The Biggest Losers of a (likely) Nixed NBA Season

[dtgold88]

Yeah, funny that some folks were trying to criticize them for it (probably communists).

I don't watch the NFL draft every year and when I do, it's never more than the first day.

If they televise it, I'll likely be watching the whole thing.

Most of the criticicism I heard came from the GMs/FOs just because things would be so much different.

said then and still say suck it up. Probably gonna be like it was in 70s or even part of 80s......and everyone plays by same rules.

Real issue is what happens to 2021 draft if no 2020 CFB season. what a disaster that could be to figure out....but again I guess same rules/disadvantages for everyone.

 

[msgkings322]

They were literally 1 win and/or a CP3 injury away from winning a title 2 years ago.

Granted, it took an Iggy injury to get them to that spot, but still.

That ‘18 Cleveland team would have had almost no chance to win the Finals against them. Only so much LeBron can do.

I still doubt he can do it.

 

[tlance]

I still doubt he can do it.

Sure.

Pretty safe bet to take the field against the Harden led Rockets today.

But you said you didn’t think a Harden led team could win a championship. They got extremely close. They easily could have, they just didn’t. And now they probably aren’t good enough anymore.

 

[trojanfan12]

Sure.

Pretty safe bet to take the field against the Harden led Rockets today.

But you said you didn’t think a Harden led team could win a championship. They got extremely close. They easily could have, they just didn’t. And now they probably aren’t good enough anymore.

They weren't good enough then either.

 

[DorianRo]

Lakers lose out the most. This was Lebron's last shot as a potential FMVP. (2nd, 3rd ring piggy back titles dont count). On a sidenote, it destroys Federer's GOAT status in tennis too. Nadal overtakes him in the slam count in the next 2 years.

Fed/Leshits are both screwed

 

[tlance]

They weren't good enough then either.

That isn’t true.

just because a team didn’t win doesn’t mean they weren’t good enough to.

Case in point, I am very confident in saying last year’s Raptors were not good enough to beat a full strength Warriors team. Yet, they won the series for a number of reasons. So they were good enough to win the title.

So were the Warriors. But the Warriors didn’t win.

There is almost always more than 1 team good enough to win. Rockets were very clearly the 2nd best team in the NBA in 2018. Had a couple more breaks gone their way they would have won the championship. And last I checked, Harden was on that team.

 

[dtgold88]

That isn’t true.

just because a team didn’t win doesn’t mean they weren’t good enough to.

Case in point, I am very confident in saying last year’s Raptors were not good enough to beat a full strength Warriors team. Yet, they won the series for a number of reasons. So they were good enough to win the title.

So were the Warriors. But the Warriors didn’t win.

There is almost always more than 1 team good enough to win. Rockets were very clearly the 2nd best team in the NBA in 2018. Had a couple more breaks gone their way they would have won the championship. And last I checked, Harden was on that team.

other than the "very clearly..." extreme comment I agree 100%.

 

[Robotech]

That isn’t true.

just because a team didn’t win doesn’t mean they weren’t good enough to.

Case in point, I am very confident in saying last year’s Raptors were not good enough to beat a full strength Warriors team. Yet, they won the series for a number of reasons. So they were good enough to win the title.

So were the Warriors. But the Warriors didn’t win.

There is almost always more than 1 team good enough to win. Rockets were very clearly the 2nd best team in the NBA in 2018. Had a couple more breaks gone their way they would have won the championship. And last I checked, Harden was on that team.

Yup. There was nothing predetermined against the Rockets. They didn't win, but they had a good chance.

 

[tlance]

other than the "very clearly..." extreme comment I agree 100%.

Are you suggesting the Cavs could have beat them?

The Cavs were trash relative to the Rockets and you know it.

Could LeBron have pulled a miracle and somehow beat them? More possible than against the KD Warriors, but they were not nearly as good. And that is plainly obvious to anybody outside Cleveland.

 

[bksballer89]

Sure.

Pretty safe bet to take the field against the Harden led Rockets today.

But you said you didn’t think a Harden led team could win a championship. They got extremely close. They easily could have, they just didn’t. And now they probably aren’t good enough anymore.

