The Greatest Team Ever
In honor of possibly the greatest NBA playoffs ever (going on right now), I decided to come up with the greatest NBA team ever. Here was the question:
If I had to make a 12 man roster, which players would be on it?
Simple as that. I went to NBA.com and looked over their 50 Greatest Players list. I also looked at another "All time great list" that had about 100 players on it. From this group and my own extensive knowledge of the NBA, I felt I had enough to come up with a pool from which to choose. I came up with the following list:
I also used some subjective measurements. How clutch was the player? If he had a tendancy to pee on himself and kill his team in the playoffs, he was not included (Karl Malone). Did drug problems ruin his career? This is the best of the best; I don't care how good you could have been, I care about how good you are (George Gervin). Were you a liability at one end of the court? If you had great stats but were horrible defensively or offensively, then you were out (John Stockton).
So that led to the above pool that I considered. I came up with a 12 man roster from that, and an "Honorable Mention" of three people in case we had a 15 man roster.
Starting Five
Magic Johnson (PG): The only hole in Magic's game? A high amount of turnovers (almost 4 a game). When you put that next to 11 assists a game, however, doesn't seem like that's too big of a deal. Stats, titles, clutch play, the ability to play multiple positions: Magic had it all.
Michael Jordan (SG): The best player ever.
Larry Bird (SF): You know, you hear about Bird's defensive deficiencies a lot. But is that true, or do people just assume that because he's white? I think it's the latter. He averaged more steals than any other forward or center on the list. He's averaged a decent amount of blocks for his height. He was named to the All-NBA Defensive second team three times. I don't think he's was a great defender...but I think Larry Legend was a Hell of a lot better than anyone gives him credit for.
Tim Duncan (PF): Mr. Fundamental. His free throw shooting isn't great, and quite frankly he's not a great clutch player. However, in spite of those, he is a winner: 3 titles in 7 years with Tim as the team's star. You can't argue with that.
Wilt Chamberlin (C): Somewhat suprisingly, the center position was the hardest to judge. I could honestly accept any name from the list except Kareem here. Was Wilt really as good as his stats suggest...or was he just a man among boys? Ditto Shaq? Does Russell's unparalled ability to win (the man has more rings than fingers) make up for his poor individual statistics? Were does Hakeem--whose 2 year dominance of the NBA was more complete than any player, even Jordan in his prime--rank among the great ones? I went with Wilt and his monster stats. However, this position especially is open to much debate.
Bench (in no particular order)
Oscar Robertson (PG): Mr. Triple Double. That's really all you need to say.
Jerry West (SG): Regarded as having one of the best outside jumpers ever, provides dead eye marksmanship (remember, this is a team, and we have holes to fill). Also gains points for being the logo.
Lebron James (SF/SG): Is this early? Yes. But when all is said and done, when he retires I believe he will be known as the best player ever.
Hakeem Olajuwon (C/PF): Not enough repect is paid to Dream. His dominance from 1993 to 1995 was unparalleled in NBA history. Jordan was the best player ever, yes. Jordan completely dominated the league for years, yes. But Jordan never dominated the league by as wide a margin in a year as Hakeem did those two years. He was literally unbeatable. It was amazing. He completely destroyed Shaq, David Robinson, and Patrick Ewing in winning back to back titles. That's three of the top ten best centers ever--without question. How many players have ever done that? He left no doubt that he was the best in that period. It was beautiful to behold. If this team had a 6th Man, I think he would be it. He's by far the most versatile center; he could easily play PF. Hell, he even shot 20% on threes in his career! Dream was amazing.
Shaq (C): So tough deciding on the third center--Shaq or Russell? I went with Shaq, because in spite of Russell's winning ways, his numbers just weren't that great. Leads to an interesting debate though: Did Russell win as many titles and sacrifice personal stats because his Celtic teams were so good? Could he have won as many titles with less talent but putting up better personal stats? We'll never know. I just heartfully apologize to Russell for leaving him off--this is almost too close to call.
Isiah Thomas (PG): Possibly the most disgusting human being in NBA history? Yeah. He's up there. He and Kobe led me to a huge "should I hold against them the fact that everyone hates them and might refuse to play with them?" debate. I decided that the titles Isiah orchestrated meant that at least some people could play with him, so I'd let him on the team. Talent and career-wise, there's no question he deserves to be here. It's the intangibles that kept him off the Dream Team. I'll put him on this one...begrudgingly.
