HotTubMike wrote:dynamic duo wrote:bmurph128 wrote:
This.
The fact that they won in Houston without KD....yikes.
further proof that lebron is the goat, a 73-9 win team felt the need to beg another top 3 player in his prime to get past lebron.
I mean..they had already gotten "past" Lebron in '16. I agree that Green calling and begging KD was super weak but let's not distort history here.
This team is still the class of the league with or without Durant.
Round 1 the Cavs were missing their 2nd and 3rd best players. Round 2 the Cavs won. Round 3 KD came into it. We'll never know what would have happened, so we have to go off of what happened: they needed KD to get past LeBron.
People have often said "that's just an excuse", but I'd love to see an example of any team in NBA history who won a series missing their 2nd and 3rd best player - particularly a series against a team as good as the Warriors.
I suppose the statement could be amended - they needed KD to get past LeBron when he had at least an average NBA caliber roster around him.
You could also point out that the Warriors were missing Green for a game, Bogut and Curry was hobbled - but they've stormed through the West over the past five years when missing a player for a few games (like KD being out against Houston). That just adds to the disappointment that we never got to see the Cavs and Warriors go at it without KD but with healthy rosters.