Paul George and John Wall Explain Why It Takes a Superteam to Win a Title

The Miami Heat and Golden State Warriors have fundamentally altered the modern NBA. These days, it's practically a guarantee that at least one team will boast three All-Stars.

Bob Donnan
USA Today Sports

Image via USA Today Sports

Bob Donnan

The Miami Heat and Golden State Warriors have fundamentally altered the modern NBA. These days, it's practically a guarantee that at least one team will boast three All-Stars. And the best players in the league are well aware of it—they know they need to team up with other stars if they want to have a prayer at winning a championship.

In a new piece from the Washington Post's Tim Bontemps, John Wall and Paul George explain how the game has changed. Wall plays with one fellow All-Star in Bradley Beal, but the Wizards have struggled to get over the hump in the East.

"If you don't have a superteam, or three superstars, or three all-stars on your team, it's very hard to win," Wall told Bontemps.

Similarly, PG-13 is paired with 2016-17 league MVP Russell Westbrook, but he seems to know his team will need more firepower to overcome the loaded Warriors. Here's how George broke it down:

No team has won [a title] where one single guy was the lone star and it was their team. It's not that era. I'm not sure how the veterans, the legends, don't understand that part. It's a different game now. For those guys to chime in and say we're not built the same...I never understood that, because who would we be fooling if we went out alone and tried to go up against the Warriors? The best guy in our league right now couldn't do it. [LeBron James] got swept [in the 2018 Finals]. So that just goes to show you at this point what it takes to win. Because you need guys that are alike talent-wise and skill set-wise to win championships.

George added that today's players "know what it takes" to win rings.

Last season, the Wizards won 43 games and Thunder won 48, but neither team made it past the first round of the postseason. The Warriors are still the overwhelming favorite, at -195, to win next year's title.

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