Laker's supporting cast - over rated ?

[USA]

If it wasn't for Pau Gasol and his win shares, the Lakers would be a lottery team this year.

[C'mon Cavs]

The Cavs are loaded with great defenders, rebounders, and shooters and the team has excellent chemistry. The Lakers have none of these elements which are essential for a championship team. You can't just look at a list of names.

The Cleveland Cavaliers... A team so loaded that it is winless (0-8) since the start of the 2007-2008 season in games that LeBron doesn't play.

I still don't get why people continue to overrate the rest of the Cavaliers team because if LeBron doesn't suit up, they aren't even close to being a playoff team, let alone a championship contender.

What does that have to do with anything ? Put Lebron on the Knicks, would they be better than the current Cavs, IMO, absolutely not.

The whole point is that the Cavs are built better around Lebron than the Lakers are built around Kobe. Put Zach Randolph as the Cavs starting PF, do they get better or worse ?

These are terrible analogies. The Knicks don't have all the much talent on their roster, so of course if you put LeBron on that team they are not going to better than the Cavs.

Put Zach Randolph on any team and they probably get worse. He's a career loser and a chucker. Put Zach Randolph on L.A., do they get better or worse? Worse...What's that prove? Put Kobe on the Knicks are they better than the current Lakers? No, they'd be much, much worse...again, what does this prove?

Put Brandon Bass on the Cavs, are they better or worse? Better.
Put LeBron on Dallas in place of Josh Howard, are they better than this Cavs team? Yeah.

[amb1ent]

after rigorous mathematical analysis i've derived a new statistic called "awesomeness points", and pau gasol is reppin 62.2 AP while kobe is down in the 30s

[USA]

after rigorous mathematical analysis i've derived a new statistic called "awesomeness points", and pau gasol is reppin 62.2 AP while kobe is down in the 30s

That will put a smile on JordansBulls face.

[Silver Bullet]

These are terrible analogies. The Knicks don't have all the much talent on their roster, so of course if you put LeBron on that team they are not going to better than the Cavs.

Put Zach Randolph on any team and they probably get worse. He's a career loser and a chucker. Put Zach Randolph on L.A., do they get better or worse? Worse...What's that prove? Put Kobe on the Knicks are they better than the current Lakers? No, they'd be much, much worse...again, what does this prove?

Put Brandon Bass on the Cavs, are they better or worse? Better.
Put LeBron on Dallas in place of Josh Howard, are they better than this Cavs team? Yeah.

The point was that how many games the supporting cast wins without the best player is irrelevant.

The Knicks are a better team than the Cavs are without Lebron. But the Cavs are a better team with Lebron than the Knicks would be with Lebron.

The Randolph analogy is relevant because if you take away Lebron from the Cavs, they probably would struggle to win 20 games. Add Randolph to that mix and the team gets better. But with Lebron there, adding Randolph in a starting role would likely make them worse. I don't know if that makes sense or not, but there is more to teams than just offensive talent.

[Dat Pass]

The Knicks are a better team than the Cavs are without Lebron.

Wow. If I understand that correctly, Im not sure what I can say.

That about sums up my feelings on why LeBron's supporting cast is so criminally underrated. Your saying that if LeBron wasnt on the Cavs, they go from 66-16 to 32-50? That is one of the most absurd things Ive ever read.

[Silver Bullet]

The Knicks are a better team than the Cavs are without Lebron.

Wow. If I understand that correctly, Im not sure what I can say.

That about sums up my feelings on why LeBron's supporting cast is so criminally underrated. Your saying that if LeBron wasnt on the Cavs, they go from 66-16 to 32-50? That is one of the most absurd things Ive ever read.

No, I'm saying If Lebron wasn't on the Cavs they'd go from 66-16 to 20-62, because they would be very weak offensively.

But I'm also saying, that put Lebron on the Knicks and they go from 32-50 to 50-32, not 66-16. The Cavs are specifically built that way, to have the offense around Lebron. Put some better offensive players on the Cavs (that need the ball to be effective) and they become worse, not better.

[Dat Pass]

No, I'm saying If Lebron wasn't on the Cavs they'd go from 66-16 to 20-62

Just found me a new sig... Thanks.

You realize that in a game without LeBron, Mo Williams, Big Z and Joe Smith they dropped 110 on the 76ers.. The 6th seed in the East. And West and Varejao only played 1 half.

