What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important

Moderators: Domejandro, infinite11285, Harry Garris, ken6199, Dirk, bisme37, KingDavid, bwgood77, zimpy27, cupcakesnake

What was your favorite NBA Era

1980 - 1988 Bird vs. Magic Golden Era
14
15%
1989 - 1998 Jordan Era
35
37%
1999 - 2007 Shaq vs. Duncan Era
22
23%
2008 - 2016 Modern Era
24
25%
 
Total votes: 95

Wigginstime
Sixth Man
Posts: 1,794
And1: 2,453
Joined: May 06, 2006

What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#1 » by Wigginstime » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:29 pm

Since the NBA/ABA merger in 1976, the NBA has been defined by 4 core eras:
1980 - 1988 Bird vs. Magic Golden Era
1989 - 1998 Jordan Era
1999 - 2007 Shaq vs Duncan Era
2008 - 2016 Modern Era

Currently the NBA has an all time high focus on parity. This seems interesting given the NBA is at an all time high in terms of parity. I am curious to see the correlation between how people view the quality of NBA basketball vs. the actual amount of parity in the league when you consider the results of the eras were:

Bird vs Magic aka “The Golden Era” (1980 – 1988)
Lakers and Celtics win 8 of 9 championships

The Jordan Era (1889 – 1998)
Bad Boy Pistons win 2
Hakeem rockets win 2
Jordan Bulls win 6

Shaq vs Duncan Era (1999 – 2007)
Lakers and Spurs win 7 of 9 championships.
Shaq wins another with Miami

Modern Era (2008 – 2016)
7 different teams win championships in 9 year period. Only teams to win more than once are Lakers and Heat at 2x each. No other time in history has this many different teams won the championship in the period of a decade.
User avatar
RCM88x
RealGM
Posts: 14,972
And1: 18,959
Joined: May 31, 2015
Location: Lebron Ball
     

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#2 » by RCM88x » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:39 pm

People say they want Parity and but would probably select the 80's or Jordan era as their favorites...
Image

LookToShoot wrote:Melo is the only player that makes the Rockets watchable for the basketball purists. Otherwise it would just be three point shots and pick n roll.
Statlanta
RealGM
Posts: 12,407
And1: 9,056
Joined: Mar 06, 2016

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#3 » by Statlanta » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:45 pm

Shaq v. Duncan because it's the one I grew up with.
Not a lot of parity but I like the stars and the contrast of personalities and style(talent based dynasty in big market vs. skill based dynasty in a small market). It also has the peak of the most aesthetically pleasing offense(7 seconds or less) imo and the start of the 3pt era with great defensive teams. I idolized some of the iso chuckers because I was young, they were on my team(Hill, McGrady, Francis) and they adapted to the defensive rule changes in unique ways.

I don't care about parity much and basically shrug at Durant's decision due to the abudance of entertaining young talent around the league today
East #1 Draft Picks: Fultz, Banchero, Wiggins, Cuninigham
West #1 Draft Picks: Edwards, WIlliamson, Ayton, Towns
improper
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,521
And1: 4,405
Joined: May 23, 2014
     

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#4 » by improper » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:45 pm

RCM88x wrote:People say they want Parity and but would probably select the 80's or Jordan era as their favorites...


The NBA will never have parity like the NFL simply because of how much of a difference one transcendent player can make. In the NFL, one guy, even an elite quarterback, still needs good players to catch his passes, block for him, run the ball well, etc. Not to mention a defense that can stop the other team and keep him off the field long enough to get a breather. In the NBA, one top five player can totally change a franchise. In the NBA, LeBron James could join the worst team in the East and they'd be instant favorites to make it to the Finals.