And the Warriors are the Warriors. One of the best teams in NBA history

Can make more than a solid case about the Rockets being the 2nd best team in basketball the previous 2 seasons especially in 2018

 

[bksballer89]

Just because sports only crown 1 champion per year doesn't mean there are not other teams that was very capable of winning the title

 

[bksballer89]

Had a couple more breaks gone their way they would have won the championship. And last I checked, Harden was on that team.

Something as small as Trevor Ariza not going 0-12

 

[trojanfan12]

That isn’t true.

just because a team didn’t win doesn’t mean they weren’t good enough to.

Pretty much exactly what it means. They weren't even good enough to get there.

 

[msgkings322]

Just because sports only crown 1 champion per year doesn't mean there are not other teams that was very capable of winning the title

Which is why every title involves a lot of luck. Every team needs a few breaks to win.

Except 2017. No one was stopping the Ws that year.

They still had a ton of luck in how they were able to get KD however.

 

[tlance]

Pretty much exactly what it means. They weren't even good enough to get there.

Semantics.

History proves that they didn’t get there. And it is really easy to say “well they didn’t win, so they weren’t good enough.”

But that isn’t necessarily true.

There were a lot of teams “not good enough” to get there. But the Rockets got so damn close it is actually pretty clear that they were “good enough” to win a series against the Warriors. They just didn’t finish the job.

Having said that, my position is that the Warriors were the better team when they were at full strength. But there were a couple injuries in that series that shifted momentum. And the full strength Rockets were definitely good enough to win that series against an Iggy-less Warriors.

Just not how it played out.

 

[Robotech]

Semantics.

History proves that they didn’t get there. And it is really easy to say “well they didn’t win, so they weren’t good enough.”

But that isn’t necessarily true.

There were a lot of teams “not good enough” to get there. But the Rockets got so damn close it is actually pretty clear that they were “good enough” to win a series against the Warriors. They just didn’t finish the job.

Having said that, my position is that the Warriors were the better team when they were at full strength. But there were a couple injuries in that series that shifted momentum. And the full strength Rockets were definitely good enough to win that series against an Iggy-less Warriors.

Just not how it played out.

A team that got can go toe to toe with the dynasty years Warriors is plenty good enough to be competitive with any team in history. One of the best non-title winning teams, IMO. Gotta give them credit for trying to win during those years when many other teams were just waiting it out for the Warriors to decline.

 

[trojanfan12]

There were a lot of teams “not good enough” to get there. But the Rockets got so damn close it is actually pretty clear that they were “good enough” to win a series against the Warriors. They just didn’t finish the job.

And the Rockets were one of those teams that weren't good enough. Just like the 29 other teams that didn't win.

Doesn't matter how close they got. They weren't good enough. They blew a 3-1 series lead. If they were good enough, they'd have won 1 more game and finished the job.

 

[dtgold88]

Are you suggesting the Cavs could have beat them?

The Cavs were trash relative to the Rockets and you know it.

Could LeBron have pulled a miracle and somehow beat them? More possible than against the KD Warriors, but they were not nearly as good. And that is plainly obvious to anybody outside Cleveland.

The idea you think a Lebron led Cavs team stood no chance to beat Houston really goes against your main point here....and it's hilarious. Lebron with a far lesser Cavs team gave a better (than Houston) GS team all they could handle in 2014-15.

Yes, the Cavs could have beaten Houston. would they have won? Not so sure.

But you be you. I might just sit back and watch you kick your own ass on this topic.

 

[dtgold88]

Pretty much exactly what it means. They weren't even good enough to get there.

If they play 10 series, Houston has no shot?

I mean, Cavs won 2016 title, but I would certainly say GS could beat them if they played 10 more times. Maybe even 1 more time (series).

 

[dtgold88]

And the Rockets were one of those teams that weren't good enough. Just like the 29 other teams that didn't win.

Doesn't matter how close they got. They weren't good enough. They blew a 3-1 series lead. If they were good enough, they'd have won 1 more game and finished the job.

If they replayed Game 7 two days later and you were offered 5-1 odds on Houston you'd have said no thanks?