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basketball-lifer · 4 years

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Kobe Bryant: The Greatest Laker of All-time

Originally published on Facebook, on December 2, 2015

NBA Finals Game 7: Boston Celtics v Los Angeles Lakers

LOS ANGELES - JUNE 17: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers celebrates after winning over the Boston Celtics in Game Seven of the 2010 NBA Finals on June 17, 2010 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2010 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)In 1996, a young Kobe Bean Bryant was drafted by the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets straight out of high school and was immediately traded to the Los Angeles Lakers (a trade that would be a monumental blessing for the franchise in years to come, considering the fact that Shaq had also signed with the Lakers that very same season)

His impact on his team and the league would be significant to say the least. Despite scoring a record 31 points in 1996-97 Rookie All-Stars game, he would not be awarded Rookie All-Star MVP award because of AI’s all-round performance in leading East Rookie All-Stars to victory that night but that was more than enough to get the attention of seasoned Basketball pundits not to write him off

So today is the day when Kobe announced that 2015-16 will be his last season in the NBA, many of us have been struck with the thought that what makes this player one of NBA’s greats as well as the greatest Laker in franchise history?

Simply, he’s the only Laker to lead his team to 2 NBA Championships in 2008-09 & 2009-10 seasons. The latter championship was won by defeating a star studded cast of Boston Celtics led by Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen with Coach Doc Rivers at the helm

Unlike Lakers Dynasties of the past, with the exception of Minneapolis Lakers led by George Mikan, every Laker team won a championship whilst having at least 2 power-houses on the floor. I’ll start with 1971-72 Lakers:

Team Chamberlain-West

When Wilt had joined the Lakers in 1968-69 season, he was welcomed by Jerry West and Elgin Baylor as his team mates. Both West and Baylor had had unsuccessful runs at the NBA Finals thanks to Red Auerbach’s Boston Celtics with Bill Russell at its core

Elgin due to his injuries retired at the start of 1971-72 season. No one expected an ageing team minus Baylor to be able to make it to the Final round of the playoffs, let alone win a championship BUT West and Chamberlain not only led their team to a championship against New York Knicks but also set monumental records such as winning 33 consecutive games in a season (which remains to this day) and winning the most games in a season, 69-13 (a record that was broken by 1995-96 Chicago Bulls), to name a few

Despite what was accomplished by the team, had it not been for the duo of West-Chamberlain (All-Stars, future Hall of Famers, future 50 Greatest Players of all-time); this record-breaking championship drive would not have been possible at all

Showtime Lakers

Many will argue that Kareem and/or Magic is/are the greatest Laker(s) of all-time. Many will point out the fact that a rookie Magic Johnson was able to fill in as a center (despite being a point guard) for an injured Abdul Jabbar in the crucial game 6 of 1979-80 Finals, not just against any team but the team of Philadelphia 76ers led by Dr. J

But we need to remember that Magic was in a team of All-Star veterans which included the likes of Jamaal Wilkes, Spencer Haywood; players who were senior to him in experience and let’s not forget that Abdul Jabbar (another senior, a legend) was out for 2 games in the best of 7 series i.e. he was with Magic in games 1, 2 and 3 that allowed Lakers to gain a 3-2 advantage. The title clinching game was one by a team of vets with Magic as their ‘jewel in the crown’ whereas the 2009 & 2010 titles were won by a team of youngsters who lacked championship or play-off experience similar to that of Kobe

With regards to Showtime Lakers’ 1985, ‘87 & ‘88 titles, they defeated their bitter rivals, the Boston Celtics, at Boston Garden (something unimaginable at the time) but both teams were at par with one another in terms of talent. If there were Bird, McHale and Parish on one side then there were Magic, Kareem and Worthy on the other unlike in 2010 finals, a super-star Kobe was up against Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen (all 3 being All-Stars with tremendous amount of playoffs experience)

Shaq-Kobe era

In 1996-97 season, Shaquille O’Neal signed with the Los Angeles Lakers but that didn’t result in an immediate championship run. The Lakers, despite adding 2 time NBA Champion (w/ Houston Rockets) Robert Horry and veteran Celtic Rick Fox, were still struggling to move beyond Conference Semi-Finals because of giants like Stockton and Malone’s Utah Jazz followed by Robinson & Duncan’s San Antonio Spurs

With the addition of 3-point Champion Glenn Rice, 3 time NBA Champion (w/ Chicago Bulls) Horace Grant & hiring of Phil Jackson (8 time NBA Champion, twice as a player with New York Knicks and 6 times as Head Coach of Chicago Bulls) as Head Coach for the team, did the franchise’s fortunes turn-around

Coach Phil’s signature Triangle Offense & Defense strategies, proved as successful for the Lakers as they did for Chicago Bulls in the 90s but like all strategies, key components are needed for their flawless execution and this particular team had a huge experienced talent i.e. Playoffs, Finals and otherwise

If Shaq was the X-Factor, the team would had been a championship contender in the late 90s rather than see itself get sidelined by Jazz and Spurs

Why not Mikan?

What George Mikan was to the BAA/NBA in the 50s is what Dr. J was to the league in the 70s and Michael Jordan was in the 90s. He was NBA’s 1st Superstar, someone who helped popularize the game and the league when American sports scene was dominated by Boxing, Baseball and Pro Football (NFL)

He is without a doubt the 1st greatest Laker to make his mark on the league and the sport of Basketball. He’s the league’s 1st ever ‘BIG Man’ to set foot on the court but worth noting are the facts that he:

competed in a league that only had 11 teams

didn’t have a direct competitor in any of the rival teams at the time. The only big man who came close to him was Power Forward Bob Petit of St. Louis Hawks. By the time Bill Russel and Wilt Chamberlain entered the league, Mikan was coaching Minneapolis Lakers

Bryant’s Laker Legacy

Kobe Bryant is a David in the Lakers’ world of Goliaths. He is not 6’9” (rather a shooting guard team leader similar to but not like Michael Jordan) which makes him unlikely to benefit from his height similar to Mikan, Chamberlain, Kareem and Shaq (he is shorter than Magic and Worthy) and/or weight/strength similar to Chamberlain and Shaq (again). He made history by leading a much younger and much in-experienced team to 2 consecutive NBA championships without support from a fellow legend/superstar on the court. He proved himself to be the X-Factor which West, Chamberlain, Kareem, Magic and Shaq struggled to do so

Thanks to his leadership in 2008-09 & 2009-10 seasons, the Lakers franchise is only 1 championship away from tying Boston’s record of 17 Championships

#basketball #nba history #nba #nba basketball #basketball love #los angeles lakers #kobe bryant #mamba forever

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ecliffz · 4 years

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NBA Decade's Best

The league has been around for 7 decade now and entering its 8th at the end of the upcoming season. We have witnessed players on their stellar years and players on their waning moments, while others are just starting to build up their legacy as the "first someone". Like Vince Carter playing for his 22nd season at the Hawks, Giannis Antetokounmpo who just won an MVP award last season and Zion Williamson, who just made the draft but is already causing tremendous noise around the league. The never ending discussion of who the GOAT is, may remain as the game of NBA basketball continues. Fans on different eras may have different views of who the GOAT is and why he deserves that appellation. It's an arguable discussion and is sure to cause disputes in the NBA world. The difference of era played, poses a critical factor. That's why instead of having the GOAT in general, having it in decades may be less-arguable by eliminating one of the factor. This doesn't solve anything, but let's see who made the list of the "NBA Decade's Best".

