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You got your top three wrong dude. Cleveland is playing the best ball. Lakers, Celtics and Magic are arguably tied 2nd. Followed by the Spurs, Hornets and Hawks.
If the playoffs started today the Lakers win in 4-5 games and the series isn't even close.
If you think your Spurs team is playing anywhere near the level of a BOS or CLE you are sorely mistaken.
It's LAL, BOS, CLE..............and then a sizeable drop to the rest of the league.
You got your top three wrong dude. Cleveland is playing the best ball. Lakers, Celtics and Magic are arguably tied 2nd. Followed by the Spurs, Hornets and Hawks.
It amazes me that people still don't get the resourcefulness and championship resolve this team has.
To automatically dismiss them from the WCF......is just wrong. Period.
I can post all their stats from the past 5 years and the fact they have 20 wins after 30 games when starting 0-3.
Go ahead and dismiss them...at your peril.
Wow....I guess this team will have to prove why they have been the best team in the basketball in the last 5 years.
And the argument that the playoffs started today...doesn't hold water because they have to play an 82 game season. The season is used to get themselves better and ready for the playoffs.
And I will put my money on the original Big 3 who are savvy enough and hungry enough to want another championship.
I can accept an honest debate whether they will win a NBA le..that's fair! But to stay that aren't a threat to the Lakers in Western Conference....is flat-out wrong. Outside of injuries....they will be right there.
They were 21-9 after 30 games last year and are only a game back of the pace right now. Again I can post all of their stats to prove my case....
But the season will play out and the team every wants to dismiss will be there right again!!
Absolutely Amazing!!!
I agree with the above SPurs will not go down easy Mason of a pickup ...only doubt is Manu gonna be healthy he looks to be still laboring ...if he is I take SPurs over everyone except Lakers i would guess it would be Lakers in 7 ...
My point EXACTLY ....Spurs need Manu MAson helps offset him looking less than Super MAnu ...but come playoff time I would rather Mason be forced to make plays than MAnu ...
DrHouse just wants assurance. Only reason this thread exists.
The reality is, Spurs and LA are destined for another matchup in this playoffs. LA fans write off everyone, its nothing new, but we all know Spurs will still be right there in the very end. Writing them off is mere foolishness.
I don't think the Spurs make it past a fully healthy Hornet or Jazz team this season.
I'm just not impressed with their bench and the Big 3 is looking less and less dominant as each year goes by. I saw Duncan get his rejected thrice by freaking Marc Gasol, that would never happen to the Duncan of old. Manu is just jacking up random 3's at will and making careless turnovers. Parker is the only one of the Big 3 who seems to be as good as ever and that's because he's under 30.
As for the rest......Bonner, Mason, Hill, Udoka, etc. Forget it, that cast of characters is never going to win a championship over a fully healthy BOS, CLE, and LAL team. Until the Spurs show me that they can consistently beat the best teams in the NBA instead of beating the lowly .500 teams I'm not going to even take notice.
Whatever dude!!
You just showed you don't really watch basketball! Sorry I have to write that!
And to post that Duncan got his shot blocked by Gasol in a compe ve game...is ridiculous. It can happen to anybody and the other team does have professional ball players.
We will see...as the season goes along.
But to make a premature judgment on a team that has won as much as the Spurs is silly at best.
Have a great day!!!
Yes...even the Lakers!
I have posted on this forum the games in last year's WCF and how compe ive they were.
Go ahead....like the rest of the Lakers fans and count out the Spurs. I want an objective argument....not one based my dislike of a team. I don't like the Lakers but it would foolish of me to post that this team is one of the best in the league and a favorite to come out of the west.
But to dismiss the Spurs like their yesterday news...even though they have averaged 58 wins in the last 6 seasons and won three les in that time period and are on pace to win 53 games this season. Its just silly!!!!
We will see at the end of season......(barring injuries)
The Spurs have not yet shown they can even beat the good teams in this league.
Losing to NOH and ORL. Barely squeaking by the Suns. Tell me why I should be afraid of this team? The Lakers dispatched them in 5 last year without Bynum or Ariza....it's simply not even going to be close if they face again this year.
What are they doing there?
The spurs have a habit of cruising through some parts of the regular season and then jacking up the pressure as the play-off nears.
Age seem to catch up to them a bit in the past season and they are no where near the top in physical or talent terms but purely on mental/experience level, they are still the best.
I don't think that will be enough for them to get past the hump this year and right now (December) the Lakers will probably take them in 5.....6 the most.
Still alot of Basketbasll to be played.
As someone said, bump this thread around the time the play-offs come.
Again you are resorting to revisionist history.
First, last year's WCF was very compe ive and Manu was hurt for the Spurs as well.
Game 1 89-85 Lakers
Game 2 101-71 Lakers
Game 3 103-84 Spurs
Game 4 93-91 Lakers
Game 5 100-92 Lakers
Three close games and a blowout on each side....a compe ive series even though it was 5 games.
I will give you the argument that the Lakers were without Bynum and Ariza but Manu seriously hurt and affected that series.
Now, the Spurs have 6-9 record against teams with above .500. The Phoenix, Dallas, Denver, and Miami games were without Tony or Manu. Also, they beat Houston without Tony and Manu and were down double-digits in the fourth quarter.
Lastly, they went on the road and beat Denver decisively, Dallas in 2OT, and Phoenix on Christmas Day. Those are good teams...not great teams but good wins nevertheless. Also, I could criticize the Lakers losing to Sacramento and Miami but those things happen in an 82 game season. So I expect the same la ude to the Spurs.
