It seems like a lot of fans like to use the 4-6 argument for Lebron or Finals losses affect a player’s legacy negatively more than early round losses. Why don’t we celebrate winning the East/West pennant more often? It’s almost as if making the Finals is as useful as making the playoffs and getting knocked out in the first round.
Yet in the MLB making the World Series is a BIG deal even if you get swept and blown out each game. It’s considered so prestigious that we always say AL or NL pennant. Why don’t NBA ever get to the same prestige level on winning the pennant as MLB?
It changed maybe 10-12 years ago.
Where older people got scared that someone may actually be better than MJ, so they had to make up ways to create LeBron slander.
rank the best players he played against in the ECF from 2012-2018
Because the National and American leagues were separate entities for a very long time and the level of interleague play MLB has today is relatively new. There was and still is a lot of pride winning your league.
NBA Basketball is all one league with no history separating the conferences. The goal has always been the finals.
We definitely give teams credit for getting to the Finals. It’s a major accomplishment. Years from now, people will still remember how the Heat made it after barely getting into the playoffs.
The problem comes when a team has higher expectations than just making it to the Finals. If they are the one seed or even the two seed in the conference, they may have a legitimate expectation of winning it all. And at that point losing in the Finals is a disappointment.
In baseball, for example, I don’t think the Yankees have ever been proud of losing in the World Series, because they’ve won it all so often that just making it there isn’t a big deal. Of course, its better than missing the playoffs entirely, but it’s still not part of Yankees lore.
Years from now, people will still remember how the Heat made it after barely getting into the playoffs.
I feel like it’s the opposite because media members and people on here (and get highly upvoted) are still claiming the Heat are either going to miss the playoffs or not make it past the play in despite their performance between 2020-2023. People are claiming the Sixers, Cavs, and Knicks are in a better position than the Heat lol despite the Sixers being incapable of making it out of the second round AND the dysfunction they’re currently dealing with.
If anything, I think the discourse surrounding the Heat proves the question OP is asking; there was no respect when they made they run (most of their performance chalked up to “fool’s gold, lucky shooting, and Giannis was injured and tatum’s ankle!” while ignoring that they lost Herro to an injury for the whole post season and that despite Giannis being out for a game and a half, the Bucks still won the only game Giannis was completely out of – and lost the games he played, including when he triple doubled and with an insane performance by Brook Lopez. Same for the Celtics- lots of "but tatum’s ankle!! while conveniently overlooking that Celtics dropped 3 games with a perfectly healthy Tatum --2 of which were at home). They were gentleman swept by the Nuggets but very little props given for beating Denver at home–something literally not one team in the post season accomplished.
Because the strength of the conference is relevant to the discussion?
What I find more weird and cringey is how MLB players celebrate every playoff series win as if they won the World Series.
“Win First round! break out the champagne!”
Baseball still treats as if the leagues are separate. Remember how much hype Aaron Judge was getting for breaking the AL record for single season home runs? You would never hear about someone breaking Western Conference record. Not to mention their individual awards such as MVP and ROY are rewarded separate by league.
making the finals seems to be the only thing that matters other than winning a chip
Two leagues for longer than pro basketball has existed.
If the NBA and ABA never merged, and the ABA grew to be an NBA equal, pro basketball in the US/NA would be completely different.
Players have created the narrative that it’s ring or bust. It started with Jordan, then continued with LeBron. Now, star players demand trades one year into a new contract because the ring is the only thing that matters