does warriors dominance equal hayward

[RLewis35]

The whole league is toast. Any FA should just look for max dollars they can get. No team is taking warriors with out at least having two top 10 players.

Cavs already have two top 10 calibre players.. add Love

you need at least 4 all stars to have a chance

They have 4 all-stars and 2 MVPs. First team ever with 2 MVPs, both below 30. So I guess you need 4 all-stars and at least 1 MVP caliber player as well. Good luck with that.

*sigh*

No, what you need are the right matchups. You can't compete with their firepower. What you have to do is take them out of their game.

I'm old school so I look to GSW like being George Foreman. Unstoppable. Knocked Frazier out who beat Ali. A wrecking machine. Frazier couldn't come close to beating him. Norton looked pathetic against him. Yet Ali came in and beat the heck out of big George and fairly dominated that fight (led on all 3 scorecards when he knocked him out). Yet Frazier and Norton gave Ali whuppins' (Ali's decision over Norton was a farce).

Same deal applies here. Cleveland doesn't match up really well against GSW. If the Warriors hadn't been complacent last year this would be their 3rd straight victory over them. You can't beat them at their own game. You have to take them out of it. Frankly, I think we have *most* of the roster to already do that which is why we're 2-2 against them the last two years. The problem is that we don't match up well against Cleveland and yes we need a bit more firepower on our end to truly have a chance. But they're not neigh invincible and we shouldn't be treating them like it.

Agree 100 pct.  Let's also not forget coaching. Pop and Brad would have made adjustments after game 1 (um or never let their best player beat us on wide open dunks) that lue didn't make until game 3.

Let's also not forget that the spurs were destroying the warriors in game 1 on the road until kawhi got zaza'd.  Cavs care way too little about D to beat the warriors.  No one is beating the warriors in an offensive shootout.  Spurs and Celtics and maybe even a retooled Cavs could win next year. Also, too much winning can make players complacent. Or gripe about shots. Not permanently maybe but for a year, or maybe two guys have a riff (see Kobe and shaq).  Stranger things have happened. Let's not anoint them next year too just yet.

[jbpats]

The NBA is a joke right now, borderline unwatchable.
No team should be able to run the table in the playoffs, the sad thing about it is nobody is surprised it's happening.

What's the point of watching?

[Jvalin]

The whole league is toast. Any FA should just look for max dollars they can get. No team is taking warriors with out at least having two top 10 players.

Cavs already have two top 10 calibre players.. add Love

you need at least 4 all stars to have a chance

They have 4 all-stars and 2 MVPs. First team ever with 2 MVPs, both below 30. So I guess you need 4 all-stars and at least 1 MVP caliber player as well. Good luck with that.

*sigh*

No, what you need are the right matchups. You can't compete with their firepower. What you have to do is take them out of their game.

I'm old school so I look to GSW like being George Foreman. Unstoppable. Knocked Frazier out who beat Ali. A wrecking machine. Frazier couldn't come close to beating him. Norton looked pathetic against him. Yet Ali came in and beat the heck out of big George and fairly dominated that fight (led on all 3 scorecards when he knocked him out). Yet Frazier and Norton gave Ali whuppins' (Ali's decision over Norton was a farce).

Same deal applies here. Cleveland doesn't match up really well against GSW. If the Warriors hadn't been complacent last year this would be their 3rd straight victory over them. You can't beat them at their own game. You have to take them out of it. Frankly, I think we have *most* of the roster to already do that which is why we're 2-2 against them the last two years. The problem is that we don't match up well against Cleveland and yes we need a bit more firepower on our end to truly have a chance. But they're not neigh invincible and we shouldn't be treating them like it.

We are light years away from Golden State. Good luck trying to match up against them with Hayward, IT, Horford and Bradley (assuming he stays which is far from certain) . Don't get me wrong, these are all very good players. Thing is Durant, Curry, Thompson and Green are way better, and to make matters worse, they have already built an almost perfect on-court chemistry.

I've been around for a long time. I've seen a lot of "invincible" teams that have lost. 1980 Russian Olympic team. 2007 NE Patriots. 1968 Baltimore Colts. 1986 Edmonton Oilers. 1996 Detroit Red Wings. 2016 Golden State Warriors. 1991 UNLV Running Rebels. 1973 Celtics. 2001 Seattle Mariners. The list goes on...

All of these teams were considered unbeatable history-making teams of destiny. Yet none of them won a championship. Some lost in one game. Some lost in 7. All of these were beaten by supposedly inferior teams that simply (a) played perfectly and/or (b) matched up very well against their opposition.

