Imagine the huge failure if OKC loses to a +500 underdog, yet Lebron did in 09' & 10

[3ba11]

I know you’ve said this a couple time now, no doubt dying for a response so I’ll bite…

…I applaud your trolling effort on that one

I'm sure OKC could manage for part of a regular season without Jaylen, but no one would expect them to make it through the playoffs without him - they would be big underdogs to any serious title contender due to this lack of firepower.

So the Magic had the injury excuse but still won the 09' ECF.. This is like the Cavs missing Kyrie but still winning the 15' Finals....Oh wait, that's exactly what happened minus the winning part..., So Lebron choked in the 09' ECF, 10' ECSF, 11' Finals, and 07' Finals (22 on 35% with 6 TO's).. These chokes forced the "decision" to stack the deck, so his choking is cemented in history - he's the goat choker because his choking forced him to scurry away and form super-teams

[3ba11]

+2000 preseason odds too. You’d think with Dwight, Lewis, Hedo and a super star like Jameer Nelson they would have seen a little more love there.

2015 Warriors were +2800

Another non-point by you.

This entire derail is a non-point

It kills any team in the playoffs to miss their star guard, so the Magic were big underdogs

In addition to the injury, the 2nd part is that Lebron/Zydrunas could only make the Cavs a 45-50 win team on their own from 06-08'... They needed another all-star in Mo Williams to be a true contender - so they were a legit 60-win team - it wasn't all Lebron.. Mo joined a 45-win team in 2009, even though they had top defenses, a 2x all-star center and great coaching..

Essentially, the Magic were big underdogs because they were injured and facing a 6th year organic juggernaut

[ShawkFactory]

I'm sure OKC could manage for part of a regular season without Jaylen, but no one would expect them to make it through the playoffs without him - they would be big underdogs to any serious title contender due to this lack of firepower.

So the Magic had the injury excuse but still won the 09' ECF.. This is like the Cavs missing Kyrie but still winning the 15' Finals....Oh wait, that's exactly what happened minus the winning part..., So Lebron choked in the 09' ECF, 10' ECSF, 11' Finals, and 07' Finals (22 on 35% with 6 TO's).. These chokes forced the "decision" to stack the deck, so his choking is cemented in history - he's the goat choker because his choking forced him to scurry away and form super-teams

If they replaced Jalen with a similar but still lesser player like Tyler Herro? Yea they’d still be favorites.

[3ba11]

If they replaced Jalen with a similar but still lesser player like Tyler Herro? Yea they’d still be favorites.

Jaylen and Herro are all-stars, while Rafer was a journeyman bench player.. So no..

Btw, OKC would still be in trouble with Herro in Jaylen's place, but at least they wouldn't be +500 underdogs like the odds Rafer gives teams like the 09' Magic... That's what happens when a contender replaces their all-star closer with a journeyman bench player and street baller.. And we're talking about a 58 win team, not 68 like OKC.

And similar to Lebron's recent losses to the Nuggets and T'Wolves, Lebron massively choked down the stretch of every loss to the Magic.. Aside from bed-wettings in the 07' Finals and 08' ECSF, this was his first big choke - it started with 7 TO's in the 4th/OT of Game 4, which swung the series.. He was horrific in the clutch by losing 3 fourth quarter leads, while also having the defensive blunder by guarding Lee instead of Hedo.. And he's too ball-dominant at 38 PPG to beat top teams.

[ShawkFactory]

Okay..replace Herro there with OG Anouby.

[3ba11]

Okay..replace Herro there with OG Anouby.

You keep choosing decorated starters..

It would be like replacing Jaylen Williams with Bruce Brown or any bench player journeyman like Divencencio or something... They could still do okay for part of the regular season, but no one would think they have a chance in the playoffs

[ShawkFactory]

You keep choosing decorated starters..

It would be like replacing Jaylen Williams with Bruce Brown or any bench player journeyman.. They could still get hot in regular season, but no one would think they have a chance in the playoffs

I do keep choosing decorated starters, as that's what Rafer was.

[Phoenix]

Lol.

[k0kakw0rld]

This idiot can not stop thinking about LeBron. Who's not even in the playoffs right now. Your life is pathetic

[Lakers Legend#32]

The NBA cannot allow little bum**** OKC to have the title.

It would be too embarrassing for the league.

[3ba11]

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Thread Cliffs


Lebron never "ruled the East" because he was embarrassed twice as an OKC-level favorite in 09' and 10', which forced him to put the top 3 players in the conference on 1 team (the "decision").. Somehow he got props for winning the conference after that.

This "decision" created a record 6 straight preseason favorites from 11' to 16' (previous high was 3), and a sidekick to outplay the league MVP... These unprecedented advantages required another unprecedented advantage to overcome it (KD's), but Lebron's advantage lasted twice as long (11-16' vs 17-19').