How the Definition of ‘NBA Superteam’ Has Changed

can I can I actually do a little rant here go ahead can I can I do a little rant here I’ll allow it let’s go all right there’s always these NFL and NBA comparisons why the NFL is better why more people watch it why don’t people watch the NBA blah blah blah one of the things uh that I think has come up consistently is the idea of parody right and I I have said this multip times throughout the season that this is the best the league has been in terms of overall Talent depth and how that depth of talent is spread across the league and it’s reflected I think in the number of good teams the Lakers were like people treating the Lakers let’s say like a bad basketball team or the even the Warriors the warriors were not a bad basketball team they were a good basketball team there’s just a lot of good basketball teams and there’s a lot of good players it keeps coming up that somehow the Denver Nuggets had the worst finals run of all time and people always talk about the seeds they played number first of all they’re the number one seeds they had to play the eight SE they didn’t have a choice there right set okay think about last year Nuggets won I want to say 53 games something like that sounds all right Lakers won 43 because the Warriors won 44 um in football if a 12 and4 te let’s I’m using 16 games because I I haven’t really fully bought into the 17 game idea but let’s say a 12 and 14 this is what we grow on 12 and 14 te plays a nine- seven team and a 10- six team right the difference in win percentage is like 15 to 19% the difference in win percentage between a 54 win team and a 4 pre- win team is like 12 or 133% so like we have parody in the league absolutely people need to stop [ __ ] paying attention to the seeds the seeds don’t M all these teams are good you have to nobody plays 82 games anymore it’s impossible it’s literally impossible so you have to factor all this stuff in you can’t use like oh well in the 90s this team played this team and this well guess what the eight seeds sucked back then terrible they sucked terrible and you haven’t even thought about this next year’s going to even worse Memphis is coming back Spurs are what do the Spurs do this I mean Spurs are going to do something Rockets Rockets like that’s even more teams in the west that are like going to be good there’s going to be no bad teams yeah Philadelphia as a seven seed Philadelphia is a seven seed they have Jolan be they have Maxi they have cap space Max Max cap space what but also to your point to your point about the seaing thing with like the Denver thing like okay it doesn’t matter what seed the Lakers are when they have LeBron James and Anthony Davis like it doesn’t matter it doesn’t matter you have to beat LeBron James and Anthony Davis in in a playoff series you to beat them four times and it’s also like it’s not their fault like they’re just playing whoever’s in front of them that’s not their fault that if they’re injured or like a little bit like the chemistry isn’t there that’s not their problem yeah you still have to put the ball in the basket I think people underestimate you still have to put the ball in the basket do you think we’ve talked about this a good amount but not living in the moment but just seeing what Minnesota’s doing hold on hold on real quick I just want to say one last thing mhm nobody ever says this about an NFL team no nobody said if if a there’s been Wild Card teams that have [ __ ] won NFL championships that have won the Super Bowl and nobody’s like oh their their run was a fraud why no they didn’t say about the chief s year well I just don’t understand why just about the NBA why because it’s like they play so many games nobody no because it all goes back to the [ __ ] goat and Legacy [ __ ] yeah people would rather talk about that than basketball you really worked up about this one [ __ ] he said he was he said he was going to rant I see he said he was going to rant I see do you think I was going to say do you think do you think Super teams are officially dead dead I just think it’s looked at it in a different way now I think it’s not okay we have four guys that are Allstars in like really good high high paid players but like instead it’s more so this team is really cohesive like like is a super team because you can’t attack anybody on this team everybody can score they can dribble they can pass they can shoot so I think that could be like the newer definition of a super team because obviously with the second apron we’ve seen well the new CBA rules and the taxes we’ve seen you it’s going to be tough to make like a super team with guys that are making a lot of money and then the rest of the guys not making much money at all I think the idea and again I I’m I’m happy to be wrong on this I really am I I’m happy to be wrong if the Phoenix Suns go on to win a championship next year with that group and those three guys together I’m happy to be wrong I’m happy to be wrong I mean if the Lakers somehow trade for a third star and they go on to win a CH like I’m happy to be wrong I’m still in the west now hold on I’m saying I’m happy to be wrong I I’m not saying I would be happy if either of those teams won I’m just saying I’m happy to be wrong I like I like being wrong it’s fine okay my point was going to be on the death of the super team I I would say the idea a of building uh a three star three max level team through trades and free agency that probably is done if you can build a younger team through the draft and timely trades that can still exist like OKC yeah is going to have three max guys in three years correct they’re gonna have three max guys Jaylen and Chad in three years will be on a Max contract and Shay will be on a Max contract so there’s still a way to do it it just to me it has to be through the draft or you have two you have a bunch of young assets you have future picks and you trade for that third star that way versus going all in on three guys and not being able to build out a competent roster oh for sure

In this clip, JJ Redick goes on a rant about the parity of great teams in the NBA compared to the NFL and discusses with Trey Murphy (New Orleans Pelicans) what makes an NBA ‘superteam’ in today’s league.

Subscribe to The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick (ESPN / First Take) and Tommy Alter YouTube channel today for more NBA analysis, player interviews and highlights.

