA history.

[JoeTait75]

Agreed tbh. IIRC from the replays I've watched and vids from youtube, the east back then was weaker right? So the Bulls were always fresh in the Finals while the West teams were good to great at most. Right?

Yeah, the East was significantly weaker than the West from about 1991 on, after the downfall of the Bad Boy Pistons. Chicago's main competitors during their first three-peat- New York and Cleveland- were a level below the Portland and Phoenix teams of the same era, IMO.

[lefty]

Best NBA moments of the 90's : Reggie Miller trolling the shit out of the biggest city in the World

[cantthinkofanything]

I'll again recommend Winning Time, Reggie Miller vs The New York Knicks. Great documentary on the Pacers/Knicks playoff battles in the 90's. Interviews with Miller, Spike Lee, Ewing, Starks, Jackson, etc. One of the best 30 for 30s imo.

[cheguevara]

Ewings knicks were overrated as shit.

[lefty]

I'll again recommend Winning Time, Reggie Miller vs The New York Knicks. Great documentary on the Pacers/Knicks playoff battles in the 90's. Interviews with Miller, Spike Lee, Ewing, Starks, Jackson, etc. One of the best 30 for 30s imo.
I was going to post about it

Super stuff :tu