If anything Jim would dominate even more in tdays nba tbh
Because defense is what prevented guys like Steve Nash and Steph Curry and Dirk and Harden from being MVPs over the past decade and a half...
Jokic isn’t an MVP candidate because in this offensive explosion of an era, a guy who scores 20 PPG might as well be scoring 12 PPG. There will be multiple players who hover around or over 30 PPG in today’s game, and they’ll always be viewed as MVP contenders. Right or wrong, agree or disagree, that’s just how it will be. Anthony Davis’ best season where he put up 28/11/2.6 blks/1.5 stls and led a Pels teams to their best record in like a decade, and he still finished behind Harden and LeBron for the MVP.
If anything Jim would dominate even more in tdays nba tbh
Being a sexual, it's quite likely he would be drafted #1 no matter since it'd be a good PR move. Rockets would love him
Sure Duncan would be in the NBA. But would he get a lot of bench time like Capella, Boban, etc?
Once Shaq got that first le he started piling on weight and it would be over for him. His pick n roll defense was maybe the worst in the NBA. Really would have required him slimming down and he just never had such discipline.
Boban can actually make a FT.
1. You are right about Harden,Dirk,Nash,Curry. I didn't consider them when I thought about the defensive aspect of my argument. I was just factoring in why I feel Jokic is flawed. It's possible Jokic could win an MVP if the Nuggets have a break through season of winning 60 plus games and finish with the best record in the league. Winning I still believe helps tremendously in winning the MVP. Think about it Nash won 2 MVP's and it was mainly due to leading his Sun teams to elite records.
2. Davis was never going to get the MVP simply because his Pels didn't finish with a top 4 record. Westbrook is the only guy in the last 40 years to win the MVP and not have a team with a top 4 record so it's rare you are going to get the award if your team is not elite.
There's no way he'd sniff top 5 today. He'd be better than Gobert still, but come on.
all this tbh
plus the way you are allowed to defend the post is much different now as well, with zone defense being allowed. it allows much more strategy for denying the ball getting into the post cleanly. previously, you either had to blatantly send a double or it was an illegal defense. but with zone being allowed, teams can shade to discourage the entry pass much differently. the 04 Pistons were a perfect example of this in how they defended shaq in the finals. once shaq got the ball, it was pretty much an easy bucket, he could have averaged 40ppg that series, but they did such a good job denying him the ball in spots he was comfortable, that he just didn't get nearly as many opportunities as he would have liked. so many times they just couldn't cleanly get it into him, and had to leave it to kobe to find some way to make something out of nothing with a short shot clock against a defense full of wings who could make him work. take away the allowing of zone defense, and i highly doubt detroit wins that series.
its just not as easy anymore to consistently get clean passes into the post with room to operate, even with a bunch of three point shooters around. defensive strategy has evolved to help reduce the effectiveness of low post players.
But he could shoot 80 FG on dunks against these center-less teams.
What about his pathetic pick n roll defense though? You think he could get away with it in this day and age?
He'd have had to retired five years earlier or gotten in better shape; but I think you're over thinking it some.
Shaq would have a nice career in China imho
I know one thing. Young Dunc wouldn't be getting on by P.J. Tucker.
duncan would be a rich man jahlil okafor they both have the same offensive skill set
back to the basket big men are dead. he’d still be a starter because of his defense but he’s pretty much useless offensively. 15 ppg and 10 rpg would be his ceiling.
he’d be a top 7 big man for sure, above deandre ayton and steven adams.
Just because your boy AD can't back down PJ Tucker and Harden doesn't mean back to the basket style of play isn't effective.
Just because your boy AD can't back down PJ Tucker and Harden doesn't mean back to the basket style of play isn't effective.
come on bruh. i like duncan tbh but what i spit is nothing but truth.
duncan wouldn’t be a top 10 player in this association.
kawhi
lebron
harden
giannis
steph
KD
Luka
AD
tatum
lillard
donovan mitc
jimmy butler
cp3
would all be in front of duncan
ya cant build a championship with a center in today’s era.
prime kobe would be a god if he played in today’s game
The only big man today that has a legit back to the basket game is Jokic and very few guys can guard him. No way would you ever see Harden or PJ Tucker trying to guard him. Only reason Jokic is not a top 5 player is because he's a poor defender and limited on the defensive end. Hard for me not to see Duncan not being even more dominant on the offensive end after watching what Jokic is doing. Duncan would be able to dominant the defensive end unlike Jokic.
