BP & JB AOW
NBA Playoff Discussion:
1) How far is LeBron from Michael Jordan's legacy if he beats the warriors?
2) What will it say about the Warriors and their "super team" if they lose to the Spurs or the Cavs?
3) What does it say about the competition in the NBA if neither the Cavs nor the Warriors lose before the finals? Is this a good or bad thing for the NBA?
Supplemental Resources (Numbers Correspond with the aforementioned questions):
We encourage you to touch upon one, two, or if you are feeling real snakey, all three questions. Our goal is to spark an intellectual debate about the intricacies of the National Basketball League's annual two month long, 'Hunger Games'-eque, tournament. Please draw upon the attached videos and article to reach a conclusion about your true opinions.
Enjoy!
1: Comparing the legacies of Jordan and LeBron is a very difficult task. Even if the Cavs were to defeat the Warriors in the NBA Final this year, I'd still firmly believe that Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player to ever live. The reason I say this is because Michael Jordan didn't need to leave Chicago to win his championships. Michael Jordan didn't need to join a "super-team" to compete for a title because he was the "super-team" himself. Meanwhile, LeBron has had to join forces with other NBA superstars to even give himself a chance to win the Finals. Since I do not hate LeBron, I will say that his recent success has definitely put him over Kobe as the greatest player in this generation. 2: If the Warriors don't win the NBA Finals this year, it would be the biggest let down for the Warriors franchise in their history. They arguably have four top-15 NBA players in their starting lineup, which only increases the pressure on them to win. Most NBA fans would be delighted to see the Cavs win this year because Kevin Durant is the biggest snake, sham, bust, loser, hypocrite in the history of any sport. With their current roster, the Warriors will always be known as "super-team", but it is up to them to decide whether or not it translates into championships. 3: On a brief note, I will say that "super-teams" are bad for the NBA because it limits close games/series. The lack of excitement only limits the growth of the game, which is not what the NBA wants. Adam Silver should make a rule change in which teams would only be allowed to spend a certain percent of their pay roll on one player. This would #MakeTheNBAGreatAgain
ReplyDeleteI think that if the Cavs do win this years NBA championship, it will make a very compelling case for LeBron as the greatest basketball player ever. Many people say his success is not as impressive as Jordan because he has been on a super team, but I think that if LeBron can take down a team with four of the best players in the league this argument will be less valid. In the NBA, with only 5 starters it is very easy to create "super-teams", I think that if the Cavs beat them in the Finals it will prove how great LeBron is to be able to take down one of the greatest teams on paper in the Warriors.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion both players make a great case for being the greatest basketball player ever. If the Cavs win this year, LeBron's career as a whole could be seen as being a more well rounded player. Even though LeBron is on a "super team", he still is leading this team which could argue the point and bring him closer to Jordan. With that said, Jordan has left a legacy that hasn't been touched. So to say that LeBron winning this years championship would allow him to be named the greatest basketball player over Jordan is unfair. Jordan's stats are incomparable to LeBron's. With that said this championship game will allow LeBron to advance his career, but I don't think it will catapult him above Jordan.
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ReplyDeleteI believe that when it comes to comparing Jordan and LeBron it is a very complicated situation. If the Cavs were to defeat the Warriors in the NBA Final this year, I would still believe that Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player to ever live. Jordan didn't need others around him a to compete for a title because he was still the greatest player. But, LeBron had to join forces with other NBA superstars to get himself a chance to win the finals. Therefore, Jordan overall is the best player.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if the warriors do not win the NBA finals this year, it would be the biggest let down for the Warriors in their history of basketball. According to the article they have four top-15 NBA players in their starting lineup, which increases the pressure on them to win, hence why they are the “super team”. Most NBA fans would be happy to see the Cavs win this year due to Kevin Durant being a loser and hypocrite in the history of any sport. With the current roster, the Warriors will always be known as the super team, it is up to them to decide whether or not it translates into the championships.
Lastly, the “the super teams” are bad for the NBA because it limits the close games. The lack of excitement only stops the growth of the game which is not what the NBA wants.
