What positions are the weakest in today's NBA

[The Batman]

Discuss

[Darrin]

Discuss

2-guard. Look at some of the contenders:

A washed-up Ray Allen for Boston. Arron Afflalo for Denver. Delonte West with 2 60-win seasons in Cleveland. Who starts in Chicago--Ronnie Brewer?
Raja Bell starts for Utah? Did anyone see him play last year? Can you name me the starting shooting guard for the Toronto Raptors? Did he score over 13 points a game? Who did Orlando have next to Rafer Alston when they made the Finals?

It's so bad that teams like Dallas use another small forward--Caron Butler to start at 2-guard. The era of the big guards is over. We see either two small forwards or two point guards in a lot of lineups. They are used as utility players. Stephen Jackson is a dinosaur fossil. That guy used to be on every team. And still, the Bobcats use him at the 3 most of the time now.

[sefant77]

PGs with real court vision

Sick of these athletic clowns that are just able to play some drive & dish combined with a shaky jumper or no range.

[Juanobili]

true centers


you know the league is lacking in these when people get excited when their team lands a vet with little gas left lol

[#41 Shoot Em Up]

Back to the basket centers

[JamStone]

Agree with traditional low post centers. Duncan might be the last of a dying breed.

There are some young players with potential to be good centers, like Brook Lopez and Bynum and Oden, but none of them look like guys who will end up being all time greats. Dwight Howard is the best center in the league and has an extremely back-to-the-basket post game. Al Jefferson and Chris Kaman and Andrew Bogut might be the next best low post scoring centers after Duncan but their overall games have a lot of limitations and none of those guys look like all time greats either. There's some hope with Brook Lopez and maybe even the rookie-to-be DeMarcus Cousins, but it's far from a certainty that they will be great centers either. The league might be at an all time low in terms of having great centers.

[jonnybravo]

2-guard. Look at some of the contenders:

A washed-up Ray Allen for Boston. Arron Afflalo for Denver. Delonte West with 2 60-win seasons in Cleveland. Who starts in Chicago--Ronnie Brewer?
Raja Bell starts for Utah? Did anyone see him play last year? Can you name me the starting shooting guard for the Toronto Raptors? Did he score over 13 points a game? Who did Orlando have next to Rafer Alston when they made the Finals?

It's so bad that teams like Dallas use another small forward--Caron Butler to start at 2-guard. The era of the big guards is over. We see either two small forwards or two point guards in a lot of lineups. They are used as utility players. Stephen Jackson is a dinosaur fossil. That guy used to be on every team. And still, the Bobcats use him at the 3 most of the time now.

Do that list again with Centers.

[Chomag]

Yep, I agree with the others. Do a list of centers and after the first few there is a huge drop off in talent.

Power forward would be next imo, not near as lacking in talent as Centers but still pretty mediocre compared to other positions. There just is a huge lack of skilled big men in the NBA right now.

[Dex]

Centers, and it's not close.

[024]

only al jefferson's post game has been comparable so far to duncan's. brook lopez has the potential to be a duncan jr. but that's about it. most centers these days are more concerned about shooting a good jumpshot or just scoring off lobs.

[Darrin]

Do that list again with Centers.

Atlanta - Al Horford
Boston - Kendrick Perkins
Charlotte - Nazr Mohammed or Erick Dampier
Chicago - Joakim Noah
Cleveland - Anderson Varejao
Dallas - Brendan Haywood or Tyson Chandler
Denver - Nene
Detroit - Ben Wallace or Greg Monroe
Golden State - Andris Biedrins or Mikki Moore
Indiana - Roy Hibbert
Houston - Yao Ming
Los Angeles Clippers - Chris Kaman
Los Angeles Lakers - Andrew Bynum or Pau Gasol
Memphis Grizzlies - Marc Gasol
Miami Heat - Zydrunas Ilgauskas or Joel Anthony
Milwaukee Bucks - Andrew Bogut
Minnesota Timberwolves - Kevin Love or Darko Milicic
New Jersey Nets - Brook Lopez
New Orleans Hornets - Emeka Okafor
New York Knicks - Amar'e Stoudemire
Oklahoma City Thunder - Nenad Kristic
Orlando Magic - Dwight Howard
Philadelphia 76ers - Jason Smith?
Portland Trailblazers - Greg Oden or Marcus Camby
Phoenix Suns - Channing Frye
Sacramento Kings - Samuel Dalembert
San Antonio Spurs - Antonio McDyess
Toronto Raptors - Andrea Bargnani
Utah Jazz - Mehmet Okur
Washington Wizards - Andray Blatche


It's a skilled set of players. There's 20-10 guys on there like Bogut, Kaman, and Bynum. There's number one picks, there's shot blockers, rebounders, great guys at setting screens.

