Seasons where the best team didnt win the title [Archive] - Message Board Basketball Forum

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 03:41 PM

What can u think of?

2002 Queens - we all know what happened in the Lakers series, one of the most complete teams of the past 2 decades

2003 Mavs - they were the best team for sure but Dirk got injured against the Spurs. They wouldve easily beat the Nets and healthy Dirk they beat Spurs too

2012 OKC - Scott Brooks had one of the worst coaching series of alltimes. Playing Porkins that many minutes when Miami went small, OKC always had to dig out a hole. Had Porkins chasing Bosh and Battier on the perimeter. OKC outscored Miami with Porkins on the bench

2006 - U could argue a couple teams honestly

2007 Suns - They were the most stacked for sure. One of the most talented teams but we know what happened with that Spurs series. They wouldve easily beat whoever came out Least especially Cavs

2015 - U could put a few teams here honestly

Who else???

Cocaine80s

10-12-2015, 03:43 PM

2011
2014

stalkerforlife

10-12-2015, 03:44 PM

2011
2014

So you're saying your boy choked.

:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

Mr. Jabbar

10-12-2015, 03:47 PM

2012
2013

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 03:48 PM

2011
2014
:biggums: :biggums:

2011 Mavs were the best team, very underrated team historically. They went through some of the toughest playoff competition of alltime to their title.

2014 Spurs get overrated historically by some nikkas but they were clearly best team................Actually healthy OKC mightve been better. If Ibaka didnt miss games they might win that series. It was 2-2 with Serge

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 03:48 PM

2004
2006
2011

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 03:48 PM

2004
2006
2011
Who do u think was the best in 2004????:biggums: :biggums:

StephHamann

10-12-2015, 03:50 PM

2012

Harden Westbrook Ibaka and Durant

sadly they had the worst coach in the league

JT123

10-12-2015, 03:51 PM

2009 - KG injury kept Celts from repeating
2010 - Perkins injury plus rigged game 7 robbed the Celtics
2015 - Warriors barely defeat Cleveland's d-league team

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 03:56 PM

2009 - KG injury kept Celts from repeating
2010 - Perkins injury plus rigged game 7 robbed the Celtics
2015 - Warriors barely defeat Cleveland's d-league team
Forgot about 09...........ye healthy KG repeats for sure. They had a ridiculous record before they went down

ShawkFactory

10-12-2015, 04:01 PM

2012
2013
Takin care of business as the underdog :applause:

Wade's Rings

10-12-2015, 04:01 PM

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 04:03 PM

2003- Kings IIRC were great until Webber's knee injury. Not sure if they were the best team because the Mavs were also great.

2006- Spurs or Mavs IMO. The Mavs collapsed at the wrong time and had the Spurs beaten Dallas they would've won it all.

2007- The Suns were the best team. The Mavs were great as well until the 1st Round Collapse.

2011- The Heat were the best team IMO
In 07 Mavs won 67 games obviously but they werent dominant. Its weird to say but they won a lot of close games because of how clutch and ridiculous Dirk was. Their point differential wasnt special at all especially for a 67 win team. Avery was a sht coach too they were bound to fail and Dirks supporting cast was pretty bad that was a carryjob

pauk

10-12-2015, 04:06 PM

2011
2014

Mavs were truly the best that year, the way they were performing (and Dirk playing out of his ***ing mind/capability including everybody else) sweeping the defending champs (Lakers/Kobe) im not sure Heat would have won even if Lebron produced up to his standards.... infact Mavs were the reason behind much of Lebrons decision making that series, they made all the superstars less efficient that playoffs (by those players standards), Durant shot 42%, 23% from 3, Kobe averaged 23 ppg... you have to give them credit...

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 04:08 PM

Wade's Rings

10-12-2015, 04:12 PM

Mavs were truly the best that year, the way they were performing (and Dirk playing out of his ***ing mind/capability including everybody else) sweeping the defending champs (Lakers/Kobe) im not sure Heat would have won even if Lebron produced up to his standards.... infact Mavs were the reason behind much of Lebrons decision making that series, they made all the superstars less efficient that playoffs (by those players standards), Durant shot 42%, 23% from 3, Kobe averaged 23 ppg... you have to give them credit...

If Lebron doesn't shit the bed the Heat more than likely sweep and the Mavs didn't make him choke.

