RealGM

You need length, strength, and mobility.

I'd like to nominate pre-broken foot Kevin McHale. 6'10" barefoot & 235 pounds, with a 96-inch wingspan and a gargantuan standing reach. Kevin was quite mobile before wrecking his foot. He was a smooth, fluid, and flexible mover with quick feet and jumping, great rotational mobility (flip hips, 180-degree recoveries), solid lateral and backward movement, and a sturdy, barrel-chested, wide-bodied frame, with a penchant for physicality.

Kevin's unique blend of size and athleticism gave him a startling degree of front-court defensive versatility. He effectively guarded FWDs as short as 6'4" to 6'5" (Dantley, Barkley) and PF & Cs as big as 7'2" to 7'4" (Kareem, Sampson*). Technically, he guarded 7-foot-7-inch Manute Bol, but that's no tough assignment. I've watched games where Kevin defended Dr. J, Barkley, and Moses at different points. Or, Bernard King and Moses.

*Ralph was listed as 7'4" but was more like 7'2".

His 1986 Playoffs were quite remarkable, on both ends. He locked down Woolridge in the first round, blocking him about a million times. Held him to 40.3% FG (-9.2) and 45.9% TS (-10.1). He then shut down Dominique better than I've ever seen anyone in the ECSF.—39.8% FG (-7.0) and 49.4% TS (-4.2). After that, it was Terry Cummings in the ECF; Kevin held him to 40.3% FG (-7.1) and 43.9% TS (-6.4).

And to finish off, he made life hell for Ralph while helping out in spurts on Hakeem. Sampson shot 43.8% FG (-5.4) and 48.7% TS (-2.9) while Olajuwon did 47.9% FG (-4.7) and 52.6% TS (-3.4).

Numbers in brackets indicate how much below their 1985-86 RS average.

From what I've seen, McHale (pre-injury) was genuinely one of the best PF/Cs at guarding out on the perimeter. I'd liken him to Joakim Noah (6'10" barefoot, 7'1.25" wingspan) with nearly a foot more of wingspan and at least half a foot of standing reach.

Here are some GIFs of McHale's defensive versatility:

Defending 76ers Charles Barkley:

Dipper 13 wrote:

Biddy77 wrote:Nobody should EVER advocate giving Barkley ground in the paint.

Yes, considering Barkley is perhaps the best interior finisher in NBA history that would be a bad strategy. Not the best in terms of artistry or high flying, but rather efficiency. He went up strong with two hands almost every single time, thus reducing the chance of him missing easy shots every now and then. I can't even recall him doing a one handed dunk outside of his first couple years or so. Everything around the basket was a powerful two handed finish. However I will agree that McHale definitely defended Barkley the best due to his size and reach. He could sag off him a few feet on the perimeter to prevent the drive and still be in position to challenge the jump shot.

Below in the 100 game sample from Barkley's prime years he was shooting 81% (537/663 FG) within 2-3 feet of the basket.

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?p=41130091#p41130091

Dipper 13 wrote:

I don't understand ranking Barkley so high as a low post scorer. Maybe he's the most impressive low post scorer, due to his height

He ranks ahead of all the great centers all time (who were no slouches) in terms of post efficiency. He may not have had the same volume of post plays but he was the best in terms of efficiency, drawing fouls, and finishing through contact. Also as a finisher around the basket, he is certainly the best I have seen. Not in terms of artistry or high flying, but effectiveness. He went up strong with two hands almost every single time, thus reducing the chance of him missing easy shots every now and then. I can't even recall him doing a one handed dunk outside of his first couple years or so. Everything around the basket was a powerful two handed finish. I will say however that while Barkley is among the most unstoppable offensive players to ever play, the only player I ever saw give him some difficulty was McHale due to his size and reach. He could sag off him a few feet and still be in position to challenge the shot.



84 Game Sample

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=1274519" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

At Rim: 537/663 FG (81.0%)

Post Up: 228/298 FG (76.5%)

-1.64 PPP

-Drew Fouls 28.3% Rate

-Finished Through Contact (And-1) at 29.5% Rate

Explosive SF Orlando Woolridge (all from one playoff game):







Bonus: defending Michael Jordan in the clutch:

FrodoBaggins wrote:You need length, strength, and mobility.

I'd like to nominate pre-broken foot Kevin McHale. 6'10" barefoot & 235 pounds, with a 96-inch wingspan and a gargantuan standing reach. Kevin was quite mobile before wrecking his foot. He was a smooth, fluid, and flexible mover with quick feet and jumping, great rotational mobility (flip hips, 180-degree recoveries), solid lateral and backward movement, and a sturdy, barrel-chested, wide-bodied frame, with a penchant for physicality.

Kevin's unique blend of size and athleticism gave him a startling degree of front-court defensive versatility. He effectively guarded FWDs as short as 6'4" to 6'5" (Dantley, Barkley) and PF & Cs as big as 7'2" to 7'4" (Kareem, Sampson*). Technically, he guarded 7-foot-7-inch Manute Bol, but that's no tough assignment. I've watched games where Kevin defended Dr. J, Barkley, and Moses at different points. Or, Bernard King and Moses.

*Ralph was listed as 7'4" but was more like 7'2".

