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Cavs Now Title Favorites With Las Vegas Sportsbook
RoadDawg55
Member Posts: 30,123
3-1. They need to get Love to even have a chance. If Melo goes to the Bulls, I'd favor the Bulls. Obviously with LeBron, the Cavs will make moves to be a contender, but this is jumping the gun. The Spurs would sweep the Cavs. The Thunder and Clippers would most likely beat them too. There are a few more teams in the West the Cavs would struggle with.
Comments
I agree they shouldn't be the favorites at this moment, but if the Love deal happens they might be.
If Houston can figure out how to sign Bosh and deal Lynsanity in time to keep Parsons they're right there, too, but I'm not optimistic that will happen.
Add to that that they still have Terrence Jones who is better suited to play the bench and a D-League team that will furnish them with guys that can stand behind the 3 point line and bomb. They should also be an attractive destination for a player chasing a title.
IMO they would vault ahead of OKC in the West's pecking order right now.
In Houston, he'll allow Howard to stay at the rim and provide better floor spacing than what Jones could offer.
Losing in the 1st round of the Western Conference Playoffs doesn't mean that you're a bad team. The difference between losing in the 1st round and getting to the conference finals is very slim.
The Rockets also need to fill out their bench. Who do they have after Terrance Jones? Lin and Asik are now gone. They aren't going anywhere without a couple good rotation pieces. They could really use a PG for their 2nd unit. It's hard to rank the teams in the West because they are loaded. Even San Antonio got taken 7 games by Dallas. Golden State and Memphis almost won their series' too. I'm just not buying Houston.
Whatever happened to MossterFS anyway?
My point though on Houston though right now is that the pieces fit. Howard is a stay in the paint big that quite frankly there aren't a lot of them left in the league now. He creates matchup problems offensively (when he's committed to being big and dominating the glass) and has the ability to cleanup defensive shortcomings. You'll never win a title with Howard if he's your #1 offensive option and you are asking him to do too much. He averaged 18 and 12 last year. If you can bump up the rebounds to the 14 range and get his blocks back up to the 2+ level (which should happen with Bosh guarding the opposing team's best big), then you are getting what you need from Howard. Harden is Harden and orchestrates - but he needs someone with championship experience to get in his face about his defense and this could be where Bosh helps them. Parsons spaces the floor but needs to get better defensively. Beverley is a great "in your face" type of player that that roster desperately needs. I like Jones coming off the bench because he's good enough to play 30 minutes a night and make sure that you don't tax Bosh or Howard. Bosh will be helped by getting the opposing team's 2nd defensive big on him. His jump shooting game is a perfect fit with Harden. Add to that that Bosh is a very good passer for a big and has the ability to play some high-low action with Howard. Houston very easily could be the best offensive team in the league. I like Isaiah Cannan and think that he can very easily turn into a decent player off their bench. I really like the Nick Johnson draft pick because if nothing else he'll be able to come in and play defense right away for them. They will never have a shortage of wings able to play given how they play with their D-League team. And I would expect that they'll be able to sign a free agent or two at mid-level exceptions or at veteran minimum's to help round out their roster.
Regarding Portland, I thought that they were just happy to win a series last year and really didn't have any expectations of beating San Antonio. The reason that they beat Houston was driven by the fact that Houston has nobody that could guard Aldridge - Bosh can do a credible job there.
This roster fits and fits about as well as any roster in the West. My personal opinion is that the 4 "best" fitting rosters in the West are (in no particular order) San Antonio, Houston (assuming they round out the roster with these deals), the Clippers, and Golden State.
NOGAFATNBA
Chris Bosh and his 1.1 apg last year agree that he is a great passer for a big man. I can't wait to see them run some high/low action with Howard. Maybe they can call Romar for some pointers on the high post offense.
Houston has a good starting 5 if they get Bosh and Parsons. Chris Bosh and Dwight Howard compliment each other very well on paper. I fully agree with that and understand the reasons why. Terrance Jones should be a good 6th man. Beyond that, it's bare. I'm far from sold on Kevin McHale as a coach too.
Your last paragraph is shit. OKC doesn't have a "best" fit roster because Westbrook isn't a true PG? I agree that they need to make changes, but any team with Durant, Westbrook, and a top 3 defensive big has a "best" fitting roster.
The Thunder certainly had bums in their rotation. So did the Warriors though (Speights, J. O'Neal, Blake). So did the Clippers (Big Baby, Granger). They had no legitimate back up big. The Rockets have/ had a worse bench than OKC. Think it through.
