Reggie Miller/Lebron James vs Julius Erving/Dirk Nowitzki

[Matt15]

Which duo would you rather build around in todays league?

[HeartBreakKid]

Erving and Nowitzki are much closer to Lebron than Miller is to them.

Two MVP level guys I think is almost always going to beat out one without more details.

[LukaTheGOAT]

I suppose this might come as a surprise to some, but I would take Reggie Miller/Lebron James, as the fit is better plus some other factors.

I'll go Lebron and Reggie.

I think this group has an edge in scoring, has the best on-ball playmaker and creator out of the 4 guys here, and also probably get the best peak defense combo out of guys.

From 91-2001 the average defensive efficiency of Indiana’s postseason opponents was around 102 per 100 possessions, and yet in the PD, the Pacers still scored 109.5 points per 100.

Along with Magic and Kobe, Reggie is one of three players in history to play on two separate teams with five-year stretches of +5 playoff offenses. He never had the onslaught of offensive help those two had either.

They clearly outperformed expectations offensively just based on that.

The one year that the Pacers had a below average PS offense was unironically in 96 when Miller was injured. And then they went back to being good offenses in the PS after that. The best playmaker Miller ever played with was Mark Jackson, and I feel as if having Lebron would only help to amplify such offenses.

In terms of my belief that Lebron and Reggie are a better combo as scorers

Reggie Miller in the Playoffs from 1990-99:
• 27.0 Points/75 on +11.3 rTS%

Some notable Lebron 3-year stretches
Lebron (08-10)-Inflation Adjusted 32 pts per 75 (rTS% of 5.6%)

Lebron (16-18)-Inflation Adjusted 30.6 pts per 75 (rTS% of 7.9%)

Lebron (17-20)-Inflation Adjusted 30.5 pts per 75 (rTS% of 8.3%)

Lebron (12-14)-Inflation Adjusted 30.3 pts per 75 (rTS% of 9%)

Lebron (14-16)-Inflation Adjusted 30.1 pts per 75 (rTS% of 5.9%)

Lebron (13-15)-Inflation Adjusted 29.7 pts per 75 (rTS% of 6%)

Lebron (09-11)-Inflation Adjusted 29 pts per 75 (rTS% of 6%)


Most notable Dirk 3-year PS scoring stretches

Dirk (10-12)-Inflation Adjusted 30.2 pts per 75 (rTS% of 8.2%)

Dirk (09-11)-Inflation Adjusted 29.8 pts per 75 (rTS% of 9.2%)

Dirk (08-10)-Inflation Adjusted 28.4 pts per 75 (rTS% of 9.5%)


Most notable Erving 3-year PS scoring stretch (not including ABA, which might not be completely fair, although honestly it is difficult to gauge how to measure the impressiveness of it)

Erving (77-79)-Inflation Adjusted 23.8 pts per 75 (rTS% of 5%)

Overall, I feel as if Miller and Lebron give you more guaranteed longevity as postseason scorers, while also arguably being better at their peaks (Malone's best PS runs seemingly came earlier than his MVP years). Considering how they play, I don't believe that that they would be stepping on each other's toes in terms of exerting offensive impact (putting Lebron with shooters is best), and therefore we might even see the GOAT 2-year PS Offense Cavs (16 and 17 PS) be potentially surpassed with the right surrounding pieces. Elite shooters, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love posted career-best marks in scaled APM in 2017 because I do believe Lebron's passing (especially skip passing) generates some of the best looks for shooters ever.

Heck, LeBron + Love at the 5 lineups in 16-17 (2490 mins) did the following:

120.5 ORTG (+12.9rORTG)
+14 NetRtg
107.6 DRTG (-1rDRTG) [respectable enough for offensively slanted lineups]

Pretty absurd.

Dirk and Erving may individually have more talent than Lebron and Reggie combined, however, I don't know if they play off each other quite as well as a hypothetical Lebron/Reggie pairing. I think Lebron and Reggie can really amplify each other's play. I think Erving and Dirk are individually brilliant and would be dominant together, however I am not sure if it overcomes the other pairing. Perhaps in the modern age, Erving would be a truly prolific playmaker and I am not crediting him enough for his point-forward skills, but this is where my head is at.