« Reply #31 on: April 22, 2015, 04:09:39 PM »
Wonder if Grantland will do an oral history in twenty years about the "Dynasty that Never Was" like they just did with 90s Orlando.
TP... I too was thinking about teh current OKC team the whole time. And hoping for their sake they keep it together. I really think that Durant and WB stay together... they both seem to be driven but not overcome with ego.
That story was a great read. Johnathan Abrams is a world-class writer, and probably my favorite at Grantland (and I really enjoy Zach Lowe's writing a lot).
Fascinating that Shaq was actually much closer to staying in ORL initially than leaving (assuming it wasn't revisionist history). That ORL really botched it. I guess it seemed like a done deal -- but that may be my recollection about it being so after that LAL-VAN trade.
It also made me glad we made the playoffs. That ORL benefitted from getting bounced by IND initially. It showed them what playoff ball was about and led them to adding Horace Grant.
BTW..... The stories that (a) Embiid got fined a couple times and (b) that Coach Brown wasn't thrilled with his work ethic came out while i was reading the Magic Oral History and I thought "well no **** players on your team ? that is intentionally fielding a bad team ? aren't working at 110% the way guys like Smart or Crowder are." It baffles me that the trickle down effect of Sam Heinke's "strategy" and "leadership" isn't more discussed.
I think *at best* they'll mirror those talented but rudderless NJ Nets teams with Anderson/Coleman in the early 90s. I don't think PHI wins more than 30 games in the next 6-10 years.
I didn't read that article but Orlando really botched the draft picks they got in the Webber for Hardaway swap. I mean the 1996 1st they traded to dump Scott Skiles contract. While that pick became Todd Fuller still on the board at that time were Kobe, Peja, Nash, and JO. The 1998 1st they took Keon Clark at 13 but also had 12 and 15 in that draft. They ended up selecting players at all 3 but did trade Clark before the strike shortened season started for a future pick that became Keyon Dooling. In 2000 they selected Mike Miller at 5 (and Dooling at 10). Miller was probably the right selection. How much different does Orlando look if they keep the 96 1st and draft the right person. Even if Penny still gets hurt they would have won a lot of titles with Shaq, the corpse of Penny, and any one of those players still on the board when Golden State took Todd Fuller. The real dynasty of course would have been Orlando keeping Webber. How good would Shaq and Webber have been. They would have been unstoppable.
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2023 Historical Draft - Brooklyn Nets - 9th pick
Bigs - Pau, Amar'e, Issel, McGinnis, Roundfield
Wings - Dantley, Bowen, J. Jackson
Guards - Cheeks, Petrovic, Buse, Rip
