Event THE 2024 NBA CHAMPIONSHIP! The Boston Celtics vs The Dallas Mavericks!

Fuck around and you will find out.

 

Just last year, the Nuggets won the title without All Stars at 3 or 4.

 

"Whoops"

 

Can we say that JoeCro helped build a championship team before Dame got one?

Or is it still too early for all the Damies?

 

Cronin has a blue book, a green book, and he's out their making connections. Now it's Boston's turn to return the favor, by giving the Blazers something really cool. Because, you know, all GM's try and help each other out. NBA competition is restricted to the court, never amongst opposing team managers.

 

Boston gave the blazers 2 picks and maybe more, I think they already gave up something cool

 

But borderline All-Stars, as I also pointed out, they do have at the 3 and 4. MPJ and Aaron Gordon are such since they're capable of notching 17+ppg if given the ball.

Yep, three of those guys are borderline AS...and one is obviously MVP candidate. Solid bench players. We can even compare them to other squads:

15, 17, 18, 22 Warriors: Steph-Klay-Barnes/KD/Wiggins-Draymond (like a Rodman or Ben Wallace, unconventional AS)....good bench (Poole, Payton, Porter)
21 Bucks: Giannis-Middleton-Jrue-Lopez.....Portis, Pat
19 Raptors: Kawhi-Siakam-Lowry-Gasol....FVV, Green
16 Cavs: Lebron-Kyrie-Love-JR Smith....Thompson, Frye
14 Spurs: Kawhi-Duncan-Parker-Manu....Green, Mills, Diaw
13 Heat: Lebron-Wade-Bosh-Allen....Allen, Birdman, Battier
11 Mavs: Dirk-Marion-Terry-Chandler....Barea
09, 10 Lakers: Kobe-Gasol-Odom-Bynum...Ariza/Odom, Farmar, Brown
08 Celtics: KG-Pierce-Allen-Rondo....Posey
04 Pistons: Hamilton-Billups-Sheed-Ben....Campbell, Hunter
03 Spurs: Duncan-Robinson-Parker-Jackson....Manu

90s Bulls: MJ-Pippen-Rodman/Grant/Armstrong-Kukoc....Paxson, Harper, Kerr
94, 95 Rockets....Hakeem-Thorpe/Drexler-Maxwell-Smith...Cassell

80s Pistons: Isiah, Dumars, Lambier, Aguirre....Rodman, Johnson
80s Celtics: Bird-Parish-Maxwell/McHale-Ainge/Tiny-Johnson....Walton, Henderson, Ainge
80s Lakers: Magic-Kareem-Worthy-Scott.....Cooper, McAdoo, Green, Thompson
80s Sixers: Moses-Dr. J-Cheeks-Toney-Jones.....

So, yeah....that's pretty much how it goes in every decade. You don't win without those players.

 

I suspect you're placing meaning where there isn't any. How many teams fit that criteria that don't win the championship? I'm guessing a deep dive into that data would reveal that any team labeled a contender probably does.

And calling Porter/Gordon borderline All-Stars is a stretch. They're closer to role players, IMO. Porter especially. All he can do is catch-and-shoot. He's basically a taller Sam Hauser with a much higher price tag.

 

2 NBA championships in the last 10 years for the 3 Rivers league!

Oregon Represent!

Kevin Love (2016, Cavs)
Payton Pritchard (2024, Celtics)

 

Well, yes, contenders do showcase this, too. Case in point, Barkley's Suns, Drexler's Blazers, Ewing's Knicks, Payton's Sonics (though, I've pointed out that small PGs rarely win as the lead star), the Lakers and Celtics losing to one another, etc. But A.) that's a testament to Bird/Magic/Jordan's competition, which is why people still sing praises about the 80s and 90s and B.) obviously, being a contender gets you a shot at a championship. It's not an either/or thing. It's a trait thing.

These traits for overall teams are not common at all, counter to what you sort of infer. It doesn't guarantee a team wins it that particular year but within a multiple year span of keeping that type of core? It very often does lead to a championship. And you're welcome to provide counter examples but I've done a lot of looking here already.

Certainly, it may seem arbitrary but I guarantee you, future NBA championship squads will continue to look like what I've just described. It's one of the reasons why the Wolves, Pacers, and Thunder just jumped out of nowhere this season despite being considered laughingstocks last season and are merely waiting for the MVP caliber players to enter their primes.

As for Gordon/Porter, I simply disagree there. Calling them roleplayers and comparing them to Sam Hauser is a tremendous discredit to the contributions they make as players. If Sam Hauser can knock 17ppg, he'll be as valuable as MPJ but so far, he cannot.

 

I'm not saying it's arbitrary, rather than it's not a causal relationship. At the highest level, winners and losers exhibit the same general make-up, so it's only a significant trait when looking backward.

What does Porter do better than Hauser, other than have a bigger role? Rebounding and finishing on the break, probably, but Hauser's better activity offsets some of that, and he's better at Porter's one-trick (shooting) than Porter is. They're obviously not very comparable players. My point was to diminish Porter as being remotely near borderline All-Star.