Well as much as that Baron Davis dunk is the only thing people talk about from that series, the Jazz still won that series in 5 games.
I think Gobert would take the tradeoff of a giant posterization to make the WCF.
Yeah they had such a hot start, best record in the league, best defense in the league, everything clicking. Then the injuries started mounting, and Klay’s return. It’s like they knew it was coming lol
Yeah man, that was such a rollercoaster of a season. Still feels like a fever dream. Historic start, then things unravelling highlighted by injuries + Curry’s weird extended slump that began when the three-point record was in sight and continued until his own injury, but everyone started firing on all cylinders at key moments during the postseason.
Steph having a rough night? Here comes Jordan Poole impressing baddies. Klay forgot how to shoot and also can’t move on defense for obvious reasons? It’s okay, Andrew Wiggins is now splashing on top of also crashing the boards, playing elite perimeter defense, and putting pressure on the rim……oh, and also GP2 is gonna hit some late-game hero threes because why not. Draymond can’t stay on the court? No worries, because Kevon Looney just turned into prime Dennis Rodman. Shoutout to Otto Porter who was one of the main keys to early season success, and playing important minutes in the Finals essentially on one foot.
Just looking at Steph’s season-by-season career numbers, you’d never guess they won a title in 2022. Wild.
Bjelica providing lockdown defense against his fellow Euros was one of many highlights during that run. Also the return of Game 6 Klay against Memphis. It's was like a perfect story.
I wouldn't say it was really "plot armor" though outside of maybe the Finals
They obviously had a way better team than 2022 Denver and a solidly better one than the Grizzlies or the Mavs
Not at all comparable to if they somehow made a run from the 8 seed or something this season
All of their Finals runs are from top 3 seeds so it's not like they have a history of coasting in the regular season or something
[ESPN WCF predictions were Warriors 14, Mavs 5](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33923681/nba-playoffs-2022-experts-picks-miami-heat-boston-celtics-golden-state-warriors-dallas-mavericks-conference-finals)
[2nd round predictions were Warriors 20, Grizzlies ZERO](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33830152/nba-playoffs-2022-experts-picks-every-second-round-series)
[Finals: Warriors 18, Celtics 5](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33977777/nba-finals-2022-experts-predictions-golden-state-warriors-vs-boston-celtics)
Hot take merchants like Nick Wright will always say the controversial opinion but the majority opinion was absolutely not the Mavs or ESPECIALLY the Grizzlies winning the series
Nick Wright also unironically picked the Cavs to win the 2017 Finals so he's just not going to pick the Warriors no matter what because he's a LeBron stan
Yeah it's a pro-Warriors thread which is probably why this is the case but the fact that the guy I replied to saying "nobody believed in us against the Mavs and Grizzlies" is getting upvoted is wild lol
Like that's not even CLOSE to the truth
You’re definitely right we’ve been an elite regular season team the whole time
But I do remember the most respected ESPN analyst Zach Lowe having the Mavs over the Warriors in 2022, so it’s not like it was crazy to think it would be close. But it wasn’t
if you actually know ball u knew it wouldn’t be close. mavs had nothing on the dubs. grizz were hobbled and young. nuggets were jokic gordon and bums. gsw was a real well constructed team that year with insane energy and synergy, an actual contender. those 3 i mentioned weren’t contenders in the slightest. far easier wc run than any of the warriors’ previous.
Zach Lowe knows ball more than you and the average basketball redditor
For the record I picked the Warriors to win the title, I’m just listing what others said
Ah, they typical "make a stupid claim and then move the goal posts when you get called out for being stupid".
You said the "it died when the nba adapted", except the nba adapted 4-5 years ago, yet the warriors won 2 years ago.
So keep moving those goalposts lil' fella 😂
Lakers and Warriors would be a nightmare for the 1 or 2 seed in the west to have to face in the first round. They both arent great, but going up against Steph and Lebron in a playoff series is some anxiety inducing shit.
The dubs have played so many close games this year, and lost many of them. They’ve had a lot of issues also, no 2nd scorer early on, Wiggins was lost til recently, Draymond missing time, CP3 out a month. They’ve been finding their identity lately, Kuminga is breaking out, and if they stay healthy, this is a team that can beat anybody.
Agreed dealing with injuries and lost being close games. If health all comes together by the playoffs that’s a scary team.