The league was established in the mid 40's being one of the rare professional league in sports. It started with few teams represented by cities in states. By judging its quantity, there wasn't much competition yet, but players work to their bones for the sake of their dreams.

• 1940's & 50's

C| George "Big Mike" Mikan (1948-1956)

Minneapolis Lakers | 4x All Star

1940's stats: (128 GP) (27.8 PPG) (3.2 APG)

1950's stats: (311 GP) (20.3 PPG) (4.2 APG)

On a millennial's stand point, his stats is not that incredible, but they might pop their eyes out if you they were leaving on that era. He was dubbed as the league's first superstar and is known for his one handed jam that shooked the whole league. One of his most remarkable moments is his name alone vis-a-vis to a whole team (George Mikan vs New York Knickerbocker) displayed on the poster. He led his team with 5 title, all being a Laker. He's one of the earliest Naismith Hall of Fame inductee.

• 1960's

C| Wilt "The Big Dipper" Chamberlain (1959-1973)

Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers | 13× All Star

1960's stats: (788 GP) (34.2 PPG) (23.9 RPG) (4.5APG)

Standing at 7 foot 1 tall, he made a living inside. He was a monster at the board and literally, no one can stop him from having an offensive onslaught. He once scored an NBA record 100 points and is the only player to register a triple digit scoring output. Unbelievable that he has only one championship in the entire decade while enjoying a monstrous numbers. Well, championship wise, Bill Russell might've made it on the list instead, but the stilt just set the record book on fire.

• 1970's

C| Kareem "Cap" Abdul-Jabbar (1969-1989)

Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers | 19x All Star

1970's stats: (773 GP) (28.2 PPG) (14.4 RPG) (4.5 APG) (3.5 BPG)

Formerly Lew Alcindor, is known for his iconic shot "The Sky Hook" -- maybe the hardest shot to defend in basketball. As the NBA transitioned into a different era after the merger, Kareem's move to another team changed the landscape of the league forever, joining the later known "showtime LA". He had one championship with the Bucks and won the Finals MVP. He led the league in blocks thrice late in the decade and is a two time scoring champion.

• 1980's

PG| Earvin "Magic" Johnson (1979-1996)

Los Angeles Lakers | 12x All Star

1980's stats: (718 GP) (20 PPG) (7.3 RPG) (11.5 APG) (2.04 SPG)

The first PG in the list after decades of center dominance. Magic's relenteless passing ability gave birth to "Showtime". His triple double performance in the 1980 NBA Finals while playing multiple position is arguably, still the best performance by a rookie. He led the Lakers to 8 finals appearances and winning 5 of it. His individual rival " Larry Bird" from the Celtics, made his life not so easy taking a serious hit in the '84 Finals. The 80's is one of the toughest era in the NBA, and Magic and the Lakers came out the best of it.

• 1990's

SG| Michael "Air" Jordan (1984-2003)

Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards | 14x All Star

1990's stats: (503 GP) (30 PPG) (6.3 RPG) (4.9 APG) (2.2 SPG)

In any of the GOAT's discussion, his name maybe took the most appearances. He carried the Bulls into 6 championships without losing and is the only player to retire twice after every 3-peats. He broke several player's dreams to embrace the championship trophy giving way only to the Houston Rockets who won it during his retirement period. Apart from winning 6 Finals MVP, he was also declared as the season MVP 4x in the entire decade.

• 2000's

SG| Kobe "Black Mamba" Bryant (1996-2016)

Los Angeles Lakers | 18x All Star

2000's stats: (755 GP) (28.4 PPG) (5.8 RPG) (5.3 APG) (1.6 SPG)

With the toughest era to live with, Kobe maybe the most disputable player who made it into the list. He is known for his intensity and mentality. Along with Shquille O'neal, he brough the Lakers back into the championship block and won 4 in the decade. As a scoring machine, he sets the record 81 points as the most point scored in the shot clock era and is remarkably known for his 63 point performance in 3 quarters outscoring the whole Mavericks team.

• 2010's

SF| Lebron "The King" James (2003-still playing)

Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers | 15x All Star

2010's stats: (650 GP) (26.6 PPG) (7.7 RPG) (7.5 APG) (1.5 SPG)

With the emergence of superteams and offensive minded players, Lebron had full control of his throne despite losing the Finals multiple times. His 8 consecutive appearances in the Finals with 2 different teams is a never before seen feat in the league. He took the Heat to its first consecutive championships and Cleveland to its first ever major sports championship in more than 6 decades after destroying the historic 73-9 Warriors.

• 2020's (Prospect)

PF| Giannis "The Greek Freak" Antetokounmpo (2013-still playing)

Milwaukee Bucks | 3x All Star

Prior stats: (465 GP) (18.8 PPG) (8.3 RPG) (4.3 AST) (1.2 SPG) (1.3 BPG)

Despite winning the MVP award, surprisingly, he's not yet on his peak. If he's level of play continues and improve, I can't think of any other player who can outperform him. Unbelievable that he's just 24.

Note: All statistics are from the regular season; no stats are taken from the Playoffs.

Reference(s):

basketballreference(.)com

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sailolive93-blog · 4 years

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The best Guide to Reddit Marketing around 2019

"Yep, i do all my modelling in C4D as I just know the tools so well there. I do minimal retopology in Zbrush on organic shapes but any hard surfaces I make in C4D. I'd recommend the "Introduction to Subdivision modelling in C4D" by Shane Benson on Vimeo (he goes by Sheppard O'Neill on YouTube if you prefer that) and it was his tuts that got me into box and subdiv modelling.

