2017 NBA Season In Review

   

At the beginning of this season, all anyone was talking about was the Warriors, now with Durant, and the former champs, the Cleveland Cavaliers.  As the season progressed, talks continued, and continued, and continued.  The absolute domination of each team's respective conference made it near-impossible to talk about anything else.  Sure, the Cavs ended up with the east's 2nd seed due to a horrendous month of March, but was there any doubt that Cleveland would make its third straight trip to the Finals?  Maybe for fans of the Celtics, but the Celtics proved to just be pretenders for now.

 

Durant had an injury scare during the year that cost him numerous games. The Warriors had to sacrifice a lot of depth to acquire Durant, so there was valid concern that this was the worst possible case scenario for the Warriors.  Well suffice to say they didn't miss a beat, and come playoff time Durant was firing on all cylinders. So much so that the Warriors were undefeated heading into the rubber match with the Cavs.  

The Cavs turned things around in the playoffs (like there was any doubt) and lost only one game heading into the Finals.  It would have been really cool if both teams were undefeated, but at the end of the day that isn't important. The important part was that the Cavs were back on course and James vs. Durant was going to happen again in the Finals (the first meeting was in '12) with Durant now on a juggernaut of a team.  

Through two games, the Warriors looked unstoppable.  Game three in Cleveland looked to be in the Cavs favor, but the Warriors squeaked it out in the end.  The Cavs had a historic shooting night in game 4 to gut out their first win.  But in the end it was for naught because the Warriors wrapped it up in game 5.  Thus winning the championship like so many thought they would the second they signed Durant last summer.  

I understand those who don't like Durant's path to his first championship. At this point however, I personally am pretty jaded to all that free agent craziness after the LeBron debacle in 2010.  Plus, it was rather easy to feel bad for Durant when playing with Westbrook.  As a biased Durant fan, you couldn't help but wonder what was going through his head as Westbrook would take more shots per game than he would; even though Durant was/is a much more efficient scorer than Westbrook ever could be.  He had to look at that fluid offense of the Warriors and think, Man I want a team like that.  

Which brings me to my next point.  There are now arguments that the Warriors have ruined basketball.  The Warriors could realistically win the next 3-4 championships without a contender in sight.  (LeBron isn't getting any younger after all.)  To that I will say this:

Did the 90's Bulls ruin basketball?

Think about it, six championships in eight years.  It seems to me every one considers that the "golden age" of basketball.  Those championship teams only had two seven game series.  That's dominance for sure, but isn't that "boring?" You can't praise the Bulls' success, then claim the Warriors' is "boring." That's a double standard via nostalgia.  In twenty years those same folks will probably be singing a different tune regarding these Warriors.  Besides if you're a fan of the game, you should enjoy watching the Warriors even if you don't care for them.  Their offense is spectacular. And I'm not even talking about the shooting. Their ball movement is the stuff of legends.  Their defense was also ramped up this year.  Durant and Curry were never known as defensive guys, but their team "D" fits in with the Warriors system, and each guy made an impact on the Finals with defensive plays in key moments.  (Also we can quit with the "Curry sucks in the Finals" talk.  After averaging 27, 8, and 9, it's safe to say the doubters are silenced.)

As for LeBron’s legacy?  He doesn't have anything to worry about.  Yes he has a losing record in the Finals, but going to seven straight has to count for something. He averaged a triple double for crying out loud!  He clearly had the inferior team, with the exception of Kyrie.

For the record, I've never liked Kyrie. It got to the point where I would dislike him more just because everyone said how good he was.  A dumb reason I know.  But he was truly great this Finals.  I will admit when I'm wrong.  I've never seen a little guy take it to the hole and make such difficult layups with such consistency in my life.  He won me over.       

As for Kevin Love, he once again is the scapegoat for the team.  He's getting rumored to be traded for Paul George.  I really don't understand why.  Love averaged 16, 11, and 2 steals a game in the Finals.  That's as good as you can ask for from a third wheel. George definitely brings an elite defensive game, but he is somewhat redundant with LeBron.  

I don't understand why they just don't start Love at center.  That’s where they had their most success against the Warriors.  Tristian Thompson offers little in today's NBA.  Rebounding is great, but when you only average six per game like he did in the Finals, you would think you could find a better, and cheaper option.  I do realize that you could get much more in the trade market for Love than Thompson, which would be the most obvious reason to trade him over Mr. Kardashian.  We'll see what happens.  

Much like the season, I only reviewed the Warriors and Cavs.  But that's not to say there isn't bright spots in the future.  Jimmy Butler going to the Timberwolves is very interesting.  The Clippers are most likely breaking up.  The Bucks continue to be a fascinating team of young talent with gobs of potential. And the Knicks?  Well they still suck.  I would have gotten this out earlier, but a hand injury made it a difficult to type.  So just in case you were wondering, that is what the hold-up was.