T_L_P

10-12-2015, 04:13 PM

pauk

10-12-2015, 04:18 PM

Lol, if LeBron plays up to his standards they probably sweep

Im not sure man, Mavs were very scary, they had epic chemistry, filled all puzzles, all players were on the same page mentally and their games were complementing eachother so beautifully on both ends of the court.... and Dirk.... oh man, i have never in my life seen something so absurdly surprising from a player.... Dirk was not even a top 20-30 player in the league that regular season or previous season (something like that).... then comes the playoffs and he is playing like he never did before, he was playing like prime Larry Bird, better than anybody, like the best player in the world, he was possessed, consistently, every single game he would close teams out in the clutch, he made Kobe, Durant & Lebron walkout in shame.... all of the sudden next season starts and Dirk is back to planet earth....

Easily one of the most impressive championship runs ive seen from a player.... i guess for every player that magical stretch happens where everything just "clicks" and that was the one for Dirks career, at the most perfect time ever...

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 04:19 PM

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 04:21 PM

The Spurs were up 2-1 with Dirk...and the Mavs only won G1 by 3 points and they went 49-50 from the line, which is once in a lifetime efficiency.

Spurs won G2/3 by 13 points each.

Odds say Spurs still would have won. You definitely can't say they favored the Mavs.
In 2014 Mavs were up 2-1 on the Spurs with a 20+ point victory.

They play best of 7 for a reason...........Mavs were up in game 3 IIRC before Dirk got hurt too and wasnt the same for the rest of the game.

How about the rest of the games? Walt Williams (WTF????? a scrub in his last season, literally one of the worst players in the league) replaces Dirk for the next 3 games.

The results?

Spurs win by 7
Mavs win by 12
Spurs win by 12

Lets be real. Spurs arent likely to win that series with a healthy Dirk who was a top 3 to 5 player that year

ScalsFan21

10-12-2015, 04:24 PM

I definitely feel like the Spurs were the best team in 2013 given the state Wade in particular was playing in. That version of Miami (as well as 2014) really wasn't in the same class as SA. The Heat even going 1-1 against them is an achievement.

I still think the '05 Pistons narrowly edge out SA as the best team that year (and the Heat were literally right there with both of them), but that's very debatable.

I disagree that the 2003 Mavs were better than the Spurs.

When healthy, I think the 2009 and 2010 Celtics were the best in the game as well.

And yeah, 2011 Mavs are probably the biggest example of this; without LeBron's horrific series, they wouldn't have won more than a game.

But I don't begrudge any of the "non-best team" champions credit for winning, especially if they were able to beat the best team on their way to the ship.

ClipperRevival

10-12-2015, 04:26 PM

LeBron in the 2011 finals was the worst choke job I have ever seen from a transcendent player. He wanted nothing to do with the outcome of the games and wanted to go into a shell and hide. If he had just played his normal game, the Heat win that series easily. But the Mavs sensed the fear in LeBron and fed off of that weakness.

Of course LeBron fans will never admit this and will bring up excuses, sort of like the Wilt fans. Losers give excuses. Winners win.

Hey Yo

10-12-2015, 05:14 PM

Bruh, with a chance to go up 3-1 LeBron scored 8 points in a 3 point loss. If LeBron averages just 22 ppg instead of 18 they easily win that series
Or....if Joel Anthony, Bibby, Chalmers and Haslem scored more than 13pts combined in their 94mins of play, Heat go up 3-1.

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 05:15 PM

Or....if Joel Anthony, Bibby, Chalmers and Haslem scored more than 13pts combined in their 94mins of play, Heat go up 3-1.

No, if a 4x MVP at his peak manages a dozen points, they go up 3-1

DaOldLion

10-12-2015, 05:18 PM

Mavs were truly the best that year, the way they were performing (and Dirk playing out of his ***ing mind/capability including everybody else) sweeping the defending champs (Lakers/Kobe) im not sure Heat would have won even if Lebron produced up to his standards.... infact Mavs were the reason behind much of Lebrons decision making that series, they made all the superstars less efficient that playoffs (by those players standards), Durant shot 42%, 23% from 3, Kobe averaged 23 ppg... you have to give them credit...

your evaluation of teams is absolute shit

you'll say anything possible to make it look like Lebron is facing goat competition

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=315601

what a freaking joke :oldlol: :oldlol:

DaOldLion

10-12-2015, 05:20 PM

94 & 95 (depending on how you feel about the best player in the game leaving the 3peat champions) 02, 03, 09, 11

GrapeApe

10-12-2015, 05:22 PM

Mavs were truly the best that year, the way they were performing (and Dirk playing out of his ***ing mind/capability including everybody else) sweeping the defending champs (Lakers/Kobe) im not sure Heat would have won even if Lebron produced up to his standards.... infact Mavs were the reason behind much of Lebrons decision making that series, they made all the superstars less efficient that playoffs (by those players standards), Durant shot 42%, 23% from 3, Kobe averaged 23 ppg... you have to give them credit...

