This whole debate is so bad . Toronto beat the warriors fair & square and that is all that matters . Steph hasn't been at his best but his teammates being rubbish hasn't helped. Don't see the point of arguing hypotheticals is when there is no way to prove any of those arguments . In the NBA the better team wins majority of the times so fair play to the raptors for getting to this position
NBA 2018-2019
- Thread starter altodevil
- Start date
True or false?
After game 2 the Dubs had just won in Toronto, had regained home court advantage and had all the momentum?
Toronto were already a better team in the first two games aside from that one quarter. They showed in Oakland they had this under control. As I said they proved in game 4 it didn’t really matter Klay or not. They had two games in Oakland, and won BOTH of them. Your point would maybe have any validity if game 4 didn’t go the way it went.
I suppose Steph will never get that 3-1 out of his head.
Dubs 3 titles - Cavs 1 title.
Yeah but to be fair two of them are on KD. Without him LeBron would have probably got another one over them in 2017 as well, and they probably don’t even play each other in 2018.
3 titles is 3 titles - don't care who gets the credit. Now where have I heard that before?
So, it was still 1-1. You don't get bonus points for winning three out of four quarters in a game. They showed they had it under control in Oakland but only because Klay was out for game 3. That win completely changed the whole momentum of the series. Do you not get that?
Normally I would disagree with you since IMLTHO debate is what forums are about. However in this case I've tried to get out of it twice. I'm getting tired now.
is Klay fit for the next game?
Another good thread gone shit.
Although I wonder. If KD going to GSW was a bitch move because it meant he didn’t earn titles/they were already so good...but at the same time, they wouldn’t have won 2 of their 3 titles without him. And they only won the other one because of injuries to the Cavs (what was that about excuses)...I guess he earned those rings after all? There’s a serious war on logic/consistency.
Although I wonder. If KD going to GSW was a bitch move because it meant he didn’t earn titles/they were already so good...but at the same time, they wouldn’t have won 2 of their 3 titles without him. And they only won the other one because of injuries to the Cavs (what was that about excuses)...I guess he earned those rings after all? There’s a serious war on logic/consistency.
Depends. If Warriors win then yes. If they lose he was at 70% and Steph was at 60%.
Nah I think they have a good chance to win without him but probably not both. He tips the scale so much though that it ceases to be competition. It’s not like he adds extra 5%.
They probably don’t win in 2015 without Cavs injuries but they probably also win in 2016 if Draymond isn’t an idiot, and even more probably if they don’t chase 73 wins and burn out in regular season.
Depends on whom they would have got, but I think that both Cavs in 17 and Rockets in 18 would have been favourites against them. Heck, even Cavs last year might have had a good chance.
Steph and Klay go cold very often in playoffs. As we saw in 16, no one gives a shit about 'their 73 wins in regular season' when is the playoff time.
Cavs last year weren’t good, it’s a miracle LeBron took that team to Finals. Even without KD that still should have gone Warriors way. Agree about Cavs 2017 (who were better than the year before I think) and Rockets last year.
Yeah, the last few pages being filled with childish discussions have put me off what was once a good thread. See you all on the next one
Also I don’t like the talk about how poor Curry is for having to play with this group. This is largely the same team that won 73 and was beaten by LeBron and Cavs. He isn’t playing with Suns.
Kawhi gets his team to 3-1 up against favored Warriors and the reaction to that ‘they would have done much better with Curry instead’
It's really not in any way the same team. Significantly worse.
And then...
I'm not sure why you keep saying injuries are not an excuse when you clearly don't believe that.
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It's such a silly point that I didn't even feel like replying to it . Iggy and Draymond are not the same offensively at all , Livingston is borderline unplayable at this point and that is not even counting likes of Barnes and Bogut. Majority of the current bench wouldn't be near a roster if the warriors cut them
No I honestly believe injuries are not an excuse. They may be a reason why something happened but as I keep saying they are part of the game. If/when the Raptors win they will have done so fair and square as far as I'm concerned. Injuries are just bad luck, you play what's in front of you (see previous)
Exactly. Livingston, Bogut, Igoudala are shells of their 2016 self. Rush and Speights were 40% 3 point shooters off the bench. Barbosa was one of the best bench guards in the league. Barnes is gone, replaced by no one. Green is significantly worse and who knows if he will ever get back to that level.
