Natural Born Analysts Podcast 001 – “The disappointment of Cee-Lo Green”
The first of many podcasts on all things Wolves, Bulls and NBA is here.
We are still in prototype mode, but all feedback is welcome.
Check it out!
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
Round 2 HERE WE COME!!
Westbrook winning? the fashion playoffs…
Round 2 is about to begin, with your Bulls pulling out a gutsy victory over Brooklyn on their home court. Only to be rewarded with a matchup with the King and his South Beach Cavalry. So with the games starting tomorrow its time to pick them again.
East:
Indiana VS New York
Chicago VS MiamiWest:
Oklahoma VS Memphis
San Antonio VS Golden State
Who do you have? Who are you looking forward to seeing?-
naturalbornanalysts
Quickly I think we will see an Indiana vs Miami ECF.
Miami will just be too fresh for your boys to be honest. I see them winning in 5. I cant imagine the bulls have much left in the tank, but I will be rooting for them all the way.
Indiana and New York will be a grind. A very very good matchup. I see it going 7 but I think Indiana have that killer instinct…and David West.In the West I see Memphis vs San Antonio in the WCF.
Memphis and OKC I see as this:
Conley > Jackson
Allen > Thabo/Martin
Prince/Allen Ibaka
Gasol > PerkinsMEMPHIS > OKC
Spurs just have too much class and experience for the GSW… but I hope its an exciting series.
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
Award Season
Bill Walton- Winner of best Beard/Headband combination 1979
End of season awards will be handed out shortly, and while there seems to be a unanimous opinion that LBJ will win yet another MVP, there are still some awards up for grabs. So lets hear your thoughts on the traditional (and not so traditional) honours.
MVP:
DPOY:
MIP:
6th MAN:
ROY:
COACH:GAME WINNER:
CLUTCH PERFORMANCE:
BENCH SQUAD:
FOY (Foreigner of the Year):
BEST TRADE/ADDITION:
BEST SACKING/RELEASE:
BEST STATLINE OF THE YEAR:
FANTASY PLAYER OF THE YEAR:Feel free to add some.
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naturalbornanalysts
MVP: Lebron (Duh)
DPOY: Marc Gasol
MIP: Greivis Vasquez
6th MAN: Jarret Jack (was awarded to JR Smith today)
ROY: Lillard
COACH: Frank VogelGAME WINNER: Lillard announcing himself to the world and putting is name on the ROY trophy.
CLUTCH PERFORMANCE: I think we just saw it… ANDRE MILLER!!! 28 points, 18 in the 4th, Game Winner!BENCH SQUAD: Denver
FOY (Foreigner of the Year): Nikola Pekovic (Homer Pick)
BEST TRADE/ADDITION: Birdman!! He has helped the Heat A LOT!
WORST ADDITION/TRADE: Jason Terry… sucks!
BEST SACKING/RELEASE: Avery Johnson
BEST STATLINE OF THE YEAR: Curry vs New York – 48(mins) 18-28 (fg) 7-8 (3pts) .875 (3pt%) 11-12 (ft) 6 (rebs) 7 (asts) 3 (stls) 4 (TOs) 54 (pts)
FANTASY PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Durant
GAME OF THE YEAR: Denver @ Boston 3OT
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
Race to the Finish
Playoff Prediction.
It’s that time of year again, and while one of our teams made it and the other didn’t, its still the best time of the season.
So lets hear your predictions for the first round and maybe a little preview of the type of games you think you will see. Who are the keys? The X-factors? What are you most looking forward to seeing.EAST:
Miami vs Milwaukee
Indiana vs Atlanta
Brooklyn vs Chicago
New York vs BostonWEST:
Oklahoma vs Houston
Spurs vs Lakers
Clippers vs Memphis
Nuggets vs Warriors
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naturalbornanalysts
I will start even though we are already up to Game 2 of each of the series.
