LAL1947 wrote:a8bil wrote:LAL1947 wrote:Personally, I'd pick Larry over Tim Duncan in a draft 10 times out of 10. Timmy only has longevity over Larry, and that was due to an unfortunate off-court incident with Larry. I'd even go so far as to say that Timmy is on the verge of being knocked out of the All-time Top 10, i.e., if Giannis (the new best PF of all-time?) can continue in the same way that he has been.
Only because the casual fan can't understand in how many ways Duncan impacted the game. Years from now, there will be fanboys saying, Draymond who? That sportcaster? Looks at his numbers...they are garbage...Kevin Willis was better,,,blah, blah, blah.
So now I'm a casual fan because I feel that we do not hold Duncan or his career under the same microscope that we do other, better all-time greats... nor do we truthfully state the quality of his teammates (Kawhi, Parker, Ginobili, Robinson,
Finley, Bowen, Barry, Malik Rose, Daniels, etc, etc) while we always talk about the stacked Celtics, Lakers, Bulls, Heat, GSW, Nets, etc... nor do we factor in the Front Office excellence and stability he enjoyed at the Spurs compared to others... resulting in him being held up higher than he should be? FWIW, I do think the Bucks are currently quite stacked as a team too. Anyway, I'm taking a jab at Duncan here because there are a few Duncan-fans on this forum who will compare Giannis to Duncan's competitors for a Top-10 spot (like Kobe) to safeguard their dear Timmy... while ignoring the most obvious comparison there is to be made, Power Forward vs Power Forward, Duncan vs Giannis.
And please don't come at me with that gibberish about Draymond. I've been singing his praises as a defender and play-maker from well before it was fashionable. He is an integral part of their movement-oriented offense as well as how good they defend as a team. Intelligence can sometimes make up a lot for a lack of height or athleticism. There are many similarities to be drawn between Draymond and Sergio Busquets, if you also follow soccer.
Michael Finley joined the Spurs when he was 32, 5 years removed from his last all-star season. In 27 minutes a game he averaged 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 turnover while shooting 41%. He was washed.
Brent Barry had 8 years when he scored 10 or more points in a game. All of them were before he joined the Spurs at the age of 33. Brent Barry had 6 seasons when he had 3 or more assists a game, but all of them were before he joined the Spurs.
Malik Rose's career averages are 6 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist per game.
In 99 when the Spurs won the championship Antonio Daniels averaged 1.8 ppg, 0.7 rebounds, 1.1 assists.
Kawhi, Parker, Ginobili, and Robinson were all great players, but the rest not so much. And Duncan in 03 goes down with Dirk in 11, Jordan in 98, and Hakeem in 94 as one of the greatest carry jobs of all time. Robinson was 37, Tony Parker was 20, and Ginobili was a rookie. No other Spur made the all-star team, yet Duncan beat the Shaq and Kobe lakers and was dominant in the playoffs. 25, 15, 5, and 3 while shooting 53% from the field.
I do think that Duncan had much better teammates than KG and Dirk, but he's still better.
And I don't consider Duncan to be a power forward. He played 63% of his career minutes at center during the regular season, and 71% of his playoff minutes at center. They played him at power forward when they had Robinson, just like how Hakeem played power forward when the Rockets had Ralph Sampson.
No matter how you make a top 10 list, some great player is going to be left out, but I don't think I'd ever leave Duncan out.