Can't believe the Raptors are pulling this off. Surprised and pleased, because I can't stand Curry and the friggin' Golden State Warriors.
Yup. Pretty much this.
In game 3 they failed big time. Literally no one showed up. Livingston, Bogut and Igoudala are pretty much shot. Green is still good in defence (if we consider all PO games so far), but his attack output will begin to diminish more and more.
They need to replace pretty much their whole bench in the Summer.
Yeah bench is significantly worse.
It's still not a bad team. We are two and half weeks removed from all the 'they don't need Durant' talk. I said back then beating Portland is no big deal, Finals would show how good they are without him and so far they've not been very good at all.
It was an odd statement to begin with. Considering how depleted their bench is so that they can afford him.
Durant left practice after 20 minutes with an ice pack on his ankle. Don’t think he’s going to really play today.
To practice what? NBA 2k?
He’s done for the series. Any clips of him knocking down 3s while wearing his beats headphones under no defensive pressure isn’t going to mean he’s ready for a win or die situation.
This is what will frustrate me if Toronto win the championship - the narrative will be how the warriors were punished by injuries instead of the Raptors garnering praise for their triumph.
No one really mentions CP3 getting injured in last years western conference final prior to the crucial game 7, or Kyrie and KLove being injured in the finals a few years ago.
The warriors have an embarrassing array of all star riches in their roster, not to mention that it’s hardly a secret Kawhi is carrying an injury.
It's been mentioned a lot.
Yeah and dismissed by Warriors faithful saying 'if Curry was at 100% we win in 6' or 'if Iggy was healthy it's done in 5'.
Yeah as I said above he's apparently left practice after a short amount of time with ice on his ankle. He's done.
Nah. Warriors went into this finals 6-0, they had more rest, they looked great. Klay sitting on the bench for a game 3 was also a decision made by a club not to risk anything and they thought (as most people tbf) even if they lose they are more then capable to catch this at 2-1 down, so this talk about stopping their momentum is silly. They never got going in the first place. Most predictions, even at 2-1, were for the Warriors. If Raptors win it, it is because they were a better team, fair and square.
If they win it 4-1, well, that's just crazy considering what everyone thought going into this series.
Man I wish I was back in Toronto to see Raptors winning it. I thought the match was today and woke up at 6am only to figure out it's tomorrow Come on Raptors!
Come on Raptors!Majority of the whole narrative was started by other fans to put down kd and the media because it helps them get clicks. Also they did win on the road in Houston and swept the WCF so you can't just say not very good. Toronto just happen to be a terrible matchup for this team without KD
Toronto have been the better team and deserve to win . Injuries are a part & parcel of the sport but this stuff works both ways really . Just to use your point in an opposite way for years now Warriors have heard about how they beat injury ridden teams to win titles and now when they have injuries people want the other teams to get credit. See what I did there , it depends on what argument you want to make
They were the better side in all 4 matches so far. You can put an asterix to game 3 where without both Klay and KD Dubs looked miserable, but can't really put many excuses for the other three.
I am not questioning that all . They deserve the win
Yeah mate. I agree with you, my point was in regards to injuries and how will some people view it.
Well, of course they would. They're fans.
Man, it doesn't matter. The Raptors won't care because they have a great team in their own right.
Masai has been building a well balanced team offensively and defensively, with a mixture of youth and experience. They have a future all star power forward in Siakam, basketball intelligence both offensively and defensively in Lowry and Green, the best 2-way player in basketball (Kawhi) and the final piece added earlier this year in Gasol who has been huge. Raps also have a very impressive bench which can come up with big defensive and offensive contributions (Van Vleet, Ibaka, Powell, etc.). Let alone their rookie coach who is better than people give him credit for.
The Raptors are an excellent team and it's no coincidence that they beat some excellent teams along the way to, at worst, losing the finals in 7. They deserve respect.