Are centers important to the success of an NBA franchise?

[monosylab1k]

I say yes but I want to know what SpursTalk thinks!

[21_Blessings]

It depends

[stretch]

not really. as seen in recent years, avery, TP, manu, pierce, kobe, wade, billups were all the guys doing the work. duncan? shaq? pfft. useless. why you ask? because avery, horry, and kobe were the ones hitting the game winners, while pau was being a soft piece of shit!

[mountainballer]

good Centers yes!
bad centers not so much.

[Venti Quattro]

Jordan already falsified this hypothesis... NEXT!

[stretch]

centers are extremely important. pau should have won MVP of these finals. shaq and timmy won plenty as well. kg got robbed too. if it wasnt for them, the guards like parker, manu, and kobe would have been completely useless. guards blow ass.

[midnightpulp]

Definitely. Take the Lakers. From Mikan to Gasol (who can be considered a center by virtue of his size and playing style), centers have always had the most impact on those title teams. Sure, the Lakers had some good guard play throughout their championship runs, Magic of course being the best, but otherwise, the perimeter players were largely replaceable while the big men were not.

Good thread.

[stretch]

jordan already falsified this hypothesis... Next!

+1

[stretch]

dude, look at some of the teams that won championships in the past 30 years

parish
kareem
hakeem
shaq
duncan
gasol
garnett
sheed

big men are vital

[stretch]

Definitely. Take the Lakers. From Mikan to Gasol (who can be considered a center by virtue of his size and playing style), centers have always had the most impact on those title teams. Sure, the Lakers had some good guard play throughout their championship runs, Magic of course being the best, but otherwise, the perimeter players were largely replaceable while the big men were not.

Good thread.

jordan had no centers. neither did kobe, as he had a soft piece of shit.

fuck centers

[stretch]

It depends

no it doesnt

no good big men = no title

[Ashy Larry]

I always look at the 1983 Sixers. Only real change was taking Darryl Dawkins off and adding Moses Malone. The difference was 0-2 in the Finals versus the Lakers (80 and 82) with Dawkins. With Moses, four game sweep. Dude practically murdered Kareem.

[Kobe Bryant Fan]

Kobe Bryant has 5 championships and Shaq only has 4. Clearly, centers are not as important to winning championships.

[Nahtanoj]

Jordan already falsified this hypothesis... NEXT!

Since you bring up Michael, the question should then be: Is an interior defender/rebounder important to the success of an NBA franchise? Then the answer is yes. Horace Grant and/or Dennis Rodman were no slouches. Look at the year prior to the arrival of Rodman when Horace left via free agency in the offseason - they played Kukoc at PF and the rebounding was horrible.

[21_Blessings]

And they were much better interior defenders/rebounders than Pau Gasol.

[Nahtanoj]

And they were much better interior defenders/rebounders than Pau Gasol.

They were obviously better defenders and rebounders in their prime..

Pau's rebounding numbers improved last year because Bynum was on the court more last season than the previous two. Call it the twin tower effect or whatever..

[JamStone]

Yes, having a quality center is extremely important for success in the NBA. Doesn't have to mean championship success, but with a dominant center, a franchise knows it will have some sort of success and be better than just average. Any elite center can easily make an average team a playoff contender or better. But having an elite point guard or wing scorer wont necessarily do the same.

For example, even a player like Patrick Ewing can raise an average team to significant heights over a guy like Dominique Wilkins. But, obviously that doesn't mean a great big man is always better than a great perimeter player, as we could compare Ewing to Jordan.

A great center makes a huge difference but doesn't guarantee a championship. And with examples like the Jordan Bulls or the 2004 Pistons (at least offensively), a great center isn't a requirement to win a championship. Teams can make up for not having a great center by having that dominant perimeter scorer (Jordan) or by having great balance in the line-up (2004 Pistons, 2008 Celtics). So important, yes. Vital for championship success, no.

Even with the NBA evolving, having a quality center still can change the fortunes of a franchise and team because the game can still be controlled in the paint at both ends of the court. Having a low post, pivot scorer for high percentage shots and to draw defenses that lead to better perimeter shots and then having that huge defensive presence in the paint to block, alter, and deter shots gives a team huge, huge advantages.

You're not guaranteed championship success and it's not the only way to build a championship contender, but quality centers are still hugely important for NBA success.

[Trainwreck2100]

not now as it used to be because offensive players can do whatever the fuck they want to now in today's nba

[21_Blessings]

not now as it used to be because offensive players can do whatever the fuck they want to now in today's nba

You're confused.

[TheMACHINE]

No ....Centers arnt important. Kobe won 2 rings without a center...and the spurs won 4 rings without a center either.

[BlackSwordsMan]

No ....Centers arnt important. Kobe won 2 rings without a center...and the spurs won 4 rings without a center either.

So you're saying duncan wasn't why the spurs won 4 rings? Classy laker fan, real classy man.

[PDXSpursFan]

Yes, centers - in the old days. Today PG's are the most important

[TheMACHINE]

So you're saying duncan wasn't why the spurs won 4 rings? Classy laker fan, real classy man.

You're a fucking retard if you are thinking thats what im saying. Go read it again.

[stretch]

So you're saying duncan wasn't why the spurs won 4 rings? Classy laker fan, real classy man.

hes being technical in that Duncan is listed as a PF

[TheMACHINE]

hes being technical in that Duncan is listed as a PF

stretch showing some reading comprehension. :toast

[Leetonidas]

:cry great fucking basketball discussion :cry

[JamStone]

Yes, centers - in the old days. Today PG's are the most important

Is this a serious response?

The best point guards of the past decade, Jason Kidd and Steve Nash, are ringless. But point guards like Avery Johnson, Derek Fisher, and Jason Williams started for title teams. Even if you consider point guards like Tony Parker, Chauncey Billups, and Rajon Rondo good players, they still weren't really premier point guards in the league when they won titles.

It's still better to build a title contender with an elite center than with an elite point guard in today's NBA.

[Basketballgirl25]

yes centers are important for success of a NBA franchise. Now they don't have to be the best center in the league, but at least decent center

[TheMACHINE]

lets see:
championship centers the decade:

2010-Bynum
2009-Bynum
2008-Perkins
2007-Whoever the Spurs had at Center
2006-Shaq
2005-Whoever the Spurs had at Center
2004-Ben Wallace
2003-Whoever the Spurs had at Center
2002-Shaq
2001-Shaq
2000-Shaq

Other than Shaq, Centers dont seem like they are needed.

[DJB]

not really. as seen in recent years, avery, TP, manu, pierce, kobe, wade, billups were all the guys doing the work. duncan? shaq? pfft. useless. why you ask? because avery, horry, and kobe were the ones hitting the game winners, while pau was being a soft piece of shit!

But what got them to the point of there even being a game winning shot to make? You're trying to say that without the presence of Timmy, TP and Manu could have won 3 championships? And without a prime Shaq in 2000,2001, 2002, Kobe would have gone on a three-peat with Robert Horry and Rick Fox?

:rolleyes

[Basketballgirl25]

lets see:
championship centers the decade:


2003-Whoever the Spurs had at Center
2002-Shaq


Other than Shaq, Centers dont seem like they are needed.

these two years the Nets had the worst centers, never had great centers in the Kidd era, we had Collins:lol

[ambchang]

Unless you are Jordan, yes.

[stretch]

But what got them to the point of there even being a game winning shot to make? You're trying to say that without the presence of Timmy, TP and Manu could have won 3 championships? And without a prime Shaq in 2000,2001, 2002, Kobe would have gone on a three-peat with Robert Horry and Rick Fox?

:rolleyes

fail