:biggums:

I thought I had heard every spin possible, but I guess I was wrong. :oldlol:

Wade's Rings

10-12-2015, 05:27 PM

your evaluation of teams is absolute shit

you'll say anything possible to make it look like Lebron is facing goat competition

http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=315601

what a freaking joke :oldlol: :oldlol:

:roll:

Hey Yo

10-12-2015, 05:31 PM

No, if a 4x MVP at his peak manages a dozen points, they go up 3-1
:rolleyes:

So 2 starters and 2 top role players who barely scored above a dozen points combined in that game gets a free pass? They shouldn't held accountable whatsoever from keeping the Heat from going up 3-1?

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 05:37 PM

:rolleyes:

So 2 starters and 2 top role players who barely scored above a dozen points combined in that game gets a free pass? They shouldn't held accountable whatsoever from keeping the Heat from going up 3-1?

He had Wade dropping 32 and Bosh adding 24, how much more scoring help does a top 10 player of all time need? If LeBron gives them even the notorious 2010 "elbow game" performance the Heat win that game

Hey Yo

10-12-2015, 05:46 PM

He had Wade dropping 32 and Bosh adding 24, how much more scoring help does a top 10 player of all time need? If LeBron gives them even the notorious 2010 "elbow game" performance the Heat win that game
It's not about what LeBron needed, it's about 4 others who shit to bed also in game 4

But in your eyes, they shouldn't be held accountable whatsoever.

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 05:57 PM

It's not about what LeBron needed, it's about 4 others who shit to bed also in game 4

But in your eyes, they shouldn't be held accountable whatsoever.
Yeah Bran gets all the credit when they win even when the role players play great like Battier, Miller. But the role players get blame when sht dont go right:lol :lol

SouBeachTalents

10-12-2015, 05:59 PM

It's not about what LeBron needed, it's about 4 others who shit to bed also in game 4

But in your eyes, they shouldn't be held accountable whatsoever.

Bibby averaged 7 ppg in 2011, scored 3 points

Anthony averaged 2 ppg in 2011, scored 4 points

Haslem averaged 8 ppg in 2011, scored 4 points

Chalmers averaged 6 ppg in 2011, scored 5 points

LeBron averaged 27 ppg in 2011, scored 8 points

Factoring in their 2011 averages, those 4 had a 7 point drop off combined in Game 4. LeBron had a 19 point drop off in Game 4, and a 9 point drop off for the SERIES

SHAQisGOAT

10-12-2015, 06:03 PM

1969 - Lakers
1975 - don't really believe GS was the best team
1978 - Blazers (but Walton got injured)
1981 - either the Celtics (champs) or the 76ers
1984 - Lakers
1988 - you could argue for the Pistons
2006 - Spurs or Mavs
2007 - you could argue for the Suns
2009 - Celtics
2011 - Heat

Wade's Rings

10-12-2015, 06:04 PM

To add to my original post the 2005 Heat could be argued as the best team that year.

Probably forgetting a few other years and teams but i'll just post them if they cross my mind.

Sakkreth

10-12-2015, 06:11 PM

2000
2002

Both due to refs.

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-12-2015, 06:20 PM

2000
2002

Both due to refs.
2002 yes it was rigged.

2000 the Blazers flat out choked and collapsed while Kobe had a legendary clutch performance.

Hey Yo

10-12-2015, 07:12 PM

Bibby averaged 7 ppg in 2011, scored 3 points

Anthony averaged 2 ppg in 2011, scored 4 points

Haslem averaged 8 ppg in 2011, scored 4 points

Chalmers averaged 6 ppg in 2011, scored 5 points

LeBron averaged 27 ppg in 2011, scored 8 points

Factoring in their 2011 averages, those 4 had a 7 point drop off combined in Game 4. LeBron had a 19 point drop off in Game 4, and a 9 point drop off for the SERIES
Bibby scored ZERO points in game 4. If he makes his only FGA (a 3PTA) that would have sent the game into OT.

According to you, that's how outcomes are suppose to be looked at...right?