I'm also releasing a modelling workshop in C4D and models from the kitchen scene that these belong to will be in there to learn. Just not these two as they belong to marketing for the workshop. very well "Brand new Reddit account with two extensive comments defending Boa Vista Orchards huh...? We joked earlier about spotting the Boa Vista account in here but it looks like we actually have lol! > I just talked to the dude who does the marketing for Apple Hill and he sent me this So you just randomly talked to the guy and he emailed over his entire statement...? " "I too wonder why they didn’t just create a new line and call it the mach-e instead of mustang, I believe it has something to do with the marketing department since they knew it’ll stir a lot of discussion" "Precedent suggests it depends on the marketing around the product being sold and the implied purpose. " "Wow, ha. The fact that you think that it’s ok for the government to strip away my personal health insurance so that I HAVE to be on the same shitty plan on everybody else is crazy. If healthcare is “free” and universal, the quality of healthcare is bound to decrease. I can choose to pay for whatever the fuck I want and whatever healthcare I want. I give to charity and I have plans on giving a lot more to charity as I get further in my career and start making more money. Believe it or not, you aren’t the only one that cares about people just because you want “free” healthcare for everybody. And there is also no such thing as free healthcare. It has to be paid somehow and middle class taxes will go up no matter how complicated you try to make the source of payment sound. And regarding free college, that will also raise middle class taxes. You keep bringing up this. 02% of financial transactions bullshit as if that’s going to cover all costs. Have you done studies on this yourself? Do you even know that? You act like all these things can be magically paid for without anybody in the middle class being negatively affected. I have a bachelor’s degree and I didn’t feel like college was very challenging. It was more like a series of annoying classes I didn’t need when all of college could have been boiled down into one year of the core classes of my major of marketing. College is a fuckin scam and it’s only truly necessary for a very limited amount of majors. You’re just another minion that kisses the feet of big-government Democrats that try to make us feel like horrible people for not allowing them to sucks insane amounts of money out of the economy and spend it how they would like to. inch "That's including the localization teams for every language though, as well as PR and marketing. >! Some of them might even be legacy accreditation for the Gen 6 models they're *still* using.! < " "Time is a cost and you should track where that cost is going. That said, if you are working on general administrative/nonbillable stuff within your own department, it's pretty easy to have that time automatically go to the right cost bucket, so generic entries for that sort of thing are fine imo. The stuff that really has to be tracked is anything for clients or for departments that are outside your default (e. g. engineer writes a blog post, that's marketing time etc). micron "I believe there are some lessons on Google Academy for Adss (now called Skillshop) but hands-on experience is tricky. Two ways are possible, 1) is for you to have your own website and use Google Ad Sense, but this is more from the advertiser side rather than publisher or technical side 2) ask a digital or marketing agency that is near you if you can shadow/assist/internship/work experience for a week or so. This may be difficult depending on where you live and agency people are always very busy, so if you do ask tell them how you could help THEM not the other way around. To be honest, start with Analytics and Paid Search as they are arguable more accessible and have more out there for you to learn" "We are in the same boat, but different industry. Here's my approach, starting this week: I'm joining business groups that my target clients are a part of, for example, manufacturer groups. Then I'm going to target that organization with our services. I'm then going to offer to speak about the service I offer and how it helps businesses. Not a marketing spiel, an educational talk. Good luck" "One might consider a lawsuit if a car or alcohol company advocated or implied the action of drinking and driving in their marketing" "This post has been removed for breaking Rule 1. No Spammy Titles. Do not mention anything about selling anything in the title. Absolutely ZERO marketing in the title. Do not even ask for people to contact you for more. Be enticing. Post quality pics with quality titles. Read the rules for info on how to market yourself here. If your posts keep getting removed then you will be banned. READ THE RULES! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Remember to[contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/? to=/r/feetpics) if you have any questions or concerns. *" "I came of grew up and came of age in Chicago during Jordan's time with the Bulls and the shortest answer is that it's almost incomparable because the level of fame basketball players before Michael Jordan was laughably lower than now. Even today MJ has a logo that might be more identifiable than the company that created it. I would argue no athlete in any sport has surpassed MJ's level of fame. MJ pioneered so many avenues of endorsements, its like comparing planes in the era of propeller planes with jet planes. Jordan like most greats, stood on the shoulders of giants, specifically Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Those two spent the better part of the late 70's and early to late 80's dominating the sport of basketball. Also add in Isiah Thomas of the Pistons and arguably "Dr. J" Julius Erving of the 76ers and those four were the superstars of the four teams that won EVERY NBA championship of the decade. Before Michael Jordan won his FIRST NBA Championship in 1991, he was arguably bigger than all of them. Before MJ, being a big name athlete meant getting your name on a breakfast cereal box called Wheaties, and doing the commercial saying the plug line "Gotta eat your Wheaties! " That's not a joke. Check 'em out on youtube, they're cringe worthy. MJ's meteoric rise in my opinion was helped by a few special advertising campaigns. I think first would have been his Nike commercials with Spike Lee, another pioneer. He just made "Do the right thing" at a time when black people making movies with black people in the movies wasn't really a thing. Spike Lee also happens to like playing characters in his own movies and Mars Blackmon was a character in that movie that Spike Lee chose to portray in a series of commericals with Michael Jordan. Again, pardon me for repeating, but I have to say it again for context. You have a supremely talented and charismatic young athlete being marketed by a young shoe company (Converse Chuck Taylors were still THE basketball shoe) hiring a visionary and ground breaking director to do something that had not been done before. And they crushed it. Again, at this time Michael Jordan wasn't winning NBA championships. He was having savant level performances, but get bounced out of the first round by the Celtics, or getting manhandled in the playoffs by the Pistons. By the time he did win it all in 91, MJ was doing things that no one had done in fields well outside basketball. Michael Jordan in Flight is one of the first videogames to have 3D. He had already supplanted Dr J in the one on one basketball video game with Larry Bird. Gatorade put out a marketing campaign with the song "Be Like Mike" and that song was the top song for the summer of 92 in Chicago on most radio stations regardless of genre. You're already familiar with Space Jam, but before Space Jam, the Looney Toons were relegated to afternoon after school syndicated (rerun) television stations. Michael Jordan made Bugs Bunny cool again to a whole new generation that knows of them only through MJ. I hope that helps. inches "Yeah I don't want to turn it around and criticize Musk over this or anything, but Tesla is great at PR and marketing while convincing people they don't actually try to be. inches "No, you dont need more parties, you need to ban all parties and establish government funded elections where everyone with a certain amount of support by the people can run using government money and marketing channels. Equal funding, equal marketing, equal candidacy, by the people, for the people. Sounds too good to be true? Well fuck you, because parties are corrupt barbaric cavemen shit. " " Funny Cartoon Images for website content - Family Funny Images and illustrations, Ultimate single panel funny cartoons used for websites, social media and emails https://www.freecartoonsdaily.com https://www.cartoons.cafe www.cartoons.cafe www.acmeblanks.com sign up now! Funny Cartoons, Funny family cartoon images, Custom Cartoons, Niche Cartoons, Humorous Illustration Services, Business Cartoons, Medical Cartoons, Custom Comic Strips, Book Illustration Services, Political Cartoons, funny hospital cartoons, cartoons for marketing, corporate cartoons, work cartoons, business cartoons, Computer Cartoons, farmer cartoons, farm cartoons, tractor cartoons, Pig cartoons, pig farmer cartoons, cor farmer cartoons, wheat farmer cartoons, soybean farmer cartoons.... inch "That's including people associated with the marketing and promotion of Sword and Shield, which means people at Nintendo and the Pokemon Company rather than actual programmers at Game Freak working on the game itself. The same article you're looking at gives 200 at Game Freak - which is likely wrong since Game Freak had 143 employees, and Game Freak openly stated most were working on Town. You could include the modelers from Creatures Inc, but given that the models are the same as those developed for X and Y by Creatures Inc years ago, they are likely still being credited for "work" on this game that was actually done quite some time ago. " "Imagine what a lucky break JonTron was for FlexSeal. Their products are actually pretty decent, but their marketing was almost typical infomercial stuff that no-one over fifty would've seen. Next, out of nowhere, some YouTuber makes them famous amongst younger customers. People make "that's a lotta damage, " and "I sawed this boat in half, " memes. Everyone knows who they are. Chances are, when you need some stuff like this you'll at the very least know about their existence and you might buy their stuff because at least you know they're legit. Some people will buy it when they need something like that, literally for the meme. All they have to do is keep the ball rolling with tweets like these (because, of course, people actually follow them on Twitter now). " "That's my point. The pub you linked to is disney land. I'm looking for somewhere that recreates the a more authentic historical experience. I think these places have got their marketing wrong which is why they are closing. They should be trying to recreate an experience closer to that in the Pathe news reel. If you just sold fresh baked bread, potted Hare, a variety of local ales you could heat with a poker while smoking a hilarious pipe you could capture a huge slice of the real ale / hipster / foodie market. " "No game in the genre had been competition for the Diablo franchise since it's inception. D3 no matter how you look at it was a huge commercial success being in the top 10 video games sold of all time at one point. Diablo now has become what WoW was before, tons of games saying they are a WoW killer and none of them doing it. So now we looming at Diablo killers but they all end up falling off somewhere because they don't get the same $$$ support / marketing. inch "8M opening weekend bad = bad marketing. Bad quality movie would be revealed in the multiplier (word of mouth and no rewatches). In this case I don’t think there was anything compelling from the movie they could focus the marketing around which led to the 8M OW. " "I’m in the same boat. I have to get 14 credits by may2020. In the last 2 weeks I did principle of marketing 3 credits score 66 and principal of management 3 credits score 62. This week I’ll take precalculas which is 5 credits and calculus which is 4 credits. I did not pay the $89 for the test because I did modernstates which pays the testing fee. It also reimburses me for the $20 testing fee" "Marketing. McAf€€ gets money from users, Micro$oft gets money from McAfee. They beget the green, motherfuckers that they are. Sometimes http://tipofmytongue.topreddit.info who install 3^^rd party stuff tho, it's not only Microsoft. Anyway, it's a motherfuckery of bloatware if not malware. "McAfee antivirus is one of the worst products on the planet" -John McAfee" "You're arguing entirely from marketing hype instead of actual quality, which is entirely stupid and comes down entirely to Sont having far greater of a userbase and them having less games to pump more money behind. Besides, let's not pretend Sony has an actual library of games here. Both Xbox and Sony have completely shit the bed this console generation in terms of exclusive libraries. Sony has had like, 8 good games this entire generation as exclusives. You have Death Stranding, Uncharted 4, Horizon, Until Dawn, Bloodborne, God of War, MLB The Show... That's about it? I guess you also have Detroit and Last Guardian depending on who you ask, but I defo don't wanna throw Days Gone on that list. But in any case, you could lump all of those games into loke 3-4 genres. Am I missing anything? But yeah, stop saying dumb shit like "Well its not a household name so its irrelevant" because you're entirely missing the point and reducing the entire industry to what can or can't be marketed. As well, its telling that Sony has stated their goal next-gen is to have less games release but have them be bigger, where Microsoft is going the opposite direction. Keep the the big titles, bur also have a little something for everyone. Diversity is important. Your Battletoads reboot might not sell as well, but its important to folks who like it. Games shouldn't be live or die based on how well they fit in established and marketable trends. Its absurdly reductive" "I actually never had injected one, whats the main difference? And is it really a big improvement or rather a marketing bait" "It’s all part of his NYC persona. Marketing. inches

