How good was prime Arvydas Sabonis?

The Laker Kid · Post #21 » by **The Laker Kid** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 5:04 am

He was a lethargic Roy Hibbert. Shaq owned him everytime they met. I even remember a game where Sabonis got so pissed and cried on the bench.

weberoth · Post #22 » by **weberoth** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 6:01 am

As a F.C Barcelona fan,i can only respect the guy.Man he got game.He played for Real Madrid some years and was a Beast.
Had some range,crazy passing,incredible touch around the rim...its a shame than the NBA got the already dead knees version...Damn i hated the guy.He used to destroy Barsa like it was nothing.

As i said,respect!!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06usV6451ik[/youtube]

kangarooaus · Post #23 » by **kangarooaus** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 6:49 am

One of the great unknowns in basketball history. It was so hard to know what the domestic league was like in the USSR in the early 80s, unless you were living there. The myth grew in the West though, every time he would play in international competition. But truthfully it is difficult to know how he would have fared. He did have a plethora of moves and was a giant of a man with quick footwork, great court vision and a great long distance release. But overall, no idea how he would have looked if he came to Portland earlier or if he didn't do his achilles at a young age. Overall though, I'd say he would have at the very least been a very good to great NBA center in the 80s and the rest is a who knows............

Black Jack · Post #24 » by **Black Jack** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 8:07 am

I feel like pre horrible injuries Yao is a better comparison than the Gasols. Maybe Walton but for Sabonis he had that extra height advantage, he seems more in the range of the 7-2 to 7-4 or so freaks but with better mobility and athleticism than almost anyone as a young super tall guy.

He did a good job against Shaq despite his physical limitations at that age.

Tomazan · Post #25 » by **Tomazan** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 8:15 am

A few weeks ago

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPNgG9aJMPw[/youtube]

NBAfan3024 · Post #26 » by **NBAfan3024** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 8:21 am

Mvp contender easily...that guy destroyed Robinson during the Olympics really made people take notice

DNP - Old · Post #27 » by **DNP - Old** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 8:34 am

Kareem Abdul Jabonis.

TimRobbins · Post #28 » by **TimRobbins** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 9:59 am

tsherkin wrote:Young, faster, more explosive, healthier... I think it is a reasonable bet to expect something like an efficient 20/11/3 from Sabonis. Maybe a little more of the scoring depending on the given team and year, but yeah, he'd be really good.

I think you're selling him short. A young, healthy Sabonis would be a 25ppg scorer and a triple double machine. If there's one guy I wish I could have seen playing in his prime in the NBA it's Sabonis. If only the cold war had ended sooner.

mixerball · Post #29 » by **mixerball** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 10:06 am

He did a good job on prime shaq with everything already ruined in his body including both achilles. We all know his soft touch, passing and iq but he was an athletic beast prior to injuries. He could dunk from the foul line.

JesusHCoxMd · Post #30 » by **JesusHCoxMd** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 12:21 pm

The Laker Kid wrote:He was a lethargic Roy Hibbert. Shaq owned him everytime they met. I even remember a game where Sabonis got so pissed and cried on the bench.

Well it kinda means he cared, unlike Dwight Howard who has no emotion about losing just keeps smiling at everyone and tries to be everyones friend.

chrismikayla · Post #31 » by **chrismikayla** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 1:24 pm

I had also heard he had some Dirk like qualities to his game when he was young.

Post #32 » by **tsherkin** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 1:44 pm

TimRobbins wrote:
tsherkin wrote:Young, faster, more explosive, healthier... I think it is a reasonable bet to expect something like an efficient 20/11/3 from Sabonis. Maybe a little more of the scoring depending on the given team and year, but yeah, he'd be really good.

I think you're selling him short. A young, healthy Sabonis would be a 25ppg scorer and a triple double machine. If there's one guy I wish I could have seen playing in his prime in the NBA it's Sabonis. If only the cold war had ended sooner.

It 's possible. He was a 22 PTS36 guy in his first NBA season and something like 62% TS. It's quite possible that he could have elevated his scoring volume with more mobility and more minutes. Very late-90s Malone options as far as PnP, and of course he was a block beast too.

TimRobbins · Post #33 » by **TimRobbins** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 1:47 pm

tsherkin wrote:
TimRobbins wrote:
tsherkin wrote:Young, faster, more explosive, healthier... I think it is a reasonable bet to expect something like an efficient 20/11/3 from Sabonis. Maybe a little more of the scoring depending on the given team and year, but yeah, he'd be really good.

I think you're selling him short. A young, healthy Sabonis would be a 25ppg scorer and a triple double machine. If there's one guy I wish I could have seen playing in his prime in the NBA it's Sabonis. If only the cold war had ended sooner.

It 's possible. He was a 22 PTS36 guy in his first NBA season and something like 62% TS. It's quite possible that he could have elevated his scoring volume with more mobility and more minutes. Very late-90s Malone options as far as PnP, and of course he was a block beast too.

He was unbelievably versatile offensively. He could shoot from anywhere on the court, including the 3pt line. He was unstoppable in the post and he was a beast on the offensive boards. He was the most skilled bug man I have ever seen. On par with prime Hakeem, but bigger and stronger.