And its not like the 6ers werent playing for anything either.

[wreck]

No, I'm saying If Lebron wasn't on the Cavs they'd go from 66-16 to 20-62

Just found me a new sig... Thanks.

You realize that in a game without LeBron, Mo Williams, Big Z and Joe Smith they dropped 110 on the 76ers.. The 6th seed in the East. And West and Varejao only played 1 half.

And its not like the 6ers werent playing for anything either.

What were the 76ers playing for? The right to play a team that swept them during the regular season? Oh yeah, Boston did that too...

A team that was 39-1 at home before that game LOST to a team that was 17-24 on the road. The Cavaliers are a lottery team without LeBron.

[Dat Pass]

No, I'm saying If Lebron wasn't on the Cavs they'd go from 66-16 to 20-62

Just found me a new sig... Thanks.

You realize that in a game without LeBron, Mo Williams, Big Z and Joe Smith they dropped 110 on the 76ers.. The 6th seed in the East. And West and Varejao only played 1 half.

And its not like the 6ers werent playing for anything either.

What were the 76ers playing for? The right to play a team that swept them during the regular season? Oh yeah, Boston did that too...

A team that was 39-1 at home before that game LOST to a team that was 17-24 on the road. The Cavaliers are a lottery team without LeBron.

If Philly had nothing to play for.. Then why the hell did Igudola play 47 minutes and Andre Miller play 45? Why not rest those guys for the playoffs, "if they had nothing to play for".

Let me emphasize that not only did the Cavs alomst beat the 6th seed in the East without LeBron, they also did so WITHOUT Mo, Big Z, Joe Smith, and West and Varejao for 1 half.

Its a small sample, I realize that, but for this team to nearly beat a 6th seed, virtually without a single starter, is pretty damn impressive. And I find it absurd that anyone thinks this is a lottery team without LeBron.

[wreck]

If Philly had nothing to play for.. Then why the hell did Igudola play 47 minutes and Andre Miller play 45? Why not rest those guys for the playoffs, "if they had nothing to play for".

Let me emphasize that not only did the Cavs alomst beat the 6th seed in the East without LeBron, they also did so WITHOUT Mo, Big Z, Joe Smith, and West and Varejao for 1 half.

Its a small sample, I realize that, but for this team to nearly beat a 6th seed, virtually without a single starter, is pretty damn impressive. And I find it absurd that anyone thinks this is a lottery team without LeBron.

Let me guess. You also think it is absurd that the Lakers could win 55 games without Bryant in the lineup.

[Dat Pass]

If Philly had nothing to play for.. Then why the hell did Igudola play 47 minutes and Andre Miller play 45? Why not rest those guys for the playoffs, "if they had nothing to play for".

Let me emphasize that not only did the Cavs alomst beat the 6th seed in the East without LeBron, they also did so WITHOUT Mo, Big Z, Joe Smith, and West and Varejao for 1 half.

Its a small sample, I realize that, but for this team to nearly beat a 6th seed, virtually without a single starter, is pretty damn impressive. And I find it absurd that anyone thinks this is a lottery team without LeBron.

Let me guess. You also think it is absurd that the Lakers could win 55 games without Bryant in the lineup.

Haha, yea of course I do. So your saying:

Lakers minus Kobe: Go from 65-17 to 55-27? (10 game difference)

Cavs minus LeBron: Go from 66-16 to 35-47 (31 game difference)

Yea that seems about right...

[SimonAdebisi]

I can't see how anybody can argue that the Cavs would be a good team without Lebron. They would be the WORST team in the East, and you can put that in your sigs.

PG Mo Williams
SG Delonte West
SF Wally Szczerbiak
PF Andersen Varejao
C Big Z

LOL, that lineup is supposed to be a good team? Sorry, but nobody on that lineup can draw a double team. Z can't even create his own offense anymore, Wally and Varejao obviously can't. West and Mo Williams are good players, but you would be expecting them to be the #1 and #2 options on a team, which is a recipe for disaster.

Lebron's defense is really underrated by fans for some reason. He's clearly the anchor of this team's D, and he's their best overall defender. You would also have to add in the fact that Delonte West would have to give more effort offensively without Lebron, which would make his defense worse, and he's their best defender outside of Lebron.

[hsb]

I can't see how anybody can argue that the Cavs would be a good team without Lebron. They would be the WORST team in the East, and you can put that in your sigs.