This was true 8 years ago. Are they the best players in the league? No. But give me the list from 2001-02 and tell me we're not in better shape than a decade ago.

[Darrin]

only al jefferson's post game has been comparable so far to duncan's. brook lopez has the potential to be a duncan jr. but that's about it. most centers these days are more concerned about shooting a good jumpshot or just scoring off lobs.

centers, sure. Most play like Dennis Rodman now. But the power forwards along for the ride still post-up. The problem, the decline, is at 2-guard. How can you win 55 games with a 2-guard that puts up 9 points a night?

[noob cake]

Shooting guards; there are never plenty of quality centers (except in the 90's).

Every team should have an good/elite shooting guard, which is pretty much the prototypical do it all position, except we have a lot of scrub SG starting in 2011

[Indazone]

It's really unbelievable. Where did all the true Centers go? Have skills eroded that much? I don't think that we aren't growing kids this big anymore. If anything, kids are getting bigger. Is it the rule changes in the NBA favoring perimeter players?

[Darrin]

It's really unbelievable. Where did all the true Centers go? Have skills eroded that much? I don't think that we aren't growing kids this big anymore. If anything, kids are getting bigger. Is it the rule changes in the NBA favoring perimeter players?

Have you watched a game since 2006? Yes, it favors perimeter players. The NBA has stopped the banging since 2004 and 2005. The game looks completely different now. It is geared towards running now because the person with the ball and the offensive team get the benefit of all contact.

As for bangers, there are plenty. Watch the Lakers sometime. Watch Kendrick Perkins when the Celtics utilize him. Watch Carlos Boozer and Andrew Bogut. There are guys out there. They just don't score 30 a night. Teams don't go to bigs until the offense gets bogged down. Post-up teams better go quick or they will get a foul. It's a quicker game and bigs are more skilled at finishing around the rim and in transition. Just because a guy hangs on the rim off a tip-in doesn't mean he can't bang on the block.

[Cane]

Easily the center position. Dwight Howard's also the worst "best big man in the league" in NBA history imo; he'd get destroyed in other eras and would struggle to make the all star team back in the 90's, if he gets there at all. Dude's mental toughness is also nearly non existent ditto with his offensive game, especially against guys his size or bigger.

[Indazone]

All I see is a bunch of Eurocenters coming to the NBA. Which means jump shooting big men from 3 pt land.

[Purch]

2-guard. Look at some of the contenders:

A washed-up Ray Allen for Boston. Arron Afflalo for Denver. Delonte West with 2 60-win seasons in Cleveland. Who starts in Chicago--Ronnie Brewer?
Raja Bell starts for Utah? Did anyone see him play last year? Can you name me the starting shooting guard for the Toronto Raptors? Did he score over 13 points a game? Who did Orlando have next to Rafer Alston when they made the Finals?

It's so bad that teams like Dallas use another small forward--Caron Butler to start at 2-guard. The era of the big guards is over. We see either two small forwards or two point guards in a lot of lineups. They are used as utility players. Stephen Jackson is a dinosaur fossil. That guy used to be on every team. And still, the Bobcats use him at the 3 most of the time now.

Who said Bell was starting?

But the weakest position by far is the Center right now.

[Killakobe81]

Agree with traditional low post centers. Duncan might be the last of a dying breed.

There are some young players with potential to be good centers, like Brook Lopez and Bynum and Oden, but none of them look like guys who will end up being all time greats. Dwight Howard is the best center in the league and has an extremely back-to-the-basket post game. Al Jefferson and Chris Kaman and Andrew Bogut might be the next best low post scoring centers after Duncan but their overall games have a lot of limitations and none of those guys look like all time greats either. There's some hope with Brook Lopez and maybe even the rookie-to-be DeMarcus Cousins, but it's far from a certainty that they will be great centers either. The league might be at an all time low in terms of having great centers.

Agreed. As good as i think Bynum CAN be ...injuries may have put a ceiling on that AND I never thought he was HOF material regardless... just all-star caliber. David Robinson for example, 15 years ago might of been behind hakeem, Ewing and shaq but would be the best center by farrrrrrrrr in the current NBA. Go back further and a HEALTHY Brad daugherty would be the best center by far as well ...Heck look at Team USA Chandler is the starter and Odom was his backup over the weekend ...LMAO

[Ashy Larry]

How about good Head coaches.......