PS. Dont piss off the Lion
EAST:
Miami vs Milwaukee
-Lebron killed game one with an incredible stat line. I expected MIL to give the Heat a bit of trouble, because they always seem to trouble them for some reason. But the Heat are better than last year and this will be a sweep… nothing gentlemanly about it. MIAMI 4-0Indiana vs Atlanta
-Paul George started off with a bang, and Larry Drew has seemingly given up already (Al Horford only 28 mins?). I think Indiana take this series in 5. INDIANA 4-1
For note: I’m on the Indiana bandwagon… its small… I may be driving, but I will ride hard.Brooklyn vs Chicago
-No Noah? Big Problem! I can’t imagine Deng playing much worse than he did in Game 1, so its only up from here! I think that Chicago manage to grind out a couple of games at home, but Brooklyn look very good. BROOKLYN 4-2New York vs Boston
-Carmelo was good. Boston was terrible in the fourth and have no bench. Im not that impressed with the Knicks. I think Boston just find a way. Boston 4-3WEST:
Oklahoma vs Houston
-Woah boy… OKC look good… and that sea of blue is going to wash all over Houston. OKC in the gentleman’s sweep. OKC 4-1Spurs vs Lakers
-Ugly shooting in game 1, but I think that the Spurs are just using this to round into a bit of form for Round 2. Spurs take this in 5, because Pop is a gentleman. SPURS 4-1Clippers vs Memphis
-Memphis cant play much worse can they? And I still think they get this series. I dont trust Del Negro and I dont trust the Clippers. Im looking forward to Mike Conley adjusting to the bright lights of Hollywood, and Lionel Hollins out-coaching Chris Paul… I mean Vinny Del Negro. MEMPHIS 4-3Nuggets vs Warriors
-Lee done for the season really hurts the Warriors. Faried playing in Game 2 really hurts the Warriors. The perimeter length of the Nuggets really hurts the Warriors. Nuggets in six because Andre Miller has overtaken Billups as the most underrated player in the League. DENVER 4-2
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
3 moves to fix your team.
Just a quickie….
We are a month into the season. We know what our teams have got, and what they lack.
You have 3 moves that you can make to fix your team (and I’m not talking about miraculous healing).
Amnesty? Trades (has to financially work/realistic)? Future draft? Rotations?GO!
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jk41
So I’m guessing we’re talking about short term, in season here…
If its this season, I’m not sure there’s much we can do! We’re hard capped thanks to the Hinrich signing which means we can’t sign any free agent til December or something because of the pro-rated salaries.
The only players of value we have are Luol Deng and Joakim Noah. These guys are on pretty big contracts and then who do you go for? Rudy Gay? But then Memphis are pretty settled. And Noah’s having a great season, there’s no need to get rid of him.
So I really think the moves to fix the team have to come from within, as boring as it sounds. But these are the things I would do:
1. Get the rotation right
Thibs is trying all he can to find the right combination off the bench. With last year’s Bench Mob, he usually left Deng in with the bench as that stabiliser. But I think now without Asik, he has to leave either Noah or Boozer along with Deng for that extra stability off the bench.2. Work in some new offensive sets
Scoring is such a nightmare on this team, as you’re well aware of with your gambling. But it’s not just the lack of scoring, but how they approach it. It’s a point guard dominated offense due to it being designed to have Rose running it. It relies on a lot of penetration and ball handling of the PG. And in case we haven’t noticed, Kirk is no Rose. So I would love it if they tweaked their offense to run more through Deng in the post or Boozer/Noah initiating passes, because what have you got to lose? And best outcome is that you find a killer Boozer or Deng play that you can rely on when Rose does eventually come back.3. Miscellaneous
- Play Marquis Teague. Find out what you have in him.
- Hit some 3s! At the bottom of the league and critical to success in today’s NBA
- Thibs to trust his bench. Management to provide personnel that Thibs will trust. Short and long term road here.
- Pray for Derrick to come back stronger than ever.
Wow…I really didn’t think I had that much to write, but then again we are 8-7…
OK, how about the T’Wolves?
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naturalbornanalysts
I agree that your offensively challenged Bulls need some spark off the bench. But at best I think you need to hope Jimmy Butler starts to shine and get some more minutes. Nate is too unreliable.
