Scholarship table
I like this list . In my experience Jerry West was a game Changing force on the court and a top 5 level player . Had a huge competitive desire,tough as nails, incredible athleticism could jump to the moon and had very broad shoulders with long arms , was excellent on offense and defense and incredible basketball knowledge . His name was Mr Clutch for a reason.
Bird's stats are crazy though. He was clearly a very good rebounder and passer.
I completely understand why some have him as a top 10 player. He was arguably as important to some of those Lakers teams as Steph is for GS.
I agree. Barry would win numerous scoring titles today with the 3 point shot. But there is no evidence he would be a better player.
How good was Moses? Seems underrated to me.
He was very good. But since he signed with the Sixers to get his ring, his career should be downgraded. But in all seriousness, he was Kareem's top contemporary in the late 70s / early 80s who just didn't have the team around him in Houston. I mean, he dragged the Rockets to the Finals in 1981 by dominating Kareem in the first round.When he signed in Philly, it was a HUGE deal. Everyone knew they were the team to beat.
Someone needs to do a "Where are they now?" retrospective on that kid starting into the camera from between Malone's legs.
Top 5 picks NBA draft? The consensus seens to be Smith #1. I have some concerns about Holmgren. The two guys that I think have great pro potential are Banchero and Ivey. Better pro Murray or Johnny Davis?
Murray
Would you take Holmgren number 2? Ahead of Banchero and Ivey? Maybe the potential is there but I think he could be two years away.
I’d take Holmgren 1. I like Banchero as the safest bet but who knows. A lot will depend on fit and organizational competence
Ivey is a burner and my fav player in the draft. He has that 6th gear. The thing about taking Holmgren 1 is that there are no guarantees he will re-sign for his 2nd contract.
I mean, there aren’t any guarantees anyone signs a 2nd contract
You must of watched some select games.He settled a lot at times rather than relentlessly attack. And his D was borderline sad most of the year.Hes a very high upside lottery pick. But I didnt see any special gear on Ivey that the rest fail to have.
I would have Curry ahead of both of them. Let's just start with the fact and reiterate that he just won a title, at 34, with Andrew Wiggins as his #2. Now when it comes to the top 10 it's extremely difficult because eras are impossible to compare, guys train much differently, and the game has changed a lot. For example I don't look at Wilt, Shaq, Jabbar, Duncan, or Russell as players that can't be high on the list. I also believe it's important to recognize that that there were far fewer teams in the past and that an argument can be made that the competition was better on a regular basis, not worse. The bottom line is it's very difficult to rank players because the post game really doesn't exist anymore and bigs in particular didn't handle the ball and play on the perimeter like they do today. At the same time that doesn't mean people would rate Jabbar or Duncan behind Anthony Davis and Tatum. At least not right now. But since it's fun to rank and discuss I will share my top 10 and where I would slot Curry. I can't put him ahead of Jordan, Jabbar, or James and I would imagine most would echo this sentiment. After that is where it gets tough. You have the Magic, Bird, Wilt tier.....is Curry realistically in their class or better? Wilt changed the game and statistically was unmatched. Magic and Bird also changed the game but had much shorter careers than Curry. And guess what? Curry isn't done. He may get a 5th ring and three as the #1 option. As for Wilt? Yes, he only has two rings but he played against a Celtics team with much greater overall talent. Anyway, here is my top 10:10) Russell 9) Shaq8) Duncan 7) Bird 6) Magic5) Chamberlain 4) Curry3) James2) Jabbar 1) Jordan * Statistically is very difficult not to have Robertson in the Top 10** Olajuwon, Kobe, and Durant were hard to leave off.*** Giannis and Doncic could one day be considered **** Curry trails only one player as the best pound for pound of all-time and can't catch him because he's a foot taller.
But of course we don't know that.
Thanks for the response, Muggs.I agree that what Curry accomplished this season was special, yet another great achievement in a great career.I like your list because you're being honest and taking a swing at a very difficult thing to do, as you mentioned in your post.For me, the only player on your list I'd put Curry ahead of is Shaq, and even him I'm not certain about. But I don't claim to know I'm "right." There's no way to prove any of this.I could nitpick about other things but that's kinda the whole idea of these conversation-starter kinds of things. It's why people love lists and rankings (or love to hate lists and rankings). I also agree with 9-9-9 that West is underrated ... but everybody can't be in the top 10.My top three would be Michael, LeBron and Magic, but I wouldn't be the least bit bothered by anybody who thinks Kareem, Russell and/or Wilt should be in there, too.I also tend to agree with what Barry is saying -- not only about himself but applying it to many others. I think if the most driven of the 60s, 70s and 80s era players were competing today, they would have trained to be bigger, stronger and more agile. And in the case of the non-centers, they'd have focused a lot more on 3-point shooting. Of course. We don't "know" lots of things on this subject (and many others). It's literally impossible to "know" how Rick Barry or Larry Bird or Moses Malone would do today. But these are fun conversations that let us speculate a lot.