Happy Black Thanksgiving

[heyabbott]

NBA All-Star 2016 Complete Schedule of Events

As Michael Wilbon believes this weekend or the NBA All Star Game for some of us.
No thread? Niche Sport?

LeBron James is only 6 years younger than Kobe? Kobe was never the GM of a team yet he won 5 Championships. Maybe LeBron should follow his lead and win as a player rather than play at GM.

 

[wicked]

Kobe also lucked into a team that had Jerry West as the GM and an in-his-prime Shaq in the middle.

 

[Jake_Taylor]

Yeah, Kobe has never hurt the Lakers by sticking his nose is front office stuff.

 

[heyabbott]

Kobe also lucked into a team that had Jerry West as the GM and an in-his-prime Shaq in the middle.

LeBron did luck into playing into the weakest conference for almost the entirety of his career. Given his prolific skill set he should have been able to roll out of bed and win the east. He did. LeBron has also had the opportunity to recruit his teammates.
Is it odd that no elite free agent has ever wanted to sign with LeBron?

 

[Batman]

Kobe also lucked into a team that had Jerry West as the GM and an in-his-prime Shaq in the middle.

I hate that argument. Hate it, hate it, hate it.
Has there ever been an all-time great player who won multiple championships without at least one other hall of famer on the roster, and usually a HOF coach to pull it all together?
Jordan had Pippen, and later Rodman.
Russell had God only knows how many guys around him.
Magic and Kareem had each other, plus Worthy.
Bird had McHale and Parrish.
LeBron had Wade and Bosh.
Duncan had Ginobili and Parker.
Even Hakeem had Drexler.
Kobe and Shaq had each other.

The same debate goes on with football players. It's stupid. A great player can pull a team to one championship, like Dirk Nowitzki or Dwyane Wade circa 2006. No team becomes a dynasty without a stacked roster and someone capable of managing it all.

 

[Big Circus]

LeBron did luck into playing into the weakest conference for almost the entirety of his career. Given his prolific skill set he should have been able to roll out of bed and win the east. He did. LeBron has also had the opportunity to recruit his teammates.
Is it odd that no elite free agent has ever wanted to sign with LeBron?

The Bosh fella doesn't count?

 

[heyabbott]

The Bosh fella doesn't count?

Bosh, if elite, signed up with Wade and Riley along with LeBron. Don't see Durrant thinking about teaming with James

 

[Big Circus]

Bosh, if elite, signed up with Wade and Riley along with LeBron. Don't see Durrant thinking about teaming with James

So your argument is "the league's best player couldn't get the league's second-best player to sign with him at any point"?

 

[heyabbott]

So your argument is "the league's best player couldn't get the league's second-best player to sign with him at any point"?

No. The leagues best player as the defacto GM and coach of the Cavaliers, in both incarnations, has failed to create a winning organization. He has maximized his earnings which is personal and appropriate but at the expense of building a winner. His entourage and associates and taken over his team to the exclusion of his teammates and he hasn't attracted quality teammates to join him.

Not a fan of Kobe, but he wanted to win at almost all costs. James wants to win, but only if he gets front office credit too

 

[Big Circus]

No. The leagues best player as the defacto GM and coach of the Cavaliers, in both incarnations, has failed to create a winning organization. He has maximized his earnings which is personal and appropriate but at the expense of building a winner. His entourage and associates and taken over his team to the exclusion of his teammates and he hasn't attracted quality teammates to join him.

Not a fan of Kobe, but he wanted to win at almost all costs. James wants to win, but only if he gets front office credit too

Taking a historically dominant opponent to 6 games in the finals without the team's second- and third-best players = "not a winning organization"? Christ.

 

[Jake_Taylor]

James forcing the Cavs hand in front office decisions might fall under the category of his ego getting in the way and thinking he knows more than he does. But it doesn't mean he doesn't have a tremendous desire to win. He's maximized his earnings by investing in headphones and endorsing Samsung and Sprite, not the moves the Cavs made.

