I don't think he ever played with ALL that much talent before he came to Houston to play with Harden (where he may have won a couple rings if not for Fertits and f*cking Scott Foster... and of course his hammy). I think the things he accomplished in LAC with a criminally overrated frontcourt are pretty solid. And in N'awlins at 22 years old he nearly beat the NBA champion Spurs with friggin David West as the Robin to his Batman, which is impressive as hell... Let alone the fact that he coulda/shoulda/woulda gotten the Rockets over the hump playing next to another ball dominant guard that no one thought he could play with. Let alone what he did for the Hornets and the Suns in his mid 30s. If not for his hamstring and knee issues (and maybe the fact that Foster hates him), I think Paul may have gone down as the best true point guard of all time.
See my edit in the post you quoted, but again, this may be a semantic debate. Could younger Bron have led his team past the Suns? Certainly possible, and yes, definitely more possible than with this version of LeBron. But would he have? I think it's unlikely. He wasn't invincible, even at his peak, and his team was heavily outmatched after Davis went down. The odds would not be in his favor, but he'd have a shot.
None of the above. It remains to be seen who the next dynasty will be. Durant/Paul/Leonard/Curry/Harden will decline in the next 3-4 years. Embiid, Antento, Booker have shown zero indication of being premier load carrying guys. Without Jordan Kobe and Lebron the NBA will be looking for its next alpha dog for a few years.... .... And I'm actually really looking forward to that.
agreed Did Bron have a single chase down block this series? 2015-2018 Lebron if he had a supporting cast as bad as these Lakers minus AD would play all 48 minutes, slow the game down to a crawl to control tempo, and would get the rim and free throw line at will while making enough jumpers to score 40+, and he’d have 8-10 rebounds, and 8-10 assists as well...if his team played good defense and just 1 or 2 role players were above average, it would be enough Schroder had 20 and KCP 19 last night...Wes had 12...that would definitely be enough for him to beat PHX, but not with this washed version averaging 23 ppg and launching threes
Wut? David West would have been our 2nd best player outside of Howard who was post back surgery and he would have been the greatest 3rd guy Harden has ever had. It seems that you are going on David West in GS and not the All star he was with Paul. The fact that because you don't think he played with all that much talent does not make it true the fact you totally ignored his being with the Clippers and how talented that team shows you have a blind spot. He has gotten the Sun's out of the 1st round by beating a hobbled Lakers team and he is clearly not the best player, let's just pumped the break's a bit.
I'm not denying David West was a very good player, but he wasn't a legit 2nd man on a championship contender next to anyone but maybe the best 3-5 players of all time. Is 22-year-old Chris Paul as good as Lebron or Jordan or even Harden? No, but we're at an impasse if you don't think it was still impressive what he accomplished with that team. He was robbed of MVP that year, too, because the NBA wanted to give Kobe a lifetime achievement award. I'm not sure what you're trying to say in your last couple paragraphs. Something about a blind spot...? No one is calling these Suns world beaters, but they're far better than most people imagined they would be before the season started. They went from bottom feeder to 2nd seed in the west in one summer, and Paul was a big part of that.
its obviously luka. outside of injuries, the only thing that would hold him back from being the face of the league is simply being in dallas. put that dude on the lakers or and its a done deal.
I know that. I like CP3 a lot, almost as much as JH. I wanted to crown him for a day, because he played a significant part in knocking Lebron out.
Who said he was a legit 2nd man on a championship team? If Paul is the point gawd he could have gotten that team out of the 2nd round and once again you totally ignore all of the talent he had on the Clippers. The Suns were one of the hottest topics in the bubble and everybody was saying that team were gonna make the leap, you act like The suns were at the top of the lottery. This Suns team was 1 game out of the playoffs last year and had some young guys take a huge leap. I am not knocking Paul as not being a great player but this is why he is not mentioned with the other guys.
I agree. I think it depends on whoever decides to build a superteam first. Ja and Zion are really good friends...will Luka court another star to Dallas (or leave Dallas?) or will another team draft really well and build a superteam naturally like the Warriors did? The Nets could win a few rings but their core isn't young enough to dominate the NBA long enough. For now, I think there's a vacancy...but Luka and Giannis will be the most popular players once Lebron hangs it up.
Lebron is the fallen KING and Ned and has just got beheaded... Jokic is Rob the king of the north and perhaps future king in waiting. He's been the MVP and best player this season NO QUESTION. Without the help of his injured (back) court of Murray and Barton, he's been leading the North... err... Nuggets to victory after victory. (Just like Rob without John and Bran). The question is... will Jokic follow Rob's story of never having lost a battle (MVP) yet ultimately losing the war (championchip)? Luka is obviously the prince that was promised. He and the Mavs started the season off poorly just like how john and the nightswatch struggled when they started their northern expedition. But as the season(s) continued, Luka just like John started fulfilling his promise, potential and destiny. He's on the cusp of being the NEXT KING... but that gap is filled with pitfalls (injuries), challenges (postseason success?) and questionable allies & traitors (Porzingus?) Embid is the night king. He's hard and cold like ICE - inflexible/strong/powerful. He doesn't bend to pressure, thus he could be the strongest KING, unfortunately his unbending nature also leads to a lot of breaks. He is the most dominant of the potential NEXT KING, but he's also the most uncertain. Giannis is the mother of dragons. Nearly as dominant as the night king, he can overwhelm his opponents with size, length and power. Like Drogon he flies and towers across the battlefield like no other. However his single minded focus/arsenal (where are my dragons? burn!) of driving into the paint has led to limitations in his game. Giannis can be the next KING if he win the crown and overcome those limitations ( clutch play, free throws). Durant is Cersei. Ever so so so close to being the one with all the power - the KING, but just a step away. Even when he's conquered the title and beat the King he was still regarded as second or third in line. With Lebron finally dethrone, will Durant be able to seize the crown by once again winning the realm? His weakness is court gossip and the criticisms of bards near and far. Curry is Tyrion Lannister. Though not the main character, he's often stolen the show and has been regarded as the favorite character. His skill like Tyrion's intellect is second to none. Though his current power is fracture, defeated and in retreat, he's a threat to seize the crown from any spot in the realm. Weakness - small stature, weaken allies and state of kingdom. Harden is Joffrey. He's hated by the public but he's arguably the leader of the most powerful force in the realm. Some detest his cruelty and battle methods, others the manner in which he left his previous kingdom, but everyone is wary of his abilities to lead the powerful Nets to victory. Known for launching countless arrows and serving fatal injury, Harden is on the cusp of conquering the realm for the first time. Question is - will he get the rewards, the blame or the acknowledgement. Kawhi is arya. A mercenary. Silent, dark and mysterious. A skilled assassin who has conquered castles and kingdoms. He's done it as the shining knight support of the King and he's done it as the temporary leader/king of a Kingdom. Can he finally do it with his own kingdom? AD is Sean bean. As the lead character or leader, his kingdom doesn't do so well. As a supporting character however, he may be one of the best. His talent, skill and physical abilities are unquestioned, unfortunately he is susceptible being written off, eliminated or for one reason or another heroically not seeing the end of the story.
I hope the next King lands in our hands in the NBA draft. But, will Tilman give the new hopeful the warriors he needs to build an undefeatable team, or squander his gold and hope for the best?
