Palmetto Proving Grounds

Yep. The Heat role players were better than OKC's. Mike Miller was on fire, and good for him. You will never hear any coach say anything remotely bad about Mike Miler and Shane Battier. Those are some of the best teammates Lebron could have imagined getting. Haslem is a beast, he's just a workhorse.

What does OKC do with some of their guys? The only ones I thought gave them an edge this series were Ibaka and Collison. I really, really like Collison. They HAVE to keep Ibaka. Harden is a free agent now, so is Ibaka and Perkins.

I think I would keep Ibaka and Collison over Perkins. Those two are so athletic, that you can go without a true center in there. What do they do with Harden? Westbrook is not up for debate, they're keeping him.

How many championship teams ran through the playoffs?

Yeah. I also didn't say anything about the 96 bulls.

You forget that Bosh was hurt. Lebron was essentially playing center during the Indiana series and half of the Boston series.

With Bosh at full strength they were 4-1 vs NY, 1-0 vs. Indiana, 2-0 vs. Boston, 4-1 vs. OKC. That's pretty solid. This Miami team was in the top half of NBA champions IMO.

What do you mean? The Knicks sucked and were missing half their roster, the Knicks could have beaten the Pacers but it took Miami 6, the Celtics are old as dirt and Allen/Pierce were terrible but it went 7. OKC was a great win, but that was it. I don't think this was an elite run, that's all. They are 2012 nba champions and Lebron solidified his 2012 MVP.

You don't think losing there only talented big had something to do with the Indy performance? Yes Boston is old, and they took it 7. Does that say more about Boston, or less about the Thunder? Is one overrated an the other overrated? Or is a healthy Bosh more important then you think?

Rarely do champs walk through the playoffs. And I'm not saying you're wrong because it's hard to judge past teams vs present. The rules change, and the athletes change.

You don't have to. Turn the radio or TV off.

Who do you think their center will be next year? The younger white guy from Kansas? I cannot remember his name.

I like when they have Durant, Westbrook, Sefalosha, Collison, and Ibaka out there. I was infinitely impressed with Collison, that guy is the ultimate energy/effort/ team player. He is way more athletic than I thought too. He is the Dennis Rodman/ Ron Artest - type all championship teams have, without all the baggage. The fans love that dude.

They won't let Ibaka get away, will they?

I just don't know what to think about Harden. He is a clever player, but he struggles getting his own shot, and had no chance guarding Lebron. Nobody can stop him, but he struggled as much, if not more than most against him. I don't think he is nearly as good as Manu.

You think Perkins is gone? I don't know how much that will hurt. He was a perfect fit for Boston. He would be great in Dallas.

I wanted them to win for one reason, espn will maybe shut up.

I think it's two fold

1 - the Celtics had much, much better matchups for Lebron than OKC did
2 - Bosh stretch the Thunder to an uncomfortable point by pulling Perkins and Ibaka out more than they're used to. OKC is most effective when Perkins and Ibaka can bang with bigs.

I thought the advantage would go to OKC in the matchup bc of the speed and the depth. But Miami played an incredible final 4 games.

Obviously because the careers of current players are incomplete. Its ridiculous to compare a 27 year old to guys who played a full career.