You do know that there were like half of many teams in the NBA when the Celtics and Lakers won all those championships back in the '50s, '60s and '70s. And if the NBA greatly favors big market squads, why haven't the Knicks won since '73?
Done with the NBA. I can't sit there and watch this stuff anymore. The CBA fixed nothing. The NBA is broken.
How does this trade make any sense for Orlando? Compared to what the Rockets and Nets were offering? Dwight Howard, Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol on one team. 4 guys who each *ran* their own teams at some point. Unbelievable. I didn't want Dwight to come here as much as the next guy, but to L.A.? So now L.A. literally will skip their rebuilding time...again...because Dwight will just pick up where Kobe will leave off. If it weren't for the Thunder I'd be just about done with this league.
Of course I knew this .... I've been watching the NBA since the Rockets came to Houston , attended games in the Astrohall , Sam Houston Coliseum and the Astrodome .... Wonder how many others can say the same. I never said it was Stern's fault. I merely pointed out the facts. I didnt know a whole lot about the history of the game when I became a fan , that happened when the Rockets moved here from San Diego ... It was new and exciting to be a part of and I was a young kid. I probably havent missed seeing more than a dozen games since 1971. The Lakers have won Ten Larry O'Brien trophy's since I began watching the NBA ....The Celtics six. Oddly enough , half of their total of 32. They've also won Six between them since the turn of the century .... That again is half. They even changed the format of the finals because of the Lakers / Celtics. Their "rivalry" is why the finals is 2-3-2 instead of 2-2-1-1-1 like any other series because of the travel logistics. Thats exactly what I said , isnt it ?! ..... Its been like this from the word go. Why should we expect anything different ?? You assumed a lot in your post .... but thanks for making my point. Thats a layup .... The Knicks have been horribly managed for the majority of that time with the exception of a short period in the 90's where they made the Finals twice (93-94 & 98-99).
So you're basically supporting my point that management is just as important, if not more, than being in a large market.
That is because I am a Rockets' fan. You think Lakers' fans are upset about the inequality of the league?
The thing about it for me.... is that I actually think people are looking at the wrong thing. The problem isn't Miami. Or even LA. It's actually OKC. Because ever since then they pulled off what they did, basically every team that isn't a contender is gunning straight for the tank, hoping to pull off what OKC did. Furthermore, because teams can convince their fans that sucking is actually okay, it makes it easier for them to dump stars to the other big teams, because the logic that they will frequently use ( and we've seen) is "By the time tanking miraculously fixes us, those teams will suck." I've seen Magic fans literally fantasize about getting the #1 pick for THREE STRAIGHT YEARS as their magical solution for revenge. Not making smart moves, just praying to the lotto gods year after year. This discourages teams from making basketball moves and encourages to make tanking moves, which is a boon to smart GMs in desirable locations. Consequently, tanking/the lotto needs to be fixed before anything, to discourage the tanking outbreak which Durant inadvertently created. Not a franchise tag, which I frankly don't like on the principle of it.
Who knows? I am sure David Stern has done so much lately to make it feel that way though. Making a trade not happen that directly led to the number 1 pick a year later by the Hornets. Then to reward the Lakers with Dwight Howard after that effecting the Lakers certainly does make it sound that way. The fixed way that is. It sounds rigged the way it all turned out. Certainly is wierd chance how it all played out. I do not believe in chance. I stopped believing in sheer luck and chance when I grew up.
Stars want to play with stars. Unless you're a big enough market to sign other ones (Chicago), you have to tank year after year for the next star. Like the Cavs are trying to do, like OKC did. If you're like the Melo Nuggets or the Howard Magic you'll be stuck winning too many games to get better unless you have RC Buford or Morey (someone who can find steals in the draft). You're stuck being mediocre. The only solutions are to improve the lottery and contract the league to about 26 teams or a hard cap. Of course, that won't happen as long as the league makes money.
Clearly they aren't upset. Look at Ubigred for instance; he is pretty satisfied with the disparity of the league and the team he supports being at the top of the chain.
The Lakers are able to overlap talent Kobe bridged them between Shaq and Dwight Dwight will bridge them to the next player so on and so forth The issue with TMAC and Yao . . is they gave out at the same time No real overlap Rocket River
Good observation, the Lakers have a big advantage playing in LA, but that doesn't mean they haven't been run well. Magic took over for Kareem, Shaq came in shortly after Magic (although there was a gap) then like you mentioned Kobe took over for Shaq and Dwight will take over for Kobe.