#tag #statics

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emma1125 · 5 years

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Larry Bird - Miami Vs Oklahoma City: The NBA's Next Pleasant Rivalry?

The 2012 NBA Finals gets underneath way Tuesday night in state capital in what certifications to be relate degree energizing match-up that incorporates various electrical competitors. a considerable measure of the talk close LarryBird Net Worth arrangement has focused around LeBron James and Larry Bird Net Worth inquiry that subtle starting title, together with Larry Bird Net Worth nearby within reach duel with Kevin Larry Bird Net Worthtoriographer for the "title" of the NBA's best player.

From a group point of view, there's conjointly the topic of regardless of whether LarryBird Net Worth can be the start of a Miami Heat keep running of titles, or if OKC's considerably more youthful center is it coming to steer and turn into the NBA's alpha canine group for progressive 5 and years.

Except for the glow and Celtics, there region unit excessively a few blood matches left inside the NBA - bunches that must bear the inverse inside the playoffs on partner degree yearly premise to accomplish the last word prize, rivals that relish the opportunity to complete the period of the inverse. inside the 1980's there have been assortment of those competitions, one among the extra remarkable being Magic Johnson's la Lakers against Larry Bird's capital of Massachusetts Celtics.

Incredibly, either the Lakers or the Celtics contended in each NBA Finals fight consistently, with LA catching 5 titles and furthermore the Celtics 3. They square off in 3 life-changing Finals ('84, '85, and '87), and notwithstanding the Houston Rockets (first with Moses so with the double Towers of Sampson and furthermore the Dream), Moses and Doc's urban focus 76ers, and furthermore the unfortunate Boy Pistons, the Larry Bird Net Worth Lakers and Celtics would've most likely conflicted two or three elective occasions with everything out and about.

The principal 1980's make a beeline for move Finals fight among LA and capital of Massachusetts happened inside the late spring of 1984, and watching out back at these gatherings aggregate lists thinking back one sees some of the amusement's uncomparable greats inside the prime of their vocations.

The Lakers touched base inside the Garden that year with a group that encased Magic (24 years of age), Bryon Scott (23), James Worthy (23), chief heavenly messenger Cooper (28) all moving toward their pinnacle years, with veterans like Bob McAdoo (33), Jamaal Wilkes (31), and furthermore the everlasting Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (37) as yet getting a charge out of pleasant ball.

The Celtics countered with their everything world bleeding edge of Bird (27 years past, back not in any case breaking apart), Kevin McHale (26), and Robert Parish (30) beat their primes, and monitors and job players like Dennis Johnson (29), Danny Ainge (25), Cedric Maxwell (28), Scott Wedman (31), and Gerald Henderson (27) all causative at key focuses all through. LarryBird Net Worth conflict of ability met at just the correct time, with each posting having its best players equipped for getting a charge out of at the best of levels for quite a long time to return. LarryBird Net Worth issue in truth was dominating in making their succeeding conflicts in 1985 and 1987 potential.

LarryBird Net Worth brings U.S. to the glow and Thunder. Miami brought along its "Enormous 3" of LeBron, Dwyane Wade, and Chris nonsensicality to collect numerous titles and command the scene of the association for the anticipated future.

They in all likelihood did not figure the Mavs happening their unimaginable run a year ago, or LeBron lessening underneath the extreme lights once Larry Bird Net Worth group expected him to require over. He returned with a reprisal LarryBird Net Worth season, and has the glow four recreations expelled from catching the essential of the numerous titles Larry Bird Net Worth unit is intended to win inside the years ahead.

