best defensive series against great offensive players/teams

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best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#1 » by falcolombardi » Sat Apr 2, 2022 6:31 pm

what are those times that a great team offense or a great offensive player were played perfectly to limit them the most ?

for example somethingh i learned about the 97 jazz is that karl malone amd ostertag were unusually good at stopping rodman and the bulls from taking offensive boards in a way few teams came close, which helped them go toe to toe against a juggernaut like that in spite of karl malone scoring struggles

alternstively series where a player or offense "solve" a strong defense/defender also count too, clippers 5-out offense making gobert a limited factor in the 2021 playoffs is a good example
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#2 » by LukaTheGOAT » Sat Apr 2, 2022 6:53 pm

08-Celtics against Lakers in the Finals
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#3 » by eminence » Sat Apr 2, 2022 7:38 pm

Only good, not ATG, but Dray throttled the ‘16 Rockets and Harden.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#4 » by falcolombardi » Sat Apr 2, 2022 7:53 pm

eminence wrote:Only good, not ATG, but Dray throttled the ‘16 Rockets and Harden.

draymond has wrecked a lot of good offenses and great offensive players, 18 rockets and 19 Blazers too

i think only lebron cavs were somewhat "impervious" to the warriors playoffs defense
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#5 » by 70sFan » Sat Apr 2, 2022 8:28 pm

Of course 1973 Warriors against Milwaukee, with Thurmond shutting down peak Kareem.

How about 1983 Sixers against LAL? They completely shut down one of the most talented Lakers teams of this decade. The combination of athleticism and length on perimeter turned Lakers offense into a disaster.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#6 » by Peregrine01 » Sat Apr 2, 2022 8:28 pm

2007 Spurs versus Suns.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#7 » by FuShengTHEGreat » Sat Apr 2, 2022 8:44 pm

Olajuwon vs Seattle in 93. He was everywhere on the perimeter and the paint.

Mutombo vs Seattle in 94 - This is probably imho THE most impressive individual defensive performance in NBA playoff history from a team perspective vs a elite offensive team. The Sonics simply could not get anything going in the painted area with him there. 6 blocks per game!

Nate Thurmond vs Kareem Abdul Jabbar in 1973 - Imho the most impressive h2h defensive performance in NBA playoff series history. That was by FAR the worst series of Kareems career before aging/decline set in. 22ppg and 42% FG is what peak Kareem was restricted to.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#8 » by MartinToVaught » Sat Apr 2, 2022 10:03 pm

"Great" is probably pushing it, depending on how you feel about Melo, but the first one that comes to mind is Quinton Ross putting the clamps on prime Melo in '06. That series was a masterclass defensive performance from him.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#9 » by TroubleS0me » Sun Apr 3, 2022 4:00 am

04 pistons Prince vs Kobe
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#10 » by migya » Sun Apr 3, 2022 6:35 am

John Stockton in 91 playoffs keeping KJ to 12.8pts, 9.8ast at 30fg%. KJ was 22.2pts, 51.6fg% in the RS. Stockton had 18pts, 12.8ast at 62.2fg% and 50fg% 3P.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#11 » by PistolPeteJR » Sun Apr 3, 2022 12:23 pm

07 Spurs vs Cavs
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#12 » by Colbinii » Sun Apr 3, 2022 2:30 pm

PistolPeteJR wrote:07 Spurs vs Cavs


The 2007 Cavaliers were a -1.0 Offense. They posted a 99 Ortg and 104 Ortg in the previous rounds leasing upto the finals where they posted a 97 Ortg.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#13 » by jasonxxx102 » Sun Apr 3, 2022 4:05 pm

PistolPeteJR wrote:07 Spurs vs Cavs


What? The 07 Cavs were horrible lol.

LeBron dragged a horrifically bad team to the finals that had no business being there.

Not hard to stop a team when 4 of the 5 players can’t score when they’re wide open
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#14 » by PistolPeteJR » Sun Apr 3, 2022 9:05 pm

jasonxxx102 wrote:
PistolPeteJR wrote:07 Spurs vs Cavs


What? The 07 Cavs were horrible lol.

LeBron dragged a horrifically bad team to the finals that had no business being there.

Not hard to stop a team when 4 of the 5 players can’t score when they’re wide open


I misread OP my bad… lol
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#15 » by homecourtloss » Mon Apr 4, 2022 3:21 am

2016 Cavs and Thunder vs. the Warriors. Warriors were a +8.1 rORtg Team and were held 6.0 points per 100 possessions under their reg season ORTg vs. the Cavs and -6.7 vs. the Thunder.
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#16 » by falcolombardi » Mon Apr 4, 2022 4:16 am

homecourtloss wrote:2016 Cavs and Thunder vs. the Warriors. Warriors were a +8.1 rORtg Team and were held 6.0 points per 100 possessions under their reg season ORTg vs. the Cavs and -6.7 vs. the Thunder.


for that same matter, 2016/2017 cavs and 2016 thunder were incredibly resilient offenses against the warriors defense
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Re: best defensive series against great offensive players/teams 

Post#17 » by feyki » Mon Apr 4, 2022 6:08 am

Ben Wallace against the Magic in the 2003 Playoffs.
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