Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Wonder if the warriors will keep Livingston? He was a big reason why the warriors won also since he helped maintain or increase their leads.
Livingston and Iggy are the keys to the Warriors this offseason. If they both walk, the chances of the Warriors finding good two-way ringchaser players who aren't over the hill are rare.
Livingston and Iggy are the keys to the Warriors this offseason. If they both walk, the chances of the Warriors finding good two-way ringchaser players who aren't over the hill are rare.
The Cavs didn't have anyone who could come off the bench and knock down shots like Livingston which is why they need to revamp the bench.
I think it's too late for fancy footwork. That stuff takes a lot of time to master. Things could get really ugly when Lebron loses a little off his first step.
Here's one more thing I'll say that no one has raised before: KD has become a better basketball player while Lebron has not.
I always said the one thing holding KD back from being a Top 10 player would be his decision-making/passing. Think back to that regular season OKC/GSW matchup where he threw a dumb pass that resulted in a TO and then fouled Iguodala at the end of regulation. As brilliant a scorer as he was, if you brought enough pressure on double teams, you could force him into making some really bad decisions. I believe he also had some costly TOs in Game 6 of the WCF, which the Warriors went on to win.
That KD appears to be gone. He was making some dumb mistakes in the beginning of the season, but he almost always makes the correct decision with the basketball now. He's excellent at finding the open man when the double team comes and he made some difficult, terrific passes during the Finals. The scary part is that he's still improving.
Now let's turn to Lebron. I love the guy. He's everything coaches tell you a player should be. However, I have not seen him improve any dimension of his game in any significant way, at least not in a way that's lasted. He became a very respectable mid range/post up shooter in Miami, but he's since regressed to rookie year levels. His offensive options today are (a) drive to the basket as hard as he can and finish or (b) shoot a 3 pointer. There's no guile or craftiness to his game at all despite having one of the highest basketball IQs ever.
So maybe Lebron needs to spend some time at his L.A. residence with Kobe and learn the art of the post game. That aspect of his game did improve a bit when he worked with Olajuwon, so maybe Kobe can help get it back on track.
Great players often don't age well. They stick to the same things too long. Tim Duncan and Ray Allen are recent exceptions. Tim started out as a high post face up player next to Robinson. When Robinson retired Tim moved to the low post for a good decade as a back to the basket center. The last several years saw Tim evolve again into an off ball high pick and roll player.
This did a couple of positive things for Duncan. Getting off the block was easier on him physically. It also allowed the team to change their offensive strategy as he was no longer holding the ball in the post. This led to other players becoming more effective and Tim not having to shoulder so much responsibility. And it extended his career.
LeBron has played mostly the same way for 14 years. Putting your head down and bullying to the rim is unstoppable when you are 22 years old with his gifts. But at 32 and with his mileage that same style of play requires too much energy. Thing is LeBron insists on playing that way. He wants the ball in his hands. And he wants to be the focal point of the attack. But the responsibility that requires is wearing him down.
Kyrie outshot Steph but Steph outplayed him everywhere else. Kyrie gets up for Steph and the Warriors, but he's not nearly in Curry's class. Steph is the best point in the game. Kyrie may be #5, #4 at best...
And we all know Dray is a better player than Love. Love played well for the most part, though, and I think they mostly canceled each other out. The biggest differences are the Warriors were the far superior defensive team and had the far superior bench. Those are what Cleveland must seek to improve above anything this offseason...
Kyrie outshot Steph but Steph outplayed him everywhere else. Kyrie gets up for Steph and the Warriors, but he's not nearly in Curry's class. Steph is the best point in the game. Kyrie may be #5, #4 at best...
And we all know Dray is a better player than Love. Love played well for the most part, though, and I think they mostly canceled each other out. The biggest differences are the Warriors were the far superior defensive team and had the far superior bench. Those are what Cleveland must seek to improve above anything this offseason...
Kyrie had one horrible game and that was game 2. And KLove basically outplayed Dray.
Great players often don't age well. They stick to the same things too long. Tim Duncan and Ray Allen are recent exceptions. Tim started out as a high post face up player next to Robinson. When Robinson retired Tim moved to the low post for a good decade as a back to the basket center. The last several years saw Tim evolve again into an off ball high pick and roll player.
This did a couple of positive things for Duncan. Getting off the block was easier on him physically. It also allowed the team to change their offensive strategy as he was no longer holding the ball in the post. This led to other players becoming more effective and Tim not having to shoulder so much responsibility. And it extended his career.
LeBron has played mostly the same way for 14 years. Putting your head down and bullying to the rim is unstoppable when you are 22 years old with his gifts. But at 32 and with his mileage that same style of play requires too much energy. Thing is LeBron insists on playing that way. He wants the ball in his hands. And he wants to be the focal point of the attack. But the responsibility that requires is wearing him down.
He was quicker and little more nimble but what advantage he lost there he picked up in strength which at this point is overwhelming. He's had some tough covers in the past, Jae Crowder played Lebron admirably well a few years ago this year Lebron overwhelmed Jae
Kyrie outshot Steph but Steph outplayed him everywhere else... The biggest differences are the Warriors were the far superior defensive team and had the far superior bench. Those are what Cleveland must seek to improve above anything this off season...
Agree, agree.
Steph had a lot more defensive attention directed his way too.
Basically, Kyrie was single covered by Thompson, with little to no help coming when Kyrie beat him.
I don't see the Cavs trading off any of their starters, but they really need to get some quality help coming from the bench. Frye must be in the dog house, and on his way out, after languishing on the bench during the finals.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
