GOAT?

[Black Adam]

You are going way too far here.

Bulls would be a good series, but to be honest, they do not be match up well. The only positional advantage the '96 Bulls have is MJ. Contrary to popular belief, he was mortal. The Warriors play so damn well together it is silly.

The Pistons? No. Not even close. Only if they are allowed to play football. The Showtime Lakers and the Duncan/Robinson Spurs are the most interesting matchups, but only those Lakers are truly on the Warriors level as far as greatness. If the Spurs won the series, it would have been because of matchup troubles.

"silly"? more like damn near criminal...

 

[UK Cowboy]

The game is played so differently now with the refs not letting players get physical on D ... Back in the day the game was so much more defensive... If the game was played with the old rules I can see some of the big boy's like the 87 Lakers, Detroit bad boy's, 90's Bulls beating them in a series... And of course you can't look past Mike in his prime finding a way, we all forget how ridiculously good he was ...

Exactly right. Steph had a lot of trouble in the Finals last year because he was simply getting bumped off screen. Imagine the Warriors playing a series where it was perfectly legal to not only bump you, but to literally put a hand on you and ride you. Imagine Steph going to the rim, and getting knocked flat on his ass by someone 6'9'', 260, and only getting a foul out of it, not an F1 or F2. Teams would have no trouble defending the Warriors under those rules, put a hand on them at the three point line, play them tight, when they drive, make them pay. Now, play the game by today's rules....much better for the Warriors, but insert any great team, not just the Bulls, but the Showtime Lakers, the Celtics, etc...Guarding Magic or KAJ without a hand on them or an elbow in their back, it would be a layup drill. Same with Bird-McHale, Bird was a better player than KD, and no one on the Warriors could guard McHale under any rules format, but under today's rules? it's a joke.
I'm not a Warriors hater, they are a great team, what I do hate is the NFL and NBA taking defense out of the equation, turning the NFL into 7 on 7 and proclaiming Brady the GOAT and calling a finesse team like the Warriors the GOAT when they can only play one style

 

[handicappers]

So let me get this straight.

LeBron is the greatest ever, better than Mike, yet his team gets dismantled by the warriors and you think the Bulls would win?

Lebron played great tonight and for the whole series. He is awesome. The Warriors are better.

Jordan had a better "team" around him. From a "pick one person" theme, most people will remember James as a total badass do it all basketball player that ranks him as the GOAT.

 

[tlance]

Jordan had a better "team" around him. From a "pick one person" theme, most people will remember James as a total badass do it all basketball player that ranks him as the GOAT.

Better than Cleveland, not better than Golden State.

The gap between the two teams was pretty wide.

 

[thunderc]

Everyone always wants to call the current best the best ever. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but in my opinion several teams would outclass this bunch. The showtine Lakers are the best I ever saw, they would beat this team pretty handily. Impossible to compare him adequately to Jordan and Lebrun because of the type of player he was but make no mistake about it, Kareem belongs in any GOAT discussion, he is always underrated based on what my eyes saw.

 

[tlance]

Everyone always wants to call the current best the best ever. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but in my opinion several teams would outclass this bunch. The showtine Lakers are the best I ever saw, they would beat this team pretty handily. Impossible to compare him adequately to Jordan and Lebrun because of the type of player he was but make no mistake about it, Kareem belongs in any GOAT discussion, he is always underrated based on what my eyes saw.

I agree with you on Kareem.

But, when the Lakers were at there best, Kareem wasn't. He was pretty far past his prime. He was still very good, but not a dominating force in the mid to late 80s.

That to me is the biggest difference. Curry and KD are both in their primes.

Look, I do not agree that everyone wants to say the current team is the best ever. This group is special. Their accomplishments over the last 3 seasons speak for themselves.

 

[black francis]

LeFraud

 

[flyerhawk]

Only 4 teams had ever won 69 or more games in a season. The Warriors AVERAGED that over the past 3 seasons.

Only 14 teams in the history of the NBA have won 67 games in a season. The Warriors won at least 67 games the last 3 seasons. While going to 3 straight finals and winning 2 of them.

Hard to imagine any team beating these guys until one of KD and Steph leave.

No team is going to ever going to compete with the Celtics as far as dynasties. That era is long gone and won't be replicated.

But as far as dominance goes it is this club and the Bulls.

 

[bksballer89]

NBA experts' easy call: Bulls No. 1 all-time, not Warriors

 

[shopson67]

They made Javele McGee a functional NBA player. END OF DEBATE

Who they benched to close out the series? He of 6 shot attempts and 7 fouls? That was getting lit up by the pick and roll?

McGee has always had physical talent; it's a matter of minimizing his brain farts (which aren't as prevalent as a depth player).

 

[trojanfan12]

Fun to debate, but ultimately, there can be no winner. What are the Showtime Lakers like if they had the same emphasis on the 3 that the Warriors have? The 80's Celtics?

What if the Warriors were more post oriented?

What happens to the Warriors if they play in an era like the bloodbath that was the 90's?

What could the Warriors do against a monster like prime Shaq? Especially if the game is played as "hands off" defensively as it is now?

 

[flyerhawk]

Fun to debate, but ultimately, there can be no winner. What are the Showtime Lakers like if they had the same emphasis on the 3 that the Warriors have? The 80's Celtics?

