Where do you rank Moses Malone among Centers?

[bwgood77]

Big family Christmas discussion on this. Seems like most have DRob ahead. But should he be?

[SkyHookFTW]

Big family Christmas discussion on this. Seems like most have DRob ahead. But should he be?

He is 6th on my list behind (in no particular order) Wilt, Shaq, Kareem, Russell, Dream. I have DRob 7th on my list.

[dhsilv2]

Obvious guys ahead of him
Duncan
Wilt
Russell
Shaq
Kareem
Hakeem

Then similar level

Robinson
Jokic (yep moving him on up)

[bwgood77]

Obvious guys ahead of him
Duncan
Wilt
Russell
Shaq
Kareem
Hakeem

Then similar level

Robinson
Jokic (yep moving him on up)

That's about what I was thinking, though I didn't think of TD I guess since most consider him a PF though I know he's really more of a C. I also thought of Jokic who will end up somewhere in there but kind of decided I shouldn't really rank guys until their career is either over or on the downside.

[nfmos]

Honestly i just think its awesome you guys are having a Christmas family debate about Moses Malone in 2021, thats awesome

[dhsilv2]

Obvious guys ahead of him
Duncan
Wilt
Russell
Shaq
Kareem
Hakeem

Then similar level

Robinson
Jokic (yep moving him on up)

That's about what I was thinking, though I didn't think of TD I guess since most consider him a PF though I know he's really more of a C. I also thought of Jokic who will end up somewhere in there but kind of decided I shouldn't really rank guys until their career is either over or on the downside.

Was kinda debating Jokic before I said it...but if Walton is making top 75 lists, I think Jokic at this point is a better player than he was at his best (I'm open to a debate there, it's not some "not close" deal). I think we have so many insanely good years for Jokic at this point and after last year, I can't see this year as just some "in the moment" thing either.

I should add I wanted to add Embiid but I have more questions on him but I think his play warrants being in this discussion.

The one guy I left off was Mikan, which I'm now thinking should be there, but god he's era is weird. And I think Ewing maybe should be on that tier with Moses but I think Moses was better.

[Blacksheep25]

Honestly i just think its awesome you guys are having a Christmas family debate about Moses Malone in 2021, thats awesome

My first thought. Actually my first thought was I wish my family was cool enough to have a Moses debate at Christmas dinner in 2021

[wojoaderge]

KAJ
Wilt
Russ
Mikan
Dream
Shaq
Moses

[Tim Kempton]

Pretty much what most others said here. KAJ, Olajuwon, Wilt, Russell, Shaq are better. Mikan depending on how you rank the OGs. After that, he's the divide between that tier and DRob and Ewing.

[ellobo]

Moses Malone was one of my favorite players and someone who I think tends to be underrated by people who never saw him play.

Offensively, Moses was a great post up and midrange face up shooter, with a very quick first step facing up.

He wasn't just a power player. He was very skilled and had a multidimensional offensive game. I've seen him in warmups hitting turnaround three-pointer after turnaround three pointer with an assistant coach planting a forearm in his back.

He was a bouncy athlete who had a very quick jump off the floor, and a quick second, third and fourth jump, and he had incredibly quick feet.

[Del] Harris said Malone was much more athletic than given credit for. He had a first-class drop step for a short turnaround jump shot and could torture taller, more lumbering centers — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, most notably — with quickness off the dribble. When the Rockets ran sprints, Malone would regularly beat smaller teammates to the finish.

Harris recalled Robert Reid, who was 6 feet 8 inches, once jumping up and tapping his head to the rim with a running start. Malone, at 6-10, said, “That’s nothing,” walked over and did it from a standing position.

https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/17/sports/basketball/moses-malone-was-easy-to-overlook-but-undeniably-great.html

He was also a fiercely relentless competitor who could carry teams and played big in big moments. In the 1983 Finals against Kareem, he averaged 25.8 points, 18.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.5 steals.