Post #34 » by **tsherkin** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 2:33 pm

TimRobbins wrote:He was unbelievably versatile offensively. He could shoot from anywhere on the court, including the 3pt line. He was unstoppable in the post and he was a beast on the offensive boards. He was the most skilled bug man I have ever seen. On par with prime Hakeem, but bigger and stronger.

Hmmm. Versatility means only so much. He had legit 3pt range in the NBA only with the pulled-in line, though that certainly highlights that he could step out to 21, 22 feet and stick a J... although that means only so much at that FG%.

Anyway, you wouldn't want to leave him open in the corners, but he'd have never been there, just wouldn't make sense. Yeah, he'd be a monster on the block, but I also think that he'd see more time in the high post/elbow areas, because of his passing. It'd be like if Chris Webber wasn't tissue-soft, you know? He was all about the no-look drop passes and hand-offs, etc, and with that J, he'd have been a nightmare for the defense right there. Then, when they needed a bucket, BOOM, 7'3 280 on the block.

I hesitate to put a lot of stock into the 25+ ppg on a regular basis kind of angle because as awesome as he was, that's usually not the best way to deploy a big unless they're really an ATG scoring threat who can pass very well. To me, it looks a lot more like Sabas would be better deployed as a low/mid 20s guy who passes really well, trading some low-block efficiency for high post passing threat to enable to team (and of course the team O is more important than individual volume).

But there is absolutely no question in my mind that he'd be a nightmare for the league, for sure.

chrismikayla · Post #35 » by **chrismikayla** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 2:34 pm

Also he might be the best passing big man I have ever seen even on destroyed legs.

Prokorov · Post #36 » by **Prokorov** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 3:04 pm

taufblazers33 wrote:Thats a player who you dont read about much and I have not witnessed his greatness (or lack of) aside from the Lakers Blazers playoff battles in the late 90s.
How good of a player was he and which recent player resembles Aryvads's game? I think he is one of the most unique big men NBA has seen.

His prime wasnt in the NBA. but popular opinion has him as one of the 50 greatest players of all time. the range on him goes from "hall of famer" to "GOAT better then jordan who spits fire and craps thunder"

He was an athletic 7+ foot center with the size/muscle of a big man and the shooting skills of an elite stretch big. one of the best passers the game has seen (at any position, not just at center) and an elite bbiq to go along with skills, toughness, defense, and muscle.

how he would have fared in the NBA in his prime is completely subjective... but in his mid to late 30s and with bad knees/injuries at the tail end of his career he posted 16/10/3/1 on 21 PER 59TS% with pretty elite on off numbers and a Ortg of 113 and drating of 97.

i think if he played in the NBA during his prime you are looking at an elite player. something like 25/12/7/3 on elite efficiency and multiple rings/DPOTY awards.

chrismikayla · Post #37 » by **chrismikayla** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 3:10 pm

https://youtu.be/VGrC-VT6JtQ

A 31 point, 10 rebound, 7 assist effort from him.

Prokorov · Post #38 » by **Prokorov** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 3:14 pm

cold_cowboy wrote:there are no truly comparable players to sabonis, but marc would be closest. i've heard both the gasol brothers say they've been highly influenced by sabonis' game and i think it's fairly obvious, as he played in spain for a number of years.

i dont see the gasol comparisons at all. i dont think arvydus plays anything like him. both in style or approach. offensively he was on a whole different planet then gasol

Post #39 » by **tsherkin** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 3:24 pm

Prokorov wrote:
cold_cowboy wrote:there are no truly comparable players to sabonis, but marc would be closest. i've heard both the gasol brothers say they've been highly influenced by sabonis' game and i think it's fairly obvious, as he played in spain for a number of years.

i dont see the gasol comparisons at all. i dont think arvydus plays anything like him. both in style or approach. offensively he was on a whole different planet then gasol

In as much as they're quality shot blockers who can score reasonably well and make passes while being very tall, there's a comparison. I think the difference is that Sabas was more creative a passer and had a broader scoring arsenal on top of that. Obviously, I suspect a younger Sabonis would have had a lot more mobility, as well. It's not an awful comparison, so long as you constrain discussion of Marc within the idea that you're talking about actual Portland Sabonis.

Prokorov · Post #40 » by **Prokorov** » Wed Sep 2, 2015 3:35 pm

tsherkin wrote:

In as much as they're quality shot blockers who can score reasonably well and make passes while being very tall, there's a comparison. I think the difference is that Sabas was more creative a passer and had a broader scoring arsenal on top of that. Obviously, I suspect a younger Sabonis would have had a lot more mobility, as well. It's not an awful comparison, so long as you constrain discussion of Marc within the idea that you're talking about actual Portland Sabonis.

i guess i dont view sabonis as someone who can "score reasonably well". i see sabonis as a 24ppg scorer or better in the nba in any era in his prime. gasol is a 12-15 ppg guy.

As a rebounder i think the compairson is even worse. i think sabonis is a guy who would be top 5 every year while gasol has never seen double digits.

and while marc has been DPOTY, i view arvydas as having a bigger defensive impact. i think even the version of sabonis we saw in portland was better defensively.

i just think its really far off. from style to production. other then both being big foreign white guys i dont see anything all that similar.