Would David Robinson be the ideal big to put next to a perimeter superstar?

[KingofTheClay]

Fell off a cliff in the playoffs, got smoked by Hakeem Shaq and the likes.

You understand how little that means, right? Olajuwon is one of the best playoff risers in league history and Shaq is one of the 10 best players the league has seen. He was a matchup nightmare for basically anyone who wasn't Wilt.

It's pretty clear you have no real feel for Robinson's game, dude. Just quit.

Thus hes not the ideal big next to a perimeter superstar……

I don’t want a guy that gets owned in the playoffs like clockwork. Jokic would run circles around a guy like DRob. He’s a paper tiger.

If we’re solely looking at contemporary peers I’ll take Ewing. Playoff riser. Held his own against Hakeem. Matchup nightmare in the modern game with his back to the basket ability and strength in the post. Basically an Embiid that shows up in the playoffs.

I think Porzingis was a bad call. I’ll concede that I was too overzealous. But Garnett in the modern game absolutely. Incredibly versatile on defense, more switchable, can be the hub of the offense, more shooting range, which is crucial for spacing. These are honestly just more impactful attributes in the modern era.

Robinson is a Gobert/Giannis hybrid that wilted when it mattered. A bit overrated by old heads.


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[Ol Roy]

If you watch Robinson play, you can't help but see how he was misused (a product of era and mediocre teammates). He was obviously a huge force, but I think his potential was untapped.

He was an adequate post scorer, but not a great one for his time. Just the best on the team. So double teams could be effective. He was a very good passer but didn't have the teammates to take advantage of it.

But whenever he got free (holding the ball in the post or cutting in off-ball) it seems like the other team basically had to just foul him. Sure enough, he and Shaq both have 58% free throw attempt rates. But he made teams pay for that a lot more than Shaq, shooting 74% on his free throws as opposed to Diesel's 53%.

Backed to the untapped potential. As the thread asks, imagine him playing with a perimeter star who themselves drew doubles and allowed Admiral to have more single coverage. Imagine him being paired with a great pick-and-roll partner. Imagine him being able to kick out to three-point shooters. And maybe more controversially, I think he'd be an adequate spot-up three-point shooter today, and also a good passing hub on the perimeter.

Basically, I view him as a Swiss Army knife. He's similar to Garnett in that way. Garnett is different in that he offered less rim pressure and better range on his jumper.

[tsherkin]

I don’t want a guy that gets owned in the playoffs like clockwork. Jokic would run circles around a guy like DRob. He’s a paper tiger.

No, he was quite effective on defense and he was overextended on offense with poor rosters around him. He was a phenomenal floor-raiser on offense, he just had a specific matchup weakness.

If we’re solely looking at contemporary peers I’ll take Ewing. Playoff riser. Held his own against Hakeem.

So right here, it's clear you don't actually have any idea of the details.

86-97, Ewing was a 23.6 ppg, 56.1% TS guy in the RS, shooting 51.3% from the field. That same span in the playoffs, 22.5 ppg on 48.1% FG, 52.8% TS. Very much the opposite of a playoff riser.

And against Olajuwon in 94, he posted 18.9 ppg on 36.3% FG and 39.0% TS.

Matchup nightmare in the modern game with his back to the basket ability and strength in the post. Basically an Embiid that shows up in the playoffs.

So he actually WASN'T a brilliant back-to-the-basket player. He had crap footwork, was a poor passer, traveled often and did his best work facing up from the mid-post and manipulating the threat of a 17-footer.

You couldn't possibly be MORE wrong about him. He was a LOT worse than Robinson on offense, in part because he wasn't as athletic and was so much less effective at drawing fouls. And yeah, totally wrong about rising in the playoffs and holding his own against Hakeem.

But Garnett in the modern game absolutely. Incredibly versatile on defense, more switchable, can be the hub of the offense,

Also a playoff dropper, not actually more switchable (that's nonsense, given Robinson's athletic tools). Definitely a better playmaker, but also a worse scorer. Definitely had more shooting range, but also considerably inferior at applying foul pressure, and worse on the offensive glass.