Lue likens LeBron's era of dominance to Jordan's

It's the reality of life in the NBA. For most of its modern history, the game has been dominated by a handful of superstars in different eras. The recent past and present belongs to LeBron James, and while he possesses a sub-.500 record (3-4) in seven NBA Finals appearances, he has snuffed out many team's dreams of just getting there.

Just ask the Toronto Raptors.

"Michael Jordan, the same way," Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue told The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski. "There's a reason why guys like Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, and Reggie Miller don't have championships, because of Michael Jordan. And now, in this era, because of LeBron James."

While it would be a bit of a stretch to compare current Eastern Conference players such as Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan with Hall of Famers like Ewing and Miller, the point is clear. The last time a James squad was knocked out of the East playoffs was by the Paul Pierce-Kevin Garnett-Ray Allen Celtics in 2010.

Even Lowry was frank about what he and rest of the league is up against.
"(The Cavs) got LeBron James and nobody's closing the gap on him," he said.

It's the sort of conundrum that leaves observers of teams like the Raptors wondering about total rebuilds. After all, what good is good, if it's not good enough?

Eras also matter in the NBA. James has dominated in the Eastern Conference since 2010. Jordan and the Chicago Bulls did so from 1991-98, with the only two years they didn't win titles coming in the season-and-a-half His Airness was retired. In the '80s, Magic Johnson's Lakers and Larry Bird's Celtics combined for 13 Finals appearances and eight titles. In the early 2000s, there was the much briefer reign of the Shaq-and-Kobe Lakers.

The seasons are few and far between where at least one conference didn't have an almost-immovable roadblock to championship dreams.

"LeBron ain't breaking spirits here, but he's just that good," Lowry said. “He's a dominant player, one of the top five most dominant players in basketball history."