Best two teams of the 2000's +

[SpursDynasty85]

I was wondering which two teams would you put together and have go against each other in a 7 games series for the NBA Championship.

-Any player goes..
-Players must have reached their peak after 2000 and beyond.
-Please back up teams with a small commentary and outcome of the series stating why you think this team would be almost unstoppable and who would win.

Heres mine:

Team #1
Tony Parker
Manu Ginobili
Kobe Bryant
Tim Duncan
Yao Ming

I'm a spurs fan and I always thought Tony,Manu,and Duncan Combo can compete with anyone when healthy. As Spurs big 3 as my foundation and plugging the most offensively gifted player ever, then you have a team that is offensively dominant. I would hesitate putting Shaq at Center because the top 3 players of the 2000's would be outright unfair.

Team #2
Deron Williams
Dwayne Wade
Lebron James
Kevin Garnett
Shaquille O'neal

This team is obviously one of the more athletically devastating teams you can put together. The Wade/Bron combo obviously wouldn't be the most complementary but their undeniably 2 of the greatest players in the 2000's. Put in Shaq for halfcourt domination,Kevin Garnett's intensity and shooting, and William's overall game, this team is more dominant on paper.

Outcome:
I would lean towards the 2nd team in a shorter series. But in a 7 game series a halfcourt game is more important. The added chemistry of the spurs big three, absolutely killer instinct of Kobe, and the length of Yao and Duncan to hold the paint, I would take team #1.



What do you guys think? if you have another team that would beat any one of these teams, post it and put a commentary.

Thanks!

[Phillip]

Team 2.

Fact is, you can't really double off of any player on either team, so there will be a lot of one-on-one, and Parker guarding D-Will, Manu guarding Wade, and Yao guarding Shaq, I think those matchups will not bode well for team 1. Plus if a team was able to double off and get back to their man with ease, it would be team 2 due to their extremely superior athleticism.

I think team 1 would win a one or two close games, as they have a better grindout team, but i think team 2 would win 4 games pretty solidly, because they are flat out a better team.

[SpursDynasty85]

Thanks for the reply! I admit, it is a hard sell to have team 1 beat team 2. I guess its just my insistence that Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are underrated. I think Manu could match up very well with Wade, Shaq would dominate anyone he played. I think you might be right. The size and athleticism of the 2nd team would be really hard to overcome.

I probably should have taken out Manu for Mcgrady. Mcgrady was easily the better play in his prime.

[PM5K]

Unfair, stupid ass. It's just ing fantasy, fantasies don't have to be fair, ask my wife.

[Killakobe81]

Team 1 looks great EXCEPT Yao Ming at center and Parker at PG.... this is not to knock how good a healthy Yao was, but look at team #2! Why would you want the slow-footed yao to match up with that team? Yes, he plays sHaq and dwight howard well, but many people forget that because of switching pnr etc. Yao would have to "show" up top vs Wade and Lebron which is a horrible matchup. And as great as Tim is as an anchor inside, he is not the fastest of foot either. Also I know Parker has his strengths but no way would i choose him with that grouping because with yao inside the paint is clogged and his main asset is driving. Bad fit of players.

[Killakobe81]

My team:

PG Manu
SG Kobe
SF Lebron
PF KG
C duncan

Bench:
Horry
Dwight
Wade
Dwill
Grant hill


I dont need a traditional point because both Lebron, Man and Kobe can initiate the offense. Defensively either of those 3 (in their primes) could guard a quick PG like tony or Rose. No they wont shut them down ut as we saw in the playoffs last year both Kobe and Lebron did credible jobs vs. rondo and Westbrook for stretches ...

Inside we dont have a traditional big man, but with tim as the anchor and KG with his speed length and defensive a en I dont think even shaq could get easy buckets because they would not allow him to get easy catches inside. Plus Lebron, Manu and Kobe are excellent "rovers" and could double and get back to their man ...

Offensively I would run the triangle and PJ would be the coach.
Manu would be the ron harper of the team but with better offense and solid knees.
Kobe would play the MJ role as best as he could Yes, I know he aint MJ but he is the closs the NBA has seen.
Lebron gets to to play his new age Pippen role and despite his critics, he was built to be in the trinagle in this role ...
KG Would thrive at the elbow to 20 feet jumper that this offense sets up, plus he is great at the baseline jumper which this offense provides plenty.
Duncan would be great at any offense but i think in a triangle with his bank shot and post moves would be greater than shaq wa sin it, and more efficient if less dominant.

Plus the range of duncan and KG leaves driving lanes for Lebron to drive. Lebron's ability to drive rivals duncan's bank shot, Shaq's power dunk, Kareem's hook, the dream shake, the MJ pull-up and the Kobe fade as the best offensive weapons and obviously the most high% play outside of shaq under the basket.

on my team, Lebron will still run offense up top at tims, but a great coach has the best players doing wht they do best ...

BTW chose the bench guys for role playing obviously there are beter choices but with my starters i need role players ... not super duper stars

[BUMP]

I would've probably taken Team 1 had you not included Shaq in Team 2.

