ceoofkobefans wrote:I definitely disagree with that. I’d say Shaq is a lot better and more willing of the ball than Kareem although Kareem is usually pretty good at getting positioning he’s not really moving alot or screening or anything
I disagree. Kareem is one of the most active post players ever. He consistently moved a lot without the ball and fought for position.
I also disagree that Shaq screened a lot. Shaq worked very hard in the post without the ball, but he didn't do much else without the ball. Sometimes, he run occasional P&Rs with Kobe, but it was sporadic part of Lakers offense.
I also think Shaq is a better passer than 77 Kareem
What are the arguments for Shaq over Kareem as a passer?
and has a lot more gravity which he’s really good at utilizing.
Again, strongly disagree with "a lot". I will quote myself from a different thread:
70sFan wrote:About Shaq's gravity - this one is a massive game changer, but I wonder how much different it was compared to Kareem. I mean, this is how Kareem was guarded in 1977 playoffs:Spoiler:
This are not highly selected screens - I picked them from one quarter of game 3 vs Warriors. Kareem absorbed ridiculous amount of defensive attention and he had a harder time beating it without the three point line.
I don't see how to quantify this, but it's not a clear edge for Shaq to me.
I don’t think 77 Kareem is significantly better than 00 Shaq on D. I think they have similar motor issues although Kareem’s aren’t as bad and he’s better at coming out of the paint than Shaq. He may also be a slightly better rim protector by 77. I think 00 Shaq is prolly like a +1.25ish defender and 77 Kareem is a +1.5ish defender
I can't see that, it's like watching two completely different tier of defenders. Kareem is vastly better rim protector, not "slightly better". Shaq was low effort, low volume rim protector with bad fundamentals. He often fouled in situations he shouldn't have. His timing is very mediocre. He often missed easy rotations.
Yeah, Kareem wasn't perfect either. His positioning wasn't always great and he could be late at times, but there is no comparison between them. Jabbar still defended a lot more shots and he could recover much better.
That's only about rim protection, Kareem crushes Shaq in every other aspect of defense (except for post defense).