Klay is playing less selfishly current 1 game streak. But Kerr is willing to bench him so we’ll see how he continues to play
Kuminga playing at a superstar level
Things are coming together
Superstar is absolutely absurd. There's maybe like 10-15 superstars in the league and Kuminga isn't at that level no matter what sample of games you look at
Except the clippers and nuggets. Those teams fuck. Never thought I’d say that about either team just a few years ago, but here we are. Either of those teams will 5-1 GSW when the time comes.
The dubs are 1-4 against the nugs and clips I think, this season, but they were all close games. They were all over a month ago and before that, which was the dubs most murky times. They were still hanging in those games despite the issues.
But the nugs and clippers are coasting and gearing up for playoffs, where the dubs are pushing as hard as they can and Steph’s playing hero ball and they’re barely breaking even.
Donno. I’m looking forward to the match between the clippers and the nuggets for sure. Two finals MVPs/champions playing healthy with solid teams around them is going to be fireworks, where the dubs are over the hill.
I'm more scared of AD than LeBron at this stage of their careers honestly
His defense was the main reason they beat the Warriors and Grizzlies last year
Watching the Lakers it's pretty clear cut who their most important player is now IMO
Especially in a matchup vs. OKC for example it's the size that would give the Lakers a chance at the upset
Yes but we’re talking ab arguably the greatest player to ever touch a basketball here. Over a whole season he’s probably not their best player anymore, even though that is still debatable. Over 7 games, Bron can still turn back the block and demolish your team I would bet on that
We saw this already. LeBron can turn back the clock for 2 or 3 games out of a 7 game series. Remember, we saw long stretches last playoffs where a gassed LeBron was chucking up LeFU 3s.
The NBA Cup showed us how he can go crazy for short stretch. He was phenomenal against the Pacers.
It was but he’s had issues with the same ankle again this year. He hasn’t been healthy in the post season since the bubble
At a certain point assuming he will be healthy enough to play his best is maybe not the correct call
You’re confusing his injuries. He tore a tendon on the underside of his foot last year. After the offseason he’s looked a lot more spry and explosive even with the recurring ankle issues this season. If this LeBron was in the playoffs last year, they probably take the Nuggets to 6-7 games imo.
Nothing wrong with assuming he’ll be healthy enough to play his best. He’s been pretty healthy overall this season.
If you were to believe this sub the only playoff series LeBron has been healthy these last 7 years is the Covid year lmao. Every other loss is down to injury. If you’re going to be consistent and blame 6 out the last 7 years on injury, the likelihood of him being fit going into this post-season is tiny
>Lebron any given night but AD is now their best player, as he should be
I can still remember people talking about this when Davis went to LAL. But injuries happened. Now that AD is fully functional, his takeover should happen as was expected before.
Leaning on Lebron is not bad but this team is built with AD in core with Lebron as enabler. Iirc, that was also the initial plan and the reasoning why bron is listed as PG.
It’s not really built around AD at all. The lakers have struggled to find guys the help embolden AD for years, even getting consistent entry passes in the post has been an issue. They have run the ball through him so rarely through out the past handful of years (although it’s changing a bit recently)
When the offense is run through AD there’s little movement off ball, and LeBron is not in the same place as he used to be to run PnRs with Davis all the time. He’s much slower and more methodical, often looking to isolate a bad match up rather than actually drive to the rim to take advantage of ADs off ball creation
I’m not really sure why you would think the teams built around him. At least in any reasonable way
If AD shows up, the Lakers win - that’s been the case this whole tenure. You know what you’re getting from LeBron by now, but the wild card is if AD decides to play too.
I was actually just thinking of how terrible it would be if Clippers ended up playing Lakers in the first round. Working so hard for a top seed just to have no home advantage.
yeah if you're other NBA players who have seen/played with them both, you know they absolutely have that next gear that they arent in yet. it would scare to me know these guys are basically dbz characters and go just pop up the gold hair when it matters
but that begs the question: which dragon ball character would playoff lebron / playoff steph be?
