MinutesDefenseThis teams bread and butter, it’s true Identity is defense. KG with Perkins, Pierce, Allen, Posey, Rondo resulted in one of the best defenses the league has ever seen. A prime KG with HIbbert, Pippen, Prince, Kidd results in nightmares for my opponent. That would be the line-up I would put on the floor if the team is need of a stop.
Again this is a prime KG who in 04 led the league in Win Shares, Rebounds, Points, PER, and won league MVP. There is such a thing as too many scorers and some of the teams in this league have succumb to that, but there is no such thing as too many defenders. Let me put things in perspective even more, even if we combine the 08 celtics with the best defensive team of the last decade which are the 04 Pistons, My team would still be better defensively.
Match-upsKG will mainly be on Mchale who is a solid post player but Garnett is the perfect player to guard him. HIbbert will be on Yao which he should have no problem containing and boxing out since this isn’t prime Yao were talking about.
Pippen will be the primary defender on Lebron, he will get rest when Lebron does and check back into the game when James checks back in. Pip has routinely shut down perimeter players and this is without the help of two 7 foot defensive beasts behind him, his main aim would basically be to force James into taking long 2’s.
Miller will guard Peja or jones which shouldn’t be a problem, just contest their shots and force them off the 3 point line. Kidd will be on either AI, or Eddie depending on who’s on the court.
Defense-to-Offense One thing you might not realize by just glancing at my roster is how well they will be able to convert the many defensive stops they will get into easy transition points. From steals, Rebounds, Blocked shots, or any forced or unforced turnovers. No one outside Magic Johnson is better at running a fast break than Jason Kidd. Imagine Kidd with the ball on the break with Griffin and Pippen on the wings, Miller at the 3 and KG trailing
Good luck stopping that. In fact my entire bench is excellent in transition.
OffenseThis may not be an offensive juggernaut like some of these other teams in the league but they have something most don’t which is chemistry. How? because they are all unselfish, high basketball IQ players, who will essentially play the same role on this team as their original teams.
Kidd will have the ball the most especially in transition, but there will be a lot of ball movement. I have 3 players starting that are excellent playmakers in Kidd/Pip/KG who are all also excellent off the ball.
Speaking of moving without the ball, Reggie Miller is a master at getting open looks and he didn’t have KG setting screens for him or a player of KIdd’s caliber getting him the ball and still rocked a 60% TS which only got better in the playoffs. So he is obviously my go to guy down the stretch
Versatility I have 2 swiss army knives in KG and Pippen who can and will do practically everything on the court. That alone gives me great flexibility for line-ups and styles of play.
for example KG/Griffen/Pip/Miller/Hardaway if the offense needs a boost, or put in Kidd and that might be the most deadly fast break line-up in this league.
final possessions I can trout out KG/Pip/Miller/Richmond/Hardaway that’s two 40% 3 point shooters (with Hardaway and Pip at 35%), five 20+ ppg scorers, all players can handle the ball, with KG/Pip/Miller being elite off the ball. How will my opponent guard that line-up? Just have KG set a pick and my team is guaranteed an open look.
Not only are my players versatile but so is the offense that will be run. Everything from screens, double/triple screens, pick-n-rolls, lots of cuts to the basket with KG at the high post, something very similar to the Spurs offense from the last couple years
ReboundingI have by far the best rebounder in this match up in KG who in the 3 year span was averaging 13.6 rpg. Also averaged 3 offensive rebounds per game each year and lead the league in defensive rebounds every year selected. Hibbert’s last two season’s he’s averaged 3.3 and 3.7 offensive rebounds and is currently averaging 3 per game. Kidd and Pippen are also elite rebounders for their positions averaging 6.7 and 7.7 respectively.
SummaryMy opponent has Kevin “Black Hole” Mchale, Allen “Practice?” Iverson, and “boogie” Cousins, who will all probably see significant minutes. A young and inexperieced Yao who wasn’t in his prime yet, and Peja who is a great shooter but is known to have the choke gene.
Even if AI, Mchale,Cousins bought into the team concept and accepted their roles on the team(which is unlikely) the team is just a mess in terms of chemistry. Yao and Mchale roaming the paint means KG and Hibbert are doing the same which will make it very difficult for Lebron to drive. My opponent should have built an up tempo team with Lebron that has a bunch of shooters but that isn’t the case. Yao/Mchale are not beating anyone in transition, so my opponent will be forced into his half court offense for most of his possessions. Another problem is ball movement, that team will be very reliant on Lebron creating for everyone which will makes things even easier for my Defense.
My team on the other hand is full of unselfish, High basketball IQ players that will easily buy into the team concept. The biggest disparity in this Match-up is Defense which his team might be adequate at while mine would be Legendary, with all those stops and the fact my team will rebound better that means even less possessions for my opponent. I'm sure you've heard the saying "Defense and Rebounding wins championships" well my team has that in spades.