All things considered, LeBron has been inside the NBA for what appears perpetually, anyway remains exclusively twenty seven years past and kept on advancing as a player. Thinking about the deficiency of curve "bigs" by and by inside the amusement, the Boshster (28) still has a few compelling years left, while Wade (30) should be an abnormal state player for a few extra seasons looking on anyway Larry Bird Net Worth body holds up. watching LarryBird Net Worth condition of the japanese Conference, it's anything but a stretch to make reference to that the glow are inside the join to go to the Finals for at least another 3 of 4 years.

OKC while not address has the least difficult youthful core inside the amusement, and after they move LarryBird Net Worth group is almost relentless . Larry Bird Net Worthtoriographer (23 years of age) could be an assessment machine, Russell Westbrook (23) plays with a blend of a youthful Allen Iverson's speed and a youthful Baron Davis' capacity,

James Harden (22) could be a wash player World Health Organization will get off any shot he wants whenever, relate degreed fabric Ibaka (22) is a rising hostile player World Health Organization conjointly happens to be a beast on resistance, swatting without end much everything near the edge. you must accept these players with still enhance which LarryBird Net Worth group are the most elevated canine inside the Western Conference for whatever length of time that they remain.

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a few years expelled from their primes), and wellbeing permitting each can have a phenomenal likelihood to go to the ebb and flow real reason next season. we tend Larry Bird In NBA’s ‘Huge Three’ Thought Overrated? What is Larry Bird Net Worth? to were every one of the a kilo knee damage expelled from seeing the Lakers and Celtics play against each other in 3 successive Finals two or three years back, and with those 2 storied establishments as of now being produced to the foundation it is the Heat and Thunders time to sparkle.

#Larry Bird Net Worth #Larry Bird

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mjordan-nba-nhl · 1 year

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JULIUS ERVING & MICHAEL JORDAN | Philadelphia 76ers & Chicago Bulls, 1986/87.

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areefan · 3 years

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Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has bone bruise in knee, to be reevaluated in 2 weeks

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid has a bone bruise on his left knee and will be reevaluated in two weeks, the team announced Saturday.

An MRI overnight revealed no structural damage to the knee that Embiid hyperextended in a victory over the Washington Wizards on Friday night, sources said. Embiid underwent the MRI immediately after returning to Philadelphia late on Friday night, sources said.

Embiid's ACL and meniscus are fine, sources said, and there's significant relief within the Sixers that the injury isn't s บาคาร่าออนไลน์ omething much worse.

Embiid left Friday night's game when he hyperextended his left knee after landing with all his weight on his leg after a dunk in the third quarter.

Embiid was in the midst of the latest dominant performance of his MVP-caliber season, scoring 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting to go along with 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks in 20 minutes, when เล่นบาคาร่า he caught a pass from Tobias Harris and flew in for a dunk to give Philadelphia an 80-60 lead with 6 minutes, 20 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

EDITOR'S PICKS

76ers' Embiid hyperextends knee, to have MRI

Embiid overtakes LeBron as favorite to win MVP But as Embiid went down after the dunk, his full body weight landed on that left leg -- causing it to hyperextend, sending him falling to the court and causing him to writhe around in pain.

After staying down for a few minutes, Embiid eventually got to his feet and walked off under his own power -- though with a fairly pronounced limp -- as he went straight bac เกมยิงปลาออนไลน์ k to the visitors locker room inside Washington's Capital One Arena.

Embiid had a similarly scary situation last month when he hyperextended his right knee in an awkward fall against the Portland Trail Blazers after blocking an Enes Kanter layup. In that game, Embiid returned a few minutes later and dominated, scoring 31 first-half points in a mat ซื้อฟรีสปิน chup Philadelphia eventually lost.

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mjordan-nba-nhl · 1 year

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JULIUS ERVING & MICHAEL JORDAN | Philadelphia 76ers & Chicago Bulls, 1986/87.

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junker-town · 4 years

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TITLELESS: 16 NBA teams who were robbed of a championship

Peja Stojakovic, Chris Webber, and Mike Bibby were an iconic trio for the Kings.

Enjoy this eclectic mix of NBA What Might Have Beens.

The cover art for our final Titleless division is meant to be taken figuratively, not literally. Some of these 16 teams were unjustly “robbed” of their chance to win a championship. Others were thwarted by unforeseen circumstances: injuries mostly, but also their own incompetence and other bizarre factors. They were “robbed” in the sense that cosmic forces conspired to destroy their title dreams or cut short potential dynasties.

Enjoy this eclectic mix of NBA What Might Have Beens.

16. 1996-97 Detroit Pistons

ERA: Young Grant Hill

RECORD: 54-28

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +5.3

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in first round to Atlanta Hawks (3-2)

KEY STAR(S): Grant Hill

COACH: Doug Collins

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Joe Dumars, Lindsey Hunter, Otis Thorpe, Terry Mills, Theo Ratliff, Aaron McKie, Grant Long, Michael Curry

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

With the Bulls struggling late in what proved to be his final season in Chicago, Doug Collins moved Michael Jordan to point guard and refashioned the Bulls’ offense. (Dan Devine of the Ringer has a wonderful summary of how that happened, why it didn’t continue, and how it was the precursor to the point forward movement of today.)

Years later, Collins found a new young star more willing to play along in Detroit, at least initially. He put the ball in Grant Hill’s hands and asked him to run the team as he saw fit. Hill, an often reluctant attacker in the past, thrived in his new role. Collins surrounded Hill with shooters and role-players, opened the floor for Hill to attack, and watched him emerge as a potential new face of the NBA. Detroit got off to a fast start and won 54 games before losing in a tight five-game series to a terrific Hawks team.

Alas, the run was short-lived because Collins’ grating got on Hill’s nerves the same way it got on Jordan’s. The Pistons fell apart the next season, and depending on who you believe, Hill either asked Collins to be fired or declined to endorse him. Two years later, Hill suffered the ankle injury that would forever change his NBA destiny.

15. 1990-91 Golden State Warriors

ERA: Run T-M-C

RECORD: 44-38

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +1.6

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in second round to Los Angeles Lakers (4-1)

KEY STAR(S): Tim Hardaway, Chris Mullin

COACH: Don Nelson

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Mitch Richmond, Sarunas Marciulionis, Mario Elie, Rod Higgins, Alton Lister, Tom Tolbert, Tyrone Hill, Jim Petersen

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 1991-92

Meet Run TMC, one of the NBA’s all-time cult favorites. With Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, and Chris Mullin forming a high-scoring trio, the Warriors upset the second-seeded Spurs in four games, using a funky strategy that involved stationing their center as far away as possible so David Robinson couldn’t provide help on their scoring studs. (Remember, this was the illegal defense era.)

They fell to the mighty Lakers in five, but not before stunning them in Game 2 behind a torrid Mullin and nearly winning Game 4 at home.

Unfortunately, Run TMC was short-lived. The Warriors inexplicably traded Richmond to Sacramento for rookie forward Billy Owens, the No. 3 pick in the 1991 draft. Golden State actually won 55 games the next year, but were smashed by the underdog Sonics in the first round. The next few years were kinda bizarre, but let’s just say they did not go as planned.

