Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

[pw_1016]

The big market teams are good EVERY YEAR. When was the last time teams like Cleveland, Minnesota, Milwaukee and Charlotte made the playoffs? The exception is the OKC is not a big market team and still made the playoffs but that current roster was being built while the team was still in Seattle.

I just don't get how teams like those four teams I mentioned get high draft picks every year but do not seem to get better. I think part of it is ownership. It shocks me that these owners do not get run out of town.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

The Cavs were literally the favorites to win the title 3 years in a row the past 5 years.

Oklahoma City is a tiny market who is one of the few legit contenders.

The Knicks and Clippers haven't been legit title contenders in forever. The Bulls have been largely average since Jordan retired the second time and San Antonio had a dynasty recently.

So no, the big market teams aren't always the favorite. Basketball is one of the few sports where the big markets don't dominate.

[pw_1016]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

The Cavs were literally the favorites to win the title 3 years in a row the past 5 years.

Oklahoma City is a tiny market who is one of the few legit contenders.

The Knicks and Clippers haven't been legit title contenders in forever. The Bulls have been largely average since Jordan retired the second time and San Antonio had a dynasty recently.

So no, the big market teams aren't always the favorite. Basketball is one of the few sports where the big markets don't dominate.

Yeah, but you have to wonder why the same teams are horrible almost every year. Before Lebron and now after Lebron , Cleveland has not impressed anyone. Charlotte bobcats have always been terrible. The Bucks and T'Wolves have been horrible for a LONG time. Phoenix has not been spectacular in recent years. The wizards since changing their name from the Bullets.

The same teams, LA Lakers, San Antonio, Miami, and maybe a select couple others are favorites to win it every single year.

[OSUFan_88]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

The same teams, LA Lakers, San Antonio, Miami, and maybe a select couple others are favorites to win it every single year.

Yeah, welcome to the NBA since 1980. Mix in the Bulls, Celtics, and Pistons and you've got most all the world title winners of the modern era.

Either way, the Cavs belong no where near this list. In the mid 80s, they had probably a top 3 team in the NBA, just got buzz sawed by the Bulls every damn time, had moderate success in the 90s with Brandon, Kemp and Z. Then they just had the LeBron Era and are now starting a new era with the reigning Rookie of the Year in Kyrie Irving. They certainly don't deserve to be mentioned with those other teams when you have teams like the Hornets, Clippers, and Warriors to choose from.

[BlueNGold]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

Yeah, but you have to wonder why the same teams are horrible almost every year. Before Lebron and now after Lebron , Cleveland has not impressed anyone. Charlotte bobcats have always been terrible. The Bucks and T'Wolves have been horrible for a LONG time. Phoenix has not been spectacular in recent years. The wizards since changing their name from the Bullets.

The same teams, LA Lakers, San Antonio, Miami, and maybe a select couple others are favorites to win it every single year.

There's like 5 teams that have been consistently bad over the past decade (Bucks, Bobcats, Hornets, Warriors, Raptors). Every other team in the league has been considered a playoff team or title contender at some point in the past decade. The Clippers and Knicks would be in that mix with those 5 teams I listed but things have turned for the better for them as of late.

Just going through your examples:

The T-Wolves were an elite/title contending team within the past decade when they had KG.

Using Phoenix to try and prove your point is an incredibly bad example. They've been one of the more consistently good teams in the league and were title contenders from '05-'09, not to mention had a few breaks gone their way they'd probably be looking at one or two championships.

Cleveland was just in an NBA Finals in '07 against -- wait for it -- San Antonio. Cleveland vs San Antonio, such big market heavyweights!

Washington has been pretty awful but you also have to factor in the Gilbert Arenas injury and gun incident into that. At one point they were an above-average team.

The only two teams I can't disagree with are the Bucks and the Bobcats. But that's what happens when you can't draft for ****. Just look at some of these glorious Bobcats draft picks: Emeka Okafor (2nd overall), Raymond Felton (5th overall), Sean May (13th overall), Adam Morrison (3rd overall), Brandan Wright (8th overall), etc, etc. Gee, I wonder why they can't be a good team. Must be because they're in small market Charlotte....

And you completely contradict yourself when you say "the big market teams are good every year", and then list San Antonio amongst the Heat and Lakers.

[CelticPride17]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

It may not be New York or LA, but San Antonio is the 7th-biggest city in the country. I'd consider them to be a large market.

On topic, BlueNGold's list is pretty accurate. The best team out of those 5 has only made the playoffs 4 times since the 02-03 season (a decade), and that's the Hornets (who actually finished second in the West in the 07-08 season, first in the division).

[DamnYanks2]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

When were the T'Wolves ever contenders? I don't remember them ever being title contenders, even when they had KG. Didn't they always flame out in the 1st round, I'm asking because it's been a while, and I just don't remember them ever being title contenders. When they had KG and Wally maybe?

[CelticPride17]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

When were the T'Wolves ever contenders? I don't remember them ever being title contenders, even when they had KG. Didn't they always flame out in the 1st round, I'm asking because it's been a while, and I just don't remember them ever being title contenders. When they had KG and Wally maybe?

In the 2003-04 season, they made the Western Conference Finals.

