RCM88x wrote:McBubbles wrote:This doesn't really make sense. "Prime 2017 Warriors" is basically just the 2017 Warriors with a prime David West and Varejao. 90% of the team is the same.
Compare that to the Heat in which no one outside of Lebron or Chalmers was in their prime and it's a wash. The Prime 2013 Heat would take this easily imo. Am very surprised by the poll results.
Andre Iguodala, Kevon Looney, and Matt Barnes as well.
For me an "all-prime" 2013 Heat are a significant departure from what they were in reality while the same version of the 2017 Warriors is the same team, just with better players. Much more difficult to project the Heat while the Warriors are quite easy... greatest team ever just upgraded. Plus I think the style of basketball the Warriors played was just superior to the Heat that it would take a lot to make that up, maybe more than just upgrading the quality of the players.
2013 Heat defensively would be an absolute juggernaut. DPOY LeBron anchoring alongside prime Wade, Allen, Lewis and Bosh, and you've got Battier coming off the bench who defensively was tremendous too? In terms of bigs, the Warriors' bigs even in their primes are nothing to be concerned about as far as the Heat are concerned. Prime Haslem, Bosh, Birdman will be fine as a rotation with LeBron also helping out there too.
How are the Warriors stopping LeBron? They're not obviously. Limiting him? Probably not much, but even then, who's defending prime Wade? Prime Allen? Prime Lewis with his 6'10" frame while being a lethal 3PT shooter? Heck, prime Miller off the bench?
If the argument is that the Heat's synergy wouldn't be as great as the Warriors' on offense, on defense I think the Heat clearly have their number, increasing transition opportunities. Prime LeBron + Wade + Allen in transition is just completely unbeatable.