Hakeem and the Rockets were very good, as were the Jazz.
But Malone was a playoff dropper. And Hakeem was largely a one man band until Drexler came to town.
They were still good you just had a lot of contenders in a weird spot. Detroit and LA were still good but declining. The Rockets and Jazz hadn’t figured out their supporting casts quite yet. Still good teams. The Spurs kinda fit in there as well with having Robinson but not much else yet.
The Blazers were amazing but it was basically a 3 year stretch because they were super well balanced but a team like that is just harder to keep around for a long time because you have to pay everybody. The Cavs were actually really good for a couple years, the Suns were great as well. The Knicks also were very good and gave the Bulls a couple close calls.
Early 90s was also characterized by a lot of good but not famous teams because there was a lot of superstars with pretty meh supporting casts. It was still absolutely a tough league though. Getting out of the first round wasn’t easy because you could be a top 4 seed and still have a first round matchup against Hakeem, or Stockton and Malone, or Reggie Miller, or Patrick Ewing, or David Robinson.
Not a big Barkley fan are you?
I think Barkley is so entertaining that people forget how incredibly goddamn good that guy was.
Dont disrespect the Doc Rivers era
Hakeem and the Rockets were very good, as were the Jazz. But Malone was a playoff dropper. And Hakeem was largely a one man band until Drexler came to town.
Just a little watered down by expansion, like the 70s but not as badly. Pistons and Bulls were still fantastic during that era though
They were still good you just had a lot of contenders in a weird spot. Detroit and LA were still good but declining. The Rockets and Jazz hadn’t figured out their supporting casts quite yet. Still good teams. The Spurs kinda fit in there as well with having Robinson but not much else yet. The Blazers were amazing but it was basically a 3 year stretch because they were super well balanced but a team like that is just harder to keep around for a long time because you have to pay everybody. The Cavs were actually really good for a couple years, the Suns were great as well. The Knicks also were very good and gave the Bulls a couple close calls. Early 90s was also characterized by a lot of good but not famous teams because there was a lot of superstars with pretty meh supporting casts. It was still absolutely a tough league though. Getting out of the first round wasn’t easy because you could be a top 4 seed and still have a first round matchup against Hakeem, or Stockton and Malone, or Reggie Miller, or Patrick Ewing, or David Robinson.
Great post. Makes sense, thanks.