TheBigVeto

10-12-2015, 09:47 PM

Lol, if LeBron plays up to his standards they probably sweep

Bron is a great player but he wasn't stopping the almighty god Dirkrules that year.

guy

10-12-2015, 11:43 PM

It's not about what LeBron needed, it's about 4 others who shit to bed also in game 4

But in your eyes, they shouldn't be held accountable whatsoever.

You're right. Lebron should be held to a scrubs standards so we shouldn't blame him at all.

ClipperRevival

10-13-2015, 12:23 AM

2002 Kings.

I thought all year they were clearly the class of the NBA. And it looked like it was there time. If Horry misses that 3 in game 4 they go up 3-1. And you add in the ref issues.

BasedTom

10-13-2015, 12:42 AM

2011, in recent memory

kennethgriffin

10-13-2015, 12:46 AM

1988 - lakers ( thanks refs )
1993 - suns ( thanks paxson )
1998 - jazz ( thanks refs )
2000 - lakers ( thanks kobe ... game 7wcf )
2004 - lakers ( thanks malone )
2006 - heat ( thanks refs )
2011 - dallas ( thanks lebron )
2013 - Miami ( thanks ray )

JoHnShOeZ1492

10-13-2015, 12:56 AM

2009 - KG injury kept Celts from repeating
2010 - Perkins injury plus rigged game 7 robbed the Celtics
2015 - Warriors barely defeat Cleveland's d-league team
Preach!!!!!!!!!!! :bowdown:

Young X

10-13-2015, 01:05 AM

2002 Kings.

I thought all year they were clearly the class of the NBA. And it looked like it was there time. If Horry misses that 3 in game 4 they go up 3-1. And you add in the ref issues.On paper they were better than the Lakers. Best record in the league, #1 SRS/Point differential and they were a deeper team.

Lakers had experience on their side though which showed in game 7. Kings were missing way too many FT's and bricking 3's they normally knocked down while the Lakers played with much more poise eventually coming out with the W in OT.

ClipperRevival

10-13-2015, 01:06 AM

1968 76ers
1969 Lakers

Both Wilt teams had better records over the Celtics (8 more wins in 1968 and 9 more wins in 1969). These two seasons were his best shot at beating Russell. And to add insult to injury, Russell was the head coach and player in what were his final two seasons.

Wilt's 76ers are up 3-1 and lose 3 straight, losing game 7 at home in 1968.
Wilt's Lakers are up 3-2 and lose game 7 at home by 2 points, where he was 1-11 from the FT line in 1969.

:facepalm These are the two seasons that really hurt his legacy. He could've made the ring count 9 to 4, instead of 11 to 2.

Young X

10-13-2015, 01:25 AM

I think the Mavs were probably the best team in 2003. Dirk, Nash, Finley, #1 offense, #1 SRS, tied for best record.

Shame Dirk got injured. Webber also got injured that postseason iirc, wonder how things would've played out if those 2 had been healthy. Maybe the Kings beat the Mavs and Spurs to go on to the finals and win the title.

Hamtaro CP3KDKG

10-13-2015, 01:39 AM

Duffy Pratt

10-13-2015, 03:23 AM

Possible that the 04-05 Pacers were the best team in the league before the Malice in the Palace. Also agree about a number of the rigged series, especially 2002 Kings.

sportjames23

10-13-2015, 03:45 AM

Bibby scored ZERO points in game 4. If he makes his only FGA (a 3PTA) that would have sent the game into OT.

According to you, that's how outcomes are suppose to be looked at...right?

Are you honestly gonna shift blame to role players for Lebron shittin the bed? That'd be like blaming Steve Kerr, Judd Buechler, Bill Wennington and Dickey Simpkins for not scoring more if MJ didn't perform to his usual standards.

Bron stans. :facepalm

ArbitraryWater

10-13-2015, 04:34 AM

I think people understand different things under this..

Only officiating/major injuries should be of importance

1988
2006
2010
2015

1999 just a dumb year.

Naero

10-13-2015, 05:10 AM

1992-93 Phoenix Suns.

It's easy for modern-era fans to retrospectively believe the Bulls were the best team after capping off their first three-peat of the Bulls-dominated '90s, but the fact is that they were not the collectively best team this season; they needed a herculean effort from Michael Jordan to get over the hump in the end, and a missed John Paxson three-pointer may have eventuated into an improbable Game 7 win against the raucous Phoenix crowd.

After coming off two back-to-back championship runs, the honeymoon was far from over, as teams suffer through the "hangover effect"

G0ATbe

10-13-2015, 05:23 AM

2011,14,15.

Naturally all of them had something in common.

