{"id":81228,"date":"2018-06-12T18:04:53","date_gmt":"2018-06-12T18:04:53","guid":{"rendered":"\/rcntv\/?p=81228"},"modified":"2023-04-12T21:44:22","modified_gmt":"2023-04-12T21:44:22","slug":"lebron-kd-steph","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/","title":{"rendered":"LeBron, KD, or Steph?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The views expressed in this blog are<\/em> those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I think it is always fun to dream a bit, especially if you are a sports fan. Every sports fan loves to second guess, loves to complain about decisions made during a game, and loves to be a \u201cMonday morning quarterback\u201d.<\/p>\n

It seems like it\u2019s innate in a sports fan to think they know more than the coach or the general manager when it comes to making decisions about trades, the roster, play-calling, substitutions, and strategy. It\u2019s just who we are.<\/p>\n

So, if you are so inclined, I invite you to have some fun. Imagine if you are the general manager of the newly formed RCN Roundballers of the NBA<\/a> and money is no object.\u00a0 You have the opportunity to take any two of the following NBA players:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. LeBron James \u2013 Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Kevin Durant \u2013 Golden State Warriors<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. Steph Curry \u2013 Golden State Warriors<\/a><\/li>\n
  4. James Harden \u2013 Houston Rockets<\/a><\/li>\n
  5. Giannis Antetokounmpo \u2013 Milwaukee Bucks<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Whom would you select? Let\u2019s go in reverse order.<\/p>\n

    Antetokounmpo might be the least known to you, but the 23 year-old might just be your best investment. He is 6\u201911\u201d and averaged 26.9 points during the regular season and 25.7 in the playoffs.\u00a0 He averages 10 rebounds per game.\u00a0 He has a huge learning curve and is pretty much a guarantee to be a dominant force for many years to come.<\/p>\n

    James Harden certainly could have led the Rockets to the NBA championship final if he had some help in games 6 and 7 in the semis against the Warriors. Chris Paul was out with a hamstring injury so he had to carry the team, unlike the support that Curry and Durant get every night.\u00a0 He averaged 28.6 points in the playoffs.<\/p>\n

    Is there any fan (unless your team is playing the Warriors) who is not impressed with the play of Stephen Curry? He is the engine that runs the Warriors and his 3-point shooting borders on phenomenal (nine in game two of the Finals was a record), not to mention his ability to take it to the basket against much taller players.\u00a0 And, if you are looking for someone to run your offense and who is a proven winner (three championships and two MVPs), Curry might be your man.<\/p>\n

    Kevin Durant WAS the MVP of the 2018 NBA championship. He shot 65%, led his team in scoring (28.8), rebounds, blocks, and was second in assists.\u00a0 If you watched the playoffs, he made big shot after big shot throughout.\u00a0 The Warriors were not better when he was on the bench (-26 points), but they were much better when he was on the floor (+86 points).\u00a0 But remember with the likes of Curry, Draymond Green, and Klay Thompson, no player had more support.<\/p>\n

    And then there is LeBron. Individually, in the NBA today, there is no better player.\u00a0 His team lost, but his supporting cast did not come close to those the Warriors had.\u00a0 He averaged 32.3 points (51 in one game) after suffering an injured hand after game one.\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure anyone would argue that he is the most dominant player in the NBA.\u00a0 Bear in mind, however, that he is 33 years old.<\/p>\n

    So there you have it \u2013 dream a bit. Start your team with two picks.\u00a0 You will need a large payroll, for sure.\u00a0 Do it among others so you can defend and argue for your choices.\u00a0 Who will it be?\u00a0 And remember \u2013 no matter whom you choose, someone will second guess you, anyway.\u00a0 Welcome to the front office.<\/p>\n

    ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Oh, no! Ohtani is on the disabled list for the Angels<\/a>. Shohei Ohtani, the pitching and batting phenom for the LA Angels, has a grade two sprain of his UCL. He was trying to do what Babe Ruth was able to do \u2013 pitch and bat in the majors. He was 4-1 on the mound and was batting .289 with 6 HR and 20 RBI\u2019s.<\/li>\n
    2. It was nice to see the Washington Capitals <\/a>win their first ever NHL Stanley Cup<\/a>\u00a0this past week. Alex Ovechkin was the MVP and the franchise won for the first time in 43 years. The Redskins<\/a> won the last DC title when they won the NFL<\/a> championship in 1992. The Bullets last won an NBA title in 1978 \u2013 40 years ago. Are the MLB Nationals <\/a>next?<\/li>\n
    3. There is plenty of speculation about where LeBron James will play next year. Some notes on the situation: he can become an unrestricted free agent if he opts out of his contract by June 29. By July 1, other teams can bid for his services. He has played for Cleveland<\/a>, Miami<\/a>, and Cleveland again. Watch for a feeding frenzy on July 1, if no decision is made by James until then.<\/li>\n
    4. The Golden State Warriors <\/a>will not be invited to the White House following their NBA championship. Unlike the Eagles<\/a>\u00a0who were disinvited, President Trump said he will not invite the Warriors.<\/li>\n
    5. \u00a0RCN-TV will travel to Dimmick Park next Tuesday to bring you the BML<\/a> match-up with the Yankees taking on the Royals. Watch at 9:30pm.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company. I think it is always fun to dream a bit, especially if you are a sports fan. Every sports fan loves to second guess,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"Yoast SEO Relevanssi index exclude","inline_featured_image":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-81228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-mic"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"LeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company. I think it is always fun to dream a bit, especially if you are a sports fan. Every sports fan loves to second guess,...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"ATVN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gary Laubach\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gary Laubach\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Gary Laubach\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee\"},\"headline\":\"LeBron, KD, or Steph?\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":858,\"commentCount\":0,\"articleSection\":[\"Behind the Mic\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/\",\"name\":\"LeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/lebron-kd-steph\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/\",\"name\":\"ATVN\",\"description\":\"Local Programming & Astound Digital Cable, Internet & Phone Services\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee\",\"name\":\"Gary Laubach\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"\\\/atvn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/11\\\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg\",\"url\":\"\\\/atvn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/11\\\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"\\\/atvn\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/11\\\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Gary Laubach\"},\"description\":\"Gary began his broadcasting career with Twin County in 1972. Twin County eventually became C-TEC and then Astound Broadband. Gary is currently a Sports Broadcaster for Lafayette College.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.astound.com\\\/atvn\\\/author\\\/rcntvgary\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"LeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"LeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN","og_description":"The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company. I think it is always fun to dream a bit, especially if you are a sports fan. Every sports fan loves to second guess,...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/","og_site_name":"ATVN","article_published_time":"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00","author":"Gary Laubach","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gary Laubach","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/"},"author":{"name":"Gary Laubach","@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/#\/schema\/person\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee"},"headline":"LeBron, KD, or Steph?","datePublished":"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/"},"wordCount":858,"commentCount":0,"articleSection":["Behind the Mic"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/","url":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/","name":"LeBron, KD, or Steph? - ATVN","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/#website"},"datePublished":"2018-06-12T18:04:53+00:00","dateModified":"2023-04-12T21:44:22+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/#\/schema\/person\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/lebron-kd-steph\/"]}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/","name":"ATVN","description":"Local Programming & Astound Digital Cable, Internet & Phone Services","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/#\/schema\/person\/149d57a8e347f18c57a13b75a3c0f3ee","name":"Gary Laubach","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"\/atvn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg","url":"\/atvn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg","contentUrl":"\/atvn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/Gary-Laubach-Behind-the-Mic-Author-Image.jpg","caption":"Gary Laubach"},"description":"Gary began his broadcasting career with Twin County in 1972. Twin County eventually became C-TEC and then Astound Broadband. Gary is currently a Sports Broadcaster for Lafayette College.","url":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/author\/rcntvgary\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81228"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87487,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81228\/revisions\/87487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}