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     Saarang Pilla Bewarse Username: Saarang Post Number: 323 Registered: 04-2015 Posted From: 206.29.176.75 Rating: N/A |
Legacies: The stakes are enormous. Golden State just wrapped the greatest three-year regular-season run in league history. Coming away with one title would be an undeniable disappointment. In the age of analytics, we judge teams based on large sample sizes. That is one reason Warriors owner Joe Lacob claimed recently that the Warriors were "the better team" last season. Zoom out, and he's right. But we all agreed long ago to determine champions on the court, in short series. You don't raise banners for season-long point differential. You have to win, four times in seven tries, sometimes amid adversity. There is being the best team, and there is being the best team head-to-head when it matters most. Do both, twice in three 67-plus-win seasons, and you join the all-time pantheon. Durant is already there, though a title would boost him to a new level. LeBron is probably the second-greatest player ever. He has a chance to finish his career as the all-time leading scorer, and one of the half-dozen greatest passers in history. In the end, maybe he won't even need a win in this series to state his case as the best to ever do this. Maybe a strong showing in defeat would be enough. That would drop LeBron to 3-5 in the Finals. That is three fewer titles than Michael Jordan, with five more losses on the biggest stage. But at some point, the gap in appearances -- eight and counting for LeBron, six for Jordan -- starts to matter, too. But if Cleveland wins? Against this team? The discussion gets real, right now. |