Lebron's teams are never the "smart" team like his opponents (SAS, GSW, DAL)

[3ball]

Lebron's less diverse and unadjustable style prevents his teams from using optimal, cutting edge strategy.

Instead, it's the opposite - Lebron's Finals opponents are the ones employing the superior, cutting-edge strategy (i.e. Spurs, Dallas, Warriors) - they're the teams that are considered the "smart" teams in the league, not Lebron's.

Otoh, MJ's Bulls were like the Warriors, Dallas, or Spurs - they employed cutting edge strategy and were perceived as one of the league's smart teams.. MJ's GOAT offensive sophistication provided the necessary adjustability and capacity to be the centerpiece of cutting edge strategy (the triangle).

Unfortunately, Lebron-ball's rigid, straightforward approach means it can never be part of a smart team that uses cutting edge strategy... This precludes him from ever being part of an all-time great team.. All-time great teams are always smart teams that use cutting edge strategy over an extended period of time, which gives the team a sustainable advantage on the rest of the league (i.e. Pistons, Bulls, Celtics, Spurs).

[PickernRoller]

Except vs. OKC.

[3ball]

Except vs. OKC.

You made my point.

OKC was one of the dumbest, youngest Finals team of all time.

That's the only team a Lebron team can be smarter than, or where Lebron-ball is the superior strategy.

[3ball]

Totally legit thread - but no takers because the truth hits so hard it can't even be trolled.

So I'll smack y'all again with the truth - Lebron's style precludes his teams from ever using cutting edge strategy and being considered one of the league's "smart" teams (like the Warriors, Spurs and Dallas).

Naturally, the only team that Lebron's teams were ever smarter than was the youngest, dumbest team to ever make a Finals - the 2012 Thunder.

Otoh, MJ's teams were always the smart team using the cutting edge strategy, just like the Spurs, Warriors and Dallas.
.

[GIF REACTION]

The 90's was a weak era for the NBA. Expansion teams spread the talent thin, creating a lack of true quality teams that featured multiple star players, and afforded only a few teams so. The rules also limited defenses severely to concepts and strategies as a team. Whoever had the better players always won. However today there is no illegal defense, they can create sophisticated defensive schemes to hinder greater talents, and ignore non offensive threats which wasn't allowed in the illegal defense era of the NBA.





















gif source: http://[FONT="Comic Sans MS"]https:/...t1Q[/FONT]

[dubeta]

GIF REACTIONS slaughtered this thread and OPs argument



Would make I'm Still Ballin Proud

[3ball]

Today's defensive schemes aren't needed when there's no spacing.

[COLOR="White"].................................................. ..[/COLOR][COLOR="Green"]SPACING[/COLOR]


There was no weakside spacing in previous eras, so all 5 defenders remained on the strongside, and therefore closest to help on strongside action:






Otoh, today's game uses weakside spacing to reduce the number of strongside defenders.. Help defenders are now on the weakside and furthest from helping on strongside action:





Weakside spacing leaves the strongside with fewer defenders, which necessitates the flooding of defenders BACK TO the strongside - this is how strongside floods originated.

Otoh, as the first GIF showed, weakside spacing didn't exist in previous eras, so defenders weren't lured away from strongside - defenders just remained on the strongside, which meant players faced strongsides that were already flooded with all 5 defenders (5-defender strongsides)..

These fully-flooded strongsides were a product of no-spacing and represented the "advanced" version of the game that included hand-checking, higher physicality, and legal paint-camping, and therefore requiring more sophisticated 2-point shooting ability.

This is a stark contrast to today's weakside spacing and resulting 1-defender strongsides, which is basically the "beginner" version of the game that includes less strongside defenders, no hand-checking, no paint-camping, no physicality.. The highest levels of offensive sophistication simply aren't needed for the beginner version of the game.

[joe]

How about the Heats defensive, ultra trapping scheme, which only worked because of Lebrons immense defensive gifts?

How about the 2012 Heats spectacular ball movement, which worked because Lebron is one of the most selfless megastars in the history of the game?

Seriously.

Lebron has never played for a top notch coach. Spoelstra showed he has some GREAT smarts, a truly underappreciated, top notch coach. But you are comparing Lebrons teams to teams coached by Pop, Carislile, and now Kerr who I believe will prove to be another outstanding coach. Look at the ball movement and teamwork he instilled in that Golden State team.

Maybe Lebron doesnt want to be coached- we saw some of that between him and David Blatt. Still, he has had to work with scraps for much of his career, counting teammates AND coaches. When he had some good talent in Miami, he indeed WAS on the smart team- the team that out ball movemented the SPURS, and defensively blitzed the entire league for 8 months.

[3ball]

How about the Heats defensive, ultra trapping scheme, which only worked because of Lebrons immense defensive gifts?

Lebron was an elite defender for a short span - about 4-5 years.. But those days are long gone..

He didn't even make the all-defensive team this year... He was so bad defensively that they couldn't even include him based on name-recognition, like they did with many of Kobe's all-defensive selections.
.

[joe]

Lebron was an elite defender for a short span - about 4-5 years.. But those days are long gone..

He didn't even make the all-defensive team this year... He was so bad defensively that they couldn't even include him based on name-recognition, like they did with many of Kobe's all-defensive selections.



Exactly - you make my point:

The only team that Lebron's team was ever smarter than was the youngest, dumbest team to ever make a Finals - the 2012 Thunder.

Otoh, MJ's teams were always the smart team using the cutting edge strategy, just like the Spurs, Warriors and Dallas.

The 2013 Heat had even better ball movement and they beat the Spurs, who were COOKING that year. One of the best teams to ever lose in the finals. They did it with ball movement and defense all year long, including winning like what, 29 straight games? That was a smart team with cutting edge strategy that was only available, at the end of the day, because you had a player as gifted and selfless as Lebron.

[3ball]

The 2013 Heat had even better ball movement and they beat the Spurs,

Nah, the Heat won in 2013 because 3-and-D strategy was still only a few years old, and the league hadn't figured out how to shut down a plain-vanilla, 3-and-D strategy yet.

But by 2014, the Spurs had made the adjustment, and now the unsophisticated strategy employed by the Heat in 2013 will never work EVER AGAIN.

Real talk..

[3ball]

Expansion teams spread the talent thin in 90's

How does expansion to a 30-team league spread the talent any thinner than today's 30-team league?

Someone explain that to me.

[3ball]

How about the 2012 Heats spectacular ball movement

Exactly - you make my point:

The only time Lebron's team was ever the smarter in the Finals was against the youngest, dumbest team to ever make a Finals - the 2012 Thunder.

Otoh, MJ's teams were always the smart team using the cutting edge strategy, just like the Spurs, Warriors and Dallas - you know, all the teams that figure out and own Lebron in the Finals.