The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3)

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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#541 » by MisterHibachi » Fri Apr 2, 2021 4:28 pm

Read on Twitter


YIKES
"He looked like Batman coming out of nowhere"
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#542 » by Ballerhogger » Sat Apr 3, 2021 2:07 am

MisterHibachi wrote:
Read on Twitter


YIKES

Yet Dennis turns down max contract :crazy: I mean I like deniss but he ain’t all that
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#543 » by Homer38 » Sat Apr 3, 2021 11:38 am

MisterHibachi wrote:
Read on Twitter


YIKES


It was a bit expected ... All the teams that would have lost their top 2 players will suffer a lot, including teams like the Bulls if they would be without Jordan and Pippen at the same time or the lakers without Kobe and Shaq

At least they win against teams with a losing record ..... that's all I'm asking right now
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#544 » by TroubleS0me » Sat Apr 3, 2021 1:23 pm

AD should have been back by now
whats going on?
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#545 » by donnieme » Sat Apr 3, 2021 2:57 pm

Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#546 » by LikeABosh » Sat Apr 3, 2021 4:35 pm

This thread is so quiet when the Lakers actually have a good game :lol:
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#547 » by PaulieWal » Sat Apr 3, 2021 4:38 pm

donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.
JordansBulls wrote:The Warriors are basically a good college team until they meet a team with bigs in the NBA.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#548 » by Slava » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:11 pm

PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.


I doubt its much different to how the Raptors played the Warriors in the finals. Lakers' rotations are pin point and they are far too good at trap and recover schemes.

In the tightest games, even the best scorers drop their percentages but the defense is something that carriers over. The playoff run is going to be much harder than last season though, the margin for error is way too low.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#549 » by Slava » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:12 pm

Its amazing what a bit of competition does to a player, Marc had his best game in ages once he lost his guaranteed starting berth.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#550 » by homecourtloss » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:14 pm

donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


In games LeBron played this year:

12-2; average margin of victory: 13.5
lessthanjake wrote:Kyrie was extremely impactful without LeBron, and basically had zero impact whatsoever if LeBron was on the court.

lessthanjake wrote: By playing in a way that prevents Kyrie from getting much impact, LeBron ensures that controlling for Kyrie has limited effect…
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#551 » by donnieme » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:19 pm

PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.

The bolded is why I also lean towards the Nets. I recall that against the Rockets in the bubble Lakers players didn't actually show any ability to stay in front of Harden, they won through scheming that was helped by Westbrook being a bit of a dummy in the 4v3. Replace him with KD in the exact same setup and that particular scheme might be shredded.

Because of their five out offense this year's Nets cant really be schemed much beyond playing good defense in the 5 individual defensive matchups. There'll be zero to little room to hide anyone on defense, no trapping, no doubling. I also don't know if a team like that can be beaten 4 times. However of all 29 opponents the Lakers defense has the best chance
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#552 » by Greyhound » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:25 pm

PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.

This team healthy will not be down 15-20 often.

This team has not had AD for half the season. On top of that, he has not been up to speed (in comparison to his last season play) all season. This team is impossible to judge right now.

There is monstrous defensive potential there.

...

On the flip side of your main point. If you go down 15-20 points to this Lakers team (at full strength), you may as well purchase a tombstone. Down 15-20 against Brooklyn (with their weak defense), you still feel that you have a shot.

They will be heavy favorites (because of everyone’s obsession with offense and shooting), but I don’t think they will be heavy favorites on the court.

I too am very interested in the clash of styles.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#553 » by Homer38 » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:30 pm

If LeBron and AD are healthy and dominant they have a chance against every teams ... But of course our shooting need to not be awful at the worst possible time ....
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#554 » by Greyhound » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:32 pm

On another note, while everyone is concerned about the health of LeBron and AD, the biggest injury concern is Kevin Durant. There is no proof that Kevin Durant will be able to be himself for an entire playoff run.

Without an effective Kevin Durant they could still potentially win the East, but they would have no shot against the Lakers.

None.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#555 » by donnieme » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:37 pm

Greyhound wrote:On another note, while everyone is concerned about the health of LeBron and AD, the biggest injury concern is Kevin Durant. There is no proof that Kevin Durant will be able to be himself for an entire playoff run.

Without an effective Kevin Durant they could still potentially win the East, but they would have no shot against the Lakers.

None.

It's probably too early to predict injuries but Yes, people predicting Laker injuries dont realise even Kyrie has every other season ended prematurely by injury. 2014/15, 2017/18 and 2019/20. That's almost one playoff run affected every 2 year average
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#556 » by PaulieWal » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:53 pm

Slava wrote:
PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.


I doubt its much different to how the Raptors played the Warriors in the finals. Lakers' rotations are pin point and they are far too good at trap and recover schemes.

In the tightest games, even the best scorers drop their percentages but the defense is something that carriers over. The playoff run is going to be much harder than last season though, the margin for error is way too low.


Yeah, that 2019 Raptors defense was insane but they only did face KD for a quarter and a half. Secondly, I'd argue that this Nets team is more offensively loaded than the 2019 Warriors, the defense will almost have to be perfect over the entire series to contain the Nets.
JordansBulls wrote:The Warriors are basically a good college team until they meet a team with bigs in the NBA.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#557 » by Ainosterhaspie » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:57 pm

When was the last NBA championship team that wasn't an excellent defensive team? I can't think of one going back more than 10 years. Maybe you could argue 2018 Warriors, but I'd say that's more a team that's been there several years in a row taking it easy until it matters, not that they weren't excellent defenders. Lakers, Raptors, Warriors, Cavaliers, Spurs, Heat all excellent defensive teams. Maverics, Kobe Lakers, Celtics all very strong defenses. Which of those teams didn't have an excellent perimeter defender or interior defender? Many had both.

