My Tiers for Defensive Centers of All Time

mdonnelly1989 · Post #1 » by **mdonnelly1989** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 3:05 am

Combination of Peak, Prime.

#1. Bill Russell 99

Very small gap.

#2. Hakeem Olajuwon 98

Small Gap (3 - 7 are interchangable)

#3. David Robinson 97
#4. Ben Wallace 97
#5. Wilt Chamberlain 97
#6. Mutombo 97
#7. Duncan 97 (Exclude if you feel he's a PF)

Very small gap

#8. Nate Thurmond 96
#9. Kareem Abdul Jabaar 96
#10. Patrick Ewing 96

Honorable Mention:

Dwight Howard 96
Eaton 96
Bill Walton 96

VanWest82 · Post #2 » by **VanWest82** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 3:42 am

One opponent certainly isn't everything, but someone needs to do a deep dive on Dream vs. Mutumbo vs. the Sonics. One guy seemed to do a heck of a lot better than the other guy. No, no, no, no.

migya · Post #3 » by **migya** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 3:55 am

Mourning is in the Ewing group.

70sFan · Post #4 » by **70sFan** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 6:14 am

Is this about peak or career?

mdonnelly1989 · Post #5 » by **mdonnelly1989** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 3:35 pm

70sFan wrote:Is this about peak or career?

Combination of Peak and Prime

kcktiny · Post #6 » by **kcktiny** » Tue Jun 20, 2023 6:24 pm

Nice to see someone list David Robinson so high. Great defender, and the best all-around player I ever watched consistently (did not see a whole lot of Chamberlain/Russell).

Also I would list Eaton defensively above Mutombo, Duncan, Howard, and Ewing.

mdonnelly1989 · Post #7 » by **mdonnelly1989** » Wed Jun 21, 2023 12:21 am

kcktiny wrote:Nice to see someone list David Robinson so high. Great defender, and the best all-around player I ever watched consistently (did not see a whole lot of Chamberlain/Russell).

Also I would list Eaton defensively above Mutombo, Duncan, Howard, and Ewing.

For me that's 2013 Lebron. A few votes shy of Defensive MVP. One of the most efficient seasons of all time and of course and what imo separates him from the rest is his passing. That simply makes him very well balanced / dominate on both sides of the ball.