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There were legitimate talks about Manu being nearly as good as Kobe, just with less minutes, circa 2005. He used to be unstoppable. I'd put him at about the same production as Paul Pierce - another player that could sometimes be the best in the league.

Whoa.. Manu is really loved in here.. Ima use that word so I wont say Overrated Lol

Manu was a product of Pop, Parker and Duncan... no way Manu has the skillset to carry a team.. a team with him as the best player wouldnt even make the playoffs... He was put in the perfect situation and made the best of it and now people think he could have been better if he was the man.. Man, stop overrating these players!!

Ito wrote:Whoa.. Manu is really loved in here.. Ima use that word so I wont say Overrated Lol

Manu was a product of Pop, Parker and Duncan... no way Manu has the skillset to carry a team.. a team with him as the best player wouldnt even make the playoffs... He was put in the perfect situation and made the best of it and now people think he could have been better if he was the man.. Man, stop overrating these players!!

So who was he a product of on the Argentina team

Mirjalovic wrote:He has nice fundamental & real skills, also very smart bball player. If he healthy enough to play extended minutes, i believe he doesnt far away from Kobe, even sometimes in burst i think he is the best player in the game. You guys underrating him.

So Manu jumps from top 60-70 all-time to top 15-20 all-time?

CHA_77_Bobcats wrote:

Mirjalovic wrote:He has nice fundamental & real skills, also very smart bball player. If he healthy enough to play extended minutes, i believe he doesnt far away from Kobe, even sometimes in burst i think he is the best player in the game. You guys underrating him.

So Manu jumps from top 60-70 all-time to top 15-20 all-time?

I wouldn't go that far, but he could definitely have been a top 50 if he went the route the OP suggests. However, I think he's more than happy as it is. He's bound to be in the HOF after he retires, no other player has accomplished as much in basketball, NBA and international combined, than Manu Ginobili. Obviously he never got the MVP's, although its arguable he could have gotten a Finals MVP at least once simply due to his clutch heroics.

-Kees- wrote:But he isn't a 1st option on a title team.

That's the key right there. There are a lot of players in this league if you put them on a crappy team give them the green light that can score 25ppg.

DanTown8587 wrote:Completely depends on guys 2-12, but his teams could have been top 3-4 seeds in their confremce and competing for conference championships.

I don't think so. With a great 2nd-3rd option, good and cohesive supporting cast and coaching staff he could lead his team to the playoffs, but as a low seed and maybe if they're lucky and get a good match up make it to the second round but that would be it. Basically the Roy-led Blazers without Oden.

Manu's had a great career, not really worthy of a "what could have been" situation. He's been an international superstar, and a multiple-ring-winning important piece of his team. Easily a HOF'er.

Manu would've have been exposed if he was a main building block of a team. The guy is a great player for the role he is given in However, I just don't think he has enough talent to put a team on his back to have a winning culture.

Phoenix would have been great for his. Run and gun and good medical care

The problem with Manu is his durability. He would have a few elite seasons thats it. He does not have the durability to be a starter for several seasons.

TheToothFairy wrote:Phoenix would have been great for his. Run and gun and good medical care

True. He could probably help Nash win a ring or two.

Ito wrote:Whoa.. Manu is really loved in here.. Ima use that word so I wont say Overrated Lol

Manu was a product of Pop, Parker and Duncan... no way Manu has the skillset to carry a team.. a team with him as the best player wouldnt even make the playoffs... He was put in the perfect situation and made the best of it and now people think he could have been better if he was the man.. Man, stop overrating these players!!

he won everything there is to win wherever he was playing

and did that with team on his shoulder
he shouldered the spurs too when they needed him

and for manu (and european me) these numbers (25-5-5) mean nothing
its the TEAM play,team success and championships that its all about
and manu decortated himself quite nicely over the years

he was the first option everywhere except the spurs

you cant use overrated and manu in the same sentence

Manu's going to be a HOFer, so all this talk is moot

Some important facts:
About duration: Manu played his best seasons stat wise when he rested in the summer. Also, he came to the NBA at 25/26 years old..
About stats: Spurs has always been a deep team, so no one had BIG stats (ala Kevin Love) since 2003.
About being 2nd/3rd option: everybody knows Timmy was the guy, but Manu always had the ball in his hands in the last minutes of games, so that makes his an unusual 2nd/3rd option, right?

Manu as the Man would have averaged 25/4.5/5 on 46 % shooting

Stat Padder wrote:Manu as the Man would have averaged 25/4.5/5 on 46 % shooting

I think 46% shooting is a stretch I'd say 44

Great player/competitor, but he's the been the benefactor of playing with one of the best big men ever. I don't think he could've had nearly the same career being a #1 option. He probably would've ended up being the guard version of Luis Scola.

Stat Padder wrote:Manu as the Man would have averaged 25/4.5/5 on 46 % shooting

This is funny coming from the "statpadder". Because he would have to do some serious stat padding to avg those numbers. lol