(Assuming all these guys are in their prime of course) Shaq was just devastating in his prime. Just ridiculous. And that would put them over the top. He would eat Yao Ming alive like it was nothing. It would be close, because Tony, Manu, and Tim are very effective playing together, whereas James, Wade, and Williams would be epic fail as far as team chemistry is concerned.

Chemistry would be pretty good with Team 1 since we all know Kobe plays better with a dominant big. With Shaq, Wade, and LeBron on Team 2 it would be a free throw shooting spree everytime down the court.

[Killakobe81]

My team:

PG Manu
SG Kobe
SF Lebron
PF KG
C duncan

Bench:
Horry
Dwight
Wade
Dwill
Grant hill


I dont need a traditional point because both Lebron, Man and Kobe can initiate the offense. Defensively either of those 3 (in their primes) could guard a quick PG like tony or Rose. No they wont shut them down ut as we saw in the playoffs last year both Kobe and Lebron did credible jobs vs. rondo and Westbrook for stretches ...

Inside we dont have a traditional big man, but with tim as the anchor and KG with his speed length and defensive a en I dont think even shaq could get easy buckets because they would not allow him to get easy catches inside. Plus Lebron, Manu and Kobe are excellent "rovers" and could double and get back to their man ...

Offensively I would run the triangle and PJ would be the coach.
Manu would be the ron harper of the team but with better offense and solid knees.
Kobe would play the MJ role as best as he could Yes, I know he aint MJ but he is the closs the NBA has seen.
Lebron gets to to play his new age Pippen role and despite his critics, he was built to be in the trinagle in this role ...
KG Would thrive at the elbow to 20 feet jumper that this offense sets up, plus he is great at the baseline jumper which this offense provides plenty.
Duncan would be great at any offense but i think in a triangle with his bank shot and post moves would be greater than shaq wa sin it, and more efficient if less dominant.

Plus the range of duncan and KG leaves driving lanes for Lebron to drive. Lebron's ability to drive rivals duncan's bank shot, Shaq's power dunk, Kareem's hook, the dream shake, the MJ pull-up and the Kobe fade as the best offensive weapons and obviously the most high% play outside of shaq under the basket.

on my team, Lebron will still run offense up top at tims, but a great coach has the best players doing wht they do best ...

BTW chose the bench guys for role playing obviously there are beter choices but with my starters i need role players ... not super duper stars

Not saying Manu is better than Ray Allen, Wade, Paul, kidd etc. Just saying that for a "fit" i think he would give you intangibles, he is clutch and in the triangle he would fit perfect because he can drive, pass and shoot really well.
and phil likes bigger PG's

[8FOR!3]

Not saying Manu is better than Ray Allen, Wade, Paul, kidd etc. Just saying that for a "fit" i think he would give you intangibles, he is clutch and in the triangle he would fit perfect because he can drive, pass and shoot really well.
and phil likes bigger PG's

That's interesting and all, because he is...

[jason54858]

That's interesting and all, because he is...

[SpursDynasty85]

keep it coming...

[SpursDynasty85]

I dont need a traditional point because both Lebron, Man and Kobe can initiate the offense. Defensively either of those 3 (in their primes) could guard a quick PG like tony or Rose. No they wont shut them down ut as we saw in the playoffs last year both Kobe and Lebron did credible jobs vs. rondo and Westbrook for stretches ...

Inside we dont have a traditional big man, but with tim as the anchor and KG with his speed length and defensive a en I dont think even shaq could get easy buckets because they would not allow him to get easy catches inside. Plus Lebron, Manu and Kobe are excellent "rovers" and could double and get back to their man ...

Offensively I would run the triangle and PJ would be the coach.
Manu would be the ron harper of the team but with better offense and solid knees.
Kobe would play the MJ role as best as he could Yes, I know he aint MJ but he is the closs the NBA has seen.
Lebron gets to to play his new age Pippen role and despite his critics, he was built to be in the trinagle in this role ...
KG Would thrive at the elbow to 20 feet jumper that this offense sets up, plus he is great at the baseline jumper which this offense provides plenty.
Duncan would be great at any offense but i think in a triangle with his bank shot and post moves would be greater than shaq wa sin it, and more efficient if less dominant.

Plus the range of duncan and KG leaves driving lanes for Lebron to drive. Lebron's ability to drive rivals duncan's bank shot, Shaq's power dunk, Kareem's hook, the dream shake, the MJ pull-up and the Kobe fade as the best offensive weapons and obviously the most high% play outside of shaq under the basket.

on my team, Lebron will still run offense up top at tims, but a great coach has the best players doing wht they do best ...

BTW chose the bench guys for role playing obviously there are beter choices but with my starters i need role players ... not super duper stars

Yao ming in his prime would give Shaq a little bit more trouble than some are suggesting on this site. Shaq will get his points and he'll dominate if he's inside the paint. But if he catches the ball a little more outside the comfort zone Kobe and manu, whom have great timing, would try to steal the ball from Shaq. Shaq would only have Wade and Bron to throw out too, whom do not have a great catch a shoot jumper.