Naero

10-13-2015, 05:39 AM

Also omitted...

2006-07 Phoenix Suns

After dispatching the Spurs in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, the only adversaries on the road to Phoenix's first NBA title was the 5th-seeded Utah Jazz, who capitalized off of the match-up against the 8th-seeded Warriors on the coattail of one of the biggest first-round upsets in NBA Playoffs history against the 67-win Mavericks, and an underwhelming, talentless Cavaliers team.

Except that it never materialized; the Suns would be ousted by the Spurs in a six-game series, and there are more than enough present-day fans around who remember why it's stigmatized as to how they did it.

Despite having trailed 1-2 against the Spurs after losing Game 3

ArbitraryWater

10-13-2015, 08:20 AM

Im not sure man, Mavs were very scary, they had epic chemistry, filled all puzzles, all players were on the same page mentally and their games were complementing eachother so beautifully on both ends of the court.... and Dirk.... oh man, i have never in my life seen something so absurdly surprising from a player.... Dirk was not even a top 20-30 player in the league that regular season or previous season (something like that).... then comes the playoffs and he is playing like he never did before, he was playing like prime Larry Bird, better than anybody, like the best player in the world, he was possessed, consistently, every single game he would close teams out in the clutch, he made Kobe, Durant & Lebron walkout in shame.... all of the sudden next season starts and Dirk is back to planet earth....

Easily one of the most impressive championship runs ive seen from a player.... i guess for every player that magical stretch happens where everything just "clicks" and that was the one for Dirks career, at the most perfect time ever...

what the **** are you talking about?

Dirk literally wasn't any different than his 2009 (peak) and 2010 self, aka top 3 player in the world.

Also omitted...

2006-07 Phoenix Suns

After dispatching the Spurs in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, the only adversaries on the road to Phoenix's first NBA title was the 5th-seeded Utah Jazz, who capitalized off of the match-up against the 8th-seeded Warriors on the coattail of one of the biggest first-round upsets in NBA Playoffs history against the 67-win Mavericks, and an underwhelming, talentless Cavaliers team.

Except that it never materialized; the Suns would be ousted by the Spurs in a six-game series, and there are more than enough present-day fans around who remember why it's stigmatized as to how they did it.

Despite having trailed 1-2 against the Spurs after losing Game 3—interestingly the last game Tim Donogahy ever officiated in the NBA, and the first thing we remember when thinking about him that year is why that came to be—the Suns reclaimed home-court advantage with a Game 4 win.

However, in the waning minutes of that game, Boris Diaw and Amare Stoudemire were suspended for the pivotal Game 5 after illegally leaving the bench during an altercation triggered by Robert Horry. The Suns narrowly lost Game 5 85-88, and thanks to a formality per NBA rules more than any effective harm, we can only theorize how the Suns' fortunes would have changed if they had their second-best player and a pivotal role-player to get over the hump.

The Spurs would capitalize on their home-court advantage as the morale of the two teams went into divergent directions after the series-swinging Game 5, and they went on to sweep the Cavaliers en route to their fourth franchise championship.

dafuq? I can't find any of this on Google... did you write all this?

guy

10-13-2015, 09:34 AM

Health and choking is part of what makes a team a team. So really, officiating issues are the only argument for why a team that won the title wasn't actually the best team.

ArbitraryWater

10-13-2015, 09:36 AM

Health and choking is part of what makes a team a team. So really, officiating issues are the only argument for why a team that won the title wasn't actually the best team.

Exactly, although I'd add the health department for one year, never seen it be more obvious than this past post-season, really.

Naero

10-13-2015, 09:43 AM

what the **** are you talking about?

Dirk literally wasn't any different than his 2009 (peak) and 2010 self, aka top 3 player in the world.

dafuq? I can't find any of this on Google... did you write all this?

Yes; it's all in my own writing. I have no shortage of verbosity when expressing my own opinions.

guy

10-13-2015, 09:47 AM

Exactly, although I'd add the health department for one year, never seen it be more obvious than this past post-season, really.

Kyrie and Love haven't been exactly the most durable players so I don't see why it's an exception. On top of that, it's not like the Cavs were definitely going to win if they were healthy. So with that being the case, it's unfair to say the Warriors weren't the best team.

ClipperRevival

10-13-2015, 10:48 AM

[QUOTE=Naero]1992-93 Phoenix Suns.