 

[heyabbott]

James forcing the Cavs hand in front office decisions might fall under the category of his ego getting in the way and thinking he knows more than he does. But it doesn't mean he doesn't have a tremendous desire to win. He's maximized his earnings by investing in headphones and endorsing Samsung and Sprite, not the moves the Cavs made.

Is he on his 2nd consecutive 1 year contract in order to maximize his earnings and leave open the door to his leaving after every season?

 

[Jake_Taylor]

He wants power and leverage in the organization. Kobe always has too. They've both hurt their organizations that way to some degree, but that's an ego thing. I wouldn't question either one's competitiveness because of it.

 

[Alma]

The All-Star game thread becomes about Kobe vs. LeBron.

Kinda sums up the flaw of the NBA, huh?

 

[Jake_Taylor]

Well, considering Abbott started a thread with black in the title, it could have gone in much worse directions.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

Says way more about this place (and specifically the guy who started the thread) than it says about the NBA.

The NBA is in great shape these days. The Warriors are more entertaining to watch than any team since the '80s Lakers. Last night's dunk contest was the best since MJ/Dominique.

If someone wants to spend his time on an NBA thread making up silly excuses to dislike LeBron, so be it.

 

[wicked]

I hate that argument. Hate it, hate it, hate it.
Has there ever been an all-time great player who won multiple championships without at least one other hall of famer on the roster, and usually a HOF coach to pull it all together?
Jordan had Pippen, and later Rodman.
Russell had God only knows how many guys around him.
Magic and Kareem had each other, plus Worthy.
Bird had McHale and Parrish.
LeBron had Wade and Bosh.
Duncan had Ginobili and Parker.
Even Hakeem had Drexler.
Kobe and Shaq had each other.

The same debate goes on with football players. It's stupid. A great player can pull a team to one championship, like Dirk Nowitzki or Dwyane Wade circa 2006. No team becomes a dynasty without a stacked roster and someone capable of managing it all.

Kobe came into the NBA with a far better supporting cast than LeBron did. That's all I said.

1996-97 Lakers roster:
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From
PF 43 Blount, Corie 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Cincinnati
SG 8 Bryant, Kobe 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 212 lb (96 kg) Lower Merion HS (PA)
PF 41 Campbell, Elden 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Clemson
PG 2 Fisher, Derek 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Arkansas-Little Rock
SF 5 Horry, Robert 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Alabama
SG 6 Jones, Eddie 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Temple
SF 12 Kersey, Jerome 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Longwood University
C 40 Knight, Travis 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Connecticut
SG 24 McCloud, George 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Florida State
C 34 O'Neal, Shaquille 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 325 lb (147 kg) LSU
C 45 Rooks, Sean 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Arizona
SG 4 Scott, Byron 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Arizona State
PG 9 Van Exel, Nick 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Cincinnati

2003-04 Cavs roster:
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From
C 4 Battie, Tony 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Texas Tech
PF 1 Boozer, Carlos 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 258 lb (117 kg) Duke
SG 5 Brown, Kedrick 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Okaloosa-Walton CC
C 52 Diop, DeSagana 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 280 lb (127 kg) Oak Hill Academy (HS)
C 11 Ilgauskas, Zydrunas 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) 238 lb (108 kg) Lithuania
SG 33 Jackson, Luke 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Oregon
SF 23 James, LeBron 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) St. Vincent-St. Mary (HS)
SF 24 Kapono, Jason 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) UCLA
PG 0 McInnis, Jeff 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 179 lb (81 kg) North Carolina
PF 54 Nailon, Lee 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Texas Christian
SF 14 Newble, Ira 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Miami (OH)
PG 12 Ollie, Kevin 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Connecticut
SG 2 Wagner, Dajuan 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Memphis
SF 55 Williams, Eric 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Providence

 

[JC]

HeyAbbott should not be taken seriously when it comes to anything NBA.

He is Devil light in his hot takes.