Also agree that Marquis Teague should get some more minutes so you can see what you have with the kid. He is young and I think the experience right now would be good for him.
And you might have your wish with Rose running around before games as of late.Ok so the Wolves…
We have obviously been hit probably the hardest of any club this year with injuries. To the point that we signed Josh Howard (who surprisingly hasnt been playing all that badly). We have a lot of young talent, and a sprinkle of vets.
Having said that I think there are only three untradeables at the moment:
Love/Rubio/Shved1. Package Luke Ridnour ($4M) and Derrick Williams ($5M) for something:
Orlando Magic – JJ Reddic ($6M) and Josh McRoberts ($3.5M)
Denver Nuggets – Wilson Chandler ($6M) and Corey Brewer ($3M)
Utah Jazz – Enes Kanter ($4.5) and Raja Bell ($3.5)I would love the Magic Trade. We need an outside shooter desperately and a guy to play the SG while Alexey continues to develop. And McRoberts can bang the outside shot as a big, which is something Lou and Steimsma cant do.
2. Run more small ball. When AK and Rubio come back I would love to see us running a three guard front, with a wing player like AK playing the 4 and Love/Pek playing inside. So far this year Pek and Love have struggled on the court together, and we have a young athletic team that could allow a team like Rubio/Lee or JJ/Shved/AK/Love to get up and down the court… and if you had Reddick at the 2 guard spot it would fit perfectly. Having said that I dont want Rubio to be rushed back- the same way you dont want Rose rushed.
3. TRADE KEVIN LOVE. Yeah I said it….
Hear me out. He has voiced his concern at not being in the playoffs and not being surrounded by enough talent. Our attempts this year have failed miserably (Budinger, Roy, Williams, Admunson, Steimsma do not inspire confidence) and there is a good possibility we wont be in the playoffs again this year with teams in the West out performing expectations. He is arguably a top 5 player? I would say easily top 10… was the best power forward last year. So what can we get for him? A LOT! Im not going to figure it out now, but definitely a guy with the calibre of Harden at least, and then add a pick or a young guy too. This stems out of the fear of him demanding a trade and us being forced to give him up on the cheap. So if it looks like we arent going to make it again this year… ship him to Danny Ainge in Boston.-
jk41
Wow…does number 3 mean you get lynched on arrival in Minny? I’m really not sure about that one. I think if you have a special talent, which Love is, you try your best to build around him. Players like him don’t come around everyday, and although there is the threat of him leaving, I think the guys you signed this offseason can be pieces to be turned into a higher level player. This was the thinking with Batum, a wing who can shoot threes.
I like ideas 1 and 2, definitely doable. There seemed to be a trend this year of teams trying to get as deep and possible with any ‘name’ players possible. Looking at Brooklyn and the Clippers here and to a lesser extent, your Wolves. But like I mentioned before, these guys are now in position to be traded as pieces for a bigger fish, and that’s a good position to be in. Not a luxury we have for the Bulls.
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
Hall of Fame Class 2012
Earlier in the week we saw the introduction of the 2012 Hall of Fame Class… the inductees were:
Lidia Alexeeva
All American Red Heads
Don Barksdale
Mel Daniels
Phil Knight
Katrina McClain
Reggie Miller
Don Nelson
Hank Nichols
Ralph Sampson
Chet Walker
Jamaal WilkesI had to look up at least half.
Are there too many each year? Did anyone of note miss out?
Good speeches? Bad ones?
And who do we have to look forward to next class?
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jk41
This years class seems like a lot, and I’m in the same boat with not knowing who half of them are.
I’m ok with Reggie, Don Nelson and Chet Walker.
Ralph Sampson had a good college career, but never set the NBA on fire. All American Red Heads for historical significance, fair enough. Jamaal Wilkes seems like stretch. And what’s with a Nike exec up there? No Bernard King, but a dude who made his money off all these NBA players?
