The finals last year was OKC/SA. And the finals next year will be OKC/SA.

[russwest0]

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/images/icons/icon14.gif

[fpliii]

SA is so good, but you have to think Timmy is going to fall off at some point (and he's the least replaceable part). Then again, it seems like we say that every year lol. If he does drop off (and it has to happen, KG did last year finally), even with Pop they can't win it all IMO.

I do think OKC vs MIA would've been a competitive series, even with a healthy Ibaka. I'm not sure who would win, but it would've been a good watch.

Going into this season though, I do expect the winner of the WCF to win it all.

[GrapeApe]

What about the year before? Was MIA/IND the real finals?

[raprap]

So are you saying that durant is 0/2 in the finals? Damn.:eek:

[#number6ix#]

You got one hell of an imagination kiddo

[poido123]

I think OKC v warriors bro :cheers:

I love the spurs, but they had everything go right last year with an aging core.

An injury to one of their key players and that is enough to slip up in the west, particularly if they slip from top seed too.

[navy]

The real finals are the real finals.

[russwest0]

The real finals are the real finals.

"Real" is all relative. The two best teams in the league played in the playoffs last year and it was OKC vs San Antonio, AKA, the Finals.

[Haymaker]

Keep sleeping on the Spurs. :oldlol:

[Warfan]

I can see OKC losing before the WCF like they should've this season. As long as they have the retards that are WB and Brooks, combined with Durant playing like a beta they arent winning shit. Need to get a new coach and get rid of the useless POS that is Perkins if they want to win. The talent is there, just needs to be used properly

[navy]

"Real" is all relative. The two best teams in the league played in the playoffs last year and it was OKC vs San Antonio, AKA, the Finals.
San Antonio beat Miami with superior ball movement. Let's not sit here and pretend like OKC wouldnt have been isoing like usual and there supporting cast is particularly reliable from 3 like San Antonios. Or the fact that Bosh owns Perkins and Ibaka. Or the fact that with Sefolosha a shell of himself OKC was going to what throw Durant on Lebron and watch him pick up fouls? :oldlol:

The real finals are the finals. Get over it. This was the same exact dumb shit people were saying in 2012 before the Heat beat OKC in 5. Literally.

[russwest0]

San Antonio beat Miami with superior ball movement. Let's not sit here and pretend like OKC wouldnt have been isoing like usual and there supporting cast is particularly reliable from 3 like San Antonios. Or the fact that Bosh owns Perkins and Ibaka. Or the fact that with Sefolosha a shell of himself OKC was going to what throw Durant on Lebron and watch him pick up fouls? :oldlol:

The real finals are the finals. Get over it. This was the same exact dumb shit people were saying in 2012 before the Heat beat OKC in 5. Literally.

Lol what?

Are you one of those retards who, after the Pistons lost to the Lakers in the Finals in the 80s, maintained that should they rematch, the Pistons would get their asses kicked again? :oldlol: :facepalm

The Spurs and Thunder were in a class of their own this year and had Ibaka been healthy I don't doubt that it would have been at the worst for OKC a 7 game series with the final game coming down to the wire.

Miami was simply not anywhere near the level of those two teams. They would have been at best a fukking 4th seed in the West :lol

[joeyjoejoe]

The real finals are the real finals.

This

If you wanna bring all the context in you could the real finals never happened clipps spurs, thanks refs

[russwest0]

This

If you wanna bring all the context in you could the real finals never happened clipps spurs, thanks refs
How far do you want to go with this "refs" narrative.

Depending on what you believe, we're looking at a Grizzlies/Warriors 2nd round in the West. :confusedshrug:

[navy]

Lol what?

Are you one of those retards who, after the Pistons lost to the Lakers in the Finals in the 80s, maintained that should they rematch, the Pistons would get their asses kicked again? :oldlol: :facepalm

The Spurs and Thunder were in a class of their own this year and had Ibaka been healthy I don't doubt that it would have been at the worst for OKC a 7 game series with the final game coming down to the wire.

Miami was simply not anywhere near the level of those two teams. They would have been at best the 4th seed in the fukking West :lol
You never actually know what will happen until it happens. Which is why the real Finals are the Finals.

The Thunder should have been bounced in the first and second round. And the Spurs let the Mavs take them to 7. Class of their own, lol. Quit being an idiot. Every series is different. The Spurs and Thunder were boh in clear cut danger of a quick ass exit. You never actually know what happens until it happens. :oldlol:

[russwest0]

How the hell would Miami defend OKC?