14. 2000-01 Milwaukee Bucks

ERA: “Big 3” Bucks

RECORD: 52-30

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +3.8

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in East Finals to Philadelphia 76ers (4-3)

KEY STAR(S): Ray Allen

COACH: George Karl

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Glenn Robinson, Sam Cassell, Lindsey Hunter, Ervin Johnson, Tim Thomas, Jason Caffey, Scott Williams, Darvin Ham

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

The “Big 3” Bucks of Ray Allen, Sam Cassell, and Glenn Robinson were an annual tease except for one memorable 2001 playoff run. The Bucks finished with the second seed in the dilapidated East and nearly knocked off Allen Iverson’s 76ers in the conference finals. That series featured some, ahem, curious refereeing decisions, including a potential missed goaltend on Allen’s game-winning tip attempt in Game 5 and a surprising league call to upgrade a common Scott Williams Game 6 foul to a flagrant, thereby forcing him to miss Game 7. Allen essentially said the series was fixed without officially saying it.

Soon, the Bucks went back to being perennial teases. Milwaukee swung a big sign-and-trade for Anthony Mason that summer, thinking an upgrade up front was the missing piece. Instead, Mason threw off their chemistry and they missed the playoffs entirely in 2002 after a late-season collapse.

13. 2017-18 Boston Celtics

ERA: Brad Stevens’ Celtics

RECORD: 55-27

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +3.6

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in East Finals to Cleveland Cavaliers (4-3)

KEY STAR(S): Kyrie Irving (injured in playoffs)

COACH: Brad Stevens

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Al Horford, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Gordon Hayward (injured all season), Marcus Smart, Aron Baynes, Terry Rozier, Marcus Morris

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

Classifying these Celtics was challenging because of all the dominoes involved. Gordon Hayward shattering his leg on opening night undoubtedly set the Celtics back, but Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown may not emerge so quickly otherwise. Kyrie Irving’s late-season knee injury killed their championship upside … or did it, based on the evidence of 2019’s dysfunctional season and 2020’s good vibes with Kemba Walker in Irving’s place? What’s the point of comparing 2020’s Celtics with the 2018 version, since Al Horford’s not walking through that door? And how can we possibly quantify the degree to which Tatum’s 2020 superstar emergence relates to the flashes he showed in the 2018 playoffs?

I dunno, man. Let’s just put them here.

12. 2008-09 Portland Trail Blazers

ERA: Roy-Oden

RECORD: 54-28

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +5.3

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in first round to Houston Rockets (4-2)

KEY STAR(S): Brandon Roy

COACH: Nate McMillan

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Oden, Nicolas Batum, Travis Outlaw, Steve Blake, Rudy Fernandez, Joel Przybilla, Sergio Rodriguez, Jerryd Bayless, Channing Frye

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

What might have been if Greg Oden only stayed healthy? Would the trio of Oden, Brandon Roy, and LaMarcus Aldridge really have dominated the league for years to come?

We’ll never know, but the 2008-09 Blazers are the closest we’ll ever get to an answer. After missing his entire rookie season, Oden stayed relatively healthy and showed dominating flashes in 21 minutes per game behind reliable Joel Przybilla. With Roy emerging as a superstar in his third season and Aldridge becoming a burgeoning sidekick in his second, Portland won 54 regular-season games and looked to be ahead of schedule.

Portland’s run ended that year with a disappointing first-round loss to the Yao Ming-led, Tracy McGrady-less Rockets, who stole Game 1 on the Blazers’ home court and beat them in six. Oden reinjured his knee in December of the following season and played just 23 pro games thereafter.

11. 2018-19 Philadelphia 76ers

ERA: Post-Process

RECORD: 51-31

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +6

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in second round to Toronto Raptors (4-3)

KEY STAR(S): Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler

COACH: Brett Brown

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Tobias Harris, J.J. Redick, Wilson Chandler, Mike Scott, T.J. McConnell, Greg Monroe, James Ennis

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2017-18

The post-Process 76ers era is far from over, but maybe 2019 will end up being their best shot to advance deep in the playoffs. What happens if one of the 700 bounces on Kawhi Leonard’s buzzer-beating, series-ending game-winner goes in a different direction?

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Do they beat Milwaukee, a team with whom they matched up well? Does Jimmy Butler stay instead of leaving for Miami and throwing thinly veiled shots at Brett Brown’s coaching? Does that mean the 76ers don’t make the mistake of signing Al Horford in the ensuing offseason? We have nothing but time to play the what-if game.

10. 1988-89 Cleveland Cavaliers

ERA: The team Jordan always beat

RECORD: 57-25

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +7.6

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in first round to Chicago Bulls (3-2)

KEY STAR(S): Brad Daugherty, Mark Price

COACH: Lenny Wilkins

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Ron Harper, Larry Nance, Craig Ehlo, Hot Rod Williams, Mike Sanders, Darnell Valentine

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 1991-92, 1992-93

Before the Cavaliers became the franchise Michael Jordan tormented, they were a burgeoning young powerhouse propped up by the league itself. Ever heard of the Ted Stepien rule? It’s named after the despicable former Cavaliers owner who, among many other worse things, kept trading first-round picks for nobodies in the early 80s. The NBA eventually blocked him from trading first-rounders, but when that didn’t help, they forced Stepien out, even awarding Cleveland compensatory first-rounders to prop up the franchise’s value to potential buyers. They eventually found one in Gordon Gund, who restored normalcy to the franchise.

With the first rounders Stepien surely wanted to give up, Cleveland drafted key pieces like Brad Daugherty, Mark Price, Ron Harper, and (via a draft-day trade) Mark Price. A fifth future stud, Kevin Johnson, was traded for veteran Larry Nance. That young core stunned the league in 1989, finishing with the NBA’s second-best record behind Detroit. Because they were in the same division as the Pistons, though, they got the East No. 3 seed and a matchup with Michael Jordan’s Bulls. The rest is history.

Cleveland traded Harper just seven games into the next season for the rights to Danny Ferry, the No. 2 overall pick in the 1989 draft that refused to show for the Clippers. Ferry never lived up to the hype, and Cleveland was never quite the same.

9. 1987-88 Dallas Mavericks

ERA: Post-expansion Mavs

RECORD: 53-29

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +4.4

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in West Finals to Los Angeles Lakers (4-3)

KEY STAR(S): Mark Aguirre

COACH: John MacLeod

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Rolando Blackman, Derek Harper, Sam Perkins, Roy Tarpley, James Donaldson, Brad Davis, Detlef Schrempf

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 1986-87

Even by this section’s standards, the rise and fall of the 1980s Dallas Mavericks was bizarre. The diverse cast of characters included outspoken owner Donald Carter, general manager Norm Sanju (who endorsed a Process-like rebuild before it was fashionable), talented but drug-troubled center Roy Tarpley, and the nice-but-not-superstar young core that included Rolando Blackman, Derek Harper, and Sam Perkins. But the two most notable ones were superstar Mark Aguirre and longtime coach Dick Motta.

