Yup. Its always hard to rank players because the times are much different, the game is much different today than it was, lets say even 10 years ago. Its always a risky thing to switch plays in and out of different eras. 1 thing I can say for certainty though, if these guys today played in the 80s, they wouldn't even dare flopping. But, that's a whole different topic for another day lol.
Every year I go into it thinking that it will be the year the Spurs take a step back. Now I'm beginning to think their organization is just too good. They have one of the best coaches to ever coach, a great scouting department, amazing player development. They are the ideal model of longterm sustained success and it transcends just basketball. They've been a contender every year for like 15+ years now and I can easily see that continuing for 15 more. I can't think of any team in any other sport that has had that type of success. I'm pretty sure they've only missed the playoffs once in the last 30 years.
Yeah they actually believe that the transition after Duncan and Manu leave will be good. Leonhard is the next leader in San Antonio, Parker will be there for probably 5 more seasons. Popovich has created a system that really limited the minutes for everyone all season which might actually make it possible for Duncan and Manu to extend their careers past 2015. Also as for Lebron James, he is better off going back to Cleveland. I keep hearing people say "well this is his prime, he cant wait for young guys to grow up". First off this logic might be right, but it does not mean they cannot win. Duncan won with Parker when he was like 18, and Ginobli who just entered the NBA. Now look at Duncan, 38 years old and is still competing for a title because Parker has become the main guy there. Lebron James right now is 29 years old, if he goes to Cleveland he will be teaming up with Kyrie who is 22 and maybe someone like Embiid or Wiggins who is only 19. Lebron would open up a window for himself for at least another 5 years, if not 10 if Cleveland could keep them together, he could be in the same spot Duncan is in right now. 38 years old and getting a crack at a title because Irving and whoever will be in their prime. If Lebron wants to pass Jordan, hes gotta go team up with the youth of this league.
Isn't that bridge burned already in Cleveland? I don't see LeBron wanting to come back there after their owner publicly trashed him like that. Fans will be fans, that's nothing, but the way that owner reacted was bush-league. He's better off without Cleveland anyway
I dont think the bridge is burned entirely. Gilbert did trash him when he left but the owner would probably welcome him back. Lebron did promise Cleveland a title and we all know he still has bad feelings for leaving. Im interested to see how this plays out. I believe all along that he would go back but that shifted after Cleveland seemed like an absolute mess. Them getting the #1 pick has changed everything though, they have a chance to draft players that the experts are calling once in generation. Now personally I think Exum is better than Wiggins but regardless, both seem like they will be major players in the pros. If Exum is going to stick to a PG, it wouldnt make much sense for Cleveland so I believe they have to go with Wiggins, Lebron or no Lebron.
1)It's Leonard. If you're going to say he's an elite player, it might be time to learn how to spell his name. He doesn't actually play safety, he's just a real life interpretation of one. 2)It's Ginobili. 3)Parker's first title came when he was 21, not 18. Ginobili was a 25 year old rookie at the time.
Awesome video on the Spurs: I hope they win it this year. I've never seen a team so deserving of it right now.
http://www.nba.com/2014/news/05/22/pacers-george-no-contact-drills.ap/index.html INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Pacers coach Frank Vogel says Paul George is feeling better after being diagnosed with a concussion. It is still uncertain whether he will be ready to play Saturday night at Miami when the Eastern Conference finals resume with the series tied 1-1. Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 19m There's an increasing confidence around Pacers that Paul George will meet benchmarks of NBA's concussion protocol before Game 3 on Saturday.
I'm a Knicks fan lol I thought OKC would beat San Antonio but you can't deny the Spurs this year. This is their year it is obvious. I root for OKC, but like I said, I root for anyone to beat Miami
And ill be honest, the Spurs caught a huge break here. Ibakas absence is probably the difference between this series going 7, to this series probably going 5. The sooner they can wrap this up the better, sweeping the Grizzlies last year helped a lot because we got to rest for the finals.
not to mention mavs rather than grizzlies and portland rather than clippers or okc spurs finished 1 but they couldn't control where the other teams finished, and they could've wound up with a grizzlies-clippers path
Ibaka could return for Game 3 Adrian Wojnarowski @WojYahooNBA 5m Serge Ibaka has rapidly progressed and Thunder have changed status to day-to-day for Western Conference Finals, league source tells Yahoo.
Thunder can salvage the series still. I had the Spurs winning all four home games so the Thunder can still win all of theirs. They need Ibaka near 90% though, if he is still injured and they plan to use him for like 12 minutes a game, it wont work. I guess we will see if Ibaka can play 25+ minutes.
I'm going to throw my bias ways aside here, and ask how is this legal? If you announce somebody is done for the playoffs, it should be like IR in football. Am I right here? It kind of seems cheap. That said, COME ON SERGE!
Yeah IDK, I watched the interview after game 1 with Scott Brooks and he was very defiant when they asked if Serge was coming back, he made it clear that he wasnt. This might just be some sort of smoke screen, he might not be coming back at all, they just want to give the Spurs something to think about but I am sure the Spurs will be prepare for Ibaka or no Ibaka.
This could be like a David lee thing of last year. Didn't he come back for the warriors in hope to give them so motivation but only played limited minutes
