Where Do the 2014 Spurs Rank Among Top Teams In Past 15 Years?

Not sure on all, but I think this was the best Spurs team ever. They simply dominated the Heat. I would have to put them in the conversation of the elite Lakers teams and the 2012 Heat. I would think somewhere around 3rd best.

Thanks for that. I had no idea.

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If we consider the past 15 years to be the post-Jordan era, where does this year's Spurs team rank in that?

You've got the Lakers of the early 2000s, the other Spurs champions, the 2008 Celtics, and the last two Heat champions in the conversation, I think.

This Spurs team might have been the best of them all, though. Perhaps the 2000-2002 Lakers would have been better. Not sure how this Spurs team handles Shaq in his prime.

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I'll probably get guff for saying this, but if it were the Celtics, Lakers or Heat who did what the Spurs did, the media and fans would be lauding them as the best ever.

I'm not even a Spurs fan, but they continue to be underrated in the grand scheme of things. The talk all season was of the Pacers, Heat and Thunder, with the Spurs being an afterthought of a talking point.

Hard to say. What hurts them is they went 7 games with an 8 seed and if OKC had Ibaka they might have lost that series.

The 01 Lakers that went 15-1 in the playoffs are still the GOAT of the post MJ era.

I do think they are the best franchise post MJ.

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I do think they are the best franchise post MJ.

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I think its a wash with the lakers. sure they haven't missed the playoffs and the lakers have twice, but they've both won a frick ton of titles, conference titles, and have only a one series difference in the playoff head to head. I think theyre both 1A and 1B

I'd put them below the early 2000 Lakers teams and on par with the 2011-12 Heat team

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I think its a wash with the lakers. sure they haven't missed the playoffs and the lakers have twice, but they've both won a frick ton of titles, conference titles, and have only a one series difference in the playoff head to head. I think theyre both 1A and 1B

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Pretty much. It is just their sustained success and lack of down seasons that sets them apart IMO, but we are really just splitting hairs.

This past season doesn't help the Lakers cause though

I think that's what people are going to look at. the lakers had a core that would have ran off at least two more titles IMO that fell apart in 2004 only to rebuild it in 2008 and have it fall apart in 2012. I still am very salty over the chris paul fiasco cause I feel like what happened this year could have been somewhat avoided had that thing not fallen through but whatever. I think a lot of people are going to look at what happened this year and forget the lakers have won the west more and have the playoff head to head over the spurs in this time frame while the spurs have been able to not miss the playoffs

IMO:

1. 2014 Spurs
2. 2001 Lakers
3. 2008 Celtics
4. 2009 Lakers
5. 1999 Spurs

The only reasons I rank the 14 Spurs ahead of the 00/01 Lakers is pace and depth.

Shaq was dominant (understatement), but he wouldn't have been able to run with these Spurs.