LeBron asked if this Thunder team compares to the 90s Bulls and 17-18 Warriors - “They’re pretty damn good from top to bottom. They don’t let their foot off the gas”
Lebron didn’t play against the 90s bulls why the fuck would they ask him that lmao
Because that’s playoff basketbal
Still super weird. Lebron has played against so many good teams in his career, why ask about a team he never played against because he was only 8 years old
Lebron is one of the few people left in the league who was alive when Jordan played.
What?
They’re saying he’s the only one that’s actually ever seen MJ play on tv live and lived thru it. The rest just watched the tape
I was being a bit literal in questioning the “…who was alive when Jordan played” as the amount of players born between 1988 and 2001 and are still active in the NBA, is probably close to 100. Thats KD to Cade. A little more than a “few.”
Your post narrows it a bit more and gives a bit more credence to Lebron’s experience, but again, if you start as young as 6 years old (born in 1996) there’s about 30+ players who may have watched Jordan play live on tv (Jaylen Brown, Devin Booker, Spyda, Kennard etc), not including the players born as early as 1988 (KD).
Edit: grammar
Because Lebron has only went up against 2 dynasties, and only one of them ranks all-time in dominance. It’s normal to ask if this Thunder team is the next one
Lebron was older for the Shaq/Kobe lakers 3peat than he was for either of the Bulls 3peats, and LeBron was in the NBA at the time that the kobe lakers repeated 2009-2010. He also played against the 66-16 2008 celtics that won the chip. And of course Lebron also played on a team that repeated. Not even counting how many great Spurs teams existed over that time as well.
Also on a different note, feels kinda premature to say those squads weren’t as dominant when the thunder haven’t even won the 2nd ring yet.
LeBron, do you think this team compares to the Bill Russell Celtics?
How about Genghis Khan and the Mongol Empire?
so they can get a reaction out of him for the clicks and engagement
Check the box scores. Lebron has always been in the NBA.
George Mikan? LeBron at 15.
That’s some Bulls shit
Not mentioning his heat team is kinda funny
Cause they weren’t this deep as the okc or warriors bron was just bron.
2013 Heat had Lebron, Wade, Bosh, Haslem, Birdman, Chalmers, Battier, Ray Allen, and Mike Miller. That’s plenty deep.
LeBron had 17 points on 7⁄17 shooting in game 2 of the finals and the Heat won by 20
That 2013 team was phenomenal. 27 game win streaks don’t happen by accident.
for sure, but I do think the team as a whole was greater than the sum of its parts.
LMFAO literally most of the players you named weren’t good at all outside of the context of playing with LeBron James
I just got an uneducated dickrider alert. Sir, are you okay?
“Uneducated” bro I was there to watch those Heat teams live. This guy just wrote down Mario Chalmers and Birdman. Are you actually this dumb?
I don’t think anyone with a Thunder flair gets to talk about anyone else being uneducated lmao. You do not have the right.
If you call this deep, then I doubt you were following the NBA back then. OKC has a way deeper bench and younger guys.
yea i was about to say, chalmers on his best year was maybe not even 10 ppg and wasn’t a good defender
Fucking Mike Miller…
birdman and chalmers? depth?
They were old as hell though lol. I mean the bench guys you mentioned were all past their prime. I loved Chalmers as a KU guy but he was a liability a lot of the time.
They were still good but not to the level of these teams being mentioned. Plus they didn’t have great size. Their main big was Joel Anthony who only started 3 games for a reason.
Don’t forget James Jones. Heat had elite shooters.
Dwayne Wade averaged 16 pts 4.8 assists and 4.6 rebounds in the 2013 playoffs
Chris Bosh averaged 12.1 pts 7.3 rebounds in the 2013 playoffs
Wade averaged 20 points a game in the 2013 finals. More than anyone else that played not named LeBron
Wade had no knees, and hte rest of their bench doesnt come close to the role players on okc dude
Wade was still a very good player. But revisionist history treats him like he was a glorified role player to LeBron in that era.
He would have won FMVP in 2011 if the Heat won. He was still very good the next few years.
The regression really hit hard in 2013-2014. No denying that. But before? Yeah, he wasn’t 08-09 top 3 player in the league Wade, but he was still a top player on both ends of the floor when he needed to be.
After their first title Wade was objectively nowhere near the same player.
Very good the next few years bro come on…
If he was still the same player LeBron we wouldn’t have been the #1 option.
