Giannis isn't stopping a fully healthy Nets team. Harden injured in game 1. Irving injured in game 3. Joe Harris completely disappeared off the face of the earth. It took all those things going the Bucks' way and they still almost lost to Kevin Durant. We talk about PHX and how lucky they were with opponents' injuries - let's not forget Milwaukee was pretty lucky, too.
There is a problem with your point of view, its directed at what happened with other teams that might have impeded their success. Injuries, disappearances, heck we can add to that list and put that on why Giannis has a ring.... But you also have to look at what Milwaukee did that actually got them to the Finals, and one of those things was Giannis absolutely dominating. I don't like Giannis, I hated he won the MVP over Harden and for years enjoyed seeing Giannis fail. This past year he really impressed me, the dude is unstoppable right now and getting better. The Bucks are a tightly knit team with one thing in mind, winning. The Nets, three very weak minded superstars.... I predict Brooklyn goes out in 7 games vs Bucks and someone asks for a trade to LA or wherever all the superstars are going to in 2023...
I'll tipjar bet anyone here that the Nets go farther in the playoffs than the Bucks and if they face each other, the Nets eliminate them next year
I'm not taking anything away from Giannis or the Bucks. Sometimes, you have to be both lucky and good to win a title, and that's what the Bucks were. Good and also very lucky. But if you think a fully healthy Bucks team with a locked-in, looks-like-2-time-MVP Giannis can beat a fully healthy Nets team 4 times out of 7, you'd be in a very small minority. "Giannis absolutely dominating" barely squeaked by a team whose second best player was...Jeff Green? Blake Griffin? Meanwhile, Holiday, Lopez and Middleton all had a solid series showing. Point is, the Bucks were mostly healthy (DiVincenzo) and they barely beat a Nets team without Harden, Irving and basically without Harris. The Bucks won their ring fair and square, because injuries happen. But I just don't see how a healthy Nets team loses against any team in the East, 4 games out of 7. Also, your argument is immediately suspect when you call KD a weak-minded superstar.
Maybe your right, popular opinion is Nets win it all.... They should right? Possibly even more stacked than GSW in 2017.... These are 3 super stars, and you 100% expect them to win. But I don't think its unlikely or even an upset if Bucks do eliminate them. I think they will.... I hope not, Harden deserves a ring. Also KD is a very weak minded superstar. Never won a chip on his own, extremely sensitive and while he was the ultimate piece in GSW during his time there GSW had already won it all without him. Curry and Klay gifted him a couple of rings he would still be searching for if he had signed elsewhere. I don't think its far fetched at all to say KD is weak minded, I'll admire him more if he wins at all alongside Harden thou. That is tough, that does take leadership and mental toughness.
by the playoffs I would. I'll even go as far as if the nets have minimum 2 of the big 3 playing they'll beat the bucks next year
Depends on which 2 of the big 3. Besides, it also depends on whether they can find adequate defensive personnel. We'll see.
no one was singing this tune when Bucks went down 0-2 and it seemed giannis still had his choking fashion when he was on the free throw line...even game 3 was a one possession game which would've put bucks down 0-3...but thatst how close the margins are. Heck even Durant was maybe an inch forward in what would've been a game winner despite their injuries...but you look at raptors title hinging on a very odd bounce from leonard, you look at ray allen hitting the 3 for miami against spurs...the margins in the playoffs are very thin and somehow despite giannis choking last year losing 1-4 as a 1 seed in the semis and missing all his free throws, as well as choking the year before not being able to do anything close to what he did in the regular season, its amazing their fans didn't give up on him and say its not wortht spending 150 million on a 30 year old jrue and 3 first rounders, or 150 on middleton. or even trade a first for an aging pj tucker who according to your measurements o ariza, is trash and can't help a team win, but for somereason coaches kept playing pj 30 plus minutes and he did the same in the finals. they got the job done and kept faith and no one is crying over marc larsy's crazy tax bill or his new facilities. That said, love giannis...a lotta heart, great growth and it was cool to see him get his chip, but they coudl've easily lost to the nets and it was due to injuries not 'weak minds'. that yours 'narrative', lets see if it holds up I do not get the KD being weak minded or soft mentality, i get the gs move no one likes, but he carried them if you actually watched(35-8-5-2-1 and 29-11-7 all incredible efficiency and he took pride in defense). they were down and out in both situations and he just created and hit big shots...hes done that his entire career, he may be sensitive on twitter, but he has never let it show on the court. Hes hit one o the most clutch badass shots in the pull up in the finals to ice the cavs, that just takes utter balls, confidence, and skill. he almost carried the nets last year within a literal inch of clinching game 7 from the eventaul champs while his team were injured. I get the criticism on him offthe court with his social media junk which i care less about, but theres never a time he doesnt handle it on thecourt. That warriors team ran its course and would've edged out if KD wasn't there the last coupel years nad they still lost agains the raptors-you just never know in the playoffs. And even in OKC, he led them to a finals, confernece finals while dropping close to 50/40/90 on 30 points. the nba isn't easy there are less than a handful of people with his success, that takes grit, fight, skill. Also, how many players win a ring on their own as you suggest? Hakeem maybe dirk? all the other elites like MJ, Kobe, Lebron had help and in this era we all see the superstar stuff is getting worse. Giannis did it a special way, but he put pressure on his team to go trade 3 picks for a 3o year old jrue and give him 150 million, 150 million to middletone who no one considered a 1a star as well, obviously jrue made one of the steals that changed the series too. Frankly, it always takes a team. the won a ring narrative is if they get lucky with a compettent organization who surrounds them well, but itst just for steven a and espn/tmz to talk about like hoops is played 1-1 to casuals.
a healthy Kyrie or Harden next to KD would’ve been enough to thoroughly demolish the Bucks without question…all 3 of them playing and it’s a likely sweep or 5 game series max Harden and Kyrie without KD is the only version with just 2 of the Big 3 healthy that Milwaukee might beat, and even then it would still be very tough for them
they were up 0-2, one possession away from 0-3 in milwaukee and even then they were kd stepping an inch back from beating milwaukee. no one was singing praise for giannis when he struggled the first two games with free throws and all, goes to show how if you stick with your guys, magic can happen in the playoffs.
definitely helps your 2 of your opponents' big three are injured.. one of them you having a hand on..
yea but injruies, buzzer beaters...they happen every.single.year. itst a marathon and being healthy is a part of the luck and thats a major one and its just a part of the game. bucks won it, but everyoen saw them a possession away from going down 0-3, its an odd thing to act like its a given for bucks to beat nets
I'm not denying they won fair and square. but their own health and reliability won in over the opponents injuries. unless you are saying 100% healthy nets vs bucks and bucks still win
We don't even have to go back to the Kyrie injury--the Bucks were saved by a couple of inches when Durant's foot was on the line for that shot in Game 7 that would have ended the series but instead sent it to OT. Milwaukee was about to lose to a Nets team that had 1.5 out of 3 healthy stars. That being said, if I had to pick between what would more likely happen--Bucks repeating or the Nets actually having their Big 3 100% healthy next season--I might pick the former.
The point is that Nets big 3 does not need to be 100% healthy, and Bucks big 3 needs to be 100% healthy, so Bucks repeating chance is not that good.