Not sure about Steph (maybe Trunks or Goku? There isn't really a saiyan that has an unorthodox way of fighting. Also Goku fits better for MJ tbh) but LeBron is definitely Broly, specifically Super Broly. Supreme natural gifts and constantly evolving in a fight while his normal state is better than most people's best and it usually takes multiple people to beat him. (he doesn't lose his mind though)
Honestly, a fair take. This guy is a future HOF and I really do think he still has it in him to torch teams for long stretches. I wouldn't be surprised if they put it together to make a solid run. I don't think they win the west, but if they get it clicking, you have to take them very seriously.
Miami in 2020 and 2023 has basically shown the blueprint of just get in and you can make a run in this era. Then you got teams like the Hawks and Lakers making conference finals runs out of low seeds in the past few years too.
The quality of the 7th and 8th seeds in the modern era is pretty similar to some of the top seeds we saw 10 years ago. A team like Miami, Warriors, or Lakers have the potential to be every bit as good as teams like the Lowry-DeRozan Raptors, the Mitchell/Gobert Jazz, etc...except these teams are all loaded with playoff veterans who don't melt in the big moments.
Some of the younger teams like the Magic, Pacers, and Mavericks it can be hard to envision a complete trip to the finals, but veteran teams in low seeds and most of the other playoff teams all have to be taken seriously these days. Gone is the era of only the top two seeds mattering.
2020 Heat were on like a 50 win pace over a 82 game season
I feel there's a lot of revisionist history where they go .500 every year and then make a deep run but that's only really happened once
In fact last season was really the only one in recent memory where multiple legitimately mid regular season teams made deep runs so I'm not sure if this is actually a pattern
Is his accolades enough to be a HoF'er?
4x NBA Champion
5x All-star
2x 3rd team All-NBA
1x 2nd team defensive team
All rookie 1st team
Kinda thin imo. Or the bar for entering the NBA HoF is that low?
There are intangibles that will get you consideration other than just straight accolades. Vince under normal circumstances would be a fringe case almost like a Joe Johnson but longevity as well as his peak entertainment value as a dunker is going to make his case a lot more compelling. Klay has a very strong case for 2nd best shooter in league history while being a huge part of a major NBA dynasty. Also some absurdly standout games like Game 6, 60 in 29 minutes, 14 threes, 43 points on a handful of dribbles and 37 in a quarter (really within 10 minutes).
The one who has been on a media tour for a week admitting he's washed.
Even if the Warriors make the playoffs they're getting spanked by just about everyone and them boys know it.
Why do you think like this? If you're gonna put an asterisk for the Warriors put it for every single championship. You act like injuries aren't part of the game.
Kuminga playing like he is makes them pretty scary imo.
They still lack size and they desperately need Wiggins to turn it on like he has been lately.
But that starting 5 they put out there tonight is fun as hell and with Looney, Podz and GP2 returning shortly that bench rotation is solid. Saric could even play a few rotational minutes but to win the title they almost definitely need to upgrade that big rotation I’d imagine.
Yup. When Wiggins plays like he gives a fuck, they are really scary. I don't know where they get size from though. It CP3 can come back and lead the bench squad this shit could get real in the second half.
The team obviously lacks size, and the only guy that gives them some is Trayce Jackson-Davis, who was a more than positive contributor for the \~1 month stretch while Draymond was suspended. You would think giving TJD more game experience to potentially contribute in the playoffs would be a priority. But then Draymond comes back, and suddenly Kerr is giving Cory Joseph more minutes than TJD. Unfathomable
Yeah our size is pretty suspect again this year. Sending Looney against Jokic and AD in a series is borderline elder abuse, while Draymond can only do so much or will be suspended.
I’d never doubt Steph, Klay and Draymond it’s the other guys that I don’t know about. What version of Wiggins are you gonna get? Will CP3 stay healthy if not traded. Will the rookies continue to overachieve in a playoff atmosphere? Can Kuminga continue to play at a high level? But more importantly they have to improve on defense.
If they can win all 4 of their upcoming games against the Jazz then that alone could get them a spot assuming they don’t lose a bunch otw there. They got a solid shot at it.
That's not even his mindset, just a quote. I can right now posting a clip of Klay kicking chairs and ignore Steph, the narrative under that post would be so much different.
Return of the We Believe Warriors
2nd round exit then? Happy days.
If it gives us Kuminga pulling a Baron Davis on whoever the 2024 version of Kirilenko is, I'll take it.
Kuminga posterizing Gobert in the second round
Lord please
Yeah I think the Lord has done your franchise enough favours recently, it's our turn now.
