It may not be in 2017, but...

[Hambombs]

There is one factor that I think many of you guys are missing.

As currently assembled, the Warriors and Cavs are highly likely to meet in the Finals for the next 3 years, at least. However, if Silver and the owners decide to lock out the players and work to change the cap rules to prevent super team formation, one or both of these teams could be forced to break up.

Aside from that, it will be Warriors and Cavs again. Probably more than once.

Its stupid for silver to do that. What is he going to take off durant and kyrie off there own teams? LOL

 

[Heatles84]

Find me a post where I have indicated that...Clearly the OP reads that our best hope is if we expose the defensive shortcomings of Irving and Love...

You can't?...Good talk then.

You've mentioned it multiple times in this thread. Your posts about "He can't possibly keep this up and wouldn't be surprised if he fell down in terms of production this upcoming season" (paraphrasing) reeks of hoping he fails.

 

[Heatles84]

Right, let's just not play the games...

Sports don't work work that way, dude. Who would have predicted Warriors back-to-back finals appearances two years ago at this time???

Don't conduct yourself like you know what you're talking about when some of your posts are suspect.

Waiting for the next punchline from @Heatles84 ...The fact is that LeBron is not Jordan. He's not going to lead the Cavs to the Finals every year until he retires...Anyone who claims otherwise is spewing "propaganda"...Yes @flyerhawk I know what the word means...Maybe some of you need to look it up in the dictionary...

I dislike Lebron, but can respect him. You say he won't bring the Cavs to the finals every year. Well, he's taken his respective teams to the Finals for the last 6 years now. As of right now, he's a virtual lock for making it 7 straight given the current landscape and how teams are structured, barring a major block buster trade that sends a superstar(s) to the East.

You by far are the biggest baby back bitch on this forum. You get upset and take personal jabs when people merely disagree with your posts and bring sensible dialogue to counter your posts. Your responses is rating it bullshit or facepalming the posts.

You are the very definition of a kunt.

 

[WiggyRuss]

To enforce an absolute hard cap would be a hard sell to the Players union. As long as the NBA's making money, I'd have to imagine a lock out is the last thing that anyone wants.

the owners always start off the negotiations with the hard cap- but know that they will never get it- its a bargaining chip.

 

[HurricaneDij39]

You've mentioned it multiple times in this thread. Your posts about "He can't possibly keep this up and wouldn't be surprised if he fell down in terms of production this upcoming season" (paraphrasing) reeks of hoping he fails.

Never said "upcoming season"...Just Pointing out there's a reason Jordan is the greatest of all-time and that's how won those MVP's at 34/35...And as @shopson67 pointed out, LeBron has more miles on him than Jordan did...The likelihood of him reaching the finals every year until he retires is next to nothing...And your right, sometimes I do rate people when I don't agree, it's sometimes better than burning a post on them and giving them more attention...You, on the other hand, continue to resort to cowardly name-calling when someone disagrees with you...

Go figure.

 

[flyerhawk]

Jordan also didn't come into the league at 18, didn't play on the US team as much, and missed a year and a half playing baseball. The toil on Lebron's body is much worse.

Lebron is also a physical freak of nature. He's closer to Karl Malone when it comes to his frame. Karl won an MVP at age 36.

Lebron could of course break down at any time. But I wouldn't hold my breath.

 

[Heatles84]

Never said "upcoming season"...Just Pointing out there's a reason Jordan is the greatest of all-time and that's how won those MVP's at 34/35...And as @shopson67 pointed out, LeBron has more miles on him than Jordan did...The likelihood of him reaching the finals every year until he retires is next to nothing...And your right, sometimes I do rate people when I don't agree, it's sometimes better than burning a post on them and giving them more attention...You, on the other hand, continue to resort to cowardly name-calling when someone disagrees with you...

Go figure.

Well, the majority of the posters on this forum tend to always rustle your jimmies. It's that old saying where, if it keeps smelling like dog shit wherever you go, it's probably you and not everyone else.