[JamStone]

centers, sure. Most play like Dennis Rodman now. But the power forwards along for the ride still post-up. The problem, the decline, is at 2-guard. How can you win 55 games with a 2-guard that puts up 9 points a night?

Question isn't what position is most valuable or most necessary to have an elite player at. The question is which position is the weakest.

The 2-guard position in today's NBA still has certain or at least likely HOFers in Kobe, Wade, Ray Allen, Ginobili, multiple all star guards in guys like Joe Johnson, Rip Hamilton, Vince Carter, solid 2-guards in Jason Richardson, Stephen Jackson, Andre Iguodala, and young quality 2-guards in guys like Brandon Roy, Monta Ellis, OJ Mayo, and Tyreke Evans.

With Shaquille O'Neal on his last legs, Yao Ming a walking injury, the best centers in the league are really power forwards in Duncan and Pau Gasol. And after Dwight Howard, the next best centers are probably Andrew Bogut and Chris Kaman. Heck, guys like Joakim Noah and Kendrick Perkins are probably top 10 centers in today's NBA.

There should be no question which position is weakest in the today's NBA. It's the center position.

[Ginobili2Duncan]

The weakest position in the NBA right now is Center and it isn't close. Pau Gasol is considered the best bigman in the league by ESPN and other casual NBA fans. Gasol is a 2nd tier star at best.

[The Franchise]

Centers, and it's not close.

You are correct sir. Talented big men are rare in today's league.

[balli]

Agreed, centers, obviously, but every position in the league would benefit from more fundamental post players. I understand the current rules make it less valuable, but post play is still worth it and is becoming a lost art. Again, for every position.

[poop]

the reason for the center position decline is that young players today are totally dependent on pure athleticism and natural physical ability and dont bother to put in the fundamental skill.
the second howard and ama'r'e''' lose their explosiveness they will FALL OFF A CLIFF.

LOL duncan hasnt had ANY athleticism since 2000 and hes managed to succeed based on Skill alone...once he is gone the Skilled Post Big Man is extinct (except for Big Bird)

[poop]

the reason for the center position decline is that young players today are totally dependent on pure athleticism and natural physical ability and dont bother to put in the fundamental skill.
the second howard and ama'r'e''' lose their explosiveness they will FALL OFF A CLIFF.

LOL duncan hasnt had ANY athleticism since 2000 and hes managed to succeed based on Skill alone...once he is gone the Skilled Post Big Man is extinct (except for Big Bird)

[JamStone]

You can fault Amare for being a dumbass and not doing enough on defense or rebounding, but he has skill, at least on offense. Amare has never been noted as a defender or an elite rebounder. But he has worked on offense. He might not be great on the low block, but he's even improved there. Has obviously worked pretty hard on his jumper, is a capable dribbler for his size and position, and even a surprisingly decent passer. His offense won't suffer nearly as much as Dwight's when each respectively loses their athleticism and explosiveness. And even with Dwight, he might be extremely raw for being in the league as long as he has, but from what I gather, he puts in the effort and hard work.

While sometimes it can be a justifiable criticism, sometimes I think we give too little credit to how hard some of the star players in the league work on their game. Not every player has the same type of crazy work ethic as a Kobe Bryant when it comes to improving their game, but a lot and probably most of the elite NBA players work really hard to at least maintain their game, even the ones that rely on mostly their athleticism and explosiveness.

[leemajors]

How about good Head coaches.......

Are they really given much of a chance to build anything? One bad season and you're out.

[poop]

You can fault Amare for being a dumbass and not doing enough on defense or rebounding, but he has skill, at least on offense. Amare has never been noted as a defender or an elite rebounder. But he has worked on offense. He might not be great on the low block, but he's even improved there. Has obviously worked pretty hard on his jumper, is a capable dribbler for his size and position, and even a surprisingly decent passer. His offense won't suffer nearly as much as Dwight's when each respectively loses their athleticism and explosiveness. And even with Dwight, he might be extremely raw for being in the league as long as he has, but from what I gather, he puts in the effort and hard work.

While sometimes it can be a justifiable criticism, sometimes I think we give too little credit to how hard some of the star players in the league work on their game. Not every player has the same type of crazy work ethic as a Kobe Bryant when it comes to improving their game, but a lot and probably most of the elite NBA players work really hard to at least maintain their game, even the ones that rely on mostly their athleticism and explosiveness.

respectively.

[rayjayjohnson]

centers.

i love him, but when white boy bogut is one of the best in the league, you got problems.