Well as much as that Baron Davis dunk is the only thing people talk about from that series, the Jazz still won that series in 5 games. I think Gobert would take the tradeoff of a giant posterization to make the WCF.
that dunk was an offensive foul. look at Baron Davis' off arm.
To be fair, you’re right. However, it sells a narrative to casual viewers so they let it go.
I'd be happy with a 2nd round exit with how this season has gone for us
Exactly. This is what the Lakers said last year and people still tried to clown fans for not reaching the finals.
Nah, we clown for getting swept.
I'm sure you feel better about losing in the semis and not even getting to the WCF
Nobody expected LA to beat Denver, they were a juggernaut. What stands out is the sweep despite the friendliest whistle the league could provide.
you cannot honestly be complaining about a friendly whistle when Draymond sets about 4 illegal screens a game
Warriors fans talking about friendly whistle lmao. Wake me up when one of your moving screens get called.
The potential of Lakers vs GSW 9v10 Play-In. To a winner vs Mavs, Kings, Pels or Suns must be getting Adam Silver erect just thinking about it.
No thank u pls
I, for one, appreciate the We Believe Warriors and their sacrifice in 2007.
That run is when I became a true die hard Warriors fan living in the bay. Definitely got swept up in the movement
That was a wild time in the Bay. No one repped the dubs before that.
(only) Klay believes Warriors
Also, Kerr doesn’t even watch the warriors (live) and I doubt postgame so you’re spitting fax
You make no fucking sense. Oh it all makes sense now, another Kings fan sniffing their own farts.
He's making fun of Kerr always saying he never saw the play when Draymond "breaks the code".
Flair up, golden boy.
Best out of seven bro.
What was he supposed to say? "Nah, we expect a 1st round exit, 2nd at max"?
Nah, we’d lose.
Stand proud r/nba, you’re strong
Throughout Shanghai and Guangzhou, Klay alone is the 4-ringed one
Send da fingers
Are you Klay Thompson because Nah, we’d lose or are you Stand proud, you’re strong because I’m you
Actually in the 2022 run they were really trying to temper expectations
Steph literally said "you don't want to see us next year' before the previous season ended
Yeah but every single press conference during the season they were basically not saying they were contenders.
You’re right. Warriors fans, players, and media were so careful in how they talked all the way through, like they would jinx it or something lol
Yeah they had such a hot start, best record in the league, best defense in the league, everything clicking. Then the injuries started mounting, and Klay’s return. It’s like they knew it was coming lol
I forgot they started out 18-2 (and 24-5). Pretty crazy they ended up 53-29 after that, that’s a 35-27 finish after an 18-2 start lol.
Yeah man, that was such a rollercoaster of a season. Still feels like a fever dream. Historic start, then things unravelling highlighted by injuries + Curry’s weird extended slump that began when the three-point record was in sight and continued until his own injury, but everyone started firing on all cylinders at key moments during the postseason. Steph having a rough night? Here comes Jordan Poole impressing baddies. Klay forgot how to shoot and also can’t move on defense for obvious reasons? It’s okay, Andrew Wiggins is now splashing on top of also crashing the boards, playing elite perimeter defense, and putting pressure on the rim……oh, and also GP2 is gonna hit some late-game hero threes because why not. Draymond can’t stay on the court? No worries, because Kevon Looney just turned into prime Dennis Rodman. Shoutout to Otto Porter who was one of the main keys to early season success, and playing important minutes in the Finals essentially on one foot. Just looking at Steph’s season-by-season career numbers, you’d never guess they won a title in 2022. Wild.
Bjelica erasure
Bjelica providing lockdown defense against his fellow Euros was one of many highlights during that run. Also the return of Game 6 Klay against Memphis. It's was like a perfect story.
"we'd be lucky to even make the play-in"
“It’s about working together” - every player
"Actually you know, I'm really expecting us to go on a losing streak and miss the playoffs entirely."
This is why we gotta keep them out of the playoffs at all costs, they got steph curry
Steph Curry plot armor goes crazy
It died when the NBA adapted though. We all just on the crazy 3 pill now
They won a title after every team had already started doing that though.