The Warriors are the NBA's best team. But they're not unbeatable and of all the teams out there the two that match up the best are us and San Antonio. I'm not saying we wouldn't be underdogs but we would have a fighting chance. And if we can have a fighting chance while drafting for the future then that's the best of both worlds.

Best example of what you are saying I can think off right now is the 2004 finals.

Lakers Vs. Pistons

Shaq - Kobe - Malone - Payton Vs. Billups - Rip Hamilton - Prince - Sheed - Ben Wallace

Lakers had the star power, Pistons were the superior team. Thing is, the Pistons won because they played great D. Rip is 6'7 and he was their 2 guard. Tayshaun Prince is 6'9 and has a 7'2 wingspan! Ben Wallace has won DPOY a record 4 times! Sheed - Billups were great defenders as well. All 5 starters were at least above average on D. We cannot do the same thing because we have IT. Whomever IT defends is gonna score pretty much at will against us. Let's face it, we cannot play good enough D with IT on the court.

Not to mention the fact that we have to beat both Golden State and Cleveland. Even if we match up very well against Golden State, that's not the case against Cleveland.

[footey]

Our biggest challenge is Durant and Green. Our guard rotations match up pretty well vs. the Warriors. Especially if you add Fultz and consider Brown a 2 guard, who can cover Klay Thompson's size.

[Darío SpanishFan]

The whole league is toast. Any FA should just look for max dollars they can get. No team is taking warriors with out at least having two top 10 players.

Cavs already have two top 10 calibre players.. add Love

you need at least 4 all stars to have a chance

They have 4 all-stars and 2 MVPs. First team ever with 2 MVPs, both below 30. So I guess you need 4 all-stars and at least 1 MVP caliber player as well. Good luck with that.

*sigh*

No, what you need are the right matchups. You can't compete with their firepower. What you have to do is take them out of their game.

I'm old school so I look to GSW like being George Foreman. Unstoppable. Knocked Frazier out who beat Ali. A wrecking machine. Frazier couldn't come close to beating him. Norton looked pathetic against him. Yet Ali came in and beat the heck out of big George and fairly dominated that fight (led on all 3 scorecards when he knocked him out). Yet Frazier and Norton gave Ali whuppins' (Ali's decision over Norton was a farce).

Same deal applies here. Cleveland doesn't match up really well against GSW. If the Warriors hadn't been complacent last year this would be their 3rd straight victory over them. You can't beat them at their own game. You have to take them out of it. Frankly, I think we have *most* of the roster to already do that which is why we're 2-2 against them the last two years. The problem is that we don't match up well against Cleveland and yes we need a bit more firepower on our end to truly have a chance. But they're not neigh invincible and we shouldn't be treating them like it.

Sorry mate, I own a boxing club here in Spain, so huge fan. I don't buy that analogy at all. Here we are talking about another level between contenders.

[footey]

I really just can't stand this front running bull****. It was one thing when James joined up with other star players to start something from scratch in Miami, but for Durant to go to a 73 win team like this, a team that had already won a championship, it is just awful for basketball.

The cause was the cap spike coinciding with incredibly team friendly extensions given to Curry, Thompson and Dray, by the GM, Myers, before those players took things to the next level and started performing like superstars. It was the perfect storm that allowed GS to sign Durant, so hats off to Bob Myers for cap management and talent evaluation never before seen.

Luckily for the rest of us, the luxury tax in the new CBA is so financially hampering that GS's shelf life will only last another season or two, otherwise the owner, Lacob, is going to be paying something like $5 million per $1 Million spent over the cap. Hopefully that breaks it up.

Alright, long winded rant over. I'm going to bed a bitter NBA fan.

Need a cap expert (Saltlover?) to analyze the luxury tax outlook for the Warriors over the next 2-3 seasons.

[td450]

The whole league is toast. Any FA should just look for max dollars they can get. No team is taking warriors with out at least having two top 10 players.

Cavs already have two top 10 calibre players.. add Love

you need at least 4 all stars to have a chance

They have 4 all-stars and 2 MVPs. First team ever with 2 MVPs, both below 30. So I guess you need 4 all-stars and at least 1 MVP caliber player as well. Good luck with that.

*sigh*

No, what you need are the right matchups. You can't compete with their firepower. What you have to do is take them out of their game.