Was he a top ten player? No. But top 20-25 in 2012 and 2013, and as a playoff performer especially? Yes, he was. They don’t even beat the Pacers in 2012 without Wade.
If a top 25 player in the league is not “very good” I don’t know what is.
16-5-5 in the 2013 playoffs, is that a top 20 player???
You are the one that keeps moving your own goal post…
Eventually we’ll get there I guess that means
I agree with you that Wade wasn’t the same after playing like a FMVP in 2011. Lebron had to take over as number 1 after that, not only because he was obviously better, but because Wade knew it wouldn’t work if they both tried to be number 1 options.
Then you say okay he was not very good the next few years. I say he was a top 25 player, at least, which is very good to me.
So what goal post was moved?
It worked fine their first year and the year they won with Wade being number 1. It only changed because of his injuries he could literally not be the #1 option anymore.
We can argue semantics of “very good” all day. The point is he couldn’t care the same load anymore and there were better #2 options
He was all nba in 2012 and 2013. He was more than a top 20-25 player especially with his experience
He was 3rd team All NBA in 2013 and got both MVP and DPOY votes but that’s just LeBron fans doing what they always do….disrespecting his teammates, calling them trash, just so they can uplift LeBron. Pretty abhorrent but it’s just who they are…
Bro, Wade never had ‘knees’ because that injury came when he was in college. His entire NBA career was played on that injured knee. Obviously wear and tear made it worse as time went on but it’s not like he injured it in 2014 for the first time in his life.
After the 2nd finals against the thunder he averaged 16-4-4 in the playoffs. He was not the same player lol
Wade playing with no knees was still better than JDub sitting on the bench. He was second leading scorer in the series between both teams
Do you think the heat would be as good as this OKC team if Wade was on the bench hurt not playing? Basically just proved OKC’s team is way better lol
Those heat teams were incredibly deep what’re you talking about
The whole point is it’s a poor question by the reporter. The heat team is a dynasty comparable and he has personal experience with the team which would lead into a more interesting and in-depth response on if he gives them flowers or not
Giving flowers turned into such an overused and corny phrase. I’ll die on this hill
Showtime Lakers
Bird’s Celtics
Bad Boy Pistons
90s Bulls
Hakeem’s Rockets
Shaq/Kobe Lakers
Duncan’s Spurs
Heatles
Warriors
Thunder
Greatest teams in the past 4 decades that must absolutely be mentioned.
For dynasties, probably needs to win more than 2 championships or reached 3 or more Finals. Arbitrary but perhaps that prevents the Heatles, Rockets and Pistons from being perceived as all-time squads.
Cavs 4 finals run better than any thunder team
What about the 2024 Celtics. Only got one year to run but they were phenomenal
The downvotes are crazy that team was insane. Pretty much 5 all star players that year they were so good
That Heat team isn’t in that tier
Bulls, shaq/kobe, heat team, warriors are the best 4 teams in the last 30 years so yeah they are..
Several spurs teams better than the Heatles
2013 Heat are better than any single Spurs squad in that time
It’s true but wasn’t the pre-KD era Warriors basically the same team when GDP+Kawhi Spurs and Big 3 Heat were around?
I’ll put them on that kind of tier if they repeat for sure. Not quite as dominant defensively as the late 1990s Bulls and not quite as dominant offensively as those Warriors but so incredibly incredibly well rounded
I wouldn’t put them on either of those teams levels until a three peat ngl
It’s not really fair to compare the Thunder to the 2017⁄2018 Warriors because they got a top 15 player of all time at his peak for free.
The Thunder should be compared to the 2015⁄16 Warriors.
If Wemby decides to join the Thunder in the summer, then we can compare them to the KD Warriors.
If Wemby joined this thunder team, it would be 10x worse than the KD warriors
Peak KD was better than current Wemby.
And peak KD was the perfect fit for the Warriors because of his shooting, he seamlessly blended into their system.
And he upgraded their weakest position, which was SF.
Wemby going to OKC would be like Lebron going to golden state
15-peat?
Not one, not two, not three…
The main difference is that Wemby seems to be the main obstacle for the thunder. Even though it didn’t turn out that way, Lebron basically became the main hope against the KD warriors. There’s no 2010s Lebron now.
Thunder were a big obstacle to the warriors prior to KD leaving though.
Rockets took them to 7 in the 17-18 season.
Spurs were going to give them a fight in the 16-17 season until Zaza.
Crazy as it sounds, that Warriors team was definitely more vulnerable than a Thunder team that adds Wemby.