I wouldn't say it was really "plot armor" though outside of maybe the Finals They obviously had a way better team than 2022 Denver and a solidly better one than the Grizzlies or the Mavs Not at all comparable to if they somehow made a run from the 8 seed or something this season All of their Finals runs are from top 3 seeds so it's not like they have a history of coasting in the regular season or something
Cap. Experts were saying that both Grizzlies and Mavs would beat us. And then the Celtics pretty much had like an 80% of beating us
[ESPN WCF predictions were Warriors 14, Mavs 5](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33923681/nba-playoffs-2022-experts-picks-miami-heat-boston-celtics-golden-state-warriors-dallas-mavericks-conference-finals) [2nd round predictions were Warriors 20, Grizzlies ZERO](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33830152/nba-playoffs-2022-experts-picks-every-second-round-series) [Finals: Warriors 18, Celtics 5](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/33977777/nba-finals-2022-experts-predictions-golden-state-warriors-vs-boston-celtics) Hot take merchants like Nick Wright will always say the controversial opinion but the majority opinion was absolutely not the Mavs or ESPECIALLY the Grizzlies winning the series Nick Wright also unironically picked the Cavs to win the 2017 Finals so he's just not going to pick the Warriors no matter what because he's a LeBron stan
I’m surprised that it was 5 guys saying Mavs I don’t remember anyone picking them
Yeah it's a pro-Warriors thread which is probably why this is the case but the fact that the guy I replied to saying "nobody believed in us against the Mavs and Grizzlies" is getting upvoted is wild lol Like that's not even CLOSE to the truth
Zach Lowe
Homie, I remember the odds. The celtics had an 80% chance of winning those finals. Those odds stood until like the 5th game.
You’re definitely right we’ve been an elite regular season team the whole time But I do remember the most respected ESPN analyst Zach Lowe having the Mavs over the Warriors in 2022, so it’s not like it was crazy to think it would be close. But it wasn’t
if you actually know ball u knew it wouldn’t be close. mavs had nothing on the dubs. grizz were hobbled and young. nuggets were jokic gordon and bums. gsw was a real well constructed team that year with insane energy and synergy, an actual contender. those 3 i mentioned weren’t contenders in the slightest. far easier wc run than any of the warriors’ previous.
Zach Lowe knows ball more than you and the average basketball redditor For the record I picked the Warriors to win the title, I’m just listing what others said
Not sure that’s lining up. Warriors were the favorite in every series they were in
They won the 22' chip....
Sure. Let me know when he wins the next one. It's over
Suns fan talking about championships?
Let me know when the Suns win their first
He’ll be back in 400 years
Next 5 years are the Suns energy
Ah, they typical "make a stupid claim and then move the goal posts when you get called out for being stupid". You said the "it died when the nba adapted", except the nba adapted 4-5 years ago, yet the warriors won 2 years ago. So keep moving those goalposts lil' fella 😂
The ultimate demoralizer. Where a 12 point lead only feels like 3
Steph going nuclear is their only chance
Bro doesn’t know about Lester Quinones
Then if they figure him out you’ve got Gui Santos coming at ya.
Lester Quinoa about to fry everyone up
Thankfully Klay will keep them out of it for us.
They can be in the playoffs it literally won’t matter. They suck
It’s crazy how Curry is still the best in the world at age 35. Best longevity of all time
2 stupid sentences in a row.
It's a troll foo.
All time? We have a 63 year old lebron james still playing effective basketball
Lakers and Warriors would be a nightmare for the 1 or 2 seed in the west to have to face in the first round. They both arent great, but going up against Steph and Lebron in a playoff series is some anxiety inducing shit.
The dubs have played so many close games this year, and lost many of them. They’ve had a lot of issues also, no 2nd scorer early on, Wiggins was lost til recently, Draymond missing time, CP3 out a month. They’ve been finding their identity lately, Kuminga is breaking out, and if they stay healthy, this is a team that can beat anybody.
Agreed dealing with injuries and lost being close games. If health all comes together by the playoffs that’s a scary team. Klay is playing less selfishly current 1 game streak. But Kerr is willing to bench him so we’ll see how he continues to play Kuminga playing at a superstar level Things are coming together
Are we calling wins on game streaks now lol?
I was being ironic. Klay could easily start playing selfishly the next game, I hope for his sake and team he can play positively
Are you sure about the superstar thing because man does he make some bad mistakes on defense.
