That 50 greatest players list was made a while back and not every single player on there was a superstar. Without Pippen I say Jordan still wins at least one title, without Jordan Pippen probably never even makes it to the finals. Pippen was a very good/great player but there are very few players that are considered superstars and he is not one of them. It's close but I see a superstar as a player who can carry a team on his back and lead them to success. Pippen had one opportunity to do that in his prime and he was knocked out of the playoffs in the second round.
NBA Thread - 2010-2011
- Thread starter Big Sexy
- Start date
That 50 greatest players list was made a while back and not every single player on there was a superstar. Without Pippen I say Jordan still wins at least one title, without Jordan Pippen probably never even makes it to the finals. Pippen was a very good/great player but there are very few players that are considered superstars and he is not one of them. It's close but I see a superstar as a player who can carry a team on his back and lead them to success. Pippen had one opportunity to do that in his prime and he was knocked out of the playoffs in the second round.
Derrick Rose has been playing like a mad man since the start of the season. So far the Bulls have started 6-3, and that is all thanks to Rose. He is playing like an all-star, and I think he has hit that next gear that he wants to be in the MVP category. Don't know if that will happen just yet, but he wants that and a championship, and that's great to see from a young point guard. Tom Thibodeau has definitely got the team playing solid defense. The role players are coming in and playing well. The only thing the team needs to do (which they have been the past week/ week and a half) is watching the foul trouble. But a solid start to the season so far and a good start to the annual Circus Trip last night in Houston. Let's see how they play the Spurs tonight.
Josh Smith, when under control, is amazing. Al Horford is really the unsung hero of my Hawks though. No one on the Hawks is more consistent than Horford, with double digit points in almost every game, and he regularly gets double-doubles. Say what you will about Joe Johnson [I love him], but if I had to keep any one player, it would definitely be Horford.
John Hollinger has a column about Michael Beasely and Kevin Love being the frontcourt duo in the league. I didn't actually read it as I don't have insider, can't pay for that shit. Anyway, seems like a pretty bold statement to make, crazy even. However, when you look at it, why can't they be in the top 5. Who's ahead of them?
Lakers (Gasol and Odom/Bynum)
Bulls (Boozer and Noah)
Magic (Howard and Lewis)
Utah (Jefferson and Milsap)
That's really all I can think of. Isn't it strange that for how awful David Kahn is at GM that the T'Wolves have managed to put together arguably a top 5 frontcourt with 2 young talents? Isn't it also crazy that they're still nothing more than a 20 win team?
Lakers (Gasol and Odom/Bynum)
Bulls (Boozer and Noah)
Magic (Howard and Lewis)
Utah (Jefferson and Milsap)
That's really all I can think of. Isn't it strange that for how awful David Kahn is at GM that the T'Wolves have managed to put together arguably a top 5 frontcourt with 2 young talents? Isn't it also crazy that they're still nothing more than a 20 win team?
Goliath Uterus
Getting Noticed By Management
Bosh finally came out of his shell tonight and dropped 35 on the Suns. This was against a very undersized Suns team, but his performance was immpressive nonetheless. Just like jmt said, he needs to play as more of a perimeter forward, and he certainly did that tonight, hitting a good majority of his field goals from the elbow/free throw line area.
Also, fucking Greg Oden is getting knee surgery and is out for the season again, poor guy just can't catch a fucking break. And ya think the Blazers have been just a little upset with the choices they made in that draft? Think about that team + Durant.....
Also, fucking Greg Oden is getting knee surgery and is out for the season again, poor guy just can't catch a fucking break. And ya think the Blazers have been just a little upset with the choices they made in that draft? Think about that team + Durant.....
Yeah, it was nice to see Bosh finally show up in a game. The Heat did a nice job of establishing Bosh early and he never looked back. Very nice game from the third man of the big three. Kevin Durant had another good night. 24 points, 4 rebounds and assists and 1 steal. Makes me happy to have both of these guys on my Fantasy team. I would also like to say that Tayshaun Prince has been incredibly solid this season. He has be very consistent, giving his team a nice 13 to 15 points per game. I just wanted to point him out as a player who has been good but doesn't get a lot of love.
Goliath Uterus
Getting Noticed By Management
Yea, I've always loved Tayshauns silent consistency. Dude always drops his 15-20, gets a few boards, a few steals, and plays lockdown defense. Possibly the most underrated player of the decade.
I love Tayshaun. He never has been and never will be an all star but he always gets his 12-15 points, 5 boards, and 3 assists. He is also a very good defender and would start for nearly every team in the league somewhere in the line up. I'll be sad to see him go if he doesn't resign with the Pistons.