Yes Brooklyn has some of the greatest offensive potential we've ever seen, but the trend that you need strong defense to win titles is hard to ignore.
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The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#558 » by Greyhound » Sat Apr 3, 2021 5:58 pm

donnieme wrote:
PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.

The bolded is why I also lean towards the Nets. I recall that against the Rockets in the bubble Lakers players didn't actually show any ability to stay in front of Harden, they won through scheming that was helped by Westbrook being a bit of a dummy in the 4v3. Replace him with KD in the exact same setup and that particular scheme might be shredded.

Because of their five out offense this year's Nets cant really be schemed much beyond playing good defense in the 5 individual defensive matchups. There'll be zero to little room to hide anyone on defense, no trapping, no doubling. I also don't know if a team like that can be beaten 4 times. However of all 29 opponents the Lakers defense has the best chance

They are a great team no doubt. I called it months ago, before it became the trendy thing.

That being said, there are a lot of unproven playoff players over there. Blake Griffin and Jeff Green or foldable. James Harden has been known to fold under playoff pressure as well.

Harris has been a great shooter (no doubt), but how will he look under playoff pressure, with fans. That’s a question mark.

Their main, key players are guys who are use to being the offensive focal point on their team. This point should not be overlooked, or brushed aside easily.

Everyone is Kumbaya and “buying in” right now, but when the pressure is on, they will lean on their nature and try to do more of what they are good at. Score, score, and score some more.

...

All of the overlapping talent they have makes it easier for them to sustain injuries and still keep chugging along.

The Lakers on the other hand are constructed with players having set roles. One missing part throws off everything.


With everyone up and running however, the Lakers have guys who all know their roles and are looking to excel at different things to help the team. The Nets have guys who will be stepping on each other’s toes, ultimately.

———-

The Nets are the more talented team, but the Lakers are a more cohesive team. The offensive/ shooting team vs. the defensive/ rebounding team. The clash of styles is going to be epic to watch.

Hopefully both teams do their part and make this matchup happen.
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#559 » by donnieme » Sat Apr 3, 2021 6:05 pm

Slava wrote:
PaulieWal wrote:
donnieme wrote:Lakers and Brooklyn are opposites in their excellence, Lakers defense is so good they only need an average shooting night to blow teams out whereas Brooklyn's offense and shooting are so good they only need an average defensive performance to blow teams out. If both teams get to the finals their battle will be legendary on a strategic level


I think Brooklyn should be heavy favorites over the Lakers if they meet in the finals. With Lakers this year it feels if they go down on 15-20 it will be a wrap with their crap shooting. Meanwhile if Nets are down 15-20 they will be able to erase that gap in minutes with some shooting.

Also the Lakers won't be able to double or trap anyone really here. Nets have good passers at almost every position, the Lakers will have to mostly play the Nets 1 on 1 and just hope that the iso ball percentages work in their favor but even that might not work considering the greatness of their big 3 as iso scorers.


I doubt its much different to how the Raptors played the Warriors in the finals. Lakers' rotations are pin point and they are far too good at trap and recover schemes.

In the tightest games, even the best scorers drop their percentages but the defense is something that carriers over. The playoff run is going to be much harder than last season though, the margin for error is way too low.

Nah I doubt that. Raptors threw a box and one at Curry, only possible because he was the only creation threat on the team. In addition to KD being injured that version of the Warriors had no offensive depth. Have even one more threat like KD on the floor and that type of scheme is less effective. That's what Paulie's post was highlighting, You cant throw those type of schemes against teams with multiple threats

What I was saying is Lakers have the individual defensive talent to not need that type of scheme to have a shot at winning. OTOH Any playoff team carrying multiple poor defensive players in their rotation need to call it a season
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Re: The Lebron Thread | 2021 (Pt. 3) 

Post#560 » by yoyoboy » Sat Apr 3, 2021 6:11 pm

Ainosterhaspie wrote:When was the last NBA championship team that wasn't an excellent defensive team? I can't think of one going back more than 10 years. Maybe you could argue 2018 Warriors, but I'd say that's more a team that's been there several years in a row taking it easy until it matters, not that they weren't excellent defenders. Lakers, Raptors, Warriors, Cavaliers, Spurs, Heat all excellent defensive teams. Maverics, Kobe Lakers, Celtics all very strong defenses. Which of those teams didn't have an excellent perimeter defender or interior defender? Many had both.

Yes Brooklyn has some of the greatest offensive potential we've ever seen, but the trend that you need strong defense to win titles is hard to ignore.

Brooklyn isn’t that bad of a defensive team though.

On the season their team DRTG obviously isn’t great but if you look at the individual on-court DRTGs of:

Claxton: 103.1 DRTG
Griffin: 99.5 DRTG

It’s clear the team has been playing much better defense as of late since getting their rotation together. And then you add in Aldridge who although it was just one game looked pretty solid on defense. Durant has played less than 40% of the season (112.0 DRTG which is exactly league average) and come playoffs he’ll probably have slightly above average defensive value. And guys like DJ or some of the bench liabilities will see their minutes reduced in the playoffs.

When they’re healthy and rolling I think Brooklyn is an average at worst defensive squad. You combine that with maybe the most high-powered offense the league has ever seen, and I think Brooklyn is definitely the favorite in any series.

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