Playing back to the basket is lost art. It's why AD and Giannis are both getting exposed right now because both don't have the ability to play that type of game. AD can't do it simply because he's not strong enough to do it. Giannis can't do it because he never developed the footwork and fundamental skill set to do it.
Nah.
Peak Duncan would easily be the 2nd best player today. Probably even the best player.
That was a champion and the smartest superstar i have ever seen play the game of basketball.
if jokic is your standard, be advised that he’s ineffective as seen in the playoffs
jamal murray had to drop 2 50 pt games to carry that bamma to the second round
AD is a soft ass but he’s still much more valuable than duncan because of his offense.
defensively it’s a tie. dont think duncan can guard perimeter players like AD so by virtue, brow would be ranked higher in today’s association.
duncan as the 1st option on any team would either make um worse or you wont see a significant improvement.
replace giannis with prime duncan and the heat would still run circles on that bucks team, fasho.
this is not an insult, its just the reality of today’s low quality, trash game.
...the “smartest” angle is probably one of the dumbest take tbh.
there’s plenty of dumb players with championship rangs.
talent/organization >*
1. Jokic was the reason why the nuggest won the series. Murray was terrible in game 7. It was Jokic that nuggets went to in the 4 quarter to win the game and get buckets. For a bum Jokic average 26 pts and 8 rebound along with 5 assists on above 50 percent shooting. I know you will bring up Murray's 50 point games but Jokic's presence on the court plays a huge role in Murray being able to get easy buckets. Jokic was also statistically better than Murray in the playoffs last year. Last year Jokic in the playoffs average 25-13-8 on 50 percent shooting while Murray averaged 21-4-4 on 42 percent shooting. It's clear Jokic is the best player on the Nuggets. Go ask Nuggets fans who they value more and they will tell you it's Jokic.
2. Only thing AD does better on the offensive end compared to prime Duncan is he's a much better jump shooter. I'm not a fan of AD's game and never have been. He's in the mold of a Garnett-Robinson-Bosh type of bigman which is he's reliant on shooting jumpers and slashing to the basket to get his on the offensive end but has little to no post up game. It's why Houston can get away with guarding him with midgets and force the Lakers to play their game. Historically you don't win with those type of bigs as your number 1 option. I don't see prime Duncan struggling defensively he was great at switching on rotations and also has higher IQ than AD on the defensive end.
3. Duncan would not struggle against Bam Adebyo. The problem with Giannis game is he's a 7 ft Russell Westbrook. He's reliant just barreling his way to the basket for a lay up or a dunk. He has no counters to doing anything else once a team forms a wall around him. It's what has hurt the bucks down the stretch when the game has gotten close against the Heat in the 4th quarter. Duncan again is great at switching so I don't see how he would have any problems defending against the Heat.
And then in 2011 he somehow got better again, culminating in his First Team All-NBA selection in 2013.
So... I'm confused. When are we saying this modern NBA started? Because Tim Duncan, on one knee, was the best player on a championship team in 2014, and was a bounce away from being finals mvp in 2013. He was smart and skilled enough to transition from the best post big in the league to arguably the best PNR big in the league by 2013. He could've adjusted to anything.
Prime Timmy could hit the outside shot, had a faceup offensive game, and was one of the few bigs in the league along with Garnett and Wallace who could hedge on 3 point shooters and recover to his man/protect the rim. He routinely took guys off the dribble and either finished at the rim or made one of his finesse moves to score. He was much more than a low post scorer.
Just imagine today's "switch everything" defense putting a guard on prime Timmy...he would average 30 or 20 and 7-8 assists depending on the team's double strategy.
Embiid and Jokic are both arguably top 10 players in today's game. Timmy was better than both. Surround that man with shooters, and one perimeter play maker, even today, and it's over.
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