I'm old school so I look to GSW like being George Foreman. Unstoppable. Knocked Frazier out who beat Ali. A wrecking machine. Frazier couldn't come close to beating him. Norton looked pathetic against him. Yet Ali came in and beat the heck out of big George and fairly dominated that fight (led on all 3 scorecards when he knocked him out). Yet Frazier and Norton gave Ali whuppins' (Ali's decision over Norton was a farce).

Same deal applies here. Cleveland doesn't match up really well against GSW. If the Warriors hadn't been complacent last year this would be their 3rd straight victory over them. You can't beat them at their own game. You have to take them out of it. Frankly, I think we have *most* of the roster to already do that which is why we're 2-2 against them the last two years. The problem is that we don't match up well against Cleveland and yes we need a bit more firepower on our end to truly have a chance. But they're not neigh invincible and we shouldn't be treating them like it.

I'm in this camp. You can't try to beat the Warriors by competing with them straight up, but they can be beaten.

I think for us to have a chance, we need Jaylen Brown to evolve into a player that can compete against Durant. He doesn't have to play him to a draw, but he can't be dominated. We also need the Amir Johnson/Kelly Olynyk slots to be filled by an aggressive, productive player or two that can cause matchup problems. I don't think we can lose Bradley. And we need Fultz to become a 20 ppg scorer and solid defender by year two.

Those things require a bit of luck, but are realistic, and they make us competitive with the Warriors.

[csfansince60s]

I've been around for a long time. I've seen a lot of "invincible" teams that have lost. 1980 Russian Olympic team. 2007 NE Patriots. 1968 Baltimore Colts. 1986 Edmonton Oilers. 1996 Detroit Red Wings. 2016 Golden State Warriors. 1991 UNLV Running Rebels. 1973 Celtics. 2001 Seattle Mariners. The list goes on...

All of these teams were considered unbeatable history-making teams of destiny. Yet none of them won a championship. Some lost in one game. Some lost in 7. All of these were beaten by supposedly inferior teams that simply (a) played perfectly and/or (b) matched up very well against their opposition.

The Warriors are the NBA's best team. But they're not unbeatable and of all the teams out there the two that match up the best are us and San Antonio. I'm not saying we wouldn't be underdogs but we would have a fighting chance. And if we can have a fighting chance while drafting for the future then that's the best of both worlds.

......Let's add the '69 Celtics(vs Fakers balloons) and the '60 Pirates to that group....No chance for those teams either.....I was stunned by both of those as were the Fakers and Yanks



Match-ups and heart and some luck are needed....we have the first two....we'll need some of the Leprechaun dust too.

[rollie mass]

the rumor mill starting that Lebron is looking at west coast along with george-maybe hayward will see the writing on the wall- "Go East young man"

[Bobshot]

James "have championship, will travel" has been a kind of bad influence in the league. Starting with Miami, he lured Bosh to play with him and Wade. Then going back to Cleveland, the .500 team miraculously won the lottery, which yielded Love. Irving was there, so presto, a championship. And now you have the Warriors piling on with Durant, and the Spurs who scarfed up Aldridge and Gasol. The Celtics detractors would chime in on KG and Allen, but Ainge pulled off a couple of trades to get his stars to go with Pierce. The other teams were FA plucks.

From a FA standpoint, James started the empire building in free agency. Now all the big FAs want to go to the best teams. And it seems easy to do that--just get rid of enough players to fit them under or near the cap--which is as soft as molasses in the NBA. The League doesn't have an answer for this, since the FA rules are those of both the league and the players association.

That's the way it is. Makes you wonder if drafting talented 19yos will ever get you anywhere.
Clearly, more than that is needed.

[rollie mass]

James "have championship, will travel" has been a kind of bad influence in the league. Starting with Miami, he lured Bosh to play with him and Wade. Then going back to Cleveland, the .500 team miraculously won the lottery, which yielded Love. Irving was there, so presto, a championship. And now you have the Warriors piling on with Durant, and the Spurs who scarfed up Aldridge and Gasol. The Celtics detractors would chime in on KG and Allen, but Ainge pulled off a couple of trades to get his stars to go with Pierce. The other teams were FA plucks.

From a FA standpoint, James started the empire building in free agency. Now all the big FAs want to go to the best teams. And it seems easy to do that--just get rid of enough players to fit them under or near the cap--which is as soft as molasses in the NBA. The League doesn't have an answer for this, since the FA rules are those of both the league and the players association.

That's the way it is. Makes you wonder if drafting talented 19yos will ever get you anywhere.
Clearly, more than that is needed.