As for Lebron, most on here have said that he has about 2-3 years left as the best basketball player in the league until someone like Durant, Curry, etc... take over. We all know the Cavs aren't going to the Finals for the next decade, it's how the NBA works. However, for you to say that the Pacers are eventually going to go given your roster is foolish given that you don't know what the NBA will look like.

 

[shopson67]

Lebron is also a physical freak of nature. He's closer to Karl Malone when it comes to his frame. Karl won an MVP at age 36.

Lebron could of course break down at any time. But I wouldn't hold my breath.

Again, Malone did not have the wear and tear on his body at 36 that Lebron will have when he gets there. Six consecutive finals (and counting), straight to the NBA out of high school instead of easier college game schedules, more international play with team USA, etc.

It's not a matter of breaking down, it's a matter of wear and tear. A 30 year old car can run just great, but it loses horsepower and leaks fluids.

 

[lebron23james]

Again, Malone did not have the wear and tear on his body at 36 that Lebron will have when he gets there. Six consecutive finals (and counting), straight to the NBA out of high school instead of easier college game schedules, more international play with team USA, etc.

It's not a matter of breaking down, it's a matter of wear and tear. A 30 year old car can run just great, but it loses horsepower and leaks fluids.

Players nowadays have better treatments, training/diets...Lebron has had a lot of easy playoff battles getting out of the east...He is prob pretty fresh right now

 

[WiggyRuss]

Players nowadays have better treatments, training/diets...Lebron has had a lot of easy playoff battles getting out of the east...He is prob pretty fresh right now

LeBron and the Cavs are going to make sure that he can play at a high level for a while yet....he will get the Duncan treatment- as much as they can make him sit, he will sit..

the guy is a freak and has such a diverse skill set that he could still effect the game in a lot of ways even when he starts to decline...

having kyrie and love signed up long term and able to grow with him, take the pressure off, and eventually take more of a leading role- at least in the regular season- has to be the plan...

irving, thompson, love, shumpert are all still young guys....

 

[shopson67]

Players nowadays have better treatments, training/diets...Lebron has had a lot of easy playoff battles getting out of the east...He is prob pretty fresh right now

His minutes/game has declined for basically 7 straight years (other than a .4 min/game increase in one season over that stretch).

This article is a year old, but drives the point home.

LeBron James has played more minutes than anyone in the NBA since 2010, and it isn't even close

He's playing an unprecedented number of games for an NBA player, and strong build or not, that weight he carries puts pressure on his joints. In addition, the NBA is a jumping game, adding even more impact to those joints. At some point, it takes it's toll and Lebron will have to adjust his game to being more below the rim. I'm not sure that will be pretty, given that a lot of his advantage now is his skill set in that huge powerful frame.

 

[lebron23james]

LeBron and the Cavs are going to make sure that he can play at a high level for a while yet....he will get the Duncan treatment- as much as they can make him sit, he will sit..

the guy is a freak and has such a diverse skill set that he could still effect the game in a lot of ways even when he starts to decline...

having kyrie and love signed up long term and able to grow with him, take the pressure off, and eventually take more of a leading role- at least in the regular season- has to be the plan...

irving, thompson, love, shumpert are all still young guys....

Yep which is a good thing

Keeps lebron fresh for the playoffs while Irving, thompson, love and everyone else continue to get better

 

[lebron23james]

I dislike Lebron, but can respect him. You say he won't bring the Cavs to the finals every year. Well, he's taken his respective teams to the Finals for the last 6 years now. As of right now, he's a virtual lock for making it 7 straight given the current landscape and how teams are structured, barring a major block buster trade that sends a superstar(s) to the East.

You by far are the biggest baby back bitch on this forum. You get upset and take personal jabs when people merely disagree with your posts and bring sensible dialogue to counter your posts. Your responses is rating it bullshit or facepalming the posts.

You are the very definition of a kunt.

 

[Heatles84]

Players nowadays have better treatments, training/diets...Lebron has had a lot of easy playoff battles getting out of the east...He is prob pretty fresh right now

I wouldn't say fresh. Father time will eventually get to him. But as I mentioned before, I personally think Lebron has 2-3 years left at the elite level he's at now. By then, the mileage would/should catch up to him. And even then, the team he has is rather solid and I don't see Indiana as constructed taking down the Cavs. If anything, it would be Boston given the long-term potential that they have in their roster, so long as they can add another super start to that roster before Thomas' next contract takes affect.