That said, the NBA could, and should, make steps to increase the league's parity. A hard cap would be a nice starting point, as it would effectively neuter the ability to team up more than two stars together. You'd still have a handful of great teams, but the rest of the teams in the league would have more of a shot to get a star simply because having three max guys on a team would no longer be feasible. I'd also like to see some sort of rule that gives small markets more leverage in keeping their star players. I'm not talking about a franchise tag, but maybe an exception that allows a drafted star to be paid significantly more than their actual cap hit.
Statlanta
RealGM
Posts: 12,407
And1: 9,056
Joined: Mar 06, 2016

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#5 » by Statlanta » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:48 pm

improper wrote:The NBA will never have parity like the NFL simply because of how much of a difference one transcendent player can make. In the NFL, one guy, even an elite quarterback, still needs good players to catch his passes, block for him, run the ball well, etc. Not to mention a defense that can stop the other team and keep him off the field long enough to get a breather. In the NBA, one top five player can totally change a franchise. In the NBA, LeBron James could join the worst team in the East and they'd be instant favorites to make it to the Finals.

That said, the NBA could, and should, make steps to increase the league's parity. A hard cap would be a nice starting point, as it would effectively neuter the ability to team up more than two stars together. You'd still have a handful of great teams, but the rest of the teams in the league would have more of a shot to get a star simply because having three max guys on a team would no longer be feasible. I'd also like to see some sort of rule that gives small markets more leverage in keeping their star players. I'm not talking about a franchise tag, but maybe an exception that allows a drafted star to be paid significantly more than their actual cap hit.


How about applying Bird Rights only to extensions and/or giving a higher max for hometown teams?
East #1 Draft Picks: Fultz, Banchero, Wiggins, Cuninigham
West #1 Draft Picks: Edwards, WIlliamson, Ayton, Towns
improper
Lead Assistant
Posts: 5,521
And1: 4,405
Joined: May 23, 2014
     

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#6 » by improper » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:52 pm

OrlandoTill wrote:
improper wrote:The NBA will never have parity like the NFL simply because of how much of a difference one transcendent player can make. In the NFL, one guy, even an elite quarterback, still needs good players to catch his passes, block for him, run the ball well, etc. Not to mention a defense that can stop the other team and keep him off the field long enough to get a breather. In the NBA, one top five player can totally change a franchise. In the NBA, LeBron James could join the worst team in the East and they'd be instant favorites to make it to the Finals.

That said, the NBA could, and should, make steps to increase the league's parity. A hard cap would be a nice starting point, as it would effectively neuter the ability to team up more than two stars together. You'd still have a handful of great teams, but the rest of the teams in the league would have more of a shot to get a star simply because having three max guys on a team would no longer be feasible. I'd also like to see some sort of rule that gives small markets more leverage in keeping their star players. I'm not talking about a franchise tag, but maybe an exception that allows a drafted star to be paid significantly more than their actual cap hit.


How about applying Bird Rights only to extensions and/or giving a higher max for hometown teams?


My thought would be to allow a team to "franchise" a guy by paying him 50% of the cap, but only absorbing a 30% (or whatever the player's normal max would be) cap hit. Stipulate that you can only do that to a guy who was drafted by your franchise (or at least were traded to your team before they played their first rookie regular season game). That would make it a hell of a lot harder for a star player to leave home.
Little Digger
Head Coach
Posts: 6,854
And1: 2,710
Joined: Aug 01, 2010
 

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#7 » by Little Digger » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:53 pm

Parity = boring bad basketball..Ya Toronto made the confernece Finals!! Awesome..

The greastest era without a doubt took place in the 80's..Nobody talked about superteams or parity..

You want to become great? Draft correctly like the Pistons did in picking Isiah and Dumars..or Chicago did with Jordan and that great draft day Pippen trade..or the warriors did in selecting 3 all-stars with picks 7,11 and 35..or the Lakers did with Magic and Worthy..Or the Celtics dd with Bird and a draft day miracle trade of Carroll for Parish and McHale..
ILOVEIT—Good 'ol Bob. Two things that will survive the next apocalypse - Cockroaches and Fitz.
wablty
Sixth Man
Posts: 1,905
And1: 1,043
Joined: Jun 18, 2012

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#8 » by wablty » Thu Jul 14, 2016 8:54 pm

If you could combine high level play with parity, that'd be ideal but it hasn't happened yet. Otherwise I prefer to have a handful of really great teams going at it. You just don't want to see where the winners are a foregone conclusion. There have to be some legitimate threats besides the obvious ones. I've loved the Western Conference playoffs the last several years because even though there was always a team you thought probably was the best, there were others you knew could knock them off. Conversely, the Eastern playoffs have been pretty damn boring basically ever since Lebron rose to power and Boston faded.

