http://www.ocregister.com/articles/thunder-243945-season-lakers.html Predictions??????? Im leaning towards Lakers in 5.
I don't want to see a sweep, because a sweep is boring.... it would be nice to see the series go five or six games.
I think the Lakers take it in 5 or 6. And I really don't think the Thunder overachieved this year. They have a ton of talent and I thought they would be a borderline playoff team anyways. I also think they have, who should be, the MVP in Kevin Durant. Too bad LeBron will win for the next decade.
How should Durant have won it? Lebron led his team to 60 wins with talent/players who know their role as well as the Thunder.
Durant was on a team that just won what, 27 games last year, something like that? And they proceeded to win 50 this year in a Western Conference that was as tough as ever, with 8 teams winning 50 games yet again. He's also got the stats to back up an MVP vote as well, going for 30/7/3. I'm not saying LeBron isn't deserving, I just hate his guts and don't want him to win the MVP. Ever. I'd much rather see him retire tomorrow, personally. And for what it's worth, the East sucked ass again this year, so LeBrick was playing "weaker" competition for a good chunk of the season.
Fair enough. But it doesn't take away the fact that Durant's team is just getting better and deeper, so that played a huge part in their success, not Durant carryign them all the time. Meanwhile, Lebron on 29/7/8 led his team to 10 more wins. For the record, I'm one of those guys that believe Lebron does have sufficient teammates. I'd take the team with guys who all know their role and play them PERFECTLY than a team filled with budding talent.
I have to agree with you. LeBron plays on one of the slowest teams, skewing the numbers. And he's a much better passer and defender than Durant. The guy should be a unanimous selection.
I know we're kind of cold right now, but I can't quite pick the Thunder just yet. Who knows how healthy Bryant is, that's what matters.
Well, LeBron has arguably the deepest team in the East, especially if Shaq is healthy. You can't really use the excuse that he's carrying a poor team on his back when he's got a ton of talent around him. Z, Mo Williams, Jamison, Varejao, Parker, West, Moon, Hickson...yea, I'd say that's a deep and talented team. You can use the argument of them playing at a slow ass pace, but also keep in mind that he has the ball in his hands 80% of the game, allowing him to rack up stats offensively.
They use pretty much an equal number of their team's possessions, so that shouldn't be a problem. So if King didn't have the ball in his hands all the time, he'd have what? Fewer wins and fewer assists like Durant? Who exactly is he hogging the ball from? What exactly does Durant do better? And if Durant's team has improved it is also because he has some decent young players around him. If you're shooting over 70% on inside shots then you're simply a beast. If you're going to make it a numbers thing there isn't anything to argue about. And Z, Jamison haven't exactly been playing the whole year, neither has Mo. Parker, West, Moon, Hickson? They're ok at best, and please Shaq was terrible for the Suns last year.
lakers could very well lose this battle, but i will reserve any judgement until after the first game, when we see how these two teams fair against each other in a playoff matchup. what i am worried about though is the lakers recent play, pau's softness, kobe's constant injury list and wether ron ron is going to work in the playoffs. and also how well fisher is going to hold up against westbrook. durant holds the seasons scoring record, the guy is pretty amazing, and incredibly difficult to defend, i wonder how well ron ron can handle him, he is not very strong, but he is quick and tall.
It's not about the stats at this point. Lebron has the ball in his hands a lot because he makes the best decisions. Why should he pass the ball to someone like Mo Williams and Delonte who only turn it over on a weak-ass layup attempt.
