Classic Basketball Thread

[Camo]

Anyone seen ESPNs top 10 of each position?

Sg:

1.Michael Jordan
2.Kobe Bryant
3.Jerry West
4.Dwyayne Wade
5.Clyde Drexler
6.Allan Iverson
7.George Gervin
8.Ray Allen
9.Reggie Miller
10.Earl Monroe

PG:

1.Magic Johnson
2.Oscar Robertson
3.John Stockton
4.Stephen Curry
5.Isiah Thomas
6.Chris Paul
7.Steve Nash
8.Jason Kidd
9.Walt Frazier
10.Bob Cousy

Center:

1.Kareem
2.Wilt
3.Russell
4.Shaq
5.Hakeem
6.Moses
7.Robinson
8.Ewing
9.Mikan
10.Walton

PF:

1.Duncan
2.Malone
3.Dirk
4.Barkley
5.Garnett
6.McHale
7.Pettit
8.Hays
9.Pau
10.Rodman

SF:

1.Lebron
2.Bird
3.Dr J
4.Durant
5.Baylor (should still be above Durant)
6.Pippen
7.Hondo
8.Barry
9.Worthy
10.Wilkins

[MovieGal]

Camo, you surprise me.. you are in the UK and you watch American sports?

Most Ukers and Australians dont like American sports..

[jiraffejustin]

When did they post this? I know Steph Curry hung the moon and all, but feels kinda odd for him to be that high already.

[Camo]

When did they post this? I know Steph Curry hung the moon and all, but feels kinda odd for him to be that high already.

They are running through a top 100 as well here is 91-100 so far.

100.Shawn Kemp
99.Kevin Love :laugh:
98.Gail Goodrich
97.James Harden
96.Bobby Jones
95.Marc Gasol
94.Mark Price
93.Lenny Wilkens
92.Nate Thurmond (should be a lot higher)
91.Maurice Cheeks

[seanc]

Wade, Curry, and Paul all seem high. I hate Iverson. I know he was a scoring machine though.

[jiraffejustin]

I saw that too. I was on the phone with a friend when I saw it. I mentioned how out of place Love felt on the list, and I also thought it was a little early to see Harden in the list. Happy to see Gail Goodrich on the list. I said the same thing about Nate Thurmond too, dunno why he is so low.

[seanc]

100 is a lot but Love and Gasol? Too early for Harden too.

[Camo]

Camo, you surprise me.. you are in the UK and you watch American sports?

Most Ukers and Australians dont like American sports..

Out of the big four NA sports Basketball is the only one i'm really into have been since i was like 8 or something. Getting into the NFL quite a bit right now and can't wait for the Super Bowl, i'm interested in Baseball too but i must admit i'm mostly interested in pitching, Greg Maddux is my favourite player so far.

[jiraffejustin]

We can all agree that the worst thing about the Cold War is how long it kept Arvydas Sabonis out of the NBA, right?

[Camo]

100 is a lot but Love and Gasol? Too early for Harden too.

Marc and Pau :laugh:

[Camo]

Wade, Curry, and Paul all seem high. I hate Iverson. I know he was a scoring machine though.

Iverson actually got me into Basketball. I started watching when he was at his best and i actually supported the 76ers for a while because of him, still have a 76ers Basketball :D

[jiraffejustin]

One of the best youtube channels if you want to watch OLD basketball posted a 26 minute video on Elgin Baylor. Baylor is a lot of fun to watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjNS_oYE92E

[Camo]

We can all agree that the worst thing about the Cold War is how long it kept Arvydas Sabonis out of the NBA, right?

Yeah. Also Rocky 4 has to shoulder the blame for the horrendous officiating in the Lakers-Portland 2001 series.

[Camo]

Elgin Baylor was unbelievable. The saddest thing in Basketball was him retiring a year before the Lakers won the title.

[jiraffejustin]

Yeah. Also Rocky 4 has to shoulder the blame for the horrendous officiating in the Lakers-Portland 2001 series.

Sabonis gave Shaq some trouble, just imagine if he actually had knees at that point in his career.

[Camo]

Sabonis gave Shaq some trouble, just imagine if he actually had knees at that point in his career.

Still think the Chris Webber Kings team was better than that Portland and deserved a title.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vglV2qpoD70

[seanc]

We can all agree that the worst thing about the Cold War is how long it kept Arvydas Sabonis out of the NBA, right?