What if the Warriors were more post oriented?

What happens to the Warriors if they play in an era like the bloodbath that was the 90's?

What could the Warriors do against a monster like prime Shaq? Especially if the game is played as "hands off" defensively as it is now?

I agree.

You can't really compare teams from different eras.

The truth is that the Lakers and Celtics of the 80s were built to excel in that climate. Same is true of the 90s Bulls. Same is true of today's Warriors.

 

[purguy12]

They arent the best but they are the best in this NBA era. They have weakness againt the tough physical NBA back in the day. Bulls match up well against this team. Lakers march up well.

In todays NBA they are great. Not taking anything away from them.

 

[Mebert]

I have never seen a team be bored in the finals like this. It took a record breaking game from the Cavs to prevent a sweep.

It was the finals and the warriors would try random crap just to see if they could get away with it and would still win by 20.

 

[Shanemansj13]

Well KD definitely makes a huge difference, like most expected. The Cavs improved, if the W's have the same team as last year I say the Cavs would have won in 5 or 6. Depending on wjo they get to keep the W's will be overwhelming favs for probably the next couple years. I mean it is just too easy with the talent they have and elite shooters. They should 3-peat without question if this is "the greatest team ever" or close to it...

 

[tlance]

They arent the best but they are the best in this NBA era. They have weakness againt the tough physical NBA back in the day. Bulls match up well against this team. Lakers march up well.

In todays NBA they are great. Not taking anything away from them.

How do the Bulls match up well?

PG: Harper vs. Curry: curry in a landslide
SG: Jordan vs Klay: Jordan in a landslide, about as much an advantage as PG for Dubs
SF: Pippen GS KD: edge KD. Pippen is 4 inches shorter. As great as he was, he isn't bothering KD's shot.
PF: Rodman vs.. Green: edge Green. He plays offense. Rodman doesn't.
C: center was a weakness for both, but Longley would be a liability against Warrior pick and roll. They would have to go small. John Salley is really the only one that might have a chance. But, since none of their centers were scoring threats, they are really just liabilities.

Bench:
Kukoc vs. Iggy: advantage Iggy. He is the more versatile player
Livingston vs: Kerr: both are role players with differing skill sets neither makes a huge impact.

Sorry, but nobody is beating the Warriors without dominate interior play. The Bulls were great, but they match up pretty poorly with the Warriors. There is only one advantage, and MJ was in act mortal.

 

[Hornsstampede2.0]

The 2001 Lakers were the best post-season team of ALLTIME.
They would beat this Warriors team.

They beat an NBA record FOUR 50 win teams.
They beat 6 allstars, the MVP, and the DPOY along the way.
All of the teams they played in the playoffs were close to full strength and no horrible injuries.
They only lost one game (in overtime) after a 10 day long rusty layoff to a 56 win team with unequal rest.

The Ws beat 3 50 win teams.
They beat 4 allstars.
The Blazers, Jazz, and Spurs were all riddle with injuries to critical players.
The Ws got blown out in their one loss to a 51 win team who had equal rest.

 

[tlance]

Well KD definitely makes a huge difference, like most expected. The Cavs improved, if the W's have the same team as last year I say the Cavs would have won in 5 or 6. Depending on wjo they get to keep the W's will be overwhelming favs for probably the next couple years. I mean it is just too easy with the talent they have and elite shooters. They should 3-peat without question if this is "the greatest team ever" or close to it...

Well if their roster stays in tact and healthy, I believe they will.

But, a lot can happen. Role players can and will move on. Injuries can and will happen as both teams know. There are a lot of variables.

 

[tlance]

The 2001 Lakers were the best post-season team of ALLTIME.
They would beat this Warriors team.

They beat an NBA record FOUR 50 win teams.
They beat 6 allstars, the MVP, and the DPOY along the way.
All of the teams they played in the playoffs were close to full strength and no horrible injuries.
They only lost one game (in overtime) after a 10 day long rusty layoff to a 56 win team with unequal rest.

The Ws beat 3 50 win teams.
They beat 4 allstars.
The Blazers, Jazz, and Spurs were all riddle with injuries to critical players.
The Ws got blown out in their one loss to a 51 win team who had equal rest.

Well,

The 51 win team that the Warriors lost too was a gazillion times better than the 56 win team the Lakers lost too.

Sorry, but that is just fact. Those Sixers were completely overmatched. Would have been like the Warriors playing the Celtics.

 

[Hornsstampede2.0]

Shaq goes off for whatever number he wants.
The Lakers get into the bonus by the 3 minute mark each quarter because they simply have to foul Shaq every single time he touches the ball.

Kobe, Fox, Horry are all world class defenders who can defend perimeter players. Horry is a criminally underrated defender whose elite defense is almost overshadowed by his famous 3 point shots.
Shaq doesnt need to play D. And when Shaq needs a rest, Kobe can carry the offensive load.

The Ws really only have one weakness.
They have zero answer for a dominant physically imposing low post big man.
Luckily they never really faced one. The closest call was the relatively decent 2016 OKC Big men duo.

These Ws are better than Jordans Bulls.
Those Bulls were a perimeter oriented team without a low post guy to exploit the Ws only weakness.
Jordan would NOT be 6-0 if he played this Warriors team.