Notice how half of the Lakers losses all season came the day after a hard fought battle versus our Rockets.
Remember when everyone said the Lakers were invincible? We're now over a quarter into the season, and the Lakers are in second place in the West. Let's take a look at some quotes from BBS members on the Spurs and Lakers going into this season. There is no way the Spurs will even be close to the best team in the league. That title will go to either the Lakers, Kings, Blazers, Sixers, or Magic. The Spurs are screwed. And of course Anderson's loss is HUGE, unless they can get another scorer and slasher. They're inability to find that 3rd scorer in the playoffs killed them (that and losing their manhood while getting stomped by shaq and kobe). So don't say this "they didn't want DA" crap here man. They are going down the tube unless they some key aquasitions this summer. They are so screwed, and I love it! 1. Los Angeles Lakers- This team has only added talent to the best nucleus in the league. I can't be blinded by my hatred of Kobe any longer. This team is just too good not to get the number one seed. However, they will not be that far in front of their Pacific Division rivals I don't see how an objective person could view the Spurs as any where near the Lakers. Spurs are dead now. Steve Smith is finished, knees are completely shot. The only team in the West I can see competing with LA next year is Sacramento, with the acquisition of Mike Bibby. I'm thinking if the Lakers continue to play like they have this year, they're going to be knocking on a single-digit-loss record. Unless injuries or something else like Shaq retiring messes them up, it won't matter... they will be the NBA's best. And from the looks of it the best by a long shot. You had a good enough team (when DA was healthy) to compete with LA. Now you don't. I'm beginning to think the Spurs may be the 3rd best team in Texas next year unless they make a major move, soon. It's very possible that this will be their line-up next year: No, I'm assuming that the Spurs are a team of crap, and that their playoff smashing will criple them mentally and screw them over for next season. I don't expect these Spurs to ever contend again. 1.Lakers 2.Mavs 3.Blazers 4.Kings 5.Spurs Nothing personal against anyone, just having some fun with the arguments from earlier this summer. Yes, we're only 23-24 games into the season. But right now, even while the Lakers have played some of their best basketball, they are second in the standings. So much for that invincibility.
One game. And if the Lakers win the next game to tie SA, the Spurs would be ahead based on a better division record.
I never said they'd suck. I just said the Mavs would be nowhere near as good as the Spurs, and that all the hype about being Midwest champs was unearned. I also said that they possibly weren't as good as the Rockets. The first part has been proven true, and the second probably would've been if not for all the injuries. Remember the result when a relatively healthy Rockets team played the Mavs.
Just ignore it DOD. If you look at the 10:07 time it was posted and then look at the main BBS page, you'll see it was just one of his random posts he made in order to "take over the BBS"
You know, all you guys saying how the Spurs are such a great team and they're so much better, blah, blah, blah... I was with you last year. I thought SA was the team that could knock LA out of the playoffs... just think back... LA absolutely dismantled the Spurs in that series. If you also remember, the Lakers started off slowly, then gained momentum on their way to becoming an absolute juggernaut. They are 19-4 right now; they were 15-8 at this time last season. We'll see at the end of the year. There is only one season and that's the post-season. Have the Spurs improved so much over last year that they will be able to find their collective jocks after having them ripped off by the Lakers? In case you've all forgotten the margins of victory in the 4-0 broomstick-to-the-ass sweep of the Spurs : 14, 7, 39, and 29. Talk is for the birds. The Lakers are the best until proven otherwise and the regular season won't prove it.
According to most experts, the Lakers started off red hot this year, and the Spurs still have a better record. The Spurs have added Steve Smith, Bruce Bowen, Tony Parker, Charles Smith, etc. to that team that got swept. The Lakers were the best last year, but it's a totally new season with a new team and a new identity. I know many won't believe until the Spurs beat the Lakers in the playoffs, but I'm just pointing out that the Lakers aren't as invincible in the regular season as many said they would be. I mean, there were people talking about the Lakers getting 75 wins, and the Spurs being as low as a 6 or 7 seed. The gap isn't that large.
Cat I REALLY hope you are right. HOWEVER...no way do the Spurs get any respect at all until they do it in the play offs. Last years performance v LA was the biggest choke job I have ever seen. San Antonio have folded under finals pressure way too many times to have credibility. The lock out season aside, which looks more and more an abberation, they have never done anything when the pressure was on... Hope I'm wrong...I'd love to see them and the Lakers in a classic 7 game series.
What? An abberation? The Rockets first championship came without Jordan... could that have an asterisk? Championships are championships. And by the way, can you please tell me these times they've folded under finals pressure in the Duncan era? (beyond his rookie year) 1999-- Won Championship 2000-- Lost in First Round b/c Duncan was hurt 2001-- Choked That's one time... it happens to everyone. The Lakers had a choke just as big back in 1999 when the Spurs won. By the way, ESPN seems to think the Spurs have credibility. The Spurs, not the Lakers, are ranked #1 in their latest power rankings.
Cat One player retiring is NOT an aberration. Star players leave sports every year in every sport in every country. Thus, Jordan leaving hardly warrants any sort of asterix. On the other hand, strike halved seasons...where hardly anyone got in pre season shape, half the games weren't played, little recruiting was done...and teams with the core returning had a massive advantage IS an aberration. Why refer only to the Duncan era? That teams culture and attitude has never changed. 2001 showed that even Duncan can't change the soft nature of that team. 1993 - 1999 Choke every year when it counts. 1999 - Was an aberration. 2000 - Fair enough... 2001 - Choke job of the decade. That's a pretty stunning record of failure when it counts...
Can you explain how the culture and attitude hasn't changed, besides the one example of last year? Duncan is the leader, not Robinson. Different team. BTW, if professional basketball players can't be ready to play playoff basketball after 50 games, they shouldn't be playing. Everyone was ready by the postseason, and the Spurs beat them, pure and simple. Again, if players weren't in preseason shape after a two week preseason, they shouldn't be in professional basketball. Also, on Jordan: star players may leave, but how often does the best player in the history of the game leave for one season, come back, and have his team dominate on the same level they were before? You can easily make an argument that the Rockets won their championships because Jordan was gone. I have one question for all of you: why wasn't anyone saying these things before the 1999 season? I read message boards all across the Net. Everyone, especially Rockets fans, was extremely pumped about their chance to win a championship. Absolutely no one that I saw said it would be a fluke championship before the season. Then, amazingly a team most don't like wins the title, and everyone sings a different tune. Sounds real objective to me.