The spurs talk it’s just hopes and dreams at this point
Rockets the only team that truly competed with them and they imploded.
I mean my Pacers took them to seven games with Hali as the biggest name on the roster. Might have won it too if Hali was more aggressive in Game 6 and didn’t have an injury in Q1 of Game 7.
OKC is definitely beatable, but it requires playing a bench that’s able to contribute and keep it close. You don’t necessarily need a superstar, you just need to have the legs going into the fourth.
Probably the best outcome for the West is if the Wolves drop Gobert and replace him with Wemby.
You have the #1⁄2 for DPOY and another in the top 10 all on the same team.
Lmao that shits arguable
Wemby has a strong case to be better than Shai right now, who clears KD as a player
It would literally be the end of the nba, it would be what people thought the KD warriors would do. Thunder with wemby is 10 peat.
Cooper Flagg 3-1 comeback in the Finals we will be here (even me as a Thunder fan because its just awesome)
Flagg gets sent east?
Flagg gets sent wherever he needs to be sent to carry some weirdo fucks to their first and only big contract
Yeah they’re trading him for Joel Embiid this offseason
KD to the warriors could have done what people thought they could do barring the serious injuries + disfunction. No team had a chance against even just a mostly healthy version of that team.
Yall gotta realize Peak KD is like the most portable player ever. He fit so perfectly and created a legit offensive death lineup
SGA Wemby Dub Chet v Curry Durant Klay and Draymond. Now that I’m typing it out, I agree.
If he somehow demanded a trade, maybe coach bangs his mother or something, I’d say Thunder would need to give up a hell of a lot….probably Chet, JDub and a gazillion first rounders (which luckily OKC have). No clue if the salaries worked out but not sure if that would take the Thunder to a whole new level as it makes them a less well rounded team and changes Shai’s role, perhaps for the worse. But hey, it could also make you guys completely unbeatable, winning 70+ games every season and six peating lol
Honestly you just need them winning the lottery to compare them to the KD warriors
Nah, that still wouldn’t be the same impact
KD was in his prime. One of those lottery dudes would be lucky if they end up as good as KD, and it will take them years to even get to their peak. And that’s what joined the warriors. A peak KD.
Unless a Dybansta or Peterson looks like rookie LeBron from the jump, this team will look wildly different by the time they’d hit their peak.
thunder have the refs on their side that’s better than any free agent signing
Some would argue they had a top ten all time player, a top 15 all time player and a top five all time defender….oh, and the second greatest shooter of all time who is probably the greatest 3&D player of all time. Not sure the Bulls were that stacked with talent. They had the single greatest player of all time in MJ, a top 30 player of all time who is also possibly a top ten defender of all time in Pippen as well as a top five defender of all time who might be the greatest rebounder of all time in Rodman. Add Kukoc who was, at the time, one of the greatest Euroleague players of all time and Kerr who still holds the highest career three point percentage of all time. Oh yeah, they had one of the best coaches ever too. So come to think of it, they were pretty equally stacked.
A three peat might be too much to ask for reasonably but certainly 3⁄4 or maybe 3⁄5.
New cba makes roster construction completely different
Ya this the real answer here.
OKC is amazing for this salary cap parity era, but this era doesn’t have teams stacked with multiple stars.
Boston is the only team with two superstars in the NBA.
Tbh, idk if I’d even take OKC over that Boston team from 2 years ago; that Boston team was ridiculously deep as well.
The Warriors from 15-18 were far deeper than people remember without KD. They had Iguodala, Livingston, Bogut along with their 3 HoFers.
The Bulls obviously were as well, but it’s they’re on a different level when you have Jordan, Pippen, Rodman in one lineup.
bro what ur flaired team literally has LeBron and Luka
Even then it would be another excuse lmao
2 champs? need a bigger sample size than that
Well it said 17-18 Warriors so that’s technically just two championships
2 current day chips are worth more than they used to be
How?
Because of the increase of talent in the league, (higher floors spread out everywhere), everyone playing with 3 and d players, better all around coaching and the second apron + tougher draft rules it’s much harder for a team to repeat vs years past
2 rings in this podcaster era isnt much imo.
There are more teams now
Yes adding the Charlotte bobcats in 2004 means Jordan’s threepeat with 29 teams is worth less than the warriors or potential thunder 2 rings
Nah you see Jordan’s rings were worth less because the NBA expanded but the rings from the current NBA that has even more teams than when Jordan played are worth more
You have a point
so disrespectful
to who my guy?