 

[flyerhawk]

Again, Malone did not have the wear and tear on his body at 36 that Lebron will have when he gets there. Six consecutive finals (and counting), straight to the NBA out of high school instead of easier college game schedules, more international play with team USA, etc.

Well I can't predict where Lebron will be physically in 4 years. Maybe he will have retired for all we know.

It's not a matter of breaking down, it's a matter of wear and tear. A 30 year old car can run just great, but it loses horsepower and leaks fluids.

I really don't see evidence to support your claim. We aren't talking about NFL players here. Lebron has 38,000 minutes under his belt so far. Karl Malone finished with 54,000. That's a lot more minutes in the tank. And the game is not nearly as physical today as it was in Malone's era.

 

[flyerhawk]

I wouldn't say fresh. Father time will eventually get to him. But as I mentioned before, I personally think Lebron has 2-3 years left at the elite level he's at now. By then, the mileage would/should catch up to him. And even then, the team he has is rather solid and I don't see Indiana as constructed taking down the Cavs. If anything, it would be Boston given the long-term potential that they have in their roster, so long as they can add another super start to that roster before Thomas' next contract takes affect.

IMO, I expect Lebron to turn his game into a more straightforward post-up game. I expect his offensive game to be at a high level for several more years. His defense, OTOH, may start to suffer as his energy levels start to diminish.

 

[Heatles84]

IMO, I expect Lebron to turn his game into a more straightforward post-up game. I expect his offensive game to be at a high level for several more years. His defense, OTOH, may start to suffer as his energy levels start to diminish.

Well.....I think Lebron is one of the best post players in the NBA, if not the best right now given that Duncan retired. Not many players are in the post as much anymore given the transition in a faster spread offensive approach in the league. Lebron will still be effective when the time comes to be in the post - but he's not going to be elite is what I'm getting at in terms of overall production like you're getting out of him now.

 

[tlance]

Right, let's just not play the games...

Sports don't work work that way, dude. Who would have predicted Warriors back-to-back finals appearances two years ago at this time???

Don't conduct yourself like you know what you're talking about when some of your posts are suspect.

Waiting for the next punchline from @Heatles84 ...The fact is that LeBron is not Jordan. He's not going to lead the Cavs to the Finals every year until he retires...Anyone who claims otherwise is spewing "propaganda"...Yes @flyerhawk I know what the word means...Maybe some of you need to look it up in the dictionary...

My posts are suspect? That is absolutely hilarious coming from you. You have knowledge about players and stats, but know very little about the dynamics of how the game actually works. My bet would be that you never played above Rec ball. There are some things you just can't learn from watching TV.

When did I ever say that LeBron would be in the Finals every year until he retires? I did not say that. I said that if healthy, the Cavs and Warriors will be in the Finals next year. Barring a dramatic shift in power and/or major injury, it could be them for the next 3-4 years. I am certainly taking both these teams over the field, and I think it is a no brainer.

By the way, talk about suspect posts. You are the one who thinks pairing up Kris's Middleton and Brandon Knight would give you the best shot at beating the Warriors. Their chemistry was so awesome with the Bucks they were able to win like 32 games. Let me know how that works out. In case you can't figure it out, Middleton is not the problem in your dream back court there.

 

[tlance]

One more thing:

The Celtics have the assets to assemble a roster that an take down the Cavs THIS year if they go all in. I am not sure they should do that, but they could. Trading for Westbrook and another player is the type of power shift I am talking about that would be necessary to overthrow the Cavs.

Thad Young and Teague ain't it.

 

[flyerhawk]

Well.....I think Lebron is one of the best post players in the NBA, if not the best right now given that Duncan retired. Not many players are in the post as much anymore given the transition in a faster spread offensive approach in the league. Lebron will still be effective when the time comes to be in the post - but he's not going to be elite is what I'm getting at in terms of overall production like you're getting out of him now.

Lebron James is probably one of the 5 best players of all time. And when his career is done, he may wind up being the best player of all time.