Regarding Jackson/Adams, those guys are essentially starters for them and then if they are, their bench sucks ass. If they come off the bench, they have pieces of shit starting for them. They are probably 2 pieces short in my mind.
I get your point about Cannan and Johnson. Cannan hasn't done shit yet so no doubt I'm stepping out on a limb. He could be good ... might not be. I liked his game in college and I think he could be a valuable role player in the NBA. I may have a higher opinion of Nick Johnson than most ... I think he'll prove to be a very valuable NBA player. I'm not 100% privy of the Rockets depth/roster right now regarding contracts, but I was expecting guys like Cannan and Johnson to be 9th/10th players for them in the long run. In the end, the point is gone anyway with Bosh going back to Miami.
Speights is a POS if he's a valuable rotation player. If he's your 10th guy off the bench, you're not relying on him but if he gives you a good day you ride him. O'Neal wasn't that bad at times and Blake is so-so as a backup option. He's not going to hurt you.
The Clippers have already addressed their problems with the bench as Granger has been replaced by Wilcox (Romar still doesn't have talent) and Big Baby with Hawes.
They were dominated by Aldridge and I doubt he puts up back to back 40+ games against Bosh.
I think Miami is a little crazy paying Bosh 5/118 but they had to overpay to keep an all-star in these circumstances.
Agree with Road Dawg that right now today Cavs aren't the favorites but you could put them as favorites over OKC cause they have a clearer path to the finals which is half the battle.
I think if Gasol goes to either the Spurs or OKC they will be runaway favorites IMO.
P.S. Tequilla if you expect me to read your posts break it down. I see a big wall of text and I just skim to the next post.
At least initially, I don't think they will be as good as the Big 3 Miami had in 10-11. Bosh averaged 24 and 10 in Toronto. Is Love really a top 10-15 player or is he a big numbers on a shitty team guy?
LeBron knows how tough it's going to be. It's still Cleveland and the organization has no Pat Riley running the front office. LeBron even said his goal is to bring one championship there. Favorites is a stretch at this point.
Chicago needs to make a move. If I'm Indiana, I think I give it another shot and hope that with experience and time together will be enough to beat the Cavs. Same with NJ and Toronto. The East is so shitty, a lot of those teams have a chance.
For those who say he doesn't have that competitive drive of MJ or Kobe well that quote gave you a ton of evidence.
”When I left Cleveland, I was on a mission,” he continued. “I was seeking championships, and we won two. But Miami already knew that feeling. Our city hasn’t had that feeling in a long, long, long time. My goal is still to win as many titles as possible, no question. But what’s most important for me is bringing one trophy back to Northeast Ohio.”
I’m not promising a championship. I know how hard that is to deliver. We’re not ready right now. No way. Of course, I want to win next year, but I’m realistic. It will be a long process, much longer than it was in 2010. My patience will get tested. I know that. I’m going into a situation with a young team and a new coach. I will be the old head. But I get a thrill out of bringing a group together and helping them reach a place they didn’t know they could go. I see myself as a mentor now and I’m excited to lead some of these talented young guys. I think I can help Kyrie Irving become one of the best point guards in our league. I think I can help elevate Tristan Thompson and Dion Waiters. And I can’t wait to reunite with Anderson Varejao, one of my favorite teammates.
Read more: Necole Bitchie.com: LeBron James Announces Return To The Cleveland Cavaliers: ‘I’m Coming Home’ http://necolebitchie.com/2014/07/lebron-james-announces-return-to-the-cleveland-cavaliers-im-coming-home/#ixzz37EACyJ4Z
Read more at http://necolebitchie.com/2014/07/lebron-james-announces-return-to-the-cleveland-cavaliers-im-coming-home/#3q2GoYZGXRMtJXsW.99
Just so you don't think I'm killing Lebron I actually enjoyed his letter a lot. You can tell this was a family decision to return home. That going home every offseason he probably heard the whispers how he betrayed them and it got to him. Lebron wants to be liked and the thought of his hometown hating him probably took a toll on him.
I also think Lebron wants to be in a situation where he isn't the clear cut favorite. Where if he wins a title it's a huge accomplishment and if they fall short it's not the end of the world failure which was Miami's situation.
I actually think America will embrace Lebron this next year and will actually be rooting for him to win a title while most were rooting against him while in Miami.