[pw_1016]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

In the 2003-04 season, they made the Western Conference Finals.

wow...one good year

[pw_1016]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

There's like 5 teams that have been consistently bad over the past decade (Bucks, Bobcats, Hornets, Warriors, Raptors). Every other team in the league has been considered a playoff team or title contender at some point in the past decade. The Clippers and Knicks would be in that mix with those 5 teams I listed but things have turned for the better for them as of late.

Just going through your examples:

The T-Wolves were an elite/title contending team within the past decade when they had KG.

Using Phoenix to try and prove your point is an incredibly bad example. They've been one of the more consistently good teams in the league and were title contenders from '05-'09, not to mention had a few breaks gone their way they'd probably be looking at one or two championships.

Cleveland was just in an NBA Finals in '07 against -- wait for it -- San Antonio. Cleveland vs San Antonio, such big market heavyweights!

Washington has been pretty awful but you also have to factor in the Gilbert Arenas injury and gun incident into that. At one point they were an above-average team.

The only two teams I can't disagree with are the Bucks and the Bobcats. But that's what happens when you can't draft for ****. Just look at some of these glorious Bobcats draft picks: Emeka Okafor (2nd overall), Raymond Felton (5th overall), Sean May (13th overall), Adam Morrison (3rd overall), Brandan Wright (8th overall), etc, etc. Gee, I wonder why they can't be a good team. Must be because they're in small market Charlotte....

And you completely contradict yourself when you say "the big market teams are good every year", and then list San Antonio amongst the Heat and Lakers.

Anger! lol

first of all, '07 was during the Lebron era. In my post I was referring to BEFORE and AFTER the Lebron era . How many championships did they win or finals appearences did they have in the 90s and up until 2003?

If the T'Wolves have been title contenders so often, then why did Garnett leave? If I am not mistaken , the rumors where that he went to Boston so he could have a chance to win a ring and because he was not surrounded by enough talent in MN.

The Clippers are an exception to my statement, but they are the red-headed step child in LA so what do you expect?

[JerzeyReign]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

I see what the OP is trying to say -- some of y'all are digging too deep. The new CBA, once it fully kicks in, should help in this process but I still wish they were modeled more after the NFL's way of doing things -- the hard cap could stop the 'Super Teams' forming in the same general areas.

[BlueNGold]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

wow...one good year

6 out of 7 seasons* with 45+ wins (from 97-98 to 03-04) is more than "one good year".

*They went 25-25 in a lockout-shortened season

Anger! lol

first of all, '07 was during the Lebron era. In my post I was referring to BEFORE and AFTER the Lebron era . How many championships did they win or finals appearences did they have in the 90s and up until 2003?

If the T'Wolves have been title contenders so often, then why did Garnett leave? If I am not mistaken , the rumors where that he went to Boston so he could have a chance to win a ring and because he was not surrounded by enough talent in MN.

The Clippers are an exception to my statement, but they are the red-headed step child in LA so what do you expect?

Not angry at all. I just disagree with having to shift the power in the NBA or whatever you want to call it. It's a shortsighted statement.

You say "the big market teams are good EVERY YEAR" because many of them are playoff/championship-caliber teams right now, but you're ignoring the fact that teams like the Knicks, Clippers, Celtics, Bulls, and Heat have all at one point been some of the worst teams -- if not the worst team -- in the league in the past 5 years.

To your point about teams like the Cavs, first of all you're completely altering your question from the OP. You only asked when the last time teams like Cleveland, Milwaukee, Charlotte, and Minnesota last made the playoffs. Not "when did they last make the playoffs before and after they didn't have their franchise players". Well of course a team isn't going to be very good before it acquires an all-time franchise player. How would they have been in the position to get him in the first place?

And again, obviously they aren't going to be very good immediately after that player leaves either. What team is still a 50-60 win team after it's best player leaves? And in Cleveland's case, leaves in the fashion LeBron left, which put them in an incredibly difficult position to even re-tool it's post-LeBron roster during the offseason he left.

To answer your question about how good the Cavs were in the 90s, they didn't win any titles or appear in the Finals, but they were a pretty consistently good team making the playoffs 5 straight years from 91-92 to 95-96. And 3 of those appearances were ended by Jordan's Bulls teams.

As for Minnesota, I've already shown that they were a top team in the league within the past decade for an extended period of time. Eventually they fell off as every team eventually does. And don't quote me on this but I'm pretty sure the reason KG ended up leaving was because they were shopping him behind his back or something along those lines. Otherwise he would have ended up staying with the T-Wolves and grinding it out.

[slowdifference]

Re: Something has to be done to shift the power in the NBA

The Miami heat are not a big market team. The only big markets in the NBA are Knicks, Nets, Bulls, Lakers, Clippers, Mavericks, and Raptors. The Warriors will be in a few year when they go back to San Fran and Seattle will when they get a team.

[The 24th Letter]

It may not be New York or LA, but San Antonio is the 7th-biggest city in the country. I'd consider them to be a large market.

San Antonio is not a big market...

[The 24th Letter]

I see what the OP is trying to say -- some of y'all are digging too deep. The new CBA, once it fully kicks in, should help in this process but I still wish they were modeled more after the NFL's way of doing things -- the hard cap could stop the 'Super Teams' forming in the same general areas.

I don't think he's digging deep enough...seems like the same generic statement regarding large market teams without really looking at what has actually taken place over the years...even when the CBA kicks in, it may eliminate 'super teams', but NFL type parity simply isn't realistic in the NBA..