I liked Reggie’s speech–although I did think it was a bit of a Cheryl Miller love fest–but it’s his moment so whatever. Don Nelson’s was pretty good too, seems like a chill dude living in Hawaii. There seemed like there were a lot of LeBron shout outs for some reason. Didn’t Dirk go through just as much pain of not winning a championship and also not acting like a jerk about it and sticking with the Mavs? So what’s the big deal? (we might need a tag for my #LeBronRants!)
As for next year’s class, I’ll probably focus on guys I know even though there are probably plenty of deserving old timers like Orlando Woolridge, Bernard King, Spencer Haywood etc. Here are a few of my picks:
Gary Payton – The Glove. Multiple all-stars, DPOYs, was 1a if not 1 on those Sonics teams, got a ring late in his career.
(Wow, looking through the list: http://www.basketball-reference.com/friv/hof.cgi, it’s kind of hard!)
Maybe Christian Laettner for his college career? Ron Harper – 5 rings as PG on those Bulls/Lakers teams? Mitch Richmond – great scorer, late championship? I don’t know, I’m not too sold.
You have any other ideas??
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naturalbornanalysts
I watched the red carpet interviews and it seemed that just about everyone was huge on Jamaal ‘Silk’ Wilkes… which surprised me because I didnt know a lot about him.
There is always a lot of love between the Millers. Great that they are both in now!
Haha, I agree that we might need a LeBron hate thread for you. I agree that Dirk should get more love than he does though. Future 1st Ballot HOF?
Agree with GP. Definitely think guys like Bernard King should be straight in. Spencer and Orlando possibly. Paul Silas? Doc? Tom Chambers? Hornacek?
Christian Laettner I would pass on. Possibly Ron Harper…
Mitch will be eventually but not right away. Its harder than I thought. -
jk41
Yep, I think Dirk is a definite for 1st Ballot:
1 ring
Finals MVP
’07 Regular Season MVP
11 (!) time All-Star
4-time NBA First Team
….2010 Shooting Stars Champ lol!I think the reason it could be hard is because like some people have said, we’ve only now entered this great new golden age of stars. Post-Jordan it was kind of a lull of ‘next-Jordans’ who never quite made it and the Lakers and Spurs dominating over the next decade with their locked in Hall of Famers (Shaq, Kobe, Duncan).
Now, it seems like the star power is a bit more spread out throughout the league and with the competition a bit more even? Or is that a result of a lot of young great players coming up but having not yet proved themselves into greatness? E.g. We know players like KD, Rose, Love, Westbrook are great, but they haven’t had enough time to prove they are consistent at that level.
Who are your early picks for HOF? Top 5 guys off the top of your head who when they become eligible are first ballot? (Can be active players if you want) I got:
1. Shaq
2. Kobe
3. Duncan
4. AI
5. LBJ-
naturalbornanalysts
Wow I didnt know that Dirk was an 11 time MVP.
Yeah it is true that with the two great Western Powers (besides a brief Detroit interlude) there wasnt a lot of star power. I guess that the number one thing that defines star power is success. There is the current older crop of guys like the ones mentioned above (and undoubtedly they are some of the greatest of all time; Garnett, Kobe, Duncan, Nash, Allen etc), who are at the end of their careers, and the new breed of seemingly more humble who still need to finish the race before we can elevate them to greatness. Its like a 72 Hole golf championship…. you dont declare the winner after the front 9.. you need to see the final putt.Im going to break it into the top 5 older generation active players and the top 5 younger players who I think will be locks.
Older:
1. Kobe
2. Duncan
3. Garnett
4. Dirk
5. KiddBillups/Nash/Manu/Allen/Gasol (All get in easily)
Younger:
1. LBJ
2. Wade
3. Dwight
4. KD
5. Rondo(CP3/Rose/D-Will/Carmelo/Love are all up for debate)
I can see why it would be difficult and I would like to know the criteria for entry.
In other news…. Does OKC keep Harden? Surely they cant resign him without shuffling the deck a little. Will he sign the extension or just run to Free Agency next summer?
