Tiger Hawk
Bench
- Messages
- 2,928
Artest is right - that team without LeBron probably isn't talented enough to make the playoffs. So what does that say about LeBron though? Is Artest acknowledging James is the best player in the game?
Going further, replace LeBron with any other small forward and what would happen? Replace him with any old starter - say Shane Battier or Marvin Williams, guys that are middle of the road, stock standard average - and that team is a lottery team. Wouldn't win more than 30 games. Replace him with a star - say Carmelo Anthony - and that team still would struggle to make the playoffs, at best somewhere between 40 & 50 wins (like every Melo season before Billups). Cavs are on track to win 62 games, 10 more than Melo's Nuggets (& Melo has the superior supporting cast).
Is there another player you could say that about in the NBA? Kobe / D-Wade cancel eachother out. Switch those two around and Lakers are still contending and Miami are struggling, playing .500 ball. Same with Garnett / Duncan, Chris Paul / D-Will or Nash. The only player to come close would be Howard, but you could throw Duncan down there and that Orlando team would be just as good.
I can't think of any other player with that sort of impact on his team????
Going further, replace LeBron with any other small forward and what would happen? Replace him with any old starter - say Shane Battier or Marvin Williams, guys that are middle of the road, stock standard average - and that team is a lottery team. Wouldn't win more than 30 games. Replace him with a star - say Carmelo Anthony - and that team still would struggle to make the playoffs, at best somewhere between 40 & 50 wins (like every Melo season before Billups). Cavs are on track to win 62 games, 10 more than Melo's Nuggets (& Melo has the superior supporting cast).
Is there another player you could say that about in the NBA? Kobe / D-Wade cancel eachother out. Switch those two around and Lakers are still contending and Miami are struggling, playing .500 ball. Same with Garnett / Duncan, Chris Paul / D-Will or Nash. The only player to come close would be Howard, but you could throw Duncan down there and that Orlando team would be just as good.
I can't think of any other player with that sort of impact on his team????