Kevin Garnett (PF/SF/C/SG): A lot of people will probably have a problem with this one. Well, too bad. What's the problem been with all of the Team USA teams since the Dream Team? Too many stars, not enough Second Bannanas. That's the problem with KG's career: it's misunderstood. He's the Greatest Second Bannana ever. And there's nothing wrong with that--it's a compliment. Here's a guy who can damn near play 5 positions, can pass, can D up almost any position player, and will do anything to win. Oh, and he's also a league MVP and statistically one of the greatest players ever. He's perfect on a team like this--he's the type of player who will come off the bench, do what's needed, and make sure everyone stays focused.
Honorable Mention
Julius Erving: If Dr. J was a better jump shooter, I would have put him on the team over Jerry West. As it he is, he's our first runner up.
Charles Barkely: A victim of the one end of the court rule. Barkely was such a bad defender that he just couldn't quite make the cut. Still one of my favorite players of all time.
Dwayne Wade: Again, maybe too much too soon. But I've got faith in him. I love his desire to win; DWade is one of those players who will NOT be beaten, even during the All Star game. If he improves his jumper a little bit and ends up with the career it appears he's heading towards, he'll proably move onto the 12 man roster.
If I had to make a 12 man roster, which players would be on it?
Simple as that. I went to NBA.com and looked over their 50 Greatest Players list. I also looked at another "All time great list" that had about 100 players on it. From this group and my own extensive knowledge of the NBA, I felt I had enough to come up with a pool from which to choose. I came up with the following list:
I also used some subjective measurements. How clutch was the player? If he had a tendancy to pee on himself and kill his team in the playoffs, he was not included (Karl Malone). Did drug problems ruin his career? This is the best of the best; I don't care how good you could have been, I care about how good you are (George Gervin). Were you a liability at one end of the court? If you had great stats but were horrible defensively or offensively, then you were out (John Stockton).
So that led to the above pool that I considered. I came up with a 12 man roster from that, and an "Honorable Mention" of three people in case we had a 15 man roster.
Starting Five
Magic Johnson (PG): The only hole in Magic's game? A high amount of turnovers (almost 4 a game). When you put that next to 11 assists a game, however, doesn't seem like that's too big of a deal. Stats, titles, clutch play, the ability to play multiple positions: Magic had it all.
Michael Jordan (SG): The best player ever.
Larry Bird (SF): You know, you hear about Bird's defensive deficiencies a lot. But is that true, or do people just assume that because he's white? I think it's the latter. He averaged more steals than any other forward or center on the list. He's averaged a decent amount of blocks for his height. He was named to the All-NBA Defensive second team three times. I don't think he's was a great defender...but I think Larry Legend was a Hell of a lot better than anyone gives him credit for.
Tim Duncan (PF): Mr. Fundamental. His free throw shooting isn't great, and quite frankly he's not a great clutch player. However, in spite of those, he is a winner: 3 titles in 7 years with Tim as the team's star. You can't argue with that.
Wilt Chamberlin (C): Somewhat suprisingly, the center position was the hardest to judge. I could honestly accept any name from the list except Kareem here. Was Wilt really as good as his stats suggest...or was he just a man among boys? Ditto Shaq? Does Russell's unparalled ability to win (the man has more rings than fingers) make up for his poor individual statistics? Were does Hakeem--whose 2 year dominance of the NBA was more complete than any player, even Jordan in his prime--rank among the great ones? I went with Wilt and his monster stats. However, this position especially is open to much debate.
Bench (in no particular order)
Oscar Robertson (PG): Mr. Triple Double. That's really all you need to say.
Jerry West (SG): Regarded as having one of the best outside jumpers ever, provides dead eye marksmanship (remember, this is a team, and we have holes to fill). Also gains points for being the logo.
Lebron James (SF/SG): Is this early? Yes. But when all is said and done, when he retires I believe he will be known as the best player ever.
Hakeem Olajuwon (C/PF): Not enough repect is paid to Dream. His dominance from 1993 to 1995 was unparalleled in NBA history. Jordan was the best player ever, yes. Jordan completely dominated the league for years, yes. But Jordan never dominated the league by as wide a margin in a year as Hakeem did those two years. He was literally unbeatable. It was amazing. He completely destroyed Shaq, David Robinson, and Patrick Ewing in winning back to back titles. That's three of the top ten best centers ever--without question. How many players have ever done that? He left no doubt that he was the best in that period. It was beautiful to behold. If this team had a 6th Man, I think he would be it. He's by far the most versatile center; he could easily play PF. Hell, he even shot 20% on threes in his career! Dream was amazing.
Shaq (C): So tough deciding on the third center--Shaq or Russell? I went with Shaq, because in spite of Russell's winning ways, his numbers just weren't that great. Leads to an interesting debate though: Did Russell win as many titles and sacrifice personal stats because his Celtic teams were so good? Could he have won as many titles with less talent but putting up better personal stats? We'll never know. I just heartfully apologize to Russell for leaving him off--this is almost too close to call.
