close how ? the clippers are not favorites. they lost in the first round last year. can james IMPROVE their odds and make them one of the favorites ? sure. the difference is the warriors were obviously already there. they broke the regular season wins record FFS. this isnt remotely close to that situation.
Care to elaborate more? KD, in the peak of his prime, lost to the Warriors(all still in the peaks of their primes) in the west finals and then immediately joined them the next season. They won a title before KD, most people assumed they would be capable of winning another one without ever acquiring KD(they did after he left) and EVERYONE thought with the KD addition they were very likely going to win titles. Multiple. Kawhi and PG have spent most of the last 4 years getting hurt. Both of them are on the downside of their careers and so is Harden. These two as a Clippers duo have 1 WCF appearance in their 4 years together(3 years ago). Prior to acquiring Harden NO ONE thought they had a chance at a title going forward and NO ONE thinks they are going to win the title now that he’s there. It’s not even remotely close. KD walked into what could be argued were the most likely title(s) in NBA history.
I do not know what monstrosity it is but it sure looks like a Flesh Craft Hydra I do not want to go near.....
I think they will be good, but in the end Harden's lack of D and playoff inconsistency and Westbrooks lack of shooting and decision making will do them in against one of the West's better teams (PHX, Den, G St). They could probably beat G St at this point in a series if they healthy.
That's a whole lot of suck on that team. Harden, Westbrook, George and Leonard as glass men. This reminds me of the 2018 Lakers. Totally funny that it took all of 4 months for the Clippers to realize that KMJ cannot play defense. So Morey has House and KMJ. What other Rockets trash can we get for him? Nix? Wood might be available from the Lakers soon. What's Chinanu Onuaku up to?
Congratulations to Rockets Legends Daniel Theis and PJ Tucker (DNP-CD) on leading the Clippers to their 6th straight win.