Statistically they are better than the Bulls defenses. Eye test wise they look better too tbh. I think the most common argument for the Bulls would be this Thunder team gets away with fouls and that’s why they are better. Of course even if that’s true that’s not an argument for the Thunder being a less effective defense.
I don’t know if their top end talent compares but they’re depth is incredible and they have the assets to extend this for a decade. Shai will prob be up there, I’m curious how history will remember Jdub and Chet. Their 4⁄5-15 spots might arguably the most stacked ever? Even the best teams in the past maybe had an incredible top 8-10 being quality players but OKC in on another level.
nah. Theyd need to do it over 4-5 years. Pacers almost beat em last year. theyre good but not on 2017 gsw or the 90s bulls level yet
They’re repeating cmon
Statistically the defense is on the level of the Bulls
They are better defensively than those Bulls. Their relative defensive rating is better.
They’re better defensively than those bulls teams, the thunder are among the GOAT defensive rosters, i would consider the bulls one tier below that on defense but they were essentially the best offense and best defense in the league even still. A well balanced unstoppable machine
Its just offensively there’s been some struggles here and there that have stopped them from becoming as legendary as the 90s bulls
This season could change that with ajay and mccain though
Ppl downvoting bc they don’t realize this isn’t an opinion but a fact. OKC has a better relative defensive rating - ie the extent to which their defensive rating is better than league average.
Is it a good idea that I parlayed my entire life savings into a Lakers sixers final? Am I fucked?
Double down habibi
Let’s witness history
Sounds like a juicy payout to me
Just hedge Okc/Spurs vs anyone else in the East
I still wonder what would have happened in the series if his ludicrous performance in Game 1 of the 2018 Finals wasn’t wasted
Warriors win in 5
Probably six games, bron smashed his hand in game 1 from frustration
Understandable reaction. He dropped one of the best games of all time against one of the best teams of all time only to lose with the JR blunder or even George Hill not hitting the FT before.
That was his magnum opus in those playoffs and that’s saying a lot because he had like 5 or 6 all time performances lmao.
He’s already got 2016 as his magnum opus.
I think his 50 point game will age well tbh, just showcases even more how incredible he was that entire playoff run and how he carried that team
Arguably the greatest team in nba history vs LeBron and friends no Kyrie. Cmon bro
Lebron’s inner dog died once George Hill and JR stumbled
Warriors would have beaten the bricks out of cavs in 5 games thats it lol.
That was the only game the Cavs could have won in that series. No way was LeBron having another performance of that caliber and that 2018 Cavs squad that he carried to the Finals was probably his second worst team next to only the 2007 squad that he carried to the Finals.
Lebron smashed his hand and broke part of it after that first game, so his numbers obviously got worse. I wouldn’t have put it past him to have another 45-50 bomb that series if they had won game 1 and he hadn’t busted his hand. 2018 lebron was the best version of the best player ever…he had no weaknesses.
What are we doing
It’s a stupid question and Bron did a good job at deflecting and just praising them instead of engaging in dumb comparisons
lebron is well seasoned steak in this game and a new york strip cut at that
There was definitely a brief flash in his eyes where it looked like he wanted to unload on her for asking that, but he pulled it together.
Yea, well it’s like comparing a player to jordan. You’re basically asking for an easy engagement bait that will result in the compared player to be torn apart by fans. There may not be a team quite like that warriors team for a long time and that’s completely fine
were now in the “where does this team rank all time” point naww T_T
Their team is the greatest collection of role players of all time.
The Bulls and Warriors team had that ‘fear’ factor. Its not the same with this Thunder squad. They dont give out a scary vibe at all.
And it’s not just that a 73-9 win team added Kevin Durant, it’s that they replaced the worst player (Harrison Barnes) in their starting 5 with him.
Yeah the Thunder have that annoying younger brother vibe
They don’t feel inevitable. Maybe they should and we just haven’t realized it yet. But I think there’s a good chance a few teams sweeps us and the Luka-less Lakers. This doesn’t really prove much on its own. But ya, if they dominate the next two rounds, i think we’ve got a dynasty.
It’s gonna be fun to watch some of these guys move on to be forgettable rotation players when they don’t have sga to play off of. Their role players are good but I don’t see any stars outside of Chet. They all just feed off of sga and without him they’ll struggle to dominate more focused coverages.
Warriors, maybe. Bulls? No. Heck maybe not even 2000s Lakers, until this Thunder team three-peats. But one this is for sure, this has to be the deepest team ever constructed. No team comes close.