It's easy for modern-era fans to retrospectively believe the Bulls were the best team after capping off their first three-peat of the Bulls-dominated '90s, but the fact is that they were not the collectively best team this season; they needed a herculean effort from Michael Jordan to get over the hump in the end, and a missed John Paxson three-pointer may have eventuated into an improbable Game 7 win against the raucous Phoenix crowd.

After coming off two back-to-back championship runs, the honeymoon was far from over, as teams suffer through the "hangover effect"

Indian guy

10-13-2015, 11:53 AM

1992-93 Phoenix Suns.

There's simply no case for Phx being the best team of 1993. 2 teams had a better SRS in the regular season. They had a ridiculously tough time in every single series of the playoffs. Heck, they trailed 0-2 to the 41-win Lakers in the very first round! Needed 6 and 7 games to dispatch SA and Seattle, and the officiating in the latter series is generally considered very fishy in favor of Phx. In the Finals, they were frankly lucky to not get swept. Bulls won the first 2 games on the road with relative ease, lost Game 3 in triple OT and then won Game 4. They controlled every single game of that series with the exception of Game 5. Nobody who watched the Finals could've walked away thinking Phx were the superior team. And it's not even so much about MJ having a ridiculous series. He did, but 2 of Chicago's wins came with MJ averaging a ho-hum 32 ppg. It's not llike he was dropping 40+ and single handedly beating Phx in all 4 of Chicago's wins. The Bulls were simply the much more rounded team. 1993 Suns could score like no one, yeah, but they couldn't guard a chair. They were in same mold as the '05/'07 Suns.

ClipperRevival

10-13-2015, 12:36 PM

There's simply no case for Phx being the best team of 1993. 2 teams had a better SRS in the regular season. They had a ridiculously tough time in every single series of the playoffs. Heck, they trailed 0-2 to the 41-win Lakers in the very first round! Needed 6 and 7 games to dispatch SA and Seattle, and the officiating in the latter series is generally considered very fishy in favor of Phx. In the Finals, they were frankly lucky to not get swept. Bulls won the first 2 games on the road with relative ease, lost Game 3 in triple OT and then won Game 4. They controlled every single game of that series with the exception of Game 5. Nobody who watched the Finals could've walked away thinking Phx were the superior team. And it's not even so much about MJ having a ridiculous series. He did, but 2 of Chicago's wins came with MJ averaging a ho-hum 32 ppg. It's not llike he was dropping 40+ and single handedly beating Phx in all 4 of Chicago's wins. The Bulls were simply the much more rounded team. 1993 Suns could score like no one, yeah, but they couldn't guard a chair. They were in same mold as the '05/'07 Suns.

Just because a team struggled somewhat in the playoffs doesn't mean they weren't a great team. Like the 1988 Lakers or the 2008 Celtics struggled mightily to get to the finals, doesn't take away from what they were as a team. The realistic outcome is that if MJ isn't as efficient as he was averaging 41.0 ppg, there is a chance Phoenix wins the series because they were a deeper team and had HCA. The Bulls were one Paxson shot away from playing 7 game at Phoenix.

Indian guy

10-13-2015, 01:38 PM

Just because a team struggled somewhat in the playoffs doesn't mean they weren't a great team.

I didn't say they weren't a great team, just that they weren't the best team.

The realistic outcome is that if MJ isn't as efficient as he was averaging 41.0 ppg

That's the point. They couldn't stop MJ from being as efficient as he was because, you know, they simply weren't good enough. He was coming from a series against NY where he barely shot 40%. He shot 12% better than that in the Finals. Phx simply wasn't capable of playing much D and average defensive teams NEVER win the championship. They were no different than the mid to late 2000's Suns.

The Bulls were one Paxson shot away from playing 7 game at Phoenix.

Or 1 made or missed basket away in that triple-OT game from sweeping the whole series. Again, Bulls handily won the first 2 games on the road, controlled 5 of the 6 games in the series and MJ scored in the low 30's in 2 of Chicago's wins. There's no argument for Phx being the better team.

ArbitraryWater

10-13-2015, 02:09 PM

The 1993 Suns argument is a decent one. They did win 5 more games than the Bulls in the reg. season. And yeah, the Bulls needed almost every one of MJ's 41.0 ppg in the finals to get over them. An amazing performance considering that he shot over 50%.

Many thought the Suns had a great chance at beating the Bulls. They had the best record in the NBA, had the MVP in Barkley and a ton of supporting talent in KJ, Majerle, Ainge, Ceballos, Dumas and Chambers. They were an offensive jaggernaut.

None of this should even be mentioned in this thread.. y'all get an F for missing the topic.