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Who would you say is better


I would say Howard slightly as he was the better rebounder but other than they they are equal

Pena for peak Howard to me clearly reached a higher level of play.

However, eff that guy. There’s no chance I’d ever chose him over Mourning to play on my team. Mourning was a wee bit better defensively and he’s so far ahead as a human being and teammate it’s really not a difficult choice for me.

In Today's Game, I would have to choose Dwight.

Dwight felt more dominant.

Howard to me was a far more impactful defender. On offense neither get high marks, and not sure who was better. I think 09 and 11 Howard are a bit better than 00 Mourning.

Howard if he werent a head case would be knocking on top 30 all time status.

Alonzo for sure, he led more dominant teams and came into the league right away as a star.

JordansBulls wrote:Alonzo for sure, he led more dominant teams and came into the league right away as a star.

The first statement isnt true. The second doesnt reply to the topic, and seems like an odd way to put down a straight from high school player.

dhsilv2 wrote:Howard to me was a far more impactful defender. On offense neither get high marks, and nite sire who was better. I think 09 and 11 Howard are a bit better than 00 Mourning.

Howard if he werent a head case would be knocking in top 30 all time status.

Why doesn't Howard get high marks on offense? 2008-11 20.6 ppg 4 offensive rebounds/game on 61.6 TS%, and in playoffs kept the numbers but 62.5 TS%. May not have been pretty, but was damn effective.

LALifer49 wrote:

dhsilv2 wrote:Howard to me was a far more impactful defender. On offense neither get high marks, and nite sire who was better. I think 09 and 11 Howard are a bit better than 00 Mourning.

Howard if he werent a head case would be knocking in top 30 all time status.

Why doesn't Howard get high marks on offense? 2008-11 20.6 ppg 4 offensive rebounds/game on 61.6 TS%, and in playoffs kept the numbers but 62.5 TS%. May not have been pretty, but was damn effective.

His best OBPM was 0.9, best offensive win share was 6.7 both in 11 (one of his best years). But that's not good. By contrast Mourning comes in at 1.7 OBPM and 7.3 his 00 season.

If I get a young version of Dwight that's amenable to running a pick & roll offense, then it's him. If he insists on playing back to the basket and having the offense run through him? Then it's Zo.

I'll give it to Howard. Howard was a bit better on defense than Mourning due to superior lateral movement.

While Mourning was a more skilled scorer, he probably still tried to do a bit too much - so in the grand scheme of things there isn't a huge offensive difference between the two.

Dr Spaceman wrote:Pena for peak Howard to me clearly reached a higher level of play.

However, eff that guy. There’s no chance I’d ever chose him over Mourning to play on my team. Mourning was a wee bit better defensively and he’s so far ahead as a human being and teammate it’s really not a difficult choice for me.

Mourning was never better than Dwight on defense. Just a better shot blocker. His overall defensive game was nothing special. Dwight was better at every aspect of defense except shot blocking. In that case at his peak he had as much impact at the rim as anyone in the league.

richboy wrote:

Dr Spaceman wrote:Pena for peak Howard to me clearly reached a higher level of play.

However, eff that guy. There’s no chance I’d ever chose him over Mourning to play on my team. Mourning was a wee bit better defensively and he’s so far ahead as a human being and teammate it’s really not a difficult choice for me.

Mourning was never better than Dwight on defense. Just a better shot blocker. His overall defensive game was nothing special. Dwight was better at every aspect of defense except shot blocking. In that case at his peak he had as much impact at the rim as anyone in the league.

What?

While Dwight's Rebounding is the only clear edge between the two as far as box score stats. I always felt Dwight changed more shots and deterred more driver than Zo. And he also drew more attention offball. While Zo was a more well rounded player, Dwight had a bigger impact and we can see that with how he carried those Orlando teams defensively and even got them to the finals.

Howard is better rebounder, Zo is better offensively and much better defensively

Zo for me because of his offensive scoring, defense, passing, free throw shooting, and shot blocking.

richboy wrote:

Dr Spaceman wrote:Pena for peak Howard to me clearly reached a higher level of play.

However, eff that guy. There’s no chance I’d ever chose him over Mourning to play on my team. Mourning was a wee bit better defensively and he’s so far ahead as a human being and teammate it’s really not a difficult choice for me.

Mourning was never better than Dwight on defense. Just a better shot blocker. His overall defensive game was nothing special. Dwight was better at every aspect of defense except shot blocking. In that case at his peak he had as much impact at the rim as anyone in the league.

Zo had a several year stretch where he had a legitimate argument as the best defender in the whole league, including winning a DPOY in 2000.

Take a look at the 1997 ECF. When have you ever seen Michael Jordan of all people shoot 38% from the field and average 2 assists in a playoff series? The Bulls couldn’t get anything against Mourning and the Heat, but Miami’s offense was abysmal.

Zo was arguably the best defensive player over a several year stretch that included Mutombo’s peak and Robinson’s late prime. He was a freaking animal, and unlike Dwight had the focus to follow through every possession.

TheBomb81 wrote:Zo for me because of his offensive scoring, defense, passing, free throw shooting, and shot blocking.

This is another big advantage that I forgot. Hack-a-Dwight is a legitimate knock against him.

KobesScarf wrote:Howard is better rebounder, Zo is better offensively and much better defensively

Do you have zo has on bar with Russell for greatest peak defender ever?

Honestly never heard anyone rank Zo's defense as GOAT level, and Howard is almost universally seen as a post Russell GOAT contender.

dhsilv2 wrote:

KobesScarf wrote:Howard is better rebounder, Zo is better offensively and much better defensively

Do you have zo has on bar with Russell for greatest peak defender ever?

Honestly never heard anyone rank Zo's defense as GOAT level, and Howard is almost universally seen as a post Russell GOAT contender.

What? I've literally never heard anybody say Howard is the GOAT defensive player post-Bill Russell. Where are you getting that from?