Take the criticism Carmelo Anthony received during his career, amp it up a few exponents, and you get Aguirre. An undersized forward with remarkable scoring skills and an equally remarkable ability to leave you wanting more, Aguirre eventually wore out his welcome the year after Dallas finished one game short of the Finals. “Today should be an all-day party because he’s gone,” said Perkins on the day Dallas traded Aguirre to Detroit. Ouch!

(Related tangent: Aguirre has not had his jersey retired by the team. He was supposed to speak at Derek Harper’s ceremony in 2018, but no-showed. Fast-forward to this year, when now-owner Mark Cuban honored the late Kobe Bryant by declaring that no Maverick would ever wear No. 8 or No. 24 again. Aguirre’s number? Twenty-four.)

Calling the Aguirre-Motta relationship “combustible” is kind. For some reason, Motta decided the best way to reach Aguirre was to ride him constantly. “I’ve said things to him that I wouldn’t say to my dog,” Motta said during the 1982-83 season. (Motta later said the quote was taken out of context, supplying this odd defense: “I did cuss my dog out last night. I’d like to go on record saying that. He wet the floor … I’ve never kicked my dog once, and I’ve never had a player die on the floor from overwork or abuse. And my dog still likes me.” OK!)

Somehow, the two co-existed until 1987, when the 55-win Mavs were upset in the first round by the Sonics. Driven by his volcanic relationship with Aguirre, Motta abruptly quit after that season.

Aguirre initially welcomed veteran replacement coach John MacLeod and turned in his best season in leading Dallas to the West Finals, but after a few postseason benchings and a strange summer, he asked to be traded early in the following season.

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Dallas fell apart thereafter and slowly turned into a joke of a franchise before Cuban purchased the team in 1999.

8. 2007-08 Houston Rockets

ERA: Yao and T-Mac

RECORD: 55-27

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +4.7

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in first round to Utah Jazz (4-2)

KEY STAR(S): Yao Ming (injured for playoffs), Tracy McGrady

COACH: Rick Adelman

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Shane Battier, Rafer Alston, Luis Scola, Bonzi Wells, Chuck Hayes, Luther Head, Carl Landry, Dikembe Mutombo

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2006-07, 2008-09

Talk about duos destined for star-crossed careers: Meet Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady! This remarkable guard-big star tandem missed a combined 179 games from 2004-2009, which is more than two full seasons! Their best shot to go deep in the playoffs together was in 2007, when they lost Game 7 on their home floor to the Jazz.

The 2007-08 team, fueled by a remarkable 22-game winning streak, was the best of the bunch. Twelve of those wins came before Yao suffered yet another stress fracture in his foot, which kept him out for the rest of the season. Houston won 10 more in a row with aging Dikembe Mutombo in Yao’s place, but were running on fumes. In the end, McGrady alone didn’t have enough to avenge the team’s 2007 playoff defeat to the Jazz.

7. 1985-86 Houston Rockets

ERA: Twin Towers

RECORD: 51-31

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +2.6

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in NBA Finals to Boston Celtics (4-2)

KEY STAR(S): (H)akeem Olajuwon

COACH: Bill Fitch

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Ralph Sampson, Rodney McCray, John Lucas, Lewis Lloyd, Robert Reid, Jim Petersen, Allen Leavell, Mitchell Wiggins

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

But for a fleeting moment in the 1986 playoffs, the Twin Towers Rockets were more a theoretical dream than a coherent basketball team. Whoever picked “The Greatest Team That Never Was” for Grantland’s giant oral history of the 80s Rockets deserves a raise, because that was always their destiny.

Ralph Sampson and Hakeem Olajuwon were never going to be a seamless on-court fit. The laid-back Sampson and drill sergeant coach Bill Fitch were never going to see eye to eye. Fitch’s hope that point guard John Lucas would stay sober was never going to pay off. Lewis Lloyd and Mitchell Wiggins were always threats to be the ones that’d get the book thrown at them to crack down on its players’ drug use. Sampson was never going to be the same physically after his scary fall late in the 1987 season.

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But it’s fun to dream, isn’t it?

6. 2003-04 Indiana Pacers

ERA: Pre-Malice at the Palace

RECORD: 61-21

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +5.8

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in East Finals to Detroit Pistons (4-2)

KEY STAR(S): Jermaine O’Neal

COACH: Rick Carlisle

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Ron Artest, Reggie Miller, Al Harrington, Jamaal Tinsley, Jeff Foster, Anthony Johnson, Austin Croshere, Fred Jones

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: None

5. 2010-11 Chicago Bulls

ERA: Rose and Thibs

RECORD: 62-20

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +7.3

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in East Finals to Miami Heat (4-1)

KEY STAR(S): Derrick Rose

COACH: Tom Thibodeau

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Taj Gibson, Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver, Keith Bogans, C.J. Watson, Omer Asik, Kurt Thomas

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2011-12

Had I known Derrick Rose’s career would be forever altered by one knee injury, I’d have spent much more time appreciating his 2011 MVP season instead of grumbling that the award should’ve gone to Dwight Howard or LeBron James. Rose might have been a tad overrated statistically, but he was an incredible thrill to watch and an inspiring foil to the hated Heatles. Looking back on it, I should have appreciated how Rose’s production and the Bulls’ combination of defense and depth complemented each other, rather than use those forces to argue against Rose’s MVP case. Live and learn.

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These Bulls fell short because a pissed-off James put Rose in a straight-jacket in crunch time of Miami’s five-game East Finals victory. With nobody else there to help him score, Rose was powerless to stop the Heat.

4. 2004-05 Phoenix Suns

ERA: 7 Seconds Or Less

RECORD: 62-20

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +7.1

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in West Finals to San Antonio Spurs (4-1)

KEY STAR(S): Steve Nash, Amar’e Stoudemire

COACH: Brian Hill

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson (injured in WCF), Quentin Richardson, Jim Jackson, Leandro Barbosa

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2005-06, 2006-07, 2009-10

Picking the best Suns team of the Steve Nash era was difficult. The 2010 team was a delightful surprise, the 2006 team inspired one of the best basketball books of the millennium, and the 2007 team got hosed most obviously. But the original 2004-05 version is still — Hot take alert! — the most thrilling and revolutionary basketball experience the league has seen since … ever? Let’s go with ever.

It’s easy to forget how many skeptics the Suns had while zipping through the league that season. They ran, ran, and ran some more instead of positioning themselves into set plays the coach diagrams. (I loved this Mike D’Antoni quote from a 2005 SI story: “I don’t know how you script against something when the offensive team isn’t even sure what it’s doing.”) They took threes in transition when nobody else did. They played “small” by moving Shawn Marion to power forward and Amar’e Stoudemire to center. They built their entire team around the spread pick-and-roll. They were the first to do so many things we take for granted today. But despite winning more games than anyone in the league, they were never seen as favorites and were often derided for promoting a style that wouldn’t hold up in the playoffs.