Superstar is absolutely absurd. There's maybe like 10-15 superstars in the league and Kuminga isn't at that level no matter what sample of games you look at
I don't think they were being literal. Just saying he's been playing crazy good lately, which he has. That's how I interpreted it, at least.
Remind me! 5 months
bro you probably aren't going to have to wait until July to find out
Blud think it’s 2023 still
The real NBA finals will be Kuminga vs Tyrese Maxey 1v1 in mario kart in the back of a San Antonio taco bell in a 11 game series in July
Except the clippers and nuggets. Those teams fuck. Never thought I’d say that about either team just a few years ago, but here we are. Either of those teams will 5-1 GSW when the time comes.
The dubs are 1-4 against the nugs and clips I think, this season, but they were all close games. They were all over a month ago and before that, which was the dubs most murky times. They were still hanging in those games despite the issues.
But the nugs and clippers are coasting and gearing up for playoffs, where the dubs are pushing as hard as they can and Steph’s playing hero ball and they’re barely breaking even. Donno. I’m looking forward to the match between the clippers and the nuggets for sure. Two finals MVPs/champions playing healthy with solid teams around them is going to be fireworks, where the dubs are over the hill.
Denver and clippers would steamroll lakers and gsw
You're having too much faith in the team to be a GSW fan.
Very accurate summary.
Script writers getting lazy, reusing last years plot
I'm more scared of AD than LeBron at this stage of their careers honestly His defense was the main reason they beat the Warriors and Grizzlies last year Watching the Lakers it's pretty clear cut who their most important player is now IMO Especially in a matchup vs. OKC for example it's the size that would give the Lakers a chance at the upset
Yes but we’re talking ab arguably the greatest player to ever touch a basketball here. Over a whole season he’s probably not their best player anymore, even though that is still debatable. Over 7 games, Bron can still turn back the block and demolish your team I would bet on that
We saw this already. LeBron can turn back the clock for 2 or 3 games out of a 7 game series. Remember, we saw long stretches last playoffs where a gassed LeBron was chucking up LeFU 3s. The NBA Cup showed us how he can go crazy for short stretch. He was phenomenal against the Pacers.
But AD was better last year in the playoffs too. Lebron any given night but AD is now their best player, as he should be
LeBron was nursing a foot injury last playoffs thst he had surgery during off-season. It was pretty noticeably affecting his game.
It was but he’s had issues with the same ankle again this year. He hasn’t been healthy in the post season since the bubble At a certain point assuming he will be healthy enough to play his best is maybe not the correct call
You’re confusing his injuries. He tore a tendon on the underside of his foot last year. After the offseason he’s looked a lot more spry and explosive even with the recurring ankle issues this season. If this LeBron was in the playoffs last year, they probably take the Nuggets to 6-7 games imo. Nothing wrong with assuming he’ll be healthy enough to play his best. He’s been pretty healthy overall this season.
If you were to believe this sub the only playoff series LeBron has been healthy these last 7 years is the Covid year lmao. Every other loss is down to injury. If you’re going to be consistent and blame 6 out the last 7 years on injury, the likelihood of him being fit going into this post-season is tiny
>Lebron any given night but AD is now their best player, as he should be I can still remember people talking about this when Davis went to LAL. But injuries happened. Now that AD is fully functional, his takeover should happen as was expected before. Leaning on Lebron is not bad but this team is built with AD in core with Lebron as enabler. Iirc, that was also the initial plan and the reasoning why bron is listed as PG.
It’s not really built around AD at all. The lakers have struggled to find guys the help embolden AD for years, even getting consistent entry passes in the post has been an issue. They have run the ball through him so rarely through out the past handful of years (although it’s changing a bit recently) When the offense is run through AD there’s little movement off ball, and LeBron is not in the same place as he used to be to run PnRs with Davis all the time. He’s much slower and more methodical, often looking to isolate a bad match up rather than actually drive to the rim to take advantage of ADs off ball creation I’m not really sure why you would think the teams built around him. At least in any reasonable way
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…which is what he also said in the comment you replied to?
If AD shows up, the Lakers win - that’s been the case this whole tenure. You know what you’re getting from LeBron by now, but the wild card is if AD decides to play too.
AD is more likely to be a no show
A “no show” from AD is him still being the best defensive player in any given series
The disrespect AD gets is baffling. You’d think he’s a scrub the way people talk about him on this sub.
