How many NBA Finals would LeBron play, if he was playing in the West?

[joeSpurs]

Just curious what people think about this:
We all know that LeBron has been to 6 straight NBA Finals. Not trying to take anything away from him.
But let's face it, LeBron's roads to the finals have been quite easy.
Guys like Durant, WestBrook, Chris Paul, Dirk and even Tim have had to go through really tough competition to get there. Every year, it is a serious tussle to even make the playoffs in the West. I don't know if teams like the Raptors or the Hawks or even the Heat could make the NBA playoffs in the West.
I have the feeling that Warriors vs Thunders was the NBA Finals. Cavs look overwhelmed ... with all their "stars" healthy.

[tholdren]

It depends what team he was on. But Yes, getting to six finals when the best player in your way is John Wall... Not Impressive.

[HarlemHeat37]

Lebron's Heat teams routinely destroyed the West, IIRC..

He wouldn't have as many Finals appearances, but that would actually work in his favor, since it would eliminate the illogical "Finals record" argument..

[Hoops Czar]

Cleveland is a lottery team without James.

[joeSpurs]

A lottery team with the highest payroll in the League?

Cleveland is a lottery team without James.

[Hoops Czar]

A lottery team with the highest payroll in the League?

Kyrie Irving is overrated AF; Kevin Love is overrated AF. Remind me again how many total playoff appearances each had before Lebron entered the picture. The rest of the roster is a collection of overpaid scrubs.

Oh, yeah, Tyron Lue is getting exposed for the overrated as AF coach that he is.

[joeSpurs]

Could they make the playoffs, if they were in the West?

Kyrie Irving is overrated AF; Kevin Love is overrated AF. Remind me again how many total playoff appearances each had before Lebron entered the picture. The rest of the roster is a collection of overpaid scrubs.

Oh, yeah, Tyron Lue is getting exposed for the overrated as AF coach that he is.

[Hoops Czar]

Could they make the playoffs, if they were in the West?

Not without Lebron.

[Kawhitstorm]

Lebron's Heat teams routinely destroyed the West, IIRC..

He wouldn't have as many Finals appearances, but that would actually work in his favor, since it would eliminate the illogical "Finals record" argument..

Basically: Nobody would be counting Finals appearances, just rings ala Hakeem.

Heat beat two LEGIT teams in the Finals:

OKC/Spurs were the best team in the West b/w 2011-2014 & the Heat beat both of them in the Finals. It also goes both ways since the 2008 Cavs could have beaten the Lakers if it wasn't for the Celtics.

People also forget that Bosh missed a bunch of games during the 2012 postseason which was why the Pacers/Celtics took 'em to 7 games.

[joeSpurs]

Could they make the playoffs in the West WITH LeBron? Could they be a top 4 seed in the West with LeBron?
Right now, I have a hard time seeing how any of LeBron NBA Finals team could have won 2 playoff series in the West.
The Only NBA Championship LeBron won convincingly was against the Thunders.

Not without Lebron.

[joeSpurs]

It took a miracle shot by Ray Allen to win the first one against the Spurs.

Nobody should be counting Finals appearance, just rings.
Heat beat two LEGIT teams in the Finals:
OKC/Spurs were the best team in the West b/w 2011-2014 & the Heat beat both of them in the Finals. It also goes both ways since the 2008 Cavs could have beaten the Lakers if it wasn't for the Celtics.

People also forget that Bosh missed a bunch of games during the 2012 postseason which was why the Pacers/Celtics took 'em to 7 games.

[tholdren]

Kyrie Irving is overrated AF; Kevin Love is overrated AF. Remind me again how many total playoff appearances each had before Lebron entered the picture. The rest of the roster is a collection of overpaid scrubs.

Oh, yeah, Tyron Lue is getting exposed for the overrated as AF coach that he is.
lol lebron hand picked those guys even when he was in miami gilbert was calling him asking who he wanted when he returned.

[HarlemHeat37]

Could they make the playoffs in the West WITH LeBron? Could they be a top 4 seed in the West with LeBron?
Right now, I have a hard time seeing how any of LeBron NBA Finals team could have won 2 playoff series in the West.
The Only NBA Championship LeBron won convincingly was against the Thunders.

Lebron's Heat teams had a dominant record vs. the West from 2011-2014..also, the top of the West was pretty weak in those years outside of the Spurs and Thunder and 2011 Mavs..

This year, the 5 to 8 seeds in the West wouldn't have made the playoffs in the East..the top half of the West is significantly better than the East, but the bottom half has transitioned for the East..

[phxspurfan]

Lebron's Heat teams had a dominant record vs. the West from 2011-2014..also, the top of the West was pretty weak in those years outside of the Spurs and Thunder and 2011 Mavs..