Those skeptics got the last laugh, but with mitigating circumstances. Everything changed when Joe Johnson fell face first on the floor after Jerry Stackhouse fouled him on a fast break in Game 2 of the Suns’ second-round series with Dallas.

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Johnson missed the rest of the series and the beginning of the conference finals against the Spurs with a fractured orbital, only returning as a shell of himself after San Antonio took a 2-0 lead in the series. By then, it was far too late.

Why was this a bigger what-if than the controversial suspensions that doomed the Suns’ 2008 season? Well, Suns players say so:

”We should’ve won it all that year,” Marion said. “If it wasn’t for that (Johnson’s injury), I think we would have.”

The controversial suspensions to Stoudemire and Boris Diaw during the 2007 conference semifinals are the most cited bad breaks of that Suns era, but the Suns think Johnson’s bad break was worse, especially to lose his defensive option on Tony Parker.

”There’s no way you can tell me we wouldn’t have been NBA champions if I hadn’t got hurt,” Johnson said.

And I believe them. Before Johnson became known as ISO-Joe in Atlanta, he was the glue that held the Suns’ fragile ecosystem together. He shot 48 percent from three that season on four-and-a-half attempts per game. His non-stop running kept Phoenix’s transition attack going. He defended the toughest guards that Nash couldn’t. If the Suns’ main attack broke down, he provided the supplementary playmaking. We all love Boris Diaw’s game, but he was never as important as Johnson was to the Suns.

About that. Annoyed by Johnson’s salary demands, the Suns dealt him to Atlanta that summer and got Diaw back in the sign-and-trade. It wasn’t quite the James Harden trade, but it had a similar effect. Phoenix stayed in the mix for the rest of the decade, but in hindsight, the summer departure of Johnson, combined with Stoudemire’s microfracture surgery, doomed their title hopes forever.

3. 1994-95 Orlando Magic

ERA: Penny and Shaq

RECORD: 57-25

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +7.1

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in NBA Finals to Houston Rockets (4-0)

KEY STAR(S): Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway

COACH: Brian Hill

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Horace Grant, Nick Anderson, Dennis Scott, Donald Royal, Brian Shaw, Anthony Bowie

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 1995-96

You already know about Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway, the 1995 win over the Bulls, the four missed Nick Anderson free throws, and the unceremonious end to the Shaq era the next summer. If not, watch the 30 for 30.

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So let’s talk about the move that turned the young Magic into serious title contenders: the 1994 free-agent signing of Horace Grant. Cue Michael Buffer, because … let’s get ready to lawsuuuuiiiiitttttt!

In the summer of 1994, Grant, the critical third piece of the first Chicago Bulls three-peat, was a free agent. Tired of doing the dirty work without receiving enough credit, Grant wanted to leave and yearned to join up with Hardaway and O’Neal in Orlando. There was just one problem: Orlando didn’t have any salary-cap space to sign him. Kinda an issue.

But Grant and the Magic designed a clever, mutually beneficial way around this dilemma. First, Orlando traded point guard Scott Skiles and a first-round pick to Washington to open up Skiles’ $2.1 million salary slot. Then, they signed Grant to a six-year, $22 million deal that included a first-year salary of just over $2 million (fancy that!) and an opt-out provision after the first year. Left unspoken: Orlando would invite Grant to exercise that option and give him a much bigger contract thereafter. Convenient and successful. Everyone got what they wanted and nobody got hurt.

Unfortunately for the Magic, salary-cap circumvention was a growing concern for the NBA. The league tried to prevent the Blazers from doing a similar move with Chris Dudley the previous summer, but lost in court. Buoyed by the ruling, other contenders, most notably the Phoenix Suns, inked quality veterans for below-market contracts that were either for one year or contained opt-out clauses like Grant’s. (This is how Phoenix got perennial all-star Danny Manning to sign a one-year, $1 million deal.) Using evidence of a reported five-year, $20 million offer from the Bulls as proof that Grant signed below his market value in Orlando, the NBA voided Grant’s deal, along with two other giant new contracts for Toni Kukoc and A.C. Green signed one summer after agreeing to miniscule short-term deals from the Bulls and Suns the previous summer.

The Magic sued the league, and the case went before the same judge that ruled in the Blazers’ favor for Dudley. This time, the judge sided in favor of the NBA, making Grant a free agent again just weeks before training camp. (He did not do the same for Kukoc and Green because it would violate the precedent set in the Dudley case. Oddly, the Manning deal was allowed to slip through, as was a similar Magic one-year deal to bring veteran point guard Brian Shaw in to spell Hardaway.) The league said they’d allow Grant to sign with Orlando if the opt-out clause was after the second year instead. Two weeks later, the Magic and Grant agreed. That’s how close Orlando’s “missing piece” signing came to falling apart.

The epilogue to this story shouldn’t surprise you. Though O’Neal left Orlando after the 1996 season, the Magic still gave the 31-year-old Grant a new five-year, $50 million deal, even though he was coming off a devastating elbow injury. After all of that, they still successfully circumvented the salary cap. Glad the lawyers got paid, though. (Shaw, by the way, got a one-year, $9 million deal after the 1995 season, while Manning inked a six-year, $40 million deal with Phoenix despite tearing his ACL. These teams were not subtle!)

2. 2011-12 Oklahoma City Thunder

ERA: Pre-Harden trade

RECORD: 47-19 (58-win pace)

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +6.2

PLAYOFF RESULT: Lost in NBA Finals to Miami Heat (4-1)

KEY STAR(S): Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden

COACH: Scott Brooks

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins, Thabo Sefolosha, Nick Collison, Derek Fisher, Eric Maynor, Daequan Cook, Reggie Jackson

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2010-11

We’re still waiting for the tell-all book or documentary that explains once and for all why the Thunder traded James Harden to the Rockets. We have many theories and circumstantial explanations, but no absolute truth. All I know is that these words from Andrew Sharp, published on our website on Oct. 28, 2012, were prophetic.

“So if you want to say the Thunder chose long-term flexibility over a short term shot at a title, that’s fine. Just don’t overlook the second part of that sentence. If basketball is a business, there’s a good chance this was a bad business decision. Because what happens if KD and co. aren’t good enough to win it all in the next few years? Doesn’t OKC end up spending to compete with the best, and eventually paying the luxury tax because of somebody else? And it may not work. There are no guarantees at finding a core that clicks on the court the way last year’s did.”

Every word of that paragraph came true, including the prediction that OKC would end up going over the luxury tax for a worse player than Harden. What might have been, indeed.

1. 2001-02 Sacramento Kings

ERA: The beautiful game Kings

RECORD: 61-21

POINT DIFFERENTIAL: +7.6

PLAYOFF RESULT: “Lost” in West Finals to Los Angeles Lakers (4-3)

KEY STAR(S): Chris Webber

COACH: Rick Adelman

OTHER KEY PLAYERS: Peja Stojakovic, Mike Bibby, Vlade Divac, Doug Christie, Bobby Jackson, Hedo Turkoglu, Scott Pollard

OTHER SEASONS CONSIDERED FROM THIS ERA: 2000-01, 2002-03, 2003-04

Just watch this video.

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