Isiah Thomas (PG): Possibly the most disgusting human being in NBA history? Yeah. He's up there. He and Kobe led me to a huge "should I hold against them the fact that everyone hates them and might refuse to play with them?" debate. I decided that the titles Isiah orchestrated meant that at least some people could play with him, so I'd let him on the team. Talent and career-wise, there's no question he deserves to be here. It's the intangibles that kept him off the Dream Team. I'll put him on this one...begrudgingly.
Kevin Garnett (PF/SF/C/SG): A lot of people will probably have a problem with this one. Well, too bad. What's the problem been with all of the Team USA teams since the Dream Team? Too many stars, not enough Second Bannanas. That's the problem with KG's career: it's misunderstood. He's the Greatest Second Bannana ever. And there's nothing wrong with that--it's a compliment. Here's a guy who can damn near play 5 positions, can pass, can D up almost any position player, and will do anything to win. Oh, and he's also a league MVP and statistically one of the greatest players ever. He's perfect on a team like this--he's the type of player who will come off the bench, do what's needed, and make sure everyone stays focused.
Honorable Mention
Julius Erving: If Dr. J was a better jump shooter, I would have put him on the team over Jerry West. As it he is, he's our first runner up.
Charles Barkely: A victim of the one end of the court rule. Barkely was such a bad defender that he just couldn't quite make the cut. Still one of my favorite players of all time.
Dwayne Wade: Again, maybe too much too soon. But I've got faith in him. I love his desire to win; DWade is one of those players who will NOT be beaten, even during the All Star game. If he improves his jumper a little bit and ends up with the career it appears he's heading towards, he'll proably move onto the 12 man roster.
posted by Michael Pondrom at 10:11 PM
5 Comments:
Here's my team, and it ain't no all-star team.
PG - Magic Johnson: I agree with Phil Jackson that big guards are the only way to go.
SG - Michael Jordan: This position begins and ends with Mike.
SF - Larry Bird: He may not have been athletic, but he’s gotta be one of the smartest players ever. So far my list isn’t any different than yours…
PF - Bill Russell: I want an all-out defensive stopper in my starting five. Any offense he provides is just cake.
C - Hakeem Olajuwon: Jordan was incredibly athletic when he was younger and incredibly smart when he was older. For that brief period when the Rockets were winning it all, Hakeem was both. Watch the finals versus Orlando. He didn’t just beat Shaq. Hakeem looked like a man playing a large child in that series. He did whatever he wanted. There are a lot of other centers that could go here, but other than Shaq, I really didn’t get to see them play.
Bench:
Tempo changer - Isiah Thomas: I don’t really care if nobody likes him or if he was a bit of a ball hog. He’s here just for the scoring.
Offensive Guard - Oscar Robertson: A triple-double!!!!!???? Are you kidding me?
Defensive Guard - Scottie Pippen: Just in case the other team has a hot guard. Pippen could put the clamps on any player under 6’7’’.
Bruiser - Shaquile O’neal: Nobody punishes defenders like him. I would worry how he does off the bench, though. I just don’t know if he has it in him.
Shooter - Dirk Nowitzki: I need a shooter and I can’t really think of anyone better. Being 7 foot tall means he shouldn’t ever be blocked when Dream and Shaq kick it out. His defense stinks, but its at least serviceable. Besides, I have Olajuwon, Russell, and Shaq guarding the basket.
Jack of All Trades - Kevin Garnett: His position says it all. Definitely not a master of any with the exception maybe of rebounding and blocking.
Winner - Robert Horry: A nice good luck charm to have on the team. Seemed to work well with Shaq and Hakeem. Since they are on this team, I thought it was fitting. (Note: This does not mean that I support Horry as a HOF candidate. To me, he’s not a HOF’er, but one heck of a clutch team guy.)
Honorable Mention
Sam (I am the Rocket Man) Cassell: Not so much for his basketball ability, but for the entertainment value. There is just nothing funnier than seeing him hit a three in the face of some kid half his age with tons more athleticism and then grinning like an idiot and doing his 'Big Cajones' dance.
Kobe Bryant: This season, he has shown that he can score almost at will, but he won't be on my team because of his poor team skills.
LeBron James: Really, I wouldn't mind swapping him with Robertson. He's the only player that I have seen who really could average a triple double.
Not bad. I'd lose Kobe.
Michael
Thats why he's just an honorable mention.
Well, let's leave out the honorable. He's just a mention.
LOL good one Bo.
Michael
Post a Comment
<< Home