PG Mo Williams
SG Delonte West
SF Wally Szczerbiak
PF Andersen Varejao
C Big Z

LOL, that lineup is supposed to be a good team? Sorry, but nobody on that lineup can draw a double team. Z can't even create his own offense anymore, Wally and Varejao obviously can't. West and Mo Williams are good players, but you would be expecting them to be the #1 and #2 options on a team, which is a recipe for disaster.

Lebron's defense is really underrated by fans for some reason. He's clearly the anchor of this team's D, and he's their best overall defender. You would also have to add in the fact that Delonte West would have to give more effort offensively without Lebron, which would make his defense worse, and he's their best defender outside of Lebron.

I wouldn't go that far, even though I might be in the minority on this point. I would admit Lebron's defense has gotten much better then years past but Cleveland has been a very good defensive team for quite awhile now. Even before Lebron entered 'great defender' status. The whole team has multiple good defenders and role players who incorporated themselves well into a system created by Mike Brown and his coaching staff. Lebron is part of the reason why they are a great defensive team, not the anchor in my books (waits for someone to cry about this...).

Anything more is giving to much credit to one player. Just like people give Kobe to much credit when the team loses or not enough for the team wins. As odd as that sounds...


Going back on topic. Safe to say the same idea applies. To many people weigh one player to heavily. The Lakers, on paper, have one of the best teams money can buy. They are one of the best on the court as well. This is not because of Kobe alone, but he is part of the reason. So no, the players surrounding Kobe are not overrated. They wouldn't have had the second best record in the league if it were the case.

[Silver Bullet]

I can't see how anybody can argue that the Cavs would be a good team without Lebron. They would be the WORST team in the East, and you can put that in your sigs.

PG Mo Williams
SG Delonte West
SF Wally Szczerbiak
PF Andersen Varejao
C Big Z

LOL, that lineup is supposed to be a good team? Sorry, but nobody on that lineup can draw a double team. Z can't even create his own offense anymore, Wally and Varejao obviously can't. West and Mo Williams are good players, but you would be expecting them to be the #1 and #2 options on a team, which is a recipe for disaster.

Lebron's defense is really underrated by fans for some reason. He's clearly the anchor of this team's D, and he's their best overall defender. You would also have to add in the fact that Delonte West would have to give more effort offensively without Lebron, which would make his defense worse, and he's their best defender outside of Lebron.

I wouldn't go that far, even though I might be in the minority on this point. I would admit Lebron's defense has gotten much better then years past but Cleveland has been a very good defensive team for quite awhile now. Even before Lebron entered 'great defender' status. The whole team has multiple good defenders and role players who incorporated themselves well into a system created by Mike Brown and his coaching staff. Lebron is part of the reason why they are a great defensive team, not the anchor in my books (waits for someone to cry about this...).

Anything more is giving to much credit to one player. Just like people give Kobe to much credit when the team loses or not enough for the team wins. As odd as that sounds...


Going back on topic. Safe to say the same idea applies. To many people weigh one player to heavily. The Lakers, on paper, have one of the best teams money can buy. They are one of the best on the court as well. This is not because of Kobe alone, but he is part of the reason. So no, the players surrounding Kobe are not overrated. They wouldn't have had the second best record in the league if it were the case.

Well, what if they're a team built for the regular season. If the role players can't hit open shots, when the going gets tough, You can have a team that is the best in the league in the regular season, yet has virtually no chance of winning the title.

[hsb]

Well, what if they're a team built for the regular season. If the role players can't hit open shots, when the going gets tough, You can have a team that is the best in the league in the regular season, yet has virtually no chance of winning the title.

A team is a little more then 'built for the regular season' if they went to the NBA finals.

Just because they lost in it doesn't mean it boils down to every player, except for one, couldn't hit their shots when the going gets tough. It just means they lost to Boston. C'mon, just a weak statement.

[ag101]

OT: Yes.

[Idunkon1stdates]

Kobe Bryant: Overrated.

[Pharmcat]

farmar: offers them nothing
walton? slav medvedenko gave them more than he does

odom and shannon brown are they only good thing they have really

[Idunkonyou2]

Obviously so. They can't even put away a Yaoless/McGradyless Rockets team in 6 games. I won't be surprised to see the Lakers beat the Rockets in LA, but I would be surprised if they got by the Nuggets, who are flat out the best team in the west right now.