Diprosalic
Banned
I agree that curry, kd and bron are top 3 but he's the clear no. 4. Ranking WB or Harden over him is insane.
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NBA Regular Season 2017-18 |OT| KD's chip, IT's hip, LeBron's Sinking Ship
- Thread starter Cornbread78
- Start date
I agree that curry, kd and bron are top 3 but he's the clear no. 4. Ranking WB or Harden over him is insane.
Cornbread78
Member
Yeah:
Bron
KD
Curry
Westbrook
Kawhi
Harden
Davis
It gets real cloudy right around here.....
FullMetalx117
Member
Kawhi is probably number 2. Watching him play is so...elegant? Hard to describe. I still believe that Kawhi could have won at least 2 games for the spurs against the warriors this past year.
1. Lebron
2. Kawhi (silent assassin)
3. KD
4.Curry
5. Harden
6. Westbrook
7. Davis
8. KAT
9. Giannis
10. Paul
1. Lebron
2. Kawhi (silent assassin)
3. KD
4.Curry
5. Harden
6. Westbrook
7. Davis
8. KAT
9. Giannis
10. Paul
Yes...a better sport indeed. Only the finest of sports are those which end up with most of their players dead by 55. Truly, the best game.
I hear Warren Sapp is doing terrifically these days.
(Sorry I'll stop. Best sport in the world, etc.)
On the NBA front - I can't believe the season is finally here. That off season was insane, but felt longer than usual. I'll be tuning in to the Cavs-Celtics tonight for an early look at the 2 teams my Raptors will be ignored by the media for this season.
Shmeagatory94
Member
I'd go
1. Lebron
2. KD
3. Kawhi
4. Curry
5. Westbrook
6. Harden
7. Kyrie
8. AD
then Im not sure who number 9 and 10 are.
1. Lebron
2. KD
3. Kawhi
4. Curry
5. Westbrook
6. Harden
7. Kyrie
8. AD
then Im not sure who number 9 and 10 are.
mordecaii83
Member
Curry gets dinged for not being as tall and long as LBJ, Kawhi, and KD. But for his position he's actually solid on defense.
The thing is he has such a huge effect on offense that it still puts him in contention for top 3, and I would personally rate him above KD. LBJ is the only other person in the NBA that teams will absolutely sell out to stop to a similar extent, and I'd argue they go even further when it comes to Curry. He warps the other team's defense and creates open looks for his team just by being on the floor.
Dreams-Visions
Member
Today is the day, brehs!
GO CAV
GO CAV
Hyperactivity
Banned
#FreeHitta?
That immediate underclass is CP3, Wall, Giannis, and AD imo. Superstar imo means your team is a getting into the playoffs no matter what. It's arguable that CP3 is still with the bottom of the top 6, depends on the time of day, and whatever other factors matter to you there.
On Kawhi though - it's not about his one game against Golden State. He didn't have a bad game the entire fucking playoffs.
In previous years I was really skeptical about his ability to truly become the guy on offense. He averaged 27.7/7.8/4.6/1.7/0.5.
What was more ridiculous was his fucking shooting percentages. 52.5/45.5/93.1 splits (4.6 3PA, 8.5 FTA).
His overall TS% for the playoffs was 67.2%.
There literally wasn't a spot on the floor Kawhi couldn't score from. It was fucking ridiculous.
Curry is solid, Kawhi is a perennial DPOY candidate.
Peter Ian Staker
Member
Curry is a much better scorer and playmaker than Kawhi.
Even if his defense is just average for his position that easily puts him above Kawhi.
friskykillface
Banned
🐐ward
LeBron
KD
Steph
The rest
Hayward is lucky Kyrie is there, guy seems pretty shook x meh so far this pre season
LeBron
KD
Steph
The rest
Hayward is lucky Kyrie is there, guy seems pretty shook x meh so far this pre season
mordecaii83
Member
Absolutely, and Kawhi has much less impact than Curry has on offense, which is my point.
I think Westbrook could easily be 4th over Kawhi.
Defense is less important than offense since good offense beats good defense. Not to mention Curry is decent on defense anyways.
True Savior
Member
Kawhi is good but you only need intercontinental champion Zaza, the people's player, to take him out of the game.
kaiju
Member
I was on ESPN this morning and this is the first thing I saw
Harden has a big fucking head.
Giving the voodoo magic to Kyrie tonight, him and his gang are going to expose the old geezers. Glad the process is back.
Beards tend to cause this perception.
While true, it's also possible to be such a dominating offensive force that it overshadows your defensive liabilities.
slightconfuse
Banned
nah
Cornbread78
Member
and the Lakers
Both can be true.
Take my OKC. Andre Roberson....hes probably one of the best defensive players right now. Top 3 easily. He holds Harden down hard. I think one game Harden was 3 of 18 woth Andre on him.
But he has no confidence in his offense and is TERRIBLE at free throws and below average at most on 3 points.
Does him holding the other teams best or top offensive or play maker to bad shooting negate his terrible offense or when they start hacking him?