This year, the 5 to 8 seeds in the West wouldn't have made the playoffs in the East..the top half of the West is significantly better than the East, but the bottom half has transitioned for the East..

Youre saying the Hornets would beat the Mavs.

[HarlemHeat37]

Youre saying the Hornets would beat the Mavs.

Yes, easily..

[Hoops Czar]

Could they make the playoffs in the West WITH LeBron? Could they be a top 4 seed in the West with LeBron?
Right now, I have a hard time seeing how any of LeBron NBA Finals team could have won 2 playoff series in the West.
The Only NBA Championship LeBron won convincingly was against the Thunders.

It's dependent on match ups but, they were easily a top 4 team in the league this year and they would have p'wned the Spurs in a series as well because the Spurs were kinda overrated AF. They probably could have given the Thunder a run for their money too. Last years, they could have gone toe to toe with most Western Conference teams but, they were bogged down by injuries during the playoffs. However, they were still a Lebron made FG away from going up 3-0 on the Warriors.

Lebron doesn't make 6 straight finals playing in the West but his team would be a serious contender year in and year out.

[Kawhitstorm]

It took a miracle shot by Ray Allen to win the first one against the Spurs.

Except it took two bone headed turnovers by LeBron to let the Spurs back into the game & a miraculous step-back 3 by Porker to tie the game. Let's not forget Porker making a shot from his knees to win Gm 1.:lol

At the end of the day, Gm 7 happened & LeBron had an epic game. OKC blowing Gm 6 in WCF was was worse than the Spurs since they actually controlled the game before their meltdown.

[SAGirl]

I'd say half of what he has.

[TheGreatYacht]

Zero, tbh. Probably wouldn't have home court advantage in the playoffs for half his career

[Spurs 4 The Win]

Zero, tbh. Probably wouldn't have home court advantage in the playoffs for half his career

Assuming all his teams played in the West, he probably has 1 Final and 1 championship.

[Down Under]

9 of the top 10 players in the league the past 5 years have been in the West, so he would struggle.

[r0drig0lac]

lmao chris paul

[TheDoctor]

I'd say 2 Finals appearances with a 2-0 record.

[Obstructed_View]

He beat a great, great Pistons team by himself with a supporting cast that Kobe couldn't make the playoffs with. Also, the series isn't over yet.

[NameLess Scrub]

I don't know how many, but it would have gotten pretty hard for him to get up there.

Have to consider not only the strength of the teams, but the match ups.

I'd think he would have lost several playoff series just by running into unfavorable match ups.
Also, winning series with injured players in the roster would have been harder too.

He has made 6 finals appearances by teaming up with 2 more stars/superstars, having big influence in team decisions, and playing in the weakest conference. Can't be much more favorable for a superstar.

[TheGoldStandard]

Which team would he play for? How much would their payroll be? Who'd be the coach?

[TheGreatYacht]

He'd be a conference final virgin like his best friend Crisp Paul

[Kidd K]

Lebron's Heat teams routinely destroyed the West, IIRC..

He wouldn't have as many Finals appearances, but that would actually work in his favor, since it would eliminate the illogical "Finals record" argument..

You're not recalling correctly. He just -barely- beat the Spurs, got historically smashed by the Spurs twice, was lucky to play OKC instead of the Spurs, and lost to Dirk's Mavs when that wasn't even the best Mavs team ever. That's his record vs the only 4 west teams he played. Basicially 2-3 (about to be 2-4), and the 2 wins were very fortunate for him to happen.

Not saying LeBron is bad in any way (clearly an all time great), but put him out west with the same teams and he never makes the Finals with the Cavs and only gets there once or twice with the Heat tbh. We also have to remember he would have been losing more in the season too and less likely to have HCA.

The west is brutal. . .east is a joke and has been for a long time. The West has had a few down years too, but the east has a down year every year pretty much.

[baseline bum]

He beat a great, great Pistons team by himself

Meh, that Pistons team wasn't very good after replacing Big Ben with a washed up Webber.

[SpursFan86]

Don't think he'd have made the Finals any of the past 3 years if his team were in the West. No way in hell is he making 6 straight Finals.

[keeferob25]

Lol sooooo Lebron would basically have to go through THREE ROUNDS of the following in some fashion:

Tim Duncan
Manu Ginobili
Tony Parker
Pau Gasol
Dirk Nowitski
Kobe Bryant
Tracy McGrady
Ray Allen
Amare Stoudemire
Steve Nash
Chris Paul
Davis West
Tyson Chandler
Kevin Garnett
Kevin Durant
Russell Westbrook
James Harden
Marc Gasol
Z-Bo
Mike Conley
Dwight Howard
Lamarcus Aldridge
Brandon Roy when healthy
Andrew Bynum (when in allstar form)
Lamar Odom
Ron Artest
Stephen Curry
Klay Thompson
Draymond Green
Jason Terry

Mind you ALL of these players in one way or another were in PRIME form and some of the truly special ones were in PEAK form during the time Lebron has been in the league. Now contrast who I just listed for the west and then get prepared to laugh when I task you with trying to list the notable threats on the Eastern side LMAO!!! And remember also we're talking THREE ROUNDS of any combination of these players/tandems and that's JUST to get to the finals. Lebron has been on a cake walk the second half of his career.