Parker/Ginobili would push the pace to the way they want it. And a prime Duncan would slow it down when need be.


As far as your team. I like your team in the triangle offense. But thats it. manu is a good pnr player, but not great. When all else fails, the pnr is the deadliest weapon in the game and your going to need a true pg for that. Parker is much better at the pnr than manu. Parker would pressure the defense and open up jumpshots for Manu and Kobe. If that closes up, Manu and Kobe's play making skills will take over. While Yao and Duncan whom are do-it-allers in the middle area and paint area would finish. I think Yao midrange would be deadly if set up because it is literally ungaurdable, where as KG's can still be contested.

KG/Duncan combo is definitely one of the deadliest.

If i had to choose the most talented team it would be:

Chris Paul
Kobe Bryant
Tracy Mcgrady
Tim Duncan
Shaq

^^^

[frodo]

if one game is played between the two teams i'd say the team1 hold a bigger odd of winning since they have superb chemistry and their opponents have none. Yao in prime was just a quality player tbf, not so great but was still a good addition to any squad. Kobe can play good D if he wants to.

however if the two teams are to play a full season, or even a playoff series that only takes 7 games at most, team 2 would be winners and you all know why.

[ynh]

PG- Billups
SG- Bryant
SF- Bron
PF- Duncan
C- Ben Wallace

High FT percentage Backcourt along with great 3 point shooting and great in the clutch. Backcourt is outstanding defensively and at controlling the tempo.

Would like to get a better 3 point shooter at SF but went with lebron.. Great D from him and the ability to switch off positions.

PF and Center you have the two best defensive bigs in the last decade.. great rebounding, help defense, steals, and blocks from a front court.. Only issue is that they suck at FT.. There is enough options on O that there is no issue with the fact Ben isn't much of a scorer...

Only weak link to the team is it's FT shooting in the front court.. Otherwise that's about the best defensive team I could think of that would still be able to control the game into a half court slow tempo game.

[TE]

PG- Billups
SG- Bryant
SF- Bron
PF- Duncan
C- Ben Wallace

High FT percentage Backcourt along with great 3 point shooting and great in the clutch. Backcourt is outstanding defensively and at controlling the tempo.

Would like to get a better 3 point shooter at SF but went with lebron.. Great D from him and the ability to switch off positions.

PF and Center you have the two best defensive bigs in the last decade.. great rebounding, help defense, steals, and blocks from a front court.. Only issue is that they suck at FT.. There is enough options on O that there is no issue with the fact Ben isn't much of a scorer...

Only weak link to the team is it's FT shooting in the front court.. Otherwise that's about the best defensive team I could think of that would still be able to control the game into a half court slow tempo game.

I would probably take team one, but with Ben Wallace at post instead of Yao.

Ben Wallace in his prime just shut down people. Would I take that over Yao ming, yes.

[#2!]

Team 1:
Steve Nash
Manu Ginobili
Reggie Miller
Kevin Garnett
Tim Duncan

Team 1's offense comes down to dumping the ball down to Tim Duncan in the post and surrounding him with plenty of outside shooting (KG included). Steve Nash can also take advantage of the great 3 pt shooting of Miller and Manu, while also dominating with pick and roll/pop with Garnett.

The defense of the guards is a bit shaky and could prove to be the downfall for Team 1. However the combination of Duncan-KG down low would be considered all time great so that may be enough to balance out Nash's slow feet, and even allow for Manu's gambles. The question is though, can any of them hold Shaq to surmountable numbers?

Team 2:
Tony Parker
Allen Iverson
Kobe Bryant
Rasheed Wallace
Shaquille O'Neal

This particular 3 guard lineup along with O'Neal means Team 2 will make their living in the paint. Dumping the ball into the post and letting Shaq back his man down would only narrowly edge out the offensive option of sending any of the 3 smalls into the lane and dumping the ball off to the Diesel for easy dunks. Rasheed Wallace provides versatility on offense; with his polished post game and range playing alongside Shaq might work well. Team 3 could also easily clear out the lane and let either Bryant or AI go iso. Firepower is the name of the game.

On defense this team has some good/great individual defenders, but might not have great team D. The matchups are pretty solid though, so the team D wouldn't be too much of a problem unless team 1 is astounding at execution..

I designed team 1 to be astounding at execution on both ends of the floor. I'd favor team 1.

[ALVAREZ6]

Montecchia
Ginobili
Nocioni
Scola
Oberto

Gold

[rickross]

homer spur fans doin work!

[rickross]

Montecchia
Ginobili
Nocioni
Scola
Oberto

Gold

son lemme give u a tip since u is spurfan and thrid world country fan: there is sport out there were u can play like man not like made flopper.

[jacobdrj]

On the OP's team 1, I would swap our Parker for Billups, Rondo or Rose to compete with Deron. Rondo would be a better defender and setup man, Billups would be a better shooter and defender, and Rose does what Parker does better...

I might also swap out Yao for Ben Wallace in his prime. Only reason I am reluctant is that you would effectively have 2 help side defenders in Ben and Timmay. Ben needs a man on post defender to be most effective.