Its a conundrum. But this year we have Melo Russ and PG13 so they dont need him for offense.
Its tough. I dont get why he cant makre free throws
dragonyeuw
Member
Scottie Pippen was a better two way player than Magic, but no-one in their right mind would say he was a better player in general. It is possible to be so prolific on one side of the ball that it compensates for the other, especially in a 3point happy league where Curry's king. So yes, the sum of Kawhi's game is greater including defense but Curry's marksmanship combined with elite shooters around him is too valuable to not be at worst a top 3 player. A team's defense is not typically geared to stretch out 25 feet to account for a guy who can hit from that range with volume and efficiency.
Why doesn't Klay make any of y'alls lists?
He's very good on defense
He's deadly from anywhere on the floor
He's got good size and endurance, moves a lot and doesn't seem to get tired
The only areas I see him possibly lacking are ball handling and maybe passing? Not really because he sucks at those things but because those aren't things he's needed to do at GSW.
He's very good on defense
He's deadly from anywhere on the floor
He's got good size and endurance, moves a lot and doesn't seem to get tired
The only areas I see him possibly lacking are ball handling and maybe passing? Not really because he sucks at those things but because those aren't things he's needed to do at GSW.
Latvian Hitman
Member
Lol. Nobody pays attention to boring stuff like that.
klay's more of a top 15-20 guy
mordecaii83
Member
Klay's great but he really struggles creating for himself. That plus he has a habit of missing too many layups.
He fits perfectly on the Warriors, but I'm not sure he'd have quite the same impact on other teams. Top 20 is about right.Stabby McSter
Member
china klay the real number 1
Curry's offense is once in a generation level. There's a reason why the supposed to be jump shooting team has won two chips when that has not worked in the past. Kawhi isn't even the best defender right now.
Boombloxer
Member
In one to two years, yes, Lakers will be the better LA team. This isn't that much of a stretch. I expect the Clips to fall off pretty hard the next year or so, CP3 was everything to that team. 4 years 😂.
Which is fine, cause this Warriors run isn't ending for a few years.
And I think Klay is underrated because he doesn't need to do a lot of those things that the others do because he has so much around him. Dude scored 60 on 11 dribbles. If he was on another team and asked to take 20-25 shots per night, he'd be a top 5 scorer and probably their best defender.
But since he has one of the greatest scorer's in history on one side, and the best 3 point artist in history on the other, along with the leagues best all around defender...easy to overlook. Dude is the top grade Audi in a land of Bentleys and Ferraris.
I'm pretty surprised they're really starting Tatum. Trial by fire.
Such an athletic, skilled lineup though.
johancruijff
Banned
what about the Cavs?
Rose
Wade
Crowder
LBJ
Love
?
Rose
Wade
Crowder
LBJ
Love
?
that's pretty much how it is still
the mark of a team that can make a run in the playoffs is being top 10 in offense and defense
golden state was 1st in defense last season and they won a chip
cleveland was 9th in defense for 2015/16 and they won a chip
golden state was 1st in defense for 2014/15 and they won a chip
spurs were 3rd in defense for 2013/14 and they won a chip
miami was 7th in defense for 2012/13 and they won a chip
miami was 4th in defense for 2011/12 and they won a chip
mavs were 9th in defense for 2010/11 and they won a chip
lakers were 6th in defense for 2009/10 and they won a chip
lakers were 4th in defense for 2008/09 and they won a chip
celtics were 1st in defense for 2007/08 and they won a chip
etc.
dragonyeuw
Member
I think most people recognize him as a complimentary star, basically a perfect fit for Golden's offense. He's not a guy whose going to be your lead option on a contender. And, he's really not much of a ballhandler or passer. No, those skills aren't needed from him on the Warriors but they aren't parts of his game that could be utilized elsewhere.
Shamrock7r
Member
Also the term "great offense beats great defense" rings true for the most part but elite defensive players like Kawhi transcends that. There are maybe only 2 or 3 players that can make that claim.
Latvian Hitman
Member
It really doesn't, though. Not in the real season. You know, the one that starts in April.
Yep. Even the seeming outliers, like the 2015 Cavs or 2010 Mavs really ratcheted up their D in the postseason. GSW would not have won their first title in 14/15 without playing some tremendous D. Both Memphis and Cleveland bogged them down offensively in a major way during that run.
now this is doing it
Hope rebounding doesn't remain a mess...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vmul3FvGPPo
This is the best basketball related video ive ever seen. Fucking shivers down my spine...
This is the best basketball related video ive ever seen. Fucking shivers down my spine...
Cornbread78
Member
yeah, that line-up looks like lots of fun, but they will need "all of Australia" to show up and battle Thompson on the boards, or else it could be a long night....
XiaNaphryz
LATIN, MATRIPEDICABUS, DO YOU SPEAK IT
Dreams-Visions
Member
I continue to worry about live sports becoming more and more inaccessible to low and average income people. Even baseball tickets are getting up there.
mordecaii83
Member
It's fine unless you want to watch the Warriors (and Cavs to a slightly lesser extent).