Do you think general quality of players in the NBA...

[Dex]

has risen or fallen?

Do you think the All-Stars of the 70s or 80s or even 90s are better or worse, on average, than the current ones? What about all the players collectively? Do you think there is more talent in the NBA these days or less?

The reason I ask is thus: you look at some of the rosters in the league and these teams are LOADED with talent. Think about it: San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, Sacramento, Denver, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Phoenix, Seattle, Miami, Detroit, Indiana, Cleveland, Orlando, Chicago, New York, Washington, even New Jersey...all these teams have at least 2 players that have the potential to be All-Stars. Most of those teams also have very skilled supporting lineups to surround those players.

It just seems like teams are loaded with talent these days, thus making the league seem more competitive than it has ever been. But I am yet a youngin', so I don't remember much past the mid-90s. Has this always been this case, or would you say the basketball curve is rising with time?

[exstatic]

I think it fell for a few years when they mined out the worthy HS kids, and started drafting only on potential in the lottery. Lottery picks used to be a finished product. Now, with the influx of Euros and their fundamentally sound games, it has picked back up again.

[tursiops93]

I believe there are better athletes today, however I feel that the fundamentals are much weaker. Players today are good because of their physical abilities and they were more fundamentally sound we would see incredible basketball. For example, how can so many players be so bad at a free throw??

[boutons]

"bad at a free throw"

or a wide-open 10 - 15 ft jump shot?

While Dwight Howard is starting at Orlando and is lot richer than he would be taking illegal payments/gifts from alumni/gangsters in college, maybe he would have learned to make a jumpshot in college with a good coach?

The problem is, it's so damn hard to pass up the $Ms after HS talent-show, no matter how good/bad the fundamentals are.

[Jimcs50]

THE 50 GREATEST PLAYERS IN NBA HISTORY



Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Nate Archibald

Paul Arizin

Charles Barkley

Rick Barry

Elgin Baylor

Dave Bing

Larry Bird

Wilt Chamberlain

Bob Cousy

Dave Cowens

Billy Cunningham

Dave DeBusschere

Clyde Drexler

Julius Erving

Patrick Ewing

Walt Frazier

George Gervin

Hal Greer

John Havlicek

Elvin Hayes

Magic Johnson

Sam Jones

Michael Jordan

Jerry Lucas

Karl Malone
Moses Malone

Pete Maravich

Kevin McHale

George Mikan

Earl Monroe

Hakeem Olajuwon

Shaquille O'Neal

Robert Parish

Bob Pettit

Scottie Pippen

Willis Reed

Oscar Robertson

David Robinson

Bill Russell

Dolph Schayes

Bill Sharman

John Stockton

Isiah Thomas

Nate Thurmond

Wes Unseld

Bill Walton

Jerry West

Lenny Wilkens

James Worthy

Give me 15 of these guys, and I could coach them to play a game or a series with any 15 players today, and my team will kill them.

Any further questions?

[Dex]

Another point to be made:

Ever since the 3-point line was introduced in 1979-1980, more players have been training themselves to take that jumpshot from 23-24 feet and beyond. Some players even make a living by it. Although players before the 3-point era undoubtedly COULD hit those long jumpers, I'm betting they rarely did. With 2-points being strictly 2-points back then, it wouldn't make sense for them to be stroking jumpers from 25 feet out.

Granted, introduction of the long ball has undoubtedly killed the mid-range game in players these days, but it's still exciting to watch when a guy starts raining threes on the court, and undoubtedly harder for them to do.

[Dario]

Rofl Jim from where did u copy+paste this top 50 players? I personaly never heard of almost half of them and jordan is around 30 spot :) IMO wilt should be first...