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jk41
Rondo’s an interesting one. I think he’s someone you can definitely see greatness in him right now, but still yet to leave his legacy. Definitely like him for the aloofness, jerk superstar kind of factor!
I think you can afford to ship Harden and get a scoring 4, someone like Gasol/Aldridge would be nice next to Ibaka. You’ve probably got enough on the perimeter with KD and Westbrook which I suppose is a lot of the reason he’s coming off the bench.
The season is not far now!
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Natural Born Analysts NBA Podcast
The Era of the Super-Team
So much talk lately has been focussed on the creation of super teams, and guys teaming up to win championships. There are negatives and positives to both sides of the argument. And there is now a push at the college level to see superstar recruiting classes the likes of which saw Kentucky only lose 2 games all season, and saw 5 of the class drafted (and it could be happening again ).
So what are the positives? Sacrificing to win? Playing team basketball to get the best result?
What are the negatives? Diluting competition across the league?
Is it any different to what we have seen in the past with Kobe/Shaq or Clyde/Hakeem/Barkley or the Boston Big 3?
Or the “organic” ones like Manu/Parker/Duncan or Durant/Westbrook/Harden?
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jk41
Wait, wasn’t there a lockout last season to stamp out this super team shit!? Seems like a lifetime ago and I truly hope there’s never another one. I think we both stared down the barrel of a lost season and were ready to pull the trigger ourselves! Love of the game…
On first thought, I would be the most opposed to the super team, given my own Bulls are a one star team which now look like they won’t be in true contention for a few more seasons, having lost in 2011 conference finals to the doucheiest super team Miami.
But one point that I’ve read more about lately is how Magic/Bird saved the league in the 80s. Stars drive this league. As do rivalries. And those Laker and Celtics teams were absolutely stacked with All-Stars! I think people love seeing these “super teams” go head-to-head because it inevitably means the ascension of one great over the other. People love seeing who is the greatest. Although today’s “super teams” are more blatant in their creation, the same factor drives the popularity of the league. People want to know if Lebron is going to be greater than Kobe. The fact they have all star supporting casts merely makes it all the more entertaining. Who doesn’t want to see a Lakers-Heat Finals Game 7 triple overtime game next season??
Then what about the small market teams? Indiana, Milwaukee, Memphis and co.? Well I think the “organic” model *must* be adopted by them in the face of their own economic constraints. There is no way other way for them in this era. And many of them swing and miss. But it’s not like it doesn’t work, see: Spurs (4 titles), Mavs (breaking through in 2011), OKC (making the finals last year).
The way I see it, the super team is healthy for the league in terms of maintaining the popularity of the NBA, producing enticing rivalries and matchups, and doesn’t negate the small market teams from rising if they make their management makes the right personnel decisions.
I guess my question to you is: is there a bias towards the romance of team basketball, and guys not ‘taking the easy way out’ by teaming up? Like Sir Charles said, “MJ would never have teamed up just to chase rings and make it easier”.
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naturalbornanalysts
Being a fan of a one man team is often beautifully frustrating as you know, especially in this day and age where one man alone, just cant seem to get it done. I struggled heavily as KG tried to carry us all those years in MN, and ironically it wasnt until he did join forces with the elder statesmen in Boston was he able to accomplish the one piece missing. Yet i didnt at all begrudge KG for leaving for Boston, nor did I feel like Ray Allen had turned his back on Seattle to do the same thing. It was three loyal guys who had not been able to get it done with those franchises, teaming up, sacrificing, and in appearance at least, doing it the right way.
You’re correct about those star matchups making the league what it is, both past and present. You only need to look at this years series between OKC and Miami to see all kinds of TV ratings records being broken. People want to love and want to hate. In my case I wanted LeBron to fail again. And I wanted the young, mother-kissing, Durant to shine under the biggest spotlight of all.
Its human nature to pick sides in a battle.Im sure to most basketball purists, the “organic” way is the only way it should be done, and the idea of big time players seeking each other out to join forces and dominate seems fraudulent somehow. However, as I mentioned, it has been happening pretty much since the invention of basketball, so I do think there is a irrelevant bias towards the romantic notion of letting the chips fall where they may, and may the best “natural” team win. Ultimately, I dont think there is anything wrong with the teaming up of stars, done legally (and without sportscenter shows), as it often means sacrifice, and teamwork (Wade giving up alpha dog status and Bosh shooting less).