It's hard to think of him as anything but a Piston and that is coming from someone who is strong Pistons hater, no offense Big Sexy. Tayshaun probably has the saddest most depressing defense play of all time against the Pacers and yet I cannot imagine him on any other team in the league and wouldn't want to see him in any other jersey. No matter where he may go he will always be a Piston to me, but he still has some time to either stay or go.
Yes it is true Jordan would have won a title without Pippen, but he would have not won 6. Pippen did carry the Bulls in 1993-94 taking them to a second round and forcing a very good knicks team to 7 games. This is also when the East was the powerhouse out of the 2 conferences. If he was not a superstar he would have been the closest thing to it.
Could you really count Magic in there. Howard is a beast, but Lewis is nothing. He can shoot the 3 ball and thats it. Is a decent rebounder at times but I cant think of anything else. When healthy, the rockets have a top 3 front court in Scola and Ming. But with Odom in at the 2 I think the Lakers would have to take that home. Maybe if Bynum comes in and averages a double double they can still hold that crown.
Beasly however has been playing great! The load is of his shoulders now and him and Love are just running a muck in 'Siberia'.
No, actually the West was the better of the two conferences at that point. The East had the Knicks but that was about it. Chicago was without Jordan, the Magic were still too young at that point, the Pacers were good but not great, and the Hawks were actually tied for the best record in the conference. The West had the NBA champion Rockets, Seattle with Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, the David Robinson led Spurs, the Jazz with Stockton and Malone, the Suns with KJ and Charles Barkley, and even the Warriors were a 50 win team with young stars like Sprewell and Webber and some good veterans in Avery Johnson and Chris Mullin.
Pippen also may have led to the Bulls to the second round of the playoffs but he really struggled shooting the ball in that series, especially on the road, and as the series wore on he started to wear down at least mentally. That led to some un Pippen like performances in the last two games. He was playing hard as evidence by the amount of rebounds he was getting, but he was shooting horribly and just wasn't the superstar type that could get them over that hump.
Goliath Uterus
Getting Noticed By Management
Did anybody else see Blake Griffin last night? Good lord... He scored 44, had 15 boards, and had an additional 7 assists. If you haven't seen the highlights, check them out immediatley, he had some absolutetly nasty dunks... Here's the link:
http://www.nba.com/games/20101120/NYKLAC/gameinfo.html
And is anybody else as excited for the Clippers as I am? They're obviously not going to be good this year, but if Griffin and Gordon continue to emerge as stars, the other rookies, guys like Al-Farouq Aminu, Willie Warren, and DeAndre Jordan continue to develop, then this team will be pretty damn good in a few years. It'll be interesting to see if they can get another impact player from next years draft as well.
http://www.nba.com/games/20101120/NYKLAC/gameinfo.html
And is anybody else as excited for the Clippers as I am? They're obviously not going to be good this year, but if Griffin and Gordon continue to emerge as stars, the other rookies, guys like Al-Farouq Aminu, Willie Warren, and DeAndre Jordan continue to develop, then this team will be pretty damn good in a few years. It'll be interesting to see if they can get another impact player from next years draft as well.
If the Clippers want to be successful at any point in the near future they have to get rid of Baron Davis as soon as possible. When things aren't going his way, which they certainly aren't right now on a 1 win team, then he's basically useless. Bad influence for everyone around him. Get him out of there now.
They have a lot of talent in place, just a matter of putting it together. Griffin is obviously a freaking monster, but I hope his career isn't decimated by playing on the Clips like so many others have been in the past.
They have a lot of talent in place, just a matter of putting it together. Griffin is obviously a freaking monster, but I hope his career isn't decimated by playing on the Clips like so many others have been in the past.
Hip2bsquare
Pre-Show Stalwart
I think its hard to make a comparison of a SF Beasley and a PF Love against the Center and Power Forward combos that you have put up. Perhaps if they are compared with other SF/PF combos they could look even better?
Talking of the Wolves, Dako has even been playing well lately, who would of thought that?
Apparently they've been playing Love and Beasely together a lot at the 4 and 5. Darko has been a complete shock as of late. Their interior as a whole actually looks pretty solid. If they didn't completely screw up their PG situation with the Rubio/Flynn picks they could really have something there. As it is, they still suck.
In other news, Spurs are off to their best start ever despite Duncan being off to his worst start ever. I'm sure they're cool off at some point with their age and all, but they're definitely not a team anyone wants in the playoffs.
Also, I may have an oppurtunity to go to the Cavs/Heat game Friday. It's a bit of a drive and I'll have to be back the next day, but I feel like it'd be an incredible experience being there live.