[Dex]

THE 50 GREATEST PLAYERS IN NBA HISTORY



Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Nate Archibald

Paul Arizin

Charles Barkley

Rick Barry

Elgin Baylor

Dave Bing

Larry Bird

Wilt Chamberlain

Bob Cousy

Dave Cowens

Billy Cunningham

Dave DeBusschere

Clyde Drexler

Julius Erving

Patrick Ewing

Walt Frazier

George Gervin

Hal Greer

John Havlicek

Elvin Hayes

Magic Johnson

Sam Jones

Michael Jordan

Jerry Lucas

Karl Malone
Moses Malone

Pete Maravich

Kevin McHale

George Mikan

Earl Monroe

Hakeem Olajuwon

Shaquille O'Neal

Robert Parish

Bob Pettit

Scottie Pippen

Willis Reed

Oscar Robertson

David Robinson

Bill Russell

Dolph Schayes

Bill Sharman

John Stockton

Isiah Thomas

Nate Thurmond

Wes Unseld

Bill Walton

Jerry West

Lenny Wilkens

James Worthy

Give me 15 of these guys, and I could coach them to play a game or a series with any 15 players today, and my team will kill them.

Any further questions?

:oops

You have a bigger toybox; This game isn't fair. You get to pick from players from a span of 40 years whereas I get to pick from a span of about 5, so you're undoubtedly going to have the advantage on me.

Even then, I would imagine that a lineup such as Tim Duncan/Shaq O'Neal/Kobe Bryant/Dirk Nowitzki*/Lebron James could hold their own in a game of 5v5 with your guys, especially if we are imagining them all in the prime of their careers.

*I subbed Nowitzki out for McGrady at the SF just because that's how I do business. Replace any of these names to suit any of your other fancies if you wish. You get my point. :lol

[Rummpd]

I could also make a case that the international stars, ala Dirk and in a sense Duncan, Virgin Islands are making the league better.

I think that give James, Wade, J'Oneil 2 years or so, and you could take a mix of old new in todays NBA and beat in a 7 game series WITH the right coach the supposed 50 best of previous. It would be close though and fun!

Take anyone off your list except those still playing:

Center Shaq, Amare, Ben Wallace 3
PF Duncan, Dirk, J'Oneil 3
SF Garnett, James 2 (James would also play some guard - he could play against most centers in two years as big as he is getting).
Guards: Nash, Kidd (assuming health), Kobe, Manu, Wade, Parker (by that time he will really be a stud) and an aging but still tough AI. (Manu and Kobe etc. can also do a little at SF). 7

Give me that team and a month of coaching by Pop in defense and teamwork and I will take on any team ever!!!

Hardest to leave off - 1) McGrady; 2) Vince but I don't want players who take time off even in losing causes!!; 3) Yao not convinced yet on his development beyond last year; 4) Carmello but they would be injury fill ins.

Why would this team win = Pop could always turn to his core 3 - Duncan, Parker and Manu who know his system.

[ShoogarBear]

Rofl Jim from where did u copy+paste this top 50 players? I personaly never heard of almost half of them and jordan is around 30 spot :) IMO wilt should be first...

Um, they are in alphabetical order.

[baseline bum]

The NBA was garbage in the 70s, so we can throw that out. A lot of people complain that players could shoot in the 80s, but defenses usually gave up a ton of really good open shots. Nowadays, with the increase in athleticism and a focus on defense open shots are generally 20 footers and three-pointers. You don't see open 15-18 foot shots with regularity like you saw on every possession in the 70s and 80s.

[Dre_7]

Rofl Jim from where did u copy+paste this top 50 players? I personaly never heard of almost half of them and jordan is around 30 spot :) IMO wilt should be first...

I think its alphabetical.

I like that list. Looks pretty good, cant find a problem with it.

[Mr. Body]

baseline bum is spot on.

Players are so much bigger and more athletic now. The 80s was a great era, but teams didn't play defense the way they do now. As fast as players are today, they can close off a medium-range jumper better than ever before, which makes the 3-pointer even more attractive.

We just might be entering another Golden Age. The Jordan years were great, then there was a drop-off immediately after. Now you have LeBron and Wade and some established stars still having a few years left, and the league is balancing out from the defense-heavy styles.

[Jimcs50]

Those guys will kill these young punks...it would not even be close.

Wilt, DRob and Wes Unseld would handle Shaq, no problem.