A Moses Malone fun fact that I post every time Moses is mentioned:
Moses Malone has 2566 more offensive rebounds than anyone else in professional basketball history*** (NBA and ABA).

Moses has 53.28% more offensive rebounds than 2nd place ABA/NBA combined (Artis Gilmore)
Moses has 46.39% more offensive rebounds than 2nd place NBA only (Robert Parish)

The difference in total offensive rebounds between Moses (1st) and Artis Gilmore (2nd) is bigger than the difference between Artis Gilmore and number 73 on the career list (Vin Baker).

[***Offensive rebounds have been recorded since 1973-74 (NBA) and 1967-68 (ABA). Malone is third in career total rebounds behind Wilt and Russell.]

Finally, Moses stars in (and I believe improvised the voiceover for) my all-time favorite NBA-themed commercial:

"At the age of fourteen I discovered the secret: Pick the one thing you do best and work at it.
So while every other kid were trying to be the next Iceman, I were hittin' the boards.
Because I figure: If you ain't got the ball, you can't shoot the ball."

Watch on YouTube

[TaylorTRoom]

I loved Moses. In his era, he was a top center. He wouldn’t be a fit in the modern game, I admit.

[ty 4191]

For what it's worth, Moses is 5th all time in Win Shares in NBA/ABA history among all Centers, 4th in WS/48, 7th in VORP.

That's damned impressive. He played forever, at a very, very high level.

What's a metric that looks at peak value?

How strong was his defense?

How does he compare to David Robinson and Hakeem Olajuwon?

[ty 4191]

Big family Christmas discussion on this. Seems like most have DRob ahead. But should he be?

DRob blows Moses out of the water in quality/peak stats, I'd say. Both in the playoffs and RS.

WS/48
BPM
VORP
PER

Etc.

But Moses blows Robinson out of the water in career value/longevity stats.

Fair to say?

Who was better in the playoffs?

[Dutchball97]

Yeah he's probably behind Kareem, Russell, Wilt, Shaq and Hakeem for everyone. Robinson and Mikan could be argued over Moses as well but are less clear.

[gottamakeit]

For a boneheaded minute i was thinking of the Mavs center Moses Brown instead of Moses Malone

[pipfan]

I have KAJ, Hakeem, Shaq, Russell and Wilt about him, for sure
I have him even with DRob and above Ewing-we'll see where Jokic ends up

[kuclas]

Wilt Kareem Russell Shaq The Dream than Moses.

So Moses is up there with the very best.

People always like to modern era to how Moses fit. But Moses played when he played and he was dominant and a winner. 3 time league mvp.

[Winsome Gerbil]

Traditionally Moses was ranked #6 or so, after Wilt/Kareem/Russell/Shaq/Hakeem, with the biggest differentiating factor being his defense. But I remember a couple of years ago in a ranking thread I took a real hard look at his career and I just couldn't justify keeping him up over Admiral any longer despite the MVPs.

Huge rebounder, more relentless than brilliant offensively, incredibly durable and iron manny. Steady rock. Meh defender though, and a critical although not always noted fact -- like McHale and Ewing, he didn't pass. One of the reasons he was less sparkly as an offensive player than some of the others. His overall level of achievement is still greater than Ewing or the current guys, but both Jokic (even bigger defensive issues though) and Embiid are arguably more talented, if they can ever get within shouting distance of Moses's career (unlikely with Embiid, possible on Jokic).

[bwgood77]

I wonder where Arydas Sabonis would rank had he played his whole career in the NBA.

[Norm2953]

I've got Letting Moses Malone go along with not drafting MJ as the two biggest mistakes in the
history of the Portland Trailblazers for one can at least understand drafting Greg Oden.

Portland's 1977 titles need not have ended prematurely for their 1977 team built around Malone,
Maurice Lucas and Lionel Hollins should have been competitive with anyone until the showtime Lakers
and Celtics came onto the scene in the 80's