And the Spurs haven't played the Lakers, Cavs, and Celtics yet in their schedule.
So again you are using a premature analysis..to judge a team that has been the most consistent and successful team in basketball in the last 5 years.
Game 1 89-85 Lakers
Game 2 101-71 Lakers
Game 3 103-84 Spurs
Game 4 93-91 Lakers
Game 5 100-92 Lakers
The games from last year's WCF. The Lakers didn't steamrolled the Spurs. Three close games and a blowout from each team...sorry that argument doesn't work.
And, Manu was injured in that series, I will give the Lakers credit...because they won the series fair and square. But to post that the Spurs were steamrolled is a big overstatement.
And the Spurs will be the main compe ion for the Lakers along with Rockets for the WC.
They will be ready by the end of the season. The Spurs do have production off the bench with Mason, Bonner, and Hill and the Phoenix game showed if you double one of big 3...they have someone else who can hit shots!
We also blew a 20-pt. lead in Game 1 and a 17-pt. lead in Game 5, not to mention the NBA-acknowledged missed series-altering call in Game 4.
Doesn't change who won the series, but it just shows how lucky the Lakers got, and that their losing in the Finals was no mistake.
Since when do regular season match ups hold more value than beating both of those teams in the playoffs last year? We already put away Chris Paul, Amare, Nash, and Shaq in the playoffs last year. How the does a regular season match up matter now?
Bynum and Ariza are irrelevant.
You can rationalize your loss to the Lakers last season all you want, but you still lost 4-1. The better team always wins a 7 game series. The Jazz put up a better fight than the Spurs and were more of a threat last season. And basketball is a game of runs so the fact that the Spurs were up double digits is meaningless.
I'm simply not convinced that the Spurs got any better than they did last season. Big 3 are not as good and I doubt that the rookie Hill, Bonner, Udoka, and Mason can make the same kind of impact guys like Barry and Horry did when they were playing for the Spurs. You replaced veterans with playoff virgins, that never works out. You know why BOS's bench is struggling now....it's because they lost two vets in PJ Brown and James Posey. You can't rely on a young bench to win games agains the elite teams.
FIFY
And basketball is a game of runs so the fact that the Spurs were up double digits is meaningless.20 and 17 are leads a rested team keeps.
George Hill and Mason Jr say hi.I'm simply not convinced that the Spurs got any better than they did last season.
Barry and Horry?Big 3 are not as good and I doubt that the rookie Hill, Bonner, Udoka, and Mason can make the same kind of impact guys like Barry and Horry did when they were playing for the Spurs.on a good joke
What Mason Jr, Bonner, Hill, and Udoka already do this season is much much more than Horry and Barry did at any point as spurs. The only thing Horry ever did was make clutch plays. He rarely had a game where he contributed anything. Barry did essentially nothing during last season due to injuries and lack of PT, and his defense was always atrocious.
Horry was a dinosaur passing up shots. Bonner will be shooting those and nailing them, and he'll be drawing Gasol out of the paint. No big men double teams on Tim, he'll be picking LA apart with his passing.
Udoka has a way of coming in and changing the game with key steals and rebounds, even penetration. Last season's series against NO proved he has the ability to play a role in smallball lineups.
Mason Jr is a breath of fresh air to our offense. This guy will be the difference between last season's Game 1 WCF drought and this season's extension of a lead. His offense comes in spurts but if he gets open for a shot, its money, and his faking/inbetween game is impeccable. He's pretty athletic as well.
George Hill has been the steal of the draft (unless you want to call Mayo getting traded for Love a steal). His very tenacious on D, has high BB iq, and is great at getting to the paint. He has a reliable jumpshots so you can't leave him like Vaughn.
And the whole thing about the big 3 not being as good, fool its December. Bump this in April when they're healthy and firing on all cylinders. Everything seems to forget we had to survive a month without two of our big 3 and they're still rounding in to game shape even now.
Besides,Tim Duncan will dominate any bigman LA throws at him and that's why the double teams will be coming. if we nail shots, LA doesn't stand a chance. Their interior D is far too weak to control Tim 1on1.
Also, it has nothing to do with rationalizing. I gave the Lakers credit for winning the series. But you made earlier point that Bynum and Ariza were out and I countered with the fact that Manu was hurt and that affected the series.
I don't know why you keep putting up the Jazz...when the Spurs soundly beat them in 2007 playoffs and would beat now...even if the series started today.
I'm okay that you are not convinced about the Spurs. My argument has been you dismissed them as a legitimate threat in the Western Conference.
That part of your argument doesn't make any sense.
Also, you have brought up the point about the Celts bench and that clearly was the problem for the Lakers in the finals last year. The Lakers didnt have any veteran leadership outside of Kobe and Fisher. And that is still the issue this year. Moreover with the development of Mason, Hill, and Bonner will help the veteran presence (Thomas, Bowen, and Finley) off the bench be ready for the playoffs.
All of this will be settled as the season goes along....but to dismiss three-time champions in the last six years is just a lack of respect.
I think what really matters is not who wins the W.C., but who wins the championship. In that case, the Lakers become irrelevant, it's really about who can challenge Boston. Boston won the Finals last year, no surprises, they were just beating a team they were supposed to beat.
SD gets it.
When you're agreeing with SD you might want to reconsider your position.
So coming out on top of the WC guarantees you a championship? Why then dont the Lakers have 2 more les by now?
He's right that Boston is the main dogs despite what some dellusional Lakers fans think.
The Lakers will easily ... never mind, your sig distracted me...mesmerizing.
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