Westbrook would have COOKED everyone on the Heat until that shit got bad.

And no, the refs weren't sucking LeFlop's **** this year. They put on a historic rig job to get him his first ring but these past two years really haven't been that bad. I doubt Durant gets in foul trouble three games in a row again while the refs refuse to call blatant fouls committed against him and Westbrook :confusedshrug:

And lol, last time OKC played MIA in the playoffs Ibaka was a 9PPG scorer :lol

MIA is actually kind of lucky they got San Antonio who couldn't abuse any lone matchup. Westbrook could have easily averaged 35-40 PPG vs Miami in the Finals while OKC would have swept Miami.

If you thought what Westbrook did to Conley, Paul, and Parker was bad.......... :roll:
And if you thought LeBron making Kawhi Leonard look like Michael Jordan was bad... imagine Durant :lol

[navy]

How the hell would Miami defend OKC?

Westbrook would have COOKED everyone on the Heat until that shit got bad.

And no, the refs weren't sucking LeFlop's **** this year. They put on a historic rig job to get him his first ring but these past two years really haven't been that bad. I doubt Durant gets in foul trouble three games in a row again while the refs refuse to call blatant fouls against him and Westbrook :confusedshrug:

And lol, last time OKC played MIA in the playoffs Ibaka was a 9PPG scorer :lol

MIA is actually kind of lucky they got San Antonio who couldn't abuse any lone matchup. Westbrook could have easily averaged 35-40 PPG vs Miami in the Finals while OKC would have swept Miami.

If you thought what Westbrook did to Conley, Paul, and Parker was bad.......... :roll:

Westbrook would have chucked the same way he usually does. How do you think anyone defends Westbrook. He will drop 40 in one game and go 4-20 in the next. You seen his overtime and close game numbers? Got to some of the worst of all time. :oldlol:

Durant is soft. I'd throw Mario Chalmers on him to get into his head. Did you see the way Durant was throwing the ball away when he was even lightly forced to playmake during the playoffs? Embarrassing. Chalmers would score on him too. Would be quite a matchup.

OKC would have swept Miami. Okay. Sure. Still should have gotten to the real finals and proved it.

[russwest0]

what do you mean "should have gotten to the finals and proved it"

they lost in the finals to the spurs in 6 games. would have been a hell of a series with Ibaka healthy though.

[joeyjoejoe]

The irony, an okc fan complaining about the refs

[navy]

what do you mean "should have gotten to the finals and proved it"

they lost in the finals to the spurs in 6 games. would have been a hell of a series with Ibaka healthy though.
Nope they lost in the WCF. Let's be honest. The Ibaka gimmick only takes OKC so far. You make him guard a three point shooter and he is straight up useless. :oldlol:

These past three years? Dude got shut down by Shane Battier and Matt Bonner.

[russwest0]

Nope they lost in the WCF. Let's be honest. The Ibaka gimmick only takes OKC so far. You make him guard a three point shooter and he is straight up useless. :oldlol:

These past three years? Dude got shut down by Shane Battier and Matt Bonner.

Lol so why not just move Ibaka to center and put Durant at the 4 on Battier or Bonner?

OKC wins that trade by far.

[navy]

Lol so why not just move Ibaka to center and put Durant at the 4 on Battier or Bonner?

OKC wins that trade by far.
Why not just put the three point shooter at center? Why do you think OKC always crumbles? Ibaka is not reliable. Westbrook and Durant only get so far throwing up shots.

It will be no coincidence when they lose again nest year in the exact same way they have always lost.

[russwest0]

LMAO!!!

Why do I always rape you in debates?

I get a good kick out of it but damn, it feels kind of bad, you know?

[GrapeApe]

Why even play the games? Just have OP send the results to the league and call it a season.

[andremiller07]

Nope they lost in the WCF. Let's be honest. The Ibaka gimmick only takes OKC so far. You make him guard a three point shooter and he is straight up useless. :oldlol:

These past three years? Dude got shut down by Shane Battier and Matt Bonner.
ether right here

[navy]

LMAO!!!

Why do I always rape you in debates?

I get a good kick out of it but damn, it feels kind of bad, you know?
Why do you always do this? You could have let the post speak for themselves, but whenever I call you out on your bullshit, you start talking about how you won the debate. :oldlol:

If you were winning a debate you wouldnt have felt the need to prematurely end it. But maybe next time russ. You'll get me. Im sure of it.