[HarlemHeat37]

You're not recalling correctly. He just -barely- beat the Spurs, got historically smashed by the Spurs twice, was lucky to play OKC instead of the Spurs, and lost to Dirk's Mavs when that wasn't even the best Mavs team ever. That's his record vs the only 4 west teams he played. Basicially 2-3 (about to be 2-4), and the 2 wins were very fortunate for him to happen.

Not saying LeBron is bad in any way (clearly an all time great), but put him out west with the same teams and he never makes the Finals with the Cavs and only gets there once or twice with the Heat tbh. We also have to remember he would have been losing more in the season too and less likely to have HCA.

The west is brutal. . .east is a joke and has been for a long time. The West has had a few down years too, but the east has a down year every year pretty much.

I was referring to Miami's RS record vs. the West, which is the whole basis of people saying "the West is tough"..they cite the RS records of fake contenders like Memphis, Portland, etc..

The Heat were 2-2 vs. Dallas/SA/OKC..it's silly to think they would have had any difficulties with teams like Memphis, Portland and the Clippers:lol

[DPG21920]

It's such a hard hypothetical. Are you saying how would his current rosters do in the west? Lebron is a superstar. If he played for a decent franchise in the West who built around him he would have a legit shot at many finals still. If it's his teams that he's played for just transported to the West, then clearly he'd have less finals.

[joeSpurs]

The West has had so many great players, who have had great seasons, but have never been able to advance far in the playoffs, because they were in the Western Conference. Steve Nash (2x MVP), Chris Paul, Durant/WestBrook (Once to the finals), Garnett had to move to Boston. Same for Ray Allen. Since Dwight Howard has been in the West, he has not gone too far, Aldridge, ... etc.
I believe that LeBron's career would just be average, if he played in the Western Conference.

[rasuo214]

The elite talent is and has been in the West, even this season when people tried to argue the East was catching up.

Curry, Westbrook, KD, Kawhi, CP3, Drayond then there's guys like Cousins, Griffin, Lillard, Harden, LMA, Klay etc.

What's out East? Paul George on a shitty team and playoff chokers in Lowry and Derozan. Other than Lebron and Paul George does anyone else in the East even sniff an All-Star spot in the West?

So yea maybe a better version of CP3 or he'd have a similar career to KD (conference finals runs but only 1 finals appearance).

[KDKSpurs24]

A lot of you guys seem to be placing him in the West with his current team or past teams.. But you have to look at it from an entirely different perspective.

It has to depend on what team he is on. Also he would have a completely different coach from the west(which would probably be better than any he has ever had). He would have a different supporting cast(if the west is better then they have better players overall right?)

So it probably wouldn't be 7. But it definitely would not be 0 or 1 like some are saying. Just to take a guess I'd give him 4 appearances and 3 rings. They would always be a contender though. He's a great player.

[Obstructed_View]

A lot of you guys seem to be placing him in the West with his current team or past teams.. But you have to look at it from an entirely different perspective.

Exactly this. Put Lebron on any West playoff team the last ten years and they're a lot better than they would have been. Then we'd be in here starting a thread about how weak the western conference is because of all the free agents that went East to have a chance to make the finals.

[Keepin' it real]

A lot of you guys seem to be placing him in the West with his current team or past teams.. But you have to look at it from an entirely different perspective.

It has to depend on what team he is on. Also he would have a completely different coach from the west(which would probably be better than any he has ever had). He would have a different supporting cast(if the west is better then they have better players overall right?)

So it probably wouldn't be 7. But it definitely would not be 0 or 1 like some are saying. Just to take a guess I'd give him 4 appearances and 3 rings. They would always be a contender though. He's a great player.

I think you have to simply place the same teams he's been on in the west instead of the east. Otherwise you open up too many possibilities.

So for example, how would LBJ's teams have done if Cleveland and Miami were in the west, while Minnesota and Utah were in the east, and all rosters were the same.

[Spurtacular]

Basically: Nobody would be counting Finals appearances, just rings ala Hakeem.

Heat beat two LEGIT teams in the Finals:

OKC/Spurs were the best team in the West b/w 2011-2014 & the Heat beat both of them in the Finals. It also goes both ways since the 2008 Cavs could have beaten the Lakers if it wasn't for the Celtics.

People also forget that Bosh missed a bunch of games during the 2012 postseason which was why the Pacers/Celtics took 'em to 7 games.