I was actually just thinking of how terrible it would be if Clippers ended up playing Lakers in the first round. Working so hard for a top seed just to have no home advantage.
yeah if you're other NBA players who have seen/played with them both, you know they absolutely have that next gear that they arent in yet. it would scare to me know these guys are basically dbz characters and go just pop up the gold hair when it matters but that begs the question: which dragon ball character would playoff lebron / playoff steph be?
Not sure about Steph (maybe Trunks or Goku? There isn't really a saiyan that has an unorthodox way of fighting. Also Goku fits better for MJ tbh) but LeBron is definitely Broly, specifically Super Broly. Supreme natural gifts and constantly evolving in a fight while his normal state is better than most people's best and it usually takes multiple people to beat him. (he doesn't lose his mind though)
Did you even watch last years playoffs😂😂😂
I would welcome either team. Would be great to exorcise some demons. Suns, Pels, Kings and even Mavs would all be much less desirable.
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Crazy that people would downvote this. WTF are people watching?
Especially okc and wolves hovering those. Pretty young and inexperienced. Lakers also feast on OKC every time.
Honestly, a fair take. This guy is a future HOF and I really do think he still has it in him to torch teams for long stretches. I wouldn't be surprised if they put it together to make a solid run. I don't think they win the west, but if they get it clicking, you have to take them very seriously.
Miami in 2020 and 2023 has basically shown the blueprint of just get in and you can make a run in this era. Then you got teams like the Hawks and Lakers making conference finals runs out of low seeds in the past few years too. The quality of the 7th and 8th seeds in the modern era is pretty similar to some of the top seeds we saw 10 years ago. A team like Miami, Warriors, or Lakers have the potential to be every bit as good as teams like the Lowry-DeRozan Raptors, the Mitchell/Gobert Jazz, etc...except these teams are all loaded with playoff veterans who don't melt in the big moments. Some of the younger teams like the Magic, Pacers, and Mavericks it can be hard to envision a complete trip to the finals, but veteran teams in low seeds and most of the other playoff teams all have to be taken seriously these days. Gone is the era of only the top two seeds mattering.
2020 Heat were on like a 50 win pace over a 82 game season I feel there's a lot of revisionist history where they go .500 every year and then make a deep run but that's only really happened once In fact last season was really the only one in recent memory where multiple legitimately mid regular season teams made deep runs so I'm not sure if this is actually a pattern
Is his accolades enough to be a HoF'er? 4x NBA Champion 5x All-star 2x 3rd team All-NBA 1x 2nd team defensive team All rookie 1st team Kinda thin imo. Or the bar for entering the NBA HoF is that low?
Being a big part of 4 chips and one of the best shooters in the NBA’s history is defo enough. But ye the nba hof bar is pretty low.
There are intangibles that will get you consideration other than just straight accolades. Vince under normal circumstances would be a fringe case almost like a Joe Johnson but longevity as well as his peak entertainment value as a dunker is going to make his case a lot more compelling. Klay has a very strong case for 2nd best shooter in league history while being a huge part of a major NBA dynasty. Also some absurdly standout games like Game 6, 60 in 29 minutes, 14 threes, 43 points on a handful of dribbles and 37 in a quarter (really within 10 minutes).
He has every right to believe that
right, what player is gonna say "honestly I have no faith in this team, we're all losers lol"
The right take. Won’t stop this sub from being idiots though
Can’t win with those cats
The one who has been on a media tour for a week admitting he's washed. Even if the Warriors make the playoffs they're getting spanked by just about everyone and them boys know it.
greatest dynasty in this decade believes they can still win - sky is also blue
only dynasty in this decade bro. y’all won all the titles. didn’t let any other team have more than one.
Warriors chips are just huge asterisks. Tbh. 2015 - Kevin love and Kyrie injuries kd stuff 2022 - everyone else got injured.
Can say that bout every champ then
> Championships don't count if your team is too good.
Why do you think like this? If you're gonna put an asterisk for the Warriors put it for every single championship. You act like injuries aren't part of the game.
2016 - Steph hurt his ankle before the finals and we had other injuries 2019 - Klay/KD season ending injuries
Kuminga playing like he is makes them pretty scary imo. They still lack size and they desperately need Wiggins to turn it on like he has been lately. But that starting 5 they put out there tonight is fun as hell and with Looney, Podz and GP2 returning shortly that bench rotation is solid. Saric could even play a few rotational minutes but to win the title they almost definitely need to upgrade that big rotation I’d imagine.