Do you have a problem with the Gary Paytons and the Karl Malones who move to win rings in the final year or two of their careers, when they dont contribute and are being carried, creaking knees and all over the finish line?
Lets put together a top 10 super teams list- see how many are manufactured and how many are organic… throw out some nominations?
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jk41
I don’t have a problem with the old guys chasing rings, especially if they’ve done their time and tried it out on their own. Plus, they don’t specifically get remembered for having a ring, which is the difference between being the guy and chasing at the end of your career, people do remember you differently. The difference between, KG, Ray, GP, Malone, is that they tried it on their own for so long and used up their PRIME trying to be the guy, whereas Lebron shirked the responsibility in his prime. Plus, he made a douchebag of himself with the “The Decision”. I really believe if he didn’t go on that whole song and dance recruiting tour, do the tv show and the ridiculous parade in Miami, they probably would’ve beaten Dallas without all the pressure they put on themselves. But that’s history!
My nominations:
84-85 Lakers: Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Byron Scott, McAdoo, Michael Cooper
(Do we call this manufactured? They made the trades which lucked them into Magic and Worthy, but didn’t necessarily “buy” them)85-86 Celtics: Bird, McHale, Parish, Dennis Johnson, Bill Walton, Danny Ainge
(Same question as above with manufactured vs. organic)02-03 Spurs: Duncan, Parker, Robinson, Manu, Steve Smith (pretty underrated player), Steve Kerr, Bruce Bowen, Stephen Jackson
(We’d call this organic, bottoming out while Robinson was injured and picking up Duncan)07-08 Celtics: KG, PP, Ray, Rondo, Perkins, Tony Allen, Big Baby, Scalabrine (haha)
(Manufactured)Who you got?
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naturalbornanalysts
The 85-86 celtics we will run with organic, even though they pulled turned Joe Barry Carroll into Parish and McHale in 1980 somehow…
OK so I will go even older to start :
1964-65 Boston Celtics 62 – 18 (Organic)
Led by Bill Russell, Sam Jones, John Havlicek (first round pick), Tom Sanders and Tom Heinsohn
Thats 4 guys in the pyramid… and probably the most expensive team to collect in terms of my collection (still waiting on Russell, Jones and Heinsohn!).1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers 68 – 13 (Manufactured)
Wilt Chamberlain, Hal Greer, Chet Walker and Billy Cunningham.
Finally ended the Boston streak… but undoubtedly manufactured… with the 76ers doing a Lakers before the Lakers did a Lakers to the 76ers (got that? good!).
Wilt Chamberlain, who was traded from the San Francisco Warriors to the Sixers for Connie Dierking, Paul Neumann, Lee Shaffer….who?!1999-2001 Lakers
The 3 peat team… I dont know what this is… they drafted fisher and kobe…. but traded for shaq… so its kind of like Yao Ming… sure, if the two of the tallest people you know have a baby… then they will have a tall baby… but you still need to teach it to shoot. This could then lead onto the Odom and Butler trade for Oneal that lead Miami to a championship…Just as a side note…. anything prior to 1994 is pretty much all research based…haha
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jk41
Ok so we have 7 teams:
84-85 Lakers (organic)
85-86 Celtics (organic)
02-03 Spurs (organic)
07-08 Celtics (manufactured)
64-65 Celtics (organic)
66-67 76ers (manufactured)
99-01 LakersI’m gonna throw another three in to make it a nice round 10, so I’ll say:
95-96 Bulls: Can’t leave out a 72-10 team right? or an team with MJ!! (organic)
82-83 76ers: Moses, Dr. J, Mo Cheeks, Andrew Toney (organic)
11-12 Heat: Essentially sparked this debate so we gotta have them (Manufactured)I’ll let you take first stab at ranking these 😉
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naturalbornanalysts
95-96 Bulls (organic)
64-65 Celtics (organic)
84-85 Lakers (organic)
85-86 Celtics (organic)
99-01 Lakers (Manufactured)
66-67 76ers (manufactured)
11-12 Heat: (Manufactured)
02-03 Spurs (organic)
07-08 Celtics (manufactured)
82-83 76ers: (organic)I dont think I have any justification for this other than gut feel
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jk41
I think you have the Heat a bit too high right? When I look at these lists, I usually think matchup wise and try to contextualise them by the form they had in that year.
