Are the 25' Pacers winning equivalent to a Steve Smith led team winning in the 90s?

[L.Kizzle]

I'm trying to think of a better comparison in the 90s and that's the best I could come up with.

The mid-90s Atlanta Hawks winning the championship would have flipped the NBA world upside down.

[3ba11]

What a great comparison - Hali to Smith

Steve Smith dunking all over MJ

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bAfOvq...a3Mgb24gbWo%3D

[tpols]

Would've been more like if Reggies pacers won championship. But the MJ Bulls and Shaq Kobe Lakers are much tougher competition than this Thunder team. And those teams were who prevented it from happening.

[gengiskhan]

evuivalent to late 80s, early 90s, Nique Led HAWKS winning ring.

Nique
Doc
Webb
Willis
Rolins
Levingston
Blaylock
Plastic Man

They had that all time great amazing HAWKS uniform.

this IND winning is like that 1988 - 1993 HAWKS winning ring.

[Real Men Wear Green]

Haliburton is hard to rate. A month ago if you say he's definitely not a superstar there wouldn't be much argument but the clutch shots he's hit put him up there and he gets an unquantifiable bonus for hitting the Reggie Miller choke gesture in Game 1 vs NY. No basketball fan living today will ever forget that moment. Regular season comparison to Steve Smith isn't off especially if you account for the bigger numbers of similar level players in the game now vs then. But there is an important difference: Smith was a shooting guard with an exceptional handle. He could play point guard but that wasn't what he really was. Haliburton is a true pg, pass first and getting a lot more assists. I'm not sure there is a better comparison for Haliburton though. Only guy I'm thinking of is Penny but Penny was a lot more athletic.

Does anyone think Haliburton would be much better if he lifted weights? Normally I would say yes but it might damage his shooting and as a point guard he's in little danger of being muscled.

[RRR3]

Haliburton is like a taller John Stockton on offense maybe at least stat wise.

[Phoenix]

Not a bad comparison. Funny enough you could kind of say the same thing about the Pacers from the mid 90s, mid 2000s, or mid 2010s. Seems like once every midpoint of a decade they show up as a threat.

[90sgoat]

Huh, no Hali is definitely better than Steve Smit.

Maybe someone like Ray Allen or Glen Rice in their peaks.

[Phoenix]

Huh, no Hali is definitely better than Steve Smit.

Maybe someone like Ray Allen or Glen Rice in their peaks.

I don't think that's the point of the thread. It's more like which unheralded 'star but not quite superstar' would lead a 'very good but not quite elite' team to an unlikely title, analogous to this years Pacers team if they end up winning.

[ArbitraryWater]

Would've been more like if Reggies pacers won championship. But the MJ Bulls and Shaq Kobe Lakers are much tougher competition than this Thunder team. And those teams were who prevented it from happening.

Def not the 2000 lakers

[tpols]

Def not the 2000 lakers

Oh yea...

Shaq would've made mince meat out of hartenstein and 125 lb Chet. Ground beef. And Kobe as well vs skinny faggy SGA, Jalen who?, and tough guy Lou Dork.



LA had "other guys" who could space too. But the advantage inside and athletically would've been totally overwhelming.

[90sgoat]

I don't think that's the point of the thread. It's more like which unheralded 'star but not quite superstar' would lead a 'very good but not quite elite' team to an unlikely title, analogous to this years Pacers team if they end up winning.

Yeah thats why I mentioned Ray Allen or Glen Rice, players who could light it up and were at their best good enough to be the main guy on a championship team.

[ShawkFactory]

Oh yea...

Shaq would've made mince meat out of hartenstein and 125 lb Chet. Ground beef. And Kobe as well vs skinny faggy SGA, Jalen who?, and tough guy Lou Dork.



LA had "other guys" who could space too. But the advantage inside and athletically would've been totally overwhelming.

Who's Shaq gonna guard? Chase Chet around the perimeter? He'd tire quickly.

[tpols]

Who's Shaq gonna guard? Chase Chet around the perimeter? He'd tire quickly.

He could guard hartenstein easily.

Chets shooting 10% from 3 right now. Hes not exactly a dynamo. Hed probably get hurt in the paint with Shaq swinging his body and elbows around tbh if he tried for blocks.

[plowking]

No.

Role players are even more important now than superstars.

The 3 pointer has completely changed the weight of importance of players in a team. Big leads are no longer safe because of it, and role players are far more important. Much harder to have sustained excellence and winning in this era. Don't think we'll see a proper dynasty for a while until someone builds a new optimal method to counter the current.