What position would prime Larry Bird play in today's NBA?
Posted: Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:01 pm
I haven't posted in the Bird vs. LBJ thread yet. Maybe I will after it's moved to the Player Comparison board.
But it made me think. Would Bird be a 3 today or a 4? The real question is defense, where he Bird was a questionable man defender then and would be worse today, yet made some all-defensive teams for his free-safety pass-intercepting defense. So he often defended against what we would now call 4s, while McHale got the 3s, even if moving him outside was a waste of his shot-blocking ability.
Basically, on defense Bird was a better Brian Scalabrine.
So where do you play a guy like that?
As for offense -- I love Bird's game for the 4. He could play low post, high post, perimeter -- whatever the particular flow of the game demanded.
But it made me think. Would Bird be a 3 today or a 4? The real question is defense, where he Bird was a questionable man defender then and would be worse today, yet made some all-defensive teams for his free-safety pass-intercepting defense. So he often defended against what we would now call 4s, while McHale got the 3s, even if moving him outside was a waste of his shot-blocking ability.
Basically, on defense Bird was a better Brian Scalabrine.
So where do you play a guy like that?As for offense -- I love Bird's game for the 4. He could play low post, high post, perimeter -- whatever the particular flow of the game demanded.