Example 1: 11-12 Heat vs. 82-83 76ers
- Dr. J could athletically matchup with LBJ
- Moses was a beast and would kill Bosh
- No idea on how good defensively Cheeks was, but he is 5th all time in steals, so you’d think he could check Wade.
> So I reckon the Sixers beat the Heat
Example 2: 11-12 Heat vs. 07-08 Celtics
- KG kills Bosh, especially in that first year with the C’s he was on a mission
- Pierce on LBJ, though the 11-12 version of LBJ would win out
- Ray on Wade, bit of a wash
- Perk plus a not quite there Rondo for the C’s as well
> I’ve got to take that C’s team over the Heat
The Spurs I can live with the Heat over them, although the team chemistry and coaching and TD can always give you an argument the other way. I’m pretty happy with the rest though, and I’m probably just re-shuffling the bottom cos I’m a Heat hater!
95-96 Bulls (organic)
64-65 Celtics (organic)
84-85 Lakers (organic)
85-86 Celtics (organic)
99-01 Lakers (Manufactured)
66-67 76ers (manufactured)
82-83 76ers (organic)
07-08 Celtics (manufactured)
11-12 Heat (Manufactured)
02-03 Spurs (organic)So it seems like the Organics win out, and I also think there’s something to say for teams that build and use chemistry vs. teams that buy. I suppose its more the feeling that while both styles of teams can win, the Organics have a better chance at building a dynasty than the Manufactured do?
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naturalbornanalysts
Its always difficult to argue these past vs present points, but I think the Heat are indeed better than that 82-83 76ers team, and better than the Spurs, however I think I was wrong with the Celtics being below the Spurs, but that was based more on the notion of the Spurs having won multiple titles and WCF within that window.
Example 1: 11-12 Heat vs. 82-83 76ers
Dr. J could athletically matchup with LBJ – I think that LBJ would dominate Dr J… the athletic ability would possibly balance out, but the power and defensive ability of Lebron would show out, and the outside shooting of LBJ is better the Julius.
Moses was a beast and would kill Bosh- Agreed.
No idea on how good defensively Cheeks was, but he is 5th all time in steals, so you’d think he could check Wade- Possibly, but you could argue that the top two guys in that category (Stockton and Kidd) wouldn’t be able to check Wade. Mo was 6’1″ compared to Wades 6’4″ and while some the stats would balance out more due to Mo coming into his prime compared with Wade on the decline, I still think Wade would have the edge over a young Mo.Example 2: 11-12 Heat vs. 07-08 Celtics
KG kills Bosh, especially in that first year with the C’s he was on a mission- Agreed…Bosh coming off an injury is no match for the 07-08 KG
Pierce on LBJ, though the 11-12 version of LBJ would win out… undoubtedly the 11-12 LBJ version wins out.
Ray on Wade, bit of a wash… yeah it is… hard to compare these two… kind of cancel each other out on what they give each team..
Perk plus a not quite there Rondo for the C’s as well – vs a balling Chalmers (have to admit he had a pretty nice finals) and a suddenly hot Battier.Think the C’s would get this one though.
we might be having this debate again with the 11-12 vs12-13 Heat with the additions of Ray and Lewis…urghSo Organic seems to win out most of the time… seems to set up for better dynasties… possibly because there is a more natural heirachy that forms, which was evident in Miami, with the Wade and LBJ ‘you shoot… no you shoot’ year before they realised its LBJ’s team and everyone else should enjoy the ride.
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Courtside Notes 
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