If LeBron is able to win this year's NBA championship against the Warriors, I still believe that he has a ways to go before he can be considered "better" than Michael Jordan. First of all, looking at statistics, LeBron has half the amount of rings that Jordan has. Along with this, Jordan played 15 season and was able to accomplish this feat within that time period. LeBron, however, has played 14 season already, so even if he wins this year, he will be short of Jordan's record. However, in general, their statistics are very comparable. LeBron has been in the All-NBA first team 11 times, while Jordan has been in it 10 times. Although they were both rookie of the year in their first seasons, Jordan went on to be the leading scorer in 10 of his seasons, while LeBron has been the leading scorer just once in his 14 seasons. For the second question, I feel as though if the Warriors lose to the Cavs in the final, it would say a lot about the "superteam." It would prove that having a team of superstars will not win you a league championship, but leadership and dedication will win. Lastly, I do not believe that the league is competitive with the Warriors and the Cavs in the championship again. This is evident because the Warriors and Cavs have been in the final for the past 3 years, so it does take away from the competitive nature of the league.
ReplyDeleteIf LeBron beats the Warriors he will be one step closer to Jordan’s legacy. I don’t think that he will be better or surpass Jordan because he has a legacy that will always be thought of as the best. I am not a very big basketball fan and I don’t know all of the technical stats on both players. I do however know that MJ is a very known and loved figure throughout society. Even people who do not have much knowledge of the sport know of his athleticism. I think that although there will always be an argument about this topic, the side in favor of MJ will always be superior.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of the competitiveness of the NBA, I believe that it is still a very competitive sport. I think that the Warriors and the Cavs have become definite powerhouses for the league, however that title has been passed around. The fact that the teams that made the finals is based on the level of play of the players on each team shows that the league is still competitive. There is an ability for other teams to gain better players and make it to that level, which shows that the league is still competitive.
I think LeBron is very close to catching up to MJ. While MJ almost beats LeBron in every single statistic people have to understand that these players play in different eras. Lebron plays in the 3 point league while MJ played in a league of extreme physical contact. While it is hard to determine whether this change in the game has made it harder for Lebron, in my belief it is alot harder for players like Lebron to become a extremely dominant player. Under these circumsatnces, LeBron has still shown amazing talent and determination to acquire 3 rings. This is why I believe LeBron is gaining ground on becoming a bigger legend then MJ.
ReplyDeleteIf LeBron wins this year, he may be able to equal Jordan. There is no surpassing Jordan, but he can be at his level. MJ revolutionized the league, and just the fact that LeBron is being compared to MJ proves that he is not the GOAT. Both are outstanding players and the best of their respective generations, and both will go down as legends of the NBA. However, LeBron will likely never be able to surpass Jordan.
ReplyDeleteIf the Cavs beat the Warriors this year, I do not think that he will be equal or surpass Jordan. Jordan established himself as the greatest player of all time and played in a different era of basketball. LeBron is close to Jordan, but I do think he will always be close. He and Jordan have both won the same awards, but different amount of times. If the amount of awards and stats do not matter, then there is nothing more that LeBron can do because he has nothing left that Jordan has not done. Jordan has already done everything first so even if LeBron did everything Jordan did, he would only be able to equal his talent, not go above it.
ReplyDeleteI think that if Lebron wins this NBA Championship, he would be considered the greatest basketball player of all time. He has teammates with similar capabilities as Jordan and he has to face much tougher competition. I think if the Warriors lose to the Spurs, it says a lot on how basketball is about more than just talent. It would be very embarrassing for them to lose to any team in the Western Conference. If they lose to the Cavaliers, that is more acceptable because both are essentially "superteams" so that matchup should be close. If neither team loses before the finals, I think that is okay because then it just sets a tone that other NBA organizations have to match in order to be competitive. Lakers-Celtics rivalry was just as significant before this. Those two teams dominated the league for a significant portion of time but there was not as much criticism of being great back then as there is now. I do not think there is necessarily anything wrong with these superteams. I think that this is something that has occurred before but there is just a lot more attention on it now so it is easier to tell.
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