[poido123]

I can see OKC losing before the WCF like they should've this season. As long as they have the retards that are WB and Brooks, combined with Durant playing like a beta they arent winning shit. Need to get a new coach and get rid of the useless POS that is Perkins if they want to win. The talent is there, just needs to be used properly



Hey bro, check your emails...:cheers:

[ralph_i_el]

I think OKC v warriors bro :cheers:

I love the spurs, but they had everything go right last year with an aging core.

An injury to one of their key players and that is enough to slip up in the west, particularly if they slip from top seed too.

San Antonio has to be the elite team LEAST susceptible to injuries.

[poido123]

Why do you always do this? You could have let the post speak for themselves, but whenever I call you out on your bullshit, you start talking about how you won the debate. :oldlol:

If you were winning a debate you wouldnt have felt the need to prematurely end it. But maybe next time russ. You'll get me. Im sure of it.


Navy still mad that his Alt coughed up for everyone to see...

Don't concern yourself with him Russ. :cheers: chin up

[poido123]

San Antonio has to be the elite team LEAST susceptible to injuries.


That maybe so, but also the oldest core in the league too...age has shown to impact injuries, however they may very well fight father time again...

Im still high on the warriors.

I like the coaching change and the Livingston pickup.

[wally_world]

They should rename the Eastern conference playoffs to NBA Finals runner-up tournament

[ralph_i_el]

How the hell would Miami defend OKC?

Westbrook would have COOKED everyone on the Heat until that shit got bad.

And no, the refs weren't sucking LeFlop's **** this year. They put on a historic rig job to get him his first ring but these past two years really haven't been that bad. I doubt Durant gets in foul trouble three games in a row again while the refs refuse to call blatant fouls committed against him and Westbrook :confusedshrug:

And lol, last time OKC played MIA in the playoffs Ibaka was a 9PPG scorer :lol

MIA is actually kind of lucky they got San Antonio who couldn't abuse any lone matchup. Westbrook could have easily averaged 35-40 PPG vs Miami in the Finals while OKC would have swept Miami.

If you thought what Westbrook did to Conley, Paul, and Parker was bad.......... :roll:
And if you thought LeBron making Kawhi Leonard look like Michael Jordan was bad... imagine Durant :lol

Miami would have defended okc way better than they did SA. SA dominated Miami with spacing, making it impossible to hedge/blitz/double team SA's perimeter players. OKC takes turns playing ISO. Miami would have forced a ton of turnovers against OKC (and I'm saying this as a DC Metro area native who loves Durant+ a UCLA fan who loves Russ). OKC just plays ugly ball due to bad coaching and a weird mix of players.

[Fudge]

Hahaha yes sir, chump ass Eastern conference. Weaker than my calves (no pun intended) after leg day. :lol :lol

[russwest0]

Hahaha yes sir, chump ass Eastern conference. Weaker than my calves (no pun intended) after leg day. :lol :lol

I keep having to hear the Heat get hyped like they were some great team...

Yet in the West they're the goddamn 4th seed..

[tontoz]

What about the year before? Was MIA/IND the real finals?


Did Miami take the Spurs to the woodshed last year? Or did they stay alive with a miracle 3?

[SOD 21]

Oklahoma City could very well be the best team in the league next season and they are certainly no worse than second or third best team going into next year.

But I do have someone legitimate concerns about them that I will be very interested to watch this coming season:

1. Will Kevin Durant continue to allow short defenders to crowd him on the perimeter without taking them to the post effectively? He cannot continue to allow defenders like Tony Allen, Chris Paul or Danny Green guard him effectively on the perimeter.

2. Will Russell Westbrook improve his decision-making and will his knee continues to stay healthy for an entire season? I don't know if Scott Brooks has the ability to hold him accountable for his poor decision-making at times.

3. What will OKC do to improve their ball and player movement and attempt to transition from such a isolation heavy offense? I would have liked to see them bring in an offensive minded coach as an assistant to help address this obvious weakness.

4. Is Scott Brooks capable of holding his players accountable for poor decision-making, developing his young players and implementing an offensive scheme that brings about better ball movement? Phil Jackson didn't have to be an expert on the triangle offense when it was implemented by Tex Winters. He only had to be smart enough to recognize that there was a weakness in Chicago's isolation heavy offense and needed to come up with a solution. Can Scott Brooks and Oklahoma City do the same?

5. Oklahoma City is filled, practically overfilled, with young players that have loads of room for improvement from Steven Adams, Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones, Mitch McGary, etc., and can these players develop over the season to be impactful players in the playoffs next year? Can Adams play 25 to 30 minutes a game without foul trouble, can Jeremy Lamb become a consistent performer and improve defensively, can Mitch McGary crack the rotation?