22 comments

  1. I think having borderline or undeniable dynasties is just better for any league because it's ratings all day, every day, to watch them go down. You lose me when the dynasties are the KD Warriors or Lebron Heat, which were built off fabricated BS. If the Warriors continued to win chips without KD, then those are the types of dynasties I want to watch night in and night out, even cheer for like I want to see the Nuggets repeat. Celebrating greatness from developed players that were together from a young age, great coaching, front office, etc.

  2. i think, jj, that the hyperbole is on both sides of the "fraud" debate – n it prob does have to do w ppl loving the goat/legacy convos. which i dont talk down on bc its what drove a lot of our favorites like kobe n shaq.

    but as far as the nuggets are a fraud thing goes – there are as many ppl calling them frauds as there are ppl that think the nuggets are "a top 5 team all-time" or "top 3 offense all-time." (so the legacy point you made again was spot on). so if theses are the narratives being established in the media then its kinda fair to call them "frauds" bc in most ways they dont measure up to the any of the true dynasties in nba history. on the flipside we saw 3mpvs for jokic in 4 yrs. they had a v dominant run last yr which makes ppl project out for legacy – which is understandable. so both sides have something to stand on but also the nuggets are a great team! n if jokic retired tm he would not go down better than shaq!

    the real issue, imo, is that that ppl let the debates get charged n then the hyperbole grows. some of that hyperbole is just fandom. some of it is sensationalism to sell the the league. some of it is ppls egos. they want to think they "know ball." n if im rly being honest this thing is DEF racially charged. its just the history of this country n how we grew up (and history of the jokic debate on espn). i think consciously or not many ppl want to see jokic succeed or fail bc of that piece.

  3. The difference between the NBA and the NFL is that the NFL only has one game to determine the winner. The NBA is a truer measure of which team is better by having a seven game series. The best team on the football field doesn’t always win that game, but the better team usually wins a series in the playoffs in the NBA. I do enjoy both very much but they are just different measures of success.

  4. The context makes the difference. A super team which stacks superstar talent is not given the same respect as a team that is built ground up into a super team. It's the process of building a team into a super team vs trading your way to building a superteam. Imho

  7. Should we call the Boston Celtic this year a super team – two super star in Tatum, brown, two all stars in porzingis and jrue holiday. Then an all star coming up in Derrick white. This is a super team even if you compare to the Heat or even that expensive Jordan team. Only difference is they traded for threee all stars versus hiring a couple super star max guys

  8. It hasnt changed just because there isnt any superteam now. I would still say the celtics are a superteam because they have 4 all stars in the team

  10. Been saying it for a couple of years now. The old super team model doesn’t work anymore because the talent level of the average player has increased so much. If you spend all of your money on 3 stars and fill in with minimum guys, those minimum guys are gonna get absolutely torched by the mid to above average role player. Jokic and Murray are more than capable of doing enough against 3 stars that their great role players can be the difference against the minimum guys

  11. Why don’t 4 Team USA players strategize this summer to form a Superteam down the the road where they all make $30 million each? They would be well below the Luxury Tax and still have enough money for role players. 🏀

  13. But it’s all rigged though… What I don’t understand is why people who believe in the rigging conspiracy don’t predict the outcomes of future seasons. If it’s all rigged and you know it, then you should be able to predict it.

  14. The NBA has progressed to a point where teams can't just rely on a single player and win. You need complementary players and a system that works to win it all. Even heliocentric teams like the Knicks don't win without strong team chemistry. The age of big markets buying huge contracts is done for now.

  18. i dont agree w acting like the lakers an warrirors were as good as every1 else in the west…basketball is a relative sport. they dont score the game like tennis – first to a certain score wins. its who has MORE points at the end of the game. its relative.are lakers better than previous 8th seeds? sure but relative to the rest of this yr's western conference the warrors n lakers werent real contenders. n its ok to point that out!!!

    i love basketball too jj. n this is totally unrelated to a goat debate. the lakers n warriors had clear basketball flaws. are you trying to say that fans shouldnt have the audacity to point out what they see from a basketball perspective?! that's somehow thats toxic?? or are you just riled up bc you disagree?

    do you think the lakers were as good as the wolves for instance? bc id love to hear logic that makes that make sense – in a healthy basketball discourse kind of way. i think its ok for ppl to agree to disagree too. but i like to check ppls temp re how they feel abt certain teams or players n i like to get feedback on my own thoughts so thats why im in the comments like this lol its not all hate n negativity. its not all top5 debates. jus saying!

  19. there are as many ppl calling the nuggets a dynasty as ppl calling them frauds. basically both sides are right in some aspects and both sides are wrong n forcing it in others. im somewhere in between. its funny bc now moderates on both sides of this debate feel the need to defend their position against the ones who force it. but when i actually have the debate we usually agree. our opinions just use different sides of the hyperbolic narratives as a reference point which shapes how we feel. in reality theres less disagreement than arguing lol

  20. jj the reason people keep bringing up the nuggets having an "easy" championship run (whether thats wrong or right doesn't matter) is because their championship run kept getting labeled as "historic" when really it wasn't so people had to point out it wasn't that good

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