Teams that were worn down on much harder paths. Though really, SA simply choked. I admit those Heat teams were largely championship contenders if out west. But they weren't sure things to make the finals like they were either. That's the difference.

[Kawhitstorm]

Teams that were worn down on much harder paths. Though really, SA simply choked. I admit those Heat teams were largely championship contenders if out west. But they weren't sure things to make the finals like they were either. That's the difference.

The 2012-13 Heat won 66 games & 27 straight while owning the West. B/W 2011-13, the Bulls gave them the most trouble in the regular season & Pacers gave them the most trouble in the postseason.:lol

[dbestpro]

If he was on the Spurs, not only would he be there every year, he would win it every year. :)

[Kidd K]

I was referring to Miami's RS record vs. the West, which is the whole basis of people saying "the West is tough"..they cite the RS records of fake contenders like Memphis, Portland, etc..

The Heat were 2-2 vs. Dallas/SA/OKC..it's silly to think they would have had any difficulties with teams like Memphis, Portland and the Clippers:lol

OKC was meh compared to SA that year and the win vs the Spurs was nearly a loss and you know it. Their loss to SA was a fucking demolition the next year. . .so let's not act like that 1-1 is a wash. The loss = they had no chance. The win was practically a fluke because of how game 6 played out (as all Spurs fans know). Many times a dope team gets knocked out BEFORE the Finals in the west, so yes I do think they could have lost to other teams. It happens all the time in the west.

[disciple]

Kyrie Irving is overrated AF; Kevin Love is overrated AF. Remind me again how many total playoff appearances each had before Lebron entered the picture. The rest of the roster is a collection of overpaid scrubs.

Oh, yeah, Tyron Lue is getting exposed for the overrated as AF coach that he is.


Very simple. Since he has to play the best if the west IN the finals he would of had to play that team BEFORE the finals. So 2 finals appearances.

[aal04]

Well, he would probably have more rings because he doesnt really choke until the finals. So he would probably win the wcf a bit more then moonwalk past the ecf winners as per usual

[joeSpurs]

Should the NBA change its format for the playoffs? Cavs vs Warriors is not the best matchup the finals could give us. Cavs look like world beaters in the East. They really have looked pedestrian in this series. I doubt they could have beaten the Trail Blazers in a 7 game series.

[GSH]

With the exception of that stacked Miami team, most of the teams he's been on haven't given him a hell of a lot of support. So - put him on half the teams in the West, and he's still a contender to make it to the Finals most years. Put him on one of the good teams in the West, and he's in every year.

Put him on the Memphis roster (without all the injuries this season) and think about how damn good they'd be. Hell, put him on NO's roster with Anthony Davis, and they look a lot more like Cleveland than they do a team that didn't make the playoffs.

[Obstructed_View]

Very simple. Since he has to play the best if the west IN the finals he would of had to play that team BEFORE the finals. So 2 finals appearances.

Pick a west playoff team, put Lebron on it, and the best in the west suddenly becomes second best in the west.

[skulls138]

With the exception of that stacked Miami team, most of the teams he's been on haven't given him a hell of a lot of support. So - put him on half the teams in the West, and he's still a contender to make it to the Finals most years. Put him on one of the good teams in the West, and he's in every year.

Put him on the Memphis roster (without all the injuries this season) and think about how damn good they'd be. Hell, put him on NO's roster with Anthony Davis, and they look a lot more like Cleveland than they do a team that didn't make the playoffs.Its the same old question, does a star make the teammates around him great or are the teammates already great? Where would players like Scottie Pippen, Kevin McHale, James Worthy be without the stars they were attached to? Not HOF's. Granted, early Lebron teams needed help but some of it falls on Lebron lap as well. I cant stand the way he stands behind the three point line with the ball in his hands and jacks it up or runs down the court and jacks it up. Those shots hardly EVER go in!!! Same with Westbrook. It just kicks the whole effort square in the balls. Look at last night. When the game was out of reach Lebron suddenly finds a way to make lay up after lay up. Too late. Sorry but Lebron is no Jordan, Magic or Bird.

Id even take prime Manu or prime Wade over prime Lebron. Of course Duncan but different position.

[TheGreatYacht]

The way his washed up ass is playing now, he wouldn't reach the conference finals

[resistanze]

I think you have to simply place the same teams he's been on in the west instead of the east. Otherwise you open up too many possibilities.

So for example, how would LBJ's teams have done if Cleveland and Miami were in the west, while Minnesota and Utah were in the east, and all rosters were the same.

The point is that it's a silly hypothetical. If LeBron played in the West, he would play for a Western Conference team. Since we all know the West has had more talent for the last 15+ years, it stands to reason he would have more talent if he were on a Western Conference team.

[HarlemHeat37]

Damn..past his prime and has the most mileage during 1 stretch in NBA history, yet still destroying the NBA Finals..