In other news, Spurs are off to their best start ever despite Duncan being off to his worst start ever. I'm sure they're cool off at some point with their age and all, but they're definitely not a team anyone wants in the playoffs.
Also, I may have an oppurtunity to go to the Cavs/Heat game Friday. It's a bit of a drive and I'll have to be back the next day, but I feel like it'd be an incredible experience being there live.
The Hawks are back on a winning streak. Hopefully it sticks around. Larry Drew seems to be doing a pretty good job as a rookie coach. We just haven't beaten any good teams really. But all the starters are producing. Josh Smith had a triple double yesterday amd Marvin Williams, who I think is overrated, actually had a double double. Joe Johnson is consistently scoring in the double digits, and Al Horford is raking in double doubles like it's his job. I guess it is though. Any thoughts from other NBA fans? No trash talking.
The Hawks will be alright. Probably finish 5th or so in the East and go out in the first round again. The thing is, they're not any better than last year really, so you can't be expecting too much from them. Unless Jeff Teague is able to really step up and take over for the rotting corpse that is Mike Bibby, I just can't see anything better than a quick playoff exit.
I can't help but agree with you Disarray. I've been saying since last year they're trying to groom Teague as Bibby's replacement. He hasn't been getting too many minutes the last few games though, and that worries me. He still needs a lot of work and game time. He's already a good swingman, and adds a whole new dimension to their pace. Unless Miami gets a new coach and some kind of depth to their bench, I think the Hawks are a 2nd or a 3rd place team in the East. But a lot of teams are stepping up. The Bulls are strangely one of my biggest worries as far as the Hawks go. I almost expect to lose to a team like Orlando, but the Bulls are going to be amazing when Boozer comes back.
Hip2bsquare
Pre-Show Stalwart
How is Marvin Williams overrated when nobody rates him?
Has everybody voted for the All Star game? Here's the link for those that haven't.
http://www.nba.com/allstar2011/asb/eng/landing.jsp?referrer=asb11_lac&cid=nba329
Vote for my boy Blake Griffin
http://www.nba.com/allstar2011/asb/eng/landing.jsp?referrer=asb11_lac&cid=nba329
Vote for my boy Blake Griffin
Joe's Gonna Kill You
The Hunt is On
My Knicks defeated the Nets tonight 111-100. Amare played really well scored 35 Chandler had 27 and Felton had 23. Knicks have now won 7 of the last 8 and they are playing really well and its about time. There are two players that have really impressed me this Season 1 of them is Raymond Felton who I thought would be a Good PG for us but so far this Season he has played Great. The other Player that has really impressed is Rookie Landry Fields he has played great for a Rookie and he is one of the biggest steals of the this year's Draft Class. Knicks have played well and I hope they can keep it up.
Goliath Uterus
Getting Noticed By Management
Wow..... Anybody catch the highlights of the Bulls/Rockets game last night? D-Rose channeled his inner Jordan and buried a last second 3 over two defenders to put in into OT. Definitely a contender for POTY so far.
And does anybody have an idea what the Grizzlies are doing with O.J Mayo? As much as I love Henry, Mayo is obviously the better player, I'd go so far as to say Mayo is a future star in this league, and you start the rookie who averages 5 PPG? Mayo averages 13 off the bench for chrissakes, either trade him or start him, but don't waste him like that.
And does anybody have an idea what the Grizzlies are doing with O.J Mayo? As much as I love Henry, Mayo is obviously the better player, I'd go so far as to say Mayo is a future star in this league, and you start the rookie who averages 5 PPG? Mayo averages 13 off the bench for chrissakes, either trade him or start him, but don't waste him like that.
Goliath Uterus
Getting Noticed By Management
Ohh, and one more NBA tidbit...
By now I'm sure many of you have heard that the Hornets are about to be bought (or may have already been bought) by the NBA until a new owner can be found (http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/12/04/nba-well-on-its-way-to-purchasing-new-orleans-hornets/). Obviously the NBA would like to keep the Hornets in New Orleans, but there also have been rumblings of them moving to Kansas City, or even back to the Supersonics.
Hopefully they wind up in KC, where nobody gives a shit about anything but sports and beer.
By now I'm sure many of you have heard that the Hornets are about to be bought (or may have already been bought) by the NBA until a new owner can be found (http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/12/04/nba-well-on-its-way-to-purchasing-new-orleans-hornets/). Obviously the NBA would like to keep the Hornets in New Orleans, but there also have been rumblings of them moving to Kansas City, or even back to the Supersonics.
Hopefully they wind up in KC, where nobody gives a shit about anything but sports and beer.