His 1986 Playoffs were quite remarkable, on both ends. He locked down Woolridge in the first round, blocking him about a million times. Held him to 40.3% FG (-9.2) and 45.9% TS (-10.1). He then shut down Dominique better than I've ever seen anyone in the ECSF.—39.8% FG (-7.0) and 49.4% TS (-4.2). After that, it was Terry Cummings in the ECF; Kevin held him to 40.3% FG (-7.1) and 43.9% TS (-6.4).

And to finish off, he made life hell for Ralph while helping out in spurts on Hakeem. Sampson shot 43.8% FG (-5.4) and 48.7% TS (-2.9) while Olajuwon did 47.9% FG (-4.7) and 52.6% TS (-3.4).

Numbers in brackets indicate how much below their 1985-86 RS average.

From what I've seen, McHale (pre-injury) was genuinely one of the best PF/Cs at guarding out on the perimeter. I'd liken him to Joakim Noah (6'10" barefoot, 7'1.25" wingspan) with nearly a foot more of wingspan and at least half a foot of standing reach.

Here are some GIFs of McHale's defensive versatility:

Defending 76ers Charles Barkley:





Explosive SF Orlando Woolridge (all from one playoff game):







Bonus: defending Michael Jordan in the clutch:

AK 47. Would be ideal

I want to say Ron Artest on LeBron, but Ron's been on record saying he couldn't stop him because LeBron wasn't putting his dead down looking only to score and was open to making the right pass instead, which kept Ron on his heels and prevented him from doing that.

I'm going to nominate Bobby Jones, who funnily enough, is from Akron as well, but as a great option on both LeBron and KD, though his 210lb frame is a bit light on LeBron.

PistolPeteJR wrote:I want to say Ron Artest on LeBron, but Ron's been on record saying he couldn't stop him because LeBron wasn't putting his dead down looking only to score and was open to making the right pass instead, which kept Ron on his heels and prevented him from doing that.

I'm going to nominate Bobby Jones, who funnily enough, is from Akron as well, but as a great option on both LeBron and KD, though his 210lb frame is a bit light on LeBron.

Is that weight listing accurate? They're often wrong. McHale was listed at 210 lbs but was 230-240 as a SR in college and referenced at 235 in a 1987 NY Times article.

Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Sagging off him worked quite well. You need a big who's long and quick enough to sag off, close out, but also stay in front, absorb contact, and contest his drives.

FrodoBaggins wrote:

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Sagging off him worked quite well. You need a big who's long and quick enough to sag off, close out, but also stay in front, absorb contact, and contest his drives.

I think Andrei Kirilenko would be that person. He may look light but he was strong

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Kawhi and Pippen have the size, strength and brains to make him work.

Could be Kyle Kuzma when he locks in.

JRoy wrote:

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Kawhi and Pippen have the size, strength and brains to make him work.

Yea Kawhi looked awesome on pre 2nd Cavs stint LBJ. Afterwards it was a mix of LBJ understanding what worked against the claw + Kawhi simply evolving into an offensive force that led to somewhat mixed results on defense.

But in 2017 a locked in Kawhi still dominated KD before the ankle sprain. In hindsight, that might be the most career altering minor injury I've seen.

Dennis Rodman.

JJ Barea for LeBron, Draymond Green did a good enough job on KD he tucked his tail and joined Golden State

Dennis Rodman or Ron Arrest.

You need that crazy defender that will legit get in LeBron's head. Both Rodman and Arrest had the strength to matchup with LeBron.

Andrei Kirilenko being mentioned is amusing to me. He would be a perfect matchup for Lebron to score 50 on.

Same for Dennis Rodman and Ron Artest "Metta World Peace".

AleksandarN wrote:

FrodoBaggins wrote:

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Sagging off him worked quite well. You need a big who's long and quick enough to sag off, close out, but also stay in front, absorb contact, and contest his drives.

I think Andrei Kirilenko would be that person. He may look light but he was strong

I don't recall AK being a good Lebron defender (above the other good defenders), and he's also too weak. Yes, he was stronger than he looks, but not strong enough for Lebron.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200601210UTA.html


;pp=ygURTGVicm9uIDUyIHZzIFV0YWg%3D

Of course that is just one game, here are others:

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200703170CLE.html

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200702140UTA.html

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200711160CLE.html

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200711070UTA.html

Don't know if he's a primary LeBron defender anymore in these later ones:

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/201001140UTA.html

https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200911140CLE.html

Overall looks like he does fairly well

FrodoBaggins wrote:

Optms wrote:Only LeBron was stopping Lebron. There is not a single defender that could keep him in check. Too big. Too fast. Too strong. Too skilled.

Sagging off him worked quite well. You need a big who's long and quick enough to sag off, close out, but also stay in front, absorb contact, and contest his drives.

Only in 2007. Didn’t work when it was tried again in 2013. Especially Game 7 of the Finals.

These are two of the GOAT offensive players ever so no one is slowing them down but 2013-2016 Kawhi Leonard is probably the best defender you can give the assignment to

Bornstellar wrote:These are two of the GOAT offensive players ever so no one is slowing them down but 2013-2016 Kawhi Leonard is probably the best defender you can give the assignment to

Well slowing them down would be doing better than other people do, so of course there are defenders who can slow them down, but no one is shutting them down, I'm assuming the latter is more what you're saying.