That is a name I haven't thought about in years. Fun Portland team. Lots of good players but I was a Terry Porter fan. I have a thing for PG.

[seanc]

Still think the Chris Webber Kings team was better than that Portland and deserved a title.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vglV2qpoD70

Webber was good but lacked a killer instinct or something. Those teams were a good blend. Young and old, inside and outside. Nice team.

[jiraffejustin]

Speaking of knees. Manute Bol. He has some of my favorite stat lines of all time. One of them was when he was in a DIII college, but still, this is a wacky one: 32 points, 29 rebounds.... and 31 blocks. I know, DIII college game, but still hilarious to think about. That would have been a blast to see in person.

[seanc]

31 blocks, holy geeze. I hated wztching Bol. Very awkward looking player. You like the giants hey JJ?

[jiraffejustin]

31 blocks, holy geeze. I hated wztching Bol. Very awkward looking player. You like the giants hey JJ?

They can be a lot of fun to watch. There's something exciting about seeing Manute Bol block 8 shots and make a three pointer. I love reading box scores, so oddities like that make me like certain players more than I should.

[Camo]

32 points, 29 rebounds.... and 31 blocks

That was like an average tuesday for Wilt.

[seanc]

They can be a lot of fun to watch. There's something exciting about seeing Manute Bol block 8 shots and make a three pointer. I love reading box scores, so oddities like that make me like certain players more than I should.

Saw the Knicks in person a couple weeks ago. I'm not loving Porzingis. 7'3 and he's fronting guys. Doesn't play tough at all. Maybe it will come.

[jiraffejustin]

That was like an average tuesday for Wilt.

If we compared everything to Wilt, the only thing that would impress anybody is somebody making two free throws in a row.

[MovieGal]

Out of the big four NA sports Basketball is the only one i'm really into have been since i was like 8 or something. Getting into the NFL quite a bit right now and can't wait for the Super Bowl, i'm interested in Baseball too but i must admit i'm mostly interested in pitching, Greg Maddux is my favourite player so far.

Camo you know my home team won the World Series.. yeah I know its silly its called that but hey I cant change that...

We got to go to the play offs for the NFL but lost to Cricket's silly team... Patriots...

We used to have a basketball team in the 1970's...

http://assets.fontsinuse.com/static/use-media-items/27/26921/full-737x560/56701a84/1954_kansas_city-omaha_kings-media_guide-1975.jpeg?resolution=0

We have NASCAR here, minor league baseball and soccer as well and we had indoor football and hockey at one time.

[seanc]

Wilt's numbers were other worldly. If stats told the whole story he's the greatest by miles.

[Camo]

If we compared everything to Wilt, the only thing that would impress anybody is somebody making two free throws in a row.

I saw something the other day about Wilt having one of the highest post season free throw % of 68 i think it was.

[Camo]

Yeah MG, you guys had Oscar at one point.

[MovieGal]

Yeah MG, you guys had Oscar at one point.

Oscar? sorry, Im not familiar with the players back then.... I was a young girl .. I remember my father watching it.. but my parents were more into Baseball and Football.

[jiraffejustin]

How in the world did that happen? Watching video of Wilt shooting free throws is hilarious. He approached it like a child approaches the task of eating their vegetables. I've heard the theory that Wilt was just too powerful for free throws and it was hard for him to get the right amount of touch on his shots from the line. I don't remember where I saw it, maybe on his namesake's archive, but it talked about how great he was with fadeaways because he could actually get touch on his shot by going away from the basket.

[seanc]

Oscar? sorry, Im not familiar with the players back then.... I was a young girl .. I remember my father watching it.. but my parents were more into Baseball and Football.

De la Hoya, the big O.

[Camo]

Oscar Robertson - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Robertson

Apparently he didn't play in KC. Played for the same team though.

[seanc]

Oscar Robertson - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Robertson

Apparently he didn't play in KC. Played for the same team though.

I think they were Cincinnati then?

[MovieGal]

Oscar Robertson - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Robertson

Apparently he didn't play in KC. Played for the same team though.

well The Royals are our baseball team... and the Kings was our basketball team...

[Camo]

How in the world did that happen? Watching video of Wilt shooting free throws is hilarious. He approached it like a child approaches the task of eating their vegetables. I've heard the theory that Wilt was just too powerful for free throws and it was hard for him to get the right amount of touch on his shots from the line. I don't remember where I saw it, maybe on his namesake's archive, but it talked about how great he was with fadeaways because he could actually get touch on his shot by going away from the basket.