Other way around. The 2017 warriors were the greatest team. Looked damn near invincible
Two three-peats is a bit tough to beat, no? And 90s contained more future HoFers than what the Warriors faced.
No that Warriors team is way better than the Bulls. The Warriors having Steph and KD as a completely unguarded duo as well as having Prime Klay as a third option was crazy. They had Draymond at his defensive peak where he was the best defender of his generation. The Warriors also had guys like Iggy coming off the bench.
The Bulls may have had Jordan but that simply would not be enough
It’s just so disrespectful if you won’t even bring the GOAT second option in Scottie there, who was at worst the third best player on that team, and one of the truest 1-5 defenders and monster rebounder in Dennis.
Bottom line is this. The Bulls team not only had potential, but longevity and resilience to threepeat. They converted their 72-10 season into a Championship one, did not sign Karl Malone or Olajuwan or Barkley to create a super team like Warriors did, and still won six out of six with none going to a seventh game.
The warriors had the record for the most wins ever in a season and then replaced their weakest position with the second best player in the NBA. They’re better than those bulls teams
Greatest team to not win a title. You can’t be the best if you couldn’t win the title.
They are lucky that Kyrie left
Kyrie left the season after
Cavs win 2018 with Kyrie
No we do not
Kawhi had them by the balls until he got Zaza’d
They Spurs were going to be lucky to get two games off the Warriors that year
Nah. Lakers are just bad. Too many defensive liabilities
[deleted]
How would the dude that played one of those teams 2⁄3 times in the finals know? I wonder
Best compliment you could receive
Here we go trying to build the narrative for when Lebron gets swept.
I don’t think we’d beat the warriors but I’d love a shot at them. That was just cheating. It’s a miracle that team only won two championships.
It took KD, Klay, and Iggy all going down in the playoffs and a very good Raptors team to stop that
The spurs will put the thunder in their place
lol
Crazy that OKC have 4 1st rounds this upcoming draft
What a dogshit question by that reporter
The Warriors could beat any team in history except the refs and/or the 90s Bulls.
I think both would lose to these refs and OKC.
Probably thinking, can’t beat em, Join em. /s
This Thunder team is nowhere near as good as those teams lol. They barely beat the Pacers - and with a healthy Hali likely lose.
They barely beat the Nuggets - and lost to the Mavs the year before.
They are going to get spanked by the Spurs.
How does LeBron can say if it compares to 90s bulls, he never played them.
🤦🏾♂️
would this be the only team to sweep him after the 17-18 warriors?
Denver
oh right. thought he was injured for some reason. went out with a 40/10/9 lol
Well he injured his foot in the Dallas game late into the season and missed some crucial time when the Lakers were fighting to get into the play-in.
2023 Nuggets
No 2023 Nuggets
Nuggets
Nah the Nuggets swept him a couple of years ago
Spurs swept Bron in the 07 finals
comparing the 3-peat bulls to a team that blew a 3-1 lead in the finals is so disrepectful lmao
I don’t recall the 17-18 warriors team blowing a 3-1 lead in the finals
wrong warriors team
they were taken 7 games last year & won due to hali injury. they aren’t even close to those teams
This a dumb take that I keep seeing. First of all the pacers were an amazing team and one of the best in the league in the back half of the season. Secondly by average age they were quite literally the youngest team ever to win a chip. Young teams don’t win in this league and typically encounter a bunch of bumps and setbacks before they reach the mountaintop. You’re saying you can’t compare because they lost yet same situation in the first year the Warriors won too. No Kyrie and Love, and that series went to 6. LeBron other starters in that series were Shumpert, Dellevedova, Mozgov, and Tristan Thompson. That’s fucking garbage. So how can the early warriors not be compared?
KD Warriors got taken to 7 by the Rockets and probably should’ve lost and this OKC team definitely beats that Jazz team that took the Bulls to the end too. And I’m begging yall to at least acknowledge that the game was even when Hali got hurt lol yall act like they were up 20 and he was on his way to score 60
Warriors got taken to 7 as well.
Halliburton was a -2 and just because you score a lot in first quarter doesn’t mean it will be sustained.. this is common knowledge.
I fucking hate this hypothetical shit. We were down 1 or tied when he went down? “ Oh but he scored 9 he was dropping 40 that game for sure” , ya the guy who scored 4 points like 2 games ago will not go cold and score 40 okay.
They got taken to game 7 by an injured nuggets team also.
It must not be fun to be this stupid
They lost?
Flopn asses. They’re good. But still some flopping ass hoes.