NBA's lack of parity.

[CastletonSnob]

What do you think has contributed to the NBA's lack of parity? The Warriors and the Cavs have played each other in the finals for 4 years in a row.

[Lenis]

I think both of them had strongest teams coming into 2015 seasons in their respective conferences. Both teams (especially GSW) risked a lot by signing big long term contracts with their upcoming players before that succesful season. Huge increase in salary cap throughout the years let them to keep all of their top players. Stacked teams allowed them to get some great veterans. Things just worked out.

[icausewipes]

Check out the 80s.

[Deleted]

What do you think has contributed to the NBA's lack of parity? The Warriors and the Cavs have played each other in the finals for 4 years in a row.

Well, that isn't happening this year for sure.

Anyway, the biggest factor is consistency. When you overall keep the same high performing players for a few years, you end up with consistent high results. There are specially some key players in both teams that were instrumental in keeping the success going.

[Blueobelisk]

>League with 30 teams.
>There are only a handful of superstars who can actually carry.
>They decide to play together.

Solution:
1. Reduce the number of teams.
2. Restrict superstars being able to play together.*

* This is usually hard to qualify, but it was fucking obvious a 73 win GSW team adding Kevin Durant was going to be completely unfair.

[Craaazyyy]

in the 80s Celtics and Lakers were in the finals combined 13 times, including playing 4 times in a row against each other

- - - Updated - - -

>League with 30 teams.
>There are only a handful of superstars who can actually carry.
>They decide to play together.

Solution:
1. Reduce the number of teams.
2. Restrict superstars being able to play together.*

* This is usually hard to qualify, but it was fucking obvious a 73 win GSW team adding Kevin Durant was going to be completely unfair.

i mean teams need to get better at drafting etc. then

reducing number of teams wouldnt really help, also it would reduce the revenue and piss off the fans of said teams

superteams were always a thing and will remain a thing..

[McFuu]

What do you think has contributed to the NBA's lack of parity? The Warriors and the Cavs have played each other in the finals for 4 years in a row.

The biggest issue is the "championship now" mentality. LeBron brings it with him to every team he goes to (except Lakers) but it seems that it has started a dangerous trend. You see it manifest in other teams, trying to put together a big three/four, but there is only so much talent. You also have a slight problem with Durant on GS. GS has been a contender since 2014, Durant put them way over the top. I don't blame him, it's in snake's nature to do things like this. Durant on any other team, immediately makes them a Playoff team, a playoff team is going to try to trade for and sign talent. Thus making a certain number of focal points in the league for players to go "to win now".

Although..... and some people may disagree with me, I think the fact that GS has been so stable, not pulling talent out of the league to keep winning because they are solid (even without Durant they would probably have 1 less Ring right now). Other teams are starting to build... the weak East, is actually pretty scary right now.

I would say this is just how it goes, you get cycles of a couple of teams dominating and grabbing players, until they can't do it anymore... and then suddenly other teams rise out of the ash. In the 80's-00's I would say this was mainly due to teams going over Salary cap and having rebuilding years where they had to drop some debt. The cap got raised big time in the 10's (It's odd to be saying that still even though it's 2018), and there just wasn't any more talent to grab, even though teams could afford it.

[Craaazyyy]

The biggest issue is the "championship now" mentality. LeBron brings it with him to every team he goes to (except Lakers) but it seems that it has started a dangerous trend. You see it manifest in other teams, trying to put together a big three/four, but there is only so much talent. You also have a slight problem with Durant on GS. GS has been a contender since 2014, Durant put them way over the top. I don't blame him, it's in snake's nature to do things like this. Durant on any other team, immediately makes them a Playoff team, a playoff team is going to try to trade for and sign talent. Thus making a certain number of focal points in the league for players to go "to win now".

Although..... and some people may disagree with me, I think the fact that GS has been so stable, not pulling talent out of the league to keep winning because they are solid (even without Durant they would probably have 1 less Ring right now). Other teams are starting to build... the weak East, is actually pretty scary right now.

I would say this is just how it goes, you get cycles of a couple of teams dominating and grabbing players, until they can't do it anymore... and then suddenly other teams rise out of the ash. In the 80's-00's I would say this was mainly due to teams going over Salary cap and having rebuilding years where they had to drop some debt. The cap got raised big time in the 10's (It's odd to be saying that still even though it's 2018), and there just wasn't any more talent to grab, even though teams could afford it.

in a way superteams are making the league better on average.. i think right not the league is amazing and filled with talent, and everyone is trying to catch Golden State, which is great to watch

like who knows maybe Milwaukee this year is what Golden State were in 2014

and like you said Eastern Conference is getting stronger

[McFuu]

in a way superteams are making the league better on average.. i think right not the league is amazing and filled with talent, and everyone is trying to catch Golden State, which is great to watch

like who knows maybe Milwaukee this year is what Golden State were in 2014

and like you said Eastern Conference is getting stronger

Yeah, I would argue that 2014 the league was decently balanced, there were multiple contenders around the league. The Durant move really hurt the league, and then LeBron trying to build a championship team, with multiple moves every year in Cleveland, that's a lot of role players being sucked in, weakening other teams. Durant not only had the effect of making OK not a competitive team anymore, but also removed a lot of other teams from being competitors just because they lack the sheer fire power.

