NBA Super Teams: Good or Bad look for the league?

The NBA regular season has officially started, which means that fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors can turn their televisions off. Because of their All-Star-studded rosters, these two teams have faced each other in the NBA Finals for 3 years in a row, which does not make a fourth Final between the teams unlikely.  

The Golden State Warriors are the ultimate super team — an NBA team that has at least 3 All-Stars on their roster. Former MVPs Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant highlight the team, with All-Stars Klay Thompson and Draymond Green assisting them. Having four All-Stars on one team is highly unusual in history of the NBA. There have only been eight teams with four all stars on their roster; the first being the 1962 Boston Celtics. Interestingly, four of those eight teams were from the 21st century.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have racked up their own superteam, starring Lebron James, who is arguably the greatest player of all time, and have reached the NBA finals seven years in a row. He is backed by Kevin Love, a four-time All-Star, along with Isaiah Thomas who has been an All-Star for the past two years.

When asked about how this new wave of super teams is affecting the NBA, Academic Support teacher Gino Sorcinelli said that, “the playoffs have become less competitive.” Sorcinelli referred to the lack of competition presented to the Warriors in their playoff run. He later said that “the playoffs last year were an afterthought” due to the fact that it was almost certain that the Warriors and the Cavaliers would be playing each other again in the finals, based on their dominance during the early stages of the playoffs.

Some people have suggested reshaping the league entirely. MacDuffie Senior Khaylen Mahdi said, “right now super teams are not a problem to the extent where the league would have to be rearranged, but maybe if it continues to be a serious problem in the future, reshaping the league should be considered.” Talks about making the league more competitive surfaced around social media in 2016 when it was clear that the Western Conference was much more dominant than the Eastern Conference, although it hasn’t gone much farther than a few bloggers arguing their points on the issue.

Super teams in the NBA have completely changed the game – championships are desired, and teaming up with other superstars is the best way to win them. Over this past offseason some teams have added star caliber players in attempt to create a super team to challenge the likings of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors. The Oklahoma City Thunder have three All stars on their roster along with reigning Most Valuable Player Russell Westbrook. Also the Houston Rockets added Chris Paul, who has been an All-Star nine times in his career, to pair up with MVP Candidate James Harden.

Although these teams have been built up to compete with the Warriors and Cavaliers, they still lack the depth and experience to beat them. Considering the Warriors, Rockets, and Thunder are all in the Western Conference, we can expect some exciting games in that bracket this year.

The result of this season cannot be foreseen, but if you’re a fan of any team besides the Warriors or Cavaliers, you may not want to get your hopes up. By the looks of their rosters, both teams have all the tools to make it back to the NBA Finals for the fourth year in a row.