Is remarkable that they are a top two or three team in the league with all these questions, legitimate questions, swirling about them. It says a lot about their talent level.

And yes, I am very long-winded. Sorry about that.

[GrapeApe]

Did Miami take the Spurs to the woodshed last year? Or did they stay alive with a miracle 3?

Irrelevant. Anything can be spun using hindsight. Was the '04 ECF the real finals because Detroit spanked LA? I could go on and on. My point is that most people thought this year's finals was going to be an epic 7 game battle. It didn't turn out that way.

[navy]

Irrelevant. Anything can be spun using hindsight. Was the '04 ECF the real finals because Detroit spanked LA? I could go on and on. My point is that most people thought this year's finals was going to be an epic 7 game battle. It didn't turn out that way.
Was the ATL Hawks the real finals in 08 because of how the Celtics spanked the Lakers? :oldlol:

[Kingwillball]

OKC would not even of beaten the Heat.. They def won't beat the New look Cavs wake up op..

[tontoz]

Irrelevant. Anything can be spun using hindsight. Was the '04 ECF the real finals because Detroit spanked LA? I could go on and on. My point is that most people thought this year's finals was going to be an epic 7 game battle. It didn't turn out that way.


No it isn't irrelevant. The OP makes a legit point that OKC may have been the 2nd best team in the league.

Miami was weak in the regular season relative to the top teams. They finished second to a reeling Indy team and won only 54 games in a historically weak conference.

And they collapsed when they finally faced a strong team in the playoffs. They were lucky to win 1 game in the finals and got destroyed the last 3 games.

That wasn't even remotely comparable to last year's finals.

[rmt]

1. Will Kevin Durant continue to allow short defenders to crowd him on the perimeter without taking them to the post effectively? He cannot continue to allow defenders like Tony Allen, Chris Paul or Danny Green guard him effectively on the perimeter.

2. Will Russell Westbrook improve his decision-making and will his knee continues to stay healthy for an entire season? I don't know if Scott Brooks has the ability to hold him accountable for his poor decision-making at times.

3. What will OKC do to improve their ball and player movement and attempt to transition from such a isolation heavy offense? I would have liked to see them bring in an offensive minded coach as an assistant to help address this obvious weakness.

4. Is Scott Brooks capable of holding his players accountable for poor decision-making, developing his young players and implementing an offensive scheme that brings about better ball movement? Phil Jackson didn't have to be an expert on the triangle offense when it was implemented by Tex Winters. He only had to be smart enough to recognize that there was a weakness in Chicago's isolation heavy offense and needed to come up with a solution. Can Scott Brooks and Oklahoma City do the same?

5. Oklahoma City is filled, practically overfilled, with young players that have loads of room for improvement from Steven Adams, Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones, Mitch McGary, etc., and can these players develop over the season to be impactful players in the playoffs next year? Can Adams play 25 to 30 minutes a game without foul trouble, can Jeremy Lamb become a consistent performer and improve defensively, can Mitch McGary crack the rotation?

Is remarkable that they are a top two or three team in the league with all these questions, legitimate questions, swirling about them. It says a lot about their talent level.

And yes, I am very long-winded. Sorry about that.

1. Dirk also had the problem KD is having against smaller players like Stephen Jackson and eventually figured out how to play against them. Of course that was later along in his career so that the inevitable decline due to age coincided with the wisdom learned through experience. KD is young enough to figure it out and still have his prime ahead of him (and high chance of championships).

2. Westbrooke has to buy into the team before individual (ego). Still amazes me how high he can jump even after what 3? knee operations.

Much of OKC's problems have to do with Brooks. I shudder to think what Rick Carlisle would do with a team with so much talent (and so young). Good for SA's fans that isn't the case. Hopefully it'll take him a few more years to figure it out by which time SA's window will have passed (Duncan and Manu - retired). Don't think they'll get rid of Brooks since they kinda all "grew" up together.

[rmt]

Irrelevant. Anything can be spun using hindsight. Was the '04 ECF the real finals because Detroit spanked LA? I could go on and on. My point is that most people thought this year's finals was going to be an epic 7 game battle. It didn't turn out that way.

Wasn't that way because Pop studied and keyed in on beating the Heat. He moved away from a staple of Parker/Manu pick and roll which is easily defended by Miami's swarming defense to crisp, ball movement - the perfect foil for MIA's type of defense. The interchangeable parts and heavy use of Diaw as point-forward nixed their defense.