No idea. I haven't even tried to confirm it myself, it was from a guy on another site who is obsessed with Wilt who usually ends up in Wilt vs Russell debates the only thing more boring than Brady vs Peyton. The guy does know his Wilt stats and would be called out for making stuff up so i saw no reason to doubt it and mostly didn't care.

[MovieGal]

Kansas City Kings - Basketball
Kansas City Royals - Baseball
Kansas City Athletics - Our first baseball team (moved to Oakland)
Kansas City Blades - Hockey
KC Sporting - Soccer
Kansas City Brigade - Arena Football
Kansas City T-Bones - minor league Baseball
Kansas City Monarchs - Negro Baseball Team (1920-1965)

damn forgot Kansas City Chiefs... (how could I?!?!?)

[Camo]

well The Royals are our baseball team... and the Kings was our basketball team...

The Kings were the Rochester Royals (they won their only title under this name) then the Cincinatti Royals before becoming the Kansas City-Omaha Kings then just the Kansas City Kings now Sacramento.

[MovieGal]

The Kings were the Rochester Royals (they won their only title under this name) then the Cincinatti Royals before becoming the Kansas City-Omaha Kings then just the Kansas City Kings now Sacramento.

Ok makes sense... I didnt know.. I just knew that Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland CA and became the Oakland A's.

[Camo]

Ok makes sense... I didnt know.. I just knew that Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland CA and became the Oakland A's.

You mean the Philadelphia Athletics ;).

I know they were KC btw, just saying they were the Philly A's for over 50 years.

[seanc]

So what current players are you guys into? JJ, your a Thunder fan right? Are you a fan of a current team Camo?

[Camo]

So what current players are you guys into? JJ, your a Thunder fan right? Are you a fan of a current team Camo?

I'm a Celtics fan, but that isn't happening lately obviously the Spurs and Thunder are joint for my fave West team. Duncan is the person i like most in the league but he isn't a favourite to watch. Not talking about how they are playing now, my top 5 active players would be something like this:

1.Dwayne Wade
2.Russell Westbrook
3.Danny Green
4.Kevin Durant
5.Stephen Curry

[AboveTheClouds]

Wish Steve Nash was a little higher than 7, and it's awesome to see Larry Bird at 2 but I don't like Lebron, and I'm a die-hard Celtics fan, so number 1 would have been awesome. And personally I think Reggie Miller is a better ball player than Allen or Gervin, he should have been behind Iverson.

[Camo]

Top 5 retired since this is a Classic thread:

1.Bird
2.Hakeem
3.Frazier
4.Pippen
5.Iverson (yup)

[seanc]

Iverson. Come on Camo. My fave five. Quite standard and boring.

Magic
Jordan
Hakeem
Bird
Malone.

Sorry, you said you were a Celtics fan in the other thread. I don't watch nearly the amount of ball I used to but I really enjoy watching Curry, Durant, and Rose when he's healthy. Dirk is fun. Bryant is great but a love to hate kind of guy for me.

[AboveTheClouds]

Bird
Jordan
Pippen
Magic
Nash

[matt72582]

My starting lineup

PG: Isiah Thomas
SG: Michael Jordan
SF: Lebron James
PF: Tim Duncan
C: Bill Russell

[Camo]

Karl or Moses Malone Sean? I imagine it is Karl but just in case. Glad to see Hakeem and Bird on your list.

ATC has the best one (other than mine) though.

[seanc]

Karl, sorry. I like Pippen and Nash but they are not this level for me.

[matt72582]

Maybe do it by decade? If I had to go with the 2010's I'd go with...

Chris Paul
Kobe Bryant
Lebron James
Tim Duncan
Joakim Noah

[jiraffejustin]

So what current players are you guys into? JJ, your a Thunder fan right? Are you a fan of a current team Camo?

Yep, Thunder are my favorite team. As far as current favorite players, go, I usually like to watch young teams that aren't that great yet. Or they are pretty good, but not good enough to beat the Thunder in a series, because then I will fall in hate with them. That's how it is with the Warriors now, I liked them before they were champs, now I just want to crush them somehow.

Starting Five all-time, if I want to win some kind of championship

Magic
MJ
Bird
Nowitzki
Wilt

I like the idea of having damn good spacing with this group.

