There are a weird number of coincidences between the 1926 World Series and 2016 NBA Finals.
- Both were seven games and down to the wire.
- Both featured the first championships for a Midwestern franchise that had a long-time record of flopping around (Cardinals and Cavaliers).
- Both featured a defeat of a fledgling mega-dynasty (the “Murderers Row” Yankees and “Death Lineup” Warriors)
- Both mega-dynasty superstars dropped the ball in some fashion in Game 7. (Babe Ruth controversially tried to steal second with two outs and failed[1], while Steph Curry missed his last two shots.
- The later successes of the mega-dynasty make those mistakes seem less consequential.
[1]The opinion on how wise this was ranges from “Ruth, while not Rickey Henderson by any means, was faster than a lot of people gave him credit for, and thus it was a justifiable gamble to not have to need two hits with two outs” to “Ruth was statistically the worst base stealer of all time.”
Coiler's Creative Corner 