Right now all we can hope for is a Spurs or Clippers revival and the rapid development of the Magic, Wolves, Jazz, Bucks and/or Nuggets.
SkyHookFTW
Assistant Coach
Posts: 4,371
And1: 3,071
Joined: Jul 26, 2014
         

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#9 » by SkyHookFTW » Thu Jul 14, 2016 9:06 pm

I took the 80's. There was all-time great basketball between the Lakers, Sixers, Celtics, and the change of style Pistons.
"It's scarier than Charles Barkley at an all you can eat buffet." --Shaq on Shark Week
"My secret to getting rebounds? It's called go get the damn ball." --Charles Barkley
User avatar
Wargreymon
Lead Assistant
Posts: 4,546
And1: 6,391
Joined: Feb 29, 2016
 

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#10 » by Wargreymon » Thu Jul 14, 2016 9:12 pm

I voted Shaq/Duncan era. Vince Carter vs A.I. In their primes. The rise of T-Mac. 2004 Pistons shocking the Lakers. Ben Wallace dominating DPOY. Yao Ming making history for China. The beginnings of the legendary 2003 draft class. 2000 slam dunk contest with VC in Oakland. Man I need a time machine
Image
Austincys21
Veteran
Posts: 2,613
And1: 733
Joined: Apr 10, 2013
   

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#11 » by Austincys21 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 9:55 pm

When it was
Kobe and Shaq
Tmac
VC
Iverson
Duncan, Parker, Manu
KG, Spreewell, Cassell, Wally
Kidd, Martin, Kittles, Van Horn
Dirk, Van Exel, Finley, Bradley
Yao and Francis
Marbury
Allen, Lewis, Ridnour
Pierce And Walker
User avatar
JDR720
Forum Mod - Hornets
Forum Mod - Hornets
Posts: 42,088
And1: 42,876
Joined: Jul 09, 2013
     

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#12 » by JDR720 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:13 pm

RCM88x wrote:People say they want Parity and but would probably select the 80's or Jordan era as their favorites...

people like super teams because its entertaining and fun to root against them, people want parity because its easier for their team to compete and its more unpredictable. i think ideally you have a mix of both, a few really good teams but the other teams could still beat them in a series. we will probably move towards this in the next CBA.
User avatar
Throwback24
RealGM
Posts: 31,072
And1: 41,651
Joined: Jun 17, 2008

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#13 » by Throwback24 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:19 pm

Current day basketball is my favorite no garbage big man that occupy space
Remember when’ is the lowest form of conversation.
Doctor MJ
Senior Mod
Senior Mod
Posts: 50,504
And1: 19,294
Joined: Mar 10, 2005
Location: Cali
     

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#14 » by Doctor MJ » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:19 pm

A good question. I think it's pretty safe to say that when people look back they really don't remember the parity like it was a key to what they enjoyed.

Parity helps make the regular season more important but it makes the playoffs less so.

I'll always remember the playoffs of '94 and how collectively the world just felt like the winner didn't matter. Because Houston eventually repeated and Hakeem turned in performances in '95 that made him a true icon people don't remember the fact that in '94 the championship was greeted with an utter yawn not despite of how competitive the league was but BECAUSE of how competitive it was.
Getting ready for the RealGM 100 on the PC Board

Come join the WNBA Board if you're a fan!
jbk1234
Retired Mod
Retired Mod
Posts: 53,214
And1: 31,963
Joined: Dec 22, 2010
 

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#15 » by jbk1234 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:21 pm

Once Brad Daugherty got hurt and the Cavs weren't competitive anymore, I pretty much tapped out for a while. I'm a homer fan. You can sell me on the future or the present, but you've got to have something to offer for me to be anything other than a casual fan.
cbosh4mvp wrote:
Jarret Allen isn’t winning you anything. Garland won’t show up in the playoffs. Mobley is a glorified dunk man. Mitchell has some experience but is a liability on defense. To me, the Cavs are a treadmill team.
ebill_03
Sophomore
Posts: 165
And1: 58
Joined: Jul 24, 2006

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#16 » by ebill_03 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:49 pm

My favorite era was the Jordan era, and looking back it doesn't seem like it had a lot of parity. My view might be inaccurate since I was just a kid, but I feel like there were a couple legitimate contenders on each conference even though Jordan won pretty much every year he had a full season.