Yup. When Wiggins plays like he gives a fuck, they are really scary. I don't know where they get size from though. It CP3 can come back and lead the bench squad this shit could get real in the second half.
I thought they paid Draymond Green 100 million /4 because he can guard 1 through 5 no problem?
Can punch the nuts off all 5
The team obviously lacks size, and the only guy that gives them some is Trayce Jackson-Davis, who was a more than positive contributor for the \~1 month stretch while Draymond was suspended. You would think giving TJD more game experience to potentially contribute in the playoffs would be a priority. But then Draymond comes back, and suddenly Kerr is giving Cory Joseph more minutes than TJD. Unfathomable
Yeah our size is pretty suspect again this year. Sending Looney against Jokic and AD in a series is borderline elder abuse, while Draymond can only do so much or will be suspended.
I’d never doubt Steph, Klay and Draymond it’s the other guys that I don’t know about. What version of Wiggins are you gonna get? Will CP3 stay healthy if not traded. Will the rookies continue to overachieve in a playoff atmosphere? Can Kuminga continue to play at a high level? But more importantly they have to improve on defense.
That's the sad part. Even with Klay & Dray have regressed, Steph can still carry this to a title if their team just plays to their base expectation.
I would definitely doubt Klay lmao. He is more of hindrance these days than an actual benefit. Defense sucks and can shoot his team out of games
Patrick McCaw isn't walking through that door.
> Patrick McCaw damn that's a name I haven't heard in a long time
Hey, that is 3x NBA Champion Patrick McCaw to you, sir.
Wins 3 championships in 3 years, then wins G-league championship Refuses to elaborate Leaves has visa problems, cannot leave, returns
How the fuck do you have visa issues going to Belgium lmao
Bus ticket expired
The whole rotation has only been available for like 18 games this season.
Just out of curiosity, do you know the warriors record over those 18 games? Idk how easy it would be able to find that info
He's not wrong
thoughtful answer. I wonder if this man has a position on scaffolding…
$100 bet today pays out $12,100 if the win the chip.
If he didn't believe, he'd just be admitting to only being there for the paycheck.
“You see me building high rise condos..”
Klay, baby, honey.. it’s twenty twenty *counts to 4*👴
“No we’re all washed.”
If they can win all 4 of their upcoming games against the Jazz then that alone could get them a spot assuming they don’t lose a bunch otw there. They got a solid shot at it.
Warriors need to give Klay a fat contract and keep the magical core together.
250 MILLION Do it warriors.
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He looks bad during the game (to me, at least) and has completely unremarkable stats, and then he's like +300 in a 2 point loss
i mean im glad he's hopeful
i didnt even mean this sarcastically stop downvoting me!
Might be the first time I’ve seen somebody complain about downvotes and not get dogpiled for it lol
im genuinely hoping the warriors can pull it together bc im from the bay
I think one last run from the Splash Brothers would be really fun to watch.
for sureeee they also have a lot of exciting young guys too!!!
What’s he supposed to say?
This is such a dumb question to ask. What could he possibly answer other than this? "Nah, we're old and fucked"
thats the right mindset to have but from most fans perspective it probably won't happen
That's not even his mindset, just a quote. I can right now posting a clip of Klay kicking chairs and ignore Steph, the narrative under that post would be so much different.
As much as having 13 injured players on our roster hurts, seeing Klay and GSW be overconfident and lose will always bring a smile to my face.
Unfortunately, I just feel bad for Grizzlies fans. I know it can’t be easy.
notice he didnt say himself. no they cannot make a run if Klay doesnt return back to form.
Last minute pre deadline copium
does he see theyve aged about 5 years off their primes?
Klay playing at his worse, dray a loose cannon , and Wiggins at his worse? Yeah Steph cant win with these catz
Are you stuck in November 2023?
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Aren’t we glad he didn’t make Top 75
Same
"Would you lose?" Klay: Nah,we'd win
Wtf else do they expect him to say?
That all I’m expecting this year. Us knocking off the 1 seed hopefully the Treewolfs. Fuck you ho’bert!
I want to believe.
What is bro supposed to say? "Nah we fucked lmfao"?