1. Clippers 2. Nuggets 3. Blazers 4. Jazz 5. Rockets 6. Lakers 7. Warriors 8. Spurs Dark Horse Candidates: Kings Mavericks
Because he is 34 and he has had 3 months off already with two more coming. He is quite possibly the most finely tuned athlete in the league. It's about more than just age. He has had no major injuries so he will not slow down like Kobe did after his Achilles. Jordan at 34 played 82 games and averaged over 28 a game. Yes he won a ring that year. This whole idea that 34 is old is really crazy talk. When i was 34 i was putting 25 year olds to shame. Yes the Jordan Comparison does fit here. They are on the same level.
A few things Lebron came into the league at 18, Jordan at 21 or 22 (can't remember). I'm not saying the Lakers will suck, but he will be 35 in the middle of the season whether he's 35 now or not. His best teammate AD has made the playoffs two times in his career, you can spin that it was all on his teams if you want but the fact is he still hasn't proven anything yet. Who of the top 8 teams in the west if they get home court aren't going to be a force to Contend with? Like I said above I'm not saying the Lakers can't be the best team in the west, they very well could be, but I'm not predicting they will. There's so many really good teams in the west they could fall in a lot of different ways by the end of the year.
Jordan didn't enter the league at 18, he took off two years to play baseball, and the league wasn't as physically demanding to play all 82 games as it is now. Glad you remember how young you felt at 34. LeBron has been a shell of his old self defensively for years. Now in the playoffs he might be a beast, I wouldn't put it past him to even be up there for best player in the league, in the playoffs with no back to backs and time to rest. But over 82 games there is no realistic chance he can compare to the best young guys in this league. We saw that last year in LA and the year prior in Cleveland. Another year at 34 is going to make it even harder.
Duncan was very good then, but he wasn't the beast he was at 27. LeBron could still be amazing in the playoffs, but he is going to need help, especially in the grueling regular season, and he isn't close to the same player as he was in his 20s.
I do agree LeBron has been an amazing fine tuned athlete. That's why he was an elite player at 31 while lazy Melo was below replacement level. But all that working out only puts off father time for so many years. Eventually you slip and we've seen that gradually happening for years. LeBron used to be able to shut down PG like MVP Derrick Rose defensively. Now he would be burned by Dame or CJ. It doesn't mean LeBron can't be an all star or even help get a team a title. It just means he can't destroy the competition on his own like he used to or carry a team on his back, he needs a lot of help.
He will also know he is #6 on the list of combined minutes played in the regular season and playoffs for a career. Here's a list I compiled: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar* 66297 Karl Malone* 62759 Kobe Bryant 57278 Dirk Nowitzki 57263 Tim Duncan 56738 LeBron James 56284 Jason Kidd* 56199 Kevin Garnett 55701 Wilt Chamberlain* 55418 John Stockton* 54162
My order: 1. Clippers 2. Warriors 3. Blazers 4. Jazz 5. Nuggets 6. Lakers 7. Rockets 8. Mavs Sorry, not sorry Spurs
That's kind of like saying a marathon runner has run so many miles he is slower and less able to run than a dude that doesn't run much. I'm a 10,000 miler. I run just fine. My point in this whole thing is he has had 3 months rest from a groin injury that would not have sidelined him if they were competing. He has 2 more months off and there is no question he will be rested and ready. He played 3000+ mins two years ago. But last year he only played 1937. After 5 months off he will not be dealing with the minutes he played 2 years ago. This whole total minutes played thing is a fallacy. Age is age sure. But 34 in this league is not old and without major injury your body recovers. This is just my take on this. You guys are more than welcome to call him old and washed up. But i disagree wholeheartedly. LeBron is on a mission to win another ring and he has the supporting cast to do just that. IMHO
It takes great conditioning to get to this point of his career and be the man. I am also a runner and I condition my body for it. Great conditioning brings about great health. At least it has for me so far.
It's helpful doing this in tiers: 1 Clippers if healthy clear favorites Jazz Complete team 3 Nuggets depth and altitude brutal Warriors Better next year than if Durant resigned Blazers wouldn't be shocked if seed 1-7 6 Lakers - Defense will be a disaster Rockets - CP3 big step back Spurs - Murray healthy good Morris addition best coach game 7 last year 9 Pelicans upside combo of youth and vets Mavs Porzingis takes a step they could make playoffs Kings Fun season, any improvement left? TWolves how long until towns wants out? Thunder sell everything Grizz rebuiling Sun's inept
Nice! Yeah it's tough at times. Funny part is the eating right is tougher than the working out part. My next sprint marathon is in Aug but i have two weeks of travel in July starting tomorrow. The biggest thing for me is to get at least two good workouts a week to keep what i got and just eat right on the road. So easy to grab and go with something that isn't nutritious. Keep up the good work and yes. Great conditioning leads to great health and a bunch more fun because you can actually go do fun things.
A couple things on this i totally agree with. The west is gonna be a blast to watch this year. Also the Blazers anywhere from 1-7 seems about right as well as 6 other teams. I'm betting April will be very tight!
I think the league and the rest of the world are tired of the Rockets style of play much like they were tired of the FlopsieClippers. If your entire offense relies on the amount of fouls you get called then you might want to rethink your offense. 1st round exit I am not sure what seed the Lakers are going to end up at but if healthy they are going very deep into the playoffs. SAS -1st round exit unless they play the Rockets then a second round exit. Utah- depends on the matchup 1st round exit unless they play the Rockets then second round. Warriors- Russel does not scare me or intimidate me in anyway shape or form their seeding all depends on Klay. If Klay is back to form by the Playoffs WCF if not second round exit. Denver-The refs really like Jockitch he should have fouled out every game it would be nice for Zach to get a few of those calls. Tough team tough series I do not think they are ready yet for the WCF. Second round exit Clippers- Gave the Warriors two black eyes with a bunch of no names. I still do not know who is on that team. but with the edition of Kahwai and George Probably WCF Portland- I think we are the Dark Horse here. We lost 7 players and it will all depend on when we gel and get it together
I believe if the Lakers were in the hunt last season, LeBron would have played. Like Kevin Love in Cleveland, no reason for those guys to play in their eyes. Don’t like that mentality, but that’s how it is today.
All I can say is that there are going to be a lot of disappointed Blazer fans when April rolls around.
I believe the converse of that: that if LeBron had played, they would've been in the hunt. Because they were.