I would prefer that a top 2 seed in each conference isn't pretty much guaranteed to get through the second round barring injury, that there is still legitimate threat even in the second round. In terms of parity I feel like the 00's were the best, I might not necessarily want that kind of play, but I want that type of talent distribution in the league. Back then a big 2 was a big thing, if you even had a lone superstar with solid role-players you had a chance. Nowadays you're not a contender if you don't have a big 3 or 4.
Pennebaker
Head Coach
Posts: 7,014
And1: 5,577
Joined: Nov 02, 2013

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#17 » by Pennebaker » Thu Jul 14, 2016 11:05 pm

Wargreymon wrote:I voted Shaq/Duncan era. Vince Carter vs A.I. In their primes. The rise of T-Mac. 2004 Pistons shocking the Lakers. Ben Wallace dominating DPOY. Yao Ming making history for China. The beginnings of the legendary 2003 draft class. 2000 slam dunk contest with VC in Oakland. Man I need a time machine


Hmmm. The era immediately following MJ's retirement was the Dark Ages for the NBA. Everything went downhill, and fast, in terms of interest in the league/viewership/ratings and even quality of play. Not only did the NBA hit a ratings low in the 00s, but they also hit a low in terms of pace and in terms of league FG% average in the modern era (the last time NBA players shot so poorly was in the 60s).
Image
Wigginstime
Sixth Man
Posts: 1,794
And1: 2,453
Joined: May 06, 2006

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#18 » by Wigginstime » Thu Jul 14, 2016 11:19 pm

ebill_03 wrote:In terms of parity I feel like the 00's were the best, I might not necessarily want that kind of play, but I want that type of talent distribution in the league. Back then a big 2 was a big thing, if you even had a lone superstar with solid role-players you had a chance. Nowadays you're not a contender if you don't have a big 3 or 4.


Statistically the 2000s had the worst parity considering Shaq and Duncan won 8 or 9 titles from 1999 - 2008. 5 NBA finals during this period were won in 4 or 5 games and they drew the worst ratings in NBA history.
ebill_03
Sophomore
Posts: 165
And1: 58
Joined: Jul 24, 2006

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#19 » by ebill_03 » Thu Jul 14, 2016 11:49 pm

Wigginstime wrote:Statistically the 2000s had the worst parity considering Shaq and Duncan won 8 or 9 titles from 1999 - 2008. 5 NBA finals during this period were won in 4 or 5 games and they drew the worst ratings in NBA history.


I don't see how pointing out two players winning most the titles automatically makes that period the least competitive. 90's Jordan/Hakeem did the same. 2010's looks like it's gonna be Lebron/Curry.

Even when the Spurs/Lakers were dominating, you still had the Kings, Twolves, Mavs and Suns as serious contenders for the majority of that decade. With the Blazers, Rockets and Hornets being competitive at various points.

You had the Sixers, Nets, Pistons, Heat, Celtics, Heat, Magic and Cavs making the finals from the East. Many of those teams were serious threats to come out of the East in the years they didn't come out along with teams like the Raptors, Bucks, and Pacers.

The biggest problem with the 00's was lack of balance between the conferences, the West was very very competitive.

You can't really say that just because a few teams won, the other teams didn't have a chance.
SCHeat
Pro Prospect
Posts: 766
And1: 676
Joined: Jan 24, 2015
 

Re: What was your favorite NBA Era? Was Parity Important 

Post#20 » by SCHeat » Fri Jul 15, 2016 1:11 am

2010-14

Because my team was good

I didn't care about parity

Return to The General Board