[SOD 21]

1. Dirk also had the problem KD is having against smaller players like Stephen Jackson and eventually figured out how to play against them. Of course that was later along in his career so that the inevitable decline due to age coincided with the wisdom learned through experience. KD is young enough to figure it out and still have his prime ahead of him (and high chance of championships).

2. Westbrooke has to buy into the team before individual (ego). Still amazes me how high he can jump even after what 3? knee operations.

Much of OKC's problems have to do with Brooks. I shudder to think what Rick Carlisle would do with a team with so much talent (and so young). Good for SA's fans that isn't the case. Hopefully it'll take him a few more years to figure it out by which time SA's window will have passed (Duncan and Manu - retired). Don't think they'll get rid of Brooks since they kinda all "grew" up together.


Good post, by the way.

I understood why Scott Brooks the offense simple and allowed these talented young players to pretty much just go out there and play by keeping things simple. They were young and their talent would simply overwhelm the opposition, and still does in most cases.

But my problem with Scott Brooks is that he hasn't demonstrated the ability to hold his players accountable as they have matured or implement a more sophisticated offense. It would be scary what a quality coach that will hold the players accountable to do for this team.

Scott Brooks isn't all bad because he is good at fostering a good culture on the team and will not hesitate to stand up for his players. He is a standup guy. As much as the players like him and even KD has stood up for him, but he is also probably their biggest stumbling block.

It is tough to replace a coach that has been there since the beginning with all these young players and is so well-liked, even though it is obvious to the rest of us the change could benefit them.

[Milbuck]

Don't sleep on the Bulls russ..you can't deny how sick a healthy Rose v Westbrook matchup would be. I'd pick OKC to win, but it'd be a close series.

[Lakers Legend#32]

Durant's mind is already checking out of OKC.

[Hey Yo]

OKC would not even of beaten the Heat.. They def won't beat the New look Cavs wake up op..
OKC was favored in the Finals in 2012 and STILL couldn't beat the Heat.

[Inferno]

Next year will be Warriors - Spurs.

[poido123]

Next year will be Warriors - Spurs.


I got warriors v okc

Spurs will be have another good year though...

[poido123]

Oklahoma City could very well be the best team in the league next season and they are certainly no worse than second or third best team going into next year.

But I do have someone legitimate concerns about them that I will be very interested to watch this coming season:

1. Will Kevin Durant continue to allow short defenders to crowd him on the perimeter without taking them to the post effectively? He cannot continue to allow defenders like Tony Allen, Chris Paul or Danny Green guard him effectively on the perimeter.

2. Will Russell Westbrook improve his decision-making and will his knee continues to stay healthy for an entire season? I don't know if Scott Brooks has the ability to hold him accountable for his poor decision-making at times.

3. What will OKC do to improve their ball and player movement and attempt to transition from such a isolation heavy offense? I would have liked to see them bring in an offensive minded coach as an assistant to help address this obvious weakness.

4. Is Scott Brooks capable of holding his players accountable for poor decision-making, developing his young players and implementing an offensive scheme that brings about better ball movement? Phil Jackson didn't have to be an expert on the triangle offense when it was implemented by Tex Winters. He only had to be smart enough to recognize that there was a weakness in Chicago's isolation heavy offense and needed to come up with a solution. Can Scott Brooks and Oklahoma City do the same?

5. Oklahoma City is filled, practically overfilled, with young players that have loads of room for improvement from Steven Adams, Jeremy Lamb, Perry Jones, Mitch McGary, etc., and can these players develop over the season to be impactful players in the playoffs next year? Can Adams play 25 to 30 minutes a game without foul trouble, can Jeremy Lamb become a consistent performer and improve defensively, can Mitch McGary crack the rotation?

Is remarkable that they are a top two or three team in the league with all these questions, legitimate questions, swirling about them. It says a lot about their talent level.

And yes, I am very long-winded. Sorry about that.

I don't think anyone commented on your post but well done :applause: oops there was one..

I read all the way through and i think okc are heavily restricted by the coach. Natural improvement though should see them compete this year and be there when it matters.

[LoneyROY7]

Clippers will go further than the Thunder next season. Bet that russ.

[qrich]

So OKC will be given heavy advantages in the first two rounds again?

[Lebronxrings]

Clippers will go further than the Thunder next season. Bet that russ.
they could if cpchoke wouldn't lose the ball in crunch time.