It's weird to say, but I think this is why I kind of give LeBron a pass and blame Durant for his championship chasing. LeBron goes to a team and usually that team isn't great (we can argue about the Heat, people always say they had won before Lebron got there, but the Heat team LeBron joined was very different to the 06 champions, only Wade was really still there)... Back to LeBron, he went to the Heat, they built a team, against a lot of other tough teams like LA and the Spurs and won back to back. LeBron went to the Heat not when the Heat were a contender, Lebron made them a contender, among other moves. I don't even think the Heat made the playoffs the year before he joined. When LeBron went back to Cleveland, lets be real Cleveland was always shit. LeBron and other moves made because of LeBron made them a perennial Finals team. Without LeBron, they have 1 win, that win was probably scored against their practice squad, I'm not even going to look.

So yeah, LeBron seems pretty toxic as a team mate sometimes, because he demands a drive out of his teams. I see it in the Lakers games sometimes, he gets a really pissy body language if God forbid a fucking rookie, which that team has many, forgets to crash the lane or slow on a switch and give up a lay-up. And to me even though GS gets along and it's fucking sunshine and roses over there, Durant is a toxic teammate, he isn't buddies with Curry, Thompson, and Donkey because of their attitudes. It's because they can crush any team they feel like crushing, whenever they want. If they were struggling to make it to the playoffs... Durant isn't resigning for less than his value, period...

It's LeBron's competitiveness to win, with whatever he is given that is impressive. Durant wants to win, but it's path of least resistance. The most resistance he faces is when people make fun of him (like I am, I know I'm incredibly self-aware), but really who cares about that, not Durant because he got his rings. Durant doesn't care that his legacy has been hurt. It's a sociopathic style competitiveness. The type of dude to buy your business, fire everyone except for 3 people, and sell it off piece by piece because the business turns a profit now with no employee payroll overhead. Yeah he is getting the results, but he isn't putting in the work, someone else has done that for him.

[MatthewOU2015]

Cavs arent doing anything this season lol

[Blueobelisk]

i mean teams need to get better at drafting etc. then

reducing number of teams wouldnt really help, also it would reduce the revenue and piss off the fans of said teams

superteams were always a thing and will remain a thing..

How does improving drafting help teams get better? That's like saying all poor people should just get better at handling finances.

Reducing the number of teams would help spread the good players around and create more exciting games. Yes, fanbases and league revenue might go down, but right now everything is spread thin.

Superteams where top-tier players come together has always been a thing. Never in the way GSW has done it.

The biggest issue is the "championship now" mentality.

There are teams focused on winning the draft lottery and rebuilding right now, that even in the next 5 years won't be contenders.

in a way superteams are making the league better on average.. i think right not the league is amazing and filled with talent, and everyone is trying to catch Golden State, which is great to watch

Super teams are only good for the super teams fanbases. As a NYer, the NBA season sucks because the Knicks and Nets are trash.

Even not looking at home-bias, the NBA season is boring because we already know who the good team is. Everyone expects GSW to win. Everyone. Every other team is playing for nothing.

[Craaazyyy]

How does improving drafting help teams get better? That's like saying all poor people should just get better at handling finances.

Reducing the number of teams would help spread the good players around and create more exciting games. Yes, fanbases and league revenue might go down, but right now everything is spread thin.

Superteams where top-tier players come together has always been a thing. Never in the way GSW has done it.



There are teams focused on winning the draft lottery and rebuilding right now, that even in the next 5 years won't be contenders.



Super teams are only good for the super teams fanbases. As a NYer, the NBA season sucks because the Knicks and Nets are trash.

Even not looking at home-bias, the NBA season is boring because we already know who the good team is. Everyone expects GSW to win. Everyone. Every other team is playing for nothing.

nothing you said makes sense

how improving drafting help teams get better? what kind of question is that even? and ofc poor people should get better at handling finances, most of them wouldnt be poor if they knew how to handle their money better

games are already really exciting, especially in the regular season.. if you dont think so, then you're not much of a fan

i love NBA and my team sucks nowadays, but overall its super fucking fun to watch, almost every team has at least one really great player that is fun to watch..

you're focusing on the negatives too much, probably because your team hasnt won shit in decades, but thats not the only thing you should be excited about

also in what way GSW has done it? and how has it never happened b4?

GSW built their team through draft

[Rennadrel]

The fact that teams have to trade nearly dollar for dollar contracts makes moving players difficult, not to mention most teams aren't drafting 3 point shooting types of players who are also good defensively. The league also only has a small amount of really good players and because you don't have large rosters, it becomes easy to stack a team with talent, especially when you draft and develop like GSW. The Cavs never had that, they didn't have the team aspect or enough threats on the court. GSW was always a threat regardless of who they put on the court, even without Durant. OKC had a lot of depth with KD and still couldn't beat the team aspect of GSW. I don't think many teams have that and a lot of coaches haven't adapted to the way the league plays either.

[PokeKitty]

It is still lack of parity right now, because GSW might just go to finals for another few years, they have like 3 best shooters in the league and a DPOY, then a past top 5 center in the league, it is so unfair to other teams.