For fun starting 5:

Jason Williams
Manu Ginobili
Kevin Durant
Elgin Baylor
Bill Walton

[matt72582]

Yep, Thunder are my favorite team. As far as current favorite players, go, I usually like to watch young teams that aren't that great yet. Or they are pretty good, but not good enough to beat the Thunder in a series, because then I will fall in hate with them. That's how it is with the Warriors now, I liked them before they were champs, now I just want to crush them somehow.

Starting Five all-time, if I want to win some kind of championship

Magic
MJ
Bird
Nowitzki
Wilt

I like the idea of having damn good spacing with this group.

For fun starting 5:

Jason Williams
Manu Ginobili
Kevin Durant
Elgin Baylor
Bill Walton

Off-topic JJ, but that clapping avatar is annoying :)

And your forwards can't play defense! :D

[jiraffejustin]

Off-topic JJ, but that clapping avatar is annoying :)

And your forwards can't play defense! :D

defense is for losers :p

[Swan]

My response to JJ's avatar?

http://www.movieforums.com/community/customavatars/avatar76459_27.gif.pagespeed.ce.W0CQ8_o94-.gif

[jiraffejustin]

We should talk about how Dennis Rodman should have won the 96 Finals MVP.

[cricket]

Funny thing about JJ's avatars is even though I hate rap, I love his current and former avatars.

[cricket]

Iverson. Come on Camo. My fave five. Quite standard and boring.

Magic
Jordan
Hakeem
Bird
Malone

I like that 5, except I'd take Duncan over Malone.

[jiraffejustin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20ByBuATTyg

[cricket]

Horace Grant was a very good player for the Bulls, but when Rodman took over that slot, they went from great to practically unbeatable.

[jiraffejustin]

Horace Grant was a very good player for the Bulls, but when Rodman took over that slot, they went from great to practically unbeatable.

That's because Rodman is a little bit crazy, and he managed to be the right type of crazy to help all of his teams (most of the time.) He's a blast to watch on youtube, either from full games or just clips. You never know what kind of shenanigans he is going to pull, and then of course he hit the offensive glass HARD. Plus he was an assh*le on defense, in the best possible way.

[cricket]

He was also a very smart player

[seanc]

Chicago was the best possible place for him. Jordan was always going to keep him in check. So like JJ said, he was the right kind of crazy. I still have never watched anyone who anticipates for a rebound like him. I have also never seen a worse offensive player in the NBA. He made Bowen look like MJ.

[matt72582]

Rodman said he learned from Rick Mahorn to pinch guys' butts to get into their heads.

If you haven't already, check out the ESPN "30 For 30" Detroit Pistons Bad Boys

[AboveTheClouds]

http://www2.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/File+In+Profile+Dennis+Rodman+-71EbAqjkAvl.jpg

Rodman was an awesome ball player, but I always think of this movie first, before I even think about his skills.

[MovieBuffering]

It's a shame Orlando couldn't put a decent team around T-Mac in his prime. He doesn't get mentioned in these things but on pure talent he deserves to be. Nobody made scoring look as effortless as him. He almost beat the Detroit Pistons in the playoffs when Orlando was an 8 seed and Detroit was a 1 by himself. He averaged close to 40 that series. The next year, with basically the same team Detroit won it all. Bet you can't name another player on that Orlando team besides T-Mac and Grant Hill (and he didn't play). Anyways I'm a massive Magic fan ha if you can't tell.

Curry while being a GREAT player shouldn't be that high yet. Who is to say Curry doesn't blow out a knee and never play to the level he is playing now? He is only been elite elite for a season and a half. Needs more of a full body of work. Saying that he is probably my favorite player to watch since Orlando T-Mac.

Also I love Durant and Westbrook. But it is hard to root for the notSonics. Seattle was ALWAYS my favorite west team. I loved Payton and Kemp and always had a fascination with the city of Seattle (never been). Plus the Seattle SuperSonics might be the best name in sports and those uniforms are great. Literally go from the best team name and uniforms to the worst. Seattle had that team stolen and they should be doing this in Seattle.

Also I am completely sold on Ben Simmons. As long as he develops a consistent jump shot it is going be unstoppable. He is a 6'10 PG, legit PG. He is Magic Johnson but a better athlete.

[jiraffejustin]

The Chamberlain archive posted some fun highlights today from 1973

Jerry Lucas and Earl Monroe vs the Bullets

Lucas - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqDKOFbpEZE

Monroe - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gRhm1vZysY

[jiraffejustin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kDYqngdd7E

Pistol Pete was too dope.