Morey and his argument of "Need 3 elite players to win a title"

When it comes to playoff, when room for errors on and off court is very narrow, an elite coach that knows how to prepare a team during regular season and get everybody ready for each game of the series is more important than the quality of a single player. With McHale as sitting at the front seat, I don't see any chance even if Lebron is here.

 

Going back to 1980, the 94 Rockets, 04 Pistons, and 2014 Spurs are the lone exceptions. Every other winner had at least two major stars pulling their wagon and some even had three.

Another way of looking at it is counting the hall of fame players. The Spurs might be old, but Duncan, Parker, and Ginóbili are all heading to the hall of fame, plus their coach. Lots of talent and experience there. The 94 rockets only had one hall of fame player, the 95 had two.

 

The Spurs don't have 3 elite players.

 

How about 1 elite coach.

 

Every exception here has an "All Time Great" player as at least one of the elites. Morey won't say it (smart), but we don't have one of those guys on our roster. What Morey means when he says "3 elite players" is that you need 3 elite players if you don't have one of the best players to ever play the game on your roster. Harden could still develop into one of those. Dwight could be one if he can play like his Orlando days. But for now, our best chances rely on getting a third star.

 

Who was the finals MVP? Not elite? Hmmm.

 

Ok, maybe they have 3.5.

 

When was the last time an elite player had 0 all star appearances?

 

The Spurs have 2 elite players on their roster and several super roleplayers. Old Manu and Kawhi aren't elite. They're amazing because they have the best coach in basketball history.

 

Without an elite coach, I do not know if it is possible for a great team to win it all, just go back to check the Lakers team before Jackson was hired.

 

I think this has a lot if not all to do with fitting as much value into the salary space a team has. LBJ might be able to win with "lesser" elite talent because his value on the court dramatically exceeds his capped salary. Role players can get you there but less likely because 1) they'd have to play for much less than their on court value and 2) you can only have 5 people on the court at a time and most likely an 8-9 man rotation.

Moneyball is all about maximizing value. Three elite level players gives you a better shot because you're maximizing value with your limited cap space. Paying players their actual on court value is what any team can do. To compete for a championship you need to create an edge. That means not paying market or above market price.

However, this doesn't happen in a vacuum either. Because our players on court value has an expiration date, you have to put the pieces together quicky and so then it becomes a time vs value question. Parsons is barely worth his contract and those aren't contracts you give unless you're up against a time window. I'm disappointed we didn't match because we are up against the clock here but if morey thinks he can acquire a elite talent that exceeds his contract price than I guess I'll have to trust the man who knows a whole lot more than me.

 

True, except for Miami. Not sure Spoelstra will do that great without the big 3.

 

It happens quite frequently when a player is only in his 2nd or 3rd season, especially in a conference loaded at his position.

Chris Paul: Drafted 2005.....1st All-Star 2008
Kevin Durant: Drafted 2007.....1st All-Star 2010
Steph Curry: Drafted 2009.....1st All Star 2014
Tony Parker: Drafted 2001.....1st All-Star 2006
Dirk Nowitzki: Drafted 1998.....1st all-Star 2002
Russell Westbrook: Drafted 2008...1st All Star 2011
LaMarcus Aldridge: Drafted 2006.....1st All Star 2012
etc.....etc.....etc

Would you really bet against Kawhi Leonard being an All-Star this coming season?

 

Was Otis Thorpe elite? He was not HOF but was playing at a high level at the time.

What about Sam Cassel?

 

Probably every time the year before that elite player got chosen to an all star team. Was a Lebron an elite player only after he got chosen to an all star team? Or was the fact that he was an elite player what caused him to then be chosen for an all star spot? I think you might be confusing cause and effect. Being an elite player is what causes a player to get chosen as an all star, not the other way around. If you don't think Kawhi is an elite player, and you don't think he will be an all star next year, then you probably weren't watching the finals. The spurs beat Lebron in five games. Kawhi is the reason Lebron quit on Miami and went back home to Cleveland.

When was the last time parsons won nba finals MVP? It's pretty stupid for the guy who compared parsons to Kawhi. Lol da Dakota lol

 

Yeah, I agree. Let's look back at 20 years of championship head coaches.

1994 Houston Rockets -- Rudy T
1995 Houston Rockets -- Rudy T
1996 Chicago Bulls -- Phil Jackson
1997 Chicago Bulls -- Phil Jackson
1998 Chicago Bulls -- Phil Jackson
1999 San Antonio Spurs -- Gregg Popovich
2000 Los Angeles Lakers -- Phil Jackson
2001 Los Angeles Lakers -- Phil Jackson
2002 Los Angeles Lakers -- Phil Jackson
2003 San Antonio Spurs -- Gregg Popovich
2004 Detroit Pistons -- Larry Brown
2005 San Antonio Spurs -- Gregg Popovich
2006 Miami Heat -- Stan Van Gundy and Pat Riley (both, according to Wiki)
2007 San Antonio Spurs -- Gregg Popovich
2008 Boston Celtics -- Doc Rivers (who the Clippers would later actually TRADE FOR to further improve their team)
2009 Los Angeles Lakers -- Phil Jackson
2010 Los Angeles Lakers -- Phil Jackson
2011 Dallas Mavericks -- Rick Carlisle
2012 Miami Heat -- Erik Spoelstra (protege of Pat Riley)
2013 Miami Heat --Erik Spoelstra
2014 San Antonio Spurs -- Gregg Popovich

Copy and paste was my friend here. I think coaching might just possibly have a little something to do with winning championships.

 

Exactly what I was thinking when I read his post. I give you rep points if I had any.

 

When was the last time a third year player was finals MVP?

 

Except the 2004 Pistons.