Upgrade to enjoy this feature!
Vital MX fantasy is free to play, but Premium users receive great benefits. Premium benefits include:
- View and download rider stats
- Pick trends
- Create a private league
- And more!
Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
---
I never said D-Fish carried a team on his back. I simply said he was the leader. He controlled the locker room and was the general on the court. Without him the team was in chaos. Without Kobe in the lineup the Lakers have always had a better winning percentage than with him. You can see the level of team play and all around effort improve dramatically when Kobe is out for any amount of games. As good as an "individual" as he has been, Ive always felt they won in spite of him. He always seemed out of place and against the grain to me.
And yes, youre right, his personality did play a factor in that. He's basically an Italian kid.
---
As for Durant, yes "could have been" better than Pippen. His career is far from over but history has shown me that guys who lack the stuff he does, dont just magically figure it out after time in the NBA. They become really great role-players instead of dominant team leaders. Chris Bosh is a good example and to be honest, so is Lebron. Ive watched Lebron closely since day one and he's still making the same mistakes he always did. There are things he just doesnt get. Things that arent pre-programmed into his game. Do you honestly think Lebron's game has really grown that much in 8 years? I dont. I still see the same player I always did. And I believe the same about Durant. Their isnt any growth whereas with Westbrook and Harden, both are noticeably better players than they were their rookie years.
You gotta remember, that year we (the Sonics) were going to draft Durant in the lottery, it was pretty much a forgone conclusion so us Sonics fans watched all of his games at Texas in his one season in the same way the Colts fans probably all watched Andrew Luck this past college football season.
Look at your boy Steve Nash. He understands the game from top to bottom. You cant tell me Durant is anywhere on that level of basketball knowledge. And you also cant tell me that Nash picked up his IQ over time. He was that smart pretty much from the start when playing behind Jason Kidd (another very smart player). Guys like Bird, Magic, and Hakeem didnt play the same position but they understood the game from day one due to their college experiences and thus were able to hit the ground running as they entered the NBA. Do you honestly think, after what we've seen in Durant's career thus far, that he will ever reach those levels of the guys I mentioned?
---
Of course Pippen doesnt win the 6 rings without Jordan. But Im not giving Pippen credit for teh 6 rings either. What I am giving him credit for is that he is one of the top small forwards to ever play the game. Easily in the top 5 all-time I'd think, maybe higher. He did everything. His defense was impeccable. He could shoot the 3. His shot selection was excellent. He could run the floor with the best of them. And he understood the game from every level.
Durant will never play D like Scottie did and will never have the judgement in shot selection.
IMO, both Westbrook and Harden are the more important players on the Thunder. And it should not be that way. Durant has all the skills and physical traits that should make him the best player on any team he plays for.
Same goes for the Heat. Both Lebron and Bosh should be better than D-Wade. But Wade is a better all around player than either of them and that wont ever change. This series shouldnt even be close, Miami should win it. But due to the overwhelmingly high bball IQ of Durant's supporting cast I dont see how the Thunder lose this series unless good ol David Stern gets involved.
OKC has the better coach (not that I think Spolstra sucks, he just doesnt get any respect from his players so his coaching is not effective at all), the better point guard, the better post players, a deeper bench, and a team that is every bit as athletic as Miami. Take away Miami's athletic dominance and they have nothing else to fall back on.
There is absolutely no shame whatsoever in getting beat by the greatest competitor of all time. I dont hold it against the Pacers, Knicks, Jazz, or Blazers. All of those teams were GREAT teams, including your Barkley led Suns, they just happened to go up against MJ.
When my Sonics finally made the Finals in '96, I didnt even watch the series. I was so happy we'd finally done it that it felt like a championship. I never expected to beat MJ. Though, we might have been able too had George Karl not made a major coaching blunder and let Gary Payton guard Jordan the entire series instead of just games 4 and 5 (which we won).
In the two games that Payton guarded him, Jordan has the two worst games in his Finals career. The Glove was a hell of a defender and probably the 2nd best trash talker of all time (behind Jordan himself).
I loved George Karl though and dont hold a grudge.
Great game—dang you can’t count the Thunder out till the buzzer goes off.
They can’t keep digging a hole like that and yea that was a foul Lebron did to Durant, but that’s BB—calls missed and some phantom calls made, part of the game.
I'm pulling for the Heat. I hope James gets his championship. He's been playing great ball, as others on the team have too. The coach is kind of a joke, but, eh, whatever.
Thunder are young. They'll be back next year. Harden and his beard crack me up, though....
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
Lebron did make contact with Durant's body but did not interfere with his arms or shooting motion. That combined with the baseline ref being out of position led to the no call IMO. And Durant was somewhat fortunate to still be in the game because it looked like he committed a charge on Battier that went uncalled minutes earlier which would have foul #6 for him.
I'm pulling for the Heat. I hope James gets his championship. He's been playing great ball, as others on the team have too. The coach is kind of a joke, but, eh, whatever.
x2
The more that the Boston fans "boo'ed" LeBron, the more I started rooting for him. He has been left at the altar twice already, he is ready to get his ring. The Thunder have a VERY young team, and will be back.
It is not that I don't want them to win, because they are a great team, but James deserves to get that monkey off his back.
I'm pulling for the Heat now... It's bad enough he acts like a child on the court.
Pit Row
Post a reply to: NBA Finals