TP-Have Gun Will Travel a favorite as a kid
I grew up in lexington  was familiar with the Greeley ancestors

[Quetzalcoatl]

James "have championship, will travel" has been a kind of bad influence in the league. Starting with Miami, he lured Bosh to play with him and Wade. Then going back to Cleveland, the .500 team miraculously won the lottery, which yielded Love. Irving was there, so presto, a championship. And now you have the Warriors piling on with Durant, and the Spurs who scarfed up Aldridge and Gasol. The Celtics detractors would chime in on KG and Allen, but Ainge pulled off a couple of trades to get his stars to go with Pierce. The other teams were FA plucks.

From a FA standpoint, James started the empire building in free agency. Now all the big FAs want to go to the best teams. And it seems easy to do that--just get rid of enough players to fit them under or near the cap--which is as soft as molasses in the NBA. The League doesn't have an answer for this, since the FA rules are those of both the league and the players association.

That's the way it is. Makes you wonder if drafting talented 19yos will ever get you anywhere.
Clearly, more than that is needed.

The Warriors were largely created by drafting 19 year olds.  Curry wasn't even a top 5 pick

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

James "have championship, will travel" has been a kind of bad influence in the league. Starting with Miami, he lured Bosh to play with him and Wade. Then going back to Cleveland, the .500 team miraculously won the lottery, which yielded Love. Irving was there, so presto, a championship. And now you have the Warriors piling on with Durant, and the Spurs who scarfed up Aldridge and Gasol. The Celtics detractors would chime in on KG and Allen, but Ainge pulled off a couple of trades to get his stars to go with Pierce. The other teams were FA plucks.

From a FA standpoint, James started the empire building in free agency. Now all the big FAs want to go to the best teams. And it seems easy to do that--just get rid of enough players to fit them under or near the cap--which is as soft as molasses in the NBA. The League doesn't have an answer for this, since the FA rules are those of both the league and the players association.

That's the way it is. Makes you wonder if drafting talented 19yos will ever get you anywhere.
Clearly, more than that is needed.

The Warriors were largely created by drafting 19 year olds.  Curry wasn't even a top 5 pick

The Warriors certainly have had exceedingly good fortune. Virtually no one expected Curry, Green, or even Thompson to be as good as they are. And the Warriors were paying all three virtually peanuts when one of the game's best players just happened to be a free agent. Couldn't have worked out any better for them.

[cousytoheinsohn]

I've been around for a long time. I've seen a lot of "invincible" teams that have lost. 1980 Russian Olympic team. 2007 NE Patriots. 1968 Baltimore Colts. 1986 Edmonton Oilers. 1996 Detroit Red Wings. 2016 Golden State Warriors. 1991 UNLV Running Rebels. 1973 Celtics. 2001 Seattle Mariners. The list goes on...

All of these teams were considered unbeatable history-making teams of destiny. Yet none of them won a championship. Some lost in one game. Some lost in 7. All of these were beaten by supposedly inferior teams that simply (a) played perfectly and/or (b) matched up very well against their opposition.

The Warriors are the NBA's best team. But they're not unbeatable and of all the teams out there the two that match up the best are us and San Antonio. I'm not saying we wouldn't be underdogs but we would have a fighting chance. And if we can have a fighting chance while drafting for the future then that's the best of both worlds.

......Let's add the '69 Celtics(vs Fakers balloons) and the '60 Pirates to that group....No chance for those teams either.....I was stunned by both of those as were the Fakers and Yanks



Match-ups and heart and some luck are needed....we have the first two....we'll need some of the Leprechaun dust too.

Preach, brothers, preach!

Well done.

I'm right there with both of you and I'm sure the magic dust is en route to Beantown even as we speak.

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

Looking down the barrel of that Warrior squad for the foreseeable future might motivate him beside the obvious connection to Brad.The Warriors will attract the best vets coming off the bench at discount looking for a ring.Their situation looks long and getting stronger.

Hayward might prefer playing with Horford  a big that stretches and a great passer.Then the attention Isaiah gets should really favor Hayward.
The  media attention the Celts get as a rising team with Danny and Brad and the focus to build and win another banner. Too  to be part of that legacy in a sports mad great city might be just enough.

I like what Utah has going, and I generally have positive impressions of the Jazz as a franchise, but if Hayward wants to win titles—and I presume he does—his best bet is Boston, hands down. Utah will almost assuredly never attract marquee free agents, and the Jazz are highly unlikely to ever beat this GS team (or even the Spurs). Hayward's title odds are much better over the next several years if he joins the Celtics (unless he could somehow join the Warriors).